...wait a minute. We have 33 IP. I see what's going on. If we fight over the phantasm enough so that say, 20 or 25 IP is used, they can force through the Draw Memory by using up all remaining IP. We can avoid this by letting them get the initial Phantasm started, then overpower it by blowing all the IP we have left.

Right now they're using 18 IP. If we allow that, there's 16 IP left, which we can blow on countering MOST of the phantasms, keeping the ghosts from using draw memory.

In light of this, I am retracting all my spending plans for IP until after the phantasm is set.

>>636530
We can use up the remaining IP, too, though.

The easiest way is to game the IP so only 25 is left, and then blow it all on a botch to hurt the Rook when it takes a swing and a miss at Sami. Granted, that means we're risking a hit, but there's no way this thing doesn't try at some point anyways.

>Right now they're using 18 IP. If we allow that, there's 16 IP left, which we can blow on countering MOST of the phantasms, keeping the ghosts from using draw memory.
>In light of this, I am retracting all my spending plans for IP until after the phantasm is set.

** To clarify: You are wanting allow the Cursed Spirits to proceed with their Phantasm, wait a minute for it to subside, and then apply your own? **

>>636536
>Since you're 'watching' you can actually counter the Phantasm before it fully manifests so only the end result will cost IP. So of the 33 IP that's available, it's only the end spend that matters.

Okay how is this different from what happened the first time?

>>636538
Last time we thought it was the memory of her drowning, not a phantasm (because we had the light path up and didn't realize phantasms on different senses didn't conflict). So we wasted time trying to counter the memory and let the enemy phantasm take hold before we attempted to counter it.

>Last time we thought it was the memory of her drowning, not a phantasm (because we had the light path up and didn't realize phantasms on different senses didn't conflict). So we wasted time trying to counter the memory and let the enemy phantasm take hold before we attempted to counter it.

** That's correct; Sami had been 'drowning' since she began to choke. Your Phantasm kicked in at basically the last second when she had begun to transform... (I had already begun sketching her transformation). I just want to make sure that the plan is to let Sami deal with the Phantasm for a solid minute OR if the plan is to just wait until the Cursed Spirits have 'paid' and then pay to fight them.

It sounds like there are three plans being proposed:

1. If you let the Phantasm take hold, the Curse pays the initial value (not the added amounts to fight you) and it will last a minute, although it will feel longer to Sami. You can then project a new Phantasm of your choosing at whatever cost of realism. This has the lowest IP cost but Sami will have to endure a minute of the Phantasm.

2. If you want to fight the Phantasm but then 'throw the fight' when they up the ante, they will have to pay the 'won battle'. This has the middle IP cost and Sami will have to endure a minute of the Phantasm.

3. Or you can fight them to win, and you'll have to pay an upped ante but their Phantasm will stop before it affects Sami. This has the highest IP cost but Sami will not have to deal with their Phantasm.

As a side note, DRAW MEMORY can ONLY work on sharpening SURFACE THOUGHTS. Unless Sami is reminded of her mother's cooking it will never be available as a surface thought to focus on. You may scan her surface thoughts using DRAW MEMORY for free **

>>636560
I want to make the spirits pay and then pay to fight them. That way we are more likely to be able to exhaust our entire IP pool, making this the final phantasm/memory attack.

From how it worked the first time around, the phantasm would not last the full minute.

[private]
>You may scan her surface thoughts using DRAW MEMORY for free
Well, that seems like a no brainer. If we can do that, we should, so we know what we risk the curse spirits dumping us in.

It seems to me that if we let the enemy phantasms take effect, her surface thoughts will focus on the drowning, and the enemy can and will cast draw memory on that.

If we get our phantasms up (daylight, breeze, cooking, ...uh, do we leave taste and sound out?), any draw memory will hopefully not focus on that.

Option 3.

...also, if we try to game the spending so we have exactly 10 IP left, we have Sami get close enough for the Rook to attack, she dodges, and we apply botch to the attack attempt.

>>636564
>spend IP on other things while countering the phantasms
...I actually like this better. We can just plain nullify the worst parts of the phantasm, and still empty our IP pool.

I think I can actually do that in one post, if other people agree with me. I mean I could spend 5 IP on seven things- all five phantasms and both a failure and success roll. That's 35 IP without anyone helping.

** The following surface thoughts are available to focus, in no particular order **

- The Piper's song and the beautiful illusion
- Sami's best friend Rosemary. Hers were the last eyes she looked into before she transformed.
- Rage, bloodthirsty, blind rage.
- Excitement so intense it became sexual when she tore into the creature who murdered the town's children and would have murdered her if not for her buried fae blood.
- The choking sensation of water in her lungs right before she transformed; her body reacted to the aquatic asphyxiation sexually. It is a fetish she has long suppressed because she also associates it with death and shame.
- A passing realization that shame sexually excites her, regardless of its appropriateness at the moment.
- Curiosity at the colour of the golem.
- Fear at trying to deal with a huge creature.
- Calculations on where she could run to and estimating the golem's speed.
- Wondering if there could possibly be a God of any sort that could allow this to happen.
- God doesn't exist.
- Hating God if She exists and let this happen.
- Hoping that God exists just so there's a chance her friends might not just ceased to exist.
- Hating herself and thinking this is happening because she deserves it. This one seems to repeat in different themes, including wondering if this is happening because God actually does exists, is actually good, and that Sami is being punished because she's a horrible monster.
- Wondering if the spirits are really on her side.
- Hoping the spirits are on her side.
- Considering the spirits are just toying with her.
- Wondering if the spirits are the 'good' counterparts to the Curse. Wondering if the spirits are actually that of the other children.
- Why is the golem in the Mayor's home?
- Feeling hungry.
- Really wanting a drink and to smoke some weed when this is all over.
- Hoping that this kills her and just ends it all already.
- Intense fear that she'll die.
- The water is really cold for an illusion.

>>636672
[Private]
...okay. Wow, first of all, we do not admit we did that. Or make reference to these thoughts. I don't care how much she trusts us, or not, there's some personal stuff in there I feel skeezy just looking at.

Got that? Sami hasn't ever mentioned Rosemary to us, we don't know about the erotic asphyxiation or the Catholic shame fetish, or her theory we might be dead children. Don't mention that where she can hear.

I think we can also agree that's not a happy collection of thoughts.

>Curiosity at the colour of the golem.
Well, at least she'll get a better look at it if our daylight phantasm takes hold.

Maybe we cast draw memory after we've overcome the phantasm, but I still favor option 3 from before for the immediate action.

Smik 2015/04/28(Tue)13:59 No. 636809 ID: 3009b4
File 143025478078.jpg - (364.74KB , 640x720 , CursedRookisAngry.jpg )

Struggling with the Cursed Spirits is like trying to have a physical confrontation by shouting at each other, drowning each other out with the loudest noise until one side becomes hoarse.

** VISION Phantasm is over-ridden for 6 IP. **
** TOUCH Phantasm is over-ridden for 5 IP. **

As the vision and sensation of the river around Sami fade, Sami gets a sensation of pins being pulled out from the back of her mind and shivers involuntarily.

** The CURSED SPIRITS have removed their direct presence from Sami, taking with them the power they brought, although the PHANTASM and DRAW MEMORY applications remain available. IP is down 20 (11+19), 13 IP is left **

It's soon apparent that the Curse has had enough of using nightmares and mental anguish and has decided to take a rather direct approach in ensuring that Sami never leaves this place.

Despite a lack of mouth or any visible audio equipment the Rook lets out frenzied scream that sounds like the death scream of a rabbit amplified a hundred times.

Sami manages to stammer "B... bugger me sideways, what did you lot do?" just before the Rook charges towards her at terrifying speed, the rapid crash of stone against stone echoing like a machinegun.

Run first! Talk on the go!

Please remember you can talk to us by thinking hard at us, you're probably going to need your breath for running.

Also, the illusion of daylight will only last a minute, though it might feel longer for you. Take advantage and get as good a look at your surroundings as you can while it lasts. Every edge in staying ahead of that thing counts.

>"B... bugger me sideways, what did you lot do?"
We won the battle for your mind. We prevented their crushing your spirit, or letting them make you see and feel what they wanted.

...and they are really sore losers. They aren't trying to torture you emotionally or drive you insane anymore, now they're just trying to kill you.

To win the war, you just need to stay ahead of that thing long enough and get the gold where it needs to go.

[private]
>13 IP left
>phantasm and draw memory still available
Okay, now that the curse is out of her head, we don't need to worry about using draw memory anytime soon. Phantasm will be useful later, but I don't think we need more now.

Right now all the IP is gonna be good for is emergency evasion, and maybe a botch on the golem if we time it right. If we can get it to wipe out, that might give us time to double back and get the gold where it's going.

>>636809
Oh! Okay Sami, the ghosts gave up on illusions because we kept fighting them off. They went to boost the Rook instead.

...unfortunately this is bad because the golem is now likely just as fast if not faster than you. You can't outpace it and you can't hide from it, so you're going to die unless you transform, I reckon. It's almost like fate is conspiring to force you to face your monstrous side! GEE HOW ABOUT THAT. Well I guess you have one stupid option left- try to enter the house while the golem actively attempts to kill you, resulting in the building collapsing around you as you try to find the mayor's ghost or whatever controls the golem. Do whatever you want. We have a small amount of resources left, but it's not like you're going to be able to hurt the golem in any way. All we can do is maybe help you dodge.

Sami, do you recognize what the golem is made out of?
[+2 IP towards Sami dodging incoming attacks]

>>636819
I don't know why you're assuming transforming would cause her to not die. I doubt her aquatic form would be faster on land than she is (in fact, it might be much slower). It might be more durable, but I doubt that makes much of a difference when being pummeled by anger-fulled stone fists. Plus, a less rational and/or our of control Sami is on a poorer position to try and protect herself.

Even divorced from the emotional and/or moral concerns, it doesn't seem like it would help. If anything, I think a transformation would significantly up the odds of a bad outcome. (Which would be why the curse was pushing for it, before).

>>636823
What this guy said. The Curse wanted her to transform, so we clearly really don't want that to happen.

Basically, uh, Sami, cheese it. Book it. Get outta dere. It's going to be faster now than it was thanks to the Curse moving from messing with you to boosting the golem. We'll do what we can, but it's mostly going to rely on you keeping a level head and running away.

Sami, can you play the flute while running? (That's just so we don't miss an easy solution.)

The golem is now even faster. Do not try to outrun it, keep dodging and get somewhere that it can't reach.

The other three golems were unable to approach the church. What if these ghost hackers (or the golem) have a place nearby that they're loathe to approach? Keep moving until you find a place where the golem stops advancing. You'll need adequate defenses against melee and ranged attacks, as the hackers are in control and likely smarter than Rook.

*Private*
We should have access to TEN, so somebody DO SOMETHING!
*/Private*

>>636823
>>636826
The transformation makes her much stronger, but it has some effect on her mind. The Curse isn't trying to make her transform, it's trying to make her suffer and/or die. I doubt the ghosts even know Sami survived because of the transformation.

Smik 2015/04/28(Tue)18:40 No. 636838 ID: 3009b4
File 143027164599.jpg - (465.31KB , 640x720 , Rook Attack.jpg )

Sami figures her best bet is to get to whatever the Rook is guarding and dashes forwards, trying to run past the golem.

She feels the air rush past her tail as the stone creature slams its massive stone fist into the ground with a deafening slam that makes her ears ring. She just made it past!

** Even with help, Sami failed her dodge and lost 10 Plot Armour; 90 remaining **

Thankfully she doesn't have to worry about the door as the golem hammered it to pieces. As she runs blindly into the darkness she trips over some rubble and tumbles down the hard, stone stairs.

She can hear the roar of the golem bearing down on her as she spins helplessly in the darkness, as her her poor little body bounces off unidentifiable, worn but still painfully solid corners.

** Sami rolled extremely poorly and loses and additional 5 points of Plot Armour to avoid breaking bones or taking serious injury that would severely impeded her chances of survival. **

Finally the spinning stops as she loses the last of her momentum, sprawled out on the ground in an undignified bruised heap. As her hearing returns and her head begins to right itself, she realizes that it's oddly quiet.

Ouch. Sami, you okay?

That was real close. If you were a cat, I'd say you burned off one of your nine lives making that.

>As her hearing returns and her head begins to right itself, she realizes that it's oddly quiet.
...are we there? Or is just the eye of the storm.

You should have matches. Light one up.

I'm guessing that nightvision phantasm doesn't actually work?

>** Even with help, Sami failed her dodge and lost 10 Plot Armour; 90 remaining **

Do you mean 100 remaining, because Sami was at 110 due to extra determination a few updates back?

Jeez! Didn't think that would be possible... This guy just got stronger, and will remain so until you help the guilt-ridden spirits find peace. Every spirit you help do so will weaken that power boost it got, I believe there's eight right now?
*Private*
>Perhaps you should be more curious as to why it isn't spending more.
...They were able to copy our remaining points into the Rook, weren't they?

Meet the Mayor Smik 2015/04/28(Tue)19:38 No. 636850 ID: 3009b4
File 143027509823.jpg - (284.07KB , 640x720 , Sami meets the Mayor.jpg )

** I realize I forgot to activate the nightvision Phantasm, but she rolled so poorly (94 for a target of 50) it wouldn't have had an impact. **

A soft light begins to grow along with an unsure whispering that slowly begins to take the form of a voice.


....ssssssSAAAAAAmmmmiii ....

... sssSAAAmmii .. ?

... SAMI!

Oh no... no... no... no... oh Sami... what... what have I done to you? Sami... Sami I'm sorry...


Sami painfully turns and squints to see an aspiration before her. She does not recognize its form, but she recognizes the voice. Her vision begins to clear somewhat. Spectral tears flutter down and land on her face like dust before fading.

Despite her situation, she can hear the pain in the former man's voice and she pities him.

Sami: Mr. Mayor?

The Mayor:Sami?

Sami: Pardon me for saying so sir, but you look like shit.

Her attempt to lighten the situation is lost as the ghost stares at her in disbelief. As Sami slowly turns over to right herself, she hears a crinkling of glass in her backpack.

** Sami's inkwell has broken in the fall. It's ruined her normal paper. Her sheet music, faerie ink and faerie paper are fine. The pipe is also fine. **

The Mayor:Are you hurt?

Sami checks herself for broken bones. She's in a lot of pain, but she's not seriously hurt.

Sami: I'm fine (she lies).

The Mayor:Why have you come back? What are you doing with that cursed gold?

Sami: I thought it was related to the curse on this place. I hoped you might know how to cleanse it.

The Mayor:That gold... was what we gathered to pay the piper. It was not enough. It is blood money. I locked it away because it reminded me of my failure and what I did to our town. I was... not thinking very clearly, although at the time I thought I was being very calm and collected. It was... fortunate I did, because it is cursed. It was locked away so others would not fall to this curse, and Sami... you of all people should be spared from it. You were our only child. You were truly *innocent*.

Sami takes a deep breath and sighs.

Sami: Not to be rude Mr. Mayor, but do you know how to cleanse it?

The Mayor:You must take it to the Piper. It is his gold, and his debt is unpaid..

A thought occurs to Sami.

Sami: ... 99 children.

The ghost reacts in horror.

The Mayor:NO SAMI!! Please, if you die I'm afraid you will be entwined in this curse and I've done enough wrong as is. Every moment is spent regretting what I did. You are innocent..

Sami: ... it's why I felt like I had to come back though. It's the debt. It's got to be settled one way or another, doesn't it? And there is not enough gold here to do it.

The ghost sinks in shame.

The Mayor:No... there is not enough gold. There was never enough gold. I can't remove that mark, but if you take that to the piper it should cleanse you..

The mayor cocks its wisp of a head to one side.

The Mayor:It's funny but now that you're here I've clarity that I've not had in so long I cannot remember. You... have you dealt with ghosts before? You are very calm..

Sami smiles weakly.

Sami: I've been haunted ever since that day, Mr. Mayor. And several ghosts have already tried to drive me mad and kill me already, including that Rook we never got to work. This is nothing.

The mayor seems to ignore her second attempt to lighten the mood somewhat.

The Mayor:I think I can... no, I WILL hold the Rook. I will not let any more harm come to you while you are here.

Sami nods. She wonders if her guides might have any questions for the mayor?

>Do you mean 100 remaining, because Sami was at 110 due to extra determination a few updates back?

** No, I forgot about that. Thanks for catching it. Sami's at 95 because she still loses 5 not being seriously hurt falling down the stairs. **

>...They were able to copy our remaining points into the Rook, weren't they?

** They took the points they brought with them back the Rook. **

Sami, please don't try to complete the blood contract. Offer the statue of Faustia and the gold or whatever and finish this.

We didn't help you come this far just for you to throw your life away.

...Maybe you'll never be the happy little girl again. But you still remember her. You carried the memories of better times across your nightmares, and the result is a survivor.

Maybe... maybe there was always a debt, before Piper. Before all of this. A debt of cold, hard reality that would write your fate, even before you understood what fate was.

And despite your misery YOU CAN FINALLY PAY THAT DEBT.

There are a lot of people at fault here in all this business. Mayor should've had the money to pay the man he hired. Piper shouldn'tve been such a bastard. But, bastard as he is, he does not deserve your life. We get him his money, we scrape together whatever we don't have, and put this to an end. All debts paid, all sales final, no grudges on either side.
But you're not going to be the collateral. Non-negotiable.
Now.
Do we know where the Piper is? Is getting to him as easy as walking the road and knocking on his door?
And, what can we give him in payment?
Statue of Faustia is made of gold, isn't it? That'll work.
The priest might know where/how we can get some more gold.
I bet those golems, or their parts, sell real well if the Mayor can hold them back.
Basically I'm, and I hope you are, fully prepared to strip this village bare to get that asshole's shadow out from under you once and for all.

>>636850
Yeah, first, ask him where the rook's control device is. We may be able to use it. Secondly... uh, the Piper is dead. Does bringing the coins to his corpse still work? Or would we have to bring the coins to his employers?

Is there anything else of interest in this house?

>You must take it to the Piper. It is his gold, and his debt is unpaid.
So. Um. Sami has to eat the gold?

Or we have to dump the coins in the river.

>Sami: ... 99 children.
While the concept of self sacrifice is noble, I don't think blood can cleanse the darkness rooted here, Sami.

And I don't think you can take the chance that if you offer yourself up in payment, that something else will then own the darkness inside you. You've kept it contained- you don't want to loose it.

>She wonders if her guides might have any questions for the mayor?
Hmm. Is he aware of any other ghosts that linger here? Who else remains?

Are there other cursed objects, like the gold? If we can cleanse it, are there others we have to find?

[private]
>She's in a lot of pain, but she's not seriously hurt.
I don't suppose the experience of a phantasmal painkiller is an option?

Although we can only give a minute's relief at a time that's not very cost effective treatment. It would only really be worth it if we could drag it out, or if we just had to get her past a hump.

Heya Mayor...
AH! a question for you-was there a specific place in town where you would meet the Piper or no?
And good luck with the Rook, hey, maybe we can give you a hand with that?
[give 3IP to Mayor]

>Offer the statue of Faustia and the gold
That won't do anything, Kome. The gold has to be offered to the "Grave" of the Piper. Do you remember, Sami, the part of the river he was at? Take the gold there, and bury it.
>The Mayor: It's funny but now that you're here I've clarity that I've not had in so long I cannot remember.
Sounds like just being permitted to see you was enough to cleanse his guilt. He is glad that the Last Child has lived.
>The Mayor:NO SAMI!! Please, if you die I'm afraid you will be entwined in this curse and I've done enough wrong as is.
On the other hand, your death will cause him more Grief than he ever had before, strengthening the curse. At least until we can lighten up the curse some more, dying is not an option... Of course, I would prefer it be avoided anyways, but now we have a solid reason.
>And despite your misery YOU CAN FINALLY PAY THAT DEBT.
Man, what.
>Do we know where the Piper is?
...Did you forget? The Piper is dead. All we can do is take the gold to his "Grave." Making a proper grave for him might help, too, even if it's just a burial mound: A bunch of rocks piled over it to denote somebody died there.
>Are there other cursed objects, like the gold? If we can cleanse it, are there others we have to find?
Cleansing any objects cursed by the Guilt and Grief should help weaken the curse's hold on the city, and make it easier to rebuild.
>maybe we can give you a hand with that?
[Im_OK_with_this.jpg]

Smik 2015/04/29(Wed)17:43 No. 636994 ID: 3009b4
File 143035462705.jpg - (397.35KB , 640x720 , Sami and the Mayor1.jpg )

>[give 3IP to Mayor]
** Not possible. **

>And good luck with the Rook, hey, maybe we can give you a hand with that?
** Nice idea but not necessary. **

>Sami, please don't try to complete the blood contract. Offer the statue of Faustia and the gold or whatever and finish this.

Sami: The statue isn't made of real gold, guys.

>Do we know where the Piper is? Is getting to him as easy as walking the road and knocking on his door?

Sami: I *know* where the Piper is, and I'll never forget it. He'll be where I killed him.

>I bet those golems, or their parts, sell real well if the Mayor can hold them back.


Sami: Oh probably except for the fact that there's no way in hell I can move them.

>Yeah, first, ask him where the rook's control device is. We may be able to use it. Secondly... uh, the Piper is dead. Does bringing the coins to his corpse still work?

Sami: Do you know where the rook's control device is?

The mayor flickers and nods.

The Mayor:The vault is just a little further. It's locked up, and I don't know if you'll be able to open it, but the Siren's Axe is supposed to control the golem. It looks like some sort of... angry guitar.

Sami: ... so I control the rook by playing the guitar?

The Mayor:That's what we thought, but we could never get it to work.

>Does bringing the coins to his corpse still work?

Sami: I'm pretty sure it will.

Sami removes the flute from her pack. The mayor wisps around her with interest.

The Mayor:... is that...

Sami nods.

Sami: I'm not as innocent as you think, Mr. Mayor. I killed the Piper, and stole his things and told no one about it. I'm sorry.

The Mayor:... I don't understand. You were just a little girl. The Piper was found ripped to shreds.

Sami: I'd rather not discuss it.

Sami plays the flute. Like a late riser struggling out of bed, with a creak and a groan the vault opens before her.

Sami: ... I don't suppose you know if there's anything left to scavenge in the town? Like where I could get some food? I gave half my rations to the priest.

The Mayor:... Priest? I... don't remember a priest. But I don't know anything that happens outside this place. Your best bet would be the merchant's guild for supplies; it had the sturdiest locks. Be careful Sami, taking anything from this town enrages the curse.

Sami stows the gold in her pack and approaches the Siren's Axe. It is stored in the center of the otherwise empty vault (save for the remains of smashed objects) on a simple wooden table. Despite everything else being coated in a thick layer of dust, the guitar looks pristine. As Sami picks it up, it flickers with power you can see, and while Sami can't see it you can tell she is aware of something magical about the instrument.

Too bad she doesn't play guitar.

>>636994
Look around for a reptilian scale or something of the same shape. These equate to the "bow" of this type of musical instrument.

I'll bet the guitar is like the Piper's flute. The flute affects natural things. If the guitar works on the golems then... manufactured things? Enchanted things? Spiritual things? Hold on, we'll scan it for you.

[Scan guitar]

>Sami: ... so I control the rook by playing the guitar?
>The Mayor:That's what we thought, but we could never get it to work.
They probably didn't know the right song to try. I'll bet your sheet music works.

>Sami: Oh probably except for the fact that there's no way in hell I can move them.
Well, you could sure move them around if we found a way to take control of them.

>Too bad she doesn't play guitar.
...that may not be an issue. Hey, guys, anyone here know how to play a guitar? We might be able to manipulate the strings with a touch based phantasm. Or, failing that, we could guide Sami through the chords on a piece (making the places she needs to put her fingers light up, a warmer / colder feeling to guide her fingers, a visual example of someone playing to mimic, etc).

>>636994
Hmm. Well Sami, I think you're going to have to learn.

Also it sounds like the "Priest" is a Fey using an illusion of some sort. Don't we have something that can dispel illusions?

>>637001
He's not necessarily hiding something (though he may well be). He could have just come to this town after the mayor was dead. (Although, the general trend would have been people leaving town, not moving in, once the decline started).

>Look around for a reptilian scale or something of the same shape. These equate to the "bow" of this type of musical instrument.


Sami: I know what a guitar is Kome. It's not a violin.

>They probably didn't know the right song to try. I'll bet your sheet music works.
Sami: Problem is it's not a matter of notes, I have to get the rhythm too. It has to be played properly or it doesn't work at all.

> We might be able to manipulate the strings with a touch based phantasm.
** Phantasm only works on Sami's senses to create illusions. For example, a daylight Phantasm actually relies on spirit vision and then overlaying it as an optical illusion. Yes, I know I forgot to trigger it but that's how it would work.**

>Also it sounds like the "Priest" is a Fey using an illusion of some sort. Don't we have something that can dispel illusions?
** You have the ability to see through Glamours now, but not dispel illusions. This ability does not transfer to Sami, so for example if the Big Bad Wolf used a Glamour to appear to be Sami's grandmother, even though YOU can tell it's Big Bad, Sami still sees her Grandmother and you'd need her complete trust to get her to attack. **

If no one has other questions, the Mayor explains that the Piper is trapped within the Curse as well -- he can sense him -- so if Sami can find his place of death she should be able to give him the gold. He warns her that despite her best intentions, until she gets close to the Piper's place of death he will be enthralled by the rage of the Curse and will attack her with everything he has. He warns Sami that he might not be able to restrain the Curse if she moves too far away from him -- he could barely focus consciously at all until she was right next to him.

>>637025
So to sum up, you're safe here but if you go anywhere the golem will chase you. How long do you think it would take for you to learn how to play even the first part of the song on the guitar? If you learned how to play the whole thing, it would instantly destroy the golem.

Hey, can you get to within sight of the Rook while the Mayor is still able to focus? You could just try to experiment with the guitar. Oh! Ask the Mayor if he knows what material the golem is made out of.

** Also: The Wiki is still not available yet. The Guitar is a network-active item but that's all you can find out for the moment. **

>If no one has other questions
Where did he get this guitar, anyways?

>Sami: Problem is it's not a matter of notes, I have to get the rhythm too. It has to be played properly or it doesn't work at all.
...and the only way around that is practice. Which we don't really have time for. And I'm not sure one should practice with a magical instrument, anyways. Mistakes could have unforeseen consequences.

Unless we can find someone else who can play a guitar. Not very many candidates for that around here, though. And we'd have to trust them with it.

The Priest may be a Fae, or a Cat, or just somebody who arrived afterwards and happened to either already be or decided to become a priest. No sense doubting him, though, he's kept the church in good shape, and hasn't done any harm.

I suppose the best course of action is to relieve the Piper of his Grief, since we're carrying around a portable curse. It might be best to wait for day, but it's also possible that the enraged curse would be able to break into the church.

If we had a luthier we could make a curved bridge for the guitar! Then it could be a giant violin!

I once saw a concert where the performer had done that. Mid-act he switched from playing it like a guitar, to playing it like a violin. It was very impressive.

>>637071
I would think a guitar is too big to play like a violent. A cello, maybe.

>>637116
That might work better for Sami, she's not that big.

Sami: Mr. Mayor -- could you watch over me if I needed to rest?

The Mayor:Yes Sami. I'm afraid you'd have to rest right here since the farther we get from my place of death the harder it is to focus, but I can stop the Curse from doing anything to you as long as you're here.


Sami: Thanks. Guys, if you don't mind... I'd like to just rest here until morning. Unless there's anything else you wanted to do or ask.

You more than deserve a rest, Sami. We've got nothing immediately pressing to ask of you.

Goodnight. We'll be here when you need us.

[Private]

Would it be possible to spend a couple IP towards her having a nice dream? Or should that be conserved for something more important anyways?

Goodnight, Sami.

>I'd like to just rest here until morning.
Hey, it's all good. I was worried about them breaking into the church, but I trust the Mayor to be able to stop them from breaking into here.

Smik 2015/05/08(Fri)21:44 No. 639162 ID: 3009b4
File 143114666758.jpg - (318.67KB , 640x720 , Sami Chapter End.jpg )

Sami Quest: Chapter One Complete

Despite all the excitement, threats to her life, aching body and general horror, Sami falls asleep quickly. Perhaps its the presence of the mayor or maybe it's sheer exhaustion, but even on the hard floor of the basement she sleeps soundly, gently clutching the Siren's Axe.

The mayor watches over her, light pulsing in rhythm to Sami's breathing. Every so often he mutters to himself, repeating "Protect her" over and over, as if he might forget if he didn't focus himself. Other whispers seem to coast in and out like waves, and you catch 'the child' or 'Sami'.

Every so often, the mayor whimpers "Sami... forgive me," but never loud enough to disturb her.

****

Sami's Quest will continue in a new thread; this one will be updated when ready. I plan to create a more consistent interface that also displays things like current IP.