Digging? Sounds like a plan, just be sure to reinforce the area as you tunnel through. Head for the area just past the door, it hasn't seem to have been damaged anywhere inside yet.

Take the safest route you can, but get IN THERE

Someone should really work on getting some kind of teleportation spell. Like that one Gaia used before he attacked you. Well, before we convinced him you were his master, then you attacked him and arrogantly walked off, and then he kicked your ass.

>>171038
Oh, shush.

L, our limited vision suggests that there's no second floor for this area. You could remove the top without risking a cave-in.
Are you capable of making rock flow like water? That would let you restore the area to its original strength without the stresses caused by moving rocks around.
If you can do transmutation, then turning the structure into titanium or aluminum would give it far more strength than stone.

Otherwise go for digging.

So, now that we've shown it's possible to resurrect the long dead, would you be interested in helping us bring back the others? Including Lord Z?

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)20:01 No. 171251 ID: cf68aa
File 127242369659.png - (12.66KB , 400x400 , 919.png )

>>171038

>yeah yeah, fuck you. I let my guard down okay? And I paid my price.. My stone is only a fragment of what it used to be. If I don't do any big alchemy I have maybe ten years left to live.

>Now, let's dig!

He begins moving the earth around him. He goes under the rubble and into the room where the circle is. He digs up and finds himself surrounded by fabric.

>What the!? Where am I- Oh... huh.

Tickle feet.

prepare for a face-kicking. i think you just dug into Alex's dress.

"Helllllllo, Alex. Nice view from down here."

enjoy the view, descend a few feet, move over, ascend dramatically. It never happened.

>>171251
Smack the back of her feet to make her move. Just make sure you keep a straight face and act like nothing is wrong.

Why do you only have about 10 years left to live? Will you suddenly age to what you would have been otherwise? Will the shock of losing your stone cause you to die?

At any rate, there are a few options.
The first is to find somebody with a PStone who doesn't deserve to have one, and take it from them.
The second is to create more of it, which is an evil act but people seem to throw it around like candy. Also, some people are just outright evil enough to deserve it, like Dart.
The third is to find an elf that's willing to soul bind with you.
The fourth option is the kind of strange thinking that got us in this situation: Steal part of peoples' souls for Red Tincture, then use soul magic to heal the damage. The moral and ethical problems basically go away.

There are a few other options, but these are probably your best bets.

>>171266
Wait, no, there's one more reasonable way. Get a time mage to create a spell opposite of "Age".

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)20:36 No. 171285 ID: cf68aa
File 12724257763.png - (27.00KB , 600x600 , 920.png )

>>171264

Master L stays there for a few more seconds then figs back under. He moves a few feet and rises again.

Alex, Cecil & Gene "Master L!"

>"Where's the body!?"

Cecil leads him to the body of Amy

>"okay.. She's still alive.. Why the hell would you guys do something so reckless!?"

"Sorry Master L..."

>"Sigh... Well she's here now. Problem is we need to get back her soul."

"how can we do that?"

>"Well, when a magic user is killed by a powerful spell, whether by accident or intentional they are sent, not to the afterlife, but into a different place. A different world almost. To get there though we'd need an ancient artifact, the Goldeon Dagger. But that was lost years ago.. If we can find it we can go there and retrieve her soul.

>>171285
Well that's convenient. IT WAS RIGHT HERE IN THE SCHOOL.

I believe Cecil has it now. Instruct her in the proper use of it.

Well gee wiz isn't that convenient that Alex got it in her Magi test.

@Alex: go :3 and show it to him.

that must be the black place.

>>171285
What, that old thing? Cecil's got it. The damn place was full of soulless, but the guy controlling the soulless seemed like a decent guy. I mean, he was rather friendly considering we skewered him last week.

So, that's where we've got to go? Lets go get all the souls in one go, then bring everybody here back. We've got plenty of skilled soul mages on hand to bind the souls into items, after all.

Oh hey that reminds me. Master L, is Lord Z's soul somehow tied to this school? We are in contact with someone who has the Goldeon Watch and it points to this location. Also when the watch is in the building (which was a while ago, I admit) the direction was... everywhere. The hands just kept spinning.

Also I'd like to point out that there's another person we'd like to retrieve by the name of Laura. Her body should've been in a coffin somewhere in the school.

>>171295
The Goldeon watch finds a person's body, not their soul. It seems Lord Z has been dispersed over the school, which could make finding a bodypart either very easy or very hard.

>>171311
Well at least Lord Z's spiral of life is normal. If we can find a body part then it'd be easy to bring him back.

>>171324
No, it wasn't. It had the same mark as Amy and Laura.

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)21:12 No. 171327 ID: cf68aa
File 127242796374.png - (9.61KB , 500x500 , 921.png )

Cecil shows him the Goldeon Dagger

>"!? You have it!?"

"Yes, Alex got it during her Magi test."

>"But why is it even.. Never mind. You don't question gifts from the gods. Okay, that blade can cut into many different 'hidden worlds', one of which is the Dark World. We need to go in there and find the Soulless that belongs to her, the one that ate her soul. To do this we'd also need the Goldeon Watch which your friend has."

"Mya!?"

RJ "Uhm... Yeah.. I found it a while ago.. Sorry."

>"Now the question is, who will go with me?"

Gene "Count me out. I still need to explore."

>"well you guys need me to go to the Dark World so I'm going there. Who will join me?"

>>171295
Add to last update

>Sure we'll get this 'Laura' as well. As for Lord Z, I'm not sure what to do about him

>>171327
Hrm... It's going to be dangerous, so RJ and Nari should stay behind. While I really don't like the idea of leaving her behind, we need Alex to stay and keep the structure stable while we're gone so it doesn't collapse.

Cecil, Chel, and Felix should go to the Dark World.
Alex and Nari should stay with Amy.
RJ can either stay with Alex and Nari or go with Gene.

>>171328
Oh? Is there a reason why you'd be hesitant to bring Lord Z back?

I'm not disputing your motives, but he took most of the secrets to Sage magic with him, and we need that kind of power to face Dart.

>>171327
RJ can explore with Gene, since she's good at disabling traps. Alex goes too, to keep the building standing.

Cecil goes with Master L since he's really good at Sealing. Make sure he drinks (a) mana potion(s) to regain that lost mana.

Nari and her mom can stay and watch over Amy. I suppose Felix can stick around with them since he's a strong fighter and we want to make sure everyone's safe.

you know what would be maximum irony? if one of those souless you have already captured is the one we need.

Alright, screw all this nonsense.
@Master L, Alex
How much stuff is above you here? How hard would it be for you to shape that into a solid half-sphere dome that encompasses the room, with an aperture at the top through which we can enter and exit? Possibly with a stone staircase running down to the floor so no magic is needed to exit?

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)21:44 No. 171342 ID: cf68aa
File 127242984746.png - (10.07KB , 500x500 , 922.png )

>>171337
>Well thanks to the law of conservation of that'd either leave us with no walls to support the roof, no floor or no roof. I don't think we should do that.

>Now, how does this look?

@Cecil: Don't forget about those mana potions we've got. Drink up!

>>171340
I was thinking more along the lines of turning the roof into a dome. That would make this room all but immune to collapse, meaning that anybody left behind would be safe while at the same time giving us an exit which couldn't collapse and trap us.

Oh, and I was thinking of asking King Rai for the aid of the royal army mages. This place needs to be excavated, sanitized, and cleared; Cecil's not going to leave his family's legacy a decrepit ruin, let alone a superfund site like this.

@Cecil: Mana potions. Use them. Offer some to L as well. Also, we were thinking of ordering more of them from the I Shop; can you give us a number to order?

Ccecil fought and captured a soulless during his test... it appeared after Alex used the dagger and opened up that rift to the dark world... I don't suppose that could be the same soulless that ate her soul? ...Could it really be that easy?

>>171351
Ah, yea, we should check that.

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)22:55 No. 171366 ID: cf68aa
File 127243414526.png - (2.02KB , 500x500 , 923.png )

Cecil drinks some Mana Potions and restores all her lost Mana. Master L tells the group about who will go where. They nod and head off. Master L takes the Goldeon Dagger. After feeling around he slashes the air, it rips open making another tear into the Dark World

>I'd rather not get King Rai involved in this. He tends to overreact.[/i]

>>171352
>I would have sensed it. That'd be way to easy though.

>"Everyone ready?"

"Yes."

They step in through the tear. It suddenlt closes behind them. It is dark here.

>>171366
@Cecil: Light.

@Chel: Can you still hear us?

>>171352

I was just gonna say. Didn't those helpful soulless on the other side go fetch her when we asked about it?

...keep an eye out for a girl with a weasel hovering around her.

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)23:02 No. 171369 ID: cf68aa
File 127243454194.png - (7.47KB , 700x500 , 924.png )

Cecil casts fire instead. She maintains the flame on the tip of her wand. There are stone monuments everywhere. Ahead of them lies a castle

>"A castle!? In the Dark World!?"

"That wasn't there to begin with..?"

>"No.Question is, who built it...?"

>>171369
Probably the guy who can control Soulless.
Go check it out.

>>171369
Yeah, there's some kind of leader dude that we've met before. He doesn't seem to be completely hostile, so perhaps we can talk with him.

ah yeah, that guy. he claims to be a mercenary and when Alex cut through to here earlier he showed up. looks a lot like a souless.

>>171369
Just a thought... when RJ checked on the location of Zerin Aussa before it showed a weird spiral of life and pointed someplace, when she checked it in the ruins the direction went nuts. You think this is where Lord Z has been?

As for the soulless looking thing, I doubt a guy with a castle in the dark world would be wandering the real one as a mercenary. There could be some connection, but that isn't likely it.

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)23:14 No. 171376 ID: cf68aa
File 12724352482.png - (41.42KB , 800x600 , 925.png )

>>171373
>That may be possible...

>Now, you mention some man who resembles a soulless and somehow had control over them? That's impossible. there's no way someone c- OH FUCK!

A Big Shield appears and charges at Master L

>"Run!"

Master L tries to use Earth Spike, nothing happens

>!? I can't use alchemy!?

The Big Shield slams one of it's shields into him sending him flying.

>>171376
@Cecil: Cast Holy, Bless, or Light on it. Whichever you have.
Also, shout "IS THIS ANY WAY TO TREAT YOUR GUESTS?"

.... SHIT! earth as you know it doesn't exist here! pull out the golden knife, it can hurt them.

>>171376
The Goldeon Dagger is effective against Soulless. Defend yourself with it!

[switch to Cecil]
Alright, assist L. Can you freeze the Soulless? If not, blast it with light magic until you can Seal the thing.

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)23:33 No. 171391 ID: cf68aa
File 12724364027.png - (24.41KB , 600x600 , 926.png )

>>171378

>Damn it!

He pulls out the Goldeon Dagger and slashes at the Big Shield. At the same time Cecil casts Holy on it. The Big Shield blocks the Holy but the Goldeon Dagger slices right through the shield. It roars in pain and glares at Master L. It charges for another attack

>>171391
@L: Dodge, then slash at it again. See if you can destroy the other shield.
@Cecil: Hit it in the face.

>>171391
Dammit does any alchemy work here? Do you know anything besides alchemy? Can you pour your mana into the darkness, the way you can with every other kind of element?

If you can't do anything else, just keep fighting with the dagger. It's going to be gunning for you, so feint from it's attack and try to get beside it for the kill.

Master L 2010/04/27(Tue)23:52 No. 171400 ID: cf68aa
File 12724375518.png - (28.06KB , 600x600 , 927.png )

Master L doges the next attack and jumps behind the soulless. It tries to swing around but before it can reach him he slashes though it's head. It's body crumbles away and a unkown greyish smoke leaves it's body.

>"Damn it... I was so not ready for that. And all my earth alchemy is useless here..."

"We still got it."

>"Barely. And that wasn't even a strong one.. In total there are 11 soulless seen in our world, with three more seen only in this world. The one we fought was only 8."

"hmm.."

>>171400
Test if there's any sort of alchemy you can work with here. You have more than just earth magic don't you?

>>171400
Clearly, you need to summon the light spirit if you fight anything more dangerous.
Go check out the castle. If that soulless-guy is around here then we might be able to convince him to help us. He was working as a hired thug last time, so we should assume he'll be reasonable unless provoked.

@Chel, Nari, and Alex: Can you hear us?

yes, another fact is he was 'hired' meaning that even if he wont help us for free just throw enough cash towards him and it should be good.

Master L 2010/04/28(Wed)01:03 No. 171427 ID: cf68aa
File 127244182342.png - (25.02KB , 600x600 , 928.png )

>>171407

[The message doesn't reach them]

>Of course I still have other spells on me as well. But earth Alchemy was my forte.

They walk closer to the castle. As they do they see a man sitting in front of it with to antennae sticking out of his head. He looks at them.

>A human!?

"Hmm? we don't get many visitors...."

say 'that could be because that shield guy attacks anyone that shows up.'

>>171427
"Hello, I'm Master L, and my friend here is Magi C. Might I ask who you might be?
We're looking for some of our friends who arrived here about, oh, twelve years back. Can you point us in the direction of somebody who would know? Or at least tell us where we are?"

>>171427
It's not surprising that they don't get many visitors when the only way to get here is via a one-of-a-kind item. Plus the welcome wagon leaves something to be desired.

>>171431
Oh, and that's not human; triangular irises and antennae.
It doesn't seem to be a soulless either, since the symbol it's wearing is wrong.

Master L 2010/04/28(Wed)02:30 No. 171458 ID: cf68aa
File 127244702752.png - (8.32KB , 800x600 , 929.png )

>"That could be because that shield guy attacks anyone that shows up."

"Oh, they're only doing their job adn guarding our castle."

>"They should learn to be more cordial. Well, I'm Master L, and my friend here is Magi C. Might I ask who you might be?
We're looking for some of our friends who arrived here about, oh, twelve years back. Can you point us in the direction of somebody who would know? Or at least tell us where we are?"

"You're standing in front of our leader John's castle. The only safe place for humans in this whole world."

>>171458
Ask permission to enter and meet John.

>>171458
"Ah, we would like to meet with this John, is he available to visitors?"

Master L 2010/04/28(Wed)02:49 No. 171465 ID: cf68aa
File 127244814844.png - (29.56KB , 500x500 , 930.png )

>"So.... can we come in?"

"I don't so why not."

The man stands up and opens the door. The light from within almost blinds them. Their eyes adjust. The interior has a rusted look to it. They walk further in. Before them is a giant stairway leading up and several rooms in both directions.

>"Keep your guard up"

"Okay"

>>171465
That's a different symbol on the wall there. Get a good look at it?

>>171465
Yell: "Hello? John?" and start heading up the stairs.

Master L 2010/04/28(Wed)03:05 No. 171469 ID: cf68aa
File 127244912522.png - (4.44KB , 600x600 , 931.png )

They go up the stairs. The trip seems unusually short and after a few minutes they reach the top.

>"John? Are you h-"

"Come in"

The voice is coming from a door near them. They step into a dark room. There is someone sitting in a chair facing an open window.

"Yes?"

>>171469
"Hello, I am Master L and this is Magi C. We were wondering if you could tell us more about this land, and help us track down a large number of souls who wound up here about twelve years ago."

Suggestion 2010/04/28(Wed)03:13 No. 171472 ID: 7524b0
File 127244958761.png - (14.05KB , 557x518 , 126940410728.png )

>>171469
If this is the same guy we're thinking of he should look something like this.

Master L 2010/04/28(Wed)03:20 No. 171474 ID: cf68aa
File 127245005568.png - (6.00KB , 600x600 , 932.png )

>"Hello, I am Master L and this is Magi C. We were wondering if you could tell us more about this land, and help us track down a large number of souls who wound up here about twelve years ago."

"There are thousands of soulless out there, constantly moving and shifting. Any direction I point you in will likely be wrong within a minute. As for my land, we simply refer to this place as the Dark World. We know nothing about it, only that it shouldn't exsist."

>>171474
Ok, use the Goldeon watch to try and find the souls of Amy Sky, Laura Winselm, and Zerin Aussa.
"How do you keep this area safe? Are you looking for a way to the, er, 'light world'?"

>>171474
"It's our fault, isn't it? Using souls for power, creating soulless... that spawned this world."

Master L 2010/04/28(Wed)03:30 No. 171477 ID: cf68aa
File 127245065689.png - (6.36KB , 600x600 , 933.png )

>"It's our fault, isn't it? Using souls for power, creating soulless... that spawned this world."

"The people of your world may have created this one but in retrospect I am thankful for it."

>>171475
>I can't see very well in here!

>"How do you keep this area safe? Are you looking for a way to the, er, 'light world'?"

"Safe? You say that as though there were something to fear."

>The way he talks.. The fact that his back is turned.. It's unnerving.

>>171477
"Well you know the soulless around here kindof seem to want to kill us."

>>171477
"The soulless don't take kindly to humans."
@Cecil: Say: "You seem familiar... Have we met?"

Master L 2010/04/28(Wed)03:53 No. 171482 ID: cf68aa
File 127245198182.png - (7.11KB , 600x600 , 934.png )

>"Well you know the soulless around here kindof seem to want to kill us."

"I would as well. The souls of mages are taste far better then those of mundane humans."

Cecil "You seem familiar... Have we met?"

The chair turns slightly

"I highly doubt that."

>>171482
"What about... a catfolk alchemist? Pinned you to a tree? Or perhaps that was someone else that lives here."

>>171482
@Cecil: "I can't quite place where, but I'm sure we've met before..."

@L: Cut-off Cecil into the second half of his sentence with "You seem to be able to keep them from harming anybody around here. Is that something that could be learned?"

@Cecil: "We took a look in here not even an hour ago, and I saw a man I had met before. He had a bunch of creepers with him and looked like a soulless himself, but seemed fairly friendly. Would you happen to know who that is?"

Oooh, we could ask him if he knows why soulless are starting to appear in greater frequency all over the world. The royal army was looking into it...

>>171497
Go read "The Red Stone"

>>171553
Yes, I know that and you know that but Cecil doesn't know that.

Master L 2010/04/29(Thu)23:40 No. 172033 ID: cf68aa
File 127260963385.png - (6.89KB , 600x600 , 935.png )

Cecil "There was a man a while back that my teamat-"

>"So, you seem to have some control over these things. Is that something you learned? Can we learn it?"

??? "No.."

>"Why not?"

"You smell too human..."

>"huh? ... There've been a lot of soulless popping up lately. Any clue on that?"

"Unless they were manifested in this world I can not say."

>>172033
"Well at any rate if there's anything that we can do for you in exchange for helping us find the lost souls we're looking for, just ask."

>>172033
So what, are we just going to sit here and play around asking questions hoping to guess at something relevant, or is he going to turn around and introduce himself?

>>172033
"If you can't help us avoid needless combat, then could we at least see your face?"

L, you said we needed the watch to find them. How does that work?

Master L 2010/04/30(Fri)00:07 No. 172053 ID: cf68aa
File 127261125165.png - (20.92KB , 600x600 , 936.png )

>>172034
>"Well at any rate if there's anything that we can do for you in exchange for helping us find the lost souls we're looking for, just ask."

"Noted."

>"So... Can you turn around? That way we can formally greet each other"

He turns around. As soon as he does so a soulless appears in front of him.

"Leave"

Without any hesitation the two of them leave

>"Cecil...Did you see that?"

"Yeah.. I've never seen that soulless before. It looked almost human..."

Master L 2010/04/30(Fri)00:08 No. 172055 ID: cf68aa
File 127261130631.png - (9.80KB , 400x400 , 937.png )

>>172042

>ah yes. The watch can show us what direction their soul is in, but it keeps moving around. Once I go one way it moves to the other.

>>172055
Perhaps it's above us. Or it could just be very fast! Does tilting the watch alter the direction it's pointing?

>>172055
Well, try to average its direction out. Try for Amy first, since she's the one with a body waiting. As long as we get her we can come back for the others later.

>>172055
Check for Lord Z as well, see if it looks different from in here.

Master L 2010/04/30(Fri)00:37 No. 172067 ID: cf68aa
File 127261307610.png - (23.91KB , 600x600 , 938.png )

>No, tilting it does not change the direction it points in. And making it point directly up or down just seems to turn it off.

>I think this was a lost cause... The soulless here are too fast for us. Maybe we should head back.

>>172067
Just giving up? What would it take to catch these soulless, Haste magic? Teleportation? Having some way to slow them down or call them? I don't think the Red Stone does time magic, but we've never tried it. We could tell it to cast haste, if you think it's worthwhile.

...It may not be worth anything, but whenever RJ tried to get the watch to make a function it wouldn't do, it gave her a strange rune instead. She or us couldn't make heads or tails of it, so we aren't sure it it does anything usefull. But everything brought about a different rune, so maybe it is handy. Tell it to do something helpful or ask it something and read what it shows you.

>>172067
I think you're missing something, L.
If its angular velocity is that high, then that means the soulless is very close. Such as the one that's just off to your right at this very moment.
Head in that general direction and keep your eyes peeled for it.

[Switch to Cecil]

Cecil 2010/04/30(Fri)01:28 No. 172079 ID: cf68aa
File 127261611754.png - (30.13KB , 600x600 , 939.png )

-------------------------

>"Anything Master L?"

"Nada. this thing's going crazy..."

>"Damn... Should we head back and try again later?"

"Nah, we'll find Amy. I'm sure of it."

>"Okay.. !!! master behind you!"

"Huh?"

>>172079
Use Seal to create a barrier between L and it.
"Hello? Who are you?"

>>172079
@Master L: Confirm it is hostile before attacking it with the knife.

>>172100
@L: Don't attack, just put some distance between yourself and it.

Cecil 2010/05/03(Mon)11:33 No. 173201 ID: e9a4f7
File 127291161285.png - (16.75KB , 629x665 , 940.png )

Both Master L and Cecil jump back from the creature

>"Who are you!?"

"Humans.. In our world? Don't see very often. I am the Creeping Death. ruler of creepers..."

"Ruler of the.... Wait a sec.. Are you a creeper?"

"close enough... looking for soul...?"

>"Yes. We're looking for at least two, both girls. Amy Sky and Laura Winselm."

"Know where they are. Can get them. Trade. Soul for a soul. Deal?"

oh umm... pull two souls out of the Alchemist stone.

>>173201
Use US!... assuming we're a bunch of souls...

>>173201
Ask if he can retrieve Zerin Aussa as well, and if so then include them in the deal.

As far as what to offer? This is a toughie...
Something you could try is ripping off a large chunk of your soul then Soul Healing the damage, and seeing if a soul chunk is acceptable. If it is, then you can offer to exchange some of the 'meat' off your souls and your creeper captive for the 'core' of their souls.
You don't need their entire souls, just the bits that contain them. Once you have the cores of their souls you can heal the rest back into place.

@L: We're working out negotiation tactics in Cecil's head, but we have a few questions for you. The first is the hardest: Who went into your Philosopher's Stone?
Can you add Red Tincture to your stone, or does it have to be gathered a specific way for your stone to work?
Can you turn a loose chunk of soul into Red Tincture?
What can you tell us about the 'anatomy' of souls?
Why are you slated to die in a decade? Is it that you will assume your 'natural' age when your stone runs out? If so, how old are you? Is it that tying your life to your stone makes them coterminal? Why doesn't ontological inertia function here?
Oh, by the way, you probably didn't notice but we had Chel Sils with us. If your affection for Amy isn't of a romantic nature, then you might want to consider romancing her. Your gift to Cecil helped him bring her back from Soul Petrification, so you would be starting off in pretty good standing with her.

>>173202
From the size of it I would guess it has about one soul left, and when that goes away L's life goes with it.

>>173203
We're not.

>>173201
Negotiate, see if he might settle for one of the souls in the alchemist stone. Keep in mind he may just be trying to rip you off or set you up. Dealing with this thing is a bad idea, but what you need to buy is time. Master L is going to check if this thing just the souls we want. If it is you guys need to take him out.

[To Master L]
Check the watch again, confirm that this isn't the one who actually has the souls. If it is both of you just attack him.

>>173201
Oh, I wonder if that guy Alex met those other two times was the Ruler of Shadows! If we can contact him we might get a better deal. Like instead of trading souls we could trade a favor of some sort.

Cecil 2010/05/03(Mon)14:05 No. 173230 ID: e9a4f7
File 12729207016.png - (21.51KB , 539x635 , 941.png )

>>173207
Master L

>Look, I'm not gonna answer anything about how to make the stone or anything.
>And how do you guys know one of it's ingredients!?

Who went into your Philosopher's Stone?
>None of your business. No one important though.

Can you turn a loose chunk of soul into Red Tincture?
>No, likewise I can't make a stone out of just a piece. This'll answer another question but in order to make a stone I need the core of it not it's aura.

Why are you slated to die in a decade? Is it that you will assume your 'natural' age when your stone runs out? If so, how old are you? Is it that tying your life to your stone makes them coterminal? Why doesn't ontological inertia function here?

>ontological what..? Look, I'm hundred of years old, I stopped counting after I turned 200. Once I run out of the Stone my body will rapidly age to where it's supposed to be so I'll be nothing but a emancipated version of my beautiful self.

...Chel Sils.

>Wha!? I'm not doing that! I barely know the chick! Besides isn't she royalty!?
----------------------------------------------

>"One moment"

Cecil takes Master L aside

>"Master, could you sacrifice two of the souls from the stone for this?"

"Sure. it'd only set me back about half a year or so."

>"Thank you"

They turn back to the Creeping Death. Master L pulls out two souls from the Stone and holds them out to the Creeping Death. He quickly takes them and stores them somewhere. He holds out two souls.

"Once you take. Soulless. Everywhere."

>>173230

>> emancipated

emaciated

>>173230
Confirm identity, we don't want to end up with the souls of two hamsters or something.

indeed. confirm, grab, use golden knife and make an escape point.

>>173230
@L
Oh, that. You're a bit late there, since we already bought the spell from the I Shop and helped Alex learn it. If it makes you feel better, then you should know she was completely horrified by it.

We don't care about how important they were, we care about what kind of people they they were. If you used the scum of the earth to make it then that's different than if you used innocent people.

Quick and dirty? "Ontological" means "State of being", "Inertia" means "Tendency to continue unchanged". The combined term means "The tendency of things to stay as they are until changed". In short I asked why you would suddenly age instead of simply starting to age from where you were.

Is it really that much to ask of you? Just spend some time around her to see if you're compatible.
As far as her being royalty goes you're far more concerned about that than you should be. Put that out of your mind and treat her like you would anybody else.

Anyway, confirm the identities of the souls, then use the dagger to cut your way back to the light world. Secure our exit so we can get out of here once Cecil takes the souls.
As long as we end up within a day of rock-surfing travel of the school it doesn't matter where we end up. Besides the obvious, I mean.

@Cecil
"Zerin Aussa. Do you have him as well?"
If it doesn't, then wait for L to cut a way home before you take the souls.

>>173334
When we said Lord Z's name to the watch, we got a NORMAL spiral of life.

His soul is not in the Dark World. His body is just... difficult to find.

>>173339
Wait, you're right! How did I miss that?
Yea, forget Lord Z for now.

Cecil 2010/05/04(Tue)14:04 No. 173444 ID: e9a4f7
File 127300704595.png - (93.21KB , 500x500 , 942.png )

>>173231
Master L
>I need sleep...

Master L confirms the souls identity. He takes then and quickly cuts his way back into the normal world. Cecil thanks the Creeping Death then leaves with Master L. The tear in space soon closes.

"We made it... I can store the souls into my stone for a bit since they're whole."

>"Where are we?"

"Still in the school, but not in the same room we left from. Hell I'm not even sure what floor this is."

They look around. The only thing in the room is a single door with writing on it. It has no door knob and the writing says

OCCDRNIG TO RSEACREH, IT DEOSN'T MTTAER IN WAHT OREDR THE LTTEERS IN A WROD ARE, THE OLNY IPRMOETNT TIHNG IS TAHT THE FRIST AND LSAT LTTEER BE AT THE RGHIT PCLAE. THE RSET CAN BE A TOATL MSES AND YOU CAN STILL RAED IT WOUTHIT PORBELM. TIHS IS BCUSEAE THE HUAMN MNID DEOS NOT RAED ERVEY LTETER BY ISTLEF, BUT THE WROD AS A WLOHE.

IS TAHT SO? WE AT THE SOHOCL AERN'T SO SURE. HOW AUOBT A PPNELXRIEG, BNLEFDDUIG SCENETNE LIKE THE FNLWOOLIG:

THE SPREHAS HAD PONITS AND PATLES

SCNTWIHIG LGNUEAGAS NULARLATY MEKAS TNGHIS STGHILLY MORE CPACMTILOED. TIHS IS A TRHITY EGHIT LEETTR LHIAIUATNN WROD - NSUIUOESKUNIKSOIAISEAEJIACOBSPAUKIPLTE. CAN YOU UABRNMCSLE IT AND TLEL US WAHT IS SYAS?


"....Huh?"

>"It's a riddle..."

"screw this I'll blow the door off"

>"You taught here, you should know that won't end well."

"Any clue what it means?"

>"I'm working on it."

>>173444
What are the major languages?
And what thirty-eight letter words do they have?

>>173444
What I can translate: "Switching languages naturally makes things slightly more complicated. This is a thirty eight letter LHIAIUATNN word - NSUIUOESKUNIKSOIAISEAEJIACOBSPAUKIPLTE."

The first unknown word should give a hint to the longer one, it's the name of a language but I'm not familiar with it. If we know where the word came from we can probably look at the the hopefully small number of 38 letter words and find one that fits.

Or maybe the answer to the riddle is just "no".

>>173456
The first word is Lithuanian, and with some searching, the second word is NEBEPASIKISKIAKOPUSTELIAUJANCIUOSIUOSE.

It also seems that our Dear Author here played Perplex City!

>>173444
What's that thing on the ground near the door? Piece of rubble?

> THE SPREHAS HAD PONITS AND PATLES

The sharpes had points and plates?

spheras?
shepars?
searphs?

>>173230

Oh, Master L, we know its ingredients because of an alchemist in another world who got in some serious trouble over those stones, and we happened to hear about it. You probably haven't heard of Edward Elric. We could never get our hands on such a thing as a soul ourselves!

>>173444
The claim it makes is a myth with seeds of truth. The human mind is very focused on pattern matching, and what is really happening is that the mind looks for the closest match. Combining the context of the words with the first and last letters being fixed gives the mind all it needs to correct simple scrambles.

@Alex and Chel:
Ok, we're back and we brought a couple of souls with us. What's been going on while we were separated?

>>173553
[No. You keep that crap out of here. :|
We already translated the important parts of the spell, so you don't need to bring in outside sources to do it.

Also, as a reminder, we are fragments of Cecil's mind. We are not the OIP, we are not Legion, we are not Gion, we are not any of that.]

>>173557
Yes, because Cecil knows Lithuanian, and can make sense of that monstrous word.

>>173559
[If they have a Lithuanian word, then they have the Lithuanian language.
Also, it's not much of a stretch for us to know things Cecil heard but ignored. This is one of those times.
The point is drawing a line between in-universe information and out-of-universe information.]

...I still think the correct answer is "no"

THE SPREHAS HAD PONITS AND PATLES = The seraphs had points/pitons and pleats/plates/petals.

NSUIUOESKUNIKSOIAISEAEJIACOBSPAUKIPLTE = NEBEPASIKISKIAKOPUSTELIAUJANCIUOSIUOSE = "In those of masculine gender who aren't gathering wood sorrel by themselves anymore." Probably not a useful word in Lithuanian.

Cecil 2010/05/05(Wed)11:43 No. 173809 ID: e9a4f7
File 12730850194.png - (30.82KB , 500x500 , 943.png )

>"Nebepasikiskiakopusteliaujamciuosiuose"

With a click the door opens

".... How the hell did you know that?"

>"The voices in my head told me."

"Oh. I worry about you sometimes... Let's keep going."

They walk foreword into the next room

"Oh for the love of....."

There are three doors, each one has a different riddle on it.

"damn it... Well Cecil, your choice. Which one do we take?"

>>173809
Look at all the doors and read the riddles. The way out is probably the easiest riddle.
Oh, and was there anything interesting in that last room? Especially anything worth taking?

@L: Do you have any idea where we are? Or which of the school's masters knew Lithuanian?

>>173809
Eh, might as well go with the middle, it's more likely going to lead out. Maybe.


Waaaiiit, use the watch to find out where our allies are, go to the nearest door to that.

Pour monster blood on it.

Cecil 2010/05/05(Wed)12:06 No. 173820 ID: e9a4f7
File 127308639190.png - (32.87KB , 500x500 , 944.png )

>>173813
Master L
>No clue where we are. And how would I know what languages they knew!? I didn't bother asking them.

>>173814
Cecil
>that... Seems like a good idea.

they use the watch to locate Nari. the watxh points straight ahead. Cecil walks up to the door and a riddle appears. It reads;

Consider the following equations:

1 = 0 + 12 + 34 + 5 - 67 +8 +9
2 = 0 + 123 + 4 - 56 - 78 + 9
3 = 0 + 123 -45 -6 -78 + 9
4 = 0 + 12 +3 - 4 + 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 + 9

The numbers on the left side of the equations are calculated by using each of the digits 0 through 9, in any order, exactly once and either concatenating those digits or separating them with a plus (+) or minus (-) sign.

What is the smallest positive number for which you cannot write such an equation?


>... I hate math. And I don't have the time for this!

"Damn. Who the hell came up with these!? I know it wasn't me."

>>173820
Oh bloody hell. You've got to be kidding me.

[To Gene]
Hey, you good at math? We've just got back from the dark world and we're stuck in a spot with riddles out the whazoo, and they are ridiculous. I don't suppose you're familiar with this little gem?
[Relay the riddle to Gene]
Hopefully you've heard of this before, or know a shortcut, because otherwise we might be here a while.

I'd say 0, but that's not positive.
211 would be the answer if we couldn't rearrange the numbers.
Hrm...

Try 99,464.

@L: You're currently talking to the voices in the head of a man turned into a woman by a megalomaniac sociopath, and then went on to undo an irreversible soul petrification on a long-missing princess, settle a blood feud between two cities, kidnap and cure on of said sociopath's most valued henchmen, become immortal, learn Alchemy in a day, learn Soul magic in 15 minutes, defeat a mage who used magic which died with Lord Z, cure death, and wind up in one of the most complicated romances of all time.
You have every reason to worry about him, but at the moment we're more concerned about your mortality.
So, you've got about 40 souls left in that thing. I wonder if we could heal those souls to give you a bit more time...
Bah, we'll just have Cecil craft a spell to make you a spry young 20-something so you'll be fine once your stone fails.

>>173829
99464 is correct.

>>173829

Yeah, Cecil can do anything! :D

inb4horribledeathscene

Cecil 2010/05/05(Wed)17:36 No. 173936 ID: e9a4f7
File 127310620267.png - (29.73KB , 756x566 , 945.png )

>"99,464"

The door opens

"Damn... How did you know the answer to that!?"

>"Head voices again."

"Oh."

The move north. In the next room there is a large beast blocking the doorway into the next room, there's also a hole in the ground. Cecil pulls out his staff

>"What is that!?"

"A Behemoth. He was a lot smaller when we first got him though.. It's funny, you think he'd have died by now. A creature that size would require a rather large food source to support it."

>"How do we get past it?"

"Well I could blow it up or we could wait until it wakes up and decides to move. there's also the hole in the ground"

was he trained to do anything when the school was still around.

>>173936
"Is it particularly aggressive?"

>>173936
Take a look inside the hole. Use Light only if you can't see.

@L: The most important question right now is "What does it eat?", followed by "What is its name?".

My only question is where can you get a large supply of pink ribbon on short notice :o

>>173936
I don't suppose we could use a gravity/aer combo and push that thing aside? Otherwise, we could do that along with light to explore down that hole.

Cecil 2010/05/06(Thu)11:11 No. 174104 ID: e9a4f7
File 127316946838.png - (43.07KB , 500x500 , 946.png )

>"Was he dangerous? What does he do?"

"Oh, we thought he was a Kem but he just started growing. Before we knew it we had a Behemoth on ours hands. He's not dangerous just... In the way."

>"Okay, we're heading down then."

She checks out the room below then jumps down. Inside there are the remains of a work table and a old bookshelf. The books in it have crumbled. Master L jumps down

"Oh hey! It's old Z's study room"

>>174104
Carefully... CAREFULLY inspect the bookshelf for anything salvageable.

Cecil 2010/05/06(Thu)11:29 No. 174110 ID: e9a4f7
File 127317056379.png - (70.53KB , 500x500 , 947.png )

>>174105
>most of the paper crumbles at the touch... Wait..

She carefully picks up a piece of paper.

>A spell card? A'ge- Used to push things away. Seems similar to Aer almost. Maybe the lack of versatility is made up for in power.

>>174110
Cool. Make sure to preserve it so that Gene can get his hands on it too.

Let's head into the next room.

>>174110
These books are neither old enough nor ill-kept enough to crumble on touch. You're looking at protective magic.
Cecil, learn that spell then check the door; ideally we'll find Z's corpse crushed under some debris in his room.
Actually, check his name on the watch to see if it has anything new to say besides the circle of life and wild spinning.

>>174110
>crumbles at the touch
THEN DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING GOD DAMN

Gene needs to be the one in here, he likely has ways to preserve or even recover these tattered records. Lets get a good look at this so we can relay it to Gene later if we have to.

Anyways, as nice as this all is it's still a dead end. Unless there is something non crumbly in here, head back up. Or is there a door from down here?

>>174115
There's a door right there.

@L: Is there any way you could use your alchemy to strengthen the remaining paper so Cecil could read it?

>>174116
Ah yes, damn my eyes. Does it actually just open up and go somewhere, or do we have to deal with another sort of crap like a riddle or some fatass monster sitting in front of it.

Cecil 2010/05/07(Fri)11:25 No. 174633 ID: e9a4f7
File 127325672993.png - (73.43KB , 500x500 , 948.png )

>"We should let Gene have a look at these."

"Yeah. He might be more interested. Probably has better ways of preserving them then I do as well."

They go open the next door and walk dowen a hallway.

>"So master L, any clue as to what those things were in the Dark World? Not the Soulless, those... People."

"No clue. i've never even seen them before. They seemed human, they had souls and everything. But something was off. Not only their appearance but their souls structure was different from ours."

>".... Do Soulless mate?"

"No. At least not that I know of."

>"Oh, I was thinking maybe they were like half human and soulless."

At the end of the hallway is another door. They open it to find themselves where they started off. Nari and her mother are kneeling over Amy's body, Felix is missing. Nari looks up

"Cecil! You're back! I was so worried about you!"

>"Heh, Don't worry I'm fine Nari."

>>174633
"Where'd Felix go? Did he decide to join the others?"

>>174633
Hug Nari and have L restore Amy's soul.

@Felix: Where are you? Everything ok?

@Alex: How are things going for you?

@Master L
Perhaps they are just partway to a soulless somehow? Like their souls were ripped loose but not removed, or pulled back because the person was strong enough? How much do you know about the creation of soulless anyways?

Cecil 2010/05/07(Fri)13:36 No. 174671 ID: e9a4f7
File 127326459924.png - (45.40KB , 500x500 , 499.png )

>>174645
Master L

>Well once a soul is taken from a human they will go through a one hour trial. If within that time their soul is returned they will remain human. And more after that and they will become a soulless.

>Though this half soulless theory intrigues me... I may look further into it.
>Anyway this soul transfer may take a while so give me some time here, go with someone else. Oh! Maybe Chel can help..
-----------------------------------------------

Alex
>Oh, hey guys. Felix is with us now and he's fine mya. He said he wanted to stay with RJ. I think that's kinda cute mya.

>so we went down into the school. Gene has magic fire so we can see but we're in a uncharted area. A lot has been destroyed by the explosion mya and we've had to clear some rubble. We haven't found anything interesting yet though.

@gene: we found Z's room. the books were kinda falling apart so we left them alone, do you have any spells that will hold them together?

>>174671
Well I don't have much to say other than... find something interesting.

Alexis 2010/05/07(Fri)16:26 No. 174719 ID: e9a4f7
File 127327480589.png - (13.06KB , 453x529 , 950.png )

>>174675
Gene
>What!?
>"Hey I'll be right back! Don't touch anything while I'm gone!"
Gene Leaves
---------------------------------

>.. Like I said mya, nothing interesting.

RJ "Achoo!"

Felix "!? Are you cold?"

"A little.."

"Here, you can stay with me under my cloak"

"You don't have to"

"I would feel bad if you got sick or anything."

"Okay, thanks."

RJ and Felix hold each other for warmth

>... Those two.. Did something happen between them when I wasn't looking mya?

>>174719
@Alex
Yes, it was adorable. And almost entirely not our fault!

I dunno, I mean they could be friends with benefits. That's just a guess though. They don't look too close to be anything more really.

>>174722
Well, they're thinking along those lines, I doubt it will work out that way.

Well Alex, Felix was sleeping like a log, and had RJ pinned. We heard elf ears were sensitive, and thought a rub would get her to wiggle off of her. And...
[Replay the scene from RJ being pinned to Felix waking up]
We let them be, and things got more touchy feely. And then Felix got his ring, and... yeah. Neither are taking it seriously, but they both seem so much happier. Not to mention cute~

>>174719
You might want to have everybody head on back to rejoin the others, since Gene doesn't quite understand what's waiting for him; Lord Z seems to have been a huge fan of riddles and puzzles, so Gene has a lot of work ahead of him.

@Master L: You called it a trial. Perhaps they passed the trial.

@Chel: Are you excited to be helping in this historic resurrection of a long-dead person?

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)00:44 No. 175347 ID: cf68aa
File 127339107652.png - (20.16KB , 500x500 , 951.png )

Master L
>I need to study more on this.. I wonder if Cecil would mind having his soul ripped out for a bit...
--------------------------------------------------

>"Hey guys let's-"

"Help me!"

>"Mya!?"

>That sounded like it came from the next room... Should we go?

>>175347
Investigate, but be careful. There really shouldn't be anyone else here right now.

@Cecil
There is someone up here with Alex, calling for help. We're going to see what's going on, you should get over here to back them up.

@Master L
OF COURSE HE WOULD MIND

>>175352
>OF COURSE HE WOULD MIND
Well, it wouldn't hurt to ask...

>>175347
Look into the next room, but DO NOT ENTER IT FOR ANY REASON.
Call out "Hello? What's your name? What's wrong?"

>>175354
That's what convicted murderers are for.

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)01:15 No. 175371 ID: cf68aa
File 127339294115.png - (18.93KB , 500x500 , 952.png )

Cecil begins to head down to meet Alex
Alex goes into the next room to see who's there. A small person is flinging around water attempting to fight off some creature.


>That's a Denhider! Their sting is very poisonous mya!

>>175371
Oh? Is it completely incurable? Does it prevent resurrection?
I'm betting it doesn't. I'm also betting this is an illusion created by something lethal in order to bait you in.
Call out "I need your full name in order to help you!", since with their full name we can confirm they exist.

We'll let Gene and Cecil know, though
[Stream this to Gene and Cecil]

Use Move Earth to slam the Denhider. Nonlethal takedown.

>>175377
Oh? And if it's an illusion that's goading us into attacking the Denhider so we'll break open its confinement?

>>175380
...you're second-guessing this a little too much I think.

If you want to try something unexpected, Move Earth could be used to create a shield for the girl instead of attacking the thing directly.

>>175371
I'd say block it off from her with earth alchemy, but can you do that safely? Maybe just drop a small rock from the roof onto its head.

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)01:38 No. 175386 ID: cf68aa
File 127339433494.png - (32.76KB , 500x500 , 953.png )

Alex makes a thin wall between the Denhider and the Merfolk. He(?) takes the opportunity and slashes both the wall and the Denhider in half with his(?) water. It falls to the floor dead. The merfolk leans against a wall and begins to heal himself(?).

>"Are you okay mya...?"

"I'm fine.. Thank you for your help. That's the tenth one I've seen today. they thrive underground.."

RJ and Felix enter the room with Alex

"Oi, everything okay in here?"

>"It is now mya"

Merfolk "Thank you again."

>>175386
Who are they?
AND STAY OUT OF THE ROOM! ARE YOU CRAZY?

>>175386
Make introductions, and ask the merfolk what the heck it's doing in here.

>>175386
Hrm, I wonder if that could be considered water-based Alchemy?

Well we're already in the room so let's ask if they got poisoned. Do we have any antidotes? Ask how they got in here.

>>175392
It's special merfolk magic, but probably analogous to alchemy in principle.

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)01:52 No. 175397 ID: cf68aa
File 127339512882.png - (31.17KB , 500x500 , 954.png )

>"Well my name's Alex mya. These are my friends RJ and Felix."

"Nice to meet all of you. My name is Mizuno."

>"So what're you doing her mya?"

"Ah, I was sent here to collect any artifacts that may have been left behind."

>"Sent mya? By who?"

"Heh, that's confidential. I can't really say who."

>>175397
We'll we're here for knowledge, although so far artifacts has been a better haul what with the goldeon dagger. Still our goals aren't mutually exclusive, maybe we can team up for a bit. Assuming he wasn't sent by Dart, but he doesn't seem like the sort.

At least ask him about his experiences thus far here, it might be useful info.

>>175397
"Er... It kinda matters, since we came here with the rightful owner of the school and one of the teachers.
We're not strictly opposed to you taking artifacts, but we really do need to know what you're taking and where they're going. We need as complete an inventory as possible if we ever want to sanitize this place for future use.
Oh, also, have you seen any corpses around? We're collecting remains so we can resurrect the dead."

>>175397
Maybe she was sent by Lord Z.

@RJ: Hey maybe you can ask about how to unlock any Mermaid-related potential you have.

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)02:14 No. 175403 ID: cf68aa
File 127339649556.png - (10.34KB , 500x500 , 955.png )

>"Er... It kinda matters, since we came here with the rightful owner of the school and one of the teachers mya. We're not strictly opposed to you taking artifacts, but we really do need to know what you're taking and where they're going mya. We need as complete an inventory as possible if we ever want to sanitize this place for future use. Oh, mya, also, have you seen any corpses around we're collecting remains so we can resurrect the dead."

"I'm sorry miss... I really can't say anything.."

>I don't wanna force the guy..

>"I guess it's okay mya. Can you at least tell us a little about what to expect down here?"

"Well mostly there's just Denhiders. But you also gotta watch out cause there's some shades around to. Those will really kill y- Oh no!"

>"What!?"

"My cloak! It's ruined! Oh man..."

>"It's okay mya. I'm an alchemist. If you still have the pieces I can mend it."

"Really!? That'd be great! I think they're in the room"

>"I'll help mya."

Alex looks around. she finds a piece and picks it up

>.........

>>175403
Is that Dart's symbol? Move to patch his cloak, and use the Cell Stone as material to form a thin blade and propel it in between the vertebrae in his neck.

@Everybody We've got a Cerin here.

[Use Red Stone to cast Thead on Mizuno]

Okay, this is WEIRD. If this person was under Dart's employ, why did they not recognize Felix? Or you?

Consider continuing to act friendly with the intention of finding out more about Dart's plans.

>>175404
{CORRECTION! Everybody EXCEPT the ones in the room with Alex.}

>>175403
Looks like Darts symbol... time to force the guy to talk.

@RJ and Felix
This person may be with Dart, RJ try to steal his decanter of water and then Felix restrain in and put a soul blade to his neck. Time for interrogations.

Oh and Felix, on the off chance that this person is an unwitting pawn, try not to kill him right off.

>>175404
Easy there champ, we want to question this guy.

>>175408
[Do not let RJ and Felix know]

We have Phoenix Downs with us. We kill him FIRST, then restrain him, have Gene steal his mana, and THEN bring him back. Safest way for everybody.

>>175404
[do not use Thead]

>>175409
Or we can just take away his water, bind him, and question him. Besides, Thread from the red stone is risky, what if it has some undesired effect?

>>175410
[Show King Rai Mizuno, but not the location]
@King Rai: We have a member of the Cerin Squad here.
He doesn't seem to realize who we are.
Will you grant us a legal use of Thead so that we can capture him safely, with the understanding that we intend to revive him?
Also, is there anything we should know about Thead before casting it?

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)02:42 No. 175414 ID: cf68aa
File 127339814851.png - (18.52KB , 500x500 , 956.png )

>Okay guys WAIT!
>Before we do 'anything' lethal let's see if we can get more info mya.

>"So... How long have you been working for this person mya...?"

"Oh I just started. One of the other members of my group left so I filled in. Oh darn! I wasn't supposed to say group.."

>"It's okay, I won't tell anyone."

"Thanks. Fides would kill me. Oh darn it! I did it again.. Can you pretend you never heard that?"

>"No problem mya."

"Thanks. Anyway I 'really' shouldn't be saying more about them"

>>175414
Okay, get to mending the robe and do a Spike from behind straight through the heart. Move Earth to pin the arms and legs and perhaps get that decanter away from them.

>>175414
Alex, invite him to join our search party.

-> >>175412

@Cecil: Put your hood up. Can you try to seal a Shenjou curse on him and move it into The Child?
If it fails, then he's not cursed.

>>175414
>>175417
This guy is an idiot, and I don't think he has a clue what he has gotten into. He could almost certainly be convinced not to help Dart anymore.

Let's worn this guy about a dangerous enemy that has been attacking us, enslaving and killing others, erasing existence and such. Out of concern for his safety, of course. Then mention who it is that has bee doning so.

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)03:00 No. 175421 ID: cf68aa
File 127339920269.png - (15.30KB , 500x500 , 957.png )

>"So mya... Have you heard about this evil wizard going around killing people and stuff mya?"

"Huh!? N-no I haven't..."

>"Yeah he'd pretty evil. Someone like you might get killed pretty fast. Surprised you never heard about him"

"Who is it?"

>"The Dark Mana Wizard Dart."

"Lord Dart!? He's not evil! Take that back!"

>"He kills and enslaves people. I'd say that's pretty evil mya."

"He's doing it for the greater good! He's saved people to!"

>"And killed scores more."

"Don't make fun of Lord Dart!"

Mizuno shifts the water to Alex. She quickly knocks him(?) out with a blunt earth spike and seals him to a wall. The alchemy causes bits of the ceiling to fall off. Mizuno lies pinned against the wall unconscious. A black stone falls to the floor

>>175421
Move him out of the room and down the hallway a ways, then give him a Cell Stone so we can work his mind. The black stone could be another of Dart's traps, so we need to get away from it and wait for the others to get here and identify it.

>>175421
Ahh, the loyal, innocent idiot. Put a cell stone to him, we have things to show. As for that black stone it might be dangerous, don't touch it but try to use alchemy to determine its nature or just destroy it. A bit of alchemy to shore up the damaged room is probably a good idea too.

>>175421
That black stone... could be anything.

It could be an improved version of the Time Erasure bomb that we witnessed at the Tigerfolk city. It could be some kind of communication device. It could just be an offensive weapon.

Better be safe. Put it in RJ's hat for now. That should contain the explosion if it goes off, and we can take it out when we have time to analyze it.

Or, can any of us here inspect it to see what it does? Without touching it. It could be some kind of prototype copy of the Cell Stones we have.

Alexis 2010/05/09(Sun)03:16 No. 175429 ID: cf68aa
File 127340019018.png - (11.83KB , 400x400 , 958.png )

Alex rushes everyone out of the room. They wit several minutes then cautiously enter again. The black stone is still laying in the same spot. Alex moves a bit closer then casts Manascir on the object

>That thing was made with Alechmy mya... It's similar to my Cell Stones.

She picks it up. Nothing bad seems to happen

>This IS a Cell Stone.

>>175429
Hijack their network. Let US access theirs, but NOT let THEIRS access OURS.

>>175429
Shit... this could be bad, hopefully it isn't listening in. We'll interrogate the fool about what he knows of it. Can you shut it down until we're ready to deal with it?

@!0mNnvYRnes 2010/05/09(Sun)03:29 No. 175433 ID: cf68aa
File 127340096228.png - (39.98KB , 400x300 , 959.png )

>>175431

%^*)#$@%^)*#$%
@#%$^&%$%@#
@#%^&*(*&^&*()

[Nate]
[Fides]
[Aaron]
[Lucius]
[John]
[Toby]
[Bella]
[Gaia]
[Dart]
-Mizuno-

>>175433
Fides.

so we can prank call dart?

>>175433
Ok, attach a hijacker cell stone to this one so you can use it as a tap. Include a selfdestruct spell in it. Have L bury this thing DEEP in the earth.

>>175433
Oh wow... so they won't be able to hear us at all, right? We should at least check on each of the ones w2e haven't seen yet, so we know who they are. And maybe later try and hijack Gaia again, that's always fun.

>>175434
Sounds good. Fides is seconded.

>>175435
Of course, but it's hardly the smartest option.

Fides 2010/05/09(Sun)03:50 No. 175446 ID: cf68aa
File 127340221186.png - (24.14KB , 500x500 , 960.png )

>>175434

>Fuck! This guy.. I didn't think he'd be so strong... Damn.. I should retreat for now.

"Have you decided to stop attacking?"

>"Fuck you."

"So vulgar. You should try to be more like the snow. Pure and gentle."

>"Shut it!"

"If you leave I promise not to harm you any more. I do not like fighting"

>Damn... We need him dead in order for this to work...

Have you tried punching him? I hear guys like that have a weakness to fists.

>>175446
(Haha got his ass kicked. Let's listen in as he reflects on his failure.)

>>175447
He can't hear us, you know.

Fides 2010/05/09(Sun)04:07 No. 175453 ID: cf68aa
File 127340322591.png - (30.07KB , 500x500 , 961.png )

>>175448

"You're thinking you need me gone so Dart can complete his plans."

>"!?"

"I can assure you I won't stand in his way. This world is not a concern of mine. But heed my word. It will not be I or the other Masters who will try to stop Dart. It will be the hundreds who's lives he has ruined."

>"As if they're strong enough! The rest of the world are mere insects compared to him."

"Even the tiny bee can kill if they attack together."

>"Hmph..."

"Now, leave my mountain. It is time for me to meditate."

>"Sorry pal. I need to kill y-"

"The only reason you are not dead is because I will it. Your life is in my hands. See the snow around you? Within it is tiny glass fragments. You've been breathing them in this whole time. They are tiny, minuscule, but I can have them all leave you body rather violently if I chose to. I ask again, will you leave?"

>"......."

Fides glares at Fai then makes his way down the mountain

"Have a pleasant day."

[Switch to Lucius]

@Chel: So, what do you think of L? :3

>>175454
Okay.

Lucius 2010/05/09(Sun)04:43 No. 175462 ID: cf68aa
File 127340543410.png - (26.29KB , 500x500 , 962.png )

Lucius is reading

>Huh... So Merfolk can alter emotions. I need to see if this can be used by humans as well. Several branches of magic have been crafted in ways similar t No humans have their limits as we Hmmm.. No if w no that's not poss well it's worth a shot anyway. I'll put it on my todo list..

[Switch to Cecil]
Ok, we can spy on Dart's minions.

Suggestion 2010/05/09(Sun)04:58 No. 175466 ID: cf68aa
File 127340629013.png - (25.92KB , 500x500 , 963.png )

>>175463

>That's great! I'm assuming everything went well with the Cerin? Sorry for not getting there, we're stuck at a riddle door.

>>175466
What's the riddle?

>>175466
Yeah, everything's going well.

Speaking of the Cerin, they seem to actually truly believe that Dart is a good guy. Obviously we just knocked him out.

We also found out that we don't need to worry about Fai. He is apparently strong enough to fend off Dart's strongest minion without much effort. I think Nari might get along well with him though, if we went and visited anyway.

So. What's the riddle?

Oh, is Amy up yet?

>>175466
Alex set it up so we couldn't be heard. Spied on Fides who was trying to kill Fai, good news is he failed rather badly. Bad news is Fai doesn't seem to care about Dart one way or another. Spied on Lucius but he was just reading something about merfolk.

Speaking of which, the merfolk member of the cerin seems to be completely ignorant that Dart is a bad guy. We'll have a lot to talk to him about I think.

So what is this riddle about?

@Alex
Ok, seal it off and restrain our merfolk friend. We'll give him a good talking to he's conscious and bound. Nothing like a captive audience, eh? And of course search him for loot.

@Alex: Oh, before we forget: Is there anything magical in Mizuno's body? Or spells on him?

Cecil 2010/05/09(Sun)05:17 No. 175474 ID: cf68aa
File 127340746276.png - (1.63KB , 115x247 , 964.png )

>>175472
Alex
>Just a box mya. I can't open it though mya.
-----------------------------------------------

>Well here's the riddle. All it says is 'What does this represent?'

>175474
Tilt you head left and look at the lines as if they were the far right edges of blocky capital letters.

Can you see the word LIFE?

>>175474
"Life Lines"

@Alex Take it out of him, set it aside, leave the black cell stone there, and come back to the circle room. You don't want to be in the blast radius of anything Dart left behind.

Cecil 2010/05/09(Sun)05:50 No. 175482 ID: cf68aa
File 127340940338.png - (21.77KB , 500x500 , 965.png )

>"Life Lines"

The door opens. Cecil goes in to join Alex. They embrace and begin to talk about what had just happened

>"He.. Or she, I can't tell, seems to be okay. Dart probably brainwashed him though"

>>175482
So? Dart's too lazy to use normal brainwashing techniques, so just move the Shenjou over to The Child. If that doesn't work, detect what magic was used.

After that, check up on L's progress.

>>175482
He didn't act anything like Felix did, so I don't think he's magically altered like that. Just lied to and sucked in on false pretenses. Not that we should make assumptions, try and see if there is a mind slave to transfer.

>>175482
Perhaps we should find out what gender this person is.

...does anyone know much about Merfolk gender differences?

>>175486
I really hope this guy isn't one of RJ's parents.
It would be so like him to do that, too.

@Alex: Plant a Cell Stone on Amy so we can talk to her as soon as she wakes up. You already put one on Mizuno, right?

i think felix would be best bet to talk to them.

@felix: explain how you USED to be dart's minion but were brainwashed and forced to do anything he asked. he had another minion cast a memory erasure spell so you wouldn't be able to reveal any secrets i learned, which is a blessing in disguise as you were apparently a crying wreak over some things you used to remember doing.

Have we asked RJ for an aura check on the Merfolk?

Cecil 2010/05/09(Sun)21:10 No. 175700 ID: cf68aa
File 127346460127.png - (22.17KB , 500x500 , 966.png )

>>175486
>I have no clue. I'd assume the difference would be obvious if we took down this persons pants but I'd rather not.

They wait until Mizuno wakes up. He thrashes around trying to break free.

"Let me go!"

>"Sorry. We won't kill you or anything but we can't simply let you go. Not after finding out who you are."

"Why are you doing this to me...? I'm not a bad guy."

>"No but the person you're working for is."

"Says who!?"

>"Says humanity."

"What has he done that's so bad?"

>"He's killed and enslaved countless people"

"So has anyone using a Philosopher's Stone. Yet they're praised as heroes"

>"He's trying to kill off the world leaders"

"to make this place better! With all the crime committed and all the hate, this world is a mess! If Lord Dart ruled there would be no reason to worry about things like racism! We'd live in a better world!"

>I can't get through to this kid...

>>175700

"he turned my boyfriend into my girlfriend"

>>175700
Put a cell stone to his head, we'll give him a showing of Dart's Greatest Hits.

is felix in the room? if so send him out and tell them 'i just sent out felix, one of dart's old minions. he was being mind-controlled and until his memory was erased by another minion he was an emotional wreak because he remembered dart ordering him to kill his own family to prove his loyalty. tell me, has dart made you kill your faimly yet, or will he tell you to do that later?'

and/or 'what makes you so sure dart would be a good leader anyway? let's say he wins, he kills the leaders and becomes ruler of everything, then what? he makes laws that say 'anyone who says anything racist will be killed' or some-such?'

>>175700
Try to remove any curses he has FIRST. Brainwashed people aren't easy to convince.

"Stopping racism. Ah, so that's why he went out of his way to start a blood feud between the catkin and tigerkin that had progressed to attempts at genocide. Well, I suppose there could be less racism in the world if there were fewer races, but I doubt it.
Haters gonna hate.
And how about crime? Will he be taking away everybody else's free will to do so? You know, like he did for most of the Cerin squad? Tell me, did you used to be a girl?
Speaking of crime, isn't it murder to kill innocent civilians? Would you really want a criminal to stop crime?"

[i keep thinking up good ones]
'what is the difference between a knight and a bandit? they both kills people and get money from them. simply, a knight is given the money in gratitude, while the bandit simply takes it.'

Man, whatevs, he's being a dick to us. He's a badguy. Also uses brainwash magic. I don't give a fuck about the other leaders, yeah, they could be evil but they sure as hell don't brainwash people and switch their genitals around. I mean you can't be more obviously evil than that.

Think about it kid, he tries to enslave the party leader and make him insane. I believe we're a hell of a lot more justified than some ignorant idealist that may or may not be brainwashed. Ergo, fuck Dart we can say he's a bad guy. We got the props, dawg.

Cecil 2010/05/09(Sun)22:38 No. 175730 ID: cf68aa
File 127346991115.png - (21.15KB , 500x500 , 967.png )

>"what makes you so sure dart would be a good leader anyway? let's say he wins, he kills the leaders and becomes ruler of everything, then what? he makes laws that say 'anyone who says anything racist will be killed' or some-such?"

"People need laws. Without them and someone as strong as Dart to enforce them then there would only be chaos. Would you be evil if you knew you would die?"

>"Probably not but I am not evil anyway"

"But there are evil people out there who would hurt others. Lord Dart promised that he would stop them. He's saved so many people. He's good. The murders may seem evil but it's for the greater good!"

>"Tell me, did you used to be a girl?"

"Wh-what!? No! I've always been one!"

>Oh. He's a she.
>>175703
>Yes. Maybe you guys can help.

He has Alex make a Cell Stone and places it on Mizuno

>>175730
Hello, Mizuno. Please, tell us, what has Dart done to earn your loyalty?

Why are you using a person who admits to using evil methods freely, even if the goal they claim to pursue is noble?
Cecil? The one you were talking to? He challenged Dart after Dart murdered his entire family on a whim. No rhyme or reason, just killed them all our of the blue.

Felix? Dart placed him under the Shoujen curse, put him on the Cerin squad, then decided it would be fun to send him out to kill his entire family.
Here, we can show you what the guy you replaced was feeling around the time Dart was promoting you to his position.
[Expose him to the torment Felix faced pre-memory wipe]

[Also, the relevant parts of this >>175714 ]

You act like Dart is simply misunderstood, but you need to understand that he has been doing horrible things to innocent people for generations. We can't see his alleged motives, but his actions speak volumes.

So, what did he promise you? Returning your missing granddaughter? Immortality? Bringing back a loved one who died? Power?

>>175730
Hey there pal, we're your new best friends. And we've got some things to show you.

[Replay A series of events including Darts attacks, Felix's suffering, the erasing attack on the hospital, and add the emotions of those involved]

And just so you don't think we're just as bad...
[Replay our struggles, the good we've done, those we have helped, saving Nari and Chel and Felix and others]

So, any questions?

Also, has Dart ever helped you get laid? I think not.

[Replay RJ/Felix footage just before the sex started with us chanting "OH YEAH" Ferris Bueller style.]

>>175743
[... no, just... no.]

>>175743
[No. Very no.]

>>175743
[Thirding the NO]

But I did lol :3

>>175743

[My mind says no, but my fingers say oh god yes.]

It's nice to have a captive audience for once! Here, would Dart join forces with a luck goddess to travel the universe searching for adventure and bringing space criminals to justice? I think not!

[Replays episodes of the Lucky Bunny Bounty Show]

Cecil 2010/05/09(Sun)23:48 No. 175757 ID: cf68aa
File 12734740928.png - (21.42KB , 500x500 , 968.png )

>>175735
>>175736

>.... He is a good man.

>There was a small town where I used to lived.
>Everyday in that town was torture. I hated it.

>One day someone tried to kill me, he managed to cut off my tail.
>I ran away from the town bleeding. I knew I would have to go back. I had nowhere else to go.

>Then I saw him. He was walking by and he healed me. He asked me who had done this to me.

>He went to that town and destroyed those responsible. all the bad people died.

>And he gave me a place to live.

>Lord Dart is a nice man who truly cares for us halfbreeds. He may not be a night but he does what he can for those who can't defend themselves. In the end we will all be happier.

so ether your mom and dad didn't care that bad stuff happened to you or you were orphan that ended up at the asshole of the world.

i smell rewrite all over this story

>>175757
...

I think we need a better understanding of exactly what Dart has done. Why did he cast Shoujen on Felix, for instance? Was he an assassin like Cecil?

>>175757
Huh. That's interesting. Still, moments of kindness don't excuse or legitimize the sheer volume of innocent people he has murdered.
While we share many of the goals you have ascribed to him, his methods are as inexcusable as they are brutal. We aren't out to stop him out of revenge or to get justice for those he has wronged, we just want to stop him from destroying the lives of more innocent people.

You may be interested to know that much of our group is of mixed parentage. In fact, you know how you replaced Felix in the Cerin squad? He loved his family, they loved him, and Dart forced him to kill them all.
I can't see that as anything but an act of pure evil.

Now I'm curious... Have you ever had kids? If so, how long ago? Because we happen to know a girl who is a quarter Merfolk, and we would like to help her find out who her family is - even if you oppose us, you have to agree that is a noble goal - and there aren't too many half-merfolk people in the world...

>>175767
@Cecil: Are there any curses or magical effects on this girl? Can you tell if Rewrite was used on her?

[passively listen on black cell stone, if anyone says or thinks about Mizuno then bring it up front.]

wait, you said you were replacing someone in the group yet you didn't recognize Felix?

Mizuno 2010/05/10(Mon)00:48 No. 175776 ID: cf68aa
File 127347773037.png - (20.91KB , 500x500 , 969.png )

>>175769
>I can't sense any magic on her.
-----------------------------------------

>>175767

>He's a nice man. It's everyone else who is evil... If someone is trying to make the world a better place and someone stands in their way doesn't that make them evil..?

..children

>No. None that I know of.

>>175776
All the bad people died? What about the good people? Surely not everyone there was a horrible person. Did he just up and kill everybody?

Look there's a number of half breeds with us as well, and we've all been hurt and threatened by Dart. He does terrible things and towards terrible aim, just killing the bad with the good is not a good thing. Why not make peace, instead of killing everyone? We've made efforts to save everyone we've come across, both those who have been victims and those who have been enemies. What has Dart done to make peace, resolves difference, or prevent bloodshed.

>>175776
Everyone else?
What would you call a person who spends all their time helping people in need and trying to make the world a better place? You said that is good, correct?
That's what we have been doing. Dart keeps trying to stop us.
By your own statements, that would make him evil.

Would you agree that reducing suffering is good, while increasing suffering is bad?

@I Shop: Do you have any spells that can reverse ReWrite? Even partially?

>>175778
@Cecil: While we're working, could you go get that box Alex pulled out of her and, if they're done with Amy, examine it with L and Chel? Otherwise take a look at it yourself.

>>175776
Evil is defined by deed AND intent. If Dart is indeed trying to make the world better, then standing in his way is not necessarily evil, if the person trying to stop him doesn't understand the situation.

Mizuno 2010/05/10(Mon)01:26 No. 175783 ID: cf68aa
File 127347997178.png - (34.22KB , 500x500 , 970.png )

>>175782
>See. But people all assume he's bad but he's really not.

>>175777
>Well maybe not all of th-
>>175778
>well suffering is bad but if Dart succeeds...

"Mizuno was it? Dart is not the man you think he is. He is a evil person who won't hesitate to kill y-"

>"SHUT UP!"

She breaks free from her stone prison. Water spirals around her.