[IC] Cross x S[i]N: The Dark Sephiroth

[Dark Revenger Knight]

Dante Fierro
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

I could feel the ends of my fingers start to wiggle; a feeling that seemed familiar yet very distant. Soon my entire arm was animated. The feeling spread through my body like wildfire; an energetic jolt of life circulated throughout, igniting the complex systems of my inner self. The last part of me to awaken was my sight, I hesitated opening my eyes, partly because I was resistant. My memory was a mess, it was almost like my head had served as a punching bag for a professional boxer. It took me a second to realize I was inside some kind of tank filled with thick liquid to the roof. I was breathing only thanks to a device that connected into my nose by tubes and concealed my mouth. My instincts kicked in and I couldn't help but gasp for air except I couldn't relieve my breath naturally. Only bubbles sprang from the clear mouthpiece. I could see them gently flowing upward, everything else seemed so chaotic compared to their methodical ascension to the top of the tank. I was so distracted that I failed to notice the people staring at me. There were three people outside looking at me.

Scientists.

That much I could tell from their labcoats. There were two males and a female. The two males were definite greybeards but she couldn't have been much older than I was. The man standing in the middle of the three seemed to be the one that called the shots in this place. He ran his finger against the ridge of his glasses before adjusting them. Cliche, I thought. Without moving my neck in either direction, I scanned the area but there was hardly any light save for that which came from computer monitors. A basement, perhaps? The lack of windows would indicate so. Just then, my thoughts were interrupted by mumbling. I could clearly see the man's lips moving but I couldn't make out what he was saying to me. He shook his head in disappointment. That's when I heard the female speak, "The impact appeared to be brutal. The trauma could've caused permanent loss of hearing."

Impact? That I heard. I shook my head in disagreement. I was slow as if I had lost basic motor skills or rather if they were just now starting to work again. "Ah, good to know that is not the case." The lead scientist was speaking to me; back and forth we traded information through nods, I couldn't speak. He asked who I was and how I crashed but I couldn't remember. I could see flashes of memory, an attractive woman, a dance but the rest was a blur. That's when he told me I was not the only person found that day. There were more; as my vision struggled to regain full clarity, I turned my head and sure enough - more tanks.

...

Jayden Mathers
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

A loud 'boom' slammed against the walls of my head. I could feel it echo through the rest of my body like I had been partying the entire night except I knew I hadn't been. I was on a cruise ship when shit happened. Couldn't really remember what, the details were scarce and shady so probably not all that important anyway. I opened my eyes only to realize I was being held captive by some freaks wearing long, white coats. There was only one female so there was no telling what sort of perverted things she had in mind. I had enough trouble with people tearing for my clothes whenever they had the chance; this wasn't the best situation for me. I could barely move.

Took me a cool while to realize I was floating inside some weird tank with no oxygen. The hell was I breathin'? Not sure but I could feel something connected to my nose that went higher up than it should. There was thick liquid all over; my immediate thought was, fuck, it's Melinda's birthday party all over again. I was sure that wasn't the case, though. It was during that moment that I remembered a wave. A red wave of monsters. I couldn't see their faces but I could remember the horrible stench and then something much darker. A threatening presence that made me shudder as I jerked inside that tank.

The creepy lookin' people paced toward where I was and made some questions. Something about a huge earth gash and some other people being involved. The hell you asking me for? I don't know what you're talking about... I thought.

[Crimson Flame]

Selena Diana Artemis I Andre Bellamy
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

Selena was unconscious, and floating inside of a tank filled with an unknown liquid. A series of tubes were connected to her mouth allowing her to breathe. Slowly, her eyes fluttered open as she regained consciousness. For a minute her vision was blurry. As soon as soon as her vision sharpened, and got a good look at where she was, she wanted to scream, but kept her cool for the sake of keeping up appearances. Besides. she found herself unable to do so even if she had wanted to anyway.

Meanwhile, in a different tank, Andre was experiencing the exact same situation as Selena. He had a much easier time keeping his composure. Surely, none of this real. He must have dozed off in his room, and this was a strange dream as a result of something he ate that day. He smiled and enjoyed floating in the thick liquid, figuring he may as well enjoy this before he woke up. As his senses became clearer, he soon began to realize that this was not a dream, but very real. Andre was upset, but wasn't aware of how he had gotten into this situation enough to let it bring him down. He still kept a smirk on his face. Getting angry and thrashing about wasn't going to get him out of here any faster.

The room they were in was like one of those cliched science fiction movies, Selena thought. It was dark, save for the lights of the large computer monitor. What was more concerning were what seemed to be scientists studying her. Two male, and one female. Those male scientists were studying her much too intently for Selena's liking. She could see a smile starting to form on his face, which made her cringe. If she were able, Selena would have slapped him right there. Who did this man think he was? As if he stood any kind of chance with her. She was way too good for him. Thankfully, the female scientist snapped at him. before turning her attention back to the tank. "The impact appeared to be brutal. The trauma could've caused permanent loss of hearing." The scientist explained.

Selena shook her head. I can hear you perfectly fine, thank you! She thought. She wanted to say that out loud, but couldn't. The device on her mouth made any kind of speech difficult. Then they asked how she crashed, but she honestly couldn't remember. There was a fabulous cruise, a masked ball, but everything else was a blur. Then they said something about having found another person, but Selena wasn't the least bit concerned about who the other person was. All she wanted was to get out of this tank, and away from these scientists.

Andre's recollection of events were just as vague as hers was. He did have vague memories of a luxury liner, and some interesting people, but that was it. He could see a few other people that looked vaguely familiar were in the room with him. He hoped he would get to see them and make them his friends soon. A few new people to play with would make this experience much better.

[Atrum Lupus]

Evgeniya Sergeyevna Chernova
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

Evie thought that she was dead, at least, until she felt her long ponytail tickle the front of her face. Feeling gradually came back to her hands, and then her neck. Slowly, she shook her head, and forced herself to open her eyelids. What was once pitch black gave way to colors and shapes, but not in the way she remembered seeing things. Things seemed blurred and warped, as if she was...swimming in something. She looked down and saw herself floating as her vision became clearer. She was floating in what appeared to be a clear space filled with liquid. She felt her legs and feet, but did not feel any solid ground beneath them. She opened her mouth, but was inhibited by what she noticed was a device covering her mouth, wires connected to it through her nose, which hurt. She looked around, then above, noticing the circular ceiling of wherever the hell she was. The blonde pushed herself forward, balling her hands into fists as she reached for the walls of the tube. Why was she trapped in here? What was going on? The twenty-two-year-old pounded her fists on the walls of the chamber. She wanted to get out, and she wanted answers.

It was then that Evie noticed where exactly she was in. It seemed like some sort of laboratory, dimly-lit and windowless, but spacious. She saw a large bright computer monitor, as well as other people dressed in long, white lab coats. Around the room, she saw that there were a few other tubes as well, each of them holding its own prisoner....though she couldn't make out more of them, as she was almost in front of the computer monitor and the light in front of her made it difficult to see. Evie pounded her fists on the glass again, trying to break out. This however, only managed to catch the attention of the three people clad in lab coats, who stopped in front of her cylinder.

One of them, an older male wearing glasses, started observing her. She glared back at him, holding a fist up as she pointed to the glass with her other hand. The scientist then started asking her questions, about a crash, and about what she could remember, still not letting Evie out of her chamber. She grew impatient. How was she supposed to give the man all the answers he wanted when what she remembered were just fragments? Evie could not recall anything past fragmented images of a ballroom, a dance with a mysterious masked man, a number of faces...and a battle. What did he want from her?

Though Evie's legs still felt rather stiff and numb, she kicked the glass as hard as she could, wanting to end the interrogation.

[Jester Acharis]

Miraela "Mira" Dalcascu & Cisrian Dalcascu
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

Miraela didn't want to wake up.

Compared to the hard, wooden bed she had been forced to sleep in for the past year or so, the feeling of floating in endless, soft nothingness without the need to worry over her next meal or source of income was actually rather shooting. She couldn't feel her limbs or make out what way she was facing, and she certainly had no idea where the floor or the ceiling were - if her place of slumber even had either. She hardly cared though. She was content like this, drifting away forever without a worry in the world. Or, well, she would have been, if a rather disturbing feeling of sudden dread hadn't soon slithered into her world of sleep and shaken her conscious. She fidgeted, letting out a small whimper as her eyes opened to the light pouring in through her eyelids. For a moment, she saw nothing but shapes and swirls, all blurred by what she presumed to be tears. After only a moment however, her vision sharpened and her senses flowed back into her, drawing from her a silent gasp, one that was instantly muffled by a strange device over her mouth. What...? Where was she? Awake now, Mira found herself still floating, feet higher than the ground and hands not touching anything solid. Was she dead? She better not be, this place was unsuited to be heaven in any religion in the world; the tubes surrounding her were anything but elegant, and the scientists standing solemnly just beyond her reach made her shudder. They reminded her of her brother, standing there without moving an inch, watching her struggle to understand what was occurring around her.

The second she could manage it, Miraela took a better look around her, quickly realizing that the water in her eyes wasn't from tears. No, rather, she was completely submerged in some sort of liqui, the device covering her mouth her only link to oxygen. That alone was enough to almost send the girl into a fit of panic, but she kept her composure. It would not do good for her name to cause a scene.

Well, that's what she said, but alas, a scene she caused only seconds after; in her desperate attempts to make any sense out of her surroundings, she happened to look directly to her left, and what she saw there was enough to send her into fury of attempts to trash free from her peculiar cage. There, right next to her, floating in a tube filled with liquid much like her own, was no other than her elder brother, yellow eyes fixed on her and seeming to almost glow menacingly. Why? Why was he here?! Why the look? Did he come here to finish her off-? And was he... was he alright? He looked so pale, had he eaten? Had he been alone this whole time? Why?

She would have asked all those questions had she been able to, but since she couldn't speak, and since one of the scientists standing in the room seemed to note her aware state just then, she had to hold back her concern and fear for now. She glanced at the scientist as she approached, and from the corner of her eye she could see Cisrian do the same. They were asked questions - a lot of questions they had little answers to. They asked for names and about the way they had crashed, whatever that meant, but neither found themselves recalling. Miraela's heart started to race. What had happened? All she could remember was... was chasing a bird, a luxurious cruiser and a kiss - that still made her blush and quickly turn her gaze away as if to try and avoid the memory. And, next to her, Cisrian found himself coming to much the same conclusion as her; he couldn't remember anything he would have wanted to. Just a ship and a ritual interrupted by a loud crashing sound and water pouring in. And then darkness.

[Dark Revenger Knight]

Dante Fierro || Jayden Mathers
Aries - Envy || Capricornus - Gluttony
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

"Release them, Kira,"

The female scientist hurriedly walked over to a machine and pressed a button on the hologram screen.

Dante's feet touched the metal platform of the tank just as it was flushed entirely. The glass, cylindrical door opened, releasing steam that poured into the dark room making it warm for a brief second. Without warning, Dante removed the mouthpiece and hurdled it. "W-where am I?" He asked, trying to catch his breath.

"Angel's Town," the lead scientist answered, "who are you people?"

"People...?" Dante could see others emerging from the tanks; their faces seemed familiar. "I...was possessed and then the ship,,,I was on a cruise ship. I was supposed to oversee a delivery when the ship was attacked by a giant dragon. I was on that dragon with everyone in this room. I remember others but we were intercepted by a legion of Blood Orcs." He remembered everything now, the battle, the Blood Orcs and something much more sinister.

The scientist remained silent, his expression revealed nothing about his willingness to believe Dante's story.

"...And your sister?"

"I don't have a sister," Dante replied.

"Sure you do, she's right here with you," the scientist said as he gestured toward the female with the dark hair and blue eyes.

"The hell are you talking about?"

"Your genetic data matches, she's, in fact, your sister."

"Impossible; just who do you think you are making such insane claims!?" Dante was becoming increasingly impatient, it was evident that he had half the mind to hit someone right then and there.

"I'm the man who saved your life so if you're done ranting, explain to me why your power levels are so high?" The scientist turned to everyone in the room before nudging Dante. "You can sort your family affairs later..."

"We found you all minutes away from death but were able to save you. A normal human would not have survived that sort of crash which was the only reason we decided to keep you alive...three years ago."

Jayden had finished draining liquid from one of his ears when he heard the news. "Three years ago!? Dude! Everyone is probably looking for me!"

"And just who are you?"

"Name's Jayden, man. What? You live under a rock or somethin'?" The spunky, rosy haired male asked.

"Angel's Town is about forty kilometers from Black Lake and is protected by a powerful magical barrier; no one gets in or out without special clearance. No, I do not have the sincerest clue as to who you are, the fact that you were found so close to this location in such fatal condition is nothing short of miraculous or planned."

...

[Crimson Flame]

Selena Diana Artemis I Andre Bellamy
Cancer - Pride | Leo - Greed
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

The female scientist went over to the computer, and pressed a button, draining the liquid out from the tanks. The doors opened, and Selena and Andre removed their mouth pieces as they stepped out.

"Thank goodness that's done!" Selena exclaimed "Now could one of you be so kind as to tell us where we are, and what's going on?"

"Angel's Town," the lead scientist answered, "who are you people?"

"Selena Artemis..." The dark haired woman answered cooly. Inside, she was seething, and had to stop herself from snapping at the man. How did he not know who she was? She was Miss Pandora IX for crying out loud. Surely he must have been living under rock to not know who she was.

Then, she saw one of the scientists talking to another man, while pointing at her, and saying "your sister." She recognized the other guy from the ship. Selena blinked. If she hadn't heard it herself, she wouldn't have believed it either. She recognized the person that was apparently her brother. Of all the people she could have been related to, why did it have to be him? This was the guy she had try to kill when she was... indisposed... And for good reason to. He attacked her first. The man was just as shocked she was. "You can't be serious..." Selena said, trying to keep calm. "My mother hadn't told me anything about having any siblings. Surely this must have been some sort of mistake."

"Like I said, we have the genetic material. They match."

The Scientist was adamant. Selena looked at the guy. Quite frankly, she wasn't surprised they were related, they had a lot of features in common. Same dark hair, same pale blue eyes, even the same skin complexion. From the looks of it though, those were the only things they had in common. She wondered why her mother hadn't informed her of the possibility she could have a sibling. Did she not know? If word got out, there was no telling what this could to her reputation.

Before she had a chance to question this situation further, the scientist interupted her with more shocking news. "We found you all minutes away from death but were able to save you. A normal human would not have survived that sort of crash which was the only reason we decided to keep you alive... a year ago."

And then Selena stopped trying to keep her cool. She had enough of all these surprises. Her eyes widened, and her brows furrowed. "WHAT?! I'VE BEEN IN THERE FOR A YEAR?!" She had half a mind to grab one of these scientists by their necktie, and slam them against the wall. This was not good. The public must have presumed her dead and gave her title to the first runner-up. She barely had a chance to do anything. Her entire career had sank along with the luxury ship she was on.

"Mademoiselle, calm yourself." Andre interupted. "There is no need to get angry. We are still alive after all. Surely we will get out of this." Andre didn't blame her for being upset, after all he had millions of fans who were probably worried about his disappearence. Screaming about it wasn't going to get them out of there any faster.

In the mean time, Andre approached a certain spunky, rosy haired male that called himself Jayden, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and put his arm around his shoulders. "As for you, I know who you are." That statement wasn't a complete lie, Andre knew of him. He was the subject of ridiculous rumours just as much as Andre was, it was difficult not to know who he was. He just wasn't a fan of his music. It would be nice to have another famous friend. "They take your picture just as much as they take mine. I must say, you are even better looking in person."

[Atrum Lupus]

Evgeniya Sergeyevna Chernova
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

The female scientist walked over to one of the machines in the room and pressed a button. Immediately, the liquid around Evie drained, allowing her feet to touch the bottom of the tube as the tank emptied itself. Evie quickly ripped off her mouthpiece, moving and stretching her stiff jaw as she stepped out of the tube. She certainly did not enjoy being inside.

"Govno...about time you let me out! Where am I? Why the hell am I here? Tell me!" She shouted, taking in her surroundings. Everyone had exited their tanks, and Evie found them...familiar-looking to say the least, perhaps except for the gray-haired man dressed in robes. Even the guy she now remembered dancing with was in the room.

"Angel's Town," the lead scientist answered, "who are you people?"

"Evgeniya Sergeyevna Chernova...gah, Evie! Just Evie, damn it! Tell me how the hell I went from fighting Blood Orcs to getting trapped in here?" The blonde growled. Had they not tried to at least identify whoever they took? Them not knowing her gave her a bit of relief however. Had it been the police, and information about her less-than-legal activities was revealed...it could have been much worse. Evie remembered most things now, but there was still that gap in her memory, something missing that she could not point her finger on.

Something was going on between another scientist, the dark-haired man and the dark-haired girl. From the conversation, it appeared that the two were apparently siblings, judging from their surprised and disbelieving reactions, as well as mentions of DNA samples by the scientist. From Evie's point of view, the two couldn't be more different, their outward coloring aside. The guy, Dante, was rugged-looking and muscular, while the female, who called herself Selena, was anything but, instead being elegant-looking and dressed in pink.

"We found you all minutes away from death but were able to save you. A normal human would not have survived that sort of crash which was the only reason we decided to keep you alive... a year ago." The scientist changed the topic as he faced everyone in the room. Evie knew that she could hear...but did he really say that a year had passed? Had she been held captive for a year? Selena yelled angrily at the scientist as the truth sunk in, only to be calmed down by a blonde male. If what the scientist said was true...

"Are you telling me that Artem thinks I'm dead? Or that the police is hunting me down? Chyort durak! Idi k chertu!" She cursed angrily, losing her temper as she balled her hand into a fist and punched the scientist on his face.

[Dark Revenger Knight]

Dante Fierro – Envy – Aries
Jayden Mathers – Gluttony – Capricornus
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab --> Town Center

Kira saw them first three years ago. She was the one that spotted them amid the rubble, but still, it was her colleague with his unmatched knowledge of regenerative medicine – forbidden in Pandora – who was able to bring them back to life and now he lay against a cratered brick wall – Kira could tell by the impact of the blow that they were dealing with very dangerous people. She whipped out a serum vile and syringe kit. Wasting no time, Kira drove the blue liquid into her mentor’s neck, at the exposed flesh above his collar. The man’s veins protruded and turned a violent, heavily accentuated blue hue. He rose by his own accord and with a nod, expressed the message that he was well. For the moment, no one said anything and all that was heard was the syringe clanking as it fell from Kira’s hand onto the floor. The man glanced down at himself and saw his veins squirm as the blue-liquid surged within his body, repairing all ailments.

“Yes,” he began, his face revealing nothing of his exhilaration, “you see …”

Dante’s eyes narrowed and the scientist knew he had only seconds to explain before he had another body down his throat. A dark, smoke-like substance began to collect itself in the palm of Dante’s right hand. A pitch-black, stainless-steel, giant sword emblazed in crimson fire took shape from the smoke.

“Don’t move a single inch,” a deep voice cautioned. “Explain to us what the hell you are,” Dante continued.

The scientist fixed his sight on the distinctness of Dante’s sword, trailing his eyes along the length of the blade. “No ordinary man should be able to carry that weapon two-handed, much less single handed like that,” the scientist, a peculiar sight himself, rebutted. “I practice regenerative medicine, forbidden outside the Dark Realm but perfectly safe, and necessary, here.”

Regenerative medicine? Dante thought. He had never heard of such a thing; it involved an obscure magic referenced only in classified text available exclusively in the King’s library.

“He saved your lives!” Kira finally cried abruptly. “It was the only way to keep you all alive –”

Dante only glared.

The male scientist silenced her by raising a finger. “You’ve all made it abundantly clear how able you are,” the male scientist said. “Your energy is a consequence of power donned by the Sacred Constellations. My team and I aren’t too familiar with the power as the legends are scarcely recorded in scattered scrolls across the entire planet.”

This didn’t make too much sense to Dante; he was aware of the Sacred Constellations through stories that had been passed down from generation to generation. What can they possibly want with me? He thought, recalling the journey across Black Lake, the giant serpent and the blood-orcs. And then the most painful memory struck him like a sledgehammer straight to the head. The woman he once loved. His gaze betrayed his feelings, his eyes momentarily falling upon the female he had danced with the night of the wreck. “Maybe some of us never wanted this second chance …” He muttered with a solemn fray.

“Be careful what you wish for,” the scientist whispered. “You were all brought here for a reason, it is best not to convince the fates otherwise. Our King is still amiss and the Divine Council has taken full control. This is worrisome because they are now in possession of the blueprint to a weapon with terrible power that rivals that of the Sacred Constellations – the Dark Sephiroth. The weapon is intended to absorb the soul of virtually every living organism in the entire planet. All in one mighty blow. But they need one key item, the catalyst. Problem is no one knows what that catalyst is only that it is somewhere here in the Dark Realm.”

“How do we fit into all of this?” Dante questioned. He had his mother and apparently a sister as well even if he had tried to kill her. He felt a vague pang of regret for entertaining the thought of letting it all happen but he knew where this talk was going. Then he reminded himself of how long he’d lived in regret and how he wanted peace, and the emotion disappeared.

“It’s either finding the catalyst before the Divine Council,” the scientist forewarned, “or let the world melt before your eyes’. I, we, cannot afford to venture beyond the town’s magical barrier, we will guide your travel from here and support with our research.”

At that moment, a younger man, clad in soldier gear, complete with armor and a sword, stumbled into the room from the stairway that lead outside and scurried past the group. The lead scientist met him with a disapproving nod but knew his presence could only mean danger – the kind that would put the entire town’s population of 1,000 at risk.

Panic was overflowing from the young soldier’s eyes. His trembling legs exerted terror. “100 blood-orcs!” he said, trying desperately to catch his breath as he delivered the news, “they’ve breached the barrier! We’re getting killed left and right!”

“What!?” The scientist shouted in utter disbelief. Blood-orcs approached the barrier countless times but they couldn’t get in, it was virtually impossible; breaching the magical barrier of Angel’s Town required godlike force. “How!?” He demanded.

The soldier’s face flushed from all color, his face the hollow of a living person. “… It’s…the Executioner, he’s here.” He managed to mutter before collapsing onto his knees. Though he’d skirmished with and beheaded blood-orcs and other creatures, Dante had never gone up against anything remotely close to the Executioner – an immortal entity that guarded the mysterious depths of Black Lake. He knew who the Executioner was, countless had fallen victim to his brutal might. Dante was not about to let anyone die as long as he could do something, he felt the need to redeem himself from his indolent life. Crimson fire and dark shadows engulfed Dante transforming him into a fully armored warrior. This was his Constellation form. Maneuvering with efficiency, Dante bolted to the outside. It was chaos everywhere. Wooden abodes were being burned to the ground by the oversized blood-orcs. The scientist trailed behind Dante and the rest, “I’ll get working on the barrier! Hold them off!” He said before disappearing into the confusion.

Dante stood unfazed amid the destructive sight until he caught a glimpse of a large silhouette off in the distance. His eyes widened as the heavy, armored man effortlessly killed half a dozen soldiers in one strike. Dante’s mouth went dry in anticipation, a mix of eagerness and adrenaline. He tightened his grasp on Inferno – his great sword – and bolted forward with his weapon held against his right side. As he moved closer, Dante could finally see the Executioner himself. Engulfed in dark armor was a man towering above twelve feet in stature except his face was covered by a mask split into two colors, blue and black. The eye sockets were pitch-black as if completely devoid of organs and a frown was imprinted on the mouth also an empty shell as if the man had no face underneath the horrific mask. Dante took to the sky in a worthy leap and swung his sword down as hard as he could but was parried by an enormous sledgehammer made of dark steel. Dante shot like a bullet through several wooden walls. He felt a momentary surge of vertigo as he steadily raised himself from the rubble. Within seconds he was surrounded by six blood-orcs. He took a deep breath and exhaled a powerful fireball, causing the blood-orcs to flinch, taking advantage of the distraction to roll behind a wall as he prepared for his next attack.

---

Jayden had found himself rather distracted throughout the entire conversation; he’d met Andre Bellamy but nothing else had stood out. He couldn’t comprehend the severity of what was being said until the moment the soldier had delivered the news.

Now, he found himself hiding behind a pair of shields that he effortlessly seemed to be able to carry. He was afraid; he couldn’t understand how the black-haired male was able to act so easily. This wasn’t for him. He wanted no part of this. He witnessed in terror as dozens of soldiers and townspeople were being slaughtered like animals. Embarrassed by his cowardice, Jayden hesitantly emerged from his shields and paled when he saw a formation of blood-orcs rushing straight for him. “No!” he yelled, preparing himself for the inevitable blow. Seconds before the leading blood-orc could strike, one of his shields acted by its own will and deflected the hit, sending the orc back a few feet but quickly got back up and charged once more. As second blood-orc attacked but this time, by pure instinct, Jayden managed to hold his right shield up, parrying the blow. For the next few minutes he traded blows with the formation of blood-orcs, taking some and just barely being able to deflect others. He had no offensive will – he didn’t know how to fight back.

[Crimson Flame]

Selena Diana Artemis I Andre Bellamy
Cancer - Pride | Leo - Greed
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab > Town Center

If these scientists were to be believed, they had all been endowed with the power of the Sacred Constellations. Upon hearing this, Selena raised an eyebrow intrigued, and pretty much ignored the rest of their story. She had heard stories about the Sacred Constellations, but they were simply just that, stories. She never in a million years believed that those stories could be true. As she started thinking about this whole situation further, maybe there was a silver lining to everything that has happened. Sure, her blossoming career was in the toilet, and she apparently had a brother she never about... but, now she had the power of a Goddess flowing through her veins. The thought of that possibility excited the young woman. "Really now? The Sacred Constellations, you say?" A clear liquid substance, not unlike the water in the Black Lake, began to swirl around Selena's right hand. The water solidified into a white scepter with a sapphire orb and a crescent moon shape at the top."Well, that certainly is some very powerful magic we have at our disposal." Selena admired the staff with a grin. "I can only imagine the sort of things I can do with that sort of power at my fingertips."

Right at that moment, a younger man, clad in soldier gear, ran into the room looking panic-stricken. Apparently, some Blood Orcs have broken through the Magical Barrier protecting this town. At this Selena put her free hand on her hip, and tapped her foot in disapproval. After everything she had been through, she really wasn't in the mood to see another hideous Blood Orc for as long as she lived. "Are you serious? We've already dealt with this those things already. Those... disgusting creatures are still around?!" Suddenly, the poisonous white liquid reappeared, and swirled around her, completely enveloping the young woman. When the liquid subsided, she had changed into her white and silver armored dress. The young woman had transformed into her constellation form. "Well, It looks like I'll just have to take care of these beasts myself!" Moving gracefully, Selena walked outside with confidence. When she got there, she saw chaos everywhere. Homes were being destroyed by those blasted blood-orcs.

Selena was not bothered by the all the destruction. Amongst all the Orcs, there was a huge armored man killing all the human soldiers with ease. The Scientists had said something about an Executioner earlier, and it looks like this is who they were talking about. There were mentions of an Executioner among stories she'd heard as a child, but like the Sacred Constellations, she only believed them as nothing more than stories. As Selena began to calculate how she was going to take down her foes, the man that was apparently her brother, had lept up and attempted to attack the Executioner. Selena shook her head in frustration. Is he trying to make me look bad?! She found herself grinning that his attack had failed, and he was knocked back through several wooden walls. When the man got up, he was suddenly surrounded by six of those Blood-Orcs. He shot a fireball at the Orcs, then rolled behind a wall. Is her seriously hiding?! How pathetic can you be?!

Selena decided to take this opportunity to make her move. Before she could even think about dealing with the walking suit of armor over there, first she had to get rid of these monsters. She raised her scepter, and a poisonous mist flowed out from the blue orb, and surrounded the six orcs. As they inhaled the mist, the creatures started coughing loudly, and moved sluggishly as the poison took effect. Selena smirked at the sight of it. "Oh, what's the matter? You hideous beasts can't handle a little cough? Hmph, how disgusting! I was expecting some sort of challenge..." As she was boasting, another Orc who wasn't caught up in her toxic mist, came at the young woman from behind, and hit her with a blunt club with such force that it knocked her down face first. "AH!" After hitting the ground hard, she slowly got up and rubbed her bruised cheek. Selena was seething mad. She wasn't going to let this thing get the best of her. "WHAT?! HOW DARE YOU STRIKE ME IN SUCH A MANNER!" She raised her septer once more, and shot out a stream of water, knocking the monster backwards. "I have the power of Goddess! I am you're superior! You should be bowing before me, and begging for my mercy! Not that I'd give it to you anyway..."

Another Orc took the opportunity to charge her, but Selena was prepared for it this time. She drenched herself with the water from her scepter, and melted into it just as the orc hit her with his weapon. The strike went right through through the liquid, and Afterward, the puddle of water that was Selena had reformed into a woman again. She looked barely phased by the attacked. "Oh, is that all you can do? I barely felt a thing... Ohohohohoho!" She laughed mockingly and stepped to the side. Then she used her toxic mist once more to poison more of these orcs.

---

As if this entire situation couldn't get stranger, they had just been tasked with finding some sort of catalyst thing before this Divine Council could, otherwise they would create a weapon that could bring about the end of the world as they knew it. This whole situation sounded like something from a movie Andre was in once. The young movie star was thrilled by the concept. "Oh c'est fantastique!" He exclaimed. If he managed to succeed in this endeavor, he would be hailed as a hero by everyone. He knew very well how much people loved a hero.

He was surrounded by a golden flames, and lighting for a moment before he himself had transformed into his Constellation form, A fuchsia grecian toga, with gold a trim on the hem, and a matching pair of sandals. His entire body is covered with gold stripe tattoos, including two on his cheeks. His hair had gotten messier in this form, and he has lion ears and tail. He didn't particularly care for the way his Constellation form looked. That dark-haired woman had gotten a pretty white dress, a beautiful weapon, and a tiara to boot. Why couldn't he get something pretty too? This outfit was so boring! The Sacred Constellations could have at least given him more clothes... The only good thing about this was the color of the toga, and the power this new form granted him. Now Andre had to help bring down these monsters. They were the exact same monsters Andre had to fight back on the ship. The Auroran man didn't particularly care much for violence, but he could put that aside if he needed to.

He looked around, and saw his new friend Jayden fending off a group of those Blood-Orcs. Andre could see from the look on his face that he wasn't enjoying this at all, and he couldn't help but smile. Oh, how cute! My friend is in trouble! The young movie star thought. Moving as fast as lightning, Andre ran to the other boy's side, leaving a trail of electric sparks in his wake. Oh, Ça va... You do not need to be afraid mon ami." Andre reassured the boy. "I will... help you..." he reached out to Jayden with his hand, gently touching the underside of his chin, and gave the boy a light kiss on the forehead. Then he turned around, to face the group of monsters he was struggling against. "As for you... en garde!" The Auroran man held out his hand, and manifested his golden crossbow. He aimed the weapon, and fired a flaming arrow at one of the orcs. While the monster was screaming out in pain, Andre ran through the group, and shocked them with the trail of electricity he left behind. He reappeared behind them, and shot out another flaming arrow at one of the orcs.

[Atrum Lupus]

Evgeniya Sergeyevna Chernova
Dark Realm || Angel's Town
MediLab

The scientist Evie punched fell backwards on his butt, his glasses skidding down his nose. He mumbled "Damn, girl..." as he picked himself back up, dusting his lab coat. Instead of saying anything, perhaps knowing the girl's mood swings, he pointed towards the head scientist and the lady next to him, who were now mentioning something about how the dark-haired guy shouldn't be able to "carry a sword like that one-handed". At the mention of "sword", the blonde noticed that the man was indeed carrying a dark sword that was literally on fire. Was that even humanly possible?

“You’ve all made it abundantly clear how able you are,” the head scientist stated. “Your energy is a consequence of power donned by the Sacred Constellations. My team and I aren’t too familiar with the power as the legends are scarcely recorded in scattered scrolls across the entire planet.” Sacred Constellations? Evie knew about those stories. Though her parents were scarcely home when she was a young girl, she did recall them telling her stories about the Constellations. Artem himself had proclaimed that he was born under the Constellation of the Lion. Realistic Evie, however, only thought the legends to be just legends and that there were no such things as higher beings or powers. She wasn't one to usually believe that these things just happened. But then, here she was now, with her mother and Artem probably thinking her dead, and bedtime stories apparently being real after all. Powers...sounded like a whole new experience, and she liked the idea of having some cool ones, though she still did not get how exactly she, as well as everyone else in the room got them. But then, what was stopping them from lying?

“You were all brought here for a reason, it is best not to convince the fates otherwise. Our King is still amiss and the Divine Council has taken full control. This is worrisome because they are now in possession of the blueprint to a weapon with terrible power that rivals that of the Sacred Constellations – the Dark Sephiroth. The weapon is intended to absorb the soul of virtually every living organism in the entire planet. All in one mighty blow. But they need one key item, the catalyst. Problem is no one knows what that catalyst is only that it is somewhere here in the Dark Realm.” The head scientist continued, answering the man's inquiry, before warning that they had to find the catalyst he spoke about before the Divine Council did so. Evie stepped towards the graybeard and grabbed his lab coat.

"Give me one damn reason why I should believe you!" She confronted, glaring at the head scientist. The powers, the stories...they all sounded too good to be true, too perfect, everything had to be lies.

“100 blood-orcs! They’ve breached the barrier! We’re getting killed left and right!” She heard a voice pant from behind her. She turned around, and saw a man dressed in combat gear. The head scientist demanded how it happened, to which the soldier mentioned "The Executioner", another name familiar to the Almazine from more than a few stories, and it wasn't a name tied with anything good for that matter. Evie was only half-attentive, however, as the words blood orcs caught her attention and stirred something in her head. Images of a battle flashed in her mind, this time more vivid. Yes, she now remembered what exactly blood orcs were, and she remembered herself in the battle. Fierce, strong and in control...now everything came back to her. Just at that moment, black shadows and a violent tempest not unlike the north wind surrounded her and transformed her into a different form. Now, she was dressed in tight black leathers, thigh-high boots and skull adornments. She felt subtle tugs from on top of her head as well as from behind - blonde wolf ears and a tail. She held out her weapon, a large, six-pointed bladed weapon in the shape of a star, somehow remembering how she used it, and grinned cockily. Dashing out of the facility's door, she saw several homes being destroyed by the blood orcs. The soldier clearly wasn't exaggerating. Among the orcs was a dark-armored figure twice as tall as Evie. The Executioner, undoubtedly, and he was clearly dominating the battle. The dark-haired man had now assumed a different form as well, and had leapt towards the Executioner, who knocked him down with his giant sledgehammer. Definitely a challenge, and Evie wasn't going to shy away from one.

Evie charged between the groups of blood orcs, first slashing at the ones on her side alternately, before splitting her weapon into two shadowy clones, allowing her to hit the two blood orcs flanking her. She snarled as she struck one twice deep in the chest, before quickly pulling her weapon out and swiftly turning, thrusting her weapon into the second blood orc's neck. The creature collapsed, prompting Evie to laugh sadistically as she faced the incoming blood orcs. Just in front of them, she spotted the blond-haired guy, now with leonine ears and a tail, scantily-clad in a purple toga and wielding a crossbow, and the rosy-haired guy who looked to be...hiding behind a shield? What a pussy, Evie thought. It did not help that she saw the sniper kissing him! She strode to his side fusing her weapon back into one, and punching his arm hard with her free hand.

"Is that a shield or is that a fucking hidey-board?! Are you a man or are you a pussy?! Bash their damn skulls in, glupiyi!" She growled, pointing at the orcs before knocking his shield out of his hands. She then focused her attention on the orcs once more and coated her weapon in hard ice before charging forward and forcefully stabbing the nearest blood orc in its chest.