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>I should rest a bit and try to clear my head. Tomorrow we're leaving for Gem, after all.
>I should get on my Swift Rider and head to Tianna City. I need to speak with Amata.
>I should get on my Swift Rider and head to Tianna City. I need Amata to send an Infallible Messenger to the Gem infiltration team for me.
>Tia was feeling bored and is probably waiting for me in my room right now. I shouldn't keep her waiting too much.
>It's been a while since I saw Silk. I certainly hope she's behaving.
>Apparently Five Tails was panicking for some reason? Maybe I should look for her. Wonder what's up.
>I need to see Valeriana, Irene and Zaan, and hear from them how their work's progressing.
>I should get Karas, Rajan and Samiel in a room and hear their plans on how to organize our armed forces in greater detail.
>(Other?)
(at this point you could be doing anything, you're on your own schedule so you could write in whatever you want. These are just suggestions.)

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>Who are we?
Maka, an exiled noble Exalted as a Zenith-caste Solar. Queen of Gem, now ruling the western island of Tianna. You have gathered a vast amount of allies and friends, and defeated every threat to Tianna up to now.
You recently discovered that Tianna is actually an artificial island, built around a First Age Titan: an almighty flying fortress. Your forces have crushed the Bodhisattva Anointed by Dark Water, a Deathlord who tried to usurp its power for himself.
And now, on the day of your wedding, the Unconquered Sun Himself appeared to you and crowned you Princess of Creation, asking you to be an example for others in these dark times.

>Solar? Zenith? I don't know Exalted...
This quest is as newbie-friendly as possible, and I want it to work as a newbie's intro to Exalted. If you have ANY question, ask in thread. For the setting, google "1d4chan exalted".

>Archive?
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Solar%20Quest

>System?
Dicepool-like system. When performing an action, everyone rolls 1d10 when posting. the first X rolls are considered, where X is equal to attribute + ability.

>XP?
Attributes cost [current score x5] xp. Abilities cost [current score x3] xp, except Zenith costing [(current score x3) -1]. Charms cost 10 xp, except for Zenith-based charms (related to charisma and physical/mental fortitude) which cost 8 xp. At the end of every "session" (thread) you will be presented with a list of possible acquisitions.

>Twitter?
@exaltedfag

>Any questions?
http://ask.fm/Exaltedfag

New System Info: http://pastebin.com/pvAZpsJ6
Characters info (player-made): http://pastebin.com/5WnD47jp
Quest in ebook format (player-made): https://www.dropbox.com/s/0wl5obxcwuakgdj/Exalted%20Quest%20-%20Threads%2001-101%20%5Bpdf%5D.rar?dl=0
Meanwhiles: http://pastebin.com/u/Exaltedfag

>>46832373
>Apparently Five Tails was panicking for some reason? Maybe I should look for her. Wonder what's up.

>>46832373
>Apparently Five Tails was panicking for some reason? Maybe I should look for her. Wonder what's up.
Let's hear about those Lunars.

Nice to see you back EF.

>>46832373
>>It's been a while since I saw Silk. I certainly hope she's behaving.
I do wonder about Five Tails, but given Mikhail couldn't find her, I doubt we'd fair much better.

>>46832373
>>I need to see Valeriana, Irene and Zaan, and hear from them how their work's progressing.

>mfw i caught a thread

>>46832373
>>It's been a while since I saw Silk. I certainly hope she's behaving.
Silk's likely in her time-room, so talking with her should leave us enough time to see one more person afterwords.

>>46832353
>>Tia was feeling bored and is probably waiting for me in my room right now. I shouldn't keep her waiting too much.
>>It's been a while since I saw Silk. I certainly hope she's behaving.
Good owners care for their pets, and good wives care for their husbands... possibly with pet aids?

>>46832373
>Apparently Five Tails was panicking for some reason? Maybe I should look for her. Wonder what's up.

>>46832373
>>Apparently Five Tails was panicking for some reason? Maybe I should look for her. Wonder what's up.

Hello, EF.

>>46832373
>Apparently Five Tails was panicking for some reason? Maybe I should look for her. Wonder what's up.

>>46832373
>It's been a while since I saw Silk. I certainly hope she's behaving.

You heard from both Karas and Mikahil that Five Tails is apparently very nervous about something, and they can't find her anymore.

Well, neither had any idea as to what went on with her exactly. Whatever could it be? Whatever it was, it was something that she couldn't even tell Mikahil about.

Or maybe she did tell him and they're both keeping a secret from you? That sounds suspicious, but also unlikely.

You take a brief walk around Golden Reach and it suddenly dawns on you that, if a Lunar wants to make themselves scarce, there's very little you can do to actually find them.

How should you proceed?

>Ask around if anyone's seen her... or any suspicious-looking animals? (m+t)
>Search for her in Golden Reach. She might still be around, after all. (m+t)
>Maybe she's in the city? Plenty of hiding places. (m+t)
>Organize search parties. If you can't find her alone, maybe a larger effort will yield results. (m+t)
>She probably left Pearl. You'll have to search for her in the farmlands. (m+t)
>If you wanted to hide, you'd do so in the wildlands, far from civilization. (m+t)
>(Other?)

Rolled 6 (1d10)

>>46832799
>If you wanted to hide, you'd do so in the wildlands, far from civilization. (m+t)

Rolled 4 (1d10)

>>46832799
>If you wanted to hide, you'd do so in the wildlands, far from civilization. (m+t)
Wouldn't searching the wilderness be Survival?

Rolled 5 (1d10)

>>46832799
>If you wanted to hide, you'd do so in the wildlands, far from civilization. (m+t)

>>46832799
>If you wanted to hide, you'd do so in the wildlands, far from civilization. (m+t)

I have no idea. This is the reason why I was curious about Five Tails.

Rolled 10 (1d10)

>>46832799
>>If you wanted to hide, you'd do so in the wildlands, far from civilization. (m+t)

Rolled 5 (1d10)

>>46832799
Forgot dice.

She's probably pregnant

> Get up high and shout as load as possible for Five Tails

Rolled 2 (1d10)

>>46832888
That would mean Mika would have to doing lewd things with her and not with his piles of money

>>46832918
We are spending a lot of money, maybe he turned desperate in his despair.

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>46832941
Mika's secret dream of doing a Scrooge McDuck style money dive is slowly going down the drain

Rolled 8 (1d10)

>>46832799
>Organize search parties. If you can't find her alone, maybe a larger effort will yield results. (m+t)
Get Tia involved, at least. Lunars are really good at finding stuff, especially hiding Lunars.

>>46832976
Tia at least is a good idea, I think we can do this one regardless of what we pick

>>46832976
>Organize search parties.
pls no

This is inappropriate and insulting.

>>46832965
>Mika's secret dream
Please, even the mortals know probably know about it. he hides his love of money only slightly better than Maka hides her love of sex.

Rolled 10 (1d10)

>>46832799
>>If you wanted to hide, you'd do so in the wildlands, far from civilization. (m+t)

>>46832997
Eh, only actually care about the bit I wrote in.

>>46833049
Feels like that bit would fit the "far from civilization" one better anyway.

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You head back to your room and enlist the help of Tia. Takes one to find one, right?

Tia is extremely happy to see you and is already posing draped over the bed like one of your Chiaroscuran girls when you dash her hopes mercilessly: "Uh, actually I just wanted your help to find Tive Tails, she's vanished somewhere and not even Mika knows where."

"...oh." she groans, supremely disappointed."Um, why do you think I can help you find her?"

"Well... you're a Lunar." You point out the obvious. "You should know something that could help us find her, right?"

"I'm not the hiding kind of Lunar." She grumbles. Well, she does have a point. "What is she hiding from, even?"

"No idea, honestly. Not even a hint. I was kind of assuming she must be hiding somewhere in the woods."

"What, just because she's a Lunar?" Tia pouts. "That's an insult to my people."

You roll your eyes. "You're not even- you're from the northeast, she's from the southwest, you couldn't be any more different. Just give me a hand, alright? I've got a bad feeling."

She shrugs. "Alright, but Five's the nervous, worrying sort. I'm sure she's panicking over something minor."

"Gods, I hope so." You roll your eyes. "Besides, isn't your tribe camped out around Pearl? They might have seen her."

The Full Moon shakes her head in response. "The Black Fangs are good, but they're not spot-a-Lunar-who-is-very-good-at-hiding good. Still, we could try."

[Mental + Twilight = 6 4 5 10 5 2 9 = 3 successes]

Over the course of the night, you search the surroundings systematically. You inspect tracks, question farmers, nomads, hunters and whoever you find roaming the sparsely settled countryside, and regard suspiciously every trace of local fauna.

As dawn breaks, your end result is nothing. As you and Tia meet each other at Golden Reach's main entrance, neither of you has anything to show for the many hours spent searching.

(cont.)

>>46833083
Probably. Time-lapsed pocket dimension is also a possible hiding spot when dealing with Lunar Hide-and-Seek.

>>46833115
>As dawn breaks, your end result is nothing.
Told you all this wouldn't work. Our stats for looking for hiding people are shit.

>>46833155
It was pointless since the start. We shouldn't have worried about her in the first place. Instead we should have checked on something that's our immediate business like how valerianna and the others are progressing.

"Well." Tia consoles herself. "If she's hiding out here, she's certainly seen that we're looking for her. So either she has a good reason to hide despite realizing that she's making us worried..."

"Or she's not out here." You groan. "It's like looking for a needle in a haystack, and the needle can shapeshift into hay."

Tia, who was rather indifferent to the whole issue at first, seems to be a bit more worried now.

"I wonder what the heck happened. I can't imagine something that would upset her this much, and that she'd keep hidden from Mikahil as well." She mumbles. "...Isn't he worried?"

"Now that you mention it, he didn't seem particularly worried. He said that Five Tails can perfectly take care of herself. And that, well, even if he wanted to find her he wouldn't be able to unless SHE wants him to find her."

She frowns. "...You think they had a fight?"

"...doesn't seem so? I have the feeling that someone else here would know that as well, if they did. Or- well, okay, Mikahil is a very hard man to read. It's possible, but I'm not certain about it." You consider.

>Mikahil is probably right, when she wants to speak she'll show up. No sense worrying about this so much.
>Let's try looking for her someplace else. (Golden Reach / Pearl / farmlands / other) (pick one) (m+t)
>(other?)

>>46833193
>Mikahil is probably right, when she wants to speak she'll show up. No sense worrying about this so much.

>>46833193
>>Mikahil is probably right, when she wants to speak she'll show up. No sense worrying about this so much.
Apologize to Tia for taking up her time

>>46833193
Let's go see Zaan, maybe he's heard from her, if not we can at least hear how he's doing with the Essence juice

Rolled 6 (1d10)

>>46833193
>Let's try looking for her someplace else. (Golden Reach) (pick one) (m+t)

>Mikahil is probably right, when she wants to speak she'll show up. No sense worrying about this so much.

Not going to find her until she's ready to talk.

>>46833193
>>Let's try looking for her someplace else.
>>Pearl (m+t)
Not giving this up.

Rolled 5 (1d10)

>>46833275
Forgot dice

>>46833193
>>Mikahil is probably right, when she wants to speak she'll show up. No sense worrying about this so much.
Let's go visit Silk, since we have Tia with us already.

Rolled 5 (1d10)

>>46833229
And dice just in case

>>46833290
I'd rather go see Zaan.

Rolled 3 (1d10)

>>46833193
>>Mikahil is probably right, when she wants to speak she'll show up. No sense worrying about this so much.

Tomorrow we go to Gem. Let's get a last bit of work in order.

>>46833193
>Mikahil is probably right, when she wants to speak she'll show up. No sense worrying about this so much.

You sigh, massaging your eyes. "...I'm sorry for whatever Five Tails' problem is, and I'm sure there's a good reason she's disappeared, but we don't really have a way to find her. We can only wait."

Tia nods. "Well, Mika is right. She can handle herself."

"Yeah. We should focus on getting as much work as possible done before we leave for Gem."

She makes a strange face. "...I'm coming to Gem with you too, right?"

"...That's a weird question. You don't want to come?" You weren't expecting that.

"N- no, no, I didn't say that. Just... I'm coming?"

You nod. "...What's the problem?"

"I'm a bit... nervous." She mumbles.

Oh, boy. Tia's only ever been nervous when she's been in a position to cause you trouble or embarrassment, which means that-

"Oh, you're worried about meeting my dad?" You read between the lines. "Don't be, you'll get along greatly. Well... You stop and think. You essentially ran away, got pregnant, and married without his consent. Of course, the circumstances were nothing but extraordinary, but...

You glance up and down at Tia. Hidden under her dainty appearance and white dress, there's one of Creation's most terrifying engines of murder. Will dad really try and pick a fight with her?

...You'll cross that bridge when you get to it. For now...
(cont.)

>Let's rest.
>Let's go and see Amata.
>Let's go and see Silk.
>Let's go and see Valeriana and Irene.
>Let's go and see Zaan.
>Let's arrange a meeting with Karas, Rajan and Samiel.
>(Other?)

>>46833521
>>Let's go and see Valeriana and Irene.
I wonder if Val even knows we're going to Gem

>>46833521
>Let's go and see Valeriana and Irene.
Tia a cute.

>>46833521
>Let's go and see Valeriana and Irene.

>>46833521
>Let's go and see Silk.

>>46833521
>Let's go and see Valeriana and Irene.
Solar Circle get!

>>46833521
>Let's go and see Valeriana and Irene.

>>46833521
>>Let's go and see Zaan.

>>46833521
>>Let's go and see Silk.

>>46833521
>>Let's go and see Valeriana and Irene.

>>46833521
>Let's go and see Silk.

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Val and Irene have more or less set up an excellent semi-permanent workshop inside Golden Reach by now. Things aren't as hectic and patched-together as they were back when they were still working around the clock to prepare for the Silver Prince's assault.

The workshop is also vast and fully using all that space, with several dozen craftsmen, apprentices and assistants working under Valeriana's skilled supervision and handling anything that doesn't necessarily require Irene's expert handling.

"Maka! It's nice to see you're back!" Val looks up from her own work table, which is a mind-bendingly pile of large sheets of paper filled with designs and schematics of all sorts, together with wooden and clay scale models of... pretty much everything, but most of those look like internal components like levers and gearboxes and such.
You recognize more than a few of those designs: they're additions and modifications to Golden Reach.

"...I see you've kept yourself busy. Any of this has anything to do with the, uh, discussion we had at the wedding?"

She shrugs, blushing briefly. "...Sort of? It gave me ideas. I still want to make Golden Reach into something amazing, but, eh."

"...What is it?"

"...Nothing, I'm still working on the best idea. For now, there's still A LOT of work to do. We cut a lot of corners while building it, and I want to make it, you know."

"I know, you want it to be amazing." You can't help but smile at her earnestness. "How amazing?"

"I'm working on it. With enough help, think we can finish all work on Golden Reach and Pearl in about one year. That depends on a lot of things, of course, and it assumes that we get to use Tia to do some of the heavy lifting." She glances sideways to the Lunar standing behind you.

"I don't mind." She replies.

(cont.)

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"Out of curiosity, how much would it take without her?" You wonder.

"Heck, maybe five years?" She groans. "And without supernatural help at all, that is, without summoned demons, spirits and gods and such, maybe fifty years."

You whistle. "That's impressive. But it's fairly long term in any case, right?"

"Right." She nods.

"What about all the military hardware we got from the Skullstonians?"

"Oh, ask Irene, she's handling it." She points at the Dragon-Blooded, sitting pensively in front of a table on the other side of the room. She doesn't seem to have noticed your arrival. On the table some sort of complicated-looking piece of magitek machinery sits, half-disassembled. You see bundles of metal wiring, lenses and prisms and crystals and colored gemstones, small metallic plates with hand-carved runes, and screws, nuts and bolts of all sizes and shapes spread all over the place.

You sneak up to her. "Hi, Irene."

She's so startled she almost falls from her chair. "MAKA!" She suddenly exclaims. "You already back?"

"It's the 22nd, dear." You grin.

She glances around, as if to look for a calendar hanging on a wall, but there are none to be found. "Is it? Wow. Welcome back! How was the trip?"

"Pleasant." You reply.

"Could've been more pleasant." Tia smiles, with a somewhat threatening air about her.

"So, what's this thing here?" You lean on the table.

"Main focusing assembly of one of the Lightning Ballistas we captured. It's almost intact but just a single lens cracked, and we don't have any replacements. It's almost a pity, but I was thinking that it might be better to recycle it all for spare parts after all."

"Just for a cracked lens? Can't we repair or substitute it?"

(cont.)

>>46833961
>"Could've been more pleasant." Tia smiles, with a somewhat threatening air about her
We definitely need to give Tia a bit of Maka time before we go. For the good of all.

>>46833961
>Crack-Mending Technique
>Incantation of Effective Restoration
Come on, Val

"Not with something so delicate and precise. Besides, I really, really need a lot of these spare parts for other stuff, so it's not like it's a huge loss." She yawns and stretches. "The last week has been a lot like working on Creation's largest jigsaw puzzle. I've been shuffling parts and pieces around trying to get as much stuff as possible to work."

"...I hope it's not a bad time to ask you for a report? Because we kind of need to know what we have to work with, if we want to make plans of an offensive against Skullstone." You ask.

"Give me ten minutes." She nods, leaving her table and walking up to a group of other workers gathered around another table. You make yourself comfortable as you see her walk around, take notes on the works in progress, ask the staff how their projects are going on, et cetera. Finally, she has a brief discussion with Valeriana, before returning back to you with a notepad full of scribbles taken in shorthand.

"What's the verdict?"

"Well, currently, we have six Swift Midday Brilliance-class ships..."

"Wait, THAT's the name?" You interrupt her

"That's the official name they had in First Age documents, right." She nods. "Skullstone's model was a bit different, but still based on that design, and we're changing it another bit, but they're minor adjustments. Other than replacing all the Soulsteel with Jade or, where possible and necessary, Orichalcum, of course. As a result, by the way, these ships will maneuver slightly better during the day, worse at night, and... I suspect rather badly in the seas of the Underworld, but I have no way to test that."

"At least they're not going to eat us or anything." You sigh in relief. "So, we have six?"

"Well, six that are functioning at 100% efficiency. Others under repair. We gave our Abyssal "friends" two of these six."

"...And now three to Moray, leaving us with one."

"...I'm sorry, what?" Irene facepalms. "Essence-driven ships aren't CANDY. You can't JUST GIVE THEM."

(cont.)

>>46834008
>>46834226
>"...I'm sorry, what?" Irene facepalms. "Essence-driven ships aren't CANDY. You can't JUST GIVE THEM."
Irene too.

>>46834270
speaking of that, how long has it been we've had Maka time with Irene?
I mean, she's really deserving it by now with all the stuff she makes for us ceaselessly.

>>46834399
I think it's been awhile since we've been with any part of our harem that wasn't Tia or Amata. We should fix that when we have the time.
Also maybe work on adding some of the Abyssals.

"...Don't worry, I have a plan." You reassure her, hoping that you really do. "You were saying?"

She calms down and takes a deep breath. "...So, six ships, five of which are... let's say on loan. Three common-class Warstriders, one of which is on loan to the Abyssals. Plus the Dragonkaiser, which... I don't know, it's a rather unique design but I'd put it on par with a Noble-class Warstrider." She says with a hint of pride.

"What about weaponry?"

She reads from a list: "7 Implosion Bows, 21 Concussive Essence Cannons (of which 5 handheld, 11 small, and 5 medium-sized), 4 Lightning Ballistas, and a Storm Hammer. Everything else is damaged and under repairs."

You frown lightly. "...Remind me the details?"

"Implosion Bows fire an alchemical fuel solution, basically a large firebomb charged with natural Essence. They're what you'd normally use on ships, and can also be carried by Warstriders." She explains, and then slaps her large spear-like weapon, which is propped up against a near wall.

"Concussive Essence Cannons like this can either work off your personal Essence, use a hearthstone, or use the cartridge system we designed some time ago. They deliver a powerful, blunt blast, like an enormous punch, a huge rock, or an air blast. Handheld ones are just that. This is a small one, which means that you need a team of two to lug it around, unless you're very strong. Medium ones are definitely something meant for a fixed position, unless you're like Tia or something."

"The fact that you stop at Medium implies that there are Large ones?" You wonder.

(cont.)

>>46834442
and that cute half-ghost!

but first: Irene

>>46834468
Right.
Though we should try and give everyone some one-on-one time between Gem and Skullstine. We don't want anyone thinking we don't love them anymore.

"We don't have any, but we have rough blueprints and some bits and pieces from the Titan." She explains. "Well, then, Lightning Ballistas are the most powerful. They're huge, are meant to be mounted on a fixed position, need a hearthstone or a very powerful and difficult to make cartridge , and pack one hell of a punch. These are the ones that Skullstonian ships used to bombard us during the battle, and you remember the damage they did against a fortified position."

You sure do. You saw those blue-white beams of lightning tearing through stone like it was paper, whenever they hit with the right force and angle.

"...What's a Storm Hammer?"

"Our secret weapon." She grins. "Mom used it to sink more than a few ships on the Tianna City front. It's basically a huge contraption that can call down a lightning storm, and direct every single bolt with pinpoint precision. It's a purely defensive weapon, but an excellent one."

"...What about the damaged stuff? Can we get it ready anytime soon?"

She shakes her head. "Not soon at all. We need to do a lot of overhauls, craft a lot of very delicate parts and fit them exactly.

"Karas told me that we'd be done with the repairs by Fire season?"

"Not a bad estimate."

>How is this armory going to improve by then?
>What about conventional artifact weapons, like Daiklaves and such?
>Can't you get it done faster?
>(Other?)

>>46834578
>Sneak up behind her, give her a hug and steal a kiss.
>Show appreciation for her work.

>>46834578
>How is this armory going to improve by then?

>>46834578
>What about conventional artifact weapons, like Daiklaves and such?
>(Other?)
How's all that stuff they found beneath the Titan doing, ?
I remember some good shit like an Ashigaru assembly line

That was a pretty huge update

>>46834578
>>How is this armory going to improve by then?

>>46834578
>>46834609
Yeah, this is also good

>>46834578
>>What about conventional artifact weapons, like Daiklaves and such?
>>46834609
Business, then pleasure.
I mean, Maka can do both at the same time, but members of our harem deserve our full attention in both cases.

>>46834578
>Did we uncover any facilities in the Titan we can use?
>How's the work on the Titan coming along, btw?

>>46834624
>That was a pretty huge update
I love it when he does his info dump.

>>46834578
>How is this armory going to improve by then?
>What about conventional artifact weapons, like Daiklaves and such?
Anyone think Tia would get much use out a mid cannon in Gem or would it be a minimal improvement over her standard rip and tear?

>>46834609
Business first.

>>46834578
>>What about conventional artifact weapons, like Daiklaves and such?

>>46834578
>What about conventional artifact weapons, like Daiklaves and such?

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>>46833115
>draped over the bed like one of your Chiaroscuran girls

>>46834655
>>46834643
I can and do respect that
But do not forget: without some pleasure business is nothing. And the other way around.

>>46834874
>But do not forget: without some pleasure business is nothing. And the other way around.
It sounds like you're trying to make some kind of wise-sounding saying but it just seems like unfounded nonsense.

>>46834874
I was the one who pointed out how much we've been neglecting our harem recently, so I'm completely on board with lewding up Irene. But after we're done with the business stuff, we're on a time limit after all.

"What about conventional artifact weapons, like Daiklaves and such?" You have to wonder.

"We have quite a bit." She smiles. "Unfortunately, we're out of Orichalcum, because everything we've left we'll need to repair these artifacts and to improve on Golden Reach, or so Val says. We have a bit of spare Jade, not an enormous amount but enough to get some extra stuff done if we need it. We also have found more than a few weapons and suits of armor and stuff like that in the Titan. Most of them are damaged, but it's still recyclable material, and some of them are still usable."

"And as for the Ashigaru suits?"

"Right now we have 10 that are fully functional, between the ones found in the Titan and the reverse-engineered ones from Skullstone we can repurpose. Regis, Millian, Pyre Spark, Iscariah and Zareen are already wearing five. Oh!" She suddenly remembered something. "I remember Val saying that if we can find a large amount of gold, she can try and distill some more Orichalcum, with Flame's help."

"We might." You grin. "Anything else?"

She thinks about it for a moment, then calls for Valeriana. "hey, Val, you told Maka about the hole?"

"Oh? Oh! I forgot completely."

"What?" You ask, suddenly worried. "What hole?"

Val walks up to you. "You know the massive underground crater that the Titan's beam blasted when we finally managed to kick the Silver Prince under it and pull the trigger?

"Vaguely."

"It's cooled down a bit by now, even though it's still too hot to actually explore."

"...Wait, explore?"

"That's the issue. The crater intersected a few underground tunnels." Irene explains. "We have no idea what's down there."

"They might be natural." Val continues. "Or not. The crater's still too hot and too full of chaotic Essence to give them a closer look."

"...Well, that's interesting."

>Can you work on something that will let us explore them as soon as possible?
>Let's just let them cool down.
>Can you seal them up? I don't want any trouble from there.

>>46834890
Work and relaxiation.
Working just makes relaxiation, well, relaxing.
On the other side relaxing gets tiresome if you're doing nothing but pleasurable things.
It's that phenomenon when your vacation starts getting on your nerves, you may or may not know that, many people don't do real vacation anymore, and working starts burning you out. It's just about keeping the balance.
Best to take time to sharpen the axe before you cut down trees.

>>46834935
still completely on board with you. that last line might have been immensly unnecessary.

nah, best ignore me, as to not clutter the thread with needless discussion

>>46834998
>>Can you work on something that will let us explore them as soon as possible?
If it takes up time or stuff we need then just let it cool naturally and we'll look afterwards.

Doesn't Gem also mine a shit ton of gold?

>>46834998
>Can you work on something that will let us explore them as soon as possible?
We can go on a fun adventure with the waifus to explore caverns, find a lost civilization of Jadeborn and punch darkbroods in the face.

>>46834998
>Do you have a solution for making it cool down faster? You know, a few holes for heat and essence to vent or something along these lines?

>>46834998
>>Let's just let them cool down.
How hot is "too hot?"
Because we have a LOT of soak charms, including a Perfect Defense.
We could take a look to see if it's worth the time to speed up, or if we should just wait for it to cool on it's own.

>>46834998
>>Can you seal them up? I don't want any trouble from there.
>>Let's just let them cool down.

A door or hatch we can lock and bar from our side up but open up for exploration later on.

>>46835049
>We can go on a fun adventure with the waifus
Why are you leaving out our husbandos? Just because we don't have as many of them doesn't mean we should neglect them.

>>46835103
Stone of gender changing. Husbandos now fall under waifus.

>>46834998
>Can you work on something that will let us explore them as soon as possible?

>>46834998
We could probably just check it out ourselves if we want a prelim scout withjust our charms.

IPP or our soak charms for the crazy essence and Hardship Surviving Spirit will deal with the heat

>>46835103
Mostly because Maka is Dom even if she's Sub. Along these lines everyone except Sol is Maka's waifu. Because waifus are taken.

>>46834998
>>Can you work on something that will let us explore them as soon as possible?

>>46834998
>>Can you work on something that will let us explore them as soon as possible?

If there is a mountain climb, it and if there is a hole jump into it. Rather than waiting for it to cool we can check it out right now.

>>46835128
It depends on what danger the essence is, shaping would be IPP and just scary damage would probably be soak

>>46834998
Now that I think about it, Irene mentioned she wanted to come to Gem with us way back when.

>>Can you seal them up? I don't want any trouble from there.

The only thing down their is bohemoths

"Can you work on something that will let us explore them as soon as possible?" You ask her. "I'm really curious."

"Eh..." She thinks about it. "...I MIGHT? I don't know, got no ideas right now. The problem isn't just the temperature, it's the local Essence flow that's... really wrong. It's going to take some time for it to settle down. I have really no idea what effect it could have on someone going down there."

"How long will it take for it to become accessible on its own?"

Val bites her lower lip in thought. "No idea, really. I'll have to take a second measurement in about a month and compare."

"More than a month, then?"

"Could be a month, could be a year, could be a hundred years." She replies. "...Don't even THINK about it."

"About what?"

"I can read your mind."

"No you can't."

"You're thinking about going down there alone."

"Maybe!"

"Well, don't."

"Do it, or think about it?"

"Neither." She groans. "I have NO IDEA of what could be down there, or how the polluted essence flow could affect you."

>I'm going to do it anyway, RIGHT NOW.
>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.
>Alright, I get it. So, about those artifacts we were talking about...
>(Other?)

>>46835469
But in that case we need it's guts to make cool stuff with

>>46834849
>Dereth_woman.jpg

>>46835477
What are the dangers of the polluted essence?

Like what would we need to protect against it?

>>46835469
you mean the only thing down there is valuable reagents for artifacts and trading goods

>>46835477
>>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.
Though the first option is REALLY tempting.

>>46835477
>>I'm going to do it anyway, RIGHT NOW.

Just for a bit, we'll run if it turns out to be difficult.

>Alright, I get it. So, about those artifacts we were talking about...

>>46835477
>>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.
Unless that essence is Wyld-like we don't really have anything to defend against it.

>>46835477
>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.

>>46835477
>I'm going to do it anyway, RIGHT NOW.

>>46835477
>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.

>>46835477
>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.

>>46835477
>>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.

>>46835477
>>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.
>>46835513
Integrity-Protecting Prana comes to mind, which is a charm we already have.

>>46835762
>Integrity-Protecting Prana comes to mind, which is a charm we already have.
Depends on whether the essence is a shaping hazard, might work though.

>>46835477
>>We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem.

You shrug. "We can worry about this problem some other time. Meanwhile, let's talk about Gem."

"You're right, it's something we can worry about some other time." Irene nods. "So, we're making the big move towards Gem?"

You nod, glancing sideways at Valeriana. "You said you can only carry five with your spell, right?"

"Right. Well, four plus myself. It'll be something like three or four days to go and as many to come back."

"Sorcery is amazing. Three or four days to cross that sort of distance boggles the mind. Normally, it would take MONTHS of travel." You're definitely impressed. "And untold dangers along the way."

"Well, the Azure Chariot is really conspicuous, mind you. It can be dangerous, or at least draw a lot of attention along the way." She points out. "But yes, when are we leaving, then?"

"Tomorrow." You reply, determined to move out as soon as possible.

"Who's coming, other than me and you?" She then asks. "And Karas, I assume."

>I need to speak with some people first.
>Rajan
>Irene
>Samiel
>Tia
>Zaan
>Zareen
>Millian
>Regis
>Mikahil
>(someone else?)

(up to two votes)

>>46835834
Wait, if we take anyone else, who will carry our Dad and Sister back?

>>46835834
>Mikahil
>Tia

>>46835869
They probably won't come back, someone will have to manage Gem after we take over.

>>46835834
>Janet Deer
because I forgot her other name
>Irene

>>46835851
while I'm not totally against it, Tia CAN be the opposite of stealthy very easily. Also consider how she'll look in a place where people are up to charcoal black

>>46835834
>Samiel
>Tia

>>46835869
Or, if you want them to come back with you, you have to leave two empty spaces.

>>46835834
>Tia
>Tia

>>46835834
>Tia
>I need to speak with some people first.

>>46835834
>>Tia
>>Zareen

>>46835898
>Also consider how she'll look in a place where people are up to charcoal black
Most aren't considering it's a trade city with lots of people and farther South doesn't mean blacker

>>46835834
>Tia
>I need to speak with some people first.

>>46835834
>Tia
>Regis

I considered Samiel and Rajan, but we might as well leave them here. We are pretty OP as we are.

>>46835898
>>46835916
Starfall and Zareen are already in Gem

>>46835834
>"Sorcery is amazing. Three or four days to cross that sort of distance boggles the mind. Normally, it would take MONTHS of travel." You're definitely impressed. "And untold dangers along the way."
Maka would know. She came from Gem to Tianna by conventional means, after all.

>>46835834
>Tia
>Irene

>>46835942
Oh damn, you're right. Slipped up there.

>>46835919
except for the coal people tribes, but those are wyld mutants, so meh

>>46835942
ah, my bad, thanks

>>46835834
>>Zaan
>>Zareen
>>Millian
>>Regis

>>46835834
>>Tia
>>Mikahil
Tia because Tia unless something with the Lunars comes up.

And we have to take Mikahil to the money city.

>>46835834
>Tia

Just Tia, I think everybody else is needed in Tianna to make sure the Skullstone preparations are moving smoothly

>>46835957
>(up to two votes)

>>46835834
>Mikahil
>Tia

>>46835944
Thinking about it, Maka was already specced for Zenith even before exalting, given how high a rank in Survival that would have required.

>>46835971
We can always ask if they need to stay behind and pick someone else. I think Mika would let us know.

>>46836001
She didn't pull it off alone, and probably used whatever Gem money she managed to grab before fleeing to fund the trip, but yes, you'd have to be a fool to think that Maka made it across the desert/mountains, through dangerous cities, and across the entire goddamn ocean to safety without any personal skills.

>>46836001
She almost certainly did not do it alone, I'd imagine that the Crown Princess of gem going on the lam would require help from a loyal retainer (maybe a lovestruck young guard) to get her out of the city and to the coast on a ship.

Heck lets say reason he wasn't with us on Tianna was because he was killed by assassins in the coast town getting us on a chartered boat with the last of the treasure taken with Maka as she escaped.

>>46835904
Well we can still bring two people with us and extract them if we need to, its less efficient and would mean our sorcerers would need to travel back and forth and a few people would be left with the first trip.

But if the shit hit the fan and we needed to we send one chariot with its pilot, our Father and Sister and two fighters to defend them. The Chariot moves so fast they could be ferried to a relay spot well away from danger, far enough that enemy forces would have all but no chance of getting to them, before the rider returns for us and our forces.

If things go well and we take the city travel arrangements can be more relaxed.

>>46836046
Or a loyal general/aid to her parents. It's a lot more likely that whoever helped her did so out of loyalty to her family and its regime than because they were trying to court Maka. Otherwise, we certainly would have had a moment of mourning for them in character by now.

>>46836074
More likely yeah but it lacks the drama of a good one sided infatuation from a young guard for the beautiful crown princess that he'd never be able to talk about without being immediately fired and maybe killed.

So i'm going with the more dramatic choice.

>>46836046
Stop trying to retcon in your shitty self-insert fan character.

>>46836134
Just spitballin' here anon, I don't care what direction EF goes or who helped Maka really escaped from Gem.

Unless you're just trying to get rid of contenders for YOUR shitty self-insert character.

>>46836102
Disagreed. The unrequited romance angle is trite and underwhelming (and more than a little creepy), while the principled steward giving his own life to send his sworn ward to the only possible better life that he can see is nuanced and dramatic as hell.

"Well, of course Tia, I have to introduce her to my dad." You joke.

Tia quivers uncomfortably.

"And then... Mikahil, so we'd have our full Solar circle in action on the field." You conclude.

"Alright, we're leaving tomorrow at dawn then. The spell lasts until sunset, so we need to leave as early as possible in order to make as much progress as possible." She explains.

"Excellent. Then..."

>I'll rest until then and wait.
>I want to see Amata in the meantime.
>I want to see Silk in the meantime.
>Let's get this army organization thing sorted out while we wait.
>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.
>(other?)

>>46836238
>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.
He might know about Five Tails too

>>46836200
Agree.

>>46836238
>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.

>>46836238
>>Let's get this army organization thing sorted out while we wait.

>>46836238
>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.

>>46836238
>>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.

>>46836238
Damn, these are all good. Since I feel like a guilty owner, though:
>I want to see Silk in the meantime.

>>46836238
>I want to see Silk in the meantime.
We need to make sure she's behaving.

>>46836238
>>46836312
agreeing on this
we'll have a problem if she gets too bored

>>46836238
>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.

>>46836238
>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.

>>46836238
>>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.

>>46836238
>>I want to see Silk in the meantime.

>>46836238
>>I want to see Silk in the meantime.
I do kinda want to see Zaan too, but ultimately however his thing is going will be fine without us checking, I can't say the same thing about Silk though.

>>46836238
>Let's hear about Zaan's progress.

>>46836502
As long as we don't spend all night with Zaan we can spend the rest of our time with Silk probably

>>46836673
I'm intent on taking care of the army stuff next.

>>46836696
It's not like that's on a time limit or anything, plus Karas has been working on that by himself so it's not like no one is doing it.

>>46836736
I've already considered that and still want to get a status update and deal with anything that might need dealing with first. Ideally it'll only take a little bit of time, but if it doesn't, then it was for good reason and would be worse to skip over.

File: Zaan White-Teeth.jpg (241 KB, 553x829)

241 KB JPG

"Then I'll be off. I need to see with Zaan. Do you know where he is, by the way?"

"You'll probably find him in his room. He set up some sort of weird alchemy lab in there."

"Alright. See you tomorrow, then!" You leave, heading for Zaan's quarters.

...Which are, more or less as described, pretty much an impromptu alchemical lab, but a very strange one. Potted plants of all sorts scattered everywhere, jars filled with dusts and powders, cages with a bewildering variety of small animals in them, including cats, dogs, mice, ferrets, rabbits, as well as aquariums full of fish and crustaceans. Beakers, alembics, pots, pipes, and all sort of related equipment is scattered around, clearly in active use, including several vessels put on a metal grid suspended above a live fire. Some of them are boiling, some of them are smoking.

The smell is indescribable, mostly because it's clearly a mix of hundreds of different scents layered one atop the other.

In the middle of it all, Zaan is cautiously inspecting a small glass cup filled with an emerald green liquid. "...Oh, hi Maka." He mumbles, noticing your arrival. "You know, I never really got much into alchemy, but I have to admit it's fairly interesting. Oh, make yourself comfortable."

You try and find a place where to sit down without breaking anything. "It is?"

"Oh, definitely. Smalltime compared to Sorcery, but still intriguing. And has a lot of potential, since it doesn't require Essence to be used."

"Speaking of that-"

"Yes, I know, the formula, right? I'm working on it. I think I'm close to a breakthrough, but there's a few problems I've already noticed with the procedure."

"Problems?" You echo him.

"Rather, limitations." He corrects himself. "Problems can be solved, but limitations are built in the method you're using, and I suspect many of these are limitations we can't work around." He lifts a finger, while sipping the greenish, sickly liquid in the cup.
(cont.)

"Point one: several of the required ingredients are fairly rare. Delicate plants, tinctures that require arduous and careful distillation, precious elements in nontrivial amounts, and also, a lot of careful work. It's never going to be something that we, or anyone, can mass-produce. And that probably explains why, historically, no one ever tried."

You have no idea what that green goop was, but you're in no rush to learn. "The other limitations?"

He reaches with one hand inside a rabbit's cage, picking up its occupant delicately, while counting to two on the other. "The procedure of a forced Awakening of one's Essence via alchemy is a terrifying systemic shock for a mortal. ...Let's say that the likelihood of someone dying or suffering some kind of damage from the procedure will not be zero, not even if everything's done with the utmost care." He explains. "Which also means that this might be a problem when the time comes for human experimentation."

That's not a pretty picture. And, thinking about it, neither is the one with Zaan biting the rabbit in half with his beartrap-like mouth. You wince instinctively.

"...What? I was hungry." He shrugs. "Why does everyone always make that face?"

You regain your composure. "How long before you're ready for this... experimentation phase, like you call it? Until you have some practical result?"

"No idea." He admits honestly, while chewing down his rather crunchy meal. "Really none." He gulps down the second (and last) bite of rabbit. "The path to knowledge is impervious and mysterious. I've already made several breakthroughs, but I've also suffered many setbacks." He glances to the now-empty cage. "I keep losing my important test animals."

"You know, Zaan." You cough politely. "I think you might not be cut for lab work."

[SESSION END]

(Sorry for ending so early, but I have to leave shortly.)

>>46837136
Base: +2 XP

>>46837136
Thanks for running.

>>46837136
>[SESSION END]
It's over!

Thanks for the thread as always EF

>>46837136
>And, thinking about it, neither is the one with Zaan biting the rabbit in half with his beartrap-like mouth. You wince instinctively.

Sharks, not even once

>>46837136
>[SESSION END]
Let's hope we leave for Gem next episode.

>>46837136
Super short thread today, we didn't even break 200 posts this time

I knew we wouldn't shag Irene this thread
But I didn't think it would be because of an early end

>>46837638
Not even that, we left her before the thread ended

>>46837655
Well, we COULD've come back to her. You know, it's only over when the fat lady sings. Or EF calls the end out-