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In World of Light: the Endless Now → 2 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay
Geralt of Rivia

Mafia Town

Lvl 14 Geralt (20/140) -> Lvl 14 (22/140) (+2 pending)

Word count: 1,168 words


As Geralt made his way downtown (literally, in Mafia Town’s case), an abundance of activity at the docks caught his eye. He’d heard somebody had caused a ruckus there the previous day, and from the descriptions he’d heard, it could be no other than the abandoned royal children, Junior and Rika. They’d attacked some of the mafia that watched over the dock and took ‘their cut’ of the incoming fish, leaving the rest to the sailors that had brought them in. Good on them.

Returning his attention to the present, Geralt’s eyes narrowed when he noticed just how…professional…the unloaders were being. That wasn’t the local Mafia’s incompetence at work, and Geralt diverted his path to get closer to the docks, watching them carefully from above. The men moved smoothly and quickly, bringing their haul of shark fins into a nearby storehouse. Why only the fins, Geralt had no idea. Perhaps they were of particular medicinal value?

Stalking closer, Geralt realized that they only had one lookout, and he was watching the sea. Idiots… he thought to himself, jumping down to land on the ground level of the dock, to the side of the storehouse. He calmly walked around the side, acting every bit as if he belonged here, and turned the corner before walking in the entrance.

Inside the storehouse was a hive of activity. The mysterious dock workers hugged the sides of the storehouse, bringing the product in as far away from the customers as they could be, keeping out of the way for whatever business was being conducted here, out of the public eye. Geralt’s eyes darted to and fro, and once he managed to catch an actual transaction taking place, he frowned. What kind of place gives you something for free, and gives you money on top of that? Gotta be something fishy going on here.

Knowing he would be caught if he didn’t play along, he joined the back of a line of people waiting to ‘purchase’ some pearls, listening carefully. “Alright, these are the pearls that you ordered, and this is your rebate.” The man running this stall said. “Count them if you like, but it’s all there. One dozen pearls, all at or above our guaranteed quality, and ninety pons back. You can’t beat our prices. One dozen pearls for 30 pons, total. You just have to pay the insurance deposit first, and when it all comes back okay, you get everything that you asked for.”

Geralt’s brow furrowed. That wasn’t an unheard of business model on the Continent, especially when it came to shipping goods to Skellige, but it was frowned upon by more honest merchants. If the ship was lost, investors would just come with bodyguards and take back their ‘deposits’ anyway. He supposed this area of the World of Light wasn’t devoid of danger, especially in the ocean, but something about this was bothering him. When the man who had just received his product passed Geralt by, something tugged at his gut. Whoever was in charge wasn’t running an honest operation, he just had to figure out what the catch was.

A few more people received their pearls and their ‘rebate’ of pons, and Geralt was near the front of the line, still thinking and trying to calmly observe his surroundings to see if he could catch anything off. The man in front of him had clearly ordered a massive haul, receiving ten dozen pearls and a bag of pons larger than he could carry. One of the workers, who had just offloaded his merchandise and was headed out to the ship to get more, was ordered to help carry the bag of pons, and when a few spilled out, Geralt was quick to act. Grabbing one of the fallen pons, he dextrously swapped it with one of his own before handing his own pon over to the worker with a nod. When the pair turned to leave, Geralt faced the man running the stall. “What’s the deposit for a dozen pearls?” The man looked at Geralt as if he were talking to an idiot.

“What, did you not hear it the half-a-dozen times I said it before you got up here? A hundred twenty pons for a dozen. Ten pons a pearl, and you get ninety pons back when the haul comes in. If the ship goes down, you’re out of luck. It hasn’t happened yet, but I have to warn you that it’s a possibility.” Geralt nodded, giving a dejected-looking shrug.

“I don’t have that kind of money on me right now, but I can try to scrounge it up, ask a friend. When will you be here next?” He asked, keeping the ruse going.

“The ship comes into port every few days. You’ll find us here, in the same spot. We can’t always be certain how the tides will go, or if the ship will fill early, so the schedule isn’t strict, but keep a careful eye out, and you’ll see us.” The man advised. “Now, if you aren’t able to make an order at this time, I do have to request that you not loiter. I have more customers to help. Good evening, sir.” He quickly transitioned to helping the next person in line, as Geralt left the storehouse, waiting until he was a good distance away before checking the pon he’d swapped.

Fake pons. Clever. Have to imagine they’re not all fake, though they’re giving far too many back for most to be real. Surprising that nobody’s caught on yet. If they have, wonder if they’re just killed or if they handle it some other way? Geralt’s musings took him to Bancho Sushi, where he had originally been heading.

Entering the restaurant, Geralt nodded when he saw that Nadia, the kids, and Juri were all there. Therion and Falcon must have been off doing their own things. He caught the tail end of Juri’s explanation of there being a giant bird nearby, and hummed. “Doubt that’s the same one we fought at Black Bay? Bird that size must move quite a bit, but ‘giant bird’ isn’t exactly descriptive or rare, I imagine.”

Shrugging, he got to his own information. “Found a counterfeiting ring. Fake pons.” To illustrate, he pulled out the fake pon he’d snatched, as well as one of his real ones. “Fake one is a little lighter, slightly different material. Smells differently, as well. They smell…wrong, somehow. Wrong the same way smoke does in fresh air. It’s not quite what we were going for, but I haven’t had quite as much time to really scope this area out. They’re at the docks right now, but aside from fraud and counterfeiting, I’m not sure if they’re up to anything truly shady. Might have to investigate further to tell, though, and they won’t be back for a few days after they go out again.”

It wasn’t a solid lead by any stretch of the imagination, but it was the only real one he’d gotten.
In World of Light: the Endless Now → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay
Geralt of Rivia, Featuring Sakura & Karin

Satisfactory -> Mafia Town

Lvl 14 Geralt (15/140) -> Lvl 14 (20/140) (+2 pending)

Word count: 4,278 words


Wednesday Morning

Having had a much happier reunion with Yen than their last (especially without the awkwardness of being female that he was half-worried he would have to deal with), Geralt was on his way to find Ciri, the Sorceress having followed him down in a Hellpod, though not without great reluctance. She still hadn’t recovered the ability to create portals, though making one to a completely unknown area would have been a difficult matter itself. Instead, the pair traveled to the outskirts of the Satisfactory, where Karin had instructed the survivors from Midgar to go.

The approach to the Satisfactory was a largely arid series of canyons and plateaus, though small rivers and oases did dot the landscape in sufficient number to make the place liveable. Small huts and stacks of logs, rudimentary clay bricks, and chunks of stone and metal surrounded the refinery, which fed ray materials not being used for construction of shelter to the main factory.

“Huh. Not even going to pretend I know what half of that’s for.” Geralt remarked, eyes wide at the massive scene before them.

“That…is…enormous!” Yennefer cried. “To think of the kind of marvels they must be able to produce with these machines! The sheer scale of output! I knew this world had some amazing things in it, Geralt, but this is…amazing.” Geralt was a little surprised by just how taken in by all this Yen was, but he took it in stride.

“It’s something, alright. Only makes sense they’d need something like this to keep a city as huge as Midgar running, I suppose. Have to make everything somewhere, and what better place than the middle of nowhere?” Geralt looked around, emphasizing the remote location of the factory, before shrugging. “Alright, nothing to it. Let’s start looking.”

It wasn’t long before they’d found somebody who had seen somebody going by Ciri’s rough description, though it had been a few hours since they had. Deciding that it might be better to just go straight to the people in charge, he described Sakura and Karin as best he could to Yen, who nodded impassively at the descriptions before raising an eyebrow. “Surrounding yourself with beautiful young women again, are we, Geralt? If I didn’t know better, I might be jealous.” She gave that sort-of laugh that she did sometimes, and Geralt smirked a little.

“Ah, but you do know better. Besides, I’m fairly certain Sakura isn’t even yet twenty. Younger still than Ciri by a few years.” He replied. “And I’m also fairly certain she could beat me in a fight if I tried anything.” Yen paused at that, thinking.

“Even Ciri would be hard-pressed to fight you without the full brunt of her power, and that would be if she could fully control it. That girl must be quite the fighter.” She remarked, humming. “I think I should like to meet her. And this Karin is her rival in their martial arts training? My, how interesting.”

“I wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of their fists or feet, that’s for sure. But let’s see if they can help finding Ciri.”



Karin Kanzuki, if she did say so herself, was doing a stupendous job. She was back in red, and back in a position of leadership. While of course figures like Susie were back in Midgar itself, the actual refugees of Midgar needed a leader, and Karin had stepped up. It had been one of the most rewarding challenges of her career so far. It had only been a short while but her message combined with her take-charge attitude were enough to make people consider her. And the amount of force she and Sakura together could output were demonstration enough. There were many scattered factions trying to take advantage of the people, and during the first few hours of the chaos Sakura and Karin had mostly gone around rounding folks up and battering criminals and corrupt cops alike, all while trying to form a ‘council’ of anyone who wasn’t evil. Fortunately they had a lot to choose from.

The beginning chaos had settled down, and the two had turned their attention to the Satisfactory. It was an obvious choice to get production going to begin the construction of a real town. Karin had discovered that building and crafting were much easier here than they were in the real world. Within a few days she predicted they could have an entire town of shelter built up.

Karin was up on the roof, peering down through the sunroof to the factory floor down below. ”A little to the left….My left!” Karin shouted down.

Sakura was carrying some ridiculous machine on her back, and she set it down with a thud in a grunt. Some nearby workers applauded. Sakura grinned and waved at them, and suppressed a wince as she held the small of her back, looking up to Karin.

”How did I let you put me up to this? You’re telling me the best way to get this factory going is for you to shout at us on high while we carry around heavy machinery?” Sakura complained.

”Oh, no. You’re the only one carrying around heavy machinery, Sakura.” Karin replied coyly. ”And I have to stand up here to see the whole picture!”

”Wow!”

”No, but honestly! You’re strong, aren’t you? Can’t you do it?” Karin asked.

”Of course I can do it.” Sakura said.

”After we’re done setting up, you and I can go for a first-to-one hundred.” Karin said. Sakura’s eyes lit up.

”You think we’ll have time for that?!” She clutched her fists and bounced on her heels.

”We’ll make time.” Karin replied. Then her tone became sly once again. ”Besides, it won’t take me long to thrash you one hundred bouts in a row.” Then she switched tones once again. ”Could you bring that craft bench from outside in here? Right up against the North wall should do.”

”Oh, you’re so on.” Sakura sprinted out of the room. Meanwhile, Karin grappled hooked down from the roof and began connecting the Refinery to the rest of the conveyor belts. Then she hooked back up onto the roof and began pacing from sunroof to sunroof. She had a table set up there with sketches and papers held down by various trinkets and gadgets salvaged from Midgar, most not useful.

She called down to the workers below. ”Remember: Coal, then metal! None of us will be cold tonight if my name isn’t Karin Kanzuki!” She said, which got a cheer from the collected work force. Ah, it was good to be the queen. Karin looked out upon her kingdom of ramshackle huts, tents, shacks, and pre-existing warehouses. Soon, it would be a walled utopia of the people. Not just the massive factory itself, but the space around it, too. A bastion of freedom, under her complete, benevolent control! And Sakura…could be the mascot. Tomorrow, Karin would turn her attention to getting that large crane operational. There were some engineers she knew that could help with that…

“Karin!” Geralt’s voice boomed, his hands cupped to better direct his call directly up to his ally. “It’s Geralt, from the Seekers!” He added, since his appearance had drastically changed since they’d last met. Karin’s head snapped in Geralt’s direction, her golden hair sparkling in the sun with the movement.

Heads turned at the Witcher’s loud call, a few astute observers having picked up the ‘Seeker’ part and connecting it to what Karin had said last night. Whispers and murmurs picked up throughout the crowds as people slowed to see what was happening.

”Ah! So he has returned.” Like before she seemed to take his new appearance in stride. ”With company, no less. I suppose now is as good a time as any: take five, men!” She called down to the workers. Then she leapt from the roof and rappelled down to the ground, approaching.

Once Karin had made her way closer, Geralt introduced Yen. “This is Yennefer, my wife, and a powerful sorceress where we come from. I received…information…that Ciri was in Night City when Midgar fell, and had come here with the other refugees. We were wondering if you, or somebody you’ve been working with, could help us track her down among all the people here.”

Yen nodded, for her part. “After being separated, and reunited, then separated again, we just…need to see for ourselves that she’s okay.” She was keeping her composure well, but Geralt’s many years of experience with the woman told him that she was both frustrated at the situation, and excited to see Ciri again.

Karin nodded. ”Indeed. I suspect that-” Almost like she saw it coming, she pointed behind her as Sakura shouted, setting down the craft bench with a thump and sprinting over.

”Mister Geralt! You’re back already!” She said. She ran up and gave him a big hug.

”Oh! Oh oh oh!” She pulled back and began tapping him on the shoulders. Then she glanced over at Yen, gasped, pointed at her with her mouth in the shape of an ‘o’, and hopped in place, taking a few steps back.

”Yes! Okay! Guess who I saw!” She held her hands towards them. There was no time to answer the rhetorical question, though. ”It was Cirilla-san!”

”I said I knew who she was and she knew that I would only know because you told me. And I said you were just here and were probably coming back Mister Geralt. But some guys told us about some giant scorpions. And I said she would wait here in case you come back and I can go fight them, but I knew that was dumb.” Sakura stood up straighter and lowered her eyelids, adopting an exaggerated posture of Ciri.

”‘If you think I’m just going to sit around and wait for him to show up while there’s monsters to hunt, you’re sorely mistaken.’” She said, in a surprisingly accurate impression.

”And I was like, yeah I’m really sorely mistaken, and then she took off that way!” She pointed over a nearby hill. ”There’s some cliffs and a ravine over there where the giant scorpions are, and also a well. That’s why those guys saw the scorpion in the first place.” Sakura said, a little breathless.

Geralt huffed a short laugh at Sakura’s exuberance, but the news that Ciri was here, right now, and safe, meant a weight off his shoulders. He gave the Street Fighters a small smile and nodded. “Then, if you’ll excuse us, I think we have some scorpions to deal with. We can talk more when we get back.”

Yen gave the pair a nod, hanging back a few moments as Geralt turned to leave. “Thank you two for helping make sure he was safe. I know Geralt is more than capable of taking care of himself, but he’s had nothing but praise for your abilities as well. In this hostile land of Galeem’s designs, we all need all the help we can get.” Her piece said, she turned to join Geralt, the pair quickly walking in the direction Sakura pointed.

”Of- of course!” Sakura bowed again. She knew they would want to speed off to see Ciri as soon as possible, which is why Sakura’s intent was to waste no time telling them where she was. Karin simply nodded, holding her elbow with one hand and keeping the other by her face.

”Come. If they’re going to be slaying beasts we should not waste time in our own contributions.” Karin said, and the pair returned to their duties. Sakura kept looking over the hill, though, between actions. She knew they’d be back shortly!

It was by no means a long walk to find Ciri, and once they caught sight of their surrogate daughter dancing around a half-dozen [url=http://]i.imgur.com/WoLwcZk.png]Giant Scorpions[/url], both moved to assist. Geralt slid down the hill they were standing on, drawing his steel sword, while Yen more carefully descended it, a ball of fire springing to life above her shoulder and hurtling towards one of the scorpions.

The creature cried out in surprise, turning towards the approaching interlopers, while Ciri let out a gasp of surprise, then was forced to blink away when another scorpion nearly caught it with her claws. The trail of blue-green energy left in her wake had been confounding the scorpions since she’d began carving away at them, but they’d begun to ignore the light show after beginning to realize it was of no harm to them, nor was it prey that they could kill.

“Geralt?! Yennefer?!” She called out, confused but delighted. “You showed up much sooner than I anticipated! It’s only been a day!” Ciri’s sword flashed out, carving through and removing half the pincers of a scorpion that closed in, and she kicked the stinger that it sent hurtling after her aside as she dodged, spinning in a flourishing blow as she severed the offending appendage. “I know you’ve been busy, I could have waited a few more days!”

“Wasn’t gonna let that happen.” Geralt replied gruffly as he landed on a stable spot and stopped. He closed his eyes, concentrated, and lifted his sword aloft. A glyph of magical energy began to form beneath him, and after a few seconds he spoke again. “Light of the heavens, pierce my foes. Holy Lance!”

As he cried the name of his spell, the glyph disappeared from beneath him and several new glyphs appeared around one of the scorpions, five lances of holy energy rising from them, while a sixth hovered ominously above. The five lances, in sequence, crashed into the scorpion, catching a second one nearby in the explosion of energy that appeared as they landed, and the sixth crashed upon its target like a meteor from above, destroying the scorpion and scattering the ash of its body in an instant.

A wave of lethargy overcame Geralt momentarily, but he shook it off and dove into the battle while Yen and Ciri’s eyes bulged out of their heads in surprise, the latter being caught off guard and grabbed in the remaining pincer of the scorpion she’d mutilated, which violently slammed its destroyed pincer into her body. She grunted from the impact, but a fireball from Yen crashed into the scorpion’s back, finally finishing it off and freeing Ciri.

“When did you learn proper magic, Geralt!?” Ciri asked, parrying another stinger sent her way while Geralt stabbed into the back of one of the remaining scorpions, dancing out of the way of its stinger and carving a bloody furrow through its body.

“Fused with a few Spirits yesterday afternoon. You should see what else I can do.” He joked, backing off from the scorpion he’d wounded and taking a deep breath. That spell took a lot out of him, but he was already nearly fully recovered. Yen, for her part, rolled her eyes as a third fireball streaked from her and immolated the stinger of the scorpion Geralt had wounded, while Ciri attacked another.

“It might behoove you to show off your newfound abilities when our lives aren’t in peril, Geralt.” Yen chided, rolling her eyes with a fond half-smile. None of the three were truly in much danger, but it was a reminder to take the battle seriously and not showboat, which Geralt acknowledged with a cocked nod of the head.

“Fair enough. Finish off the scorpions, then we can all trade stories over a few ales. Sound good?” The ‘Yes’ he got in response from the two was enough for Geralt, and they refocused on finishing their quarry.



Carrying the Spirits of the scorpions back, Yen, Ciri, and Geralt chatted and swapped stories as they returned to the factory approach where they’d last seen Karin and Sakura, depositing the Spirits in a box that had been set aside for such things. Aside from venom or chitin, they couldn’t think of anything they’d get from mere scorpions, giant or not, and the trio had decided that they could better be put to use by the magical-seeming factory, perhaps used for building armors, high-end fashion, or antivenom.

Looking around for the pair of street fighters, Geralt called out to try to get their attention once more, though this time it resulted in far fewer heads turning. Seems they were already old news.

”Yay, you’re back!” Sakura called out, carrying a big box. She kept walking to set it down. Karin waved over her shoulder but was in the middle of a discussion with a foreman.

”One big happy family.” Sakura smiled. ”Galeem better watch out, huh?”

“Actually, we were talking while we were on our way back here.” Ciri said, smiling at Sakura, and looking around as she took a step closer to Sakura. “And I think I’d like to stay here. Helping people.” Geralt nodded behind her, a faint smile on his own face. Yen stepped forward as well, an arm around Ciri’s shoulder.

“And I might not understand how these machines work, but in our world I was an advisor to an emperor.” She left out how that emperor was Ciri’s father by blood, but that detail wasn’t entirely relevant. “I understand how kingdoms are run, and while this may not be a kingdom in any way I know, Geralt did mention that your world has a concept by which all people have a say in who manages the lands? I think I might be able to lend a hand in some fashion.”

Sakura’s eyes widened. ”Of- of course! We’d be so happy to have you?!” She ask-exclaimed. She turned over her shoulder at Karin, who had been tuned into two conversations at once.

”Are they staying?”

”It seems that way!” Sakura said. ”In a very democratic fashion!” She added a hint of tease to her voice.

”...Well, perhaps.” Karin put her conversation on hold and walked over. ”We’ve got a lot of work cut out for us. But more of this world should be liberated, and we can make that happen.”

”That’s even more great because I know where my parents are now thanks to that big speech and the internet! With emails and all that? With you two here I’ll be able to go meet them even sooner.” Sakura smiled. ”Today is a good day! How long will you be staying, Mister Geralt?” She asked. ”Lunch, at least?”

“A few days.” Geralt replied, smirking. “Figure I’d help out, see these two settle in, then call Sandalphon to bring our new ship around.” Yen rolled her eyes at that, but nodded.

“It flies. It’s not a ship, Geralt.” She said in exasperation, only for Geralt’s smirk to deepen.

“That’s what the people using it call it. An airship. It’s certainly not the sleek, small flying machines most people were using in Midgar.” He retorted, shrugging. “Either way, Yennefer, as well as the two of you, should be able to call for Sandalphon if anything happens. We’ll be here as soon as we can, at least those of us on the ship around that time. If C comes back, or anything else for that matter…” Geralt’s eyes widened as he remembered something, and his posture deflated somewhat.

“I…just remembered something. Last night, Sandalphon told us something, and then Bowser…went and did something stupid. Peach…was killed during the attack on Midgar. And when Bowser went back to her castle to find what he could, he found her.” Geralt paused for a moment, closing his eyes. He was still having trouble understanding it. “Peach is a Consul now. Consul P. I don’t know what Guardian she’ll be defending, or if she even can defend a Guardian, seeing that the last P was guarding the Guardian that the other team defeated, but she is not to be trusted. Not the same way, at least. Being who she is, part of me has to hope this is a plot to defeat them from the inside, but…you need to be aware. If she comes here, just be wary. She’s not the same Peach you knew.”

Karin narrowed her eyes, rubbing her chin in thought. Sakura’s eyes widened and she covered her mouth, briefly not looking at anything. ”That’s terrible!” She wasn’t even sure what to think. Peach died? But she wasn’t dead? And she was a Consul? ”Um…w-wow. At least she isn’t trapped in a giant monster body anymore.” Sakura said.

”I appreciate the word of warning. Interesting that such a thing is even possible. This is no doubt some kind of scheme to divide the cause of the Seekers.” For a moment Karin considered rejoining the war effort. But the people of Midgar needed her. They needed a place worth staying.

”The Consuls can act all kinds of ways. Be themselves. It’s not all bad, right? ” Sakura said with a nod. ”I hope she stops by.”

Geralt gave Sakura a small smile, nodding. “I understand. Hopefully, she’s still on our side, or at least not with the Consuls like the others are. I just wanted to warn you. For now, though, let’s all get to work. I can help move things around, or just work with Ciri keeping the surroundings safe. I suppose we’ll see what we need more of.”



With a few days having passed hard at work, the time finally came for Geralt to leave. With Sakura, Karin, Ciri, and Yen all gathered to say goodbye, they said their final words for a time.

“Be careful out there, Geralt. Between the Consuls, the Guardians, and everything else out there, you must take care of yourself.” Yen cautioned, pulling Geralt into a close hug. He squeezed her gently, smiling happily.

Ciri came around and hugged the both of them, smiling as well. “And keep in touch. Visit sometime, alright? We’ll miss you.”

”Quite. Give them a show.” Karin said, looking up from a digital pad. She had collected a loyal personal entourage already. ”The Seekers will always be welcome in Midgar. Return whenever you please, should you grow tired of the confines of aircraft.”

Sakura came in for a side hug. ”It was good to see you, Mister Geralt. It’s kinda hard to believe I’ve been at Midgar just as long as I was a Seeker. Time flies when you’re not constantly fighting for your life, huh?” She said dryly.

“Oh, that it does, Sakura.” Geralt replied, entirely seriously. “And every fight feels like it stretches on for weeks.” It was funny how that happened, but they just had to make due with the time they had together. “I’ll be sure the others know that they have a place here. Whether they want to take a break, or step away from the fight entirely, they all deserve that.” Giving everybody one last squeeze, the group hug broke apart, and Geralt stepped back to activate his Fulton. “Hopefully, you all only get to see this once.” He flatly remarked as the balloon activated and knocked him unconscious as it yanked him into the air for the Avenger to pick him up.

”Goodby-” Sakura blinked and flinched back, not at all expecting the method of his exit to be so violent. ”Wh-...was that supposed to happen?” She looked around at the others.

Yen sighed. “Yes, yes it was.” She shuddered involuntarily at the memory of when she had to do that.



Monday Morning

Geralt sighed, looking out over the strange Mafia Town. Back in the Deep Blue Seaside. At least this time there wasn’t an endless war going on that they had to solve. The place was lively, seemed happy, and had a seemingly endless supply of morally bankrupt mafia members to cause conflict. “What a place.” He sighed again.

Stepping away from his space high up in the town, he stalked around, looking for another fight to get involved in. In the few days he’d been here, Geralt had taken out his frustrations on the mafia more than a few times, but left before Juri could ever show up to help out her ‘allies’. He knew what she was doing, and approved of it even, but in order to keep the charade up, he had to seem like they were enemies and that he didn’t want to deal with her.

Overhearing the sound of a shopkeeper begging for more time to pay his pons, Geralt stuck around and waited for the inevitable. The mafia member slapped the shopkeeper before grabbing him and shaking him to get whatever pons he had on him. That was when Geralt came in, using his own monstrous strength to lift the mafia member, shaking him in return. “Thought you’d have learned by now.” He snarled menacingly. “These people aren’t your playthings to shake like dogs with a bone, looking to suck whatever you can out of them.”

Dropping the mafia stooge, Geralt stepped to the side when the man swung at him, knocking him unconscious with a single punch. Rifling through his pockets to find a sum of pons, Geralt tossed a dozen or so the shopkeeper’s way. “Next time they come around, tell ‘em you had a generous customer. I’ll be keeping the rest.” The shopkeeper nodded and ran off, closing the door of his shop behind him. Counting what was left, Geralt found himself with about ten more pons to his name. “Not bad.” He muttered, following the shopkeeper’s lead and making himself scarce, but not before dragging the unconscious mafia member and stashing him somewhere nearby, but out of sight. He’d wake up later.

Making himself scarce, Geralt headed to the restaurant he knew Nadia was working at. He could chat and catch up with her later tonight.
In World of Light: the Endless Now → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay
Zenkichi Hasegawa

Lvl 7 Zenkichi - (67/70) -> Lvl 8 (2/80) (+1 Pending)

Word count: 4,022 words


Wednesday Morning

As the Hellpod hurtled towards the outskirts of Shinjuku, Zenkichi wondered how exactly he would go about finding the kids, let alone what he’d do when he did. They’d sent a calling card to a friggin’ Consul, for crying out loud! He wasn’t sure if Joker was being an idiot or if they’d figured out some way to take J down, but after fighting Y, C, and Z, Zenkichi knew one thing: he wanted to be there to help. There was too much going on to rope the rest of the Seekers into this, especially since the goal was to avoid pissing off the Consuls, but he could at least lend a hand.

Thankfully, actually getting into the city wasn’t terribly difficult, and his current get-up was looked upon as little more than a curiosity or some kind of cosplay. While little bits and pieces here and there betrayed this Shinjuku as not his own, it still felt like the Japan he knew. Walking the streets, he took in the once-familiar sights, a sad smile on his face. Midgar had tainted his feelings a bit when it came to big cities. Part of him couldn’t help but be on guard for an Other incursion, despite the fact that he was far from Midgar itself.



After a couple hours of somewhat aimless wandering, Zenkichi caught sight of a familiar blond head of hair, and rapidly turned to follow after it. He stayed at a distance for a bit, before closing the gap between the two as Ryuji turned a corner, quietly calling out. ”Been a while, hasn’t it, Skull?” Stepping closer and holding out a hand to pat Ryuji on the shoulder, Zenkichi chuckled. ”Been looking for you guys.”

Ryuji, for his part, nearly had his eyeballs pop out of his head, before he shook it and laughed. “Way to go, gramps! For a second there I didn’t even know it was you. Oh, man, the others are gonna lose their shit when we show up at the hideout!” He laughed, slapping Zenkichi on the back, and jerked his head. “C’mon, follow me, I’ll show ya where we’re holed up!”

The boy led the way out of the bustling, crowded city center, away from prying eyes into a more laid-back neighborhood. Closed to vehicular traffic, Sixth Street boasted a mix of residential buildings and cute, colorful businesses like the music shop Bardic Needle and the toy store Box Galaxy, all stylized with a deliberate old-school aesthetic that encompassed everything from CRT television sets to pay phones to records. Of course, even peaceful neighborhoods weren’t always quiet, and today a handful of rabbids seemed to feuding -or perhaps just playing- with intelligent devices called bangboo, and together the two groups of rabbit-like mascots were getting into all sorts of antics. Outgoing as ever, Ryuji waved to and greeted plenty of local denizens, shopkeepers, and even bangboo, before finally steering Zenkichi over to what seemed to be the team’s hideout. In typical Ryuji fashion he hadn’t even managed to go the whole trek without mentioning the Phantom Thieves once at full volume, but after confirming that nobody seemed to be following him, Zenkichi ducked into his old team’s new base excited to see the youngsters once more.

Inside, Zenkichi found more than he bargained for. From the outside the entrance looked like a manhole, which wasn’t an inviting prospect, but when he climbed to the bottom of the stairs he discovered not sewers, but what appeared to be an underground fallout shelter with an even more retro look, styled after 1950’s America. It opened up into a large square lounge area with red-and-white checkered tiles with a lower section in the middle that resembled an old diner, with a small adjoining segment meant to look like a lawn between two houses, separated with a white picket fence from an image of the sea. Zenkichi saw a pool table, and even a few pinball machines, though whether they worked or not was anyone’s guess. While the whole place had clearly seen better days, it was large and well-stocked–not just with supplies, but with Phantom Thieves. They were spread out around one of the booths, and at the sound of footsteps they looked up from their discussion.

“Zenkichi?!” A young, casually-dressed woman with blonde pigtails sprang to her feet, hitting her knees on the table in the process. She winced, then hobbled over as fast as she could. As usual the black-furred Morgana trailed after her, big blue eyes wide, scrambling (rather like a cat, despite his frequent claims otherwise) over the back of a chair to take a running leap into Zenkichi’s arms just before Ann embraced him, and even Ryuji threw an arm over the detective’s shoulder. “It’s you! Thank goodness, we were so worried about you!”

Zenkichi caught Morgana with ease, hauling the totally-not-a-cat up onto his shoulder and out of squishing range from the hug with Ann. ”Yeah, I was pretty worried about you kids, too. Got a tip you were here and came running.”

“I knew he could do it! You’ve been fusing too, huh?” Morgana never passed up a chance to talk himself up. “Well, I’d recognize that old-man smell anywhere! It’s good to see you again, pops!”

Two more of their friends followed suit, showing a little more restraint as they left the table and headed over to receive the new arrival: a solemn-looking young man in white with dull blue hair, and a girl whose short brown hair contrasted deep red eyes. The former bowed formally. “Mr. Hasegawa, sir,” Yusuke greeted him, using all the honorifics he could. “Glad to have you back with us.”

Makoto, meanwhile, opted for a handshake and warm smile. The Shujin Academy class president almost always kept a stiff upper lip, but today she allowed her relief to shine through. “Hello and welcome to our humble hideout,” she told him. “It’s an old Hollow shelter, built to keep citizens safe from Ethereals and supplied with sedatives until rescue arrives, should a Hollow consume this area. Sixth Street’s been stable for a long time, so it’s never been used. Technically we’ve been squatting here…”

Ryuji shot her an incredulous look, as if to say, come on, for real?

“...Buuut we needed someplace to stay ‘til we’ve finished our mission,” Makoto admitted. “It was locked up tight when we found it, but the lock was electronic, so…”

She turned toward the last two Thieves at the table, her attention on the young, bespectacled redhead in particular. Though Futaba had looked up and waved to Zenkichi when she arrived, her attention quickly shifted back to her laptop computer, which she bent over like a shrimp. Next to her, a boy with scruffy black hair and glasses rose with his hands in his pockets, a grin on his face as he regarded the new arrival. “You came at the perfect time,” Joker declared. Each and every one of these teens appeared to be free from Galeem’s influence, creating a conspiratorial atmosphere. “We’ve almost got the whole gang back together. If you’ve still got some fight in you, we could use your help.”

Morgana sighed. “Yeah, ‘cause we still haven’t found Haru yet. We need all the firepower we can get!” Joker opened his mouth as if to say something, but fell silent with a sigh.

Zenkichi nodded at the knowledge that the Thieves were still missing their explosives expert, wondering where the girl could have wound up. ”So, heard you guys were working on taking down a Consul. So how’s that going?”

“C’mon over and see!” After Morgana leaped down and retraced his steps, Ryuji and Ann basically dragged Zenkichi with them, moving the group back toward the lounge’s tables. When he arrived, he found a map spread out across the surface, with a handful of pictures, playing cards, snipped-up newspapers, and writing utensils scattered around. “We’ve got a big…hyp! Day ahead of us!” Morgana explained as he clambered up onto the seat so that he could plant his paws on the table. “We went over it once already, but let’s break it down for Zenkichi so he’s all caught up!”

Ryuji scratched his head. “Uh, could we do the TLDR version this time?”

Almost everyone looked at Makoto immediately, which seemed to exasperate her somewhat, but she relented. “Sure…but first, you should tell us how your ‘solo mission’ went. Can we count on that proxy or not?”

“Oh yeah, totally!” Ryuji nodded vigorously. “I was on the way back from Random Play when I saw Zenkichi, so I kinda forgot, but yeah. Phaethon’s on board!”

Zenkichi looked between the other Phantom Thieves, bewilderment clear on his face.

Joker gave a nod of approval. “Good. For a minute there I thought we might really be flying blind.

“Ahem, the situation is this,” Makoto began after clearing her throat. “When Joker and the others first arrived here, they began investigating the city. In the course of their investigation, they found Futaba and I, and once we were freed we could join the Phantom Thieves in undertaking a new mission: stealing the heart of the city’s true ruler: J.” She took a breath, then continued. “She calls herself the ‘Consul’. This city has a mayor, but he’s just a puppet. That said, even though she holds all the power, she doesn’t rule. Instead, she conducts Killing Games, abducting handfuls of people -usually students our age- and trapping them in various locations where they’re forced to kill one another.”

“All just to savor their despair,” Futuba concluded grimly. Zenkichi shook his head sadly, his mouth a thin line. He knew the Consuls had to keep the blood flowing, but that felt needlessly sadistic.

Narrowing his eyes, Yusuke went into more detail. “Specifically, they’re trapped and informed that if they want to leave, they must murder one of the others. When someone is murdered, a trial is convened to figure out who did it. If the group chooses correctly, the murderer is then executed, but if they’re wrong they’re all executed, and the murderer goes free.” He pursed his lips. “Quite the grisly affair. No…if anything, ‘grisly’ is underselling it. It’s an evil, barbarous practice, and it cannot be allowed to continue.”

“Hence our mission,” Joker added. “Over the past week, we’ve been working our way closer to her. Since we’ve all been trapped in the Metaverse this whole time, it’s been a lot scarier than infiltrating a palace, but the end result is the same. We find our way in, then steal her heart. And as it happens.” He nodded his head at the paper clippings on the table. “We just sent our calling card yesterday.”

Zenkichi blinked when Joker said they were in the Metaverse. ”Uh, wait, huh? Metaverse? Huh, yeah I guess I could see why it would seem that way…” He muttered, frowning. ”So, what’s J’s jail like?” He asked, steamrolling over that potential landmine of a conversation. They could hash out the details later. For now, he wanted to get this Consul dealt with and get the kids the hell out of this place.

“Jail isn’t quite the right word, but she frequents one school in particular, Hope’s Peak Academy,” Makoto told him. “It’s enormous, more like several schools mashed together into one big labyrinth, and there are plenty of monsters scattered around.”

Ann smacked her hands together. “We’re planning to ambush her there today! She just started a new Killing Game, and since the calling card said we’d stop them once and for all, she’s definitely gonna be there.”

Zenkichi nodded, hands on the table, looking down at the map. ”So, what’s the plan? And who’s that person you mentioned before, Phaethon?” Name isn’t ringing any bells from…home.” He avoided saying ‘our world’, because he had a feeling that’d fly like a lead brick, and frankly, it did sound a little insane, now that he was thinking about it. Were they really in some bizarre amalgamation of worlds created by a wannabe god, or was this the Metaverse? But if it was the Metaverse, how were they stuck, and how did that explain Gleaming? His head was swimming just trying to parse all the possibilities.

Joker decided to answer that one. “Phaethon is a proxy, someone who’s skilled at navigating Hollows. Space is warped inside them, so we can’t navigate normally.”

His comment seemed to ruffle Futaba’s feathers. “Yeah, yeah. Just you wait until I get a grip on this proxy thing. I’ll blow Phaethon out of the water.”

Chuckling, Joker patted her on the head. “Of course. For now though, we need help, and Phaethon’s our age, so they want to stop J as bad as we do.”

“They’re the only reason we have a route in a place like a Hollow at all,” Makoto admitted. “They sync up to a special bangboo to lead us through. Have…you seen one yet, Zenkichi?”

Morgana crossed his arms, turning up his pink nose. For whatever reason he didn’t seem to like bangboos.

Zenkichi blinked and shook his head. ”I have never heard of either a Bangboo or a Hollow. Well, I’ve heard of a Hollow Child from where I was before this, but that is definitely not what you’re talking about.” He was trying to keep up, but beyond Hollows being some kind of extra-dimensional space, he didn’t get it at all, and said as much.

“Well, don’t worry about it!” Ryuji told him, shrugging. “I sure don’t! Just follow along behind Joker, same as always!”

Ann winced. “Well…you could probably stand to think a little harder than Ryuji.”

“Well, there’s the pot calling the kettle black! You don’t know anything about Hollows, either!” Ryuji accused her.

Not at all subtle, Ann attempted to deflect. “Pssh, yeah right. I totally know…”

“We’re getting a little lost in the weeds,” Yusuke interrupted. “But Ryuji, while inelegant, is not wrong. We need merely follow our valiant leader into the fray.”

Joker grinned. “Then I say it’s about time we get busy. You guys ready to steal another heart?”

”Yeah, let’s do this.” Zenkichi confirmed.

The Phantom Thieves were more than ready. Once everyone gathered their supplies and equipment for the final raid, it was time to move out.



“I…I can’t believe I did all these things…all just to live forever?” Moebius J panted, her eyes wide with guilt and self-loathing, as the collected Phantom Thieves stood before her, her heart successfully stolen.

“Good work.” Joker congratulated the others, a confident smile on his face, as he turned back towards their enemy. “There’s always a future. You’ll have to face the punishment for your crimes, but your life does not have to be defined by the worst of it. There is always hope.” J’s head sprung up, her eyes blazing.

“Hope?! Hope! You…you don’t know anything if you still think there’s hope! I…no. No. I refuse. I refuse to live like this. You can’t make me.” Joker turned to the others, confusion evident even behind his mask, and reached out his hand.

“J, listen to me-”

“No!” Standing up shakily, J stepped back, producing a knife and plunging it into her chest, piercing right through her armor, and removing it before rapidly plunging it into her own chest, over and over. As the Phantom Thieves rushed forward to stop her, she threw herself backwards, trying to crawl away. “I won’t…live with…this despair…” She murmured as she tried to escape, Zenkichi flipping her over and looking at the weight of a thousand lives in the eyes of Moebius J.

”So, this is it for you, right? Once a Moebius dies, you’re out of the system?” Joker and the others looked at Zenkichi like he was talking nonsense, but J just nodded, tears building in her eyes.

“And I wasted all that time. Working for Galeem…working…for the Endless Now. I just thought…I’d get to see so much despair…” her body wracked with a cough as she spit blood up, Zenkichi’s new outfit getting stained with crimson, as he frowned sadly at the girl in his arms. She looked as young as the kids were.

”I’m sorry we couldn’t save you, J. I’m sorry for what Galeem did to you.” J’s body shook with sad laughter, and she shook her head.

“I was like this before Galeem, before Moebius…before the Endless Now. He didn’t do anything to me. It was just…so…boring. Everything. Despair was the only thing that wasn’t boring.” Zenkichi’s eyes hardened a bit at the confession, but he shook his head and hugged J, much to everybody’s surprise.

”It’s terrible. It’s a terrible way to live.” He chided, gently stroking her hair while the other Phantom Thieves backed away, looking at each other in concern. ”But I understand. When life is so monotonous, so empty, all you look for is what excites you. I used to be the same way. But you hurt so many people doing that. And when you finally face what you did, it hurts so much. You didn’t have to do this, J. I know you didn’t.” Ann and Makoto looked at each other, realizing what Zenkichi meant, before pulling on Joker and Ryuji’s arms, trying to give Zenkichi privacy to face his demons.

“I…I had to…I couldn’t…I can’t…live with all that pain in me. I…I killed so many people just…for fun.” J cried, hugging Zenkichi as she faded into light.

Zenkichi sat there, on his knees, for a minute or so, before taking a deep breath and standing up, turning to the other Thieves. ”I…think I have some things I need to explain. About what happened. About where we are. Because, Joker…this isn’t the Metaverse.”



”I’m just saying, even if this is the same Demiurge we fought before, in a new form, these are real people around us, not Shadows. I worked with Shadows in Midgar, and they did the same normal thing they did in the Metaverse. Whatever Galeem is, we can’t be playing by the same rules we used to. I watched Konoe die, Joker. Saw his Spirit, whatever that is, and transformed it into his weapon.” With that, he summoned the Hero’s Saber, and a sad look crossed his face.

”It’s hard for me to believe, too. At the very least, the people around us are real. J was a person until they became a Moebius, and I barely understand just what that means. I’m in way over my head here, but…I think I should go back to the Avengers, and the other Seekers.” A wave of shock passed over the other Phantom Thieves.

“Gramps, no way! We just got you back!” Ryuji cried.

“Mr. Hasegawa, sir, I must implore you to reconsider.” Yusuke closed his eyes and frowned as he spoke, already knowing it was fruitless.

“But, Zenkichi-san! We work best as a team, and we still haven’t found Haru, either!” Ann begged, stomping her foot.

“If you think that’s best, Mister Hasegawa. I just hope you’ll keep in touch.” Makoto did not beg, nor did she try to convince Zenkichi to stay, but she did hope he wouldn’t just vanish like dust in the wind, and the unsure look on her face made his heart ache.

“Awww, come on gramps! You that eager to get rid of us?” Futaba whined.

“You will keep in touch, I hope? If so, I understand.” Joker was the calmest of the group about this, though like always, his motivations and innermost thoughts seemed a mystery to Zenkichi. “Keep us updated on how the war against the Guardians is going, and we’ll let you know if we could use a hand. Phantom Thief style, or Seeker style.” One thing was for sure, and that was that Joker was taking what he’d said seriously. They were in uncharted territory now, with other people having been dragged into the Metaverse, not just their shadows.

”Wouldn’t dream of keeping you in the dark, guys, don’t worry. I’m glad you’re all safe, and I’ll be keeping an eye out for Haru, too. Come on, guys, don’t make an old man cry.” He joked, holding his arms out for a hug, which Ann and Makoto all too happily obliged. Ryuji slung an arm over Zenkichi’s shoulder, pulling him down a little, and thumped his back.

“You keep yourself safe out there, gramps! We’ll do the same, don’t you worry! Ol’ Ryuji’s still got his tank thing going on!” Zenkichi laughed, and pushed the thuggish Phantom Thief with a heart of gold off.

”Yeah, I will. And I’ll let Akane know you guys are all alright, too. I know she misses you, but I couldn’t get her dragged into an attack on a Consul.”

“Of course.” Joker replied simply, nodding. “Regarding the Consuls, you said there are 26 of them? And that when threatened, they take on that more powerful form, that they call Moebius?”

Zenkichi nodded. ”Yeah. And, from what I heard about Peach…they can make somebody else one too. To replace the ones we kill.” Everybody’s face fell at that, the fresh memories (and Zenkichi’s bloodstained tunic to remind them even if they tried to forget) aching. ”If anything, changing their hearts would be the better way to go about it. As long as they’re not as messed up as J was, that is…” Rubbing the back of his neck, Zenkichi shrugged.

“Then we’ll likely keep doing that.” Joker said. “Is there anything else you need?” He asked simply. Zenkichi shook his head in response, smiling.

”Nope. We’re splitting up into a few groups, one of which is gonna be nearby. Meridi-at-Han. If you need me, I’ll be there for the next few days or so. Otherwise, just send me a message.” Holding up his cell phone, Zenkichi waggled it a bit. ”The internet should be spreading out more now, especially with Bridges free to spread out a bit from Midgar. Good luck, you crazy kids.”

“Good luck, Gramps!” “You too, Zenkichi!” “Yourself as well, Mr. Hasegawa.” “Good luck, Mr. Hasegawa.” “We don’t need luck, Gramps, we got me!” “You too.”

With one last round of hugs and handshakes, Zenkichi departed the shelter, waving goodbye to the friends and allies who’d helped him remember what it meant to be a hero.



Monday Morning

Meridi-at-Han was a much livelier place than Midgar or even most of Japan was, Zenkichi had concluded after only a few days there. He’d spent a couple of days on the Avenger after having been picked up, relaying the story of J’s demise and the safety of the Phantom Thieves to everybody he could, along with hanging out with Akane, talking with Sandalphon, and testing out some moves with his new weapons. That, and getting his tunic laundered.

One day had been spent relaxing, because Zenkichi was not nearly as young as most of the other Seekers, and Geralt had a half-dozen fusions and mutant metabolism to keep him sprightly. Zenkichi had poorly-done stretches and coffee. His bones ached from the high-octane adventure he’d been dragged into.

And, of course, he’d had to climb what felt like a mile of stairs just to get into the city. No rest for the wicked, it seemed. At least that had been Friday afternoon, and he’d managed to spend Saturday relaxing. Sunday had involved hunting a massive beast to help pay for his stay here and food. And now, Monday, he was finally doing what he was supposed to be: trying to gather information on Consuls and Guardians. He had phoned it in a bit the first few days because he’d already helped take down a Consul, but a new J would be back soon enough. He couldn’t rest on his laurels.

So, he wandered the streets, picking up rumors as he went, and any mention of the leader of Shinjuku was like a knife to the heart. Still, he kept his ‘patrols’ up, and heard of something really interesting: a circus was coming to town. Strange, but the World of Light was a strange place. With nothing else to go on, he figured he’d pay it a visit.
In World of Light: the Endless Now → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay
Edelgard von Hresvelg

Level 1 Edelgard (0/10) -> (2/10)

Word count: 757


Sunday Evening

As she finally returned to her private quarters after a difficult battle on one of the islands further afield from Skyworld, Edelgard sighed. Every battle was long and hard-fought, especially those farther on the periphery from the heart of Lady Palutena’s power. It wasn’t often she sent any of her Lieutenants as far as they had gone, especially given that the Corruption seemed to be fighting them harder and harder lately. But when she did, it was for good reason. Reports of strange, new Corrupted had been cropping up, and Edelgard had volunteered her unit to investigate.

Corrupted angels. Edelgard shuddered at the implications. Worse still was that there were two kinds. If it had only been the mockery simulacra that appeared, it would have been bad enough. To have their soldiers’ likeness imitated, insulted by those monsters. But no. No, the Corruption, whatever was at its heart, if it had some intelligence, that was, had taken actual angels. Soldiers of Lady Palutena’s Skyworld, and twisted them for its own disgusting ends. A new, hot burst of fury grew inside Edelgard’s chest, but she shook her head and took a deep breath. No need to get angry now. She and her unit had cut down more than their fair share of Corrupted. They were fighting this war, and fighting it damn well.

She sat upon her bed and rested her head in her hands. This war seemed to have no end, but even still, they would fight. They were the holy host of Lady Palutena. Her resolve burned deep in her heart. Edelgard would not let the people of Skyworld down. She was a warrior, and failure was not something she would tolerate, especially not from herself.



Monday Morning

As the assault force gathered, Edelgard stood before her platoon of angelic forces. ”Black Eagle Strike Force!” She called, and her angels stood at rapt attention. ”Today, we will fight in an all-out offensive gathered by our Lady Palutena! Today, we shall beat back the Corruption, and destroy its taint on her lands once and for all! We must be at our best today, and do Lady Palutena proud!” The assorted angelic soldiers all raised their weapons in the air and cheered, garnering a nod from Edelgard.

”You may rest and congregate amongst the others until it is time for us to move. At that time, I expect you all to return to formation and join me in our assault. Dismissed!” At her command, they separated into smaller groups, talking excitedly and nervously amongst themselves about the upcoming battle. She knew that many of these angels would not see the end of the day, and though that saddened her, it was the harsh reality of war. Their efforts would see it ended on this day, or at the very least, they would push the Corruption back further than it had been before. She had no doubts of Lady Palutena’s faith in them all, or in the necessity of this attack, as bloody as it would be for their forces.

As her own people congregated, Edelgard sought to do the same, looking for the recent additions to Lady Palutena’s forces, and her favored captain, Pit. She had been rather busy since their arrival, and had not been able to make time to properly greet them. If they were going to fight together, it was high time she did so. Approaching the group, and having missed Midna’s lament, she gave the Twilight Princess and her companions a nod.

”Hello. I don’t believe we’ve met yet. I am Edelgard Von Hresvelg, one of the Lieutenant’s of Lady Palutena’s forces, and leader of the Black Eagle Strike Force. I thought it prudent to introduce myself before the coming battle, so that we might familiarize ourselves with one another’s capabilities and battle tactics. I, personally, utilize a combination of physical and magical attacks, and have composed my platoon of a well-rounded group of soldiers to compliment that versatility. Should you require it, I am capable of performing basic healing with my magic as well, though I must warn you that I am limited by both quality and the quantity when it comes to healing magic.” Looking to the others, she gave a stilted smile and a curt nod.

”And Captain Pit. I’ve heard much about you from Lady Palutena. I look forward to seeing you live up to her praise.” The compliment was direct, but pointed and conditional, with a very subtle implication that failing to live up to that praise would have dire consequences.
In World of Light: the Endless Now → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay
Hello all! My three are posted, hyped for the Sequel Thread!
In World of Light: the Endless Now → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay





In World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate VG Crossover RP, reborn!) → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Interest Checks
I believe the typos are fixed and I have added some more to her personality.
In World of Light: the Endless Now (The Ultimate VG Crossover RP, reborn!) → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Interest Checks

In World of Light → 3 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay
Geralt of Rivia & Zenkichi Hasegawa

The Avenger

Lvl 13 Geralt (129/130) +3 +3 +3 +4=13 Collab XP -> Lvl 14 (15/140) (+2 pending)

Lvl 7 Zenkichi - (54/70) +3 +3 +4=10 Collab XP -> Lvl 7 (67/70)

Word Count: 1,447

Rapport: 3


With dinner finished, both Geralt and Zenkichi found themselves heading towards the Spirit Chamber once more, determined to find those they had lost. Their paths only crossed near the Infirmary, and with a simple nod to one another, they continued to their destination, Spirits ready to trade.

Entering the Chamber, they looked to the corner that had been pointed out as Vulgrim’s domain and approached. They saw that they weren’t alone here, but instead of the old coroner Deadman, the spirit chamber was home to the very demon they sought. In the corner of the room redecorated into a makeshift fortune teller’s lair with the aid of tapestries, baubles. and cushions lounged a demon that could only be Vulgrim, a specimen of appreciable stature with huge horns, vestigial wings bound in bandages, tinkling trinkets, and a noseless, skull-like face full of enormous teeth and poison-green eyes. When he spoke, he did so in an evil-sounding drawl, chewing the scenery with every turn of phrase. “Well, hello there. I only just now got back, and I already have visitors, hm? As luck would have it, though, I’m already open for business.” He tented his claws, his fleshless face a skeletal smirk at the two men. “So, what can I do you for you gentlemen this fine evening?”

“We’re looking for someone. Or, I am. He’s looking for a few people.” Geralt responded, eyeing the demon somewhat warily. “Take it that would make you Vulgrim?” The Witcher inquired for clarification. “Geralt of Rivia. I’m looking for a woman by the name of Ciri. Ashen hair, has a scar across her eye. Her full name is Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon, if that is of any help to you.” His tone was measured but not suspicious. He figured that more detail was better.

”Zenkichi Hasegawa.” Zenkichi introduced himself as well. ”I’m looking for a group of kids, call themselves the Phantom Thieves of Heart. If that’s too vague, their leader goes by Joker. I can tell you his real name if you need it. But only you. Sorry, Geralt, but they take that stuff really seriously. Already blew the lid on my identity, but I don’t wanna betray their trust.” Geralt shrugged, entirely unbothered by the exclusion.

Vulgrim gave the two a condescending, almost admonishing look. “Well, isn’t that nice…everybody’s looking for something, as they say.” He gave a shrug and rolled his eyes. “Even me. Something small, colorful, and very, very tasty. Oh, if only there was someone out there who could trade me for something like that…”

Rolling his eyes, Geralt removed the capsule containing the last Spirit he hadn’t traded away or fused with, and opened it to reveal the Spirit within. “Hope this is enough.”

For a moment Vulgrim peered around, as if trying to find the rest of Geralt’s offerings. Then he grumbled. “Hmmm…soul for a soul, eh? I’m used to more…‘lavish’ offerings.” He glanced over at one of the Spirit Chamber’s furnishings, a conspicuously empty operating table. “Now that was a feast. Haven’t eaten like that in ages…though there’s always room for more.” The demon returned his sly gaze to Geralt. “If your daughter means anything to you, she ought to fetch a high price, mmm?”

Eyes narrowing, Geralt sighed. “Could turn a few Strikers back into Spirits, I suppose. Haven’t used a few of them much. Wonder what kind of deal I’m making here, though…” His tone turned somewhat accusatory towards the end, but he shrugged. “Fine. Give me a minute.” He stalked over to the Spirit Chamber and entered it, while Zenkichi stood there awkwardly.

”I got, like, three Spirits I can give you. So hopefully that’s enough when he’s done.” Zenkichi awkwardly added, standing there while the Spirit Chamber did its work. ”But I’ll let him go first.”

When the Spirit Chamber was finished unbinding the PT Imp pack and Panther Caruso’s Strikers, Geralt exited with them in hand, bringing his total deal up to three Spirits for Vulgrim. “Alright, Vulgrim. Three Spirits for you.” His eyes were a little harder now, though he said nothing more to the demon.

“Hmmmmm…” Vulgrim made a show of thoughtful waffling, cradling his bony chin in his claws. After a moment, though, he relented. “Oh, alright. No use fleecing a man who’s already put down his bottom dollar.” Opening his maw, the demon sucked up the spirits like a vacuum cleaner, then licked his chops with a serpent’s tongue. “Mm, not bad. There were some young ones in there, heheh. As for your dear little Ciri…” He leaned back on his cushions, a smug air about him. “She’s alive. But out of her element. Stuck in a realm of neon lights and broken dreams…Night City. Also known as…Sector 04. Until recently, of course, when the death of a certain Guardian plunged that place into permanent night.” He waved a hand dismissively. “And from there, well…nowhere to go but ‘up’. Though I can’t imagine she’s gotten far.”

Geralt closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Of course. Of course they missed her in Midgar. And Night City? From what little he remembered, it sounded like a terrible place. “Zenkichi, you lived in Midgar. What was Night City like?”

Zenkichi, for his part, kept his cringing to a minimum. ”To be honest with you, Geralt…not good. It’s a dangerous place that even Turks don’t hang around in unless they have specific business to deal with. The gangs are vicious, well-armed, and they live every day knowing it could easily be their last. A lot of them are okay with that, as long as they can leave a mark on the world. I never understood it. But I’m sure she’s alright. Never heard you say anything but praise for her.” Geralt groaned a little, but nodded.

“She can take care of herself, but…it’s still not exactly ideal to have to go right back to Midgar and look through its most dangerous sector to find her, or wherever everybody wound up.” Shaking his head, Geralt turned back to Vulgrim. “Thank you. Good luck, Zenkichi.” And with that, he left to head to the bunks and figure out a plan.

”So, that leaves us, then. Like I said, I’m looking for the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, and if they’re not together, more specifically, their leader Joker.” For the information, he offered the Spirits of Cecilia, Diana, and Yuanwu.

After devouring his offering, Vulgrim interlaced his fingers and considered Zenkichi carefully. “Your little friends have been busy. They’ve been hiding out in the Forbidden Kingdom. In Shinjuku, right under the nose of one Consul J, steadily growing their numbers…as well as J’s headache. And just today, why, I heard the strangest thing. That the lady Consul herself received a special message–a calling card, of all things. Whatever is the World of Light coming to?”

Nodding, Zenkichi breathed a little sigh of relief, before frowning. ”Going after a Consul directly. That’s about what I’d expect from those kids. Bold…alright. Thanks, then. Even if that just opens up a whole new can of worms…” Waving over his shoulder as he left, Zenkichi pondered the new information. Forbidden Kingdom. I’ll have to head to the Bridge to see exactly where that is, then figure out how to track them down. Couldn’t make this easy, huh Joker?

When he reached the Bridge, Zenkichi headed straight for the Geoscape, looking over the holographic projection of the World of Light. ”Alright, so…how the heck does this thing work?” He muttered, looking around for the Forbidden Kingdom. He found it in the northern part of the World of Light, between the Frozen Highlands and the Dystopiascape. From a high level it appeared to be a blend of temperate forest, wetlands, plains, and mountains, and it bore a handful of names of a style the man could recognize as Japanese or Chinese.

Okay, Hidden Kingdom, in Shinjuku…there. Zenkichi thought, pointing to the spot on the map and sighing. It wasn’t far from Midgar, all things considered, but it was far enough away that they’d never have run into each other without Vulgrim’s help. He was surprised to see a place from Earth on the map, somewhat, but more surprising was the giant hole that was Japan. He remembered Goldlewis seeming surprised he was from there, but…to see it here, without the distraction of a conversation about what came next?

It rattled him. Hard. What would he tell Akane? Did he tell Akane? There wasn’t really a reason to, as it wasn’t even the Japan they knew. If it came up, he’d mention it, he supposed. For now, it was time to settle down and think of his next move.
In World of Light → 4 mos ago Forum: Casual Roleplay
Training Squad

@MULTI_MEDIA_MAN’s Geralt, @Archmage MC’s Roland, Blazermate, Sectonia

Words: 3,397 (+4 EXP)

Rapport: 1


Having left the Spirit Chamber, Geralt made his way straight to the training center. He wanted to try to get an idea of what had changed before going out into battle again. While being a bit later, Roland would end up joining Geralt, as well as Blazermate although the latter came more to make sure people weren’t getting hurt with their new training.

First, Geralt transformed into his Ardor Blossom identity to see how much the dragon Spirits had affected him. The first thing he noticed was that he was quite a bit larger, probably about 7 and a half feet tall. His skin was darker, and felt rough to the touch, like scales. He was still unarmored in this form, though he wondered if his skin would mitigate damage in this form. He could feel horns growing out of his head and wings on his back, and he noticed that his hands were once again clawed, like when he had originally fused with the Harbor Water Demon.

“Not bad.” He nodded, before a ball of flame appeared in his hand and was launched at a target, scorching it. “Seems to function about the same as before. Just to see what those dragons gave me.” After throwing a few more fireballs to get a feel for his new body shape, Geralt followed a newfound instinct and lifted his leg, stomping harshly onto the ground. When his foot impacted the floor of the training center, a series of dark explosions burst forth, knocking out a wide swathe of targets. “Oh.” He simply exhaled, blinking. “That feels like the power of a dragon, alright. At least, what a human could handle of one’s power.”

A few moments after, Geralt suddenly returned to his normal form, a grunt of confusion escaping him. “Huh?” He questioned, focusing on Ishmael’s transformative ability with no result. “Oh, don’t tell me…” He sighed, looking up at the ceiling above him. Could he only handle so much power in his Identities now? Trying the LCCB Assistant Manager Identity, he was pleasantly surprised to see that that transformation still worked.

It didn’t look or feel terribly different from how it had before, though that was to be expected. He fired off a few shots of his pistol to get a feel for how to use the weapon properly, before deciding to take another minute or two to get some target practice in. He wasn’t quite as accurate as he’d have hoped, but his skill with the hand crossbow translated somewhat well to the pistol. He had to adjust his aim lower, as the bullets traveled much faster than even the quarrels of his over-tuned hand crossbow, but otherwise it wasn’t terribly dissimilar.

At around this time Roland and Blazermate came in, with Sectonia instead touring the ship to let others bask in her platinum splendor. Roland had been watching Geralt for a bit of the tail end of his little transformation and skill work, before silently deciding to join him and practice his own new tricks. Granted, unlike Geralt, he didn’t have too many new things to try with his new, blue skinned physique. Blazermate waited until the two boys were done with their fun, since she’d need them to kinda… fight each other a little bit to test out her things.
With some time having passed, Geralt transformed into Ardor Blossom again, breathing a sigh of relief when the transformation occurred without a hitch. “Didn’t take too long to come back, at least.” He muttered, before stomping once more to see if that was the trigger. This time, however, nothing happened. Taking a deep breath to exhale his building frustration, Geralt paused and thought on it. How did that ability work? Last time, he did it after feeling the instinctual desire to do so, though that hadn’t appeared until after he’d scorched a few targets with fireballs. Was that the key? Damaging something, even something as simple as a practice target?

Roland meanwhile tried his new Ink powers. Well, the first one that involved summoning a spirit. What he wasn’t expecting was the spirit to look like Angelica. He did read in that book about Grimstroke’s sorrow over losing his wife, but he wasn’t expecting it to morph to match Roland’s trauma. Although this spirit was more… corrupt wasn’t the right word. Dripping with ink was more accurate. That and just being some sort of ‘summon’. He’d have to get used to something like this, but he for sure wasn’t going to mention anything about what this spirit represented.



Now’s the time to test these things, Geralt thought, tossing out a few fireballs to scorch up a series of targets. After hitting about five, he followed through on another new feeling, and this new attack summoned a swarm of 14 shurikens, which flew threw the air and knocked over a large swathe of targets. “Huh. Not bad.” On top of that, he somehow felt invigorated, as though he’d had a good meditation session. He didn’t quite know what that was about, but he continued his testing, firing off more fireballs before he suddenly returned to normal once more. “That was about twenty-five to thirty seconds. Must be time related, then.” He surmised, though it wasn’t exactly a well-tested idea. He only had so much time before he needed to be on the Bridge, though, so it’d have to do.

Drawing his steel sword, Geralt twirled it with a flourish before slashing the blade, sparks emitting as it just barely touched the ground, and a battle cry escaped his lips. “Demon Fang!” He cried, and a burst of blue energy travelled along the ground, crashing into another target and sending it crashing back to the ground. “What.” Geralt simply uttered, before scrunching up his face. “Did I just call out an attack? What kind of weirdo did I fuse with?!” He complained.

Still, it didn’t seem to be a bad attack. He attempted to do it again, though this time the irrepressible urge to shout the name of the attack did not come, and he hummed. That could be worse, he supposed.



Lifting his sword, Geralt began to channel energy, a circle of light emanating from his feet, and he uttered a chant. “Come forth, sacred spirits! Luminant Scythe!” As he finished the name of the spell, he swung his sword until it was parallel to the ground, and a veritable light show appeared around the target he pointed his sword at, battering it with energy until it was violently blasted back to the ground, clattering loudly against the floor. “Oh. Oh, that was…actually powerful magic.” He wondered what Yen would say to that. At least he didn’t have to face her as a woman.

Roland meanwhile was trying his other inky attack, a swelling of ink around him that… didn’t seem to do much of anything. He’d have to wait for Geralt to back off the training dummy before he went to see what this move did with some ‘targets’ around. It was pretty clear at that point though what this move did, it sucked the life out of whatever enemy was near the ink, causing it to grow and eventually explode in a shower of ink.

Geralt stepped back, giving Roland a nod and a gesture to let him know that he had the floor. “Looks like ink off a quill.” He commented about Roland’s new abilities. “Blazermate. Came here to test your fusions as well?” The Witcher inquired, giving the Medabot a glance up and down.

”Uh huh! Well, that and also making sure people don’t get hurt in here. You never know with these powers and all that.” Blazermate said ”So it seems yours went well. I wanna try mine, but I think mine are more support based so uh… Might need you two to hit each other a little bit.” She continued, looking at the gemstone emitting a warming light from her right hand.

Geralt hummed, nodding in reply. “Makes sense enough, I suppose. With how much I’ve been fighting lately, it’s almost like I’m on the Path again. Or a Skelliger, given how many friendly spars we’ve had so far.” And some of those spars were just as bloody as they were for Skelligers. The only thing he hadn’t done yet was go fisticuffs with somebody, though given how tough the Seekers were, he wouldn’t be an easy champion like he was on the continents. “Roland, when you get a minute, Blazermate wants us to fight so she can try out what she has.” He announced, solidly throwing Blazermate under the proverbial bus, with a ”Hey!...” from the bot.

Roland pulled back from trying out his new ink powers, something that reminded him a bit of what some gangs used for enhancements back in the City, and said simply. ”Well, if the little schoolgirl wants to see two men fight for her amusement…” Roland said, giving Blazermate all sorts of sass due to her request, seeing if that’d make the bot a bit embarrassed. It did a bit, but seeing blush on a bot was basically impossible so he let that sit a bit before saying ”Yeah. I guess we can do something light. Although we shouldn’t go too hard. Who knows then that Consul Z will jump us again.”

”Hey, you know it's kinda hard to test what healing abilities do if people don’t get hurt you know!” Blazermate said, retorting at last. Roland waved her with a “yes yes” sorta gesture before agreeing to do a little bit with Geralt.

“Alright, then. Just something simple, rough each other up a bit, then let her do her thing.” Geralt said, rolling his arms. “I’ve got a few things I could try out, but it seems like some of them take a few seconds to do. I’ll stick to the quicker stuff right now.” Once they were both in position, rapidly crossed his arms in front of his chest and swung them apart, a blade of Hydro energy appearing in each hand as he launched forward into a flurry of rapid blows, fusing them into a large twinblade mid-flurry.

Roland followed in kind, conjuring his twin swords to meet Geralt’s hydro blades. It was clear right away Roland’s new physique made him a bit slower, with him losing a few of his clashes with Geralt. The rapid slashes he could match with, but once the blade was fused that caused him to get hit. He felt like he got hurt more on top of that, but without having fought Geralt before, he wasn’t sure of that. He followed up though by pulling out his hammer and giving Geralt a few defensive swipes with it. It was around this time he noticed himself getting a bit faster, as if his new body just needed to warm up when entering a battle. A bit annoying, but it couldn’t be helped. On his last defensive smash, Roland decided to use another of his new abilities, empowering the attack and bashing through Geralt’s guard to deal some damage. Only Geralt and Blazermate could see the attack was infused with magic, with Roland unaware of that fact.

Well, with the two guys hurt, Blazermate tried her first new move, Divine Star. She shot a holy bolt out at the two which didn’t seem to do anything. However once it reached down the shooting range and came back, it had grown into a giant light wave that washed over the two boys and herself. The healing was stronger than her medigun, but it was more in a burst instead. Seeing that Roland was on the losing end of the exchange, since he tended to take some time to wind up, Blazermate tried another trick of hers and as Geralt went for another blow, she used Disruption on him. Roland now being suspended in a weird black bubble and Geralt’s attack completely missing him. This bubble lasted for 3 seconds before Roland came back, but instead of 1, there were 3 Rolands all going after Geralt now. Two of them were illusions, but they did do real damage. Roland was as surprised as the other two about the illusions, but shrugged.

The Hydro blades were rather quick, but once Roland got back up to speed and pulled out his hammer, Geralt was put on the back foot instead, taking a powerful, magically-enhanced blow to end the exchange before Blazermate intervened with a heal. Once Geralt saw the bubble of energy protecting Roland, he backed off a little, shocked to see three come out, and he dismissed the Hydro blades in favor of his lightning-infused katana. Skirting the blade along the ground, he shot out a pair of Demon Fangs before rushing in, hefting the sword and plunging it into the ground just before the three Rolands were on him, crying out “Guardian Field!” as a field of blue energy appeared to give Geralt some extra healing while keeping the Rolands back with the threat of punishment.



Roland himself hopped out of the way, making it clear to Geralt who was the real one while the Roland illusions, under the command of Blazermate, dove into Geralt’s attack and took the attack.The illusions had no fear of death, although that was more because Blazermate was testing them out to see what they did, and as such they took the whole holy field. They also didn’t swap weapons or do anything advanced, they just hit Geralt with their hammers until they finally poofed.



Before the two could get ready for another go, Sectonia entered the room in a gesture that yelled “Gaze upon my brilliance!”. She was still in quite the good mood and from the looks of things, she had been touring the ship a bit on her way there, making it clear to everyone she was beautiful and wanting their adoration. Blazermate gave her a clap, with Roland being half and half on her posturing. He didn’t know this bee queen much besides the minigames, so he wasn’t sure how he should react to her but gave a polite clap just in case. Blazermate made sure to give the two guys a top off as Sectonia showed off, but once she was done, she said. ”I’m here to test these new powers now that we don’t have to test them in the field. I assume the three of you are the same?”

Geralt nodded, though he was breathing a bit heavily thanks to the beating he took from Roland and the taxing use of Guardian Field. Putting his hand up, he stood to his full height, took a deep breath, and released it, immediately looking much heartier as he regained control of his breathing. “Yes. Roland and I were sparring so that we and Blazermate could test some of her new abilities, and since so many of them revolve around healing magic, it made sense to do it all together.”

As he started to regain some of his stamina, Geralt hummed, another instinct tugging at him. He held his sword aloft, and chanted a new spell. “Divine energy, fill me. First Aid!” As he cast the spell, restorative energy suffused him, restoring a good chunk of the damage he’d taken immediately. “And it would seem one of the people I fused with had something along those lines, as well.”

”Hey, I had you!... but good to know you can do that. If only Big daddy B could do that.” Roland looked at Blazermate and said, a bit worried. ”Who?” with Blazermate giving a bit of a giggle saying ”Bowser. Wait til you see more of him. He likes adopting kids left and right. He even tried adopting a sea monster! It didn’t work out, but boy did he try!”

Sectonia let out a single cough to get attention back onto her. ”Now then, I will give it a go if you could stand aside.” Sectonia said, fiddling with her new abilities. At first she tried her new Reaper’s Scythe ability, but noticed upon the dummy it did barely any damage. She let out a little ”Huh…” when this happened, a bit unsure of what happened. She did note that, as she used the ability, the surrounding death in the area seemed to focus on the dummy so… perhaps it would be something that she couldn’t use in good conscience in a training session. She did note that the dummy was completely locked down before the scythe hit though. Her second ability she decided to try the Death Pulse, which unleashed green skulls that radiate out from her in a limited area, the skulls homing in on Roland, Geralt, and Blazermate, Sectonia just being outside the range of the attack for the dummy.



Instead of causing damage though, these skulls healed the three as well as the pulse healing Sectonia herself. She’d have to wait a little bit before getting closer to the dummy, getting an idea of its limited range but finding that it did damage to her enemies, and healed herself and her allies if they were nearby. One very notable thing about these skulls was that they moved kind of slow. Still fast as a projectile, but weirdly slow at the same time as if someone who was fast enough could outrun them.

“Huh, I wouldn’t have expected that to help…” Geralt muttered when the healing skull hit him. A skull felt sinister, though it might have simply been a thematic thing with whoever that ability came from. “I think I’ve gone through everything I’ve gotten.” Geralt mentioned to the others, but he looked at Blazermate. “We didn’t get much done for you, however. What else do you need?” He asked outright. Instead of having her on the sidelines for a spar to clean up the aftermath, they could just whack each other a bit and have her heal them between, perhaps.

While Geralt was asking that, Sectonia was busy trying to figure out how her power from her dragon fusion worked. She’d try a few various poses with no success other than a faint ‘poof’ of glitter which really wasn’t something she was hoping for in an attack. She even took this opportunity to hit the dummy with this short ranged ‘glitter’, but nothing came of it. A bit annoyed, she decided to use a bit of her Radiance powers for once and blasted the dummy with rays of light and skewered it with swords of light.

Blazermate shrugged, saying. ”I’ve got one more I wanna try, but it's a bit weird. I kinda don’t get it, but something tells me it's good.” Blazermate decided that, since she was going to try another support power, moved in between the two boys and behind Sectonia, who was still blowing off a bit of steam on the dummy. She channeled some of the light in her hand, then raised her hand in the air and nothing happened. She did this a couple times until she started to say ”We stand together as one!”. Once she started to say this phrase a giant holy dome encased everyone and healed them for a significant amount and would make them immune to damage, although only Blazermate could notice that last part. It didn’t last long, only 3 seconds, but it looked really cool.



Sectonia meanwhile, after relieving herself of her frustration, decided to focus and try her attack one last time. This time however, as she had charged it up by using light attacks, instead of glitter, a large, very powerful beam of light came from her hand, dealing some heavy damage to the dummy and impacted the back wall, scorching it as the beam collided and eventually fizzled out.

”Huh… why did it only work when I said something?” Blazermate said, scratching her head. When everyone was quiet about it, Sectonia piped up. ”It was probably some verbal spell component. If what you did was magic.” Sectonia said, nonchalantly answering Blazermate.

“Looked pretty magical to me.” Geralt replied, somewhat sarcastically. “Though with some of you, it’s hard to tell machines from magic.” He added in admission. “Still, good progress overall, I suppose. Thank you all.” Nodding at Roland, Blazermate, and Sectonia, he gestured at the exit to the training center. “We should probably get going to that meeting, though.”
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