alright. now the real part of the game starts, i suppose. once more unto the breach, dear friends Spoiler -so i checked the clock in the trophy room, because i didn't want to leave anything out, and Spoiler: image 11:11.....what relevance does that have? the calendar in joey's room was set on nov 11 (11/11) too. considering it's homestuck, it doesn't really seem irrelevant, especially if we've seen it twice... and i checked the clock outside the trophy room, and that also looks like it's set to 11:11. what's up with that number? i mean, it's probably just a date or something, but -dear god that was a lot of monsters. bit tricky to figure out but kinda fun! i hope jude is gonna be okay though...i mean, the monsters are still there and he doesn't have his flare gun anymore Spoiler: image -jude knew it was a portal? did he know that the whole time? jesus, okay, that definitely explains his whole.. conspiracy theory thing. -"hypermuscled horse-man fountain in the yard" oh dear. looks like jake picked up his interests from his friends -are joey and jude normal kids or are they related to jade? obviously there's something sburb-ish going on in this universe, re: the portal, the troll references in the house, but... -JAKE WHAT THE FUCK YOU JUST LEAVE LOADED GUNS LYING AROUND?? THOSE ARE YOUR CHILDREN WHO HAVE TO LIVE IN THE GUN HOUSE -the portal is "calling out to her", well. that's some. really weird shit right there. what's going on with that? is it alive? is it similar to the exiles or the cherubs talking to the kids?
i'm about to enter the portal. warning: xefros's reactions to "dammek" (aka joey) are fairly.. upsetting and paint an ugly picture wrt dammek's treatment of him, tread with caution Spoiler -okay, that cherub portal definitely has some weird mind-altering effect and i'm worried for her. is that why jude told her not to touch it? -look, i'll just put the flavor text you get if you select "operate" on the portal (separate paragraphs, separate messages): Spoiler: text "You don't know how to operate this thing...except, of course, to put a key in it and turn it. That seems like the most obvious thing, right? Like the most obvious and necessary thing you've ever known, and were always going to do, and have always known, and do it do it do it now. Now. Now. The Key. Do It. Do it. Open the door." -and here's the flavor text for if you use the key on the portal anywhere but the keyhole: Spoiler: image -okay so i went through the portal (and managed to grab a quick snap of the portal in action) Spoiler: portal image -for some reason i am able to read alternian, etc etc. there was a palmhusk or w/e nearby and i picked it up and Spoiler: image this is really... really something. xefros are you okay?/dammek what the fuck are you doing Spoiler: image -this was in response to "who are you". oh poor dear xefros Spoiler: image -protect him -joey keeps saying the exact wrong thing and it's stressing me out because i don't want to make xefros panic but joey is a lot less tactful than i am. this is awful Spoiler: joey why dot png -xefros calls dammek "tetrarch", which is a ruler's title, and says he has a secret weapon in his house. jesus, what's up with that Spoiler: image -i.. this is not just anxiety this is a reaction to past behavior. okay that's really. not actually okay in the slightest -finished the chat goings-on and now scouting around. weird paper gotten but... now i have to talk to xefros again, oh dear. well, now is as good a time as any for a new post
okay, i accidentally deleted all of the images in that post so i'm going to reload an earlier save and try to recapture the vital ones edit: whoof, okay, done! time to continue onward
alright, time to get the power back on Spoiler -xefros thinks of everything joey asks him as some kind of test, which really speaks volumes to how much of an asshole dammek is Spoiler: image Spoiler: image (this is HEARTBREAKING thanks) -oh hell yeah the password was a game of snake, i LOVE snake -dammek's lusus is so majestic. liondeer :0 -a map with unfamiliar landmasses....but wait, they look familiar. hmm, where have i seen that before? [thinking emoji] -(joey it was the globe in the trophy room keep up) -"this door is all that stands between you and a rampaging deer monster" that's dammek's dad be nice -this is an honest-to-god weapons bunker, unlike jude's. i mean, etc etc troll culture, but jesus christ. Spoiler: image, joey NO -[horrified facepalm x2 combo] joey you can't just SAY that to xefros. i mean on one level i'm glad she doesn't recognize his behavior for what it is, but on another level, i REALLY WISH SHE DID. Spoiler: image THERE WE GO i mean this development might put joey in danger but at least xefros knows she's not dammek Spoiler: image -xefros it's okay he's gone (at least for now)
aaaaaand we go right back to joey being fairly nasty, which... well, she is 14 and on an alien planet, so maybe i didn't give her a lot of credit here, but it's still very distressing to watch Spoiler Spoiler: image -this is really awful to see, and even worse when i can't autoblame joey for her behavior, because she must be under a ridiculous amount of stress Spoiler: image -on the flipside: xefros i know this is an exciting time for you but please give her some space Spoiler: image -okay so i know out of three options "i'm from a planet called earth" is the best choice to convince xefros probably but there's only one possible choice. i'm going to tap-dance his sad little nerd brain into believing me. -"that was kind of a normal thing to say." oh dear xefros -whoa, i'm xefros now!! neat :0 and balconies are called "gander precipices", hahah good to know -in reference to the sports poster: "You play PUSHER, of course. Burgundies are ideally suited to this position because of their TELEKINETIC POWERS and their ability to COMMUNE with dead players." interesting! so that's canonical proof that at least the majority of that caste has those specific powers, which means there probably isn't a huge diversity of powers so much as there's a wide range of ability level. -xefros having to be a butler adds context to equius, a right and proper blueblood, having such a thing for aradia, a rustblood who should be serving him in a very literal way, instead ordering him around -"dammek insisted you have HALF the flavor disk." oh. oh dear. -it took me a while to get the Pry Object (bent spoon) but once i did everything was easy from then on Spoiler: image -this is... really sweet i love xefros -scratchware, huh? well at least i can chat back and forth now -i appreciate how much cueball imagery there is. it's interesting to see worldbuilding on a less anomalous scale than the homestuck troll kids -alright, i'm currently joey trying to figure stuff out. let's see how this goes!
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm i don't have much to say that snake game was kinda fun i guess. a bit hard until i figured out the message was taped to the top of the screen :p i'm a bit too tired to Dedicated Liveblog rnow but i love dammek's lusus he is so fluffy n good also it's nice to have a hint that lusus have names other than just.. slothdad/seahorsedad/etc so much TROLL LORE dammek is kind of an asshole and a slob though :/ and god, "nah it's a boy" "oh, i'm sorry, i've been assuming you were a boy this entire time" "i am X:)" "oh...." joey yes gay people exist
