Teyao

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

A couple hours later and he was all but thrown over a table looking listless at the ceiling.

Around him were the rest of the research team in similar positions, the feeling of defeat permeating the air. It hadn't taken long for the other members to engage him when he started sprouting ideas, desperation was wonderful for team bonding apparently, and despite some of his weirder suggestions they followed through. But even after all manner of weird experiments the cube remained as immutable as ever, floating gently and appearing dead to the world, even after singing to it, covering it in milk, insulting it, talking dirty, all equally useless.

"What if we-"

"We already did that"

Conversation started only to be shot down mercilessly. Both of the speakers looking chagrined for daring to speak.

He let out a breath and directed his gaze to the only person standing upright.

Alone Clarissa Shields remained unbowed, head raised high and eyes centered on one of the screens, perusing some of the gathered data with single-minded focus.

He couldn't see her expression but just from her posture he could imagine the intense look in her eyes, he had known her for less than a day and he could already picture it, she was scary like that. Releasing a grunt he moved from his resting position until he was sitting on the table with his knees crossed, facing her direction.

"So what is next Chief?"

He waited a couple seconds without a response, at first he thought that she hadn't heard him, he had seen the same thing happen with a couple of the other researchers, but just as he was about to speak again she turned-

Someone gasped.

He may have only known Clarissa Shields for less than a day but even he could say that the dull gaze wasn't meant to be on her face, tired eyes and a grimace completed the unnatural visage of the proud Director, beside him the other researchers were looking at her with varying degrees of dread. Dread that he shared.

"I..."

Her face cycled through a thousand emotions before settling in a disconcerting blank gaze, the next words came in a neutral tone, low and measured as if she was simply commenting on a pebble beside the road. But her eyes refused to make contact with anyone.

"...I do not know"

Despite the low volume in which those words were uttered one could be pardoned for thinking someone had been shot, silent like a grave and with as much enthusiasm, the reality of the situation was falling upon the heads of the researchers with the only sound being that of the Director turning once more to stare upon the screen.

Someone left.

Followed by someone else.

More and more people followed the example, maybe to cry or to go see loved ones, he could bet at least one was planning to go rage away from prying eyes, but even as the last one departed he couldn't spare them a look, too focused on the Director's back

Before long there were only two people left within the room.

"You should leave too"

She didn't turn around.

He let out another breath, fuck his life man, why did he keep getting into these situations? Right whole 'Hero from another world' stuff, frankly he felt as if he had been scammed. A hand messed with his locks as he mulled over his response. Words stolen from a booklet in his room.

"The strong man may attempt to divert the river, but it is the da-"

"Spare me your sermon, Priest, I can not afford distractions"

"Ha!"

An incredulous laugh left his mouth before he could help it. Here he was about to spill a bunch of religious bullshit just to be cut off before he could begin, fucking hell this bitch was awesome. She was looking at him again, an eyebrow raised and the dull look in her eyes hiding faint irritation.

"Hahahaha.., sorry Chief, just caught me by surprise" He wiped a tear from his eye, man it felt good to laugh like that, if only the situation wasn't so bleak "But for reals, I have a vested interest in Valheim not falling so forgive me if I decide to stick around for a little longer"

She looked at him with scrutiny before lightly shaking her head from side to side.

"You have already proven you do not have the solution, it would be more efficient if you directed your efforts somewhere else"

Cold and harsh. As expected of one who held the title of Director of Research and Technology at the esteemed Valhiem's Academy, why, if she was any lesser he had no doubt one of the countless bottom feeders would have tried to supplant her already. Okay fine, maybe he was being dramatic but it had been a stressing last few days and he was due some form of release, if being a dramatic bitch was what brought him comfort then so be it.

He stretched to loosen his stiff muscles, hours of barely any movement had let his muscles feel tense, Ascension brought countless benefits but it didn't correct a bad posture.

"It would"

"But you have no intention of doing so"

"I do not"

He could practically feel the frustration oozing from her, the last days of stress and sleepless nights catching up to her and churning her emotions to a more volatile state, a lesser person would have exploded days before but it was a testament that even with his goading the Director still managed to get her emotions under her control. Both had seen it countless times before, inters thrust into positions they were not prepared for and balking under the responsibilities/New soldiers losing their nerve the first time their lives were at risk. Eyes closed she seemed to be contemplating something, after a couple seconds she looked at him again having come to a verdict.

"Very well, if you are determined to remain here I will put you to work, do you have any idea?"

Ah shit, she started with the difficult one.

"Truth be told I don't" He grimaced harder "You already tested for a faith reaction with Areleth and he is more versed in the stuff than I am "

"So you are useless then"

Ufff, right where it hurt.

"I-i would't sayyy -okay yes" It racked both parts of himself more than he was willing to admit "Butttt, I have been told that I am particularly blessed by the gods, so if nothing else you can use me as a good luck charm, I am practically Jesus you know?"

Another emotion surged from the sea of frustration and worry.

She snorted, the reference flying over her head but the tone more than enough to paint a picture of her mind. Even with her admittedly lacking social skills she could see what he was trying to do, if nothing else working with higher spirits was bound to produce better results.

"I don't think you would be much help even if you were Lady Sillagy in disguise"

The response died in his lips.

It was tiny, minuscule, and he almost thought he had imagined it but his instinct was screaming at him to not dismiss it. He jumped from the table and grabbed the Director by her shoulders, their eyes met and he tried to impart all the seriousness the situation merited.

"Repeat it" He ordered.

Dark eyes widened slightly before focusing on him, looking at his reaction, analyzing it and coming to some conclusion in a fraction of a second. Then the words spilled from her mouth.

"I don't think you would be much help even if you were Lady Sillagy in disguise"

Another snort followed by the same words said in the exact same tone, with accompanying matching gestures and facial expressions, had he not been as focused he would have applauded her performance. As it was he immediately latched onto his sixth sense, the same strange feeling that had accompanied him ever since he had cast his first Blessing.

...

Maybe it had been his imagination after all, there wasn-No! There! It was at the edge of his perception but hiding from him, no, hiding was not the right word, camouflaging, blending it, dodging his attention, telling him it wasn't there.

Lying

The first real piece of the puzzle slotted in his mind, too small to show the whole picture but large enough to deduce the following shape.

He opened his eyes and found himself looking at someone reflecting his own hope back to him.

Bleach: Rise Of The New Generation

Just a little to get the ball rolling.

Bleach: Rise Of The New Generation

He peered again at the envelope, eyes squinted trying to decipher some meaning he had missed the first time, he wasn't all that good at reading but if there was one thing the old covers at the academy had managed to beat into his skull was the importance of being able to read. According to the note, the people taking part in the mission were supposed to meet here but so far he hadn't seen anyone.

Maybe he had gotten the place wrong?

...

Meh, he was sure that wasn't the case, throwing the note back into his pocket he set to wait. At least this was a good excuse to slack off, can't fault a guy for being in the correct place too early eh?

Still, he wondered who are the rest of the schmucks on the team, if he was lucky it was either Nakajima or Kobe, if he was unlucky it was the pink-haired menace. There were a few dozen members of squad ten alone, surely the chances were too small...

Lacking anything else to do he closed his eyes and let himself relax, according to the note the lead was from Squad 2 and the second in command was from Squad 5, which if he remembered what his teachers said meant that the mission was either stealth or combat focused. Finally a chance to do something, it had been years since the last time he had been in a proper scrap.

He just hoped it would begin soon.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

He looked at the device in front of him, their analog for a computer, he hadn't noticed when he came in but the thing was not made of metal or plastic like back home, instead, it looked to have been carved out of some kind of gleaming stone with the 'screen' having a cloth-like texture, It reminded him of the image that old projectors had when he was young. The keyboard was strange, divided in half by a bunch of random keys he didn't know what they did but at least he was able to use the ones with the Mytherian alphabet (Or was it the empire's?).

"Okay lets see..."

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-

Ah couple of hours later he was all but banging his head against the deck. So much data, so many random experiments... according to the terminal the first round of testing had begun after his party brought it in, at the start the methods had been light and not invasive, just brushing it with mana, studying its symbology and running different elements through it. All standard procedures for enemy technology according to some documents he had managed to flinch.

Then the siege started.

The experiments turned more complex, applying different domains to it, limited essence contact, heck! they had even tried some of the dark arts that he knew about. When there was no visible progress the scientists had gotten... creative.

Burning it, freezing it, screaming at it, not looking at it, trying to speak to it, etc. More and more bizarre tests had been conducted in the hopes of finding an angle, which notably hasn't been found yet.

So yeah, these guys were getting desperate and it was showing, if the stink eye some directed to him when they thought he wasn't looking (adventurer senses for the win!) was any indication then it was safe to say that bringing him, an outsider, as a consultant was them scrapping the bottom of the barrel on their long list of experiments.

And now that he was caught up it was his turn to give it a try.

"Let's see"

The cube was just as he remembered, each corner emboldened and each face showing a different engraving. It was as unresponsive as back then but there was something, at the edge of his memory, he was sure the cube was different now somehow, like a feature it had shown before was simply absent.

He scratched his head and sighed, he could already feel the headache coming.

Bleach: Rise Of The New Generation

This are the ones I am interested for Yuto:
1.-Snakes Without Sin
2.-Tower Of The North

Yuto really sucks at diplomacy to the oint him being on the rokungai team is more of a hidrance. And he is a meathead so straight combat calls for him. On a more serious note he is still thinking about what Kenpachi said and he believes that throught protecting human sould he might find a purpose. Maybe.

Bleach: Rise Of The New Generation

He raised his head, the hand felt heavy on his shoulder, and unfamiliar.

The words were... they were, that was the best description he could give them, he recognized them as advice, from anyone else he would have blown them off. It was the same thing he did with others back in the Rokungai. But not the Kenpachi, this was a man who could kill him without moving a muscle and that was something that had to be respected.

He gave the man a nod.

He was still shaken, more than he had ever been but he would heed the advice, his purpose would find him. He just hoped it was soon, if a purpose was what allowed the Captain to grow to his current strength then...

But first thing first, looking back at the man he spoke.

"Thank you"

Words rarely uttered left his lips, he couldn't remember the last time he said them, maybe he never did. The man had left an impression on him, few words, yes, but the familiar feeling of burning fire beneath his skin roared with newfound vigor.

Head raised high his mind went back to stalls, maybe he would find a familiar face, maybe not. But he was going to enjoy himself.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

Shortish post, got writerblock but managed to push somwehat

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

Breakfast continued uninterrupted, although there was a new mood covering their table, no surprise considering the news and the fact that they were still under siege, even if it didn't feel like it. Once everyone finished he bid goodbye to them and started his journey to where he was summoned... with a slight deviation.

The Temple was somewhat full, considering how religious people in this world were that wasn't a big surprise, what was surprising was that Areleth was the one doing the morning sermon, usually such things were delegated to lower-ranked priests unless it was a very special occasion so seeing him high in the podium wasn't nothing if not surprising. He listened to it for a couple minutes before deciding to go for another route, originally he would have made contact directly but it was obvious that this session was not going to end soon, not with the fervor in his voice.

Instead, he had to search for something to write on, eventually obtaining an empty paper from one of the altar boys.

He didn't write everything, and while he was confident it would reach Areleth human curiosity was a big concern. So he just described the situation in general terms, that one of his and Kass' party members had accidentally caught the attention of a denizen of the abyss and that he needed some help and certain resources to get prevent things from escalating. Listed were the materials he needed as well as a promise to cover the costs for them and the help.

Message delivered he tipped the altar boy some coin for his trouble and then made his way to the official that would escort him to the Academy, thankful that they had allowed the side trip in the first place.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-

The Academy was... imposing.

That was the first thought that crossed his mind the moment he came across it, he recalled the others talking about it but he had always been focused on other things. Now he regretted not having given more attention to those scraps of knowledge.

The official guided him past the big frontal doors and then through a number of hallways until he entered a room that was almost sci-fi like. People were dressed in lab coats and were buzzing from side to side, with the person he recognized as Clarissa, Shields standing in front of one of the bulkier machines monitoring something.

Introductions were quick and curt, the woman not bothering with any fancy speech.

“I’ve asked for you on the recommendation from trusted sources that you are uniquely intelligent and gifted.” She gestured to the cube that was being held in magical stasis amidst different kinds of machinery and computers. “This is technology beyond Mytheria. And you being from beyond Mytheria, puts you in a unique position to help us by providing an intellectual perspective that none of us have.”

Clarissa

...How the fuck was he supposed to respond to that?

Bleach: Rise Of The New Generation

Yuto scratched his head as he thought about the Captain's words, something to fight for? wasn't he already doing that? He wanted to not be pushed around so he fought, he wanted to not go hungry so he fought, he wanted to fight so he fought. But something inside was telling him that the Captain wasn't referring to those things. So as the smart person he was, he decided to confront the part inside himself that was saying such things.

Closing his eyes he could see a burning district. In the midst of the flames sat a tall man, horns adorning his head, a mask concealing his face from the outside world.

"Hey bastard! What did he mean by 'Something to fight for'?"

The man didn't answer like he never did, even when he first went through the trials to get his Shikai the man had never uttered a word, just tossing him his Zanpakuto and assuming a stance.

To be fair that had been enough.

He kept watching the man for a few seconds but at his silence he let out a 'tsk' before turning away, what a waste.

The sound of cloth moving brought his attention back immediately, there standing at his full height was the tall man, sword still sheathed but ready to be drawn at any point. Then the flames around them grew in intensity, hotter and brighter to the point he could feel his skin almost melting, his heart racing, and a blush rush to his face. Memories rushed back, of previous fights, of hunger, of desperate moments where his life had been on the line. Then the academy flashed through his mind.

Abruptly the flames died, and the cold seeped into him, clutching his ribcage and freezing him instantly. Unpleasant, unsettling, unnatural.

He didn't like it. Bring it back, the heat, bring it back, bring it back!

Just as he was about to... to do... to do something the flames returned, lacking the previous intensity but still there, providing lukewarm heat.

The man was seated once more but with a hand extended in his direction, it wasn't an invitation but a presentation, like saying 'There you have it'. And he did, weirdly enough.

He scowled and opened his eyes to the real world, barely a second had passed and Kenpachi still answering questions. He got it now, the difference between fighting and fighting for a reason.

He just... he just didn't know his reason. The anger that was slowly rising fled his body, damnit, this is why he disliked that thinking shit, it only helped create problems he didn't have before. He remained where he was, Nakajima was asking something but he wasn't listening, instead his gaze was focused on his own hands.

What could he fight for?

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

I will try to update today or tomorrow, I am having troubles with my net