Trail 64: Mischief, Family, and Manipulations

  --- Jon Whitaker ---

  “Alright, so you’re still working on teaching Pix how to use her spell scripts?” Miss Edna asked as she found him surrounded by Spell Circuits and an interested looking Pix.

  “Sort of… Since she wasn’t all that interested in the Spell Scripts I was trying to show her before, instead I’m trying to focus on something she actually seemed interested in.” He explained. “Unfortunately, since I’m having to translate what I know into a way she can use it.”

  “And what is my grand-apprentice interested in?” Miss Edna wondered, picking up one of his circuits before blatantly telling him that, “This is illegible and unuseable.”

  “Yeah, I’m aware… Like I said, I don’t really have much in the way of illusions that we can work on so instead I’m trying to teach her the theory behind using them better, but that’s kind of going in circles if I’m being honest.” He sighed, running a hand through his hair in frustration. “Whatsmore, I don’t have that much time left until Ma gets back so… yeah…”

  “If you’re worried about your mom, you could always borrow one of Edme’s rooms. I mean, I dragged you there so that we could use the ones she rents out to her better customers.” Miss Edna reminded him.

  Something he couldn’t help but frown at. “I don’t want to take advantage of them just because they’re… your family.”

  “Our family.” His second parent argued, ruffling his hair as she took a seat next to him. “And again, that’s why I dragged you over there, but since you’re being stubborn about it I guess we can have today’s lesson here. Completely wasting my efforts to bully my sister into giving you free rentals.”

  “Alongside everything else you bullied her into giving me.” He noted dryly.

  “She’s my sister.” Miss Edna shrugged as if that justified it, before grabbing a piece of paper and some ink. “Anyway if you’re going to be working on illusions you need something that you both can work with, and luckily for you the Moon affinity can work for some of the simpler mental magics.”

  “I know, I’m just… not a fan of messing with people’s minds.” He admitted with a grimace.

  “You let Pix mess with people all the time.” His teacher pointed out, already half done with a circuit that would’ve taken him ten times longer than that to draw.

  “Pix doesn’t have a Deity of Madness regularly breaking into her mind.” He scoffed.

  Miss Edna paused, long enough to give him a concerned look. “Uh, you uh, you need any help with that?”

  From her tone alone he could tell that she didn’t want anything to do with the Cheshire if she could help it -(which I can’t blame her for)- but was also willing to do whatever she had to to help him.

  He honestly considered it before sighing. “No, from what I can remember of our meetings he’s more an annoyance than anything dangerous…” (He just keeps making me drink his tea and coffee while going on about how to optimize my character sheet for his stupid game.)

  “The fact that you can say that at all is all sorts of concerning.” Miss Edna grinned wryly, before very blatantly switching topics. “This is the Moonlit Charm spell, not very dangerous or invasive but enough to distract someone for a few moments or to get any uptight relatives to wander into a prank they’re too smart to actually fall for.”

  He gave his second parent a dry look. “How often have you used this on Miss Edme?”

  “Enough times that she might have made herself immune to mind control.” Miss Edna admitted with no shame. “I’ll have to stress test that while I’m in town.”

  Scene Consequences

  -Pix Level Up

  --Illusionary Traps Lv. 2

  -Thanks to Miss Edna’s assistance both Jon and Pix have learned [Moonlit Daze]

  --Moonlit Charm: Create a small light or apply to an object, any target that sees it will roll a (User’s Spell Craft Vs Target’s Willpower) check. If they fail they gain (Craft Rank) Stacks of Charmed* towards the affected object/light.

  -For teaching Pix how to better use Traps and Learning a New Script Jon has gained 1XP to Trapmaking and Script Craft.

  --Currently: Trapmaking Lv. 9 (11/20) and Script Craft Lv. 5 (5/12).

  *Charmed: This unit uses their turn to move towards the target of this effect if possible, otherwise they Pass. Remove 1 Stack every Turn. Only one target can be had at a time.

  ---

  “I’m surprised you’re still here given the holiday tomorrow.” He admitted while flipping through the book DeSade had given him on detailing several of the more infamous dealings with the eldritch in an attempt to prepare him for his own.

  DeSade gave him an amused scoff as he made several notes at his desk while occasionally glancing at the void core. “Thanksgiving isn’t a holiday my family celebrates beyond an occasional political manipulation or a surplus funding to the local charities to buy the favor of the locals.”

  “So it’s a purely political thing for you, rather than a family thing like with me?” He figured, a bit surprised since the one redeeming feature DeSade had was his love for his daughter.

  “To be fair, the plymouth thanksgiving that the holiday stylizes itself after was a multi-day event that was used to establish a hundred year treaty between the local pilgrims and the natives. Meaning that it was always political.” DeSade explained, continuing with his paperwork. “That or religious, given how there were many Thanksgiving days that were established after a bountiful harvest or particular military victory where the people would spend the day praying thanks to their variation of god. This was of course more common in New England with the pilgrims than the southern states founded by other countries, and so was a point of controversy when the government made the tradition a state’s right.”

  This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

  DeSade began to twirl his pen as he continued his impromptu history lesson. “A singular thanksgiving was only established around the time of the Civil War due to Lincoln hoping to maintain unity in America, similar to how he took a southern unionist as his vice president. The political nature of the holiday continued with Roosevelt using it as a means of trying to control the economic boosts of the holiday season. The actual familial part wasn’t actually added until the urban rural divide began to split families and thus it became a reunion holiday with an add on of sports due to their cultural popularity.”

  The Dark Lord turned his attention towards Jon. “Neither of which my own family were interested in, the first due to having firmly established ourselves as the owners of Blackwell and rarely having more than one child per generation. The latter due to our sporting interests being in… more interesting games of blood and magic.”

  Knowing that he didn’t want to know what those games were he instead pointed out how, “For someone with no interest in the holiday you sure know a lot about it.”

  DeSade crossed his hands in front of his face. “Remember Jon, everything is a tool. History simply tells us why some failed and why we built others. If you’ve ever have an idle curiosity for why something is the way it is or how it came to be, don’t simply accept the existence of the tradition. Understand its purpose and then decide whether the tradition deserves to be preserved or should be burned where it stands.”

  “And how does the Arcane Nexus fit into those traditions?” He wondered, knowing that if they were jailbreaking the Nexus then they were probably breaking a lot of those.

  “The Arcane Nexus…” DeSade paused, seemingly contemplating how he wanted to answer. “The Arcane Nexus is an interdimensional Spell Engine that was meant to function as a control valve of sorts for every dimension that exists within the more corporeal side of the Black Briar. The Nexus allows cross dimensional travel while also limiting the number of Bleeds that are capable of forming alongside a number of other functions that preserve dimensional integrity while also preserving both knowledge and functioning as an interdimensional ark in extreme cases.”

  “Okay…” He nodded slowly, as he processed all of that. “That all sounds like things we should be leaving exactly where they are.”

  “And you are correct.” DeSade assured him. “Except for the fact that we aren’t actually going to be breaking any of the Nexus’s traditions so much as the Arcane Association’s. I believe I mentioned before the risks of summoning a Madness entity as well as the fact that you should be able to summon a lesser Madness entity as you are, yes?”

  “Yeah, I remember the warning label on all of this.” He confirmed, as DeSade pulled out a laptop from his desk. (Which is more surprising than I was expecting.)

  “Well, if we were to compare the Nexus to a computer system, every user possesses different permissions based on a number of factors. Catalysts can function as passwords to temporarily access specific parts of the system, if with limited access to those different subsystems.” DeSade explained, showing him a small box full of black and white text. “By jailbreaking the Nexus we are essentially hacking it to grant your user ID greater permissions than you -and later on I- should normally have. Of course, even with these permissions neither of us will be able to, let alone willing to, access the parts of the Nexus used for its more permanent functions.”

  “And so doing this won’t let us break the main system, even by accident?” He asked, feeling the need to double check given how important all of this apparently was.

  DeSade seemed to consider this once more. “Mm, I believe only the actual Admin could disable any of those functions, and no one is entirely sure who that is. Though the leading theory is… an entity I’d rather go without meeting.”

  “Who?” He frowned, wondering what could make DeSade wary given the things Jon knew the Dark Lord usually got up to.

  DeSade gave him a dry look. “The Cheshire’s Wife.”

  “Ah.”

  “Quite.”

  Scene Consequences

  -Thanks to DeSade gained 2XP to Occultism and Contracting: Summons, and Computers.

  --Currently: Occultism Lv. 8 (13/18), Contracting: Summons Lv. 6 (8/14), and Computers Lv. 1 (3/4).

  ---

  “I know I don’t usually spend Thanksgiving with you guys, but does he normally get like this?” Miss Edna asked from where she was watching him on the sidelines.

  “Yeah, though usually not to this extent.” His Ma nodded, still looking exhausted from being woken up early by all of his cooking.

  “That’s because not only do I need to make Thanksgiving dinner for our family, I’ve also got to make things for people who aren’t coming to our house, and I need to have all of this done in time to deliver it as well as get back here before everyone else shows up.” He ranted while flitting between five different pots, bowls, and pans.

  “You know we could just order chicken or something, I mean that’s what me and John did up until you took over cooking.” His Ma pointed out as she poured herself a cup of coffee. “No need to put so much stress on yourself.”

  He gave her a confused look. “But I’m not putting any stress on myself?” (I mean it’s not like I’m picking a fight with a Demon or anything… today.)

  “Okay, well how many people are you planning on cooking for?” Miss Edna asked him instead. “Because I’ve seen you cook for three dozen at the camp before, but you’re usually a bit more put together than this mess.”

  He thought about it for a moment. “Are you eating with us or Miss Edme?”

  “Eh, I usually go to my sister’s but I figure since I’m here already I might as well meet the rest of the Whitakers.” Miss Edna shrugged. “Might visit later though since she’s not too far away.”

  “Then food food for eight, and desserts for… The Petrovichs, the Valentines, the Jeffersons, Miss Edme’s family… you think I should make something for Ying and Artemis too? But then should I do something for Audrey and Val if I’m making something for Artemis…”

  His Ma paused coffee half to her mouth. “Ying, Artemis, Audrey, and Val?”

  “I know who half of those girls are.” Miss Edna confessed.

  Not really paying attention he continued doing a tally. “Then there’s also Daisy and Travis from the cooking club, I know they’re probably set since they can cook, but they mentioned a cooking contest type of thing. I should also send something to the station since I haven’t done my monthly ‘don't fear my mom’ thing.”

  “Which you don’t have to do since I want them to be scared of me!” His Ma called a little louder, before turning back to Miss Edna to continue (whatever they’re talking about.) “So who are these girls exactly?”

  “There’s also the homeless… I haven’t really given them anything in a while…” He frowned as his mind drifted from people he should give food to to people he didn’t want to take anything to, (but there’s also DeSade I guess… he’s missing thanksgiving with Rosalind because of me and the Horror… And, if Miss Edna’s here then is Quartermaster Rogers stuck by himself?)

  After a moment he took another look at the kitchen clock, before being forced to admit that as much as he was willing to just cook the whole day, (I can’t actually make food for everyone… There’s just not enough time…)

  He ran a hand over the back of his neck, before telling himself, “I need to prioritize.”

  Patreon Thanks

  A/N: Okay, and here is the next round of Patreon Demo Chapters.

  Also the circumstances of the Patreon Quests have changed some -due to a couple people asking- and now should the Patreon page reach certain goals by the end of the final voting period I will maintain more than a single one of these Quests based on which goals are met. ($1=1, $100=2, $200= all 3.) Minimum Patreon $1, Maximum $10.

  But that is for when the demo ends, we're still in the demo though so you can vote on all of these for free on the Patreon page if you want to.

  Smile Like You Mean It

  A/N: Also, quick warning, pretty sure this story is going to be the most experimental of the three if it continues until the end.

  ---

  Ira Invidia (II): The First Hunt

  --- ??? ---

  (G???????: We need to leave.)

  (E???: We're not even going to pretend to be sane are we?) A second voice drawled, almost mockingly.

  (S????: That would be too much work for too little gain.) An exhausted third pointed out.

  (P????: Yes, yes, we're insane. We've already discovered this, but there's more new things to learn! I mean, look! There's something odd about these two… Why aren't you investigating!) A fourth (more sophisticated) voice cried.

  (the one you should absolutely ignore)- wondered if it was a good idea to heed the words of these voices, but given how they were him in a sense he decided to listen to them in so long as the ideas they voiced were intelligent or beneficial to him at the moment. (Smart man!)

  (G???????: No, we need to leave before someone finds us with these bodies.) The first voice growled.

  (W????: He has a point, if we don't leave people will seek vengeance.) A fifth agreed. (We aren't in a condition where we can fend off everyone who seeks us.)

  (G???????: We need to learn more about our prey before we hunt them down.)

  (P????: Oddly reasonable for you two, but I'm always in favor of bettering ourselves. We can learn on the move.)

  (L???: There's seven us in total!) A chipper voice answered. (Oh, and you don't have to listen to us if you don't want to!)

  (G????: He's right, for once, you should just ignore everyone else and search this lots' pockets. We can't afford to be wasteful in a world like this!) The final voice threw out.

  (E???: We also can't afford to be caught until our work is done.)

  (L???: Ooh, ooh, go the way the girl went!)

  (G???????: He's got a point… The men you killed came from the other, if someone sees you walking out covered in blood they might put two and two together.)

  (L???: Oh, no, I just wanted to make a new friend!)

  (Or perhaps not…)

  (G???????: No look at them. More than one person is covered in blood or openly carrying a weapon… They're all ready for violence, but look at them… They watch their fellows with fear hidden behind anger… They're merely prey pretending to be prey… How delectable…)

  (G???????: Go ahead… Take a bite… Show everyone here what a real predator looks like!)

  rip into the meat and-

  (P????: Now isn't the time for bestial violence!)

  (E???: That is what happens when you lean too hard into one of us. You start to behave the way we would, were we the ones in control.)

  (After all, they're already me and they're already in my thoughts, so who could say who is really in control.)

  (P????: An interesting philosophical, but right now we should focus on the actual project at hand… Look around and we'll see what we can learn shall we?)

  (Is that real, or merely another hallucination?)

  (E???: It's real. It's also a spell circuit… Too big to read from here -can't even take a guess at what it does- but it's probably not why the sky is red.)

  (P????: Perhaps it's a reaction similar to how water particles normally turn the sky blue… Though that wouldn't answer what particulate is causing the red…)

  (G???????: Blood… Can still taste it in the air despite leaving the alley… There's been so much bloodshed it's stained the very air… Not as good as true blood, but still a mouth watering flavor, wouldn't you agree?)

  (P????: Clearly every person or business here affiliates with whatever organization this represents, but what does the symbol actually mean?)

  (annoyance/disgust/rage.)

  (W????: The symbol is for idiots and pathetic wretches who'd rather blame the innocent than take responsibility.) An angry voice growled, filling his mind with red.

  (P????: Now, now, we need a clear head to think. I'm noticing another oddity on the fellows surrounding us.)

  subtle look at the people around him, for a moment thinking them no different than an ordinary person before spotting the thing the voice was talking about.

  looked human, almost everyone also had several traits that were distinctly not. The most common of which were claws and fangs, glowing eyes, and in a few instances even horns and tails. (At the very least I shouldn't stand out too much.)

  (P????: I'd think not. They're all like us, both human and not… Though with a less clear divide between the two…) The other voice mumbled, piecing together his thoughts for him. (Nice of him to do that.) (You're welcome, still this means that they can't turn off whatever phenomenon causes our transformation…)

  (E???: We can only manage that because everything is so shattered in here, and even then only just barely.)

  (G???????: Should just cut loose, restraint is pointless. Revel in the Madness of it all.)

  (E???: It may be fun, but it won't see our work get done.)

  something he couldn't quite name.

  (L???: Oh, oh, I've got an idea!) The happiest of his voices shouted.

  (L???: Well, we've got no direction at the moment, right? So why don't we try talking to the people around us, maybe they'll give us some?)

  (P????: No. Caring about strangers' opinions is how you end up tied to a worthless organization full of idiots.)

  (S???: Though getting someone else to do some of the work for us would be nice.)

  wanting be it due to either their affiliation with that (annoying/stupid/vile/disgusting) pinwheel or because they were just bland and blended into the scenery.

  (L???: Well what about that girl that we woke up to? She seemed nice in a 'desperate street rat trying to survive' kind of way.)

  (G???????: Hmm, it's more fun when they run… The fear makes their meat so much sweeter.) That one purred as his stomach growled.

  (Are we a cannibal?) He idly wondered, while considering his delight in the taste of blood.

  (P????: That would depend on your definition, but… probably.)

  (W????: You're not eating her, she's innocent.)

  (L???: Yeah! She's going to be a friend not food!)

  (G????: Innocent? She stole from us! That's worthy of a death sentence!)

  (W???: She stole nothing of value.)

  (G????: Nothing of- Everything is of value as long as it's ours!)

  (G???????: Hmm, her scent 's in the air, still fresh enough that the blood and filth of humanity has yet to consume it. The innocence makes it stand out against the rabble.)

  (I can't smell anything…)

  (W????: I smell the blood of the innocent and the damned alike, but not the girl.)

  (G???????: Grrah, need to feel the beast… let it guide you on the hunt…) The feral one growled as his skin began to feel a little too tight on his bones.

  (E???: Dangerous route this one, be careful not to over indulge it lest it consume you.)

  (W????: True but the Beast has purpose, value we shouldn't neglect.)

  (It uses a capital B.) "Ah, apologies." He coughed into his hand. "Ahem, the Beast is a valuable tool, but that doesn't tell me how to use it."

  (E???: The Beast is a state of mind. Leave it to the unconscious mind, you'll just direct it as the conscious mind.)

  (P????: So long as you remain more man than Beast at least.)

  (G???????: Not the time. Time to hunt!)

  (prey/friend/girl) he was after.

  (prey) not caring in the slightest about the people around him or the fact that several flinched away from his bloodstained form and snarling maw, (all that matters is the hunt!)

  nothing in the face of his growing (hunger.)

  (scent/emotion/madness) that he'd been following expanded into such a large thing that it consumed his vision.

  (She's nearby…) He growled both internally and ex at that thought, not sure whether it was him or the voices making the sound.

  (G???????: The rabbit's den is buried, need to dig it out.)

  (whatever I was tracking.)

  just big enough for a sleeping bag, a backpack, and a terrified green eyed girl who could be no older than ten and four bundled up in a heavy scarf and jacket.

  (G????: There's the thief!)

  (G???????: Food!)

  He growled, ready to rip into her throat and- (Enough/Enough/Enough!)

  (W????: She's a child!)

  (L???: Friend not food!Friend not food!!!)

  (E???: What would your mother think of this behavior?)

  weren't all for killing the girl reprimanded him.

  (P????: As I said, will you be a savage beast or a proper gentleman?)

  (Right…) He inhaled, before exhaling. (Need to be sure of whatever choice I make…)

  You found the girl. Now what will you do with her?

  Note: Some choices will resonate with certain classes while repelling others. In such cases the names after the + will grow stronger, while the ones after the - will grow weaker.

  []-Kill Her. (+G????/G??????? -L???/W????/E???)

  []-Leave her alone. (P????/E???/W??? -G????)

  []-Recruit Her. (L???/S????/E???)

  Any Questions -for her- before we do that? (Max 3 per Person)

  []-Write Questions Patreon In Comments. (+Depends on the questions asked.)

  The Black Briar Library

  Book I: The Remnant of Gregory Fischer: Chapter I

  --- Gregory Fischer ---

  (The Flames of War… No, don't want anything to do with that again. Smoke of War… I… I don't think I want to know how much they know about that…)

  (Ashes of War, the Remnant of Gregory Fischer…)

  read the book he'd chosen.

  "Once upon a time, there was a soldier named Gregory Fischer." An echoing voice said, the paper parting just enough to show a picture of him in his brown uniform saluting.

  "Gregory was a good little soldier who followed orders, no matter how much he hated them." The voice continued as the paper parted once more to show him standing over a street littered in bodies flames eating away at the edge.

  "Until he was given an order he couldn't follow." The pages parted once more to show him holding a file in his hand with a terrified look as he stood in front of a smiling man in a suit.

  "So he didn't." The voice declared as it showed him burning the file from before.

  (If they're coming for me because of that… then I'll deal with it.)

  "The men he viewed as his brothers abandoned him for failing to follow his duty…" The voice continued uncaring for his words as it showed him sitting in a canteen by himself, a clear gap between him and everyone else.

  "Shame filled him… Not because of the order he rejected, but because of all those he didn't…" An image of him clutching his head while surrounded by smoke appeared, the smoke parting just long enough to see things he'd rather not remember.

  "Unable to do the job he was made for, they threw him out onto the streets… A broken burned out husk of the man he once was…"

  "This is where our story will begin."

  (W-what?) He blinked, finding himself back in his room, the library and the pages from before nowhere to be seen. (Was… was that all just a nightmare?)

  not fall asleep in since the collar would always choke him, reminding him of when- (Don't think about it.)

  (No, that's not right… The pages have something written on them…)

  (The name 's changed…)

  (since they didn't give me a door out of this room) he picked up the book.

  (For Gregory Fischer, The Man Who Burned So Others Wouldn't Have To.)

  something in those words…

  (Okay… Now the question is what any of this means…)

  (A scream tore loose from his throat, almost as loud as the roar of the flame that devoured his arm.)

  (Smoke flooded his lungs, choking him with every breath as he stumbled ever forward in pursuit of his goal.)

  (All around him ashes floated through the air, painting the world gray as they left him alone with the dead.)

  (dangerous) book he'd left on the book. Its closed cover innocently gazing up at him.

  really meant, (the Synopsis of Gregory Fischer… My… My entire life…)

  (Whatever magic makes this place up… It's compressed my entire life into a single book…)

  something.

  ("Species: Human, Genre: Sci-fi/Fantasy, Classification: Cyberpunk/Practitioner/Scrapper, Derivative Addendum: None.") He wasn't entirely sure what all of that meant, but from what he could understand it was all sort of fitting with what he knew about himself.

  (Slash, Blunt, Pierce, Mind, Spirit, Fire, Ice, Electric, Light, and Darkness… With a skull over Mind, a shield over Fire and Ice, and an equal sign over everything else… So Mind is bad while Fire and Ice protect and everything else is even?)

  ("Opening Strike. Cost: 1 Blank Page. Blunt Melee. An opening strike to unleash greater combos, the foundation of something greater for all martial artists. A Quick Read for Scrappers, Bruisers, and Infiltrators.")

  (So… the book is also dissecting my abilities?) He frowned before flipping back to the Current Story and seeing that he only seemed to have five as far as the book was concerned. Which was all kinds of wrong given how he had learned, developed, and mastered his style of fighting during the war.

  sure his 'work' had kept his edge from dulling, (then again most of my jobs are pretty straightforward… Never need to bring out anything really fancy…)

  (Isn't that what the first book underlined?)

  (But how?)

  actually overcome his depression, then he might as well roll over and die given how long he'd been battling that particular demon with no success.

  What do you write in your book? (1-3 Word Prompt.)

  []-Write-In Patreon Comments

  Simon Lorde, The Overlord

  A/N: Okay, there was a tie between Ruins and Swamp… I can make that work.

  ---

  Chapter 2: Jaegerjaque's Tour

  --- Simon Lorde ---

  (It, it might be best to just roll with things until I get a moment alone.)

  (They… really are happy to see me for some reason…)

  (I guess this is sort of like riding a rollercoaster.)

  (rather disturbing imagery…)

  very impressive." He assured the fanged woman who could throw him across the room. "What exactly is it you want from me?"

  (I hope Annabelle doesn't worry too much… Or murder anyone while trying to find me…)

  (That I have zero intention of actually doing.)

  (Though the fact that I don't really know what's going on kind of says I am the fool here…)

  how do I use the Overlord's Hand?" He elaborated, believing that (when in an unknown magical place the best thing to do is listen to the possibly magical creature.)

  (Just decide what I want and will it so…) He frowned, figuring this was going to be one of those things that he'd just have to figure out for himself.

  What color is the Overlord's Gem? (Freebie Overlord Perk. Have to complete a Big objective for these but they are literal game changers.)

  Hint: This color scheme is common in my other stories.

  []- Red.

  []- Blue.

  []- Gray

  []- Green.

  []- Black.

  []- Violet

  What does the Overlord will for? (Freebie Overlord Ability. Have to train to get these, they're useful but won't change how you play.)

  []- A weapon in hand.

  []- Power unleashed.

  []- Controlled force.

  []- Domination.

  Thanksgiving Event Start. (Pick 4 to do before the Whitaker Family Gathers)