Palace of Greed, El Dorado (Library of Ruina)

[AUnderSave]

given how close that description is to the basic index proselyte, and the fact that you can get the blindfold as a battle symbol, it'd probably be easiest to make them just in-engine.

Click to shrink...

Also Mods can be helpful... You know what I'll make Nugget's of Nico... Lily, and Kai too cause why not.

Spoiler: Nugget's ... Moddin Time

There aren't any Mordred Hair's in the workshop so Mysterious Heroine X's will have to do. I also Used what Pages I thought that matches what they have now... Which is ironically Grade 8-7 Fixers.

 

[thePUNisher]

Also Mods can be helpful... You know what I'll make Nugget's of Nico... Lily, and Kai too cause why not.

Spoiler: Nugget's ... Moddin Time

There aren't any Mordred Hair's in the workshop so Mysterious Heroine X's will have to do. I also Used what Pages I thought that matches what they have now... Which is ironically Grade 8-7 Fixers.

Click to shrink...

About what I'd imagine they'd look like in nugget form, save for Lily's terrible lack of drip, guess the suit must be getting washed

 

[Ros and Los]

This was hard to write and to be frank that's mostly because I really don't have a handle on their characters. I'd make a few more comments on this and stuff but I literally stayed up till 4 am to finish this. So just enjoy while I get some z's. This section might get edited later or smth I dunno. Feel free to ask questions and shit if you wwany.

Im taggingf ouy for the night.

Hope you enjoyed this though guys.

Click to shrink...

I could not react to this last night because I had to go to sleep myself. I was just thinking about how we have game planners, we have theorists, we have symbolism breakdowns, we have artists, and we have far too many ideas to write down and none of us can stick anything on paper. Then you posted that soon after as if to challenge that.

This puts a smile on my face like you wouldn't believe, it was amazing. We really do not have that much information on most of the office but I think you did well with what we have. Mori and Burke do not have much of a connection to Lily and, while saddened, they are more concerned with why Mao is reacting to this death in particular. Meanwhile, Mao is can not keep her emotions away this time because Lily has bypassed her defenses and died while in Mao's presence. It is easier to brush away the pain from second-hand accounts rather than first-hand ones. Boss is just being Boss and this is another one lost, another one that is never returning, but then gets whiplash with the City being merciful for once.

The entirety of Kai was great, from the depressing rationalization to the hilarious Red Ribbon activation. I absolutely adore the way you used the ribbons. I generally see the Red Ribbons as a potential reference to the red string of fate, also known as the red string of marriage. This is not just more shipping ammunition since I have seen many stories using it to represent an inseparable bond instead, one that does not care about petty concepts such as time, space, and death. So it is incredibly fitting that Kai's ribbon is tugging her back to Lily.

I am incredibly afraid of Kai going away but I have a feeling that everything might turn out well. We have people who put in the effort and time to do symbolism breakdowns about Lily and Kai, I think we have the stubbornness to fight tooth and nail to keep this partnership.

 

[AUnderSave]

I am incredibly afraid of Kai going away but I have a feeling that everything might turn out well. We have people who put in the effort and time to do symbolism breakdowns about Lily and Kai, I think we have the stubbornness to fight tooth and nail to keep this partnership.

Click to shrink...

Not just us. Lily herself would probably do so being the Tsundere that she is. And we know what she's like... and the resurrection ability will probably just increase her stubbornness.

 

[SoothingCoffee]

Spoiler: Vote

[X] Plan: FIRST TRUMPET ver. All Seven Fever
-[X] Break Their Formation
--[X] Focus on the Grade Nine Fixers first, kill two of them
---[X] Then, pivot to Victor, unleash the Guntlet, pop the pill, break him and the rest
----[X] Clean up the remaining Fixers and get ready to support Mao.

Tremors course through your body. Jaws clenched tight, and your fists tighter – Knockbar in your right hand, and Guntlet in the other. You could hear it, the blood rushing in your veins, the drumming beat of your own heart. Louder, and louder. Somewhere, in the background, Mao and Sun are battling – yet somehow, someway, it's quiet. It's dark. You couldn't hear them, you couldn't see them. You keep your eyes forward, and you realize belatedly that you could barely see them. Seven on one – maybe if they're chum Rats, you don't gotta be so cautious, but they ain't just Rats, and they ain't just any ordinary Fixers, however low-grade they are.

[Instinct Check: Medium. Pass.]

Not anymore, they're not. They have changed. Have been changed. Calm, and calculating, and fearless.

[Insight Check: Hard. Pass.]

Rational. Conscious. In control.

[Empathy Check: Easy. Pass.]

Happy. Warm. Trusting. In Love.

[Vision Check: Easy. Pass.]

A future where you're not alone. If only you could be like them.

You breathe out with a shudder, pressing your back against the concrete pillar. No, fuck off. Whatever this shit is, it's getting to you – and you gotta fight smart. You gotta plan. Resting Knockbar over your shoulder, you lower your body, one foot in the front, the other pressed against the wall, and then –

Bzzt! Golden amber light fills the room, blinding, searing off your eyes, but you keep them open, and they don't.

Now!

You kick off the wall, and lunge forward – first thing's first, you gotta thin out the fucking herd.

They meet you head on – a fixer stands your way. You stop two steps away from her, and swing your knockbar – she raises her baton up, and her knees buckle under the weight of your strike. You grin. She smiles, hearts for eyes, and the grin leaves you with a shiver. Her eyes glance to a direction – you follow it to the right. Two of them, rushing to you, swords in their hands. With a snarl, you let go of your knockbar; it hangs in the air, for a moment, and the woman's eyes widen at the lost of weight. She stands up, about to lunge, but then you snatch your knockbar with your left hand, and pull, catching her baton with the hook of your knockbar – she grunts, stumbling forward. Your leg lashes out, sending her flying back – unharmed, you curse, as your foot slams against steel. Whatever. You turn to your newer assailants and sweep your knockbar – one jumps over, one ducks low.

You curse, and stomp your foot forward – the one below you skids to a stop, barely, your boot missing his leg by an centimeter; you brace your knockbar with two hands. The jumping fixer smiles, and rears his back, and chucks it like a fucking spear. You growl, and swing – steel clash against steel, a loud shrieking clang echoing as you hit the tip of the blade; it bounces, flying straight back towards the fixer, and he simply catches it off air by the hilt; he twists with sword's momentum, falling away down the floor. But it's not ever yet – below you, a sword shoots out; you snap your head back – a thin stinging line drawing from your chin as it barely grazes your skin.

Growling, you glare the fixer below you, aiming your weapon down at her, and – and you stop. Something catches in your throat. Hair white as ice, strands of it draped across the barely visible floor – and her eyes, cold frozen blue, blank, nearly emotionless if not for the slight curve to them; the small smile connected to it.

[Empathy Check: Easy. Pass.]

Warm. Below that exterior, there's warmth. She cares for you. Lovingly so. She wants the best for you.

"K-Kai?" your breath hitches, voice echoing, eyes wide. Cold air fills your lungs, from your mouth, into your throat, your lungs and your ribs. Ice in your stomach; a large gaping hole, freezing you from within. You lower your weapon. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here for you, Lily," Kai answers you, soft, her voice devoid of emotion – but you know better than that. "

[Perk Activated: Kai's Partner.]

"You shouldn't be here."

[Item Activated: Red Ribbon]

You feel the temperature drop.

Because she's not!

You inhale sharply, and the cold air in your lungs stab into your heart, choking you. It snaps you awake. You should be. But she's still there, and – and she should be in the other side of the district, you fucking idiot! Snarling at yourself, squeezing your throat, you slam your knockbar down. But she, Kai, no not Kai, but she looks like Kai, sounds like Kai, and that's not possible – Kai rolls to the side, shattered web crack forming where she used to be. You pull your leg behind, and –

And you kick the air – you hear a grunt, feel steel clash against your boot as a fixer lunges in, his weapon raised just in time. He recovers to the ground a few steps away, and you turn to Kai – she's not there. Snarling, you swing your knockbar around in an arc, and a pair of fixers halt their attacks, hurriedly blocking it; it breaks their guard, pushing them away from you, and walk to them, and – from the side, Victor shoots out from the dark, his steel-tipped tonfa glinting almost, as it slams into your gut; or it would have. Instead, it strikes the back of your guntlet. You swing your knockbar in response, and he sidesteps it, and steps into your space; his tonfa glints, and you leg buries deep into his stomach – but you feel steel underneath your soles.

He grunts, pushes back.

[Crowd Deals no Physical Damage.]
[Crowd Deals 1 Sanity Damage. Lily's Sanity: 22/25.]
[Lily Fails to Hit.]
[Lily Fully Blocks Victor.]

You look around yourself, and curse. Fuck. You can't see them, but you know they've surrounded you. You could only see Victor, and he looks at you with a smile. But he's not attacking you. They're not attacking you.

Victor chuckles.

[Empathy Check: Easy. Pass.]

Warm. Caring. Fatherly. Motherly.

[Repression Check: Very Hard. Fail.]

Lying there, under that old familiar shitty ass looking ceiling. It feels as though you were trapped there, but it's the only thing you know – this and the hallways beyond this room. It's home. You hear a click, and you snap awake with a gasping cry, jolting up to your feet. Grinning, you face the door as it opens. You quickly rush to them. "Mom, Dad! Welcome back!"


"Oof!" Dad grunts as you throw yourself to him. Next to him, Mom chuckles. "Yeah. We're home, kiddo – don't gotta be so loud. Linny's gonna kill me if he gets anymore complains."


You raise your head up, and pout. "You were taking too long – hrmpf!" you glare as Dad tousles your head. "Stop that!"
​

"You remind me of myself," Victor muses, and you jolt, clenching your jaws tight. Fuck was that? You turn your glare at him. Flinty brown eyes turn to you wistfully – you see the hearts in his eyes, and none of the resignation you saw back then. "So full of spirit, and high on energy, believing that he'd one day make it. But reality isn't so kind," he shakes his head with a sigh. "I don't want you to walk the same path I did."

"How about you fuck off," you spit out, eyeing him – eyeing your surroundings. "It's my fucking life – not yours."

"That's what I thought too," Victor chuckles, shrugging. "And would you like to know where that leads me? I bled, and fought, and struggled."

"And you're a fucking pussy. So don't –" you growl. You need to do something. Anything. Ah. Fuck it. Growling, you snap to the left – Victor lunges to cut you off, but you quickly snap to your right, dashing low. For a moment, you cross eyes. "—compare us two!"

A fixer – Kai, your heart stops for a moment – meets you head on, her sword ready, and you snarl, charging. Her eyes widen, and she swings – but you're faster, and you slam right into her, carrying her with you. Her sword digs deep into you, piercing into flesh, warmth blooming underneath your outfit, but this shit's nothing, and Karrion's work kept the worst out of it.

[Empathy Check: Easy. Pass.]

Even then, you think blearily, staring deep into Kai's eyes, her smile, her warmth, this ain't so bad.

You and her – mostly her – slam straight into a concrete pillar. You hear the crack – a choke leaving her as her back arcs, the air leaving her lungs. Her sword digs deeper still, her eyes never leaving you.

"You're not real," you growl to her face. "So stop wearing her fucking face, you asshole."

"Does it matter, Lily?" Kai asks, her voice soft. "If I'm real or not? I'm doing this for you."

"And nobody fucking asked," you answer her. "So fucking drop it, or I'll get real fucking pissed."

Kai tilts her head, then chuckles. Kai doesn't chuckle. It should be wrong. "But I can't. You only see what you want. This is our present."

So that's how it is. You press guntlet onto her mouth, and she smiles, and smiles. Your throat catches itself. "… Then you're gonna die first."

"If it makes you –"

[Empathy Check: Easy. Pass.]

Happy. Would it? Would killing Kai make you happy?

A cut in the wind – silent footsteps. You throw your head against Kai's and burrow your fingers into her shoulders – with a grunt, you turn, and heave her away. She rockets into a blur – no shouts, no screams, no nothing; you hear crashes. Metal against metal, body against body, but that's not what – your eyes widen as you glance down. Victor meets your eyes with a warm smile. You swing your knockbar down – his tonfa shoots up, and sparks shoot as he deflects your strike with the side of his tonfa, guiding it away. You aim your guntlet down, and – another tonfa shoots out from underneath his other sleeve, knocking your aim away. Snarling, you twist the grip on your knockbar, like a spear, and strike it down – only for him to sidestep it, and he swings. You step back. He's forcing you back. He's hitting you, getting through your guard.

[Endurance Check: Easy. Pass.]

But he's not hurting you. Karrion's Outfit. Your body. It's a fortress, sister.

"We are different," Victor admits, casually, as you his tonfa pushes your guard away, the other capitalizing it immediately with a thrust to your neck. You twitch, and it shaves against your chin. "You did in weeks what I had to in months – and you'll do in months what I couldn't in years."

"Jealous much? Eat shit, fucker," you spit out – actually spit out. He moves his head to the side, and you switch your grip on knockbar into an icepick hold, and snap it to his temple. His tonfa knocks it away, barely missing him, and you step back as he steps forward. You need space. You can't use your knockbar this way – you can't even attack properly while raising your guard up. "How 'bout stop being shit?"

"But the City doesn't care," he carries on, unbothered. You clench your jaws tight. "There's nothing at the end of the road."

You twitch. Flinch. You nearly bite your tongue. Fire fills your lungs. "So I should give up?!" you snarl. "Ya think I got this far just to fuck off?!" and his eyes widen as you step in – his tonfa shoots out, and it strikes against your shoulders; there's not much power behind it, and you manage to check him. He grunts, stepping back, and you step back – then step in with a kick. He leaps back. You click your tongue. "You don't think I didn't fight, and bleed?!"

Scurrying. Scrounging. Crawling in the dirt, and mud – groveling down to these fucks who looked down on you – to lower your head whenever Landlord Lin chides you, to obey and listen to every word he says, to starve and bleed and die. Begging, pleading, cryin' like some fucking pussy; getting beat, getting killed, getting fucked over by Rats and Syndicates and Fixers. Bzzt – golden amber light fills the room. It comes from somewhere, elsewhere, a place beyond you, and it sears your eyes off like thunder. You keep them open even as Victor squints his eyes.
It ain't all just for survivin' – you wanna fucking thrive.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?!"

"Someone who reached the end of your road," Victor smiles, electric-blue eyes curving gently. Ignoring you. Looking down on you. "Who've found a better one."

"Your path," you conclude, gritting your teeth.

Victor nods. "Our path."

[Crowd Deals 2 Physical Damage. Lily's Health: 28/30. Crowd Deals 1 Sanity Damage. Lily's Sanity: 21/25.]
[Lily Deals 4 Damage to Crowd. Crowd's Health: 116/120.]
[Victor Deals no Physical Damage. Victor Deals 1 Sanity Damage. Lily's Sanity: 20/25.]

Snarling, you kick into a dash – Victor lunges to meet you halfway. His tonfa swings, a half-moon arc for your head, but you duck, and stop – he slams his elbow down, tonfa singing through the air, and you step to the side, and sprint into the darkness. He's you're your target. Not yet. You're a woman of your word. Movement. Steps. Closer. Closer. Now.

You stop, and raise your guntlet – just in time as the air shifts; a baton, a nightstick, cuts the air. Your hand rattles from the shockwave, sending it numb as it strikes against the palm of your guntlet – there's a moment of realization, as your attacker tries to pull back, but your grip around the nightstick tightens. You pull, and a cry rings out as your head slams against his – blue eyes blink blearily, the smile intact, the hearts in his eyes throbbing. You shiver in disgust. You shoot your leg out – only for you to stumble forward as you hit empty air.

Suddenly, the weight around your arm doubles. His legs leave the floor, and they hook around your arm, scissoring it; muscles bulge, squeezing your arm tight; the hands around his baton leaves to clench around yours. It feels numb, and cold. Deadening. "Get off!" growling, you slam him down to the floor – a crack, and a squelch; a pool of blood blooming like a red flower. His eyes stare at you still, dazed, but the limbs remain locked. You keep him there, pressing him, and twist your grip on your knockbar, and swing it – a sword flies, cuts through the air, and it clashes against your knockbar, disrupting its course. You snarl as the sword deflects back, and Kai catches it.

She lunges – you swing – she jumps over it, and you take a step forward, and heave your other arm out. You hear her grunt, sending her back, but not too far. Good. You follow through the arc of your swing, just in time for another fixer to come from the shadow; his sword thrusts forward, and the weight on your arm falls away, fucking up your balance. Clenching your jaws, you pull your fist back – the tip of your sword coming to your neck, and you throw a punch, slapping it away. You step forward, and rear your other leg back, and kick – it slams against the fixer on the ground, sending him flying, skidding on the floor, towards the fixer before you. They grunt, stumbling together.

Kai steps next to you, her sword thrusting forward – another fixer appears to your other right, and another to your front. Your eyes widen, and you raise your guard; one clashes against your knockbar, and the other you catch with your guntlet. The one on the front lets out a cry, and you lash out with your leg, catching him on the guts – except you only strike empty air, but he's gone, and – you curse as Victor replaces him, his tonfas slamming down against your overstretched leg, sending it back down to the floor. You hear – feel the crack from the impact; a web forming underneath your leg –

[Crowd of Fixers deal no Damage.]
[Lily Deals 5 Damage to Crowd. Crowd's Health: 111/120. Knockback is Applied!]
[Victor Deals 1 Physical Damage. Victor Deals 1 Sanity Damage. Lily's Health: 27/30. Lily's Sanity: 19/25. For Richer, For Poorer Sanity Status Reached. -1 to All Mental Skill Rolls.]

"Lily, Lily," Kai calls out, and you blink. Where are you? You should be – "Lily," Kai calls you out again. You stare at the spoon right in front of you, cross-eyed. On it, what you suppose is spoonful of porridge. It's red from chili. "Say ah."


Right. You're visiting Kai's place for lunch. You roll your eyes. "Aah."


And just like that, the spoon lodges itself into your mouth – alarm begins to blare, your instinct screaming a little too late as pain blooms; acceptable warmth turns into uncomfortable heat turns into unbearable hot sludge of lava. Tears form in the corner of your eyes – Kai looks on, practically leaning forward, her blank eyes filled with expectation. You swallow it. Like fuck are you wasting food.


"It's… it's spicy as shit," you grumble. "What did you put into it?"


Kai perks up – it's barely noticeable, but she is. "Chili," she says, nodding. "And curry powder."


You open your mouth, and then close it with a begrudging grumble. "Ain't the worst shit I've eaten, I'll give you that, Kai," you mutter. "Need some salt though. Also," you mutter, realizing something as you glance down your watch. "Lunchtime's 'bout to finish – should hurry a little."


"… We can take time, I think," Kai murmurs, and then you blink, glancing at her. She stares into her own bowl of porridge, before fidgeting, cold blue eyes staring at you. Then she leans into your side. You twitch a little as she hums, the vibrations rumbling through you. "Let's take our time. Stay here for a bit."


You open your mouth, then close it. You can't take your eyes off her. "I – yeah. Sure. Could take a little nap."


A nap sounds good. Just forget what's happening for a little –

​

[Ego Check: Hard. Fail.]

"No!" you snap, inhaling sharply. Kai steps back. Sun frowns, her nightstick lowering. To the side, you catch Mori with a crooked smile, and Mao smirking, tilting her head. Burke frowns, and Victor smiles. You open your mouth, but no words could leave it. They shouldn't be here. It doesn't make sense. Why are they here? "None of you –" you step back, and grunt as your back hits a concrete pillar wall. "None of you are real."

"L-Lily," Sun calls out, gently, softly. Your eyes lock with hers. Her baton falls to the floor. She opens her arms out to you, stepping forward, and you feel her envelop you. "It's okay. We're here for you – for richer, for poorer. There's no need to fight it."

"Fight?" you ask – ask to whom? Yourself. No. Stop. Think. Recall. Remember. "You're not real," you repeat, voice distant. Your eyes jump to them, one by one. "None of you are."

"You're tired, ain'cha, tiger?" Mao calls out, and your eyes latch to her. She saunters up to you. "Ain't no shame in it, you know – you said it yourself to me, right?" she murmurs, softly. "Can't work too hard, or you'll kill yourself. Take it easy."

Your face twitches. "Mao wouldn't say fucking say that."

Sun looks up at you, purple eyes glimmering, hearts throbbing in them. You can't look away. "It's fine, isn't it? Just stay. Stay with me," she buries her face into you. "Please. I can't live alone anymore."

[Repression Check: Very Hard. Pass.]

Maybe, in another lifetime, the answer you give would be different.

Your hand reaches up to Sun's chin. Sun smiles, lips shivering. "I…" you start, then stop, gulping.

[Vision Check: Very Easy. Pass.]

What's wrong? You can see it, can't you? The future you'll have. Of all the futures you can have, this one's not the worst out there – it's even close to the best. A family. Friends. Lovers. People who'd die for you, who you'd die for.

[Ego Check: Hard. Pass.]

They're not real.

[Vision: Very Easy. Pass.]

Does it matter?

[Item Activated: Red Ribbon]

Yes.

[Melee Check: Hard. Pass.]

Just kill them all.

And it's like flipping a switch on your brain.

Sun grabs your hand. You pause, looking at her with a frown. You stand on the precipice of her apartment – of inside and outside. Out in the City, and hidden from the City. "Please, Lily," Sun whispers, and you can't look away from eyes. They beckon. Promising safety, and comfort, and food. "Just stay here for a bit longer. Please?"


You open your mouth and then close it. It would be wonderful, wouldn't it? What's the point in fighting, in struggling, when you know there's nothing out there for you, when you know, deep in your heart, that even if you do succeed, even if you somehow manage to climb further beyond, that what you'll get will never be enough.


Why risk it?


You smile, and step closer to her. Sun's eyes widen, and you see the glimmer in there. Your hand closes around her –

​

Sun gasps. You blink, staring down at your own hand – squeezing tightly around Sun's neck. Such pretty little thing, you numbly think.

[Melee Check: Easy. Pass.]

If they're real, kill them all. If none of them are real, kill them all.

[Endurance Check: Medium. Pass.]

It's the only way out of this hell.

"Right," you mutter, eyes locked with Sun's eyes. She doesn't struggle, you realize. She keeps smiling. She won't struggle. You smile back. Your fingers dig into her neck, breaking skin, breaking flesh. Blood spurts: a shower of red across your face as your guntlet pierces a vein – you can see it. You can understand it, looking them in their eyes, and back to Sun, accepting you, accepting this. You glance down and see a knife sticking out, barely piercing your coat, barely piercing your actual flesh, but pierce it did. "This is also for my own good, isn't it?"

Sun smiles, lips trembling, nodding.

[Lily Full Blocks Crowd's Offense!]
[Lily Deals 7 Damage to Crowd of Fixers. Crowd Health: 104/120. Knockback Applied!]
[Lily Blocks Victor's Offense.]

You drop her. She gasps, crumpling unceremoniously to the floor. You'll finish her later. You have someone you need to deal with first – your eyes latch onto Kai. She's not real. Not even close. But you're a woman of your own words, and she'll have to be the first. Mao jumps right in front of you – her blade bites deep into your side, but you ignore it. How could Mao forget the extent of Karrion's craftmanship? Or maybe she knows, and that's why she's not aiming for your head – or maybe it's because she's not real – her blade cuts through your face –

From her lap, you watch Mao lean down to you, closer, and closer, and closer, until you could see her golden amber eyes and your reflection in it. Eyes wide, cheeks flushed. Your hands, they touch her chin, and then trail down to her neck. You squeeze. She doesn't react.


Just kill them.


It's the only way out of this hell.

​

It splits your lips and cheek apart, and you could poke your tongue through it. Mao smiles, and you smile back. You swing your knockbar, but it's predictable – it's meant to be, you heavily telegraphed it. Mori jumps in, and Burke, and more and they cut into you, rain blows down upon you, wearing you, tearing you apart. You'll kill them too. All of them. That's what they're asking, right? That's why they're doing this. Why they're looking down onto you. But they're not your target. Not yet.

[Crowd Deals 2 Physical Damage. Lily's Health: 25/30. Crowd Deals 2 Sanity Damage to Lily Lily's Sanity: 17/25.]
Kai stands her ground. She doesn't move. Doesn't act, guard open – Victor blocks your path, and you ignore the distraction; his tonfas rain down on you, each impact creating its own shockwave against your own armor, and you wonder if he always has blue eyes, if he always got blond hair. Warm. Caring. Selfless. A tonfa aims straight to your face, and you raise your guard up; it slams against your arm, sending vibrations up to your head, into your brain. But it doesn't hurt. You're invincible. Mori. Burke. Sun. They all descend onto you, but your eyes are locked to one thing and one thing only.

"You shouldn't be here," you start, casual, frowning.

Kai shrugs. "But here I am."

You nod. "I know," you raise your knockbar, and lightning quick, brings it down. Kai doesn't dodge. She should have. It digs into her shoulder, and on reaction, she thrusts her blade forward – it stabs into your chest, but it only barely pierces it. You take a step closer, and pain and warmth and heat bursts through; a red bloom forming underneath your armor. You take another step forward and twist your knockbar. Blood sprays across your face, revealing muscles and bones and flesh of Kai. You yank it, and the shoulder grows slack, lowering, almost falling, hanging on by sinews. "But you're not real," you say, and Kai tilts her head, eyes blank, emotionless. Your guntlet reaches to her neck, to her face – snow white skin, stained, for the first time, in red. Your thumb hovers over her eye. Her blade digs deeper, and deeper, through your flesh, but it's nothing. Victor's tonfas hammer against you. Mao's blade, and Sun's baton. They're nothing you can't deal with. "She only has one eye."

Kai blinks, then chuckles. You've never seen Kai chuckle before. "I see. Then if it makes you happy," she lets go of her blade, and places her hands around yours, guiding it. "Do it."

[Ego Check: Medium. Fail.]

It would make you happy. You'll have to savor it.

[Melee Check: Easy. Pass.]

And damn if it wouldn't be satisfying.

You plunge. A squelch. Even with your guntlet covering your fingers, you could feel it, her inside, squshing and squelching. Kai screams, low, and distant. You dig deeper. Blood drenching you. Flesh torn, bone shattered, and brain – there it is.

[Lily Deals 8 Damage to Crowd. Health: 96/120. 1 Fixer Dead. Life Sap Activates: +5 Temp Health to Lily. Health: 30/30.]
['Till Death Do Us Apart Activates: Weeping Heartstrings Suffers 11 Damage. Weeping Heartstring's Health: 64/142.]
Kai drops to the floor on her feet. She stands there for a moment, her eye never leaving you, her smile never leaving you, and then falls to her knees. She wobbles, then falls again now on her back, eye on the ceiling. You stare at it. At her. Her eyes. Her face. Her.

[Melee Check: Easy. Pass.]

Yes.

[Vision Check: Easy. Pass.]

No.

[Ego Check: Medium. Fail.]

What have you done?

[Perk Activated: Partner]

You swore. You promised. It was an Oath. One would die for the other. That's how it went. And you just fucked it. You fucked it like a dog.

You stare at it – at her longer. Kai stares back at you with her one eye, blank and empty and dead. Cold, frozen, and empty air fills your lungs. They stab, and pierce and cut your insides. Horror, and terror mixing, and for a dull moment, you feel awake. You feel clear. She's dead. You killed her. You don't know what you expected. For something to happen. For something to change. Like when you're woken up from a nightmare.

"No," you croak out, stepping back. "This isn't –"

[Husband and Wife Activated. Lily Receives -1 Sanity Backlash from Damaging Weeping Heartstrings. Lily's Sanity: 16/25.]

But it is.

​

This isn't a nightmare.

It's reality.

​

And you killed Kai.

Why? Why did you kill Kai? Why did you think she was fake?

She's real.

​

You turn your gaze towards the others. "You're all real," you say, and you want to throw up. They all smile at you. Congratulations, their heart-filed eyes seem to say. "But none of you should be real."

[Endurance Check: Trivial. Autopass.]

There's only one way out of this hell.

That's right. If you want to live – do you even want to, after what you've done? You're no better than a filthy Rat – then you'll have to kill them all. You sigh, and your eyes lock for a moment with the corpse slumped in front of you. She looks so happy, Kai.

"Congratulations," you look up to the speaker. Victor – no.

You step back, eyes wide. Blue eyes, nearly electric, like the blurs that thunders leave behind, and golden hair the same as yours, that on her reminds you of the rays of the apartment's lamp early in the morning, waking up; a shining circlet of light resting above her head. Her smile, warm, and knowing, and reassuring; her fingers caressing you, and her voice, humming, calm. Safe, as if no harm or wrong would ever befall you; a promise and an oath.

It's imperfect, but through him, you see the reflection of her. In him, through the windows of his soul, you her own soul, and thus he becomes her. Your throat constricts. You feel yourself fading, swept under the swirling emotions within you. Loathing and tenderness, anguish and joy, sickness and disgust and yearning and longing, spite and affection – all mixing, twisting, to create a bittersweet concoction. Something wet trails down your cheeks. You open your mouth, and then closes it again.

You remember her. Not everything – but you do. You remember her.

Iris, that's her – that's Mom's name, a High-Grade Fixer, and the best mom you could ever ask for. She was always there for you. Until she wasn't. Until she and Dad left you behind to who-the-fuck-knows-where under Lin's care, and never came back. They abandoned you, and they're probably already died somewhere in a ditch years ago.

[Ego Check: Hard. Fail.]

No. Please. No. This is not how you want to start remembering her. You can't take it anymore.

"Mom," your voice breaks. "This isn't how I wanted to see you again."

"Oh, flower," Mom croons, soft, and you close your eyes, taking her voice in. You crack them open again. "How else would you see me again?"

​

[Mom Deals 0 Physical Damage. He Deals -2 Sanity Damage to Lily. Lily's Sanity: 14/25. In Sickness, In Health. -1 to All Mental Skill Rolls.]

You shiver. "I don't know," you mutter. "Not like this."

"It might be the only way," she tells you, and you feel a knot forms inside your throat, lodged so deep that you can't say anything. "… How have you been?"

​

[Ego Check: Medium. Fail.]

She's… not…

[Vision Check: Easy. Pass.]

She's real enough. Even then, so what?

[Repression: Medium. Pass.]

There's only one way leaving this place.

[Vision Check: Easy. Pass.]

But do you want to leave?

[Ego Check: Medium. Fail.]

…

[Instinct Check: Medium. Pass.]

Violets are Blue, Roses are Red. The Sky is Blue. There was once a War between Wings called the Smoke War. The Head sees all. These people love you, welcome you into their fold; if it means accepting them, understanding and following their Vision, they'd die for you just as they'd die for their fellows. There are Five Fingers, Twelve Associations, and Twenty-Six Wings and Districts. The are all governed by the Head, the Eye, and the Claw. These are all facts of the City, knowledge that even uneducated children would know. In other words:

[Instinct Check: Hard. Pass.]


do what comes naturally, Lily

​

[Melee Check: Trivial. Auto-Pass.]

Killing.

[Endurance Check: Trivial. Auto-Pass]

Surviving.

[Instinct Check: Easy. Pass.]

Whatever it takes.

You look away from mom, bitter acrid bile gurgling at the back of your throat. Any longer, you might have gone and truly lost it – this isn't right. None of this is right. Yet all the same, it pulls you in. Grabs you, sinking you deeper and deeper with promises of comfort, and more. You've killed Kai, broke your own words – what could be worse than that? But that'd only be escaping realightmare – and fuck that, you think. You feel lost. You feel stuffed. Blind, and deaf, and senseless. What's right, and what's wrong, and what's left or up, you don't even know anymore.
There is only warmth, wrapped up so sincerely, and so freely to you.

You walk. Meander. Saunter. Then you stop. Before you, Mao, Mori, Burke, Sun, and Karrion stand – an odd crowd, you realize; one of the is not like the others, and your eyes lock on with the odd one out. Sun blinks, then blushes, looking away. You see the flash of a blade as you approach her, Mao giggling happily as she dances, cutting her way through you – Mori chuckles, and Burke guffaws as they join in. Karrion titters, as if she's above it all, but the hearts in her eyes say otherwise.

Your limbs move on their own – they seem disconnected to your mind, which you think, might not be that bad of a thing. Cuts, and stabs, and thrusts – you feel bloated. Bloated with the red liquid of life, and they're helping you lose a little bit of that. You don't want to burst though, so you raise your guard up, and they all laugh and smile with you.

[Crowd Deals 1 Physical Damage to Lily. Crowd Deals 3 Sanity Damage to Lily. Lily's Health: 24/30. Lily's Sanity: 12/25.]

"I knew," Sun says, mumbles really, as you come close to her. She smiles shyly. "I knew you'd come around."

You pause for a bit, before shrugging. "Sure, I guess," you grumble, wrapping your guntlet around her neck. Claws. Nails. Fingers dig deep into her flesh. Sun lets out an involuntary choke as her feet leave the ground. You sigh, smiling at her as she smiles at you. "But there's no damn way I'm staying here. I don't care if this is real or not anymore," you admit. "But I know there's only one way to stop this ride."

[Lily Deals 6 Physical Damage to Crowd. Crowd's Health: 90/120.]

"You…" Sun croaks, and her tiny hands wrap around yours. She smiles, tearful, and you chuckle. "You just have to see it. To take it. To accept it, Lily. We just – we just want what's best for you."

You hum. "I know," and you do. If you close your eyes, you could see it, and what a future it would be. "But –" you hear a whistle – a bzzt, followed by a flash of amber. You turn around, Sun in hand, and raise your knockbar. Your flesh and body and limbs move on their own as Mom turns her tonfas on you, squaring against her strikes. None of them reach you. "But I don't want or need what's best for me."

[Victor is Fully Blocked.]

From over Sun's shoulders, you see Kai's face stares at you. Her eyes are cold, but they're not cold with lift anymore. They're cold with death. Rotting, decomposing, and soon to be taken by the Sweepers, or simply melt into the City. You did this, the voice comes not from her, but from you, and you nod with it. You killed Kai. Your Partner. Someone who put her life into your hands. Someone who trusted you. You don't fucking deserve the best.

Yes.

Your eyes snap back to meet Sun's heart filled purple eyes. They gaze into you with warmth, and you gaze deep into hers, sinking, drinking it. Your hold on her tightens, and your fingers strike bone, strike veins and arteries, and she coughs, and chokes red liquid life onto your face, painting, blessing you with her essence. All around you, Mao, Burke, Mori, Karrion, and Mom join to bask in it – their weapons strike you in one, in a coordination that you could have once might have been able to achieve with Kai, but since you fucking killed her, that's never going to happen again, if it ever did in the first place. Your limb moves, knockbar raised and prepared and swung to stop them from taking too much – Sun stands in front of you, her hands gripping the hand around her neck. She acts as your shield, protecting you, her back against them – her front facing you.

[Lily Blocks Crowd. Crowd Deals no Damage to Lily.]

You see her. You want to see her. You watch her. You want to watch her. You feel her. You want to feel her. Colors pump and drain from her face – pale white into shades of purples. Her eyes gaze lovingly into yours, and you gaze lovingly back into hers. She opens her mouth, but nothing comes out – a choke, a croak, a noise that reminds you of a clogged toilet. Life – that ever important factor one requires to live, you feel it coursing away, wasted, and drained. Her hands tighten around your hand. She smiles, tearful with joy, and you smile back.
[Lily Deals 9 Damage to Crowd! Crowd's Health: 82/120]

"Lily," you see her mouth move, soundless. "Lily."

You nod. "Thanks, Sun. For everything."

Sun twitches, then stutters a nod.

Something slams against the back of your head – heavy, and rough. You sense a glimpse of Mom, and your head follows with the motion, draining the worst of it. You turn around and face her. Mom smiles back, standing low. You keep one attentive eye on Sun, and another on Mom. Her sight roils your stomach. Disgust and loathing – but this time, you can't look away from her. She pulls you in, and the disgust and loathing are quickly replaced by something else; a song, a hum. The first and third and fifth are Mom's Special, and the second and fourth and sixth are Dad's Special – combined together, we have the Seventh Day, the Special Mom and Dad's Special.

Seven. The number picks at the back of your brain. Seven. It distracts you, pulls you back, like an itch.

Electric blues lock deep in yours. Soft, and gentle, and warmth. Reassuring. You yearn for those days – what are you talking about? You could have those days back if you wish it now. But you can't return to those idyllic days. Not after you killed Kai. Not after you're about to kill Sun. But.

But it's not enough to not let slip a single question:

"Why did you leave me?"

Mom's lips twitch. "Because you didn't love us enough."

"Oh."

[Victor Deals no Physical Damage to Lily. Victor Deals 3 Sanity Damage to Lily. Lily's Sanity: 9/25. To Love and to Cherish.]

You look away from her, a pit in your stomach. Loathing and disgust, aimed back at you. It's true, you know. How could you sat that it's not when you didn't even remember her until recently – you got years with you, where you fucking forgot, and years with you until you finally remembered, and even then, still not all. It's still fuzzy. Unrecognizable. That's why she – why they left you, abandoned you. Because you deserved it. And considering that you just killed Kai, they were probably right about it.

Behind, the other fixers continue their blows on you. You ignore them. Focusing on her, and her. On Mom and Sun.

[Lily Blocks Crowd. Crowd Deals no Damage to Lily.]

"But it's never too late, you know…" Mom continues, and you glance to her, something rising in your chest, soaring. A thing called hope. "You can always be with us again. We won't ever leave you again."

You open your mouth, and then closes it. "That would be nice, wouldn't it?" you ask aloud, turning your attention back to Sun. "Wouldn't it?"
Sun doesn't answer you. Her glassy purple eyes stare back.

You release your grip on her. Her feet touch the ground first, just for a moment, then she falls, her body crumbling. Her neck, bruised, and purple, and angled wrong. Dead. Expired like an old burger patty.

She's dead.

You killed her.

Bile rises up to your throat. You manage to force it down, but you can't erase the taste.

You failed your mission.

You killed Sun.

[Melee Check: Hard. Pass.]

And another one bites the dust~

[Lily Deals 10 Damage to Crowd. Crowd's Health: 72/120. One Fixer Dies.]
['Till Death Do Us Apart Activates: Weeping Heartstrings Suffers 11 Damage. Weeping Heartstring's Health: 37/142.]
[Husband and Wife Activated. Lily Receives -1 Sanity Backlash from Damaging Weeping Heartstrings. Lily's Sanity: 8/25.]

You let out a laugh, a chuckle, a cry. God, you fucked up. You fucked up hard, didn't you? Weren't you supposed – paid, even – to protect Sun? Now then why did you go and decided to fucking kill her?

[Instinct Check: Easy. Pass.]

Because it feels right.

[Endurance Check: Easy. Pass.]

Because you need to survive.

[Melee Check: Hard. Pass.]

And another one gone, another one gone, another one bites the dust!

[Endurance Check: Medium. Pass.]

Because it's the only way out of this hell, remember?

"I meant what I said," Mom says gently, and you blink as she rushes up to your face. You step back – her tonfas shoot out, a blur, mauling after you, but you raise your guard in time. Electric blue eyes lock with yours. "It's never too late. We can go back, like how it used to be?"

[Mom Deals no Damage to Lily.]

"Can we?" you echo, as you bat her strike with your knockbar. Her eyes widen as knockbar swings, and she slides back, tonfas raised over her – sparks fly as your weapon grazes against hers. Movement. You snap back to focus to your surroundings, and leap away. Your back's open – not that it really matters. Everyone descends upon you, and the push you back, step by step now that you're not occupied with Sun or Kai or Mom. Their eyes shine with understanding, with sympathy, with the answer to your question: "We can," you give that answer a voice.

"It's never too late," Mom repeats again, and you step back – only to realize that you can't step back anymore. There's a concrete pillar stopping you, covering your back. Her tonfas stop short from crushing your neck – and blades and batons, they freeze, hovering over your vitals, cornering you – harm, death, and rest hanging inches away from your eyes. "I believed it was for me too, but," she smiles, warm, and gentle, like the first lights filtering into your apartment. "Here I am."

And all you'd have to do is give in. Accept them – their love for you, and your love for them. It's that simple.

But.

You feel tired. Leaning your back against the wall, eyeing the eyes eyeing you, you let out a sigh. You're not exhausted – not even hurt, if you really think about it. All things considered, you're fine. But you're tired. You feel sick – Sun and Kai's blood have stained you, still fresh on your jacket, their stench intermingling with yours. They'll never leave you.

You want to close your eyes, and never wake up.

Just what is it that you're trying to do? Why is it that you fight? Because you're good at it – because in order to live in the City, you need to take others' place – because you want to stand on the very top, where nobody'd be able to look down on you. Where you can eat whatever you want, sleep whenever you wish, and do shit not just 'cause you gotta, but also 'cause you wanna. Would the prize be worth the struggle? The question pops to mind, as your eyes latch onto Mom's. No, before that: is it even possible?

You'd have to leave everything behind, kill everything in your path, stay committed until you reach the end of the road – and if at the end of the road lies only disappointment… then what?

You don't know. You don't want to know. It's scary. It's fucked. It's terrifying as shit.

If that's the case, then maybe it's better to not struggle at all – to give up and give in. Splayed before you, there's another path, no?

Mom smiles, and this time, you see the tint of hope in there. Of adoration, of the promises of comfort and love that you'll be showered in. Mao, Kai, and Sun, and everyone, they're all waiting for you, and –

No.

[Lily's Current Sanity: 8/25. To Love and to Cherish.]

You can't, can you? Even if you want to, you couldn't let go. Even if it would be the best for you, you don't want to let go. To Love and to Cherish. If you're going to give in, to give up on your dreams, on your path, then it needs to hurt. It needs to be complete. To be total. All your nails pulled, and fingers crushed, and your arms plucked off – until then, you can't.

A gamble then – a flip of the coin. Either you find salvation, or you'll drown in this hell.

[Instinct Check: Medium. Pass.]

Return to the Basic.

[Melee Check: Medium. Pass.]

Hey, I'm Gonna Get you Too!

[Endurance Check: Medium. Pass.]

Last man standing "wins".

You dig into your pocket and pull out a bean. You inspect it. Golden with Sevens scrawled across it, and the size of a rock candy the size of your thumb. It's such a waste to use this after you've gone this far without it, when you're just about to give in – but that's the point, isn't it? Besides, things like that shouldn't be a concern anymore, and wouldn't it be a waste to buy it and not use it?

Speaking of…

"What's that?" you blink, turning to Mom. She eyes the bean with warm curiosity, encouragingly.

"It's candy," you answer back, smiling. You offer it to her. "Want it?"

Mom blinks, then shakes her head. "No, flower – it's yours. You bought it."

"I did," you chuckle, and everyone chuckles with you, even as the tips of their weapons point at you. "And I'm feeling a little hungry – so here goes."

[Item Consumed: Seven Pill.]
[For the Next 7 Turns, Gain +7 Physical Damage, +7 Mental Resist, and +7 Armor Resist. After Mission, Health State is Stuck to "Injured" for the rest of the Week.]

The effect is immediate. Power. Pure concentrated power roils and broils and boils inside you, blistering. Your skin cracks, and shatters, and reforms and reshatters – your muscles stretch, and coil, and wriggle, and move, and breathe. It is alive. They. Are. Alive. And they whisper to you. They introduce themselves to you: a seed, and you are its host. And thus it tells you its secrets:

[Melee Check: Easy. Pass.]

Seven Strikes.

[Endurance Check: Easy. Pass.]

Seven Shields.

[Instinct Check: Easy. Pass.]

Seven Gods.

Seven – the King of Numbers, Ruler of All. Seven. The Lucky Number, the Blessed Number, the All Decider.

There were once seven of them – you took two apart, killed them. Kai and Sun, forever stained in your soul. Now there are only Five.

You inhale, and then exhale, and then chuckle, and smile at Mom. She stares back, eyes wide. You feel tears. "I'm sorry, Mom. I'm stayin'."

In one, they all strike, weapons descend – you move. One. Two. Three. Your knockbar swings, and the hands which these weapons belong stumble back. All except Mom. You take four small steps, and in a fifth of a second, as she tries to leap back, the fangs of your knockbar bits down into her shoulder – muscles tear, and bones break as you wedge your weapon in between; the shockwave blasts her, nearly causing her to slip on the ground, but you keep your grip on knockbar strong, and slipping a hand under her arm, you manage to stand her back up. She tries to break free, and everyone tries to help her – you count it, one, and two, and three, and four, and five, and six. Six attempts. All of them failed. None of them reached you. To complete the number Seven, you press guntlet into Mom's stomach, and pulls the trigger.

Blam!

[Guntlet Ammunition Used. 2 Left.]

Flesh and blood and gore and organs and so many things – they don't spray over you so much as they blasted you, sending your hair, and jacket, and clothes back. Her guts drape over you like a blanket. Warm, borderline on hot – the ideal water temperature to start the morning of, if the heater ever worked for you. Mom stares back, still smiling, electric blue eyes a little blank, yet just as warm as before. Chunks of her stomach is gone. Yet she's still standing. That shouldn't be a surprise – your knockbar ensures that she's stayin'.

She's not gonna leave you again anytime soon.

But she's alive, and she's still kicking. You smile. You haven't killed her yet. She is your Mom after all! Her single tonfa swings for you, but even in this close a distance, you follow her motion well, blocking them with your gut-soaked guntlet, deflecting them. She gasps, and breathes through her mouth and nose, ragged, and you place a comforting hand over shoulders, steadying her, rubbing the small of her back.

You hum a familiar tune.

[Friends are Fully Blocked. Friends Deal no Damage to Lily.]
[Lily Deals 14 Damage to Mom. Mom's Health: 16/30. She is Injured. -1 to All Her Combat Roll.]
[Mom is Fully Blocked. Mom Deals no Damage to Lily.]

Again. One, two, three, and four come towards you, returning with an embrace for you – their blades cut and swing and strike and pound bash slice and wallop. They feel like the pitter and patter of rains, and you turn your focus back to Mom. She gazes back, glassy eyed, and with a soft hum, you pull your knockbar out of her flesh, from her shoulders, and she lets out a cry as her arm goes slack, as it stretches to the ground, connected only by strands of muscles and tissues. You run your guntlet's nail across the string, and it falls down. You smile at her and she smiles back as you let knockbar slip, and count to five – when you close your palm, it closes just right around the head-fang of your knockbar. You lock eyes again Mom, and as you finish the sixth hum, you shove it right into her jaws. Blood sprays, and shrapnel of white teeth harmlessly stab into you. You twist, and turn, your back against her, and heave – and at the count of seven, you press your guntlet against her neck.

Blam.

For a moment, weightlessness, as if you're airborne – but you're not, just slightly off balance, and you turn around. Mom doesn't stare back at you anymore. A headless body stands, a fountain of red, showering you with the essence of her being. You raise your knockbar, and there, stuck, mom stares back at you, with her dead electric blue eyes. Smiling, a wet stinging sensation on your eyes, you press your forehead against hers.

[Friends Deal 0 Physical Damage. Friends Deal 0 Sanity Damage.]

[Lily Deals 16 Damage to Mom. Mom Dies. You Have Been Abandoned Once Again. No. You have abandoned her.]

['Till Death Do Us Apart Activates: Weeping Heartstrings Suffers 11 Damage From Mom's Death.]​

[Why couldn't you have loved her back?]

[Husband and Wife Activated. Lily Receives -1 Sanity Backlash from Damaging Weeping Heartstrings. Lily's Sanity: 7/25.]
​

[You fucking deserves this, Lily.]

[Weeping Heartstring's Health: 11/142.]
​

And then, you hear a glass shatter –
a door being slammed –
a table smashed apart –
a fire being lit –
a man murdered –
a woman kidnapped –
thunder –
lightning –
drowning, sinking, deeper –
rain.

[Weeping Heartstring's Health Can't Go Lower than 11]
​

Screaming.

Your ears bleed, and your vision blurs. You pause, stop, and then stumble to the ground – tears, they are tears, run from your eyes, and form a pool of blood. You see your reflection, staring back at you. Bzzt – amber light sears your eyes, sears the entire room, and you glance up, and see –

You gasp, a wave of relief slamming against you. That's Kai. That's Sun. That's Mom. That's Mao. They're alive. They're all alive. They're – calling. Calling for you. Crying for you. It's a song, and it's a song about you, for you, with you. Numbly, you climb up to your feet – you open your mouth, and a voice leaves your lips; it is your voice, but also not. A song. You are singing. Humming.

Your hand picks up knockbar – picks up Mom's head, and you smile as you press her against your chest.

"This is fuckin' it, Mom," you mutter, as you walk towards it. "Our way out."

And closer, and closer, and closer –

And there, you see, a Palace
Of Gold
Of Greed
Of Treasures
El Dorado

Bzzt!




THE END
['Till Death Do Us Apart]
​

"Lily!" someone shakes your shoulders. What? You groan, but the shaking only gets worse. "Lily! Wake up!"

You inhale sharply, and your eyes shoot wide open. "What –" you choke, feeling your heart race a thousand beats per second. "Fuck –" it's so fucking bright. You squint through it, glaring. "Why the fuck did you wake me up?"

"… You were having a nightmare," the voice points out. "Throwing left and right. I had to wake you up," you could hear the frown. "... It's been a month since the Weeping Heartstrings Request. Are you…" another pause. "Are you sure you're okay?"

You flinch at the name, letting out a gurgled reply as you collect your thoughts. Has it been that long? Feels like minutes ago. First fucking first though… you squint through the bright fucking light. "Who's…" you trail off, jaws slightly open, confused from being woken up so fucking roughtly. There, sitting next to you, next to your bed, leaning slightly over you, into your vision, expression knit in slight worry. That's –

Article:

Welcome to "Lost Isle of Love, Yomi" – a sequel to "Palace of Greed, El Dorado".

We're jumping right into it.

Choose 1 (Who woke you up?):

[] "Kai?"
[] "Mao?"
[] "Sun?"
[] "Mom?"

 

[Haruhi is Waifu]

[X] "Mom?"

Could be a fake out. Could be a wildcard. Who am I to deny the City what it wants?

 

[Alectai]

What the fuck

 

[SoothingCoffee]

Forgot to edit in some deets in the last last part of the update. Oops. Should be there now.

 

[Haruhi is Waifu]

What the fuck

Click to shrink...

I concur

 

[Alectai]

Okay, now that the details are in, it seems what happened is that Lily triggered the phase change, which apparently means she got hit with the Phase Change mechanic. Now, the fact we still weren't in the final SAN bracket when the Fuckery went down, this shouldn't be a Quest End.

That being said, I dramatically underestimated how much SAN damage this fight was going to spit out. We're still in the game, and that "I have +8 Mental Resistance" field should still be working for a while, but unless the phase change did some bullshit "Reduces all enemies SAN to zero" arbitrary nonsense, the fight's still going on.

Just that, well, Fuckery is afoot.

I wonder if this is kind of like one of the Opportunities from the Limbus Company preview? Where after you Stagger every target on an Abnormality, you get a brief VN interlude where making good decisions can put you in a position of advantage when the fight resumes, and making bad ones can put you in a bad position.

Also, if the whole "Sucked into a VN" thing is reserved for "Whoever triggered the Phase Change". We're actually in a good position because it means Mao is still in play, while Lily soaked up the SAN damage swarm while still contributing roughly a quarter of the boss's health in total, and removing the toughest of the mooks to boot.

Also, I dunno if it was the best plan we could have made for this fight, but the plan we picked was absolutely the most dramatic one we could have taken, holy hell that was a great update.

 

[Filo]

[] "Kai?"

Anyone else have more doubts that Lily needs to upgrade prudence to II?

Edit:
[X] "Mom?"
After some discussion I decided to change my vote

 

[Alectai]

Oh yeah, Prudence needs to level up, like, yesterday

 

[Thebigpieman]

Haha.

Holy fucking shit that's way too much to absorb all at once. Fantastic update, Boss.

[X] "Mom?"

 

[Technought]

[X] "Kai?"

 

[Spector29]

[x] "Kai?"

i think Mao might actually be the correct choice since, if we're still in the fight, Mao is the only person actually there.

Now, we might've hit 0 SAN during the phase change and this is our last chance to save ourselves before Quest End, in which case I would want our Partner pulling us back from the brink of insanity.

 

[Bladesguy]

Well. That Happened.

[X] "Mom?"

Might as well hop right down that rabbit hole. Let's see where we end up.

 

[Alectai]

[x] "Kai?"

i think Mao might actually be the correct choice since, if we're still in the fight, Mao is the only person actually there.

Now, we might've hit 0 SAN during the phase change and this is our last chance to save ourselves before Quest End, in which case I would want our Partner pulling us back from the brink of insanity.

Click to shrink...

We were still at 6 San when the phase change happened, so it was either an infinite SAN damage bomb that triggered on phase change, or something fucky is going on.

 

[wrecksalot]

[x] "Kai?"

we have a bonus on Empathy checks with Kai, here's hoping that makes the difference.

 

[D-san]

[X] "Sun?"

That was so cool.

 

[EternalObserver]

[X] "Kai?"

Wow......what is happening?

And yeah, ever since I saw Distorted Moon's stats last update, I immediately thought that we need to upgrade Prudence (and Ego) once this is all over

 

[Islanderninja]

I want to get off Moon's wild ride.

 

[SleepMode]

Ohohohoh… we're really in it now guys.

[X] "Mom?"

 

[SkyCrack]

[X] "Sun?"

I have a big soft spot for Sun... also no way this is actually the sequel or anything, this is 100% phase 2 matrix false world shenanigans, distortion fights are ROUGH

 

[Islanderninja]

I just realised something.

When Lily is going to interact with either Sun or Kai later on, she might have flashbacks to killing them in this fight.

Won't that be fun for Kai to try and piece together what happened to Lily.

 

[Dutch]

[X] "Mom?"