Lurker > MariaTaylor

yeah I more just meant for future choices

anyway looks like FAKERU IS THE MAIN CHARACTER
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

yeah not really a fan of a bunch of swapping but I understand people sometimes want to change their votes. I'd just say that it helps a lot if when you swap you say "swapping from C to B" or something. makes the process a lot easier to tally, especially when it's happening multiple times.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
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(11111) A. Zephyr
(11111) B .Fah
(1111) C. Kidd
() D. Enoch
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(1111) A. Zephyr
(111) B .Fah
(1111) C. Kidd
(1) D. Enoch
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

trdl hasn't voted yet either and I assume he'd go A
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

yep, that's correct. I have a tendency to miss PK's votes sometimes because he usually puts them in the middle of a line somewhere.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

(11) A. Zephyr
(11) B .Fah
(1111) C. Kidd
(1) D. Enoch
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

MysteriousStan posted...

Also something just struck me and I can't believe I didn't notice it sooner. Dunno if it was deliberate or coincidental on Maria's part but I'm interested to see if anything comes of it.

What is it?
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

On average I've probably done about one a year. Some years two, some years zero.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

I just realized after everyone I've killed, the amount of characters remaining is still about equal to how many I originally expected to sign up.

Man I have no idea how I did it but this project got a TON of sign ups.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

There was someone still talking, a man who hated him now because he had been chosen to witness this miracle. And yet, those words faded away. It was because they were weak and meaningless words -- they were as empty as the wind itself. The only truth that existed was this portrait before him. Stretched out across the darkness and painted on the canvas of death itself.

Yes, Cata wasn't sure at first, but now he was certain.

He was definitely looking at the formless God.

And this was the place where angels came to die.

Then, before his eyes, the crescent moon began to rise... splitting the vision in two.

This wasn't just about seeing him. Things couldn't be that simple. It's because he was going to meet him, soon. The only way to see this God of Death was if you were about to die. Cata understood now. He understood it so badly that it hurt. He understood something that this deranged cult lunatic could never understand. Now that, that, that, that, that, that, that.... it was a painful irony, wasn't it?

"No, not the moon..." Cata mouthed the words, but nothing came out. The air and the blood had been drained from his body. The last of all of the tears in his reality formed, and it began to run down his cheek. "It was the sun I wanted to see. Just one last time." It wasn't fair, was it?

Then, as if answering a prayer, a brilliant light began to shine from the south.

It was so sad, and so distant, but somehow Cata was grateful that he was able to see it in the final moment. Just then, the moon crashed into him and ended his life. With a single stroke, it was all cut cleanly and fully to the end of the script. It was funny. What kind of ending was this for a noble scion, who had gone off to find adventure and mystery... treasure and fame... maybe even love.

Was it possible for such a grand story to end in such an instant and final way?

When did he lose control of the situation? Why hadn't he been given a choice in the matter?

Well, for what it was worth, Cata was briefly happy for the final Miracle that appeared before him.

Perhaps that was the best conclusion he could have hoped for...

[End]

18. Who is the main character of this story, anyway?
A. Zephyr of Redemption
B. Fakeru of Female Empowerment
C. Kidd, the Mysterious Gunslinger
D. Enoch, the Even More Mysterious

[The Dream]
Valter, the Chained Knight - decider

Lancer Aaron - FB
Torin Gemmason - Mana
Jamison, Inspector - maniac

Enoch the Wanderer - crazy
Owen the Coward - stan
Beastkin Zephyr - ermine [DEMORALIZED]

Leone the Cat - CPU
Jen Lowell - pk2k
Fakeru, Lucky Girl - fake
Gunslinger Kidd - drak

[Graveyard]
Tristan - Punch couldn't save him.
Ignael Gades - He didn't sacrifice himself for the rest of the team because he liked them, you b-baka!
Seth, Golden Agent - Was actually pretty interesting, so I'm sorta bummed I had to kill him off. Oh well.
Punch - Punch couldn't save himself.
Matsuda - You lost.
Dismas - Decoy protag dies first.
Goetic - A fitting vessel, nothing more.
Maria - Understanding is pain.
Cata Spade - He saw it, at the end.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

"Still, we must keep trying."

The moon fell in an instant the room was snuffed of all light, plunging them into terrible darkness. The curved blade struck her in the throat, Cata was sure, but he didn't see the skin on her neck break open. He didn't see the surging waterfall of blood that must have cascaded across her blouse in that instant as she was torn apart and set free.

Cata couldn't see her face in the dark, but, even if he did...

There was no way he could have taken the time to know what she was thinking in the moment of her death.

There was a gargling sound, a dripping and dropping sound. The noise of a heavy weight striking the ground. A quiet corpse, a quiet end. She wasn't the first to die down here in the dark. She wouldn't be the last. He knew that now. He understood it. Cata began to weep more openly as the understanding dawned on him as well.

Maria wasn't going to be the only sacrifice.

A snarling toothed jackal grabbed him and pulled his body across the ground. Rocks dug into his face and his blood smeared across the ground from one totem to the next. Cata, he... Cata... he felt a chuckle rise within his body, his ribs rattling with amusement.

Did Maria figure it out before the end too? The extreme irony of that picture they spotted from above... Cata solved the mystery right then and there. There was no meaning to the picture. Those lines weren't painted intentionally. Gods above and below.... Cata was crying tears as he approached the end. Every line was just the stain left behind by another human sacrifice.

"What do you think?" A voice asked him, a voice that was now completely shrouded in darkness.

Cata thought that he saw the hooded visage above him, looking down at him, but there was no way a human's eyes could adjust to this kind of blackness. He might as well take a guess at what might be looking down at him. For all he knew it could be a ghost or a god or a devil.

Cata thought that this guy was probably insane. If it even was a man, and not some monster.

"You're looking at him right now, aren't you? You bastard..."

Frantically, desperately, the one above him began to mutter to himself again. "You can see the formless God. I've brought you here, to the end, in order to see it, and you can't even thank me!" He was shaking his head now, Cata heard the noise of the fabric moving. "No. No!"

"It's not just that. I know that you can't thank me because the sight is too wonderful to behold."

Cata squinted into the lack of light, trying to make it out, trying to see what this man was talking about.

"The reason I am filled with hatred, with jealousy, and yet with such divine sense of wonder is because.. right now... you must be looking at the thing I want to see, more than anything else in the world. And I can bring you there, I can, because I know him, I know that formless God."

"So, after all of this, why am I the only one who can't see him?"

And Cata, thought, maybe... maybe he did see something. It was dark, and it might have just been a trick that his eyes played on him. Perhaps the last lingering light was casting shapes across his iris that were being processed by his brain in a way that couldn't be fully quantified.

Perhaps he saw his life flashing before his eyes, and maybe it didn't look the same as how other people described it. Maybe all of those memories and emotions were condensed down into the form of a single, shifting phase. Rather than playing it back one at a time, he saw the colors and the movement as they were spreading out before him and all around him.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Ah, yes. It had all been a strange and distant dream. He was still at home, somewhere, living on his father's lands and content to wallow in that kind of simple life. Who needed adventure? Who needed risk? He had been born a fortunate lad, lived a fortunate life up until now.

And, as he lay there in the hay, dwelling on it, he couldn't help but smile.

Only a fool would have gone on such a foolish quest. Why throw all of this away and get himself killed? If he had to say it, Cata would admit... he didn't even have a reason for going to a place like Cain's lands. Maybe it was just to pass the time, and because he was bored. But was that really a good reason to do something so dangerous?

And, as he lay there in the hay, dwelling on it, he felt his eyes opening up once again.

There was something wet at the corner of his eyelid. Blood? Tears? Perhaps a mix of both? As Cata woke up, he found himself laying on his back in the darkness. A strange totem was hanging above him. His hair had gotten stuck in the golden sap. His lungs hurt.

"Uhu-.... Uck...." All he could do was make weak sounds, sounds without effort, the last whimpers of a dying creature. He was dying. Wasn't he was dying? He was dying... wasn't he? No, maybe this was something else. Maybe he had fallen asleep back there in the hay again, and this was all just a dream.

Cata tried to lift his body but he was too weak. The strength and the blood had been drained from him in such a short time. He tried to lift his head, managing only to nudge it. As his limp and heavy skull rolled to the side, he found himself looking out across the floor.

Maria was there. The shadows were cast against the wall and the flames were burning quietly below.

Her pupils, which had grown so tiny earlier, had become so large now. There was someone, or something, standing above her. A robed figure who seemed to be hiding some great and terrible secret beneath its hood. It looked as if she wanted to speak but if her mouth opened all that came out was blood. It was trickling down from the corner of her lip.

Some monster had moved into the light and grabbed her hair, holding her upright by it. Yet, it was hard to say if she felt pain or panic. It was more like... all Cata could see when he looked at her was a deep and intense understanding. Like she knew so much that it hurt.

Like it hurt to know that much.

"No," a voice spoke in the darkness. "We won't make it quiet like this."

"We won't meet the formless one."

A sliver of light appeared from below. The crescent moon in the palm of fate.

"I know him. I know him. I know him." The voice of the hooded figure became frantic now. "And yet, after all this, he still won't appear before me! As if the lives of these mortals were worth that of the gilded coin!" He leaned forward, peering intently at Maria.

Still, completely stunned into silence, her open mouth exposing the blood from within her body, all she could do was return a wide eyed stare. To understand what she was looking at now must have given her an intense shock.

"As if everything I had done so far could possibly be enough to make him appear, as much as I know him, I know that he is a fickle God," the hooded figure lamented. He took a knee before Maria and the crescent moon began to rise. "And I know he won't appear before me like this, not with such a pathetic gift."

"Still..."

Cata felt the air drain from his lungs.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Instead of forming an artistic shape, a logical shape, a mathematical shape, there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the placement of these high pillars. Stacked atop each one was some kind of odd totem fashioned out of what looked to be bone. And, between each of them, were trails of blood that streaked across the ground.

Curved lines, straight lines, there wasn't any sort of pattern to the music of those colors.

Even, examining it from above like this, the lines didn't seem to draw any static image that either of them would understand.

However, as the fear in her heart subsided, Maria realized the Devil was no longer right behind them. Her pupils, which had grown tiny, returned to their normal size. And she found herself able to breath again. She thought about reloading the crossbow here and now, but worried that the sound of the device would echo too loudly in this chamber.

Could she, perhaps, risk a whisper?

"I think this might be the end," Cata said quietly, breaking the silence before she could.

Maria kept quiet but altered her posture slightly. She moved her arms beneath her chin, leaning on those, and looking down at the display beneath her. Were there shapes moving in the darkness? Cast against the light, it was so hard to see. It was so hard to be truly certain.

It wasn't the kind of world that she knew how to acclimate to. Things had always been different for her, growing up. Some people complained that the world was an awful place, and she couldn't deny that. But if someone said 'this world is too complicated to understand,' she would have to disagree. No matter how confusing the world seemed, especially to other people, she had always been able to break things down and make sense of them.

Yet, here, in this bottomless pit of despair, there was no sense to be found. Nothing to break down into segment. It was just... an endless void without meaning. Quiet and somber madness broken up briefly by objects and shadows which held no purpose. They were shown all along the rock face as the flames from below burned upward. Moving and twisting, dark shapes, things that weren't easy to reason with.

A place that wasn't easy to reckon with.

"We'll double back. Perhaps," Maria replied. She had just about had her fill of this quest. "I've had my fill of this quest. It's high time I return home." Even if she said it, though, that part of her -- the part which could see the world for what it was, and understand the world -- knew that she wouldn't be returning home again after this. "Or maybe..." Could she live in denial? Or, rather, would she just die in denial like this...?

It all seemed so pathetic... this forever branching corridor filled with dead ends.

The shadows below now were watching them, just as they had been watching the shadows below. There was a glint of understanding, from a high-minded beast, as it made eye contact with Maria Taylor. And, in that moment, she knew. She understood. All it took was that moment for her to figure out how to make sense of this place.

Well, she had always been talented, but...

If only they had noticed the shadows creeping in from above.

Cata let out a quiet gasp, as Maria let out a "GEH!" while the enemies dropped down on them with plunging attack. Oh, no, it wasn't to kill them. The two weren't quite dead yet. But this was definitely the end of the line for these two. Shadows now, beasts moving in the darkness, came crashing down and knocked the sense out of the two adventurers before they could react.

When Cata Spade awoke he was in a place he could have never expected. It was in the farm seven miles south of the main estate on his father's lands. He was still inside of the barn and yet somewhere in his brain he could see the light shining in through the corners, and in through the cracks in the doors.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

No, whatever that thing was, it wouldn't be this easy to escape it.

The stone structure was split into pieces with a single swipe from the Gray Devil. Then they heard the rattling of chains from below as Valter's body was roughly tugged across the ground. The enemy must have been preparing to scale the stone face and was thinking of how to lug the heavy man. Cata looked to Maria, trying to give her a nod of assurance, but he couldn't even muster such a simple gesture. Wordlessly, the two slipped into a low hanging crevice and began to crawl away from the threat.

"Mona..." Valter was muttering something in the dark. "I'm sorry.... Mona..."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

If only he had never shut away that part of himself.

If only Valter had remained true to his faith, and never surrendered his power.

Would he have been able to stand in this situation?

"No, that's wrong, Valter," she said. There was no hint of regret, no hint of disdain in her voice. Those lighthouse eyes shined brilliant green, even here in the bottomless pit of despair. "You shouldn't be thinking about that. Shouldn't be thinking about regret."

"Would you have been able to stand...? If you're asking that, you're making it sound like you've already failed."

Valter clenched his hand into a fist as his knuckles were dragged across the rough stone and dirt. As hard as he pulled, as hard as he struggled, there was just no breaking free from these chains. He wanted to open his heart again -- even only in the pursuit of a Miracle. Yet, at the same time, this situation seemed hopeless.

"You should be asking a different question."

Can I still stand? Was that it, he wondered.

"How can I get back to my feet now?"

No, there was no question about it. She was right. He would definitely stand. It was only a matter of how he was going to do it. That's because... "You're right," Valter said. "It's a Miracle -because- things are so hopeless right now." To say it was too hopeless for a Miracle was an oxymoron.

All it took was for him to stop denying his power, to open his heart again, to-

CLANK!

The chains were roughly pulled upon and his face was smashed into the dirt. Then the enemy dug its feet into Valter's shoulder and moved his limp form across the ground. He was roughly shoved forward and lost consciousness for a few moments. The world went black, and in the dreaming world there was no lighthouse to guide him.

Maria led Cata forward through the low tunnels and into a wide and deep chamber beyond. When the two of them reached a sharp ledge, overhanging the platform below, they took a moment to absorb the sights beneath them.

It was a place without any comprehensible purpose. But, that wasn't to say it didn't have one.

Rather... it was a place where humans couldn't possibly hope to understand what that purpose was.

Piled rock formations marked several locations across the ground. Those, stacked on top of each other, were slathered in a gold and bronze colored liquid that reflected the dim light from below. Some kind of ritual fire was burning down in the dark, in the pit below the open chamber.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Entry 18: A Bottomless Pit (Of Despair)

It was madness, utter madness, to flee into the darkness like they were doing. The monster behind Cata Spade at that moment was scary. There was no denying that. Yet, at the same time, at least they knew what was waiting up above. At least he might see the sun again some day if he went in that direction. What was going to happen next? He was going into unfamiliar territory where greater threats awaited.

It was the open door, displaying darkness and mystery. Despite his natural fear, his natural aversion, everything his instincts were telling him, he charged ahead into it.

And what about Maria? Shouldn't she have known better than this? Honestly, logically speaking, she should have known the way out. Yet for some reason she had thrown logic aside and dropped it all. Maybe in the face of something like that, even Maria was no better than him.

He wanted to say something but his face was breathless, a pale ghost, and words wouldn't form. He hardly had the strength to keep running like this. Yet he forced his muscles to keep carrying his body forward. Because if he stopped, if he went backwards... The Gray Devil would be waiting for him.

Cata's sword had broken back there, leaving him mostly without a weapon. When the first enemy appeared, coming around a corner, it was a miracle that Maria was able to react quickly enough to save them. The crossbow pressed firmly against the face of the foe and, almost without stopping, she punched him right through the eye with the bolt.

The monster had a face wrapped in rags and didn't quite look like the others. It scaled hide crept up the back and shoulders, but fleshy skin was exposed on its torso. And, beneath those bandages, had been some kind of face that... no, there was no time to stop, no time to think about it.

Maria barely knew how to reload the crossbow, and she certainly couldn't do it while running. Few had that ability. When the second foe appeared, a lanky and hairy creature similarly wrapped in bandages, Cata hesitated for a moment. That hesitation might have gotten him killed in other circumstances.

Driven by the adrenaline of fear, the normally calm woman threw herself forward and swung the crossbow. Rather than using it to fire a bolt she was clubbing the enemy with the weapon. As a bludgeoning tool it would suffice. The enemy went to the ground. Its back twisted and coiled as it scrambled and tried to get into position to attack.

Cata drive a sick hiss back down its throat as he stomped on its chest hard. Then, without stopping, he dove forward and kept running. It was hard to say how close the enemy still was but--

FWOOSH

A wave of heat and shadow swept across the narrow ledge as Maria ducked into the space behind him.

The bandaged foe, which had just been pulling itself back to its feet, was cut in half by a thin razor blade made of some kind of dark miasma. Its scaly hide split into pieces and its arm twisted back as its fingers clutched in terror and pain. It must have been just as afraid as they were. Or, in its eyes just then, did Cata sense a hint of rapture?

Perhaps it felt honored to die in this kind of way...

The two in flight were only hastened by this alarming action. They quickly came across a bizarre wooden support structure. Set up so far below ground it was hard to imagine what purpose it has served or who had built it, though the likely answer was either Avel of Cainas. In any case, without knowing where it led, Cata threw himself onto the wooden platform and then began to scramble upward onto the stone ledge above.

Maria, seeming to have the same idea, wasn't too far behind him. She was grateful when Cata reached back for her and helped pull her to safety. The two were less grateful when the shadow aura beneath them burned with an intense heat and didn't pass.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

tonight or tomorrow!
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

I'm not too worried about the purge. Just wanted to let you guys know what was up.

May Mona Bless You On August 10 Instead
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

hmmm.... so just a heads up, guys, I've decided to delay the next update by a little bit. it's somewhat likely we'll only get one update this week instead of the usual two. figured I'd mention this now when I've decided on it so people aren't wondering where the heck the next update is if I don't get it out right away.

the reason is because as we move into the last part of the story I really, really want to make sure all of my ducks are in order and that I can solidify the outline as much as possible to make sure that I stick the landing. additionally, in regards to the outline, I've been thinking about tweaking the order and flow of the next few chapters for various reasons. because of that it's likely that things might look a little bit different from how the normal chapter orders would look, but I think this will be important to me to convey the gravity and urgency of specific situations.

for those still reading, thanks for being patient!

this project has been really fun for me and even though I had about twice as many people sign up as I figured would join I still have had a lot of fun with it so far. my goal right now is to make sure I do the story justice and write an ending I can be proud of.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

FakeAccount3000 posted...

Perhaps that's a clue that we still have a chance for divine assistance... which might actually have been better if we activated it earlier even if Goetic did get a divine smite. He might have been done for already and it would have avoided this mess. >_>

may Mona bless you on August 7
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

young Valter, as a church knight

https://imgur.com/PEs3y29
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

haha glad to hear I still have the power to surprise readers
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

"I already got out," Gray said. "And it's all thanks to your help."

Those twin claws shot forward, plunging into Goetic's eyes, and impaling them. At the same time the long nails bored through his face and into his skull. The Abnormal's brain was punctured and blood ran out through the holes as his body went limp and he was killed instantly.

It was a merciful death for the Vessel whom Gray owed so much to.

He definitely would have never escaped from the Stone Temple if Goetic hadn't been led down here.

"You're curious, aren't you? You were so curious." Gray stood there over the corpse of the fallen Abnormal. The Angel and its ward were still broken and chained behind him. He didn't plan to let them go anytime soon. "You probably would have wanted to know what happened to the others, if you had time to think about it."

Gray's eyes narrowed as he stared into the pit beneath him.

Maria and Cata, they didn't even have time to think about what might be waiting for them down there.

They had fled straight into the darkness.

[END]

17. Does this group have any hope of escaping?
A. It'd be a miracle if they did.
B. Logically speaking, no.
C. There's no way of knowing.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

"You know, I thought of you as a person with obsessive curiosity," Maria noted. "I'll have to be thankful that you thought of saving our lives before getting a glimpse of whatever was hiding behind that door."

"Mm." Goetic averted his eyes. "Well, I'll get the chance later on. There didn't seem like much of a rush."

Despite what he said, it still must have been a difficult decision for Goetic to make. And, having arrived too late to impact the battle, he surely must have regretted that decision on some level. Yes, in the end, he was likely wishing he had stayed back there with Abom and searched out the contents of the stone passage.

Well... there were many things in this life that a person couldn't decide on their own. And even when they made a decision they wouldn't always have access to all of the best information available. Sometimes you could make the wrong choice, or even make the right choice for the wrong reasons.

There was a rattling of chains as a large figure appeared in the space above them. Only, this thing definitely wasn't Abom. It was a formless Devil whose true visage couldn't even be comprehended by those here. All they saw were shimmering lights clinging to the outline of its body like bands in the darkness. Then, there, behind its heaving form, was their missing ally.

Beaten and driven to the ground, Abom was being dragged along behind the Devil's form by his chains.

Cata was so startled that he nearly tripped over his own feet in his attempts to get away. He ended up almost throwing himself to the ground, and ended up on his hands and one knee behind Maria. Maria watched quietly, looking up, knowing she probably didn't have the strength or the speed to act here.

This left Goetic directly in the line of fire. He was the nearest one to the enemy.

It reached out a hand, touching his face gently. Yet, at the same time, it was like the enemy was grabbing him. Goetic's bright eyes grew dull and he felt the world around him fade as the darkness and the colors all swirled about. Lights were rising as orbs from out of the pit below. Rain was falling from above. A heavy, foreboding rain. Each droplet containing souls of the departed or entire worlds.

In a mere molecule of water he could see an entire dream housed inside. Recorded memory of another being sleeping somewhere very far away. All of that was falling by the hundreds, by the thousands, filling the space around him. This dark and distant landscape to which his mind had been pulled.

His eyes found it hard to focus. They grew wide and then, like a drunken fool, kept trying to close on their own. The lids were moving in and out like some kind of rhythm he had lost control over. Just as he had lost control of his entire body.

"Gray?" Goetic called out. "Gray, are you there? You've got to... You've got to help me now. I'm not going to make it out of this if you d-... We're not going to make it out of here if you leave me to die like this. Gray?! Grayyy!!"

As much as he called out into the darkness, Goetic found no immediate response. It seemed he had been put into a place where Gray couldn't reach him anymore. Or maybe something else was going on here.

Then, from above and below, from beyond, the face of the Devil moved close to his. "Goetic, I'm already here," the voice in front of him spoke. "It's me."

"You...?" Goetic inquired. His mind was still trying to process what was happening around him, but it was all so fast that he never had time to figure it out. A pair of sharp claws curled upward and around his cheek.
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

As she pulled the trigger of the crossbow it punched right through the head of the enemy and skewered it. The enemy flailed left and then right, almost seeming as if it still might dive forward and cover Cata in that acidic slop. But, instead, it simply fell straight down and continued to twitch.

"Out of there," Maria quickly called to Cata.

But he didn't need to be told twice, or even once, as he was already scrambling away the moment he got the chance to move freely. Cata looked back at the enemy, making a wide path around it, as he skipped over to where Maria was and joined her side. "Is it... dead?"

Maria didn't answer him. There was something else on her mind. Along with the smell of death, she had smelled something else while she was on the floor. Maria examined the room and her attention was drawn to the barrels which had been smashed open, and the green elixir that was all along the floor now.

"Ethanol," Maria muttered. Then she retrieved a match from her alchemy kit. "Flammable," she concluded. Then with a small spark and a quick motion of her hand, the liquid on the floor caught fire and consumed what was left of the monster.

That thing didn't have the strength to fight back anymore. And, instead, simply collapsed into a burning wreckage. As horrifying as it had been... they had survived.

Maria took a few steps back and put the back of her hand across her forehead. She closed her eyes. It was all she could do to find peace. That was perhaps the most stressful situation she had ever been in, in her entire life. Yet, at the end of it all, she had succeeded and made it out of there alive.

Without a doubt, Maria was confirming for herself that she was a person with high ability.

"Hey, Goetic!" Cata called out, noticing the other man appear at once out on the ledge. He tried to get Maria's attention and drag her that way. "You're just a moment too late."

"And..." Goetic looked around the room, examining what had been left over from the battle. He didn't see any sign of Dismas. That man had, of course, been blown up, crushed under the collapsed table, and then likely set on fire in the raging blaze. "I'm assuming Dis didn't make it?"

"An unfortunate casualty," Maria concluded. She began to reload the crossbow as she moved out of the room and onto the ledge with the others. She glanced down and then back up. "Where's Abom?"

"He should be just a moment behind me," Goetic explained. "We thought you might be in danger."

They heard the dragging sound of chains coming from above. That must have signified the imminent arrival of the one called Abom. That clanging and dragging metal sound always alerted them whenever the big man was around. It was a welcome noise, even though it might have been somewhat scary or unnerving in a place like this if they didn't know what it was.

Cata leaned against the wall and examined his ruined blade. "Ack. A family heirloom ruined. And for what?" He thought about what they had found so far and what might wait below. "For all of this?"

"Did you find what was behind that door?" Maria inquired, growing curious. She looked back to Goetic, not sure how to truly comfort Cata over the loss of his precious sword. For Maria it was hard to say if she had ever owned anything precious, or any item of much value at all. It was difficult to empathize.

Goetic shook his head. "I was on the verge of seeing something, but that's when we heard the sound of fighting break out. It... seemed more important to come this way, first. Although it seems you two were able to handle yourselves."
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Maria, thinking for just a moment, returned to her natural element. All that was needed was that one moment where she transitioned from panic mode to analysis mode. And, in that moment, her calm demeanor returned as she fell into her natural element.

At first her mind wanted to reject the idea. After all, those bone spurs had shot clean through the table and it hadn't seemed to provide enough cover to be worth it. However, when the monster spit acid directly at her, the table had blocked a good portion of that damage. At the least it would give her enough time to get away.

However, this created a few other fundamental issues. The parts of the table that were already destroyed would leave gaps where her body would be exposed. And if she made a run for it she'd not be able to fight defensively. Beyond that, it would mean leaving Cata here to almost certainly die.

Maria didn't know if it would be worth the risk at the end of the day but she had to imagine that turning her back to the enemy and running at full sprint was going to carry its own risk anyway. Instead of doing as Cata commanded, she picked up the table and held it over herself as best as she could. Then... she ran straight for Dismas.

"What are you-?!" Cata blurted out.

She didn't have time to answer him. All Maria could do now was focus on the enemy above her, and the item she was looking for below. There was a hissing sound as a puddle of acid hit the table from above. The burned section dripped through the wood and ran along the outer side. Thankfully, none of that goop hit her exposed skin or she might have turned into a corpse bomb as well.

Maria went to her knees, letting the table come to rest above her back and provide a momentary cover from the monster that was now clinging to the ceiling directly above her. The stench of death was strong, and the horrific sight of a human split into pieces was scattered all across the ground. She was kneeling in his remains. And yet, for someone who had studied corpses, she was probably one of the most suited to put herself into such a gruesome, disgusting place and not be phased by it.

Maria grabbed the crossbow.

There was a heavy THUD as the monster dropped straight down onto the table. Maria heard a cracking sound as the weight of the monster began to overpower the broken and brittle wood. Soon it would break and the enemy would fall right on top of her.

Which way was his mouth pointing when he fell? Go the other way!

Maria rolled out from under the table as the wood broke into pieces and the enemy fell. It was momentarily stunned as its heavy body slammed into the ground. Dismas had kept the crossbow loaded ahead of time in the case of an emergency -- a lesson they had quickly learned after the first encounter on the road while he was still chained up on the wagon.

If he wasn't dead, she would have needed to thank him for that.

Cata, who hadn't hesitated to act either, was now on the opposite flank of the enemy. Foolish or brave, he had no idea if his weapon would affect this monster, but he slashed and thrust at its thick and slimy hide with the sabre. For as much as he might have succeeded in damaging the enemy, his blade ended up breaking in the struggle.

The noble scion clung to the hilt tightly and pulled away the broken metal, now dripping with acid, as the shattered silver shards were buried in the hide of the slug. Even as its burning blood ran free from those wounds, Cata was backed up toward the wall again as the enemy turned its attention to him. Its mouth opened wide and a roaring, gargling hiss began to rise in its throat.

Then, taking a scholar's guess at where the brain might have been, Maria set the bolt against the back of its skull.

CLUNK!
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

It pulled on the chain roughly, yanking Valter across the ground. He felt his chest ripped apart and covered in a bloody rash as he was pulled along a hard stone floor dotted with debris. "Aggghh!" He cried out in pain. Valter flailed and tried to rise, but this only caused the chain to restrict tightly around his arm and the side of his neck. It locked him in place as he turned over and tried to go back the other way.

The monster, still holding down the chain, had effortlessly pinned down even the big man.

Then, on the other side, the majority of its body was still on top of the fallen Angel. Her wings flickered, going straight up and then battering the walls. Was she flapping them, trying to knock the monster off of her? It didn't seem to be working.

Rather, instead, the creature seemed to grab her wing in its hands. They both knew what would come next but neither of them were able to stop it. There was a popping and a tearing sound as the creature broke her wing in half. Devils were powerful. Blood and feathers ran along the lengths of the exposed and broken bone. Devils were so strong that an Angel alone could not hope to defeat them. The knights of the church couldn't hope to drive them back from this world.

It was only together, through this concord, that they ever stood a chance.

And yet Valter, in his own weakness, had let himself grow apart from his Mona. He had lost his vigilance, let himself be separated. And, when they weren't standing together, they had no chance to stand up against such a monster. All he could see in that moment were the tears in her eyes as the foot of the monster came down on the back of her skull.

Then, with a forceful push, Mona's nose and cheeks were covered in bruises and lacerations. Angel's blood was splattered across the floor of the dark passage, the unnatural dark. Her form went limp for an instant. Then, as the creature stepped off of her, the unbroken wing continued to twitch. She was alive, still, at least.

Valter couldn't make out its form well enough but he felt the creature grab onto the chain and pull it tightly against his neck. Then, fading in and out of conscious, he was being dragged out into the passage and then down the slope. This thing wasn't trying to escape. It was going down into the depths below.

In a haze, being pulled through rocks, Valter could feel her behind him. His Mona, being bound to him, was also being dragged along the ground because of the ward that kept them together. Since she couldn't stand it meant that, while he was being carried like this, she was being carried behind him. His eyes came back into focus and he looked back at the broken Angel's form.

Her split wing was hanging on by mere strips of flesh. Then, in that moment, the fibers tore and a chunk of flesh and feathers was left in the passage behind them. The bloody stump that remained, clinging tightly to her back, wobbled back and forth as if she were trying to flap the wing that was now missing. Each time they hit a bump or a clod of dirt the remaining wing became more bloodied, the feathers more broken, her form more covered in dirt and bruises. Did Valter look as beaten as Mona did right now?

Why hadn't this monster killed him yet? Valter couldn't comprehend the way of thinking for such a Demon.

All he had the strength to do now was fall asleep.

--//--@@//--

"T-... Table!" Cata shouted from his spot against the far wall. "Use the table for cover, and get the hell out of here!" It was the first idea that came to his head and he wasn't sure if it would really work, but he would at least try to save Maria's life if there was no way for him to escape from this death trap.
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

"Geh!" Valter felt blood surge into his eye as he went face first to the ground. He tried to turn his weight and move the chains into a position where he could attack. Instead, those only weighed him down and restricted his movement.

Yes, all along, they had been put on himself for that very purpose. Valter had restricted his own movement and power for the very reason that he didn't want to hurt innocent people anymore. His mental weakness had allowed his Mona to goad him into doing things hastily, not the way they should have been done. The Church had given him this power to impact a positive change and yet in his memory he held visions of scenes that could have been avoided.

And, because of that weakness, he chose to chain himself down and stop himself from repeating the same mistakes. It was only ironic that this literal shackling of his own abilities was now leading to his downfall when he needed them the most.

"I fear you're not long for this world, Valter," Mona said. There was a hint of sadness in her voice. "Does this mean I'll be going home soon?"

Valter struggled to turn his body enough that he could at least nudge his neck in the right direction. Being able to see into the passage behind him, there were two figures he could easily spot. Mona in her regal beauty was tall enough that she almost touched the ceiling of the passage with her head. Her wings were spread out and folded against the walls.

And through that soft tunnel of light formed by her silhouette was the creeping darkness from beyond -- the unnatural darkness! The thing which emerged did not have a visible form. But, rather, the very fabric of reality clung to it tightly and rejected its presence. He could see a thin film of colors shifting and twisting like madness around it.

They were the antibodies of this world trying to destroy a virus which had appeared on the wrong side of the gate. He had found, at last, a true Devil. The entire purpose for which he had been given these powers. The pain he felt as he bit down on wood and cloth to stop himself from eating his own tongue. The pain that coursed through his entire body as they branded his arms with the white X of the high temple. His first time ever seeing his Mona as she descended to him from above.

That one hurt his heart more than his body, but it was a pain that he still remembered.

Was that monster looking at him now? No... It was...

"Mona," he muttered through a bloody haze.

"Worry yourself not for my expense," Mona told him. "Remember, Valter, nothing of this world can see m-" Her words were cut off as the creature grabbed her in a fierce and clawed grapple. Before she could even reason out what was going on, the monster shoved her face first into the ground.

The entire passage shook from the force of the half giant sized woman being smashed into the stone work by an unimaginable creature of extra human strength. Valter reactively twitched from the force of the blow and felt his body curl inward as he imagined the pain she must be feeling.

It was all he could do to turn on his side and raise the chain that was buried beneath his torso. The feeling of rocks and metal scraping into his underside was unpleasant. A dangling sound rung through the passage as the chain stretched out along the ground behind him.

Then, the force of the monster twisted and stretched. Like a rainbow flying over him, he saw its body distort and spread along the ceiling. Something like a hand shot straight down, grabbing the extended length of the chain on the ground. Valter's eyes slid in that direction. He was trying to follow the motion.
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Entry 17: Into the Darkness

After working for a solid ten minutes, Valter managed to partially pry open the bottom section of the stone door. His back was uncomfortably planted against the ground, now, and he was straining his legs in order to try and push the door straight up from below. Goetic, the scrawny little Abnormal, unfortunately hadn't been able to help very much.

"Get under there," Valter commanded. "You should be able to fit."

Goetic lowered his body and put his shoulder under the exposed stone door. Together they wedged themselves against the bottom of the door and continued to press it upward into the frame where it was made to disappear as part of the wall.

Valter, they had taken to calling him Abom, had a moment where he needed to adjust his posture and get to his feet. From that point, with his full strength at his disposal, he was able to employ enough power to force the door the rest of the way open without much trouble. He looked at the other man with a satisfied nod.

Goetic was now red faced and sweating. He was breathing heavily while staring down the exposed passage of darkness. "This doesn't look right," Goetic observed through strained breaths. "It shouldn't be -this- dark."

The door gave a satisfying click as Valter mashed it into place. From here it seemed as if the door wasn't going to fall straight down behind them or on top of them. That would be essential toward exploring onward. Though there was a nagging thought in the back of his mind. What would it mean if they needed to quickly close the door? How would they accomplish that?

Before they could gain an answer to that question, Goetic seemed to hear something from below.

"Fighting. I hear the sound of battle," Goetic observed. He looked down the passage and then back the other way. Then, biting his lip as if making a difficult decision, his brightened eyes shined in the dark as he made his resolution. "We must go and help the others."

Valter nodded in agreement. "You'll be faster than I," he said simply. "Go to them. I'll be right behind you." The big man knew in his current state of exhaustion he wouldn't be winning a marathon run to the bottom of the pit, and with his chains weighing him down it was hard to say if his sprinting speed would be faster than Goetic either. But if the blue-haired Abnormal could get there quick enough and make a difference there was no reason for him to wait on Valter.

Goetic took off wordlessly as instructed, leaving the big man alone in the corridor.

Valter stopped to take one last long look at the darkened passage that was laid out before him. There he saw a strange film of colors that moved and shifted, never completely forming, never settling, and not quite there. Yet somehow visible in a way that couldn't be seen. His mouth opened slightly in shock, but he knew he couldn't remain to study this odd display. There were others who needed his help.

"Ah, such a shame," his Mona told him. "You let that Devil escape from us. I would have liked to catch him before The End."

Valter turned his vision back down the other way and began to exit the stone passage and out onto the ledge. He was tired and felt as if he was dragging his entire weight and the weight of the chains more than ever before. He thought to catch a glimpse of Goetic, but the smaller guy had already taken off with such speed that he was no longer visible in the darkness below. That, at least, was a natural darkness.

Then, the hairs on Valter's neck stood up. What did she mean? "... The End?"

A hand shot out from the darkness behind him, the unnatural dark that he had left his back to, and wrapped around the side of his skull. There was a flash of light at the edge of Valter's vision. Then his temple was forcefully slammed into the stone wall.
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

tonight

17

into the darkness


---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

I'll go with this, then.

Aaron
Torrin
Jamison

Enoch
Owen
Zephyr

Leone
Jen
Fah
Kidd
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Tom Bombadil posted...

also I am about 99% sure Maria is on the autism spectrum

wow marked for flaming...
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

I think it's going to be fun for me to separate characters into categories based on what they are doing and then process how the battle goes from there
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

is that a vote for the same as what crazygamer posted?
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Arms, fingers, toes, shoulders, legs, collar bone, the eye, the ear, the nose, a skull, fingers, fingers, more fingers, something wrapped around something else like a trunk of flesh, he saw bones, he saw skin, he saw flesh stretched out from between the splintered ribs. It was all the parts that one would put into a pot if they were using a recipe that told them which ingredients were used to make a human.

Then, as it soundlessly stumbled toward him, with the other following close behind, he realized that there was something missing. Ah, yes. Something so simple and so vital. It had no mouth.

[END]

For this chapter I'm just gonna have people select an action for each character, rather than having a formal one choice whose vote affects the entire outcome. I'll take the most votes for a given character on how they might behave, but I'm also willing to simply give control over to the person who created the character if they demand it (or if others are willing to turn that responsibility over).

There are some characters who only have one action available, but I WILL list them here so you guys know what they are doing.

Torrin: Lead from Behind
Aaron: Aggressive Push/Defensive Stand
Enoch: Leading Attacker/Support Attacker
Jen Lowell: Rescue Leone
Leone: Struggle
Owen: Psychic Assault/Support Attacker
Zephyr: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Fakeru: Rescue Leone/Support Attacker
Jamison: Follow Aaron/Flanking Shots
Kidd: Leading Attacker/Rescue Leone
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

But, no. It wasn't going to be like that. It just never was.

It wasn't that kind of story, after all.

"Shit!" A voice cried out from above, coming from one of the passages on the upper level. "Shit, shit, shit, shit!" The door burst open completely, nearly being knocked off the hinges, as the tall man in the trench coat emerged. One hand clung tightly to his hat, trying to keep it on his head even as he was running. "This is baaaaaaddddd!"

Without stopping to think, in a total panic, or maybe the situation was really that desperate, Enoch threw himself right over the railing and down from the second floor. Or, rather, it looked that way at first. But his motions were surprisingly controlled and measured -- his foot went forward first, hitting the railing. And with that he was able to push himself into a full jump.

Aaron was forced to dive out of the way as Enoch came flying down from the balcony and smashed into the wagon from above. Was that meant to cushion his fall somewhat? It was hard to say if it had worked. And, at that time, Aaron didn't have the luxury of stopping to check on Enoch. His eyes were drawn back to the scene above.

All those here on the ground floor waited there with baited breaths... waiting to see what would emerge.

Nobody moved. Nobody acted. Nobody spoke. Everyone was watching carefully and quietly.

Gunslinger Kidd, in a subtle motion, found the courage to draw his gun and pull back the hammer. That soft click was the only sound which broke the absolute silence coming, and it was followed only by a groan of pain coming from inside of the wagon.

What looked to be a small mess of bodies, nude and melted together in some sick ritual, broke through the gap. It was hard to tell where one ended and one began. And the arms were tightly wound into the body, creating larger structures. And so the large arm of this thing, which might have been one thing or a dozen things, was made of many smaller arms and legs and faces and other body parts.

But those fingers, they weren't fingers, but they were unmistakably curled in the shape of fingers, held a limp body aloft. Leone the Cat had been grabbed by the throat. His body was slammed roughly against the inside of the door frame as the enemy pulled him forward. Then, broadcasting its terrible existence, the fleshy amalgam lifted the body and shook it.

Was he... dead? No.

Leone choked, gasping for air as the enemy continued to clutch at his throat. His leg rose, weakly, unable to form a full kick and send it at the enemy. And Aaron realized there was no way that he could get up there in time -- putting aside the question of how he'd even begin to fight such a monster.

And there wouldn't be time to think about that problem.

The door below, the main double doors that led from the entry hall to the inner estate, suddenly collapsed downward with a loud banging sound. The smashing wood resounded with a shocking pulse that seemed to spur everyone on the lower floor into action at last. Those who had weapons began to draw them... as two more of the nightmare creatures emerged from the smoke and the dust and the darkness of the chamber beyond.

To think these inhuman nightmares, made of the pieces of humans, but not truly human, had been lingering just outside of their view for this entire time. Aaron had been relaxing so peacefully while these twisted monsters were on the other side of a door. He saw it all now;
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

"It's-... Yes, it's the stone that we found." He held it forward, offering it to her as it glimmered in his palm. "I thought you might be able to make use of something like this. Kidd mentioned it was an object that could be used for Transmutation."

Fakeru honestly had no idea what that word meant, but she took the stone gratefully. "I'll do my best. If I've learned anything, we all need to start pulling our weight around here. I can't just keep hiding," Fakeru declared in a determined voice. "I need to be able to protect myself."

"Your resolve... gives me courage as well," Jamison said.

"But I may have to ask Kidd more about the stone. It sounds like he knows about its use," Fakeru said, in a distant and distracted voice. As the conversation was forcefully ended, she walked away from the scene and left Jamison behind on his own.

Jamison turned his neck. He looked up at the ceiling for a moment, and then back down at his feet. All he could do in that moment was let out a sigh as he released all of the burning anxiety that had just been smashing his insides to pieces.

"Do you fancy her?" Aaron inquired, having just watched this entire scene unfold.

The Inspector nearly jumped out of his shoes. Apparently the lancer had been so quiet that no one had really noticed he'd been watching all of them as they entered the room, or that he'd been listening to their conversations. Jamison couldn't do anything at the end of it all but stand upright in shock, and then slump back into his default posture of a timid man. "It's... It's not that."

"Mm. I won't press the issue either way," Aaron said. "I honestly couldn't tell if you did or not. If you say no, then I guess I believe you."

"I just get nervous around women in general," Jamison explained, turning back to the lancer. Since he had already opened up somewhat, and this man had already seen him make a fool of himself, and since there was a person in front of him who was actually listening to him... it felt good to open up a little bit more. "I don't know why it is, but, well, you can see the difference already."

"A bizarre affliction, but it isn't one that I haven't seen before." Aaron put his arms behind his head and leaned back. He rested himself gratefully against the wagon. As someone who never had trouble with women it was hard to really even imagine that sort of life. "I think the trick is to just remember that men and women really aren't any different. We're all just humans, right?"

Well, except for Abnormals, but that was another story.

"Yes, I know the theory. It's the practice that is difficult." Jamison let out a frustrated sigh. "We each have our own strengths, our own flaws, our own perversions. It shouldn't come as such a difficult task for me, but I've been this way ever since I was young. There's a part of my heart, or my nerves, that can't handle the pressure."

"Perversions, huh?" Aaron smiled. He had to chuckle a little bit before he could speak again. "So I guess you're that kind of guy, after all..."

"Oh, I didn't mean it like that!" Jamison retorted. Though he looked somewhat embarrassed it was still a far cry from the puddle he turned into whenever Fakeru was around, or any woman for that matter. This was his normal response to normal teasing.

Aaron stared up at the ceiling and thought about things had been, and where things were going. He wondered what would happen next. Would he have to wait long to find out? Probably not. All he could do was keep himself ready to react when things turned for the worst. Among all those here he was the most rested and the most prepared to deal with whatever came next. And, with a prayer, the rest of this quest just might be easy.
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Aaron found it difficult to even picture how much harder Dismas and his band of idiots had it. Those fools had dug right into the heart of this corrupted place. There could never be a good end waiting for that group, not in that situation, under those circumstances. Their only hope was if Torrin and the others arrived in time to save them from whatever they had gotten themselves into.

Gunslinger Kidd stumbled in ahead of the others, a bloody mess, still holding his gun at the ready and fully prepared to deal with whatever threat might be waiting. There was a look of deep relief that flashed across his face when he saw friendly faces awaiting him inside. Covered in wounds as he was... it was impossible to think that he could have actually secured the room if a threat had been waiting inside.

Owen returned bearing only the hat of Captain Punch. He turned that over to Torrin with an apology. "Things went wrong. We... couldn't save everyone," were the words that Owen spoke. But the look on his face and the way he said it meant something else. 'We lost the best of us, and only the worst were left behind.' That's how he was feeling about himself and the loss of the Captain.

Zephyr clung tightly to what looked like a coin, or a poker chip, as he scampered over to the wagon and climbed on top of it. Looking mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausted... the ermine had no choice but to curl up and try to find a small piece of rest in the midst of all the turmoil he had faced thus far. Turning back now was impossible, Zephyr knew that, and he only wanted to make sure that he kept his sanity strong enough to prevent his mind from breaking.

Things weren't any different than they had been in Pelengreer. Nobody had been prepared. Some of them had died, some had lived. Maybe the ones who came back might be better prepared next time. And maybe, at the end of it all, Aaron would be left alone and kneeling in their blood. Or maybe some idiot would be kneeling in his blood, mourning over an undeserved victory. There didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to the violence of this world. At least nothing that could be seen from the view of a mortal man.

"Lady F-.. Ah, I mean, Fah... I had been thinking about it... and... " A very small and insecure man emerged onto the scene, following a young woman who might have even been an inch or two taller than himself. In his hand he held a special stone of some significance. It was often said that in this world men would offer gifts and jewelry to women that they favored. "Well, not that I was paying p-particular attention but I got the impression you had some experience with magical items."

That itself was a long story, and it was one that Fakeru hadn't spent any time recently dwelling on it. Though his assessment was true and she was at least able to make use of magical items. The sandals which gave her the property of weightlessness and floating were among those, but she had made use of other special tools in the past. "Ah, yes. So you noticed that? I guess you are a gifted Inspector," she gave a simple and polite reply. "It's not normal for servants like me to be trained in magical applications, but I was given some special training."

"Oh, I don't think of you that way," Jamison replied hastily. "Well, I mean, I-... I don't think of you as a servant or-.. or a person with low station or anything like that. Well, it's-..." He hesitated, stuttering over his words. "It's not that I'd say you're special to me or anything either, but... I mean... not that you aren't special or unique in your own way, either."

"And I believe you had something you wanted to say originally?" Fakeru inquired. She tilted her head at this rambled train of dialogue which had gone far from his original target.
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

The battlefield was empty now. There was no longer a place for someone like him.

"Wait, a moment, you say that you found a woman's corpse... a preserved corpse... and she looked like the wife of the local smith?" Torrin expressed in shock. This statement seemed to bring Aaron back to the past. He hadn't been paying attention to their conversation up until now. As Enoch confirmed what Torrin had just said, the older man's expression changed to a troubled one. "Oh, I don't like this."

"From what I can remember, Maria and Goetic found a diary that was kept by the same woman," Torrin explained. He shook his head. "It sounded as if she had been suspicious of Avel, and somewhat of Cainas as well. She had taken to investigating them and trying to figure out what they were up to in these lands."

"A troubling possibility indeed," Leone muttered. As someone with connections to one of the larger criminal organizations in Hendrake, he absolutely knew what the implications were. It wasn't uncommon for someone who caused problems to disappear before they could alert the authorities. If Cainas or Avel were up to no good, if they truly had ties with the Thieve's Guild at all, it wouldn't be a shock to fall back on such methods. However... "I just can't imagine how they were able to preserve her corpse or why they'd go that far."

"To silence someone, you only need to toss them into a river," Leone concluded.

Enoch shook his head. "Either way, I don't like it. It gives me shivers. I knew that woman, you know?"

"Yes, this must be especially troubling for you." Torrin put a hand on Enoch's shoulder and offered him a moment of warmth. "To see a disturbing scene like that, even if you weren't close to her, must be hard for the human mind to process."

Preserved corpses? Aaron didn't like it. It reminded him too much of the all-too-human statues that were on display all around this area. If Cainas or Avel had been doing such things while people were still living in the mansion it would have obviously drawn attention to whatever was going on here. But what did that mean...?

"Now I'm thinking we should probably investigate this angle further," Torrin concluded. He sat back on his perch on the wagon, rubbing his beard thoughtfully. "If that woman was taken here and killed, and they couldn't dispose of her body, but they had to freeze her in that prison... perhaps there are more clues about. Maybe we can find signs of whatever it was she was looking for, or whatever she had found."

It was hard to say if that would really be a possibility. Up until now, the Smith's Wife had been playing a game against Avel and Cainas. The pieces had all been lain out on the board and they had been making their moves until checkmate. But that checkmate had arrived. The Smith's Wife had already lost. She'd been captured by the enemy. The field was empty, already, and the game board had probably been wiped clean.

Still, it couldn't hurt to check. With that in mind, the trio of Leone, Jennifer, and Enoch went back upstairs to investigate the upper passages a bit more. While that was going on, Aaron and Torrin had more time to relax on the lower floors while waiting for the other party to return.

As it happened, the Moth Party would be arriving at the front gates of the keep before long. They were in much worse shape than they had left. While Torrin's Shell Party, meant to breach the gates, had taken a slow and cautious approach, the Moth Party had waded into some dangerous waters and suffered heavy losses already in such a short time.
---

~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

At the end of it all, the Hero of Rot's disemboweled corpse stumbled forward over the bodies of the brave soldiers of Pelengreer. He was already dead... but that hadn't stopped him from coming forward. The only one left to stand against him was Aaron. A half-trained boy wielding a footsoldier's pike. He planted his feet and held it forward, letting the enemy impale himself.

This was not some heroic victory. It could definitely be said the Hero of Rot would have died of his wounds even if Aaron had not been there. Even that brittle footman's pike broke in half from the force of the enemy charge. Aaron ended the day on his knees, but he couldn't find the mud anymore. The fields had turned completely to blood and blight.

From this action several consequences emerged. Each was based upon how the various factions chose to view these events. The idea that Ser Sellark would perish here and some green boy would be the only person to return was so ridiculous... many speculated that Aaron must have abandoned his post, fled from the battlefield, and then tried to claim the glory at the end once the two forces had torn each other apart. There were others who gave Aaron the credit for slaying the Hero of Rot, even though that was far from the truth either. It was hard to say what the truth was -- it wasn't somewhere in between... it was neither. He had simply been a witness to these events. There was some blood on his hands, sure, but he had accomplished no great deeds.

Still, he found himself rewarded with a specially forged lance that had spellwork sewn into the metal. It was supposed to be hot as steel on the forge, and yet still hard and impossible to break. It wasn't until much later he'd learn the same didn't apply to the haft of that weapon. The blade, however, was strong and couldn't be broken. It could cut through most anything. It was hard to say if he deserved such a gift but he'd been given it regardless.

Despite those who doubted him, and even in spite of doubting himself, Aaron vowed to become someone who could live up to the ideal that Chadryn Sellark had lain out for him first. However, that idea itself was somewhat ridiculous. Even Chad had never been this great hero to begin with. The ideal he aspired to was nothing more than a simple knight doing everything that he could. It wasn't long before the dedicated Aaron, with a magic weapon, working as hard as possible to try and improve himself, found that he had long surpassed Chad and all of the others.

At some point the war ended and Aaron didn't know what to do with himself. He was not some great hero who had struck the final blow against the Blight King. He hadn't even been present at the final battle, but rather he was overseeing a blockade of a route that supplied several enemy fortresses. As peace returned to Pelengreer, the soldier realized it was a place that no longer held anything for him.

Had things been much better since coming to Hendrake? Had moving to a new place away from all his friends and family really solved his problems? Well... no. But he couldn't have known that before he came here. Now he lacked the resources and the energy needed to travel back across the lands and return to his home. All he had accomplished was starting a new and lonely life in an unfamiliar place as he quickly learned the people of Hendrake also lived miserable lives.

All Aaron had learned in all of this time was that people, everywhere, were miserable.

He didn't know if there was a way to change that, and he doubted this quest would change that for him either. If he became rich or if he inherited a castle of his own he didn't know if this would really fill the empty space inside of him. For now, anyway, it just felt like something to do. Aaron was risking his life and it was only a slightly better way to pass the time than rotting away in some bar in Hendrake.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Entry 16: Living Perversions/The Field is Empty Now

Aaron sat quietly and watched the surrounding halls as the others returned from upstairs to report their findings. It might not have been the place or the time for it, but he began to think about where he came from and what had brought him here. It would be proper to say that his life was flashing before his eyes.

As a native of Pelengreer his childhood had been spent in fear of the Blight King. His young adult life had been spent training in service of the Pelengreer knights, and then going out to the field to engage this threat. It was not an overstatement to say that he had not been prepared for what he saw on the battlefield. There weren't really any who came prepared for something like that. There were those who died in the chaos, and those who survived. The ones who survived might be better prepared for the next battle. That was how things worked in Pelengreer.

At that time, Aaron was tagging along with a knight named Chadryn Sellark. Sir Sellark was not a man of great renown or fame, nor was he one to stand on ceremony -- the men often called him by his simple name, Chad. "Worrying about something like holding your spoon in the right hand at the lord's table will get you killed out there on the battlefield," Chad was known to say. "Let's react as quickly and decisively as possible. Leave the details for those with the luxury to examine them. And, with a prayer, we may all come home."

They didn't. They never did. It wasn't that kind of story.

Aaron's final battle was fought a mere thirty miles west of Pelengreer. The Blight King's forces had made a far push toward the city and sacked several small villages along the way. Sir Sellark and his men were tasked with trying to hold an important mill which bordered some of the largest unguarded farmlands in the west. With no walls protecting these lands they would have to rely on the Pelengreer army backing them up, and, with a prayer, the greatest champions of the enemy might not choose this direct route to pass through.

He came for them. That's how it was always going to be.

The standard bearer was the first to die. A man who stood on ceremony, his corpse was left behind as the others charged into action. They waded through the mud as arrows rained down on them from above. And, with decisive force, Chad led them into the enemy archers. They were able to cut down two ranks of longbow wielding soldiers before the enemy footsoldiers moved into position to intercept their charge.

They fought on a narrow hill, retreating slowly down it as they tried desperately to hold their ground. With the unsteady footing behind them it wasn't uncommon for a man to slip or fall. That instant when you lost your balance you would be picked up and skewered. Halfway through this skirmish the Hero of Rot appeared at the top of the hill. He led a small pack of heavily armored elite reinforcements.

The Hero of Rot was a well known figure who struck terror into the hearts of Pelengreer soldiers. His reputation was fearsome, but it was often said that the deeds he committed were somehow able to exceed even this reputation. As bad as things might seem... they were worse.

By the time they reached the base of the hill the fields were stained with blood -- of men and monsters alike -- of rotted blight infested corpses that melted the grass and killed all signs of life. Sir Sellark had lost a good portion of his armor and a good portion of his body, but he continued to fight through the pain. And this courage was the only thing driving the human forces to keep fighting back. It was the only thing keeping them in this fight.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

Did some writing this morning but I ended up watching Avengers, and then I had to write a review for that. So I'm gonna recharge a bit and then finish writing the rest of this chapter later today.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

lol

sounds a bit underpowered for druid. they need something more impactful, like maybe Absolute Zero.

0 Mana. Your opponent can no longer gain mana crystals or play cards or draw cards.

(the downside is that your opponent becomes immune to fatigue, so it's balanced)
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

LiquidOshawott posted...

Does this mean Ulti stops playing

brother, ulti is still gonna be playing hearthstone and complaining about RNG when the heat death of the universe happens
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

outline for the next chapter is done. I'll get around to writing it... when I get around to it!

(hopefully tomorrow)
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

I've pretty much always thought spreading plague is the most vile card printed in the history of hearthstone, so seeing all of the druid hate lately is A+
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

phase 3 will be zephyr's time to shine obviously. if he hasn't gotten much development yet it means he has a lot of screen time incoming.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

15. Who will get the Alchemy Stone?
(1) A. Jamison
(0) B. Kidd
(11111) C. Fah
(1111) D. Zephyr

note sure how to process crazygamer's vote because the two options are directly competing against each other, meaning they both need his vote equally.

kidd and jamison seem to be out of the running unless we see a massive change of heart from every single voter.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

https://imgur.com/DAxiAZ4
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc

"In my previous work I served a few noble families. It wasn't too uncommon for the young ladies to keep alchemy stones on them in this kind of fashion," Kidd explained. "They could have varying properties, but often the stone wasn't even used at all. They just believed that wearing the brooch would help them keep a young appearance even as they began to age."

There was no sign of the woman's body so it was hard to say how much the brooch had helped with the aging. Though, Kidd suspected, if they did find her she wasn't going to look very good in her current state. It was likely the monsters had picked all of the flesh off of her bones already. Then, in that moment, he had a strange realization.

"... Corpses..." Kidd muttered to himself.

"What's that?" Jamison inquired. "Are you saying bizarre things now?"

"No, it's just," Kidd glanced around as they made their way back toward the main room in which they had entered the estate. "I was thinking about something. We haven't really seen any human corpses in or around the estate. At least not any that I could remember."

"Monsters probably dragged them off to some lair," Owen muttered in a despairing tone. And while, on some level, that was true... it still felt bizarre that they had barely found any evidence of people who had been killed and eaten on the spot.

Had the monsters really the patience to drag every single victim back to their feeding pit? What about the adventurers like themselves who had come here after the fact? Wasn't it bizarre that so many people had died in just the last few days, and yet there was no evidence of previous groups having come here and perished before them?

"I think... no matter what... we should keep our eyes open and think about the bigger picture here. There might be something much worse going on." Kidd's eyes became sharp as this lurking unseen threat disturbed him. Enough that it put all of his senses on full alert, even though there was no enemy directly in front of him. "But damn I'm in so much pain I can barely think."

Fakeru watched them from behind, walking slightly below the pace of the rest of the group. She began to feel a phantom pain in her fingernails. A stinging sensation just beneath them. It was as if she was returning to a very low place from which she had escaped long ago, and to which she thought she would never return again.

This looming unseen threat made her feel as helpless as a child.

[END]

Lots of character development in this one, and not much action. Hope you guys still like it!

15. Who will get the Alchemy Stone?
A. Jamison
B. Kidd
C. Fah
D. Zephyr

Owen already has a power and a stat boost so I'm going to pass on allowing you guys to also give him the stone on top of that. We don't need to consolidate too many high value rewards onto one character.
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~* Now I only see your dull imposter ~*
https://imgur.com/tdhOSKc