Gauging interest for a shared universe.

Yeah. I was meant to PM you first <.<

So I'm P Ming you now, with instructions and directions and awesome stuff.

Also:

There is no confetti... Otherwise I would throw you some...

Dealan needs to buy some more already

There are too many toasters in my chimney!

=D

That is all.

Wait, do people still need to vote on advancing the harpy character? Can I vote yes? (Though I don't think you need some freidian justification for her flirtations. Lord only knows why I do it, and I'm not even a harpy.)

edited 26th Nov '10 9:23:46 PM by DaeBrayk

Nah, you don't need to vote. We already voted 'yes'... I think.

So Sal, you cn write you scene now, hehehe

There are too many toasters in my chimney!

If anyone wants me to research a particular monster or element of mythology, just notify me. Im researching alot of stuff this week!!Also, IRC event this weekend. Be there.Were going to be Rplaying as our characters in a set scene.

Pfffft, they don't know how to get onto our IRC. That's an Author thing.

There are too many toasters in my chimney!

I should've P Med everybody that; I meant it towards the general authors that had already been accepted...oops.

edited 28th Nov '10 6:17:22 PM by cutewithoutthe

So... how exactly does ki work in this universe? Visually, I mean. I skimmed the thread, so if it was mentioned here, I missed it. I'm already halfway through my "audition," and I have ki working sort of like this.

Ki Warriors fight using ambient magic. Ambient magic=the floaty invisible stuff of the universe. Most archetypes, maybe all, use it somehow, but Ki warriors use it directly in their bodies, to be stronger and faster and what-have-you.

doublepost but also, you can send us your writing sample the way it is and change it to fit canon later (if you even want to include the sample in canon)

edited 29th Nov '10 7:29:50 PM by DaeBrayk

This is half of my writing sample. Fight scenes tend to take up a lot of space for me, plus I had a bit of setup to accomplish. Naturally, I'll have to change some things if I get accepted, but yeah. I'll follow up with a character-based scene, but I just wanted to show y'all a glimpse of how I write action.

---

Professor Mao was not a very imposing figure, but most of the students in the gymnasium knew of his reputation, and they were only first-years at the Nephilim Institute. This was the man who had trained with Nolan, one of the greatest Ki Warriors of Legend.

"Greetings students," Mao announced in a booming voice. "Today you begin your training in the art of the Ki Warrior. This is a basic course, through which you will learn the art of generating Ki and using it to enhance your own natural abilities. When you have completed the customary course, you are expected to fight harder than you are capable of, take more damage than you can bear, and live past the brink of death. Any who do not believe that they can do these things may leave now."

Several students rose and rushed for the door.

"For those of you who remain, I shall give you a demonstration of what exactly a Ki Warrior is capable of. For your protection, we will observe the competitors from outside this glass dome."

As he said it, he pushed a button and the gym floor split open. The students in the bleachers watched entranced as a platform, encased in incredibly thick glass, rose from underground.

"Here are two students from an advanced course; Azher Kant and Toshiro Yikama"

Many of the students were perplexed at the appearance of the female competitor- Azher. She was covered in tan feathers from head to knee, and beyond that, she had skinny, scaly calves that ended in talons. She wore no shirt, most likely because the wings that grew out from her arms prevented that sort of thing. She was, at least, wearing pants: a pear of jeans that were tattered at the cuffs. Toshiro- a human male in black silk pants and a green vest- was far more nondescript, though some of the students wondered about the small wooden staff he carried.

Professor Mao spoke into a microphone. "You may Begin!"

Both competitors became shrouded in ethereal light; Azher's formed itself into a set of teal wings, while Toshiro was simply shrouded in gold.

"As you can see students," Mao began, "Every Ki Warrior has his or her own Aura that can be seen when they use mystical energy. This usually comes off as a glow, but, as with Azher over there, there is variation."

Toshiro rushed towards Azher, spinning the staff above his head as his Aura shrouded it, forming blunt extensions on either side. He vaulted the last few feet to deliver a flying kick to Azher's midsection.

Or he would have, had Azher not dodged out of the way at the last second. The class saw her open her mouth, and Toshiro flew straight toward them, impacting rather comically on the glass.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Mao exclaimed suddenly. He pushed a button on his dashboard to enable the sound, and immediately, the entire room had to cover their ears. Azher's shriek, still echoing about the glass, was painful to listen to.

"Sorry!" Mao announced sheepishly.

Toshiro's aura fizzled out for a brief moment, before it combined with his staff to turn it into a double-ended Naginata. He ran forward again, slashing and stabbing at Azher, who didn't seem to be paying much attention to him, dodging back and forth nonchalantly. Finally irked enough, Toshiro leaped back several meters and fired a large Ki blast that totally enveloped her. It dissipated to reveal Azher's teal wings folded over her in protection. Her corporeal wings were folded in front of her as well, and she uncrossed them, plucking a feather in each hand, and hurling them with blinding speed. Toshiro just barely knocked them out of the way, and Azher opened her mouth again.

It was a noise the likes of which none of the students had heard, as though it was not meant for human ears. Toshiro braced himself. The sound seemed to be pushing him away. And then suddenly, with the visual addition of Azher's Ki, the sound wave blew him off his feet once more. He impacted on the wall behind him and slid to the ground, and disappeared. Even Azher looked confused at this development, but was utterly shocked at the long, shallow cut that appeared on her chest. She stumbled back, only to receive a similar one on her leg. Her right wing was next, then her left, before Toshiro appeared before her, smirking. None of the wounds were life-threatening, of course, but they were annoying. Azher jumped back to gain some ground, but Toshiro leapt into her, driving his elbow into her abdomen and colliding with her against the wall. He backed off, leaving Azher on the ground, bleeding, her Ki wings shrinking. Everyone agreed that she was out of the fight.

Then she began to sing.

There were no words to the song, just a melody. It was a sad, calculated dirge, rising and falling at precise intervals. Toshiro- who was running to deliver the final blow- halted in his tracks as his gold aura was replaced with a teal one. The melody changed into a fast-paced ditty, and Azher's Ki wings shrunk until they were mere dots on her back. Ki was pouring out of her mouth and shrouding her whole body. This continued for several minutes, Toshiro unable to move and everyone enraptured by the harpy's song. And as abruptly as the song began, it was over.

Out of nowhere, huge wings of Ki erupted from Azher's back, and she let out a screech so destructive that the speakers and lights in the room exploded in a shower of sparks and everyone, even Professor Mao, had to cover their ears. Azher's aura wings burned so brightly that lights weren't even needed at this point. Toshiro, snapped out of whatever trance he had been placed under, rolled out of the way just in time, as bright teal sound waves narrowly missed him. He took a stance and waited. Azher took another deep breath, her chest expanding, and Toshiro immediately raised his hand and spelled out "I Forfeit" in golden letters above his head.

Not a second after Azher's aura disappeared, and she fell to her knees, panting heavily. The dome separated, and Toshiro bowed to Professor Mao and began to walk out of the gymnasium. After a few minutes, Azher regained her footing and followed.

"And that, students," Professor Mao began, "Is a just a glimpse at the things you can be capable of.

---

Some general, non-canon things: Harpies and Sirens are often confused for each other because they use the same "magic" system, based on bound meaning and concepts intrinsically linked to the style of song used. The Caster acts as a catalyst, invoking with the power of the tongue their own energy, and drawing from about them the power needed to activate the spell. A lot of her enchantment magic falls under Siren Song. Mermaids also use this system, but they're not Bird Women, so they get a free pass. Azher's final assault was basically using her Ki to enhance the effects of her Empowering Song, while using the song to increase the effectiveness of her Ki. She thought of that on the fly.

edited 30th Nov '10 2:00:06 PM by SalFishFin

I like it.

Me too. I think this is actually enough of a sample to vote on and I vote yes. So, two (or three? I don't know if we're going half or majority) more votes to go, but Cute is holding out for the second half.

Judging by your technical writing skills here, I'd say you won't have a problem with getting accepted

But I would like to see the character-drivn scene, so that I can see how well you handle that first.

There are too many toasters in my chimney!

Just saying that I approve of Sal Fish Fin's piece. I'm very interested in reading the the next one.

(And my order has just arrived. Nephilim currently owns 98,3% of all comfetti on the planet.)

I'm not entirely sure of the layout of the Nephilim Institute. For the sake of this story, there's a park on campus. Y'know, with trees and stuff. Just roll with it. I was basically trying to get everyone's character across in as few words as possible, but I think I overdid it anyway. It was fun.

---

The hooded figure snuck about the park, darting from tree, under cover of the dense foliage. It tried to make as little noise as possible; no need to draw attention to herself. The package had to be kept secure. After several minutes of rapid, silent movement and a minute scouting out the area for intruders, the figure removed its hood to reveal long brown hair. Black cat ears popped out of the crown of her head near the temple. She smiled to herself, razor-sharp glinting in the afternoon sun. Taking a few more seconds to ensure that she wasn't followed, the catgirl reached into the sack she was carrying and pulled out a roasted bass. She purred to herself as he hung it by its tail, ready to dig in to her meal. There was a whoosh, and the catgirl's jaws closed onto thin air. A figure landed across from the catgirl, the fish in its talons. Lifting its legs toward its mouth, it took a bite.

"Hello Azher," the catgirl sighed.

"Hey 'Rika," Azher said through mouthfuls of bass.

"My name has three syllables," came a surly reply.

"Oh, sorry," Azher retorted. Flakes of chewed fish flew from her mouth. "Good afternoon, Jirika. Thanks for providing me with lunch today."

Jirika opened the sack, pulled out another fish, and began munching on it.

"Hey," Azher protested, "your fish is bigger!"

"Exactly. My fish. I have a right to the bigger one."

"Still, if I had brought fish, I'd have given you the bigger one."

"Yeah. That's why I took it."

"No, that's not what I- Ugh! You're no fun. Why do I even hang out with you?"

"That's what I want to know."

After a few minutes of noisy eating from both parties, Jirika's ears perked up.

"Your boyfriend's coming," she informed.

"I don't have a- Oh, not him again!?"

"Yup."

"How far away can I get-" Azher began, but was interrupted when someone landed on the ground in front of her. She sighed.

"Hello again, Toshiro."

She got no reply.

"Let me guess. You want a rematch."

"Yes," Toshiro replied, his golden aura already flaring.

"No."

"You disgraced me! I only lost because of your trickery and deceit! I deserve a proper fight."

"You don't "deserve" anything from me."

"Also," Jirika chimed in, "trickery and deceit are practically the same thing." She was largely ignored.

"You will fight me, bird-woman!"

"You'll have to attack me first," Azher snapped, turning her back to him. "I'm waiting."

Toshiro didn't move.

"Thought so," Azher huffed, leaping into the air and taking flight.

"Hey! Get back here and fight! Coward!"

"Good idea, insulting her," Jirika deadpanned. "That'll get her to do what you want."

"Thanks!"

"Wait, that's not what I-"

"Hey, you skinny bird-woman! Your feathers smell bad!" Toshiro yelled. "Your talons need lotion! Your... your mother is a whore!"

Azher turned around. Toshiro, pleased with himself, turned to Jirika, but only the fish head and bones on the ground were evidence that anyone had been there. Toshiro heard Azher land and turned to face her.

"What," Azher asked menacingly, "did you just say?"

Toshiro accepted the challenge. "Your mother is a wh-"

He was knocked out before he finished the sentence.

---

edited 2nd Dec '10 9:58:50 AM by SalFishFin

... Okay, I've voted yes.

Hell, I'm putting my God Hat on and voting yes. Now my vote is worth 1.1 votes.

(Also quick word of advice- when you get accepted, you're gonna need a gmail account)

There are too many toasters in my chimney!

I have no less than 6 gmail accounts as of the time of this post. use the one that's the same as my Troper handle (no spaces, natch).

edited 2nd Dec '10 10:58:29 AM by SalFishFin

Anothere yes vote. Your acceptance is pretty much settled. Just two more.

Nah, she's in. There are six authors, I already voted yes (a few posts up) and we need a majority vote, which Cygan provided by a margin of .1 votes. =D

Can I throw some confetti now?

Also, visual question 'cause I'm drawing the chracters, does Azher have arms independant from her wings?

No, her wings sort of "sprout" from her arms,starting about 6" below the wrist. There's a membrane that runs down both sides of her torso, ending a few inches above her hips, creating a sort of triangle of flesh that's covered in feathers.

Yay Sal got in :D

~ throws lots of confetti ~

Congratulations Sal :D

There are too many toasters in my chimney!

I have an idea for a character's powerset, but I'm uncertain what category it would be placed in. My character has the ability to manifest certain parts of his personality as spiritual beings, with powers corresponding to the Western elements of air, water, earth and fire. The fifth element, energy, is something the character will learn to use on their own body later. While technically the potential for these powers is enormous, the character is limited by the three spiritual gates that must be opened to manifest their full spiritual power (which gradually rises as they learn new techniques). The gate of the body must be opened to manifest anything. It does manifest the elements, but with no free will, intelligence or serious power. The gate of the mind manifests them with a lot of power and the ability to communicate advice telepathically to the character, but if that part of the character's personality gains dominance in their mind, that element will possess the character. The gate of the soul manifests them with the full force of the character's spiritual power, but once the task specified by the summoning is complete, the manifestation has free will. It then has to either be talked into re-merging, or forcefully subdued. So does this powerset correspond to human mage, Shinigami or Sidhe?

edited 12th Dec '10 4:13:35 PM by Ultrayellow

Except for 4/1/2011. That day lingers in my memory like...metaphor here...I should go.

Cygans going to have to answer this one- she will probabaly be back by tomorrow.

Sounds like a wizard to me. A Sidhe, most probably, as your character sounds really powerful. To be honest, a bit too powerful. And "he's not a Physical God (exaggeration) yet" isn't an excuse. That said, there's not a power cap characters have to meet, as long as we think you are able to handle it. Or I could just be misjudging your character.

To know for sure, we'd need some more information. But anyway, your answer is "A Sidhe mage, probably."

If you want the character powered down, I could remove the character's ability to protect themselves with the fifth element, energy. That would make them a Glass Cannon. But you're right, opening the second or third gates would have to make the character a lot more powerful. The gate of the soul is actually a lot better than the gate of the mind if the projections aren't serious threats to other people by that point.

Except for 4/1/2011. That day lingers in my memory like...metaphor here...I should go.