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A Simple Transaction I
- Thread starter Rihaku
- Start date
- Original
Now for something a bit different
Omake All for nothing 1207 words
1182 words remaining.
Omake All for nothing 1207 words
All for Nothing
You are Kendo Gikari, the official headmaster of the High School for High Elementalist NGC. Many people asked you what NGC means but you just moved your glasses with your middle finger and subtly pressed a button on them to make them shine. It did not matter if it was in a dark room or a sunny place. Your glasses always shone when moved.
In reality you are a simple and well-adjusted man of culture. When your family fled the Empire, you have not watched the final 4 episodes of your favorite show 'Neuron Genesis Cathedrelion' and this caused almost irreparable mental damage. You disagreed with your psychiatrist that you were obsessed with the show and even fed him to the Rotbeast after a particularly annoying session.
So what if you have created a Human Elixir Project that sole purpose was to use children that are piloting mechanical armor to fight against weird beasts that suddenly attacked your city unprovoked. It was justified, it was for the sake of anime and creating the proper ending in real life. You were sure the intentions of the creator of Neuron Genesis Cathedrelion was to give all his characters happy ending.
You even manipulated your son to crave your attention in order to simulate the perfect environment. And soon all will be completed, you just needed a feisty red headed pilot. You have managed to secure a princess from a neighboring kingdom and if the rumors were true she was a totalbitch tsundere.
A ringing tone interrupted your happy thoughts, it was the red phone that signaled that the Spa Secret Service were calling you. They provided a massive amount of funding to your school so you had to at least appear cooperative.
"Gikari speaking, what is the problem?"
A mysterious voice (it reminded you of Keel Lorenz)
"The duchess Letrizia von Artriez, pilot of the Devouring Armament, Verschlengorge, is coming to your school. Treat her nicely, her bodyguard can fight an elite Rotspawn alone and she has another sorceress bodyguard. She is untouchable, show her a good time in the school. SSS out"
The what now? You had no idea what was happening so you called your assistant and asked for some explanation.
"We have a rather important guests in the spa resort this week but I did not have the time to compose a report. Basically she is the duchess pilot of a giant mech, but I don`t think you like those sorts of things. She is coming to the school as we speak. The special service guys are tailing her and making sure nothing happens to her. Her bodyguard is extremely dangerous and the Empire is likely to deploy their Armaments to avenge her."
You fell on your knees and started crying. The gods themselves deliver this gift to you. You will not squander it.
"I will meet her myself. Show me a picture of her"
"This is what we have, she normally has white hair but we think she has some transplants is a natural redhead"
YES.YES. Everything is coming together.
"Ugh sir, I think you are having a stroke. I am pretty sure you smile should not be that wide"
"Shut up, I am gloating"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The pilot herself – Letrizia was clumsily sneaking near the school fence and was quietly humming to herself some weird melody – 'Dun Dun Dun da dada Dun dun dun da dada dun dun dun da dada, de da doo de da doo de da doo do dut'
"Hello young lady, you must be the transfer student right. I am the school headmaster, nice to meet you"
Letrizia jumped slightly and looked around before answering
"Y-yeah, that is totally me. Letriz… I mean Letrisia, the transfer student. I will be in your care."
"Perfect, we have your uniform prepared, come with me"
He gave her a quick trip around the school and was preparing to finally introduce her to his son and adopted daughter. Tonight the plan will bear fruit.
Unfortunately Letrizia had other plans. She saw that stupid due FullMight and Roilweft training in the courtyard and as expected the duchess wanted to look. No, unacceptable, the plan must go on. He tried to pull her hand but she was surprisingly strong for her size.
"What are you doing you creep, let me go"
"No, you must see the other Children. The plan must conti…"
Suddenly Kendo lost control of his limbs and three men in black suits caught him and started moving him against his will.
One of them just stopped and addressed the duchess
"Apologies for the rough handling lady Letrizia, please disregard him, he is overworked."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kendo woke up a bit later. He was chained to a chair and a giant TV was in front of him. There was only one more person in the room – his assistant.
"What is the meaning of this Kozo?"
"I am sorry sir but your action almost caused the destruction of the spa resort. I had to call in the secret service to restrain you"
"You traitor, I trusted you!"
"Sir you are a good headmaster and the secret service made an exception for you. I even got you a present – I managed to order the final four episodes of Neuron Genesis Cathedrelion so you can watch them and end your mania. I even got the movie that is a direct continuation after the end of the anime series"
Impossible, your dream was finally in front of you. Better than ever.
"How did you managed to order them?"
"Amazon"
How did he not think of that? It seems that even a genius like himself has some blind spots.
"Thank you Kozo, now leave me alone. I want to enjoy the ending in piece"
"Of course sir. I am sure you will like it"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Four episodes later
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kozo knew when Kendo had finished watching the anime because the cursing started immediately after.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS? I DID NOT WANT ALL THAT RELIGIOUS BULLSHIT AND PHILOSOPHICAL BULLSHIT. I JUST WANTED A NORMAL ENDING. HOW IS SHINJI EVEN A BIGGER PUSSY? I WANTED THEM TO BE HAPPY AND AT LEAST AKNOWLEDGE THEIR FEELING. THIS IS PURE SHIT. EVERYTHING I HAVE WORKED FOR IS MEANINGLESS. UNLESS…"
Kozo snapped his head towards the room. He feared the worst could happen, but when he entered he saw that Kendo was furiously writing something on a list of paper and he was also grinning.
"Kozo, fuck that show! So I decided to create an anime show myself about high school students fighting against evil monsters but they will have powers themselves. It will be extremely original and reconstruct the hero genre. Do you want to hear its name?"
"Of course, sir"
"My hero elementia"
"Son of a bitch" Kozo muttered and slowly started hitting his head against the wall.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meanwhile Letrizia was collecting some blood from somesimps boys. She was going to be a mage soon. Honestly she had already forgotten that dumb headmaster. She couldn`t wait to tell Lord Hunger and Lady Gisena about her adventures in school today. And they thought she was not a stealth specialist. Nobody knew who she was.
You are Kendo Gikari, the official headmaster of the High School for High Elementalist NGC. Many people asked you what NGC means but you just moved your glasses with your middle finger and subtly pressed a button on them to make them shine. It did not matter if it was in a dark room or a sunny place. Your glasses always shone when moved.
In reality you are a simple and well-adjusted man of culture. When your family fled the Empire, you have not watched the final 4 episodes of your favorite show 'Neuron Genesis Cathedrelion' and this caused almost irreparable mental damage. You disagreed with your psychiatrist that you were obsessed with the show and even fed him to the Rotbeast after a particularly annoying session.
So what if you have created a Human Elixir Project that sole purpose was to use children that are piloting mechanical armor to fight against weird beasts that suddenly attacked your city unprovoked. It was justified, it was for the sake of anime and creating the proper ending in real life. You were sure the intentions of the creator of Neuron Genesis Cathedrelion was to give all his characters happy ending.
You even manipulated your son to crave your attention in order to simulate the perfect environment. And soon all will be completed, you just needed a feisty red headed pilot. You have managed to secure a princess from a neighboring kingdom and if the rumors were true she was a total
A ringing tone interrupted your happy thoughts, it was the red phone that signaled that the Spa Secret Service were calling you. They provided a massive amount of funding to your school so you had to at least appear cooperative.
"Gikari speaking, what is the problem?"
A mysterious voice (it reminded you of Keel Lorenz)
"The duchess Letrizia von Artriez, pilot of the Devouring Armament, Verschlengorge, is coming to your school. Treat her nicely, her bodyguard can fight an elite Rotspawn alone and she has another sorceress bodyguard. She is untouchable, show her a good time in the school. SSS out"
The what now? You had no idea what was happening so you called your assistant and asked for some explanation.
"We have a rather important guests in the spa resort this week but I did not have the time to compose a report. Basically she is the duchess pilot of a giant mech, but I don`t think you like those sorts of things. She is coming to the school as we speak. The special service guys are tailing her and making sure nothing happens to her. Her bodyguard is extremely dangerous and the Empire is likely to deploy their Armaments to avenge her."
You fell on your knees and started crying. The gods themselves deliver this gift to you. You will not squander it.
"I will meet her myself. Show me a picture of her"
"This is what we have, she normally has white hair but we think she has some transplants is a natural redhead"
YES.YES. Everything is coming together.
"Ugh sir, I think you are having a stroke. I am pretty sure you smile should not be that wide"
"Shut up, I am gloating"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The pilot herself – Letrizia was clumsily sneaking near the school fence and was quietly humming to herself some weird melody – 'Dun Dun Dun da dada Dun dun dun da dada dun dun dun da dada, de da doo de da doo de da doo do dut'
"Hello young lady, you must be the transfer student right. I am the school headmaster, nice to meet you"
Letrizia jumped slightly and looked around before answering
"Y-yeah, that is totally me. Letriz… I mean Letrisia, the transfer student. I will be in your care."
"Perfect, we have your uniform prepared, come with me"
He gave her a quick trip around the school and was preparing to finally introduce her to his son and adopted daughter. Tonight the plan will bear fruit.
Unfortunately Letrizia had other plans. She saw that stupid due FullMight and Roilweft training in the courtyard and as expected the duchess wanted to look. No, unacceptable, the plan must go on. He tried to pull her hand but she was surprisingly strong for her size.
"What are you doing you creep, let me go"
"No, you must see the other Children. The plan must conti…"
Suddenly Kendo lost control of his limbs and three men in black suits caught him and started moving him against his will.
One of them just stopped and addressed the duchess
"Apologies for the rough handling lady Letrizia, please disregard him, he is overworked."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kendo woke up a bit later. He was chained to a chair and a giant TV was in front of him. There was only one more person in the room – his assistant.
"What is the meaning of this Kozo?"
"I am sorry sir but your action almost caused the destruction of the spa resort. I had to call in the secret service to restrain you"
"You traitor, I trusted you!"
"Sir you are a good headmaster and the secret service made an exception for you. I even got you a present – I managed to order the final four episodes of Neuron Genesis Cathedrelion so you can watch them and end your mania. I even got the movie that is a direct continuation after the end of the anime series"
Impossible, your dream was finally in front of you. Better than ever.
"How did you managed to order them?"
"Amazon"
How did he not think of that? It seems that even a genius like himself has some blind spots.
"Thank you Kozo, now leave me alone. I want to enjoy the ending in piece"
"Of course sir. I am sure you will like it"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Four episodes later
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kozo knew when Kendo had finished watching the anime because the cursing started immediately after.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS? I DID NOT WANT ALL THAT RELIGIOUS BULLSHIT AND PHILOSOPHICAL BULLSHIT. I JUST WANTED A NORMAL ENDING. HOW IS SHINJI EVEN A BIGGER PUSSY? I WANTED THEM TO BE HAPPY AND AT LEAST AKNOWLEDGE THEIR FEELING. THIS IS PURE SHIT. EVERYTHING I HAVE WORKED FOR IS MEANINGLESS. UNLESS…"
Kozo snapped his head towards the room. He feared the worst could happen, but when he entered he saw that Kendo was furiously writing something on a list of paper and he was also grinning.
"Kozo, fuck that show! So I decided to create an anime show myself about high school students fighting against evil monsters but they will have powers themselves. It will be extremely original and reconstruct the hero genre. Do you want to hear its name?"
"Of course, sir"
"My hero elementia"
"Son of a bitch" Kozo muttered and slowly started hitting his head against the wall.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meanwhile Letrizia was collecting some blood from some
1182 words remaining.
That is beautiful.
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- Location
- Philippines
FML. Peak degeneracy. I love it.
Since the last fight at the Temple, we've gotten:
If the character sheet is fully updated, that is roughly going from 66 stats to 129 total stats, keeping in mind that each + is a greater magnitude of increase than the previous. And I'm not sure if that includes the potential extra 45% increase from Edeldross.
Not to mention the non stat improves of having Uttermost, two hands, a second form of attack in Edeldross, and is no longer weighed down by 2 conditions that penalised him by 20% roughly
I'm reasonably confident that Hunger now would be an overwhelming opponent to Hunger halfway through the vacation, who would in turn have been an overwhelming opponent to the Hunger who fought Vanreir.
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Right, I did actually have something in mind for those, so here goes:
{ } Unelementalism - Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Mastery of these is merely the tip of the iceberg, first step in a journey that will take them far beyond the circumscribed confines of humanity. At the intersection of the sacred and the profane, halfway between the shaman and necromancer's craft, lurks Unelementalism. Legend says the first Unelementalist was a sage who lived in such harmony with the elements that when his physical form passed away he endured within them.
That is the central, superficially wholesome insight at the core of the art: treating fire and its counterparts as indistinguishable from flesh. If internalized with the proper rituals, this precept allows for necromantic manipulation of nature. Unelementalists are infamous for their indefatigable tenacity, their sheer stamina and inexhaustible reserves enshrined in a thousand fearful tales. Oceans of flame, eternal hurricanes, mountains crumbling into valleys and rising again at the Unelementalist's command.
To put it plainly, they can resurrect their own attacks. This power eventually expands to version control of physical reality. In conjunction with the replacement of organs with elemental prostheses, they become extremely difficult to kill. But the Rubicon of immortality is only crossed for good once an Unelementalist discards the brain, transitioning their consciousness to an elemental substrate, their thoughts becoming as dark and deep as the benthic fathoms in which some reside.
*The alien and territorial nature of high-attaining Unelementalists may be the only thing preventing the domination of the planet by an Unelemental Shogunate.
*Unity with different elements entails different modalities of thought.
*An Unelementalist harnesses the earth's plodding patience and the fire of inspiration to further their research.
*The secret of the Unelemental Avatar State is known to few.
{ } Valiance - Nothing grows in the shadow of the Valiant Mausoleum. The obsidian edifice lies abandoned, like the corpse of some elder behemoth lingering into the twilight of a lesser age. Most who seek the truth behind the stories find only dust and echoes, departing disappointed and relieved in equal measure. But even in this fallen era, there are those who are worthy of receiving the offer. To practitioners of Valiance on the day of their initiation, one promise is made: that their deaths will be glorious.
If the initiate's heart is true and they do not flinch from the vision of their demise, instead accepting it fully, then whatever power resides in the Mausoleum accepts them in turn. The pact is sealed. The Valiant are granted armaments and sent back into the world like hounds given the scent of heroism, always at the center of great events. Nothing except irrelevance is beyond them. Their doom is both burden and boon, its form shaping their abilities, and until their Appointed Hour the Valiant cannot die.
Destiny itself is their sworn shield. If stolen, a sword will find its way back to their hand stronger than before; if captured, they will leave an enemy's fortress in flames behind them. Most resolve to live fully within their span, blazing new trails into the frontier of mortal existence. As their end approaches, their power grows. If in need of power, they may voluntarily hasten the Appointed Hour's arrival. To oppose one of the Valiant in their finest and final moments is to know futility.
*When the Valiant falls, a wind out of the west spirits the body away for interment in the Mausoleum.
*Artifacts granted are potent, but awakening their full potential usually comes with a cost, e.g. Stormbringer or Gurthang.
*Death or glory is a false dichotomy. The truth has always been death and glory.
*Centuries ago, a crusade was mounted to claim the hoard of artifacts that must surely lie within the Mausoleum...
Thanks, I love it! Though 'discarding the brain' sounds like it's going to take some more work...
Back to writing a reaction. Hopefully we'll make enough to get Flare.
- Location
- The Surface Of A Hostile Planet
- Location
- Philippines
Aaaaaagggghhhhhhhh
Choices are fucking hard to make dude. This is like, Build Vote Purgatory at the worst. But yieee boiii, Part 1 isutarto!
1270 Words for it.
It was a smile that defied description. As if all the stars of the evening sky twinkled. As if the horizon yonder opened, to reveal teeth made of mountains. Nine steeled his soul against the unease that dared flood his being. For every proverbial step the stranger took, the more Nine's own very core shook. His very own essence understood, without explanation, the inexplicable weight the being in front of him carried.
He held no fleeting fancy that It's action was born from any form of mercy.
"Now, now, my child." It's laughter was the wailing of war-torn widowers. "No need to be afraid! You did, after all, agree." There was a sensation of a hand atop his heart. Reality blanked out. Then came pain even greater than the expenditure of his very own life force. Words could not convey. Consciousness retreated.
…
…
…
"You survived! As I knew you would!"
Nine may have had no corporeal body yet he could feel his very throat tear itself raw from the scream. Phantom sensations ran along his consciousness. Affirmation that he was meant to be feeling pain. Red eyes locked unto the source of everything, manic energy fed into them.
"Yes, yes, anger and despair will always aid you well! For when else does a Man find it in him to defy impossible odds?" Quiet laughter. "You are a prime example, after all." And with a wave of its hand did reality warp. Where it had been but an expanse of consciousness, now stood Nine atop his own corpse.
Rather, where his corpse should have been.
He felt more hale and hearty than ever before. The lost arm returned, and his lungs unmarred. All manner of wounds he had accumulated gone, as if erased from the fabric of existence. All this he understood, as if it had always been this way. "Surprised?" At Its voice, the young mercenary turned. Spun in place, looked up, looked down, looked everyone around to spot the voice. "I suppose anyone would be." There was another laughter, yet this was different.
It felt...normal? Grating, rather. Like an annoying teammate that was just a bit too friendly.
"Quite specific, there. And yes, your thoughts are not alien to me. No, I am not just guessing. Yes, I actually am reading your mind. You may now stop wasting the first few minutes of your new lease on life and listen." At the...being's request, Nine nodded even as he took steps away and away from the battlefield.
"As part of our minor transaction, and because my heart is as wide and deep as humanity's hatred, I will bestow upon you a Gift. Even more, should you provide adequate entertainment. Thus my child! Nay, my Apostle! How do you wish to entertain me?"
----
[9] Where Do I Sign has won, and we have essentially sold Nine's freedom and control of one's self to a higher being that we have no idea about. Allllllllll so that we can make sure he can keep his promise. Dunno if I should be warmed about the idea, or grieving about the fate we've consigned Nine to. Fucking Promises, dude.
But as the Being has said, with Nine now being an Apostle, some benefits have made themselves available.
By Default, Nine has received:
Progression Rate: 150%
Condition: Perfect (Temporary)
Advancements: Breakthrough Points -> Apostle Credits
Rank: 2.2 -> 2.8
Picks: 1 for the below
You may pick any combination below, provided sufficient Picks are available to afford it.
[ ] Increased Progression: "Some people take forever to get anywhere in life. You've already got a small boost by being my Apostle, but hey. I can probably toss a bit more your way. It'll be like using the elevator instead of a staircase. Try not to waste it, alright?"
- Increase Progression Rate to 200%.
- Costs 1 Pick
[ ] Symbiote: "Ever get tired of needing new weapons? Seeing as you'll be escalating...hmmm, gonna be a hassle looking for something that can keep up so...ahah! You've gotten pretty good with lances so just lemme...that goes there...fix it here...and there we go! A New Lance that'll grow alongside you! It's made of your own soul and some esoteric jargon you don't have to worry about, so it's not like you'll ever lose it either!"
- Provides a weapon that will scale with you.
- Your Lance is a part of You. You are a part of Your Lance. Its strength is Your strength.
- "Give it a name! Personally? Longinus. It's only presumptuous if you can't back it up!"
- Costs 1 Pick
[ ] Devour: "You know what tastes better than steak? Victory! You know what tastes even better than Victory? Power! Of course, worthwhile meals are the ones you threw a lot of effort in! The more effort you put in, the delicious-er the meal will be!"
- Provides the [Devour] Ability
- You are what you kill! The successful Execution of any worthwhile opponent will provide Nine an opportunity to absorb aspects. Repeated kills of the same type of opponent will provide less and less options per Execution. Satiation is a thing after all.
- Costs 2 Picks
[ ] Perfection (Permanent): "You know what sucks? Losing a limb. It's a hassle, and so is trying to get worthwhile prosthetics. Know what else is a hassle? Taking a shit in the middle of the woods. Gotta hate that feeling. So make your life easier and just, you know, stop with all that nonsense."
- Provides Perfection (Permanent)
- Lose a limb today, get it back tomorrow! Eating, shitting, sleeping, and other base human needs all become optional!
- You only die when you are killed. Losing your head? Dead. Drowning? Dead. Not being able to eat for an entire year? No problem.
- One Free Max Heal per day!
-- Does not include complicated caused by notable events.
-Budget Gamer Body
- Costs 2 Picks
[ ] Brand Of The Apostle: "You don't get to my level of being without killing a few hundred...million things. Course, some of those things either didn't actually die or had some reallllly bad backers. All who see you will instantly know that you're my Apostle, at least if they're relevant. Normal people like your precious mercenary squad don't count unless they get a backer."
- Provides [Brand Of The Apostle]
- All Beings, and all their Apostles or equivalent thereof, who have an issue with your Benefactor will find themselves immediately aware of what you are as well as your...circumstances.
- Good fucking luck hiding from them.
- Provides 1 Additional Pick
[ ] He Who Was Not: "Your memories paint a real fun picture. You've got Viktor, the older brother mentor kinda guy. Izmerel, the woman you're so head over heels for. Then there's foul-mouth Hans, dumbass Kennedy, unnecessarily wordy Jennifer...and a bunch of other people that you care about. I'll find it mighty...interesting if, say, they forget who you are."
- Provides [Erased]
- Everyone who once knew of you, everyone who you ever cared for, and any other individual equivalent to them will find you erased from their memories.
- Efforts to help them remember who you are will only cause heightened hostile responses. The harder you try, the more hostile they become.
- Of course, you'll still have to go see them. You promised after all. That initial meeting is gonna be a sight to see!
- Depressive shit, dude.
- Provides 1 Additional Pick
He held no fleeting fancy that It's action was born from any form of mercy.
"Now, now, my child." It's laughter was the wailing of war-torn widowers. "No need to be afraid! You did, after all, agree." There was a sensation of a hand atop his heart. Reality blanked out. Then came pain even greater than the expenditure of his very own life force. Words could not convey. Consciousness retreated.
…
…
…
"You survived! As I knew you would!"
Nine may have had no corporeal body yet he could feel his very throat tear itself raw from the scream. Phantom sensations ran along his consciousness. Affirmation that he was meant to be feeling pain. Red eyes locked unto the source of everything, manic energy fed into them.
"Yes, yes, anger and despair will always aid you well! For when else does a Man find it in him to defy impossible odds?" Quiet laughter. "You are a prime example, after all." And with a wave of its hand did reality warp. Where it had been but an expanse of consciousness, now stood Nine atop his own corpse.
Rather, where his corpse should have been.
He felt more hale and hearty than ever before. The lost arm returned, and his lungs unmarred. All manner of wounds he had accumulated gone, as if erased from the fabric of existence. All this he understood, as if it had always been this way. "Surprised?" At Its voice, the young mercenary turned. Spun in place, looked up, looked down, looked everyone around to spot the voice. "I suppose anyone would be." There was another laughter, yet this was different.
It felt...normal? Grating, rather. Like an annoying teammate that was just a bit too friendly.
"Quite specific, there. And yes, your thoughts are not alien to me. No, I am not just guessing. Yes, I actually am reading your mind. You may now stop wasting the first few minutes of your new lease on life and listen." At the...being's request, Nine nodded even as he took steps away and away from the battlefield.
"As part of our minor transaction, and because my heart is as wide and deep as humanity's hatred, I will bestow upon you a Gift. Even more, should you provide adequate entertainment. Thus my child! Nay, my Apostle! How do you wish to entertain me?"
----
[9] Where Do I Sign has won, and we have essentially sold Nine's freedom and control of one's self to a higher being that we have no idea about. Allllllllll so that we can make sure he can keep his promise. Dunno if I should be warmed about the idea, or grieving about the fate we've consigned Nine to. Fucking Promises, dude.
But as the Being has said, with Nine now being an Apostle, some benefits have made themselves available.
By Default, Nine has received:
Progression Rate: 150%
Condition: Perfect (Temporary)
Advancements: Breakthrough Points -> Apostle Credits
Rank: 2.2 -> 2.8
Picks: 1 for the below
You may pick any combination below, provided sufficient Picks are available to afford it.
[ ] Increased Progression: "Some people take forever to get anywhere in life. You've already got a small boost by being my Apostle, but hey. I can probably toss a bit more your way. It'll be like using the elevator instead of a staircase. Try not to waste it, alright?"
- Increase Progression Rate to 200%.
- Costs 1 Pick
[ ] Symbiote: "Ever get tired of needing new weapons? Seeing as you'll be escalating...hmmm, gonna be a hassle looking for something that can keep up so...ahah! You've gotten pretty good with lances so just lemme...that goes there...fix it here...and there we go! A New Lance that'll grow alongside you! It's made of your own soul and some esoteric jargon you don't have to worry about, so it's not like you'll ever lose it either!"
- Provides a weapon that will scale with you.
- Your Lance is a part of You. You are a part of Your Lance. Its strength is Your strength.
- "Give it a name! Personally? Longinus. It's only presumptuous if you can't back it up!"
- Costs 1 Pick
[ ] Devour: "You know what tastes better than steak? Victory! You know what tastes even better than Victory? Power! Of course, worthwhile meals are the ones you threw a lot of effort in! The more effort you put in, the delicious-er the meal will be!"
- Provides the [Devour] Ability
- You are what you kill! The successful Execution of any worthwhile opponent will provide Nine an opportunity to absorb aspects. Repeated kills of the same type of opponent will provide less and less options per Execution. Satiation is a thing after all.
- Costs 2 Picks
[ ] Perfection (Permanent): "You know what sucks? Losing a limb. It's a hassle, and so is trying to get worthwhile prosthetics. Know what else is a hassle? Taking a shit in the middle of the woods. Gotta hate that feeling. So make your life easier and just, you know, stop with all that nonsense."
- Provides Perfection (Permanent)
- Lose a limb today, get it back tomorrow! Eating, shitting, sleeping, and other base human needs all become optional!
- You only die when you are killed. Losing your head? Dead. Drowning? Dead. Not being able to eat for an entire year? No problem.
- One Free Max Heal per day!
-- Does not include complicated caused by notable events.
-
- Costs 2 Picks
[ ] Brand Of The Apostle: "You don't get to my level of being without killing a few hundred...million things. Course, some of those things either didn't actually die or had some reallllly bad backers. All who see you will instantly know that you're my Apostle, at least if they're relevant. Normal people like your precious mercenary squad don't count unless they get a backer."
- Provides [Brand Of The Apostle]
- All Beings, and all their Apostles or equivalent thereof, who have an issue with your Benefactor will find themselves immediately aware of what you are as well as your...circumstances.
- Good fucking luck hiding from them.
- Provides 1 Additional Pick
[ ] He Who Was Not: "Your memories paint a real fun picture. You've got Viktor, the older brother mentor kinda guy. Izmerel, the woman you're so head over heels for. Then there's foul-mouth Hans, dumbass Kennedy, unnecessarily wordy Jennifer...and a bunch of other people that you care about. I'll find it mighty...interesting if, say, they forget who you are."
- Provides [Erased]
- Everyone who once knew of you, everyone who you ever cared for, and any other individual equivalent to them will find you erased from their memories.
- Efforts to help them remember who you are will only cause heightened hostile responses. The harder you try, the more hostile they become.
- Of course, you'll still have to go see them. You promised after all. That initial meeting is gonna be a sight to see!
- Depressive shit, dude.
- Provides 1 Additional Pick
Choices are fucking hard to make dude. This is like, Build Vote Purgatory at the worst. But yieee boiii, Part 1 isutarto!
1270 Words for it.
Nice. Though I'd like to think that there are implements of peace within as well. Every true defiance to the uncaring cosmos is worthy of an offer.
Subtle and Quick reaction 1002 words.
180 remaining words remaining. I don`t think I have it in me anymore for today. I am spent. The last few reactions raised my Salt level a bit too much for my liking. For today I managed to do 7.2k words. My choices were
[X] Unacceptable
[X] Maximal Greed
Take care guys, I believe in you.
Subtle and Quick
I wanted Letrizia to have the pew pew electromagnetic force manipulation but this is fine too. It would have been fun to emulate Hunger and go murder some Astral beasts alone while laughing.
Letrizia: You think I am locked in here with you. No. You are locked in here with me!
Verschlengorge: I feel a bit useless here.
LETRIZIA SMASH PUNY BEASTS!
Hunger saw a peach falling and he failed to catch it. For shame! He tried bribing his young charge but it seems Letrizia suffers from mono focus. She can either focus on food or magic, never both. Our hero is right to worry when the young duchess turned down food. I suggest an intervention, preferably in an all you can eat restaurant.
Hunger had an unborn child but his father instincts were developed as well. Here we have a touching scene where the bodyguard is protecting the mental state of his charge by not letting her power go to her head. What a dutiful bodyguard!
I feel like Hunger sees his unborn child in Letrizia and at least tries to protect her smile (because anime clichés becoming real is the her actual element)
You might think that this is some setup for a mini Tournament arc but you are wrong. This is a deeply layered plan where two master scammers create an infernal plan to steal the money of some teenagers. The disposition of our protagonist versus the master servant relationship of the duchess. Those two collide in a symphony of transgressing the boundaries towards a transformative hermeneutics of quantum Rank. This is the true and deep meaning of this exchange and not a desperate attempt to collect words because I am having a minor writer block.
Ok, I have to activate "ackshually" mode. The pruning of the fingers is caused by our brain when it detects that we are in water. Signals from the brain cause the blood vessels under the outer layer of the skin to constrict. This causes the pruning which many scientist believe is the body answer to slippery surface. In fact they have shown that nerve damage could prevent the pruning of the fingers which proves that this is a reaction from the brain rather than a reaction to water.
If Hunger does not prune he has nerve damage or a superhuman control over his body neuron signals.
Nice try Gisena but Hunger can detect the element in his blood himself. Still the stuff about toys is projection and if he was a bit slower the sorceress would have caught our hero playing with some rubber fishes in the bathtub. The humiliation would have been worth it.
Gisena must be a one in a lifetime genius if she can come from medieval France and understand the technical manuals of star faring civilization. Still she has shown her weak spot, she can be bribed with books. I hope the Temple does not find out or they can promise her thousands of books and a lot of victims to tease.
Translation – you have been slacking off Gisena. Now Verschlengorge is my best friend and you will become side character.
Hunger shows that he is a man of culture and prefers raw fish that he caught himself. Letrizia is continuing to act half her age and not eating her veggies.
Gisena: You your veggies Letrizia
Letrizia: No, I don`t want to.
Gisena: Here comes the airplane
*Letrizia opens wide*
Even Hunger pointed out that the element that we have selected for him is weird. Augmentation and enhancing nobility? Rihaku is now pouring salt on the wound of InkSky (rip my sweet prince). And no I am not salty at all. I will never forgive the maeg gang.
Hunger has cheerleaders now. That could be good and bad thing. He also understands that Blade plus Ring is the way that people of culture prefer. He is a sword wizard, not like those teenagers that he will scam tomorrow.
Hunger playing around with his element and trying to give the poor Rotspawn a fighting chance. At the end he just need to scream "Victory". Remember we need to be legendary, not actually do legendary feats.
Hidden masters: And the crowd goes wild. Number 7, Lord Hunger scores another win versus the Rotbeast. But the war is far from over. Come and find out after the break on A Simple Transaction I
Hunger got some money after a hard day at work. Letrizia found some suckers that can be scammed tomorrow and Gisena has been slacking off. Seem about the group dynamic has not changed.
+Mental Stability is bad for business. It means that Hunger does not suffer PTSD and learn new stuff at the heart of battle. But the double plus for Gisena is nice. It is always nice to have loyal subordinates. It is a matter of math really – one plus < two pluses.
This is the suboptimal option as proven in the equation above.
I wanted a brutal rejection scene where Fullmight`s hopes are crushed so hard, that Hunger takes pity on the boy and teach him some fishing.
Sup Shinji, nice and chuuni name you got there. Still you cost Arete so you will be forever shunned by the SAVE GANG.
I am not a fan of hiring some child soldiers. We already have one in Letrizia and frankly she is enough. Sorry honey, you might be a nice girl but Hunger has no place for another teammate.
Safe and efficient way to collect picks and progressively get stronger. Of course that means it was discarded by the quest participants in favor of the option below.
Let`s try to present ourselves as a turncoat. We absolutely suck at taking orders so the best way is to go ask the Temple superiors for missions and orders. Because Doom of the Tyrants is after all joke curse that has never procd. I know that my Salt is showing a bit but what the fuck thread?
I wanted Letrizia to have the pew pew electromagnetic force manipulation but this is fine too. It would have been fun to emulate Hunger and go murder some Astral beasts alone while laughing.
Letrizia: You think I am locked in here with you. No. You are locked in here with me!
Verschlengorge: I feel a bit useless here.
LETRIZIA SMASH PUNY BEASTS!
Hunger saw a peach falling and he failed to catch it. For shame! He tried bribing his young charge but it seems Letrizia suffers from mono focus. She can either focus on food or magic, never both. Our hero is right to worry when the young duchess turned down food. I suggest an intervention, preferably in an all you can eat restaurant.
Hunger had an unborn child but his father instincts were developed as well. Here we have a touching scene where the bodyguard is protecting the mental state of his charge by not letting her power go to her head. What a dutiful bodyguard!
I feel like Hunger sees his unborn child in Letrizia and at least tries to protect her smile (because anime clichés becoming real is the her actual element)
You might think that this is some setup for a mini Tournament arc but you are wrong. This is a deeply layered plan where two master scammers create an infernal plan to steal the money of some teenagers. The disposition of our protagonist versus the master servant relationship of the duchess. Those two collide in a symphony of transgressing the boundaries towards a transformative hermeneutics of quantum Rank. This is the true and deep meaning of this exchange and not a desperate attempt to collect words because I am having a minor writer block.
Ok, I have to activate "ackshually" mode. The pruning of the fingers is caused by our brain when it detects that we are in water. Signals from the brain cause the blood vessels under the outer layer of the skin to constrict. This causes the pruning which many scientist believe is the body answer to slippery surface. In fact they have shown that nerve damage could prevent the pruning of the fingers which proves that this is a reaction from the brain rather than a reaction to water.
If Hunger does not prune he has nerve damage or a superhuman control over his body neuron signals.
Nice try Gisena but Hunger can detect the element in his blood himself. Still the stuff about toys is projection and if he was a bit slower the sorceress would have caught our hero playing with some rubber fishes in the bathtub. The humiliation would have been worth it.
Gisena must be a one in a lifetime genius if she can come from medieval France and understand the technical manuals of star faring civilization. Still she has shown her weak spot, she can be bribed with books. I hope the Temple does not find out or they can promise her thousands of books and a lot of victims to tease.
Translation – you have been slacking off Gisena. Now Verschlengorge is my best friend and you will become side character.
Hunger shows that he is a man of culture and prefers raw fish that he caught himself. Letrizia is continuing to act half her age and not eating her veggies.
Gisena: You your veggies Letrizia
Letrizia: No, I don`t want to.
Gisena: Here comes the airplane
*Letrizia opens wide*
Even Hunger pointed out that the element that we have selected for him is weird. Augmentation and enhancing nobility? Rihaku is now pouring salt on the wound of InkSky (rip my sweet prince). And no I am not salty at all. I will never forgive the maeg gang.
Hunger has cheerleaders now. That could be good and bad thing. He also understands that Blade plus Ring is the way that people of culture prefer. He is a sword wizard, not like those teenagers that he will scam tomorrow.
Hunger playing around with his element and trying to give the poor Rotspawn a fighting chance. At the end he just need to scream "Victory". Remember we need to be legendary, not actually do legendary feats.
Hidden masters: And the crowd goes wild. Number 7, Lord Hunger scores another win versus the Rotbeast. But the war is far from over. Come and find out after the break on A Simple Transaction I
Hunger got some money after a hard day at work. Letrizia found some suckers that can be scammed tomorrow and Gisena has been slacking off. Seem about the group dynamic has not changed.
+Mental Stability is bad for business. It means that Hunger does not suffer PTSD and learn new stuff at the heart of battle. But the double plus for Gisena is nice. It is always nice to have loyal subordinates. It is a matter of math really – one plus < two pluses.
This is the suboptimal option as proven in the equation above.
I wanted a brutal rejection scene where Fullmight`s hopes are crushed so hard, that Hunger takes pity on the boy and teach him some fishing.
Sup Shinji, nice and chuuni name you got there. Still you cost Arete so you will be forever shunned by the SAVE GANG.
I am not a fan of hiring some child soldiers. We already have one in Letrizia and frankly she is enough. Sorry honey, you might be a nice girl but Hunger has no place for another teammate.
Safe and efficient way to collect picks and progressively get stronger. Of course that means it was discarded by the quest participants in favor of the option below.
Let`s try to present ourselves as a turncoat. We absolutely suck at taking orders so the best way is to go ask the Temple superiors for missions and orders. Because Doom of the Tyrants is after all joke curse that has never procd. I know that my Salt is showing a bit but what the fuck thread?
180 remaining words remaining. I don`t think I have it in me anymore for today. I am spent. The last few reactions raised my Salt level a bit too much for my liking. For today I managed to do 7.2k words. My choices were
[X] Unacceptable
[X] Maximal Greed
Take care guys, I believe in you.
No worries, man, you do more than your fair share. We'll try to carry the torch in your absence. Went page by page from 773 to the present, so the index should be complete for now.
A small unfinished reaction. If I get electricity back today, I'll add a little to it and write some more.
I wonder how many people the Fates - I am sorry, Hidden Masters had enslaved. This time, chosen hero is not a Season Incarnate (...At least to the first glance) though, merely an isekai hero. I wonder, was Hunger offered celestial orbs? Special empowering choices to make his life easier during this challenge? Or was he just dropped into the universe without so much as a word? Probably the latter; Although Hunger burned a lot of his memories, he probably would have retained memories of his ultimate enemies.
I must say though, inhibiting Destiny like that is an impressive feat. With how far Hunger managed to go, I am not sure if it was completely sundered, but it sure was chained and weakened. One must wonder how he managed; at rank 7-8 such effect is probably a little bit impossible, you'd expect such things from Rank 9 or even 10; roughly the level at which Fates were in EFB. Accretion is characterized as the system that transcends, but this is much worse than blocking a supernova. This is blocking literally Destiny. The magic-defeating stance wouldn't cut it; even All-Defeating Stance probably wouldn't cut it.
...But notably, we still don't know anything about the art that took Hunger's youth, or his memories. Sword of The Tyrant depraved him of his arm at very least, but wounds in his mind do not seems to come from the same source. Perhaps something to do with the armor of the Hero, an accretion artifact we had left behind before embarking on our adventure? But that was a defensive-oriented artifact mostly meant to keep Hunger alive, not something that burns the wielder for fuel in a glorious blaze of power.
...Honestly, this sounds remarkably like our Temple Trip, at least from the thread-side. Constant desperation, and memes that cover it.
[X] Maximal Greed
Looking at activity so far, I do believe we'll have the arete required.
And so, I am voting for this option for the reasons people previously discussed at length, with full understanding that it is not, in fact, the safest option to go for under current circumstances. There will be no bitching if we die, I knew the risks.
And the choices we made put extra emphasis on these narratives that are threaded through the universe.
Even Further Beyond; Disk 2.
I wonder how many people the Fates - I am sorry, Hidden Masters had enslaved. This time, chosen hero is not a Season Incarnate (...At least to the first glance) though, merely an isekai hero. I wonder, was Hunger offered celestial orbs? Special empowering choices to make his life easier during this challenge? Or was he just dropped into the universe without so much as a word? Probably the latter; Although Hunger burned a lot of his memories, he probably would have retained memories of his ultimate enemies.
Oracles and other mortal servants of destiny were mentioned to exist later on, in the passing, together with the fact that Tyrant slaughtered them all. It appears that divinities of destiny and fate were much more consistently hands-on in this realm than in EFB; or at least in this cycle.
I must say though, inhibiting Destiny like that is an impressive feat. With how far Hunger managed to go, I am not sure if it was completely sundered, but it sure was chained and weakened. One must wonder how he managed; at rank 7-8 such effect is probably a little bit impossible, you'd expect such things from Rank 9 or even 10; roughly the level at which Fates were in EFB. Accretion is characterized as the system that transcends, but this is much worse than blocking a supernova. This is blocking literally Destiny. The magic-defeating stance wouldn't cut it; even All-Defeating Stance probably wouldn't cut it.
Yeah, I kind of feel that the guiding hand of fate wasn't totally absent; one does not survive a failure after failure, compounding injuries and repeated loss of allies without entering a death spiral of bad status - especially against such an opponent as a The Tyrant was said to be.
Forbidden art for our chosen magic, Accretion, is uzurpation of other Noble Phantasms excuse me, items of power that belonged/belong to other notable heroes. We took Forebearer's blade by using that art.
...But notably, we still don't know anything about the art that took Hunger's youth, or his memories. Sword of The Tyrant depraved him of his arm at very least, but wounds in his mind do not seems to come from the same source. Perhaps something to do with the armor of the Hero, an accretion artifact we had left behind before embarking on our adventure? But that was a defensive-oriented artifact mostly meant to keep Hunger alive, not something that burns the wielder for fuel in a glorious blaze of power.
Sounds like taking Forebearer's blade for the first time came with a fair share of power; more than usurping Evening Sky gave us.
...Honestly, this sounds remarkably like our Temple Trip, at least from the thread-side. Constant desperation, and memes that cover it.
This sounds like -Defeating Stance line, or something like it. Tyrant very obviously tried very, very hard to be a Forebearer; it makes me wonder if his actions were even slightly justified or he just went "My will is the cut of my blade" and cut through whatever opposition arose regardless of reason and circumstance.
The moment of pain that fucked up Hunger and made him into the man he is now; more than anything else. We hear echoes of "victory is the only thing that matters" every time Hunger comes out of combat almost dead, every time he kills his physical body to test out his abilities, every time he doesn't care about terrible pain and physical injuries.
Was that a moment of emotional weakness? Or was Tyrant unshakable, and Catherine merely used a self-sacrificing technique open to pry a hole in Tyrant's defense? We might never know.
PTSD, The Man. Honestly, all things considered, Hunger recovered quite well. This could have gone much, much worse.
That moment is probably the core of why Hunger does not care much for heroing right now. I wonder if he'll share the circumstances of his betrayal and eventual transaction with Letrizia; for a duches of Empire, she seems to be somewhat naive to the brutalities of fantasy/sci fi politics and intrigue.
Honestly, a pretty strong core for Accretion. I wouldn't be surprised if The Hero would have recovered at least some of his shattered power eventually, if the powers that be allowed him.
Well, neither he did sit idly, but I suppose, whatever he did was simply not enough. I must say tho, in the land of Accretion-empowered Kings and such, building a democracy without wielding overwhelming strength first... Pretty difficult even without nudging hand of fate pushing things in a wrong direction. A heritable Accretion artifact(s) that magically chooses the worthy, or empowers the temporary holder of the office probably could have allowed something if set up by a being of sufficient power, but, once again, same issue.
Age and Treachery. The Tyrant tried to live by this, but his Treachery is honestly pretty weak in comparison.
Hello there, Accursed. I wonder why you came by here and now... Probably because seeing the heroes die in a ditch personally offends him. But why not sent a Progression-Type to fix this world? The Tyrant and The Hidden Masters both looked like a prime example of a terrible universe doing terrible things to not terrible people. Hm.
A reminder that Odyssial comes from a universe without a devil. Every otherworlder ever mistaking him for one was probably pretty bizzare for a first few times this happening.
[X] Maximal Greed
Looking at activity so far, I do believe we'll have the arete required.
And so, I am voting for this option for the reasons people previously discussed at length, with full understanding that it is not, in fact, the safest option to go for under current circumstances. There will be no bitching if we die, I knew the risks.
- Location
- The savanna.
[X] Fine
[X] Maximum Safety
If we've gotta pay Arete through the nose to survive our mistakes, so be it. Also wow, let's not fucking ditch the stealth asset right after resolving to go with infiltration guys, the Arete and pick aren't worth it. Her Element's way more relevant against someone who can't be bothered to chase us around than what we get for refusing her. Look at Aeira, what kind of monster would crush this girl's mercenary dreams?
[X] Maximum Safety
If we've gotta pay Arete through the nose to survive our mistakes, so be it. Also wow, let's not fucking ditch the stealth asset right after resolving to go with infiltration guys, the Arete and pick aren't worth it. Her Element's way more relevant against someone who can't be bothered to chase us around than what we get for refusing her. Look at Aeira, what kind of monster would crush this girl's mercenary dreams?
- Location
- Omniverse #1345
I'm refusing to be bound by past mistakes.
- Location
- The Surface Of A Hostile Planet
- Location
- Philippines
The voices in Hunger's head if we don't get enough Arete to get Crimson.
This is not the right time for Crimson. Get what we need now then save back up for Crimson.
- Location
- Omniverse #1345
This is exactly the right time for crimson.
- Location
- Brazil
Also, wondering aobut the Forebearer. He seems to have visited countless worlds, if his blurbs are to be trusetd, which makes me believe that he was a cursebearer with geas of inenditure, it also makes me worried that he really is a possible future for Hunger, making me want Once and Future even less...
It's just, if he was indeed a cursebearer with geas, why would he have left his blade behind? Unless he had outscaled it, even then, it feels really weird for someone to discard part of their panoply.
On the other hand, a being that transcends time and space, and that is anaethema to our existence...it would make perfect sense to leave his blade behind: The best insurance so that his previous self travels his path.
Of course, there is no guarantee of any of this, he might just have been some really strong guy that somehow had dimensional travel, honestly, it's not like we haven't seen people of his level that aren't cursebearers, but that would raise even more quesitons. Perhaps he just transcended beyond the needs of a mere sword?
It's just, if he was indeed a cursebearer with geas, why would he have left his blade behind? Unless he had outscaled it, even then, it feels really weird for someone to discard part of their panoply.
On the other hand, a being that transcends time and space, and that is anaethema to our existence...it would make perfect sense to leave his blade behind: The best insurance so that his previous self travels his path.
Of course, there is no guarantee of any of this, he might just have been some really strong guy that somehow had dimensional travel, honestly, it's not like we haven't seen people of his level that aren't cursebearers, but that would raise even more quesitons. Perhaps he just transcended beyond the needs of a mere sword?
Projectile
Thinking of Rabbits
- Location
- USA
This is amazing! I can't believe I didn't make the connection, I literally just watched LotR again. I guess the Evening Sky can have many colors or something?
Edit: Is this how tallying works? No, clearly it isn't, nothing showed up. Nevermind.
Edit2: Wait, what is this black magic?
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