2x
Well sort of anyway, I say we take the chance to sneak attack the harpies. Have the crew of prisoners wait in junk room and arm them selves with whatever they can find. While we head up to the harpies and start a riot and retreat. Once they start funneling down the umm "stairs" use Magic Cannon or Entrapment (if we evolve it to III) while the prisoners pick off what gets through.
Or alternate plan.
Evolve Dread I, II, & III (-60 Energry) and just wreak havoc in the room with the harpies after the initial attack. Since it says it releases pheromones this is an area effect power right? If it isn't, forget about this one.
Or alternate alternate plan.
Use Lust Whichever on every single one of them or till we are spent of energy and have our selves a merry little orgy! If they are still asleep, it might be subtle enough to tag enough before anyone wakes up from their wet dreams hehe
I say let's ask what their relationship with black. Then evolve Healing Slime Ooze II. Use it on everyone only if they swear loyalty to us over Black. Agreeing with Gargoyle Add Minor Telepathy.
Yup, we should do this at first and then we should do UjisatoGamo's alternate alternate plan, then we return to black bastard.
Note: If we can have Meera and the others as allies we can try to take black down.
Note note: We already have the skill about understanding if someone is lying right? If so upgrade it to full because Im nearly sure that Meera could be a good liar, since she is always calm in every situation and she is with black.
Yup, we should do this at first and then we should do UjisatoGamo's alternate alternate plan, then we return to black bastard.
Note: If we can have Meera and the others as allies we can try to take black down.
Note note: We already have the skill about understanding if someone is lying right? If so upgrade it to full because Im nearly sure that Meera could be a good liar, since she is always calm in every situation and she is with black.
Don't say I didn't warn you about infrequent updates. Upshot is that at some vague, indeterminate point in the future, I will actually have time to write updates fairly regularly.
Annnyway, Option 2X Better read back and see what that actually was...
----
"The area below the trapdoor is too well guarded," you tell Meera. "Cloud Wraiths, or something like them. We'd be better off ascending the Tower; I know a way to get everyone down."
Meera frowns, but then nods grudgingly. "I suppose..." she concedes.
You lead the way out of the corridor, up to the twisting staircase of the tower. Meera follows close behind you, newly-acquiered silver sword held ready. She uses her other hand to urge on the rest of her motley gang; one large bloke holding the iron mace, the rest female, dressed in torn rags. They all look faintly terrified, even the man with the mace.
You press on, past the room full of rusting metal junk. Meera pauses, scanning it quickly with her eyes.
"Looking for something?" you whisper. Her head snaps back round to face you and an irate expression appears on her face. "No," she retorts. "Just checking to see if there's anything useful."
As you approach the top floor, you whisper to Meera to be quiet. She relays the instruction to the rest of the group, and together you inch sneakily up the stairs, pressing yourselves against the wall... and emerge onto the floor to find it empty.
What the fuck?
All the Harpies that were roosting here have gone. No sign of any of them, anywhere - the whole room is eerily silent. Baffled, you glance around with Aura Sense, on the off-chance they've had an invisibility spell put on them - but no. Completely gone. Meera looks down at you as though you've gone mad. "What are we sneaking for?" she hisses.
"There were Harpies here," you insist. "A whole flocking, just asleep, hanging from the ceiling. But they seem to have vanished."
Meera rolls her eyes, then pushes past you, climbing the rest of the stairs out onto the tower roof. You follow close behind, starting to get the nagging sense this is a trap - but you emerge to find the Dimension just as bleak and empty as ever. Grey cloud rolls across the ground as far as you can see, broken up only by those holes.
It turns out the only thing worse than an entire flock of Harpies is not knowing where an entire flock of Harpies has gone.
"How exactly were you planning to get us all down from here, by the way?" Meera asks.
"There was a Harpy," you begin, looking around for your subdued victim... who's also gone. Excellent.
Meera mutters something about incompetence under her breath, then eyes up the edge of the tower. Before you can call out to stop her, she's leapt over the edge, plummeting down through the air - and landing completely unharmed in the cloud banks below.
This woman is really starting to grate on your nerves.
You follow her off the building, expecting a giant swarm of Harpies to come tumbling out of the clouds at any second. Fortunately that doesn't happen, and the rest of the group soon follow you.
"So, which way to Black's Archcrystal?" Meera asks, tucking her new sword into her belt.
"Follow me," you reply.
As you journey through the misty desert, you take the opportunity to ask some prying questions of Meera. "Just how do you know the Black tentacle?"
"Oh, we're very old friends," she says. You press her for more details... but she clamps shut and doesn't say another word. Helpful.
Soon you're back at the Archcrystal.
****
The push and pull on your body of cross-dimensional travel fades... and you wake to find yourself back into your Mournful Orb. It's been expanded quite a bit to allow for the large group of people following you through the Archcrystal.
At the sound of your arrival, Black sprouts forward from his host once more.
"Is this a trap?" he asks, a frown evident in his voice. "I asked you to fetch my allies, Purple -"
"NOW!" Meera screams, striking forward with her silver sword, bringing it crashing down on the Mournful Orb. It slices through it like a knife through butter, and in seconds Meera has cut a rough gap in the sphere to jump out of. She lands in the room, and brings her weapon round on Black's host, who's barely able to raise his own club in time. The two begin to duel fiercely as Black cries out for aid. His (human) lackeys pour in the room, but the rest of Meera's gang have freed themselves from the orb, buying her time.
----
Whose side do you take?
Option A) Meera's!
Option B) Black's!
Option C) Ignore everyone and try to escape!
Status:
Health: 100/150
Energy: 125/200
Morality: 13/100
Evolutions:
Currently unlocked:
Fire Bolt I
Magic Sting I, II, III
Magic Cannon
Scale Armor I, II
Slime Ooze I (just sticky/slippery, no other effects)
Magic Shield I, II
Aura Detect I, II, 2.55, III
Perception I, II
Teleport I, II, III
Lust I, II, III (Magical Bolt)
Stealth I
Body Shock I
Entrapment I, II
Swim I
Levitate I
Holy Beam
Holy Closure (a fine golden mist that prevents undead from being rewoken)
Still available:
- Thunder Bolt I (Like Fire Bolt, Thunder element).
- Water Bolt I (...ditto).
- Ice Bolt I.
- Ovipositor I (Allows you to lay eggs within the orifice of a host. At low levels, these eggs are weak and may not hatch properly. Further upgrades reduces this risk. Each egg costs 10 energy to plant, but the hatched tentacle is autonomous and commanded by you).
- Dread I (Releases pheromones that make organisms more afraid. The higher the level, the stronger the effect it has, and the better it works on people (lower levels are effective mostly against animals).
- Confusion I (Launch a magical blast that can disrupt the brain-waves of a foe. Useful against well-armored creatures that aren't very vulnerable to normal attacks).
- Levitate II (allows you to hover straight over even wider gaps).
- Firebolt II (Like Magic Sting II, but Fire Element).
- (Lust) Slime Ooze II (your slime induces lust in those that contact it).
- (Sleep) Slime Ooze II (your slime makes those that touch it sleepy. Very... sleepy).
- (Healing) Slime Ooze II (your slime heals those that touch it. Like with all slime effects, it can be turned on and off at will).
- Stealth II (20 energy required. Become even sneakier).
- Swim II (20 energy required. Can you guess what this evolution does?)
- Body Shock II (20 Energy required. A powerful wave of magical energy runs over your skin. Akin to picking up a live electrical wire. Obviously limited to close-range combat, though).
- Tentacle Arts II (20 Energy required. Recover HP through sex).
- Magic Shield III (30 energy cost. Lasts longer and tougher to break than Level II).
- Entrapment III (30 cost). Small tentacles appear from the ground around your enemy and bind them to it. The tentacles are strong but not unbreakable.
- Re-Skinned Illusion III (30 cost). Use magic to change the outward appearance of a surface. Useful for laying traps, though not much help in the heat of the moment.
- Minor Telepathy (30 Cost). If you're close enough to another sentient being, you can pick of very faint snatches of their thoughts and emotions. Which of course can be very helpful for a variety of reasons...
- Plague (30 Cost). Fire a wave of sickly green energy that makes people ill. If left untreated, it can kill within a day.
- Illusory Duplicate (40 Energy Cost). Creates a magical duplicate of yourself that can slide around causing all sorts of panic, though unfortunately it isn't truly alive and can't perform any magic of its own.
- Aura Detect IV (40 Energy cost. The pinnacle of Aura Detection - see Cursed and Holy objects from far afield, allows you see even the faintest magical trap clearly, and can allow you to perfectly judge the magical aptitude of your foes).
People and Places:
This is to help me keep track. I've been doing everything from memory so far 'cause notes are for wusses.
Dimensional Nexus: An enclosed amphitheater with an abundance of people and Archcrystals to link to other dimensions.
Blue Archcrystal: Water Dimension. Something stirring in the deeps, but you have already released the central mountain from the control of the Necrofish.
Red Archcrystal: Fire Dimension. Vast dry plains overlook an endless sea of lava, with wooden ships improbably lined up against the cliff-face that separates them. Known for its demons and the wyverns that fly through the air.
White Archcrystal: Ice Dimension. Leads to a snow-encrusted mountain. Currently under the control of an army of metal men that you unleashed.
Green Archcrystal: Forest Dimension. Blue had a lair just outside of it, which you ransacked, and the forest holds all sorts of surprises, included a wooden town in a central clearing.
Stone-Grey Archcrystal: Unknown
Pale Blue Archcrystal: Cloud Dimension. A vast, barren, empty waste sandwhiched between two layers of cloud. Structures are few and far between, but there are many openings to different worlds below.
Dirty-Yellow Archcrystal: Sand Dimension.
****
You are the Tentacle Overlord.
The Necromancer is a close ally of yours. You joined forces with her in Blue's lair, but she's currently being held prisoner in Black's lair.
Succubus: An ally.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Martha: Mermaid ally. Currently holding the Subtle Knife.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Paladin: Somewhat bitter ally. Powerful but unfriendly.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Dragon: A colossal, intelligent red Dragon that you freed (accidentally) from Blue's lair. He feels that he owes you a debt.
Current Location: Unknown.
Atta: An insectile female humanoid, with hard, shiny exoskeleton, lengthy antennae and timid demeanor. Powerful user of magic, but feels a strong connection to her home nest.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Elene: A woman wrapped in a fur coat. She suffered a terrible ordeal in the Ice Dimension, but you rescued her from the metal men and she's currently recovering thanks to the Paladin.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Necrofish: A half Merman, half-Angler fish monstrosity. Resides underwater, last seen when you defeated him in the Water Dimension.
Current Location: Unknown.
Use the Holy Beam of Awesomeness on Sir Blackie just to see what happens. Use an Entrapment II on Black's minions and then get close to Blackie and ABSORB!!
Though, tbh! I'd be fine with taking Black's side. Meera hasn't been all that nice to us. ;(
Black DOES have our friend locked away... We could totally use that as justification to duel Meera. Though if we do absorb Black that means we'd be all that much more stronger. The real problem lies in what Meera's plan is for after this conquest. Would she suddenly turn on us? Death to all tentacles!?
Edit of Awesomeness!: A Evolve Plague I use it on minions, use Holy Beam on Blackie, then go in for the finisher (absorb him)!
A Just make sure black isn't actually hurt. Should be easy to grab him as soon as he leaves the body. we could probably just strangle him while he's fighting Meera.
Evolutions: Plague Healing once all the soldiers are infected we can offer to heal them for their loyalty.
A Just make sure black isn't actually hurt. Should be easy to grab him as soon as he leaves the body. we could probably just strangle him while he's fighting Meera.
Evolutions: Plague Healing once all the soldiers are infected we can offer to heal them for their loyalty.
I would say A, then evolve illusory duplicate and try to jump black unawares. After that secure our necromancer and make sure she hasn't been infested and this black is just a decoy infestation. Because that just seems to be how black rolls. Misdirection and general sneakiness.
You watch as Meera presses her advantage over Black's host, her hand-and-a-half sword streaking through the air in a silver blur. Not at all bad for someone who's been kept in confinement for God knows how long! Black's host's cudgel is deteriorating beneath the onslaught, but you have to grudgingly admit he wields it pretty well - more than once a riposte comes within inches of Meera's head.
Whilst his subordinates pour into the room and attempt to subdue Meera's allies (although they seem to be having little luck with the big fella, who's cracking skulls with his mace left right and center) you take advantage of the distraction and pour some energy into another evolution - this time developing the ability to spew magical plague.
It takes only seconds, and when the process is done you slide smoothly out through the hole in the mournful orb, tripping over one of Black's soldiers as you go. Curious, you test your new spell on the man lying prone on the floor - a wave of putrid green magic spews from one of your purple tentacles, enveloping the man in a thick, cloying cloud. His eyes bulge in shock and his face turns grey as he begins to cough and splutter, turning to retch on the floor. Satisfied, you slither away, utilising the spell on other fighters (but taking care to keep the sickly green spray away from Meera's allies).
Your appearance has turned the battle decidedly in Meera's team's favour; they now outnumber Black's human servants and are forcing them to retreat, still fighting multiple one-on-one duels. You see an open window just across the room and briefly consider making a break for it -
when a loud snap draws your attention right back to Meera.
Black's host is lying on the floor, bleeding heavily from a large gash across the face. His club lies some distance away, shattered into fragments of sharp wood.
One of Meera's arms hangs uselessly by her side, but she's wearing a triumphant smile, bearing down over her enemy.
Before you can stop her, she lunges, burying her silver blade in the man's heart.
The next moment happens very quickly. The blade is sharply withdrawn, accompanied by a spray of black blood. You see movement in the host's mouth, and Black himself springs free, launching through the air like a rocket. He soars towards the window, towards freedom, making good his escape...
Until you flex a tentacle and rip him from the air mid-flight.
"NO!" he screams, furious and twisting, wrenching himself away - but it's too late. Where your skin has touched, the cells have fused, binding him to you impossibly tightly. All his thrashing about only seals him to you tighter, until one stray fibre of his body brushes against your core. A blast of magical energy bursts in your mind like a firework, pure white and all powerful. Everything goes black.
****
When you awake, the first thing you see is a very scared looking man leaning over you.
"ir...?" he whispers. "..Sir?".
You groan mentally, your mind feeling like treacle and your body not much better. You remember it being more pleasant than this when you bonded with Blue.
"Sir?"
Good lord, the man won't shut up. You've a good mind to flay the skin from his body for daring to disturb you.
"...Yes?" you eventually manage. Coiling up, you notice something about your body that wasn't there before - two brand new black tentacles, shooting out from your core. They're same length as the others, and you notice you bear an increasingly close resemblance to a starfish, though admittedly a large, magical, terrifying one.
"What are your orders, sir?" Ah. This must be one of Black's servants. No wonder you feel so queasy. Quick to change loyalty to you, it seems.
"Report on the situation," you mutter.
"The woman and her band of followers have left both the building and the town, sir. There are a band of mercenaries at the town gates, demanding to meet with you about their unfair treatment after slaying a goblin horde, but most importantly there are... demonstrations going on outside. People with flaming torches, pitchforks, that sort of thing."
Hm. Succinct and to the point. Maybe you won't devour him after all.
"Any idea what these... riots are all about, Mr...?"
"Hu'jet," the man replies. "And I don't know, sir."
No, of course not.
----
Option A) Give orders for the mercenaries to be kept outside the town, don't want them making things worse.
Option B) Let the mercenaries in immediately, so their grievance doesn't boil over into them doing something stupid.
Option C) Go out in person to try and placate the angry mob. Option C2) Or 'placate' the mob with lots of powerful spells! Option C3) Send out Hu'jet to try and appease the angry mob of people. He's expendable. Option C4) Ignore the mob for now, they're a distraction that'll get bored and go home soon enough.
Option D) ...Shouldn't you check on the Necromancer?
Status:
Health: 90/200
Energy: 150/250
Morality: 13/100
Evolutions:
Currently unlocked:
Fire Bolt I
Magic Sting I, II, III
Magic Cannon
Scale Armor I, II
Slime Ooze I (just sticky/slippery, no other effects)
Magic Shield I, II
Aura Detect I, II, 2.55, III
Perception I, II
Teleport I, II, III
Lust I, II, III (Magical Bolt)
Stealth I
Body Shock I
Entrapment I, II
Swim I
Levitate I Plague Shrink I (You can contract your now large body to 1/4 its size. Helpful for sneaking). Ovipositor I, II Invisibility I (You can turn completely invisible for up to a minute at a time. Thanks, Black).
Holy Beam Holy Belief (if you have allies wielding weapons, this spell imbues them with a holy aura, greatly increasing the damage they do on undead and unholy creatures).
Holy Closure (a fine golden mist that prevents undead from being rewoken)
Still available:
- Thunder Bolt I (Like Fire Bolt, Thunder element).
- Water Bolt I (...ditto).
- Ice Bolt I.
- Dread I (Releases pheromones that make organisms more afraid. The higher the level, the stronger the effect it has, and the better it works on people (lower levels are effective mostly against animals).
- Confusion I (Launch a magical blast that can disrupt the brain-waves of a foe. Useful against well-armored creatures that aren't very vulnerable to normal attacks).
- Levitate II (allows you to hover straight over even wider gaps).
- Firebolt II (Like Magic Sting II, but Fire Element).
- (Lust) Slime Ooze II (your slime induces lust in those that contact it).
- (Sleep) Slime Ooze II (your slime makes those that touch it sleepy. Very... sleepy).
- (Healing) Slime Ooze II (your slime heals those that touch it. Like with all slime effects, it can be turned on and off at will).
- Stealth II (20 energy required. Become even sneakier).
- Swim II (20 energy required. Can you guess what this evolution does?)
- Body Shock II (20 Energy required. A powerful wave of magical energy runs over your skin. Akin to picking up a live electrical wire. Obviously limited to close-range combat, though).
- Tentacle Arts II (20 Energy required. Recover HP through sex).
- Smog II (20 Energy required. Spray a thick, toxic fog over the immediate area, for concealment and poisoning attackers).
- Magic Shield III (30 energy cost. Lasts longer and tougher to break than Level II).
- Entrapment III (30 cost). Small tentacles appear from the ground around your enemy and bind them to it. The tentacles are strong but not unbreakable.
- Re-Skinned Illusion III (30 cost). Use magic to change the outward appearance of a surface. Useful for laying traps, though not much help in the heat of the moment.
- Ovipositor III (30 Cost) Eggs can be laid anywhere in the body, vast amounts can laid, they hatch quickly and are totally autonomous AND loyal to you.
- Minor Telepathy (30 Cost). If you're close enough to another sentient being, you can pick of very faint snatches of their thoughts and emotions. Which of course can be very helpful for a variety of reasons...
- Illusory Duplicate (40 Energy Cost). Creates a magical duplicate of yourself that can slide around causing all sorts of panic, though unfortunately it isn't truly alive and can't perform any magic of its own.
- Aura Detect IV (40 Energy cost. The pinnacle of Aura Detection - see Cursed and Holy objects from far afield, allows you see even the faintest magical trap clearly, and can allow you to perfectly judge the magical aptitude of your foes).
People and Places:
This is to help me keep track. I've been doing everything from memory so far 'cause notes are for wusses.
Dimensional Nexus: An enclosed amphitheater with an abundance of people and Archcrystals to link to other dimensions.
Blue Archcrystal: Water Dimension. Something stirring in the deeps, but you have already released the central mountain from the control of the Necrofish.
Red Archcrystal: Fire Dimension. Vast dry plains overlook an endless sea of lava, with wooden ships improbably lined up against the cliff-face that separates them. Known for its demons and the wyverns that fly through the air.
White Archcrystal: Ice Dimension. Leads to a snow-encrusted mountain. Currently under the control of an army of metal men that you unleashed.
Green Archcrystal: Forest Dimension. Blue had a lair just outside of it, which you ransacked, and the forest holds all sorts of surprises, included a wooden town in a central clearing.
Stone-Grey Archcrystal: Unknown
Pale Blue Archcrystal: Cloud Dimension. A vast, barren, empty waste sandwhiched between two layers of cloud. Structures are few and far between, but there are many openings to different worlds below.
Dirty-Yellow Archcrystal: Sand Dimension.
****
You are the Tentacle Overlord.
The Necromancer is a close ally of yours. You joined forces with her in Blue's lair, but she's currently being held prisoner in Black's lair.
Succubus: An ally.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Martha: Mermaid ally. Currently holding the Subtle Knife.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Paladin: Somewhat bitter ally. Powerful but unfriendly.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Dragon: A colossal, intelligent red Dragon that you freed (accidentally) from Blue's lair. He feels that he owes you a debt.
Current Location: Unknown.
Atta: An insectile female humanoid, with hard, shiny exoskeleton, lengthy antennae and timid demeanor. Powerful user of magic, but feels a strong connection to her home nest.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Elene: A woman wrapped in a fur coat. She suffered a terrible ordeal in the Ice Dimension, but you rescued her from the metal men and she's currently recovering thanks to the Paladin.
Current Location: Dimensional Nexus.
Necrofish: A half Merman, half-Angler fish monstrosity. Resides underwater, last seen when you defeated him in the Water Dimension.
Current Location: Unknown.
Hu'jet: A previous human servant of black, he now serves you, mistakenly believing you are the new embodiment of his old master. You see no need to remove this notion.
C I geuss also D
Not sure if A and B are supposed to be a separate choice or not. If is then A, if not they can wait.
Not sure what the mobs problem is but sounds urgent, maybe the truth that black is no longer in charge will calm them down. Still torn between this and D, so we should at least make sure to have necromancer freed and given food, then sent to see us. If calming the mob works I still think declaring this day a holiday to be celebrated with orgy is a good idea. Use some lust spells to get things going.
Evolutions: Minor Telepathy as long as were not going for fear this seems to be best we can get to help calm the mob. Tentacle Arts II
(Lust) Slime Ooze II (Healing) Slime Ooze II
