Previous Thread: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/14080039/

Your dracat purrs as she springs agilely up onto your bed, her bluish scales sparking with a bit of electricity.

What will you do?

>You have one day until your hydras arrive.

FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK

TRY AND GET DOWN THE TOWER ASAP

>>14104897

They will be delivered to your Offsite Dungeon, of course. They are far too big to fit in your Laboratory.

You make your way downstairs, where one of your gnoll servants has made food for you. "Good morning, master." She says, pulling out the chair of the great oak table.

You eat your breakfast. The familiar chill comes from an open window.

It's not as good as the one Algers made you yesterday.

You give your dragat a few scraps of ham, which she eats quickly.

"Master, if I may." The servant woman says.

"You may."

"Word on the streets has spread of General Morted's defeat. His friends are quite upset at you, my lord." She places two small envelopes on the table next to you. "These messages came for you, sir."

"Thank you." You say, dismissing her.

The messages are from Fereed Grignos and Darane Kiried.

What will you do?

bump with mah pic.

OK, so maybe a wooden table is not the most exciting thing to bump this with.

You are Alkenin Murejed, a powerful magician and aide to the king Rissik Thungon I of the great city Aldini. You have resolved to destroy your Worthless Son for his betrayal. He is currently far to the south, where the Rebellious Southerners and the Hated Dragons are banding together to strike at the kingdom. So far, King Rissik Thungon I has done nothing to stop them. You have some plans of your own.

So, what will you do?

You have a Laboratory wherin you can twist the Chain of Life, adding links from other creatures as well. This process is how your ancestors made the gnolls, lizardmen, and minotaurs. This is how you made the dragat.

You have discovered that Dragon's Blood is most certainly Mutagenic for non-dragons, as your friend Fereed Grignos suspected. His work on New Gargoyles has also panned out recently, though you're not sure what it is. His letter remains unopened.

Darane Kiried seldom sends you letters. You wonder what this one could be about.

"My Dearest Alkenin,

I have heard of your victory, and I am impressed. I say it calls for a small celebration, on me. We can talk about What This Means and about your Plans For The Future.

It's a pity about Algers. It's so hard to find good help these days, especially help that has some manners.

-Darane

Piss out the window onto the people below.

We're a fucking WIZARD, we can do what we want.

Make Algers a robot leg.

No, make him two, and cut off his other leg, so he can fly with rocket legs.

Read all the letters.

Cast Scry to see the people who sent them.

Catch something on fire, throw it out the window.

Fly to the Scrying room, scry on the people who sent the letters.

>>14105686

You would never assert your authority in so obvious a manner.

And besides, you're not some Spell Memorizing Plebian. Your spells come from the depths of your Soul, expressed in Pure Blasts of Flame, and Lightning. You don't need some Book Penned by a Shut-In to tell you how to bend your foes to your will. Your power cannot be exhausted in so stagnant a manner, your spells not shrugged off easily, like the Clothing of the Young Women You Bed Despite Your Aging Features.

You are a Sorcerer. And you Disdain being compared to such imitations.

>>14105703

You consider the possibility. No one has ever successfully made a functioning prosthetic. Your mind drifts to the wacky, reminding you of Fereed Grignos, probably the most eccentric person you know. Perhaps his research into Gargoyles and Golems would be of some assistance.

You open his letter.

"Alkenin,

I have still not shown you my breakthrough. But I assure you it is ten times more impressive than it was yesterday! They can read, write... They actually pay attention and learn! And my ice- well, that can wait I suppose.

Oh, congratulations on winning that fight contest thing or whatever.

-Fereed"

He doesn't get out much.

You head up to your Scrying Array to look in on him.

He is currently casting various spells on a block of ice with a look of concentration on his face.

Huh.

Darane Kiried is weaving a new dress using various beautiful threads and cloths. She notices the scrying sensor, and winks through it.

You suppose she means either he wants to meet with you tonight, or very soon.

What will you do?

>>14105848

Should be "she wants to". She's not a tranny as far as you can tell.

Back in 10.

>>14105848
So we can't memorize new spells?

GAY.

UBER GAY.

Let's KILL SOMETHING

Wait, can we Summon things?

>>14105989

Why would you "memorize" a new spell? You magic's potency is through the roof, and you have all of it at your fingertips. Even your most basic spells have been honed to perfection, something one of those book-headed imbeciles doesn't know a thing about.

As a matter of fact, you pull out Agrus Morted's memory. He was a wizard. Look where his rope trick sleeping ass is now. A tiny black bead in your hand. His body is being held in your Storeroom, drooling like a mindless idiot. He prepared for every occasion. Why would you prepare for every occasion when you can make THEM come to you? It's attitudes like that that lead to an Early Grave.

You smile to yourself. Doing him in was actually pretty satisfying.

>>14106228
Because.

Early Graves also come to those who can't cast Rope Trick when not doing so would kill them.

We need to be Batman.

>>14106200

You don't enjoy killing things without a reason. However, exercising your skills after such a long period of abstaining from Disposing of Your Enemies is certainly a valid reason.

You know you cannot summon things inside your tower. It has been warded against teleportation and extraplanar travel.

There is the lizardman in the storeroom who cut of Algers' leg. You wonder if the gnolls have dealt with him yet. If they haven't, perhaps you could examine the effects of your Disruptive Rays on him and see how many you can hit him with before he expires.

>>14106264
Let's DO EET

Try out some new Pain-Inflicting Spells first.

>>14106264
Torture it with magic a bit first. See if we can turn it to our side, and have it cut off its own leg as punishment.

>>14106240

You don't understand.

You are prepared.

Like any good spellcaster, your Secret Horde of Scrolls For Every Occasion is always close by. So, there is no reason to laud your flexibility. You have warded your tower against teleportation, planar travel, and it is treated to withstand a magical assault easily. A physical assault is out of the question due to the Tower Defenses. You did not rise to your rank merely by the virtue of your birth, like your Worthless Son. You have killed hundreds of other spellcasters, priests out of their place, others with the Gift like yourself, and a great many Imitators. Only one were you ever impressed with. It was a pity you had to kill him. He was a Young Man with Great Promise, but orders were orders.

>>14106290
>>14106301

You head down to the Storeroom. The two gnolls watching the room salute you as you move out of the way.

The storeroom is quite large, filled with enough grain, alchemical equipment, and wine to last you and the servants for two years. You can see the lizardman, stripped of his clothing with a number of cuts and bruises he did not have before in the center of the room, nearby his former master, who is sitting without emotion in a wooden chair.

He sees you as you come in. He prostrates himself. "I am sssory master."

You do not enjoy seeing creatures in pain. Such a draw is beneath you.

You spread your fingers without words, and razor-sharp darts constructed from arcane energy with a large electrical battery hit the lizardman in numerous major nerves in the its body.

"You do not yet understand how sorry you are." You say, clenching your fist. The batteries discharge, causing the lizardman to sceam in agony as every one of his nerves spasms, leaving him in a seizuring pile on the floor.

This creature injured Algers. You will make an exception in this case.

>>14106464
Keep torturing it.

Tell it to cut off its leg if it wants the pain to stop.

>>14106464
THROW IT OUT THE WINDOW.

Come on OP, you gave us a window in our room, now let us use it.

Make him cut off his leg, like >>14106502 and >>14106301 said

Stop torturing it, leave it to the gnolls.

I KNEW IT!
I KNEW THIS WOULD RETURN!
I SENSED YOU, OP!
I SENSED IT!

>>14106464

(Hurm, strange picture)

You pause for a moment, the magical batteries in the spell ceasing their onslaught.

"That gnoll who you removed the leg from has been bred to be more intelligent, more magically adept, and better than his fellows."

The lizardman looks at you with eyes full of fear. You turn the electricity back on.

"He is MY personal attendant, and any slave in this house I would kill instead of him in a second."

You pause it for a moment, giving the lizardman a chance to breathe.

"He has learned to read, write and speak in five languages, whereas you barely manage one. His conversation has entertained even King Thungon himself. If he was human, I would-"

You pause. What do you consider Algers? He was there when your wife passed, caring for her as you desperately looked for a cure. When she passed, he brought you back to your home against your will, and even misled assassins looking to exploit your vulnerable position.

"-If he was human I would have killed you where you stood." You lie to the creature.

The lizardman looks back up at you. "P-pleassse-"

"YOU WILL ONLY SPEAK TO ME WHEN I HAVE FINISHED SPEAKING!" Your voice thunders through the room, and the lizardman's body writhes in agony as you clench your hand.

>>14106836
Dammit, he was our friend.

CURSES.

WE HAD A FRIEND AND WE LET HIM GET HURT.

Make them redefine the definition of pain. The lizard will suffer as none have before.

>>14106836


"You have no idea the blow you have struck against this house, which you now seem to be property of." You say, looking at his former master, who is passionless, like a doll, watching the scene. "That gnoll is worth more to this house than your entire regiment!"

You look down on the lizardman, who clenches his teeth in pain as his nerves recover from the overloading shock. You incline your head, inviting him to speak.

"I... hrg... I understand... massster."

"You do not understand." You feel your heart grow cool as ice as you respond to the lizardman. You activate the secondary function of the spell, and cause him to stand. You create a sword from pure force and place it in his left hand. His eyes widen in surprise as his body acts without being told to.

"You cannot understand." You focus, and his left arm raises, the black force sword clutched in it. "You will spend the rest of your life trying to understand."

The sword descends, and with a yell that dwarfs the screams from before, the lizardman cleanly removes his own leg at the mid thigh. You disengage your spells as he falls to the ground.

"Now, you have felt the pain you caused him. And you will be injured as he is." He screams, clutching at his thigh, bleeding across the cobblestones. You force his eyes open with telekinesis.

"Now you can begin to understand."

You heal his leg with the application of a healing scroll, pink bare skin forming over the bare muscle and bone of the stump. The nerves will heal on their own, painfully.

"You may do as your people do with your limb. Bury it, eat it, I care not."

>>14106875
Good.

NOW GET TO WORKING ON THE ROBOT LEG FOR THE GNOLL.

>>14106875

Oh dear. That looked painful.

>>14106875


You go to step out of the storeroom, giving the lizardman a final warning as you leave.

"If anything 'happens' to Algers, that same thing shall also happen to you."

You leave, satisfied. Your servants look at you with satisfied expressions. You notice quite a few of them standing near you.

"Do not harm him any more. I have taken care of this."

They nod, and go back to their duties.

What will you do next?

>>14106923
ROBOT LEG.

FOR ALGERS.

>>14106932

Concurran'.

Robot leg, definitely.

>>14106894

You are unsure of Algers' ability to stand up to magical experimentation. However, you have to try.

You grin to yourself. After all, you have Someone With the Exact Same Injury to use for any Dangerous Testing.

How will you proceed?

>>14106952

Do we have any knowledge of alchemic golem creation?
Or perhaps life-magic sufficient to regrow limbs?

This will be fun.

First, experiment with powering or controlling devices by attaching them somehow the lizard's nerves. Then figure out how we can integrate some sort of non-toxin non-corrosive metal with the bone. Then we construct a prototype of the leg, and test it on the lizard. Then we make a better one, and give it to Algers.

Simple.

>>14107000
This.

Also, give it the ability to hold things. Like a knife or really weak wand or whatever. So he can defend himself.

>>14106998

You have cared far less for golem making than other sorcerers. You like having intelligent servants who can help things run smoothly. Gnolls may not be the smartest, but they are dependable, strong, and good at working as a team. Having to point your own minions to what needs to be accomplished next every five minutes would grate on your nerves. And after a while, none of them would be left.

You know of only divine methods of regrowing limbs. And having a priest do such a thing for a slave would start people asking questions. Even for Algers, it would run the risk of making you seem weak or foolish. Most regenerative creatures you could alter his chain of life with would make him dumber, and you're not even sure if the limb would regrow, as it was severed before the augmentation.

Golems... Fereed is the leading authority on golems, and gargoyles. He could help if it comes to making the lifeless move. And no one pays him any mind. After all, you could just say the operation was a "favor" to him, and no one would be any the wiser.

There are many ways you can do this. How will you proceed?

>>14107095
ROBOT LEG.

WITH A GUN HOSTLER.

>>14106827

You mean

you KNEW I would return.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

It looks like we'll be talking with Fereed.

Hell, if we manage to get prosthetics that work, imagine how many -useful- soldiers in the army will be able to continue fighting for king and country, or even how many we could have go in for voluntary upgrade?

Roboleg

Let's make robocop

>>14107175

You have your coachman ready your carriage, and head out to Fereed's Laboratory.

The unimposing brown-stones building is currently being painted over in an... incredibly vibrant orange color. You notice the gargoyles are wearing eye protection. You tell your driver not to look at the color for too long before heading inside.

You pass by numerous assistants testing a goopy black substance you recognize as Deep Violet with attempts at annihilating it. So far, nothing seems to be working.

Fereed is looking over to a very slim, well-carved gargoyle who is sitting on a table. "Now then, two plus two is?"

"Four!" The gargoyle says excitedly, its glassy eyes a sparkling green.

"Quite the improvement." You say.

"Oh yes, I know." Fereed says, patting the gargoyle on the head. "Now, run along and work on your spelling, young man."

"Yes father." The gargoyle says, bowing respectfully to you before running down the hallway like a five and a half foot tall child.

"And manners." You grin. "Now, Fereed, I am truly impressed."

"I try." He says.

>>14107283
"Let's get down to business, friend. You may have heard there was an incident at my tower, and my favorite servant has been maimed.

Rather than letting him go to waste, I have decided to use this as an opportunity to delve into making working prosthetics. You were the first person I thought of who could have some thoughts on the matter."

>>14107352

Nonono! Too direct.
Indicate that we have taken an interest in prosthetics.
THEN hint that we may have a perfectly viable test subject for him to further his own research in that area.

"You may have heard of what befell Algers yesterday." You say.

"Oh yes, terrible shame that. And I was just up to teaching him the remaining steps to the march of the ancestors. Imagine the looks at court!" He sighs. "I suppose I can always teach my boys, but it won't be the same."

"A thought had crossed my mind." You say, politely interrupting Fereed before he goes off on a tangent or you have to imagine anything involving gargoyles like the Unicycle Incident.

"Yes?" He snaps out of it quickly with a smile on his face as he continues his thought process privately.

"Perhaps a prosthetic could be constructed for him."

"Well, no doubt. But it will be months before he can walk normally, doubtful up all those steps. And he'll certainly never dance again."

"Not a normal one. A functioning replacement."

"Oho, now who's been into the wine early?" Fereed laughed.

"Don't you laugh at me. There must be some way to do it."

Fereed thinks to himself for a while, his eyes inspecting the ceiling.

"It needs to be non-toxic, as well. It is my intention to improve our armies with more powerful limbs, perhaps with built in weapons. A wand contained inside perhaps. That might allow them to cast a single spell."

Fereed snaps his fingers, grinning. "Remember the unicycle incident?"

You lose it. "What does this have to do with the unicycle incident?!"

He pauses, holding up a finger. "Do. You. Remember. The. Unicyc-"

You bury your face in your hands. "Yes I remember the unicycle incident." You mutter.

"Well, after you Stormed Off, I went to see what I could do about the mess."

"The terrible, terrible mess you made of those creatures." You add.

"Yes, well he should have practiced harder! He'll certainly never unicycle across a tightrope again."

You pause, bringing your face up. "Thunlin's beard, he still lives?"

"Certainly, broke his arm and leg off in the fall, killed most of the orchestra, but he lived." He looks disappointed. "He won't do anything I ask him now, even after I fixed him."

You look over at him astonished. "You mean you've already developed artificial limbs?"

He shrugs. "In a sense. Come, I'll show you."

"What about arms? Hands? Can you make limbs dexterous enough to let one continue to cast spells?"

FOLLOW HIM!

Also, see if we can get some kind of sweet looking staff to wave around. With floating crystals and stuff. And lighting shooting between the crystals at random.

The staff can focus and enhance our already amazing power.

>>14107470

You pool your thoughts for later, something you wish Fereed would do more often.

He leads you deeper into the complex, through cramped passageways and gargoyles doing manual labor. You see great machines with swirling lights that you suspect are Elemental Energy inside of them, most likely advanced versions of his Primalium Core Generators upstairs.

He leads you to a residential wing where you hear the sound of a ball hitting the wall and floor over and over again.

"He loves playing this." Fereed whispers to you, giddy that he gets to show something off you haven't seen yet.

Inside of a room with a glass wall facing the hallway, a gargoyle stands bouncing a rubber ball off of the sculpted stone wall. You recognize him as the star pupil, but with metallic bands around his upper arm and legs.

"Vladi! How are you doing this fine day? Look who's here to see you with all your arms and legs!" Fereed says to the gargoyle in a cutesy voice. Even with his limited intellect, you can tell the gargoyle thinks the voice is as stupid as you think it is.

"Umm, it's good to see you after all this time, lord Mure-, murujur-" He stumbles, looking a bit embarrassed.

"It's nice to see you too, Vladi." You cut him off, looking over to Fereed."

"Vladi, would you show master Mu-Re-Jed how you walk?"

The gargoyle raises an eyebrow and his mouth goes slightly agape, walking away and back again with an expression on his face like he's suddenly come to doubt the wisdom of his creator.

"You see, I had the stumps shaved down, and new legs put on him made of a soil-water mixture that the elemental spirit was capable of turning into a muscular replacement." Fereed sighs. "Granite bones and a semi-flexible exoskeleton, mimicing the normal vein and muscle functions of creatures of flesh and bone. Why didn't I do it earlier?!"

>>14107095
>Most regenerative creatures you could alter his chain of life with would make him dumber,
Most? Hurmmm, interesting thought, can we use crossbreeds in altering other creatures? I'm thinking our super-hydras might be handy, or failing that, some kind of crossbreed we develop for the purpose. Also for the lulz. It might not regrow what he's lost, so the prosthetics seem like a good idea, but it could help stop problems in the future.
Plus, if we augment a bunch of our servants with this, think of the trolling potential.
>Adventurers fight their way through our minions
"At last, evil sorcerer, the battle has ended, and we have defeated your foul hordes. Now, we bring you to justice!"
"Defeated? Ended? Hahahaha, the battle has just begun!"
>Adventurers look behind, see all beaten enemies rising back up
>Ohgodsno.jpg

Also, FUCK YEAH SORCERER QUEST! FATHER OF THE KHAJIIT, YEAH!

Also, possibility on this
>HERITAGE CODE RECOGNIZED
stuff.
Is this some kind of world building thing, and what we do is basically being acessed in the archives in some kind of history lesson or some such? Are we GLORIOUS FOUNDING FATHER! or DESPICABLE TRAITOR TO GLORIOUS MOTHERLAND! depending on how quest goes? Because that would be awesome.

>>14107696
>Why didn't I do it earlier?!"
Because you're an idiot. Possibly an idiot savant, I'm not decided yet.
DO NOT ACTUALLY SAY THAT BIT.

Flatter him slightly, but point out (gently) that that won't work for anything other than a gargoyle (or elementals, or whatever. We should know this in-character). It might be adaptable to work on flesh creatures, though, if we could use some kind of cloning technique to grow the limb seperately (or just make a perfect Chain of Life copy and cut the leg off it, whatever) and then graft it on, assuming we have the magitech for it. Maybe even embed some enchanted stuff in the limb/wound, depending on what we can do...

>>14107484

"And his arm?" You ask.

"Well, we went through a few steps with that, didn't we, Vladi my boy?" Fereed croons over to the gargoyle.

"Yes. Took some time to get working." Vladi says, flexing his right arm and hand.

"It sure did!" Fereed says, like he's talking to a small dog. "I went through three different models. Let me tell you, I wouldn't want to have to put this together." He says, holding his hand up in front of your face. "But this model on Vladi he says works almost like the old one! Isn't that-"

"So? Why can't we just use a leg like his?" You cut off Fereed's babbling with a gesture to Vladi. He winces a bit, trying to cover up one of his legs.

"Not actually your- Oh Thunlin give me strength."

"Well, let me finish up real quick." Fereed says. "Making those limbs, I decided why not whole bodies? So I made machines manufacturing the bodies, and decided to test out my hypothesis." He points back up towards the surface. "That gargoyle up there, Ivix? He's part of a new breed of gargoyle. Not as tough as ol' Vladi of course, but it's just the beginning." He points at his own head. "Inside his noggin is a tiny Pygmy Elemental."

"You got them to survive outside of the closed environment." You say, astonished.

"Yes, their habit of dissipating to any strong elemental force made them a tough case. But, their ability to control the elements is almost as great as that of any other elemental." He points down to the bands on Vladi's legs. "They just needed a means to focus their control. Inside of their heads is a bladder to protect them from the elements hooked up to a complex system like that. Through the Elemental Focusing Processor, they can control an entire body made out of limbs like the ones Vladi is sporting."

Fereed begins laughing maniacally, grabbing you by the shirt. "Don't you see?! I have done it! I have birthed a race all my own from my blood, sweat and tears! I HAVE CREATED LIFE!"

And with that, back in 15.

>>14107863
"Cool, I get it, you're a genius. Now, help me make a leg for my slave before I make you eat your arms. We're burning daylight here."

>>14107902

"I work. At night."

>>14107902
>>14107935
I suddenly had a mental image of a caster sitting in a lab working on shit while a fireplace behind him had blocks of sun piled in it and lit up.
No, I don't know either.

>>14107863
Can they reproduce?

>>14107979

You know exactly how much Fereed cares about the Laws of the Land. "Fereed, they can't breed, can they?"

He looks at you like he's about to bite your ears off. "OF COURSE NOT! Do you have any idea how hard it is to put together a fully functioning womb and reproductive system, let alone A GODS DAMNED GENETIC STRUCTURE FOR COMPLETELY ARTIFICIALLY CREATED CREATURES?!?" He lets go of you, his face reddening as he breathes in and out like a panting hound.

"I was just making sure..." You say.

"You can't be excited for me this one time? My gods damned magnum opus and you're acting like I put on a poor production. Do you have any idea how many times I asked Ivix mathematics questions before you came in today?! What the hell do I have to do to impress you people?" He raves, marching around the room and slapping the ball out of Vladi's hand. The gargoyle backs away slowly.

"Just calm down." You say. "I was excited, I was just-"

"You can be such a wet blanket you know? Nothing ever gets you damned noblemen to bat an eye. You weren't even phased when we got the image of thousands of dragons arriving from the southern seas."

"That was one of the most astounding things I have ever seen." You say, honestly.

"And yet all you could manage is 'ah'." He says mockingly, putting a startled gasp on his face. "Knowing your habit of overreacting to my inventions to appease me, I bet their reaction would be to fall asleep! No, no way. I will find something to make them all shaken from their fragile lives, to bring them terror, astonishment!" He grins like an efreeti in a room full of gullible men. "I'll show them who's boring, I'll show them who's a workaholic, antisocial, shame of his family! I'll show them." He chuckles to himself. "I'll show them all."

(sorry about that, field was too long)

"Listen," You say, half shouting. "I am excited. This is me excited, but I will be even more excited if you can help Algers. I will throw you a gods damned-" You pause. You can't actually remember any kind of social event that has interested Fereed that he didn't make himself. "-party, a ball, I will throw you a fucking parade if you can get Algers a new leg."

"A ball?" Fereed says, snapping out of his maniacal state. Behind him, Vladi nods rapidly.

"A ball. You can invite-" You pause. Again, he has no friends save you and Darane. You look over at Vladi. "-you can invite Vladi."

Fereed pouts. "That's all?"

You look over at Vladi demandingly. He tries to pantomime "more", and then points to himself. You shake your head. He looks over at you and shrugs. "Clever bastard." You mutter.

"You can invite." You say, speaking to Fereed like a child. "All of your gargoyles, assistants, whoever you want to the ball if you help me help Algers right now."

Fereed is nearly ready to burst with excitement.

You ready the finishing words. "Maybe you could finish teaching Algers to dance?"

"Oh imagine!" He shouts, running out into the hallway. He jumps and squeals to himself with excitement before turning around deadpan. "Unfortunately it's impossible."

Impossible? We're godsdamned miracle workers, ain't shit impossible for us. You just need the right attitude.

>>14108366
*Sigh* There goes plan "Fuck the dwarves, muahahaha!"

Oh well, time for pla-

>"Unfortunately it's impossible."
Waitwhat.

"No it isn't."

If he says it is, keep repeating it isn't.

"What do you mean impossible?" You snarl.

"I mean he has no ability to control the elements, so it'd be a big chunk of useless rock to him." He shrugs. "I would love to tell you I could, but I-" He pauses, staring off into space.

"Maybe." He says after a few seconds. "Do you remember the exchange we had with the tengu?"

"The crow-men." You nod. "Yes I remember."

"Well, according to their religious beliefs, every living creature has the power of four elements within them; air, earth, fire and water. Their religious figures, their 'gods', include mortal tengu capable of manipulating the four elements." He grins. "And they have a special ritual that their noble families use to change the balance of the elements in a creature, giving them the ability to manipulate that element." He pauses. "Of course it requires two people to swap elemental affinities."

"We have another." You say. "The lizardman who maimed Algers." Fereed looks giddy. You stop him with a finger. "It gets better. He lost his leg this morning."

"Oh, what a pity." Fereed says with the most fake sympathy you've ever heard. "This is perfect! Now I can test out TWO new limb structures instead of one!"

FANtastic! Ain't shit impossible when you put your mind to it. Let's get to brainstorming.

>>14108536

Be advised:
It sounds as if this will give the lizardman the ability to manipulate an element.
BEWARE!

>>14108614
We could always plant him with some kind of magically-triggered brain bomb or something.

"Wait, this seems like it could be dangerous." You say.

"Well, you know what they say. To make an omlet you have to break a few eggs." Fereed says, devoid of any sense of responsibility.

"Algers." Your glare silences him. "This is Algers we're talking about. He is not expendable. You break him," You pause, turning Fereed to look into his eyes. "And I don't think I could forgive you."

He sobers, finally. "Of course. All safety measures will be taken." He pauses. "But most who undergo the ritual are hatchlings no more than six months old. Their small bodies can take the strain." He takes off his glasses, polishing them as he continues. "With older subjects there is a higher risk of death by roughly 20%."

You feel your chest grow cold. Would it be worth losing Algers over? If it was the choice between living his life in a bed and that, what would h-

No. He is your servant. You must decide what is best for him. You know that even if you did give him the choice, what he would choose without hesitation.

"Algers is strong." You say, nodding. "He can risk it."

"Excellent!" Fereed says, clasping his hands with a noisy clap. "Now then, they will either need to be altered along the fire and water or the earth and wind axises. Each will get the ability to manipulate a single element based off of that fact." He pauses. "Unless we introduce more participants in the ritual! But then we would have to hack the limbs off of some poor slaves for my purposes." He grins at you, practically purring. "But we can't do THAT, that would be barbaric."

"Yes. It would." You say simply.

"Aww." Fereed snaps his fingers, disappointed. "Well then, let us go to where I have the prototype limbs stored." He slaps his thigh at Vladi. "Come along, boy! Let's go to the creepy limb room!"

You're fairly sure that gargoyles don't get cold, but you're certain you see Vladi shudder.

>>14108731

Interesting!
An air or earth limb would probably be quite useful.
Perhaps agility or stability, respectively.

>>14108731
I can't see fire being all that useful as a leg replacement, and air would be of limited use, but earth or water could be good. Hrmmm, what do we know about the elements? Does water include ice? Does air include various gases? What about magma, would that be fire, earth, or both? How about flesh/plant matter, is that some combination, or something else entirely? Also, I guess it's basically a "you increase earth, it decreases wind, you increase wind, it decreases earth, and ditto for fire/water" kind of thing? Would you only be able to increase two abilities regardless of how many people were involved in the ritual? Or is it more of a "your ability in each starts off at 0, and as it is increased the axis grows, not just shifts around the 0 point" thing?

>Captcha: Trabe returns
Ok, apparently we need to keep an eye out for someone called Trabe, who is returning.

>>14108731
CHOP MORE LIMBS OFF SLAVES.

BARBARISM SMARBARISM, WE'VE A GODDAMN MAGE.

FOR SCIENCE!

>>14108731
Do elemental affinities have links to mental or physical attributes? Is there any chance we could actually make him more clever?

You enter a room filled with stone limbs stacked up on walls in wooden racks, like wine bottles. The variety is astounding. There are limbs sculpted to resemble artistic versions of the talons of eagles, limbs like those of lizards or dragons, even ones with detailed engravings.

Vladi shivvers. "Don't have to take off my arm do I father?"

"Not unless you want a new one." Fereed starts. "But that can wait until I show your uncle one last thing." He makes a circle with his thumb and forefinger. "Put your left hand through here, boy."

"Sure, anything for 'uncle'." Vladi says, giving you a somewhat mocking grin.

"Don't push it." You tell him, looking down as a whitish aura envelops the gargoyle's stony fingers.

"That is Vladi's spirit." Fereed says, pointing with his other hand. "It allows for the body to hear commands, apparently even elemental creatures have them." He looks at Vladi. "Right hand, please."

"S' my lucky hand." Vladi says to you, seeming a bit shy suddenly. He puts the much better sculpted hand through Fereed's fingers, and you can see that the whitish aura only stretches up to between his second and third knuckle on each finger.

"Try and bend your fingertips, Vladi." Fereed says.

Vladi visibly concentrates, his second knuckles bending a bit, but the ends of his fingers stay stiff.

"Apparently, the spirit in this case has atrophied to the point of reducing my boy's functionality." Fereed says, moving his hand in front of your eye.

>>14108973


You can see the world in whitish blue, and Vladi's spirit as well. The spirit on his legs and right arm seems far thinner than the one on his natural arm.

"His arm was attached six weeks after the accident. He couldn't move his right hand at all for a while 'cept for the wrist, but he's made a startling improvement."

You shove his hand away and look at him incredulously. "You're going to sit here warning me about this as you actually manage to make the problem worse?"

"Well, if he just lost it yesterday there shouldn't be much of a problem." Fereed says, gesturing that you should move further into the Creepy Limb Room.

"Then why mention it?" You ask.

"Because knowing how this works is important, Alkenin." He says, looking over at you. "What if a priest does something weird to his spiritual body and I'm dead or something? You need to at least know the basics on how to fix this."

"Alright." You say. Though you're fairly certain he was just explaining that for the sake of an explanation. "So, what about these new prototype limbs?"

"Yes, certainly." Fereed says, pretending to be all business when he's skipping joyfully on the inside as he walks towards the back of the room.

>>14108995
I suppose he might have a point about us understanding this all, even if his explanation had nothing to do with that fact. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

"First, we have a classic." Fereed says, lugging a three-toed leg sculpted of stone over. "Sixty pounds of earth and stone, durable semi-flexible exoskeleton, this is the model all the fashionable 'goyles are walking around in." He plunks it down with some difficulty.

"One of my more ambitious achievements, constructed out of pure water with independently functioning veins and regenerative properties is the kapoacynth leg." He hauls out a leg with fragile fins and seemingly liquid webbing attached to a frosted metal tank by hoses on wheels. He regards it fondly. "The circulation is a delicate operation, but by far my proudest solution."

"And here we have," he says, pulling down what looks like a large, thick metal greave with three toes from the wall, with thick metal mesh near the joints. "My most interesting problem. You see, by nature fire elementals are formless, even air elementals can move some sort of object like a muscle without destroying it. But fire? Forget about it! Even in a gargoyle body would be useless ash and slag in minutes." He pulls a great tub out from below the shelf the leg was sitting on, kicking some spare parts out of the way. "So I figured, why fight it? Be like water to overcome fire. Funny when you think about it." He grins, opening his palms towards the tub. His hands glow red hot, like a furnace, as the brownish metal quickly begins bubbling.

"Lead, or another low melting point metal, can be used to effectively hold heat for a long amount of time without being so hot as to be like magma, which would of course burn us all alive by standing in the same room as it." He picks up the tub after securing the armored greave in position on a stand with a pair of gloves. "They can manipulate the heat in the liquid, using it like an extremely loose muscle. With a shell to allow them to avoid losing heat or having parts of themselves stick and fall off, they can interact with society as do you or I, with a surface temperature of only about eighty degrees or so." He pours the liquid into the greave, which slowly gains weight, then another, and another.

>>14108951
MAGITECH, HO!

>>14109047
Even if he wasn't right, we might as well indulge him. Knowledge is power, after all, and anyways, it pays to keep the person helping you with fancy stuff like this on good terms.
Besides, if we're the one he goes to to show off the developments he makes, we'll probably get something useful out of it every so often, even if it does come at a cost...
>Laughingunicycletroll.jpg

>Captcha: eatemen types.
I... I don't think I want to know what you're saying, Captcha.

"I love it. I can demonstrate this one." He giggles, moving the liquid gently and causing the knee to bend, the toes to wiggle, the leg to swing as though running or kicking. "And not to worry. His ability to manipulate heat would keep him from suffering burns due to the hot liquid."

"Are you sure?" You ask.

"Oh, certainly. There are stories of powerful fire elementalists bathing in magma. Something as relatively cool as lead should provide little trouble. If you're really so concerned I have a laundry list of new alloys with low melt-"

"Alright. I've seen earth, water, and fire." You say, cutting him off. "What about wind?"

>>14109047

The point is, sans spirit, you can't move a limb.

Are there secondary effects of becoming elementaly attuned? Beyond the obvious ability to control an element, that is.

>only about eighty degrees or so.
... This is Celcius, right?

Also, pic for some reason reminds me of our character.

>>14109158

"I was going to call the fire ones Chaud Marteaux, by the way." Fereed mentions quickly.

"Wind..." He pauses. "Remember my ornithopters?"

Oh gods no.

"Well, I got them to fly much better!"

The screaming of gnoll children, their kites mangled by an overhead monstrosity that came crashing down upon them echo in your mind.

"Are you listening, Alkenin?"

"Yes, yes." You say, rubbing your temple to try and sooth the screams of brutally injured children. "You do know things like that are why no one invites you to any parties."

"Until the end of today!" He says happily.

"Why am I friends with him?" You ask Vladi. The gargoyle shrugs.

"Because I make things like this!" He announces, with a delicate tap on the ground. You see a leg that looks the oddest out of the lot, delicately shaped wood with large cup-like holes towards the calf, a lighter colored metal for the foot and knee, aluminum or a mithril alloy, you wager. The toes are curled like the talons of a very angular bird, with an almost skeletal appearance.

"This one is the lightest out of the lot." he says, swinging it with one hand to demonstrate. "Fragile, but perfect for flight."

"I don't know how much flying Algers will be doing." You say.

"They'll be my little ornithopters." He coos, reaching down to put his lips on the limb. Before you can say he has legitimately lost it and is making lip time with a wooden leg, you hear a puff, and see a small leather balloon inflate out of one of the gaps in the calf. "An air based muscle that can deflate to avoid injury during combat." He explains, holding up several tubes. "These go on there as well, hydraulics allowing for a superior sense of balance."

"Anyway, that's all of it." He says, pulling out a packed pipe and lighting it. You stare at the surreal sight of the four legs in front of you. "Making one's no problem, I could probably be done with that and the surgery in four hours for both of them." He lets out a puff of white, sweet smelling smoke. "So? What do you think?"

>>14109223

(Nope, amerifag here. 80 degrees Fahrenheit. This is also if the marteau is trying to contain the heat, which it usually is, since that's kind of like trying to contain your blood. So around 26~ degrees Celsius. This is not to say that these guys use that scale of measurement, just said like that so I had to explain less. Obviously not successful)

>>14109220

"What else will this do to Algers?"

"Oh yes! That's right." He looks over to you seriously. "If one dies, the elemental function will cease to work, meaning my original theory will be true and Algers will have a useless hunk of whatever for a leg."

"Also," He says, looking over to the limbs. "There may be some effect on his personality."

This sounds bad. "What do you mean?"

"Well, according to tengu belief, the emotions are governed by those elements as well. Ever wonder where the term 'hot headed' came from?" He glances sidelong at you, smirking. "Tengu expression. Apparently our little maritime encounter isn't the first time they've come to Manara."

"More to the point, Fire makes one more passionate, creative and also easier to anger. Water makes one focused, empathetic, but also slow to act. Air makes one aloof or capricious, but somewhat better at talking and being independent. Earth makes one strong-willed, unmovable, but also unwilling to be moved." He grins as he finishes reciting the phrases. "Seems that if you only have one element, you are quite a bit more free in that regard. I've seen some of my gargoyles stray from the group and others averse to violence, unlike normal ones trained for war."

"In addition, the elemental balance will be shifted in his body, giving him a way to access one of the elemental planes in a limited sense." He finishes. "In short, both of them will get magical abilities, including the lizard."

"Shouldn't be a problem in my tower." You retort.

"Ahh, but it is." Fereed says, tutting you quietly.

"Their own body can store enough elemental energy to burn a town to the ground just as easily as you or I could. They don't have to open a gate to use their power."

"Hmm," You ponder this development. Perhaps this can be used to Advance Your Hydra Research. "Ever tried it on non-humanoids?"

"Not yet." Fereed says. "Haven't tried it yet."

"Be careful then." You say, inwardly shaking your head.

"Well, haven't hooked an Elemental Focusing Processor to a humanoid creature either. Today is going to be full of firsts!" He says happily.

"Oh yes, the two of them may experience some animosity towards one another." He adds.

You shrug. "I think they will anyway."

Fereed looks confused for a moment, then remembers. "Oh yes, with the leg lopping off, right." He chuckles.

Which elements shall you choose for Algers and the lizard?

>>14109278 The screaming of gnoll children, their kites mangled by an overhead monstrosity that came crashing down upon them echo in your mind.

Vot fhor vould joo write zat daring?!

(Sorry about taking so long, I had stuff saved up from last time for him as well, but it dropped off before that point.)

Feel free to discuss etc. I'm going to stretch out a bit.

>>14109419
>>14109454

Keeping the lizard alive, no prob. Having to keep him alive? problem.

We got 4 legs yes? Get 2 more subjects, chop off their legs. 1st subject and lizard are the test group, then the 2nd subject and Algers for the remaining 2 legs. Choose a 2nd subject that can be useful, and a 1st that can be expendable.

This keeps Algers safe, and gives us a lever to use on the Lizard. Don't emphasize that aspect. the lizard need never know. He and the other lizardmen will see that while harsh, you are fair to your servants. Generous even. Give the lizardmen an asignment far from the tower.

>>14109478

It is a bit cruel, but certainly possible.

I STILL SEE NO ELEMENTS IN THAT POST

Oh durp, hold on a second, keep discussing.

>>14109454
>Perhaps this can be used to Advance Your Hydra Research.
*Squees*

Also, on the elemental thingy: Not really sure this is a good idea. All of these elements seem to have emotional drawbacks that will make him much less useful as a servant. Air, Fire and Earth would make him harder to control, and Water would make him slower and probably less receptive to our more... ruthless orders. Plus, I'm presuming that we have to move them to opposite spheres, and having the lizardman we cut the leg off ourselves with horrible torture be more violent, have greater capacity for hatred, and be more creative at coming up with revenge plots seems like a bad idea... Ugh, I guess having Algers as Fire and the Lizardman as Water is probably the best choice, assuming we have to choose opposite spheres, and that we can't think of /any/ other way to replace his leg.

I'm really thinking we should avoid Air.
*Sigh*
Pic related, it's Fereed.

>>14109478
Hurmmm, yes, this is a good plan. Still a bit worried about the loyalty of anyone we have the limbs cut off and subject to experiments, though. Maybe ask for volunteers?

"The mixing of spirits." Says Fereed suddenly. "I nearly forgot. You see, when this procedure happens, the two's spirits mix for a moment. I suspect it may have some effect on the two's missing limbs."

"They are both missing them at the same level." You say.

"Oh, good. If they were dramatically different, there could be complications."

You consider the positive aspects of using that lizard. It appeals to your sense of irony using him to fix Algers' malady. Having a capable warrior to protect him who would have some genuine investment in keeping him alive: The same logic used in allowing homosexual relations in the troops, but fueled off of both positive and negative emotions.

On the other hand, what would Algers think if you posted him as a guard? Told him he could not strike at him? But will any of the other lizards from that group be any better? Surely, the lizard will tell his allies to make Algers miserable.

Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. Is that adage true here?

>>14109544

Earth seems the best for loyalty and having the least chance to be a nuisance.
Or perhaps water.

We could also always just use the lizard as a test subject, and stealthily visit a priest to heal Algers.

Many would understand the value of a loyal and trustworthy servant.

>>14109548
An Excellent Plan! See if we can get 2 good volunteers from the gnolls.

How about fire for Algers, water for another of the house gnolls.

Air for the Lizardman, then we send him on detached duties. Use that independence. Earth for a gnoll "politial officer" we send with him, selected for loyalty. Do not warn them that they're linked. If he ever turns on us, his first act will be to cripple himself!

>>14109544

Well, you could wait on it, but the spirit of the limb will slowly atrophy, and we haven't see if that's fully reversible yet.

Algers is extremely loyal. That's all there is to say on the matter.

Also, the elemental mood swings aren't extremely severe. He won't become Fereed if you give him air, for example.

>>14109604
This. The whole affair seems much riskier than simply seeking a Divine healer. Unless there is another huge price involved.
Fereed can still run his tests, though. Either on the lizard, or on other loyal servants-- who would gain elemental powers in the process.

>>14109604
>>14109625

What is the cost (explicit and otherwise) of having a cleric regrow a limb?

>>14109625

read: >>14107095

>>14109544

I'd like to argue this, but I really have nowhere to go.

After all, we already know he dressed gargoyles up as clowns and put on a horrifyingly bad show for us that ended in disaster. And that his hobbies include making extra limbs for his creations. That's kind of like if Henry Ford spent all his free time cackling and constructing axles, wheels and engine blocks.

>>14109604
Earth might be good for loyalty if they are already loyal (so Algers), but if not they will be even harder to make loyal. Plus, it means if we order them to do something they have an objection to, they will be more stubborn and less likely to just accept our will and follow orders. Water seems ok for loyalty, but empathy could be a problem if we order them to follow ruthless orders. Of course, that should be easy enough to get around by ordering someone else to do it, but it still leaves the "slow to act" problem. Last thing we need is to "oops, I accidently'd" our servant.
Perhaps, if we are going to subject others to the experiment anyways, we could try the "multiple participants in the ritual" route and try to balance things out? That also might have less effect on his personality, which is good, since the last thing we want to do is kill off our minion's mind and replace him with someone different.

Hmmm.
Could we make the lizard water and Algers earth?
Perhaps by including a third participant...

Also.
We don't *have* to give the lizard the prosthetic do we?
After the shifting ritual, that is.
Could we simply Stasis Chamber him?

>>14109606
This doesn't seem like too bad an idea, though based on the loyalty of the gnoll, I would say we might want to warn him, since it would be silly to have him kill the other guy at the slightest suspicion and inadvertantly make himself useless. Also, I would rather like to avoid using air, given I'm a little disturbed by the whole ornithopter thing.

Oh, one other thing: if we do give Algers fire, and his guard dies, he suddenly has a large mass of very hot metal attached to his leg that he cannot control. Oh shit?

>>14109692
>No prosthetic, stasis chamber
This is probably a good idea, though we have to be very sure that however we contain him is safe.

>>14109707

Air?
On someone who dislikes us?
Sent alone almost with supervision?
Told exactly what his weakness is?!

Belay that order!

Water for the lizard, definitely.
His animosity toward us will be overcome by empathy with us.
And even if it isn't-- he'll be slower to act at plotting against us.

>>14109658

The ritual will have the same, subtle effect on his personality no matter the number of participants.

Multiple participants goes by the same rule as the 2-fer. As in any one of those boys dies, everyone goes back to normal.

It's like a complex set-up of magnets, all balanced against one another. If you nudge one, they all stick together.

You could be hilarious and get like 16 participants though. Then one dies, and the whole group falls down on the ground.

Absolutely perfect security save the mass of crippled beastmen crawling on the ground.

>>14109692

You do need an even number of participants. 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, etc. Basically each one needs an opposite, and there needs to be a bit of balance in the group.

You could totally just stick him and leave him in a stasis chamber. You would have to bring him out intermittently to prevent him from possibly dying, but that could work.

Of course, it's also a waste of a potentially useful and powerful servant.

>>14109729

Waste of a servant he says.
Have you seen EXCOMMUNICATE TRATORIS at work?!

>>14109729
Hmmmm. Then. I'd have to say, just the two of them, fire for Algers, water for the lizard.
Algers will be a bit more zealous, and the lizard will be more loving!

>>14109747

Concurran'. Perhaps some of Alger's loyalty will rub off on our lizard-who-needs-a-name.

>>14109658
The effects aren't severe, they're just mood swings not a completely altered personality.

I argue for fire for Algers because it will aid him in artistic endeavours, he seems even tempered enough to handle mood swings, and he can be trusted with the power.

Water for a 2nd household servant because the personality changes are the least likely to cause strife. This is the best one for someone close to us that does not have quite the trust we have in Algers. Make sure they are trustworthy though.

I air for the Lizardman because we'd never trust him close to us anyway. If we wish to make use of him at all, have it be at a distance. Given this, enhancing his independence is actually useful.

Earth for his "watchdog". We instruct him to follow the commands of the lizardman, yet make sure they match my orders. For this we wish a loyal and inteligent gnoll warrior, made more loyal still by the magics involved.

The "watchdog" will have elemental powers, complete loyalty to us, and orders to watch the lizard. The lizard will not act against us while this threat exists, and he unknowingly cripples himself if he removes him.

The general purpose of giving the lizard a prosthetic implant is to test to see if it's safe for Algers. You don't have to give him a prosthetic after the test is complete, you can just pop that shit off like a dirty jacket and hurl it back in the storeroom. It would be awful hard to run from danger with one leg, though.

>>14109707

But the ornithopter parts look so cooool

^Worrying about appearance in a game with no graphics.

>>14109747

Fire=passionate and creative!
Very useful in a loyal servant.

Water=focused and empathetic.
Useful in a companion.
Also, lizards may or may not be more comfortable with water.

>>14109707
If we toss the lizard in a tank though, we lose the loyalty of the other lizardmen. If we send a gnoll along to keep watch, they should be OK at a distance. Treat them well and they'll probably come around.

If we're not going to make use of them, better to just chop the leg off of another gnoll and sell the lot as slaves or use them in experiments. There is no gain in creating an empowered lizardman we have no use for.

In any case, we should NOT leave a potentially embittered element user in our home!

Also the opposing elements guys? Will Always Oppose Each Other. This is balanced by the fact that usually neither wishes the other harm.

I had a short plot in my game with two tengu, one water with the party, and his brother from the mainland, fire. The two had hated each other since childhood, and his brother wanted to kill him to remove his own powers.

This scenario is much less unlikely in this situation because it's like "Hey, my body works perfectly fine, I can shoot lightnings from my hands, but you really grate on me. Too bad I won't do shit to you because if I do, I will suddenly lose one of my limbs and my powers which would normally let me fly and ignore that shit.

>>14109783

Also, lizards are cold blooded. Water gives resistance to cold.

Jussayin.


In addition fi you're still on about that more than two people thing, I'm sure you could find a couple of amputee slaves in short order. There is a war going on, you know. Given the opportunity, I'm sure they'd be much more loyal than some slave you came up to, handed a bone saw and said "Well, get to it, your master commands it."

>>14109812

Resistance to cold seems extremely useful for something cold blooded-- won't be as affected by chill weather.
Perhaps may even need less time in the sun!

As for the multiple people thing-- the more involved, the greater the points of failure.
Hugely greater chance for one dying.
Double-greater chance for betrayal and coercion of various sorts.

The the two of them is much safer-- less variables.

>>14109812

WAIT A MOMENT!
There's a war on?
We have not heard of such a thing!

ingwar repens

>>14109852
Yes, a group of 4 is sub-optimal. We should either go for 1 or 2 pairs. There is too little advantage to anything else.

>>14109812
GM, you may need to pull an Iron Quest, and move the plot along.

Too much debating can stall a quest.

Alright, just to speed this up a bit, I'll post up what I'm seeing the most. We can narrow the discussion down to what's going on with this.

Algers as fire, opposed by the lizard who took his leg as water.

Ayes or nays.

Emotional shit to consider:

Fire makes one more passionate, creative and also easier to anger. Water makes one focused, empathetic, but also slow to act.

These emotional changes are not drastic, I must emphasize once again. It's not like you're putting doctor Jekyll in the ritual and Mr Hyde is coming out.

Continue discussing beyond that though.

>>Microbial ntaoa

capcha what are you even saying.

>>14109875
>>14109852
>>14109783
>>14109756
>>14109747

The two of them!
Fiery Algers,
Watery Lizard!

>>14109884

This. In the mean time, since it's not completely necessary that you decide this second, I'll go ahead with a short scene I had planned.

>>14109892
If we're doing only 2, then this is the best. I think I'm the sole voice for setting up 2 pairs anyway.

So: aye.

You order your driver back to your tower to pick up Algers... And the lizardman. He looks surprised, but does not gainsay your orders. He and your other servants come in two coaches. Algers is brought out in a stretcher, a blanket over his lower body, doing little to hide the missing potion of his leg. They put him and the lizardman down on beds in separate waiting rooms. You go to Algers.

He looks pathetic, lying there. Around a fourth of his left leg remaining, head tilted off to one side, eyes half closed and breathing almost like he was sleeping. You take a seat in one of the nearby chairs and lean over to him.

"Algers, myself and Fereed are going to try and get you a new leg." You say, looking down at him sympathetically.

"Fereed... Master?" Algers says weakly, still tired from the painkillers and blood loss. He chuckles, a high pitched sound you rarely hear him make. "At least its someone who I know won't just kill me. I'm much more interesting to him alive."

"Fereed will try his best to make sure nothing happens." You say, feeling a lump in your throat.

Algers breathes in, a wheezing, slow sound. "What might happen, master?"

You pause. The lump in your throat grows as you speak your next words. "You might die."

He looks off to one side, his eyes clear, comprehending.

You want to let him opt out. Don't want to risk losing him.

Is this how you think about all of your servants? What if the coachman were to be in the same situation? Would you not risk losing him to have him return to his job?

You simply cannot harden your heart all the way in this matter. Algers is a part of your family. If you can say you have a family.

But that would make him an equal, wouldn't it? Which means he should decide.

"Algers," You start.

"I understand." Algers says, tilting himself up off of the table he sits on to look at you eye level.

"Don't push yourself." You say simply.

"I'll be alright master." He says, looking down at the place where his leg used to be. "I... I can't serve you like this."

"You could." You say, allowing you emotions to override your personal image for a split second.

"No." Algers says, with surprising strength. "After yesterday, you need everyone... Everyone at their best. I can't have you worrying about me in a bed."

"I wouldn't." You say.

"Master," Algers says, smiling. "You're worrying over me in a bed right now."

You laugh, startling Algers a bit. "That's what I like about you, Algers. You're not afraid to be honest with me." You pause for a moment. "After Lelora died..."

"That is in the past, master." He says, laying back down. "I did my duty then, as I will now. If I die, I will have led a privileged life as the personal servant of the Greatest Sorcerer of All the Aldini. I do not regret it."

You close your eyes. For a moment, you hear your father standing over you, shouting.

"You would jeopardize our whole world, Alkenin!"

Your body twitches in memory of the pain running through your nerves.

"Damn the world, Algers." You say, looking down at him. "You are my friend."

Algers is shocked, and then laughs. "I know master. But what kind of friend would I be if I didn't try with all my might to help you?"

You feel first one tear roll down your cheek, then another.

"Please don't cry, master. It's unbecoming." Algers looks over at the wall. "You might tarnish my opinion of you if you keep it up."

He brings a hand across to his own face.

“And what kind of servant would I be if I had a poor opinion of my master?”

You spend a moment composing yourself before leaving the room.

You still feel an urgent desire not to risk it. But you know that he's made his decision.

You laugh quietly. He pretty much faced you down and told you what he was going to do. Some master you are.

You walk in to see the lizardman, who appears far more lucid. You regard him coldly. He may have taken Alger's leg, and you may not know much about him, but you have clearly proven your authority over him. If he's intelligent in the slightest, he will jump at the chance to get back on your good side. Figuratively speaking of course.

What will you say to him?

>>14109729
>The ritual will have the same, subtle effect on his personality no matter the number of participants.

So, we can't influence them to gain more than one element, as
>>14108731
>"Now then, they will either need to be altered along the fire and water or the earth and wind axises. Each will get the ability to manipulate a single element based off of that fact." He pauses. "Unless we introduce more participants in the ritual! But then we would have to hack the limbs off of some poor slaves for my purposes." He grins at you, practically purring. "But we can't do THAT, that would be barbaric."
implies?

Because that would be best.

Also, remember guys, if we make Algers Air, Earth or Water, him losing his ability will stop his leg working, but probably not actually harm him (unless he's flying and loses air, or is in the middle of doing something fancy, I guess).
On the other hand, if he is running fire, and his partner dies and he loses the ability to control it, suddenly he has a large lump of molten metal attached to him, which he now (presumably) has no resistance to. So yeah.

>>14110277

You could. But it'd take a while for the prosthetic to be made in that case, as Fereen would have to find a way to make one that incorporates two elements.

>>14110305
Does it actually have to incorporate two elements? I thought the element thing was just so he could manipulate what the leg is made out of, not that the leg was actually necessary for having the power (hence the whole "take the leg straight off the lizardman afterwards or not" thing).

>>14110328

The leg isn't necessary for the power.

It's necessary so he can walk.

Which is the point of this little debacle.

>>14110239

(Just jump in here if you have any extra stuff you'd like to tell him.)

His green-scaled body still twitches occasionally, and he hisses in pain from the morning's brutality. His stock was gotten from a monitor lizard, as you can tell from his head, and when he stood, he was roughly half a foot over you. He sits up against the wall, looking at the ceiling as though trying to forget the pain.

"What is your name?" You start simply.

He pauses, breathing in hard as a sudden stabbing pain hits him. "Sssergeant Kresssrasss... Sssir." His words slur even worse than you're used to from lizardmen.

"Well Kresras. The reason I brought you here is that I'd like to give you your leg back."

He looks over to you with confusion, and then suspicion. His left hand drifts down near his stump of a leg. "What mussst I do?"

>>14110375
Yeah, that was what I meant. You said "it would take longer because a new leg would have to be made using both elements," but unless he actually needs the leg to do anything, couldn't he just use the leg from one of those elements?

>>14110375

I should elaborate a bit.

If you do bond to two elements, they're not nearly as powerful as just bonding to a single one.

So until he grew in power, he'd need a leg he could bring his full talent to bear on.

>>14110392
>needs the leg to do anything
>Needs the leg to do anything elemental
*Slaps head*

>>14110385
*Smiles*
"Tell me, have you heard of Fareed?

>>14110399
Ah, I see. And I presume that, assuming you could even do it, bonding to two opposite elements would be even worse?

"You and Algers must enter into a ritual. After which, there will be surgery. If everything goes well, you will both have new legs." You straighten up a bit. "However, if either of you die, the other will lose the elemental abilities that power the leg, making it useless."

"I sssee, sssir." He says, looking up at the ceiling. "May I asssk what my chancesss are?"

"You and Algers have a one in four chance of dying during the ritual." You say, without betraying your emotions. "As for the surgery it's unknown, but-"

"Ah, that doesssn't sssound good." He says, grimacing.

"Do not interrupt me." You say plainly. "Just because Algers' life depends on yours does not mean I am according you any special privileges, is that understood?"

He nods.

"Good. In addition, you will follow orders from Algers as though I gave them."

His eyes open wide, and he loooks over at your face to see if you're lying.

"And if he dies, I assure you." You say quietly, leaning in closely so you can be sure the reptilian ears catch your words. "I will make this morning look like the best day of your life. And then I will kill you."

You walk out without another word, leaving the lizardman staring at the ceiling, contemplating his fate.

>>14110422

Let's just say it would be incredibly impossible to make a limb out of hot metal and ice, or super heavy and super light elements.

But in other cases yes that would be a viable option.

>>14110487

You look back into the room for a moment.

"By the way, have you heard of Fereed?"

Kresis looks over at you, nodding his head before wincing.

"This is his laboratory. He will be presiding over both operations."

"There goesss my wisssh." Kresis grunts. "Of dying with sssome dignity."

>>14110520
>>capcha:
>>ontin Gligor:

>>Gligor:

>>Gligor

>>14110531
"Virgil D. Gligor (1949) is a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University."

This would make a rather good novel, I must say.
The OP's writing style is entertaining and to-the-point.

The circle is set, with great mounds of metal on two sides, a bowl of water and one of air on the other. Algers sits on one half of a divided circle, and Kresis on the other. Each looks the other square in the face.

"That should be everything." Fereed says, checking the scroll in the bizarre language one final time. He looks over at the two. "Are you both ready?"

Algers nods, not breaking eye contact with Kresis. The lizardman cracks his neck before giving a nod as well.

The black walled room becomes painted with light as the flames ignite on the powdered phosphorus, the whole scene flashing in a strobe across the two's faces as Fereed's voice raises over the fizzling sound in an ancient chant.

You feel an invisible force press in on the scene, the flames rising up to the ceiling and the water bowl freezing over. You close your eyes for a moment, feeling the two's spirits intertwine, the two consuming and splitting like amoeba.

Several minutes into the ritual, the frozen bowl smokes as Algers coughs up water. You start to go forward, but Fereed looks over to you. You both know how dangerous it is to interrupt a ritual. The water swiftly evaporates, and Algers sits back up, calming himself. Within seconds, the lizardman vomits up fire, and he reaches out for it as it flickers away. He looks saddened for a moment before looking back up.

The circle glows as the ritual finishes, consuming the components. Both Algers and Kresis seem fine.

Fereed laughs. "First part of the operation, successful. Time for surgery!"

Some of his gargoyles come in and 'help' up Kresis, pretty much pulling him into another room.

>>14110496
Oh, I was thinking more of the whole "weaker than normal if you bond to two elements" thing, not the "How the fuck would you make a leg out of two elements" thing. After all, that would probably lead to steam, and then steampunk, and then all would be glorious magitech.

Actually, how well would putting someone through multiple rituals go? Ie, bind them to one, give them a chance to get used to it and learn to use it, then bind them to another with someone else, and so on? Would that work, or not? Could you have some kind of cult-like setup, with the leader bonded to them all? If it did, and one of the minions was killed, disrupting the bond with the leader, would that then mess up all their bonds, or just that one? This could be an interesting way to make very powerful minions, properly regulated...
You'd need some way to ensure their loyalty, though... Perhaps some species bred for it... Probably best not to involve cats then =p

Also, while I would rather have used the lizard as a "test pair," I suppose this way works too, if only for the hilarity of binding the arsehat who cut his leg off to serve Algers.

>>14110531
>Gligor
If that was an a...

>Ltdev Mauro,
Captcha wants us to set up a company that works to develop something called Mauro.
*Shrugs*

>>14110675
F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5

You smile over at Algers. "Feel any different?"

He shrugs, pulling himself up into a nearby chair. "A bit more energetic, nothing much, master."

He pauses, then laughs. "I feel sorry for him, though."

You look puzzled. "Kresis? Why?"

"Well, he has to go first, and the look on his face when the gargoyles pulled him up out of the room..." He laughs to himself. "Besides, everything has changed for him in the last few days, and it's all because of what his master ordered him to do."

Maybe that's true. Still, you cannot have sympathy for him after what he did to Algers.

"During the ritual, I felt that from him." The gnoll leans back, holding onto the chair for balance. "You did that to him. I thought it was one of the servants."

You look puzzled. "You didn't know?"

"No." He says. "I was in a lot of pain, still am. After they pumped me pull of drugs, master, I was barely conscious. I only heard the screams and chatter, saw them bring out the leg and burn it in the fireplace." His expression changes to one of disappointment. "I heard that it was done for me, but not by who."

"It upset me very much to see him hurt you." You say quietly. "And his torturing you filled my belly up with hate. I could not contain it."

Algers sighs. "If you keep coming back for me, master, one day the world will leave you behind." He looks over to the closed doors of the operating theater. "He may seem remorseless, but he's really just terrified. An interesting model of soldier mentality."

"I will keep that in mind." You say.

>>14110712

Hmm, I hadn't thought of doing the ritual multiple times. I guess it might work as a more stable version of the bigger ritual maybe? I guess that's how you involve three people.

>>14110675
>Fereed laughs. "First part of the operation, successful. Time for surgery!"
DA DOK IZ IN! WHOZE REDY FER SURGERY?! ITZ GONNA HURT A LOT, BUT YOU'LL BE /BETTAH,/ YOU'LL SEE!

Oh man, this is like that time I was playing shitloads of DoW then went and played Spellforce. Every time that Ent spoke, I could hear the Orks...

>>14110802

Well, if the ritual can be done multiple times, you could create a lattice such that everyone would have access to each element, and each element one had access to would be dependent on one person.

Although, if your indication above that it is more of a "shifting" is accurate, it may be that giving someone fire and water would immediately balance out to neutral.
Their ritual partners would still have their powers though.

>>14110581

I appreciate the compliment. I do hope to go into writing at some point.

I think I'm really long-winded, but if it's quick for you to read, then that's a very big compliment. I've been reading Lovecraft and trying to pick that up from his style.

Plus, you guys have kept me too busy for long bawdy descriptions.

I am going to need coffee tomorrow.

>>Industry tstla

Industry Tesla?

>>14110802
Hurmmm, interesting. I guess you'll have to work the details out then, but I can think of a number of possible uses for it, depending on its properties.

>>14110831

I guess you could have weakened access to three? Each one you allow is going to make you weaker in all of them. By the fourth, you've come full circle and are now a regular ass guy.

Latticing though could be interesting. I'll keep that in mind for my tengu, thanks!

>>14110834
The writing is easily imaginable, and fluid to read.
The characters seem to have real personalities as a normal human might.
Those are the making of a good book.

As well, the descriptions are clear without being overly verbose.

You may wish to look at the writing of Frank Herbert's Dune series as well; he is rather good at conveying detail quickly and fluidly, in addition to comprehensive world-building.

>>14110858

That depends on how the 'axis shifting' works-- if it is a hard opposites shift, fire+water would be like an even tug of war.

However, it may be plausible to perform a bit more tugging-- bond one to fire one to water, then bond the same fire to fire again, and another to water.
Perhaps the first will have double-fire, with as many ancillary alterations as that would entail.

You could have a squad of tengu who have bonded one person to 5x wind who requires all the 1x earths close-by to keep him grounded.

Fereed exits the operating theater nearly an hour later.

"Haha, wow I nearly blew it! I almost attached the damn plate in reverse. That would've been messy."

Fereed's assistants fight with gargoyles dressed in white robes over a stretcher on wheels carrying Kresis' unconscious form. Fereed lifts up the sheet, revealing a gray steel plate over where the lizardman's leg ends. Several small reddish gems spring from the edge, and the bottom is covered with a large orangy-gold plate. cut into the setting, and a small plug in the center.

"Primalium." You say, noting the metal.

"Yes, capable of emulating and producing elemental energies." Fereed drops the sheet back down. "Let the man have a little privacy." He says, seriously, the assistants winning out and wheeling Kresis away.

"Alright, Algers, time to go under the knife!" He exclaims.

"You be careful." The words come out of your mouth just as Algers says "Don't sound so excited, sir"

Fereed contemplates this for a moment. "I will." He says, looking at you. "I won't." he says looking at Algers.

The assistants help Algers up onto the wheeled stretcher, and you look on in silence as he passes through the thick wooden doors.

"A son." You whisper.

You should have said you consider him a son.

>>14110834
It's kinda hard for me to judge, given that I'm a quick reader, and that I do so compulsively (fucking book purchase expenditures, man, I spend more on them than anything else), but I quite enjoy your writing style, and the content is good too. The humour is always a good addition, and the use of caps for emphasis is... interesting. I'm not sure, it seems like you use it a /little/ too much at times, but I'm treating it more as a quirk of the characters/setting than anything else. Besides, given the amount of horrible, horrible murder of the english language I find in so much stuff that supposedly goes through drafts/revisions/editing, your ability to consistently not make my eyes bleed is a glorious and most welcome state of affairs. In all, I'm certainly enjoying the quest, especially the way you adapt our sometimes rather strange suggestions (cat/dragon and supah-hydra suggester here, so yeah...) so well into the plot. In short, I would certainly be interested in at least giving anything you write a look, though I will have to say
>I've been reading Lovecraft and trying to pick that up from his style.
oh dear gods, what the hells are we in for...

cont.

>>14110962

'Twelve hells all with bells and a little tea totaled together.'

>>14110878

I keep meaning to pick those up. I'll try and look into it, the Dune universe has always fascinated me, even with boring eight hour movies.

>>14110903

It's not necessarily an even tug between opposition. Fire and water would be a slight drain on earth and wind. It's just with four positive elements, there's no way for them to equalize out in that person except by becoming as they pretty much were before.

>>14110962
>>14110858
Hurmmm, what would happen if you were to
A) Do the ritual for the same element several times without trying to get access to others? Get stronger, get more control, lose your mind/become incredibly unstable, have your body break down as the energies keeping your flesh together rampage out of control, turn into an elemental...?
B) Go around several times, networking with someone for each power, then the same again (though with different people, presumably. Or maybe not?), and possibly several times more? Same thing happening each time? Getting used to each power quicker as you gain it each time? Staying normal as far as elements are concerned, but gaining "power" in some other way (stronger/faster body, perhaps an increased ability with magic resulting from more experience with using powers, whatever), possibly at the cost of sanity?
C) Same as above, but doing the power rituals in different orders each time to get increased familiarity with the different powers?
D) Assorted other variations on this theme.

Also,
>Industry Tesla?
*Drools*

>>14110976
Bridge It, a game by Chronic Logic, with more positive axes that your suspension cables can handle.

>>14110962

>>What are we in for

Racism galore clearly.

Made even more clear by the fact that there are no white people in my story.

I'm trying out the caps thing a bit, I kind of got the inspiration from the game Burning Wheel's lifepaths and traits. The names of the orc ones are all capitalized and some are phrases. As of now, I'm also doing it kind of like a keyword system you'd see in older games (< This is me not being subtle with it anymore because it'll take you a while to get it, and all the opportunities will slip by by that point). Kind of like the title of a book or an article. I imagine the words being read by the spider guys from Legend of the Ur'Quan Masters, with the Emphasis On The First Syllable Of Each Word.

I like adding humor to my writing because not only is it entertaining for you, it's entertaining for me too. Writing a completely serious character like Alkenin next to Fereed's complete insanity is classic comedy gold.

My biggest flaw is I have a habit of repeating words really close to each other, doing this and Gargoyle Quest are me trying to break that habit.

BUT ANYWAY

>>14110991
You know your setting is awesome when, in it, they invented non-Euclidean geometry to try to map out the relationship links between your bird-person elementalists.

>>14111028
>>14111028
HOW DARE YOU NEGLECT THE NAME OF THE ILLWRATH FROM STAR CONTROL II: THE UR QUAN MASTERS?!

SUFFFFFFEEEEERRRRR!

>>14111028
Indeed, inde-
>completely serious character like Alkenin
Waitwhat?
Oh well, I suppose that he's fairly non-insane for the setting, crazy super-hydra dungeon traps to troll adventurers aside.

>Made even more clear by the fact that there are no white people in my story.
Hooray, I was right in my earlier conjecture (well, at least partially, I dunno if there are asians or other around, but that at least suggests I was right about the kingdom being all black)

>My biggest flaw is I have a habit of repeating words really close to each other, doing this and Gargoyle Quest are me trying to break that habit.
I actually haven't noticed that, so either you're doing a good job so far, or I'm just being oblivious. Or both.

>kind of like a keyword system you'd see in older games
Ah, right, yes. I was imagining it more like Mr Teatime, hence me thinking you might be overdoing it a bit, but looking at it as keywords I can see how that fits better.

>"It upset me very much to see him hurt you." You say quietly.
One thing, I may be wrong here, but I think that should have been
>"It upset me very much to see him hurt you," you say quietly.

>>14111152

Based upon the names of the characters and the similarity of the setting to the medieval middle east, it is likely that our characters are Babylonian, Persian, or Arabian, and not colloquially 'black.'

As for your last point-- that is the author's preference.
One is a full-stop, the other is not.
In this case the full-stop makes the description seem like an afterthought, which carries a subtly different meaning.
Though. It can make the text slightly less fluid. Sometimes.

About an hour later, Algers is wheeled out of the operation theater. Fereed walks out, wiping his forehead. "Whew!"

"What are you so relieved about?" You ask suspiciously.

"Just glad the operation's over." He says, looking down to his operating tools and putting them away.

"Did something happen, Fereed?" You look down at his instruments, all scrubbed clean.

"Nope." He says plainly, packing up his instruments and walking off.

Whatever it was, he's not talking about it now. "When can Algers get his leg?"

"When I'm done with it!" He shouts at you from down the hall.

"You're not done with it?" You yell back at him.

"I'd like to see you get all of this crap done BY YOURSELF!"

You grumble. "You could have just asked for help."

Constructing the frame for Algers' leg is simple enough. You delicately bend sheets of steel for the shell and wrap superfine metal cloth around the more exposed parts. The canine leg is a bit wider than his real one, but at the end it looks stable as anything.

Kresis' leg is made simple by Feress' ice sculpting. "A bit sloppy, but he can fix that. Make himself a damn human leg if he wants to."

Kresis is up first, his constitution still strong despite his injury. He sits up in his bed like before, unclothed save a simple brown loincloth like the nonhuman test subjects.

"Can I pleassse have sssomething for the pain?" He hisses to Feress.

"Well, since you asked so nicely," Feress says, grinning, digging in his pocket, and pulling his clenched hand back out of it, "No!" he finishes cheerfully, opening his hand to reveal nothing.

The lizardman does not appear amused by this.

"If I give you or Algers anything now, it could cause a blood clot and you could die, rendering all of my work today pointless." He says, still grinning. "And if that happens, you'd better hope you're the one to die!"

Kresis winces. "Honessstly I could almossst go for that right now."

"Well, then you're really not going to like my next suggestion." Fereed says, pulling up the sculpted icy leg with gloved hands, a small metal plate on the end with a hole for a plug the only non-icy portion. "We can hook this up right now, but I warn you it'll feel like your leg has been waking up from a long, long sleep."

He looks over in disgust. "Ice? But I hate the cold!"

"You'll learn to love it! Think of all those things you used to hate that you can now enjoy with your ability to ignore cold temperatures!" Fereed nearly chants.

"What?" Kresis says in surprise, looking over to you.

"Oh yes, you can manipulate water and ice now." You mention offhandedly. "Won't get cold, avoiding that nasty habit your people have of growing lethargic and weak in places with low temperatures."

He looks astonished. "Well then, I want to try it out! Hook me up, doc!" He says, closing his eyes as he braces himself.

Fereed seems less than amused this time. "It's lord to you." He says, shoving the leg into place unceremoniously.

Kresis clenches his hands in pain, his toes curling on his flesh and bone foot, growling as he feels nerves he did not have a moment ago waking for the first time. "You weren't kidding." He rasps, rolling off of his cot onto the floor with a loud thump.

Fereed watches impassionately.

"Aren't you going to call someone?" You ask him.

"Why? I'm not a doctor." He mutters, devoid of emotion.

"You are impossible." You say to him.

Kresis' pained grumbling stops. A scaled hand reaches up to grasp the side of the cot as the lizardman rises up, steadying himself. He lets out a great laugh. "What a rush! Oogh!" He shivers. "This is cold, but I hardly feel like curling up."

"Your leg stays cold because of the extremely cold circulation that comes from your body come on let's see if Algers is awake yet." Fereed says, with no punctuation or inflection, his face a blank mask of disappointment.

"He's not a doctor." You say to Kresis, handing him a cane before leaving the room.

>>14111230

Well, they're technically not colloquially any of those things, as this is not earth. :P I just meant that they are brown skinned and black haired, like the black people of our earth.

And yeah, I probably should've comma'd that. But this is me with very little editing.

>>14111381

I'll make a note of warning for an author:
Don't become blind to what the reader interprets based upon in-universe logic.
In-universe something can be what you want it to be, but that does not change what the reader of a particular culture on Earth will *see* it as.

That's not to say that you've done so here, it's just a note on your words.

For a more clear example:
"Annallicker is a title given to scribes of tenure, derived from the common habit of using a licked finger to turn the pages of Mircor's Great Historical Annals."

"Now, this liquid will work like the muscle of your leg, and the plating like the skeleton." Fereed's voice echoes down the hallway, like a completely different person. You push into the room, where you can see numerous gnolls from your household crowding around Algers' bed. They see you, signaling each other to part as you approach. You see one of them helping Algers up into a sitting position. Algers yawns, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "OK, OK I'm up already!" He says, growling a bit as he shakes the sleep out of his eyes. He hasn't yet noticed you. His tone is different with them. One of them reaches over and pats him on the shoulder. You could not imagine having that kind of support. You have always kept yourself alive, capable. Your position demanded it. But still, you wonder what it would have been like as Algers catches sight of you. He grins. "Good morning, master."

"It seems I am the one to rouse you from your slumber this time." You say with a slight smirk.

"Well, don't get used to it, master." Algers responds, with the rest of the gnolls in the room letting out a few high-pitched chuckles. "I will be waking you tomorrow morning on schedule."

"I look forward to it." You say, straightening up a bit. and looking around at your servants. They are his friends, you suppose. Maybe you'll have them dress up for the ball.

"Now then, if you lose fluid you'll feel your leg start to grow numb, if the actuator works correctly. You can add some fluid at the top on the sides after partially detaching the limb." Fereed says, breaking up the chit chat. "Not my best work, but a more elegant solution takes time."

"Thank you, Lord Grignos." Algers bows his head, and most of the gnolls in the room do the same.

Fereed is beside himself. "Lord? I haven't bee called a lord in... Oh that's depressing. Never mind that." He finishes funneling the fluid in, placing a black adamantine cap on the end of the leg. "Now I warn you, this sucker's heavy. It might be a while before you're running at full speed."

"I can manage." Algers says, breathing a bit deeply.

"Alright then, on three." Fereed says, bending the knee of the leg down as Algers scoots towards the edge of the cot.

The whole room counts down, save you, and Algers winces, an almost canine yelp escaping from his mouth. The room is quiet for some time. You want to give him help, somehow. But you realize that these others would then know. He'll be stronger on his own, you decide. The pain stops, and Algers looks down, pulled mostly onto the floor by his leg's weight. He moves the toes, to surprised oohs and quick chatter from the crowd. He slides to one side of the cot as he tries picking the leg up, and the group cries out in shock. He catches himself. "Get up here." He says, pulling his new leg up onto the bed. The crowd laughs with him again.

"That really did hurt." He says, after a bit, placing his feet carefully on the ground. He walks, his new leg seeming at first too stiff, then too loose. One of the nearby gnolls puts Algers' arm over his shoulder, and the two walk out of the room.

"Just keep it up lad. You'll get it!" Fereed shouts, wiping the sweat from his brow as the gnolls filter out.

I am kind of confused why everyone opted for torturing the lizardman.

It was quiet obvious that what he did, he do because he was ordered to.
Torturing him was kind of out of place.

Anyway, back to reading.

This is very fun OP. I like the way you write, all the detail you put in ... it's fantastic.

>>14111711

We're not torturing him.
We're making him happier about his life.

Also. Archive this thread!

You look down the hallway as the gnoll lets Algers go, and he begins walking, clumsily. You smile.

"Not bad for a day's work." Fereed says. "I mean it."

"Yes it's been a hell of a day." You say back to him.

"Alkenin? How do know it's you and not a doppelganger?" Fereed laughs,

"Because you'll never hear me complain again." You say, grinning. Nothing to complain about today anyway.

You see Algers standing down at the other side of the hallway. "Want to go for a walk?" He says, smirking.

His face blurs for a moment, bars of your vision moving randomly as his image freezes.

SEQUENCE INTERRUPTED: BRAIN PATTERNS ABNORMAL

NULLIFYING HERITAGE ACCESS

You burst back into consciousness, lungs rasping in the cool cave air in complete darkness. Your body caked in sweat, you feel your heart beating against your chest like its trying to escape. You collapse to the ground for a moment, trying not to come fully back into consciousness.

It isn't a lie. He was there.

But how?

How?

>>14111755

Be advised: The Allegory of the Cave isn't how it works in reality.

ALSO IF YOU ASSASSIN'S CREED THIS, BAD THINGS MAY OR MAY NOT HAPPEN INVOLVING ASSASSIN'S CREED.

And with that I am going to get a couple hours of sleep, then go to class. If you can archive this for me, that'd be great. I want to see what your synopsis would be.

Part 3 will probably start on Monday.

>>14111739
Well,

I was talking about the punishment from the beginning ... you know that which ended with his leg being cut off?

>>14111643
>Fereed is beside himself. "Lord? I haven't bee called a lord in... Oh that's depressing. Never mind that." He finishes funneling the fluid in, placing a black adamantine cap on the end of the leg. "Now I warn you, this sucker's heavy. It might be a while before you're running at full speed."
>"Lord? I haven't bee called a lord in... Oh that's depressing. Never mind that."
>haven't bee called
>bee

You know what we must do.
You know what we must make.
You know what we must become.

>>14111755
>>14111789

WHAT KIND OF CLIFFHANGER IS THIS!?

DAMN YOU, VKO, ARGHHHH!!!

>>14111788

Or does plato's cave actually exist and we are all...

OK probably not.

Assassin's Creed if it had heartwarming stories of the little gnoll engine that could instead of collect 500 flags for 100 gamer points, maybe.

Besides, that may not be all that's in play here. In this case, I'm not introducing a new element, just a new character.

Also Alkenin would not just spontaneously die if you drop kicked a whole bunch of babies. I will say that.

>>14111835
Actually, better idea:
>bee lord

>>14111849
>Also Alkenin would not just spontaneously die if you drop kicked a whole bunch of babies. I will say that.
Oh, that's a relief. Back to plan b then.

>>14111849

Is it... HASTUR?!
I think it's HASTUR.
But luckily for this thread, I'm not going to introduce everyone to why I think it's HAS...mwhahahaaa.