cyoa: akechi edition

[twostringsonebow]

Hello, Recolle.

Let's play a game.

Don't worry -- it's a very fun one, and most of the work is on my part, but I think it'd be a good time sink... and you may even learn a little more about yourself in doing so. You may quit at any point of time and gain rewards from it (those are to be decided, mostly depending on how far you get in your story), though seeing it through to a satisfying end would be the most fruitful for your time.

Now.

Please pick a genre and one of the following colors: Red, Blue, Green.
1. Fantasy
2. Dystopian
3. Romance

Your story's waiting to begin. ♪

Comments

[twostringsonebow]

(I'm glad to have you! Don't fret too much at your own cliffhangers.)

The world is green and beautiful, and before you is a town built of pale stone. The sky, dotted by pinkening clouds, is starting to darken as night falls; you have three party members with you, as well as your animal companion. There is one quest left to do before you turn in.

Quest: Nightwalkers

There’s been rumors of beasts roaming the streets of the nearby town, hunting down those who stay out at night. Bring peace to the night.

> Will you accept it?

[pronounces]

of course! niichan won't back down from a challenge! ᕙ( * •̀ ᗜ •́ * )ᕗ

[twostringsonebow]

Good.

You and the rest of your party members decide to put off sleep for the moment so you can quiet the unrest of the town you'll be staying in. The rumors simply state that there are beasts, not where they come from nor what they may actually be. It seems dangerous, but with that kind of confidence, you're all feeling pretty good about it!

> What now?

[pronounces]

hmm...
i'm confident, but i'm not dumb. can i ask around town to see if anyone's encountered whatever the beasts are and try to get information?

[twostringsonebow]

You suggest it to your party.

Hogar, a ghastly warrior with one too many scars to be called handsome, disagrees. It's a waste of time to ask around when they could just be finding the damn things.

The voice of secondary reason, Thistle, agrees with you; it'd make sense to gather what information they could while there was still some light, before it became too late.

Alli, a young lady you'd picked up with no known skills, says that they'll be taking a tour of the town and starts off without another protest to be heard. Hogar is displeased, muttering a mockery of her declaration, but follows, and Thistle seems relieved.

Your faithful companion, Dilly, settles on your shoulder.

The information you gather is varied: Some claim that they're bipedal, others say all four are on the ground; they're large, they're small, black fur versus white like the moon. You're all starting to get the feeling that no one's actually seen one of these "beasts" before.

They do, however, all agree on one thing.

The sounds that occur at night.

Screams and howls, bestial in nature, and then silence. There's been scuffling noise outside one woman's door, but she breaks down into tears before she can say much more.

[pronounces]

what a cute name for a pet ✨

hmm... that really wasn't helpful at all! ( >д<)
but i guess that's to be expected....

it sounds like we need to protect the townspeople, though, so we should stay in town and be vigilant!
let them know their niichan is here to keep them safe! ᕙ( * •̀ ᗜ •́ * )ᕗ

[twostringsonebow]

You let them know that their niichan is here to keep them safe! ᕙ( * •̀ ᗜ •́ * )ᕗ

They thank you, Niichan, and seem a little more reassured. Alli rolls her eyes and gestures on.

"If that's settled! You two -- three, Dilly counts as a person I guess -- will keep watch in this area, while Hogar and I will make the other side of town our perimeter. Tata~."

And with a grab at Hogar's arm -- who could not look more displeased, thank you -- they're off, leaving you, Thistle, and Dilly on the worse side of town.

Thistle hesitates, then steps closer to you and Dilly. "I wish we could've had a vote, but she's always like that... Some days I wish we hadn't picked her up."

You'd felt sorry for her, standing so proudly at the edge of the road as wagons gave her no second glances with her nice dress all covered in kicked up dirt and torn by anything that'd gotten in her way... Even Thistle hadn't wanted to take her in initially, due to rumors of bandits baiting with young women like that, but had given in easily to your plea. Hogar didn't care either way until she started taking charge like she owned the land.

The area you stand in now is on the edge of the slums, the transition gradual but clear between it and the rest of the town; farther in you can see the buildings out of shape, their stone darker and cracked, windows boarded up or closed off by cloth. There's some flickers of candlelight behind the eyes of the house, but other than that?

There's no one around.

[pronounces]

akechin, you're such a good writer!~ i'm so impressed! ♪♪
that even sounds like me, nihihi.

poor alli. even with an attitude like that she probably still needs help...
i hope she'll be okay o(*´д`*)o

but i guess we should look around, right? it's like a horror movie...!

[twostringsonebow]

[hhhhhhh this is why nazuna is one of the people on the list of "if someone does you wrong i will slit their throats".]

(Thank you, I do my best to deliver. ♪)

It's exactly like a horror movie.

Looking around is fruitful, actually. There's marks on the ground in some areas that resemble deep scratches, and tufts of black fur tucked in splintered pieces of doors. Fights have been happening in this area, it'd seem, and Thistle touches her hand to the ground.

"... I wish I could be more help, but I can't connect to any plantlife... It's all stone, from the street down." You know that Thistle, as a dryad, can usually get the lay of the land by connecting to it. Stone, however...

Well, it can't be helped. She's useless right now, but that doesn't make her useless as a person -- any reliable niichan can see that.

She stands again, smiling sheepishly. "Maybe we can try some of the houses with candlelight?"

[pronounces]

oh...! i'll definitely reassure thistle, because i bet she's been really helpful every other time, and it's helpful just having someone there! ♪
two heads are better than one no matter what the situation is!

but that's a good idea. let's go look at the houses.
and stick really close and watch each other's backs, just in case.

[twostringsonebow]

A good idea.

There aren't many houses willing to open their doors, but one finally does, revealing a young man about your size. His slightly pointed ears mark him as at least elf-related, though he looks human otherwise.

"You're the ones sniffing around, aren't you?" He asks, only a little haughtily; Thistle opens her mouth and he opens the door wider, revealing a... bound and gagged human girl, though she's unmoving at the moment. The elf grins and perks himself up, ears high. "Too bad~! I've already caught one of them, so there's need for outsiders."

... Alright then.

[pronounces]

?!??!
is he saying the girl's one of the monsters?!