How'd This Go Again? (Magic Multiversal Mayhem 1.5 Quest) (PJO Universe Eventual Multicross)
- Thread starter Xolsis
- Start date
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[x] plan: essential operations
As much as the light or the darkness would give some really great firepower? They aren't really needed right this minute, as much as not being able to throw lightning around makes me sad
Plus, well, Light and Darkness would probably let us kill gods given… everything, and we will need that sooner or later.
As much as the light or the darkness would give some really great firepower? They aren't really needed right this minute, as much as not being able to throw lightning around makes me sad
Plus, well, Light and Darkness would probably let us kill gods given… everything, and we will need that sooner or later.
1.2 Vote End
- Pronouns
- Male
Ignore that third dice in the 2d20
Steal Some Food: 13/10 Passed
New Hiding Spot:11+4=15/15 Passed. Barely
Comprehension: 4+2+1+15=22/20
2 roll over into Deconstruction
Due to learning Comprehension, 2 added to every dice roll to all Alchemy related rolls.
Deconstruction: (2+1+2)+(3+1+2)+(1+1+2)=5+6+4=15/20
Last edited:
- Location
- California
So these rolls we're as low as the previous ones, but significantly uglier. However, we do pass everything from what it looks like.
- Location
- USA
Yeah last time we had 2 11s and 2 4s and now we had 9, 8 ,7, 5 and 2 on the d20s at some point we hopefully start rolling better (or at least average)
- Location
- California
Okay, so this is spicy. Will this be how we will learn to roll more than DC 100; with mastering supplementary skills to gain boosts to dice rolls?
- Pronouns
- Male
This and various other ways that might provide boosts. Chief among them being finding your wizards tower.
- Location
- USA
Next turn we should be recovered from our injury? Because going to 7 activity dice will be a nice bonus, and we may want to throw some at magic learning. And it looks like finding our wizards tower is going to be something we want to focus in on.
- Location
- California
We can't exactly unlock Eastern Alchemy as it stands. Moreover, I think it might be psychological healthier to look for Tom. As an orphan and homeless, our guy has attachment issues. Ignoring this plot thread might be potential lethal for Old Man Tom.
- Location
- USA
I am not saying throwing all of our activity dice at magic but going up to 7 throwing 1 or 2 a turn to start working on our magic would be helpful. Probably 2 dice on looking for tom, 1-2 on magic and that is 3-4 for other actions
We don't necessarily have to go full bore on magic, and even then, eastern Alchemy/Alkahestry is not as far out of reach as you would like to think it is. I am thinking at most two, maybe three turns to get it, assuming average rolls.
Aside from that, the extra activity dice are good mostly for getting us looking at other thing that may be important, not just derping around for stuff. Keep that in mind.
Aside from that, the extra activity dice are good mostly for getting us looking at other thing that may be important, not just derping around for stuff. Keep that in mind.
- Location
- California
Undoubtedly, like I would like Merric to learn lock picking and other skills as it might help to find Tom; even if said skills may be 'forgotten,' in place of niche magic spells.
- Location
- USA
I do want to start on light or dark next turn with an activity dice or two if we can because they mention improving body and mind between the two which will be useful for us in getting things done.
Urchin 1.3
- Pronouns
- Male
March 10th Monday, 2010
Ever felt that lightbulb finally go off in your head? Well, now you did. Like a flash of lightning, the pieces just clicked in your head, snapping your book shut with a snap and running over towards the far wall.
"What the hell's got you so damn excited?" Mia asked from the back of the room, finishing the last bit of bread that the both of you had, the piece that you had taken sitting heavy and light in your stomach.
Instead of answering her, you grab some of the ash near the fireplace, uncaring that it was going to take forever to get the damned stains off your fingers, and you start writing on the wall. It started slowly at first. After all, you used to suck at art, and the only way that you could draw a half crooked circle was if you were tracing it in the first place.
But for the first time in your half long life, your hand was steady as you drew a perfect circle on the wall about the size of a dinner plate. After that, you drew in a pentagram in the middle of the circle before adding in more circles within each triangle of the star. Then came the harder part. Trying to write a formula into the transmutation circle with ash and fingers was a tumbling affair, forcing you to slow down and delicately draw some symbols in with your fingernails instead of your fingertips.
The symbols and equations were like old ghosts coming to visit once again, each one an old memory that begged to be documented, conduits of energy for the destruction and reconstruction of matter.
However, you couldn't write everything down properly. The flash of inspiration just… left you as soon as it came, the equation only barely half done, and you knew that you were going to have to steal from a Staples store or something.
But you knew the basics at least. Of how to calculate the flow of energy, and how to tell exactly how much mass of the wall that was in front of you, along with the various elements that made it up. Give or take that 1% that could be anything from calcium to magnesium. It honestly depended where the wood that made up this wall came from.
A smack to the back of your head roused you from your alchemical contemplation, and you held back a curse as you glared at Mia who hefted her shoe like it was some kind of bat and waved it at you.
You took a step back in fear.
No, retreat.
Yeah, that was it.
"Next time I ask you what the hell happens, and you respond by acting like a zombie I'm going to smack the shit out of you." She promised, pointing her nuclear grade shoe, or as she liked to call it, a 'chancla', no matter how you much you tried to argue that it was in fact a shoe.
You wince, and rub the back of your head in sheepishness, glancing at the floor. "Sorry about that, I just… was inspired and knew that if I didn't write this down I was just going to lose it."
"And what the hell is this shit? Some sorta demon summoning circle? Cause I don't care, I'll drag your but into a church and waterboard you with the holy water if that's the case." She promised.
"You're never going to get a man if you threaten them all like you do with me." You sniped back, and had to duck as she swung her shoe, barely missing your head by centimeters.
"Then it's a good fucking thing that I can pitch too, isn't it?" She asked with a sweetly beautiful smile that promised retribution in the future.
Yeah, you weren't going to get into that conversation with her. Yes, yes, you knew that you were the one that started it in the first place, whatever.
"It doesn't have anything to do with demons, or whatever satanic crap that you're thinking of. Watch." You place your hand on the circle, and focus on a part of the wall above you. Nothing big, just a small patch of the wall, accounting for every last atom and bit of matter that made up the wall, though just the outer layer.
With some focus, and force of will, blue electricity crackled on your hands and circle, traveling up to said patch of the wall and causing it to make a sound like a laser was being blasted into it. In a mere second, the entire wall is disintegrated into mere debris, falling to the floor, leaving a perfect square where the wall met the roof.
"What the hell was that?" Mia asked, deathly quiet, eyes wide open as she stared in… was she afraid?
You… didn't know how to feel about that.
"Alchemy." you instead chose to explain, knowing that the more that someone understood a subject, the less they were likely to be afraid of it. "Or, at least, the first two steps of it. Going to need some more practice before I can actually manage to use this right."
"Alchemy. Like making lead into gold?" She asked, suddenly dollar signs replacing the fear in her eyes, or more likely, hiding it.
"I mean, yeah, I think I could do that. Though, no one is going to want to buy gold from a bunch of kids, remember?" You asked rhetorically, knowing the moment you walked into a pawn shop to sell some gold bars, the clerk was probably going to call the cops. If you went to the wrong one at least. "Anyways, that's the reconstruction part of the formula. To do alchemy, you need to understand exactly what it is that you're transmuting down to it's base elements, break it down, and then reform it into whatever you're trying to make while applying comprehension to that again."
"And that's why you needed those chemistry books?" She asked.
"Can't exactly perform alchemy without taking into account every atom and knowing what elements I'm working with." You said with a shrug, wiping off the ash and soot on the wall.
You didn't know if people would know what any of it meant, or if anyone else can even use alchemy, but you didn't want to take any chances.
"Sounds annoying." Mia said, sighing and going back to her sleeping back, eyes drooping with sleep. "Get some sleep Von."
You don't waste your breath trying to remind her that you don't need to sleep, and just stare at the door, resuming your watch. "Get some sleep Mia."
March 12th Wednesday, 2010
"You keep your word at least." The man said the moment that you walked into the library, the book that you had borrowed in your hands as you froze in step like you'd just been caught in the middle of a crime.
He was sitting in the same exact spot that he had been in last week, shades on his face, silver jewelry shining in the fluorescent lighting of the library.
Without a word, he takes the book from you and flips through the pages, his eyebrow raising when he reaches some of the more well-worn pages that you had spent a particular interest on.
"So, what the hell is a kid your age doing reading through a college level chemistry textbook, specifically one that's focusing on bio chem?"
"Answering questions isn't part of the deal." You say back, already glancing towards the back of the door, your injuries now a light throb compared to the agonizing pain that you had been dealing with. You still couldn't sprint without wanting to throw yourself off a bridge, but you could at least tolerate it longer now.
Instead of getting irritated, the man laughs. "And you got balls, I like that kid. How'd you like to do some work for me?"
"Do I look like a bald old dude to you? I'm not making drugs." You responded quickly, knowing that you might be pushing things, but what other reason would someone want to get 'work' out of a kid that was reading through a college chemistry book like it was light reading for?
The fact that you could make said drugs was completely unrelated.
"Nah, that isn't what I'm talking about." The man said, leaning back in his seat before opening the book to a specific page, and you felt the blood drain from your face.
At the bottom of a page was a small diagram, one that you had doodled in while you were reading and thinking of the proper formulas for alchemical transmutation.
It was a rudimentary transmutation circle. Nothing special, just a half mangled circle with some triangles on the inside. A failure, one that you had just written in while you were just daydreaming through different variations that you could write down.
Thing is, you couldn't admit to that. You already had enough people coming after you, no need to have anymore after you.
"No idea what that is. If that's everything-" You tried walking away from him, but he simply raised his hand while he took his shades off, revealing the greenest eyes you'd ever seen.
"I'm not here to rat you out kid. Just need some help from someone who can hang below the radar and is used to… weird shit happening."
"And that means?" He asked, not knowing what the hell he could know about that would make him think that you were used to weird shit in the first place.
"That friend of yours. The girl? Is a magnet for trouble, isn't she?" The words were said innocently, a mere throw away line that boiled your blood in a way that you weren't quite used to.
Before you could tell yourself that it was a bad idea, you turn around and lean down, your face just a few inches away from the man, one of your hands already reaching towards the crumbled up newspaper that you had drawn a transmutation circle on. "Choose your words carefully." He might outweigh you by a good hundred pounds of muscle, but all you needed was to slap that on him and focus.
His eyebrows raised, and for the first time since you've met him, there is a hint of emotion, embarrassment, on his face. "Didn't mean anything by it. I just happen to know why weird stuff seems to follow her around."
And that stopped you in your tracks.
How could it not?
Since you had both ran away from home a few years ago, you had just grown used to keeping an eye out for certain monsters or groups that wanted to take her. Whether they wanted to eat her or 'train' her depend on who and what it was.
If you couldn't spot them coming from halfway down the street, you both would have probably long since been caught.
And you didn't have any idea why.
Suddenly you were quite happy that she needed to go to the restroom right now.
"What would this work entail, exactly." You asked quietly, at least wanting to keep your options open.
He nodded, and reached into his jacket. He took out a piece of paper and passed it to him.
You took the folded sheet, and opened it, making sure to keep him within the corner of your eyes.
And felt yourself stop in place.
The formula in front of you was something that should have been impossible. A spit in the face of physics and math. It was the make up of something that you had never seen before. It resembled gold, but was something so much more.
"What exactly do you want me to do?" You asked. "It isn't like I can do anything with just a formula."
"Ah, but you understand it right?" He asked, a glint in his eyes as he leaned forward as you took a step back.
Shit. This had been a test.
"So what?" You asked.
"So, I want to know the process that this was made. There is going to be one step that I don't expect you to find out given how… secret it is, but if you can figure out what went into making these, what were the base elements and theories to make it, I will answer all of your questions that you might have about why you've been running from monsters and weirdos." He said with a smile that made his eyes shine. "Along with proper material compensation."
You remember that formula, a compound, one of gold, and some other components that you just didn't understand. And already your mind was working miles a minute trying to break down what the hell could make something like that.
You could do it. You knew that you could. It was just going to take time.
"I'm not making any promises." You said with a snarl, turning around and walking towards the restrooms by the entrance, where Mia was watching with her hand in her jacket's pockets.
"Very well then. In two weeks, I shall be waiting out in Central Park, near the lake. I hope to see you there."
You rush out of the building, Mia following close behind you.
March 14th Friday 2010
You decided to steal some food and find a new place to lay low in one fell swoop.
The fact you had fucked up trying to steal some food from a gas station and had to hoof it through town was entirely inconsequential. Sure, you maybe tripped over something and caused a loud enough noise for the cashier to come and check, and maybe you heard the cock of a gun while you were running, but hey, it all turned out alright in the end?
It just took Mia throwing some more of those stink bombs you had made to help things out. He should be fine, the damn smell was just horrible.
"Alright, I got the cans and alarms set up at the front." Mia said as she slumped in her sleeping bag, eyes tired, but enjoying the instant Ramen you had taken from the gas station. You were still in Brooklyn, but closer towards the East River in an abandoned restaurant that had seen better days.
The doors were solid, and you could start a fire in what had once been a pizza oven just fine without worrying about setting off any alarms.
Probably wise time to do it too, you had seen certain… guys eyeing the house the last time that you had come back from a venture into the city.
Mia rustled some newspapers out of her bag and passed it over to you. Was it boring and made you feel like an old man? Sure, but it passed the time. Besides, not sleeping means that you technically have been 'alive' for longer than most fourteen-year-olds would be.
"What the hell are we doing?" Mia asked out of the blue, destroying the companionable silence that you both grown used to in each other's company.
"Living." You responded back without looking up from your paper, knowing exactly what she meant. It wasn't the first time that your friend had brought up a subject that was more… philosophical in nature. "It might not be much, we might be barely making it through, but I think that we're doing alright all things considered."
"Are we?" She asked, all but glaring into your eyes when you glance up. "Von, all we're doing is moving from place to place, stealing food when we're damn near starving and barely making ends meet. Add that we keep running away from monsters and assholes that want to eat me, and…" She stops speaking, glaring at the ground, and you already know exactly what she is going to say.
"I'm not leaving you. No way in hell." You say firmly, from over your newspaper, speaking in a way that made you feel older than you really were. Like… it wasn't just you saying these words to her, like you had said something similar before to someone else.
"Von, you're a genius. I bet you that if you show up again you'll be just fine and can get your hands on a scholarship to a cushy college without breaking a sweat. Especially with how fast you're doing this alchemy stuff." She said, gesturing towards the backpack that was full of papers and pens that you had taken from a different library just yesterday. "At this point, I'm just dead weight, and we both know it."
"And yet, you're the one that taught me how to booby trap places to know if someone has been here or not. I wouldn't know how to start a fire properly and keep it going if you hadn't been the one to teach me, same goes for how to boil water right when we can't steal some water bottles from a store." You shot back. "Anytime that I would get sick, or hurt, you're the one that would take care of me, fight off assholes that would try to take whatever money I made whenever we'd go panhandling. What the hell kind of friend would I be if I just left you because life is a little more interesting with you in it? Besides. I have a good feeling on how things are going." You say with an easy smile as you place a piece of paper on the ground, the alchemy sign on it, and press your hand to it, destroying some of the wrappers, bottles, and other pieces of trash into little motes of dust to dispose of outside.
For now, you were just street rats out looking for refuge, but your injuries were all but healed, and you could feel so many possibilities at your fingertips.
Then a thought struck you.
"Want to stop feeling like dead weight? How about I teach you some alchemy then."
"Von, I'm an idiot."
"Bullshit, I know you were an honors student before you ran away from your asshole of a dad." You said.
"Fine, then I find it boring." She said with a huff.
"I'm not hearing that you can't learn it." You said with a smile.
"Oh yeah smartass? You're the one that said you're only doing half of what you can do! How'm I supposed to do something that you don't know how to do yet?" She asked.
"With basic chemistry." You said simply, already beginning to go through all the elements that were bouncing around in your head.
You have fully healed from your wounds! You will now receive seven activity dice instead of four.
Please have your votes in plan format.
[ ]Find Tom 0/15: The old man had been one of the more welcoming of the homeless figures in the community. Happy to help and offer guidance to others, tips and tricks on how to avoid cops during certain hours, and which gas stations had the least amount of security for small stuff like some ramen, or bottles of water. Unlike most other Homeless people, Tom was here by choice, preferring the easy freedom of being on the streets after having lost his wife, and nothing brings him more joy than helping others who might need it. It has been a few weeks since either you or Mia had seen the old man, and it was beginning to worry you.
[ ]Try and Get a Car: Your prospects here aren't the best, you're a 14-year-old without any sort of identification, and with the cops constantly looking for you, let alone your best friend. But, having a car is beyond useful, especially for a quick getaway or to leave this place. DC:100
[ ]Find A New Hiding Spot 0/15: For now, you're hanging out in an abandoned house, a hiding spot that you and others have used before. There's the rub. Others have used this place before, and you don't want to get an unexpected visitor in the middle of the night. DC15. A d100 will be rolled for a random event to trigger every week starting with a DC of 90. Every consecutive week that you spend in the same location, the DC will lower by 20.
[ ]Learn Lockpicking 0/20: Alright, there is no real legal way that you're going to be able to get anything that you really need, and while you think that you might be able to do something about locks if you keep studying this weird stuff, that isn't going to be anytime soon. So, that means that we need a more practical solution, and that solution is learning how to be a little rat like those asshole cops like to call you. Will unlock new avenues and options, while lowering DC for certain activities.
[ ] Work on the formula 0/20: The stranger at the library has offered you something that you've never had before. Answers about why Mia is being chased by monsters all the damn time. Only thing that he asks for in return is figuring out what the hell that weird formula was made of. It's honestly not that hard if you're being honest. Just going to take some work. You have two weeks to get this done. Will count as an Alchemy roll.
[ ] Urban Exploration 0/30: So far you have just been looking around the normal spots that you've learned were good hiding spots over the past few years since you became homeless. But there's only so much you can do moving from spot to spot of places that other people know about. With your injuries healed, you can take it a step further and start looking for someplace that no one has found, or has been forgotten about. Will remove having to look for a new hideout every other week.
[ ]Check in on Rosa: Your former foster mother was… a monster to be sure. But you had lived with her for two years and in that time, she had shown you nothing but love and affection as if you were her own. Why she suddenly turned on Mia you don't know, but you suspect that there is something deeper to it with what the stranger said, along with constantly running from monsters for the past few years. DC10.
[ ]Begin Teaching Mia Alchemy:Comprehension 0/40: While it might not seem like something important, maybe teaching your friend how to at least start to learn alchemy would help you alone. Two people means double the workload after all!
Due to Teaching Perk, every dice used on teaching will receive a +5 bonus.
Ever felt that lightbulb finally go off in your head? Well, now you did. Like a flash of lightning, the pieces just clicked in your head, snapping your book shut with a snap and running over towards the far wall.
"What the hell's got you so damn excited?" Mia asked from the back of the room, finishing the last bit of bread that the both of you had, the piece that you had taken sitting heavy and light in your stomach.
Instead of answering her, you grab some of the ash near the fireplace, uncaring that it was going to take forever to get the damned stains off your fingers, and you start writing on the wall. It started slowly at first. After all, you used to suck at art, and the only way that you could draw a half crooked circle was if you were tracing it in the first place.
But for the first time in your half long life, your hand was steady as you drew a perfect circle on the wall about the size of a dinner plate. After that, you drew in a pentagram in the middle of the circle before adding in more circles within each triangle of the star. Then came the harder part. Trying to write a formula into the transmutation circle with ash and fingers was a tumbling affair, forcing you to slow down and delicately draw some symbols in with your fingernails instead of your fingertips.
The symbols and equations were like old ghosts coming to visit once again, each one an old memory that begged to be documented, conduits of energy for the destruction and reconstruction of matter.
However, you couldn't write everything down properly. The flash of inspiration just… left you as soon as it came, the equation only barely half done, and you knew that you were going to have to steal from a Staples store or something.
But you knew the basics at least. Of how to calculate the flow of energy, and how to tell exactly how much mass of the wall that was in front of you, along with the various elements that made it up. Give or take that 1% that could be anything from calcium to magnesium. It honestly depended where the wood that made up this wall came from.
A smack to the back of your head roused you from your alchemical contemplation, and you held back a curse as you glared at Mia who hefted her shoe like it was some kind of bat and waved it at you.
You took a step back in fear.
No, retreat.
Yeah, that was it.
"Next time I ask you what the hell happens, and you respond by acting like a zombie I'm going to smack the shit out of you." She promised, pointing her nuclear grade shoe, or as she liked to call it, a 'chancla', no matter how you much you tried to argue that it was in fact a shoe.
You wince, and rub the back of your head in sheepishness, glancing at the floor. "Sorry about that, I just… was inspired and knew that if I didn't write this down I was just going to lose it."
"And what the hell is this shit? Some sorta demon summoning circle? Cause I don't care, I'll drag your but into a church and waterboard you with the holy water if that's the case." She promised.
"You're never going to get a man if you threaten them all like you do with me." You sniped back, and had to duck as she swung her shoe, barely missing your head by centimeters.
"Then it's a good fucking thing that I can pitch too, isn't it?" She asked with a sweetly beautiful smile that promised retribution in the future.
Yeah, you weren't going to get into that conversation with her. Yes, yes, you knew that you were the one that started it in the first place, whatever.
"It doesn't have anything to do with demons, or whatever satanic crap that you're thinking of. Watch." You place your hand on the circle, and focus on a part of the wall above you. Nothing big, just a small patch of the wall, accounting for every last atom and bit of matter that made up the wall, though just the outer layer.
With some focus, and force of will, blue electricity crackled on your hands and circle, traveling up to said patch of the wall and causing it to make a sound like a laser was being blasted into it. In a mere second, the entire wall is disintegrated into mere debris, falling to the floor, leaving a perfect square where the wall met the roof.
"What the hell was that?" Mia asked, deathly quiet, eyes wide open as she stared in… was she afraid?
You… didn't know how to feel about that.
"Alchemy." you instead chose to explain, knowing that the more that someone understood a subject, the less they were likely to be afraid of it. "Or, at least, the first two steps of it. Going to need some more practice before I can actually manage to use this right."
"Alchemy. Like making lead into gold?" She asked, suddenly dollar signs replacing the fear in her eyes, or more likely, hiding it.
"I mean, yeah, I think I could do that. Though, no one is going to want to buy gold from a bunch of kids, remember?" You asked rhetorically, knowing the moment you walked into a pawn shop to sell some gold bars, the clerk was probably going to call the cops. If you went to the wrong one at least. "Anyways, that's the reconstruction part of the formula. To do alchemy, you need to understand exactly what it is that you're transmuting down to it's base elements, break it down, and then reform it into whatever you're trying to make while applying comprehension to that again."
"And that's why you needed those chemistry books?" She asked.
"Can't exactly perform alchemy without taking into account every atom and knowing what elements I'm working with." You said with a shrug, wiping off the ash and soot on the wall.
You didn't know if people would know what any of it meant, or if anyone else can even use alchemy, but you didn't want to take any chances.
"Sounds annoying." Mia said, sighing and going back to her sleeping back, eyes drooping with sleep. "Get some sleep Von."
You don't waste your breath trying to remind her that you don't need to sleep, and just stare at the door, resuming your watch. "Get some sleep Mia."
March 12th Wednesday, 2010
"You keep your word at least." The man said the moment that you walked into the library, the book that you had borrowed in your hands as you froze in step like you'd just been caught in the middle of a crime.
He was sitting in the same exact spot that he had been in last week, shades on his face, silver jewelry shining in the fluorescent lighting of the library.
Without a word, he takes the book from you and flips through the pages, his eyebrow raising when he reaches some of the more well-worn pages that you had spent a particular interest on.
"So, what the hell is a kid your age doing reading through a college level chemistry textbook, specifically one that's focusing on bio chem?"
"Answering questions isn't part of the deal." You say back, already glancing towards the back of the door, your injuries now a light throb compared to the agonizing pain that you had been dealing with. You still couldn't sprint without wanting to throw yourself off a bridge, but you could at least tolerate it longer now.
Instead of getting irritated, the man laughs. "And you got balls, I like that kid. How'd you like to do some work for me?"
"Do I look like a bald old dude to you? I'm not making drugs." You responded quickly, knowing that you might be pushing things, but what other reason would someone want to get 'work' out of a kid that was reading through a college chemistry book like it was light reading for?
The fact that you could make said drugs was completely unrelated.
"Nah, that isn't what I'm talking about." The man said, leaning back in his seat before opening the book to a specific page, and you felt the blood drain from your face.
At the bottom of a page was a small diagram, one that you had doodled in while you were reading and thinking of the proper formulas for alchemical transmutation.
It was a rudimentary transmutation circle. Nothing special, just a half mangled circle with some triangles on the inside. A failure, one that you had just written in while you were just daydreaming through different variations that you could write down.
Thing is, you couldn't admit to that. You already had enough people coming after you, no need to have anymore after you.
"No idea what that is. If that's everything-" You tried walking away from him, but he simply raised his hand while he took his shades off, revealing the greenest eyes you'd ever seen.
"I'm not here to rat you out kid. Just need some help from someone who can hang below the radar and is used to… weird shit happening."
"And that means?" He asked, not knowing what the hell he could know about that would make him think that you were used to weird shit in the first place.
"That friend of yours. The girl? Is a magnet for trouble, isn't she?" The words were said innocently, a mere throw away line that boiled your blood in a way that you weren't quite used to.
Before you could tell yourself that it was a bad idea, you turn around and lean down, your face just a few inches away from the man, one of your hands already reaching towards the crumbled up newspaper that you had drawn a transmutation circle on. "Choose your words carefully." He might outweigh you by a good hundred pounds of muscle, but all you needed was to slap that on him and focus.
His eyebrows raised, and for the first time since you've met him, there is a hint of emotion, embarrassment, on his face. "Didn't mean anything by it. I just happen to know why weird stuff seems to follow her around."
And that stopped you in your tracks.
How could it not?
Since you had both ran away from home a few years ago, you had just grown used to keeping an eye out for certain monsters or groups that wanted to take her. Whether they wanted to eat her or 'train' her depend on who and what it was.
If you couldn't spot them coming from halfway down the street, you both would have probably long since been caught.
And you didn't have any idea why.
Suddenly you were quite happy that she needed to go to the restroom right now.
"What would this work entail, exactly." You asked quietly, at least wanting to keep your options open.
He nodded, and reached into his jacket. He took out a piece of paper and passed it to him.
You took the folded sheet, and opened it, making sure to keep him within the corner of your eyes.
And felt yourself stop in place.
The formula in front of you was something that should have been impossible. A spit in the face of physics and math. It was the make up of something that you had never seen before. It resembled gold, but was something so much more.
"What exactly do you want me to do?" You asked. "It isn't like I can do anything with just a formula."
"Ah, but you understand it right?" He asked, a glint in his eyes as he leaned forward as you took a step back.
Shit. This had been a test.
"So what?" You asked.
"So, I want to know the process that this was made. There is going to be one step that I don't expect you to find out given how… secret it is, but if you can figure out what went into making these, what were the base elements and theories to make it, I will answer all of your questions that you might have about why you've been running from monsters and weirdos." He said with a smile that made his eyes shine. "Along with proper material compensation."
You remember that formula, a compound, one of gold, and some other components that you just didn't understand. And already your mind was working miles a minute trying to break down what the hell could make something like that.
You could do it. You knew that you could. It was just going to take time.
"I'm not making any promises." You said with a snarl, turning around and walking towards the restrooms by the entrance, where Mia was watching with her hand in her jacket's pockets.
"Very well then. In two weeks, I shall be waiting out in Central Park, near the lake. I hope to see you there."
You rush out of the building, Mia following close behind you.
March 14th Friday 2010
You decided to steal some food and find a new place to lay low in one fell swoop.
The fact you had fucked up trying to steal some food from a gas station and had to hoof it through town was entirely inconsequential. Sure, you maybe tripped over something and caused a loud enough noise for the cashier to come and check, and maybe you heard the cock of a gun while you were running, but hey, it all turned out alright in the end?
It just took Mia throwing some more of those stink bombs you had made to help things out. He should be fine, the damn smell was just horrible.
"Alright, I got the cans and alarms set up at the front." Mia said as she slumped in her sleeping bag, eyes tired, but enjoying the instant Ramen you had taken from the gas station. You were still in Brooklyn, but closer towards the East River in an abandoned restaurant that had seen better days.
The doors were solid, and you could start a fire in what had once been a pizza oven just fine without worrying about setting off any alarms.
Probably wise time to do it too, you had seen certain… guys eyeing the house the last time that you had come back from a venture into the city.
Mia rustled some newspapers out of her bag and passed it over to you. Was it boring and made you feel like an old man? Sure, but it passed the time. Besides, not sleeping means that you technically have been 'alive' for longer than most fourteen-year-olds would be.
"What the hell are we doing?" Mia asked out of the blue, destroying the companionable silence that you both grown used to in each other's company.
"Living." You responded back without looking up from your paper, knowing exactly what she meant. It wasn't the first time that your friend had brought up a subject that was more… philosophical in nature. "It might not be much, we might be barely making it through, but I think that we're doing alright all things considered."
"Are we?" She asked, all but glaring into your eyes when you glance up. "Von, all we're doing is moving from place to place, stealing food when we're damn near starving and barely making ends meet. Add that we keep running away from monsters and assholes that want to eat me, and…" She stops speaking, glaring at the ground, and you already know exactly what she is going to say.
"I'm not leaving you. No way in hell." You say firmly, from over your newspaper, speaking in a way that made you feel older than you really were. Like… it wasn't just you saying these words to her, like you had said something similar before to someone else.
"Von, you're a genius. I bet you that if you show up again you'll be just fine and can get your hands on a scholarship to a cushy college without breaking a sweat. Especially with how fast you're doing this alchemy stuff." She said, gesturing towards the backpack that was full of papers and pens that you had taken from a different library just yesterday. "At this point, I'm just dead weight, and we both know it."
"And yet, you're the one that taught me how to booby trap places to know if someone has been here or not. I wouldn't know how to start a fire properly and keep it going if you hadn't been the one to teach me, same goes for how to boil water right when we can't steal some water bottles from a store." You shot back. "Anytime that I would get sick, or hurt, you're the one that would take care of me, fight off assholes that would try to take whatever money I made whenever we'd go panhandling. What the hell kind of friend would I be if I just left you because life is a little more interesting with you in it? Besides. I have a good feeling on how things are going." You say with an easy smile as you place a piece of paper on the ground, the alchemy sign on it, and press your hand to it, destroying some of the wrappers, bottles, and other pieces of trash into little motes of dust to dispose of outside.
For now, you were just street rats out looking for refuge, but your injuries were all but healed, and you could feel so many possibilities at your fingertips.
Then a thought struck you.
"Want to stop feeling like dead weight? How about I teach you some alchemy then."
"Von, I'm an idiot."
"Bullshit, I know you were an honors student before you ran away from your asshole of a dad." You said.
"Fine, then I find it boring." She said with a huff.
"I'm not hearing that you can't learn it." You said with a smile.
"Oh yeah smartass? You're the one that said you're only doing half of what you can do! How'm I supposed to do something that you don't know how to do yet?" She asked.
"With basic chemistry." You said simply, already beginning to go through all the elements that were bouncing around in your head.
You have fully healed from your wounds! You will now receive seven activity dice instead of four.
Please have your votes in plan format.
[ ]Find Tom 0/15: The old man had been one of the more welcoming of the homeless figures in the community. Happy to help and offer guidance to others, tips and tricks on how to avoid cops during certain hours, and which gas stations had the least amount of security for small stuff like some ramen, or bottles of water. Unlike most other Homeless people, Tom was here by choice, preferring the easy freedom of being on the streets after having lost his wife, and nothing brings him more joy than helping others who might need it. It has been a few weeks since either you or Mia had seen the old man, and it was beginning to worry you.
[ ]Try and Get a Car: Your prospects here aren't the best, you're a 14-year-old without any sort of identification, and with the cops constantly looking for you, let alone your best friend. But, having a car is beyond useful, especially for a quick getaway or to leave this place. DC:100
[ ]Find A New Hiding Spot 0/15: For now, you're hanging out in an abandoned house, a hiding spot that you and others have used before. There's the rub. Others have used this place before, and you don't want to get an unexpected visitor in the middle of the night. DC15. A d100 will be rolled for a random event to trigger every week starting with a DC of 90. Every consecutive week that you spend in the same location, the DC will lower by 20.
[ ]Learn Lockpicking 0/20: Alright, there is no real legal way that you're going to be able to get anything that you really need, and while you think that you might be able to do something about locks if you keep studying this weird stuff, that isn't going to be anytime soon. So, that means that we need a more practical solution, and that solution is learning how to be a little rat like those asshole cops like to call you. Will unlock new avenues and options, while lowering DC for certain activities.
[ ] Work on the formula 0/20: The stranger at the library has offered you something that you've never had before. Answers about why Mia is being chased by monsters all the damn time. Only thing that he asks for in return is figuring out what the hell that weird formula was made of. It's honestly not that hard if you're being honest. Just going to take some work. You have two weeks to get this done. Will count as an Alchemy roll.
[ ] Urban Exploration 0/30: So far you have just been looking around the normal spots that you've learned were good hiding spots over the past few years since you became homeless. But there's only so much you can do moving from spot to spot of places that other people know about. With your injuries healed, you can take it a step further and start looking for someplace that no one has found, or has been forgotten about. Will remove having to look for a new hideout every other week.
[ ]Check in on Rosa: Your former foster mother was… a monster to be sure. But you had lived with her for two years and in that time, she had shown you nothing but love and affection as if you were her own. Why she suddenly turned on Mia you don't know, but you suspect that there is something deeper to it with what the stranger said, along with constantly running from monsters for the past few years. DC10.
[ ]Begin Teaching Mia Alchemy:Comprehension 0/40: While it might not seem like something important, maybe teaching your friend how to at least start to learn alchemy would help you alone. Two people means double the workload after all!
Due to Teaching Perk, every dice used on teaching will receive a +5 bonus.
Light Categories
Light Control 0/40: The ability to control the Light, the spark and growth of life with a path towards cooperation between diverse forms of life. Through trial and error, you will learn to harness the physical aspect of paracausality in the ability to cultivate life and creation.
Will unlock the ability to use the Light in your own body for physical enhancements, minor they might be. Unlocks further abilities down the path of Light.
Darkness Categories
Darkness Control 0/40: The Ability to control the Darkness, the realm of consciousness and dreams of oneself. Where the Light is in the realm of the physical, the Darkness is the other half of life. After all, where would we be without our thoughts, dreams, and the memories of those that came before?
Unlocks the ability to use the Darkness and expand one's own mind, intuition, and supernatural sensitivity. Further options down the path of Darkness will be unlocked.
Light Control 0/40: The ability to control the Light, the spark and growth of life with a path towards cooperation between diverse forms of life. Through trial and error, you will learn to harness the physical aspect of paracausality in the ability to cultivate life and creation.
Will unlock the ability to use the Light in your own body for physical enhancements, minor they might be. Unlocks further abilities down the path of Light.
Darkness Categories
Darkness Control 0/40: The Ability to control the Darkness, the realm of consciousness and dreams of oneself. Where the Light is in the realm of the physical, the Darkness is the other half of life. After all, where would we be without our thoughts, dreams, and the memories of those that came before?
Unlocks the ability to use the Darkness and expand one's own mind, intuition, and supernatural sensitivity. Further options down the path of Darkness will be unlocked.
[ ]Comprehension Mastered: A general understanding of chemistry and the application of said chemistry towards alchemical circles.
[ ]Deconstruction 15/20: The Alchemical Practice of breaking down materials and matter before applying reconstruction. Mastering this aspect gives you greater proficiency at disassembling materials, even able to completely disintegrate items with the proper knowledge and transmutation circles.
[ ]Reconstruction 0/20: The second process of alchemy, reassembling broken down materials into a new shape or form. Can also be used to simply change the shape of something, along with being able to complete more complicated forms of transmutation.
LOCKED BEHIND DECONSTRUCTION/RECONSTRUCTION/COMPREHENSION
[ ]Alkehestry 0/25: An Eastern branch of alchemy known for it's healing properties and ability to link separate transmutation circles.
[ ]Portable Transmutation Circles 0/40: This skill to simplify and miniaturize alchemy circles, allowing you to draw or engrave transmutation circles into portable objects.
[ ]Deconstruction 15/20: The Alchemical Practice of breaking down materials and matter before applying reconstruction. Mastering this aspect gives you greater proficiency at disassembling materials, even able to completely disintegrate items with the proper knowledge and transmutation circles.
[ ]Reconstruction 0/20: The second process of alchemy, reassembling broken down materials into a new shape or form. Can also be used to simply change the shape of something, along with being able to complete more complicated forms of transmutation.
LOCKED BEHIND DECONSTRUCTION/RECONSTRUCTION/COMPREHENSION
[ ]Alkehestry 0/25: An Eastern branch of alchemy known for it's healing properties and ability to link separate transmutation circles.
[ ]Portable Transmutation Circles 0/40: This skill to simplify and miniaturize alchemy circles, allowing you to draw or engrave transmutation circles into portable objects.
Okay, this one is a doozie. There is a lot going on here, and conflicting priorities as well...anything I put up as a plan at this point is likely going to be preliminary as all hell and subject to change without notice.
That being said, Option select rating:
Find Tom: This is an enigma. Dunno who or what Tom is, but it is entirely possible he may or may not be important for later. personally, I would like to solve the mystery here, but there may be other options.
Get a car: No bueno at this time. Other matters are more important, and needing to basically throw everything we have at it and pray that it works is too much of a longshot.
New Hiding Spot: Shelter is always important and necessary. That being said...Shelter is also not 100% stable at the moment. Right now we have a new spot, so it is not necessarily an issue...but it may be worth keeping in mind that we should be on the prowl for a more permanent location.
Lockpicking: Unrated, No Commentary.
Work on the Formula: Okay, this one has my attention. Whatever that Formula is, it is important, and I mean this in a way that is bigger than words. Definitely worth at least one die thrown in its direction, possibly two...but at the same time, what we don't know can't bite us in the ass later...
Urban Exploration: get a better lay of the land, see the sights, sounds, and people, and potentially stumble upon things that could be relevant. Do not underestimate this one, it is more important than it looks. I recommend at least two dice here, maybe three.
Check in on Rosa: this is a bonding activity, and while I cannot directly recommend it on any objectively solid grounds I cannot disrecommend it for the same. Personally I think we should go for it, but that is just me.
Teach Mia Alchemy: and here is the Big Choice. Mia learning alchemy is actually super important, I think, and should be a focus...though not at the expense of other important things. Recommend at least one die here, potentially more depending on need to spread dice around, but it needs to at least get started.
Magic Dice (Remember we get three free ones)
Deconstruction: use 1 die
Reconstruction: use two dice.
Apply activity dice as desired, but stick to Alchemy for now, preferably to rush Decon/Recon so we can learn Alkahestry. save portable transmutation circles for last, as I suspect we will have bonuses if we know everything else...
I will put up a draft plan later, once I have gathered my thoughts and/or heard opinions.
That being said, Option select rating:
Find Tom: This is an enigma. Dunno who or what Tom is, but it is entirely possible he may or may not be important for later. personally, I would like to solve the mystery here, but there may be other options.
Get a car: No bueno at this time. Other matters are more important, and needing to basically throw everything we have at it and pray that it works is too much of a longshot.
New Hiding Spot: Shelter is always important and necessary. That being said...Shelter is also not 100% stable at the moment. Right now we have a new spot, so it is not necessarily an issue...but it may be worth keeping in mind that we should be on the prowl for a more permanent location.
Lockpicking: Unrated, No Commentary.
Work on the Formula: Okay, this one has my attention. Whatever that Formula is, it is important, and I mean this in a way that is bigger than words. Definitely worth at least one die thrown in its direction, possibly two...but at the same time, what we don't know can't bite us in the ass later...
Urban Exploration: get a better lay of the land, see the sights, sounds, and people, and potentially stumble upon things that could be relevant. Do not underestimate this one, it is more important than it looks. I recommend at least two dice here, maybe three.
Check in on Rosa: this is a bonding activity, and while I cannot directly recommend it on any objectively solid grounds I cannot disrecommend it for the same. Personally I think we should go for it, but that is just me.
Teach Mia Alchemy: and here is the Big Choice. Mia learning alchemy is actually super important, I think, and should be a focus...though not at the expense of other important things. Recommend at least one die here, potentially more depending on need to spread dice around, but it needs to at least get started.
Magic Dice (Remember we get three free ones)
Deconstruction: use 1 die
Reconstruction: use two dice.
Apply activity dice as desired, but stick to Alchemy for now, preferably to rush Decon/Recon so we can learn Alkahestry. save portable transmutation circles for last, as I suspect we will have bonuses if we know everything else...
I will put up a draft plan later, once I have gathered my thoughts and/or heard opinions.
- Location
- USA
Did the points we have in this from previous weeks go away?
Recurring option due to circumstances. See Urban Exploration for why.
- Location
- California
I wonder if the Mists interfered to protect her mind?
I want to say Ares is testing him with Imperial Gold, but this could also be stolen from an Infinite Order Lab as provided by the scenario.
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- Location
- USA
Activity Dice (avg 10.5)
Find Tom x2 0/15
Work on Formula x2 (+2 to roll) 0/20
Urban Exploration x1 0/30 (chip away at this)
Darkness Control x2 0/40 (boost to mind so might help with magic learning and some actions)
Magic Dice (avg 2.5)
Deconstruction x1 (+2 to roll) 15/20 (50/50 to finish this with one die)
Reconstruction x2 (+2 to roll) 0/20 (start in on this with our other magic dice)
Early thoughts- find tom seems important to our character. Work on Formula, we have 2 weeks and need at least 2 dice, by doing 2 dice this week we have a chance to finish and are better able to assign dice next week if it does not. Urban exploration- we need a secure base and this seems to be it so chip away at it as we do other things
Darkness and Light seem quite useful for helping us out as well as improving our "stats" which should in turn make other actions easier. Going with Dark because of mental boosts and likely boosts to some aspects of magic but this could be light as well for physical boosts.
For magic dice, keep on working away at alchemy, try to finish deconstruction and start chipping away at reconstruction
Find Tom x2 0/15
Work on Formula x2 (+2 to roll) 0/20
Urban Exploration x1 0/30 (chip away at this)
Darkness Control x2 0/40 (boost to mind so might help with magic learning and some actions)
Magic Dice (avg 2.5)
Deconstruction x1 (+2 to roll) 15/20 (50/50 to finish this with one die)
Reconstruction x2 (+2 to roll) 0/20 (start in on this with our other magic dice)
Early thoughts- find tom seems important to our character. Work on Formula, we have 2 weeks and need at least 2 dice, by doing 2 dice this week we have a chance to finish and are better able to assign dice next week if it does not. Urban exploration- we need a secure base and this seems to be it so chip away at it as we do other things
Darkness and Light seem quite useful for helping us out as well as improving our "stats" which should in turn make other actions easier. Going with Dark because of mental boosts and likely boosts to some aspects of magic but this could be light as well for physical boosts.
For magic dice, keep on working away at alchemy, try to finish deconstruction and start chipping away at reconstruction
If this is Ares hopefully that is a contact that is not trying to hurt us
okay, Preliminary planning time. Please note that this plan is still WIP and subject to change.
[ ](tentative) Plan: Understanding, Family, and Major Tom
Find Tom (1d20)
Work on Formula (2d20)
Urban Exploration (2d20)
Rosa (1d20)
Teach Alchemy (1d20)
Deconstruction (1d4+2)
Reconstruction (2d4+2)
REASONING: Tom feels important in more than one way, and is a central figure regardless, having allies is not a bad thing. The formula is a no-brainer for those interested in that route (as I am) but if people want to duck it then the dice can go elsewhere, like dumping into magic.
Urban Exploration is a major kick that we need to get going on as a serious thing and not just a kicker assignment, which is why I put two dice on it and not just one. Besides, you never know what we might find out there...
Rosa getting a die may be controversial, but I feel it is warranted, if for no other reason that this is the woman that raised us for a good portion of our lives, and she deserves at least that much, even if it only ends in tears.
And, as I said before, teaching Mia Alchemy is a big deal, and worth at least one die in my eyes. That being said, if people want to try and finish off alchemy before we dive into teaching others, even though we have mastered the basics of the basics, I have no direct objections.
[ ](tentative) Plan: Understanding, Family, and Major Tom
Find Tom (1d20)
Work on Formula (2d20)
Urban Exploration (2d20)
Rosa (1d20)
Teach Alchemy (1d20)
Deconstruction (1d4+2)
Reconstruction (2d4+2)
REASONING: Tom feels important in more than one way, and is a central figure regardless, having allies is not a bad thing. The formula is a no-brainer for those interested in that route (as I am) but if people want to duck it then the dice can go elsewhere, like dumping into magic.
Urban Exploration is a major kick that we need to get going on as a serious thing and not just a kicker assignment, which is why I put two dice on it and not just one. Besides, you never know what we might find out there...
Rosa getting a die may be controversial, but I feel it is warranted, if for no other reason that this is the woman that raised us for a good portion of our lives, and she deserves at least that much, even if it only ends in tears.
And, as I said before, teaching Mia Alchemy is a big deal, and worth at least one die in my eyes. That being said, if people want to try and finish off alchemy before we dive into teaching others, even though we have mastered the basics of the basics, I have no direct objections.
My thoughts starting with magics cause it's easier are that throwing 1 at deconstruction is probably wise along with some in reconstruction and teaching though I would leave the light and dark stuff till later.
Car and lockpicking can be ignored for now, exploration and hideout are low dice investments this go and I'd go for Tom over Rosa. The formula is the main one I'm unsure of because it's probably Imperial Gold and that is a can of worms I'm not sure if we want to open. On the surface Imperial Gold is the Roman version of Celestial Bronze as the anti monster material but it's very dangerous. Firstly because aside from being gold it's highly valuable because the legion lost most of what they had in the failed Alaska expedition having it much less being able to make it is a big deal that will bring attention. Secondly that guy is shady and there frankly aren't any good canon factions he'd fit into so I don't think giving it to him or being recognised as an asset is a good idea because Imperial Gold is also flat out dangerous in that it's weapons tend to violently explode when they break.
Finally it's the Roman exclusive material which likely means being drawn into their part of mythology and that's bad because the legion kind of sucks and a lot of the helpful or at least neutral Greek inhabitants like Centaurs and Satyrs are either evil or useless. we also aren't exactly combat ready right now and if Mia is a demigod then getting those details would make her scent stronger. Though I guess we could always work it out and not tell him.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[x] plan: Mystery, Connections, and Teaching
-[x] Find Tom 0/15: x2
-[x] Work on the formula 0/20: x2
-[x] Urban Exploration 0/30: x1
-[x] Check in on Rosa: x1
-[x] Begin teaching Mia: x1
—[x] deconstruction: x1
—[x] reconstruction: x2
Okay as much as I would like to pick up the light and the dark to get started on some combat power? I think I like this plan better. Checking on Rosa let's us get a different opinion than that of shady definitely a cultist guy, and might let us reconnect with someone who's as close to family as we have other than Mia, even if she does/did want to eat our best friend for some reason. Which, honestly if that reason is "the divine are all evil and need to die?" I can't really even argue that point very hard, but eating children is still a no no so… should figure this out.
-[x] Find Tom 0/15: x2
-[x] Work on the formula 0/20: x2
-[x] Urban Exploration 0/30: x1
-[x] Check in on Rosa: x1
-[x] Begin teaching Mia: x1
—[x] deconstruction: x1
—[x] reconstruction: x2
Okay as much as I would like to pick up the light and the dark to get started on some combat power? I think I like this plan better. Checking on Rosa let's us get a different opinion than that of shady definitely a cultist guy, and might let us reconnect with someone who's as close to family as we have other than Mia, even if she does/did want to eat our best friend for some reason. Which, honestly if that reason is "the divine are all evil and need to die?" I can't really even argue that point very hard, but eating children is still a no no so… should figure this out.
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- Location
- Maine
- Pronouns
- They/Them/Theirs
Personally? I say avoid the hell out of Paracausality until we have some other offensive power. Like having Alkahestry or portable circles down so we can alchemize at a distance or hit people the way Scar did. The first time Paracausality is used, we become enemy number one to every pantheon out there except the Egyptian. We go from "A Kid" To "Rogue creator deity who can forcibly create new versions of any god that comes close, the way Jupiter was made from Zeus". The Darkness can create sapient life as well as do mass mind control. Are there other less powerful uses? Yes. But if anyone gets a single whiff of that, Von's going to be lucky he doesn't needs to sleep because everyone will be coming for him.