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>>5795968

Information:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/QM91m
Discord: https://discord.gg/AmjbaTR
Archives: https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?searchall=do+your+best+quest
(Rough Grammar ‘till half of the 9th Thread)
Incomplete Guide: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-nIx_dvaNCPQ7zLg2BK_ucCyGNM741kAANxqXj7hdDs/edit?usp=sharing

Votes:

Votes are counted until 25 minutes have passed. This rule doesn't apply to the last reply of the day.
Votes that require a dice roll are counted until 15 minutes have passed, so we can speed up the process. Rolls are counted until 10 minutes have passed, so be prepared!

(NEW) Dice Mechanic:

We always roll 1d100s!
Since most people weren’t happy with the system of averaging top four rolls, we’re using best of 2/3/4 depending on the attribute a prompt requires. If Johnny is a genius and it’s a Knowledge based roll, he gets more rolls (Max. 7)! If he sucks, he gets less dice (Min. 2)!

When asked for rolls, I will specify how many you’re going to get. Rolling begins after it’s asked.

Rolling 100 is a critical! There are no Critical Failures anymore!

The difficulty of the roll is tied with the effectiveness of the action. In other words, the harder the option the better the result!

Don’t forget that at the end of the day, this is a story-driven quest! What the prompts are describing is more important than the difficulty of the rolls, for results in a fight.

Again, rolls are only counted when they are posted within ten minutes of being asked, so watch out!

>>5795968
>>Go to the Restaurant ‘Bullseye’ with Vera.

>>5795968
>Go to the Restaurant ‘Bullseye’ with Vera.

>>5795968
>>Go to the Restaurant ‘Bullseye’ with Vera.

>>5795968
>Go to the Restaurant ‘Bullseye’ with Vera.

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You thank the reporter for his help and end the call as politely and quickly as you’re capable of. It took some time, you’re bad at this when you don’t feel comfortable with strangers. With that out of the way, you’re going to the restaurant with Vera to find the mastermind behind all of this. Goodbye dead end Motel, you hardly knew thee…

Public transportation comes clutch and lands you awfully close to the place. You look it up online, and you don’t want to jump to conclusions, but Vera says this restaurant looks like a money laundering scheme for the mafia — and that ain’t good. You’re an optimist though, you believe it’s a well run front, and they might serve a decent meal…

You’re outside. The place looks as decent as the pics suggest from the outside, there’s a security guy by the door. He has a mean mug. You need a plan.

What do you do?

>Go eat. They can’t kick you out if you want food. You didn’t pay for the room yesterday, so you have money. Dumb receptionist…
>Go inside and pretend to check out the place. Tell Vera to do her thing quickly.
>Befriend the security guy just in case.
>Write In.

>>5796115
>>Go eat. They can’t kick you out if you want food. You didn’t pay for the room yesterday, so you have money. Dumb receptionist…

>>5796115
>Go eat. They can’t kick you out if you want food. You didn’t pay for the room yesterday, so you have money. Dumb receptionist…

>>5796115
>>Go eat. They can’t kick you out if you want food. You didn’t pay for the room yesterday, so you have money. Dumb receptionist…

>>5796115
>>Go eat. They can’t kick you out if you want food. You didn’t pay for the room yesterday, so you have money. Dumb receptionist…

>>5796115
>>Go eat. They can’t kick you out if you want food. You didn’t pay for the room yesterday, so you have money. Dumb receptionist…

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This guy can’t stop you if you come here to eat, right? The customer is king! This place could be called Fronties and they’ll still have to serve you food. Politely, the security man said you can’t go in, restaurant is busy. Vera was having none of it and demanded access, she even pulled the disability discrimination card to the man’s horror. Emboldened by her attitude, you backed up these claims. He apologetically let you in. You kinda felt bad for a moment, then remember this place isn’t a real restaurant.

Bullseye has a sports bar kind of vibe, too inclined to the bar side of things, but TV displays are all over the shop. You’re led to a table by a random waiter, he doesn’t have a uniform, but at least he wears an apron. This man has little clue about what he’s doing, most of the ‘staff’ is busy with a meeting at one of the tables in the VIP section. From what you can see from here, it’s a bunch of tough-looking big shots having a tense conversation. The only reason this place could possibly be for anything but money laundering is that the staff doesn’t know how to wash anything, not even the dishes.

The menu has barbecue, so you went for that for both. Vera was too occupied with her magical phone to care about her order. It doesn’t appear she needs the specters to look around the area, but sadly, you have the sneaking suspicion that Sewel had his meeting with the mastermind in the VIP Sec—

“Yes!!! Found him!” Vera smiles from ear to ear. “That reporter man who left me to suffer and suffer wasn’t wrong at all!”

“Who is it?” You’re not going to lie, you’re glad she got it.

“Take a look! Do you know him? Because I don’t. Never seen this guy before in my life.” Vera turns the screen for you to see. “What does this runt have against me?”

“I was expecting you to have a clue. But look on the bright side, at least it isn’t personal.” You don’t know why this would make anyone feel better, but you say it anyway.

“Why would I be happy about that? Everything has gotten much harder.” Vera is very upset.

Huh, she has a point… Or does she?!

What do you do?

>Call Wessam again to ask him about who this guy is.
>Ask the Waiter if he knows who this guy is.
>“Well, after we’re done eating. We just need to follow his trail with your phone, right?” Follow the trail of the mysterious assailant.
>“Do you guys know who this is?” Be really stupid, and ask the mafia men in the VIP section who this guy is.
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5796185
>>Call Wessam again to ask him about who this guy is.

>>5796185
>Ask the Waiter if he knows who this guy is.

>>5796185
>>Ask the Waiter if he knows who this guy is.

>>5796185
>Ask the Waiter if he knows who this guy is.
Who the hell is this palmtree head?

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“Then let’s start making this way less difficult.” You say with unfounded confidence as the waiter comes here with your food. “Sir, may I ask you a question?”

“Let me do this first, I can’t do two things at the same time.” The meathead waiter puts down the plates and the drinks on your table. “What?”

“That’s how you talk to all your customers?” Vera doesn’t like the attitude.

“I don’t like talking to a couple of little kids who should be in school. Be thankful I’m not calling the cops on you two.” The guy is clearly annoyed.

“I’m sure the VIP section is thankful too.” Vera starts drinking her juice. The fraudulent waiter looks at that room and gulps.

“W-What do you want? I’m not one to chit-chat, but I can't leave you kids with a bad impression.” Waiter will try to be a little more polite.

“Have you seen this person before?” You point at Vera’s phone. Her befuddled expression tells you that she isn’t on board about showing the picture to this guy, but she does it anyway.

“Can hardly see the guy in front, but that kid? Yeah, he’s been around. Palm Head is a school boy just like you lovebirds. A lot of youngsters like you two have been showing up lately. We were joking that this place is getting hip in the back.” The waiter doesn’t mind wasting his time chit-chatting. “Is there something we should know? This some kind of prank for the views? A test of courage of sorts for social media? You should watch it, kids, because this joint is for tough guys and gals.”

“Oh, yes, it really shows...” Vera is full of sarcasm.

“Thank you. Is that all you have for us?” You wonder. The man shrugs, he’s out of information.

“You two babies better tip good later.” The waiter walks away without giving it another thought.

“That got us nothing.” Vera chows down on food.

“What do you mean?” You’re confused. “Not even in a gazillion years would I have said this guy is our age. You sure you haven’t seen him before?”

“What would be the point of me hiding it? I need your help. We are a team. Vera’s team.” Vera doesn’t get why you keep pushing. That name needs work.

“I couldn’t help but overhear you two, and, well, if you need any help, I could, y’know, help.” A random ass guy at another table grabs your attention. He looks young, around your age. No wonder the waiter was annoyed at the sudden youth intake. “We’re likely working for the same thing, so let’s scratch each other’s backs.”

“That’s a rude way to say hello.” Vera gets annoyed at the marsupial-looking man.

“I didn’t say hello.” The tiny kangaroo man retorts.

...You are meeting a lot of wild animals. All equally conflictive.

>>5797253


What do you do?

>“Tell us.” You don’t have anything to lose but time. And time isn’t of the essence.
>“Only if you promise to be our friend.” Pinky swear. That’s an unbreakable bond.
>“We’re fine, Mr. Stranger.” Decide to call Wessam again.
>“We’re good, Mr. Stranger.” Decide to use Vera’s power to follow Palm Head’s trail.
>Write In.

>>5797256
>>“Tell us.” You don’t have anything to lose but time. And time isn’t of the essence.

>>5797256
>“Tell us.” You don’t have anything to lose but time. And time isn’t of the essence.

>>5797256
>“Tell us.” You don’t have anything to lose but time. And time isn’t of the essence.

>>5797256
>“Tell us.” You don’t have anything to lose but time. And time isn’t of the essence.

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“Tell us.” You don’t have anything to lose but time. And since you are wasting money on a traditional Prancijanian barbecue, it seems both things can go hand-in-hand.

“Bray Luque Magogue.” The tiny kangaroo man doesn’t fully turn or leave his table, he speaks with his head sideways and chair inclined backwards. You’re worried that he might hit his head if he’s not careful. “Purple Rose student. In his last year of high school. He’s cousins with a young politician named ‘Ayde Magogue’, and acts as his errand dog. He has done his fair share of shady tasks for him. Looks fairly impressionable and dumb.”

“Yeah, we noticed his haircut. Your beef is with the politician, right?” Vera is trying to weave out the useless information.

“You’d be correct.” Kangaroo Man acts aloof. “I have no interest in politics, but a friend of mine got in trouble because of him. And Bray, well, did the deed; and let me be clear, he’s the one behind all the turbulence. Without him, Mr. Politician is as good as a toothless dog.”

“If you say that, he doesn’t sound that dumb.” You say.

“Connections are hard to make, I’ll give you that. But that’s as far as I’m willing to go.” Kangaroo man shrugs.

“What happened to your friend?” You ask.

“Jail. She got framed for some bullshit.” Kangaroo Man sticks to the point. “She was in Magogue’s way, and he took her out of it.”

“Damn, that sucks.” You don’t have much more to say.

“If you happen to find any evidence of any misgivings, hand them over to your reporter buddy. Heard he’s pretty good. Probably would do a decent job clearing her name.” Kangaroo Man cares only about that.

“Agh, this Bray guy goes to my school, we might have crossed paths, but I don’t remember seeing him. Like ever.” Vera is using all her brainpower to find a hint in her memories, but there’s nothing.

“Oh, I go to Red Tulip.” Kangaroo man reveals.

“Green Foothill.” You raise your hand.

A strange tension rises between you three, a silent feud is brewing…

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>>5797441

“Don’t be hard on yourself, sister. Bray had a monumental shift in makeover not too long ago. Coincides with his growing bond with his cousin.” Kangaroo man breaks the silence.

“Where can we find him?” You wonder.

“Hmmm. You’re in a pinch. The only place I can think of is their Political Party’s Headquarters.” Kangaroo man can’t think of any other options.

This isn’t fair! You didn’t ignore politics all your life to be punished for it!

“…...You idiots, we can visit my school.” Vera is annoyed by how you two want to overcomplicate things.

What do you do?

>Visit Magogue’s Party Headquarters.
>Go to Purple Rose High School.
>Follow the Perpetrator’s footsteps using Vera’s ability.
>Ask Kangaroo Man to join the party.
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow! Sorry for the short session.)

>>5797442
>>Follow the Perpetrator’s footsteps using Vera’s ability.

>>5797442
>Follow the Perpetrator’s footsteps using Vera’s ability.

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“We’re going to discuss what’s next after we’re done with our meal.” You raise an eyebrow towards Vera, that ‘we’ seem to include someone else into the equation.

“Please, enjoy your food, and do what you please with the information I gave you. I'd rather keep my hands clean while I’m eating.” Kangaroo Man wasn’t willing to join you two anyway.

“What business do you have here anyway?” Vera feels like this strange kid doesn’t fit the picture of this place.

Kangaroo Man hints towards the VIP section with his mouth and says nothing else, then shrugs.

“That’s juicy, good luck with that.” Vera gets a tiny bit scared for him.

“We’re going to let you do your thing.” You politely end the conversation with this strange kid.

“This conversation never happened. I’m wishing you luck, two kind strangers.” Kangaroo Man turns to his table and raises his glass of water without looking at you.

“Thank you, Kangaroo Man.” You raise your glass of juice.

Kangaroo Man tilts his head back, a hint of confusion on his face, then smirks as he resumes position. Vera really wants to say something, but something in her head tells her that if she does, you’ll probably call her a rat somehow, and she isn’t into that spiel.

During the rest of the meal, you two agreed on a new plan of action: Using Vera’s powers to follow Bray’s trail from the end of his meeting with Sewel Scott until he gets home or at any other place of interest. After paying the tab, it’s a go. You two follow the ghost of Palm Head. The great advantage of pushing Vera in a wheelchair is that what she’s doing with her phone appears normal to bystanders.

You’d like to say it was an interesting trip, but it wasn’t. The highlight was that at some point, dumb haircut took the bus, and you had to figure out how to do this. It was simple, you two took the bus too. What a great puzzle. The layout was different, so it was a little fucked on Vera’s phone, but aside from that? All fine.

You arrive at your target’s house, it’s close to the line between the Northern District and yours. The entire street has terraced houses, what a change of scenery. Vera proved it’s his by changing the timer to different days and seeing Bray and his family go in and out of the house. There are no doubts, except on what to do. You’re hiding inside some bushes nearby to not cause suspicion.

What’s the plan?

>Wait here to confront Bray.
>Knock on the door and meet his family.
>Sneak inside the house and look for information.
>Write In.

>>5798345
>>Wait here to confront Bray.

>>5798349
+1

>>5798345
>Wait here to confront Bray.

>>5798345
>Sneak inside the house and look for information.
This feels natural

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It took some convincing, but you believe the best course of action is to wait and confront Bray. This asshole might have planned to kidnap Vera, but — and this is a big but like the size of your history teacher’s — he went with Sewel Scott because he couldn’t do it himself, on top of that, he’s a high schooler just like you two. To say he’s small fry isn’t the point, but to act like you’re in more danger than you are is equally ridiculous.

On a stupid note, bending down to talk to Vera makes you feel like you’re talking to the president. You just wanted to mention that. Well, Madam Rat witch-president considers your approach acceptable and is willing to go along. She wants her hand on your phone though, to call the police as a safety measure.

You ask why include the cops now after she discarded them yesterday, Vera responds that you need more than the police to scare the mob, but a simple student is another different story. You get it. Both of you feel content with each other’s answers. Now there’s nothing else to do but wait.

And you didn’t have to stand idle for that long. Less than half an hour later it appears that you’re not the only one who skipped classes today.

Bray Luque Magogue is looking for his keys as he walks up to his house. You come out of the wind to confront him.

“Hey there.” You say in the least threatening manner.

“Yes? How can I — WOOOOOOOOOOAH!!!” The mastermind behind it all loses his marbles upon laying his eyes on Vera.

“You’re… loud.” You feel like you’re not going to like this guy on any level.

“Primavera, you’re okay. Oh hell yeah, this is good… very good” Bray is out of breath but happy in his pain. “I was so worried like a mother goose.”

“Excuse me? Who are you?” Vera furrows her eyebrows in obvious annoyance. And yeah, you’re sticking with Vera as her name because you already forgot what this guy called her.

“You don’t know who I am? It’s me, Bray! We’re classmates. Basically friends. Last I heard about you, you went missing.” Bray’s surprise adds to his acting, but it’s easy to tell he’s lying. “Who’s the guy?” He asks with disdain.

“Drop the charade, we know it was you.” Vera doesn’t play along.

“Me? What are you accusing me of?” Bray steps back, a little offended. “I’m innocent, by the way.”

“Why did you do this to me, you idiot?!!!” Vera shouts angrily.

“Errr… Well… SEE YA!” Bray starts running away.

You should’ve seen this coming… Or maybe not. Running from a disabled person is a new low, and he kidnapped said injured girl.

What do you do?

>Let him go. You’ll follow Bray’s trail with Vera’s powers. Let him tire himself out.
>Chase after Bray! Subdue him heroically! [Athletics Based] [Hard Roll]
>Shout that you two know this is his home, and you’ll wait until he needs to come back.
>Write In.

>>5798448
>>Shout that you two know this is his home, and you’ll wait until he needs to come back.

>>5798451
You fool, he'll go sleep at a motel and wait US out!

>>5798448
>Let him go. You’ll follow Bray’s trail with Vera’s powers. Let him tire himself out
Take our time

>>5798448
>>Let him go. You’ll follow Bray’s trail with Vera’s powers. Let him tire himself out
THE HUNT IS ON.

>>5798448
>>Chase after Bray! Subdue him heroically! [Athletics Based] [Hard Roll]

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You two watch Bray go like the wind…

“You know, if I was someone else, I would’ve questioned you for not knowing your own classmate.” You say it so monotonously that Vera can’t tell if you are joking or not.

“To put it out there, I just transferred. Don’t think I’m callous for that.” Vera justifiably thinks there are better reasons to think she’s not nice. Or maybe she needs to word her responses better. “Why are you saying that?”

“I don’t even remember mine.” You slowly start pushing the wheelchair forwards. “We don’t need to rush if we use your powers.”

“Don’t over-rely on this. I get tired using my powers. Magic is not easy on my precious body.” Vera wants to chit-chat while moving. She seems to enjoy talking to you a lot.

“That’s fine. I’ll make another tasty meal to recover your stamina waiting for you. With some cheese.” You wiggle your eyebrows.

“Look. It’s NOT fair that you equate cheese to the rat stuff. Everyone likes cheese. You like cheese, I saw you eat it. Don’t deny it.” Vera crosses her arms in annoyance.

“I’m not obsessed with it.” You shrug.

“That’s a form of denial.” Vera didn’t like your response. “Like, are you a vulture for eating meat? Hmm? Like you chow down on a burger and say ‘mmm, delicious corpse, caw, caw’?”

“There are vegan burgers.” You get petty.

“Oh, please, don’t give me that, Noodles.” Vera had to go there.

The pointless conversation continues as you follow Bray’s steps. It doesn’t take long to find him hiding in a trash container in the first alleyway after all those terraced houses. He really thought he could trick you.

“Kick it.” Vera demands, she’d do it herself if she could.

“Sure.” You kick the container. It hurt your feet. You’re not going to mention it.

“We know you’re in there, Palm-head. There’s no point in running, we will find you no matter what.” Vera sounds annoyed.

“It’s way past lunchtime anyway.” You point out.

“I don’t eat garbage!” An annoyed Palm head comes out of the container! “You eat garbage!”

“I mean, Fronties wasn’t that bad, was it?” You ask Vera.

“D-Don’t change the subject.” Vera wants you to focus. “It’s time for you to explain yourself!”

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>>5798579

“Please, Primavera, your ire only hurts this poor man’s heart. This is all a big misunderstanding that I will be able to explain succinctly once you lay down all the information AND evidence you have on me.” Bray is trying to save face in the worst way possible.

“We are not going to do that. You’ll have to explain yourself.” You shake your head.

“I’m not talking to you, four-eyes. This is between me and Primavera. Now beat it before I beat you up.” Bray wants nothing to do with you.

“Yeah, four-eyes, leave the cripple you adore alone with the guy who planned to kidnap her.” Vera retorts sarcastically. “Could you just talk?”

“Hmph, I should’ve guessed you could’ve used your powers to find me.” Bray decides it is time to talk.

“Being injured isn’t a superpower, idiot.” Vera denies having magic.

“Ah, so you haven’t told him. That’s alright, you don’t have to trust each other…” Bray smirks, he’s trying to cause disruptions.

“That’s not going to work, you low wit. We trust each other dee—” Vera gets interrupted.

“COULD YOU STOP INSULTING ME?!” Bray shouts. “Primavera, you’re my darling, if you talk disparagingly about me, I don’t know how much my soul can take…”

“Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid, Stupid.” Vera is not stopping. Each ‘Stupid’ is like a singular slap on Bray’s face.

“Vera, we’re not going to get any answers if you kill him.” You politely tell your wheelchair assassin to ease up.

“I don’t mind if he dies.” Vera wants to continue.

“I’ll do anything… just not one more word…” Bray looks sickish, like someone beat him down with a hammer.

You’re getting close to the truth, but would this mean that Vera will be okay?

What do you do?

>Ask Bray why he planned the kidnapping. Learn the truth.
>Ask Bray how he knows about Vera’s powers. No need to beat around the bush for this one.
>Tell Bray to fuck off and leave Vera alone forever. Secure your rat’s safety.
>Ask Bray if he was set up to do this. Maybe the truth is more complicated than you expect.
>Force Bray to eat garbage.
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5798581
>>Ask Bray why he planned the kidnapping. Learn the truth.
>>Ask Bray how he knows about Vera’s powers. No need to beat around the bush for this one.
>Ask Bray if he was set up to do this. Maybe the truth is more complicated than you expect.
Info first, tell him to fuck off (and maybe eat garbage) later

>>5798583
+1

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“Can you explain yourself like Vera asked? Why did you kidnap her?” You reiterate your favorite rat’s questions.

“That’s a loaded question with no easy answers.” Bray wants to weasel out of this one.

“STU—”

“FINE! Fine! Fine...! No more insults, my mouth is ready to talk!” Bray interrupts before Vera says the S-word. “Before we dwell on this, I want to let you know that I’m not the enemy, I’m on your side too, and I know deep in my heart that we can work something out.”

“You kidnapped me.” Vera frowns.

“It wasn’t like I wanted to hurt you for real. The plan didn’t pan out as I intended, that’s it.” Bray tries to wash his hands from this. “Like, heart to heart? I have a massive crush on you and your long, long legs. The kidnapping was all a setup. I was supposed to be your knight in shining armor, rescuing you from those evildoers, you’d fall in love with me, then we’ll use your powers for… stuff. Good stuff.”

“Are you out of your god-forsaken mind?” Vera feels insulted.

“Primavera, please, we know all the rumors are true. You’re a clingy, obsessive girl who perpetually lives in denial and who’s a hopeless romantic with a knack for getting into bad one-sided relationships that turn into restraining orders. You’re not complicated, that’s all that would’ve taken, you know it because it already happened. But you’re in luck because I find all that very hot!” Bray smiles.

“Don’t LISTEN to him!!!” Vera is furiously embarrassed. She wants to strangle our ‘hero’.

“Four-eyes, I know you’re the guy who screwed this up. You thought you were the hero, but you put us all in danger. Congratulations.” Bray shakes his head. “I don’t hate you for this, but I really want to.”

“How do you know about her powers?” You need all the information you can get.

“Don’t tell him anything.” Vera wants you to keep your cards close to your chests and not tell him about her powers, but it’s pointless, Bray has already mentioned them a bunch of times.

“I have a flame too.” Bray reveals like it’s a big deal. “And my flame knows hers and its powers.”

“Flame?” You don’t know what he’s talking about.

“The demons look like flames. I didn’t think it was an important detail since nobody but the host can see them in this form.” Vera didn’t want to hide anything.

“Just for the record, our flames are a couple. So, you’re perpetually making everything awkward for us, four-eyes.” Bray gets snarky.

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>>5799853

“She says that your buddy is probably her ex.” Vera is happy to let this guy down.

“Please! Everyone has marital problems!” Bray retorts.

“Wait a minute, I looked the name of Vera’s flame up online, and it says she’s married to Zeus, your demon is Zeus?!” You ask as you look through your phone. Oh fuck...

“Oh, no, that's her *first* husband. She remarried later.” Vera explains.

“There’s nothing like that here…” You keep looking at the article.

“It’s new lore! Would it kill you to believe me outright?!” Vera gets exasperated for some reason.

“Yeah, mine is not Zeus...” Bray is very disappointed.

“But how do you know that she has that flame in particular?” You wonder.

“Well, uh, my flame was stalking hers before joining forces with me.” Bray doesn’t sound very proud.

“Ew.” The rat is disgusted at the garbage man.

“You said I got us all into trouble because I have human decency and helped a damsel in distress. Why?” You feel like this is bigger than the worst attempt at flirting ever.

“My cousin. He helped me set up this plan with the condition that we would use Primavera’s power for something important he needs. And as long as we get that done, Primavera will be fine.” Bray is trying to play peacemaker. “Look, he’s an influential man, the one with the contacts with the evildoers who kidnapped those precious legs. And if he doesn’t get what he wants, he gets… pushy. Do you understand?”

“You’re full of it, liar.” Vera doesn’t buy it. “This plan is way too ridiculous for anyone with more than two brain cells to agree to.”

“With some goodwill earned, you get to move some pieces on the board every now and then.” Bray doesn’t think this is a stretch. “Fine, it was a setup to take down the guy who kidnapped you! He ruffled some feathers with the wrong people, so some nasty men — who may or may not work with my cousin— prepared an ambush, but something went wrong along the way or else neither of you would be here. I suggested you so I could do my own plan. Happy?”

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>>5799857

“There you have it.” Vera crosses her arms. “You promised something you can’t deliver without my powers and now you’re doomed. Let’s get out of here, Noodle man.”

“Scott is still chasing after you. And he’s a real assassin, feared around the country. You’re not in the clear unless I make the call.” Bray threatens.

“He has bigger fish to fry. We’re leaving.” Vera wants you to take her away. She’s obviously very upset that all of this was for nothing.

“Look, Primavera, you’re the one assuming I didn’t tell my cousin about your powers. And he really needs this favor done.” Bray gets really pushy.

“Oh, now it’s a favor? Funny how that keeps changing. We’re out! Push me away, Noodle arms!” Vera is not going to go along with this.

Bray looks like he has made the biggest mistake of his life. Now, the only question left is… why did he run? Wait a minute, you don’t care about that answer.

What do you do?

>Convince Vera to help this loser with that favor. You feel bad for him even if he’s a dumbass.
>Deny to help with the favor. But propose to find a way to stop this guy’s cousin. You feel like you won’t be safe with him in the picture.
>Find a way to contact Sewel Scott. You’ll let him know who is chasing after him so he can get rid of them. That’d keep Vera safe too.
>Ask Vera if you two are really out of trouble. It doesn’t feel like it.
>Write In.

(Only reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5799859
>>Find a way to contact Sewel Scott. You’ll let him know who is chasing after him so he can get rid of them. That’d keep Vera safe too.
This will solve both problems. Might wanna do it anonymously though

>>5799865
+1, Johnny never met Sewel till Poker Night

>>5799859
>>>Find a way to contact Sewel Scott. You’ll let him know who is chasing after him so he can get rid of them. That’d keep Vera safe too.

>>5799859
>Find a way to contact Sewel Scott. You’ll let him know who is chasing after him so he can get rid of them. That’d keep Vera safe too.

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“Be thankful we didn’t force you to eat garbage.” You say to the weird looking man before turning around and pushing Vera away with your noodle arms.

“Listen, no matter how much you wish that this is over, it won’t end here.” Bray gives a last warning.

“You want to eat the garbage then?” Vera threatens back.

“T-That’s not what I meant, Primavera!” Bray jumps back home. “But you’ll see what I actually *did* mean! You’ll see!”

And that’s the last you heard from this love struck loser… You two are heading towards the bus stop.

“Maybe we should lay low.” You propose to Vera. It bugs you a little how headstrong the loser was at the end there.

“Don’t listen to him. That loser was trying to scare us.” Vera doesn’t sound worried about that guy. “Don’t believe a word that came out of his mouth. None. Not even one. He’s all wrong.” Vera is annoyed. “You don’t actually believe the stuff he said about me, right?”

“He doesn’t have a great track record.” You shrug.

“I’m not the most pleasant person to be around, and people think that gives them the right to spread dumb rumors about me. When I try to be nice back, they say I’m desperate. The entire world hates me.” Vera is letting her frustrations out.

“I don’t hate you.” You don’t know what to say but you’ll support her.

“There has to be a little resentment in that Noodle heart of yours. This whole thing, from beginning to end, was a huge waste of time. Pure nonsense and I dragged you into it.” Vera doesn’t quite believe you.

“I had fun.” You shrug. “And as long as you’re not in danger, we’re good.” You take out your phone. “Which reminds me, we should contact this Sewel Scott guy to tell him who is chasing after him. He can get rid of them, and that will ensure your safety. Anonymously.”

“How are we supposed to contact this master assassin?” Vera’s voice is dripping in sarcasm.

“He has a Car Repair Shop. I found its phone number online.” You don’t like how easy this was to find, but you’re not the one putting your neck on the line to kill people. “Fronties is in the car business too.”

“Hand me the phone. I’ll do the call. He should know my voice.” Vera asks for your phone.

“The idea is to do it anonymously.” You remind her.

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>>5800619

“Trust me.” Vera wants to do this no matter what.

“Fine.” You relent.

The Rat makes a brief call to the car repair shop, she lets whoever was on the other side of the call know about the ruffian behind the entire operation. It was all cut and dry.

“Did it work…?” You worriedly ask.

“It wasn’t Scott, but the guy I was talking to is going to contact him immediately. Let’s pray for Craig’s success. Place is a total front.” Vera doesn’t care one way or another. “In short, I think it worked.”

“Cool. Huh, we’re totally lying low for a bit.” You don’t want to leave it to chance.

“No, that won’t happen, kids.” A group of three thugs stand behind you. “We found them, boss. Right on the bus stop.” The main thug of the group informs through his phone. “Make some space, she’s coming.”

Immediately after, a black car jumps from the horizon, and parks you in front of you two, running over the bus stop sign by mistake. A buff lady steps out from the driver’s door.

“We want the cripple. The nerd can go.” The tough-looking lady yawns. “Unless, you have some kind of objection, kid.” She looks at you right in the eyes.

“Who are you…?” Vera doesn’t know what’s going on anymore.

“The mob. Are you joining your girlfriend or not?” The lady asks again.

Welp, that was a short-lived moment of tranquility.

What do you do?

>Go into the car with the mob and Vera. Stay close.
>Deny going in, and look for a way to keep track of them! You’ll follow them from safety!
>Run Away with Vera! Get out of here! [This is not going to work Roll] [Athletics Based]
>Write In.

>>5800622
>>Go into the car with the mob and Vera. Stay close.
Don't split the party

>>5800629
+1

>>5800622
>>Go into the car with the mob and Vera. Stay close.

>>5800629
+1

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“Sure.” Splitting the party is always a bad move in horror movies, you’ll find out if it is as stupid in Gangsters movies.

Vera is having a mixture of emotions, a mix between feeling moved and flabbergasted at your own recklessness. She couldn’t say a word.

“Aren’t you a sweetheart? I bet she feels really lucky to have you.” The fit woman shows her white teeth with glee. “Help her in. Guys, keep an eye on them, and let’s go.” She puts a leg back inside, but...

“B-Boss, no offense, but could one of the boys drive the car?” One of the random thugs pleads to the muscular woman as he points at the dead bus stop sign.

“Ugh, go ahead. I’ll focus on our guests.” The boss relents without saying much.

That forces you three in the back of the car. The mafia boss is right in the middle, and it’s as awkward as it sounds. You’re glad to have a window though. The car starts moving...

“Who are you? Where are you taking us?” Vera doesn’t want to wait for an explanation.

“I’m ‘Bulldozer’ Bodil. I’m the matriarch of this tiny family.” Bodil smiles and puts her arms around you both like you’re old friends. “They handed me these boys to keep track of me. They’re intrusive, but I like the company.”

“Again, where are you taking us?” Vera asks again.

“To our office. You’re our little bargaining chip and bait, you’re a multifaceted hostage. You’ll stay with us for a while.” Bodil headpats Vera.

“What’s a while?” Vera tries to push Bodil’s hand away.

“Couple of weeks? It won’t be so bad, you’ll have your boyfriend around.” Bodil now pats your head.

“That’s… not great.” You know, you kinda enjoy that neither of you are denying these claims.

“Not great? Did you get into a fight? I worked as a marital counselor, you know?” Bodil is willing to hear you both out.

“The long stay is what is not great.” You clarify.

“I was locked in prison for years, this is nothing!” Bodil dismisses.

“I… don’t like the sound of that.” You’re not sure why you are honest now.

“The trauma made me tough. You know what they say, what doesn’t kill you goes to therapy.” Bodil jokes around.

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>>5800794

“Why do you need me? Why me?! Does it have to be me?! I mean, I’m great, but seriously?!” Vera regrets that this wasn’t a boring story with a lame garbage-eating villain.

“You’re a relative of one of the big heads of the military. Same individual who trained my former friend Sewel Scott. And, as I was told just now, you might be important for an operation of another friend of mine. Alleged friend too, at this point.” Bodil ruffles Vera’s hair. “We need you to bait Sewel Scott to save you because he’s not going to let his mentor down, and… You know who that is, right? Scott? He’s the bastard who kidnapped you.”

“Why are you telling us all the details?” You interrupt to ask.

“You’re under my wing now, you two! I’m your mama! Welcome to the family! We all need to be on the same page if we want to come out victors!” Bodil hugs you both. “Call me, Mama Bodil. Nobody does. Because they’re a bunch of cowards! Cowards!”

“But I love my actual mom…” The driver thug explains. He seems to have said this a bunch of times already.

“You can have more than one mama. Takes a village to raise a kid… and an army!” Bodil starts laughing.

Nobody is laughing. What the hell is going on now?

What do you do?

>“How about we help you with one thing and you leave us alone? We’ll be part of the family in spirit.” You wanna have an amicable relationship. You know, to be safe.
>“Mama Bodil, could you not do this, please?” Use your puppy dog eyes. You know, the thing you have never done before and never will if this fails.
>“How did you find us?” You feel like it’s a little convenient that she just appeared when she did.
>“Actually, me and Vera are just friends.” You don’t want to jump forward into a relationship yet! Without her approval at least!
>“Isn’t it, like, really bad to have kidnapped a relative of a high governmental officer? This is terrorism.” Try to convince Mama Bodil that this is a bad idea.
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5800796
>“Mama Bodil, could you not do this, please?” Use your puppy dog eyes. You know, the thing you have never done before and never will if this fails.

>>5800796
>>Write In.
" Hope you don't end up like my real mom. Hit by a car, thrown through the air, and bashed into a phone booth that then exploded."

>>5801143
+1 for the sad funny

>>5801143
This

>>5801143
Supporting

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“Hope you don’t end up like my real mom. Hit by a car, thrown through the air, and bashed into a phone booth that then exploded.” You remember the most traumatic moment of your entire life. The moment your mom died right in front of your eyes…

“Oh sweet child, let Mama give you a big hug, okay?” Mama Bodil traps you between her arms. It’s comforting despite the initial awkwardness. “It’s all gonna be fine, alright?”

“Thanks, Mama Bodil.” You don’t know if you should hug her back, but even if you wanted to, your noodle arms are in an awkward position to do so. Upon hearing those words, she hugs you tighter.

“...He’s taking the piss, boss.” The thug in the co-pilot seat doesn’t believe your story.

“What?!” Mama Bodil is offended on your behalf.

“Did you actually listen to what he said? It’s made-up nonsense.” The same thug retorts.

“Who named you a lie detector?! I see the emptiness in his eyes. It’s all true.” Mama Bodil argues on your behalf.

“What eyes? These kids look blind.” The thug is so confused by this.

“Even if I was, I would see that you’re a moron.” Vera has been irritated ever since this guy questioned your backstory. Like she harbors a lot of resentment.

“Who are you calling a moron, huh?!” The mean thug wants to punch a handicapped girl.

“Mama, he’s being mean to me!” Vera hides behind the big boss.

“D’awww! You called me Mama too! I like you, kids! Let Mama give you some well-deserved love!” Mama Bodil brings you two closer and kisses the top of your heads repeatedly!

“Boss! You need to command respect! You don’t know these kids.” The same thug scolds the muscle woman.

“Shut your mouth, these kids are fun.” Mama Bodil laughs.

“Please, Mama, we need you to take this seriously…” The copilot pleads.

“Mama? Don’t patronize me now, boy.” Mama Bodil turns serious in a blink. “I know what I’m doing. From minute one. II told you all that I don’t need any cowards around who don’t trust me. Anyway, where was I...?”

She forgot what she was talking about before you told her about your actual mother...

What do you do?

>Keep winning Mama Bodil’s heart! She won’t let you two be hurt if she cares about you, right?
>Plan your escape while in the office. This isn’t safe.
>Go along with whatever is going on. You don’t have another choice.
>Discreetly call Wessam for help. Let’s be fair here, you don’t have any other allies but him.
>Write In.

>>5801798
>>Keep winning Mama Bodil’s heart! She won’t let you two be hurt if she cares about you, right?

>>5801798
>>Keep winning Mama Bodil’s heart! She won’t let you two be hurt if she cares about you, right?

>>5801798
>Keep winning Mama Bodil’s heart! She won’t let you two be hurt if she cares about you, right?

>>5801798
>>Keep winning Mama Bodil’s heart! She won’t let you two be hurt if she cares about you, right?
Maybe we can get her to be Vera's new Mom, Since the family she does have is either too busy to watch her Correctly or is implicit in her troubles.
If Bodil here actually starts caring for her, Vera could get some henchmen too.

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“You were explaining to us what’s going on, Mama Bodil.” You try to be useful to get on Mama Bodil’s good side.

“Aye! We need to be on the same page…” The mafia leader recalls her own words, then looks at Vera. “So, you’re the bait, dear. Not *actual* bait. We’re not going to hang you by a string for these piranhas to bite you.” It doesn’t sound like this is how she envisioned it at first. “We only need ‘em to know you’re with us, and they will come flying like bees to flowers, pretty girl.”

“One of those bees is my kidnapper, who is the other?” Vera sounds very polite. The big woman was about to answer, but...

“Boss, do you really like these suck-ups?” Copilot thug doesn’t like either of you in the slightest.

“Keep your teeth next to each other for a smile or I’ll take them all out for you.” Bodil hates being interrupted. “You’re not the one chasing after the Bray kid, so be quiet and thankful.”

“Yes, Boss…” Copilot thug decides it’s time to stop putting his life in danger.

“You need to know when to shut up, man.” The driver thug whispers to his buddy.

“The other bee is a politician. An old friend of mine from my college days before I decided to make a living out of smashing skulls.” Bodil remembers fondly the skull smashing, not the college days... “My friend Ayde used to be a stand-up man, but the game he got in doesn’t let ‘stand-up’ guys prosper without using the house rules. My family is helping take his trade foes out from the playing field.” Bodil looks pissed. “And you know what we just found out? He’s making deals with another family within the clan because we’re too small time for him. Can you believe it?! He’s joining forces with the Youhao Family! The guy in charge is gunning for the top seat, that’s the big difference. It’s mob stuff. Mama knows you find this boring.”

“Mama Bodil, don’t underestimate your abilities! You’re a good storyteller!” You say with enthusiasm.

“But if you don’t think it’s important, we can skip it! Mama knows best!” Vera plays along.

“Right on, I do! You have no idea how boring that Youhao is! He makes it all about money, respect and efficiency, but where’s the fun in that? None of that is real.” Bodil shakes her head and sits back. “So in short, I have two men who disrespected me deeply who need to be taught a lesson. We need to know where Scott left the people who he was supposed to kill, and maybe destroy his kneecaps. And we need Ayde to break all links with the clan, and let him fail on his own… then we’ll destroy his kneecaps.”

“Oh boy, that sounds like it’d hurt…” You don’t know how to sound enthusiastic about that.

“Don’t try to force a smile, kid. But thanks.” Bodil pats your head.

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>>5802012

“The stupid cousin he has, can you not use him for something?” Vera wonders. She really wants some payback against Bray for kidnapping her.

“He doesn’t give a damn about that kid. That man has no heart anymore, not like he ever cared for the boy.” Bodil feels conflicted about this. “The only thing that matters to Ayde is what you can provide. He’ll scorch the earth for you if it’ll help further his career; as I’ve been told, you have the capability to take out a political opponent from another party, girl. If it was from within his, he would’ve used us. But, alas.” Bodil yawns. “Even if you couldn’t provide the help he thinks you can, he’d be happy using you to force your relative to retire, through us or Youhao. I don’t get all the politics, but that’s what I understood. He didn’t bother to tell me much, he thinks I’m too much of a meathead to get the specifics, it seems the bastard forgot where we met.”

“My grandaunt barely knows me. She wouldn’t step down for me.” Vera says.

“You don’t know your aunt, do you?” Bodil chuckles with arrogance.

“Yeah, that’s what I’m saying.” Vera dryly retorts.

“Ha! I’m talking about the kind of person she is! She won’t let that happen, trust me, I met her and she’s a lovely lady.” Bodil pats Vera’s head. “She’s one of those sanctimonious people who believe they play bigger roles in life than us mere mortals, but are willing to sacrifice their lives for the greater good and what not. I can’t admire them, they act like they believe in a bigger purpose, but don’t really believe in anything but that the act of sacrifice is holy. It’s like they forget to be human. Like happiness only exists on a bigger scale.”

“Putting your happiness over others, huh?” Vera stares at you… with her eyes closed… After what that thug said, you’re starting to wonder how this mousy lady can see anything.

“Don’t look at me. I haven’t done anything special.” You shrug.

“Right, I think I get what you mean, Mama Bodil...” Vera rolls her eyes. Did you say something wrong?

“All in all, kids, I like you, I really do. When I said you’re under my wing, I meant it. I’m going to avoid putting you in danger if I can. As long as you stay in the office, we’ll bait these chuckle fucks to their doom, and you’ll be clear. Do this favor for Mama Bodil, okay?” The mafia leader is counting on you.

What do you do?

>“But after you do all of this, will Vera be fine or not?” You want to know if Vera is going to keep doing stupid stuff for the mafia afterward.
>“Mama Bodil, could you please help Vera live a normal life?” None of that stuff is going to solve anything.
>“Fine, Mama Bodil. We accept.” You’ll come up with something inside this office.
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue when we can (Most likely on Saturday, maybe tomorrow, who knows?))

>>5802014
>“Mama Bodil, could you please help Vera live a normal life?” None of that stuff is going to solve anything.

>>5802336
+1

>>5802014
>>“But after you do all of this, will Vera be fine or not?” You want to know if Vera is going to keep doing stupid stuff for the mafia afterward.

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“Okay…” Vera doesn’t feel like there’s another option.

“Good, very good.” Mama Bodil taps both of your shoulders at the same time, but she notices that you don’t have the same look of resignation as Vera. “Anything bothering you, kid?”

“Yeah.” You nod slowly.

“Easy, Mama is not going to let your girl get hurt.” Bodil winks at you with confidence.

“But that’s not enough.” You shake your head.

“Not enough?” The only reason Bodil isn’t pissed with you is because she’s patient enough to see where you are going with this.

“Mama Bodil, could you please help Vera live a normal life?” You don’t think any of this stuff is going to solve anything. “I don’t want her life to be only trouble from now on for something she didn’t do. It’s not fair.”

The two men at the front of the car were about to say something, the offended criminals want Mama to shut you up, but the boss raised her hand to shut them up before a word came out. On the other side, the mousy lady is flabbergasted by your actions. She doesn’t understand why you demand this out of someone who has all the control in this situation. She’s bossy, but not reckless.

“You’re asking a hell of a lot out of me.” Bodil doesn’t try to paint a different picture with boastful confidence or anything.

“Children ask a lot out of their parents.” You adjust your glasses like a doofus.

“The only way is if we kill Ayde.” Bodil looks you right in the eyes. The same eyes everyone in this car struggles to see. The same eyes that lost their spark of life long ago. “Would you take his life, kid?”

The car parks right in front of the building. No one inside is willing to say a word or move a muscle. All eyes are on you.

Would you kill a person for someone who you just met?

How do you respond?

>“Yeah.” Say it with conviction.
>“Maybe we can find another way?” You have Level 1 Knowledge, maybe you can come up with something.
>“No. I can’t.” Say it with conviction.
>Write In.

>>5803639
>>“No. I can’t.” Say it with conviction.

>>5803639
>“No. I can’t.” Say it with conviction.

>>5803639
>“No. I can’t.” Say it with conviction.

>>5803639
>The same eyes everyone in this car struggles to see. The same eyes that lost their spark of life long ago.
Invisible nerd at rock bottom

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“No. I can’t.” You respond without faltering. “I’m not taking anyone’s life.” You won’t put your principles in jeopardy even if you haven’t solidified them yet.

“You can’t?” Bodil knew you would refuse. “You know how selfish it is to ask someone else to stain their hands with another man’s blood? A former friend of mine to boot?”

“I’ll do it.” Vera raises her voice for the first time since things got awkward. “It’s basically self-defense in my case, isn’t it?”

“Haha! That’s lawyer talk, doll! A form of speech that makes sense in a world where right and wrong is decided by who’s in charge. We don’t live there, even if we play by those rules.” Bodil laughs hysterically. “I’m talking about reality, the place where each one of us decides the value of a life. I won’t get philosophical, I barely get the discourse myself, but I feel it in my bones. It’s the worst way to learn your limits.”

“Boss, we’re here.” The driver decided to raise his voice at long last. This must be the office. Or, at least, one room has to be it. The building looks about 10 stories tall.

“Hurry up, kids. We’re taking you to our office.” Bodil nudges you to leave the car. She’s in the middle after all.

“You didn’t answer my request, Mama Bodil.” You respectfully point out.

“You answered for me.” Bodil doesn’t seem like she will do it.

“Is there no other way?” You wonder.

“Yeah, but it’s too late, she should’ve gone with Scott.” Bodil smiles.

“You and your goons literally stopped that from happening.” Vera argues. “Take responsibility, Mama Bodil.”

“I’m not kidding, kids. I’ll do it if you want me to, but it’d be under your command, and by proxy, you’ll be responsible too.” Bodil is rather sad. “It’s the push I need… to kill a friend of mine.”

“You’re asking children to take part in murder.” Vera furrows her eyebrows.

“No, I’m asking another two human beings how they want to live and showing them how much that decision costs.” Bodil looks dead serious.

“I don’t want this!!! I never wanted to be involved!” Vera complains with good reason.

“Too bad, doll. Welcome to reality...” Bodil sighs. “Welcome to reality…? I’m sounding like Ma. I hate being the bad gal. Sorry. Forget this, kids. You don’t have to make any decisions. Leave it all to Mama as we planned. Just stay pretty inside the office, you’ll be safe. I promised. I’ll do what I have to do.”

>>5803833


The entire gang leaves the black car and prepares to go to this office…

What do you do?

>Ask Mama Bodil what she’s planning on doing.
>Take Vera aside and have a chat. Ask how she’s holding up. It feels like you haven’t gotten a real moment to breathe.
>Start planning on an escape. Yeah, Mama Bodil can’t help, but that’s within her constraints in the situation. There are other ways.
>Propose a different plan. Kangaroo Man mentioned that his friend was framed by Ayde and Bray. If you find proof of this, Ayde will go to prison, and Vera will be fine, right?
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5803837
>>Propose a different plan. Kangaroo Man mentioned that his friend was framed by Ayde and Bray. If you find proof of this, Ayde will go to prison, and Vera will be fine, right?

>>5803837
>>Take Vera aside and have a chat. Ask how she’s holding up. It feels like you haven’t gotten a real moment to breathe.
Let's talk to her first before rushing into anything

>>5803841
+1

>>5803841
also supporting

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You spent the journey to the Ewing Family’s office deep in thought, looking for a way out of this corner. All other matters were of little concern or difficulty. Aren’t you glad this building is wheelchair accessible? The office itself is nothing to write home about, it’s an office space within an office space, three desks in the middle with some chairs lying around, bookshelves to the side and a lot of paperwork all over the place. First impressions are deceiving, the place has accumulated a considerable amount of dust, meaning they haven’t been here for a while. There’s Bodil’s office right by the windows at the end of the room.

After a milquetoast explanation of the layout and the points of interest (including the bathroom), the floor is open for someone to talk.

“Mama Bodil, I have an idea.” You adjust your glasses with newfound confidence.

“I told you to stay in my office, there’s a TV and a nice couch in there. Relax and let me handle this.” Mama Bodil has completely forgotten why she kidnapped you two. Or she’s really trying hard to be liked now that her original plan is going smoothly.

“Hear me out, please.” You ask politely. “I think I found a way out of our moral dilemma.”

“Shoot your shot, cowboy.” Bodil grabs a random chair and is ready to listen.

You explain to Bodil everything you learned from Kangaroo Man, your most reliable source and a marsupial. If you find the evidence of Ayde and his crew setting that politician girl up, he’ll be in too big of trouble to worry about your rat. Vera took the reins of the conversation by the end there to propose the plan more concretely.

“...If we hand the evidence over to this journalist, we’ll land his butt straight behind bars. I won’t have to worry about this pesky imbecile anymore.” Vera looks as serious as you did. “At worst, he’ll be too busy with the bad press to be concerned about me.”

“Dylan is with the Bray kid, right? Tell him to interrogate him. That brat is too much of a moron to not yip something useful out.” Bodil orders her men around. They both nod and get to it. “Even if the hit is old, knowing Ayde, he wasn’t the only big wig involved in this operation, he must’ve kept some evidence as leverage.”

“There’s real hope!!!” Vera’s face is starting to shine with glee!

“And as far as he knows, the plan went accordingly and I’m still on his side.” Bodil puts her hands together. “We’ll use it to our advantage. Now, go to my office and rest, kids. I’ll talk to you once I get word from my men. Capiche?”

What do you do?

>Hug Mama Bodil and thank her for her help!
>Take the moment to rest and talk to Vera. Ask her how she’s holding up.
>Start coming up with an escape plan to leave the office. You can’t trust these people to do the right thing. Your rat’s security is the most important thing of all.
>Write In.

>>5804699
>>Hug Mama Bodil and thank her for her help!
>>Take the moment to rest and talk to Vera. Ask her how she’s holding up.

>>5804699
>>Hug Mama Bodil and thank her for her help!
>>Take the moment to rest and talk to Vera. Ask her how she’s holding up.

>>5804699
>Hug Mama Bodil and thank her for her help!
>Take the moment to rest and talk to Vera. Ask her how she’s holding up.

>>5804699
>Hug Mama Bodil and thank her for her help!
>Take the moment to rest and talk to Vera. Ask her how she’s holding up.

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“Yes, we understand.” Vera doesn’t want to screw this up by saying anything inconvenient.

“Good, girl. You may be something worth killing for.” Mama Bodil has a good laugh as she starts walking away.

“Mama Bodil, thank you!” You decided to hug the big framed woman from behind because you’re a reckless idiot who doesn’t understand social cues, like a panda.

Bodil looks down back at you, one arm lifted in the air like she’s trying to keep her distance, with the textbook definition of confusion riding on her face. She freezes momentarily, trying to understand what’s going on and what you are doing.

You can’t look at Vera, but you can feel the same amount of confusion somehow, and a tad bit of jealousy.

“…” Bodil continues staring at you with the same expression. “You’re so… god damn...” then slowly her face cheeks turn cherry, and a big grin makes an appearance. “ADORABLE!!!!!!!” She lifts you with ease like a twig, and then buries your face in her chest with the biggest bear hug you have received in years. They call her Bulldozer for a reason! She’s going to leave you flat after all the air in your body comes out! “You’re the most wonderful children I have seen! C’mere, girl!” With one arm she drags Vera into the hug and makes all your plans pointless, because you’re not leaving her arms alive!

“Help...” Vera barely mustered with the little air her lungs have left.

“Yes!!! I will help you!!! Nobody will touch my kids!!!” Mama Bodil is taking turns kissing the top of each of your heads. “Do you love your Mama?!”

“yeah...” You two say in unison with the strength of an old man on his deathbed.

“MY PRECIOUS KIDS! I LOVE YOU TOO!” Mama Bodil drops you two on the nearest couch. Vera on top of you… “Now! I gotta go to make sure my men get the job done!”

The muscly woman leaves with a second wind she didn’t know she needed. You two are dead in contrast.

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>>5804774

Nobody is in the office but you two. After regaining some semblance of energy, you put Vera back in her wheelchair, and push her into Bodil’s office where the supposed TV is.

“I thought she was manipulating us, but she’s just an idiot…” Vera says after you two catch your breath.

“At least she’s on our side…” You drop on the comfy couch. Yes, it is comfy, better than your apartment’s. “How are you holding up?”

“I’ve been better, you know that, but that doesn’t matter now. I… There’s so much I NEED to talk to you about.” Vera pushes her wheelchair right in front of you, blocking the TV. She doesn’t know what to do with herself, but she’s looking directly at you.

What do you do?

>Tell Vera she’s making this awkward.
>Answer Vera’s questions about your mom’s incident. You can feel that is coming.
>Listen to what Vera has to say.
>Write In.

>>5804777
>>Listen to what Vera has to say.
Nice trips

>>5804777
>Listen to what Vera has to say.
Is this where she mindwipes Johnny?

>>5804777
>Listen to what Vera has to say.
Kind of a sweet scene with 'Mama' Bodil honestly. But I guess all good things come to an end.

>>5804777
>>Listen to what Vera has to say.

>>5804777
>Listen to what Vera has to say.

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“What’s wrong?” You’re going to listen to what Vera has to say.

“We just went through a wild set of events, you don’t think we should talk about them?” Vera is dumbfounded by your outward chillness. It’s supposed to calm her down, not make her question your sanity. Maybe being too aloof only shows disinterest in others… You’re going to keep that in mind for the future.

“I mean, where do we start?” You give a half chuckle that sounds like you almost choked on your own spit. Great.

“All you did, all you said, all you are doing… do you mean it? Like, actually mean it?” Vera wants to make sure of something…

“I don’t remember lying.” You might be dumb, but she’s not giving you much to work with to understand what she’s talking about specifically.

“You want me to live a normal life? What was all that about?” Vera says. Half angry, half confused. Or is it concern?

“Oh, that. I mean, that’s what you want, right? Not being chased by the mafia or any type of weirdos?” You ask back.

“Duh, but you went a little too far. And by little, I mean way too far. I thought one of those imbeciles was going to sucker punch you in the back of the head for being such a little numbskull. I mean, I’m thankful, I really am! But I don’t want you to get hurt!” Vera gets angry at you.

“I can take it. I mean, I rather not take it, but you get what I mean. I want to help you.” You’re here for her!

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>>5804875

“Yes, and I’m more than wonderful enough to be worth the sacrifice, and it’s good that you’re gaining some confidence, but I don’t wanna see that.” Vera shakes her head. That didn’t come off the way she wanted. “Like, I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. Nothing. Nobody has gone this far for me, and I don’t know if I’ll ever meet someone who will again.”

“I’m sure you will. You’re fun to be around, Vera.” That comes from that void that used to be your heart. Fuck, you’re edgy.

“No way! Y-You’re special! You! I don’t want anyone else anyway!” Vera gets frustrated by your front of nothingness.

“But Vera—”

“Quiet! No more buts! If we’re going to stay together, we will both be equals! You hear me? Neither one more important than the other.” Vera interrupts your rebuttal! “We will both come out on top or die trying. And I’m sure as hell and beyond that I’m not ready for my final rest! Do you understand, Johnny?!”

How do you respond?

>“Yes, Vera. I do.” You’re officially a team of equals now!
>“No, Vera, you’re more important than I am.” You’re already putting her life above yours. Why pretend otherwise?
>“Vera, this is really lame.” Have a chuckle, but welcome her openness!
>Write In.

Anything else to talk about?

>You can tell Vera wants to talk about your Mom. Not your Mama. Your *actual* mom… Let her.
>Ask Vera about herself. You actually don’t know much about her.
>Rest until Mama Bodil comes back. The worst is yet to come.
>Write In.


(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5804877
>>“Yes, Vera. I do.” You’re officially a team of equals now!
>You can tell Vera wants to talk about your Mom. Not your Mama. Your *actual* mom… Let her.

>>5804877
>“Yes, Vera. I do.” You’re officially a team of equals now!
>You can tell Vera wants to talk about your Mom. Not your Mama. Your *actual* mom… Let her.
>Ask Vera about herself. You actually don’t know much about her.

>>5804875
>Maybe being too aloof only shows disinterest in others… You’re going to keep that in mind for the future.
Haha...

>>5804877
>That comes from that void that used to be your heart. Fuck, you’re edgy.
What lots of prolonged bullshit does to a motherfucker

>“Vera, this is really lame.” Have a chuckle, but welcome her openness!
>Ask Vera about herself. You actually don’t know much about her

>>5804886
Supporting

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“Yes, Vera. I do.” You nod… This entire exchange feels odd in a good way. Refreshing is the word you’re looking for. Having someone who cares about your well-being is refreshing.

“Good! I knew you were going to say that.” Vera acts like everything went just as planned, even if her spontaneous relieved smile says otherwise. She places her hands on top of yours. “I almost forgot to thank you. But you can sense that I’m grateful, right?”

“I actually do.” You wouldn’t have put yourself in trouble for someone ungrateful. “Anything else you want to talk about?”

“Yeah, but I’m sure it’s going to bother you. So I’ll leave it there.” Vera doesn’t know if what she’s thinking is worth bringing up as she moves her hands away.

“I’m open to anything.” You wiggle your eyebrows.

“It’s serious.” Vera doesn’t play along with your tomfoolery.

“I know, I can sense where this is going too.” You act earnest now.

“What happened to your mom… you weren’t making that up. You lost the spark in your eyes when you mentioned it. Bodil saw it too.” Vera is trying to frame this in a way that doesn’t upset you. “I want to know more, if you’ll let me.”

“What I said before is pretty much it, I was there and…” You begin telling the story of the saddest ice cream you ever ate.

You recall the moment your mother died right in front of your very eyes with as much detail as you can. Your little sister managed to pull you out of the way of the drunk driver, but she couldn’t save you both. Your mother was launched twelve feet in the air and then… Boom. Gone forever. And your old life with it.

Your stepfather abandoned you. Your deadbeat dad wants nothing to do with you but the bare minimum, and that’s a stretch. He constantly reminds you of how worthless you are, how your existence is a nuisance to everyone around you. He hated seeing you cry, he hated hearing you laugh, he hated seeing you live… so you shut down and pretended to not be alive anymore, until it was no longer pretending. Little by little, you realized there was no place in the world for you to find any joy, and just like your dad said, you weren’t tough enough to create your own. A talentless, gutless loser. That’s Johnny Ando.

Vera puts her hands on top of yours again to act as any type of comfort.

“...Sorry if all that was a bummer.” You apologize without thinking.

“You didn’t deserve any of that. You really didn’t. The world sucks and I hate it as much as you do.” Vera pats your shoulder. “We’re not too dissimilar. You withdrew, but I got angry. I lashed out. So I kinda get it.”

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>>5805664

“Tell me more. I wanna know more about you.” You ask your equal for more of her backstory.

“It’s just another bad father ruining a family. A drunk bastard who couldn’t stand that we were better without him, doing everything to ruin my mom, me, and my brother.” Vera is starting to look really upset. “Throwing his cash around at any fraudulent lawyer he could find. Suing for custody at every chance. Libeling our mother and badmouthing us all around town to sway the judges so he could ‘fix’ us. If you knew the stuff he spread about me… Ugh... Money can’t buy happiness, but you can totally ruin someone’s life with it easily!”

“I’m sorry.” It’s your turn to comfort her.

“Hey, I can’t imagine what having two bad dads is like. I’d shoot myself.” Vera takes it with humor.

What now?

>Rest until Mama Bodil comes back. Shit is about to get serious.
>Ask Vera about more positive things about her. You know, her hobbies and whatnot. A person is more than their issues.
>Maybe you should call someone in case things get dangerous. (Write-In.)
>Write In.

>>5805665
>>Ask Vera about more positive things about her. You know, her hobbies and whatnot. A person is more than their issues.

>>580566
>Ask Vera about more positive things about her. You know, her hobbies and whatnot. A person is more than their issues.5

>>5805666
+1

>>5805666
>>5805682
This

>>5805665
>>Ask Vera about more positive things about her. You know, her hobbies and whatnot. A person is more than their issues.

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“Can you tell me about the things that don’t want to make you shoot yourself?” You ask as genuinely as you can muster.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Vera feels like your question came out of the blue.

“Like, tell me about the things you enjoy. Like hobbies and stuff like that.” You clarify.

“Due to the circumstances in which we met, I know you’ll make fun of me for this one thing in particular…” Vera sounds more so resigned than fully against sharing it though.

“I won’t, Vera. I swear.” You raise your hand solemnly.

“Will you tell me yours?” Vera wants to know about you too.

“I guess? I’m a boring guy though. It’s comics, movies, games, and the like.” You shrug.

“Imagine that, enjoying those things, couldn’t be me...” Vera retorts sarcastically.

“You like them?” You raise an eyebrow with pure curiosity.

“Uh-huh. Who doesn’t like movies? Aliens?” Vera doesn’t get what’s so difficult about this.

“What about games?” You lift your eyebrow even further.

“I got a Sweetch.” Vera doesn’t see the big deal.

“Tell me more…” You think you have trapped her into talking…

Vera talks about her interests. She has a general interest in all types of media with no attachment to any genre in specific, if it’s good, it’s good. With the one caveat being that she’s primarily into RPGs just like your mother, and horror games, and shooters (both tactical and real-time). She said she got into games because there aren’t many hobbies you can partake in on a wheelchair, they’re time-consuming… and for lonely people. Though, judging by what she’s saying, she totally has preferred genres in movies, books, games, theater, and everything in between. It’s not an important note, but it’s something you will keep in mind.

Also, she likes animals, rats in particular. You heard that right. Rats, hamsters, mice, she likes them all. She attributes her ability to mimic the squeaks to this. Vera knows you’ll make fun of her for it and will embrace it. She’s also into bird-watching. And she gets pretty obsessive with her interests. She can recite obscure facts about the shows she enjoys with ease. In fact, she gets way into it, you can feel that she enjoys writing her fiction… for fans. If you catch the meaning. Last bit of information is that your tastes in music are pretty incompatible at a glance.

In return, you tell her all about your own pleasures in life. It was a fun conversation. You have watched more things that you thought you did over these two years without your family. It’s a funny thing, the passage of time. You feel like you’ve done nothing but you actually did.

You feel like the inevitable is close to coming. Better say your final piece before things get too hectic.

>>5805750


Anything to say to Vera?

>No. You can always tell her later after you’re done with this.
>“We’re going to have so much fun together when this is over, Vera.” Ignite a flame inside you. One that shines towards the future.
>“This is the first time I’ve asked this, but, uh, do you wanna go on a date after we’re done with all of this?” Propose valiantly and be prepared to be rejected.
>“Do you have any dreams?” Ask what feels to be the final appropriate question.
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5805751
>>“This is the first time I’ve asked this, but, uh, do you wanna go on a date after we’re done with all of this?” Propose valiantly and be prepared to be rejected.
This is the same old Johnny who always asked his teacher out despite constantly getting rejected

>>5805750
>>“Do you have any dreams?” Ask what feels to be the final appropriate question.

>>5805753
+1

>>5805751
>>“Do you have any dreams?” Ask what feels to be the final appropriate question.

>>5805751
>“Do you have any dreams?” Ask what feels to be the final appropriate question.
>“This is the first time I’ve asked this, but, uh, do you wanna go on a date after we’re done with all of this?” Propose valiantly and be prepared to be rejected.

>>5805922
+1

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“Do you have any dreams?” You feel like this is an appropriate final question now that the other conversation has died down.

“Me? Dreams? None that I can think of.” Vera is thrown into a loop by your question, despite answering without issues. “I didn’t think I would reach 20, I didn’t bother dreaming.”

“Not even one thing?” You can’t believe it.

Vera pulls a face. “And you?”

“Nothing either.” You don’t know what to do with your life.

“I figured.” Vera doesn’t mind. “It’d be nice if we had something.”

“Eh, let’s reach 20 first, then reassess.” You shrug.

“That will do. We could do better though. C’mon, get creative!” Vera demands a lot of you.

“Well then, huh, this is the first time I’ve asked this, but, uh, do you wanna go on a date after we’re done with all of this?” You valiantly propose with no hope for her actually accepting.

“S-S-Sure!!!” Vera blurts out like she is about to miss out on a deal of a lifetime. “W-Why not? I-It’s going to make us look forward to the future. Right? Right. Right…? Right!!!”

“Cool.” You faintly smile. Who are you kidding? You’re flabbergasted in a good way! Pleasantly surprised! You can’t look at each other in the face. Point is, you’re ha—

Someone violently bursts into the office! It’s Mama Bodil, and she kicks the door closed out of habit. You witnessed it all through the window to the mini-office space you’re in. The mafia leader welcomes herself back to this room.

“Everything is in order for what’s next, kids.” Mama Bodil doesn’t sound pleased about the situation. “Quick lowdown, one of my cowardly men quit on me because he couldn’t stand the idea that I wasn’t tricking you into doing my bidding. Pathetic, I know.” The mafia woman sighs. “On the positive side of business, we heard from the cousin that Ayde keeps the leverage as I presumed, either in his house or his political party’s headquarters. Ayde wants a briefing on how things are going here in this office since his brat cousin would rather not speak with him. The Bray brat wants us to delay it and lay low until we sort out the mess, in his mind, we all look bad if his cousin finds out. He has no clue that you’re here.”

“Where is this traitor?” Vera doesn’t want loose threads lying around.

“Locked in the basement. I’ll set him free in due time.” Bodil cracks her knuckles. Somehow, you almost forgot she’s a criminal. “Kids, the harsh reality is that me and my men are not the sly and crafty type. We’re muscle. Brutes. I don’t see a way we can get our hands on this evidence in an elegant manner — so I’m listening to ideas.”

>>5806843


What’s the plan?

>Tell Bodil to beat the shit out of Ayde until he gives you what you need. She’s muscle? Use the muscle.
>Tell Bodil to pressure Ayde to bring the blackmailing evidence he has to the office. Let her throw Bray under the bus, and do the mafia thing where there’s a change in the deal because of the new information and whatnot.
>Tell Bodil to have this meeting, and to distract Ayde as much as she can. You’re going to use this time to find the evidence yourself! Use Vera’s powers to trace back Ayde’s footsteps. Maybe they can lead you to what you need.
>Write In.

>>5806845
>>Tell Bodil to have this meeting, and to distract Ayde as much as she can. You’re going to use this time to find the evidence yourself! Use Vera’s powers to trace back Ayde’s footsteps. Maybe they can lead you to what you need.

>>5806845
>Tell Bodil to have this meeting, and to distract Ayde as much as she can. You’re going to use this time to find the evidence yourself! Use Vera’s powers to trace back Ayde’s footsteps. Maybe they can lead you to what you need.

>>5806845
>Tell Bodil to have this meeting, and to distract Ayde as much as she can. You’re going to use this time to find the evidence yourself! Use Vera’s powers to trace back Ayde’s footsteps. Maybe they can lead you to what you need.

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“Have the meeting and distract Mr. Politician as much as you can, Mama Bodil. We’re going to use the time you buy for us to find the evidence ourselves.” You propose as you look at Vera right in her eyes. She nods back.

“Call him, Mama Bodil! And find a way for him to check on the blackmailing evidence. We’ll take care of the rest!” Vera seems to know what your plan is.

“Kids, bring me up to speed. What are you scheming?” Bodil wants some reassurance.

“We’ll use what this loser politician wants from me against him.” The confident Vera smirks with ill intent. “I have an ability to track down people, where they’ve been and what they were doing there.”

“Can your Mama know how?” Bodil is interested in the machinations behind this ability.

“Trade secret.” Vera winks smugly. “But trust me, Mama Bodil, I’ll help track down whatever you need after this.”

“Like Scott?” Bodil throws it out half jokingly.

“If that’s what you wish.” Vera is up for it.

“Hahaha~! I’m kidding, girl! We’re doing this to save both of your skins, why would I put you in more trouble?! I’ll kick his ass myself.” Mama Bodil smacks her thigh, laughing. “You’ll have my gateway driver at your disposal. Now do what you have to do, Vera, Johnny. And remember, Mama loves you.”

“Thanks, Mama Bodil!” You and Vera smile back.

“Keep on the smiles, kids!” Bodil smirks as she waves.

After that, you joined forces with the getaway driver in the black car from earlier. You’re parked right in front of the building, and are waiting for Ayde to arrive. To understand the situation, this is the same guy who was driving before, the co-pilot deserted, and Dylan (the guy checking on Bray) is still on guard duty with Palm Head.

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>>5807012

To make things far less confusing, you asked the driver what his name is. He’s Edward. You and Vera decided to call him Eddie instead. He prefers it over Ed. This is not something you should dwell on, but you have time to kill waiting for this lousy politician to arrive.

After a while, the politician arrives with his bodyguards in a silver car. Thank god Eddie has seen this guy before, because neither of you have any idea of who this guy is, and he looks rather tame for a rising star politician.

After they went inside the building, things got awkward as you had to explain to Eddie that he needed to park in front of the car, in the same space it was before for you to track it. It took a few minutes before you were all on the same page, and started actually following the thread to its origin, heck matching the speed was difficult until Vera started using her phone to slow down the speed of the recording, and you feel like giving more details would make things more confusing. It worked. That’s all you need to know.

And all of this lead, predictably, to one of the two places Mama Bodil mentioned: The Political Party’s Headquarters. On one hand, it’s the least private of the two places that it could’ve been, but on the other hand, having random people come in isn’t going to be that strange as it seems pretty open for the public. Heck, the building has a rotating door! If that isn’t inviting, you don’t know what it is.

Maybe getting in won’t be difficult, but past that…

What do you do?

>Pretend to be well-seasoned party members of the party of... What party is this? Oh god, this isn’t going to work.
>Pretend to be enthusiastic young people willing to join the party. Get access easily.
>Pull a Fire Alarm, then sneak in through the chaos.
>Just follow the phantom until someone says something. Act like you belong...
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue tomorrow!)

>>5807014
>>Pull a Fire Alarm, then sneak in through the chaos.

>>5807014
>Pull a Fire Alarm, then sneak in through the chaos.
Old Johnny does not care

>>5807014
>>Pull a Fire Alarm, then sneak in through the chaos.
Old Johnny is no giving any fucks about anyone. I mean, he's a teen with NOTHING left to lose,

>>5807014
>Pull a Fire Alarm, then sneak in through the chaos.
Chaos is a ladder.

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“Let’s get in.” Vera wants you to help her out of the car.

“I’ll wait here with one foot on the accelerator, kids.” Eddie the Getaway Driver takes his job seriously. He opens the back of the car for you to get the wheelchair. “You got my number if you need anything.”

“Aye.” You say as you leave the car.

“Good luck, kids, don’t make the boss look bad.” Eddie believes in you two for whatever that is worth.

You and Vera get inside the Party’s headquarters, a somewhat fancy place showing its age, which reminds you of an old sophisticated hotel in a classic heist movie, there’s something about the details, the marble floor, and the candid light that give you that impression. It’s spacious with flaming green flags all around with a symbol that doesn’t look like anything you recognize. Many slogans on banners behind tables with people queuing similar to a convention, tiny groups chatting about a myriad of issues, the main talk appears to be the upcoming presidential elections and who the party wants to back. But outside of specifics, it seems to be a recruitment meeting, what a nice coincidence.

There is also talk about odd sounds inside the building from party members. You recognize them because they wear a pin on their chest with the unrecognizable symbol.

Anyway, you follow Vera’s instructions until you reach a ‘dead end’: the second reception at the lobby farther inside. It’s party member exclusive, if you don’t have credentials, you can’t pass. Judging by Ayde’s path, Vera believes he came out of the elevator at the end of the room past this blockage.

“I have a plan.” You say with confidence as you notice an object that is going to come in handy.

Without hesitation, you walk towards the closest Fire Alarm, stare at it, realize you don’t know how to break the piece of plastic under it to pull the handle, come up with the worst solution possible, and use your phone to destroy the obstacle — then trigger the alarm. And people say old phones aren’t useful, they are heck of a lot more sturdy…

The alarm rings all over the building! People aren’t sure what’s going on, they all look around like fireworks are supposed to come out or something. Security is confused but taking it seriously. The receptionist who just rejected your entrance walks past the blockage to address the bewildered crowd. Panic hasn’t set in yet, but people are uneasy.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” Vera wheeled herself to your side to be beside herself!

“Creating an opportunity?” You say without the confidence you had 2 seconds ago.

“To get us arrested?!” Vera can’t believe this.

Huh… You don’t have to panic. Well, you don’t have the Courage not to panic. But you can be useful while in a state of panic!

>>5807668

What do you do?

>Blend into the crowd with Vera, and hope they don’t realize it was you who pulled the alarm.
>Fuck it. Rush to the elevator with Vera. [Athletics & Courage Based] [Hard Roll]
>“Floor 5 is on fire, guys.” Casually tell the security, trick them away.
>“BOMB ALERT! I REPEAT! BOMB ALERT!” Exclaim! Pretend you saw it on the phone!
>DISPERSE! ESCAPE! BAD IDEA! TAKE VERA OUTSIDE!
>Write In.

>>5807672
>>“BOMB ALERT! I REPEAT! BOMB ALERT!” Exclaim! Pretend you saw it on the phone!
ESCALATE!

>>5807672
>>“BOMB ALERT! I REPEAT! BOMB ALERT!” Exclaim! Pretend you saw it on the phone!

>>5807672
>“BOMB ALERT! I REPEAT! BOMB ALERT!” Exclaim! Pretend you saw it on the phone!
MORE MORE MORE

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“BOMB ALERT! I REPEAT! BOMB ALERT!” You masterfully escalate the situation! You raise your phone and point at it to pretend you read it somewhere!

“D-DON’T BRING ATTENTION TO US!!!” Vera exclaims as her mind is starting to break by your sheer stupidity (in her opinion).

“Oh my god!!! We need to get OUT of here!” Panicky Man is the first to take your message earnestly, and for that, you thank him spiritually.

“I think I can SMELL fire!” A panicky woman shrieks! What a nice lady, she should marry the first guy and have panicky babies together.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!” An old lady is in hysterics. What an annoying woman, why make it all about her?

More voices start rising with different but harmonious screeches of consternation! With this combination of hysteria, chaos emerges! People look for an escape but struggle to thanks to the welcoming rotating door trapping them with its unorthodox design! Security and part of the staff come down to the entrance to help the crowd into an orderly exit.

As stupid as it may sound, this distraction has created the opportunity you told Vera it would. Before she can even process what is happening, you drag her to the elevator. As she regains clarity, your wheelchair partner double checks her magical phone to confirm this is where Ayde went, but there’s still a final obstacle.

“Where are you kids going?! The exit is over there!” A random member of the staff questions your decision making. She knows it was you who pulled the alarm.

What do you do?

>Strike this woman! Knock her out with your noodle arms.
>“My sister is up there! I need to save her!” Pretend your sister is somewhere in here and not working at a forgettable Flower Shop like the NPC she is.
>“Oh, my bad!” Pretend to go but hover around the area until she leaves.
>Write In.

>>5807733
>>“My sister is up there! I need to save her!” Pretend your sister is somewhere in here and not working at a forgettable Flower Shop like the NPC she is.

>>5807733
>>“My sister is up there! I need to save her!” Pretend your sister is somewhere in here and not working at a forgettable Flower Shop like the NPC she is.
A

>>5807733
>“My sister is up there! I need to save her!” Pretend your sister is somewhere in here and not working at a forgettable Flower Shop like the NPC she is.

>>5807733
>“My sister is up there! I need to save her!” Pretend your sister is somewhere in here and not working at a forgettable Flower Shop like the NPC she is.

Whatever happened to Amelia's job at the flower shop?

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“My sister is up there! I need to save her!” You act like your little sister is here being consumed by the fire that you also made up. You’re a web of lies and deceit. What would your sister think of you?

“It’s far too dangerous, sir. Please, leave the area and go to safety...” The staff woman feels bad about this. “T-The firefighters will arrive soon.”

“My sister’s life is hanging by a thread. Please, let me in!” You double down!

“S-Sir, don’t make this more difficult…” The staffer is on the verge of tears.

“I beg you…” Your voice breaks with desperation.

“I…” The poor woman steps aside for a moment. When you were about to push Vera forward, she notices a contradiction and jumps back to where she was. “Hold on a moment, you can’t use an elevator during an emergency!”

“But it’s for her.” You want to bring Vera along. Your rat looks incredibly embarrassed.

“Why are you bringing a handicapped girl along?!” The staffer doesn’t like the smell of this!

You aren’t sure how you’re going to spin this, but even in panic mode, you feel like you can come up with something!

How do you respond?

>“You’re coming along!” Push her inside the elevator! There’s no time to waste!
>“She forgot her wallet up there!” Say the most senseless thing you can.
>“You’re right! We’re taking the stairs!” Push Vera towards the stairs and ignore this ever happened.
>“Because she knows in which room my sister was locked in!” Create a convoluted story.
>Write In.

>>5807804
>>“Because she knows in which room my sister was locked in!” Create a convoluted story.

>>5807804
>>“Because she knows in which room my sister was locked in!” Create a convoluted story.
WE MUST TELL LIES. WE ARE DESPICABLE PIECE OF ANDO!!!

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“Because she knows in which room my sister was locked in!” You create a convoluted story for this woman to swallow.

“He gets lost easily!” Vera adds to the ridiculous excuse.

“Is this sister of yours even real?” The woman wants reassurance that she’s not going to make a bad decision.

“She’s this tall, her name is Ame, and she has a weird obsession with bears. Total loser. Can’t let her die though.” You describe your small sister as charitably as possible.

“Ugh, I hate bigger siblings.” The staff woman walks away. “You may pass. And survive.”

You and Vera enter the stupid elevator…

“I swear you have the power to make everyone act dumber when you’re around.” Vera doesn’t like it.

“That’s nice, you think everyone was smarter before they met me.” You don’t drop anyone to your level, they’re already there. “What floor?” You ask.

“Huh, I don’t know, it goes backwards. I don’t see him press the button. We need to go up to check.” Vera disappoints you with her ability.

“Any guesses? I think his office is on the 5th floor. Just a hunch.” You shrug.

“Go for it.” Vera doesn’t give a flying duck as long as you move on.

You press the button, then have your eyes glued onto the phantom recording… and luckily, you nailed it. Phantom Ayde goes into the elevator here. You find it odd that he seemingly came alone, but you don’t think it’s something worth pointing out. Vera is overjoyed with this stroke of luck, she would ALMOST forgive you for the fire alarm stunt you did in the mood she is in… She doesn’t want to admit it, but the only reason this place is deserted was because of it, so you take the credit for all of this.

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>>5807861

The two of you follow the trail to its origin… After going through some hallways and carelessly opening doors, here you are, at the heart of the Party’s headquarters: Ayde’s office!

“Someone had to be here.” Vera points out the oddity in this. Everyone rushed out for their safety and left everything open, including this room. “Behind that picture on the wall there’s a safe. The password is 6969… that’s disgusting.” Vera just realized it. A lowbrow joke for a lowbrow politician, you guess.

“Do we take everything inside?” You don’t know what to do with all of these archives.

“Just hurry up!” Vera doesn’t care. “There’s a pouch on my chair we can use to store them!”

“Freeze, you two, and remain calm.” A gruff voice commands as you also hear the sound of the door closing. It’s a man in military gear, and he’s pointing a gun at you. “I knew someone would come here to find the files for me, but I didn’t expect it was going to be two kids, but I shouldn’t be surprised about Magogue and his minions.”

“T-T-That’s a gun…!” Vera doesn’t remain calm.

“Hand them over, kid.” The criminal demands.

…?

>Hand over the goods...
>“Don’t you dare do anything to her or I’ll snap your neck in half.” You won’t allow anyone to hurt Vera.
>“I can’t do that, sir.” Stall! Stall and trust Vera! She’s going to do something!
>“Didn’t you hear the fire alarm? You need to leave now!” Convince someone to do something they don’t want to do with no leverage and at gunpoint.
>Write In.

(Last Reply of the Day, we continue when we can!)

>>5807862
>>“I can’t do that, sir.” Stall! Stall and trust Vera! She’s going to do something!

>>5807862
>>“I can’t do that, sir.” Stall! Stall and trust Vera! She’s going to do something!

>>5807862
>“I can’t do that, sir.” Stall! Stall and trust Vera! She’s going to do something!

>>5807862
>>Hand over the goods...
As long as we don't get shot, we can just follow him.

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“I can’t do that, sir.” You need to stall. Maybe Vera will do something!

“Quit playing around, kid.” The criminal’s eyes are locked on you. He’s dead serious, and the ‘dead’ part scares you.

You can’t lie, move, or even blink. Fear takes over all your senses and they scream danger like the fire alarm you pulled. Nobody told you that when your life was at risk, time gets slower, and your perception heightens. You can feel each drop of sweat coming down from your forehead, smell the strong fragrance of the air freshener, hear the muffled commotion below, see the hole on the gun in which the bullet that is going to kill you will come out of.

“I’m not going to ask again, hand them o—”

The man’s body twists and turns, his arm holding the gun contorts upwards, he looks like a mime being restrained by a ghost. His spine bends backwards, his feet hover above the ground for a moment, he tries to scream but his voice doesn’t come out, and then his entire body is thrown on the ground face first and he falls unconscious. The gun slides away from his hand…

You’re alive.

“Did you use your magic...?” You ask as your noodle knees start wobbling.

“YOU IMBECILE!!! What was that?!” Vera unleashes her anger on you. Her concerned ire. “Why in the world did you do that?! You reckless MORON!!!” She doesn’t want answers, she wants to scold you.

“I-I’m sorry, it was a panic response…” You didn’t think, you acted. For the worst.

“DON’T GIVE ME THAT!” Vera’s voice breaks. “We’re both coming out of this alive, like we said. BOTH OF US. Don’t ever pull dumb stunts like that again!”

“S-Sorry, I will do my best. And I’ll make it up to you.” You’ll be on your best behavior. “We gotta go!”

“We can’t! This bum is a terrorist, I recognize the emblem on his back. These guys are petty as hell, we’ll get into a new set of problems after this one if we don’t do anything.” Vera demands a moment of your time.

“Huh… you want us to bring him to the cops?” You don’t know if that’s a good idea.

“No. My magic has another perk.” Vera pulls a ghostly USB-C cable from the unconscious man’s neck. “I can delete a section of someone’s memories. He won’t remember ever meeting us, but…”

“But?” You wonder.

“Using this spell will leave me in no better shape than this guy is now. Dead tired. So, I’ll be counting on you to get us out of this mess. Okay?!” Vera wants your reassurance.

“Are you sure? I just did something really dumb.” You aren’t sure that Vera should trust you.

“Regain your confidence now because we’re out of options!” Vera doesn’t see another way.

What do you do?

>Go along and drag Vera out of here. Your getaway driver is waiting.
>“No. Let him remember. We’ll manage. The cops will be here anyway, I think.” You don’t know if this is a good idea. You can’t let Vera be tired now.
>Write In.

>>5809428
>>Go along and drag Vera out of here. Your getaway driver is waiting.

>>5809428
>Go along and drag Vera out of here. Your getaway driver is waiting.
Stick to canon

>>5809428
>Go along and drag Vera out of here. Your getaway driver is waiting.

>>5809428
>“No. I have to take responsibility. I'll make sure he never talks. Ever. We’ll manage. The cops will be here anyway, I think.” You don’t know if this is a good idea. You can’t let Vera be tired now.

>>5809428
>>Go along and drag Vera out of here. Your getaway driver is waiting.

I like how, despite how deadened and invisible and broken Old Johnny is by this point, he's still afraid to die. He's still just a regular random boy going through life. He never asked for this. He didn't want his mom to die and for him to be kicked out of his house. He didn't want those or any of the bad shit that happened to him. He's in this state because of events and people around him getting him here, and then him coping with it all in the only ways he knows how. He's not actually suicidal. He's not actually dead inside. He's just scraping by in life

>>5809428
>Go along and drag Vera out of here. Your getaway driver is waiting.

>>5809428
>>Go along and drag Vera out of here. Your getaway driver is waiting.

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“Alright, do your thing.” You’ll trust Vera on this one. You’re not sure what you’re messing with, if she thinks it’s better to be safe than sorry, then it is and you shouldn’t try to argue against it. The pressure is back on you.

“Two things I want to clarify. One, this guy won’t wake up for a few hours. And second, I know I held my composure pretty well when we met yesterday, but the truth is that I act a little emotional when I’m tired. It’s not unusual, understood? Just treat me accordingly when I wake up and we won’t have any problems.”

“Duly noted, I’m ready.” You nod with focus.

“One more thing, Johnny, I…” Vera stares at her phone without muttering another word, the screen shows it’s ready to do the ‘deleting’. You wonder how it works, this power would be creepy in the wrong hands. “Johnny, are you listening to me?”

“I said I’m ready.” You adjust your glasses to show more confidence.

“Get closer. I want to show you something.” Vera waves you closer. You oblige and put all your attention on the phone.

Vera kisses you on the check. “I believe in you.”

You turn to her with a dumbfounded expression. You feel the temperature rising for... reasons.

“A-Aren’t you going to say anything?” Vera wonders if she fucked up, she gets too embarrassed to wait for you to answer. “Okay, I don’t wanna hear it, take care of me, see ya.” Vera talks really fast then presses the button that activates her magic.

“W-Wait.” You didn’t know what to say! That’s all!

But it’s all too late, she acted like she had a brain freeze after eating too much ice cream for a moment, and then slowly gets herself in a comfortable position to sleep like a sloth, then she joins the kingdom of dreams.

“Thank you.” You headpat the unconscious girl, then push her away from the room in pursuit of the elevator. Not like the elevator is running away, but if it goes up and down from floor to floor, you can say it kinda escapes (?).

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>>5809547

You press the button outside the elevator and wait. It’s coming from the first floor, so it’ll take a little, as it opens, an unexpected surprise comes out.

“You! Why are you here?!” It’s Bray. How disappointing. “Primavera is here too? Why is she unconscious? Wait a moment, I see it clearly, you’re after the documents, aren’t you?! You’re the one trying to fuck me!” He points at you then puts his stinky fingers on you, then pushes you back.

“What’s your problem? And… what did you say to me?” You don’t think that’s an appropriate usage of the word fuck.

“You’re working alongside those traitors, I dispatched of that Dylan guy when I knew something was afoot, you must be the mastermind behind it all… What’s your name, again?” Bray never paid any attention to you. “Doesn’t matter. You’re coming with me!”

“Dude, we have no time for this.” You grab Vera’s wheelchair and try to make way.

“I decide when we make time.” Bray grabs his stupid palm tree knot… pulls it out like a sword, and it becomes one… made out of lasers? A laser sword?! Someone should sue him. Why are you joking?! It looks dangerous. “Now, you, me, my Primavera and my cousin will have a long conversation where you’re going to accept all the blame for this, and more importantly, exonerate me! You hear me?! GAAAH!?”

Suddenly, an explosion shakes the entire building! It comes from above! Does it have anything to do with the terrorist guy? Oh god, this ain’t good! You need to get out of here quick!

What do you do?

>“Forget this for now, we all need to get out of here.” Try to befriend this idiot for everyone’s good.
>Run for the stairs. You’ll manage Vera around just like you did at your apartment building. [Athletics Based] [Very Hard Roll]
>Push this guy aside, and get inside the elevator. There’s a chance the machine won’t work, but it’s a bet you’re willing to take. [Courage Based] [Very Hard Roll]
>“We don’t have anything on us, a guy in military gear stole them first!” Pretend what didn’t happen, happened!
>Take your chance. Knock him out! Johnny Uppercut! [Athletics & Courage Based][Extremely Hard Roll]
>Write In.

>>5809549
>>Push this guy aside, and get inside the elevator. There’s a chance the machine won’t work, but it’s a bet you’re willing to take. [Courage Based] [Very Hard Roll]
quick, while he's distracted!

>>5809549
>Write In.
>Run into the other room while he's distracted, grab the gun that the terrorist was holding, shoot him in the leg when he enters
Our stats all suck too much for these rolls. We've gotta get creative

>>5809551
Supporting

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With the distraction coming from the explosion and the panicky screams that drown every other noise, you retreat to Ayde’s office with Vera, intending to find that gun the terrorist dropped. Bray shouts for you to come back seconds later after your escapade starts and chases with a considerable disadvantage, not that he won’t shorten the distance since you’re running while pushing a wheelchair — but it gives you enough leeway.

The scene back in the office is exactly as you left it, you look around for the gun in a hurry and find it by the corner. You don’t know how to use it properly, so you’ll be extra careful not to misfire or something. You take a deep breath as you point the gun at the door, waiting for the bastard. For some ungodly reason, you use your hoodie sleeves not to leave any fingerprints. Does this even matter? Maybe it’s too much TV. Regardless, you have your eyes locked on the door.

“There you are, you — WHAT?!” Bray gets so scared when he notices the gun that he loses his balance and drops to the ground. He knows it’s real. You want to shoot him in the leg, but it’s tricky now that he’s on the floor. “P-Please don’t kill me…! Look, no more sword!” He makes his weapon disappear back to the top of his head. He realizes something else. “You *are* scared! Put that away, even if you don’t have the guts, it is still dangerous to point a gun at someone! And — AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!”

You pull the trigger and hit him right in the left foot. He screams and cries like a big baby if babies had a good reason for their tantrums. Guns are loud, way too loud. A cacophony blasting through the mass panic in the building, and the noise of a firearm STILL almost leaves you deaf. Your eardrums are ringing, and are kinda itchy. How weird is that? Anytime something bad happens to your ears, you want to scratch them!

...

Are you trying to not pay attention to the person you just shot?

“You okay there, man?” You’re probably yelling louder than you think. It’s awful being deaf.

“YOU JUST SHOT ME!” Bray grabs his leg in pain. “AAAAAAAH!!!”

“I mean, you wanted to stab me.” You refresh his mind. “And you tried to kidnap Vera, and… why am I justifying myself to you? You’re not even listening to me.”

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>>5809615

Bray is in too much pain to do or say anything constructive. You’re going to let someone know he’s up here when you go down. You don’t want to carry the burden of deciding a life’s worth, you just wanna protect the life of someone you know. And that’s what you did. These tough situations are sure a test of character like Mama Bodil said, and she’s right, this is the worst way to learn your limits. There have to be better ways.

Moral quandaries aside, you went past Bray through the hallways. You have Vera to take care of! She depends on you! The gun left your hands at one point inside a drawer of a random desk you saw. The elevator wasn’t working, so you went down the stairs with Vera in your arms. Everything is a blur from this point onwards. The stress, the adrenaline, and the chaos overwhelmed your senses, but you managed to leave the building and went straight to the car somehow. Eddie carried the wheelchair to the back.

Exhausted, you look through the window and see the chaos unfold. The upper half of the building is on fire. The firefighters and paramedics are here, people are being escorted out… It’s a mess. Despite all that, you’re glad you told them you heard someone screaming up on the 5th floor though.

Eddie asks you if you found what you were looking for. You half-assedly raise the archives with one arm, you’re beat. The Cat plushy always keeps his evidence with him. Your getaway driver smiles and starts taking you back to Mama’s office.

You feel closer to obtaining Vera’s absolution…

Anyway, that’s all we have for this thread! Thanks for playing and see you very soon!

>>5809619
Thanks for running!

>>5809619
Thanks for running

>>5807804
Why does this woman have matilda eyelashes?

>>5809619
Wait a minute, we bluffed that there was a bomb threat and then there was actually a bomb? Johnny is really something else.

>>5810140
that's certainly some luck, not sure if good or bad but what are the odds