King Cosmos

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

Akeno

“Tsk.”

It seemed this opponent was a little smarter than the others Akeno had seen fight, taking advantage of the blind spot her shield created to feint an attack at her middle and then rapping her shin with the wooden sword instead. He then circled towards the side he had hit, the side that was now hurting, and lunged while her sword was out of position.

As strategies went it was decent, but if this Orc expected Akeno to shy away from his attack or hesitate just because of a little pain then he was going to be sorely disappointed. She ignored the shooting pains down her leg to twist around even as he started circling and met her opponents lunge with one of her own. Lifting her shield up, Akeno didn’t use it to block but instead jammed the wooden edge of it into the underside of his arms to stop him from bringing his sword down in the first place. At the same time she swung her club in a low arc towards her opponent’s own legs.

@Zeroth

Fate/Dark Heritage

Berserker

Saber pulled away before Hang could grab his sword, then drew his own weapon and deflected his blade. Not too surprising, stopping his attack was a feat that Berserker would have expected from any Servant known for using a sword, but this deflection did more than just divert his blade; it redirected the force of his swing in such a way as to leave him off balance when the counter attack came and though the sword slid across his skin harmlessly, it demonstrated a severe amount of precision on Saber’s part.

Precise or not, no sword could harm him while he held the Taming Sari and Berserker charged heedlessly towards his opponent even as he prepared another swing. A short chant and a swing at nothing sent a rush of wind towards him. From behind him his Master sent lightning of his own to partially counteract the building storm. Berserker charged through, letting the wind buffet his body that tore at his clothes and his skin, the slight injuries not bothering him in the least.

Shou said something about territory that barely pierced the red veil descending over Hang Jebat’s vision. Closing the distance between them, Berserker swung at Saver again with a heavy overhead strike and prepared to follow up with a roundhouse kick when the strike with blocked or side-stepped.

@Randomguy@Iamme

The Hunt, A Modern Fantasy Smorgasbord RP

Angelica could only smile as Morgana returned the firebolt towards her. Redirecting the firebolt to land on the ground, conveniently hitting a brazier and setting it on fire. The statue of Hecate behind it turned from a dead reflection of the goddess into a seemingly silent observer, whether that was a deliberate flare for Angelica or convenient happenstance would forever remain a mystery.

Morgana also seems to be weak towards Holy Magic. An unfortunate possibility for Angelica as she thinks of her future moves. She is weak towards Holy Magic, sure. But as Morgana expected, that is not an area of expertise on Angelica’s part. She needed something much more subtle, more quiet. At that point, however, a thought came towards the elderly witch. And she smiled. Yes. That can work She thought. Deciding, counterintuitively, to sit down, her legs crossed as she started casting something small. Small and barely noticeable even to the most skilled magic users. Light flashes of purple and white seemingly going out like fireworks out from her hand. And at the end of it all, the flashes stopped.

The spell is ready. All she needs to do is provoke Morgana to act first, and make her think too emotionally instead of strategically. That would increase the chances of her plan working out. “Dearest Morgana. May I ask you a question? Why did you run away from this household? I know the reasons may vary daughter. Perhaps you wanted to explore other types of magic, perhaps you wanted to meet other people from other backgrounds in life? All very understandable reasons. But perhaps… you just felt that you would never be able to achieve the heights of your mother, and you ran because you needed the approval of some faraway, distant organisation that wouldn’t understand you. An organisation that will provide you with value, purpose, and direction in your otherwise unremarkable and unfulfilling life? Makes sense, you did ran away with your Witch’s Hat after all…

“Also, pray tell. Why did you always send me your research papers daughter? They are impressive papers, yes, but I am very sure the gods and fellow researchers at the OMR would understand that. So why did you send that to me? Do you crave the feeling, the desire that we will welcome you back to the fold? Did you want to prove that you were doing something with your life? To me? To yourself? That you hadn't thrown everything away for nothing? You could have come back any time, all you had to do was admit your mistake. It feels… pathetic, really. Oh, and of course I always burned whatever papers you’d sent to my address to the firepit. No need to peruse whatever forbidden, and ultimately, useless knowledge you’d have stumbled upon that I don’t have existing knowledge over.

“Really. In truth, this little job of yours is a little bit of a farce, isn’t it? Heretical studies? Who named that? I remain convinced that the director of the OMR herself took one look at the name of that department and thought it so preposterous that she approved it. Just to see how you would ultimately disappoint your new bosses just like how you disappointed your family.”

The matriarch also heard some yapping from the cells, perhaps some of her newly acquired captives didn’t understand their place in this whole affair, she decided to ignore whatever voices were coming out from the hanging cages, and recentered her attention towards defeating Morgana.

There is enough going on around the matriarch that focusing her attention on someone wanting to distract her would be a major mistake on her part. Just one provocative move from Morgana is all she needs. And the tide of the fight would turn in her favour, slowly, but surely…

---

It was probably too much to hope that her mother would start a monologue about something useful; all of her plans, how she had reached this point and how to stop her for example. Instead the older witch settled down into a comfortable position and began to recite the tired old song that was her disappointment with her daughter.

A familiar tune this one, Morgana could almost hum along to it. How could she leave? Who would be the next head of the Faith family, if not her? Why waste her talents there? The verses differed but the chorus was always the same; come back home and we will start again from where we left off. It had been year since she has last heard it and to those who did not know either Morgana or her mother the words might almost sound like those of a loving family member. Witches had long been adept as tricking people after all, even each other; even themselves.
Morgana knew what her mother wanted wasn’t an heir or a daughter, it was a pawn; she hadn’t always, but she knew it now. They both did, and both left it unspoken, but only one of them thought the other still stupid enough to believe the lie.

Ah, but this time the words were different and the chorus never came. Doing away with pretences this time were they? Was her mother finally giving breath to the truth that had laid behind her teeth all of these years, the truth that Morgana had finally figured out when she stopped paying attention to the words and started paying attention to the woman? Weak, stupid, helpless little Morgana. Ran away from home because she couldn’t follow her lessons little Morgana. Hid from her mother because she didn’t want to be scolded little Morgana. Attention seeking, desperate for approval she couldn’t earn little Morgana. Your efforts are beneath my notice, your job is a farce that I refuse to take seriously and your work is a joke fit only for kindling. Little Morgana.

She had heard those words even when they were spoken aloud, buried under layers and layers of the pageantry that witches were so fond of. And now that they were spoken out loud for all to hear, all Morgana could do was smile.

“Why?”

It was an ugly thing; all bared teeth and not a spark of joy. Rather it seemed to be carved of pure, terrible vindication. Morgana’s hands rose and with two fingers the witch began to rapidly draw a complex circle in the air, one hand covering the wide, sweeping motions while the other filled in the finer details. Three concentric circles, the space between each forming a ring that was quickly turned from empty space into scrawling script of what appeared to be mostly Arabic but was almost certainly made of multiple languages at once. The centre was left blank until the last moment, but as the outer rings were completed that too was swiftly taken over by an assortment of lines that formed a shape of some kind that hurt the eyes to look at for too long.

“It’s quite simple really. I hate you. I’ve hated you since I’ve been old enough to understand the gravity of the word.”

It was not beyond her notice that her mother had been casting this entire time; the wards on her person might not protect her from curses, but they certainly burned in their presence enough to warn her of their presence, if not their nature. She was aware too, or the counter-spell her mother had woven around her that would make direct offense against her difficult to achieve.
At the moment, Morgana cared for neither of these facts.

Heedless of the warnings buzzing against her skin, Morgana snatched the magic circle out of the air by its centre, her fingers somehow intersecting with none of the drawn lines in the process, and slammed it onto the ground.

As the flare of magic faded and sunk into the stone it took all of the light in the room with it. The brazier lit before the statue of Hecate went dark, as did every other source of illumination in the room as the two witches, the awaiting audience and the captive were plunged into unnatural darkness and the next words Morgana spoke echoed around the room with no discernable source.

“And I wish to make a mockery of everything that you stand for.”

And at a point positioned right over her heart, the curse began its work.

Fate/Dark Heritage

Berserker

It was a particular talent of arrogant nobles to demand something they wanted and make it sound like they were offering you something out of their own generosity; they all spoke that way, like you should be continually grateful in their presence. Berserker did not want a bout; his Master had already said they were leaving and he had no interest in fighting for sport or for this man’s entertainment. Hang Jebat also did not miss the insinuation that Saber would win and would graciously let them leave with something that was not his to give or to take away, that their lives were not their own and would remain their own.

What right did Saber have to grant him anything? What right did he have to allow them passage or to leave? What right did he have to claim this temple as his territory to begin with? Conquest? Birthright? Did those under his rule choose his protection? Did they accept it? Were they even aware it existed? Was this anything more than a man grabbing at power and land and forcing his will onto others?

Was Saber a tyrant after all? It was hard to say. Perhaps he had the makings of one. He was a man whose first act back from the dead was the claim land and people as his own. He was a man who made demands and claims like he was owed. He was a man who would brandish a katana boldly in the face of those he said were not his enemies.

A fair king is a king saluted, a tyrant king is a king disputed. Saber was not a man Hang Jebat felt much like saluting.

Lashing out with the hand not on the hilt of his weapon, Berserker made to grab the blade of the katana being pointed at him; if it was just a mundane weapon and not a Noble Phantasm then the properties of the Taming Sari would prevent it from cutting him. With his other hand he drew the kris from its sheathe, bringing the blade up and swinging it across Saber’s stomach in a reverse grip in an attempt to disembowel the Rogue Servant.

@Randomguy@Iamme

Fate/Dark Heritage

Berserker

As it turned out, Berserker’s assumption was wrong. There was someone at the temple; they were just slow in making themselves known. He stepped into front of his Master as the other Servant appeared, not blocking Shou’s line of sight of the newcomer but placing their body between the mage and the potential threat.

The temple’s occupant was a swordsman, a samurai specifically, by appearances; the robes and lack of armour made him look more like a noble or a bureaucrat than a warrior in Hang’s opinion, but the air of confidence and competence he carried himself with and the ease with which the sword sat at his side ensured he would not underestimate this opponent. Should it come to a fight.

They were a Rogue Servant though. Supposedly not after the Grail and looking only to protect the temple and their territory; Saber claimed not to be their enemy, unless they made one of themselves first. Berserker’s fist clenched around the hilt of his blade when the katana was drawn, though the lack of reaction from the Noble Phantasm itself let him know that this was a not a real threat, just a bit of theatrics. Nonetheless, Berserker almost drew his blade in turn; all this talk of territory and taking heads was starting to make the red creep in at the edges of his vision. Saber was not a tyrant, he was not a king or even a leader, though he may be some kind of noble based on the way his Master mentioned a clan name; but the high handedness with which they were handling this situation…

Hang Jebat relaxed his grip but did not let go of his weapon’s hilt. “As you say, Master.”

@Randomguy@Iamme

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

Akeno

Sleeping on solid rock with nothing but the vest on her back to protect her from the elements was not a pleasant experience, especially not when her muscles were burning with the after-effects of as much exercise as Akeno could force out of this pint-sized body. Even so, when morning came around she didn’t feel nearly as sore or as tired as she thought she would.

Orc’s were hardy things from the feel of it. They’d have to be to be able to survive the way they did.

Following the directions of the head warrior, Akeno made her way to the training circle and lined up with the rest. She recognised a few of the faces from the day before, including a handful that she knew to be like her, but there were just as many that she didn’t recognise. The head warrior’s bellowing brought to mind the kind of stereotypical drill sergeants she’d seen in movies and the threats of nonsensical violence would have fit in any one of them; as would the intensive, even excessive amount of physical exercise that followed.

Akeno was starting to regret the sit-ups and push-ups she’d forced herself to do before falling asleep last night. Even if she wasn’t feeling as sore as she’d expected, that didn’t mean her muscles weren’t complaining by the end of the squats, then screaming in protest by the time they were done with the rocks, then outright calling for mercy by the time the branches came out.

When they got to the wrestling it was actually something of a relief to Akeno. Grappling on the ground was not something she had any real experience with but the same could also be said of pretty much everyone else present here as well; even as she watched some of the other matches take place, all it really amounted to was a bunch of Orcs trying to trip each other up and push each other over, then overpower them or use their weight to pin them do. There were no arm bars, no triangle holds, no escape attempts that weren’t just trying to brute force throw their opponent away.

A few strangulation attempts though. She was pretty sure at least one Orc was foaming at the mouth by the end of things.

Grappling experience or not, Akeno definitely had an advantage when it came to takedowns, and when it came time for her own fight it was a fairly simple matter to duck under the other Orc’s grasping arms, wrap her right arm around the back of one knee and the other arm around their waist, lift one leg off the ground and spin them around so that they lost balance and fell to the ground. Akeno fell on top of them before they could get their bearings or try to get back up, but past this point she had no idea how to pin them down or keep them from bucking her off; somehow though, in the process of pinning them down her elbow found itself connecting with the side of their jaw and left them dazed enough to make pinning them easier.

Totally by accident.

The guy counting didn’t seem to care anyway.

After that they were led back to the weapon racks and she was told to pick a weapon to use. At first her eyes were drawn to the knuckle dusters and then to the leather wraps when she wasn’t sure if the former would disqualify her from her skills bonuses. Looking at her options though, she eventually decided on a small shield and a one-handed club. She could already fight unarmed so this was a chance to learn something new and even though she had no idea how to swing a sword properly, a club should be fairly simple to figure out. And she could just drop it if it didn’t work out.

She stepped into the circle against her opponent and when it was clear that he wouldn’t make the first move, began to walk forward with her shield raised and angled towards them until she was in range of their sword.

@Zeroth

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

Hoga Nao

Yamazaki High School - South Team

There might have been some kind of karma involved, to ensure that the first Grudge hunt Nao went on was at a high school. As punishment for skipping out on class for so long, she now had to save a different school from the manifestation of all the negative bullshit that made her stop going in the first place. Surely being saddled with these strange abilities that she couldn’t even have any fun with because she’d have to pay double for it was bad enough, but she guessed that tricky fox and the universe had different ideas.

Or maybe Grudges appeared at schools all of the time because they were such terrible places to be and it had nothing to do with karma at all. That did make a lot of sense. Damn, that probably meant they’d be sending her to a lot of schools then.

At least this time she likely wouldn’t have to deal with the Grudge directly. She was paired up with the fancy scion of some big shot family and a girl so eager to fight that she was already letting off little bursts of lightning; careful there, you’ll be paying for that later, literally. Nao could just sit back and let them deal with things; save herself having to spend any money at that damn shrine this week.

The lightning girl asked something about what do to if the students got caught up in things and Nao gave a bored answer for her spot squatting beside her, face resting in her palms with her elbows on her knees. “I don’t know, zap them?” That would be fun to see, less so to explain later. “Or let them get eaten? It’s their own fault if they get caught; who would even be at school this late anyway?”

Someone with no life. Were there any clubs that even ran this late? She wouldn’t know, having never been part of one. Nao could just hope that everyone had already left for the day, because if they did run in to anyone it would probably be up to her to distract them or hide them from the Grudge and then she’d probably have to pick up more shifts or find a second part-time job to make up for it.

Stupid fox.

Karaoke sounded fun though.

“Only if you’re paying.”

Fate/Dark Heritage

Berserker

The forest was as empty as Shou had predicated, at least as far as their cursory investigation could tell. Hang stayed close to his Masters side as they travelled, remaining visible and tangible so as to provide a target for anyone they stumbled across and to better protect Shou should another Servant appear.

From the sounds of it, they did not have much in the way of resources with; a phone, which his knowledge of the modern era gave him some understanding off but his own lack of experience meant he was missing some context, some money and clothing but little else. Had his Master really entered into this war so ill prepared? Was it confidence, naivety or desperation? He mentioned a brother he wanted to save, so perhaps the latter.

In terms of skills at least he seemed better equipped. Berserker still didn’t have much confidence in the martial ability of modern mages, but Shou’s skillset at least seemed suited towards combat. Even so… “Wherever possible, leave the fighting to me. It’s a Servant’s duty to fight for their Master and the longer we can keep your abilities hidden the better. Act only in self-defence if you can or in secret if you can get away with it.”

They arrived in front of a temple. “If someone were here, I suspect they would have made themselves known by now. Let’s take a look for ourselves.”

@Iamme@Randomguy

Why Were We Reincarnated as Orcs?!

Just let me know if there's something specific you need and I can tell you so you can include it in your next posts.

@Zeroth

Is there anything I need to include in my next post based on the actions I mentioned in my post above?

Fate/Dark Heritage

Berserker

Berserker gave his master a considering look as he spoke. Planning their route so as to avoid bringing civilians into their conflict spoke well of him, morally, but to do so at the cost of sending them to scout a location unlikely to result in anything further added to his concern that Shou was someone not used to war. That they had not established or found a location for a base of operations before summoning him was another sign of that. “The forest it is then.”

They had delayed here long enough. Hang Jebat broke eye contact with his master and turned to walk away, keeping his pace slow enough that he was inviting Shou to walk with him, rather than leaving him behind. “I was not aware we didn’t yet have a base of operations; in that case we should hope not to encounter anyone and instead make that our priority.”

The forest would work for now, since as Shou said it was unlikely anyone would be there, but at some point Berserker would like to take a closer look at this town that his master mentioned. If possible he would prefer setting up base closer to or even in an urban area rather than somewhere isolated since while that isolation would hide them, it would also make them stand out more while in transit to and from their base.

”While we travel, could you inform me as to the resources we have available and what you are capable of, Master?”

@Iamme