Current
I should write science fiction, so I can get paid to blackpill about how technology can be misused instead of doing it for free.
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1 yr ago
The last time I sent my picture to someone... oh wait, I've never done that.
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1 yr 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
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1 yr ago
I can't find the brain anywhere inside this fog, chief. I think the brain has evaporated. It has become the fog itself.
1 yr 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
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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.
The girl's mad eyes and grin widened, impossibly. "Khhk khhk khhk khhhk! She let out a horrible sound, caught somewhere between a snicker and a wheeze. "I knew it! You don't want to kill magical girls at all! You want to turn them, and if I had to guess—just to see what would happen?" She smiled expectantly, as if she understood Nonsuch's mindset completely. "Well, that's only half of my reasons for trying to turn you girls~ My original wish was to see the world, you know? Instead of seeing planet earth, though, I was shown the depravity of human beings—and should I not show other magical girls the Truth? Isn't that the 'right' thing to do? Even us so-called 'dark girls' want to do the 'right' thing sometimes, you know~?" she said pleasantly.
Taking her phone back from Nonsuch, she crossed her arms and threw herself off the war hammer, dangling from the pole with her legs. "—but you wound me, my dear rival! I daresay I didn't fall so easily as you think, you know? I was hanging above that dark abyss for some time, looking for even a glimmer of precious light..." as she said this, a metaphorical ocean of false Mogalls formed a shaft around them, squirming as they flew up high, creating the illusion that both they and the war hammer were falling, the only source of light being Kiyo's glowing red eyes. "I don't think I'll be raised up so easily, either!" she shouted impossibly over the roar of movement around them. Then, she closed her eyes, momentarily bathing the two of them in utter blackness.
Then, the illusions began to fade away. "Hehe! I'd rather have dinner at a restaurant than in a hospital bed, so I'll let you go. For now," she teased. "Until I get to welcome you into the fold with that fateful hug, I'll leave you a question that's really a question: why bother to raise up what's already proven itself—as you see it—unable to stand?" She had that genuine look of curiosity again, mixed with a sly smirk. "Oh, but, one more thing I can guarantee: I'll see you around!" With a pleasant smile, she let herself fall, unaware that Nonsuch had even sent a text at all.
—and, as things stood, a magical girl with dubious survival instincts who had "changed her mind" plummeted towards the earth.
Shinobu was taking everything in stride—including the revelation that Yui had been a magical girl before. "Oh yeah, that checks out," she replied to Izumi's question about it. Unbeknownst to everyone, she wasn't buying any of this magical girl stuff for a second. When the light entered her chest and filled her with a warm tingling, she tried to guess at what might actually be happening to her in the real world. She stood frozen as she imagined herself upon an operating table, being given open-heart surgery. It filled her with a sense of dread. Oh, this is what they call a "bad trip," she thought, but didn't say.
Strangely, though, her surroundings didn't change to match the encroaching sense of impending doom. That was weird. In her state of confusion, she ended up abandoning her plan to stay in the room and just followed the others down the hall. According to what the fairy girl was saying, she should have changed into a magical girl by now, right? —but she didn't look any different. Did she have to transform or something? How would that work? As two students appeared down the hall, Shinobu hatched a silly idea. Striking a pose, one hand on her hip and the other making a V sign in front of her eye, she smiled at the girls. "Kira, kira~" she announced with a goofy grin, prompting the girls to snicker. "What's with that?" one asked. "She's doing that substitute teacher positivity thing," the other girl replied, shrugging it off as the pair of them went down the hall, only occasionally glancing back. Despite what they'd said, though, their sudden lethargy after having passed the entrance of the cocoon seemed to recover a bit from her "positivity thing."
"Hmph! Well, I'm sorry for having substitute teacher energy," she quietly sassed back, sticking out her tongue at the students. By the time she was done with these antics, she was almost the last one to enter the cocoon, quickly rushing to catch up to the other teachers. As she walked into the detritus-filled sports field, at first she wondered why she'd have conjured such a scene from her mind—but then, it clicked. This wasn't her "bad trip," it was a student's, and she might even know which one it is! A suddenly serious Shinobu struck a sufficiently serious pose, hand over her heart like she was about to recite an oath. Imagining herself as a magical girl was somewhat difficult for her, what with her whole complex about her age—or rather, just because it was weird. Right.
Shinobu's transformation felt to her like being dropped into a dunk tank. Watching it was like seeing what could only be described as a visual glitch open up in the air above her head and douse her in buckets of ink. When Shinobu opened her eyes, inspecting her "drip," she had an understandably confused expression on her bewitchingly beautiful face. "Not what I expected from a magical girl outfit, to be quite frank. Hey, tell me I haven't fallen to the dark side already! It's too soon for that!" she pleaded with Lux.
JABBERWOCK: A fire-belching axe of macabre make and peerless power. Requires a physical strength roll of 25 or more just to lift the axe and swing it around; requires 55 or more for ignition to use special moves, or to steal it from an inept wielder who cannot use the ignition. Requires a roll of 75 or more to steal it from an adept wielder.
SPECIAL MOVES:
DOUBLE DOWN: Missed? No problem. Use the ignition to perform a pole-vault and try again.
SHUFFLE: Really? You missed again? Fire the ignition and slide backwards. Let them eat cake. Er, exhaust.
STRAIGHT FLUSH: Do the previous move, but hold the axe in place to use it as a flamethrower. You can hold it still, yes?
ROYAL FLUSH: Do the same move, but backwards. Ride Jabberwock like a witch's broom. Mind the angle you hold it, or you'll fly.
HIGH ROLL: I told you to mind the angle. For Pete's sake. At least attack on your way down so you don't look so incompetent.
ROULETTE: Spin to win. Your enemy might make fun of you for turning your back—just spin faster; problem solved.
SPLIT: By counteracting the leverage with both hands, you can just propel yourself forward. Whatever you do, don't trip and fall.
ROYAL F#&%-UP: Congratulations, the axe flew away. Unbelievable. I hope it hits you on its way back to you.
MAGIC BRANCHES: Elemental (Fire/Earth) and Enchantment
SIGNATURE SPELLS:
SACRED HEART: Baptizes the target in ethereal flames, turning their very soul into a living bonfire that smites evil.
DIAMOND ARMOR: Adds 2d10 to the target's strength rolls. Enhances both body and weapon, for there is no difference.
HELL'S BELLS: Adds 1d20 to the target's strength rolls. A fire-elemental enchantment that may ignite enemies.
EARTHSPLITTER: Opens a great chasm in the earth, creating a fresh grave of boiling mud for all who fall in it.
TRUMP CARD - HEARTSNATCHER: Twice per scenario, Marissa can turn any non-ultimate spell that's currently being cast into a Joker card. Doing this cancels the spell, steals it, and stores it in the card for Marissa's use. Each time the Joker card is used, it then teleports into the possession of a random ally or enemy until it eventually ends up in the possession of the target the spell was stolen from, at which point the Joker card is destroyed and the spell is returned to its original owner. There is both a red Joker card and a black Joker card; the red one can steal an elemental or enchantment spell, while the black one steals black magic or illusion spells. Joker cards can be hoarded to deny enemy spellcasting, but they can also be stolen by a pickpocket, so for slower characters like Marissa, sometimes it's better to use them.
BIO/FUN FACTS: A passionate and stubborn woman with a single objective: to destroy the Dark One. Whether having the Seven Legendary Weapons will destroy it or summon it is of no consequence to her; if it's summoned, she will be there to destroy it. Her heart may be considered "pure" in the strictest sense—that she has no personal, selfish motives for seeking out the Seven. In another light, however, it might be seen as an empty void; for Marissa no longer has anything to lose—no name of great repute, no surviving family, and no property besides her great bloodied battleax. This life and this world have taken everything from her, and everything she may add in place of what she's lost will someday be removed, of this she is certain. Even her combat abilities and her life will be taken by time and death.
That doesn't mean she won't try, however. Marissa will greedily claw and grasp at every ounce of power she can acquire in service of her end goal. If the world has decided that might makes right, then those who seek to be right must acquire the means of might. She's honed her body to a razor's edge and accumulated the strongest equipment she can extort skilled craftsmen into making for her. While she's rather skilled at manipulating others, giving her an undeserved air of sharp intellect, her ability to manipulate numbers and objects in her mind is pretty dull. She's also blind in one eye, giving her a lack of depth perception that hinders her coordination. Igniting Jabberwock gives Marissa a much-needed speed boost, but she's otherwise pretty slow when in full armor, and wielding the Jabberwock with her armor removed is about as sensible as doing metalwork in a miniskirt—not that there isn't a chance Marissa would try it. When it comes to magic, Marissa keeps things simple and effective, using it to enhance her weapon and its attacks. She has the raw talent, but lacks the intellect to be truly creative with it. Combining earth and heat to create boiling mud is about as deep as she goes. Perhaps a sharper mind can teach her some new tricks.
The pupa approached Raffaella, and she stood—or rather, floated—frozen, strangely not with fear as she expected, but at genuinely not knowing what she could do except run. Somehow, though, that just didn't feel right. Perhaps there were more logical reasons why she shouldn't run, like the possibility that there might be more than one pupa approaching from behind, just around the bend. A real, proper tactician might have suggested pushing forward to unite with reinforcements up ahead, but Raffaella was no tactician. Rather, a single, near irrational thought invaded the mental space that really ought to have been taken up by her survival instincts. You need to be strong right now. You're capable of that. It echoed in her mind like the lyrics of a song as the pupa charged at her, its hunger for the kissed mystic obvious in its cold eyes.
The pupa jabbed at her, but she swerved out of the way quickly. It jabbed its finger again, intent on piercing her heart. Raffaella picked up on this and began dodging in counterclockwise circles around the creature. Frustrated, it charged at her, trying to predict where she'd be, but Raffaella spun around and started going the other way. The tiny girl may have had a big target beating inside her chest, but she was fast, and this time she did more than evade. As she spun around like an aerial ballerina, she lifted up one leg, kicking her assailant right in the side of its head. "Ow!" she cried, grasping her foot, as the young man who'd effectively rescued the two first years finished the job by stabbing the downed pupa. "I think I broke my ankle!" Raffaella cried out over-dramatically, prompting the boy to inspect the "damage" and insist that she'd be fine; it was just bruising.
Evil Eye's manic laughter was drowned out by the whooshing of air all around them as they rose higher and higher. Did it seem to her like Nonsuch was acting as a protector of the world? Not really. As was usually the case with Evil Eye, it was a rhetorical question for her to think about later—something to slowly bore into her mind and eat away at her—but as was usually the case with Nonsuch, it was like trying to bore a hole into a lava tube. Everything Evil Eye thought she knew about magical girls, all of her experienced calculations told her that she could make this girl fall; but something beneath the surface, burning and inexplicable, repelled her efforts—and it made her laugh so.
She was just so interesting.
"Hehehe! If we hadn't been stopped just now, would you have chased me all the way to the ocean? Just so you could chat me up?" She crossed her legs and tilted her head curiously, still not looking away from Nonsuch. If her body ached at all from the fresh bruising she'd just received, she didn't show it. Instead, she flashed a sly grin at her alleged enemy's suggestion. It seemed as if she liked the idea. "Hmhm~ Just what am I supposed to gain from tugging on my allies' supposed heartstrings? Some sense of validation—that someone cares about me, that I'm important enough to risk life and limb to come rescue?" She scoffed at the notion.
"Perhaps you don't understand me as well as I thought. My dear Nonsuch—that's how a Light Girl thinks."
If it were possible, her eyes grew even wider with madness. Illusory magical girls that Nonsuch couldn't recognize appeared behind Evil Eye, looking down at her with scorn. "These protectors of the peace rejected me because my powers weren't useful for violence. Isn't it funny? How they'd fallen already, and couldn't see it." An illusory sun rose and quickly swept the girls away as it passed over the two of them. It continued to rise and set at unnaturally fast speeds. "The light is fleeting and quick to leave us when we need it most. The human heart is just a pit of darkness, with carefully woven lies as our only safety net to prevent us from falling in. Things like love, hope, duty—once you see them for the flimsy excuses they are, and sit on the precipice of that gaping maw, you can only accept what you are, or stand up for lies." She giggled suddenly. "Or I suppose you can just sit on that precipice until your heart is as numb as your ass—but then, it'll be too late to stand back up again... Someday, you will make that choice, Nonsuch. To stand up for lies, or fall head-over-heels into the truth—and when you do, I'll welcome you with open arms!"
She extended her arms out toward Nonsuch, as if to offer the girl with broken bones a hug. Her smile almost seemed genuine; was that an illusion too? —but Evil Eye's "moment" was spoiled by the notification from her phone. Her face soured, she pulled the offending dopamine dealing device from inside the folds of her gi. Reading the text, she giggled. "You see, it's just as you say. Like I'm not even in danger, ahuhu~! ...but it doesn't matter to me if they 'care' or not, you know?" She smiled, holding the phone loosely in her hands and waving it contemplatively as she considered her reply. It didn't really matter to her whether she was "part of the Club" or if she was just an orbiter who got made fun of behind her back. Rei gave her food, a place to belong, and Miseria to hunt, which was more than she expected from others. Her reasons for doing all of that for Kiyo didn't matter. Only her actions in the moment mattered. Someday, she'd find an excuse to stop doing those things. Her reasons for turning her back on her wouldn't matter either. Somewhere, there was another "Rei" willing to take her. Their excuses for doing so wouldn't matter, either. "Kindness" was illusion—just another carefully woven lie—and in the end, things like illusions and lies—excuses and misdirection—they weren't really worth thinking about, were they?
I have a post for Evil Eye mostly formed in my head but it'll be two days before I even have the time to sit down and write more than a sentence or two.
A strange and shifting space, with the only consistent feature being its collection of creatures, both real and imagined. Sometimes it appears as an ancient and advanced laboratory, with creatures locked away in glass tubes of an indescribable sort. At others, it's a more rustic location, with proper enclosures, sometimes with accessible entrances Karla can use to get close to the critters. Sometimes, the enclosures are easy for the animals to escape from. Sometimes, there are no enclosures at all, with all of its fauna roaming free in an open field still being set up for construction. At the worst of times, it's an endless stretch of untamed wildlands with predators lurking behind every bush, or an indistinguishable black mass of varying body types pressing in on all sides—an inescapable and crushing nightmare come to life, threatening to consume and swallow Karla whole. Sometimes, Karla finds herself in an enclosure, usually with an inmate... but not always. Sometimes, she wonders if she is part of the Menagerie.
Personality/Bio:
Look into Karla's eyes, and you'll see the face of a girl who's used to disappointment. When your ability as a Dreamer results in the constant presence of animal companions, it turns out that civilized society has no place for you to belong. Sure, you might find a few apartment complexes that allow pets, with some caveats. You may even find one or two workplaces in the entire world that allow an emotional support animal—but summoning a common house cat or golden retriever is about as likely as winning the lottery. You'll never find the likes of, say, a starfish, an ostrich, or a whole-ass crocodile under that umbrella, either—and while there are plenty of places full of people "willing to work with animals," what they really mean is that they require their employees to be willing to work with their animals. Nobody is willing to work with hers.
One might think that her place to belong is obviously among other Dreamers, and while that isn't exactly wrong, it's not exactly right, either. Karla has zero control, more or less, over what is summoned, and whether or not she can command it. She's spent most of her life drifting from group to group, hoping to impress enough to earn a day's wage or at least a meal. Knowing that it's only a matter of time until she summons something as useless as a toy dinosaur or as dangerous as a saber-toothed tiger, she never allows herself to get too attached to anyone, least of all her animal companions which are largely responsible for her misery and don't even have the courtesy of sticking around to serve as substitute friends. They all eventually disappear, leaving her alone again. Even her mother abandoned her long ago, and she no longer remembers her family name or how old she is. The only silver lining is that no matter how disobedient her summons may be, the worst they'll do is ignore her. Most of the time she doesn't have to deal with the dangers of traveling alone, and for that, she's grateful.
Having spent all of her days surrounded by animals and most of her nights sleeping in the wilderness, she is pretty much numb to the inherent terrors mother nature holds over most "civilized people." She's used to the various howls and cries, and can easily tell them apart from the otherworldly noises made by nightmares. She has a sense for real danger, knowing when to pack up and go. If she awakens to the sensation of a snake or spider on her skin, she'll quickly go back to sleep. She naturally possesses many survival skills that other Dreamers have to be trained for, as well as some that they aren't, such as—mercifully—how to make soap. Whereas other Dreamers often forget these skills as they rise through the ranks, they are so ingrained in Karla that she'll never lose them. She has that impossibly practical and paradoxical nature of having the eye for details, but the personality type of not sweating the small stuff. She travels light, her greatest luxuries being the handful of multi-tools she's found and repaired while exploring the ruins of the old world—her finest treasures, if you were to ask her.
Summons are created involuntarily whenever the previous summon expires. At any time, a summon can teleport to Karla's side, or vice-versa if the summon is sufficiently enormous.
D20: Determines the familiar's school of magic. Sub-schools are shown in parentheses.
1-2: Fire/Ice (Heat and Cold)
3-4: Water/Thunder (Storms and Lightning)
5-6: Wind/Earth (Form and Substance)
7-8: Light/Shadow (Holy and Profane)
9-10: Nature/Artifice (Wood and Metal)
11-12: Truth/Illusion (Sight and Sound)
13-14: Inertia/Kinesis (Stop and Go)
15-16: Time/Space (Sun and Moon)
17-18: Blessing/Curse (Life and Death)
nat19: Divine (Commandment)
nat20: Primordial (Chaos)
D8: Determines the familiar's level of power, from Tier 0 to Tier 7.
1: Tier 0 - An inanimate object. Does nothing at all, but might be of dubious real-world utility. Example: Rubber Duck (Water)
2: Tier 1 - The most basic of familiars. Entirely unintelligent and commonly know only utility spells. Example: Will-o'-wisp (Fire)
3: Tier 2 - Below-average summons, capable only of following basic commands and casting basic spells. Example: Wight (Shadow)
4: Tier 3 - Average summons, capable enough to hold their own without commands. Dog-like intelligence. Example: Dire Wolf (Illusion)
5: Tier 4 - Above-average summons, often large and very capable in combat. Typically intelligent. Example: Colossal Squid (Water)
6: Tier 5 - Dangerous beasts, often dwarfing Karla in size. Near-human intelligence at a minimum. Example: Sasquatch (Nature)
7: Tier 6 - Extremely dangerous to handle, these anthropomorphic creatures humble human intelligence. Example: Wendigo (Ice)
8: Tier 7 - Supreme minions suitable for deities. Beyond all human reasoning. The kings of monsters. Example: Conquest (Divine)
nat20+8: The Tier 7 Lucky Black Cat familiar. Its Primordial Meows are said to cause miracles to happen. Zero obedience.
D4: Determines the creature's first reaction to being summoned.
1: Fight Response. Charges Karla, attacks the enemies nearest to her as she runs away.
2: Flight Response. Flees from Karla on instinct, attacks random enemies as it flees. (Tier 5 and above defend instead of fleeing.)
3: Freeze Response. Does nothing for the first turn it's summoned, but will allow Karla to mount them if applicable.
4: Calm Response. Will allow Karla to mount them or issue commands where either is applicable.
D4: When failing an obedience check, perform a random action.
1: Physical Attack
2: Magical Attack
3: Defense/Parry
4: Do Nothing
D100: Determines how difficult the creature is to handle, from 0 (totally wild) to 99 (99% obedient)
Note: Tier 5, 6 and 7 creatures carry an innate obedience penalty of 20, 40 and 60 percent, respectively.
D12: Determines the number of rounds of combat the familiar will remain for, ranging from 1-12.
D6: Determines how many times the summon can use its magic, ranging from 1-6 spells to cast.
Rika ran ahead, paying no mind to her coworkers' antics so long as they were following closely behind her. Something was different about her today. "...Yeah. Blood," she replied to Kaeru, her tone one of disappointment rather than surprise or horror. She watched Kaida's purification ceremony out of the corner of her eye, her head on a swivel, not really sure if she should be doing that in the event that someone decided it was evidence. Well, she didn't really care one way or the other. Not today, not with a Devil on the loose.
"I agree with the others. It's probably not our target—but we investigate together or not at all." She turned her head to regard the others, then snapped her head back to Kaida as she caught her moving forward on her own. "What are you—wait!" she barked in a hushed whisper, following after her, shadow arm at the ready. "You got a deathwish?!" she whispered frantically. Something was definitely off with her. Gone was the smooth confidence of their previous mission. Though it didn't show on her face at all, she seemed almost afraid. She was still doing what needed to be done, but it seemed less natural somehow.
In a single, visceral instant, Kiyo's bike was gone from beneath her. She blinked, unable to process how this had happened, watching the pavement get closer in adrenaline-fueled slow motion. Evil Eye remembered two strange thoughts occurring to her in that moment. She found it funny, of all things, that ditching the bike in favor of flying had been an afterthought. To be fair, it had been a cool bike. The other odd thought that invaded her consciousness in place of any sense of self-preservation was the mental image of getting an earful, either from Rei or from Shatterscape about losing one of her precious bodies. Not that it was a guarantee that she was paste by now, but...
Yeah, I should probably start flying before I become just another pretty red stain on the asphalt, she finally thought.
That thought, too, was snatched from her as time suddenly seemed to resume. Snatched out of the air, embraced by unfamiliar hands, she made contact with the pavement, but hardly felt a thing. That was either a very good sign, or a very bad one. Bracing herself for the subsequent impacts, she tumbled along with her captor into the grass. Were they falling down the mountain now? Eventually, mercifully, their harrowing brush with death ended. Evil Eye looked up at her rival, bewildered for only a moment before she burst out laughing yet again. "Was it as good for you as it was for me?" she managed to taunt between her gasping and coughing. When she'd finally caught her breath, she simply settled into the small crater of dirt, eyes locked on Nonsuch. "Be honest with me, now—what are you hoping to gain from this? You think I'll get on my knees and beg for my life? Shake your hand, tell you I was wrong all along and ask to be your friend? What?" She grinned madly, but her words carried a tone of genuine curiosity. "If you're going to kill me, answer me this first: why protect a world that rewards only evil? You've seen it, I know you have; I can see it in your eyes. You're not like those others who cling to the light like shit to a toilet bowl. What goes on in that head of yours, huh?" She reached up, as if to grab Nonsuch by the shoulders and pull her in closer—and as soon as she did, all over Hibusa town, her Mogalls began screeching madly, a sound like the mournful wail of a banshee with a touch of nails on a chalkboard, with the Mogall closest to Shatterscape also flailing their appendages wildly. Unless Nonsuch looked away from Kiyo's eyes, all she would hear is a dull ringing in her ears, though.
I just want to pop in here real quick and mention that this was planned between me and ERode. They aren't being lame or anything. I'll try to get a post out tonight with some dialogue for Nonsuch and a distress signal for Shatterscape.
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>
Abstract Proxy
Noctis
Antlers
wintersoldier
Villamvihar
Snowdrops
X Fiendfyre X
Silly
Little Bird
TokyoPewPew
