Lord Wraith

Commencement: A Foundation Institute RP

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_{Location: Southern Plateau - Dundas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Welcome Home #1.092: Supermassive Black Hole

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_{Interaction(s): @Rockette - Amma Cahors, @Melissa - Aurora Mitchell}

Previously: Howlin' For You

"Do you feel better now?"

The question itself was like a knife, it was thrust into his chest like an opportunistic assassin disappearing into the crowd while Lorcán was left to bleed out. The multitude of students continued about their meal and conversations, oblivious to the wounded boy left fending for his life.

Stumbling away from Haven, Lorcán couldn’t stop his eyes following Amma. Watching her sneakers trod away on the grass, her long pale legs seemed to endlessly climb to a slender torso gifted with curves in all the right places. Her cropped sweater revealed those beckoning tattoos that appeared to reach out towards Lorcán, those tentacles threatening to pull him into her shorts, burying him beneath her toned navel while the beetle crawled down his throat, consuming his last breaths.

Mumured rumours and mocking laughter bit at the back of Lorcán’s head. His fiery eyes darted from side to side, looking for the source of the voices, but there was nothing, the whispers were fleeting, evaporating as his molton gaze fell upon them.

_{^{Burn them all.}}

Lorcán turned again, swearing he had heard a voice crawling over his shoulder before its seething tone breathed hotly into his ear.

Burn them all.

It gnawed at his earlobe, a tingle of anticipation running the length of his body leaving every hair erect and stiffened with excitement. Intrusive thoughts filled his mind as he surveyed the campsite seeing only tinder and chaff where he ought to see friends and colleagues. The fire flared momentarily as he closed his fists, turning to look at Amma again as the wind howled through the Hype-made cliffs.

A primal call, but was it mating or war?

Bodies wrestling in the shroud of darkness, scratching, piercing, sucking and pleading. As the horizon suffocated the setting sun, so too, did the darkness drive Lorcán deeper into disparaging thoughts and further distanced from his friends. Something was inside him now that wasn’t there before. Something festering and growing, eroding with each ebb and flow of the storm that was Lorcán’s emotions. The tide was coming in, washing away the torn-up beach and revealing a new layer of sediment beneath the trampled surface. The old was smoothed away, replaced by something new, something identical but different.

But through the storm cut a blazing ray of warm light and the clouds parted before dissipating. The bathing warmth of copper spilled over Lorcán’s view as brilliant sapphire whirlpools softened his heart, relaxing his hands and a calm washed away the storm inside. Smoked-filled visions of ruins fell away from his eyes like the scales of a blind man gifted his sight. Kindling became kin and kindred souls alike as Lorcán was transported from the darkness directly into the light.

“-eat that?” Cassander asked again, this time giving Lorcán a playful elbow to the ribs as the latter dropped the plate laden with an untouched taco until his lap with a startled jump.

“Bro, what?” The daze still had a firm hold on Lorcán as he looked around, unaware of when he had made it back to his seat. His eyes drifted to Aurora and an involuntary smile floated on his lips.

“The taco,” Cassander repeated for a third time. “Are you going to eat the taco? I can’t abide wasted food, man.”

“Go to town, dude,” Lorcán nonchalantly replied before handing the plate over and looking towards Aurora again. He still needed to talk to her, but he didn’t want to do so in front of everyone, yet it might be better to rip that bandaid off before they were in the tent together.

A Westerly chinook blew through the campsite, Lorcán silently cursing the ethereal forces over the warm wind. A cold night might have enticed Aurora to come closer and find herself in his embrace. Standing once again, Lorcán conspicuously inconspicuously made his way towards the empty seat beside Aurora before sitting down and picking up a stick topped with a marshmallow.

“Can I introduce you in your usual shade of golden, Lady Dude?” Lorcán asked while playfully twirling the gelatinous treat on the stick.

“I missed you this afternoon, Rora, and you know I can’t stand to see you sitting here looking so sad, Lady so this guy right here figured what better to cheer up the Lady Dude than s’more marshed mallow on a stick pressed onto chocolate and graham cracker.”

Wraith's Little Workshop of Horrors

S P A R R O W S

^{He Wrote Hunts Monsters}
A Historical Fantasy Roleplay set in the Hyperverse

PREMISE:
Long ago, while the Earth was still young, Theogony, then known as Pandora unleashed the horrors known as Hellions and their plagues upon the world. To pay penance for their forebearer, the descendants of Cain, known as the Jäger, are charged with the divine mission to rid the world of the evils wrought by Theogony. The Jäger are followers of the Way, they serve the deity known as the One Above All, and are personally guided by the counsel of the archangel Samael. However, all Jäger are cursed to wander the Earth and unable of putting roots down anywhere. Ruled by the Venari Council, the Jäger seek out Hellions and eliminate their threats using a variety of tools provided to them along with their natural talents.

The most elite of these Jäger are simply known as Sparrows.

Every Jäger is identifiable by their ancestral mark, the Mark of Cain. This mark can appear anyway on the body, though it often appears on the thigh and is not dissimilar to a tattoo. The mark is immediately recognizable by some Hellions, even while covered.

...The mortal enemy of the Jäger is the Dragon and its followers. Flanked by the First Beast and the Second Beast, the Dragon employs its Seven Heads and Ten Horns to do its bidding.

Wraith's Little Workshop of Horrors

When a Jäger is activated, they inherit the skills and knowledge necessary to leave the safety of their ancestral home and begin to walk the Path. The Path refers to a Jäger's mission to protect the mundane world from the evils that lurk in the darkness and beyond the veil the separates our world from another. This has been the sacred duty of the Jäger since time immemorial. When an elder Jäger passes on, their memories and skills are passed along to their closest heir. In this case, the heir was Ellara, and the elder Jäger unbeknownst to her was her late father. When this happened, the memories and training of Ellara's ancestors were passed onto their living descendant, 'activating' Ellara as a Jäger.

It is for this reason that, Ellara has a natural aptitude for fighting as it is her ancestors' memories imprinting themselves on her reflexes and reactions which acts as a sort of instinctual intuition. She gained their knowledge of fighting against the supernatural, and with it their weapons' skills and preferences. As part of her heritage, Ellara also possesses incredible observational abilities and keen instincts.

Perhaps the most valuable, though underutilized skill that Ellara gain upon being activated is her 'Divine Tongue'. Through her ancestors, Ellara has become something of an omniglot, capable of speaking and reading languages she has never heard of. The additional cones in her retinas allow Ellara to view written language in a way most humans can't, and to see messages under the letters left by others like her. In addition to the modern language, Ellara possesses the gift of a 'Nightingale Tongue' and has an innate, almost imprinted understanding of 'Divine Languages' such as Latin, Gothic, Enochian and most notably, the 'Language of the Birds'. This is a significant contributor to Ellara's natural connection to the supernatural and therefore affinity for performing mystic arts if given the correct direction or training.

► Limitation(s)
Ellara's inexperience as a Jäger is her biggest limitation despite having grown up seeing the supernatural, Ellara never had anyone to guide her nor train her despite her 'Ancestral Activation'. As such, while she can survive on instinct alone, if Ellara ever starts actively pursuing her heritage, she will quickly find herself outgunned and outmaneuvered by beings who have centuries more experience in confronting and defeating Jäger.

Additionally, due to the overwhelming amount of information unlocked in her mind upon 'activation' and her 'Divine Tongue', Ellara can suffer from bouts of glossolalia, or 'Speaking in Tongues' which makes it near impossible to communicate with others unless they're familiar with the tongue or a translator is provided.

► Weakness(es)
The greatest drawback to being an 'activated' Jäger is the numerous memories and personalities that cloud the mind of the new hunter. The mental strain alone has left Jäger in the past institutionalized upon being activated and not everyone survives the ordeal. Some Jäger have even had their personalities and sense of identity completely overwritten upon activation creating a loss of self and almost a reincarnated form for the previous Jäger.

While activation can aid a Jäger in combat, it is not a suitable replacement for actual training and over-reliance upon inherited memories can lead to a Jäger's downfall. Additionally, the memories provided by her 'activation' are limited to just that, being memories. If Ellara encounters anything new or unfamiliar, she has no aid from her 'activation' and must resolve the situation on her own.

► Application(s)
The primary application of the Jäger's ancestral activation is to preserve their knowledge and skills through each subsequent generation. This method also allows for accelerated training and avoiding learning curbs due to being able to draw upon the experience of those who came before.

Ellara has a unique physiology gained from a long ancestry dating back most famously to Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. While her abilities are underdeveloped, Ellara still possesses several differences from a base human. The first of these differences is nearly undetectable, Ellara possesses two additional cones in her eyes' photoreceptor cells which allows her to see things that escape detection from the average human eye. Predominantly, this allows Ellara to see and detect the presence of the supernatural whether those around her want to seen or not. Ellara's sense of smell and her sense of hearing are also enhanced and with the proper training could be honed to the point where Ellara's hearing or sense of smell alone could compensate entirely for the loss of her sight. Additionally, Ellara possesses a sixth sense, a sort of supernatural 'radar' that provides her with an overwhelming 'gut feeling' whenever she's in the vicinity of something belonging to the supernatural.

The most notable aspect of Ellara's Jäger Physiology is her resilience to physical harm. As a Jäger, Ellara's body is substantially more durable and resistant to blunt force trauma than that of an ordinary human's and she possesses an incredibly high pain tolerance. It is difficult, though not impossible, to bruise Ellara and even more difficult to create strain on her joints or break her bones. Ellara possesses a sort of metaphysical strength that is not related to her physical mass and thus is hard to fully gauge. At best, it puts her above a trained strongman but not on a level that one would consider superhuman. Likewise, her physical speed, agility, and reflexes are also enhanced and while impressive to an average human, anyone one of these attributes would be rapidly outpaced by an individual possessing a superhuman trait of the aforementioned.

While a regular person may require eight to ten hours of sleep, Ellara requires considerably less but still needs rest to function. Ellara herself is capable of staying awake for days but this will result in her 'crashing' and her body forcing her to sleep for half a day. Provided Ellara is left undisturbed while she recuperates, there will be no lingering disabilities. When sleeping, Ellara can recover from most non-lethal injuries, the severity of which will determine how long she requires rest. Likewise, her body can sustain itself on very little food and water, having nearly double the threshold for dehydration or starvation that a human has, which leads to Ellara eating relatively lightly on an average day but capable of putting away large amounts of food after a long fought battle.

► Limitation(s)
The Jäger's sixth sense for the supernatural is not accurate, it can only inform the Jäger that there is a being of supernatural origin within a fifty-foot radius. It cannot determine who is the supernatural being or even what kind of supernatural being it is. A Jäger who is not accustomed to the sensation of their 'sixth sense' may also feel nauseous, even violently ill which would do them more harm than good. Additionally, Ellara's Jäger Physiology does nothing to alert her of the presence of enhanced beings outside of the supernatural spectrum.

Ellara is also something of a technophobe, preferring to do things by hand whenever possible and using computers and cellphones sparingly. Furthermore, a lifetime of seeing what others can't has left Ellara in poor mental health and quite damaged. This has led to Ellara often refusing friends, help or aid even when in need of any of the aforementioned.

► Weakness(es)
There are several noticeable weaknesses to Ellara's Jäger Physiology. The first of which is that in the same way Ellara can see the Supernatural, they too can see what she is. When her abilities see through the disguise of a supernatural, her own nature is revealed to them. Despite their resounding resilience against blunt force, a Jäger can be injured by conventional bullets, bladed weapons, and more advanced weaponry just as easily as an ordinary human can. Likewise, despite being able to perform it, Jäger's are not immune to magic and can be harmed or even killed from offensive spells.

All Jäger suffer from a weakness to 'Witch Blood' which is a literal term and refers to blood belonging to a living practitioner of magic. Weapons or objects laced with Witch Blood have a toxic reaction with a Jäger, causing burns upon contact and preventing wounds from closing. Ingestion of Witch Blood can lead to a Jäger being reduced to human levels if not outright killing them pending the quantity of dosage.

As a Jäger's primary method of recovery is through sleep, this leaves them with only two choices while injured requiring them to either continue fighting while wounded or to retreat in order to sleep. Either way, this decision could lead to the Jäger's untimely death due to falling in battle or being discovered while unable to defend themselves.

► Application(s)
A Jäger is designed to do one thing, and one thing very well, protect the world from the threats of the supernatural. As such, they equipped to seek out, discovery and destroy any supernatural threats, possessing the natural tools to survive and overcome any encounter especially when trained to do so.

While a Jäger's Physiology provides a significant boon against the forces of the supernatural, when faced with overwhelming odds, Jäger are known to mark their skin with arcane runes. This practice traces back to their Germanic origins and often is done using Germainc Runes however some Jäger are known to favour Enochian instead. The actual rune itself is mostly ceremonial and it is the magic sealed within the symbol that has the greatest influence on the effect of the rune.

Application of a rune requires a skilled practitioner of magic, specifically one skilled in alchemy due to the process involved in the mixing of the ink. No two runes require the same combination of ingredients and almost every mixture contains an ingredient of a magical origin. For this reason, runes are sparingly used and only applied in dire circumstances. Amongst the Jäger, there are specific members who dedicate their lives to learning how to craft and draw runes, those who walk the path often bring tribute to these 'Scribes' as compensation for their services.

While these runes are almost exclusively used by the Jäger, they could be applied to a mundane however the detrimental effects would be accelerated without the Jäger's constitution to stand up to the toxicity of the runic concoction. Outside of ritualistic body modifications, runes are also used on weapons in order to create specific effects and enchantments. If applied during the forging process, the rune is more stable and often has a longer period of use than a rune added to a pre-existing weapon.

► Limitation(s)
Each rune can only contain one effect and the use of multiple runes accelerates the risk of poisoning within a host or degradation of a weapon. Damage to the rune can render it unstable and any sort of breaking of the symbol will render it useless to the host or user. In the event of a damaged rune, pending the extent of the damage, a Scribe may be able to touch it up and stabilize the magic but a ruined rune will need to be removed and reapplied.

► Weakness(es)
Runic Markings are exceptional volatile both to apply and to the host. Ingredients need to be measured precisely and mixed exactly otherwise the rune will fail or worst, backfire in horrific ways. The rune itself will fade with each use but must also be cleansed from the host system using a purification concoction. Failing to cleanse the rune from the host after it has been extinguished, will result in a form of arcane blood poisoning to the host. Continued neglect will eventually lead to madness and a mindless, feral state turning the afflicted Jäger into a zombie-like creature.

Much like the rune itself, the purification process requires the correct alchemical concoction and depending on the state of blood poisoning and the rune that caused it may require a stronger blend or specific ingredients. If prepared incorrectly, the purification concoction can lead to severe side effects if not outright killing the consumer.

► Application(s)
Runes are used to compliment a Jäger in any area they're lacking or to specifically target a known weakness. They can be used not only to bolster both offense or defense but also create specific situational effects if given the time to prepare.

Tongue of the Nightingale
The tongue of the Nightingale or 'Divine Tongue' is a Jäger's unique gift that gives them the ability to command and understand both written and spoken language in a way more humans can't. Considered to be 'Priority Speakers' when casting incantations or banishing beings from this plane, a Jäger's words take precedence over those of a rival caster or opponent. In addition to this, Jäger's are able to see messages hidden behind words and characters especially in the cast of rune or glyph based writing. Due to their 'Divine Tongue' and enhanced sight, new messages can appear on a page that wasn't present before due to the Jäger's mind being able to extrapolate the hidden text.

Combined with her ancestral knowledge, Ellara possesses a high degree of mastery over language and the longer she remains 'activated', the more ingrained her knowledge of Earth's various tongues will become. As a side effect, all Jäger speak in perfect pitch and share a natural talent for singing, storytelling and other vocal forms of communication.

► Limitation(s)
The Divine Tongue, while granting a Jäger a mastery over language, does not allow for instantaneous learning of foreign tongues. Pronunciation may come easier to a Jäger but they will still need to learn the ins and outs of a new language if they wish to speak it correctly. The only exceptions to this rule are the Divine Languages which are ingrained within a Jäger's subconscious.

► Weakness(es)
The Divine Tongue is not a universal translator and when confronted with a foreign language not in their repertoire whether, through their ancestral memories or their own learned, a Jäger will be as lost as those also involved in the conversation. This goes both ways in that a Jäger will not automatically begin speaking the foreign language in order to communicate when necessary. Languages not of Earth or based on other forms of communication such as pheromones or even sign language will present as much difficulty to understand to a Jäger as anyone else.

► Application(s)
The greatest application of the Divine Tongue is casting or countering magic. Due to being a 'Priority Speaker' the Jäger will be able to overcome most lesser practitioners as well as being able to unleash a powerful offensive of their own.

Commencement: A Foundation Institute RP

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_{Location: Southern Plateau - Dundas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Welcome Home #1.086: Howlin' For You

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_{Interaction(s): @Skai - Haven Barnes, @Roman - Gil Galahad, @Garden Gnome - Mei Hisamatsu, @webboysurf - Rory Tyler}

Previously: A Bridge to Build, or to Burn?

Rory’s outburst was still bothering Lorcán by the time Tad called the group for dinner. Even working apart, he, Rory and Amma had managed to make their quota for their assigned work.

Apparently, anger was a good motivator.

Still, Lorcán didn’t enjoy feeling like a turbulent sea was being tossed around inside of him. He had half a mind to sit Rory down and talk about whatever happened, but whether it was stubbornness or pride, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He understood Rory being upset about being abandoned, perhaps that what all of this was about was just the simple fact he had been excluded from the excursion to the woods.

Lorcán’s stomach had been in knots since he found himself alone in the forest. He felt like he had done something wrong. Like he was stained by something that he just couldn’t wash off. Marked by an invisible ink that everyone could see except him. He had seen the way some of the other teams’ members were talking about him. What exactly did people think happened in the forest? What actually happened in the forest?

His mind began to recall the events, the feelings, the sensations before he shoved them all back down. Why did their powers mingle like that? Was it possible with anyone and if so, why hadn’t it ever happened with Aurora before? He’d leant his powers to Rory numerous times, but never had their powers intertwined as Lorcán and Amma had now on two separate instances.

Nonetheless, it was only dinner time and the day felt like it had dragged on for weeks. Why did he abandon his friend and work to run off with Amma? Sure there was a genuine part of him that just wanted her to experience fun, but then there was the way their powers interacted and the feelings attached to that. Why did he act the way he did around her? It was more than sympathy, it was more than friendship.

Did he like Amma?

Lorcán almost gave his head a literal shake as he got in line for food. His eyes wandered around the two campsites, first finding Amma. They lingered for a second, narrowed in concentration. Why would he like Amma? He knew next to nothing about the girl, but he couldn’t deny that the French woman had a certain je ne sais quoi about her that made Lorcán want to know her. When Amma walked into the room, Lorcán was transported into an old black and white film. The raven-haired dame with a case he couldn’t refuse walking into his office, her seemingly endless legs swung over her desk.

He half expected her to walk up to him with a cigarette asking for a light.

But then his eyes shifted, landing on familiar copper hair and he felt his heart skip a beat. Suddenly it was like there wasn’t anyone else around as he watched the beautiful blue eyed girl tuck a strand of her fire-like hair behind her ear. Lorcán often forgot there was a time before Aurora was in his life. He was very accustomed to waking up in the morning and firing her a text inquiring if she wanted to meet for breakfast. Rarely did he fall asleep without texting her goodnight and far too often the pair were exhausted for the next day from talking all night.

That’s of course when they didn’t end up on the beach for one reason or another.

Lorcán never really considered himself capable of having the same affection for anyone else that he held for Aurora. But if he was being honest with himself, the sparring, the running off, it had been fun. Spending time with Amma had been fun. It was almost an odd admission, one that he couldn’t easily make to himself, let alone his friends.

Although, perhaps Gil would understand? If ever there was a man who found himself between two girls, Lorcán would put money on it being Gil. Normally he would talk to both Gil and Rory about this sort of stuff, he tried to always include both of them in his decision making. But Rory hadn’t exactly made himself available at the moment. Moving to talk to their resident movie star, Lorcán noticed Rory also in line for food as words from Calliope floated back into Lorcán’s head.

It didn't take much to see what Rory did, got to you.

He shot a subtle glare towards Rory. Indignation rising in his chest as he brooded on Calli’s words, replaying them over and over in his mind as he re-witnessed Rory ask Aurora to the dance. If Calli and everyone else could see it, why couldn’t Rory? He allowed himself to fume a little longer before he suddenly remembered something else she had said.

You and I both know he meant well.

It was only then that his perspective began to change and as Lorcán replayed the memory again, he realized Rory wasn’t asking for his own benefit, but for Lorcán’s. Rory hadn’t asked Aurora to the dance, he had tried to play matchmaker. Regret suddenly washed over Lorcán as he realized in the heat of the moment he had thrown Rory’s actions back in his friend’s face. Actions his friend had already tried to make amends for. Furthermore, Lorcán had only added insult to injury with his playful teasing. No wonder Rory had accused him of deflecting.

Taking his food, Lorcán walked over to Rory before speaking,

“Hey bro, look I can’t handle this storm crashing our mellow, can we hash this out?” He asked, “I was a grom earlier, what I did was selfish both because I shirked the work and because I left you to fend for yourself. Teammates don’t bail on teammates and we also don’t exclude each other. I was talking with Amma, and it turned out the Foundation had never let her have fun with her powers, so I wanted to give her that experience. One thing led to another and we ended up going to the forest where people used to spar. I should have asked if you wanted to come or if you were okay with us taking a quick dip.”

As Rory went to speak, Lorcán interrupted him,

“I also want to apologize for the way I spoke to you when I came back, I treated you like a total Benny instead of a bro and that’s been eroding away at me. I had no right to make jokes about your abilities or your relationship with Haven. I understand now that you were trying to help yesterday on the beach and I’m sorry I lashed out at you.” He apologized, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head before speaking again.

“I totally get it if you’re like still mad or whatever, but I wanted to extend a bonafide apology and explanation for earlier.”

Rory slowly finished chewing his bite of food as he listened, before simply nodding.

"I... I appreciate it, bro. I'm sorry I got heated and didn't talk it out. What you had said hurt me, man. I can take a fun dig, dude, but you dug a little too deep. A tackle is fine, targeting isn't." He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry about the thing on the beach too. You know how things get when I try to be clever, but I'm more sorry I didn't apologize for that sooner."

He held out his hand towards Lorcán, mimicking the latter's motion from earlier.

"It's been a bad day, bro. Wolves stick together." Rory's eyes instinctively wandered, a glimpse of a certain pair of wings out of the corner of his eye catching his attention for a moment. He quickly diverted his attention back to Lorcán.

"Though, maybe not tonight. I think the gals have us starting for different teams tonight." He gave his bro a wink, hand still outstretched. Lorcán eagerly slapped his hand to Rory’s before smacking the back of their hands together and ending with an exploding fist bump. He gave Rory a quick half hug as relief began to wash over him.

“That goes for you too, Mei,” Lorcán added, turning to see their other housemate. “Wolves stick together!” He patted her on the shoulder while passing by before walking away.

Lorcán felt a little better at least getting things off his chest, but he couldn’t help but shake the feeling that the Foundation and its presence was already causing rippling effects through their team. Was Amma a mole for the Foundation? Sure her presence preceded Torres’ arrival by a year, but that could have all been part of the ruse. Lorcán still found it far-fetched after his discussion with Amma. Unless she was a better actor than Gil, she clearly hated the Foundation as much, if not more than the rest of them. Taking his food, Lorcán found himself a seat between Cassander and Gil. Normally he would have sat with Aurora, but given the events of the afternoon he wasn’t as keen to sit beside her.

His stomach was still in knots, feeling like it was eating away at itself even after his resolution with Rory. Lorcán wasn’t really familiar with this feeling. Was it guilt? He looked towards Aurora again and his stomach tightened. Calli had said something else yesterday that was still replaying in Lorcán’s mind.

You're smart, you're attractive, and you are one of the sweetest guys I know. She likes you too, trust me.

Would she still like him after today though? It was no secret how Aurora felt about Amma. Given the implications and adding to that abandoning Rory. Lorcán’s head sank a little in shame as he silently ate his food. He hadn’t taken the news this morning well, but he could have acted on it better. Admittedly the Team’s contributions to the Trial were more superficial than anything, he still jeopardized it for Rory, the twins and Ripley. No doubt his absence also put a sour note on Aurora and Haven’s visit.

Did he owe Haven an apology too?

It probably wouldn’t hurt to offer her one. Placing his plate down, Lorcán stood up again, turning to Cassander and Gil before springing to his feet.

“Watch my food for a second, I’ll be right back.”

Moving quickly across the campsite towards the pair of wings that Rory had eyed earlier, Lorcán tapped Haven on the shoulder before speaking.

“Hey, Sky Betty, I think I owe you an apology, brah.” He started, “I totally shouldn’t have bailed on Rory and I just don’t want you to get the wrong impression. This stuff with the Foundation is messing with my head, but I’m trying to work through it.” Lorcán looked around for a second before continuing.

“I’ve already made peace with Rory, but uh,” He paused, rubbing the back of his head, “How is ‘Rora doing?”

Commencement: A Foundation Institute RP

A blindfold was placed over the man’s eyes and his graying temples. He knelt on the ground, hands placed in his lap as he bowed his head. Though he could not see, the man heard the opening of several doors before expertly raising a hand and catching the foot of his first attacker.

“Weak.” He growled, tossing the attacker away before spinning around and redirecting a strike from another opponent into a third.

“Pathetic.”

Pivoting into a sweeping kick, the man spun himself about-face in time for his heel to connect with the jaw of the next assailant. Springing into a flip, he felt the air move beneath his airborne body as another attacker attempted to strike where his legs had just been. Landing, the blinded man raised his forearm, blocking a retaliatory blow before twisting it into a lock and then dislocating the striker’s shoulder.

“Sloppy.”

The man didn’t have time to relish in the moment. Predictably, his opponents had opted for weapons to give them an edge. His hands reacted in expert timing, a palm coming to rest on either side of the cold, steel blade. Guiding the weapon away from his body, the man twisted it out of his foe’s hands, sliding it into a reverse grip before slashing its original wielder’s chest in a vicious swing. Flipping the point of the weapon into his fingers, he flung it behind him.

The scream of agony alerted the man he had struck true.

The deafening sound of a gunshot rocked the room, but the bullet flew harmlessly through empty air as the blindfolded man was already moving. Evading each additional shot as he perfectly predicted where the shoot would fire next. Suddenly, the gunman found his opponent on top of him, the weapon wretched from his hand before the magazine hit the floor and the butt of the weapon broke the shooter’s jaw.

“Have you injured enough of our brothers yet, Miguel?” The tired voice of an older man asked from a balcony overlooking the training room below.

“I’m certainly bored now,” Shiv replied, looking around the room at the injured bodies.

“Then you’ll be pleased to know that the Face has requested you among our body at Pacific Royal.”

“I’d hardly consider that an exciting assignment, respectfully of course.”

“No matter, it wasn’t a request. Your bags are packed. You’ll make landfall by dawn.” Nakamura retorted.

“As the Head wishes.”

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_{Location: The Southern Plateau - Dundas Islands, Pacific Ocean}

Welcome Home #1.085: S'moregasboard

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_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: A Terrible Idea

“Quittin’ time y’all!” Tad yelled over the din in his best Jim impersonation as the collective graduate teams put the finishing touches on this year’s Homecoming Trail. The build had come a long way and the student contributions had ended. Throughout the night, other graduate students like Robert would inspect the work, correcting and adjusting anything that didn’t fit or could potentially cause harm to a new student. Most of the time was generally spent on adjusting the programming of the simulation.

“Come and get some grub!” Jessica added, joining in on the fun. “Firebird, we’re going to be eating with Blackjack tonight, and then in the morning we’re going to obliterate their time through the Trial.” She called to her team, winking at her fiancé, “Even if they do have an inside advantage.”

“Are you sure we can eat this?” Tad flirted back, “How do we know you didn’t poison us to gain the advantage?”
“We’re all eating the same thing, silly.”

“But your team could have the antidote!” Tad retorted in mock protest only for Jessica to ruffle his hair and slug him in the arm.

“If I wanted you dead ,Thaddeus Finch, you’d be dead.” She winked before gesturing to the tables erected before the two campsites. “Serve yourself, we’ve put together a bit of a taco buffet, there’s a couple different kinds of meats, vegan options, we have both flour and corn tortillas, hard and soft. Whatever floats your fancy.”

“There are drinks in the coolers, and for those of you who have been using their abilities all afternoon there’s P.R.C.U.’s own Hyper-Aid to help replenish those HZEs and electrolytes. Can’t have anyone running the risk of Hype-Psy.” Tad interjected pointing towards two large coolers.

“Grab some food, pull up a chair and circle around the fire. Don’t feel obligated to stay out here all night. And when people start going to bed, those who are out here try to keep it down, after all. You have a trial to test in the morning.”

“And when you’re full up on tacos,” Jess chimed in, “We have a bit of S’moregasboard for dessert.”

A collective groan could be heard from both teams at Jess’s pun.

“If I had said that, there would have a very loud-”

“SHUT UP, TAD!” Blackjack collectively yelled as Tad knowingly pointed to the group.

“In their own way, they do love you.” Jess replied, “And if they don’t, I can make them,” The empath joked with an exaggerated wink.

Team Firebird had roughly the same amount of students as Black. There were of course familiar faces in both Cassander Charon and Lucille Calder who had started their P.R.C.U. journeys as part of Blackjack before leaving during the team swap. Other faces included long standing members of the community such as Mira Falls, Noah Gallagher, Zebulun Michaels, Simone Richards, Eden Sherwood, Layla Schade and RJ Scott. Then lastly, there was Firebird’s own Foundation Transfer, the redheaded Alyssa Townsend. The nine students that comprised Firebird helped themselves to the spread before taking seats together. Alyssa found herself a seat between her best friend, Luce and boyfriend RJ. To the other side of RJ was Firebird’s other predominant couple in the combination of Zebulun and Eden, while beside Luce sat Mira, Simone and Layla. Noah as usual found himself a more isolated corner as the introverted shape shifter preferred.

Waving forward his team, Tad invited Blackjack to follow Firebird’s lead.

“Come on, team. Let’s get some food.”

^{_{__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

As the teams had sat down with their food, the roar of an engine could be heard coming across the plateau towards the campsite. The large SUV was emblazoned with the school crest, distinguishing it as a vehicle used by only one person.

Coming to a stop in front of the shared meal site, a tall man stepped out of the driver’s seat before affixing his signature Stetson atop his head.

“How’s my favourite team doin’?” Jim asked entering into the Blackjack side of the campsite. There was a certain fondness for his old team, Jim had taken each of them through the Homecoming Trials at one time or another. A fire crackled in the middle of the campsite as the team was gathered around to share a meal after a hard day of work.

More so for some than others.

“I know y’all are pretty on edge after what happened earlier at the ceremony,” He started, grabbing a seat beside Rory before he continued to speak.

“Rest assured I’ve secured accreditation for all the graduating students affected by the sudden news. So hopefully that helps raise some spirits around here. There will be some other changes happening, but for now, I hope that news at least brings you some solace.”

He looked around the campsite, spotting the two students had had come looking for.

“Look Tad, pretty sure you all have this handled. I need to borrow Miss de Léon and Mr. Galahad if ya don’t mind.”

“Who am I to tell the Chancellor, no?” Tad replied with a small smirk.

Motioning for Calliope and Gil to follow him, Jim waited until they were away from the rest of the team before he began speaking.

“As y’all are both well away, this year has been complicated by the Foundation. Unfortunately with things in the state they are, I’ve been forced to play civil with them until H.E.L.P. can properly rectify things. Which means I need a favour, and I can’t think of two people more qualified to help.”

Jim drew a deep breath before continuing.

“I need y’all to put together a themed dance. Foundation’s first priority is that the students get to express themselves individually so after the Trials are complete, the dress code is going to be nullified. As such, dress uniforms will not be required for the Senior Homecoming dance, meaning we’re looking at doing something a bit more… Hollywood.”

The concept was clearly foreign to Jim as he tried to articulate it.

“So who better to help than Hollywood and the glam,” Jim added motioning to Gil and Calliope respectively.

“Y’all have the A.R.C. at your disposal to program in any environment you see fit for the dance. Full fabrication at your disposal too. If there’s anything else y’all need, let me know and I’ll see what I can do to set y’all up.”

Looking between the pair, Jim tried to gauge their interest while waiting for an answer.
“Now, Mr. Galahad, I know you’re more than accustomed to the particular politics of these sort of situations, we need our best foot forward here. Miss de Léon, I know with your upbringing, y’all are no stranger to them either, and I know right about now you probably want to stick it to those Foundation bastards.” Jim smiled softly.

“Let in y’all in a little secret, I would too.” He added, “But no matter which way the wind blows, it’s our reputation and the school currently at risk. So while you might want to go and shock everyone and burn it all to the ground, all I ask is that if y’all are goin’ to flip the bird to the Foundation, at least try to be subtle about it.”

He stopped, taking the Stetson off his head and extending his arm towards the pair.

“So can I leave it with the two of you?”

^{_{__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

Subject: Career Plans

Mr. Roth,

I would like your help to schedule a meeting with H.E.L.P. sometime in the next week or so. I need to discuss career plans given my watchlist status and recent developments at school.

It's about time I follow my parent's lead.

- Rory Tyler '29

[e-mail]

Subject: RE: Career Plans

Rory,

I’m excited that you reached out to me. I can have a meeting scheduled with Nicholas Locke, the current Deputy Chief of Staff at H.E.L.P. to explore some career options for you. Given your performance both in the H.E.A.T. program and your current ambitions in psychology, I think you’ll find that there are plenty of doors available to you.

I had the honour of working with your father. He and your mother were both exemplary agents and would be not only humbled and honoured to know you’re looking to follow in their footsteps.

Right now, I’m looking at early Friday morning, the same day as the Homecoming Dance. There are available slots at 9:45am and 11:15am. Let me know which works better for you and I’ll make sure we have that time reserved with the Deputy Chief.

Thank you and best regards,

- Aiden Roth

Professor of Practical Ability Training
Primary Administrator of the Augmented Reality Center
Faculty Representative for House Canis

_{“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”
– Winston Churchill}

[e-mail]

Does anyone have any tips for an aspiring (small group) GM?

For me personally, I like to have my OOC ready before my interest check. A lot of people might see this as a wasted effort, but I've seen too many RPs stall out between gathering interest and building their OOC. For me, the interest check is a way to advertise as opposed to gathering enough interest to run an idea. If I have an idea, then I'm going to run it and I think that confidence goes a long way to getting players interested.

That said, keep the iCheck concise, it should be able to communicate your premise but it does not to include the entirety of an OOC. The OOC on the other hand should contain or at least direct to all relevant information a player will need to create a character. If it's a fandom RP, link to relevant wikis or characters where appropriate. If it's original, lay out your information logically and with enough detail to create your world. If you want players to contribute to world-building, leave them space to do so, and if not, communicate that as well.

Have rules in place. But more importantly, make sure they are rules that you will follow. If you apply rules to a game that you as a GM break, then your players' trust and faith will be quickly eroded. This is where you also get to post your desired pace and post length, make sure it's again something you can produce consistently as well.

Character sheets don't need to be overly complicated, nor do they need to be long. Make sure they include information relevant to your game and what you need as a GM to accept them. A lot of character sheets are bloated with information that is not relevant to the game or would be better revealed in the IC. I'm pretty guilty of overly convoluted character sheets myself and a lot of times too much information has come back to bite me. If you want your small group to primarily interact with each other in a linear game for example, don't add a supporting cast section to a sheet because that gives the impression of a more sandbox story.

As a GM you also get to decide if you're going to play a character, just drive the story or both. You can drive via your character's POV but you risk becoming the main character. Likewise, you can drive the story through updates and NPCs but you risk a lack of engagement. I like a balance of both, but it is a balancing act where you are writing two distinct styles of posts.

If you're using dice and rolls to determine player actions or outcomes, that's also going to factor into how you approach IC posts versus a more collaborative writing environment.

OOC engagement also goes a long way. Encourage players, thank them for playing and posting. Tell them what you liked, speculate and spitball with them. This can either be done with the forum OOC or you can do a Discord if that's more your speed.

Lastly off the top of my head. Don't be afraid to say no, whether that's to accepting a character or even a player you don't like, to shooting down ideas that conflict with your vision for the IC. There are times to be flexible and constructive, but your enjoyment also matters and as the GM you need to be engaged. If players are running off with themes and ideas you're not enjoying, your engagement will dip. But likewise, it's important to indulge players as well. You'll find a balance as you get along with your players.

Wraith's Little Workshop of Horrors

E P I S O D E O N E A W A R D S

	Best Character: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best Character Development: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best Epsiode: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best Story Arc: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best Post: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best Flashback: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best Supporting Cast: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best World Building: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	Best Collaboration: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	The Breakout Character: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD
	MVP Award: TBD Honorable Mention: TBD

Wraith's Little Workshop of Horrors

P.R.C.U. Presents: Agents of H.E.L.P.

Following the exploits of a Hyperhuman Investigative Team, think Criminal Minds meets Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, as the team tries to proactively stop Hyperhumans who have chosen to exploit and abuse their abilities.

Return to Crestwood Hollow - Dawn of the Magni & Hyperhuman War

Uncover the truth of the Dark Eclipse as the Magni Community unite to reclaim their seat of power in the world from Hyperhumans. Players will be able to have multiple characters on both side of the conflict as the warring factions attempt to out maneuver one another in the ultimate bid for power.

Sparrows - He Who Fights Monsters

Players take on the role of a Sparrow, an elite Jäger sect that works in the shadows to defend the world from Hellions and other Hellspawn beasts. With the world reshaped by the catastrophic events of the Magni & Hyperhuman War, there are new monsters to hunt and plenty people in need of a Sparrow.

Commencement: A Foundation Institute RP

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: Southern Plateau - Dundas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Welcome Home #1.078: A Bridge to Build, or to Burn?

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): @webboysurf - Rory Tyler}

Previously: in your heart.

“Dude, I have to hand it to you, I would have quit the moment I took off, bro.”

Lorcán's voice came from behind Rory as the other Blackjack member opted to ignore the first, continuing to hammer away at the metal in front of him, drenched in sweat.

He wasn't entirely sure where Amma had run off to, but he figured his best course of action would be to return to work and try to build a figurative bridge with his roommate. Rory wasn't one for grudges, but in the heat of the moment and the height of the sun, things were born to be a tad heated.

“Y’know Bulltrue has a metal bender right?” Lorcán teased before picking up some of the metal. Looking over Rory’s shoulder at the plans, Lorcán superheated it, moulding the metal with relative ease before tossing it aside.

“I mean I suppose you can keep bustin’ your hump out here and ignoring me. That’s cool, I get it. But you’re only tiring yourself out.” He added, bending another piece of heated metal and tossing it aside before cutting through the next like hot butter.

“Tiring yourself out before your night with Sky Betty as I heard.” Lorcán added attempting to break the tension with a jab to Rory’s ribs that prompted a grunt and a turn as the other young man continued to work without so much as acknowledging the younger team member.

“Look, you can be angry all you want, but at least I didn't ask Haven to the dance. That was a pretty kook thing to do.” Lorcán sliced through another piece of metal nearly overheating it before tossing it aside.

“None of this matters anyway, you’re just as raked under as I am. No degree, what are you going to do? Even I know there aren’t a lot of options for a Jake with your abilities.” His tone softened,

“Look, I’m sorry I ran off. It wasn't my intention to actually leave you with the work. Why don't you power up? Even in three minutes the two of us can blast through the rest of this and I’ll cover the rest once you tap out.”

He extended a hand to Rory.

“Come on, wolves stick together, dude, two of us would be better than one. If you’re eager to see this through, let me help you, bro.”

Wraith's Little Workshop of Horrors

Atlantic Regal Secondary and Post Secondary Institution of Higher Learning