The Guisi broke camp with an actual fire for the first time in what they claimed to be weeks. After sufhfering from slaves rations, and then unable to make fire for fear of their pursuers the tears that they shed in happiness had indeed been well deserved.

The dethroned lord of the Eastern wood lay dead in a pit, hide peeled back and flesh carved to be cooked on sticks over the fire. You taste the crackling meat and how it explodes with latent fury into your mouth, a natural spice from such a mighty creature.

With the Greater Blood Viper's thanks, no other powerful beasts of the wood draw near the group of runaways. Mira having pacted with the serpent's shadow, it had reason to keep everyone safe.

Mirth returns to the runaway's faces, as they begin to speak of some their older days, before they were enslaved.

Mira keeps quiet, listening to the others, yet the girl seems troubled by something as her eyes dart from everyone and then down into her own thoughts quite frequently.

The old coot, Cornel keeps looking your way, almost as an invitation to conversation.

The brother and sister pair, you've come to know these Guisi as Ira and Hemma, stand around the pit that's become the Ursarinn's grave. They stare down at the monster, making fun amongst themselves.

The wind blows gently, nursing the flames of the campfire and causing them to flicker in an abstract dance.The forest has become so peaceful, you wouldn't have known that a dozen men and a greater beast had been massacred not even a few hours ago.

>[See what's wrong with Mira. Maybe she needs someone to talk to?]
>[Sit by Cornell, he and the others might have words to share.]
>[Check on those Guisi siblings. Wouldn't want them pissing off the soul of that bear.]
>[Walk away from the others, meditate alone.]
>[Write in]

>>43224171
>Return to where the slavers were killed, they might possess equipment and rations to scavenge
Actually not metagaming, we could do with some proper clothes and tools.

>>43224171
>[Check on those Guisi siblings. Wouldn't want them pissing off the soul of that bear.]
I was scared that you got replaced by a changeling after 2 threads without delay

>>43224291
This but tell the siblings to not piss off ghosts

>>43224171
>[Sit by Cornell, he and the others might have words to share.]

>>43224171
>[Sit by Cornell, he and the others might have words to share.]
I want to know more about guisi

>>43224171
>[See what's wrong with Mira. Maybe she needs someone to talk to?]

>>43224171
>>[Walk away from the others, meditate alone.]

>>43224171

You give Cornel and his fellows a brief wave, “I'll be over in a moment”

He looks back, watching you as you walk over to the pit where the siblings are raising spirits. You creep up behind the children before clapping a firm hand upon each of their shoulders, giving them such a start that they nearly jump out of their skins.
With a hearty chuckle you say, “Now children, you should be wary. Thespia's children work in mysterious ways. Careful that you don't get cursed by the Ursarinn's spirit.”

“C-cursed?” The brother says, suddenly losing his nerve to jeer at the deceased.

“No! I don't want to be cursed! Ira, you stupid arse!” The sister yells at her brother, her horns lengthening and profile darkening.

“You're the one that was daring me to pee on it, Hemma!” The brother yells back, the same transformation occurring in him.

You loudly clear your throat, “No one's peeing on anything, we're eating the beast and then laying his bones to rest. Are we clear?”

“Yes sir...” The two say in unison before reverting back into their usual state and slinking away.

With that taken care of, you're about to return to the others when you hear a distant echo, a familiar growl, “Thank you... Guisi liar...”

“You're welcome, great bear.” You say under your breath with a mix of sarcasm and honest reverence.

>>43225093

Joining Cornel and the other older coots around the fires. The manic elder, Cornel, snickers as you return, “Those kids, when they relax it's hard for them to remember our restraint.”

You recall that, Mira said that Guisi are liars. Passive, pacifistic, and restrained. Guisi pick the time to reveal themselves...

>You might want to be careful around these folks, can't have them realize that you're an impostor.
>[“Showing their horns like that, makes me wonder how they weren't seen as slaves.”]
>[“I spoke with Mira earlier, what do you see our “change” as?”]
>[“The soldiers that pursued us are dead, you guys want to scavenge them?”]
>[“So, what have you all heard about me?”]
>[Write in]

>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7AKwQCUpJ8

>>43225106
>[“Showing their horns like that, makes me wonder how they weren't seen as slaves.”]

>>43225106
>>[“I spoke with Mira earlier, what do you see our “change” as?”]
>>[“The soldiers that pursued us are dead, you guys want to scavenge them?”]

>>43225106
>[“The soldiers that pursued us are dead, you guys want to scavenge them?”]
>[“I spoke with Mira earlier, what do you see our “change” as?”]

>>43225106
>[“I spoke with Mira earlier, what do you see our “change” as?”]
>[“Showing their horns like that, makes me wonder how they weren't seen as slaves.”]

>>43225106
>You might want to be careful around these folks, can't have them realize that you're an impostor.

>>43225240
The [] text are the options.
Just an arrow is more of a note for you guys than anything else.

>>43225252
oh.
>[“I spoke with Mira earlier, what do you see our “change” as?”]

>>43225106
>[“The soldiers that pursued us are dead, you guys want to scavenge them?”]
>[“Showing their horns like that, makes me wonder how they weren't seen as slaves.”]

>>43225106
>[“I spoke with Mira earlier, what do you see our “change” as?”]

>>43225106
>[“So, what have you all heard about me?”]

>>43225106

You take a stick from the fire with a long strip of crackling meat, glimmering a lightly burnt orange and wafting off its intense flavors. You take a bite, letting the gristle and fats pop in your mouth, the excess dripping down your chin. You shake your head, “Those kids, showing their horns like that. Were they ever seen during your time as slaves?”

One of the other men, a bearded fellow with deep wrinkles upon his face looks down to the fire, resting a spit upon his lap, “Those are stressful times. They reacted with more lies. Lies and fear. They may be a touch young, the sister being fifteen and the boy a year younger, but they are not stupid enough to break our secret.” The man spits a tendon back into the fire where it sizzles into a lump of charred flesh.

“Indeed, none are more world-wise than Guisi children.” Cornel smiles, showing off a missing gap in his teeth, “That is, unless they choose another Arche...”

You grow silent for a moment, trying to hide the many questions lingering in your mind. If only you could be forthright with these people, “Speaking of our Arche, I spoke with childe Mira earlier. She had said that our change was considered either a return to our normal selves or a lie from ourselves. What say you to this? What is our shadow?”

One of the men, the bearded one, throws back his head in laughter, “ Children, how they think of useless things. Our change is simply our change. It is what makes our Arche unique. Nothing more, nothing less.”

>>43225629

Cornel raises a hand as if to protest, “Now, now, Gaffer. Not all of us think the way you do.” Cornel meets you at eye level, “Now, if I were to say, especially to the Reaper of Aurel... It must be a return to our true selves. What else could it be, that we throw away our lies and become as a spirit of vengeance?”

“Corn, you old goat!” One of the men with a pig-like snout barks at him, “Just last week you were saying that showing our horns is a lie!”

“Valce, you Gipparo-nosed homebody!” Cornel smiles with an almost manic mirth in return to the pig-nose, “Guisi lie, right?”

“Right...”

“Then of course I'd tell a white one to keep us moving forward. If we'd fought without the reaper we'd have all perished!”

“Pah!” Gaffer throws his head back laughing again, food spilling out of his mouth, “You mean if the reaper hadn't fought FOR us. Old goats like us... It's amazing that even one of us has a contract. Damn Danhor made sure to kill the ones that could be dangerous.”

Cornel laughs, his face almost a sneer, “Aye, and I bet they'd not have thought that I'd be wooing one of their pickaxes.”

“Great, you're pacted with a pickaxe, go dig a hole like those greedy Drezar.” Returns Valce, with a defiant snort.

“Oh, and I did- one deep enough to kill a Bearzerker.” Cornel's cackle rises up over the others.

You take another bite of the meat a mid their coversation, “So, not even the elders here hold an unbiased opinion.”

Cornel meets you again at eye level, for real talk, “None of the Guisi can agree. Honestly, it could be all of the above, or two faces of the same coin like the dark side of Luna we only ever see when she kisses Sol.”

“Are the two lovers okay? Don't think I've seen a solar or lunar kiss of recent.” Gaffer says, scratching his beard in thought.

“Not for years.” Mumbles Valce.

>>43225642
>Bearzerker
really?

>>43225769
>tfw you should know me by now

>>43225642

You, Cornel, Gaffer, and Valce spend some time talking. They trend towards the things that they miss from home. The mountainside forests free from mine an quarry work, the fields of crops that've long been burnt down, and the notable absence of the Danhor scourge acting as hands of the Hylon.

Eventually, when they stop reaching for skewers, you bring up the equipment that the dead soldiers left behind.

The three men smile widely, “I hadn't even thought of that. Perhaps some of us can get out of these rags.” Cornel chuckles.

Gaffer shrugs, “I'd reasoned to fashion something out of that bear's hide. A greater beast's skin should be hardy as chainmail. Claws could prove useful daggers... Or swords.”

Valce snorts deeply, it kinda makes you want to grab his heart-shaped pig nose. “Sounds good to me.”

“Gaffer, “You look to the bearded man, “Hold off on skinning the Ursarinn until we return. Should have some proper knives.”

“I'd be pleased to not have that hide flayed any further.” Gaffer laughs heartily, crossing his arms.

You start to rise, yet the other men stay seated. As you begin to walk away, Cornel calls out to you, “Reaper! Where are you going?”

“I'm going to collect their equipment, aren't you coming?”

Cornel throws his arms up, “It's bloody past midnight! We can't see out there!”

You blink with a blank stare until you remember just how superior your darkvision is. “Sorry, I can see perfectly.”

“So the stories are true, the reaper's eyes pierce the dead of night. Well, are you going off alone or are you going to share rest with us?”

>[Camp with the rest of the Guisi.]
>[Go alone to retrieve the equipment.]
>[Mira was able to attack the Ursarinn... Can she see in the dark?]
>[Write in.]

>>43225835
>[Camp with the rest of the Guisi.]
Dream time

>>43225835
I guess we are rather tired after the Ursarinn ordeal so I don't want to go alone
>[Mira was able to attack the Ursarinn... Can she see in the dark?]
or
>[Camp with the rest of the Guisi.]

>>43225835
Disregard >>43225866
changing vote to >>43225908

>>43225835
>[Go alone to retrieve the equipment.]
>[Mira was able to attack the Ursarinn... Can she see in the dark?]
We should get the equipment rather now than get surprised tomorrow

>>43225835
>[Mira was able to attack the Ursarinn... Can she see in the dark?]

>>43225950
Supporting this

>>43225835
>[Camp with the rest of the Guisi.]

>>43225835
>[Go alone to retrieve the equipment.]
>[Mira was able to attack the Ursarinn... Can she see in the dark?]

>>43225835

“I'll be taking Mira with me, she struck the Ursarinn earlier. Likely she too can see in the dark.”

The other men seem to understand, wishing you good luck.

Mira's lost in thoughts by one of the other fires as you kneel beside the girl, touching her arm.

She shudders for a moment, before looking you in the eyes with dwindling bewilderment. “Oh, uh... Reaper. It's been a day, hasn't it?”

“Indeed it has, and I need you to come with me.”

“Oh, what for?” The little lady looks up at you as you rise.

“The slavehunters. They had equipment. I'd like to retrieve it before beasts are drawn to the scene. I'll need someone to watch my back.”

Mira seems to flush and look down, “Me? I-I can't see in the dark...”

“How did you attack the Ursarinn earlier? You struck out its other eye in a flash.”

“I guess I can... But... I'm not too sure, I'm still not really good at showing my horns...” The girl touches her arm affectionately, toying around with her needle in the other hand.

“You'll learn, and the beasts are wary of your pact with the viper. Come, we can't waste time.” You turn to leave, it's not even before your fifth pace that you hear the girl running after you.


>Scene: The Recent Battlefield.

Finding the site that the soldiers perished was as simple as following the destruction that the Ursarinn caused. With that rampaging bear literally tearing a path through the woods, you find the opening that you lured the two parties to.

There are half a dozen wolves, enormous and with steel-gray fur prowling around the area, they take one sniff of your air. “Killers of Ursarinn...” their inner voices whisper in concert as they trot off to the brush, content to watch the two of you for the time being.

>>43226478

Mira stays close to you, apparently still having trouble with seeing in the dark. At the very least, the two of you are alone to talk freely.

The shreds of bodies are everywhere from the Ursarinn's furious attack. Armor pieces are everywhere, yet some protection is better than none. If the Guisi had a forge and proper tools, it likely wouldn't take long to reforge these bits. Broken spear hafts litter the ground, the weapons smashed to pieces. The Ursarinn's attack didn't leave much untouched...

Might as well start looking around.

>[Check for weapons.]
>[See what usable armor there is.]
>[Any valuables?]
>[Write in.]

>>43226500
>[Check for weapons.]
>[See what usable armor there is.]

>>43226500
>[All of it]
I hate this kind of prompt

>>43226500
>[See what usable armor there is.]

>>43226500
>>[Check for weapons.]

>>43226500
>[See what usable armor there is.]

>>43226500
>[See what usable armor there is.]

>>43226500
>[Any valuables?]

>>43226500
>[Check for weapons.]
>[See what usable armor there is.]

>>43226500

Checking around for armor first and foremost, you look over the remains of each body, which happen to each fall in three or five different places. Mira stands far away, looking away from the mess.

Despite how recent the deaths are, the sight, and the smell is more than a bit gruesome. Likely you only feel twinges of despair and revulsion yourself due to how accustomed to death the Reaper is.

Most of the armor and the clothes is a miss on all points. The most that's unscathed are breast-plates, pauldrons and greaves. Saying the breatplate's unscathed though is a bit of a lie. There are only as many as three that can block a blow to the chest. The stomach however is cleaved right open. Leaning in closer, you see that the cut in the metal from the Ursarinn's claws isn't torn, it's clean. As though an axe was taken to it.

You pull of a couple of the breastplates and the salvageable greaves.

As you get to the last one however, the body shifts, reaching up and grabbing you by your collar. Reflexively, your scythe is summoned to your other hand, the blade crooks around , reaching for the man. You hesitate, the man hasn't got a body below the waist, already as good as dead. The dying man looks into your eyes and you see your own reflection, “Please... Please tell my sister... Anaiss... He reaches up with his other hand, clutching something firmly. “Anaiss. Tell her...I love... I love...” His grip weakens and you catch a pendant as it falls from his hand, “Her...” He exhales and stops moving.

Mira looks over, alert, yet wincing at the entire scene, “Reaper?”

>>43226912

You stand up, looking down at the nameless soldier, scythe still in hand. Your scythe wriggles, trying to bend itself to cut through the man. You forcibly dismiss the weapon, “It's nothing. You don't have to watch me do this, just keep a lookout.”

The pendant is a simple thing wrought of what you determine to be brass, inlaid with a single gem. Opening it, there's a subtly illuminated image of a family.

Damn slavehunter wants you to take sympathy? You should pawn this off at the next shop you see. Who has time for this sort of thing?

>[Keep the locket, resolve to sell it when given the chance.]
>[Keep the locket, and honor the dying man's last request.]
>[Leave it with the body, you'll have nothing to do with it.]
>[Destroy it, Danhor deserve nothing less.]
>[Write in.]

>>43226930
>[Destroy it, Danhor deserve nothing less.]
Fuck them

>>43226930
>[Keep the locket, resolve to sell it when given the chance.]
or
>[Destroy it, Danhor deserve nothing less.]

>>43226930
>[Keep the locket, and honor the dying man's last request.]

>>43226930
>[Keep the locket, resolve to sell it when given the chance.]

>>43226930
>[Leave it with the body, you'll have nothing to do with it.]

>>43226930
>[Destroy it, Danhor deserve nothing less.]
Crush it in our fist

>>43226930
>[Destroy it, Danhor deserve nothing less.]

>>43226930

No, not even simply selling it would be good enough. These people came out here trying to take the Guisi, your people back as slaves. Who the hell does this dying bastard think he is, trying to get you to take it to his sister. If she's a part of this, she'll die as well.

That's when you'll tell her that her brother loves her.

Your horns lengthen as you tremble with rage. Flinging the pendant up, you call back your scythe and rend it asunder midair. Whatever magic held within that drew it to close causes it to burst apart as you divide it.

From the little explosion, you can see a pair of lightly glowing threads drifting from it. Dispelling your scythe, you catch them in the palm of your hand.

They're familiar... It reminds you of the threads that were flowing from this face when you first put it on.

You tie the glowing fibers around your finger and they form together like a ring, yet easily pulled apart. Interesting.

You feel a tingling in the back of your head as you suddenly double over with a rush of opening memories...

>More memories of wrath can now be accessed due to letting the Reaper express his malice.

The tingle goes away. It feels as though you're goin to be able to dive deeper the next time you meditate upon this face. Something in you wonders if this hasn't buried your own life a bit deeper.


With the salvaged armor gathered, you move onto valuables, finding nothing but a thumb ring inlaid with a gem on the archer's severed hand. You ponder at the owner's whereabouts yet don't pursue it. Not a lot an archer can do with one hand.

>>43227355

Among the weapons, the spears are all useless save for their heads that might be able to be refashioned. You collect a few of those. The real find is with the sword belts. Due to their location, there are just shy of a dozen intact. Swords, armor scraps, and spearheads. A decent haul overall.

Tying a bunch of shirts together and using a ruined breastplate, you create something of a sled that you can pull. You and Mira begin the walk back to the others. As soon as you and the girl leaves, the wolves re-enter the clearing, savaging the defenseless corpses.

You make conversation with Mira...

>[You seem quiet, are you okay?]
>[How does one control the shadow form?]
>[Are you looking forward to freeing your loved ones?]
>[Stay silent.]
>[Write in]

>>43227376
>[You seem quiet, are you okay?]

>>43227376
>[You seem quiet, are you okay?]

>>43227376
>[You seem quiet, are you okay?]

>>43227376
>[You seem quiet, are you okay?]

>>43227376
>[You seem quiet, are you okay?]

>>43227376

Mira's silence is worrisome. While she hasn't been one to talk your ears off, she's never really been this quiet before. Could it have been that grisly scene, or...

“Mira, you've been quiet, are you okay?”

She's silent for a few moments, “I'm fine.”

You can't help but grin besides yourself, “That's what all women say when they are most certainly not. Talk to me, share your thoughts. It's the least I can do when you're the only one I can confide in.”

“What do you-”

You interupt, explaining yourself with a stern conviction,“It's not easy being an impostor and trying sincerely to give people hope. You're the only one that I can talk to, only one I can trust. Letting the others know what I am would cause a schism.” You let a moment of silence rest and then breath, “So I will hear you. Speak your mind.”

Mira's reservations take a moment to discard, but, “I don't like it. Killing. The Ursarinn was the first I've ever killed. I thought of you, with the scouts and then... all of those people.” She holds herself, gripping into the rags covering her arms. “You didn't do all that, right? I can... I could smell the Ursarinn there. The taste of blood flooded my nose and tongue. I don't understand how you do it. All that slaughter, yet you can stand tall and walk fine.”
You can hear a shaking sob well within her voice, “I just want to wash myself in a river, of that bloodshed...” She takes a deep breath. And again, a deeper one. You look back at her to find that she's stopped walking, her horns lengthening, her shadow overtaking what little light Luna casts upon her, and then red markings appear, not unlike the Great Blood Viper.

>>43227906

“Then there's this.” The hesitation in her voice dips into oblivion as she becomes lucid with blood red eyes, “I smell everything, for miles. The blood of the Ursarinn, the flayed men, the wolves tearing apart their hides. I still feel that fluttering part of myself that just wants to curl up and be left alone. Yet when I'm like...” The form dispels itself at once, returning her to her usual self, “That. When I'm like that I want to stab all the things I hate. I don't understand... I don't want to.”

>[“It's like fighting with yourself, I know the feeling.”]
>[“Your other self is just another side to your coin, they're both you.”]
>[“It's good that you're kind. You'd become like me if it didn't bother you.”]
>[Give her a hug, let her cry it out. You're there for her.]
>[Write in.]

>>43227919
>[“Your other self is just another side to your coin, they're both you.”]

>>43227919
>[“It's good that you're kind. You'd become like me if it didn't bother you.”]

>>43227919
>[“It's good that you're kind. You'd become like me if it didn't bother you.”]

>>43227919
>[“It's good that you're kind. You'd become like me if it didn't bother you.”]

>>43227919
By accepting it, it has become a part of you. You will in time need to accept it, lest it destroy you. Whether or not you let it control you is another matter.

>>43227919
>[Give her a hug, let her cry it out. You're there for her.]

>>43227919
>[“Your other self is just another side to your coin, they're both you.”]

>>43227919
>[“It's good that you're kind. You'd become like me if it didn't bother you.”]

>>43227919

“Childe Mira.” You turn to face her, letting go of your makeshift handle and walking up to her crumpled up form. Kneeling down besides her, you look at her at eye level. “Look at me.” It takes her a moment, but she looks back at you, the twinkling of tears in the light of Luna.

“It's good that you are kind. If you weren't, you'd become a calloused old monster like me.”

“B-but you give people hope. You give them-”

“As do you, Mira. Have you not seen the way that the others look at you? You're the one that liberated them with but a needle at your disposal. You've shown bravery beyond your years. There is so much light in you, so much kindness.”

You watch her carefully. Her lips quiver into something akin to a smile.

“I will say though,” You place a hand upon the girl's cheek, wiping away the tears from her eyes, “You will need to accept your shadow as part of yourself. In time, such indecision could destroy you and without you others will fall. The face you show to your enemies is never the one you show to your friends, your family.”

Mira turns her eyes down in thought, at the idea of letting that hatred manifest, yet she looks back up to you, determination renewed. “The face we show to our friends...” She takes a deep breath and lets her shadow take over, “And the one we show to our enemies.” She lets it go as quickly as it comes.
“I'll learn it. I'll control it... Thank you... Reaper.” Meekly, she leans away and stands up again, wiping away the rest of her tears.

Mira grabs the handle to the cart, “Let's go. We need to hurry back to the others!”

“Right behind you.” You start following after Mira when you hear a distant voice, the inner voice of something... someone, “Meet me outside of your camp.”
Is it that woman? No... No this one sounds like a deluge, where she might by a dancing spark or ray of sunshine. This inner voice is like the deepest, darkest well.
Pure melancholy.

“Reaper? Is there something the matter?”

“It's nothing, let's go.

>>43228323


The stroll back through the woods is peaceful. Mira takes the equipment to the ones standing watch and keeping the fires burning. You can tell at a distance that they're extremely happy to have means to defend themselves.

>[Ignore the voice's beckoning, go to sleep.
>[Answer the call, wait some distance away from the camp.]

>>43228339
>[Answer the call, wait some distance away from the camp.]
No way this could go wrong

>>43228339
>[Answer the call, wait some distance away from the camp.]
Why do you even have such votes?
It's not like anyone ever resisted the mystery box

>>43228374
Break up blocks of text. And give you guys an option.

>>43228339
>[Answer the call, wait some distance away from the camp.]

>>43228390
I mean I'm pretty sure it'll blow up in our face but I can't resist

>>43228339
>[Answer the call, wait some distance away from the camp.]

>>43228339
>[Answer the call, wait some distance away from the camp.]

>>43228339
>[Ignore the voice's beckoning, go to sleep.

>>43228339
Ignore

Because we have the freedom to, and because you never entreaty someone by asking them "meet me in a disadvantagous location for you"

Not even a "help me" to trigger chronic hero/side quest syndrome.

>>43228323

The lure of the mysterious voice calls to your attention. Slipping away is simple. Since you'd observed the other Guisi, you've begun to realize that accessing your alternate form is as simple as letting yourself feel unrestricted emotion.

It appears to work even if it's artificially enforced. As a blackened form, you vanish into the night and walk some ways before feeling as though you should stop. It's a strange, unnatural sensation.

Everything about this is unnerving, and then you notice something strange. The world goes quiet. The wind stops blowing, the chatter of nocturnal creatures goes flat... And then a new sound picks up, a dark, quiet and despairing melody.

>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKyvAjoIvAI

A shuffling figure moves directly into your view, making no attempt at hiding itself. It moves no more than a few paces before stopping, and looking up to you in silence.

The degree at which you are on edge could split hairs, and yet you feel a strange, distant familiarity with this robed figure.

“Who... What are you?” You ask, nearly taking a step back, feeling that very real fear again. It's not unlike what you'd felt from the woman.

“Avar. Jaded and cruel.” The man speaks with a dismal, sad tone. With a slow and methodical draw, he offers a bow. “You've already met my worse half. You know the one, the one that likes to laugh.”

“The woman?”

“Indeed is true. And what shall I call you? Faceless is too rude.”

>[“I've heard that before, how do you know?”]
>[“Why do you and her seem so familiar?”]
>[“What did you want with me?”]
>[Write in]

>>43228895
>[“Why do you and her seem so familiar?”]
>[“What did you want with me?”]

>>43228895
>[“Why do you and her seem so familiar?”]
>[“What did you want with me?”]

>>43228895
>[“Why do you and her seem so familiar?”]
>[“What did you want with me?”]

>>43228895
>[“What did you want with me?”]

>>43228895
>[“I've heard that before, how do you know?”]

>>43228895
>[“Why do you and her seem so familiar?”]
>[“What did you want with me?”]

>>43228895

You wince, trying to push back the innate fear your mask exudes. Part of you finds it an amazing farce that the Reaper could fear any man. “Why do the two of you feel familiar? I swear that I must know the two of you, yet I cannot recall for the life of me.”

The man ponders your question, fingering his staff in thought, “I'm offended, it's awful of you to forget. I am Avar, as we've already just met.”

“No.” You squint, and draw closer against the wishes of your face. Perhaps a better look would...

“It will not work, you will remember when you remember, and not a bit sooner.” Avar shakes his head and then sighs, mumbling under his breath in a language you think that you understand.

“Very well, what do you want with me? Why call me out here?”

Avar's expression grows more dour. As he looks up at you, you can see his silver eyes in the light of Luna. They're the same as the woman's. “I've called you, to introduce myself, have a chat. It appears to have been a mighty terrible idea as I had thought.”

“T-” You begin, and already you are cut off.

“Why you were released from that well.” Avar stares at you as he takes a seat upon one of the trees felled by the Urarinn's rampage.

You're speechless for a moment as you recollect the well, the voices from the top... Your breath begins to quicken as you remember. The endless time you spent down there, who are you, why-

“Relax lest you swallow insects.” Avar pats a spot beside himself on the tree, “Sit.”'

It takes a moment for you to relax, and still you sit nowhere near him. “I'm guessing that you know-”

“Be silent, and listen to what I must say. I'll leave time for questions after as it'll be the least I can do.” His voice is stern, impatient, and sad. To you, it still sounds like a deluge. A rain that just won't stop, that keeps pouring down upon your body without a care for how it might make you feel. Perhaps that's the best description for this man?

>>43229335

“A deluge?” Avar looks at you, his downcast silver eyes shining like distant stars, “That's quite a description.”

You're taken aback, peering at him in disbelief. He heard?

“Yes. Now quiet, and listen.” He brings a finger to his lips to shush you.

“First, I will tell you why my sister and I released you from that well.” Avar clears his throat as though to begin a long story, “This world is cursed.”

You wait for some time, expecting him to say more. But when it doesn't come, “Is there anything else?”

“No, now is the time to ask questions.” He says without the inflection of any humor, not even a chuckle. Deadpan.

“What do you mean the world is cursed?”

“Thespia is cursed. We've released you to break that curse.” Avar gives a little more, this time looking at you. “I'm sorry, I'm not as cheerful as my sister. My previous joke fell flat.”

“Just tell me what's going on. Where is my face, and what do you expect me to do?”

Avar ponders this with his eyes closed. You can tell that he's trying to be selective with his words.
“The world is cursed and we released you to break this curse. You are the only one that can break this curse, and we will do everything in our power to ensure your success. As for your face, we do not know where it is. Only you will be able to find it”

“How will I find it?”

“You will feel where it is. It is the face you are meant to wear and both of you will be calling out to each other, you merely need to listen for its voice.”

>[“What does this curse do?”]
>[“How am I the one that can break this curse?”]
>[“Will my memories return when I have my face?”]
>[“Write in.”]

>>43229350
>[“What does this curse do?”]
>[“Will my memories return when I have my face?”]

>>43229350
>[“What does this curse do?”]
>[“How am I the one that can break this curse?”]

>>43229350
>[“What does this curse do?”]

>>43229350
>[“What does this curse do?”]

>>43229350
>[“Will my memories return when I have my face?”]

>>43229350
>[“What does this curse do?”]
>[“Will my memories return when I have my face?”]

>>43229350

“This curse, what does it do?”

Avar's gaze lingers upon you before drawing away, staring at nothing in particular. “Likely, you wouldn't believe me even if I told you.”

“I'll keep an open mind.”

Avar's silent some moments longer before he lets out an exalting sigh, “The curse causes everything to repeat itself. Everything that's currently happening in the world has happened several... hundreds of times before. Everything, everyone repeats itself. All except for a few, and you number among one of them.”

“Why not seek out the others then? Could they not help?”

“The only ones exempt are you, myself, and my sister.”

“So why haven't you broken the curse? How am I some kind of chosen one?”

Avar looks back to you, “Your sarcastic tone is more dreadful than the night is old. We have tried, and we cannot. It is that simple, and if you could break this curse, I would happily leave this world.”

“So... If i'm understanding this, everything repeats itself, and we are exempt. So...”

“Everyone event has occurred before. Everyone that's been named, been born, lived, loved, thrived, and died. It has all happened. Again and again. My sister studied the cycles of every player's life in this world before releasing you. There's only ever been so much we can do and so much we can risk.”

“So much... to risk?” A question forms in your mind, “If everyone is within the cycle then wouldn't you-”

“The ones that are exempt are the ones that can break the cycle. The ones that are exempt similarly cannot be recycled by the cycle. That is to say, if you die, you will stay dead. Nothing you've done will have any credence in the next part of this accursed cycle.”

“Then, to break this curse?”

“I will tell you in time, but I will say that a certain someone needs to die. If you have any other questions, I will answer what I can, however I must depart shortly... There are things that I must do to lay foundations for you.

>["Write in"]

>>43229669
>“Every event has occurred before.

>My sister and I studied the*

>>43229669
How did you come to the face of the Reaper?

>>43229669
Why was I faceless in the hole?

>>43229669
What is your Arche?

>>43229747
>>43229777
One of these

>>43229747
This

>>43229669
Supporting >>43229747

>>43229669
Why can you not give more direct help? Or at least, info about the reaper.

>>43229669

Many questions boil in your mind, in hopes of having them all answered in the pressingly short time frame, you fire them off:

“You dropped this face into the well, how did you come upon it?”

“Simple, we took it, with one part overwhelming power, and the other part I cannot yet say how.”

You decide not to press the question, “Why was I faceless in that pit, in that hole, in that-”

“Well? Well... I do not know, though I'm betting that you put yourself there. The myth about only wishes and evil things being sealed in wells has its exceptions. Though I know of some wells that bear both wishes and an evil thing.”

You squint at Avar's face. You haven't remembered all the Arches yet... However there is something decidedly strange about his gloomy outlook and silver eyes. “What is your Arche?”

Avar actually seems almost surprised at that one, he blinked. “Mine and my sister's Arches are Dramani. We exist as each other's foils of comedic joy and despairing tragedy. We are ruled by the dual star constellation, Dremini of nearly the same name. And you, bearing the face of the Reaper of Aurel, are a Guisi ruled by the constrained star system, Guisar that pulses once every thousand years.”

The sudden information catches you off guard compared to the other scarce answers. Why is he so willing to share that?

“Because it has no effect on your growth.”

>>43230227

“Another question,” You close your eyes a moment, “Why can't you give more direct aid? You can't even tell me my face's real name?”

Avar doesn't hesitate for those one in the slightest, “For the same reason that I will not tell you who I think you are or why you know me. And in the same vein that I'm at liberty to tell you the Arches and their stars. If I were to do so, it would stifle your growth. Your strength will be what saves Thespia, and your natural mastery of other faces will be what assists in that growth.
You already understand that you wear a face that is not yours. One that had been so far gone as you wouldn't have been even a thimble compared to watch you're capable of now. You access memories and make these connections as though it were like remembering the rhythm that your heart beats. Our aid will be small, and it will be precise. We'll leave most of everything to you. Not because we're tired or empty of hope, but because you must become as strong as you once were if you are going to break this curse.

Live the life of the Reaper, walk in his shoes, and once you are ready, we will give you another.”

Avar rises from the log, “As for me, I must now be leaving. Is there anything else that you must know? I cannot promise a sufficient answer.”

>[Write in...]

>>43230239
Thank you, for freeing me.

>>43230239
I can think of nothing so >>43230262

>>43230239
>What will happen to the Reaper when I receive the face of another?
I assume we can't hotswap faces midbattle

>>43230239
What is the danger of losing myself in the face?

>>43230239

You rise from the log, standing to meet Avar's posture as he turns to leave, “What will happen to the reaper when I receive the face of another, and what are the dangers of losing myself in the face?”
Whether or not you always agree with the reaper, he's at the very least become like a partner to you with how intimately the two of you've become involved.

Avar looks back to you, “As you wear the Reaper now, you tie his threads of fate to yourself. This is no different from the way you've affected those others. Did you know...” Avar's frowning face actually turns up, into a sardonic, almost malicious grin. His eyes do not reflect the same... “That all of those Guisi, save for the girl, Mira were destined to die in these woods? The girl would have gotten away from the Ursarinn and killed it regardless with the help of that snake. It was you and the Reaper that saved that entire lot.” Avar's grin vanishes back into his usual dismal look.
“I don't quite like smiling... Doesn't feel as photogenic.”

“And the dangers? Of losing myself?”

“Ah, right. Should you lose yourself to a face, they'll be the one in complete control and stifle whomever you really are. It is good to lose yourself a little, it's what binds the face and their powers to you. Stay true to yourself as well as the face you wear, never let the face wear you. Once you're accustomed, you may even be able to switch roles at will... With that, I must be going.”

“One last thing.”

“What?”

“Avar, thank you for freeing me.”

The Dramani looks you up and down. “You are very welcome.” He says in a bored lackluster tone. Something tells you, that meant a lot more to him than he lets on.
Without further ado, Avar holds out a hand, an orb of water black as the space between stars, “Aques Pute” The orb expands, engulfing him in a rippling wave. Before long, it condenses and then evaporates into thin air.

>>43230445

The Dramani, gone. The usual sounds of a forest night return and you make your way back to camp with your mind abuzz with all of that often cryptic, but world-view changing knowledge.
You slide into a free spot by the fire and let yourself slowly fall to sleep. It's honestly the thing you want most in the world right now.

You wonder dimly when you'll see either of those two again. Likely won't be long...

>End Scene.


Alas, we must wrap this up for tonight! How did you all like this?
Any other comments, questions, concerns?

>>43230466
Good work Dran, this setting managed to take elements of Dark Souls AND ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE IT WILL GO PLACES. You captured something real good here.

>>43230466
This thread was really enjoyable.
I still like the Overhuman setting more but this is also fun

>>43230504
Overhyman is RIP in pepperonis.

>>43230516
update never

>>43230466
Good thread.
I'm just wondering how well this story is suited to being a quest.

>>43230487

Elements of dark souls? That's interesting, I hadn't really been looking at as far as inspirations went...

What are you seeing as elements of dark souls?

>>43230535
I've been worried about the same. Gonna keep running it and see how it goes as I scrape off my literary rust. I've been engrossed in the dynamic of one character facing multiple perspectives and already have the endgame in mind as well as the other faces you'll come to wear. The dynamic with them and how the end turns out will be based upon your choices as well as the allies you make and the enemies you destroy.

>>43230568
Cycles, repetitions, and viewing characters from perspectives outside any one timeline, without veering too close to good and evil dichotomies.

Youve got a lot more leeway here because things are more dramatic than realistic, so hopefully we wont hit anything immersion breaking.

>>43230648
That point reminds me.
Have you read Wheel of Time yet, Dran?

>>43230666
I still haven't unfortunately. Every time you bring it up makes me realize I need it read it more and more.