Here in the Darkness/Archive Three

Archive three for the cyoa game *Here in the Darkness*.
## sorry it's another interlude

Gotta keep this going while i draft episode 11 ':)

K, so um...

We have some s t u f f that needs to be done.

Since this is a more freely-based game and we are, after all, trying to make as much chaos and disruption as possible, there will be no numbers going up and down. (or left and right, and hanging out with each other at pool parties for that matter)

*However*, what we will need is... these: basic statistics of your skills and abilities, so that i know what sionora is good at, and what she isn't.

The stats in question are

* Strength: average 3, min 0, max 6
* Speed: average 3, min 0, max 6
* Stamina: average 3, min 0, max 6
* Stealth: average 3, min 0, max 6
* Tree-climbing: average 2, min 0, max 4
* Magic: average 1.5, min 0, max 3
* Swimming: average 1, min 0, max 2

Some things to keep in mind

- lenix magic is not cool, sparkly, or powerful. it is merely presented as a way of healing yourself slightly faster, and to strengthen another attribute (including the sharpness of claws) for a short length of time, such as ten seconds.

- it's a forest environment. there are lots of trees and only a few streams (which do not need swimming to cross). but you might leave the forest later.

- stealth is also used to determine how acute your perceptions are (hearing, sight, touch, and smell). thus, a lenix with higher stealth is more probable to sense a lenix with lower stealth creeping up on them.

- speed only works for sprints and body movements. to run fast for long times, you have to get stamina.

- to have a full score of 6 in one of the first four scores basically means that you are about the top three lenixes in the forest at the subject

- doing .5 points is okay as well, for example 5.5 for strength or 1.5 for tree-climbing

The strongest possible stats would have a total of 33, but obviously i'm not going to give you that.

Instead, here are 21 points. Use them as you will - you do not have to use them all.

Basically just comment saying how good you want to be at each stat, with the total score smaller or equal to 21. i'll then take the average and use it for sionora :)

***The players chose:***

* Strength: 3.3
* Speed: 3.8
* Stamina: 3.1
* Stealth: 4.6
* Tree-climbing: 2.8
* Magic: 2.3
* Swimming: 1.1

xi
--

*Yo it's finally here*

You wander off, limping badly. The scent of Swallows and Anres drifts on the air, and you head toward the source, mentally shifting through your files on the two tribes.

The Swallows, the oldest and largest tribe in the forest, led by Master Rlorrck, or Lord Rlorrck as he preferred to be known, their territory flowing with prey and all sorts of wonderful stuff. A tribe with a strict sense of hierarchy, but nevertheless not participating actively in the war. Said to be the keepers of tradition.

The Anres, led by Moriath, a lenix who insisted on using no honorifics. It is said that they are most brutal and barbaric in their approach, but from your view they're just a group of badly organised and deadly loyal canines. Hmm.

You pad on through the wrecked grass, the stalks crushed and snapped at strange angles to the ground. A small breeze starts, and mixed in among the smells of hay was a sniff of Swallow - old and proud, the scent of ancient oak and old tree roots looping the forest floor. You hurry onwards.

A few lenixes lift their head as you approach; there is no sign of either Haleer or Rlorrck, and you have a pretty good bet that the former of the two is somewhere quiet with Val. As for the leader... Lians is away, is she not? There could be a leaders' meeting somewhere.

You settle down beside a random lenix about your age, her brown tail swishing among the grass stalks.

"Hi, I'm Sionora."

She sniffs. "Do know you?"

"Well, no. I thought I could make some acquaintances here."

"And a fat lot of good it might do you," she looks you up and down. "Here, you're a Swift, aren't you?"

"That's right. And you're a Swallow." You meet her gaze steadily. This is not a time to back down.

There was a pause.

"Flexer," she snaps, turning her head away. "I guess there's no harm in it."

"By 'it', you mean -"

"The fact that you are a Swift, of course. Naturally, you might very well turn out to be trying to get information about our tribe, but you won't get any from me. You can trust that."

"Is there anything else I can trust about you?"

She thinks for a moment and bursts into a grin. "Just put that paw of yours between my teeth and we'll find out."

So she has noticed the paw. A slightly older lenix whose talking style flirts with danger, and who is out of the default lenix arrogance enough to observe a few things about someone else. Interesting.

"No, thanks. It's already twisted. I don't want to have it broken."

"Quite right. Very wise. Never put an injured body part in front of someone from an enemy tribe," she chuckles, "here, Dunbar, come and look at this Swift I found. She actually has a brain about her."

The lenix napping some feet away lifts up his head. "Flex, don't tell me you've found another kid to bully."

"My brother Dunbar," Flex whispers loudly in your ear at such a volume that Dunbar should be able to hear each word, "between you and me, he's a bit of a twerp."

"You're the only one in the forest who would ever call me a twerp."

She smiles. "Ah yes, of course. The obvious does not need repeating."

Another younger voice pipes up behind you. "Who's this?"

You swivel your head around. A cub gazes up at you with wide unblinking eyes, round and yellow like the sun during noon. Flexer sighs. "And this is Andrus. My younger brother."

"Wait, I thought you said that you wouldn't tell me anything?" you say. It was certainly an abnormal move, but you figure that by reminding her you can gain more of her trust.

"Andrus and Dunbar? They're not tribal secrets at all. Which sensible Swift would want to know about these two no-brainers?"

You would. Any information will be valuable, if not to Lians, then certainly to you. And here is this Swallow - balantly rude, yes, but she's also chucking information at you, and the chance is simply too good to miss.

Dunbar growls a friendly growl towards Flexer, who nods and grins. Andrus doesn't seem to understand the sentence.

"So," smiles Flexer, "what brings you here?"

"Well, there was that quake and all that -"

"I mean, why did you come here to talk? Any relationships?"

You think fast. "Haleer's a friend of my friend, I think. I just thought I could come here and... talk?"

"Fair enough," she shrugs.

Dunbar cuts in. "Hey, you're Nightingale's kid, aren't you?"

"She's my mother, yes. How did you know?"

"She's a cousin of our dad's. I heard him mention her several times."

"I've never heard her say anything of this sort to me."

Flexer flicks an ear. "Nearly everyone has Swallow ancestory in one way or another. *Especially* Swifts," she laughs, winking at you as if making a joke on some secret.

You...

1) Chat about current relationships between all the tribes (Ginger)

2) Ask Flexer what she means about the family ancestry (Traj)

3) Ask more about your family line (Minty)

4) Make up some random lie about Flexer being your long-lost sister (Cici)

5) Ask Flexer about everyone being related in some way, and more about swallows (Blu)

6) stare, boggle-eyed at Flexer, then very rudely say "Excuse me? Are you out of your mind?" She'll probably respond- and maybe give you more info >:) (Onyx)

***The players chose option one***