"Darn, guess I missed something. Best go find someone who can help me."
Go find headmistress Madeline or one of the seraphim, and ask them about activating the rounds so that I can test if their intended effect is working.
After some searching, you finally found Summer Hat Madeline and explained the situation to her. She looked surprised, almost as if she didn't expect anyone to actual try to test out their charms
now. Nodding in understanding, she gathered the other students, except for Lemmy for obvious reasons, for an impromptu lecture.
“Normally, I would teach you how to condense the quintessence into Q-Gems as soon as you're ready for the next assignment to allow you to focus more on preparing, as well as to add a little...*ahem*, flair to the occasion. However, I now realized that some of you may want to test out your Charms now. Hmm, it seems that the flair would have to be sacrificed. What a pity.”Closing her eyes, Summer Hat Madeline exhaled slowly as she slowly arced her arms over her head until the palms of her hands pressed together.
“Just follow my movements and relax as much as you can,” Summer Hat Madeline said as the students complied to the best of their abilities.
“You can perform this ritual whilst standing, sitting, and reclining. You can also perform this ritual if either of your arms are for some reason disabled. Just visualize yourself doing the ritual hard enough and you'll get your Q-Gem. However, there is a risk of failure. There's also another way to gain a Q-Gem if you find yourself in this predicament, which I will later explain.”Summer Hat Madeline begin to lower her arms toward her chest, keeping her hands pressed together.
“Now, as you pull your hands downward, imagine that you are pulling the surrounding energies into them like water rushing into a hole in a dam. The moment your hands reach your chest, you will feel the quintessence pour into your being. Congratulations, you would now have a Q-Gem!”Opening an eye, Summer Hat Madeline smirked.
“Of course, I'm only showing you the motions of the ritual slowly so that you can more easily commit it to memory. In reality, the ritual should take no more than five seconds to complete to receive one Q-Gem and that's a good thing too! Otherwise, the Contorted will get free snacks while we're busy doing yoga, right? Hahahaha!”Clearing her throat, Madeline demonstrated the ritual within five seconds, her movements deliberate and graceful. Immediately upon lowering her clasped hands toward her chest, a burst of tiny white, cyan, and navy blue stars erupted all around her moments before rushing into her hands. When she finally brought her hands to her chest, the mixture left them and entered her heart. The headmistress glowed for a few seconds before returning to normal. The student quickly followed suit. A chorus of gasps and other responses echoed throughout the room as the students reacted to the experience, each feeling as if something had been unlocked within their very being.
“Now, do you feel like another part have been added to your soul? Now you are able to create and use the Q-Gems. At your current capability, you are only able to hold a maximum of three Q-Gems, though your capacity will increase as your bodies get strong enough to hold the additional quintessaline. Don't worry about knowing how to use the Q-Gems; you now know how to do so on an instinctive level. Just be careful with them as they hold a substantial amount of power.”Summer Hat Madeline raised an index finger.
“I almost forgot: if for whatever reason any of you are unable to complete the ritual with your arms or just want a boost, your classmates can pass their Q-Gems to you. To do so, place a hand over your heart, doesn't matter which one. Imagine that you're drawing water from your heart and into your hand. Do this for five seconds for each Q-Gem you want to pass to your classmate. Once you are satisfied with how many Q-Gems you want to give up, just extend your hand toward the classmate in question and the goodies should pass to them. Make sure that you have direct line of sight to the recipient or it won't work. Don't worry about your Q-Gems being intercepted by the Contorted; our reports say that though the eldritch bastards often visually tracked the Q-Gems in transit, they appeared to be uninterested in blocking them. Even if they were to one day grow some gray matter and move to intercept them, the Q-Gems are basically moving at the speed of sound and thus are hard to catch.”Clasping her hands together, Summer Hat Madeline continued cheerfully.
“Now that you're finished with Crystal Addiction 101, you may return to your preparations. I will see you again for your next assignment tomorrow. Ciao ciao!~Later that day…
Going back to the shooting range, you brought up the training dummies again. Using one of your Q-Gems, you activated your Totems and tried again:
-Metz (Acc 10 + 1(-Finned- Taser)) vs. Target 1 (Agi 4): 10 vs 2: Hit
\\Lv 1 KB Taser Charm = Metz (Mig 8 + 2(-Hardened- S.A.P. Round) vs Target 1 (End 5): 4 vs 5:
Resisted!-Metz (Acc 10 + 1(-Finned- Taser)) vs. Target 2 (Agi 4): 10 vs 3: Hit
\\Lv 1 KB Taser Charm = Metz (Mig 8+ 2(-Hardened- S.A.P. Round) vs Target 2 (End 5): 6 vs 4:
Success! = -4 Mig, -6 For, -4 Agi. Duration: 6 rounds
-Metz (Acc 10 + 1(-Finned- Taser)) vs. Target 3 (Agi 4): 6 vs 1: Hit
\\Lv 1 KB Taser Charm = Metz (Mig 8 + 2(-Hardened- S.A.P. Round) vs Target 3 (End 5): 4 vs 3:
Success! = -5 Mig, -3 For, -2 Agi. Duration: 3 rounds
-Metz (Acc 10 + 1(-Finned- Taser)) vs. Target 4 (Agi 4): 2 vs 1: Hit
\\Lv 1 KB Taser Charm = Metz (Mig 8+ 2(-Hardened- S.A.P. Round) vs Target 4 (End 5): 6 vs 5:
Success! = -5 Mig, -6 For, -3 Agi. Duration: 6 roiunds
-Metz (Acc 10 + 1(-Finned- Taser)) vs. Target 5 (Agi 4): 9 vs 6: Hit and Precarious Success (Target): -2 Endurance (Target)
\\Lv 1 KB Taser Charm = Metz (Mig 8+ 2(-Hardened- S.A.P. Round) vs Target 5 (End 3): 8 vs 2:
Success! = -5 Mig, -6 For, -6 Agi. Duration: 3 rounds.
Though the first target had barely shrugged off the taser round despite getting hit, the other targets didn't fare well. In fact, in an effort to dodge the round that hit it anyway, the last target was so 'surprised' by the attack that it neglected to brace for the subsequent electrical assault from the taser embedded in its torso. Once you became satisfied with the result after subsequent field tests, you powered off the simulations and retrieved your rounds. You then headed for your dorms, pausing momentarily when a low rumble echoed somewhere outside the room, followed by distant alarms.
(I wanted to smoke the cigs, not use them as tools.)
"Of course she's worried about second-hand smoke. It isn't as if everyone here is immortal, and a drug that makes people calm and improves attention would be of no use in a school setting. Particularly a school setting where everyone is supposed to die every week. And it isn't like there isn't room for recreation here, only that smoking is bad for some undefined reason."
"I mean, hell, if people are getting blown out of their minds or die on overdoses, it is the work of a moment to push a button and revive them fresh and ready for combat."
"Anyway, time to find something worth doing here."
Time for some mischief. If these tools disappear back to the shop, that's amazing and very useful. Head to the kitchen, and reduce some syrup into a sticky mess, getting assistance if necessary. Do a large amount, at least enough for two or three bucketsful. Then head to the shop, get a couple buckets and a stepladder, and a few minutes later, a couple hooks, some twine, and a ladder. Then warp to random destinations until I find one that seems empty. Sneak in, and use the hook to hang a bucket full of syrup to the ceiling over something that looks important. Do this for all the buckets. After the buckets teleport back, the syrup, not being from the shop, should dump all over everything and make a huge mess.
After that, go set both rooms on fire. Easy enough to get an igniter for an acetylene torch, and those are basically just portable unpowered sparkers.
..They might be a bit careful about it, or there might be sprinklers or something, so time to be careful. Get some acetone cleaning fluid, it will be very commonly used to clean up grease and chemistry equipment, and tear out some book pages to soak in acetone as some proper kindling. Cut up a bedsheet for a few long rags, and soak the rags in acetone. Use one as a wick to bring the fire to the other room, pouring a little extra acetone into the other room to make sure it catches. Then set both rooms on fire with the sparker, leaving quickly.
Not much point in hiding, so go head to the wall of snark and wait for the fun to begin.
((Actually, it's because even when dead, some who were non-smokers in life may still find the stench intolerable...
))
After convincing an extremely
coercible helpful student to help you make a sticky concoction, the both of you brought three buckets of the stuff as well as other materials to construct your childish pranks. You then decided to travel to three rooms to set them up.
The first room was easy enough as it was none other that the dormitory your group been assigned to. After, most of the students were either taking classes or doing everything else besides resting in their rooms. Choosing a room at random, you and your 'buddy' broke into it and looked around. There were a variety of stuffed animals hanging from nails on the walls and some where propped onto the student's desk. Sitting in a chair nearby was a huge teddy bear. I mean, it looked as if it could completely envelop a grown man. Hmm, looks important.
Needless to say, you set up your trap above the giant stuffed animal and got out of there.
The next place you randomly ended up is strangely another dormitory. How many dorms are in this place?! Anyway, you and your 'friend' chose to enter the room whose door frame was painted gold and have fancy reliefs on the surface. Above the door read an inscription: “
Obstacles today, stepping stones tomorrow”.Its interior looked as if it was literally transplanted from a luxurious castle or a royal mansion, only that whoever sleeps here has a weird fetish with bees. The golden drapes and the materials of the canopy bed have honeycomb-like patterns on them. There were beehive figurines on the mahogany wood desk and frieze depicting honeybees carrying crowns ran along the upper edges of the lemon yellow wallpaper. This room is fit for a queen.
No doubt she would appreciate your sweet gesture. In fact, she will soon be laying in it. Setting up the trap underneath the canopy of her bed, you both left the room.
After playing with the rollers on the dais, you both found yourself in a room that was in the middle of renovations. In a corner was what appeared to be a jagged tear in the fabric of reality. There appeared to be some sort of machinery on the other side. Walking over to the strange tear, you and the other student stepped through carefully, bits of your loose clothing getting singed upon touching the edges.
You find yourself inside a large room ten meters in diameter. At the center were robotic arms arranged in a ring across what appeared to be four large thick rings of different sizes lying in a concentric pattern around a large mechanical orb that pulsed with a golden light. The strange silvery metal the rings and orb consisted of was heavily damaged and scorched in several places. However, the strangest thing was that each ring and the orb itself held a band of eye-shaped symbols on their outer surfaces. The orbs at the center of each 'eye' swiveled lazily in several directions though a few tracked the both of you as you gingerly stepped over the rings, their red lens seemingly peering into your very being. A nearby computer read: 'Integrity 14% restored.' Understandable, the entire thing creeped the both of you out so you decided to set up the trap over the orb at the center and get out of there as briskly as possible. You both managed to step back through the tear before it closed. Wordlessly, you left the room and made it back to the Great Workshop.
Lastly, after some further 'convincing', your buddy helped you set up flaming traps in the kitchen and the Great Workshop and activated them. Since the latter still have people inside, you decided to set the fire traps in front of the entrances so that no one cannot escape. Wanting to work quickly and as stealthy as possible so that no one would notice what you both are trying to do, you decided to not bother with the sprinklers. Who knows, the others may just get themselves killed in all the confusion and chaos anyway. After making it perfectly clear that he is not to tell anyone of this or a stern 'conversation' will occur, you left him and went to the Wall of Snark. Sitting crosslegged on the floor, you watched the fun happened. It's a shame that you didn't bring popcorn, though.
”-In memory of Clint, who went out in a blaze of glory, having been immolated by Lemmy and Ralph.-”
“-In memory of Noel, who got too hot to handle, courtesy of Lemmy and Ralph.-”
“-In memory of Petyr, whose face now has the consistency of melted candle wax. Thanks Lemmy and Ralph!-”
“-In memory of Agnes, the perfectionist who got cooked to perfection by Chefs Lemmy and Ralph.-”As you continued to laugh at all the misery you're causing, you hear footsteps behind you. Turning around, you narrowed your eyes upon finding yourself staring at one of these Seraphim wandering around this school. This one appeared to be a female with twin ponytails that extended down to her knees. Tensing, you stood up and expected her to arrest you for murdering students who didn't bother you. Instead, she simply tilted her head and did something that you didn't expect.
She slammed a fist into your face.
No, this was no ordinary punch. The best way to describe this is to picture what happens when an anti-tank shell hits an egg. Now imagine the shell being the Seraph's fist and the egg being your face. Your skull blossomed like an overripe tomato, spilling brains, cerebrospinal fluid, and blood onto the Wall behind you. A few seconds later, a new set of epitaphs appeared on the Wall of Snark's surface:
“-Um, ew?-”
“-I'm really not digging this coat of paint.-”
“-Ahem, on to business.-”
“-In memory of Lemmy, who'd encountered a divine being and received an unholy amount of facial fisting for his trouble.-”As your body slumped to the floor, the Seraph straighten her tie. Absentmindedly flicking a bit of brain from her cheek, the Seraph summoned a mop and bucket and got to work.
A few minutes later, you found yourself inside one of the cloning vats you saw during the tour. Figuring that you'd soon be let out, you waited for the fluid to drain. Once the last of the fluid drained, you waited for the glass to open. However, nothing is happening. You frantically banged your fists on the glass, yelling to be let out of here. However, all you got in return is a slow clap and a sarcastic reply.
“Bravo for your fiery performance! A shame that you got caught.”Looking, you found yourself facing none other than Headmistress Madeline herself. Standing beside her was the boy you'd more or less 'convinced' to help you do your dirty deeds. He fidgeted slightly when your hard gaze drifted to him. Madeline; however, was smiling, though you could almost see the fury lurking beneath the surface. Conscious of your nakedness, you quickly covered yourself. However, Madeline didn't seemed to notice as something else was on her mind.
“You know,” she continued.
“I'd thought you would behave yourself after that verbal dressing down I'd gave you yesterday, mister. Turns out you need more than words to see straight. What a shame that you would dedicate your talents to pulling off childish pranks like setting rooms on fire. How I know that? Well, you'd chose Ralph here as your partner in crime, not knowing how nervous he gets. In fact, when he'd bumped into me, he immediately 'spilled the beans', as the humans from planet Earth would say, on what you did to the kitchen and to the Great Workshop. Fortunately for you, Ralph's not a fighter and therefore won't disassemble you bloodily.”As you continue to glare at her, Madeline paced around your vat, a predatory smirk on her face.
“Unfortunately for you; however, you're now stuck in there and are completely at my mercy. What to do with you, I wonder? I'm usually not a sadistic person but what if the childish antics of a certain… delinquent pushes me over the edge? Would you even be allowed out of there at all? How long would it take for you, who will be reduced to an emaciated wreck having to feast on his own excrement to stave off starvation, to finally receive the sweet release of death? Oops, my mistake, I meant to say 'the sweet release of a death', as your bodies will still be cloned and you will respawn as normal. How long would your 'detention' persist? Two months? Five years? A century? Perchance seven thousand years? You'll be begging to be sent to the Tartarus Realm for some psychiatric help afterward.”Stopping in front of you, Madeline summoned a huge golden hammer with white and black trimming. A few seconds later, she morphed it into a massive cannon. Despite its length being at least twice her height, the headmistress hefted it as if it was made of tissue paper.
“On the other hand, I could be slightly merciful and just kill you in many ways five times a day. I can split myself into many copies as you are no doubt aware and doesn't require that much sleep anyway.”With a sigh, Madeline continued,
“However, instead of embracing that twisted fantasy, I will offer you a chance to redeem yourself. You will join your dorm mates in the next assignment tomorrow and you will fight the good fight. You will also join them in their first three missions. You will not impede your comrades nor inadvertently aid the Contorted in any way. If my terms are somehow too harsh for you, then the Seraphim can always use an extra hand in plumbing and corpse disposal. Mind you, this is a huge place.”Unsummoning her weapon, Madeline gave a nod to a Seraph working the controls nearby. Immediately, the vat doors opened, exposing you to a draft of cool air.
“Until further notice, you are not to take anything out of the Great Workshop without the supervision of at least one Seraph. Furthermore, you will spend the remainder of today helping Ralph sweep, clean, and mop the kitchen, the Great Workshop, and the hallways of this sector. You will not cease cleaning until I say so. Do you have a choice? Nah, you pretty much killed it when you channeled your inner prankster.”Summoning a cleaning cart similar to what janitors on your homeworld would use, Madeline gave you a wry smile as she stole a quick glance downward.
“I'll leave you to get dressed. I would suggest an apron and gloves to avoid getting cleaning chemicals on yourself.” Madeline was about to leave when a subtle rumble shook the room, The lights flickered as alarms rang somewhere outside the area. Tensing, the headmistress closed her eyes and stood there for a minute. You can almost hear her mutter,
'It went rogue and escaped?' to herself, though whether she was muttering to herself or talking to someone else, you couldn't tell. Finally she opened her eyes and turned to give you a stern look.
“There is something that required my full attention at the moment. Don't think I won't forget what I'd just assigned you to do, though.” And with that, Madeline hurried out of the room.
Well, those bees sure did warble 'bout some human shit under the impression that I gave a crap about their high-and mighty attitude. I don't know nor care what inane nonsense they were screeching about in that annoying tiny human voice, but it's clear that whoever that is is overly confident and probably very tasty prey. Go find her.
Wondering how delicious the ocular organs of a haughty, bee-loving hairless ape is, you searched for her through the hallways. Unfortunately, she proved to be a slippery target as she was nowhere to be found. There wasn't even a stray bee to take your frustration out on. Perhaps you will encounter her later? The only thing to do now is to return to Roland.
Plonk 10 points into fortitude, cause why not right. Also apply my shiny and blessed new mod.
Then go find Corvo and see what he's up to this time. If the B team Queen shows up again, start converting her into a proper Christian. Deploy Charisma!
As for an actual research action, How about I research IASNAF some more.
Corvo was actually just returning to you when you both reunited. Other than his encounter with the talking bees, there was nothing new. Wishing to bring this 'Queen' into the flock of Christ Jesus, you looked around for her as well. Unsurprisingly, she was nowhere to be found so you gave up and returned to the Great Workshop. The mysterious girl did say that she will meet you before you go to your next assignment. Perhaps you can try to convert her then?
Returning to the Great Workshop, you worked to improve your mod in hopes of it proving even more useful in tomorrow's assignment. You figured that at least a week of improvement will get the job done.
Week 3: [3, 3, 2, 1, 4] = 20% + 80%(4 extra successes from Novice IASNAF recipe).
Result: Rookie IASNAF Mod (+4 Fortitude)
It didn't take long before you put the finishing touches on your mod. Now it can protect you like a literal shield of faith. It will take a bit more that whatever fiery darts the enemy launches at you but the mod's protection should be enough for you to close the distance and give the Contorted, demons, or whoever you will have to fight a much needed smiting. Satisfied, you was just beginning to exit the workshop when you saw two students hurried toward the dais and teleport out of the section. Seconds later, a bright flash erupted behind you and you quickly sidestepped just in time to avoid a line of fire that cut you off from the inside of the workshop. Though you were safe outside, there has got to be a few people still inside the room. You quickly left to find help.
Roland receives Rookie IASNAF Mod (+4 Fortitude) and 20 XP (Crafting)!
Type of action: Consumable Recipe
Desired progress in weeks/levels: 3 weeks
Description: There was one thing that always kept Jun going during those long days where she just couldn't get a trick down, and that was blue Gatorade. She had no idea what the actual flavor was called, or how it was made, but try as she might the stuff she found in the kitchens here at the Academy just wasn't the same. She was going to have to take matters into her own hands and come up with the exact recipe on her own.
[Consumable that confers an Endurance bonus to whoever drinks it. It also turns your sweat blue, just like the commercials.]
Wanting to imitate the athletes posing for the famous and admittedly weird commercial involving a sports drink and the unnatural color it dyed their perspiration in, you channeled your inner chemist and got to work. Hopefully, your strange concoction won't ruin someone's sweat glands. They kinda need those.
[3 weeks(5 rolls) + 2( +1/5 Endurance) + 4 (+1/5 Intelligence) + 2 (A Shop Class Student's Diligence)] = 23 rolls
Week 1: [4, 1, 5, 2, 2] = 40%
Week 2: [6, 2 5, 4, 2] = 80%
Week 3: [3, 4, 4, 3, 3] = 20%
Week 4: [6, 1, 4, 2, 2] = 60%
Week 5: [5, 4, 4] = 60%
Total: 260% = Weeks 1 and 2 completed, Week 3: 60% completed.
Results:
Congratulations, you done what not even the formulators of that sports drink you love so much couldn't do: made a recipe for one that actually made one's perspiration blue! After figuring out how to make the dye get to the sweat glands after bypassing both the digestive system and the liver, you formulated a recipe for a drink with a strange byproduct. That way, you and your compatriots can feel hydrated and energized while staining your clothing with blue spots on hot, sunny days. Why you would run the risk of your underwear being stained blue is something that only you would know. Maybe it's a cool thing to do or maybe you find it kinky. Regardless, in the words of your generation,
you do you. However, such involuntary tie-dyeing would have to wait; the next assignment starts tomorrow and a long time may pass before you get enough time to actually concoct your sports drinks.
Jun receives Novice Blue(TM) Flavored Gatorade Recipe (+1 to Endurance for five rounds of combat), three extra successes for Blue(TM) Flavored Gatorade Recipe (Week 3), and 10 XP (Recipe)!Type of action: Skill
Desired progress in weeks/levels: 2 weeks
Description: Jun's comfort with her newfound portal generating abilities was increasing, and with it came weapon familiarity. Mainly, she became familiar with how hard it was to shoot a giant staff full of metal spikes. To augment this, she comes up with a method of popping portals in and out of existence so that she can just generate a portal near her enemy and fire through the other portal she makes at the end of her staff. It makes aiming a whole lot easier, the only issue is tearing open portals at a distance is tough, and she can't manage it past a certain distance.
[Jun makes a ranged attack at half range. If that attack hits, on her next turn she can make ranged attacks on the enemy as if they were standing five feet from her.]
((Since this 'skill' is determining the effect of your Psyche, it actually counts as a Perk. Since Perks cannot be increased in levels, I'll put the rest of your efforts into more insight for your Psyche.)
Feeling that your Psyche could use some extra reach, pun totally intended, you decided to devise a way to attack an enemy from a greater range using your portals. Ideally, it would involve creating some sort of beacon on the target that would open a tunnel between it and your staff so that your spikes can hit the enemy even if they're beyond your maximum range.
[2 weeks (5 rolls) + 1 (+1/5 Might) + 4 (+1/5 Intelligence) = 15 rolls
Week 1: [4, 5, 4, 3, 5] = 80%
Week 2: [6, 4, 4, 4, 4] = 120%
Week 3: [5, 6, 4, 4, 4] = 140%
Total: 340% = Portal Shot 100% completed. Weeks 1 and 2 of Portal Generation Insight completed. Week 3: 40% completed.
Results: Portal Shot (Perk) – Upon making a successful ranged attack on the target at half range, subsequent ranged attacks can be made on the affected target from almost any distance for the duration of the battle. Chance of failure at greater distances beyond a distance equal to half the maximum range. Level 1 Portal Generation Insight (+2 to relevant progress actions) and 2 extra successes for Portal Generation Insight (Week 3)
The success of this little project of yours is so rad that maybe someone should design a video game or something to show how awesome it is. Like a hapless test subject being thrown for a loop by a sadistic and snarky female AI, you found yet another way to maximize your ability to make portals. All you have to do is get close enough to the target in question and successfully hit them with a launched spike. Provided that they survive, a beacon effect will be placed on them that will allow you to use your Psyche to hit them from any distance, line of sight and cover be damned. During your research, you learned more about your Psyche, a boon that will serve you well should you seek to take it to new heights. Though such a Perk obviously have some limitations, you are confident that the Contorted will regret picking a fight with a certain skateboarder. As the coolest skeleton 'alive' always say, they're going to have a bad time…
As you left the Esoteric Laboratory, you paused when the section shook slightly, alarms resounded from somewhere beyond your location.
Jun receives Portal Shot (Perk), Level 1 Portal Generation Insight (+2 to relevant progress actions), 2 extra successes for Portal Generation Insight (Week 3), and 20 XP (research/perk)!
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Topic: (IC)Altera Vita Academy- A Red Day (Read 20391 times)