>Thread Archive: suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Beyond%20the%20Gate
>QM Twitter: twitter.com/SmileytheQM
"What kind of big company?" Derrick asks.
"Gimme a second" Ilica replies.
"Maybe they're friendly" You say.
"If you think that, you should go give whatever it is a big hug" Ilica says.
"Yuu, give her a minute please" Emi says.
"Kay" You reply.
Ilica shuts her eyes, and her ears continue to move about. After a few seconds of listening, she raises a hand.
"That way. Doesn't sound huge, but it's getting closer very quickly" She says.
"Tastess like blood..." Emi says. You turn to see her sniffing the air, and every couple of seconds her little forked tongue flicks out.
Hang on, she has a normal tongue. You've seen it when she talks. Does Emi have a second little tongue in her mouth?
"6 legs" Ilica says.
"Can we outrun it?" Derrick asks.
You see something on her face. It's only there for a moment, but it looked like she was afraid.
"I don't know" Ilica says.
>We can try
>Can we cripple it and then run?
>Then we fight
>Does Emi have 2 tongues?
>Other
>>46208099
>Does Emi have 2 tongues?
Asking the important questions here.
>>46208099
>cripple it?
Deliberation, then
>you have two tongues?
>>46208099
>Does Emi have 2 tongues?
>writing
Glad to see that you guys are focused on the task at hand.
>>46208099
>>Does Emi have 2 tongues?
>>Can we cripple it and then run?
>>46208531
A snake girl with possibly two tongues? That's life and death knowledge, son.
"Do you have 2 tongues?" You ask Emi.
...
"You're asking that now?" Emi asks. "I do... but... I don't think now is the time..."
You nod. That was all you needed to know. "Can we cripple it and then run away?" You ask.
It takes a second for everyone to catch up with your random changes in subject...
Derrick looks troubled. "It wouldn't be the most humane option..." He says. "It'd be kinder just to kill it. That way we could collect a bounty from the Hunter's Guild"
"Can't collect a bounty if we're dead" Ilica says. "And I ain't dyin' out here. Not after we just escaped from that hellhole. I hate to say this, but Yuu is on to something. If we can nail its shins and run, we should"
You see Derrick's hand tighten on the grip of his sword, and his brow creases.
"Still..." He says.
"Whatever we do, we need to decide now" Ilica says. "It's getting closer"
You look over in the direction that Ilica pointed out, and you can make out a shape approaching you through the brush.
It doesn't look that big... From here it kinda looks like a cross between a crocodile, a man, and a scorpion...
Did it just shoot something at you?
...
It definitely did.
>Roll 1d100, best of three
>We'll switch to high roll now, because it's easier for me to evaluate
Rolled 47 (1d100)
>>46208907
Rolled 30 (1d100)
>>46208907
Two tongues, or fully ears.
Rolled 26 (1d100)
>>46208907
She does have two tongues. Nice
Rolled 54 (1d100)
>>46208907
>switch to high rolls
>low rolls inbound
>>46208980
>>46208982
>>46208990
>>46208997
Called it.
On that note are we permanently switching to High rolls, or are we going back and forth?
>>46209045
I dunno. I'll probably stick with high, or I might mix thing up a bit.
Then again, if you guys roll like this every time I mix things up, I may just not do that.
>writing
>>46209173
I'd say just stick with one, high or low. Mixing just raises the chance for needless confusion.
You see several needles flying towards you. It looks like Derrick and Emi are out of danger, but you and Ilica...
"Whistling?" Ilica says. "Did it shoo-"
You reach over and shove her away, before trying to get out of the way yourself. And you almost make it.
The barrage of spikes peppers your back and your outstretched arm. Wherever they hit, you feel a burning pain that seems to spread slowly outward.
"Too slow..." You mumble.
"Yuu!" Emi shouts.
"Look out! It's here!" Derrick calls out.
You dive out of the way as the creature pounces on your group. From what you can see, it has the lower body and arms of a scorpion, with a human-like torso, and a crocodile's head.
You're a little weirded out by how you know words like crocodile and scorpion, given that you don't think you've ever heard them before. But there are more pressing issues.
Crippling it and running might be out of the question. It looks like someone did that already.
The creature is obviously injured. There are spiked chains wrapped around each of its 6 legs, several skewers and swords stuck into its lower back, bloody froth is coming out of its mouth, and a ragged cloth hangs off of its tail...
Derrick steps to the side as it charges, making a shallow cut in one of its legs as it passes. While Emi seems to be concentrating on something.
Closer to you, Ilica seems torn between it and you...
>Join the fight
>Let Emi, Derrick, and Ilica handle this
>Ask Ilica for a hand
>Other
>>46209653
>>Join the fight
>>46209653
>Ask Ilicia for a hand
>>46209653
>>Join the fight
>>46209653
>join the fight
>>46209653
>Join the fight
>writing
"Let's go" You say.
"What? You can't fight! You've just bee-"
Can't fight? We'll see about that.
You find it a little hard to move, and your senses seem a bit dull. But your eyes are clear, which is all you need.
You step forward to test your legs. A little wobbly, but you can make it work. Then you dash into the fray.
The creature swipes at Derrick, who swiftly ducks underneath and counters with a thrust aimed at the creature's chest. Unfortunately, his sword can't get through the monster's tough skin.
When the beast follows up, it gets hit by a sudden burst of water. The force causes the monster to stumble, but it doesn't stop it. Instead, it turns its attention to Emi.
The monster's tail swings back, and you can see more of the spikes that are stuck in your arm and back sticking out of the tip.
Derrick attacks to try and distract it, but he can only keep its front half busy.
So you reach out and grab the tail.
As it swings forward it carries you, and your outstretched foot, right into the monster's upper back. With the added weight, it doesn't manage to get the speed it needs to launch any spikes.
Before you have a chance to celebrate, the tail swings back out and whips you around. Then it swings another way, like the creature is trying to shake you off.
You can't let go of the tail. If you do there'll be spikes everywhere...
So you-
>Try and make it sting itself
>Make a grab at one of the weapons in its back
>Try and pin the tail down
>Other
>>46210202
>>Make a grab at one of the weapons in its back
And pin it into the tail or something
>>46210202
>>Make a grab at one of the weapons in its back
>>46210202
>Try and make it sting itself
>>46210202
>Make a grab at one of the weapons in its back
Remove that damn tail
>>46210202
>Try and make it sting itself
>>46210202
>>Make a grab at one of the weapons in its back
>writing
>>46210202
>Yes
>Yes
And
>Yes
It swings you around towards its torso, like it's trying to get you off by hitting itself with you.
Luckily you manage to get a foot onto it's upper back and cushion the hit. That seems like it might've hurt...
As it tries to swing you back around, you reach out and try to get a hand on one of the weapons that are lodged it its lower back. Most of this stuff looks like broken shafts and metal spikes, but you do see the handle of a sword.
So you grab it as you swing by...
And the handle comes clean off the rest of the sword.
That wasn't what you were expecting. You were hoping to get something you could actually u-
"AGH!" You yelp, as the tail whips back and slams you into the ground.
Another cry comes from Derrick's direction as the beast turns to face you. You look up at it and feel... sort of envious.
It has all those teeth, those big claws, the spiky tail, and the thick skin. Meanwhile all you have is a busted sword handle.
The creature lets out a pained roar as it raises its claws.
You grit your teeth and work your brain.
There must be something...
>Roll 1d100
>High roll again
Rolled 7 (1d100)
>>46210626
Stab that fuck
Rolled 34 (1d100)
>>46210626
Dice, stop fucking around
Rolled 24 (1d100)
>>46210626
Dice gods please
>>46210663
>>46210674
>>46210703
Dice gods why?
Rolled 100 (1d100)
>>46210626
The curse is real, watch me get the high roll now that the 1st 3 failed.
Rolled 3 (1d100)
>>46210626
Mercy?
Rolled 84 (1d100)
>>46210626
>>46210734
Fuck you
>>46210734
What
The
Fuck
>>46210663
>>46210674
>>46210703
>>46210734
This is kind of sad...
>writing
"Roll under is shit"
And the dice gods shit on you.
>>46210734
I fuckin' called it...
>>46210737
>>46210734
Only thing that would have made it better would be a 777 trips
>>46210734
>>46210737
...
Nothing. No ideas, no tricks.
This might just be it.
You close your eyes and brace for impact as the monster brings its claws down. They strike with a sort of angry cat noise...
...
Hang on. That's not the kind of sound you were expecting. You were expecting more of a 'thud' or a 'whump'... that was more of a 'ree-e-e-er'.
You open your eyes to the sight of the creature struggling in vain to pry Ilica off of it's face, while she claws at its eyes.
"That's it, Ilica! Hold it right there!" Emi shouts.
"Whaddya think I'm doin'?" Ilica shouts back.
The monster finally gets a claw on Ilica, and tosses her to the ground. It stands still for a moment to breathe. But before it can do anything else, a sharp chunk of ice pierces its chest from behind.
It arches its back and lets out a shriek, and its claws frantically try to get the ice shard out of it. But its efforts quickly weaken, until its arms drop to its sides. Then its legs give out, and its tail flops to the ground as its torso slumps back into the spikes sticking out of its back.
There is a moment of silence as you all wait to see if it moves again. As the moment passes, you see Emi rushing over to Derrick.
"Is everyone okay?" Emi asks.
"I'll live" Derrick says, as he stands up. He's clutching his shoulder, which probably isn't a good thing. "See you Yuu first"
Emi nods, and slithers quickly over to you.
>[1/2]
"Yuu!" Emi calls out, about a foot from your face. "Can you hear me?"
"Yes" You reply.
Emi looks concerned. "Alright, we have to get these things out of you" She says.
You feel Emi's tail coiling around you, turning you over and holding you up.
"Will he be alright?" Derrick asks.
"I can't believe he's still alive" Emi says. "That was a Carracore, wasn't it?"
"It was" Derrick says.
"Then he should be dead. It's a miracle that he isn't" Emi says. "Carracore venom only burns the skin and causes weakness in small doses, but in larger doses it'll stop the hea-..."
"It kills by stopping the heart" Derrick says, finishing off Emi's thought. "Lucky"
"I disagree" You say.
"Don't you worry. I should be able to fix up the burning and the weakness... mostly" Emi says. "But first I have to get these out... this may hurt. Are you ready?"
"No" You say.
"Then I'm sorry" Emi says, as she yanks out one of the spikes. It hurts for a moment, but the pain is followed quickly by a cool feeling that makes the pain go away.
As Emi takes out the Carpa-... Cera... Corro-... the monster's spike, you look up and around. Derrick is over by the slain beast, looking it over. While Ilica is sitting against a tree licking a spot on her arm...
>Ask Emi how she makes the pain stop
>Ask Derrick if he sees anything
>Ask Ilica if she's okay
>Other
>>46211537
>Ask Ilica if she's okay
>>46211537
>>Ask Ilica if she's okay
>>46211537
>Ask Ilica if she's okay
>>46211537
>Ask Ilica if she's okay
>>46211537
>Ask Emi how she makes the pain stop
Truly the snek we need
>>46211537
>>Ask Emi how she makes the pain stop
>Ask Ilica if she's okay
>>46211537
Some parts of the corpse have any value or something?
Is it edible?
>>46211537
>Ask Emi how she makes the pain stop
>Ask about why the croco-scorp thing was pissed off in the first place
>writing
Ilica spots you watching, and pauses in the middle of licking her arm.
The two of you lock eyes in silence for a moment, until you open your mouth. "Are you alright?" You ask.
Ilica looks annoyed again. "You're the last person who should be asking that" She says. "You could have been killed"
"But I wasn't" You say.
"Pure luck" She says.
"I can deal with that" You say.
Ilica sighs, and takes a second to calm herself down. "Why did you save me?" She asks.
"Hmm?" You say.
"You owe me nothing, and it's not like I'll be sticking around... so why stick your neck out for me?" She asks.
"It seemed like the thing to do" You say.
Ilica mumbles something that you don't quite catch, as she stands up.
"What did you say?" You ask.
"I said you're an idiot" She says.
"Oh" You reply. "You might be right"
"I know I'm right" Ilica says, as she walks past you and Emi to where Derrick is. "Anything important over there?"
>[1/2]
>>46212063
Tsun rabbit.
>>46212091
She's a cat.
>>46212121
Really? Are you sure? I thought I read something about long ears.
>>46212165
Triangular ears. Ilica is what's known as a Felid.
"Well, I've got good news, and bad news" Derrick says. "What do you want first?"
"Gimme the bad" Ilica says. "That way we can leave on a high note with the good"
"This Carracore... these injuries... none of them came from a fight" Derrick says. "Somebody bound its limbs with these spiked chains and tortured it to the point of madness"
"No-... what the fuck?" Ilica asks. "What kind of sick freak does something like that? I mean... I may not be a fan of these monsters, but I'd never... do that"
"I can't say anything for certain about who it was, but-"
"There was a thing" You say. "On it's tai- ow"
"Sorry! These ones are a bit deeper, so this'll be a bit more painful" Emi says.
You breathe in, and out. "There was a thing on its tail" You say.
"Hmm..." Derrick says as he steps around the dead thing. Ilica follows him over, and they both lift up the tail. "Shit... I was hoping it wouldn't be this"
"What is it?" Ilica asks.
Derrick stands up and holds out the cloth that was tied to the creature's tail. It's ragged and discoloured.
"It looks like a used bandage" Ilica says. "Smells like one too"
You turn your head with some difficulty to get a better look. "It's just a cloth with a heart cut out of it" You say.
"This is not just a bloody rag with a cut out" Derrick says. "It's the banner of the Hell's Legion"
>The who?
>Is that bad?
>I see... (Change the subject)
>Other
>>46212420
>Is that bad?
>>46212420
>Is that bad?
>>46212420
>>The who?
sounds like a bitching name for a biker gang
>>46212420
>>Is that bad?
>>46212420
>>Is that bad?
>writing
"Is that ba-ow" You say.
"Ssssorry!" Emi says. "Almost done, I promise"
Breathe in. Breathe out. Okay, you're good. "Is that bad?" You ask.
"Yes" Ilica says. "Very bad. How the hell did they get this far into Lubars?"
"I don't know..." Derrick says. "But if they're here, then it's far worse than I believed"
Ilica and Derrick keep talking about borders and stuff. It sounds kinda boring, so you tune it out.
"There" Emi says as her tail moves you, turning you over and putting you down on your feet. "How do you feel?"
You move your arms and bounce on your feet to test them. "Better" You say.
"Thank goodness..." Emi says "I was afraid we might lose you for a second there"
"Sorry..." You say.
"Don't worry about it" Emi says. "Ilica would never say it herself, but thank you for saving her"
"Is that not normal?" You ask.
"Is what not normal?" She replies.
"Helping your... uhh..." You say. You still can't quite remember that word...
"Friends?" Emi asks.
"That's the one!" You say. "Helping your friends"
Emi smiles. "It is" She says. "Now, I should go patch up Derrick's shoulder"
You follow Emi as she turns and slithers over to where Derrick and Ilica are talking.
Friends...
You like that word. It sounds nice.
>[1/2]
Emi slithers up next to Derrick, and looks over his shoulder.
"All done, Yuu?" Derrick asks.
You nod.
"Well, I'm glad you're alright" He says.
"Me too" You say.
Derrick chuckles, and then winces as Emi grabs his shoulder and pops it. "Ow! Little warning next time?" He says.
Emi shrugs. "It was only dislocated" She says, as a ball of strangely blue water forms around Derrick's shoulder. "Here, I'll get rid of the pain as well"
"Thanks Emi, you're a saint" He says.
"Just doing what I can" She says.
"So who are these Hello legs guys?" You ask.
"Hell's Legion" Derrick says. "They're just what their banner would suggest: an army of demons"
"Bad?" You ask.
"Worse" Derrick says. "They got their start... a little over 2 decades ago? It was before I was born, so I'm just going by what I've heard. Started small... just a bunch of demons that got together to raid the smaller towns that you find further north"
"That doesn't sound so bad" You say.
"It wasn't, back then" He says. "As more demons got word of it, their numbers swelled. At the time, no one thought much of it... until 4 years ago, when Antolia was wiped off the map"
"Ant-elie?" You ask.
"Antolia" Emi says. "It used to be the rival nation to Lubars, taking up most of the western coast of Emil... now it's capital is a smoking ruin. The only places that see much activity there are the forts and castles, and that's just because they belong to the Legion now"
"I've heard that Lubars' western cities are filled with Antolian refugees" Emi says.
"You heard right" Derrick says. "King Dein is doing his best to combat the Legion... but his methods..."
>Methods?
>Emil?
>What's up with the tortured monster?
>Other
>>46213449
>Methods?
>>46213449
>Methods?
>>46213449
>Methods?
>>46213449
>>Methods?
Are we playing snake?
>writing
>>46213629
Pardon?
>>46213734
"Methods?" You ask.
"You were there, remember?" Ilica asks. "Mortifas prison"
"Oh..." You say.
"The punishment for just about any crime now is death" Derrick says. "The King closed just about all of the jails and courts. Now everyone just goes to Mortifas"
"That old coot is so worried about new demons joining the Legion that he forgets that he'll need the people he's got" Ilica says. "It's pathetic"
"I wouldn't call it that" Derrick says. "The powers that be wanted action... but actually attacking the Hell's Legion would have been suicide. Mortifas was was a gesture, to placate the nobles"
"Maybe we should toss THEM in there" Ilica ssays. "Seems only fair"
"And this is why I want to go to Locke" Derrick says. "The king's sister Altea is trying to seize power so she can do something about this"
"You think she can?" Emi asks.
"I think that if anyone could, it'd be her" Derrick says. "But the reality is that the power must shift. The King's new laws do nothing to keep the Legion away, and it's only a matter of time... this-" He points to the dead monster "-only proves that further..."
You look at the dead monster, then back at Derrick. "What was the good news?" You ask.
"What?" Derrick replies.
"You said there was good news and bad news" You say. "We never got to the good"
"Right... sorry" Derrick says. "I got carried away there, I suppose"
>[1/2]
Derrick takes a breath, and shakes his head. "The good news is that we may be in luck, as far as coin goes" He says.
"Oh?" Ilica asks.
"If we bring something that confirms this kill back with us to Sherton, we can hand it in to the Hunter's guild for a reward" He says. "They'd probably pay extra for something like the tail, for it's venom"
"Should we tell them about the banner?" Emi asks.
Derrick looks at the bloody rag in his hand. "I don't know" He says. "On one hand, the information could save lives if the Legion is planning on attacking here... on the other, if they aren't then we'd just be spreading unnecessary panic"
"I say we tell 'em" Ilica says. "Better to have a good belt than to get caught with your pants down"
You look at Ilica, and then down at your pants.
"I don't have a belt" You say.
"Or a shirt" Ilica says.
"Do I need a shirt?" You ask.
"Yeah" Ilica says. "I don't think you'll get into Sherton without getting looked over, with scars like those. And if you get looked over, they'll find out that you have no heartbeat. They find that, and it's right back to Mortifas with you"
"We can worry about that when we get closer to the city" Derrick says. "Come on. Somebody help me get this thing's tail off"
"Kay" You say.
>[2/3]
>>46214391
We should wear the banner as a shirt
>>46214466
Yuu is gullible, but not an idiot.
>>46214466
That's a great idea, I see no way it could backfire at all
>>46214520
Dont worry bro its not a legion banner, its just a band tshirt
>>46214561
>"what's a T-shirt?"
It ends up taking some time, as the monster had a tough tail, but eventually the four of you are moving again.
It doesn't take all that long to reach the road, and from the road you can see towers in the distance.
"Is that it?" You ask.
"The towers of Sherton" Derrick says. "A monument to how far people with too much money will go to one up each other"
You turn to Derrick, and he chuckles when he notices.
"The 3 big families that have homes in Sherton own those towers" He says. "There used to be just one tower, and it was nowhere near as tall as it is now. That was until another family decided that they needed to build their own tower, and make theirs taller than the current one. The next family followed suite... and the first family decided to extend theirs..."
"Ah, the infamous dick-waving contest of Sherton" Ilica says. "I hear the shortest one is about to get another extension"
"It is" Derrick says. "If you look closely enough, you can see it being built"
You focus on the shortest of the three towers... and you can kind of see something moving around on top of it. But that's not your focus...
"What's a dick waving contest?" You ask.
"Err... forget I said that" Ilica says.
"Kay" You reply.
That's all for tonight!
I'll be running pretty much throughout the long weekend, so expect lots of threads. Next thread will be either tomorrow or Friday.
As always I'll be sticking around for a bit in case anyone has questions/suggestions
>>46214729
Does the kings sister realise that a civil war is the worst thing possible when a nation is being invaded?
>>46214767
Yes
There'll be more on that either when you get to Locke, or ask Derrick about it
>>46214729
thanks for running
>>46214729
Fun thread, though I've noticed you use "said" a lot rather than describe how people talk. Not a big problem overall, but with exposition dumps like today it bugged be a bit.
>>46214729
Great thread, Smiley!
Only just found this quest and I wanted to say it's brilliant.
