Fandom Children of Abraxas

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> Be Jean.

SJ: Don't hold it against him, js is... he's weird.
SJ: As for the other thing?
SJ: We already took care of the black king.
SJ: If you make us when you scratch
SJ: Which is a crazy idea.
SJ: You'd just be stuck in our session with us.
SJ: There isn't anything for you to do here.

-

=> Leto: Are you doing this?

You are doing this.

SS: uh...
SS: i like pot roast,
SS: i guess?

You attempt to clone the frogs. You find both of them and press the APPEARIFY button to do this thing!

You TELEPORT the frogs to your location...

You get the inclination that you aren't doing this correctly.​

 

[SerbianMounted]

=>

JL: i meant, if we took all the.....eugh, nevermind
JL: he really seems it, i already don't really talk to any of y'all as is
JL: him, even less
JL: it's just, you realize there is literally no way out of this right?
JL: this game is unwinnable as it is
JL: the only out is with a scratch, after we try and figure out as much as we can before we go
JL: and maybe a way of escaping to your session, so we don't die martyrs
JL: then again, unless we found a way to enter that newly scratched session too, we'd be stuck together
JL: maybe dying martyrs wouldn't hurt​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: Teleport past frogs

Hm, since this machine seems to be able to teleport stuff from the past...what if you just...tried to get the frogs when you were looking at them for far too long? Would it clone them since you don't remember them disappearing? Will it create a black hole? Who knows! Only one way to find out

LJ: Um
LJ: Pardon my ignorance
LJ: I don't know what a potted roast is : (
LJ: But I really like caprese...
LJ: I would love to try a potted roast with you : )​

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> Be Jean.

SJ: I don't know about that.
SJ: There has to be a way for you guys to win.
SJ: They wouldn't make an unwinnable game for no reason.

-

=> Leto: Clone.

SS: jesus your rich.
SS: potted roast is just throwing a bunch of shit into a pot for a couple hours.
SS: literally anything you have in your fridge would do,
SS: my granny once put a day old sandwich in their and it turned out fine.
SS: well,
SS: fine is a strong word.

You successfully create a PARADOX CLONE SLIME IMPRINT of the FROGS. Their genetic material goes into the many TUBES on the ECTOBIOLOGY APPARATUS

You could be at this for a while.​

 

[SerbianMounted]

=>

JL: you're going to tell me that every gaggle of kids who play this just go at this
JL: and win, no problem?
JL: they never encounter any insurmountable challenge, they always rise to the test and battle huge monsters, and never die?
JL: every kid who's ever played has some weirdly aggressive guardian that assesses their battle capability
JL: it's a big world out there, and people are people, i.e fallible
JL: and this isn't exactly a walk through the park, this is serious shit
JL: i just.....eugh, maybe it really just doesn't matter
JL: maybe this is what skaia had in mind when it made us
JL: just create us, go through all that big, triumphant bullshit for naught, and have us die
JL: because that's just how it was 'supposed to go'
JL: i mean, we were supposed to have a reckoning at least, with all the kids on the meteors
JL: so i guess we'll wait it out until then, and if we're strong enough, we'll give it a shot, die trying, and leave you there, with two more blacked out screens
JL: or abandon you, let ourselves get overwritten and hope that some schmucks get it right
JL: which i don't know how i feel about, if it's even worth it to set them up for what might just be another failure, and bring them down with us
JL: i'll see you

You let SJ reply as they want, but don't really respond back. You've long since left the REEL HOLLOW, and have taken a return node all the way to Seth's house. Still no evidence as to who that was that exactly opened those doors before you. You're gonna guess the cherub, since they seem so gun-ho about meandering through the medium and exploring what they can to learn more about the game and the scratch. You wouldn't be surprised if that was where they got the idea in the first place.

You return to your house, uncertain of where you should really head to next. You sit down, leaning against the guardrails of your very tall spire like house. You lean, giving out a languishing sigh. You should probably message Leto. You don't know when the reckoning will happen, but it's officially your countdown to when it's time to start your scratch. If you fail, and decide to bail out before one or both of you die, then that's certainly the time to start using Echidna's quills.

Spoiler: Pesterlog Leto

JL: interesting find on LOYAL just now
JL: i found the REEL HOLLOW, like what the cherub mentioned
JL: all we need to scratch and maybe start the whole universe over is to talk to echidna
JL: so, keep that in mind if you ever get to talk to her
JL: don't know if i'll ever track my shitty denizen
JL: don't know what that would even do
JL: the cherub mentioned something about it maybe giving me some clarity about my quest, but he never gave a shit about us doing this linearly
JL: i'm sure they'd sooner start the scratch right now if they could

​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: Keep getting slime!

You continue by picking all of the frogs you saw on your walk, those you saw when you first arrived, as many as you can remember. As the tubes fill with more and more, you turn your attention to SS and Jean's messages.

LJ: I did grow up with a bit more than most, yes...
LJ: And you could put anything in?
LJ: At least, theoretically?
LJ: You could put in some nice steak...
LJ: Once this is all over
LJ: Teach me how to make it? : )

Spoiler: Pesterlog

LJ: I see....

Spoiler: Pesterlog

LJ: I will do my best to negotiate with her! : )
LJ: And I'm sure you could find your denizen eventually...
LJ: I've also started the frog breeding
LJ: You should come over if you have time
LJ: SS taught me about potted roast!!
LJ: You deserve a break, you've been putting in a lot of hard work
LJ: plus, all of the talk about scratching is a lot and just...everything
LJ: It just scares me : (

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> Be Jean.

You meander through your home aimlessly, when you come across a NOTE written in a familiar hue.

Noon, tomorrow
Meet in the Veil, bring Leto
I figured it out
I know how to fix the game
- TC

A second note is attached below, showing a poorly drawn map to a sequestered BUNKER on LOYAL.

-

=> Be Leto.

You collect as many frog genes as you can, but you are only JUST BEGINNING.

SS: sure?
SS: i taught myself how so im sure i could teach you.

You have run out of frogs.​

 

[SerbianMounted]

=>

You look at the note. Well, this is certainly news if youve ever heard it. You message Leto about this new development. You were originally going to try and head out to LOSAS and do some investigating to try and find any evidence of your denizen. To see what they'd yeild for you as another possinle lead for answers.

But that can wait. Maybe Leto's right. Youre in no condition to go exploring after the bullshit youve just been through. You could stand to just sit down and zone out for a while while Leto tries her hand at making peasant dishes.

Spoiler: Pesterlog Leto

JL: maybe
JL: theyre an elusive bastard, tucked away god knows where
JL: but maybe if i try and scan over some of the maps in my land the others have i could try and find him
JL: ....the cherub just gave me an invitation, to meet in the veil sometime tomorrow
JL: they say they think they know how to fix the game
JL: ....im gonna head over, maybe we should just spend the night together, go first thing tomorrow?

​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: Breed

You try and mix the GENETIC MATERIAL together, hoping to breed some frogs together.

LJ: : D
LJ: Thank you~
LJ: I'll try and focus on my frog breeding
LJ: Thanks for humoring me : )

Spoiler: Pesterlog

LJ: Oh
LJ: That sounds good. I hope they're right.
LJ: I'm still working on the frogs
LJ: I think I'll be here in a while so if I'm not in my room I'm probably up here
LJ: But yeah, we can go tomorrow : )

​

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> Be Leto.

You make your first BATCH OF FROGS. They turn out adorable, but they are still just some BOG STANDARD FROGS... you don't exactly know what you're supposed to be making here. After a couple hours of random ECTOBIOLOGY, you take a break and have a slumber party with Jean.

-



=> Kids: Fast forward to tomorrow.

It is now NOON the next day, or what you can only assume is NOON, as there's no way to actually TELL THE TIME in the medium.

The two of you are on LOYAL. You have followed a crude map to a small building beyond the THIRD GATE, where a musty room holds nothing but dust, and a TRANSPORTALIZER. You've seen these things before in your spelunking, just a simple, handy way to perform QUANTUM ENTANGLEMENT and rematerialize at your DESTINATION. Fun. After hopping through you find yourselves in a much COLDER ENVIRONMENT, like your first step onto the kitchen linoleum in the morning.

You are in a small black CORRIDOR somewhere you can only assume is THE VEIL beyond the medium. A handful of papers litter the floor with a long yellow line trailing down the long narrow hallway.​

 

[SerbianMounted]

=> Jean: follow yellow brick papers

That was a pretty lazy reference, but you walk side by side woth Leto as you walk down the hallway. Following the papers as far as you can. You have one of your deadlier yo-yos on hand now.

You refuse to be caught off guard by whatever trickery might still be at play.


JEAN: woulda been nice of them to tell us about this place
JEAN: would maybe have helped in getting back to derse and trying to investigate more about my apparent murder
JEAN: or maybe trying to kill the queen and do anything on that front
JEAN: but, unsur fucking prisingly the cherub has no damn interest in linear progression
JEAN: i guess i dont either....half the time, anyway
JEAN: you ready?​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: Skip

You skip as you move alongside Jean, parasol closed in your hand, defenses lowered unlike him. You still believe in trusting The Cherub, they only want to help, right?

That's what you'd like to think, anyways.

LETO: What matters is that we're here!
LETO: Even though the reckoning is on it's way...
LETO: I can't help but feel like we have a lot of time to get things done
LETO: Maybe it's the steady progression
LETO: But, I'm ready!

You search for any entrances to, well, enter another room.​

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> Kids: Walk.

You walk down the incredibly long hallway. You enter into an ANTECHAMBER with a LARGE METALLIC DOOR at the end.

Here the papers on the floor become wider, covering a greater area until they start piling up on the door-side wall. Shortly before going under the door, the yellow line fades and is replaced by a GRAY LINE. A small block of text is written where the lines switch.

Ran out of yellow
Switching to gray

A COAT RACK stands in the corner, a long BLACK COAT hangs in place, while the SMALL TABLE has what appears to be GREEN CLAWED GLOVES and a SKELETAL MASK...

The DOOR bears the symbol of CHERUBIC SKULL, drawn in GRAY MARKER.​

 

[SerbianMounted]

=> Jean: wtf?

You look over at the drawings, seeing the frank waste of paper scattered all over the floor as a move uncharacteristic of the person you'd thought you'd be meeting. It's just a hallway really. You didn't just go through a maze, why the theatrics from such a shadowy, reserved guy like them? You also notice the trenchcoat. It doesn't fit you as you try it on, because it's a cool as trenchcoat and why wouldn't you try that sort of thing on.

You open the door with the Gray Skull painted on it and step through.

JEAN: what the fuck is that doing here?
JEAN: the.....mask and the gloves, and shit
JEAN: what would a cherub need cherub cosplay shit for?
JEAN: =/
JEAN: nah, a bullshit thought crossed my mind
JEAN: but i've decided it is too bullshit to even dignify with a bullshit vocalization
JEAN: whatever​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: What a waste

They could have cut this to save paper! But the thought of The Cherub wanting to make sure you didn't get lost was sweet in a way, if a little insulting. It's the thought that counts!

As Jean puts the coat, stars practically form in your eyes, although you wish that could be a thing.

LETO: Jean!!!

LETO: You look so cool!!!

LETO: But maybe they wanted us to take it...? Or they were just putting their coat on a rack.

LETO: Tell me the outlandish thought!

LETO: Maybe it's more likely than you think!​

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> Kids: Enter.

You enter through the door mid-conversation, when you are stunned to silence by the sight of the other side.

The largest room you have EVER SEEN lies before you, and more importantly, is COVERED ENTIRELY IN PAPER, every wall, every square inch of floor. Each written in a mish-mash of GRAY and YELLOW text, bearing information about the game and sessions that would take you DAYS to read. A grand FOUR SCREENED TERMINAL lies on one end of the room, it seems to be a larger version of the ECTOBIOLOGY APPARATUS that Leto has been using to breed frogs. EIGHT TUBES contain a thick, green fluid waiting to be materialized. The SCREENS are DARK and OBSCURED BY NOTES. A nest-like mass of PAPER has been formed in the corner to act as a bed for a GHOSTLY ORANGE SNAKE-BAT, something you recall as SETH'S SPRITE.

The most eye-catching thing, however, is the HUMANOID MASS crouched on the floor in the center of the room hastily writing notes in their GRAY MARKER. They are wearing the GREEN SUIT belonging to your guide THE CHERUB, but they aren't wearing the overcoat. Their hood is up and their back is facing you, so you can't see much.

They haven't seemed to notice you come in.​

 

[SerbianMounted]

JEAN: uh....it's kinda stupid
JEAN: i've been coming up with a lot of stupid theories though lately, so i'm sure this one won't be too bad
JEAN: by comparison anyway
JEAN: do you think.....do you think it's some guy just cosplaying as a cherub? with the mask, and the gloves...and the giant trench coat?
JEAN: that'd be kinda bullshit wouldn't it?
JEAN: anyway.....uh.....
JEAN: thanks? i guess, heh, lol, it does look pretty sick, maybe.....yeah maybe i'll keep it
JEAN: it'll be super awkward when they see me wearing their shit, and are like 'what the hell, why are you wearing my shit'
JEAN: and then i'll have to lie, and say i didn't know it was their shit
JEAN: wait, fuck, i'm kind ruining the moment aren't i

You proceed through the door and survey the scene.

=> Jean: cough

You cough, after being briefly stunned by what is possibly the second most large and breathtaking creation you've see in this game so far. The sheer pressure created around the REEL HOLLOW from its gravitas as something clearly giant and important, connotated with the sense of a very drastic and radical action for any player to undergo makes it take the cake. But this.....this is a pretty good second. You look around, noticing the yellow notes and the gray ones.

And then, you slowly approach the figure, fist clenching your yo-yo like the handle you are about to fly the fuck off of in a second if this shit goes bad in the worst way.

JEAN: ahem
JEAN: uh....
JEAN: hey? ​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: Examine notes

Logic tells you to pay more attention to the situation at hand, to the stranger and the sprite. Your heart, on the other hand, says to see Seth and Jill's writings, to see potential last words...

LETO: Hello...

You barely manage any words yourself, voice barely above a mumble as you trace your fingertips against the wall, underlining each and every word, rose colored eyes tearing up slightly. You drop to your knees, reading more and more of the writing, parasol falling to your side. ​

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> Kids: !

As Leto touches a page to read, Jean is faced with a less-than-pleasant sight.

A HUMAN BEING, no older than the two of you turns to face you and speaks:

THE CHERUB(?): Don't touch that please
THE CHERUB(?): That has to be where it is exactly

They seem calm and composed, unbefitting of their UNKEMPT APPEARANCE. They have several LIGHT SCARS from injuries sustained in combat, healed only through TIME, and the faintest hint of PUBERTY-INDUCED STUBBLE could be seen on their chin. It's a little hard to see with the hood and aging, since you've only seen picture of his eleven year old self, but you are fairly confident that this is a slightly older -perhaps FIFTEEN- version of a familiar person.

THE CHERUB(?): Or else we could all be doomed

This is SETH.​

 

[SerbianMounted]

=> Jean: flip the fuck out

You look down at this small, pubescent boy. And look on in a mix of what can only be discerned from your otherwise shocked expression a mix of abject horror and rage. You drop your yo-yo on the floor, your hands shaking as they reach out and pick up this Leto sized boy by his lapels. And you begin shaking the fuck out of him.

JEAN: WHAT. THE. FUCK.
JEAN: WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK
JEAN: HOW ARE YOU ALIVE? WHY WERE YOU COSPLAYING AS A FUCKING CHERUB
JEAN: WHAT THE ABSOLUTE HELL
JEAN: I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: STOP JEAN

LETO: JEAN
LETO: DON'T
LETO: He obviously has his reasons!!
LETO: Please! Just hear him out before you shake him to death : (

You use your parasol and lightly bomp Jean on the head, hoping it'll be enough to snap him out of it. But to be sure, you try and pull him off from behind, half hugging him as you try and tug him off.

LETO: Please...

Your voice shakes, the tears in your eyes growing more and more abundant. Your brother and best friend. Oh boy. You just hope Jean snaps out of it. ​

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> The Cherub(?): Survey situation.

You have just been JOSTLED AROUND by THE BARBARIAN. He seems to be angry at you for some reason, you haven't the faintest idea why, though. You're here to help them. THE PRINCESS on the other hand seems upset in a more SOMBER WAY. You wish these two could just understand that you're trying to help.

You're here to help them.

=> The Cherub(?): Help them.

THE CHERUB(?): I'd prefer if you didn't do that
THE CHERUB(?): I don't like being shook
THE CHERUB(?): I'm here to help you two​

 

[SerbianMounted]

=> Jean: drop

After the lightest of BONKs to your noggin', you release the fake Cherub by his lapels, and let him land as soon as he has time to really react to the situation he had found himself in. You look down at him, a hand clenching and unclenching as you notice how upset Leto is, in her own tearful way. You take a step back, your chest huffing.

JEAN: i know you are!
JEAN: i know you are, dude
JEAN: i know it's you! you'd have to be a fucking doofus not to see the resemblance
JEAN: why the hell did you walk around in green skull monster cosplay like it was halloween for the past two weeks?
JEAN: why didn't you say anything when you saw us? let us think and even tell you that you were DEAD
JEAN: do you realized how fucked up that is? how fucked up it was to make leto sad and think that the only family she might've had left fucking ate it?
JEAN: what happened to you after you wrote all those notes?

You know that is a very poor phrasing of the idea. Insinuating the possibility that Nan and Cuz' have died tragically is something you try to stave away from. Even hope against in Leto's presence, just for the sake of knowing that you two might be able to see them again. But you were too angry and stupid to care.​

 

[SpectrumCrow]

=> Leto: Cry for a moment


You allow yourself a few good tears, face turning red as you arms shake and move to cradle yourself. Keeping your head down, a sudden wave of guilt passes over you.


Even though you barely tapped the guy, your mind spirals saying you probably hurt him. You shouldn't be here, Jean wouldn't be so upset if it weren't for the pain it caused you. And now look at you, crying more and more. That's sure to comfort him.


You realize you haven't been strict enough with yourself, without Nan you've turned into a wreckless hooligan...you deserve to be alone again.


LETO: I'm sorry

LETO: I'm so sorry

LETO: I'll leave. I've caused enough trouble...​

 

[Eidolon Astronaut]

=> The Cherub(?): Fall.

You land on the ground. It seems that THE BARBARIAN is talking to you about some stuff that you are PRETTY SURE YOU DIDN'T DO. Notes? No, these are THE WIZARD'S NOTES. You simply put them all in one place. How else would they be here? WIZARDS make notes, CHERUBS just help people.

THE PRINCESS is crying now. You wish she wouldn't, though you don't exactly know WHY.

You are A CHERUB, a figure to aid and help others. When you saw THE BARBARIAN after he learned of THE WIZARD'S FATE, you wanted to help him too.

Maybe you should say something?

=> The Cherub(?): Say something to help her.

THE CHERUB(?): You must be confused
THE CHERUB(?): I'm not Seth
THE CHERUB(?): I'm The Cherub
THE CHERUB(?): I help people

You tell the BARBARIAN that he's wrong. That's what you were gonna say, yeah.​