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File: interview.png (115 KB, 1920x1080)
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You sit alone at a large desk in a dark room. You were escorted in here roughly fifteen minutes ago so that you could have your interview with The Hunters Bureau. The de facto group for dealing with the supernatural. And while things have surely changed since the Bureau's inception- around a thousand years ago now- it still holds onto its core belief that anyone could be a Hunter… yes, anyone. Before you got shoved into this box you were sitting in the waiting room, surrounded by all types of characters: ex cops, ex cons, prostitutes, androids, chrome heads, dope heads, children and even some respectable looking citizens in there too.

A sound suddenly fills the room, the sound of a handleless door sliding open, followed by a faint square-shaped beam of orange light. Though both of these stimulants are kicked out of the room as an old man steps into the room- the door sliding back closed. The stench of smoke fills your nostrils before your eyes can adjust to actually see the man's face. A bald head, grey moustache and Dreamland Co: Asteroid Blue mega-cigarette are the only details you can make out on him. That and his bulky, torn jacket, adorned in damaged medals and sewn patchwork squares. He lowers himself into a chair on the opposite side of the table, placing a chunky tablet on the table. He plucks the mega-cigarette out of his mouth and presses the side of the tablet- the harsh blue light that erupts from it almost makes your eyes water. And then the harsh white ceiling light he turns on with a tap on the screen actually makes your eyes water. With a few grumbles, screen taps and hits of the mega-cigarette he finally meets your gaze.

“I'm sure you know why you're here so I'm gonna skip parts of this script they got for me-” He holds up the tablet with a flimsy grip before putting it back down- from the brief glimpse you got of all the text on the screen you couldn't be more grateful. “Gimme your name. First and last.”

>[SHORT & SLIGHTLY STANDOFFISH] “Write in.” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues, he's clearly just like you. Antisocial.

>[REHEARSED & PROPER] “My name Write in.” You fix your posture and reach out for a handshake. “To whom do I owe the pleasure?” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues. Some order in the chaos (his life) would be good for him.

>[HAPPY… LIKE WAY TOO HAPPY] You reach out with a strong smile and, forcefully, shake his hand “My name is Write in! Nice to meet ya!” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues. He desperately needs a friend.

>[REJECT SOCIAL CONVENTIONS] Stare and say nothing. | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues, clearly he doesn't want to do his job.

>[WRITE IN] In the words of a great philosopher: “Ahhh go crazy.”
>>
>>6300222
>[SHORT & SLIGHTLY STANDOFFISH] “MARY SYKES.” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues, he's clearly just like you. Antisocial.
>>
>>6300222
>[SHORT & SLIGHTLY STANDOFFISH] “CHARLIE STRODE” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues, he's clearly just like you. Antisocial.
>>
>>6300222
>>[REJECT SOCIAL CONVENTIONS] Stare and say nothing. | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues, clearly he doesn't want to do his job.
>>
>>6300222
>>[REHEARSED & PROPER] “My name is MARY SYKES.” You fix your posture and reach out for a handshake. “To whom do I owe the pleasure?” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues. Some order in the chaos (his life) would be good for him.
>>
>>6300222
>[REHEARSED & PROPER] “My name is MARY SYKES.” You fix your posture and reach out for a handshake. “To whom do I owe the pleasure?” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues. Some order in the chaos (his life) would be good for him.
>>
>>6300222
>[HAPPY… LIKE WAY TOO HAPPY] You reach out with a strong smile and, forcefully, shake his hand “My name is MARY SYKES! Nice to meet ya!” | This man is willingly smoking Asteroid Blues. He desperately needs a friend.
For some reason I want to play a genki girl this time.
>>
(Firstly, thanks for all the responses!!! Secondly, sorry for the long reply time have a short window of time to make theses)

Your reply comes quickly.

“Mary Skyes. To whom do I owe the pleasure?” No point putting on the whole show but when someone asks your name asking for theirs is just what you're supposed to do .Silence fills the room again soon after as if it was never broken to begin with. The man's eyes drop down to the tablet as he taps on the screen- the golden embers at the tip of his mega-cigarette glowing softly as he takes a drag. He stops; plucks out his mega-cigarette and blows a cloud of smoke into the air. Then he raises the block of metal up to you again. You can't help but notice, now that your eyes have adjusted, that his left hand is covered in metallic groves going down the whole length of his arm.

“Jordann Mcdonald. I get it right?” You look at the top left corner of the screen at the designated Name box. The name ”Mary Skies” greets you.

“It's Skyes with an -yes.” He lets out a low groan then flips the tablet around, passing it to you. You can't help but roll your eyes before fixing the error yourself and giving it back to him.

“Age?”

“21.”

“I need the D.O.B.”

“Sixth of June, 3266.”

“Address?”

“14 Alder House, South east Nu-Northampton.”

“History of education- if you got any?”

>[HIGHER EDUCATION] “Went to Nu-Northampton's University.” | Thankfully you were smart enough to know that those three years weren't going to open up that many job opportunities for you. Makes being here feel a lot less soul crushing.

>[BASIC EDUCATION] “Got through the first and second block.” | Though intellect varies wildly amongst state school graduates it's impossible to not pick up something over an eleven year period.

>[PRIVATE EDUCATION] “Got through first and second block at Nu-Northampton Tech.” | Your parent's money got you a slightly better education than most kids. The only downside being that your classmates were, frankly, insufferable.

>[UNEDUCATED] “Didn't go to school.” | Thankfully education and intelligence are two different things so you could be one without the other. However, you are neither and it probably shows in most situations.
>>
>>6300789
>>[PRIVATE EDUCATION] “Got through first and second block at Nu-Northampton Tech.” | Your parent's money got you a slightly better education than most kids. The only downside being that your classmates were, frankly, insufferable.
>>
>>6300789
>[HIGHER EDUCATION] “Went to Nu-Northampton's University.” | Thankfully you were smart enough to know that those three years weren't going to open up that many job opportunities for you. Makes being here feel a lot less soul crushing.
>>
>>6300789
>[BASIC EDUCATION] “Got through the first and second block.” | Though intellect varies wildly amongst state school graduates it's impossible to not pick up something over an eleven year period.
>>
>>6300789
>[BASIC EDUCATION] “Got through the first and second block.” | Though intellect varies wildly amongst state school graduates it's impossible to not pick up something over an eleven year period.
>>
>>6300789
>>[BASIC EDUCATION] “Got through the first and second block.” | Though intellect varies wildly amongst state school graduates it's impossible to not pick up something over an eleven year period.
>>
>>6300789
>[HIGHER EDUCATION] “Went to Nu-Northampton's University.” | Thankfully you were smart enough to know that those three years weren't going to open up that many job opportunities for you. Makes being here feel a lot less soul crushing.
>>
“Finished the first and second block.”

“Where at?”

“Avery South.” For the first time in this whole interview you watch as Jordann's face lights up alongside his cigarette, letting out a chuckle of sorts.

“Sorry to hear that.” Something within tries it's hardest to make you feel offended by his joke but as someone who did, in fact, attend Avery South you can't help but agree that it's a pretty unfortunate fate for any child.

However, the real tragedy here is that during the brief pause provided to you by Jordann throwing his current mega-cigarette bud to the floor and lighting a new one. You can't help but think back on your school days.

[MECHANICS: ROLLING]
In this quest there will be two types of rolls made: Player Rolls and GM Rolls.

Player rolls will be used to complete complex, high stakes or certain write in actions. Player rolls given a set DV to beat by me. The outcome of the Player roll will be determined by the first 3 players to reply. 1 person beating the DV is all that is required to beat a roll but the more successes on a roll will make Mary's action more resounding.

3 success = critical success
2 success = normal success
1 success = pyrrhic success
0 success = failure

GM Rolls will be done by me to determine anything that could have multiple outcomes (mainly due to a player choice) or things I don't want you voting on. They will have a list of outcomes in a table that will be determined by my roll.


GM ROLL | MARY THE ???
>>
Rolled 78 (1d100)

>>6301250
>1-25 LONER | You spent most of your time in school wishing you were literally anywhere else. You don't really know why you were deemed unapproachable in the first block but by the time you and your classmates reached the second your rep was cemented. And you played into it hard. Grew the bangs out over your eyes, ate by yourself at lunch and scribbled all kinds of esoteric and edgy nonsense into your school books. If your classmates were to be asked to describe you back in school they'd all reply with: Ummm…. Who was that again?

>26-50 DELINQUENT | God you were one scary bitch back in your block days. When the stars aligned and you weren't suspended or skipping- you terrorised the halls of Avery South with your friends. Which usually led to a swift suspension, freeing the students from your tyranny. But if one crime had to define you it would definitely be grievous bodily harm. When you fought it wasn't to just settle a score, it was to fuck someone up.

>51-75 NERD | Teacher pet, through and through. You were the kid who raised their hand to answer every question and it paid off for you greatly. When tests, competitions or pointless debates online came knocking on your door you were always victorious. You surrounded yourself with fellow intellectuals and had a small but tight knit circle of friends. However, you did frequently get beat up for reminding your teachers about collecting homework.

>76-100 POPULAR | The object of envy, the apple of eyes, miss most-likely-to-become-a-celebrity! Who else could it be The Mary Skyes!!! When you walked into school there was magnetism that turned every head in the room. Your words resonated in the hearts of your peers like scripture. You were already a natural at influencing people but you decided to master it and that's what truly cemented your legacy back during the blocks… Oh my god we're really sitting in a Hunter Bureau interview room right now, where did it all go wrong?!?! T^T
>>
>>6301251
red][MECHANICS: TRAITS]

Choosing certain options will occasionally provide the player with traits. Traits can do a variety of things such as increasing stats (which we will touch later), adding additional choice options and will change the general attitude or mannerisms of our hunter-to-be Mary. However it will also affect how the NPCS in the world treat her too, so it's probably best to not stack up on psycho traits just for the stat benefits.[/red]

TRAIT GAINED | MARY THE POPULAR

Jordann finishes lighting his new mega-cigarette and continues going down the list.

“Any preexisting medical conditions?”

“No.”

“You smoke?”

“We practically shared that last cigarette.” You fan away the grey cloud that Jordann blew in your direction as you were responding.

“That didn't ans-”

“Yes.” You sigh.

“You drink too?”

“Mhmm.”

“Alright now we're on to the questions that actually matter.” He stands up with a stretch and reaches into an inside coat pocket. In a blur he whips out four cards- licenses- spread out evenly in his palm. They read out in order:

Permit to Bear Small Arms: Jordann Mcdonald

Permit to Bear Shoulder Arms: Jordann Mcdonald

Permit to Bear Bladed Weapons: Jordann Mcdonald

Permit to Bear Combat Cybernetics: Jordann Mcdonald


“Got one of these, Miss Skyes?”

>[SMALL ARMS PERMIT] | You figure it's best to match Jordann's energy since it might help you get employed. You reach for your waist and draw your ‘Ol reliable. An M3011 pistol. You spin it around your finger before slamming it on the table. Then you draw back the slide- just enough to show you carry with one in the chamber- since he definitely seems the type of guy to tweak out over that.

>[SHOULDER ARMS PERMIT] | You figure it's best to match Jordann's energy since it might help you get employed. You reach under the table and lift up a briefcase, flinging it over your shoulder. Without looking back you press a button on the handle and the bottom half of the briefcase separates and flips upwards, revealing your FMG99.

>[BLADED WEAPONS PERMIT] You figure it's best to match Jordann's energy since it might help you get employed. You hook your foot under something you had laying underneath the desk and with one fluid motion you kick it into the air. Your Ring Revolution Sabre spins in the sky. You stand up, grabbing the weapon as it starts to descend and with a quick flick of your wrist you draw the blade out fully.

>[COMBAT CYBERNETICS PERMIT]
Requires “COMES FROM WEALTH” trait
>>
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>>6301255
Missed a bracket, going to kill myself... also forgot to post this image with the roll too.
>>
File: xgDE-Q.gif (6.33 MB, 480x360)
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>>6301255
>>[SMALL ARMS PERMIT] | You figure it's best to match Jordann's energy since it might help you get employed. You reach for your waist and draw your ‘Ol reliable. An M3011 pistol. You spin it around your finger before slamming it on the table. Then you draw back the slide- just enough to show you carry with one in the chamber- since he definitely seems the type of guy to tweak out over that.
>>
>>6301255
>>[BLADED WEAPONS PERMIT] You figure it's best to match Jordann's energy since it might help you get employed. You hook your foot under something you had laying underneath the desk and with one fluid motion you kick it into the air. Your Ring Revolution Sabre spins in the sky. You stand up, grabbing the weapon as it starts to descend and with a quick flick of your wrist you draw the blade out fully.
>>
>>6301255
>>[SMALL ARMS PERMIT] | You figure it's best to match Jordann's energy since it might help you get employed. You reach for your waist and draw your ‘Ol reliable. An M3011 pistol. You spin it around your finger before slamming it on the table. Then you draw back the slide- just enough to show you carry with one in the chamber- since he definitely seems the type of guy to tweak out over that.
GUN.
>>
>>6301255
>[BLADED WEAPONS PERMIT]
>>
>>6301255
>>[SMALL ARMS PERMIT] | You figure it's best to match Jordann's energy since it might help you get employed. You reach for your waist and draw your ‘Ol reliable. An M3011 pistol. You spin it around your finger before slamming it on the table. Then you draw back the slide- just enough to show you carry with one in the chamber- since he definitely seems the type of guy to tweak out over that.
>>
You reach for your waist and draw your ‘Ol reliable. An M3011 pistol. You spin it around your finger before slamming it on the table. The sound echoes throughout the room as Jordann looks down at your pristine firearm. Then you raise the weapon back up, continuing your spinning theatrics. One of Jordann's eyebrows raise as he slowly plucks his mega-cigarette out of his mouth. Suddenly- he contracts then extends his arm. A sharp screech, akin to a braking train, pierces your ears. And in the blink of an eye a G63 flies out from within his coat sleeve into his palm by a bracelet of sorts. The display makes you stop spinning instinctively. Your eyes dart from your gun to his and then into his eyes. They meet…

MARY THE POPULAR
“Mine's bigger.”
. The corners of Jordann's lips lift and he can't help but let out a few smoker's-lung-riddled chuckles. If this was an actual shootout he would've knocked your head off clean but in a war of words and minds you always reign supreme.

“You'd be shocked how many times a lady's told me that.” He holsters[/] his gun; sits back down, goes back to typing and you follow suit. “But I'd be in both of our interests for you to go back to being concise.” And just like that, he's back to business like the ordeal never happened. You do notice however, that he has begun filling out a bunch of sections on your file without asking you anything- just how much info can you deem or infer from one license? No point in questioning it though.

“Two questions left. Have you ever had an encounter with a supernatural entity? Which is defined under section eight of the Defining Humanity Law as-”

“Any human or animal that has been infected by the blood of a Vampire, Lycanthrope, Ghost or Necromancer.”

"Yeah."

>[AVOIDED THE SUPERNATURAL] | “Nope. Know nothing about them either.” Since you were fortunate enough to never have a hands-on experience with the supernatural you never felt the need to look much into it. And on the days where they talked about them in class you were doing much more important things- well important in regards to a teenage girl.

>[THEORETICAL ENCOUNTERS] | “Never seen one in person but I've read up on them.” Through school, tales around town and personal research you can safely say that you're knowledgeable on the subject but who knows how much will hold up in the field.

>[PERSONAL ENCOUNTER] | “Yeah… I bumped into one.” You don't like to talk about your encounter with the (write in). And you've done your best not to think about it.

>[PERSONAL ENCOUNTER & OBSESSION] “Yeah. I bumped into one.” You don't like to talk about your encounter with the (write in). But after you survive an encounter with one of those things- any of them- you can't go back to normal. Weeks, months, years of your time in private was spent making sure that you'd be ready for the next time.
>>
: (
>>
>>6301651
>>[PERSONAL ENCOUNTER & OBSESSION] “Yeah. I bumped into one.” You don't like to talk about your encounter with the (write in). But after you survive an encounter with one of those things- any of them- you can't go back to normal. Weeks, months, years of your time in private was spent making sure that you'd be ready for the next time.
>Write-In: SASQUATCH
>>
>>6301651
>>[THEORETICAL ENCOUNTERS] | “Never seen one in person but I've read up on them.” Through school, tales around town and personal research you can safely say that you're knowledgeable on the subject but who knows how much will hold up in the field.
>>
>>6301657
+1
>>
>>6301651
>[PERSONAL ENCOUNTER] | “Yeah… I bumped into one.” You don't like to talk about your encounter with the (write in). And you've done your best not to think about it.
>Write-in: Something infected by the blood of a Ghost
Leaving the specifics of the creature to the QM.
>>
>>6301651
>>[PERSONAL ENCOUNTER] | “Yeah… I bumped into one.” You don't like to talk about your encounter with the (write in). And you've done your best not to think about it.
Slit-Mouthed Woman
>>
“Yeah… I bumped into one.” You don't like to talk about your encounter with that ghost. And you've done your best not to think about it. The deformed face… the questions- it left you alone in the end but it feels like the world gets a sick kick out constantly reminding you. Every compliment makes your stomach churn- a memory floods back. Back in school, two days after that damn ghost talked to you some asshole… No, he was just some guy- some guy who couldn't have known… He said you had the most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen and asked you out. But then that damn face flashed in your head. You unconsciously winced and then threw up. It wasn't too long after that, that you decided to keep your bangs over your eyes and that kid moved somewhere else. Worst thing is you never had the courage to report it so for all you know that ghost is still out there and could hunt you again one day.

TRAIT GAINED : APPLE OF THINE EYE (GHOST) | You may not care too much about ghosts or anything of those other supernatural entities. But that one ghost… that one damn ghost.

The sound of Jordann clearing his throat brings you out of your own head. He tosses the burnt-out bud of his second mega-cigarette so far to the floor but, to your surprise, doesn't immediately start lighting up a third. He just stares at you. His stone cold expression felt even colder somehow.

“Final question: What made you choose being a hunter?”

>SURVIVAL | “To be completely honest, money. It's either this or death.”

>FAME | “To go down as one of the best to ever do it.”

>TRADITION | “It's just what us Skyes do- honestly shocked you didn't seem to recognise my surname.”

>ADORATION | “I know most people just see Hunters as shittier cops but I've seen the good they've done for people and I've always wanted to be one myself.”

>THRILL | “The hunt called, I answered.”

>DEATHWISH | “Easy way out…”

>PURPOSE | "Well, I can't stay holed up in my basement forever… I just… can't.”

>KNOWLEDGE | “There's an entire world out there we barely know anything about- and I want to know.”

APPLE OF THINE EYE (GHOST)
>OBSESSION | “There's a ghost I have to slay.”
>>
>>6302170
>>PURPOSE | "Well, I can't stay holed up in my basement forever… I just… can't.”
>>
>>6302170
>PURPOSE | "Well, I can't stay holed up in my basement forever… I just… can't.”
I'm actually interested in most of these, hard to choose. Except for Thrill and Tradition I'd be fine with anything. But Purpose... The reference to living in the basement in combo with the popular girl background is entertaining to me.
>>
>>6302170
>>KNOWLEDGE | “There's an entire world out there we barely know anything about- and I want to know.”
>>
>>6302170
>PURPOSE | "Well, I can't stay holed up in my basement forever… I just… can't.”

Yeah, nice contrast, past and present.
>>
"Well, I can't stay holed up in my basement forever… I just… can't.”

Jordann pushes himself out of his seat, typing in your final answer while he heads to the door. “Hunters get their share of work, sure, but the ones who last tend to have an idea of what it's doing for ‘em beforehand. Take it from me. You'll be hard pressed to find fulfillment in the hunt alone.”

“At the very least, let's just hope I've actually found a job for now.” You stand up and start packing your things.

“Let's… applications are processed quickly- three to five business days. Give or take. If you hear back from us at all, congrats, you got the job. They stopped sending rejection notices decades ago.” With that he leaves the room and it's not long before you finish collecting your things and exit too.

The second your feet step out of the building, a lighter and cigarette is in your hands as if they’d just materialised in your palm. As nicotine fills your veins with a quick twitch of your thumb the world feels like it is spinning slower. Your eyes drift over the sea of grey buildings tightly packed together, only separated by the occasional alley or road. This concrete jungle is dense in terms of habitat and inhabitants. The sidewalk is filled with a hundred or so busy bodies going in different directions. The homeless on the streets tucking their tents and bodies in the alleyways to avoid trampling, though you doubt many would notice. Almost every alley is haunted by this droning moaning sound, caused by folded-over drug addicts that inhabit them. The Rings call it the Siren’s call- a cruel joke on Synthoadeline’s (Street name: S) signature side effect of relaxing the facial muscles. Eventually the inevitable happens- some asshole bumps into you and you're brought back to reality. You drown out the street with your headphones and head to your car.
>>
>>6302813
The drive home is uneventful. You arrive back at your house- well it's not a house- it's a pillar. A massive state-housing unit built to hold as many people in one place as possible. The front door opens with a signature creek and you're immediately met with the sight of your mother sitting down at the table, eyes glued to the Televisional Hologram System that's older than you. In her dominant hand is a cup quarter-filled can of cider and in her off hand is a Carousel Gold cigarette- the Skyes’ brand of choice. As you finally close the door behind you her greying hair tied-up in a bun sways as she turns to face you. A burn mark on her cheek serves as a poorly blended blush. Her stare drowns out the sound of the THS.

“How'd it go?” You duck into the kitchen to crack open a can of your own, preemptively letting out your sighs and eye rolls before you crash into your seat and reply.

“I think it went well.”

“You think-? They didn't say they were gonna follow up or anything?”

“Dude at the interview said to give it a week.”

“Hmmm, okay… That's good.” You both take a sip in unison. “You quit smoking again or what?” She takes a snide puff of her cigarette.

“I finished my pack on the way here.” Your mom nods her head slightly, toward the opened pack laying on the table.

“Help yourself.” You sigh but oblige.

“So… If this Hunter thing is a bust, do you have any other plans?”

“...No.”

“Think you could finally give your dad's idea a try-?”

“No!”

“Why not?!

“Getting gawked at isn't my thing anymore. I'm not going up to sector seven to have old weirdos do it to me all day.”

“They're not old weirdos, they're photographers. It's modelling!”

“Same shit- still not doing it!”

“Oh my God. You are so selfish, you know that? Your father goes out there working- day and night- to get you an opportunity up in sector seven... and you're just gonna throw it in his face again and again. If I looked half as good as you, I'd have my face plastered all over The Rings by now.”

“Why can't you attention whore like everybody else and just do porn already- since you want people to see you get plastered so bad?” Your mom’s gasp shakes the room.

Mary Charlie Skyes, there must be a ghost in this room because I know you're not talking to me like that in my house! I mean just look at your friends from Avery. They're all finishing uni and going into good careers- but I'm the bad guy because I don't want my daughter getting mauled by a lycan.” She knocks back what remained in her drink, snuffing her cigarette in the ashtray and standing up. “I don't know what you think you'll find working as a Hunter but hopefully you come to your senses before you die.”

With that she leaves, leaving you alone in the living room. How do you spend the rest of the night?
>>
>>6302814
>JUST GO TO BED

>DRINK TILL YOU DROP

>WATCH THS

>CALL DAD

>APOLOGISE TO MOM

>GO ONLINE AND SEE IF YOUR BLOCK FRIENDS REALLY ARE DOING BETTER THAN YOU

>WATCH PORN & MASTURBATE

>WEAPON MAINTENANCE

>RESEARCH ON SUPERNATURAL

>DRIVE AROUND AIMLESSLY TILL YOU'RE TIRED
>>
>>6302815
>RESEARCH ON SUPERNATURAL
Might as well look up what's in store for us. If we land this job, that is.
>>
>>6302815
>>GO ONLINE AND SEE IF YOUR BLOCK FRIENDS REALLY ARE DOING BETTER THAN YOU
>>
>>6302815
>DRINK TILL YOU DROP
>DRIVE AROUND AIMLESSLY TILL YOU'RE TIRED
The funniest combination.
>>
>>6302815
>GO ONLINE AND SEE IF YOUR BLOCK FRIENDS REALLY ARE DOING BETTER THAN YOU
>RESEARCH ON SUPERNATURAL

These can both be done one after the other on the computer. It isn't as funny as drinking and driving, but it's safer.
>>
>>6302815
Yeah, if they can be combined, I support this anon >>6303113
I am tsNozTLY, my ID changes constantly.
>>
>>6302815
>>WATCH PORN & MASTURBATE
>>
>>6302815
>WATCH PORN & MASTURBATE
No this is funnier. Too pretty to do modeling but not to watch porn.
>>
>>6302815
>CALL DAD
>>
You figure if you actually land this job it'll probably be best to touch up on your knowledge on the supernatural. You grab your laptop and legally buy a book on the subject… for free.

The book's opening chapters go over some introductory information. To begin, there are four classifications of supernatural entities: Vampire, Lycanthrope, Ghost and Necromancer. And, unlike other entity groups such as mechanical entities, each supernatural entity is considered an ’A threat to human existence’ under the ‘Defining Humanity Law’, meaning it is punishable by death to house, store or support them without government permission. While visuals can vary wildly within the groups each has a distinct identifying factor. All Lycanthropes have unnatural amounts of hair on their body and a tail. All Necromancers show visual signs of flesh decay. All Ghosts appear slightly transparent. And all Vampires, the hardest to identify, possess unnaturally large canine teeth.

Supernatural entities appear to have varying intelligence which seems to correlate with their strength. And their strength seems to increase when they consume human blood. An animal is converted into a supernatural entity when it is infused with the blood of another supernatural entity via bite- a feat exclusively done by entities who have obtained sentience. Regardless of intelligence beforehand a newly converted entity will tend to act with intelligence akin to a three year old human child.

There is only one way a supernatural entity can be ‘Vanquished’ in a ‘Hunt’. That is by removing and destroying its heart, which will cause its body to disintegrate into an ash-like substance. However, all entities possess the ability to regenerate themselves. This is where silver munitions come into play as they slow down the rate of regeneration and weaken the entity's special abilities, enough so that the heart can be removed without a prolonged battle. If silver munitions are not available it is still possible to vanquish an entity the hunter will simply have to drain the entity of its blood through battle. It is advised for Hunters, if found in one of these situations, to repeatedly dismember and behead the entity until they show signs of severe blood deprivation before making an attempt on destroying its heart. This process can take several months and, most likely years, depending on the strength of the entity. The record for ‘longest hunt on a single supernatural entity’ is currently set at 336 days.

[TRAIT GAINED: FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE ON SUPERNATURAL ENTITIES]
>>
>>6303347
You let out a long yawn, a clear sign from your body that you've been reading for too long and it's time to do something more fun. It's not too long before you find yourself doom-scrolling on your social media of choice and it's not a bad experience, per se, but it's not exactly a good one- Wait a minute!? You stare at something on your screen wide-eyed. It's a picture of a girl, about your age, cradling a baby while laying in a hospital bed.

“Holy shit, Vanessa has a kid now?! She's fucked!” You unconsciously blurt out an insult and then quickly cover your mouth, darting your eyes left and right as if you were gossiping at a lunch table with the girls again. Except you're not and the last time you did was about four or five years ago- kinda embarrassing to think those mannerisms are still there just laying dormant within you. But that doesn't matter because clearly your mom was dead wrong- I mean Vanessa has a son at twenty. And there's not a father in sight in this picture or the nine other photos she took. This vindicates you enough to finally check up on what your block friends are up to since, if Vanessa is anything to go off, they might actually be doing worse than you somehow.

You check Julia's page and it's pretty… meh. It's just pics of her going to uni and the occasional party on her page. Her most recent post has her standing in front of a decent-looking office building with #dreamjob as the caption. But that'll only start stinging bad if the next three to five business days are filled with radio silence. Hannah is up next and- oh God… She's not a goth anymore. She's so normal looking now… To think the biggest slut in your friend group is now roaming sector nine with blonde hair, cybernetic blue eyes and a decent fashion sense. Seems like the baking content she was making is serving her pretty well… three hundred and ten thousand followers, eh? That's kinda decent. Let's check Amanda's page, she's probably been doing nothing but sitting around- on yachts this whole time?! Who in God's name flew this bitch out to sector two?! You scroll down through her page and come to the conclusion that it's time to remove a lot of artists from your playlist. Your eyes spitefully scan the right side of your laptop for a different account to click and you notice a vaguely familiar face. Damn is that… Vomit Guy? His name is Josh but after you, literally, vomited on him the nickname became his Avery identity. It is! Let's get off of Amanda's page and see what he's up to. Woah… that's a lot of shirtless pictures. And he got kinda… umm- fit. Like really fit, over the past couple years, huh? His… girlfriend is pretty damn hot too… and lets just check her page real quick- yep there's the porn link.
>>
>>6303348
Deep down you know you're gonna click it but there's a section of your conscious mind that cannot accept this wild train of thought. Are you really gonna touch yourself to… Vomit Guy, dicking someone down? Yes, yes you are. You'll think about how bad of an idea this was when you're done. You grab your laptop, head to your room (which technically is the basement, renovated into a bedroom) and masturbate.

However, those eight minutes go by way too fast to justify this. You lay in bed, laptop closed and to your side. Your eyes drift to the left wall and stare at the barely visible pictures of your block days plastered all over it. Pictures of the days where everything was so much simpler. Or maybe it was always this complex but you just didn't have to care back then, who knows? All that we do know now is that: You're the only one with nothing going on in your life.

That thought sends you off to sleep. Then you wake up; get out of bed, go pee and then go back to sleep. This repeats for… who knows how long, you weren't counting. But the cycle is eventually broken by the sound of your mother.

“Mary! The Hunters sent a letter! Get up here!”

>GO BACK TO SLEEP

>FALL ASLEEP

>CONTINUE LAYING DOWN WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED

>NOD OFF

>DOZE OFF

>SNOOZE

>NAP

>EMBRACE PSEUDO-DEATH ONCE MORE

(Just to say thanks for all the contributions from you guys and keeping up with this quest we got going here! I guess with this we kinda just got through the chapter 1 of Mary's story- to many more!!!)
>>
>>6303351
WHOOPS- meant to put a
>WRITE IN
here too
>>
>>6303351
>WRITE-IN
>HIT THE HAY
The illusion of choice.
>>
>>6303351
>CONTINUE LAYING DOWN WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED
If mom isn't so kind as to deliver the letter to us...
>EMBRACE PSEUDO-DEATH ONCE MORE
>>
>>6303351
>>SNOOZE
>>
>>6303351
>>CONTINUE LAYING DOWN WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED
>>
>>6303351
FUCK the popular opinion.
>Double-check whether you're sleeping, and if not, go get the letter.

>Just to say thanks for all the contributions from you guys and keeping up with this quest we got going here!
It's cool so far. If I may point out one thing, it is that you sometimes pick options that are not most voted. e.g. first vote [SHORT & SLIGHTLY STANDOFFISH] and [REHEARSED & PROPER] had equal votes, but you picked the latter. Another was [PERSONAL ENCOUNTER] vs [PERSONAL ENCOUNTER & OBSESSION]. Usually QMs roll for ties, so I wanted to ask what guides you in picking which options win. It's fine either way, just wondering if that's just QM preference or some deeper reasoning.
>>
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You continue to lay in bed, keeping your eyes closed in hopes that eventually the calls from above will cease. And your hopes come to pass as after about a minute of yelling your mother, seemingly, gives up and you're free to submit to the warm duvet above you. It is then yanked off you- you can't help but groan as your skin is subjected to the cold.

“Mary! Get up!”

“Okay- okay. I'm up- God.” You roll off your bed and begin following your mom up into the living room in a groggy haze.

When you finally make it to the living room you see the unopened letter laying in the center of the dining table. With a yawn you rip the envelope open and skim over the paper inside.

“So…? What they say?”

“Said I'm in. Yawn. Umm… I gotta come in on… Monday to do basic training and I guess I'll be an official Hunter by the end.” Your mom gives you a small hug then holds you by the shoulders, smiling.

“Well that's good- still have my thoughts but unfortunately you're not a baby anymore and I can't really stop you.”

“Thanks… I'm gonna head back to bed now.” You move to break free of your mother's grasp but you weren't expecting her to actually try and keep you in it so she ends up keeping you in place with ease.

“Oh no- I think you've been in your bed enough. Go take a shower- me and you are going out today.”

“Huh- Why?”

“Well we need to make sure you look good for your first day, Mary.”

“It's my first day as a Hunter mom. Not a lawyer or anything- don't you have work today anyways?”

“Mary, it's Saturday.” Your eyes widen a little and it suddenly becomes much harder to maintain eye contact- maybe you have been in your bed for too long. “And either way it doesn't matter if you're a lawyer or fast food worker, you should look presentable. So get going.” She practically spins you around and in defeat you go walk into the bathroom.
>>
MECHANICS: STATS]
There are 3 stats that make up the broad generalisation of Mary skills. Those being Combat, Charisma and Cunning. These are increased and decreased, mainly, by Mary's traits. When making a player roll one of the three stats will be used to complete the task. The current value of the stat becomes the modifier added when making a player roll.


You have a nice, warm shower and when you're done you look at yourself in the mirror above the sink.

STAT BLOCK

COMBAT | COM: 1

CHARISMA | CHA: 3

CUNNING | CUN: 1

WEAPON(S): M3011 | COM+1

TRAITS: MARY THE POPULAR | CHA+3, APPLE OF THINE EYE(GHOST), FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE ON SUPERNATURAL ENTITIES | CUN+1


You know what, we can work with this, maybe we aren't a lost cause just yet. You dry off; get dressed, put on a minimal amount of makeup and then wait for your mom to complete her awfully long routine. When she eventually finishes it becomes painfully clear that this outing has a dual-purpose of sorts because she's gone out of her way to fully hide her burn scar with makeup. She never leaves the house without doing a little work on it since, you can both admit it's not pleasant to look at even when you're used to it, but she never covers it up fully unless it's a special occasion or when your dad visits. However, there's no real point in questioning it- at least not right now. So, for now, you just drive her around wherever.

The first stop is as hairdressers. Which is nice because your hair is a little damaged but annoying since you don't actually want to change your hairstyle. You're essentially giving up an hour of your life to have an inch cut off and extra volume in your hair for a week. You oblige regardless though- how could you not mum is paying. Well… kinda. You notice while you're getting your hair washed, which is doubling as a really good head massage as well, that she's chatting up what seems to be the manager. And low and behold when it's time to pay you two are covered for.

If antics like this were usual for your mom this would be no big deal but they're not. Maybe in her past but certainly not while you've been on earth- so there's only one meaning to this. One meaning behind that overtly smug smile as you two get back in your car. She's trying to one up you. You're not sure if she's trying to prove she's prettier or has more game or whatever but she's trying to say outclasses you regardless.

>SHE'S CLEARLY GOING THROUGH A MIDLIFE CRISIS DON’T PLAY INTO IT |

>MAY THE BETTER GIRL WIN!

>QUESTION (REJECT) | “What was that about, mum?”

>QUESTION (ACCEPT) | “Where'd you learn to play guys like that? Would've thought your Gen's methods would be patched by now.”

>WRITE IN

(To that one guy, if the votes are tied, and I can't combine the options, I'll usually go with the one I think I can execute better. I'll probably roll when the options are more dire though- and hey it keeps you on your toes… hopefully
>>
>>6303790
>MAY THE BETTER GIRL WIN!

I'll give mom the undeserved benefit of the doubt and say she's just being playful, or perhaps a cunning miser. And not...weirdly competing with your daughter because of jealousy or something.
>>
>>6303790
>MAY THE BETTER GIRL WIN!
The future is now, old woman
>>
>>6303790
>QUESTION (REJECT) | “What was that about, mum?”
>>
>>6303790
>SHE'S CLEARLY GOING THROUGH A MIDLIFE CRISIS DON’T PLAY INTO IT

>(To that one guy, if the votes are tied, and I can't combine the options, I'll usually go with the one I think I can execute better. I'll probably roll when the options are more dire though- and hey it keeps you on your toes… hopefully
Alright, got it, chief.
>>
>>6303790
>>MAY THE BETTER GIRL WIN!
>>
>>6303790
>MAY THE BETTER GIRL WIN!
>>
Ok if this is really what she wants to do with her Saturday- fine- but you're not going to let her get that ego boost without working for it. The family battle of charisma starts now, may the best girl win.

You start your car and begin your journey towards the perfect battleground to host your feud- it also has quite a few options for clothes but that's not important right now. It takes about an hour, or so, for your mother to recognise the route you're taking. She adjusts her posture and casually takes out her phone, examining her face using the camera app.

“You're heading to The Enclosure? And here I thought you wanted this trip to be quick.”

You gotta go all out on looking good. A wise old woman told me that once. Plus I'm just not feeling like walking through a high-street today.” She gives you a small laugh in response before speaking up again.

“Ok then dear, just don't drain my social battery too fast. Even I can't swoon everyone.”

“Who said anything about you doing the swooning?” There is a resounding silence in the car as your car sits idly at a traffic light. “I got it covered.”

“Do you now? Hmph. Didn't expect you to be so gung-ho, considering how you've been acting recently. Though I assure you I'm perfectly fine.”

MARY THE POPULAR
“C’mon don't hog all the fun- the day will be boring if you just win everybody over. The fact I could fail miserably is what makes this fun~”


“Well I don't think anyone is saying no to that face.” She pinches your cheek. “But I'll be there to catch you if you fall. And pay, if we run into a gay man or something like that.”

You laugh but the thought of failure is far detached from your mind. You're already starting to revel in an imagined victory. Back when you were a kid you got away with a lot due to your looks and charm- God knows you got people to do some embarrassing stuff too. But you haven't felt the need to enter that mindset in a long time… that feeling of suspense almost makes you feel alive.

It's not long after this conversation that you reach The Enclosure. A massive, circular, black-walled sports stadium. However after it had served its initial purpose it was renovated into a massive shopping mall. With five floors above ground and two below, practically every company with a name that holds worth has a section in that building to call their own. Regardless of how frivolous their products might be. As you turn off the music in your car the sound of S fiends outside becomes palpable. It doesn't really shock you, this being a hot spot for the homeless just makes sense there's a lot of people around with money to spend allegedly, but the amount of them is absurd
>>
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>>6304193
You head inside and the first order of business is to get new clothes. You head towards one of the smaller, and currently empty, stores but not just because it was the first one you saw or brand loyalty. The main reason is that this place is known for having a cashier that doubles as a tailor. As such it's more hassle than it's worth for most of the clientele to come in here and that cute brunette girl working at the counter is probably bored out of her mind.. Easy slam dunk. When you step inside she actually gives you quite a bubbly greeting and offers to help with whatever you need. Eventually you pick up some options and throw them on. You stand in front of a mirror in the back, getting eyed up by the tailor and your mother and after a few spins and twirls the tailor speaks up.

“Hmm… take off one of those sleeves on the jacket for me please.” You oblige and unzip one of the detachable sleeves, handing over to your mother. “Hmmm... Yeah. Yeahyeahyeah- I think we should defo’ shorten the sleeves on that. Show more of the wrist ya know.”

“Really? I dunno girl, I like the longer sleeves. It's cute, no? It's got that, like, Jane Rockhelm vibe to it.” The girl nods but clearly isn't fully swayed.

“Let's see how it looks with the gun out dear, don't want any casings flying into your coat.”

“Oh my God I didn't even think of that your mom is soooo right. C'mon pull it out, let's see.” Damn if you had a dick this would've been the perfect chance to make an all or nothing shot… Also you haven't really talked to someone, your age, for so long you forgot you kinda sound like a stereotype when you do. Regardless of that you draw your gun. “Hmmm… Okay with the gun out that does look way better.”

“Yeah. I don't think we'd have to get any work done on these, Mary.”

“Mhmm~ I could ring you guys up right now if you want.”

“Aww that sucks…”

“Huh-? Why?”

MARY THE POPULAR
“I wanted to spend more time with you.” The tailor eyes widen for a split second before her body is overtaken by a little laugh.


“W-well can't say I mind the company. It's almost one and you two are like my first customers today, so serious.”

>LET MOM TAKE THE WHEEL

>CONVINCE MOM TO JUST PAY

>STICK THE LANDING, SECURE THESE FREE CLOTHES | CHA ROLL (DC 8)

>SECURE THE CLOTHES & THE NUMBER | CHA ROLL (DC 10)

>BURROW YOURSELF INTO HER PSYCHE | CHA ROLL (DC 12)

(These rolls are done with d20s if I didn't state it earlier)
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>>6304195
>STICK THE LANDING, SECURE THESE FREE CLOTHES | CHA ROLL (DC 8)
Should we roll now? Is it a best of 3?
>>
Rolled 5 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>6304195
>SECURE THE CLOTHES & THE NUMBER | CHA ROLL (DC 10)

I forgot if you mentioned it, but do we wait until all the votes are tallied before rolling, to avoid influencing the vote?

Anyways, with +3 to our rolls, and with 3 rolls, I think we have a decent chance of succeeding even the DC 12 choice with at least 2 of our 3 rolls beating the DC. I'll play it safe though and go middle of the road.
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>>6304199
Read >>6303790 and >>6301250 again to understand the mechanics.
>>
Rolled 13 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>6304195
>STICK THE LANDING, SECURE THESE FREE CLOTHES | CHA ROLL (DC 8)
>>
>>6304203
Now that we've actually started rolling that's probably how I should’ve gone about it but from how I wrote it and planned it in my head. The rolls come first and then we find out which option the majority goes for. Which could lead to people voting on a option based solely on the fact it'll have more successes but eh. I'm not gonna be mad at it or anything.
>>
Rolled 9 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>6304195
>STICK THE LANDING, SECURE THESE FREE CLOTHES | CHA ROLL (DC 8)
>>
Rolled 1 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>6304195
>STICK THE LANDING, SECURE THESE FREE CLOTHES
>>
>>6304265
Good thing I rolled 2 minutes later and this roll is out of the Bo3 bounds.
>>
STICK THE LANDING, SECURE THESE FREE CLOTHES | CRITICAL SUCCESS

You share a quick glance with mom. Her eyes speak clearly: there's no way you're my daughter if you mess this one up. You exchange a few more words with the tailor before going back into the changing room and putting on the clothes you came in with, cracking your knuckles before you exit again.

You wrap the clothes over your forearm and walk out with your posture perfect. There is a rhythm to your steps that just demands attention, swaying your hips in a way that can't be ignored but doesn't come off as forced. She stares at you as you walk up to the counter. Good thing she can't tell that if you're aware of that fact due to your bangs.

“Well, this is it~ You know I would probably snag a few more pieces but I don't wanna take up too much of your time.”

“Girl please, I already said I didn't mind. Having someone to talk to actually makes this bearable.” She fiddles with the sleeve of her suit jacket before finally scanning your first item. You let out a laugh.

“Well if it wasn't for-” You point at your mother. “Her, I could stay here and just chill with you the whole shift. I fuck with your vibe so heavy.” When you put your hand back down on the counter it, accidentally, lands on top of hers. You feel her flinch but your hand stays firmly pressed against hers.

“Same… Same…” Her eyes keep moving back and forth between your hand and your face. There's a growing blush.

You look at her. She looks at you.

MARY THE POPULAR
“It’s rude to stare, you know~”


Her face goes beet red as she tries to play it cool and begins scanning and bagging the rest of your clothes. You gotta admit she is very cute while flustered.

“Sorry about that- I just got a little distracted.” She's clearly trying to keep this interaction covert, considering your mother is standing nearby. “That'll be eight- I mean- ninety-six credits.”

Distracted? You know you should really focus more on your customer.” You reach into your pocket and pull out… nothing. Then you do the same routine with your other one. “Oh shit- left my bank-tool in the car. Mind if I take these up now and come back?”

“Yeah you're good- don’t even worry actually…I'll cover it.”

“Hmmm~? Thanks but where'd this come from?”

“Let's just say…” she pulls on one of the clothes’ tags before scribbling something down on it. “It's something to keep me on your mind~ plus the employee discount here is crazy. It's no big deal.” And with that she bags up your clothes, letting you and mom leave.
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>>6304297
You check the tag after and it's her number. Heh, didn't even have to ask.

“I'm shocked you didn't start kissing her in the store, Mary.”

“Okay, one, eww. I'm not kissing anyone in front of you, let alone a stranger… But, yeah, if I wanted to she totally would've let me.”

FUNDAMENTAL KNOWLEDGE ON SUPERNATURAL ENTITIES
The next stop you have in mind is a gun store- a box or two of silver ammo is definitely gonna come in handy.


You pick the first one you come across, that actually advertises having silver munitions in stock, and are met with a small population of customers looking over various wares. There seems to be two workers here. The first is a man around your mom's age who's kinda built like a wall- it's mainly a muscle thing but it's undeniable that he takes up a lot of space. Him being about a head taller than you also helps. The other is much younger, closer your age, and kinda… looks like he'd commit a school shooting. A thin build with blonde hair covering his eyes and tight snapback hat. He could probably branch off into a heartthrob if he really put in the effort.

>GET THOSE BULLETS FROM THE OLDER GUY

>GET THOSE BULLETS FROM THE YOUNGER GUY

>EXPLOIT THEM BOTH AT THE SAME TIME

>TAG TEAM WITH MOM
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>>6304298
>TAG TEAM WITH MOM

One for each of us, double the chances of a good deal. Besides, it isn't much of a competition if we hog all the cuties. But we need one more than mom, considering we are technically only even, if we count the hairdresser.
>>
>>6304298
>TAG TEAM WITH MOM
>>
>>6304298
>>EXPLOIT THEM BOTH AT THE SAME TIME
>>
>>6304298
>TAG TEAM WITH MOM
>>
>>6304298
>EXPLOIT THEM BOTH AT THE SAME TIME
>>
You gently tap your mom on the shoulder before leaning in to whisper in her ear, explaining your plan for the two of you to each get something out of one of the clerks. She agrees with glee and as if she were being pulled by magnet slides over towards the older gentleman. However, she does make it clear getting a brass catcher for an AR she has back at home is her priority and she'll try to get the silver ammo as a bonus if she can.

You walk past a few of the customers, who are mainly focused on various military paraphernalia that they're not actually going to buy, and make your way up to the young clerk. There's a brief moment where the two of you stand in silence, while seemingly, staring at each other. He takes the gamble of initiating the conversation.

“Looking for something?” If talking to him wasn't your sole focus here you probably would've missed his mumbled excuse of a sentence. Clearly you’re getting the full range of interactions today.

MARY THE POPULAR
“Yeah, ammo, silver.” You adapt to his speech pattern, perfectly.


“What size?”

“forty-five ACP. But I can take nine mills’.” He turns around and starts looking into a cabinet behind him. “I fuck with your hat.”

“Thanks. My girlfriend got it for me.” He finally takes out a small box, holding thirty bullets, while you maintain your nonchalant demeanour. “Why’d you need silver ammo? You a Hunter or something.”

“If I say yes will I get a discount?”

“Honestly… you might if you ask him.” he points over to the other man and you turn your head to see him giving a very passionate speech about something as your mom listens while giving him bedroom eyes. In other words, she's doing fine. “If you are one, for real though, that's cool.”

“The only thing cool about it is how skilled we get with our hands.” Is this technically stolen valour- you guess. But that doesn't matter as you notice the slight twitch in this man's facial muscles as you make your innuendo.

“That so? Show me something.”

“Gonna need to hand me something first.” He reaches to his side, pulling a pistol out of his holster limp-wristedly and sliding it on the counter.

>RESPECT HIS GIRLFRIEND, DO SOMETHING COOL FOR COOL’S SAKE ONLY

>PUT ON A SHOW, PRESENT YOUR FINESSE AND LET HIS MIND DO THE WORK | COM ROLL (DC 12)

>MAKE IT VERY OBVIOUS THIS GUN COULD BE HIS DICK IF YOU GET THAT AMMO | CHA ROLL (DC 14)

(Shorter one due to time restraints T^T)
>>
>>6304751
>RESPECT HIS GIRLFRIEND, DO SOMETHING COOL FOR COOL’S SAKE ONLY
>>
Rolled 6 + 1 (1d20 + 1)

>>6304751
>PUT ON A SHOW, PRESENT YOUR FINESSE AND LET HIS MIND DO THE WORK | COM ROLL (DC 12)

It's okay for the mind to wander in the moment, but lets not get him or ourselves in trouble by being too explicit.
>>
Rolled 10 (1d20)

>>6304751
>PUT ON A SHOW, PRESENT YOUR FINESSE AND LET HIS MIND DO THE WORK
>>
Rolled 13 (1d20)

>>6304751
>>MAKE IT VERY OBVIOUS THIS GUN COULD BE HIS DICK IF YOU GET THAT AMMO | CHA ROLL (DC 14)
>>
>>6304751
>MAKE IT VERY OBVIOUS THIS GUN COULD BE HIS DICK IF YOU GET THAT AMMO | CHA ROLL (DC 14)
>>
Rolled 12 + 3 (1d20 + 3)

>>6304751
>MAKE IT VERY OBVIOUS THIS GUN COULD BE HIS DICK IF YOU GET THAT AMMO | CHA ROLL (DC 14)
>>
MAKE IT VERY OBVIOUS THIS GUN COULD BE HIS DICK IF YOU GET THAT AMMO | PYRRHIC SUCCESS

You slide your finger along the length of the barrel and become painfully aware that semi automatic pistols aren't exactly phallus-shaped. And everything you try to do after realisation comes off as you trying way too hard to make an action look sexy which- both you and the clerk are learning- makes the action just seem awkward. Though your questionable but reasonable thoughts on how the male brain is wired, at least in regards to sex, is proven right again as once he's internalised that sex is your bargaining chip here he seems all for it.

“You know, I could get all of this from my girlfriend.”

“Really- right now? Because it doesn't look like she's here.”

“She is.”

Oh.

“Yeah. But you can do something else for me. Ammo's on the house then.”

“...That is?”

“Help me do something. It's for my girl.”

“Ok…” The second the vibrations that make up your response are processed by his brain, he yells to his coworker that he's going on break. The older man and your mom have their attention drawn. Mom gives you a quick series of faces and gestures to ask you: is it going well? You reply back with your own, just as fast, to say: I have no idea.

He leads you to a room at the back of the store. It's dark with a faint green light much deeper inside which outlines the rows of stacked books and munitions on shelves leading towards the source.

“Mind your step.” You move your hands down to your pockets trying your best to hide the fact that you're just keeping them close to your gun and follow behind the man. The further you venture into this storage room the more your steps seem to echo off the walls and the conversations from outside get more faint. All while the light grows more vibrant. You start to pass by books that are open. Their pages covered in sigils- some glowing faintly themselves. Then the man stops, looking down at something in front of him. You cautiously creep close enough to see what's drawn his attention while still staying far back enough to retaliate if he tries something. You lean to look past his shoulder and you see a… person?! No. Android, thank God. But its resemblance to a human is near perfect. It lays on an operating table bolted to the floor with its chest split open. Braided ginger hair with a freckled face and cat ears. The light shines from within the cavity with a flow, of sorts, as if it was water moving down a bending river. You're mesmerised by the visual stimulus but you can feel sweat start to rise up, laying just beneath your skin. This is the first time you've ever seen something like this- you're not even sure what this exactly is.
>>
>>6305487
“She's beautiful, isn't she?” The man turns his head to look back at you.

“Is that… your girlfriend?”

“Mhmm. See why I was vague about her.”

“Yeah.” You take a cautionary step back and begin posturing to shoot him. “So what exactly does… she need help with?” The man seems to have an almost puzzled look on the section of his face you can actually see.

“She'll get killed if I just keep her as an android. So I need to turn her human. A drop of your blood will complete things.”

“Why set her up to be shut down-?”

“Killed.”

“... Killed. Regardless of what we call it, why go through the effort of making her human? It's not like you can't have androids around just don't make them look so real. And if people find out about this she won't be the only one going either.”

“Well that's where you come in Hunter. I'm sure rituals like this are nothing new to you. So just lend me a drop and it'll be over with.”

“That didn't answer my question.” You draw your pistol, not aiming it yet, mainly because you technically don't have legal right to harm this man because you're not an official Hunter yet.

“Isn't the love that drives me clear to see? Haven't I made it obvious? Can't you see it infused into detail of her form? Even since I conceived her in my head- my love for her has kept the passion burning hot. Bringing her life is what I live for.”

...Love keeps the passion burning, huh?” You let out a small sight. “And just to be sure I get my ammo after this right?”

“I'll let you have as much as I can get away with l don't care about this job. It's just a means to an end.”


>HELP FULFIL HIS PURPOSE, GIVE A DROP OF YOUR BLOOD

>ENQUIRE FURTHER ON CLERK | “And how do you know this ritual will work? What if it fails?”

>ENQUIRE FURTHER ON RITUAL | “Never seen a ritual that looked like this before, how’d you set this up?”

>REFUSE & TRY TO LEAVE

>SNUFF HIS PURPOSE | Fill that android with lead and retreat to find someone who can actually do something about this. If you let everyone in the store know about this they won't let him escape. And you doubt he'll be able to fix things before it's too late.

>WRITE IN
>>
>>6305489
>ENQUIRE FURTHER ON CLERK | “And how do you know this ritual will work? What if it fails?”
catgirl daughter? how many ears
>>
>>6305489
Wowzers...I was not expecting that. Totally thought we'd just end up embarrassing ourselves but getting by due to horny shenanigans, or having to promise him a date or something.

>ENQUIRE FURTHER ON RITUAL | “Never seen a ritual that looked like this before, how’d you set this up?”
>Walk around the android, try and peer through the light and find its heart.
>Be cautious and keep one eye on the guy, do we see any signs of the supernatural on him?

Knowledge first, gotta get that Cunning foundation up. I think we can guess that bad shit will happen if it fails. What I wanna know is the details on the magic itself, especially if we choose to help him.

Mind you, I don't think we should actually help him. Mary says that the girl is an android, but I'm not convinced. We passed books with glowing sigils, that kinda says "supernatural entity" to me. It is punishable by death to store or support them, meaning we'll get the electric chair if we help him, likewise proactively hunting them is likely A-okay, or at least forgiveable on account of them being threats to humanity. If it weren't for the fact that the guy seems outwardly normal, I'd think he was a necromancer trying to trick us with "muh android gf" shenanigans. In fact, don't supernatural entities grow stronger with blood?
>>
>>6305489
>>ENQUIRE FURTHER ON RITUAL | “Never seen a ritual that looked like this before, how’d you set this up?”
>>
>>6305489
>ENQUIRE FURTHER ON RITUAL | “Never seen a ritual that looked like this before, how’d you set this up?”
>>
>>6305489
>>ENQUIRE FURTHER ON CLERK | “And how do you know this ritual will work? What if it fails?”
>>
>>6305489
>REFUSE & TRY TO LEAVE
>KEEP HIM AT GUNPOINT
I think it's pretty obvious this dude is a necromancer, like this anon guessed >>6305506 and since we haven't been given training, our best option is to run and report this place to actual Hunters.
>>
Doubts about this man's legitimacy fills your head immediately, hell, even him being a man at all is up for debate right now. If anyone in this room is likely to be a lycan it's the thing on the table and you're certain his teeth were fine since it was the only part of his face you could look at. You're not seeing through him either so that needs no further inquiry but most of his body is covered. Mainly by clothing that didn't seem worthy of scrutiny before but now has made you very aware of how much skin can be hidden by the most casual of outfits. Speaking of that thing on the table, you try to look closer at the gaping hole in its chest, maybe spotting something inside, however the light is so bright that attempting it makes your eyes water. You can barely stare at her face for long before the strobing green disrupts your vision once more… And the only thing you really pick up is that she has two pairs of ears.

Your breath grows shaky as you speak up, wiping your tears with your sleeve but your expression somehow is still oozing with unmistakable curiosity. “Never seen a ritual that looked like this before, how’d you set this up?” Granted you've never seen any ritual before but your selective use of language isn’t what’s important here- what’s important here is that instead of earnestly filling you in the store clerk responds with a grimace. Hopefully your facade hasn’t been shattered this quickly.

“I think we’d be here all day if I had to go through all the details.”

[FUNDAMENTAL KNOWLEDGE ON SUPERNATURAL ENTITIES]
“Well you gotta give me something to work with here. A few details can be the deciding factor on whether I see your android as a GF or a TTH… and it's uh- my day off. So I'd rather not have to work.” He opens his mouth, probably to deny your inquiries again on impulse, but there’s no sound as his mouth stays agape while he processes your statement.


“It's just a transmogrification ritual. To turn her from android to human just like I said prior.”

“Well, yeah, that went without saying.” You walk a bit closer to the android so you could observe it better. “I said I needed details, didn’t I? Like why’d you need so many books and this big storage room to change one thing… or what’s going on with that?” You point at the light’s center.

"Her heart is unstable. I would’ve set up more sigils but I was pressed for time.”

“Pressed for time? This operation wasn’t on our radar. You should have all the time in the world, no?”

“I did but I must’ve misheard an instruction and now the heart is on the verge of dispersing. And it's going to be hard to explain what's going on to the boss when he sees-” He makes a waving hand gesture through the light and it seems to ripple at his touch. “This, tomorrow morning.”
>>
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>>6306413
“That’s… fair- actually on that note- did you need to set this up here? Take it from me, no girl wants to wake up in some dark storage room filled with guns. Artificial or not. Not to mention, like you said, how hard it is to hide a ritual like this.”

“Space, mostly. Have to make due with what the world gives me.” He sighs, starting to lightly scratch his forearm.

“Couldn’t find, like, an abandoned lot or something?”

“And risk her getting scrapped for parts by some S fiends looking to make credits. I’ll take my chances with off-duty Hunters.”

“So, uh, why’d you need my blood?”

“To complete the ritu-”

“No. Why do you need, my, blood? Why not use your own, like, your own or something? I know I'm special but surely there's more to why you picked me? Rituals like this can get real complex sometimes, right?”

“They can but in this case it's quite simple. She needs a girl’s blood because… she’s a girl. And you just happened to be the first girl I had the chance to use.”

[MARY THE POPULAR]
“So you were just using me for my blood?” You put on a pout. Which causes him to give a soft smile.

“Yeah… Sorry, but my heart belongs to another.” There’s a silence as you both shift your gaze to the body on the table.


“Is her design… based on anyone?”

“Is that detail necessary?”

“No. Just asking to ask.”

“She’s based on my actual girlfriend. They got turned into a lycanthrope… then got vanquished.” You shiver but you can’t tell whether it’s because of the insane coping mechanism or the fact that he probably hates your guts over an occupation you don’t even have. But there doesn’t seem to be any animosity in his tone. You glance over to the clerk as he wipes his face with his forearm for a brief moment. However, there is one element of this situation that you need to bring up again and it likely will be the deciding factor on this whole ritual’s legality.

“I didn’t bring it up before but I do have to ask… Who told you about this ritual or showed you how to do it?”

“A friend noticed how bad I was taking Viv’s death and let me in on it.”

“Your friend just… gave it up? I’m sure the knowledge on how to make something human isn’t easy to come by or very cheap. I know I wouldn’t part with it for free.”

“That just makes it sound like you’re a bad friend. No offence.”

Everything goes still. Even the raging stream of light seems to calm to a calm stream from the tension. You raise your gun, pointing it at his back and it seems that he can tell. All this Hunter larping has landed you right in the middle of some serious Hunter work.

“Who’s your friend and what are they?”

“They’re… a- listen everything will be over with when I bring Viv back. If you just help me complete this. Please, I-I need this.”

“C’mon man, you know I have to know.”

“And we both know, I can't tell you.”
>>
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>>6306419
>BECOME A BLOOD DONOR & LEAVE

>BECOME A BLOOD DONOR & REPORT HIM

>BECOME A BLOOD DONOR & ARREST HIM

>BECOME A BLOOD DONOR & KILL HIM

>PROLONGUE HIS DESTINY AND JUST LEAVE

>CULL THE DREAM- REPORT HIM

>CULL THE DREAM- ARREST HIM

>CULL THE DREAM- KILL HIM

>DESTROY THE THREAT | ALONGSIDE AN OPTION ABOVE SHOOT THE VESSEL AND DISRUPT THE RITUAL
>>
>>6306421
>CULL THE DREAM- REPORT HIM
way above our paygrade
>>
>>6306421
>>CULL THE DREAM- REPORT HIM
>>
>>6306421
>>CULL THE DREAM- KILL HIM
>>DESTROY THE THREAT | ALONGSIDE AN OPTION ABOVE SHOOT THE VESSEL AND DISRUPT THE RITUAL
>>
>>6306421
>CULL THE DREAM- REPORT HIM
>DESTROY THE THREAT | ALONGSIDE AN OPTION ABOVE SHOOT THE VESSEL AND DISRUPT THE RITUAL

It's a bit brash, but he could take violent action and obtain some other girl's blood in the meantime before the arrest is made. Of course, he could go crazy if we do.

If we happen to know if a 'citizen's arrest' is a legit thing or not, then I might consider going for the arrest, simply because of the risk of just leaving him be.

Maybe we'd make a different choice given further knowledge, if supernaturals aren't all universally threats to humans, if we learn the state is just pointlessly oppressive. He doesn't seem like a bad guy, but it is hard to take him at his word.
>>
Rolled 26 (1d100)

>1-50 SPARE THE VESSEL
>51-100 SLAY THE VESSEL
>>
A silence fills the room as a million different ways to resolve this situation flood your head but ultimately there’s only one choice that you make, considering you are still a civilian and are going purely off suspicion right now. You have to report him- it's simply not your right to place judgment upon him. Your gun slowly trails away from his back to the head of the android body laying on the table. It's not your right to judge that either. A deep exhale escapes you and every part above your waist droops while you pinch the bridge of your nose.

“Okay, here’s what’s going to happen. I have to call this in because there’s clearly some foul play here. You’re going to stay in here until the Hunters arrive and then we’ll continue this while you’re detained- or well the interrogators will that's not really my department.” You pause for a moment and watch as the man is overcome with involuntary twitches and shakes, sniffling sounds filling the room. It feels like something is gripping your stomach, slowly increasing its pressure as you watch his composure shatter but you keep steadfast and continue. “It’s going to take a while before they arrive, as they say, you can feel the budget cuts in the response time… Use this time to- um- say your goodbyes. And I’ll try my best to make sure they keep your girlfriend intact.” You’re not met with words. The only response you get is the sharp sound of snot being reeled back into a nose- that's your signal to leave.

You walk backwards, your gun pointed at his back as you take cautious steps, however you only get a few in before you hear his voice bounce throughout the room.

“Is it even worth it… saying my goodbyes? All I wanted to do was bring her back- that was all I needed to do… And I failed. I failed in doing the one thing I was useful for I-I don’t even deserve to be in her presence. Let alone say goodbye- She shouldn’t even be gone! I failed! I should be dead!”

You feel that familiar shiver slide down your body once more. You grip your gun even tighter as your vision shifts focus from the clerk to your sights all while still moving back. “I don't think Viv would agree with that man. I mean she was your girlfriend- if there was anyone she’d want to have around at the end it would be you.”

“And look what being around me brought her. Nothing but death and decay and disappointment-!”

“And love! Look- I don’t know how things were before all this but I can tell you really loved her! And to have someone love you so much that they’d go through all this- put their own life on the line- just to be with you a little longer… I doubt there’s anything more gratifying than that.”

“...You’re right. I still have love for her. That’s why I can’t just say my goodbyes. How could I give up now and say I ever loved her?”

“H-Hey, sometimes love is letting go. You can embrace her memory with the time you got left.
>>
>>6307165
“Let go? Is it really possible to let go of something you love?” You pause for a moment mid stride. You feel sweat starting to raise up through your pores and lay on your skin. Your throat clenches up almost if it was forcing you to think back on all the things you had given up on before it gave the privilege of responding. You think back on school and how you gave up on university. You think about how you gave up on playing the piano when you were ten. How you gave up on growing your hair out. How you gave up on drama class because your dad kept trying to get you acting roles. How you gave up on the model idea before you even gave it a shot. Your besties for life who you love so much~ Where are they now? In fact, didn’t you just give up on a few days of your life rotting in bed? If the answer to his question is no- if it isn’t possible to give up on something you love- can you even say that you love yourself?

“I… I-I.” The man whips around, shoving his hand into his pocket and ripping out a knife. Now you do have every right- in that split second alone you could have blasted half your mag into his chest. And you should. But you haven’t, instead you spin around and start booking it towards the entrance of this room. You already made the choice to not kill him- lets at least see this idea through. You blitz down the path you came- it sounds like thunder every time you or your pursuer take a step. With each step the door becomes more visible. The sound of chattering outside becomes louder. And the gnawing feeling that the man behind you is getting closer grows.

You grab the door handle and fling the door open, slamming it shut behind you. Crash! The sound knocks away all other sounds in the store like how a wave would capsize a boat. You press your back against the door and you feel him repeatedly try to kick it open.

“Mary?!” You hear your mum yelp from somewhere within the store.

“Block the door! Qui-!” Crash! An inch or two of the knife bursts through the door, lodging itself in the material. The blade is blue with green eyes bulging from it- in unison they all shift to look at you before the knife is pulled back into the abyss behind the door. A few shoppers band together to push one of the display cabinets in front of the door, giving you respite as you scurry away. You mom rushes over to you wrapping you in a tight embrace but you push past her so you can throw up in the nearest bin-shaped object. Within seconds, The Enclosure security is on the scene. They usher everyone out as they fill the room with SMGs drawn. One of them grabs you and your mom and practically throws you out because you weren’t clearing the scene fast enough. Your vision starts to swirl as you lay on the floor, the face of your mother contorting as she looks down at you. Then suddenly a cacophony of bangs, loud yet muffled, fills your ears.

You pass out.
>>
>>6307168
And in what feels like a split second, the dark void that embraced you turns into a white blinding light. Which slowly fills with colours and objects as your eyes adjust to the lights in your…give it a second… Living room. Living room? How’d you get here? You begin to twist your body, rising up from whatever you're laying on but the hands of someone else stop you in your tracks.

“Woah- easy there. Try not to move too much, dear.” There’s one only person who could be in this house- well…technically two but the second option calls you princess instead of dear.

“Mom… what happened?” You groan as your eyes fully adjust to your surroundings.

“You passed out after that psycho's attack. They had all sorts of people look you over from doctors to hunters but they all deemed you okay and let me bring you back home.”

“Did… did the guy die?”

“Yeah. They smoked him- wish I got a shot at the bastard too for chasing you down like that!” You wince a little at the yelling and lower yourself back down.

Fuck… They get Viv too?”

“Who-? Did he have an accomplice?!”

“Ow- Mom… calm down, please. It was just him but the android- did they break the android?”

“I… I don’t know anything about an android, sorry.” you sign; then squint and realise something else is very off right now.

“Where… Where did my bangs go?” Your mom’s body shudders slightly as she starts to laugh.

“They’re still there honey, I just pinned them up with a hairclip. I know how important keeping that big forehead covered is to you.” She rests her hand on your big forehead and you both laugh. “Rest up, okay. The hunters said they would come to interview you when you woke back up so expect to be busy tomorrow.” She moves away from you, turning off the ceiling light as she leaves.

“Mom?”

“Yes?”

“Do you… love me?”

“Of course.”

“And would you do anything for me?”

“Of course.”

“Thanks… Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, dear.”

Soon you are met by the sleep abyss again. And your mom wasn’t kidding, a large portion of your Sunday is spent answering an ungodly amount of questions about the incident. Even Jordann shows up at your house, at one point, to interrogate you on a few of the case details. By the end of everything you’re exhausted but you’ve got the time to sneak in one thing- what's a Sunday without a little you time?

>DO WHAT YOUR BEST AT…SLEEPING

>CONTINUE READING THAT BOOK YOU TOTALLY BOUGHT ABOUT THE SUPERNATURAL

>WEAPON MAINTENANCE

>AIMLESS DRIVING

>WATCH A MOVIE ON THE THS
>JILL OFF

>DOOMSCROLL

>READY YOUR OUTFIT FOR TOMORROW
>>
>>6307170
>>CONTINUE READING THAT BOOK YOU TOTALLY BOUGHT ABOUT THE SUPERNATURAL
I figure we could stand to learn a bit more about this stuff if we're gonna run into it like we just did. Forewarned is forearmed and all that
>>
>>6307170
>CONTINUE READING THAT BOOK YOU TOTALLY BOUGHT ABOUT THE SUPERNATURAL
Feels in-character. We don't know how to deal with this shit. Better learn and be ready next time.
Also
>READY YOUR OUTFIT FOR TOMORROW
>>
>>6307170
>CONTINUE READING THAT BOOK YOU TOTALLY BOUGHT ABOUT THE SUPERNATURAL
>>
>>6307170
>>READY YOUR OUTFIT FOR TOMORROW
>>
>>6307170
>CONTINUE READING THAT BOOK YOU TOTALLY BOUGHT ABOUT THE SUPERNATURAL
>READY YOUR OUTFIT FOR TOMORROW
>>
>>6307170
A tragedy for sure. Not sure if we could have avoided it by helping the couple out, but given the result I'm disinclined to think well of them.

>READY YOUR OUTFIT FOR TOMORROW

It's one thing. I don't think we'll be thrown into the fire right away the very next day. Learning more about the supernatural is good and all, especially after being involved in an incident, but we're not a nerd. If anything I'd feel like we'd want to relax after such a stressful event. The interrogation and psychically induced sleep probably don't help.
>>
Despite thinking about the supernatural making you feel even more tired, especially after today, you deem that you really can’t let up on your research on them though. It’s really a matter of your own safety at this point. You grab your laptop and open up the pdf containing your book and continue where you left off.

The following chapters of the book describes a concept known as Vibrational States and how they relate to all recorded entities and humans. Firstly, there are currently two known Vibrational States: Positive and Negative. Which produce Positive and Negative Vibrational Energy, respectively. Humans and Mechanical Entities are almost always in a Positive Vibrational State. Whereas Supernatural and Abnormal Entities are almost always in a Negative Vibrational State. The difference between two types of energy is that Positive energy is mainly used passively unlike Negative energy which tends to require a deliberate use. It is believed that this energy is what really helps maintain, restore and develop an organism's body. Allowing organisms that are in a Positive Vibrational State, like humans for example, to do things such as breathe unconsciously, learn things or do a various amount of restorative processes while unconscious. Organisms in a Negative Vibrational State need to consciously use their energy to complete these processes- although how to do these rituals seems to come to them naturally. This may also explain the phenomenon of positively charged organisms losing most brain function when having their energetic state transferred, forcefully. The process of consciously using your own, or another organisms, Vibrational Energy is known as a Ritual. There are many different types of rituals and the effects of a ritual can either affect the caster internally or affect the external environment. For more information on Rituals you’d have to read up to page 103 but the end of this chapter is as far as you’re going tonight. Anyways… An organism's Vibrational State can be forcibly changed, though research is being done to see if it can be done at will, typically when they come in contact with specific materials. When [re]Silver comes in contact with a Negatively Charged organism it changes their Vibrational State temporarily. All Supernatural Entities possess teeth, made out of an ivory-like substance, that cause this effect. Though it is common for them to grow additional appendages that are made of this substance as well. While organisms with different Vibrational States can interact with each other it is quite difficult to inflict damage on an organism in a different Vibrational State than your own- hence why it is recommended that Hunters use silver munitions when possible to more efficiently vanquish supernatural entities.
>>
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>>6307661
And done… You flop back on your bed and close your laptop. You think you might explode if you see the word ‘supernatural’ again tonight. You roll around for a little bit, stretching and yawning. You ponder what else you could do with the little time you have left with the day, assuming you actually want to be well rested for tomorrow’s endeavours, since there’s no way it can end on this note… Oh yeah, you never picked out an outfit for tomorrow. You push yourself off the bed and walk, like five steps, over to your closet. You open it up and most of the stuff in there probably isn’t work appropriate but you do have stuff in here that works… and it probably wouldn’t hurt to try them all on, you know to make sure they’re not tight or anything~ You conduct your mini fashion show, to your hearts content, but at the end of day you can only wear one of them tomorrow. So it's gotta be…

>PICK AN OUTFIT OR FRANKENSTEIN ONE TOGETHER FROM YOUR OPTIONS- GO CRAZY FASHIONISTA
>>
>>6307662
(I was half and half on if I wanted Hunters to be more bloodborne coded or more corpo looking. And you probably can tell which I picked. And if you’re wondering why Mary is allergic to pants its just because I think dresses and skirts are hotter- I admit it =-=)
>>
>>6307662
>D
>>
>>6307662
>E
>>
>>6307662
>C
>+ undershirt (or w/e gives sleeves)
>+ tights
Seems the most practical to me, if a little basic. Also I have no fashion sense lol, veto it if you don't like (and it ends up winning somehow).
>>
>>6307664
>And if you’re wondering why Mary is allergic to pants its just because I think dresses and skirts are hotter- I admit it =-=
Who am I to blame a man for his taste?
>>
>>6307662
>D
>Add tights
Fuckin classy
>>
>>6307662
>E
>Cut skirt
>Cut sleeves
>Add stockings
>>
>>6307662
>>6307802
+1
And add cleavage too
>>
>>6307802
>>6307886
Switching to this
>>
>>6307662
>>6307754
>>6307802
>>6307886
I'll switch my vote to this too, what the heck
>>
>>6307662
Ah, the most important vote of the quest~
Ahem...excellent taste QM.
>D
>Add Tights
>Add Hair Decs
>>
It's gotta be… damn. You're pretty conflicted on two of these outfits and with all the extra accessories you could add on too. Then you start thinking about all the combinations options you could have and don't and how cute they'd be. I guess despite all the existential crises you've had, and will probably have in the future, you're still a girl-who-wishes-they-just-had-more-clothes at heart. However, the main conflict at hand is which of these two outfits are you going to pick. The turtleneck outfit or one of your blazer outfits. You stand over two outfits pristinely placed on your bed, staring down at them as you stroke your chin and then an idea hits you. There's someone who would be perfect for settling this issue. You search around the room for the shopping bag that you'd got from your last hall and when you finally do you look inside to see a familiar receipt. You were so preoccupied you never actually got the time to put this in your phone, though you and her both knew it was a fifty-fifty chance that you actually would at all, but hey better late than never. You create a, currently nameless, contact on your phone and send her a message. However, it is pretty late and there's no way she could know it was you texting her so if she doesn't respond in about ten minutes you'll probably have to make the decision yourself. The second you finish that thought your phone vibrates in your hand, as if on que, drawing your gaze down to your screen where you are met with a signature: Who is this??? You identify yourself along with a selfie just for good measure and she cheerfully graces you with her name in response… It's Grace. You lead the conversation by sending a signature text of your own. Wyd. That right there is your King's Pawn opening, textbook and flawless even better when asked in the middle of the night to someone with a day job because the answer is always going to be nothing.
>>
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>>6308076
“Nun’ much just watching a really stupid horror mv : D”

“Nice!!! I got like 50 of them downloaded but ain't watched any of them. I can't watch horror movies at all- cuz even the silly ones give me nightmares T^T”

“What??? I don't believe it- the silly ones are so funny.”

“Don't say that, it makes feel like a wuss >: (“

“Alr alr XD But you def need to let me give you some movie recs in the future. Anyways wyd???”

“Aside from txting you. I was planning out outfits for work tomorrow. Actually, rq, which one do you like more?” You take a quick photo of the clothes on your bed and send it to Grace who wastes no time responding.

“I like the turtleneck outfit more personally but it's hard to judge a fit without seeing it worn first.” God, she is trying so hard to play it cool right now it's adorable. Granted, to say you were completely oblivious to how this progression could come off would be a lie. In fact, you completely knew what you were doing here. Messaging a girl, who is clearly into you, in the middle of the night and asking her to judge your outfits. Seriously? Even though you do genuinely want her opinion on the matter. The ulterior motives here are barely hidden. After the whole gun store fiasco it's oddly comforting to know that even after being isolated for a few years you can still make people invested in you. Not to imply that you think Grace would put herself in jeopardy to bring you back from the dead if you died tomorrow- hell you don't even think your mom would go that far despite her saying otherwise- but simply sending you a text back can work for now. So… might as well put these on so she can judge them more accurately. And judge she does- if sending a bunch of heart eyes and compliments under your pictures really counts as that. Either way though, she stays adamant that the turtleneck outfit is better but you'll never really know if it was genuinely the better outfit or just the one Grace was into more. You continue chatting for a little while longer but you eventually tell her that you gotta head to bed; you share your goodbyes and you fall asleep.
>>
>>6308077
The sharp, high-pitched sound of your phone’s alarm jump-starts your brain, ripping you out of the blissful unconscious void. Your body jolts upwards, instinctively, but once a second or two passes and you become aware of what's going on you just let out an annoyed groan as you turn it off. You flop out of bed with a stretch and yawn before making your way upstairs. You walk into the living room, rubbing your eyes. There you find your mom, who you can tell is just about to leave for work by how she's dressed, she notices you and gives you a quick hug before telling you she left you breakfast in the kitchen. You only have time to tell her good morning and thank you before she takes up her keys and heads out the door. However, when you enter the kitchen you're not only met with breakfast but with a small box as well. A letter on the top of the box reads: Employment present, love Mom. Inside the box are fifty silver bullets. You can help but smile at the gesture, you'd completely forgotten all about getting these considering everything that happened. You throw your breakfast into the microwave and send your mom a thank you message as the smell of bacon and eggs fill the room. The water in the kettle is still hot from when mom had her breakfast so you make some coffee too. Needless to say, this morning has started out pretty amazing. You check your acceptance letter again while you eat just to make sure you remembered the time you're supposed to arrive correctly, along with the address of the training facility. After you're done eating you get ready and before you know it you're on the road.

The facility you've been summoned to is one of many around this sector, or at least that's what you assume since it's called Training Facility E, from the outside it looks like a fairly small office building but once you enter it feels way more spacious. The room is a dull grey with a grid pattern drawn on the floor. The air is cold and the faint sound of a distant fan spinning somewhere fills your ears. The smell of cigarettes and other nicotine filled products fills your nose and only seems to get stronger as you walk over to what could only be a receptionist desk. An older woman looks you over before asking for your acceptance letter- you hand it over and after a moment of skimming over it she directs you to a room where your training will be held. You walk past a double door that connects to a corridor, the smell of ash almost instantly disappears from the air, and make your way to the room.
>>
>>6308078
You casually push open the door. Inside you see a woman, who is much shorter and clearly less social than you, standing in the room's center. Her red eyes are glued to the ground only coming up for a brief moment to look at you when you enter before dropping down again. She makes an attempt to fix her posture as you step deeper into the room but she remains hunched over regardless, lightly squeezing on her bicep with one hand and a grey briefcase with the other. She has on a blue blazer with a standard pencil skirt. However, layered underneath is white hoodie with a pair of peculiar ears sewn onto it.

“A-A…Are you… you-” She stops and lets out a deep exhale, balling her fists. “Sorry… Are you one doing t-the training?”

“Nope, I'm one of the trainees. Name's Mary, to whom do I owe the pleasure?”

“Lilly… N-Nice to meet you.” Shockingly she offers up a handshake to you and you oblige.

“I have no idea why but I always assumed this would've been a one-on-one thing. Now I feel silly.”

“W-Well Hunters do tend to be… l-loners.”

“Sounds like I'm more fit to be a Hunter than I thought.” She doesn't laugh but you do see the corners of her lips rise ever so slightly.

“That makes two of us…” Unfortunately, there is no good follow up to Lily's response and you two are thrust into a silence. You know that this is just par for the course when talking sometimes but the increased fidgeting from Lilly is a sign that this silence may literally be killing her. If you're gonna be training with her, it's probably best you start helping her out from now.

>ASK WHERE SHE GOT THAT HOODIE

>ASK WHAT'S IN THE BRIEFCASE

>ASK WHY SHE CHOSE TO BECOME A HUNTER

>ASK IF SHE HAS A WEAPON ON HER AND IF YOU CAN SEE IT

>ASK IF SHE'S WATCHED ANY MOVIES LATELY

>ASK WHAT MUSIC SHE'S BEEN BUMPING RECENTLY

>ASK IF SHE HAS EVER WONDERED WHY SHE'S HERE

>ASK IF SHE BELIEVES IN GOD

>ASK IF SHE'S EVER TAKEN DRUGS AND IF SHE SAYS YES ASK WHAT HER CRAZIEST TRIP WAS LIKE

>ASK IF SHE'S A TEA OR COFFEE PERSON

>WRITE IN

(Okay funnily enough I drew the outfit image when D was still in the lead so it was very funny to come home and see all of them switch to E. I guess we'll have to wait till Mary gets traumatised again to change her outfit- or who knows maybe she'll get better this time)
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Also image... WHOOPS
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>>6308079
>ASK WHERE SHE GOT THAT HOODIE
>>
>>6308079
>>ASK WHY SHE CHOSE TO BECOME A HUNTER
>>
>>6308079
>>ASK WHERE SHE GOT THAT HOODIE
It is really cute
>it was very funny to come home and see all of them switch to E
Hey its all good, maybe it can be her next outfit choice next time she changes,
>>
>>6308079
>(Okay funnily enough I drew the outfit image when D was still in the lead so it was very funny to come home and see all of them switch to E. I guess we'll have to wait till Mary gets traumatised again to change her outfit- or who knows maybe she'll get better this time)
That one's for tomorrow I guess

>ASK WHERE SHE GOT THAT HOODIE
>>
>>6308079
Ok, schizo theory time: this test is something akin to Men In Black monster shooting scene, a thinking out of the box test, and the girl in front of us is a Supernatural Entity of some kind. We gotta tread carefully.

But making small talk is fine for now.
>ASK WHERE SHE GOT THAT HOODIE
>MAINTAIN DISTANCE AND BE READY TO SHOOT HER FULL OF SILVER
>>
>>6308079
>>ASK IF SHE HAS EVER WONDERED WHY SHE'S HERE
Other outfit for field work maybe?
>>
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“I like your hoodie-”

“So why do- Oh sorry umm… you go first.” You let out a little laugh as Lilly fiddles with her hands.

“I’ve never seen a hoodie like that- it's sick. Where’d you get it?”

“Oh you r-really think it looks cool. Umm… this was a gift from my dad- well not my real dad but t-that not- it’s from Keepout. If you… know that brand.”

“Yeah… I’m familiar.” You feel that shiver go down your spine again but you keep yourself composed and stop yourself from making any additional comments that might crush Lilly’s already low confidence.

“Really~?” Her head perks up a little and she finally holds eye contact with you for longer than a split second. “I’ve never met someone who actually knew what that was- though you do look like you’re into fashion s-so I guess I should’ve assumed you would. Sorry…”

“It’s fine, but I wouldn’t say I’m like a fashionista or anything. I think I’m just addicted to spending money on clothes I don’t wear.”

“S-Same difference.” She gives a little giggle at her own joke but is cut off by the sound of the door behind you opening.

Two girls walk into the room. The first girl walks in with an icy and rigid aura. Her blue eyes pierce into Lilly causing her to avert her gaze almost instantly which leaves you as the only remaining target for her stare down. The clicking sound of her heels fill the room with every precise step she makes and her golden hair sways behind her as if choreographed. You don't even properly process the fact that she's the smallest person here because of the grandeur of her entrance. Her right hand stays firmly attached to a sword which hangs on a holster tied around her black dress. And just before she's about to speak the sound of the door slamming cuts her off. The second woman enters with a smile that brings the room back up to liveable temperatures, giving you and Lilly a wave as she strolls in. She stretches and yawns, towering over the ice queen, the light from the ceiling giving her darker skin a beautiful glow. However, that pales in comparison to how the light reflects off her legs. Below her rolled up trousers are two metal prosthetics, bearing a yellow stripe that goes down the middle, that the light harshly bounces off. But even the deep polish can't fully hide all the wear and tear upon closer inspection.

“Both of you, names. Now.” The blonde speaks up. The look in her eyes has reduced Lilly to a fidgeting mess so you take initiative.

“Mary. To whom do I-”

“Full name-”

“Jeez, Vida.” The second lady puts her hand on Vida's shoulder and she immediately pries it off, barely hiding her disgust. “You just got here and you're already bitchin’ out girl. Take a chill pill~”

“I am not bitchin’ out! I am simply getting introductions out of the way- why am I even explaining this to you!?

“Sounds like you two have some history?”
>>
>>6308819
“Pfft- yeah about two minutes worth. I met her down in reception and she's been moving like a soldier all day. Name's Ato, by the way.” She gives you a quick wink before trying to lean on Vida's shoulder to very little success.

“I'm right here you know and I'm still waiting for your full names.” She crosses her arms and you roll your eyes but there's no point dragging this out if she clearly isn't going to let up.

“Mary Skyes. Need my middle name as well, officer?” Ato and Lilly both smile, regardless of whether they were trying to hide it or not, much to Vida's chagrin.

“No. That's fine… Other one, we're waiting.”

“U-U-Uh… umm…” Lily's mouth opens but she stutters and fumbles over her words so much she has to fully stop. Take a breath. And start over again just to get words out. “I-I umm Lilly… Lilly M-M-Mcdonald.” Vida's eyebrows lift up slightly.

Mcdonald Du Eversor?” Lilly nods her head timidly, clearly expecting a negative response from Vida but instead she lets out a sigh of relief. “Ah, perfect. The stats show that having two Hunter families in a training squad increases their success rate by twenty-eight percent. But you should have more pride in your name, Du Eversor.”

“Okay…I-I'm sorry.” She looks down like she's being scolded by a parent. And you're probably up on the chopping block next as you get ready to ask a simple question.

“Uh…Hunter families? What are those?” Vida rolls her eyes at your question but quickly puts on a smile as she straightens her posture.

“Well if you must know, when a bloodline produces a number of exceptional Hunters their Ring will bless their last name with a title. And when it comes to Hunter families none are more prolific than mine. The Dubois Du Viper.” She holds her hand up to her face, directing your eyes straight to her smug grin. And yes, this is the first time she has looked happy to be here since she stepped through that door. Probably, since she stepped in this building if she bumped into Ato straight away.

“Oh, so that explains why you're like that.” Ato grabs Vida by the shoulders, again, but this time she just sighs and accepts defeat which brings a smile to Ato's face. “The bitchin’ is genetic~”

“We are not bitches! I am not a bitch! Stop saying that!” She wriggles out of Ato's grasp and starts to look up at the ceiling. “God, can this first trial just start already.”

“Alright~ Alright~ I'll stop.” As a gesture of good will she steps away from Vida and moves closer to you and Lilly. “Anyways you said something about a trial-?”
>>
>>6308821
Just then, you hear a low-pitched hum above which draws everyone's attention. A singular square section of the ceiling opens up and a brown book falls down from it. Vida jumps up and catches it with one hand. Then without looking at any pages beforehand, she stretches out her arm and closes her eyes. Suddenly, she starts emitting a green light forming a tiny sphere around her body and a small ID card materialises pinned to her dress. It only takes a few seconds for the ID to be completed and when it is, she opens her eyes and tosses the book to Lilly. Who fails to catch it but it clearly doesn't matter to Vida who walks past the three of you, the green aura fading from sight, towards a scanner on the wall behind you. She plucks the card off her chest and taps it against the scanner causing a section of the wall to open up.

“Hey, Du Eversor, It'll take them a while to complete the first trial so hurry up and get in here. I want to talk to you about something.” She doesn't wait for Lilly to respond before walking into the opening which promptly closes behind her. You and the two remaining girls all share glances with each other for a moment in silence.

“God, what is her problem?” you begrudgingly pick up the book, handing it to Lilly who gingerly takes it and opens it up after putting her briefcase down.

“Who knows?” Ato positions herself behind Lilly to get a better look at the book. “My theory is that if she ever says something nice she'll explode.”

“Maybe… She's just under a lot of s-stress. Being a Hunter seems pretty i-important to her.”

“That doesn't excuse being an asshole, Lilly.”

“Y-yeah… you're right… Sorry.”

“No it's fine- what does the book say?”

“Oh- yeah. Umm…” She awkwardly hands the book back to you so that you can read it aloud instead.

“Hello, hunters-to-be. blah, blah, blah. For your first trial you must use this book to manifest your identification cards… The book is a conduit for the ritual. Instructions on manipulating your positive energy are on the following pages… You have three hours, from when this book falls, to complete the trial or you will fail basic training.” You close the book and hand it back to Lilly.

[FUNDAMENTAL KNOWLEDGE ON SUPERNATURAL ENTITIES]
“Okay, so, basically we have to make our positive energy flow into this book, which will start a ritual, and it'll create the key cards needed to open that door Vida went through.”


“A-Alright. That seems simple enough.” A white light erupts from Lilly, unlike Vida's it's almost blinding and creates a spherical shape around her. In the blink of an eye her ID is formed, pinned to her chest and she takes a look. “Oh, that's a cute picture. When did they take this-?”
>>
>>6308825
“Gah-! Hey Lilly, was it? Mind not turning into a flashbang right next to me?”

“Or at least give us a warning first…” Lilly stammered seeing you both wince in pain from the eye strain, helplessly.

“S-S-Sorry, I d-didn't mean to-”

“Well I'm more than willing to accept your apology if you tell me how you did that. Not really into the idea of failing on the first trial.” Ato plucks the book out of Lilly's hands.

“Oh, ummm… There are a few methods to c-controlling energy flow but m-my one is a little silly.”

“Fire away. You're the expert here, Lilypad

“W-Well I like to picture an orange being squeezed in my head and sync my breathing to the juice coming out.” You and Ato share a glance. But Ato shrugs it off and closes her eyes.

“Welp, it's worth a shot~”

“Yeah hopefully it helps but if it doesn't i-it sounds like there might be other methods in the book. Uh- I'm gonna… head into the next room now.”

“Oh, really?”

“Ah- yeah…Sorry Mary but I have some things I want to talk about with her as well.”

“Okay, stay safe.”

“Yeah. I'll see you two in there. I'm sure you'll make it.” With that Lilly walks over to the scanner, opens the door and disappears when it closes behind her. Ato bursts out laughing.

Okay, stay safe. Pfft~ What are you, her mum?”

“No, it's just that Commander Cunt is running rampant in there... Any luck with her method?”

“Nope, complete bust~ I have aphantasia so it was dead on arrival. But I couldn't crush her heart since she looked so happy to help.” She holds the book out to you. “Wanna give her method a try?”

“I'll pass.”

“Fair enough.” She flips through to the last couple of pages. “Jeez, didn’t expect this Hunter business to be so… esoteric. I just thought I’d be more of the usual. Never heard of this positive energy stuff in my life.”

“Same I only found out about that stuff, like, last night and I had no idea you could control it or that it makes people glow and shit. Never seen the Hunters that patrol around my area do anything like that either… Also, what do you mean, more of the usual? We’re not gonna just move past that.”

“Damn, girl. You’re already gunning for group mom, you don’t need to be the group cop too~ But if you must know, I used to hunt all types of entities for people who didn't want to call these lot.” She makes a sweeping gesture.

“Ah, so you’re a hitman.”

“Hitman implies I got the luxury of killing humans too which, unfortunately, was not the case. But I was fairly good at hunting so the court told me if I did it under their payroll I won’t have to do jail time. Hence why I expected this whole training thing to be solely about killing, I didn’t need any of this nonsense to do my job… Hmmm, Okay this method seems feasible.

“Fill me in.
>>
>>6308826
“Think back on a memory that invokes a strong emotion within you. Focus on that emotion until it overwhelms you and starts to affect your body. Once you are proficient with this method it may be beneficial to create a mantra that can bring you into this emotional state, if possible.”

Ato closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, holding out the book akin to Vida. You and the room fall silent in respect. You don’t know how long the silence lasts- how long you were staring intensely at Ato but it feels like an eternity. Then just as you're about to avert your gaze. You see her twitch- her face twitch specifically- and like popcorn she is overcome with small twitches one after the other. Her brow furrows leaving waves of wrinkled skin on her forehead and she starts baring her teeth. Then just on the surface of her palms you see a faint yellow light emerge. You don’t know how long you were staring intensely at Ato’s hand but you only stop when she throws the book to the ground. She goes from looking enraged to looking exhausted as she opens her eyes again and you see a hint of embarrassment when she makes eye contact with you again for the first time.

MARY THE POPULAR
“Lemme guess, wishing you had just gone on the run right now?”


ATO THE POPULAR
“You know me so well bestie. But hey, take it from me, if you want to get that ID-” She looks down at the card pinned to her chest. “That’s one way to do it… I’m gonna go and see if your girl-crush has been killed by Commander Cunt yet. Don’t take too long.”


You pick up the book as Ato leaves to join the rest of the group, leaving you by your lonesome. It’s eerily quiet but that's just how you like it. Were you always like that or was this brought on by some type of learned helplessness? Who knows? Who cares? It’s only you here. You have been out done by everyone again, granted you haven’t tried to reach their level yet. You haven’t tried to complete the trial yet. And that. That. That is why this defeat doesn’t feel as visceral as when you realised all of your block friends had out done you. Because it’s impossible to say you never tried in life. Hell, all that time embedded in your school politics wasn’t easy to deal with, you teenage girls get ruthless. You tried hard back then and failed even harder. But…you haven’t tried to complete the trial yet. There’s about an hour and thirty minutes left, give or take, you could wait out the clock. I say you do that instead of whatever you call this. You’re throwing yourself into this complex Hunter bullshit. When you could be throwing yourself into bed. Into that blissful void. Into nothingness. Do nothing and be as nothing, lest you realise that you aren’t capable of doing things the hard way.
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>>6308828
>DO THE RIGHT THING
>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT GUN STORE FIASCO

>DO THE RIGHT THING MARY

>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT WHERE YOU STAND AMONG YOUR BLOCK FRIENDS

>WHY ARE YOU STILL CHECKING YOUR OPTIONS JUST QUIT

>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT ENCOUNTERING THE SLIT MOUTHED GHOST

>THERE YOU EXPLORED ALL THE OPTIONS READY TO MAKE THE OBVIOUS CHOICE NOW?

(God this was quite the long one huh)
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>>6308830
>>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT ENCOUNTERING THE SLIT MOUTHED GHOST
>>
>>6308830
>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT GUN STORE FIASCO
>>
>>6308830
>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT GUN STORE FIASCO
>>
>>6308830
>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT ENCOUNTERING THE SLIT MOUTHED GHOST
Seems like the most painful memory.
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>>6308830
>>DENY YOUR GUT INSTINCTS | THINK ABOUT ENCOUNTERING THE SLIT MOUTHED GHOST
>>
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Against your better judgement you decide to close your eyes and crawl down into the deep pit that is your mind, unearthing memories that were locked away by your subconscious.

You’re brought back to a cold evening. It was a few weeks after your mom’s injury, she was caught in an explosion when a gas tanker was hit by a stray bullet but luckily she only lost half her face, and your dad had you come up to live with him temporarily while she recovered. You two had gotten into an argument- originally he pitched the idea of you living with him in sector seven which was valid considering the recent circumstances. But it quickly turned from a conversation about your safety to conversation about your future and how if you lived with him there’d be so many opportunities to get your face out there. You just as quickly, yelled at him and ran off. You ended up in a park- at the top of this large hill- and sat on a lone bench. There was a light rainfall going on at the time and you could feel the damp residue press against your thighs as you sat on the wooden planks. The stinging sensation in your eyes just won’t go away and you keep wiping tears as they start to roll your face and snot before it pours down into your mouth. You open up the fanny pack strung across your torso and pull out the only things that could help with your mood right now. A lighter and a pack of cigarettes. Leaning forward you lift one of the cigarettes out of its box with your teeth and your thumb strikes the lighter. Again. And again. FUCK! A flame just won’t start. All you get is brief sparks but that doesn’t stop you, you keep flicking your thumb down until you end up dropping the thing in your fit of desperation. You throw your head back and close your eyes, every muscle in your face clenching in a desperate attempt to stop more tears breaking through. Click. There’s a quick metallic sound, followed by the signature sound of burning. It causes your eyes to shoot open and you see a lighter being held to the end of your cigarette. You let out a puff and turn to your right to face its owner.

It’s a dark-skinned woman with long black hair that goes down to her lower back. Golden accessories cover her body from piercings to necklaces and rings. Along with a unique surgical mask covering the lower half of her face. She flicks her wrist snapping the cover of her golden zippo light shut before putting it back into a black handbag on her lap. The way she moves oozes with style but when still she looks perfectly feminine. Almost like a statue handcrafted with beauty in mind.
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>>6309669
“T-Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” Her voice is soft with an aged tone. “Bad day?”

“Fucking horrible.” You blow another cloud of black smoke into the air and she rubs your back.

“Want to talk about it? It helps to get everything off your chest sometimes.”

“Its just my dad- he keeps bugging me about some fucking modelling shit. It’s like he doesn’t care about anything else and I… No I-I shouldn’t hold you up with all this. I just need some time alone.”

“Very well.” She gives your back one last pat before standing up. “If you want my advice, from what little I know, talk to your father again when you’ve calmed down and try to see if you can get him to understand. But don’t partake in any modeling or things of that sort.”

“And why should I?”

“Because dads are stupid. There are some things that you really have to drill into their heads before they get it. And don’t take his job offers because it's hard to go far in that line of work.”

It takes a while for you to respond and the woman begins to take her leave but you muster out another sentence. “Yeah… I doubt I’d be able to handle it. But you, I'm sure you could make it.” She stops dead in her tracks and slowly turns around to face you.

“Why? Do you think I’m pretty?”

“Y-yeah. Who wouldn’t?”

She stares at you. Deep into your eyes. A yellow glow… A yellow glow starts to emit from her skin and she almost seems to fade. The memory starts to slow as the woman reaches for her face and the moment her hand makes contact with the mask.

Your eyes are forced open by the sound of the book crashing against the floor. Your breath is staggered and your throat has this prickly dry feeling, sweat covers your skin on the verge of rising to its surface. You stare at your hand, that was once holding the book, and watch it twitch and shake with a purple light slowly fading from your palm. It takes all your might to get your hand to move to your chest and your skin presses against a cold, plastic card blocking your fingers from your chest. You pull it off and stare down at your ID born from fear. You take a minute or two to compose yourself and then move towards the scanner. You don’t even look back at the book- you’d rather die than touch it again.

You go down a short corridor lit by lanterns on both walls and end up in a room akin to the one you were in before at least in terms of size. However, on the floor are four circles and unsurprisingly Vida is yelling at Ato who is holding a white-covered book over her head while Lilly attempts to mediate. They notice you, one after another, and the room falls silent.

>TIME TO DROP A COOL ONE LINER OR NOT | WRITE IN
>>
>>6309670
>"Mondays, am I right?"
>>
>>6309673
+1
garfield
>>
>>6309670
>>6309673
Supporting.
>>
>>6309670
I love my job
>>
“Mondays, am I right?” Ato's smile grows wider.

“Tell me about it, I hate Mondays.” However, that brief moment of distraction was enough for Vida to jump up and snatch the book out of her hands, scurrying away with it. “Ah well, that was fun while it lasted~”

“Glad to know you derive pleasure in tormenting me, Macchio.” She scoffs. Lilly walks up to you with a warm smile.

“Glad to see you made it… I-I don't know if this is mean to say- I certainly don't mean it that way- but you were kinda cutting it close… For a second, I thought-”

“Wait, really? How much time did I have left to complete the first trial?”

“About three minutes from when you stepped into the room.” Vida chimes in. Damn, you didn't think you were reminiscing on that memory for so long.

“Y-Yeah, Ato had to stop Vida from just starting without you.”

Did she now?” You walk past Lilly and for the brief moment while she's still in front of you, you see her become stricken with exhaust. As if she knows exactly what's about to happen next. You get closer to Vida, looking down at her with a frown and she stares up at you with one of her own. Ato looks like she's about to pull out some popcorn. “What’s that about, huh? Didn't think I'd make it?”

“Of course not. You haven't given me any reason to have faith in you, Skyes.”

“And my last name wasn't impressive enough for you to just assume I’m competent?”

“Hmm, let me think...” She dramatically strokes her chin and looks up to the sky, granted she was practically doing that already. “Yes. That sums it up perfectly. Listen, you might excel in being eye candy but being a Hunter isn't something you just jump into willy-nilly and for someone who seems to be the most inexperienced you're quite lax about this. I still can't believe mother didn't hand pick a team for me.

“Lax?! You've been around me for two minutes- max!”

“And two minutes is all I need to know you're just here to discover yourself or whatever those other frauds say-” You snatch the book out of her hands- with ease and a sigh- choosing that over smacking her for now. “Hey-! Give that back Skyes! I swear to God!”

“I don't even know why I'm letting you chat to me like this. If Lilly's positive energy control wasn't two hundred times better than yours, maybe I'd give a shit, but from what I've seen. The first entity you meet is gonna snatch that sword out of your hands and cut your head clean off.” Vida's eyebrows furrow and small specks of water start to form in the corners of her eyes.

“Well… when I finally go on my first hunt I'm gonna laugh while whatever we fight tears you to shreds before I vanquish it with ea-”

“First hunt? Wait, have you seriously never been on a hunt before?!” Ato chimes in with an ungodly big smile- you didn't even know a human’s face could get that wide.
>>
>>6310544
“Of course not! You can't hunt if you're not an Hunt-”

“Pfft- I've been hunting entities since I was like fifteen! And here I thought you were getting family privileges or whatever.”

“No one is falling for your bullshit, Macchio, we all know that's illegal.”

“So~? As if that's ever stopped anyone~? Girl, I'm here on a court order~” Vida opens her mouth to speak but gets stunned by Ato's response all her body can do is blink while her mouth lays agape. “Sounds like I'm more of a Hunter than you.”

“So let me get this straight. Lilly's better than you when it comes to positive energy control, by far. Ato has probably been hunting things for longer than you've been alive. And I actually have a mom that does things for me. Sounds like we're all doing better than you.

“Umm. G-Guys!” Everyone turns to Lilly, except for Vida, and the sudden eye contact makes her flinch. “Umm t-this trial probably has a t-t-time limit too. W-We gotta focus on that o-or we'll all fail.” You take a quick glance back at Vida who is visibly shaking and staring down at the floor. You hear here mutter something about being eighteen and some other nonsense. You roll your eyes and open the book.

“Yeah, you're right.” You read over the first page. It says that since everyone who has made it this far can control their positive energy, to an extent, the next step is to complete a basic ritual. “Good news, no time limit. All we need to do is copy this pattern in the book onto the floor using a basic manipulation ritual… I don't know what we're supposed to use for it though.” You flip to the back of the book and a small packet falls from a hollowed-out section. Inside are four scalpels.” Surely, not, right?

Vida being the closest picks up the packet; takes a scalpel and cuts her thumb. A crimson orb starts to slide down her skin and that familiar green energy flares around her hand. The blood as if it were string- solid instead of liquid- moves away from her thumb and stays suspended in the sky for a few seconds. Then the blood flies towards one of the circles, overlapping itself to form the pattern in midair before dropping onto the floor with a soft splat. You look back at Vida and her thumb is completely healed and there isn't a trace of blood on her skin.

Well don't look at me. You're all such great Hunters manipulating your blood with positive energy should be easy. It's not like mastering takes a lifetime or anything.
>>
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>>6310545
You roll your eyes again. Lilly quickly makes the pattern as well but clearly tones down her skills for Vida's sake. Though she did seem rather uncomfortable for the whole process. Regardless of that though, you and Ato actually have to try when doing this. You place the book down on the floor so that the two of you can properly memorise the pattern. Staring down at the page you cut your middle finger. There's a small sting as the blood drips down, a little too fast for your liking but it should be fine. Then you think back on the slit-mouthed woman. The few seconds where she reached for her mask, that felt like a thousand years. Your blood starts to glow a faint purple.

>CREATE THE SIGIL ONLY | CHA ROLL (DC 10)

>CREATE THE SIGIL AND HEAL YOUR FINGER TOO | CHA ROLL (DC 13)
>>
Rolled 20 (1d20)

>>6310546
>CREATE THE SIGIL AND HEAL YOUR FINGER TOO | CHA ROLL (DC 13)
Heh. I only need ten percent of my power for this little thing...
>>
You know I think I'll consider a 20 as 2 successes from this point just because that's kinda fitting
>>
Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>6310546
>CREATE THE SIGIL AND HEAL YOUR FINGER TOO | CHA ROLL (DC 13)
>>
Rolled 5 (1d20)

>>6310546
>>CREATE THE SIGIL AND HEAL YOUR FINGER TOO | CHA ROLL (DC 13)
>>
>>6310546
>CREATE THE SIGIL ONLY | CHA ROLL (DC 10)
Don't overreach (yes I know there's already a 20 there, I won't let it affect my judgement).
>>
>>6310546
>>CREATE THE SIGIL AND HEAL YOUR FINGER TOO | CHA ROLL (DC 13)



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