Dungeon Life Quest (DLQ) 69 - Awkward Conversations Edition

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You are Brianna la Croix, grateful that this town doesn't seem to have an issue with you being a necromancer, and you need coffee.

You need coffee so badly.

"We need a tavern," you tell Hatchet. "I need coffee before I literally die - hello officer how may I help you?"

Maybe you spoke too soon about the necromancer thing. This town guard - you'd bet cash that his greatcoat is lined with mail the way Nate's is - looks annoyed as hell.

"Miss, I'm going to need to ask that you leave your mount and its terrifying organic scythes the fuck outside of my town," he says flatly. "You're going to disturb the peace."

"I'll stay with the boar to ensure no one steals our stuff," Hatchet tells you. You sigh, dismount, and pass him the reins. Hatchet rides back out of town without a comment or backwards glance.

"Anything else?" you ask, as politely as you can.

"Don't raise the dead without written consent on the part of the formerly deceased, and I advise that you avoid the water," the guard tells you. "That last one is advice from me to you. Something grim's been haunting the fresh water."

"There's salt water?" you ask, curiously.

He gestures at the sea. "On the far side of the Bar, aye. Enjoy your stay, keep the peace."

"Wait - tavern? I need coffee."

"Try the Bulging Net, near the docks," he advises. "There's coffee in other places, but they clean the kettle."

You thank the man and trudge that direction, shaking your head to try and clear the cobwebs from it.

The Bulging Net is pleasant enough, with clean tables and a nice, comfortable air. Even better, this level of the Dungeon actually trades in coinage, letting you purchase two pots of coffee and sit down to thoroughly overdose on it. The place isn't busy at the moment, which makes it easy to overhear the few conversations going on. They all seem to be about the river; it hasn't been flowing, and everyone is relieved to see it's come back.

You smile, into your cup. It's nice to know you did some good.

You might as well start with the barkeeper. She - like many people you've seen here - has the olive skin and gentle features you saw in the picture of Kells' wife. There's been a scattering of others around town, including a few like you - but you're beginning to suspect that this might be where Kells met his lady love.

"Ma'am?" you ask. She offers you her attention while she cleans a glass. "I'm looking for someone, the sweetheart of a friend of mine from the Broken Jaw. He was an ice miner."

You have the room's attention. Oops.

"Have you been through the Jaw?" she asks. "What's been happening up there? We tried to send a party to check on it, but the entrance was frozen over..."

> You don't have time for this talk; lie
> Tell her gently
> Tell her straight

>Tell her gently
I wanna see how gently something like this can be delivered

>Tell her gently
Lying now would just look bad later on.

> Tell her gently

> Tell her gently
Telling her seems like the right option, but I'm a bit conflicted as to whether it should be told gently or told straight. I'm going with gentle for now.

>> Tell her straight

Better that it comes from us than distorted at however many removes once the news starts spreading.

And...well, I'm not sure how gently "every man, woman, and child in there died, and the ones who were eaten so the others could live a little longer were the lucky ones" can be put.

>Tell her straight

Also include that the Diviner is very, very dead thanks to your party.

Alright folks, I gotta get ready for and then go to work. Full eight and a half hours; I won't be back until just after midnight EST. Votes remain open.

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated. Now is a pretty good time to think about your plan of action both with Emily and in terms of Nate & the Warehouse team; I'll keep the discussion in mind when I go to update.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

Can we do mild version.

>It was frozen over. I've come through from the roost once it thawed; not seen a single living soul. Only the ghosts.

> Tell her gently
Just say the entrance is opened, not that we were the one that opened it.

>tell her straight

>> Tell her straight
straight and honest

inb4 she's the one we're looking for and she will be heartbroken when we say "everybody died"

I'm sorry who the fuck is Emily?

Is she John's sweetheart who Lora just decided to make important?

Yes.

>Tell her gently.
This is going to be rough.

Well, Vox did say that she was trying too hard to be 'the good guy' or some such. This was Lora going overboard when John asked her to protect Emily.

If its worth anything, having a Chosen of Death may be a /good/ thing, not just for the Dungeon but for the whole world.

Basically, Lora (being literally Death) takes last words/requests VERY seriously. Making Emily her Chosen was the most expedient and probably the most solid method of ensuring her safety vailable to Lora (that being John's final request - for Lora to keep Emily safe).

>> Tell her gently

Six hours and change to call. Busy day; won't be able to talk much.

Question folks - hop back to Nate after this section, or swap to River and what she was doing during lich time?

Ehhhhh, I'd rather hop back to Amy and play the next section as her because doing three plotlines at the same time is what part of the reason Star Wars The Phantom Menace was a bad movie

Fair enough.

I have noticed that both times that Amy's had the chance to be the MC for a floor, user has favored Nathan. This intrigues me.

Back to nate and company. Don't want to be doing too many active plotlines at the same time.

I like them both and wouldn't mind playing as amy at all. It's just that after long periods of pragmatism there something... therapeutic about playing HERO.

It usually has to do with the context of what we're doing (for example, New Hell was all about beating Natalia).

Our goals in the Roost meant that being the voice of reason was playing Brianna, instead of exploring Amy's old stomping grounds from her perspective.

Maybe we can switch to our lovely murderbird when we go for the Cornucopia?

And Amy is all about cuteness, fun, joy, love and murder!

I really enjoy that dichotomy. One moment she's this sweet, innocent songbird, and the next she's a vicious raptor going for the throat.

There's no point since Brianna will be caling most of the shots and we want to play the shotcaller of any given section.

See, play as Amy throughout the entirety of the Roost would have been cool if Brianna was preoccupied with something else.

The only reason we played Nate was because plot demanded that Bri could not call the shots during New Hell.

Really, we should have split up into THREE groups during this section, Nate in Warehouse, Bri in Broken Jaw and Amy in Cornucopia with all the relevant side characters that we never see in action like Silence and Korl the goblin as the helpful party members

>The only reason we played Nate was because plot demanded that Bri could not call the shots during New Hell.
Eh, I kinda disagree here. I liked Nate taking charge in New Hell because that part was Veeky Forums story and his fight.

In regards to the Roost I think we played Bri because Amy wasn't the most level headed in a situation that needed diplomacy. And also because of the overwhelming amount of death magic stuff we ran into. I would still love to do an Amy route but it needs to be a spot where she will excel at such as a sneaky infiltration mission or a full on shankbird time.

Exactly. It isn't so much being the shot caller as it is being the most appropriate character for the setting. Although if I was given a choice between the main characters to play as I'd almost always default to Feathers[\spoiler]

Well... That's embarrassing.

Four hours and change to call. Still a good time to toss around plans and ideas.

>> You don't have time for this talk; lie
>> Tell *her* straight; in confidence. She'll be a good judge on just how wide the knowledge should be for the area.
DO stress you have limited time; and you have to get to something a bit more pressing very much SOONER than LATER.

Whoops, just meant the tell her straight one. Editing error.

> Tell her gently

Man, all the Gently options. There's a time and a place for stuff; but given we're ALREADY in a hurry and that we ALREADY are hunting coffee like someone's life is on the line, it just doesn't make sense to stop and handhold here when we've got a MISSION.

Rushing stuff can be very bad. And gently does not mean slowly.

Two hours and change to call.

One hour and change. Tomorrow and Wednesday will also be more or less like this, but then I have three days off. Of those, only Thursday is somewhat spoken for.

Also I forget, wasn't briana supposed to be a much darker character originally? With you accidentally giving a backstory that you really mostly came up with to justify us not being lolevil with how we were arrested?

Not really. Bri's exile was planned as unjust from the beginning. I took user's early cues about her characterization and I expanded on her backstory with an eye to the sort of past that would produce the person that my readers were encouraging her to be.

As for precise details, how badly do you really want to meet the man behind the curtain?

but she is a dark character
get it
cause she's black
shit's jokes

Off work, heading home.

hurrah

I want to know a lot, but anything you think would be bad to hear before the quest is over keep to yourself.

I'd like to hear about the other three protagonists because this quest feels so much like Bri had to be the main character that I forget there were other options

>context?
I'm pretty sure you're the one to introduce the person to questing, Vox.

Yeah...that's gonna be Man Behind the Curtain territory. Keep those questions around, and ask me as we get closer to the end of the quest or into the epilogue; I don't mind talking about my process, but I also don't want to disturb the experiences of my audience. I know that, for me, hearing some of these answers /during/ the process would take something away from it, y'know?

S'wha?

Called, writing.

The Basement Quest thing, remember? The one that's also about a dungeon, but magic is still in completely unknown territory and everyone is packing modern firearms?

But that QM doesn't need to speak in code in my threads, they can pester me in real time.

I think we have deviated from the original purpose of this conversation.

Forget it and WRITE SL-I MEAN LICH!

both work, people were assuming Vox was a prostitute long before people started calling him a lich

You take a long drink of your coffee. When you speak, it's in a low, sympathetic tone.

"The people of the Broken Jaw have entered the Sunless Lands," you murmur. "There were no survivors. Their deaths have been avenged, but it...it will be a very long time before it becomes the place it was. The damage done was significant, down to the fish and game."

There are murmured prayers and curses. The barkeep reaches under her counter, opens a jug of rum, and pours herself a shot before downing it.

You take a heavy breath. "It was the last request of one of the ice miners that I deliver a message to his sweetheart. His name was John. Hers is Emily."

"I know them," the barkeep confirms. "She's a soldier, protects the town's fishing fleet. She didn't ship out today, though. Her captain came through here, pissed as all getout. Said she refused to leave her home."

You look down at your coffee and start drinking it faster.

"Is she in trouble?" the barkeep asks.

"Probably," you admit.

"Are you going to help?"

"After coffee."

There's a long quiet. And then - "Miss...is the Jaw /safe/?"

You shrug. "It's quiet," you tell her, softly. "I still have business there, but honestly...there's nothing there, right now. It needs time to heal. Time to mourn, I think."

You gratefully accept the shot of rum that the barkeep sets at your table, and finish your coffee as fast as you dare. You down the shot before standing. "Where can I find her?" you ask.

"House with the blue door on the east side of the river," you're told.

It's easy enough to find. The home is two stories - surprising in itself - and has a bright blue door. The shutters are drawn.

Your loud knock is answered with, "GO AWAY!"

> What do you say?

Lora sent me

best I can come up with, I am not a clever man.

Goddamn but today took it out of me. As you probably guessed, I'ma leave this one overnight. Pro tip: the days when SNAP benefits refresh are hell in retail. Votes remain open.

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>"The angel has sent me, Emily. I am here to help."

>The angel sent me. I bear news from the Broken Jaw.

Thread archived. Passing out for real now.

> It's about John.

>> It's about John.
Seconding, she probably doesn't want to hear about the angle as much as she does john. Open with that, then lora. She needs to know

>"Emily? I..I have something for you. From John."

Remind me again why Brianna has to deal with this shit? And not just because 'ethical necromancy'. Holy crap, she isn't just a reluctant Hero, she's a saint.

Lora has turned her into a chosen of Death (Lora) while Lora is still controlled by Richard and company. Remember the misinformed chosen Nate and Amy ran into that Natalia tricked into fighting us? If any of them find out about her they can force Lora to use her for rather destructive purposes.

Nah, I was here to catch that.

I just mean, Brianna seems to spend an awful lot of time having to trudge through emotional, soul-crushing crap. She's going to need a long, cathartic cuddle pile by the end.

I'm not so sure about that, I think chosen just get free magic and a voice in their head not having the god control their actions or some shit. The worst that could probably come of it would be getting Lora to lie to her or something but really now, when you have the power of an angel at your fingertips are you really going to go "hey lets go out of our way to try to deceive that one chick nobody cares about with a few magic powers"?.

The issue should be addressed just in case, but I doubt it is a real threat. The main reason for the visit is John asked and we promised we would.

I originally thought that Emily would be some innocent maiden mourning her passed sweetheart.

Now that I read she's a (potentially) butt-kicking soldier girl, we might have the distinct possibility for a roaring rampage of revenge.
>Before you say it, she's not a necromancer, and Lora can probably help her determine who is and isn't working for the Chain-Holders, so no collateral damage.

woah, test

Personally, I think it's less about Bri being an ethical necromancer, and more about her being the someone that does something (of "someone ought to do something" fame). There's this refusal to pass off the responsibility onto someone else that seems to be baked into Bri's very soul.

> It's about John.

Let's start with the human part of this conversation.

(She refuses to leave her home, so I suspect this has... affected her visual appearance and sudden outlook on life.)

I don't know about that, the other Chosen didn't have any major weird characteristics as a result of her station. She just had the cloak given to her by her God. In this case, the sword we've brought her is probably the equivalent.

I think it's more likely that she's heard Lora speaking in her head, assumed she was going insane, and now she's hiding herself out of shame and fear that she'll be ostracized as a loony.

This. Remember, even the non-necromancer la Croix - the alchemists, the healers, even just the undertakers - are the Somebody. Bri's parents were just ordinary civilians, and they /died/ being the Somebody. That, along with the long family history with death, is the essence of the name.

>when you have the power of an angel at your fingertips are you really going to go "hey lets go out of our way to try to deceive that one chick nobody cares about with a few magic powers"?.
I dunno, if you've got the power of an angel at your fingertips are you going to squander it on making her fuck you?

Evil is pretty prone to pettiness in any case, and the opportunity to control a Chosen isn't exactly insignificant. If nothing else, she's a potential enemy asset to be contained, so they'd have reason to mislead her just to keep her from working with us.
Or, worse, compel Lora to pass her faulty information while Emily is in the middle of assisting us with something important. Something like "Bri needs you to cover her flank, get ready to attack the enemy coming down this hallway." When in fact an ally like Amy is coming that way.

There was also the blood-red eyes, my friend. The cloak is her sign of station but no one gets such power and remains unchanged.

Called, writing.

Oh shit is she skellington?

...Or maybe a permanent skull facepaint, that'd be pretty cool.

>/qst/
Get on the containment board.

"Emily," you call through the door. "I need to talk to you."

"No you don't," the young woman's voice answers, sharply.

"Emily, it's about John."

You hear the hard pounding of boots on stairs, and the door is wrenched open. Emily is about your age, with a heart-shaped face and the olive skin so common to this part of the Dungeon.

Her hair has been replaced by short black feathers, and her eyes, wide with concern, are gripped by a spreading black coloration that follows the veins of her cheeks.

"Where is he? What happened?" she asks, immediately. She looks at your face, and her fear slowly sinks into sorrow. She takes a step back, shaking her head. "No, no, he..."

"We have a lot to talk about, Emily," you murmur. "John's final request was that you be told what happened to him, and that you be kept safe. I'm here to help."

"Brianna?" Emily asks, in a tight whispers.

You nod. "You heard an angel's voice. She said to expect me."

> "We need to go; it's not safe here."
> "May I come inside?"
> "Does anyone else know about your current state?"
> Write-in?

>> "May I come inside?"

>> "May I come inside?"

We don't know that it's not safe here—at least not in the immediate sense—and it's probably better to be talking indoors for now.

Especially with her looking like that.

>"May I come inside?"
Sorrow ahead.

>"May I come inside?"

Less public. No need to go anywhere else at the moment.

>"May I come inside?"
Yeah, rushing will probably end up slower if we've got one extremely noticeable Chosen and one extremely noticeable necromancer who is about to collapse.

We may need hatchet and boar to cause a distraction, if it gets bad enough.

> "May I come inside?"

Called, writing shortly.

That was me.

Does Lora have unaffected rights with her Chosen the same that she has with her Heritor?

That Emily looks more sorrowful than afraid is a testament; you sigh, and remove your hat.

"May I come inside?" you ask quietly. "There's a lot to explain. About John, and about...what's happened to you."

"She said I was Chosen. Chosen for what?" Emily asks.

"...This floor doesn't have a lot of traffic with the surface, does it?"

Emily shakes her head, mutely.

"Okay. This explanation just got...a lot longer."

Emily waves you inside. The home is modest, and clearly lived in by more than just the young soldier; for one thing, you're fairly certain the sketches of the two older people that look like her are her parents.

For another, a note on a bottle of wine says 'Dad's'.

You close the door behind yourself and accept the chair that Emily pulls out for you. She sits across from you, expectantly.

"...The thing I need you to understand about this is that it wasn't John's fault," you murmur. "There is...there is a group, attempting to control the Dungeon. Attempting to misuse its power. Thirteen masterminds in all, each skilled and deadly. One, the Diviner, sealed off the Broken Jaw and used her power to scourge it of life. She destroyed the food. Froze over the water. Killed the game, the fish. In the end, the only thing left to hunt was one another."

The breath catches in the young soldier's throat.

"...John did what he could to survive," you continue. You hold her gaze, trying to stay warm and compassionate. It's hard to talk, and you keep having to stop to take a deep breath and focus. "It wasn't enough. When he died, he rose as a kind of undead, a draug, that feeds on the flesh of the living."

"...We call them reavers down here," Emily murmurs. "Sea reavers. You get them, sometimes, near shipwrecks..."

You nod. "I encountered John in the Roost, along with many other draugs. He surrendered to me and my companions and asked for the chance to settle his affairs before his final death. He'd wanted to say goodbye to you, but..."

"But?"

>he's a QM
>on the internet
>on a traditional games board
>he does it for free
>he takes his "political statement" very seriously
>he does it because it is the only amount of power & control he will ever have in his pathetic life
>he reports posts he doesn't like because whenever he gets upset he has an asthma attack
>he reports posts he doesn't like because they interfere with the large backlog of little girl chinese cartoon waifus he still has to write trash erotica about for other questfags to smack it to
>he will never have a real job
>he will never move out of his parent's house
>he will never be at a healthy weight
>he will never know how to cook anything besides a hot pocket
>he will never have a girlfriend
>he will never have any friends

"This is the part where it gets complicated," you admit. "These masterminds, they've imprisoned an angel of the Death Choir. When John took his revenge on the Diviner, the angel offered him a boon. He told her to protect you, and to give him a clean death."

The tears well in Emily's eyes, and she starts to sob. You stand and circle the table to comfort her; gods know you'd want someone there for you.

"I'm sorry," you murmur. "He seemed like a good man."

"What does the angel want with me?"

> Nothing; this was just a gift
> The others are still holding her captive. I need your help.
> To be honest, I think this was a mistake. She accidentally made you a target.
> Write-in?

>> Nothing; this was just a gift

> Nothing; this was just a gift

> But the thing is that gift comes with choices. You can choose to leave, or to stay here and try to move on.

> If you want, you also might have the power to choose to hit back at the people that made this happen. It's your choice though, and the boon is Johns reward so you get to keep it regardless.

We should probably hook her up with the other chosen since Lora seems to be somewhat . . . Inconsistent about how they work.

> To be honest, I think this was a mistake. She accidentally made you a target.
But what you have now is the strength to make this place better and get rid of the masterminds who forced John to do those things. If you'd like I could help you help yourself be stronger.

>Write-in?
>"There was no hidden agenda for... this. Because of her bindings, it was the only way she could think of to grant John's request. There are consequences though, once the masterminds find out, you will become a target, either for servitude or death. If you would allow me, I be your guide and we have another Chosen close at hand who can also help out."
A bit of "just a gift" and less harsh about being a target.

This seems best to me

>> Write-in?

I literally have no clue what Lora was thinking and this inhuman reaction to the wish "protect my loved one" is making me reconsider my idealized viewpoint of such an entity that is meant to represent the concepts of death and entropy in physical form. Truly, this seems obviously the opposite of keeping one's loved one out of harm's way. You have been granted powers beyond your imagination, without your consent I might add, which to my mind now makes you almost obligated to go out and aid me in the fight against the people imprisoning the "God" (?) that has chosen you to be her representative.

However, by doing so I would be breaking the wish of the man who asked for your protection but by not doing so I'm leaving somebody incredibly powerful and you may potentially have a big target on your back.

Essentially, Lora interpreted "protect Emily" to mean "make her your chosen that way you can divine intervention whenever you want, lol".

So, y'know, c'mon John, gotta know how to word those fuckin' wishes mate. Monkey's paw bullshit.

>>Write-in?
>>"There was no hidden agenda for... this. Because of her bindings, it was the only way she could think of to grant John's request. There are consequences though, once the masterminds find out, you will become a target, either for servitude or death. If you would allow me, I be your guide and we have another Chosen close at hand who can also help out."
Seconding

>> Nothing; this was just a gift. Still, the others are still holding her captive and you're not safe here. I'd like you to come with me so I can help you, and maybe when you've got a bit more of a handle on your situation, you can help me.

nigger that doesn't even rhyme, 0/10

Seconding this guy >>"There was no hidden agenda for... this. Because of her bindings, it was the only way she could think of to grant John's request. There are consequences though, once the masterminds find out, you will become a target, either for servitude or death. If you would allow me, I be your guide and we have another Chosen close at hand who can also help out."

You are a sad strange little man and you have my pity. Farewell.

>biting the bait

The (you)s feed his soul.

Vote slightly extended for dishes.

So much salt, its like I'm floating on the Dead Sea.

Kinda supporting, but also with;
>"There are so many others who have lost those precious to them, endured bloodshed, suffered under the yolk of slavery, and been subject to terrible cruelty. There are many more who still do. This is an opportunity to give them hope again, that there will be a tomorrow, and that we will make it through. Together."