Lugubrious

Infactorium: A New 4Xpansion (Overlord RP) [DISCONTINUED]

I'm all for it.

Infactorium: A New 4Xpansion (Overlord RP) [DISCONTINUED]

How're things looking?

World of Light

Tora, Poppi, and Big Band

Location: Sandswept Sky
Level 9 Tora (216/90) Level 9 Poppi (216/90) Level 7 Big Band (44/70)
Midna’s @DracoLunaris, Sectonia’s @Archmage MC, Primrose and Therion’s @Yankee, Jesse’s @Zoey Boey, Raz’s @TruthHurts22, Raiden’s @XoXKieroBombXoX, the Phantom Thieves, Braum, the Scout, Peacock, Mao, Tharja, Ciella
Word Count: 1548

As weary and sore as the Seekers were, nobody planned on plumbing the depths of Hollow Heights, so they had no choice but to drag themselves up off the girders and onto terra firma once more. Part of it had bent downward but not collapsed, so after all the sand slid off into the void the team could just hike on up to the desert surface above, so long as they watched their step. The knowledge that at least part of the Sandswept Sky lay suspended on a metal floor atop untold fathoms of pitch-black space was a little disconcerting, but as long as they got away from the edge they could focus on the bigger problems at hand: the interminable vastness and untenable, searing heat of the desert itself.

Before anyone could set off anywhere they needed to cool off, at least enough to ward off heatstroke and stymie the sticky sweat that flowed so freely that it stung the eyes and made dehydration a legitimate -and dangerous- possibility. Poppi and Sectonia worked together to alleviate the heat with their elemental power. While the artificial blade channeled ether through her Ice Core to spray her Masterpon and then her allies down with frosty mist, the insect queen -as ever- deferred the work, this time to her Ice Antlions. Fox lent a hand too as best he could, calling upon Goemon to manifest chunks of ice, and Ciella certainly spared no effort cooling herself down by inundating herself in her own frigid water. Even after wriggling out of his overalls and tasting sweet relief in the nude, Tora continued to cling to his companion’s leg the whole time. “Need...cold,” he muttered over and over, his eyes shut and his mouth open as he panted. “Need…cold…meh…”

“You’re welcome!” Poppi told Jesse, smiling cheerfully. “That was certainly outrageous battle, and absurd experience, overall. All way up mountain, all way down, then all across desert. Truth be told, things turn out way better than Poppi projections indicate. So Poppi happy as clam!”

“Tora happier after ten-hour nap,” her Masterpon moaned.

Big Band let out a long, slow breath. “I’m just about played out, myself. We could all use a good, long break after all that hullabaloo. Hell, they oughta make a picture outta what we went through today. If we don’t get filthy stinkin’ rich off the movie rights, there ain’t no justice left in the world, after all.”

“Say, now there’s an idea!” his young charge grinned. “Peacock and the gang on the silver screen at last! I’d buy that for a dollar!”

Aside from the temperature problem, there was the matter of the team’s health. Nobody had escaped unscathed, with injuries ranging from bruises, sprains, and minor breaks from being thrown around on the train, to burns, shrapnel, and ruptures from Akrid attacks. After the shockwave of the armory car exploding, few people were still breathing or hearing quite right, either. Sectonia’s passive healing wasn’t going to cut it, so Mona set up triage. “If you’re hurting bad, right this way!” the little guy called. “I’ve got plenty of spirit left, so I’ll get you fixed up, lickety-split!”

“I can help!” Panther volunteered, already in the middle of tending to Skull’s bloodied arm.

The various Seekers worked their magic, endeavoring to undo all the damage inflicted by Red Eye and red-hot sun alike throughout the course of the long and hectic boss battle. Still, despite their efforts, none of their attempts to help got through to Tharja, who remained dead silent and blank-faced despite the incredible misery that clotted inside her. As the others did what they could, Midna took the opportunity to explain about the World of Light, mostly for Raiden’s sake. Her explanation ended in a mission statement, and while it was true that their campaign had a long way to go, four bosses out of thirteen was nothing to sneeze at. Nothing eased the pain of one’s trials and tribulations quite like victory, after all. Once sufficiently cooled off and patched up, some of the heroes started to walk, with Jesse leading the way. Tora and Poppi just sort of followed along, but it didn’t take long for the Nopon to think twice about the journey he was embarking on. “Hang on, meh. Where we going?”

Poppi glanced at Jesse. “She heading toward Al Mamoon,” she postulated based on the FBC director’s direction and purposeful stride.”

Tora squinted, trying to peer through the heatwaves that distorted the desert air. “That way? Tora not see anything, meh.”

“Well, it pretty far,” Poppi allowed.

“And you people okay with just walking there. Ugh.” Tora plopped down in Big Band’s shade, sitting on the ground. He had yet to put his overalls back on, so the hot sand burned his rear a little. “That crazy, meh. We sure there not better way? Maybe we could signal train!”

“Not unless there’s more tracks nearby,” Band observed. “That monster tore up the rails behind us the whole way.”

Skull patted Mona’s head, his expression hopeful. “Oh hey, maybe you could drive us there?” The little thief, however, looked profoundly unhappy about the suggestion after considering the distance, effort, and group size involved.

Having already changed back into civilian attire to prevent his black Phantom Thief outfit soaking up the sun, Joker thought about what to do. With Fox still at Tostarena to help out its citizens, he tried to put himself in the expedition leader’s shoes, thinking back to all the means of transportation the group used to cross the vast, sandy waste. He remembered Vah Naboris, the mechanical camel that ferried his team across the first third, but that immense wall of ruins had proved impassable for it. Some of the others could fly, but not enough of them to carry the rest, provided they even had the stamina for it. Joker furrowed his brow and cast his mind farther back, all the way to Alcamoth. The team had a whole city of allies out there, just waiting to lend a hand, but Vandham and the others back there didn’t even have a way to reach the Seekers, let alone the means to reach them. Or…did they?

Joker suddenly recalled Fox stepping away from the group for a moment to make contact with home base, offering status reports and requesting mercenary missions. To do so he’d summoned a cute little critter in a puff of smoke. But how? The boy didn’t remember any sort of phone, whistle, or other item. Fox had just…called out its name. Could it really be that easy?

“Moogle!” he said suddenly, drawing a couple glances.

Without a moment’s delay one such critter poofed into existence next to him, all done up in a thinning combover and a spotted red tie. “Yessir!” the moogle greeted him. “What can I do ya for, boss?”

“Oh!” Tora slapped a hand to his head. “After everything, Tora forget about that!” He glanced at Poppi, one eyebrow raised. “Wait, but what about you? Shouldn’t Poppi have perfect recall?”

The artificial blade shrugged. “Poppi thought it group leader responsibility and not pin memory data, so it slip away.”

Joker crossed his arms, his focus on the moogle. “We’ve taken down the Sandswept Sky boss, but we’re stranded in the middle of the desert, a very long way from the nearest city. While we’re okay for now, we’re pretty exhausted. Is there anything you guys can do to help? Some kind of emergency evac, perhaps?”

“Uh, maybe!” The moogle seemed optimistic. “Heard it through the grapevine we got a ship last night. Could be fixed up and ready to fly by now. Gimme a sec.” He poofed away, and a few moments passed by in relative silence, the wind blowing softly across the sand. Joker removed his glasses and wiped his brow with the back of his hand, then brushed his hair back to unstick the strands from his forehead. Band turned his back to the sun so that at least his face was in the shade, and Peacock flipped through a comic book she’d pulled from nowhere. After a minute or so the moogle returned, waving his little nubs in excitement. “Good news, pal!” he exclaimed. “I got word the ship can take off as soon as possible, and head on out to pick ya up! Here!” He tossed a device at Joker, which the teen snatched from the air. It was round, with a flashing light and not much else. “This’ll help ‘em find you. The only thing is, the ship isn’t at one hundred percent just yet, so they might end up stoppin’ over at wherever’s closest, just to make sure everything’s good to go.”

“No problem,” Joker breathed, relieved that he wouldn’t need to hotfoot it all the way back to Al Mamoon after all. By the looks of them, just about everyone else shared his elation. As the moogle disappeared again he turned to face the others. “Guess we’ll just make ourselves comfortable ‘til help arrives, then?”

The team’s mechanic had already rolled onto his back in the shade cast by Big Band, his limbs splayed across the sand. “Way ahead of you! That what Tora does best!”

Ms Fortune

Location: Deep Blue Seaside - Limsa Lominscuttle Town
Level 9 Nadia (7/90)
Word Count: 3777

“Sorry, emergency!” Nadia blurted out by way of explanation as she vaulted over the front counter to enter the Mizzenmast Inn, earning not just a shocked expression from the unsuspecting receptionist, but also a handful of curious looks from the customers of the Drowning Wench nearby. Ignoring them completely, the feral raced down the inn’s main hall, past room after room until she skidded to a stop in front of her own. Closed. No sign of a break-in. She tried the knob, her face contorted into a pre-emptive wince, only to find that it was locked, after all. The sour sense of unease in her guts wouldn’t let her leave it at that, however. Without the key, I couldn’t have locked it. So why is it?.

Behind her, the sound of footsteps got her attention. She turned to see the receptionist approaching her, his expression one of professional concern. “Ye were in a right hurry there, lass. Anythin’ amiss?” he asked, his hands clasped behind his back.

“I, uh…” Nadia made a show of patting down her shorts. “I fur-got somethin’ in my room, only to realize, uh, well, I fur-got my key in there too, heheh.”

The man gave a sympathetic nod. “Happens all the time. Just leave it to me, lass. I’ll ‘ave it open in a jiffy, or my name ain’t Ezekiel Keys.” From a pocket he produced a metal ring laden with jingling keys.

“Oh! Thanks!” Nadia flashed him a grateful smile and cleared the way. As he combed over his keyring for the correct one, something occurred to the feral, and she leaned against the nearby wall with her arms crossed. “Ya know, I’m glad you’re such a trustin’ guy. Woulda figured you’d be a li’l more reluctant to help, what with the possibility of thieves and such.”

Mr. Keys humored her with a smile. “Not exactly, lass. I just remember ye from the registry, is all.” He turned the latch and swung wide the door, then held out a hand to usher her inside. “Enjoy.”

“You’re the best!” As Mr. Keys peeled away, Nadia went inside and immediately began to scan her room for any evidence of a disturbance. At a glance, the difference between the room as she left it earlier and how it looked now was like night and day, but not in the sense that it had been ransacked. Instead, it was the picture of clean and tidy. The blankets she left in a state of incredible disarray from a night of frenzied tossing and turning were nowhere to be seen, and their spotless replacements lay as flat and serene across the bed as a sheet of fresh snow, so pristine that Nadia had to suppress the urge to throw herself down on them all over again. She also found none of her old garments or beer cans in the trash can, thankfully. A cleaner must have come in and fixed everything up earlier that afternoon, she figured. But not everything was as it should be. Sure enough, on her desk was the futuristic container she’d been given last night on that nightmarish beach, and when she popped it open, there wasn’t a coin to be found.

She’d been robbed.

“Aaaaagh!” Nadia groaned. “Dammit, I’m so stupid!” She went rigid, her hands clapped to her head in despair, then abruptly fell to pieces. As fantastic -and melancholy- as the circumstances had been in which she’d received that bounty, it hadn’t been a dream, and losing it was no joke. Especially when it came as the parting gift of her beloved Fishbone Gang, the found family she’d once lost on a night of dire consequence, and witnessed again one last time at the seam between this world and the next. Nadia wanted to bang her head against the wall; how could she let this happen to such a personal treasure!?

After a moment spent moaning in a pile on the floor, Nadia sighed and began to pull herself together. Once back on one piece, she plopped down with her back against the foot of the bed, her head in her hands. Slowly she massaged her temples with her palms, as if to churn her brain back into working order. “Okay, okay. This isn’t the end of the world,” she thought aloud, her eyes squeezed shut and brows furrowed. “I can fix this. Think, dummy. You’re a thief, this should be easy. Just gotta get in his head…”

Nadia rocked onto her feet, sprang up, grabbed the case, and hightailed it back down the hallway. A moment later she turned up in front of the receptionist. “‘Scure me, Mr. Keys?”

“Hm? Oh.” While the man looked at her with mild concern, the fact that he stayed up here rather than pursuing her meant that he recognized her as a legitimate customer of the inn, which hopefully meant he knew all of them. “Hello again, lass. Everythin’ alright?”

With a wry smile and a helpless shrug, Nadia leaned on the desk. “Well, y’know, could be better. Turns out, I’ve been burgled!”

The receptionist’s brows rose a touch. Though pretty well-composed, he did make sure not to hide his genuine worry. “Cripes, ‘ow terrible. Should I send word to the Maelstrom, then?”

“Uh, not yet, nah,” Nadia shook her head. “I just wanna ask a couple questions, if ya don’t mind.”

Impressed by what he took to be his guest’s commitment to solve the problem on her own, the fellow placed his clasped hands on his counter. “Well. Fire away then.”

“Ya mentioned a registry earlier. You keep an eye on everyone goin’ in and out, right?” Nadia queried. When she received a nod, she continued. “Did you see anyone suspicious? Or carryin’ this case, maybe?”

She showed the Mr. Keys the container. His gaze lingered on it a moment, then on Nadia, as if to ask if she was sure she didn’t see anything wrong with her question. “...No,” he replied after a couple seconds. “Can’t say I did. Nobody goes in or out, ‘cept payin’ customers, an’ Mizzenmast staff. All of ‘em get written down in my li’l book ‘ere, too.”

“Mm, must’ve used his own bag then,” Nadia mused before clearing her throat. “Ahem! That reminds me. My room got cleaned up since I left. Maybe the thief is a staff member?”

Mr. Keys’ eyes narrowed. “Very unlikely, lass. Not only are the maids vetted, but we got safeguards in place. Gotta make sure customer security’s our priority. None of the maids mentioned an unlocked room this afternoon, either.”

Nadia blinked twice, thinking. “Huh. So the culprit either came in before, or picked and then re-locked it after…maybe I could check your notebook?” It took her only a short time to peruse the handful of entries logged between the time she’d left and the time she’d returned. Most people, it seemed, spent this part of the day out and about. It helped that a number of the Mizzenmast guests right now were fellow Seekers, although not all of them. She couldn’t glean much from the names and times of the four entries that remained, other than the second one being the cleaning woman, courtesy of Mr. Keys. That meant two possible suspects–unless the robber didn’t come in the inn’s front door. It was possible that the thief was a guest here too, with a room elsewhere in the inn and maybe a fake name, but was it likely? If the shoe was on the other foot, Nadia certainly wouldn’t have. No matter how good your act, every witness and every record was a liability; a skilled thief got in and out without ever being seen by anyone, or leaving any trace to suggest that he or she was ever there at all.

Finally, the gears were beginning to turn. She thanked Mr. Keys and jogged back to her room, where her focus immediately gravitated toward the window. What happened was no grand heist, but a spur-of-the-moment act committed by someone on the hunt for an easy mark. There were other windows the culprit could have used to enter, but what mattered was the one used to leave. Only a stupid or greedy thief would have stuck around after lucking into such a bounty. Nadia approached the window that she remembered leaving open earlier, and peeked her head out. No balcony of any kind, and no nearby fire escapes or other such easy method of escape. Narrowing her eyes, she ran her finger along the windowsill, and found a mark in the wood on the side of the room. While small, it was deep, and a quick examination determined that the board seemed to be pried up a short distance. A grappling hook, supporting the weight of a man, Nadia reasoned. She leaned out the window and squinted downward. And his ill-gotten loot!

Her window looked out over the Aftcastle, the largest public courtyard to be found to be found on the Upper Decks, so named due to the nautical convention of being behind the Mizzenmast. It sported a smattering of people around its wide-open space, most on official business as far as Nadia could tell. From the Aftcastle, sturdy bridges extended to the Missing Member pub, the Blacksmiths’ Guild, the Hyaline hub tower, and most notably, Maelstrom command. With what amounted to Limsa’s police station right there, she seriously doubted that a small-time thief had the guts to just walk across the plaza. Nadia’s eyes glossed over the largely uninteresting courtyard to land on the real problem: the wharftown. A direct descent from here led not to the marble-white towers and suspension bridges of the Upper Decks, but to the shanties that occupied the five or so stories of vertical space between the Lower Decks and the water’s surface, crowded like thickets and bushes around the ‘trees’ of this maritime forest. The feral slowly exhaled, mulling over her options. If that’s where her thief went, he was as good as gone. For that amount of money, though? “Doesn’t hurt to try.”

Nadia threw herself out the window, performed a somersault in midair, shot past the seastacks, and bounced off an awning like a trampoline to land with a roll on the top layer of the shanties. She stood, moved to the side to let a burly workman by, and took a look around. A second look at the canvas she landed on confirmed that it was, in fact, a sail, and that large sections of this upper layer seemed to be using sails to provide shade from the sun. As her search continued she spotted many sets of wooden stairs that led either up to the Lower Decks or down to interior levels of the shanties, as well as crates, cranes, and cargo operations of all kinds. It looked like the top layer served to load and unload shipments, stockpile material, and so forth. In short, it was everything one would expect from a wharf–and with nowhere to hide, not where Nadia’s quarry would be found.

A set of nearby stairs brought her below, where for the first time the cat burglar laid eyes on the shanties’ true ecosystem. The remaining four layers were a conglomerate of multi-leveled piers integrated with the pirate ships, frigates, galleons, and sloops that had gone out of use long ago, salvaged for lumber or lashed to the docks wholesale and converted into the shantytown’s buildings. Their hulls were the shantytown’s walls, their holds the apartments, their decks the floors, and their cabins the houses, although Nadia could see plenty of more conventional shacks, too. The smells of fresh fish, lamp oil, pine tar caulk, and medicinal remedies hit her all at once. Beneath her feet she could feel the whole place rock steadily with the ebb and flow of the tide. In an odd way it reminded her of the violated fishing village up north, bolted together from the doomed ships that wrecked upon the beaches of Carcass Isle. This was where the refugees of the war with the Abyssals and castaways from all over, without the money to get by in Limsa’ Lominscutte Town’s sunlit decks, found themselves: holed up in a labyrinth of barnacle-crusted wood and gutted vessels going nowhere, getting by however they could in the lamplight. It didn’t look that bad, but it was quite the change of pace from the Limsa that Nadia knew. She could feel the eyes on her, leering, suspicious, hungry. The bottom line was that if the Azure Navy and Maelstrom kept the town above picture-perfect, then this was where the displaced pirates and scoundrels surely dwelled, including the thief who’d made off with her precious hoard.

The only problem was actually finding him. Nadia glanced over at the stairs. If her target was eager to disappear, he most likely came this way. Someone must have seen him. At a measured pace she made her way over to a dingy stall nearby, where a stocky carver seemed to be working at some wood. “Hey,” Nadia greeted her. “Oh, I get it, you must be a c-arr-penter. Well, I don’t wanna holdja up, but any chance ya seen a someone run through here lately with a grapplin’ hook and a bag?”

In reply she got only a surly, squinted stare. Nadia got the feeling that she was being sized up, and that this tough-looking lady wasn’t impressed. Her patience ran out fast, and with it her friendly smile wavered. After a few seconds the trader crossed her arms. “...Maybe,” she growled, her voice grievously hoarse. “What’s it worth to ya?”

Of course. This hoodlum wasn’t going to divulge anything without something on Nadia’s part to sweeten the deal. Unfortunately, the feral was fresh out of cash, and every second that passed was another that let the thief get farther away. Her annoyance was already starting to boil over, so she slapped her palms down on the table. “Look, I don’t have time for this. If ya know somethin’, cough it up, matey!”

The carver suddenly lunged, grabbing Nadia by her baggy tank top and pulling her forward onto the counter with her shirt twisted up in a knot. All of a sudden her face was in the feral’s, so close that she could smell the stink of the pirate’s breath. “Maybe those funny ears o’ yers don’t work so good,” she snarled. “‘Round here, we ain’t fond o’ outsiders struttin’ in, actin’ like they own the place. Ya think I’m some kinda rat!? So I’m askin’...what it’s worth to ya. Is it worth dyin’ for?”

After getting over her initial surprise, Nadia bared her teeth. She didn’t appreciate being put through the wringer like this on her day off. If this person felt like being an asshole, fine. “Let’s find out.” She opened her neck scar and released a spray of blood into the carver’s eyes. As she reeled back Nadia delivered a headbutt to the woman’s nose, then grabbed her head and slammed it down into the counter. The next second she flipped into the air, her leg held high, and before Rita could recover Nadia brought down an axe kick that smashed the jerk through the table and laid her out flat on the deck.

As she sputtered, Nadia crouched beside her. Next door, the drunken bone peddler looked on with alarm, but made no move to stop the newcomer. With a flash Nadia hardened her nails into claws. As much as she wanted to try intimidation, Galeem’s influence wasn’t about to let Rita go quietly. As if on cue Rita let out a bellow, rising from the ground with her whittling knife in hand. The feral spun out of the way and delivered a revolving slash to Rita’s head that cut her eyepatch to ribbons and left clawmarks from temple to jaw. “Wagh!” she yellowed, but rather than falter as Nadia expected, Rita shoulder-barged her. As she got knocked back, the pirate followed up with a slice of surgical precision, only for her blade to slide harmlessly through the scar tissue of Nadia’s neck.

“What!?” Rita snapped, not sure what just happened. Her enemy, meanwhile, realized that this must be no ordinary hoodlum. When she found her footing, Nadia went low, then kicked high, going for the throat with Nail Clipper. It left Rita gurgling, and the feral wasted no time comboing into High Brow to launch her into the roof. The carver landed in a heap, all the fight knocked out of her and her knife lost.

This time Nadia put her foot on Rita’s elbow before crouching down. “Ya asked for it,” she sighed. “Now, where’s that thief, huh? What, cat got your tongue? Nyahah, not yet I don’t. Course, we need that if you’re gonna spill the beans. I betcha you ‘wood’ not be happy if I broke your carvin’ arm, though…”

Not conscious enough to resist, Rita grit her teeth. “...I know ‘em. He’ll’ve gone to…Sturmbreacher.”

“Sturmbreacher,” Nadia repeated. “There, that wasn’t so hard, was it? You pirates ‘arr’ gonna hafta work on your people skills.” She patted Rita on the back. “Smell ya later!”

A dozen minutes and a couple floors later, the cat burglar found just what she was looking for: an old galleon with the name she wanted to see emblazoned on the hull in faded paint. It floated listlessly on the water with one side torn open, replaced by a facade with swinging doors and shuttered windows. She stepped inside and discovered that it was a bar, and one rank with disreputable grog and body odor, to boot. Though not jam-packed by any means, it harbored a handful of crooked-looking customers, including a scoundrel, arapscallion, and a ne’er-do-well. Behind the bar stood a huge man with a purple cape, but Nadia was more interested in the fellow sitting in front of him, with his back to her. The white-haired man sported a grappling hook on the end of a rope wound around his shoulder, and on the bar lay an aquamarine bag that glittered with gold. Everyone but him turned to look at Nadia as she entered, bemused and angered by the stranger that clearly didn’t belong.

“We-he-hell, who do we got here?” one of the brigands drawled as the three goons looked over from their table. The bearded man leaned back in his chair. “A pretty li’l miqo’te gal, out all on ‘er own? Now ain’t that just the sorriest thing I ever did see!”

“Heheh,” the girl giggled, obviously drunk and not on the same page. “Yeah, look what the *hic* cat dragged in.”

A noise prompted Nadia to look over her shoulder. From the shadows out of view, a pirate gecko had moved to block the way out, his arms crossed. He looked tough, with a lot of meat on his bones and a big bandage on his nose from a recent scrap. “Well, guess it’s up to us to keep ‘er company!” the first brigand continued. “En’t that just lovely! Well, what’re ye waitin’ for, then! ‘Ere, kitty-kitty!”

Nadia smirked at him. “You just keep on drinkin’, booze-for-brains, ‘cause I pack a hell of a lot more punch than whatever that crap is you’re chokin’ down, and I’ll leave you a whole lot groggier, too!” Although she kept a straight face, on the inside she was beside herself with excitement. Hell yeah! That was a GREAT LINE! Let’s keep it up! She cleared her throat. “I’m here for him.” Grinning, she pointed at the man who had yet to face her. “You! Yeah, you with the haircut! Gimme back my money…uh, dumbass!”

The big guy behind the counter let out a deep, bass chuckle. “Geheh. So it was yers, huh? My boy was just tellin’ me he swiped it offa someone who left both ‘er window and ‘er door wide open. And you’re tellin’ me he’s the dumbass? Gahahaha!”

As everyone started hooting and hollering Nadia couldn’t help but turn a little red, even if she did manage to keep up her sassy grin. She stepped forward. “Oh yeah? W-well, uh. Just you wait, tons of fun. I'll deal with you ne-!”

“SHUT UP!” The man suddenly bellowed. In an instant the entire bar went quiet. “You’ve got some nerve comin’ to pick a fight with me, the pirate lord Barth! I’ll hack you into pieces with my axe!”

“Barf?” Nadia almost doubled over with laughter. “That short for Barf-olomew, or Barf-ood? Either way, some big blowhard like you couldn’t hack it as a deckhand, let alone a pirate lord!”

“You MANGY, FLEA-BITTEN BITCH! RAAAAGH!” Barth roared. He bent behind the counter to dig for something, probably an axe, if his threat was anything to go by. The thief at the bar, however, found his voice first.

“Come now, boss,” he said, his voice calm. “Don’t fall for her petty insults. She’s just upset that she lost a few coins. It’s only natural, after all.” He turned around to reveal the biggest shit-eating grin Nadia had ever seen in her entire life, which was saying something given how often she looked in a mirror. “A fool and her money are easily parted.”

Barth rose up and slammed a giant, double-headed axe down on the bar. “A fool and ‘er life, too!”

“Not this fool.” For just a moment, Nadia was deathly serious. Then, in classic fashion, she broke out into a cheerful giggle. Six enemies, all with weapons, at least half of them thoroughly inebriated. Even with that handicap, this would be suicide as a straight fight. Luckily, she didn’t plan on fighting fair, and as a small sidenote, she couldn’t die. To think this is how I’m spending my vacation. she thought. I coulda been chillin’ on the beach with the others, sippin’ margaritas, but no. She jumped into her fighting stance, bouncing back and forth on her heels. “Come and get me then, ya rabid sea dogs! I’ll show ya I’m not kitten around!”

Cerberus

Location: Deep Blue Seaside, Kanzuki Beach Estate
Koopa Troop’s @DracoLunaris, Blazermate’s @Archmage MC, Geralt’s @MULTI_MEDIA_MAN, Ace Cadet’s @Yankee, Sakura and Karin's @Zoey Boey, Link’s @Gentlemanvaultboy, Rubick’s @Scarifar

The fight kicked off in spectacular fashion, and the bright-eyed Triple Demon soaked it up like a sponge. After all the sensory deprivation they’d been through, this beach bash of Karin’s had turned out to be quite the banquet, a veritable smorgasbord for the senses. Not knowing either Sakura or Birdie, they pretty much just wanted to see blood, so they shouted out their encouragement whenever anyone got a hit. When the first round came to an end they almost looked disappointed, but that didn’t stop Cerberus from clapping to show their appreciation, at least with the triplets that weren’t buried up to their necks in the sand.

In the brief interlude a few more unfamiliar faces made an appearance, and predictably Cerberus’ short attention span got the better of them. Ace provoked little more than a glance, but they looked over in perfect unison as two female robots showed up alongside an illustrious sorcerer, whose stylish robe, noxious green glow, and mystical manner struck them as the very embodiment of villainous finery. “Ooh, you look cool!” they chorused. “Are you from hell too? What kind of magic can you use? Can you show us? Please, please, please!” To Blazermate and Susie they paid no mind, assuming that the robots belonged to the mage in their midst.

Before Rubick could either rebuff or oblige the curious hellhound, however, the newly-returned Junior and Kamek started a lightshow of their own. Eager to demonstrate the remarkable artifact they’d lucked into, they leveraged the leftover spirits retrieved from the bowels of Carcass Isle in the wee hours of the morning, putting the monster’s remains to good -or perhaps questionable- use. They started by smushing a freaky penguin spirit into Junior’s poor suspecting Popplio, then moved on to try outfitting Bowser himself with new crustacean armaments. Cerberus’ eyes went wide with wonder as the multicolored light radiated outward from the subjects’ bodies, bright enough to distract the nearby street fighters as they attempted to go about their business.

For Dazzle

Spirit consumed:
Dire Penguin
Target: Flippers
The host’s flippers got longer, winglike in shape, sprouting sleek, rudimentary feathers ideal for diving. Theirs is a rubbery black coloration, which spreads out from the shoulder joint and across the host’s back, forming a vestlike patch interspersed with red marks, while the blue skin is now dark gray toward the belly. The host’s personality is more irritable and noisy. This spirit grants the Power Penguin Leap, a move that launches the host is a fast parabolic bash. It bypasses shields, deals respectable stagger, and goes both harder and farther if performed from the water. It also grants the Weakness Flightless Bird, making movement clumsier on land

For Bowser

Spirit consumed:
Land Dreugh
Target: Right Shoulder
Reddish chitin plate armor has spread from the snaktivation point, replacing the scale armor already in place. It extends down to the right elbow, up toward the neck, and across the upper-right chest. With its knobby little spikes it’s quite hard, providing better defense at the cost of having exposed flesh where the armor isn’t. A new jointed limb has also sprouted from the spot, right next to the host’s right-side cannon. It terminates in a bristly claw and can strike quickly, but not at the strength the host is used to. The host’s personality is more aggressive and less social. This spirit confers the Power Shocking Touch, allowing Bowser to electrify a single limb that then spends the charge on whatever it hits next, zapping it. It also confers the Weakness Can’t Swim. When in water, the host can only sink to the bottom

For Kamek

Spirit consumed:
Tonberry
The host has gotten smaller and stubbier, and lost her human skin in favor of green amphibian flesh, as well as gotten a more round head and more pronounced snout, and a more fishlike tail. Her eyes are also now yellow. The host’s personality is more quiet and ominous. This spirit grants the Power Knife. It’s a slow, point blank stab attack that always critically hits, ignoring defense and immunity, thereby dealing massive damage. It can only be used when the host intends to kill her target. It also grants the Weakness Total Killing Intent. When the host goes in for a killing blow (which is intrinsic when she wants to use Knife) she can’t communicate, use equipment, or otherwise do anything but walk toward her target and attack, although she can snap herself out of it

After oohing and aahing over the transformations, despite a complete and utter lack of understanding of what was going on, Cerberus’ attention naturally drifted back towards the street fighters’ bout. With Rubick all but forgotten they launched into another round of shouts, laughs, cheers, and occasionally jeers, just barking out all their thoughts and suggestions no matter how dumb or impractical they might be. In other words: they acted just as tournament watchers should. The banana peel incident in particular had the three rolling. It wasn’t long after that some sharp words amped up the tension levels, and the action swelled. Cerberus fell silent for the first time, watching at rapt attention as the two went back and forth, trading aluminum cans and spirit fireballs along with incredible kicks and punches. All too soon the spectacle was over. Courtesy of Sakura’s splendid coup-de-grace, Birdie sailed away to splat face-first in the sand. Rather than wallow in the knowledge that he went 0-2 he figured out something more productive to do with his time, and promptly hit the bricks.

The Triple Demon, meanwhile, was impressed, even if there hadn’t been any bloodshed or broken bones. These people were tough! Tough enough for Cerberus to play with, maybe? Even if the two above ground managed to dig their sister out in time, though, it looked like a bout of their own wasn’t in the cards. They realized both that Sakura would be facing off against Karin next, and that it was a grudge match, too. “Ooh, drama!” Cerberus exclaimed as Ishizaki stepped up to referee. “Go on, kick her ass!” they exhorted neither of the gals in particular.

The Chalk Prince, the Fallen Child, the Prisoner, and the Skullgirl

Location: Frozen Highlands - Dragonspine Foothills
Linkle’s @Gentlemanvaultboy, Frisk’s @Majoras End, Prisoner’s @XoXKieroBombXoX

As Albedo pulled his swordblade free the halves of the Sir Slush melted away. Handily done, if the alchemist could say so himself, but with a flurry of snowballs on the way he couldn’t afford to dawdle. He plunged his hand into a pouch and withdrew a fistful of the Dust of Azoth, which he proceeded to ram straight through the snow and into the cold earth below. “A new beginning!” he called, and from dead soil fresh life sprang forth. A fir tree sprang into being, a deep-green coniferous wall of defense bristling with needles to mitigate the impact of the enemy’s projectiles.

Albedo narrowed his eyes as he peered through the boughs, coldly considering the situation. With his observational skills he’d robbed the enemy of not just their element of surprise, but their best chance at an advantageous position. If he and his allies could hold the line, they could take control of the battle and exterminate the enemy without the situation ever devolving into chaos. If it were just him, the long range of the snowmen would pose an issue, potentially pinning him down behind cover until they could surround him, but as his crossbow-wielding ally quickly demonstrated, he needed not worry at all.

Linkle summoned a sniper with a giant bowgun almost as big as the Skullgirl herself, and a moment later Imani blasted a hole straight through the frosty ringleader’s middle. In that charge shot’s wake flew a barrage of crossbow bolts, faster and deadlier than anything the snowmen were packing. In a matter of moments Linkle turned the tables on the would-be ambushers, forcing those with sufficient intelligence to take cover themselves, while their mindless brethren got skewered and blown up by the bushel. The barrage of snowballs against Albedo’s fur tree came to an abrupt end as his assailants shifted focus to the much bigger problem, and like clockwork the alchemist sprang from cover. He raced across the snow with surprising speed and darted into the snowmen’s foxhole from the left side, where his blade slid through snowmen like butter.

He wasn’t the only one who got busy in light of the Skullgirl’s initiative. Frisk procured a dangerous-looking firearm from Linkle’s sled, a bladed black rifle that would be big in the hands of a burly veteran, let alone a noodle-armed child. Despite the splendid veneer, the gun was still the Alternator underneath, a mess of scrap metal and alpine wood cobbled together in the withering cold and scarcity of the icebound world Reisum. When Frisk pulled the trigger it spat out nine frost rounds a second with bone-jarring recoil, and being fully automatic, the recoil quickly mounted to the point where it tore from the kid’s numb fingers. It fell into the snow with a hiss, where it continued to steam for a moment. Meanwhile, the ice shots did almost nothing to the snowmen they did manage to hit, only really serving to make them mad.

Luckily, the snowmen had other issues. The trio’s mysterious pursuer had revealed himself at last -intentionally, at least- and straightaway joined their offensive against their chilly adversaries as a gesture of good faith. With the Prisoner well-situated in his vantage point to pick off any troublesome snowmen that slipped through Linkle’s assault, and Albedo wreaking havoc in the wings, victory seemed all but assured.

As the alchemist lopped the head off one last Sir Slush, he spotted the big snowman from earlier. With no internal organs to pierce, he’d survived Imani’s charge shot despite the gaping hole it left behind, and merely jammed more snow into the gap to fix himself up. Then he lumbered forward, both arms clad in giant masses of snow and ice like shields to block Linkle and the Prisoner’s shots. Like a juggernaut he weathered the storm, stomping closer and closer until he got into range. Then he roared and smashed his wintry shields down, one after another. Each shook the earth, creating a wintry wave that rumbled toward Linkle, Frisk, and the Prisoner, threatening to knock them down and batter them bloody. “Gahahah!” Bad Mr. Frosty guffawed. “Not so tough now, are ya? C’mon, gimme your best shot!”

Albedo obliged, leaping from the sidelines to sink his blade into Frosty’s back. The snowman grunted, but did not relinquish his ugly grin. “Hah! That it?” He gritted his teeth as he raised both giant arms overhead. As he inhaled he burned through his entire cigar in a single mighty puff, and his eyes blazed with fury. “Have…one more! GRAH!”

He brought his arms down in a giant ground point. For a second it seemed no stronger than the other two, but then the whole area began to quake. Albedo turned and looked up at Dragonspine, looming above the icy river and layer-cake hills. His eyes widened as he spotted a great mass of stone and snow hurtling down the slope. “Avalanche!” He went to leap off the snowman and flee in the direction of the gulch’s walls, but to his surprise he couldn’t tug free. When he glanced down he found both his sword and the arm that held it frozen solid, stuck where he pierced Frosty’s body.

“Not so fast, bub!” the snowman smirked. “You can hang out here as long as ya like. It’s ‘snow’ trouble! Gahaha!” Albedo clenched his jaw and pulled, but he couldn’t get free. All too soon, the avalanche thundered down the valley, swallowing up everything in its path in an unstoppable tide of ice and snow.

It took a few moments for the powder to settle. Then Bad Mr. Frosty exploded from the mess, none the worse for wear despite Albedo’s Cinnabar Spindle still lodged in his body, with no sign of its owner. “One down, three to go!” the villain hollered, looking around. “Who’s next?”

Lost my RP Voice - help me find it?

Hello and welcome to the guild. I'm terribly sorry for your loss, and the mark it's left on you. Such tragedy can really be so devastating. Still, I applaud you for your desire to push onward. Undertaking new commitments can be frightening, and with how often RPs fade away, I understand completely the wariness of joining a group that might be gone tomorrow, or never begin in the first place. At the end of the day, all we can really do is try to forge ahead, hoping that everything holds together for as long as possible. I certainly hope you find what you're looking for, giving you the chance to enjoy your passion once more.

If you're looking for really solid, dependable groups, you might profit from looking at long-running RPs with decent activity. The Casual section generally has the most options. As intimidating as it can be to jump into an RP that's been around a while, those are probably the ones that'll continue to stick around for years to come. I'm blessed to be a small part of one such group of rockstars, and I wish you the best of luck finding the same!

World of Light

Tora, Poppi, and Big Band

Location: Sandswept Sky
Level 9 Tora (213/90) Level 9 Poppi (213/90) Level 7 Big Band (41/70)
Midna’s @DracoLunaris, Sectonia’s @Archmage MC, Primrose and Therion’s @Yankee, Jesse’s @Zoey Boey, Raz’s @TruthHurts22, Raiden’s @XoXKieroBombXoX, the Phantom Thieves, Braum, the Scout, Peacock, Mao, Tharja, Ciella
Word Count: 2194

With everything that life had thrown at the intrepid heroes today, it made a weird sort of sense that even the simple act of falling would present a challenge. The moment that the Seekers made the conscious decision to descend was the moment they realized that everything was working against them. From within the bowels of the manmade abyss known as Hollow Heights welled a powerful updraft, streaming upward alongside the warm thermal currents that poured from Red Eye’s fiery innards. Together they provided so much air resistance that Tora didn’t think he’d take a lick of damage no matter how far he fell, but what at first seemed like saving grace turned out to be a curse in disguise. For those winds also allowed the hordes of Trilid that wormed their way out of Red Eye’s flesh to seethe upward in angry clouds, like the tephra of a terrific volcanic eruption. The same currents that bore them upward also conspired to keep the Seekers sky-high, forcing them to endure the Akrid onslaught until they too were nothing but dust on the wind.

Of course, nobody was about to let that happen, not after the sacrifice made by Robin that allowed them to snatch the hope of victory from the literal jaws of defeat. By switching to more aerodynamic positions and employing whatever powers of flight they had at their disposal, the Seekers of Light turned the tables, and faced the Trilid swarm head on. It quickly became chaos, but each skydiver had a method to his or her madness. Jesse called upon Sven to supply a flask that she could supersize and ride down like a giant, flammable snowboard. Midna drew her blades and equipped her faithful insect once more, relying on its vigorous wings to usher her through the tempest. Far, far below, Raiden raced across the desert sands full of bloodlust, eager to take full advantage of the blank check that fate had written him and clear the way for his allies’ descent. Sectonia put on a dazzling light show with her rings as she buzzed back down to earth, and while Therion with his steel formed a formidable vanguard for his airborne company, Primrose unleashed her pyromancy to blaze even brighter than the Akrid that assailed her.

The others rose to the challenge as well. Braum crusted over his shield with ice, increasing its size threefold, then stood atop it with Raz and the Scout tucked under one arm each, mulching Trilid like bugs against a windshield the whole way down. Maybe taking inspiration from him, Ciella let off a handful of spread-shots to help thin the swarm before manifesting a cryogenic meteor beneath her, so large and heavy that she only needed to latch on to plummet straight to the front of the group. Peacock pulled her buddy Andy Anvil out of hammerspace and held tight as the cartoon curmudgeon dropped like a rock, shooting like a maniac with her pistol as she did. Mao wielded his mechanical arms to make mincemeat of whatever Trilid swerved his way, while an emotionally overloaded Tharja eviscerated all comers from the inside out with fearsome dark power. Unfortunately the Phantom Thieves had little choice but to dive headfirst, making use of whatever shields their allies could provide on the way.

Big Band, meanwhile, took his protection into his own hands. Upside down and pushing through the currents thanks to his rockets, the detective deployed his brass cymbal over and over again to parry the Trilid that attacked him, which allowed him to kill them without taking damage if timed right. Of course, he couldn’t always time them right, but the one-man band was made of sterner stuff than most, so even as a handful of the pests crashed into him, he stayed the course. No matter how the wind roared in the heroes’ ears, the clash of his cymbal cut through it, reassuring them that the big guy was still alive and kicking.

Unwilling to allow the Trilid to ruin their big moment, Tora and Poppi quickly changed tactics. At her Masterpon’s request Poppi switched gears into her Alpha form, the heaviest and bulkiest of the three, allowing her to supply Tora with his coveted drill shield. Once angled downward and dialed up to eleven, the drill bit pierced through both the thermal updraft and any Trilid unfortunate enough to charge the pair head-on, while the shield’s rearward boost added to the Poppi’s overall thrust. As small as their shield was, it was enough to make them practically invincible as they dug through the Trilid onslaught, so long as they stayed committed. Even as friends took damage, they couldn’t do much to help other than veer their way slightly, hoping that the streak they carved would help to alleviate their troubles.

Together the seekers weathered the storm, slashing, piercing, dodging, diving, ducking, burning, and bashing. They filled the sky with light and darkness, fire and ice, and mustered all their strength to push through the alien swarm until finally, finally they broke through to the other side. The Trilid supply had been exhausted, many reduced to ash but most harmlessly flown by on their way to the clouds above, and the Seekers of Light remained. As the final stretch opened itself up before them, with Red Eye sitting defenseless at the bottom, they began to pick up speed. Raiden ripped a gruesome path across its body, bleeding the giant Akrid of the T-ENG that flowed like magma from its sallow flesh. With his help, the core was totally exposed.

“Poppi!” Tora roared, his heart beating a mile a minute as he retracted his shield’s drill bit. “Time to combine power!”

“Here goes Poppi!” The two switched places, with Poppi taking over the shield and filling it with channeled ether. “Throttle released! Preparing to strike!”

Nearby, Band shrugged off bug bits and gooey ash from his cymbal, then whipped out his bagpipes. The few notes he belted out were lost in the wind, but the act was nevertheless of vital importance. As Red Eye grew closer and closer, he deployed his giant French Horn and blasted the last couple hundred meters, the wind whipped at what little remained of his hair. “Uuuaaahhh, horn crush!”

“There!” Tora cried, then along with Poppi, screamed out his two favorite words. “JET BITER!”

In quick succession the heroes divebombed Red Eye’s thermal core. Ciella’s frozen comet came down hard enough to not just leave a crater as it shattered, but shove the monster even farther onto the myriad girders that skewered it. Big Band smashed into it with Super Sonic Jazz, then laid waste with a barrage of brass-knuckled punches. “Tubatubatubatubatubatubatubatuba–TUBA!” Next to him Tora and Poppi struck at withering speed, drilling straight into -and then through- the Akrid’s dying body. The impact of Braum’s shield caused a blood-curdling CRACK to echo across all of Hollow Heights, and the Phantom Thieves became a flurry of black blurs that tore across Red Eye’s final weak spot like ravenous piranhas. Saved from fall damage by the drafts from below, everyone lent their all to this climactic final assault, and when the last Seeker fell upon it the behemoth gave up the ghost at long, long last.

Its body burned up from within, its countless tons of biomass turning to ash in a matter of moments. The Seekers were left to drift down to and grab hold of the steel beams and supports that once held up this section of desert. Perched precariously on one such length, Tora and Poppi held tight, both to one another, and to the knowledge that they’d made it through the action-packed, heart-stopping rollercoaster of a boss fight to somehow claim victory once more.

Results

Party: Tora, Poppi, Big Band, Midna, Sectonia, Primrose, Therion, Jesse, Raz, Raiden
Reward: 30 EXP

Band took a long, slow breath. “Well, it wasn’t easy, and in some ways it’s hollow as these here heights, but we did it. And if we could take out that sonuva gun, I guess there really ain’t nothin’ we can’t do. Even the sky ain’t the limit.” He pulled a fresh hat out from his jacket, dusted some ash off his shoulder with it, then put it on. Up above, the blue sky was beginning to yellow in the west; it wouldn’t be too long until sunset. Sloggin up Split Mountain, skedaddling down, and then nearly getting killed a half-dozen times over a giant Railway Gun was enough to take its toll on any man, and Band for one was just about ready for an early bedtime. Idly he wondered how far the team was from Al Mamoon, and if they could even get there with both train and track totaled.

Still, there was one crucial matter to attend to. The spirit of Red Eye had emerged as the ash of the body that housed it melted away into the abyss, and now it floated in a whorl of crimson light over the open space. “Boss spirit immune to crushing,” Tora said aloud, remembering the dilemma that followed the defeat of both Megadragonbowser and the Ender Dragon. Of all those present, only he and Poppi had the pleasure of being present for the death of another of Galeem’s chosen guardians, so he realized it fell to him to explain.

Before he could say anything, however, a stern voice reached the Seekers from above. “Correct.” They looked up to see a lone figure floating down. It was Ram, the oddly emotionless brigadier who’d dined on fast food with the team in Al Mamoon last night, then helped them against the great stone snakes above the Graveyard of the Peaks today. At some point she’d exchanged her robe of white, with its strange fleshy lining, for a hooded coat of black. With its zipper undone it flapped in the wind, but Ram took no notice. “If you don’t want it to revive in the next sixty seconds, someone needs to fuse with it,” she explained.

Band’s brows shot up. “Hold on, sixty seconds!? And whaddya mean, ‘fuse’?”

“She mean absorb monster into self, taking on it powers and appearance,” Poppi supplied, relishing the idea about as much as everyone else familiar with the concept, which was to say not at all.

“Huh!?”

The deliberation came to an abrupt end when a black blur swept over the spirit, snatching it up. It came to a stop on a high girder above the others, revealing itself to be Joker. When the young man turned after a moment he held the spirit up in his red-gloved hand, grinning devilishly.

“You’re not…” Mona blinked twice, his eyes wide. “Wait! I know what you’re up to! Nyeheheh, if this works, you’re a real card, Joker!”

Tora looked between the Thieves in bewilderment. “What friends mean!? If Joker fuse with big wormypon, he get even bigger than Railway Gun! That no way to live, meh!”

“Who said anything about fusing?” Joker asked. With his free hand he reached up and took hold of his mask, which turned into a ball of azure flame when removed. “I’ve never met a god that the Wild Card could not overcome. Compared to their like, a monster like this…is nothing at all!” So saying, he took hold of the Red Eye spirit with his flame-wreathed hand. It struggled within his grasp, somehow fighting back against whatever he was doing, but Joker grit his teeth and gripped harder. “I am thou…” he growled. “And thou art I…let the contract be signed…now!” There came a pulse of energy, then silence and stillness. When Joker opened his hand, a mote of light floated up that turned into a new mask. He smiled and put it on, then stretched out his arms. “Manifest. Red Eye!”

Behind him, the behemoth reappeared in a burst of bright blue fire, albeit at only a fraction of the size. It curved around to Joker’s side and opened wide its maw to let out an ethereal roar. “Holy moly, Joker!” Necronomicon exclaimed, the UFO whirling in excitement on his other side while Mona struggled to stay seated on top. “Not only did you actually turn it into a nuclear Persona, but it’s crazy strong!”

The Thief shrugged and banished Red Eye before placing his hands in his pockets. Doing so nearly caused him to fall off his girder, so he held them out again for balance. “All in a day’s work,” he downplayed, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead. “How about we…get out of here?”

At a loss, Band looked over at Ram, but the brigadier seemed less than certain herself. When a few more moments passed with no explosions or violent changes of any kind, he heaved a sigh. “Well, if that takes care of that, by all means. Let’s blow this joint.” It would be a decent climb -or a short flight- to the surface from here, so the battle-weary detective got cracking.

For Big Band

New Power Obtained:
Take Five - Big Band’s Outtake. A strategic option taking the form of a high-knockback, non-damaging attack. If a foe is fighting as part of a team, this special attack not only stuns the victim but drags in whatever enemy teammate Band wants. If the foe is alone, this attack prevents the foe healing until the battle is decided

New Strength Obtained:
My Feet Can’t Fail Me Now - Prolonged overuse of Band’s reconstructed body in extreme conditions has toughened it up somewhat, giving him increased endurance, temperature tolerance, and defense

Ms Fortune

Location: Deep Blue Seaside - Limsa Lominscuttle Town
Level 9 Nadia (3/90)
Blazermate’s @Archmage MC, Rubick’s @Scarifar
Word Count: 2384

Having taken heart, Nadia descended from the Upper Decks. While the many ropes, nets, walkways, bridges, and beams of Limsa Lominscuttle Town might leave the average newcomer lost and dumbfounded by the complexity of it all, to someone as agile and opportunistic as Nadia Fortune, the whole place might as well be one big jungle gym. She leaped, vaulted, slid, and swung her way down to the Octant, where the majestic, sapphire-blue, crystalline Aetheryte hummed and span softly above the heads of the civilians, who by either whim or necessity found themselves in or passing through the seastack city’s busiest -and most popular- intersection, its living, beating heart.

After she used a taut banner line to pull off a successful triple-backflip, Nadia alighted on the plaza’s white stone bricks with feline grace, landing on her feet as always. While a few passers-by glanced her way, nobody seemed to regard her dynamic entrance, or her appearance for that matter, as anything unusual. Most of the people gathered around the Octant just kept their focus on Shantae’s dance class taking place on the grass ring around the Aetheryte, for obvious reasons. As if the half-genie heroine herself wasn’t eye-catching enough by herself, her expert movements so perfect and fluid as to be mesmerizing, she’d assembled quite the assortment of earnest students. More than a few appeared to be dressed for the occasion, and almost all of them were pretty good, following their instructor’s example nearly to the letter. With all of them together, the synchronized dance became a captivating display of whirling silks, bells, and hair, all flowing to the merry maritime music of a few piratical bards on their concertinas, banjos, drums, and hurdy-gurdies.

Naturally, such a splendid spectacle had drawn a suitably large crowd to watch and cheer the performers on. Now that she'd come down amongst them, Nadia could really appreciate just how clogged with people the Octant was. Even with everyone arranged around the perimeter, there were enough men, women, children, and creatures around to get in the way of people trying to go about their business as usual. In fact, it was a wonder that nobody had toppled backward over the plaza’s knee-high seastone railing yet. As much as she wanted to just jump right in and try her luck, Nadia couldn’t help but hesitate at the edge of the crowd. Maybe it was just her inexperience talking, but these dancers didn’t seem like beginners at all. Some of them were supplementing their dances with spinning rings. While she was no shrinking violet by any stretch of the imagination, there were a lot of eyes around if she ended up making a fool of herself. In the end Nadia decided to bide her time for a bit. She crouched down and stroked her chin like a philosopher, eyes narrowed. If she could glean a basic idea of what to do before trying to do it, after all, she’d be that much better off.

Try as she might, however, she just couldn’t commit to a serious study of the dancers’ craft. It was just too enjoyable, and too easy to get caught up in the spirit of it all. In no time at all her feet were tap-tap-tapping and her tail was swishing in time to the beat. It took all her willpower not to give in to the urge to spring to her feet and join in the fun. Not yet, she whispered to herself, aware and frustrated that her internal rebellion made it that much harder to concentrate. She was almost grateful when a hand came down on her shoulder and shattered her focus completely.

Nadia glanced up to see a red-haired woman to her right, looking down at her with a raised eyebrow and a slight but knowing smile. She looked familiar, but the feral couldn’t quite place her. “Looks like you wanna jump in. What’d the hold-up?”

“Heh, that obvious, huh?” Nadia returned the smile, not so self-conscious that she couldn’t laugh at herself being foolish. “Well, I’ve just never tried it before, that’s all. Don’t want to…ya know, ruin it or anythin’.”

The lady crossed her arms. “Oh, yeah? You looked plenty limber hurtling around the city the other night to us. Well, how about this. Guybrush here’s got two left feet, and we’re just about to give it a shot.” On her other side, a good-natured blond fellow gave a friendly wave. Seeing the both of them together jogged Nadia’s memory enough to make her realize where she’d seen them before: laying together up on the grass-topped seastack she scaled on the way to the Blitzball arena. Small world after all! she supposed. “Why not join us?” Elaine asked.

As Nadia mulled over the offer, the pirate’s music came to a sudden crescendo, then finished. The crowd erupted into a mighty round of applause, drowning out any reply she might have made. Some of the dancers bowed out and dispersed into the crowd, while a few of its members jogged up to take their places. Among them went Guybrush and Elaine, the former led by the latter, although the redhead paused for one final glance back at Nadia. It was now or never. Oh well, she thought with a shrug, then grinned as she reached out a hand. Just for today, I’m going with the flow. Elaine seized hold and pulled her along.

Nadia and the other newcomers took their place in a circle around the Aetheryte, encouraged by a chorus of cheers from the onlookers. Shantae treated everyone to a big, warm grin. “Alright, everyone!” she sang. “It makes me so happy to see so many fresh faces! This is gonna be great. Just follow along as best you can! Let’s go~!”

The band struck up a fancy tune, Nadia took a deep breath, and Shantae began to spin. Together the dancers launched into action, planting one foot and stamping the other in a circle with arms outstretched. While a little stiff at first, focused completely on the rotation and rhythmic up-down, up-down of her leg, the cat burglar quickly realized that she needed to be moving her hips, arms, and head as well. After three spins, Shantae would sashay from side to side, arms and waist snapping back and forth in sync, then begin a new set of spins. Nadia tried to copy her, and to her surprise found that it wasn’t nearly as much of a struggle as it first seemed. One step at a time she worked to synchronize the movements, keeping her eyes on her fellow dancers so she could follow their example. In doing so she also began to notice that the others weren’t quite as perfect as they first seemed. Maybe everyone was just learning and doing their best, after all! Plus, all around her were fellow catgirls or statuesque, rabbit-eared women, making her own animal features nothing out of the ordinary. Instead of scornful faces, she found only smiles, and kindred spirits. Pretty soon, Nadia’s worries about tripping over her fish-tail, jeering onlookers, and judgemental professionals began to melt away. Her rigid spasms turned to , and the exhilarated beat of her heart chased away the unease that had gnawed at it. She was actually doing it, and it was fun!

After a few minutes the music suddenly changed, switching from elegant to goofy in a flash. Nadia looked at Shantae in alarm, but found the half-genie heroine giggling as she bounced around in a ridiculous dance that all the others hurried to emulate. Even members of the outside crowd got in on it. In an instant all of Nadia’s illusions about this being a serious performance were shattered. Though taken aback for a brief moment, she quickly burst out laughing, then joined in, hopping on one leg and swinging her arms with the best of them. Forget dignity and decorum–this was just a rollicking good time. All too soon, the bards’ song came to a thrilling conclusion. Everyone gleefully leaped into the air and landed with arms upheld, surrounded by a cheerful mixture of ovation and mirth.

Nadia, tired but happy, spotted Guybrush and Elaine heading off together as the dancers dispersed. The crowd was in the way of a proper thank-you, but the feral still managed to shoot the pair a grateful smile and mouthed thank you. If not for their encouragement, she would have missed out big time, and probably never even realized what her hesitance had lost her. As the herd thinned she spotted a distinctive giant ponytail of purple hair, so Nadia made her way over to where Shantae rested on a white stone bench in the shade of the Octant’s leafy green tree. “That was paw-sitively delightful!” she punned, reaching out a hand to shake. “Thank ya so much for puttin’ it on!”

“You’re welcome!” the dancer beamed. “This is your first time with us, right? Well, you could have fooled me! You’re practically a natural!”

Nadia laughed, scratching at the back of her neck as she soaked up the praise. “Ya think so? I’m just glad I didn’t fall flat on my own face, honestly. Compared to li’l ol’ me, you’re practically breathtaking.”

“Aw, you’ve got nothing to worry about. The crowd couldn’t take their eyes off you! You’d better come back tomorrow.” Shantae tilted her head slightly. “Then again, if I remember right, I saw you, like, two days ago with that Peach lady and that big Bowser guy, right? That must mean you’re with the ‘Seekers’?”

Nadia nodded, seeing no reason to hide her affiliation. “Uh-huh! Nice to meetcha, I’m Miss Fortune.”

“A pleasure, Miss Fortune. My name’s Shantae. And wow!” Sheseemed even more impressed. “That makes you extra specially welcome, but maybe you’re moving on to the next big thing pretty soon?” The half-genie heroine crossed her arms. “I mean, if everything I’ve heard is true, you all just rolled into town, un-cursed the Bottomless Sea, and toppled the Abyssal Fleet in what, a day? While we’ve been struggling for months? Sounds like you’re the breathtaking ones.” While still smiling, Shantae looked a little downcast, too. “Compared to all that, I haven't been much of a hero.”

“Oh, go soak your head!” Nadia scoffed, much to Shantae’s surprise. “I’m nobody special. Just some stray in the right place at the right time. If someone like me can be called a hero, anyone can. Plus, good heroes are super modest, right? So I bet you’re secretly, like, the best ever.” Her tail swished back and forth as she put her hands on her hips, an eyebrow raised. “So tell me, Shantae, what does a day in the life of a hero look like?”

The dancer did argue, but rolled with the change of subject. “Well, I guess you got me. Yesterday I went out with a team to track down a fugitive from the city, wanted for murder. A silver-haired swordsman with a long, long blade.”

Nadia’s eyebrows shot up. “No way! I knew that guy was bad news! Well, sword-a. We only met him earlier that day, but he gave off a bad vibe. You’re saying he went and killed someone in the city?” When her new friend nodded, she shook her head in bemusement. “Jeez. Guess we shoulda left him to die in the Dead Zone. No wonder he didn’t show up the mornin’ we shipped out. Didja get his ass, at least?”

“I think so…” Shantae toyed with her hair uncertainly. “We met someone of that description, sword and all, just chilling in a resort up north. But I guess the initial description was off, because the target was a woman. We put her under arrest, and on the way back she attacked us. For a minute I thought we were done for, but she kept trying to run, and Officer Nanu shut her down every time. After that…well, it was us or her.”

“Sheesh. Well, good on you guys.” Given Sephiroth’s fusion with one of the Cia clones, Nadia felt like she might have an idea about what happened. Just went to show that nobody could afford to be careless, brazen, and murderous all at once. As messed-up as this world was, actions still had consequences. “Anyway, I dunno where we’re headed next. I was thinkin’ of lookin’ at a map or somethin’. Right now though, all I care about’s findin’ somewhere nice we can all pig out for dinner. Got any tips?”

Shantae tapped her index finger on her chin. “Well, there should be a map of the region at the Aftcastle. And for food, if you want the finest dining Limsa has to offer, either Bismarck or Mother of Pearl’s the place to be. One up high, one out on Galdin Quay in the north shore district. That said, my favorite is Rum for Ale. While I don’t drink, and I don’t know where ‘Cuba’ is, the flavor of the food there is to die for.”

“Never heard of Cuba either, but good to know! Thanks for everything, Shantae.” Looking down at the donations box, Nadia gave it a nudge with her foot. “I’d drop ya a tip, but I don’t have anythin’ on me right now.” As she said it, the feral couldn’t help but feel as if something was wrong. She scrunched her brows together as she patted herself down, realizing that her new jean shorts didn’t even have pockets. But if I don’t have pockets, she thought, where…is my room key?

As horrific reality dawned on her, Nadia’s eyes went wide, and her jaw dropped. “Uh oh.” While Shantae looked on in concern she sprinted off toward the Bulwark Hall, headed toward the elevator that would take her back to the Mizzenmast Inn, where her room waited for her with its door ever-so-slightly ajar, and not a single golden coin to be found inside.

Cerberus

Location: Deep Blue Seaside, Kanzuki Beach Estate
Koopa Troop’s @DracoLunaris, Geralt’s @MULTI_MEDIA_MAN, Ace Cadet’s @Yankee, Sakura and Karin's @Zoey Boey, Link’s @Gentlemanvaultboy

When Link approached the Triple Demon, he found the three in a much better state than he left them in. Practically the moment Karin gave them her blessing, her butler Ishizaki and several of the Kanzuki ninjas had swept the would-be freeloaders up to give them a much-needed hand. Running rampant over the buffet table in utter disarray, soaked to the bone and plastered with sand, would behoove nobody after all, and it was patently obvious they had no plans to help themselves other than to Karin’s barbeque. In a matter of moments the three bedraggled, waterlogged messes, with their nice suits and long white hair in a sorry state, had been toweled off, brushed up, and given spare sundresses to change into, with their garb washed off and hung up on the railing of the beach house’s deck to dry. Link found them sitting in a circle on a giant striped beach towel in their fresh clothes, eyes bright and tails wagging as they chowed down on plates of leftover meat.

“Thanks!” they chorused as they accepted the hero’s offerings without a second thought, so quickly in fact that none of the triplets took the correct color-coded drink. Luckily, if the way they gulped their mango smoothies down was any indication, they liked the stuff plenty anyway. Cerberus didn’t seem to even consider the possibility that Link bore them any ill will from their fight, as intense as it had gotten, and they certainly didn’t bear him any. It didn’t take much time spent watching or listening to them as they squabbled or bubbled about this or that to get the impression that the triplets shared a forthright, one-track mind, blunt and -despite their earlier stated intentions of corrupting the mortal realm- rather happy-go-lucky. They were beings without subtext, enthusiastic but endearingly empty-headed–sort of like dogs.

Two of them shuffled over to make room for Link to join them, and while they kept snacking afterward, the one across from Link considered his request as she scratched her ears. With all three in matching sundresses, they were just as identical as when they first emerged from the Evergaol, with only the color of their eyes telling them apart. “Heehee, did you forget already?” Cerberus grinned at Link. She sneezed abruptly, then leaned back with her palms on the beach towel. “That was a jail! We were stuck in there forever, and it was awful! Dunno who put us there, or how. One day we were at home, everything business as usual, yeah? Then all these pillars of light showed up outta nowhere! We thought angels had come to send us back to hell. Everything went white. After that…” She squinted as if trying to see her memories better, and the others’ feast ground to a perplexed stop. “It was weird. Hard to remember. Like a bad dream. Nothing made sense. We just got jumbled around a lot. We fell into this giant dog monster with three heads, like us. Except it was us. Dunno. Then finally…something. Some kind of faraway place. Didn’t recognize it, but better than nothing, right? But no matter how hard we reached, we just couldn’t…couldn’t get there.”

Cerberus sighed. She fell back against the towel, her hair splaying out beneath her. “Next thing we know, we’re thrown in jail. The world was right outside, but it’s like we were trapped in this weird limbo. Sometimes ghosts would come around, but no matter what we did they ignored us. So we were alone. Stuck with this horrible feeling…like we lost out. Like the mailman gave everyone their letters, but we got left in the bag. Like he couldn’t figure out where we were supposed to go, and it was our fault!?” Her brows furrowed as her lip curled. “No way in hell! Damn mailman. Screwed up, then left us to rot! You said you’re fighting whoever it was, right? Well, lemme at ‘em! We’ll feast on his flesh, and gnaw on his bones!”

As the others echoed her conviction, Cerberus angrily bit into a smoked drumstick, ripping off its succulent, flavorful flesh as if it were the throat of the mailman she spoke of. After a few bites, however, her flared-up temper began to subside. “At least sleeping in that purple crack passed the time faster,” she said with her mouth full. “Since the jail’s for losers, we just had to wait and hope someone’d spring it eventually, so we could kick some ass and get out. And here we are! That’s all there is to it, I think.” With a bright smile the demon downed the rest of her drink.

It wasn’t too long before Cerberus took note of a gathering nearby. Karin, Geralt, and the Koopa Troop had all assembled to build sand castles, whether for the purpose of destressing or socialization, but by their collective efforts the construction of a great sand city was well underway. Its citadels, fortresses, battlements, and parapets slowly took shape, painstakingly molded together by both the builders’ hands and their tools, and seeing it all come together intrigued the Triple Demon greatly. “What’s that?” they wondered, naturally gravitating toward people and wanting to be involved. Together they got up and jogged over to join in the fun, and while terrible at first and comically oblivious to the importance of the architectural detail that Karin went to great lengths to recreate, they were eager to learn.

Once sufficiently instructed to keep their goofing off at a safe distance from the young woman’s creations, they spent a little while making lots of haphazardly-placed towers with their buckets before they decided to see who could build the biggest one. In a mad scramble to do so they ended up digging a couple bathtub-sized pits in the beach, mostly with their hands, and when the blue-eyed triplet tripped and fell in the others wasted no time burying her up to the neck. None of them paid any attention to the conversation between Geralt and Karin, although when Sakura arrived and a fight seemed to be brewing they perked up their ears and looked on with interest. It took a minute to get going, but when it did Cerberus pumped their fists in excitement and goaded the combatants on. “Fight, fight, fight!” they cheered, eager to see what the new girl and the big guy could do.

The Chalk Prince, the Fallen Child, and the Skullgirl

Location: Frozen Highlands - Snowy Forest
Linkle’s @Gentlemanvaultboy, Frisk’s @Majoras End

In just a few moments Linkle and Frisk managed to indulge their curiosity, but beyond the few nuggets of wisdom and information the clerics saw fit to dispense, Albedo saw no further reason to engage with them. His companions came to the same unspoken conclusion, and when the child ventured that the three should continue onward, Albedo nodded his assent. Before long the body of the Gammoth would be totally stripped of all its meat and useful materials, which might go on to feed and arm small communities like Snowdin across the Frozen Highlands. Even beyond that, though, these holy hunters had their own business to attend to, and Albedo’s group theirs. When Linkle bowed Tatiana curtseyed in return, her smile warm enough to blunt the bite of the woodland’s cold winds. “May grace shine upon you,” she told them. She then turned along with D, who gave only a stiff nod by way of farewell, and the both of them headed back to their fellowship.

Soon Linkle returned, coasting down the ridge on her sled. She cruised past trees and fragments of the nearby ruins in a flurry of powder kicked up by her sled’s runners, and at one point even took flight thanks to a small snow drift. It looked like such simple, childlike fun that Albedo made a mental note of it. When everything blew over and all was as it should be once more, Klee might get a real kick out of an afternoon spent sledding down Dragonspine’s tamer slopes. The tough part would be convincing Acting Grandmaster Jean, but then again, how could she object to a proposal that would keep the mischievous Spark Knight entertained without the risk of dynamite fishing or forest fires? When Linkle pulled up and sprang to her feet, that made all three members ready to go, so the next leg of their journey northwest could begin.

While the idea of scrounging the ruins for treasure did not escape Albedo’s mind, the weathered edifice didn’t seem that large or intricate to begin with, and the trio didn’t have a wealth of time to spend on a detour anyay. In this region it was harsh and cold enough in broad daylight, so he did not relish the prospect of spending any more time than he absolutely had to out in the frozen wilderness at night, when the silvery light of the moon and stars would be the only thing between hapless explorers and pitch blackness. Besides, if this forest was as well-traveled as the sizable crew of clerics made it appear, anything of value had probably been picked from those ruins long ago. Accordingly, the alchemist did not give them a second thought as he set off, leading the way for Linkle and Frisk toward the lonely mountain that towered above the northwestern coast. He suspected that for anyone else from his world, Dragonspine would be cold comfort as the sole element from Teyvat to make it here, but it suited Albedo just fine. Its beauties and its perils alike were well known to him, a welcome source of familiarity in this strange and unpredictable world. Before they reached Dragonspine, however, there would be plenty more winter wonderland to grapple with.

As the three pushed onward through the silent woods, the trees gradually began to thin, but as the foliage grew more sparse Albedo noticed a handful of unusually large specimens. They followed a frozen river as it wound through the forest, past rotund hills that sat alongside the icy water like giant layer cakes covered in frosting. Pretty soon the path narrowed into a snowy gulch between the hills, scarcely wider than the river itself and lined by trees on either side. Overhead the sky remained a moody gray, but with only moderate snowfall visibility was still pretty good, and with drifts smaller than the woodlands’ the going was easier, too.

Only one thing kept Albedo on edge: the odd snow formations that seemed to be growing more frequent as he, Linkle, and Frisk proceeded through the canyon. They took the shape of bulbous piles and small spires, making it easy to imagine something concealed behind or even within them that could jump out any second. He kicked a couple to make sure, but the splashes of ordinary snow did little to set his mind at ease. Worse still, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being watched, but no matter where he looked he saw only earth, snow, and trees. It got to the point that when one finally did move, the alchemist wasn’t even surprised. His weapon manifested in his hand in an instant as he prepared to attack, but as he stood there with his sword drawn, the snowman in front of him did nothing more than mill about aimlessly. It gave no sign at all that it noticed Albedo’s presence, let alone his implicit threat. In the area ahead he spotted a couple more, all wandering with neither rhyme nor reason. After several seconds the alchemist relaxed with a sigh, but he did not allow the Cinnabar Spindle to fade away. “Do not let down your guard. This area is ripe for an ambush,” he whispered just loud enough for the others to hear. “We may as well get it over with, don’t you think?”

He stepped forward and sliced the harmless snowman in two. Its top half fell to the snow with a plop, the pieces of its coal face arranged in a frown. There came a series of crunches as nearby snow piles began to move. “As I thought,” Albedo said, readying his blade. “Get your victims used to something odd but harmless, then after they’ve strolled into the belly of the beast, spring the trap.” He watched with narrowed eyes as Sir Slushes took form, grimacing at the trio as they packed snow together into rock-hard snowballs to hurl with pinpoint accuracy. When the first one let fly, its projectile would have struck Albedo square in the throat if he didn’t manage a deft block with the flat of his swordblade. It was an ambush, but since he triggered it early, only a handful of the total enemy force was close enough to engage his team. Of course, he suspected that if Linkle felt like it, an entire army of snowmen would be no match no matter how good their aim was. The smaller snowmen were cute, and their ice looked more dangerous, but not by much. There was one at least who looked like a nasty customer, maybe the ringleader of the whole gang, but he was a ways off and not too fast by the looks of him. “Nothing like a little exercise to get the blood flowing,” he quipped dryly. “Do take care not to go too overboard.”

The Sir Slush hurled his second snowball, but this time Albedo rose out of the way on top of a Solar Isotoma, spawned in secret beneath the snow. He kicked off, using the golden platform as a footstool to leap straight toward his frosty foe, his sword upheld for a mighty overhead chop aimed straight for the monster’s top hat.

World of Light

With your new changes, the sheet is pretty good. If there's nothing else to her backstory then she's accepted as your third character. Props to you for keeping up the interesting picks!

World of Light

It might just be me, but the image is broken on RpGuild. Rather than 'be modified to shoot elemental blasts' I would probably say 'be infused with elemental power by her allies'. For Weaknesses, you could add that she has low defense to Lightweight, and also say something like Plugged In or Tech Reliant. which describes her lack of fighting skill / ability on her own and how she basically can't fight at all if she doesn't have her equipment. I would also actually get rid of Weapons Expert since I don't know if there's any evidence that's she's able to adapt to new weapons and learn how to use them with no training; rather, I would think that she's just proficient with the Haltmann Corp weapons she's been given. Also, having a backstory like that is kind of weak. Maybe you should describe her story throughout Robobot, and then after she's taken over the company following Haltmann's defeat, she's left idle while raking in the money until Galeem attacks

World of Light

That's a good choice! Rubick would definitely make for an awesome and unique character, given both his personality and power-copying gimmick. The strengths and weaknesses are appropriate. There's no Guest List that I saw, but that section is optional anyway, so that's fine. The first two items in his inventory aren't really necessary or that important, but by the same token, they're not offensive either. I'd be fine with the sheet as-is, so you can post Rubick to the Characters tab. Once you do, I can PM you about an entry point for your character. Welcome aboard!

World of Light

I have a tentative interest in this. May or may not make a CS.

Also, I see a few familiar faces in here. You may or may not remember me.

@Scarifar

Hello and welcome! We'd be happy to have you if you decide to apply--and if there's anything I can do in the meantime to stoke your interest, please don't hesitate to ask.

World of Light

Tora, Poppi, and Big Band

Location: Sandswept Sky
Level 9 Tora (182/90) Level 9 Poppi (182/90) Level 5 Big Band (120/50)
Midna’s @DracoLunaris, Sectonia’s @Archmage MC, Primrose and Therion’s @Yankee, Jesse’s @Zoey Boey, Raz’s @TruthHurts22, Raiden’s @XoXKieroBombXoX, the Phantom Thieves, Braum, the Scout, Peacock, Mao, Robin, Tharja, Ciella
Word Count: 2724

The plan had been made, but there was a problem, one lost on those possessed of profoundly superhuman durability, like Tora, Big Band, and Ciella. Red Eye’s explosive rising headbutt had ripped the Seeker’s caboose from both train and track, throwing it and all its ammunition into the air like a child’s toy. Its nigh-cataclysmic explosion not only went off too far away from the behemoth to meaningfully damage it, but also pummeled the hapless heroes with a withering pressure wave. It slammed into them like an omnidirectional pile driver, strong enough not just to rattle their brains in their skulls, but to crush their pressure-sensitive lungs and eardrums. In the wake of the blast, the vast majority of Seekers aboard the Railway Gun wound up deafened, dazed, and breathless–in short, stunned.

For a second or two Band looked around in confusion at everyone who apparently hadn’t heard the man. Then the realization hit him like a bolt from the blue, prompting a guttural hrrk. He’d managed to bear the brunt of the debilitating shockwave thanks to his iron lung and protective headphones, but Jesse, the Phantom Thieves, Primrose, Peacock and her cohorts, Mao, the Scout, and the Shepherds were all down, in various states of pain as they struggled to draw breath. Those who did manage to pull themselves together and pick themselves up, confused and desperate to do something, went on the offensive against Red Eye for all the good it did. Midna and Braum spearheaded those desperate measures from the back of the train, joined after a moment by Ciella, but Red Eye closed the distance anyway, gaining on the train with agonizing, almost mocking slowness. Unable to help them, Sectonia offered her magic to speed up the turning process, so Tora directed her down below to the enormous turntable that the whole Railway Gun sat upon. Neither Raz nor Therion were anywhere to be found, which hopefully meant they’d taken shelter either down below or up in front with the Conductor, and not fallen from the train or anything. Meanwhile, something had broken in Raiden. After throwing all his flashbangs to no effect, he seemed to go crazy, talking to himself and shouting at the monster that even now grew steadily closer by the second.

Seeing the absolute state of his team brought a fresh wave of sweat to Big Band’s brow, and with a shaky mechanical arm he dabbed at his skin with a handkerchief, trying to get himself under control. Aside from himself, only Tora and Poppi still possessed the faculties and inclination to operate the Dragonfire cannon, owing to the duo’s shared defense and regenerative ability. “That ain’t enough,” he breathed. He or Tora would need to convince the shooters up front to come back and lend a hand, but even if they obliged, it meant the loss of precious seconds.

The Nopon, however, had other issues. He’d beelined to one of the turning stations to start the Railway Gun swiveling himself, only to be stopped in his tracks by a giant flashing error message on the console. “It JAM!?” he wailed, clutching his head in horror. His wide eyes landed on Band. “Sectonia buff no good if gun not move at all! Tora need go down below and fix!”

“No time to waste!” Poppi grabbed her Masterpon and flew down over the edge, headed for the Railway Gun’s innards so that Tora could service the turntable himself.

Band’s handkerchief flew away in the wind as he reeled, suddenly all alone atop the train hurtling toward Hollow Heights with the mother of all monsters in tow. At a loss for words, he clenched his jaw and stomped to the crane loader, the mission’s last hope clutched tight in his brass knuckles. He slammed the Wrath shell into place, then hopped down to the rear middle section by the mammoth barrel of the main gun that still pointed backward at Red Eye, a laughably empty threat. He gritted his teeth and rammed his shoulder against the steel, pushing with all his might in a desperate attempt to turn the cannon by force. He strained and strained, blasting sound behind him for extra force, but for all his effort the barrel would not budge. “C’mon!” he growled, sweat rolling down his face and stinging his bulging eyes. “C’MON!”

Suddenly, the Railway Gun obliged, but in the wrong direction. It flew sideways in a burst of speed, forcing Band to grab hold to avoid being knocked off the train. “Whoa-oa-oa!” Tora must have fixed the turning mechanism, he realized, allowing Sectonia to hasten it with her magic. But if they were down there, who was up top? Wheezing, Band looked up to see none other than Jesse at the turning station, nowhere near as hurt as he first thought. With the FBC director mashing away, and bemoaning certain allies for not lending a hand or two, the detective gave a sigh of relief. As the whole thing continued to spin he clung to the barrel for dear life, waiting until it brought him back over the train before he relinquished his grip. Disheveled and in sore need of a breather, Band tumbled down the slope and landed upside-down on the lower forward platform, where he remained.

The noise of his landing made the Conductor glance over his shoulder, though he obviously couldn’t see anything from inside the engine. “Gah! What was that!?” he exclaimed, glancing between Therion and Raz. “Go look, wouldja? We’re arrivin’ at Hollow Heights any minute!” Sure enough, a yawning pit had appeared in the desert up ahead. Across the void, a single railway bridge extended through the turbulent air, and that was where the train was headed.

Meanwhile, Poppi burst out from the Railway Gun’s undercarriage, boosting up to the crane loader to get the long-awaited Wrath shell ready to fire. Tora emerged a moment later, panting and smeared with machine grease. When he laid eyes on the team’s pursuer, his mouth hung open in terror. It was too close. The extremities of its gargantuan outer jaws were only seconds away from coming up alongside the train on either side, and in the center of its horrendous mass its inner-jaws gnashed together in anticipation, those pedipalp-like limbs eager to grab hold of the train and pull it straight down Red Eye’s nightmarish gullet. No amount of metal spears, icy blasts, water arrows, or drunken turret fire could keep that monstrosity at bay.

“Meh-eh-eh…!” Tora moaned, tears pooling in his eyes as he flapped his wings in fear. “It t-too late! Train is done for! Need abandon ship! P-Poppi-!”

A hand came down on his shoulder, steading him as he went to shout for his companion. “Meh?”

He looked up to see Robin, clearly still hurt but on his feet nonetheless. “Don’t worry, my little friend,” he said, patting Tora one last time before he stepped toward the back of the train. As he crossed the lower rear platform to where Midna and the others were shooting, the tactician raised his voice. “Hear me, Seekers of Light! I’m telling you this, not for the sake of senseless sacrifice, but so that if worst should come to worst, no-one should ever have to lay their lives down in vain!”

Robin pressed his eyes closed, then opened them with a flash. There came a sound like a thunderclap, and around him swelled a prismatic energy. “This is the power within us–a power unique to each and every one of you. Your whole being in one almighty attack, strong enough to turn even the darkest hour to brightest day. A Final Smash!”

As the aura around him continued to grow, his very body refulgent with power, Ciella seemed to understand what he meant. The Agito lowered her bow as she stared at him. “What madness is this? Do you truly intend to throw your life away for these strangers?”

Robin’s gaze seemed to pierce her mask, meeting his former enemy’s eyes. “My dear friend believed that it was our duty, Ciella. To be the heroes that people needed, to serve and fight for those who could not do so themselves. To be Shepherds for the sheep. His ideals of heroism were no delusion. My faith in them, and in the dream of these ‘strangers’, is no deception. Wallow in despair if it pleases you, Agito, but if my life can somehow be a guiding light unto others, then that is what I will do!”

He thrust his Levin Sword into the air, sparking with lightning. Red Eye roared, its maw so close that the Seekers could feel its infernal heat, but Robin’s voice cut through the chaos. “It’s time to tip the scales!” A lightning bolt shot skyward. Tora watched in astonishment as a cyclone of clouds exploded outward from the top, then opened wide. Through the tempest a colossal black dragon descended, its six great wings carving through the air. As many blazing eyes glared down at the behemoth below, and as it unleashed a tremendous roar, purple flames welled up in its throat, so vivid that it hurt even to look at them. Robin, however, didn’t bat an eye. He leveled his sword at Red Eye, and let out a roar of his own.

”Incarnate Calamity!”

The fell dragon swooped down, and from its jaws raged a torrent of purple fire. Its breath of ruin blasted Red Eye right in the mouth, then swept across its back all the way to the tip of the tail, with the giant worm screeching all the while. Red Eye slowed down, thrashing from side to side in agony, and overhead the soaring dragon dissolved into multicolored light.

Tora blinked several times, trying to process what exactly just happened, and how. In the end, though, he latched onto the most important detail: that Robin had bought enough time for the Seekers to get their final shot off. “Go, go, go!” he yelled, bouncing up and down. Red Eye was still coming, but it had a lot of ground to make up, and the others weren’t going to waste this opportunity. After getting the Wrath shell loaded Poppi moved to the turning console to take over from Jesse, who climbed back in the cannon. The whole shebang began to swivel back around again, creaking and grinding until its business end faced Red Eye once more.

Tora’s eyes landed on Robin once again, and despite the circumstances they lingered there a moment. The young man seemed oddly indistinct, as if he were caught in a desert mirage. On second glance Tora was shocked to realize that Robin seemed to be dissolving, but into light instead of ash. He’d turned around to meet the gaze of Tharja, who was staring at him with teary eyes in stunned silence. For a moment he just looked at her sadly, and when he tried to say something, no words came out. Then he disappeared, evaporated, like morning dew.

Suddenly the desert sand on either side of the Railway Gun disappeared, replaced by pitch-black nothingness. The train clattered along a double track suspended over what seemed like a bottomless pit, surrounded on all sides by an endless forest of metal girders and scaffolds that held up the Sandswept Sky. Red Eye wasn’t far behind, but something strange had happened. As the sand it burrowed through grew shallower beneath it, its whole body rose higher and higher, and its segmented legs found less and less purchase with which to pull its titanic mass along. It slowed down fast and came to a stop not far from the precipice, its limbs scrabbling uselessly at the metal floor beneath a pittance of sand. The guardian was a sitting duck, its defenses blown and burned wide open. It was quite possibly the easiest shot of Jesse’s whole career.

For the final time, the Dragonfire Cannon invited hell. Its payload ripped through the air and exploded against Red Eye with jaw-dropping power. A safe distance away and growing safer every second, the train screamed onward, but its dumbfounded passengers could still feel the blast on their faces. On the heels of the unfathomable explosion came a cacophony of metal as the floor beneath Red Eye gave way, sending both the beast itself and the desert for thousands of meters around plummeting into the abyss.

There was just one problem. That included one end of the railway bridge, and as the Seekers looked on in horror, the rest of the span quickly began to collapse behind them.

Panic erupted all along the train as the whole bridge began to wobble dangerously. With no way to reach the other side in time, there were only two choices: abandon the train, or die. Tora ran around like a chicken with his head cut off, calling for Poppi until his partner snatched him up and took to the sky. Unfortunately, the pair’s troubles didn’t end there. All the chaos had provoked a reaction from Hollow Heights itself, kicking up gale-force winds from deep inside the earth below. As metal came tumbling down, the storm surged up, yanking the heroes from the train with such outrageous force that even the likes of Tora couldn’t help but black out completely.

---

The first thing Tora felt upon awakening was the wind coursing through his hair. When his eyes blinked open his brows furrowed in surprise, for he could see nothing but blue, blue, blue, no matter where he looked. He tried to crane around for a better look, only to realize that he was being held tight in Poppi’s arms. “Poppi!” he called, straining against the wind to pat her gently on the cheek. As he wriggled he happened to look downward, at which point he very quickly realized where he was: the sky.

Below him stretched the desert in its entirety, the mountains on one side, the ocean on the other. He could see Al Mamoon from here, and Sweet Sweet Canyon, the great wall of ruins, Split Mountain, even Smash City Alcamoth way to the south. Beyond the western mountains lay plains, forests, and arid badlands, the green green grass of the Land of Adventure, and beneath storm clouds a great crater blackened by what looked like a colossal handprint, with a strange tree towering at the center. He gulped. “P-Poppi! Wakey-wakey, Poppiiii!” The artificial blade’s eyes lit up as her systems rebooted, and with a groan she brushed Tora’s hair out of her face. After some furious blinking she finished recalibration, then looked down in wonder at the landscape.

“...We very high up!”

“Tora see that!” the Nopon howled, barely able to hear her despite being inches away from his partner. Poppi just stared down at the pit far below, trying to calculate how strong that upswell must have been to carry them this high up. She and her Masterpon both spotted Ciella in her Agito form nearby, and quickly realized they weren’t alone; everybody on board the Railway Gun had been blown sky-high and scattered around, their fall slowed by a lingering updraft. Ciella pointed downward, encouraging Poppi to look again. As she searched, Poppi’s optics were drawn to a fiery glow in the pit, and when she focused she found something disconcerting.

Red Eye was still alive. It lay skewered on countless girders, its whole head in gruesome tatters, but in its middle an enormous core of thermal energy smoldered with unquenchable fury. As impossible as it sounded, this fight wasn’t over. A guttural sound drifted up from below, accompanied by a massive swarm of Trilid sent straight upward to strike the Seekers down. Ciella responded by diving like a bird of prey, zooming down past the incoming Akridd that Tora realized must be trying to protect what could only be the mother of all weak spots. He narrowed his eyes, pounded his Mech Arms together, and pointed downward. Poppi nodded her assent, a smile on her face. Around them the Phantom Thieves descended, and the dynamic duo joined them, sped on their way by Poppi’s thrusters. It was time to end this once and for all.

Ms Fortune

Location: Deep Blue Seaside - Limsa Lominscuttle Town
Level 8 Nadia (80/80)
Koopa Troop’s @DracoLunaris, Blazermate’s @Archmage MC, Hat Kid’s @Dawnrider, Geralt’s @MULTI_MEDIA_MAN, Ace Cadet’s @Yankee, Sakura's @Zoey Boey, Link’s @Gentlemanvaultboy
Word Count: 2724

For nearly ten minutes straight Blazermate took Nadia on a whirlwind tour of Limsa Lominscuttle Town by air, pulling off twists and turns, plunges and slopes, even a couple loops for good measure. It was way crazier than any roller coaster ride the feral had ever been on, and she dutifully screamed herself hoarse whenever Blazermate took a deep dive or made a daring maneuver, much to her carrier’s amusement. Their circuitous trip took them from the city’s lowest depths, where Nadia skimmed along the surface of the fishers’ oyster-encrusted canals, all the way up to the loftiest parapets of its breezy seastack towers among the terns, cormorants, and gulls.

They passed by the Bismarck restaurant, tidied up and open for business after their group’s nasty spat with Cia nearly two days ago, and soared over the harbor they’d set sail from yesterday to find it utterly devoid of shipgirls making ready for war. In the light of day the city’s immense Blitzball arena seemed even more magnificent, and with no game in progress Blazermate could fly right inside. While the two of them had visited the stadium before, an aerial view was a far cry from watching in the stands. She skirted around the great orb of water suspended in its center, allowing Nadia to reach out and drag her fingers along its incredible surface. When she pictured the players from that beautiful night inside, she remembered their movements better than their faces. To an outsider it had been a mesmerizing display, not too unlike the elegant fish she’d seen schooling throughout the reef in Heaven’s Edge, except the Blitzball players were more like sharks on the prowl, working together to hunt down the ball and hungry for victory. Their dance had been one of lightning passes, cunning interceptions, and ruthless tackles, intense as it was beautiful, and thrilling to behold. If she weren’t so caught up in the moment Nadia might have asked Blazermate to drop her into the water, curious to see if her fusion with the Oceanid made her even half as good a swimmer as those athletes on the night before the storm, but before she knew it the pair were back out in the open air once more.

The only thing that flew faster than Blazermate and Nadia as they hurtled beneath the bridges and around the vast nets of Limsa Lominscuttle Town was the time. All too soon Blazermate coasted down for a landing among the dirigibles and flying machines of the city’s bustling airship pad, bringing their wild ride to an end. “Whoo-oo!” Nadia exulted as Blazermate let her go. “That was- wagh!” When the feral hit the deck on wobbly legs she nearly fell flat on her face. She ended up in her knees, gasping for breath as she clutched at her chest in a vain attempt to grab hold of and bestill her racing heart. “Gah…hah…hah!” she coughed, her throat raw from a potent combo of hyperventilation and emphatic yowling. Her nerves were shot, she’d lost her voice, and her head still spun from the dizziness, but as Blazermate could see when Nadia lifted her head after a moment to shoot her a huge grin, she was happy as a clam. “That..” she croaked. “Was awesome.”

After a few more moments she managed to bring her breathing and heart rate under control, which also turned out to be enough time for the cityfolk going about their business in the area to stop giving the surprise newcomer weird looks. That meant that when Nadia picked herself up, she got to see the airship deck in all its glory. Perched high atop the Mizzenmast, the great tower that formed the beating heart of Limsa Lominscuttle Town, the landing stretched out in every direction like a giant umbrella. News of the city’s freedom from Abyssal siege seemed to have traveled fast, and a whole host of air vehicles now sat upon or hung about the place. Some, like lhe Junker and Squid, hovered alongside the deck like ships docked at a pier, prevented from setting down by their peculiar construction. Their immense balloons really caught the eye, but even they didn’t quite hold a candle to the actual blimp moored nearby, its fins and undercarriage a striking hot pink. Nadia spotted a sick-looking helicopter with two adjustable rotors, as well as an even more futuristic hauler. Not counting the steampunk ships’ balloons, the hauler tied for biggest alongside a green arship with a huge, sharp nose that reminded Nadia of a narwhal’s tusk. She expected to see the Seekers’ Atomos somewhere, but if unlike her Bowser spent the night in Alcamoth, it made sense that the team’s airship would’ve been left in the public park or something. Workers were loading and unloading cargo, making regular use of the Crow’s Lift in the deck’s center. It was an impressive scene, although even with all its grandeur, the airship deck couldn’t claim the honor of being Limsa’s highest point. That went to Sky’s Hatchery, accessible by the spiral staircase that began where the lift ended. When Nadia looked upward, she could see the rookery up above, traces of animal activity visible through the windows.

Nadia took a deep breath in, then let it out. Despite the fumes coming off some of the nearby vehicles, she could really savor the fresh air up here, almost as much as the wealth of opportunities that stretched out in every direction beneath her. Her flight with Blazermate, and all the sneak peeks around the city it provided, had helped her realize just how much there was to see and do around here. Her previous jaunts around the city had really just scratched the surface; exploring the upper and lower decks alone could keep her occupied for days, and after taking into account the labyrinthine wharftowns plus the shoreline districts across the great bridges, as well as the culture and citizenry that brought the whole place to life, Nadia could picture herself falling in love with Limsa in a way she never could with New Meridian. Compared to that, even the thought of facing another Dead Zone or Bottomless Sea made her want to die a little inside. She looked over at Blazermate. “Thanks again for the ride! Never have I ‘meda’ better ‘bot. I think I’m gonna wander around a while, though. Maybe meet up back at the beach ‘round dinnertime. See ya!”

With that she was off, but Nadia didn’t plan to go down before she checked out everything that was up. With bright eyes the feral skipped up the stairs two at a time until she stood at the threshold of Sky’s Hatchery. The instant she set foot inside she found herself greeted by a whole flock of birds, winged beasts of all shapes and sizes, some even big enough to ride on. A few were flapping around but overall they seemed pretty content to just lounge around their perches and cages. Some customers milled about, mulling over potential purchases, and a couple hired hands -who were themselves penguins- helped to take care of the other creatures. They were adorable in their little caps and vests, although the ‘DANGER - DO NOT THROW’ warnings on their backs threw Nadia off somewhat. In the middle of it all stood Sky herself with her trusty partner Wrench on her arm. She seemed to be talking about owls with a magical-looking girl, who had a cute little owlet of her own. Nadia waved when they glanced her way, then did a lap around the place to look at the birds. Most were a little wary of her, so she only stopped once in order to pet an industrious-looking rooster named Nugget, whose label identified him as the hatchery’s manager. Highly impressed, Nadia gave him some feed, then went on her way.

Rather than join the crowd using the Crow’s Lift, Nadia made her way to the edge of the airship deck. The wind whipped at her hair and her shirt, but she wasn’t afraid. As tall as it was, the Mizzenmast didn’t exactly compare to modern skyscrapers, and she was by no means starved for ways to get down. She turned and, like a diver from a boat, fell backward over the railing. As she did she embedded hardened claws into the rim. From there she descended using her muscle fibers as a bungee cord, stretching them out farther and farther until she could feel the pain even through her typical numbness, at which point she was left dangling in the air.

Ignoring the probability of being stared at through the windows behind her, possibly by somebody important, she scanned the nearby upper decks for any good anchor points and found a suspension bridge held up by nets between two buildings. “Okay,” she told herself, bringing her off hand up in front of her. “This should work…I think…” After taking a deep breath Nadia began to pressurize her arm, charging up power until her scar tissue couldn’t hold together any longer. In an explosive burst of vital fluid her hand launched forward, connected by strands of fiber. She aimed high, and thanks to the abundance of net, managed to snag a handhold from afar without issue. “Hah! Like shakin’ up a can of soda–a certified pawttle rocket!”

Of course, that was just stage one. Nadia started building pressure in her thigh and ankles, but kept her muscles tightly bunched, so that instead of blowing her parts off, she’d blow herself forward. When she had enough power she took a deep breath, let go, and with a hearty blast of blue blood zoomed toward her new handhold. Nadia barely kept herself under control, her teeth clenched the entire time, but after a moment she came together right where she wanted to be.

A moment of silence passed as she double-checked to make sure everything was intact. Then she breathed a sigh of relief–a sigh that turned into a cackling laugh halfway through. “Nyahahaha! Course it worked, I’m the coolest!” Still giggling, she climbed onto and flopped down on the bridge, where she lay staring at the sky. After a couple moments she lifted up her forearm again and looked it over. “Hmm,” she thought aloud. “Y’know, I bet if I sat down for a couple hours and practiced I could use that to punch dudes from a ways off. Fast, too. That’d be purr-etty cool…yeah…” As she realized she was talking to herself, she rolled her eyes, then got to her feet. So, the Upper Decks, she mused, looking around. Where to next?

She wound up in the next building over, the Marauders’ Guild, where a bunch of big, burly dudes trained with axes. While she watched for a few minutes, wondering if she could apply any of their techniques to her fish tail, she soon moved to the balcony to get a good view of her surroundings with no nets in the way. It offered a great view, not just of the Upper Decks around her, but the Lower Decks beneath. From here she could see the Mizzenmast Inn, where she and a number of the other Seekers had their rooms, and where they’d chowed down on pub food the same night she went to watch Blitzball. Just down the way stood the Aftcastle, where the Maelstrom militia was garrisoned, keeping the peace inside the city and doling out commissions to anyone who wanted some work. Farther down she could see the Aetheryte Plaza with its distinctive enormous crystal mass, full of people mingling or going in and out of Hawkers’ Alley. Lower still, the shanties extended outward. If the Mizzenmast was the hub of a wheel and the other seastacks plus their stone walkways the spokes, then those multi-tiered wooden wharves were the space between.

Naturally, everywhere she looked, Nadia saw the people of Limsa just going about their business. Funny how just watching ordinary people still didn’t tire her out; hopefully it never would. Maybe she was just imagining it, but today it seemed like everyone was walking with some pep in their step. With the Abyssal Fleet leaderless and in tatters, people were full of zest all over, even those who couldn’t afford to while away their time on beaches and in resorts. When Nadia narrowed her eyes in search of familiar faces, she spotted Shantae down in the Aetheryte plaza, cheerfully giving dance lessons to a dozen or so bright-eyed girls and a couple guys. Some of the young ladies seemed vaguely familiar, so the feral went ahead and assumed they were shipgirls she saw during the battle on Blackwater Bay. She also saw Bacchus slumped against the wall by the Mizzenmast Inn, unsurprisingly plastered. Other than that though, she didn’t really recognize anyone. Not until she happened to glance back at someone she initially passed over, a gray-haired young man on a different bridge looking out to sea.

It took a moment for the ball to drop. “Oh wait, yeah, I know him, he was the guy…” Nadia stopped dead in her tracks, a knot forming in her stomach. The guy who asked me to tea a couple days ago. Who I saw at the Blitzball game, with…her. She recalled her impression that Inigo was an incorrigible flirt who seldom saw success, and that when she saw him actually on a date with the somewhat aloof Northampton, she felt happy for him. Happy that he seemed to have found someone, and ended up happy himself. But that girl was dead now. Killed on Blackwater Bay, fused by Nadia herself, then later removed and fused with Link. It was impossible to say one way or another, but an idea haunted the cat burglar: the idea that Northampton really had been the one for this poor guy, only to be murdered the very next day, then have her remains passed around like a trading card.

“Ugh.” Nadia held a hand to her head and averted her gaze. Part of her felt like she ought to make her way over and offer her condolences, but at the same time, she didn’t really know Inigo, or even Northampton for that matter. Her eyes drifted to her old wounds, which no amount of regeneration seemed able to heal. She was no warrior, but she knew that in any war, there were always sacrifices. Better than most, she reckoned, she knew the scars that tragedy could leave in its wake. Some scars would never fade away. But by the same token, those scars made sure that she would never forget what she had lost–and why she needed to keep fighting. Today was her day to take a load off, sure, but tomorrow the sun would still rise on a world full of evil. Her fingers closed into a fist, her Oceanid eye glowing with resolute power. Tomorrow, she would rise to the occasion, too. No matter how many more Dead Zones or Bottomless Seas awaited her, she couldn’t live well while Galeem and all the evil it brought into this world still endured. As long as she had her allies, stronger and braver than she, and spirits to give her the power to make a difference, Nadia Fortune could finally be the change she wanted to see.

For Ms Fortune

New Power obtained:
Cat-aract
After building up enough pressure in her head, Nadia can use her Oceanid eye to unleash a torrential cascade of pure Hydro, a foamy spiral beam of water. The beam itself is magic rather than physical and does not rely on her reserves of vital fluid, nor does the water stick around afterward. It is two feet in diameter, has a range of 100 meters, pushes Nadia backward while using it, does not pierce opponents or objects, and deals high continuous damage to whatever it hits for the couple seconds it lasts. Like her vital fluid, however, it can proc Hydro reactions. It takes as much Dramatic Tension to use as Fifth of Dismember

She took a deep breath and straightened up. Her conviction allowed her to dull the pain of seeing Inigo alone again; hopefully, he wouldn’t give up, either. While today still lasted, she could still make the most of it, at least. Nadia turned and began to make her way to the Aetheryte Plaza, wondering if she could learn a thing or two about dancing before the next bubble pit came around.