[Enthralled] second floor (america jones)

[cibarium]

rules and mechanics

your mission
The person on this floor is not themselves, and needs rescuing! In order to due so the veilworm filtering their thoughts and making them complacent needs to be removed. The first step to safe removal is causing enough stress to the host for the parasite to disengage.

persuasion
As long as the thrall doesn't seem hostile, this is your best tactic. You can try to remind them what kind of person they really are if you know them, or resort to a less poetic plan of attack if you don't.

• Roll a d10 and bold your persuading phrase
  
• At the end of the turn, the thrall rolls a d10 (if persuadable)
  
• At least one player must meet or exceed the thrall's roll to succeed
  
• Multiple successes in the same turn count as one success
  
• Four successes will make the veilworm retreat and become removable

combat
Fun tip: It's possible to summon up a weapon with magic if you need one, just in case punching isn't your thing.

Everyone starts with 25 HP. If a combat scenario starts, please keep your HP total at the top of your posts!

• You may attack once per round
  
• To attack: roll a d6
  
• At 0HP the thrall becomes incapacitated
  
• Incapacitation makes the veilworm retreat and become removable

other
Thralls are unpredictable at times. If that means something about their rescue doesn't fit the script above, their player will let you know in bolded notes at the end of their post.

 

[lizbot]

You enter to the sound of doors slamming at once and a hall that's dark except for the flickering light of the large, neon cross at the end. It's quiet and when you open the first door, maybe it seems like there was a fight or some sort of violence. A bed on its side, a chair against the wall, drawers from a dresser no longer there scattered beside the entrance. The mattress blocks the bathroom, but if they look inside, there's nothing there, except a shower curtain laying in a sad heap on the floor.

The next rooms are much the same, and a method to the mess comes clear: there's nothing to hide behind. You open each door and there's nowhere for something to jump out at you, nowhere to be surprised.

The last room, of course, is different. For one, you can hear a girl's voice through the door, talking low and steady and fast.

Yea though I walk through the evil of thy rod I will not fear the valley, for thy shadow and thy staff they comfort me. Force me to kneel in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it, I need it I need it I...trust in the LORD with all my heart and must not lean on my own understanding. He will make my path straight again, again, again. Yea though I walk...

The light of the room is a warm contrast to the rest of the floor, with a dozen lamps circling the little room in a bright but comfortable glow. In the center of the room is a chair with a girl on it, nesting among a pile of blankets and pillows and a messy tangle of red hair; there's tall stacks of books on each side, creating large armrests. Closer inspection reveals that they're all bibles, the one book you can always find in places like this. But, as is often the case with Other Ashdown, there's something about them that's off, that can't hold up to close scrutiny.

At your entrance, the girl sinks down into her nest, as if trying to hide even while her voice continues, reciting other odd verses from the two books in her lap. If she doesn't acknowledge your presence, doesn't make eye contact or break the quiet litany of prayer, maybe you won't see her. Maybe you won't hurt her.  

[Smerdle]

Theo emerged from the stairs to a sharp, loud sound that made him jump, turning an unwelcome but bearable situation into a tense one over the span of a single second. The cross didn't help. He wasn't sure what he had expected a mindworm lair to look like, but he could safely say this hollow home wasn't it. For a moment he considered calling out, but that seemed likely provoke a fight he wasn't looking to have.

Over the next several minutes he continued on, keeping vague track of Julian and the bluejay's locations as he looked over each room. He wouldn't have said he was stalling, but there was something different about that last room, even before he approached it. When he finally opened its door, Theo held his breath as he stepped inside.

"America?" He found it easier to pitch his voice slightly higher than he might have a couple of months ago, as if he was speaking to a child. It was probably because of his new skunk. "We've got your bird."

To the point, but not particularly persuasive.

cibarium

lizbot

 

[cibarium]

Julian followed Theo slowly and quietly, looking about as tired and done with the situation at hand as Theo seemed to be when they made introductions in the basement. He hadn't met America himself, but knew she was considered a family friend, so hopefully he'd be able to say something to help. And also not have to fight. He sucked at fighting and hadn't been pushed to train at fighting by his patron.

He kept his arms to his sides, neutral and hopefully non-threatening, as he slowly bent down to sit on the floor relatively nearby. "Hi. You're America, right? I'm Julian. If you don't mind, I kind of need you to help me understand why you're here."

show spoilerhide spoiler

smerdle

lizbot

 

[lizbot]

The girl cautiously looked up through her hair and seemed to relax a bit seeing Theo, vaguely remembering seeing the handsome fellow 'round Darlene's. Even more so at the sight of Mr. B, her little friend, safe and sound and getting ready to scold by the looks of it. America began to sit up more fully, like she might stand up and greet them and there there was a Julian.

A Julian.

She knew he was one of two things, and neither were something she wanted anywhere near her. The girl stilled, carefully not moving, not trying to run just yet. Not saying a thing. The increasing bellows of her breath, in and out and waiting, was the loudest thing in the room.

smerdle

cibarium

 

[Smerdle]

There was something in her eyes, a wariness over Julian that she didn't seem to have toward him, even though they'd only ever interacted over drinks and fuzzy, pink abominations. Theo recognized her now that he could see her face, though he was a little embarrassed that he hadn't already done so just by the color of her hair.

"Don't worry about that. Just b—"

He took a step forward as he spoke, aiming to place himself between them. Instead, he knocked over a lamp.

cibarium

pls roll high

lizbot

these rolls tho

 

[cibarium]

"Crap," Julian muttered in between America shrinking and the lamp clattering to the floor. It missed his own damn leg by a good half inch, naturally causing him to flinch a little. He elected to stay where he was instead of moving and causing more noise in the unnaturally quiet room.

"I'm not sure why I scared you, but I'm sorry I did," he continued slowly. It didn't occur to him that America might've interacted with his double, who with the veilworm had probably acted ******** weird at her. "Look, you're not safe here. We're here to help you."

Julian was confident they were all screwed.

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smerdle

lizbot

 

[lizbot]

"I know what you are," America hissed through her teeth. "And now you're trying to stop us, trying to ruin things just like you people do." And then suddenly she's scrambling out of the chair, ignoring Mr. B's sudden bird cries that asked her to wait, to stay, to try and reassure. There's no way out, really, but even terrified, the girl wasn't powerless. Behind her the books start to levitate off the ground. All of them.

"Go away go away GO AWAY!"

cibarium

smerdle

 

[Smerdle]

Theo took a step back at her shouts and the rising books. To be fair, he had knocked over a damn lamp. Holding his hands out in front of him, he thought about trying to bring the books down with whatever mind powers he might have had over here, but his magic was no counter to America's and he quickly gave up.

"We don't want to stop you from doing anything. We want to help. But we'll leave if you want."

More like he'd try to Vulcan nerve pinch her while Julian was providing a distraction.

cibarium

lizbot

 

[cibarium]

Julian took a deep breath, stood up, and started backing away, careful to avoid eye contact. For the moment he decided to shut the hell up. It was obvious his presence was stressing her out.

While backing away he instead tried to signal Mr. Bitterberry to come land on his arm as a means of signaling he wasn't a monster, but it either didn't work or the bird had snubbed him in favor of his partner -- in which case Julian couldn't blame him.

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smerdle

lizbot

 

[lizbot]

America's eyes narrowed. "And why would a Noble want to destroy themself? You're lying..."

And then the Noble gestured toward Mr. B. "LEAVE HIM ALONE!" The lamps that cluttered the room slowly lifted in the air to join the books.

smerdle

cibarium

 

[Smerdle]

Even with the strong suspicion that this was their last chance to keep the situation from devolving into a brawl, Theo was still no closer to finding some magic phrase that would stop this than he had been when he'd walked in. Why was she talking about nobility? And what had her so freaked out about Julian?

"I don't think anyone's royalty here." He looked around with a nervous chuckle, trying to strategize with his eyes. "Right, King Julian? I, um, just put everything down and I promise we won't come near you or your familiar." He didn't think a bunch of books and lamps flung at high velocity would kill him right away, but that didn't mean he wanted it to happen.

cibarium

it will never happen again julian sorry XD

lizbot

 

[cibarium]

Julian just stayed silent and continued to back away slowly. Christ, this was going poorly.

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smerdle

lizbot

 

[lizbot]

Theo's assurance went sideways, sounding more like a threat. Tears began to spill from the girl's eyes eyes and slowly the items began to lower to the floor as she pleaded, "Ok! Just don't hurt him!"

The lamps and bibles began to tremble as they floated down.

cibarium

smerdle

2/4!

 

[Smerdle]

Well, now he felt kind of bad. Theo stayed where he was, crouching slightly to make himself smaller.

"We won't. I have a familiar now too and I would never do anything to hurt someone else's."

cibarium

lizbot