In The Queen's Name [[ One-Shot ]]

File: Adrian.jpg (90KB, 770x900px) Image search: [Google]

90KB, 770x900px

>>139591

“And there you go again—on and on about this Queen. Who even is she?” You ask.

“She is the sovereign ruler of the underground, powerful and just.” Adrian responds. “And I—her Regent—rule at her side and execute orders at her command. I have ventured far and seen much in the Queen’s name. Now, we, and the city around us, find ourselves upon a great threshold.”

“Threshold of what?” You ask.

“It is uncertain.” He responds, seeming somehow more eloquent. It’s a bit unusual, but come to think of it, you don’t terribly mind seeing him like this; you have always had a thing for guys with glasses. “It is our responsibility to determine what transpires next. We choose for everyone. Stand with us in our court, and you too will have that power. Have I sold you on this yet, or what?”

"We'll see." You respond. "You'll owe me for Friday regardless. I got all dressed up and everything..."

> [[ Continued ]]

File: Hecatel.jpg (350KB, 1024x1474px) Image search: [Google]

350KB, 1024x1474px

>>139594

“We’ll have to get you suited up with some better gear, of course. The outfit I bought for you is good for now - it looks nice, anyway, but it's still basically starter duds. Once you join up with us, we’ll work on getting you leveled—then, you can see what skills and weapons you prefer. Have you thought about how you want to build yet?” Adrian drones on as you wander through the palace’s halls. The walls are carved from granite slabs, arches with jewels inset. Faintly glowing steam rises from pools far below, deep pits adjacent either side of the walkway. The vapor wafts upward; it intrudes, intoxicating.

“You know I’m not a gamer.” You respond, rolling your eyes. “I have literally no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Right, right. I’ll explain in more detail later.” He says, as the two of you approach an archway with carpeted steps leading upward. “This is the entrance to the throne room. Be on your best, will you?”

“That doesn’t mean you can treat me like a child, either.” You sigh. “I’ll follow your lead.”

> [[ Castle Hecatelia: The Queen’s Throne // Queen’s Guard Territory // PVP Enabled ]]

The atmosphere changes as you cross the threshold. At the top of another set of stairs on the far end of the enormous room, a woman sits, crowned Queen of an oracle’s throne, carved of marble, adorned with gold and jewels, coins, cups and jars, crafts of brass and silver – and of silk or velvet. She wears ornamental vestments which scarcely preserve her modesty, clinging tightly to her chest on either side, leaving her midriff and thighs bare – leaving little to the imagination. Coarse, silver hair spills across her shoulders from beneath her massive, decorated crown.

Her skin is a pale shade of grey. There is nothing behind her eyes.

>>139603

The two of you come within proximity, and the Queen gives a satisfied look as Adrian kneels before her. He gestures to you, with a glare and a harsh sideways nod, and you fall in line at his side, dropping to one knee at the base of the carpeted steps. The pressure around you amplifies, and you find it difficult to right yourself once you reach this position, the air growing heavy as if you are being physically oppressed by her presence.

“My Queen.” Adrian speaks, looking up at her – with a look in his eyes you wish you’d ever seen before. You grit your teeth, shaking your head as you try to gauge what he’s feeling, and why he regards this woman so. You’re uneasy; this whole situation has something unfamiliar welling up in the pit of your stomach.

…Jealousy?

Couldn’t be.

Could it?

“My Regent.” The woman speaks with a sultry tone, slouching a bit and interlocking her fingers in front of her. “I’m told you come bearing news?”

“Indeed.” Adrian responds. “The material requirements for the new Excavator design have been finalized. More importantly, however, your contacts outside the guild have made an important discovery with the outsider’s help.”

“Most excellent. The details can wait, however; I see you’ve brought a friend.” She smiles.

“A close personal friend, actually.” He gives you a nod that you imagine is supposed to be reassuring. “I’ve extended her an opportunity to join the Queen’s Guard, and wished to show her all the best of what we have to offer.”

“Oh? Wonderful. What’s her name?” The Queen asks, before looking down at you. “Well? Introduce yourself.”

> Write-in (?)

>>139591
Goddamnit, it's always unexpected with you.

>>139610
"Hello there. Umm. I am a little out of my depth here. My name is [Player Name], and I think you're very pretty, miss....Queen?"

Should I post that picture now, or at the end of the thread?

>>139641
+1

>>139591
I don't see a twitter post or anything, Syl.

File: 1420942301606.jpg (132KB, 1024x701px) Image search: [Google]

132KB, 1024x701px

> Disclaimer
This is a one-shot Quest taking place in the universe of Broken Sky Online Quest, which runs on /tg/ and will most probably remain there for as long as possible in order to avoid splitting the archives (though I am fond of many of the new faculties provided by /qst/). I wanted to try running here in order to familiarize myself with the board and see how much I like the features, as well as to reach out to any prospective players that don’t overlap with /tg/’s population (I'm not sure how many people this might be, but I get the sense that it's not very many). BSO has been on a hiatus of about a month as I’ve had to deal with finals, graduation, and family matters, but will hopefully resume relatively soon; I like to run one-shots as a way to relax, provide a little bit of exposition (schmuck-bait) and help the readerbase acclimate to my characteristic breaks.

As with the other one-shots I’ve run in this Quest’s continuity, things will be made as palatable as possible for those who have absolutely no idea what’s going on. If you find yourself interested or want to archive dive and get a feel for the Quest proper, check it out here:

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Broken%20Sky

I’m going to have to sleep in a couple of updates’ time, but will resume in a few hours, a break apparently made tolerable by the slow pace of this board. Once I return, I’ll reach out to my followers on Twitter, etc.

>>139641
You may have noticed by now that I’m pathologically incapable of meeting expectations.

>>139641
Also, whenever you please; I'm eager to see it.

Writing.

File: Aetherforged.png (267KB, 359x420px) Image search: [Google]

267KB, 359x420px

>>139690
considering how few people there are right now, may as well, despite how not-immediately-relevant this is.

File: Aetherforged joke.png (264KB, 359x420px) Image search: [Google]

264KB, 359x420px

>>139693
aaaand a really obscured joke version

File: 18fa5b9030f38da04008201a67723465-d5wdmnw.jpg (210KB, 1216x656px) Image search: [Google]

210KB, 1216x656px

>>139641

“Hello, there… uhm, excuse me, I’m a little bit out of my depth.” You take a deep breath, placing a hand on your upper chest. “My name is Anastacia—and I think you’re very pretty, miss… Queen?”

“Hecatel, if you were unaware. Please – we are all friends in this court, are we not?” Hecatel asks. “And I believe you are new, are you not?”

“Mostly.” You respond. “I haven’t done a whole lot yet.”

“But I trust you’ve enjoyed your stay in our city.” Hecatel smiles.

“I’m just trying to take it all in.” You nod, as you and Adrian rise to your feet. “There’s… a lot.”

“I’m told it’s that way.” The Queen closes her eyes, leaning back against the marble, inhaling the vapors of the vents deep below. “I’m told that in time, you’ll learn to better parse the information available – especially once you set sight on what is truly important. That is, if you survive that long.”

A pause, before you ask: “What do you mean by that?”

“Death has… considerable consequences in this world.” Adrian says.

“...I’m not gonna like, die in real life, am I?” It’s a hilarious thought – like all of those movies you’ve seen.

Wait, are you?

“Oh, no! Not at all. Just, you’ll become Nameless.” He responds. “You’ll lose access to your Unique Identifier, which allows you to store items, manage contacts, send messages and browse the bulletin boards remotely...”

“But the Nameless are also weaker, and more closely bound to this world.” Hecatel adds. “For example, they possess the privilege of feeling such sensations as the exquisite pain that this world has to offer…”

“Pain? What the fuck, Adrian? You didn’t say anything about feeling pain!” You barely manage to maintain a reasonable speaking volume.

“I didn’t want to freak you out!” Adrian says, raising open palms and slowly lowering them in a disarming gesture. “Relax, it probably won’t come up…”

“And it’s all the more incentive for you to stay alive, it seems.” Hecatel says. “Welcome to Hecatelia, Anastacia. If there is anything I can do to make your stay here more enjoyable, you need merely ask.”

File: underground_city_blue_fantasy.jpg (318KB, 2560x1440px) Image search: [Google]

318KB, 2560x1440px

>>139745

Adrian’s ensuing discussion with the Queen involves logistics—more than you thought would be possible in a game. They’re discussing maps and supply lines, politics, warfare and strategy, and “how many bodies they’ll need to get the job done”. Much of it is lost to you: heavily numeric and fiercely logical statements are difficult enough to parse on their own when not bound up jargon you don’t understand.

You can see how someone might find this fun, you guess. You’re just trying to stay on your feet. As you said, it’s a lot to take in; the game appeals to all the senses, and the intoxicating vapors of this place combined with the Queen’s aura, when applied over a significant time period, render you barely conscious. You pay closest attention to Hecatel's sultry voice, and to Adrian's enthralled gaze; in a strange way, it feels like you're watching your boyfriend cheat on you. You feel lied to - pain? - as if the nature of this game was misrepresented to you.

And you're not sure if these are reasonable ways to feel, or if any of this is actionable at all.

“Very interesting. And you’ve learned what of Nephilim?” Hecatel asks, tilting her head, looking intently at Adrian.

“The fight they’ve waged with us has to do with a belief that reaching the surface will have dire ramifications.” Adrian responds. “Lore-wise, it’s a reasonable assumption that we’re down here for a reason. But information they have and are unwilling to share leads them to believe that the consequences of reaching the Overworld could bring destruction to the entire Underground.”

“And?”

“They’re willing to reason with us – to resolve a treaty. It would be entirely on their terms, as they’ve been the ones keeping this struggle alive.” He responds, to the Queen’s disdain. “I know, I’m not fond of the idea either, but we’ve lost plenty of good men and a whole Excavator to this. It’s got to end somehow.”

“We’ve other options, you know.” Hecatel says.

“Stay here, and allow Hecatelia to stagnate.” Adrian says. “Decidedly unsustainable.”

“We could start a war.” The Queen responds. “Unleash our full military might on each of their pathetic hovels.”

“We’d suffer losses – and what if they’re right?” Adrian responds. “About what they know of the Overworld? I don’t think they’re bluffing.”

“There are choices still.”

“We’ve discussed abandoning the surface in favor of charting the lands deeper below.”

“What does Nephilim know of them?” Hecatel asks.

“I can’t be sure.” Adrian says.

“We’ve one advantage, then. The vapors of this place have shown me much in your absence and that of our unguilded contacts.” Hecatel smiles. “I know now what lies beneath Hecatelia – a place called the Earthsea, and its mighty nobles.”

File: 12059712.jpg (508KB, 1200x484px) Image search: [Google]

508KB, 1200x484px

More politics. It’s as if the two of them are trying to be as confusing as possible, as if they’ve cultivated a secret language in the time they’ve spent together. You turn to the side, willing only to listen rather than look, and absorbing what little information you can hope to understand.

“You’re suggesting what, then?” Adrian asks. “We barter information?”

“In spite of all that’s happened I don’t believe that it’s unreasonable for us to work together with these people.” Hecatel responds.

“You were declaring war on them a moment ago!”

“A fleeting thought, my Regent. A mere possibility.” Hecatel says. “But enough of these thought exercises. If they believe it possible for us to achieve a measure of peace, I’d like to know exactly what that entails. Are you willing to go to them now?”

“Yes, my Queen.” Adrian responds. He interacts with his Unique Identifier—an important piece of technology which all players carry bound to their waist—and projects a holographic menu before him, scrolling through a list of names by touch. “Vaine and Pandora are both online right now. I can bring—“

“That won’t be necessary, assuming you’re confident enough to protect yourself.” Hecatel says. “This meeting is to negotiate peace. Traveling with an entourage of unaligned superpowered mercenaries might undermine our purpose. Are you confident enough to protect yourself?”

“Yes, my Queen.”

“Good.” She responds. “Though, feel free to bring your friend. Anastacia? It was a pleasure to meet you.”

You elect not to respond. You make back for the palace courtyard – this time, with you leading Adrian.

I found myself unexpectedly tired, and writing an unexpected amount of text unexpectedly slowly. Sorry to be a tease, but I'll continue after a couple hours' sleep.

what kind of maniac starts a thread at 3 am?

>>140200
How much more do I have to do before I've proven myself certifiably insane?

File: Anastacia.jpg (27KB, 165x400px) Image search: [Google]

27KB, 165x400px

>>139781
> [[ Outer Hecatelia // Neutral Territory // PVP Enabled ]]

“I’m sure you’ve changed your mind by now, haven’t you?” Adrian asks. He’s looking giddy, but you aren’t particularly sharing in his happiness. “Isn’t all of this amazing?”

You shrug. You’re holding the weapon he bought you – a medium rifle called a “longcaster” – ready to fire in accordance with his advice. You’ve never shot a gun before; you only picked this class so you could stay as far away from the action as possible.

> [[ Anastacia ]]
> [[ Primary Archetype: Gunner ]]
> [[ HP: 14 / 14 ]]
> [[ PP: 12 / 12 ]]

“Is something wrong?” He asks, looking at his map the entire time. The road out of town leads through harsh subterranean paths, and you feel the heat on your skin. You’re passing through a cavern with shining crystals sticking out overhead. Through cracks and over ledges, you can see movement in the shadows below. “We’ll be there soon, if you were wondering. Unless you wanted to do something else?”

You're still a little upset, having spent a good few minutes watching him undress the Queen with his eyes (not that she needs it) - and, when you weren't watching, listening to him speak of lessons learned from people you've never met and of things you don't have the tools to understand.

And... what was that about pain? You suppose it's your responsibility to stay alive as long as you're in here. Is this what games are like, now? You didn't ask for any of this.

> Adrian’s neglected your feelings enough. “What’s your deal with Hecatel?”
> Try to learn more about these politics. “Who are these Nephilim guys, anyway?”
> Try to learn more about Adrian’s other friends. “Something about… unaligned superpowered mercenaries?”
> Take your mind off things. “Can we fight some monsters?”

>>139591
Main quest never ever. I want to test our artifact even though I don't like it

>>142383
> Adrian’s neglected your feelings enough. “What’s your deal with Hecatel?”
Main quest when?

>>142383
>> Adrian’s neglected your feelings enough. “What’s your deal with Hecatel?”
So what I just saw was you abandoned Friday night to play second fiddle to a pair of digital tits.

>>142383
>> Adrian’s neglected your feelings enough. “What’s your deal with Hecatel?”
After that we should probably go grind.

>>142383
> Adrian’s neglected your feelings enough. “What’s your deal with Hecatel?”

>>142383
May I ask if this is the third of three different stages of tests?

Writing

>>142506
What do you mean by that?

>>142535
I don't actually have a twitter account but my vote goes to /qst/ for the next thread. Maybe run one more thread on /tg/ and link http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Broken%20Sky at the end of the thread so future archive readers can find the archived /qst/ threads

>>142535
I cant vote on twitter without an account, but i vote /tg/ just for continuity

>>142535
Just looking for a particular QM who is running a one-shot as the final testing of /qst/'s viability and shares a bit of writing style with you.

File: underground_palace_by_pbario.jpg (925KB, 1200x642px) Image search: [Google]

925KB, 1200x642px

>>142392
>>142395
>>142407
>>142415

“I just want to know what your deal with Hecatel is.” You stop on the path, and Adrian pauses ahead of you, looking a bit confused.

Slowly, he turns, and raises an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Don’t act like you don’t know what I mean.” You respond. “Based on what I just saw, you skipped out on me Friday so you could play second fiddle to a pair of digital tits.”

“Ana…”

“And this is what you’ve been doing? Your purpose in this whole ‘world’, as you put it?” You respond.

“She’s my guild leader, Ana.” Adrian says with a sigh. Looks like he’s trying to stay calm. “I’m supporting her, s—“

“She can’t support herself? This whole big guild and she’s got no one else to shoot the shit with? I’ll be totally honest, it looked like you were in love with her.”

“Love? You’re being completely ridiculous—I never took you for the jealous type...”

“Don’t make this about me.” You say, and watch as he sits down on an outcropping of silver-flecked blue crystals.

“I may respect her, Ana, but only insofar as she is powerful. She is a leader, with a strange sort of control about her. An uncanny presence, that creeps into your head as if her sovereignty is axiomatic.” Adrian says, looking at you gravely, gaze narrowing. “You must have felt it, or seen it.”

“Maybe? Honestly, I was looking at you the entire time.”

He scoffs. “Even so, this is just a game! Have you forgotten?”

“You’ve forgotten! You’re acting like this is real goddamn life.” Your voice echoes through the crystal caverns. “I told you, I was never actually into games. I installed just so I’d have something to do with you for once! How do you think I feel when I see you neglecting me here too?”

“…I’m sorry, Ana.”

“…What’s gotten into you?”

“I can’t explain it.” He says. “I want you to see it for yourself. Then perhaps you’ll understand.”

“You keep telling me that.”

“One more chance, Ana. You wanted to do something with me, right? We’re here, now.” He rises from the rocks, walking toward you and extending a hand. “I would be honored—my Queen—if you would accompany me on this mission.”

You sigh. "Fine."

File: underground_palace_2_by_pbario.jpg (504KB, 500x853px) Image search: [Google]

504KB, 500x853px

>>142696

“Where are we even going?” You ask. The road has become winding as the two of you venture downward, and without a map, or Adrian’s help, you doubt your own ability to make it back to Hecatelia proper.

“The members of the guild Nephilim are not welcome in our court. In the wake of the first Excavator’s construction, they declared war on our attempt to reach the surface, fearing catastrophic consequences.” He responds.

“I thought the point of this game was to dig up to the surface.” You say. “Isn’t that what you told me?”

“In short, yes—I believed that too, but Nephilim seems to possess information that they are withholding from the public. Think of it as a power game.” Adrian says, still carefully looking at his map. “Cast out of the city, they utilize villages far below as their bases of operations. Though they are great in number, they are spread relatively thin.”

“And we are…?”

“We’re venturing downward to these villages, to meet with their leader in hopes of achieving diplomacy.”

“Won’t that put us in the middle of enemy territory?”

“It’s complicated.” Adrian responds. “We’ll be safe, if that’s what you’re wondering. Stay close to the inside of the path up ahead, though. There are hostile monsters down below.”

> Ignore the advice. “But you can take them, can’t you, Regent? I want to see how you fight.”
> Suggest engaging an enemy. “We’ll beat them together, then. Right?”
> Continue down to Nephilim’s village.
> Look for a shortcut.

>>142751
>> Suggest engaging an enemy. “We’ll beat them together, then. Right?”

>>142751
> Look for a shortcut.

>>142751
>> Suggest engaging an enemy. “We’ll beat them together, then. Right?”

>>142751
>Suggest engaging an enemy. “We’ll beat them together, then. Right?”

>>142751
> Suggest engaging an enemy. “We’ll beat them together, then. Right?”
> Ask about this game. Is it that things are more open or easier then the world?

>>142751

“We’ll beat them together, then.” You nod, leveling your rifle as you approach the edge. It’s foggy down below. “Right?”

“Ana, careful. These aren’t exactly starter monsters.” Adrian says, approaching you quickly. “You haven’t been in a proper fight yet, so it’s probably not the best idea to…”

A shape moves in the pale below the path. Shocked, you stumble backwards as it rushes up to meet you, tripping and landing on your back with your rifle at your side, held tightly with one hand around the grip. A strange body darts up and onto the platform—the shape of an inverted teardrop, the color of granite, wrapped in twisting clouds of fog which reach down to spill out like rolling fountain waters where a pair of legs should be. It’s broad, and top-heavy, with a pair of clawed arms of the same color and make of its body.

“What is that!?” You shout, scrambling backwards to put distance between the two of you.

“It’s a type of monster that inhabits the lower branches!” Adrian responds. “They’re capable of moving quickly through the fog, so be careful!”

“Yeah, thanks for the advice!” You roll to one side clumsily, flopping about on the ground as it stomps and swings toward you. Interlocked claws collide with the ground where you laid a moment ago, sending reticulated cracks through the stone surface in all directions. “What am I supposed to do?”

“Gunners are sometimes about precision, and sometimes about DPS—I mean, raw damage output!” Adrian says. “You have to learn when to attack indiscriminately, and when to wait for a weak point to appear.”

“Nothing about this thing looks weak!” Stomping footsteps grow louder as it looms over you.

The fog twists and warps, blooming into an expanding bubble that bursts with blue light from within—halting the creature’s movement mid-swing and sending it reeling. When you next look up, you see Adrian standing between you and the monster, sword pointed to the side with an outstretched arm, the mist not-yet-settled swirling around him in wide arcs.

“Take all the time you need. I’ll protect you.” He says, looking to you over his shoulder. “Hecatel and the Queen’s Guard as my strength, I’ll not fail.”

> Scan for a potential weakness.
> Feel it out. Open fire and don’t stop shooting until something happens.
> Get close. Dodge its attacks and lure it into a compromising position.
> Other (?)

>>142996
> Scan for a potential weakness. Be ready to hit anything that pops up.

>>142996
>> Feel it out. Open fire and don’t stop shooting until something happens.
While we do this we should also try and reposition ourselves to that we're not firing from directly behind Adrian.

>>142996
> Scan for a potential weakness.

>>142996
>> Scan for a potential weakness.

>>143026
>>143024
>>143005

> [[ 1d100 ]]

Rolled 31 (1d100)

>>143058
nat 98

>>143058
Uh anyone else going to roll? DO I have permission to roll more?

Rolled 21 (1d100)

>>143058
sorry, got distracted

Rolled 23 (1d100)

>>143058

Rolled 99 (1d100)

>>143058

>>143113
>>143117
god dammit

Rolled 37 (1d100)

>>143058

File: bb292c7cc8920124c74a045472210080.jpg (144KB, 736x1114px) Image search: [Google]

144KB, 736x1114px

>>143065

> [[ 31 ]]

You’re so busy sizing up its form that you lose sight of your surroundings. Adrian wouldn’t dare dodge its next attack; he’d put you at risk. But when he turns it aside with his sword, parrying the massive claw and sending it wide, you imagine he’s banking on you to move, or at least to react.

> [[ HP: 2 / 14 ]]
> [[ Dazed ]]
> [[ Bleeding ]]

Maneuvering forward and wildly swinging, it pushes through Adrian’s cautious guard and bashes into your side so hard you might as well be unarmored. An enormous stony fist hits home in the side of your upper chest, sending force rippling through your body with a series of resounding cracks. You tumble across the ground, looking an absolute mess when you come to your senses. It’s as if your ribcage has collapsed—however, you feel no pain, but a dull buzzing sensation throughout your entire body. Can you even stand like this?

“Ana!” You hear Adrian’s voice, and look in his direction, still in a daze. “Don’t worry—here!”

It’s then—right when you look over—that you see something familiar in his hand, the sight of which leaves your jaw hanging loose and brings tears to your eyes.

You don’t remember exactly what it is, merely that it’s been missing for so long.

If only he’d told you that you’d be able to find it here. You would have started playing so, so much sooner.

You reach out weakly to him, but rather than offer you the gift as he approaches, he merely crushes it in his hand. You gasp, choking back a scream as it dissolves into glittering dust that wafts in your direction.

As quickly as it appeared, it was gone. But for just a moment, you feel whole. Your wounds are coated in all of the colors.

> [[ HP: 14 / 14 ]]
> [[ Celestial Fortitude ]]

“Adrian…” You speak barely above a whisper. “What was…”

“We’re not done, Ana! Pay attention!” He calls out.

>>143117

> [[ 99 ]]

You see what you’ve been looking for—a seam, a narrow crack in the creature’s form that reaches across the back of its domed cranium, a tiny light within—as you leap to your feet with newfound strength. You feel a strange excitement, as instinct guides you away from the next set of strikes, ducking under claw swings and moving to distance before Adrian can reposition to protect you.

It’s yet another feeling you’re not sure you’ve ever experienced before. You’re not sure what this one is.

> Try to stay still and snipe it out from distance.
> Get past its offense and make a point-blank shot.
> Other (?)

>>143204
> Try to stay still and snipe it out from distance

>>143204
> Try to stay still and snipe it out from distance.

>>143204
>> Get past its offense and make a point-blank shot.

>>143204
> Get past its offense and make a point-blank shot.
aww he used a gem for her. what a nice guy.

>>143204
>Try to stay still and snipe it out from distance.
trust in the Guard

>>143204
> Try to stay still and snipe it out from distance.

>>143207
>>143214
>>143223
>>143245

“I can’t…” Your mind is spinning.

“Focus.” You hear Adrian’s voice. “Trust me!”

Down the sights of your rifle, you watch a battle unfold, decisive strikes between the fall of hourglass grains stretched out across what now feels like hours to you. You pull the trigger, and your caster screams, spitting a bolt of white light at your target that crosses the intervening distance before you’re aware it’s left the barrel.

It strikes just next to the crack, rebounding away in a shower of colors and sparks. The next hits just on the opposite side, shearing a chunk of stony flesh from the creature’s body. It turns away from Adrian, now moving towards you.

Focus.

Another pull of the trigger sends a bolt dead center. The creature looks unsteady, for a moment, and releases a strange whine, slouching as the fog around it dissipates and the light within dies away.

> [[ mistbound revenant was defeated. ]]

“Congratulations, you did it.” Adrian says, after a long pause. He plants his hand on your shoulder, having approached from behind, and you instinctively swivel around, stumbling away and pointing your weapon at him. “Hold on! That’s a powerful weapon. I’d hate to have it pointed my way.”

“S-sorry.” You respond.

“No, it’s alright.” He says. “Like you said, we can defeat them together.”

> [[ You have 1 unspent EXP. ]]

You take a break to collect yourself, resting in the cave a while, as Adrian explains to you the basics of leveling up your character and learning new abilities.

“That’s about it I think. Oh, you don’t want to neglect your weapon skills, either, though.” He explains. “Abilities are good up to a point – you might find yourself with more actives than you have PP to support, though. But skilling up can open some opportunities as far as contributing appreciable damage goes. You’ve got some time to try the different types of guns, see which ones you like most.”

You nod, trying to listen carefully.

“Alright, are we ready to go?” He asks. “I didn’t expect us to take this long.”

> Ask what that ability he used to save you was.
> Ask Adrian about his other friends.
> Ask Adrian something about the game. (?)
> Head down to the village.

>>143407
let's take a look at our skill tree

>>143407
> Head down to the village.

>>143407
> Ask what that ability he used to save you was.

>>143407
>> Ask Adrian about his other friends.
>> Head down to the village.

>>143407
>What did you use to save me? It...looked beautiful, and you crushed it. What kind of game is this?

>>143474
I like this one. Begin the Celestial Gem obsession.

>>143562
I like to think of it as realizing what stripping out the protections with neural VR does, while trying avoid thinking about the item...which causes you to think of the item.

>>143474
Seconding. Or thirding as the case may be.

>>143474
>>143562
>>143572
>>144192

I'm in the process of writing this but this thread has been dialogue heavy and I've been having absolutely hideous focus issues for a while now. I thought they were over but I was quite mistaken. /qst/ lets my threads stick around for a while, thankfully, but this isn't a standard I want to hold myself to.

I'll wrap this up after I sleep.

>>144209
Yeah, 16 hours, MAYBE 24 is the most I could see a thread hanging around. And that's with a marathon run.

File: 1462972164805.jpg (17KB, 342x500px) Image search: [Google]

17KB, 342x500px

>>144209