Current
The last time I sent my picture to someone... oh wait, I've never done that.
2
likes
10 mos ago
I will never emotionally recover from the knowledge that Fire Emblem Awakening could have been a Pokemon crossover instead of a waifu simulator.
2
likes
11 mos ago
I can't find the brain anywhere inside this fog, chief. I think the brain has evaporated. It has become the fog itself.
11 mos ago
Psst. uBlock Origin doesn't have this "we've detected an ad blocker" problem. They also don't literally let companies pay them off to allow their ads through, like some other ad "blockers" out there.
2
likes
11 mos ago
The ideal number of RPs depends entirely on how active you expect your partners to be, and your own mental bandwidth for keeping track of characters and story threads.
7
likes
Bio
A late twenties/early thirties, they/them something-or-other who's been doing this writing thing on and off since my teens. When I need to blow off some steam, I play the kinds of games that would make the average Dark Souls fan scream with rage. Aside from those two hobbies, I don't make time for much. My roleplaying is probably the most social I'll ever be across the internet, but hopefully that's what you're here for. Time Zone: +9, Korea/Japan/Australia. Hello American night shifters.
"I don't spread rumors about myself. That's just a rumor."
Rumor has it that if you wander the streets of Mudville at night, inquiring about a certain "Five-Tailed Fox," the locals will point you in a general direction—and if you're lucky, a woman of indistinguishable ethnicity will appear to give you aid for whatever you require, for the right price. Make no mistake, though—you do not find the Five-Tailed Fox. The Five-Tailed Fox finds you.
Of course, that's just a rumor. There is no Five-Tailed Fox. The locals are playing a prank.
If one were to grow frustrated in their search and inquire about a "Six-Tailed Fox," however—well then, they might get somewhere.
Meet Xiuyáng. She's a bit of an oddball, or as the sailors say, a fish out of water. Though it could accurately be said that her complex family history leaves her with no place to fully belong, that suits a habitual traveler like her just fine; in fact, someone like her can go just about anywhere—and though her odd appearance may raise many questions, none of them would be too serious or inconvenient—merely curious. This is her strength. Her vaguely ethnic face blends into almost any crowd you'd find at any port in the Ensollian Sea. Nothing to see here—just another traveling merchant, on a very normal business venture. Pleased to make your acquaintance.
Though she comes from a wealthy family, she hides it well, dressing and acting more like her merchant father than her noble mother. Though she is, in theory, a magician with markedly high potential, she doesn't flaunt it; some even say she once paid the Little RAScals a modest fee to spread a rumor that she'd been invited to join them. Though she is young, she gives off an air of being wise beyond her years, her face seemingly tailored by Oraff himself to perfectly wear a knowing wink and smirk. Her devil-may-care attitude belies a quiet, deadly strength. She knows when to play up her shady, cutthroat merchant act, implying that her services will require a dire price to be paid—to reserve her hidden kindness and generosity for those who truly deserve and need it. In all, she keeps everything close to her chest, her cards always hidden from prying eyes. Everything one thinks they know about Xiuyáng is equally likely to be either the truth or a misdirection. Xiuyáng associates with very few and trusts even fewer. It's only recently that the wider student body has even become broadly aware of her existence.
B U S I N E S S A N D P L E A S U R E
"Sure, I'll lend you some hats—as many as you can balance on your head. No, I am talking about the currency. Now hold still, I need to concentrate."
Like her father, Xiuyáng is a shrewd businesswoman, always on the lookout for opportunities not seen by the untrained eye, listening in on a variety of conversations for any juicy gossip she may encounter. She frequents the streets of the markets, the alleys of port towns, and the parties of the upper class in equal measure. She keeps a low profile, but those in the know will take note of her presence—and more importantly, her absence. If she's absent at an event that everyone else in her circle is swarming to, there may yet be something even more interesting going on elsewhere, behind the scenes. Either she's scheming something big, or she's at an even wilder, secret party, likely getting drunk with some yasoi friends. Some say she doesn't truly get drunk, merely absorbing the alcohol by drawing from it and using it for some subtle, deceptive magic that'll get others talking—but that's a rumor.
While she's smart with money, Xiuyáng isn't what one would call a miser. She'll gladly pay full price for quality goods and services, and leave the bargain bins and flash sales for those who need such things to make ends meet. It's simply an aspect of her dedication to the ways of the gods. While she is an open but innocuous critic of the church, she is profoundly spiritual. Broadly speaking, she mostly adheres to the Quentic faith, but draws some inspiration from the Angic Way, believing that balance in life and self is important to both religions. After all, the most coveted fate one can be assigned after death is reserved for those who pleased all five gods equally. Her interest in the beliefs of the yasoi's Chosen Creed—and the sixth—is just a rumor. Don't believe those kids.
A T R O U B L E D S O U L ?
"If I told you that you owed me a favor because I gave you a Gift, you'd look at me funny. It's not a Gift if you owe me. Why, then, do we apply different standards to the gods?"
That's how some of the more "religious" practitioners of the Quentic Faith would describe Xiuyáng, anyway. She's a good-natured and well-meaning child of the faith who's just a hair or two off the straight and narrow road; a little patient, gentle correction will set her right. Most others see her as an innocuous religious progressive with the vapid opinions typical of youth. She's in a rebellious, edgy phase, and she'll grow out of it and wise up eventually. In reality, Xiuyáng does seriously consider other worldviews, and has nothing but disdain for the secrecy of the church, and the academy. They keep so many secrets—openly and arrogantly—that it begs the question of just how many secrets are kept in absolute secrecy. So far, though, she hasn't made any bold attempts to unveil those secrets—at least none that anyone knows about, or that came to any sort of fruition. She also definitely has no involvement in any high-profile protests that never officially happened, and whose instigators were never seen again. That's not even a rumor at this point, it's just straight up slander.
S O P H O M O R I C W I T
"To catch fish, cast a net. To teach music to a crab, castanets."
Sophomore: from Thalak 'sophos' (clever or wise) and 'moros' (foolish). A wise fool. Intelligent and philosophical—but young and yet inexperienced—Xiuyáng spouts both profoundly wise proverbs and a unique brand of abject nonsense in equal measure. Some say this is just yet more misdirection, and she's secretly a genius. That's just a rumor, though. In reality, she still has quite a lot of growing left to do. While she's quite "knowledgeable" in history, politics and religion, and is always expanding her repertoire of cultural experiences—ultimately, this so-called wisdom is highly derivative of the (albeit diligent) studies of a child of the upper crust of society, with little experience to back her confidence—which is, perhaps, the sharpest edge of her mind: the charm and wordsmithing skills to convince others that she knows what she's talking about. To some degree, she still lacks the "bullshit filter" of the truly wise; one may want to find a polite excuse to leave the room when she starts going on and on about something she heard while "accidentally" eavesdropping on the Truth-Seekers Society. Of course, she's not actually a member—nor does she periodically disguise herself as a variety of first-year students who only visit the club once and never return. Xiuyáng is much too busy for something silly like that.
U N F I L T E R E D F U N
"Don't try to butter me up—unless we're making sandwiches—in which case, you butter me right the fuck up—capito?"
While Xiuyáng is viewed in much the same light as a comically useless rebel without a cause, it is widely known that she is a wild party animal and a drunkard to boot, and this is generally more concerning to others with an eye for the well-being of the students. It can't be helped, some say, knowing she essentially spent all of her teenage years surrounded by sailors, and even longer shadowing her father's business deals at extravagant drinking parties. What can she say, she's a fun little thing with a taste for the fun juice, and she'll drink you under the table. She also knows how that sounds, and is totally here for it. Xiuyáng actively seeks out people and places to relax, chill and vibe. Her quiet disdain for the pompous manners and ceremony required in the presence of nobles is nonetheless quite strong, and a sailor's mouth is what to expect when she lets her hair down, especially if she's genuinely drunk. In her mind, it's all part of her spiritual philosophy. Study hard, party hard—and as it happens, her preferred crowd to hang with is the yasoi. She finds their hunger for new life experiences endearing, and their culture fascinating to a fault. Perhaps she even feels some measure of belonging with them, as an eternal traveler in both a physical and spiritual sense—but that's just a rumor. Really, the Yasoi'riimel are just fun to be around.
L A N G U A G E S
"Go ahead, call me a dumb bitch in a language I don't understand. I'll wait."
Xiuyáng is well-traveled, as is her heritage and her birthright. As such, she's fluent in not just Avincian and Revidian, but Torragonese and Rettanese—and by extension, can read and write a good amount of Nikanese as well. She's also quite competent with Virangish and Perrench, able to navigate various forms of negotiation just fine. Her Inipori and Belzaggic are barely passable at best, and her Eskandish is, how do you say... mjög slæmt? No, that's not the one. Anyway, you get it. She's trying to learn the yasoi language as well, but it's proven difficult for her. Learning languages was much easier when she was younger.
C H A R A C T E R A P P E A R A N C E
"We both know I'm nothing worth looking at, so... why are you staring? Idiot."
Xiuyáng is not your traditional pretty girl or classy lady. She keeps her hair short and most of her body covered, despite her ostensibly open personality. Some even say that her true appearance has never been seen, but that's just a rumor. Other rumors include that she's secretly a Bloodchild, or a yasoi with dwarfism, or that she has some horrific disfiguration or skin disease, or that she's a Sanguinaire protecting herself from the sun, or that she has Blackrot and covers herself to protect others from being drained to death. Still others, especially the girls, say that it's a simple case of low confidence or breast envy. Rumor has it she's been seen hanging with the Corpse Flowers once or twice. Honestly, nobody knows why she's so shy or secretive about her figure, but one thing is certain: in both appearance and spirit, she's "one of the boys."
Her manner of dress is a cultural hodgepodge. It's quite an eye-catching conversation piece—which, given her mercantile tendencies, is probably the primary function, rather than being fashionable abroad—though it is a nice side effect. She keeps everything but her hands and the upper half of her face—she's proud of her mother's eyes, if nothing else—covered at all times. She's also rarely seen without a medicine box strapped to her right hip (as is tradition, so that one makes the sign of Oraff when administering first aid, for good luck). As one of the more skilled students in binding magic, she sees it as something of a responsibility to always be quietly available to assist in any medical incidents, leading many to question where she suddenly appeared from. It violates her rule of staying low profile, but what can you do. When her fellow students are up to no good and somebody starts bleeding, it's her moment to shine.
T H E G I F T
"With just a bit of magic, and a lot of creativity, you can outshine the reverse."
Base RAS
Augmented RAS
HP
Blood Types
Items
8.32
8.65
20
Facemimic Devourer
Broken Mask of the Relentless Pursuit, Sea Legs, Staff of the Burning Monkey King, The Gourd of Joyous Springs and Ash Blossoms, Beanie of Weggosi Relaxation, Sanguine Bayonet of Endless Bloodhunger, Ahn-Dami's Second Chancers, Paired Mirrors of Swift Exchange
School
Speciality
Tier
Base
Offensive
Defensive
Magnetic
{Speciality}
0. Neophyte
d2
4/5d2
4/5d2
Arcane
Pyromancy, Illusion/Luminescent
IV. Adept
d10
4/5d12
4/5d12
Binding
Healing, Material Creation/Destruction
IV. Adept
d10
4/5d10
4/5d10
Chemical
Internal, Alchemical
III. Apprentice
d8
4/5d8
4/5d8
Kinetic
Telekinetic, Stasis
I. Novice
d4
4/5d4+Adv
4/5d4+Adv
Atomic
{Speciality}
0. Neophyte
d2
4/5d2
4/5d2
Blood
Dissolution/Generation, Fleshcraft
III. Apprentice
d8
4/5d8
4/5d8
Temporal
{Speciality}
I. Novice
d4
4/5d4+Adv
4/5d4+Adv
Dark
{Speciality}
0. Neophyte
{BASE d#}
{AugRas#d# + Offense Mods}
{AugRas#d# + Defense Mods}
Command
{Speciality}
0. Neophyte
{BASE d#}
{AugRas#d# + Offense Mods}
{AugRas#d# + Defense Mods}
Primordial
{Speciality}
0. Neophyte
{BASE d#}
{AugRas#d# + Offense Mods}
{AugRas#d# + Defense Mods}
Extra
Description
Fruit:
Wild Cherry: Twice per cycle/encounter, the bearer of this fruit may completely negate any bonuses, effects, or advantages that are not naturally a part of her opponent and their abilities and come from items, potions, or other external sources.
Candied Cherry: Three times per cycle/encounter, the bearer may roll with advantage and +3, so long as she is making use of any items, potions, or other external factors that apply bonuses, effects, or advantages that are not naturally a part of her.
Loon's Call: Thrice per scenario, prevent combo defenses and negate all related positive effects.
Sacred Plum: Grants +2 healing every round when eaten. If healing is not needed, grants a buff instead. One-time use item.
Other:
Used Cycle Reroll: No Used Arc Reroll: No Crown of the Burning Monkey King: Passive +1 Skill Modifier Tier to non-Cryogenic Arcane Spells. Shielding Dance of the Monkey King: Negate up to 6 damage twice per scenario. Vampiric Rancor: Curses the opponent to take the same tier of damage repeatedly each turn until they heal. Kinetic Absorption and Reflection: Advantage when using Kinetic. Double running speed and jump height. Sound Dampening: Passive +2 Stealth. Clean Breathing: Immunity to inhaled substances. Water Breathing: Immunity to drowning while submerged in water. Voice Alteration: Passive use of Sonic Break and Sonic Bend when speaking. The voice synthesizer is malfunctioning. Weggosi Relaxation: Passive immunity to sense and mood-altering effects. Extrasensory Perception: Ability to see through solid barriers and hear through sonic barriers. Temporal Clairvoyance: Allows the user to cancel an undesirable roll and choose a different action, 3 times per cycle. Third Eye: Automatically pass any perception roll, twice per scenario. Second Chance: Store power, up to 20, each time a dice threshold is not met. A second chance at fate. Better Half: Exchange places with Ciro Volta, provided he's been informed through the mirror and agreed and prepared to swap. The More the Merrier: Attack (4/5d8) to steal 16+d32 manas from a target. Chug to acquire manas. 4 separate targets, 96 max. Chug chug chug: Drinking provides a random buff or debuff (d6) 4 times per scenario:
Advantage on next action
+6 on any action this turn
Double action on your turn
8 HP instant heal
Double Disadvantage
-6 on your next action
Mana Types:
Facemimic: Description: A mana type that is able to latch onto foreign manas and convert the surrounding cells to transform into a copy of the other manas' host. The targets must have an at least somewhat similar DNA make-up. Makes for near instant identification of mages: RAS, manatypes. Transformation is slow and often painful, if too many foreign manas are consumed, the transformation runs the risk of becoming permanent.
Mechanical effects: When using Facemimickry, adopt the opponent's mana types and RAS as your own. Costs an action in combat. Cannot be used to transform into other races or species. While transformed, the user's skill levels in all magics remain the same, but all skill modifier tiers are effectively reduced by one.
Devourer: Description: Most often in West Severa, 6/1000 - Devourers are notable for having generally high capacities (over 7.6) but being slow at drawing. Their manas are highly aggressive toward foreign or invasive substances, relentlessly attacking them. This is a double-edged sword, as it sometimes leads to severe and unwarranted allergic reactions. At its best, however, it renders Devourers virtually immune to all forms of poison and most forms of illness and disease.
Mechanical effects: Any effects, positive or negative, associated with toxins or maladies are negated, unless they are purpose-built to attack Devourer manas. Viral mana types not inherited at birth are strongly resisted. Internal Chemical attacks have their skill modifier reduced by 2 tiers. When drinking multiple mana brews or shots, thresholds only increase by 2 instead of 4. Devourers suffer disadvantage when rolling for initiative, and predictability penalties are doubled. This blood type is considered blessed by the Quentic church for its ability to ward off Sanguinaires; Sanguinaires who drink Devourer blood suffer effects ranging from instant death for New Sanguinaires and up to a week of intense pain and vomiting for High Sanguinaires. The taste is also said to be vile.
With her high RAS score and family wealth and connections, her admittance into Ersand'Enise was essentially a guarantee. However, her almost singular focus on the binding school of magic was cause for concern. After rigorous testing, though, she was—somehow—able to convince the relevant authority figures that she is someone of upstanding moral character. Imagine thinking that Xiuyáng is actually a goody two-shoes underneath all the misdirection, and that her shady persona is a façade—mostly. That's definitely just a rumor. Anyway, with a bit of pressure, she selected arcane as her second school of magic, which has worked out pretty well for her, though she is still mostly interested in binding. Her skill in it as a second year student is quite remarkable, but one must wonder what she'll do once she's mastered it. Certainly, her parents will pressure her to pursue other schools more seriously so that she can graduate Summa cum Laude and become the Arch-Zeno she's clearly meant to be, but others worry that she might start to crave darker, unmentionable pursuits.
While it would be an exaggeration to call the Facemimic mana type a "Solari family secret," there are remarkably few people in all of Sipenta who are aware that they possess it, and that list is carefully managed by the Solaris themselves, as well as their powerful allies. Xiuyáng keeps this secret as well, knowing the dire consequences if it ever slipped to any of her friends. She keeps her Devourer mana type close to her chest as well, pretending to be drunk or sick when appropriate. In combat, she uses stealth techniques to buy her time in the heat of battle to offset her slower drawing speed. She'll sometimes play at being a Truecaster, a type which also has its origin in Torragon, to lower her opponent's guard for a vicious combo attack. In truth, there is a bit of her own personal bias in that as well. She believes it's only fitting that, when borrowing (drawing) from one god's domain of magic, it's just good manners to deposit back into the same account, so to speak. She doesn't keep a ledger or anything like that though.
Another method that she's devised to work around the limited drawing speed is a technique she calls "Casting the Net." Essentially, while she's mostly outgrown the need for focus words, she can use them as a crutch to ease multitasking, allowing her to cast a spell while drawing at the same time, giving her actions in battle just a little more efficiency. Naturally, it requires a near-meditative state of concentration to maintain both full strength of her spells and full drawing speed, and unless an ally is covering for her or her enemy is cowering in fear, one or both will have to be compromised to maintain it. It is undeniably cool to watch when she's using both hands to work her magic, but many rightfully argue that it's more trouble than it's worth.
One unique trick her obsession with binding magic has resulted in is the art of drawing from physical matter, basically storing the drawn object inside her manas, and reconstituting the exact same object later. What began effectively as little more than a party trick became seriously useful when she realized she could use it to pickpocket with a degree of plausible deniability. Of course, she's not interested in stealing some poor kid's lunch money. No, she's much more concerned with the keys that various faculty and Lamplighters carry on their person. It's said that she has quite the collection of duplicate keys she's made out of reconstituted metal, but that's just a rumor. She often practices this trick in secret, attempting to store and reproduce a functioning pocket watch. Thus far, though, it's always come out broken, alas.
B A C K G R O U N D
"I could probably teach my family history for an entire semester. You're getting the redacted version."
Roughly three generations ago, various families of Rettanese nobility loyal to the Jiang Dynasty fled the pursuing Ten Dynasty, all the way across the Asperic Ocean to Virang, marrying into their noble houses, changing their names. Others who were unable to do so drifted to neighboring countries, including Torragon, where they did much the same. This is a very brief summary of her mother's side of the family. A young Sofia Yihan Xiang Esparza would inherit the Esparza Crown Jewellery Company here, and later marry Cosimo Solari, the successful owner of the Sant'Agata Albignese Trading Company, who would take the jewelry business to the next level in exchange for marrying into the Torragonese nobility. The arrangement proved profitable, affording the man nearly everything he wanted to achieve while supporting Prospero Malatesta's rise to power in Revidia. Cosimo had been an idealist, and wound up jaded by the whole affair, as in the end, merchants were still not afforded the same rights as the nobility—namely, the ability to be appointed Doge. He retains a cordial relationship with l'Anguilla, as he is not fool enough to tangle with the Eel.
The marriage proved fruitful as well, resulting in three daughters, of which Xiuyáng is the youngest. The others would marry off into other noble families, quietly expanding Cosimo's influence. However, Xiuyáng's raw magic potential was too great to ignore, and so it was decided that Ersand'Enise would be her future home. The news came to her as a mixed bag. Having the Gift made her special, but also, it meant that her adventurous life of traveling with her father was probably coming to an end. Being a clever and sneaky little girl, she would—in an unspoken bid to delay the inevitable—choose the binding school of magic, adding various trials and tribulations to the whole enrollment process. Much of her time in the following years would be spent shadowing various binding mages as they treated injuries and cured the sailors of her father's trading company of their illnesses. After a while, she'd become unironically interested in it, and took to the subject with notable enthusiasm. However, they wouldn't let her attempt any binding magic immediately, instead encouraging her to feel the wind of the Ensollian Sea, and use it for some small kinetic feats, in which she proved herself capable of picking up new skills quite quickly. She was brilliant, and had great potential—later to her chagrin.
At the same time, she was continuing to shadow her father as he conducted his business. As she grew older and more confident, she began fraternizing with various peoples: namely sailors, captains, and merchants, who'd have the most influence on her future temperament. While her father pushed her to be as productive as she could manage, her binding mage mentors were more relaxed, encouraging her to play and take breaks. They'd never imagine that she'd spend them watching the sailors brawl below decks, betting on the outcomes. This sparked her interest in martial arts, prompting her to pick up a few skills from her family's personal bodyguards. With her ability to out-drink even the drunkest of sailors, it wasn't long before she was considered "one of the boys," welcomed to drink with them and join the locker room talk. Her father would have hated this, of course, but he never found out about it. It was the best-kept secret of the fleet that Xiuyáng let loose whenever she was on a separate ship from her father. He did pick up on her new social skills, however, and began inviting her along to important meetings to listen to the nobles discuss business and politics.
Once she'd finally begun attending the academy, she started doing what she does best—making connections. She's in the maximum number of student clubs, and eavesdrops on a few others, namely the Truth-Seekers Society, Faithkeepers, and Egalite Fraternite. She also keeps tabs on the Faceless—or so she thinks—but is never directly involved in their activities—as far as she knows. Unbeknownst to her, they may be scouting her. Notably, she's absent from both the Carnation Accord and the Malturra Society, despite her obvious interest in binding magic, and alleged dabbling in blood magic. Some say she's a secret member of the Malturra Society, but given she's in the Magicians' Guild, that's impossible. It's possible that she's attending in secret, somehow, but that's just a rumor. She's too busy drinking and partying with yasoi friends to be of any real threat. Then again, her spotty attendance in most of these clubs speaks volumes...
M O T I V A T I O N
"If the best doctors in the world can't handle it, I'll become better than the best."
If one were to use magic to force Xiuyáng to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, she would tell you that she wants what she can't have—a simple life on the high seas, traveling with no higher purpose in mind. She's convinced that this is impossible, though, and so she's settling for what, in her mind, is the next best option: to become truly, unfathomably, unreasonably skilled at exactly one thing, and ensure that her skills are needed worldwide. In her case, that would be the use of the Gift to preserve and improve the lives of others. She believes that service to the gods should be entirely voluntary, and in her case, she's chosen Oraff—not to the exclusion of others, mind you, but it's simply not plausible for a mortal to be in five places at once—not that she hasn't considered the Temporal route. However, she rather values her sanity, in spite of her flagrant alcoholism. Look, she's working on it.
She fears disappointing her family, or being badgered, pressured, or even forced to pursue something more than her personal interests encompass. Her parents will probably give her no small amount of trouble if she won't broaden her horizons to other schools of magic so she can graduate with the highest honors. In particular, her father drills into her the importance of maintaining wealth, status, power and influence. Hoard money openly, and spend in secret, he says, that none may know your intentions. Fraternize with the nobility whenever possible, that you might someday marry up into a reputable and wealthy family. Carry the biggest sword, and do not reveal the full extent of its reach to your enemies. Bring all others to heel with a gentle hand. She's taken some of this to heart, but rejected most of it. She loves the mercantile life that her father cynically left behind, and dreads the day that his newly acquired noble title will come back around to thrust its tired, predictable expectations upon her colorful, fun life.
I N V E N T O R Y
"Of course I've got the goods. I'm a Solari. Now, what're ya buyin'?"
Xiuyáng carries a large but nonetheless portable medicine box, not just for her personal use during any medical incidents she may be present for, but also to sell and trade with. Within the right circles, she's known to deal in borderline illegal, recreational substances, if given the right code phrases. Her medicine box also contains a few small tools useful for gathering more ingredients. Generally, she uses her manas to store much of the same stuff within her own body, able to create more medicine in the unlikely event that she runs out. She'll have to give that stuff up if she finds herself in combat, but that's a pretty rare occasion.
Of course, she always has money on her—and lots of it. Occasionally, she'll open up a tent in the market and sell some Torragonese jewelry from her mother's company at a nominal student discount. The brand is quite a hit with the ladies, and rings are very popular. She's often seen with a smoking pipe in her hand, but she doesn't touch the stuff, instead drawing the chemical energy directly. Amusingly, she'll use it as an impromptu wand, if she's suddenly attacked. It also gives her an air of shrewd maturity that she finds quite advantageous when making business deals—a trick she learned from her mother. Another trick she learned from her is that a full sack of coin makes for an effective impromptu bludgeon. Aside from that, Xiuyáng doesn't carry any weapons aside from her cherry wood wand, unless she's forced to. On such occasions, she prefers claw-like weapons such as the Nikanese tekkō-kagi or a pair of the Sawandi equivalent, the baghnakh.
Name: Broken Mask of the Relentless Pursuit Item Description: A fearsome mask made of dark steel and padding to provide comfort and protection. This mask is tailor-made for hunting threshers, but can also comfortably be worn on land. It purifies toxins the user would breathe, allows the user to breathe underwater, and also allows them to alter their voice to speak clearly underwater with their teammates (or conceal their identity, for illegal poaching activities). This mask is made with an interlocking plate design that will shift with changes in the user's facial structure and changing levels of pressure, maintaining a proper seal regardless of whatever challenges the wearer may face. The voice synthesizer is broken, and can only project a distorted version of the user's own voice.
Special:
Clean Breathing: With Maladyshield, manas within the mask allow the user to breath in air that may be poisonous or caustic. Anytime the user is to breath in a toxin, poison, illness, or disease, they are immune to the aerosolized substance.
Self repair: The mask is enchanted to take energy from the surrounding area to repair itself. Such as heat from the sun, the kinetic energy of the wind or even the mask moving. It leaves no abusable openings.
Water breathing: The mask is enchanted so while underwater, it will undergo the constant chemical process to break down the molecular structure of water to create breathable air for the user.
Voice Alteration: The mask is able to alter the sound and loudness of the users voice, the pitch, the frequency, and many other things to recreate a voice the user can think of. Allows the user to use a voice other than their own, or even project it in certain ways to distract or disorientate. The voice synthesizer is malfunctioning.
Use: As someone who often finds themselves on the water, never having to worry about drowning is a big plus. Disguising her voice is its primary purpose however. The interlocking-plate design comfortably accommodates her changing facial structure when using Facemimicry. Clean breathing is rarely useful, but redundant layers of protection are always welcomed when dealing with sketchy types. It offers a degree of plausible deniability when and if her immunity to toxins gets noticed. It's obviously the mask. She's not a Devourer; that's just a rumor.
Name: Sea Legs Item Description: A slightly flashy pair of cannonball thresher leather boots that provide a customizable fit. These boots are made to help the user maintain balance, speed, and stealth. They're also quite sturdy and nominally heat resistant. Rumor has it Xiuyáng nicked these off a pirate captain. Nice booty!
Special:
Kinetic Absorption and Reflection: The boots are also enchanted to absorb external kinetic energy the user would feel from the boots and will reflect it back in the direction the user received it from. Allowing the user to increase many things, such as their kick power, jump height, running speed, and can even be used for defense to try to negate the energy of a strike. Gives the user advantage when using Kinetic based spells, and double the users effective running speed and jump height.
Sound dampening: Any sounds the user produces are dampened and reduced, making the user much quieter. This will give the user a +2 to stealth.
Use: Running fast while carrying a medium-large quantity of medicine can be awkward. Wearing these can make the load easier and safer to bear without worrying about damaging the goods. Sound dampening is another redundancy measure; if Xiuyáng's focus slips, her footsteps will still be quieter than they would be otherwise.
A regular looking gourd that naturally refills itself with any alcoholic beverage according to the owner's desires and tastes. This enchanted container has often been disregarded as a below average refill bottle that has gotten into fashion during the last decade, however Mountain Spring has kept the particularities of the gourd a secret for the most part. He left it with Xiuyáng after the battle with Marhazannet in the Forbidden Quarter of ReTan (Metropolis) as a parting gift after swearing an oath of sobriety to himself and the gods. The two had gotten along quite well in such a short amount of time, and Xiuyáng had said she needed a drink, only to be given a lifetime supply. Ask and ye shall receive!
The More the Merrier: Anything properly smacked by the gourd (d2 for 4d8 or 5d8) will have up to 48 manas taken from them (roll a d32 with a minimum of 16 guaranteed). Anyone that drinks from the gourd next (and they must appropriately chug) will assimilate those manas. This will wear off after a while. This can only be done once per target, four times per combat scenario, and the total number of manas stolen from all targets combined may never exceed 96 (the max potency of a prime shot).
Chug chug chug: Drinking from the gourd can provide a random buff or debuff: (Roll a d6, use up to 4 times per scenario)
Advantage on next action
+6 on any action this turn
Double action on your turn
8 HP instant heal
Double Disadvantage
-6 on your next action
Use: Xiuyang doesn't quite know what the gourd does, yet. She hasn't tried smacking anyone with it, but she has chugged from it many times, and received a positive energizing effect each time. She'll experiment with it more soon, but for now it seems like a very promising item to her.
On top of providing 24 manas, this bo staff will bump all arcane spells except for cryogenic ones up by one skill modifier tier. If twirled rapidly, it will create a blazing shield of heat capable of absorbing up to 6 damage twice per scenario.
Use: Xiuyang hasn't used it yet. She can feel the increase in manas. She'll test it out soon enough.
Beanie of Weggosi Relaxation: This multicoloured beanie allows its wearer to open their third eye, allowing them to see backward and forward up to ten seconds temporally in great detail, to see through solid barriers and hear through sonic barriers. It will allow its wearer to preview their own dice rolls within a turn cycle and act or react accordingly; at any time that rerolling is considered a valid action, the user may instead cancel their action that turn and try something else: a different magic school, or a different action altogether. This can be done 3 times per cycle, but only once per turn cycle in a combat scenario, and cannot be used to cancel an action that has already had rerolls spent on it. Additionally, twice per cycle, the wearer may automatically pass any perception roll. While wearing this hat, they will be immune to sense and mood-influencing effects. Provides 24 manas.
Use: Xiuyang, the all-seer. Be very afraid. She seems to be regularly using the Temporal Clairvoyance for something, but she won't tell anyone what it is.
Sanguine Bayonet of Endless Bloodhunger: Sucks the blood from whatever it stabs or slices, self-repairing. Upon dealing any damage, will continue to deal that same tier of damage every turn until the effect is dispelled. Provides 14 manas. For every round that its effect is active, it gains 4 more manas, up to a maximum of 30.
Use: Xiuyang's first truly lethal weapon. War approaches; perhaps it's time to get serious.
Ahn-Dami's Second Chancers: A pair of cutting-edge flintlock pistols. Every point that any of their bearer’s rolls fail by is stored, up to a total of 10 per gun, to be unleashed when their bearer sees fit. Provide 12 manas each.
Use: Another lethal sidearm. After the Trials, Xiuyang is arming herself to the teeth. What could she be thinking?
Paired Mirrors of Swift Exchange: If two people stand in front of these mirrors and speak the words “Commuto cum socium alibi” (I exchange with my partner elsewhere), they and any items on their person will immediately switch places. This action may not be blocked or canceled through the intervention of Knowers.
Use: Xiuyang has given the other mirror to Ciro Volta as a gift. She seems to have grand plans for this item.
Hui Mei: a female, albino land octopus. Always full of mischief. Known to steal shiny objects.
Daemonium Albusignium: Coldfire Wyvern, female, near-alpha, blackfire coloration. The largest wyvern species, rideable, breathes coldfire. This dragon is a battle companion or rideable for smaller individuals. This was a gift from Ciro Volta.
Ceremonial ReTanese Qipao. A "gift" from the Twin Emperors.
Collector's Edition Evil Eye Action Figure
Collector's Edition Mountain Spring Action Figure
Mammoth Tusk. Purpose unknown.
Cold Soup's Spoon: Imbued with some kind of magic. Purpose unknown.
Tusk Bandage: Provides 4 health and a +1 to next action or movement.
Sacred Plum: Grants +2 healing every round when eaten. If healing is not needed, grants a buff instead.
2x Seagoat Cheese: Creamy and exotic, imported from Meatu, will boost your RAS by 17-32 manas.
Contents of 3 Constantian Foodstuffs Crates, including:
1x Roquefort Fauvais (Regular)
3x Stanton Greene (Regular)
2x Rodtegelost Bricks (Special)
2x Rodtegelost (Regular)
1x Mozzarella Orlani (Special)
3x 1x Mozzarella Orlani (Regular)
1x Spratz
7x Whole Rosy Threshers
5x Kaempe Ko Steaks
20x Brandaebles
29x Kerreman Lila Banane
9x Snepebbers
13x Carotte Fourchee
15x Purple Crown Tomatoes
11x Mandrake Onions
10x Jars of Seagoat Milk
I have no money! HAHAHAHA!
Fruits of Nature and Construct:
Nature: Twice per cycle/encounter, the bearer of this fruit may completely negate any bonuses, effects, or advantages that are not naturally a part of her opponent and their abilities and come from items, potions, or other external sources.
Construction: Three times per cycle/encounter, the bearer may roll with advantage and +3, so long as she is making use of any items, potions, or other external factors that apply bonuses, effects, or advantages that are not naturally a part of her.
S T R E N G T H S & S K I L L S
❖ Sneaky Combat Medic ❖ Master of Disguise ❖ Duchess of the Ensollian Sea ❖ Escape Artist ❖ Surprisingly Tough ❖
"Oraff keep you, but at the same time... I never forget a face. Fuck around and find out, yeah?"
Surprising no-one, Xiuyáng's specialization is in stealth and subterfuge. Truly, she can go almost anywhere just by being herself, but when that's not enough, being a Facemimic is the icing on the cake. Xiuyáng usually avoids combat through arcane light-bending and kinetic sound-dampening, remaining undetected on the battlefield while gathering up useful resources and tending to the injured. It may seem unnecessary to some, but having studied Tan Keoulean and Nikanese history, Xiuyáng laughs at the notion of "rules of war." Blindly trusting her enemies to spare her life because she's a medic, or because she's a woman—or whatever other vapid, comforting notions others may rely on—is the privilege of children and of the naïve.
Xiuyáng is quite well-connected within the bounds of the Ensollian Sea, having spent her teenage years on various ships in her father's fleet, shooting the breeze with sailors, captains, merchants, and nobles. Really, it's her father's name that pulls the weight when she decides to make use of these connections, but she's not above it. Because of these past experiences, she also knows a great deal about how to run a ship, as well. One might think she'd be a valuable hostage—and one would be right—but anyone looking to kidnap her has their work cut out for them. Not only does her raw magic potential and strength of binding technique make her nigh impossible to contain—and her arcane and kinetic skills nearly impossible to catch besides—she's also pretty tough. You kind of have to be tough to impress sailors who are a foot taller than you. She picked up a unique style of physical combat from her family's personal bodyguards called Liu-Tian, which borrows techniques from both Machorro and Seun-chi-go. Many hapless street thugs are caught unaware by just how willing this seemingly pacifistic girl is to enter into a brawl, and just how favorable her chances are when she has the element of complete surprise.
"I'm a binder with blinders, on a lifelong bender!"
With the lion's share of an entire continent as her oyster, one may wonder what Xiuyáng can't do. Truthfully, she wonders the same. One answer might be that a big oyster is pretty empty with nobody to share it with. She trusts very few, and struggles to make genuine connections or trust others completely. While she's not so much of a lone wolf that she can't follow simple orders, asking her to do anything that might put her in a compromised position where she must rely on others to bail her out of said position will earn you a scoff and a polite counteroffer to fuck right off. Her teamwork leaves much to be desired. Another answer to the whole oyster dilemma might be that she's stretched too thin, filling it with junk. She is ever in the information gathering phase of various projects, but somehow—according to her—always lacking that special little piece of critical information that would cause her to act. She suffers from a loosely defined identity, too many options to choose from, and, to put it quite plainly, a lack of ambition. An excess of ambition, she will remind you, is portrayed as a critical character flaw in Thalak tragedy, and—as she'll rant on and on about, in the right setting—she hates how wealth, power, status and influence have become the nobility's raison d'être. With the introduction of the middle class into the structure of society, they—including her father and mother—have lost their way, and will incur Dami's wrath in the afterlife for exerting their will on the populace.
On the other hand, it could also be said that Xiuyáng suffers from tunnel vision. She rigorously studies the binding magic arts, to the exclusion of almost everything else. Her interest in other schools of magic only truly manifests to the degree that said school might make her a more effective medic. Arcane and kinetic help her to keep a low profile, while chemical lets her spread some of that happy brain juice that she desperately craves around to others. Some say that her true interest lies in blood magic, but that's just a rumor. True, she skirts the line, often snidely remarking to her critics that "blood magic is not used for defense," and "binding magic isn't real." However, no-one can mount any evidence against her that her interest in blood magic is anything more than an extension of her focus on medical applications, or even just idle curiosity. Because of her myopic view of the schools of magic, though, she generally makes for a pretty poor combatant. Her spiritual nature makes her a bit of a pacifist; though she will throw hands to protect herself and others when necessary, she will scarcely take a life except in the service of preserving it. Her dedication to Oraff is in no small part responsible for why her less scrupulous activities are largely tolerated. This tolerance, though, has left Xiuyáng a bit spoiled. While her recreational activities on the water keep her in reasonable physical shape, she scoffs at the notion of doing any hard labor herself. She tries to couch it by saying that it's her role in creation to pay skilled workers a livable wage for such things, but anyone with any sense knows that's a flimsy excuse to spend less time working and more time drinking. The girl loves her alcohol—and loves to blame the stuff for her occasional outbursts of emotion. A silver tongue becomes a double-edged sword when wielded in anger, and words that cut deep with surgical precision can't easily be taken back.
M I S C E L L A N E O U S
"Shune won't kill you if you learn too much, but curiosity killed a cat or two."
Points History for Salty Rat Bois: Starting Points: 1 Binding, 2 Arcane, 1 Chemical, 1 Kinetic First Semester: Took Binding and Arcane. 2 Binding, 3 Arcane, 1 Chemical, 1 Kinetic Second Semester: Took Binding, Chemical, and Blood. 3 Binding, 3 Arcane, 2 Chemical, 1 Kinetic, 2 Blood Also gained that year: 1 Arcane (daily stealth practice) Year One Final Tally: 3 Binding, 4 Arcane, 2 Chemical, 1 Kinetic, 2 Blood
SK102A: Making Camp, Foraging, Hunting and Travel in Remote Areas
MF107A-B: Blood Magic
AC101: Fundaments of Philosophy and its Relation to the Magical Arts
Classes, Year 2, 1st Semester:
MR201A-J: Containment & Efficiency
GR201A-J: Mathematics
MF204A-D: Chemical Magic
MF203E-H: Binding Magic
MR202K-T: Freecasting
GR202K-T: Written Avincian
AC201A: Philosophy in the Ancient World - Zaqhoria to Avince
SK201B: The Art of Persuasion by All and Any Means
MR203A-J: Preservation
GR203K-T: Theology
AC203A: Cartographical Practice and Measurement
SK204C: Advanced Gardening & the Myriad Uses of Plants
Free
AR206B-C: Tailoring & Fashion
MF208B: Blood Magic
SI10: Angic Philosophy, Practice, and Meditation
Classes, Year 2, 2nd Semester:
MR204A-J: Focus Words & Triggers
GR204A-J: History
MF204I-L: Chemical Magic
MF203M-P: Binding Magic
MR205K-T: Multiplicative Effects
GR205K-T: Logic
SK208A: Glassmaking
AC207B-C: Philosophy in the Modern Era
GR206A-J: Avincian Rhetoric
MR206K-T: Defense Against Magical Threats
SK210A-C: A Merchant's Guide to Finance & Accounting
Free
SK212A-C: An Introduction to Martial Arts & Combat Sports
AC212C-D: An Introduction to Chemistry
SI02: Recognizing and Resisting Dangerous and Radical Philosophies
SI06: Living with a Disability
Magicians' Guild - Officially a member, and a pretty active one—expected, given her heritage. She's always eager to do business, and others are always eager to meet her parents by way of her referral—a win-win for everyone involved. Will leverage the available discounts for others outside the Guild if they ask nicely.
Steamchurners - Got in before anyone realized that she comes from a noble family. They were so cool with her that they voted to just let her stay without a test. She appreciates their unpretentious and humanist vibe. Philosophy and drinking is her way of being—preferably both at the same time. She picked up a few neat arcane tricks here, too.
Innovators' Exchange - The place to be when looking for business opportunities, though it's usually the members of the club who are seeking out Xiuyáng for her interest in various projects of theirs. Xiuyáng herself is interested in where technology is going, and whether or not it may someday restructure society entirely, in some kind of technological revolution.
Society of the Grapes - A place where nobles parody themselves while throwing incredible parties? Xiuyáng was born for this. She's right at home with the other masked attendees, and well respected for her high magical power, unique insight, and—somewhat paradoxically—her willingness to be casually and flagrantly incorrect.
Waveriders - Xiuyáng very much enjoys their activities. Access to their equipment is generally useful to her too, if not for nefarious purposes. Anyone hoping to catch a glimpse of her body by signing up is sure to be disappointed, though, as she covers herself even while surfing. Seriously, in this climate? Torragonese genes are something else.
Brotherhood of Brew Appreciators - Naturally, Xiuyáng will try just about any brew, and can drink pretty much the entire club under the table one after another, despite being a woman of average proportions. Nobody knows her Devourer secret, as she mostly only pretends to be drunk, using the beer for chemical energy to give her the high using a Blessing of Joy. It takes an unreasonable amount of alcohol to actually inebriate her.
Yasoi'riimel - Most outsiders and even a few insiders assume Xiuyáng is only there to learn all about the secrets of the academy. However, she's unironically interested in yasoi culture and religion as well, and at least one or two of the members genuinely know it, while most others just agree she's harmlessly fun and generally tolerant of strangeness. These guys are her home away from home—don't fuck with 'em.
Cynthia looked around at the other champions as they completed their preparations. She was already prepared, having just left her own battlefield to join them on this quest. If she had any preparations left to make, Dominus would have never let her hear the end of it. She noted the lack of fear in the three delicate-looking ladies as they declared their readiness to Amaterasu. The way Dominus acted, Cynthia was dreading having to carry the other champions on her back, but given their confidence, it seemed that might not be the case after all. As she stepped through the portal, she smirked a bit. Shin'za and his lord had an infectious attitude. She was almost looking forward to this, now.
Dominus glanced at Amaterasu as she spoke, but didn't say anything. His world was close to one of the other three infected worlds, and the rest of the gods knew it. However, it had already been decided that this world was a higher priority, and there was no use reigniting the same argument again. So, he remained silent, looking at Amaterasu's device with his arms crossed. How long would it be until his world would reclaim such technological prowess? He looked forward to finding out. Now, he just hoped his world would get that chance.
As Cynthia exited the portal into the research facility, she involuntarily shivered. Images flashed through her mind; genetic memory of a place she'd never been to had been intentionally left buried deep in the DNA of her hybrid species. It reminded her that she existed because of the genetic experiments of her cold-blooded ancestors. Yes. You are a weapon. Stay sharp like one, she mentally chided herself, in a voice that sounded like Dominus, blended with her own. She let out a long exhale, turning up the heat of the magical gemstones in her jacket to provide just a bit more warmth as she composed herself.
She took in Mitsuko's advice, looking around at the weapons available. Some, she could tell, were heavily advanced firearms. In her world, the most advanced artillery she'd ever operated were a musket and cannon. It wasn't going to be easy to learn how to effectively use them in a short time span. Instead, her eyes settled on a curved, single-edged sword with magic runes she didn't recognize carved into it. As soon as she grabbed it, it vibrated slightly and crackled with red sparks, which caused the hair on the back of Cynthia's neck to stand on end. After some fiddling with her mana, she managed to get it to stop, only charging with energy in brief intervals as she tested the weight, swinging it around halfheartedly.
Suddenly, a vampire-looking creature appeared, introducing itself. Cynthia was not put at ease by this action, as vampires on her own homeworld were notoriously polite little mass murderers. She pointed her newly acquired blade—which she didn't know the name of—at him while the others welcomed him. She glanced at them with a look as though they were the crazy ones, but she eventually relented. He was quite outnumbered and would have to be a fool to attack them, and Mitsuko insisted this place was undetectable. "Well met," she said simply, in defeat. Quietly, she was frustrated that she was having to take everyone else's word on everything. She felt like a novice once again. Perhaps, that was Dominus's angle in sending her here. It seemed an optimistic assumption, though.
Finally, she turned her attention to Illistrianna, and the flasks she's found. Cynthia couldn't read the label, either. Nonetheless, she took one, opening it up and sniffing its contents. She only considered her next action for a second. "Quite potent," she remarked, before chugging the contents. Now, she was the one getting glances, as if she were the crazy one. Appropriately, she made a sound as if she were disgusted. "Like exthpired cough thyrup," she remarked, gagging slightly.
At last, Rika's shadow arm retracted down the hall towards her. As it grabbed one of the last two beasts, she felt conflicted. Even in spite of the deferential attitude she'd displayed thus far, she did consider herself at least a little experienced, but already on her first team assignment a new weakness she didn't know she had was being revealed: how easily she and her shadow arm could be separated if she wasn't careful about staying close to it. This frustrated her to no end, but it thankfully didn't show on her face.
It did, however, show through just a bit in how she handled the remaining two beasts. "Thanks. I got it now," she said calmly as she lifted up the beast she'd grabbed by its legs and smacked the other beast with it, wielding its body like a sap. She stood there, hand casually in her pocket, quietly watching the carnage as her decoy dolls slipped away back to the entrance. Internally, she was taking out her disappointment in herself on the two giant dogs. At least she was trying not to hit any of the walls.
Nooo~! I don't wanna gooo~! Raffaella had pleaded—somewhat fussily and with mist in her eyes—to her lifeline, Tessa. Raffaella had scarcely begun to settle into her new life and get her feet wet at the academy yet. She knew pretty much nobody, yet was already being tasked with dressing up and going to a social event; it was sure to be hard on her. Tessa knew how to keep her shy little wall flower motivated, though. With the promise of a "sweet reward," she'd been gently persuaded to go. Of course, she loved her sugary treats, but she loved a mystery even more—a little fact that Tessa had subtly picked up on in the few short months they'd spent writing back and forth leading up to Raffaella's orientation, and in the days since. Still, there had been some haggling involved. She didn't need to talk to anyone if she didn't want to; Tessa just wanted her to be there. With that settled, Ra'fel agreed to give the preparations her all.
The dress was, as suited her, predominantly pink, with white accent, and very frilly. White and wine-colored rose patterns decorated it. It came with a matching shawl that covered her arms and upper body like a blanket. A medium-sized red ribbon in front, and a large one in the back completed the set. Stepping into her rose-colored heels, she gazed into the mirror, blinking. She was almost standing at a somewhat normal five feet tall, now—what a weird feeling! Finally, she put on her mask—a gift from her father—a blush pink colored one to match her look, with little diamonds carefully placed to accent the corners of her eyes. She also wore, on her head, a small, wine-colored thing that her mother called a "cocktail hat." It was covered in feathers and reminded her of a dreamcatcher. She was wearing a dreamcatcher on her head. "I look silly," she remarked quietly to herself, pouting in the mirror in disbelief. Still, she'd promised Tessa she would go, and that was that. "Time to go, Pooka," she whispered sullenly, gathering up the ball of white mossy fur in her arms.
Despite her eye-catching appearance, her walk down to the ballroom was uneventful. Nobody looked at her, yet they cleanly avoided her without thinking, like one with cortical blindness avoids obstacles while walking without being able to actually see them. For Ra'fel, this was normal life. Unless she did something crazy, she wouldn't be noticed—but, that was fine with her. She was shy and didn't want to be noticed, especially not in this ostentatious getup. So she walked, her rare albino gupoo with pink daisies as her sole traveling companion. As she did, the ephemeral threads she called "heartstrings" tickled her body uncomfortably as they phased through her, giving a sensation not unlike walking through cobwebs. This was yet another reason why she disliked crowded places. Inevitably, people who were connected on a spiritual level but physically apart would create heartstrings in her path that she'd just have to walk through. As long as she didn't touch them with her hands, they'd remain mostly incorporeal, thankfully. It's for this reason that she kept her hands to herself at all times.
At last, she made it to the ball, or at least, the ballroom. It seemed as if nothing had actually started yet, except for the food on offer. The smell made her hungry, but she didn't want to get in trouble for eating before everyone else. Thankfully, she hoarded sweets on her person for just such occasions. Holding Pooka under one arm, she retrieved a little paper bag from inside her shawl and opened it up. She stuffed the strawberry shortcake swiss roll into her mouth, her cheeks tingling with delight. "Mm~!" As she enjoyed her little snack, she looked around the room at the unfamiliar faces. There was one absolutely, terrifyingly tall man—lady—person? —that she was glad she wouldn't have to talk to. There was also the energetic cait girl that Ra'fel was tempted to talk to, but couldn't get past her shyness. Then, there was...
"...Boss Kass?! Is that you?! No way!" she blurted out in shock.
With a sound like a prolonged, forlorn sigh, the spot in which she stood became hazy, shimmering like the illusion of an oasis in the desert. Gradually, Raffaella became visible, standing there in her ballroom dress and cocktail hat, wide-eyed with shock as she stared at Kaspaan, remnants of the icing from her pastry gracing her pale cheeks. Suddenly, everyone remembered that there was a new addition to the House of Ivar, a petite and cute but desperately shy girl named Raffaella. She stood there, frozen, her face pale as death, bordering on translucent. A younger student body could have been convinced that they'd seen a ghost. However, as the reality of her outburst gradually seemed to sink in, the life inside of her became apparent as her cheeks flushed pink. Terrified by the new sets of eyes on her, she suddenly squeezed her pet gupoo, causing the poor creature's eyes to bulge slightly, and its body to shiver, creating a small cloud of pollen.
"Hwa... ababa..." she stammered, trying not to sneeze. "Het—chieuw!" she squeaked into her hapless pet.
"...S-Sorry," she apologized to no one in particular. Trembling with fright, she hid her face behind the fuzzy puff ball in her arms.
"What's the most dangerous thing you've ever done?"
Cynthia Schovajsa, Reptilian War Queen
Mm. I charged blindly into a blizzard. Complete white out. Toward cannon fire. It could have been anything. I took my chance that it were mere infantry. It ought to have been one of the mechanized behemoth called golem. It would have been my death, to bring a mere five of mine home in one piece. ...I'd do it again.
...My niece. Dead, from friendly fire. No one to blame or kill in revenge. I took no punitive action. My family called me weak. What would you have done?
With the beast trapped in Rika's grasp thoroughly pasted, she no longer had a "shield" to protect her. That wouldn't do, of course, and so she swept low at the monster-class demon with a grabbing motion from her giant arm, hoping to at least goad him into jumping straight into Natsumi's fire attack, and distract him from whatever nonsense Andrea was up to. Unlike the posturing, cocky foe who stood before them, Andrea at least acted somewhat serious in Rika's estimation, so she hoped Andrea wasn't just playing with her food.
Then the fireballs reached her end of the hall. Thankfully, she had left some distance between her and the monster, giving her some time to absorb the pattern of their attack. She skillfully danced out of the way of the incoming projectiles, unwilling to experience even a fraction of the pain of being burned alive. As she dodged, she hopped backwards, trying to keep up with Akira as she retreated. As the smoke cleared, though, Rika could see three more of the beasts charging her. "Aw, der'mo," she swore. "Uh, Emi-san?" she said somewhat urgently as the three approached. The two Rika dolls left at the entrance they'd used abandoned their posts, charging into the construction site to provide their maker with some backup. If her grab missed, she was about to be in a bad spot.
Hmm. That's a good question. I don't have very many peers, as cursemaker is an unpopular profession.
...Oh? I suppose an explanation is in order, then.
You can think of it as a magical equivalent to a clockmaker. Only replace gears with magic circles and you have the gist of it, though it's vastly more complex if I may be so bold. It also carries much the same moral dilemma as a locksmith's skill set. Breaking curses is an ugly affair, one that results in unpredictable and untold amounts of human suffering. It's much safer to reverse them, but doing so requires reverse engineering. Hence, my profession—but it is one that is tolerated, not celebrated. The state recognizes me as an expert in magical maladies, and I carry the title of "doctor," but the church and much of the population see me only as a glorified witch. The knowledge I possess could easily be put to evil purposes. So, I suppose what I'd like to see is more honest cursemakers. The ones I know of are no better than witches. One curses, another cures—both split the money. It's quite a racket. I charge very little, and that angers them, as it takes away from their so-called business. It's made my life quite difficult, but that's how I like it. The struggle reminds me that I'm still alive, despite how dead the darkness makes me feel inside. ...Sorry, I've rambled quite a bit, haven't I?
I suppose my question is a bit silly, coming from a dark mage. Have you ever had an unrequited love? How did you deal with that?
Tessa Vellhart "Watch out everyone, cold take incoming! Our Mentor is the best! ...Shut up! I'm not biased!"
Anastasia Aslan "Makes you feel super warm and safe! A Gifted hug maestro!"
Lhoren Faith Ashdale "Big sister energy! Need I say more?"
A Tier
Emmelynne 'Melle' Starbuck "A super chill girl with unrivaled coziness! Very easygoing and fluffy, can do small talk or just vibe! Very versatile!"
Sylvia Copeland "A cat is fine too? Excuse me, a cat is fine? A cat is purrfect, hello?! Watch those claws, though!"
Lisa Goldheart "For those craving a soft-but-strong safety hug, Lisa's the best! She's also really warm, too!"
Leah Eusebia Clearwater "Imagine being able to hug someone from fifty feet away! Wow! She's also super strong! Big safety points!"
Fasha Sumbul "Strokes my hair like a villainess. Not sure how I feel about that, but she does have this nice, calming scent!"
B Tier
Raffaella Struna "Very fluffy and smol, but to be honest, low availability has to put me down in B Tier. Really hard to find during a 100% All Hugs Speedrun."
Primrose Greenleigh "Great earthy smell, friendly, and gives headpats! Hands are a bit rough though, and the gardening tools get in the way a little."
Corrina Lucretia Parisi-Di Cosma Marchesi "Gives the tightest hugs. Metal hands are a little cold. Get yourself a blanket and prepare to get snug!"
Lucius Kree "Very tall, gives wholesome gay best friend vibes. I don't like being picked up, myself, but your mileage may vary!"
C Tier
Kaspaan Mustaven "Sorry boss! I just get really cold after a while!"
Beatrix Gyre "I love the positive energy, but my hair has a different opinion on the matter. Don't get shocked!"
Petyr Nostradé "Gives acceptable hugs, but you become a target of everyone's jealousy afterwards. Not enough positive points for the cost. Sorry!"
Manny Ryi "Generous with hugs, but will hug you regardless of what form she's in. Some hugs will be fluffy. Some might be... sticky. I'll never forget."
D Tier / Unranked
Myrion Stevar "I feel like hugs aren't really his thing. He always seems so tired. I dunno, hard to rank. Never tried it!"
Ezekiel Seganal "This one also needs peer review. Hugging them seems like a bad idea; but I'm too shy to ask, anyway!"
F Tier / Unranked
Taegan “Tae” Granlock "Declined a hug, wouldn't say why. Probably heard me called 'RiffRaff' once. Your loss!"
Walter Ozwyrd "Can you believe the nerve of this man?! Charging money for hugs?! It's outrageous, a scandal! Free hug gang, rise up against this tyranny!"
"Reconnaissance complete, boss! Here are the results! ...Hey, this info is really important to me, okay?!"
A late twenties/early thirties, they/them something-or-other who's been doing this writing thing on and off since my teens. When I need to blow off some steam, I play the kinds of games that would make the average Dark Souls fan scream with rage. Aside from those two hobbies, I don't make time for much. My roleplaying is probably the most social I'll ever be across the internet, but hopefully that's what you're here for. [i]Time Zone: +9, Korea/Japan/Australia. Hello American night shifters.[/i]
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">	A late twenties/early thirties, they/them something-or-other who's been doing this writing thing on and off since my teens. When I need to blow off some steam, I play the kinds of games that would make the average Dark Souls fan scream with rage. Aside from those two hobbies, I don't make time for much. My roleplaying is probably the most social I'll ever be across the internet, but hopefully that's what you're here for. <span class="bb-i">Time Zone: +9, Korea/Japan/Australia. Hello American night shifters.</span></div>
Lunamaria Hawke,
Suicharte,
dragonpiece,
Izurich,
Lildear18,
Heckno12,
Ti,
Rabidporcupine,
Kaithe Dame,
BlackRoseSiren
