Answers

Begrudgingly the group agree to a mimic test. Each one is cut and each cut bleeds. It is seemingly clear that none of them are mimics. With that done Yulia puts on the halo and gives a hug and kiss to each of the other members before heading off on her own. She enters the dream path and Lem is waiting for her.

"You are making a good choice, the Old Mind will see you now," he says and then leads her through the dream to the path of the Old Mind. The path there is crawling with Mindflayers who watch her passage, mimics, in both normal form and some disguised as various people are also present and watch her. Fighting her way through all of these would be almost impossible, she thinks as she continues to follow Lem. Eventually they pass through the path and reach the Old Mind itself. Immediately Lem drops to his knees and Yulia does so as well, involuntarily. The Old Mind is a decrepit looking old man, human seemingly, sitting in a chair in the center of the room. Around the edge of the room more Mindflayers watch. He doesn't move and in fact it takes a few seconds for Yulia to realize, he's a corpse. One that has been dead for quite some time.

"Greetings, Church Healer, Yulia, it is a pleasure to meet you," a voice echoes into her mind, the sound rich and smooth, "I am the Old Mind. Dreamer of the Dream," he explains.

"You... You're not what I expected," Yulia admits and she hears a chuckle in response.

"You didn't expect a former Chosen? One who died here in the deep, but... Continued to dream of the success he had failed to achieve?" he responds and Yulia gasps.

"That's... How is that possible?" Yulia asks.

"The Tower saw fit to grant me a chance it seems. Though I had failed to reach my goal, the Tower saw fit to reward me. Trapped in a state of constant ****, but able to interact with the world through the dream, I can still achieve my goal," he explains and then chuckles again, "I have been here for thousands of years slowly working my way to that goal and now with your arrival and the gift you have brought me, I can achieve that goal at last," he says.

"Right... This gift? What is it?" Yulia questions.

"Well of course the gift is..." he starts, but then stops, "where is it? You don't have it? You were supposed to have it?! What did you do?! WHY DON'T YOU HAVE PUPPET?!" he says his voice becoming erratic, panicked.

"I... I gave it away, traded it to Liloth," Yulia admits, too surprised and concerned by the panic to think logically about her response.

"LILOTH! YOU IDIOT! YOU'VE RUINED EVERYTHING! YOU MUST GET IT BACK! I NEED PUPPET! I HAVE WAITED SO LONG FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY! I WILL NOT BE DENIED!" the voice screams in Yulia's mind, making Yulia try to shrink away from it, pressing her head to the floor and her hands to cover her ears, "If you do not bring Puppet to me I will... I will..." he starts and then he seems to calm, "I will kill them. All of them. Every mimic in town will be activated, turned on their fellows, it will be a slaughter. The streets will run with the blood of the people of Aresque, unless you. Bring. Me. Puppet!" he says, yelling the last words into her brain.

"I-" she tries to speak, but then rears back with a cry. A strike to her mind, hitting like a slap to her face, silencing her.

"We will speak, when and if you bring Puppet to me. For now, begone from my sight," he commands. Yulia stands, shakily and retreats, Lem not following her, she makes the trip back out of the Dream alone and as soon as she arrives in Aresque, she collapses to the ground, twitching. Guards approach her seeing her on the ground. They remove her mask and find her nose is bleeding and she seems to be having a seizure. She's taken to be cared for, but the effect passes after a bit and she returns to normal.

Once she's discharged she returns to the others and tells them about what happened, "I... I don't know if we can fight the Old Mind. I don't think he was even trying to hurt me, just the effect of his anger was enough. We need to talk to Liloth, either to do as he says and get Puppet back, or... to see if there's something she knows that could help us fight him" she explains.

(Health: 100%

Mana: 50%

Equipment: Ceramic Beaked Mask, Reinforced Monastic Scapular, standard bra, Standard Panties, 3 poison gas grenades, 3 healing kits, 1 syringe of poison, 1 syringe of adrenaline, 1 syringe of poison antidote, 1 sewing kit, 1 vial of strong aerosolizing aphrodisiac, 8 days worth of rations, 3 two liter water jug, 1 health potion, 3 mana potions, A boar mask, 4 vials of sticky white liquid, Ornate Rapier (-3), 4 arrows, Quiver, God's Favour (Halo. Prevent **** one time), 1 sack of cooking ingredients (Apples), Bone Spear (-1), Ash's Quiver, 6 charm arrows, Smithing Ingredients (6 steel ingots), 1 sack of cooking ingredients (Vegetables), Grenade Launcher, Empty Bandolier, Silver Staff (-2 added to the effect of all spells), Spidersilk gown, Smithing Ingredients (3 silver ingots), 10 silver throwing knives, twenty feet of Spidersilk rope, 1 sack of Cooking Ingredients (Fish), an Onahole.

Spells known: Great Heal (Lvl 2, Mastered, Cost: 25%)

Great Cure (Lvl 2, Mastered, Cost: 15%)

Energize (Lvl 1, Mastered, Cost: 25%)

Icicle (Lvl 1, Mastered, cost: 15%)

Unlock (Lvl 1, Unmastered, Cost: 15%)

Repair (Lvl 1, Mastered, Cost: 5%-20% depending on factors)

Undermine (Lvl 1, Mastered, cost: 25%).

Life Drain (lvl 1, Mastered, cost: 2% per 1 Hp healed)

Blizzard (Mastered, cost: 5%)

Fetish: Bondage Rank: 2, Masochism Rank: 1, Lesbian rank: 1, Submission Rank: 1, Incubating Rank: 1, Large Insertions Rank: 1

Status Effect: Permanent increase to physical attribute. Combat level raised to medium

Atrophied: Permanent Decrease to Physical Attribute. Combat Level lowered to weak. (Countered previous Permanent Increase)

Psychosexual Break: In order to deal with her trauma, Yulia has begun to subconsciously fetishize her experiences.

Deflowered: Virginity Lost, sexual experience changed to: Inexperienced, non-virgin.

Marked by The Abyss: Found You.

Trauma Rank 1 : Costs of all spells doubled for the remainder of the floor. (Caused by first impregnation)

Mind Shattered: Max Mana temporarily halved.

Companion: Cherchiel, Goma, Martin, Isalia.

Cherchiel Equipment: Ultra Durable Spear( -5, -10 with Boar Mask), Ultra Durable Shield (-5, -10 with Boar Mask), Solanium Reinforced Bodysuit (add -1 to all physical actions).

Cherchiel Status Effect: Divine Grace. Combat Level raised to High

Goma Equipment: Runed Dagger (-2, -5 with boar mask), Hunting Horn (-2 for each ally affected), Reinforced and Nethicite Augmented Thick Hide Outfit (Negate most physical damage)

Goma Mana: 50%

Goma spells known: Heal (Mastered, 15%)

Isalia Equipment: Isalia's Sword (-3), Isalia's Shield (-3), Black Leather Armor

https://forum.chyoa.com/threads/the-tower-of-voices-voting-thread.3460/ )