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Reaching the small embankment, you noticed that all the trees were of the same kind. It was a kind of tree you had never seen before, their nodular trunks erupting into a burst of thin branches at similar heights.


When you reached the trees, you finally saw why they were arranged in such a linear fashion. You wondered why the path was divided into two track grooves. Was it such a busy route?

The footprints on these tracks were foreign to you. You knew no beast which printed such regular patterns in the soil, nor carts that had such wide wheels. Only a few reassuring hoofprints reminded you of…

You could not complete that sentence for a combination of reasons. Firstly, you had no idea what it reminded you of. Secondly, you began hearing a constant high-pitched growl.

Immediately all your senses flared. It was distant, but getting closer. It was coming from the right.

You did not know this beast. Its noise was high-pitched, and you could discern a rapid ticking noise from the constant growl as it grew louder.

After freezing for a while you snapped out of the terror and scrambled to hide behind one of the strange trees. Pressing the whole of your shivering body against the trunk, you noticed you were still covered in the mud you crawled out of. You should do something about that sometime.

The growl was growing to deafening strengths, while some other noises became audible. Whatever this was, it was not moving smoothly. Loud clunks and thunks escaped this creature while it supposedly stumbled down the path.

The high-pitched yammering of a voice sneered through the brisk wind before being interrupted by a lower baritone. There were two speakers, one clearly more agitated than the other. Both were speaking a language you stood no chance of comprehending, but it was a language that clearly suited itself to vocalizing anger. Were they running from this beast?

You could no longer curtail his morbid curiosity. Peeking from your position behind the tree, you could only stare in awe at what you saw barrelling down the path.

This was no beast.

A black blob made out of shiny metal was busy growling itself down this path. Upon further inspection this box was riding on four small wheels which were struggling to get over the bumps, producing the odd clunk when they hit a particularly big one. The growling and ticking seemed to come from the weirdly curvaceous front of this blob, which was adorned with two bright metal disks. All things considered it had a weird, rodent-like appearance.

The blob also featured a small piece of glass, which displayed an interesting scene.

Everything about them was completely foreign to you; their dark hair, tanned faces and smooth skin looked otherworldly in this grey environment. They were in a heavy argument, making strange hand gestures to go along with their unknown tongue. One of them was clearly in a heated tirade, his rather small moustache moving at breakneck speeds to keep up with the mouth used to berate the other in the high-pitched voice you had heard before. The other man looked rather similar, featured a weird and incomplete mask that only covered his eyes and appeared to be more focused on the path.

The path. Before you knew it you were standing on the side of the path, trying to speak to the weird men in the blob. Only then did you realise you didn’t know how to. More misfortune came when you misjudged how fast this blob was going. By the time you reached your position on path’s edge, the blob had almost passed.

It was at that moment the silent man saw you and broke into a scream.

Startled, you ran back to your hiding tree while the blob veered away from you and accelerated, beating a hasty retreat. The man with the high-pitched voice apparently did not notice you, as his enraged scream only came when the blob made the unexpected move. While the blob sped away, you heard an increasingly more distant furious debate.

Walking back onto the path, you saw the wide cart prints were similar to the prints this blob left behind.

Off in the distance behind you, you heard a large blast. Turning around, you saw smoke rising at a few hundred trees’ distance. It was only a small bit to the left of the path.

You were covered in mud and shivering from the cold. You considered following this path.

>Go in the blob’s direction.

>Go to the smoke.

Hi, this will be my quest for the coming time. I'm new to QM'ing, so excuse any mistakes I make while I wrap my head around this whole writing thing. I plan on making an update every two or three days (I'm rather busy). The quest will be extremely mechanics-light (because I frankly wouldn't know what they are needed for here).

The [] around my name is unintentional by the way, I didn't know you didn't need them to set a tripcode (because every other function on this site does).

I hope good times lay ahead with this quest.

>>6137365
>Go to the smoke.

>>6137365
No sense trying to chase the blob!

>Go to the smoke.

>>6137365
>>Go in the blob’s direction.

>>6137365
>Go to the smoke.

>>6137365
>Both were speaking a language you stood no chance of comprehending, but it was a language that clearly suited itself to vocalizing anger.
>One of them was clearly in a heated tirade, his rather small moustache moving at breakneck speeds to keep up with the mouth used to berate the other in the high-pitched voice you had heard before.
Nazis?

>Go to the smoke.
Hitler won't get us today

>>6137365
>>>Go in the blob’s direction.
>>6137368
Good luck.

>>6137557
Many men have small moustaches. Especially if we're maybe used to big, bushy ones. Plus, was Adolf ever tan?

>Go to the smoke.
Thy were freaked out by us, though. We should try to find a way to see out face.

>>6137585
>>6137365
Oop, meant to tag QM for the vote.

>>6137365
>>Go to the smoke.

>>6137390
>>6137407
>>6137470
>>6137557
>>6137585
>>6137766
For going to the smoke, and
>>6137464
>>6137560
for following the blob.

I'm calling it here and I'll start writing. Expect an entry later tonight or tomorrow.

>>6137900
Sure thing. Oh, and

>>6137368
Username and tripcode aren't tied to one another.

You turned around again. The blob had now left your view, and its growl was diminished to a measly whine. You saw nothing but more path this way.

With that assessment you turned back and doddered towards the ever-expanding cone of smoke.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

It felt like an eternity on that path. Every small step strained your legs, every gust upset your balance ever so slightly. Walking was not always this hard, was it? Then again, it would probably help if you weren’t so awfully cold. You could feel it eating away at your senses the farther you went.

The slight shlick of your feet hitting the hardened dirt grew softer.

In fact, everything did.

Only the muted howling of the storm persisted.

Endlessly the winds hunted across the wide fields, the unceasing current of pressure waging an eternal battle for everything that stood in its way.

Your view became hazy. It wouldn’t be long until you were torn back asunder by this gnawing cold.

The ever-present, all-consuming cold.


Was that a fire?

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The crackling flames of the house were nice and warm to your hands. Feeling your senses come back to life, you looked at the farmyard you just entered. Consisting of three separate buildings, you could only assume that this revitalizing inferno you were warming your hands on must have been a home of some sort. You had never seen buildings made out of these little brown stones before. They would surely fall over in this wind, right?

Your makeshift firepit didn’t really resemble much of a home anymore, though. Most of the roof had collapsed in on itself and every window was spewing flames into the howling winds.

A tiny array of charred plants adorned the front of this residence. Great care had clearly been taken by its owners to keep the blackened saplings in perfect order. You felt sorry for them while their hard work went up in flames. It must have been a nice place.

The other buildings looked less identifiable but had been spared by the fire. To the left of the home you saw an unusual tower. Just below its tip this strange tower had a sort of wooden collar, above which four wings were spread out. You could see them turning rapidly, trying to keep up with the howling tempest.

The other building was a lot less well-built and of a much less intricate design; it looked like an upscaled version of the residence that was warming your hands, with special attention being given to the width. Its windows featured wooden shutters which wildly flapped into the wind, creating a dull thud when they hit the walls. Curiously, both the tower and the wide house’s doors were wide open.


A terrible stench surrounded you.

With the warmth returning your long-lost sense of smell, you noticed the air was not only drenched in the scent of smoke; a stench of death and mud permeated the airwaves.

You realized why the man in the blob was screaming. Looking down you saw a mud-covered husk of a man, more dead than alive.

High time to look for some water.

For its size, the rest of the yard was rather empty; the only thing you saw were black marks resembling those wheel prints on the path and a rack with tools you didn’t know the function of.

>Search the winged tower.

>Search the wide house.

>Write-in.

Sorry for the late and messy upload.

>>6138138
Good to know.

>>6138371
>>Search the winged tower.

>>6138371
>>Search the winged tower.

>>6138371
>Search the winged tower.

>>6138371
>Search the wide house.

>>6138385
>>6138541
>>6138950
>>6139263
Unanimous vote, nice. Writing...

Before I post this entry, a quick explanation of the brackets I use. Might be useful.

<><><> = Scene transition.

~~~~~~ = Perspective transition.

Yes, I did basically steal this from Poképocalypse. If it works, it works.

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The wings towered above you. Now that you could see the building more clearly, you wondered why someone made a winged tower if it couldn’t fly. Its door remained wide open, showing some vague movements inside. You progressed into the dark interior.

You’d never seen such a complex mechanism. When your eyes adjusted to the darkness you saw various wheels, all turning each other with sharp and perfectly interlocking wooden teeth. At the bottom, you found two large stones which were grinding against each other. Did they grind their grain using the wind? Such instruments must have cost a fortune.

It was only when you gazed down upon the floor that you realized found what you sought; a bucket of what you presumed was decently fresh water. You started cleaning.

The water reflected a spotless and mud-free face. Sporting short, unkempt brown hair and eyes of the same colour, you couldn’t help being quite satisfied with your work. The rest of your body had received the same treatment; your pants were now back to what you presumed was their original brown colour and you half-disintegrated shirt (no wonder you were so terribly cold out there) regained a tinge of what you assumed was its original white colour.

You were terribly wet though.

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Warming yourself near the smouldering remains of the farmhouse again, you wondered what had happened to you. Did you perish? Were you cursed? If so, who placed the curse upon you? And why? What was the purpose of bringing you to this nigh-desolate plain of storms? What did you do to deserve this?

Your thoughts fell silent for a moment. You couldn’t answer any of these questions, could you? You should probably adopt a more solvable line of inquiry. So…

…what happened to this farm?

Your ruminations were disturbed by a loud metallic CLANG coming from the wide house. Time to find out.

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It hurt so goddamn much.

Lying on your back in the stables, you tried your best to reach for the first aid kit the farmer left behind. Shame that his house was probably ruined by that explosion. He was a nice man. A helpful man.

Christ, you hated the bastards.

Finding the bandage roll inside of this kit, you tried bandaging your foot. It looked pretty bad, but you didn’t doubt that it would heal in some time. At least you wouldn’t have to find a doctor. Those weren’t always to be trusted these days; your bounty could probably feed their family for a couple of days.

The bandaging… didn’t really work. Your bruised sides refused to bend over far enough for you to fully reach your damaged foot. Your second attempt was trying to bend your knee, but this also proved to be more difficult than expected. If it just didn’t have to hit the ground it would hurt a lot le-

You stopped in the middle of that thought. You heard footsteps.

Was someone else in here?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Entering the wide house, you were surprised by what you found. This gigantic house was used solely as a stable. You stared in awe at the giant metal bars used to reinforce the structure of the massive building and the ingenuity of the sliding stall doors. Who would have a need for this many horses? What mighty land was ruled from this farmstead? More importantly, why was every single stall empty? Were you walking through the ruins of a fallen-

You stopped in the middle of that thought. You heard soft grunting and heavy breathing.

Was someone else in here?

Inspecting the floor, you saw what you were looking for. Someone had dragged themselves from one stall to the back of the building; a rough trail was dragged through the thin layer of hay laying on the floor. Following the trail, you heard the grunts come to a sudden halt. When you reached the stall the trail ended at, the breathing followed suit. You opened the sliding door.

Lying before you was a red-headed woman. She looked a lot less pale than the reflection you had seen in the bucket not too long ago, but definitely not as tan as the men in the blob. She wore clothing that was not too dissimilar from yours, but featured a lot more colours than your attire. Those orange dyes must have been expensive. More interestingly, she was only wearing one hard-leather shoe. Her other foot was bare and only haphazardly covered by white fabric. Her eyes were completely drenched in fear while her body was tensed up as if she was expecting violence. Was she wounded?

Both of you were staring silently at each other. Should you… say something? If so, what could you even say? So far, the only thing that had escaped your mouth was an inarticulate grunt when you fell over back in the field. In fact, you hadn’t even found any language to speak within your memories when you wanted to approach the men in the black blob. What could you possibly convey to her?

The longer you kept standing before her in silence, the more the fear in her eyes turned to confusion. After what felt like ages of silence, she began talking. The language she spoke was just as unfamiliar as that of the men in the black blob, but not the same one. It sounded a bit harsher. She seemed to be stumbling over her words and sometimes even stuttered a bit. Was she trying to lie to you?

She fell silent and looked at you. Did she expect a reply?

After another minute of confused staring, she started making symbols with her hands. It took you a while to grasp what she meant, but it appeared as if she was asking if you were with the men from the black blob, which you figured out when she made a noise similar to its growl.

You shook your head.

Immediately her tone shifted. She eased up, slumping down with a sigh of relief while her expression turned from frightful to curious. She began trying to convey her next question. Pointing at herself, she said “Vera”. She then pointed at you. What was your name?

That was a very good question. You shrugged.

After this, many more questions about who you were followed. You had to shrug as an answer to all of them. In a final desperate attempt, she asked you how you even got here.

>Point towards the path.

>Shrug.

>>6139450
>>6139575
Forgot to insert my name here. Too used to being one of the anons I suppose.

>>6139578
>Point towards the path.
Dang not even language? We have super amnesia

>>6139578
>Point towards the path.
She seems nice enough 'Vera', huh? Maybe she can give us a name and teach us a bit of language, if we're capable of understanding and vocalizing.

>>6139578
>Shrug.

>>6139578
>>Point towards the path.

>>6139578
>Point towards the path.

>>6139578
>Point towards the path.

>>6139598
>>6139722
>>6139934
>>6139984
>>6140585
For the path, and
>>6139894
for shrugging.

Calling it here for now, next entry will drop tomorrow or the day after depending on how busy it gets for me.

>>6140905
Sounds good, QM!

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>>6140905
It's going to be tomorrow (read: 15 november, for some it may already be tomorrow). I can't finish this tonight if I want it to be at least decent (as far as my writing goes). I have to mind my sleep schedule.

>>6141517
Reasonable. We'll be here.

You pointed towards the path you came from.

She rubbed her thumb and index finger on her closed eyelids. After another sigh, she made another set of signals. Everyone comes down this path, you see. It is the only way to get to this farm.

Vera began firing off another set of signals at you to elaborate, only to let out a sharp breath. Her entire body had been shocked, and her face displayed only the grimace of deep pain.

Only then you realized she had been holding her injured foot off of the ground for the duration of your non-verbal conversation; letting it down had clearly hurt a lot. Still grimacing from the pain, Vera directed you to the faded green box hanging on the wall. Finding a whole host of unfamiliar equipment, you decided to grab a roll of the white fabric you had previously seen on her foot.

It took you a lot of attempts, but you had finally managed to enclose her whole foot with the white fabric. Lying on the ground with a relieved expression, she looked like this had never really happened to her before. How did she get this hurt? You decided to ask her.

Signalling yourself proved to be a whole lot harder than you imagined. First you tried pointing at her foot and shrugging, then you made a vague gesture imitating how you thought someone would have hurt her foot like this. It would have been a very bad kick, right? Vera looked on in confusion, with slight amusement occasionally crossing her eyes. When you stood up for another attempt, she signalled for you to stay put. You had a long way to go.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

You had learnt quite a lot in the following hours. Making signals at high speed, you were now able to hold full-fledged conversations with Vera. Her grandfather had apparently lost the ability to hear, so she had already been quite adept at using hand signals to communicate. You had also tried you hand at some vocal language, surprising Vera when you first tried mimicking her speech. In combination with the hand signals you used along with it, it must have been a rather amusing performance; it took a while for her to recover from the fit of laughter.

Though she commended you on your quick learning and drive, she suggested you keep to the signalling for now. She explained that vocal language was quite the hassle with a lot of redundancy and could be learned at a later time. Besides, it was better to stay silent these days.

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You were about to ask why it was better to stay silent when she interrupted you. It was getting dark, and she was expecting someone. You looked out the window: the grey sky was indeed darkening its shade, making everything outside lose its colours while the invisible sun (if there was something like it in this eternally overcast realm) retreated behind the western horizon.

Looking back at Vera, you saw she was struggling to ask for something. The trouble didn’t seem to come from the difficulty of the signs (which you had experienced quite a lot in the past few hours), but rather from the unease that was now clearly showing in her eyes. She had a small request.

It appeared you had regained quite the bit of strength in your time in this stable. Lifting her was rather easy; below her clothes Vera appeared to mostly consist of skin and bones. Were these people eating enough? She did not seem to be too comfortable in this arrangement, trying her best to make as little body contact with you as possible. You wondered what was wrong with your torso.

The familiar wind hit your face again.

Slowly walking out of the stable the leftover daylight shone on a scene not too different from the one you had left behind. The house was however no longer the blazing inferno it had one been; all that remained was a slightly smouldering burnt-out shell of those little brown stones. Some parts of the wall had collapsed; you considered it a miracle any of the little brown stones were still piled up in their peculiar order.

To your shock and surprise, Vera began shouting. Her cry was rather short, consisting of the repetition of “Tom”. Along with her repeated cry, Vera was scanning the area for any sign of life. Was she telling someone to come out of hiding?

The longer no response came, the shriller her voice became. She was now breathing heavily, frantically looking around her between every scream. You could feel her tensing up again in your arms. She directed you to the remains of the house. Still occasionally shouting, she began inspecting the black and charred remains. You wondered if she had lost something in that fire.

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She abruptly stopped in the middle of her breath. Feeling the tension leave her body, you looked over towards the remains to see what had made her fall silent. You saw nothing of note. Vera in the meantime had fallen completely silent; looking at her face, you saw nothing but shock and horror.

Since she was giving you no directions, you remained there for quite a while. As the last daylight faded, you still saw no discernible change in her expression. At least she had picked up her breathing again shortly after falling silent. Feeling your arms strain from holding her up for so long, you decided to stroll back to the stable. It was time to go to bed.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Back in the stable, you laid Vera back on the floor of one of the stables with the least filth lying around. Even though it had long been deserted (Vera told you it had been empty for almost a year now), the horses had definitely left their traces in some of the abandoned stalls. A stroke of luck came across you when you stumbled across a stall with a couple of blankets hanging on the wall; even though they seemed to be made for horses, they would be a definite improvement to being exposed to the bitter cold. Even inside it was rather chilly.

Getting back to her stall, Vera had not moved. Still lying on her side (you had placed her in this position so her foot wouldn’t hurt as badly when she touched the ground) and with the same, now a bit more vacant expression, it was clear she wasn’t present. You decided against intervening for now and put the blanket over her. Being so meagre must have made her real cold out there.

Grabbing your own improvised bedsheet and moving to the stall next to hers, you mind quickly drifted asunder when you hit the hay. Within 15 minutes you entered the realm of slumber.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

You were jolted back awake by the dry snap of a branch. The sky was still dark, although the clouds had disappeared to show something you were definitely familiar with. The stars and moon shone down upon you with their pale, but benevolent sheen while the howling of the wind had been reduced to the slow rustling of the outside vegetation.

Hearing shallow breathing from Vera’s stall, she was now definitely asleep. Listening a bit longer, you noticed a muted sobbing occasionally accompanying her shallow breaths. You supposed she lost someone dear to her in that fire. Trying to close your eyes again, you couldn’t shake the feeling that you were being watched. This feeling, along with Vera’s sobbing, prevented you from finding any sleep; you had to go do something about one of these reasons before you were allowed back into dreamland.

>Try to comfort Vera. She is probably not taking her loss very well.

>Look around outside. That branch couldn’t’ve been broken by this mild breeze.

I hope the large entry compensates a bit for my extended absence. I wish my schedule agreed to my writing plans. Ah well, such is life. In the meantime, enjoy this new entry.

>>6142112
>Try to comfort Vera. She is probably not taking her loss very well.

>>6142112
>Look around outside. That branch couldn’t’ve been broken by this mild breeze.

>>6142113
Consistency and persistence matters more than speed.

>>6142112
>>Try to comfort Vera. She is probably not taking her loss very well

>>6142112
>Look around outside. That branch couldn’t’ve been broken by this mild breeze.

>>6142112
>Look around outside. That branch couldn’t’ve been broken by this mild breeze.

>>6142112
>Look around outside. That branch couldn’t’ve been broken by this mild breeze.

>>6142300
>>6142671
>>6142914
>>6143665
For looking outside and
>>6142204
>>6142425
for comforting Vera.

Writing up the next one. I'll try getting the next entry out today, but it might be tomorrow instead.

You didn’t trust this. Whatever was outside might be a threat to you both and definitely needed to be addressed first. Listening to a feeling you might have been able to locate as coming from your gut, you decided to close your eyes and focus all your energy on listening for any additional sound this potential fiend created.

Rustling. Breathing, both from you and Vera. Muted sobbing. Creaky wooden shutters. More rustling. Kchhhhhhhhhhhhh.

That noise was not supposed to be there. Still pretending you were asleep, you listened to the static noise a bit longer. It was very quiet and did not seem to change position. It would stutter a bit occasionally, but no true changes seemed to occur.

Moving very carefully, you exited your makeshift bed and headed for the window at the back of your stall. Very gradually raising your head above the windowsill, you saw absolutely no sign of activity anywhere. Letting your eyes adjust to the light of the almost-full moon a bit more, you were still left wondering what was causing this noise. The noise had grown a bit more distinguishable though, and soon you were able to approximate where it came from. Behind the stables.

Exerting an unprecedented amount of control over your body, you silently made it to the stall door. Moving the sliding door very slowly, you managed to avoid the usual metallic grinding noise that came with the operation of this still rather curious mechanism. From there it wasn’t long until you had made your way to the stable’s front door.

Listening very carefully, you didn’t hear anything unusual. The noise had become completely inaudible, and no other sound had come to replace it. Hoping for the best, you stepped outside.

It took a while for your eyes to adjust to the light. It surprised you how well you could see in the middle of the night. Then again, the overcast skies that were present before you went to sleep had cleared up. Along with the pale moon, every star had its free reign over the earth’s luminance. Were you still on earth?

Shaking the intrusive question out of your mind, you started making your way towards the back of the stable. Keeping to its wall as closely as possible, you heard the noise reappear and grow louder the further you went. You began noticing the freezing cold again; slowly but steadily you began to resent the torn-up rags that were barely even attempting to warm your upper body.

Arriving at the back of the stable, you saw a perfectly aligned row of waist-high bushes. These were placed on another one of these banks, creating a striking similarity to the odd trees that outlined the path. This row of bushes was however rather short; it seemed to end at the other end of the stable, and started at the corner you were positioned behind. The rustling and the noise were now at their loudest, and you assumed its origin was rather close. Only then did you notice the yellow light seeping through the foliage.

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You were caught completely off-guard by this unexpected light: burning with the colour of a thousand campfires, its actual illumination seemed to be rather small. It almost seemed like the light was being directed into one specific direction; reflecting off of something hidden behind the bushes, you could see it occasionally being blocked by…

there was someone in there.

Quickly snapping out of your dazed state, you slinked your way behind the side of the bank. Slowly creeping further behind this artificial hill, you began seeing what, or rather who was hiding behind the underbrush. If you had entered the row some five steps left of your current position, you would have certainly bumped into him.

The man you saw looked like no one you had seen before. Donning a tight black attire and a small hat that resembled an upturned bowl, his face sported another small moustache which was different from the ones you had seen on the men in the blob. His activities were even more foreign to you, using a bent pipe to shine the yellow light on a larger, more angular tube which was of a dark green colour. He was busy poking an even smaller metal rod into this tube, which you now saw featured two short cylindrical stubs on one of its sides. Occasionally he would turn the small metal rod, creating the odd stutter in the noise, which seemed to originate from this dark-green cuboid.

While you once again waited for your eyes to adjust, the man suddenly stopped using the tiny metal rod. In another heartbeat, the man had stuffed the rod in his pants pocket and turned his head.

He was now directly looking at you.

Instinctively, you held your breath and hoped he hadn’t seen you. It was dark after all, and his sight must’ve surely been diminished by the beam of light… that was now shining directly into your eyes.

Raising your hand to cover your eyes, you realized it was already too late: you were completely blinded. Trying your best to readjust your eyes after the sudden flash, you looked at the spot the man was occupying a second ago.

The only thing you saw when your sight returned was the still-shining tube lying on the ground. The mysterious man had disappeared into thin air.

Trying to back up your vision with your ears, you tried listening for any trace of the man escaping the scene. You heard nothing over the rustling of leaves.

Slowly nearing the bent tube, you began to see what the man had done to flee his unexpected company: shining the concentrated beam at your eyes you were blinded in the exact way you were blinded before. The beam was actually pretty small in width, making it hard to light up more than a narrow cone of the darkness. Inspecting the weird tube yourself, you saw that it was the same colour of green as its angular counterpart, although it was certainly a lot smaller. It had a small black button on the side of it, which when pressed up or down would make the light appear and disappear. You wondered how the fire that burnt within this tube could be lit and extinguished so rapidly.

Returning to the stable, you had lowered your caution. You noticed no sign of life in your vicinity, and you were too busy trying to figure out the functions of this curious tube anyway.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Getting back to your stall, you were alerted by a new sound coming from Vera’s stall. Along with her usual sobbing, she had now started to talk in her sleep. She sounded quite distressed, repeatedly calling out for this “Tom” in what you assumed were vain attempts prevent the loss in her sleep-induced delusions. You felt quite bad for her.

Quietly opening her stall door, you decided to take the matter into your own hands. Entering her stall, you saw she had subconsciously turned her body to lie on her other side. Noticing her injured foot lying on the ground, you gently removed her horse blanket and turned her around again. Still hearing her troubled speech come through, you sat down and began lightly patting her shoulder.

It wasn’t long before Vera’s slumber was pacified. You could finally go back to sleep.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Your upper arm was being shaken. Still groggy from your disturbed sleeptime, you tried shaking the unwavering nuisance off of your limb. When this proved ineffective, you finally decided to open an eye. It took you a while to recognize what was being shown to you through your blurred vision. It was Vera. She had apparently crawled over to your stall and was trying to rapidly signal you something.

Rubbing your eyes and sitting up, you were met with an avalanche of hand-signalled questions. You now saw that Vera had laid the bent pipe (which you had taken back to your stall before falling asleep) in front of her, occasionally stopping her tirade of questions to inspect it for a clue of some sort. Slowly regaining your awareness, you patiently answered all of her questions by recalling the events that played out last night, excluding what happened after you re-entered the stable. Those details were not relevant to the story.

You had never seen Vera this excited and happy. Overjoyed, she told you this meant someone had been true to their word. When you wanted to ask who this someone was (you suspected the man behind the bushes himself) and what his word entailed, Vera quickly switched topics. She wanted to quickly leave the farm behind. It wasn’t safe to stay here.

You agreed, if only for the fact that the skies were once again grey and the howl of the wind had returned. You seriously needed some new clothing. Your concerned look at your shirt didn’t go unnoticed by Vera though; she quickly assured that she would give you something better to wear once you arrived at her destination.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

One could be forgiven for thinking nothing had changed at all. Walking down the tree-lined path once again, the weather had returned to the exact state it was in yesterday. You noticed Vera was noticeably less averse to body contact than the last time you had to carry her; using eachother’s body heat would get you further in this bitter clime. You were growing slightly distrustful of your found accomplice. With the way she communicated you wondered how much she was hiding from you.

Despite the shared body heat, you had to make frequent stops: the cold together with the strain of carrying Vera made sure you had to rest and regain your strength every ten or fifteen minutes. It was during one of these breaks that you noticed you were at the spot where you had seen the blob; you saw your own footsteps on the track, along with the blob’s tracks veering around your past self.

You knew Vera was probably still wondering how you got here. It might be helpful to show her the ditch you crawled out of. Then again, it probably wouldn’t hurt to avoid detours in your journey. During the last stop, Vera said there would be a warm fire at her destination.

>Head towards the ditch.

>Continue down the path.

>>6144815
>Head towards the ditch.
We have questions. She may have answers.

>>6144815
>Continue down the path.

>>6144815
>>Head towards the ditch.

>>6144815
>>Head towards the ditch.

>>6144815
>Head towards the ditch.

>>6144815
>Head towards the ditch.

>>6144815
>Head towards the ditch.

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>>6144915
>>6145256
>>6145394
>>6145515
>>6145718
>>6145884
For heading to the ditch, and
>>6145067
for continuing down the path.

Due to my schedule going haywire, the next entry will have to come sometime next week. Sorry in advance for the delay.

>>6146062
Thanks for the heads up, QM. I hope things mellow out for you soon.

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Scrutinizing the field you came from, you noticed your tracks were still distinguishable. You would have no trouble following them back to the ditch.

Before long you were knee-deep into the field, retracing your old footsteps. Lifting Vera a little bit higher than you usually did to avoid repeatedly dunking her in the muck, you were surprised at how light she was. She really didn’t look like she would be that easy to carry. Were you just stronger than you remembered?

The further you proceeded into the soggy fields, the less distinct your old prints became. When you finally got close to the ditch, they were barely more than vague indentations in the wet grass.

The ditch. It had gone.

In front of you was nothing more than a continuation of the endless fields. The ditch had gone without a trace. You couldn’t even see the distinct mark your initial fall had made on the grass; all that remained was the stretch of green that had greeted you when you cast your first gaze upon this world.

Vera asked why you stopped moving. You couldn’t reply (your hands were quite full), so you just shook your head. She only looked more confused when you turned back towards the path.

Back on the hardened dirt, you mourned the cleanliness of your pants. Having regained their mud-stained appearance, you hoped Vera’s destination had a water source of some kind. Putting down Vera on the surface of the path again, you began explaining why you turned back in a seemingly empty patch of the fields. The lack of ditch surprised Vera as much as it did you when you discovered your place of origin had vanished. You couldn’t really ponder the implications of this though; it was too cold. Both shivering in the frigid wind, Vera suggested continuing the trip before your legs froze off.

Though you assumed she was joking, the length of the path ahead made you think twice about mucking about. Swiftly picking up your human cargo, you began to make haste towards the row of trees that was beginning to appear on the horizon.

At least the skies were finally showing some signs of the sun breaking through.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

You looked at the signpost in front of you while nudging Vera to wake up. Despite the biting cold, the monotony of your pace had rocked her back to sleep. Yawning and shaking her head a bit to regain her wakefulness, Vera looked a bit dazed before directing you to the left on this three-way junction. The new path was noticeably larger, with the two tracks now united into one wide surface of hardened sand which was dotted with small rocks. All this walking was beginning to hurt your feet.

Making your way down the new path, the cold started take its toll on you. The wind, which first came from your side, now blasted right down the path, fiercely opposing every step you made. Your vision once again grew blurry, and your fingers were turning into solid claws around Vera’s waist. It was time for a break again.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Having regained your vision, you began noticing some changes in your environment. Though no tracks were visible on the hardened sand (you yourself also didn’t leave any, so you assumed it was just the nature of this path), your surroundings became increasingly… inhabited. More and more houses lined the path, until they were merely separated by a very small hedgerow. Who could survive on such a small tract of land?

What also surprised you was the emptiness of the road. Though it was now completely lined with houses, you barely saw anyone outside. Those who were outside did not make eye contact, trying their best to avoid acknowledging your existence. The one look you did get was from a small boy, who tugged at his mother’s jacket and pointed at you. It didn’t take long before he was reprimanded.

After passing a large sign on the side of the path, Vera pointed at a house. You had arrived at your destination. It was a rather small house, featuring a front-facing window that was covered by a black sheet of some sort. You could see some yellow light seeping through the slits on the sheet’s edge. In front of the house was another small hedge with demarcated a small garden, which was crossed by a small, tiled path leading up to the front door.

Walking through the yard, you couldn’t help but admire the skilfully trimmed grass. It must have taken a lot of time to get it that level. Vera used her free hands to knock on the door with irregular intervals between every hit of the wood. You thought she was trying to mimic some kind of melody.

A jovial old woman opened the door for you. Standing in the doorway, she first briefly greeted Vera with relief clearly audible in her voice. Only after talking with Vera a bit did she look at you; a mix of confusion and distrust crossed her eyes while she inspected you. Vera was quick to respond, speaking to the lady in a calming tone. Turning to you Vera explained that this woman was called Nadine and that she was her grandmother.

While Nadine quickly motioned for you to step inside, the expression in her eyes traded in its distrust for some sort of appreciation. You wondered what you had done to earn it.

The first thing you noticed inside was the warmth. Feeling your senses reawaken, you saw that everything was lit up by tiny glass bulbs that were attached to the ceiling. You couldn’t look at them too long, for they blinded you just like the bent tube which Vera had stowed away in one of her pockets. The yellow light they emitted showed you a small hallway, flanked by stairs on the left and featuring two doors, one on the right side and one forming the wall right ahead of you. Leading you into the house, Nadine opened the door to the right and motioned you to follow her through it.

Shuffling through the doorway, you were astonished by the room you had entered. Large illustrations adorned the walls while a soft fabric seating arrangement was positioned in front of a softly crackling hearth. Vera let out a sigh of relief the second you put her down on a long, comfortable bench while you stretched your arms and flexed your shoulders. You were surprised you had been able to carry her for so long.

Warming yourself near the fire, you wondered why the windows were covered with black sheets. Wasn’t the purpose of windows to let in natural light? Was this a way to protect against the cold? While you sat yourself down in one of the plush chairs, you wondered what wealth Nadine must possess to have such a royal seating arrangement in her house. The other side of the living room was a bit emptier; a table, some sober wooden chairs and a large closet occupied the other half of the living space.

Nadine herself had just left through a door on this side of the room. After a bit of clattering from the adjacent room Nadine returned with two bowls. While Nadine put the bowls down on a small table in between the chairs, you saw that the bowls contained some kind of soup. The curious smell of the dish reminded your stomach of the fact that you were starving; you literally could not remember the last time you had something to eat. While Nadine began feeding the soup from one of the bowls to Vera, you treated yourself to your first meal in what felt like ages. The soup featured small bits of vegetables you could not identify, but your stomach overruled your brain. To your surprise, they tasted pretty good.

Having finished your meal alongside Vera, Nadine began signing to you. Using a language that was essentially the same as Vera’s you quickly understood that your muddy pants were fouling up the carpet. She ordered you to cleanse yourself and lead you up the stairs to a room which, in contrast to the carpeted rooms in the rest of the house, was only furnished with tiles. Turning a metal knob on the wall, a curious contraption began raining down fresh water. You understood what you had to do.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Having thoroughly rinsed yourself once again, you looked at your clothes. You really wished there were something better to wear. Nadine seemed to agree, for there was a new set of clothes lying in front of you when you stepped back into the corridor.

Having dressed yourself in this new set of clothing, you were surprised by how comfortable the fabric was. The tailors in this world were clearly very skilled, because the brown pants and checkered shirt felt much better than the rags you had left behind in a neat pile. You were also not used to wearing socks; almost slipping when you took your first steps, you quickly adjusted to the lower grip. At least your feet wouldn’t be cold now.

Re-entering the large room, you saw Vera and Nadine were in a busy conversation. Nadine seemed to be berating Vera, who was trying her best to interrupt whenever she saw an opportunity to do so. They both stopped when you entered, Vera giving Nadine a weird look when she saw your new attire. Nadine stood up and motioned for to pick up Vera and come along. Having once again lifted Vera off the couch, you followed her back upstairs.

The room featured two beds. Having put Vera down on one of them, you stared in awe at the luxury afforded to your sleeping accommodation. You could not wait to spend a night on these large mattresses. Seeing the light coming through the slits diminishing, you assumed it wouldn’t be long before you could hit something that appeared to be a lot comfier than hay. You didn’t really feel tired though. It had been a rather short day.

Looking around your shared room you found a large shelf on which a large number of curious rectangles were neatly arranged into a row. Vera explained that these were called books and that they contained writing.

Seeing as she was also not tired enough to fall asleep yet, she offered to read from one of them. Not like she could do much more in her position anyway.

Scanning through the shelf, your eye fell on two “books” which captured your interest.

>A big red book featuring an angular bird of prey spreading its wings.

>A smaller blue book with a golden lion printed on the back.

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Quick heads-up; due to holidays and other interruptions, I will be posting once a week from now on. I wish I could post more often, but with the length of these entries I don't think I can maintain the previously outlined schedule.

>>6147880
>A big red book featuring an angular bird of prey spreading its wings.

>>6147884
Duly noted. It's a bit slow, but whatever works best for the QM long-term is what's best for the quest.

>>6147880
>A big red book featuring an angular bird of prey spreading its wings.

>>6147880
>A smaller blue book with a golden lion printed on the back.

>>6147880
>A big red book featuring an angular bird of prey spreading its wings.

>>6148169
It is indeed a bit slow, but due to the slow pace of qst atm I don't think it'll make us fall off any quicker. However, this will also give me more time to collect some good pictures for the quest.

Every cloud has a silver lining (unless you're in this quest, in which case every cloud is followed by another cloud).

>>6147880
>A big red book featuring an angular bird of prey spreading its wings.

>>6147880
>A smaller blue book with a golden lion printed on the back.

>>6147880
>A smaller blue book with a golden lion printed on the back.

>>6147880
>A smaller blue book with a golden lion printed on the back.

>>6148169
>>6148216
>>6148359
>>6148777
For the red book and
>>6148224
>>6149101
>>6149164
>>6149887
for the blue book.

We have a tie. Can anyone help out?

>>6151241
Roll

Rolled 1 (1d2)

>>6151260
Noted.

1 = Red
2= Blue

>>6151267
That settles it. I'll write up an entry tomorrow.

Picking the red book off of the shelf, you looked at its front- and backside. The cover was imprinted with large black symbols while the back featured smaller patterns of the same variety. You found the thick letters hard to distinguish from another. The writer must have been very sloppy with his ink.

When you presented the book to Vera, you were surprised to see a flash of disappointment dash across her face, followed by a realization which led to amusement. You wondered what was so reprehensive about this eagle. It seemed to represent a powerful ruler, ruling vast lands with the power commanded by such an impressive seal.

Vera explained that you had just selected a “telephone book”. Asking what a “telephone” was only earned you a shake of her head and a chuckle. Trying her best to make her description comprehensible, Vera explained that a telephone was a long line through which you could talk to people who were too far away to hear. You could choose who to talk to through so-called “telephone numbers”. Every telephone had its own unique number to avoid mix-ups.

This world was more outlandish than you thought. A magical line through which you can hail a man beyond your horizon. You wondered what other life-changing gimmicks these strange people had conjured up.

After flipping the book and opening it, Vera explained that the book was a list of all the phone numbers of this province. Each one had the owner’s name next to it along with the place where they lived. She didn’t see much use in reading its entirety to you – a list of long numbers was not the most interesting in her opinion – but you were in need of a name. People would begin to ask questions if you did not have one. You didn’t want to be questioned in this day and age.

You had given up on trying to figure out what she meant with statements like these. You had heard something similar to it before and knew you wouldn’t be getting a proper explanation of this distrust anytime soon. However, you did agree. You really needed a name. A new name, that was; you didn’t really remember your previous name. If you had one to begin with.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Vera had gone through a large portion of the book, saying the names she thought were interesting out loud. You were bewildered by the weird names of this realm. Several names like “Bertrand”, “Gerard” and “Hugo” went by, all of them stranger than the last. Why would anyone name their son “Archibald”? Did the telephones corrupt their brains?

Nearing the end of the thick book, Vera was getting tired and a bit desperate. You had stubbornly declined all of her suggestions, and the supply of these nonsensical names was running out. In a final move of desperation, she asked you to come sit next to her and pick out a name you liked. Although you couldn’t read any of these symbols, you acquiesced.

The inside of this book was very strange. The letters were very small, making you squint to see any individual lines and their numbers. Turning pages at random, Vera told you that you were supposed to read a book from the left to the right. You were going back to pages she had already covered. You quickly corrected your mistake by flipping a large number of pages to get back to where Vera left off.

That’s where you saw it. A tailless downwards arrow with a broken vertical line next to it, followed by a tall bridge, the half-moon, a spiral, another bridge and finally ending upon a cross. Vera, seeing your interest in this name, looked closer and uttered your chosen name.

Vera was a bit surprised by your choice, but didn’t really seem to mind. It was only when you tried to pronounce your own name that she seemed to realize what you wanted from her.

What followed was a long session of speaking lessons. Vera seemed to focus on teaching you how to explain who you were and some basic greeting methods. Though you tried your best, speaking turned out to be a bit more difficult than hand signals. Every sound you made needed a significant adjustment to be deemed right by your tutor, who couldn’t contain her laughter when you inevitably botched a pronunciation. You didn’t mind, it must’ve sounded extremely comical to her.

After a long stretch of failure, you finally began to grasp the basics of this curious language. Using long, open vowels and short and grindy consonants you managed to correctly utter some phrases about who you were. As a final touch, Vera taught you what to say when going to bed.

“Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Vincent.”

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

The sheets proved to be everything their soft looks had promised. The second you slid yourself under the thick cloak you went out like a light.

You were swimming in a sea of darkness. Though there were no waves, the water was moving alongside you towards an unknown destination. Despite the complete lack of light, you clearly saw your own body moving in the water, your arms making large lashes to keep up your forward momentum. You didn’t appear to be in control of your swimming; when you tried to stop the ever-continuing motion, your body resisted as if it was being pressured by an external force. Looking forward, you saw nothing. There was no end for this journey. It was only a matter of time before you drowned.

It wasn’t long before your body gave in to its exhaustion.

Holding your breath, the black water began infiltrating your orifices.

Slowly, the darkness began to envelop your mind.

It was everywhere. It had always been.

Nothing would save you here.

No one ever would.

You were alone, destined to eternally sink into the depths of this bottomless ocean.


Looking up, you saw the water’s surface growing evermore distant. You vision was fading. It wasn’t long before your lungs would give out too.

In your last moments, you saw a bright, circular light appearing behind the walls of inundation.

There was a way out.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

You were covered in sweat. Sitting up, you wondered what had caused you to heat up this much. It wasn’t that hot inside, was it?

Looking around you, you saw you were still in the room you had fallen asleep in earlier. Vera had told you to switch off the yellow light just before you went to bed, so everything was rather dark. The window did also not provide much light, with the dim moonlight only seeping through the irregular slits left in the covering sheets.

Speaking of Vera, she was having another troubled night. It seemed like she was crying for Tom again. He probably meant a lot to her. Quietly moving out of your bed, you used your socks to their fullest potential by sneaking over to Vera in complete silence. It’d be impolite to wake her up, after all.

Gently stroking her back and shoulders again, you saw her tension ease as her breathing slowed to the shallow pattern of slumber. When her softly muttered cries fell silent, you hoped she would start to sleep easier soon. It wasn’t practical for you to wake up in the middle of every night.

Having returned to your own bed, you heard Vera mutter one last name. It was yours.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

You woke up from a dreamless sleep. Rubbing your eyes and stretching your limbs, you actually felt rather well-rested for the first time since waking up in the field. The sweat had gone, along with the darkness; you saw the first shimmers of dusk come through the blinds, returning a small amount of colour to the two-toned dimness of the room. You heard Nadine was already up, moving around downstairs with the occasional clattering of… metal? You wondered what she was making down there.

In either case, it was time you got out of bed.

>Wake up Vera.

>Go downstairs.

>Write-in.

>>6151899
>Go downstairs.

>>6151899
>Go downstairs.
Vera could probably use more rest, all things considered.

>>6151899
>Go downstairs.

>>6151899
>>Go downstairs.

>>6151899
>Go downstairs

>>6151918
>>6152041
>>6152140
>>6152196
>>6152338

A unanimous vote. Writing something up tomorrow or the day after.

After struggling a bit with your new socks, you silently left the bedroom without alerting Vera. She’d probably wake up soon anyway.

The corridor was almost completely devoid of light. You slowly began moving your feet towards the faintly illuminated staircase, trying to avoid your toes bumping into an unseen obstacle. Thankfully the stairs were slightly less dark, making them easier to traverse.

Downstairs, you heard the clattering came from the door at the end of the main hallway. You hesitated a bit, but eventually decided to proceed into the unknown area.

The room you entered was like none you had seen before in this house. The floor and a part of the wall were covered in tiles, in front of which stood a row of cupboards whose drawers were opened to various degrees. On top of this row of cupboards stood a large amount of what you assumed was cooking equipment. Its familiarity varied between a set of large knives, some pots, and a large bowl with holes in it. Why would anyone want their bowl to leak on purpose?

You realized Nadine had been looking at you for a while. She had been tending to a large pan which was standing on a large black cabinet, inside of which a small fire burned to warm the room. The soft bubbling noise the pan emitted made you suspect it contained more of the soup you were fed the day before.

Nadine herself was wearing a fabric robe which only covered the front half of her body and holding a wooden spoon in her hand, which she laid down on the counter to make some signals to you. Did you have a good night?

After expressing your gratitude for the bed she provided and other small exchanges, Nadine asked for you to wait in the living room. You obliged, and after a short while she too entered the living room with two more bowls of the warm soup. She motioned you to join her at the table.

While sitting down at the table, you saw your chance to ask some questions Vera wouldn’t answer. Why was staying silent preferable these days? Why were people asking questions dangerous? Why did everyone look away?

Nadine tried to slow your rapid succession of questions down. She couldn’t answer all of them yet, but she could definitely make a start in explaining how the world worked. It was however imperative that you finish your soup first; it would be a shame if her secret recipe went cold before you ate it.

Looking at your bowl you noticed that the nearly translucent soup you had yesterday was replaced by a thick and lumpy sludge which sported a vaguely green colour. Though it was thoroughly unappealing to your eyes, your nose staunchly disagreed with this verdict, the warm aroma presenting a very enticing prospect for your mouth to follow. Hesitantly and against the better judgement of your vision, you took your first spoonful.

The earthly, slightly sweet taste reflected everything the smell had promised. You could definitely get used to this dish.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Sitting down in the more comfortable chairs, Nadine began her explanation.

The reason for this general distrust is what she would end up calling “the occupation”. The land you were currently in was rather small and had been occupied by its larger neighbour some four years ago. This neighbour had occupied the country with relative ease, but had also gotten itself into a war with other states. The occupier was now losing its war, and with the enemy drawing ever-closer to its own borders the suspicion against its occupied territories had grown considerably.

You now understood why Vera didn’t want you to draw any unwanted attention.

Nadine was about to continue her story when a harsh knocking hit the front door.

Nadine, being caught in the middle of a sequence of signals, muttered what you assumed were a series of profanities before moving to open the door. Motioning for you to follow her, she asked you to remain silent before turning around to answer the next series of what had now become aggressive beatings of the front door. Seeing the old wooden door tremble in its frame, you wondered if they were trying to break in by destroying it.

Four men in uniform occupied the doorstep, while another waited outside the front yard. Two of the men on the doormat donned a dark grey uniform while the other two wore a dark blue uniform with a white collar. One of the men in grey, a rather tall older man with particularly hawkish facial features, began speaking. After a few words in a sharp language that you had never heard before, he motioned for one of the men in blue to step forward.

The man in blue was noticeably less uneasy and began speaking the language you had heard Vera and Nadine speak before. In a tone you adjudged as nonchalant, he began explaining something to Nadine. Nadine, who was clearly trying her best to keep up a façade of compliance, responding with the occasional nod or verbal acknowledgement.

You couldn’t exactly pin down what the man had said, but it led to the four men proceeding inside. The tall man in grey proceeded to speak in the foreign tongue, however now he directed his words to the man in blue, who then proceeded to… translate them for Nadine?

Conversation continued like this, and you began sizing up the men which had remained silent. The other man in grey attire was shorter and of a stout build, wearing a large helmet instead of the more dignified leather cap of his hawk-like companion. He was busy scribbling on a wooden board to which a white sheet was attached. An attempt to look at what was being written was met with a hiss and a handwave. It was apparently not meant for your eyes.

The other man in blue uniform was rather different: easily outsizing his three companions, he struggled to get his head through the doorframe upon entry. He did however make up for this excess height in his lacklustre width; you assumed a strong gust of wind would break him like a twig. He wasn’t preoccupied with Nadine like the others, spending his time taking in the surroundings and blowing dust off of the yellow light-bulbs.

During your analysis you had apparently become the subject of the conversation; after a few questions during which the hawkish man pointed and looked at you, Nadine apparently found a decent excuse for your presence.

The three-sided exchange continued, and at a certain point the four men were supposedly entitled to a tour of the house. Although you expected to be left in the hallway, Nadine nudged you to come along. She looked rather nervous, so you obliged. None of the four men seemed to mind anyway.

Going through the house room by room, the helmet-wearer quickly began writing on his sheet while the other three inspected the room for any irregularities. When one was found, the scribe was alerted. It was in this way that you learnt the tall man in blue could not understand the foreign language; when he found a bed leg which turned out to be broken, he had to relay the information through his bilingual colleague.

When the group came to your bedroom, Nadine had reached the peak of her nervousness. With a trembling hand she opened the door, which revealed a surprising sight to you.

Vera was gone.

The room looked like you two hadn’t been there at all.

Now curiously conducting your own search, you saw that Vera had very quickly remade the beds and removed all her personal belongings from the floor. The only thing that remained as it had been when you left earlier was the red book laying on the nightstand.

The four men didn’t seem to notice however, and within a couple of moments the room was abandoned again. You could’ve sworn you heard Nadine make a sigh of relief.

The rest of the house inspection went by without incidents, and before long the four men were back in the hallway. The hawkish man was now speaking in a much more amicable tone, which his translator tried to convey in an apologetic way. It was apparently time for them to leave, as they began heading for the door.

While you and Nadine waved goodbye to the men while they walked down the front yard, you saw the man that had been left waiting outside approach the four inspectors. Now that he came closer you saw that he was rather small, donning a large, black-leather overcoat and a smaller hat which featured a head-surrounding rim. Talking to the men in grey he seemed to be greatly displeased with the work they had done, pointing towards you as a figure of his (quite angry) speech.

The hawkish man kept his cool and replied in a calm tone, explaining what you assumed was Nadine’s previous alibi. The smaller man, however, did not appear to buy it. Parting the four men like a river the man made surprisingly swift strides, reaching the front door within a heartbeat. While he made a short tirade to Nadine, you examined his face in detail. It didn’t take long before you decided to name him the Rat.

The Rat, after concluding his rant against Nadine, grabbed your arm and attempted to drag you along. Although you were surprised by the strength of the human rodent, you didn’t move an inch. The Rat was not pleased by this, screeching at Nadine in his harsh language to presumably make you move along with him. Nadine sighed, sided with the Rat and directed you to stop resisting.

The Rat took you to the neighbouring house and pinned you against the wall. Although you initially resisted, the threat of the four other men moving in was enough for you to relent.

Talking to you in the language you’d started learning yesterday, he began firing off what you presumed was a storm of insults, anecdotes, and questions. Although you repeatedly tried to signal that you were not able to speak or understand this language yet, the Rat’s iron grip on your arms prevented you from making any intelligible signs. Keeping up the pressure, the Rat’s voice began to steadily rise. When he reached his highest pitch, he began fastening his grip on your arms. Feeling the blood flow decrease, you decided to intervene against the rabid rodent’s rant. Exerting most if not all of your vocal strength, you shouted back one of the greeting lines Vera had taught you.

“HELLO, I AM VINCENT!”

This seemed to be enough to stun the Rat, who finally seemed to understand that you could not speak. Using what you presumed to be his absolute highest level of sign language, he began making a shoddy sequence of signals.

Apologizing for his previous behaviour, the Rat thought that you were simulating deafness. Many people had tried to do this before, all of them traitors to the fatherland. He just wanted to ask some questions, is all. Surely Vincent would not be dishonest with the authorities, right? It would be really easy for you and convenient for us if you helped out, you know. In fact, there was just one question you needed to answer.

Was there anyone hidden in that house?

>Someone was indeed hidden in that house.

>No one was hidden in that house.

>Write-in.

>>6156143
>No one was hidden in that house.
As if we'd sell out Vera, OP. Come on.
Alright, so it's Vichy France, near the end of WWII?

>>6156158
Did I specify that this 'someone' was Vera?

Nothing will be clear before Vincent learns how to read.

>>6156253
Anything that alerts them to hidden people risks Vera's detection.

>>6156143
>>No one was hidden in that house.

>>6156143
>Someone was indeed hidden in that house.

>>6156143
>>Someone was indeed hidden in that house.

>>6156535
>>6156695
Anons, dare I ask why?

>>6156143
>No one was hidden in that house.
Vincent saw Nadine was relieved when they didn't find Vera and Vera hid for a reason. We have a reason to cover.

>>6156158
>>6156495
>>6156874
For lying,
>>6156535
>>6156695
for the funnier way of lying.

The entry will drop next week.

Did he think you were some kind of simpleton?

Remaining calm, you slowly moved your hands up, massaging your wrists to get the tingling out of your fingers. Taking great satisfaction in the impatience of the Rat you began slowly and clearly signalling your response. During this process you carefully maintained a blank expression which seamlessly covered up the simmering indignation that had built up inside you.

You’d gladly help the man to catch any miscreants within the building. In fact, you’d been looking for one just to be sure. Sadly you had to report that there were no people of such ilk in the household, let alone any other than Nadine and you. You had even checked for mice and other rodents, but you found none. The cat must have done his job well. If Nadine had one, that is. Was it still customary to hold cats for this kind of housekeeping? It had been some time since you visited her, and you wondered if man’s feline friend had gone out of fashion.

The Rat was perplexed. Trying his best to understand your eloquent signalling, he replied that cats had unfortunately not gone out of fashion. It was quite regrettable though. He couldn’t stand the creatures. They always seemed to have it out for him.

It was quite hard to stifle the snickering impulse that followed.

The Rat went on to inspect your background information. Name? Occupation? Place of birth? Reason for visiting Nadine?

You replied with the same signalling speed as before, struggling to hide the radiant grin that was creeping onto your face.

Vincent was indeed your name, which was something you had said before. Was the Rat suffering from memory loss? You knew a thing or two about such a phenomenon and hoped he got better soon.

You were not occupied at the moment, although this country did seem to be in such a state. You were not sure where you were born, but probably somewhere in your mother’s vicinity just like everyone else. As for visiting Nadine, wasn’t everyone entitled to visiting their grandmother from time to time? She was getting rather old, and you didn’t know how soon you were able to visit again in these turbulent times.

The Rat sighed and began working on his next series of signals. Clearly your answers were not satisfactory, and you could see the Rat was teetering on the edge of another outburst.

You would have been worried if it were not for a certain hawkish figure looming in his wake…

The Rat, still busy with his stuttering sequence of signals, remained oblivious to the approaching danger. Waving away the hand which tapped on his shoulder, he continued his story about “last names”. Whatever those were. Only when the Rat saw you look at something above him did he realize the grave mistake he had just made.

But at that point it was already too late.

Grabbing the Rat’s shoulder’s with both hands, the infuriated Hawk swung the small rodent around, stopping the rotation in its tracks when the Rat had turned his way. The sudden movement caused the Rat to almost lose his balance, frantically moving his legs to support the involuntary gyration.

What followed was the loudest scolding you had ever seen. Screaming from the top of his lungs in the harsh language that was apparently native to him, the Hawk thoroughly chewed out his pint-sized acquaintance. Bending forwards further and further, the Hawk brought his scathing tirade closer and closer to the Rat, who seemed to grow smaller in response. You were thoroughly enjoying this.

After a few minutes which felt like an hour, the Hawk’s anger seemed to have faded away. Having finished his business with the Rat, the Hawk turned to you and signalled in what to your surprise turned out to be perfect sign language that he was very sorry for the behaviour of his… “colleague” (the Hawk seemed to visibly scoff at the notion of being affiliated with the man which now almost cowered before him). He was not allowed to pursue such questioning as it was outside of his function within the SD. The Hawk hoped he had not inconvenienced you too much and recommended you got back inside. It was freezing.

You realized you were only wearing the chequered blouse Nadine had given you yesterday.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Lunch consisted of the same green soup which had served as breakfast. Nadine had made a big pan and supposedly intended to use all of it. Vera had also come out of her hiding place after the four men had finally departed, having apparently hidden herself under her own bed. You were surprised no one had looked for such an easy hiding spot. Vera seemed to share this sentiment, her face still showing some signs of the relief she felt after Nadine had told her she could come out.

You were beginning to get annoyed at the prospect of having to carry her up and down the stairs again. Her sprained foot should’ve been healed by now, right?

After the three of you finished the bowls of soup, Nadine motioned for you two to sit down at what you recently discovered as a “sofa”. Putting down Vera on the couch, you placed yourself on one of the very comfortable chairs and tuned in to Nadine’s impending message.

You had to leave before the week’s end. It was currently Friday.

The recent visit meant that soldiers would start living in this house on Monday. Vera was no longer safe within the confines of this home. She would have to flee south towards the armies of the coalition that was formed to fight the occupiers for any modicum of safety. Nadine pleaded with you to accompany Vera on this journey as long as you could manage. In this state, she needed all the help she could get.

Vera huffed but did not disagree. Without you she was bound to the couch she was lying on.

Adding to this, Nadine recommended you learn at least a basic amount of reading and writing as soon as possible. She considered the Hawk’s signing ability a miracle. Apparently his harsh language shared its signal-based variant with yours. You would also have to forge identification papers; not possessing them would mean trouble when faced with the authorities.

You mentioned that before being stopped by the Hawk, the Rat mentioned something about a last name in relation to your identification. Was such a thing important?

Nadine confirmed that yes, a last name was indeed important. People had last names to distinguish themselves from others with the same first name. For instance, how would someone keep track of your identity when there were two or more Vincent's?

Vera chimed in, saying that it was best to adopt the last name both she and Nadine had for now. From now on you would be known as Vincent Bouman.

Nadine scraped her throat to regain your attention and continued her story.

To make your journey to the southern front, it was best to take the train. Due to the restrictions on ticket sales you would have to travel as stowaways on a freight line. The train would stop rather frequently on its route, so it was of the utmost importance to remain hidden while the trains were inspected at the station. It was hard, but Nadine believed you were capable enough.

There was not much more she could do now. The rest was up to you.

After finishing her statement, Nadine retreated to the kitchen.

Nadine’s story left you full of questions. Making your way to Vera’s couch, you sought an explanation for them all. Vera herself looked conflicted, but seemed to at least understand the task ahead of her. Moreso than you did, anyways.

Placing her finger on your lips, Vera signalled that she wasn’t going to answer the impending bombardment of inquiry. Not yet. She wanted to figure out what to do in your two remaining days first.

Pick two.

>Ask Vera to give you more lessons on speaking.

>Try your hand at reading. There was a bookshelf to discover upstairs.

>Scour the small town for more equipment and supplies. You really needed another set of clothes.

>Attempt obtaining forged identification papers. You didn’t want to risk upsetting the authorities. Whoever they might be.

>Write-in.

I forgot to insert my tripcode for all of these. Very professional indeed, hm?

>>6160490
>>Ask Vera to give you more lessons on speaking.

>>6160490

>Try your hand at reading. There was a bookshelf to discover upstairs.

>>6160647
>>6160776

You need to vote for two options, as said in the post. Single votes like these will not be counted.

>>6161048
Oop.

>Ask Vera to give you more lessons on speaking.
>Try your hand at reading. There was a bookshelf to discover upstairs.

EZ.

>>6160490
>Ask Vera to give you more lessons on speaking.

>Try your hand at reading. There was a bookshelf to discover upstairs.

>>6160490
>Ask Vera to give you more lessons on speaking.
>Try your hand at reading. There was a bookshelf to discover upstairs.

File: End of the road.png (3.67 MB, 1632x1224)

3.67 MB PNG

>>6161280
>>6161317
>>6162040
Unanimous. Nice.

I will however not start writing, for I am discontinuing Grey Skies.

I'll be blunt; I am making this decision because there hasn't been enough interest and engagement. This is not your fault, nor is it that of your peers here at /qst/; the board has just been extraordinarily quiet during my tenure.

The thread was already coming to the end of the board and will be archived after this message goes up. I hope I can one day revive this quest when the board is less dead and I get the itch to write again. I know that realistic OC quests like these are rather rare on this board and I do wish to contribute to a genre diversification of sorts again sometime.

It has been incredible to write and it has been good as a first dabbling in QM'ing. For now, I shall return to the horde of anonymity.

I hope you have enjoyed this quest just as much as I did making it.

I will see you all when the time comes to return.

The quest has been archived here:
https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Grey%20Skies

>>6162484
Three to four voters for niche quests (mystery quests, realistic quests, slower paced quests) has been typical for about 2-3 years now, and the board's only getting slower. Sorry to see you go, though.

>>6162484
Make your quest hornier

>>6162802

There's already a woman in it, what more do you want?

>>6163024
Not enough

>>6162484
Well, thank you for writing, and thank you for stating your intentions for the quest clearly instead of flaking.

>>6162484
>I hope I can one day revive this quest when the board is less dead
Lol. Good luck. 3-4 voters for all but exceptional quests has been standard for /qst/'s lifespan (source: active since 2018), and your update schedule was really slow on top of that. I mean no malice when I say you either need to adjust your expectations or try something else.

Thanks for running though.