>>36549261

Autumn steps toward you. “Meanwhile, one of us could tail Sylvas or Hugoth, see if they do anything suspicious.” She shrugs.
Vi lands on your head. “We have to see if there is any truth to what Sylvas said about the soil.”
“That would mean we would have to potentially kill someone.” You say solemnly.
“It’s up to you leader, but it would be better for us to know.” Vi taps the top of your head with her hand.
“Where’s Cecilia?” Autumn says with a small note of alarm in her voice.

You turn back to where you last saw her and see nothing there but a barren patch of soil. You then look all around you, but see nothing but treefolk.

“Cecilia!” You call out, again and again.

No response.

Vi sighs. “I’m sure she’s fine, she probably just off exploring or playing some place. We’ve got more pressing issues right now.”
You have to admit that she may be right, but it really isn’t like Cecilia to stray too far away from the group. There are three of you now and only a few hours left.

Assign one, two, or all of your group members to do an activity.

>Talk to Dynlos

>Secretly follow Hugoth

>Secretly follow Sylvas

>Test the how deadly the soil is.

>Look for Cecilia

>Write in.

Bumping just once.
;_;

>>36549323

>Test the how deadly the soil is

>>36549803
Hello!
For this choice you can put different people to do different things, but if you aren't familiar with the quest then I will just put the whole group to do the activity.

>>36549865
Put everyone on it I guess.

>>36549865
>Writing
Unfortunately, I'm afraid I don't want to go for too long if it's just one person, but I will remain hopeful!

>>36549950
That's probably for the best.

Sorry didn't see this come on, 2 here now.

>>36550033
Yeah same here, I just got home a few minutes ago.

>>36550033
>>36550069
Welcome! Good to have you here.

>>36550095
Just woke up, sorry for the latenees Ari.

>>36549261
>Secretly follow Hugoth
Vi

>Test the how deadly the soil is.
Ed

>Look for Cecilia
Iron Girl Autumn

>>36549950
You rub your both your temples in an attempt to sooth your stressed head.

A long sigh leaves you. “I hope you’re right about Cecilia.” You turn to the unruly treefolk in the distance. They’re still going at it.
You crouch down and pick up a small hand full of the barren earth beneath you. “Let’s see go see about that soil then.”
“Are you sure you want to go through with it?” Vi says with a note of surprise on her voice.
You raise your hand close to her. “We have to be.”

Once she takes some soil into her small hands, you offer the same to Autumn.

“We’re with you, boss.” Autumn says confidently and smiles.
Your heart beats quickly as you lead your group to where the treefolk are fighting each other. You clench the soil in your hand tightly as the raucous yells become clearer with each step.
You stare ahead. “Split up and pretend that you’re watching the fight. Act when you know you won’t be caught. If we don’t get a chance, we’ll have to get someone after they’re done fighting.” You say seriously to your group.

Autumn gives you a thumbs up, with some soil dropping from her hand and then runs off ahead. Vi gives you a reassuring pat with her foot and then flies overhead.
Bark is striped as hard, heavy blows are exchanged. This is wild, reckless fighting without any sort of discipline. You step as close as you dare. Excited shouts sound out all around you as treefolk cheer on the fighters. The noise is punctuated with the scraping sound of punches being exchanged.

Directly across the fighting circle, stands Autumn, intently watching the fight. You think that maybe she wouldn’t mind taking on one herself, but as you do one of the fighters is shoved into the crowd, landing hard on the ground right next to where you’re standing, sending leaves flying everywhere.
You gulp and what would appear to an outside observer, quickly bend to help the fighter up. You reach out your soil-filled hand.

Roll 1d20 , best result of three.

>>36550598
No problem at all! I'm glad to have you here now.

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>36550639
Eat it bitch, or birch, or whatever you are.

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>36550639
I was here all along, I just didn't post at first to make you feel bad.

Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>36550639

>>36550639

>>36550689
Dude that's just plain fucked up.

>>36550678
>>36550689
>>36550706

RIP Ed.

Also just got here as well, Auri!

>>36550689
Well that's shitty.

I only posted first so he wouldn't.

>>36550689
Well that's kind of mean, but I can't stay mad at you, since you were honest.
>>36550711
"Noko+dice+1d20 in the email/options field will roll a 1d20 for you.
>>36550737
He's not going to die from just that! Also, welcome! It's good to have you here.
>>36550749
If you are the first person to post, I appreciate it. I really wanted to quest today, I've been looking forward to it.

>Writing

>>36550829
>"Noko+dice+1d20
I know how to roll dice, Ari.
My l33t keyboard just auto filled the "e" in it as a "3".

>>36550892
You sure youre not lying?

>>36550943
62 percent sure. It's a customized board for my phone.

Ammusingly I still forgot to include a percent symbol on this thing.

>>36550829

The fighter bats you off and you only manage to get some soil to slide down his chest.

“Damn.” You say under hushed breath. You shake your head to Vi and Autumn to let them know that you weren’t successful.

The fighter you tried to poison charges back into the circle and tackles his opponent to the ground. The downed fighter blocks feebly as heavy blow after heavy blow rains down upon him. Finally, from the defender’s mouth, a previously unheard screeching rings through the air.

The assault ends.

The victor pushes off the downed fighter and basks in the cheers of the crowd, who soon push past you roughly to congratulate him. After a few minutes of celebration, the crowd begins to disperse, all still chattering excitedly.
You watch as the loser struggles to his feet and limps off in the opposite direction of the revelers in an attempt to be alone.

Vi zooms swiftly to your head. “There’s our chance, Ed. There’s no one else in that direction.” She says as she pulls on your ear.

You nod to Autumn who rapidly grasps the situation and then begin to tail him. Your group follows far behind as you progress slowly due to his limp. You can’t hear the cheers of the other treefolk anymore when the loser chooses to stop to better examine one of his wounds.

Now’s your chance. You pull off your cloak and silently sidle up to him, taking great care not to step on anything that might announce your presence. Once you’re only a few steps behind him, you see that he isn’t much more than a head taller than you. You lunge forward to wrap his face in your cloak and then take him down to the ground.

Roll 1d20 for the takedown, best of three.

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>36551465

Rolled 11 (1d20)

>>36551465
I ended this quest last time with my two ones. Will it happen again?

Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>36551465

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>36551465
I'm a little hazy on this, Why are we trying to randomly murder someone again?

>>36551516
damn, wrong kind of two ones.

>>36551516
I laughed quite hard, really I did. >>36551534
Testing to see if what Sylvas said about the soil was true.

>>36551516
Well at least you're consistent.

>>36551516
Master of ones.
>>36551534
Basically what >>36551560 said, but you're trying not be get caught while testing it.
>>36551519
>Writing

>>36551609

He crumples easily due to fatigue and his injuries. Your cloak muffles his cries as he flails wildly to escape your bindings.

“Settle down.” You grunt at him as you wrestle to keep him contained.

His continued struggling shows you no sign that he understands what you’re saying.

Autumn steps in front of your victim and smiles. “Pull it off his eyes, Ed.”

You comply and slide your cloak, allowing him sight again.

Autumn stands above the downed tree menacingly. She raises one of her long and athletic legs in the air. Your victim is suddenly silent. Autumn tenses her leg, and lets it come down as if she wanted to stomp on him.
You feel the tree flinch and tense as he tries to shrink from the blow.

Autumn stops her foot, just a few hairs away from his body. She laughs excitedly. “I guess this one saw what I did to his friend.” She crouches down next to his face. “Now then, go ahhhh.” Autumn points to her open mouth and then points to the tree.

You slide your cloak down to his chest.

Your victim hesitantly complies, only opening his mouth a little, but at Autumn’s continued insistence, he soon opens it widely.

“There you go!” Autumn smiles wildly as she shoves her dirt into his mouth, pressing down roughly on the tree’s face with her small hands. The tree attempts to struggle, but quickly submits out of fear.

Vi lands on your victim’s as he consumes the dirt. She rubs all of her soil into one of the victim’s wounds, plunging her arms deeply into the opening.
Both Autumn and Vi back away from your victim, where he lies trying to cough up the dirt that was shoved into his throat. They overlook the victim threateningly.
[1/2]

>>36552375

You keep your hold tight as you wait for any effects to take place. Many minutes pass in relative silence, as the tree quietly whimpers in fear, sometimes spitting dirt from his mouth.

You wait even longer to be sure.

Vi flies close to the wound again and observes it closely.

“Nothing is happening.” She said with a hint of anger on her voice. “Not a damn thing.”
Autumn crosses her arms. “We were lied to.”

You take a close look at the tree’s face and see no signs of anything but terror. You let out a long sigh and think of nothing but why.
“We need to kill of him.” Vi announces somberly. “We’re being played, Ed, and all we have going for us right now is that they still think us to be in the dark about it.” She shakes her head. “If word gets out about what we did to him, there goes our only advantage.”
Autumn crouches next to you. “I’ll do it you want, Ed. I already killed one of them, what’s one more?”

Once again you look down at the helpless tree. He’s done nothing to harm you or your group, and from the fear and pleading in his eyes you can see that he desperately wants to live. There’s no way to communicate an order to him to stay silent about this, so can you risk letting him free?

>Kill him (Yourself)

>Kill him (Autumn)

>Let him go.

>Write in.

>>36552408
>Burry him

He's a tree so he can't exactly die from it, but we'll be long done by the time he gets out.

>>36552408
>>36552499
This if feasible if not
>Kill him (Yourself)

>>36552408
>Kill him (Yourself)
we do not have a lot of time so we can't really waste it burying him

>>36552408

>Let him go.

>>36552408
>>Kill him (Yourself)

>>36552524
Burying him would take up most of the afternoon, since one of you needs to hold him down and there would be no guarantee that he wouldn't die a long and slow death instead if he couldn't get out himself..
>>36552536
>>36552606
>Writing

>>36552660
Better than trying to leaping right over the moral event horizon like we've been doing

>>36552660
You close your eyes and shake your head. What a horrible day to be him; watch one of your friends be killed, get beaten up, tortured, and then killed. Most of this due just to you being here, like dying forest around you, you can’t help but think all of this is horribly ugly.

You open your eyes and turn to Autumn and simply say. “Hold him.”

You hand her the cloak that you had been clutching onto for so long and stand. Your legs are sore as you stretch out, you look around at the forest. The sun illuminates the rooted dead trees as they reach upward into the sky like long forgotten towers, casting their twisted shadows upon you. Nothing moves in this place home to the dead and those soon to be dead, nothing watches.

You unsheathe your sword and watch as the tree begins to panic at the sight. Autumn pulls the cloak over his mouth and struggles to keep him contained. Guilt hangs heavy in your chest as you watch him fight just to live. You wish it could’ve been different.

“I’m sorry it had to be like this.” You steadily plunge your sword into his eye and plunge deeply. His struggling soon ceases.

Autumn lifts herself off the ground and hands you back your cloak.

She places a hand on your shoulder to reassure your raging thoughts. “Let’s pull him further in.”
“Right.” You say solemnly and stare at him for a moment longer before dragging his body further into the dead forest.

“Sylvas wanted us dead, so we can’t trust him and maybe his brother. ” Vi says as your group returns to where the treefolk. “So, what do we do now?”

You think of what you learned and consider your best course of action.

>Assign one, two, or three of your group members to the choices.

>Find Cecilia

>Talk to Dynlos

>Inform Hugoth of what you learned.

>Find and tail Hugoth

>Find and tail Sylvas.

>Confront Sylvas

>Write in.

>>36553531
>Find Cecilia
All three of you. Something fucky is going on here.

>>36553531
>Find Cecilia
Ed & autumn
>Inform Hugoth of what you learned.
Vi

>>36553658
I'll change mine to
>>36553701

>Writing

>>36553811

You turn to face Vi. “Find Hugoth and tell him what we figured out. Autumn and I will find Cecilia.”

Vi tosses up a skeptical eyebrow and giggles. “Hmm? You need the two of you to find her do you? Can I trust you not to get sidetracked?”
“I just want to find Cecilia before the night. That’s all.” You say sternly.
“Whatever.” Vi mumbles, clearly not satisfied with your response. “I’ll come back here when I’m done, you be sure to do the same.” She flies off a few feet and then stops. “I didn’t know you liked them blonde.” She giggles and the flies out of sight.

You sigh and then turn to Autumn, she shrugs, seemingly not too bothered by the whole exchange.

The two of you spend the better part of an hour searching for Cecilia in the treefolk’s territory. Taking note of the interaction between the treefolk, you see that they are a crass and violent species. Hugoth ruling over them with an iron fist is making more sense the longer you stay here.

You make your way to the ring of rocks in which you last spoke to Hugoth. Your mind finally eases as you see Cecilia turning the rocks, causing the light upon them to be reflected in different directions.

You walk up to her. “Have you been here the whole time?”
Cecilia looks a little surprised when you first speak and then she smiles. “Ed! Autumn! I figured out this puzzle.” She taps the rock that she’s standing near.
“Puzzle?” You express your confusion.
Her face brightens further “Yeah, there’s two answers. Out and in. But it takes a while to get it set up just right and it way changes all the time. Do you want me to show you one?”

You’re not quite sure what she means about solving the puzzle, but you are mildly interested. You look at the sun beginning to set and wonder if you have the time for this when you're still gathering information.

>Show me the "in" answer.

>Show me the "out" answer.

>Maybe some other time.

>Write in.

>>36554645
>Other
pls explain

>>36554803
This. Why do the simple minded seem to confuse us the most.

>>36554803
>>36554832
>Writing.

>>36554892

You scratch your head at her vague explanation. “Uhh, Cecilia do you think you explain what you mean by ‘out’ and ‘in’?”
Cecilia nods. “In was the first one I figured out. I got all the rocks to point their light in the center and it got really bright and when I touched it, I felt really strong and confident.” She scratches her own head. “That was a while ago, I don’t really feel like that anymore.”

She continues. “But when I did out, EVERYTHING got really bright, but I stopped it because it hurt my eyes.”
“Huh.” Autumn expresses what your same thoughts.

You rub your chin “Well, now that you explained it…”

>Let’s get going.

>Show me “in.”

>Show me “out.”

>Write in.

>>36555062
>>Show me “out.

>>36555062
>Show me "out."
Well we know why those two brothers are different now.

>>36555153
>>36555154
>Writing.

>>36555258

“Show me ‘out’, Cecilia.” You nod to her.
“Roger!” She cheers as she focuses on the rocks. A serious look comes upon her face as she turns the rocks to change how the sunlight is shining.

The puzzle that she’s doing is quite complex, and you find her pausing often to see where the sun is in the sky.

“Nnnngh” She mutters in frustration as she goes back to a rock that she already turned.

Several minutes pass with no obvious changes.

Autumn whispers quietly. “Are you sure this was a good idea?”
You sigh. “Not really, but I already said that she could show us.”
“You just can’t put your foot down to her.” Autumn grins at you and then leans her back on your side. She sighs softly. “What will we do if we can’t get back home?”
“I try not to think about it. Plus we’ve only just started.” You cross your arms as you watch Cecilia wipe sweat from her brow.
“Right, we’ve only just started.” Autumn stares off into the dead forest.

When more time passes you start to get antsy. Vi is probably awaiting your arrival, angry now that you’re taking so long.

You decide that you can’t wait any longer. “Cecilia it’s time to get go-“
[1/2]

File: 1416644249216.jpg (289 KB, 1600x709)

289 KB JPG

>>36555902

A brilliant flash of light expands outward from the ring. The shock sends you and Autumn tumbling to the floor.

“I did it!” You hear Cecilia shout out as the light continues to blind you. You stumble around trying to get your footing, but feel nothing but Autumn trying to do the same.

“You can stop it now!” Autumn shouts to Cecilia as she stumbles over you.
“I can’t see the rocks!” Cecilia calls out sadly.

You begin to feel frustrated at your lack of sight when suddenly it returns to you.

Autumn gasps only a few inches from your face as you remain speechless at what you see.

The forest around you is alive again as lush colors of green return vibrantly to previously gnarled roots and trunks. Healthy leaves stretch outward from branches high above to catch the last of the setting red light. The soil beneath you is a deep dark brown and holds strong to the ground.

You and Autumn turn to Cecilia to see her grinning and rubbing the back of her head proudly.

~

Okay, that's where I'm going to end it for tonight. I want to thank everyone who played today, especially since I really thought I would have to not run or end early today. Please feel free to leave any questions or comments in the thread and I'll do my best to respond.

The next thread may be this weekend, but that remains to be seen because of Finals. So I may be busy until next Wednesday. I sincerely hope that's not the case, but we'll see.
Once again, thank you and see you next time!

>>36556008
https://twitter.com/QM_Auri (Twitter)
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=otherworldly+arboretum (Previous threads)
Forgot to link these in the previous post, hehe.

>>36556008
thx 4 runin budi gud thred

>>36556029
Thanks for running.

>>36556008
Thanks for running, Auri. I hope you do well with your finals.

>>36556054
>>36556056
You're very welcome. I hope to see you again.
>>36556082
Thank you, I hope I do well too, haha.

>>36556008
Missed the last couple votes, but thanks for running Auri!

>>36556133
That's no problem at all. I'm glad you played regardless and you're welcome! Hope to see you next time.