Matou Shinji and the Broken Chains (HP/FSN CYOA)

[Skull Leader]

Also I strongly dislike things like Geass on very basic level, so there is that.

I am not a huge fan of their use myself, or really life debts in general that are enforced. But in this case I think its somewhat justified. But you are totally right, Elesa if she takes him with her has to deal with Shinji and his wonderful nature and she not going to fully enjoy that. She does however needs something to prove that Shinji is not just blowing smoke at her and can man up to what he is saying.

Another way to look at this choice to me is not the whole what option gives Shinji (us) the best possible outcome with the least number of risks, but to think of this as Shinji paying his debt to her. If their is one thing I think I have noticed over this course with Shinji is that he really does pay his debts. Heck you can argue that everything he does for Sion is him paying the debt he feels he owes her. We do owe a debt to her and another one to Touko and this way we maybe can cover both in one stroke.

Or maybe Shinji just racks up debt after debt with her as he Elesa learns the joy of Shinji the way that early Ayaka saw him.

I don't think you'll need to state anything about Touko's artifact since it will likely be in the temple too, but if you really want to be sure, why not.

Yeah I been going back and forth on to have it in or not. I can see it being important or being something that raises an alarm in her mind when he really does not want to say why.

As for your ideas Daiki on support, I can get behind them, thought I am not sure Lestrange needs a knife. And giving her the recipe for Shinji's fading is kinda necessary all ready if Shinji going to get her to help improve it. Fading potion dose certainly could help her. Maybe giving her some notes about eastern herbs to use while he is gone with Elesa. The sunlight potion might help her but I am leering of handing her if we are going to go adventuring in some dark hole.

We could give her the ring of fireballs...oh wait never mind no rings to her. No one would ever let that go with Shinji giving her an ring.

Ok rewrite time for Lestrange's write in. Anything more people want to add/change in this? I am not sure we need to give a large amount of resources to her, she has her own. But if Shinji is going to go off with Elesa we need to at least hand/help her some stuff to at least give some aid before Shinji can really help her in the field.

[] Full disclosure of Shinji abilities. Lay all his cards on the table including his fading potion, so that she has a better idea how he might help or request his help in the future. Inform her that he owes the American champion a favor and that he and she will explore some of the ruins of the island, so he might be occupied doing that. But afterwards, he plans on helping her full time. Give her a dozen Flow Ofuda. Give her some notes he has on useful eastern plants for her to find. Give her a dose of his Fading Potion.

[Malorius]

Guys, if you are so dedicated to temporarily enslaving Shinji, at least include Touko's artifact hunt and help to Lestrange as an additional condition for limited free action in the wording.

I really hope that we will not find out later something like "Too bad, you didn't check the fulfillment condition, now you are bound for life. Also, you have no right to defend yourself against her because wording. Have fun with that!"

Just... Magical oaths. Seriously.

I cannot comment on the amount of resources you dedicate to helping Rachelle because I don't know how much we currently have, Skull Leader. But something tells me that giving so much both Flow and Fading while we don't have Fusion is very bad for our survivability...

There is a matter of "keeping up" with Elesa, after all.

[Skull Leader]

Don't have fusion...ah we have a week for Zelkova to recover. I am sure he not going to wake up the first day but give it time. I doubt we are going to be without fusion for long. At least not until some other horrible thing messes with the duo again. But I guess you have a valid point in that we can not just assume recovery, even if its likely to happen.

While a number he can make in time is hard to guess because he does have other stuff that he is doing that might effect how many he makes. So keep in mind that anything we do until the event starts might effect the final amount. On the other hand, I personally do not want everyone to go, we do nothing else so that we can Max the number.

But do remember that this upcoming 'adventure' is like weeks long and that Elesa is not about to say Shinji do not make more of that thing that makes you useful. Ofuda is limited yes but its not as tight as say the fading potion doses are. Hence why I wanted to give only one dose to her. But even that might mean we have only one or two uses left unless we are able to remake the stuff.

But do keep in mind if you share a bit of your resources that she might in turn share something of hers. Equivalent Exchange and all that.

And yes keeping up with Elesa (or Ayaka had we tried her) is a bit of a concern, I think for everyone.

[Desann]

[x] Say that a verbal agreement should be enough

Like, you do remember that almost the same situation with geas lead to bad end in Heaven's Feel?

[Malorius]

Adventuring is much less fun when you are contractually obligated to do it. Or else.

Well, in hopes of the option with reasonable cowardice winning, I am willing to fully commit to helping Lestrange. Maybe she will be willing to reciprocate but I'll not hold my breath.

[X] Full disclosure of Shinji abilities. Lay all his cards on the table including his fading potion, so that she has a better idea how he might help or request his help in the future. Inform her that he owes the American champion a favor and that he and she will explore some of the ruins of the island, so he might be occupied doing that. But afterwards, he plans on helping her full time. Give her a dozen Flow Ofuda. Give her some notes he has on useful eastern plants for her to find. Give her a dose of his Fading Potion.

On the other hand, if this option goes together with Geis, then we are shooting Shinji in the foot so hard - people on the other side of the Earth will feel the shockwaves.

By the way, the last time we were so helpful, the girl decided Shinji had wanted to marry her. I hope your body is ready.

[Daiki]

[x] Full disclosure of Shinji abilities. Lay all his cards on the table including his fading potion, so that she has a better idea how he might help or request his help in the future. Inform her that he owes the American champion a favor and that he and she will explore some of the ruins of the island, so he might be occupied doing that. But afterwards, he plans on helping her full time. Give her a dozen Flow Ofuda. Give her some notes he has on useful eastern plants for her to find. Give her a dose of his Fading Potion.

Definitely keep sunlight phial for ourselves.

I hope your body is ready.

I think Shinji's been ready for half a year or so.

[Malorius]

Unfortunately, that's not what I was talking about. More like, "are you ready for another heart-breaking scene where young maiden finds out that her feelings will never be truly appreciated and her shining knight is already committed, mind, body and soul?"

Although, admittedly, Alf is good in that kind of stuff, so I won't mind overmuch.

On the subject of waifubaiting, are there pictures for any of the numerous OCs somewhere in the thread(s)?

[alfheimwanderer]

No pictures per se, but you can think of Lestrange as bearing more than a passing resemblance to Weiss Schnee (mixed with a hint of Saber Alter), Sondrol as looking rather like Pyrrha Nikos, and Elesa as resembling Terra Branford of FF6.

I will also mention that Lestrange is not interested in Shinji in that manner. Now, perhaps if he was a girl...

[Skull Leader]

Elesa as resembling Terra Branford of FF6.

Is that before or after the esper transformation?

Oh god its both isn't it...she has a familiar after all. Right, not that this is surprising, but please do not piss off berserk Esper form Elesa.

And now I know why Elesa can not die, she only gets 'injured' cause Nintendo rules on death.

[alfheimwanderer]

Oh god its both isn't it...she has a familiar after all. Right, not that this is surprising, but please do not piss off berserk Esper form Elesa.

Berserk Esper form? Well, she does have an alternate form, where her body glows with inner light and is wreathed in azure lightning. Refer to Shinji's dream in Chapter 67: Ominous Visions.

[Malorius]

So, I haven't actually seen any discussion about our summoned Spirit, Perseus. That's quite an important topic, considering the guy's history with women. Well, he was an arrogant glory-seeking cheating scum, a true Hero of that era. Also, there are Rider's words that he was "Shinji who succeeded". All in all, I am intrigued and saddened by this development.

What can we do to not be influenced by Perseus? Methinks, this bears some thought.

[Skull Leader]

Maybe its just me Malorius but I think you are looking at Perseus from just one POV. Remember that Medusa was killed by Perseus so of course she has nothing kind to say about him. Just like how I would not look to Medea for glowing review of Jason and his Argonauts. But at the same time Medusa is not a hero but a monster that could only be summoned cause the grail was corrupted so that not a strong endorsement in itself. You can not view Medusa has unbias here. Does not make her statement less true, but her view is not the entire truth of the matter.

Now maybe the greek tales are correct and Perseus is this great person that did great deeds all for a sake of a girl, or maybe Medusa is right and he is a horrible glory seeking scum of the world. Its all a matter of who is telling the story. King Arthur tales have that same issue, where tales of legend can talk about Camelot and him as some gold standard to what a King and government should be, but go and ask Saber or Morden and you get two more entire conflicting views.

Greeks loved their flawed heroes and tragedies so of course everything is not perfect with Perseus. The greek gods themselves are some of the most flawed in any Pantheon so its not surprising that the mortal heroes that are subject to their whims would not fair much better on being a shiny moral compass to all.

Another way to think about this is to look at Shinji as described by say Luna vs say Shinji described by Harry of the future. Harry of next year will of course declare Shinji as some villian that trying to grab power without carrying about the British people. One that cares only for his closest people and no one else unless the person is a girl in which case Shinji goes off to act out his fantasy of being the hero to them. Even if said girl needs/wants no darn help like Lestrange.

Only in children tales are there usually such easy to see clear line between the good side and the bad side. I am looking at you JKR and a series told only from Harry's viewpoint. Had Dumbledore lost against either dark lord he fought, then it would be Dumbledore that was considered the bad guy in the end. History is told by its winners.

So if you are concerned about the influence of Perseus on Shinji then I think you have this all wrong. Its not Shinji being influenced by Perseus. Perseus was the most compatible Hero that Shinji could summon since there was a lack of a notable catalyst involved. They are already on the same wavelength and are likely to influence each other because of their similar nature. Shinji can not be corrupted by Perseus because Shinji is already similar to Perseus.

I suspect that this similarity to the two is going to lead to them have going into a psudo fused state when both of their mindsets are in sycronization with each other and they have a common goal before them. The issue is more that their fusion is too much for Shinji's body to handle.

It is too late to be concerned. The die has been cast and honestly it was made brick by brick over the course of everything from the day he got his letter.

[Malorius]

Yes, there hardly is going to be an unbiased opinion in tales of him. Thankfully, there is a Fate/Prototype, where Perseus plays the role of antagonist! Mass murderer with a shallow reasoning, if I recall right.

Also, the only thing for the girl was his fling with Andromeda, but it came with the crown attached.

[alfheimwanderer]

Choice 320: For Elesa - [x] Commit his words to paper and sign but disclose that he does need to find an artifact to pay for his replaced limbs; For Lestrange - ​[x] Full disclosure of Shinji abilities. Lay all his cards on the table including his fading potion, so that she has a better idea how he might help or request his help in the future. Inform her that he owes the American champion a favor and that he and she will explore some of the ruins of the island, so he might be occupied doing that. But afterwards, he plans on helping her full time. Give her a dozen Flow Ofuda. Give her some notes he has on useful eastern plants for her to find. Give her a dose of his Fading Potion.

---

Choice 321: Elesa looked on as Shinji filled out the scroll, writing on it exactly what he had said: that during the competition proper, he would lend her his aid in exploring the island, as long as she might wish it, without any other qualification or condition. The boy did note - verbally - that he would need to retrieve an artifact as the price for his new limbs, but as a gesture of good faith, said that he would leave it to her to determine if he had helped enough to deserve it.

"A show of trust, is it?" she inquired mildly.

"You didn't have to save me," Shinji replied quietly. "Not after whatever happened to me when I was exploring the island. But you did, and you did so freely. That's why I'm not putting any conditions on the aid I'm offering to you - because you didn't put any conditions on the aid you gave to me."

He signed the statement and slid it over to the American Champion, who took it, examining it for any inconvenient loopholes, and satisfied that there were none, pocketed the item.

"As I said, you are a very honest individual," Elesa noted. She closed her eyes for a moment, taking a breath, as her expression shifted into something more serious - quite unlike the mask of the model she usually wore. "Tell me, Matou, how much do you know about this island?"

"I know its a remnant from the Age of Gods," Shinji replied evenly. "I trust you know what that is."

"Naturally."

Shinji felt a chill go down his spine at the reply.

He'd suspected, but to have confirmation...

"There's something under this island..."

"Are you asking me or telling me?" the blonde questioned, somewhat amused.

"A little of both. I remember something about tunnels. And something about a song, though I don't remember much about where it came from. The center - the structure in the center - its important."

"You're not wrong," Elesa admitted, with the young woman allowing a hint of laughter to escape her lips for a moment, before she sobered. "There are many forgotten things on this isle. Some harmless, and some...nowhere close to it."

"You mean, like nuckelavee?" Shinji asked. "My team fought one during the preliminaries."

"Those aren't exclusively found here," the blonde pointed out. "Though they are fairly rare. I speak of older things. Hidden things. Such as what you ran into, before I discovered you."

White hot pain lanced through Shinji's mind as something brushed against the forefront of his mind, before rapidly receding, with the boy finding that he was on the floor, breathing quickly, his body trembling as his mouth opened in a silent scream.

"...what...what was...?" he asked breathlessly, once he could think again, accepting a hand as she helped him back into a chair. He tried to recall what had pressed at his memories, what had driven him to this, but he couldn't, as if his mind and body were keeping the knowledge from him, lest it destroy him utterly.

"...I don't think it would be wise to discuss the matter further," the American champion noted. "You were fortunate to have survived what you experienced, but the effects have not vanished fully, despite my best efforts."

"...I see," Shinji said distantly. "Are there...are there more things like...whatever it was?"

"Perhaps. I doubt whatever we will face will be of the same degree of threat, however," Elesa replied. "From the records I have studied, there will certainly be beasts. Perhaps some undead. Perhaps worse. But nothing like...that."

"...how about..." Shinji paused, as a figment of a dream came to him. "What about something like a chimera?"

"Deeper down, yes," the blonde admitted. "You will have a difficult time facing such without your familiar."

"...he's ok. I'm sure of it. He's just...recovering, after..." the boy trailed off, frustrated. "After what happened," he said finally.

"Will he recover by the time of the competition?" Elesa questioned.

"...I don't know. The last time something like this happened, I was hit by the Killing Curse while fused." The boy sighed, tightening his jaw. "This time I...I hope he's alright."

"If you would like, I could assess his condition," the American said after some seconds. "I would need something linked to him, however."

Shinji considered the offer for some moments, before withdrawing the wand from its holster.

"...you're not surprised that I didn't die when hit by the Killing Curse."

"You were fused. What was killed was the union, not the individual parts," the young woman noted diffidently.

"You know, I really shouldn't be surprised you know that," the boy grunted. "But I still am."

"Good. It means my usual act is working."

Shinji froze.

"...you're admitting its an act?" he asked, finally.

"Why not? You signed an agreement to lend me your aid during the competition," Elesa replied. "And I doubt you'll be telling everyone else what I can do."

"...true enough," he said, handing over his living wand. "If you could then..."

A golden glow suffused Elesa's hands as she took the item, humming lightly as she ran her fingers over it, before handing it back.

"Your familiar suffered a good deal of spiritual damage, but is alive," the young woman replied. "I've done what I can to accelerate the healing, though repairing that sort of thing is not my specialty."

"How soon?"

"In a few days. At the very latest, by the first day we are out on the field."

"...thank goodness."

"Well, you agreed to help me. I may as well ensure that your condition is such that you can actually be of help," the American Champion noted. "Speaking of which, is there anything else I can do for you at the moment, or is that about it for now?"

How does Shinji answer? (choose one)

[ ] Gear - he could use something to replace the wyvern-hide robes he lost
[ ] Potions - a sample of the Tonic of Preservation, which can be used to preserve a drinker's life, even if they are on the very verge of death
[ ] Knowledge - a summary of what he can expect to find on the island, and any recommendations for dealing with them
[ ] Intelligence - her impressions of the other Champions, their threat level, and how to best counter them
[ ] (write-in)

Choice 322: Lestrange listens patiently as Shinji describes what he is capable of, including the various potions he has access to, the ofuda he can create, the knowledge he has of Eastern potions - and uses for eastern ingredients, his knowledge of the various sites on the isle, and other such.

"During the competition itself, I will be...working with the American Champion to explore some of the more dangerous parts of the island," he admitted quietly. "She saved my life so I...am honor-bound to repay the debt. I still want to help you in whatever way I can though, even if I can't do so in person."

"Vy?"

"Hm?"

"Vy do all zis, for me?"

Shinji chuckled, but it was a warm sound.

"That's easy," he murmured, with something like a smile. "Its because I..." he trailed off, his face somewhat red. "I think my patron would wish it of me," he said after some seconds. "I...heh...I owe her more than I can say. Everything that I am now - every bit of worth that I might seem to have. Everything I have done - I have managed because of her. The last of the Eltnam."

"I...see," Lestrange noted, narrowing her eyes. "Even so, to give up your chance at victory..."

"To be honest, I never really had much of a chance to begin with," Shinji said candidly. What chance he did have was because of the Book of Potions, and that was now lost to him. "So it is no great thing to give up what little I have for some whose well-being I...someone I care about," he amended, his cheeks tinged with pink. "You are an Alchemist and Potioneer, the like of which I can only aspire to one day become. You are brave, powerful, cunning, and relentless - as a true Champion should be. You have come this far by your own power, not by power and skills lent from others."

Without Sokaris' aid, he would have had nothing to live for.

Without Zelkova, he would be dead a hundred times over.

Without Budge, he couldn't compete against the others.

But she - Rachelle Lestrange - had made it this far on her own, under her own power, mastering the arts of the Eltnam, like mind partition, thought acceleration and such without the benefit of instruction.

He would explore the island, gaining what knowledge he could of it and doing his best, which was all Sokaris had asked of him.

Victory he would leave to someone more deserving - someone like Lestrange, who had nearly died because he had foolishly overestimated his abilities.

"If I accepted your aid," she replied after a while, "would zat not be accepting power and skill lent from another?"

Shinji made a complicated expression...

What she said was true, but...

"Perhaps a trade?" she suggested. "Equivalent exchange is at ze 'eart of alchemy, after all."

"...I think I can live with that," the boy said, closing his eyes.

"Zen tell me, vat would you like?"

What would Shinji like?

[ ] One unspecified favor, to be claimed in the future (enforced by self-geass scroll)
[ ] The recipe for the Elixir of Damage Diffusion
[ ] An assortment of her binary potions
[ ] The basics of Thought Acceleration
[ ] A summary of the teachings of Zepia Eltnam Oberon

[Malorius]

Wait, wasn't there a tie on Elesa's vote? 2-2. Did you flip a coin, Alf?

EDIT. Ah, yes, sneaky Neophyte. 3-2 it is.

Well, might as well make our discount Sharingan's main feature even more useful.

[X] The basics of Thought Acceleration

It seems, my worries were directed to the wrong target: clearly, it's Shinji whose heart will be broken by the everdistant lady (again).

How do we make him un-fall for her? A trade of favors seems like a step in the right direction, but it's hardly enough.

[Desann]

[x] Knowledge - a summary of what he can expect to find on the island, and any recommendations for dealing with them

[x] The basics of Thought Acceleration

[Malorius]

Also, those aftereffects. It really helps to define the size of the bullet we dodged.

*ominous music sounds in the background*

Or did we?

[Skull Leader]

[X] Gear - he could use something to replace the wyvern-hide robes he lost

I rather stay on target here and pick the option I thought we were going for the entire time, getting gear. Not that the other choices are not just as good but seriously gear was the plan. Plus her gear is magic tech, it has to be fun.

[X] The basics of Thought Acceleration

You can make a good case for any of these options but I have to side with the long term investment of Thought Acceleration considering its a boost to everything that Shinji does. Plus I suspect that Shinji will score better overall coming into Atlas officially if he already has partitions (assuming he can get another one so he actually has two that he can use) and thought acceleration before we get serious with the group.

Thought Acceleration is the Flow choice of this round, in that it supplements everything he has. Fast tracking eyes, with the fast movement of fusion, combined with multiple tracks of quick thought. Yes please.

[Daiki]

[X] Gear.
[x] Teachings of Zepia.

[Malorius]

Pls no 6.