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Cloud is Dead (Final Fantasy VII CYOA)

Nahel

Arcane
Joined
Feb 12, 2015
Messages
862
C. Marcus needs to try
 
Unwanted

Kalin

Unwanted
Dumbfuck Zionist Agent
Joined
Sep 29, 2010
Messages
1,868,264
Location
Al Scandiya
D) Name is better imo, dinner wouldn't work because tsundere SOLDIER would have to unequip her helmet to actually eat and that's a no no I reckon. Also she'll want the booklet back anyway so it's (probably) not like it's now or never.
 

Dayyālu

Arcane
Joined
Jul 1, 2012
Messages
4,465
Location
Shaper Crypt
I doubt we're going to bust this one open easily. We're a job and nothing more. Marcus should feel proud that the Hivemind shot down the horny nurse and went for the hardass bodyguard-with-barely-concealed-disdain. A man close to my heart indeed.

D then C
 

Random

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Sep 19, 2008
Messages
2,812
Ds have the advantage this go around.

Changing Times Part XII

"You still didn't give me your name," you say just as she's turning to leave.

She halts mid-step, turns, and shakes her head in a manner that could mean all kinds of things.

"I'm not supposed to tell you that. But it's Berenike."

You commit it to memory. "Berenike. Alright."

Berenike shrugs and heads out. You're sorry to see her go, but love watching her leave.

Unwilling to try too hard to befriend her, you let her go. It feels like you missed an opportunity. You may never see her again, you realize.

But regardless, you head to the street and start the walk back to your apartment. All the way there, you wonder what assignment HQ has cooked up for you. You have a bad feeling about the way Berenike said it. You may no longer get your cushy post as a security guard at HQ anymore... which, although you resolved to try to move beyond just accepting a comfortable position a while back, you can't help but miss a little. But how bad could it be? Surely the worst thing you could get assigned to is patrol duty around Midgar.

You get back to your apartment without incident, trudge up the stairs, and sit down on the couch of your sparkling clean apartment. At any rate, whatever you get dumped in your lap, you'll be ready for it. Probably.

You make yourself a nice dinner, steak and potatoes and a salad, using up the last of your groceries. Using some of the techniques you learned over the past week, you manage to make it nice and satisfying. Not the best you've ever eaten in your life, but it leaves your stomach full and contented. With that taken care of, you sit back and crack open the materia manual Berenike lent you.

After a brief scan of its contents, you have a better understanding of the underlying science behind materia and how they work. You realize that your idea of trying to cast the spell faster or memorize it was utter nonsense. The former would just exhaust you, while the latter was impossible. According to the book, nobody had been recorded in the last five hundred years as being able to cast magic without the materia in hand. However, the concept of casting the spell bigger... had some merit, albeit not in the way you had originally considered. Apparently, materia, if used often enough, could gain power and unlock new spells within the domain of the materia, including more powerful ones. Doing so, however, took a lot of hard work, and even materia specialists needed years to accomplish it.

The booklet also makes it very clear that materia were precious to the extreme and thus reserved solely for SOLDIER's use outside of special requisitions for regular infantry. It clarifies that sometimes normal troops can acquire materia through purchase or discovery in the field, and they are permitted to make use of them, but that it is at their own risk and ShinRa Corp. does not accept responsibility for any self-injury or death caused by unsanctioned materia use.

Fair enough, you think. With all that you've learned, you can see why materia is not distributed widely throughout the Department of Public Safety. Most people would just get themselves killed one way or another.

A few minutes after finishing the manual, you wind down and prepare for bed. It's only eleven at night, but you know well enough to expect an early morning delivery of your new orders.

The following morning, you are not disappointed nor surprised when, at 0500, you get a call that rudely interrupts your good, deep sleep and answer your PHS to hear a machine voice reading out your new orders.

As it turns out, your new post is not in HQ.

You're in the 226th City Patrol Unit.

---

You get dressed in your uniform and catch the train to HQ to meet your new squad.

The absurdity of a Major getting assigned to lead a single squad is not lost on you, but unfortunately it seems that your double promotion was not exactly considered legit by the powers that be, only a formality. You don't know if it was Heidegger or the new President or just someone in the middle that decided to screw you over with this kind of post, but ultimately, it doesn't matter. Nobody in the outfit would respect you for getting a rank they would not think you deserved, and you don't really think you deserve to be a Major either. Captain, maybe. Maybe.

Either way, it's a cold splash of water and a slap to the face. You're not on the gravy train. You're up shit creek and without a paddle. HQ Security might be an assignment for executives' kids and men looking to coast through their career, but City Patrol is where the losers who can't even score well on their academy exams get stuck with a hard-working job for shit pay and zero respect from both the citizenry and your fellow troopers. You haven't moved up in the world. You've basically hit rock bottom.

Goddamn it.

---

When you get to HQ, you're escorted by a guard into the armory to get kitted out for your work. "This is your equipment, and you are fully responsible for maintaining and returning it should your assignment change. If you fail to present any of your standard issue equipment, the cost of replacement will be deducted from your salary, and you will be further fined for negligent behavior... blah blah blah," you've heard it all before. The quartermaster seems displeased in your cavalier attitude. But fuck him, you outrank him.

You don your gear. It fits excellently. You have to give ShinRa credit. They sure know how to tailor a suit of combat armor.

"However," the quartermaster goes on to say, "Your new rank grants you access to some new requisitions, if you want 'em. Take a look." He hands you a clipboard with a sheet on it of various optional equipment that only commissioned officers can request, and you realize that as a Major, even if only in name, you have considerably greater clout to make such requisitions than you used to. Most of the list is things like extra field blankets, a spare tent, extra rations, and other miscellaneous items that won't be of much use in Midgar proper.

A few other things on the list catch your eye. There's the option of a potion set (despite the fancy name, really just a proprietary energy drink that ShinRa ads claim to incorporate healing chemicals derived from Mako research), a ShinRa medical first aid kit (with one antidote, eye drops, bandage, hyper stimulant, and tranquilizer), and an ampoule of ether, a rare chemical known to be able to restore someone's mental energies despite excessive fatigue (useful for materia specialists). While you're no medic, your recent experiences have taught you that having some sort of first aid on hand is extremely useful. You consider your options. You can only fill out one requisition form in the time you have before you have to meet up with your new unit, so you have to decide which of these things is the most appealing.

Which do you request?
A) x5 Potions
B) First Aid Kit
C) x2 Ethers
D) Extra ammunition
E) Extra grenades

---

Roll Results
Cooking roll to make yourself a good dinner:
1d20 + Cooking Lvl. 1 + Intelligence 7 + Pristine = 8 + 2 + 7 + 2 = 19
TN: 15
Success!

Character Sheet
Name: Marcus "Steelwall" Westford
Class: Ranger
Level: 2
Profession: Major of the ShinRa Co. Peacekeeping Corps, Department of Public Safety, Military Police Division
Age: 23
Dominant Inner Nature: None
Health: [Pristine - Fine - Poor - Severe - Critical - Dead]
Status: Clear

Characteristics:
Strength 4 Agility 8
Tenacity 6 Intelligence 7
MP: 2/2

Skills:
Discipline Lvl. 3
Marksmanship Lvl. 2, Athletics Lvl. 2, Bluff Lvl. 2
Hand-to-Hand Lvl. 1, Fieldcraft Lvl. 1, Stealth Lvl. 1, Academics Lvl. 1, Observation Lvl. 1, Electronics Lvl. 1, Computer Use Lvl. 1, Cooking Lvl. 1, Charm Lvl. 1, Drug Use Lvl. 1, Materia Use Lvl. 1

Perks:
Tough Guy ("Love the suck." The penalty for all mundane negative status effects is reduced by 1)

Inventory: Civilian casual clothes, Shinra Employee ID Card, Pocket Knife, Portable Handheld System, Wallet w/ 12,245 Gil, Note from Janice, Tom's business card (blood-stained), Concealed Handgun Permit (Licensed to carry 1 firearm)
Gear: Bolt Materia (Lvl. 1), Peacekeeping Corps. Light Combat Armor, SM20-A2 Assault Rifle, SM2 Service Pistol, Nightstick, three magazines of 7.62x39mm, two clips of 9mm, two frag grenades
 
Last edited:

Kipeci

Arcane
Joined
May 22, 2012
Messages
3,027
Location
Vicksburg
Out of curiosity, what would we have made if we’d rolled a 0 on cooking? Or is that more in the realm of accidentally burning your house down?

Anyhow, B for me
 

Random

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Sep 19, 2008
Messages
2,812
Out of curiosity, what would we have made if we’d rolled a 0 on cooking? Or is that more in the realm of accidentally burning your house down?

If you stacked enough penalties to do that, yeah, maybe Marcus would have an aneurysm, dress up like this:flamesaw: and try to cook with a burning chainsaw, leading to
:thisisfine::imokay:
and then you would most certainly need to make a new character, of course.
However I am also the kind of guy who enjoys when critical failures can sometimes indirectly lead to achieving one's goals in a roundabout way, so that's always a possibility too.
 

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