Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Locked thread
Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
Above you, the storm clouds are starting to gather. Spiral. Reach down...

Through the spray of water, Aubrey sees Madoka smile in thanks, clap her hands together and prepare another kidō incantation. You don't hear what she's shouting, but Madoka manages to spread her arms and erect a weak bubble of spiritual force around the boat with what's left of her energy. It flickers and cracks as some of the incoming creatures bounce off it, but it keeps them away.

Laura feels Tavleen grab onto her arm for support. With her free hand, she's holding up her phone...

Kaiya slithers towards the portal, but with so many arms in the way, it's not long before she's grabbed and held to the deck. "hsssss..."

And then Tom jumps. He seems to think he'll be fine, but Shiro definitely doesn't like it. You think you can hear him over the rushing water:

"I'll find a way back! Shiro never abandons a cliiieeent..."

. . .

The roar continues. A wind picks up. The water rushes harder, somehow.

Somewhere between the oncoming storm and the ocean, the horizon starts to shift. The water is draining so fast you can feel yourself lowering towards the ground. All you need to do is hold.

A flying tortoise cracks Madoka's shield and she finally sags, unable to go on. The boat starts to split around Laura's sword. You can hear it creaking. Air rushes behind the water and into the cabinet until you can barely breathe.

... And then the boat touches down. The clouds have gone. A final turtle slides backwards into the cabinet with an expression that could be a friendly farewell from a simple testudine, and then the flow stops.

The cabinet rocks a little, steadies itself, then slams shut.

That's it. The sea is back where it should be. Ashton Junction isn't even that damp. It's over.

Konami hops off the cabinet and reverts to her normal form with a shudder. She wordlessly pulls her board shorts out at the sides, releasing a bucketful of water and a bunch of flopping fish, then drops to her knees and faints face-first into the ground.

"It's over," Azumi whispers. "Now what do I..."

Madoka grabs her chair with weak, trembling arms and manages to lean over the side before she vomits. "huuuuuaaaaaaggh"

You don't see Tavleen at first. You find her on the ground, flat on her back with a wild look in her eyes. She arches her back and screams at the sky.

"WHAT"

"A"

"SCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO


. . .

Go ahead and post what you do now—your immediate reactions and any business you plan on doing before you all get rounded up for debriefing. Assume that if you check, the survivors you left with Tamora are fine, everyone from the Academy is in a safe space, and reinforcements will be here soon.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Waffleman_
Jan 20, 2011


I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna!!!



Sebastian falls to his knees, panting a bit before vomiting and collapsing onto his back.

"It's....finally over...Can I....go home now? I'd really just like to watch Netflix with my girlfriend. But first...I just wanna lay here a bit."

K Prime
Nov 4, 2009

Jia

"I'll..." Jia looks away from the others.

"I'll be right back."

She sets off across the beach at what, for her, is a jog. When she judges that she's sufficiently fair away from the others, she looks around. Calls out.

"....Daddy?"

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
Sifu Wudang rode out the storm inside a ghost whale he could leave at any time, so it's not surprising when she finds him standing at a sufficiently respectful distance from her.

"Yes, my child?"

K Prime
Nov 4, 2009

Jia

Jia looks away from him too.

"I... I'm glad you're alive... but..."

She lets loose a long sniff that is totally not her holding back tears. Nope. Nuh-uh.

"I guess this is goodbye."

She turns away. "Thank you for everything you taught me. But I can't take that and use it to destroy the world. This world... This world is beautiful. I don't want to go back to some idea of perfect you believe!"

She stomps. The beach shakes, just a little.

"...I love you daddy. But I think we're going to have to go different ways."

Turn. Face him head on. Stare at his eyes. "And when you do this again. I will stop you."

Comrade Gorbash
Jul 12, 2011

My paper soldiers form a wall, five paces thick and twice as tall.
Aubrey Murphy FP XXO | Hope OOO | Passion X [Requisition Orders: XXXXX]

Aubrey lays down in the boat, arms splayed to either side. "Hey Laura?" She pauses. "If all your adventures are like this, I totally get why you got sick of it now."

She stares up at the sky for a while, then adds, "Is it bad that, even after saying that and meaning it, I still really want to have another go at it?"

Waffleman_
Jan 20, 2011


I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna!!!



"YES."

Takanago
Jun 2, 2007

You'll see...
Laura Bailey
FP 0/3 | Hope XOO | Consequences (-2/-4/-6)

"Probably," Laura chuckles.

Leaning over the edge of the boat, she stares at the horizon. "But I know exactly how you feel. I mean, there's just something about it. If I were to give you some practical advice, I'd tell you just quit while you're head but..."

She sighs."I don't know what to think about that anymore. The world almost ended, my friends almost died, Azumi's a sword now, this whole island got wrecked, the Lunar Pendant's gone, Tom and Shiro too. Gone forever, maybe. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll never know. And somehow I don't feel that mad about that all. Well, kinda mad about some of that. But if you asked me this morning, oh I'd be smashing everything up and cursing up a storm right now."

Laura turns around and smiles. "I don't know how I kept a fan club all this time. I really don't. Anyway, y'all ready to head back? I think I got a few words for the master..."

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
Jia

Sifu meets her gaze for a while, then nods sadly.

"I understand. I won't force you. If I taught you well that would be difficult... heh."

He nods again—in understanding, this time—and turns to leave.

"I'm still sending you birthday cards."

. . .

The rest of the day passes by in a blur.

Foundation security forces arrive in the area a few minutes later. A few of them escort you back to the Academy, where you're given a quick check-up to make sure you're not about to die. You're asked to surrender any injured, dead, and major artifacts to the Foundation for study/treatment. Afterwards, you get some time to relax with a hot meal before you're rushed through some interviews to establish what happened, an appointment with a counsellor, a deeper check-up, and some NDAs.

If you want to get your stories straight first/plan any lies/draw attention to something in particular during your Foundation interviews, let me know! These questions may be important:

• How do you talk about the way Konami handled her transformation?
• What do you actually say about Shiro/Thomas?
• You don't even know what a Shinigami is, 🌟 riiiight?🌟

Anyway, time for the debriefing.


. . .

The Next Day, 8AM

Sleep is late and fitful, but the Foundation at least tries to let you get some.

By the time you show up to the Headmaster's office, things are getting back to normal. Classes are postponed, but Foundation workers and government contractors have already dried everything up and are hard at work repairing the damage. Even Ashton Junction is recovering. You get the feeling this will have Never Happened™ within a week or so.

Some of the others are waiting outside when you rock up. Tavleen's busy sulking in a chair over all the NDAs she had to sign. Konami's sitting around in a Foundation jumpsuit with a massive ice pack pressed into her head and a half-asleep expression. Daigo is standing around giving a dramatic speech on how the day's been saved, and gives you all a thumbs-up as you pass. Madoka is pretending to listen to Daigo while she games, and grins and waves as you pass. The dorks you met mid-adventure (Tamora, Panda, those Computer dipshits, Ayame, and the Laura Fan Club) are being quizzed by Foundation officers with clipboards in case you need to drag them in for anything.

Kaiya and Fred are nowhere to be found.

The Foundation waves you into the office.

Headmaster's Office


Azumi's here. She's slumped in the comfiest chair in one of her least offensively delinquent outfits, with bandages wrapped around her head and most of her left side. There are a couple of crutches on her chair, her magical girl sword in her lap, and a book of trendy eyepatch options in her hand. She looks hella tired.

Headmaster Lovelace is at his desk in one of his many identical outfits. He definitely had the better day here.

"Good morning."

Lovelace opens his mouth to speak. This is probably when someone starts yelling.

Takanago
Jun 2, 2007

You'll see...
Laura Bailey
FP 0/3 | Hope OOO | Consequences (-2/-4/-6)

"Oh, gently caress you..." Laura shoots Lovelace a mean, tired glare. Though somehow she doesn't seem that much more tired than usual. She must be used to getting an awful night's sleep.

"What the hell give you the right to say 'good morning' after all that poo poo?" She looks over at Azumi and flashes her a smile, which immediately disappears again when she turns back to continue berating the headmaster. "This is all YOUR fault, you know. Especially with what happened to Azumi."

Laura sits down in one of the chairs and pushes her foot against the edge of the headmaster's desk. "What do you have to say about that?"

Comrade Gorbash
Jul 12, 2011

My paper soldiers form a wall, five paces thick and twice as tall.
Aubrey Murphy FP XXO | Hope OOO | Passion X [Requisition Orders: XXXXX]

Aubrey managed to change into a clean uniform and fix her hair. She sits quietly and politely while Laura yells at the Headmaster. She just happens to be idly flipping through a brochure on the school. One she just happens to be holding so the Headmaster can see the cover. Which happens to have a picture of Murphy Hall on it.

When Laura finishes her rant, she adds, "I'd like to hear that myself."

Gotta put the Legacy Kid aspect to use at some point!

Waffleman_
Jan 20, 2011


I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna!!!



Sebastian had a stern discussion with the Foundation, and while they didn't want the truth of what happened to come out, they still allowed him the film rights to fictionalize the events as a propaganda film. Work is work! But that didn't mean he didn't have words for the good old headmaster.

"I nearly died like five times!"

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
The Headmaster checks his screen and sits back.

"Well, for what it's worth, I'm sorry for what happened to Azumi. I shouldn't have sent her alone. And I'll apologise on the Foundation's behalf for allowing Fred to do... any of this."

He leans forward again. "I did ask you to say in your dorm hall. But Dr West tells me it was much easier to resuscitate Azumi thanks to you retrieving her, so... thank you for that."

"I'll discuss that more in a moment, but first I need to talk about what happens next." He taps at the touchscreen in his desk. "The Foundation told you already, but everything that happened today is classified. You can't make it public. We'll talk about the details later. First, let's talk compensation."

"Let me see... to start, I can put you in our advanced defense classes. You don't really learn about Shenshashen and his kind there, but last night would count for... up to 90% of your mark. If your families received compensation for attending, they'll receive extra. You won't receive any black marks on your record for anything that happened, and if you had any before we can get rid of them. Call it extenuating circumstances."

"Any questions? And before you ask, Madoka already asked us to bring chocolate back to the dorm hall vending machines."

Takanago
Jun 2, 2007

You'll see...
Laura Bailey
FP 0/3 | Hope OOO | Consequences (-2/-4/-6)

"Shouldn't have sent her... alone?!" Laura twists her face into an almost-painful looking grimace. The headmaster's apology seems to have hit a sore spot. "Bull. poo poo. It's your loving psycho-rear end, manipulative 'secret probation' poo poo that caused that. She shouldn't have had to do that poo poo in the first loving place."

She grumbles and crosses her arms, clearly frustrated and fuming with anger. "You think you can just buy us off with good grades and clean records?! I don't CARE ABOUT THAT CRAP!"

"If you want me to stay quiet... You absolutely have to take Azumi off of double-secret probation. And you'll never put her on it again, or anyone else. And..." Laura tilts her head back and groans as she starts thinking of a million things to ask for, though pretty much all of them are things that would never, ever happen. "And... I get immunity from all future punishments."

Comrade Gorbash
Jul 12, 2011

My paper soldiers form a wall, five paces thick and twice as tall.
Aubrey Murphy FP XXO | Hope OOO | Passion X [Requisition Orders: XXXXX]

Aubrey was going to take the deal offered, to be honest. But when Laura opens up on the Headmaster with both barrels, she's happy to back her up. The blanket immunity is probably not going to fly. But whatever Azumi did to earn the ire of the academy, it doesn't justify the way she's being treated.

On the other hand... Aubrey had enjoyed that whole mess, on some level. Not the thing with people getting hurt, she'd still rather none of it had happened because of that. But her own part in it? Aubrey wanted more of that.

"Laura's right, it's unconscionable to treat Azumi like this. If she doesn't want to do this, she shouldn't have to." She bites her lip, then continues, "Clearly you need someone to do this kind of thing though, but it should be volunteers. And those volunteers should get some consideration for it. Kind of like a sport's club."

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
The Headmaster sighs and takes off his glasses. "All right, point taken. I'm sorry for sending Azumi out, period. And she—"

"Wait!" Azumi says.

She stifles a groan as she pulls herself to her feet and limps over to give Laura a half-assed hug. "Thanks, but I want to do this myself."

Then she turns to the Headmaster.

"Do you know how much ████ I've been through?! And now I need to go to the hospital! For months! I can't even leave this ███████ magical ██████ sword behind because it's """helping""" me recover! You guys are the ████ worst! ████ YOU, ████ THE FOUNDATION AND ████ YOUR APOLOGY! ███████ ███████! I AM NEVER WORKING FOR YOU AGAIN! NOT IF YOU BEG ME! I QUIT!!!"

Azumi slams her crutches into the floor and storms out.

The Headmaster adjusts his glasses. "Well..."

He's interrupted by a thump from the corridor as Azumi collapses again. You hear a muffled groan.

"Can somebody bring her back to rest until Doctor West collects her, please?"

. . .

Azumi decides faking unconsciousness is better than admitting defeat and lies there with her eyes closed wherever you leave her. She seems to have calmed down, at least.

The Headmaster cleans his glasses idly. "Well. Yes. Azumi's free, once she... wakes up. We'll take care of her."

"As for you. Immunity doesn't sound workable, but..." he puts the glasses back on again. "... a volunteer club does. I'm sure we can work out the details. Who would be joining?"

If you want to ask about anything/anyone else, now is a good time!

Takanago
Jun 2, 2007

You'll see...
Laura Bailey
FP 0/3 | Hope OOO | Consequences (-2/-4/-6)

Laura seems to have calmed down as well. She's sitting in the corner now, 'watching over' Azumi who is lying down on a couch. There seems to just be a cloud of resigned resentment coming from that section of the room. At least it's probably quiet resentment now.

"Well, I'm not joining." Her voice gets a little softer, a little less angry. " I mean, honestly... Fighting evil and stuff isn't all bad but, like, it totally sucks when it becomes a job. And, I don't know, I might try it again, maybe, sometime later. But God, not now."

Comrade Gorbash
Jul 12, 2011

My paper soldiers form a wall, five paces thick and twice as tall.
Aubrey Murphy FP XXO | Hope OOO | Passion X [Requisition Orders: XXXXX]

Aubrey is sitting on the end of the couch Azumi is on, opposite Laura. She frowns to herself for a moment. "I'll join," she says, not quite meeting Laura's gaze. "I think it might be something I'd be good at."

Waffleman_
Jan 20, 2011


I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna!!!



"Hell no! I belong behind the camera, not in the action!"

K Prime
Nov 4, 2009

Jia

"I'll join. Someone needs to watch out for my father."

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
"Alright. We'll work out the details later." The Headmaster takes off his glasses again and checks his notes.

"Let's see... one last thing. The others you brought with you. The citizens from Ashton Junction are fine... well done on that, by the way... which leaves the other students."

The Headmaster starts scrolling through student files. "Next, I'm seeing... Tavleen, Tamora, Ayame, and Madoka. They're fine, and I don't believe there's anything important going on with them. Ah, Daigo as well, though I hear he missed half of it. Went to help the Student Council prepare. Send them in on your way out, please."

"Oh, and Konami seems to be fine, thanks to you. I'd prefer if you didn't gossip about her condition, if you don't mind. She's here on a special scholarship. It's not very classified, but we'd rather not spread it in case she makes an enemy and they try to, you know, provoke her. We set aside a room for her in the Student Health Office, if you'd like to see her later. I think it has spare beds if you need one."

"Which brings us to... Thomas and Kaiya. Kaiya is, ahem, also under Doctor West's care. She's in a critical condition. It's... complicated. She may miss the rest of the school year, or more. I'll let you know if—when she's able to receive gift cards."

"As for Thomas, we're not quite sure where he is. He's... also a special scholarship student. He could be on the roof for all I know. Professor Zann's looking into it. I won't make any promises, but let's talk about him later."

"Oh, and Fred. Fred, Fred, Fred." The Headmaster just shakes his head. "I expelled him earlier. I believe he's under arrest now. Extremely classified, I don't think you'll see him again. You can tell your friends it was because he started this whole mess. Leave the details, out, please."

"And you know about Azumi. She can take her own path now, or whatever that thing she likes to say is."

He finally sits back and rubs his forehead. "And I believe that's a wrap. If you've got anything left to say, go ahead. If not, you can go. School will resume eventually, but you deserve a rest for now. And... well..."

"Thank you. For everything. I mean that."

. . .

Unless you want the Headmaster to say anything else, he's done. Either way, Aubrey, Jia, Laura and Sebastian can each make one final post. Feel free to close it with whatever you think should happen to the character afterward. Epilogue it up!

Comrade Gorbash
Jul 12, 2011

My paper soldiers form a wall, five paces thick and twice as tall.
Aubrey Murphy FP XXO | Hope OOO | Passion X [Requisition Orders: XXXXX]

Aubrey nods at the Headmaster, not exactly willing to let him off the hook yet. But it'll do for now. "I'm going to go check on Konami. Does anyone want to come with me?"

Afterwards, Aubrey sits down and writes a long email to her parents, explaining everything that happened. She doesn't suggest any course of action herself, though. Let them decide what to do about it. In the meantime, Aubrey tries her best to keep up the connections with those she shared her adventure with, particularly with Laura and Azumi, since both of them seem like they could use a friend.

She also starts consulting with Jia regarding who else to recruit for the club. Aubrey definitely has picked up a taste for adventure.

Waffleman_
Jan 20, 2011


I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna!!!



"I'm going back to my dorm and staying there for like 5 days and if my teachers have a problem with that, they can frankly suck it, Headmaster."

Back at Sebastian's room, he lays on his bed when someone knocks on his door.

"It's open!"

The door creaks open and Ayame peeks her head in. "Bassy? Are you okay after...all that?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I am."

Ayame closes the door behind her and sits on the side of the bed.

"Ayame, I just...I'm glad you're here."

"You wanna watch some Netflix?"

"....Yes, I would love to watch some Netflix. Hand me my tablet."

And so the director and his leading lady watched kaiju movies into the night.

K Prime
Nov 4, 2009

Jia

It's quiet in here.

Jia lies in the bed. Stares at the ceiling.

"Hey, Konami."

"..."

"...wanna help beat up my dad?"

Takanago
Jun 2, 2007

You'll see...
Laura Bailey
FP 0/3 | Hope OOO | Consequences (-2/-4/-6)

"Whatever..." Laura sighs and shrugs, making a big show of not caring that much about what the Headmaster has to say. Though if you compared it too all the other times she went, 'I don't care,', it does seem a little forced this time. At this point, she probably just wants to get out of here.

"C'mon Azumi, let's go." Laura gets up, with some help, she brings the 'unconscious' girl outside. Almost immediately upon leaving they drop the act and just start walking normally. Yeah, whatever.

---

Sometime later, the two delinquents are hanging around on the school roof.

"Y'know..." Laura stares out at the horizon, grumbling with a really vague feeling of frustration. "We went through all this, and what was even the point-"

She groans, cutting herself off. "Ugh, no, the answer is obvious, isn't it." Laura looks over at Azumi for confirmation, then sighs. "Yeah... We saved the day. But- AGH! It doesn't feel right, you know?! Or-"

The girl spins around and punts a piece of trash off the roof. "I've gone through so many fuckin' emotions today it's... fuckin' bullshit! It's like I'm back in middle school. Back when I was trying to figure out if I wanted to stick with the whole justice thing or not. I said I wasn't gonna but then- Uuuuuggghhhh!"

"And it's not like I didn't like justice- but then there was all that pain and bullshit- which was just really Shiro's bullshit- but then he's gone but so is Tom and the Moonlight Pendant is still out there and- God! I just don't know how to feel right now!"

Laura sighs again. Most of her frustration has drained away now. "Actually... I think I know. I'm... I'm fuckin' Tsundere for justice. And that's kinda bullshit." And then she just shrugs.

"So..." Laura looks back over at Azumi. "I guess the question is what we' wanna do now. We could just slack off... do the delinquent thing. I mean, this place is still kinda bullshit. And headmaster's still kind of an rear end in a top hat. Or we could... help out Aubrey sometimes. Maybe. Not officially. But I don't got my wand, so... Well, I guess I don't really need it."

A half-grin forms on Laura's face. "I think you're technically more magical than I am, Azumi. You could-"

Then, suddenly, Laura realizes something.

"Y'know, actually..." Her half-grin widens into a deep, devious smile. "You said, before, that you needed extracurricular credits, right? And, y'know, we could do that whole volunteer adventurer thing if we wanted to jump back onto that saddle. But if Fred's getting expelled, then that means that there's a certain club which probably doesn't have enough people to stay a club anymore...."

A dreadful silence passes. Could she be talking about... those losers?

"Yeah." Laura smiles even more. "That's right."

Oh no.

"The Laura Lovecraft Fanclub."

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010


. . .

Almost.

. . .

The Dreamlands, Unknown Time

For a while, all Thomas knew was sound and rushing water and a strange, unexplainable emotion that seemed to come from somewhere else and envelop his mind. Then everything went dark.

When he comes to again, things feel nicer. He's still damp, but drying. Up above him is the sky—the familiar sky of the Dreamlands.

"I'm aware. But those are the results."

The voice is kind of familiar too.

When Thomas rolls over, he finds himself in an inflatable raft. It's coasting down a river in some unknown part of the Dreamlands, surrounded by twisted blossom trees and jagged rock outcrops.

At the other end of the raft, a strange catlike creature is talking into a device that's almost as big as it is and looks like some kind of sci-fi 80s cellphone. Thomas has seen the cat before, usually on Laura's shoulder.



"The rest is up to the clients. My work here is done. Mhm. Yes, that's acceptable. Hold on, we'll talk later."

Shiro pushes the device over and pushes a paw down on the disconnect button.

"Hey there, buddy. Need a ride?"

Davin Valkri
Apr 8, 2011

Maybe you're weighing the moral pros and cons but let me assure you that OH MY GOD
SHOOT ME IN THE GODDAMNED FACE
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!

FP/Refresh: 0/3 Hope: XXX Severe: Missing Ear

All Tom wants to do right now is lie on his back and purr contentedly. He's heading home...he's dry (ish)...he's still missing an ear, but cats know how to fix mere physical damages...

...oh? There's another cat on the boat. He can hear him, yes, but he can hear him.

Shiro. The Saturn Cat.

But...did Saturn Cats need cell phones to talk to their masters? If Shiro was a Saturn Cat, wouldn't he talk to them psychically?

Tom blinks once. Twice. His nose twitches and his tail curls under him.

Results...clients...who is this Shiro?

Curiosity killed the cat...but everybody probably thinks he's dead already. And there's only one way to sniff out the bottom of this.

Need a ride?

Tom silently nods.

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
"Cool, cool." Shiro's jaw stretches like rubber as the alien swallows the phone whole, then he turns back to Thomas.

"So, was that a mess or what? It's not every day I almost make psychic contact with the avatar I'm supposed to be observing. You're lucky you weren't devoured. That's all in the past, though. Speaking of, no hard feelings, yes? That was just business. Stirring things up to see what happens. Data collection is my job. Just a sec."

Shiro grabs his jaw and pulls back until his mouth snaps and stretches back over his head.

New matter spills from the hole as Shiro pulls wider. Something black and saggy and fuzzy. Shiro's arms disappear inside his mouth as his body turns inside-out. There's a brief moment where things seem to stall and Shiro tumbles over with his legs kicking the air, then new paws pop out of the black mass and pull the new skin tight. Shiro pulls his jaws over his legs and closed again.

Now there's a new cat. It looks like Shiro with black fur, and a scrunched-up pile of fur where its tail end should be. Shiro kicks his legs out into the new body and fixes that little problem.

"I'm back, sorry. Had to patch up. I'm not exactly invulnerable, you know? Now, where was I..."

"Ah, right. So, here's the deal. You fight pretty well for a mortal... well, something close, anyway. I recommended your services to my... employers, and they've authorized me to offer you a job. I could use an extra set of hands. Figure of speech, anyway. And more importantly, whatsherface is probably going to get the Foundation to retrieve you. Erika Zann, right? I could use a set of eyes on Earth, if you get my meaning."

"You've proved yourself a decisive man so I don't expect you'll have any trouble deciding what to do. If you're not interested, well..."

"...Ulthar's around the next bend somewhere. I'll drop you off. Call it payment for services rendered. Besides, I'd like to visit an old client someday and I'd hate for her to think I'm a murderer..."

. . .

What's it gonna be, my man? Either way this will probably be your last post, make the most of it!

1) Accept Shiro's offer
2) Decline Shiro's offer
3) Decline Shiro's offer, and also punt him into the river

Davin Valkri
Apr 8, 2011

Maybe you're weighing the moral pros and cons but let me assure you that OH MY GOD
SHOOT ME IN THE GODDAMNED FACE
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!

FP/Refresh: 0/3 Hope: XXX Severe: Missing Ear

Tom's remaining ear twitches as Shiro eats the phone, then twitches even harder when Shiro flips inside out. His tail is going spastic right now, and he's pretty sure he's not wagging it consciously.

What did I just make a deal with?


He wants to say that he isn't a mortal, but that's the least of his worries right now. And something about the way Shiro talks about Zann and "an old client" makes his claws start to pop and his back hitch.

You don't suppose...no...maybe? Does he know Zann?

Fight or flight is telling him to punt Shiro into the river and jump for the bank. The space where his other ear should be is telling him if he tries that he'll probably drown in the space between dimensions. His whiskers are saying that "another pair of eyes" means ripping his own out of their sockets. His tail is telling him to pick something before they try to kill each other already!

All at once everything stops moving.

"Shiro..."

His ear twitches once.

"...I'm listening, nya."

Ettin
Oct 2, 2010
Shiro turns to the front of the raft. "Nice."

"Alright, first I need a new pendant. Laura's better off keeping hers and we'd have to turn around anyway. The Oort cloud is far enough away as it is."

This time, the cat's grin splits the sides of his head.

"Wanna know the truth? This is going to be great."



. . .

This game deserved a proper ending, so here you go.

Feel free to use this thread for OOC talk now, if you've got something to say. If not, thank you for putting up with my delays and other bullshit. :)

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Waffleman_
Jan 20, 2011


I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna!!!

Buy the full game now on DTRPG!

  • Locked thread