Lappland - Shootout at the Naval Yard

Lappland steadily advanced on the next thug, a smile spreading across her face as she watched him, waiting for her moment. These strange green-blooded goons weren't really much fun, but toying with them was still turning out to be kind of amusing. This one was definitely realizing how outclassed he was, and Lappland was just considering putting him out of his misery when a tiny figure zipped across her line of sight, and the thug wend down like a pile of bricks.

The lupo stopped in her tracks, amused smile draining from her face as, just for a second, she looked down at Krillin with a dangerous glint in her eyes.

A moment later, however, a chuckle came bubbling back up her throat as the policeman delivered his little speech and rushed off, only to be met by a hail of gunfire for his trouble.

"Ah, of course! Someone might get shot! We wouldn't want to risk that!" Lappland's voice was thick with ironic laughter as she casually swept her sword in an arc that reduced a few stray incoming bullets into bursts of sparks, deftly skipping and ducking back out of the way of another volley, sweeping her other sword in a low arc that would send a crescent flash of silver light back towards the thug who had fired - at a nice non-lethal knee height, of course.

Gotham Naval Yard

With a smack, Rico's foot met the face of one of the thugs, and he crumpled to the ground, his sunglasses shattered. He fell to the ground, unconscious, as Rico continued on and landed on the wall he'd been grappling to. He turned around for a second, to observe the fight.

Somebody new was here, some type of animal person. She killed him with a sword. Unfortunate, Rico thought. Krillin probably wouldn't like that. But the martial artist seemed on the ball, as the newcomer's next target was "saved" by Krillin knocking him out before he could taste cold steel.

The engine of their van had suffered a rather unplanned disassembly, and sitting inside of it was some type of machine. Rico couldn't identify it at first glance. It looked like nothing he'd ever seen. The thugs were equally transfixed, at least until they spotted Krillin, at which point all of them took out their handguns as once and started shooting at him and the machine.

Rico took half a second to think, then came up with an idea. He pulled the grapple hook out of the wall, then grappled up to a higher point before he could fall to the ground. Once he'd gotten some altitude, he kicked off the wall and spread his wingsuit, covering the distance between where he'd gotten to and the thugs attacking Krillin in about a second. He rolled to a stop behind them, then aimed his Grappler carefully.

He aimed one grapple shot into one of the thugs. Then the second hook into another. If they both connected? Rico would hit "retract". And the thugs would suddenly become quite intimate as the detached grapple reel pulled them towards each other at high speed.

Edited by SpartyMcFly on Nov 11th 2020 at 2:11:42 PM

Juri & Chun-Li, Crime Alley

Juri grinned at the remaining four bikers sadistically, before she started kicking one in the face repeatedly before grabbing him with her legs. As another biker approached her, Juri used a roundhouse kick to knock them both to the ground before slamming her legs into them.

Catwoman dodged the attempts of one of the bikers trying to attack her before she did a kick of her own to the face of him, knocking him down to ground. However, this left her open to be grabbed by the last remaining one... until Harley slammed her baseball bat into his head, knocking him out.

At this point, the bikers were either knocked out or fleeing from the women at this point.

"Bein' a waitress there was boring anyway!" Harley stated in the affirmative.

"A nightclub sounds perfect," Catwoman nodded to Mystique.

"Fine by me," Chun-Li simply shrugged to the others.

Club Murciélago + Mystique

After Mystique on her part used the time to shapeshifter into a blond woman with a red dress

“With everyone being dressed as superheroes. I could be my real self in that place, but now I rather not draw too much attention to myself.”

Soon after walking for a few minutes, still near Crime Alley, she would lead them to one of the best if not the best and most expensive nightclubs in all the city: Night club Murcielago.

Even at the entrance, the music from the party inside, and part the light show inside could be seen in the sky. Just outside was A huge line of rich and young people eager to dance all night.

Mystique would lead the group to skip the long line and go straight to the entrance were a very buff bouncer was waiting for them.

“Your tickets please,” he said with and angry frown.

Raven would turn to Chun Li. “Here’s your first challenge. We got no tickets, you don’t like breaking the law. And yet that man is the only thing that stands between us and a night of fun.”

“What will you do?”

She stares at Juri, Harley, and Catwoman.

“I know you can do it ladies, but she has to learn on her own.”

”lBatman” —-Gotham Streets

Interrupting the scene Between Alan Wake and Rocket Racoon was none other than the dark knight himself.

“Am I interrupting something?” He says while frowning at Alan Wake and Rocket Rackoon?”

He crosses his arms. “ I want to make one thing clear: I don’t care how much you think you’ve saved this city with your meddling. I don’t trust you visitors from other world. Step out if the line and I will come after you.”

Edited by FallenLegend on Nov 17th 2020 at 8:17:20 AM

Gotham, Naval Yard: Krillin Plays Nanny to Too Many Characters

As unsettling as the (invincible) REGIS Mk. 5 was, Krillin could let out a short sigh of relief; this black spider thing wasn't looking to cause trouble for them.

...of course, that relief was short-lived because the machine was still looking to cause trouble for the identical thugs. Judging by the way it liked to exercise it's "vengeance," REGIS Mk. 5 the invincible was bound to commit murder and wreck half the naval yard at the same time!

"Look, I know you're mad, but could you—"

"FUZAKENNAKORRA!"

Krillin flinched at the battle cry (or was that a slur?) and muttered his own "Oh, crap!" in response. Though startling as these thugs were, their uniformity was beginning to be a noticeable weakness: they didn't strategize and divide their jobs up very much; they didn't work as a team so much as limbs of the same body. So when the four thugs opened fire on Krillin and a certain invincible AI, two for each target, the martial artist could plan his counter knowing that his attackers wouldn't have much of a backup plan.

Just like the first trio of thugs to attack Krillin, the two thugs would find their target simply vanished into thin air—as if he'd been a convincing mirage. They might have a blink's length of time to feel shocked, before a chop to the jugular would hit one attacker and a knee strike to the back of the head would hit the other. With any luck, these bizarre pushovers would be down for the count, leaving Krillin enough time to finish what he'd been saying to the machine:

"—could you narrow your scope a little more than that?! Nobody has to die here!"

For better or worse, Krillin was far too preoccupied to hear Lappland's sarcasm...not that he'd have a great comeback even if he had heard her. Coming up with sly remarks in the middle of battle was more Piccolo and Vegeta's thing.

Gotham, Streets: There is An Imposter Among Us

Wake heard Batman's voice before he saw the man in the flesh: an authoritative bass that could make even a hardened thug feel like a little kid facing the disciplinary vice principal. It even had an effect on Wake too, for a moment: a few inches of retreat like a calm reaction to a jump scare, the look on his face a mixture of fear and...well, awe. Mr. Scratch knew who normally protected this city—for Christ's sake, he'd known it for most of the old model's his goddamn life! Meeting a real-life superhero, even decades after you stopped caring about that kiddish crap, was an unbelievable experience!

...which was precisely the problem: it was unbelievable. "Batman" might have a moment to celebrate the desired reaction his presence would make before the well-dressed man before him hardened his expression with two forceful words:

"Horse shit."

Scratch straightened from his involuntary slouch, and resumed the "fully-in-control" demeanor he'd been using with the talking raccoon a moment ago.

"I don't know who you are, but I know who the fuck you're not. What, do you think this is funny? The city's gone to shit because the Bat didn't come along for the ride here. The Mayor and I are busting our asses off trying to drag the city out of the hellhole we found it in, and you think it's hilarious to walk around in an overzealous Halloween costume posing as the guy who put Gotham in this mess?!"

The Mayor's Adviser started walking towards the Caped Crusader. He took his time with each step, like he was slowly hammering down a nail.

"There's something you need to know about this little prank of yours: everyone is going to hate you for it. The people of Gotham lost their protector a few months ago, and without the Dark Knight watching the streets, crime has spiked to the highest rates it's ever been. That costume reminds them of what they've lost and how much worse their lives are now, so thanks for that!

"The Outsiders hate it too—we're the altruistic jackasses trying to turn this city around, and yet all we get for thanks is threats and harassment. Care to guess how many phone calls and emails the Mayor gets telling him to go die in a ditch for 'trying to be Batman?' No one likes to see the team favorite get traded away for a rookie, but for fuck's sake the Bat's fanbase is relentless! If Travers and the rest of us wanted to become Caped Crusaders, you think we'd be walking out in broad daylight with half a dozen targets on our backs?!

"And the criminals, ohhhhh, they're gonna hate you most of all! Wanna know why? Because you're a fucking sheep in wolf's clothing. One shot to the head, and down you go: no conflict, no challenge, no revelation of some diabolical plot, just some wannabe dumbass on the ground and bits of his brain on the walls. Talk about a bummer, don't you think?"

By now, Mr. Scratch was within "Batman's" personal space. Yet he continued walking, just with a slower pace—as if to really nail down his words.

"Maybe you think I'm talking out of my ass; you'd hardly be the first. But if you've spent even ten minutes in this city you'd know just how stupid you are for wearing that. How many glares did you get just walking down this street? How many threats? Or did you stick to side roads and alleyways just to avoid the oh-so-unwanted attention? Whatever the case, you're not just out of your league, you're out of your alleged element; any first-grader could tell you that bats only come out at night.

"But by all means: prove me wrong! Take off the mask, let me see my audience! Because there's something else you should know about this little prank of yours..."

Now, standing within a foot of the Caped Crusader, both men might come to an interesting realization: if the shapeshifter had done their homework, they were the same height. This detail allowed Scratch to subtly lean towards the Dark Knight's ear without strain.

"I know who's supposed to be under that cowl."

Edited by TheodoreHastings on Nov 18th 2020 at 7:40:32 AM

Not-Batman —Gotham Streets— But I didn’t Vent.

“Really? Is that your plan. That I might reveal might secret identity, so that potentially millions of people will see, including my worst enemies? Just for the off chance you might recognize me?” Batman crossed his arms.

As Alan Wake towards Batman, Mystique a wide grin appeared through her face.

“I’m not in the mood of playing along as a man I hardly know, so I”ll just spare you the act of being this “Batman.”

Batman would touch her face as if he were to unmask. But, instead, a blue streak would go through “Batman’s body” as Mystique returned to her real form

“”You know, good people usually like to cooperate with superheroes. They never question someone with a cape or a mask. It makes my job easier. “

She crosses her arms. “For the record you put too much faith in humans. They’re very fickle with their hero adoration. They will love you if you if you save them like a good Boy Scout.But, Eventually they will turn on you. They will hate and fear you the instant they learn you’re not just different, but a constant reminder of what they could’ve been, but never will.”

“This Batman never had any powers had he? Just an average man with a mask. It doesn’t surprise me they loved him that much. In the end people were just loving themselves.”

Edited by FallenLegend on Nov 25th 2020 at 5:56:13 AM

Chun-Li, Club Murciélago

Chun-Li gave a look at Mystique and the other before turning to the buff bouncer and pulled something out of her pocket... A very large sum of money. Breaking up that opium drug ring did leave her with quite a bit of excess money to burn off.

Chun-Li smiled and winked at him, "That should cover me and the girls."

Hopefully, this guy will take the money bribe as ticket payment.

Gotham, Streets: Blue (Wo)man Group

Scoffing at the summary, Wake took a step back so that "Batman" could get a good look at that confident smirk one more time.

"You're the one bluffing, jackass. Not me."

Sure enough, the bluff was called...just not quite the way the Chief Adviser had expected. Some wannabe vigilante, sure. A shapeshifting babe with blue skin with skull ornaments working serving as a near-pointless belt? Not exactly the first suspect on his list.

Not that he could feel very surprised anymore; this entire planet had abused those neural signals so much they'd practically burnt out. Besides, he was standing next to a walking, talking, and heavily-armed raccoon. Why not add more crazy to this fever dream that was Wake's life now?!

The Chief Adviser stood in silence like a good audience; it was only fair after the monologue he'd made this shapeshifter^note  too soon to call her a "woman" yet, that's how the shapeshifting trope gets ya! stand through. He even lightened up on the smirk a bit, though that might not have been purely out of etiquette. She made a fair point about Fearing the Other, and while almost any amateur writer could give a lecture on the correlation between superheroes and the Übermensch, those last four or five sentences were full of so much dramatic irony it shattered Scratch's façade like a very sudden and very funny joke—so much so that he felt compelled to cover his mouth with his free hand to try (and fail) to hide his beaming smile.

"Sorry about that." he cleared his throat after a moment. "I'm not at liberty to really spill the beans about our Gone-but-not-Forgotten paragon, but let's just say...'if you only knew.'"

Average Man with a Mask my ass. Having mountains of money is a superpower in and of itself!

"Far as the rest goes..." Scratch turned to the streets, pretended to think the matter over, and shook his head in disapproval. "I think you might be confusing 'good people' for 'sheep.' Good people do what's right and challenge the wrongs in front of them. Sheep just do as they're damn told. And while there's more of one class than the other, isn't that all the more reason for the good people to become shepherds?"

Scratch had maybe half a second to be proud of his metaphor before he realized where in the old model's his oldest memories he'd plagiarized it. The recollection put a sour taste in his mouth.

"Oof. Shit, that sounds kinda religious, doesn't it."

Shaking free of the New Testament or wherever that came from, the Chief Adviser turned his full attention back to the shapeshifter and offered his hand to shake.

"Alan Wake, Adviser to Mayor Travers. And you are?"

Mokou's fire would actually manage to set a goodly portion of the cocoon aflame despite the air of divinity that seemed to stifle the biological reactions that were transpiring for whatever reason. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that for a few seconds, a faint illusion of a vague white wolf could be seen looking down from the air while the rays of the sun shone as though it was noon down in the depths of the dark earthly chasm. Almost like it was the final intervention of a deity that should by all rights be dead.

With the aid of the sun, phoenix fire itself would be tinted with solar energy while all the surrounding Drows present would be beset by that most hateful of substances that depleted their strength even as it bolstered the morale of the invaders. Magic fire now tinged with deific blessings for just a moment, the inferno became all the more stylized as though painted into reality by a celestial brush as it sped across the writhing structure to make the imagery almost akin to an ink painting.

For a couple still seconds, a heartbeat loud enough to thrum the earth and be felt to the bone stilled before a keening screech rang out and several knife sharp legs punctured out from the silken innards of that great construct to madly scrabble at the battlements it was perched upon. Strands of burning silk unraveled to reveal a half formed arachnid monstrosity with the upper half of a drow female growing from where the head would be, visage all but set in a rictus of the utmost raging hatred against all who stood before her plan.

And then even that was unceremoniously interrupted before any speeches were given by the fact that rays of scintillating darkness lanced out from across the battlefield to strike the goddess through the chest, leaving a gaping hole through the heart. And yet even now the dark god still survived even if she was staggering back from the surprise shot which caused the stifled fire to creep back up through her legs to set the main body blazing once more, the smell of cooked flesh and boiling fats now wafting through the air like the most macabre of incense.

"Ah, and so your hunger has backfired upon you. How ironic is it not that by attempting to snatch at the domain that proved to be the opposite antithesis to yours in order to get rid of that weakness, you find yourself in such peril because you could not simply wait to ascend to the heavens. Now you are but a pitiful pest whose nest has been scoured by the prey that you could not even properly digest."

An amused tut could be heard ringing out from the natural amphitheater that was the connected caverns before the visage of yet another grey-skinned woman of tall stature could be seen entering the area proper, shadow looming down to cast itself over dreaded if incapitated Lloth who couldn't even give a proper reply save for a frothy gurgle while godly flesh slowly reknit itself.

And then snakes erupted from the newest invader's hair, serpentine giants that grew in stature to secure the most painful of grips on whatever soft flesh the fangs could burrow themselves into while the amusement from their owner slowly bled away to show condescendence. "I know just what you are capable of and so there will be no drawing things out. A pity that you cannot experience a fraction of the torture that you've put so many through but... necessity dictates a true ending of any such problems, especially from a tricky sort as yourself... Be glad that your death shall be swift, yes?"

And then with great strain did the coils of biological muscle pull the Queen of Spiders apart in a god slaying display of drawing-and-quartering, ichor splattering about the area to hiss away at the stones while the badly mutilated carcass was swallowed wholesale by the nest of serpents that adorned her head, bulges of ingested goddess flowing down through the lengths into the one that went by the name of Medusa.

With that grisly feast finished, shadows grew thicker around her personage even as her stature grew more great in presence- both from the fact that she had a growing aura of dark energies as well as the fact that she had gained enough mass to eventually stop at twenty feet tall. "In the end, I suppose that I would be the most fitting vessel to stop your evil from invading and corrupting the hearts of those who are easily tempted. Darkness is something I know all too well and you cannot taint blackness any further." A bitter chuckle of ironic amusement rang out before the visage of a wolf was gently cast out from within to ascend to the skies and dissipate. "I've no need for any light so be free, fleeting sunrise."

Gazing at those who were stock still from sheer surprise at what had happened, Medusa grimly smirked before stepping back into the tunnel that she came from. Any who would chase after the interruption would find that there was no trace of her to be found, even those who were trackers that could follow the trail of prey across a continent even. And so, the war simply ended on such a quiet note as those who drew power from the Spider Queen wilted and slumped both from the fact that their dread deity had been slain before their eyes as well as the fact their most powerful of clerical magics were now not responding due to having no source to draw from.

Added to that was the fact that civil infighting spread like an infection through the ranks as the lower castes and the males gleefully set upon their former masters with all the dark rage of those that had been abused so greatly could, getting their pound of flesh in ways that were most apt and literal while blood freshly flowed in rivers like the end goal save from sources that most of the higher class did not wish to come from.

Yes, on this day did the Underdark truly end in a manner that most would never have expected, not even those of Camoa or the allies they brought with them. The war if it could be called such was truly over and the coalition of forces that had descended would not find their way to the rest of the world blocked given what had transpired, with the way out literally open for those who had wearied from the fight and sought more cheerful settings.

Club Murciélago—Gotham- Outside

The bouncer would take the money with a side smirk “Babe, you just needed to ask nicely,” he says as he takes the money to put it in the right pocket of his jeans. He then moves aside to let them in.

Meanwhile Raven would give a glance at Catwoman while pointing at the bouncer’s wallet. “Psst,” she would say. Truth be told it would be an easy steal for her, should she want it.

Then Mystique would shake her head at Chin-Li

“No, no. You aren’t an old rich man. “When I told you had more potential than you knew I meant it.”

She crosses her arms. “You’re a good woman, Chun Li. More humans should be like you. But sometimes it’s helpful to play a role that you aren’t used to, you know? Being a bad girl has its perks.

Mystique would shapeshift her dress to something more black to better blend in

“Haven’t you tried to go undercover? Take it from a shapeshifter like me, sometimes the best way to win is to think like the enemy. “ she shrugs. “And who knows you might even enjoy it.l

Inside—Club Murciélago

“Humor me this time, Chun Li. Tonight you aren’t that well-behaved girl that goes to sleep at 10:00 am after doing her good deeds of the day. No, Today you’re Chun li a young woman that just wants to have fun, and plays by no one’s rules except her own,” Mystique would tell the martial artist.

And once inside they would find themselves in what was a very noisy nightclub, to the point it would be hard to hear inside.

Given this was a luxury night club it had a pool section where people were swimming.

The other half had the classic section where people dance as they listened to the D Js jamming some music.

In the middle, there was a bar where people went to get their drinks

And there were of course tables where people could talk and drink while not being bothered as much by the music

As for the music. Of course, they played modern songs, but as luck would have it, right now they were playing a retro song from the ’80s instead to give a temporal retro feeling.

Mystique—Gotham streets

“Keep it, “ the Mutant said referring to Batman. “You said enough. Just Another rich kid playing superhero, that’s hardly something I care about.”

To answer his question she would say, “I am many things, but my true name is for people that have gained my trust. As for you? I am Mystique,” the mutant would reply. “You’re clever than most I’ll give you that. But titles do very little to impress me. Mayor? Presidents? Kings? Those I can easily replace. “

It was at this point that she gave Alan her back back, and walk away. Or she would’ve if it wasn’t for his speech that made her turn around and listen to him.

“You look like just another man, but you don’t talk like one.”

She stares at the street deep in thought. “It’s true. Few people have the gift to chose on their own. People like to think they are good, just because they do what everyone tells them to. The popular opinion. Those people need to be guided to so the right thing.”

“Like you, I want to change things, but here’s the difference, between us. Everyone else is focused on building an empire, and become the leaders they never were wherever the world they came from. As for me? I prefer it when others take the spotlight for me. I do my best work in the shadow. I believe people are shepherd best when they don’t even know it when they think it was their idea. That’s what real power is.”

Edited by FallenLegend on Dec 13th 2020 at 9:11:50 AM

Chun-Li & Juri, Club Murciélago

Chun-Li frowned as that was not what Mystique wanted. However, she actually considered Mystique's comment about going undercover.

When she saw the dance floor, Chun-Li headed over there to start dancing before signaling some of the others to head over. The only one who bit on dancing with her was Juri, who simply shrugged and joined Chun-Li in dancing.

Both Catwoman and Silent Magician decided to head off to the pool after getting in swimsuits. Meanwhile, Harley Quinn helped herself to the alcohol at the bar. The only one there who simply sat down at one of the tables was Seth.

Once more time would flow ever steadily onward, with the inexorable march resulting in both great progress just as there were massive regressions in various other areas as though to balance each other out. Many things would occur over the ten years, both major and minor but all would agree that there was no stopping change from occurring.

And so the nascent soul watched and learnt from the inhabitants that were scattered among the lands, slowly forming the beginnings of consciousness like how an embryo was now a newborn.

Its actions were instinctive still but now, there was more of an overall guidance as it aimed the world to shift along with what was needed for long term survival of civilization as well as long term continuation of the status quo getting shifted without the sheer randomness of its earlier flailings.

Astronomers and explorers of the land would note that the world itself would not grow any bigger after a certain amount of time nor would the continents and landmasses themselves shift any further after expanding to be roughly the size of planet Earth. Instead of being the figurative jigsaw puzzle that kept getting separated and put together in various different manners, now the world was more akin to a large coloring book that was slowly being filled in with various shades and hues.

It was an incomplete world still yes, but now there was a definite basic frame that would not further be unsettled any longer with any new landmarks or places instead slotting themselves down atop what was already there like the transplanting of topsoil rather wholesale excavation.

Likewise, new flora and fauna were introduced as well but on a more minute scale than prior. Where before there were mass immigrations of certain groups, now there were a more mixed bag trickling of whatever creatures and people from all over the multiverse to slowly settle about the strange new worlds they found themselves in like displaced silt that drifted down.

Monsters that threatened civilization prowled the wilds in various forms and patterns, ensuring that there was always a need for stalwart pioneers to brave the paths that would keep the lands connected in land, sea, and sky. Likewise those that were more sentient but preyed on their fellow thinking people lurked within the depths of the lawless wilderness, lacking natural weapons and animalistic strength but more than making up for such with terrible cunning and the willingness to commit evils in the name of freedom and survival away from the established rules of the civilizations' various hubs.

Perhaps even more unsettling besides the fact that the world around them grew all the more dangerous despite finally settling down on what sort of planet it wanted to be were the fact that aliens were known to exist if the fact crop circles were formed overnight with no witnesses to see the vandalism other than the fact that suspect streaks of blurry pictures captured on devices were the only evidence caught of such misdeeds.

Oh, and the green moon that traversed the skies at night seemed to have unsettlingly grown a dark patch on the face it showed the inhabitants of the Frontiers that made it look like a giant eyeball gazing down at the world and all who lived there in question every three full moon periods- almost as though it was a scheduled event in question.◊

It is now the anniversary of the tenth year of the realm's creation, a full 3650 days that had gone by. To those who survived until this point and were important enough to be viewed as such, they would get two Permits of Perpetuity over the years to use with as they please as if it were bonuses for making it this far.

The land itself would feel supercharged with an intangible excitement and energy now that the tenth year milestone had been reached, as though it were a portent that things were going to change on a grand scale once more in the near future with the build up shoring for such monumental events that were to come. For now though... life goes on as it always did for those who were trapped in this grand experiment.

Ten years. For a lonesome man, it is a long length of time, enough for one to think over what they've achieved, reflect on past life and ponders on where to go from there; the allure of moving past it all growing strong. For a long-dead spirit given mortal form, things remained unchanged as ever, save for perhaps new relations, new places and new responsibilities; her calling as a nurse having not once escaped her. For a shell of a metallic man, a year or ten makes no difference; long as he can satiate his lust for murder, he'll be eternally content with a gleeful smile and laugh.

Yet beyond the multitude of unique individuals and entrenched factions that had claimed the Frontier as their own home, a new power rises from the horizon. One that has appeared so suddenly some years ago, robbing an ancient alchemist of his millenia-old plan... yet granting him new horizons and opportunities in the process in his eternal quest to escape from his 'flask'.

Daud ; Unnamed Town - Fantasia

A modest cottage. Nosy albeit friendly villagers with odd beast-ears with the occasional 'adventuring parties' traveling through. And a pier, from which a man◊ silently held onto his fishing pole, waiting for a bite. All of this reeks of crappy idealistic fairy-tale town some no-name author concocted, yet here he was, a murky guy living in the middle of it all. Such was the new life the assassin-turned-master spy-turned-grandpa led, slow idle days passing by.

Suddenly, a bite. As if driven by reflexes that still hadn't left him, the fisherman pulled, scoring his third catch for the day. Words of praise were heard from those around him. That should earn a fair bit of coin.

Shooing away some snot-nosed brats gathering about him and giving a slight nod at the other fishermen passing by, the old man hefts and made his way to the market along stone-cobbled path. Just another average day for Eric, an immigrant of Akihabara.

Nightingale ; Frontier Medical Center - Akihabara

In stark contrast to Daud's idyllic life, the Servant's days have been as busy as ever; being the de facto director and head nurse of the Frontier Pledge; her modest hospital now having transformed into a respectable medical center boasting hundreds of staff and with many branches around the world. She even has her own standing elite combat-medics armed to the teeth, able to secure patients in any high-risk conflict and scenarios.

Most of it was thanks in part due to her wish for a universal panacea and organ-printing technology, her collaboration with chaos' holographic device for the training of her staff and her deal with Tekka Ascendancy.

... And it was on this day that Nightingale was expecting for her next scheduled shipment from them, having already came back to the center after her routine clean-up of Yue's room; apron and duster still on hand.◊

Barry ; Wulfrik's Murderhobo Cruise

The Chopper's life can be summed up in as few parts. He murdered, got a gig as someone's henchmen, murdered some more, murdered a bit too much that got the attention of nosy do-gooders, been on the run 'cause being imprisoned/killed means he can't go on another murder streak again, scored big time when he met others that doesn't mind his healthy hobbies of murderin' folks on a magical teleporting ship...

Then he murdered some more.

Such is his legacy that he's content with nothing more. If there were to be some regrets, it was that he could no longer hit on the ladies that he met since they kinda wanted his head on a silver platter now...

Eh, who cares about the hoes anyways! Murderbros for life!

"Oi, Wulfy, old pal!" the enthusiastic killer greeted his fellow murderin' pal, his trademark cleaver over his shoulder with his stabby sword at his side.◊ "Know if we heading to any more butcherin' ground? My chopper's been getting a bit too clean and itchy. Been a while since we've painted a whole town red, gahaha!"

Amestris

Over the course of three years, Amestris◊ had annexed many farmlands and small towns around their surrounding(either via diplomacy, military subjugation or manipulation by the Homunculi themselves), under the assumption to maintain their growing empire and protect the people from foreign powers; instilling the people living under their territory a sense of nationalistic pride. Railways, communication towers and barracks were made in conjunction, to better maintain control over their newly-annexed territory.

Deep beneath the beating heart of Amestris that is Central Command,◊ Father waits. And planned. The sudden shift of the whole place had put a wrench to his long wait, but in its place, new opportunity arose. One where he suspects that will show itself soon enough.

... And he was right, when a portal emerged in the outskirts of Central City about a week ago, amongst some old building. Already, a checkpoint was established and King Bradley would have a delegation prepared whilst the homunculi will be left to their own device, long as they advance Father's plan in their own way.

It is time.

[Akihabara-Amestris Portal established]

5,256,000 minutes. 5,250,000 moments so dear. 5,256,000 minutes. How do you measure, measure a year?

In murders, in conquests, in waifus, in cups of coffee(?). In meters, in kilometers, stop using imperial measurements Americans! In 5,256,000 minutes. How do you measure a year in the life?

Measure in… MEEEEEEMEEEEES! Measure, measure your life in memes and shitpoooooosts!

Is There a Glitch in the Simulation

Yes, yes there is. Maybe we should go back to whatever qualifies as “normal” around this place.

Kaiba, KAIBADOME -Akibahara

Kaiba had certainly kept busy these past 10 years. He’d built his own theme park, Kaiba Corp branded movie theaters, battle arenas, game shops, the works. His entertainment empire was considerable at this point. Not only that, but he had started doing philanthropic projects within Gotham. Most notable of which was an orphanage that he took great care to maintain. He was a bit of a ruthless bastard, but he knew what those kids were going through, and wanted to do right by them if nothing else.

In the meantime, Kaiba was currently hanging out in the new and improved KAIBADOME™. There were more high tech facilities now, including VR stations where people could fight in total unreality if they so wished. Schmaden Schmuki and Schmuya Schmasaki were currently having an epic duel at the moment, and no those definitely aren’t real people. You must still be feeling sick from the simulation glitch or something. Get some rest.

Kaiju Empire, Diet

What does a society created by a killer crab woman look like? Lots of aggressive territorial expansion, mostly. Whatever villages may have existed in the immediate vicinity have been absorbed into the now Empress’ Dessy’s bloody claws after years of violent conquest. At first she had used an army of lizardmen and other roustabouts to invade nearby territories, but after a wish she now had the ability to outright create kaiju. These beasts proved to be far too much for the innocent farmers and civilians that found themselves in her path, which led to a pretty quick surrender on the part of anyone who was still showing some form of resistance.

The Empire had grown into a surprisingly functional society when all was said and done. The trains ran on time, people were fed, and there was a government. Not a democratic one by any means, but a government nonetheless. Biollante, Dessy’s other wish, ended up doing most of the day-to-day administrative tasks - sort of the equivalent position to the Prime Minister if anything. Meanwhile, Queen Ghidorah was general of the Empress’ army, vested with full control over it in situations where the Empress herself wasn’t present. Nobody really had half a mind to question these giant terrifying women, though Biollante had proven to be significantly less bloodthirsty than the other two. She understood it was difficult to run a nation through terror and death all the time, which made her the most reasonable person in power and helped temper Dessy’s violent ambitions to more manageable levels.

As far as what it actually looked like, there was a distinct traditional Japanese flavor to the architecture. Buildings that looked like this◊ weren’t uncommon within the Empire. In place of the Japanese flag was something a bit more threatening, though. A simple illustration of a monstrous creature of some kind flew high above the Diet building, giving off an ominous vibe.

Biollante sighed, taking a swig of sake that she kept on her desk at all times at this point. More locations were popping up across Frontiers, and the Empress’ enemies were growing in strength. The future was uncertain right now, and uncertainty was anathema to the finely tuned dictatorship she was trying to maintain. Even if she was ultimately the Empress’ puppet ruler, her job was stressful at times like this.

“There’s a storm brewing,” the plant kaiju girl thought to herself. “And I don’t want to be caught in the rain.”

But the rain would come sooner or later. That much was certain.

Destoroyah, Murderbuddies

Destoroyah had done quite a lot over the past 10 years. Starting her own empire was no easy feat. But ultimately, she was a woman of simple pleasures, and what pleasured her most was killing people. Which she did a lot of. She made a name for herself and proved that a woman could be as terrifying as any man, which was a huge step forward in the fight for gender equality in the Frontiers.

All this reminiscing about murder and conquest eventually brought her back to an old flame of hers – Barry the Chopper. She didn’t know if she was capable of the emotion of love, but she liked the cut of his jib. Sometimes, that was the most you could ask for in a murderbuddy.

She made her way over to Barry, kneeling down and bending so she could give him a kiss on his helmet. Tall crab was tall.

“Hey Barry,” she said in a friendly, playful voice. “Did you miss me?”

She looked over at Wulfrik, someone she had also become well acquainted with over the last decade.

“Heard you two wanted to fuck shit up. Count me in.”

Edited by HilarityEnsues on Jan 10th 2021 at 5:16:30 AM

What's it like, spending ten years in this shithole called the Frontiers? Well if you're immortal, it's just Tuesday. If you aren't... well you just deal with it, I guess. Carving out whatever slice of peace, comfort, or happiness you can in this miserable rock flying through space, staving off disasters and calamities galore as you descend into tribalism, and generally looking for something to do. For an adventurer, there was always another adventure. For a soldier, there was always another war. And for a goddess, there was always the future.

And... to be honest, there's usually explosions involved. A lot of explosions. Too many? Who's to say. But they just seem to be a part of life now. And yeah, okay, sometimes you ruin half a city with them, but people learn to move on.

Frontier Medical Center - Akihabara

"Well, well, well, Gale, I didn't get the memo we were roleplaying today, you shoulda called ahead." M16 strolled in leisurely, rocking her standard Shippuden timeskip casual look◊ while some dummies handled the grunt work of pulling a truck up to the loading dock with a delivery. She smirked at Nightingale as she took a good long look, her gaze sweeping up and down.

"Gotta say, as fine as you pull off the domestic look, can't help but feel it doesn't express enough of you. Like putting a collar on a lion - sure, it might look nice and pretty on it, but the lion's got too much spirit to be chained up like that."

She pulled out a bottle of Jack Daniel's from her coat, took a swig, and offered it out.

"Though.... I won't be complaining if you wanna wear it more." She laughed at that, sitting down partially on the nearest desk, counter, or surface-like object around. "So, anything planned after the delivery? Got any battlefields that need your special touch? I got a lot on my hands these days, but, well... I got a lot of hands, too. Could always use the chance to stretch my legs. Plus you know I'm good for it if you ever need a little fire support, aye?"

Ruins in Plains - Fantasia

BOOOOOOM

Reverberating for hundreds of yards, yet another explosion rocked the uncharted ruins that had shown up in the middle of one of the many plains of Fantasia. It was like someone had turned on a faucet out here, just dumping things from one world after another, ripe for the picking. Or... exploding, in this case.

At the center of the ruins, a towering automaton stood stock-still after it bore the brunt of the sheer explosive force that had rung out scant seconds earlier. And then, after a moment of deafening silence in the post-explosive calm, the machine fell down in pieces as overpowering laughter drowned out the clinging and clanging of its destruction.

"OHOHOHOHOHO! Let this go to show that some oversized third-rate metal golem crafted by what was clearly a fifth-rate sorcerer is no match for the great Naga the White Serpent, the greatest sorceress in the entirety of the Frontiers, ohohohohoho!"

"Well done, Mistress Naga."

"Of course Albedo, now move aside, I need to get this damned thing's gem out...."

With a whistle, Naga picked up the shiny gem that had been the creature's power core.

"Darn, it's a bit chipped, but I suppose I can use it. Not bad for a day's work! OHOHOHOHOHOHO!"

When she was done laughing, the echoing didn't stop. And then it turned to rumbling. Before Naga knew it, three more of the automatons◊ had sprung up from the ruins near her.

"Ohohoho, three more gems. Today is our lucky day!"

And then three more pulled themselves out of the rubble. And three more. And more. At least three dozen of the things had pulled themselves up and started to grumble and groan as they powered up, and there was no telling if that was all of it.

"Albedo?"

"Tactical retreat?"

"Tactical retreat."

Hoisting her newfound treasure over her head... Naga began running away, her soulless minion keeping pace as she flew right behind her, dull expression on her face, all the while the horde of oversized machines charging right behind her as they cut a swathe across the countryside.

Good thing this place was so big, it could stand to lose a mile or two of grass.

Nightingale - Frontier Medical Center

"You're here."

M16. For some odd reason, the deliverywoman is very persistent. Even if she were to use a different body, she would've recognized her right away, not to mention the Jack Daniels being a dead give-away. Such was Nightingale's familiarity with the raifu over the years.

"Been housekeeping my Master's home. Busy as I am, my priority is still maintaining her well-being first and foremost." Normally, she'd skip right down to business instead of idle chatter, and she did so, initially. When that failed, the nurse actually indulged in the raifu, thinking that it'll be enough to satisfy her to not waste her time further. Then one thing led to another and, well... here they are.

By this point, she treats this as just another routine.

"If it's pent-up release you wish for, we can do so in our usual room in a moment. If you wish for more intensive care, then please feel free to visit us anytime you or any of your bodies accrue damage." The head nurse spoke indifferently even as she inspected the cargo manifests. Let's see: ventilators, check; repair parts for their damaged vehicles, check; precision laser parts...

Her office itself is... well, what you would expect. Sterile white just the way she likes it, with couch comforts for her guests but little comfort of her own, with her mahogany desk and chair. The only decorations about were ones insistently placed by her staff such as potted ferns and diagrams and the various souvenirs that M16 had brought along(the tasteful ones, at least) during her many, many visits.

"It's all in order." Nightingale nods, satisfied. Then puts it away. "No. I've been formally invited to a peace conference in Brittania-Melkia, but I was never one for such things. No warzones require my immediate attention for now and there's no emergency operations scheduled for me today." In other words, this was a rare moment in which she actually has time for herself... which she'll probably spend just by finding more work to do and overseeing the other doctors. Such was the oath she took to not rest in her duty in life. "I'll be handling staff operations afterwards. There's plenty for me to do left."

"So what's your answer, sixteen?" blunt and straightforward as ever, Gale is.

Daud - No Name Town - Fantasia

There's been a rumble and minor quake happening in town, even seeing billowing smoke coming from somewhere far away, but it's nothing that 'Eric' isn't used to. There's all sort of monsters, creatures and magic happening. Probs some adventurer getting in way over their heads.

Well, it's not like they'll ever head in this direction, right?

Edited by JustSomeGuy732 on Jan 10th 2021 at 7:18:47 PM

Frontier Medical Center - Akihabara

"Lucky girl, getting you to clean her floors in that getup. She better appreciate what she's got - Roombas just can't rock the maid look, no matter how much you try and paint them." M16 laughed slightly at her joke. "No warzones and surgeries, huh? Guess Gotham really is shaping up into something... decent."

She drummed her fingers on her leg, listening about the summit between Melkia and Britannia.

"You're not missing much bouncing on formal nation stuff like that - peace conferences aren't really my thing, either. Kind of an ironic name, since all they're good for is showing off your toys to the other guys, and getting them thirsty for something new that can shoot it out of the sky when the next war shows up. Countries might not have the same names as the places back home, but it's always the same thing, no matter what world you're on. Peace talks today, and by noon tomorrow we'll have a dozen orders for shoulder-fired rockets to defend against whatever giant robot or super-heavy tank or missile drone the next jackass is trying to parade around while beating his fists on his chest."

She capped her bottle of Jack, setting it down on the desk with the gentle 'thunk' of glass on wood.

"It's good for you, at least. The more people that get robots and drones to blast each other out of the sky, the less you have to worry about them marching in an army of patients with blown-off limbs and gaping wounds through your doors. And the more time you get for side projects."

M16 slowly, casually shrugged at Gale's question. And then smirked.

"Well.... I've never been one to say no to a pretty face."

Sometime in the past

-Wulfrik barks an order to his crew, and the Seafang turns to better catch the wind. He looks at the hideous carcass of steel and what Point calls plastics littering the deck, trophies taken from the bloodless innards of the latest beast he had tasked himself with finding and slaying in the name of the true gods.-

-Where the iron beasts he has broken to his will thanks to the spear of control resembled earthly animals, this titanic creature brought to mind the denizens of the deepest swamps of Lustria, aberrant survivors of a bygone age, all grasping feelers and snapping claws, bringing to mind the offspring of a lobster and a scorpion given tentacles by Tzeentch’s blessing, and grown to the size of a mountain. Even the Sun-Eater would not have attacked this monstrosity without pause.-

-The metal horror had been quite a challenge, its skin far more resistant to injury than the ones that make up the bulk of Wulfrik’s army, and all too eager to devour them and his henchmen alike. The spear’s controlling magics had proven futile against it, and it was all Wulfrik could do to take control of the lesser machines it spawned around itself. Much as he hates to admit it, the battle would not have ended with the loss of merely three-quarters of his forces without the presence and intervention of Kylo Ren, the young man currently standing at the Seafang’s prow.-

-The young man had carved his way through the devil’s minions and into its body with his blade, a thing of sputtering magic like a solid flame, flaring into existence at its master’s command and cutting through metal as easily as through air. Where Wulfrik’s strength had failed to wrest the monster’s plates apart, the sword Kylo called a “light-saber” had slid through the outer skin as easily as a scalpel, letting the two of them force their way through its body and into its central brain, where their combined strikes succeeded in destroying the demon for good.-

-Wulfrik had contemplated seizing the saber from the pale youth as soon as their foe had been felled, but several factors had prevented him from doing so.-

-Despite his adolescent appearance, Ren is a skilled sorcerer and fighter, able to block, parry, and even return missiles thrown at him, some stopping in midair before being hurled back, and doubtless the blade is enchanted to respond solely to his hand, to spite any thieves. He is several classes above the average warrior Wulfrik had met on this hateful world, despite the harsh training he put his warband through. Most importantly, he is one of the few to recognize the law of the land of Norsca, where only strength of arms and wits matters, not wealth or lineage. He would make a fine recruit for the cause of Chaos, if only he did not look like a Sylvanian freshly dug up. Wulfrik feels halfway tempted to put him to work on the oars to get some healthy color into his cheeks. Instead he walks up to him.-

“That blade you carry, Ren. Is it unique, or are there others like it?”

-Kylo Ren’s body heaved with the exertion of the freshly-won battle, his stance and the movement of his hair in the slipstream lending him an almost feral quality. Though the Supreme Leader would never admit it to the hulking warrior’s face, Wulfrik had proven a useful ally. He had helped clear the decks of their foe’s minions, his strange spear gleaming coldly in the light and his primitive blade cleaving animalistic droids clean in half. The man was fearless, and seemed to be completely undaunted by the towering mechanical monstrosity. Indeed, he seemed to take it as a personal challenge, another chance for glory. However, Wulfrik was not as foolhardy as he seemed, as he had helped Kylo scout out the battleground and find useful weapons and tools for the struggle ahead.-

-When the duo had finally managed to clamber onto the gigantic droid-beast, Kylo noticed that Wulfrik also seemed to have an instinctive grasp of where to press home his savage blows and when to let it tire itself out. In short, without Wulfrik, the Dark Side acolyte likely would’ve never been able to get into position to strike a mortal blow. Kylo was riding the ebbing tide of adrenaline when he heard the hulking Norscan stomp up behind him, the wooden deck creaking and groaning as it took his weight. Taking a deep breath, Kylo faced Wulfrik. Warily, not quite sure of his intentions, Kylo showed Wulfrik the cobbled together hilt of his weapon. “It’s a lightsaber. The mark of a Jedi or a Sith. But those two failed orders are gone. Only I am left.” He found himself unconsciously tightening his grip as he recalled how his uncle and the scavenger girl had cheated him of complete victory.-

-Wulfrik nods as if he knew the orders Kylo speaks of. Probably different warbands he’d joined and deserted once they had nothing left to offer him.-

“And with them, the art of creating new ones? Or can its enchantments be replicated?”

-He glances back at the stern, where the drow wizards have stationed themselves. None of them have ever manifested any proficiency in true fighting, but perhaps they know of ways to forge magic into weapons.-

-There is a long pause as Kylo weighs his options. He could, of course, lie and say that those secrets were no more. But there was a chance that the primitive, musclebound warrior was more astute than he seemed and might try to force the issue if he detected any deceit on the Supreme Leader’s part. Perhaps he could even turn it to his advantage. The burns of a lightsaber could be mistaken for those caused by a fusioncutter, but even those unfamiliar with the Dark Side acolyte’s weapon would eventually puzzle out his involvement if he wasn’t careful. But what if he wasn’t the only lightsaber duellist in the Frontiers? Distinguishing a lightsaber cut from a fusioncutter was one thing; telling one type of lightsaber from another purely by the damage it left behind was quite another.-

“...I built this myself. I can build you one too,” he said, now looking Wulfrik in the eye, “if you can find me the parts and a focusing crystal. But only certain crystals can be used in a lightsaber.”

“Crystals? What manner of crystals? Can they be found on this world?”

“Kyber crystals. And if they are on this planet then I haven’t seen them.”

-Wulfrik considers his next words carefully. A blade capable of cutting through any metal, any armor, is certainly a trophy worth a great sacrifice. And perhaps with more luck than demanding on of the fabled swords of destruction that are said to sometimes appear in the Chaos Wastes, their own magics slicing through flesh and steel alike.-

-Finally he makes up his mind. Reaching for the jade tablet around his neck, he squeezes it in his hand.-

“Spirits of this world, enthralled to the might of Chaos! I claim now my reward! Give me the crystals with which to build a light-saber!”

-A long, green crystal - roughly palm-sized - materialises in Wulfrik’s hand where the jade tablet used to be. It seems to shine with a soft inner radiance, as if it contained a miniature sun. Kylo Ren stared at it acidly, as if its very existence were an affront. Green. Of all the colours it could have been, it’s green.-

-Swallowing the choice words he sorely wanted to utter, Kylo took a deep breath.-

“I - you’ll need the parts too, remember. An emitter, a high output energy cell, focusing lenses, and whatever you want for the hilt. Choose something meaningful to you.”

-Wulfrik looks with distaste at the crystal, glowing as it does with a greenish glow like the contraptions of the rat-men. Of course, it’s better than nothing, and perhaps Kylo’s magic functions like their own, summoning lightning to strike at will. He nods, the gift of Chaos turning the strange words into concepts he understands.-

“Point! Get me one of the Cold Ones!”

“Yes boss! Stab! Get a Watcher up here!”

-The goon brings one of the enslaved metal Cold Ones to the prow. Wulfrik draws his sword and plunges it without hesitation through the creature’s neck. Even before it stops twitching he pops the focussing array from its head, then rips a powercell out of its chest cavity.-

“Something meaningful, you say…”

-Wulfrik searches among the skulls and trophies and finds what he seeks: the head of a steel panther, the first metal beast he slayed all those years ago. He wrenches one of the oversized fangs from the skull, holding it in his palm.-

“There you go, sorcerer. The fang of the first of the iron beasts I killed, taken through valor and strength. Will that do?”

-Kylo watched the Chaos warrior butcher the droid animal impassively. A brief examination of the fang and the other droid parts sufficed to tell the Supreme Leader what he needed. “Yes, that’ll do.” Snatching the fang and other components out of Wulfrik’s grasp, he went off to find a convenient spot to begin. The sailcloth and wooden planks in the hold could provide a temporary workbench, even if it would be uncomfortable work.-

-Hollowing out the fang was a simple matter of using a small fusion cutter from his lightsaber maintenance kit. Laying everything in front of him, he closed his eyes and began to draw upon the Force. He could feel the kyber crystal, the cold steel of the fang, the buzz of electricity in the power cell, and the delicate curvature of the focusing lenses and the emitter. Slowly the parts began to levitate, rotating this way and that as the Force subconsciously guided the Dark Side acolyte. It was strangely soothing; Kylo had precious little time to spend on tinkering since he had arrived in the Frontiers. Or at least, when he did there was usually a more pressing need, or something interrupted him partway through (often SAI).-

-As if the final piece of a mystic puzzle had finally slotted into place, Kylo sensed he had found the right set of alignments and other small tweaks. By now the green kyber crystal was glowing brightly, its emerald light glinting like a sliver of verdant fire. Gently he telekinetically affixed each part to another until only the kyber crystal was left exposed - and then it too disappeared inside the steel fang. With a muffled clink it landed on the wooden planking acting as a makeshift workbench, and Kylo opened his eyes. Smirking at his success, he picked up the heavy weapon and brought it to Wulfrik.-

-Wulfrik watches with curiosity and unease, remembering the last time a sorcerer had enacted a ritual aboard his ship. It had nearly cost him his life, that of his crew, and even the Seafang. Yet the pieces of the weapon dance around him in a fascinating ballet, and when a marauder tries to approach his captain to ask about the next course, Wulfrik punches him away without a word for fear of disturbing the young man mid-effort. The inverted elves watch without disguising their contempt, fear or even envy of a magic they do not master.-

-Finally the ritual is completed. The iron panther’s fang, now filled with the parts Kylo requested and his sorcery, lies in Wulfrik’s hand. He holds it up, testing its weight, holding it with both hands and looking straight down the hollow end of the fang, catching a glint of green deep within. Suddenly a terrible thought strikes him.-

“There is a spell to activate it? Some word of command?”

“Don’t stare down the emitter!”

-For perhaps the first time since the two struck their odd alliance, Kylo looked visibly alarmed and very nearly tried to snatch it out of Wulfrik’s hand before thinking better of it. It was doubtful he could have wrested it from the Chaos warrior’s hand anyway.-

-Instead, gathering himself, Kylo pointed at a red button about three quarters of the way up the fang. “Press the activation stud. Just don’t point the lightsaber at anything you don’t want to destroy. You were nearly its first victim.” Hopefully that’s all the safety talk he needs, thought Kylo sourly. The last thing he needed was to be stuck on an antiquated vessel which he had little hope of understanding - never mind control - with a bunch of henchmen who might take exception to the sudden, unpleasant death of their master.-

-Wulfrik starts at the outcry, nearly pushing the button, but stops himself in time. With care, he turns the hilt away from himself and points it to the sky before activating the magic within.-

-A beam of magic nearly as tall as himself lances out, a radiant green glow emitting a constant hum. But where the warpstone that powers Skaven magic is forever threatening to vibrate itself loose, shaking and thrashing like a man possessed, the crystals in the saber feel no more threatening than the purring of a kitten. The blade's movement through the air causes a shift in the sound, quickly returning to the regular drone.-

-His fears of the saber responding to a master other than himself assuaged, Wulfrik begins moving it slowly, taking care to avoid carving through the ship or himself, not wishing to test the blade against his own armor. A weapon as destructive to its wielder as the enemy, without being a daemon's prison, is exactly the kind of trap lesser champions would fall into. He pushes the button again, and the blade retracts into nothingness.-

"Superb."

-He nods at Kylo. He is not so dense as to think a sorcerer of such power will be grateful or consider that there are no debts to pay, but some token effort must be made.-

"Take your pick of any beast from the hold, Ren. It is yours to keep."

-Wulfrik roars at the ship's prow, and the Seafang's course takes it closer to the earth. The Stormbird flying below squawks as it moves out of the way. Wulfrik steals a glance at it as it flaps upwards.-

"Even that one, if you wish it."

-Kylo watches patiently as Wulfrik experiments with the greatsaber, testing out its wieldiness. The emerald blade reminds him painfully of his uncle. If it had been a red blade it would have made things so much simpler, he reflected. But this was the hand of sabacc he had been dealt, and he would play it to its fullest. The Supreme Leader merely nods as Wulfrik makes his final judgement.-

“A word of caution: as you no doubt felt, the blade is weightless. That can make the greatsaber behave somewhat… unpredictably. I recommend you practice often. It should not require recharging except in an emergency.”

-Normally he would have added that only a Force sensitive could hope to wield such a thing with more skill than a child, but he doubted Wulfrik would take kindly to it (or indeed, he’d see it as a challenge).-

-Kylo was all too familiar with the droids in the hold after the duo’s travails, but the Dark Side warrior’s dark eyes caught the glint of light playing off of the gigantic wingspan of the climbing Stormbird. It would make a promising mount - at least until he could build or acquire something akin to his TIE Silencer - and a potent symbol for the First Order.-

“I’ll take it.”

-He points a gloved hand at the mechanical bird of prey.-

“Very good.”

-A stormbird less will make little difference to his warband’s offensive ability, having captured three more since the raid on the drow city.-

-Wulfrik looks over the side. The ground is still some distance away, and the rowers still powering through the air. They will have time enough.-

-Shrieking to the stormbird in its strange beeping language, he forces the iron beast to keep pace alongside the ship.-

“Speak the orders you wish it to obey, I will force it to obey you.”

“And if you want to give it a name that consists of more than numbers and letters, find one now. Unless you believe ‘Unit Designation Z-R2-3PO’ will strike fear into the hearts of your enemies.”

“You can speak binary?”

-Kylo raises an eyebrow as Wulfrik calls for the great droid-beast.-

“...Never mind.”

-The uncomfortably familiar elements of the droid’s designation almost make it seem like the galaxy is mocking him yet again. Shaking it off, he takes a few moments to settle on a name and a few orders beyond those required to control it.-

“I think I’ll call it Z3. I want to be able to tell it to attack, defend me, come to my side, and pick me up.”

-That seemed like it would cover all the likely scenarios that the Dark Side warrior would encounter. However, the Supreme Leader paused as something occurred to him.-

“Will it be able to learn other commands in future?”

-No mention of the Stormbird’s ability to spit lightning on its foes from the skies. Wulfrik briefly ponders whether or not to reveal this to the sorcerer. No one ever died riding mechanical beasts into a melee, or rather, such a death was most worthy in the eyes of the gods.-

“Certainly it will, if I’m there to teach it to obey those commands. Point tried to explain it to me once, it doesn’t so much understand orders so much as it hears the sounds you make, and if they’re in accordance with its own instructions, follows those instructions. He showed me their writing. It looks like a fine-toothed comb in the shape of a mountain range, and writes down your reply in the same script. Only if the pictures match does it obey, and he tells me no man shares this comb-image with another.”

-The Seafang lands at Wulfrik’s command on a dusty plain, the Stormbird flapping down next to it.-

“Say the command, sorcerer, and I will repeat it in its language. Careful not to cough while doing it, or you’ll need to go into battle with a cold every time you ride it.”

-With another beeped command, the Stormbird sits up, turning its head towards Kylo. A red light blinks in and out of existence on the side of its head.-

-The explanation was somewhat satisfactory to the Supreme Leader. Momentarily he considers trying to get at the stormbird’s droid brain to analyse its inner workings for himself, then swiftly dismisses it. He only had the one, after all, and Wulfrik was unlikely to be pleased if he found out that Kylo had damaged or destroyed it in a vain attempt to reverse-engineer the secret of commanding these droids. It seems that for the foreseeable future he would be bound to Wulfrik, just as Wulfrik would be bound to him. Not ideal, but there were worse situations to be in…-

-Once the droid-bird landed, there was a brief moment of silence besides the whistling of the slipstream as Kylo considered which command to teach first.-

“Z3, attack!”

-He studies the stormbird carefully, ready to dive out of the way if something were to go horribly wrong.-

-A series of clicks and beeps issues from Wulfrik’s mouth, and the light on the Stormbird’s head stops blinking. Spreading its wings wide, the iron beast lunges forwards, talons spread wide, at the space above Kylo’s head, swooping around to strike with its beak. At another command, it ceases and settles down on the ground.-

-The remaining orders are transmitted and recorded in its brain. Once the beast is trained to Kylo’s satisfaction, Wulfrik turns his attention to the lightsaber. Activating it, he swings it in great sweeping arcs, practices wielding it along with his shield, with his mundane sword, with both hands. The sand of the plains becomes pockmarked with crescent-moons of fused glass, the ghostly blade cleaving through as effortlessly as water.-

-Certain that he got the better end of the deal, Wulfrik turns his gaze towards the horizon. New challenges await, new trophies to be offered to the dark gods.-

-For the first time in many a year, Wulfrik is content.-

-Kylo stands his ground as the droid-bird swoops overhead, feeling quietly pleased with himself. He now had another asset for the First Order and an ally of sorts - an ally that could throw any would-be investigators off his scent, for a time at least. He watches as Wulfrik practices, reluctant to try to tell the Chaos warrior the finer points of lightsaber duelling - after all, the hulking brute would likely take exception to such an attempt. Instead, he simply tells Wulfrik that although a lightsaber’s power supply is virtually limitless, if he does need to recharge it - or any modifications - he can seek out the Supreme Leader. That done, Kylo does a little experimentation of his own. Landing on Z3’s back with a Force-assisted leap, he takes flight and relishes the feeling of being airborne once again. It was no starfighter, but for a droid it feels strangely alive - as if waiting for the single twitch of a finger to set it to its master’s bidding. He swoops high and low, flying as close to the earth as he dares. Satisfied with his findings, he sets it down nearby Wulfrik.-

-After a gruelling time in the wilderness, Kylo finds he too is content.-

Above the plains, now

-Wulfrik turns to the slaughterer and the dragonkin. While their council is of limited use at best, they are of some use in a fight. Of course, they need to be regularly supplied with fights, but this at least is not too rare an event.-

Soon enough. Once we-

-He pauses. A far-off echo reaches his ears and he turns towards the source. He snarls an order at the Seafang, and the longship obediently turns to a new heading.-

Man the oars, you lazy bastards!

-The marauders and barbarians of the wastes, beaten into competent sailors by years of constant training and judicious thrashings by their captain's delicate touch, jump to obey his commands. The drow wizards at the stern look warily over the sides, more cautious at the prospect of battle than the humans onboard. The longship creaks as it approaches the site of the explosion.-

-Wulfrik looks down at the unfolding drama. Titans made of metal are emerging from ancient ruins far below, lumbering towards a single cloud of dust intent on escaping them. They bear no resemblance to the metal beasts he has now tamed by the thousands, but trying to bring new forms under his domination is always worthwhile.-

-The creatures are distracted, looking down and the other way. Excellent conditions for an ambush from above. He turns towards the slaughterer, motioning at two marauders. Well-used to the maneuver, they take a coil of rope and tie it securely to the mast.-

Will oil do for blood, Chopper? Or would you have me find less durable foes less likely to blunt your blade?

Edited by Chabal2 on Jan 11th 2021 at 11:14:50 AM

Nightingale - Frontier Medical Center

"War is war. Be it by manpower or drones." the nurse answered simply, resolutely. "So long as conflict still exists, professions like mine will be needed still. Whether the body count will number in the thousands or just a few."

"And you've already proven that self-thinking drones are patients too." she added, noting M16's origin as a robot built for war from their past talk. "I will not have you treat your life so lightly in my hospital. Come."

Taking the initiative and holding M16's hand onto her own whether the raifu wants it or not, the nurse then led her to their usual room and spot, having it to themselves...

Barry - Seafang, above the plains - Fantasia

Well, what do you know? As it turns out, there is an angel after all!

"Gurl, you have no idea how much you're making want to kill ya right now." guffawed Barry upon the peck at his helmet, being entirely serious while laughing it off. "You're darn right that I miss ya, Des! Where have you-"

It was about then that the robots appear, a rope is thrown out and Wulfrik spoke. "WHAT?! Of course they're different!" Barry, naturally, sulked, with a cartoonish wave of his cleaver in the air. "Where's the bloody gore? The look in their eyes? The feeling of live flesh being chopped up reaaaaal nice and good! It ain't the same and fun without 'em!"

The automail sighed, seeing that the ropes is already tied to the mast. "Fiiiine. Guess I can do ya this favor. But you better treat me to some real fresh kills later!" The automail would then tie up the ropes around himself... and geronimo'd down!

Welp, might as well get this over with! Taking out his stabby knife, he waits till he's directly on top of one of the robots and tries to stab it deep to get his footing. If successful, he'll take out his favored cleaver with his other free hand and proceeds to just... well, bash whatever weak spots/joints the machine has that he can see.

There's no fun in dismantling lifeless bots, but it's honest work.

Frontier Medical Center - Akihabara

"Doctor's orders...."

Some time later, M16 was putting her eye patch back on, her one visible eye glancing around the room, sometimes looking at things scattered around, but mostly focusing on its other occupant.

"You know.... Hadn't really been thinking much about the date, but it's hard not to notice when it's right there in my head - today is exactly ten years since I showed up here." She tilts her head to the side and taps her chin for a moment. "I mean, unless you count leap years, but screw that. Anyway, point is, ten years. I've spent more time here than the old world, and home is looking less like... home. At some point, this stopped being something temporary, and just started being... normal."

She started to work on her buttons, making sure not to misalign them when she started.

"You ever start thinking that way too? Your mission, all this," she used one hand to point at the ceiling, and then wave her hand all around the room. "-isn't just a side gig, but it's your life now. You're not just pitching a tent for a few months on a campaign and heading back."

Ruins in Plains - Fantasia

"Oh... hello there! Long time no see, you must have heard I was here and came to witness me!"

Naga gave Barry a casual wave as she ran by.

"Lovely day for a jog, isn't it? You have such fine timing, because the great Naga the Serpent was just about to take on this army of golems - OHOHOHOHO!" She ground her heels to a halt, doing a 180 and coming to a stop near the golem Barry was... Barrying.

"Bogardic Elm!" She punched the ground below her with a magically-infused fist, causing the dirt between her and the oncoming onslaught of ruin guards to turn softer and wetter, slowing the footfalls of... the non-flying ones. Those were still heading over at their usual rate, courtesy of their lack of feet.

"Nice of you drop by, though!" She added as she fired off an ice bolt at one of the approaching guards.

Nightinale - Frontier Medical Center

Nightengale, for her part, had already begun to compose herself; sitting onto the bed while working on her hair. Listening over to M16 in regards to the weight of ten whole years, she has this to say.

"My mission has always been my life. Whether back in the familiar battlefield, here or wherever else, some things remain unchanged. Even if I were to return to whence I was, I would simply fall back into routine."

The Head Nurse spared a glance at the raifu buttoning herself up. "You're starting to belong here. Good. Homesickness is a terrible thing to be afflicted by." She then started on her own clothes. "You've already made a nuisance of yourself in my own schedule. At this point, I long expect you to continue this for years to come." In other words, feel free to express her unease to Nightingale anytime she wishes.

"Or do you perhaps find me unsatisfying?"

Barry - Ruins in Plains - Fantasia

"Gyahahaha! Long time no see yourself, missy! Gettin' yourself into trouble again, eh?" exclaimed Barry in greetings even as the machine that he held onto slowed down from the muddy floor. It even spun in its place trying to get the living automail off, only for Barry to get down and punt his stabby sword in its one giant eye in retaliation, briefly stunning it for a moment.

"Love to stay and chop ya nice and good, but I'm busy with these pieces o' scrap. Oi, Wulfy, look who decided to show up!" The Chopper yelled up above at the ship. "It's the loud big-boobied gal from the Adventurer's Guild!"

Frontier Medical Center - Akihabara

"Whoa, hey, easy up there, don't jump to conclusions so fast, Gale." M16 held up both her hands, palms up, trying to diffuse things. "Unless... you're pulling my leg, aren't you? Guess I can manage to get you to open up once in a while after all. I mean not the usual way - the figurative kind."

She set her hands down again now that she wasn't trying to defend herself from such slander anymore, resting them on the countertop.

"That's good, though, having your calling and that. They never exactly built me with dreams, just orders, so this is all new territory to me. Though as far as routine goes, guess I've got mine as much as you, somehow always wind up finding a new army the same way you find a new hospital."

She raises an eyebrow, thinking back.

"Years to come, aye....? Maybe I'm not as much of a 'nuisance' on your schedule as you're letting on." She taps her chin. "Well, putting aside the years, what about the next couple of hours?"

Destoroyah, Fantasia

“I was off creating my own empire,” she answered Barry as she flew down from the ship. “I made sure to keep myself busy these past 10 years, conquering lands and taking what I please.”

She blasted a nearby golem in the face with her micro-oxygen beam, knocking it on to the ground as a chunk of its face was blown up.

“Sounds like you’ve just been up to your old tricks, though. That’s just as well – you’re good at what you do~”.

As she heard Naga’s duck-like laugh, she felt a surge of disgust work its way up her spine. By the gods, some things never got any easier to deal with.

Six years ago

Lappland didn’t know how long she had drifted between numb half-awareness and black, dreamless sleep. When she opened her eyes to that first moment of clarity, she didn’t recognize the ceiling above her. She didn’t know who had dressed her in a nightgown and bandaged her wounds.

She just knew that she was alive - shockingly weak, trembling like a leaf, but alive.

It started to come back to her as she dragged herself down the hall outside her sickroom, eyes darting to every door and window she passed. She remembered… agony. Not the dull pain she had grown used to over the years - true agony, a fire lancing through her veins. A relapse so bad all she could do was writhe in her own sick.

She remembered the wishing plaque breaking, and a terrible tug as she magic ripped the infection out of her system, and after that, nothing. Somewhere in there… she remembered her. The blonde hero. Belmont? Remembered her standing over her and shouting… and then… feeding her soup? She remembered a cool hand on her forehead, and someone tucking blankets around her. It was like a dream. Too soft to be real.

But it was real. For the first time since her childhood, the wasn’t any pain. No subtle grinding of crystal lesions with each step. The absence was glorious, and somehow also… frightening.

Her ears pinned back to her head as she growled under her breath, pushing off from the wall and taking another unsteady step. She needed answers.

Once Lappland emerged from the room, and made her way down the hallway her room was a part of, she’d find herself in the dining room. Or, rather, a dining room, given this one seemed to be much smaller and personal compared to one a nobleman would entertain guests in. Sitting at the table, watching her come in, was the Belmont in question, giving the merc for hire a raised eyebrow but otherwise not stopping her.

“You’re awake, I see. I’d expected you to be down longer to recover your strength...then again, if it were me, I wouldn’t be comfortable remaining idle either.” Sonia said, remaining seated and allowing Lappland the freedom to move and look around at her own pace.

Lappland didn’t take her eyes off the other woman for a second, even as she held onto the back of a chair, panting slightly from the exertion of simply walking down the hall.

“I just wanted… to thank my host, you see...” She managed, a little grin spreading across her face, even as the tension radiated off her to fill the dining room. "So this is your place, huh? Real fancy... “ She shuffled along to the next chair, her claws digging into the varnish as she glanced around quickly.

“How long… have you been keeping me here?”

“Roughly a week.” Sonia answered, watching the woman warily. “You used your wish to cure yourself before whatever disease you had killed you, but it was still a close thing. So I took you home to make sure you didn’t perish after all that. Given you’re lucid and moving, I take it you’re feeling at least some better.”

A giggle burbled out from the snowy-haired mercenary, her claws digging into the back of the chair.

“Ah—ahaha- Why-?” Lappland may have been laughing, but under that her voice wavered with genuine confusion. This was the question that had been eating at her since she woke up.

“Why the hell would you do that? Just to… turn me over to your, hah, police friends? Ngh-” Her ears pinned back to the sides of her head as her legs gave out, depositing her to one knee beside the table.

“Why are you helping me?”

It was perhaps fortunate that Lappland had been down for so long, as despite knowing she’d ask this question, it had taken the better part of the week for Sonia to come up with a suitable answer, one that wouldn’t sound hollow or condescending to her own ears. Once Lappland fell, Sonia finally got up, and walked over to where she was...before also descending to one knee to mirror her guest’s state.

“Lappland. Look at me.” Whether or not the mercenary did so, Sonia would continue. “You’re not just a mercenary. I’ve seen into your eyes too many times to believe that. You’re a warrior, same as I am. And it would not only be a stain on my own honor if I allowed you to die when I could have prevented it...but it would be a shame to see our rivalry come to such an ignoble end.”

“I hold you under no obligation to repay me for treating you. I also accept that I have no sway over you to make you act as if anything has changed between us. But while I have you here, I will make one request of you. You’re skilled, Lappland, there’s no doubt about that. So I would ask that you use that skill for more worthy causes. I leave the choice up to you...but it would be nice to fight on the same side for once.”

Once she was finished, Belmont offered Lappland a hand, and were she to take it, she would help her up.

Lappland looked up, her eyes glinting through her ragged bangs as she stared at the other woman, the lupo girl seeming poised on the edge of… something, listening, tensing. After a moment, her shoulders started to shake as another round of laughter wracked the breathless merc, Lappland’s head hanging as she giggled out between gasps.

A warrior! Get a load of this! What sanctimonious crap. To think someone could still believe in honor after four years in this place.

To think… Sonia’s honor had saved her from dying in a Gotham ditch…

To think that she felt… almost grateful…

The laughter petered out, the manic energy that usually defined the cackling lupo’s mirth conspicuous in its absence today. Lappland just sounded… tired, her final chuckle accompanying a rueful smile as she glanced back up at her rival.

“You’re a fool, Belmont…”

Reaching up, she clasped Sonia’s hand, and let the other woman take her weight.

Present day, Fantasia Plains

The high-pitched whine of an electric motor sung out over the plains as a figure in black and grey sped through the tall grass on an off-road bike, wheels eating up the endless expanse of picturesque emptiness.

Lappland had her head tilted back slightly to enjoy the wind whipping through her silver hair, a sharp-toothed grin on her face. She'd been a bit ticked off when she heard that her target had decided to make his little stand way out here in the middle of nowhere - but this wasn't half bad, really. Akihabara and Gotham may be the places to be on the Frontier, but sometimes a little peace and quiet went a long -

BOOM

Or not! Lappland's ears perked up as the sound of explosions swept across the plains. Was someone trying to poach her mark? Her grin turning a little grim, she gunned her engine to make it up over the next shallow rise, getting a little air before skidding to a halt to take in the scene up ahead - Ruins, giant robots, magic explosions... and a familiar boat flying over head.

"Oh, it's you guys." Lappland steadied her bike with one foot, pulling her goggles down around her neck as she smiled. An old familiar thrill lanced its way down her spine as she took a moment to watch the chaos, but all she did was rest a hand on the swords sheathed at the side of her bike. "Tch, why didn't anyone tell me the Seafang was in the area?"

Edited by LittleMako on Jan 12th 2021 at 2:21:16 AM

On the first year, someone had taken a wide, empty lot, and he had decided that it was best to do something with it. He put a garden there, growing some vegetables scrounged from seeds that others threw away. In his wisdom, he planted a tree off to the side.

On the second year, the garden had grown, and the man had made a little bit of extra money from selling his vegetables. This money went straight into the garden again, and a small bench was built beside it.

On the third year, he had planted some grass in the fertile dirt.

On the fourth year, the man died of old age, surrounded by his family, in a land that remained unfamiliar to him to the last of his days.

On the fifth year, his son had decided to continue working on his father's garden, regardless of how overgrown it had been. With a bench and a short tree nearby, poking up from the ground and reaching toward the sun, he figured it would make a nice park.

On the tenth year, Yue was directed to find herself at a specific time, at a specific bench that was beginning to rust.

If she arrived at the specified time, she found herself alone in the park. The nearby school was still in session and no events were scheduled today, so it was only her, and...

...the mysterious figure that was walking up to her. Wearing a dark-colored raincoat, a hood covering their face and everything; the definition of a suspicious person who worked to keep their identity hidden.

Still with some distance between them, the figure spoke in a low woman's voice: "No one's following you, right?"