>>5290397
The best and the brightest, however, attend the Astral Academy from a young age to receive the best training a Magical Girl can receive. Sprawling across the bulk of the Island of St. Sophia, the Astral Academy sits directly beneath Wisdom's holy light, where it is bathed in his glory both day and night. Those who graduate from these hallowed halls become the Magical Girls who are seen throughout the World Reborn, bringing peace, order, and justice to all of Mankind.

You, of course, are one of those gifted children who received an acceptance letter from the Astral Academy.

What got you in to the most prestigious Academy in the world?
>Good breeding. Literally - you were bred to be a superior Magical Girl, and got in easily on merits. (+2 to all base stats, even in Mundane Form)
>Nepotism. Your Mother holds a high position in the World Reborn, and as such you have been guaranteed a spot from birth. (Gain the Ojou-sama and Money Perks)
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
>Scholarship. You studied your pretty pink panties off to make the most of your odd alignment, and all that work paid in dividends. (Gain the Gifted and Sorcery Perks)
>Groomed. Not like that you sickos! But... one of the teachers here was your mentor, and wants you to be her successor. You'll do your best! (Gain the Watcher and Allies Perks)
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
>Infiltration. You were born of a monstrous womb to bring down the high strata from the inside, raised to bring about chaos and destruction. (Gain the Big Friend and Patron Perks. Your Specialization has been Corrupted as if you rolled a 20)

Regardless of how you got in, roll 13d20.

Patrons: If you pick Patronage or rolled the Patron perk, use this table for your 13th D20
01-13: One of the Stars has taken notice of your talents, and has chosen to sponsor you.
14-15: A Retired Magical Girl has taken notice of you, though she's too old to give you much but her Wisdom.
16: One of the Noble Houses with ties to the school has sponsored your acceptance.
17: An Elder Thing from an age before even the Machine Builders has arranged for your acceptance by tugging the strings of Fate.
18: The Sisterhood of the Unfallen has claimed you as their own. Become a Dark Magical Girl and taint your Specialization, but you remain on the side of Humanity.
19: One of the Palantine Ordos which your family has served within for generations has sponsored your acceptance.
20: Wisdom Himself has selected you for this position. No pressure.

Rolled 9, 11, 9, 3, 2, 4, 6, 12, 19, 15, 9, 19, 3 = 121 (13d20)

>>5290398
>>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
How can I not choose this.

Rolled 5, 13, 1, 10, 12, 6, 8, 12, 8, 15, 13, 4, 14 = 121 (13d20)

>>5290398
>>Scholarship. You studied your pretty pink panties off to make the most of your odd alignment, and all that work paid in dividends. (Gain the Gifted and Sorcery Perks)

Rolled 6, 12, 16, 5, 9, 7, 8, 13, 7, 13, 8, 12, 15 = 131 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
Well this seems interesting.

File: AMGCore1.1.pdf (7.64 MB, PDF)

7.64 MB PDF

>>5290398
>>5290400
>>5290402

PDF that contains what you'll get for the first twelve rolls. This probably won't follow the mechanics within (and the setting is very different) but will give the fluff and general abilities of the Magical Girl you roll up.

Rolled 2, 20, 6, 9, 2, 12, 13, 1, 14, 14, 16, 1, 19 = 129 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Groomed. Not like that you sickos! But... one of the teachers here was your mentor, and wants you to be her successor. You'll do your best! (Gain the Watcher and Allies Perks)
Will we all finally become the little girls we were destined to be?

Rolled 15, 5, 10, 13, 9, 10, 15, 4, 5, 14, 3, 14, 1 = 118 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

I want cute boys, cute girls and nice older characters.

>>5290405
>9 years old
>roll 20 on body type
>roll skimpy outfit
I have become the jailbait.

Rolled 8, 4, 6, 11, 2, 12, 13, 8, 14, 15, 15, 15, 16 = 139 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)

Rolled 6, 16, 19, 12, 20, 3, 4, 9, 19, 17, 7, 14, 6 = 152 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

Rolled 2, 2, 5, 2, 18, 18, 12, 14, 9, 3, 3, 10, 20 = 118 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)

Rolled 3, 9, 1, 10, 20, 8, 8, 14, 20, 18, 8, 17, 15 = 151 (13d20)

>>5290398
>>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

>>5290467
Ah, yes, the 9 YO underdeveloped invulnerable melee chosen one

>>5290483
The dice really loves underaged lolis saving the world

Going to give people until 7 AM EST to choose backgrounds. Then I'll build any new rolls and put builds up to a vote.

Also going to say that the Skimpy Override from l00d groomed is purely cosmetic, and won't affect stat-lines to make things less headache inducing for me.

Rolled 7, 10, 1, 14, 19, 9, 15, 15, 18, 2, 15, 19, 13 = 157 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

Rolled 2, 15, 3, 4, 18, 19, 10, 5, 8, 15, 1, 18, 16 = 134 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)

Rolled 15, 5, 5, 14, 2, 17, 2, 1, 12, 18, 9, 9, 12 = 121 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Infiltration. You were born of a monstrous womb to bring down the high strata from the inside, raised to bring about chaos and destruction. (Gain the Big Friend and Patron Perks. Your Specialization has been Corrupted as if you rolled a 20)

>>5290405
I have escaped my Wage Cage and can now properly inspect my rolls:
>2, 20, 6
Age 9, Ultra Oppai Loli with Psychic Powers. +2 to MAG and LCK
>9, 2, 12
Ranged weapon, +1 AGI, Skimpy Outfit, +1 AGI, Avenger, +1 VIT
So Psychic Ultra Oppai Loli who's bound to go absolutely ballistic if one of her friends get hurt in the line of duty, in a bikini with a firearm or a magic bow
>13, 1
Healing Artifact, +1 VIT, Dual Weapon. Very nice, some Monster Hunter level transforming weapon shenanigans.
>14, 14
Double Patron Perk, +2 to ANY stat. Also rolled a 19 for the 13th die, so not one but TWO Palantine Ordos sponsors my acceptance in to the academy. Hot damn.
>16, 1
Fix-it Band-aids, +1 VIT, Super Map, +1 LCK

So Psychic Ultra Oppai Loli who's bound to go absolutely ballistic if one of her friends get hurt in the line of duty, in a bikini or swimsuit with a firearm or a magic bow that can transform in to another weapon, a magic map that combined with her innate ability to detect minds can be used to pinpoint the exact location of any enemy, with the backing of two Palantine Ordos as Patrons and enough Healing Items to patch up any friend that gets herself a little beaten up. I dig it, I can absolutely roll with this.

>>5290524
So uh, is this a Multiplayer Quest? Do we all get to be the magical girl we rolled, or are these templates we'll vote on later? It seems a little vauge right now.
Do we also get to use the coins the PDF mentions to alter certain stats, or are we just going to ignore that?

>>5290631
These are all templates that you're going to vote on for MC-chan. The one that you rolled, I may have code-named Oppai Archerdin. Very balanced rolls with no real weaknesses, and good VIT. Note that you do not double stack the same perk, so the Second Patron becomes the Dimension/Overcity Shift.

Also note that you're a bikini knight of some sort.

Current build codenames are:
Born Lucky, Gambling Ace, Mage Tank, Oppai Archerdin, Chuuni Loli, Psychic Trickster, Iron Maiden, Chibi Yuusha, Shield Heroine, and Arcane Athlete.

>>5290629
>>5290630
You two will be getting proper builds tomorrow morning.

Rolled 11, 20, 12, 3, 6, 17, 15, 15, 1, 3, 20, 12, 11 = 146 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Nepotism. Your Mother holds a high position in the World Reborn, and as such you have been guaranteed a spot from birth. (Gain the Ojou-sama and Money Perks)

I'm a sucker for a good Ojou-sama

Rolled 9, 8, 3, 8, 20, 13, 13, 10, 10, 10, 7, 2, 16 = 129 (13d20)

>Infiltration. You were born of a monstrous womb to bring down the high strata from the inside, raised to bring about chaos and destruction. (Gain the Big Friend and Patron Perks. Your Specialization has been Corrupted as if you rolled a 20)

EEEvil

Rolled 5, 6, 9, 14, 1, 9, 14, 19, 5, 2, 7, 20, 16 = 127 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Nepotism. Your Mother holds a high position in the World Reborn, and as such you have been guaranteed a spot from birth. (Gain the Ojou-sama and Money Perks)
I’m a little confused, but give me my ringlets

File: Arcane Athlete Example.jpg (538 KB, 850x1339)

538 KB JPG

Because [Lewd] and [Not Lewd] will have very different tones, and it's very close between Patron and Groomed [Lewd], going to have a run-off with the Build Choice.

What got you in to the most prestigious Academy in the world (Run Off)?
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

What sort of Magical Girl are you?
>Born Lucky
STR 5, AGI 10, VIT 4, MAG 7, LCK 10
Average, Sound, Melee, Skimpy, Copycat
Perks: Flexible, Enhanced Outfit, Swan Song, Money, Ojou-sama, [CENSORED]

>Gambling Ace
STR 4, AGI 7, VIT 5, MAG 9, LCK 11
Average, Gambling, Ranged, Elaborate, Nullification
Perks: Disguise Artifact, Enhanced Outfit, Get Out of Jail, Money, Mirror Move, Underdog

>Mage Tank
STR 7, AGI 4, VIT 9, MAG 11, LCK 6
Average, Gravity, Melee, Elaborate, Focused Assault
Perks: Disguise Artifact, Healing Artifact, Environmental Sealing, Futanari, Defender, Mana Channeler

>Oppai Archerdin
STR 7, AGI 7, VIT 9, MAG 6, LCK 8
Vavoom, Psychic, Ranged/Melee, Skimpy, Avenger
Perks: Healing Artifact, Dual Weapon (Melee), Patron, Dimension Shift, Fix-It Bandaids, Super Map
Patron: Palantine Ordo

>Chuuni Loli
STR 4, AGI 5, VIT 6, MAG 14, LCK 7
Lolimode, Darkness, Mystic, Elaborate, Focus Fire
Perks: Monster Form, Mystic Artifact, Dimensional Home, Patron, Tuner, Dimension Shift
Patron: Stars

>Psychic Trickster
STR 4, AGI 6, VIT 7, MAG 9, LCK 10
Lolimode, Psychic, Mystic, Skimpy, Avenger
Perks: Healing Artifact, Disguise Artifact, Patron, Money, Skeleton Key, Monster Form
Patron: Noble House

>Iron Maiden
STR 9, AGI 4, VIT 8, MAG 8, LCK 7
Vavoom, Metal, Mystic, Cosplay, Hammerspace
Perks: Mystic Artifact, Bloodmage, Soul Jar, Swan Song, Sturdy, Dimension Shift

>Chibi Yuusha
STR 6, AGI 7, VIT 9, MAG 7, LCK 8
Lolimode, Reinforcement, Melee, Cosplay, Invulnerable
Perks: Enhance Outfit, Allies, Big Damn Hero, Fated, Tuner, Transfiguration

>Shield Heroine
STR 5, AGI 4, VIT 13, MAG 6, LCK 9
Average, Shields, Shields, Cosplay, Prime of Your Life
Perks: Disguise Artifact, Allies, Fake Parents, Eternal Style, Defender, Snapshots

>Arcane Athlete
STR 7, AGI 4, VIT 8, MAG 10, LCK 7
Average, Gym, Mystic, Cosplay, Barrage
Perks: Monster Form, Money, Eternal Style, Martial Training, Skeleton Key, Censored

>Swift Spiritualist
STR 6, AGI 9, VIT 8, MAG 6, LCK 8
Vavoom, Air, Melee, Cosplay, Tentacles
Perks: Bag of Holding, Gifted, Get out of Jail, Money, Fix-It Bandaids, Astral Projection

>Mini Monk
STR 8, AGI 7, VIT 8, MAG 7, LCK 7
Lolimode, Reinforcement, Mystic, Skimpy, Regeneration
Perks: Martial Training, Enhance Weapon, Room to Grow, Eternal Style, Ojou-sama, Bloodmage

Too many options...

File: Gambler Example.jpg (2.37 MB, 2039x2894)

2.37 MB JPG

>>5290832
>Warrior of Light
STR 9, AGI 6, VIT 9, MAG 6, LCK 7
Vavoom, Light, Melee, Flowing, Regeneration
Perks: Monster Form, Money, Mysterious Friend, Fated, Mount, Mana Channeler

>Airhead Operator
STR 4, AGI 10, VIT 8, MAG 7, LCK 7
Average, Air, Ranged, Cosplay, Shadow Clones
Perks: Healing Artifact, Bag of Holding, Absolute Direction, Transfiguration, Sturdy, Memory Link

>Sonic Boom
STR 4, AGI 10, VIT 5, MAG 9, LCK 8
Lolimode, Sound, Mystic, Skimpy, Barrage
Perks: Allies, Awareness, Martial Training, Dimensional Home, Sturdy, Mount

Additionally, for the sake of my sanity, all ages will be normalized to 1X years old, the appropriate age for an ordinary first year student at the Astral Academy.

>>5290832
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)

Voting for
>Chibi Yuusha
Although consider this a vote for
>Iron Maiden
if that gains traction.

>>5290832
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
>Mage Tank

>>5290832
>>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

>Born Lucky
>Arcane Athlete

>>5290832
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
>Oppai Archerdin

I'll put my vote down for what I managed to roll out. A Ranged character with the ability to sense minds and a Map that allows them to know exactly where they (and any enemies) are at all times, I can't just dip on something like this.

>>5290832
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)

>Psychic Trickster
>STR 4, AGI 6, VIT 7, MAG 9, LCK 10
>Lolimode, Psychic, Mystic, Skimpy, Avenger
>Perks: Healing Artifact, Disguise Artifact, Patron, Money, Skeleton Key, Monster Form
>Patron: Noble House

>>5290832
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
>Chuuni Loli
Wa ga hai!

>>5290832
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
>Iron Maiden

>>5290832
>>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

>>Born Lucky

>>5290832
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
>Oppai Archerdin

>>5290832
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

>Born Lucky
Has everything I wanted.

>>5290832
>>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
>Mini Monk

>>5290832
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
>Chuuni Loli

>>5290832
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
>Born Lucky

>>5290832
>Patronage
>Born Lucky
We’re already flexible (and skimpy) so groomed gives less overall.

>>5291036
If you end up getting a trait from your background that you would already have, it will bump to another trait. In this case, the Flexible will become "Fortunate" (and give you even more luck). Likewise, the Patron from Patronage would become Dimensional Shift (or Allies, if you have that, or a random one if you have all 3).

The skimpy is purely cosmetic, but a fun meme might be that double stacking it turns your outfit into Censor Bars during your transformation.

(This is not to say that I prefer one or the other; my personal preference was Scholarship, but I also didn't put down anything that I'm not willing to run)

Rolled 2, 1, 10, 2, 17, 9, 17, 8, 17, 2, 7, 2, 17 = 111 (13d20)

>>5290398
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)

>>5290832
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
>Born Lucky

>>5290832
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

>Arcane Athlete

>>5290832
>Mage Tank
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
my inner /d/ compels me.

>>5291210
>>5291212
I should have put a post when I started work on the character sheet, but I'm halfway through that and it would be too much work to back out now. I started at the tie, so you're getting a "por que no los dos" with less fucking your teacher on the regular and more being patroned by one of the Stars that seems to be a pervert. Toning down lewdness from Groomed and cranking it up from the original patron.

>>5291213
But I want to lewd the teacher(s) too!

>>5291213
Oh I thought it would be the other way around to avoid the whole /d/ monster/alien fuckery instead perv teacher fucking their student which is why the Watcher is there to watch your back from their perverted ass and the flexible to escape from them. That seems worse. I would rather deal with a lewd teacher.

>>5291213
Gotta crank up the lewdness back to groomed levels since it won. Don't really care about the other aspects if you choose to mix it up.

>>5291213
I like the compromise, myself

>>5290832
>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)
>Shield Heroine

>>5291213
No offense, but that sounds worse than one or the other.

>>5290832
>>Patronage. You were selected by a higher power to be their champion - but even champions must receive a proper education (Gain the Patron and Fated Perks.)

>>5290832
>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)
>Born Lucky

>>5290832
>>Groomed. Okay, yeah, like that. But it feels super good, and... uh... you're really limber now! (Gain the Watcher and Flexible Perks. Your outfit roll is overridden to be Skimpy)

File: Parva (Uniform).jpg (1.24 MB, 2894x4093)

1.24 MB JPG

>>5291213
Well, since y'all tied up the vote when I started work on this post, I guess we'll be going with this as your background:

Groomed by a High Power. You were selected by a higher power for mysterious reasons that often require you to be naked in their presence? They talk about wanting to observe their Shrine Maiden's growth, but... aren't you just giving them an elaborate peep show!? (Gain the Patron and Flexible Perks)

Expect lewdness levels for this quest to be about on par with Mahou Sensei Negima. Maybe a bit higher with heavier stuff going on in the background.

Character Sheet
Name: Parva Symphonia
Titles: Maiden of the 1728th Shrine Hall
Magical Name: You have not earned a epithet to use among Mahou Shoujo circles yet
Patron: The Star of Diligence
Sex: Female

Attributes
STR 5, AGI 10, VIT 4, MAG 7, LCK 12

While transformed...
You have Strength to match your average body builder, and the endurance to run a marathon.
You have Agility to match a precision tool with your hands, and the speed of a car on the highway.
You have Vitality to match a healthy and athletic girl your age, and an ordinary resistance to pain.
You have Magic aptitude enough to match the greatest of sorcerers outside the circles of Mahou Shoujo.

Even without your transformation, your Luck reaches the point of absurdity in how the world will bend over backwards to accommodate you when it comes to matters of chance.

Magical Girl Abilities
Grand Symphony: The magical sound of music, which primarily serves to enhance your fighting style and inspire courage in your allies. It sheathes weapons in shockwaves of sound that shake apart your foes, and tempers spirits against those taken by fear. Those with just hearts who hear the music your magic produces gain the benefits of your magic, and those who are aligned with evil are stuck with fear and foreboding.

Metron and Nomos: Your magic swords that harmonize with your music. They are especially suited to carrying the sonic hymns as a form of attack.

Barrier Jacket: A barrier jacket devised by the Star of Diligence. Breezy and showy, but very comfortable!

Kaleidoscope Eyes: You can copy other people's special abilities and fighting styles as long as you can seen them in use. Abilities that you've copied can be stored for later use, but their powers are largely diminished, and you can only store 6 of them.

File: Parva Symphonia (Transformed).jpg (322 KB, 1448x2048)

322 KB JPG

>>5291307
Perks
Flexibility: Outside of your transformation, you have the flexibility of an olympic gymnast and master contortionist, with nearly perfect control of your body's motion. While transformed, you may as well be made of rubber, with how inhuman your flexibility and motion can become.

Enhanced Outfit: The Star of Diligence Himself designed your barrier jacket to his exacting specifications to provide a greater level of protection for his shrine maiden than even the fabled powered armors of the Machine Builders. How he managed to do that while also showing off your body to the degree that the barrier jacket does is a mystery...

Swan Song: You're only scratching the surface of your potential when you fight, because the forms which Diligence raised you to learn can be dangerous for the human body. However, if the need arises, you have his permission to go all out - just this one - and turn the tide of battle. Just don't expect to be walking for a while after you pull that stunt off...

Money: You're rich. Or rather, Diligence provides you with a living stipend as His Shrine Maiden, and he does not skimp out on the the amount of money that stipend has. You cannot afford to buy just anything you want, but most things within reason are within reach. If you make a good case for it, your Patron might even be willing to splurge and get you something big.

Ojou-sama: Diligence raised you as a daughter of his shrine to become His ideal of graceful beauty, and it shows in your affected mannerisms and demeanor. You can move among the highest social circles of the Upper Strata comfortably, and are blessed with the aid of one of His creations: a golem manservant, who attends to your every need.

[CENSORED]: Behold, the ULTIMATE FATHERLY DEFENSE of Diligence. Somehow, whenever your get into a lewd situation or otherwise lose your clothing, there's always clouds of steam or rays of light that hide the important bits until they're properly covered. The reason you think it's Diligence's work is because of another blessing He gave you... any time you swear, it comes out like the quack of a duckling.

Fortunate: From duplicate "Flexibility". Your luck extends to your mundane life, with things just happening to go your way whenever it's up to a game of chance. This can be a curse at times, because if you're looking for trouble, you often enough will just miss it if you wouldn't be able to handle it.

Patron: You were abandoned by your mother upon the steps of the 1728th Shrine Hall, in the Upper Strata. Though it had long since been abandoned, to be consumed by the wilderness, the Star of Diligence who calls that Shrine His Home took you in as his own. He raised you into a fine young girl, though His strange quirks and preferences - such as "no clothes in the Shrine except for ceremonies" - have given you a few strange habits of your own.

>>5291222
There is nothing stopping you from pursuing the teachers as romance options and "bagging" them, though don't expect me to go into incredible detail if you do earn yourself a smut scene.

>>5291232
Oh, no. The perks were the Teacher and the results of their Teaching, not means to escape them. Flexibility for various positions, Watcher because they did feel affection towards (you) and they would have gone a long way further out of their way to help you out. The current situation has no SEGGS going on, just being raised without any nudity taboo and the Star of Diligence regularly clinically examining Parva's body a la what happened in the John Wick Isekai.

>>5291309
I like how her sheet has turned out, I'm down for this.

>>5291475
Much agreed.

>>5291307
>>5291309
Looks pretty good.

File: The 1728th Temple Shrine.jpg (1.18 MB, 1046x1544)

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A small island meanders listlessly across the upper strata of the World Reborn, carried by currents of ether and starlight along its orbit around the Black Star Below. With barely more than a few square kilometers upon its sunward surface, it shows little sign of human development. Too large to house a noble's private getaway, too small to make for a proper fiefdom for even the lowest gentry, it flies beneath notice alongside a million other shards of its size. The only thing that sets it apart from any other islet soaring through the upper strata is the ivy-clad spire that peaks out from the forest's canopy, marking the location of the 1728th Astral Shrine.

Until recently, even that would only get a passing glance from those who passed this nameless island. Forgotten shrines whose stars have long since burnt out are an all-too-common sight even in the upper strata, and few can tell the difference between a shrine that housed a star and a mere temple built to revere them at first glance. A record of it may have existed within the archives of the Church of Holy Wisdom and His Ten Thousand Brother Stars, but it just as easily may have been lost to time. To a Sister of the Church, it would have been a passing curiosity that she might visit if she had the time, to record its history and update the archives' knowledge of it.

Now, however, the spire shines with the Light of Diligence, and the faithful have taken notice.

After centuries of silence, the halls of the 1728th Astral Shrine hum again with the sound of the faithful upon pilgrimage, making gossip and singing prayers as they bathe within the holy light. Rumors fly as they have for over a decade now, of why the Star of Diligence has flickered back to life. Some say it was the mysterious and alluring priestess sent by the church to shepherd the faithful petitioned Wisdom Himself to restore His little brother's light, and the Second Sun answered. Some say it was the work of the well dressed golem who can be seen sometimes in the shrine's halls, keeping it cleanly for the faithful. Surely in his memory banks, the Machine Builders left him the knowledge of the Star Forge and the wisdom to maintain and restore their Greatest of Works.

The most prevalent theory, however, lays the deed at the feet of the charming and graceful shrine maiden who leads the many ceremonies to honor the Star of Diligence. Her pure smile could surely restore life to the dead, and a Star is no exception. Of course, there may be even more rumors about her than about Diligence Himself.

"She speaks the tongue of the Machine Builders like a native! Could they have sent her adrift in time, to future?"

"I heard she walks around the Temple grounds at night clad only in the Light of Diligence. Of course, she's so pure, the world itself provides for her modesty..."

"They say Fortune is her Mother and Wisdom Himself is her Father, because only divine blood could grant her such divine luck..."

And so on and so forth.

>Limit...

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>>5291733

You are that charming and graceful Shrine Maiden, and if you had heard people spreading those rumors, you'd probably quip that one of them is true and leave them to guess which one it is. It's the second one, for the record. Being clad in light is natural state of things, and the air's sweet kiss upon your bare skin is a far more comfortable state to live in than wearing clothes that itch and scratch. Not to mention that it is Diligence's rule that - unless ceremony and custom demand otherwise - you go clad in light throughout the shrine, that He may better monitor your growth.

[It is important that your health is monitored for any aberrations, that you may grow into the ideal Shrine Maiden]

"Holy Wisdom forgive my heresy..." you sometime hear Sister April say during her morning prayers. "I fear Your Little Brother is a peeping Tom."

Today is the Feast Day of Diligence, and the day that His Light flickered back to life after a child was abandoned upon the vine-covered altar by her mother - the closest thing you have to a Birthday. This year is a special year, as if the Star of Diligence believes you are ready, you will be heading to the Astral Academy to hone your skills as a Mahou Shoujo. While living in a shrine all of your life may have blinded you to some of the cultural significance of the Astral Academy, one thing Diligence diligently drilled into your head is that the instructors there have all counted themselves among the greatest Mahou Shoujo to ever live.

Which is why you need to do your best today. You moved gracefully and elegantly upon the stage, performing the rituals expected of you as a Shrine Maiden during this holy day. An elegant and intricate dance, which culminated in the first breaking of Earth for spring with your ceremonial hoe to honor those faithful farmers who work with Diligence upon the fields. You tilled the earth that had been prepared in offering upon the shine's altar, and Diligence shone His light down upon you in recognition that it was Good.

Your ceremonial dance may have been just a bit cheeky. Sister April would not recognize your movements upon the stage, but Diligence certainly would. The footwork of your dance matches the sword form you intend to perform in the Light of Diligence tonight, for your Patron's judgement, step for step.

That form is...
>Two Shadows Dancing Over Water. Though it is a simple form, you intend to prove your worth via its perfection.
>The Wolf and His Mate Stalk the Antelope. A form that introduces certain complex motions to hide the intent and direction of your swings.
>The Bear Has Two Swift Claws. An aggressive sword form that is remarkably graceful despite its focus on the offensive over all else.
>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.

Regardless of your choice, roll 1d20.

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>5291734
>Two Shadows Dancing Over Water. Though it is a simple form, you intend to prove your worth via its perfection.

Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Bear Has Two Swift Claws. An aggressive sword form that is remarkably graceful despite its focus on the offensive over all else.

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Wolf and His Mate Stalk the Antelope. A form that introduces certain complex motions to hide the intent and direction of your swings

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.
I feel like something convoluted would fit someone blessed with immense luck.

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>5291734
>>Two Shadows Dancing Over Water. Though it is a simple form, you intend to prove your worth via its perfection.

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5291734
>>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.

Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Bear Has Two Swift Claws. An aggressive sword form that is remarkably graceful despite its focus on the offensive over all else.

Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>5291734
>>Two Shadows Dancing Over Water. Though it is a simple form, you intend to prove your worth via its perfection.

>>5291737
Ironic that our extremely lucky girl's first roll would be a natural 1

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Bear Has Two Swift Claws. An aggressive sword form that is remarkably graceful despite its focus on the offensive over all else.

>>5291734
>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>5291734
>The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves. A highly complex sword form, where your two blades must move as one in wildly different ways from one another.
Fits in with being lucky.

>>5291734
>The Wolf and His Mate Stalk the Antelope. A form that introduces certain complex motions to hide the intent and direction of your swings.

Rolled 8 (1d20)

>>5292171
forgot to roll

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Sword Form Selected: The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves.
Roll 1d20+AGI+(LCK/2) vs DC 30
Fortunate inverts your roll from a 1 to a 20!
20+10+6 = 36. Two Degrees of Success!

Your part in the Feast Day ceremonies ends with the completion of the First Tilling.

A respectful and reverent silence hangs in air as you step away from the altar to allow Sister April her proper place before the congregation. Though you may be the Maiden of the 1728th Astral Shrine, the Church entrusted Sister April to be its keeper shortly after she reported that Light of Diligence shone anew. The faithful are in her very capable hands. She has two more than most people have to work with, a consequence of living in the lowest rings of the lower strata, where the Ebon Mists can roll in like the tide and bring mutation and madness in their wake.

It is a mark of her ironclad faith in the Light of Wisdom that though her body is twisted away from the purity of human form, her mind is untainted by the Black Star Below. Though her extra arms may be unsettling to some, to you they were the arms that cradled you as an infant - every bit as familiar and comforting as the sermon she now gives to the faithful. A sermon you first heard before your mind could shape thoughts into words and understand the meaning that she seeks to impart to her flock that has grown from an empty prayer hall, to a scattered dozen, to now well over two hundred people.

The meaning of Spring.

The blossom of life born anew.

The diligence of the simple folk who tend to the fields.

The coming of the Light, which banishes the cold of winter and brings with it the renewing rain.

Sister April has never given the same sermon for the Feast of Diligence twice in your memory, though the passage from the Book of Stars remains the same as it always does. The familiarity of the passage is a comforting thing, and the tone in which she reads it is meditative in a manner that is almost hypnotic. It's so easy to become lost in her reading of the passage that when a firm hand clasps your shoulder, you nearly jump out of your seat in shock.

"Radford!" You try to keep your voice down, and not disturb your neighbors in the side pews. Back to reality, you don't need to look over to see who it is - you know the touch of your servitor almost as well as your own. You also have your suspicions as to why he'd be interrupting you in the middle of the prayer service. "You nearly scared my skirt off. Is it time?"

"Indeed, young mistress." The automaton named Radford confirms your suspicions. He quietly leads you from the pews, towards the back rooms of the shrine where your quarters and the training hall can be found. "Diligence is ready to judge your growth for this year. May I ask which sword-form you intend to demonstrate to him?"

Right. Radford is many things, but a swordsman he is not. He would not have recognized your footwork.

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>>5293064
>Limits

"The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves," you give the name of the form. It's more than a mouthful in the modern tongue. You prefer its name in the Machine Builders' tongue: Tarnach Moireal. Like most things that Diligence teaches you, the Machine Builders came up with the sword style you use. "Think he'll approve of that one? I've got it down pretty much pat."

"'Pretty much pat' generally doesn't mean mastery, young mistress." Radford's voice is rumbling and is as inhumanly deep as the voices of the Stars. "Diligence admires diligence above all else. If I thought I could convince you..."

"I'm not doing Two Shadows Dancing Over Water, Radford." You skip ahead of him and cross your arms infront of your chest, making a big X as you shake your head in an emphatic No. "That's booooooring! Besides, I'm sure Diligence would approve of the diligence I put in to learn the Tarnach Moireal so quickly!"

"If you say it, it must be so, young mistress." From Radford's tone of voice, you're pretty sure he doesn't believe that.

"Bah, whatever!" You roll your eyes, and then stop in the middle of the hallway that cuts through the living quarters of the shrine's rectory. Sticking your arms out to either side, you wiggle like a noodle in gesture for the golem's help. "Now, help me out of this stuffy get-up, will you?"

"Wait until you get to your quarters, young Mistress." Radford chides you. He CHIDES you!

It's not like your quarters are far away, but you're sick of the scratchy woolen fabric that's been draped over your skin. Besides, you have Sister April's permission and Diligence's approval to go clad in light in not only the rectory, but every part of the shrine besides the chapel proper. The automaton refuses to budge on this matter, and - taking one arm in each of his massive hands, he gently pushes you towards your room.

When you left Sister April's room at the age of five, you helped clear your new room out as best as you could - which really meant doing a little sweeping with a broom meant for an adult while Radford did all the heavy lifting. It used to have enough bunks to cram six people inside of it, kind of like potting meat. Now, the three bunks are one, with the lower bed converted into a comfy couch to curl up on with a book or the rare comic. A large armoire with your ceremonial outfits - and a number of day to day clothes you refuse to wear - sits beside the window, which looks out onto the forest. Next to your bed is your desk, with tomes you dread to open resting upon it.

"Alright, will you help me out of this now?" you ask Radford, once again stretching your arms out in askance for his assistance. This time, in front of a mirror. You'd shuck the outfit off yourself, if it wasn't the sort that needed help getting in and out of it. "My back's beginning to itch..."

"Very well, young mistress," Radford rumbles in amusement.

>Limit

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>>5293065

Watching him undress you in the mirror, you're reminded of how very uncanny Radford is. Supposedly, he was designed to resemble the men of the Machine Builders, but he does not look like any man that you've seen before. He certainly does not look to be made of steel, though the golem-craft of the Stars apparently uses flesh as well as metal, so that is not so strange. For every attention to the details that separate men and women, such as the Adam's apple and that weird bulge in his pants that Sister April promises to tell you about when you're older, there are design choices that are just strange.

His shoulders are almost comically wide.

His chest is too small for someone of his impressive stature.

The joints of his legs and his hips are connected all wrong, causing his feet to make a V instead of sitting parallel to one another.

Strangest of all, he has dark fur covering the lower half of his face. Fur! On his face! It's so weird...

While you are contemplating just how Radford has fur on his face and why Diligence would design him in such a strange manner, he dutifully helps you out of your Shrine Maiden clothes. An elaborate white and blue set of robes with flowing sleeves and fasteners on the back, removing the stiff and scratchy fabric reveals you to be the beanpole that you are.

Thin and fair-haired, with skin like creamed buttermilk, you're long and lanky for your age. Already over 150cm tall, you have to wonder when you'll start growing horizontally as much as you've been growing vertically. If you have three more years of growth, just how tall are you going to get? Your hair reaches all the way down to your calves, and if you didn't have Radford to provide expert assistance with it, it would quickly devolve into a tangled mess.

As Radford folds your robes and unmentionables with expert precision, you stretch yourself out infront of the mirror. First your stretch your arms, and then you stretch your legs - raising one all the way up above your head in a standing split, before lowering it back down and doing the same with the other. Then you lean down to one foot, and then the other, going through a full calisthenics routine and enjoying the feeling of your muscles loosening up.

Of course, all any peeping Tom would see if they tried catching a glimpse of something special is a ray of light blocking their view, proving your purity.

"It feels so good to be out of that [quack] thing," you mumble. When a certain word slips from your lips as a quack, you slap your hand over your mouth. Radford lets out a soft chuckle.

He then tells you where you need to go, to meet your Patron's judgment.
>The Catacombs. Deep beneath the islet's surface, in the oldest part of the Shrine.
>The Bell Tower. The highest room there is closest to His Light.
>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.
>The Dojo. Really, where else would your sword-forms be tested?

>>5293068
>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.

>>5293068
>>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.

>>5293068
>The Bell Tower. The highest room there is closest to His Light.

>>5293068
>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.

>>5293068
>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.

>>5293068
>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.

>>5293068
>The Bell Tower. The highest room there is closest to His Light.

>>5293068
>The Bell Tower. The highest room there is closest to His Light.

>>5293068
>>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.

>>5293068
>The Rectory Courtyard. Your test will take place beneath the sky, for all the Stars to see.

>>5293068
>The Dojo. Really, where else would your sword-forms be tested?

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The rectory courtyard sits behind the shrine's chapel proper, in the shadow of the Bell Tower. The Light of Diligence shines from the summit of the spire, where your Patron's body rests. A marvel left by the Machine Builders to safeguard the next age of humanity, the nature of His construction is far beyond your comprehension. Though even those who consider themselves experts upon the Stellar Machinery will readily admit that they do not understand the inner workings of these ancient wonders, only what they do for the world.

You would best liken His body to the hole for a button on one of your dresses, imposed upon the fabric of the world instead of the wool of your dress. Deliberately cut by an expert seamstress, and then reinforced on every side with further wrappings of that same thread to give him form and safeguard against an accidental tear. Instead of a button pushing through from the other side, a glorious and golden light that cleanses impurities and burns away rotten things.

You spent your earliest months bathing in His Light, before Sister April answered his call.

Perhaps that is why your fair and creamy skin is without blemish or flaw, why you never seem to tan all that darkly, and why your body is free from even the simple vestiges of mutation that even children of the upper strata would show. It feels appropriate, somehow, that the Star who has given you everything you have was also responsible for your fairy-like good looks, even if it was not intentional on his part. All the more reason for you to do your best on your sword forms today, to show that you're ready to take the next step in becoming the ideal Shrine Maiden.

You enter the courtyard clad in light. Not a single scratchy stitch covers your body, leaving you exposed to the gentle kiss of the spring's breeze. Up above, the Second Sun has passed its zenith for today, drowning the light of the Ten-Thousand Brother Stars with the almost oppressive glory of His Light. At the top of the Shrine's Spire, you can see the Light of Diligence shining upon you, just as it had during today's ceremonies.

Beneath your bare feet, you feel the cool touch of polished stone, still thick with winter's chill despite the Sun shining down upon them. The sound of running water reminds you of how much progress has been made in restoring this courtyard.

Before you could walk, this place was overgrown with vines and wild flowers, but Radford's diligence has tamed it. The flowers have been trimmed back and planted in appropriate places, and the pavestones have been cleared of moss and debris. The fountains at the courtyard's corners are clear of algae, the water as drinkable as what is pumped through the copper pipes in the walls. The vines are gone save for where they make for tasteful decorations upon the pillars that support the roof over the perimeter walkway, where doors lead to more dormitories.

A relic from when this Shrine was a proper Convent.

>Limit

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>>5293986

"Light of Diligence and Noon-Day Star who presides over the labors of man, I answer your call." In a practiced motion, you hold out the scabbards of Metron and Nomos in one hand. That hand is just barely large enough to hold both scabbards at once; you may be tall for your age, but you still have some growing to do. Normally, you would not use such formal language, nor the tongue of the Machine Builders, but today is a special circumstance. "I come clad in light to receive Your judgment, that the fruits of my own diligence may be found to please You, and that I maybe be found ready for the next step of my training."

[My child, I witness your answer to my call.]

If Radford's voice is unnaturally deep and gravelly, hitting low notes more appropriate for a Sousaphone than a singer, Diligence's voice is the rumbling of thunder and the sound of earth sliding down from the mountain tops. Deep as the ocean and powerful as a bolt of lightning, you would be surprised if the faithful in the chapel did not hear it. Few outside of the Church of Holy Wisdom have an opportunity to hear the speech of the Stars, and given that he has responded in the tongue of the Machine Builders, you wonder what they might make of the sudden sound.

[I see the splendid blossoms of the springtime of your youth.] The Light of Diligence shines upon you with such intensity that any who would try to behold your naked figure would be blinded by the light reflected off of the sheen of your creamy, princess-like skin. [So too do I see that you remain hale and hearty in body and mind. But above all else, it is your DILIGENCE that shall determine if you are ready to take your next step. What have you to show me, my precious child, that proves you understand the value of hard work and determination?]

"With your permission, I would show you the results of my great effort," you say. In a single fluid motion, you draw Metron and Nomos from their scabbards, allowing the wooden sheathes to dissipate into the ether. With a blade in each hand, you fall into a deep stance, one blade raised high to block a blow from above, the other held infront of you, ready to take to the offensive. "I have mastered The Tarn Dragon's Heads Argue Among Themselves."

Silence hangs in the air as you wait for permission to begin.

For a moment, you think that Hadford might have been right. Perhaps you should have chosen a simpler sword form, one that you've practiced ten thousand times instead of a mere thousand.

[It pleases me to see you reaching for the heavens, my precious child.] Diligence's voice rumbles through the courtyard. [Show me what you are capable of.]

>Good break point as we approach the limit

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>>5293988

You take a deep breath in, hold it for five seconds, and then slowly release it. This serves two purposes: to help calm your nerves, and to help empty your mind of an extraneous thoughts that would get in the way of your performance. You used the footwork of this form for your ceremonial dance during the rite of First Tilling this year, but the footwork is only half of it - and the simplest part to boot. Overthinking how your blades need to move will be the downfall of your performance, so you force every single thought but the feeling of Metron and Nomos in your hand over a handful of seconds that feels like a handful of hours.

Then, in a burst of motion, you begin.

A form is little different than a choreographed dance, when all is said and done. Unlike the dance, however, rather than being something done for the artistry alone, every motion is meant to teach you something that you can later apply to the spars in which you would truly learn how to fight. Each stroke is something to be practiced a thousand times at least, until you understand how it is that you're supposed to move.

When you were first starting out, you thought that clean and crisp motions were the best way to perform your sword-forms, but you've long since learned how wrong that was. While it might be visually impressive to see, and such stilted movements are helpful in learning to control the blade, that is not true master of the lessons the forms teach you. Rather, when you can move from blow to block to parry and back to blow again in a seamless and fluid dance where every move is none-the-less distinct from one another without being jittery, that is a sign that you've mastered it.

Pauses between moves are openings for the enemies you envision in your mind's eye to attack you.

So you simply do not pause.

The lesson imparted by the Tarnach Moireal could just as easily be taught by rubbing your belly and patting yourself on the head at the same time. The motions it wants you to learn amount to getting your right and your left hands to cleanly do separate things, to move in different ways during a fight. Of the forms you know, it's the most complex... and that's why you spent the most time mastering it out of all of them. Because if you can perform that form perfectly, then every other will come easily.

In the end, you get through it as easily as you got through the Rite of First Tilling, with not so much as a single hair falling out of place.

Again, silence hangs in the air for a few minutes, before Diligence breaks it.

[You have done well, my child.] The Star's voice rumbles. [Retire to your quarters and pack your things. Arrangements have been made, for your departure to the Astral Academy...]

>Limits...

>>5293991
But how will you be getting there, anyways?
>You'll be taking the public airship, with pilgrims from the Faithful.
>Diligence has made an air-skiff has been made, for Radford to sail you to the Island.
>The Pontiff's daughter is also going. Diligence pulled some strings, so you'll be flying with her.
>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.
>He will show you the means to enter the Ways. Use your Kaleidoscope Eyes to copy this ability, and follow the ancient paths on foot...

Regardless of your choice of transportation, roll 1d100. Due to Fortunate, the better roll of the first two will be chosen.

Rolled 6 (1d100)

>>5293992
>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.

Rolled 87 (1d100)

>>5293992
>>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.

Rolled 38 (1d100)

>>5293992
>Diligence has made an air-skiff has been made, for Radford to sail you to the Island.

Rolled 70 (1d100)

>>5293992
>He will show you the means to enter the Ways. Use your Kaleidoscope Eyes to copy this ability, and follow the ancient paths on foot...
Definitely the coolest method

Rolled 44 (1d100)

>>5293992
>>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.

Rolled 6 (1d100)

>>5293992
>>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.

>>5293992
>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.
Sure is nice that we're fortunate, since we keep sucking on our first rolls

>>5293992
>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.

>>5293992
>He will show you the means to enter the Ways. Use your Kaleidoscope Eyes to copy this ability, and follow the ancient paths on foot...
Sounds pretty cool so gonna go with this.

Rolled 69 (1d100)

>>5293992
>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.

>>5294101
kek. would be nice if we have lewd crits

Rolled 95 (1d100)

>>5293992
>>You'll be taking the public airship, with pilgrims from the Faithful.

Rolled 46 (1d100)

>>5293992
>He will show you the means to enter the Ways. Use your Kaleidoscope Eyes to copy this ability, and follow the ancient paths on foot...

Rolled 44 (1d100)

>>5293992
>He will show you the means to enter the Ways. Use your Kaleidoscope Eyes to copy this ability, and follow the ancient paths on foot...

>>5293992
>He will show you the means to enter the Ways. Use your Kaleidoscope Eyes to copy this ability, and follow the ancient paths on foot...
Let's go into thr Not!Warp.

Rolled 93 (1d100)

>>5293992
>One of the faithful have a son attending as well, and volunteered to take you with them.

>You do something idk lmao

>He will show you the means to enter the Ways. Use your Kaleidoscope Eyes to copy this ability, and follow the ancient paths on foot...

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By the next morning, all of the possessions you intend to bring to the Astral Academy have been packed away into a number of bags for Radford to shepherd upon a disc-shaped conjuring. Five fairly large bags in total, though most of them contain clothes that you probably won't spend much time wearing. Going clad in light brings you closest to the Light of the Stars, so aside from ceremonial activities requiring one of the uniforms that has been tailored for you, you shouldn't be required to wear any of them. It is, after all, one of the highest expressions of one's faith in Holy Wisdom and the Ten Thousand Stars, that all you need to maintain your dignity is the protection of their light.

Why is Radford looking at you like he knows exactly what you're thinking, and doesn't approve?

No, that can't be it. He must be worried about something else - after all, worrying about you is the job that he's programmed to do!

"What's wrong, Radford?" You look up at the human-shaped golem with bright blue eyes and a puppy dog expression. He knows the face you're making, and you know that he can't say 'no' to that expression. You're quite the devious girl, aren't you? "We tripled everything while we were packing up! We should be good to go meet Mr. Dove, riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight?"

"I am fairly confident you're missing something rather important, young mistress." Radford's face is caught somewhere between amusement and irritation beneath that thick fuzzy fur on his cheeks.

"Huh? I've got my backpack here with the stuff for the trip..." You twirl around on the heel of your foot, showing off the red leather bag that rests on your shoulders. It's packed full of everything that you'd need for the trip to the Academy - books, hygiene articles and cosmetics, the works. It took a bit of work with some of the straps on the sides, but you even managed to attach your swords to it. "Metron and Nomos are strapped in there, see? I didn't forget to put my Lapis on this morning aaaaaaaaaand I'm wearing my stellary too! That's everything you told me I needed."

"I believe I also told you to put on some clothes, young mistress." The golem gives you an affectionate poke on the head, pushing you softly back towards your armoire. "We're not leaving until you've done so."

"Oh, Radford..." You give him a gentle chiding, in a tone that you picked up from Sister April. You also picked up the way you clasp your hands as though in prayer from her, and you do your best to imitate the serene expression of a holy woman that she makes when giving a lecture on why your actions disappoint the Stars Above. "A pure and holy shrine maiden's modesty need not even the roughest cloth to be preserved, for she may walk clad in the Light of Wisdom and the Stars with all the dignity of the highest princess in the land..."

>Approaching the Limit

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>>5295201

You get a flick on the forehead for quoting scripture out of context. "Maybe someday you'll be that pure and holy, young mistress. For now, I've laid out a number of outfits for you to choose from."

"Heeeeeeeeeey!" You rub your forehead where Radford flicked you, glowering at the golem butler. He has on the expression he gets when you know he won't budge on something, so you decide to give up for now. Maybe if Sister April were here, she'd let you go about clad in light - which is far more comfortable than scratchy woolens, thank you! - but even she only lets you go about like that freely in the rectory. Which hasn't stopped you from sneaking out, but... "Fiiiiiiiiiine, I'll put something on..."

In the end, you manage to get away with something acceptable.

The set of woolen underwear that came with each of the outfits that had been laid out gets quietly snuck into your backpack alongside the outfits that clung too tightly to your body for your tastes. Why would anyone wear anything that touched more of their skin than absolutely necessary, anyways? That's just a good way to get a case of the itches. Socks are mostly alright, because going barefoot along the dirt roads is icky, and so is wearing shoes without socks.

In the end, you end up in a loose white coat-dress that ought to be plenty warm enough for you to wear in the chilly air that sits between the islands of the upper and middle strata. It reached down your thighs to rest just above your knees, so a heavy breeze shouldn't end up revealing anything important to anyone. Which is probably especially important to the sensibilities which Radford has been programmed for, because...

"Just wearing the coat, young mistress?" Radford gives you a suspicious look as you sling your backpack over your shoulders and adjust it to make sure it's resting straight. "You may want to consider wearing something underneath it. I'm told that that once you get away from the island, the air gets quite chilly."

"I'll be fine," you brush off the concern. You need to put your foot down there, as you are not allowing yourself to be talked into subjecting yourself to the hell of itchiness that the other outfits would have been. Radford can be horrifyingly persuasive at times, but fortunately he doesn't press the issue. You bet the big blue puppy-dog eyes helped. "Can we go meet Mr. Dove now? I want to see what sort of man of the faithful is willing to lend a space upon his airship to a humble shrine maiden such as myself."

"The Church has many friends, young mistress," Radford says. With a snap of his fingers, the disc holding all of your bags hums to life, and begins to follow him around. "When one of the Stars themselves makes a request, I imagine anyone who has the means to fulfill it would volunteer..."

>Limits

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>>5295203

As it turns out, the sort of man who offered you a space aboard his airship is very short. You can't tell if he's just that short naturally, or if he's supernaturally short due to exposure to the Mists of Mutation - and frankly, it would be rude to ask. Blonde hair slowly turning to silver reaches down to his shoulders, as is the fashion for men in the cities, and he wears a richly purple tophat that matches his suit. For his frame, his chest is even more impressive than Sister April, who you've quietly noticed is a few sizes bigger than most. A pair of dark glasses hide his bright blue eyes, and but for a few wrinkles along his brow, you would say he has a boyish face.

A woman you can only presume to be his wife stands next to him, towering over the man by a good three and a half feet. Frankly, she's as tall as he is short, with a more slender build for her frame than that of her husband. Curls of candy-pink hair flow down to her waist, and her features are soft and gentle as a pillow. She wears a simple, but finely cut dress of navy blue silk upon which is stitched a rather famous pattern that dates all the way to the Age of the Machine Builders, depicting a starry night.

Lastly, a young girl - or perhaps young boy - is hiding behind her mother's skirt, peeking out nervously with emerald green eyes that match her mother's.

"Childe Symphonia, I presume?" The man reaches out for a handshake, which you graciously accept. For a man of his stature, he has a strong and reassuring grip. With the well practiced smile of a man used to charming his way through a room, he gives you his own name. "Ivor E. Dove, at your service. The lovely woman to my right is my dear wife, Cher E. Dove, and... come out, now, Bear! No need to hide, son. This girl is the shrine maiden we came out all this way to see perform the First Tilling for Diligence Day."

"It was a lovely performance, by the by," Cher says, reaching out to take your hand. Though her smile might look a bit vapid, her tone is sweet, cheerful, and - most importantly - genuine. "Ara, it's been a long while since I hung up my sword, but your footwork... that was an old form, wasn't it? Ah, but I couldn't tell, was that the Sgaillogh Dahmsha or..."

"The Tarnach Moireal." You puff up with pride at the looks that earns you.

"Ara, that's quite an advanced form for you age...!" Cher seems strangely excited by that.

"You hear that, Bear? She likes fencing too, so..." Ivor sighs when his son ducks back behind his mother. "My apologies, there may have been an ulterior motive to our acceptance of Lord Diligence's request. Bear is dreadfully shy, and we thought it might help him to be around another child around his age during the journey to the Astral Academy. Get him used to coming out of his shell... would you be willing to help him, Childe Symphonia?"

>>5295207
Will you help their son come out of his shell?
>Smile evilly. You will drag the boy out of his shell kicking and screaming if you have to.
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.
>Smile deviously. For the right oil, of course. (You can write in specific requests from this wealthy merchant family)
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.

>>5295208
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chosen to help those in need.

>>5295208
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.
We must be very Diligent in helping him!

>>5295208
>>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.

>>5295208
>>Smile evilly. You will drag the boy out of his shell kicking and screaming if you have to.
Some time alone between the two of us is all we need.

>>5295208
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chosen to help those in need.

>>5295208
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chosen to help those in need.
Onee-sama time

>>5295208
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.

>>5295208
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.

>>5295208
>>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.
Always nice to have inflight entertainment.

>>5295208
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.

>>5295208
>>5295528
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.
Indeed

>>5295208
>>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.

>>5295208
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.

>>5295208
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.

>>5295208
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.

>>5295668
>>5295983
>>5296051
>>5296064
samefagging already?

File: Capture.png (6 KB, 441x140)

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>>5296067
i just learned about this quest. fuck you.

>>5296067
My dude, the quest is than a week old. People can stumble in, especially after everything finally got settled with the deluge of builds at the start.

>>5296077
A bunch of one-post IDs voting for same, under-supported option is pretty suspicious man

>>5296067
My internet situation is fucked, so my ID changes frequently. Here are some of my other votes:
>>5293110
>>5291833
You are gonna see more 1 ID votes from me in the future too, I'm afraid. Can't speak for everyone else, of course, but hey.

>>5296081
at least for me, parva has shown to have a rebel side to her, so it makes sense that she'd try to lightly prank the boy

>>5295208
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.

>>5295208
>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.

>>5296077
Yeah true to this, I waited until character creation was done until I joined in so I wouldn't be surprised if others are only joining in now.

>>5295208
>>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.

>>5296081
No need for the tinfoil hat, Anon

>>5295208
>Smile mysteriously. You have a few ideas already on how you can pran- can help him.

>>5295208
>>Smile serenely. Of course, it is your holy duty as Diligence's chose to help those in need.

Not going to be able to post tonight, but can I get two d100s? The next post was going to ask for them at the end, but since I can't post tonight I might as well end that post with something more concrete than what I initially had planned.

Note that the vote is now locked at "Smile serenely. Of course, it is your Holy Duty as Diligence's chose(n) to help those in need."

Rolled 75 (1d100)

>>5296595

Rolled 23 (1d100)

>>5296595

Rolled 65 (1d100)

>>5296595
Best out of...?

>>5296605
Best out of the 2, sorry. Really it was going to be "regardless of wat do, roll a d100". Now I get to incorporate why things are happening into the post, yey.

Rolled 45 (1d100)

>>5296595
Doesn't count, but fuck it, rolling anyways

>>5296609
Are we molesting and exposing ourself to the boy? Please say yes

>>5296605
>can I get two d100s?

Rolled 84 (1d100)

>>5297619

>>5297791
so this is the kind of anons we have, huh

File: Bear.jpg (298 KB, 1260x2048)

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"I'd be happy to," you tell Ivor and Cher with a voice thick with serene sincerity.

There is no lie there, but you do need to hide the seed of suspicion. A serene smile that you diligently practiced a thousand times in the mirror crosses your face without quite reaching your eyes. You dip low in the curtsey that Radford drilled into you to the point of it being an automatic response when you need to put on the face of the young mistress. As far as ulterior motives go, the one the Doves presented is rather innocuous... but that is what they presented to you. If you wish to be a diligent girl, you should trust their stated motives - as is only courteous - but also look beneath the metaphorical carpet to verify them.

"That's wonderful!" Ivor says, giving your hand another firm shake before trying to guide you towards his son. Sadly, you and the lad are like loadstones of the same charge; where ever Ivor takes you, the boy is sure to dart away to the other side of his mother. Ivor sighs with almost exaggerated exasperation. "Son, come on out from behind your mother. No need to be shy!"

"Dun wanna..." the boy says. His voice is light and almost girlish, none of his father's contalto just yet.

Frankly, from the sound of things, you have a hard time believing he's your age. Then again, Diligence could only estimate, when you were left upon the altar...

"Beary, dear..." Cher tries to step out of the way, but it's clear that this is a dance that they've done a thousand times before. If the Dove Shipping Company wasn't the second largest freight enterprise in the World Reborn, having gotten there under Ivor's watchful eyes, you'd almost believe that there are no other motives hiding under the metaphorical carpet. Cher squats down, her dress brushing against the grass, and puts her hands on the boy's shoulders, looking him in the eyes. "Could you please step out and say hello to Childe Symphonia? For mama?"

"..." there's an almost audible silence as the two of them communicate wordlessly in ways only a mother and son can. After what feels like a minute, a weak word can be heard, in a tone that knows it's been defeated. "...kay."

Bear steps out from behind his mother, and for a moment your heart skips a beat from just how pretty he is. He shares his father's boyish face, if not yet his ample bosom, with his mother's pink hair cropped short as his father's. He wears a very warm looking outfit appropriate for air travel, though his shorts are fashionably short - as is the style for city boys. A stellary hangs around his neck, and he wears his own Lapis in his hair. While yours is a black musical note, his is a violet flower.

With one eye hiding behind his cherry-pink bangs, he glowers at you. It's not a look of hatred or contempt, but rather that of a loner being dragged out of his cave by his loved ones for some rare sunlight. You can tell how much he wants to shrink back to his room...

>Limit

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>>5297848

Holy Wisdom High Above, the shrewdest businessman in the upper strata might not have any ulterior motive after all, beyond getting his son to socialize with someone. The boy looks about your age, even if he doesn't sound it, and that means he's just a year or two away from his chest budding and his balls dropping. Okay, that might be a line of thought inappropriate for a pure and diligent maiden such as yourself, but it boggles the mind that he's this shy at this age. He really does need your help...

Still, as jovial as the man has been, he's still Mr. Ivor E. Dove of the Dove Shipping Company.

Best to still keep one eye open.

"Hello," the boy mummers, barely audible, his eyes not meeting yours. "I'm Bear."

"Hello Bear," Playing at the perfectly innocent maiden who doesn't understand things as complicated as ulterior motives and politics, you cheerfully offer your hand to the heir of the second largest shipping company in the World Reborn as if he was any other child. This appears to have been the right move, as he stares at it in surprise, before giving you a hesitant handshake. "I'm Parva. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Yeah, well..." Bear snatches his hand away from you when he hears the tone you take - sweet and polite, the picture of perfect courtesy as you were raised to be. He glowers at you, this time with an irritation at you instead of the fact that he's not alone in his room. "I hear that all the time. Don't think I don't know that you only want to be friends because of Dad's money, lotsa girls try to-"

"Beary!" Cher looks horrified at the possibility of what her son was about to say. His father winces - oh, you think you found the second motive. They don't just want him to get out of his shell, they want him to meet a girl who doesn't care about his money. It's a good thing that you really don't. "Childe Symphonia is a Shrine Maiden..."

"Yeah, well..." Bear continues to glower. "Even churches need donations."

"I apologize on behalf of my son..." Ivor says, quickly trying to smooth things over with you - and Radford, who does not look amused by Bear's words. Ivor gives the boy a look that promises a very uncomfortable conversation. "Rest assured, I will be having words with him about this later..."

"Perhaps a few remedial lessons in etiquette might be in order." Radford rumbles. Ivor, Cher, and even Bear are all shocked at how deep the golem's voice is - the only thing they have to compare it to would be the voices of the Stars themselves. There is a powerful gravity to it, a reminder that he was created in the image of Diligence. "If you would like, I can arrange for them over the journey over. In fact, I may have to insist..."

"That will not be necessary."

>Approaching the limits.

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>>5297849
You and Ivor are of like mind on the idea of remedial etiquette lessons, it seems - you both say the same thing at the same time, in the same tone. Your voice just happens to be an octave or so higher, and much more childish - a given, given your age. All eyes fall to you, as while it was expected from Ivor... well, most girls your age would probably be egging Radford on to punish the boy or demanding some recompense. You are not most girls, however - you are a pure and diligent shrine maiden, and your serenity will not be broken by mere words alone.

After all, if it did, then Radford and Diligence would have done a poor job in training you to become the young mistress.

"It saddens my heart that you have had such a hard time finding genuine friends among those whose greed blinds them to who you are, Bear," you say, borrowing the tone of voice Sister April uses during the confessionals. All it takes is a clasp of your hands and the raising of a close-eyed smile towards the light of the Second Sun for you to become the very image of a holy maiden. "I will pray to the Stars Above on your behalf, that one day you might find yourself among companions who care for you, and not your father's money. Mr. Dove, does your airship have a chapel aboard?"

Ivor coughs. "Ah, yes, as a matter of fact it does. You'll find my Fat Dove to be among the most well appointed ships in the sky, I'm sure. The chapel sits just below decks by the bow... and your quarters are right next to it, of course. Why don't I show you the way?"

"I would appreciate that, Mr. Dove, thank you." Before you go to board the ship, however, you turn to Bear with the same look of calm serenity, and extend a hand. "Would you care to join me in prayer, Bear? I believe it may do you some good..."

No longer hiding behind his mother's skirt, Bear squints at you in a way that leaves his mother appalled with his behavior. His answer comes somewhat suspicious: "Sure..."

===

Ivor E. Dove is no liar.

The Fat Dove might well be one of the most opulently appointed pleasure-craft to sail the skies, and it's name certainly isn't a lie. The profile of the airship certainly brings to mind a hefty bird whose wings struggle to keep it aloft, though as it leaves the island's makeshift-docks you find it certainly does not handle like one. The only thing that gives clue to the clip at which the ship sails the skies is the wind currents. Even buffered away by the magic that optimizes the vessel's profile, there's a heavy breeze that might catch one's cap if they're not careful.

Below decks, you find an interior to the vessel that is less a ship and more a mansion that flies, thanks to a scant few components that Ivor boasts about salvaging Machine Builder ruins in his adventurous youth. Though the mechanism is not fully understood even after a thousand years of research, the dilation of space allows for the ship to contain a home away from home for the head of the DSC.

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>>5297850

The chapel you find yourself praying within is no less opulent, to the point where even a young mistress groomed to walk among the upper crust like yourself find it a bit distasteful. Though you will not say you live in humble poverty - for Diligence provides your every need, and a fair number of your wants - seeing a shrine so... sterile and gilded puts you off. White and gold with candles and incense, it has all the makings of a chapel, but it doesn't feel like it's been used as often as it's been cleaned.

That doesn't mean that you cannot pray within it, however.

In fact, you intend to put it through its paces during your flight.

Diligence guided your training in academics and Radford taught you courtly etiquette, but it was Sister April who helped you discover the deep prayer and the benefits it has for your mind and your body. A few things need to be set first, which Bear - still a bit skeptical - watches you prepare with great interest. The candles must be lit just so, a stick of incense must burn and fill the air of the shrine, and you must take to your knees before the prepared altar and clasp your hands together.

The final step, Sister April needed a music box for, but you do not. Your own magic is the invocation of the Holy Chorus, and you mastered attuning yourself to the Blessed Frequency around the same time you learned to walk. One hundred and eleven hertz, which opens the gate of dreams. You fill the room with this sweet white noise, and even Bear's jaw drops as the frequency envelops him.

This might be the closest he's ever come to true prayer.

You are an expert at praying. In your mind's eye, beyond the gate of dreams, you envision an image of Holy Wisdom - the blazing and glorious Second Sun whose light protects humanity from the horrors of the Black Star Below. You feed your everything to that image of Him. Your thoughts, your feelings, your hopes, your desires, your hatred and your love... and even a single, genuine prayer for boy who has sunken to his knees next to you, in awed imitation of your prayer. Everything is fed into the Light of Wisdom, and-

"Uh, Parva!" Bear's touch upon your shoulder snaps you from your prayer, back to reality. The expression on his face is positively delightful - reverence, awe, concern, and curiosity all blended into one. As well as a bit of sheepishness. "Mama just came by and said that dinner was about to be ready, uh, if you want some. And, uh... what was that? We came in here at noon, and then it's sudden seven and I feel like I just had a really good nap-"

"That was how everyone ought to pray," you tell him, a serene and devious smile gracing your lips. You give him an inviting look. "Would you like me to teach you how to pray properly? You've only scratched the surface..."

>Limits

>>5297851
And so began your routine for the next two weeks, as the Fat Dove sailed across the sky to the Island of St. Sophia. You just needed to give Bear a little taste of what a real prayer felt like, and you had him hooked. Sadly, Radford forbade you from praying whilst clad in light as is your preference - some nonsense about girls needing to keep some secrets from boys. But it's not like he would see anything anyways, for you are a Shrine Maiden pure and diligent, and the world will protect your modesty even if you do not. For your body is inherently pure, not a vehicle for prurient interests.

Or so you would like to say.

You will admit, having a boy hanging onto your every word like Bear has been wonderful.

Especially since he's so pretty, with the sort of boyish good looks that would have girls swarming all over him even if his daddy wasn't one of the richest men in the World Reborn. Of course, you feed those thoughts to Wisdom during your prayers, as you seek to have His Light fill your mind and soul. It wouldn't do for you to just become another girl chasing him for shallow reasons like money and beauty.

Instead, the thing you enjoy the most out of everything is how diligent he has become. Prayer - true prayer, not merely losing yourself to your thoughts in a chapel - is a life changing experience. Once he reached the Gate of Dreams and pushed beyond its closed doors with the help of your Blessed Frequency, he seems much calmer and less misanthropic than he had been.

Though he still hides half his face behind his bangs! Come on, Bear, beauty like yours should be shown to the world! Then again, it does add a layer of mystery...

This routine continues without interruption until the ninth day of the voyage.

First, the ship suddenly jerks, knocking you out of your prayer and nearly tipping you over the pew in front of you. Bear is left sprawled about on the ground as well, slowly picking himself up as the ship stops rocking back and forth. Then, as soon as you get your bearings again, you hear a screeching and inhuman voice roar across the ship.

"Oh how sweet the maiden's kiss..." The voice drills into your head like an awl to your temples, spiteful and hateful and joyful and twisted beyond reason. A horrid mixture of machine and man, maddened by the darkness below. But how is it here in the upper strata? "Her lovely lips as red as blood, the blood I spilled that winsome morn' when I took your head in my hands and with great force I smashed it 'gainst the dull concrete and painted it a pretty pink, a pink like love and summer's rain, the tears of joy that sprung from my eyes when I saw the patterns of the gore and viscera upon our bed...!"

>>5297854
A fog of the Black Mist has rolled in unexpectedly. What do you do?
>Run and hide. Mr. Dove's bodyguards will kill it.
>Pray with all your might for the protection of those who fight it off.
>Take up arms against this ill fortune, with your Lapis.
>Confront it with a prayer on your lips and a song in your heart.
>(Write in)

>>5297855
>get naked
i hate to admit it, but this is the perfect excuse for prava to get rid of her clothes. after all, what better shield against the black mist we can get than the light of Diligence Himself?
>Confront it with a prayer on your lips and a song in your heart. and maybe try to retrieve metron and nomos, just in case.

>>5297855
FUCK, I forgot:

Regardless of what you do, roll 1d100.

Rolled 85 (1d100)

>>5297863

Rolled 100 (1d100)

>>5297855
>Get naked
>Take up arms against this ill fortune, with your Lapis

>>5297874
The answer folks, is to always fight naked.

Rolled 61 (1d100)

>>5297874
Supporting

>>5297855
>Take up arms against this ill fortune, with your Lapis.

Rolled 52 (1d100)

>>5297855
>Take up arms against this ill fortune, with your Lapis.

Rolled 98 (1d100)

>>5297874
Support.

...so what are the stellary and the lapiz? What do they do?

>>5297855
>>5297874
+1 To this, seems like fighting naked is the answer!

>>5298087
Phone posting at the moment so please excuse the different ID.

A stellary is a symbol of faith for the Church of Holy Wisdom and the Ten Thousand Stars Above. It's something that the faithful generally wear about as a good luck charm and token of community, as well as out of reverence and respect to the Stars Above, similar to how a Christian might wear a crucifix.

Your [i]Lapis[/i] is the focus of your power as a Mahou Shoujo (specifically the focus, and not the source). Most people of the World Reborn create their Lapis upon being baptized in the Light of the Stars (a ceremony that typically occurs once a child is old enough that it's certain they will not die of sickness or mutation, around 7 years). Everyone has one, and thus the ability to perform some basic magic, though few have the potential to enter the ascended state of Mahou Shoujo and manifest a Barrier Jacket as you and Bear do. The ability also wanes with age - Ivor was a Mahou Shoujo, once, but he's too old to enter his ascension any longer.

Rolled 8 (1d100)

>>5297855
>Get naked
>Take up arms against this ill fortune, with your Lapis
I doubt we’ll be naked for long
>>5298087
Not sure about the Stellary, but a Lapis is probably what allows us to use our powers/transform, with its shape denoting what magic one uses (so we know Bear uses plant magic)

>>5298098
>>5298122
This is what I get for not checking for updates

>>5297855
>Get naked
>Take up arms against this ill fortune, with your Lapis
https://youtu.be/UAMriLCnkvg

>>5298098
>The ability also wanes with age - Ivor was a Mahou Shoujo, once, but he's too old to enter his ascension any longer.
I was wondering if it was possible for males to use magic/become mahou shoujo, so I guess this confirms it. Given their appearance, and how weirded out everyone seems to be by Radford, are all/most males in this setting femboys?

>>5298145
>are all/most males in this setting femboys?
looks like it. although i'd say that men are more like dickgirls instead of femboys, which brings some interesting cultural questions...
>2AMNY

Rolled 63 (1d100)

>>5297874
>get naked
>Take up arms against this ill fortune, with your Lapis

Rolled 37 (1d100)

>>5297874
the crit has spoken +1

File: 8ec.gif (2.61 MB, 540x304)

2.61 MB GIF

>>5297874
parva's just gonna do this to her clothes

Rolled 82 (1d100)

>>5297874
+1

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>>5298098
Confirming that his was me, no more phoneposting today.

>>5298145
>>5298164
Males having somewhat feminine skeletal structure alongside what we would consider to be secondary female sexual characteristics is the end result of the events of the the Fall of the Machine Builders and the emergence of the Black Sun Below. The mutation those events left within its wake left its mark on the human genome, though among the upper and middle strata things are relatively stable. Males and Females primarily identify members of the opposite sex by the breadth of their shoulders and the structure of their faces. Faces are more reclined towards the median as a whole, meaning everyone is a bit prettier on average, while males have what we would consider boyish looks and females have girlish looks (with a note that on the whole, things have slid towards being "softer").

Female skeletal structure has largely remained the same (less were on the front line) as in real life, while Males now share several structural traits with females. Most notably is probably the joint structure at key points, which to an extent reduces the athletic advantage males have over females. Only to a point, though, as while their joint structure has aligned itself to somewhere between modern Male and Female, they retain the muscle and bone density that modern men have.

Thus, in this Post-Apocalyptic semi-Feudal Neo-Theocratic mess of floating Island pseudo-states that is the World Reborn, females remain by and large primary caretakers while males remain by and large primary providers from a social standpoint. Expectations of this are less than they were 200 years ago, but more than they were 50 years ago.

There is also a cultural expectation that people with magical aptitude learn how to use it, typically as Mahou Shoujo (a pair of loan words from tongue that was antiquated when the Machine Builders fell). Most people can use a degree of magic in their day to day lives, but the ones who can become Mahou Shoujo stand at a small fraction of a percent of the population. Distribution of magic at this level is odd, as while the sexes are laaaaargely balanced within a rounding error, the distribution curves are inverted - females as a population are a bell curve centered on the median, while males as a population are concentrated towards the lower or upper ends of the power curve with very few in the middle.

Funnily, for "what do people consider masculine and feminine appearances", I remember a study that suggested that when estrogen levels were equal, women with larger boobs had higher testosterone levels.

Therefore, in the World Reborn, the standard of male beauty is that of what to us would be more or less a big titty toned tomboy with manly bits between his legs.

Svelte and girlish women are the standard of beauty for females, provided they have a good hip-shoulder ratio. A flat chest like Parva's is, in fact, a status symbol.

Hope to start update in 3hr

>>5298599
i don't know how much time you have invested into making the world, or from how many other pieces of work you've stitched this together, but im impressed. it gives me hopes for the longevity of the quest

>>5298599
Fascinating dive into the thoughtfully detailed world you've built as the setting for this story. Reading contextual tidbits like this makes me very excited to see where this quest will go. Props.

>>5298606
>>5298632
You guys help me out by asking these sort of questions that make me sit down and write up the stuff that's in my head. If [you would like to know more] on anything you see, don't hesitate to ask!

>>5298681
got another question
are the lapises replaceable? can you buy one a more fashionable one at a boutique store, or are you stuck with your only one until you lose your powers?

File: Parva (Habit).jpg (455 KB, 3564x2579)

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"Bear..." Your eyes quickly run over the figure of the pink-haired boy brushing off his baggy jeans on the other side of the pew. He has a pretty face and he carries the Lapis in his hair confidently... but so does every boy and girl who can shoot a ray of light through a tin can. A cantrip like that can kill rats and coyotes, but it won't do much at all against even the merest wisp of the Black Mist. If he got into the Astral Academy, he has the potential to ascend, but that doesn't mean that he can do anything with it. "How much can you do with your Lapis? Can you ascend?"

If he can't ascend, you'll have him stay here and chant his prayers as loudly as he can. Wisdom rewards the faithful, and whoever constructed and consecrated the Fat Dove's chapel knew the esotery of His grand designs. It pains you that a true Holy Ground like this had gone without use for so long. The walls, the pews, the altar, it is all arranged to resonate and amplify the Blessed Frequency of 111 hertz within its border, easing the uninitiated into the realms of true prayer and deepening its benefits for the initiated.

Further, the Blessed Frequency is anathema to all creations of the Black Star Below. Should the Black Mists seep into the chapel, its tendrils can be dispersed with a single spoken word.

If Bear can ascend, however, you can take him with you.

Though it might be the safest place aboard the Fat Dove right now, you have no intention of sitting idly by in the chapel and hiding behind Mr. Dove's money. He may have a number of retired Mahou Shoujo on his payroll, any one of which will be able to uncover the source of the Black Mist and clear it away given enough time... but you are a pure and diligent maiden. One who can resonate with the Blessed Frequency herself. To sit back and do nothing would be the same as smearing mud across the altar of the Astral Shrine that you have called home for as long as you can remember.

"Yeah, mama taught me," Bear says. The one eye that peaks out from behind his short-cropped bangs looks nervously at the chapel doors. Tendrils of the Black Mist worm their through the gaps in the frame, only to be dispersed as they are enveloped by even the weakest echoes of the Blessed Frequency. He stares at you in disbelief as you pick up Metron and Nomos from their place beside the altar. "Wait a minute, wait a minute! You're not planning to go out there, are you? There's a real Mahou Shoujo aboard the ship, the guards have procedures for what happens if we run into the Black Mist. Our job is to wait for help to get here, not to play hero!"

"Where do you think this ship is heading, Bear?" you ask. Another shock hits the boat, and while Bear stumbles, you don't fall. A serene smile crosses your face as your habit billows upon the draft. "As long as we don't get in the way... as long as we help, then this will be good for our education, don't you think...?"

>Limits...

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>>5298896
You don't have to listen for his answer.

You spent the past nine days deep in prayer with him, after all. While you won't pretend to know everything that makes Bear tick at this point - and he definitely can still surprise you, sometimes - you have a pretty good idea on how to press his buttons and get him to do what you. You hope the smile on your face isn't too smug, as you watch his expressions shift into wonderful, confused things as he struggles to find an answer. Thank you, Holy Wisdom, for bringing this opportunity to see such a pretty boy dancing so adorably on the palm of your hand, unaware of the strings that guide his actions.

Okay, enough of indulging in all of those funny emotions that well up in your stomach when you indulge in your stranger habits, it's time for you to give him that final push over the edge. You turn away from him, and with a single fluid motion you free your Lapis from its place in your hair and clasp it against your chest.

Then, you intone the first two lines of your ascension. You do not know the others - you cannot say if there truly are any further lines. For some, that short stanza is all there is to it. For others, they may never learn the full incantation in their lifetime.

In any case, this one is yours.

The ephemeral song dances within my heart.
Its words written in the Light of the Stars.

You hold back the tide of magic that wants to surge through your Lapis, delaying your transformation and causing the musical note in your hand to glow brighter and brighter as it tries to unleash the power you have invoked. Bear makes a sudden choking noise, sputtering in wordless disbelief as you step right over the edge to go on without him. The boy might be a bit of a gloomy loner around new people, but that just means he hates behind left behind by people he knows and likes even more. You can feel the pressure begin to build within your chest, for you can only hold this back for a few moments.

But he blinks first.

"Parva, you... okay, fine!" Unlike you, Bear inelegantly pulls the violet from his hair and intones his own verse. Like you, he knows the first two lines from his ascension.

The roots of the garden spread far and wide,
And reach deep into the life-giving Earth.

As the two of you sing your intonations, your Lapis respond. The pressure from within your chest as you held back the energy it sought to draw from within you bursts out in a wild surge that leaves your Lapis hot to the touch. Almost hot enough to leave behind a nasty burn upon your hand. Diligence would have scolded you if you he saw you doing that. The baptized can receive a new Lapis if theirs breaks, but there's always a nasty penance involved if it did not break for good reason...

>Limits

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>>5298897
Of course, you think it was a good reason.

Had you not made a dramatic showing that you were just about to leave him behind, Bear would almost certainly have been content with waiting in the chapel until this all blew over. While there's no shame in following procedures like that, such behavior is unfitting of a future Mahou Shoujo, especially one on their way to the Astral Academy when it happened. You couldn't have that, could you?

But now, you've both intoned your ascensions, which means there's only one step left in your transformation sequence. Your habit has already melted away into the Lapis storage, your body glows with the Light of Diligence, and you see something nice in the corner of your eyes. It's a little small for now, but you've read that such things tend to grow. But those are thoughts for later. With your voice as one with Bear's, you both say the final words:

"Luminous Arcane Power Integration System, set up!"

=====

Spirit Resonance confirmed... arcane lock canceled.
Welcome, Parva Symphonia.

Caution: Power Fluctuation in secondary subsystems.
Caution: Fragmentation detected in configuration documents.
Caution: Fragmentation detected in system controls.
Performing Factory Reset...100%
Checking system performance...100%

Performance Nominal, All Systems Green.

Would you like to load one of your preset configurations?
Loading Clad_In_Light_01...
Clad_In_Light_01 is forbidden for use by system controls
Loading Clad_In_Light_02...
Clad_In_Light_02 is forbidden for use by system controls
Loading Clad_In_Light_03...
Clad_In_Light_03 is forbidden for use by system controls
Loading Clad_In_Light_04...
Clad_In_Light_04 is forbidden for use by system controls
Loading Clad_In_Light_05...
Clad_In_Light_05 is forbidden for use by system controls
Loading Clad_In_Light_06...
Clad_In_Light_06 is forbidden for use by system controls
Loading Clad_In_Light_07...
Error reading system control file for Clad_In_Light_07.
Reset system controls for Clad_In_Light_07?...Yes
Clad_In_Light_07 has been removed from the system controls list

Set Up: Holy Wisdom who shines above, deliver us from from the Black Star Below

=====

Your ascension complete, a radiant smile crosses your face as you feel the air's kiss upon your fair and flawless skin. It seems that little power surge you accidentally caused disabled some of the controls which Sister April had requested the Star of Diligence put upon your Lapis. This is a very dangerous and forbidden form, after all - the amount of power that a youthful picture of feminine beauty (such as yourself) can wield with it is untold. Of course, you are a holy maiden, diligent and pure, and the Light of Diligence thoroughly protects your modesty.

"Wha-!" A red faced Bear stares at you. He doesn't see anything important - your body is inherently pure, after all! - but it's still a lot more of you than he's seen before. "Where's your Barrier Jacket!?"

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>>5298899
You clasp your hands together in prayer, wearing a smile that perhaps does not belong upon the face of a diligent and pure maiden such as yourself. Alas, it cannot be helped that one of your more glutinous faces pokes out its ugly head, his reaction is just too delicious and it makes you want to play with him more. It's just cute that he doesn't know where to look. Could it be that he's doing what Sister April warned you that men were wont to do, and is sullying your light-clad body with impure, prurient thoughts?

Oh my, you see a pleasant sight indeed, evidencing quite a bit of growth. How lovely~

It takes every ounce of your self control to avoid breaking out into laughter at his reaction. You have work to do. Putting on a more serious face, you explain things to him.

"I am a holy maiden, diligent and pure." You look up at the icons above the altar, where the likeness of the stars hang from thin strings upon the ceiling. "The Light of the Stars Above is the only protection that I need from a mere wisp of the Black Mists. My faith is my armor, my purity is my shield... and frankly, we have not the time to discuss your objections to how I manifest my barrier jacket. We must be off..."

>...to the upper decks, to join the fight against any boarders.
>...to the lower decks, to check for any intruders that might have slipped past.
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.
>...to the hold, to see if something or someone stowed away.

Regardless of which choice you make, roll 1d20.

Rolled 8 (1d20)

>>5298901
>>...to the upper decks, to join the fight against any boarders.

You know, I am pleasantly surprised at how much effort was put into what I first assumed was a shitpost quest.

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.
It might not be that flashy, but people need to be protected and the older magical girls can handle whatever problem is upstairs

>Could it be that he's doing what Sister April warned you that men were wont to do, and is sullying your light-clad body with impure, prurient thoughts?
>Oh my, you see a pleasant sight indeed, evidencing quite a bit of growth. How lovely~
Welp, parva definitely takes after Diligence in this matter

>4NNA4

Rolled 12 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.
This seems prudent. Though with our luck probably no one will get there in the first place.

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.

Rolled 11 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the upper decks, to join the fight against any boarders.

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5298901
>>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.

Rolled 16 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.
I wonder what we accidentally turned off with our little stunt. Also interesting how technological the ascension sequence was

Rolled 11 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.

>>5299137
Hopefully nothing important. From the sound of it, the control file got corrupted, so its just a matter of getting a new file from sister april or diligence. The worrying thing is that the lapis had to factory reset itself; thats not good. At the very least it means the tutorial pop ups might appear again, but at worst everything got deconfigured and we'll have to do it on the go.

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the upper decks, to join the fight against any boarders.
FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!

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>>5298897
>Thank you, Holy Wisdom, for bringing this opportunity to see such a pretty boy dancing so adorably on the palm of your hand, unaware of the strings that guide his actions.

Looks like parva's liking being a manipulator a bit too much. wouldn't be surprised if she ends up like jessie

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the lower decks, to check for any intruders that might have slipped past.
I quite liked the description and aesthetics for the magical girl transformations

>>5299318
that actually reminded me a bit of 40K and the techpriests. they know that they're dealing with technology but lost the way to directly mingle with it, so they default to "rituals" passed on from generation to generation

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>5298901
>>...to the upper decks, to join the fight against any boarders.

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>5298901
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.

>>5298901
>...to the living quarters, to secure those who are not armed.

>>5299305
Like who now?

>>5299469
jessie from the ff7 remake. in the game she basically flirts with the main character all the time just because she can. And after reading what parva thinks about bear, i can see her going the same route; teasing, flirting and manipulating her way around, not for any ulterior motive whatsoever but just because its fun to her

>>5299491
>Implying our most holy lady Parva would be anything other the the top exemple of saintly grace and purity
Someone needs etiquette lessons.

>>5299518
Still, her standard for purity was set by a pervy god AI thing, so she definitely has some inherent lewdness waiting to be set loose.

>>5299518
>implying she can't do both

>>5299137
>>5299187
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh wow, in my insomnia I appear to have skipped over the section of the transformation sequence that would have clarified a lot... and failed to change a few words I had thought I had changed. This was not a Factory Reset, but a Defragmentation - with the control file that locked you out of Clad_In_Light_07 being damaged beyond recovery. You have currently loaded the Barrier Jacket configuration for Clad_In_Light_07, which makes your body glow so bright that you might as well be a Barbie Doll below the neck. Think the glowing form most magical girls take when their clothes explode during their transformation sequence.

For some reason, Sister April disabled all of the configurations Parva had set up to clad herself in the Light of Diligence with the parental controls. There's a bit of a disagreement there, because Sister April believes a proper Barrier Jacket is in order, while Parva believes that the Light of Diligence is the only protection that a holy maiden as pure and diligent as she is needs, even from the lustful gazes of men (for their is nothing sexual about her body, which is the very IMAGE of purity). This definitely is NOT an excuse Parva gives to paint a veneer of faith and piety over the fact that she's a nudist.

>>5299373
You're not wrong in the sense that certain technologies are definitely heavily involved in the religion of the Church of Holy Wisdom and His Ten Thousand Brother Stars - after all, Parva has seen Diligence's body; it is an ancient wonder from the age of the Machine Builders. The Lapis are designed and distributed by the Stars as part of one's baptism; you cannot be baptized at a normal church, your family must make pilgrimage to an Astral Shrine. Note that, similar to Medieval Europe, the connotations of the word "Pilgrimage" is effectively "an extended vacation to visit holy lands". So it's not a burden on the family, but rather a time of relaxation and celebration - especially as the Church holds employers and Lords accountable for allowing even the lowliest of their workers the opportunity to go on Pilgrimage without reprisal. Likewise, the Church is expected to provide hospitality for pilgrims who request it.

>>5299305
>>5299491
>>5299518
>>5299578
>>5299624
I will say this much: Parva is definitely a devious girl...

I'll be starting the update in about an hour, as an FYI.

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Roll Magic 1d20+MAG+(LCK/2) vs. DC25 to create a path through the whisp of the Black Mist!
The Black Mist's weakness to the Blessed Frequency reduces the DC to 20!
8+7+6 = 21. One Degree of Success!
Fortunate has banked two 20s from the rolls that went unused.

"Fine," Bear huffs as he draws the baton strapped to his hip. A blue rose blooms on one end, while a thorny vine extends like a tether or the lash of a whip from the other side. From beneath his white hood, he looks to the door, and then to you with some concern. He's right to be concerned: tendrils of black damnation writhe behind the door, breaking apart as they enter. "I hope you have a plan, though. Rosenpeitsche will come in handy if we need to move something out of the way, but I don't think it can do much against the Black Mist. What's keeping it out of here, anyways? It can't just be faith, can it...?"

You clasp your hands together in prayer in front of your chest, and give him a smile full of serenity. They draw his eyes to your svelte and maidenly bosom, from which he swiftly looks away with a cherry red blush lighting up his pretty face.

"Our prayers, of course." You tell him nothing but the truth.

"Parva, please don't joke around right now..." Bear pinches his nose in exasperation.

"I'm not," you insist. He stares at you in disbelief, so you decide that the best way to do things would be to show him what you mean. Your Transformation feels better than ever today - probably because you are clad in light instead of horrid, scratching clothes. The Blessed Frequency rises from your heart and fills the room with a clean white noise that scours the nooks and the crannies of any errant tendrils of the Black Mist. "This chapel is a true Holy Ground. So if you want to follow procedure and wait for someone to rescue you, just duck behind a pew and recite Wisdom's prayer like your life depends on it. The chapel will resonate with your words at the Blessed Frequency, and shake the Black Mist apart."

"You already told me that wouldn't be becoming of a Mahou Shoujo," Bear says. With a puff of determination to his small and boyish chest, he steps past you and grabs the handle on the door. "Like heck am I staying behind. At best, you'll never let me hear the end of it."

"Oh, I wouldn't do thaaaaaaaat~" you tease. Oh dear, a devious smile has crossed your face, hasn't it? You should stop that. You are a holy maiden, diligent and pure, and such behavior is unbecoming of you. But look how manly he's acting with just the teensy-tiniest bit of needling, he's so fun to play with! Maybe if he does well, you'll give him a special reward... and bless his weapon with your anointing oils. "You have to admit, though... you'd make for an awfully cute damsel in distress!"

"Ack-!" Bear makes a funny sound as he sputters in surprise. "Come on, didn't you just say that we must away...?"

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>>5300005
You did - and you do. When Bear throws the door open, you see the once pristine hall covered with a smoking black sludge that roils with sickening and corruptive energies. The sludge flows through the air like stains of viscous black ink smearing a leaf of paper, moving in patterns of fractal geometries that hurt the eyes to look at. This is the Black Mist that brings with it damnation and mutation, the outer skin of the Black Star Below that has sloughed off the first Sun's surface and seeks to subsumes the souls of mankind. Not only is this the Black Mist, but it runs heavy and thick, and the voices of the souls that it has stolen crackle and screech their mad iambic meter that run on and on into insanity.

"How sweet the flesh of children dear," the voices curdle like electrified milk, crackling and popping like a broken loudspeaker. "Who come to play among the dead bodies beneath the hollow tree where we now sit so deathly still in wait for our succulent prey who come to us that we may eat our gorey fill and rip and tear the meat so sweet and suck the marrow from the bones we polished clean to make a doll to wear their clothes...

The tendrils see the door fly open, and try to grasp at the souls of the living.

But you expected them. The Blessed Frequency has already been invoked.

"Be at peace," you command the Black Mist.

A horrid sound fills the hall as the Blessed Frequency slams into the mist, shattering the tendrils and scattering the darkness to the corners, out of sight. A droning song, a single note of 111 hertz fills the hall. Only where it is loudest is the sludge-stuff that makes up the mist destroyed instead of rebuffed, but even where it grows dim it repels the Black Mist like a magnet pushing away ions of the same charge. What hasn't been shaken apart tries to regroup itself, but the song in your heart follows you down the hall as you make for the nearby living quarters.

What? Of course you have Bear's hand in your own. Make no mistake - you are a holy maiden, diligent and pure, and you would be derelict in your duties if you did not keep him close at hand. Nothing good would come of letting him venture outside of the area where the Blessed Frequency shakes apart the Black Mist.

Also, the redness of his cheeks when you grabbed his hand and starting running was amusing.

"Okay... if they're this weak to sound, what do you think about grabbing one of the emergency radios?" Bear huffs as he follows behind you. He's not just being dragged along, mind - where the mist begins to coagulate densely in your path, he lashes out with his whip and tears it apart, killing anything dangerous before it can manifest. "Blast the entire place with your frequency thing, and burn 'em out like you're doing now?"

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>>5300008
"It wouldn't work," you tell him. Even now, the Black Mist has begun to find spaces where the frequency drops off or rises up, as the hall's acoustics leave much to be desired. Without Bear's whip breaking those clumps apart, a demon may have been born from the Black Mist's density as it flees the Blessed Frequency. "Acoustics are a fickle thing, and it takes great effort to create a true Holy Ground where the whole area will resonate as one. The Fat Dove is a wonderful vessel, but an intercom only cares if the message is passed on successfully, not the specific notes and tone of the speaker."

"Well that sucks, but I guess it makes sense," Bear says. His whip cracks again, tearing apart another globule of the mist that has coagulated ahead of you. With a flick of his wrist, his whip catches the handle of a door and pulls it open. "This way! Miss Lucy's quarters are the closest, and she's not any good with magic, not even cantrips. So she's probably the most vulnerable to the mists..."

Fortunately for her, the Black Mist thins a bit as you pass through the door. You rebalance the Blessed Frequency to be loudest at your back, incase it begins to flow through the new opening.

Bear leads you to the end of a hall, where a little plaque hangs on a door at the dead end that says "Lucy's Room". The mist is almost clear here, with what few tendrils that float about being easily shaken apart by the Blessed Frequency. You deal with that as he gets the door, and you can hear him trying for the handle before letting a very foul word slip from his mouth.

"Language~" you chide. The barrier of sound is strong enough that you can afford a bit of levity.

"Really...?" Bear complains, sighing. He takes a step back from the door frame, and shifts his stance around. "I'm gonna break the door down, keep me covered."

"On it..." you turn around, readying yourself for the possibility that Bear's about to charge into a room filled with a dense fog of the Black Mist.

"Alright, three..."

"Two..."

"Now!"

With a force that only one of the ascended could muster, he crashes through the door and bursts into Lucy's room. The door's hinges snap off, and it crashes to the floor as he rushes in. The fact that the Black Mist is almost entirely absent from her quarters somehow does not fill you with relief. Something about this entire situation smells off to you. No, if anything, the Black Mist's absence fills you with a slowly blossoming sense of dread, that perhaps the worst is yet to come.

The Black Mist should have been able to slip through the cracks of the doors to this part of the ship. Why, then, did it seem like every bit of sludge was slowly creeping away from this corridor?

"...Lucy?"

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>>5300009
As Bear stares in confusion at the sordid scene playing out before him, the only thing you can think of is that you now know what smells off.

Intellectually, you know what it means for a man and a woman to climb the stairs to adulthood together. Sister April did not approve, but Diligence believed that the knowledge was necessary for you to understand and recognize what is happening if - Wisdom forbid - someone who ought to know better attempts to take advantage of your pure and diligent heart. Many passages of the Librum Stellaris describe the act in vivid metaphor, talking of cats and roosters, tides and floots, and flowers and their sweet nectar.

And yes, even though you are a holy maiden, diligent and pure... well, these past nine days especially, you have been getting to that age where you have started to notice boys and how cute they can be when they get worked up about something. To say nothing of the sapphic pleasures... whatever the heck those may be.

Seeing all of this in person, though...

"Come on, bitch, shake your hips more! Don't you see, we've got ourselves an audience~!"

A violent parody of lovemaking plays out upon the sole bed in Lucy's quarters, and the poor maid appears to be the unfortunate star, and it takes your brain a bit of time to process the unfamiliar sights, sounds, and smells. Her assailants are a pair of creatures with skin that shines like polished grey stone, with black and red veins glowing visibly beneath their skin. Demons coagulated from globules of the Black Mist, given a hollow parody of human form and only the worst traits that humans that humans possess.

The demons have her pinned down to her bloodstained bedsheets, her skin a bloody mess as blasphemous iconography of the Black Star Below that has been carved into her body by a jagged knife scars over. The maid long since stopped struggling against them, and lies still as they conduct their sordid business with her. You find it odd that her face is dry of tears, but you can't know what's going on inside of her mind right now. The stench of the act that hangs in the air is horrid enough from where you, and it only worsens when they pull away, leaving black sludge seeping from her nethers and her mouth.

"Well isn't this cute!" one of the demons says. "A pair of pups lost their way, and stumbled upon the big dogs rutting. But didn't it look fun boyo?"

The demon looks Bear straight in the eyes.

"Wh-what... no, hey!" Bear shakes off his shock, but it's clear that he doesn't recognize them for what they are, and you're only just now finished processing what you just saw. "Who are you mutants, and what did you do to Miss Lucy?!"

>>5300010

You just finished processing... all of that. Demons. Demons that just finished up raping the maid Bear wanted to save. (Choose as many as you like, the most voted for option will be used)
>So anyways, you started blasting. Fill the room with the Blessed Frequency, with as much power as you can safely manage.
>Metron and Nomos have been resonating with the Blessed Frequency for a while now, and you think you just heard them ask if they could please cleave and smite evil.
>You are the Maiden of the 1728th Astral Shrine. Diligent and pure, the ritual of exorcism is well within your means... but Bear will need to buy you some time. (Roll 1d100)
>Bear's ignorance of their nature might work in your favor; they're distracted. Change your barrier jacket to a less... conspicuous configuration, and see if you can't purge some of the corruption they've filled Lucy with.
>Bear's ignorance of their nature might work in your favor; they're distracted. Change your barrier jacket to a less... conspicuous configuration, and see if you can't stab them in the back
>Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)
>Now is not the time to stand your ground. Now is the time to run the heck away.

Regardless of which option you choose, roll 1d20. OR vote to use one of Fortunate's Banked 20s.

Note: Rolls from posters that vote to use a Banked 20 will be ignored for the purposes for determining roll results and banking d20s.

File: Hiss_-_Pattern_-_Red.png (5.72 MB, 3840x2160)

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Rolled 3 (1d20)

>>5300008
...oh fuck this is the hiss! just black instead of red. nice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjIrLMGhCIU

>So anyways, you started blasting. Fill the room with the Blessed Frequency, with as much power as you can safely manage.
>Metron and Nomos have been resonating with the Blessed Frequency for a while now, and you think you just heard them ask if they could please cleave and smite evil.

we can purge lucy's corruption once we deal with the beasts

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5300013
>Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)

Well, this situation is certainly... unfortunate. I agree that we should probably make sure we're not about to get stabbed in the back while trying to exorcize her. Either way, dumping exposition in the middle of battle is a very anime thing to do, so let's go with that. Hopefully she won't be too far gone by the time we finish.

Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>5300013
>Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)
>Metron and Nomos have been resonating with the Blessed Frequency for a while now, and you think you just heard them ask if they could please cleave and smite evil.
Yeah purification can wait until we clear them out.

>>5300013
>Metron and Nomos have been resonating with the Blessed Frequency for a while now, and you think you just heard them ask if they could please cleave and smite evil.
Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)

Rolled 1 (1d20)

>>5300013
>Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)

Rolled 14 (1d20)

>>5300013
>You are the Maiden of the 1728th Astral Shrine. Diligent and pure, the ritual of exorcism is well within your means... but Bear will need to buy you some time. (Roll 1d100)

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>5300013
>>Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)
>>Metron and Nomos have been resonating with the Blessed Frequency for a while now, and you think you just heard them ask if they could please cleave and smite evil.

>>5300027
>...oh fuck this is the hiss! just black instead of red. nice
I can't say that I know what that's from.

Also, as an update, I will not be available to do another post until Sunday evening (or Monday, depending on how late things go). Votes will remain open until then, if more people want to have input on the next decision (or vote to use a Banked 20).

Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>5300013
>>Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)

I say use our banked crit

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>5300013
>Metron and Nomos have been resonating with the Blessed Frequency for a while now, and you think you just heard them ask if they could please cleave and smite evil.
>You are the Maiden of the 1728th Astral Shrine. Diligent and pure, the ritual of exorcism is well within your means... but Bear will need to buy you some time. (Roll 1d100)

Rolled 2 (1d20)

>>5300013
>>Reveal their nature to Bear, and try to do what all Mahou Shoujo teams do - win with the power of teamwork! (Roll 1d100)
>>Metron and Nomos have been resonating with the Blessed Frequency for a while now, and you think you just heard them ask if they could please cleave and smite evil.

>>5300931
oh, its from control, a very underrated and amazing game by the studio that made alan wake and max payne. you should definitely check it out if you like shooters
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F74LLDhAhhI

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Roll Agility 1d20+AGI+(LCK/2) vs DC 35 to attack the Heart-Thirst Ravagers.
Demonic weakness against the Blessed Frequency reduces the DC by 5!
13+10+6 = 29. One degree of failure causes a complication!

You look one more time at the bed in the middle of the room, where who knows how many sordid acts where inflicted upon that poor maid. Thoughts make laps around your head, bringing new questions every time they cross the finish line. Were the demons born of the Black Mist, or was the Black Mist called by the demons? If the Black Mist was called by the demons, then how did they get aboard the vessel? Did one of the Black Ships fly out from the abyssal depths all the way to the upper strata for just a simple boarding action? Is there a heretic aboard who summoned them? If so, who?

"Why, we gave her nothing less than what a beautiful woman like her deserves, boyo~" The first demon gives off a light chuckle. "Tender... loving care... ufufufufu~"

"Don't think she didn't love it..." The other advances on Bear with a hypnotically feminine sway to her hips that even you have trouble looking away from, and you like boys. Like its sibling, the demon's boyish bits have disappeared in a swirl of Black Mist. Her eyes glow a bright gold that stares into Bear's own. "She was panting in delight the entire time. If you want... ufufufu, I could teach you what that's like. Wouldn't love to experience it, making a girl pant and moan and squirm in pleasure~?"

"I... uh..." Bear sounds a little woozy, and for some reason, you feel a bit dizzy yourself.

Something warm and pleasant-feeling has pressed up against your back, and a pair of strong hands have grabbed ahold of your shoulders. They begin to rub all of your troubles away, letting your body and your muscles loosen up so much that it becomes hard for you to stand. Where did that demon go, again...? A little exclamation point caught inside a triangle is flashing in the corner of your eye, but you can't bring yourself to care enough to bring up the details of what it means. Everything feels so warm and fuzzy that you just sort of want to sink into that feeling with a dopey smile and be carried away on the currents of a warm wind.

"That sounds nice..." Bear's voice snaps you out of your empty, floaty lack-of-thoughts. He has a dopey smile on his face, staring at the large, swaying chest of the demon. Wait, something about that statement seems wrong...

"Good, good," the demon's voice carries throughout the room, far too light, far too melodious. She's getting so close to Bear that it's kind of pissing you off, a furious song welling up in your chest. "Let me help you climb the stairs to adulthood~

"And I'll help you do the same~," a voice whispers in your ear.

The demon strokes Bear's cheek.

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>>5303511
Something inside of you snaps, when you see the demon stroke his cheek, and all the common sense that had fled your mind in the demons' presence comes rushing back into your heart. The song that had been muted by the fog their sinful bodies danced into your mind rings heavy in your ears with chords of the Blessed Frequency. Disgust wells up as you feel demonic hands caressing your shoulders while a thick and heavy tool of corruption presses against the small of your back. Whatever secretions it left behind were burnt away by the Light of Diligence that envelopes your body, but all the same, you have to say this for the record - ew, ew, ew, ew, EWWWWWW!!

"Get your filthy hands off of him, demon!" you snarl with contempt.

The demon caressing Bear's cheek stares at you in panic, while the one that had been rubbing its disgusting body against your own leaps back. For all their bluster in calling you pups, they don't have much confidence in their abilities if they're afraid of a single, untrained Mahou Shoujo breaking free of their charms. Perhaps they're the sort of one-trick ponies who only have their charms and not much else to fall back on? They have large, manly chests, and tone bodies, but if they shy away from a fight that quickly...

A burst of the Blessed Frequency puts some distance between the demon and Bear, but unlike the Black Mist, it's not dissolved immediately. They both give out a scream of pain when the Frequency fills the air, cleansing the room of all the corruption within. Even the black goop splattered onto Lucy's naked body is shaken apart by the noise. Unlike when clearing away the Black Mist, however, the demons quickly acclimated, though the pain on their faces tells you that they're powering through it more than ignoring it entirely.

"Marxan! Silence that bra-"

You cut off the demon that had been caressing Bear's face with a flurry from Metron and Nomos, striking as one with both blades. The clanking and inelegant thud of metal striking stone rings out through the room. The demon manifested a pair of glowing pink gauntlets, dripping with some corruptive, pink, oily liquid whose sweet scent would send a blush to your cheeks if your song wasn't already resonating within your heart, and through your blades. The Blessed Frequency at which Metron and Nomos vibrate shakes it apart as quickly as the Black Mists, but something tells you that you don't want it touching you.

The demon clearly did not realize that you are a holy maiden, diligent and pure, whose inherently pure body not only rejected their corruptive hypnosis, but also has been trained in the Sword Dancing of the Machine Builders. You keep it on the back foot, defending your sword blows with its gauntlets as your viciously attack every opening you can find. Even though it's 30cm taller than you, Metron and Nomos give you superior reach, and your foot work keeps it on the back pedal...

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>>5303512
"A little help here, brother?" The demon yells for its companion in a panic, looking away for just a moment too long. Really, it should have known to keep its eyes on its opponent - you take the opportunity to get through its guard and pierce her side. For a moment, you leave Metron inside of her, cranking up its vibrations at the Blessed Frequency. The demon lets out a roar of pain at that, and then again when you rip the blade out, opening up her side. "FUCK! Fuuuuuuuuuck! Little exhibitionist brat has claws-"

Since it has energy to swear and blaspheme against Diligence - who has told you time and again that your body has inherent purity - you make another thrust. Sadly, this one doesn't catch its side or vitals, but gets knocked away at the last moment to cut its cheek.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!" The demon growls. It jumps over a sweeping kick, and catches the blow you make to follow it up. The sonic pressure and the force of your swords together knock it to the floor. "Bro, where the hell are you?"

"Relax, Grouchon," the demon named Marxan rumbles in a powerful contralto. You look towards it and pale at what it's done. "You care for this one, no?"

The demon has taken its place behind Bear, a single claw of its own pink gauntlet pressing against Bear's neck. For a moment, you wonder why Bear didn't jump in to your fight or take on this Demon, but then you see it in his eyes - a smouldering golden heart. You must have broken free of their hypnosis moments before it became Domination, and the only reason he didn't join them against you is because you prevented Grouchon from giving him any orders. Well, besides "climbing the stairs of adulthood"...

Before that one can say anything, or even get up from the ground, you press the tip of Metron against its throat.

"And I assume you care for this one," you snarl at the demon, making an emphasis of where your sword is. You need to keep in the forefront of your mind that every action a demon takes is something they do to spread the corruption of the Black Star Below as far and wide as possible. Even if they can be a bit abstract and human-like some times. "Well, as much as a demon can 'care' for anything, anyways."

"Hah! Indeed, so you understand," the demon barks a hollow laugh, its golden eyes glowing. You keep the song in your heart loud and clear, and the room filled with the Blessed Frequency... even if its acoustics aren't the best. It seems disappointed for a moment that you haven't fallen back to a hypnotic lull. "I would propose a deal. I will not kill the pup, you will not kill Grouchon or I... and we will leave this vessel. Dealing with a remnant whisp of fog should be easier than two demons, no?"

>>5303514
The Demon Marxan has taken a thoroughly Dominated Bear hostage... but seems to be proposing an accord.
>These terms are acceptable. Take your so-called "Brother" and leave. [Allow them to leave]
>I don't make deals with demons. [Kill Grouchon and attempt to kill Marxan].
>Free Bear from this one's control first, then you can have your so called "Brother" and leave. [Allow them to Leave]
>Free Bear from this one's control first, then you can have your so called "Brother" and leave. [Kill Grouchon the moment Bear is free and then attempt to kill Marxan]
>You're going to need to make this deal a bit sweeter if you want me to let Demons leave... [Write in a request from them].

Regardless of your decision, roll 1d20

>>5303516
what do they mean by "this vessel"? is it the ship itself, or the room? (i assume this also includes leaving lucy alone)