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>the map of the known world

We wake up, get dressed, grab our guns, and go help.

do you have a link for the last thread?

>>22771103
>I knew I was forgetting something
>previous threads:
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Fantasy%20Quest

Reading last thread to get caught up. will post in a bit

we need to find jack! grab guns and go help!

why are they attacking the train!? we removed the money! oh god what if they want jack!? we need to protect him.

>>22771386
What? I'm sure Nona isn't that retarded. But yes find jack, kill train robbing douches.

You grab your gun belt and climb up to the top of the train. The shouting, you realize, is the dwarven marshals, yelling orders and repositioning. The attackers are all riding around the train wreck skirmishing, stopping only long enough to pop off a couple of shots at someone and then galloping off again. The casualties on both sides are tremendous, as the skirmishers are able to move to weak points in the train's defense, but open themselves up to counter-attack when stopped to shoot.

You look for Jack. You find him nestled into a well-protected position on top of one of the train cars, leading riders with his rifle and popping off a few shots. When he sees you, he waves you over. "Thank God the fighting woke you up. They just started attacking a minute ago, and they're hitting us with everything they've got. They're desperate - I don't think they know that the cash is already gone. Get your gun ready and cast some magic or something - I think this is going to be a rough one."

What's the plan?

Go find out what's happening. If you need to expose more than top of your head to do so, use invisibility. Maybe use at least some small camo field not to exhaust yourself too much.

>>22771498

Cast magic. Can we make a ghost sound of Horses incoming or another train incoming? something to make it sound like we have more incoming? Is jack wearing the armor?

>>22771498

Sing a song.

Unless we can cast something like http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/SRD:Weird bardic song might be most cost-efficient way for us to help in medium-scale skirmish.

>>22771498
Camouflage ours and jacks position, locate the area of the train with the most marshals. Call up a wall of illusionary flame perpendicular to the train in that area to slow down the raiders forcing them to either turn around or go the long way around the fire, dther way giving the marshals more time to shoot.

>could you guys roll to break the tie?
>you don't seem to want to do the same things at all, really

Rolled 44

>>22771592

Rolled 73

Hunker down behind the best cover nearby, and start singing a song to either help the marshalls and jack, or to confuse and disorient the banditos.

If we can, take pot shots at the banditos, as well.

>>22771790

>shooting while singing
in rhythm, preferable. As percussion.

>cast voice really loud, tell them there is no money on the train. pray the bandits believe us.

>>22771873

>if there's no money on the train, why do you have so many guards?
>besides you still have more liquid assets. Like your blood to ransom!

>>22771892
>crap

You get behind cover and start singing a song designed to make the defenders sharper, more precise, and faster, designed to make the attackers careless and clumsy. The effects, small though they may be on the individual scale, turn the balance of the conflict almost immediately. You start taking shots with your wand pistol, eventually even knocking someone clean off his horse - wow, this thing may be shitty against people with armor, but it sure packs a huge fucking punch.

Soon, there are much fewer attackers still standing, and the defenders are starting to focus their efforts on the now-outnumbered gunmen. That's when the battle really ends. A few of the gunmen start retreating, others drop their weapons and surrender, and those few who have the romantic notion to go down fighting get gunned down.

And then it's over. The wounded are being treated, the dead laid out. The enemies who surrendered are being bound and prepared for prisoner transport, and the marshals are binding the injured attackers instead of making any effort to treat their wounds - some of them will probably bleed to death if nobody does something.

Jack looks on the scene with a sort of grim restraint. You realize that he wants to see the prisoners treated, but that if he tried to do anything about it, the dwarven marshals would just ignore him - or worse. You could help Jack by trying to convince the marshals to have the prisoners be treated, or let those fuckers rot, or something else.

What do?

>>22772150
al least suggest treating the wounded to the marshals, or if theres a medic around, offer to help (and learn some healing in the meantime)

"Gentlemen, we are not monsters. Help me Clean these poor fucks up."

>>22772210

second.

Although we should keep in mind...
Any survivors are gonna get hanged or shot or whatever the penalty is -- no no, wait, marshals are dwarves, yes? This can only mean one kind of justice. The HAMMERING

>>22772232

(It might seem this goes against us killing that bandit in last thread, but it really doesn't. Maybe Nona is being only nice because of Jack's paladin aura.)

>>22772210
This.

Suggest, humanely, that we at least prevent these men from dying.

They'll serve their time in prison.

If the marhalls poo-poo us for suggesting the idea, just ignore them instead. Don't want to ge on their bad side, especially after we just helped the so much, lately.

>>22772344
Hey, that fucker stood a solid chance of still attacking us. These guys surrendered.

>>22772344
Also, the only two times we've killed someone we were defending ourselves.

>>22772232
Well, yeah. Big smashy kill more than small pokey.

>>22772382
We also just outright shoot him in the head, we didn't leave him to bleed out in a desert.

never thought I'd be using an orc as a moral compass but.....What Would Jack Do?

Rolled 70

>>22772475
We already know what.he would do. Anyways try.to get help for the wounded, if we cant, then do it ourselves, sing a southing song.

"Hey!" you call out at the marshals handling the wounded attackers. They look up at you. "At least bandage them up so that they'll live to see trial. Have some common decency - some honor." You hope that these dwarves care enough about tradition that you playing the honor card like that will have some effect. The captain overseeing the handling of the prisoners glares up at you for a second, then lets out something between a sigh and a single chuckle.

"Bandage them up, then," he says to the marshals. "They'll live to see the hammerdwarf's block if I have anything to say about it."

Hammerdwarf? Ah. So that's how these men would be dealt with - execution by hammer. You'll probably be skipping that.

Still, Jack seems to relax now. "You did a good thing, Nona," he says, giving you a big smile. During the battle, he was hard-eyed and cold, but now he's back to being gentle and warm. He slings his rifle up over his shoulder and gives you a hug. "I'll be glad when we're in Newport and this is truly over. I'm going to go see if anyone's got some coffee going down in the train. Do you want to come with me or get back to sleep? You were only out for a couple hours there."

That's a good question. Since you're not injured, you should be on one of the last loads evacuated from here, so you've got a fair bit of time to kill. How do you kill it?

>>22772586
We need to convince the dwarves that these men should be granted normal prison sentences, as long as they give us information about the bandits and what they're doing. It's worth it to spare their lives to save more of the innocent lives that could be lost in future attacks.

There's a lot of things we need to know. Where do they get their magic breastplates? How do they know that there's money on this train? Where is their main base of operations, and how can we stop this rebellion?

>>22772586
sleep. we totally earned it.

>>22772640
>We need to convince the dwarves that these men should be granted normal prison sentences
>implying that execution isn't a normal prison sentence for murdering innocents, attempted armed robbery, and blowing an entire train off its tracks
They getting fucking hammered, bro.

>>22772640
>magic breastplates
I don't think it was magic. I just think our particular type of wand pistol has a projectile that spreads across instead of penetrating hard surfaces. That's why our wand pistol left huge dents while our bullets punched clean through.

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>>22772586

I wonder how he reacts to our recount of our travel. Did we get to that before going to sleep?

Ah well. For now I guess we could practice our music. Or illusion. Or marksmanship - not everyone we will meet will fall for our well-crafted decoy spell.

>>22772586
sleep inform jack about the ride to town then sleep more

>>22772689
Dwarven justice is swift and brutal, but fair.

>>22772640
Punishment is punishment.

If they tried to just rob the train through steal, then prison seems fine.

But killing and injuring both civilians, AND officers of the law, as well at destroying government property, and attempt at theft of government money...

Yeah, execution sounds pretty just, for these low-lives.

Just because we're 'good' doesn't mean we have to keep everyone from dying. Evil deserves punishment, and punishment it shall receive.

>>22772683
Still, it's curious that bandits would be so organized like that. That's the sort of gear a military force or maybe a police officer might have in this setting, and we need to know where they get it.

>>22772669
How come you guys wanted to be so nice to the assassin bandit at first, but now that we have these guys surrendering and not posing a threat, we want them to get hammered? At least do some interrogation for a life sentence as opposed to a hammering. Even if we don't care for them, they do have information that could be useful.

After that, we should sleep for a bit, until Newport comes.

>>22772721

I suppose that's for MP to clear how commonplace guns are, but those bandits did not strike me as spectacularly well equipped. A plate of armor and a gun does not seem all this shocking in a magic-industrial era.

>>22772721

plus it's not like we WANT them to get hammered, it's just how the justice works in this system. If you insist, we could maybe have Nona go out of her way to try and advocate for them.

The point of the gesture was not letting them bleed out like animals, but making sure they face a judge/hammerer/whatever. It's civilization.

"Wait," you tell Jack. "I want to tell you all about my trip to Newport."

You and he find a place to sit down and you give him the full rundown. You tell him about the guy trying to track down and kill you. You tell him about Earl and the horseless carriage. You tell him about getting together the marshals at the rail station. You tell him about how riding the horse made your ass hurt because you don't know anything about riding horses.

Then you remember that the two horses are tied up a few hours outside of town. You hope that they're okay.

Once it's all said and done, Jack tucks you in to a makeshift bed in one of the cabins and heads off to try to find some coffee. You happily get to sleep - you're still sleep-deprived, sore, and mentally exhausted from all of the big magic you've been throwing around lately. It doesn't take long at all for you to fall asleep.

You're woken up an unknown amount of time later by a hand on your shoulder and a bearded orc in your face. "Nona, it's our turn to get evacuated. Get your stuff together and let's go."

You do so, loading up into the fast armored car. This is the last load out of here, consisting of uninjured combat-capable passengers. Most of the marshals are remaining behind until a mage can be sent in to help move the train well off the tracks and repair the damage.

Do you do or say anything on the ride back to Newport?

>>22772921
Remind Jack we need to find Varaia, when we get to Newport, ask him what his current plan of action is, then just snuggles until we get there.

>>22772921

Try asking someone who looks responsible how the engine works and how it can reach such speeds as it does.

>>22772921

find Varaia

see about a reward

find a hotel to sleep for a night or two

go to Saint Martin's sing?
find a good place to sing and earn some money

plan the next leg of our trip

>>22773076

Seconding all of those. Should Jack be obstinate in accepting reward for his shooting, shrug and request your own share.

We could check on the horses, but if they were by the road, they are liable to have a happy new owner by now.

Our stoner orc acquaintance seems as good starting point as any to start our performances, but we better avoid his 'other' business unless we wanna get hammered. There might be some tensions with Jack, too. In fact, we might want to find another tavern to play our trade in.

>>22773176
What is Jack's stance on Mary-J, MP?

>>22773216

It's hardly relevant what his stance is. It would poorly behoove a paladin to break local law over something as petty as recreational drug.

>>22773176
he we have been running for our lives and killing people all week long and nearly dying we deserve some goos Smoke

>>22773249
How do we know that the marijuana doesn't serve a medical purpose in other cities? Earl could be trying to help his fellow man with his product. In orcish cities, it might even be standard procedure to give patients marijuana while they're performing typical medical operations with magic.

"We need to find Varaia when we get to Newport," you say to Jack. "I want to make sure she's okay, and she has all the cash that I took off of that assassin."

"Agreed," replies Jack. "Dwarven cities can be rough for orcs, but for a wild elf alone in a colonial city on Sirocco? I just hope that nothing's bad happened to her without you around to vouch for her."

Well, shit, that's something that you hadn't even considered.

"Speaking of the assassin," Jack continues, "You said you erased your tracks, right? He might have been using divination magic to track you. If he was, you're lucky that he didn't pierce your illusions until it was too late."

That's also something you hadn't been considering - the fact that some people might be able to just see right through your illusions with magic.

"Anyway, once we find Varaia, I think our next step should be getting a hotel room," you say.

"Agreed," says Jack. "Tomorrow, I want to stop by my PO box to see if anyone's tried to contact me, then we can look into finding passage to Graia. I hope we have enough money."

"Between what I've been earning at my performances and what I took off that assassin, I sure hope so too," you agree.

You rest your head on his shoulder for the rest of the ride back. When you arrive at the train station in Newport and file off the engine, you see Varaia lying on a bench, dozing with the bag and her gear on top of her. A half-dozen marshals are glaring at her from around the station.

What now?

>>22773749

Greet her. Ask her, how she's doing. Has she been seen by a medic?

Ignore the dwarves, unless they start being actively bothersome. Or perhaps ask one of them where should you go to receive some sort of compensation for your aid in train's defense.

>>22773849
This. Catch her up on our plans, as well. Also ask if she's been receiving or causing any trouble, while in town.

>>22773849
Let's not push our luck. Let's not activally push for a reward. Might come off as pushy, and our group isn't exactly popular already.

>>22773943
>pushy
Literally everyone on that train would be dead and all of the money stolen if it hadn't been for our help.

>>22773962
We also have the fantasy equivalent of an Apache and a negro in a Wild West setting.

>>22773962
Just... Don't be a dick. Maybe a little bard-charms majiked into our words. Pissing off the authorities would not be a good idea.

>>22773962

This. We did without exaggeration saved everyone's asses, at least twice, and probably a third time as well.

>>22774015
This anon gets it.

We can saunter around like we own the place, until people recognize us. Even then, modesty above all else.

If they see fit to reward our good deeds, then we will accept it graciously. If they don't offer us anything, then so be it. We did our good deed; that's all that matters.

>>22774051
>can

can't*

>>22774037

No magic charms when asking for compensation please. Policemen are probably gonna be warded and will not be amused by an attempt. Just ask politely.

>>22774051

Fair enough.

Dwarves should have enough decency to offer at least token payment regardless.

>>22774089
speaking of which, money we took from that bandit was most likely stolen. Did we turn it in with our story yesterday? If not, we might want to do that now.

>>22774015
this. lets be the modest heroes. its not like we're lacking a steady income anyway, hell, we could probable make a great performance out of it (playing up the great heroism of the marshals, of course)
I mean, come on, not getting shot again is its own reward.

Well, first order of business, you wake up Varaia. She breaks into a tearful relieved smile and pulls you two in for a hug. "I heard there was more fighting," she says, "And that the bodies would be on the last train... And then you two kept not showing up."

"We're okay," you say. "Really. I told you a I wouldn't die, and here I am."

"Did you get a doctor to look at your head?" asks Jack.

"A medic came and shone a light in my eyes. That's it, though. I don't think they want me here, but also don't want to have to ask me to leave," she says, frowning.

You feel anger stirring in you. The rail company prioritized evacuating the money, was going to let prisoners just bleed out, are trying their hardest to avoid treating Varaia, and apparently treat their employees poorly enough that some have chosen being mass-murdering bandits over working for them. This is some kind of bullshit.

"Listen," you say. "I'm going to go make sure that we get a reward and a refund for all this, then we're going to go get somewhere to stay at a hotel in town. After that, we'll figure out what we're doing next."

Then you stride over to one of the marshals and ask, "To whom should I speak about getting a reward and a refund?"

Several minutes later, you've arrived at the station manager. After explaining you and your companions' roles in all this, he offers you a full refund for your tickets and offers you each a lifetime pass for their services.

Anything else before you go?

>>22774264
>lifetime pass
sounds good to me.

>>22774264
We need to tell them that Varaia needs to be checked for her serious head injury, which was received when the train crashed. Seriously, she could drop dead.

>>22774264

Find a medical facility and persuade them with money to take an earnest look on that head wound. Hopefully it's nothing, but better safe than sorry. After that, just stroll through the town until a hospitable tavern catches our fancy that we could crash in.

If we come across a bookstore, perhaps of an arcane variety, we could look up a copy of "Healing for Dummies" or "How To Be A Paladin In Three Easy Steps: Lay On Hands Edition". Or anything else we or either of our compatriot would find useful or enjoyable.

>>22774264
>Lifetime pass.
Well, all is forgiven then! Alright, these guys aren't so bad after all.

>>22774264
>lifetime pass
Do they realize how long an elf's lifetime is? This company will probably be long bankrupt before Nona or Varaia die. Well, at least if we fail at adventuring, we can just get our own personal cabin with this lifetime pass, like a penthouse hotel suite but less awesome and more mobile.

>>22774561

If it's state rail, it's rather unlikely to go bankrupt. Worst that could happen to it is being privatised, and even then it will have natural monopoly over the track.

You thank him for the refund and reward, then head out to Jack and Varaia. You hand Jack the refund - he was the one who paid for the tickets after all - and then hand out the slips signifying that you three have lifetime passes. The passes are in your name, not necessarily something you have to have on hand - the slips are more receipts than anything else. "Lifetime passes for the trains and a refund," you say. "I hope we're coming back to Sirocco someday, otherwise these passes don't mean much."

Jack sighs, then says, "That's honestly more than I expected."

Varaia nods at that. You're not sure if they're being cynical or just realistic. You all collect your stuff, which still isn't much - three bags and a bunch of weapons between the lot of you. Jack hails down a taxi, which is a horseless carriage in much nicer condition than the one Earl gave you a ride in, this one painted a garish yellow.

"Which area do you want to get a hotel in?" Jack asks you. "There's the orcish ghetto - it's a rough part of town, but cheap. There's the area around the Seelie or Unseelie enclaves. There's downtown. There's the waterfront. I'm not sure if anywhere else has much in the way of hotels or boarding houses."

That is a good question. Where do you want to try to get a hotel?

>>22774857

Let's go to the middle-class district, whichever that is. We're only stopping by on our way to Orsalem, anyway, or?

>>22774857
I think the area around the Un/Seelie enclaves might be a bit... dangerous for Jack. Elves hate Orcs after all. I say we shoot for the waterfront.

>>22774857
Let's go down to the orcish ghettos, so we can save money to do things like buy the books and get food. Remember to stay with Jack for most of the time, though, because they'll probably be okay with us if we stay close to him.

...
anyone wanna try glamouring ourselves to look like orc children

You decide to head to the waterfront. After all, you'll probably be leaving by ship, and there might be a neat boardwalk or something. The ride is interesting, and significantly less nerve-wracking than when you rode with Earl. You see storefronts with carefully-moulded glowing magical signs, like neon lights. Restaurants and extremely modern-looking fashions. You even pass through a commercial district downtown with shining, animate, illusionary billboards, like Time Square or Shibuya.

Finally, you arrive at the waterfront. It's equal parts warehouses, industrial docks, commercial boardwalks full of buskers, swanky houses far from the industrial areas, and shabby apartments close to the industrial areas. Overall, it looks decent, clearly a place where plenty of commerce and industry flow in and out of the city. The cabby drops you off in front of an affordable-looking hotel, a dozen-story blocky building of brick and glass.

"We shouldn't get too many bad looks in this area," says Jack, "As long as Varaia and I stay away from where the nice houses are, anyway. There's a lot to do on the boardwalk - I stayed near here the first time I came through the city. There are plenty of trains in the Understreets around here and downtown too, so we should be able to get around fine with our passes if the same company handles the metro trains. You have anything you want to do while I get us a room?"

Well, do you?

>>22775313
Busk out front for a while see how much money we can get. Also, listen to other buskers to see if anyone is especially talented.

Get food! It's been forever.

>>22775313

How much money do we have? And how much does ship ticket cost? Does world wrap east-west, resulting in short trip to Orsalem, or are we going to have to follow southern coast of southern continent? Is there a temple nearby where Jack might seek some additional guidance? Has an earnest medic seen our elf friend yet?

That being said, if Varaia feels alright, we might as well go shopping. Bookstores prefered for our background. Maybe some sort of hunting gear store for V.

>>22775394
>almost 3,000 crowns
>you're not sure
>the world might wrap east-west, but there's a ton of unexplored territory to either side - the map is just the known world
>Varaia hasn't seen a doctor yet, but seems fine

>>22775447

I say we go for a medical check first order of business just to be sure. We don't want unpleasant surprises during adventuring. Didn't Jack earn a wounded hand as well?

Does the city have a Hero's Guild? Maybe we could check that place out.

Take a look on ship fare prices if an opportunity present itself.

Rolled 50

>>22775367

Rolled 40

>>22775589
>>22775517
>>22775367

Help Varaia first, then get noms. Hell, do both, if we can find something to eat while going to the doctors.

>>22775517
Ask around about where the nearest hospital is, so that we can get Varaia's head fixed. Then we should get a bite to eat, and focus on things like the books and hunting supplies.

>>22775640
"I'm going to go find a hospital and take Varaia in for a check," you say to Jack. "We'll probably grab some food on the way back. Should we grab something for you, or will you be fine getting something on your own?"

"I'll probably grab something on the boardwalk," says Jack. "If I'm not waiting for you two in the lobby when you get back, I'll probably be down on the beach. Once we get a room, you should consider leaving your weapons in there, or at least getting a concealed holster. We're not in a frontier town anymore, this is the big city."

You nod - it's something you'll take into consideration, at least. You and Varaia head out, asking around about where the nearest hospital is, and what route to take when getting there. Varaia gets some looks, but not too many. You're glad that her clothes cover her tattoos.

The directions eventually lead you into the Understreets. More than a dozen meters below ground, carved into the bedrock, and connecting directly to the underground portions of the city's buildings, the Understreets are broad thoroughfares filled with glowing neon, bustling dwarves, and small shops. Tram cars move up and down the center of the streets, and you and Varaia catch a ride on one, getting dropped off at the hospital's bottom floor.

You ride an elevator up into the lobby, and are greeted with a question of whether you're there for mundane or magical medicine. Mundane is much cheaper.

Which is it?

>>22775850
"Mundane, unless the injury turns out to be serious.

My friend here had a concussion recently and I wanted to be sure that there weren't any long lasting effects of damages that might crop up later."

>>22775850
Magic.

I doubt they have non-magical MRI tech.

>>22775909

This is something I've been wondering as well - how well they would be able to diagnose without use of magic.

Rolled 64

>>22775850
Whatever we need to get a concussion looked at - can we get a quote first? Obviously if we can't afford something, we should request it.

>>22775850
We already know that she's suffered serious head trauma, and we can pay you well for a treatment that makes her better. Whichever one that takes (most likely magical.)

>>22775966
>can we get a quote first?

>getting her head magically examined and any damage healed will probably cost about a thousand crowns, of which you currently have almost three thousand

Rolled 43

>>22776080
Sure, it costs less than we currently own, and it's for a dear friend.

We'll gladly pay for it.

>>22776080
I'd prefer a mundane examination if we think that'll catch the problems, and magical healing if it looks necessary.

>>22776115

I vote for this

>>22776153
>there are no non-magical methods of brain scanning, so non-magical examination would mostly be checking to see if there is pupil dilation and other visible signs of an ongoing concussion
>it wouldn't catch clots or internal bleeding, and it wouldn't be fixed like with healing magic, just diagnosed as concussion/not a concussion

>>22776115
Yes, let's pay the thousand crowns. We can't have her just gradually healing when there's things to do.

Afterwards, let's go get a bite to eat and see if we can't find a good bookstore.

>>22776188

Yeah this too. we should find a book about illusions for us and white necromancy for Jack.

>>22776225
thirded.

>>22776188
>>22776225
>>22776292

fourthed. Is that even a word?

"Magic, I guess," you say. Considering what you saw earlier with how Jack's leg was treated, and the difference between magical and nonmagical treatment for your gunshot wound, you're betting that they don't really have the nonmagical equipment to identify or treat various risks. Magic is the obvious route to go, you feel, when it's for something this important.

You get shown in to a healer in short order. She places her fingers on the sides of Varaia's head and closes her eyes. You expect she's doing some kind of high-precision, close-range divination spell. "There's a small clot - it's not blocking anything and will probably break down on its own. I'll get rid of it, heal the bruising, finish knitting the skin from the impact, normalize blood flow and... There we are. Good as new. You can pay the receptionist on the way out."

You do so. Varaia's trying not to show it, but she seems relieved to have been actually properly seen to. On the way back, you stop for some food, getting sandwiches from a dwarven delicatessen - dry aged and preserved meats make a lot of sense for dwarves, in retrospect. You find a used book store, smelling of paper and ink and the faintest mildew, too. You stop in and look around - you find a university-level textbook on Enchantment and a novice's primer on magical first aid - maybe Jack would like that.

Do you buy either of those two books?

>>22776449

if we can afford it, both. I imagine the enchantment would be especially expensive. Something to read on a ship would be extra good to have.

>>22776534
>the enchantment book is a college textbook, but it's used; it's about 50 crowns
>the book on magical first aid was relatively cheap to begin with, and now costs about 15

>>22776449

buy the one for jack. We need to save money.

>>22776602

oh since it is so cheap i say buy both then.

>>22776578
We have like 2000 crowns, right? We buy both, and look after something nice for Varaia. I do not, a new tomahawk? A new bow?

>>22776449
>>22776578
Get both of them. They're cheap as hell.

>>22776578
If the books are that cheap, why don't we ask if we can get some more? I'm willing to blow a solid 200 crowns on some good books for spell-casting, and we might as well ask Varaia if she wants something too.

>>22776449
I'd say yes, we have some discretionary funds at the moment, thanks to the failed assassin. And see if there's a music shop in the area.

>>22776748

Music shop would be a good idea. maybe we could go to the hotel and play for tips as well. Or maybe try to do some movies.

for the books, I say get both, a veritable bargoon. I'd also like to look into equipment upgrades...or at least some sort of light armor for all of us...

>>22776617
in all likelihood, her hand-made tools are in better condition that what we could get here, and mean more to her than any mass-produced civilized model.

>>22777402
some leathers or a duster reinforced with hard strips of boiled-leather might not be a bad idea. And of course, there's always the Back To The Future 2 'I'm going to cheat in the gun fight' trick.

Guys, we need to start remembering things like that. We come from a world were almost everything that can possibly happen to our current self has been fantasized, romanticized, plagiarized, or otherwise been made available via mass media. We have serious advantages we're barely exploiting.

You decide to grab both books. After all, they're relatively cheap, and you've got a fair bit of money on hand. While you're at it, you get Varaia a couple of cheap scifi/fantasy novels that she had been eying.

You and Varaia spend a while looking around the Understreets for a while, hoping to find a music shop, but you don't end up finding one. You take a tram back towards the waterfront, laughing and joking, both incredibly relieved to be back in relative safety again. You do get some scared looks from people, though, seeing as both of you are quite openly armed on a public street. You try to not pay them too much concern for now.

"Hey, Nona?" asks Varaia.

"Yeah?" you respond.

"Before the train crashed, we were talking about... Us. About whether we were going to go back to the way things were, or just pull back and slow down but keep going. We're going to finish having that conversation soon, right?" she asks. She leans against your shoulder.

"Of course," you say. You hadn't really had much time in the past couple days to consider it. You're still not sure what your answer will be.

"Good."

When you get back, you eventually find Jack, shoeless and with his pants rolled up past his knees, wading out in the water, breathing in the sea air, and generally relaxing. You call him up onto the beach and give him his book, which he seems extremely pleased about. He's hoping to self-teach as much as possible before settling down with a tutor.

What now?

>>22777550

go up to hotel room and put down weapons. don't want people getting freaked out. maybe then go play in the water with jack.

>>22777550
a nice romantic dinner for three at a sea-side bistro, if available, and then retiring for the night to a hotel room for a serious discussion of our (plural) future and hopefully some extensive cuddling.

>>22777550
Let's chill out a bit on the beach, enjoy the sun, then head back to our room, lower the amount of weapons we are carrying, and have that talk. We would have had it earlier but we've had pressing concerns.

>>22777618
I'm seconding this.

Here's an idea: We know Enchantment magic, so we can manipulate minds and emotions? Varaia wasn't all that into Jack when we started this relationship, but he's grown on her. What would happen if she knew, really KNEW, how wonderful he really is? Could we craft an illusionary 'home movie' of our memories of the first three days of our life here, with an enchantment side effect so the viewer feels what we felt at the time, and then play it one night so she can see how amazing Jack really is?

>>22777793
I thought we agreed that wasn't cool, man.

>>22777793

We're not gonna manipulate her mind, man.

That shit ain't cool.

Not cool dude.

You and Varaia head up to the room that Jack got for the lot of you to deposit your weapons so that you'll stop getting weird looks from people. The room itself is nice - a queen-sized bed, a table with a couple chairs, a small couch, its own bathroom, and what looks to you like a radio. The three of you wander around the boardwalk until you find an elven bistro serving fresh sea food. You eat and laugh and talk and relax and even have some wine - something that fills you with bardic knowledge as you find yourself analyzing everything about the drink in your hand. Apparently bardic training involves getting a really good taste for wine.

The three of you retire to your room well after sunset and a walk on the beach. You flop down on the bed, Varaia on the couch, and Jack sits in a chair. There's comfortable silence for a few minutes before someone talks.

"So," says Varaia. "Let's finish that talk we were having before the train was derailed."

"Okay," says Jack. "Well, like I was saying when it happened, we could either go back to how things were or just slow things down and get more comfortable while keeping all three of us together. I'm willing to do either, but unless we're unanimous about staying together, I don't think we should. What do you two think?"

"I would like to stay together," says Varaia. "I wasn't honest with how I felt when we started, but I really do want this now."

What do you have to say?

Rolled 92

>>22777895
>stay together

>>22777895
"I want to stay together. I don't want to lose either of you."

Rolled 71

>>22777895
Break it off, having her as a third wheel isn't fair to her.

Stay together, but keep it slow

I maintain that a two person relationship is more than enough for a former virgin neckbeard. three feels like too much.

>>22778046
Indeed, I believe that the current situation detracts from the relationship with Jack.

Besides, Elves live forever, Varaia just has to wait 40 or so years.

Three way is the best way

>>22778046

from the practical point of view, a wild elf girl would seem better fit for Nona's neckbeard former self. On the other hand, the bard has already managed to build a relation with Jack.

I abstain of vote on the matter. I would prefer all three adventuring together, but if either one feels they are treated unfairly, for whichever reason, this could be... inconvenient.

>>22777895
...Can we not do the whole awkward triplet thing? Why don't we just stay with Jack right now...and maybe put a little bit less emphasis on the sexual aspect.

>>22777895
Yes, I think it's cute us three. Though I don't like the sexy portions I do like how close weare.

>>22778177
>>22778160
I'll agree that our triplet thing is fun-ish, but I'd rather have the smexy be less focused.

I still feel we jumped in to bed too quickly with Jack even....dat sexual tension....

>>22778036
Agreed, and less of a constant porn feel though. That anal thing almost drove me away from this quest.

>>22778213
Agreed, but going back on those choices seems a cop out.

>>22778221
>>22778202
>>22778177
I agree with these statements.

>>22778236
true that.

>>22778046
I disagree. True, we have no previous experience with relationships, but here we have two people that we know, for a fact, are willing to do anything including kill, to keep us safe and make us happy. They're both offering more emotional support than we ever received in our old world, and having that love and support at the same time would be a very good thing. Our implanted bardic skillset has covered for our natural anti-social personality so far, but it would be better if our base personality was healed of that flaw naturally, and that only happens by opening up to people. I vote we continue the polyamorous relationship, but at a slower pace. We'll need a much longer getting-to-know-you phase.

And I think Nona and Varaia should spend more time getting to know Jack. We'll be around for centuries, hopefully. But he has, at most, 40 more years of life. We should make those the best, happiest years of his or any other orc's life. We have the rest of eternity to accomplish any goals we set for ourselves, but he needs to accomplish his soon, and we should help him.

>>22778260
Seconding..or fifthing?

I like the threesome thing but I prefer the less porn idea

Rolled 33

To friend zone, or not to friend zone?

That is the question.

Knowing how bad it sucks, first hand, I say we let the poor elf girl in with us. She *is* all alone now, basically, because of us. And keeping her out of our's and Jack's little circle of love, would almost be just as bad. 'Hey Varaia, we're gonna head over here and do sexy-together time stuff. Just sit here and be a doll, will ya? Thanks!' 'Oh... o-ok...'

>>22778280
you do raise some valid points.....ok, withdrawing my vote for a twosome, but I agree with less porn....

>>22778304
Yea super agreed. Just hoping we won't be all ANAL TIEM!!

Rolled 65

>>22778304
Also on top of the "Varaia alone' thing - it's kind of hard for a wild elf to fit in anywhere (except with other wild elves, of course,) so she's forced to stick with us.

Short term things might be more awkward, but long term it's probably for the best.

>>22778304
>>22778316
Okay, yeah, I'm going with what Owlface here is saying. Maybe a relationship of three is best in this given situation, but stop it with the sex stuff, okay?

>>22778316
So it seems we want less porn but still threesome.

"I'm okay with staying together," you start. "I definitely want us to take it slower, though. All of us. I think we've been getting too intimate too quickly for how long we've known each other," you say, making a point to look at each of them as you say it. "I'm not saying we won't come back around to where we were again, but let's start fresh and take it slower this time. After all, what really matters is the support and caring and commitment, right?"

Jack smiles and Varaia nods.

"I can be as patient as we need," says Varaia. You believe her too - after all, her original plan was to wait a century for Jack to die and you you to finish grieving before courting you.

"I thought we were moving too fast in the first place," says Jack. You buy that too.

You all sit there smiling - that's a weight off your shoulders that should have been lifted two days ago. The three of you share a long group hug and some kisses, then dress down enough for bed and tuck in.

"Tomorrow, I need to check my PO box, and then I want to go see what the prices for ship fare are. You might want to pick up concealed holsters for your gun - maybe even both guns," says Jack's rumbling voice from behind you in the darkness.

"I would like to take a look at the neighborhoods around the fae court conclaves," says Varaia. "We wouldn't enter the conclaves themselves, obviously, since I'm Wild and you're without a Liege. I just want to see how they look."

Do you have any words before you sleep?

>man, I'm totally cool with less sexual content
>I only went that route because it was the majority vote at the time
>I would have preferred to keep milking the tension with Jack, and then Varaia, instead; it would have given me more material when designing scenes

>>22778435
I think we just had a problem with shirt posters want to fap.

>>22778409
"I love you two."

Cuddle up to both of them, gently rub Varaia's ears.

>>22778450
Shit posters even

>>22778409
"Goodnight, both of you."

Tomorrow, we can go get some holsters and maybe study some of that book, and find a tutor for Jack.

>>22778482
Seconding

>>22778482
Thirding

>>22778482

fourthing.the book being the enchanting book.

"Goodnight, both of you," you say. You run the back of your hand across Varaia's cheek and ear, then put your hand in Jack's, his arm wrapping around the two of you. "Tomorrow I might get some holsters and spend some time reading my new book. We'll see how the day goes."

You drift off into what you expect is the most comfortable sleep any of you have had in days.

When you wake up, Varaia is still curled up with you, but Jack's not in bed. You sit up and look around, and see Jack sitting on the couch. There's a small pile of opened letters on the table, and Jack is reading another one, his face grim. When he finishes, he holds the letter in front of his face for a second, then crumples it and throws it at the wall, hard.

"Jack?" you ask, worried about him.

He looks over at you startled, then his face melts from anger into worry and sadness. "Letters from home. Most of them were... Expected. Wishing I was back home, hoping I was safe, trying to get reconnected. The most recent one, though..." he gives a big sigh. "I think I might need to go back to Mildania before we go to Graia," he says. His tone of voice is one you might expect of someone saying that he has to walk across hot coals.

What do you say?

>>22778701
"Why? What do you need to do there? Is there any trouble? There any way I can help?"

>>22778701
"Why, what's the matter?"

We're most likely going to accept whatever he needs to go to Mildania for.

>>22778701
"Say the word and we're off. Clearing your name, helping your family, tracking down the crime boss and turning him inside out, you name it."

>>22778701
Let's kick some gangster ass.

>>22778716
Also this.

"What's the matter?" you ask. Then, before he even answers, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Jack gives you an appreciative smile, but worry and sadness remain in his eyes. "It's my sister," he says. "My brother too. After I left, that fucker Stonehammer, who was blackmailing me, convinced my sister that coming to work for him would be enough to convince him to clear my name and let me come back. That was less than a month ago, and rumors started hitting the streets that she was going to get put in a bordello. So Johnny - the hotheaded idiot - goes running off to Mild. He's starting a one-man street war against the family - he's going to get himself killed. If I don't go back and fix this, my brother's going to die and my sister's going to end up a whore, or worse, and it will be all my fault for not just folding and going to prison when he tried to blackmail me."

Jack puts his head in his hands. He looks on the verge of tears. You can hardly blame him.

"But if you go back - you might get arrested. Or worse. Right?" you ask.

"Worse, probably. There's no way to fix this now that doesn't involve going to war with the Blackmountains. I just need to do it smarter than Johnny. Even then, though, I'm not sure I'll be coming out of this alive," says Jack. "Listen, you don't need to follow me to this. This could get you killed, or worse - Blackmountain isn't kind to women it captures."

What do you have to say to all that?

>>22778969

We can take care of ourselves. We've killed two men already!

>>22778969
"Jack, don't be an idiot. There's no way I could let you do this alone. I'm coming with."

>>22778969
"Then we're going to Mildania to take out Blackmountain and help out Johnny and your sister. Wake up Varaia, and grab everything we've got. We're going back on the train."

>>22778969
Just give him a look that says "Are you fucking serious? It is like you don't know me at all."

>>22779053
>We're going back on the train
Mildania is the large island south of Newport.

>>22778969
"Well, guess what? Blackmountain has never seen the kind of hell I can bring. I'll have every laborer in the city hunting his goons in a week."

-snap your finger and a very realistic illusion of the first Iron Man armor from the movie, the cave-built one with the flame-throwers, appears behind you-

"We will tear his network of businesses and goons apart."

-SNAP- A half dozen Dirty Harry looking cops with rather large .357 magnums replace the armored war machine, each is wearing a Punisher T-shirt under their jacket.

"We will track him down, and his entire family."

-SNAP- a Xenomorph crawls down from the ceiling, hissing softly and swaying its razor-barbed tail.

"We will string him up in the city central square along with anyone who sides with him. In my home world, organized crime syndicates have risen up a half dozen times, and I know a good deal about how each and every one was torn to shreds. If Stonehammer is VERY VERY smart, he'll slit his own throat before we get there and save us the time."

>>22779117
Are we doing the Q snap from Star Wars?

>>22778969
'lets go'

>>22779203
You mean Star Trek?

>>22778969
'Of course we're going to help you, Jack! Don't be ridiculous.' Then hug/kiss/snuggle up next to him

'We're with you until the very end.'

>>22779117
Who are you, and why am I not aquiring more? I'm throwing money at the screen! Soo much money.

Yeah, no. This was stupid when it was about a dress.

"Then we're going to Mildania, obviously," you say, like he was stupid for even considering the idea that you might not come along. "You go find us passage on a ship there - something that leaves tonight if possible. I'll wake Varaia up and go get whatever gear we need. We're going to fucking war."

Jack nods, puts his things together, and stands up while you start shaking Varaia awake. It's time for shit to get fucking real.

>this is a good stopping point for me for tonight
>I'll be ending it here and picking up with a new thread tomorrow

>>22779221
>about a dress
I'm not sure what you're talking about. Did you click on the wrong thread?

Damn. I missed the vote for whether or not to break up the threeway. Ah well, I doubt this is the end of the issue.

>>22779231
Man, we're sooooo dead.

>>22779259
we were dead before we got better,

lets get him a disguise for tomorrow as well

Rolled 30, 41 = 71

>>22779231

Who's going to archive it? Me or someone else?

And what should I put for the tagline?

>>22779290
"Please purge me in a few months"

Can't wait for the summer purge this year. So many quest threads need deleting.

>>22779290
"The train situation is resolved and new problems arise in Newport."

Rolled 1, 68 = 69

>>22779318

Will do.

>>22779290
shit gets even realer.

>>22779350

Not sure.

If they didn't like furious masturbation or even weed I doubt they'd like drama.

>>22779369
*shrug* can't please everyone.

>everyone remember to vote the archive up if you want it not to fall off of the archives
>don't if you don't

>>22779520

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/22770990/