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[LP CYOA] Spiral

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Lambchop said:
Nevill, if you'd rather lose than have our character experience some emotional truama, there's nothing I can do.
You call that emotional trauma, I call that character development. And I don't want to head there.

That was a topic we discussed in Legend, at the very last choice. Worked pretty well for us, all things considered.

All I am saying is that some risks are worth taking. Not all of them, obviously, but I think we can find the right balance, and the current choice falls on the side of that line where I am willing to take my chances.

Lambchop said:
It had clearly touched her or she wouldn't have experienced pain when the pool ghost appeared, and since ghosts don't bleed...
Nah, it was established that Mitsuki has a strange bodily condition and a hightened sensitivity to spiritual... let's call them irregularities.

And ghosts do bleed, just as they do rot. Where do you think all the bloody notes and bloody bags come from?

That probably wasn't blood, though. We didn't find blood in the cubicle. I think it was a piece of the corpse. Ewww.
 
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a cut of domestic sheep prime

Guest
It was a ghost not a corpse, but fair enough. It's possible. And it's possible that the lukewarm puddle we stepped in inside the cubicle was merely urine. I would certainly be happier about that considering we did risk our life to save her. What was the red stuff then? Do ghosts spew blood from their nethers?
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Do ghosts spew blood from their nethers?
Wouldn't put it past them.
You had not seen them there before, but now you do: there are people in the lobby, staring at you. Their forms flicker with static, as if they are not fully here… just like the man in the bathroom. Many of them are garbed in casual wear or outfits you would not find out of place in a hospital – doctors, nurses, patients – but there are also those dressed in clothing dating back to an older time. A tingle of fear runs down your spine as you cast an eye over the spilled guts and broken necks; most of them bear the marks of their violent deaths – there can be no doubt about it. These people are also dead, though perhaps in a different manner from the unmoving bodies, you observe, before proceeding to your next thought, which is, I need to get out of here!
 

Rex Feral

Prophet
Joined
Jan 29, 2013
Messages
1,300
E>C>A

I was just waiting to get rid of that infected arm anyway. Besides, maybe the act of sacrificing our finger to save Mori's life will give us protection against ghosts or at least a fate point.
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
Hm, was hoping to find the time to close the votes and update today, but no dice. I'll be away from a proper computer due to work-related stuff till Monday. I'll check back on the tally and update then.
 

a cut of domestic sheep prime

Guest
Codex has a terminal case of RPG bravery.
cat-facepalm-o.gif

Well, of all the physical options, this one is probably the best as no one (that doesn't know our voting habits) would ever expect we would do something so stupid.
I was just waiting to get rid of that infected arm anyway. Besides, maybe the act of sacrificing our finger to save Mori's life will give us protection against ghosts or at least a fate point.
That or a "wtf is the matter with you?" slap across the face...
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
Man Tiger Pig's Corollary: The longer the LP goes on, the more likely the voters will begin to embrace MAXIMUM FUCK.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
If zero fucks are given, they tend to accumulate. The results are often disastrous.

...

:bounce::bounce::bounce:
 

a cut of domestic sheep prime

Guest
On the plus side it should make everyone (save possibly Urehara) like us for such a ballsy and selfsacrificing move. Of course, they will all forget about it by tomorrow, but hey, maybe Maeda will give us some before then. If it doesn't get us killed that is...
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Calm down, dude, we are still tied between C and F, depending on how you resolve the flops.

I don't know what I would prefer, myself. Mori's face would be priceless if we pull E off. Does not compute! What game are we playing now? :?

Maybe he would even finally tell us what is his problem with us.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
No it's not. Even with your new vote it's just another tie between E and F.

And the votes usually don't close until the update is on the way... I think.

ERYFKRAD - D
Kipeci - F
Jester E>B
Lambchop19 E
Nevill E
Kz3r0 E
TOME C>F
Grimgravy F
oscar F
LWC1996 E>C
Rex Feral E>C>A
GreyViper E

C - 1 (0)
D - 1
E - 7
F - 3 (4)
 
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a cut of domestic sheep prime

Guest
Screw it. It's the brown wedding all over again. I can't live with not seeing what happens.
E
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
You have seen the Light, bro. :hug:

Let's go together. :salute: E.

2015_02_07_035541.jpg

2015_02_07_035445.jpg

Bring out those lemmings.
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
You dart forward, ignoring the shouts and the screams, focusing your attention single-mindedly on the barrel of Mori’s gun. The timing has to be just right. Too quickly, and he’ll push you aside before you fires. Too slowly, and your finger will not catch up to a speeding bullet, not at that distance. Why? Why not. Do it. It is a bad idea. It is a foolish idea. It is an illogical idea. Do it, you coward. The voices whisper madly in your mind. Mori’s eyes are black and empty. Tears roll down his cheeks as his gun-hand twitches.

It’s now or never.

The tip of your finger presses up against the end of the barrel, the smooth metal cold and unforgiving.

You hear the bang.

Something wet splatters across your face. Your finger goes numb, and then your entire hand, and it is only shortly afterwards that the pain comes rushing in, blotting out all thought in your mind. You release a breath you had no idea you were holding in, letting only a slight hiss of agony escape between clenched teeth. Clutching your forearm, you sink to your knees, breathing heavily as your lungs attempt to draw in more oxygen before you pass out. Everything below your wrist is a screaming, mangled red mess of nerves and muscle and bone and pain. The bullet had struck your finger head-on, split the bone, and deflected down the palm vertically, tearing apart the soft tissue so thoroughly that whatever remains of your hand now hangs limply in two parts, cleaved apart by the trail of destruction in the wake of the projectile’s passage. Your fingers are bent at unnatural angles, twitching beyond your control, while the skin along your digits is curling up and peeling away from the shattered knuckles, scalded off by the hot burst of ignited gases from the pistol’s chamber.

It was a bad idea. It was a foolish idea. It was an illogical idea. You did it. The voices agree silently, and as you stare at the dark red blood pouring from your wound, the faintness overtakes you. You’re bleeding out and going into shock. Someone shouts your name, and you feel hands supporting your back, but you cannot make out who they belong to any more… whether those around you are living or dead. What does it matter? Your eyelids grow heavy, and against your will, they begin to slide shut…

***

A distant bell tinkles.

It is cold. Your cheek is resting against a firm but not entirely uncomfortable surface. For a moment, your brain turns this way and that, attempting to get you your proper orientation. It takes a while before you realize that you are lying down, presumably on a bed. Your awareness of your surroundings begins to return, piece by piece.

You are in a ward of some sort… a hospital. How did I get here? No, that is not right. You were already in a hospital before this, so that should be no surprise. You look down at the shattered remnants of your right hand. It is wrapped up in a swathe of bandages, sending throbbing, painful pulses up your arm intermittently. Red blooms across the white cloth; just the small movements of your awakening was sufficient to reopen the wound. A tourniquet has been tied tightly around your forearm, but not tightly enough, it seems.

You fall back onto the inviting pillow, trying to get to grips with the situation. You shake your head, trying to clear your mind. Your memory is fuzzy and faint, flickering at the edges of your consciousness, taunting you with things unremembered. You remember blocking Mori’s pistol with your finger – he was trying to shoot himself – and you remember the gun firing. You remember the pain, and you remember little else. Unless you managed to stumble into this room while blacked out, someone must have brought you here, and then left you alone. But who?

You get the answer almost immediately, when Maeda re-enters the room. “Ah, you’re awake. How are you feeling?” Though her tone is calm and collected, you can see a strain of unease buried under her cool exterior.

You raise your bandaged hand wordlessly. It goes without saying, doesn’t it?

“Hey, don’t complain,” Maeda shrugs. “None of us were doctors. I could only slap on as much anaesthetic cream as I could to help you out.”

“No… I meant to say, thanks…” you mutter. “For bandaging me up, I mean.”

“T-There’s no need to thank me for such a simple matter. If you really want to show gratitude, then make yourself useful and get better quickly, got it?” she retorts quickly, though there is no anger in her words. Perhaps it is a trick of the light, but there seems to be a faint redness in her cheeks, and Maeda changes the subject in a haste. “Why would you hurt yourself to save others?” she asks softly, thoughtfully, as if reminded of something that had happened in the far past.

“It was probably the only way of stopping the bullet reliably,” you explain. You stretch wildly for an example of things going wrong, and find one. “If I had tried to grab the gun, there was no telling where the bullet could have gone. It… it could have hit you, for example.”

“Oh.”

There is an awkward silence as Maeda looks directly at you. Is that appreciation? Understanding? Affection? You cannot tell. You shy away, averting your eyes – a lie all a lie I you we are all liars – as an intense sensation of guilt fills your heart. You do not know the reason, only that it was provoked by the gaze in her eyes, but it forces you to try and change the subject again. “W-Where are the others, Maeda-san? How is Mori-san now?”

“Mori-san recovered soon after that attack. He told me to convey his apologies for such unsightful behaviour. It appears that he has his reasons which he has yet to share with us, but Mori-san seems convinced that it will not happen a second time.”

“Oh… no, no, I must apologize for getting in his way,” you say reflexively, bowing as you do so.

Maeda giggles childishly at your remark, the years seeming to fall away. “Well, as for where the others are…” In a turnabout from her previous behaviour, her face darkens into a frown. “Shortly after you fainted, we were attacked by dead people behaving similarly to the doctor that came back to life. Uehara was convinced that the research facility in the basement could hold the key to stopping all of this, so they left to investigate the place. They took the keycard you were holding – Dr. Usui’s card.”

That’s right. Checking your belongings, you realize that Maeda is not lying. The keycard is missing.

So is the charm that you picked up at the Juunimon tree.

That bitch has it.

Shizu.

It’s hers. It’s rightfully hers.

Kill the thief.

“So, do you want to go after them, or do you want to rest further?” asks Maeda, interrupting your train of thought.

***

18:00

A. If it is to be done, it is to be done right. Your mangled hand is practically useless at this point. You use a nearby surgical set to amputate the hand properly and seal the wound before moving on.

B. There is no time. You tie the tourniquet more tightly to prevend yourself from bleeding out, but that is about as much as you are willing to spend time doing. You need to go after the others now.

C. You take the time to rest. You are still feeling hurt and tired from getting your hand shot.

***

A. You ask Maeda about the charm that you had, and which you suspect Uehara of taking.

B. You keep quiet about the charm. No point telling her about it.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
as an intense sensation of guilt fills your heart. You do not know the reason, only that it was provoked by the gaze in her eyes
Don't tell me we dumped her and run abroad. :argh: Maybe we were sent away?

AB, I guess. We are not fit for travel in our current state. It's either moving on after taking care of what is left of our arm, or resting.

Can we talk to Maeda if we stay and rest?

Not sure about the charm. Neither we, nor Maeda know about its significance. Is there a point in talking about it now?

We probably should avoid being alone from now on. We still have a bottle and a lighter, but we can no longer do much with them with just one arm. A second person might help us stay alive.
 
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