guestservices | CYOA Week 6: Lup, Shinobu, Yoo Joonghyuk

[oh, she likes zen. she will go gently pick one up and tuck it behind her ear? sorry about fashion, that comes first.

she watches... the other two wander off. and sighs. they're both still in the lawn but whatever, lup makes bad decisions, and she's totally zen right now so why not, right. yjh is like one person should go to the tower! so she does. she approaches the lit tower and doesn't even think twice she just knocks. better hide if you don't want to be seen.]

[ does she need stupid boys around in order to be the responsible one

shinobu is too busy glancing into these barrels, if she can, and trying to open this chest to notice lup just walking right up. at least not immediately.

so i guess that's happening. ]

[ For the prints, are there differentiating humanoid feet of different sizes or will it not matter.

Joonghyuk is also just checking out the inside of one of the shed turrets! Are these rings supposed to be guards? Like to reinforce wheels or grinders… me like wtf are these.

Tell me about the poles. They wood? No, he doesn’t realize Lup had shouldered the responsibility and left to Jehovah Witness the tower. ]

[well. no one answers the knock so there's that? but the door does appear to be unlocked. shinobu cannot see into the barrels since they are also closed from the top, and the chest looks like it is locked and needs some sort of key to open it, if not another mechanism.

it does not matter regarding the feet but i will tell you that they are just a lot of different sizes like people running around with shoes on. the rings are large, metal hoops that look like they may hang from something. the poles are made of solid, sturdy wood and appear to have clasps hanging from the top. maybe the rings are meant to hang from them? they are very large and spiked at the end as if they are meant to go into the ground. very thick, too.]

[the answer to that question, ara, is yes.

lup opens the door and peeks inside.]

[ shinobu will try to open this closed barrel while lup is zen and entering this tower alone. ]

[ are these poles lootable

He wants them, at most three, but at least one, and after he gets them or doesn’t he will leave to notice something.

Hm. ]

Where is Lup Lastname?

[we are already off to a great start.

lup looks inside the door and she sees...stairs! it is a massive set of stairs that seems to lead up and wind around and around to the top of the tower. tucked away under the staircase is a broom and a bucket.

shinobu can try to pry open the barrel, but it does not seem to budge just by doing that. she may have to leave it for now.

yjh. can. technically take a pole i guess? they're like. very tall. and bulky. like nothing is stopping him but if he starts to grab for one he will find that it's possibly even taller than he is and decently thick.]

[lup lastname is going into the tower to take the broom. this belongs to her now.

she's also going to start climbing the stairs. i'm sorry yjh and shinobu, i'm glad they're the completionists and lup is the speedrunner.]

[ she can't open anything, so she leaves it alone and goes back.

she looks around at yjh, then at the open door, and back. ]

It looks like she went in. I'm following.

[ and unless yjh stops her, she's going to do just that. ]

[ He just has a giant pole! That is taller than 6’! Can he try to break it with his 20 strength?

Grumbling. ]

All right.

[ He will go after Shinobu once he sees result of stick. If stick doesn’t break, he’s going to abandon it onto the floor like Riff’s eyebrows. ]

[lup has a broom. yjh has a pole that i guess reasonably he could actually carry with him but it's thick so maybe don't break it. it is not easy to break with his 20 strength but he can have a comfort pole if he wants.

but okay, they climb. all of them will climb

and climb

and climb?

eventually, they reach a landing with another door. there isn't a railing or anything to catch them, the landing a little small but just enough to fit the three of them before they open the door itself.

the room at the top of the tower is wide. the door itself is tall and wide, and as they enter the room they'll see a few things. there are square shelves hanging on the wall with a few books, and the room itself has a lot of candles in holders on these shelves as well. there is a large chalkboard off to the side, and to the right there's another equally large ornate door that is closed and may lead off to another tower. in front of them is a large wooden desk and a highback chair sits behind it. a book lays open on the table, and a skull-shaped candle burns brightly on the corner of the desk.

there are a few other items in various corners, more shelves of books and pots and jars of various things. there are several star-shaped windows behind the desk that overlook the yard below, a large crescent moon window directly behind the chair.

but there are no people? hm.]

[if this broom comes to life at any point she's going to flip her shit.

anyway, she keeps making her way up, and waves with said broom when the other two join her.]

... This feels like a wizard house. With like, traps. [she says, squinting at the skull-shaped candle.] Nemesis, hit things with that pole if they get too close.

[he like, has a name, lup. anyway, she's going to look at the chalkboard, first. what's on this sucker.]

White rabbits make good sacrifices, don't they?

[ she would never sacrifice someone, but she says it anyway.

while lup checks out the chalkboard, shinobu gravitates towards the books like a nerd. the open book is tempting, but what if it's a trap like lup said?

she goes to the bookshelves. i hope they aren't too tall for her. ]

If I remember correctly, Dimitri was a lion.

[ Joonghyuk is willing to be mean, really, granted he’d never want that for the dead man. It’s the last thing he’d want.

He’ll check out the open book anyway, but peers at the jars as he goes over to hover at a safe distance?? ]

[first thing's first. the door closes behind them once they're in the room. but at least that means there's plenty of time for them to look around! the stained glass ceiling above them offers enough light from the galaxy outside to shine around the room so they can explore. shinobu is almost too short for some of the shelves, but on others she's able to read the spines and see that some of them are, in fact, books on magecraft. there are some books on magical theory, spellcasting, etc.

yjh peers at the jars. they glow a soft green in color, labeled with one to three stars. there are some unlabeled jars that glow blue as well.

inside the book there appears to be a diagram of several rings, and text that is unidentifiable. it's written in a language that they cannot understand, but there are arrows and shorthand around the rings themselves.

the chalkboard itself has a message:]

Their hurting will be mended, when you return to end it.

[the lights dim down, and soon all three of them will hear a voice speak up. there isn't anyone in the room, but they will hear it inside their head.]

"So much to do, so little time. But power sleeps within you. Will your power be your triumph, or your downfall? If you give it form...it will give you strength. Choose well."

[three items materialize on the desk then. a sword, a staff, and a coin. if they look at the book again, they will see that the writing has changed.]

The power of the warrior. Invincible courage.
The power of the mystic. Inner strength.
The power of the guardian. Kindness to aid friends.

Which power will you seek, and which will you exchange?

[choose wisely. or do something else, i don't know you guys.]

[she nearly kicks the chalkboard over when the voice happens in her head. she doesn't, but she almost does. she stares at the words on there for a second, and then sighs heavily and looks over at the desk.]

See? What'd I tell you. Wizards.

[a pause.]

Dibs on the staff.

[ she is about to turn around and be snippy at yjh when the voice sounds in their heads. she stills. she doesn't like that. she doesn't want people in her head. ]

Wizards....

[ she glances at the chalkboard before she sees the new items. she wants to be contrary, but... ]

We'll have to choose one to move on, won't we? I'll take the coin.

[ First, he heavily dislikes the voices in the head thing going on and he visibly tenses, eyebrows furrowed and glare dark.

Damn. I thought she would take the sword to be mean to Joonghyuk which is valid. He also thought that, too.

Anyway, he doesn’t say anything and chooses the sword. ]

Why are they dramatic.

[cool.

they can't take any of the items until they say what they're giving up though. the items do seem to respond to them though, the choices locked in for them. they will not know what they've selected until a power is exchanged, however.

which of the three would you do away with?]

If you could shoot fire out of your hands, wouldn't you be dramatic?

[she says idly, staring down at this staff. hm.]

Uh... I guess I'll exchange courage. The sword. Whatever. [she says, reluctantly.] My strength stat sucks anyway.

[ she looks at yoo joonghyuk because he says that as if he's not one of the most dramatic bitches alive. ridiculous.

she can rise above being petty every now and then. maybe. she looks at the choices left. ]

There's nothing wrong with being dramatic. [ up to a certain point. ]

I'll exchange the staff. [ because she thinks her inner strength is fine as it is and her whole life has been wanting a better strength stat. ]

Being less dramatic can save us from invasive voices in our heads.

[ Fire is acceptable and it just ends up being flashy which he agrees comes with the package. Some things can’t be helped.

Also, he gives himself a permit for everything. ]

I’ll exchange the coin.

[ everyone in this room knows he’s a bitch already it’s fine to possibly become worse ]

[congratulations everybody!

so here's what we've got:

lup has chosen the way of the mage. she will have a staff and she can generate magic. she will be able to do an array of lowgrade spells, but after a few casts of magic (five or so), she will need to rest to recharge and regain her strength.

shinobu has chosen the way of the guardian. she will be able to help defend the party, raise their strength on occasion, and boost the luck of the group in critical moments.

yoo joonghyuk has chosen the way of the warrior. his sword can transform into a blade he's more familiar with if he'd like. he will be able to wield the sword a little more easily than usual and will have an easier time in combat without getting as winded as he normally would.

likewise, lup has given up extra strength, shinobu has given up being able to use any form of magic easily, and yjh has taken on the chance of bad luck and leaving himself open with less defense.

the voice returns to their head.]

"Your path has been set. You have chosen what is most important to you, and what you will cast aside. Was it an easy choice? You have many other choices to make on your journey."

[stars light up above them, little constellations that begin to form faces, shapes, and expressions. it's hard to make out at first, but soon the three of them will recognize several guests from the hotel. kaeya. dimitri. rupert. clementine. claude. emet. all of them are there, watching over them patiently.]

"You have been given a responsibility to fulfill. But you must choose your path to pave the way back. Will you do it? All you have to do is close your eyes."

[but don't worry. the disembodied voice will wait for whatever you want to do. whenever you're ready.]

[oh you bet your ass she's not gonna like having to recharge. lup "taz has no spellslots" lastname over here.

she makes the worst face at having to make choices. no. she doesn't want to. but - the constellations shift and change, and she glances up at them, immediately frowning. oh. no, that's unfair. for a second, she holds the staff to her chest, just watching the faces, and then she sighs out slow.]

Yeah, sure. Not uh, not like we have much choice, right? So I guess - see you guys on the other side.

[and she does. she closes her eyes.]

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