LuckyBlackCat

The Secret Lives Of Schoolteachers - A Magical Girl Mix-up RP

All Kohaku could do was stare in awe as, one by one, her colleagues took on their own magical girl transformations. Much more impressive and elaborate ones than her own, no less. "Hata...?" She slowly approached the green-haired, deeply tanned young woman. She could see the vague resemblance in facial structure to the kindly old geography teacher, but that was quite the drastic change - and Hata wasn't the only one who'd de-aged. Miss Harper flipped over the fallen backpack to reveal a younger, smaller Amber. "You're not hurt, are you?" Kohaku asked, bending into a slight crouch, noting the lack of stiffness in her back from night after night hunched over a desk. Magic, it seemed, was the ultimate age care.

Shinobu, decked in an elaborate floral hat and monochrome striped cloak, panicked right away about falling to the dark side. "I doubt anyone with that substitute teacher positivity thing would fall from grace so fast," Kohaku tried to reassure her colleague.

"No need to worry!" Lux confirmed, rather unconvincingly given the fact that they'd all ended up in the middle of a nightmare sequence. "Different magical girls just get different outfits!"

Izumi's costume wasn't exactly standard magical girl fare either, being a skintight sci-fi style bodysuit that brought a blush to Kohaku's face. She averted her eyes, hoping Izumi hadn't noticed, only for her mouth to fall open at the sight of Aiko. It was unmistakeably her - same face, same voice - yet that punk rock getup, with the attitude to match, was not something Kohaku would ever have associated with the mellow music teacher.

Just as radical was Sakura's transformation, lightning sparking around her as she stood. Yes, stood, no wheelchair in sight. With a laugh and a spin, Sakura lost her balance. Before Kohaku could head over, Andrew was on it, helping her up while cracking a joke, albeit a rather unsettling one about pharmaceutical companies. As well as he meant, Kohaku couldn't be sure that was helpful right now.

Close by him stood Emiko, sporting rainbow-coloured hair and eyes, swinging a giant paintbrush. Red paint arced through the air, turning into an energy blast that Kohaku narrowly dodged. "Ah! That's impressive and all, but... Be careful!" She watched as it collided with one of the bizarre stalls, obliterating it in a burst of burning splinters.

"Yes!! You've got this!" Lux, seemingly oblivious to the near-miss, twirled and fist-pumped the air. "Now let's go! As for how you use your powers, you'll have some sense of how they work right away! And this is a good chance to figure out the finer details!"

"But... Wait!" No, she didn't, was all Kohaku could think as she followed Lux through the chaos, her steps strangely fluid despite her less than practical shoes. "Elaborating on that would sure be helpful right now."

She came to an abrupt stop at the sight of a large stage at the end of the field, just like the one in the school hall, only with ragged curtains that opened to reveal... Kohaku stepped back, gripping her spear. A giant doll-like figure, with plastic-looking jointed limbs and a tattered school uniform, hunched over the group, a mountain of stalls piled onto its shoulders as it juggled several fireballs. No, not fireballs - burning items. A large notebook. A soccer ball. A chalkboard eraser. A festival-style lantern. All of which illuminated the unmoving form at the back of the stage, limbs bound in shadow tendrils like a spider's web. He was translucent, as if immaterial and fading, but Kohaku's heart sank as she recognised him right away.

"Watanabe-san..." The name came out in a shaky whisper. Her suspicion had been correct. "Don't you dare hurt Watanabe!"

The wraith, its face cracked and worn away, gave an eerie laugh that juddered through Kohaku's bones. "I'll do what I like for once!" Its voice, however distorted, was clearly Watanabe's. "Do this, do that! I'm sick of living on everyone else's terms! Sick of taking on the weight of the world! Sick of it sick of it sick of it! Ahahahaha!!" His laugh took on a panicked, desperate tone as he flung the blazing notebook at Kohaku.

Snapping back into action, Kohaku pulled out of the way, bringing her free arm up to shield her eyes from the fiery glow - which instantly dimmed. She gaped as the notebook hung there in midair, half-open and completely still. Even the flames no longer flickered, stationary as a film scene on pause, their former brightness now a dull sepia tone. Just as she processed what she'd done, time resumed for the book once more, sending it darting like a shooting star through the mockery of a festival.

Shadow Contract: A Demon-Slaying Action RP

@Quartz @Rune_Alchemist @VitaVitaAR

Kaida stared as something burst from the girl's back. A mass of slime, with a pair of eyes suspended in its translucent, gelatinous body, and a gooey arm that morphed into a point dangerously close to the girl's throat.

Thoughts racing, Kaida clenched her jaw at the slime creature's offer. Spare it, and spare the hostage. They couldn't sacrifice a child. But they couldn't let a demon go free either, especially not in a crowded mall like this.

Natsumi, ever calm in a crisis, spoke up, negotiating with the demon. It was once Natsumi cast her glance first in Kaeru's direction, then in hers, that Kaida gleaned her intention - keep the blob monster distracted, and lower its guard enough for Kaeru to strike. Kaida suppressed a shudder at the thought of where she'd come in. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that.

"Would you be able to tell us where that monster is?" she asked. "Cos it seems we have a common enemy. We were looking for a Devil, so could that be part of your terms?"

She lowered the water orbs, attempting to appear nonthreatening. Of course, she had no intention of actually letting the mutated jello go. It was a matter of lulling it into a false sense of security, and she remained primed to attack should the demon make a bid for escape - or to heal the girl if the worst happened.

Dreams of the Old World (Post apocalyptic adventure with dream based powers)

"Fucking hell..."

Those particularly non magical girl-like words were the first thing Sarah uttered as her surroundings swam into view. Steel bars. One of those infernal rocks embedded into the floor. And, just her luck, a cheering crowd that made her head pound in pain. Of course her dumb costume had let her down yet again, giving those mercenaries the upper hand.

She reached into the dream, attempting to access her wand and healing magic - a possible concussion wasn't something to take lightly - only for her headache to spike. Groaning and pressing her hand to her forehead, she slumped against the bars. She could feel dried blood running down her left temple to her jawbone, flaking to the metal floor from her touch.

Her fingers clenched into fists as the wannabe warlord made the hammiest announcement he could. A show. A brawl. And a reward. Her eyes flicked towards a crystalline gleam she recognised all too well. Something in her leapt at the promise of food and shelter. Literally selling souls wasn't the most ethical line of work, but ethics and survival rarely went hand in hand. She'd had that drummed into her from a young age. Yet the pit of her stomach twisted in revulsion at the thought, an annoying sensation she'd had to deal with since she'd gotten her dream.

The audience's chants, as if they worshipped this 'Lord Morski', exacerbated said sensation. "Fine," Sarah snarled, sweeping her glare over the gathering. "You want a show? How 'bout this?" She flipped off the crowd, which only seemed to fuel the fire as their cheers grew louder, punctuated only by a metallic clang. She stared over at the Dreamer who'd kicked down the door of his cage, the Dreamer she recognised. It took a second or two to place him. The brother of a Dreamer she'd worked with in the past.

"Richtor?!" The moment of bewilderment was all it took for the other doors to swing open. Hurrying out only to fall to her knees as the arena blurred, she closed her eyes and drew upon the dream. Images surfaced in her mind - a pastel hued kingdom, warriors of light pitted against denizens of darkness. In a flash of pink light, a wand that looked like a plastic children's toy appeared in her hand, the tip heart-shaped. As she held it to her forehead, it glowed, the pain fading while the wound closed.

"Anyone else need healing?" She glanced from Dreamer to Dreamer, one of whom stood beneath a formidable being consisting of mostly eyes. She resisted to the urge to shrink back, not fancying her chances against said summoner, to say the least. "Don't get the wrong idea. It's just to make sure it's a fair fight, so don't any of you dare think I'll go easy on you."

Chronicles of the Six: Magic’s Awakening: A Magical Boy RP.

@Letter Bee @Crimson Flame

As the sky lit up with shooting stars, Kieran felt Conner's hand on his. Blushing, he returned the grip. After this, he resolved even as his nerves jangled, he'd confess. He'd work up the courage, and then he'd tell Conner while he still had the chance.

A strange sight snapped him from his thoughts. The stars arranged themselves into a vortex, like a spiral galaxy, growing by the second. Before he could say or do anything, glowing tendrils shot out, grabbing him and the others. His insides jolted as if he were falling, until his hands and knees struck solid, grassy ground.

"Ugh... Can't say I've heard any folklore of shooting stars doing this!" Propping himself into a sitting position, he stared around in awe and bewilderment. They'd all found themselves in some kind of forest clearing, lit only by luminescent mushrooms and the multicoloured aurora overhead. All he could glean of where they were was that this wasn't Earth. "Ehhh, let's hope this isn't like one of my dad's comics." Storylines involving people trapped in dark, hellish worlds filled with monsters replayed through his head, and cold sweat beaded at the back of his neck. At least if this turned out to be one such world beneath its pretty surface, he'd know from the comics what not to do. "Everyone alright? We've got to stick together no matter what."

He staggered to his feet, brushing himself off and giving the many pairs of eyes that stared out wary glances. One pair advanced, a small form scampering into the light, revealing itself to be an ermine. A talking ermine, dressed in a crown and robe, announcing its presence with a loud "HEY!"

Stunned into silence, Kieran watched as the ermine, who introduced himself as Basil, scampered onto Deuel's shoulder. A glow enveloped Deuel, and vanished as quickly as it had appeared, leaving him in a suit of ornate armour befitting of a paladin. Or rather, the chosen one, as Basil explained. The chosen one tasked with the duty of leading an adventuring party.

"Hold up." Kieran's eyebrows furrowed. "Is this some kind of prank you're trying to pull? What's actually going on here?" As someone who liked to play a fair few pranks himself, he recognised something put-on about Basil's tone. Ciel expressed a similar sentiment, pointing out the faulty logic - as much as any of this could even be called logical.

Sure enough, another creature that could only be an animal companion approached. A flying dolphin by the name of Chesi, settling on Conner's shoulder. Kieran stepped back as water swirled around Conner, transforming him as the light had transformed Deuel. His mouth fell open. "Wow... I... That... That's neat. That's beyond neat." Conner stood there in a sea-blue tunic and cape, with pauldrons and gauntlets bearing water drop patterns. His hair had changed colour to match his outfit, and he gripped a trident as he struck a pose.

"Oh for the love of magic, did you really think you were fooling anyone?" came a loud, sharp voice from above. Kieran raised his head to see a longhaired black cat perched on a tree branch, her green glare fixed on Basil. "Anyway, it's MY turn to explain." Head and tail held high, she turned her attention to Kieran. "I'll have you know, I am Archmage Melanthe, or Melanthe the Magnificent if you prefer. The fact that you saw through Basil's pack of lies proves you're maybe a little smarter than you look, so you've probably figured out this is a duty you've all got to share, while we make sure you don't get in over your heads."

She climbed down onto Kieran's shoulder, sitting in a regal pose like an Egyptian goddess sculpture. "Can't say I was expecting someone so scrawny to help save Arcanum, but oh well. Considering your friends here, I doubt I need to tell you what to do."

Kieran nodded, his thoughts whirling too fast for him to take offense. "Well, here goes nothing..." Melanthe's presence had brought a surge of energy, welling in his chest, waiting for him to tap into it. As soon as he focused inwards, it swelled outwards. Wisps of shadow whirled around him, starting at his feet and rising to his head until they cloaked him completely. They evaporated as quickly as they'd formed.

The first thing Kieran noticed was the change in his eyesight. His surroundings appeared sharper, brighter, even against the night, as he cast his gaze down. His T-shirt and swim shorts had changed into a black bodysuit, with a ragged cape that seemed more shadow than substance, and silver accents at his waist, arms and legs. Dual sheathes on his hips held daggers.

"Oh wow..." Glancing from Conner to Deuel, he gave a breathless laugh. "Looks like I really did unleash my inner warlock."

"Excuse me!" Melanthe bristled, earning a wince from Kieran as she dug her claws in ever so slightly. "I think you'll find I did. And you'd better take this seriously, because let me tell you, Arcanum's seen better days."

Shadow Contract: A Demon-Slaying Action RP

@Emeth @VitaVitaAR

Rika hissed her concern right away, sounding rather like Kazemi - Oh dang. Kaida winced inwardly and pushed the thought to the back of her mind, hoping Kazemi hadn't heard it. She gave Rika a brief glance, not daring take her attention off of the store interior for too long. "Hey, not like everyone else is far away," she whispered, trying to put her comrade at ease. She didn't blame Rika for her suddenly tense demeanour - she'd hinted at having fought Monster and Beast class demons, but not Devils. "We've got this."

Sure enough, everyone crept forward, following the two into the shop. Items lay strewn all over the floor, but nothing else moved, or made a sound. Kaida kept her guard up, holding the water orbs in front of her, bracing herself for a demon's ambush. She doubted a Devil would hide here, much less knock something down and give their presence away, but if this was indeed a Beast, even they could be formidable if one's guard was down.

Just as they neared the back of the shop, something stirred. Kaida placed her feet apart and swivelled her torso in a battle stance, water spheres swelling as she faced the... child? A little girl, also primed to attack, holding a baseball bat over her head. The tension left Kaida's muscles.

"W-wait... You're not demons?" the girl uttered.

Slowly, so as to not intimidate the child, Kaida approached. She could understand the little girl's distrust. On more than one occasion, Kaida had been mistaken for a demon at first glance, and then there was Andrea. "We're a Demon Destruction Force team," she explained, "or, technically, magical girls." With a warm smile, she made a sideways V sign next to her face, letting the water glob float by her side. "Let's get you out of here. Are you hurt? Do you need healing?"

"I know you want to comfort her," Kazemi spoke up in her head, "but we need to ask her about demonic activity."

Kaida gave the girl an apologetic look. "I understand it won't be easy to talk about, but did you see where any demons went?" She wished she didn't have to ask. For all she knew, the child might have witnessed the incident that left the blood splatter.

Harold's Academy for the Magically Inclined

Sylvia Copeland

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Day 1 ◈ Time: Night ◈ Weather: Moderate Rain ◈Location: Harold's Academy, Main Ballroom ◈ Participants: Sylvia Copeland, Leah Eusebia Clearwater @vietmyke, Anastasia Arslan @Ti, Arthur Everwood @Jumbus

---

---

Before the Pupa's strike could land, a large hunk of metal bowled it over, manipulated by an unseen force - the wielder of which could only be one person. "Leah!" Sylvia gave such a huge sigh of relief her ribs ached as an avalanche of steel plates crushed the creature.

Sylvia didn't wait to check whether it was dead. She made to rise, but her wounded leg seared and buckled. She yelped as her body suddenly moved against her will, taking on a standing position, no doubt courtesy of Leah. "Heh... Thanks. Looks like I'm down to eight lives." She gave a strained chuckle through gritted teeth, trying to ignore the pain, although a glance down revealed several deep angry wounds in her right ankle, matting her fur with blood.

Leah hurtled her ahead, towards the hall, rather less than gently - not that Sylvia could blame her. "But... Ana!" Panic spiked again as she remembered Ana's predicament. "Ana got attacked!" Sylvia stared over her shoulder to see her wielding the chandelier like a battle hammer, the Pupa in a mangled heap on the floor. A relieved laugh bubbled through Sylvia. "Impressive! You alright, Ana?"

Pushing off of her good leg and taking to the air to ease the strain on her ankle, she darted into the hallway. A crumbling, crunching noise echoed through the place. She whirled round, watching Leah clench her fist, her psychic grasp tearing down chunks of stone. A glance around revealed everyone had made it through just in time, Arthur rolling across the floor and thudding to an awkward halt.

"Arthur! Are you ok?" The air mage simply grinned, thanking her and Leah. "Ehh, can't say I really did much back there. It's Leah who saved us." Sylvia's gaze shifted from Arthur to the doorway, the last chunks of debris falling and sealing the entrance in a cloud of dust. Holding off the attackers - for now. "Let's keep moving. Don't want to be a downer, but I wouldn't put it past the Pupa to try and dig through."

She stuck by the other defenders, keeping her claws extended just in case.

The Secret Lives Of Schoolteachers - A Magical Girl Mix-up RP

Emiko and Sakura were both quick to reprimand Kohaku about her comment on children's shows. "I know. I know anyone can enjoy them," she replied, glancing from them back to Lux. "It's just all a lot to take in." Her mind reeled as she tried to imagine the group in outlandish costumes, battling supernatural forces with flashy moves. "But if someone needs protecting - and if, of course, this isn't all just some prank - then I'm in too."

One by one, others accepted, Yui even hinting she'd done this before. Kohaku's eyebrows furrowed. Was Yui serious, or was she in on this prank, if it did indeed turn out to be that? Before Kohaku could ask any questions, Hata offered to risk herself for everyone else's sake, which prompted Aya to insist she'd go in her stead. The chair scraped against the tiles as Kohaku stood. "No... No Aya, you didn't fail," she reassured her, approaching. "Assuming this is real, we couldn't have known about it. Lux? I-I'll go first."

She clenched her fists by her sides, trepidation bubbling through her. She suspected not even magic would be enough to change her terrible luck, but if the worst happened? As much as the thought terrified her, it wasn't like she had a spouse, any children, or really any close family she'd leave behind. And this would help these kids far more than anything else she could do for them.

Lux, who backed away from Andrew and his hatchet, gave a nervous laugh that became a grin of relief as her eyes flicked from person to person. "You will? Oh, thank you! I'll try to make this up to you in any way I can! You alright with this too?" She fluttered over to Aiko. "Wielding power to fight wraiths and..." Her antennae perked right up, and her eyes widened. "Ah! It's stirring! It'll drain the students if we don't do something now! Sorry there's no real time to explain but... Are you all ready?"

Flying to the middle of the room, Lux spread her arms. Kohaku stared down to see an orb of golden light form just beneath her collarbone and meld into her body, filling her with a strange, tingling warmth. Proof that this was no practical joke. A quick look around revealed the same thing happening to every other staff member in the room, except for Andrew.

"Ehh..." Lux gave him an apologetic look. "Seems it really only does work on girls. Quick, get somewhere safe! Everyone else, follow me!"

Kohaku frowned at the plain sweater and pencil skirt she still wore. None of the staff looked any different, and now the warm glow had passed, she didn't feel different either... except for... Her entire body tensed at the sensation of wrongness permeating the area. A chill that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "Can you feel that too?" she asked, her gaze darting around at the others.

The sensation grew stronger as she followed Lux out of the staff room, down the hallway. Colder, emptier. Rubbing her arms, Kohaku shivered. "And I thought Monday mornings brought enough looming dread at the best of times." As she and the others turned a corner, she stopped, rooted in place.

In the middle of the corridor, wisps of black and purple smoke floated in midair. Two girls wandered right past, appearing not to notice as they chatted, although their footsteps visibly flagged and one pinched the bridge of her nose as if sudden fatigue had come over her. "There! The entrance!" Lux called. Kohaku started, thoughts racing as she wondered how to explain Lux to the students, but they ignored the fairy too, trudging away. She'd have questions about how that worked later, but now wasn't the time.

With a deep breath, she gave the others a resolute look. Seeing the effect on those two students just now bolstered her determination to protect them. "When I said I'd go first... I meant it." Heart pounding a steady staccato against her ribcage, she bit her lip and inched forward.

"Please, you've gotta stick together!" Lux squeaked. "It's best if we go in as a group!"

Kohaku glanced at Aya and Hata to make absolutely sure they still wanted to go through with their offer - even if they'd changed their minds, she'd still go on ahead. Someone had to. "Well, here goes nothing." She stepped forward, and the ground tilted beneath her as the hallway blurred and shifted.

---

"Ah!" Kohaku's stomach jerked as if from a sudden fall. She stumbled, regaining her footing on... grass? Scanning her surroundings, she found she had no words for them.

On a weirdness scale of one to ten, calling it an eleven would be an understatement. She stood on a sports field, complete with chalked lines, yet festival stalls in every garish colour imaginable had been haphazardly set up all over it, some of them even piled up on top of each other with broken canopies. The sides of some bore doors for some reason, hanging off of their hinges, signs with school club names taped to them. Streamers ran between them in a tangle, adorned with what looked like report papers or assignments. Light flickered ahead, and Kohaku yelped as she noticed some of the stalls were on fire - yet the flames weren't spreading, confined to the wreckages of cloth and wood. Bars arched up around the field like a cage, silhouetted against a red sky. "This... is a Cocoon? This isn't exactly what I had in mind..."

It looked like a mish-mash of school events gone horribly wrong. Or a class representative's nightmare... Oh no. Realisation struck. A certain student had been acting a little off since becoming class rep. No matter how dreamlike this place was, being able to put a possible identity to the victim made this all the more painfully real.

"Now! Imagine yourself taking on magical form!" Lux flitted above her, taking in the chaos.

Kohaku blinked in surprise. She didn't have to say an incantation, or use a trinket? She just had to think about being a magical girl? Feeling more than a little silly, she closed her eyes and visualised herself transforming. Hopefully it wouldn't be some lengthy, showy sequence, considering there was no time to wast-

It was instantaneous. A glow flared around her, that tingle returning as magic thrummed through her body. Once the light faded, she looked down, eyebrows raising at the maroon-coloured, frilled, beaded minidress she now wore. She wouldn't have looked out of place at a steampunk convention. Grasped in her fist was some kind of spear, shaped like an intricately designed clock hand. "Wha...? How am I supposed to fight in this?"

The getup didn't look at all practical, yet as she took a step, she found her movements oddly light and fluid. So this was being a magical girl. A real live magical girl.

Dreams of the Old World (Post apocalyptic adventure with dream based powers)

Magical Girl Sarah

Name: Sarah Cordell

Gender: Female

Age: 26

Appearance:

Standing at 5'4", with soft features, Sarah would look unassuming if not for her typically unfriendly body language and near-constant scowl. She's learned from an early age to cultivate an air than makes people not want to get on the wrong side of her. She opts for practical, loose-fitting clothing that's easy to move in and that she doesn't mind getting dirty. Her light blonde hair is kept reasonably short at shoulder length. Her eyes used to be brown, but turned pink when she got her dream, making it difficult to hide that she's a Dreamer.

Personality: A no-nonsense pragmatist, Sarah is focused on doing what it takes to get by, and has no time for heroism or any nobler goal - at least, that's what she claims. Raised to be cynical, distrustful and ruthless, she never really had any childhood sense of wonder. Upon gaining her dream, however, she's developed more of a sense of idealism. Instead of merely being bitter about the state of the world, she's caught herself doing little things to make it a slightly better place for some people - all while denying that was her intent. Wouldn't want anyone thinking she's gone soft, after all.

Between having lost loved ones and being on her guard against betrayal, she tries not to grow too attached to people, and has a hard time getting close. Not helping is her gruff and grouchy demeanour. Once she spends long enough around others though, she does often develop more of a soft spot for them than she outwardly lets on.

Dream: Magical Girl
A cheery and colourful fairytale realm, where the stars shine bright. A dream of battling against monsters, taking down evil royals who dare invade, bringing hope and joy to civilians. A dream of clear-cut morality, where justice always prevails.

From this dream, Sarah can currently summon two things. One is a frilled and ribboned white costume with pink, blue and rose gold highlights, which replaces whatever she's wearing and gives a further boost to her already Dreamer-typical strength and toughness, as well as increasing agility. The downside is that it's about as practical as it looks, and can snag on things if she's not careful. It's most likely only thanks to the agility boost that she can even run in those shoes.

The other is a pink heart-shaped wand with a ribbon tied around it. This allows Sarah to use a basic smite attack which takes the form of a glittering energy blast, and also grants minor healing abilities. As she learns to delve further into the dream, she'll be able to summon different wands, granting fire, ice and lightning powers. Naming her moves, shouting them out, and posing adds to their strength.

Only she can use the wands, and she can only summon one at a time, although she can summon both the costume and a wand at once.

Bio: As the daughter of two Shardhunters, scraping by in the poorer outskirts of a Nova Republic city, Sarah grew up with no illusions of how unforgiving the world was. When they weren't away on perilous searches, her parents taught her to take what she could from life and give back as little as possible. A world like this was no place for kindness; it was best to look out only for oneself and one's immediate family. Anyone else was either not worth caring about, or a potential threat.

These words rang particularly true after her father passed away when she was 14, murdered by a group of scavengers while on a mission. After that, her mother doubled down on her self-defense lessons, as now Sarah would have to join her to gather shards and secure resources. For a few years, they worked together, but shards were few and far in between. One day, her mother also failed to return from a hunt - this time, it had been a rival Shardhunter who'd literally backstabbed her. At age 19, Sarah was now on her own, save for the tense alliances Shardhunters formed when necessary. Growing close to anyone was a liability - all too commonly, they'd either die, or betray their allies.

More years passed, and it was only a matter of time until one of Sarah's hunts went badly awry. She'd been lucky enough to find a shard, but as she and her group travelled back towards the city, a creature attacked. A mutated being that bore only the vaguest resemblance to a human. A Nightmare, whose territory she'd just stumbled into. In desperation, she tore off one of her gloves and grabbed the crystal with her bare hand. Images of a brighter world, starkly contrasting with hers, flooded her mind as the shard vanished into her skin. She mentally called out into the dream for something she could use to defend herself and her fellow hunters. In a flurry of sparkles, her shabby old clothes turned into - a frilly dress? And the "weapon" she now held was a pink, beribboned, heart-shaped wand?

For all her confusion, she found her physical skills significantly boosted, allowing her to evade the monster's attacks - until she tripped up in her high heels. As it made to lunge, she pointed the wand at it. The words "Sparkling Smite" echoed in her head, and feeling more than a tad ridiculous, she repeated them. A glittering energy burst knocked the monster back, giving her time to stand. A few punches and Sparkling Smites later, the Nightmare fell dead.

The immediate threat was gone, but now Sarah found herself faced with another problem - specifically, that she was now a Dreamer living in a city that hated and feared them. She couldn't exactly blame the fearful either, considering the non-infintessimal risk that she'd turn into the same abomination she'd defeated. So, she wasted no time in getting registered, in order to capture criminals and take down more Nightmares. Her intentions were more pragmatic than heroic; it was a matter of surviving and keeping her home. Even so, she found some of the dream's idealism rubbing off on her. There was something rewarding about saving people and bringing dangerous thugs to justice, and it wasn't just the money.

But as her view of the world slowly changed, so did her view of the job. She grew to despise having to represent the Republic as flawless beacons of morality, when they really only cared about power, rather than about their citizens. And some of the "criminals" they told her to go after were hardly that bad. Some were just desperate, like she'd once been - she'd committed her own petty thefts from richer folks when she was younger.

Which is why she ended up turning her back on the Republic for a Dreamer settlement, surviving on her wits and resources as she always had - while deep down, wondering if things really could change for the better.

Dreams of the Old World (A post apocalyptic 'magical' Adventure)

@Heckno12 Here, hope this is ok!

Magical Girl Sarah

Name: Sarah Cordell

Gender: Female

Age: 26

Appearance:

Standing at 5'4", with soft features, Sarah would look unassuming if not for her typically unfriendly body language and near-constant scowl. She's learned from an early age to cultivate an air than makes people not want to get on the wrong side of her. She opts for practical, loose-fitting clothing that's easy to move in and that she doesn't mind getting dirty. Her light blonde hair is kept reasonably short at shoulder length. Her eyes used to be brown, but turned pink when she got her dream, making it difficult to hide that she's a Dreamer.

Personality: A no-nonsense pragmatist, Sarah is focused on doing what it takes to get by, and has no time for heroism or any nobler goal - at least, that's what she claims. Raised to be cynical, distrustful and ruthless, she never really had any childhood sense of wonder. Upon gaining her dream, however, she's developed more of a sense of idealism. Instead of merely being bitter about the state of the world, she's caught herself doing little things to make it a slightly better place for some people - all while denying that was her intent. Wouldn't want anyone thinking she's gone soft, after all.

Between having lost loved ones and being on her guard against betrayal, she tries not to grow too attached to people, and has a hard time getting close. Not helping is her gruff and grouchy demeanour. Once she spends long enough around others though, she does often develop more of a soft spot for them than she outwardly lets on.

Dream: Magical Girl
A cheery and colourful fairytale realm, where the stars shine bright. A dream of battling against monsters, taking down evil royals who dare invade, bringing hope and joy to civilians. A dream of clear-cut morality, where justice always prevails.

From this dream, Sarah can currently summon two things. One is a frilled and ribboned white costume with pink, blue and rose gold highlights, which replaces whatever she's wearing and gives a further boost to her already Dreamer-typical strength and toughness, as well as increasing agility. The downside is that it's about as practical as it looks, and can snag on things if she's not careful. It's most likely only thanks to the agility boost that she can even run in those shoes.

The other is a pink heart-shaped wand with a ribbon tied around it. This allows Sarah to use a basic smite attack which takes the form of a glittering energy blast, and also grants minor healing abilities. As she learns to delve further into the dream, she'll be able to summon different wands, granting fire, ice and lightning powers. Naming her moves, shouting them out, and posing adds to their strength.

Only she can use the wands, and she can only summon one at a time, although she can summon both the costume and a wand at once.

Bio: As the daughter of two Shardhunters, scraping by in the poorer outskirts of a Nova Republic city, Sarah grew up with no illusions of how unforgiving the world was. When they weren't away on perilous searches, her parents taught her to take what she could from life and give back as little as possible. A world like this was no place for kindness; it was best to look out only for oneself and one's immediate family. Anyone else was either not worth caring about, or a potential threat.

These words rang particularly true after her father passed away when she was 14, murdered by a group of scavengers while on a mission. After that, her mother doubled down on her self-defense lessons, as now Sarah would have to join her to gather shards and secure resources. For a few years, they worked together, but shards were few and far in between. One day, her mother also failed to return from a hunt - this time, it had been a rival Shardhunter who'd literally backstabbed her. At age 19, Sarah was now on her own, save for the tense alliances Shardhunters formed when necessary. Growing close to anyone was a liability - all too commonly, they'd either die, or betray their allies.

More years passed, and it was only a matter of time until one of Sarah's hunts went badly awry. She'd been lucky enough to find a shard, but as she and her group travelled back towards the city, a creature attacked. A mutated being that bore only the vaguest resemblance to a human. A Nightmare, whose territory she'd just stumbled into. In desperation, she tore off one of her gloves and grabbed the crystal with her bare hand. Images of a brighter world, starkly contrasting with hers, flooded her mind as the shard vanished into her skin. She mentally called out into the dream for something she could use to defend herself and her fellow hunters. In a flurry of sparkles, her shabby old clothes turned into - a frilly dress? And the "weapon" she now held was a pink, beribboned, heart-shaped wand?

For all her confusion, she found her physical skills significantly boosted, allowing her to evade the monster's attacks - until she tripped up in her high heels. As it made to lunge, she pointed the wand at it. The words "Sparkling Smite" echoed in her head, and feeling more than a tad ridiculous, she repeated them. A glittering energy burst knocked the monster back, giving her time to stand. A few punches and Sparkling Smites later, the Nightmare fell dead.

The immediate threat was gone, but now Sarah found herself faced with another problem - specifically, that she was now a Dreamer living in a city that hated and feared them. She couldn't exactly blame the fearful either, considering the non-infintessimal risk that she'd turn into the same abomination she'd defeated. So, she wasted no time in getting registered, in order to capture criminals and take down more Nightmares. Her intentions were more pragmatic than heroic; it was a matter of surviving and keeping her home. Even so, she found some of the dream's idealism rubbing off on her. There was something rewarding about saving people and bringing dangerous thugs to justice, and it wasn't just the money.

But as her view of the world slowly changed, so did her view of the job. She grew to despise having to represent the Republic as flawless beacons of morality, when they really only cared about power, rather than about their citizens. And some of the "criminals" they told her to go after were hardly that bad. Some were just desperate, like she'd once been - she'd committed her own petty thefts from richer folks when she was younger.

Which is why she ended up turning her back on the Republic for a Dreamer settlement, surviving on her wits and resources as she always had - while deep down, wondering if things really could change for the better.

Dreams of the Old World (A post apocalyptic 'magical' Adventure)

@Emeth Zero obedience - Sounds about right for a cat 😂

I'll have my CS up soon!