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You came back...!

A voice from your dreams stirs you awake, with a pounding headache to accompany it. You wince, feeling shards of glass slip from your clothes as you gingerly tried to rise and reluctantly pry open your crimson eyes in an attempt to find out where you are.

You are Irue Valen, blood heir to House Valen, and the last thing you remember was the scream caught in your throat as a wooden golem bearing your own smiling face had left a shattered window in its wake. Whatever had transpired after that, it seems you had been left alone in this darkness... A fact which still surprises you, as memories that weren't your own tried to reconcile the inability to simply see through the darkness.

Shaking those foreign memories away, you blindly brush your hands out and over the smooth stone flooring; Cool to the touch and familiar, it served to inform you that whatever series of events had led you to this point had also left you inside of your house... A house which seemed far less welcoming to you than it had when you left. Vines and roots snaked across every surface you found as you stumbled to your feet, finding lumps of wooden knots and humps occasionally bulging out with every couple of steps.

You strained to hear something in the darkness, some sign of Priat or Mim, but found nothing except the quiet rustling of leaves to greet you. If you focused on it for too long, you could almost make out laughter.

Regardless, it seems you were well alone for now. While you had planned to come and reclaim your house, it seemed like you had stumbled into something more than you had wanted to deal with. At the very least, this was a place you had lived nearly every day of the last ten years in; It wasn't as if you were going to be lost. The fact there was still glass on you when you awoke was a good sign you hadn't ended up very far from the window you were pulled through, which meant you had a general idea of where in the house you were.

...Of course, you could have a better sense if you took a moment to spin a web.

>Meditate with the Bracelet (which Mana?)
>A Spider's Web.
>Call out to the others.
>Search for the broken window.
>Make your way to the front of the house.
>Other? (write-in)
>>
Previous Threads:
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Valen+Quest

Where things are said: https://twitter.com/Riz_QM
Where things are asked: http://ask.fm/RizQM

Assorted Supplemental:
Current Abilities - http://pastebin.com/PchcdWpw
A List of Forgotten Things - http://pastebin.com/kPEscJ3h
Irue's Memoires - http://pastebin.com/sWnicrK7

Write-ups:
Kara's Day Out - http://pastebin.com/8ZbiSKLs
Adventures with Asche - http://pastebin.com/RNviCBJu
The Reclaimed Doll - http://pastebin.com/n6miP1qT
In Your Shadow - http://pastebin.com/EfeeHFAE
Friends Forever - http://pastebin.com/Yn0QaTVB

Misc notes:I hope broken-leg anon is doing better this week.

Memo:
1. You'd be taking a Salamander Adept into a forest though, so be careful with that.
2. Invite Marchovic on adventures next time there's a chance.
3.
>>
>Search for the broken window.
>>
>>514183
>>Other? (write-in)
Try to signal the others without voice - knocking noticeably, perhaps.

I sort of want to medidate shade, but...

Also, how big is our house? And where in it do we think we are?
>>
>>514186
Holy shit, the newest write up.
>>
>>514203
Broken windows!

>>514218
Voiceless signals! Irue does not know Morse Code, but will figure something out.

>>514218
Your house is fairly large. It has two stories in it, and comfortably managed to house 30+ people. It's more of a small mansion by all rights, and has perpetually been crushingly empty for the past ten years with only Asche and yourself.

You think you're towards the back, likely near the backdoor... But you remember it being closed at the time. The front door was open, however, so there's that.

>>514220
Friendship!

Writing.
>>
Your first reaction was to want to call out to the others. While this wasn't the first time you had been caught in a situation like this, it was the first time you had been so... Alone. There had always been someone else with you, even if that other person was a piece of yourself. However, the words failed on the tip of your tongue; You needed to remember how you had wound up inside. There was no telling where the wooden golem that dragged you in had gone, nor if it was the only one which was in the house.

No, if you just called out now then you were just as likely to attract their attention as you were to find the others. You took a step forward, hand brushing lightly against the bark and ivy covered wall to steady yourself in the dark. They hadn't gotten close to the window like you had, which meant there was a possibility they were still outside... And given the amount of glass that had fallen off you earlier, you likely weren't far from that broken window. You rapped your knuckles sharply against the wall every few feet, tapping out a simple staccato pattern that served to both distract you, and hopefully signal someone else near by.

After a few minutes of slow progress, it you the simple knocking had done little in way of obtaining a response from Priat or Mim, but it had served rather admirably in helping you relax. Humorously, it also nearly made you miss the crack of broken glass underfoot which alerted you to having finally found the shattered window you were initially drawn into.

You blindly ran your hands along where it should have been, finding strips of your curtains trapped between heavily constricted roots. The glass underfoot was a sure sign that this was where you had entered, but whatever entry had been here had been sealed shut.... Although.

You felt your way several feet further down the wall as the staccato continued, feeling the roughness of the wood give way to a far less strictly covered layer of ivy, and eventually running your hands across the imprint of a door. Whatever sense of urgency had driven the wooden golem to seal away the broken window had, evidently, not extended to blockading the door not several feet away.

it was times like this which made you question just how intelligent they actually were. Clearly there was some sense of thought behind their actions, but how much did they actually understand?

This was the same door you had ducked through shortly after your first venture into the Fae Woods, and subsequently your first encounter with those wooden golems. You had found Ari and dashed back to your house faster than you had ever moved in your life, slamming shut the door behind you in the hopes of keeping out any pursuers at the time.

...Of course, there had been none at the time.
>>
The soft rustling of leaves in the distance had continued its merry laughter as you stood back in thought. If you focused on the steady rhythmic knocking, you could almost drown it out completely. The more you listened to it, the more you realized that the whispery laughters were echoes of your own voice - Different times you had laughed, linked together into a single looping chorus that could only softly be heard over the natural shifting of the ivy leaves.

You glanced further down the hall, towards the distant din of rustling leaves, and barely made out a pale pool of moonlight drifting through the parted curtains. Now that you thought back on it, none of the other windows you had passed on your way to the back of the house been closed either. Was it just that one?

Why only seal a single window? Did their common sense really just not extend that far?

>Clear the ivy and tendrils from the door
>Go investigate the unsealed window
>They probably left the front door open, as well.
>Other? (Write-in)
>>
>>514375
>>Clear the ivy and tendrils from the door
>>
>>514375
>>Go investigate the unsealed window
>>
>>514375
>>Go investigate the unsealed window
>>
>>514375
>Go investigate the unsealed window
>>
>>514382
Ivy!

>>514396
>>514400
>>514403
...Overwhelmingly not Ivy!

Alright then, writing.
>>
You decide to leave the door be for now, making your way cautiously down the hall instead. Pulling the curtain back revealed a window unbarred by the ivy and roots, which gave you a clear view of the night sky... And the small crowd of smiling faces standing completely still in the back yard. You could barely make out large swathes of blackened and charred grass under the pale moonlight, the same light which left the various wooden statues to resemble featureless black silhouettes cast in their own dark shadow.

After several motionless moments, you remember to breathe once more. None of them were moving, but they were all watching the house. Long, hair-like ivy cascading down their wooden bodies with leaves shifting in the night wind. You swallowed dryly as a breeze picked up, and with it, the volume of the laughter you had been hearing.

The curtain falls back into place after you confirm there wasn't anything else for you to see outside. You had at least been unconscious long enough for evening to pass, and if the damage to your lawn was any indication, Priat hadn't exactly gone along quietly with whatever had happened. Where that left him and Mim, however, was anyone's guess. If worst came to worst however, you knew you could get out of the house through a window.

...Although, given what seemed to be waiting for you outside, you wonder if outside was really where you wanted to go at all.

The muffled laughter died back down to its previous subtle din, leaving you alone with the constant knocking once more. A knocking which... You had nothing to do with. Stepping back and away from the now curtain-covered window, you turn to stare back down the way you had come - Following the trail of the staccato sounds, and the way they seemed to gradually grow closer with each repetition.

>Knock back.
>Call out vocally.
>Keep moving.
>Break the window.
>Other? (Write-in)
>>
>>514497
>>Knock back.
>>
>>514497
>Keep moving.
It's probably the golems mimicking us.
>>
>>514497
>>Knock back.
>>Other? (Write-in)
Then hide, until it's closer.
>>
>>514501
>>514525
Marko?
Polo?

>>514524
Yeah no, we know this trick.

Writing!
>>
You glance around the hall, stepping deftly out of the sliver of moonlight still peaking through the curtains. Seems like your concerns about attracting them earlier had been a valid one. You had too much experience with these golems to believe that this kind of response anything else but an approaching golem. That said, what options did you really have in response?

The simplest answer was just to keep moving. The knocking wasn't catching up any time soon, and if you picked up the pace a bit then you wouldn't need to bother with it at all... But if it kept following you, then what was to say you wouldn't eventually encounter another one? Would leaving this one's pursuit alone just get you cornered later?

Your fingers slowly curled into a fist. You had some manner of success in the past in getting them to listen to you; A fact which had kept this entire affair from being anymore unnerving than absolutely necessary. That said, the capacity in which they would listen always seemed... Sketchy. Still, you made up your mind to gamble on its mood as you swiftly knocked out a response and hid-

-Hid where? Behind the curtains?

The knocking paused briefly, frozen alongside your mind as you realized you hadn't actually thought out where you were going to hide. Horrifyingly, it seemed to only speed up after that was rapid footsteps echoed down the hall immediately after. You needed to hide, and you needed to do it now! There's no way you were putting your back against that window, which left...

Memories of the house sprang to mind easily, and in little time you had felt out the closed door of an empty room. This door opened inward, a small blessing as you forced it open and then clambered through the sparse ivy covering to get inside and shut yourself in. You could listen from within as the rapid footsteps approached, plodding through the halls and leaving the rustling of ivy hair in its wake. A part of you was satisfied you had correctly assumed it was a golem... But what exactly did you plan to do about it now?

'Come back.'

You held your breath when it called, and listened to its warbling voice pace up and down the hall. If you were going to say something, now would be the time.

>Stay quiet, let it pass.
>Say something (what?)
>Meditate (Which Mana?)
>Throw the door open and attack.
>Other? (write-in)
>>
>>514648
>Say something (what?)
"No, you come back"

Stupid, I know, but I don't see any smart options.
>>
>>514648
>Say something (what?)

"You come here."
>>
>>514675
I feel you hive mind.

Screw being clever, we're sick of this. That attitude hasn't let us down in the past!
>>
>>514648
>>Stay quiet, let it pass.
>>
>>514648
>>Say something (what?)
"What do you want?" or "hello?" or something.
Aside from this most recent window-yank, the golems haven't harmed us, right? scared the crap out of us, sure, but not hurt us.

Given the opportunity, we should parrot the "request for a stick" thing at some point. Be interesting to see what sort of reaction we'd get, and if we're lucky Ari's still got said stick
>>
>>514675
>>514677
I know it doesn't understand speech the same way, but why would we call it to us?

Why not instead...
>Say something (what?)
"GO back."
>>
>>514701
>>514648
meant as an actual vote, forgot to point to this post.

>>514697
But I actually like this idea (the latter, not the former - no unnecessary chatting), though I'm not sure if it would help us right now.
>>
>>514675
>>514677
>>514697
>>514701
Saying things!

>>514696
This is neglect play, right?
---

So we have two votes for "No you.", a vote for asking what it wants, and a vote for "Go away".

....Aight.

Writing!
>>
"Why don't you come back?" You grumble under your breath, almost reflexively realizing after you had said it that your mouth had run ahead of your brain once more. Your jaw snapped shut, breath held sharply.... You had been quiet, at least. Maybe it hadn't heard you?

...It was knocking. On a door. Your door, specifically. You weren't sure how to feel about this at all.

On one hand, you had given away your position to a potentially hostile and unidentified freakish thing.
On the other, it was showing surprisingly good manners.

'You come back?'

Manners that led you no closer to figuring out how much of its speech mimicry it actually understood. At the very least you had established contact with it though, so if nothing else, you were primed to run with the one skill you could proudly say had been polished since day one!

Talking with completely unwarranted confidence.

"Why are you following me this time?"
'Come back?'
"And why are you in my house?"
'Come back... My house?'
"What's with all of your friends standing around outside, anyway?"

This was reminding you miserably of the last time you had tried to talk to the wooden golems. They hadn't understood anything back then, either... If anything, you had just helped expand their vocabulary.

...A fact which dawned on you belatedly as you sighed, disappointed and frustrated with yourself for making the same mistake again.

"Look, just go away. And tell your friends to leave with you."

You actually kind of missed the fleshy stick. Despite advancing in a thoroughly disturbing direction, it had showed the most ability to actually understand your orders.

'....Friends?'

It wasn't leaving.

>?
>Am I forgetting something....? (write-in)
>>
>>514781
>Am I forgetting something....? (write-in)

Our friends outside? Our giant golem? That the fae are dicks to their friends? Our golem staff friend?

On mobile and so high, someone please get this.
>>
>>514781
>Am I forgetting something....? (write-in)
The mask the first one we saw was wearing was of our good friend the Fleshstick, right?

If that's wrong, maybe we should do what >>514697 suggested and ask them to retrieve it anyway. And Ari too, while we're at it. We probably won't get anywhere with that kind of request, but who knows.
>>
>>514804
Yes. RIP Fleshstick. We only gave you a name once you left us.

>>514781
Though I think the actual forgetting might be related to how the Fae treat their friends (pic related). Though I don't know how to react to it.
>>
Going to give you guys another 10-15m for this Forgetting, since I recall some people mentioning they'd like longer windows when these come up.

In the meantime I'll just work on this completely unrelated interlude.
>>
>>514810
What I get out of this is that we should kidnap fleshstick v.2 and dress it up in our Testaments clothing.

They can't actually speak, only copy though. Right?
>>
>>514781
Fae share a single mind. Yet Fleshstick was killed and made into a mask instead of just doing what Fae want. So either there is more than one faction that can use wood golems, or Ari somehow separated Fleshstick from the Fae overmind.

Also this means that the golems outside aren't this one's friends, they are one and the same.

...I'm just throwing ideas at the wall here.
>>
>>514781
Here's another stupid idea:

>?
Try to meditate on Fae like you would on a Mana.
>>
>>514853
>Stupid idea, I like it! Let's do this.

Nothing that hasn't been said comes to mind with the forgetting.

>>514822
Riz, did you catch the discussions at the tail end of the previous thread? Was any of it getting close?
>>
>>514844
>>514853
I like both of these stupid ideas. It might mean we can get frowny's... sentiments? To spread to the others. Whatever those are.

Murderously obedient.
>>
INTERLUDE

"Sorry I couldn't get you anything warmer." You apologized to the knights with a smile, wrapping the your shawl closer around your shoulders. Nights in the desert could get much colder than this, almost brutally so, but the humidity in this region was something you had become unfortunately aware of. It wasn't simply cold here, but cold and wet; A combination you found yourself weak to.

These men, however, only laughed off your apology and your shawl as they drank merrily from their cups. Until very recently they had been brigands, with little to their name and even less on their back, dealing with a coldsnap during the night was more invigorating to them than unpleasant. If anything, the proper clothes they had obtained by working under Irue made it nigh unnoticeable.

...You shook your head when they asked about their erstwhile employer, lips thinning with unwanted thoughts as you once more told them you didn't know when their blonde saviour would be coming back. It was a question you were used to fielding at this point, because you had stepped up to handle the day-to-day affairs.

You learned rather reluctantly that as far as the knights were concerned, this made you second in command... And thus also more approachable in voicing their concerns and questions. When you had complained to Dullem about not handling that part of his job, the bear of a man had had the nerve to shrug at you!

These thoughts were interrupted as you were returning to your room, a simple tap against the hallway window drawing your attention. The moonlit silhouette was familiar, and you could already feel a scowl beginning to burn its way across your face as you opened your mouth to lay into the childish noble you had found your life entwined with recently...

...But what you saw was left your jaw snapping shot as the moonlight shifted and revealed to you the frozen smile carved smoothly onto the unmoving wooden face which stared in at you.

And beyond, many, many more.
>>
Your eyes snapped open suddenly, crimson iris dilating painfully as you jerked forward in your chair. The shaft of the polearm Irue had near died to deliver to you still clutched tightly in your hands, so much so that your knuckles shone white as your grip trembled.

It had appeared in your dreams again. You hadn't been gotten more than ten or twenty minutes of sleep at a time for almost a week now before that night began to play over again in your mind. Sometimes you rushed back to the front door, and other times you simply ran - You knew that no matter how fast you ran, the knights you had spoken to not minutes before wouldn't be there any more.

That face had haunt you ever since. Though you had taken the knights and fled to Carona, you still couldn't shake the fear of seeing it again. You found yourself hesitating in your dealings with the knights, unsure and anxious that each time they walked out the door would be like it had back then.

It was silly.

Intellectually you knew that. irue had even come and gone since then, and... You had made the mistake of telling the insensitive blonde about the problems you had been having. They had asked, persisted in asking, and you were too tired to keep them out.

...Of course nothing had come of it. Some part of you had actually hoped they would have an answer to help you, but reality wasn't that kind. Now they were off again, to reclaim the house you had fled - and if you knew Irue, they wouldn't be coming back without Ari in tow either.

Which left you here. Waking fitfully as your struggle against sleep continued to lose ground.

You had at least been able to use the constant paperwork to keep your mind moving, keep yourself too occupied for sleep, but... That damn maid Irue had left here couldn't even be called human. Not a day after Irue had left, it was as if she had revealed her nature of some sort of managerial super weapon. Out of sheer indignity you had insisted on double checking her work, but... It was flawless.

How in Shade's domain did anyone do that much paperwork?

...Now you had nothing. Nothing but your thoughts, and the looming nightmares which waited for the inevitable lapse in will power to sneak back up on you.

You saw it even now, as you stood outside. A deep breath of fresh air in the empty night streets, cold and humid, an unpleasant sensation against skin and clothes slick with sweat that served to shock you back into temperamental wakefulness. It was there, in the corner of your eyes. You refused to look at it, because that was simply where it lived now - That damningly familiar silhouette, haunting you from just out of sight.

You wouldn't give it the satisfaction of chasing shadows.
>>
Asche watched the red haired Testament go, turning back towards the outer door with the phantom semblance of a frown beginning to form upon her impassive face. In the midst of the night, she stood upon the threshold and stared out into the chilly air, words forming barely visible puffs of steam in their wake...

"You are unwanted here."

...And leaving the lifeless streets slightly emptier than before.

But it would return.
It always returned.
Like they would always return.

This was, after all, a nightly affair to you.

One which you had done every night, of every week, for the past ten years.
>>
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>>514872
>One which you had done every night, of every week, for the past ten years.

oh
>>
>>514872
. . . . . We're going to have to have a serious sit-down with Asche one day.

There's a lot we already knew she was keeping from us, regarding our sister and the bracelet and heck even what Asche actually is and all.

But it occurs to me that we've never really gotten into it with her about all the things she's been taking care of for us over the years. The Manor and all that.

We really need to focus on getting Ari back. Second best Testament there.
>>
>>514853
>>514866
>>514868
Meditating to the Fae!
Ironically you failed the forgetting, but chose the action it would have led to?

Sorry, the interlude got away from me.

Writing!

>>514866
If by tail-end you mean almost a full week after i ended the thread and left, then yes. I actually just happened to notice Valen was still up and glanced in to find like 80+ posts of conversation had just magically appeared.

Why doesn't anyone like to have conversation during the threads?

Some of it was on the mark, others were so far off that I wondered how anyone could come to that kind of conclusion.

Though now that you remind me, I did some backreading to make sure of something and found out that I had never expressly told you at any point that the specific resource was valuable. It had been alluded to, but in such a vague and unrelated manner that I don't think it fair at all to hope anyone would have picked up on it.

Thus for the record, I'm taking the blame on that and it'll show up again later as an opportunity for you to make use of.
>>
>>514877
Wait, so did we nail the resource?

A lot was just me thinking out loud hoping to urge forward a spark of genius from someone else, I wasn't too concerned about being so wrong it could bring me shame.

You must have inhuman willpower to manage to avoid your own threads for over a week, I always have to sneak a peek every other day or I grow anxious.
>>
>>514871
>some sort of managerial super weapon

Senpai has quoted me!

>>514872
Oh
Fuck
Asche is also a Fae(?) repellent.

>>514877
Could we know what we forgot then?
>>
>>514883
Or the Fae just wanted to get rid of Asche so that we would be all alone with no-one but them.

Because they are dicks.
>>
>>514883
>What we forgot?
___

>With a deep breath, you finally raise your arm and grasp at your late-sister's bracelet. They had mimicked this when they were born, its replica had killed the one which caught you a little over a week ago, it had to mean something special to them... You just weren't sure what.

>"I want you to protect me." You mutter, trying to project the intent of your message towards the wood golem. "The things important to me, at all costs, I need them safe." Blood from the cut on your forehead dripped down, painting streams of red down the center of your face as you tried to implore the wood golem to listen to you again. Just one more time.

>>514882
>Did we nail the resource?
No, no one even came close.

Also, I'm really writing this time!
>>
By the way, here's a theory I came up with after reading "Friendship Forever"

The narrator pretty obviously is the Fae talking about the captured Ari. The points of interest are:

>"Bitter scent"
>Moonlight faintly glowing arount her
>"You think the curse is a blessing, and once we would have agreed"
>"Jelousy defiled this light"
>"Moonlight has been washed away, you are safe now. Safe from our memories and our wretched sibling"
>"That smell brings our memories to stir, and they are a despicable thing"

It seem the Fae were once "siblings" of Mana, particularly of Luna. But since then they have really fallen apart.
Luna did something very unpleasant to them.

Corroborating:

>The only other mention of "Her" was in the vision in the ruins. The vision which Luna has deleted from Irue's memory.
>A Shrine building has a tree growing in the center. What the hell is it for?
>The ruins also had such a tree.
>The Goddess' Champion will rid the world of seven great evils. There are seven Mana and a Goddess is a good candidate for being called "Her"
>No one said Maran was working FOR Artemis. They just played some role in her plan.
>>
>>514890
Hm, no time for me to rummage the archive but if I remember correctly, wasn't Riz musing about the choice to teach Ari about Luna?


>No one said Maran was working FOR Artemis. They just played some role in her plan.
Oh, nice observation. This would make my conjecture in the previous thread about Maran being an Artemis agent and selling her out, fall under the "so far off" category in >>514877.
Definitely an angle to pursue
>>
>>514896
>wasn't Riz musing about the choice to teach Ari about Luna?

I hadn't found anything like that in my dump. Riz did muse about naming her "Ari" though.
>>
...Seeing as how actually talking to the thing had destroyed whatever threatening atmosphere that had been building since you woke up in here, you decided you could probably do worse than to take a seat and collect yourself. For its part, the wooden golem which had been stalking you seemed content to knock on the door, occasionally repeating 'Friends?' or some such... You doubted it was going to be a problem in the next few minutes.

They didn't understand words... Not entirely, at least. The fleshstick had been the closest to actually capable of understanding its orders, but it had been something of an anomaly all the way around. For one, it had slowly been devouring the flesh of the people it killed until it was some manner of skin covered tree monster that... Had started to resemble a corpse of you, rather than a carving. You can't help but wonder just how much becoming a humanitarian had aided its evolution into conversation-capable.

...But no, it hadn't always been like that. When it was raging, you had gambled it all on a stupid idea to try and calm it down, didn't you? Even back then, you had clumsily attempted to use your late sister's bracelet to get its attention.

Her... Bracelet. Which was a Relic. It had worked back then, though. Now that you thought about it. Given Asche's... Vague... Explanation.

Dammit, Asche never explained anything about this bracelet to you. You were supposed to be working with her so it didn't do that thing where it carved off pieces of your soul and then seared the gaping wound shut in order to conjure natural disasters.

...It was an activity that sounded of much more dire importance than you had actually given it at the time, seeing as how you never actually got around to any of that, but oh well. If the bracelet had worked to facilitate proper conversation once before, then you were confident you could do it again - Especially given you had a much better understanding of... Of...

Especially since you had more experience in it!

Your fingers traced the bracelet's dual rings familiarly, drawing comfort from the shape of its curves and the weight which clung to your wrist. What you needed more than anything right now was intent, and by definition, that meant there was no room to for deception. It wasn't a communication marred by interpretation, but raw meaning.

"Let's try... One more time." You resolved to not tell Asche about this. She wouldn't be happy if she found out you had broken your promise to not use it again so soon. "What do you want?"

Something was... Pulling at you, in the silence which ensued. One devoid of 'friends?' and the characteristic knocking. A silence which almost made you wonder if you had failed. After a moment though, the knocking resumed, with renewed pleas to 'Come back'.
>>
You grasped at your wrist with a wince as the pulling sensation began to solidify. It was if the veins and tendons in your entire body were being stretched taught and plucked. Of course it didn't answer, the fleshstick hadn't answered either... But it paused, so maybe it at least understood you.

>Issue an Order
>Maybe you should stop
>Other? (write-in)
>>
>>514916
>Issue an Order
"Return Ari, Priat and Mim to me"
>>
>>514916
>>Issue an Order
Take me to Priat and Mim; help us find Ari
And get out of my house
>>
>>514902
You reckon the two dual rings in the bracelet may represent Luna and the Fae perhaps? Maybe it's just grasping at what is right in front of us, but how many religious or magical dualities are we aware of?

>Other? (write-in)
"As your friend, I tell you that you are unwanted here. This is my home, not yours. Friends only come when they are invited."

Also, faedka is actually fae blood? Looking at them it feels obvious that they don't have brewing technology but that's kind of whack. If fae was once separated from Luna, it can explain why drinking it removes your attunement with the mana.
>>
>>514919
>>514916

No, rather, "return everyone you've taken from me"

I still hope we can get kidnapped knights back.
>>
>>514921
I don't think our bracelet is connected to Luna in particular.
>>
>>514921
>Looking at them it feels obvious that they don't have brewing technology

Well, they do somehow make glass bottles with cute labels.
>>
>>514916
Well shoot. The golem is just doing exactly what we told it to.

>Issue an Order
"Guide me to the people I came here with, then stop and wait for more orders."

They might not know the names of Priat and them. And I don't want them doing random shit while we figure out our next move or going back to following previous orders.
>>
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>>514920
>>514928
Take me to Priat and Mim!
Also help find Ari.


>>514921
>>514920
get the fuck out of my house.

>>514922
Return everyone!

Issuing orders!

Writing.
If you stare at it long enough, you'll start to feel like Rinnier does all night.
>>
>>514932
Where are the eyebrows?
>>
>>514933
We won't need eyebrows where we are going.
>>
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>>514933
?
>>
"Guide me to the others."

The words weren't important. They were a tool you used to help form your intentions, so it didn't matter whether or not it actually knew who Priat and Mim were. The intent was there, and like everything else, its meaning was laid bare and genuine. You would have to trust that this was going to work... Though just to be safe-

A blindingly sharp pain wracked your body, as if a half-healed scab was being torn off of every inch of your body all at once. It was a deep pain, once which sent your world into a blinding white as your knees buckled underneath of you.

-"Then... Wait for more orders." You gasped out the final clause of your tentative instructions, pulling your head back away from the door just long enough to slam it back against the wooden barrier. Again. And again. And again.

The impact lessened the pain, and somehow dulled the nausea you were experiencing. It would take you an unknown amount of time simply slamming your face into the door before the stinging pain on your forehead was more noticeable than that which permeated the entire inside of your skull.

"You tear away a piece of yourself to create them... Searing the wound shut when they are killed."
"Your body is not what you hurt."
"You need time."
"Please. Let yourself heal."

'Come back...?'

You pull yourself from your knees, heavily leaning against the frame of the door simply to support your shaking legs. "I'm coming..." You muttered as the door clicked open, revealing your own smiling face under the pale moonlight. It almost seemed to preen under your presence, and if it didn't hurt to exist right now, you may have been moved by how oddly cute that was.

As it stood, however... You took a shaky step and brushed your disheveled hair back.

"Let's go."
>>
Going to pause the thread here for now, and then pick it up again.... Probably this coming monday!

Irue is gradually coming to pay the price for the forces you have commanded so flagrantly until now. While one obstacle has been overcome, this house is far from over.
>>
>>514937
Thanks for running Riz!

Have a shitty artist's impression of Irue's mental state for the last few weeks.
>>
>>514938
Hooray! Fanart!

I'll save and treasure it more than explicitly necessary.
>>
>>515061
She NEEDS to meditate on Shade and seek help.
>>
Since I may not be able to participate later, I'll leave this here.

It looks like we're finally going to get Ari back, so now we can focus on other problems. The only immediate problem that I actually have a solution for is Rinnier's Valenaphobia.

There is a couple of ways we can deal with fear, but I think the best way to face you're fear is exposure. 'Can't remember were I read this, but most of your fears are created in your own head. Once you realize the worst isn’t that bad, you’ll be ready to crush them.

I had a friend who use to be scared of heights, so- being the great friend that I am- I threw him of a cliff. Worked like a charm! He never again avoided skyscrapers. Actually, he never avoided anything ever again. He was fearless. He did't even flinch when they buried him.

For Rinnier, I'd recommend she spend more time around okenrues. Like, I don't know, lock her in a room full of okenrues for a few days. That should do it. Soon, she'll be sleeping well every night AND day.

If you think that's a bit extreme, we can always ask her to think of hypothetical worst case scenarios when dealing with okenrues. Ask her, "What could go wrong?" Then proceed to debunk all her arguments. Because nothing can go wrong. Ever.
>>
>>515067
> most of your fears are created in your own head. Once you realize the worst isn’t that bad, you’ll be ready to crush them.

Haha. Funny man. I personally have a phobia about deep water. I can handle lakes and rivers, but night swimming or particularly large lakes trigger it. Hard. I am a capable if not actually excellent swimmer and can swim against strong currents and also swim/float style for long periods, it's not drowning because I dive and scuba. Specifically deep water is too much. Too deep, too directional, too dark eventually, with terrible things that it turns out are worse than in my mind, unlikely as they are.

So yeah I swim in the ocean once a year at least, from the beach if nothing. Sailing I'm fine, don't get seasick or have balance problems. But I go zero to shock when I jump off and force myself to stay for 30 min.

So it's not about crushing your fear. Or even facing it, but accepting it and getting stuff done while freaked out. I mean pulse 120 with pinhole pupils. Very controlled breathing in a state that I would say is specifically not hyperventilating, as opposed to simply being any state other than hyperventilating.

Anyways Rinnier seems to be more afraid of not knowing, really more anxiety than fear. Maybe some uncanny valley discomfort too. But once she knows what's with the golem she won't like them but should be able to deal. Get some sleep.

Not something you can do with phobias. The screams and flailing happen eventually, inside or out the result is the same where you're not actually present anymore. Outside flailing is easier and usually resolves the problem at least, but might wreck sit around you or hurt yourself.

Inside flailing is a special PTSD flavour, happens when you can't/refuse outside flailing but can't hold on anymore, and is a fucking wonderland of problems. The entire reason I do ocean swimming is to be able to control that shit longer.

Had to ramble. Partner isn't coming back on the Ambo. Froze up and actually didn't fail a call, but he's still flailing inside because he couldn't flail outside. Sober and tired after shift and your post . . .

Eh. Rinnier should be fine. Creepy shit is creepy, let's make it not creepy.
>>
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Are you a bad enough dude to make the Valen cast in a shitty flash waifu dress-up game?!

https://2995c29805bc62632246266798940ee013527468.googledrive.com/host/0B31ASET0VYFvWjE5SEtwZWZmbjg/chara.swf
>>
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>>517964
There aren't enough smug options on this fuckin' thing.

>Dirty peasant chic, on route to Clara's estate.
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What the hell does Kara even wear?
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>>518249
The one who will always be in our hearts
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>>518308
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>>518330
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>>518345
Maran looks like this and you can't convince me otherwise.
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>>518330
>unbidden feelings of irritation
Yeah that's Rinnier alright

Couldn't find a good description of Mim but I tried anyway.
>>
>>518439
I love the color scheme on this.
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>I could always use another maid
>>
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>>518778
I'm so ashamed I proposed that idea.
>>
>>518797
>>518797
I'm glad you did actually that shit was hilarious, it really made my day.
>>
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>>518797
Small edit. You made her cry, I forgot about that.
>>
Rolled 4 (1d100)

rolling to summon riz
>>
>>519030
Hi, yes.

I'm doing some last minute programming homework that's due tonight. Depending on how troublesome it is, I hope to start Valen again in 3-4 hours.

If it becomes a pain in the ass and I would end up starting after 11pm, I'll just pick up tuesday. Eitherway, you'll get a notice in 3 hours (max) as to where we stand!
>>
>>519048
Okay cool, thanks for letting us know the score Riz.
>>
Alright, writing!

>>518330
This hair is concerningly accurate.
Rinnier should have a larger bust, though.
>>
It's funny how a little familiarity can make you feel safer.

Once you had stopped to actually open a dialogue with the wooden golem, it ceased to be a faceless stalking horror. Combined with the fact that this was literally your house, you were actually feeling pretty calm right now!

Would that being calm could translate to feeling good, however. Your entire body ached after your last use of the bracelet, and it wasn't the physical displeasure of tired muscles which insisted on making itself known either! It was deeper, something intangible that split your skull and left it difficult to breath and move. Fortunately the wooden golem seemed perfectly content to wait for you as the two of you stumbled your way through pitch black halls, (hopefully) en route to Priat and Mim.

Perhaps Asche had a point when she told you that you needed to heal before trying to use the bracelet's powers again. How long did these kind of esoteric wounds even take to heal? Hadn't you spent a month or more resting already?

Still... The pain was a small price to pay. The blindingly sharp agony from before had dulled to a persistent burning, and in return you had managed to establish a decent connection with the wooden golem. Owing partially in part to how long it was taking to navigate towards the others, you had spent some time trying to feel out just what you could do to talk to the thing.

It responded to your general intents without further use of the bracelet, much like the fleshstick had after that incident. While you still weren't entirely sure what the people-eating had done to affect that particular wooden golem, it did seem that your fumbled attempts at using your bracelet as a channel had been responsible for the sudden jump in its comprehension.

While that was good news to you now, as it meant you wouldn't need to try and go through that debilitating pain again if you wanted to tell it something, it left you even further in the dark as to what this bracelet was even supposed to do. Whatever its intended purpose was, the myriad of ways you'd been trying to use it were evidently not part of it... And while you had known that nothing connected to Mana or Relics came without a price, your mind boggled trying to divine the toll this particular Relic was taking on you.
>>
You shook these errant thoughts away as your guiding golem finally came to a stop in the main foyer. The front door was still left open, allowing you look out beyond the threshold and see the majority of your front yard dotted with smiling golems standing solemn watch over your house. Aside from the silent undertone of warbled laughter, none of them looked as if they were any more than inanimate statues.

Of course, the one at your side was all the proof you need to know that was false. It followed your gaze out into the outside and almost seemed to bristle at their presence, tugging pointedly on your sleeve as it pointed towards the second floor stairs.

Ah... But you left your web outside.

It wouldn't hurt to step outside and reconnect to it, would it? Then you could fill your house with the web, and finally be [i]home[/i] again.

>Step outside to reattune with the web
>Start spinning a new web where you are
>Follow the golem upstairs
>Other? (write-in)
>>
>>519676
I have a suspicion stepping out will trigger the golems outside. Having the web indoors would be nice, and it's nighttime.

>Start spinning a new web where you are

We'll need to be wary of getting sucked into the web though; We've started having thoughts along those lines.

Will starting a new web destroy the old? Or could we connect the two later if needed?
>>
>>519676
>>Follow the golem upstairs
>>
>>519835
I feel like making another web would be a bad idea. There's a price for using that, and Riz said we're starting to pay the price for using it.

>>519676
>Follow the golem upstairs
>>
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>>519835
The web outside is quite stable! And connecting to it would certainly keep you aware of every movement the oakenrue outside make. Spinning a new web inside the house won't cause the one outside to fall apart, but connecting them might be troublesome; It's possible, certainly, but the results won't be as crystal clear.

Of course, it would still be miles and miles ahead of the senses you're currently using.

>>519849
>>519850
Are you sure you don't want to spin a web? Think of how much more effective it would be, and how efficiently you could navigate once you could feel everything. It wouldn't matter how dark it is with a web, and you'd always know if there was something else lurking in the house!

No? Nobody? Guess I'll start writing.
>>
The golem's tugging became more insistent as you thought about it. It was only a few steps away, and you could reconnect with the precious web you had spent time spinning earlier! It would give you proper awareness of what was going on around the house, and you'd even be able to keep an eye on all of the wooden golems that had taken up guard around the estate.

Once more the tugging grew stronger, and you irritably shook your arm as your sight fixated on just how close the web was. Even if you didn't step outside, couldn't you just spin one in here? And then link them together! Then you would be completely aware of what was lurking in your house, and where the others had gotten to, and no matter how dark it was, you'd be able to see just fine!

Again the tugging, this time it was enough for your thoughts to snap as you rounded on the insistent golem... And realized that it wasn't impatience which had spurred it on, but that you had inadvertently begun to walk towards the open door.

You let out a breath and thought back to basic meditation practices, slowly and deliberately bringing yourself back to center. "Sorry." The smiling replica watched you attentively, its default grinning expression and lack of any other kind of body language lending it a disconcertingly cheerful demeanor, but it seemed to understand the gist of your apology as it let go of your sleeve and pointed back towards the second floor.

Tossing one last sidelong glance back out the door, you hum an acknowledgement and continue following your guide.
>>
You recognize the halls you're moving through now, retracing steps that were taking you closer to the library that Rinnier had claimed as her make-shift office during your month of drunken revelry. The amount of roots you were tripping over only seemed to increase as you wandered further on, a fact that became almost painfully obvious as those self-same roots gradually bathed the once darkened halls in cool illumination.

Tiny motes of light pooled along their length, running vibrant veins of semi-solid sab that started as thin as a strand of spider's silk and widened as you traced them back along the hall. Whatever it was, the wooden golem seemed careful to avoid it as much as possible; A feat only made possible by its 'feet' being replaced by very literal spindly points that you were certain were going to leave pock marks in your flooring.

Eventually however, even that wouldn't be enough. Your guide came to a stop several feet from the entry to your library, smiling features highlighted by the bioluminescent vines and roots. Though it pointed further in, it very clearly didn't want to go itself.

>Call out from here
>Enter on your own
>Spin a web to see what's inside
>Make it go anyway
>Other? (write-in)
>>
>>519967
Maybe... maybe we should take a break from the spinning.

>Enter on your own
>>
>>519967
>Enter on your own

We're paying the price for using supernatural powers that weren't even of much use to us. This is that kind of quest.
>>
>>519973
>>519980
Entering!

Writing.
>>
>>519973
>>519980
Moderation is key here I think. If the consequences build up exponentially, we need to spread our use of our resources so it doesn't get too bad.

Hopefully it's the kind of addiction that can wear off over time.
>>
>>519998
In regards to the web, this is correct. Consistent usage of it results in a deepening dependence and addiction to, essentially, being omniscient within a given range.

While it is your power, a gift granted to you by solving the Ice Queen's Atelier, all power comes with a price for its use. This is true in regards to abilities granted from Ateliers, strength gained through Relics... And even for Adepts themselves.
>>
>>520005
But if we use it only a moderate amount, do we end up with an increased tolerance for using it?
>>
After a few seconds, you nod towards your guide and step past them. It had been attentive and helpful to you up until this point, so there was little harm in humoring its reluctance to proceed further. Motioning for it to wait around, you choose your steps carefully and pick your way forward through the clustered mess of roots and vines until you reached the library doors themselves.

While the rest of your house had been pitch black, stepping through the open doorway led you into a vibrantly glowing room positively consumed by plantlife. It wasn't difficult to find the source of it all, either; A fragile looking sapling whose tender roots had grown over its insufficient potting and wound themselves across the table it was set upon like a clingy dress. Those deceptively small roots practically oozed the semi-solid luminescent sap which had permeated the outer roots, and your jaw set warily as you realized that the roots you had tred upon to get here were NOT from this tree.

If anything, it seemed as if those roots had erupted from elsewhere in an attempt to seize the sapling... But were seized themselves in response. Tiny, fragile looking luminescent roots wrapped themselves around the much broader shafts; Tendrils burrowing through the outer layers and worming inside unabated like a greedy parasite.

"How did this get all the way out here~?"

And within this glowing sanctuary, you found Mim reading one of your books by the tree-light. Seemingly unconcerned with the circumstances around her, the little Luna Adept was almost entirely preoccupied turning the pages of a volume of Luna's scripture you vaguely recall giving up on some years ago.

"Oh, you're all right!" She finally seemed to notice you had entered the room, perking up as she greeted you. "Priat's been looking all over the place for you, what happened? How did you get here?"

"I walked. It's my house, remember?"

"...Is your house normally a living maze?" Mim countered curiously, "When Priat and I got inside, the entire place decided predictable architecture was for shrubs."

You studiously do not react.
But her smile widens regardless.

"Long story short, the hallways have been changing constantly, and something was hunting us the entire time." Mim continued with a frown, warily eyeing the open doorway. "Priat eventually blasted a hole through a wall and we managed to find this place... He left me here to go back out looking for you."

...Seems like you lucked out getting a guide.

>He blasted a hole in my house?
>What's going on with the tree?
>Do you know where he is now?
>Some other question (what?)
>Am I forgetting something...? (write-in)
>Other? (write-in)
>>
>>520023
Usage of it without succumbing to addiction does increase your tolerance for it, yes. To be entirely clear on this matter, you can get context clues to how close you might be to that addiction from the posts themselves, but until I ask you to roll to stop using them, you haven't reached a point where you're becoming legitimately addicted.

Success on those rolls implies you fought off the looming addiction at the time, but a failure (while explicitly implying you DIDN'T fight off the looming addiction) isn't the end of the world, either.

Addiction isn't the end, and while it can (and likely will) lead you in terrifying directions, it isn't as if you're committing suicide by falling into it.
>>
>>520031
That fricking merchant didn't say his tree can do this!
Though considering it's called Nymphs Tree, probably some kind of interaction between it and Fae trees was to be expected.

It's also interesting that we could use our knowledge of the house freely and not one hallway changed for us.

>Do you know where he is now?
>How long ago did he leave?
>What's going on with the tree?
>How did the golems behave?
>Were they particularly hostile to Mim?
>What the hell are they anyway?
>Check whether the sapling is blooming

The hole isn't so worrying considering we might have to give up on this house.
>>
>>520054
This stuff.

Writing.

Also you didn't specifically label it as such, but the Forgetting was recognizing where the tree was from.
>>
>>520067
I mean that seems okay for me.

We should also ask how much Mim would pay for the book.
>>
You deign not to comment on the hole in your wall. All things considered, your house was currently overtaken by debatably sentient plants with an informed knack for disregarding architectural plans... You were coming to terms with the fact you may have to give up reclaiming it.

If you could get your books out at least, you'd be satisfied.

"You said Priat was looking for me, do you know where he is now?"

"Hmm..." She closed her eyes for a moment, turning her head slowly before finally pointing towards the floor. "He's that way."

"..." The two of you stare down at the floor, and then back at each other. Mim shrugs. "I told you the house keeps changing, this is the best I can do".

"Well how long ago did he leave?" You cross your arms thoughtfully, finger tapping against your bicept as you try and work out your next step. Contrary to Mim's story, your house hadn't changed at all for you... Which either said something about you, or your guide. You'd stake a reasonable sum of your non-existent money on the second. "An hour or so, I think...? He said he thought he felt something related to Salamander down on the first floor."

...Rinnier had lived in this house for a while. You can't imagine much of anything related to Salamander that would have willingly stayed here. You shift your attention to the frail looking sapling, noting the way its leaves hung very gently in the midst of the relaxing glow. It wasn't flowering, but it certainly wasn't as finnicky as that travelling merchant had implied it would be.

For that matter, he never even remotely implied it could fend off hostile house invasions and bio-jack bigger trees, either. What in Shade's Domain was that thing, anyway?

"Nymph's Wood." Mim answered the unspoken question, catching a sidelong glance as her reward. "I can't read minds, it's just the most obvious thing on your mind when you stop and stare at it."

You let it pass, there were more important things to do than squabble over how much a Luna Adept knew. In fact... In this case, you might just make use of Mim knowing things she shouldn't. "What exactly is this tree?"

"Nymph's Wood." You groan at the unrepentantly cheeky answer. "What it's doing isn't natural, if that's what you're asking." She continued more seriously, "At least... It isn't natural by our standards. On some level, it's probably the most natural existence here."

"..." You felt yourself beginning to frown. There were too many experiences beginning to line up for you. "You're saying it's Mana?"

"I'm not saying it isn't." She skirted around the answer hesitantly, "It doesn't match with any of the seven Mana we know, but..."

"Yeah." You accept her unspoken concerns implicitly. "What do you think of the golems?"
>>
"If you mean the thing that was chasing us through the house, then it seems to have an aversion to this tree. There's nothing else really protecting the place, but I haven't so much as heard it skulking around since I got here."

That fit in line with its behavior earlier, at least.

"I hadn't actually seen a creature like that before, but... Well, no." She corrected herself after a moment, "It reminded me of the Oakenbears. For some reason, it took to life and assumed something else's shape. I'm curious to know if it has a taste for flesh as well, but given its fascination with Priat and I, I don't think I'll find out any time soon."

...It may not be a taste specifically, but the fleshstick had shown a capacity to consume flesh and blood. It was even starting to change because of it.

"An Oakenbear doesn't hunt for itself, really." Mim mused, "It's a puppet for the trees which birthed it. They're the ones desperate for flesh, the bear is just a means to an end."

>Ask something else (what?)
>Go find Priat
>Introduce Mim to your guide
>Other? (Write-in)
>>
>>520104
>Ask something else (what?)
Cost of the book. Also actually tell her about the flesh eating. Mention you had thought the golem were from the Fae, but if they're like the trees then are they maybe protecting Ari from the Fae?

Oh man, do we have some weird "The King is the land and the land is the King" deal happening?
>>
>>520104
> Other

We should also take a clipping of the Nymph's Wood. Could be handy.
>>
>>520111
What this anon said.
>>
>>520104
>Introduce Mim to your guide

With any luck, she'll have enough new impressions to be deeply in our debt with regards to knowledge.

Then
>Go find Priat.
>>
>>520111
>>520113
Further discussion of the oakenrue

>>520119
Introducing Mim to our guide, then fetching Priat.

>>520112
...Taking a clipping of the tree!

Writing.

How's everyone feeling? It's 4am on a weeknight, so I know some of you might be having some problems.
>>
>>520131
I'm about to black out at my keyboard; I think I'm going to go to bed. Thanks for running.
>>
>>520131
10 am here.
>>
>>520131
2am here. I got another hour. I actually have to work days for another week.
>>
>>520131
11 am and a welcome distraction from soul-crushing work here.
>>
"I don't know if it's a taste, but I have seen them eat flesh before." You probably wouldn't get another chance to talk with a Luna Adept in a non-formal setting any time soon, may as well go for broke on what you know. You spend the next few minutes telling Mim about your experiences with the frowning wooden golem, and how it had gone berserk and started to grow flesh shortly afterwards.

You didn't bother explaining that you had never bothered to name it beyond 'fleshstick', though. That wasn't important.

"...But why do they look like you?"

You shrug. "They looked like me when I met them... Thinking back, the first one I met took some of my blood, too."

Mim's brows knit together as she fell silent. It was a rare sight to see an Adept of Luna legitimately baffled, and honestly gave you some measure of vindication in having shit-all hard knowledge of what they were.

"You said they reminded of you Oakenbears, didn't you?" You venture forward on a hunch, "Let's assume the similarity isn't a coincidence. What makes the two of them so different? The ones I've met haven't been mindless beasts, and most of them have even tried to be helpful."

"Perhaps the mind is a plaything of the body?" Mim muttered half-heartedly, recanting a misworded philosophy you remember reading from scriptures on Shade. "I don't think that's the case, though. If we presume the Oakenbear and the Oakenrues-" You twitch at her absent naming, "-are similar, then why THEY act differently isn't important."

"I'm pretty concerned about that, actually." You disagree flatly, casting your mind back to the time the fleshstick had gone berserk. However, Mim simply shook her head in a manner which spoke heavily of how familiar the precocious Luna Adept was to having to catch people up to her thoughts.

"An Oakenbear doesn't hunt for itself." She repeated, "So if they're similar, it stands to reason that the Oakenrue wouldn't act for themselves either. The question isn't 'why do they act differently', but 'what does their creator want?'. IF-" She emphasized her hesitation on the notion, "-They really are connected, then we would need to stop considering them as separate entities all together, and more as extensions of a single will."

A single will... Manifesting through plant life?

"The Fae?" You blink as the idea comes to mind, and instantly Mim's attention is on you. "Not far east from here, my estate borders the Fae Forest." You slowly begin to explain, "They're typically called the Lords of the Forest. We crossed that border a couple weeks ago in an attempt to retrieve one of my Testament, and the forest itself seemed to take offense to it."

"The King and The Land are One?" Mim follows your idea quickly, seizing on the idea presented to her. "If we link both the Oakenbear and Oakenrue-"

"-Please stop calling them that.-"

"-To the Fae, then we'd have a will... But we still lack a motive. What do they want? Why start acting now?"

'Come baaaack?'
>>
Mim freezes as your distorted voice warbles in from outside, echoing down the hall plaintively.

"I guess it's getting tired of waiting." You offer an explanation lamely, receiving a look of confusion and bewilderment you took a moment to savour. "I probably should have mentioned this, but the house didn't change at all for me on the way here; I had one of the wooden golems guide me."

"It's just been waiting outside this whole time?"

"It seemed afraid of the glowing roots." You shrug. "So I told it to stay put."

You snag a quick clipping of the Nymph's Wood on your way out, making quickly devised plans with Mim regarding introducing her to your guide and your intent to go find Priat in the meantime. This plan all but came to a halt as the two of you left the room and began to approach the solitary wooden golem you had left standing in the hall.

Its smile was lit up by the luminescence around it, and for a moment it seemed to perk up as it saw you approaching... Only for the ivy like vines which made up its hair to visibly bristle as its attention shifted towards Mim. Whatever patience and stillness it had possessed until that moment was promptly discarded as it became visibly distressed, pacing and stamping its spear like legs into the ground furiously.

"Calm down!" Instinctively you thrust your hand out towards it, trying to bring it back under control, but your words seem to wash over it worthlessly. It was on a much smaller scale, but you recognized this kind of behavior.

"Irue, it's going berserk!"
>>
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http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Valen+Quest

And we are archived.

I'll lurk the thread for a bit to try and answer some questions if I can.

Apologies to all anons who participated in Valen Quest but died at their keyboards wondering when QM would finally stop.

To those who did not make it to the end, we will never forget your sacrifice.
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>>520171
How fucked are we?
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>>520172
I can't answer that!
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>>520171
DID WE REMEMBER TO GRAB A CLIPPING FROM THE PLANT? If so, maybe that will hold it back.

Also, just shove Mim back into the room that it's afraid of and we'll deal with that later.

Really, really, really want to know what the fuck Luna took from us way back.
>>
>>520177
Luna took the memories of the vision we had in the ruins.
Now what did we see in it, that's a good question.

>>520175
How very disheartening.
>>
>>520177
>Did we grab a clipping?
Yes! Using it will be an option next thread.

>Shove Mim back into the room
I'll make a note of this being an option next thread as well!

>Want to know what Luna took from us.
Technically you, as the player, can know. The divide is that Irue won't, since Luna took it. I think some players back around that time figured it out, I was never very subtle about what was lost.
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>>520179
I'm already staying up too late, I can't archive trawl now. Busy watching "Is it wrong to love hips in an evil bitch."

That being said, for future votes, I'm just saying we hold the sprig up at first if we decide to use it, and if it charges at us then we throw it on it.
>>
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>tfw abandoned by riz



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