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TOME

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I too do feel that C might be the "correct" option here. But I have nothing else to base that but the nagging feeling that Ean got split up by the spheres and everyone we sacrifice is going to take a toll someday.

But that isn't good enough reason to vote C. A and D are out too if we are going to achieve in the infiltration. So that leaves B, but what happens if Lamplock gets too scared or some shit and starts talking? Killing him might be the only option but then again I don't want to vote for that.
 

Storyfag

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I think C will make the Cult accept us more cordially, as we'd be seen as selfless, instead of ruthless. However I'd like Dio to propose C without really meaning it. Gambling on the Cult's perception of him improving, if you will :smug:

In other words:

E - feign offering our own eye, but if push REALLY comes to shove revert to fighting our way out with telekinesis.


B
 

Esquilax

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Storyfag, that's pretty much the same thing as D. Either you give them some sort of offering to prove your loyalty, or you fight them. The Cult's perception of Dio won't actually improve until his eye is plucked out. Also, we should rule A out completely:

Skarfeld gives a short, barking laugh and spits at your feet. “Shinari nobles are righteous? Bah!” A sharp feeling of hostility suddenly emanates from the man and he leans forward, grabbing you by the front of your tunic.
...
“You speak pretty words, Shinari. Prove that you truly believe them.”

This man demands a display of devotion to his god, something substantial. B will work, but the problem is that it gains us no trust with the cult, and hurts us in the long-term by making our Watchers distrust us even further. We've betrayed them once already, and using them as a pawn in our schemes the second time will simply not do. This time, I think we're going to have to take one for the team.

Look at our situation - we're a Shin'ari noble and a foreigner to Skane, which gives the cultists two very good reasons to be suspicious of us. Every initiate has provided an offering of flesh, and taking part in this would make us one of them and eliminate their suspicions. I understand that people have reservations about acting "honourably" but this is one of those times when being honourable also happens to be the smartest thing to do. This sort of reminds me of Ean at the Gutian village in that sense.

However, I admit that one thing makes me nervous:

“Emperor Jannik desires a tribute of flesh from each of his initiates.”
...
Skarfeld laughs. “Oh no, do not fear. For you, we will not demand a tribute from your own body. We prefer you unmarked. No, your tribute can be exacted from Lamplock over there, who has testified to the honest soul that you bear. His eyes would do fine, though if you would want any part of his limbs I could get a cleaver from the kitchen.”

treave, does Dio get the sense that Skarfeld is sincere in his offer? Does he have any idea why he doesn't want Dio marked? I suppose you could chalk it up to the fact that they would want an intelligent up-and-coming noble to serve as the face of the organization to recruit more people, but I find it very suspicious that Dio seems to be exempt from this. Is this sort of deal common for nobles who join the cult (i.e. getting someone else to offer up a tribute of flesh in their stead?)

C
 

Azira

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Codex 2012
Give up the eye for wisdom, gain the powers of Runic Magic, just as Odin did to drink of Mimer's well... :obviously:

We're in Skane. Let's play into their mythology. :troll:

C
 

treave

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Codex 2012
treave, does Dio get the sense that Skarfeld is sincere in his offer? Does he have any idea why he doesn't want Dio marked? I suppose you could chalk it up to the fact that they would want an intelligent up-and-coming noble to serve as the face of the organization to recruit more people, but I find it very suspicious that Dio seems to be exempt from this. Is this sort of deal common for nobles who join the cult (i.e. getting someone else to offer up a tribute of flesh in their stead?)

C

The likely guess is that yes, they want somebody unmarked even anywhere under their clothes as a spy in government. You don't know for sure but right now it's still a grassroots cult in Skane, with little influence elsewhere, so you're not certain whether there are any other nobles in the cult. Also, regarding the offer, Skarfeld seems serious about it, though Dio gets the impression the cultist wouldn't mind if he chose to do the initiation the way everyone else does it.
 

Baltika9

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I'm going for C.
It's like Esquilax said: B screws us over in relation to our Watchers, they may even decide to fuck Dio and support Inge. Enough is enough. Also, this will win some rep witht them and hopefully reverse the damage we have done during the Prince's attempted assassiantion.
A is right out, Garfield pretty much said so.
D, while doable, defeats the puropse of being here and revelals Dio's presence as another superpowered individual to Inge's and reveals our status as a government agent. In otehr words: stupid.

C. In a sudden fit of courage and nobility, you offer your own eye
Where does this sudden burst of nobility come from, treave? From Dio's conscience, or the memories?
If it's not too meta, that is.
 

treave

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Same burst of insanity that would have made you save Thania from your own plot.
 

Esquilax

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I think C will make the Cult accept us more cordially, as we'd be seen as selfless, instead of ruthless. However I'd like Dio to propose C without really meaning it. Gambling on the Cult's perception of him improving, if you will :smug:

In other words:

E - feign offering our own eye, but if push REALLY comes to shove revert to fighting our way out with telekinesis.

Okay, I feel like D/E (it's pretty much the same thing and the result is the same) is a very bad idea and we shouldn't vote for it. What do you think Skarfeld is going to do, say "LOL jk bro, you don't really have to give me your eye, that was just a test! I'll take you to see the Emperor right away!" As treave mentioned, Skarfeld is completely serious - these guys are religious fanatics who are devoted to their faith, so it seems pretty logical that they would demand displays of devotion to prove that any would-be members of their upper echelons are actually sincere in their beliefs. He means what he says, and he isn't going to back down unless we either give one of our eyes or both of Lamplock's. A won't work because this isn't a man who is going to be swayed by rhetoric, he's going to be swayed by action.

Make no mistake, if we are wishy-washy, if Skarfeld senses that we're bullshitting him (which he has already done a superb job of thus far), he's just going to attack us before we even launch any telekinesis his way. D/E is flip-flopping bullshit and it completely defeats the purpose of infiltrating the cult in the first place. It's really trying to have your cake and eat it too, and it will end poorly. We chose a high-risk option here, so we can't back away in the middle of the action, especially given the odds against us:

This was your initiation, it seemed. You looked around you. Of course, you didn’t need to see it to know it, but the drinking hall was now devoid of anyone but cultists. It just so happened that nearly everyone in the hall just now were cultists. Their mood had shifted as fast as the northern wind, turning from friendly and amiable to cold and suspicious in an instant. You estimated there were at least three dozen of them, staring at you and Lamplock. You look at Lamplock, who stares back with a stony face.

So there's Diogenes, a beginner immortal who is rather shit at direct combat and Lamplock, trapped in a room with around 40 Skanian cultists. How do you like our odds here? I'm going off on a tangent here, but I think that D/E is yet another example of an unwillingness to compromise or eat a little bit of shit in the short term to gain long-term advantages that has hurt us before. It's going to fuck us, I'm positive.

The likely guess is that yes, they want somebody unmarked even anywhere under their clothes as a spy in government. You don't know for sure but right now it's still a grassroots cult in Skane, with little influence elsewhere, so you're not certain whether there are any other nobles in the cult. Also, regarding the offer, Skarfeld seems serious about it, though Dio gets the impression the cultist wouldn't mind if he chose to do the initiation the way everyone else does it.

:lol: So I guess castration is off the table then. Are the cultists well-known for mutilating/dismembering themselves as a sign of faith? Also, I assume that Lamplock is a member of the cult as well, so wouldn't he be mutilated in some way - has he given up a limb to them already?
 

treave

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No, they do this only at the higher levels. You're fast-tracked for promotion because of your status. Lamplock, being a low-level initiate, didn't need to sacrifice anything when he joined except his money and time. Of course, you can guess why the Watchers didn't tell you about this.
 

Esquilax

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Yes, this worries me as well. They are withholding from us, but B will pretty much alienate our Watchers completely.

No, they do this only at the higher levels. You're fast-tracked for promotion because of your status. Lamplock, being a low-level initiate, didn't need to sacrifice anything when he joined except his money and time. Of course, you can guess why the Watchers didn't tell you about this.

Did we catch a glimpse of anything from Lamplock through telepathy? Does he seem particularly surprised by this turn of events? Perhaps he didn't know. It seems crazy, but maybe Lamplock intentionally put himself in the position to get his eyes gouged out to see if we were still worthy of following as the Emperor. Watchers seem to have few qualms with laying their lives on the line thanks to their indoctrination and education, so that might be it. Perhaps this whole initiation is just as much a test from our Watchers to see if we're worthy of their loyalty as it is from Skarfeld to prove that we're a true believer.

Their mood had shifted as fast as the northern wind, turning from friendly and amiable to cold and suspicious in an instant. You estimated there were at least three dozen of them, staring at you and Lamplock. You look at Lamplock, who stares back with a stony face.

Also, I suppose we could potentially cut a deal with Skarfeld by which both Lamplock and Dio offer up an eye each to join the upper echelons of the cult (our Watchers wouldn't turn against us because at least we put our own ass on the line this time), but it would reduce our effectiveness further. Not sure what the end game would be there.
 

treave

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Codex 2012
He's not surprised, as that stony face well tells you. Lamplock wouldn't be accepted into the higher echelons of the cult. It's partially a matter of faith, and partially that of usefulness. If you wanted to blow Lamplock's cover wide open and tell them he's not just any spy, but a member of the spy organization of the Empire, that might increase his value to them.

edit: That would be a more specific variant of A.
 

Baltika9

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Yes, this worries me as well. They are withholding from us, but B will pretty much alienate our Watchers completely.

No, they do this only at the higher levels. You're fast-tracked for promotion because of your status. Lamplock, being a low-level initiate, didn't need to sacrifice anything when he joined except his money and time. Of course, you can guess why the Watchers didn't tell you about this.

Did we catch a glimpse of anything from Lamplock through telepathy? Does he seem particularly surprised by this turn of events? Perhaps he didn't know. It seems crazy, but maybe Lamplock intentionally put himself in the position to get his eyes gouged out to see if we were still worthy of following as the Emperor. Watchers seem to have few qualms with laying their lives on the line thanks to their indoctrination and education, so that might be it. Perhaps this whole initiation is just as much a test from our Watchers to see if we're worthy of their loyalty as it is from Skarfeld to prove that we're a true believer.

Or maybe they didn't know? Lamplock is a lower-level initiate and perhaps nobody explicitly told him about the ritual. Yes, he might've guessed by the mutilated managment, but maybe not convinced without them actually saying so?

However, it is more likely that the Watchers or the Cult, or both, are both trying to test Dio.
 

TOME

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C + Make a mental note to take a eye from the leader of Dio's watchers, when this is over.
 

Arpad

Educated
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Maybe the cultist bartender can store the eye for later 500 copper payment.

B is interesting but better show some guts. Flopped to C in any case.
 

Tigranes

Arcane
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Jan 8, 2009
Messages
10,350
I can totally see the eye-gouging being a major barrier to Dio's political life later on...

That said, I can see no better answer now that we got ourselves into this (thanks root :P) - C. D/E will not work and B seems an even higher potential cost.
 

Baltika9

Arcane
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Messages
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Or,if we play it smart,we will either regen or use it to our advantage.
"I gave an eye for the Empire.What did YOU do?"is a rather good way to shut a critic up.
Makes us look manly and patriotic.Who knows,maybe even our dear princess will get hot for Dio?
 

treave

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Codex 2012
Chapter 7.13: Into the Darkness

With a cold smile, you raise your fingers up to your own left eye. An amused look appears on Skarfeld's face. You had to do this. It would be a bad move to sacrifice a pawn that could be of use to you within the cult. Besides, losing one eye was better than losing two. Steeling your nerves, you plunge your fingers into your eye socket, digging and squeezing in behind the eyeball. It hurt like hell.

A burst of light smothers your left vision as you pry the eye free, and for a brief while you have the disconcerting effect of seeing two different views from each of your eyes; one straight in front at Lamplock, Skarfeld and all the other cultists, and another a view of the dirty floor of the drinking hall, spattered slightly with blood from your exertions. Then you pinch off the last of the ties that bound your left eye to you, and it dropped into your trembling hand gently. You let out a long, deep breath that you didn't know you had been holding in. It was done. Taking in another deep breath, you glare at Skarfeld and stretch your hand out, your eyeball quivering in the cold air.

"I swear my loyalty to the true Emperor, Jannik Inge. This is the proof of my faith, unreplaceable by the flesh and blood of any other person in this world. I would offer no less."

Skarfeld makes a gesture, beckoning at one of the cultists, and she walks over with a container packed with snow. He gingerly picks up the eyeball from your hand and drops it into the container. The female cultist smooths some snow over it and moves back into the crowd.

"You are now one of the Bloodsworn, the ones most beloved of the Emperor," recited Skarfeld monotonously. You could sense that he wasn't altogether pleased at this turn of events. "You have paid the price in flesh, and the Emperor shall return you payment in the form of life eternal. From this day onwards, you live and love and fight and die as one of us, who know the Emperor has returned to us. Ashur Rammu, henceforth you will be one of the lights that guide the ranks of the believers."

He stretches out one big, hairy hand. As you clasp it, you realize suddenly that Lamplock was in danger. You turn to look at him, but the unassuming man already had a dagger in his hand, swinging it at the cultist with an upraised chair behind him. It took the cultist by surprise, slitting his throat and spraying the floor with fresh red blood, but the other cultists were too many and already upon Lamplock. The Watcher did not let out a scream as he was grabbed and beat to death with the furniture that decorated the hall.

Skarfeld pulls you closer and grins again, to the backdrop of the wet, squishy sounds of wood smashing against flesh. "We are sure he was a spy. We do not tolerate betrayal."

"I did not know that, but if he truly was a traitor then this is more than he deserves, brother."

He hisses, low enough that only you could hear it, "Maybe. As it is, we have use for you, whether you are also a spy or not. The Emperor awaits your presence on the third floor." Your heart thumped. Jannik Inge was here. Looking back at the battered body of Lamplock, you knew it was too late to back out now. You were too weary and hurt from digging out your own eye to concentrate on your telekinetic powers.

***

You follow Skarfeld up the stairs, careful not to show too much signs of weakness. Your empty eye socket had been bandaged and packed with clean cotton. He reaches one of the doors and waits, motioning at you to open it. As you move closer, you picked up a being radiating great power from within. It was almost the same feeling you got from Aodh, except immeasurably stronger. You gulp and gingerly push the door open. It was gloomy inside. You step within, feeling the power wash over you until you could not sense anything else. As your eye adjusted to the darkness, you could see a great bulky shape at the other end of the room.

"Is it too dark?" The voice was soft and gentle.

"I have only one eye left to catch the light, Your Majesty. I'm afraid you'll have to pardon the squinting.

"Ah, that is right. Let us fix that." A sudden blaze of fire lit up the room and settled on numerous candles set around the walls. As the light grew slightly stronger to illuminate the center of the room, you saw Jannik Inge for the first time. The first thought that crossed your mind was that he certainly had enough posterior to need two thrones. There was no point mincing word - Jannik Inge was tremendously fat. You had no idea how he even kept himself upright. He reminded you of a gigantic pear, topped with wispy blonde hair and a well-trimmed beard. His eyes, though, sparkled with a dark insight that told you that this man was not all he seemed. He was naked - and sweating, unusual in such a chilly climate - except for a loincloth that you could hardly see wrapped around his waist. A manacle adorned each of his hands, each attached to a chain that led -

"That is tremendously rude of you to think so... Ashur?" grinned Inge good naturedly, breaking your line of thought. You make an embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry, Your Majesty. As a noble on the Shinar council I am used to judging first by appearance, as that is what makes the most impact on the public. Old habits die hard."

Inge nods sagely, agreeing with you. "True, true enough. I would not like you to get rid of your habits just yet. I have use for you in the courts of power. Come, Fenrir." He raises his right arm, rattling the chain. From the corner of the room, a big pile of fur that you had thought to be rugs unfurled itself and padded over to Inge. It was the biggest wolf you had ever seen, dark brown with stripes of silver adorning its body. Its golden eyes shone with a bestial intelligence. You realize that you could read nothing while in this room due to the sheer power overwhelming your telepathic senses.

Inge absentmindedly ruffles Fenrir's soft fur for a while, and then looks back at you. "Ah, so your name is Diogenes, not Ashur." Your heart skips a beat, but you say nothing yet. "You should've told me earlier! I cannot be a good Emperor if I do not remember the names of my faithful."

"My Emperor, I may be born as Diogenes, but I am known as Ashur to everyone else in the cult. Diogenes is my secret name, one that only my closest family know." A blatant lie, but if you judged Jannik Inge correctly, it would not be a problem. Still, even if Inge did not seem to mind, you weren't so sure Skarfeld wouldn't. "Do not worry. We are your family now. Of course, even family must have its secrets, and your secret is safe with me." Inge gave you a grotesque wink, the jowls on his face quivering as he did so. He seemed amiable enough, but something about all this seemed wrong to you.

Fenrir stretches open its jaws in a great, fanged yawn. Inge looks to his left, and grins. "I have not introduced you to my other pet." He raises his left arm, rattling the chains again. "Come, Dagrun." A trembling, naked boy crawls out of the gloom, moving towards him on all fours. It was the young Crown Prince. Jannik Inge gestured with a smile at a familiar looking container in front of him. "Feed me a snack."

The boy crawled towards the container and peered within. You spot a look of disgust flash over his refined features. Still, he reached his arm within to pick up the contents, and in that same instant Jannik's smiling face turned into a mask of black anger. He pulled his left arm back, yanking the boy backwards until he rolled underneath the Returned Emperor's chubby feet. Inge stomped down on the boy furiously once, then twice. "You need more training, pet. Do what I say." he growled.

The boy nodded mutely and crawled back to the container. He put his face within and picked up the contents tenderly with his mouth. It was your left eye. Inge smiled beneficiently like some saint. "Feed it to me." The boy moved to Jannik, putting his mouth close and dropping the eyeball into his gaping maw like a mother bird feeding a grotesquely large baby. Jannik Inge began chewing your eyeball.

As he gulps down the remains, he smiles.

"Thus our bond is established. You are now part of me, Diogenes."

You nod, keeping your head down. "I am all too willing to serve, my Emperor. Now that I am a part of you, whatever I do to help your cause helps my own."

Jannik laughs softly. "Good. Good, that is what I like to hear. Now, to business. I have a task for you, one that you are well suited to do. The parents of my pet here has been very naughty as of late. I want you to take an axe to that well-pedicured hand and bring it back to his mother. That will probably shock them into doing something drastic against my believers... something that will gain me more support." His eyes flashed darkly, his face now cold and calculative. "However, I want you to do it in a way that only the royal family would believe, and not anyone else. It must only be seen as a rumour, not truth - preferably, the royals must be seen as liars grasping at excuses to attack the faithful. I'm sure that is an easy thing to accomplish for someone like you."

You close your eye for a moment, thinking. "It does not have to be Dagrun's real hand, does it? The hand of any child would do." You cast a glance at the boy, who stared at the floor without making any sign that he had heard your conversation.

"No, he has a birthmark on his right hand."

"Easily replicated, my Emperor. I might be able to find someone to do it for you." It did not matter to you if Dagrun lost his hand in the slightest. You cared not for the Prince in any way. Still, if he survived this, and remembered this conversation, he might feel a shred of gratefulness.

Jannik glares at you. "Fakes backfire easily. I will not take that risk. Are you saying... no, Diogenes Camna?"

You don't have to do it, you know? You can kill him right now and solve this dangerous situation you're in at once.

A strange voice floats into your mind, but you keep your eyes trained on Jannik. As if all your problems weren't enough, you were starting to hallucinate...

***

A. You follow his orders and remove Dagrun's hand.
1. You follow Inge's plan to the letter, luring the royal family into attacking the cult. For now, you don't see how doing otherwise could benefit you. In the chaos you should discover better opportunities to deal with Inge.
2. You bring the hand to them and inform them of Inge's plot, allowing them to make their own conclusions.
3. You swap the hand for a fake, asking your Watchers to procure a similar hand from another boy the Prince's age. The birthmark can be scrubbed away to 'prove' that their son is still intact. Attacking the cult in a blind rage would not solve anything right now.
4. You toss the hand away when you're sure no one's watching. Fuck this shit. You've had enough of this freezing hole. It was time to get the hell out of here and return to Ankida.

B. Jannik Inge will not be talked down. The time for words was over. Though you still had difficulty concentrating through the pain, you had recovered sufficiently to use your telekinesis again. You grab the axe, pretending to obey, and attack Jannik, attempting to kill him right here.

C. Time to run. You refuse to cut off the Prince's hand, and instead bolt for the nearest window. Sure, it was the third floor, but if Aodh can survive a higher drop, you're sure you could too.
 

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