Post-Apocalypse Magical Girl Quest, Part 27

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Twitter: @echogarrote

Opening Theme: youtube.com/watch?v=r3FKgL7YVFg

Last Episode: You entered OLYMPUS and found the resting place of Joy-In-Time. You also discovered that the Joy-In-Hearts' old enemy, the parasitic being known as Misery, is still alive. Hiding within the People of Joy. She's taken control of the rest of the group, and now inhabits the boy of Joy-In-Love. The most powerful Joy-In-Heart of them all.

- - -

"So...judging by Gaft and Wren's mental breakdowns," Ray says. "We're in serious trouble."

"Yes." You say. "Yes, we are."

"Is that door going to hold?" Ray asks, pointing at the door leading out to the rest of the complex.

"I have no idea." You say. "But I think if someone tried hard enough and had the power of a goddess, they could get through."

"Wonderful." Ray says. He pauses and looks at Gaft, slumped against the wall. "What do we do with him?"

"Do we need to do anything?" You ask.

Ray nods and points at his eyes. "I can see, he's not dead. Not yet. He is an Accepting, a full one too, he's old but his body's tough. It'll take a while for him to die."

"He's not going to try any tricks, is he?" You ask.

Ray shakes his head. "He's out cold. Body's just trying to keep alive."

You look around, and see a white box attached to the wall. The red cross marks it as a medkit.

(cont)

You pop open the kit, and grab bandages, and a bunch of other complex things. They have instructions.

You stabilize Gaft, pull out the bullet, and inject him with a clear substance.

Ray takes the time to put a zip tie around his wrists and ankles behind his back.

"Where'd you get those?" You ask.

"Pytor." Ray says. "Said we might need them for him. You know how he is."

You nod in agreement.

Gaft groans, and coughs. "HESTIA..."

You put a knife to his throat. "You get one chance, and that's just because everything gone off the rails. Now, talk. What do we need to do?"

He lets out a long breath. "Kill yourselves. It'd be quicker."

You roll your eye and press on his wound a little. He winces in pain, and makes a grunting noise.

"Get HESTIA to recognize Love as an enemy." Gaft says. "If you can do that, control of the facility will shift to whomever Love would place next in seniority. Most likely Wren."

You push on the wound again. "Alright! Alright!" He confesses. "It would go to me first, THEN Wren!"

"How do we get HESTIA to see Love as an enemy?" You ask.

Gaft gasps. "Either have her put Time in direct danger, or..." He chuckles. "Or have Misery tax Love's body enough that the parasite burns through it.

"But that means facing her, and you may be a murderous psychopath...but you don't have any chance against Love." He chuckles.

Ray stuffs a wad of cloth into Gaft's mouth and wraps a bandage around it. "I'll ungag him if we need him. So...now what?"


“Well…that depends on how much we’re willing to risk.” You say. “We could wait until she’s inside here.”

“The orange lady does seem to take it unkindly if people open up the young lady’s tube.” Ray says.

Both of you get on your walkie-talkies. “Anything that can help?”

(cont)

“I’ve still got camera access, and I can see the group.” Amelia, in the Security Hub, says. “They’re going towards the infirmary for some reason. Other than that I can’t do anything other than lock the door. HESTIA has me locked out of all the rest. You’re going to have to start up a fire or something before I can help you.”

“Anything, Pytor?” You ask.

“No.” Pytor, at HESTIA’s central control, says. “I have barricaded the door with everything that was heavy, but Wren is still having a hysterical episode, and the computer-woman has made all the buttons here useless. There are a bunch of screens up here. She has constant monitoring over three rooms that no one’s in. Life Support, Summer Servers, and C.E. Siphon.”

“Alright, that’s helpful.” You say. “As soon as you can get Wren lucid, put her on we need her.”

> Let Love enter Joy-In-Time’s room. Very risky, but HESTIA freaks out if someone so much as touches Time.
> Try to goad Misery into starting a fire and just damaging the complex. If you can get her to cause enough damage, Amelia will be given access to do things. The hard thing is that means facing Love’s power directly, but it’s got the least risk of Love getting to Time, or damaging OLYMPUS.
> Lure Misery into one of the important rooms. If she damages the place, HESTIA will see Love as an enemy. It’s less risky combat, but depending on where you fight, OLYMPUS could suffer severe damage.

So HESTIA won't just go straight to seeing us as an enemy if it sees us fighting "Love" right?

Also despite the fact that several of these people are literally vomiting up black goo HESTIA doesn't register them as being contaminated by misery you would think there would be records of the most important war in human history.

>Try to goad Misery into starting a fire and just damaging the complex. If you can get her to cause enough damage, Amelia will be given access to do things. The hard thing is that means facing Love’s power directly, but it’s got the least risk of Love getting to Time, or damaging OLYMPUS.
What I wouldn't give for un-nerfed knives right now.

This reminds me did our knives improve in any way after we double critical that last small joy?

Best time of the day is here!

HESTIA recognizes them as being Woe Soldiers, but they're not doing anything that HESTIA recognizes as hostile. Love never programed HESTIA with orders to attack people if they were possible threats. Love thought Wren was a possible threat, but bad things happen if you have AIs make assumptions.

That is a possibility. However, HESTIA can recognize that Love is Misery, but that causes a logic paradox in her commands, as she cannot obey Misery but she must obey Love. The result is her programming reverts to her original mission 'Protect Joy-In-Time' and ignores conflicting data.

Your knives only produce a single bonus knife on a crit...but...

> Roll 1d20

>> Lure Misery into one of the important rooms. If she damages the place, HESTIA will see Love as an enemy. It’s less risky combat, but depending on where you fight, OLYMPUS could suffer severe damage.

I am for this.

Rolled 6 (1d20)

Rolled 20 (1d20)

>Roll 1d20

Oh, Ok.

Well good job still just the 2 of us and echo I would have expected a few more by now.

It is still early in the day. Give it a few hours and for people to get off work.

Fair, it is midnight where I am all relative really.

Ahhh our good old world user. The new world anons say hi.

Rolled 17 (1d20)

B A S E D

rolling a third for completeness >pls no 1

Alright, so now your initial throw is three knives, also, cause you crit, pick one more power.

> Ash shot
> Dodge Kick
> Ash choke

>> Dodge Kick

We already overpowered our long range move, and it is the end so we don't have to worry about ash knife addiction.

So may be a short range move or one that brings us to short range will be good.

Also think Ray is Ok with the knife addict as his goddess?

>Dodge Kick

Ray is literally biologically programmed to be okay with us.

Won't leave us like the two other girls. Best boy. Almost as good as the bear.

Alright, if both kicks land, it's +1 wound. Auto-fail has been removed, double wounds on crits still apply.

>Back to earlier decision
> Let her come to you an Joy-In-Time.
> Lure her to a Priority System Room.
> Bait her to start smashing things in general.

> Ash shot

So it would cover our escape

None of which are good options.

Do anons have a more ingenious idea?

> Bait her to start smashing things in general.
HWG

>> Bait her to start smashing things in general.

He's warm too.

I mean if there was hubris around i would say sick them on her

But she isnt going to leave the building and we didnt bring any with us this time either

This was my vote and I'm sticking to it.

Hubris is her corrupting the insects over time, right? So they are actually her army. They live off clean energy so leading them outside into the fallout will not work.

Other solutions like taking her out for a drink and become bros probably are off the table.

No, her army was mutated and became no longer under her control anymore so, woe critters became hubris cause of love mind fuck

Unity not Love

Ahhh good point.

That's her objective right?
Stop unity mind fuck in the past,
So she doesn't lose her whole army and is able to conquer an intact world while not worrying about the hubris that will try to eat her

Or simply take control of time and never lose in the first place.

Cause hubris don't care what you are

If you got the mojo their going to eat ya

Misery, she is from space.

Can we load up our people in space ships and start Alpha Centuari?

>ships
>implying we could build any in this crapsack ruined world.

No we use her ship.

"I'm going out there." You say. "Make some noise. Pytor, Amelia, as soon as you can, hit her with whatever you can."

"Do you want me to send Musor?" Amelia asks.

"Should me and Ruin come with you?" Embers asks.

> No, just me.
> Send everyone
> Just send Embers and/or Musor and/or Ruin

> No, just me.

Hate to see her corrupt anyone else

Plus we got windy powers to escape

>> No, just me.

I agree.
Musor probably is resistant to that though.

> No, just me.
>If she starts controlling me put me down, no hesitation.

> No, just me.

"No, just me." You look at Ray. "If she gets me, and I come back in here. Put a bullet in me, and then try to shoot Time."

He nods.

You take off your mask and you kiss him. He holds you. It's a spark of warmth, and you know that you'll never be able to...make this healthy or make it work. Still, Ray is here, he's yours, and...well...it's something.

"Afterwards, we'll do more." You say.

He smiles at you.

"Seal this door, or blockade it if you can!" You shout as you head outside.

You wind your way through the sterile halls. You're heading towards the infirmary, and you are starting to feel that this was a horrific idea.

You can feel Love's power from here. A tingle on your skin, and a sense of pressure inside your head.

But there's also this horrific calm as well. There's no anger, or sense of victory. A mild case of annoyance that there have been so many unforeseen setbacks and delays.

'I'm trying to ask, Civility, Meadows, and Zephyr if they have any advice, and all they can say is variations on 'Fucking Run' and other cheery forecasts.' Joy tells you.

"Huh." You say.

"What are they doing in the infirmary?" You ask Amelia as you come along the last corner before the corridor that's right in front of it.

"It looks like they're healing Joy-In-Love...or Misery...whatever she is." Amelia says. "Injecting her with crap."

> Assault her now, you'll be facing Love and all 6 of her Woes but maybe she wont be at full strength.
> Wait for her to come out and catch her in a trap. It'll be better towards her turning HESTIA if she makes the first move.

> Assault her now, you'll be facing Love and all 6 of her Woes but maybe she wont be at full strength.

>> Wait for her to come out and catch her in a trap. It'll be better towards her turning HESTIA if she makes the first move.

I don't need to fight Love, 6 of her underlings, and the HESTIA system.

>> Wait for her to come out and catch her in a trap. It'll be better towards her turning HESTIA if she makes the first move.

> Wait for her to come out and catch her in a trap. It'll be better towards her turning HESTIA if she makes the first move.

You pause. After a bit, Misery walks out. She turns to the PoJ Woes. "Ashes is close. Go secure the other sites."

The Woes nod, and march off in the other direction.

Misery just stands there in the hall. Not moving. Then there's a blur of pink and she's standing right in front of you.

Thankfully you were getting ready, so you point your hands at the ground, and the world explodes into an ashy cloud.

> Run
> Fight

Special Rules
> Joy-In-Love has 20 wounds, and she rolls 3d20 for every attack and takes the highest roll.
> Every time Joy-In-Love attacks, HESTIA's alert system rises with Misery identified as an attacker
>If HESTIA's alert system gets too high, security measures are activated.
> Every time you attack, there's a chance that HESTIA will raise her alert.
> When the alert system goes off, whomever is the highest threat will be the one targeted. Ties mean that you both get targeted.

> Fight

> Fight
HWG

> Run


>fighting the diety level threat solo
well this will end quickly.

>> Run

She is fast enough to basically teleport. Run or fight we are fucked. Getting a shot in while HESTIA can't see us is perfectly reasonable..

> Run

I am for this user.

Rolled 9, 19, 13 = 41 (3d20)

You ash dodge the hell away.

Misery isn't about speeches, or posturing, or show. She's just going to kill you, because you are a threat and she has the ability to do so.

She raises her hand and a beam of pink light blasts out from it.

ouch

so 2 hits on us then?

>beam of pink light blasts out from it.

If we are in a classical magical girl fight can we befriend her the Nohona way?

Deep on dodge kicking, add to her wounds.

do we get bonus dodge because of the ash cloud blocking sight?

>Dodge kick away until we get to a critical system for her to misfire and hit?

It strikes you square in the back, and you hit the ground as it feels like a sledgehammer has smacked you.

You roll with it, and jump back up.

> Continue to run, and blast more ash clouds.
> Fight back.

> Continue to run, and blast more ash clouds.

Yes, but not on a 19.

Also, I forgot one more option

> Spend a turn standing there summoning up your armor.

> Spend a turn standing there summoning up your armor.

> Continue to run, and blast more ash clouds.
Wait is the ai sensing misery attacks through the ash cloud?

> Spend a turn standing there summoning up your armor.

The bright pink blasts are rather hard to miss I imagine.

You stumble down the hall, trying to move as fast as possible. At the same time, you're focusing and trying to summon your armor.

DC:16
> Roll 1d20

Rolled 20 (1d20)

Rolled 19 (1d20)

Rolled 12 (1d20)

HWG

You summon up your armor and turn less-solid, at the same time you juke left, and you see a Pink blast pass through you.

You look at Misery, and she's looking a little annoyed at the ineffectiveness at her current power. She focuses on her other hand, and smiles when it starts to glow as well.

Fuck, she's learning fast.

> Keep running/clouding
> Fight back

> Fight back

> Fight back
Choke

>Keep running/clouding
We win when Misery aggros HESTIA. Kite like our life depends on it because it probably does!

> Fight back

> Keep running/clouding

This isn't going to end until one of you two is dead.

> Ash Shot
> Ash Cloud
> Ash Choke
> Ash Knife
> Dodge Kick
> Bright Burst

> Ash Choke

> Ash Choke

> Bright Burst

> Bright Burst

You realize that forces us out of meguca so if we do not one shot her(not possible given she has 20 wounds) we die, right?

>Ash Choke

You're focusing more on your breathing than hers, which is calm and measured. Still, all you need to do is push and...there!

>Roll 2d20, 1 for the Choke attack, 1 to see if HESTIA detects you or not.

Rolled 8, 13 = 21 (2d20)

Rolled 7, 16 = 23 (2d20)

Rolled 19, 16 = 35 (2d20)

HWG

You start to see the black goop leak out from Love's mouth. She spits out a clump of it, and gives you a look of mild annoyance.

She flicks her hands and they turn blue. She holds it up to her throat, and there's a flash, and she's back to breathing normally.

Thankfully that took both charges for her to use.

Bad news is that wasn't judged as hostile by HESTIA.

Good news is that neither was your action.

Your turn.

>Run
> Ash Shot
> Ash Cloud
> Ash Choke
> Ash Knife
> Dodge Kick
> Bright Burst

> Ash Shot

>Run

> Ash Shot

>Run
How's HESTIA's alert system looking?

>Run

> Ash Shot