A Game of Gods Season 4: Frontiers

Isamu - A Bit Early To Be A Dad, He Was Only 29!

"I don't think-" He replies, only to be interrupted by Maki's outburst. "...we have any dietary needs, no. I'M not picky, at least."

It was then Isamu realized May had called Maki his 'son.'

"Oh! Oh no! H-He's not my kid..." Isamu says. Not that the kid wasn't acting like one. "We all just got here. It's a bit of a story."

At that point, another man came up to him with a greeting. Still, he seemed nice enough. So, he accepted the man's handshake readily.

"Fuwa Isamu." He says, introducing himself. In Japanese, surname came first. He corrected himself. "Isamu...Fuwa. Sorry."

Then there was the other newcomer. He reeked of smarm, like an online scammer. (He also reeked of sweat too, but as a soldier that frequented locker rooms you get used to that...Speaking of which, he might need a shower) That was until he mentioned Spider-Man.

"You got sent here too, then? Hell of a sponsor."

Isamu watches the newcomer carefully as he approaches Maki, who gently ruffles his hair. The guy seemed nice enough, though you never could tell right away.

Enter - Continuing The Story

Enter internally scoffs. He literally just said he escaped from The Ark.

"Yes." Enter replies. "The Ark massacred our latest hideout with its Magia Units. We tried to defend ourselves, but it was fruitless. I barely managed to make it here. Not sure if I'm lucky to have survived my friends or worse off."

KH Trio - Little Guy Bein' A Little Dude

When Sora and company reached the source of the noise, it wasn't what he was expecting. A mermaid-woman and a...weird little guy. Something about the guy had Sora's gut on-alert, but he wasn't a Heartless or anything like that. If anything, he just seemed annoying.

Maria suggested they all let the misunderstanding play itself off and he was'nt inclined to disagree; it seemed like it was dying down, even with the loud, booming voice of the other guy talking him down.

Manhattan, Chasing Down the Devil

"Just one, thank you."

It dawns on Lola, all too late, that she has no way of communicating with Seven or Hewkii while she's doing this. If she was a psychic type, this would be an exceptionally trivial concern, but alas. Well, this is a bit of a problem...

Not much that can be done about it now, though. She'll just have to improvise.

Castelia

Charlie chuckles.

"It's no problem at all. Honestly, it's cool to have people who have any sense of wonder over dragons existing - especially for the sake of my own ego, haha. Cause here it's just a normal part of life, y'know? When you have psychics and dragons and dudes made out of rock walking around the place like it's no big deal, what's left that can surprise you?"

He pauses, realizing there's a very obvious answer to his question. Multiple of them, actually.

"Well, aside from ending up here, learning that there's multiple species and worlds I've never heard of that Arceus had no part in creating, and I guess literally everything right now?"

Shemaal got a curious glance from Lucia.

"Something on your mind?"

Edited by HilarityEnsues on Apr 7th 2024 at 1:03:41 PM

"I never heard of a porcelain god...but I am willing to pray to anyone who can get the world to stop spinning..."

Reisen was starting to regret downing the last of the bottle. Not because she was entering the not fun part of a night of heavy drinking, but because she could really use something to wash this taste out of her mouth. Eww, she could retaste some of that rice ball...

As Mai slid off her back and onto her butt, Reisen rotated her shoulders as if a great weight had been lifted. Though the bunny realized something. That was what was pressing against her back. Reisen would give Mai familiar look. A look of disgust mixed with envy. Though it would be short lived as Reisen would slump and sigh, as if admitting defeat. I mean, how should could not? The two of them weren't even in the same weight category.

"You ever consider renting those out as pillows? I bet one would sleep like a baby on those..."

She trailed off and would make a waving motion as if saying to pay her no mind. Even drunk, she could tell this was just drunk talk.

It was perhaps best for public relations between Castelia and Sky Palace that the drunks went largely ignored. Unfortunately drunks, like children, have a hard time being ignored. Reisen would yell out toward Charlie, and distinct slur in her words.

"Oh~! Too good for your old friends, huh!?"

Like, they go back a whole couple hours now! He is totally ditching them for these new girls (and guy)! The bunny would set her eyes on Charlie talking with blue elf girl and begin wondering. What was he even doing here? It wasn't like he was an official or anything. And not just here, but also getting in with the Super Heroines and other strangers from another world. Then something clicked in the drunk's brain.

"I see! Your trying to pick up chicks from other worlds! You! La blue girl! I'd watch out! He is a heart breaker!"

The problem with being a nice guy is the world is filled with jerks.

Athena, Mai & Yuri, Castelia Town Square

"The one who isn't drunk is Yuri Sakazaki," Athena introduced each of her friends in turn, still facepalming and still with a headache. "The one drunk on her butt is Mai Shiranui."

"HI!!!"

"And the one who thr— the one with the bunny ears is Reisen."

"Andy enjoys them," Mai mumbled in response to Reisen's comment. She was blushing, but it wasn't clear if it was from the comment or from being drunk.

"Pick up chicks?" Mai asked Reisen when she started calling him a heart breaker. "I'm sorry Charlie but I'm taken!"

"Reisen, Mai... It was Matt who found us and brought us here, and Hewkii and Seven were with us as well," Yuri tried to be the voice of reason here. "No offense to him, but I don't think anyone here would find Hewkii attractive enough to date."

Athena joined Lucia in glancing curiously at Shemaal, "You got an idea?"

Alucard, Chinatown F.E.A.S.T., Manhattan

Adrian narrowed his eyes and frowned, "Yeah, that Jameson person was going on about Dracula and vampires."

"I would have thought Dracula was simply a fictional character," Adrian shook his head, and chuckled, amused at the irony of calling his own father fictional. "I do hope there are no actual vampires in this city though."

"Unfortunately, I've not met Spider-Man yet," Adrian shrugged his shoulders at Isamu's comment.

Carmilla, Ozpin's Office, Vale

Carmilla looked over at Arcueid as she put her on the spot about who exactly owns the castle next to this city. She needed to give an answer, so she felt she should be honest about it.

"Well, I'll ask you two a question myself... What do you two know of Count Dracula?" Carmilla asked the two. "That is Dracula's Castle."

After all, 'Dracula' tended to be more famous than she had expected among the various worlds, so she wanted to understand what these people knew of Dracula first before clarifying points about the Dracula she herself knew.

Alexia Basques, Beacon Courtyard, Vale

Alexia chose to pick up the kitten to pet her a bit more comfortably and would let her jump onto her shoulder if the kitten still wanted to. After this, Alexia followed Irene as she looked for someone to interview.

"You think so?" Alexia questioned this idea. "I don't usually spend time with the student wi—"

Oh, someone walked up to them... and she was a teacher? It seems like Irene was already trying to interview the woman. Alexia nervously smiled at the woman.

Brutaka, Castlevania, Clock Tower

Brutaka was able to stay balanced as he climbed the Clock Tower to its top. There was only one place higher than the Clock Tower and it was the Castle Keep... Dracula's Throne Room.

Of course, the problem was that the staircase that would lead from the Clock Tower to the Castle Keep was missing. There did seem to be enough of a staircase on both sides for a being like him to stand upon. Brutaka would get the feeling that if he tried to simply jump the distance, he would just fall down to the bottom. Though... perhaps there was another way for him to reach the Castle Keep.

Edited by GameGuruGG on Apr 8th 2024 at 3:47:32 AM

Zyglak tribe, Voya Nui, Eastern Caves

"You... are not creator. Not Toa. Not Matoran above." their apparent leader snarled, not altogether appreciating that muttered remark, nor the question, clearly regarding it as self-evident—who else could have carved them? "We sense it. A sleep... and then, you."

Stepping closer and beginning to circle Judas as the others watched from a safer distance, the leader studied him critically. He might also begin to notice that these beings stunk strongly, with an odor somewhere between sulfur and rot and seawater, stronger still on their breath as they sniffed him. "Where... do you come from? Why... come here?"

Another spoke up. "He comes for the mask. Looter. Not first."

The leader's gaze snapped toward that one momentarily. "Not of Mata Nui." they replied dismissively. "From... other place. Far, far from here. Yes?"

Piruk, Voya Nui, travelling up the Ring of Ice >>> Inlet Fortress

"We d-don't really get visitors." Piruk replied simply. "Ever."

As the group approached the fortress, they would hear a shout, indeterminate at first and with its source hidden from immediate view, but it was something the green-clad Matoran evidently understood, a voice he knew. "It's me! Don't shoot us." he replied hurriedly. "I... these two, Buffy and Penny, I found 'em on the coast, they'd been exploring for a bit already. T-they're friendly, came from the new land."

Out from between the crumbling battlements atop the fort, a white-armored◊ being peered out at the approaching group, examining them with what appeared to be a scope built into the mask they wore. A Matoran like Piruk, and not unlike him, they too appeared ramshackle and haphazardly-constructed.

Joining this one up top was another, clad in blue◊. The two spoke between themselves for a moment, still illegible from that distance. Then, the blue one ducked back inside and after a brief while, they emerged from an unseen entrance near the foot of the structure and began to make their way over to the group. Moreover, they held two formidable-looking bladed weapons—not in a defensive or offensive posture, but held ready all the same.

"T-that's Dalu," Piruk commented quietly to the two visitors, signaling for them to stop. "Careful what you say around her, 'cuz she's a little... inttt-intense, sometimes. Broke a rock with her head once."

"P-probably don't mention that..."

Brutaka, Castlevania, Clock Tower >>> Keep

Standing at the foot of a broken staircase after surmounting whatever the Clock Tower could throw at him, Brutaka was, in a word, unimpressed. Had this 'Dracula' really not accounted for invaders who could teleport? Manipulate the stone of the castle? Or even just fly? Up to this point, he'd been abstaining from simply using his mask's power to bypass whatever hazard he came across. Challenging himself, really, meeting the place on its terms, gauging its owner's efficacy in repelling attack, and by extension, value as an asset.

Now, he was tempted to forego that, and simply cut the knot. He got as far as activating his mask's power, conjuring a hole in space straight to the other side, and moving to step through before...

No.

He was letting his ego get ahead of him—what if there were countermeasures? It wouldn't do to lose that wager and walk straight into a trap. The Order of Mata Nui instilled in its members a degree of cunning well above that.

Dismissing the portal, he opted instead to look around for other points of entry. Ledges, windows, gaps in the walls of the keep... or, failing that, signs that anything was off about the upper portion of steps or what lay beyond. Would it give way beneath him? Were there hidden mechanisms? For whatever it was worth, that entire portion of the castle, what he surmised to be a throne room, appeared to be floating in the air.

This too, Brutaka felt, was ostentatious.

Edited by Chortleous on Apr 9th 2024 at 10:16:43 AM

Scarlet Devil Mansion, Main Hall

As though Remilia's low-key announcement had taken place in some variety of mid-nineties sitcom, every pair of eyes in the room suddenly turned to her. Edward's head snapped up, Ein's snout whipped over, and even the drone's cyclopic eye drifted in her direction—though who could say if that one was intentional or not. If one were to take dramatic license, they could even imagine the paintings in the room swiveling their eyes to look right at her, aghast. That kind of thing. You know the deal.

So distracted was Ein, in fact, that he totally missed the build-up to Patchouli's next volley, and took the kicked ball straight to the face. Though it didn't really hurt that much, Ein made sure to play it up, with faux-injured hollering and whimpering as he bounded away, attempting to take shelter behind Remilia's chair. Ein would then poke his snout out from behind the edge of the makeshift throne, making sure to look sufficiently forlorn in Patchouli's direction. However, his beady dog eyes were in fact focused on a different target, prepared to take a nip out of Remilia's ankles if the vampire made any moves toward Edward that he didn't like.

But Edward herself wasn't scared; she was merely staring blankly ahead, her mind going over this exotic, unexpected new puzzle. She briefly considered the matter of why blood, before deciding that it didn't really have any relevance. Who was she, after all, to judge the inhabitants of this strange new world?

After about fifteen more seconds of earnest contemplation, Edward's expression broke out into a wide grin. She then flexed her fingers out in front of her, and began to get to work.

A few minutes later, Edward was drifting on the waves of the public wi-fi of an Uptown Manhattan butcher shop like a jellyfish floating bonelessly on the waves. Were Spike able to see what happened next, and indeed if he was able to understand what Edward was doing whatsoever, he may have even been proud; she flowed through the system like water, using her 'opponent's' momentum against them.

Extracting the owner's email address from the digital surf by intercepting an email that was only "encrypted" by early twenty-first century standards, she then sent that owner a sternly-worded letter from the most feared name of that era: the IRS. While waiting for the owner to click on the enclosed link, Edward kept herself occupied by assisting a businessman in the butcher shop's lobby with the matching-blocks game that he was also just playing in order to pass the time. After a few minutes of this, she slipped up, and accidentally let the businessman see that someone else was matching the blocks for him. She then covered her tracks in the only reasonable fashion she knew how, by accessing a text window within the game's interface and informing him that the computer was haunted, and also to stop cheating on his wife. Edward didn't know anything about the man, of course, but it seemed like good advice to give out in general. The computer was promptly switched off.

Finally, the owner clicked on Edward's link, presumably in a tax-related panic, and Edward immediately downloaded a worm onto his network that granted her a key to each one of the system's many doors. Traipsing through this digital mansion as though she owned it, she quickly identified the product list, and began going down the list in search of one main ingredient: blood.

“Alllllllrighty~,” Edward said at last, after long minutes of what would appear to outsiders as rapid, nonsensical clacking on the apparently-magical tablet in front of her. “The wise and benevolent King Edward has the options ready for the Scarlet Devil! Would she like cow blood, or the blood of a pig? Edward can also swing chicken's blood, but they only come in tiny little packages, like juice pouches.”

Edited by Uncandescent on Apr 9th 2024 at 12:39:51 PM

Wulfrik, Hyrule Mountains

-Wulfrik looks at the fissures in the earth, shakes his head and moves on. Yet from the corner of his eye he spots movement in the chasm, and returns towards the edge. He peers into the depths, from which a horde of misshapen and deformed beings start to emerge.-

-These are no Chaos spawn nor the loathsome creations of the ratkin, but utterly alien, made of simple shapes and clashing colors, most resembling floating eyeballs with underslung tentacles. A wizard's creations, no doubt, perhaps inspired by visions of the horrors found in the deepest parts of the sea.-

-His suspicions are immediately confirmed when the eyes throw witchfire at him. He throws himself behind a rocky outcrop and unslings his shield before snapping off a chunk of rock.-

   Does your master have so little manners as to spy upon others, and so little courage as to do so remotely!? Can't he go leer at young maidens bathing like other weaklings his age?!   

-He steps to the side and hurls the rock at the closest eye, then ducks back behind the outcrop.-

Financial District, Manhattan

The disappointment was real, of course, but by giving due weight to the signs he had picked up beforehand the ultimate revelation of there being no Searrs in this land was not a soul-crushingly devastating one to Greer. If nothing else, it meant the little traitor wouldn't have that support network either.

As Greer walked the half-block away from the unrecognizable office building, his mind had been about to move on towards figuring out where in the most expensive real estate market this side of a Lost Decade (not counting those jumped up little Silicon Valley shits) he could find an affordable hotel room before his eyes fell upon the ad at the bus stop. Oscorp? Were they related to the mayor from the newspaper he picked up earlier? It certainly seemed so. Perhaps this New York wasn't so different from the one he was familiar with after all.

Greer's eyes lingered on the job posting, the gears turning in his head. On one hand, it was a bit odd that research positions would be advertised at a public bus stop, rather than in a science journal or a university campus where qualified candidates would be more likely. On the other hand, this was a New York where humanoid wasps asking to be taken to the mayor drew little more than a relatively small crowd and basically no amount of panic or alarm — Greer did have to remind himself that not everything would necessarily be the same, even after considering the non-existence of Searrs here.

At any rate, this did seem like as good a chance as any to find some bearings and be able to earn more than what a mere beggar would bum off passers-by, and he wasn't all that sure that trying to move beyond to even more unknown areas would be wise for someone removed from peak physical fitness. It was a chance worth taking to see if he could get access to the kinds of resources that Searrs would have had. And so Greer set off for the listed address, walking down a few more blocks and taking in what might become his new home before reaching the entrance, giving himself a look over to be as presentable as one could when carrying all one's possessions before entering.

Velvet Room

It had been a blur as soon as Mami took Ringo's hand, not recognizing what had happened until she heard Madoka's voice going "Mami-san, are you OK?!" She turned from Ringo to look at Madoka and Sayaka who had approached to within a meter of the two as the swirling darkness receded, concern all over their faces. "I'm alright, Kaname-san," she replied with an assuring smile before looking back at Ringo and the new Soul Gem in her hands. The other Magical Girls plus Madoka also turned to see what Ringo had done, holding their breaths as Mami brought her hands up to cup the reformed Gem into her own hands, silent as they watched her rotate it around in examination, speechless when the Gem glowed and transformed into a golden-colored ring on her finger. "Thank you. I won't forget what you've done for me."

"What did she do for you, exactly?" Sayaka asked.

Mami thought for a moment, finding the right words. "I suppose the best way to put it is 'a meeting of the minds'." Her gaze shifted slightly from Sayaka to the person looking from behind her, enough for Sayaka to look over her shoulder to see who it was — Kyoko. "Allowed for new perspectives about our situation." She shook her head briefly and cleared her throat to bring everyone's focus back on her. "At any rate, now that we know there is a way other than Grief Seeds to keep our Soul Gems clean, we should figure out what we are going to do now. And by 'we', I mean all of us."

"What do you mean 'all of us'?" Kyoko asked, a half-eaten snack in her hand as she looked around the room with some guardedness.

Mami motioned to the whole room, including both SEES and Aion members along with those from Mitakihara. "We and SEES have now been thrown to a new dimension twice now, away from our homes, our...families." The hesitation was only momentary. "And from what we've heard from Ringo and her group, this world is locked in a battle in the shadows as well. We're all here on good terms." This pause needed a few more moments to cover the several more questionable cases present in the Room. "More or less. It seems only proper to return the favor after Miss Ringo gave us a new life." Her eyes narrowed on the small white furry creature now sitting underneath a chair in the corner. "In a way that no one else has to die for."

"More practically, it would be better to understand who exactly we would be dealing with in this world," Homura added, her eyes looking in the direction of Arrow and Milady.

<Yes, this 'Phantom Society' you are opposing, except for Milady. I am wondering why she is working with you if she doesn't appear to disagree with their goals.>

"Why the heck do you care, Rat?" Sayaka sneered. "We ain't letting you do any more contracts now that we know what you really are!"

<I wasn't planning on that, Sayaka Miki. Creating more Magical Girls won't achieve any purpose here, so there is no reason to do so.>

Meanwhile, Homura turned back to Saizo once she said her piece with the others. "I did, yes. I was told you were the most likely to know how to acquire new armaments."

Director's Residence, Fuuka

"I plan to tomorrow, Mr. Krillin," Mashiro replied with a diplomatic smile. "We will need time to finish securing the campus and figure out what exactly happened first before we know what to say to everyone else. It seems like we should conclude this meeting, then, and allow him to head out — on behalf of the Academy, we thank you for your help today once again." Discretion is the better part of valor. It did not seem likely that Krillin would notice that Mashrio never specified what exactly would be told to the civilians outside the walls of the Residence.

Once the group made it outside and Krillin took his impressionable leave, Mashiro turned to Ray. "As you can imagine, today's events have left us with several issues to address in the coming days. Many require my personal attention, so I'm afraid we will have to part ways here for now. However, you are welcome to stay in our city as long as you would like — it is the least we can do for helping us against Searrs. I can say right now, if you have a way to contact Manhattan's leadership it would be best if they were given a heads-up with regards to their continued presence in Fuuka."

The van that Ray had last seen Alyssa and Miyu being loaded onto would have returned by this point, pulling up and parking behind a more stately black sedan already waiting. The detainees would not be among those discharged to the curb, only Midori and Sister Yukariko, who would be approached by Mai and Mikoto with the latter audibly asking about Natsuki. Fumi would be right behind Mashiro, ready to push the Director's wheelchair. Behind at the still-open front door to the Residence, Nagi and Yukino would be watching, the former in a somewhat relaxed position leaning against the doorframe while the latter clutched her laptop bag — they appeared to be talking but their voices were too low to pick up any details.

???, Clock Tower to Castle Keep, Castlevania

"The Medusa Heads are erratic."

Dracula gave Death a look as if he was stating the blatantly obvious. Both beings had walked out of the Castle Keep onto the bit of staircase on their side.

"Do we know what the cause of that earthquake was?"

"No, Master."

"Hm..." Dracula seemed to be in deep thought before he finally looked down at Brutaka. "Welcome to my castle. What business do you have here?"

Brutaka, Castlevania, Foot of the Keep

Brutaka wasn't left to puzzle things out much longer as the master of the place stepped outside, and he was met with... well, he wasn't entirely sure what he'd been expecting Count Dracula Vlad Țepeș to look like, but he certainly hadn't been expecting him to look like one of the 'humans' the warrior had seen in his travels across this world, something that didn't particularly inspire confidence.

Still, it wouldn't do to judge solely by appearances; physical weakness often spoke to craftiness, guile, political pull... there was more to 'power' than exerting brute strength and flinging energy blasts, as he often had to remind himself. The Barraki of old—the leaders of the League of Six Kingdoms, christened with a word that has come to mean 'warlord' in Matoran—boasted little more than moderate physical prowess, and it was them who'd had the gall to take a shot at the Great Spirit. They'd missed, of course, thanks to the treachery of one of their own, but that was largely irrelevant to the matter at hand.

Hm. How fortuitous that I should be met halfway.

Blade stowed, he knelt. "Greetings. I am Brutaka, and I come to you as an... envoy, from the island of Voya Nui, a relatively recent arrival far to the southwest."

"As for my business here," he continued as he rose to his feet and assumed that same patient hands-behind-back posture, seeing no point or dignity in continued groveling as his own piercing red eyes met Dracula's. "call it exploration, fact-finding, seeking to understand why myself and so many others have been placed here, be it through The Cure's hands or otherwise."

He wasn't lying as he said all of this, except perhaps by omission.

"But..." he idly inspected the clawed fingers on one hand, deciding to cut straight to the chase, though more out of a desire not to waste any more of his own time than the count's. "while I won't be so presumptuous as to assume your goals here, I believe now that I might have services to offer. Some added reach, to put it one way."

He gestured to the empty air beside him, and as the mask he wore began to shimmer, a portal appeared, a hole in space leading directly to Bugaria—specifically a place overlooking the bustling hive of the Bee Kingdom. Then, after a few seconds (not nearly long enough for anyone on the other side to notice the portal), this vista would change to another: the central volcano of Voya Nui. And then to the skyline of Manhattan, then Fuuka, and again to Anor Londo, Vale, Chaldea as seen from the mountains surrounding it, the central hill upon which new arrivals found themselves, and then a view of the castle in which all present stood.

On that last note, he dismissed the portal entirely and paused as if for effect, seeing no need to elaborate further on his own capabilities.

"You mentioned an earthquake?" he spoke up again, thinking back on that quaking from earlier. He'd assumed that was related to the castle or those floating heads somehow, but judging from Dracula's own confusion, it would seem not. Had this been the arrival of yet another new land? He hadn't seen any atmospheric shimmer, so did this perhaps mean it was somewhere underground?

In any case, he used the opportunity to sweeten the deal. "Because before you stands someone more than suited for investigating, if you should deem it appropriate to accept my assistance."

Edited by Chortleous on Apr 12th 2024 at 1:09:17 PM

Judas, Eastern Voya Nui Caves

Judas scowled as the creatures circled him, tensing up and readying himself to spring into action at any second and sticking out his tongue out at their disgusting scent.

"Yes. I'm not exactly a native of this place." he replied cautiously. "I don't know anything about whatever this Mask is. What are you talking about, anyway?"

Cassette Crew, Ring of Ice >>> Inlet Fortress

Upon arrival and the appearance of two other beings, Buffy waved and Penny smirked.

"Hey there! Pleased to meetcha!" the enthusiastic fitness nut said.

"'Sup, mates?" Penny added, going for a less verbose approach as she leaned against a nearby rock face.

Dracula & Death, Clock Tower to Castle Keep, Castlevania

"Voya Nui, you say?" Dracula looked the being over, seeming more curious than suspicious. "Who told you about The Cure?"

"I see Death told the truth about your ability," Dracula nodded as a complete staircase appeared between the Clock Tower and the Castle Keep before beckoning him to Dracula's own throne room. "I accept your offer. Come. It would benefit the both of us if you were at the highest point of my castle."

"Yes, I believe another land may have just joined us as that follows one of these earthquakes, though there was no flash of light or anything to accompany it this time," Dracula frowned as he considered what it might mean. "I suspect my newest neighbor is below my own castle which is... unfortunate."

Once Brutaka and Death joined Dracula in his throne room, he opened the windows allowing Brutaka to observe as much as he could from the highest vantage point of Castlevania. Should Brutaka look, he would get another good look at Vale, albeit from a different angle this time, and see the top of Seath's Tower over in Anor Londo. However, he would also get a decent look at the Principality of Gallia as well as see the outer wall of the city of Outset beyond it. Additionally, Brutaka would see the the Gerudo Desert.

"Feel free to investigate," Dracula noted to Brutaka. "I only ask that you share your information with me whenever you find yourself in Castlevania again."

Edited by GameGuruGG on Apr 12th 2024 at 2:17:52 PM

Anor Londo, Yhorm's Forge: The Fellowship of The Ring

Yhorm gave Kayne a silent nod at her request to keep the "shiny" safe for her, at least till she was a little bit bigger. Hard to tell if someone of Yhorm's stature could tell when a small-person grew much; maybe they'd have to see!

While reserving a gifted precious ore was a simple enough matter, Moko's offer to gift the giant with something was...a little more complicated. Yhorm turned towards the Taurus Demon strop he used beside his anvil, then to the drake hide apron on his chest, and finally to—well he was technically barefoot, but the implication was there.

"Lizard...big? No. I too big. Too much work. Friend forge for friend, not I."

"Well is there something Kayne can get for you, Yhorm?" Blige asked with a tilt of his helm. "She wants to show you that you're her friend too, y'know."

"Hmmm..."

The meditative hum echoed through the Grand Cathedral's hall, before the giant blacksmith once again extended his hand towards Kayne. This time, he extended only his pinky towards the visitor, as if he were to sip from a cup (or for size ratio: a barrel) of tea.

"Can you forge ring? Lizard-skin ring. Less work. More happy."

Blige turned his head to Kayne, and shrugged. Seemed like a happy compromise to him, though he still hadn't the faintest clue how to measure such an accessory, let alone craft it. Maybe Kayne could use her torso as a good reference for width!

Assuming that Kayne agreed, Yhorm would let out another gut-rumbling chuckle, and return to hammering out the blade on his anvil. The visitors would leave at Blige's recommendation, but before the Last Outpost visitors were out of sight, they'd hear a low but warmly-toned voice behind them:

"Cometh soon."

Anor Londo, Streets: A Girl, A Knight, and A Talking Hat Walk Into A Bar...

Blige began guiding Kayne and Moko back towards the barracks. After all, that lizard wasn't going to skin and tan itself! While strolling down one of the main streets leading to The Great Lift, the trio would encounter a rather unusual sight: a group of four Silver Knights trying to inconspicuously glace into the windows of a tavern.

"Hullo!" greeted Blige. "What you lookin' at?"

"There's some outsiders in there." one of the observers replied, before swiftly tugging the curious Blige to the wall beside the window.

"You daft, man?" one of the hiding knights hissed. "What if they see you?"

Blige crossed his arms as he meditated on the outcome. "Well...I guess they'd see me, then!"

It was then that the four knights noticed Blige's pint-sized companion, along with her hat-sized companion.

"...you're not with them, are you?" one of the knights asked Kayne, thumbing to the three individuals within the tavern. The knight's tone sounded almost apologetic, as if they were doing something that might be viewed as insulting.

"Doubt it." Blige answered for his guest. "Unless there's three giant lizards eatin' in there, I don't think they're old chaps with Kayne and Moko. But that doesn't mean they can't become new chaps, eh? C'mon, let's say hullo!"

Despite the onlookers' attempts to dissuade him, Blige opened the door and stepped inside, presumably with Kayne and Moko following behind him.

...

After a grueling adventure, Trevor, Sypha, and Grant had found a tavern along one of the main streets of Anor Londo; one that was still open for business, which was rarer than it should've been for a city this size. The tall bartender took their orders with a look of suspicion behind her eyes, though if the vampire hunters studied the look they'd probably guess at the reason:

It wasn't unusual to find unarmored individuals enter the tavern, but it was unusual to find humans here. The biological differences were almost arbitrary, but humans and Undead were commonly at least a head shorter than the inheritors of Lord Gwyn's soul. The three visitors probably noticed this themselves while venturing through the city; in fact, the only Anor Londo native who had appeared comparatively "small" had been Gwyndolin.

Guess they all must've eaten their vegetables growing up.

Unfortunately for Sypha, water was ill-advised. Trevor would get his ale, though at the first sip he might've confused it for beer-flavored water—the drink was that weak. Grant's request for citrus was met with a puzzled look, and the bartender provided him with the carrots and cabbages available. In short, nobody got exactly what they wanted, but at least it was somewhat close. What a wonderful summation of this long lost city!

As the food was prepared and served, the vampire hunters might find their eyes wandering to the window facing the front of the tavern. Specifically, to the group of armored observers trying to stay out of sight. Trying and failing, since it didn't take sharp eyes or ears to notice all the mutterings or the long horns atop the helms. Stealth was clearly not their strong suit, though at least they seemed harmless. Curious folk, even if they were more than a little clumsy.

Soon enough, one among their party summoned the courage to stop eavesdropping and make a proper entrance. Behind this Silver Knight was a young girl with a metallic-looking arm, sporting a top hat with a single eye.

"Hullo!" the knight greeted the vampire hunters. "Name's Blige. This here's Kayne, and the little chap on her head's Moko—they're not from the city, so I've been showin' them around Anor Londo. Must be my lucky day; never thought I'd see two outsiders in the same day, let alone five!"

The Silver Knight took a seat and ordered an ale for himself, gesturing for Kayne to order whatever she'd like.

"So! What brings you lot to our city!"

Anor Londo, Abandoned Square: And Now For Something COMPLETELY Different!

The tailless gargoyle's swing struck true, but that truth rang hollow as Philotas refused to break against the halberd. Were it capable of coherent thought, this would be another signal for the beast to flee the battle while it still could; a human who could stop its strike in its tracks was an incredibly big threat.

Unfortunately for the gargoyle, this hint was the last it would ever get. With its primary weapon blocked and two swift opponents rushing past its defenses, the gargoyle could only let out a gurgling moan as blade and wrist-mounted shot tore into its stomach. Though it tried to retaliate, the blow was clearly mortal, and its limbs began to betray it. As blood seeped into the cracks of the cobblestone, the gargoyle roared one last time before dropping its shield and halberd, falling to its knees, and finally dropping to the ground.

One down, one to go.

Daniella's fireball was impressive, but unfortunately for the sorcerer the gargoyle charging towards her had wings. A few flaps were more than enough to allow the beast to leap into the air, and sail over the incoming projectile.

That said, perhaps that Daniella's the plan from the start; hurdling over the flames lined the gargoyle up perfectly for the Angel's follow-up strike. If the gargoyle hadn't been armed with a shield, the blow might have been devastating.

Too bad it did have a shield, and the added benefit of outweighing the little cherub fifty times over. As if to continue to mock the Angel's attempt, the host of the Sky Palace might notice a spark lighting up in the back of the gargoyle's opening maw. A moment later, and a plume of fire burst through its jaws, aiming to roast the Angel and the sorcerer beneath them.

Only one gargoyle remained, but this one wouldn't go down easily.

Akiba Ruins: It's Called "Delegation"

C.C.'s pragmatic explanation against "throwing oneself into another conflict" made Link frown. That sounded awfully unheroic, and it put L.L. in a slightly darker light in the boy's mind.

Spotting her partner's disapproval (and a chance to reinforce the important lesson C.C. was trying to provide), Tatl flew up beside the green-haired woman:

"It's like I've been telling you for a while now: you're not the only hero running around anymore. Everybody's got different strengths, and it's pretty clear that Starrk and Lilynette are a whole lot faster than we are. They could've dealt with the problem before anyone else got to the scene, even if turned out to be a lot worse than it was."

Link's frown wavered. That was probably true, but still...did that mean he should've stayed put? That didn't sit right with him. He moved to a clean spot on the page, and wrote out a question:

"If you ask me, you should've trusted those around you a little more." Tatl sighed. "Not everything requires you to rush in to save the day."

This brought Link's frown back with a vengeance, along with a skeptical leer:

"And she got help!" the fairy fired back. "I'm not saying you should ignore problems, I'm saying you should remember that it's not 'You and Me Against the World' anymore. We've got allies who can give us a hand, and sometimes those allies are better equipped to handle things than we are. Case and point: dealing with that weird tiny guy!"

The little hero silently mulled this over. Once again, Tatl was right about Starrk and Lily's skill, but how could he know they can handle a problem without seeing the problem himself? With the frown withering to a pout and the leer shifting into something akin to concern, Link scribbled out another question:

Tatl let out a sigh so heavy it almost made her lightheaded. "You wanna take this one?" she asked C.C.

Hyrule, Arbiter's Grounds: I Went to Hyrule, and All I Got Was This Lousy Mirror Shard

If the lack of devastation disappointed Ganondorf, the wrath of the Sages cheered him right back up.

   "Ambition is among my finest attributes."    he stated with a mocking bow.    "A stoop lower than all others is a stoop none have reached before me. I take it as a mark of pride."   

Apparently this was one sleight too many, for the ghostly figures dispersed before the Evil King could insult them again. Ganodorf turned from the pillars with a shrug, and went to inspect the mirror.

Something had prevented the falling pillar from destroying this thing, and yet it appeared to have been broken before. He could touch the relic, although nothing happened when he did.

   "Perhaps it requires a more personal touch."    the Gerudo smirked, his fist once again enveloped in a purple aura. With another powerful blow, Ganondorf drove his fist through the back of the mirror, further shattering it into pieces.

It had been a glancing strike, and intentionally so: two fragments chipped off the remnant still in its place, one of which Ganondorf picked up before gesturing for Goht to approach him.

   "Bring this to the castle, and inform Death of our discovery."    he stated, placing one of the two shards into the husk's hand.    "Your master and I will continue deeper into the kingdom."   

Goht nodded, too intimidated to ask any follow-up questions. As the child-sized creature took to the skies once again, Ganondorf studied the piece of the mirror still on the ground. It was sharp, but small enough to fit most of its length in the palm of the Gerudo King's hand. its shape resembled a crooked, malformed blade, which he found strangely appealing.

   "Perhaps I can use this to slit the throat of this 'Hero Clad in Green.'"    he thought, before pocketing the shard for safekeeping.

   "There is nought left for us here."    Ganondorf informed his impish companion.    "Let us depart for greener land."   

With that, the Evil King and Cursed Mask flew Eastward, over the mountains dividing the desert from the rest of Lanayru province, and towards more clues to this bizarre mystery.

Faron Woods, Faron Spring: I Got A Map if You Wanna Look At It

Zelda allowed her hand to be brushed aside; if the mage was strong enough to sit upright without issue, there seemed little reason to keep him prone.

"You're in the Faron Woods, in Southern Hyrule." the princess answered, though that second statement might have been a misstep. After all, she was a stranger to this version of the kingdom, but she had no reason to suspect that the blue-skinned man was also outside of his own time. No reason other than that he used the universal language, at least—and that was far from irrefutable proof.

"My name is Purah. I've been touring the kingdom with my companion, Robbie." The young lady gestured towards the knight with that eerily familiar resemblance. Said young man waved to Vaati with a genuine, unsuspecting smile.

"This gentleman here is Rusl. He's from Ordon Village, on the southernmost side of these woods."

With one side of the introductions over, the incognito princess smiled and asked: "What might your name be?"

Edited by TheodoreHastings on Apr 13th 2024 at 5:02:26 AM

Zyglak tribe, Voya Nui, Eastern Caves

"Mask of power... mask of life." that other Zyglak spoke up again, a definite twinge of disgust creeping into their tone. "Great power, creators buried it beneath the mountain. Hidden to all, guarded... idiotic."

"To heal Mata Nui, the 'great spirit'." a third butted in before indicating that pictograph of the shorter, kneeling beings. "Creators... care for him, care for Matoran... his 'chosen people'. Not us. Shunned, forced into the dark places."

The leader, meanwhile, continued to study Judas. "Where?" they asked of him again, in what seemed to be rising annoyance at him not answering that initial question to any satisfactory degree. "Your land... where is it? Where is this place, now? Moved, again? Moved once before."

The second one spoke again, as if they'd just noticed something about the man that interested them. "You... alone? Matoran, Toa... never alone. 'Unity' they preach. 'Duty', 'destiny'..."

Piruk >>> Dalu, Voya Nui, outside the Inlet Fortress

As Dalu approached, she eyed the two humans critically before nodding toward Piruk, who then left their side, heading past her and into the fortress (though not without watching the ongoing exchange over his shoulder as he went).

"Alright," she began after a long moment, stowing her weapons across her back upon verifying that the two bore no immediate hostile intent. She didn't come across nearly as timid as Piruk, and if anything, quite the opposite—her overall tone was curt and evidently a little impatient with the twos' demeanor, with body language that furthered this impression, her arms crossed, stance rigid. "It's been a long day for everyone here, and I have a bad feeling about how the rest of it is going to go, so I'm not going to bother with introductions or ask you two to repeat whatever you told him." she said. "Penny and Buffy, not from here, exploring the weird new island, got it."

She then nodded her head southwest. "Main village is that way. Garan is gonna want to speak to you about all of this, but you're not going up there alone and I'm not leaving this tower unmanned."

A wry smile. "So, I think you're stuck with me. Try anything, and you'll find out how it feels to hear every pin drop in a ten-kio radius. Got it? Good."

Brutaka, Castlevania, Keep >>> Mountains between Gerudo Desert and Anor Londo

Brutaka hadn't been expecting any of this to be so easy, but he wasn't about to complain as he was lead inside. Moreover, Dracula showing some degree of recognition of the name 'Voya Nui' didn't escape his notice, but he decided probing into that subject was better saved for later. How much about that past iteration of the world would the Count be willing to divulge now? Maybe he'd leverage it somehow as payment.

"I was... informed, of him. Let's just say you aren't the only ones." was his only answer to the second question.

Given a clear view of the world outside the castle, and from a higher vantage point than even most mountains, he took a long moment to study the landscape and adjoining territories (which he did just as much for his own purposes as anything else). The familiar regions seemed unchanged from his earlier travels, only reaffirming the notion that this new addition was someplace underground, but also raising a new issue: was there any sort of entrance? Nothing westward stuck out to him, too inhabited and open, and certainly nothing particularly close to the castle on any side.

Eastward, though... past the desert, he figured, could sit any number of places where such a thing might be hidden. Southward too, but he knew if he wasn't methodical in his search, he'd be at this for the better part of a week. Better to tackle things one location at a time.

"As for what I ask in return," he said, turning to leave before conjuring another portal through which blew a cold wind. Its destination was high up, as had been Brutaka's M.O for travel thus far. "know it won't be much. We'll discuss it when I come back."

With a final brief bow in thanks, the warrior vanished, and the portal with him.

His next step was not onto carpet or tiled masonry, but the rock of a mountain range, overlooking a vast desert on one side and the city of Anor Londo on the other.

Most importantly, though, he was free of the castle's stuffiness, free of having to defer to someone else, putting on airs... even that brief meeting made him a bit nauseous, reminding him all too much of his Brotherhood days and how the regimented day-to-day bore him near to the point of physical pain. It felt good to stretch his legs, though he knew he wasn't done with the Count, not by a long shot.

Frowning, he nimbly surmounted one particularly high peak in a series of powerful leaps, giving him a view of a vast, treacherous-looking forest to the east, and of a mountain ridge that extended a ways northeastward from the range, likewise bordering that northern desert and separating it from the forest. The eastern tip of that ridge, he noted as he began making his way up it, terminated with a great verdant field to the north, overlooked by... what appeared to be another towering castle, to his eyes.

What was with this strange place and castles?

Setting that aside for the moment, and moreover seeing nothing immediately suspicious, he noted another mountain range further eastward. The curvature of the planet blocked his view beyond it, prompting another portal over to its highest visible peak... at least, until he caught sight of something else, up in the sky and traveling eastward as well.

Two things, to be more specific, both humanoid—were these beings under Dracula's employ as well? Unable to make out details, he nevertheless made a calculated guess as to their probable flight path, and relocated the other end of his portal to intercept it on the ground and catch their attention. Stepping through, he had questions.

Manhattan, Oscorp F.D. Branch (Father Greer)

"Welcome to Oscorp, Sir! How can we help you today?" the generic blonde receptionist, whose nametag christened her "Julie", beamed up at Father Greer from behind her desk.

Once the good Father made it clear he was here to try to land a job, she faltered slightly, as if unsure what a priest would be doing seeking a job at a tech corporation, but quickly recovered and asked whether he had a resume available for the higher-ups to look over. Upon learning that he not only had no resume, but no home address any longer and no computer, she would wince in sympathy and think for a few moments.

"Follow me, Sir!" she said, rising from her seat and getting her pep back. "I think we may have an open computer that you can use for writing a resume upstairs!"

Stepping out from behind her desk, she strode at a reasonable clip for the elevators, bearing in mind that the older gentleman may need a slower pace and might not do well with stairs. A few minutes later, she was leading Greer through a cube farm to a cubicle in the corner, then turned its computer on and quickly typed in some credentials to log on.

"Here you go, Father Greer!" she chirped with a sunny smile, offering him the honestly very comfortable-looking office chair. "You can go ahead and get started, and I'll just step around the corner to make sure this is alright with the boss. And don't you worry; if she's not alright with it, I'll make her alright with it!" Sealing the promise with a wink, she disappeared down a nearby hallway and left Greer to his own devices.

Velvet Room

"Aha! Well, that might take us a while to explain, but I figure we owe it to you!" Ringo replied, taking a seat next to Mami. "Let's see... where to start..."

"I guess we might as well explain the two major factions, and then where we factor into it," Arrow began, folding his hands and leaning forward. "I belong to Yatagarasu, or Yata for short, an organization of Devil Summoners with the mission of preserving the world, and Milady belongs to, or belonged to, the Phantom Society, or Phantom for short, an organization or Devil Summoners whose mission is to destroy the world. Saizo is a freelance Devil Summoner, and Ringo and her sister, Figue, are agents of a third party, an electronic and spiritual entity called Aion."

"And what's a Devil Summoner?" Ringo posed, leaning an arm against the couch's end and propping her head up with it.

"Devil Summoners are people like us, who have the spiritual sensitivity necessary to see Demons, and who can use special tools called COMPs to summon Demons who we've forged contracts with to serve us in various ways, but mainly in battle," Saizo explained with a grin. "Unlike Summoners of Yata or Phantom, who mainly pursue the goals of their own org, Freelancers like me take on all sorts of jobs, which I'd argue is a lot more fulfilling, since we get to save people from things like Demon attacks on an individual level, instead of just trying to save the world. You could say that since joining forces and uniting under Ringo's goal of stopping Phantom, we've all become Freelancers, in a sense, even if Arrow still technically reports to Yata."

"And for the record, Phantom isn't just about bringing about the end of the world," Milady clarified with a huff, crossing her arms. "Their doctrine says they're bringing about the end of the current 'world', or society, and building a new, more just one, where, for example, nobody has to die in the fires of war. It's just that there needs to be some destruction before there can be rebuilding."

"Very extensive destruction," Ringo added dryly.

"Nobody said change was easy or without sacrifice," Milady countered with a shrug.

With a harsh sigh, Arrow continued, "Milady's viewpoint aside, Phantom is in the midst of something called the Covenant Recovery Project, or Project C. The Project's aim is to gather several color-coded sources of vast supernatural power called the Covenants and use their combined energies to summon a being called the Great One to destroy - and supposedly remake - the world. To that end, Phantom's leader, Iron Mask, had several people assassinated, some personally, some through kill teams. Each of those people were 'Covenant Holders', or people in possession of a Covenant, which binds with a person on the level of the soul. Thus, the only way that Iron Mask knew of to transfer a Covenant from one person to another was for the first Holder to die, and for the second person to absorb the Covenant once it emerged from their corpse. It turns out that my mentor, Dr. Kuzunoha, discovered another way to do it, but that's beside the point."

Ringo took a large breath, and then launched into a very long summary: "The Holders as of a few weeks ago were a prominent scientist and engineer named Ichiro Onda with the Red Covenant, Milady with the Yellow, Saizo with the Green, Iron Mask himself with the Blue, and Kuzunoha with the Purple. Or, as we just learned along with you all, Kuzunoha transferred the Purple to Arrow before wiping his memory of their association with one another. On the night Figue and I were born, Iron Mask used his Demon minion, Zenon, to kill Onda and take the Red Covenant, which merged with Zenon. Figue was tasked with saving Onda, but arrived too late. That same night, Arrow was in the midst of infiltrating Phantom to protect Milady, who Iron Mask had turned against and marked as the target of not just one, but two kill teams. I was tasked with saving Arrow, and also arrived too late, but I used a Soul Hack to bring him back to life, and then we arrived moments after Milady also died, but I used another Soul Hack to bring her back to life also, after we beat the guys who were after her. Figue arrived after the Yellow Covenant had emerged from Milady's corpse, and absorbed it into herself. After that, we searched for Saizo, only to find his corpse against the wall of the alley this room's door leads out into - that's the bloodstain there. Zenon absorbed the Green Covenant from him as well. I used - you guessed it! - yet another Soul Hack to bring Saizo back to life, and then we tried to track Kuzunoha down, as we thought he was the holder of the last Covenant, but we were once again too late, and arrived just after Iron Mask killed him and Zenon consumed the fake Purple Covenant that emerged from his body. Except this time, Zenon ate his corpse, too—" Ringo pulled a disgusted face, "—so that I couldn't revive him. With the power of the Covenants on his side, Zenon, and by extension, Iron Mask, are basically invincible, so there was no way we could beat them, and we had to retreat. After that, we searched for a way to beat Zenon, and found out that his species of Demon has their strength fluctuate with the phases of the Moon, becoming extremely weak during a New Moon. So, we've been waiting for weeks for the chance to attack Iron Mask and Zenon during a New Moon... which may or may not mean even more waiting is in the works, depending on what phase this world's Moon is in. If it even has a Moon, I mean."

"And so, the reason I'm working with Ringo and these two is to get revenge on Iron Mask," Milady explained, a glint of rage in her eyes at the thought. "He and I were lovers, and each other's closest confidants, and I was willing to give my Covenant up to him personally for the sake of ending the world when the time was right, but instead, he betrayed me and sent teams to assassinate me. So in return, I'm going to kill him, no matter what it takes."

"As far as armaments go," Saizo said, switching gears as he nodded toward Homu, "we can just take you to the place where we buy and upgrade our own weapons! The owner of the store, Tatara-chan, has a whole lot of useful stuff for purchase, lemme tell ya! The actual block it's located can't be accessed by normal people, but as long as ya can see Demons, you shouldn't have any trouble with it."

"So, do you all have any questions?" Arrow asked, looking about the teens gathered with a small smile.

Tokyo 205X, Phantom Base

"Let's see..." the spook leader began counting off on her fingers with a smile as the lift ascended and she answered their questions in turn, "I don't know if anybody knows for certain, but Phantom has been around for at least a thousand years in one form or another. As for where we are, this was indeed part of Japan before we got transported to whatever this planet is! The capital, Tokyo, to be exact! And as for the language we're all speaking... our agents figured out pretty fast that everybody who was transported to this world we're on now all had this new sort of universal language implanted into our heads upon arrival, since we're so used to having to swap between languages for missions and international work that we noticed it. Pretty convenient, isn't it?"

That said, they stepped off the lift, walked down a plushly carpeted, well-lit hallway with brightly-painted walls, and stopped before a large pair of double-doors at the end. The spook leader ushered the pair from Jupiter X into a sizable alcove near the door, which featured a comfy couch and pair of armchairs, along with a coffee table, one of those fancy coffeemakers that use pods and can make things like tea or hot chocolate as well, and a large, flatscreen TV against the wall, which was on, but muted; if they wanted to turn up the volume, they'd have to use the remote on the table.

On the screen were a pair of windows with arguing talking heads on one side, and on the other, a looping video of the time of Jupiter X's arrival from the point-of-view of a high-up, airborne drone, complete with aurora-like phenomenon and shaking. The chyron below read, in the Universal language, no less:

Mystery "Space Station" Appears to East! Could It Be Aliens?

Meanwhile, the spook knocked on the double doors in a particular rhythm that was probably a passcode of some kind, and the lock clicked open, whereupon she entered humbly and left Leos and Pigna to their own devices for a little while.

Edited by darksidevoid on Apr 14th 2024 at 7:05:47 AM

Kayne & Moko—Visiting Yhorm —> Anor Londo Tavern

"Hi! It's true, I'm Kayne, and my friend's name is Moko," Kayne agreed, nodding enthusiastically and making Moko grab onto her hair to not fall off. "He's a thinking cap, and I aspire to be a fighting scholar. It's nice to meet you three!"

"We didn't expect to meet other travelers in this strange land so soon," Moko added, affecting a little scrunchy bow. "Indeed, it is a fortuitous meeting. Kayne, do we have any leftover oranges?"

"Yes...?" Kayne said hesitatingly, taking off and rummaging around inside Moko, and taking out the last of the oranges she'd bought, putting them in front of each of the three vampire hunters. "Yes! Here, to mark our new friendship!"

"It's a shame you didn't go to the Silver Knights' barracks upon your arrival," Moko remarked. "We just hunted a lizard to make gumbo, and we made a roast of the rest!"

"Well, that might be too late now," Kayne admitted, shaking her head. "But the Knights recorded the recipe. So, you could probably go over and get a copy if you're interested in foreign cuisine, Madam Barkeep." That last bit was addressed to the barkeep herself, whose suspicion Kayne did her best to deflect with a cheerful childish grin.

Edited by JumpingFruit on Apr 19th 2024 at 8:38:34 AM

Manhattan, First Atlantic Bank: Mood Lighting

Scratch knew the object in the Limey goon's hands well before he lit it. Back in Bright Falls, The Old Model had horded those like a kid with Halloween candy. They were a literal pain for creatures like Scratch to deal with, but then again he'd acquired a certain ace in the hole for situations just like this.

"I don't recall asking for your opinion." Scratch said dryly, shifting into mist as he moved spot to spot closer to the wall. "You're all just toys to me, and toys don't get a vote in what game gets played."

The creature of Darkness soared towards the flare and reformed right in front of it. As the red light burst to life, Mr. Scratch dug his nails into his palm, and braced himself.

This was going to hurt. A lot.

The shades of red revealed Scratch's silhouette to the Demons, along with an unknown screeching noise and what seemed to be sparks radiating off the stranger's frame. Seems the freak was finished running, though as the would-be robbers raised their rifles to open fire, perhaps one of them might realize the reason why the creature of Darkness had chosen that particular position to reappear:

A long foreboding shadow stretched across the bank's floor. A shadow emanating from the man standing in front of the strongest light source in the foyer, and one that eclipsed an unknown number of the Demons.

"Oh, and one thing you should know...I tend to break my toys."

Mr. Scratch grinned and stretched his arms out wide, both to extend the reach of his shadow and to goad the Demons to fire away. The bullets would reach a strange black panel that sprung from the shadow, as if the shade itself was taking the blows. Scratch waited for the first sounds of empty magazines before making his next move. Using the brief instant before the fun began as a reference, he willed his shadow to leap from the tiled floor and swiftly form into long, sharp spikes about a foot and a half in length. He would've tried something a little more gruesome, but right now he was fishing blind.

He needed a cue that his stalagmite caltrops caught at least one of these bastards, preferably a scream or two. Once he heard it, he'd silently command the rest of his counterattack to regroup and turn however many Demons he'd trapped into human pincushions.

The warmup was over.

Time for some bodies to drop.

Earth 11945 - Forest Kingdom

From the moment she heard the call of a sniper being in their midst, Dark Samus knew that her attempt at intervening was going to have unforeseen and unpleasant consequences. But it wasn't until she heard the words that came out of Sea Wasp's mouth that she realized just how much she may have erred in getting involved. The girl had said that she was supposed to be elsewhere. She'd never met these people before. That could only mean one thing: there was another Samus.

That fact alone had the Phazon Warrior go still, not even registering the fact that she was being fired upon until a few of them actually managed to hit her. Shaking her head, the woman decided that only one thing mattered right now, so to that end, she leapt off the terrain she'd been standing on and started flying towards the trees and the woman that had just returned to them, making a beeline for Yunica and not caring who or what she had to get through to catch up to her.

Castelia

"Oh, I was just thinking about how best to connect with you all. From my experience, food and stories are good openers for forging bonds. And while we don't have much food with us, we've all plenty of stories to share." Shemaal explained, leaning on his staff a little to get more comfortable.

"It is so, yes. We all have tales to share, if any of you would like to hear them. It has been some time since I've played the part of storyteller, but I think I still have a knack for it." Migrana added on, already thinking of a few stories she could share. Though perhaps she might need to edit them so as not to alarm anyone.

"Taia has stories too! Like how she defended Northwall from monsters by herself!" The blue girl said, sounding rather proud of herself for that one, even if it wasn't quite accurate.

Faron Woods, Faron Spring

So. This was Hyrule. Or at the very least, a Hyrule. He'd guessed that much, but it was good to have confirmation.

Now for the hard part: what name would Vaati give them? He could always give them a false name or an alias, but if he was to be honest with himself, the very idea rankled him to even think about; he was laid low, yes, but to be so low that he couldn't even use his own name? That was...no. There was still enough lingering pride in him to not hide his identity like that.

"Vaati. My name is Vaati." The mage answered, looking between the different members of the gathered group to see if there were any flashes of recognition on their faces. There was always the slim chance that one of them would recall ancient folklore or something of the sort.

Duke's Archives, Seath's Chambers: Faye's Gonna Need A Bigger Ship

Faye would quickly discover that the dragon's sense of humor was...probably a bit more cruelty-focused. The puns and strange-sounding music didn't evoke much of a reaction at all, though at least it didn't seem to annoy him. Evidently, he and his Channelers were willing to humor Faye's humor.

"Centipede Demons exist." one of the Channelers informed Faye in a matter-of-fact manner.

"Indeed, but can one contract that wretched form?" a second Channeler asked the first.

"Nay." refuted a third. "Demonhood is a pox on the world, but tis not an affliction that infects the forms of men."

"Is this certain?" the second Channeler asked. "The Flame of Chaos hath proven one truth, tis that its progeny is notoriously diverse. Demons sink their teeth into life and refuse to part with it; twould not surprise me to discover they invent new means of bolstering their ranks."

The debate ended there, probably because none of them really wanted to explore the possibility that demons could procreate through infection as well as the traditional manner...which was something they also didn't want to think about.

As for the Demons, Seath seemed to share Faye's skepticism for "Mr. Negative's" influence over his underlings, though he shook his head at the bounty hunter's claim that it was all a hoax.

   "Sorcery may take many forms across this planet. Twould be foolhardy to dismiss the possibility outright, but the loyalty of imprisoned pawns can be fragile. Regardless, their dedication to this 'Mr. Negative' should not be overlooked. Though I find their target of choice rather perplexing. A scientist and a politician...why choose a foe so rich in resources?"   

"Mayhaps the Demons seek to ruin this Oscorp, Your Grace?" proposed one of the Channelers.

Seath considered the possibility for a moment, then shook his head.    "If the Demons sought Oscorp as their prize, or even the city's government, they would strike with more subtlety. The pragmatist assaults a castle by bribing the gatekeepers in the dead of night; only the prideful strike in the light of day while boasting that they shall take the king's head. This reeks of hotblooded inefficiency—as if Osborn's disgrace is non-negotiable."   

"A vendetta, perhaps?" proposed a Channeler.

Seath mulled the idea over, and let out another "chuckle."    "Yes...this 'Mr. Negative' hath cause to want Norman Osborn—not the leader of Oscorp, not the Mayor of New York, but Norman Osborn the man—to squirm. Tis comforting to know the hearts of men elsewhere art so akin to the pygmy's spawn I know."   

The Eternal Dragon collected another crystal, this one the size of Seath's own hand.

   "Thine information is proving worth more to me than crystal, Queen of Hearts."    Seath "smiled."    "Mayhaps thou wouldst consider a richer form of payment? One that cannot be stolen from thee by a thief drawn to supposedly 'lustrous' rock?"   

Faron Woods, Faron Spring: "Vaati?" So...Is That Like Italian, or Something?

Fortunately for Vaati, not the slightest hint of recognition passed any of the Hylians' faces. Instead, Purah returned the introduction with a warm smile.

"A pleasure, Vaati. Are you able to stand? I can help you up if you'd like."

Assuming that the mage's pride was stronger than his exhaustion or injuries, the scholarly young woman would rise to her feet as well.

"Rusl, Robbie, and I were about to depart for Castle Town before we smelled the smoke. You're more than welcome to accompany us, so long as you don't mind riding on horseback. Robbie can take you."

Needing no other cue, the knight thumbed to his steed as invitation. To boost the hospitality, he even bent his knees and nested his hands into a makeshift step, suggesting he would help Vaati get on Epona's back with a boost. After all, the blue-skinned man was pretty short!

Edited by TheodoreHastings on Apr 17th 2024 at 1:28:10 AM

"Ah," the monotone Patchy said, "ah, oh no," as she ran "ah please" as fast as she could "ah...hah...hah...hah" to Ein, panting heavily already - it was quite a spacious room in the first place and her constitution wasn't built for that sort of thing. She eventually got up to the throne on her own power, and prostrated herself before her mighty Scarlet Lord...because she was going to pass out if she had to stand anymore...and said "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"Ms. Knowledge." When Remilia brought out surnames for her best friend, things were dire. She looked down at the mass of pastels below her with a stoic coldness. "I was giving you leniency. It's a bit rude to interrupt our conversation like this, even if it appears to be stalled," she said with a glance towards King Pepelau's infinitely calculating gaze.

"I know...but he wanted to be entertained too, and..."

"It's a corgi, Patchouli. You can entertain them with just about anything." It had been many years since she's seen one in person, but does the image and concept of a corgi ever truly leave one's head? Thus, it was as if she had just seen one yesterday.

"...I'm not sure if...it's one that can be kept—"

"Don't care. Let our guest give..."

She looked back up and saw that the master was already attending to her craft. Digital equipment was beyond her and hardly interesting ("What's the point of a computer if it does all the work for you? It would make you dull" is something she might say if prompted), so she accepted this break in the conversation. "You better be glad that it was well timed, Patchy. I might have had to ask you to take your leave," and therefore deprive her of puppydog playtime. "Just aim better next time."

The grand result of Ed's work was mixed. By this time, Patchouli had been attended to by several maids, who all took turns flapping her with paper fans to keep her from overheating. Remilia had been sated with a selection of fine apple juice (mixed with blood) in a wine glass, and Sakuya had appeared at this time to lightly observe the technical going-ons over Ed's shoulder. This was exactly concurrent with the arrival of a certain masked menace, but nobody on either end of the deal would be aware of this. It's best to keep time shenanigans out of polite meetings.

While they had their own opinions on the technology, ranging from total ignorance to genuine fascination, the end result of Ed's work seemed to be a bit of a letdown. Remilia sighed and waved on her head maid to try and put this more diplomatically than she could...it seems Ed's already been demoted to working through envoys, and it's been less than 15 minutes into her arrival into the court.

"Forgive me for letting a misunderstanding like this come about," Sakuya said with a firm bow. "I am afraid you are mistaken. Lady Scarlet is a vampire - if you do not know what a vampire is then I have some literature that might be enlightening." She immediately held up a copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula to Ed, which absolutely wasn't present in the room a moment prior. "To continue, in brief, the Mistress humbly requests human blood. It's not only a generous gift, but she requires it to survive."

"And it's tasty."

"And it is tasty, as m'lady does mention. Please find it in your heart to forgive what might be a bit of a surprise." She bowed again. "And please don't start screaming and running, it's quite improper."

As that was going on, Sakuya allowed herself some quiet satisfaction with the reception of her joke. Most of the time when black humor's rolled around, people just call her an insane vampire's puppet and start shooting her. Thankfully, it was avoided this time.

"I'll have you meet her in due time. We're receiving a guest at this very moment, so I suppose the more, the merrier - if you would follow me," a hand was held towards the red brick building, "I'll show you to Madame Remilia Scarlet's home. She's fond of many different titles, but if you could look past her stature and call her 'ma'am,' then I figure she'd be thrilled." A more earnest smile came across her face as she lead him the remainder of the way.

Spider Man had a bit of a trippy arrival. There was still a good bit of walking to go, and the halls of the mansion itself were expansive - it was an impressive building outside but even more grandiose in scale when you're going through it on foot - but his arrival seemed to take no time at all. Just half a minute later and he was standing in front of an impressive pair of oaken doors, which the chief maid opened to reveal...

"...and running, it's quite improper."

Just at that moment, the last sentence of that earlier part of the post where we waffled on about blood and all that, Spider Man saw Ed and visa versa, along with the unimpressive little girl sitting on a chair at the head of the room, the purple haired girl getting cooled off by a group of winged children, and...Sakuya herself, who was standing in front of Ed at the same moment. Looking back at the door, Sakuya was no longer there, with the only sign that she even was there being that the door was about to swing shut.

"Ah, welcome. Everyone, please welcome our next guest, Spider Man. I'm sure he's going to be quite entertaining."

"What," said Remilia flatly. "Why'd you drag some pajama-wearing man into our house?"

Athena, Mai, & Yuri, Castelia Town Square

"You've not lived until you've had ka—" Yuri glanced over at the kabob merchant, noticing the cantalope, the line, and the sign:

If your melons are bigger then these melons, you get a free kabob!

She decided not to send the people they've just met in that particular direction. "...Some food from one of Jirga Para Lhao's many food uh... air trucks? Air food trucks?"

"Antigravity food trucks?" Athena tried to help out Yuri, before turning to Migrana. "Storyteller? Well, we certainly have our own stories to tell, and we've already eaten."

"Maybe Taia would like some ice cream?" Yuri looked at Athena while asking out loud. "We've not had dessert yet."

Athena looked back at Yuri as something clicked from Yuri's statement. Taia was reminding her of Kula Diamond. Athena wondered if Yuri also picked up on that given the offer of ice cream, one of Kula's known favorite foods.

Dracula & Death, Castle Keep, Castlevania

Once Brutaka had teleported out of the castle, Dracula was frowning. He looked to be deep in thought.

"So Death, I want you to go to the library and figure out how we can keep a teleporter from entering my castle without my permission," Dracula ordered without even turning towards his right-hand man. "At least until I can confirm that this new planet will actually give us wishes like The Cure. I'd rather not waste the wish I promised to Ganondorf on needed castle defense."

"Understood, sire."

Dracula knew that letting Brutaka just teleport into his castle whenever he desired was too much of a tactical disadvantage. So he will just have to find a way to nullify it.

Trevor, Sypha, & Grant, Anor Londo Tavern

"Ah, yes... Just like home," Sypha said in the most sarcastic tone ever as she looked at her meal. "Complete with beer that tastes like—"

"More like water that wishes it were beer," Trevor interrupted after taking a sip. "This is mostly water."

"This is a city," Grant pointed out the obvious, eyeing the cabbage he was given. "They ain't got fresh water, so you add a little alcohol to it to make it safe to drink."

"Like home," Sypha replied.

"Like home," Both Trevor and Grant replied back.

It was then that the trio of Vampire Hunters spotted the audience of Silver Knights that they've seemingly gained. It was then that one of the knights entered followed by...

"Trevor Belmont, Sypha Belnades, Grant Danasty," Trevor introduced himself and his companions in turn.

"They were here trying to find me, and since none of us ate..." Sypha pointed out the food they had.

"Thanks, Kayne and Moko!" Grant nodded as they took the oranges. He then peeled and split his and shared it with both Trevor and Sypha. "Here. We can save the other two for later if these two are fine with that."

"Gumbo?" Sypha seemed confused at the term.

"A lizard roast sounds like it'd be delicious," Trevor seemed genuinely interested.

"Oh, I ain't too worried!" Gosfrid replied. "We're the city of a million faces, we get all sorts coming thro here don't ya know?"

He gestured to two more Tyrant Guards, one was a large reptillian individual with the mask barely fitting. The other was seemingly a hyena person of sorts who had taken their helmet and mask off to breath for a moment.

"But ya know, ya can never be too careful. Whatcha proposing stranger?" Gosfrid asked the young lad(?).

"Whoa, sorry. Didn't mean to insult your country or anything," Oran said attempting to defuse the situation.◊

Tannhauser grumbled at the idea of a 16 year old monarch. "A coup? It seems that there is trouble afoot in your nation."

"Settle down. Not every place needs your little red pamphlet on revolution. Right now what we need is allies, and I suggest that potentially insulting them is not the right idea," Baldric said poking Tannhauser in his metal chest.

"Baldy's got a good point there Tanny."

"You misunderstand my comrades. If she has the good of the nation in hand, then there is little I can do. My issue is with Tyrants like the ones out in the sands of Zescore, such as Lord Golgotha and his vampiric commune the Black Papacy," Tannhauser reassured. "The issue is that the leader of this nation is 16 years old and her own ministers do not listen to her. It does not bode well."

Tannhauser's own societal knowledge◊ at the forefront, though blunted by the fact they were in a foreign land.

Rehua rubbed his chin. "Perhaps a meeting with the Monarch isn't a bad idea," he suggested hoping to make some progress.◊

"I say go for it! Worst we can do is make more enemies, but at least we've already offered our services to this nation!" Vali called out smiling.◊

Leon clicked on the loudspeakers of his battlemech and grabbed the handset. "Leon Hellstrand, Commander of the Private Militia Company known as Avalon's Court. Hero of the Auregian Reach etc etc. I'll be opening the cockpit soon, so please don't shoot."

He clicked the Loudspeakers off and pressed a button, climbing back as he adjusted the makeshift cooling pants as a hatch on top of his Warhammer opened up. Brutus had served him well and he saw no need to get scrapped just yet.

Out he stepped, his eyes adjusting to the light as he looked about the Hangar. "So, holoactor huh? Like somebody who gets holographically recorded or is that a Star League genuine Artificial Intelligence I'm seeing?"

Ophelia, Akiba Ruins, Training Grounds - What's up with dark-haired men? Why do they tend to be so problematic?

Ophelia was intimidated by the dark-haired man's voice. She could tell that he could easily take on anyone in a fight and command soldiers with ease. That is someone to fear and respect.

The mechanical dog wants her to accompany Spamton? That short dark-haired, pointy-nosed being that has been harassing her for the past half an hour or so?! Ophelia wanted nothing to do with him and the thought of having to be in the same space with him for any longer unnerved her to the core.

She was about to object when Ellie spoke up.

Earlier, Ellie responded to Ophelia's request to accompany her and teach her how to use her abilities with a "sure". The fish lady herself was relieved and even a bit excited to hear that Ellie was willing to take her in, far away from Spamton.

"I'm sorry sir, but I'll be going with the water fox and her friends," Ophelia told L.L.

"I also don't feel comfortable to be near Spamton any longer as well, so I would prefer if I'm separated from him for the time being." She then turned to Yoriichi and Amako.

"Oh, the lady with the wolf ears, I'm doing fine now," She told Amako, revealing that she can indeed hear her. "You and your companion can join me if you want. I'll be going with the water fox."

Speaking of the water fox, Ophelia glanced at Ellie with a smile.

"Thank you so much."

Hopefully that'll be the end of Ophelia's issues with dark-haired men. After all, Prince Hamlet (oh dear), had hair as dark as the night itself and he turned out to not be a pleasant person to say the least.

Jay Gatsby and Nick Carraway - Castelia City - World War WHAT?!

Those last tidbits of information that Seth dropped completely shattered both Gatsby and Nick's minds, filling up the remains with utter dread. Their mouths were left agape and their eyes shot up with distraught shock.

"You must be joking, old sport!" Gatsby exclaimed.

"Nononononono," Nick uttered to himself, horrified by the implications of a second World War and Seth's Great War. "The - our Great War was bloody and horrific enough as is. I know as I served in that abominable war and I witnessed far too many young lives forcibly cut short in such a gruesome manner. There were the bullet storms, mustard gas and the trenches… Oh lord, do not get me started on the trenches…"

By then, Nick was flashbacking to his days on the battlefield where all he heard were gunfire and the screams of dying soldiers. Being taken aback to these terrible memories caused Nick to hyperventilate before he could calm himself down by taking deep breaths and attempting to focus his mind on somewhere else.

Unfortunately, his thoughts couldn't escape the implications of what Seth said.

"So, sir, you are telling me that civilization has not learned a single lesson from the war we fought in and proceeded to partake in two more wars of the same - no - surpassing the brutality?" I take that your Great War might count as a World War, right?"

"I'm telling you old sport, this is quite possibly the most distasteful joke I have ever heard."

Edited by Cutegirl920fire on Apr 16th 2024 at 4:21:29 AM

Nia and Pyra, Ivalice, Obronne Monastery -> Bervenia, Outskirts: Merchants, Mirth, and Miniature Men

The two of them follow Qilby to a small, but lively village, "I didn't think they would take to their situation so well, assuming they're aware of it."

"Life goes on, even after being taken out of their home. The goods and money still gotta flow."

Then, as they approach the city, they see a man in a red coat and a knight-like man. What caught them off guard is the boyish voice from the armored suit despite the size, even more so than the shorter boy. The two of them look at each other from Alphonse's offer and Pyra replied, "We could always use some extra hands."

Nia puts a hand to her hip as she looks at the duo, "Better to have too much than to be short on something."

What Nia didn't know is that she most likely stepped on a proverbial landmine. Much like the metal and gunpowder version, it might lead to an explosion.

Vi and Kabbu, Area 11, Guliford's Office: Foreign Suites, Here We Come!

The two takes Guliford's up on his offer, though for differing reasons, "Heck yeah!"

"We would be honored to."

Though both of them still want to get back with Leif, they'll have to make do with what they're given. Besides, if they're so accommodating, why reject them? Kabbu offers Guliford a hand to shake and Vi would follow up with an enthusiastic shake of her own should the good officer take it.

Leif, Velvet Room: Offering a Job(?)

The moth raises an eyebrow at Oriko's statement, but he decides not to press any further. It's quite clear there's some tension within them, but he doesn't have enough context to make any clear judgements. He grabs an apple and bites down on it. A thought did come to him, "If you want to do good work, we've got plenty of room at the Explorer's Guild. Though, there's gonna be a lot of things, namely getting the folks at home familiar with you... ummm, what do you call yourselves again?"

Free City of Bervenia Outskirts

Ritsuka and Mash were just fine letting Pyra, Nia and Qilby lead while they tagged along from behind. They weren't sure themselves of the way forward, and the trio seemed to have a better idea.

As they reached the outskirts and watched the common folk in their day to day business, Mash remarks, "It looks so... normal."

"Reminds me of our trip through France. They have a similar feeling." Ritsuka nods, remembering the medieval period he fought in.

Just then, Mash notices the Elrics and waves. "Oh! da Vinci dropped you off here, huh?"

Ritsuka also begins to grin and wave, replying to Nia with, "From what little we know about them, they're no small fries. Their magic is... unique.".

Edited by Jules-Firenze on Apr 20th 2024 at 12:03:44 AM