>>43797397
>>Ask the Scholar if he's got anything on your watch

Then Plans n' Training in that order.

>>43797397
>Ask the Scholar if he's got anything on your watch

>>43797397
>Ask the Scholar if he's got anything on your watch

>writing

So the witch is apparently the person to ask about time magic, but not inclined to help. What do you guys think about trying to bribe her by promising to have safi be the one who wins and actually makes the "no more blood moons" wish?

Y'know, as advanced as it is, I think that the next Off-affinity Magic Saif should learn is Space. Think about it: The Spy, who used Gravity/Force, had a high chance of being the physics teacher.

Physics is one of Saif's favorite subjects; he explicitly stated that momentum, gravity, etc., are fascinating topics to him. He could actually end up indirectly learning Space Magic from his time in a muggle classroom.

Plus, imagine if he got good enough where he didn't have to rely on the Tyrant's Cane?

>>43797788
His time in Jessica's music class could also indirectly help him get his head around Mind Magic. He plays a song, and he KNOWS that the person he's going to use it on is now thinking about the song; it creates a bridge.

>>43797844
By playing a song, I mean from an i-pod, or something.

>>43797788
>>43797844
So, in a way, Pemberton and Jessica already taught Saif their spheres of magic...

"See anything, Scholar?" You ask.

The Scholar jumps, looking around like he just snapped out of a daze. "Maybe?" He says. "It's hard to tell. One moment I can see things, the next I can't..."

"What do you see in the moments where you can see things?" You ask.
"It's tied, both to you and to everything" He says. "Beyond that I can't really tell"

"Well, that makes sense" You say. "Its only real use is telling what my own time is in relation to real time"

Jessica takes the watch from the Scholar. "Still though, with the right buyers you could make a good living off of these" Jessica says.
"How so?" You ask, as you take the watch from Jessica.
"Sell one, enchant another" She says. "Researchers would kill to get their hands on something that's come into contact with time magic"

"I've been told" You say.
"You have?" Boss asks.
"We were talking about the Academy earlier" Abigail says.
"Thinking about higher education?" The Scholar asks. "I strongly advocate that"
"You would" The Smith says. "Schools are practically churches for you"

"We can worry about my further education later" You say. "I would very much like to ensure that I survive the night"
"Yes" Boss says. "We should talk business"

>[1/2]

>>43797768
Thing is, Witch doesn't WANT Blood Moon to end, hence why she chose a thrall in the first place: to zerg rush Kyla.

She'd probably refuse out of spite.

>>43797996
I realize that, but there's a point where it's like "hey this way at least you got that last buff of power." That's why I called it a bribe.

>>43797996
>>43798029
At the very least I PERSONALLY think it's worth pursuing once Harvey's dead so her winstate is unfulfillable, but hey we can offer a consolation prize.

"So what is the plan?" Kyla asks.

"I want to get rid of the Puppeteer" You say, strapping your watch back onto your wrist. You never realized how uncomfortable you were without it until you had to give it up. Now that it's back, you feel right again.

"How are you going to do this?" Boss asks.

"I need Abigail" You say. "With the Tyrant's Cane, I can get up top and hopefully track him down and either force his surrender or get rid of him"
"I'll be staying at the bottom then" Abigail says. "The Cane has to keep contact with the ground to work"

"Then she'll be vulnerable" Jessica says.
"Safi can keep an eye on her" You say.
"Are you sure?" Boss asks.
"She's every bit as capable of me" You say. "If not moreso"

"Can you trust her?" Jessica asks.
"She needs to be connected to either the crystal or to Harvey to stay under his control" Abigail says. "Without either, she is free to be herself"

"How do you know that?" Jessica asks.
"He told me" Abigail says. "It was back when this all began. He was real fuckin' proud of himself"

Abigail sounds almost as angry as you are about Harvey's "methods". You're glad that you both agree on that point...

But now the only thing up in the air are the other details...

>Bring Boss tonight? [Y/N]

Then...

>Keep talking

>Go train

>Go relax

>>43798142
>Y
>Go relax

>>43798111
See, I think she'd just rather both Saif AND Safi die, if that was going to be there wish, considering that wishing away BM would ensure Kyla's continued existence.

She doesn't give a shit about Safi.

>>43798142
>Y
>Train

>captcha is trains

>>43798142
I'd like the boss to be a wildcard that Harvey can't entirely plan for, which means keeping safi from being able to report on him. Boss stays out.
Apart from that, we should actually practice the we're talking about here.

>>43798168
She doesn't care about safi, but if safi wins she gets a one time power boost. THAT'S the bribe

>>43798221
Yeah, but if Safi wishes BM away, then Kyla keeps living, something Witch DOESN'T want.

>>43798202
This. We need some aces up our sleeve.

>>43798248
Yeah but at that point GT alligned dudes will be a huge chunk of remaining contestants. BM is PROBABLY going to get wished away, but consolation prize! She might not agree, but I think it's worth asking.

>writing

>>43798202
Thing is, she already knows what Boss can do since Glutton's Team has fought him, before.

Hell, Boss n' Yui almost killed Dwight, so he would have had to tell Harvey about what happened.

Plus, Boss can actually go hand-to-hand, something which Safi is kind of crap at.

I really want a moment where we dangle Puppeteer from his feet over the drop to the Labyrinth, below. To quote Hellboy:

>"I see the puppet... but where is The Puppeteer?"

"And as for Boss... I dunno" You say. "I'm torn between bringing you in as support, and leaving you hear to keep an ace up my sleeve"

"Both good plans" He says. "We'll decide that later"

"Yeah. I'm fine procrastinating on that decision" You say. "I was kind of hoping to get some training in anyway"
"Good idea" Jessica says. "I think everyone can go do their own thing for now. We'll meet back up at 11:20 to finish planning"
"Gotcha" You say.

Training it is, then. You feel like you're pretty much ready to go in, but it can never hurt to be cautious.

You could ask Jessica or Boss for a hand with your firearms training. It's coming along well enough, but it's always good to get lessons from someone who knows what they're doing.

You could also do some hand-to-hand with Abigail. She can probably hold her own in a regular fight, otherwise she wouldn't still be here. But you're still curious as to how much she can manage...

Or you could go wail on that rubber dummy with your sword for a bit.

>Guns with Jess

>Guns with Boss

>Train with Abby

>Train on the dummy

>Other

>>43798565
>>Guns with Boss
Father son bonding

>>43798565
>>Guns with Boss

I'm actually thinking about that Russian Mob thing, it might be a good idea

>>43798565
>>Guns with Boss

>>43798565
I already said I want to train for what we're hoping to do with abigail tonight, to at least confirm we can pull it off and make sure there will be no hiccups.

>>43798446
Well I guess we can ask Boss if he's got enough tricks they didn't see yet to be worth hiding. Really I think he would know better than us.

>writing

>>43798686
It's more about the fact that they can't be certain of your allegiance with him yet, as it isn't official.

>>43798565
>Guns with Boss
Russian mob of magic's heir with time magic and lightbringer sword?!! Loli goddess?!! Blood moons??!
WE HAVE THE PLOT FOR METAL GEAR 6!!!

>>43798726
Oh if that's all we're hiding never mind. He'd know from safi that the traitor was in fact yue, our alliance is definitely more likely than not.

File: 1421819356740.jpg (45 KB, 225x225)

45 KB JPG

>>43798750

>>43798775
Plus, he'd know that Smith's Team was Guardian's Temple.

>>43798795
Yeah but it was pretty guessable at first that WE didn't know that, especially after he assumedly got the rundown on us from safi. If we hadn't revealed to safi then we could probably pretend we didn't know the Smith would be inclined to team up.

You stop before heading up to the bouncy room.

"Hey Boss, I was going to go practice my shot. I don't suppose you could give me some pointers?" You ask.
"You assume I know how to handle gun?" He says.
"You're in the magic Russian mob" You say. "It's a safe assumption"

Boss shrugs. "Is true. Come, I'll show you what I know"

You both head up to the bouncy room and set up some targets.

"You have a gun you prefer?" He asks.
"Kind of. Is that important?" You ask.
"Not really" He says. "But ideally you should have one you know inside and out"

"Do you?" You ask.
"No, but my teacher told me same thing when I was young. Figured I'd pass it on" He says.

You snort. "I'll keep that in mind then" You say.
"I did too" He says. "Why don't we start off with you showing what you know. I can teach you from there"

"Sounds good" You say.

>Roll 1d20
>Usual rules apply

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>43798881

>>43798881
No whammies!

Rolled 9 (1d20)

>>43798881
Danny my phone and it's auto capitalization.

Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>43798881
>>Roll 1d20

Rolled 15 (1d20)

>>43798881
pew pew

>>43798899
holy crap, when did he become some kind of gun toting savant?

>>43798988
The moment Harv decided he wanted to tango.

>writing

Show him what you know, huh?

Well, you might as well give him your best shot...

You step up to the line and enter fast time, taking aim at the first target and firing 3 shots at the 2 sweet spots: 2 at the head, 1 at the heart. Then you move to the next target and repeat the process, getting all 4 targets and reloading before returning to real time.

When you hit real time, all 4 targets get hit near simultaneously, and 12 casings hit the floor.

"How's that?" You ask.
Boss rolls his eyes. "Impressive, but I was thinking you could show me your form" He says. "That move will come in handy, though"

"You sure?" You ask.
"Emptying entire magazine at many targets in less than a second will always be a useful skill, provided you can hit them all" He says. "So, let's see your form"

>[1/2]

File: Holy Crap.jpg (328 KB, 718x514)

328 KB JPG

>>43799160
>You step up to the line and enter fast time, taking aim at the first target and firing 3 shots at the 2 sweet spots: 2 at the head, 1 at the heart. Then you move to the next target and repeat the process, getting all 4 targets and reloading before returning to real time.
>When you hit real time, all 4 targets get hit near simultaneously, and 12 casings hit the floor.

Oh, we Brother Bear now.

This'll be handy if Keeper and Puppeteer try and get away through their Door.

In the end, Boss doesn't have much to give you other than some minor pointers. He's just as surprised by your progress as you are.

"Just remember one thing" He says, tapping you under the elbow to make you raise your arm up a little.
"What's that?" You ask.

"Everything that decides whether bullet hits or not does not happen at target, it happens back here" He says. "Your stance, your aim, your focus, your trigger pull, all of it. Hit or miss is decided long before bullet even leaves barrel"

You fire, and the bullet strikes the target dead on.

"I think I get it" You say. "Once its loose, there's nothing I can do to change where it's going. If I want it to go where I need it to go, I need to make sure it's headed that way in the first place"

"Exactly" He says.

"Except I can kind of intercept the bullets" You say, jokingly. "I think that might be my next foray into marksmanship: firing a bullet way off course, and then catching up to it and putting it back on course"

"You'd be better off just firing a second one most times" He says.
"You never know" You say. "What if I was faced with an ultimatum about shooting 2 people, and I changed my mind after squeezing the trigger?"

"Then you probably shouldn't squeeze trigger in first place" He says.
"Good point" You say.

You check your watch, which you are still glad to have back on your wrist. It's 11:00. You've got some time left before you have to meet everyone...

>What do?

>>43799326
Relax with friends and family.

>>43799326
>Attempt to reach your final form.

>>43799326
We need to know healing. It's Body Magic, yeah?

Plus, Boss is goin' in with us. It's all well and good to have Safi watch Abby's ass, but somebody needs to watch Safi's.

Harvey wouldn't send her in alone of he wasn't confidant that she could get her ass kicked.

>>43799432
Well really his ideal is we die but safi doesn't, so I wouldn't read that much into him sending her in alone.

>writing

""Well, I think that's it for firearm practice" You say.
"You seem to know what you're doing" Boss says.

"Well, that and I'd kind of like to learn how to heal myself" You say. "I tried it last night, and I failed spectacularly"
"Failed how?" He asks.

"Well... I got shot in the stomach, and my attempts to heal it not only didn't work, but they made things worse" You say.

"Healing is not something you learn in one night" He says. "Like most off-affinity magic, you need some understanding of concepts behind it"

"So... biology?" You ask.
He nods. "You at least need to know what parts are where, if you want to do it right" He says. "This kind of thing is what makes off-affinity magic hard to learn"

"I got body strengthening down pretty quick" You say.
"Because you have been studying how to apply bodily strength for years" He says. "Your teacher told me how quickly you learned that. It is not always so easy"

"So Safi must be pretty damn smart then..." You say. "I saw her using several types of magic, and I'm almost positive that what I saw was just the tip of the iceberg"
"Really?" He asks.

You nod.
"Then it is a shame her mind is not her own" He says. "I'm sure you both could do amazing things"
"That'll change this Sunday" You say.
Boss grins. "I believe you" He says.

>Ask Boss if he can give you biology 101

>See what (character) is up to

>Go do (thing)

>Other

>>43799723
>>Ask Boss if he can give you biology 101

>>43799723
>>Ask Boss if he can give you biology 101

>>43799723
>>Ask Boss if he can give you biology 101

>writing

"But seriously, could you teach me healing magic?" You ask. "I feel like it'll be pretty important going forward"

He thinks for a moment before responding. "Basics" He says. "You should know muscles by now, I can show you how to mend external wounds. Anything internal will have to wait"

"Gotcha" You say.

Boss spends the next 20 minutes teaching you about mending yourself. It's close enough to strengthening that you get how it works well enough, but you don't really get a chance to test it out at all.

But you've got a good grasp on it when the time comes for you to head back to the bar. You'll just have to hope it's good enough to get you by when the time comes...

When you get back downstairs, Abigail greets you by hopping up to give you a quick smooch.

"How'd practice go?" She asks.
"Well enough" You say. "At the very least, I'm not likely to blow my own head off by accident anytime soon"
Abigail giggles. "You have the unique ability to get back up and learn from something like that, though" She says.
"Assuming that I'd learn" You say. "I have been known to be stupid from time to time"

"Not when it counts" She says.
You smile, and lean over to kiss her again. Then you take her hand and go sit down.

"Alright, now that everyone is here..." Jessica says.

>[1/2]

"So what's the plan once we get in?" Abigail asks.

"First thing's first: we have to meet up" You say. "Safi and I pretty much have free reign in that maze. Once we're in, she'll start heading my way as soon as she can"

"That just leaves the two of us" Abigail says. "I can't really get around those walls"
"Nor can I" Boss says. "How do you do it?"
"I turn myself into a cannonball" You say. "Safi taught me how. You speed up time and run at the wall, and then freeze yourself as you crash through it"

"And that works?" Boss says.
"It does" Abigail says.

"So I guess I'll have to meet up with you two before we get started with anything..." You say.

You frown. This is the part that would be made easier if Boss stayed behind. The less time you have to spend setting up, the better your chances of getting the jump on the Puppeteer and the Keeper...

If Abigail is the only one you need to find then you can have her broadcast her location by using magic, and use that to find her. Safi knows Abigail's affinity, and she can hopefully catch on to the fact that you're heading to Abigail first.

If you then have to go and get Boss as well after that... that complicates things. Your targets will be watching. They'll see you rallying together before you can get at them.

It comes with disadvantages, but if your fight with the Puppeteer goes long you would feel much better having Boss around to keep an eye on things than you would leaving Safi and Abigail alone.

You know they can hold their own... but they're your girlfriend and your sister. You're allowed to be a little protective.

So that leaves the question: Do you bring Boss?

>[Y/N]

>>43800257
>Y

>>43800257
>Y

>>43800257
Also, for fuck's sake, everybody keep your eyes out for Keeper; he can move around with that magic door of his.

>writing

"I think that playing things safe and slow is probably the better plan" You say. "I tried going quick and dirty with the Spy. It worked, but he came way too close to getting away"

"Good call" Jessica says. "Alright. Everyone get ready. Messages go up in 15, Arena is up in 25"

You nod. You're pretty much good to go already, so you stay put. Abigail and Boss head off to make some last minute prep, though.

With everyone else gone, it's just you... and Kyla apparently.

"Meeee" Moriarty says, as he hops up into your lap.

... and Moriarty.

"You ready for this?" Kyla asks.
"Probably" You say, petting your cat. "I definitely feel more ready than I have before"
Kyla chuckles. "You can say that again" She says. "I remember when I first met you. You had no idea what was going on"

"Well... thankfully that changed" You say. "Why so reminiscent all of a sudden?"
"A lot has changed..." She says. "I think... I think I'm ready to change things"
"You mean you've thought about your grudge?" You ask.
"You were right..." She says. "It was all about me. I was so busy looking out and guarding this place out of jealousy, that I didn't bother looking down at how the people were doing..."

"How are you going to go about it?" You ask.
"The Earth will still be mine" She says. "But I've talked it out with the Smith... the other gods can come here, but they play by my rules"

"It's a good start" You say, placing Moriarty on the table so you can stand and hug your goddess.
"I still need the Blood Moon gone" She says.
"Working on that" You say. "I'll do my part, don't you worry"
"Thank you" Kyla says. returning your embrace.

>[1/2]

You're sitting back down, petting your cat when Abigail, Boss and Jessica come back.

"You guys good to go?" Jessica asks.
"Yeah" You say.
Abigail stretches out. "I'll be glad when all this is over and I can actually get to sleep at a decent time for a change" She says.

You shrug. "If this goes well, you should be able to skip the next few nights" You say. "With the Puppeteer gone, I probably won't need backup until Sunday"
"You probably won't even need it then" She says.
"It's always good to have backup" You say. "I don't relish the idea of letting Harvey slip away and force Safi into another week of this"

Abigail nods. "Agreed"

[Arena]>The Puppeteer will be entering the Arena
[Arena]>The Keeper will be entering the Arena
[Arena]>The Witch will be entering the Arena

You exchange a glance with Abigail, and then Boss.

[Arena]>The Creator will be entering the Arena
[Arena]>The Butcher will be entering the Arena

Your eyes narrow. You had meant to talk to Claire tomorrow... Why would she be entering tonight?

Nevertheless, your message comes up

>Will you be entering the Arena?

>>43800881
>Y

Goddamnit Claire

File: Let's Do This.jpg (118 KB, 456x412)

118 KB JPG

>>43800881
>Yuppers

>>43800898
Well, what we actually ASKED was to take off one night so we could kill the spy. She did, and we killed the spy, so there was really no reason for us to think she WOULDN'T be in tonight.

File: FIX BAYONETS.jpg (361 KB, 960x832)

361 KB JPG

>>43800881
>Y

>>43800933
Fair, but her presence makes this a bit more complicated. And more potentially lethal to our allies.

>>43800969
Well, that's a choice we made when we skipped school today and made no other effort to contact her.

>writing

>>43800990
Here's the thing that I've realized about Claire's character: if she's dismissed into the background, she WILL return to bite you in the ass.

>>43801081
I think the way Smiley intended her was that, unless she's romanced/befriended to a good degree, she can't be easily appealed to, thus, she kills more of the cast.

>>43801199
Of course, I also get the feeling he thought some of the opportunities to do so we're easier to spot than they actually were, 'cause as far as I can tell we took every claire route choice we could until the reveal and it wasn't much

You hit yes. Abigail hits yes. Boss hits yes.

You take a breath, and let it out. Just another night of frantic, frenzied fighting... and then you can rest tomorrow.

You'll take the day off school, and probably spend the better part of it snuggling with Moriarty and Abigail. Say what you will about cats being jerks, or lazy, or mean; it's handy to have one around when you need something to pet.

You give Moriarty to Kyla and stand up as the timer ticks down, then you walk over to Abigail and grab her hand.

She nods to you, and you nod back.

The warehouse is silent.

When the clock strikes 11:59, you brace for the sudden change of scenery.

It does come, but not before you see the warehouse door being blown off its hinges. What you don't see, is who comes in after that.

Because you're in the entrance already, in your own version of the warehouse. The one painted red by the moon's light.

You stand still in shock, before punching the wall.

You aren't just going in to protect your sister every night. You're being taken out of play. For the next hour, there are no allied champions in the warehouse, and the gods can't do a damn thing if they brought one.

For the next hour, what happens is what will happen.

You get the feeling you won't like what you find when you get out.

That's all for tonight!

Next thread will be sometime this week. I've been having trouble finding time to run lately, but if I see a chance I'll be taking it.

As always I'll be sticking around for question/suggestion time.

>>43801272
As much as I hate to bring it up, cause I don't want to start shit, I think hooking up with Abigail closed off more opportunities, since she drew Saif's attention away from Claire.

>>43801288
>>43801303
... Fuck.

Great thread Smiley! The plot thickens...

>>43801288
Shit Jess is in super danger. Thankfully it's her warehouse.