Board 8 > Labyrinth of Ishiene, Topic 3 [CYOA/Forum Game] [ITD8]

(+) Yeah! (+)

So far the adventurers gathered here had managed to reach the end of the dungeon:



[Player List]

Joe, Lvl 13 Young HERO [CRITICAL, Fire Chain Whip]
Fool, Lvl 12 Speedrunner [Ice Hammer, Liquid Light Arrow (2)]
Remulel, Lvl 19 Wilvalken [Injury, Seeker's Sword, Ray Gun]
John, Lvl 17 Squad Leader [High Tech Armor]
Sylvester, Lvl 14 Sea-Clops [Pick Axe+1, Nery(^.^)]
IG-59, Lvl 14 SPAM [Repeating Crossbow, Liquid Light Axe]
Y, Lvl 16 Empty [Gold Knife, Garage Pet]


With the Head Researcher and his greatest experiment in tow, they look to flee from the dungeon.
Of course... it was not going to be that easy. After all, they were being chased by two Alpha Fiends.
Hydramera was badly wounded but his spirit was like totally filled with the bleak agony of existence.
A bit of pain was nothing to him. All he wanted was to see the ones who hurt him suffer.
As for Sylph, she was a pretty and mindless creature.
Something had attacked her.
Therefore, she was going to start attacking back in return.
It was really not any more complicated than that.

The party managed to escape safely onto the Lift and retreat to the second floor.
But the enemies were in hot pursuit.
As soon as the Lift reached the second floor, the spirit of battle erupted.

"Here he comes," John cried. "Fall back!"

The group scattered as the Lift burst in half. Pieces shattered and exploded into the chamber from below.
The Hydramera, having vaulted and climbed up most of the shaft without a need for the Lift,
Essentially just erupted into the room like a deadly force of nature.
Now he landed tall, on two legs instead of all four.
The Lion's Head, slain in battle, hung limp beneath him... Lost in his beard of matted blood.
But the Goat's Face was glowing with rage, and the Hydra tails below were still dancing angrily.
Then the eyes of the Goat literally began to glow.
"Flesh... to Stone." he incanted.

Sylph was still chasing after Fool at that time.
She slipped through the hole created and water began to pour into the room from below.
Then, all at once, her form became one with the water and she "came to life."
With a swaying motion and a dash she moved to corner Fool and cut him off.
Fool readied his weapon.
The only one nearby enough to help him was that damned Seaclops.
"You want to get out of this alive, don't you?" Fool asked.
Sylvester nodded. "There are still so many good books to read."
"I can't die yet," Sylvester added.

Fool nodded. He calmed his processes.
There was a soft metal humming beneath his chest.
That was what he considered to be his heart.

"She's not smart. We can trick her. Use our tools to our advantage."
If he could freeze her with the hammer, even temporarily, Sylvester might be able to do some damage with that pick axe.
And, after all, he'd already proven once before that Sylph was easy to trick.
She might be strong but she wasn't smart.

No, rather, there's a better way to think of it.
She might not be that smart...

... but she was insanely strong!
---

Even last time he had nearly gotten killed and only survived by about an inch.
It was very presumptuous of him to assume that he'd be able to survive.
Coming up with a plan?
Who needed something like that.
Sylph didn't.
All she needed to do was attack with all of her savage might.
And the thing below her was going to be crushed,
And mashed into pieces,
And transformed into nothing but scrap metal.

If the Seaclops got in her way she'd destroy that thing too.
Sylph looked for her voice but was unable to find it.
She had her thoughts but didn't know the words for them.
It no longer mattered.
Instinct was here.

Fool moved forward with a feint, a juke, and then a spinning attack.
He leapt into the air and striked at her with the back end of the hammer.
With this path of attack the incoming blow would emerge from the opposite direction one might expect.
Someone who was intelligent might be able to read his feint.
But, for Sylph, she wasn't smart at all. She was dumb.
She kept her eye on the thing moving toward her and focused only on that.
To put it another way, a better way, then, she was someone who would easily fall for a feint.
And... at the same time... she was someone who could never fall for a feint.
Her eyes moved to the right and then the left, following the path of the creature below her.
Then from the left and back to the right as the hammer spun around backward.
Of course. Of course even Fool should have realized this.
The reaction time, the reflexes, the speed, the oppressive power of the Alpha Fiend should not be underestimated.
A "feint," when it fails, is just wasted motion.
He took the extra time performing actions that, ultimately, were worthless.

Because Sylph's hand simply shot out and wrapped around his waist while he was in mid air.

CRUNCH

"GAH!" Fool cried out. He knew pain.
Though he was a robot he also possessed the soul of a Devil.
A wandering son from some other place who had come here... here... just to...

Fool crackled, sparks flying out of his mouth. He turned the hammer in his hand.
From this angle he still might be able to-

CRUNCH !!

Her other hand grabbed his arm at the elbow, delicately, between her fingers.

Sylph smiled at him. She opened her mouth.
"... ah...." The words wouldn't come out.
She just, she couldn't find them. It was sad.
It was frustrating.
She wanted to communicate, to show herself to others.
To let them know more about her and to get to know them.
Maybe if she could make someone else knew how she felt...

CRUNCH

She ripped Fool's arm off.
Oil and fire erupted from the bent hunk of metal as his limb was discarded [1].

Sylvester came running at her flank, trying to strike her.
Even if she wasn't frozen the pick axe could still-

CRUNCH

She turned her hips, swung her leg, and punted the Seaclops right in the chest.
The hook of her foot, the tip of her toe, slammed into his ribs and broke three of them on impact [1].

Sylvester was jammed against the wall and spit out blood and a bit of vomit.

CRUNCH

She threw Fool onto the ground, shattering him.

CRUNCH

She stepped on Fool, flattening him and breaking him to pieces.

"... Ah..."
---

There was a difficult look on her face.
She approached Sylvester, slowly and quietly, then crouched down beside him.
Even for the Seaclops, who was fairly large, the Sylph was even taller.
She was looking down at him with a curious expression.
She wanted to say it.
What are you? Where are you from?
Why did you come here?
Why do you smell like the sea?

She grabbed his ear and tore it off.

"Ahhhhh.... AAAEEIII!!" Sylvester shrieked in pain as he was mindlessly tortured.

Sylph didn't know what she did these things.
She didn't understand the world, much less herself.

Her finger went into his eye and pushed until his eyeball POPPED.
Then, curling her finger inside of his skull, she yanked on his head and mashed it against the wall.
At some point his shrieks and howls of pain abruptly stopped.
After a few strikes his brain was turned to liquid and she became bored.

Sylph smiled to herself and then stood back up to her full height.
She heard the sound of fighting still going on around her.
The cries of mortals.
Of course! That was the solution!
Sylph began to hum.

If everyone else died she would be the smartest person left in the room.

Y, immediately, noticed what Hydramera was doing.
"The Goat's Head is a Caster! Take him down!"
He threw his body forward, his Garage Pet in hand, and nearly knocked himself to the ground.
That was because he put the entire weight of his body into the force of this throw.
His loyal pet, X, went soaring through the air with a wicked spiral.
If this thing could strike the enemy in the face then-

The Goat's Head caught X in its mouth and crushed the Garage Pet.

"Nooooo!" Y cried out.
However, he found that his legs were completely frozen.
He couldn't advance to try and save his loyal pet.
He was... too scared.
If he got close, he'd die.
If he stood here then X would die.
Y felt his eyes growing hot.
They were burning with fear.
Lights flickered all over the Neonite.
But, ultimately, he could do nothing except listen to the sound of his pet being devoured [1].

"IG, move!" John commanded to the Combat Droid who had come here with him.
They had ventured in together from Sea Quartz after completing several missions there.
Honestly, that thing had developed a mind of its own long ago.
But he trusted it to watch his back here. "I'll blind him, you strike!"

John dashed to the right and put his faith in that little bot.
That bot... was the only thing that could save them now.

He saw IG-59 return from below with that great weapon, the Liquid Light Axe.
If that thing connected... it might be able to... stop the Goat's advance.
But if that Goat took the momentum he would ride it all the way to their deaths.
John had no doubt about that.

The creature turned, following his movements, and took a step forward.
It was chasing John down. Good. It was working.
IG-59 was getting into position to strike, as well!

Then, at once, John released his flash light from within his belt.
He flickered the light on full brightness and shined it right at the face of his opponent while dashing forward.
The enemy at this point would squint, look away, and be taken off guard for just a moment.
And he'd likely defend as he saw John coming forward.
And, in that moment, IG-59 would be ready to strike!

John felt confidence rising in his chest.
And then explode.
---

The creature was standing there, eyes closed.
It knew the light was coming and closed its eyes ahead of time.
It skipped forward and kicked outward with its powerful leg at high speed.
Sylph was stupid. But the Hydramera was smart.
He wouldn't be fooled so easily.
And just because he looked like a monster didn't mean he couldn't understand their speech.
John felt himself go into shock as his body rattled.
He was sent reeling, rolling across the floor in a streak of blood [1].
His head was spinning around, outside of his body, and he couldn't even get a sense of where he was.
The light, dropped, had rolled away and sat on the floor somewhere nearby.
The light seemed to be moving though. It... no...
His eyes were just rolling back and forth so much.
And each time he tried to straight his vision his eyes kept rolling to the side.
"I---....G-... l--oOk.... ou!t...." he tried to speak but his words felt strange in his mouth.
Literally his senses had been knocked right out of him.

As IG-59 advanced, the enemy had been tracking his movements carefully.
Even as he sent a powerful kick forward the enemy twisted his torso.
His opposite arm shot backwards, slashing at the approaching robot to cover his rear.
IG-59, therefore, totally lost the advantage of the ambush tactic.
He lost it. Completely, he was fighting this enemy on even footing now.

A mere IG-59 against the great and powerful Hydramera who loomed over everything in this room except for Sylph.

"Vambrace, let's go!" Patry cried out.
Others were shouting at each other.
John couldn't make out their words.
He saw the Demon, Vambrace, grab Patry and began to run away from the battle.

Of course... Those two were focused on escaping.

They weren't fighting a senseless battle with impossible odds.

IG-59 stepped forward.
He planted his feet firmly.
He evened the odds.

With the hydraulic strength coursing through his arms he spun his entire upper body and slashed.
The enemy had range and speed but IG had the stronger weapon.
And as that hand came flying at him from above,
Striking in at a downward angle,

The hand of the Hydramera was split clean in half [3] !!

Cleaved bone split before the Liquid Light axe and the skin and fur was torn quickly.
Blood splashed outward, staining the combat droid.
And IG-59 was left there, standing, unharmed, and waiting for the next attack.

The Merchant ran behind him, dove to where Fool's smashed body was, and began rummaging through Fool's belongings.

Remulel, who had managed to limp over the Healing Pool, rolled over the rim of it.
With a quiet splash he disappeared into the pool and closed his eyes.
He wanted to just take a nap beneath here, drown, and let the water take him home.
But... no... once his wounds were healed he would return to the battle.

Joe, meanwhile, was crawling.
Doing everything he could to hold his insides in.
Praying the monsters in this room would ignore him.
And just hoping to stay alive [3]...

[Note: Joe was given the Nery Boost. It actually didn't matter since I rolled a 1d3 by accident first.]
[And since I rolled a 3, a success, and I always give the player the better result in the case of an error.]
[Essentially, the worst Joe could do was succeed at keeping himself alive.]
[His CRITICAL is turned into an Injury for now.]
---

Hydramera slowly walked backwards, keeping his face turned toward all of the ones who had been attacking him.
He scanned the room again with his Goat's Head.
The ones before him, and everyone in this room, had enraged him.
They were all valid targets.
Joe, John, IG-59, and Y had all attacked him recently.
And they were all. Standing. Right There.

Then again... there was someone else who had pissed him off even more.
Since the time before. The one who had killed the Lion's Head was sleeping there.
Right behind him.
No, not sleeping. What was he doing?
Well, it didn't matter.
One of the Hydra Heads shot into the healing pool and grabbed Remulel in its mouth.
Rem was slammed against the edge of the pool, picked up, and flung across the room.

"Gaaw-!!!" Rem choked and spit up a bit of water as he rolled to a full stop.
Well, he'd succeeded in healing his injuries only to earn a few new ones.

Joe craned his neck, looking up at the creature before him.
And, to his surprise, the Goat's Head was looking right back down at him.
There was a FLASH of light and then Joe felt his pain fade away.
His injuries stopped bleeding.
He had been... completely healed?
No, that wasn't it.

Joe was TURNED TO STONE.

"Joe! No!" John called out. But John himself could barely stand at this point.
It couldn't get any worse than this.

And then it did.

Sylph vaulted through the air.
She was tall enough that her feet actually scraped the ceiling as she did a spinning flip.
And, as she passed over those beneath her, her hands shot out.
Sylph's long fingers curled around Y from above, grabbing onto his face.
"Sh-... GET OFF ME!" Y tried to strike her hand, trying to pull himself free.
However, he was still grabbed and lifted off the ground with her.
At the time when Sylph landed, the momentum carried them both forward.
But Sylph planted her feet, used her strong core to hold herself in place,
And smiled to herself as a gentle rain began to fall all around her.
The enemy, however, slipped out of her hand.

Y went flying down the opposite hallway and smashed into the wall thirty meters away.
At high speed.
He felt several bones break as he collapsed to the floor.

"... ugggh..... uh...."

Then, Sylph turned. She looked down and to the right.
Sylph looked happy at that moment. ".... ah!"
It was something she knew. Something she recognized.
Something that was like her!

Another girl.
Maybe they could be friends?
Maybe they could have "Girl Talk."
Whatever that was.

Sylph was sure, if she was capable of that, she would be happier.
They would definitely have some interesting conversations.

Instead, however, she grabbed Nery in her hand,
Jammed her thumb into the solar plexus of the much smaller woman,
And then drove her finger straight through the nymph's torso.
---

Hands dripping with blood, Sylph turned back to the others.

"...k...k....keep running..." John muttered to no one but himself.

Was running even the best option here?

Running? Fighting?

The hell did it matter anyway...



[Player List]


Remulel, Lvl 19 Wilvalken [Injury, Seeker's Sword, Ray Gun]
Joe, Lvl 13 Young HERO [PETRIFY, Injury, Fire Chain Whip]
John, Lvl 17 Squad Leader [Injury]
IG-59, Lvl 14 SPAM [Repeating Crossbow, Liquid Light Axe]
Y, Lvl 16 Empty [Injury, Gold Knife]

Mara Raiev: Decided to take charge of the Quest after all of the Knights died.
Cloaked Man: A Merchant who is inexplicably still alive even after all of this.
Patry: The Head Researcher who created all of this dangerous stuff.
Vambrace: Supposedly a Demon who was very weak, but had an 'experiment' done on him.

DEATH LIST (3):
1. Carwen. Smashed to pieces by the Proto Fiend. Fast!
2. Gil. Died to Qslvl. There was Nothing he could do about it.
3. Stunt. Found life, but all living things eventually die. Purged by Qslvl.
4. Quovadis. The Angel was not stupid enough to turn his back on this guy again. Killed him instead.
5. Fool was crushed by Sylph for being a stupid, dumb, stupidface. Ha!
6. Sylvester was killed by Sylph. Guess all those books didn't help him figure out how to survive.



What was left of the Lift slowly began to descend back down to the lower floor.

[Note: Joe cannot do anything unless his Petrify status is cured.]
---

...
---

'whoops'
---

Oh damn.
---

options right now

1. continue fighting
2. retreat to sea quartz
3. retreat to the first floor
---

So I guess the 3 was Hydra doing something?
---

no I just screwed up and wrote 3 a bunch of times when I rolled 1's. I have no idea why. I guess because 3 used to be the result for failure?
---

Well, now there is just 5 PC's left now with 2 bosses that are in the same room still standing. I'm thinking we all just dogpile on one of the Alphas hoping to kill one so we only have 1 left to deal with.
---

Anyway I recall there is a freezer room here

Maybe we could lure Sylph in there and lock her inside to freeze her solid (or maybe that was the portal I am thinking of)?

Hydra should almost be down too for a range assist / general assist attack from IG and Rem?

Dunno about Joe tho

There is also the demon but dunno what that'll do (I think they went ahead already)
---

RIP Sylvester
---

yeah there was a hot door and a cold door. the hot door led to the furnace, but the cold door was not a freezer (as expected). it was actually a portal to the Negative Zone and to Sea-Quartz.
---

All dem 1s.
---

mindless murder waifu
---

tag
---

you guys might want to post actions before I update tonight
---

....
---

Sylvester makes a wish to Nery to protect everyone before he died.
---

I'm up for whatever depending on which general plan is decided

if we are choosing to stay on that floor maybe someone should examine the stone quote to possibly help free Joe to do stuff later (John probably since he is a bit under equipped / under leveled) unless we want dual assist on a target
---

lefty asked about this, I figured I'd post it public

Sylph: Injured

Lion Head: DEAD
Goat Head: Injured
Hydra Head: Injured
---

All the remaining mechanical parts of Fool self-destruct.

(Might as well try)
---

I think the correct option here is to gang up on sylph
---

I was thinking that zerging Sylph and killing her leads to Hydra killing himself because OW THE EDGE
---

seriously though I want to start writing soon
so plz people who are not dead post some actions
---

Ganging up on one of the bosses seems ideal.

John will fight the Sylph, hoping his allies come to aid him in it.
---

Remulel is a bit concerned about the Hydramera, but Sylph seems the far more threatening opponent. He takes aim with his gun and fires at her.
---

IG-59 will attack the Sylph with his liquid light axe, coooperating with the people attacking her to defeat her.
---

I think someone should examine TURN TO STONE btw

it just feels right
---

meh mmk was up for attack tho (wanted to piss off Hydra by helping take down his Ex to avenge X lol)

Y will examine TURNED TO STONE to see if he can help Joe out

edit: I could attack if Funny wants to switch to examine due to being underequipped
---

no I'm already like half done writing it

no switching
---

the dice gods hate me
---

In this case, however, running and fighting... were the same thing!
They had to break through the wall in front of them if they hoped to ever escape.
That "wall" was of course the Sylph herself.
Although she was dumb as a rock, she had positioned herself in front of the door.
And so, like a rock, it was not possible to flee through that door without taking her down first.

John, running forward, vaults into the air blindly.
At this point he's so dazed and confused that he's honestly not even sure what he's doing.
He didn't even bring a weapon with him to this point.
However, as the enemy swipes at the ground and tries to grab him,
He vaulted over her hand!
And he landed safely on the other side with a roll.
Then, as he was rising to his feet, John slammed into her kneecap with as much force as he could muster [3]!!!

Though John was tiny and had no weapon, and she was big and strong.
That meant it wasn't possible for him to break it.
But he definitely hurt her.
She tumbles out of the way and John stops for a moment.
Should he advance?
Run away? Keep moving forward?
Or was it better to stay here with his friends?

His answer came from up ahead.
It was... Y. Y, who had been thrown out of the room, didn't even try to slink away.
Holding onto his side in pain, his other broken arm hanging limp at his side, Y came running back.
How could John flee, alone, if even that guy was coming back...?

Remulel, without rising from his position on the ground, sucked in a deep breath.
He steadied his aim.
Then he pulled the trigger of the Prototype Ray Gun.
Only to find... the charge was empty [2].
The gun hummed silently for a moment.
He shook it, then tossed it aside.

IG-59 stalked across the room, swaying back and forth.
The Liquid Light Axe wobbled over his head.
It had that same immense weight and pressure as always.
Then, he was standing there before the Sylph.
She glared back at him with hungry eyes. Seeking the challenge.
Looking to meet someone who could be her equal.
She'd just been kicked in the leg and was rather annoyed.
For that reason, she leaned forward with an intimidating stare.
Her nostrils flared and steam blew out of them.
"HMPH!"
Vapor rose in clouds around her and droplets of moisture began to fall down.
They were condensing on the point of the axe.

IG-59 dropped it.
With a single stroke he dropped the axe downward.
Letting the mere weight of the Liquid Light, and the heavy haft of the weapon, do their work.
A big part of swinging an axe was knowing at what point, in the middle of the stroke, to 'drop' it.
You had to let gravity and momentum take over.
And so IG-59 did exactly that.
He got it moving in the direction it needed to go but he let the axe fight its own battle.

".... gg-.AH!"

SHUNK!

The axe slid into the back of her neck as she extended her head forward to meet him.
IG-59 had twisted to the side and sent the blade crashing down on her [3].
And, in that mere instant, the head of Sylph popped clean off of her body.
With a disgusting wave of gushing blood, her body collapsed and went limp.
Red and blue, water and blood, it began to leak out and cover the floor of the room.

IG-59 stood there several moments in sheer disbelief that he had actually just won.

Then, the silence and triumph were broken by a goat's roar.
And the hiss of the hydra's tails.

Y ran over to the statue that was once Joe and examined it.
His mouth hung open, wide, in disbelief.
This kind of magic definitely did not exist on Sea-Quartz.

"DISINTEGRATION!" the Goat incanted.

Shit. Shit. Shit shit shit!

Trying to stay alive and trying to save Joe were both impossible.
Unless... unless...
---

Y's vision drifted around the room, softly and quietly.
Yes, they were fighting in here with the healing pool after all.
It wasn't a sure thing but that pool had seemed to heal many difficult wounds.
It might be possible then to heal with the use of the pool.
And even the affliction of the Goat's magic could be...

Y grabbed the heavy stone statue and tried to drag it with his one good arm.
"Huu-.... uuuhhh...ggghhh...."
It was far too heavy.
He crouched down and extended his broken arm.
Pain shot through his arm like a lightning bolt as he extended it.
His form began to tremble as he grabbed onto the heavy Joe.
Then, with slow, muted steps, he began to waddle backwards while dragging the statue.

The pain was all an illusion.
He had to remember that.
It wasn't real.
And soon it would be over.
Once he reached the healing pool his wounds would be cured as well.

The Hydramera landed on four legs, turning, watching the movements of Y and Joe.
They were going toward that pool as well.
Just what was special about that pool?
He heard noise behind him.
Something metal moving.
The clatter of the Prototype Ray Gun being discarded.
And the one who had been marked for death already.
Struggling to get back to his feet?

The Hydra Heads lashed out at Remulel again, tangling him and biting at his flesh.
He felt bones break as the powerful snake like jaws mashed into them.
Like being caught in the mouth of a dragon, but it wasn't just one.
No, this was more like being dropped into a nest of baby birds.
And torn apart.
It was like-.


.. it wasn't like anything. Remulel didn't feel anything anymore.

[Note: Wilvalken can no longer be examined]

Blood and flesh and tattered cloth dribbled down as Remulel's corpse toppled to the ground.
Torn asunder.

The Merchant, at that moment, appeared.
He had been waiting for an opportunity to strike.
And this.... was it!

SPLASH!

Joe and Y both tumbled into the Healing Pool.

They emerged both, alive, and healed, in time to see Remulel dropping.

And they saw a flash of light as the Merchant attacked.
He had no bow, but he had taken the Liquid Light Arrow from Fool's corpse.
With that in hand he was aiming to strike at the base of the Hydra's collection of heads.
Maybe with this he could dig out some flesh and kill the damn thing with one final strike.

Blood squirted out of the wound as the arrow head ripped through the scales and fur and flesh [3].
The Merchant, surprised at his own work, did a barrel roll beneath the kicking back legs of the monster.
The snake heads, slashing about wildly, began to simultaneously cry out in pain.

And their mad flurry ended as blood began to dribble out at the base.

In fact, it seemed... with this blood loss... they weren't going to keep going.

Joe shook his head, trying to dry his hair that was still wet as he stood in the water.
He spit out a bit of that water as well.
He rubbed his eyes, watching what was happening before him.

"We're... winning?"

The Sylph was down. The Hydramera was almost completely finish.
Things were really looking up!

IG-59 was instantly disintegrated.

The Liquid Light Axe clatters to the ground.
The haft, melted in purging fires of the disintegration beam, is gone.
All that is left is a heavy and unwieldy slab of Liquid Light that was sloppily fashioned into an axe blade.

The Droid, mostly turned to dust, remains somewhat visible as a phantom.
A mere skeleton of the more rare metals that wouldn't melt so easily.
But even those... topple over and crash to the ground.
---

Joe leaps out of the pool and begins running.
He grabs John by the front of his shirt.
The two are moving with such momentum that they spin past each other.
But they somehow end up facing the same direction.

The Hydramera drops, planting his weight on his back legs.
He lowers his head.

Y tumbles out of the pool and runs after the others.

The monster charges after them.
The three men from Sea Quartz flee into the narrow passage ways.
Hopefully, this will slow down the advance of the enemy chasing them.

Joe manages to glance back over his shoulder and sees the Goat's Head just a few feet behind them.
John grabs him and yanks him the other way as the three round the corner.

The Goat slams into the wall, smashing right through it.

This gives John and the others a brief moment of respite and they are able to flee back to the Compass Room without pursuit.
However, they hear the crashing sound of the Goat coming after them.

"If it's just him, maybe we can-" John falls silent.
Would they bet their lives on it?

The Long Passage which leads to the upper keep, and the outside of the castle, is right there.
If these three keep running... they'll actually...
Even John, who never thought he'd see it...

Would be able to see sunlight one time before he died.




[Player List]

Joe, Lvl 13 Young HERO [Fire Chain Whip]
John, Lvl 18 Squad Leader [Injury]
Y, Lvl 16 Empty [Gold Knife]

Mara Raiev: Decided to take charge of the Quest after all of the Knights died.
Cloaked Man: A Merchant who is inexplicably still alive even after all of this.

DEATH LIST (3):
1. Carwen. Smashed to pieces by the Proto Fiend. Fast!
2. Gil. Died to Qslvl. There was Nothing he could do about it.
3. Stunt. Found life, but all living things eventually die. Purged by Qslvl.
4. Quovadis. The Angel was not stupid enough to turn his back on this guy again. Killed him instead.
5. Fool was crushed by Sylph for being a stupid, dumb, stupidface. Ha!
6. Sylvester was killed by Sylph. Guess all those books didn't help him figure out how to survive.
7. Remulel was ripped apart by the Hydra Heads. Marked for death by Hydramera.
8. IG-59 was disintegrated by the Goat Heads. You win some, you lose some.



Slowly but surely, the wreckage of the Lift returns to the surface.
Standing there in the darkness, alone, is none other than Mara Raiev.

The Red Crystal she holds in her hands is pulsing with a strong magical power.
The room here is filled with death.
With memory and pain. Especially the fear of perishing forever.
It's reacting strongly with the cracked orb that she's holding.

Mara smiles. "... Hmm..."

The crystal in her hand.
The light grew bright and then dim.
Rising and falling like the tide.
It was an odd ebb and flow.

Around here many bodies were scattered.
She'd missed the battle once again.
Rather, she'd avoided it at all costs.
So she could return, alive, with treasures and knowledge.
---

She looked at Sylph.
At least they had gotten one of the monsters.
"Pretty..." Mara was muttering to herself in the darkness. "I am jealous."
Somehow, even standing there with the source of light, her form was impossible to detect.
It seemed to be shifting and making her more difficult to perceive.
If anyone had been here to see it they might begin to realize something.
Mara had been wearing a magical cloak this entire time.
Rather, her cloak seemed very mundane. But it wasn't at all.
It was a tool which had aided in her endeavors and kept her alive.

"And so many others had died along the way," Mara said.
She did sound like she was actually somewhat sad about it.
Not sad enough to risk herself getting killed to try and save them.
But she was sad that they had to die at all.

Letters began to scrawl in the floor, of their own accord.
The cracked crystal was reacting on its own now.
Oh. Oh yes.

The ones here, these phantoms, some of them were not ready to pass.

They began to claw at the floor from below.

Memory and humanity.

They wouldn't abandon it just like that.

[A RED SUMMONING SIGN has appeared]

[Everyone may vote to revive a person from the currently active DEATH LIST]

[Even if you are dead or have no active character in the game you can still vote]

[That person will return with all of their items, levels, and gear as a RED PHANTOM]

[The Red Phantom will help to defeat the boss.]

[The vote will close in FOUR HOURS.]

Mara was looking at the item in her hands, almost fondly.
"Just what did I find down there? What am I bringing back with me...?"
---

actually really quick note

IG-59 CANNOT COME BACK
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votes remulel so he can run away from the boss again
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votes remulel so he can eat our unlucky throws again
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Cast my vote for Remulel!
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Remuel would be a big help, considering he gets his gear and his level back. Also would love to see a "I thought I killed you!" moment with the hydra.

Votes for Remuel.
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chaos259 posted...

Remuel would be a big help, considering he gets his gear and his level back. Also would love to see a "I thought I killed you!" moment with the hydra.

Votes for Remuel.

Haha, exactly.
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(Question: can Wilvalken be examined again if Remulel comes back?)
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catastrophy15 posted...

(Question: can Wilvalken be examined again if Remulel comes back?)

no
whoever comes back, their class will be RED PHANTOM
there may however still be other actions worth examining
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If we still act if anything could be examined it would be "common trait" so someone might want to check that out now if at all

I think the only other thing not examined was White Pods but that was back down on the bottom floor so yeah

also yeah toss a vote for Rem
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I would like to cast a vote for the people's champ

ARON REX
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MariaTaylor posted...

[Everyone may vote to revive a person from the currently active DEATH LIST]

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