>>28004528
"What does it do?"

>>28004528
Go thank Mal for being a bro

>>28004528

"I almost forgot but, Miriam was quite impressed with my recent change, would you be willing to treat her?"

"I figure your answer will be "no" but it couldn't hurt to ask, right?"

we can go tell Miriam the answer and thank Mal for the wild ride.

"... What does it do?" You ask, after a moment. You refrain from reaching out to touch it, as you're still relatively sure it would cut you apart.

"What *doesn't* it do?" Tarda says. "It's based off of Kaederi's own research... And succeeds where he fails. The Indomitable Project, when active, carries its own reality with it. A reality where its pilot's will is made manifest. That was the plan, but it went a little sideways around halfway through. Because actual reality gets in the way, it's nowhere near as effective. But... Well, it still should be pretty damn effective. If it doesn't rip a hole in reality and consume the countryside."

She almost grins at the prospect..
"I can't wear it because of the way I think, so you'll have to. How do you feel about ascending to godhood?"

Your eyes widen.
"I, uh... I think I may have some things to do in town first." You say.
"Alright." She says. "Take care. I'll just try to get that remnant heart under control. Mudimuna is tough enough to erase the barrier, but he might have some more surprises up his sleeve. The more forces we can grab, the better."
"Yeah, probably." You say. "Oh, and I almost forgot. Miriam was impressed with my recent change, and she asked about you treating her as well."
"Nope." She says. "One time dealie."
"Well, it didn't hurt to ask." You say. You wave to Tarda, and slide down the vine rope that hangs off of the roof. You make your way to the Tavern, where Marcus and Mal are drinking.
They're also staring eachother in the eyes, perfectly silent.

"One." Mal says. In lelan, surprisingly.
<One.> Marcus responds. In Galdian, almost more surprisingly.
The two of them down a glass.
"Two." Mal says.
<Two.> Marcus responds.

"I'm not sure if they're having a drinking contest or trying to teach eachother to count or what." Miriam says.

>What do you want to say?

>>28004705
<Cut me in on one of those drinks.>

>>28004705
"One" <two> <three.>

<"I'm about to become a god, wanna watch?">

>>28004705
"Probably both. Anyway, I'm off to kill the skyfort, so I just thought I'd check in one last time."

>>28004705
Say three in Kistaran.

>>28004705

we can do ONE drink, we need to be able to think somewhat clearly right now.

"Possibly a little bit of both. I talked to Tarda, I'm going back up to hopefully finish off the crazy wizard in his floating fortress."

"about the youth thing, Tarda said no, sorry."

"In case I don't make it back, thanks for looking after me these past few weeks, It was nice."

>>28004705
"3"
Take a shot

You pull yourself into one of the seats. Marcus eyes you, but shrugs and mumbles something like a hello.
<Cut me in on one of those.> You say. Mal gives you a cheeky grin, and pours you something.
Smells like spice and mint. You take a drink, and it's most likely the strongest, most bitter thing you've ever downed. It burns unpleasantly down your throat.
It's horrible.
You finish it anyway.
<Three.> You say, this time in Kystaran. You shift to Galdian. <What is this?>
<I've no clue.> Mal mutters. <This was one of the treasures I elected to keep. Found a bottle of whatever the hell this is. S' good, though, isn't it?>
<Not at all.> You say. <It's not good at all.>
You let him pour you another.

"If you're curious, I've decided to stay here for now." Marcus says. "Stick around, make myself useful. Pretend I'm still on my mission."
"Mmm." You say, and turn to Miriam. "About the youth thing. Tarda said no. Sorry."
"Pity." Miriam says, and frowns. "What are you up to today, anyway?"
"I figured I'd check in one last time- I'm about to hopefully finish off that crazy wizard in his floating fortress." You say. You translate your words to Galdian for Mal, and his eyes widen.
<What, you aren't going to let me help?> He asks. <S' fine, It's probably way out of my weight class anyway.>

>>28004705
I guess spamming the Nystaran hellbomb is going to be a thing we can do now.

>>28004818
<Man I don't even know what I'm going to find up there.>

>>28004818
<Would high-fiving me when I get back classify as helping?>

>>28004818

<You're right about that, besides, you need to stay alive so you and your sister can make some noise back in your homeland.>

"Marcus, I know you don't trust me one bit after everything but I think you're a good kid and for what its worth, you have my thanks."

>>28004818
"Miriam. Miriam, come drink with us."

>>28004818
<Bro if I don't survive, name a Tarrasque after me, okay?>

<Man, I don't even know what I'm going to find up there. Besides, you need to stay alive so you and your sister can make some noise back in your homeland.>
<Good point.> He slurs. "Four."
<Four.> Marcus stutters through, messing up the galdian word badly. The kid hardly seems there, by now.
Speaking of which, he might be too young for drinking. Especially this swill.
"Marcus, I know you don't trust me one bit, but I think you're a good kid. And for what it's worth, you have my thanks."
"Don't need it." He responds. "But thanks all the same."

You turn back to Miriam.
"Miriam." You say. "Miriam, come drink with us."
"I don't know..."
<Miriaaam.> Mal says, waving the bottle.
"... Alright." She says, and sighs. Mal grins.
<See, that's how you do it. You'll never have my charm.> He says.

The four of you take a fifth drink- and Miriam coughs, her cheeks red.
"What *is* this?!"
<Tell her it's tarrasque piss.>
You turn to her to do so, but Marcus makes a loud 'eep'.
Miriam is squinting at him, almost sternly.
"Aren't you too young to be drinking?"
Marcus doesn't answer.
Miriam glares hard enough to wither stone. You... decide it's not a good time to tease her.

<Hey.> You say, sometime later. Your head is softly throbbing, but it seems your agelessness gave you back your old resistance to this kind of swill. <Bro, if I don't survive, name a Tarrasque after me, okay?>
Mal rolls his eyes. <I've seen you get skewered, beat to hell, stabbed, clawed at, and torn underwater by a pissed off momma trog.> He says. <You're going to live, especially if you're fighting a piddly human. If anything, I should name you after the tarrasques.>
He grins. <Tarrasque. That's a fine name for you, I think.>

>>28004979
<No, but, it's like, we can both do anything, I think? Something about gods maybe. I don't know.>

>>28004979
<I'll use that as my next name.>

Grin, Take another shot

>>28004979

<I could think of worse names, ones i have actually used over the years.>

check on Marcus and Miriam, make sure they're either up and about or lying down comfortably.

>>28004979
"Pfft, I was drinking at half his age, Miriam. You've got to start young to build up a resistance, see?"

<I could think of worse names.> You say. <I'll use that, next time.>
<Not if you're going to be my noble advisor!> He says. <That might get confusing. Then again, you lelan barbarians have the silliest names, so it's not like people would make a big deal about it...>

"Pfft, I was drinking at half his age, Miriam." You say. "You've got to start young to build up a resistance, see?"
Miriam turns her glare to you. Then she closes her eyes and sighs.
"Fine. If he's old enough to fight as a soldier, he's old enough to drink."

You sit back, and spend some time trying to sober up. Miriam and Marcus get more inebrated and start arguing about something inconsequential, while Mal starts talking about one of his many sisters; The 'cute' one, apparently, who reminds him strongly of a cat.

Miriam is currently holding a flailing Marcus in a headlock. Which is when the door to the tavern slams open.
On the other side is Ann and Dalton. Ann is currently holding Bruno, and... what looks like a large bag.

She looks nervous.
"We're setting out, Miri." Dalton says.
Miriam freezes. "... What?"
"What?" Marcus responds. "To Delura?"
"I don't know." Dalton says. "It's not really my decision where we go."

Ann doesn't say anything.

>>28005088
Let's wish them good luck.

If everything turns out okay, we should try to stay in contact with them.

>>28005088

"You came to a decision then Ann?"

>>28005088
"Good luck to you, Dalton. If you ever need anything, and I'm still alive, I'll help where I can."

"And you, Ann. Take good care of yourself, and good care of Bruno."

>>28005088
"If you ever need help Ann, come find me."

"You came to a decision then, Ann?"
"I think we should... go to Delura." Ann says, quietly. "Because if I don't, I think I'll regret it."
"Are you sure?" Miriam asks, sobering up. She doesn't let go of Marcus, though.
"Uh, well, not at all." She says. "But it's a choice. Better than nothing, I think."
"I, uh..." Miriam says, trailing off.
"Good luck to you, Dalton." You say. "If you ever need anything, and I'm still alive, I'll help where I can."
"I'll keep you in mind if I need someone expendable, kid." Dalton responds.
That's pretty much how most of your clients treat you.
"And you, Ann." You say. "Take good care of yourself, and good care of Bruno."
"I plan to." She says, and nods. "It was nice meeting you."
You nod.

"... Even though I never actually learned your name..."
You shoot her a grin.
"I have a lot of names." You respond. "Anything is fine."
"Anything it is." Dalton says, with a grin.

Miriam grumbles about not having warning about Dalton leaving. The bearded man doesn't respond.
"Uh, hey." Marcus says. "Sudden change of plans. I'll come with you."
"What? Why?" Ann asks.
He shrugs. "Why not? I have to return to inform them that my mission failed, anyway."

Miriam finally lets go, and Marcus winds his meteor knife around his waist.
"Well, then... Come along." Dalton says.
He affixes Marcus with a very different glare than the one Miriam had given him.

"If you ever need help, Ann, come find me."
She nods. "I definitely will."

She, Dalton, and Marcus leave the tavern. Bruno lets out one last squeak, and a deliberate burst of flame to the sky.

>Anything you'd like to do now?

>>28005270

aside from Kissing Miriam for good luck (Which is mostly a joke option)

Giving Cromwell a heads up would be the last thing I can think of.

after that it's go time.

>>28005270
"There goes one third of the town."

"Anyway, I better go now. Gotta see a man about an aerial castle."

>>28005270
roll to seduce miriam for a kiss for the battle.

Rolled 87

>>28005386
oops

Rolled 40

>>28005428
This would have been funnier if it was a one.

Rolled 82

>>28005386
Sure. Fine. Why not?

>DC: 101. Failure!

"There goes one third of the town." You say.
"They've been here for longer than anyone else has." Miriam says. "I just wish they'd given me some damn warning. Dalton's always been like that..."

She sighs.
"Anyway, I better go now. Gotta see a man about an aerial castle. But first..."

You turn to Miriam. "How about a kiss for good luck?"
Miriam raises an eyebrow. "You'll have to get me drunker than that."
You chuckle. "Worth a try."

<Crash and burn. Ouch.> Mal says, clearly enjoying himself. He's not even pouring glasses for himself anymore, drinking straight out of the bottle.
<Hey, you don't even speak the language.> You respond.
<Body language and tone, Bro.> He says. <Let me guess... You asked for a kiss. For good fortune or something like that..>
<Uh...>
His grin grows. <I was spot on!>
Then he slams down the bottle, leaps from his chair, and plants a kiss on your cheek.
<Good fortune, bro!> He says, and starts cackling, falling back into his chair.

Yeah, whatever that is, it's stronger than you thought. Or he's had way too much. You grumble, wave to him and Miriam, and head out toward the temple again. There, still, the silver cabled whirlwind sits, spinning calmly. Tarda is staring at the remnant heart in her hands, focusing on it...
You scale up the rope, and give her a wave. "We ready?"
She growls in response. "Eventually, if I can get this thing to... listen."
She grits her teeth- and then, quite suddenly, the carapace on the pulsing heart cracks.
"... Oh no." She says, a moment later.

High in the sky, still slamming itself uselessly against the flying fortress' barrier, Steve thrashes itself. It's nothing but tendrils and teeth at this point- but that crack in the heart...

Your spine tingles, and three red eyes open up on Steve's mass.
It springs toward you, sailing through the sky.
It's fast. Fast enough to reach you in a matter of minutes.
"Oh, shit." Tarda says. "I fucked up."

>>28005562
"Again?!?"

Uh, uh, uh. Shout at the heart.

Rolled 62

>>28005562
Use the spell we used to make steve to unmake him?

>>28005562
"Do I have enough time to put on the flailing mass of wires?"

Rolled 18

>>28005562

fuck...

Steve is linked to the heart, we might be able to destroy him by using the link between the two or hinder him enough for us to finish him off.

Rolled 12

>>28005562
Oh, shit. Maybe we should just give Steve the heart.

Rolled 60

>>28005724
Rolling for this.

"Again?!" You ask.

You look down to the pulsating heart. "Hey! Stop that!"

It cracks more, and a tendril shoots out of the crack toward you. The end looks very pointy. You snag it, and roughly tear the tendril out.
"... It's no smarter than an animal." Tarda says, and her hands crackle with power, making the heart wince and wither. It's just lashing out. The heart's not the problem. Even if it gets destroyed, there's still that."

She points up at Steve. It's a horrendous mass of tendrils and blackened limbs, all curled behind it. As you watch, it seems to speed up somehow, yellow sparks crackling off of its carapace. It looms closer, screeching across the sky. The noise becomes a howl, as flames slowly bloom around Steve's form. As you watch, your once remnant becomes a meteor, streaking through the sky for you.
And it's roaring at you.

"Give it the heart!" You call.
"That doesn't matter!" Tarda yells back, all but inaudible. "Even if we do, it's still going to be *really* angry!"

"Do I have enough time to put on the flailing mass of wires?!"
"Yeah!" She says. "We have two, three minutes!"

You nod, and take a deep breath. Then, with only a little bit of hesitation, you step into the flailing mass of wires. The wires miss you by fractions of inches, whipping across your body.
It starts as a dull roar, just below your hearing.
The world lenses around you, your field of view trembling- as if light itself was being bent.
The temple rooftop cracks beneath you, and Tarda steps back.

>Field too long!

>>28005872
You continue walking closer, the wires whistling just past you. Once, twice, three times the wires cut little scratches into your cheek, or your arm, or melt right through one of the straps of your bag, breaking it easily.

Calmly, you step into the eye of the storm, and take ahold of Rebel's core.

Alien, foreign words mumble into your mind, coming seemingly from nowhere.
Personal Reality Field initializing.

Everything contorts around you, and the next thing you know, the storm is entirely gone. The whirling mass of silver is nowhere, nor is Rebel's core.
You look down at your hands. They look... Real. more Real than they had before. Everything had been a dull, muted grey... But now you're brightly coloured, blazing with light.
For the first time in your life, your spine has stopped tingling- a dull feeling that you'd entirely forgotten about.

Power rampages through your frame, and experimentally, you move your hand.
It Moves. As if reading your mind, the air itself feels like it's pushing you along with whatever you need to do. You're graceful, a dancer.

You take a step forward, and shift your weight. The temple rooftop cracks underneath your feet. You realize that you can hardly feel it, and when you try to push downward, your foot starts to melt through it- as if it were butter.

You feel... powerful. Steve, the screeching, flaming meteor, comes closer, ever so closer.

>What happens?

>>28005933
Compress Steve into a handheld sphere, then calm him down.

Rolled 46

>>28005933

Steve stops in mid air, unable to move an inch.

then regrettably, immense pressure will compact him beyond any autonomous functionality.

>>28005933
The once powerful remnant inexplicably loses his noteworthy mass and abilities. Now existing as a creature no bigger than a feather.

You wait.

You wait for the meteor of tendrils to come closer, screeching closely enough to all but deafen you.

In response, you raise a palm.

And then you catch him. With a single hand, you catch a being so massive as to dwarf you- possibly dwarfing the entire village center- and there's a cacaphonous blast, flames blowing out behind it.

All that force had to go somewhere, after all. It just couldn't go through you.
And you have a feeling that, in this state, nothing can go through you.

You spread your arms, and with immense force, you slowly press down on the enormous creature. It thrashes, and rages, but can't quite seem to break loose. You quite simply, quite calmly, compact him. All of that force, all of that power, pushed into nothingness. Black smoke billows out from its nooks and crannies, Steve's raw matter turning into the aetheric smoke from where he came. He shrinks and dwindles, unable to break loose, and next thing you know, you're holding a small, handheld ball of remnant flesh.

Its tendrils are all tied together. You think you can see a little bow in it. The creature struggles to loosen itself, unable to break itself free.

"... Wow." Tarda says, eyes wide. She grins. "That was *awesome*!"

She looks down at Steve.
"... Indomitable Project, huh." She says. "Way better than the Runic Project. How do you feel?"

>>28006096
"Yeah, it's alright."

"I still prefer lightning, though."

MEGA-LIGHTNING BOLT THE CASTLE.
DO IT DO IT

>>28006096

"Everything is so much clearer now."

we really should finish Steve off now, not sure how but we won't be omnipotent forever.

>>28006096
"Pretty decent thanks, what about you?"

>>28006096
Turn gravity off in a 20m radius.
Just to see if it works.

"Yeah, it's alright." You say. "Pretty decent."
Then you spring off of the rooftop, and sail forward. Gravity around you ceases to function. It's nothing more than optional. An energy you can ignore.
Indomitable, indeed. Unable to be effected by anything so long as you wish it.
You could get used to this. Then again, it could be messing with your head.
It is, Rebel whispers. It isn't safe to keep this connection too long.

"Alright?! Just alright? The most quickly made powerful project in the world, and it's just 'pretty decent'?" Tarda mutters, and blinks out of existence. But you feel her in a freeroaming domain- like something hiding behind the curtain that makes up the tapestry of reality.

You sail forward, into the sky, and copy Steve's own trick.
You speed up.

This time, though, you don't burst into flames from the friction. Instead, you gather that energy, that power. Catching it in your pores and fingers like catching seaweed in the ocean. It builds, and builds, growing in your palms and skin.
You streak through the sky, faster than you'd ever thought possible.
Faster than should be possible. A trip of several hours' walk to the city takes less than a minute.

And then, happily, you fling your gathered charge, incredible in power and in scope, straight toward the castle's barrier.

Crackling with power, the outer barrier catches it-

And absorbs it entirely. Static electricity crackles around the edges, being redirected and manipulated into uselessness.

She did tell you that Mudimuna isn't perfect, Rebel whispers in your ear. You're not omnipotent. Reality will assert itself. Keep your effects limited to yourself.

"You don't even understand what I'm trying to do here! I'm trying to save her! I'm trying to save everyone!" You hear someone snarl. You look down at a small figure standing atop the ruins of the tallest tower, the edges of the walls still smouldering with heat.
He doesn't seem to care how hot it is.

>>28006365
"For what purpose?"

"Also, did you know my mother? Please, tell me about her."

>>28006365

go up to that shield and go right through

"Sounds to me like you just want to lock everyone up inside your little domains for all eternity."

>>28006365
"I'd count attacking me multiple times with remnants as trying to kill me, but, you know what they say, different strokes for different folks."

You swoop down, landing on the barrier- and melting through with just a thought.

"For what purpose?" You ask, landing agily on the jade balcony.
You sink down to your ankles, too unused to this for fine control.
"Time passes!" He calls. "People die, people get hurt, people get lost and lonely and go mad! How many people do you know who have gotten hurt, or killed? How many people have you seen grow ill or starve or want for money or food or shelter? What if one could conjure all of those things, easily, effortlessly?"
"Sounds to me like you just want to lock everyone up inside your little domains for all eternity?"
"No." He says. "That's a stopgap measure. What if people lived without bodies, beings of pure energy? Able to see the stars, travel at the speed of thought? Made up purely of will? What if we could shed our skins and don them when we wish? This is all I've been working toward! I want to turn us all into gods! There could be nothing wrong with that, nothing at all!"
"You attacked me multiple times with remnants. I'd count that as trying to kill me." You say.
"One life for the rest of them." He says. "I had no choice but to try. You've allied yourself with that traitor, the Third. And why? Because she gave you *power*? Because she didn't attack you immediately when she was freed? What good have you seen her do? Does she seem and act like a good person? Does she try to make everything better for everyone?"

>>28006557
"But what about the people who wouldn't want that?"

Anyway, I'm down for atomizing this guy.

>>28006557
"she has restraint, and humility." "over all far less dangerous than some one wanting TO change THE WORLD

>>28006557
"No, because she doesn't break the rules."

>>28006557

"People will always be people, even with your solution, they will grow bored, they will grow restless, what will happen if they come across some other world, one with its own people living there?"

You are a wizard, are you not? If you are then you should know,death is a part of life as life is a part of death. One cannot exist without the other.

"She has restraint. And humility." You say.
"Psh, the Third? Who spouts about her skill and genius, when she was just handed everything by her master? Who lived in the life of luxury, being given the easiest projects and the highest ranking because of her fath-"
"Enough!" Tarda calls, bursting out of her domain. She slings a blast of light at Kaederi, but he knocks it away with an on-the-spot barrier. "You broke the rules! You BROKE. The RULES."
"Don't change the world. Not for the better, not for the worse." He says, his voice low. "No cataclysms. That rule, right?"
"Yes, that rule!" She snarls. "Do you want another Shroud to happen again?"
She flings another blast of lightning. Kaederi blocks it again.

"Yes." He says. "The shroud isn't bad. It's misguided. It changes people to make them faster, stronger, heal quickly. Have you ever met a *weak* mutant? That they go mad most of the time is just a sad coincidence."
"You bastard! You'd destroy everything just to prove your idea works?" Tarda yells.

"And what about the people who wouldn't want that?" You cut in, your voice calm.
Both of them look at you.

"What about the people who don't want to shed their forms, or become energy beings like you said?" You ask.
"Well, they'd have the choice not to." He says. "I'm offering the option, not forcing anyone to do anything. It's for the greater good."
"People will always be people. Even with your solution, they will grow bored, they will grow restless. What will happen if they come across some other world, one with its own people living there?"
"Then we bring them that very same choice!" He responds.
"You mean destroy them as well." Tarda says. "People aren't people unless they have homes, and friends. Magic isn't everything!"
"Magic isn't everything." Kaederi says. He draws it out, enlongating the words. "This, from you? You of all people? You don't even see mundanes as *people*!"

>>28006799
"And forcing all of Kystara into a soul-vault was their choice as well?"

>>28006799

"While I have noticed that, she never forced her views/ideas on these *mundanes* and saved my friend and my own life."

"By the way, what in the city could be important enough for you to fight over it so fiercely?"

>>28006925
Oh yeah, I completely forgot about them.

Ask him about Kyssd. And if he's so crazy from touching the dragon dome.

>>28006799
"Your ideas have merit, but they are morally bankrupt."

"And forcing all of Kystara into a soul-vault was their choice as well?"
"I had no choice!" He responds. "She pushed for a war that would kill tens of thousands, all so she could prove her rune magic! This was the only way I could think of that would stop anybody from getting hurt!"
"I'm not denying that." Tarda responds. "But what I was doing wasn't against the rules." She says.
"Oh, so you can murder who you want, as long as you don't make things better? Are these your rules?" He asks.
"You ask too many rhetorical questions." She simply says.

"She never forced her views or ideas on these mundanes. She saved my friend and my own life." You say. "Your ideas have merit, but they are morally bankrupt. But I have another question. What in the city could be important enough for you to fight over it so fiercely?"
"Kyssd." He responds. "You've seen her. You know who she is. She's trapped there, and she's been trapped there since time itself started. She's the lynchpin that holds the world together. Holds it up. Could you imagine the loneliness? The Titan, all alone, with nothing but beasts and monsters for company? I want to save everyone I can."

"... Titan again." Tarda says. "What is this Titan?"
"The god who holds the world up." You say. "In myth."
"Exactly." He says. "Kyssd is her. This world *is* Kyssd. Neither of you know what the anomaly truly is, but I do. I know why it's there."
"Oh? Then what is it?" You ask.
"A hole." He says. "To the world outside. To the world above. Where she waits alone for us to join her."
Something about those words make you shiver, incredible power or no.
"We're all in her head, waiting to break free. It's obvious, so obvious!" He calls.

Quietly, someone whispers into your mind.
He's wrong, Rebel says. He's insane.

>>28007079
Just kill him already.

>>28007079
"Maybe. Maybe not. All I know is that I'm on a floating castle, staring down a mad man, and I've got the power to do anything. You feeling lucky?"

>>28007127
Add "Punk" to the end and you've got a deal.

>>28007079

"I've talked to her, she didn't want me or anyone else there with her and is perfectly happy in the company of her beasts."

>>28007079
"You sound pretty sure about that. Have you talked to her?"

"Maybe." You say. "Maybe not. All I know is that I'm on a floating castle, staring down a madman, and I've got the power to do anything. You feeling lucky, punk?"
"You can't do anything." He says. "If you destroy this place, you're killing thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of people. And if you harm me, you kill everyone that will ever die!"

"I've talked to her!" You call. "She didn't want me or anyone else there with her! She's perfeclty happy in the compaany of her beasts."
"You LIE!" He roars, and slams a blast of something at you. It hardly phases you.
"You sound pretty sure about that. Have you talked to her?"
"She doesn't speak!" He says. "She never sees me! She stares into the trees and mutters to her monster like it was her *friend*!"
He's mad, Rebel says. He's... jealous.

Kaederi glares. "Do it. Kill me. All of Kystara is here watching you traitors, working against the nation's interests. Watch them judge you. They're built into this place, sleeping and awaiting the day where they can wake up in truth."
Tarda's eyes widen. "Don't. If you kill him, we won't be able to extract his Talent."
That's when your eyes, as accurate as anything, notices something drip from his sleeve.
Mud. The skin of his upper arm is sloughing off into mud.
"Do it! Kill me! Be done with it! Kill Kystara! If you're capable of doing everything, then do it already!"

Rebel realizes it as you do.
He's a doppelganger.
The real Kaederi is somewhere else.
And Rebel can't feel him in the castle.

>>28007283
10 GOTO DRAGON_DOME

>>28007283
Drop to the frozen dragon thing! Right through his castle.

"Keep the jade palace safe, Tarda."

>>28007283

Shit, I think he might be down at the Dome.

quickly, what do our god eyes see?

Rolled 94

>>28007283
>"Kyssd." He responds. "You've seen her. You know who she is. She's trapped there, and she's been trapped there since time itself started. She's the lynchpin that holds the world together. Holds it up. Could you imagine the loneliness? The Titan, all alone, with nothing but beasts and monsters for company? I want to save everyone I can."

stab the doppelganger and replace it with the real him

>>28007283
The girl asked us to leave, so I think we're actually in the right of this. She doesn't really want to be found.

It's going to be satisfying to squish this guy.

>>28007283
Can we teleport?

Teleport him to us.

>>28007310
This, but also destroy the castle.

>>28007363

no man, he built the Kystaran people INTO the castle stones.

we already disabled the ritual portion so it should be relatively safe.

"... Shit." You say. "Tarda, keep the palace safe!"
"What?" She asks.

You can't teleport anything, Rebel says. It would drain you entirely to try. The city's too far below.
You don't respond. Instead, you look down at your feet. And below, where the dragon dome sits.

So you do the reasonable thing, and swim through the solid material of the jade fortress. You fall, tumbling through solid objects, skimming across the surface of reality, and fall straight down toward the ground. Toward the town hall.

Something vaguely humanoid slams into you... And slows you.
Slows you enough to be worrying, in fact.

Failure stares up at you, all three thousand eyes staring at you.
"Rebel." It snarls. It touches you- and your arm tingles painfully. You feel that strange brilliance grow weaker.
"I'll drain you of everything you have!" It snarls.

You tear yourself away, and continue falling. But the humanoid being tears toward you, becoming a smear as it shoots down at you.
From below, every single inch of available rooftop is covered in anti-air remnants, all loyal to the being who currently hates the Project you're wearing.
The bolts don't hurt much- like small bumps- but there's enough to be worrying.

Worst of all... You feel weaker. Just a single touch weakened you.

>You'll need to start rolling now, if you wish to do something.

Failure tears out of the sky, darting directly toward you. You're still some distance from the ground- you'll need to take care of him. Should be easy...
No, Rebel says. It's not easy.

They've relearned wizardry. All of those minds inside of Failure... Have relearned their rituals again.

>What's the plan?

Rolled 84

>>28007453
Erase them from existence.

Rolled 30

>>28007453
Create metal lances inside our sphere of influence, and throw them at all the anti-air remnants on the ground.

Throw a few fireballs at Failure.

Rolled 98

>>28007453

avoid getting touched by Failure at all cost, leave a wall of compressed air behind to slow him down, weave through the stuff getting shot at us keep going down in to the ground.

>need to sleep.
>good luck gentlemen.

>>28007542
I wonder what kind of roll rules we're going with here. Best of three to reflect INFINITE POWER?

>DC: 75. Success!

Erase them from existence.
What does that mean, exactly?
What does that mean for Failure?
A being made of a dozen different minds, coming to a strange, eerie consensus. Driven by hatred and fear of death, and little else.
An immortal being, who returns each time it's killed...

It's simple, you think.

<Oblivion.> You say. You're glad you chose to give the rune to Tarda back when she'd asked.

The rune within you vibrates, shudders, and cracks. Mudimuna beings buzzing and thrumming with power. The domain erects itself around Failure, encapsulating it...
And you quite simply push that domain outside of reality before it can collapse.
It will collapse out there.

You whirl around, not even watching as Failure screeches into the void, disintegrating before it can even touch you a second time.
Below, the anti-air remnants look up at you- and then start melting, and howling in pain and agony. They aren't even trying to fight anymore. You weave between the buildings, roll until your feet are facing the ground, and stick the landing perfectly. You're only sunken in less than an inch into the ground. You're getting the hang of this.

>Field too long!

>>28007683

In front of you sits the town hall, guarded by the strange eyespheres Kaederi once had on his jade castle. They light up, preparing to fire, but you wave your arm first. Lances of metal tear out, manifested from nothing, and all two dozen of them collapse, their eyes pierced.

You simply walk in. A golem set to guard the place, made of blue crystal, swings both arms down at you.
With a thrust of your palm, you effortlessly shatter the thing's torso, and make for the basement.
You walk down the steps, noting that the traps had mostly been disarmed. He's here. He's definitely here, somewhere. When you get to the bottom, you see him.
Wearing green armor, Kaederi stands facing you and the doorway, behind the dome.
He gives you a strange, eerie smile. his hands are stuck within the dome, flashing with power.
"This is the trump card." He says. "This is why I let you take the book here in the first place. So that the Third would make something using my research instead of her own knowledge. Because this... this eats away at everything I make. Even your new power can't stand it."

The sphere swells, and crackles. Frost crawls along the ground. He gives you a sickly grin, large bags underneath his eyes. This has to be the real deal- the doppelgangers you've seen have been in perfect shape- not sickly or tired with bloodshot eyes at all.

>>28007697
Stick our own hands in the dome.
Fuck you, K man. We're gonna do whatever it is you're doing but better.

Rolled 11

>>28007697
Grab him and pull him out of the sphere.

"She doesn't want to be saved, man."
"She just wants to be left alone."

Rolled 18

Here have a roll

>>28007767
Read the sticky.

Rolled 21

>>28007697
"Okay..."

"Hey, you know, she calls the Dragon Bruun."

Rolled 75

Want another?

>>28007767
rolling for myself

Rolled 18

>>28007737
Roll for this.

>>28007807
FUCK

forgot the +

Rolled 40

perhaps the 4th time ill get it right....?

DC: 125. Success!

"She doesn't want to be saved, man." You say, your voice low. "She just wants to be left alone."
"Nobody wants to be alone." He says. "It's human nature!"
You take a step closer, and the dome throbs, some kind of shockwave making you stumble. It feels like something's peeling off your 'brightness', taking it away.

"She calls the dragon Bruun, you know."
He grits his teeth, and plunges his hands further in. "No." He says. "You don't understand!"
"I'm pretty sure I do." You say, and shove your hands up to your elbows into the dome.

As soon as you do, Mudimuna falls from you. Pain.
Rebel howls, the core springing away from you, rolling across the ground. Silver cables are suddenly wrapped around your limbs, constraining you, making it impossible to move.
Pain.

It's cold. It's terrible. It's terrible.
It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. You grit your teeth, and push on.
"You don't even know what you're doing!" Kaederi calls. "You fool! You'll go mad!"
You give him a cruel rictus of a grin in return. Something ebbs within the sphere, something terrible. Something grinding, howling...

It's about to break. Something's about to break. You don't know what you're doing, but Kaederi does... And whatever the two of you are doing, it's at cross-purposes. So you do the obvious thing, and push harder.
Everything's gotta give eventually.

And with a crack, the anomaly gives. The great dome cracks, a grand split down the middle. Like shattered glass, the shards of domestuff crumple to the ground...
And land where the dragon was. The dome is, quite suddenly, entirely gone. In its place is nothing but glass shards. A pile of nothing.
You aren't sure what it was, but... you just ... destroyed it, somehow.
Kaederi howls in anguish- and then, quite promptly, faints.

Which is when you notice that your hands are gone. In their place is nothing but rust, slowly crumbling.
You follow suit, fainting as well.

>Field too long!

>>28007955
You open your eyes to find your entire body aching. Your legs hurt, your back hurts, your shoulders ache, and your arms feel like you've just wrestled a jackolope with your bare hands.

.... Your hands! You look down at them to find them still there, still intact.
"Lucky thing that part worked out." Tarda suddenly says. You look around, taking in your surroundings. You're lying on a table, somewhere in the town hall. Kaederi is nowhere to be seen.
"Part?" You ask.
"It was a very complicated thing, you know, Mudimuna was." She says. "Doppelganger is a funny spell. Doesn't like metal, see. It was a hell of a time getting the doppelganger ritual to work with silver. But I'm not Third Wizard for nothing."

She stretches. "Oh well. All's well that ends well! How you feeling?"

>Here's where you bombard her with questions, if you want.

>>28008032
"Wait, let me figure this one out for myself."

"You doppleganger'd me, then kept my real body asleep, stuck the metal body in Indomitable, and left it at that?"

Rolled 82

>>28008032
Wait... what? I'm a doppleganger?
Where's Kalderi?

Did we win?

>>28008032
"Everybody's okay?"

Rolled 46

>>28008067
If that's the case, how on earth did we manage to get a metal doppleganger drunk? And how did we not time out and melt?

>>28008032
"You know, I was joking about it being 'alright' earlier. It was great."

>>28008032
"Are you saying I wasted good alcohol on a body that couldn't get drunk?"

>>28008032
Wait, are we still young, or are we old again?

"Wait, what? I'm a doppelganger? Are you saying I wasted good alchohol on a body that couldn't get drunk?"
"No, you *were* a doppelganger. You-"
"Wait, let me figure this one out for myself. You doppelgangered me, then kept my real body asleep, stuck the metal body in indomitable, and left it at that?"
"Nope! Wrong." She says. "Indomitable itself was a doppelganger. When you entered it, it automatically created you as a doppelganger. Your real self was right by it, in a formless domain. In the same 'location', really. So subtle you never noticed the fact you had two bodies. I just thought, you know, just in case."
You sigh, and relax.
"Where's Kaederi?"

She holds up a jade sphere. "In here." She says. "He and you were out for a few hours, so I looked through his notes until I found out what he did to the kystaran populace. Did the same thing to him. He'll stay asleep until I wake him up to extract his talent."
"Did we win?"
"... If you count destroying a priceless anomaly winning, then yes." She says, and shoots you a grin. "Good work. I'm giving you a raise."
You chuckle, and lay back.
"You know, I was joking about it being 'alright' earlier. It was great."
"I know." She says. "Rebel told me everything."
"... Is everybody okay?"
"You are, and I am." She says. "As for Rebel..."
She holds up the core. It's cracked, with a large chunk missing.
"She's kind of... bothered right now. She can't reach out, but at least she can't read minds anymore. I can still talk to her, though."

You sit up, and check yourself over. For a moment, you were worried that you'd gotten older, but you still look the same...
"Don't worry, you're still ageless." She says.

>>28008215
"Most excellent."
"Can you thank Rebel for me? He was helpful."

>>28008215
Sorry about that, Rebel. I should have realised that you couldn't go in there.

I guess I was kind of hoping you could help me out with the whole "a world that isn't this one" thing.

>>28008215
We should have a moment of silence for Steve. He was a good remnant. A minion of excellence.

Ask Rebel if talked to the girl in the sphere.

>>28008215
"What now?"

>>28008215
"Do you think Failure will return from that erase move I pulled on it?"

You take a deep breath, and push your protesting body to sit up. "Can you thank Rebel for me? He was helpful."
"Alright." She says.
"And tell him I'm sorry, too. I should have realized that he couldn't go in there."
"Will do."
A few moments later, you're sitting on one of the chairs, stretching.
"Do you think Failure will return from that erase move I pulled on it?"
"... I don't think so." She says. "I had to retroscry- Not easy, mind you- to find out what happened there. You didn't just send it somewhere. You sent it nowhere. You piped it to Null. You made it cease to exist. There's nothing left to regenerate. What you pulled there... Mudimuna was definitely not designed for. Totally awesome, but not meant to happen."
You nod. This almost feels like an anticlimax. You sit there for a short time, watching Tarda talk wordlessly Rebel for a few minutes.
"So, what now?" You ask.
"Hmmm...." She says, looking to the ceiling. "The way I see it, you have a few choices ahead of you. It's only been a few hours, so I'm sure you could catch up with that girl and her father, if you wanted. You could go with them, deal with all of their political bullshit. If you go that way, I have a premonition you'd end up falling into power and prestige. Maybe even become a knight, or you'd end up becoming some kind of a mercenary."
She taps her nose. "Or you could go with the barbarian kid. With his beastmaster powers, he'll probably end up with his little pocket kingdom, and you'll live a relaxing life in luxury."

>Field too long! As usual!

>>28008535
Then she grins. "And you have another choice! Hang around here as my assistant. Help me handle returning the kystaran people to their homes, have me train you as my apprentice when I learn to remove people's talents, and maybe a few bouts of wild sex now or then."

You blink.

"Hey, you're the one who threw the lightning. Not my fault that was hot as hell." She says, matter-of-factly.

Another choice occurs to you- one she didn't mention.
You could probably go back. Bring more notes to your clients, call the job impossible or done, and take another job. You know E.E has them lined up for you.
And hell, maybe you'll actually find out how to kill him someday.

>What do you plan to do, Wanderer?
>Are you actually going to take a name?
>If so, which one?

Rolled 91

>>28008565
Stay or go with Ann.
As much as I like Mal, I think the other 2 are more interesting.

>>28008565
Stay with Tarda. Take up the name Strelok officially.

>>28008535
That's a shame. Failure was a pretty cool guy.
Aside from the ravening hared of Rebel, of course.

>>28008565
I think we should stay with Tarda or follow Mal. Mal is the best bro. And magic's pretty cool.

Let's make a new name. Something that says "Saviour of a whole race of dudes."
Like Steve.

Rolled 57

>>28008624
i second this motion

we need to set ourselfs up as a badass mage

>>28008565
What happened to the five years thing? We're good at killing people and such, but not at returning people to their homes.

Chilling with Mal for 5 years then heading back to learn wizard shit under Tarda was my original plan.

Staying with Tarda is fine as well I guess.

>>28008565
Stay, but visit Mal, and if Ann ever needs help we'll be there. If she wins we'll need to visit.

>>28008658
I (>>28008625) Support this! Best of both worlds. Maybe not the full 5 years away, though.

>>28008658
Supporting Bro time then wizard stuff

Stay

>>28008853
>Best of Both Worlds.

"I know what I'll do." You say, and get to your feet.
"Oh? What is it?" She asks. "What are you going to do?"
"Well, first things first." You say. "We have to put Rebel in the body of that naga, right? Then I'll go with Mal for a bit. I'll be back when the five years are up, though. I'm not one for putting people back in their homes."
Tarda gives you a wide grin.

===

Within the halls of Malchack's Homestead, a strange advisor lived there. His name was Tarrasque- A strange name, an unnatural one. He was young, very much so, but his eyes carried with them a strange weight. He was calm, and slow to act- but when foreign chieftans arrived bearing tarrasques of terrific strength and power, Malchack's loyal friend fought them off by his side. A true terror in combat- filled with so many near brushes with death and mortal combat with monsters that even two sky-tarrasques didn't strike fear into his heart. At his comrade's side, The Wanderer stopped Wandering... But only for a time, only for a short, short time.
He was, after he was gone, called a firework. He was brilliant, blinding, and then he was gone.

But he wasn't gone forever.

===

Steve, the Unranked Wizard walks through the halls, bruises from his confronation with a troglodyte marking his hands, arms, and face. A bandage was wrapped around one leg where he'd been tugged underwater by it, but he didn't limp.
After all, after fighting two demons and a Stalker, a little thing like a trog wasn't much.
The Kystaran council was still deliberating as he walked into the town hall.
They were arguing, of course, as the hodge-podge group had always done since they were freed from their prisons. There was quite a lot of problems, especially with all of the lelan immigrants, but things were just starting to settle down.
At least, they would if all of the council members knew the same language.

>Field too long!

>>28008897

The argument they were having this time was about Steve himself. The crux of the situation was that Steve was not actually a very good wizard.
He was very powerful, though. Very skilled, taught by a genius among geniuses... But he didn't research at all. He spent no time working on his magic, after having learned a spell. A few days to hone something, yes, but he never spent long on it. He always left to places unknown, places unheard of, and quite a few times answered summons sent from foreign lands.

But he also had an asset in his pocket that nobody else did. He had the strange, inhuman being known as Isaac Cromwell in his pocket.

Before he left the chambers that day, he was named Seventeenth High Wizard.
At that precise moment, after the council proclaimed his new title, the door slammed open. A tall, long legged woman strode forth. A large, hound-like dragon stood by her side, almost as large as a horse.
"Hey." Ann says, shoulders high and voice confident. "Dad needs your help. Again. The norns are having apoplectic fits about something or other again."
"Yeah, yeah, I know." The Wanderer said. He called up his magic, and that tell-tale tingling in his spine started up.
A moment later, he was gone.

>End of Session.
>End of Ascent Quest.
>Here's where you guys can ask literally anything about the setting, about the story, etc. Everything is spoilers now.
>Plus, in a few days I'll be writing epilogues for the paths you didn't choose, and such. They'll be linked on my twitter.

>>28008930
Thanks for running, Exabyte.

>>28008930
Such a neat and tidy end I don't even have any questions.

>>28008930
Was there ever meant to be anything more to Kyssd?

Whatup with the Nystaran shroud?

>>28008930
What happened to Bruno, in the end? Does he still like having his belly tickled?

Did Steve have to die?

How did the lelan looters deal with the return of kystara?

>>28008930
>Never got to ride on a Tarrasque
ultimate sadness

>>28008930
So, what happened in Delura?

>>28008930
Uh..can we start playing as grown up Ann and Bruno?

>>28009044
>Kyssd
Kyssd was a lot of things. I didn't have anything in mind for her except that Kaederi wanted to free her, and I never quite developed that as much as I should have.
Essentially, what she is is the 'representation' of humankind in the world. As Bruun was the representation of dragons, and various other monsters were representations of different species in the world.

>Nystaran Shroud
Originally, it was just radioactive smog. But then someone mentioned that it was probably nanobots, so I decided 'why the fuck not' and made it nanobots.

The shroud is nanobots. It was made back before Nystara's fall, and was directly responsible for it. It keeps getting produced by the 'Thousand Towers', which is a large military complex with an AI set to be at war with everything ever because that's what all AIs do in the apocalypse.

>>28009081
>Bruno
He becomes as large as a horse. Ann rides him around, and the guy can spit flames.
He also loooooves his belly being scratched. He's also started licking people he likes, and being much more energetic.

>Steve
Yep. He had to die. The guy was powerful as hell, but at a cost of incredible degeneration. While the Wanderer had the remnant heart, he could be controlled because the two resonated, but when the heart was gone, Steve was lost forevermore.

>Lelan Looters
Tarda slapped the shit out of them, turned off their runes remotely, and said 'behave or get out'. They listened. Eventually.

>>28009096
>Tarrasque
Hey, if your friend can summon and control huge-ass monsters, you get to ride them whenever the hell you want. The Wanderer ended up riding every type. Even the burrowing type. That was hard as hell.

>>28009152
Marcus was killed in combat. He took out three knights and actually killed someone who had the *concept of death* removed from them through witch magic, but it was done. Ann grew up, and is currently in the running for the war. Witches don't like her at *all*.

>>28009166
What's there to do?

>>28009166
>>28009195
Probably not. I could probably think up something to do, but I want to take another break from questing for a bit. If I do start a new quest, it most likely won't be in Ascent Quest's setting. And if it is, there won't be any already-named characters featured. Except maybe Leroy. He wasn't even a supporting character, and I rather liked him.

>>28009184
Did you plan Marcus to be such a drag pre-revelation?

Because if so, bravo.

>>28009184
Why don't the witches like her?

And what's Dalton up to?

>>28008930
This was really fun Exa, really tidy ending too. Much improved from PsiQ.

>>28009195
I would expect there to be some kind of exciting adventure around for a teenage dragon rider. I mean really come the fuck on.

>>28009184
What are witches? Was Miriam a witch?
Did the wanderer hit on all of Mal's sisters?
How would EE react if we made trying to kill him a thing that we did every time we met him?
Is horseBruno still chubby?

>>28009184
>The shroud is nanobots
I fucking called it.

What other coolthings(tm) were there in Nystara? Nukes? More brainbots?

>>28009184
Is Tarda dead now or something?

>>28009218
This setting is a lot of fun and surprisingly rich and deep. We changed the world here, I would love to see the echoes of our old adventures affect new ones and shit

>>28009184
What was E.E.?

Who would win in a fight between E.E. and Strelok now?

>>28009243
Yeah. One thing about Marcus is that he's loyal. He's got a mission. That's was his primary character concept. He was a mirror version of the Prodigy that you guys hadn't chosen at chargen, in a way. I tried to get across that he was extremely sheltered and hadn't seen much outside of his military. After his revelation, though, he felt betrayed. Not only by you, but by his commanders, by his superiors, by *everybody*. He couldn't even finish his mission because it was impossible. So he decided to spite everyone he could.

>>28009287
>Witches
Miriam was not a witch. Witches are deluran women with the Talent. Their magic doesn't work by rituals, but by 'trading'. Equivalent Exchange, in a way. Trade away an object with enough nebulous 'value', and you have a fireball. So witches work for a profit. If you want, say, to get rid of acne, a witch will want you to give them something worth *more* than that.
The powerful ones can trade concepts. The ability to blink, someone's concept of death, colorsightedness, etc.

>Mal's sisters
Yes. Even the cute one.

>EE
He'd think it was hilarious, and would encourage you.

>Bruno
He worked off most of his fat, but he got a lot better at curling up.

>>28009310
There were a *lot* of notes to go through. She's still alive, but after finishing the wanderer's training, she pretty much cloistered herself up. She still comes out now and then, but it's rare.

>>28009288
Yes. All of it. Nystara was incredibly technologically advanced before its fall. Nanobots, teleporters, gravitational control, genetically modified life... There are probably still satellites functioning and repairing themselves, chirping away for a signal that will eventually come.
Nystara was based off of Qud from Caves of Qud.

>>28009385
What did Miriam trade?

Her soul?

>>28009385
Please tell me the Cute sister punched Strelok in the nuts.

Then walked away with her nose in the air.

>>28009385
Did we still go and see Mal every now and then?

What a bro.

>>28009384
E.E is a mercenary. Was a mercenary. At least, until he died.

A Stalker brought him back. Nobody knows why, not even him.
Because the Stalkers are sapient, insane people from before Nystara's fall. This one just wanted to help after accidentally killing him.

He's got nanobots in his body, because of it. Which is why he doesn't age, why he's superhumanly strong and fast...

Strelok The Wanderer would probably win, because he could 'lol nothingness' and cast the ritual to shunt E.E into null, as he did to Failure. In a straight up fight, though, without bullshit trump cards, it would be questionable.

>>28009436
Souls aren't actually a Thing, really. Soulforce is, but that's pretty much all of someone's mental stats. If she traded that away, she'd be a vegetable.

She traded away her memories of her father. Some of them, at least. Her most beloved ones.

>>28009461
Yes, she did. Then again, he was also a handsome mysterious man she'd been hearing about from letters from her half-brother for a few weeks, so that reaction was mostly due to embarassment.

>>28009480
Hey, if you can teleport to a place where, your best bro and his dozens of attractive sisters live, you definitely would.
Fun fact- Galdian society is kind of funny about siblings. You could technically call his gaggle of sisters Mal's harem.

>>28009508
>She traded away her memories of her father
:'(

>>28009508
Does Miriam ever stop being a butt about things?

>>28009508
Were you expected more crit successes and crit fails? Most rolls were predictably average.

>>28009595
Not really. She's kind of bitter about how things turned out for her.

>>28009609
I did, honestly.

Though if anyone's curious, here's the rule system I made up for the quest. The whole skill difference thing didn't make much difference, because the Wanderer was the all-rounder option, but it was still there; http://pastebin.com/VnEFi8cg

>>28009650
Thanks for the fun.

>>28009650
Thanks for running Exabyte.

Will your next quest be a continuation of one of your unfinished quests?

>>28009873
Psion Quest mk2

>>28009873
I think there was some mention of Vale Quest 2: Electric Valealoo after this.

>>28009888
OH GAWD NO

I loved this quest for it's calm, set-back atmosphere. It's great to take a break from scheming with other anons to just play some guy fighting and shooting the shit with bros and hot wizards or little noble princess girls with an adorable pudgy dragon.

I'll miss looking forward to what adventures we go on with Mal, how badass Steve is and crazy magic shit with Tarda. Overall, pretty fun and chill,

>>28009650
Did Strelok have wild sex with Tarda?

>>28009921
Definitely the best atmosphere of any of Exa's quest. I mean not a single shitstorm.

>>28009943
Yeah, it was kinda boring.

>>28009943
There was a mild breeze over the beastmaster bones charm but that was pretty much nothing.

>>28009965
Not if you follow Shadow Quest. It was a a relief.

>>28009978
I guess we could call that a flatulent breeze as opposed to a shit storm?

>>28010000
Sure, why not.

>>28009873
I don't think so. It might be, but I doubt it.

My next quest might involve something I'm calling the 'LONG TERM GOAL COUNTER', where players can vote to add or remove goals from the list of character goals at the start each thread.

>>28009921
It was pretty calm and set-back, but it felt kind of boring to me.

>>28009929
I suppose so. I mean, once he's magic too then pretty much all of her personal taboos have no issue with him.

>>28010182
So wizards can only get with wizards? But wizards are too busy wizarding to be social, and being social means sharing secrets, which is against wizarding.
Being a wizard must suck.

>>28010251
Not wizards. Just Tarda. She's a little messed up. She does, after all, not feel much empathy for nonwizards. It's hard to see them as equals, for her, because they can't cause storms or bend reality over a table and have their dirty way with it like she can.

>>28010277
What happened to Dalton?

>>28010277
Who was Strelok's Father and what did his mother do?

>>28010324
Was about to ask this.

Mother got called a traitor a couple times. Did you have anything else planned that we didn't find out?

>>28010300
Dalton, for the most part, followed Ann. He essentially paved her way into the Succession War for her. He never got his knighthood back, but Ann earned one herself through fighting assassins.

Funny fact, that, because the queen is actually ageless due to a deal made with witches. It'll be a long time before the War will ever end.

>>28010324
>>28010395

Politics happened. She was a council-member for a particularly small town in northern kystara, the same town Kaederi grew up in. Eventually, a big bad wizard showed up, tried to lay on the charm, and she rejected him. He pulled strings to have her exiled because she was just a mundane chick who wouldn't put out. Kaederi didn't know much about it, and heard it was 'treason' and made assumptions.

Strelok's father was a kindly man who gave Palla a place to stay for a short while, before basically booting her out when she got pregnant.

I was tempted for a while to make his father E.E, but I figured that would just be a shitty twist.

>>28010426
>the queen is actually ageless

So Strelok kinda became an immortal killer, huh?

>>28010426
How did Palla die?

>>28010426
Anything you expected us to do/not do during the quest?

for example, use the nystaran anti-cube bomb to fend off the wave of monsters.

>>28010599
She got ill. Age and sickness caught up to her.

>>28010744
Well, for one, I intended Tarda to be the bad guy. Kaederi was the reasonable one, albeit paranoid. I'd expected you to work for him instead.
That's the only big thing I can think of, though.

>>28010778
>Tarda to be the bad guy
What changed her mind?

>>28010798
The story did, honestly. I changed her to be more reasonable when you gave her the book. I still kept her mostly evil, but she mostly did things to make sure she had useful people helping her- which meant not doing things too terrible. She was weak, so having a tough mundane helping her was a great boon for her.

Did Tarda ever bake cookies?

>>28010893
Yeah, I was definitely thinking to myself that Tarda was evil while we were working with her. We just never really had a chance to flip without it backfiring completely on us. Also locked paths and all that.