Achronum

The Gifted - Concluded

James Kingston

---

Location: Hellfire Manor
Skills: N/A

James let out a sigh of relief at Serafina’s agreement. It wasn’t much but that was where resolutions started, even if he was putting a lot of blind faith in someone he’d never met and was responsible for at least one death. But if this went well, maybe they could get a handle on this whole shit show. James chuckled at Casper’s tone despite the tense situation. Trust Casper to keep his priorities right. “When we make it out of this, I play to show you just how special you are.” James promised with another kiss.

He took in the surrounding mutants as they woke out of their stupors. He couldn’t blame them for how they felt; he couldn’t imagine being trapped in their own bodies was a particularly pleasant experience. That being said, this was the wrong time and place for it. James turned to address them, hands up placatingly. “Guys, please listen. I know you’re all pissed off but right now, people who expect this place to be a safe haven are coming. I need you guys to go intercept them and head them off, help them find somewhere on the island to hide.” James pleaded earnestly. “And I know you think that returning the hurt you did will make you feel better but please, take a moment to breathe and think about it. She got you all once. As soon as Casper and Ben let her go and you attack, she’ll trap you again. Let us handle it and get out. You guys just let everyone know what’s going on here. Serafina’s agreed to talk; I have to trust she’ll stick to that.”

“Casper, Ben, as soon as everyone but us are out, let her go.” James instructed.

The Gifted - Concluded

James Kingston

---

Location: Hellfire Manor
Skills: N/A

"The Vault?" James repeated, trying to think if he'd heard of anything called the Vault. It was a wasted effort with really nothing else to go on because he didn't know anything about any vaults besides banks and Disney and somehow he doubted it was connected to either of those. He stewed on that as he continued to look around, trying to find anything that would help at this point.

Unfortunately, he was met with only a solid door made of dense plastic. Locked, of course. He gauged his chances of breaking it open and decided he was probably just going to waste precious time. He'd already wasted plenty trying to make this plan happen but he concede that ultimately, shocking Serafina was probably out of the question. They could always have Ben shove her hand in a socket but he wasn't sure how that would affect Ben. Poor guy was already dead; they didn't really need to make him suffer on top of that.

He needed a new plan. What did they have? Nothing really, other than a ghost controlling a telepath who was controlling an entire room of mutants. When Ben and Casper lost control, Casper and him would either join the zombies or end up like the person thrown at them through the door. James didn't really like either of those endings. So they hand nothing and knew nothing other than if they don't figure something out, they're toast. Oh goody.

"Babes, that's a really good point. We don't know anything about Serafina except her name and where she's from. We don't know why her and her friends are slaughtering people who, before now, probably didn't even know they existed. I'd certainly like to know why killing other mutants is necessary." James said, coming up next to Casper. Whenever Ben did anything, Casper was always the one to pay the toll and pressed a kiss to his boyfriend. "Thanks for getting us all this time, babes. I know it takes a lot. Just let us know if it's too tiring okay?" James said before turning his attention back to Ben.

"Ben, I need you to try two things. One, try to get her to release everyone. I need them gone and out of the way to tell people to avoid this place. Two, can you see if she's willing to talk with us rather than fight us?." James asked Ben. "I don't want to fight her if we don't have to. I just want to know why they're killing us and if there is a better way to solve whatever problem they have with us."

The Gifted - Concluded

James Kingston

---

Location: Hellfire Manor
Skills: N/A

James let out a sigh of relief as Casper enthusiastically greeted Ben. "Good job, Ben." James congratulated the ghost, dutifully ignoring the eyes currently rolled back to show just the whites. He turned his attention to the room as he walked in, eyeing the other mutants warily. They didn't show any discernable signs of independence but with Ben in control of their captor, they should stay out of their way. Hopefully, it would stay that way.

For now, they needed a more permanent solution to their telepath problem. James had no way of knowing anything about her other than she was covered in (or composed of) metal of some kind and that she could control other's somehow. Problem number 2 had been taken care of and he doubted a few punches would do much in the way of knocking her out but if she was anything like Colossus, maybe electricity would do the trick. They'd just have to time it so Ben could get out in time.

"Ben, are you able to tell anything about her or are you just in control of her body?" James asked as he looked around the room. His first instinct was to find a power cord and strip the insulation, wrap it around her, and plug her into an outlet right after Ben got out so they'd have a good chance of knocking her flat on her ass before she figured out what the fuck was going on.

But the designers of the Hellfire Manor clearly didn't consider a metal telepath attacking it because James couldn't see a single power cable to strip which meant he'd have to hunt one down and that left Casper woefully undefended. "Okay, babes I need you to find a place to hunker down that if shit hits the fan, you can stay out of the line of fire while you manifest Ben if he gets kicked out. Not that I don't trust you to hold her," He reassured their possessing friend. "But back up plans are important. Meanwhile, I'm going to find a power cable to strip or a metal fork so we can plug her in and light her up like a Christmas tree."

Of Blood and Magic

January 8th - 12:45am

Mage Classes

Aaron

The Mystery in Light
_Aaron

"Typically, yes. You don't need to focus as much on detail if your audience isn't familiar with whatever illusion you're spinning or if it's an artistic performance; however, I believe it's in your best interest for the time being to simply recreate everything as realistically as possible." Daun replied as he watched Aaron, offering a few corrections and pointers but letting Aaron get a feel for actively shaping his magic.

Half an hour later, Daun checked his watch. "That's enough for today, I think. The rest of the week, we'll get you used to creating a single butterfly and then we'll move onto a walking creature. Make sure to bring references of the butterfly tomorrow night and to review a little on how they move." Daun explained. He clapped Aaron on the shoulder. "You did well today, Aaron. I'm excited to see how far your eagerness to learn takes you. Now, go eat. You've been pushing your magic for a long time."

Lilie, Max, Maddie

Just a Bunch of Hocus Pocus

Lilie, Max, and Maddie

"Alright, that's enough!" Professor Mara called, climbing to her feet once more. There were more than a few sighs of relief, plenty of people struggling under the terse expectations if the Professor and ready to put the class behind them for the night. "I expect everyone who failed to barely project their magic to practice tonight and come back tomorrow with some semblance of proficiency. Remember, this is a pass or fail class so no amount of trying will save your grades." Professor Mara dismissed them, stalking back to her desk.

Maddie rested her head on the desk for a moment, the combination of a difficult first period and a stressful second demanding she take a moment to collect herself. Dowsing was a strange experience. She'd had her magic not even a year, barely understood it, and now she was forcing it to move in a way that was more than just pointing her focus and telling it to go. No, now she was telling it to go everywhere all at once and her magic was just as confused as she was.

And the experience of it. It'd taken more than a few tries but when she managed to get it to expand more than a few inches, she immediately lost all control as she was absolutely swamped. For the brief moments, she was hyper aware of every breath her classmates took, the faintest throb in her magic as their hearts beat, the faintest stretch and pull as they shifted in their seats. It was strange and uncomfortable and she was not looking forward to trying that over and over again.

As the other students swarmed out towards lunch, Maddie stood and collected her belongings, letting the crowd escape rather than braving the horde.

---

Vampire Classes

Ben, Eris, Varis

The Weight of Power
_{Ben and Eris}

"That will be all for tonight." The mage stepped forward, catching the glass as it slipped out from the vampire's hand. "I've uploaded all of the mandatory readings, assignments, and suggested readings to your Academy accounts. Please make sure you check them as soon as possible as you will be expected to know when to turn them in. Thank you very much and have a pleasant evening." She ended class with a bow.

Meanwhile, Varis scoffed at the boy's performance. Of course his subconscious creation was a flighty little insect. Anyone with half a brain could see the boy couldn't figure himself out; pretty by all accounts but flitting between families with no sense of commitment, content to take everything he could from both. If Varis hadn't been confident that his mage failed to command any sort of self respect, any sort of confidence in his position, then Varis certainly had no questions now. Though, he supposed it was still better than a raven. Varis would have lost his mind but the vampire turned his attention back to the present as he approached the class he'd left Count Eve and Eris at. Hopefully, the actor did something productive and took notes.

Amaris

When the going gets Tough, the Tough say Fuck
_Amaris

"Aaaaaand hands away from the food!" Nasir clapped his hands together loudly. "Alrighty, let's get these all wrapped up and delivered to your mages! I bet they'll appreciate all your hard work, if it doesn't kill them first!" Nasir cackled as he returned to the front of the class. "Make sure to tuck your carts back into the cooler on the way out!

Victor

Slow and Steady Wins the Race
_Victor

Melanie watched with wide eyes as Victor moved around. If it was possible, she'd be pale in the face. She followed his instructions, weak, uncoordinated strikes connecting against Victor harmlessly. She offered no response but was clearly uncomfortable attacking a vampire, much less a noble.

"Okay, okay. Everyone clear the grounds! Class is over! Go terrorize your mages or friends or whatever students do these nights." Tomas shouted across the arena. Several mages waited at the end in combat uniforms, third years looking to practice on the sands for competition while classes were out.

The Gifted - Concluded

James Kingston

---

Location: Hellfire Manor
Skills: N/A

Well, fuck.

Their attackers hadn’t bothered with the waiting part apparently but he’d think about that later. Casper was right that it was eerily quiet and in the midst of an attack on their home, it felt misplaced. Maybe the abruptness of asteroids made for a poor comparison but James expected something on a similar scale. James held his finger to his lips for Casper to stay quiet and crept his way up to the door, peeking around the frame to try and keep himself from being seen.

James barely stopped himself from banging his head on the door frame at the scene inside. A silver woman stood amongst several others, each clearly under her thrall. A telepath. Just what the god damned doctor ordered. James backed away from the door, a pit of unease growing in his stomach. Telepaths on a normal day made him wary. Telepaths actively interested in harming him downright terrified him. And Casper, jesus. This could either be incredibly therapeutic or James needed to get his boyfriend away from here as fast as possible.

“So, lots of people in there but it looks like they’re all under the fuckery of a naked, silver telepath in the middle. I didn’t see Reeva or the Three-in-One so either they escaped, they’re dead, or they’re hiding. Either way, they aren’t going to be used against us.” James explained quietly, sighing as he finished. James’ first instinct was to tell Casper to run but he wasn’t confident anywhere on the island was safe right now and he’d admit, he’d feel a lot better walking into this shit show knowing he had someone with him. “So, I don’t have a plan because frankly, I don’t know how to take down a telepath short of a bullet between their eyes or a tranquilizer round and that terrifies the shit out of me so any fantasy about how to render your sperm donor useless would be very much appreciated.” Because truly, James was out of his depth here. He could take a bullet, an energy beam, or an explosion but he had no idea if he could protect his mind in the same manner. Fuck, he hated telepaths. Having someone else possess your mind like…

An idea sparked in his head and James gave Casper a questioning look. “I don’t know if it’s even possible but can ghosts possess people, like in horror movies? Just keep her still long enough for us to knock her unconscious or walk her into something violent and deadly?”

Held roll

Reactive Adaptation if attacked

Fire Emblem: The Slumbering Goddess

---

Interacting with: @Hero

The week passed easily in comparison to their brutal training exercises, though anything shy of being mauled by a bear would be considered easy when Professor Michail’s enthusiasm defined the standard. Normally, lessons limited to ink and paper and lectures would find Clarissa itching in her seat despite the determination to absorb anything and everything but she welcomed the reprieve from action with open arms after a week whose highlights included a bloody massacre and their introduction to training exercises. Still, it felt surreal. Ghosts, courtesy of a training camp gone awry, lingered in the corners of her room while she drifted into slumber, the frustrating tug between her loyalty to the Church and her loyalty to her countrymen making smiles just a tad harder, and yet, life went on at Garreg Mach. She still woke before the sun, reveled in the beauty of it seeping through stained glass and filling the grand cathedral, walked the grounds with reverence in every step, laughed at whatever mischief her housemates wandered into, and snapped when she had to stop them from going too far. There were still books to read and assignments to complete and chores to wash up after. She found it reassuring, like the Goddess was reminding them that not everything is as world shattering as it seemed in the moment.

Though today, the restlessness came back (a facet of herself she blamed solely on Jorah’s influence in her life). The Archbishop finally had time for tea! Though she’d suggested the idea on their first day, Clarissa never thought someone as important as Ioannis would reasonably have time for something as silly as tea with students. While it was never a question that Clarissa would become someone important enough to have tea with the Archbishop, she’d always imagined it would be after she took her place on the Roundtable and entered talks on how to best coordinate strengthening the Church’s presence in the Alliance. But it’d arrived so much sooner and Clarissa could barely contain her excitement, even if Jorah was a little put out over the fact he couldn’t monopolize her for the entire day. She had no doubt it’d be over quickly; it was only tea!

She’d thought her good mood invincible to even the disturbing and inappropriate things Jorah thought acceptable to proclaim in public but the Goddess certainly proved her wrong. She’d swept into the cathedral eagerly, never truely needing an excuse to enjoy standing in such a holy place, and took her seat just as quickly. She didn’t know what would warrant early dismissal but it barely took the word rumors to change her attitude. She straightened in her spot, immediately scanning the room for their teacher’s reactions. Not that it was necessary, she doubted anyone believed nothing had happened yet considering the interruption and implementation of heightened security, but the grim set to Professor Michail’s mouth spoke volumes. Clarissa doubted that the Knights of Seiros weren’t doing everything in their power to handle this but the Archbishop’s reassurances that their confidence in the Knights weren’t misplaced echoed Professor Euphemia far too quickly for Clarissa’s comfort.

However, there would be time for speculation later in the evening. “Well at least our education isn’t in danger, just us.” Clarissa joked as she turned to her housemates. “In all seriousness however, I will always be available if you can’t find someone to accompany you on errands. Please don’t hesitate to knock on my door!” She figured she’d regret this decision in the coming weeks but she’d rather deal with the irritation than one of her housemates disappearing unexpectedly.

The Gifted - Concluded

James Kingston

---

Location: Magda Memorial Housing Complex -> Hellfire Manor
Skills: N/A

“Follow the crowd. Everyone is headed for shelter.” James replied as they escaped the building, swept up with the others running for their lives. Thankfully, people with mutants more suited to mitigating damage than fixing it were able to keep most people safe. JAmes could keep himself alive through this well enough but he was only really helpful after people were down and no one had the luxury of stopping right now.

That being said, James turned his attention to something else that was bothering him. Several heavy hitting units were launched in an unexpected attack against a mutant colony with a massive amount of variation. It could simply be that they wanted to kill as many people as quickly as they could but James thought that was an unlikely primary objective. It was a happy coincidence for them, James was sure, but ultimately, it’s likely a diversion. Their goal was to create as much chaos as possible to keep the island’s more combat savvy mutants occupied and while James has no idea as to what they could want, he certainly could draw some conclusions about their next move.

If James was involved in an incursion like this, James would have made his first move as soon as the island was available to them. Evaluate defenses and identify high population targets but more importantly, determine where the island’s shelters were. From there, he’d have it infiltrated, place explosives or operatives in the operations of the shelters, and when the attack forced all the non-combatants into place, slaughter them all to cripple the opposing force’s morale. Hellfire Manor would be a good target for such efforts. James swore as he considered the possibiliy.

“Casper, Ben, when we get to the Manor, you two have a job. Ben, you have to sweep the premises in its entirety. Look for anything that might be explosive, people who are behaving unusually compared to everyone else, anything that might mean the location is compromised. These people sent an asteroid flinger at one of the most populous places on the island while everyone was asleep, I’m not going to trust they aren’t down to kill non-combatants.” James yelled as they ran, hoping Ben was paying attention. “Babes, you need to find two or three places you can hide in if shit goes south. We’re going to need Ben for as long as you can hold him and I don’t want a stray anything to fuck you up while you’re concentrating.”

Held Rolls

Reactive Adaptation if attacked

Of Blood and Magic

January 8th - 12:15am

Mage Classes

Aaron, Varis

The Mystery in Light
_{Aaron and Varis}

Duan stepped in for a closer look when Aaron offered the butterfly for inspection, making a few noncommittal hums. “I can’t claim to be an expert on butterflies but I don’t recognize it.” He agreed. “As you can tell, making realistic illusions of things you aren’t intimately familiar with is challenging. It’s important that as we change the subjects you replicate that you spend time outside of class observing what we’re working on. Since you seem to have a natural inclination for it, we’ll start off with butterflies so make sure you spend time looking at butterflies when you can. Observe how they fly, their wing and antenna structure, and anything else about them you can so that recreating them becomes second nature to you.”

“Using a reference image outside of class is a good way to help memorize difficult details but don’t become too reliant on them. Use them a few times and then stop as soon as you feel you have a decent grasp on the image.” Duan explained as he stepped away from Aaron. A monarch butterfly shimmered wings first into existence in front of Duan, just a still image hovering in front of Duan. “Well start with a Monarch. Take a few minutes to examine it and then try and replicate it…” Duan trailed off as Varis stood.

“I’ve seen enough.” Varis decided, sweeping past Duan straight to Aaron. Duan bowed respectfully as Varis passed. “It seems you aren’t as incompitant with your magic as I’d feared, though I still intend to observe your classes more often especially after your shameful display before class. Be sure it doesn’t happen again.” Varis’ heel struck sharply on the ground as he took his leave swiftly. Duan stayed quiet until the door shut behind the Count and he straightened again.

“Maybe we should move invisibility up on the list of priorities, huh?” Duan joked before resuming the lesson. “Anyways, as I was saying, take a moment to review the Monarch butterfly and try to replicate it perfectly. Don’t let your magic fill out details;actively guide your magic just like you would any normal shape.”

Lilie, Max, Maddie

Just a Bunch of Hocus Pocus

Lilie, Max, and Maddie

“Yes, you can manipulate the dowsing area to better suit the situation. It requires a certain level of mastery over your magic and is explored more in depth during the next dowsing class. Expanding it evenly in all directions is just a simpler place to start for most students.” Mara replied to Max’s question. Around the room, students were in various states of struggle and surprise, letting out little exclamations of surprise and frustration.

Salem

Sticks and Stones may Break my Bones

_Salem

“All of them? Technically, yes. However, I would advise against doing so. Biotransmuation, one specialty in the field of transmutation, is an incredibly complex field and casting any of these base spells on complex creatures could cause serious functional failures. I advise against doing so until you advance into transmutation proper.” Hector advised just as another student exploded in a burst of water and the entire table started shrieking. “Everyone stay calm and in your seats, stay calm!” The Professor yelled as he scurried off his chair.

When the bell rang, he shouted amidst the general din, “Remember, do not attempt any of these spells without a teacher or other certified mage present! Have a wonderful night!”

---

Vampire Classes

Ben, Eris

The Weight of Power
_{Ben and Eris}

The vampire huffed at the question. “Those who claim that knowledge have long since met the sun. In these nights, some believe it simply a thrall enhanced by the ages the Child had witnessed and more still believe it a fantasy, a fantastic reimagining of brute force and experienced politicking. The truth is long lost to the night the child vanished. But we are not here to ponder on conjecture but reflect on what is known.”

“King Geoffry served his predecessor, Lord Jurgen Noila, as a mortal prior to his ascendance to a greater status. He assisted in building projects, including the original castle that the royal palace grew from, for the vast majority of his life. Geoffry’s dedication to Lord Jurgen however, paid off after he interrupted a poorly organized attack against the Lord but nearly lost his life in the process. Lord Jurgen offered the dying mortal a place in his court and with his last breath, King Geoffry started a process that would culminate in his ascension to the throne.”

“Lord Jurgen must have noticed something in Geoffry, even amidst the thrall of his transformation, because Geoffry would spend at least a decade sequestered away. It was a regular affair for any valuable vampiric prospect of the Noilan family at the time. They would spend a decade or more away from anyone except their food and their Sire, learning everything from etiquette to history to warfare. They’d be tested regularly and their time would be adjusted accordingly. Failure to complete it in a decade would have them staked for the sun.” The vampire finished it’s glass.

Amaris

When the going gets Tough, the Tough say Fuck
_Amaris

Nasir poked around as the students started creating, accompanied by his pineapple, and gave commentary and critique as he did. A few creations had Nasir staring in horror for several long moments before moving on without comment. Eventually, he made his way to Amaris’ table and brought it up to eye level, inspecting it from all sides.

“This is certainly a good first attempt. Peanut butter has an earthy flavor with a little savoriness thrown in for good measure. Meanwhile, bananas in the condition they’re currently in have a mild sweetness and a nice, soft moisture that balances how dry peanut butter is. However, the tomato.” Nasir clicked his tongue in disapproval. “This type of tomato has a bright acidity that will drown out the rest of your flavors, leaving just the clashing softness from the peanut butter and banana which creates a mess of textures in the mouth that just don’t feel good. Had you left out the tomato, this would have been an excellent sandwich. If you want to use tomato, you need another bold flavor, and a mix of textures that even out how soft the tomato is. Bacon and lettuce are both crunchy compared to the tomatoes' softness with the fat and salt in bacon strong enough flavors to stand up to the acidity of a tomato while the lettuce keeps all of the intense flavors from being overwhelming.” Nasir explained, putting her plate back down.

“Make another sandwich with that advice.” Nasir instructed. “Now remember, whatever sandwich is your fina creation you’ll be taking with you to give to your mage so make sure you think it’s yummy!”

Victor

Slow and Steady Wins the Race
_Victor

Melanie held her breath as Victor adjusted her, listening to him even as nervousness rolled off her in waves. She adjusted and held the positions she was put into, nodding to show she was paying attention. “Um, there isn’t a lot to tell you? I’m from a territory on the far side of the Marivaldis. I, um, don’t have any combat experience? I just avoided stuff like this before I was turned and uh, I was told it was good to get some fighting experience so I just sort of signed up.” Melanie admitted. “The Duchess said most vampires leave fighting to the mages now though so I don’t know why it was recommended.”

The Gifted - Concluded

James Kingston

---

Location: Magda Memorial Housing Complex
Skills: N/A

“If Magneto had a twin, I just kind of assumed―”

James’ reply was cut short, courtesy of a shitty piece of rock hurtled haphazardly into the building. It slammed barely a few feet away from the staircase with a deafening thud and James stumbled a step even as his skin shifted to metal, protecting him from the worst of the impact. He whipped around at Casper’s pleas and he swore under his breath as he rushed to where his boyfriend hung preciously from the railing. If Casper fell, there was a good chance James wouldn’t be able to heal that right away so he latched onto Casper’s arms and pulled hard, dragging him back over the railing and back onto the landing. He did a quick check over Casper to make sure there wasn’t anything else wrong and upon finding nothing else, gave him a quick kiss.

“Okay, your near death experience quota has been reached. No more, please!” James laughed, a little hysterically at the fact they were dodging massive space rocks, as he grabbed Casper’s hand again and bolted for the stairs. The night had gone from frustrating to awful in less than five seconds. If Casper weren’t here, he’d head up to the roof to figure out what the fuck was going on but Casper was and Casper needed to be somewhere safe. Ben would probably be incredibly helpful against whatever the fuck could sling asteroids but with little funcional cover, Casper would be a bright ass target for those rocks and then Ben and Casper would be out for the count. It would be better to get them to Hellfire Manor and have them help defend it while James and the others patched everyone up as quickly as possible.

The Gifted - Concluded

James Kingston

---

Location: The Apartment -> Hellfire Mansion
Skills: N/A

“Ben is… sleeping?” James laughed before catching himself on the wall as another quake hit. Casper wasn’t joking; if they stayed here much longer, they were liable to find themselves an early grave and he had absolutely no interest in finding out what lay beyond this life just yet. James stared for a second at the asteroid in their room and then shook himself out of it, grabbing Casper’s hand and bolting. “Asteroids?! Who the fuck uses space rocks as a god damned weapon?!” James groaned as they ran. He would rather argue with Casper that he was way hotter but asteroids and earthquakes made a compelling argument against spending time that way.

They needed to get to the manor as quickly as possible now that James understood how bad the situation was. James had no doubt that injuries were going to mount quickly. He’d like to be on the frontlines keeping people on their feet in a tough situation but the people who couldn’t defend themselves would need medical attention too. Havok’s accusation rose like bile in his mind but he shook it away. It was important that people could move in the event the Quiet Council attempted an evacuation effort as well. So he kept running, praying that everyone in the Underground would make it out of this alive.