[LP CYOA] Epic

[Arpad]

A

 

[TOME]

B. Although Dio will become even more powerful when we aren't screwing the decisions.

 

[Baltika9]

To all those voting for Ean:

Diogenes, unfettered by the chains of the Codex...

Read this statement and think on the implications.

B, in effect, sets loose Diogenes Camna on an innocent and unsuspecting world to ply his trade, Anbar'Shi in hand, without the Codex to minimize the collateral damage. Think about it, a twenty-something, head full of piss and vinegar, balls-out, collar-grabbing Shepard/Ahriman crossover with the power of a God.

And he will also be an enemy of Ean's, driven by his Will to Power and ego the size of Rawbutt Girlyman's.

Forgive me if I think that plan sounds foolish.

 

[Azira]

I'm not sure which is more frightening.

 

[Bloodshifter]

Wow somehow during that dakka storm you guys haven't died...

Color me impressed I prefer Dio to continue our little games but I shall not vote only watch this train wreck

 

[treave]

I must admit, this chapter didn't end remotely anywhere near I expected it would when I first planned it out.

 

[Storyfag]

Dio in 10 years without codex supervision

Part of the reason I'm voting B

 

[Baltika9]

Tally so far:
A-3: Baltika9, root, Arpad.
B-6: Esquilax, Storyfag, TOME, Kayerts, Lambchop19, Azira.

Tell me if I got anyone wrong.

 

[GreyViper]

I knew it, *sigh* so Dio ends up as antagonist not a weak one either.
Going with B because I dont think Dio can win in the end.

 

[treave]

That'd go well for all of two updates before each faction goes nuts and Ean is revived, Shulgi reveals himself, Naram comes out of seclusion, the Gieloth reappear, the Concordiat invade and shit goes down hard.

 

[treave]

The eventual outcome of a "shit hits the fan" scenario would be a toss-up between post-apocalyptic Renaissance society and space-faring Renaissance society. Probably the former, judging from the track record.

 

[TOME]

treave, care to tell how many times Shulgi and Naram have crossed paths with each other? And was Shulgi behind Skane before riftwalking?

 

[treave]

Ean will be brought up to speed about some of that in the next update, since B seems to have won.

 

[Azira]

Something has occured to me. As Ean, we chose to be returned to Earth, but we don't know the how of it.

Naram had a citadel built near Mt Olympus, where Ean exited Earth. After the building of said citadel, a massive human sacrifice was made.
This possibly opened a sort of conduit to/from the home of the Masters. Naram had something brought back to Earth.
Naram knew about the body of Ean and made commands to make sure he didn't wake up.

Was it Ean that Naram had brought back? Is it Naram we can thank for this? It's obviously Naram we can thank for having Ean out of comission for quite a while, but of all the immortals on Earth, Naram is the one most likely to be in some sort of contact with the masters. Possibly, he would also have been briefed about them not wanting to nuke Earth just now, and that they consider Ean an interesting aberration. So Naram hasn't moved directly towards permanently disposing of Ean.

Interesting. All guesses, but still interesting. Thoughts?

 

[Storyfag]

asshole

At your service, good sir

Ean will be brought up to speed about some of that in the next update, since B seems to have won.

I sense... an incoming lore dump

Interesting. All guesses, but still interesting. Thoughts?

Plausible. Extremely so, I should say. Still, we ought to nuke Naram's arse as soon as possible. And team up with Shulgi and Dio to that order

 

[TOME]

But why would Naram keep Ean sleeping, when it was the master that wanted to observe him? Maybe Naram isn't following masters plan blindly anymore?

 

[Kayerts]

That'd go well for all of two updates before each faction goes nuts and Ean is revived, Shulgi reveals himself, Naram comes out of seclusion, the Gieloth reappear, the Concordiat invade and shit goes down hard.

Two updates would be twice as long as it worked last time!

Interesting. All guesses, but still interesting. Thoughts?

The main issue I see is that Codex voted for Ean to go back to the void before this chapter began, so Naram wouldn't have been beaming Ean in from the Masters' homeworld and probably wouldn't even be able to find Ean until he made it back through the rift.

That said, ten thousand human lives is a lot to expend in an act of gratuitous dickery, especially by 1st century AD standards. Unless Naram's gone rogue, he probably brought someone here with that sacrifice. I'd guess that it was the Master who volunteered to look after Earth at the end of chapter 5, but that would mean it took him 2000 years to arrive. Maybe Naram asked his bosses to have Vajra delivered?

 

[Baltika9]

Ean will be brought up to speed about some of that in the next update, since B seems to have won.

Chapter five, here we come again.

Hopefully with better results this time, but from the track record I can assume that by the end, the Olympus rift will be the size of the Moon and our dear little planet will be Clusterfuck Central, the Space Squids will bring more of their families to land in China, the remnants of the Masters' elite strike force that survive the Great White Yonder will occupy the Empire, Dio will be driven insane by the sword and Ean will be GTFO'ing with Shulgi and what remains of his bros.

Edit: and then Mega Marduk shows up, gorged with that Devourer fragment he had on him, and we'll be right fucked, because the Masters will push the giant red "fuck this" button. Come to think of it: Fallout, here we come.
Edit 2: Instead of, say, taking ten years as Dio to prepare for the inevitable shitstorm.
Edit 3: Oh, how could I forget about the superpowered cannibal clones?
At least it will be a fun ride.

 

[Azira]

Bitter much?

 

[Baltika9]

You misunderstand.

Dis gonan be gud reel gud. Fists up.

I love watching trainwrecks. It's just that this didn't have to go in that direction. But I still get the lulz, so it's a win-win anyway.

Edit:

I must admit, this chapter didn't end remotely anywhere near I expected it would when I first planned it out.

There are a few. Remember the exile option back when Dio was confronted by Aodh, and what I said about it? Regardless, it is possible for Dio to lose and become Ean anyway, or for him to win and not become Ean. The one thing that is hardest to achieve though is maintaining the status quo. Things are going to tzeentch.

Reverse troll, never underestimate the Codex.

 

[oscar]

Could we play Dio until Ean revives and then have a choice of it we wish to now play as Ean?

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

And B has it. Phew. Close one.

I never really cared too much for Dio, but I really don't think he can survive the Codex being in control of him any longer than he has. Just one chapter and we've already locked him in prison, lost him his fiancee, his father, his eye, his army, unleashed a horde of undead upon his homeland, gotten the only agents truly loyal to him killed, had Ban - the one person who trusted him as a friend - driven mad... Honestly, Dio really needs us to stop making decisions for him or somehow develop high-speed regeneration and a host of other Ean powers in order to merely survive us any longer - or else he'd just become some sort of eyeless, armless, legless, lonely, deaf, mute, cripple. The one thing we've had going for us is luck and that's the only reason Dio has managed to obtain what he has. The best thing for Dio and for the entire world is to get the Codex back with the character they did the most good with - Ean.

Also, the whole cannibal thing could turn out to be a blessing in disguise. The hunger was created to contain the gieloth and it worked to an extent. Perhaps it will contain these crazy Ean wannabes until the real Ean can put them in their place. At the very least, when they start eating people, it may sway some from believing in them.

 

[treave]

Interlude: Awakening

It is a strange feeling, to awaken satiated. You had almost gotten used to the persistent hunger plaguing you, but this day, as you open your eyes, you know that your hunger had somehow been completely sated and would remain so for a while.

The first thing you noticed was that you were in a transparent container of some sort - probably glass, though it had been broken from the front.

The second thing you noticed was a woman in metal armour, standing at a safe distance with an uneasy look about her face. She bore a shield and a spear, and you recognize her almost at once, though her power seems to have grown tremendously since you last saw her.

"I didn't expect you to be the first one I see," you speak, your voice croaking. "Still, I'm glad to have made it back." On hindsight, plunging into the void had been reckless. You could remember little after that, and you only knew that you had managed to return when you saw her.

"How long has it been, Athena?" By the looks of the armour she wore, of a design you had never seen before, you could surmise that your world had advanced somewhat beyond when you left it. "I was tricked by them," mutters Athena. "You should not have opened your eyes again." She steps towards you, an unwilling look on her face, an apology upon her lips. "I'm sorry."

You sense that she means to do you harm. Though you were slightly bewildered at this reception, you were not groggy enough that you didn't know what to do. Marshalling your strength, you break free of the container. At the same time, you send out a blast of telekinesis at Athena. It only manages to knock her back a step, but that was enough. You close the distance to where her spear would be useless. Snaking one hand around her shield-arm, you stretch out your other arm and call for Anbar-Shi. It responds, just as it always has, forming from your flesh, soft skin warping into hard metal. The point of your sword stops a hair's breadth beneath her chin. Athena freezes. No matter if she outclasses you in sheer power, once you get this close, with Anbar-Shi ready to strike, she could not remain unharmed.

"You were holding back, weren't you? That wasn't too smart." you grin. With her current power she should've been able to blow you back before you got this far. Then, you shake your head. "Wait, that's not important. Why are you attacking me?"

"Orders, Ean. My orders were to keep you safely sleeping, and to continue putting you back to sleep should you wake."

There were probably only one group of entities she would admit to taking orders from.

"Your masters are around?"

She bites her lower lip pensively and shakes her head. "No, not exactly."

You sigh. "Having a sword at your throat isn't exactly a comfortable position for me to be in. Can we just... talk?"

Athena closes her eyes for a second. "I suppose so. He will not be able to compel me to do anything when I'm so far away. It's a long story, though."

"That's fine, I'm not exactly hungry at the moment. Now, tell me everything."

***

The Empire held together just fine for centuries after you left, but sometime around 750 A.C., Sekhenun had succeeded in opening the portal she had been working on. Athena had not been there when it happened, but she knew the aftermath. A Master had come through. It had apparently slaughtered all that were present and possessed an immortal known as Naram, who had engineered his own presence at the opening. Whether he had a hand in allowing the Master through, Athena did not know. Upon its arrival, the Master had imposed its will upon the voices of all the immortals he could reach. Athena's voices had awoken again, for a short while, before becoming a robotic call of command. In that brief period, they had warned her that this being was an outcast of some sorts, an entity that had become different from the Masters they knew.

Naram, bonded to the Master, had then headed north to Skane, where he had faced off against the immortal known as Shulgi, who had been gathering power of his own. Despite all his plots and schemes, the victor was never in any doubt, and Shulgi vanished off the face of the earth. Naram himself was severely wounded in the battle, and retreated from view to recuperate in isolation. The next time he reappeared, more than a thousand years later, he had managed to manipulate the Imperial family of the Shinar under his thumb.

You reappeared all of a sudden soon after that, though when Naram brought your body before Athena you were already in an unending slumber. What happened next was a bevy of experiments you were subjected to, under Naram's purview, though he grew bored after a few decades and soon had you put aside in favour of other pursuits. The Watchers and the Imperial family they served, however, had other ideas in mind, and used your body to create many beings with similar powers to your own. In the end, a small group of these 'offspring' of yours had come to New Athens, seeking your help. They were more crafty than Athena had given them credit for, and managed to lure her away while another woke you.

In your unconscious state, your hunger devoured him at the moment he touched you. You know his name and his memories; his loves and losses. He was now part of you, as part of you was once him. Three of them had come seeking divine aid, and now only two were left; Athena had captured them and left them tied up further from the chamber you had woken up in.

You already knew what forced them to make this pilgrimage... it looks like you had a lot of work ahead of you.

The world still needs to be set right.

 

[Baltika9]

He's probably trying to bring the Masters back. Remember that the initial seeding required a lot of human sacrifice? Only three survived out of the expedition the king sent out...

Maybe Naram's gotten himself some more allies.

Most likely not.

Well, they certainly screamed well enough.
Too bad their bodies were a bit too fragile for our size, eh?
You’re a bad joker, mate.

It's a matter of having a strong enough constitution to withstand them.

 

[Kipeci]