Words Words Words 2016/10/03(Mon)14:27 No. 750943 ID: fc828b
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"Oh! You're a Blood Tribe priestess? We hope Our presence doesn't come as too much of a shock. Most religious types tend to wind up in the hands of some God or another, so those that slip by and find their way to Us tend to be... upset. But then, the Blood Tribe has always been good at avoiding the wrath of angry Gods, haven't they? Haha. Don't worry, you're curse won't manifest here.

Its a shame you were snatched from your mortal coil so early in your life, especially such a pretty and well spoken thing as yourself, but it sounds like you had plenty of time to developed a variety of skills well suited to the challenges ahead. A love of the Sea often indicates a passionate heart, they say, and skill at arms is always invaluable.

I'm sure these skills come in quite handy in the ordeals ahead.

And see? Doesn't it feel good to stretch your soul out a bit. We bet you're feeling a lot more like yourself now and a lot less like a generic ball of potential.

Speaking of potential, its about time we dealt with the proverbial elephant in the room. There is something We need you to do, something that only you can do.

You are here because We need you to make a choice. A very important choice with a lot of far-reaching consequences. We can't, however, explain exactly what that choice is. It would... well, it would invalidate the choosing.

Consider this, then, a test of sorts. The actions you are about to take represent your agency within the world, and thus the outcome of the trial you are about to undergo represents the culmination of your choices within. In that choosing, We shall have what We seek.

Does that make sense? If not don't worry too much about it. Just go with the flow and, well, try not to overthink it.

It'll be over quick, We promise.

Before you stand Four Doors, each will lead you to a different room and trial. We would tell you to choose wisely, but there is no 'correct' path ahead of you, only different roads leading to different consequences. The choices you make here on out are your own, independent of Fate or Destiny. Isn't that exciting?

Ready? Great. Choose a door. Oh, and remember to have fun!"

go for the seaweed wave door. Might as well start with what's familiar.

>We hope Our presence doesn't come as too much of a shock. Most religious types tend to wind up in the hands of some God or another, so those that slip by and find their way to Us tend to be... upset.
It's cool. We're glad to be talking to someone at all. And amicably. Not necessarily what we were expecting but... *shrug* there are a lot worse ways one's death could have gone, right?

Nice to meet you. Whoever and whatever you are. I have the feeling you are no more free to elaborate on that as the choice presented.

>Ready? Great. Choose a door. Oh, and remember to have fun!"
Fortification, Tree, Wind and/or Sea, and Mountain.
(Maybe they represent modes of operation? Construction, growth, adaptation, endurance?).

Well, we already made it clear we loved the Sea. Third door looks closest to what we would have wanted in live. Take that one.

Stone building. wood arch, sea waters? Rock mountain...
Gotta go with that sea-looking one I think.

>Oh, and remember to have fun!
What if I don't want to have fun? What am I supposed to do then?

.....nah, just kidding!

>Doors
Choose the door that looks like the sea!

Yeah also voting the wind(?) door.

>>750943
oh but think of what treasures and secrets might be held in a castle or fort.

Lets Conquer our fears and take on the mountain!

Words Words Words 2016/10/05(Wed)21:42 No. 751563 ID: fc828b
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You take a step through the kelp portal - Oh, you have legs again! And skin and and... your senses suddenly return in a rush of cold sea spray. The humidity spikes as the temperature drops and you find yourself gagging at the overwhelming smell of saltwater and rotting algae.

Words Words Words 2016/10/05(Wed)21:44 No. 751564 ID: fc828b
File 147572907140.png - (55.21KB , 400x500 , Seacave2.png )

You appear to be standing in a Sea Cave. This place is familiar - there are a few places like this around the rocky shores of your island home, though this one doesn't seem to be one you know personally. When the tide is low, it reveals a cave entrance that you can wade through, which leads to a cavernous chamber inside. As the tide comes in and the water rises, the tunnel and chamber flood. Its a good place to hunt for crustaceans, but can be dangerous for the unprepared.

Unfortunately you don't recognize this specific chamber. But what you do recognize is that the tunnel you'd have come in through is flooded behind you, and, Based on the way the water is lapping in, you'd say the tide is still rising. In a few hours this whole cavern will be completely flooded.

You look around, slowly, allowing your eyes to acclimatize to the dark. You're begrudgingly thankful for that hole in the ceiling. On one hand the moonlight flooding in means you can see, on the other hand it also means that there's not going to be any air trapped in this cavern after it floods.

In the center of the chamber sits a series of large flat stones. You can faintly make out some old carvings - it looks like some tribe or another used this location as a shrine, but its not been maintained, so that was probably a long time ago. Upon the shrine sits a small stone cup filled with placid water - you can see the stars reflecting in it - and an old ceremonial flint knife.

A small, badly damaged wood boat, foreign by the looks of it, lies half beached nearby. The old dry wood creaks softly as one half rocks in response to the rising water. Inside you can see the human skeleton, still clutching a strange foreign sword in its hand. Whoever this fellow was, he died long ago.

Words Words Words 2016/10/05(Wed)21:46 No. 751565 ID: fc828b
File 147572920474.png - (20.19KB , 400x500 , Seatroll.png )

As you continue to look around you see movement in the shadows at the edge of the cavern, accompanied by the heavy sound of dragging chains. A wet raspy voice rings out:

"Tender Morsel! I don't know how you got here, but come closer! Let me have a look at you! My ears may not work so good any more but my eyes do, come closer where I can see you properly. I won't bite... much..."

Your heart jumps. Its a sea troll. Your father warned you about Sea Trolls. Bad little girls who don't keep the ceremonial fires burning like they're told to are dragged away by sea trolls in the darkness of night to get the flesh ate from their bones!

"I have been chained here so long... please, tender morsel... just come a little closer... Look, there is a tunnel out just here behind me. Come, use it to escape. I won't grab at you as you pass... hehehe... I promise."

You can't quite see that far in the darkness, but it does appear that there's a passage of some kind behind her, and as she moves you can hear the telltale sound of metal on stone.

What do you do?

>you can see the human skeleton, still clutching a strange foreign sword in its hand. Whoever this fellow was, he died long ago.
Claim the foreign sword for yourself. Some might call it disrespectful to steal from the dead, but you're peers now. The dead share.

>air, drowning
An important consideration: are you even breathing? I'm not sure if we've been returned to the world, or placed in some kind of spirit world test chamber, but either way, you may or may not be as "alive" as you're used to. Checking if you need to breath, and if you have a pulse, for example, tells us what the rules are here.

>troll chained by the exit
I suppose this is one of the tests the voice spoken of. With the sea rising at your back, the only path is forward, and he guards it.

go back and grab the sword... It's not a spear but it will have to do for now. Also can you read what is written on the old shrine?

Also think you could use the metal from the sword, the flint form the knife and some of the drier wood form the boat to make fire? Your father did say something about them not liking fire so maybe we could use it to drive the troll away from the exit.

Go to the mysterious carvings/runes and try to see if we can understand them. Look for signs of any 'ritual' that might revolve around this cup of water and knife?

Take the sword, and the knife. Maybe the bowl too if you can think of a need for it.

Pacifist option: Sit in the boat and wait for the cavern to flood. Float up out of the hole. Or, if it's not seaworthy, do you think you could tread water until you can climb out of the opening?

Combat option: Kill troll with sword. Might be possible, as it is chained up and you are combat capable.

>Your heart jumps. Its a sea troll. Your father warned you about Sea Trolls. Bad little girls who don't keep the ceremonial fires burning like they're told to are dragged away by sea trolls in the darkness of night to get the flesh ate from their bones!
Can you use the old ceremonial flint knife to start a ceremonial fire? That might make the troll not come near you where you try to leave. Just light one of the dry wooden planks before the water gets them wet and then carry it with you like a torch.

Unless, this is a test to see if you're willing to help get the troll get unchained and not leave it to drown in the cave. Maybe we can look for a way to free her and not get eaten, so that both of you can leave the cave.

>I won't grab at you as you pass... hehehe... I promise.
She is a terrible liar.

Overload senses with flashy lights and loud screaming.

>>751568
This is too brilliant to ignore. if it works we could stay lit so the troll doesn't try anything funny.

(minor update to answer questions) Words Words Words 2016/10/06(Thu)05:02 No. 751608 ID: fc828b
File 147575534542.png - (54.02KB , 400x500 , Seacave3.png )

You take a moment to consider your situation.

>>751567
You can feel your heart beating in your chest, and your skin feels warm to the touch. You check briefly and you are, in fact, breathing. You try to hold your breath, but after a couple of minutes you're gasping for air once more.

You're not sure what specific semblance of life you cling to right now, but life it does appear to be.

>>751568
>>751569
The writing on the old shrine is mostly illegible, even as you clear away the slime covering it. Worse, you're not especially familiar with the dialect being used. Being a priestess, however, you do recognize certain bits. It appears to describe some kind of blood ritual. It mentions making an offering of virgin's blood, and then drinking-in the night sky. You could provide the former, but you're not sure about the latter. The rest, including what the ritual is actually supposed to do, is too far gone to make out.

>>751568
>>751583
You've never actually used a flint and tinder before. You prefer your trusty fire bow, but sadly you don't seem to have that on you. Regardless, you've heard about the basic principle from some of the sacrificial slaves. The wood appears to be dry enough, though you aren't sure how long it would take you to scrape off the kindling and actually get a fire going.

>>751572
The boat does not appear to be seaworthy, though it does float. You could probably hold onto it and use it to buoy yourself up, even if you're not entirely sure it could support your weight. You certainly don't think you could tread water that long on your own. You're a good swimmer, sure, but it would be risky.


The sea troll continues attempts to lure you towards it, but you ignore it for now. It would appear as though you have a few options before you.

Okay so our options:

1) Get past the troll. It's bound in place, but without fire, an edged weapon won't be much good against something that can regenerate.

Combat risks are obvious.

2) Get out the hole up top. Best option for that is to construct a crude raft from the wood and ride the tide up.

The problem is we're in a heck of a lot of trouble if our raft drifts too close to the troll on the way up, and falling prey to cold and wet over the wait are risks.

Important consideration: study the walls. Can you find high tide marks? If the water doesn't even go up that high, this plan turns into waiting for the tide to come in and out so you can leave via the front door.

3) Perform magic ritual on yourself of unknown purpose and hope it helps.

I'd say that's foolish and risky, but all your options here are.

On that premise, if we accept that this is a test of some kind, and there isn't a smarter or safer option to find, how you choose to face your problem is more important than the odds of success.

In that light, I favor the ritual. Addressing your problem with faith and spiritualism is more "you" than solving your problems though combat, or through a test of endurance.

Hmm. So. I think the boat can be used to help us float to the ceiling hole, and that option intrigued me because it might lead us to the surface and let us bypass whatever horrors lie beyond the troll. For all we know, the troll is smarter than she seems and is leading us to a dead end.

That said, the above poster is right about the ritual sounding a lot more like what a priestess might do. I'm not sure of the specifics of the ritual or what it might do, but fortune favors the bold?

> Try using the Flint knife to bleed blood into the cup with what looks like water already in it, and then... Drink it?

>>751608
>drinking-in the night sky
Could this be done by drinking from the bowl while the night sky is reflected in it?

well you were, or at least training to be, a priestess, try the ritual first and see if it helps. I mean the water in the bowl is reflecting the night sky right? So do the blood thing and drink form the bowl. If nothing else we can at least cross that off our list.

Also for the fire thing... well it's either try that or hope the troll leaves you alone when you try to pass by her.

>>751635
Oooh, try this.

Words Words Words 2016/10/07(Fri)18:33 No. 751788 ID: fc828b
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After great consideration you decide to risk an attempt at the ritual described upon the shrine.

Now, strictly speaking, for a ritual like this you'd normally want to bring at least four other priests, a handful of tastefully arranged torches or candles and a reasonably complex understanding of who and what you're trying to evoke. As it stands you'll have to improvise. You'd also like to be wearing something a bit more formal, maybe something with a few more skulls, but at least skins are never out of style. At the very least you have a proper ceremonial knife, even if it's not nearly as sharp or as clean as you'd like. Frankly, you just hope that this shrine still holds some power.

Gods and Spirits are greedy - your father taught you that - but they're also proud. Most would bend over backwards for even the smallest of offerings, but the presentation is important. Most won't be seen to fight over scraps or respond to the summons of those that are not making an effort. To make the spirits smile upon you, you must make them feel special. That is why sacrifice is so potent. It shows them that you value them more than the world and the worldly things which you give up. Often the sacrifice is symbolic, of course, but metaphysical beings tend to appreciate a good metaphor. And of course, it's hard to find a better metaphor than blood.

The ritual begins. You sink to your knees and begin to call upon the spirits of this place. Slowly, you draw them to you, inviting them closer with promises of ritual, prayer and blood. You supplicate yourself before them, a vessel of devoted will, a conduit of mortal worship. The stars above seem to brighten. The troll seems confused by your actions and has gone silent.

This is normally where you'd begin to exorcise the mournful dead from the room, to keep them from interfering, but you don't see any sign of them so you skip ahead a bit.

Your voice descends into melody as your litanies merge into song. You rise from your knees and take the knife in hand, brandishing it dramatically as you wave it about. Rhythmically, you begin to sway, moving with grace and purpose, ad-libing a vague gestural dance. You've heard your dancing described as sultry by some of the slaves, but that too is a part of the metaphor, you are flirting with gods. Your pace quickens as the complexity of your dance increases. You move faster and more recklessly, losing yourself in the moment. Your performance is a tribute to those you now pray, a show born of the moment, a beauty witnessed only once - a symbol of your living youthful purity, a teasing promise of the offering to come.

Finally, your voice reaches its crescendo. You hold your arm above the altar, and, with an overly-dramatic gesture, you cut into your wrist. The pain is lost in the adrenalin of the moment, but you gasp out a cry anyway. Warm blood surges forth, rolling down your arm and dripping down into the waiting cup below. Blood falls among the stars.

You hold your position until you're satisfied enough blood has spilled. Virgin blood is rare, and yours is especially potent as a result of your lineage, but Gods and Spirits are greedy, and you only have so much to give. Soon you are spent.

Slowly, you take the cup in your hand. It's surprisingly heavy, as though it does indeed contain the whole weight of the night sky. It savors the moment as you bring it to your lips. You inhale deeply the smell of blood and brine, then gulp down the contents of the cup.

The taste is foul, and you struggle, but you succeed. Reverently, you place it back down upon the altar before allowing yourself the dignity of collapsing back down on your knees.

You feel a sense of great spiritual satisfaction wash over you. A good omen, but it may simply be the light-headedness that comes from bloodloss. You stare up at the dark sky above. You feel a sense of oneness with it. As though you too were a part of the night. You know, deep down, that the sky is pleased. So long as the night sky remains in your belly, no star's light will betray you.

Words Words Words 2016/10/07(Fri)18:34 No. 751789 ID: fc828b
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Sadly, the ever-closer lapping of waves reminds your you can't bask long in the afterglow. The tide is rising.

Now what?

holy shit you're invisible... I don't think you can grab the sword and have that disappear with you as well however. Oh well, time to sneak past the troll... just make sure you don't make to much noise.

>>751789
Invisibility! Take the sword and knife with you and depart. You can just quietly walk past the troll.

Or kill it I guess. Is it possible to kill the troll with a single sneak attack?

>This is normally where you'd begin to exorcise the mournful dead from the room, to keep them from interfering, but you don't see any sign of them so you skip ahead a bit.
Considering your current and/or recent status, banishing the dead might be kind of counterproductive. Or at least rude.

>grab dagger and sword
Grabbing the dagger is a bad idea. It belongs to the shrine, and to whatever gods and/or spirits just blessed us with invisibility. Stealing from them is blatant disrespect, and is liable to cost us their support. Which would be bad.

The sword we're free to take, but if it lifts up without turning invisible, or if it does disappear and the troll sees it, he might realize we're still here and invisible.

Our invisibility will only let us sneak by if he doesn't know to try and block the passage. I say we don't get greedy, move now.

Avoid the water, and wet sand. Footprints might give you away.

>>751790
>>751791
>>751803
You guys seem to be forgetting something. It doesn't matter if we can't be seen or how quiet we are. The troll will be able to smell us, especially since we have that "fresh blood" smell on us from cutting our wrist.

>>751819
Can't we just wash that off?

>>751819
Smell doesn't exactly give an exact location.

>Or kill it I guess. Is it possible to kill the troll with a single sneak attack?
That would still be an unnecessary risk, since possible to kill does not mean guaranteed to kill.

>>751819
The room has an overwhelming smell already, so after washing it off that should be enough unless trolls have supernatural smelling powers.

>>751819
I was actually assuming there's some kind of mystic seal or binding on our wound, seeing as she was somehow able to stop when she decided she'd given the spirits enough. Without any kind of bandages or anything to physically stop the bleeding.

>>751789
sneak past now that you're invisible, just beware any of the regular issues with that: footprints, water and the like

Make a crude dummy out of driftwood and rub your scent on it.

Words Words Words 2016/10/09(Sun)22:17 No. 752118 ID: fc828b
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"Where did you go little morsel? You go to all the trouble of spilling blood and you don't even share any with me? That's hardly fair, is it? Come out come out, wherever you are!"

While the troll's senses don't seem especially sharp, you worry that the smell of blood upon your wrist might be a bit of a give away. You're not sure if a troll's sense of smell is specific enough for it to actually target you with it, but you don't want to take any chances.

Carefully, you kneel near the edge of the water and submerge your bloody arm. The sting of the salt water reminds you that this is probably not the most sanitary of solutions, but desperate times call for desperate measures. The collected blood blooms into the water before being carried off. The bleeding of your wrist has mostly stopped already - you've always prided yourself on the cleanliness of your cuts - but just to be sure you wait with it submerged for a few minutes then remove it and press it tight against the side of the skirt. That should get rid of the smell of blood... you hope.

You check to see if you're leaving any tracks behind - you don't think you are, but you'll have to be careful. The ground your walking on is mostly dry, for now, but the odd slimy patch here and there represent worrisome pitfalls. Still, you keep an eye out for any puddles that could alert the troll to your presence. The last thing you want is it to get eaten over a simple misstep.

You consider taking the sword or sacrificial knife, but decide against it. You don't want to risk the skeleton potentially attacking you, and you don't want to anger the spirits you've just appeased with your ritual. Besides, you're not sure if they'd also enjoy the stars protection or not.

Slowly you begin to make your way towards the troll. She's still calling to you, though you've been mostly ignoring her. She seems to realize you're still around, she just has no idea where you are.

You've never been this close to something so monstrous before. Spirits and gods are one thing, but this troll is a fair bit more corporeal than you're used to dealing with. Her matted fur smells like wet dog, her breath like carrion. You're distracted momentarily when a glint of her teeth catch the light. She has amouth full of messy black-green things designed to crush bones, each as long and slender as your finger if they're an inch. Your pulse quickens, you struggle to keep your breathing quiet, but it feels heavy in your chest.

The troll stops talking. She turns and looks in your direction. You pause, instinctively. She breathes in heavily, sniffing the air - its a wet sound, as though she's sucking in the air through some kind of clogged funnel. A droplet of water falls from the moist ceiling and lands in a nearby puddle with a loud dripping sound. You hold your breath.

She takes a step closer. Gently, you take a step away.

You think she may have sensed you, but she doesn't seem to have realized quite what's happening. she advances closer still. You move further into the darkness. She takes two steps more, standing now where you were a moment ago. She lifts up her head in your direction and snarls.

The game is up. You run. She gives chase. You feel a whiff of air as a clawed hand swipes at your hair. You hear the chains dragging along behind it and you pray that... yes - you hear the thing's momentum betray it at the end of the chain. She's reached her limits. It screams after you in impotent rage.

"Come back here! Meat! Morsel! Come back! Come back! I'm so hungry..."

But its too late. You're already well on your way.

Words Words Words 2016/10/09(Sun)22:18 No. 752120 ID: fc828b
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You find yourself floating. It's not an unpleasant feeling, but its quite disorienting. The smell of the cave, the coldness, the humidity, all are suddenly conspicuous in their absence. This feels annoyingly familiar.

"Oh, you're back! See, We told you that wouldn't take long. You chose most admirably, and through your choice We were able to make Ours. You've done as well as could realistically be expected, and for that We thank you. We'd say you made a good choice, but as We mentioned, none is any better than the others. We'd also say We hope you're happy living with your choice, but as luck would have it, you don't have to! Cause you're dead, get it?

Seriously though, thank you. Your choice has set in motion events which will shake the firmament, and We couldn't have done it without you. Thank you.

We commend your soul back where We found it. You probably don't have very long before the vagaries of the inbetweens tear it asunder, but then, you've lasted this long, so who knows? Maybe this isn't quite the end for you yet. At the very least you can comfort yourself with the knowledge that you actually had an impact on the world. Not everyone gets to claim that.

As for Us, well... The stage is ready, the roles are cast. Its time for Us to begin Our great work.

Thanks again for your help!

Bye!"

Prologue Complete Words Words Words 2016/10/09(Sun)22:19 No. 752122 ID: fc828b
File 147607677608.png - (1.90KB , 300x500 , blackness.png )

You struggle, but no avail. You already begin to feel nothingness nipping away at you like sleep.

You drift away and are no more.

>>752120
>that was all
>you set in motion events that blah blah blah
Wat

Neat.

>>752120
Where's my customer satisfaction survey. "1/5, anticlimactic letdown flavored with motes of false hope and drab meaning, would not end my life this way again."

Chapter 1 Words Words Words 2016/10/09(Sun)22:49 No. 752141 ID: fc828b
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You wake in agony.

Blinding cold pain shoots in through your every nerve as your flesh is ripped away by thousands of crawling icy thorns. You spasm and grasp at your skin only to feel your bones shatter at the motion. Your vision is flooded by a light so bright you are forced to turn your head, but to no avail. even closing your eyes does nothing. Tears fall and burn their way down your cheek like acid. You wretch at the overwhelming taste and stench of blood in your mouth, but your throat tears at the attempt and floods your mouth with flavor anew.

You cry out and are deafened by your own voice. You try to bolt upright, gasping, but hit something hard. Then oblivion takes you once more.

Words Words Words 2016/10/09(Sun)22:51 No. 752143 ID: fc828b
File 147607866149.png - (3.85KB , 500x350 , lightstream2.png )

You awake again, still screaming. Like a dream you can't shake, the sensation lingers. Now though, its tempered, dulled. More memory than reality. You can feel your heart beating in your chest, blood flowing through your veins. You're alive. Oh so alive. You don't know why but that makes you very happy. Slowly you relax your tensed muscles, slowly your eyes begin to adjust to the darkness.

You feel as though you're lying on your back. You shift your weight and wince as your leg bangs into something solid and heavy. You try to feel around but its no good, your completely surrounded by what feels like hard cold stone, as though you were in some kind of horrible box. A glimmer of light shines in from what you imagine is some kind of small hole above you, though you can't quite position yourself in such a way as to see out of it properly.

You realize, thanks to the awkward and pokey lump beneath you, that you seem to be lying on something big and irregularly shaped, though you can't quite make out what it is. The faint stench of death hangs heavy upon the air.

You don't know whats going on or how you got here. You are trying very hard not to panic.

What do you do?

>>752143
Sounds like a sarcophagus. Push on the lid, try to slide it over.

>You don't know whats going on or how you got here.
...what are the funerary practices for your people, or your faith?

Because what you're described sounds a lot like being sealed in some kind of coffin. On top of another body.

Feel around the "lid" on top of you. Can you lift it? Failing that, can you find a seam, or a release mechanism?

Can you reach the lit hole with your hand, even if you can't position your head to look out it?

Think about it. You were DEAD. They would BURY YOU.

Look for a cord. Failing that, try to push the top like you would a lid from the inside.

push up on the box and see if you can't lift the top off.

>>752143
Yeah, things to try:
*find rope to ring bell to alert others you're not dead
*peer through hole to find out where you are and if live people might come by
*if all else fails, attempt to lift lid

Try to lift the top off. If it's too heavy, wiggle yourself prone, and use the strength of all four limbs to lift the cover with yourself.