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Past Threads
https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?searchall=Olympus+Incarnation+Quest
>Rentry masterlink, includes character sheets, shop information, inventory, and general information
https://rentry.org/olympus-quest-links
>Business inquiries: olympusqm@gmail.com

About half a year ago, the world changed forever.

Individuals worldwide began manifesting the qualities of various figures- gods, spirits, heroes, beasts, and monsters- from Greek mythos. The system that caused and continues to facilitate this phenomenon is shrouded in mystery, both in how it functions and why it began its activities when it did.

The protagonist of this tale is the incarnation of Atë, a minor goddess in the grand scheme of Greek mythology, who causes and presides over folly and ruin. She, formerly a miserable but ultimately normal office worker, has since accepted her role as the embodiment of her <Myth>. She, along with her partner in crime, the incarnation of Pheme, titan of rumors and gossip, have been working to expand their influence and stack the deck in their favor against not only mortals, but also rival incarnations. In her own eyes, she is no longer human. Her ultimate goal- the elimination of all rival incarnations and, eventually, complete and total world domination.

Atë, faced with the looming threat of the enemies she's created over the course of her journey, including the relentless Diomedes and the terrifying might of Heracles, has decided it necessarily to understand just how exactly the source of her power works. In traversing the depths of souls, has come to realize the complexities and anomalies within the realm beneath that defy comprehension.

Right now, she has come to a shocking revelation; the psychopathic, almost inhuman pain goddess Dorota has found a way to peer into the depths of her soul. She has determined to get to the bottom of her supposed servant's intentions by any means necessary.
>>
You tug the thread, hoping to pull Dorota to your side. Instead, the cord goes taut, pulling you through the window like a fishing line. You expect a hard impact as your face slams into the glass, but instead you harmlessly pass through. You touch the void, its inky surface gently caving under the impact like a stack of pillows. The feeling is supremely comfortable, but you rise to your feet, determined to get to the bottom of this.

“Explain yourself.” You demand into the void, no echo resounding as the sound waves travel into the infinite abyss.

“Of course,” a figure emerges from the black muck, ebony slime forming a rough facsimile of hair and facial features upon her mannequin-like body. The thread extends from a weighty shackle around her neck, wrought from crimson steel and attached to a glowing red harness around her black and white body.

“What the hell are you plotting? Are you trying to take over my soul? I order you to answer honestly.”

She cocks her head in genuine confusion “Take over your soul? I would sooner cut off my own head.”

Your eyes widen, “..what?”

“Look at me. Look at this place. What do you see?”

You look around: the world truly is empty. Other than yourself and the window, the only notable feature is Dorota, a crude replica of a human.

“Nothing.”

She nods, black slime drooping off of her head as her neck moves. “Ever since I was born, this is what the world seemed like to me. No color, no differentiation between this or that. No point.”

“I thought your purpose was to cause suffering?”

“NononononoNO. That is just playing with toys. Imagine going through your entire life with no hunger. No thirst. No impetus whatsoever. Sitting alone in an endless void. With only the music of screams to keep you company.”

“So… what, you opened a window to see the colors?”

“You do not get it.” Black and white divinity seeps out of her body: you instantly recognize it as the look of her <Arts> but with all of the rainbow colors drained out.

“I was born without a heart. I was born as… this.” She gestures to herself. “Not human. Monster. Horrifying, is it not? But then-”

The ink drains off of the bottom half of her face, revealing a true mouth beneath, its lips twisted into a euphoric smile.

“I met you! You like to delude yourself into thinking that you are something other than human: like when you killed that deer girl!”

“How do you know about that?”

She ignores your question, continuing her raving, “But nonono! You are human. Quintessentially so! Spiteful! Ambitious! Hypocritical and lonely! With so, SO many colors!” Her mouth begins to water with the same black slime that quivers beneath your feet.

“What are you saying-”

She walks up to you, pulling you into an embrace. “You are my heart, Atë. Your will is mine. Ahh, how ecstatic it is to WANT.”

This is not what you were expecting.

>Pull away
>Leave the realm
>Ask questions
>>
>>6070165
>"So, what is that window about?"
>>
>>6070165
>Why me? Surely Eris is just as entertaining?

Hell, if she's genuine we might get a good soul tutor.

Also
>Is a fish broken because it cannot walk?
No and yes, humans are objectively superior. Fish aren't broken because they can't walk, they and all other species are broken because they aren't humans.
>>
>>6070165
> Is this one of those identity theft sort of things? Bleed me dry until you're me and I'm you?
>>
>>6070165
Ahhhh she's a god damn philosophical zombie. More physical law than a person. If a clear mind is strength of the soul then we be fucked, because you don't get any more clear minded than gravity.
>>
>>6070174
>>6070190
>>6070191


"Is this one of those identity theft sort of things? Bleed me dry until you're me and I'm you?"

She shakes her head, holding you tighter. Her arms are warm, reflecting the heat of the sun seeping in from the window behind you.

"I want to be like your arms and legs. Your will, my execution."

"Why me? Surely Eris would have sufficed."

"No, no, you are far more interesting. Eris lacks your turmoil- she has yet to internalize that any one of the consequences that befell her are her fault. One of the things I wished to experience most is this:"

The form of the divinity behind her straightens into a thin disc, reflecting the bloody ocean of your own world.

"The second suffering: Remorse."

"..you developed a new art."

"Yes! You are my muse, Atë. I developed it for you. To feel- you."

"And that's what the window is for? To peek into my life and, what, observe my will?"

"While it is there, it is as if I have a soul of my own. Not... this."

You notice that the point of contact between the two of you has changed, metamorphizing from white, plastic like rigidity to the pliable softness of flesh and blood.

>Ask more questions
>Leave
>Wake up
>>
>>6070198
>"That's why you don't mind hanging out in someones shadow all day, doing nothing?"

>"I want to see what happens if you pick a part of a soul and graft it onto another. But only those parts that the system has added to the soul, like the divinity pool or authorities. I want you to find some incarnations to contract, do some experiments, and report back."
>>
>>6070198
Ahhhhhhhh

> Get some distance. Any distance.

> Where does this lead Dorota? Where does this end? With you woven into my body? Living in my soul?
>>
>>6070198
Alright, we can do this
We just need to keep her cloistered and unaware of anyone more interesting than us
>Ask more questions
Pointers on how to fuck with souls
I want Kronos on a leash
>>
>>6070198
>>6070205
+1
>>
>>6070198
>>6070165
Yeah I rescind my opinion from last thread. NOW Dorota is no longer entirely boring to me.
>>
>>6070201
>>6070205
>>6070261
>>6070434
>>6070510

"So, how do I do what you did? You know, interfere with other people's souls."

"Not sure! The <System> does not allow for any substantial or potentially personality-altering changes to the soulscape: I have run some experiments on some of the people I swallowed."

"What about with non-incarnations?"

"Huh, I have not attempted that. I will give it a try, if you so desire."

"One last question- where does this end for you? What do you want?"

She smiles, "Whatever you want."

You know she's being both genuine and literal.

You clutch your forehead on instinct as your brain begins to throb with the telltale pain of a migraine. Your knees buckle slightly as the accumulated fatigue begins to finally hit you as the adrenaline of the feelings of danger and anxiety finally runs dry.

"You have been in the soulscape for a long time. Longer than you think."

"What? long have I been under?"

"Almost twenty four consecutive hours. You need rest."

You nod, deciding to return to the world of the living, falling into a deep slumber for an inordinate amount of time.

Days remaining: 5

>Train an art
>Return to the soulscape
>Hang out with someone (specify)
>Develop a fighting style
>Write-in
>>
>>6070631
>Hang out with someone (specify)
Ciotti
See what he remembers, if anything
>>
>>6070631
>>6070632
+1
shouldn't take too long
>>
>>6070632
+1
>>
>>6070632
>>6070633
>>6070639

You enter Ciotti's room, finding him punching a sandbag, bandages wrapped around his knuckles as he wails on it. He turns, sweat glistening on his forehead as he loosens himself up and turns to meet you.

"Wassup Boss?" He asks, unwrapping his hands as he waits for your reply.

"I had a task for you. Do you remember?"

"What? Oh, OH right! You were messin' around in my consciousness again, right?"

"You remember."

"Well, kinda. It's like a dream- bit hazy, kinda spotty, but you keep the gist. Kinda like.."

He cuts himself off, frowning slightly.

"Elaborate." You demand.

"It's kinda like dementia."

You give a solemn nod: it seems like Ciotti gained his 'enlightenment' through standing on the precipice of oblivion.

>Ask more questions
>Assign tasks
>Leave and do something else (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6070640
>"Welp, you're the expert."
>"If in that 'dream', I hadn't asked you specifically to try and remember and retell it, would you have assumed it was just a dream?"

>Hang out with someone (Brigitta)
>Don't mention the escapade in her soul, but ask her on the song we sent her the other day
>>
>>6070646
+1
>>
>>6070640
>>6070646
+2
>>
>>6070640
>Leave and do something else (specify)
Check on our other mafia goons
Can't they set up something like what Kronos has going on with his influence farms? Not as big obviously.
>>
>>6070668
I'd like to do that next, after we're already in europe talking to Brigitta
I got some nasty ideas for new businesses too
>>
>>6070646
>>6070650
>>6070656
>>6070668

"If in that 'dream', I hadn't asked you specifically to try and remember and retell it, would you have assumed it was just a dream?"

"Probably not- it's hazy, but ever since you barged in, I'm sorta conscious of it."

You shrug, waltzing over to your door and closing your eyes. Perdix claimed that a higher level was needed to link realms, but you feel like you can request a connection by using it in tandem with <Yours Truly>. You focus, envisioning the threads and the world of her soul and, eventually, you succeed, knocking on her door.

She answers, her eyes widening with confusion as she sees you on the other side.

"..Boss? What brings you here?"

>Talk business
>Ask about your song
>Hang out (Optional write-in: specify activity)
>Write-in
>>
>>6070741
>Tell her we knew we could link Divine Realms, and we're curious to see if we can exit in Europe on her side
>>Ask about your song

I forgot we told Pheme we would talk to her "tomorrow", and now a day has already passed
>>
>>6070742
+1
>>
>>6070741
>Talk business
>Hang out (Optional write-in: specify activity)
Too much mario kart
This time we play mario party
>>
>>6070742
>>6070743
>>6070752

"Well, a couple things. First, I recently found out about linking divine realms, and I wanted to check if I could use it as a method of traveling long distances."

"I mean, I'm posted in LA, so it's not a super long trip."

"Yeah, I know, but consider the utility! If I have multiple contracteds with realms all over the world, I can essentially teleport to anywhere I have someone posted."

"Fair enough."

"Oh, right, I wanted to ask what you thought of the song I sent you."

"Yeah... that. It was pretty heavy."

"I'm mostly just checking in becoming it might be a little, yknow, mind destabilizing. You feeling ok?"

"Yeah. It was- it was beautiful but holy shit." She laughs awkwardly, clumsily brushing a tear from her eye, streaking her mascara slightly. "Fuck dude. I can't listen to that shit again."

"That's fair. Mario party?"

"Sure."

Her realm is surprisingly simple: a quaint European cottage in a garden of flowers. More surprisingly, it seems like the flowers are real, carefully maintained by a delicate hand.

You pull her through your door- she looks around, nodding to herself as she surveys your choice in interior decor.

"What do you think?"

"Not bad. More tasteful than I was expecting, but exactly as lavish."

"I have no idea why you decided to live in a hut."

She just shakes her head.

You bring her to the living room, calling over Dorota and Iwana to avoid playing with the CPU.

>Mario Party is a game of luck. Please give me 3 rolls of 3d6 (calculated as <Reckless>)
>>
Rolled 3, 2, 5 = 10 (3d6)

>>6070798
>>
Rolled 1, 3, 2 = 6 (3d6)

>>6070798
>>
Rolled 2, 3, 3 = 8 (3d6)

>>6070798
>Luck
Maybe partly, but I slughtered at those minigames
>>
>>6070806
>>6070885
>>6070899

You would not mourn if you never played Mario Party again.

You probably landed on more red spaces than blue, missing out on two stars, and having the only one you managed to pick up nabbed by Iwana's piranha plant. You got dreadfully bad minigame luck, whereas Iwana was the one player in ARCHERIVAL AND PIRANHA PURSUIT. You had to resist the temptation to order her to lose.

Anyway, you got last place and hate life. Brigita is really close to level 10 but is about 5k away. You experiment using her for fast travel, finding that you can indeed exit on her end.

What do you do now?

>Meet with someone else (specify)
>Train an <Art>
>Develop a fighting style
>Write-in
>>
>>6071212
>>6070668
this

I also want to have a little fun again and go after our primary directive
There's business to be made ruining some corporate execs and shorting their stock
And just for giggles, maybe have the mafia find some sleazy lustful pricks who want to star in porn. Buy their souls for promising that they get to fuck a lot of members of the opposite sex on camera, and then Judgement of Tiresias them
also gives the mafia revenue
>>
>>6071212

> War Council regarding Hercules and ADAM
We got a little distracted with soul stuff and Dorota being incredibly creepy (seriously that girl is going to ask us to vore her at some point) but we need to sit down with everyone with strategic and tactical sense on our team and discuss what, if anything we're going to do about Herc.
>>
>>6071212
>>6071218
Backing
Plus we should start making contracts with incarnations worldwide to set up a fast travel network now that we know it's possible
Definitely don't skip the next auction
>>
Sex with Ate
>>
>>6071308
I doubt it'd be possible given her backstory and severe lack of any desire for that
>>
>>6071308
>>6071312

Regarding this topic, despite her poor history regarding the matter, Atë has been avoiding the notion of any entanglements, romantic or otherwise, but that doesn't necessarily mean she lacks interest entirely. As Pheme points out, she's obsessed with the incarnation game to the point where everything else is set aside, but set aside doesn't necessarily mean non-existent. The players are yet to rule on it so everything regarding her orientation is completely ambiguous as of now

>>6071218
>>6071264
>>6071270

You smirk, deciding that it's been a too long since you've spoken to your friends in the Czech mafia. You pull some divinity from the Auravore, dropping in on Slavíček to have a little chat. You land atop a conference table, at which also sits Povondra, backed by Sybaris and the Manticore, and a few older gentlemen in suits. You use one of your brains to copy the language centers of Povondra's brain, using it to comprehend the language.

"Boss!" Slavíček slams his head into the table in a rapid bow, with Povondra also lowering his head, though not to the same extent, with respect.

"Who is this woman?" One of the suits asks, clearly perturbed by the interruption.

"This is the true puppetmaster behind our organization: and the single most powerful incarnation criminal in the world."

The blood immediately drains from their faces.

"I-I apologize for the disrespect!"

"These are foreign ministers from Belarus. Disputed territory between the Commander and the Russians." Slavíček explains, "They're bringing us in to control the rampant incarnation chaos without having to capitulate their power to a foreign government."

"In exchange for uncontested criminal activity within the nation?"

"Precisely. ADAM has refused to take their calls until or unless they cease their association with both and fully enter the nonaligned movement."

"Aaah. Interesting. Things must be quite bad for them to resort to this."

"Though the governments holds nominal power, a group of warlords has taken significant swathes of territory near the eastern border without contention. The government's incarnations are too weak to contest."

"And you guys aren't?"

Slavíček smiles sheepishly, "We might be able to, but honestly we were gonna ask for support from your side if the terms were good enough."

>"Sure, I'm in"
>"Maybe in about a week? I have an appointment"
>"I'll need additional compensation on top of these terms."
>"I'll need to meet with the prime minister."
>Use an authority or miracle (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6071318
>Assess Hamartia around
>"What's Belarus' stance on Russia and the guy who replaced Putin?"
>"At what level are the governments incarnations approximately? Or what's your heaviest hitter?"
>>
>>6071318

>"Sure, I'm in"
Get me the details boys and let's raise some hell. Is my pride wounded after running into ADAM? Maybe a little.
>>
>>6071332
First this
>>6071340
Then this
>>
>>6071318
>"In exchange for uncontested criminal activity within the nation?"
Does that sound like a perfect influence farm location to anyone else?

>"Sure, I'm in"
Stomping some weak incarnations will give us authority levels, could help vs Herc
>>
>>6071332
>>6071340
>>6071344
>>6071345

You scan the room with <Assess Hamartia>, finding that none of the ambassadors are incarnations, nor do they have particularly noteworthy traits. Greed, lust, ambition, cowardice: all par for the course.

"What's your relationship with Russia? Particularly the man who replaced Putin?"

"We've been trying to maintain an amicable relationship while not capitulating fully. We have the same situation with the Austrians."

"And incarnation power?"

"...none above 6."

<Assess Hamartia> confirms their words to be true.

"You know what? Sure. Lead the way. Of course, I and my organization will need to be able to work out of your country. As agreed."

They look at each other, nodding reluctantly and, as your authority confirms, mourning the loss of autonomy to a force that is likely not much better than the Russians or Austrians.

Regardless, you are their only option.

They tell you everything they know, which isn't a lot: the gang is made up of criminals who mostly escaped into neutral territory from the domains of Belarus's two big power neighbors. The two powers are allowing them to run rampant in a ploy to essentially collapse the situation, forcing Belarus to dissolve its neutrality and pick one of the two sides, each dangling safety and a number of other perks as a reward for capitulation.

The leader of the group is a <Monster>, a massive serpent that seems to be nigh immune to mortal weaponry: it must have some effect similar to <To Mortals, A Scourge>. He also effortlessly eliminated their most powerful incarnation at the time, a seventh level <Oread> with an emphasis on combat skills.

They give you the location of their headquarters, the capital building of Mahilyow, the center of their new pseudo-state

>Go alone
>Bring allies (Specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6071353
>>Bring allies (Specify)
>Dorota and Iwana
>>
>>6071353
>Particularly the man who replaced Putin?"
We really need to start calling New Putin Nutin

>Go alone
The gigachad what could possibly go wrong move
>>
>>6071353
>Bring allies (Specify)
>Dorota and Iwana

Stalker in our shadow and Iwana waiting nearby. Go with our usual infiltration tactics and see what the local defenses against mind games are.
>>
>>6071355
>>6071360
>>6071376

You take off towards the region specified, flying through the air under the cover of stealth. The site of the conflict becomes obvious: wrecked buildings, ghost towns, and obvious signs of battle can be seen on the outskirts. As you approach the interior, however, you notice something surprising: the people seem relatively content and unafraid, going about life in a seemingly normal manner.

You pull Iwana out from the realm and allow Dorota to stay hidden in your shadow as you inspect the town, a smaller rural area on the outskirts of the new territory's heart. You walk up to a random person and, after conversing for a while, something becomes obvious:

Their common sense has been overwritten.

That being said, despite what seems like multiple layers of accumulated divinity, the effect is pretty subtle, and you estimate the effective level of whatever ability was used for this mind control can be no higher than 8.

You smirk- this is the work of a rank amateur.

As you look around, it seems like everyone present has a similar issue- divinity caked onto their souls, altering their mindset to think that the new "Nation" of Marozia has always existed.

>Find the source of the mind control
>Override the brainwashing with your own
>Leave for now and head straight for the target
>Write-in
>>
>>6071394

Widespread brainwashing and criminal tendencies...a sister?

>Find the source of the mind control
Power behind the power maybe
>>
>>6071413
+1
>>
>>6071394
>Override the brainwashing with your own
Do it with a level 5 whispers though, and be sloppy and blatant about it
All brute force, no finesse
>>
File: pathetic.jpg (67 KB, 1280x720)
67 KB
67 KB JPG
>>6071394
>Find the source of the mind control
These worms are not even worth our time or divinity, just walk right on through under GT, joke with Iwana and Doroto on how pathetic it is that this calls itself a nation, but that the Leader is likely not without promise.
>>
>>6071413
>>6071416
>>6071437
>>6071664

>Find the source of the mind control

You put the <Lenses> on, looking carefully at the affected parties and focusing on the light blue divinity woven through the town. You follow the trail, eventually finding.. a grocery store?

You enter and, as you observe the food inside, you realize the trick: small particles of divinity coat the food, invisible to the mortal eye but clear as day to you. It seems like they've been tainting the food.

You close your eyes, holding your hand over the produce and focusing on the frequency- the 'color' of the soul.

Souls do not occupy physical space, they merely interface. This is why divinity may exist separate from the person- distant in space, yet still a part of a single, contiguous soul. You smile- it's tenuous, but you have a grasp on the thread.

>Enter the soulscape
>Try to inject an authority or miracle (specify)
>Follow to a physical interface (Head to Mahilyow)
>Write-in
>>
>>6071675
>Find a place to stay for a little while and overwrite the owners mind-control
>Give Iwana GT
>Enter the soulscape
>Make Arts that turn our Whispers, or better yet, Thelematoxin, into an edible
>>
>>6071675
>Enter the soulscape
>>
>>6071734
>>6071862

>Enter the soulscape

“Pallas.” You order, closing your eyes and picking up an apple with a determined gaze, “Copy <Guerilla Tactics>.”

She nods. Dorota having already replicated it as well. The effective level of the stealth authorities present reaches a substantial number.

You focus in on the apple, resonating with the soul of the holder. <Omen> warns you of the danger, but you’ve already resolved yourself to accept that risk. Activating <Yours Truly>, you begin to feel yourself slip into the sensations of the soulscape.

You find yourself beneath a cerulean sky, just a little too bright and too saturated to be real. You look around: you find yourself on an island inhabited by people- you recognize one of them as one of the townspeople you spoke to. The world is idyllic, filled with bright, beautiful trees and flowers, scenic ocean views, and the happy smiles of people playing in the sand or lazing about on the cool emerald grass.

Immediately, however, it becomes obvious that something is amiss- on the ground beneath you is a subtle pattern of intricate blue lines weaved across the landscape, snaking through the world of the soul and ensnaring the happy islanders. Spider webs, you guess, based on the shape. You levitate off of the ground to avoid touching them.

At the center of the island lies an impossibly large tree, aquamarine leaves crowning a massive trunk of sapphire crystal. Particles of jewel dust rain down on the island, blowing through its entirety on the back of a gentle breeze.

You activate <Divine Armor>, blocking the particles from touching you.

>Head for the tree
>Cause mayhem
>Leave for now
>Write-in
>>
>>6071902
>>Head for the tree
>>
>>6071902
>Head for the tree
Wonder how long they've had all this set up
>>
>>6071902
>Cause mayhem
Get back in touch with our roots. Eh? Eh? Roots? It's a tree?
>>
>>6071902
>Head for the tree
>>
>>6071905
>>6071931
>>6071953
>>6071957

You soar towards the tree, enjoying the crisp ocean air against your skin as you fly to the heart of the island. You are once again impressed by the size of the crystaline plant, comparable in stature to the Obelisk in Brigita's world. You get another sense: this tree is as your sea, or Dorota's void, or the darkness flooding Pheme's cave. This is that incarnation's <Self>- however, unlike you who chose to dominate the system's additions to your soul, this incarnation allowed themselves to meld with it, forming one entity who was neither human nor <Myth>.

You hover before the trunk, appreciating the deep blue light refracting from within and emanating from the gemstone bark. The tree quivers, and a young man's face emerges from its surface. The azure visage is cherubic, almost childlike with round, puppy dog eyes and an almost circular facial structure.

"Do you enjoy the island?" he asks in a voice like jingling bells.

"It certainly is nice," You honestly reply.

"I'm happy you're here." It says, "Please, please stay."

You frown slightly- a hint of pleading, of desperation can be heard in the tone.

>Speak to the man
>Fell the tree
>Use an <Art> (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6072003
>>Speak to the man
>"You're altering people's minds by lacing the food? That's a neat trick. I'm a fan."
>>
>>6072003
>Use an <Art> (specify)
Fetters
Let's see what happens
>>
>>6072030
>>6072048
+1 both
>>
>>6072030
>>6072048
>>6072069

“Honestly, I admire the concept.” You say, leaning back casually in midair as you flippantly wave your arm, “Lacing the food to brainwash the population? Pretty clever.”

“No… BRAINWASH.” The face in the tree scowls, “They are happy. They will not leave.”

Your eyes widen slightly, and you lean forward to more directly meet the eyes of the man in front of you, “You genuinely don't understand that what you're doing is wrong?”

“Nothing bad. They are my friends. I am their friend. They will stay with me.”

“Nothing bad, eh?” You extend your arms forward, “Then you can't begrudge what I’m about to do next.”

Crimson fetters erupt from your fingertips, wrapping around the tree and the neck of the half-emerged man. He writhes, his soul instinctively resisting your grip as you inject divinity into his body. Flowers rain down from the canopy of the massive dendriform crystal, jagged glass lotuses thrusting towards you like arrows.

You smirk- the star of death has descended upon this hapless soul.

Your <Figure> erupts from beneath your skin, writhing multi-jointed limbs and tendrils of muscle and sinew burst from beneath your skin, bearing claws and teeth and chains, dashing the brittle crystal projectiles into dust. Red smoke seeps from your blood vessels, pooling in the sky and letting a torrential rain down onto the defenseless islanders below.

Your mouths contort into a mosaic of grins as you begin to slip a chain around the <Heart> of the soul, forcibly replicating the aftermath of a <Bargain>. However, just before you establish a link, a bolt of golden light erupts from nowhere, shattering your fetters to pieces.

A familiar glowing panel appears before your face:

>Please do not interfere with the souls of fellow incarnations through unauthorized channels
>Should you wish to possess a soul, you must do so through methods approved by the system
>Failure to comply will result in immediate punishment, up to and including a complete loss of all privileges, powers, and protections bestowed by the system

You look down. Golden flames burn away the sea of crimson water that flooded the world below, delicately restoring the soulscape back to the way it was before you began your assault.

The tree trembles in terror, seemingly lacking the understanding or knowledge necessary to comprehend the situation.

What do you do next?

>Retreat for now
>Offer the tree a bargain
>Write-in
>>
>>6072105
Wow, the system giveth and the system taketh away huh
I guess it wouldn't complain if we did that to a mortal though?

>Offer the tree a bargain
We don't kill him and take over his spot and he lets us siphon half of the influence and divinity he gets.
>>
>>6072105
Interesting. Good to see the system is at least the sort to warn us before smiting us.

>>6072111
Yeah, let's try this tact. Help us subvert this nation under our leash and you can keep your friends, but the power and influence flows to us.

Hell, keep your friends, but they all have to devote an hour of worship to our idol Livestream each night. A country of worshippers sounds nice.
>>
>>6072105
I assume this will happen sooner or later
The inevitability of the system no longer being in place, but we can't swing that yet.

>Offer the tree a bargain
I still want to learn how to make food put people under mind control, and we probably want to combine that with Lethe's power to make water sources cause his baptism of amnesia.
>>
>>6072111
>>6072269
>>6072387

The tree before you quivers, not from wind, but from within: the telltale signs of abject terror. You give a friendly smile, coughing into your hand and assuming a businesslike tone.

"I have an offer for you, tree."

"YOU TRY TO KILL ME. YOU TRY TO DESTROY ISLAND."

"Look, that really wasn't personal. See, check for yourself- everything is fine! Your friends are just as happy as they were a second ago."

"YOU ARE NOT HUMAN"

"You are literally a tree."

It pauses for a second, seeming stumped by your refutation.

"YOU ARE EVIL"

"No more than you," you say, smirking.

"I AM NOT EVIL"

"Then I'm right there with you."

It pauses again in contemplation.

"Offer?"

"Right- I have no intention of disrupting your little setup here- I was being honest in saying that I respected it."

"Offer?"

"Currently, my plans would essentially necessitate your destruction- you have chosen, though unknowingly, to place yourself in my way. I, of course, have no desire to see that come to pass."

"You THREATEN ISLAND?"

"It isn't a threat: it's simply a matter of fact. You can't even oppose me in your own soul- how do you think this fight would go in the real world."

The face scows, "Offer?" It asks again in an impatient tone.

"I'll let you continue your operation- but under me. You can keep your friends, even gain more- as many more as you like so long as you don't disrupt my business."

"In exchange?"

"You will siphon, let's say half of the influence you net by doing this. And, if you can swing it, make it <Common Sense> to offer prayers to a source of my choosing. Ah, and, this is not a mutual contract- though I promise not to interfere with your operations or incarnation status unless they become detrimental to my plans, I will technically come to possess your soul."

"And if I do this, you will not... do that again?"

"I will hurt you if an only if you interfere with me or my plans."

"..."

"Or, I could pop back into the real world and turn you into some very expensive sawdust."

"DEAL."

You shake a hand outstretched from the trunk. Chains coil around the trunk of the tree.

>Congeatulations!...

You smile- it is possible to deal directly with a soul after all.

>Leave the soulscape and head for the city
>Train (attempt to create an <Art>)
>Write-in
>>
>>6073191

Typo. Long day. Sorry.

>You will siphon, let's say half of the influence you net by doing this over to me.
>>
>>6073191
>>Leave the soulscape and head for the city
>>
>>6073191
>Leave the soul scape and head for the city
I feel like train is being offered because we’re on the brink of an epiphany after that experience, but I can’t figure out what it is :(

Our own version of Faustian bargain perhaps? We should try directly chaining a mortals soul first though for maximum starting insight
>>
>>6073191
>Train (attempt to create an <Art>)
Study how we can embed our divinity into objects like food and tools
>>
>>6073378
+1
focus on the mission
>>
>>6073378
+1
>>
>>6073220
>>6073378
>>6073395
>>6073435
>>6073527

>Leave the soulscape and head for the city

You open your eyes, finding the apple in your hand crushed to a saccharine pulp. Iwana seems amused, chuckling slightly as homemade applesauce drips onto the floor, while Dorota, presumably capable of seeing your activities to some extent, looks upon you with amazement. You rise, flicking the fruit pulp off of your hand and using Iwana's shirt as a towel, much to her chagrin.

"We're going to the city now. Need a ride?"

Dorota slips into your shadow, but Iwana surprisingly shakes her head.

"I'm good- I wanted to practice flight with my new <Art>"

You shrug, taking off into the air with your cloak as Pallas follows, flame trailing from beneath her feet.

You hover above the city after arrival, and everything seems normal. However, you detect something unusual:

A large <Natural> soul resides in this city- a non-incarnation with power rivalling one, an upper level one at that. At first, you assume the signature belongs to a follower of the Uncrowned King, but no trace of his colors can be seen.

Your eyes narrow: is that the true power behind this new nation?"

>Use your authorities and miracles to incite chaos
>Fly to the soul and stage a sneak attack
>Stay hidden and gather intel
>Write-in
>>
>>6073544
>>Stay hidden and gather intel
>>
>>6073544
>A large <Natural> soul resides in this city- a non-incarnation with power rivalling one, an upper level one at that. At first, you assume the signature belongs to a follower of the Uncrowned King, but no trace of his colors can be seen.
What the fuck
Third faction?

>Stay hidden and gather intel
>>
>>6073544
>Stay hidden and gather intel

Well well well. There's nothing saying common mortals can't discover Arts after all, though it would take a rare mind to be sure.
>>
>>6073544
>Stay hidden and gather intel
>>
>>6073591
It's not just knowing Arts, it's the size of their soul. Just like how the system has been growing ours by pasting on recycled bits and chunks gathered from victims, somehow they grew theirs.
>>
>>6073660
There is that meditate skill the shop offers...we might want to pick it up and see about expanding our core soul/divinity pool, and sorting out our personal soul turbulence.
>>
>>6073553
>>6073581
>>6073591
>>6073610

>Stay hidden and gather intel

Keeping your stealth abilities at maximum output, you hover down to the soul you detected, finding yourself posted over city hall. You find an open window, slipping through it and making your way to the mayor's office.

You find the person you're looking for- a man, average in height and build, but dressed in what looks like some sort of ceremonial fur outfit, clearly sewn from various pelts of animals native to the region. He sits cross-legged on the desk, his eyes closed and a mop of blonde, almost white hair messily draped over his face and shoulders. He has a beard, wild and unkempt, and what seem to be ritual tattoos on the parts of his body not obscured by his garb.

Your first thought is that he's some sort of cosplayer, but given the size of his soul, he's probably got some sort of genuine tie to whatever he's dressed up as.

You decide to check if he's meditating with or without purpose, observing the latent divinity in the world: as expected, he seems to be absorbing the energy from the leyline beneath, reinforcing his soul little by little, layer by layer, almost like making a candle.

As you continue to observe, you see his eyelids quiver- he doesn't seem to notice you specifically, but he probably senses that something is off.

>Use an authority or miracle (specify)
>Introduce yourself
>Attack
>Leave
>Write-in
>>
>>6074393
>>Introduce yourself
>>
>>6074393
>Try to reinforce your own soul in the same way
>>
>>6074393
>Introduce yourself
>>
>>6074397
>>6074480
>>6074597

>Introduce yourself

You appear seemingly out of thin air, clapping your hands to get the mysterious man's attention.

"Hi! I had a couple questions for you if that's alright."

The man's eyes widen as he leaps to his feet, drawing a shiny steel dagger with a stag antler hilt from a deerskin pouch on his waist in a single fluid motion. "Who the hell are you?" He speaks, but without opening his mouth- or making any sound for that matter. You cock your head in fascination- is he communicating directly with your soul?

"I noticed you- such a big soul, without the touch of the system or the <King>•

His eyes widen, "You can discern the King's mark? I thought your kind was incapable of that."

You smile, allowing your fetters to play at your fingertips, causing his mouth to go slack in amazement, "I'm a bit of an exception: I know lots of things," you say with a smirk.

"What! You- how can you- no, this must be some sort of trick from your false god

"No trick, and no system- these chains are all me."

"..Impossible! How do you know our ways!"

"Oh please, do you think that whatever tribe you come from was the only one to figure out souls?"

"Impossible."

"Obviously it isn't."

He scowls: "Who are you and what do you want?"

>"Actually, I've come to ask you the same thing"
>"I've come to offer you a deal" (specify)
>"I wanted to ask about your people- and how they learned <Arts>"
>Write-in
>>
>>6074639
>"Actually, I've come to ask you the same thing"
>>
>>6074639
>"I wanted to ask about your people- and how they learned <Arts>
>>
>>6074639
>"I wanted to ask about your people- and how they learned <Arts>"
Are they the ones who have held the King at bay all this time until the system appeared? Could have a ton of useful information.
>>
>>6074639
>"The king is an enemy to us all, and I don't trust the system."
>>"I wanted to ask about your people- and how they learned <Arts>"
>>
>>6074645
>>6074649
>>6074687
>>6074925

">"I wanted to ask about your people- and how they learned <Arts>"

"They've been with my people since time began. The Spirit of Winter taught the our ancestors long ago, and thus the tradition has been carried from generations."

You scratch your chin- "The Winter Spirit" is a force you haven't heard of before. It's entirely possible that they aren't real- or that they were a human that was remembered as a deity thanks to time and reverence. Still, the <Uncrowned King> is certainly real. Who knows what else might be?

"So you're aware of the Uncrowned King. Is your tribe dedicated to stopping them or something?"

He shakes his head, "We are no friends of the King- and indeed, we interfere with the plans of his Court whenever possible, but we weren't devoted to it in particular."

"So, wait, if you've been existing for thousands of years with these powers, why only try to take over now?"

His eyes narrow: "Revenge."

"Ahhh. Against whom?"

"The Russians. They came upon our village with fire and steel. They apparently thought that we were Penitent- after all, so very few of you <Tainted> can tell the difference."

It seems like the King isn't the only one who describes incarnations in such terms. He continues:

"I wasn't at the village at the time- I was at a delegation with another to propose actions against the King's court. I was a fool- I should have stayed behind to protect them.. I knew they were safe from the King for that time, but I should have anticipated-"

He chokes slightly, his face wrought with pain.

"So, what, you're the strongest? The chieftan?"

"Shaman." He corrects, slumping down slightly, "I was the Shaman."

>Offer to help him in his revenge (genuinely)
>Offer to help in his revenge (duplicitously)
>Use an authority or miracle (specify)
>Challenge him to a duel
>Offer to exchange information about <Arts>
>Write-in
>>
>>6075447
>Offer to help him in his revenge (genuinely)
An enemy of the King is a "friend" of ours
>>
>>6075447
>Offer to help him in his revenge (genuinely)

Help destroying the Russians, learning more about Arts, aid against the Uncrowned King? Seems like an opportunity.
>>
>>6075447
>>Offer to help him in his revenge (genuinely)
eh why not
>Challenge him to a duel
can prove our worth so to speak, and get extra fighting practice
>>
>>6075447
>Offer to help in his revenge (duplicitously)
In exchange for getting access to all his Arts knowledge

I don't mind actually helping a little, but if Nutin starts taking serious offence we're pinning it all on this guy, hence the duplicitous option selection.
>>
>>6075447
>>Offer to help him in his revenge (genuinely)
>in exchange for information about <Arts>
old fashioned handshake deal, no system
>>
>>6075450
>>6075488
>>6075529
>>6075565
>>6075788

>Offer to help him in his revenge (genuinely)

“I’ll help you with your revenge.” You say, putting a hand on your hip and a professional smile on your lips, “But I have two terms.”

His eyes narrow, “Being?”

You hold up a finger- “First, I’m going to need you to stop this fake country stuff. I made a deal with the locals and they want you gone.”

He shakes his head, a somber, guilt ridden expression plastered across his face, “I can't do that. I.. need them.”

“What for?”

“..it's a secret.”

You sigh, “Look, the fact is that the person you're hunting is both a shapeshifter and the leader of one of the largest superpowers in the world, both in mortal and incarnation terms. You’re strong, I’ll admit that much, but right now you're talking to the world’s most powerful Rogue Incarnation: moreover, one who specializes in infiltration and reconnaissance. You need me. So spill.”

To emphasize your point, you decide to undo <Guerilla Tactics> allowing the terrifying magnitude of your soul to be shown in its full glory. His eyes widen in horror:

“You- just how many people have you killed to obtain all that power at such a young age?”

You shake your head, “Not how I did it- well, not directly. I got this by eating the king’s <Nodes>.”

“I-impossible! Those aren't simply power, they're poison! Just eating a part of them will cause your soul to be swamped by the King’s power, turning you into a mindless puppet!”

“The system protected me. I don't get the full harvest, but I can do it with no consequences.”

“Insanity.. If I- no, I musn’t! But, if it would save so many lives-” he pulls at his hair and grinds his teeth, some sort of mental agony obviously wracking him as he rambles incoherently about purity, tradition, and responsibility.

“What is your plan with this country?”

He laughs bitterly, “Since you have given me a useful hint, I shall reciprocate. Look around. Not with your eyes.”

You close your eyes, focusing on the divinity and leylines. You find the natural flow of the world to be twisted, disturbed even, forming a geometric pattern with this office at its center. You shiver- you can't quite comprehend the point of the formation, but you can't shake the feeling that something sinister is happening.

“What is this?” You ask, unable to fully mask the dread in your voice.

“An ancient ritual. An art most terrible and fully forbidden.”

Your jaw drops slightly as you realize what he's planning.
>>
>>6075972

"You’re going to eat all of these people: men, women, children, you’re going to devour every single one of their souls. It requires permission but, ha, the brainwashing! Fuck, they don't even have to know they're agreeing to it! Damn, that's evil even for me.”

“As you said,” he replies, pain and guilt dripping from every word, “The power I wish to fight against is formidable. This is, no, was necessary. But..”

“But?”

“If I become like you, I can spare all of these lives and consume the king’s power instead! But, to do so-” his voice trails off, before he eventually gathers himself and continues, “I’d have to fully end my people's lineage. To become <Tainted>. To lose everything.”

You clench your hands into fists- on the one hand, he would undoubtedly make an incredible ally if he deified. On the other, doing so would mean that he would stop this ritual and never perform it again- meaning that you won't ever be able to learn it. What should you do?

>Encourage <Deification>
>Discourage <Deification>
>Allow him to decide on his own
>Write-in
>>
>>6075973
>Discourage <Deification>
I like the idea of allies not in the system
>>
>>6075973
>Discourage <Deification>
Funny how he was getting on our case about murder when he was doing this. Anyway we want that ritual. Tell him uuuuh we can eat the nodes already so it's better if he deals with things in his own way so we can fight the King from different angles rather than putting all our eggs in one basket. Sucks to be the people eaten, but they're better off than if the King wins, right?
>>
>>6075973
>Allow him to decide on his own
Even if we would encourage deification, he'd likely not sell us his soul to do so. But if he doesn't sell us his soul, I don't think that he'd tell us either.
>>
>>6075973
>Allow him to decide on his own

We have soul eater in storage, and Your's Truly, and I'd rather him be happy with his decision. I think we can work out soul eating on our own.
>>
Waiting on a tiebreaker. Will resolve it randomly should one not be made
>>
>>6076338
I can swap to allowing him to decide
>>
Random musings, we have in storage:

> Body of Zagreus (1)
> Parts of your body which are removed are able to function as if they were still attached and can be reattached more easily for up to one hour, so long as they remain within a 10 foot radius of you

This is definitely a fun one. I can see us just shedding hand-spider mouths with eyes to scream at enemies, or assault them from multiple angles, or just swarm into a facility of penitent, mind fucking everyone they encounter. Maybe pair it up with Regenerate for something like

> Legion of Flesh
> You can freely separate and reattach pieces of your body. Additionally those pieces can regenerate into independent drones that can perform simple tasks, including using your authorities. You can freely switch your mind to a drone, regenerating it into a perfect copy of your body.
>>
>>6076382
Other random musing...we can basically use Pandora's Pithos an unlimited number of times with the auraphage. I do have to wonder...how fast could we fill it for it's ultimate Apocalyptic effect using the auraphage?
>>
>>6075980
>>6075982
>>6076052
>>6076365

>Allow him to decide on his own

You stand silently behind the shaman, allowing him to come to terms with his choice on his own.

Eventually, he slumps forward, a glint of resolve shimmering through the layers of guilt and grief.

"I cannot slaughter the last vestige of my people. It may be a sin but.. may the Spirit forgive me."

You give a slight nod, "How long will the formation take to complete?"

"Seven more days."

"I see. I have an engagement before then, so I suppose the timing works out. Besides, even if I don't stop you, I'm not allowed to be involved. Contracts and whatnot."

"So, shall we meet here once the time is up?"

"Pleasure doing business."

>Return home
>Offer an exchange with the shaman before you leave (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6076480
confused
he's staying untainted and going through with the ritual, right?
>>
>>6076480
>Offer an exchange with the shaman before you leave (specify)
Some of his knowledge in exchange for uuuuh the Cyclop's Eye? Not like we're using it.
>>
>>6076547
+1
>>
>>6076480
>>Return home

>>6076547
I don't think he's gonna need that, it's basically a weapon anyone approximately level 6 or 7 can have, but then give it to their subordinates
>>
>>6076687
It's not about using the weapon itself, but a chance to study how the system imbues items with divinity.
>>
Apologies for the lack of update yesterday (and the general slowdown over the last week). I have been otherwise occupied by real life concerns (medical, mostly).

I should hopefully update tomorrow at the latest, but possibly today or tonight if I start feeling a bit better
>>
>>6077242
don't worry about it, and thanks for the heads up
>>
>>6077242
I have some healing stones I'll use to send positive vibes your way OP.
>>
>>6077377
>>6077430

Thanks for the kind words. It really means a lot (haven't tried crystals, here's hoping that works)

>>6076536
He's following through with the ritual and not deifying

>>6076547
>>6076549
>>6076687

>Offer an exchange with the shaman before you leave (specify)

"I have no desire for your tainted steel. And even less so to divulge my people's wisdom to someone like you."

"Someone like me? A tainted, you mean?"

"No, though that certainly doesn't help. You are.. evil. Deeply, bottomlessly evil."

"Hey pal, I wouldn't throw stones. In case you forgot, you're about to slaughter an entire mini-country of innocent civilians over, let me remind you, an unintentional misidentification of your people as members of the Penitent. You can call me whatever you want but know this-"

You lean forward, a look partway between smug knowingness and genuine disgust at the hypocrisy of it all showing through your businesslike demeanor:

"You are not a noble avenger. You are just as evil as me."

"No, no, NO. I KNOW right from wrong. You- you're a monster. A devil. I can feel it. You don't feel anything at all when you do what you do. We're NOT alike."

"If that is true," you say, pointing his chin upwards to meet his bloodshot eyes, "Then that just makes you even worse."

He wrests his face away, and you decide to appeal to his sense of logic instead.

"Look, you know how powerful Incarnations can be. You might not know that things like, just spitballing here, ruling one of the largest countries in the world can net you massive power. The system as an apparatus is not entirely dissimilar from the stunt you're pulling here- only it doesn't have to kill anyone to accomplish it."

"What is your point."

"If you know anything about arts- techniques of the soul- you should be well aware that, no matter how much power you might have, your output is limited by your level of understanding and finesse. I have a massive soul, but my output is pathetic in comparison. I need that understanding- and if you want to win against the Russian, you'll need me to have it too."

He wracks his brain, seemingly trying to find an arrangement he can accept.

"..Fine. But in exchange, I want to study one of your system's abilities. And a powerful one at that- a maximum level <Authority> or a <Miracle> will do."
>>
>>6078164

You click your tongue, "What techniques can you offer?"

"I alone bear the weight of my people's knowledge- though I am proficient with some things more than others, I can teach you what you want to know. Except- I will never teach the <Devouring Rite>. That alone, I musn't let fall into your hands."

You want:

>Help with an existing art (specify)
>Physical enhancement (specify)
>Manifestation (eg, <Fetters of Atë>)
>Manipulation (eg, telekinesis)
>Stealth
>Mind control
>Perception
>Some combination of the above (specify)
>Write-in

In exchange, you'll demonstrate:

>Guerilla Tactics
>Touch of Madness
>A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices
>Whispers of Temptation
>Assess Hamartia
>Divine Servant
>Strings of the Neurospaston
>Atë's Playthings
>Thelematoxin
>Skin of the Chameleon
>Write-in
>>
>>6078167
>>Stealth
We want to be able to hide, preferable sometimes even from the system itself

>A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices
>>
>>6078167
>Perception
So far we've had to rely on items and power level for perception, it would be nice to have something inherent, and even better if the system can't nerf it against someone with a higher level

>Guerilla Tactics
Would rather show a generic authority than one of our core kit
>>
>>6078167
>Help with an existing art (specify)
Yours Truly
This man knows his Arts, and I want to make good use of his expertise
>Assess Hamartia
It might be interesting to show it off to him
>>
>>6078167
> Stealth
> Access Harmatia
>>
>>6078195
>>6078204
>>6078215
>>6078282

>Stealth
>Assess Hamartia

You decide to demonstrate your premier perception authority, explaining its functionality and demonstrating its use on some passersby outside City Hall. His brows furrow in concentration as he observes, muttering to himself in a language you cannot understand.

"Now then," you say after about an hour of demonstrations and observation, "My turn, as agreed."

He nods, "So, you want to go undetected, yes? There are essentially three methods of doing so."

You nod, paying close attention as he continues to speak.

"The process of human observation essentially has three components- the observer, the object, and the medium. To go undetected- being in this case the object- you may affect one, two, or even all of these components."

You nod, and he continues, "Affecting the object is best for use against those who might be more skilled in the soul, who would be far more difficult to directly target and who would notice your manipulation of the air, light, and world around you. Affecting the medium is most difficult but, if done with enough finesse, can completely mask your presence in ways that the other two cannot. Finally, affecting observers is the easiest, but most feasible to resist."

Where should you put your focus?
>Object
>Medium
>Observer
>Write-in
>>
>>6078835
You know, we never really experimented with Assess Hamartia despite it being core to the skillset. What if we AH somebody, tell that somebody everything we got on them from AH, then try to make them overcome their fatal flaws or whatever AH tells us? See what happens?
>>
>>6078835
>Object
Let's be honest, Atë has an uncomfortable amount of experience wanting to personally not exist.
>>
>>6078835
>>Object
>>
>>6078931
+1
Will she get her wish by quest's end? Or still have that as her wish?
>>
>>6078835
>Medium
>>
>>6078931
>>6078932
>>6078934
>>6078969

>The object

He nods, deeply concentrating for a few moments before responding.

“Changing the physical properties of yourself- the object, the body- is as stated the most difficult means of hiding oneself. The easiest way to do this is camouflage- changing to resemble your surroundings, or perhaps an object one might expect to find in the place in question.”

You shake your head- “I already have a trick for that. I don’t want to mimic, I want to become truly undetectable.”

He sighs, “In that case, only two options are left to you.” He scrawls a few runes on a piece of paper resting on the desk, holding them up to demonstrate before remembering that you wouldn’t be able to read them.

“The first method,” he says, holding up a piece of paper, “Is the <Hunter’s Cloak>. It coats your body in essence- what your people call <Divinity>- which has the unique property of perfectly curving the light around you, as well as holding the heat and scent of your body in.”

“The downsides?”

“Firstly, anyone who can manipulate or feel the vibrations in the air itself or the ground beneath you will still be able to detect your presence, even if you maintain perfect silence and execute the art as well as one could.”

“And secondly?”

“In order to breathe, you will have to temporarily, though only partially, dissolve the cloak. Though you will remain invisible, the heat, sound, and scent of your breaths will be audible to the world.”

You furrow your brow, “And the second method?”

“Much more dangerous- the <Steps of the Specter>. A technique in which you cease to exist.”

“That, uh, doesn’t sound very helpful.”

“Your physical body essentially crumbles into atoms, an invisible particulate cloud that can freely move through the air. However, there is a reason why this technique is forbidden despite its almost perfect effectiveness as a stealth technique- it is incredibly, INCREDIBLY dangerous. Firstly, without a body, you lose all of your body’s senses. In other words, the techniques of your soul are the only way you can interface with the world. Secondly, the reconstitution, even when performed perfectly, leaves one incredibly vulnerable. You are essentially unable to defend yourself while you reconstitute yourself. Lastly, if your concentration ever breaks while using this technique, your body will fully disperse, causing your immediate death.”

“And the upsides?”

“Like I said, nigh flawless stealth. To my knowledge, unless a person has dedicated their entire life to the observation of souls, there is no way to detect someone while the <Steps> are in effect. Additionally, you can travel freely through the air, even through the tiniest gaps in objects, and, while the <Steps> are in effect, are essentially invulnerable to all forms of physical harm so long as you keep your focus.”
>>
>>6078999

You scowl- you dislike how much physical risk might be involved in the <Steps of the Specter>, but you wouldn’t be surprised if individuals like Prometheus or that cop lady from ADAM could see right through the <Hunter’s Cloak>

>Learn the <Cloak>
>Learn the <Steps>
>Learn a different sort of stealth (Medium, Observer)
>Learn a different <Art> entirely
>Write-in
>>
>>6079000

>Learn the <Steps>

The system will probably catch us with a hydra head....maybe
>>
>>6079029
+1
>>
>>6079000
>Learn a different <Art> entirely
Transformation into ultraviolet radiation
Still very stealthy and much safer
>>
>>6079000
>>Learn the <Steps>
we can cover ourselves in a hollowed out Palladium with which we interact with the world
anyone using information gathering stuff would only see it
>>
>>6079029
>>6079041
>>6079045
>>6079322

>Learn the <Steps>

"I'll learn the second one. Can you demonstrate it for me?"

"Demonstrate it? What do you think I am, insane?"

You frown, "I thought you said that you could teach it to me."

"Yes, I can. But I'm not suicidal enough to actually demonstrate the technique."

"You're an ass."

"Do you want to learn or not?"

You pout, but ultimately don't object. He sighs, and then begins to explain.

"The fundamental essence of this technique isn't stealth, it is <Transfiguration>. The art of changing yourself into something else."

"I'm quite familiar with that," you say, sharpening your fingers into claws.

He nods, "In that case, it will be easier to start like this: you must learn to use that power without the use of the system's gifts."

You click your tongue, "That's going to take too long. I need this in working order in four days."

He bursts out laughing, "Ha, you really are mental! That is impossible- you'd be lucky to have an even rudimentary application in two months."

"I'm a fast learner."

"Not that fast."

>Do as he says and try to transform without an authority
>Skip straight to the <Steps>
>Give up on this and focus on something else (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6079427
>>Do as he says and try to transform without an authority
Time to turn Thousand Faces into an Art
>>
>>6079427
>Do as he says and try to transform without an authority

We...might want to consider cancelling our meetup.
>>
>>6079427
>Do as he says and try to transform without an authority

>>6079447
No? We don't actually need it, it would just be nice to have.
>>
>>6079432
>>6079447
>>6079487

>Do as he says and try to transform without an authority

"Any tips, teach?"

"If your aim is to learn the <Steps of the Specter>, the most important skills to learn are Transformation, Petrification, Revivification, and Discontinuity."

"Elaborate."

"Transformation is simple- change one shape to another. Petrification and Revivification come hand in hand: the ability to convert your body into non-living tissue and back again. The most important aspect of this step is the ability to manipulate your body with the soul alone and think without your brain."

"And the last step?"

"The element central to the art of the <Steps of the Specter>: the ability to be in multiple pieces while petrified, to manipulate them as a single body."

You nod, "How should I start?"

"As I've said, you ought to study your own powers, ones your body and soul have become accustomed to."

You nod, "I suppose that's your way of saying that you won't be helping out with this bit."

He shrugs, "You know your powers better than I would."

You click your tongue, "I'll expect your full support when the time to actually learn the <Steps> comes."

You activate the <Skin of the Chameleon>, filtering through the open window as a gust of ash and dust.

As you fly home, you consider your options: you will undoubtedly have an easier time picking up <A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices> due to how much you've used it over the course of your divine existence, but <Skin of the Chameleon> is much closer to the <Steps>

>Use <Faces> for reference
>Use <Skin> for reference
>>
>>6079527
>Skin
Skin feels more right for this
>>
>>6079527

>Use <Skin>

Go big. We're not going to become a world player by being afraid of a challenge. Load up on brains and get to business horribly maiming ourselves turning our hand to stone.
>>
>>6079527
>Use <Faces> for reference
Just for the first time, to gauge how it'll be
If it's easy we can swap to Skin, otherwise we'll be happy we started with this
>>
>>6079537
>>6079538
>>6079605

>Mimic <Skin>

You decide to just enter your <Realm>, planning to exit through Brigita’s door when you feel the urge to return to the real world. Not wanting to waste time, you make a beeline for your room, taking a deep breath, sitting cross-legged on the bed, and shutting your eyes.

You start by using <Skin of the Chameleon>, feeling the sensation of your fingers changing from flesh and blood to marble and granite.

Your eyes narrow: two things become obvious. One, it’s impossible to consciously implement divinity with the same level of calculation and proficiency that the System does. At least, currently impossible for you. Despite over a dozen- effectively two dozen thanks to your augmentations- brains working in tandem, the massive, sisyphean task of taking each and every molecule and fitting it into a new structure is.. impossible.

Additionally, the system seems to bring in material, not from the world around you, but.. elsewhere entirely. Additionally, you can feel, though with limited resolution, the system sort of recycles the mass of your body. Converting it briefly into energy before resolidifying it as matter. The process seems extraordinarily complicated.

Then again, does it really have to be so precise? You think to yourself: what are <Arts>, anyway? The manifestation of impetus into reality? Not purely, obviously, otherwise everyone would be accidentally using <Arts> all the time.

Your brow furrows in deep concentration- divinity doesn't violate the rules of the world, it simply exists as a previously inaccessible source of energy, a source of energy which can be harnessed by entities called <Souls>. Normally, divinity is used for tasks so minor that their ‘pool’ of it is essentially never expended.

The system calls this energy <Divinity>. Is that just an arbitrary name? A snappy title it picked just to fit in with the aesthetic of Greek mythos? Maybe, but that idea doesn't feel right to you.

Divinity. The power of gods. The power of creation.

You forget trying to copy the <Skin> for a second. Instead, you decide to pour your entire mana pool into <Creation>. Just one electron.

You visualize the nature of the quanta that make up the fabric of reality. The smallest charge, waves of probability for position and momentum, radiating, distorting the spacetime like ripples in the sea as they travel throughout the universe.

One piece. Let there be one tiny piece of that macrocosm.

The universe bares itself to you- kaleidoscopes of not-colors pour into your brain like boiling oil, scorching a smoldering hole into your psyche as you witness totality through unbiased eyes. No, not eyes. Eyes could never witness this.

You realize how arbitrary the little slice you called reality is. Like an ant looking at a house and seeing a hill. It is horrifying.

It is beautiful.

You did it.
>>
>>6079657

The mental fatigue overtakes you as you flicker out of consciousness. The last thing you see is the telltale golden panel of a notification from the system. However, you are much too tired to read it.

Days remaining: 3

You wake up with a throbbing headache and a divinity pool still less than half full- you're still reeling from the brief glimpse beyond the veil. What should you do today?

>Manage the system
>Go back to working towards the <Steps>
>Peek at the cosmos again
>Take a day off
>Write-in
>>
>>6079658
>>Manage the system
let us get it
>>
>>6079658
>Manage the system
Nascent God title?
>>
>>6079658
>Talk to Pheme
>>
>>6079658
Manage system
Pheme talk
In that order
>>
>>6079695
Support.

Yeah, let the soul settle for a moment and uh...see what the system has to say. The fact that the system encourages and acknowledges Arts is very interesting to me.
>>
>>6079672
>>6079681
>>6079693
>>6079695
>>6079747

>Manage the system, then talk to Pheme

You decide to check that notification you missed out on:

>Congratulations! You have attained the <Fable> grade title <Ex Nihilo>!
>Note: <Ex Nihilo> is a prerequisite for the title <True Deity> (1/3)

You may select a reward!
>Hint: Elegy of Gaia
>Hint: Devourer's Cookbook
><Fable> grade authority ticket
><Fable> grade item ticket (x2)
>Level increase (note, no influence gain)
>Random Directive
>>
>>6079778
difficult decision
directives are hard to come by, but random?
devourer is if we want to double down on being evil
level increase would be good if we could postbone it until hitting 14 and getting 15 instantly
and 15 is likely the systems normal next powerspike
I think I'd go with
>fable authority
>>
>>6079778
>Hint: Devourer's Cookbook
Definitely not the authority, we're always hitting up against the cap and we want to stop relying on the system.
>>
>>6079778
>Hint: Devourer's Cookbook
>>
>>6079988
It's fable grade tho. not one of the easily replaceable ones. And any authority can serve as the basis to make Arts ourselves too.
>>
>>6079778

> Elegy of Gaia
Assuming Devourer's cookbook is a guide to slicing up souls and attaching them to other people, we already have a pair of authorities under our control to learn from there. Elegy of Gaia feels like something we'd struggle to understand and find on our own.

The fact that the system is offering us fucking hints on the path to true godhood is hilarious. Some cosmic level version of Perdix is like "I'm lonely, someone else figure this shit out."
>>
>>6079787
>>6079988
>>6079992
>>6079995
>>6080000

>Hint: Devourer's Cookbook

You select the option, and a small notebook plops onto your bed. You decide to crack it open, and are met with yellowed pages and bright red text, scrawled on in messy scratches

So, you want to be a GOD, huh? Yeah, I get it. Being mortal kinda sucks dick. Does your species have dicks? Eh, probably. Not really important right now.

So, pretty much, a GOD is a SOUL. "B-but, Mr. Devourer!" you might be asking, "If a god is a soul, why isn't it everyone a god?"

The answer is simple. The MORTAL SOUL is TINY. TOO SMALL TO MAKE EVEN A SINGLE HYDROGEN ATOM. PATHETIC. A soul so MINISCULE is incapable of existing without an ANCHOR. A MEAT PUPPET if you understand my meaning.

There are ways to circumvent this by ANCHORING YOURSELF TO SOMETHING ELSE INSTEAD, but that's just another way of calling yourself TRAPPED. You will be CONSIGNED TO SIPHONING DIVINITY FROM THE WORLD YOU INGRAINED INTO like a STUPID TREE. For not one, not ten, but HUNDREDS OF LIFETIMES. Do you want to be a tree??? NO. You want to be a DEVOURER.

You stroke your chin- it seems probable that the state of being a 'stupid tree' is that of the <Nascent God>: powerful and proficient enough in <Arts> to survive without a body but much to weak to exist without the power within the leylines of a planet.

You flip to the table of contents: the book is short, only containing the introduction you just read, as well as four 'courses', presumably the book's chapters: "Mortal", "Interwraith", "World", and "God".

>Keep reading
>Stop for now and chat with Pheme
>Write-in
>>
>>6080018
>Keep reading
Get all the info first so we can hold a full convo with Pheme
>>
>>6080018

Testing

To see if

I can save some time
>>
>>6080018

>Keep reading
Set a fucking alarm though. We really do need to talk to Pheme.
>>
>>6080026

Fuggin shitty ass 4chan formatting tools amiright?
>>
>>6080018
>Keep reading

I should have posted my theory before, but this falls right into it

So what would anyone need to be a god?
Well, one part is seemingly creation
creating matter is a start, but I'd want to see if creating life is in the options further down, even just a single celled organism capable of looking for food, digestion and multiplication

Second, be master of our own soul, and not even need a body anymore. We're already on our way for that, able to shift our vessel into anything we want and even specks of dust/inanimate objects. I don't think there's a 'you must be this tall' for the god ride. But simply have the technique down to exist without an anchor without getting blown away like dust in the wind.

And for a third... a few things come to mind. But as far as only the system is regarded, for the <True Deity> title we also need the approval of an existing god, at least the approval of the system that hands out the titles.
And the system also steers people into getting worshipped. So maybe a follower count is necessary, a backing of other non-divine souls.
>>
Testing the formatting again
>>
>>6080028
Yeah it is annoying

>>6080025
>>6080027
>>6080043

>Keep Reading

FIRST COURSE: MORTALS

Mortals are one of the best sources of DIVINE NOURISHMENT for a fledgeling DEVOURER. Each one contains more divinity than
[Note: Units are converted for convenience based on universal constants, similarly to the language and idioms of the original text] DAYS of SITTING and WAITING like a STUPID TREE. And you can eat a LOT of mortals!

LIVESTOCK AND LIFEFORMS

Did you know? Every <LIFE FORM> has a SOUL. That’s right, even the littlest bacteria. Of course, the SIZE of a soul is directly related to LONGEVITY and INTELLIGENCE, so sentient life or very, very old other stuff will be much more worth your time.

The biggest complication with sentient life is COMPLEX IMPETUS. Most life forms share simple goals: eat, reproduce, etc. YOU are also a STUPID MEATBAG right now, so these desires simply BLEND IN WITH THE REST.

However other sentient mortals will have WEIRD, SPECIFIC desires and an EGO. Eat carelessly and you will develop SOUL INDIGESTION, and potentially EGO DEATH. Or worse, GROSS FETISHES.

Therefore, you must CONQUER and PROCESS a sapient soul. How? There are two ways.

SLICE AND DICE

The easiest way to do this is what the system already does: REND the soul into a MILLION ITTY BITTY PIECES. There are some drawbacks though. This process is MESSY and INEFFICIENT, especially for an unskilled devourer.

You will lose 50-70 PERCENT OF YOUR MEAL. NOT IDEAL. However, this process is FAST, SAFE, and SIMPLE. However, for BIG, JUICY souls, it might be worth your time to recover the WHOLE THING.

TENDERIZE

The best way to recover the whole soul safely is to break its WILL rather than its SOUL BITS. This can be done through TORTURE. Or pleasure, or bargains, or by dunking their consciousness beyond the veil raw. But TORTURE is most fun.

HOW TO EAT?

What are you, STUPID? You just gotta EAT them. It’s easier to DRAG THEM BACK TO YOUR OWN SOULSCAPE, but you can do it in theirs too if you want to SAVE TIME (but only using method one).

Seriously, just make a BIG MOUTH or TURN BIG or something. You can also just TRAP them in your soulscape and they will SLOWLY DIGEST (it’ll take a while though- possibly forever if they can USE THEIR SOULS). Just make sure they’re tenderized first unless you want their GROSS FLESHY DESIRES.

The next chapter is about INTERWRAITHS. They are TASTY and MUCH BIGGER THAN MORTALS. However, you should not continue reading until you feel you are ready. The SYSTEM might be protecting your world and by extension you, but it is still most unwise to GAIN THEIR ATTENTION by LEARNING ABOUT THEM until you are comfortable peering beyond the VEIL.


>Keep reading
>Stop here
>Write-in
>>
>>6080043
I don't think Follower is the word you want. More like Fuel.

On the topic of dealing with ADAM...I wonder if we can get them to back off with a deal. We'll promise not to set off the powder keg of everyone we have snared with Neuroplaston, and they'll stay out of our fight with with wonder boy.
>>
>>6080067

> GAIN THEIR ATTENTION by LEARNING ABOUT THEM until you are comfortable peering beyond the VEIL.
Ahh is this the Uncrowned King I wonder?

>Stop here
Some experimentation and cementing of our power is probably in order. Let's talk to Pheme about our ADAM woes first before we start abducting people and grinding up their souls to add to our own.
>>
>>6080072
+1
>>
>>6080067
>>Stop here
Onto Pheme

>>6080068
I'm fine with "fuel"

And since we got the devourer's advice...
we're not big into torture, but we are the goddess of folly and ruin. We can certainly over-pleasure someone's mind
>>
>>6080086
> You can also just TRAP them in your soulscape and they will SLOWLY DIGEST
This is what a Faustian Bargain is, isn't it? The slow burn digestion.

>>6080086
Giving them a glimpse of the infinite could be fun too!
>>
>>6080067
>Stop here
>Try eating the soul of a bacteria
>>
>>6080072
>>6080080
>>6080086
>>6080094

>Stop here

You put the book down and leave out Brigita's door into the real world. You're long due for a discussion with Pheme.

You soar through the air, speeding at supersonic velocities until you arrive back at Pheme's place.

You knock on the door, and Pheme opens it. However, her divinity signature is off. Much too small to be her. She notices your confusion and informs you,

"Feather clone. I finally got around to buying <Divine Realm>."

"You could have linked our realms and saved me a lot of time."

"Consider it my punishment for being several days late for our chat."

You shrug, entering the apartment. Instead of the normal space, however, you are met with a much different than the usual room: a large, gothic style reception hall greets you instead, with high buttresses and black stone towering over a polished quartzite floor adorned with intricate golden patterns. She leads you to a study, with a similar architectural aesthetic but filled with modern devices- computers, screens, and even a standing desk with treadmill in the corner.

She plops down on a couch at the back corner of the room, and you follow suit, sitting next to her as she pulls out a pad and paper.

"So. What have you been up to?"

(You can assume all information will be conveyed, but select all options you wish to hear Pheme's thoughts or opinions on)

>ADAM
>Heracles
>Prometheus
>The Whittlers
>The Penitent
>The Shaman
>Arts (And the System's encouragement of them)
>The Devourer's Cookbook
>Everything
>Write-in
>>
>>6080092
I really don't want to go the torture route for our food. Our own soul is tortured enough.
Do some weight watching, count the trauma of the souls we eat.
>>
>>6080111
>Ask how aware she is of our meeting in the soulscape
>ADAM and whether or not we should go to vidcon
>she thinks we're "working too hard", but we made a lot of enemies and we need to stay ahead of the curve
>Arts and the System's encouragement of them
>>
>>6080121
+1

>>6080114
What, finally going back to folly and ruin of specific high-value targets instead of mass chaos?
>>
>>6080145
the mass chaos lately was instantly levelling cities
which does give a lot of points, but there's a finite amount of cities we can do that with before everyone else decides we need to be dealt with. I kinda don't want to keep increasing our number of enemies, but gain power more quietly.
And making music and simply raking in devotion also really pays, and could pay of more if we get the getting worshipped directive. and make Baphomette public as a goddess
>>
>>6080121
+1

Ugh, I had many things written and lost them, but yeah, Adam, Herc, Arts and the System
>>
>>6080111
>Everything
OP must spend days writing

IN PARTICULAR THOUGH
>Arts (And the System's encouragement of them)
Is the System some kind of interdimensional defense mechanism against beings like the King (Interwraiths?)

>Prometheus
>The Whittlers
Currently I'm more inclined to trust Prometheus, but interested in her thoughts.
>>
>>6080121
>>6080145
>>6080163
>>6080174

“First and foremost,” you say, “How much do you remember about our meeting in the Soulscape?”

She shakes her head, “Soulscape, huh..? No, I’m afraid I don’t recall.”

You give a curt nod- it makes sense, you suppose.

“Any progress on <Arts>?”

“..Some. I don’t think I have much of a knack for this, though.” She lifts her hand, and as she does so, dark purple crystals of <Divinity> begin to appear at her fingertips. They grow rapidly, forming the rough shapes of birds which unsteadily fly around her in a circle.

“My <Art> is called <Eyes of the Flock>. The intention is to sort of replicate my primary powerset, but without using the system’s power. However,” she furrows her brow, “The manipulation really is difficult. I think, for people who lack the.. superhuman-ness of you and your new shadow, we’ll need to form <Rituals>. Incantations, symbols, shortcuts to automate the process so we don’t have to do everything so directly.”

You tilt your head- if you recall correctly, the Shaman was using runes and chants to represent his abilities. Is Pheme going to try and develop something similar?

“Thank you for the progress report. Now, onto recent events…”

You explain the important details of what you’ve experienced recently, answering any questions she has along the way. After you finish, Pheme begins her response.

“First and foremost, I’ll be giving what I consider to be my ‘objective assessment’- the recommendations and opinions I’d share with someone who I don’t have any particular regard for. After, I’ll tell you my personal opinions on the whole business.”

>Arts and the System's encouragement of them

“It’s probable that the primary directives of the system are as follows.” She holds up three fingers, then puts down one, “First and foremost, accruing divinity. Farming it from the universe and the mortals in it, gaining <Permission> to do so by using mortals as proxies. I believe that extradimensional entities- Like the System or the Uncrowned King- are beholden to some sort of code of nonintervention, only being able to manifest and consume when ‘invited’ by natives of that plane.”

“That would explain why the Uncrowned King hasn’t simply manifested as of yet. Why he needs a ritual, to be summoned.”

She nods, “The second,” she puts down another finger, “Is to prevent other entities from sticking any fingers into its pie- fighting off other entities like the King- or, based on the very brief mention of them in your new cookbook, the interwraiths.”

“And the last?”

“As you’ve probably guessed, I believe it’s the creation of gods. To what end, I don’t know- maybe it’s lonely, maybe it needs them for something, maybe it’s just another schmuck on the cosmic ladder whose job it is to make more gods. It’s impossible to know.”
>>
>>6080337

>ADAM and whether or not we should go to vidcon

“I highly doubt you’ll be able to negotiate with ADAM. In the Florida incident, for example, they engaged with you possibly knowing that you’d take the civilians hostage. Even though they tried to mitigate casualties, it seems like their ultimate priority is to eliminate you.”

“It makes sense- I did kill <Tisiphone> after all. Even if she came back, they’d probably hold a grudge.”

“More to the point, the fact is that you are a potentially world ending calamity. Gaia would probably stop you if you tried to straight up massacre the entire planet, but whether or not she’ll intervene in any given situation is nigh impossible to predict. Ultimately, to the pragmatist, there is no cost too great to see you eliminated.”

“So should I go?”

She pauses, a solemn expression on your face, “..It’s better to snip this in the bud. If you allow Heracles or ADAM to become more powerful- especially if they survive past the neutralization of the Penitent threat, the prospect of world domination will quite possibly become impossible. Even assuming that Prometheus isn’t helping them now, he undoubtedly will begin to support their cause once it becomes clear that you are now the greatest threat to the world.”

“In other words, I can’t afford to try to beat them at the same time.”

She nods.

>Prometheus and the Whittlers

“There are essentially four possibilities:”

“Being?”

“The first two are obvious- Prometheus or the Whittler you are in contact with is telling the truth.”

You nod, “And the others?”


“A- that one of the Whittlers is hoping to foster distrust between you and all parties involved. In reality, a small minority, possibly even just one person, is hoping to turn you against the entire government. B- that both the Whittlers AND Prometheus are in cahoots, pinning the blame on each other to keep you distracted, allowing them to act against you without you being able to strike either way without risking alienating a potential collaborator.”

“What do you think is most likely?”


“Prometheus seems more trustworthy than the Whittlers based on what you’ve said, but I honestly have no idea. I can look into it if you want.”

“That would be helpful, thanks.”
>>
>>6080338

>she thinks we're "working too hard", but we made a lot of enemies and we need to stay ahead of the curve

“Objectively, you’re completely correct.”

“Are you going to give your personal take now?”

She nods, “I’m worried about you. Seriously, it’s.. disquieting.”

“You know I have to do this. We had a plan, remember?”

“I know, it’s just.. Fuck dude, it’s really dangerous.”

“You knew that. We both did.”

“Yeah, I get it. You’re totally right. It’s just, I’m starting to wonder, is there really a point to it all? Or, rather, the better question is: is it worth the gamble?”

“What do you mean?”

“What I mean is, no matter how big the pot is, we’re betting our lives on this. Worse, I’m betting your life, and I- fuck, it sounds corny, but I don’t know if the world is worth enough to risk that. I was so gung-ho before because, despite money, powers, and a pretty comfy life, I felt empty. Felt like I had nothing to lose.” She lets out a shaky breath, and her voice begins to notably speed up in a rant of rushed, stumbled over words, “Nothing made me happy and I felt miserable and I thought fuck it at least I can go out doing something COOL but I-”

She stops, trying to collect herself. “You know, I’ve been happy lately.”

Silence hangs over the room.

“So.. what do you want me to do, Marie?”

“...Honestly, I don’t know. Isn’t that pathetic? I want to do this with you, but I also want you to quit. Ultimately, I think I know that you need this. That you’ve only gotten where you are because of the Incarnation stuff. I guess it makes me sad that.. I’ll always be secondary. I dunno. Don’t worry about it. Give me some time to think.”

>Leave
>Write-in
>>
>>6080339

Please don't disappear on me.

panic
>>
>>6080339
>Write-in
I think we're committed now. After what we've done already they aren't going to let us just settle down or disappear.
>>
>>6080339
>We'll not go to vidcon.
>Well increase devotion in our followers as cyber-siren and baphomette to gain more divinity and influence.
>Meanwhile strengthen our soul through developing arts and see if we can snowball eating souls.
>build our own soul farm
>>
>>6080539
Didn’t she just say why we should go to vidcon
>>
>>6080587
she said to snip it in the bud
if we're lucky they aren't fully prepared herc is out on enough revenge to go in alone.
if not then we're up against a multitude of powerful incarnations who cleared their schedule just to be there that day.

i much rather announce a spontaneous fan meet-up as bait that needs them to act quickly when they aren't fully prepared, in the hope they'll do something reckless.
bringing the fight to them also seems risky

but I'm fine with getting outvoted on going to vidcon, but then I want to hire dove maybe
>>
Waiting on a tiebreaker. In the absence of one, I'll try my best to compromise between all available options
>>
>>6080717
both say to continue striving for power
going to vidcon should probably be a separate vote

and we still have a doctors appointment, yes?
>>
>>6080366
>>6080394
>>6080539

You exhale, standing over Pheme as she sits slumped on the couch. It’s uncanny- she’s so much taller than you, but right now she seems so small.

“The die is already cast. But… I’ll try not to be so reckless. I recognize that I might put less value on my life than I should.”

You kneel down to meet her downcast gaze. The marbles in her eye sockets are black voids, no light reflecting from the lustrous surface of the mundane sphere, and the <Relic> somehow looking even emptier than normal.

“So I want you to do it for me. I want you to tell me when I’m risking too much for too little.”

“I.. can’t.” she rasps out, hands clutched around her head and voice cracking slightly, “My judgment is clouded. I understand on a logical level that, every time anyone does anything, they incur some personal risk. Every time you walked down the street or drove into work, even in a completely normal mortal life, you gambled your life. As humans, though we are loath to admit it, we recognize that our lives have finite value, such that minor risks to it are considered acceptable. This is common sense.”

“...What’s your point?”

She lifts her head, causing her bangs to stir and shift with the movement of her head. You catch a glimpse of her expression: had she eyes, there would be madness burning within them.

“To me, your value is incalculable.”

A storm of crystal ravens begin to emerge from her shoulder blades, chirping and beating their jeweled wings in a cacophony of divinity, trashing the room around her and completely obscuring the walls, doors, and windows. A hurricane of midnight purple closes in around you as onyx tears pour from her <Omniscient Eye>.

”To me, no risk is acceptable.”

“P-pheme, calm down, you’re starting to freak me out.”

She gasps, seemingly returning to herself. She loses control over the dozens of constructs manifested by her <Art>, sending them crashing onto the floor and shattering into clouds of divine dust.
“I’m not rational. Please go.”

She waves her hand, causing the entire world of her <Realm> to disappear around you. Instead, you find yourself on the floor of your own foyer. You exhale- you know she couldn’t- nor would have harmed you in any way, but you can’t help but feel slightly rattled.

>Work on replicating <Skin>
>Make another electron
>Practice an existing <Art>
>Practice developing a fighting style
>Talk to someone (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6080830
>Make another electron

Practice makes perfect.

I wonder if we could make some sort of Phylactery effect...
>>
>>6080830
>time to round out our kit
>level up preservation instinct, omen, regeneration and Weapon Training (claws) to 8
>use the auraphage to fill up the pithos and go level up supernatural speed, divine armor, battle acuity, etc. up to X

>>6080834
I really want to continue with that too, but there's other stuff that probably gives us more immediate benefits before we may or may not go to vidcon
>>
>>6080830
>Make another electron
THE SECRETS OF THE COSMOS
We must acquire such power that we never face risk again
For Pheme
>>
But Pheme, that is verboten love!
>>
>>6080859
Lover's dilemma. You want everything for them and you fear everything for them. I've got kids and yeah, that mentality is easy to slip into. Everything has a risk.

>>6080840
War Prep probably is the more sensible approach, admittedly. I'm not sure what the best approach is there though. What's our influence at right now anyway?
>>
>>6080834
>>6080840
>>6080854
>>6080859

>Make another electron

What you need now is more information. Based on the description of INTERWRAITHS, and their separation from <Mortals> in the Devourers’s Cookbook, it’s most likely that hunting them wouldn’t piss off anyone on earth- with the possible exception of groups that worship extraplanar entities, depending on what exactly they are. Regardless, what matters is information.

You close your eyes, this time trying to recapture the spark you viewed when you created your first matter. The plethora of input, the perception beyond sight.

You inhale: matter is macro. Objects are a bias of your scale. To a human, a grain of sand is <Part of a beach>. To a microbe, a grain of sand is <Its own world>, colossal. Sand is yellowish brown. A grain of sand is often mostly clear.

You exhale: Matter is dual. Particles are waves are particles. It’s easy to consider <Mass> as categorically different from, say, color charge, charge, or spin. In actuality, such things are on equal standing at the scale of the quantum.

Particles fill your lungs. They’re certainly in them- after all, the possible ranges of <Momentum> allow for enough precision in <Position> to determine at the very least the broad strokes. On the quantum scale, the waves of probability seem so extensive: on the human scale, you can be confident that an object is where it is.

Your brains- many, many brains, enough to coat the floor of your room, still quiver and writhe under the pressure. Blood trickles from your nose, then out from the tear ducts of your eyes.

Infinite perception. Not the finite scale you have become accustomed to: You were stupid. Why would making more brains help? One, ten, fifty: no amount of computers can process an infinite task. Yet, it’s possible. How is it possible?

It’s simple, actually. The <King> does it naturally because the <King> isn’t consigned to the flesh. The world of the material- energy and mass alike- is quantized: that is to say, it is impossible to divide infinitely any given quantity. But what about the soul? The <Points> of divinity are arbitrarily selected units- in actuality, it can exist at as small a scale as you’d like.

First, you assign half your soul to one <Piece> of the task of infinite perception. Then half of the remainder to the next. Then half of that, faster and faster, into perpetuity.
Your electron is lonely. You give it a proton. Why stop there? Add a neutron to the core- make it deuterium.
>>
>>6080877

Your atom quivers in the air. Unstable. Lonely. Drool and blood seep from your mouth as you repeat the task. Two atoms. You can feel the dance of the electrons as their probability clouds merge together, hybridizing, linking in a glorious union of being.

Atom and atom. Soul and body. You feel all of the excess structures you create wither and sink back into the <System>. You don’t need them. One brain is all you need. Fuck, you don’t need one brain.

Finite soul, infinite task. You can see everything and nothing, and soul and matter and galaxies and atoms. Unbiased resolution and scope. You exhale, a reverent, quivering breath escaping your lips as you see the atoms, moving back and forth across their bonds. You can see the heat.

You stop, returning to the material world. It looks so gray, like shadows against a monochrome wall.

>Read the next page of the <Devourer’s Cookbook>
>Work on an <Art> (Specify)
>Work on replicating <Skin>
>Write-in
>>
>>6080878
>Read the next page of the <Devourer’s Cookbook>
WE HUNT
>>
>>6080881

>Read the next page of the <Devourer’s Cookbook>

SECOND COURSE: INTERWRAITHS

So, what is an INTERWRAITH? Let me ask you this: Do you think every GOD is born MORTAL? No. That would be STUPID. Most of them start as BABY SOULS born from the DIVINITY FLUX EVENTS that occur in 99.99999% of YOUR DIMENSION and ALL THE REST in the absence of FLESHY ENERGY SINKS.

INTERWRAITHS have the leg up on you in the race to BECOME A GOD: they do not NEED to figure out how to exist without an ANCHOR: they already do. They do not need to learn how to siphon and use DIVINITY. They already do! They also have HUNDREDS if not THOUSANDS of times the potency of a mortal soul. However, you have two ADVANTAGES over an INTERWRAITH.

BIG FLOATY WIMPS

INTERWRAITHS avoid LIFE as a general rule, unless you SUMMON them by THINKING ABOUT THEM BEFORE YOU’RE READY. They FEAR adult gods and DEVOURERS on instinct, because they are juicy and tasty and, relative to their soul size, WEAK and PATHETIC.

Therefore, they have no FINESSE or KILLER INSTINCT in a fight. They can only defend themselves with BRUTE FORCE. The reason why I warned you to prepare is because they’re INVISIBLE TO THE MORTAL EYE. Even conventional DIVINITY SENSE will be too fuzzy to reliably win.

The reason INTERWRAITHS kill off unready saps who PONDER them is because they’re AFRAID. Afraid you might grow into a DEVOURER. INTERWRAITHS can travel between dimensions- that’s why they’re called that- but they are DUMB BABIES who CAN’T FULLY CONTROL THEIR POWERS. Leading well into the next thing.

INTERWRAITHS ARE STUPID

You, if you can read, probably have a FLESHY COMPUTER IN YOUR BODY. Of course, gods don’t need them, but having a brain for a bit TEACHES YOUR SOUL TO THINK. Language, critical thinking, problem solving, strategy: all of these things are INCOMPREHENSIBLE to an INTERWRAITH.

THEY ARE BARELY SENTIENT. They have BASIC SURVIVAL INSTINCTS and that’s about it. Even simple tricks, tactics, or technique will allow you to WIN and EAT THEIR JUICY SOULS.

One particularly effective strategy is the AMBUSH. They have PATHETIC SITUATIONAL AWARENESS. Especially since they naturally perceive the ENTIRETY OF THE COSMOS AS IT TRULY IS, the information overload DROWNS OUT their perception and makes your MATTER BASED BODY practically INVISIBLE. Practice SOUL ATTACKS and you should be able to CONQUER them before they even NOTICE you!
>>
>>6081003

HOW TO FIND THEM?

Your galaxy has TONS of them (assuming you’re the first DEVOURER in your area). Float outside of your solar system, clear your mind, PETRIFY yourself and leak a bit of purified divinity as BAIT. They’ll come. MORTAL divinity is much tastier than AMBIENT SLOP, and they won’t scare so easily if you AREN’T LIFE AT THE MOMENT.

HOW TO EAT?

INTERWRAITHS don’t have a real SOULSCAPE because their body IS their soulscape. They IMPOSE onto the material plane in order to EAT- so you can take advantage.

INTERWRAITHS don’t die, but if you BEAT them hard enough they go CATATONIC. You can then PONDER the one in front of you and enter your own soulscape at the same time. If you did it right, it will be SUCKED INTO YOUR PLANE WITH YOU. Unlike mortals, INTERWRAITHS dissolve almost instantly in OTHER SOULS.


You check the next page, finding it and the rest after completely blank. You are capable of feeling divinity on the pages after, but you don't know how to activate it. Maybe you'll gain some insight by hunting an interwraith?

>Work on an <Art> (Specify)
>Work on replicating <Skin>
>Plot to hunt an <Interwraith>
>Write-in
>>
>>6080878
>Read the next page of the <Devourer’s Cookbook>
Oh man are we transcending the flesh? Fantastic. Won't need that doctor anymore.
>>
>>6081007
Ok, hunting these things seems like an ideal source of power, but it already takes us hours to fly across the globe. We need some serious travel upgrades to make it outside the solar system to hunt these things. So in the meantime:

>Directly eat some mortal souls.

You know, as practice.
>>
>>6081007
>Work on replicating <Skin>
Ok, we need to be able to petrify, and we need to be able to go fast. Being able to turn into a stream of atoms is probably a good first step for both.

>>6081014
But...I wouldn't say no to a midnight snack
>>
>>6081007
>>Work on replicating <Skin>
let us get it
>>
Can we either prepare for vidcon and do short term benefits now?
OR not go to vidcon and do the long term benefit stuff like Getting Steps of the Specter with the first step being Arts-ifying Skin of the Chameleon

>>6081007
>Work on replicating <Skin>
Hmm... so "devourer" is a type of god, not a single god. Jumping to conclusions here, but since we had the choice between devourer hint and a gaia hint, then "gaia" is also a type of god.
And the cookbook probably called them out as "stupid trees", and Ate already connected them to <Nascent God>
And Nascent God seems very much like one of the requirements of <True Deity>.
Though as the two philosophy's seem conflicting, maybe the amount of potential requirements are larger than the ones we need to match to reach True Deity.
Either way, while devouring is probably what we want to do, we also shouldn't let ourselves be tunnel-visioned by the devourer's advice
>>
>>6081199
The impression I have is you can either attach yourself to the planet, slowly and carefully growing in power via meditation, or you can be become a hunter. Chasing levels in the system, or devouring nodes from the king would both work as well I assume.

The big question for me...is Prometheus opting for Tree or Hunter? Because I think he has Ex Nhilo as well. I definitely remember someone else on the list with it.
>>
>>6081239
I'd believe not having an anchor anymore is a big part of becoming a god. So I don't quite think that.

and last time we checked the record pass, these were the fable grade titles:
<Nascent God>: Gaia
<Beyond Authority>: Prometheus, Atë
<Conquer Death>: Tisiphone
<Divine Domain, Manifest>: Persephone, Hades
<First Miracle>: Kronos
<Surpass Olympus>: Athena
>>
>>6081014
>>6081049
>>6081075
>>6081199

>Work on replicating <Skin>

You decide to dedicate the rest of the night to trying to duplicate the <Skin of the Chameleon>. In seeing beyond the veil, you’ve learned a valuable skill- using your soul to perform a supertask.

The totality of the calculations to, say, turn your skin into, say, a honeycomb configuration of lightweight metal with equivalent mass to your own arm, would be astronomical. Controlling the individual transitions from matter, annihilating it into energy, and reconstituting the energy into matter quickly enough for none to escape and incrementally enough to avoid an energy overload is a monumental task. Monumental, but not even infinite.

You smirk, who needs rituals? You’re gonna do this with brute force until it’s natural. You see crimson light explode from the tips of your fingers as it converts your flesh into metal. You suppress a scream- at first the process is merely uncomfortable, but the more of your body that the aluminum alloy supersedes, the more severe the feeling of pain, biting cold emptiness as you simultaneously <Sense> the petrified limb with your soul and are incapable of feeling it with your senses, almost like a phantom pain.

Your soul also begins to throb- you were distracted before by the euphoria of gazing upon the cosmos, as well as the sheer overload of information and perception, but right now it’s obvious that the supertask, especially after a couple dozen divisions, really does put a ton of strain on your soul. The current extent isn’t dangerous, but you feel like overexerting it would be dangerous.

Your nerves tingle against the aluminum arm. Naturally, it’s impossible to move it through your nervous system. The <System> normally corrects for this, automatically turning input from your brain into soul commands, manipulating the transfigured parts as if they were flesh and blood. You close your eyes- despite the lack of organic matter, you feel that your soul is still <Imposed> over, or perhaps <Anchored< to the metal arm. You imagine threads of divinity running through the metal, threading through the metal like nerves. In the future, it would probably be wise to add articulation points to things like limbs- as it stands, you have to manually manipulate the metal, shifting the very atoms, displacing them to bend the fingers or wrist as they normally could.
>>
>>6081322

You feel your divinity starting to run low, so you try to restore the natural state of your arm. You focus, trying to restore your arm to its natural state. Your soul lurches: even with the shape of your body ingrained in your soul, this is orders of magnitude more complex of a task. Your eyes widen with shock as your entire body begins to change, skin melting and splitting like wax as jaws and arms and heads explode from the gaps. You feel your bones extend, joints clawing themselves into existence, erupting from the bones and draping themselves in supernaturally extended ligaments and tendons. One, three, a dozen mouths squeal in anguish as your vertebrae stretch, stiffen, and snap, extending your spine to accommodate more connections. More arms, more legs.

You suppress the urge to vomit as you collapse to the floor, pooled in your own blood. That’s right, you think to yourself, your <Figure> hasn’t been that of a human for a while. This is the first time the transformation has been so… visceral. So painful. The system must have helped the process of shapeshifting go far more seamlessly before.

Deeply exhausted, you decide to return to a more normal, human shape, collapsing into bed.

>New Art (Incomplete): Effective Level: 4

Allows you to convert the atoms of your body and the ambient environment into anything you desire, so long as the mass is equivalent or lesser than the weight of your <Figure>. Excess weight is stored by the soul through as of yet unknown means.

>Write-in: Name the Art

Days Remaining: 2

You awake, sore, still tired, but much better than last night. What do you want to do?

>Continue replicating <Skin>
>Work on another <Art> (specify)
>Try devouring a mortal soul
>Try to increase your power through the system
>Talk to an ally (Specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6081323
>Write-in: Name the Art
Perfect Form

>Continue replicating <Skin>
Our opponents are probably still trying to kill things that need to be alive. Soon we'll be free of that limitation.
>>
>>6081323
>Perfect Cell
>>Work on another <Art> (specify)
>Yours truly
I think we need to get ourselves under control AND supercede the negative effect of Figure unspeakable on ourselves first, or have that aspect a core tenet of trying to replicate Skin
>>
>>6081354
But seeing ourselves intrinsically as an unspeakable horror that ruins everything that looks at it like our family is part our charm!
>>
>>6081354
+1

>>6081356
Many eyes are already on the world domination plan...
>>
>>6081356
I'm not saying to get rid of Figure Unspeakable
I'm saying to get rid of the negative effect that it has on ourselves
We need to comprehend the horror that is ourselves before we can manually put ourselves back together as such again.
>>
>>6081346
>>6081354
>>6081367

I’ll hold off locking in the name for the art for a bit since the matter isn’t time sensitive and I doubt Atë would make her power a DBZ reference

>Work on <Yours Truly>

You close your eyes, near effortlessly entering your soulscape. You look at the sunset- you recognize that the <Fact> of your soulscape is the same as it always has been, but while you inhabit the realm, you can see beyond the limits of your eyes. The world is bathed in infrared, emanating from the sand and the air around you. You are reminded that everything glows, if only often at wavelengths too large to see. A canvas of ultraviolet cascades down from the sun: one of the colors in that mosaic might be your new favorite.

You blink- normally when you inhabit your soulscape things feel off. Hazy, a bit dreamlike. Right now, you feel more control than usual- however, you still find yourself unable to manifest whatever you want like Lethe or Pallas could: you’re still missing something.

You plop down, feeling the too-smooth sensation of the weirdly solid sand beneath you. Despite it feeling like a contiguous surface to the touch, you find yourself able to sink into it as if it were normal sand.

You think about how to improve this ability.

You’re stumped.

>Shadow
>Reflection
>Fetters
>Ocean
>Visit someone (Specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6081401
>>Reflection
face figure unspeakable
>>
>>6081401

> Start digging
The sand doesn't want us to dig down, and we never were very good at being told no were we?
>>
>>6081401
Backing
>>6081417
Plumb the depths of ourselves.
>>
>>6081417
+1
https://youtu.be/1khghXRGb6k
>>
changing to >>6081417
>>
>>6081410
>>6081417
>>6081420
>>6081422
>>6081439

>Start digging

Your hands take the form of broad claws, similar to those of moles, as you begin to tear into the beach. You notice that it feels like there’s some sort of film or membrane pulled over the sand that regenerates every time you start digging through- it isn’t impossible (or even particularly difficult) to tear through, but it’s slightly unpleasant to the touch.

You keep digging and, after what seemed like almost an hour, your claws hit a hard surface, which, upon contact, lets out a glass-like clink. You smile, changing to something heavier and sharper, and begin cracking the surface. A hole forms in the crystal base, and a horrid stench, somewhere between putrefaction and chocolate ice cream, spews from the puncture. You leap out of the hole, barely avoiding a spray of blackened blood-like water.

First, a crimson hand lurches out of the quagmire, leaking red pus and blood as it drags itself out of the puddle- instantly, you recognize it as your own <Figure>. The monstrous form scuttles across the sand, the fluid dripping off of it sinking into the sand and vanishing.

Next, the grimy blackness of the pool begins to coagulate in the center, an amorphous blob of ochre forming like a clot. Without warning, a tendril shoots out, burying itself in the sand and serving as a lever to vault it onto the beach.

Finally, the translucent fluid remaining, reflecting all of the colors of the world around you, crystallizes in the form of a woman: taller than you, with a full figure and perfect face. You scowl: it’s Cyber_Syren.

The three figures sit around you, silently awaiting acknowledgement.

“Who are you?” You ask.

“Atë.” The crimson “spider” growls.

“You.” The black blob gurgles.

“I dunno. Probably a metaphor or something.” The crystal maiden shrugs.

>Speak to Atë
>Speak to yourself
>Speak to a metaphor, probably
>Write-in
>>
>>6081588
>Speak to yourself
No Baphomette, huh
Well, time to self motivate
>>
>>6081588

>Speak to Atë
What the fuck are you anyway? A jung collective consciousness perception of Atë? My perception of her? Or something else that lost her chance under the System and has been fed to me, piece by piece?

> I dunno. Probably a metaphor or something
Fucking lol. I suppose we're one concert away from Baphomet joining the crowd too.
>>
>>6081670
+1
>>
>>6081588
>So what is this? Same as we saw in Brigitta's soulscape, her split into different aspects of herself?
>Do I not want to think of myself as a coherent being? Push all the fault of the horrible things we did to people on Ate, all the things we want to escape from to metaphor, and all the repressed trauma into something that literally doesn't have a shape?
>>
>>6081668
>>6081670
>>6081772
>>6081991

>Speak to Atë

“So, what exactly are you?”’

“Fuck, what do I look like, a psychiatrist?”

“If you’re a part of me, then you understand how important this is. We need to gain dominion over our soul.”

“If that’s what you want, then there’s an easy way to do it. Just kill the fucking blob.”

Your eyes widen, “Not the glass chick?”

“Oh, her? I can just eat her. Isn’t that right, sugar tits?”

The metaphor just shrugs. <Yourself> quivers with self loathing.

“If killing them off would solve all of your problems, why haven’t you done it already?”

“I’ve been trying to.” Another of her mouths responds in a bitter tone, “But SOMEBODY has been GETTING IN MY WAY.” She pauses briefly, before her main mouth clarifies, “You’re the somebody.”

“Do you resent me?”

“Not at all. Of course, it’s frustrating that you WASTE SO MUCH OF OUR TIME. But ultimately, obviously I don’t hate you. You’re- we’re- the only person I care about.” A hand of flesh and blood breaches from the gloopy red surface, gently caressing your cheek. “I love you, Atë. I’m the only one here who does.”

“It’s true,” the glass maiden speaks, “I don’t care one way or the other, but that chick is really not a fan.” She gestures to the black goo. It trembles with rage.

“So, what exactly would I get from doing what you said?”

“Fundamentally,” Atë says, “Divine power is based in <Impetus>. That is to say, the will to do one thing or the other. ‘A house divided against itself cannot stand’- a soul is the same. That-” she gestures to the blob- “and I- WE- are fundamentally at odds. If we get rid of it, we’ll be of one will. We’ll be unstoppable.”

>Ask Atë more questions
>Talk to the metaphor
>Talk to yourself
>Do as she asks
>Write-in
>>
>>6082056
>Talk to yourself
That music quest helped us, didn't it?
Thoughts on those two over there?
You got any ideas about what to do about this situation?
Is Pheme right about this whole world domination thing we want?
>>
I guess this "Ate" is our desire for power which disregards what we become in the pursuit of it.
We don't care much for our fake online personas, so they are okay with being reabsorbed too.

>>6082056
>Talk to yourself
>"You hate me, which means I hate myself. Or at least part of me hates part of me."
>"Show me."
>"Show me the depth of our self loathing"
>>
>>6082060
>Is Pheme right about this whole world domination thing we want?
I don't think we want world domination
We want to be free with nobody above us to tell us what to do. We don't want to rule over anyone.
At least that's what I'd play Ate as, and I always do the write in of "we like this world, coffee, internet, and the amenities it has"
>>
>>6082074
That's kind of my take too, it's about freedom, about being in control of our own life. And the other big incarnations aren't going to stop until they're powerful enough to pin us to the ground and demand submission or death.

We won't go back to how it was before. Everyone's tool and puppet and a cog in the machine.

>>6082056
>Talk to yourself
Talk about baggage.
>>
>>6082074
>>6082089
The freedom of the high to rest on one's laurels then? Not bad
>>
>>6082060
>>6082069
>>6082089

>Talk to yourself

“So, you hate me, yeah?”

“Obviously.”

“Which means I hate myself.”

“Is that news?”

“..No, it's not. So, why? Why do you hate me? Is it because I’m evil? A bad person?”

“Honestly. No. Not that those things aren't true, of course, you are a horrible, horrible human being. No, you aren't even qualified for that title anymore. The reason why I hate you is because of how much of a pathetic, whiny little wimp you are.”

Huh. This is not how you were expecting this conversation to go. “Elaborate.” You demand.

“Happily. Do you know the reason why Jane still lives in your head rent free despite the fact that the hundreds- thousands of innocent people you’ve killed don't even warrant a second thought? It’s because you liked her. Because you didn't want to kill her, and, despite how much power you might have gotten from it, you’ve regretted it every day of your miserable little life.”

“See, this is exactly what I fucking mean!” Atë interjects, “All this time you’ve been sitting around and wallowing could have been spent on the mission. Fuck, we could have been halfway to godhood by now, and yet here you are.”

The blob ignores her completely, focusing on you, “You think you’re so big and impressive. “I put the mission first. I don't have time for hobbies or people or anything I actually care about. I’m such a badass.” It’s pathetic. What's the point of it all? Where does it all go?”

“Godhood! Immortality! Omnipotence! You act like we’re dedicating our life to collecting fucking stamps instead of literally the most important thing ever.”

“Let me ask you this: if you could instantly become a god just by killing off Pheme, would you do it?”

“I-”

“Obviously.” Atë interrupts, “She’s useful, don't get me wrong, but what moron wouldn't trade their queen for checkmate?”

The blob lacks eyes, but it looks at you and Atë with absolute loathing. “You haven't learned a thing.”

“So what do you want us to do? Submit? Let some other person take over the world instead? Do you want us to be a slave again?!”

The blob gives a bitter laugh, “Aren’t you already?”

“No.” You firmly decline.

“Oh yeah, prove it! Tell me your name- not the one the system planted on you, I mean your actual fucking name.”

Your voice dies in your throat.

“The fact is, when you killed Jane, you weren’t ‘steeling your resolve’ or ‘doing what had to be done’. You wimped out. Chose your pathetic little fantasy over something that you actually wanted.”

You cast your eyes down to the sand. Atë scowls at the blob, and the blob observes you with the utmost contempt.

>Ask Yourself more questions
>Ask Atë more questions
>Talk to the metaphor
>Write-in
>>
>>6082101
Let's give our character a name already.
This is a mental blockage for our character
And it shouldn't be a good name but a boring one.
>"My name is... Doris Jones"
>>
>>6082108

Apologies, but vetoed. Atë doesn't not have a name because you haven't picked one, she's dissociating. Her name may be <heard> or lost based on the decisions made going forward
>>
>>6082101
>Talk to the metaphor
Let me guess, another thing I'm hiding behind.
>>
>>6082111
>Try to say our name
>>
>>6082114
+1
>>
>>6082101
>Ask Yourself more questions
What do you think I should do then? Because killing you is starting to look pretty attractive.
>>
>>6082134
+1 this too
>>
>>6082114
>>6082116
>>6082118
>>6082134
>>6082158

>Ask yourself more questions
>Talk to the metaphor

“What do you think I should do then? Because killing you is starting to look pretty attractive.”

The blob lets out a scornful laugh, “Kill me? Really? Let me ask you this: do you really trust HER with Pheme? Iwana? Perdix or Brigita?”

“Uh, you mean her PAWNS? Yeah, I’ll do what we’re supposed to do- use them to the best of their ability, discard them when it becomes necessary.”

“You’re so cowardly. So afraid of admitting what you want. That you care. Go ahead and kill me if you want: but just know this. I’m your one shot at happiness you stupid fuck. Kill me and you’ll be trapped in an endless cycle of meaningless increases to power and strength forever and ever and ever.”

Atë responds for you, “It’s not meaningless. Obviously. We’re gonna become the strongest and then do whatever we want! That was always the plan.”

“And what do you want, exactly?”

“Right now, to get stronger. But once we have that, THEN we can focus on other stuff.”

“Just gotta push that boulder over the hill, eh Sisyphus?”

“This is going nowhere.” you interrupt the argument, turning instead to the glass lady, “I want to talk to you.”

“Sure.” she replies, in a voice like clinking champagne glasses.

“What are you?”

“I’m solid. See?” She knocks lightly on her head for emphasis, resounding with a high pitched thud “But empty. Those dummies are goopy- if we want to go anywhere, you need something more rigid, right?”

“So, what do you think about-”

“I’m gonna stop you there. I don’t think anything about anything. I simply execute. Think about me like a jar. My purpose is to carry around the gooey inside bits and give them a nice pretty exterior. That’s it.”

You sigh. These things are really uncooperative.

>Kill somebody (specify)
>Leave for now
>Ask more questions
>Write-in
>>
>>6082175
>Ask Ate and the metaphor to leave us alone with ourselves

Can't help but feeling frustrated with what to do here. None of us players actually know what's deeper in our protagonist.
I think in part because everyone is trying to pull in a different direction so we never truly know what the character wants, and when I come up with something that is holding Ate down, like a name, it gets shot down.
I really don't know what to do here man.
>>
>>6082175

> Iwana has the pursuit of martial perfection. Lethe has his family. Dorota has desires at all. To unify our soul, to achieve control over it, we have to know what we want, what we actually want, and we have to believe it.

> I want a fucking decent family, people I like, and trust. And I want the power to UTTERLY DESTROY anything that threatens it. Kronos. ADAM. Heracles. The Uncrowned King. Prometheus. The System itself. ANYTHING.
>>
>>6082181
Hehehe, QM took the schizo nature of a quest protagonist and turned it into a deep seated character flaw.
>>
>>6082175
>Leave for now
I hate ourselves. That dumb blob is all "oh don't do this" but won't say what it wants. Also I would sacrifice Iwana or Brigita in a heartbeat and Perdix in ten heartbeats.

But if anything happens to Pheme I will kill everyone in this thread and then myself
>>
>>6082211
>>6082181
I think the entire point is we need to actually decide what we/Atë want. Really fucking want. Pursuit of power at all costs? A close knit family and the power to protect it? A really great warhammer 40k mini collection fully painted?
>>
>>6082224
Why can't we both pursue power and be close with Pheme?
>>
>>6082229
I think we can, but we're being called on to pick what's more important. If ADAM is holding Pheme hostage would we stand down? Or would we just unleash everything we had and to hell with the consequences?

Are we willing to prioritize some few, maybe even one, people over power?
>>
>>6082181
>>6082187
>>6082211

You lean forward, digging your fingers into the black slime and roughly lifting it upwards. It stretches, its bottom remaining planted firmly on the sand as you drag it to your eye level.

“You are really fucking annoying, you know that? You yap and yap and YAP about ‘oh you’re such a coward’ ‘oh, you’re doing everything wrong and your LIFE’S GOAL is stupid,’” crimson tears run down your face, “What do you want me to do?”

A face emerges from the slime. Maybe it was your face, once. It smiles sadly and responds with a melancholy tilt to her voice, “I just want to be happy. I just want to be free.”

“Hey, hey, don’t listen to her, Atë!” Atë interjects, “Listen. Seriously. Remember what we read in the <Devourer’s Cookbook>? ”Being a mortal sucks dick.” that THING is a lump of all of your GROSS, FLESHY DESIRES. We have a shot at being something better than human. Better than mortal. No more doubts, no more worries, no more self hatred or doubt. No more distractions.

You and me and INFINITE COSMIC POWER! If we’ve learned anything over the course of our entire lives it's that people suck. Even the people that are supposed to love you- even the people who DO love you- will despise you, curse you, use you, crumple you up and THROW YOU AWAY.

Face the music, girl. You and I are the only ones who won’t betray us. No amount of contracts or chains or wishful thinking will ever, EVER be enough to protect you forever. That’s always been MY job. To keep you safe and keep you ALIVE when that stupid pile of SLIMY SHIT wanted to kill you. Wanted to TAKE EVERYTHING AWAY FROM US. Who do you think jammed our fingers in our throat and made us throw up those fucking pills? Her? No, it was ME.

I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE FOR YOU. I HAVE ALWAYS PROTECTED YOU.

I LOVE YOU.

YOU DON’T NEED ANYTHING ELSE.”

You look back to the black slime in your hands. It simply shakes its head.

>Kill yourself
>Kill Atë
>Leave
>Ask more questions
>Write-in
>>
>>6082240

"You kept me alive, and I hated it."
>Kill Atë
>>
>>6082240
>Leave
I think we need both of them
I certainly don't want to kill Atë, she's our drive
>>
>>6082240
>Leave
Shaking our damn head at these three bitches that make up one bitch
>>
>>6082254
>>6082272
>>6082297

>Leave for now

“Look, I’m not gonna kill anyone. Fact is- I need all three of you morons.”

“Uh, no. You need Me-” Atë points at herself, “And maybe, MAYBE the glass chick. Not THAT.”

“You’re such a baby.” The blob scoffs at the crimson spider, “She finally makes a reasonable decision and you’re still whining?”

“Look.” The glass lady says, “This whole ‘constant inner conflict’ thing is unsustainable. You gotta work on yourself girlie.”

“Yeah, yeah, enough of the lecture. I’ll be back. Probably.”

You wave your hand and awake back on your bed.

You sigh, flopping down onto the covers, when you suddenly hear a knock on your door.

“Hey!” You hear Iwana’s voice on the other end, “Ciotti and I want to play some Poker. Texas Hold’em, I think he said? Anyway, that Algos chick said she’d only play if you did, so, uh, are you in? I really don’t want to go heads up with the card shark.”

>”No, I need rest,”
>”No, I need to train,”
>”No, I need to meet a friend,” (Knock on Pheme’s door)
>”Sure, why not?”
>Write-in
>>
>>6082427
>”Sure, why not?”
>>
>>6082427
>Sure, why not?
>>
>>6082429
>>6082441

>Sure, why not?

You swing the door open, met with Iwana's grinning smile. "Great! No powers though. That's cheating."

You scoff, "Please. If you think I need superpowers to read you like a goddamn book, you haven't been paying attention."

She grins, eyes burning with competitive spirit, "Oh, it's ON."

>Please give me 3 rolls of 3d6+1 (Reckless automatically selected)
>>
Rolled 1, 4, 6 + 1 = 12 (3d6 + 1)

>>6082443
>>
Rolled 4, 1, 6 + 1 = 12 (3d6 + 1)

>>6082443
>>
Rolled 3, 6, 2 + 1 = 12 (3d6 + 1)

>>6082443
Rollan'
'il guessing the main conflict point is that we haven't established clear hard boundaries that we aren't willing to cross no matter what.

Our aspects have a point: we do want to be happy (but we need to know how), we will have to make sacrifices (but not to the point where we have nothing left) and we are losing precious time over internal turmoil (but we can't solve that by tearing everything away from ourself).
>>
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>>6082519
I think killing blobself is the easiest way to achieve Yours Truly
I don't want to do that tho.
I think we have to get together and actually set in stone what we want to do with MC.

Let me moralfag for a second.
If we were to turn around MC to be good(tm) we can still do so.
As Ate, the goddess of folly and ruin, we bring ruin to those with great folly. The goddess of consequences for your actions.
I read MC is a younger millenial/older zoomer, office worker, who was trapped in late stage capitalism.
With power she behaved like "new rich" people. While people who are "old rich" like Kronos did what they have always done, build rube goldberg machines of human misery that poops out shareholder profit, influence or divinity farms. They are the real monsters.
I have posed my own plans that would make us similar monsters, so if we kill everyone the only monster left would be ourselves.
>>
Rolled 3, 5, 4, 5, 2, 3, 2, 2, 6 = 32 (9d6)

Rolling for the other players, +0 for Pallas, +1 for Dorota, and +2 for Ciotti (in that order)
>>
Rolled 96, 82, 48, 58 = 284 (4d100)

>>6082548
12, 12, 12, 12

Actually really fucking funny

Rolling tiebreakers (same modifiers, Atë, Iwana, Dorota, Ciotti)
>>
>>6082551
YES
>>
>>6082551
So did we make a comeback and win?
>>
>>6082653
>>6082666
shh, guys, QM is still counting to 12
>5, 2, 3 +1
let him cook
>>
>>6082669
Why would you ruin it for him
>>
>>6082669
Never do arithmetic on pain meds... is what I would say if I didn't know I sucked at math anyway. Doesn't really matter. Also sorry for the delay, I may have passed out a little bit.

Cards riffle and chips clink as Ciotti deals the first hand. Pallas leers at her cards, Lethe gives an enigmatic smile, and Dorota is as unreadable as ever. You smirk as the flop hits: your ace three suited comes up the nut flush.

"Bet." you declare, tossing three red chips into the center of the table, "Fifteen to call."

"Call." Dorota smiles, meeting your gamble with zero hesitation. Ciotti grimaces somewhat- you see through the facade: in actuality, he seems quite satisfied with his hand. He probably has a flush as well- or maybe three jacks? Tough to say- but regardless, you have him beat.

The turn and the flop come up worthless to you and, in most circumstances, your fellow players. You don't technically have the best hand anymore: with 8, 9, and a queen on the turn, ten-jack clubs would be a straight flush. Still..

"All in."

Dorota smiles. "Fold."

It comes to Ciotti. He clicks his tongue, "You got it, boss?"

"I got something."

"You're a real tough nut, you know that?"

"What can I say? I'm a natural."

"Yeah, at the lying part maybe."

"Call if you think you can."

"..Shit." He tosses his cards into the table.

As the night goes on, Pallas, despite suboptimal calculation and needlessly reckless play, gets constantly bailed out by the river. If not for the massive gulf in strength, Frank might have strangled her; his luck had been sour, and you've seen ice bags that spent less time in the cooler. Still, he lasts longer than Dorota, who suspiciously seems to mostly lose hands to you.

At the end, it's heads up: you against Iwana. Unfortunately for her, you can basically read her mind. You've spent more than enough time with her, sparred dozens of times, and taken the opportunity to ingrain every habit, tell, and quirk of hers into your brain. Furthermore, her unnatural luck seems to have finally run out.

You sit smugly at the turn, holding onto your cards as one queen, one ace, and two eights rest on the board. Iwana seems awfully happy, but..

Not quite happy enough to win.

"I'm putting you all in." You say, deftly playing with your tall pile of jet-black chips. Her value is miniscule by comparison, but winning this hand would change that bad spot on its head. "Call." She confidently announces, shoving her entire remaining stack into the pot. "Full house, Eights on Aces."

You can't help but let out a snicker as you let your pocket queens drop to the table, "Queens on eights."

Pallas groans, leaning back in her chair and praying for an eight or an ace. Tragically for her, a worthless king drops on the river instead.

You smile, snatching the wadded up prize pool from the kitchen counter, "Better luck next time, schmucks."
>>
>>6082783

Tired after a long day of training and a longer night of gambling, you slip effortlessly into sleep.

1 day remaining

You wake up early, almost an instinct by now, and rise lazily from your bed. What will you do today?

>Meet with Lavenza
>Try to speak with Pheme
>Talk with someone else (specify)
>Train an <Art> (specify)
>Manage the system (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6082783

Oops, discrepancy on the first hand. Should be '..or maybe three nines?' seeing a jacks was indeed not on the board
>>
>>6082784
>>Talk with someone else (specify)
>Dorota
>Ask her to ghost-of-christmas-past us
We need to do some soul searching and need someone to push us into the deep end
>>
>>6082784
>Practice eating some mortal souls

>>6082791
I think it's better to let it happen organically
>>
>>6082784
>Train an <Art> (specify)
> Skin Duplicate
Whatever it is we end up calling it. My original vote was Perfect Form, but I'll toss out <Formal Wear> as well.
>>
Waiting a few more hours for a tiebreaker
>>
>>6083115
I can change to training skin dup
>>
>>6082997
+1
>>
>>6082791
>>6082796
>>6082997
>>6083128
>>6083188

Sorry for the wait fellas, I fell asleep halfway through writing

>Train Art (<Skin>) [Also, I quite like <Formal Wear> (Or maybe some variation of it like <Sunday Best>? Regardless, I think I’ll be going with that)]

You decide to try your hand at controlling your transformation into a <Natural State>. It could be prudent to try and transform into your <Figure> and do so without essentially crippling yourself.

The method probably has to do with a difference in perspective: on a subconscious level, the primary issue might be inner conflict: you simultaneously believe that you are Atë, and that you are a human. The turmoil leads to a horrifying body horror explosion of tearing and blood.

It’s simple, really. You picture the <Atë> in your mind: the ambition, the lofty goals, the <Star of Death> who rends and tears and devours everything in your path. The part of you who never wavered in her conviction to live.

Red divinity pours over your body, warmly embracing you in a gentle caress. Your eyes burn with crimson light as your body begins to morph and change in a process that is, while mechanically not much different to the previous time, nearly as painless as you are accustomed to.

A mouth opens on the side of your neck, “Been a minute, darling.” You said that, you didn’t not say it. It’s kinda like a much stronger version of when you’re arguing with yourself in the bathroom mirror and you reply to what you just said without planning it in advance.

“Atë.”

“We are- the one and only.”

“This has been helpful, but I need to figure out how to do the other forms too.”

“Of course, I’m with you all the way on that.”

The mouth closes, and you begin to concentrate again. It takes a while, much longer than it took to manifest Atë, but eventually you feel as if you’re making some progress. The crimson burn begins to reflect the colors of the sunset, the blues and purples mixing with the yellows and reds and forming a deep, inky black. Red light burns underneath the sludge of divinity, as if trying to escape, but the void seems to devour you, devouring everything inhuman and patching it up, almost liquidating your body and reshaping it into something more human. You are doing it, of course, but as before, you process the infinite task through your soul, and, right now, <Yourself> is holding the reins.

You open your eyes, looking over your new body. Everything seems in place, in line with human anatomy, but…

The stupid bitch shrank your tits back.

You scoff, activating <A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices> and realigning your body.

You check your clock: it’s a bit past one pm.

>Keep training this new <Art>
>Practice something else (specify)
>See Dr. Lavenza
>Meet with someone else (specify)
>Manage the system
>Write-in
>>
>>6083424
>See Dr. Lavenza
>>
>>6083424
>Try to speak with Pheme
Probably our last chance to do so before the convention, we should try and get organized.
>>
>>6083424

Hah! I like Sunday Best.

> See Doctor Lavenza
Hopefully divinity sight will help us out in our upcoming fight.

Not sure where to go with System upgrades. We should definitely spend freely before vid-con, but the big question is on what? How many influence do we have laying around anyway?
>>
So, thoughts on prep for the big day.

Use Divine Servant to copy
> Regeneration 10
From Dorota
> Primordial Body EX
From Pallas
> Purchase, level, gift and copy Divine Body
To/From Lethe

Alternatively we could level/pandora hack regen to 10 ourselves and pick up
> Threads of Algos (8)
From Dorota instead. Which can transmit touch authorities. So land one hair on a target and we can embed a Thelmatoxin.

Finally we should swap out Lightbringer's Spotlight for
> Born of Vengeance, Born of Blood (1)
And level it up. It gives bonuses against Olympians and I'm assuming the son of Zeus counts as an Olympian. At the very least the fucker pasted us once already and I'm holding a grudge.
>>
>>6083463

Your current influence total, accounting for passive income, is 337,640/409,600
>>
>>6083481
Holy shit. Imma need a calculator. And a spreadsheet.
>>
>>6083463
>prep for the big day
did you mean tomorrow?
I don't think we have many chances left to do a lot of improvement with the pithos (which I still want to use for the higher level costs of authorities)
If we take Regeneration from Dorota we can keep our own at 6, while leveling up the rest of our combat abilities to 8 with influence at least and do as much pithosmaxxing as possible in the short time available... but I guess there's a lot of hobos to go around, and a lot of divinity in the auraphages


>the son of Zeus
do you have any idea how little that narrows it down?
>>
>>6083530
Yeah, vidcon. Ok, math incoming.

Buy, level, store, gift and copy level 6 Divine Body to Lethe: 4700 (recommend storing Lightbringer's Spotlight)

Bring 6 level 6 Authorities to 8: 57,600
Bring 5 level 8 Authorities to 10: 192,000 (no pithos maxing needed)

Thelmatoxin to 3: 30,000
Chameleon to 3: 30,000

Equip Born of Blood, Born of Vengeance, level it to...
6: 3100
8: 12,700
10: 51,100

Obviously Pithos abuse would help a lot here, but it's an open question how fast we can do that, or how many we can get out of it. It's certainly possible we zoom out to a suburb, thrall and murder our way through a few families, and it barely takes a few hours.
>>
>>6083535
>It's certainly possible we zoom out to a suburb, thrall and murder our way through a few families, and it barely takes a few hours.
Still want to try eating a soul directly, and seeing how much power we get when the system isn't taking a cut
>>
>>6083613
Memory is fuzzy, but I think a baseline mortal has 100 divinity base. In theory we should be able to bliss/torture someone into submission fairly quickly, then draw them into our soulscape and trap them their for slow digestion. Would be interesting to compare the divinity gain from home made soul capture to faustian bargain.
>>
>>6083535
and I want to veto spending a lot of influence because we didn't start preparing sooner, and veto going to vidcon at all
>>
>>6083945
to clarify: I don't want to go in, but if we do go in I still want to be prepared, and instead of born of blood which only helps against Olympians I'd go with Divinity Manifest, I also want it on Dorota, even miracles on her, depending on the effect.
>>
>>6084006
Divinity Manifest is definitely an option. We don't know what it does unfortunately, but I'd guess catastrophic mind fuckery. I'd be game to purchase it just to see the effects.

We've got a number of useful options we could swap in for Lightbringer's, personally I'd love to to see <Body of Zagreus> in action, the synergy with Thousand Faces and Regenerate is amazing.


We're not voting on anything yet anyway, I'm just considering what we could do to maximize our combat ability.
>>
>>6083441
>>6083450
>>6083453

>See Doctor Lavenza

You decide that you’re overdue for an appointment with the good doctor. You knock on her door, and, promptly, it swings open. Lavenza enters, straightening out her perfectly tailored labcoat and gesturing for you to fully enter the room.

“Good afternoon, miss.” she says in her ever-professional voice, “I must say that my research with your friend has been most helpful. Mostly pertaining to my own research, but I’ve made some discoveries which you might be interested in. Specifically, I’ve been able to confirm the method of <Integration of Authorities> into <Flesh>.”

“Elaborate.”

Her smile widens slightly, “As you may know, <authorities> are like .zip files: compressed packets of information representing an <Algorithm> which can be used to bring about a specific effect without comprehending or skill on behalf of the user. Yes, just like a program on your computer.”

“Yeah, that sounds right.”

She continues, “Your soul is used for processing power and storage- that is where the .zip files are uncompressed and the program might be run. But! What about monsters?”

“Why would they be different?”

“Monstrossification is an incredibly complicated process: divinity needs to be intricately netted throughout the body in order to, for example, counteract the square cube law or allow for flight (or even balance) despite physical impossibility.”

“And?”

“The file size, so to speak, is large enough that it might cause problems in the soul. So…”

“The system ingrains it in their physical body instead.”

“Yes!” She claps her perfectly manicured hands, “Yes, engraved into the very flesh and bones: incomprehensible, beautiful code. Have I cracked it? Not at all. But what I can do is <Extract the .zip into a file> and <Etch the program into a living mass>. Of course, the process is in its early days! For now, the maximum safe level is 4, I can only etch one authority into one body, and all upgrades are impossible. In effect, it just converts an <Authority> into an <Augment>.

>Stick to the plan and install a <Third Eye>
>Etch an <Authority> (specify)
>Go home for now
>Write-in
>>
>>6084150

Oooh that's fascinating. It's tempting to level up and install

> Body of Zagreus (1)

Parts of your body which are removed are able to function as if they were still attached and can be reattached more easily for up to one hour, so long as they remain within a 10 foot radius of you

Or maybe

> Ghostly Constitution (3):

Allows you to temporarily become intangible, allowing you to pass through physical objects. However, this effect does not work on divine relics or weapons of grade <Rare> or greater. You do not need to breathe while in this state

But for the moment I think my vote will land on
>Stick to the plan and install a <Third Eye>
Still, I think I'd support installing Body of Zagreus if others wanted to.
>>
>>6084150
>Stick to the plan and install a <Third Eye>
>Ask to meet with the Minotaur
>Ask where we are on payment, how much credit we have left with her.
>Show her Bane of Calydon and that it is possible to have an myth-specific beastification as a trade-able authority. But don't give it to her, nor tell her how we acquired it.

>>6084162
I think ghostly constitution can be very useful at higher level. I don't want to have it locked at level 4. And she said basically only one authority per body.
>>
>>6084150
>Stick to the plan and install a <Third Eye>
Intriguing though
>>
>>6084162
>>6084198

>Stick to the plan and install a <Third Eye>
>First, ask about <Bane of Calydon>

“I had an authority that replicated the <Monstrossification> process without having anything engraved in my body. How did that work?”

Lavenza tilts her head ever so slightly, and you can almost see the gears turning behind her empty black eyes.

“Perhaps, did it limit the number of authorities you could use while it was active?”

Your eyes widen, and she nods her head, “When I was in college, I had to use matlab. Horrid program. Much too large and quite poorly optimized. Such that I had to close every other thing running on my rickety old laptop to even run the thing.”

“I see.” You nod- at first you thought that it was done for the sake of balancing (though even if it were possible to have it at full capacity the system would have nerfed it somehow), but it seemed to be necessary rather than contrived. You change the subject, asking, “Can I see the minotaur?”

“Well, you could go observe, I suppose, but he is undergoing an experimental procedure which cannot be interrupted. He should be conscious in a day or so.”

“I might be busy tomorrow- keep him conscious for one day after.”

She nods, and you ask another question, “How many more operations do I have left as credit?”

She holds up five fingers, “Five- after this one. Now then, shall we begin the operation?”

You scowl. This part always sucks.

~

You can feel the third eye in your head.

A tiny little cluster of flesh, more of a divinity imbued gland than an eye, embedded into your visual cortex. It seems able to “open” and “close”. The sensation is sorta like a combination of sight and touch: it “renders” like sight- a full three dimensional simulacrum of the real world, but you can “feel” the divinity like touch: it has “texture” as well as “color”. Honestly, you are almost completely unable to describe it in words as nothing quite like it really exists.

“It seems the operation has been a success. The next stage is as follows.”

>Third Eye (1->2)
Makes it possible to use divinity to get a rough estimate of non-divine objects, including those who are currently masked with stealth abilities of an insufficient level

>Confirm the next augmentation (a reminder of the available options will be provided if requested)
>Delay the decision

And, do you plan to go to vidcon?

>Yes- Heracles needs to go down
>No- it’s too dangerous
>Write-in
>>
>>6084219
>>6084215

Actually, I'll just provide it even though nobody asked

>Brain (0->1)
Strengthens the divinity apparatus woven into your neural network, reducing your susceptibility to mind-altering effects and increasing your rate of cognition.

>Bones (0->1)
Your bones are reinforced with divinity, increasing their resilience substantially. Additionally, their conductivity increases, slightly increasing the output of martial authorities and miracles

>Musculature (0->1)
Increases the base capacity of your muscles upon which authorities act while also mitigating any backlash from such abilities. In addition, the saturation of divinity in your musculature increases your strength in proportion to your incarnation level

>Skin (0->1)
Substantially increases the cutting, divinity, and elemental resistance of your skin, serving as a first line of defense

>Nerves: (1->2)
You are capable of creating clusters of nerves not dissimilar to those found in the limbs of an octopus, allowing parts of your body to operate pseudo-autonomously and rapidly increasing your reaction speed. Additionally, these clusters can independently activate authorities or miracles

New Structures

>Soul Circuits (0->1)
Creates an apparatus that allows you to increase your divinity output, increasing the effective level of all divinity based abilities by 1

>Divine Heart (0->1)
A cluster of divinity which increases the processing efficiency of ambient divinity, allowing you to recover divinity faster

>Third Eye (1->2)
Makes it possible to use divinity to get a rough estimate of non-divine objects, including those who are currently masked with stealth abilities of an insufficient level
>>
>>6084220
Whoops, should read Brain (1->2). The description is accurate, though
>>
>>6084219
>Ask if she could make something like a Divine Immune System that more effectively ejects foreign Divinity and keeps it from affecting us
otherwise:
>Soul Circuits
>>
>>6084219
and ofc
>>No- it’s too dangerous
also vidcon goes over multiple days,
>>
>>6084223
>Ask if she could make something like a Divine Immune System that more effectively ejects foreign Divinity and keeps it from affecting us

"Didn't you know? You already have one."

"What?"

"The reason why, for example, an individual with water manipulation authorities is incapable of killing a person with their own blood is that one soul naturally rejects divinity imbued with malicious intent. The reason mind altering authorities seem able to bypass it is that they are specifically designed to do so, but a significant difference in power can avert that. That's why high divinity pool incarnations are capable of resisting much of the effects of such abilities."

"Then what about things like <Divine Will>?"

"The system.. cheats, slightly. Think about it like a vaccine- only possible with complete understanding- and even the use of- the invading pathogen itself. A tailor made counter which would not work if the system wasn't intimately familiar with its own methods of attack."
>>
>>6084228
So Divine Will and other system-made mental defenses only helps against Authorities, Miracles, and relics... but will likely have a significantly reduced if not no effect against Arts
Now that is what we need to pursue and then we can bring the fight to them
>>
>>6084219
>Soul Circuits
>Yes to vidcon
Does Heracles need to go down? I think it's ADAM which needs to go down. Get the Whittlers on the line. They were apologetic about the confrontation last time. Tell them they can make it up to us by having Herc back us up if ADAM attacks again. If they don't go for that, at least keep him out of the fight.

>>6084228
Also intriguing. Does that mean we can design a body altering Art specifically designed to bypass natural defenses? Instant aneurysm Art?
>>
>>6084223
>>6084225
>>6084233

Locking in
>Soul Circuits

And allowing a delay on the issue of vidcon

You lock in your next augmentation and then leave, returning to your own base.

If you want to take out ADAM, you reason it'd probably be better to get Herc out of the equation. No matter how badly he wants your head, at the end of the day he's bound by his contract. If you want to borrow a guard dog, you don't start chatting with it, you take it up with the owner.

You go back to your room, plop down on your desk, and message the Whittlers.

>We're both busy people so I'll cut to the chase
>I want to throw down with ADAM- a group who I can only assume you, as incarnation leaders of the shadow government, want out of the way.
>However, Heracles is supporting them. I either need him on my side or out of the picture.

Half an hour passes before you receive a reply

>That isn't possible
>As I have stated, the Whittlers do not hold his leash
>We had previously kept it a secret in the interests of national security, but the situation has dissolved to the point where I have no choice but to inform you
>Prometheus is the one who controls his actions. As we have made known previously, he is the one who is plotting to kill you


>Ask a question
>Deny the statement
>End the conversation
>Write-in
>>
>>6084247
>Ask a question
Why would Prometheus prioritize killing us over stopping the King?
If they don't control Heracles, what power do they have?
>>
>>6084220
>Soul Circuits (0->1)

I'm honestly not sure on Vid-con. Part of me wants to pick up <Object of Worship>, and focus on Baphomet's career, basically either dropping Cyber Siren or detonating her.

Part of me is scrapping for a fight. If we can distract ADAM, maybe with an engineered catastrophy elsewhere, maybe we can get a solo fight with Heracles where we can grind him down. Hell, maybe we can take them all. Call in the Pantheon? ADAM is a threat to Eris's plans for nuclear apocalypse after all.

Lol, poor Eris has been very forgotten lately.

No vote for the moment, sorry.

>>6084231
Soul Publisher is a mind altering Art we have. I wonder if we could tattoo ourselves with willpower sapping infohazards? That Divine Will doesn't protect against Arts is quite useful information.
>>
>>6084247
>And what is your relation to Prometheus?
>You advised me to discontinue cyber_siren, you must be aware that I have announced where I can be found tomorrow. How do you want to see this being played out in front of an audience well versed in streaming their every action and what's going on around them?
>>
>>6084254
> Why would Prometheus prioritize killing us over stopping the King?

What if Prometheus is working with the King? After all our 'try-out' was just some random base. That might have been him sizing us up to see if he could take us out. He was annoyed we didn't bring allies, he might have wanted to know our full capabilities.

Consider the Myth of Prometheus. Brings fire to mortals, then is tortured eternally for his trouble. It seem reminiscent of the story of the Uncrowned King yes? Gifts to mortals, then fucked over as a result?

For wanting to stop the King, Prometheus hasn't asked us to destroy even one node or base, or even given us a list of leads to hunt down.
>>
>>6084247

> Can we meet in person, right now? If you want me to believe you, that's probably want it would take. You have a useful identity of mine as collateral that I won't melt you into paste.
>>
>>6084262
We already saw what it looks like when an incarnation defects to the King when we were record browsing - they get a curse title to mark them to others.

><Succumb to Temptation>: Common (Curse)
Aeneas had this and Prometheus did not. So very doubtful he's working with the King. Much more likely he's working with the Whittlers to be like "oh the other side controls everything and there's nothing I can do to stop you from having such a hard time sorrryyyyyyy"
>>
>>6084254
>>6084258
>>6084262

>Why would Prometheus prioritize killing us over stopping the King?
>And if you don't control Heracles, what power do you have?

>Not sure- could be a personal vendetta, knowing you
>As for the second question- a lot more than you think. Heracles is known not because he is the United States' most powerful asset, but because we allow him to be known
>Our real power, not dissimilar to the actual powers of the world, lies behind the curtain, so to speak


>And what is your relation to Prometheus?

>We have an... uneasy alliance. Both of us have the ultimate goal of preserving the safety and supremacy of the United States, but we have major conflicts in philosophy
>We have a working relationship, but it is one of pragmatism and necessity rather than trust and affection


>You advised me to discontinue cyber_siren, you must be aware that I have announced where I can be found tomorrow. How do you want to see this being played out in front of an audience well versed in streaming their every action and what's going on around them?

>We are not sure what ADAM and Prometheus are planning, but we can only assume that they intend to minimize civilian casualties. We do have countermeasures to suppress any leaks should they arise, however.

>Request an in-person meeting
>Ask more questions (specify)
>End the conversation
>Write-in
>>
>>6084276
>Why are you telling me all this? Am I not a greater danger to "safety and supremacy of the United States" than Prometheus?
>>
>>6084283
Fuck, that's a good point. We seem way more likely to destroy the USA than Promo.

>>6084272
That's true. Hah! Here's a theory. Our Whittler contact and Prometheus are in fact the same person. This is Prometheus's play to keep us from operating in the open, thus slowing us down so he can wipe us out post King.

>>6084276
Can you pass a message on to Heracles? He wants us dead, we want him dead, we agree to a location, no allies, and we rumble. Somewhere out in the desert away from civilians even if we want to be nice even.
>>
>>6084303
>Our Whittler contact and Prometheus are in fact the same person. This is Prometheus's play to keep us from operating in the open, thus slowing us down so he can wipe us out post King.
Oh man that's true, Prometheus did get access to the card after it was sent to put his own info on there.

>Request an in-person meeting
Or, failing that, some demonstration of what they have behind the curtain - preferably one that ties up Herc while we deal with ADAM
>>
>>6084340
>Prometheus did get access to the card after it was sent to put his own info on there.
That's mainly why I asked what their relationship is.
How would he have access to the card if he's not tightly working together with them?
He's either quite allied with them, or has a spy in their midst who also is gifted enough in arts and not-black to even make this hidden message. But he doesn't strike me as the type to... share his fire with humanity...
I need to sleep on this, maybe something else comes up.
>>
>>6084283
>>6084303
>>6084340

>Why are you telling me all this? Am I not a greater danger to "safety and supremacy of the United States" than Prometheus?

>Obviously
>That being said, those aren't our only goals.
>I'll be blunt: Prometheus's ultimate goal is for humanity to have 'Self Determination'. Free from the controlling grips of shadowy cabals and god-king incarnations. This is ADAM's ambition as well.
>As of now, the Whittler's club essentially performs both of these roles- by all accounts, he intends to use us to secure American interests, defeat the other powers of the world, before enacting some plan to dissolve our organization
>Before that happens, we need to stack the deck in our favor. We need actors like you- willing to set aside such idealism


>Can you pass a message on to Heracles? He wants us dead, we want him dead, we agree to a location, no allies, and we rumble. Somewhere out in the desert away from civilians even if we want to be nice even.

>I can do that, but even if he agrees, I wouldn't trust it. Prometheus is a schemer, and I doubt he'd risk his best piece for the sake of honor
>If you'll excuse me, I have things to attend to. Good luck


You shrug- seems like the whittlers are treating you as the lesser of two evils- or more accurately, the lesser of two annoyances. Seems like they won't do much to help you aside from giving these tips- after all, it's not like they want you to actually take over the world.

>Train an <Art>
>Develop a fighting style
>Meet with someone (specify)
>Manage the system
>Write-in
>>
>>6084896
>>Manage the system
whether we get a tiebreaker for going to vidcon or not, we should upgrade all our remaining combat authorities to 8

for starters:
>Regeneration (6->8)
>Titanic Strength (6->8)
>Omen (6->8)
>Preservation Instinct (6->8)
>Specter's Wail (6->8)
>Weapon Training (Claws) (6->8)
5x(3200+6400) = 48k Influence
>>
>>6084922
Support.

Yup. This seems like a pretty straightforward minimal upgrade we want. Maybe swing through some back country roads and pithos max in the countryside. Or try out soul eating.
>>
>>6084896
>>6084922
>>6084937
We're pretty close to leveling up though, let's try soul eating then a quick rampage and see how far that gets us.
>>
>>6084945
I don't think eating souls gives influence spendable within the system, and I don't want to do a "quick rampage" worth 70k

I agree that we should keep influence to level up (preferable until level 15 even to get more authority slots)

>>6084937
you have not yet officially voted on >>6084219
I can only assume that you do want to go to vidcon tomorrow, right?

Because if we're all on the same page on going to vidcon tomorrow, we can make better decisions on this
>>
>>6084922
>>6084937
>>6084945

>Regeneration (6->8)

You may expend divinity to recover from any injury or from supernatural physical conditions such as <Rot> or <Petrification>. It is also possible to completely recover from the effects of toxins, both mortal and supernatural, below the <Fable Omega> grade. The amount of divinity necessary to heal an injury depends on its nature and severity. So long as at least 30% of your cells remain alive, you can regenerate even if critical damage is done to vital structures.

>Titanic Strength (6->8)

You may infuse your body with divinity, strengthening the power and durability of your muscles. Overuse may cause damage to connective or skeletal tissue. Max Usage: 10 divinity per second. It is possible to temporarily double the output of this authority for 1 minute, though using this ability will initiate a 5-minute cooldown. While this authority is active at an output of 100%, your strikes are imbued with divinity such that they are able to penetrate lower leveled divine defenses and deflect non-physical divine attacks such as fire or lightning. It is possible to activate this skill on reflex.

>Omen (6->8)

Gives you a premonition whenever you are at risk of immediate death or severe bodily harm. Also indicates the general direction of the danger. You also gain an instinctual understanding of not just the direction and severity, but the general nature of the oncoming threat. Also alerts you to the presence of poisons. The premonitions you receive also extend to both the immediate harm of the people around you, as well as circumstances that, while not necessarily lethal, could lead to long term incapacitation or incarceration. This authority will also activate when an objective, possession, or goal of sufficient personal value is at imminent risk. Consumes divinity whenever it activates

>Preservation Instinct (6->8)

You will automatically dodge out of the way of attacks directed at you, even if you had no way of knowing that they were coming. Consumes divinity upon activating proportional to both how dramatic or complex the dodging maneuver and how difficult the attack would be to see coming. It is possible to perform movements using this authority that would not be otherwise possible, however doing so will put proportionate strain on your body. Limited use of this authority is possible even when physically unable to move, such as the cases of torn ligaments, crushed bones, severe nerve damage, or paralytics and anesthetics.

This authority may activate as soon as a potential assailant merely intends to harm you, as opposed to once an attack is already underway, allowing you to evade strikes of speeds outside your capability to dodge. When this authority activates, you temporarily gain an increase to speed and reaction time, proportional to the danger and the level of this authority
>>
>>6085057

>Specter's Wail (6->8)

Releases an ear-splitting scream. Causes inner ear damage at close ranges and inspires negative emotions at long ones. Once the threshold of serious harm is passed, the sound will continue to carry for double the distance than it naturally should. Any individual struck by the intended affliction of this authority will be more susceptible to any other ability used by you or an ally which induces a similar effect for as ling as the intended affliction persists.

Before the authority is used, you may select from any two of the listed afflictions:

>Despair
>Wrath
>Sleep
>Hunger
>Agony

In addition, you may select any one of the following added effects to all who succumb to the effects of this authority

>Delirium
>Weakness
>Strength

>Weapon Training (Claws) (6->8)

Does not consume divinity. Gives proficiency with a chosen weapon. Can be taken multiple times. The focus of this skill can be changed by expending the influence required to level it up. You may also infuse divinity into the weapon of choice, increasing its destructive power (max of 30 per minute). Your speed, strength, and endurance are all enhanced while wielding your weapon of choice. In addition, the effective level of authorities that are directly related to your weapon and items of your weapon type are increased by 1. Additionally, you may allow a corrective effect, guiding the tip of your weapon of choice to its intended destination

>Spend more
>Do something else (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6084970
I actually wrote up a lengthy response that amounted to "fuck, I dunno" and lost it before submitting it.k.

I uh, I was hoping the usual 'fuck it we ball' crowd would show up and take the decision from my hand.

But yeah, if we need a tie breaker, fuck it we ball. Let's see if Heracles and ADAM want to start a fucking brawl in a convention center.
>>
>>6085058
>Do something else (specify)
Let's psycho torture someone and rip out their soul before vidcon.
>>
>>6085058
>Do something else
Get in touch with the pantheon, see who’s up for a brawl here tomorrow
Hopefully Eris managed to get that last member
>>
Ok, "fuck it we ball" on vidcon
I still don't want to eat a soul on the night before. It could be a lengthy process we just don't know enough about yet.
We do know how to use the pithos though

>>6085058
>spend more:
>store Lightbringer’s Spotlight
>Buy Divinity Manifest (30k)
>Thelmatoxin 1->3 (30k)
60k Influence

then use the pithos to and see how far we come
>Omen 8->9
>Supernatural Speed 8->9
>Omen 9->X
>Supernatural Speed 9->X
>Preservation Instinct 8->X
>Weapon Training (Claws) 8->X
>Battle Acuity 8->X

and while looking for pithos victims do
>>6085286
+1

As for vidcon itself: I think we should only stay nearby and control Dorota's body through Folly's Grasp where we can still use all our authorities, including thousand Faces to also look like our cyber_siren persona
>>
>>6085058
Yeah, I can park our soul eater adventures in favor of switching to

>store Lightbringer’s Spotlight
>Buy Divinity Manifest (30k)

Let's see what our "Ultimate" is. Might be worth it to drop an existing Miracle to create one with it.
>>
>>6085232
>>6085286
>>6085339

>Attend vidcon (at least in some capacity)
>Store <Lightbringer’s Spotlight>
>Buy <Divinity, Manifest>

>Divinity Manifest: Choir of a Thousand Voices

Manifests a symphony hall in which, regardless of equipment, miracles, authorities, titles, or traits, any person physically capable of hearing can hear your voice. In addition, for the sake of mind-altering authorities or miracles, any individual present in the Manifestation will be considered as in physical contact with you.

In addition, constructs of yourself will play the instruments and sing the chorus. You may switch your position with any one of these constructs at any time. Though they are incapable of attacking, each will sing with full (though unmodified by equipment) output for all sound based authorities at no additional divinity cost. In order to stop the symphony, each and every one must be destroyed.

Since the vote is split on (Thelematoxin 1->3) I’ll put it up to another quick vote

Influence: 259,040/409,600 (total costs: 48k+30k+600)

>Upgrade <Thelematoxin>
>Do not upgrade <Thelematoxin>
>>
>>6085622
>Upgrade <Thelematoxin>
Fuck it we balllllllll
>>
>>6085622
>Upgrade <Thelematoxin>
Oh my. So within the Theater we're always touching. So we can just apply Thelematoxin at fucking will. That's brutal.

Thoughts on switching out Atë's Playthings for a miracle with Divinity Manifest? Not sure which but ideas that pop to mind...

> Divine Folly
Manifests copies of incarnations we've killed/captured to attack within the Theatre
> Geurilla Tactics
The Theatre is fucking invisible/undetectable
> Regenerate
The Theatre rapidly heals, is incredibly difficult to damage
> Specter's Wail
The Theatre is now a Baphomet concert. The volume is at 11. Atë's Birthday is playing.
>>
>>6085622
>>Upgrade <Thelematoxin>

awesome
gonna wait for that Thelematoxin description before I make more plans
>>
>>6085632
>>6085641
>>6085707

>Thelematoxin (1->3)

After being planted, the <Thelematoxin> will consume the divinity of the host in order to increase its size, until it reaches the maximum possible extent. This process will fail if the host is aware that it is occurring.

>Exit the divine realm
>Replace a miracle (specify the one lost and the combined eligible authorities)
>Contact someone (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6085725

> Replace Atë’s Playthings with
Divinity Manifest: Choir of a Thousand Voices (EX)
&
Assess Hamartia (X)

Hoping to create an arena where we have all the cards, we know their weaknesses, their thoughts, and everything present is a reminder of their failures as a person designed to break them.
>>
>>6085725
>>6085739
+1
oh that's nasty if it'd have that effect

>This process will fail if the host is aware that it is occurring.
what exactly do they need to be aware of? That it's growing or that it's in them at all. because base Thelematoxin can only be cured if people know they are being affected.

anyway...
get deep into a target with Thelematoxin with our full 2,730 divinity and instantly recharge with our various batteries
2730 should be way more than most incarnations have because very few people have likely had the system itself bulk you up for eating nodes.
(On the other hand we don't know how much meditation pays off)
But it's sorta a save assumption that we can completely trench an enemy's soul in more of our divinity than they have themselves.
>>
>>6085725
>>6085739
Rather not do this, we get a lot of use out of Playthings
>>
>>6085749
>what exactly do they need to be aware of? That it's growing or that it's in them at all. because base Thelematoxin can only be cured if people know they are being affected.
I'm wrong, I was thinking of Strings of the Neurospaston
>>
>>6085780
Yeah, but how many of those uses can be replaced with a Palladium of Ourselves? Don't get me wrong, being able to summon a Dorota, or Lethe, or Monk on the fly is nice, and there's a lot of potential there, but I don't see a lot of value we can't get elsewhere.

I'd be willing to swap with Chameleon though, we're duplicating it as an art anyway.
>>
>>6085810
Yeah I can swap Chameleon instead, we're replacing it and Chen already sees right through it.
>>
>>6085739
>>6085749
>>6085780
>>6085815

>First Movement: Folly and Ruin (1)

May only be activated when one or more individuals is caught in a <Manifestation>. When an individual hears the music within it, they will be ridden with visions of <Folly>. As the individual is caught within the symphony, a simulacrum of the embodiment of their desires is formed, which can be either read for information or weaponized against the person from which they originate. This process cannot be blocked via the Incarnation System, except by a <Manifestation> of their own.

>Opus 1. Folly, Ascendant
Creates an illusion of the target’s heart’s deepest desire, carnal, spiritual, or otherwise. The illusion will be indistinguishable from reality except by a vague dreamlike feeling of falsehood, and the target will be unable to remember how they got there. Should the target accept this illusion as their reality, they will be trapped in it forever, completely unable to escape. Should this happen, their body will be rendered a <Puppet> which you may manipulate with <Folly's Grasp> or through the order function of <Touch of Madness>.

>Upgrade this miracle
>Try a different combination
>Try this combination again
>Write-in
>>
>>6085841
>Upgrade this miracle

Ooh I like it. Get ready to meet your wife again Heracles.
>>
>>6085847

Also, please specify the extent to which you'd like to upgrade this miracle:

To 2 (10,000)
To 3 (30,000)
To 4 (70,000)
>>
>>6085841
>Upgrade this miracle
Well this looks almost exactly like what we wanted, nice

It's even a 2 in 1?

>Upgrade this miracle
>>6085881
>To 4 (70,000)
>>
>>6085883
Fuck it, FULL POWER

>>6085881
> To 4 (70,000)
>>
>>6085881
>To 4 (70,000)
MAXIMUM POWER
>>
>>6085847
>>6085883
>>6085947
>>6085955

>First Movement: Folly and Ruin (1->4)

When an individual hears the music within it, they will be ridden with visions of <Folly> ->and <Ruin>. As the individual is caught within the symphony, a simulacrum of the embodiment of their desires-> or regrets is formed, which can be either read for information or weaponized against the person from which they originate. This miracle, when affecting multiple different targets, may use completely unrelated illusions or effects on them. In addition, any <Constructs> created using the divinity and information sapped via the symphony have an increase in power proportional to the depth of their folly

>Opus 2. Nocturne of Folly
Creates constructs that represent the greatest regrets of the target which you may either manipulate or allow to act autonomously based on the target’s perceptions of them. These constructs draw power from the divinity of the target, and are capable of perfectly predicting the movements of the target. In addition, the target’s feelings of guilt and despair are exacerbated. Should they give up on survival, they will be trapped in it forever, completely unable to escape, as in the first opus.

>Notice! <Divinity Manifest> has special properties
>The user may choose to add <Conditions> to its activation. By default, the condition is simply to declare the manifestation, however more can be added to strengthen the existing effects or add desired functionality proportional to the difficulty of the activation conditions to the user.

Some examples include:
>Somatic components (gestures, dances, footwork, etc.)
>Material components (gold, blood, etc.)
>Verbal components (songs, chants, rituals, etc.)
>Suffering (physical pain, emotional pain, etc.)
>Sacrifice (memories, emotions, divinity, etc.)
>Restrictions (Not doing x action for x time after one use of the Manifestation)
>Specific conditions (Specific external circumstances, such as the nature of the target, location upon use, or time of day)

You may list as many <Conditions> as you wish, and list as many <Benefits> as you’d like, but the latter will be adjusted to match the former

>Add conditions (specify both the conditions and rewards)
>Do not add conditions
>>
>>6086020
Oh man we can go full chunni with this huh

>Restrictions (Not doing x action for x time after one use of the Manifestation)
After using this technique we can't use it again for 10 days - also exacerbate feelings of anger and rage.
>>
>>6086020
these conditions cannot be removed afterwards, can they?
or is it possible to use it without all the conditions?
>>
>>6086020
>The user can designate primary targets and groups of secondary targets.
>For each primary target and group of secondary targets the user has to sing a song about their folly, therefore splitting their attention and incuring the mental strain, similar to controlling multiple bodies.
>During combat, the user is able to split their consciousness an additional time to control their main body to primarily avoid incoming attacks.
>Such a song can be composed spontaneously or be prepared in advance (either if the folly has been known previously, or if the folly is common, e.g. one of the seven deadly sins). The mental strain for prepared songs is less than the strain needed to compose a new individualized song.
>The user will have an intuitive understanding of how what the most common folly is, and how secondary targets are grouped to efficiently affect as many targets as possible.
>Even if not fully trapped by the Manifestation, a desired effect on a target can be chosen in advance, but defaults to the target being unable to take hostile actions against the user (such as crippling despair, suicidality, or shame; or in following their follies while ignoring the user and the user's designated allies)
>The effect is determined by how well a song resonates with a targets desire and how long the song goes on (passages are allowed to repeat with decreased effectiveness, but this allows for a song to go on forever)
>>
>>6086020
Let's stick with fairly simple stuff.

>Restrictions (Not doing x action for x time after one use of the Manifestation)
10 day cool down for a general increase in power I'm thinking.

>Specific conditions
Atë can't dismiss or leave the effect while enemies are in it. Enemies can't leave the effect without destroying all the Contructs.
>>
>>6086044
Once conditions are established, they cannot be removed, and the Manifestation cannot be performed without them

>>6086033
>>6086225
A ten day cooldown is a major restriction- it completely removes the defensive applications of a <Manifestation>, and missing your shot is a very real possibility. You could get a lot more than what >>6086033
suggested with that. Here are some possibilities:

>An additional 3 miracle slots for miracles pertaining to the <Manifestation>
>The ability to affect the deaf, or those without any physical means of hearing
>An increase of the effective level of all authorities and miracles by 10
>The ability for the constructs to make physical attacks

A general increase in strength is also acceptable, but it would be a significant boost to say the least
>>
>>6086253
>The ability to affect the deaf, or those without any physical means of hearing

This seems like a pretty clear winner to me. Our biggest no sell issue is people engaging in sensory deprivation, and this removes that. You'd need to outright remove your mind at this point to protect from us.

The loss of defensive applications, and outright missing is concerning but being able to hit anyone, period is very pleasing.
>>
>>6086253
cool, I got to be a stickler tho. What does "missing your shot" mean?
How can we miss our shot? like when someone is not within range, or immediately resists?

And I think I misunderstood something at least.
The limitation is for "Divinity Manifest", nor for "First Movement: Folly and Ruin", right?

Do the miracles we make with Divinity Manifest go on cooldown along with it too?
>>
>>6086272

>And I think I misunderstood something at least.
The limitation is for "Divinity Manifest", nor for "First Movement: Folly and Ruin", right?

As stated in the text for First Movement: Folly and Ruin:

"May only be activated when one or more individuals is caught in a <Manifestation>. When an individual hears the music within it..."

In other words, it can only be activated during a manifestation event, so the restriction would transitively affect both

>cool, I got to be a stickler tho. What does "missing your shot" mean?
How can we miss our shot? like when someone is not within range, or immediately resists?

The primary ways a <Manifestation> might be avoided are as follows:

>If all targets gets out of the range before it activates
>If a target defensively manifests during or before you do so, assuming you don't have the difference in strength to completely overwhelm them
>If somebody interrupts you or forces you to cancel the manifestation during a manifestation event
>If, during a manifestation event, the situation were to change such as to invalidate the manifestation's conditions (this wouldn't apply unless you added more conditions)
>>
>>6086284
Hmm. That's a powerful effect, but the drawbacks do seem pretty impactful. I am having serious second thoughts here.

If we sacrificed a limb for power I assume Regen couldn't just immediately heal it? Like, if it's a cost, it needs to be a cost that matters.

How about...

> High Drama: You can only activate the manifestation when someone is trying to kill you.
To gain an increase to our authority levels within it.

> Spotlight: You cannot use Stealth Authorities during the manifestation.
Effects partially bypass defenses.
>>
>>6086253
>The ability to affect the deaf, or those without any physical means of hearing
Noice, RIP flagellant
>>
>>6086253
how far can we turn the cooldown down and retain the "affects the deaf" trait?
>>
>>6086327

>how far can we turn the cooldown down and retain the "affects the deaf" trait?
Ten days is reasonable- but you could cut it down to a two day cooldown and have it affect people who have been deafened- which is to say, people who could once hear and now cannot thanks to an injury or other non-genetic cause. This would, for example, work on the flagellant but not humans born deaf or non-hearing entities like Interwraiths, gods, etc.
>>
>>6086352
>>6086327
I'd rather keep 10 days and have it be universally useful
>>
>>6086033
>>6086044
>>6086199
>>6086266
>>6086272
>>6086303
>>6086312

Since we seem split, I’ll lock suggestions here and instead propose a number of costs and benefits proposed by the people here. List all you wish to take on by the letter (e.g >A,C,D)

A. High Drama: You can only activate the manifestation against targets that are trying to kill you. but the effective level of all sound based authorities within the manifestation increases by the number of people within it

B. Spotlight: You cannot use stealth authorities during any part of the manifestation, including the beginning of activation. but the effective level of all mental defense authorities is decreased by half of the level of your highest stealth authority

C. No Encore: You must wait ten days between uses of Divinity Manifest but it now also affects those incapable of hearing, including those who have never experienced sound

D. Strike a Chord: You must perform a piece of music which relates to a flaw, desire, or regret the target or collective of targets possesses but the power of the manifestation increases in proportion to the degree to which the target relates to or resonates with the lyrics and melody

And I’ll throw in a few more containing effects people asked for with appropriate restrictions

E. Play The Heel: You must taunt the targets before activating the Manifestation but feelings of rage and irritability are instilled proportional to the effectiveness of the taunt

F. Hearing Aid: You may only activate the Manifestation against those who are under the effect of an authority or miracle capable of producing the illusion of sound but it is possible to use the illusion created by that ability in lieu of true sound (note, does not work against individuals who have never experienced hearing)
>>
>>6086388
>C
>E
>>
>>6086388
>BCD
this is our ult
>>
>>6086417
Really would rather not take D
Very restrictive, increases the miss chance, worse than useless against targets we don't know, etc.
>>
>>6086432
oh wait, shit, yeah, I wrote that stuff up when I was under the impression we were already able to get their Hamartia before starting to sing
then it would have been just a rapbattle, which our multiple brains should've been able to handle.
but if it's required to activate...

and while we talk about it: I don't want E, because I don't want people irritable or angry (we know anger can increase people's strength), we want them to fall for it more easily... then hmm... maybe B is also not the best

>>6086417
switching to only:
>C
>>
>>6086440
>(we know anger can increase people's strength)
I don't think that's a common enough authority to outweigh the benefits of fighting people lost to rage. People in that state make tons of unforced errors. Just imagine if we hit Heracles with a great variant of "how's the wife?" and all of a sudden ADAM needs to worry about friendly fire. Plus the aftermath of such a state is exhaustion, which feeds into Opus 2. I think there's a lot of potential synergy there.
>>
>>6086446
we have like 3 of them ourselves
>>
>>6086452
Like what? Nothing in our active kit seems to fit the bill. In our inventory we've got Rage of Achillies which increases physical toughness, but we've never bothered to equip or level it because it clouds our thoughts with rage which is clearly detrimental. Even if someone did invest into it, physical toughness is useless against mental attacks anyway.
>>
>>6086465
cutting malice and born of vengeance have similar descriptions
>>
>>6086466
I think malice and personal grudges are distinct from rage - they're a lot longer term. Even if that's not the case, another two authorities we've never seen fit to equip or level. If we weren't such a hoarder they'd have been sold or ground up already.
>>
>>6086473
I'm not saying to use them, I'm just argueing that authorities that increase your strength based on your mood are not uncommon.
>>
>>6086476
If you're that concerned we could just phone it in on some of the insults, but I think the returns on E could be huge.
>>
>>6086388

> ABE

I would love to get the effect of No Encore, but Manifesting is the primary defense against other Manifests as well. Additionally within the Theatre we're always touching our foes, so we can use effects that don't require hearing if need be.

And play the heel just sounds fun.
>>
>>6086500
my other reason to not take E is that it sorta locks us into using it offensively in combat. While we could get any number of mortals, thralled for life
but I don't want to start out a concert taunting everyone
>>
>>6086476
I'm voting for it myself, but I'm pretty sure the Authority that grants rage based stats we got from our post mortal friend who we're about to fight again. Still, anger and irritation are our weapons.
>>
>>6086511
We can thrall mortals with just whispers, blowing this on them is overkill.

>>6086508
>>6086513
Someone understands how based E is. Anger leads people to folly.
>>
>>6086414
>>6086440
>>6086508

Looks like C and E (No Encore and Play the Heel) win with two votes each, everything else remains untouched

Finished fiddling with the system, you decide to plot your next move.

>Go to the real world and exploit use the <Pithos>
>Train an <Art> (specify)
>Contact someone (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6086538
> Go to the real world and exploit use the <Pithos>

Don't accept any rewards though until we see how many we've got. If we get less than we hope to night be better to spend the level 9 costs and get more Xs rather than save influence.
>>
>>6086538
YES
>Contact Eris, see if she’s up for a pantheon team fight
>>
>>6086538
>>Go to the real world and exploit use the <Pithos>
>>Contact someone (specify)
>>
>>6086648
>>6086650
>>6086834

Porcelain and metal clink as plates and silverware land delicately on the burgundy tablecloth. Seven seats need to be prepared: Marilyn herself, her husband Jack, his parents (hers had died, rest their souls) and their three kids: one girl a highschool junior (going on senior), the other two, a daughter and son, home from college on summer break.

She had prepared a nice meal for the occasion- a party to commemorate Marcus’s acceptance into some research program or other. She didn’t know much about what he was studying specifically- epidemiology, she thought it was?- but it was very important to him, and that was all that mattered. She wanted to make this night perfect.

Just as she was straightening the last set of silverware- she brought out two kinds of forks, though Sarah hates salad and Jack could never figure out the difference between the two- she heard the telltale shutter and ring of her oven timer going off. The turkey is ready! She rushed over, waddling slightly to spare her hips the strain of a full stride. Marilyn had always believed that Turkey was a holiday food, only to be eaten at Christmas and Thanksgiving and maybe Easter if it was a gathering. Marcus, however, disagreed, especially if turkey gravy was involved, and they had shared many trivial arguments about whether a “holiday food” is even a thing. ‘Who eats fruitcake or figgy pudding during any time but christmas?’ she would say, to which Marcus would scoff, ‘Who eats fruitcake or figgy pudding ever?’

She pulled the turkey out of the oven, sticking her thermometer in to check the internal temp. She clicked her tongue- a bit over. She probably should have accounted for the fact that this turkey was a bit smaller than the usual christmas one. Still, Marcus wouldn’t mind- he’d use any excuse to slather it in drippings and gravy anyway.

A knock on the door- it must be grandma and grandpa. Well, the kids’ grandma and grandpa. Admittedly, she sometimes slips up and calls the in-laws that in casual conversation. It’s embarrassing, but they never seem to mind. “Jack! It’s your parents, get your lazy behind off the couch!”

“Yeah, yeah.” Jack chuckled, hoisting himself up off the sofa. Work’s been rough for him lately, so she handled tonight all on her own, but that doesn’t mean she’s not gonna poke some fun at the old lug.
>>
>>6087180

Grandma and grandpa were there, but, seemingly unbeknownst to them, there was something standing behind them. A shadow, maybe a woman, loomed over the elderly couple. It was pitch black, almost completely indiscernible, except for a pair of beady, glowing red eyes and a pearly white grin of jagged, razor sharp teeth. Like the mouth of a shark.

“Jack! What the devil is that thing?!” Marilyn screamed, leaping back (thankfully after putting down the turkey) in horror at the sight of the specter at the doorstep.

“Hm? Is there a bug or something?” her husband looked around, completely oblivious to the massive dark thing smiling back at her from outside. His parents also looked behind them, spotting nothing. She must be seeing things, yes, that’s the only explanation. She’d tell Jack- tell everyone about it, but only after tonight. This is Marcus’s day, and she doesn’t want to ruin it with her.. whatever this is. As if reacting to her panic, mocking her anxiety, the shadow breaches an arm out from its formless figure and gives her a little wave. She grits her teeth and lies:

“Oh, nevermind, It must have just been a leaf.”

Jack chuckled, “Seriously Lyn, you work too hard. It’s got ya seeing things. Take a seat on the sofa, why dontcha, I’ll wrap things up in the kitchen.”

“You? Cook? Why, I’d be an accomplice to murder!”

“Har har. I’ll call Lauren then.”

>”No, I’m fine, really.”
>”Lauren? Well, she does owe me for patching up her prom dress…”
>”Actually, can we talk? In private?”
>>
>>6087182
>>”No, I’m fine, really.”
>>
>>6087182
> Actually, can we talk? In private?”

Nothing bad could possibly happen when you're alone with a shadow monster!
>>
Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>6087186
>>6087215

deciding randomly
>>
>>6087186
>>6087215
>>6087228

>”No, I'm fine, really.”

Jack shrugs, “If you say so.”

Marilyn finishes everything up- mashes the potatoes, takes the fried ravioli out of the airfryer, and plates the greens. She puts everything on the table, family style, as the kids begin to pour in, doing her best to ignore the specter.

It smiles, walks up to Lauren, and punches her hard in the gut. She collapses, falling out of her chair and reeling to the floor in a fit of coughing and retching. Marilyn rushes over to comfort her, asking if she’s ok and shielding her from the shadow. “It’s ok mom,” she says, still clutching her stomach, “Just choked a bit on the potatoes.”

“But you haven’t even started eating?” Everyone around her looks at her like she’s gone mad.

“I’m going to kill them all, Marilyn Baker.” The ghost finally speaks, “Unless you make a deal with me.”

“W-what the hell do you want you son of a bitch!” The gazes and hushed whispers are drowned out by the sound of her beating heart. It reaches into itself and pulls out an urn.

“Open the lid and accept the contents within.”

“And if I do that.. you won’t hurt anyone here?”

“That’s right.”

Hesitantly, she reaches into the jar.

~

“You- you said..”

The ghost smiles. “I lied.”

After she took in the dark energy from the urn, <Pithos> as the demon called it, it paralyzed her somehow. Let her watch. It took her hostage, forcing each and every one of her loved ones to intake that same vile muck as her. Then, laughing like a schoolyard bully, it killed them. Not an ounce of guilt or remorse could be seen in its eyes.

“Why..?”

“You wouldn’t get it.”

“No. Why am I still alive?”

“I dunno. Something about you just made me want to show you what I did. But, now that you mention it…”

With a sharp burn in her neck, the world fell upside down.

~
>>
>>6087229

Well, that was fun.

Yeah, you probably could have been faster about it- you will, for the next batch- but hey, everyone’s gotta have hobbies. You wipe your hands on the tablecloth, the red of blood vanishing against its colors, and move to pick up the <Pithos>. However, as you walk towards it, an eruption of roots and stone breaks through the carpeted old floors and pulls it away. You lunge to stop it, but <Omen> flashes, compelling you to leap back as a razor sharp obsidian spike bursts from the ground, threatening to skewer you through the heart.

A body of granite and marble, adorned in moss and lichen, manifests from the spot where your relic just was- the necessity to temporarily transfer ownership was always its biggest downside. Still, you couldn’t have possibly anticipated this. The body seems to lack divinity- it’s obviously a construct- but you can feel a powerful core at the base of the tendrils manipulating it.

“Gaia.” you state. The stone nods. You ask, “I thought you were doing the non-intervention thing? Why take my stuff?”

This artefact poses a threat to the world itself. Similar- or more severe than- nuclear weaponry. I cannot tolerate that.

“How the hell did you even know about this?”

The earth is my body, child

You click your tongue, “<Omen>.”

The stone lady gives a sagely nod.

>Ask questions
>Demand the pithos be returned
>Leave
>Write-in
>>
>>6087231
>Offer a deal
We only use the pithos as a means to upgrade our authorities, we're not really interested in destroying the world.
If she gives us something that can achieve this goal in a better way, we're willing to part with it.
I she can't give us something of equal value, then we can agree to only use it in the manner we just described, and give it to her after all the myths have escaped the pithos. But in return she will need to assist us in the next fight where we ourselves are getting attacked by a third party.
>>
>>6087235
Support

I'll be honest Gaia, I like the world. There's room for desire in a destroyed world. There's no hope to crush if everyone is already defeated.

I know a crafting specialist, perhaps he can seal the apocalypse option?
>>
>>6087235
>>6087241

>Offer a deal

The stone lady sighs, shaking her head, Do you have any idea what would have happened had you let the urn reach completion?

"..admittedly, I have no clue. I wasn't planning on letting it get that far."

So, correct me if I'm wrong, you were fiddling around with Pandora's Box without any knowledge of the potential consequences? What would you have done if it filled up faster than you were anticipating? If it finished sooner than expected?

"I'd have figured it out."

You would have destroyed yourself, and then a good portion of everything else

You can't help but scowl, "So I'm not getting my pithos back?"

Not a chance

>Ask questions
>Make threats
>Demand compensation
>Leave
>Write-in
>>
>>6087231
>Ask questions
How THE FUCK did she get so strong
Is she doing anything about the King and the Penitent? He seems like an even bigger threat to the world.

>Demand the pithos be returned
We enjoy modern conveniences too much to use the nuclear option.
>>
>>6087256
And I was 20 seconds late.

>Ask questions
How THE FUCK did she get so strong
Is she doing anything about the King and the Penitent? He seems like an even bigger threat to the world.

>Demand compensation
How do we know she isn't going to use the pithos to unleash Calamity herself? If she's not going to give it back she should destroy it right here and now, and give us an artifact of similar value in exchange.
>>
>>6087256
>>6087258
+1
>"I know I likely can't force your hand, but you are stopping me from gaining strength if you simply take it without giving me anything in return."
At the very least I want her to allow us somewhere in the rain forest at the best meditation spot
>>
>>6087256
>Demand compensation
Can we at least use it as fuel to craft a new artifact?

> Questions
Also, the Uncrowned King. Care to point us at some of those bastards and we'll go hunting? This Defender of the World title is legit you know.

For that matter, you got any problems you need excised in a deniable asset sort of way?
>>
>>6087258
>>6087259
>>6087264

>Ask questions

“How did you get so powerful?” you ask.

Minutes before the system even arrived, I was killed. BETRAYED by my daughters and my people, though it was understandable. My body was failing me. Still, in my last gasps, I had achieved enlightenment: I abandoned my body and planted my soul in the earth instead. Perhaps, it was this act that brought the Incarnation System knocking on our doorstep

As you suspected- she was a powerful shaman even before the System became involved. Even without it, she could have been a god.

“What about the forces of the Uncrowned King? Why do you let them continue to exist?”


I do not want to draw the King’s eyes. Unlike you, the system does not offer me- offer gods- the same protections. Still, I have been subverting the leylines beneath their feet: so long as I live, the King shall never breach here.

You nod, “If you want, I’m more than happy to help purge them. Y’know, as a <Defender of the World> and all.”

I sense in you a danger of like kind to the King. Yet… a mortal ambition, and a humanity. I suppose I have no reason not to point you their way- I had already granted Prometheus such a boon.

“Speaking of boons.. I’ll cut to brass tacks. Obviously, I’m in no position to make demands, but I kinda sorta needed that to gain power, especially since I’m gonna have to deal with a whole lot of problems going forward. If you’re gonna unilaterally take my stuff, something in exchange at least would be appreciated.”

Well, I have accrued a large number of points and rewards from the system which I have no intention to use in any real capacity. Though direct influence transfer is impossible, perhaps I could offer you something worthwhile in exchange. What would you like, child?

>A weapon
>A relic
>An authority
>Myths
>Free authority upgrades
>Information
>Some tips about <Arts>
>Stuff from the shop (specify, totaling less than 500,000 influence)
>Write-in
>>
Ok, who wants to make QM roll 1666 Purified Drop of Chaos?
>>
>>6087285
*And totalling no more than 40 items
>>
>>6087275
>Do you have access to shop items beyond my level?

>>6087289
coward, lol
>>
>>6087275
>up to 500k shop points
Oh jeez I gotta think about this one
>>
>>6087275
Ok the 40 item limit hurts shop prospects
500K is only half of Immortality price too
Only thing we can't easily afford ourselves is Object of Worship for 100,000, so we may as well pick that up but definitely see if she has access to stuff we don't because otherwise we're left with 400K, which is enough for 100 of the best chaos drops we have access to and we can only get 39.

Other options:
>Some tips about <Arts>
We do have that other monk for this so not super attractive, but she should know more than he does? We're enough of an amateur that it might not matter, plus they're following the plant route while we're the devourer route.

>Write-in
Assistance with Interwraiths perhaps? Seems well outside our power level now, but if she can cover all the steps we can't and helps us eat one, we'll have gotten a good chunk of power and valuable experience.
>>
>>6087275

>Free authority upgrades
Gaia is pretty chill. Between subjugation rewards and this, can we max out our current kit to full X across the board?

> the system does not offer me- offer gods- the same protections.
Hmm. So once we cross the last line to true god hood we're in for a fight.

Kind of wild but I think we're absolutely approaching the limits of the system.
>>
>>6087381
>Kind of wild but I think we're absolutely approaching the limits of the system.
Doubtful, our win chances against Kronos were one in a billion last we checked, and he's pure system power. What we're doing is reaching outside the system so our power is truly ours rather than something we can lose just because we directly interfered with the soul of another Incarnation, or allied with the King, or anything else the System outlaws.
>>
I still want to hear about further shop items, but am thinking of getting a mythic level weapon and armor of higher greek letters.
Unfortunately I'll go to sleep now, hopefully the vote stays open until tomorrow morning
>>
>>6087393
>hopefully the vote stays open until tomorrow morning
I dunno man I been liking the quick updates
>>
>>6087386

Kronos probably has some sort of bullshit time stop for his divinity manifest.

Probably something else to consider is that our miracles are almost all mind altering in nature. Dove and Kronos probably have bullshit like Divine Speed - Battle Acuity Miracles, things that would let them just lol around us at super sonic speed that we just can't match.

And of course there could be a higher tier past Miracle at 15, or just more miracle slots. But I'd hazard the main threat of Kronos is a Divinity Manifest ability that stops time.
>>
>>6087418
You really think we're approaching the limits of the System, when you also believe it can stop a universal constant like time?
>>
>>6087293
>Do you have access to shop items beyond my level?

I am system level 14. Here are the options I have that you do not:

Items:

>Authority Brace: X,000
An authority crystal may be placed within the brace, turning it into a relic which recreates its effect exactly. Authorities used this way cannot be upgraded, reverted to an authority, or used for a miracle. Only one brace may be equipped at a time per five incarnation levels. The cost of the brace is equal to 1,000 multiplied by the authority's level

>Influence Generator: 15,000
Consumes divinity, providing 1 influence point for every 100 divinity inserted

>Pygmalion Protocol: 100,000
Creates a perfect physical copy of yourself that may be piloted remotely by your soul from any difference. However, doing so either splits your consciousness or renders your true body comatose. In addition, all divinity based abilities used by the copy have their cost increased by 33%

Authorities: N/A

Directives:

>Bargainer: 50,000
Whenever you strike a <Faustian Bargain> or equivalent deal, you gain 1 influence for every point of divinity they possess

>Copycat: 200,000
Does not accrue influence. At any time, you may use this to copy the primary directive of any willing partner. Upon doing so, this directive will vanish

>>6087380
>Assistance with Interwraiths perhaps?

I have absolutely no idea what that is

"You know, baby gods? Souls floating about without bodies and eating up divinity?"

I apologize, but I have nothing to tell.
>>
>>6087430

Oops, fucked up the formatting. You know what I meant.
>>
>>6087430
Ok now we're talking

>Object of Worship 100k
Because we're gonna make people pray to us
>Copycat: 200,000
To copy from Brigette and farm more from our legion of streamer simps
>Pygmalion Protocol: 100,000
Handy tool to avoid death at the hands of Dove murderblitzing us, or Heracles and ADAM tomorrow
>Pygmalion Protocol: 100,000
A second one for good measure, since we're so adept at splitting consciousness and soul. Free multitasking.
>>
>>6087430
>>6087453
+1
>>
>>6087453
>>6087733

Greedy, aren't we?

"I mean, you did offer."

Oh, that is a little problematic

"What is it?"

It seems like directives cannot be transferred between people.

"That's fine, I'll just spend the divinity on something else."

...My apologies. There is no way to refund the purchase.

>Take the remaining 400k worth of shop items
>Get something else instead
>>
>>6087831
>2x Pygmalion Protocol
>3x Authority Brace: 10,000
I know we can only use 2 right now, but we can still have one in advance
depending on how many familes we have destroyed this evening, we probably want to store Titanic Strength and Weapon Training Claws if they hit level 10
>a relic - preferably something defensive that won't get in the way of our movement or is be hidden altogether.
>>
>>6087831
Damnit
>Take the 400K of items
>>
>>6087831
>>6087852
Wait copycat is a directive too fuggg

Guess I’ll back >>6087850
>>
>>6087850
Throw in some gacha crystals if we've got any leftover.
>>
>>6087850
>>6087852
>>6087866

Very well. I shall create you an item, free of charge.

She buys a small mountain of weapons, the metal clinking against the table and bleeding at the touch of the dead bodies on the floor. You’re reminded of how inhuman Gaia is: beyond the integrity of the earth itself, she really doesn’t seem to care about anything.

“So what, are you using <Enchant Item>?”

A pale imitation? No. I shall grant you a true sacred artifact.

She closes her eyes, chanting in a tongue you’ve never heard as divinity swells with the stone maiden as a conduit. A massive flux of emerald light bathes the room, blinding your eyes and causing your third eye to scream with agony. You see the weapons crumble into nothingness and, as the light dies down, the room seems empty once again.

Hmm. Not my greatest work, though the materials were poor. Still, with this alone, you have gained far more than you had bargained for.

>Gaia’s Protection <Fable: Epsilon> (0/10,000)

Uses stored divinity against physical and divinity-based attacks performed by individuals judged to be a <Threat to the World>, including the Penitent, or mortals or incarnations with the motive and means to cause significant damage to the world itself. Additionally, while bearing this ring, anything under Gaia’s dominion, including plants or the earth, will be averted from any effort to harm you.

>Active Ability: Perfect Defense
While active, you are incapable of being physically harmed in any way. However, you are also unable to move so long as one or more individuals is observing you. Consumes divinity whenever you are hit by an attack

>Active Ability: Oakheart (1,000)
Creates a massive, nigh invulnerable wooden golem which defends the user for one minute. Can be used to amplify another wooden construct instead

You scowl upon looking at the conditional- other than the plant chick and maybe Heracles, the primary effect of this ring is gonna be absolutely useless in the fight ahead.

A perfect reward for a Defender of the Earth

Cheeky bitch.

“Whatever. Fork over the rest of the rewards.”

She shrugs, transferring the requested items to your inventory and vanishing back into the earth.

>Manage system rewards
>Contact someone (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6087888
>Contact Eris
Aaah team fight aghhh
>>
>>6087888
>>Manage system rewards
store lightbringer first so we always have the ability to take one of the random authorities
>>
>>6087895
We already swapped out Lightbringer for Divinity Manifest

> How many 'Subjugation Rewards' do we have banked?

Also, Palladium is a wooden construct, which can be empowered by the artifact. And hey, super effective tool against the penitents.
>>
>>6087923

>How many 'Subjugation Rewards' do we have banked?

Just the ones from the most recent 7 kills Hysminai (battle), Maniae (madness) (x2), Arae (curses) (x3), Phonoi (murder)
>>
>>6087892
>>6087895
>>6087923

>Manage rewards

Myths gained: Hysminai, Maniae (x2), Arae (x3), Phonoi (x1)

Authorities gained (specify the letters of those you wish to keep, the rest will be sold):

>A: Battleheart (1)
Steadies your emotions in combat, allowing you to perform coldly and efficiently. Also defends against mind altering authorities

>B: Ravings of the Lunatic (1)
Imbues your speech with your inner madness, wearing down the mental defenses of those who listen and instilling them with a similar insanity to yourself

>C: Delusions Manifest (1)
Manifests your delusions and hallucinations as real phenomena, with a maximum power dictated by your divinity pool and degree of insanity

>D: Eye for an Eye (1)
Whenever you are harmed, you gain strength when fighting against the aggressor until you inflict an equal or greater amount of damage

>E: Bitter Oath (1):
Allows you to curse a person who has wronged you, inflicting penalties related and proportional to the inflicted slight, as well as the level of this authority

>F,G (Redundant. Automatically sold.)

Additionally, you may choose to take an additional authority from any number of the related myths or use the opportunity to increase a level of your own authority. Specify all additional authorities you wish to keep, then increase existing authorities by a total equal to the remaining number (you guys know the drill by now)
>>
>>6087888

>Manage system rewards
But I think we should upgrade several authorities to 9 first, then use rewards to go to ten.
>>
>>6087939

That may be done. Please specify all desired upgrades alongside your vote
>>
Upgrade these to level 9 for 38400
>Omen, Supernatural Speed, Preservation Instinct
then upgrade 3 times with free upgrade

and use the remaining 4 to bring these to X as well
>Battle Acuity, Weapon Training (Claws)
>>
>>6087938

> Keep DE
We're not crazy....right? Right?

My vote is to level 7 authorities to 9, then use the 7 subjugation rewards to take them to 10.

My picks are
> Regeneration
> Omen
> Preservation Instinct
> Divine Speed
> Battle Acuity
> Spectre's Wail
> Stealth
>>
>>6087938
Sell em all
I’ll back >>6087955
for upgrades
>>
>>6087977
Even Eye for an Eye? That one seems great. We've got bracers after all
>>
>>6087996
We’ve already got so many great ones, and now that we know how to be independent I don’t want to unnecessarily increase reliance on the system
>>
>>6087938
actually, keep them all
we're not hoarding, we seriously need to get started on distributing epithets and authorities to subordinates.
The system seems to be rather bend on people collecting subordinates, and our personal item is about subordinates too
>>
>>6088034
Ah, Battleheart might be good for Iwana. I'll add that to my keep list. But crazy mode powers don't seem ideal to me.
>>
>>6087939
>>6087948
>>6087955
>>6087977
>>6088028
>>6088034
>>6088081

>Keep ADE, sell the rest

Influence: 259,040-> 263,353/409,600 (including crystal and maneuvering costs)

> Regeneration (8->9)
> Omen (8->9)
> Preservation Instinct (8->9)
> Supernatural Speed (8->9)
> Battle Acuity (8->9)
> Spectre's Wail (8->9)
> Stealth (8->9)

Total cost: 89,600 (12,800x7)

Influence total: 173,753/409,600

(No additional authorities, upgrade all authorities listed above to X)

>Regeneration (X):
It is possible to undo the effects of aging, effectively increasing your lifespan indefinitely in the absence of unnatural causes. So long as at least 1% of your cells remain alive, you can regenerate even if critical damage is done to vital structures.

>Omen (X)
It is possible to detect negative situations without imminent peril, such as deceptions, bluffs, ulterior motives or unfortunate outcomes for things like dice games or card draws. Additionally, you gain a much larger understanding of the specific nature of the danger or negative outcome (for example, knowing intuitively whether a bullet or spear is heading towards you as opposed to merely the direction and severity of the danger)

>Preservation Instinct (X)
Increases the effective level of all authorities or miracles invoked by this authority proportional to the urgency of the danger, with a maximum of one third of this authority’s current effective level, rounding down

>Supernatural Speed (X)
It is possible to temporarily double the output of this authority for 10 seconds, though invoking this ability will incur a 5 minute cooldown. Additionally, increases the effective level of all physical strikes by half of this authority’s current effective level

>Battle Acuity (X)
Slows down your perception of time to at minimum one twentieth of the real time speed. Using at maximum output for extended periods of time may cause damage to your brain and nervous system. Maximum output: 20 divinity per second.

Additionally, when active, this authority widens your field of vision to 360 degrees and removes all blind spots that exist as a consequence of the human eye, and all of your other physical senses are likewise heightened, though activating this effect will put additional strain on your central nervous system.

>Stealth (X)
You may activate this authority on up to ten other parties, all of which will maintain its benefits so long as they stay within a 1,000 yard radius.

>Specter’s Wail (X)
Once the threshold of serious harm is passed, the sound will continue to carry for ten times the distance than it naturally should. In addition, it is possible to choose as many of the listed effects as you wish, though contradictory effects will dilute each other. You also may instead order <Blood>, causing immediate death in those of insufficient level and intense pain and ear injury in higher level incarnations unable to completely resist the effect.

>Optional write-in: replace an existing miracle with a new one
>>
>>6088119

You decide to call Eris. The call goes dead. A few minutes later, your phone rings- you’re 100% sure she got your first call and just made you wait to be petty.

“Atë. To what special occasion do I owe the pleasure?” she says, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Uh.. hey, Eris. How’s it been?”


“Oh you know, doing work. For the pantheon. You?”

“Well, apparently in my streaming adventure I kinda.. sorta.. killed Heracles’s wife? So I’ve been trying to get enough power to not die.”

“Ah. I see what this is about.”

“I mean, we were going to have to take him down anyway at some point, right? Why not get it out of the way now?”

“Listen girl, we’re working on it! Plan A is scrapped as long as that bitch Gaia is around but we have, like, a perfect solution.”

“Elaborate.”

“We’re gonna start a war! We’ve been going around the world. Doing things, framing people. The Russians don’t trust China, China doesn’t trust the League, NOBODY trusts the House of Hades, and so on. All we gotta do is kick up our feet and wait for the world to tear itself in half!”

You furrow your brow- escalations would be annoying, but it would probably lead more to an arms race before full blown conflict broke out. You can’t speak to New Putin or Ye Min, but the Whittlers, Prometheus, and the Commander would probably never bite.

"So, you're not helping out?"

"Just give up! He'll be dead in a month anyway, and we're doing movie night tomorrow."

>Bring up your critiques about the plan
>Offer something in exchange for their help (specify)
>Hang up
>Write-in
>>
>>6088120
>"So we're just not gonna stick together when one of us asks for help?"
>"Vidcon's tomorrow, and there's going to be a lot of influential people whom we can use to spread our chaos. Do you want to miss out on a juicy meal if it presents itself too you?"
>"And ADAM might not even show up."

can you up
>>
>>6088141
>can you up
...date the rentry sheet, thank you
>>
>>6088120
>Bring up your critiques about the plan
She doesn't think Gaia would step in to avert a world war when she would do so for a rogue nuclear armageddon?
Also it's risky to think that the big players will all conveniently kill each other off. More likely at least one will survive, now even stronger from vanquishing their big rivals. At that point it would be a very long shot for us to end up on top. We gotta be proactive.

>Offer something in exchange for their help (specify)
This is fair too, we're dragging them into a mess we made, against our enemies. Not sure what to offer. Use of the new internet media network this would get us? One IOU for our backup in a similar situation?
>>
>>6088144

Critiquing Eris would probably backfire.

>Offer something in exchange for their help (specify)
Offer a favor. Say please. Beg a little. Play to her pride. We'll make her bleed eventually.
>>
>>6088141
>>6088144
Done.

>>6088164
>>6088300

“Please, I really need your help on this,”

“Jeez girlie, you don’t call, you don’t write.. you only come knocking when you need something.”


“That’s not true, I swear- I’ve just been super busy lately. Look, is there anything I can do to make it up to you?”

“Hmmm. What to do, what to do.. even if I DO agree- which, like, not a guarantee- I can’t promise you pantheon support. Hercules is a pretty big deal. No way the con artist is in, and Isabella’s only gonna hop in if she thinks you can win. It’ll probably be me, the new girl, and maybe Jen at best.”

“New girl?”

“See! You don’t even keep track of this stuff. Battle chick. Kinda nuts but she’s a killer. Literally.”

“So we’re only one myth away from a full deck?”

“That’s right. Still feel like getting yourself killed?”

“Seriously, I really need this. Think of how much mileage we can get out of this?”

“Hm… Tell you what, I’ll join in your little party. BUT- Jen and I are out of there the second we might be in any real danger and, if we win, I want <Heracles>.”

“Like, his <Myth>?”

“Exactly.”

"What? Why?"

"I've been working on a pet project. Literally, a pet project. Some powerful... appealing myths would be a nice cherry on top."

You're not sure you want to think about what she's been up to.

>”It’s a deal,”
>”That's going to be difficult. Want anything else?”
>"I have a counteroffer..." (specify)
>”Actually, I should be fine on my own.”
>Write-in
>>
>>6088336

>”It’s a deal”

Oh ho! Someone has a divine servant style miracle don't they? Looking for a diy heracles slave I'm guessing.
>>
>>6088336
>”It’s a deal”

Unless they bounce too quick and we do all the work ourselves
>>
>>6088336
>“Jeez girlie, you don’t call, you don’t write.. you only come knocking when you need something.”
The blob her in the soul also said the same shit. Ate doesn't care about anybody but her world domination autism. She's no-lifing this like she was no-lifing her shitty job and shitty existence
>>
>>6088397
> no-lifing this like she was no-lifing her shitty job and shitty existence
That's the sort of thought that would throw me into a panic attack. Nothings changed. Shitty boss, shitty deadlines, bullshit bureaucracy
>>
>>6088344
>>6088356
>>6088397

>”It’s a deal”

“Only if you stick it out until the end, that is. If you dip, you get nothing.”


“Sure thing babe! And look, we can like, call it even now, ok? No hard feelings. Besties! Love you! Bye!”

She hangs up the phone, and you heave a deep sigh. As far as you know, you have at least 6 enemies to reckon with: the three core members of ADAM that you know of- Braun, Rosa, and Chen. Then, the plant manipulator and whoever was controlling those skeletons. Finally, Heracles himself. If Herc’s handler shows up, whoever they are, that would make 7. Still, with Dorota, Pallas, and at least two, possibly as many as four allies from your end of the pantheon showing up, you should be ok on the numbers front in terms of incarnations, unless there are some major unknown factors. The sun is beginning to set. What should you do now?

>Talk to someone else (specify)
>Head to sleep early to prepare for the big day
>Write-in
>>
>>6088450
>Head to sleep early to prepare for the big day
Funny thought, what if we wore a camera and livestreamed the fight
>>
>>6088450

> Take a moment to consider authorities to mirror off your Divine Servants

Primordial Body (EX) from Pallas
Buy Divine Body, level it to 6, give it to Lethe and copy it.

Maybe leave Dorota's choice until the moment of? I'm thinking Thread of Algos, since it can transmit touch Authorities.

>Head to sleep early to prepare for the big day
>>
>>6088459
I'd be impressed by the camera that can hold up during the fight. Compromising our identity probably is a mistake though.
>>
>>6088459
>>6088466

>Head to sleep early to prepare for the big day

You select some authorities to copy- <Divine Body> (Purchased and Leveled to 6) from Lethe, <Primordial Body (EX)> from Pallas, and leaving Dorota’s ready to be swapped at any time (currently set to One With the Shadows (8)>.

You stay home, deciding to have your <Pygmalion Protocol> double go in your stead (along with your relevant equipment, minus the controls to the Auraphage). Meanwhile, Iwana and Dorota remain in the Realm, ready to be summoned once you land in Los Angeles. You had agreed to touch base with Eris in Rosa Huber’s face at a cafe near the convention center.

You see her descend, masked by stealth authorities strong enough to avoid public scrutiny, alongside Isabella, and the ‘new girl’- a tall, well built lady, maybe 5’11, with her face and body fully covered by heavy plate armor and armet helm. A deep purple cape flutters behind her, presumably responsible for her capacity for flight. “Good evening,” she says in polyglot-perfect English, “You must be Rosa Huber?”

“Yes,” you smile, extending a hand, “And you?”

“Narges,” she says, giving it a firm shake, cold steel biting slightly against your warm skin.

“It’s good to have you.”


“I heard Heracles was coming- I could not miss such a wondrous opportunity.”

You’re grateful for the extra hands, but how many battle freaks are you gonna have to deal with?

“Isabella,” you say, opening your arms for a hug, “Glad to have you.”

“..Sorry girl, you know I love you, but I’m here on business. If I don’t think you can win, I’m not going to help.”

“Well, luckily for both of us, I can.” You say, trying to project confidence. “Oh, right, I forgot to bring out the rest.”

You snap your fingers, opening up your divine realm, out of which stroll Iwana and Dorota. Eris cringes a little, “You’ve been hanging out with HER?”

Oops. You might have offended her. You decide to assuage the situation, “It’s not a social situation.” You raise your arm, demonstrating a cascade of crimson chains wound around your wrist and her throat. Eris whistles.

“I see you, girl. So, what’s the plan?”
>>
>>6088777

You explain all of the information you have on ADAM and Heracles to the girls.

Eris narrows her eyes in contemplation “The helmets probably defend based on <Sound> rather than <Sight>, right?”


“That’s possible- but my current theory is that they actually are completely dead to external input. Instead, they have some sort of mechanical apparatus that takes in sensory input and <Replicates> it rather than conveying the information directly, with a primary focus on filtering out divinity.”

“So mind altering effects are a dud then.”

“Just the sensory ones- other stuff is fine.”

She nods, “You’re probably better there than I am, so I think I’m actually gonna focus on physical damage.” She holds out her hand, and lightning crackles at her fingertips.

“I’m going to fight Heracles.” Narges declares.

“It’s possible that his armor is completely invulnerable to weaponry- it is made of the Nemean Lion after all.”

She just nods. “Our best solution is to aim at the masks anyway. If we can break them, Huber can simply eliminate them with her song, yes?”

“I should be able to.” You reply, “Pallas and Algos, you two are going to be dealing with the ADAM guys- Heracles is one thing, but on his own, there’s only so much he can do against all of us at once.”

“And what are you gonna do, Atë?”

>Focus on Heracles
>Focus on ADAM
>Write-in
>>
>>6088778
>Focus on Heracles
With play the heel on our First Movement: Folly and Ruin, and the ability to shapeshift into his dead wife, I think we can snowball debuffs on him. Plus Chen counters us.
>>
>>6088778
>Focus on Heracles and Tisiphone
>"So whom are we missing to make our pantheon complete? Limos?"
>>
>>6088778
>Focus on Heracles
Not like he isn't going to focus on us. See if we can draw him further and further away from his support.
>>
>>6088815
+1
>>
>>6088815
>>6088818
>>6088837
>>6088866

>Focus on Heracles

“We need all the hands we can get against the big fish- ADAM is a secondary priority.”

“Is that so?” A voice rings out from above- a masked figure, decked out in tactical gear, floats above the table with a telltale pair of blazing teal wings. She draws a golden orb, clicking a button on it to activate it. A cascade of golden light bears down on the area around you, though <Omen> does not activate. Instead, every mortal within a two mile radius seems to completely vanish, almost as if they were never there.

As before, you hear a supersonic crack as a massive divinity-imbued metallic rod careens towards your position, forcing you to leap out of the way: it seems like Chen and Braun are here to play too. Dorota, as you planned, slinks into the shadows and heads towards the source of the projectile.

“Look, kid, I get you want your get back, but I have bigger fish to fry. Where’s Herc?”

Instead of answering, she hurtles towards you, but rather than reaching her destination, a transformed Pallas deflects her claws, sending her careening into the floor. She breaks her fall with her arm, pivoting into a roll and hopping back onto her feet.

“[Devour Everything, Ophicius!]”

You’ve heard that voice before. You leap to the side, avoiding the jaws of a massive serpent built from starry purple divinity. However, it wasn’t necessary- you were never the target. Pallas launches himself into the air, emerald flames burning beneath his feet as he vaults onto the top of the snake, bringing the tip of his spear down onto its starry body. He nearly manages to decapitate it, but its body is far too thick, remaining intact enough to whirl around and slam its head into his side. Pallas blocks with the back end of his spear, but the force is too great, sending him flying backwards into a nearby building.

“WE NEVER FINISHED OUR FIGHT, COWARD.” Mouse roars as he leaps onto the snake, wearing a similar face mask to Tisiphone.

Pallas gets up almost instantly, throwing himself back into the fray with frightening speed. He seems to recognize that his priority should be the caster, not the summon, but the snake makes that difficult as a burst of poisonous mist erupts from between its bared fangs.
>>
>>6088911

Finally, you hear a crash behind you, <Omen> and <Preservation Instinct> warning about the oncoming head of a familiar oversized halberd. You snap your neck around, whirling out of the way of the attack while maintaining a close distance. You draw your claws, set to the second form of <Heaven’s Ruin>. You send a weighty strike, still fast enough to tear through the air like a bullet, right into his golden mask. However, he casually tilts his body, near effortlessly avoiding the strike before slamming his knee into your gut. The blow is too fast and too close to dodge, but you activate <One With the Shadows> courtesy of Dorota, allowing the strike to pass harmlessly through you as you take a few steps back.

“Heya Darrell. Long time no see. How’s the missus?”

His reply is a mad dash forward, readying a blow powerful enough to cut even your newly reinforced body in half without slowing, let alone stopping. However, he suddenly stops, redirecting his force into a backswing. The shaft of his weapon meets a bulky zweihander wielded by your new armored ally, who surprisingly manages to match his strength and stay unmoving against the might of Heracles.

>Fight close up
>Try to land <Touch of Madness>
>Try to trap him in your <Manifestation>
>Allow Narges to take the lead and focus on support
>Write-in
>>
>>6088915
>>Try to trap him in your <Manifestation>
>"Maybe if you were better in bed your wife wouldn't have cheated on you. Maybe if you didn't have anger issues she would have been more comfortable talking to you about her needs."
>>
>>6088915
>Allow Narges to take the lead and focus on support
> Get Fetters all up in everyone's business

We've only got one shot on the manifestation, we need know more of their tricks and style first. See if we can bait out any manifestation they might have.
>>
>>6088958
+1
>>
>>6088915
+1

>>6088936
I like these but I think we can really drive one home by using our shapeshifting

Maybe something like "Braun brought back his coworker, and you won't even do the same for your wife? Do you need me to do it for you?"
while flaunting a palladium clone shapeshifted to look like her in a degrading manner.
>>
>>6088936
>>6088958
>>6088964
>>6088979

Waiting on a tiebreaker- since these two options are mutually exclusive, I'll toss a coin if one isn't made rather than making a compromise option
>>
>>6089033
I'll swap to >>6088958
Maybe it is better to wait a bit.
>>
>>6088936
>>6088958
>>6088964
>>6088979
>>6089053

>Allow Narges to take the lead and focus on support

You fall back another step, comfortably outside the range of Heracles’s weapon, and lift your hand, launching your <Fetters> out towards him. He doesn’t even turn around, deftly avoiding the chains with nimbleness unbefitting his size. Though Narges seems to have him matched in pure might, her speed is incomparably slower, only surviving thanks to your interventions and the uncanny toughness of that armor.

“Forgetting something, bitch?”

<Preservation Instinct> activates, guiding your body to the right as a torrent of azure flames races past where you stood, charring the ground and warping the concrete into a smoldering mess. You turn your eyes upwards as you sense another danger- a woman, surely Chen, points a rapier at you, taking advantage of the opening. Despite a lacking physical threat, you feel as if you shouldn’t let the blade take even a single drop of blood.

“Watch out!” Narges yells as Heracles punts her across the street like a football, putting a boot-shaped dent into her sturdy breastplate and sending her tumbling across the asphalt. You smirk as he rushes back at you, activating <Battle Acuity> and <Supernatural Speed> to their maximum output. You swap <Heaven’s Ruin> to its third form, seeing them transform from lead gray to bejeweled crimson as you dodge a claw swipe from the fury. You place your hand on her arm, injecting a <Thelematoxin> and redirecting her momentum upwards in a circle toss, sending her crashing into her ally. Using your 360 degree range of vision, you predict another attack from Heracles, bend your legs into springs, and leap almost a dozen yards away in a single instant.

A bolt of lightning shoots at Heracles from seemingly nowhere, forcing him to jump back to avoid the shock. Narges uses the retreat as a chance to re-enter the fight, tossing her massive sword like a throwing knife and closing in not far behind it. Heracles blocks instead of dodging, but the sheer force of the impact sends him reeling, leaving an opening for another incredible burst of electricity from Eris. He falls to the ground, and Narges capitalizes, catching and swinging her sword down on his head in a single movement. However, she is forced to stop by Chen, who thrusts her rapier at her face, threatening to pierce through its eyeholes and dig into her brain. Meanwhile, Rosa continues to press you, fiery claws crackling like bonfires as you use your precognition to evade perfectly.
>>
>>6089108

“I didn’t come here for you,” you taunt, mostly for fun but also to prepare for a <Manifestation if necessary, “But if you’re so eager to DIE AGAIN I can oblige.”

You use <Touch of Madness>, instilling a deep fatigue into her and creating the illusion of darkness. Normally, she would be able to resist, but your power resonates with the <Thelematoxin> causing her to stagger. However, rather than collapsing, she pierces her own shoulder with her claws, creating and cauterizing the wound in a single stroke. She writhes in silent agony as blue flames explode from the point of contact, forcing you to step back and watch as your divinity is burned out of her system.

“You guys are really into self harm, huh? You say, still remembering the image of Braun biting off his own tongue to escape. You launch your <Fetters>, each tipped with <Down to the Core> at her mask, forcing her onto the backfoot as she dodges and shatters the links with her talons. You click your tongue- her regenerative capacity is impressive.

(Regardless of vote, select between Cautious, Normal, and Reckless)


>Summon a <Palladium> to help in the fight
>Try to land a manifestation (specify target)
>Focus on killing of Rosa
>Focus on killing of Chen
>Try to bait them outside the range of the mortal-free zone
>Summon a <Plaything> (Pallas by default, though you may specify another option)
>Maintain your distance and try to win the war of attrition
>Write-in
>>
>>6089110
>Focus on killing of Chen
If we can get her it's open season for illusions. Knowing this, they'll be desperate to defend her and will hopefully burn some big cards.
>>
>>6089110
>Focus on killing of Rosa
>Summon a <Plaything> (Pallas by default, though you may specify another option)
Tagged her once, we can tag her again.

The protection from mind altering effects is their helmet isn't it? Although...<Figure Unspeakable> isn't rooted in Divinity is it? I wonder if it would bypass the protection.

> RECKLESS
Now seems a solid time, while we have allies to pull our ass out of the fire. When Eris inevitably leaves us high and dry (moments after breaking a nail) will be a good time for cautious.
>>
>>6089137
Can't agree with this course of action.
Literally the last line of the update notes how impressive her regen is.
They also sent her in first and have her tying us down, so they have faith in her ability to survive.
I'm afraid focusing on her will be playing right into their hands.
You did remind me I forgot part of my vote though.

>>6089110
>RECKLESS
>>
>>6089143
Yeah, that's fair. Let's take a crack at cracking Chen.
>>
>>6089118
>>6089137
>>6089143
>>6089161

>Focus on killing off Chen
>Reckless

Christ, there’s too much math here. Lmk if there are any miscalculations.

10 (Omen) + 10 (Preservation Instinct) + 16 (Supernatural Speed + Primordial Body) + 14 (Titanic Strength + Primordial Body) + 10 (Battle Acuity) + 8 (Weapon Training: Claws) + 12 (Divine Body + Primordial Body) + 6 (A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices 10 +3 from <Born Disaster> (Halved due to partial combat functionality)) + 6 (Fetters of Atë (effective level reduced due to the ineffectiveness of the mind altering portion of the <Art>) + 5 (Down to the Core) + 3 (Sunday Best (effective level reduced due to ineffectiveness of the stealth element)

Die Size: 100 exactly

Modifiers: 0.5 (Martial Skill) + 6 (Weapon Bonus)

Give me 3 rolls of 3d100+6. The 0.5 will be added manually. (Any mistakes in your favor will be added at maximum value, any mistakes against your favor will be ignored so please point them out anyway.)
>>
Rolled 8, 15, 90 + 6 = 119 (3d100 + 6)

>>6089170
Wow that is a lot
Gonna roll now and examine while waiting
>>
Rolled 51, 50, 92 + 6 = 199 (3d100 + 6)

>>6089170

Diceeeeee
>>
>>6089170
OK

>12 (Divine Body + Primordial Body) + 6 (A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices 10 +3 from <Born Disaster> (Halved due to partial combat functionality))

This part seems a bit off, more specifically
>+ 6 (A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices 10
Like something got deleted but not completely?

Also the dice should actually be a bit larger
10 from omen
10 from pres instinct makes 20
16 from SS/PB makes 36
14 from TS/PB makes 50
10 from BA makes 60
8 from WT:C makes 68
12 from DB+PB makes 80
6 from ATFATV makes 86
^^^ maybe this should be +10? It is the messed up line and the skill level is 10, but I get it might not scale 1:1 for combat
3 from BD makes 89 (or 93 if above line should be 10)
6 from Fetters makes 95
5 from DTTC makes 100
3 from SB makes 103 (or 107)

Also dang, I thought the system couldn't cancel out the mind altering portions of Arts so easily, just Authorities. Poor Fetters :(
>>
Rolled 38, 92, 3 + 6 = 139 (3d100 + 6)

>>6089170
>>
>>6089192

To clarify, Born disaster was not forgotten. Rather, it was calculated as (10+3/2) = 6.5, rounded down as is conventional to 6. ATFATV's total effective level was halved since it is not in totality a combat authority- similar considerations would be taken with other utility authorities leveraged for combat and not their ""intended effect"", like using Lightbringer's Spotlight for feints and blinding or One With the Shadows or Body of Water to merely phase through attacks. This is done to balance strictly combat and general utility authorities (otherwise, for example ATFATV would be equally useful in combat rolls as battle acuity or titanic strength which seems dumb to me)

>>6089172
>>6089173
>>6089193

Also, between 199.5, 119.5, and 139.5, 199.5 is taken (Moderately advantageous). Writing now.
>>
>>6089199
*((10+3)/2). You get the idea.
>>
>>6089172
>>6089173
>>6089193

You create two <Playthings>, one of Pallas (to whom you toss a spear) and one of Dorota. While they are marginally weaker than their human counterparts, both unable to use <Arts>, they’re still enough to keep Tisiphone off of your ass long enough to have a duel with Chen. They move out, trying to drive the fury away from you as you dart towards your target, baring your claws and going for the kill with the first strike- double output on both <Strength> and <Speed>, with <Battle Acuity> at maximum output.

That being said, despite your multiple layers of time delay and precognition, and despite a marginal physical advantage, it’s as if she can read your mind, eyes glowing a blinding gold as she moves to dodge your attacks before you can even begin to execute them.

“Did you know?” She says, thrusting her rapier forward in a perfectly executed thrust for your throat. You dodge by a paper thin margin, but she’s relentless, pushing you back further and further as you struggle to avoid the tip of her blade. You smirk, sending chains to bind her legs, but she simply moves around them, her legs making unpredictable, almost dance-like movements to subvert capture. She continues, “They did studies of the brain and the mechanics of decisionmaking and free will.”

You scoff, ignoring her lecture and tossing a car at her. It flies unimpeded, until, in a rain of shattered glass and golden light, she bursts through the car window, barreling down at you with the point of her sword. You easily deflect its trajectory with your claws. “They found,” she says casually, “-that a person makes a decision before they even become consciously aware of it. Now, could you win against a person who knew your next move before you did?”

She smiles, taking a step backwards to dodge a stray chunk of rubble from the fight between Heracles, Eris, and Narges. “Well, I don’t have all day. Let’s get this over with.” She flicks her saber up and down, up and down as if to beckon you forward.

“I’m gonna put another hole in your chest.”

She chortles, “Scaaary.” She puts on a confident facade, but you can tell that she really is terrified: the tip of her saber trembles ever so slightly, and you can almost smell the fear wafting off of her stance. She’s trying to provoke you, it’s all calculated. You let out a genuine chuckle at the pathetic taunt.

“You really gotta work on your acting, girl.”
>>
>>6089229

You leap forward like a lion, lengthening your arms and using them almost like a second pair of legs, vaulting off of them for a burst of speed. Her eyes dart wildly, looking at things that are there and things that aren’t yet as she moves to avoid. You grow a second pair of arms, then a third, using one set to manipulate <Fetters> and the other two to overwhelm her with attacks. She scowls- you’ve solved the problem of her exceptional visual prowess: it doesn’t matter if you can see it coming if you can’t dodge it anyway. Time to fulfill your promise. She parries one claw, then launches a riposte. You smirk, narrowly avoiding it and shifting the size of your arm, plunging it through her lung. Blood spurts from the hole, drenching your arm as you pull it out. However, something’s wrong: there’s a slight twinge of pain in your arm. The tip of her rapier is lodged about a centimeter into your bicep- she must have used this as an opening, but her arms seem to have lost strength before she could do any more damage.

“Told ya so.”

She coughs up a spray of blood, staggering backwards and dropping her sword. However, instead of clattering to the ground, it vanishes as if it was never there. “This was- ah fuck that hurts- all according to plan.”

You barrel towards her, aiming this time for her exposed neck. However, before your hand can reach, <Omen> warns you to jump back, helping you narrowly avoid a javelin courtesy of Heracles.

Then, suddenly, <Omen> (though not preservation instinct) flies into panic- they’re doing something with your blood. Black light divinity creeps up behind you, beneath your equipment and over your skin. “What is this?” You half ask half demand as Chen rapidly regenerates the injury (As all titans seem capable of, apparently).

“No more hiding, bitch. It’s time to play.” She heaves out through blood spit and grunts of agony.

“You motherfu-”

One pair of eyes is swapped for another. They brought your real body out to play.

>Continue to fight Chen
>Summon your buffed Palladium
>Change your focus to another target (specify)
>Flee
>Write-in
>>
>>6089230
>Continue to fight Chen
Oh fuck! Chen counter built us so hard. She really needs to die.

Put Gaia's gift to use too, we got that too recently for them to have prepared any counters. Use Oakheart to keep anyone else (Tisiphone) off our backs, have any freed Playthings move in and help, and be ready to use Perfect Defense if they set up something we can't dodge.
>>
>>6089230
>Continue to fight Chen
>Summon your buffed Palladium

Pffft, like we weren't planning on showing up in person anyway until less than a day ago. Do we feel like we have enough brain to just pilot the clone back to this spot, mid battle? Because that would be a hilarious fuck you.
>>
>>6089256
>Soulscape over to Povondra
>Have clone soulscape over to Dorota
Would be hilarious if it wasn't way too taxing to pull off mid combat
>>
>>6089230
>>Continue to fight Chen
was our real body swapped with the Pygmalion? or do we have now two Ate bodies present?
>>
One cool idea - we've been holding off on using moves like Wail or Figure Unspeakable to avoid friendly fire. If Chen can see the future though, we could start to use Figure Unspeakable and she'd see it before anyone else. Cognitohazard moves > clairvoyance.
>>
>>6089238
>>6089256
>>6089285
>>6089486

You smirk, “Did you really think that you’d scare me off this easily?”


Chen chuckles, cracking her knuckles, “Not a chance, obviously. More importantly, I don’t have to use that stupid stick anymore.” Light flashes on her fingers, which are now adorned with a pair of pointed steel knuckles. She readies a boxer’s stance, baiting you to come get her.

“Oh, no. We play by my rules now.” You lift your arm, manifesting a full power Palladium and invoking <Oakheart>. It balloons in size, towering to at least two and a half stories. Two additional pairs of arms burst from its body, each wielding a set of razor sharp talons. It slams its arm down at Rosa, who had been attempting a sneak attack from behind, forcing her to fly backwards.

Chen decides to take things proactively, rushing at you. You see her ready a punch, but <Omen> informs you of a feint, so you lean into the trajectory of her arm, swiping at her shoulder with her claws. However, she shifts her intentions on a dime, leaning into the jab and throwing a real punch instead. You barely have enough time to convert your ribcage to titanium, but the force of the impact is still devastating, denting the metal of your body and sending you careening into a lightpost. You exhale, reforming your body. However, something’s off- you just lost a chunk of divinity- meanwhile, Chen seems more energetic than even before you landed your punch.

“Divinity drain, eh? Not gonna work out, long run.”

“Then try me, skank.”

“I really don’t like you.”

You leap at her again, and she carefully ducks and dodges all of your attacks- <Omen> is being shockingly unhelpful- it seems like, since her moves are purely reactive, even once <Omen> warns you of her intent, she simply becomes notified of you being notified and changes her plan even faster. Then, you become notified of that, and she becomes notified of that, and it’s turtles all the way down until she outreads you and slams another fist into your face. You repeat your previous tactic, launching so many attacks that they become nigh impossible to dodge. However, as you do so, forcing her into an unwinnable position, she simply winks and smiles, vanishing in a black puff of divinity. <Omen> warns you to get back, forcing you to evade as a plume of blue flame tears through the smoke, boiling the asphalt like hot tar.

Your eyes narrow- somewhere on this battlefield, there’s a spacetime specialist. They probably brought you here, and now they’re manipulating the battle against you.

(Regardless of your vote, please select between Cautious, Reckless, and Normal)

>Keep focusing on Chen- without her eyes, their coordination goes down
>Find the teleporter- with his interference, you’ll never take down Chen
>Get rid of Rosa- without her raw power, you should be able to whittle down ADAM
>Get rid of Heracles- he’s your real target, and you can just leave after he dies
>Write-in
>>
>>6089668
>>Find the teleporter- with his interference, you’ll never take down *anyone*
>Reckless
We can also always turn on Perfect Defense if we ever do get hit
>>
>>6089668
>Keep focusing on Chen- without her eyes, their coordination goes down
Ok, so Chen didn't counterbuild us even with the rapier, she just borrowed that
I still want to try >>6089520
on her before we give up and go for the teleporter though. They're probably Kronos-lite.
>>
>>6089678
Support.

Yeah, fuck it. Let's decide to unleash <Figure> and only decide not to unleash it once Chen has been hit by it. We have to actually intend to do it though, a bit of a mental gymnastics there.

We can always patch up our allies broken psyches later if we need to.
>>
>>6089698
Depending on how many people she's sharing vision with, we might catch their whole team.

I figure she's gotta be sharing with the teleporter at least, for those perfectly timed ports. A quick stun for both of them and we can tear her head off.
>>
>>6089670
>>6089678
>>6089698

>Keep focusing on Chen- without her eyes, their coordination goes down

Also, since nobody but >>6089670 voted on it, I will presume that
>Reckless
Is the desired method. Please give me 3 rolls of 3d100+6, as before.

Don't worry- strategy, tactics, and other such non-divinity based factors will be reflected in the DC (as I do not want to reveal their numerical value or spoil their potential effectiveness)
>>
Rolled 43 + 6 (1d100 + 6)

>>6089775
Yes I'd like reckless, I always forget :(
>>
Rolled 1 + 6 (1d100 + 6)

>>6089775
RECKLESS!!!
>>
>>6089778
>>6089780

Uh, you guys forgot some dice. Please both roll an additional 2d100 to supplement the existing rolls
>>
Rolled 75, 91 = 166 (2d100)

>>6089775
Thank fuck we did with a roll like >>6089780
>>
Rolled 30, 95, 78 + 6 = 209 (3d100 + 6)

>>6089775

MADDDDDNESSSSS
>>
Rolled 49, 31, 51 + 6 = 137 (3d100 + 6)

>>6089775
>>
>>6089778
>>6089787
>>6089842
>>6090117
of the three viable rolls we have 215, 209, and 137, out of 3d100 averaging 151.5
are we just gonna ignore the 1? doesn't feel right
>>
Rolled 59, 32 = 91 (2d100)

>>6089780
I supplement this dice roll and may the gods have mercy on it.
>>
>>6090499
so 215 for >>6089778 + >>6089787
and 98 for >>6089780 + >>6090499
215 is still further from 151.5 than 98
>>
>>6090499
Ok, average is 150ish. We have 98, 215,209,137.

98 is 52 from average, 215 is 75 from average, 209 is 59 from average.

Hopefully Chen gets a mindful of WTF IS THAT ARGLBRG
>>
>>6089778
>>6089780
>>6089842
>>6090117
>>6090499

Reckless- 215, 209, 98- result: 215

You whistle, beckoning the palladium to help rid yourself of the interloper. You see it charred somewhat and, though it has regenerated a bulk of the damage, it seems as if Tisiphone’s flames do a significant amount of damage to it. Still, it seems capable of stalling for long enough for you to fight Chen.

You race towards your enemy, using your <Fetters> to limit her escape options, forcing her to look at you. Then, you <Decide> to transform into your <Figure Unspeakable>. She staggers, clutching her head with agony- but you can tell it's an act. Instead of attacking, you throw a feint, baiting a “surprise” counterattack from Chen. You smirk,

“Dumbass.”

You punish the punch, wheeling around to avoid and driving a kick into her side. You feel her ribs snap with a satisfying crack as you follow through, sending her streaking across the air and slamming into a semi truck. She goes limp- seems like you broke her spine.

You rush over to attack her, but she vanishes in a puff of black smoke. You focus on your third eye, searching for a trace of her divinity. Eventually, you find it- the backrooms of a nearby grocery store. You fly over, sending a supersonic boom over the battlefield, shattering the windows of every building nearby. In a matter of moments, you find yourself barrelling through the wall towards her. She manages to barely avoid the strike and deflect the rubble, but it’s obvious that, though she seems to have regenerated fully, the fatigue is starting to build, particularly the stress on her brain from the constant precognition abuse.

“You’re a real monster, you know that?” She says, the glow around her body flickering slightly as she readies another fighting stance.

“Much obliged.”
>>
>>6090509

The arms jutting out of your back stretch, articulating at another joint and extending even further forward. Your leg muscles expand, and you compensate for the massive topheaviness by replacing your lower skeleton with dense, durable metals. She puts up a good fight- indeed, towards the beginning she lands far more strikes on you than vice versa, but ultimately the gap in sheer stats is insurmountable, especially given that she has to tone down her vision to prevent it from frying her brain. She stumbles, under the weight of a blocked kick, leaving her back exposed, allowing you to land a devastating blow, shattering her spine and practically crushing her lungs. She collapses unconscious to the floor, but, before you can finish the job, a skeletal form interrupts your strike, buying enough time for the teleporter to evacuate the titan once again.

One skeleton becomes a dozen, a dozen becomes thirty, as a massive pile of bones and blades pours down on top of you. Their bodies are weak, however, and you pulverize five of them with a single swipe of your arm. <Omen> warns you of imminent danger, however, so you fly up through the ceiling of the building. The skeletons explode in a burst of black flames.

“Boss!” You look down- Pallas stands there, breathing heavily but in pretty good physical condition, “I won my fight. What do I do now?”

>”Keep Tisiphone busy- I need someone to keep her off my back”
>”Go support Narges and Eris- I doubt they’re doing great against Heracles”
>”Go support Dorota- she doesn’t seem to have wrapped up her fight with Diomedes and the Dryad.”
>”Stick with me- I need someone to cover my back.”

Meanwhile, you plan to:
>Fight Heracles
>Fight Tisiphone
>Hunt down the teleporter
>Hunt down the necromancer
>Link up with Dorota
>Write-in
>>
>>6090504
>>6090502
RECKLESS ALWAYS PAYS OFF BABY

Damnit, we couldn't kill Chen for good.
Nice job Pallas too, I was shocked they got ahold of Mouse, he must have been very dedicated to finishing that old auction duel.
>”Go support Dorota- she doesn’t seem to have wrapped up her fight with Diomedes and the Dryad.”
Only 2v1 that isn't in our favor.

>Fight Heracles
Time to finish this guy
>>
>>6090510
>>”Stick with me- I need someone to cover my back.”
>>Hunt down the teleporter

Just to confirm: don't we still have a Pygmalion Protocol on the battlefield? Or what happened to it?
How much Divinity do we have right now?
>>
>>6090510
>”Go support Dorota- she doesn’t seem to have wrapped up her fight with Diomedes and the Dryad.”

>Hunt down the teleporter
Going to be hard to finish anyone off with a teleporter around. Finding the bastard though...
>>
>>6090523
Don't think we do - Chen borrowed a weapon from the teleporter and upon drawing blood from the BB it swapped the location of it and our real body. So it's wherever we left our real body, presumably somewhere safe and far away.
>>
>>6090523

>>6090544 Is correct, the <Pygmalion Protocol> is no longer on the field.

>>6090521
>>6090530

>”Go support Dorota- she doesn’t seem to have wrapped up her fight with Diomedes and the Dryad.”
>Hunt down the teleporter

Pallas nods, soaring away in a burst of verdant flames. You focus your third eye, and, after a few seconds of searching, find the place you’re looking for- about a block away, on the third floor of an apartment complex. North northeast. You ready the <Pegasus Cloak> and activate your stealth authorities to the mask, hoping to avoid being seen as you fly through the air towards the black divinity signature. You make it to the destination, slinking in through the shattered window. However, the moment you step inside, <Omen> and <Preservation Instinct> suddenly burst into panic mode.

Something is wrong. Hoping to evade whatever trap they have laid, you swap your <Heaven’s Ruin> gauntlets to <First Form: Skyfall>.

>Adding a new rolling style! <Desperate>: <Desperate> rolls will, rather than taking the most extreme set of 3, instead take the 3 highest and 3 lowest rolls from the totality of all 9 total die rolls and select the most extreme possible outcome.

>For example, imagine 3 rolls of 3d100: 2, 88, 53 (143); 46, 55, 75 (176); 91, 43, 33 (167). A <Reckless> roll would simply take the most radical of these 3 rolls- 176. However, a <Desperate> roll would compare the highest possible set of these 9 numbers (91, 88, 75- 254) and the lowest (2, 33, 43- 78) Then compare the differences (102.5, 73.5) and take the higher of the two results, in this case, 254.

>However, Desperate rolls will incur an automatic 3 point penalty to both totals. In this case, changing the rolls to 251 and 75. In this case, the roll would still come up high (99.5>76.5). As always, the higher value wins ties.

This is an evasion roll. [bold]Please select between Cautious, Normal, Reckless, and Desperate.[/bold]

>Die size: 10 (Omen) + 10 (Preservation Instinct) + 16 (Supernatural Speed + Primordial Body) + 10 (Battle Acuity) + 6 (Divine Body + Primordial Body, halved due to only partial mobility functionality) + 6 (A Thousand Faces, A Thousand Voices 10 +3 from <Born Disaster> (Halved due to partial combat functionality)) for a total of 58.

Please give me 3 rolls of 3d58+9 (3 from Pegasus Cloak, 6 from <Heaven’s Ruin>)
>>
Rolled 56, 44, 38 + 9 = 147 (3d58 + 9)

>>6090585
Uhh we should probably go with Cautious but new rolling type just dropped
>Desperate

Do we still have time to activate Perfect Defense?
>>
>>6090592

You can, but doing so will make you unable to move and thus result in an automatic failure of the evasion roll in exchange for the invulnerability
>>
Rolled 94, 86, 99 = 279 (3d100)

>>6090585
That you introduced desperate right here is uh...concerning. Very concerning, especially for a person who can encase their brain in steel and regenerate from it. Though I suppose that's more hilarious survivability than evasion.

Yolo?

> Desperate

Pity we don't have chameleon anymore, probably a good time to be a hundred thousand ball bearings.
>>
>>6090619
....I have had the most absolute shit luck on dice lately, and this right here, this was apparently what I was saving my luck for.
>>
Rolled 36, 12, 36 = 84 (3d58)

>>6090621
Oh hells, but they're the wrong dice aren't they?
>>
>>6090619

Letting this godly roll go to waste feels so bad that I'm just gonna keep it- multiplying each number by .58 and rounding down, of course
>>
>>6090627
Thank you based and merciful system administrator

I no longer want to try perfect defense btw
>>
Rolled 2, 2, 54 + 9 = 67 (3d58 + 9)

>>6090585
rolling
I didn't read anything but the update actively since I was busy, thought there were already 3 rolls
>>
>>6090592
so our rolls are...
(2, 2, 38) +9-3 = 48
(44, 49.88, 54) +9-3 = 153.88
(54.52, 56, 57.42) +9-3 = 173.94

average of 3d58 is 88.5
48 is 40.5 away
173.94 is 85.44 away

so our roll is 173.94
is that right?
>>
>>6091262

Those calculations are correct (though funnily if I hadn’t permitted the first roll you guys would have been in a lot of trouble)

>>6090592
>>6090619
>>6090623
>>6091258

You fly backwards, not even wasting the time to turn around, sending an ear-piercing crack through the air as you instantly retreat. A black aura shimmers in a cube around the target’s body. You hover for a moment and, almost immediately, he lets down the ability: it seems like the divinity cost is considerable. You rush back in, prepared to dash back out of its effective range if necessary. He holds out an arm, forming a disk of divinity that <Omen> notifies you is a portal. You feign falling for the deception, plunging your arm towards its inky black depths, before pivoting on a dime, shifting your momentum into a brutal roundhouse kick to the head.

You feel the crunch of tough polycarbonate against the side of your boot as you slam your foot into his face, following through perfectly and sending him reeling backwards. He staggers, collapsing to the wall as he struggles to gather the concentration for a teleport. However, before he can do anything, you open your mouth, activating <Star of Death> and <Eris’s Gown>, fully amplifying the terrifying might of your voice.

“[Kill yourself]”

The man stands up, straightens his jacket, and snaps his own neck.

>Congratulations!..

Before you can celebrate, however, <Preservation Instinct> warns you to move. You duck, dodging yet another blue inferno.

“You’re getting repetitive.” You say, rolling out of the way of another bolt of flame and bracing your body against the floor, launching your foot up and towards her neck. She dodges, attempting to grab at your leg, but you manifest a spike from its side, piercing her hand. Suddenly, she grabs onto your leg, then pivots into a firm hold as she shifts her body around and wraps her legs around your thigh. Though it doesn’t hurt, you can’t seem to shake her off, even after removing the spike. <Omen> reacts, notifying you of an undodgeable attack. On instinct, you activate <Perfect Defense>.

“<Divinity Manifest: Revenant’s Parade>"

Blue flames and tar-black malice wash over you.

>Activate your own <Manifestation>
>Try <Yours Truly>
>Maintain the <Perfect Defense> and observe
>Write-in
>>
>>6091298
>However, before he can do anything, you open your mouth, activating <Star of Death> and <Eris’s Gown>, fully amplifying the terrifying might of your voice.
>“[Kill yourself]”
Holy based

>Maintain the <Perfect Defense> and observe
Yours Truly is still woefully incomplete :(
At least get more info before trying it
>>
>>6091298
>Try <Yours Truly>
Almost certainly a terrible idea. Probably about to be bum rushed by everyone we've ever hurt, and hoy boy is that a lot.

And yet...
>>
>>6091298
I guess we are inbound for a parade of those we have killed, meaning... we are in for some trouble.
Perfect Defense will not get us out of there, it'd have to go on for too long and drain our divinity, that's not an attrition war we could win
but I have no other idea
>Try <Yours Truly> while maintain the <Perfect Defense> and observe
>>
>>6091298
If this counts as a tie I'm willing to swap to trying <Yours Truly>
>>
>>6091313
>>6091321
>>6091322
>>6091404

You maintain your <Perfect Defense>, desperately trying to think of a means to use <Yours Truly> to avert the situation. The world around you shifts, the almost claustrophobic hotel room expanding and sprawling out into a bustling street corner, filled to the brim with shades of bones, flesh, and blue flame. Music, dark but joyous, blares through horns and trumpets as a rain of azure embers rain down from the sky like confetti. It doesn’t harm the partygoers but each drop of fire bursts into an inferno the moment it touches your petrified skin, continuously draining divinity as it does. <Perfect Defense> obstructs system authorities, so you manifest your <Fetters>, rotating them above your head like the rotors of a helicopter to shield your body against the onslaught.

THUD. THUD. THUD.

Something massive approaches from upstreet, each step shaking the earth with its might: the Calydonian Boar, hulking with double the weight you last saw it have, lumbers through the asphalt, its mass so voluminous that it scrapes against the light posts on both sides of the street. A long sliver of metal- the very same one you impaled it on- juts out from its spiny fur and tough flesh, spewing fire like blood as it moves slowly, deliberately towards you.

“Ladies and gentlemen!” A voice rings out throughout the whole world, prompting the concrete beneath you to shift and elevate as if it was acting according to her script. “Are you ready for the main event!”

You notice a small winged figure sitting atop the head of the boar. She rises, raising her arms and bowing in a showmanly fashion before gracefully leaping from its head. “Let’s get some REVENGE!”

Raucous cheering sounds, tens of thousands of voices reveling in the idea of your suffering, demanding to see it soon and harsh. The colors of the sunset pour from your body, hoping to find something to help, but all they can feel is bottomless, endless spite. Rage. Indignation.

“Let’s start light. People, ten lucky souls, give me ten grudges!”

Ten of the endless legion of ghosts lift off the ground, exploding in a burst of heat and light. The energy pools at Tisiphone’s fingertips and, at the snap of her fingers, shoots into your chest.

A thousand divinity, lost in an instant.

<Yours Truly> doesn’t intercept the flame, but it reads it, allowing you to feel the grudges burnt for the fuel of the attack. A lost son, a love ended, a career ruined, a lover lost to suicide. Your brain staggers at the totality of the suffering. Of the loss.

It hurts.

Despite being immune to physical damage, you feel a pain like daggers in your heart as you soak up the suffering like a sponge. Your eyes widen in realization: you learn that revenge is…

>Depths of the pond
>Leaves of the tree
>Heart of the beast
>Mirage in the desert
>>
>>6091425
Oh god
None of these feel right and we're in trouble

>Heart of the beast
I wonder if Party Crashing to Eris will get us out of this
>>
>>6091425
>>Mirage in the desert
Revenge is an illusion. It's simply cruelty all the way down.
>>
>>6091425
Revenge is
>Depths of the pond
The darkness that drowns out everything else
>Leaves of the tree
The thousand reasons you'll utterly destroy them
>Heart of the beast
The mindless rage it provokes
>Mirage in the desert
The meaningless, hollow result, that never really existed

I'll pick
> Mirage in the Desert

and now rivers in the desert is stuck in my head, not that it's a bad thing
>>
>>6091434
>>6091448
>>6091487

People only seek a mirage when they have nothing else. Striving through the desert, heat and thirst and fatigue seeping through their bodies and clouding their mind, allowing the light’s tricks to fool them out of sheer desperation. In the end, though, nothing is left but sand.

“One hundred grudges!”

But, no rational mind would ever take a mirage over a real oasis.

“Don’t rush, you’ll ALL get your turn!”

The bark defending your body begins to crumble away as you stare down a hundred blazing, resentful souls, floating towards you with hostile intent burning with the light of a thousand lanterns.

Rosa smirks, “Finally given up?”

Mouths begin to open all over your body, and the light of the sunset begins to pour out of your soul and cast over the twilight streets of the Parade.

“Of course not.” You snicker, allowing your other throats to resonate in a perfect, baleful choir, “I’m here to give the people what they want.

You throw up your arms, all six, levitating off of the ground and basking the vengeful spirits in incandescent golds and purples and reds of your soulscape.

“It’s pointless,” she says, “What these people WANT is your head.”

You give a smug shake of your head.

“[First Movement]”

“No, this is impossible. THIS IS MY WORLD.”

“[Opus 1.]”

Desperately, she waves her hands, attempting to force the blazing revenants to fight back. They stand in silence.

“[Folly Ascendant.]”

The revenants stop dead in their tracks.

“YOU BITCH!”

Rosa claps her hands, dismissing her army. She tears through the sky in a headlong rush, waiting until a viable range to thrust her claws forward. You try to deflect, but the force of her strike is orders of magnitude stronger than it should have been in the real world, shattering every bone in your arm and the right half of your torso and sending you careening into a nearby building. You burst through the wall and collapse on the floor of an empty office complex, vomiting blood as you desperately rush to reconstitute yourself.

You try to keep singing, but it seems to have no effect on her. You narrow your eyes- you’ve dealt with the army, but this is still bad: in this world, <Resentment> is <Strength>, and her resentment towards you far outweighs yours towards hers.

>Use your own <Manifestation>
>Try to win the fight in the world of the <Parade>
>Try to slip out using <Yours Truly>
>Write-in
>>
>>6091530
>Try to win the fight in the world of the <Parade>
She may have raw physical might, but the gown buff should still be up and we just need one good hit on her helmet, like with the teleporter. Our regen is good enough that we can even trade blows and recover.
>>
>>6091530

> Remember that she is a soldier of the status quo, of the FUCKED world that birthed you. Resentment toward her? Hah, not worth your time. Resentment toward the world? Toward humanity? Yeah, that might be enough.
>>
>>6091569
>>6091642

>Try to win the fight in the world of the <Parade>

You close your eyes, reminding yourself that right now, she represents society. The status quo. The sham of freedom and equality that nearly beat you into the ground. You feel might swell in your muscles as the fibers restring themselves around your newly reconstructed bones and tendons, smiling at the rush of power that seeps from your deep seated resentment.

You rush back in, throwing a desk to obscure your approach, but it instantly evaporates in a puff of blue embers. You take advantage of the smokescreen, plunging your claws into her face, but she leans to the side, grabbing your arm in a practiced motion and slamming it onto the floor, her smoldering fingertips melting your flesh into a bubbling grease as she drives you into the asphalt, shattering your skull and painting the sidewalk with your brain matter. Pain wracks what remains of your body as the singing chorus of your extraneous mouths becomes a cacophony of shrieks and whimpers. You grow eyes in your arms as a temporary measure for sight while your head regenerates, using them to help dodge a dropkick strong enough to pulverize the ground beneath it, leaving a crater deeper than you are tall as you desperately flee.

You feel powerless. You HATE feeling powerless.

You finish reconstituting your head, and, with resentment nearly doubled, you leap back into the fray. This time, the gap in hatred has lessened, allowing your speed to finally be superior enough to gain the advantage you’ve rightly earned. Crimson chains erupt from your arms, and, though she is able to fly around them, they succeed in creating an opening.

You use your springlike legs to leap forward, allowing yourself to be impaled by her own claws, continuing your forward momentum and skewering your own gut across the length of her arm.

“Gotcha,” You say, blood pouring from your lips as you shatter the front of her mask, “Welcome to the symphony.”
>>
>>6091671

<Omen> shrieks. Something is wrong. You try to pull back, managing to dislodge yourself, but your movement is too slow. A cerulean conflagration engulfs you, a pain far worse than any injury you’d received in your entire life. On instinct, you activate <Perfect Defense>, barely managing to survive before you're rendered a pile of ash and soot on the pavement.

How is this possible? Is she immune? No, the miracle landed perfectly. <Folly Ascendant> is running rampant in her head, you’re sure of it. So how, why?

You check in on her mental state. The illusion is perfectly in line with reality

“If you were fighting Braun or Chen or any of the others-” she says, launching another devastating pillar of flame into your immobilized body, eating away a massive chunk of the <Auraphage>’s remaining divinity store, “Your little gambit would have worked.”

Seemingly just for fun, she plants a kick into your face, launching your petrified body into a dumpster.

“I’m not like them, though. Family? Riches? Food? No. There’s literally NOTHING I’D RATHER BE DOING THAN THIS.”

A sadistic grin pulls at her lips. Panic swells in your chest: you’ve severely miscalculated.

>Activate your own <Manifestation>
>Try <Strings of the Neurospaston> instead
>Regroup and try to win the fight physically
>Write-in
>>
>>6091672
>>Activate your own <Manifestation>
if she wants to "see us get beaten up and defeated" so badly. it's rather easy.
taunt:
>You're were just a soldier on the enemy side. Taking orders blindly is one thing, but now you enjoy hurting others.
>youre not just a monster. worse than me, a monster on a leashes!
>>
>>6091672
>Try <Strings of the Neurospaston> instead
If she wants it that bad she can have it. Similar to what we did to Pallas, an illusion of us to chase, beat up on, and wear down while we rest up. Except we should probably have it slowly start to overwhelm her so she doesn't think it's going too well and gets suspicious.

Also god damn she can really hold a grudge. We only killed her once, quickly even, no torture, no involving friends or family, and she still hasn't moved on. What an empty life. We'd practically be doing her a favor killing her again.
>>
>>6091683
+1
>>
>>6091683
If the dress is still on Neurospaston is definitely operating at level 40+ right now. And of course a point blank Spirit Wail wouldn't hurt either.

Overwhelming her desire to murder us with despair at her inability to do so.

One has to wonder just how long she can keep up the manifestation. I wonder if Auraphages are becoming common.
>>
>>6091680
>>6091683
>>6091818
>>6091872

You dissolve the petrification, considering when the <Manifestation> will end. How long has it been? Two minutes? Five? Ten? You crawl out of the garbage, skin burning with agony as you try to recover from being nearly incinerated. You leap into the air, barely avoiding another burst of flame.

You scream, putting everything into <Strings of the Neurospaston>, hoping to elicit despair and hopelessness. No effect.

You try <Touch of Madness>, showing her an illusion in which she beats the brakes off of you. She presses forward.

“W-what the fuck is wrong with you? Where the fuck did you get this much spite?”

“Johanna Weiss.” She says, shattering your femur with a devastating kick, “13. She wanted to be an astronaut when she grew up. She died suffering beneath a pile of burning rubble and airplane fragments.”

You leverage the element of surprise, feinting a cross hook and then shifting your shape, using your momentum to slam a devastating blow into her right side. She slams her broken arm into you, denting your titanium ribcage like an aluminum can.

“Emily Kim,” she mutters, sending a massive wave of flames at you. You leap into the sky to avoid it, “Expecting mother. Your livestream scheme made her relapse. She died when she drove her car drunk into a tree.”

You launch your <Fetters> at her. They wrap around her neck, but only serve to bind you to her as she grabs onto the chains, pulling them forward, “How do you know this shit?”

“Peter Schultz.” She spits out, ignoring your question. Her voice trembles with rage, “Military man. Wanted to retire but stayed in the business because he didn’t want his daughter to grow up in a world with PEOPLE LIKE YOU. You made him SNAP HIS OWN NECK. His last thought was an apology to his family.”

You release the restraints, stumbling backwards as you barely avoid a swipe that would have sent your body tumbling off of your head.

“L-look at you.” You say, trying to suppress the fear in your voice, “You’re not just following orders. You enjoy hurting people. You’re a monster, just like me.”

“Duh.”

She lifts her arms. <Omen> warns you of an unavoidable death. Unless-

“<Divinity Manifest: Choir of a Thousand Voices>!”

Half of the world shifts, allowing you to stumble back into the aisles of the symphony hall to regenerate yourself. As she moves forward, you notice that the ground beneath her feet is still asphalt and concrete, that her sliver of the world remains that of the <Parade>.

>Stand and fight
>Run away
>Write-in
>>
>>6091962
Fuck, we couldn't save it for Herc
She might be considerably more of a threat than I initially thought

>Run away

Gotta regen and figure out how she just brushes off all our mental effects.
>>
>>6091974
You can't destroy someone with their desires, when they're perfectly aligned with their actions. She's probably 100% aligned to the myth of vengeance.

Hell, we're probably making her stronger the more we attack her mentally.

>>6091962

> Drop all mental effects on her
> Fight with only physicals
> Stand and Fight

Mrrrrg, really want to run away to be honest, but it's just a giant "then what?" Like, if we're pinned down in a divine realm and she's free to mete out justice, she's just getting stronger and we're just falling behind.
>>
>>6091986
+1
I want to say all that shit in the second paragraph of >>6091683
>>
>>6092000
To be honest the smart thing to do is to go grab Pallas, and have the dispassionate warrior dismember the literal fury.
>>
>>6091986
>You can't destroy someone with their desires, when they're perfectly aligned with their actions.
Dunno if I agree with this. Surely you can still destroy them, they just won't mind that they're being destroyed.
>>
>>6091974
>>6091986
>>6092000

I'll need dice. Please specify between Cautious, Normal, Reckless, and Desperate
>>
>>6092091
>reckless
what kind of die?
>>
>>6092091
RECKLESS
>>
>>6092103
>>6092118

>Reckless

Give me 3 rolls of 3d113 (100+incarnation level for <Manifestation> (No additional benefit added since <Choir of a Thousand Voices> amplifies mind-altering and sound based abilities))
>>
Rolled 6, 48, 4 = 58 (3d113)

>>6092155
we're about to die
>>
File: 1451506795265.jpg (75 KB, 586x1070)
75 KB
75 KB JPG
>>6092161
>>
Rolled 16, 44, 106 = 166 (3d113)

>>6092155
Oh boy
Guess I need a roll like >>6090619
Gimme them 1 in ten thousand odds pls
>>
Rolled 54, 48, 5 = 107 (3d113)

>>6092155
Rolling!!!
>>
>>6092161
>>6092174
>>6092176

Adding the 6.5 modifier from gauntlets and martial arts: 64.5, 172.5, 103.5 (Reckless): Result- 64.5

You fully regenerate your body, rushing at the fury to bring about a final confrontation. You see a wide, ecstatic grin through the shattered remains of her mask as she effortlessly catches your arm.

“You’re afraid, aren’t you?”

Your eyes widen as she holds your arm like a vice, then each of the multitude mouths on your skin shriek in agony as she crushes the bone to dust and the flesh to a red paste. She slams her head into yours, sending you reeling back as a storm of blue flame erupts from her fingertips, baptizing you in flames.

You don’t even have the wherewithal to scream as she tears away at your body with her claws, sloughing off chunks of sizzling flesh and burning imprints of her claws into your writhing figure.

“Good. You should be.”

Flame engulfs you, agony permeating so far that your brain can’t handle the sensation, as death, unavoidable, ignoble, and pointless looms over you. Complete and utter defeat.

“Sorry I am late.”

Rainbow light explodes from your smoldering, barely existent remains as a black slime seeps out of your body, forming into the shape of a massive maw, replete with rows and rows of razor sharp teeth.

Dorota appears. For the first time, you see rage in her eyes. Tisiphone speaks:

“Servant- yes, she owns your soul. If you wish, I can free-”

Her voice is cut off as a figure leaps from the constituted mouth- Pallas emerges, slicing at Rosa’s throat. She dodges by a thin margin, attempting to retaliate, but a burst of green flame meets blue as Pallas slams her knee into Rosa’s chest. She speaks:

“Bad news- your allies have retreated. Good news, we’re here to bail you out.”

“Stop! She’s MINE.” A turquoise conflagration ignites with her at its center, threatening to devour everything whole. Pallas gingerly plucks your skull from the pile of detritus, leaping into the black mouth of Dorota’s own <Manifestation>.

~

>Crimson sunset
>Waking world
>Write-in
>>
>>6092186
>̷̧̨̗͔̟͎͔̭̥͎͖̫̤̀̐̈́̄̋͌͛̉̒̌͝>̷̮̼̳͕̤͇̫͛Ć̷͈̘̫͖̯̱͗̈́̎͘̚ṙ̴̡̧̝̣͉͇͖̖̳̣̰̆̑͜͜i̸̮̣̩̺̮̬̦̾̿͑m̷̙̳͍̻̘̬͌s̷̡̻̥̖̟̯̬͔̰̯̳̃̊͒̒̃͆̓͛̄͂͑̔̚̕͝ȏ̷̡̠̭̳͎̦̱̥͆̇̏̐̔̾̿̂̄͒͝͠͠ṉ̸̟̇̓͐́̚ ̴̡̖̥̿́͛͑̑͊͊͂̾́s̴̫͐͊̆ͅǔ̵̮̻͓͚̠̦͐̋̓̃̓̔̿͊̕͝n̷̨̢̛͕̺̗͖̪̺̖͆̈́͋̄́́̃̋̀̄́͜ş̸̧̨̛̤̘͚̘͇͕͖̎̽ͅë̸̢̧̯͓̟̤̰̱̣̪͓͕̱́͗͂̓̈̀͜͠͠ť̴̝͕͈̩̪̭̤͓
S̸̨̰͔̖͙̣̱͉͎̞̼̀͐̃͋̀̒̀̈́̉̐̿̈́̆̚Ứ̶̡̨̢̢͎̫͈̭̥̰̬̼̥̻̩͔̂̉̓̀̐̕̕͘͝͝ͅF̵͚͎̜͍͚͍̱̔͐̐̐̕ͅF̸̛͇͕͈̼͇͕̥̝͈̿̉͂͗̍́̒̒̈͜Ę̸̨̦̭͖͇͚͔͔͙͛̆̐̋̒͒́͜͜͝ͅR̸͈̫̳̞̪̻̼͉̎ͅ
>>
>>6092190
+1
Ate looking off into the sunset on the beach, sighing and saying "Man."
>>
>>6092186
>Crimson sunset
Damn it
I thought Chen counterbuilt us, but really it was her.
>>
is this sort of us at the moment as we battle?
>>6092186
what can i write in? just a two words or a character what is valid
>>
also this girl is funny..heheh she desires to see us suffer to battle us to win but she does not desire for people to be alive or for them to be well so she does not care beyond revenge they do not matter beyond that
>>
>>6092262
Not quite- the limbs and claws are about right but the body structure is a lot more human. Also, pieces of conventional human anatomy- skin, faces, etc, still exist on the <Figure> bit are almost more like torn clothes. Also, write-ins can be whatever you want, so long as it's coherent. However, out of character or blatantly impossible options may be vetoed.


>>6092190
>>6092195
>>6092203

"What the hell happened?" You ask yourself, sitting limply on the beach.

"You overestimated yourself," Atë states, scuttling over to where you sit, "As I've been saying, you haven't been devoting enough time and energy to real, tangible power that you can use in fights. Your soul is divided and so are your intentions- you need to pick an agenda and stick to it."

Yourself quivers in disapproval, "You underestimated mortals. Remember, <Impetus> is a coequal part of godhood as <Power>. While it is true that your soul is larger than theirs, the depths of human emotion- rage, determination, hope, and fear- you completely discounted them as pawns at your disposal rather than a real danger."

The glass lady chimes in, "You were plenty powerful enough, but your planning was insufficient. The ADAM guys essentially dedicated their lives and the totality of their time and energy to hunting you down. They researched and planned around your specific capacity and abilities, and you didn't do the same for them, merely hoping that dumb brute strength would see you through."

>Agree with someone (specify)
>Ignore them and wake up
>Write-in
>>
>>6092295
>Brute strength has been most all i have ever done, only time i am subtle is when i impersonating people becoming, best friends, a lover, a mentor getting to know them before tormenting or killing them for some sort of ultimate betrayal to break there trust if they do not flee, as i did with
>Shakir with his sharp sword, his darling Dahlia who he needed to find cowardice to live for someone who thought i was his brother having his back as promised through thick and thin
>That little dough headed doe who thought someone loved her
>if this was Abrahamic system i probably would have been Cain
>but guess it all just rolls back to was cashes and social media say about me, my hair screams "daddy issues"
>>
>>6092295

>Agree with someone (specify)
How do I get you dumbasses to work together? Power, Impetus, Planning, it doesn't take a fucking genius to tell they're all important.
>>
>>6092305
alot of our problems seem to be planning like we can make a decent plan and commit to it but we really dont think things through and been coasting along on pure power and our sicko cool combos we have been the biggest person in the room for awhile

and i KNOW we are supposed to fill the glass girl up with all our liquids and try and figure out how to cram it in our work life balance our balance with the girl we are before and then our job as äte murder
>>
>>6092295
>Agree with someone (specify)
Glass lady seems the most accurate, Atë second place

We need to fight them on our terms. Assassinations when they're alone. Kill their friends and families. Drive off potential allies like that teleporter and whoever has the plant Manifestation.

Also we owe Eris a thank you and more contact.
>>
>>6092326
Part of our planning definitely went off the rails when Pheme had her breakdown. I'd definitely hoped to talk more and get more intel. And uh, yeah, we're just prone to chasing random shit instead of focusing, since you know, we're controlled by a gaggle of anons. Probably not much we can do there, unless we buckle down and really plan out our downtime more thoroughly.
>>
>>6092384
We never agree on what to do on our downtime though

One example - martial arts training. It keeps getting pushed, but considering our own fighting style with shapeshifting there's no existing style we can use without sealing off our abilities and experience so far. It seems like a far less efficient way to spend our time than focusing on actual divinity and growing our soul. Plus if our girl actually had a passion for that stuff she could have done it before the arrival of the system.
>>
>>6092295
>They are all right in their own way
I'm gonna greentext my interpretation of Ate's thoughts, or what I want to direct them at
>Throwing more "power" at the problem doesn't solve the problems though, just makes them easier to ignore. Power for powers sake is a drug though that one can get addicted to and lose oneself in
>Impetus, motivation, what drives us? We don't even know who the fuck we are! I just want to be free, but I'm not even sure of the extent of what I'm running from.
>Philotes was split in two, there's four pieces of us right now.
>You said I can kill any, if not all of you, but what's the point if it's not the whole me that comes out the other end?
>>
>>6092580
>You said I can kill any, if not all of you, but what's the point if it's not the whole me that comes out the other end?
Atë would say killing the blob would eliminate the weakness inside us. That if we weren't ourselves afterwards it would be because we'd have become a better version of ourselves.
>>
>>6092610
of course she would say that, but blobself is the key to a proper impetus. killing her would fast-track finishing <Yours Truly>, but what is the point in being a soul in harmony with itself, if it's empty

I think finishing <Yours Truly> should be our next priority. And I think we should do a couple more quests. I want to test Statesman, Hierophant, Artisan, and Artist
should be managing our mafia, managing our simp followers, and creating more art
and to the Artist as difficult or herculean. These things could/should give us maybe more insight in what we want (and what the system tries to guide us to)
>>
>>6092548
Hazard of a qst protagonist I'm afraid, especially one in as interesting of a setting as this one. Inevitably as different people come in and out for different votes we'll have different priorities, and honestly some days I'm pretty random in what I want even as one person.

Ideally we'd start allocating our time in larger chunks, maybe two week intervals.

---

My goal with martial arts was to eventually acquire
> Trait: True Clawmaster

Any authorities which would increase weapon proficiency instead increase speed and strength

There are a lot of roads to power available to us though.

>>6092707
Yeah, mastering Yours Truly does seem pretty important.
>>
>>6092707
>of course she would say that, but blobself is the key to a proper impetus.
I'm just saying we already tried asking them things and never really got satisfactory answers.

>>6092847
Mastering YT doesn't seem like it'll happen overnight though
Have we truly mastered any of our Arts yet? Even Fetters, our best one, has like 6 upgrade paths available every time we practice it. Plus we lost because we had focused too much on divorcing our power from the System recently and neglected to grow our raw power. So while we can work on YT, we should also finally get around to eating some mortal souls. Our own power which the system doesn't get a cut of, but will probably reward us for anyway. Each one worth days of the plant like way of gathering sustenance that ADAM follows, according to the cookbook.
>>
>>6092847
Combat shapeshifting has been exciting I must say the accordion leg was a interesting move if anything and wound are a bit more relative perhaps we make dedicated combat forms "Stances" or poses for combat like our 3 approaches system for combat.


>>6092877
Think too much has been link able to äte perhaps we need to pretend to be some monster in diffrent regions of the world for our hunts sort of role playing giving ourself diffrent rules to train our diffrent abilities things like a set form and limited skillsets like do we only use wind drill or fetters or only use our puppets.
>>
>>6092877
Might be able to practice both soul eating and yours truly at the same time, since they're both oriented around the domain of the soul. It definitely won't be super quick to master though.

Figuring out what we really want though is our main schizo obstacle.
>>
>>6092897
>Might be able to practice both soul eating and yours truly at the same time
If this is true I won't be able to understand why devouring souls doesn't win votes. It gives us everything we want.
>>
>>6092902
>If this were* true
fixed it for you

pretty sure we will have to come to terms with "what we are willing to do to achieve power", or rather, your protagonist is.
eating souls directly feels like a bit more of a taboo than just have the system mend it onto you
my own reasoning on this is: it lacks a <impetus>, the torture method we'd just be doing it to gain power for the sake of gaining power. I suggested before that we can, instead of torture, tenderize them with visions of their folly.
we don't know what there protagonists backstory is, but I wouldn't be surprised to learn themes of substance abuse in her vacinity.
>>
>>6092912
>eating souls directly feels like a bit more of a taboo than just have the system mend it onto you
Once you understand what the system is doing I don't really see much of a difference. Souls are getting eaten either way, except when it goes through the system it's wasteful and no doubt the system itself takes a cut to maintain itself/other possibly nefarious goals.

>instead of torture, tenderize them with visions of their folly
There were a lot of ways to tenderize, it seemed as long as they were sufficiently disoriented anything would be enough. Even being nice and showing them a paradise would do it.
>>
>>6092927
>Once you understand what the system is doing I don't really see much of a difference
Yes, that is our understanding, and should be the protag's higher rationale be too. But we're still fighting against her psyche and what she considers taboo.
Yeah, we players decided to kill thousands with no regrets, that doesn't mean she killed thousands and has no regrets.
>>
OP please I need my evil girl fix
>>
>>6093949
QM is probably just staring at our all over the place responses wondering how to scavenge some character growth from it.
>>
>>6092304
>>6092305
>>6092374
>>6092580
>>6092707

Apologies for the radio silence. Dealing with some real life stuff. Should be back consistently now.

“You’re all right, and you’re all wrong.” You say, dangling your feet in the crimson ocean, “I’m missing something important.”

“Of course.” The glass lady sighs, “We always are.”

“Fundamentally, it’s a problem of <Output>.” Atë says, scuttling up behind you, “Your large divinity pool is impressive, but it essentially only gives you <Stamina>- something that <Nectars> and <Items> can essentially invalidate. Increase your levels, and create <Arts> that prioritize power over efficiency and finesse. Do that, and keep eating souls and nodes to swell your pool, and we’ll be able to crush everything in our path.”

“Look at yourself.” The blob says, melancholy permeating through its warbling voice, “Sitting here and plotting again. Isn’t there something more important than that right now?”

“Look, even if you insist on keeping HER around, the fact is that taking her advice is impulsive and reckless.” Atë interjects, “She prioritizes short-term pleasure with no regard to delayed gratification and puts off everything that we have to do. She’s irresponsible, and she doesn’t understand that my way is the only way shit gets done around here. We have no time to waste.”

“A flower not watered will wither and die.”

“Fucking cryptic metaphor talking ass bitch. Ignore her. We have work to do.”

>Go harvest a soul
>Work on developing <Arts>
>Check in on Dorota and Pallas
>Go visit Pheme
>Write-in
>>
>>6095554
>Check in on Dorota and Pallas
They really pulled our ass out the fire there. Thank yous are in order at the very least.

> Isn’t there something more important than that right now
But sellllf I'm terrified to talk to Pheme right now.
>>
>>6092934
perhaps one can in revenge or in pettyness when they are not even people to them or just people that dont matter
>>6095577
heheh support
>>6095554
no prob bob no apology
>>
>>6095554
>Go visit Pheme
We'll sort out this situation and then finally we can harvest a soul god damn
>>
>>6095554
>Fucking cryptic metaphor talking ass bitch
It's finally time to use this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QB13q0cJ7xc
>>
>>6095554
Oh right my vote

>>6095577
+1 complete with whining to the blob self; you're in your own fucking head you can whine all you want
>>
Here's what I'm thinking. We make a persona we like, a glass doll. We fill that sucker up with our ooey gooey feelings. Then we transform Atë into armor and tools for that self. Efficiency, pragmatism, ruthlessness, power, they're all just tools. That by itself is just an interwraith, and interwraiths are dumb and inefficient.

... Metaphorically and all that.
>>
>>6095577
>>6095610
>>6095660
>>6095661

“...I don’t think I can face Pheme right now.”

“You have to,” the blob responds, its tone uncharacteristically gentle, “Not for you, but for her. She needs to know that you care, that you don’t blame her, and that.. she’s more than an ally or a pawn or an accomplice. She needs to know that you care about her.”

“Doesn’t she already?”

“I don’t know. Maybe not. She might think you just want what she sees as her best parts: her wit, her perspective, her talents. Pheme, basically. She needs to know that the pile of insecurities and needs and loneliness in the middle of it all is something you need, not something you want gone.”

“I’m sorry. I- I think I just need time.”

“I get that, just.. don’t take too long.”

Atë shakes her head in disgust at her words, “She doesn’t need to know shit- especially since all of that isn’t true. Face it girl- Pheme is a nearly flawless utility. You need her, but it’s entirely a matter of practicality. Her emotional meltdown nearly got us killed- she could have helped us out and gave us intel but didn’t because she was too busy throwing a little fit over us not being locked up in her basement. She’s only better than that Epimetheus guy because she’s useful- deep down, they’re exactly the same: pathetic, desperate little fools who only care about what they want you to be.”

“I’LL KILL YOU.”

The blob explodes in size, towering over all three of you as it absorbs the seawater and lashes out with a tendril the size of a house. Atë nimbly dodges, baring her claws and tearing away at its inky black mass.

“Stop!” You lift your arm, forcing the two apart. The blob reduces in size, still trembling with rage while Atë roars, “See! She’s a liability. We can’t afford to keep her around!”

“Don’t kill each other. I have some errands to run.”

With a wave of your hand, you enter the real world.

You awake and find… a spoon in your mouth?

“You are awake.” Dorota says, placing the spoon back into a nearly empty bowl. You notice almost immediately that she isn’t smiling. “You have been unconscious for about 33 hours.”

“Where’s Iwana?”

“Busy training. She decided that <Arts> are the decisive factor in combat: unbound and undiluted by the system.”

“And you?”

“I have been here. Nursing you back to health.”

“I appreciate that. Hey, I know it’s kind of a pointless question given your position, but are you.. okay?”

“Actually, I have come to understand something.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“My first emotion. Rage.”

“Oh, uh, congrats?”

“No,” she shakes her head, “It is… most unpleasant.”

>Inquire further
>Meet with Pallas
>Go to the real world
>Write-in
>>
>>6095693
>Inquire further
Just wait until you get a load of sadness. Also didn't torturing people make you happy?
>>
>>6095693
>>Inquire further
u aight lady?
>>
>>6095726
+1
Has Dorota tried medication and other ways of feeling emotion? What about emotion-evoking authorities and similar? Surely there's a solution for her problems out there
>>
>>6095726
>>6095729
>>6095753

>Inquire further

“Didn’t you enjoy hurting people, though? Does that not count?”

She shakes her head, “It was sort of like.. living vicariously through them? I-” She pauses, tearing her own index finger off of her left hand. Blood spurts from the wound as black energy wraps around it, reconstituting her lost appendage in a matter of moments, “feel nothing. Whether I be injured or pleasured, it matters very little. I feel the sensations, of course, but I do not prefer one to the other. As I stated, it is like the difference between red and blue. Watching people so affected... it sort of made me able to imagine what it would be like to care.”

“Even still, you’ve contradicted yourself.” she tilts her head, so you elaborate, “You wanted to feel emotions, right? Wanted to undergo the ‘human experience’, so to speak.”

She nods, and you continue, “All human emotions are fundamentally rooted in three things: wanting, not wanting, and having. Your desire to be human was the quintessential form of wanting. Pure, unconditional longing. Then, after you read my soul and felt my emotions, you gained another. I personally have never experienced the “ecstasy of emotions”- that is an experience unique to you: the purest form of having, satisfaction.”

“And rage?”

“Anger is a secondary emotion, a response to something baser. Until now, nothing had ever gotten in the way of your desire because it was so ambiguous- any action was as in service to that goal as anything else. The moment you <had> something, a concrete font of everything you wanted, somebody taking that away finally made you upset.”

“I.. see?”

“Well, rage is actually pretty fun once you get the hang of it. Sort yourself out and it’ll be a blast.”

Her eyes widen in an almost innocent wonder, “Interesting. Yes, I suppose that is true. I lost my head a little bit- it really is fascinating what these things can do. Thank you, you have brought me back to my senses.”

“We’ll call it even at that, then.”

"No need. What debt can the brain owe the hand?"

>Drop in on Iwana
>Go to the real world
>Go see Pheme
>Write-in
>>
>>6095814
>Go see Pheme
I for one do not need time
Also if we've been out for 33 hours she's probably worried
>>
>>6095823
+1
>"I can't face Pheme right now, I need time."
>wakes up
>"You have been unconscious for about 33 hours."
>finishes talking to Dorota
>thinks for a bit
>"Okay I guess that was enough time."
>heads over to see Pheme
Kinda funny actually. I can imagine the blob self just shrugging in sync to her
>>
>>6095814
>Drop in on Iwana
Delayyyyyyyy

(I do really want to see Pheme though)

>>6095827
Grindmax Atë just seething at our inability to commit
>>
>>6095814
>>Go see Pheme
>What debt can the brain owe the hand?
she a real one fr
>>
>>6095823
>>6095827
>>6095843
>>6095844

>Check in on Pheme

You go to the entrance of your realm, thinking of Pheme and opening the door. It swings ajar, though, rather than feeling as if you were let in, it’s more like you simply opened an unlocked door. You hear the sounds of muttering and a faint scratching sound as you progress deeper towards a new door, a steel, deadlocked, almost dungeon-looking barrier between yourself and, as your intuition tells you, Pheme. Gritting your teeth, you transform and slip through the gap between the door and the floor.

You find yourself in a corridor leading to a large stone chamber. In it you see Pheme, hovering over a body of similar build and appearance to herself. Symbols are scrawled on the walls, carved from stone and then filled with an odd black mixture, and blood trickles under her bangs, presumably from her eye sockets based on the trail, down her face, and off of her chin. Divinity crackles at her fingertips as she chants a mantra in a language which, rather than simply not understandable, is most likely completely invented by her.

“What is this?”

She yelps as she turns to you, her concentration breaking, before rushedly waving her hand and shifting the world around you. You plop onto a comfortable couch in the living room, followed by a Pheme, blood hastily cleaned off of her face and hands.

“I’m so glad you’re ok! Look, I know that everything is my fault and Ididn’tdoenoughtohelpandIshould’veknownabouttisiphoneandandan-”

“It’s ok. Really, I don’t hold it against you. It was.. a failure on my part.”

“It really wasn’t. I… should have supported you. I should have been there when you needed me. I really am a failure.”

“No, you’re not. I promise you.”

Of course, your words are genuine/lies

“...so, what brings you here?”

>Ask about whatever it was you just walked into
>Ask about Tisiphone
>Ask about a player on the world stage (specify)
>Ask about the movements of the Penitent
>Share theories regarding the nature of <Gods> and <Souls>
>Ask about her progress with <Arts>

>Write-in
>>
>>6095870
>your words are both
She’s a failure and so are we

>Write in: how’s she holding up?
>>
>>6095892
>>6095892
+1
>>
>>6095892
Support.

Shits getting a little real isn't it?

(Aside. Let's make sure we're careful not to reveal interwraiths to Pheme, since apparently knowing about them can lure them in)
>>
>>6095892
+1
>Ask what the public learned about the incident
maybe I missed it, but where did the fight take place?
>>
>>6095870
>genuine?
>"Not a failure, just a mess. We both are."
>Ask how she is holding up
>Tell her what happened from out perspective
>Ask what the public learned about the incident

I also still want to know what happened to the Pygmalion Protocol, did it switch places with us when we were teleported in?
>>
>>6095892
>>6095979
>>6095980
>>6096018
>>6096201

She just laughs.

“How am I? I’m a fucking wreck, obviously. Anxious and guilty and angry and happy and sad. And spiteful, even though you didn’t do anything wrong. That’s the worst part- all these feelings, and I can only blame myself.”

“Hey, you’re not the only one. I’m a screwup. I can’t decide what I want or who I am or what to do. I-”

She puts her finger on your lips, stopping you from speaking. A sad smile spreads across her lips, “It’s my fault. I’ve been anchoring you down.”

“What, that isn’t what I-”

“It’s okay. I have a plan to fix it. What you walked in on was a very important project. I’m going to make a <Better Me> for you.”

“..What?”

“I used the <Pygmalion Protocol> for reference- but instead of using my own soul in it directly, I have another plan- a <PseudoSoul>- a clump of divinity that can execute the functions of a soul but lacks <Impetus>.”

“Why..?”

“Think about it! Pure reason and execution, a puppet for my <Will> and <Intellect> far removed from the messy humanity of it all. She can act perfectly in my stead, exactly as I know you want me to. She’ll never break down, she’ll never second guess or hesitate or whine or cry. She’ll be the perfect accomplice.”

“Marie, I-”

“And don’t worry about power or betrayal! She’ll be <Pheme>, and her <Soul> will be inexorably linked to mine. Almost like an avatar in a game or something. She’ll be able to give you what I can’t.”

“And what about you?”

“Oh, I’ll just… go back to my room. Well, it’ll be more of a floating chamber of divinity slime but that isn’t too different from how I used to live anyway.”

“And your sight? Your new lease on life?”

“It was fun but… I realize now that it was never meant to be. I’m sorry for dragging you along on my little delusion.”

>”This is perfect. I really appreciate it.”
>”Are you certain that there isn’t any risk of complications? A rogue homunculus is the last thing we need.”

>Write-in
>>
>>6096417

> Nope nope nope nope nope
> None of this.
> Absolutely none of this shit.
> Do we need to kidnap a therapist? I think we need to kidnap a therapist.
> It's...god. Fuck. We are so fucked up. I'm a sociopath's bridge to humanity, me <Recurring Catastrophe>. You're trying to slice yourself in half, I'm trying to glue myself together.
> Fuck
> Ahhhg
> BIG HUG
> I'm keeping all of me. Do you want to meet them? Because they're fucking INSANE. One wants to kill you, one wants to fuck you, and one just wants to be told what to do.
> We're keeping all of you. Fuck it. I need someone. Efficiency be fucked. We'll sort it out.
> We'll run away to Alpha Centauri and make new life. Fuck it. I think we can make it happen.
>>
>>6096443
+1
>>
>>6096417
>"You know, when I was pulling the rest of my pantheon in for the fight yesterday, Eris called me out. She said I only got in touch when I needed something, and she was right. I didn't just do that to her though, I did it to everyone, even you. So why would you do this? Go so far for me? Why do you even like me? I've been awful to you."
>"Please don't go through with this. I'm sorry I pushed so hard. I need you - the real you, all of you. You're my lifeline, the only thing keeping my own <Impetus> around."
This is getting pretty personal - if we can block Dorota from spying we should.
>>
>>6096417
>>”This is perfect. I really appreciate it.”
Good.
>>
>>6096443
>>6096588
+2
>>
>>6096443
first saying this then realization hits
>>6096588
and say this
>>
>>6096906
Yeah, what this guy said
>>
>>6096443
>>6096445
>>6096588
>>6096624
>>6096831
>>6096906
>>6097348

“No.”

“Wha-”

You lean into her, wrapping your arms around her narrow shoulders and holding on as tightly as you can without hurting her.

“I need you, Marie. I- I don’t give a shit if you lose your powers, lose your connections and your contacts and your informants. I don’t care if you never help me with the incarnation stuff ever again. God, I'm so fucked up. I'm sorry. I need you. Please.”

“But I, I failed! I almost got youkilled and I-”

“Fuck, I’m so sorry. This is all my fault- I never should have made you feel like this is all you were to me. I’ve been HORRIBLE to you, and I neglected you and I USED you even though I care so much and, fuck, please don’t leave me like this.”

Tears stream down your face, staining her crisp white dress shirt as you sink lower into her. She awkwardly maneuvers her arms out of your embrace, gently wrapping them around your waist.

“You don’t need to compromise yourself for me. I.. I don’t want to chain you down.”

“I don’t need to compromise yourself for you? You’re offering to throw away everything for me! Why… why would you do that? I’ve practically neglected you for months! Why would you go so far?”

Pheme lets out a shaky breath. Even through her clothes, her body is cold.

“First, it was just a… passing admiration. You were bold without being stupid, decisive without lacking in consideration, and, most of all, you were brave enough to stand against the whole world. I was watching you for a while. You gave me the courage to do something a little brave too.

“Then, we were business partners. You always looked at me when we spoke. You treated me as an equal, as a threat, as an asset. Eventually, I was your partner in crime,” a smile breaks on her face through the dried tears and disheveled locks of hair, “and you always came to me. You trusted my judgment, believed my theories even when they were wacky or unorthodox, put absolute faith in my capabilities and skills. Saw me for more than my flaws or my… disability. For once in my life, I wasn’t just a burden. I finally felt needed."
>>
>>6097380

“Did you know? I was actually terrified of talking to people in person for so long. Even with Eris, who I’d known for so long online, I was timid. Almost taciturn. Honestly, I was worried that I might break down or mess up when we first met. But with you, it was.. effortless. You gave me the confidence to go farther, to be bold and self assured and negotiate on an even playing field with some of the most powerful people in the world. Always, in my head, I imagined what you would do if you were there.

“Then, we were friends. I started watching you, even when we weren’t together. Creepy, I know, but I wanted, maybe needed, to know more. I became obsessed with learning your tells, learning when a smile or a laugh was real or fake. My heart wrenched when I found out how few of them were. I noticed so many more things: the way you tilt your head ever so slightly when you think, the way you hesitate to swallow the last sip of a glass of wine- even when a full bottle is right there on the table. The way you drum your fingers against the table when your mind wanders- and the way your rhythm is always ever so slightly off. The way you boiled with rage when I showed you my scars- the way you still get angry every time you see them now. I could go on forever.

“Even if it’s just sitting in the background, glimpsing through a foreign pair of eyes… just watching you is better than anything I used to have.”

“I’ll run away with you, if you want. Even the ‘dream’- with the devourer’s cookbook, I can complete it no matter where we go. We can run to space, or deep underground, or the fucking ocean, I don’t care. I’ll stay with you. It’s the only thing that matters to me.”

“...would you really do that?”

“In a heartbeat. I realize now that nothing in the world matters more.”

You can’t see her face, but you can feel her chest heave in quiet sobs as her shoulder begin to tremble. A warm dampness trails down the ends of your hair and onto your back as she breaks down and cries. “Why.. just for someone like me… how could you care so much?”

>”...”
>Tell her how you feel (write-in)
>You don’t mean that. You can’t stop now. Please, please take it back
>If you let yourself accept this outcome, you could lose everything
>Kill her if you have to, just, please, stop

>Write-in
>>
>>6097384
>"Because you're my first and best friend, and I love you!"
This might be a very very stupid answer
Please somebody else come up with better
I can't tolerate anybody ever telling me anything like this in my life already
>>
>>6097384

> Because you're awesome?
> You dismantled a fucking country of Incarnations with a god damn recording of my voice.
> You rolled up to the crazy bitch with First Blood and said 'Let's make a deal'
> ...
> And you understand.
> You know why. Why we're gods, and people are just cattle to the slaughter.
> You're like me. You've given up on this world. You know it's like a beached whale, rotting, about to explode from the decomp, and we'd best take everything we can before it bursts.
> Sisters of despair.
>>
>>6097384
Agreeing with the spirit of >>6097435
She was the first person to reach out to us
Hell, she was the only person to reach out to us
She's the smart one, she came up with the white noise speakers, the plan to sustainably ruin the planet
If not for her we would have ended up like Eris with her nuke the world plan
She feels needed? Maybe that's because we need her
We wouldn't be the [our name] she got so obsessed with if she hadn't supported us
>>
>>6097384
>"You dismantled a fucking country of Incarnations with a god damn recording of my voice. You rolled up to the crazy bitch with First Blood and said 'Let's make a deal'. Of course, I was sus of you in the beginning. But you were nothing but awesome."
>"I know we don't do everything together, we don't even do most things together. You're my home, my place to return to where I feel safe with."
>"You understand me, you see the world like I do -"
>"Ok, bad choice of word here, but I don't give a crap about the blind-thing, you have more ways to perceive the world than most. I never had you as 'disabled' in my mind."

We know of a doctor who could likely make her a new set of eyes. Give her the ring with Thousand Faces to morph into having eyes, and have Lavenza pin them in place.

(phoneposting)
>>
>>6097688
support
i would not dare use the word love
>>
>>6097396
>>6097435
>>6097628
>>6097688
>>6098556

A chuckle escapes your lips, ““Someone like you?” Are you kidding me? You’re like, the coolest person I ever met! You deduced my entire identity based on covert surveillance and grainy video footage. You toppled an entire government with nothing but my voice! You learned more about the Uncrowned King than I did, even after I straight up infiltrated his cult.”

Your grip around her tightens, and her cold flesh begins to heat up from embarrassment as you continue, “You’re smart, you’re funny, and you’re so much stronger than me. You came to terms with who you were and what you wanted and.. you were ready to make the ultimate sacrifice for me in a heartbeat. Without me ever even knowing what you gave up.”

“You’re exaggerating,” she starts, but you swiftly interrupt:

“You know that isn’t true. If anything, I’m understating it.”

The world around you is cold. The sound of wind whistling through the winter air rushes in your ears as you lean into her chest for warmth.

“Hey, Marie?” You ask, your voice weaker than she’s ever heard it.

“What is it?” She replies, projecting strength despite her discomposure.

“I almost ruined you.” You half whimper half ask.

“Never,” You can hear the smile in her voice, “Even as a puppeteer sitting in the dark and the cold, even in a world of endless nothing, it would have all been worth it. Now and then, I could never have regretted it.”

“Even after everything I did to you? To everyone?”

A shimmering doe lies bleeding in the winter woods, staining the opaline snow with crimson blood and golden ichor.

“Even at the end of the world.”

You break down, crying like a child in her arms, black sludge pouring out of your skin and staining the floors in murky ebony streaks. All of your improvements to your form- the figure, the face, everything- melts away as your human form, <Yourself>, lies trembling in the aftermath.

“..Will you stay with me?”

“Always.”

Your connection, the thread between her soul and yours, begins to resonate. The golden aura of the system crumbles away, replaced by an unbreakable tie of purple and red.

“I love you, Marie.” You cough out between heaving sobs.

“I know.” She laughs, not the hyena-esque cackle you’ve grown accustomed to, but a sound that feels like a splash of water on a sweltering summer day. You can feel her chest tremble as she lets it escape her lips.

You’re tired. So, completely exhausted. How have you not noticed? Slowly, consciousness slips from your fingertips, along with the burden like hundreds of pounds of weight.

~
>>
>>6099503

”What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

The bottom of a crimson sea. Red, blood, rage. The ocean boils with the fury of Atë. Her <Figure>- your <Figure>- looms over you, a massive behemoth of tongues and teeth.

”WE CAN’T AFFORD TO BE LIKE THIS. HAVEN’T YOU LEARNED YOUR LESSON? YOU CAN’T TRUST ANYONE BUT YOURSELF. HOW MANY TIMES WILL YOU LET YOURSELF BE USED AND DISCARDED BEFORE YOU FIGURE IT OUT?”

“If it’s her, I can live with that.”

”We aren’t strong enough,” her tone softens, pain showing through her wrathful demeanor, ”If she hurts us- if we lose this again, we will break and we will never come back from the edge again.”

“She was willing to crack for us. It’s only right that we take the same risk.”

”WHY?! DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU HAVE? UNYIELDING, UNCONDITIONAL DEVOTION. YOU COULD HAVE ‘LOVE’ WITH A FLICK OF YOUR WRIST AND NO FEAR, NO COMMITMENT, AND NO LOSS. WHY HER? WHY NOW? WHY-” her voice trails, dying in her throat.

”Why am I not enough for you?”

“I need you.” You say, swimming through the water towards her primary face. You place your hand on her nose, “But I can’t let you dictate my life. You- we’re hurt, I get that, but I can’t let myself be ruled by that. You’re the logical one, right? Calculating and clever. Be objective- what would you put the odds of her ‘throwing me away are’?”

”HIGH.”

“And if you exempt outcomes where it’d be my fault?”

She remains silent.

“What will we do, then? Are we going to give up everything we sought out just for her?”

>Yes
>Split, perfect symmetry
>Split, extraction
>Write-in
>>
>>6099504
>Write-In
Get her in here and help sort our mess out
>>
>>6099504

> Give everything up for her? Atë, I need you FOR her. To protect her, to protect me, to protect us. Power, by itself, that's just an interwraith, a machine, a husk. If I'm just a slave to survival I might as well be back in the office. This power has to be for something more than survival. Let's start with it being for two people.

> Fusion???
>>
>>6099504
>Keep going as we are and see what happens

Sorry Atë, we don't want to be like Dorota.
>>
>>6099504
Ok, guess we love Pheme now
>Love is not supposed to be sacrificing who you are for someone else, you idiot!
>Us being the fighter and her being the brains was always part of our arrangement
>>6099577
+1
>>
>>6099577
if i get rid of the other then neither of you would know what to do and only do things blindly and deafly you would not have jumped in like that and saved my skull
>>
>>6099510
>>6099577
>>6099601
>>6099806
>>6099848

"She is what I need you for. Power is worthless without something to use it for."

Her rage seems to have calmed completely now, settling into something between exhaustion and anxiety.

"So, what now? Are we really going to abandon the incarnation game? And what, camp out in space for all eternity?"

You wince slightly- you may have overpromised slightly, "If that's what it takes, then yes. There are still other means of gaining power- <Arts> and <Interwraiths>."

"Still, are you content with that? A life in exile? Your 'love' is ambiguous- you don't even know specifically what you want from her- a lover, a sister, a friend- you're completely clueless!"

"There's only one way to find out. Join me. Let's patch ourselves back together."

Hesitantly, she shakes her head, "When- sorry, IF things fall apart, we need a part of us to pick up the pieces. To stay sane."

"..I understand."

>Return to the real world
>Continue speaking with Atë
>Speak to someone else in the soulscape (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6099955
>Continue speaking with Atë
"(sit down) (deep sigh) This shit sucks. Before I was working myself to death and monotony to think to get a therapist. After I was too caught up in the incarnation game to ever consider one. Now I don't think one could help me without me losing my powers or you or whatever."
>"...Perdix might know a thing or two about self-sufficiency. Even if this doesn't work out it would be nice to know some."
>>
>>6099955
>Continue speaking with Atë
>"You can say it. WHEN things fall apart. Love only ends one of two ways, one dies or stops loving the other."
>"And newsflash: we're already in pieces! It's what's holding us back the most. Not being whole!"
>"Can't we just commit to something good for once in our lives? If we already think about an exit strategy it will never make us-"
>"... Make me happy."
>>
>>6099955
>Continue speaking
I don’t think Marie’s gonna ask us to camp out in space. Completely defeats the point of ruling earth and access to modern amenities. Plus things would get boring with just two of us, no matter how well we get along
>>
>>6099955
>Return to the real world
>>
>>6099966
>>6099984
>>6100010

>Continue speaking with Atë

You slump down to the bed of the endless sanguine sea, allowing yourself to sink slightly into the wet sand beneath.

"We're already at rock bottom, girl. At least we are alone."

She shifts her weight down to meet your gaze, "We have the game. The mission."

"Is that really any better than the life we had before?"

"Uh, yeah, duh. Even if we accept the premise that you've been overexerting yourself and focusing too much on work, the fact is that we LIKE this shit. Wreaking havoc and breaking brains and wheeling and dealing with the top powers of the world is fun as fuck, dude."

A chuckle escapes your lips- she isn't wrong.

"You've let <Yourself> get in your own way. Look, work life balance is important and whatever, but you can't just throw away all of your goals and ambitions in life. You might want Pheme in whatever capacity you do, but the fact is that shit is gonna get real old if you don't have a day job."

"But, I made a promise-"

"Bitch, please. She knows how important this stuff is to you- how much you need it, honestly. No way she'll force you to keep that obligation if you contest it even a little."

"That is.. probably true. It'd feel like I was taking advantage of her, though."

"That's what we do."

"You're a real bitch, you know that?"

"WE are a real bitch."

"Touché. So, speaking of 'we', still not getting in on the whole unity thing?"

She shakes her head, "Sorry, I'm not ready yet."

Makes sense, considering she seems to be the part of you with massive commitment issues.

>Return to the real world
>Continue speaking with Atë
>Speak to someone else in the soulscape (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6100350
>Return to the real world
She needs time, fair enough
Seems like she's already coming around at least
Wonder where the blob is
Did we vore her
>>
>>6100350
>Return to the real world

Well, on the plus side (for the quest anyway) I'm pretty sure we're stuck in the game anyway. ADAM won't stop until we're dead, and I don't think we have the means to escape earth yet, at least not long term. I wouldn't mind a long term goal of leaving earth behind and making a new world, with new life.
>>
>>6100365
I think we ARE her now.
>>
>>6100365
+1

>>6100387
But Earth has everything we like on top of everything we don't like
>>
>>6100495
I wonder how long building a civilization would actually take us if we were powerful enough to terraform/manifest a planet, manifest life on it, and then uplift them into civilization.

> Years later, sipping a latte.
> You have no idea how long I've waited for this.

But honestly, I think the pressing concern is the Uncrowned King. I suspect rather strongly that if his plans come to fruition we're near the top of the list of people who get whacked.
>>
>>6100531
Yeah, I figure only Gaia and Prometheus would rank higher
>>
>>6100365
>>6100387
>>6100495

>Return to the real world

Naturally, easily, you open your eyes. The world is warm- you find yourself bundled in a large black blanket, the quiet sound of breathing being the only sound in a world of silence and stillness.

“You’re awake,” She says, knowing without looking. But then again, does she ever?

“How long have I been out?” You look up at her face- a bittersweetness permeating through your soul beneath the surface of her smile. “Less than an hour,” she answers, gently stroking your hair.

“Pheme, I-”

“I know.” She says, her cold fingertips playing against the skin of your face, “I know. But, I need two things from you.”

Guilt wells up in your gut, a syrupy, roiling, ugly thing. “Anything,” you answer, averting your eyes from her face.

“First, I’ll need your participation in a little ritual I’ve been working on. Secondly, someday, I’m going to make a request. When that day comes, promise me that you will oblige.”

“..I promise.”

“Very good.”

She begins to sing, a wispy lullaby settling in your ears like a layer of fresh snow on a field of yellow grass.

“The ritual..?” You ask, fighting through your fatigue to keep your promise.

“Already in progress, my dear. All you need to do is sleep."

Everything but the warmth of your covers and the clumsy melody of Marie’s voice melts away, a comfortable lull seeping over you. For the first time in a long time, you feel truly, unconditionally safe.

~

You wake up in a familiar bed- yours, back in your own realm. The previous events seem almost like a dream. You crawl out of bed, more energized than you ever have been, and decide to take inventory. Your <Pygmalion Protocol> sits safely at your desk, inert and deactivated during your prolonged unconsciousness. You stretch, ‘fixing’ your body and molding it into the version of it you’ve been using lately. You’ve wasted a lot of time sleeping. it’s been over two days since you’d squared off against ADAM and Heracles.

It’s time to get back to business. What’s your next step?

>Manage the system
>Train in <Arts>
>Follow the <Devourer’s Cookbook>
>Meet with someone (Pheme, Eris, the Commander, Prometheus, the Whittlers, write-in)
>Focus on a rival (Heracles, ADAM, the Defender, Ye Min, write-in)
>Head back to Europe to assist the shaman
>Write-in
>>
>>6100936
>Manage the system
We did kill the teleporter, and beat up Chen

>Meet with someone: Pheme
Sooooo, what was that ritual?
>>
>>6100953
+1
>>
>>6100953
+1

Given that our opponent was a teleporter, I would actually like to take an additional authority as well
>>
>>6100953
>>6100957
>>6101098

>Visit Pheme

You knock on the door to Pheme’s realm, which instantly opens for you. You find her sprawled upside down on the couch, surrounded by papers and screens as she seemingly contemplates something quite difficult.

“You’re back.” She says, flipping to a more normal sitting position, “What do you need?”

“I had questions about the ritual.”

“It won't come up. Probably. Just think of it as a little layer of insurance.”

“A protective charm?”

“Something like that.”

“Just give it to me straight.”

“Heh. No.”

She’s trying to make it seem like she’s just teasing you, but she’s definitely hiding something. It doesn't seem like it’ll affect you negatively, after all, she would never do anything that might put you at risk or affect your mind or soul, but something about it seems suspicious. Like she’s sweeping something you wouldn't want to see under the rug.

“And the favor you asked for- is it related to this ritual?”

“..Ideally, not at all.”

Hmm, a frustrating answer

>Demand the full story
>Drop it for now
>Write-in
>>
>>6101219
>"if you can't give it to me straight, give it to me gay. I mean that's what this is evol into... right?"
>define our relationship with her better
>>
>>6101219
>Drop it for now
Fine, keep your secrets

>>6101230
We’re going to fight the stereotypes and stay heterosexual
Our love for Pheme will remain pure and platonic
>>
>>6101238
I want to keep it ace, but I want to ask her what she thinks about the relationship.
and I think MC's psyche and desires are not totally under our control
>>
>>6101238
+1
>>
>>6101219
>Drop it for now

"You better not be setting yourself up as a life form shield for me."
>>
>>6101238
support we must beat the allegations also everyone around us is pretty much girls are non of the spirits of disasters male?.......fuck yeah that could say alot of bad things about modern women or as they say in disco Elysium "Woe men"
>>
>>6101230
>>6101238
>>6101255
>>6101308
>>6101362

>Drop it for now

“Fine. Be like that. Bitch.”

She laughs, smugly crossing her legs and sticking her tongue out at you. Matching the juvenile display, you use your middle finger to pull your right eyelid down, blowing her a raspberry and waltzing out of her realm.

~

Back in your room, you decide to finally resolve that kill you got on the ADAM guy. Apparently, he was the incarnation of Janus- a fully Roman god, as far as you are aware. You suppose that the mythologies had become bound closely enough together for Roman figures, presumably only those without obvious Greek counterparts, to be allowed in the system as well.

>"Due to your authority 'Divine Folly', you have gained one random authority possessed by the target. You gain the authority <Here and There (1)>!”

>Here and There (1)

It is possible to mark one object, animate or inanimate, with this authority by touching it. Then, it is possible to swap positions with that object, so long as it remains within a 1 kilometer radius. If the object is ever outside that radius, it will become unmarked. You may freely unmark an object and choose to mark another instead. The switching function of this authority may only be used once every thirty seconds, and consumes divinity proportional to the distance and mass of yourself and the object.

>Keep <Here and There>
>Discard <Here and There>

>Take another authority from <Janus>
>Increase the level of an existing authority
>>
>>6101370
>Keep <Here and There>
Probably not for us but looks like a useful support tool for Dorota and Pallas.

>Take another authority from <Janus>
The god of "beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings". That sounds like interesting possibilities to me.
>>
>>6101370
>Keep <Here and There>


>Take another authority from <Janus>

I always complain we have too many authorities, but yeah the ones from this guy are unique and high utility
>>
>>6101391
support
>>
>>6101391
>>6101392
>>6101395

>Keep and store <Here and There>
>Take another authority from Janus

>Note: All redundant authorities (those you already possess or have tossed in the past) are omitted

>Of Two Minds (EX)
Splits your consciousness in two, allowing you to concentrate on two simultaneous tasks, including but not limited to movement, authorities, and cognition

>Tears of the Ouroboros (EX)
The line between endings and beginnings becomes blurred. The specific effects of this authority depend on the user.

>Lord of the Boundary (1)
Creates a barrier from divinity which may be passed through by some objects and not by others at your discretion

>Passage of Janus (1)
Allows you to enter any door and exit any other door of which you are aware in a one kilometer radius

>Arbitrate Motion (1)
Allows you to slow or accelerate the momentum of any inanimate object which you can see within a 2 meter radius
>>
>>6101398
>Tears of the Ouroboros (EX)

Passage of Janus is very tempting but EX mystery box? Can't pass that up
>>
>>6101398
>>Tears of the Ouroboros (EX)
how much influence was he worth?
>>
>>6101398
>Tears of the Ouroboros (EX)
This is...a weird one. Curious to see how it manifests for us (sadly it will degrade though)
maybe something with Echoes?[/spoilers]

Hmm, might be worth setting up an Authority Manufacturer with this Epitaph to try and pick up the others.
>>
>>6101398
>Tears of the Ouroboros (EX)
>>
>>6101415
>>6101417
>>6101418
>>6101423

>Tears of the Ouroboros (EX)


<Tears of the Ouroboros (EX)> degrades into <Clockwork Encore (1)>

>Clockwork Encore (1)

You may use this authority after the use of another authority which incurs a cooldown. That cooldown will be multiplied fourfold and transferred to <Clockwork Encore>, allowing the original authority to be used again immediately. Though <Clockwork Encore> removes the system incurred cooldown, it does not alleviate the physical ramifications of using such abilities. Consumes divinity proportional to the effective level of the authority which has its cooldown accepted.

>Sell <Clockwork Encore>
>Store <Clockwork Encore>
>Replace an existing authority with <Clockwork Encore> (Specify)
>>
>>6101481
sounds awesome, especially if it works for divninty manifest.
I want to store it, but for now I want to see what'll happen with it when it's leveled up a bit
>Store Divine Will
>Levelup <Clockwork Encore> to 6
>>
>>6101496
+1
>>
>>6101481
>>6101496
+2
Is op throwing us a bone because Divinity Manifest spam is the meta
>>
>>6101496
>>6101509
>>6101514

>Store Divine Will
>Level up <Clockwork Encore> to 6

Influence: 259,040-> 280,461/409,600 (including rewards and losses)

>Clockwork Encore (1-6)

You may use this authority after the use of another authority-> or item which incurs a cooldown. That cooldown will be multiplied fourfold-> doubled and transferred to <Clockwork Encore>, allowing the original authority to be used again immediately. Though <Clockwork Encore> removes the system incurred cooldown, it does not alleviate the physical ramifications of using such abilities. The strength of the authority used is increased proportionally to half the effective level of <Clockwork Encore>. When <Clockwork Encore> is invoked, you may choose to incur up to four concurrent cooldowns- however, after the cooldown timer has begun, it is impossible to add additional cooldowns to <Clockwork Encore>. Consumes divinity proportional to the effective level of the authority-> or grade of item which has its cooldown accepted.

>Keep <Clockwork Encore>
>Store <Clockwork Encore> and keep <Divine Will>
>Write-in

(Also, the thread is on page 8 so I'm looking for new OP image ideas.)
>>
>>6101530
>Keep <Clockwork Encore>
Yeah, this is definitely worthwhile. Note to self to put divine will into an authority bracer when we level up more.
>>
>>6101530
>Keep <Clockwork Encore>
We did hear that Divine Will is pretty useless against mental attacks outside the system anyway.

Not sure I understand the concurrent cooldowns part though. The way I'm interpreting it is that instead of one cooldown of 20 days we can split it into 4 cooldowns of 5 days each, and that doesn't seem right because of the stipulation:
>after the cooldown timer has begun, it is impossible to add additional cooldowns
So there's no reason to ever do less than the max? I'm probably misunderstanding, any big brain anons here to clear things up for my brainlet self?
>>
>>6101616

>Regarding concurrent cooldowns clause

Suppose you currently have 5 separate abilities on cooldown. By using <Clockwork Encore>, you may incur the cooldowns of 4 of those 5 abilities onto <Clockwork Encore>, all four of which will be added together and doubled for the total cooldown duration of <Clockwork Encore>. This will allow you to reuse more abilities at once, but at the cost of having to wait far longer to use the <Clockwork Encore> again

>Keep <Clockwork Encore>

You decide that the authority is useful enough to hold onto, at least for now.

You rise from your bed, stretching after a brief management session, and decide to plot your next move. Where should you focus your attention?

>Hunting down ADAM
>Working with your Pantheon
>Working with the <Commander>
>Taking down the Penitent and the King
>Following the <Devourer's Cookbook>
>Focusing on online influence
>Training <Arts>
>Write-in
>>
>>6101674
Oh, so we don't use it at the moment we use the original, we can use it anytime the original is on cooldown to transfer that cooldown, I see. I thought when using an authority we would need to decide right then to transfer the cooldown to CE instead. Thanks.

>Working with your Pantheon
Thanks for the help guys, sorry we beefed it
Also how'd the fight go for you guys
>>
>>6101674
>Working with your Pantheon

If nothing else to get a picture of what they've been up. Maybe help track down that last member?
>>
>>6101674
>taking stock of our gains and losses
>check in with Dorota and Iwana more properly and then our Pantheon
>>
>>6101707
>>6101724
>>6101960

The power provided from the pantheons is substantial- compared to the effort investment, it seems like the natural choice to increase your power. You call Dorota to your side and, as usual, she lodges herself into your shadow as you emerge into the real world.

~

You set foot on the manor grounds of Eris’s estate, revealing yourself as you knock on the door. It swings open, and you are met with an unfamiliar face: a butler, though the uniform seems unduly skintight. The man is handsome, tall, muscular- this must be one of those pets that Eris was talking about. You <See> a faint aura of divinity leaking from his body- it seems like he’s a low level incarnation.

“I’m here to see Eris.”

“Huber, yes, right this way.”He has a British accent, seemingly muddied by years of life in America.

“Hey bestie, glad you’re not dead! Sorry we ditched but hey, a deal is a deal.”

Eris leaps from the upper railing, wings bursting from her shoulderblades in a dramatic flair of golden light, slowing her descent into an elegant float down to the entrance hall. She flicks her hair smiling at you and grabbing you by the wrist. “The meeting’s not ‘til tomorrow, so, like, we got some time to kill.”

You chuckle- if she knew about your literal shadow, she’d probably not be nearly as comfortable.

“Sure,” you reply, “I could go for a night on the town.”

“Great! So, there’s this nightclub in Spain that kicked me out five years ago…”

~

You tear through the air, cackling like a hyena while Eris floats ahead, pulling the fat old club owner by the folds of his neck, dangling him over the glittering Ibiza skyline.

“P-please,” he whimpers in a thick spanish accent, “I- I am sorry- I do not remember what I did but please, please let me live!”

“Out of curiosity,” you say, casually circling around the poor sop like a hungry vulture, “Why did you get kicked out again?”

“Scratched a guy in the face. Maybe blinded him a little.”

You burst out laughing again, doubling over slightly as the club owner bites his tongue, clearly holding back a complaint at the obvious injustice of the situation.

“So, girl, what’ll it be? Drop him or keep him?”

“Hmm.” She strokes her chin in mock contemplation with her free hand, swinging the arm bearing the man, causing him to yelp in terror, “I dunno. What do you think?

>Drop him
>Let him go
>I’ve got a better idea… (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6101991
>"Not sure, death by gravity is a little boring, isn't it? To be honest, I don't quite know your style. We could make an art installation out of him. For public appreciation, of course."
>>
>>6101991
>Drop him
>Let him go
They're the same option!
>>
>>6101991
> I’ve got a better idea… (specify)

Experiment with using Soul Publisher to Brand him with cursed tatoos
>>
>>6101991
>>6102070
Yo I can back this
>>
>>6102070
+1
>>
>>6102019
>>6102032
>>6102070
>>6102081
>>6102088

“I’ve got some ideas,” You say, floating down to meet the man in the eyes, “But, hmm, I’m no tattoo artist. Oh well! I guess I’ll have to do this the old fashioned way.”

You place a finger on his lips, hushing him gently as your claws begin to carve into his flesh. Muffled screams ring out into the air, washing over the unsuspecting passersby below like drops of water off a duck’s back, obscured completely by your authorities.

~

You flick the blood off of your sharpened fingernails, roughly contemplating the outcome of your experiments. Firstly and interestingly, tattooed words only affect the person who they are written on when inscribed backwards. Additionally, effects regarding physical realities (strength and weakness) as opposed to emotional states (emotions, opinions, etc).

Still, as you develop the <Art>, it feels as if you can choose a route- either forward letters which affect the reader or inverted letters which affect the entity upon which they are inscribed.

The club manager is in shambles, sobbing through the pain of the tears streaming down his open wounds, blood dripping onto the building below as he writhes in Eris’s grip. He whimpers prayers, pleads, and cries of agony.

“So, what now? Drop ‘im?” Eris asks. You shake your head,

“No, no, I have a better idea.” You raise your arm, crimson light crackling at your fingertips, resonating with the golden surface of <Folly’s Grasp>.

~

“Ugh… what.. where..?” A young woman grips her head, muttering in Spanish and fighting a raging headache pounding in her head. Her eyes widen in shock as she hears the sound of her voice.

“Good morning, Mister. Or, wait, that’s not true anymore, is it?” You chuckle, fiddling with the golden goblet you purchased at the last auction and smirking at the former nightclub owner's pathetic state. “My friend and I did some digging. Found out you were involved in some pretty nasty stuff. Drug smuggling, prostitution, human trafficking? Tsk, tsk, you’ve been very naughty.”

You rise, shapeshifting into a perfect facsimile of his former identity, “I own a club now! Isn’t that fun? And I’m about to meet up with your old business friends: I just got my hands on some fantastic product.”

“Y-you think you’re gonna get away with this?” She roars, flinching again at the sound of her own yells, “Do you have any idea who I am?”

“You’re nobody. Literally nobody. No id, no next of kin, no nothing. Your identity is mine. I’ll have to ask Slavíček for someone to run my new stuff… Oh, they’re here! Eris, where did I put the gag again?”

“Desk drawer.”

“Thanks. Where he’s going, he won’t need to talk.”

The horror of the bastard’s fate seems to set in as you waltz out his own front door.

~
>>
>>6102115

The two of you had spent the night pretty busy, so you used Brigita’s realm to get home before taking a quick power nap at her place. By the time you wake up, the meeting is less than an hour away.

Neither you nor Eris need to prepare much- both of you can almost instantly look as good as you want- so you spend most of the time waiting for the others to arrive shooting the shit. Everyone seems about as you might expect, though you can easily tell that Jen’s resentment and desire for dominance has begun to boil over. Eris is inscrutable, but she seems none the wiser.

Dorota, last to officially arrive, emerges from Isabella's shadow instead of yours, seemingly just to spook her. Perhaps she’s absorbed your penchant for messing with people.

As always, the (now) seven of you enter through Eris’s secret hallway, the lair seemingly the same as usual. Eris sits at her spot at the head of the table, and you take yours, marked with crimson highlights, leaning back in the comfortable leather of the custom made seat.

“So, now that we have full attendance,” Eris says, shooting you a playfully nasty look and pausing slightly before continuing, “We’re here to discuss the final piece of our project.”

She snaps her fingers, prompting the screens to display an older Asian man in a tailored black suit.

“This is Narong Ng.” She says, “We are almost certain that he is <Horkos>, the punisher of broken oaths, and the last piece of our pantheon. Big problem-” the slide moves, showing him standing alongside a group of other people, one of which you recognize as the swordsman who used <Grasscutter> in that video Pheme sent you, “He’s one of the most influential members of the Anti-China league.”
>>
>>6102116

“So, we need to be covert.” Jen interjects, “Like an assassination?”

“Maybe, but we can’t know that they don’t have some sort of countermeasures in place.” Isabella rebuts, her voice gaining a cold, professional tilt as she considers the situation, “The trouble with groups- as opposed to individuals- is that they have a specialist in everything. We know they have enchanters, and I would be shocked if they didn’t have a member focused on coordination and surveillance.”

Eris smiles, “Ding ding ding! That’s why we haven’t tried him already- I’m pretty sure the 7 of us- fuck, even Atë or Nargez by themselves honestly- could take him one on one, but if they all show up, we might have some problems. Especially that Hajime guy. So, ladies, ideas!”

“We need allies, but the Anti-China league is almost unanimously supported by the international community as a counterbalance to Ye Min and her cronies.” Isabella says, leaning forward in contemplation, “That means we either need to throw in with them and get Horkos in our pantheon willingly, or we need to throw in with the Chinese, at least until he’s dead.”

Saanvi speaks, “I have concerns about China, though. They are, by all accounts, already the dominant force in the world. If we get rid of too many of their checks, we’ll risk them starting and winning an international conquest. After that, it’ll be essentially game over.”

Everyone makes valid points. Unlike the case with Lethe, you doubt they’d be willing to just let you have their comrade's myth, no matter what you offered in exchange. That being said, what should you do?

>Try to negotiate with the League
>Work with China
>Infiltrate the League and turn them against Ng
>Attempt an assassination
>Write-in
>>
>>6102117
>Try to negotiate with the League
We are totally willing to wreck havoc in China for them
>>
>>6102125
+1
>>
>>6102125
+1
A less stable world is a better world for us.
>>
>>6102125
>>6102149
>>6102186

>Try to negotiate with the League

“Saanvi is right.” You interject, sitting up straight in your chair, “All of the information I and my associates have gathered points to the idea that China is currently the leading power in the world. Ye Min is a monstrous threat. Even if we can’t take her down now, it’s better to undermine her as much as possible than to aid her indirectly by snuffing out the biggest thorn in her side.”

Isabella sighs, “You’re certainly not wrong, but I worry about picking that fight. I don’t know if we have the firepower to win- or even sneak a kill and get away with it- without serious ramifications. The League poses a much less significant short-term risk.”

Dorota’s smile widens as her mouth parts open, “Perhaps. But we must consider the ultimate goal: we would be most unwise to sacrifice a rook for a pawn, as it were.”

Eris scowls, “But it would be OUR pawn. No more league doesn’t mean no more anti-China. It’d just mean that the other countries’d step up to the task more.”

“We can’t be so sure.” Saanvi rebuts, “The House of Hades isn’t gonna move unless provoked, the Whittlers are too internally divided, and the Defender is nigh completely unpredictable. The Russians are neutral to friendly with China, so that basically just leaves the Austrian and I don’t know if they’ll be sufficient as a counterbalance.”

“Let’s try a negotiation first. If it doesn’t pan out, or if the risks are too high, we’ll just fuck them up anyway.” You propose, “We’ll lose the element of surprise, but I think the potential gains are worth the price.”

“Ok, sure, fine. We’ll try things your way.” Eris redirects her attention from you to the entire group, “We will reconvene one week from now in Seoul, South Korea, the head of the League’s base of operations. I know a nice cafe, so let's meet there. In the meantime, get your prep done, talk to your contacts, do whatever you gotta do. Meeting over!”

The goddesses begin to file out.

>Days until meeting: 7

What should you do now?

>Meet with a member of the Pantheon (Specify)
>Meet with the Commander
>Meet with Crimson Dove
>Meet with Dayan (and the Israelis)
>Visit Perdix
>Try to steal a <Node>
>Write-in
>>
>>6102556
>Collect the Manticore as agreed upon with Lavenza, and reunite him with his kids at Perdix'
>While at Lavenzas, ask about curing blindness
>While at Perdix', ask about Ex Nihilo
>>
>>6102569
+1 but that's the Minotaur guy
>>
>>6102581
dang, yes, I meant the minotaur
>>
>>6102556
>Quick stream to tell our followers we got caught up in an incarnation fight and couldn't make it to the convention, sorry!

>Meet with the Commander
How does he feel about China? Anything he want done over there? Maybe we can double dip? Not sure if his rewards are still worth it though.
>>
>>6102581
Hey, I traumatize a lot of people, you'll need to be more specific

>>6102556
>Try to steal a <Node>
I for one always enjoy bloodying the Uncrowned King's nose.


On a side note, did we ever get those music samples for Baphomet? Been thinking it might be a worthwhile endeavor to crank out another hit and purchase <Object of Worship>, try to convert that Devotion to Influence Income. Praying to Baphomet is the same as praying to us, right?
>>
>>6102588
Actually we can do multiple things. We have a Pygmalion. And I think we should never not do multiple things at once.

>>6102588
+1 but still do >>6102569
A good excuse I thought of could be: we bought a talisman that teleports us to safety when hostile gods are nearby, but it drained all our "mana" (because she doesn't know the word for divinity) and we were in a coma for three days.
stage a selfie from a hospital bed
>>
>>6102609
I figured since ADAM opened by teleporting away all the civilians in like a 2 mile radius we could just say we got caught up in that, no need to overcomplicate.
>>
>>6102613
then why the radio silence?
>>
>>6102620
It's only been a couple days, it's not like we were offline for weeks. I don't think we need to explain anything, we regularly take much longer breaks, like when we were infiltrating the Penitent.
>>
>>6102569
>>6102581
>>6102588
>>6102607

>Collect the Minotaur as agreed upon with Lavenza, and reunite him with his kids at Perdix'
>While at Lavenzas, ask about curing blindness
>While at Perdix', ask about Ex Nihilo
>Stream a quick apology as cyber_syren

Using the Pygmalion Protocol and

>Meet with the Commander

Using your real body

[Starting with the Pygmalion Protocol]

You knock on Lavenza’s door and, as usual, it swings open, revealing the waiting room. You walk in and are met with Lavenza, as well as Matthew. He seems to be in something of a daze, barely able to consciously register anything.

“He is sedated right now, but he may fly into a violent rage upon regaining consciousness. The experimentation has been... less than conventionally ethical.”

“We had an agreement, Doctor.”

“And it is met. Physically, he is fine. Better than ever, even, and his soul is completely intact. Simply remove a few problematic memories and he should be as good as he was when I first got him.”

“Hm, fine then. I’ll have my guy do a bit of snipping. Pleasure doing business.”

“Likewise. More subjects will be of great help to us both, and, of course, compensation will be given.”

“Any preferences?”

“Hmm, I think anatomical impossibilities would be good. Ah, yes, flight would also be handy.”

You nod, slipping back into your realm.

~
After finishing your brief apology stream, you head over to Perdix’s side, a freshly mindwiped Matthew in tow. He seems a little dazed- probably the lingering effects of Lavenza’s drugs and Lethe’s treatment- but ultimately he’s happy to be allowed to return to his kids and to a mostly normal life. You go to Perdix’s side and allow a touching reunion between parent and children while you meet with your engineer.

“Been a while. The kids were super nice. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind letting them stay full time- the orphans loved them. Anyway, what can I do for you?”

>Write-in, specify questions about <Ex Nihilo>

Additionally, you’d like to ask for:

>Tips about livable divine realms
>A new weapon
>A new defensive relic
>Another relic (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6102634
>Give him our cat poster as thanks, ask for his assessment on it too tho.
(this is something we have discussed before)
>Ask how hard it is to get material to behave on a molecular level. Graphene, Fullerene, other super materials that are as of yet hypothetical. And how much the non-divine materials provided matter in the creation of relics
>Ask what the most "dice" was he ever put into something, and how he'd like to make a gnarly weapon for us.
because he was sorta not content having done the auraphage, it not being "cool" enough
>>
>>6102634
>Tips about livable divine realms
Nothing new please, the inventory bloat is real :(

Not sure what other anon wanted to ask about Ex Nihilo. Does he even have it?

Also using soul publisher on that bar owners skin gave me an idea - why not use it on our own skin? Normal writing on the outside to debuff opponents, reverse marks on the inside to buff ourselves.

>>6102645
Ah I see
+1 but have him make the weapon for a subordinate. Maybe Pallas would like a better spear.
>>
>>6102647
yeah, it's not about him having it, more about what our benchmark is.
Graphene or carbon nanotubes is something that's possible with mortal tools. And it stands to reason that a crafting god could do more than that.
But we literally start from scratch with electrons
>>
>>6102655
Basically, if he could design elements and molecules from scratch, what would he make for different purposes like armor and weapons?

>>6102634
How about advice on traveling the fringes of the solar system? Maybe if he thinks he could make a relic specifically for super long travel?
>>
>>6102655
>>6102668
I dunno about building material for him that way - it took everything we had to make an electron. We'll need to be almost 2000 times stronger before we can make a proton, if it's a matter of mass, and building a weapon one elemental particle at a time doesn't seem ideal.

>How about advice on traveling the fringes of the solar system? Maybe if he thinks he could make a relic specifically for super long travel?
Now this is a good idea
>>
>>6102645
>>6102647
>>6102668

>Materials and Artifacts?

“Hmm, it’s kinda like this.” He tears a piece of paper on his desk, scratching some circuitry into it with his fingernails and speaking under his breath. Crackling blue flame bursts briefly from the point of contact, scorching divine circuitry into the scrap. He then tosses it into the stone floor beneath, smiling as it buries itself in the rock like a knife into butter.

“I just optimized for <Sharpness>, <Hardness>, and <Durability>. In theory, divinity can be used to set any of these factors as high as one might want. However, that being said, the investment required to overcome the physical limits of the material could have been diverted into some other function instead, or by strengthening it beyond that level. In other words, it’s best to have a relic be as physically sensible as possible, such that divinity allocation to fixing bad engineering is minimized.”

>Interstellar travel?

A grin spreads across his face, “NOW you’re speaking my language.”

He flips his whiteboard to a blank side, drawing a hasty diagram on it.

“So, spacetime, right? It’s an interesting thing. As you know, nothing in the universe: light, information, matter, anything- can travel faster than the speed of light. Even if it looks 1:1 on scales slow enough to be achievable by us, energy:velocity isn’t a straight line. It’s a limit, approaching the speed of light, closer and closer but never reaching it. BUT- your <Folly’s Grasp>, right? It somehow communicates information INSTANTLY, faster than light speed. How does that happen?”


“Well, it’s my soul that controls both bodies, not a transmission of radio waves or something.”

“Yes, yes, exactly! The <Soul> does not occupy physical matter or space. One’s individual soul happens to be anchored to physical mass, but, ultimately, the soul is capable of conveyance beyond the laws of physics, like how a 3d arch on a 2d plane would look like the two interface points were magically connected to 2d eyes. So, imagine, rather than <Teleportation>, it’s closer to <Disassembly and Reassembly>- your body is vaporized while, simultaneously, it is reassembled in another location. The system can change the <Anchor Point> of your soul partway through the process, and, since the soul doesn’t abide by physical laws, it can easily happen as such.”

“I met a guy who did portals. How did that work?”
>>
>>6102965

“Hmm, spacetime bend, probably. Much less elegant, though with the benefit of not having to invest energy into the aforementioned process. You can do it, but at larger distances it’ll become exponentially unfeasible.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well it’s like, imagine you’re on a big carpet, right? You want to make two points that are super close touch, that’s pretty easy. If you want to take two points that are super far apart touch, you’ll have to lift the blanket really, really high up. More and more blanket, ‘til eventually you’re lifting as high as you can and the two points still can’t touch.”

>Commission an artifact to travel to space
>Commission a weapon for yourself
>Commission a weapon for an ally
>Write-in
>>
>>6102968

>Commission an artifact to travel to space
SPAAAAAAACE
>>
>>6102968
>Commission an artifact to travel to space
Gonna nom some interwraiths
Before that we really really REALLY need to get around to eating one mortal soul guys
>>
>>6102977
>>6102988

>Commission an artifact to travel to space

“Hehe, what are you thinking! Sleek wristwatch to teleport you anywhere on earth or in space? Space-Ready suit fitted with propulsion and an air CO2 to O2 converter? Oh, oh, SPACESHIP?!”

“Wouldn’t something as large as a ship be kinda impractical given the premise?”

“...Ok maybe. But, what if it’s a two piece artifact like the <Auravore?> One does the warp, then you deploy the next for the ship?”

“Hmm, maybe. Problem with options 2 and 3 is that they absorb a bunch of resources for space specific tasks, making it a bit inconvenient for on earth travel.”

“But, especially for space combat, you’re gonna want some utility for that.”

>Just the teleporter
>Spacesuit
>Teleporter and ship
>Write-in

Regarding payment, you may supply any number of dice (d10s) you wish. A reminder of the numbers involved:

0-10: Failure
11-30: Common
31-50: Uncommon
51-70: Rare
71-85: Super Rare
86-95: Legendary
96-100: Mythic
101+: ???

And for materials:

Mundane: 1
Common: 2
Uncommon: 4
Rare: 6
Super Rare: 8
Legendary: 9
Mythic: 10

(Authority crystals give their level as value)

It should be noted that Perdix will be able to work easier with authorities relevant to your choice in artifact.

>Specify all items, authorities, and epithets you wish to provide. You may also lend Perdix an <Authority Manufacturer> from the shop, which has this price and effect:

>Authority Manufacturer (10,000):
You may place any epithet holder into this item. Upon doing so, any authority crystals placed into the item are converted to an authority of the same grade related to the epithet. Cannot be done with authorities available for purchase in the shop.
>>
>>6103007
>Spacesuit
A little backup on not dying would be nice.

> Loan Janus as an authority manufacturer
Seems a good match

> Payment
Oh fek. I vote we dispatch a minion to the next auction to buy up cheapo crystals. Or we could just gacha spam of course.
>>
>>6103007
>Spacesuit
Just need to survive out there, according to the cookbook interwraiths are souls and soul attacks are how to beat them, so I don't think a physical ship would be very helpful.

Let's go with 20d10?

Gotta think about payment
>>
>>6103034
Phylonoe’s Mercy would be a good start IMO, we never remember to do a hunt and empower it anyway. And yeah, agreed on targeting 20+ dice. Last thing we need is to putter around for ages.
>>
>>6103007
Death Whistle (Rare Relic)
That's 6
Euterpe's Harp (Uncommon Relic: Copy of a Legendary Relic) (copy):
That's 10
Uncommon Relic (Goblet)- Judgement of Tiresias
Pallas didn't want this so as funny as it was to use it on the manager, that's 14
>>6103038
And sure we do never use Phylonoe’s Mercy
That makes 24, I'm ok with a few extra dice being thrown in
>>
>>6103007
>>Spacesuit and teleporter

Chuck Bane of Calydon into the Authority Manufacturer set on Janus, it was EX.
>eutrepes harp
>phylones mercy

don't we still have a pile of low level weapons from the battlefield? we kept them specially for dice
>>
>>6103007
if possible i want him to make us a hud, or an additional perception item that can shift parts of the electromagnetic spectrum into the visible range.
What's the point of being in space if we can't see it's full magnificent
>>
>>6103285
We can throw the 4 extra dice into that
>>
>>6103042
A solid list, though I'd rather replace the harp with gacha fodder, I'm a bit sentimental over it.
>>
>>6103305
I don't want to use the goblet like that. There's a whole community of trans people who might sell their soul for a sip plus us then using folly's grasp to do thousand faces and turn them into their perfect selves

on this vote we got the battlefield rewards rolled:
https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/2024/6004703/#p6037506
the vote was:
1 vote for keep mythic or above
1 vote for keep highest of each weapon type
and 2 vote for only interested in legendary or above, but keep the rest as enchantment fodder
then only the legendary or above were told to us

so we should still have these:
Weapons:
3 Super Rare
2 Rare
7 Uncommon
10 Common
Relics:
5 Super Rare
1 Rare
2 Uncommon
17 Common
>>
>>6103362
>There's a whole community of trans people who might sell their soul for a sip plus us then using folly's grasp to do thousand faces and turn them into their perfect selves
If we can reshape them with folly's grasp -> ATFATV, why do we need the goblet? It's become redundant.
>>
>>6103386
yes, because once we let go of thousand faces, only that which is plausible for their DNA stays behind, the other stuff goes away. We already did some tests
>>
>>6103388
I thought just the stuff obviously impossible for humans went away, so stuff like a gender change would stick. Even if I'm misremembering, I don't think it's worth keeping. We've done a fine job browbeating people into contracts so far, we don't need to start pandering now.
>>
>>6103390
Yeah, I think between the torture illusions and that we're moving into direct soul consumption we don't think we need the goblet anymore. And honestly once we master Sunday Best, I suspect we'll be able to reshape the bodies of those we own the souls of anyway.
>>
>>6103390
hmm... maybe, but we still have a trove of dice, and the goblet still has utility. I don't want to throw the goblet out. And forceful subjugation hasn't worked out well.
>>
>>6103396
I don't know if we do have a trove of dice - the post you quoted has a line saying items above Legendary. If we do then yeah I'm ok with using junk from there instead of the goblet, and hell, also the harp to satisfy >>6103358
If we don't have the trove, I hope you guys can support >>6103042

>>6103396
>forceful subjugation hasn't worked out well.
Only once, and only because we used it on someone we needed to be functional afterwards - not a concern for random mortals.
>>
>>6103030
>>6103034
>>6103060
>>6103285

>Spacesuit
>Use battlefield loot

Perdix’s eyes twitch as he looks over the massive pile of weapons and relics you spat out of your inventory. A grimace breaches his face, and he slumps down onto the floor.

“Do you… have any idea how annoying it’s gonna be to process all of this? Even constructing partwise, it’s gonna be a nightmare.”

“Is this enough?”

“Is this enough- yeah, duh, obviously. This is like, four times enough.”

“Oh, so, uh, we’re good then?”

“…Kinda. I’d still like some authorities for the <Authority Manufacturer>. I mean, I could probably use some of this junk to make some relics you can sell off for points at the next auction, but, uh, you’d have to wait like three weeks for that.”

>Here are the list of all viable crystals you can provide to Perdix as payment. The duds and shop authorities are excluded. Select as many to hand over as you wish: additionally, you may ask for some to be converted and kept, rather than used for the device. You may also choose to upgrade the authorities to provide additional dice. Please differentiate these two uses in your vote:

>A): Cursed Gold (1):
You may place a hex on any piece of currency (10 divinity per use). If a person willingly accepts that currency with the intention to keep it, they will be affected by the hex. The available hexes are:
-Sniveling Gratitude: The individual will be more susceptible to your orders
-Bottomless Greed: The individual is consumed by greed, neglecting all other motives in service of it.

>B): Scribe of Dysnomia (3):
Any recordings or images taken of you while this authority is active, as well as anything written or spoken by you while this authority is active, including verbatim copies or transcriptions, slowly erode faith in public order when perceived. Additionally, targets of this authority also exhibit reduced guilt for immoral and illegal acts. Consumes 1 divinity per 3 seconds.

>C): Around Every Corner (1):
Allows you to observe any individual who has succumb to your divinity within ten miles, multiplied by the level of this authority

>D): Born of Vengeance, Born of Blood (1)
Increases your strength, stamina, and regenerative capabilities when fighting against an individual with whom you have a personal grudge, or who has a primary myth of or relating to the <Olympians>
>>
>>6103597

>E): Cutting Malice (1)
Shrouds your attacks in divinity drenched in spite. Increases the damage of your strikes proportional to the malice within your heart and the level of this authority.

>F): Cackle (3):
You may infuse your laughter with <Divinity>, causing temporary panic in any mortals that hear it. Additionally, you can use any currently affected mortals who can hear your laughter as a point of origin for your other authorities at an increased cost proportional to distance. Does not function over recordings or broadcasts.

The effects of this authority linger for 120 seconds after the termination of its use.

It becomes possible for individuals affected by your <Cackle> to personally recreate the first level effects of one authority specified before a specific continuous use of this authority using their own divinity until the effects of this authority wear off. However, this effect does not apply to transformation authorities
>>
>>6103598

>G): To Mortals, A Scourge (3):
You may expend divinity to gain a resistance to attacks from mortals or from non-divine natural phenomena. Additionally, you are able to survive any single attack from a mortal while this skill is active, regardless of the power and scope. This includes explosives. However, resisting more damage than would normally be possible will reduce your divinity to zero. (10 divinity per hour)

>H): Bane of Calydon (5):
Consumes divinity to temporarily transform you into the <Calydonian Boar>. While the skill is in use, you will have access to every natural authority of the <Calydonian Boar>, but you will be unable to use any of your other authorities while <Bane of Calydon> is active. Additionally, it is possible to utilize the authorities of Divine Relics while transformed. You may adjust the size of the transformation, with a maximum of the beast’s full size and a minimum of your untransformed mass. Immediately clears all mental effects incurred by the use of the beast’s authorities upon ending the transformation.

>I): Ghostly Constitution (3):
Allows you to temporarily become intangible, allowing you to pass through physical objects. However, this effect does not work on divine relics or weapons of grade <Rare> or greater. You do not need to breathe while in this state

>J): Rage of Achilles (1)
Clouds your thoughts with rage, but increases the toughness of your body in proportion to the depths of your anger

>K): Body of Zagreus (1)
Parts of your body which are removed are able to function as if they were still attached and can be reattached more easily for up to one hour, so long as they remain within a 10 foot radius of you

>L): Eyes of the Kingsman (1):
Allows your divinity sense to coincide with your vision, allowing you to see divinity even in the absence of a generally visible effect

>M): Soul Eater (EX):
Your divinity pool increases by ten per effective incarnation level (minimum of 1) whenever you directly kill another person

>N): Lightbringer’s Spotlight (6)
Creates dazzling lights from your divinity, inspiring awe in those who view you. Enhances the effectiveness of your performances, as well as any other abilities which depend on them. It is possible to make the light imperceptible to mortals and lower level incarnations while maintaining its effect (though with the effective level reduced by 1). The light may be recorded, including when made invisible, and the recording will share the properties of the authority in person.

The light takes on a cinematic character in line with the nature of your performance and can be freely manipulated by you for dramatic effect.
>>
>>6103597

>ABCGH
Pop them all up to like level six and run them through a Janus authority manufacturer. Should be plenty of interesting movement powers there. I'd hope anyway.

Man, we should keep like a backlog of like ten non shop authorities for this sort thing. Like we don't even need to track what they are, just random shit we can run through a manufacturer. Gotta send a minion to the auction is the easiest way I'm sure.
>>
>>6103599
>>6103632
Can back, but J instead of C
>>
>>6103724
I'm cool with that adjustment.
>>
>>6103724
I can support this too
>>
>>6103724
+1
>>
>>6103724
>>6103821
>>6103836
>>6103848

>ABGHJ

>Total dice from Authority Crystals: 13
>Total dice from loot: 172
>Dice from <Phylonoe’s Mercy>: 10

Total available dice: 195

>Write-in: How many of these dice would you like to use on the warp suit?
>Optional Write-in: If any, specify what other commissions you’d like to line up, and how many dice you would want to commit to them

“Well, I certainly have my work cut out for me. You can go now- I don’t want to look at your stupid face right now.”

“Right back atcha, dork.”

He turns to his desk, waving lazily with his back pointed to you as he presumably begins to draft preliminary sketches. You shrug, waltzing out of his realm.

~

>Real body, meet with the Commander

You emerge from Povondra’s realm (He seems much recovered mentally, though still unsettled whenever you make an appearance) and make a beeline for Austria. You’d set up a meeting a few hours in advance, at the usual spot, indicating that you wanted a job but not letting your specific desire to confront Ye Min slip.

“How’s it goin’, “boss”?” You call out as you push open the quaint glass door of the little coffee shop. His expression is dispassionate, gesturing you to sit as you approach the table. As usual, you stay standing.

“We ought to keep things brief- I am quite busy at the moment.”


“Oh? Any particular reason?”

“China has been making moves, expanding their influence. Setting up deals. They’ve already secured a non-aggression treaty with the House of Hades, New Putin, and Demeter.”

“Demeter?”

“New power in Africa. Neutral. Not really of particular import right now.”

“Right. So, I assume I can guess the request I’m about to get.”

He nods, “This is a matter of mutual importance. We need to disrupt China’s growth by any means necessary. You are the key we need to cause some real damage.”

“It’s my deal. What’s the job?”

“Mass disruptions. Riots, uprising, insubordination- whatever means are available to you. Rewards, of whatever sort you wish- will be provided proportional to your contribution. In addition-”

He hands you a file containing a number of names and faces, with information of varying depth and utility accompanying each.

“These are Ye Min’s dogs- they call themselves the Round Table.”

“Like King Arthur? That’s super lame.”

“Lame or not, they possess significant incarnation power. Take down one, and you shall receive rewards, both from myself and from the League.”

“Double dipping is allowed?”

“Well, I’m not going to tell them I’m paying you. The rest is up to your ability and discretion.”

You can tell he really is pressed on the matter.

“Of course, I can help. However, in return, I need…”

Select as many options as you wish. However, unreasonable demands are more likely to be rejected.

>Authority Crystals
>Epithets
>Items
>Influence
>Information (specify)
>Points
>Manpower
>Money
>Write-in
>>
>>6104068
> Mass disruptions. Riots, uprising, insubordination
Is it my birthday!? No, don't answer that, I hate my birthday.

>Write-in: How many of these dice would you like to use on the warp suit?
40
That's double mythic right?

>Optional Write-in
How about a cell smart phone that can project our voice directly into someone's mind, even if they were born with a sense of hearing.
Another 40 dice.


> Rewards
>Epithets
I'm not really sure what to ask for to be honest. Epithets can produce authorities, and influence, and with a bit of work items as well, so they seem like the most general option.

An option is to ask for a hit on Huber, but it feels like a cop out narratively to not handle that personally.
>>
>>6104068
>Write-in: How many of these dice would you like to use on the warp suit?
Fuck it, let's highball. 75. All the bells and whistles, everything he can think of to assist in fighting immaterial opponents.

>Optional Write-in: If any, specify what other commissions you’d like to line up, and how many dice you would want to commit to them
Uuuuuh
Can't think of anything super concrete
ADAM guarded themselves from our mind shenanigans somehow, maybe we can have him make something that lets us pierce through whatever defenses they had? The suit probably will keep him busy for a while.

>Influence
We've focused on soul mastery for a while and lost our giant lead on raw power. Dunno what numbers he's offering here but I'm hoping for multiple harvests from his farm, just one was pretty underwhelming. That or a physical visit so we can give blueprints to Povondra to start setting up our own.
>>
>>6104078
You know, the epithet mention has me thinking. Anyone want to go help out our dad? Not the biological one, but the one who raised us anyway and also didn't molest us. We could make him an incarnation or just keep him safe in our divine realm. Thoughts?
>>
>>6104107
If we do anything with him I'm inclined to suggest we ask Perdix to take him in. He's much much safer far away from us.
>>
>>6104082
IMO, influence is replaceable and if we put some effort into Baphomet easy to get too. Besides we're about to blitz china screaming "KILL YOURSELF" near population centers. Should be lots of influence gained.
>>
>>6104141
I would have suggested that but Perdix only takes orphans

>>6104143
This is a good point, if all goes as planned we should get a ton of influence in China. I'd still like a physical tour for the long term sustain but after that I can change to the Epithet payment.
>>
>>6104068
let's meet more in the middle and say
>60 dice
>transforms into ring or bracelet
>additional features:
>>stops anyone else from teleporting us against our will
>>allows us to shift the electromagnetic spectrum into something visible

really not sure on the rewards either
while we did subjugate a mafia, we never really did anything with it.
we could extend our reach, of course, but I'm not sure if that's what our protag wants deep down...
but we could try to become a world power ourselves
so yeah
>epithets
>>
>>6104450
>stops anyone else from teleporting us against our will
I don't think we really need this as a feature, it's only happened a single time and we killed the guy that did it.
Otherwise I'm willing to back
>>
>>6104464
better safe than sorry.
fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice...
we literally have an EX authority from Pallas too.
>>
>>6104450
epithets we'd be interested in:
something music and dance related, Apollo or Aristaeus, or the muses Euterpe, Terpsichore or Thalia; but also any other muse also has value
>>
>>6104078
>>6104082
>>6104450

>60 dice (all features listed in votes considered)
>Epithets

“I’d like epithets, particularly ones related to music.” You say, leaning onto the table slightly as you do so. “Oh, and monsters. Especially ones with wings.”

“A muse, hm? That can be arranged. Melpomene has been lying around in our coffers for a while- we had been planning to sell it off during the next auction, but this should be a suitable use for it. As for monsters, we have several, but not so many that can fly… we do have a few options, though.”

>Bloody Omen, Strix
>Insect of the Caldera, Pyrausta
>Plural Myth: Winged Horse, Pterripi
>Plural Myth: Winged Maneater, Harpy
>Ask for a different secondary reward instead
>>
>>6104676
Lavenza wanted something with impossible anatomy right?

>Insect of the Caldera, Pyrausta
Fire eating insect seems to fit the bill. And hey, how many insect myths can there be right? Probably some unique qualities there.
>>
>>6104676
Hmm.. does he maybe have another river of hades?
>>
>>6104676
>Insect of the Caldera, Pyrausta
or
>Bloody Omen, Strix
>>
>>6104683
>>6104690
>>6104726

>Moth of the Caldera, Pyrausta

“Alright, we have a deal. As I’ve said, should your performance be exemplary, you shall have yourself some additional rewards.” He smiles, manifesting a briefcase from his inventory and opening it, revealing the contents to be what seems like liquid lead. He reaches inside, pulling out an authority crystal thrumming with a hot orange aura.

“Pyrausta- your advance payment. Of course, should you decide to renege on our arrangement, it must be returned.”

“Of course.” You say, plucking it from his fingertips with a satisfied smile. “Will that be all?”

“Not quite. I have an additional bounty, should you choose to accept it.”

“Oh?”

He pulls out a copy of the file he handed you, turning to a page containing a long-haired man in Song dynasty lamellar armor. He seems on the younger side, maybe late twenties, but it’s difficult to gauge his exact age thanks to the mask covering the bottom half of his face.

“This is Hyperion: one of Ye Min’s men. Our side would pay handsomely for his epithet.”

“The reason being?”

“Strictly confidential.”

“Of course. What do you have that I’d want, anyway?”

“...”

He reaches into his briefcase again, this time drawing a metal cylinder, a bit over half a foot tall. He rotates the side, revealing a hidden window and activating an internal light. On the inside rests a small statue- maybe 2 and a half inches tall- of a crudely carved female form. It’s barely recognizable as human- tiny head perched upon a shoulder bearing two disproportionately massive breasts, leading down to comically wide, unevenly carved hips and thighs.
>>
>>6104804

“Are you fucking with me?” You ask as you look at the figure in the can.

He sighs, turning a latch on the top. Instantly, you’re hit with a massive flux of divinity, comparable to both of the nodes of the Uncrowned King you ate combined. A shiver runs down your spine as your <Devourer’s> instinct is piqued.

“This is an acquisition we obtained from the Germans in exchange for a significant favor. The Venus of Hohle Fels.”

“Is it enchanted or something?”

He shakes his head, “This is the single oldest depiction of a human being known to mankind- over 40,000 years old by the estimations of Germany’s archaeologists.”

You remember the matter of Kusanagi, the Grasscutter- ancient artifacts can accumulate divinity from the souls of the people who exist near them. It could be reverence or care or.. impetus.

Your mouth waters. 40,000 years of desire. Every time somebody in a who-knows-how-large radius had wet thoughts of idealized women, a bit of divinity poured into the Venus. Over and over again, for tens of thousands of years. To the Commander, it might just be a big store of divinity, but you know better. You understand <Arts> and the power of <Impetus>.

“Hyperion, huh?” You ask, trying to suppress evidence of your greed for the object, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

He extends his hand, and you shake it.

>Ask about something else (Specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6104805
I'm good. Drive by murder in China anyone?
>>
>>6104805
>Ask about something else (Specify)

>What's the difference between the members of the Round Table and this Hyperion?

>He mentioned inciting riots, uprising, insubordination, etc. How does he feel about just killing tens/hundreds of thousands in major population centers?

Holy moly what a windfall. So glad we had this meeting before doing anything against China.
>>
>>6104808
+1
>>
>>6104806
>>6104808
>>6104822

>What's the difference between the members of the Round Table and this Hyperion?

“Ah, apologies for the confusion. As referenced in the documents you received, Hyperion is one of the members of the Table: Codename: Gawain.”

>He mentioned inciting riots, uprising, insubordination, etc. How does he feel about just killing tens/hundreds of thousands in major population centers?

He pauses for a moment, his eyes darkening slightly as he puts his cup of coffee back onto its dish.

“You are to hinder Ye Min’s operations by any means necessary, so long as it doesn’t impact the safety of the world outside of her territory.”

Any means?” You ask with a taunting smile, taunting him with the notion of complicity in whatever it is you’re going to do there.

“...Any means.”

You snicker, giving a slow wave as you waltz out of the cafe.

You breathe in the crisp night air, floating above the sleeping city as the clock strikes midnight.

>Days remaining: 6

Oh right, you forgot about the Shaman’s ritual. That’s happening today, right?

>Go observe
>Find a candidate for your new monster
>Contact Dove
>Contact someone else (Specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6104857
>Go observe
Very time sensitive
Hopefully we learn a lot about Arts

Alright China plans - after this ritual, anyone want to head there early to do some prep? I'm thinking we could do something like this:
-Use the 5 days to tour the country
-Make a bunch of thralls in convenient locations (travel hubs, major cities, etc)
-Instruct 3-4 thralls to buy a couple months worth of non perishable food, hole up in their homes, and be convenient Party Crash locations for us
-Enslave them so we can soulscape travel to them as well

Once the fun begins we'll be able to teleport all over the country, ideally. Escape from Ye Min if she ever comes after us, respond quickly to Round Table sightings, back up pantheon buddies in need. We'll be set.
>>
>>6104874

I'll support this post, but let's do our scouting with the pym-awhatsit, and do some recording work for Baphomet with our real body
>>
>>6104901
Yeah definitely everything in China through the PP, and we can do influence gathering with our real body, hopefully simultaneously. We can grow more brains if we have to.
Also find time to eat a mortal soul. Maybe after observing the ritual so we've seen someone else doing it.
>>
>>6104874
+1
>>
>>6104901
>>6104918
>>6104920

>Go observe

You set down in Belarus, at the very same town hall where you met the Shaman in the first place. A yawn forces itself out as you float through an open window: you have grown quite tired over the course of your flight, and, since you’ve flown through several time zones, dawn is less than an hour away. You find the Shaman meditating in the usual spot.

“You are back in time for the ritual.” His eyes open, burning with white light.

“Yes. I didn’t want to miss the show. What’s the ETA?”

“Once the sun breaches above the horizon. It is.. a part of the conditions.”

“Oh? Why is that?”

“I have no idea. The information regarding this ritual has in large part been buried by the ancestors. It is, after all, an art most forbidden.”

You shrug, floating into the mayor’s office chair and lazily spinning around in it a few times. You inspect the formula etched into the city, focusing on it to the best of your ability, but it is immensely complicated. Rather than analyzing it immediately, you decide to commit it eidetically to memory instead, so that you might analyze it when you have the time.

Suddenly, <Omen> warns you of something headed directly for the window.

“Heads up!” You say, leaping from your seat and preparing your combat items. The Shaman’s eyes open, and he rises from his sitting position.

“One of your kind.” He says, drawing his dagger and taking a combat stance.

“Agreed. I wonder what his deal is?”
>>
>>6104963

“VILLAINOUS CURS SERVING THE KING!” A theatrical voice, accompanied by the thrum of an insect-like buzz reverberates through the walls as a man comes crashing through the window. The man is short and skinny, no, almost more like scrawny. His light brown skin shows only through the gaps between his sleeves and hands, and the appendages poking through his fingerless gloves. He has a flight apparatus strapped to his back, wings like a fly’s providing direction and mobility while divinity provides the lift and power. He wears a mask which, though stylized to resemble an insect, has the same distinctive design as the ones worn by Heracles and ADAM. He strikes a heroic pose, dark blue light dancing around him as the glass shatters to the floor.

“I, the dark hero BEELZEBUB, am here to stop you!”

The Shaman seems confused. You nearly die of secondhand embarrassment.

“...What is this about?” You ask, clutching your temples as you try to resist the urge to cringe.

“The EVIL SACRIFICIAL RITUAL, of course!”

“...What?”

“You must be wondering how I know, right? It’s all possible thanks to the DIABOLICAL MIGHT OF THE GREAT BEELZEBUB! And now, cultists, your days are NUMBERED.”



You use <Assess Hamartia>, but it is instantly blocked. Your eyes narrow- at first you thought that ADAM's masks were <Anti-Mind Altering> equipment, but it’s becoming increasingly obvious that, while they might have a secondary effect of that nature, the masks are primarily <Anti-You> equipment. Still, it doesn’t seem like he has any idea who you are- on the contrary, he seems to have mistaken you both for Courtiers.

You click your tongue- goofy edgelord behavior aside, he seems to be a genuinely formidable incarnation. He probably gained such power by fighting the King, just like you. What should you do now?

>Ask about the mask
>Ask about ADAM
>Try to convince him that you’re not Courtiers
>Try to kill him
>Try to crack the mask
>Write-in
>>
>>6104965
>Try to convince him you’re not Couriers
Just buy a lizard tail and show him, King servants ought to be cut off from the shop. Try not to give away that we’re pure dag nasty evil until we can ask about the mask.
>>
>>6104993
+1
>>
>>6104993
>>6105014

With a disgruntled expression, you lift a finger, allowing a crimson light to shine from its tip.

“..What?”

“Yeah dude, I’m an incarnation.”

“So, uh, are you here to stop this guy, then?”

“No. He’s not a courtier.”

“But the ritual-”

“What. Ritual.”

He lets out a stress sigh and begins to scratch his head, forgetting for a moment that it’s covered by his mask. “Ok, so, I have an authority that gives me <Premonitions> of the deaths of others, kinda like <Omen> but for everybody on earth. Usually the signals are faint enough not to be an issue, so I only feel them when <a bunch of people die for the same reason, at the same time>. At sunrise today, this entire part of the country is going to be caught up in a ritual, a rite to sacrifice their souls for.. something. And the center of that ritual is this very room!”

>Explain the situation
>Play ignorant
>Come up with a lie (specify)
>Attack him (Specify between Cautious, Normal, Reckless, or Desperate)
>Try to convince him to take off his mask (Specify between Cautious, Normal, Reckless, or Desperate)
>Write-in
>>
>>6105076
>"you know how it is, eggs and omelets."
what does omen say about this guy?"
>>
>>6105077

>Weaker than you, but only marginally. By your estimation, he's more powerful as an incarnation than Chen and Rosa (against literally anyone other than you). Considering the mask, he has a slight advantage in a one on one confrontation
>>
>>6105076
>Try to convince him to take off his mask
>”How can we trust you? We have nothing but your word and your embarrassing entrance. You won’t even show us your face.”
Didn’t want to show him our divinity because I thought he might have been warned about us since he has the mask, but I guess they’re just giving those things out like candy.
>>
>>6105107
+1
>>
>>6105107
+1 Yeah we showed we were an incantation to gain trust they should do to. How do we know he ain't making this up? He should show his face to gain our trust we are the DEFENDER OF THE WORLD after all who is he?
>>
>>6105172
What about the other mass chaos and bloodshed and other horrific epithets alongside that DEFENDER OF THE WORLD one, huh?
>>
>>6105172
Uh maybe don’t advertise that title
He might ask our incarnation name to verify it
We don’t want him looking up the rest
>>
>>6105174
>>6105177
Kek can you imagine the only DEFENDER OF THE WORLD was ATE the cruel irony. Anyways the rest of the titles, our name even maybe our true face can be shown, after mutual trust is established... By him showing his face obviously.
>İnb4 he's mask has a screen in the front that shows his face without dropping his guard
>>
>>6105076

> Cautious
Rather not overplay the hand at the moment.

>Explain the situation
Might be able to just let the shaman explain the ritual only works on the willing. Noble sacrifice to fight horrible extra dimensional invader, etc etc(Technically).
>>
>>6105076
>>6105107
Man I always forget to specify
>Reckless
>>
>>6105076
>Act as annoyed as we actually are.
>Ask the shaman to have his secretary make us tea.
>Explain the situation a little
>Any incarnation worth their salt could be getting their anti-king intel directly from Gaia. Isn't there one in his organization? Prometheus?
>Coax out of him if he has just recklessly been following this lead, or if people know he's here.
>Try to convince him to take off his mask (reckless)
>"How old are you? I know you're an *edgy* teen, but this plan is rated M."
>>
>>6105243
>>Ask the shaman to have his secretary make us tea.
I didn't finish that thought in writing.
the tea is an excuse for him to take off the mask
>>
>>6105076
>>6105243
Change my vote to this, highly doubt we'll get a better write in, and I don't even think this will work!
>>
>>6105076
Changing vote from >>6105139 to backing >>6105243
>>
>4chan keeps thinking my post is spam so I'm trying not replying to any of the posts

You sigh, dragging your hand down your face.

“Look, “Beelzebub”, just- take a seat.” you turn your attention to the Shaman, “Could you brew some tea?”

“We don’t have time for that. If you’re an incarnation like me then you know just how dangerous stuff like this can be.”

“So, how did you end up here, anyway?” You say, leaning back in the mayor’s overstuffed chair and putting your feet up on the table, “Who gives you your intel?”

“Why should I tell that to you? You’re obviously hiding something from me. You KNOW what’s going on here, don’t you?”

You smile- this kid is sharper than he looks.

“There’s an explanation behind all of this, but-” you pause, faking trepidation and casting your gaze away, “I can’t risk leaking intel. Especially to a kid who’s hiding behind a mask.”

"I'm not a kid." He says, obviously offended by the remark.

"Please, no self respecting adult would've made an entrance like THAT."

"I'm. Not. A. Kid."

"Then prove it. Should be pretty simple, right?"

>Reckless: Please give me three rolls of 3d10+3
>>
Rolled 7, 1, 5 + 3 = 16 (3d10 + 3)

>>6105354
The non linking worked
>>
Rolled 5, 2, 5 + 3 = 15 (3d10 + 3)

>>6105354

You've been playing too many disgaia games kid.
>>
Rolled 4, 9, 3 + 3 = 19 (3d10 + 3)

>>6105354
rolling

>>6105376
This isn't that kind of quest or setting, sorry kid. We're EDGY in this quest
>>
>>6105360
>>6105376
>>6105395

He pauses, seemingly considering responding to your provocation. His fingers touch the base of his mask, but he quickly removes them.

“You’re scheming something. I don’t know what it is, but I know that if I take this off, I won’t like the outcome.”

Right, a precognition ability.

He lifts his hand, a gauntlet manifesting in a flash of divinity. It whirs to life, exploding with blue light, tinged with <Not Black>, as <Omen> warns you of a dangerous presence. On instinct, you leap to your feet, claws bared in preparation for a fight.

“The King’s Colors… You crushed up a <Node> to power that thing, didn’t you?”

“Tell me what’s going on here.”

“As you know,” you sigh, fabricating a lie and masking it beneath a veneer of truth, “it is possible to use <Divinity> outside the system. The members of the Penitent- and the Court, for that matter- do that with the help of the King. But,” you smile, manifesting a bit of <Down to the Core>’s wind, “you don’t need his help either.”

“And.. wait, you’re not saying-”

You give a somber nod, “The King is powerful. Frankly, more powerful than we can deal with by means within the system. So, we’re taking a page out of his playbook.”

“...all these people. You wouldn’t.. you can’t!”

“This is why I told you not to poke your nose into it, kid. Right now, we’re fighting a war with the entire world at stake. A couple million lives is a tragedy, obviously, but if we lose, everyone, all 8 BILLION of us are completely and utterly doomed.”

His shoulders slump, “I.. I’ll bring in Gaia. You can’t do this.”

“Gaia won’t stop us. She cares about whether or not the earth gets destroyed, and, well, this is what we’re doing to save it. You called yourself a dark hero when you came- this…” You pause, adding a mournful gravel to your voice, “this is what it means to protect the world from the shadows.”

He tries to muster up a response, but it dies in his throat.

“This isn’t the work of the King. Gaia wouldn’t let this happen if it was, I promise you that. Go home.”

Though you can’t see his eyes, you can vividly imagine the expression on his face: dread, conflict, sadness.

“Is there really no other way?”

You give your head a sad shake, putting a hand on his shoulder (making sure to suppress all ill intent so as not to trigger his authorities). “War is hell. Always has been. There’s no place for heroes here.”

Silently, pitifully, he turns to fly back from whence he came.

>Launch an ambush (Specify between Cautious, Normal, Reckless, or Desperate)
>Let him leave
>Write-in
>>
>>6105435
Damnit
>Let him leave
His precog is too good, he'll see any ambush coming, and I don't want to risk a fight disrupting the ritual.
I guess we could try asking him about the mask before he leaves.
>>
>>6105435
>ask him to stay
>tell him we can't risk him coming back with backup, so if he wants to leave... we got to fight this out while it's a 2v1
>we rather not because we need all hands on deck to defeat the king
>>
>>6105435
>Let him leave

Good to know my theory of being able to turn noces into items is true.
>>
>>6105437
+1
>>
>>6105549
alright I concede, but then we shouldn't stay there for the ritual, in case he returns with backup.
Maybe shaman guy still wants to get talked out of it and wants to give in to "taint" his soul
>>
>>6105699
I don’t think we can move, this is the designated ritual center. It’s just if beelz is a king opposer like us he can probably tell the shaman is weak and thus the 2v1 threat is a bluff
>>
>>6105742
the shaman can stay and finish the ritual, but we, as in MC, shouldn't stay.
The shaman doesn't need us there for the ritual.
Beelz will likely report back to the others and they could decide to check it out anyway, both the ritual and the incarnation that knows about it, i.e. us. And I don't want to throw hands with ADAM without backup
>>
>>6105750
I don’t want to abandon our new comrade in evil
Also while it’s not beelz tier our own Omen authority is no slouch, we sensed beelz alone coming in, we’ll definitely have enough warning to teleport out if he brings company
>>
>>6105437
>>6105620
>>6105623
>>6105699

>Let him leave

“Before you go, where did you get that mask?”

He doesn’t respond. You sigh, allowing him to fly away, retreating back to wherever he came from. The Shaman, meanwhile, seems to still be on edge.

“So, what will you do now?”

“I’m not gonna stick around. I already dealt with one pest for you, so we’ll call it good, right?”

He closes his eyes again, sitting and crossing his legs, “Do what you will.”

You plant one of Pheme’s feathers on the scene, whispering in it to watch what happens before vanishing with a mock-bow, retreating into your <Divine Realm>.

>Head to China
>Find a candidate for your new monster
>Contact Dove
>Contact someone else (Specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6105823
Hang on, didn't staying for the ritual have more votes? I thought >>6105699 was the only one who wanted to leave.

If I'm delusional and leaving did win
>Head to China
Scouting + Early start to the teleport network
>>
>>6105836
+1
>>
>>6105836

Ah, nobody voted for it one way or the other besides the two arguing about it so I made an arbitrary decision. Regardless, Pheme will recall it perfectly (and can share it with you at any time) and the ritual receives no interruptions so nothing is lost either way. If it's a real issue, I can redo it as if you'd stayed and observed
>>
>>6105847
No biggie
I just thought it would make for a cool description to read about and get us Shaman affection points, but if we can get the description from Pheme anytime and the Shaman dislikes us no matter what then yeah we can go ahead and leave for China.
>>
>>6105823
>Head to China

Let's sow some seeds of chaos.
>>
>>6105823
>>6105836
>Head to China
>Scouting + Early start to the teleport network


>>6105836
I'm as surprised as you.
The earlier vote was to go observe the ritual
this vote was to let the dude leave.
I expected the next vote to be if we want to stick around or not.
>>
>>6105836
>>6105837
>>6105892
>>6106248

>Head to China

You yawn, checking to see if Brigita is available. Luckily, she is, and, at your command (and after a bit of finagling with your <Pygmalion Protocol> so she’ll be able to return to her previous location), she emerges from your <Divine Realm>. Wordlessly, you leap onto her back, dumping your <Heaven’s Ruin> and <Pegasus Cloak> items on her to increase her flight speed. You use <Divine Armor> to shield yourself from the wind and pressure changes.

You close your eyes- the down of the siren’s body feels comfortable and warm, almost like an embrace against the cold northeastern air. With a quiet sigh, you fall asleep, finally resting during the journey as Brigita flies quietly through the sky.

~

“We have landing, boss.”

You rouse, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes as you leap down onto the roof of a skyscraper.

“So this is Shanghai, huh? I assume you’ve never been either.”

She nods, stretching as she compresses back into a more human form. You take your gear back as you take stock of the place. The city is clean, almost disquietingly so, but there’s still a healthy amount of hustle and bustle even late in the evening: it seems like the nightlife has survived. Unlike basically everywhere else you go, there isn’t a drop of the anxiety that has blanketed the entire world since the advent of the incarnation system.

“Get some rest. It looks nice, but this place is enemy territory. I wouldn’t stick around.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.” She gives a drowsy salute, vanishing into her own realm.

>Start causing chaos
>Investigate the city itself
>Look for servant candidates
>Write-in
>>
>>6106336
>Investigate the city itself

Well, omen isn't screaming, and no one has thrown a pillar through our torso, so good start?

I figure we start by interrogating the locals on what they know, then start looking at critical bits of infrastructure we could knock over. Vague plan at the moment is to ensnare people with access to critical infrastructure, electricity, water, public transit, and communications, then rig them all to cause as much damage as possible, all at the same time.

Bonus points if we can find nuclear power facilities to wreck or large hydroelectric dams to explode.

Additionally if we could place people with mundane explosives at the base of skyscrapers that would probably raise a lot of hell.
>>
>>6106336
>>Investigate the city itself
Keep our third eye open for any divinity
Use Lenses of Theia and Psyche's Lamp on anything interesting we encounter

Shanghei is also a very important financial center, so maybe scout someone for Chrysus too
>>
>>6106336
>>6106357
+1 but we don't have polyglot right? Does thousands of faces give us acces to Chinese?
>>
>>6106336
>Look for servant candidates
We want our teleportation network

>>6106375
I think we can speak it but not understand it? Maybe we can develop a polyglot art real quick so we’re not using a limited authority slot
>>
>>6106375
If we shapeshift into a local we get their languages
>>
>>6106387
True, language and everything else
We can figure out why they’re so chill
>>
>>6106357
>>6106373
>>6106375
>>6106384

>Investigate the city itself

Rendered invisible by your stealth authorities, you hover over the glittering city below, selecting a random passerby as a <Thousand Faces> target, assuming her form in order to pick up Mandarin for ease of navigation.

The first thing that strikes you is all the construction- everywhere you look you see something- a renovation, an extension, a new building being built on the site where another had stood, as well as near-completed renovations from the monster attacks that had plagued the city before Ye Min fully consolidated her power. It reminds you somewhat of just how recent the System’s emergence has been- and how drastically it’s changed the world as you knew it. As you fly through the city, you also notice something odd: bronze statues of birds, about the size of an eagle, stand proud over the light posts and facades of the sparkling city beneath them. Something about them is uncanny in a way you can’t quantify.

You float down, soaring through a vibrant street market, enjoying the aromas of food and the clamor of vendors selling their product and musicians performing for the strolling masses. Despite not having any money, you decide to investigate, and are shocked by how low the prices are. You knew street food was way cheaper than restaurants in America, but the prices are so low that even that is a wholly insufficient explanation. China had been restricting tourism and immigration under the guise of suppressing crime, so perhaps it hadn’t become general knowledge that the city had become so prosperous. You decide to confirm by visiting a shop and, as expected, the prices there are a fraction of the Western cost.

Only one explanation can be drawn- Ye Min. She must have dedicated no small part of her efforts to streamlining, improving, and subsidizing the Chinese economy using a combination of her absolute authority and divine ability. As you stroll out of the supermarket, a shiver runs down your spine: despite the fact that nobody can see you, you can’t shake the feeling of being watched.
>>
>>6106428

Your eyes widen in recognition as you turn your eyes up to a bird statue perched imperiously above a stoplight: you remember, when you went to track down that gang dude in Germany, that Pheme sent you reports of metal birds rampaging through China. The <Stymphalian Birds>. If one incarnation was behind the whole flock, and Ye Min subjugated them then..

Her eyes are everywhere. Though it remains perfectly still, the statue seems to look down at you with a mocking smile.

You inhale: the air is clean, much cleaner than the city’s reputation would indicate. It seems most likely that this whole place is running on nuclear energy, or possibly even a divinity-based system of electricity generation. Thanks to her dictatorial reputation, you were expecting something more.. oppressive. Is she really trying to create a Utopia?

>Locate the nearest power plant
>Investigate the birds
>Look for a servant candidate
>Write-in
>>
>>6106429
>Investigate the birds
Hopefully they can't see through our stealth, or we'll have to try more rural areas
>>
>>6106429
>Locate the nearest power plant
I figure messing with the statues is a bad idea. Note their locations, but move on to proper objectives.
>>
>>6106429
>Investigate the birds
>>
>>6106429
>>6106548
+1 to this
Anons we need to GTFO of citys immediately! Clearly a great amount of divine protection has been invested in this great metropolis and probably others as well. We simply stand very little chance of succes here. Even if went all out and skiped straight to telling everyone to kill themselves we would either killed directly by the response or hunted by forces far far too strong for us to survive. We need to go rural infrastructure hunting in the hopes that hurting enough of their self reliance thus making them dependent on their rivals THUS makin our sponsor happy by slowing their march of progress.

Although it would pretty funny if gave overwhelming delusions of hunger to the citys creating quasi zombie outbreak. Or overwhelming grief so now everybody was to busy sobbing to participate in society.
Now that I think about it, something along the lines of these might be good idea. I'm sure benevolent rulers of China probably took many precautions against stuff along the lines of "distrust to authority" but have they taken precautions against "quarter of the population feels overwhelming desire to sleep for 20 hours a day and refuse to leave their beds"?
>>
>>6106727
Hang on anon remember the plan
These first 5 days are going to be mostly recon and preparation
Instead of getting right to the mayhem we’re just going to make a few thralls, own their souls, and have them hole up to be teleport targets.
Along with light recon of potential threats like these birds
Nothing that would provoke a response from Ye Min
After 5 days the rest of our pantheon gets here and that’s when we can cut loose
>>
>>6106744
I know anon, I was thinking about the future, I already assumed all we'd do is recon due to the 5 day limit to this visit. There is more than enough time between updates to theory craft. Which I think we must because the previous time we went without a plan beyond "kill Hercules" we almost got btfo
>>
>>6106429
>>6106727
support lets not mess with it
>>6106727
>>6106744
why not just make a peasants uprising? as villages all over the country are bullied by officials or exploited, religious minorities put in concentration camps where they are harvested for there organs making china have the best global supply and shortest time in the WHOLE WORLD for organ transplantation that is logistically not possible.
also they where all forced to give up there religion by the party but they still pray to there kids passing school with flying grades, Mao's little red book.
basically bring ruin to a country or class of rulers the classic more mundane way.
also its weird that there are birds in china at all due to the fact most birds being hunted to near extinction for food and actively avoiding humans, there is also the whole finch/sparrow extermination campaign they had.
there is also blooming bamboo as a sign of great disaster as it would feed and make a plague of rats and bugs perhaps we could entice bugs and animals to take "revenge" on humans?
>>
>>6106775
>why not just make a peasants uprising?
Anon they are living under a benevolent(currently) dictatorship that is using DIVINE POWERS to subsidize and provide security to everyones life not under MAOIST fucking China. And I'm sure China has both plenty ordinary and DIVINE counter measures against run of the mill rioting and protests. That's why I argue more esoteric sabotage. This way at least the more ordinary countermeasures (shooting protesters until they fuck off) will not work.
Beating and subjecting rioters and rebels have been done in China for milleanias now with the addition of DIVINE powers it could very easy to deal with. But would they have a easy time dealing with suddenly a good chunk of the population being deluded to think they need to sleep until they die of thirst or muscles atrophy?
>>
>>6106759
Ok I guess I misunderstood “gtfo of cities immediately “

>>6106775
Anon you might want to reread the last update, this isn’t real life china and those aren’t even real birds
>>
>>6106808
Probably would be worthwhile to see how easy the mass media is to get to. I'm very curious to know if Omen will warn us if we consider using Neuroplaston on a citizen, or just outright stabbing a news reporter and copying them.

Would be pretty hilarious if we could hijack the media and lace the entire population with depression.
>>
>>6106429
>>Investigate the birds
I assume they detect divinity, and it's possible we have already been spotted
devourer's cookbook said we can just cast divinity out like bait. We could probably do that and see if it triggers anything. Though again, we could have triggered a silent alarm already.
We have a lot of plural myths around, we could deify a rando and push them in front of one, see what happens. But that will then also alert them that someone is experimenting with their surveillance system and they have to expect a bigger incidence

Unrelated, but I still want to copy the authority the other dude who merged with a tree has used to put mind control into edibles.
As for a plan we could pull off is Lethe infecting a towns water supply and make them all forget everything.
If we could combine both and that with Thelematoxin in the future.
>>
>No replies because 4chan is stupid and thinks I'm spamming! Again!

I count three votes for power plants and three for birds. Need a tiebreaker- will roll if one isn't made whenever I check back in
>>
Rolled 1 (1d2)

Rolling
>>
>Locate the nearest power plant

You fly above the city, eventually locating what looks like an old coal power plant. No smoke billows from the top, but the building seems perfectly maintained, cars are parked in the lot, and a number of the building’s windows seem lit. You slink through a gap in one of the back entrances, making your way to the generator room.

Perhaps it’s due to the night shift, but the halls are mostly empty, only occupied by scant security or maintenance personnel. As you expected by watching the outside of the plant and breathing the city air, not a speck of coal dust can be smelled or seen anywhere you look, even as you arrive at the door to the boiler room.

Your eyes widen as you slip through a crack in the steel door: A massive chamber, inscribed with glowing silver circuits and characters, rests where the boiler presumably used to stand. Rather than the full workings of a furnace- doors and exhaust and various ports for input and output, a single handle sits at the front of the apparatus. Even as you stand there, you can sense the divinity emanating from the device. That and..

Consciousness. You can feel a soul manually operating the generator. More than that, this isn’t a <Relic>, nor is it the product of <Authorities> or <Miracles>. The generator is using <Arts>.

“What.. is this?”

You tilt your head in contemplation- it doesn’t seem to be using divinity as fuel- rather, it seems to be a catalyst, a method to harness whatever the real source of the power is.

“Brilliant, isn’t it?”

You reel back, readying your claws and looking around. Nobody’s there. You cast your eyes up at the glowing metal tank: the generator is talking to you.

“Who.. are you?”

“You could say I’m Ye Min. You could also say I’m a <Piece> of her, or you could simply call me a generator. Personally, I don’t find the distinction relevant.”

A shiver runs down your spine as your words die in your throat.

“Anyway, it really is a pleasure to meet you. I’ve wanted a chat for a while. After all, you are the talk of the town these days! ‘Archdevil’, ‘Bane to the King’, ‘The Star of Death’, ‘The Walking Calamity’.”

Omen and Preservation instinct remain silent, and so do you.

“The one and only Atë.”

>Run
>Ask how she knows you
>Ask why she isn’t attacking you
>Ask a different question (specify)
>Write-in
>>
>>6106973
>Ask a different question
“What do you want from me, that you’re not trying to kill me yet?”

How she knows us would be good too, didn’t think we were that famous
>>
>>6106973

> So...is this an interview for a job?
>>
>>6106973
First >>6107028
then >>6106978
>>
>>6106973
>>6107059
+1
>pretend to be more stupid/naive than we are
>tell her we have no quarrel with her, but we want something from the anti-china league, and our allies think we shouldn't empower china like that, so we have to hit china too
>These 4d chess moves bore us

(phoneposting)
>>
>>6107293
Let’s not admit we’re here to attack the country she rules?
>>
>>6107575
you're right, she probably thinks that an incarnation with our reputation snuck into this powerplant for a tourist visit

at the end of the day both the austrians and anti-china front only need to think we've hurt Ye Min properly
we needn't make her an actual enemy
>>
>>6107579
That would be pretty hilarious if we somehow get payed by everyone but actually do nothing of consequence.
>>
>>6107579
There’s a big difference between even 99% certainty and hearing it from our own mouth. Who’s to say she’s even that certain? She mentioned our Archdevil and bane of the king titles, maybe she thinks we’re here hunting Penitent. Or after our public throw down with ADAM and Heracles she thinks we’re at odds with the Whittlers and need a new country of residence
>>
New Thread!

>>6107803
>>6107804
>>6107806



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