Current
Wash away the sorrow all the stains of time
3 mos ago
Fusing into the unknown
3 mos ago
Looks like from here it, it only gets better
2
likes
8 mos ago
Forgotten footfalls, engraved in ash
9 mos ago
Stalling falling blossoms in bloom
Bio
Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.
Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.
So, I might use a character from another Persona RP, which Lugs and I discussed a little bit earlier - Wheel of Fortune tarot with Leir of Britain as the Persona, generally rather down on herself, probably kind of jerked around by her circumstances. With that in mind, would it be okay if I had an external Awakening based on one or more of my character's relatives?
Hey there, good to see you. That sounds good to me.
Light and dark clashed in a terrific and destructive display of arcane power. And like metal undergoing temperature shock from back-to-back treatments of opposing hot and cold extremes, Shadow did not escape unscathed. He hurtled from the dazzling magic explosion and hit the roof of the office building, where he skidded and rolled for a couple seconds before coming to a stop. Even then, however, the hedgehog did not relent. His eyes snapped open, and with his face a mask of rage he picked himself up to face Sectonia, just in time to hear her taunt.
“Minion!?” he repeated, his tone dripping venom. After a moment, however, he gave a wry laugh. “At least you recognize my power. You, meanwhile, I wouldn’t bother to scrape off the bottom of my Air Shoes!” He held up one clawed hand in front of his face and took hold of the golden ring around his wrist with the other. “Now that you’ve said your last words, I’ll go ahead and send you straight to hell!”
At that moment a song rang out from somewhere on his person, carrying through the air. Shadow paused, his expression disgusted, as the moment dragged on. “Ugh, FINE!” If Sectonia approached him he planned to stop her with Chaos Control, but either way he would release his ring to reach down into a shoe. He pulled out a small device, flipped it open, and held it to his ear. “What. Do. You want!? I was RIGHT about to teach this overgrown bug a thing or two!”
He listened for a moment, his expression growing more and more irate. “Like hell I will! If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some business to...yeah? What about it?” From his other shoe he produced a bone, which he stared at as he continued to listen. “Oh, it will, huh?” A devious grin took hold of him. “Fine then. I’ll do it your way.” He crushed the bone in his fist, and promptly disappeared.
Necronomicon lacked a face to react with, but her tone spoke volumes. “...Wooow. That was anticlimactic.” She buzzed around Sectonia as she grew excited again. “But still, that was Shadow! Shadow the Hedgehog, in the flesh! How crazy is that?” Unfortunately, Sectonia couldn’t tell her how crazy it was, and pretty soon the flying saucer was back down to earth. “Ugh, okay. Guess we gotta head back. But uh, here’s a tip. Let’s try and keep him from taking those rings off if we see him again. Things are gonna get a whole lot crazier if he does!”
So saying, Necronomicon flew back down towards the office’s front door.
Vehement though Midna was, neither Fox nor Joker took her words to heart, even as they heard her out. The much more pressing matter at the moment took the form of Ciella, about whom the Twilight Princess wasn’t wrong. As her assault on the Resistance and her duel with Amara proved, she already commanded inhuman strength and fortitude, with close-quarters combat her only real flaw. If she now possessed the strength and magical abilities of that rough-and-tumble heroine too, she could be a dire threat at any range. Under normal circumstances that might be good, but given the untrustworthy nature of the Grimleal and how quickly allies could become enemies in this world, Joker figured this was pretty bad. Of course, her power-up in itself didn’t hold a candle to what the act implied.
These people knew about fusion. That meant that either they figured it out on their own, or someone in the know leaked it to them. And either way, it meant that the power of spirits was unique to the Seekers no longer.
The four reached the main area of the office’s first floor to find the rest of the battles concluded. Joker took a quick look around but could not make out any trace of Fuse, the Dragonborn, or Shadow. Except for a pretty badly wounded Laharl and a somewhat beat-up Sectonia, everyone on his side looked only a little worse for wear; there had been no casualties. Still paused to catch their breath, the team gathered around where Midna worked her magic on Laharl to renew both body and mind. With the insect queen gradually healing, everyone would be right as rain in no time.
Physically speaking, at least. Tensions were high, both from near misses and clashing viewpoints, and even without casualties the group was technically down one. “Mona is fine,” Joker reassured everyone while Jesse went over to whisper with Midna. “He grabbed something from Jinx and it teleported to another part of the city. Since the other man wasn’t there, chances are good it returns you to a previous ‘checkpoint’.
Necronomicon hovered beside him, turning steadily. “So at least until he drives back, we’re down our main healer, huh?”
“Even so, that was well fought,” Fox put forward, a courteous congratulation to the team.
Ciella tossed her hair and snorted. “We outnumbered that rabble by a factor of two. I would hope that such odds would favor us.” Leaving the others to draw their own conclusions about what happened to her appearance, she headed for a stairwell door about halfway along the back room between the conference room and the corner where the Overlords squared off with the Dragonborn. “The pretenders lie beneath us. Let us make haste, lest they worm through an escape route.”
With blood spilled there could be little in the way of idle gossip or friendly chatter, so the ten descended the stairs in relative quiet. Ciella had meant to take the lead alongside Braum, but a little trouble adjusting to her new shorter stride on the stairs left the team’s shield out in front, along with whoever might want to make themselves the first to encounter whatever lay ahead. Only a couple potted plants could be seen in the room at the stairway’s bottom, so after parting ways with the last purple step, the group’s frontrunners spread out across the ocher-colored flooring to see what the Resistance’s basement had to offer.
Ciella let her head loll back as she rolled her eyes. “This must be a joke.”
Directly ahead there appeared to be some kind of bizarre room. Thick walls of dark blue glass extended floor to ceiling in various shapes, while the floor between them was littered with odd tiles that flashed yellow and green.
Braum crouched over one of the arrow-patterned tiles. “You know these things?”
Crossing her arms, Ciella sighed. “They hail from a project of Validar’s. Their purpose is the expediency of cargo transport in the freight sector. A shipment went missing.” She stared out across the array of stolen goods. “Anything put on one will be spun forward until it hits a wall or a yellow pad.”
Joker cracked his neck. “Sounds like a maze. Shouldn’t be much of an issue.”
Another staircase existed directly to the right, but a quick examination turned up only a couple offices with neither exits nor lurking Resistance members. One featured two locked computers, a laptop and an ancient PC, but being the Persona rather than the person Necronomicon couldn’t hack them. If the Seekers wanted to move forward, they would need to get through the maze.
Tora, Poppi, and Big Band
Level 9 Tora (31/90) Level 8 Poppi (101/80) Level 3 Big Band (23/30) Location: Al Mamoon Northwest - Obelisk Temple Primrose’s @Yankee, Fox’s @Dawnrider Word Count: 1168
While being healed Band made sure to wear his gratitude on his sleeve. “Aw, you’re too good to me. Don’t need to be wastin’ your magic juice--I can take a lickin’ and still keep tickin’. But thanks all the same.” He waited as she made her move, descending to the lower platform with the effortless grace he expected. Of course, that just left him, with the approximate grace of a drunken elephant. He took a quick but deep breath. “Okay, alrighty, here goes noth-!”
“Hello down there!”
A sudden cry from above both cut him off and brought his attention skyward. When he looked up he saw a couple familiar shapes floating down from the upper reaches of the cavern toward him, descending slowly thanks to a pair of well-tuned jet boosters. Held tight in Poppi QT’s arms like a furry beach ball, Tora waved both wings down at Band. “Hi-hi, meh! Tora and friends be with in second!”
The mention of friends plural prompted Band to look again, and sure enough, he spotted a certain sorcerer above the dynamic duo, rappelling with an extra-long bandage. It took just a moment for Tora, Poppi, and Kan-Ra to reach the bridge, then pass it to land on the promontory where Primrose waited. Excited Tora bounced around the dancer in a circle. “Tora hate bugs!” he announced. “Right after Tora and Poppi get done smushing masky lady’s nasty spideypons and get clean again, Tora locked in hall fully of icky hives!”
Poppi nodded, a traumatized look in her eyes. “Poppi make sure burn every single one with fire core. No survivor.”
Shaking his head, Tora explained further. “Turn out, one hive hide opening into huge cave. See friends Band and Primrose fighting skellypons, meh. Just about to help too, but then...super cool punch explosion!” Wielding his Mech Arms, Tora mimicked Band’s Blockbuster. “Tora need do it too!”
“Maybe after I get down from here!” Band called, bringing back the matter at hand. Everyone looked up to see him still on the bridge, his destination now both dubious and obscured.
Those already down cleared the way. “If you doubt the integrity of this extension, I can pull you over,” Kan-Ra offered, his look a lot more gleeful than it should be.
Though the guy ticked just about every box Band had for ‘untrustworthy traitorous villain’, he couldn’t help but think it a decent idea, all options considered. “If those wraps of yours’ll hold...fly me to the moon.”
Kan-Ra took a position in the doorway and extended his bandages, ready to grab. After another deep breath Band ran and jumped. He flew through the air into the waiting snare, and with a mighty pull the sorcerer yanked the detective the rest of the way. Band landed hard right in front of the door, and just as he feared there came a loud crack as the platform gave way. He pulled himself up through the doorway with time enough to turn and watch the extension crumble away into the abyss. He shook his head. “Good grief. Let me off uptown next time.”
The ride was far from over. A swell in the sounds of combat prompted the five to hurry up a small flight of stairs and around a corner. They emptied through a doorway into the temple’s third floor, a wide hall around the open middle spice like a giant, square-shaped ring. Pillars both standing and fallen littered the place, and the new arrivals got a good look at the fight in progress.
After being thrown by Azwel toward Fox, Es took the initiative. Rather than attempt a swing she committed to an airdash, arriving a lot sooner than the pilot expected with a headlong tackle rather than a telegraphed sword swing. That solid opener led to a quick and dirty combo to deal Fox some damage and dispatch him before Azwel could get on her case. From there the summoner took center stage, dancing with Es back and forth between the pillars in a whirlwind of weaponry. The reinforcements appeared just in time to see Es lock down Azwel with another delayed crest ring, send his shield flying with a well-aimed sweep, and spear him on a row of crest spikes.
Tora raised his Mech Arms, calling, “Tora and friends to rescue!”
Another six pairs of eyes fell on him, but Band was watching Es. “I got another idea.” He stepped forward, deploying a Brass Knuckle, and swatted the nearest pillar. The swing took out a cylindrical section that he gripped like a hardball and hurled the swordfighter’s way. Shocked by the unexpected attack, Es blocked the projectile but got her guard broken by the effort, and Azwel was quick to capitalize.
“Can you stand the test?!” he cried, lunging forward with an upward swing of both scimitars. As Es flew into the air he controlled the blades like a conductor, striking again and again midair. They finally coalesced into a well of power that held her in place as motes of red and blue surrounded her on all sides. “Accept this from me!” The motes became dozens of crystalline swordblades, ruby and sapphire. “My love!”
All together the blades flew toward the center. They pierced Es from a couple dozen angles and exploded into purple magic. In the chaos there came a flash of gold, like the magic circles the others saw earlier, and the girl disappeared.
It took a moment for both the light and Azwel’s vigor to die down. “Ohohoho…” he laughed, trailing off slowly. “Did you see her expression, right on the brink?” He wiped a tear from his eye. “Oho, goodness…I shall never grow tired of the human race.” As if nothing were amiss he cleared his throat, straightened up, and looked around the gathered heroes. “Well! We’re not all here I see, but I’m sure the others will be along shortly. I can sense where that retrieval magic came from. We’re not far, no, not at all…”
He lead the way toward the central area, where just a short drop from behind the obelisk led to the platform it rested on in the middle of the basin that formed the main temple’s lowest reaches. From there even Big Band could make the jump to the section of floor between nearby pillars. As filled by hieroglyphics and candles as the other floors, the first funneled into a short hallway that ended with another more cavernous room, this one shockingly vacant.
Tora and Poppi looked this way and that, examining the pillars, patterns, statues, and symbols. “This place give off classic puzzle vibes,” he announced.
“Traps, too,” Poppi added.
Kan-Ra glanced between them. “Do either you have anything helpful to say about said puzzles and traps?”
The pair shared a look before Tora spoke for both. “Meeeeeh...no. But we not really look around yet! Resistance just ahead, right? Probably healing all friends we beat. So we just need scope out room and open way fast, meh.”
Rage lent extra power to Panther’s voice as she unleashed Ominous Words. “You’re going down!” The air itself seemed to warp before her, bent purple and black, as the spell washed over the battlemage dwarf. His attempt to block did nothing, and for an instant an abyss of despair welled within him, a bleak anguish so inexorable he couldn’t so much as bring himself to move. His hammer slipped from numb fingers to clatter on top of his Snakeboard.
Panther took the opportunity for all it was worth. Her new submachine gun flashed into her hands, and with one arm extended she unleashed havoc. A dozen cognitive rounds drilled into Beast’s beard, robe, and armor, then two dozen, then three, until the damage finally mounted beyond the breaking point. He snapped out his despair with a jolt and a roar of anger, then clapped his hands. He cast Blinding Radiance, smashing everything in thirty feet with a wall of air, and Panther didn’t avert her gaze in time to avoid being blinded. She cried out in pain as she squeezed her eyes shut, but as Beast collected his hammer and charged forward with a Battering Ram, she got herself together. “Carmen! Maragion!”
Her Persona manifested in an azure blaze to conjure scattered plumes of flame. The spell’s inherent wide range covered the entire swath of pool in which Panther battled, and they welled forth with such red-hot intensity that even after they burst from the pool bottom in billows of steam they still blazed skyward. Beast couldn’t avoid them, but neither could he stop his charge, so atop his Snakeboard he bulled straight into the steam cloud. A moment later he emerged from the other side, scorched and furious. He brought the mobile platform around to re-engage with his enemy, but when the steam cleared he found a soaked but otherwise unharmed Panther adding insult to injury with a stuck-out tongue. Worse still, Skull’s petrification had worn off well before he could drown, and now the Phantom Thieves faced him with all the confidence in the world.
Still, one little setback meant nothing to the Beast, especially atop a Snakeboard. One lean forward was all it took to zoom forward into melee range. From up high he swung and the teenagers, back and forth, each strike a skull-shattering blow. Skull could afford to clash with that warhammer thanks to his sturdy kanabo, but Panther could only book it. For a few frantic moments Beast’s pressure and mobility gave him the upper hand, but the Thieves learned quickly. Skull ducked in the same direction as Beast’s swings before launching a counterattack in the Snakeboard, trying to batter and unbalance the dwarf’s ride. Though Panther got rushed down at first and couldn’t get a spell out while on the back foot, she started alternating between calling Carmen for Agilao and using Agilao herself, so that no matter who Beast went for he got a fireball from somewhere.
After an unfortunate trade she took a hammer blow to her arm, breaking it and forcing her to heal immediately. Though bruised black and blue himself, Skull threw caution to the wind for her sake and hurled himself at Beast with an overhead smash. The dwarf readied another Petrifying Touch, but Skull wasn’t aiming for him. Instead he came down on the Snakeboard, striking with enough force to pitch Beast right off it and into the water.
Growling, the stocky battlemage fought to the surface. Knee height to a human teenager was waist height for him, and he could barely move. In a last ditch effort he pulled out his trump card. Sparks arced across his hand before he plunged it into the pool, flooding the area with electricity. As Panther tried to haul herself up onto the Snakeboard, however, Skull powered through. Beast’s expression turned to one of shock as he saw the blonde pushing toward him, treating the volts that coursed through him like a minor inconvenience. “Grah!?”
“Sorry dude, but lightning’s kinda my thing! Get WRECKED!” Skull brought his club down across Beast’s block, forcing the dwarf’s weapon into the water. Captain Kidd manifested behind him as Skull yelled, “Blow ‘em away, Captain!”
”Aye-aye, sir!” The Persona clutched his ship and executed a backflip, launching Beast out of the water and into the air with a weighty THWACK. Kidd hit the water with a splash and launched a cannonball in a low arc before disappearing. With a look of utter glee Skull struck the projectile like a baseball and sent it careening into Beast mid-air. It went off with a magnificent explosion, the mushroom cloud of smoke in the shape of a skull and crossbones.
A moment later it cleared, leaving nothing behind, not even ash. “Did we get ‘im?” Skull squinted, but he couldn’t be sure. Rather than check he splashed over to Panther. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” his friend groaned. “Carmen’s healed my arm, but it’s still sore. Damn that guy.” She allowed herself to be helped up, and though she shook off Skull’s attempt to assist her to the edge of the pool, she still gave him a friendly shoulder bump. He bumped back with a smile, and she found herself wearing one too. “That was actually pretty cool.”
“Actually?” Skull repeated, sounding appalled. “I am cool!”
Panther laughed. “Whatever. Right now I’m cold. We just had to get wet, huh?” Wringing out his ascot, her companion nodded his assent, although his eyes had gone to find the truth of her words for themselves. She gave him a push that nearly sent them both back into the water, but as nice as some goofing around sounded, they knew that they couldn’t afford to waste any more time. With Yoshitsune’s battle done too, they needed to get a move on, and the multi-level staircase down the corridor was just the ticket.
Link’s experiments quickly turned up interesting results. Once emptied, the structure gel wasted little time molding itself, but not to the shape carved into the metal block Link poured it in. Instead it coagulated into an almost organic-shaped mass, complete with metallic barnacles and tentacles. Bright blue receiver nodes formed across its surface, blinking with an almost hypnotic rhythm. Clearly, this substance played by its own rules.
With the goal so close at hand Junior pushed his submarine into overdrive, full speed ahead. He breezed through the entry to Flow Control with only a minor impact on the right side and made for the main valve, even as the long-haired girl closed the distance. It fell to Mirage to protect his accomplice, and in an effort to give Junior the time he desperately needed, he made the executive decision to use his remote-controlled Universal Helper as a physical obstacle in the door. A mere moment after he inserted the machine into the frame, the drowner arrived. She scrabbled at the opening, pushing the BULL aside with surprising strength, but it could only move a few inches before it came to a stop against the aperture’s opposite edge, and for all her furious kicking the girl couldn’t either push or pull herself through the gap.
Once the realization hit her she paused, frozen except for the hair that swirled and snaked through the water. Then her featureless face locked into the head of the BULL. With both hands she grabbed the machine’s neck, but without claws she couldn’t rip through the wires. Instead she planted her feet against the wall and started to pull, threatening to excise the Universal Helper from its lodging. With the pincers in a bad position to grab hold of anything, only putting the Vortex Motor in reverse would prevent the BULL unit’s extraction, but tightly wired as he was Mirage wasn’t ready for the long-haired girl to suddenly let go. All of a sudden the motor carried him backward, right through the doorway, and then the way was clear.
But it was too late. Mimi had already wrenched the valve, again and again, until with a final THOMM it locked in place. The Depths filled with the sound of moving water, and in Flow Control in particular there resounded the frenetic noise of big machines hard at work. The drowner surged forward in a last-ditch attempt to reach Junior and punch through the glass of his submarine, but with his job done there was nothing preventing the young Koopa from turning his light on her. Some inner fury pushed her forward, striving to reach her target against the light, but the closer she got the worse it burned. Finally the drowner broke away, clutching her faceless head in pain, to dive through a hole in the floor.
The water drained fast--about a foot per second. But four stories of flooding meant a lot of feet to get through, and the Depths’ other inhabitants weren’t taking the sudden change lightly.
With a kite, a plan, and maybe enough energy to put them to use, Nadia and Ace made their way toward the bridge to drop some grates. Just a little longer, the kitten told herself through gritted teeth, trying to get her tired body to move faster. Her nonexistent child muscles were screaming in protest. Her head was swimming. Forget hungry--she was so thirsty. Almost there. Any second now…
For once, she was right. A low, unfamiliar sound reached her from beneath the water, and not to announce the presence of a new monster for once. With wide, disbelieving eyes Nadia watched the water begin to fall. First the ruined platform by the entrance emerged from the water, revealing the top of a mangled metal stair tower that must reach all the way to the ground floor. Then bits of underwater platform and machines revealed themselves. Then--”Wagh!” Enchanted by the falling water, Nadia jumped when Moreau threw himself from the water once more, but this time he didn’t even come close. His bellow seemed almost frustrated as he fell back down once more, and Nadia’s cackling echoed through the Depths. “Nyahahahaha! Sucks to suck, fish freak!” She turned to Ace, her weary eyes glittering. “They did it! Man, they were really fast, all things considered! They actually did it!” Alternating between laughs and gasps for air, she sank down to the bridge and lay on her stomach, watching the water recede through the grate.
About a minute later, Flow Control had worked its magic. The Flooded Base had been unflooded; the Depths were now the Shallows. Only a foot or so of water remained of the staggering amount of water that filled the place, and its departure revealed all sorts of stuff. Though rusted beyond both repair and recognition, a lot of machinery littered the place, interspersed with the much fresher grates and catwalk sections Ace and Nadia sent down to meet Davy Jones. The entrance to the airtight shaft of the freight elevator could now be seen on the second floor wall directly opposite the Command Center, made particularly visible (and encouraging) to onlookers like Nadia thanks to the flashing green lights. From up high the bedraggled kitten could make out a few oddities flopping around on the ground floor in the junk-littered water, including what looked disturbingly like the monster fish in the photo she saw earlier.
Much easier and disheartening to see, however, was Moreau. Unlike his less mutated brethren he hadn’t been beached by the falling tide, but hauled himself around the bottom floor with the help of giant fish arms. “My water! Nooooo!” he garbled, thrashing around in anger.
Nadia sighed. “Welp, that’s a boss fight waitin’ to happen. Ugggh.” She hauled herself back onto her feet and clapped her hands together, trying to smile for Ace. “About time we got down from here, huh? Meet up with the others, find a way around fishsticks?” She glanced at the Command Center. “At least some of us got a chance to take it easy.”
In the span of a few moments the Command Center turned from a place of relative peace to one of utter panic. With a lot more strength than a four-year-old ought to have Rika reflexively chucked her television set at the Proxy. It reacted the instant she shrieked, turning its malformed mockery of a front to face her with near-pinpoint accuracy as it started power-walking her way, only to be stopped by the sudden impact of her makeshift projectile. It stumbled back, struggling for a moment to keep its balance on legs without defined feet, but its mutated carcass swung back like a pendulum the next moment. Despite its reprehensible condition it moved like the wind, booking it down the hall and into the Command Center after Rika.
As it cruised inside it paused for a brief instant, momentarily overwhelmed by the abundance of sound, like a hungry man set before an immense buffet. Then a noise sounded out from the direction of the Command Center window where Geralt, mindful of accidentally drawing the Proxy close to Mirage, hurled his bottle. With stomach-churning gargle-cry the Proxy sprinted toward the noise, but instead of prey crunched down on chemical-coated glass. If it hurt the monstrosity gave no sign, but turned around to track the pattering footsteps of child feet on the run.
It detected Peach first, and went after her with a vengeance. The little princess squealed as panic lent wings to her feet. She threw herself at the chain link fence that she saw Nadia climb earlier and started to haul herself up in a frenzy, making a racket, but she wasn’t nearly the climber her feral friend had been. With a spine-chilling screech the Proxy hurtled right past where Sakura was frozen in fear, totally oblivious to the little girl’s presence, and smashed its bulk against Peach.
If not for the give of the chain link fence she might have died instantly. Instead the fence bent inward, cushioning the blow, and when the Proxy reeled back for another brutal pound Peach got flung clear by the recoil. She flew limply for a couple feet before she hit and rolled to a stop on the floor, not far from where Mirage continued to work the pilot seat. Of course, the Proxy heard her land and span around, eager to finish the job. The only thing that stopped it was the crash from the direction of Moreau’s nook, where Bella had smashed another chemical bottle. With another gut-wrenching wail the Proxy ran over, only to find nothing. Bella had hunkered down against the wall with tears in her eyes, clutching her tail like a pillow, not daring to breathe. Silence reigned in the Command Center for a moment, before the Proxy began its patrol.
The Skullgirl’s confirmation of her power and Albedo’s ability, even going as far as to mention super-evil powers, elicited a double take from Guerra, but neither she nor her friend planned to stick around to shed any more light on the subject. Thanks to her compass, the pair knew where they needed to go next, and Linkle was happy to more than make up for any enthusiasm that Albedo lacked. With his new friend rearing to go, the alchemist took just a moment to address the old priest one last time. “We’ll be on our way. Thank you for your help, Father Guerra.”
He gave a smile. “Don’t mention it. Just make sure you give that Stranger pendejo a good beatin’ for me, huh?” With his guests’ reassurance, Guerra waved them off and watched as they made for the third tower’s front door. A moment later the wind slammed the front door behind them, and Guerra heaved a big sigh. “Crazy kids. Good luck out there.”
Once back out in the elements Albedo quickly realized how nice it had been indoors, despite the warmth his new coat afforded him. These winter-locked peaks had a way of chilling people right to the bone, as if they were wearing nothing at all. The winds bit and howled like wolves, assailing the senses as they buffeted loose clothing and hair. Yet, for all the tumult he didn’t feel the need to shoot Linkle an incredulous look, inquiring whether or not she really intended to brave these conditions. The stars in her eyes told him everything he needed to know.
It took only a few moments to circumnavigate the perimeter of the third tower, which required a little more precision footwork and a few more firmly-grasped handholds than Albedo might have liked, to reach a point where a banner was anchored. Whipped constantly by the winds, the colorful flags gave off a cacophony of snapping noises that contributed to the overall chaos, but at least the rope looked sturdy. Near the anchor point Albedo found barrels full of coiled lengths of chain, which he took to be the means by which any prospective daredevils would zip down the line. That solved the burning question of how to ride a rope with flags on it, at least. He stepped past to give Linkle access, extended a hand to the barrels with a bowed head. “After you.”
The ride down was every bit as exhilarating as Linkle imagined. With nothing but a rope, a chain, and the strength of her arms between life and death, she could enjoy a descent as blisteringly frigid as it was quick with her heart in her throat the whole time, if only she had one. Even though he knew his friend wouldn’t be able to hear him with the roar of the wind in her ears, Albedo kept himself from screaming. He managed to keep his composure partly because he knew he had no choice, but also in order to appreciate the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity before him. ‘Bird’s-eye view’ truly could not do it justice. Looking out across an immense distance from a sky-high precipice was majestic in its own right, but suspended in the sky like this? Unanchored, with nothing but empty air in every direction? Quite indescribable.
He was glad when it was over.
One after another, the daredevils touched down in the Goat Village to the tune of unseen bells. Neither could say exactly how far out or down they went, but the atmosphere had definitely changed. For the first time in forever, Albedo felt as though he’d escaped in the grip of winter. Though crisp and cool, the air was clear and fresh rather than snowy or scathing. Earthly brown stone lay beneath his feet, rather than the imperious gray rock of the peaks, and from the cracks where soil collected, alpine grasses bloomed. The same grasses and even flowers roofed the houses that dotted the colorful mountain village which lay before them, its quaint domiciles part stacked logs and part wood painted in vivid reds and yellows. Hay bales and rainwater barrels lent the whole place a rustic feel, and the villagers who tottered around the place brought it to life. Though only yellow eyes peered out from the darkness of their hoods, the locals decked themselves out in lovingly patterned, stitched-together garments, and they greeted their visitors with all the warmth the Frozen Highlands lacked. “Hello!” the nearest one pronounced in a moderate accent, her eyes upturned crescents. “Welcome to our village! Even if it is short, we hope you enjoy your stay!”
Another one left the flowerbox she attended to and joined her. “Hello, hello! Mind our goats while you’re here. They’re nice, but if you get in way, a little pushy!” When Albedo glanced where the villager pointed he found a very different goat than the sort he pictures. These heavily-dressed, bright-eyed giants lumbered around with inscrutable intentions, the belts at their waists letting fly the clarion clangs he heard earlier. As he looked around the alchemist spotted several color-coded flaglines leading off in various directions, along with a few flagposts with nothing attached to them. To his surprise he also spotted a bizarre individual who seemed to thrum with dark particles, his body and especially his detached face turning and vibrating unnaturally.
He addressed the first villager, who perked up when approached. “Good morning. We hope to reach the base of the valley.”
“Down below?” she cleared up, sounding surprised. “Long way to bottom, friend! No direct way down in Goat Village, but there is lift at old windmill.” She pointed in the direction of a lone flagpole with a blue banner but no rope, then to the apex of the village. “Blow the horn to call flags!”
Albedo looked up across the array of houses, bales, carts, little windmills, wooden springboards, poles, clotheslines, ladders and ramps. “If I were to guess…” His eyes landed on Linkle. “You would want to race to the top, correct?”
I'm actually looking for something similar from Riny. She won't have been as social as most people and thus won't know things as in-depth as Szilard did, but as a hunter she's probably traveled a much wider area. So a broader but more shallow set of knowledge.
I'm glad you think so! If you're looking to apply, I'll be happy to have you.
@Yankee, no worries at all! The first thing that jumped out to me is that your image is broken, but if you remove everything after the .png in the link, it'll be good. As for the character...whoa. A strong premise to say the least. It's all too easy to imagine such tragic circumstances unfolding in such a manner, and that makes for an impactful story. Good work!
To answer your questions...
The Shadow section is not necessary if you're planning for your character's primary conflict to be external. That doesn't mean there's no internal conflict, but the principle source of your character's foes would be another person or system
For Empress, I don't actually know about there being a connection to ice element myself, since the only Empress character I recall off the top of me head has the Psychokinesis element. I can tell you right now we don't have anyone specializing in ice though, so it's available
For Specialty, right now we have a good spread, so you're free to choose whatever you're like
Weakness doesn't need to be hard-coded. You could have an ice Persona weak to wind, or a bless Persona weak to elec. Your call
If anyone was wondering about the start date for this RP, I plan for it to be no later than this coming weekend. Enough time to fill out the roster a little more (hopefully) but not so much that those who've already applied could get bored. Of course, it's tough to wait; I'm excited to kick things off!
The RP's looking good at five out of ten roster spots taken! This limit isn't absolutely final but it's what we're going with for now.
As a heads-up for anyone still looking to make an application, I've got a few notes based on the insight I have from seeing the Metaverse sections of all the approved sheets.
As it stands we have a great spread of Specialties, so you don't need to worry about overpopulation of any role
We're comparatively light on female characters at the moment, which I don't have a personal issue with but I know people like to fill vacancies
A more notable vacancy is that we're also light on characters with external conflicts, whose awakening would result from an encounter with a Warlord rather than their own shadow. While choosing this isn't a disadvantage at the RP's start, it does provide an investment for the future and would allow you to contribute your own Warlord to encounter down the line
I would say that we've got enough characters at the moment with the Curse element
If you're looking for a unique melee weapons, I'll let slip that we have mostly variants of swords and bludgeons so far
In addition to the Roster section in the characters tab I plan to add a section for notable NPCs, ones who will be actively present in the story and are important for the PCs. If you all want you can put out a quick write-up for your own NPCs and I can add them to the list.
An open question: would people be interested in a Discord server for quick and easy communication once the RP officially begins?
Though an excellent distraction, the flame atronach turned out to be not quite as good a fighter. It did its best to pepper Mao with fireballs, but it was no great shakes in the evasive department. The bespectacled overlord’s simple strategy to cut off its escape worked wonders and he landed a solid hit across its chest that it didn’t even try to block. Realizing this left Mao both wondering if this summoned sprite even possessed a defensive instinct, and left him with nearly free reign to dispatch the construct without breaking a sweat.
Still, the flame atronach did its job in buying its conjurer enough time. The Dragonborn managed to get his Homeward Bone in hand and was just about to squeeze it to dust when a piece of the floor itself erupted out of the ground to attack him. Its weight dealt a crushing blow to his ribs as it tumbled the man across the floor on its way to Jesse. The journey relieved him of his axe, and as he came to a stop at the redhead’s feet he found the modified barrel of his enemy’s Service Weapon leveled at his chest. His eyes went wide and his mouth gaped in fear--even a medieval warrior such as he must have come to know the lethality of firearms with the other Resistance members for company. But still he clutched his last resort in his hand. Panic galvanized his nerves into action, shattering his Homeward Bone as the deafening Shatter blast sounded out. A vortex of magic bone dust swirled around him, but a spray of blood exploded from the armored impact point, and before the man disappeared Jesse saw him jolt in shock. Then he faded away, leaving behind a big stain of blood and that marvelous green-bladed axe.
Once Mao dealt with the flame atronach, he and Jesse could reconvene. Although they couldn’t be absolutely certain that the Dragonborn had died, the wound the FBC director put in him had been a gristly one even with his armor. It fell to whoever might be around wherever the warrior would show up, either to heal him as quickly as possible or clean up the newly-arrived mess.
Even in the chaos of a burning trash storm giant rings of light stood out quite prominently, and normally Shadow would have been able to dodge them all without issue. Thanks to Necronomicon’s scanning, however, Sectonia could not just shoot at where her spiky-headed opponent was, but where he was going to be. His ego, meanwhile, couldn’t conceive of such slow and obvious attacks hitting him, and Shadow quickly wrote off what looked like haphazardly-aimed spells as ignorable. As such it came as an exceptional surprise when he suddenly found himself cornered in the sky of all places, and Shadow soon found that even a glancing blow from the rings was no joke.
“Gah!” he spat, clenching his teeth in rage. This was starting to get annoying. His LMG put out a lot of damage, as Sectonia’s wounds attested, but with just another second spent holding down the trigger his weapon exhausted the last of its ammo. Any moment now the gradual dispersal of the trash cloud would render it useless as cover or distraction, too. “It’s about time I ditched these worthless toys,” he growled. If these peons wanted to bother him with magic, he could return the favor with Chaos. As Shadow held his hand aloft a pillar of energy formed over it, ready to cast. “Chaos Spear!”
He hurled the energy javelin at Sectonia, then teleported to another angle to throw another. As she moved he planned to follow, trying to bring the battle closer to the roof of the building. After a couple tosses he started rolling out Spin Attacks, curling up to throw himself at Sectonia in an effort to smash and shred her as a high-speed ball of spikes. If he bounced off her defense or body at close range, he could uncurl to follow up with a string of close-quarters-combat moves, mostly kicks punctuated with burning exhaust from his Air Shoes. Sectonia had the stats and the tools to keep up with him before, but soon she would realize just how deep his bag of tricks really went.
After another session of traded blows, the battle reached its climax as Shadow pulled out a trump card. Until now he’d only used his most potent power defensively, saving his energy for later. He’d been saving it for this. “Chaos Control!” he yelled, and as time slowed down he summoned a Chaos Spear to hang in the air once thrown. Far enough away from Sectonia, it wouldn’t break the stasis, so in quick succession Shadow planted spear after spear. After that, he dusted his hands with a smirk. “Time to end this.” He closed his fist. “Now.”
As spears converged on Sectonia, Necronomicon’s sensors went wild. Somehow Shadow had launched an absurdly powerful attack, one against which escape and defense were nigh impossible. But the Persona knew a way. “No!”
A barrier sprang to life around Sectonia, protecting her. Necronomicon’s ultimate ability, Final Guard, prevented her destruction. When the miracle faded, the two could see Shadow taken by total surprise and fit to be tied. “What!? How!?”
The look of surprise on Amara’s face told Joker exactly how much she expected the new arrivals to actually accede to her request, but the Siren wasn’t about to object. Forced to assume that Ciella’s allies wouldn’t go back on their word, she turned her full attention back to the statuesque rabbit lady, and just like that the fight was back on.
As bullets, arrows, and astral projections started flying once more, Joker considered Midna’s reminder. Maybe he hadn’t been listening earlier, but when was it decided they needed to spare these people? What distinguished these Shadows from any other enemies? Sure, they were unique, but given those already defeated without that much trouble, they did not possess enough ability to be of particular notice. This World of Light surely contained countless unique Shadows, and however optimistic the Seekers might be they couldn’t save them all. Besides, as the presence of a living and breathing Shadow the Hedgehog so helpfully confirmed, these were not real people. Just cognitive entities, figments of the collective human heart. Their ‘lives’ were nothing to bat an eye over. Joker found himself wondering if all these Shadows came from games, which would definitely explain a lot. Of course, with Midna being a Shadow herself, he couldn’t tell her any of this. “Of course we won’t let our ally die,” he told her instead, before narrowing his eyes at Amara. “As for her..Galeem doesn’t change personality. She and her friends tried to slaughter us back there, and you want to play nice with her?” Joker didn’t put any scorn or derision into his voice, hoping Midna would reconsider.
She started dancing, and Joker left her to it. Fox watched for a moment, intrigued by the artistry at work, but once he recognized repeat performances as well as the power that accumulated around her each time, the act lost its savor for him. He did, however, glance over at Joker when Midna questioned what exactly he did with Jinx. “Negotiation,” he replied simply, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “We had a chat, came to understand one another, and I recruited her. She’ll be helping us from here on out.” His curiosity and amusement shone in his eyes. “That’s the sort of thing you’d prefer, right?”
He fell silent as the duel in the conference chamber came to a head. After exhausting the last of her ammunition, Amara had no choice but to close the distance and engage her foe head-on. She ran out of cover with her arms summoned, hurling boulders of ice across the room. Ciella sneered, turned her back as she drew her bow, and allowed the projectiles of her own element to shatter against her to almost no effect. Counting on such a reaction, Amara unleashed her energy projectiles, two in quick succession. A neon blue facsimile of the brawler burst up from the ground with an uppercut, and Ciella took it on the chin. The force spun her around to receive a projected sucker punch, haymaker, and finally hammer fist in quick succession, followed by Amara herself.
The Siren let loose a ferocious battlecry and lay into Ciella with every arm at her disposal. She unleashed a withering barrage of punches to smash the taller woman into submission, her summoned limbs a blur of magic as she brought the pain.
Joker and Midna both tensed up, ready to jump into action, but Fox held up a cautionary hand. “Wait! Look closer.” Joker followed his friend’s advice and noticed after another second the fog beginning to accumulate around the two. With every strike another swath fell from Ciella’s body, filling the air. “I’m well-acquainted with the utility that some icy mist can provide,” Fox told them. “If she can survive bullets, she can survive this. Her attacker is blinded by the light of her own arms and can only see straight ahead. Even though it looks bad, this ally of ours…” He narrowed his eyes as the mist filled the room. “Is right where she wants to be!”
With a final cry Amara dealt a brutal knockout blow, and as Ciella staggered backward, she smirked and faded away. Joker blinked, confirming what his eyes were telling him: that Ciella had turned invisible. The mist wasn’t thick enough to actually obscure her from sight, but she’s vanished nonetheless. As Amara’s chest heaved from the exertion she looked around in confusion at all the mist. The sound of a bowstring drew her attention, but a projectile in that direction as she dodged turned up nothing. A moment later a blue glow of gathered water started to build up behind her, prompting a bemused shake of the head. “That’s your best strategy? Sneak around and start charging?”
As she prepared to conjure another fist, Fox tapped Joker’s shoulder and nodded at the floor. A dark purple circle had appeared directly beneath Amara right after the bowstring noise, and within a purple circle was growing toward the outer edges. As Amara unleashed her astral fist, the circle finally reached its outer limits. In an instant a rain of pressurized water arrows dropped on her position, dealing immense damage as the deluge continued to fall. Joker realized that Ciella must have employed a delayed and easily dodgeable but highly lethal attack, then kept Amara from noticing via both her mist and herself as a decoy.
There was no final moment, no witty one-liner or derisive dismissal. The arrowfall lasted only a handful of seconds, but Amara died well before it concluded. Through sheer bad luck, the style of attack meant Midna’s couldn’t throw a friend heart in either, as the arrows would wash it away. Amara’s ashes diffused into the water as Ciella approached, her expression and stride imperious. “Foolish brute. Deceive yourself no longer.” She stooped to snatch up Amara’s spirit from the muck and peered at the confident grin of the woman within through the slits of her mask. “Your power will aid me in dispelling the delusions of your comrades.”
Joker watched, surprised and intrigued, as the Grimleal lieutenant placed the spirit in her chest. After the ensuing lightshow, a shorter but more toned Ciella stood before him. Her odd garment had separated at the midriff to a white top beneath a big-collared purple leather jacket, its shoulderpads spiked. Her purple dress now came up to a tie at her waist, rather like a sarong, over black shorts. Even at half length her hair still reached below her waist, though the inside appeared to be black rather than blue. Blue tattoos could be seen across the left hand side of her body. She sniffed as she rolled her shoulders, coolly getting a feel for her new build and height. “Acceptable. Let’s proceed.” Without protest Joker and Fox turned to leave the conference chamber behind, and head for where the others were grouping up.
Big Band
Level 3 Big Band (21/30) Location: Al Mamoon Northwest - Obelisk Temple Primrose’s @Yankee Word Count: 457
Without much in the way of brains inside those skulls of theirs, the skeletons couldn’t appreciate art if it smacked them in the face. That said, with Band playing his bagpipes and Primrose powering him up with a dance, nothing was actually hitting the bony rabble, or otherwise stopping them from clattering forward to attack. Band’s melodious taunt came to an abrupt end as the three leftover skeletons attacked in sequence, each landing a free sword swipe or club bash. Band winced. “This blows.”
At least the detective did manage to defend himself against the Stalmaster’s far more dangerous quadruple-slash. He deflected the blades using a cymbal shield and stepped back for a little extra space, but the four-armed marauder sensed weakness and pressed forward. It was the wrong move; since Band felt the power of Primrose’s Lion Dance strengthening him, all he needed was the assurance that his enemies wouldn’t be dodging before he put his own best foot forward. And there wouldn’t be a better opportunity than a reckless lunging attack.
“Supersonic!” Band called, deploying sound rockets from his front that arced around above and below him to resemble a french horn. He burst forward and slammed into the whole gaggle of skeletons to throw them back. After driving them a short distance he pulled in the horns, but carried the momentum forward as both Brass Knuckle arms deployed from beneath his coat. A gratiuitous flurry of punches that splinter, shattered, and finally powdered the truculent bones.”Tubatubatubatubatubatubatubatubatuba--TUBA!” With a final punch Band sent the only survivor sailing backward, but what little the Stalmaster had left of its vitality got mopped by an explosive grand finale from Primrose. Her dark magic scattered the remains of the duo’s assailants to the winds, never to reconstitute. Thankfully their spirits drifted down to the bridge, though.
Band had watched the brutalized bones disperse with a look of satisfaction. “Even the sky ain’t the limit,” he smiled. The little joy lasted only a moment, though, as neither he nor Primrose could afford to wait so long as their allies were in jeopardy. They made their way down the rest of the bridge to where it overlooked the lower promontory. Though solid stone, it featured no extra supports to keep it up, and Band eyed it dubiously. “What’re the odds I bust right through? I mean, I can’t fly right now, can’t airdash, nothin’. If it doesn’t hold, it’s goodbye pork pie hat.” Through the doorway he could hear the sounds of melee combat, metal against metal, as well as tones he could only describe as magical. With no time to waste, he stepped aside to let Primrose pass. “I’ll follow your lead. No sense crackin’ it before you get across.”
The taste of victory on their tongues, Skull and Panther pursued their targets at top speed, with a recovered Yoshitsune not far behind. They sprinted down the hieroglyphic-lined corridor after the retreating forms of Charnok and Beast, eager to seal the deal but mutually aware that, given the nature of Galeem’s influence, these two weren’t fleeing so much as relocating to a more advantageous position. Still, neither Skull nor Panther planned to back down. If everyone else was pulling their weight, as the sounds and cries of battle from both behind and below would imply, so would the Phantom Thieves.
A few moments after Yoshitsune caught up to the Thieves thanks to his fleet-footedness, the hallway opened up on the right side into a giant square chamber. Directly beyond the edge of where the corridor’s floor continued lay the edge of an enormous pool of water. It covered the entire room, except for where an incredible display of carved stone arose from the water on the far side. A handful of waterfalls poured down the tiers of the fountain between amazing statues, and behind them even the wall itself had been hewn into pillars, statue-filled recesses, and false windows.
The sight certainly took Skull and Panther off guard, but not their enemies, nor Yoshitsune for that matter. Without a second’s hesitation that samurai dashed off in pursuit of Charnok, who’d used his magic to rocket-propel himself up over the water and onto the fountain to gain the high ground. The water reached his knees and impaired his movement, forcing to dodge and splash around to avoid a flurry of fireballs. Even if they would sputter out with a hiss when they met the water, they would rack up the damage if they hit him. He couldn’t avoid them all, but when he finally reached Charnok he attacked as a cyclone of fiery steel. The dragon sorcerer summoned a storm of Hot Hail above him to deal constant damage in an area, to which he was immune, then after taking a few slices from Yoshitsune’s katanas unleashed a stream of flame from his staff to try cooking the man alive.
That left the dwarf for Skull and Panther. Hammer in hand, Beast stood on top of a floating snakeboard with a stolid glower, waiting for his foes to attack. Skull sighed. “Man, can’t believe we have to fight here. This place is totally sweet! Perfect date spot, huh, Panth?”
His friend raised an eyebrow at him. “What? How about we save goofing off ‘til after we beat this guy?” She jumped down into the water, followed shortly by Skull.
Immediately Beast began to move, releasing his hammer with one hand to bring forth a locus of sorcery. Panther’s eyes widened. She and Skull were sitting ducks. “This guy’s a mage! Persona!” Carmen appeared behind her with an elegant spin, flinging trails of water in a spiral. “Toast ‘em!”
The much faster spellcasting forced Beast on the defensive. As he leaned sideways the snakeboard beneath him shifted alongside him, allowing him to avoid the fireball. Skull produced his shotgun and started firing to keep up the pressure, while Panther waded in front of him. “Here’s a boost!”
“Got it!” Skull planted a foot in his friend’s cupped hands and kicked off as Panther threw him. He soared out of the water and into the air, his new club upheld. “Head’s up!”
Beast blocked the kanabo with his hammer, though not by much. Though lighter than him the teenager got better leverage from his height and started pushing Beast backward. He let go of his weapon again and grabbed Skull’s arm, casting Petrifying Touch. “What the fu-!” With a cut-off shout of surprise the boy got covered in stone and fell backward, off the snakeboard and into the water, face down.
Items scrounged from boxes: Suspicious Text Data x 815 - Pages of sensitive information transmitted unknowingly across insecure communications channels Defunct Mind Control Helmet - A durable device capable of sending the wearer’s brainwaves to whoever might be unfortunate enough to be implanted with a receiver. This one doesn’t work Structure Gel Vial x2 - Highly proteinated, cross-linked lubricant, and a conductor, and a signal medium, with aligned graphene in a petroleum monosubstrate, polysaturated matrix, containing fuel oils. The gel is encodable and can be calibrated with instructions to accomplish a specific function Metal Scrap x8 - Bits and bobs of low quality. Can be melted down and fused together to increase quality, somehow Miscellaneous Cords and Cables - Boy, there’s a lot of them. All shapes and sizes. And they’re really entangled Metal Mold x 3 - Blocks of metal meant for use at a forge. One liquid metal is poured in, it will cool into whatever shape the mold had. There is one for a sawblade, one for a key, and one for a half-pair of scissors
Although Nadia and Ace couldn’t hear it since Link went inside the adjunct room, he spoke the truth: if they wanted to keep the pain train rolling, they needed a new strategy. Unfortunately, the pair up in the airborne labyrinth couldn’t exactly sit on their hands and ponder the matter. Just as Ace said, they needed to keep Moreau off their teammates’ backs. The damage to the starting platform made the idea of anyone getting back up to the catwalks from there look pretty much impossible, so Nadia and Cadet started making their way back toward the Command Center in scorched-earth fashion. Even as their little muscles grew sore the two bent to the task of dropping distraction after distraction to keep the infuriated fish focused on their side of the room.
That task, however, came to a sudden and premature end. As Ace and Nadia worked together to cut through a tougher-than-usual chain, the tool slipped and slipped right out of the kids’ numbed, weary hands. “Shoot!” Its weight and their finger strength meant they couldn’t get a hold on it before the bolt cutters dropped out of reach, and a moment later the final distraction plopped unceremoniously to the water. Scowling, Nadia smacked her fist against her leg. “Come. On! Can’t we catch a break?”
Wildly she looked around for something, anything she could use. Almost instantly the feral spotted Bowser down on the platform in front of the Command Center-adjacent hallway. He was yelling something about a jar, and as Nadia looked closer, incredulous, she realized he was fishing. The pint-sized King Koopa dangled bait of some kind down into the water using the rod he swiped from Moreau’s meager possessions, seeking to attract the mutated monster’s attention with that tasty(?) morsel.
Now, Nadia knew she wasn’t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed when it came to clever schemes, but even she saw the flaws in this plan. For one, she and Ace would need to get all the way through the dangling maze for a third time in order to get into position, and unless her monster-hunting buddy felt a whole lot less tired and sore than she did, that wasn’t going to be fast. Second, the Command Center was where the divers would be going once they finished their mission (her lack of realization that the lowering of the water would definitely prevent that notwithstanding), and Moreau would be right in their way. Third, and most poignantly, it wasn’t like Moreau was just going to snap up the bait.
Right on cue the monster surfaced again, plowing through the water once more on a collision course with Bowser’s platform. Nadia tightened the grip on her bridge’s railing as she clenched her teeth in worry. He was going to get smashed!
He did not. Just before Moreau rammed the platform Bowser leaped out of the way, putting his impressive jumping ability to excellent use. In fact he went high enough that the could grab the ladder that linked the platform and the catwalks without issue, making Nadia feel stupid for doubting him. The next second the abomination bulled underneath him, annihilating the wall-mounted metal grate Bowser once stood on and smashing into the wall itself a moment later. The second impact sent a shockwave through the whole Depths, enough to rock the suspended bridges above dangerously. Disquietingly close by, a loose section of bridge came loose of its own accord and plummeted down into the water.
Nadia gulped and slightly relaxed her deathgrip on the railing to run her nails through her hair. “Eheh, this whole thing might be a lot less stable than I thought…” It was agonizingly easy to imagine this very catwalk dropping right out from under her feet. Every sway needled her with anxiety. But her mission hadn’t changed. That monster needed to be attended to.
Maybe inspired by Bowser, Ace surprised her with a suggestion that they pursue an even more extreme fishing plan. When he asked about a net, she defaulted to an uncertain expression. “Sorry, I don’t remember seeing anything like that. If it didn’t seem useful at the time, I probably wouldn't commit it to memory.” Her eyes fell on the long section of broken-up bridge over the middle of the room. “But maybe we can use the grates? We can pull them out and drop them without the cutters. But whatever we do, we gotta hurry!” Before she could change her mind she detached herself from the railing and prepared to retrace her steps.
Unknown to those who remained in the Command Center, and all the more tragic for it, the cruel horror of the Depths had claimed its first victim. Paralyzed and rendered catatonic by mind-wrenching dissonance, the Mockingbird of Elliot Witt collapsed to the floor to drown in darkness of its pitiable mind’s own devisement. It lived only briefly, a copied existence, fleeting, fragile, and doomed. It fidgeted there on what might as well be the ocean floor, wires forever crossed, the suit of circuitry, structure gel, and necrotic human remains never to rise once more.
But a way off shone a twinfold light of hope, if not for the broken Mockingbird, then for its mission. Junior and Mirage’s BULL reunited not far from the entrance to their destination, joining forces both to hunt for Flow Control and to keep the long-haired swimmer at bay. The koopa in particular worked his controls erratically, fueled by the adrenaline of panic, and more than once his submarine lights swept over the sign by the doorway ahead without giving him the chance to read it. Still, it wasn’t long before, with a little extra direction from the Universal Helper, Junior came to the realization that his goal lay right before him. Through the open doorway he could direct his light to a large cluster of machines and pipes on the far side, about a hundred feet away. A flashing red light brought his attention to a wheel marked by big if faded letters as ‘Emergency Drain’. All that remained was a little maneuvering through the rather tight entrance and he could putter right up to it. While the submarine lacked the BULL unit’s manipulator claws, Junior had in Mimi a set of arms already proven able to reach through glass and affect the watery world beyond.
Of course, just as victory lay within reach, the faceless girl made her move. At high speed she swam down from above, her angle of attack almost unreachable for either craft’s spotlights. While Junior made his way into Flow Control, Mirage had only a brief moment in which to somehow keep the marine monster from reaching his friend.
Sakura’s search through Moreau’s knickknacks came up essentially empty-handed. Uncorking and otherwise opening the bottles invariably assaulted her with a potent chemical smell, as unrecognizable as it was unpleasant and singing her nose more often than not. The labels were neither English nor Japanese, but Eastern European if she had to guess, and thus useless.
Pressed up against the Command Center’s glass window and peering out at the situation unfolding with Moreau across the proverbial pond with every fiber of her being, Bella jumped a good foot off the ground when a sudden metallic slam rang out from the top of the room. She whirled around fast enough to smack her little leviathan tail into the window and elicit a grunt of annoyance, but her focus did not deviate from the ceiling.
For a moment she had thought that something went wrong with the machine arms anchored there, which would be bad considering the group probably needed those to get the divers out of the water. A thorough examination of the weighty contraptions, however, revealed no apparent fault. She wasn’t an engineer of course, but Bella felt pretty sure that if the machinery made a noise like that, she’d be able to see something wrong. So, at least that wasn’t a problem.
Any relief that she might have felt about that got buried beneath the weight of a follow-up realization. If that frighteningly abrupt noise came from the ceiling but not the machines...where did it come from?
Another smack resounded through the room, less intense than the first. Already looking upward, Bella was able to zero in on the sound. It didn’t come from the submarine-hoisting mechanism at all, but from a boxy structure that extended down out of the ceiling. Now a series of bumps and smacks issued from the vent, and while the rest of her was frozen Bella’s eyes followed the source of the noise as it moved down the length of the structure, turned a corner over the racks of diving suits, and continued over both the racks and the pilot seat until it reached the wall with the door everyone came through. Then the sound grew quiet and disappeared.
Bella released her breath, feeling a lot colder all of a sudden. Goosebumps formed on the pale skin that even the deep waters she once called home never managed to chill. She held onto her arms and shivered as she ran over to where Sakura, Peach, Geralt, and Rika stood together near Mirage’s pilot seat. “What was that? Something crawling around? I thought we were safe here. If something comes out, what are we going to do?”
The discussion didn’t last long. There came a terrible ruckus from the hallway between Maintenance and the Command Center as a vent burst open, and in a nightmarish parody of birth a swollen, malformed something pushed through to slump to the ground in a moist, heaving heap. On shaking legs it picked itself up to a full height of over six feet, a pustule-ridden amalgam of mutant flesh crowned with a ghastly face locked mid-scream, and with a wet, gurgled vocalization the eyeless Proxy began to hobble toward the nearest source of noise.
To Albedo’s chagrin Skadi looked quite happy to concern herself with her animal and nothing else, but when Linkle approached and knelt down next to her, the strange goddess purposefully kept her gaze trained on the doge. Though that initially prompted a needle of frustration, Albedo quickly realized that meant something else--that Skadi still recognized something she wanted to avoid, and hadn’t retreated all the way back to her new persona. And either Linkle saw it too, or in typical compassionate heroine fashion wasn’t going to give up on Skadi either way, because she reached out once more.
If the alchemist wondered what the Skullgirl could possibly say to fix this situation, his doubts were soon laid to rest. Both clever and empathetic despite the deathly hollowness that surely must be eating away at her insides, she questioned not Skadi’s intentions but what her course of action would actually accomplish. Then, with the goddess’s newfound uncertainty written on her face, Linkle offered the solution once more. It wasn’t so strange, she reasoned, for even a divinity to rely upon a hero in times of need. Smart moves. Albedo perceived an unanchored desperation that clung to Skadi, provoking her to cling to whatever gave her support. By the way she now wavered, he realized her grip wasn’t so strong that she would refuse a better option. She just needed a little extra push.
Albedo raised a hand, drawing elemental power from his Geo vision. An arcane sprout pushed through the floorboards, ice, and drawings to reach the open air, and as Skadi looked on with wide eyes the sudden growth bloomed into a Solar Isotoma. “These are not empty promises. We may look young, but it would not be inaccurate to say that the two of us have power over life and death itself. We can do this.”
He could sense an immediate change in Skadi. The dam had been broken. “Okay.” She took a deep breath. “I believe you want to help. I believe you can help. That...that man...he’s insatiable. Unless he’s stopped, none of us...are safe.” She looked Linkle in the eyes, and did not shrink away from the scarlet skull halves within. “My step-daughter’s name...is Freya. She dwells in an autumn glenn in the midst of a misty wood. Please, keep her safe.” For the first time, the eyes of the bizarre goddess turned hard. “And make that man pay.”
She went back to her doge and buried her face in his fur. Satisfied at last, Albedo turned away to reconvene with Father Guerra and Linkle a safe distance away, once his new friend finished her farewells. The priest looked impressed. “That was well handled. Oftentimes the other residents and I visit her to keep her company, but we’ve never managed to get her to open up like that.” He took a sip of his coffee, shrugging. “Then again, we never had a reason to.” Somewhere between curious and amused, he looked between the Monastery’s young guests. “Is true, what you said. That life and death stuff?”
It was Albedo’s turn to shrug. “Does it matter?”
“I suppose not.”
The small group headed back through the basement and up to the third tower’s first floor. So evident was the question of where to go next that Albedo scarcely felt the need to ask. Luck continued to be on their side. “Would the misty wood in question be down at the base of these mountains, do you think?” he prompted Linkle.
Guerra scratched his chin. “While it’s impossible for someone like me, if you two are all you say, there might be a way to the bottom.” He led the way to a window overlooking the Alpine Skyline. “See those little mountain villages? Those ropes hanging between ‘em all are stronger than they look. This tower’s got at least one tied to it. Might be able to zip between ‘em until you reach the bottom.”
Albedo thought about it. Sliding beneath a rope through freezing air over a ridiculous drop sounded neither safe nor fun, but it would be fast, and should the worst come to pass he could pull out his glider. He glanced at Linkle to gauge her reaction, both to the potential destination and the journey.
I'm thinking Empress for an arcana for my character concept. I will definitely be looking for some assistance on the metaverse side of things, so once the CS is in a respectable state I'll PM you Lu.
Sounds like a plan!
Incidentally, I'm thinking of reserving an Arcana for a story function. Priestess maybe.
@Mistress Dizzy What you currently have is functional, but in my eyes the Personality section could be a little broader to give more of an impression of what really makes Jin, Jin. A deeper glimpse into the character's humanity.
Right now my impression is just that Jin is smart but antagonistic. Does sharp-tongued mean an inclination to insult people maliciously, or just sarcastic jokes? Is Jin defensive and vindictive or does Jin actively like knocking other people down a peg with wits and insults? Does that imply resentment for people who have it better than Jin, or just a dislike of idiots/egoists/loudmouths? You could also include things like desires, likes, dislikes. Is continuing (AKA, mere survival) all Jin wants out of life? Is spite the only motivator? Is there maybe more to the character than this outwardly nasty side?
Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.
Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.<br><br>Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.</div>
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