[IC] Royal Rumble!

[Dezuel]

Galbrek

*A call had been made to Galbrek on request of his mother to join her and the rest of their demonic kind in a brief meeting*

"Why now of all times? Fucking shit..." Galbrek cursed as he angrily stopped in front of the large twin doors leading into his mother's livingroom.

He coughed prior and then threw an annoyed glance over his shoulder. "Well? Open up the fucking door!" He barked at Adam who was placed a few feet behind him, and ofcourse after hearing such motivational words how could he refuse. The doll walked up and then opened the door the usual way his master wanted doors to be opened. Flung open for more grander an entrance, Adam pressed open the both twin doors and both he and Galbrek marched into the vast livingroom.

Ahead of them were a gathering of people. The first one was his mother, lying on a sofa or chair, depending on what one would count as a either. It appeared to be the kind you normally would find while speaking to a therapist. His mother was smoking as usual, using a long cigarette extender to make sure he had to move as little as possible. She was clad in a red dress and had her red hair bundled up in an intricate design as if she was a queen.

Ahead over by the fireplace in livingroom stood his second and oldest brother, the older of the pair was busy discussing world politics and matters concerning the law. The younger of the two appeared more bored than entertained, holding unto a drinking glass which had been generously filled.

My wretched older half brothers. Pure demons the both of them. One a snivelling politician and lawbender, the other a weapons manufacturer and warmongerer.

But they were not the only ones in the room. Ahead of him also stood the third brother, speaking to his twin sister. That brother was the family black lamb, a half-demon such as himself. He was always doing things his way and none could get him out of it. The adventurous type who was constantly getting into drunken brawls and involved in all manner of things. Good or evil.

His twin sister were involved in matters aswell, but she prefered keeping such matters to herself. Even though most knew that she was in a sense working for something the rest of the family were not interested in. Claiming herself to be a knight and heroine. Dressing up in male clothing.

It irked him that he had to be found related with someone like her, but on his mother's behalf he didn't do anything against it. His older brother would likely have defended her would such had been the case, as for his two older half brothers? They are not bothered by such mundane matters as they call it. Whilst being pure demons they seem to both have immense pride but in other senses lack it alltoghether.

Then the youngest member of the family. The little sister. One of the few which Galbrek had a soft spot for. Possibly due to her being the only one that was actually quiet. She was however not involved in neither politics or doing any deeds of good nor evil nature. A spectator more than anything else.

"Well, if it isn't our dear famous local half-brother coming to finally join us." His second oldest brother said shortly after giving an amused smirk in Galbrek's direction. Raising his glass in a mocking cheer and took a sip.

"The man of the hour huh?" The third brother said out loud. As if pondering on it. "At this rate you'll have to buy weapons from our dear older brother to defend yourself properly."

"Don't concern yourself with matters not concerning you... brother Andarek." Galbrek replied in a snide way marching past the taller more roughly dressed half-demon.

His oldest brother stood and watched at a distance, not one to ever engage into open conflicts or partake in brawls he considered useless. A man who prefered solving things by the words and laws of the world. Spineless is what some would call him, but as far as he is concerned it is far more effective to legally execute someone than to go after them himself.

The twin sister Galliere offered a polite but slight bow. "Hast thou forgotten thine ever charming smile this fine day, brother oh so dearest?" Galliere, the blonde twin sister of his asked as he was about to pass her by.

"Don't speak in such a tone to me, sister. I don't have the time to stand and prattle with someone speaking in words from a dead age. So move out of my way or you will be as dead as chivalry is."

"It ought to be chivalrous to smitten thee dear brother, yet even the folly hast a right to live to learn from their grave mistakes."

"Keep your filthy speech to yourself, you witless buffoon." Galbrek dismissively waved his twin sister away and approached his mother who was accompanied most closely by his younger sister.

"Oho hoh hoh! Good to see you my son, it is good to see you pay respect to your beloved and beautiful mother." She laughed and put a hand just before her mouth and took a deep blow on her cigarette before blowing out the smoke in Galbrek's face.

"Mother... could you stop doing that?!" The half-demon demanded in an annoyed tone.

"Oh little Gally, I am so sorry. Mother has been soo sad without seeing all of you together and getting along so well for such a long time." His mother said reaching out with her free hand to pinch his cheek. Whereof he violently slapped her hand away.

"Tch.. don't call me that! Don't touch me! I am an adult! Curse you mother... Will you ever get that into your thick skull? I refuse to be made a fool of. I am the only one in this damn family who has the ambition, brain and power to do anything about our damn situation in the world!"

"Sounds like you want to wage a war, little half-brother. Want to buy a few of my toys?" His second oldest brother said with an even more amused look on his face. Wearing that very punchable face he usually wore that made him generally untolerable for those meeting him face to face.

"Watch your mouth Kakurane, you purebred idiot or I'll string you up for the mob to lynch you..." Galbrek replied through gritted teeth. The elder brother just grinned and resumed to discuss world politics with the eldest brother a distance away from the rest of the family gathering.

"Perhaps we should discuss what we all came here for so we can get on and leave?" The third brother said in a bored voice as he fondled the hilt of the sword he had sheathed by his belt.

"I shalt have to agree with brother Andarek. Beloved mother, do please tell us why we hast been summoned?" The blonde twin sister followed.

"Ohoh.. do forgive your mother. I have called all of you here to announce something important. There is a powerful demon hunter in the city who is now on the lookout for our kind. I urge all of you to be careful. I couldn't possibly handle having to tell your fathers about you being killed by such a thing."

"Dear mother, there are actually laws which benefit our kind. The law is absolute and will not take kindly on anyone breaking it. As long as everyone adheres to said law there will be nothing to worry about." The oldest brother finally broke the silence and the silence that followed was brief but awkward with everyone giving him a look which was telling that none of them had faith at all in that.

"I guess we could just kill him? I'll do it." The third brother spoke up, stretched his arms and his neck made some slight crackling sounds. "Could be enjoyable fighting someone strong for once."

"Thee could always spar with me, brother Andarek. In preparation for thine duel with this hunter." The blonde half-demoness added.

"Heh.. no thanks. I am not interested in fights where the victor has already been decided." The tall third brother replied quickly.

"Why concern ourselves at all with just a mere hunter? My mercenaries can easily deal with someone like that." The second oldest brother twirled the drink in his glass, looking very disinterested now. "Please mother don't call us over to talk about such mundane matters as some suicidal hunter. You are wasting our precious time."

"My children! I called you over because I believe this one is no regular hunter. With that in mind be cautious. I could go on and on about this matter but I am way too weary. Is this the thanks I get for looking after my babies?" The red dressed she-demon finally sat up, only to stretch her arms.

"Afraid I don't have the time to care for some half-assed demon hunter whose in over his head. I have more important matters to do. Taking out the trash" Galbrek shrugged and turned around to walk. "We are leaving, Adam. Remember me well mother, for I shall rise high enough to lit the heavens on fire. Just you'll watch."

The rest of the demon ilk in the room watched the half-demon march out of the room, with angry yet determined steps. Some of them had their eyebrows raised.

Vittorio

He was brought out of his thoughts by some muffled clanking sounds coming from outside of his room aswell as a voice saying something. "Good mauling Vittorio." Mauling? Someone had mauled him? Was someone speaking to an enemy in the corridor? He decided to take a closer look. Was that Bak saying good morning? He asked himself as he looked through the dark hallway. Or was it a troublemaker?

Beginning to float along the corridors with his astral form, he gazed from left to right to pinpoint the clanking sound. It did sound like Bak but more silent. Something was not quite right. He saw the door close to the girls showers, which were located close to the gym.

Narrowing his eyes in his astral form he pondered on his options. Either it was Bak taking a shower or it was someone pretending to be Bak in order to get into the girls showers. For what purpose? He pondered for a few moments. Possibility of infiltration and espionage is high. The girls showers during morning hours are a limited crowded area with maximum visitors ranging from 1-3.

The majority of the girls tended to sleep longer before heading down there in a mass gathering. Then there were those who were pure evil and did not wash at all. After some pondering he decided to investigate and went into his incorporeal form and stuck his head through the wall, wearing his serious and no nonsense facial expression which often was his default look. That is when not being angry or sad.

What he was met with was the back. Or well Bak's back. It was from the looks of it indeed her. She was attempting to slide on a shirt and overall Vittorio thought it looked quite difficult, even so she was likely more proficient with it than himself counting in his physical form.

Her body is even more damaged than mine, yet despite this she continues onwards. What is she really wanting in this world? What I desire is obvious but what she truly wants that makes her eat, drink, breathe and sleep. I should ask her. But it would go against my better judgement. I am not here to make friends after all. That must not happen it would hinder my departure.

That Bak was willing to go forwards despite the state she was in. It began to grow on him. A sense of admiration. As he stood there pondering, he had forgotten where he actually were and threw another glance to Bak, this time causing him to look away in a blushing manner despite his form being unable to display such a thing, Before he slid back through the wall.

It was her after all. One can never be too safe. Everything should be regarded as being out to kill you.

The thought came to him that someone like Gilliam easily could have snuck into the girls showers for indecency. But as far as Vittorio knew Gilliam was only interested in Alto, eating food and making tea. Then he came to look at himself. He had done something indecent now. There was only one way to go about it.

He had to tell Bak the truth and his reasonings. But he had to wait for a good opportunity, he followed her to the gym where there was fighting going on. He briefly gazed over to those doing combat, then approached Bak. Casually floating up behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder and lowering his voice. "Bak... we should speak."

His tentacle like wings twitched and did low snapping sounds in the air. First confess then ask of her reasons for being with Mephisto's.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

Bak Tsarevna

A masked figure assaulting both students and teachers! This was a serious issue. "I understand. Stand back, student. SUPPRESSING FI-!

In that moment Bak felt a hand lay on her shoulder. Whipping around, thinking it to be some kind of ambush, the missile that she had been in the middle of firing were thrown wildly off target. They flew past Vittorio, because it turned out to be him standing there, and blew a giant ragged hole in the wall separating the campus from the parking lot.

Bak was for one moment mortified, then relaxed a little upon seeing that she hadn't actually accidentally blown him up. "I am so sorry Vittorio," she said, "but you should know not to surprise me in the middle of suppressing fire. Wait, I was in the middle of suppressing fire! We can speak later, right now we must save our teacher from mystery attacker!"

@AtomicNut@KillamriX88@Dezuel

[Dezuel]

Vittorio

He did not expect Bak to do what she did, but then again he were not very prone to engage into conversations or be more social than he had to. Bak had reacted very defensively to his hand and had decided to decorate the nearby wall with a brand new hole.

Vittorio didn't flinch to the projectile, all he did was to look over his shoulder to where it had landed with an blank look on his face. It surely was not to be looked on favorably by the teachers, any unwanted attention to the school's location would be prefered. But more importantly it seemed like Bak wanted to save the teacher from a particular mystery attacker. That could not end well Vittorio concluded after seeing who it was.

He also spotted Celine over by the end of the room holding unto some form of rodent.

"Hold your fire, Bak. The teacher is capable of handling this." He tried to reassure Bak before setting his gaze on Vernon. "What friends would those be?"

Had his masked ally gotten into a mess with Vernon's friends? Who were they? Could it be Vernon were a friend to this William or someone over by that tournament which had taken place some time past. Unless he were mistaken and Galbrek had done something unwise. Highly possible. For now he waited to see what Bak and Vernon would do. If need would be he would have to jump in to stop everything from becoming a mess. It is after all Alto who is the enemy.

[rawkhawk64]

Another job well done. Mother and Father would be most pleased. These thoughts were at the forefront of Yuuto's mind as he wondered the halls of Mephisto's after classes. He'd skipped a couple of classes to get the job done, of course, but that was insignificant. The only thing that could potentially worry him was Bak, who wondered the halls and "disciplined" wrongdoers. However, he was sure he'd either be able to avoid the machine-girl's wrath, or at the very least escape to The Void if needed.

Whatever thoughts would follow were literally blown out of Yuuto's mind as an explosion launched shrapnel all over near where he was. Thankfully, he managed to avoid more than a couple of scratches by quickly disappearing into the Void. After the dust had settled, Yuuto reappeared, and glanced through the hole. There was Bak, talking with the loner ghost kid. Yuuto approached where Bak could see him.

"Please don't tell me that I have done anything to earn your ire, Bak-san. Void wisdom say 'Powerful ally should not be made foe, lest ire of others be aroused.' Void wisdom usually right." It was at this point that Yuuto saw the fighting. "What is happening? Why is there fight?"

[AtomicNut]

Celestine Lightbringer

@KillamriX88@Dezuel@Gentlemanvaultboy@rawkhawk64

The battle raged on. Celestine had barely time to breath and enhace the response on his limbs at the same time. Red Rain felt like trying to juggle an elephant with boxing gloves and on fire. And probably a pregnant elephant. And there was that lovely yet deadly bloodthirst smile of hers. He knew that she was just toying with him during the showoff, but he was completely on the defensive. Until both combatants' senses picked the same sound of a detonation. Cel raised a hand, indicating to stop...

The blade of the teacher was just a hair's breadth from his neck when he did so, but she stopped nonetheless at his signal. Both looked at eachother, then at the crowd that was gathering. Bak, the tank girl... had caused the explosion. Vittorio was by her side. Celestine was the first one to speak. Of course, the young Mephisto student would recognize his voice, or so he hoped.

"It's just a exhibition match, Bak." He said to the tank girl. "No need for you to, uh... blow up things?" It was then when he eyed the teacher, who had deftly withdrawn from the battle.

And was walking towards Bak, towering over her... her hand leaning defiantly and resting atop Bak's head abruptly...

Only to ruffle her hair. "It's okay my cute student. We're just doing a show to encourage people to train." She added, while pulling some candy from her pocket, that somehow, had survived the entire fight unscathed, and offering it to the First Year student. "Transfer Student and Health Advisor will pick up from where we left." She added.

"Excuse me?" Cel tilted his head, blade still on hand.

"Yes, don't you have an opponent still?" Teacher Maskono pointed at Vernon. "Go beat him. Go all wild. Don't worry, I will step in if it gets too hairy."

Celestine grumbled... he would probably not visit her place the following week. Had she told him to go all out? Well, he probably needed to, given the atmosphere. But for the time being, he raised his sword at Vernon. "Let's dance, Vernon. Teacher says so." He droned, in a tired and defeated kind of tone.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

Bak Tsarevna

Bak lowered her guard as Vittorio suggested, and that was lucky because she very nearly swallowed her own tongue when the friendly ninja that had come to her aide three times in the apartment popped his head in through the hole she had blown. "Oh no, no no nonono, it was my fault." She said in response to his question, shaking her head from side to side. "That was not punishment missile, that was rescue-,"

"It's just a exhibition match, Bak," she heard a familiar voice say from behind the mask of the mysterious attacker. Celestine, the beautiful doctor lady that took care of Vittorio and patched up everyone when they got hurt. Bak very nearly physically shrank as the shame of nearly blowing up three friends, none of whom as far as she knew had done anything to warrant it, in about as many milliseconds sank into her. She didn't even see the gym teacher approaching, eyes cast to the ground, until the woman laid a hand on Bak's head. It had its usual, instantaneous effect. Every other thought flooded out of her mind as she leaned into her hand like an eager cat, feeling for all the world as though she might lift right off the ground and sail away into the sky like a lost balloon at any moment. When Miss Maskono offered her a hard candy she took it robotically, without even thinking about it, only coming back down to earth once the woman had removed her hand from Bak's head and stepped away.

She hadn't heard anything during that time but she could guess that this was legitimate if Celestine was involved with it. The reality of the situation only became more apparent as guys who had been hanging out in the parking lot, no doubt drawn by the explosion, let curiosity lead them through the newly blown entrance to take in the fight that was happening between Between Celestine and the guy that had tried to get her to shoot the doctor. They sat on the walls and unused sports equipment, the occasional wolf whistle being directed Celestine's way. Bak made a mental note of the offenders, then nodded and raised her arm in the air.

"Then I, Bak Tsarevna, in the name of the Student Council officially sanction this training club!" She shouted, bringing her hand down in the direction of the two fighters squaring off. "Begin!"

She started at the candy in her outstretched hand for a moment. It was lemon. Her favorite. She turned back to Yuuto and held it out to him, smiling apologetically. "I am sorry for almost hitting you with missile you did not deserve."

Whether he too it or not, she next turned her attention to Vittorio. "This is pleasant surprise though. Did you too get hit in the face with flying flier? You do not seem interested in clubs, usually." It was really nice seeing him out here, taking an interest in something other than revenge and spinning pretty words together. Though she supposed this could be considered a revenge adjacent activity.

@AtomicNut@rawkhawk64@Dezuel@KillamriX88

[KillamriX88]

@AtomicNut @Gentlemanvaultboy @Dezuel @rawkhawk64

---

"Dammit!" Vernon shouted when Vittorio distracted Bak. He'd been so close! 'Of course, that half-dead idiot can go around screaming about his vengeance, but when I want a little he can't even be bothered to take five seconds to read the mood!' Vernon ranted mentally, though his frustration was clear as day on his face. 'If William wasn't trying to save him I'd just kill him myself and save everyone the trouble!'

Answering Vittorio's question wouldn't do him any good and besides, he had bigger things to worry about. It now seemed the "Fallen One" was being pitted against him. Vernon wasn't so keen on fighting him anymore. The math was simple: Vernon had lost to Wolf, and Wolf hadn't exactly been able to beat the Fallen One. The odds weren't in Vernon's favor. But they weren't completely against him.

He'd been able to observe the aforementioned fight with Wolf. He knew the Fallen One was deceptively strong and liked to fight dirty. Also, they were clearly at least a little bit drained after scuffling with the gym teacher. One glance could tell you how much of a struggle that fight, however brief, must have been.

Vernon set his bottle aside and unzipped his cooler. He pulled out a popsicle and stuck it in his mouth... before viciously biting into it, pretty much eating the whole thing in one go.

"Well... I guess this is it then," Vernon gave a strained grin and dropped the cooler. He hadn't exactly been planning for this. He would need to stop his opponent's movements and then lock them down entirely, and he'd need to do it quickly. "Allow me to cast the first stone." And with that he unceremoniously flicked the popsicle stick at the Fallen One's chest, still sticky with saliva and melted popsicle. This was followed by an ice-ball aimed right at their forehead.

[RoflsMazoy]

Red Intentions

((Collab Post between RoflsMazoy and Letter Bee))

On Rhea's edge there lay a loe hill which made part of Rhea's wall. An urban island almost, surrounded by chain fences and barbed wire. Here were whew Rhea's most dangerous criminals were kept. Deep underground where the latest technology was used to hold all manner of powered criminals.

For some, regular power dampening wouldn't be enough. This place was also home to those criminals who couldn't be housed elsewhere. Today's story didn't take place in the depths of the compound, but above in a brightly lit interrogation room.

A middle-aged man with greying hair, wearing a red-suit and looking all the world like he'd only been arrested just moments ago. There was the signature hum of power dampening pylons, one of which was in the room sort of off to the side.

This was not the first interrogation. The man had come quite willingly in the first place, and had been happy to answer questions. None of the answers were anything that wasn't already known. It seemed he'd known them all ahead of time, in the end. There was no confession for any crime he'd been arrested for, and they were pending a trial as of this moment.

But the Ascot family had recently come into possession of some evidence which may have implied this man, Mephisto, was far more than they had assumed him to be. For the purposes of investigating this possibility, Alexander Ascot was here now.

The door opened to let in Alexander Ascot, now clad in his formal Juvenile Officer's uniform. Alexander would sit in front of Mephisto across a table, keeping his clipboard, ballpen, and notes close by. Taking a deep breath, the young man would say, "All right, Mephistopheles Erdigan, time for us to talk; I only have 90 minutes or so and I have to make this count."

His lips pursed. "From the looks of it, you've been a model prisoner, answering all the usual questions. Which is why I won't ask the usual questions. Instead, I'll just ask this - Do you truly count yourself as part of Rhean Society and on the side of Rhea, the City?"

Mephisto greeted the question with a warm smile.

"Ah, what a refreshing question! The officers here only ever want to know about my wrongdoings. It's always crime, this, crime that, and they never seem satisfied even if all the evidence is right in front of them." He said. "Although I will say that I don't quite understand where your question is coming from, I think I can provide a satisfactory answer."

He puffed out his chest and he seemed genuinely happy to receive the question from Alexander.

"First and foremost, I am a business man. I came to Rhea more than two decades ago to conduct business, and I'm not ashamed to say I fell in love with the city at first sight. Rhea is a place like no other. I decided to stay, and I even have a daughter now.

"I've become a full citizen of Rhea, and have some businesses which operate for the benefit of Rhea itself. My primary intention first and foremost is profit however, so unfortunately I can't say I'm on the 'side' of Rhea the city, but what businessman can?"

He chuckled a little at that statement.

"Rhea is just a city, after all. Society will go where the people go, and I do count myself as a person of these people. I must say, I really can't understand what your intention was with that question."

Alexander nodded, saying, "The intention is this; to tell you that if you regard yourself as part of Rhean Society, that the quest for profit must also profit other people than yourself or a small group of intimiates. Tax Fraud on such a scale, fraud, and other business that goes beyond legality, as well as the maintenance of a School that encourages the pursuit of base urges at the cost of other people...how do you justify this? How do you justify setting one of your students to murder another human being, or encouraging him to think you support such?"

A pause. "I believe you know who I am talking about."

Mephisto tilted his head quizically.

"I don't think I would say being part of a society includes benefiting all of it. That's not even including your accusations of me, but if you asked if I considered myself a 'member'. I am by definiton a member of society as someone who lives by it, criminal or no."

He said calmly.

"And I don't believe I know who you are talking about either. You've spoken quite badly about my 'school', but it all sounds like unfounded conjecture with no basis in reality. What cost are you referring to? What urges? What encouragement? I'd say it's quite bold to make so many assumptions without even a scrap of evidence."

He leaned back in his chair and sighed, as if he'd gotten bored of Alex now that he knew what he was going for.

" If there were some uninvolved bypasser here they'd call your words nonsense. Besides, my school is just that, a school. Am I supposed to be responsible for every action my students take? Am I supposed to monitor their every step? Their every move? If one of them commits a wrongdoing, you capture them and punish them, do you not? Or has the law changed in the few weeks since I've been imprisoned?"

Alexander had no time for sophistry and replied, "Let's cut to the chase. Vittorio Twinveil is one of your students. So is Galbrek Ravenovich. The first one tried to kill me as I got in the way of his vendetta against Alto, after several threats against the latter's life, while the second one tried to kill my mother by totaling her car. As the owner of the school, yes, you have an actual responsibility, if only because you are above the actual principal in the chain of command. The buck for not passing disciplinary action against Vittorio and Galbrek stops with you."

His eyebrows burrowed further into confusion.

"That first name doesn't exactly ring a bell. I don't know where you obtained your information from, but the more pressing matter is your pinning the blame on me. My school is not a correctional facility. It's against the law for me to force my students into a correctional facility. I am not their legal guardian, nor can I say I have been in a position of great influence for either of them. My hands are, quite literally, tied, and there is currently no longer anything I can do for them, or anyone for that matter.

"My personal assets remain frozen while my charges stand. My businesses can continue without me, but if you want them to do something, you'll need to go through my lawyer to do so. So with all that out on the table, what exactly do you want me to do?"

A gamble was needed to get even the tiniest bit of useful information here, and Alexander didn't like it. "I want to know why you admitted them into your School in the first place. I for one do not believe that you didn't know about their existing obsessions and fixations. And clearly, admitting them into your School was not about 'giving them an opportunity' or 'attempting to improve their situation'."

The gamble itself was revealed in the officer's next words, "There's a threat greater than the Ancient Evil coming; King is right and correct about that yet he is rectient about the nature of said threat. So anything that undermines the security of Rhea and denies valuable talent to those trying to defend the city cannot be tolerated. I have reason to believe that you admitted Galbrek and Vittorio, adopted Clara, and founded Mephisto's School for the Wickedly Inclined disregarding that fact at best, and trying to weaken the city with internal conflict between its magical youth at worst. And feel free to charge me with having an active imagination! The fact remains that Rhea's security is still undermined."

"So you came here knowing your conclusion already, and then asked me about things which you had already drawn in your conclusion, and then you didn't accept, consider, or refute any of what I'd said, and then you just gave me your conclusion? I take back what I said earlier. At least I had to figure out what they wanted out of me before. You just laid out your every intention and I didn't even have to ask. Let me spell it out for you,"

Mephisto said, suddenly serious.

"You just made an awful trade. For the opportunity to level accusations at me angrily, you gave me an insight into what you want, and why you want it. You showed me where your emotions lie, what you were hoping for, and your weaknesses.

"And for what? There was no guarantee I would give you anything. A negotiation is a battle of leverage, and you turned it into a negotiation as soon as you let me ask a question. You weren't in a position to make this move, Alexander Ascot, but you made it anyway."

Mephisto sighed again.

"You should cut your losses here. The fact of the matter is, you came here to level accusations at me with no evidence, to leverage a conclusion which can't stand up on its own. You have one and a half months until my trial to mount a case. Instead of gambling on a move which had such a low chance of success, I suggest trying to play your game on a board I can't reach."

Alexander nodded, his face an impassive mask, and said, "I admit defeat. But at least it's a defeat I can learn from."

He does not know that William is on his case. He does not know about William at all. And he most definitely does not know about my daugther.

He got up and walked towards the door, but not before looking at Mephisto one last time, impassive expression still on. Then he opened the door and left.

3...2...1...I feel like such a fool. But I will learn from this defeat.

[Letter Bee]

((Collab Post between RoflsMazoy, KillamriX88, Bartimaeus, and Letter Bee))

Two Weeks after the Midnight Tournament

Countryside Trip

The First Week after the Midnight Tournament

The first week's draws of cards from Andras had been a failure, from an 'aquire ressurectives' sense. So William Ascot decided to pursue other agendas; he had the time now. And with that, he prepared a text message to the Vigilantes; first King, then Aram and Wolf. Said texts were invitations for a mission, a mission that Ascot needed to 'pitch' to the latter as the Knight had already made his displeasure with the boy's plan clear. The mission was an excursion outside of Rhea, to the demon-infested wildlands and the ruined secret lab that lay among them. Ascot promised an additional fee of 200 Rhean Dollars each for taking the job.

If they accepted, Ascot would be waiting in a diner close to Rhea's City gates; he had already acquired an 'adventurer's permit' to go outside. Note though that his mood was slightly off as the Diners were discussing Galbrek's recent video message, and also looking uglily at him...

Wolf was almost glad for the day off. His father's training was legendary both for it's effectiveness and it's brutality. It was perhaps no wonder Victor had become the monster he was. If Wolf could attain even a fraction of that, perhaps he'd stand a chance. Or he'd just die of a heart attack -- whichever came first.

That said, he wasn't exactly happy how he got this day off. Vera had warned him that she'd passed his number along to William a few days ago during one of his meetings with Andras, but he hadn't expected a call of this nature. Wolf couldn't even say this had anything to do with the plan he'd been hired for.

Just how many things did William have his hands in?

His first instinct had even been to refuse, saying that this was too much. Too far removed from the original job... but alas, he'd dragged Aram into it too. Just walking over to meet William had resulted in Andras almsot being kidnapped and Vera almost getting run over by a car. He'd be going if only to make sure some even greater catastrophe didn't claim his fellow Vigilante's life...

When he arrived at the diner, Wolf looked rather worse for wear and sort of out of it, but arrive he did.

Aram is not a busy guy, and despite his mannerisms, he's actually pretty smart. In turn, he doesn't see the need to focus on his education much. But all that doesn't mean he wants to waste his day poking around some abandoned laboratory in the middle of nowhere. This would probably in more way than one break the law...trespassing, breaking and entering...the works. Not that he hadn't done all this before, mind you...but he always had his reasons.

Still, he found himself walking down the street towards a diner near the outskirts of town anyways. He'd been paid to do a job, and he was gonna do it. He saw his fellow Vigilante, Wolf, only a few dozen feet ahead of him.

'Good. we got some extra muscle', he thought

He continued to walk with a confident swagger until he reached the doors to the cafe, assumedly after Wolf did. He would push the doors to the cafe open wide to allow his passage.

William, clad in an orange T-Shirt, Vest, tough camoflague pants, and combat boots - he also had an ordinary sword strapped to his back, but the Diner's owner had insisted that he lock the scabbard so he couldn't draw it - would then say to Wolf and Aram, "Glad to see you two. Sorry for bothering you guys with my message, but I really need help for this cross-country trip."

He pointed to a bag of rations and survival supplies behind him; no tents as this was supposed to be short term, although there were umbrellas. "I'll explain on the way; let's just say that there's some unfinished business I have that might prove important to preperations against the 'Evil Greater than the Ancient Evil'."

Those last words were said without any note of sarcasm and irony.

Wolf blinked slowly. There was a Greater Evil now? No, of course there was. Why wouldn't there be? He pinched the bridge of his nose. What was it with this kid and trouble? He wasn't sure if trouble was drawn to him, or vice-verse. Either way hanging around him was proving ot be unpleasant.

"I'm not going to ask why you have unfinished business like that. Let's just get this over with I guess," Wolf said and let out an almost pained sigh.

Aram stopped for a moment. 'Cross country?' he thought. 'Since when was I escorting this guy across the damn country...?'
But something more pressing caught his attention.

"Greater evil, eh?" he said. "Yeah, I'm gonna need a full Smorgusborg of info after that claim. And despite Wolfie here's claim, I'm sure he'd like to know too."

He turned, eyeing the bag near the table William was sitting at. Looked heavy. "Manual labor? Now, now...nobody warned me about that..." he said with a fake frown.

William said, "I'll be carrying the bag, actually. Anyway, yeah, once we're out of the city, I'll tell you...everything."

Thirty Minutes Later

Once they were well into the countryside, following a trail into the forest, Ascot would say, "Last month, when this chain of events began, I received an old diary from a...contact. This diary spoke of someone who made a contact with the Ancient Evil due to not liking what the Gods have already given him. Said person vanished into the Hells in the Ancient Era, after the Gods themselves banded together to defeat him. That guy was named Mephisto. I did some digging, and I found out from another contact in said contact's Shrine that while our Mephisto was born in this world, as an ordinary human, a connection cannot be ruled out between him and the traitor. What makes things more sinister is that Meph ran an illegal laboratory long ago and then destroyed it with some kind of curse despite being supposedly a Powerless person.

"We're going to that place now." Ascot then paused. "As for the Evil Greater than the Ancient Evil, let's just say that King's movements have been followed by the Rhean Government, and that they put more stock in his words than some of his followers do; no offense meant. My personal speculation is that Mephisto - our Mephisto - may be serving either the Ancient Evil or 'switched paymasters' to the Greater Evil; either way, discovering more about him will either help us neutralize his potential threat, or be used to force him to help in Rhea's defense."

Another pause. "And yes, I am aware that I sound like Andras. But, for all its worth, I think she's a good person and that there's a grain of truth in what she says."

To be fair to William, Wolf didn't think he sounded like Andras at all. Andras's little delusions were silly and mostly harmless. What William was saying was far from harmless, if still borderline delusional in their own way. Well, so far William hadn't struck him as someone deranged, so it was possible he'd really stumbled onto something.

He supposed he'd be finding out soon enough.

"Great..." Wolf wasn't feeling all that talkative today it seemed. He was tired, cranky, and William was making him more cranky -- never mind the overload of information he was currently trying to process.

Aram stumbled for a moment as his foot met a branch on the side of the trail. 'Damnit...I just got these shoes shined...' he thought. He stooped to wipe the debris from his shoe as William told his story of some "Greater Evil".

He had heard that name before...Mephisto. He was head of one of the schools they regularly faced in tournaments. He stood. "Sounds like some real beef." He commented from behind the two.

He glanced at Wolf, who seemed to be pretty out of the conversation at the moment. Hmm...
"What's down, Wolfie?" Aram said, nudging him as he mathed the other's pace.

Wolf frowned for a moment. Wolfie... He had to remind himself that, aside from Vernon being a prick about it, it wasn't unusual for him to be called that. Funnily enough, it seemed Meredith and Aram had both come to that conclusion independantly. Meredith because, well, she was Meredith, and Aram because, as Vera would put it, "he talks funny."

"What?" Wolf glanced at Aram, "Oh, uh, sorry. Just tired. Father's putting me through the wringer trying to train me. I'd been slacking lately..." It wasn't just the physical aspect of it either. His father was focusing heavily on trying to get Wolf's head straight. It wasn't a pleasant process. "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

Wiliam glanced backward, worried about Wolf and wondering whether it was his fault the latter was being overworked. "Sorry for being inconsiderate," he muttered, before the group approached the overgrown and sinister-looking abandoned building and said: "We're here. I'll try and set up some basic anti-demon protection to protect our fallback position."

And with that, Ascot brought out a plastic pack labeled 'Holy Water', a smaller pack labeled 'Blessed Oil', and two jars containing Salt and compressed Garlic oil. He also brought out several military-grade religious anti-demonic symbols; small 'Rs' made up of sandalwood sprinkled with silver and blessed by Priests of multiple Gods, and began stringing those up in the trees just outside the Laboratory, before taking out the Holy Water, Blessed Oil, Compressed Garlic Oil, and saying to Wolf and Aram: "We're going to use these to create safe lines of retreat should things go south; I know that's an unwelcome line of thought, but I want to assure you guys I've prepared for it. So, can you guys help me create multiple corridors protected by these materials outside the laboratory? After that, we can come in."

Aram watched as William drew a collection of odd objects and jars from his bag. 'Wait, wait, Demons??? What dunce forgot to warn me about this??' he thought. This was much more than he had expected he signed up for. On their usual crusades, the Vigilantes planned, calculated, and usually brought more force than they required to get the job done..

But now, it was just the three of them, heading into god knows what...but once again, Aram's ears perked up at William's next request. "Hahaha!" he laughed, finishing with a smirk, "That's easy work, William. You'll soon be glad you brought this guy along!" he boasted.

He gestured at William to place the containers on the ground, before squaring the fedora on his head. He then suddenly flourished his right arm into the air, one of the jars busting open and the liquid within it spiraling into the air. He smiled at his display of ability and usefullness.

Soon the liquid was painted into a large Pentagram that engulfed the width of the path they had just traveled. In short order, the other jars were emptied in the same fashion.

Wiping away a fake sweatdrop, Aram stood with his hands on his hips, admiring his work. "See?" He smirked, apparently forgetting his previous objections.

"Don't worry about it too much. Real demons won't be around here," Wolf told him. A true demon wouldn't waste its time skulking aorund, never mind the fact that it just wasn't possible for them to enteir their world... usually. Their inhuman, mindless dogs could, but again, wasn't much reason for them to just be hanging about. Regardless, at least William was prepared. And in the worst case scenario, he'd just kill anything that showed its face.

William smiled and said, "Now, it's time to go in."

End of Part One

[6slyboy6]

AND

Kath opened her eyes. What she saw was a bright shining light in front of her, blurring her vision. Most of her body still ached. Is this heaven? Then her eyes slowly began to adjust, and the bright light faded into the dim illumination of the clinic’s ceiling lamps. Kath looked around confused as she observed the white walls and strange machines, still dizzy after a nightmare she had. Oh right, I’m in the clinic still.

After the accident at the rooftop, Kath was taken to the local clinic by Cassius and Christine. Thought she hated the idea of having to stay in there for several days, the doctors insisted she needed rest. She was promptly moved to a private clinic in the suburbs where she could still rest, but have access to some recreation facilities to keep her from getting bored (and rowdy).

And finally, one week of utter boredom has passed and according to yesterday’s evaluation by the doctor, she was free to go. Kath closed her eyes as she sat up, holder her head with her hands. “It feels like someone went over my head with a pneumatic drill.” She turned to the side, hanging her legs from the bed as she looked around the room. Several pots dotted the small table, all full of flowers as if she was seriously ill. She shook her head with a smile, remembering that most of them were from Cassius. Poor boy worried too much about her.

“As he should.” Said a bored voice in the back of her mind. “There’s no way you’d be able to defend yourself in this ragged state. It is fortunate for us that humans place so much value in healing their wounded. Were you to be so vulnerable where I am from you’d have been devoured, your strength added to another.”

Kath felt as if her veins froze and a chill ran down along her spine as she heard the voice. She thought the Demoness was just some bad dream, or maybe it was locked up tight. Why hasn’t she spoken to her since the accident? This was all wrong, why now? “I thought you were locked up! How are you speaking to me?”

“Of course I’m locked up, dear child.” the voice replied. “I’m locked up inside you. The prisoner and the warden have very different duties but they are still inhabiting the same prison. Is communication so out of the question?”

“With you?” Kath laughed weakly, both anxious and scared. “I would rather we never met. Or better yet, accepted your death. Now I’m trapped with YOU inside me.” Then Kath realised she has been speaking loudly all this time and looked at the door as if someone was to bust in any moment to check if she was fine. But nobody came. With a sigh of relief Kath turned her attention back to the Demoness. Wait, so that means you can...read my mind or something?

“No, no. Not quite. The fire keeps me quite hemmed in. It’s very dogged about that. The cage is solid, but sometimes strong emotions will rattle the bars and like the beating of a drum or the plucking of a string I can tell from the vibration what you’re feeling. Like with music. For example; the solid, monotone hum of sheer, excruciating boredom? I can empathize. All week I’ve been waiting for that sister of yours to take the opportunity to challenge you for dominance. I’ve formulated so many counter strategies for an attack I’m now unsure will ever come. I’m not sure what sort of mindgame she might be playing at this point. Perhaps I give her too much credit.”

What? You mean Christine? Why would she challenge me for dominance? I don’t understand how it works there for you, but I can assure you we don’t do that Kath pouted as she looked around the room trying to find something of interest.

“Really?” the voice said, actually surprised. “Then what do you call those tournaments you humans are so fond of throwing? What are those, if not battles for dominion? To show your strength and revel in the awe and envy of your peers as you stand above them? Are you saying that if you met her in battle you would submit rather than face your family? You did not strike me as the sort when you challenged me.”

Submit? Kath chuckled quietly in real life, the clear lack of knowledge about human traditions amusing her. No, I would never submit in a fight. You should know first hand. But you jest by calling the tournaments battles for dominion. Sure, we want to see who is the strongest, but the point is not to demolish our foes, but rather to test ourselves against our peers. Kath shook her head, dismissing the idea of any other reason for tournaments. Why, did you challenge your own sister for dominance?

“Not all of them. Some understood their place, devoting themselves to me as my useful furniture. Others sought to challenge me and in so doing only added to my strength.” Suddenly her tone changed, taking on a wistfulness that wasn’t there before, “They were true demons, clever and brimming with pride. If they could see me in this state they could only laugh. Reliant on a human for my life. I would laugh with them. Bah! I’m am glad your sister isn’t like mine were. No matter how much I planned I would not have been able to save you from her.”

Useful..Furniture? Kath shook her head to clear her thoughts and focus back on what interested her. Which was anything with which she could spend the next hour or so with. If I could beat you, I’m sure your servants would prove no difficulty either. Then they could all laugh along with you for a different reason; their pride cracking away under my will Speaking of which, Kath remembered her fight with Rurik. If only that damned Thobias wasn’t there, she would’ve teached him a lesson about using her sister as a wagering tool. Oh yes, she would’ve beat him up good. Kath clenched her fist at the thought of Rurik.

“Oooooh my, what is this?” the voice asked playfully. “This boy inspires even stronger tremors than the first one. What did this one do, to make your heart quake so?”

Kath crossed her arms in front of herself, even her face turning angry as if the Demoness was watching her from the outside. That’s none of your concern. I have damn good reasons to hate that arrogant, self centered prick and I can’t wait to get my hands on him again. He better wish Thobias will be around to save him again…

“This boy is your real enemy then? I simply wish to know who he is so I may begin plotting in the correct direction.”

Thanks, but I don’t need you plotting, or whatever. For all I know, you are just waiting for the moment to take control over me or something, and it’s goodnight for me then. Kath shook her head, her loose hair swinging around. No, I’m fine dealing with him by myself. If I ever need your help for whatever reason, I’ll ask. But don’t bet on it.

“You mistake my intentions, dear girl.” the voice said, suddenly incredibly serious. “I am bound here. You ensured that. I am hemmed in on all sides by the strength of your gifts and prodigious talent. You defeated me, branded me, claimed me for your own, and smashed my ambition. I am a demon without pride and incapable of ascent, my fate bound to yours. My every action only capable of adding to your glory. When I speak of furniture, that is what I mean. I am your furniture. You may make use of me at your leisure, as is your right, but if you wish to doubt my intentions ask yourself; who would be victorious in such a confrontation? You, a divine sliver of the heart of an inferno? Or I, whom you reduced from greatness to nothing?”

Kath took some time to think about what the Demoness had just said. Minutes passed as her mind turned the wheels processing the information given.

On one hand, it was great to know that whatever the Demoness was, would no longer be able to escape it’s cages. Thought Kath wasn’t sure exactly HOW she kept it locked up, it was a silver lining the outlook of the future. If the Demoness can help her fight better, then it is only a plus.

On the other hand, the thought of living with this freak forever wasn’t the most pleasant thing to imagine. Maybe it’s just a new experience, and Kath really will use it as a “furniture” once she gets accomodated. But however true the words of the Demoness rang, the sneaking suspicion always leaked in the back of Kath’s head: what reason would the beast have to reveal it’s intentions to the captor?

But finally, Kath made up her mind, the long silence broken by loud words once again. “Alright, I believe you. If you wish to aid me in my quest, whatever it will be, then I will not say no. But know this: I may yet be unable to fully control your leashes, but I’ll make sure that if you stand in my way that you’ll get burned again. Never forget the mark of my hand burned onto your cheeks.”

“I understand...my master.”

As if on cue to coincide with the conclusion of their conversation, the door to Kath’s room opened. It was nothing exciting, just the doctor coming to pay a visit- Oh wait, Cassius was right behind him. That was probably exciting.

“Hello, Katherine. Have a little visitor for you today-” The doctor tried to speak, but Cassius rushed right past him.

“Hey, Kath! How are you doing? Are the flowers helping? I didn’t send too many did I? I did, didn’t I... Probably getting pollen everywhere.” He didn’t even take a breath before continuing. “No, that’s probably not even the biggest problem. Was it it creepy? I was afraid sending that many flowers would be creepy, but they wouldn’t let me visit for long and I was afraid you’d get lonely!”

With Cassius and the doctor inside, Kath already forgot the Demoness. The company of real people was so much more enjoyable.

She chuckled as she looked at Cassius overreacting as usual. “No, it’s just fine Cassius, don’t worry about it. Your flowers helped me overcome the boring days of the clinic bed and reminded me that I am not gonna be stuck here for that long.”

She shot a somewhat upset glance at the doctor as she looked over at him. “So Doctor, I take it I am free to go now? I’ve been wasting around here for a whole week now, it’s time I got back to the ring again.”

The doctor pulled out a large clipboard from his coat, and flipped over a few papers after carefully examining them. He nodded with a small grunt and then looked up at Kath. “Well, you seem to be doing fine, but I would still not suggest going back into the ring so fast. When you were carried here, your body was extremely exhausted and overworked. You might feel the aftereffects of this if you do hard physical exercises, but unless you don’t mind the pain, I see no reason to keep you here.” He looked at Kath with blank expression and then scratched the back of his head. “Well, I’ll leave you two alone then. The nurses already know you are free to go.” With that he left the room, leaving the door open behind him.

“So you’re all better! Err, mostly, anyway.” Cassius the on the biggest smile he could manage to try and be reassuring. “I imagine for you, even a few days stuck in bed would feel like a long time, huh?” He noticed one of the flower pots were beginning to wilt. Apparently it hadn’t been watered all that well. He gently nudged it behind a healthier pot to try and hide it. “So, I don’t suppose they’ve been feeding you well?”

“Hah! You kidding me? This might be a fancy clinic, but hospital food is gross, and low in proteins.” To reinforce her already solid claim, Kath’s stomach grumbled loudly. “I could really go for some beef curry right now.”

She slid off the side of the bed, and put on her shoes. She was already wearing her normal clothing provided to her by Christine, so she was pretty much ready to go at a moment’s notice. “Anyways, give me a big hug you doofus. I barely saw you, should’ve been more forceful with the nurses.” Kath walked over to Cassius, and hugged the boy about as gently as she could; which still wasn’t exactly a soft one.

“HNGK!?” Cassius was soon caught up in one of Kath’s “gentler” hugs. [color=slategray“Doc doesn’t know what he’s talking about…”[/color] he wheezed, “you’re definitely good to go…” He knew he only had one hope of survival -- a counterattack! He hugged her back… nope, she was too strong, he was still suffocating. Hope was lost…

Just before Cassius would suffocate to her “gentle” hug, Kath let go of the boy and took a step back. “So, what do you say we grab a chow firebuddy? I’m sure you are just as hungry as me after a long day.” Kath said without even acknowledging the fact that it was barely 11 AM. But some people can just chow down every time of the day.

[color=slategray“Grab a chow…”[/color] Cassius chuckled. “It’s funny, I always forget you’re a rich girl.” She didn’t talk like it, and just as rarely acted like it. Considering the mental image he had of a typical “rich person” he was grateful for that. “Sure! Anywhere but here, right?” Obviously Kath was ready to leave the little clinic as of two days ago.

“You bet buddy.” Kath turned towards the flowers on the table and then looked back at Cassius with a smile. “I’ll get someone to pick those up later for me.” It is true that Kath wasn’t like what you’d expect a rich girl to be, or any fancy girl, there were a lot a feelings behind her tomboyish nature.

Kath walked out the door and waved for Cass to follow. She didn’t yet know where they would go, but the outlooks seemed great. Cassius was always great company to have around, even if he was rather shy around her. But that shouldn’t be a problem anymore, now that she made peace with her inner demon.

Cassius escorted the less-than-ladylike lady to a place to eat. Everything was going just great until Kath insisted she pay, being that she was the “rich girl.” His own fault for saying that he supposed. That in itself wasn’t the problem, though. The problem was how awkward things got when she realized that she had no money… as it had all gone up in smoke when she’d incinerated her outfit. No one had thought to drop off a wallet for her in the clinic.

After assuring her it was fine, Cassius paid and made sure she got home safely.

“Well, here we are!” He sort of figured they’d be parting ways here, not that he wanted to. Kath had obviously been absent from school over the last week, so they’d had no time to hang out whatsoever. That said, now that she was free from the hospital, he was sure everyone else wanted to makeup for lost time too. Even so, he just sort lingered at the front door with her…

Kath looked over at Cass as he idled by the door like someone who doesn’t know what to do with themselves. He was actually kinda cute whenever he was like that. Kath walked up closer to Cass, closing the distance with a step. “I am glad you came to pick me up from the clinic Cassius. For that, a reward.” Kath leaned forward, planting a soft kiss on Cassius’s cheeks. “Well, see you later firebuddy.” With that, she walked through the door to the mansion, and disappeared from view.

“Oh…” She was practically gone by the time his mental facilities finished rebooting. “Uhhh, n-no problem!” he called after her. “Bye…” He sighed, shoved his hands in his pockets, and then promptly tripped and fell down the long, painfully so, flight of steps leading up to their front door.

Damn rich people…

Oh well, at least they’d given him Katherine. She was cool. And pretty… and… “Ow…” Well he’d sort out all that once he was sure he wasn’t concussed.

[Dezuel]

Vittorio

Vittorio stood silent for a moment, not getting an answer from Vernon, thus instead turning his gaze on Bak. "Do not worry Bak. I would think I deserve death. But this form of mine does not carry my heart." The ghostly young man tilted his head to Bak before lowering his voice abit. "Not a flier. I heard something. Followed it to it's source. The girls showers. I saw you there. So you were the reason I made it all the way over here." He waited for a slight moment before continuing.

"I saw your body. My appologies. It seems like it is giving you a hard time. All the metal parts being in the way."

Leaning in further to Bak he did not waste any time and kept talking in a hushed whisperlike way. "Why are you here, Bak? What brought you to this place? What do you wish to obtain? To answer your question. I see little point in partaking in any club."

@KillamriX88@Gentlemanvaultboy@AtomicNut

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

Bak Tsarevna

As Bak leaned forward herself and listened to what Vittorio had to say her went through a whole spectrum of emotions. She started at a point of curious interest before sudden;y going completely stone faced, he cheeks gradually going redder and redder as the boy kept on talking. Her emotionless expression broke, flip flopping from fear to disbelief to total scandalation and back. Eventually she started speaking, for a certain definition of speaking, only muttering a repeated, near frantic note of "Wha-wha-whawha-wha-wha-wha-whawhawha-wha-!" This was accompanied by an odd series of hisses from her pod as she tired to fire missiles that hadn't had the time to grow back yet.

Bak's eyes widened into saucers at the realization that Vittorio had caught her right in the moment when she couldn't just blow up the problem and strip thinking about it. STOP! STOP THINKING ABOUT IT! SHE'D MEANT STOP!!!

"Da, Vittorio." She said in a chocked whisper, eyes planted firmly on the ground, fist clenched and shaking, her face awash in the colors of embarrassment and rage. "I wash in morning. As I do every morning. Gyaaaa, this is serious! Peeking inside girls shower would be serious violation of school rules even if it was not me!"

She pulled her head up and pointed at him. "As head of disciplinary committee I have no choice but to punish you for this!" The problem was, how do you punish Vittorio? The boys real body was catatonic and wasting in bed downstairs so she couldn't do it the usual way. If Bak blew that up along with all the important medical equipment there was a good chance he would die. You couldn't do anything to the spirit body either, because it wasn't really real. Any punishment you gave him he could shirk through a combination of these two facts.

Something he'd said, though, had given her an idea. He didn't want to be involved in a club, huh?

"As fellow member of student committee you will remain here with me to oversee new club!" She said forcefully, then she softened just a little bit. "And if you remain for the day I will give you my answers to your questions."

This also gave her time to come up with answers of her own, because, to be honest, right now she didn't have any. She had never really put any thought into what she wanted, only what she didn't.

@Dezuel@KillamriX88@AtomicNut@rawkhawk64

[Dezuel]

Vittorio

Bak had begun to turned from looking quite pale to red in such a short time. At first he thought it was due to anger or overheating, but later confirmed it was neither of the two. She was embarassed? Embarassment. It's been a long time since I felt that way myself. Does that mean she is still embarassed for the state she is in? I should have approached more carefully, perhaps not mentioned sighting her in the showers. But it would go against all that I want. Truth.

Vittorio would have looked at Bak's face as she was seemingly stuttering and going crazy, before she finally managed to gather herself and speak to him. She was indeed embarassed, he could see her hands turned into fists shaking. It was that or anger for certain.

"Every morning?" Vittorio pondered on that, he visualized Bak showering and having trouble with metal parts, he would have done that himself would he be actually doing something which rrequired him to wash that often. For him it was every uneven day. So she was twice as clean as him. For himself he saw it also as a bother having to go do that all the time, but Bak had a more severe issue and yet she did it.

"Impressive." He said out to her in honest admiration. "Violation of the rules. I see. Punishment?" Vittorio floated in waiting, pondering on the fact he had never actually read through any of the rules nor seen any of the posters. Even if they would have been placed right in front of him. Everything he saw was Alto, a monster and his dear ones demise over and over again. In both dreams and the real world, like an endless repeat. But now Bak was looking to punish him, how would she do that? He pondered on the two worst possible scenarios.

1. Drawing colorful and happy things using crayons.
2. Drawing colorful and happy things using crayons in company with others.

Vittorio appeared shocked when Bak finally spoke, his astral eyes widened and his mouth turned into an upside down U. "A club..." That was almost as bad as something he thought about, but this was Bak she would surely not force him to do something with colors or be overly social. Or would she?

"Very well. I accept. What is this club?"

On the better side of things, she would answer his questions after it. He convinced himself that it would be worth it. How bad could one day really be? That's right. He knew the answer to that already.

[Letter Bee]

((Collab Post between RoflsMazoy, KillamriX88, Bartimaeus, and Letter Bee))

Two Weeks after the Midnight Tournament

Laboratory stuff

William entered the laboratory's entrance, before making his way up the stairwell to the roof, though not before saying to Aram and Wolf: "We're going to need to consult the building's spirit first."

As they reached the roof, the spirit flickered to life sitting on its apex. It had seemed to be waiting for them.

"Hello, are you here to keep me company?" It asked.

William waved to the spirit, saying, "Hi, and for a while, yes. We've come to see what remaining secrets the facility holds."

Turning to Aram, Ascot said, "Anyway, this is the Spirit of the Place." Turning back to the Spirit, the boy continued, "Spirit, this is Aram; he's an Alchemist."

"C'mon now, William...don't go giving out my secrets on the arm like that, chum..." Especially not to one of these creepy things... Aram thought. He was never really fond of the presence of ghosts or the like...well, maybe nobody was, but they gave him a bad case of the heebie-geebies. Made his hair stand on end. Which it was now.

"Hm... Secrets...?" It said slowly. "I'm not aware of any that are remaining, but..."

She paused for a second and looked into the distance.

"I can feel two rooms which aren't a 'part' of me. One on the second floor, and one on the fifth. Perhaps you'll find some things there."

First demons, now spirits. At least this one seemed friendly. Well, it was a little to late to be complaining about things being weird. They were already trying to raise the dead, after all.

"So... if you're the 'Spirit of this Place,' how can any part of this building not be part of you?" He was far less well versed in spirits, but the logic here seemed fairly straightforward and what it had just said, fairly contradictory.

"Well, I don't really know. I can't see into them, but I can sense my halls leading to them, and a door without an other side." It shrugged. "They've been there since I was born, so maybe they were remnants from something else that was on this land."

William blinked. "The case thickens. What place would be easier to reach? Second floor, or fifth floor?"

"You'd think it'd be the second floor, eh smart one? Unless of course...there's some goons inside that could slow our progress?" He said the last part with a hint of curiosity as he raised his eyebrows at the small girl of a phantasm sitting upon her perch.

"Oh yes, the research specimens all escaped and are roaming the halls, even now." She said. "There aren't as many of them left as there used to be. The only food down there is each other, after all, but the ones left are fairly ferocious."

". . ." Wolf's jaw just dropped and then his pinched the bridge of his nose. "So I'll be going first, then..." No one else was really equipped to be playing the front line, after all.

"Geez Louise...what has this Gumshoe gotten us into..." Aram muttered under his breath.

William smiled at the Spirit, and said, "Thank you; hopefully, we'll see each other again if we survive."

A look at Wolf and Aram. "I think we should head to the Second Floor, then depending on the difficulty or the value of the secrets found, we continue on to the fifth or leave said fifth for another day."

The party nodded in agreement and they went to enter the facility.

Before dissipating, the spirit had left them some key information. Power throughout the facility was off. It had been some years since the facility had been abandoned, so not even emergency power would still be functioning.

There was an elevator which could have taken them straight to any floor, and if it were still functioning, the fifth floor room would be the easiest one to reach since it was fairly close to the elevator exit. There was still a way down on each floor however.

They arrived on the door to the first floor via the emergency ladder in the elevator well. It was a large cargo elevator shaft, so it was fairly roomy on the way down.

The elevator doors of each floor were sealed when the facility had entered a state of emergency. Each one could be manually released through a panel on the side. The doors served as a cargo entrance for large pieces of equipment or specimens, so when they opened those doors they would get a pretty good view of the lab inside.

Entering would be a fairly large and open space, but it would quickly turn into winding corridors as they travelled. The spirit gave them precise directions to the room they were after, so they wouldn't be exploring too much.

"How's this gonna go down, boys? We gonna muscle our way through, or lay low? I don't dig the idea of croaking in this hole, so choose wisely..." Aram was well aware of Wolf's potential. He'd seen what could happen when the boy's emotions got the best of him. As for William...he had no clue. He didn't seem like the kind of guy who could take a hit to the kisser...but you'd be surprised. And as for himelf...of course he could take a few freaks...probably.

"Avoid trouble unless we have no other options. There's only three of us and who knows how many of them. Even if it is only a few, if they're as vicious as the spirit says, it might not take that many," Wolf said, deciding for them. If necessary, he'd take charge of this whole trip. His job was to keep everyone alive, and whatever else was secondary in his mind. "Aram, cover our rear. William, stay behind me." Aram was less of a straightforward fighter than him, so he'd give him some extra space. Hopefully any threats would come head-on so Wolf could intercept them.

William nodded, and his sole addition to the discussion was, "I'm going to use my third power - the one I used to increase people's luck, strength, and speed back then - on Aram; that ought to help."

Aram would then be surrounded by an aura of golden light that would last for a few seconds...

"Oh? Haha..not that I need it, of course...but thanks!" Aram exclaimed before a golden light engulfed him. He felt energy surge through him as he became more in-touch with his own body-if that was even possible. "Oooo, that feels weird." he squirmed with a funny expression.

He grasped a hilt that was sticking out from under his suit over his right shoulder, drawing the connected short sword he'd held there. Swinging it a few times, he could feel the strength difference in his strikes. "Now we're cooking with gas...you men ready?" he said, looking to the others.

"One can only hope," Wolf frowned, his pessimistic side not doing him any favors at the moment. At the very least, William was able to shift the odds ever so slighty more in their favor. It was something. "Just stay alert." And with that, Wolf began steadily walking deeper into... one could only guess what.

The facility was desolate. The spirit's words had painted a grim picture, but it wasn't quite clear how grim. The floor was literred with skeletons. As Aram's light approached, various tiny creatures screeched and skittered out of sight. Bones but no flesh made these small creatures scavengers. It would seem that they also did well to reduce any rot that might be in this place, it'd be relatively painless to move around.

But there weren't only skeletons and scavengers here. Ahead of them, the skittering became more frantic, until there was a sound like claws slamming and scraping against the ground, and the some of the screeches stopped. Then there were the sounds of an animal tearing into a fresh corpse.

As they approached they saw the true form of the creature. A mutated fox with glowing yellow eyes and scales covering its body. It hissed at the light, blinking desperately and quickly escaping into the shadows of the beyond.

"I'm going to assume that was one of those things..." Wolf pursed his lips, tension showing plain on his face. He wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, but it hadn't been that.

William turned up his nose, then said, "Fresh corpses smell like meat. Wait, why would there be fresh corpses in this abandoned facility? Oh, wait, the Spirit hinted at a breeding population..."

As if right on queue, many more sets of yellow eyes peered out from the darkness. They formed a semi-circle around the party, held at bay by the light.

Aram repulsed at the smell of new and old corpses alike. He couldn't see much, but what light they did have illuminated the place just enough to be about one-hundred times creepier than it really was. Soon enough, the creepy environment wasn't the only thing they had to worry about.

"Uhhh, something smells fishy..." he said as the eyes revealed themselves from the gleam of his light. He moved his shoulder bag into a position where it was more comfortable for him to reach into it with one hand, and did so, placing his hand against one of the many transmutation symbols within it.

"Looks like it's too late to lay low now, boys." Black energy crackled from his left palm to his right, which was still grasping his short sword.

The foxes made their own screech and began to attack. They were plenty in number, but lacking in intelligence somewhat. They could dodge attacks, but they had only one singular target, the hated light. Years underground had made them accustomed to the darkness, and now a new, painful force was among them.

Predation was these foxes only method of survival until now, with nothing to forage, and faster scavengers claiming the excess spoils from their own kill. There was no longer any room for anything else, and now the hunt was on.

Whether their eyes adjusted or numbers simply gave them bravery, they no longer seemed dissuaded by the light. Rather, they seemed hellbent on getting rid of it and then making a meal of those who'd dared to bring said light into their domain.

They charged, and Wolf know he was going to have to rely on Aram for this one. Even William might have to fend for himself to a degree. One fox charged right at him, but Wolf couldn't deal with it right now. He raised his shield, letting the creature slam face-first into it. It gave Wolf the sparse few seconds he needed to lash out with his sword, tearing open another as it attempted to go past him toward the two behind him.

He couldn't stop all of them, but if he could at least limit the number that got past, it'd be something...

William didn't want to waste the inventory of 'Imitation Andras Cards' that he had been able to acquire thanks to the God of Stories' power, but what he wanted didn't matter right now. Raising his right index and middle fingers, he pulled out Incremental Blight, a card that would cause one fox to be afflicted with a painful disease as it tried to flank the group, while the second and third behind it would suffer crippling and fatal ones. The boy would be morbidly glad that he didn't have to use this on sapient beings.

He would then check if the mundane sword given to him by his mother was still there; it was and he was able to end the suffering of the first and second foxes afflicted.

Breathing hard, he would then prepare to imitate any First and Second Powers Aram and Wolf used; he had already 'stored' a use of Aram's 'Fine Water Manipulation' when the former had made his pentagrams outside of the building.

Aram's tone shifted as their engagement began. His movements seemed more springy, and he made sure to never catch himself flat-footed.
"You fellas watch yourselves, who knows what nasty festerings these things have-" Even as he said it, one of the creatures lept at him from the shadows, barely giving him enough time to raise his left arm, thanks to William's speed enhancement. It snapped down quickly through his several layers of sleeves. And was met with a hard clank as it bit into his armor.

"Ha! How's that for a mouthful?!" he said, quickly dispatching it with a simple swing of his blade. But there seemed to be a lot of these things. Aram didn't fancy seeing who would last longer. He dropped his sword, quickly crouching and throwing both of his hands to the ground. Jagged, slanted, stone spires erupted from the floor around them, shooting into the shadows behind him and to their flanks, earning screeches of pain and the sound of stone piercing through the beasts, hopefully hitting most of them who weren't in front.

Then the spires shrunk back from the darkness, covered in blood, and some bringing pierced creatures with them, before melting back into the floor.

There were a lot of enemies, but their number wasn't unlimited. They were thinning out as the party cut through the horde. Suddenly however, there was a deep and guttural sound. It sounded like various animal calls were recorded and choked through a filter.

It was almost impossible to tell what animals were in the mix, but they were all underlined by a very distinctive sound.

The monster horde reacted with visible fear as they heard it charge. They couldn't see where it was coming from, but they could hear it. Rapid, mad hoofbeats. The frequency was too high for a normal horse, if they were able to count the steps and recognize the pattern, they'd realize it was 8 legs striking the ground with enough power to make the ground shake.

And before them, it appeared, Sleipnir.

It reared up on its hindlegs and unleashed a stream of fire from its mouth, scorching the ground and sending the foxes scurrying away in fear.

The spirit had warned them of this creature, amongst some others. It was no simple horse, it was a chimera created by fusing together a multitude of creatures, which was then further twisted by magic to create a true nightmare.

It stood 8 feet tall, and had tough scales all along its body, and a large cobra for a tail. It had the ability to breath fire as well. Normally it would be housed on the 4th floor, but it had the speed to be able to travel wherever it wished within the facility in a matter of minutes.

The spirit had advised that if they ever ran across it that they should run.

Run. From that? They'd have to find a suitably narrow area, assuming they didn't get run down the second they turned their backs on it. So much for avoiding trouble, trouble had hunted them down in record time. He was going to need more than his sword for this one.

He just needed to focus. To draw on the right emotions. His father had very clearly told him how -- he just needed to stop hiding. To go back.

A simple task, deep in the forest. CRACK!

He shook his head. No! There was no time to sort through that now!

Still, the trident should be simple enough. He took a breath and in a swirl of black, the trident and net formed in his hands.

"Aram... I'm gonna try and keep it still. Can you follow up?" he asked, not risking looking back to see if he was listening.

Aram blinked as he stood from his crouch. "You? Hold...that still?...You?" he asked. "You've got Moxie, guy... but fine. Don't get us whacked." he said as he came up behind Wolf, standing to his left as he reached into his satchel, the black energy crackling from his hands once again.

Wolf took a breath and stepped forward, wanting to make the beast focus on him. Once he thought he had it gunning for him, he attempted to goad it into running right into his net, thrown at the beasts head. His hope was to distract it and unbalance it while then stepping aside and swinging at its legs with his trident. He didn't have the power now to sned the pralytic effect coursing through its whole body, but with that many legs, he could only imagine the havoc numbing one or two would do.

If he could slow it a little bit now, he could do even better on his next pass...

The tip of the trident rattled and slid across Sleipnir's thick scales, but the edge point caught on a space between some scales and pierced flesh. The horse quickly reared up, and let out its strange call with a snort of fire.

Even with 2 legs raised, it had 6 left to stand on. Unlike horses who couldn't deal with mice effectively since they couldn't keep their legs up, Sleipnir could attack underneath himself without worry. Its nostrils glowed with imminent death, and he unleashed his fire breath at wolf.

Aram wasn't sure what Wolf was trying to do, but it seemed it was right for him to doubt whatever it was. The other Vigilante's weapon barely seemed like a poke to such a large creature. As it reared, Aram saw the undeniable danger staring Wolf in the face.

He thought fast, thinking over his choices. Oh bilge, this'll be groddy, he thought. Aram focused his energy, channeling his willpower into the blood spilling from the deceased creatures around them. The crimson liquid flowed from the body into a large glob that congregated quickly, and then was sent flying at the Demon's face as Aram willed it. Aram aimed for the blood to explode all over the demon, filling its nostrils to prevent its fiery discharge, and hopefully its breathing.

Sleipnir recoiled from the sudden influx of blood, which ended up getting into its eyes as well. It jumped back blindly, denting the steel floor, but it misjudged its jump height and the height of the facility. It hit the ceiling which wasn't too far above its head and fell.

[Hammerman]

Christine Abigail

---

"Sorry, Rurik, but I'm going to stay with Kath for the time being," Christine replied to her boyfriend, her expression looking apologetic. "I think I might take her to the local clinic."

Cassius ended up tagging along with her. Even though he was a student of St. Laurel, it really wasn't the time to pick more fights, and Christine was perfectly amicable with him. She also expressed her thanks to him for looking after her sister.

Christine visited the clinic daily like a good sister would. She even arranged Kath's transfer to a private clinic just so she wouldn't stay bored being cooped in a place like this without any entertainment whatsoever. With the amount of money she possessed, it really was not a problem at all.

Cassius often visited as well and sometimes Christine would visit at the same time as him. He always brought flowers with him which Christine thought was a really nice gesture from him. She too brought flowers of her own so she started to wonder if they weren't giving Kath too many flowers. Kath said it was fine however so Christine continued bringing her flowers every day.

One week soon passed and the day that Kath was free to go finally arrived. Unfortunately, she was busy with her Student Council duties back at school so she couldn't be the one to pick Kath up. Cassius already said he would though so she didn't worry at all about that.

When Kath arrived back home, Christine was already there, waiting for her.

"Oh, Kath! You're finally back! That took longer than I thought it would!" Christine said with a smile as she ran towards her. "Welcome back, Sis!"

It seemed Christine had no idea whatsoever on what was going on between Kath and Cassius.

@KillamriX88@6slyboy6

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

Bak Tsarevna

"Is training club. See?" Bak took out the flier she's kept in her pocket and unfolded it, holding it out for him to read. "Is why I thought you might have been interested. It is always helpful to be a little stronger, da? You should open your eyes to the world in front of them more often. You miss opportunities like this otherwise."

Bak pointed out the teacher that had gone off to the side to observe the fight between Celestine and Vernon. "Miss Maskono is strongest teacher in whole school. I have never seen better fighter. She can even lift me!" Bak leaned in, this time to both Vittorio and Yuuto, and said a little more conspiratorially, "I heard she was even once famous monster slayer." She winked at Vittorio. "There would be no one better to talk to than her when it came to fighting people or monsters."

@Dezuel@KillamriX88@AtomicNut@rawkhawk64

[AtomicNut]

&

Celestine

@KillamriX88@Gentlemanvaultboy@Dezuel

---

Celestine stood there, the popsicle stick making a wet sound as it landed into his chest, his eyes turned down in an indecipherably expression as he looked down. It worked as Vernon intended, the snowball hitting Cel square in the face, making him reel as part of the lower jaw and one entire side came off, revealing a reddening face as well as glossy, carmine lips, the sword seemed to clatter to the ground as Celestine let a high pitched wail.

“My face, you brute! Why did you maul my face!” He seemed to stagger backwards hunched.

However, for those who had keen battle instincts, something was terribly amiss in this display. First of all, the degree of damage that the masked figure had received seemed fairly inconsistent, and more importantly, the atmosphere around the apparently mauled schoolgirl had changed sharply. It was if a cute little bunny had grown to the size of a Leviathan and had sprouted several heads more.

“...Wow, that prickled.” Suzume commented not in a really low voice, as she let a none-too-clean grin, feeling the hair of her back stand upright.” All out… huh.”

Vernon wasn’t exactly Suzume, so all he knew was that vaguely something wasn’t right. His, less trained, instincts said he should just hurry up and punish this idiot while they were overacting. He’d call her bluff.

He squared his feet and let out a howl that dropped the temperature of the area to a chilly 10 degrees, and, more importantly, aimed to spread ice over his opponent’s feet, trapping them in place. He’d thought he’d need to do a little more to make them sit still, but if they were going to just let him do that, that was fine by him.

Celestine stood very still, blood trickling from his nose, that could’ve been written off as damage from the snow projectile. However, the real source of it was entirely different. His mind roared, thousands of millions of possibilities being addressed on all his five senses at once. And among them trails. Premonitions. Predictions. Possibilities that stacked against each other, superimposing in a multidimensional and multisensorial fog that would have driven any lesser mind mad. And possibly, Celestine himself if he sustained said power for too long. The predictions of the Laplace Demon spoke to him, and he formulated his plan…

Grabbing the popsicle remains from his chest, he raised it to his mouth, as ice crept by his feet, still unable to capture his limbs but in a matter of fractions of second, they would. Just enough force. Just enough timing. Celestine jumped in the exact moment his soles, but not his feet, were frozen, and adopted a very peculiar landing position. That of a skater. He licked the popsicle remains lasciviously, before tossing it away as he showcased his temporal increase in mobility, drawing closer to Vernon in a zigzag, like a cat playing with his prey.

Vernon wasn’t sure what he was seeing here. Just that perhaps they hadn’t been bluffing, but then again he was at a loss to say what was happening at all. His own body temperature plummeted, his skin taking on an icy sheen. If attacking wasn’t going to work, then he was ready to defend himself until he could turn the tables.

“The hell is this bitch?” he grimaced. So much for calculating the odds...

Celestine circled his opponent, his lips puckered in a pout as he saw Vernon take a defensive stance. Well kicking some sense into him would hurt now, wouldn’t it? His memory gave him the answer, as he trailed back to get his sword, and in a showy cartwheel that would make more than one cheerleader blush, the girly boy retrieved the weapon, and assumed a particular stance.

It was then when teacher Maskono’s eyes narrowed, and as in a jolt, she then began running towards the duo. That...bitch. That is one of my techniques? How dare he copy my technique for this! Scratch that! If that lands!!!?... The teacher’s face visage turned into a deep concern, as she drew her weapon once again as Celestine lunged at a breakneck pace towards Vernon.

“STOOOOOP!” Suzume Maskono yelled on top of her lungs.

A clash ensued. The Red Rain staggered backwards, as the masked opponent did so as well in a greater degree, almost losing his footing. The toned back of Suzume Maskono was all what Vernon could see, as she spread her arms in a protective gesture.

“Are you fucking crazy!? That was a lethal blow!” Suzume Maskono yelled back at Celestine, who was now more steady and picking up the scabbard of his weapon.

“...Did you not say… to go all out? I trusted in your capabilities, teacher.” The masked assailant replied, sneering as she launched the sword flipping in the air, before neatly catching it blade first with the scabbard. “Oh. My apologies.”

Red. A red prickle had appeared in Suzume’s arms.

“It seems I drew blood. My bad.” Celestine said, before neatly depositing the weapon in the floor. “Yes, too bad… you are a plucky one, Vernon. I like your taste as well. But you’re a wastrel. You could use some more training. Everyone here could use it as well.” Celestine said, as he left the ring his point being made, as two daggers were thrown in his back, courtesy of Maskono’s penetrating stare.

“YOU WILL BE IN MY OFFICE IN HALF AN HOUR!” She yelled, as Celestine threw a last glance before walking inside once again.

“Lethal!?” Vernon finally snapped back to reality as it all sunk in. ’That bitch! This won’t be the end…’ But as much as he hated to admit it, there was a gap in power there. He’d need to do something… Though, after facing off against her, he wasn’t sure what. “Something not right about her,” he muttered to himself, letting his body temperature return to something resembling normal. Something not right at all.

---

Mephisto's wicked Training for the Wickedly Inclined

Prelude- Conclusion

(Open to all Mephisto Students)

@KillamriX88@Dezuel@RoflsMazoy@Gentlemanvaultboy@rawkhawk64@Hammerman

Suzume bristled, her eyes lingering a little more on the departing figure of the troublesome student. That's it, he gets the door. I am not going to be involved with him anymore. Not for even the best foot massages in the entire city. But this project we have... aaah shit. We are going to see each other frequently, won't we?. She then, to her credit, tried to rein in the situation. "Well, um, that was bit...excessive, but it proves a point. If we want to aim for the tournament, we need teamwork! Colleagues! Friends. That's why I um... I exhort you to find teammates! Two of them. Among those present or otherwise. By tomorrow. Think of this as the first training assignment for those who want to train! only teamwork is accepted!" Suzume said, as she wiped the droplet of blood from her wound.

This is going to be between hell an herding cats. For the both of us. It will be quite fun, then!

[Letter Bee]

((Collab Post between RoflsMazoy, KillamriX88, Bartimaeus, and Letter Bee))

Two Weeks after the Midnight Tournament

Secrets, Hopefully?

Wolf grit his teeth as he realized his mistake. Had he been alone, he may have ended up truly paying for it too. He'd grossly underestimated the beast's resilience. But he wasn't alone and somehow he hadn't paid for his foolishness. Still, it was humiliating... but he'd make use of that.

When the monster collapsed from its own thrashing, he saw a chance to make-up for his failure. He hefted his trident and found the beast's shoulder. If he went against the grain of the scales, under it's legs where the scales should have been much thinner, his weapon should be able to penetrate. He shoved his weapon into the beast. Even if the weapon wasn't currently at its full potential, if he drove it into the beast, the paralytic effect should spread and spread for as long as the trident could stay lodged in it.

Ascot, meanwhile, would rush at the monster from the side as the paralysis took effect, drawing his sword with both hands and trying to chop its neck cleanly. Hopefully, he and Aram can salvage it for Reagents later on...

Aram frowned as Ascot's sword failed to hash through the beast's tough scaled hide. "No dice, eh? Maybe we need something more restrictive!" he jeered, before throwing both hands to the floor. The energy was back again, crackling around him. The floor rumbled as the mass within it shifted around, finally rising from the surrounding area and arching over the beast, forming close to its body as it hardened into steel. He stood, dusting his hands.

"Bet you fellas are glad you brought ol' Aram, eh?" he said, a slight, cocky bow passing towards his companions.

Aram wasn't given too much time to congratulate himself however, as a stream of fire came aimed at his head. Sleipnir was bound, but it was still rather capable. It thrashed around in a frenzy, its deadly hooves swinging this way and that as it frantically breathed fire.

Aram jumped back from the flames, a small bit of them licking the brim of his fedora. "H-hey! Watch it! This is some classy merchandise, ya big gorilla!" he yelled disdainfully.

Wolf had a moment to think but not speak. Aram... his powers really were a lot more reliable than his. He'd acted confident, but each time Aram had one-upped him. There was jealousy there, sure, but nothing so spiteful. Just a painful recognition of his own shortcomings.

He was about to say as much,and complement his friend accordingly, but Sleipnir only needed a few moments it seemed to realize its situation and begin flailing. Wolf's, foolish, first instinct was to try and keep the trident in place, but the trident was literally right next to legs ending in thrashing hooves.

Wolf was slammed against the nearby wall and stunned. And in his daze came a bit of... honesty. Honesty with himself. Honesty brimming with doubt and self-loathing.

And all the power that such pain brought him.

Anyone worried about Wolf would soon lose sight of him as a vortex of thick, black smoke engulfed him. Next came the echoing THUD-THUD of impossibly heavy footsteps as the titanic armor of Sorrow lumbered forth. There was a hollow clang as a hoof ricochetted off the helmet, only causing Wolf to list to one side momentarily before descending bare-handed on Sleipnir.

One guantletted hand crashed down on Slipneir's nose, clamping down around mouth and nostrils to keep its flames at bay. Next, the net he'd cast earlier returned to him before he wrapped it around his other fist. The weight of the armor now comibned with the weight of the net soon came crashing down on Sleipnier's skull as he grappled the beast. And then once more. And then...

If he couldn't stab it -- he'd crush it.

The damage was reaching the beast's brain. Armour 101, blunt force can damage internal organs without necessarily having to destroy armour. Sleipnir had a thick skull, but not thick enough. The light had not faded from its eyes yet, but its thrashing was getting weaker, and it was clear it would die soon.

However, before Wolf could deliver the last blow, there were different cries. They were surrounded again, but this time by a multitude of different creatures. They stuck to the shadows but their intention was clear.

Sleipnir, their terror was bound, helpless and dying. A vertiable feast, one that would be shared, unless the party wasn't willing to give it up. Then it would be taken from them.

"I think we should go to the Second Floor's room right now!" Ascot shouted. "Remember what we came here for!"

Secrets, Hopefully? Part 2

"Gumshoe's right, Wolfie-boy." Aram nodded.

Wolf stood up straight, Sleipner no longer a threat. He was a good foot or so taller in the armor. He recalled his trident and walked directly toward a portion of the monstrous swarm. He swung his trident, striking the floor and letting sparks fly. The message was clear.

Step aside.

"I'll lead. Keep close." his voice echoed deeply from inside the armor. If they'd only gotten brave once Sleipnir was killed, then logic dictated that instinct would tell them to back away from him too. The armor would slow him down, but not nearly as much as fighting their way through everything. He'd take it off once they were clear.

Aram would follow close behind his now much taller friend, while being sure to keep William between the two. He'd try to ignore the eerie feeling he got from so many eyes staring at him, that he couldn't stare back at. He was walking backwards, because he knew what animals of prey were like. They'd take any advantage they could get. especially if they were hungry...

Aram caught a glimpse of his light glinting off of the black armor that covered his left arm. Compared to Wolf, this is nothing, he thought. Wolf might not be able to control his power night and day, but who cares? He's strong...without help, he thought. I...I have to rely on people to "help", if I can even do that. Alchemy...it's strong. In the right hands. They told me I have the right hands, but how can I believe that when I feel so...so Hu-- His thought was interrupted by a hiss nearby in the dark, startling him.

"C-C'mon.. let's split." he managed to cough up.

William knew this; that their goal was coming into view. With Wolf and Aram's help, he was going to reach the desired destination - the Second Floor's special chamber. Once the running stopped, once they finally arrived, he was going to examine, then open the door, though slowly and not without caution...

The door was a door like any other in the facility. It was shut tight, but the panel for the manual override was already half opened. There were other doors like that but so far they'd each been on a path to an exit of some sort. This room was most definitely a dead end.

Nevertheless, the party strode onwards. The room was dark, like the rest of the facility, but the lights were specifically different from the rest. Stepping into the room was indeed like stepping into an entirely different place.

Yet inside it were still very familiar equipment. There was monitoring equipment, a bed, surgery tools, and a lot of things the party didn't recognize. One thing that leaped out at them however was that the room felt like a room made for one subject.

There was a large test-tube/vat in the back of the room. The bed was nearby, with the monitoring equipment either surrounding it or facing it. They could tell that there would normally be just one subject with some researchers studying them.

In one corner of the room there was a cabinet with some files. Upon looking at them however, it seemed as if they were encrypted using a code of some kind. Other than those files, there was nothing else in the room.

They could take some pictures of the equipment hopefully to study it and try and track down the manufacturer to perhaps find some more information in the future.

Ascot took out his smartphone and began to take pictures, first of the equipment, then the various pages of the files. When his smartphone's memory ran out, he used various USBs from his pack to store more photos of the files' pages. He would then say to Aram: "Don't ask why, but two things. One, I think that the vat was used to manufacture an Artificial Human/Clone, and two, this technology would be useful once my boyfriend and I get married."

Aram raised his eyebrows at that, blinking as if he'd just been pegged in the head with a rock. "Um.. Okay? Hope you get your info so we can scram.." he said, scratching his head. So Gumshoe's got a lovebird, eh? Wait, isn't he with that Vernon kid? Something's off about that character..

This must be where Christine - Baumann, not Abigail - was born. William though as he went to the Generator. If it still worked, he could try and reactivate it and so gain access to the data stored in the monitoring computers...

He'd need some fuel to start the generator. There wasn't exactly a guarantee the generator was alright, or that the computers would boot up either, but if they did the data would most likely be intact due to being relatively isolated from the facility's main power grid.

It was likely the generator had simply run down in this room, or that it had been turned off before the researchers had met their doom.

William Ascot turned to Aram, saying: "Alchemy can be used for basic repairs to electronic equipment, right? Nothing fancy, just a few reconnected wires here and there. But more importantly, you can transmute generator fuel and use it to power up this room for a while. We can then leave and come back with even more numbers."

"Er, well...electronics are a bit sketch. But if it's just simple...I can give a swing at it. Need to lay eyes on the insides though...But the gas'll be easy as pie." he responded.

Aram looked around, looking for disposables he could use for transmutation fuel. There were quite a few. He walked over to an IV stand, grabbing it along with a blanket that had lain on the bed, and threw it on top of the stand. He unscrewed the cap on the side of the generator, then performed his alchemy once again, turning his gathered equipment into fuel of the appropriate composure for a generator, which he luckily knew the the components for. He then controlled it to flow into the old generator, until it filled to the brim.

He let the rest of the gas fall to the floor, turning it into water to avoid any unnecessary hazards. "There ya go, Gumshoe."

Ascot would then turn the generator on, hoping for the best...

The generator spluttered, but it started. As it got to work the lights flickered to life. The computer screens flickered on one by one, but each one only showed a blue boot error screen save for the last one. It seemed to contain surveillance footage, but most of it had been taken.

They were recorded with dates, and there were clear month-long gaps in between certain dates. The likely conclusion was that footage of any experiments taking place here had already been transferred elsewhere. However, there was a recording for the day the facility had been overrun.

Opening it showed a lit room almost the same as they saw it now. It was empty, the tests having long concluded by now. The time ticked on, but it wasn't even possible to hear any sound coming into the room.

Suddenly, there was a burst of static. Something had entered the room, but slices of static obscured it constantly. It was as if it was emanating it. It moved around the room, seemingly doing nothing. It came to the generator, then the recording stopped.

Ascot nevertheless used more USBs to take what data was available, including knowledge of the gaps in surveillance and the final day. He then made copies of said final day and sent them to Eleanor, his sister-in-law, to show to Alexander later; the latter should be in Mephisto's presence right now. Looking at Aram, he would say, "I think I know what this part of the facility is for; it's creating an artificial human for an unknown purpose."

Then, to Wolf, the boy would say, "And while I think that you're a combination of skeptical and disappointed right now, as the files we have are encrypted and the surveillance footage is inconclusive, let's just say that I came to this conclusion because...the artificial human is my adoptive niece. Michael can confirm; he was with me on a previous trip to see the Spirit of the Facility for the first time."

I have a niece. And I presume that Mephisto might want her to be his' if he knew of her existence. I have family I want to protect now; the rest, including Liliana, can take care of themselves. Liliana Ascot was William's younger sister. "It seems I've been selfish. Trying to save Vittorio's soul and prevent his life from becoming a tragedy, when I have someone who needs me almost as much, someone who needs me more." A sigh. "But then again, Vittorio's still the one who's suffered more than anyone else in Rhea, and winning him away from Mephisto...it'll protect my niece as well."

Aram sat for a moment, taking in all that they have gathered. "So this trip wasn't a fiasco afterall, eh? That's swell on your part...but do you think you can help that empty soul? I hear he's pretty hard-headed.." he inquiried. He'd never really met Vittorio outside of a brawl, and especially hadn't talked to him head-on, but he'd heard rumors on how stubborn he was. How obsessed...he was.

"But wait, they made phony people here? And your family adopted one?" Aram asked, "That's not possible...It shouldn't be possible."

William glared at Aram, his right fist clenched as he grit his teeth, "Call my niece 'phony' one more time and I'm smacking you in the face. Understand?"

"Woah, cool down, Goomba. We're friends, aren't we? I came to help you, I meant no harm..." he said apologetically.

Ascot's face softened as his fist unclenched. "That's all right; it was a mistake. Anyway, yeah, my niece was born right here. I hope she's adapting well to the adoption..."

A pause. "Anyway, we should go."

Aram looked over to Wolf. He seems off his wig today... he thought. He blinked. "You did swell today, Wolfie-boy." he said, then looking at William. "Let's scram. This place gives me the jitters."

William then turned off the generator, then the trip back outside started...

[AtomicNut]

Fun Stuff!

Celestine & Andras

Dance of Death by Chocolate

@Crowvette

---

Tic, tac. The rusty clock of the reading room kept droning as seconds passed by. Some people would be unnerved by it. Celestine was in the unfortunate case that it was boring him to tears, even as he read around the well-preserved but in equal parts cumbersome and intimidating “demonic” Grimoire. Obviously it wasn’t a real grimoire, but It never hurt to expand one’s knowledge. Specially to mess with people’s minds. Nevertheless, this was a refreshing entertainment, seeing how the human psyche covered with vivid imagination and ethereal connections the yawning gap of the abyss of human ignorance.

It was fairly hot and dry too. Luckily, he had brought his female clothes skirt set. He would have donned the mask as well, but public faces did not like masked individuals. Well with all the make-up and grooming, his true gender and most of his identity were still largely unknown.

“I wonder if there will be an Adults Only section” He mused to himself as he looked around. Well, this kind of solace was good once in a while. But it was boring to tears.

Andras paged through a few paperbacks she had stacked next to her. Sitting in a corner of the library farthest away from the windows, she enjoyed a respite from the strange household she had been staying in for the past few weeks. Most of the books were almost brand new, straight from the “New Arrivals” section at the front of the library.

Andras normally waited for William in the library, as he needed to oversee her draws from the Root. But this time was for Andras’s own sake. Being an only child, she was very unequipped to deal with younger kids - especially Meredith’s sister. Some quiet was necessary to keep Andras’s sanity in check, lest the magical power sealed within her eye breaks out and wreaks havoc on the world around her.

‘Or something like that.’ Andras sighed to herself, stretching her arms. ‘These books seem promising enough.’ She stood up, taking an armful of novels with her. She walked past the reading room, briefly glancing at the clock to check the time.

‘Wait. What was that…?’ Andras stopped in her tracks, and walked back to the room’s entrance. Beneath the clock, Andras recognized a familiar book. ‘T-That’s the grimoire! I’ve read that at least five times! I’ve never seen anyone else even pick it up.’ A girl was reading it. Actually reading it.

Hiding in the doorway, Andras peeked her head and stared at the girl. ‘I-Is she really a girl? I’ve learned that demons can be anywhere.’ Narrowing her eye, she tried to find a hint of demonic aura from the reader.

Celestine for his part, just stretched on his chair, and kept stretching, and stretching even further. His body was now taking a curved shape, balanced on the back of his chair. Eventually, his head went from a normal position to an upside down stare on the people at his back. He sometimes enjoyed stretching to his fullest, such flexibility which he once had cultivated to follow his mother’s steps at some point…

It was then when his eyes met with Andras cross-eyed stare. The nigh infallible memories of his brain showed that he had once met this person before. On a certain scuffle, with a sports car. Also an idiot half-demon. Vernon. Some roadkill bait and a spiky dude. And there was this girl, a… self called magician. But it looked certainly endearing in her antics, even to a black hearted rogue-slash-transvestite like him.

He just smiled at her, and waved her hand in a greeting. Well, no point in avoiding it once their stares had met.

Andras quickly ducked around the corner. Not only had the mysterious reader saw her, she even waved. ‘Oh no. What do I do?! I was staring at her the entire time!’ Trying to cover her face, she ended up dropping the books in her arms.

Andras flushed red as she saw a few heads turn from the commotion. She mumbled something like an apology to nobody in particular as she tried to pick up her books without melting from embarrassment.

Something scratched in the back of Celestine’s mind. A memory of long ago. Yes. Long ago, he had been that kind of person had he been? Awkward and shy. The days long past would never return, but that girl piqued his interest even more. Composing himself back on his chair, he picked the cumbersome heavy grimoire in one hand and with the grace of a smug cat began to walk towards the girl, his steps elegant like the finest catwalks of Rhea. He approached her, as he deposited the book in one of the many tables that were fit for returning purposes.

“Need a hand, little library fey?” He said in a low, cooing voice.

‘F-Fey!’ Andras gasped both in surprise and at the choice of words used. ‘She’s… She’s…”

Andras laughed quietly to herself, setting her books down. “Fufu. Not Fey. Demon.”
She quickly turned, standing up. She held up her hand, showing a pentagram tattooed on her skin.

It wasn’t a real tattoo, of course. Andras had cast it as an enchantment on herself, and the card had manifested as the pentagram. But of course, Andras was primarily concerned with how cool it looked. To her, the enhancement to her strength was almost secondary.

Celestine looked at the pentagram, as his eyes twitched briefly. ‘Can’t believe this airhead! Showing off magic in a place like this! So… innocent.’ He added, before cupping her hand in his, and hiding the mark from sight. “Oh, a dark ...one. One must pay respects to those who dwell in your fare... “ The transvestite answered. “Alas, no true occult knowledge in a proper library.” He added, his hands still clasping the tattooed hand with care.

“I suppose that makes me the library fey…” He japed, noticing how that woman was slightly taller than him. Well, not that was much of an accomplishment but still…

Andras let out a squeak of surprise when the mysterious reader took her hand. She wasn’t prepared for something like that, and it totally broke her cool aura. Flushing once again with embarrassment, she averted her gaze. “E-Even so… What were you doing with that book?” She paused, then added quietly, “Did you like it?”

“T’was a fleeting interest.” He interjected as he continued to hold Andras hand. “Real...demonology isn’t found in the chronicles that a drunk priest related to a shady troubadour which then were extracted by torture several centuries ago, but it...made me appreciate what little do we know.”

‘And how dull some days are’ He added as a matter of fact, his eyes darting towards the pentagram, which he then leant and kissed, a small silent curtsy accompanying it. “I am more interested...in the real thing. You may call me Sky, and forgive me being so bold…”

She added, as she let go of her hand. “Something tells me you’re certainly unique…”

Andras recoiled her hand. She had not been kissed on her hand ever, and her mind was very intent on reminding her of that fact. ‘W-What’s with this person?!’ Andras couldn’t help but think. ‘You can’t j-just kiss magic symbols!’

“W-Well. I-I…” Andras stuttered, trying to think of something to say. “Um. I-I’ve got to check these books out…” As she gave her excuse to bail, she stepped back, hitting her pile of books, and stumbling.

Celestine shot his arms forward, one of them wrapping Andras around her waist very much like a ballet pose. ‘ Too much stimulation, huh’. Celestine decided to pass towards plan b, and activating his body control allowed his face to blush beet red as he averted his gaze from Andras…”W-watch-out.” He even stuttered. “I-i’m so-sorry. I just t-tried to pl-play cool.” He let in an ungraceful manner, as he put his acting skills to test.

“It’s alright!” Andras blurted out. “You were cool. I-I was the one who didn’t have anything cool to add…”

‘Stop digging your grave here!’ Andras’s mind echoed. ‘You’re looking like a dork!’

Andras was reminded slightly of Vera’s dancing escapade, with the way Sky was holding her. Though Sky definitely was more graceful about it. At the same time, she wasn’t letting go of Andras…

“W-Well!” Andras spoke out suddenly and awkwardly. “I have to check these out!” She pushed gently against Sky’s chest to get out of the hold she had Andras in. For a moment, Andras felt that she may have a kindred sister, as she pushed on Sky’s chest - or lack thereof.

For a split second, Celestine stood still, like an automaton, as he gently let Andras go. Then he remembered he had to blush. Well, shy types required different strategies after all. No sooner she had left his grip he started stuttering.

“I-I-I-Icecream after this? I cou-could use one. I can p-pay.” He lowered his voice as he looked at his boots. “-tastesbetterwhenethere’stwoofus.” He half muttered.

“You’d pay?!” Andras was taken aback. Though Sky was a stranger, Andras was never one to turn down free food. “I’ll be in your care, then!” Andras laughed a little, as she checked out the pile of books.

“oh?” Celestine said. “Oh!”. He repeated, his stutter vanishing, as he made a fake effort to clear his throat. “Fine then, An offering of chocolate for my new…friend.” He said, gaining impetus as he took some of Andras books to carry as well. “Let me help with it... “ He added, as he resumed his proud catwalk once more, this time guiding Andras.

“...Actually, there’s a little thing I need to mention.” He gestured to his purse, as he caught it when he was trying to reach the door.

“What’s that?” Andras said, her interest piqued.

‘Is it more food?’ She couldn’t help but think.

Celestine was by the door, as he reached for the contents of his purse. A white porcelain mask glistened in the obscured doorframe, which then neatly slid into his head. “This is the second time we meet, Dark Lady of Despair.” Celestine said, this time putting the same level of gravity to his female voice as he had done when they had first met. He then realized he was missing something.

“Fufufu. Nailed it.”

There. That was more like it.

Andras was torn between shock and awe. “Sky, you’re the Fallen One?! The mysterious girl from before…”

‘She’s a dangerous person!’ Andras thought. ‘But… Maybe I can learn more about what she wants if I keep with her. I can defend myself if things get out of hand.’

“What is it that you want?” Andras asked intently.

“Have you ever wondered...why people gently set aside flowers instead of stomping on them?” Celestine said, in his Fallen One persona. “Because they’re striking, of a fleeting beauty.” He paused. “You struck me as someone who doesn’t let a sea of mediocrity and boredom dictate their lives. And you’re more alike than me than you think.” He began to walk.

“Ice cream, and talk about some more. And that’s it. No strings attached. “ He sighed as he kept carrying the books.

“I’ll take your offer, then.” Andras replied cooly. On the inside, however, she was a little flattered by the Fallen One’s comments. Not that she would intentionally show it, to someone who had fought her friends before. “Where shall we go…?”

“Well… I guess i should do a little magic on my own.” The Fallen One said, as he flipped his hand, and in a sleight of hand produced a Gold Credit card. It had been the first trick his loser dad had taught him… the memories. “Now that you know this little secret, I will have you...drown.”

He pointed at the most luxurious ice cream shop he had ever seen. “In chocolate, that is. Or vanilla. I don’t discrimate.” He tilted his head, looking at Andras.

Andras let out a prideful huff. “Just chocolate or vanilla? How mundane. Drowning like that would only be painful due to the lack of variety.” She stepped into the shop.

‘I know I’m not supposed to take advantage of other people when they’re paying for me, but... ‘ Andras licked her lips as she looked over the selection.

“...Mundane? Well let me show you something that skirts the definition of it.” He didn’t hesitate as they sat down. “ A single Mojito cream for me, and a Boatload for the lady.” He added, pointing at the biggest, most expensive ice cream of the menu.

Minutes later, an employee hefted an extra-large oversized wafer full of scoops of all shapes and flavours, and had placed a tiny captain cardboard hat on Andras, while the Fallen one elegantly savoured his Mojito ice cream.

Andras had made a sizeable dent in the giant ice cream order before she gave up. “Guh. I feel like… Ugh.” Her captain hat slid off of her head, dropping onto the table. She stretched her arms, feeling like her stomach was going to burst. Despite her warm hoodie, she felt cold. “I see. Your plan was to destroy me from within. Bravo.” She rested her head against the table, sighing, and crossing her arms to try and feel a little more warm. “What’s the next step of your plan?”

Celestine chuckled as he stretched in his chair like an overgrown cat. “Death by chocolate successful. Now all i need is to bring the Dark lady of Despair from the Frozen Hel of Dairy Indigestion with my mighty ultimate technique.” He added, amusing himself, as he stood up and drew closer to andras.

“The mighty Stomach-Churning Palm of Life.” He added, hamming it up a little, before he added in a whispering tone. “Tummy rubs.” He declared as he skillfully tried to alleviate the poor girl’s conundrum.

“T-That doesn’t make sense! I’ll be fine on my own…” Andras groaned. She was embarrassed, of course, but she couldn’t deny that some help wouldn’t hurt. “I-Is this all you wanted from me?” Andras said, trying to change the subject. “I had figured that, well. You had some ulterior motive to bringing me here.”

“Like, you know, kidnapping you cause you’re part of a half-assed plot of resurrecting a long lost love of someone?” Celestine added, without missing a heartbeat as he cradled Andras from behind and in a caring manner begin to alleviate the poor girl. “Forget that. I was just trying to cover for a junior.” He whispered into her ear. “Which is an idiot.”

He paused. “My real motive is that you’re like me, or well, you -were- like me, at some point. I can have whims and fancies too. I am also a human surrounded by dreaded boring mediocrity.” He admitted, half in truth. Nobody could say he was now a klutz, but he once had been. And that endeared this girl to him, in a way he thought he had gone dry. Otherwise he would have never revealed his face to her, knowing she was from another faction.

Andras squirmed a little. ‘When did she get behind me like this?! I need to be more attentive.’ That being said, the Fallen One seemed to be pretty adept at helping her stomachache.

“I-It’s not half assed! William said that if we can resurrect her, then we can save a life!” Andras huffed, turning away from the Fallen One. “And… Even if I stand out to you, or remind you of yourself, I won’t let you hurt my friends.”

“Well, let me tell you a little story about S.F.G. 48 years. Died of pancreatic cancer. That man had been a fireman for most of his life. Nobody knew him. He died alone and forgotten in the hospital of an acquaintance. He could have saved many more lives...if you chose to resurrect him over her. What makes such a person valuable over him? If it’s about saving lives, others can do it aswell.” The Fallen One droned as he stood tall. “Besides there’s no guarantee that after such a on ordeal people will be the same. People’s minds and sanities are fragile flowers… just like me… just like you.”

“And you’re a flower of pure innocence in a world of darkness. I feel like I have to cradle you and enjoy your presence, but if you insist in forcing yourself in harm’s way… well, there will be a limit of what people can do.” He paused. “I promise not to attack you or your friends, tournaments notwithstanding.”

Andras pursed her lips. Why was she going with William’s plan? It was to help. Maybe the Fallen One was right about saving lives, but Andras also was doing it to help William. She looked up at the Fallen One with curiosity. “A flower of innocence… What are you saying, I’m a demon!” She insisted, half-jokingly. “Still, I’m not sure how much a Fallen One’s promise is worth.” She smiled a little. “But I’m glad that you promised anyway.”

“Very well, I shall tell you a little secret so you may trust me a bit more, perhaps.” He leant into Andras’ ears and licked his lips. “I am … not a girl. How is that for a proof of trust?” He finished, before beginning to distance himself from the Demon Lady and paying the tab. “I hope I can see you again sometime, my Demon Lady…”

The words echoed within Andras’s head. Andras wanted to scoff, but she considered how flat Sky was when she pushed on her- his chest. Not a girl. A boy. But she- wait, he was… Andras’s head hurt, and it wasn’t from the ice cream.

Andras couldn’t quite find words for a while. After some time, she eventually managed to stutter out, “W-Wh… What?!” She found herself once again confused, embarrassed, and flushing deep red. She rushed to the door, searching for him, but the Fallen One was long gone by then.

[Dezuel]

Galbrek

Earlier...

Adam was sitting outside his master's workshop. The only place in the entire building in which he was not allowed to enter, whilst he had an urge of curiousity, it was not something he wanted to sate in order to die for. For what may have felt like an eternity for the tall doll, the doors finally opened and his master stepped out looking slightly weary but also sporting a satisfied grin on his face. Something had surely gone according to plan, why else would his master decorate his face with such a facial expression.

"Adam, I have good news for you. You will be deploying soon on a little errand of mine. You will get assistance however..." Galbrek reassured him and out of the shadows which led into the workshop where he himself had once been made, two figures began to emerge.

Had he reformed Bertrand and Darla? No... it wasn't them. The first one coming into plain sight was a girl clad in dark gothic lolita attire, blonde shoulderlong hair and blue eyes. Her face clad with a look of haughtyness and arrogance. In her hands were a curled whip with a sharp metal piece at the end of it.

The other was a male clad in all manner of odd colour combinations, purple, green, yellow, pink, blue and red. His pants were wide and fluffy looking, while he had a sleeveless shirt with a vest over it. His face and arms had also been decorated with various symbols and signs.

"Oh hoh hoh... good day big brother~ I expect you will come to learn to follow under my lead for master Galbrek~" The girl winked to Adam and then turned her head to look in what can best be described as fangirl admiration of their common creator.

"Your lead?" Adam blinked and looked at his master as if he had been stabbed in the back. He was demoted? He stood there silent for a brief moment before another voice was heard. The jesterlike boy.

"Yohoo! I'm Fegin, nice to meetcha'. Oi, Eve go easy on our bigger bro'. Let's work together aye? I'm itchin' for some bitchin'" The jesterlike young man flung himself up midair, backflipped and landed on a nearby table which caused a beep sound to make from his boots. He also made a pose. "Ta-da!"

"Get off my table!" Galbrek yelled out, whereof the doll in question bowed his head appologetically and jumped down next to Adam. Placing a hand on the slightly taller doll's shoulder.

"Let's get to know each other really good aye? We are going out to hunt and boy am I achin' to do some takin'." The jesterlike doll offered a smug smile, with his earrings and overall decoration making jingly sounds.

"Master Galbrek~ I, Eve shall lead your forces to victory~" The arrogant doll promised as Galbrek walked closer to place his hand under her chin. "Do not fail me Eve. The same goes for you Fegin. Take learning from Adam..."
The half-demon let go of the female doll and now slightly weary he made his way over to his chair to sit down and take a swig of wine from his finely decorated goblet.

"Bring Celine back to me. Then bring me William or Andras. Adam can point out whom they are. Do this for me and I shall reward you."

"As you wish mas-" Adam was about to reply to his beloved master, when he was rudely interupted by the smaller blonde doll.

"We shall return soon, master Galbrek~ Follow my lead dear brothers~" The blonde doll gave both of them a look before marching quickly towards the door, fondling her whip in her hand. The jesterlike doll grabbed a hoolahoop ring which had been neatly placed outside the workshop. "Don't mind if I do! Later masterino!" Fegin waved casually over his shoulder, and thus could not see Adam grabbing him by the neck.

"Don't speak to the great master in that manner! Watch your mouth.." Adam narrowed his eyes at the slightly shorter doll, who replied by sighing and grabbing Adam's wrist and forcefully removing his grip around his neck. Adam widened his eyes in a sign of surprise, this doll were stronger than him. Much stronger. He was so surprised by the fact he threw a last glance to his master sitting down. Master Galbrek... I who love you more than anyone else have been reduced to serve under these?

Some time later...

"Open up the door. This is an order... do you hear me?" The blonde doll spoke to the small slid in the door in which a blonde young man replied back.

"I don't recognize you as a member. Leave." The red eyed blonde behind the door replied in a slightly intimidating tone.

"Hold up. I am Adam, a servant to the esteemed Lord Ravenovich. I have buisness inside on behalf of my lord." Adam said in a authority like voice. The younger dolls both stood silent and waited, the red eyed young man on the other side nodded, having recognized Adam being with Galbrek on their last visit to Vittorio.

"Fine. You may pass. If the other two causes trouble it is on you." The door opened and the red eyed young man allowed them entry, before looking outside to make sure none saw them before closing and locking the door behind them.

It took them awhile to navigate around the Mephisto school, following Adam's lead now as he was more familiar with the area they came upon the gym area where there was some commotion and that's where Adam saw a gathering of people. Among them were Vittorio whom he recognized from earlier, aswell as recalling his tentacle like wings flinging him into a wall.

Adam did not want to get on the bad side of someone who could so easily restrain both himself, his master and that other person whom Adam had not seen before. Then he noticed her. Celine. She was standing there, looking for someone by the looks of it.

Adam did not waste any time but approached. "Celine."

Celine blinked and turned, if she would have had neck hairs they would be standing now. "Adam? What are you doing here?"

"We've come to get you back to our master." Adam swiftly replied

"We? Who are these two? Where is Darla?" She asked in a demanding but collected way, petting the pet rat she carried with her.

"Ohohoh... I am Eve, this is Fegin. We are, just like yourself creations of master Galbrek~" The blonde doll proudly explained.

"Yo! Fegin 'ere at your service, don't mind the ring. I jest happen to like it!" He leaned on the hoolahoop metal ring he carried.

"A clown? I have a hard time imagine you being a creation of Gal- master Galbrek." Celine said in a flat tone.

"How crude! How rude! Such attitude! I'm a jester, not a clown. Thumbs down! Beep!" The flamboyant jester heavily gesticulated as if he took great offense.

"Darla is not here. We should get moving, would not want master Galbrek to wait." Adam said out loud in a half-pondering way.

"...and if I refuse?" Celine defiantly replied.

"Then we will have to drag you there by force dear~" The blonde girl patted the whip by her belt, even looking amused at the idea.

Celine hesitated. If she refused they would drag her out, and there was not really any ally of hers here to stop her. As she now saw it both Galbrek and Celestine were not good people. Both were horrible. The first a coldhearted narcisstic megalomaniac and the other a chaotic sadistic psychopath. At least that's what she thought about them. Then there was Vittorio who she knew was powerful, but he had no reason to aid her here much like anyone else present. She had to go with them to her master. She had to face him again.

Celine sighed and nodded. "Very well..."
Adam nodded in reply, happy that he wouldn't have to resort to any other means. "Good."
They began to walk. "Fegin. You'll take her back to base. Myself and Eve will go and track down the targets."

"Just who do you think is in charge big brother? Don't forget your place~ But you are right, you return to our precious benefactor with the good news." Eve looked Adam over and took one of her hands through her artificial hair.

Vittorio

Having witnessed the teacher fling herself out inbetween Celestine and Vernon had drawn his eyes away from Bak as she had finished her words to him. Witnessing the teacher in action, but also hearing her words to Celestine caused him to feel troubled.

"A training club... opportunities... strongest teacher... monster slayer." Vittorio repeated out loud with his ghostly echoing voice, before turning his head back to Bak. "I accept the punishment. However..." Vittorio began to float away from Bak and out towards Suzume, the teacher which had reprimanded Celestine.

"He is right you know. If you don't push your limit how can you possibly get stronger? You are holding him back teacher."

He came to a stop and hovered just a centimeter above the ground. "Same applies for this one." He pointed to the side towards Vernon. "How can he become stronger if his enemy holds back?" The ghostly young man waited a moment before adding. "Put all your spirit into it or you might aswell surrender and die. People are the strongest on the verge of death. Take it from someone at death's door." Vittorio began to snap with his tentacle like wings around him violently as if he was electrified himself, like bolts of lightning crackling and creating a barrier around him.