Fandom Soul Eater: F.A.T.E

[RedArmyShogun]

Nadia Semyonov - Death City, The Colosseum

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"Blyat, Pizdets!" likely saying some form of swear words to what effect one could guess, but she waited to say what was on her mind after looking at Dani and speaking in a low tone. "You cost me a bit of money I'm pretty sure, but alas, small matter and deserved. But for now, we have other things."

Speaking up in a tone all could hear, "But yes, for now, we have a problem. The problem is they can pick in what order to fight and who they are fighting, and they all make Maria sound like the most reasonable of the bunch. And only a couple actual witches huh?" Running a hand under her chin in thought, she pauses, laying both of her hands flat on the table as she stands up.

"Makes it simple, our job till now days was killing Witches as Weapon Meister pairs. But a single Meister and Weapon, or weapons for one of us must defeat two Magus if they aren't too cocky in all but one match. Question is who they throw at who and how dirty they will fight? In either case my response is same. I break them with aid of Dani. And who knows, this may get violent enough that me and her can reach an accord even if briefly for resonance." Crossing her arms as she gazed at the images in partial contempt, she scoffs.

"The Doll maker from sounds of it may be the one we need worry about both the most and the least. I do not think it will be so easy to take control of her creations, but I also don't think she has the killer edge. Though may be wrong, da?

"For the reason of Dani and I are friends with her, I rather doubt she will fight us. We then have the African Star that totally did not lose three of his own allies to bag two witches, or so they say. No idea who they will send him at, but he's experienced. Mushroom girl? Fucking doesn't matter to me. I have defenses for her. But they likely know this and will not send her at me. The other two Meister pairs are more of at risk to her than me."

With that she points at the list. "Chain man is mad, and he can be used against any of us. Then there is that girl that likes to bite and who looks nothing like a shrine priestess, same story." Shrugging at that she looks at Dani and answers the unasked question.

"I hope they just get it over with, not like neither of us has anything else to do. And no point strategizing short of among our pairs. We have only melee and sound, they have mixed of melee, range and a biological weapon.

The two with Madness I suspect are likely to be our solo choices, because once they get going it isn't that easy to stop. The mushroom witch, I am unsure, she is lethal but if her magic is not enough to remove you from play she doesn't have much to call upon. Maybe a second line?"

Cupping her hand left under her chin, she is quick to lower it then point. "The real question is what they plan to do with Maria and the Chain asshole. Maria can operate on a line, but like I said, the madness infected are the better gamble... Chain boy seems to need time and looks for things to damage about the other. I'm going to ask a question that I know an answer too. Though, I know not all of you, which team in here has the most secrets or the most terrible situations that can be found out and is quick to anger? The past that could bring up the most anger." Laying he right hand on Dani's shoulder

"Me and Dani have reached something of an accord there, but I personally think he will be sent at us. I could be wrong but if I am, think of the worst that could be brought out to anger you and come to peace with that as you may. Or let it fuel you." Going back to her seat and putting her hands back to herself as she ponders one last thing, stretching back to lean in the chair a little bit as she spoke; "Question is where are the Japanese Oni and the Mushroom Witch going? As well as Maria and Ark. if I'm right and chains is after us, who else where and why?"

Inteactions: Prizzy Kriyze Sir Les Paul Mqueserasera Mineczka EmperorsChosen Merciless Medic

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley, Prudence Montgomery
Rank Fate Agent

Location Death City, Death Colosseum, Right Wing
Mission Exhibition Tournament
Status Focused

​

Mentions: Merciless Medic Mqueserasera Prizzy Kriyze RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Mineczka

Gauss had a different air about him. Even prior to meeting here at the Colosseum, he wasn't exactly the same somewhat haughty, outwardly verbose soul. He was fueled with determination, ignoring distractions, calls from some of his former affairs, and even informing his father and siblings that he would be more absent in the evenings for calls. Upon learning of the tournament the day before, this drive only increased that much further. Even without his outward behavior, his soul remained the same force of attraction as ever, attempting to impart his will and ambition onto his partners. With them, he trained relentlessly. His breaks were less of relaxation and more of an optimized routine. Fuel for his body, rest to restore his vigor, it wasn't necessarily the fun playboy lifestyle the others might expect. Gauss, even when his partners needed their own time, subjected himself to grueling conditioning for this match, and that resolve was present in how he carried himself in the moment.

He ushered himself into the wing previously, and this go around carrying four large boxes of differing designs. That morning, he had been across Death City picking up orders he made for the morning. A box of protein-enriched doughnuts in one, an assortment of chef specialty sushi rolls and sashimi in another, a massive vegetable and cheese platter in the third, and the fourth loaded with drinks ranging from various coffees with offset creamers to plain water or even mixed smoothies. Each were planted on the unsealed, darkwood tables of the room, and he himself was the first to grab a protein shake and slice of Havarti cheese.

"Help yourselves. Even the sweet confections were made with protein powders, and whey products were hydrolyzed, so they shouldn't set heavy. I'm not aware of everyone's tastes, so I just picked up a touch of everything," he explained in a fairly relaxed tone. This was obviously yet another one of his attempts to build bridges, sure, but in his mind, an army needed fuel, and he had the means to fuel the army. He even glanced over to Emmett and Zelda before adding, "You, too. There's plenty."

Nibbling on his cheese once he had introduced the obviously overkill amount of food and refreshment he carried, he finally made it a point to chime in on the announcement of the orders and rounds. "I don't particularly care who I fight, and as I have no role in the selection, the only choice I have is to be prepared to fight any two of them. If this is dictated by a best of three system, logic would be to stack the odds against the two easiest targets. Problem is, that isn't exactly clear. We're comprised of a trio, a werewolf, and Nadia with some magic resistance. Friendships aside, this scenario doesn't exactly afford a clear way assure victory. I would suggest we worry less about who we're fighting and instead consider now how to approach each adversary," he explained, really just musing his internal thoughts. When one could not make a specific strategy, a general one would have to suffice.

Notably, one other thing was different with Gauss. His attire. Unlike his normal semi-casual, somewhat loose garb, he was in what effectively amounted to a metal-clad battle suit of sorts. While he didn't precisely look like a storm trooper, he certainly looked far more ready for combat. Metallic plates adorned any relatively flat surface of his body and the rest was comprised of a composite weave. His back and waist carrying the most notable changes. Instead of his usual containers of ball bearings, his waist and thighs had what appeared to be rolls of metallic wire and a slim fit backpack likely full of some type of surprise. As he tried to sit down, said backpack bumped up against a chair, causing a sigh as he remembered what he was wearing.

"Oh yeah, as for this, no new Magitech. It's all just metal I can manipulate so long as I have Noah and Prudence, which shouldn't violate the rules. If it somehow is, I assume Emmett will inform me and I can remove it," he noted, still as calm and factual as he had been since entering. "I could have had something similar made for you two," he added, nodding over to Nadia, then Sara, "but I don't exactly have your measurements, and I'm not sure how to acquire those without sounding lewd."

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Adrian Hackney​

"The Maiden"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank Fate Agent

Location Death City, Oak Street South
Mission First Mission: Finding Shuumie
Status Alert, manic

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Mentions: Prizzy Kriyze @QuirkyAngel The Regal Rper Kyuubey @Sybil

Zosar made his appearance, so at least the group was in fact slowly coming together. Adrian was more focused on the goal of finding their target, so when Zosar wanted to make small talk, it was admittedly a bit off-putting. Then again, the whole area wasn't exactly the best place to set the mood, either. There was a statuesque coldness to Adrian upon listening to Zosar that emanated what could only be described as a "vibe" of disinterest. Despite that, Adrian was aware that at least attempting to be friendly would benefit the team composition to some degree, and he had spent a more than fair amount of time with Zari and Jarvis instead of Zosar.

A little effort wouldn't be such a bad thing, detractor or not.

"It depends. A lot of agents try to make it with just themselves, duos or whatever. Idiots go for the hardest missions first and learn they're not a one-man army. Unless, y'know, they actually are. But, yeah, unless you're some type of superstar, that's not normally the best way to go about it. Most agents go at it by getting sponsored by a senior agent and going on whatever missions they pick. Some lead, some micromanage, styles vary. Point is, you network your way up to big missions under someone else to build up your name," Adrian explained. It wasn't exactly the best explanation, but as an Autonomous Weapon, his experiences were also a bit different than duos.

"Gotta remember, I'm Autonomous, so I had to climb the ranks a bit different. They started me off with some escort missions thinking my Iron Maiden form would protect someone. Not much fighting, got tired of it. I turned to Monster Hunting for a while until I was endorsed, then either went on missions to hunt Corrupted, or large scale Mo--

With that, he was cut off. An incoming message from the Team Arrow group chat and what was hardly a second later, a tremendous roar that was, without a doubt, completely unexpected. A quick glance from his phone showed an audio message from Midori, and without skipping a beat, he set his phone to speaker to play it aloud:

14:19 ⏯ "Team Arrow, approximately three blocks North of the designated location, Zari and Jarvis have encountered Shuumie. Meet him and begin the hunt. I will not intervene unless one of you are bleeding out, dying, or encounter more targets. Midori, out."​

His heart beat faster. Blood pumped like like a dragster. This was a hunt. This was action. This is what Adrian lived for. This is what he missed since being on probation. This, to Adrian, was the bliss of being an Agent of the DWMA. A grin crept across his face. His wavelength spiked up in no small amount, even more fervent than in the psuedo-sports game from earlier. With his wicked smile, he looked back over to Zosar. "First one there picks where we eat," and with that, Adrian was off. Darting like a madman, sprouting his spikes to round corners at breakneck speeds without slowing down, all headed in the direction of the roar from the North he could only assume was from Shuumie. Whatever surprise lay ahead, he didn't care. Ready or not, here he come.

 

[Mqueserasera]

PRUDENCE PONTMERCY
Location: Death City, Death Colosseum, Right Wing
Mentions:
Interaction: Everyone in the room​

Prudence looked out the window to the Colosseum’s bright ground. Even she found it hard to treat it as another day at work, being pitched against other agents for sport. It rubbed her the wrong way. It was not what she had signed up for. It seemed like a farce. Like a thing someone less susceptible to change would take issue with, would make a fuss and deny the authority of one's service. But she was not, she was the kind to dismiss such simple displeasure with one secret exhalation, like morning mist made of misty eyes, at once and to trouble her nevermore.

The screen that had delivered the long text flashed dark. She replaced the magitech device in her pocket. Her mind turned quickly from the message’s content. It did not concern her, she told herself, which was nothing more than a simple piece of information, that though did come from one of the few contacts saved on her device, was just that and nothing with a deeper meaning – wholly contained within the boundary of face value and none of the underpinning guilt and sadness. It was just a message to inform her of her adoptive sibling’s arrival in this arena. She did not think it within her duty to send a reply.

She wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, having finished one of Gauss’s sugary donuts. She mused by herself and then offered an opinion. It would be weird to be so tight-lipped when you had just consumed someone’s food, out of politeness or not. “I agree with Thaddeus. We know too little about the other team to speculate who they would send to face which of ours. And, even knowing their capabilities and skill set, it’s next to impossible to predict how they would fight in live combat. On the other hand, we are fairly limited in how we could fight, unable to work together to cover our bases as they can. It’s sensible then to assume they would put a fair share of effort in devising a tactic to target our weaknesses–tricks and schemes should be expected. The most important thing is to not rush in and get complacent. Be patient and observe every detail; everything strange or out of place could be a clue to their overall strategy. Our advantage here is our physicality and durability. Wielding me, Thaddeus could drag out a fight no problem. Sara’s endurance as a werewolf and Nadia’s natural ability to resist magic will also serve to withstand blows until each can assess their opponent fully."

As she spoke, her hands moved to neatly fold the handkerchief and put it in her bag. She lacked a pocket today. Her outfit was rather simple, with no unnecessary bits, only a plain long-sleeve top with a comfortable fit, black just like her pants. The usual long braid had also been forgone to make place for a chignon adorned with glittering gold-colored pins.

She scanned the room once more to ensure she had not offended anyone with such a simple set of opinions. One never knew. Then picked up another donut.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Raphael Valerias​

March 11, 2067
Location: Colosseum
Interactions: Maria ( RedArmyShogun ), Ark ( The Regal Rper ), Chanterelle ( Meredith ), Koiya, Rand ( Sir Les Paul ), Edie
Mentions: Nadia, Dani, Sara, Suzu, Gauss, Prudence, Noah

Flashback Collab with The Regal Rper

Spoiler: ”Flashback - Yesterday”

Raph had gathered… A few books from yesterday. Wednesday had come and gone pretty quickly after catching up with Chanterelle and getting books he needed. Magic Circles, Runes, Demon Tools, Water and Metal magic. Five books in total and he had spent most of that day reading by the light of the glowing mushroom Chanterelle had given him. Rand was correct. Water magic was more fluid, not like controlling chains, which is a metal. He should look at metal and earth type magic, which he had the book for one, but not the other. Remembering Ark had earth magic, he thought to himself. Maybe he can learn a bit of earthen magic. Not so much as to put Raphael in front of Ark’s path of growth, no. He didn’t want to step on the man’s shoes, totally not because he was scared of him or anything.

No, he wanted to use the earth to make his chain magic better. Maybe he can ask.

Runes was an interesting read. Magic circles he felt like he had no hope in learning. He understood how it worked, he just didn’t know what he was doing wrong the last time he tried it. Either way, he now had a better understanding of runes. He should really make a better version of his chain anchor spell. Demon Tools was also an interesting read, and the whole creation process herein was quite fascinating. However, he didn’t have the gift his father had when it came to creation. He was very much destructive, the destroyer of things and people.

Hm, but that didn’t deter him. He wanted to surprise his father and make him proud.

As Thursday came around, Raph was contacted to meet up with Rand for a magi meetup. Sighing, Raph met up with Rand, along with everyone else, to be told there was a tournament they’ll be doing on the 11th against other FATE agents. A brief introduction to the meisters, their names, and the weapon forms they’ll be using… That was it.

That didn’t bode well for him. While he figured Rand wouldn’t leave them with so little information when they actually went fighting tomorrow, he couldn’t help his curiosity. He needed more information. He needed to know who he’d be fighting and what information he could get on them. Make them break during the fight so he can feel better about himself. That he’s on top.

Yes, weaponizing their pasts against them. Good idea.

Of course, he doubted it was going to be easy. Even as he left and got on his red and black motorbike, he was left sitting there, staring off into space about where to even start first, being uncharacteristically quiet.

Ark passed by him without so much as a word, clearly intent on heading somewhere.

The mage glanced at Raph once, gave him a little wave and a nod- then walked off towards the entrances that led into DWMA’s main building. He was at the door in just a few minutes, and inside a second after.

Oh. There he was, Raph thought he was going to go off somewhere, but if he were going to be walking into the DWMA’s main building, he might as well tag along. Making sure his motorbike wouldn’t get stolen (adding his own magical chains in place as a tire lock), he did his best to catch up to Ark. Which was difficult, considering the man wasn’t as perseverent as he should be, considering he’d be going against the peak of physicality. He really needed to do some cardio.

By the time he had arrived inside the main building, he had to calm down his breathing before he could even attempt to find Ark. Raphael looked through the halls, wondering where he went. It shouldn’t be that difficult trying to find a giant of a man walking around.

It wasn’t. The dark-skinned mage’s burning red hair made him stick out like a sore thumb as he walked through the halls, even if he was a large distance away. It did help that he was talking to people though. A conversation that seemed to be finishing up just as Raphael was nearing.

“...to their own partner anyway?”

“It sounds to me that Nadia likes to keep her cards close. Thank you for the information.” Letting the three EAT Agents go, he turned and stopped short of bumping right into Raph.

Raphael, who had watched silently as if he were a phantom, chuckled when Ark nearly bumped into him, patting his shoulder with a cheeky smile. “Well, looks like someone’s doing their homework. Was about to do the same meself, but I didn’t know where to start. Mind if I tag along?” He let go of his shoulder, still grinning like a goof. However, it dropped and melted into an expression denoting deep thought. “Ah… Well, this Nadia… She’s the giantess, yes? Not much of a giantess if we both tower over her.” He chuckled, an amused smile cracking his ponderous expression.

Ark merely smiled. “Rightchu are. I arranged a few meetings with some of her old colleagues to get an idea of what she was like. The same for the rest of Team Stitches. I’m actually going to meet someone who knew Sara back in NOT, and her former partner. You’re welcome to join.” He informed as he sidestepped Raph and began heading down the halls towards the wing of DWMA that was quartered off to NOT training, while Raph tagged along close beside him.

“Oh, already? Damn, you’re pretty efficient. Huh, by the looks of Gauss, he looks like someone who’s similar to me. Well, in terms of personality. I honestly hope not. Don’t want anyone to be raining on my parade. Oh.” He looked to Ark, a determined grin on his face. “I was wondering if you got any earth magic tricks you know that would bolster my magic. I need to have a better chain anchor spell, and metal and earth magic are similar enough to my chains that it shouldn’t be that hard to learn. Of course, my way of doing things will be different from yours, but that’s fine. Was wondering if…” His words choked. Ah, he was going to show weakness, wasn’t he? He strained through his question, sounding almost pained asking it as the madness within him growled in his mind, scratching at him. “Ah, was wondering if you could um… Teach me.” He cleared his throat. Asking a mentor? That’s fine. That’s common and okay. Asking a peer with magic they were obviously better at than he was? He didn’t want to remind himself where he stood, yet he had to anyway if he wanted to get anywhere.

Ark glanced at him, though it was more of a mental glance than a physical one. Knowing where he was on his radar exactly made that possible for him.

The only consolation to his pride was that Ark might think better of him, which made him feel a bit better. He rubbed his chest, a wince on his face from the madness that brewed for a moment.

The other mage patted him on the back, an understanding gesture- even if he couldn’t entirely understand what it was like having one’s internal Madness affect them like it did Raph now, Ark understood well enough what it was like fighting a feeling inside of you that dominated your mind.

“Sure.” His tone was welcoming. “I would be happy to.” Another pat on the back. Though this time it was more to say, ‘nice job’, than anything else. The amount of pride that surged-... No, this wasn’t pride. It could have been, but it was heartwarming. Sweet, even. It felt nice to be rewarded like that for fighting his baser instincts, or what felt like it after the madness twisted it inside of him. He gave Ark a kind smile, actually genuine and not cheeky. It lit his face up for once instead of looking like he was up to something.

They reached the NOT training ground floor where they were to meet their next target. A surprisingly gothic themed dressed EAT student that was instructing beginner NOT Agents, some of the very ones that Ark had seen on his trip to the library the other day, getting lectured on the semblances of partnerships and resonance. Basics that he himself already knew like the back of his hand. Basics that Raph had a twisted understanding of from his own sense of self.

The wave of gasps that broke the concentration in the crowd when Ark entered made the former’s shoulders sag just a little. He merely offered the surprised class a smile, then turned his focus on Sara’s former classmate. Same one that had entered EAT not long after she had dropped out of it with Noah.

Raphael, of course, felt a little jealous that Ark was that recognized, but his pride didn’t flare like it normally would. No, he knew that Ark didn’t like the attention, regardless. But damn, did he want from him, or at least take that burden… For himself, of course.

Her name was Liliana. Parents were Demon Weapons, just like her- the difference being that Ark and Raph could both sense a hint of something within her wavelength that spoke of something more magical. An inquiry that would be gone into later. Once the class had been given a break and the four had been left alone, Liliana, her meister Trevis, and Raph, the questioning and conversation had begun in earnest. What Sara was like- what Noah was like, their history of what Liliana and Trevis both knew, what Liliana knew Sara was capable and if she still maintained contact on the peppy werewolf and the stingy Demon Staff, as Trevis had called Noah- and whether the two were still partners now.

The information had been…insightful, to a degree at least. While Liliana and Trevis hadn’t been able to answer everything, they certainly filled in gaps. Sara’s capabilities in general for as much as Liliana had recalled, the fact she knew the two had went into FATE thinking on the possibility of maybe seeking out different partners from each other, and a general understanding in the clan that Sara came from- something Ark took a note of to do research on his own. Trevis even mentioned how he had dated Noah for a time while they were partners, but seemed a bit peeved about the situation and didn’t elaborate further, something that Raph let drop as it didn’t sound interesting enough.

When they’d left them, Ark had then dragged Raph to Maria. The person they were to meet with to get some details on Nadia and Dani- whom, to both their surprise, the mage was on familiar terms with. But before going to her, they had taken a detour to scrounge up little bits of information from the Hollow Papers, the school’s newspaper publishing club.

For the span of two hours, Ark and Raph poured over what they could find before speaking to the marionette sorcerer near her workshop.

The conversation with Maria had been…difficult, at first. Doing his own digging at the newspaper had been helpful else some details would have been difficult to piece together without some insight. Maria had been willing to provide the generals. The insights into the personality- had Ark not informed her he knew about Dani’s deceased brother- it would have probably never been brought up, just like if he hadn’t brought up the details of knowing Nadia’s infamous spat with her partner as well as conflicting worldview that made her a nightmare in team dynamics of any kind, as well as a TNT for partnerships that didn’t meet her excessive standards.

By the end of the meeting, they’d left with a fair bit of understanding about the demi-giant and her walking, acid-spitting Sword partner.

They had, once the meetings were concluded after a few more trips around the campus and DWMA, convened at a local coffee shop that was a favorite of many students. Steaming Plights.

Ark sat down with nothing but cold water and some of his notes.

“I think that went better than I thought it would,” he said once seated.

Raphael was lost in thought. It was the one of the few situations where he showed his analytical side when it wasn’t having a stick up his ass or trying to be bigger and better than others. He had his satchel on the table, his grimoire tucked neatly inside with his five books he decided was a great way to lug around and give himself a bit of a workout in cardio for the time being. Walking around with Ark was tiresome, but he did enjoy it. He felt like he knew Ark better now, as well as the four out of the seven F.A.T.E. agents they’ll be pitted against.

Raphael was pouring through his own notes on the matter, his eyelid over his working eye was lidded in thought while his blind eye was closed. He had his hand resting on his cheek, propping his head up with his elbow on the table as he looked at both of their notes and taking a sip from his Earl Grey tea. “Mm, yes, I didn’t expect to go through the DWMA building and find all the information there. Hell, even the newspaper clippings were insightful.” Raphael looked over the notes he had neatly wrote and pursed his lips, musing to himself, his Mancunian accent getting progressively thicker. “I wonder… Dahni seems she’s go’ madness, bit of a sad sta’e of affairs… Nadiah is aggressive, up close ‘n’ personal… Thfey bothf complemen’ one anothfeh… Extreme caution ‘n’ wear ou’ furthfeh away… Sara ‘n’ Suzu… Jus’ as dangerous, if no’ moreso, consi’erin’ ‘er werewolf-...” Upon realizing he was just musing to himself, in his hardly legible home accent nonetheless, he chuckled sheepishly and cleared his throat.

Spoiler: ”Manchester Translation”

Dani seems she's got Madness, bit of a sad state of affairs… Nadia is aggressive in close and personal… they both complement one another… extreme caution and wear out further away… Sara and Suzu… Just as dangerous, if not moreso, considering her werewolf-...

“Ah, sorry about that, mate. I uh… Lost in thought. I’ve already made up my mind. I want teh fight Nadia. There’s not much I could do to Sara and her partner. While insightful, I’d rather not…” He shuddered. “Well, she’s a werewolf. If I remember correctly, Liliana said something about her fighting in Werewolf Cage fights and I’d rather not make a fool of myself in front of a large audience. Gauss can use magnetism and… Noah can use lightning. No, not touching them with a fifty-metre pole.” He shook his head, a wince on his face even admitting that he couldn’t beat the self-centered prick (or what seemed like) of Team Stitches.

“Prudence is also a shield,” he reminded Raph. “With the ability to give back just az much as she takes. Honestly, both Gauss and his partners sound like someone I could take alone- possibly at least- but in this scenario,” his fingers touched his collar, “ It’d be fruitless and I’d just be making a fool of myself if there is to be an audience.”

Disappointing also. He’d have liked testing out his ‘metal’ against a Meister that could manipulate literal metals, but there was a time and a place. And this clearly wasn’t his time.

Raph nodded, yet shrugged. "Eh, Prudence I won't have much trouble with. Until I figure out galvanization, I can't touch Gauss."

“Nadia, while just as difficult, has a temper, along with her sword. If anything, I can make them angry enough to maybe, being the saint as I am, use their anger to either pit them against each other or help bring them together. Those two… If I know anything about resonance - at least the basics - it’s that being distrusting, difficult, selfish, and having pasts like that would make resonance nigh on impossible if they don’t share a common goal.” He sighed, sitting back and taking another sip.

“I don’t know how any of these fights are going to be dealt with, considering these are weapon and meister duos we are fighting. I don’t want to make myself look horrible in front of my father, who I know will be watching, just because I end up taking a chunk I can’t chew. If I have a tag-in partner, that’s fine. It might be better if I do, so I don’t end up tasting dirt in front of everyone. I know the giantess is likely faster, but - honestly - I’d fare worse-...” His face winced, his jaw tensed, and he rubbed his chest. He cleared his throat, the madness within him not taking kindly to being this open to another. “I don’t want to fight anyone else.” He added quickly.

“None of us want to be the divvie in this. Outta tha three Gauss ‘n’ Nadia seem like the best matchups for me, but honestly…I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t interested in getting a match with either of the girls. Never had the chance to interact with a Werewolf before.” He tapped his fingers against the table. “Guess Rand and Edie will give us the details on fights tomorrow when we go to the colosseum.”

Raphael chuckled at the werewolf comment, sighing and taking another sip. “Yeah, hopefully they say something that’s worthwhile. Anybody who fights against Gauss, I wish them luck.”

Ark sighed. “Alright, I think we deserve a break. Wanna get some lunch? Know a place we can take our bikes to. Not far, pretty good bowls they make, or sandwiches or wraps, multi-cuisine kinda place.” Ark asked as he rose.

Raph just about perked up. Wait, what? He wanted to stick around for longer? It seemed that they had already got everything they needed to learn until he realized they should really brush up on werewolves and those with ice blood. Chuckling sheepishly, he pulled his shoulder bag over his shoulder, the thing looking like it was going to weigh him down to the floor if he wasn’t a little bit strong in his lanky figure. “Sure thing, mate. That sounds dead scrumptious.” With a cheeky smile, he finished off his tea and hurried off with Ark.

Everything should be fine tomorrow, right?

The drive to the colosseum was both exciting and tense. Sitting next to his father in the same clothes he arrived at the library’s study room from a couple days ago, Raphael was hitching a ride and the man, who was smiling for once, squeezed his shoulder firmly in a sort of praising gesture. “I’m proud of ye, son. Goin’ up against meister ‘n’ weapon duos? Absolutely amazin’. Though…” He narrowed his eyes and peered at his son from the corner of his eye. “You’re not goin’ to do what ye normally do to people ye don’t like, will ya?”

Raphael chuckled and shook his head, feeling his heart race at the admittedly true accusation. “I’m not that bad anymore, pa. I’ll behave.”

His father nodded slowly, still not really believing him. Back then, he didn’t have to worry about his dear son lying, but now he had to be a bit more careful. Still, his father held out hope.

That short conversation had Raphael’s nerves acting up a bit, even when Raphael went to distract the man with a thought of his good old rival being in the stands watching. He wasn’t going to lie, hearing how his father didn’t want him to completely insult his opponents outright had him worried. Should he still go through with this?

After making it to the room they should be in to start their debriefing, he decided that it was fine. It’ll be okay, and he needed to show that the mages meant business, and they weren’t going to let some duo double team them like that. However, he noticed Ark seemed a bit off when Raphael had arrived into the room. Wondering if it was just nerves (considering Raphael remembered the only time Ark had been affected by an audience was with the war in Africa), he wanted to help him out a bit. However, Rand’s talk of the weapons and meisters had paused him from his attempt at camaraderie, and he absorbed the information given like a sponge.

If anything, the rustic look of the colosseum helped set himself at ease. He was here to show off what he learned, so why not give everyone a show worthy of a little medieval showboating?

Rand explained how it’s all structured and that the weapons and meisters haven’t had much experience with each other. Then, the breakdown of each meister, each weapon. Raphael’s eyes were trained on each picture that came forward of their opponents, burning them to his mind with a trained, focused stare - one few have seen unless they’ve caught him studying by himself or reading books.

Rand explained Nadia and Dani, relaying information Raph already knew from his info gathering with Ark yesterday. Ice Blood, natural resistance to direct magic (something he didn’t have to worry about much) or any durative spell effects that may be shortened. What had him smirking like a mad man was when Rand said she was just as prone to physical damage as anyone else. He learned more of Dani’s ability, about how her wavelength makes Nadia more aggressive and resistant to sound, which Raph didn’t use. Up close and personal, eh? He smirked.

Oh, he can do up close and personal, as well. He wondered how easy it would be to trip them up. He went over his grimoire, flipping towards the pages he needed most. Anchor, Growth, Telekinesis he may not use much of, Break, Repair (though, it might be better and less wasted magic to just grow more chains), Weight Change, Branding, Grapple Hook, Trap to lower their stamina or weaken them… He just had an idea… Chain Sap. Sapping their strength. Of course, it wouldn’t do any good against Nadia, but other opponents and enemies later down the line. A goofy smile appeared on his face upon the revelation of a new spell idea, his gaze holding an almost manic gaze to write it down and try it out when he had time to be by himself.

When the topic moved onto Sara, Raph’s eyes shot up to assess the girl and her bell. From what he gathered from Liliana and Trevis, Rand’s information seemed correct. Hearing her physical capabilities, if he were to go up against someone who also had something similar to his chains, his only weapon would be used against him. Glad he wasn’t going up against the werewolf. With that, he stopped listening as much as the familiar buzzwords were tuned out. He focused on his book, wanting to memorize the incantations he’d have to repeat to himself while holding on to his precious grimoire. He heard of Suzu’s special wavelengths, but he already gathered what they did. No point in thinking about it. Though he didn’t completely tune out Rand, and when he moved onto the last team, Raph’s eyes shot to the picture of Gauss and they narrowed.

There was something familiar about him and he hated it. Thaddeus, huh? He gathered some amount of information on him, but not enough like he did with Sara and Nadia. Black belt in karate? At least he wasn’t going to be facing him. He listened to what Noah and Prudence had, lip curling in a twitch as he realized just how “special” those two were. How cute. Despite how the two may be used, he didn’t trust this man one bit, especially if he was as creative as he looked. Totally wasn’t a compliment, he looked like he could try just about anything and no one would be able to stop him. Gave one freedom to do as they please and they'll exercise that imagination.

Raphael tuned out Rand as he explained what they’ll be doing and how the matches would proceed. He already knew they’d be given the choice to choose and how the matches were set up. The tag teaming was just a plausible reasoning he came up with on his way over to the tournament. He wasn’t about to fight without using all of his intellect in this fight, and he wasn’t going to let that go to waste, even if he was planning on hurting Nadia and Dani emotionally as he was out there. Once Rand wrapped it all up, ending with where Iris went, Raphael chuckled and turned to hear Maria’s reasoning. He noticed the suitcases she had brought with and the hooded figure next to her.

It … Creeped him out slightly.

Maria spoke of possible strategies against the teams, figuring out where she would be placed which would benefit her the most. She explained her dolls, explained where she stood with Nadia and Dani, her manner against Sara and Suzu, and then finally what use she’d be with Thaddeus’ team. And then requesting to be the bruiser. Then she paused and explained that her instructor and caretaker would be watching. Raphael actually smiled for once, not one of his cheeky smirks or smug grins. Then she said some nonsense Raphael couldn’t hope to understand. However, before he was about to take a breath to speak, Ark went. His eyes deadpanned as he looked at him with a veil of irritation, but he returned to normal upon realizing Ark had with him a duffel bag and was smiling wide, a contrast to the nervousness he held earlier.

Ark, before he made his suggestion, took off his shirt after putting his gauntlets and grimoire on the table. Damn, fucker. Wanting to show off his body like that! Raphael watched him with some disdain, but there was a hint of a glimmer within his eyes even he refused to acknowledge. His jaw tensed and he finally looked away as Ark put on his gloves before his gauntlets.

His list of suggestions began and Raph was forced to listen as he stood there slightly nervous. It didn’t help that the man was taller than him (the nerve!) but he didn’t want to seem like a bad sport towards an ally. It would make him look bad. Yeah, that was it. His pride purred in content when Raphael attempted to seem interested, only to become interested when he caught the tail end of Ark saying “make a good show”. Raphael was immediately hooked and smirking.

Right, they had an audience.

Of course, Raphael’s ego was brought up within the context of the opponents not pulling their punches and he gave a terse look to Ark, rolling his eyes at Ark’s grin with a grimacing smirk. Yeah, yeah. Chanterelle and Maria were best against Gauss, considering none of them had collars and they didn’t have any metals on them. Ark then continued on to Raph and Koiya, basically saying he shouldn’t fight Sara, and Koiya might be able to. Raphael just shrugged. “I didn’t want to fight her anyway.” Ark finished his brief overview of who and who shouldn’t fight who. Raph, a growing smirk rising on his face, got himself ready to start giving his two cents.

Thinking he already had this in the bag, he flourished his hand as he patted Ark on the shoulder. “Yup, I can concur. I maaayyyy sound like a broken record, but pretty sure you all wouldn’t mind. Anyway,” pretentiously assuming no one had an issue with his repeating of information Ark had said, he continued. “So, about Nadia and Dani. I want to fight them. I don’t care if I’m the first or last to fight them, but I would so prefer having the last laugh. It’s a shame I wouldn’t get to fight them and be the one to get the first punch in, but I want to be the one to beat them, even if they just had to be weakened.” He then patted Ark a second time on the shoulder, giving him a cheeky grin with both eyes closed. “Pretty sure you can handle them, yeah? I knew you said you wanted to fight the werewolf, too, but I’d love company.” He then turned to the rest of the females of the group, eyes open. “Reason why is because we have immensely strong magi within our midst. Even if we may not have the stamina to keep up with them physically, the ones who are best at physical stamina are Ark here and Koiya.” He gave Koiya a kind smile. “You, dear, may be wonderful against Sara. You don’t have to worry about your masks as Sara can very obviously take it, considering she’s the one we have to worry about the most, yeah? She is a werewolf, after all. If she didn’t have endurance to boot with her physicality, I would be ashamed to have her as an opponent.”

He then turned his sights on Chanterelle and Maria, giving them equally kind smiles. He approached Maria even and wrapped an arm around her shoulders despite towering over her, grinning at the two girls. “And you two, as Ark explained, would be wonderful against Gauss. No metals, and you two are rather mysterious to the rich man. He won’t know how to crack inside your skulls and understand how either of you work, especially if you keep the stoic facade up. Oh.” He then looked to Maria, ruffling her hair a little. “Don’t worry if you pair up with Chanterelle. Your dear children shall be safe from her spores if you go first. And, any spare wood that has fallen off their bodies aren’t exactly salvageable, are they? If they chip off, it can give Chanterelle an edge when she’s tagged in and your children won’t be touched at all. Chanterelle’s mushrooms are like her children, too, so you’re really going to be helping her out.” Hoping that using her language to convince Maria to pair with a troublesome ally would be enough, he let go of Maria’s shoulders and approached Koiya, patting her on the head with a gentle smile, his voice a little quiet. “And don’t worry about your sister, hun. She might be more help than a hindrance in this fight. There’s five of us here, so one of us will have to be the odd one out, but you’re not alone out there.” He didn’t forget the word slip a few days ago, and he hoped that would be enough to get the usually shy Koiya some confidence.

He returned to his original position, standing beside Ark as he hoped to have gotten everyone’s spirits up. Raphael might have been doing it to be kind, but he wanted the mages to win. He’ll do anything to make sure they win, bringing up his allies in the process and making himself out to be a good guy until he makes his opponents foam at the mouth. Yes. Yes, he can do that.

In reality, Raphael didn’t want to seem like the bad guy until he unleashed his real plan.

He looked at Ark, giving him the same kind smile as he patted him on the shoulder, voice quiet. “And you. I’ll make sure all that attention won’t last on you when I’m tagged in.” Pretentiously and arrogantly assuming they’ll go with his plan, he went back to reading his book, looking up at anyone if they spoke.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Ulysses Stein​

"D-Stein"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank One-Star

Location Death City, Central Main Street, Death-Nova
Mission None
Status Aloof

​

Mentions: EmperorsChosen

Ah, Death Nova. What else could one say about this place? It didn't open before 6PM, including on the weekends, served every cocktail and hip drink you could ask for when it was open, and was one of the de facto party spots for the scene in Death City. Named after its absurd light scheme being as bright as a dying star, it was a place that could not go unignored. Only the most recent songs of the most cutting edge musicians, whether it was techno, hip hop, or some grunge party of wannabe rockers. It was a place many shows were booked and played, too, as it was a highly desirable venue. It was a place Ulysses had played plenty of times, arguably being known as the King of the Stage there.

In fact, you could argue that stage is where he really got his start. Dropping out from the academy, ditching the grueling life of being a Meister, and making it on his own as a musician. One might call it surprising of a Stein, but it wasn't really. Known for their skill, sure, but hardly known for adhering to the rules or conventional thinking. Ulysses found Soul Studies to be a beautiful way of bringing people together, and the partnerships that it formed to be equally close, but the fact that it was done solely for fighting... that wasn't his gig. The audience became his partner wherever he went, and he went to share his message with the world.

That was eight years ago. This was now. And now, like it or not, the DWMA had to deal with yet another famous ally, like Black★Star, except this one was a vocal pacifist. Ulysses often worked closely with the DWMA for their humanitarian efforts and fundraising. He may not like combat, but he didn't exactly speak out against their military. Pacifist though he may be, he understood evil. Still, it did put them at moral odds quite often.

It did make his visits to Death City more interesting, though. A rock star that dropped out of the DWMA only to be given his honorary One-Star back, so the DWMA could claim him as an agent. A man made on his own merit. A man with enough influence that when he told Death Nova he wanted to stop by a two PM on Thursday for a latte, their assistant manager opened the doors up just for him. And his requested plus one.

"So, Super Soul Perception, yet they didn't put you with my ole pal Emmett? Crazy," Ulysses said after a sip on his almond mink, light caramel latte. "Any idea which of these bloodlusted twits they have you under, El', or are they keeping that from you, too?" he asked, with about the same nonchalance he did when he texted Death Nova that he was arriving and wanted this beautiful balcony table shaded from the sun, but still overlooking the prettier half of the Main Street tourist district.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Sara & Suzu​

March 11, 2067
Location: Colosseum
Interactions: Emmett ( Prizzy Kriyze ), Zelda, Nadia ( RedArmyShogun ), Dani ( EmperorsChosen ), Gauss ( Sir Les Paul ), Noah, Prudence ( Mqueserasera )
Mentions: Maria, Raphael, Chanterelle, Ark, Koiya

Collab with Mineczka

Spoiler: ”Training Flashback - March 8-9”

Gently led by her hand, Suzu followed Sara through the halls, while she dreaded being anywhere in public, the bell still felt warm, maybe it was still Sara’s seemingly endless kindness and joy. She couldn’t figure it out, but Sara seemed to be taking quite the precautions as they lingered in the empty hallways, as she peered into the many training rooms, attempting to find a secluded one, before entering. It was silent, still. As Suzu glanced around the room, noting every detail, every possible hiding place, every possible escape route, even if she hadn’t planned to use it, the bell wanted that protection, that knowledge she has an escape, an out, a way to run away should she need to. Taking a breath, she turned back to the werewolf that was her partner, who seemed to be watching a video of sorts.

As Sara watched, Suzu peeked over her shoulder. It showed a person using what appeared to be a heavy metal ball in the pocket of a scarf, his movements were so fluid, it was like watching a dance of sorts. As the video ended Sara’s eyes soon turned to Suzu, who seemed to jump back like she wasn’t looking over her shoulder, a nervous expression would creep across her face, as she looked away from her partner. Another breath, an attempt at calming herself, before Sara’s words came over,

“Y-yeah, I-I’m ready…” Answered the bell, who took Sara’s hand, before forming the familiar shape of her bell, “J-just to mention, I… I’m a weapon that works best… In constant motion…” A follow-up on the video she had seen Sara watch, it was apparent Suzu was nervous, but, at least she was trying.

Sara smiled wide, creating that resonance bridge as she held the rope in her hands and slipped in the new TACS in her ears. No difference in normal hearing, good. She nodded at her words, wrapping the cord in loose loops around her hand before grabbing her near the top of the bell. “Alrighty, let’s do this!” She giggled. First off, a bit of simple circular movements. She spun Suzu around in her hand before softly letting go bit by bit until she had Suzu swinging around in a wide circle. Tilting her head, she was reminded of nunchaku. As Suzu swung in a counter-clockwise motion, she swapped sides she swung next to, so now Suzu was on her other side being swung clockwise.

Interesting.

With the basic movements down, she jumped to something a bit more complicated. She spun Suzu around and guided her so she was now being swung overhead. She saw that man use his legs too, so she attempted to.

A word on attempt.

One of the movements she saw was the man swinging the rope partially around his arm to shorten the length to make the swing faster, loosens to be sent faster around and down towards his leg, and then he pulled up his leg, the ribbon catching on the underside of his knee before the centrifugal force slipped the ribbon from under the leg and the ball was sent forward to possibly knock someone in the jaw or chest.

As she shortened the ribbon and had Suzu’s bell swinging around her arm and then towards her leg, she lifted her leg too much. The bell swung and hit her lower shin, came up, and smacked her on the shoulder. Sara winced and quickly grabbed the top of the bell, yet she still had a smile on her face despite the pain she felt radiating from her shoulder. “Alright, let’s try that again. This reminds me of nunchaku, so it’s not too bad. Just a bit of a learning curve.” She strained her voice as she spun her body around to deliver a high kick, jumping before using that momentum to softly throw Suzu’s bell forward, a toll resounding before she was starting to be swung around again.

Thirty minutes of constant practice, and Sara had lost count of how many times Suzu’s bell had smacked her. Whether it be dinging her in the shins, wrapping around her arms too much and smacking her arm in a tight vice grip, or smashing into her chest. Sometimes, Sara tripped over herself or the rope and was sent crashing down. Yet, Sara always got up without so much as being bothered by the pain that she underwent, and she continued, never letting it stop her until she learned how to use her partner’s weapon form.

The jungle within the resonance that covered Suzu’s shrine swayed with the focused wind of hope to achieve. There was never a falter within that soul that spoke of negative resignation, grudge-building, resentment, or even anger. It was all so positive. All so optimistic and happy. Even when she got hit somewhere or tripped over herself or the rope, she was happy. She still had a smile on her face. She was enjoying this.

Feeling the winds, Suzu stood alone within her shrine, a guarded place thanks to the new forest that had come, the winds dancing through caused the small chimes that decorated the abandoned shrine to sparkle once more, as they created small simple melody, the joy, the happiness flowed through the shrine. All the while, Suzu stood alone, gathering her resolve, and showing that resolve in the best way she could, starting at just a simple few notes, following her chimes, before taking a deep breath, while she knew not if anyone could hear, she allowed her words, her song, to be carried along the gales, building her courage, and greatly improving the resonance between Sara and herself.

An hour passed and Sara wasn’t even panting heavily, just chuckling and giggling, whooping whenever something wrong nearly happened, grunting after getting hit but always giggling afterwards, and getting more and more comfortable with the fighting style. It was still something to get used to, and she wasn’t going to stop today or tomorrow until she could learn this by herself. Then she should probably look up videos on how to do it properly.

Of course, Sara had to stop somewhere. Thanks to Suzu, they both had a break, got some food and water (as Sara was sweating up a little), while Suzu tended to the bruises with ice packs. Of course, Sara’s smile never wavered or faltered. She was enjoying herself and she’d tell Suzu time and time again how absolutely fun it was to train with her. Even after she got hit by the bell’s weapon form.

At the end of the day, Sara had improved considerably. While she still had accidents here and there, she took the time the next day after their meetup about the tournament that Sara, instead of doing gossip work, worked on her refinement with Suzu’s weapon form. Sara also wasn’t blind to the feeling of Suzu helping her out, too. She could feel the strength of the resonance and her body felt stronger, better, faster. While she had a few accidents, they weren’t as many as they were the day before. Sara felt accomplished. But she wanted to take it a step further.

“Suzu? I know you’re not very competitive, but what’s something we can both have as a goal to align ourselves with? So we can do a resonance attack. I want to at least try one out, see where we are so I know what to work on later.” She smiled. She knew the resonance attack wasn’t going to be as good since they barely had anything to go up against. They didn’t have any conflict at the moment and doing resonance attacks like that in a setting like this may not work as well. However, she felt like they could do it.

“W-we can try… If… You want…” Suzu replied, having spent the past couple days working on this, she was still nervous, but the shaking in her voice was slowly fading, along with her trembles and fears. While they would persist, it was apparent she was making at least some strides, especially in her weapon form, no one could hear, no one could see, as her song danced along the winds of the woods, gracing only her ears for now, “J-just be warned… My… Resonance form is… Different…”

“Alright! Don’t worry, I only just want to see what it’s like and if we both need more training or just more time. I don’t think we’ll be using the resonance attack soon, but I do want to see where we stand now so we can start training for it. Don’t worry if we fail, that’s the point.” She smiled, clearly gearing up and getting ready. “I know our resonance, while it is absolutely far better than it was before, isn’t exactly ready yet. I’m pushing us a bit to try this technique out. So, get ready!” She giggled, her wavelength trickling into Suzu’s own soul so she could amplify it and use it for her own form. Soon though, Sara’s wavelength swirled around Suzu’s shrine like a protective gale force of winds, with breezes slowly moving around her shrine, almost lovingly holding it in their invisible current, only going further when Suzu deems herself ready to take it.

Alongside the winds, Suzu’s voice carried, pressing as hard as the bell could, directing and forming her wavelength with Sara’s gales, a pure wind wrapping around the shrine and forest. As her physical form changed from a delicate looking shinto bell, it slowly became a grand Church Bell, lingering for what felt like a brief moment, before a ring rattled Suzu’s Soul space, the fear that followed, disrupted everything. There was no longer a bell in Sara’s hands, as to prevent any harm done to her partner, Suzu threw herself aside, landing in her human form once more on the ground. After a moment, she could be seen curling into a ball, the fear, the pain, all had come back once more, as the winds soon died around her Shrine…

Sara was stunned though. The church bell was amazing to behold, even for a moment. The glimpse of the glory of what Suzu’s potential could have been, and their near resonance amplification was astounding. Sara wasn’t upset that Suzu was scared, she was excited that it had worked! They’ve only known each other for- what? Three days?? That was amazing!!

She ran over to Suzu and wrapped gentle, comforting arms around her, having smelled and felt the fear from her partner. “Hey, it’s okay. What we accomplished today was amazing. Suzu.” She stared at Suzu, hoping the girl could look up at her. “We got to do a small moment of a resonance attack. Nobody can say the same in our team and we’ve only known each other for three days. Nadia and Dani, as much as they are about being strong, can’t even resonate properly as I’ve seen. And the trio is going to be rife with personality flaws that will make resonation like that difficult. We did this, even for a moment. Isn’t that amazing?” She sighed and calmed herself down, figuring Suzu could likely feel her meister’s heart beating out of her chest against her arm. “I’m proud of you, Suzu. I don’t mind that you ran from it, it’s scary the first time you do it, but I’m so proud that you were even willing to do it in the first place. Also.” She smiled heartwarmingly. “Your amplified bell form looked amazing. I want to see it again, but you’re not ready for that, yet. That takes time and I’m going to build you up until you can stand on your own feet, okay? That’s what friends and partners are there for.” She grinned, nuzzling the top of her head and rubbing her ears on Suzu’s face. “You did amazingly.”

Taking a shaking breath, Suzu couldn’t shake her quiver, the fear that came resounding in, once warded away thanks to the winds that Sara seemed to provide, wrapped in her meister’s arms, Suzu couldn’t bring herself to speak, or even open her eyes to the world for the moment, eventually, as her meister’s words lingered, Suzu’s mind and body began to settle, with the adrenaline from her incredible fear also slipping away as if nothing had happened… Then came the fatigue, while she was not as tired as Suzu presumed Sara would be, the reaction took quite the toll on her already meager stamina. A deep breath passed through her again, “M-Mōshiwakearimasen…” She mumbled, her voice gently wavering still, “I… I don’t… Know what happened… I-I was fine and then…. Suddenly… I’m… Not…” Suzu could feel her words choke up in her throat, struggling to even escape her body past a simple whisper, yet, deep down, she could sense Sara’s heart, was she… As scared as Suzu was…?

Hearing the slip into native tongue, she’s only ever heard it once from Noah and it was sorry. She was sorry. Thanking Noah mentally, she pet Suzu’s hair and hummed soothingly. “It’s okay, you don’t have to know what happened. What we did was a bit complex. I pushed us, but you know what, I know where we are now. There’s a hurdle you have to jump over, and no matter how many times you try, I’ll always be there for you cheering you on. Okay?” She whispered, petting her hair still and pressing her cheek against Suzu’s side of her head. “You did wonderful, don’t you worry. We’ll figure it out soon, but know this.” She stared directly into Suzu’s eyes. “I had fun today. So don’t think of yourself as a burden weighing me down, okay? I’m made to pull people up from the brinks of their darknesses because I’ve been there myself and I know neither of us like it, and I’ll be there for you every step of the way.” Sara could only guess what Suzu would beat herself up with later, so she wanted to nip it in the butt, reaffirming where she stood with Suzu. Thinking it was time to relax, she smiled wide.

“Want a vanilla milkshake?” She smiled, wanting to reward her dear friend with something she liked.

It was time.

The date of the tournament had arrived and Sara had wanted to do a light jog there. Of course, that meant getting up early, having Suzu transform, and getting there before the meeting was even there. She made sure they both got to eat something hearty, had packed a lunch for both just in case, and they were on their way.

The debriefing was rather insightful (and yummy thanks to Thaddeus coming in with refreshments but also rather amusing thanks to his amusing suitwear). Besides the irritation coming from Emmett that stunk up the entire room, Zelda’s smell was rather clear-cut, cold, yet it was soothing in a way like how peppermint was good to eat or chew to focus. As Emmett spoke about the Marionette Sorceress, Sara felt actually stoked to fight against Maria. The manipulation of puppets and having to fight multiple targets like that sounded exhilarating. And her grimoire turned into a blade? Even better! It was so cool!

She smelled amusement from Emmett as he tried to explain Raphael, so Zelda took over. Whiplash was an interesting specimen as well, used chains and probably used them like whips. The fact that he had madness though made her skin crawl. She hoped she didn’t fight him. While Suzu had a wavelength to deal with that, it still bothered her and she’d rather not have something that would make it more difficult to keep her transformation at bay. The idea of there being an audience didn’t bother her in the slightest, but she hoped Suzu didn’t break during resonance. That would really suck.

Next was Chanterelle, the mushroom witch’s powers were succinct. But Sara knew they were just as strong as the other mages’ magical prowess and she hoped she didn’t fight her. She didn’t know if the toxic skin would affect Suzu through her weapon form, but here was to hoping Sara didn’t get picked to fight Chanterelle.

Ark was an interesting one. She had heard of him, but only briefly. The man was a towering behemoth and he had really cool magic she would love to fight against and show off her physicality. But, alas, she found herself wondering if Ark would even fight her to begin with. Though, the Pull causing him to be incredibly violent if he loses himself was rather terrifying to think about. She hoped it wouldn’t happen here.

As for Miko, the Oni witch had her shivering. Oh boy. That description was a little terrifying, what with her madness and such. If they were to go against her, Suzu’s wavelength may actually help her magic if it didn’t also suppress the magical capabilities of the mages. Interesting though. She giggled when Zelda said she likes to bite and she wondered what would happen if they bit each other.

All the while, Suzu sat silent during the briefings, she was nervous, scared even. This was her first actual fight in years, and the nerves of such showed to those who could read her, she was trembling throughout the morning, if not since the moment she knew of this tournament. Suzu barely could bring herself from the desk she had rested her chin on, and yet, she watched, gleaning every detail she could, in hopes that she wasn’t as useless as she knew she was.

After the explanation of how the battles will be fought and conditions to win, they were excused to go on ahead, to which Sara ended up getting a doughnut and put it on a smoothie cup in one hand, and a sushi roll and sashimi stacked on each other on the other hand. Just as she plucked the sashimi in her mouth, everyone began talking about strategizing. She honestly would humor them, but she didn’t really feel like it right now. However, Nadia wanted a conversation. Sara didn’t really have much to strategize on. She wanted to leave and have Suzu see her family. She merely gave Nadia a kind smile before looking at the others of their little pod and said her piece. “Either way, those who use magic will find it far more difficult when Suzu’s bell rings. I am confident in every single one except the mushroom witch. I don’t know what her toxic skin will do if our weapon partners make contact with her.” She then shrugged. “There’s not much that Whiplash can do to either me or Suzu, so I think we’re safe. If he’s going after the ones who anger easily, then I wish you two luck.” She nodded towards Nadia and Dani before moving onto Gauss’ team, deciding to just go through with the planning with them for the moment.

“If they’ve gone through debriefings of our abilities like how our mentors did with theirs, I wouldn’t be surprised if they are aware of your magnetism, Gauss. If those who have incapacitator or madness collars or are metal based, it’s likely you won’t be fighting them. I do agree with Prudence's assessment, but strategizing to this degree isn't my forte. I'll devise a strategy with Suzu with whoever chooses us. I also wish you three luck.” She then looked at the rest of them. “If anything, one team is going to only have one magi to go up against, and I know for a fact that they’ll be wanting to pair two tag-in magi on Gauss’ team. But other than that I’m at a loss for what else. Either way, I’m excited to fight whoever wants to pit themselves against us. Oh.” She turned to Gauss with an appreciative smile. “Just ask whenever you want. But that’ll be all from me for now, I want to see my family.” With a determined smile, she ate her sushi roll and then grabbed Suzu’s hand and made their way to leave their briefing room, since she figured Suzu would like some space away from the group as she knew how hard it was for Suzu to deal with fighting.

Speaking to Suzu, she had the biggest grin while her tail wagged quickly. “I want you to see my parents.” She giggled, taking the doughnut in her mouth and not really chewing it but looking like such a happy dork.

Sara was right of course, the idea that Suzu was to actually fight someone, even if it was with serious safety constraints intimidated her, let alone if it were a real fight. Furthering this, was how seemingly blase the others were, in comparison to the bell who, quite honestly was totally freaked out, it was apparent to at the least her meister, she was not handling this well. Then, Sara turned back to her, mentioning meeting her parents, which broke her thoughts for a moment, with a single remark back, “N-nani?” It was apparent her confusion, and how further twisted her nerves had become, meeting new people on the same day as a fight… Truly a day where Suzu regretted even waking up…

And with that, they left the debriefing room, leaving the two teams to discuss their strategies that Sara really didn’t want to be a part of.

 

[EmperorsChosen]

​

Eloise Keegan - Death Nova
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Today was a special day it seemed. Fresh off the boat so to speak and already meeting with a celebrity. If Eloise didn't already have a tad of ego, this would certain spawn one. Then again, if she were unremarkable, she supposed she would've been left in Ireland to succumb to her fate or face some other repercussions. Still, meeting a Stein and one that was a known musician was a surprise to be sure. Certainly she didn't mind.

Her lips curled into a small smile as she accompanied the celebrity. "Mm. 'Fraid not. Seems they intend to make it a surprise," Elly replied with a light shrug, her voice carrying an overt yet clear accent that displayed her Irish roots. "Though I wonder what I did to get rewarded with afternoon coffee with a rockstar."

Following the trials, Eloise had been kept mostly out of the loop. Though trust was shaky with the revelations themselves, the accusations that followed really hammered the nails into that coffin. She knew she was coming here and would have to go through the F.A.T.E. program, but not much else was shared with her. She was let in on information as she needed it, which was why the girl was more than pleased for this little excursion. It presented her the chance to get even the slightest amount of intel, though she didn't know if Stein was operating with the full scoop or not. On the one hand, he was a one-star, he was a Stein, and he was speaking to her. He obviously knew about her Super Soul Perception, but she also knew that he didn't exactly see eye to eye with the DWMA. Thus, it begged the question why he was here if not to be involved in the program.

"You would know more than I do, Mr. Stein~ At least, I assumed as much given this outing. I'm fairly confident in myself, but I think you could attract better than I if you just wanted the company of a pretty girl," Elly commented further, smirking slightly as she raised her own latte to her lips by its handle.

Certainly, she wouldn't be insulted if he just wanted company. However, he was a famous rockstar and DWMA one-star, and she was an, if at all, infamous two-star ex-mobster in what amounted to a rehab program. Such things did not just readily happen, so there had to be something else. As for Elly, she was just ready to be brought out of the dark.

Interactions: Sir Les Paul (Stein)

 

[Merciless Medic]

Noah Wiley​

March 11, 2067
Location: The Colosseum
Interactions: Gauss ( Sir Les Paul ), Prudence ( Mqueserasera ), Suzu, Nadia ( RedArmyShogun ), Dani ( EmperorsChosen ), Emmett ( Prizzy Kriyze ), Zelda, Sara
Mentions: Maria, Koiya, Raphael, Ark, Chanterelle

“Ya don’t need to apologize for the DWMA or for what happened! It’s really fuckin’ obvious she had madness, are people blind that she had a collar?! I was talkin’ to her partner anyway, the thought that she thought I was talkin’ about her or to her was stupid! Kinda fuckin’ demeanin’ to look like the government is gonna leash ya, isn’t it?! Don’t tell me what it fuckin’ is, tell her all ya god damn want!”

He cringed, the words echoing in the back of his mind.

“My own parents were taken by the madness, as was everyone else I knew, but ya already knew that! I had to see that shit firsthand ‘n’ I sympathize with everyone who went through that shit! After what I had said, I wasn’t gonna continue! I wasn’t expectin’ miss “gotta follow the majority” to bash the poor girl more! It was obvious she was done ‘n’ I’m not blind like her!”

His outburst from three days ago still lingered in the back of his mind. What even was that? Prudence at least apologized to him and he… Gave some semblance of an apology back. He thought, at least, without outright saying sorry. Death, if Sara had heard…

But no. Yesterday, he had moved his things into the suite Gauss had for him from the apartment he shared with Sara, so Suzu may take his space. It would… Complicate things if he stayed living with Sara. He didn’t want Suzu to think that he was taking her or anything. Or whatever went through her pitiful brain.

He had gotten everything set up in his portion of the new suite on the same day he arrived. However, as he was about to boot up his computer in the early morning hours of the arranged fights, he paused. A strange feeling overcame him, as if he shouldn’t. He looked around his room, the only thing that was different layout-wise from the room he had back in Sara’s apartment was the computer he had put in the corner.

Sighing, the feeling hitched at his chest and he felt emotional, surprisingly. Why?

He needed to walk. Plus, the event at the colosseum was going to start in a few hours. Noah wore his usual casual suit with a few too many wrinkles and his thin, black jacket opened up. Walking down the roads, he spotted his former meister hopping through the cityscape before vanishing behind a building she parkoured behind. He could hear the chimes of the bell even from here and he felt surprisingly empty. Changed. He couldn’t rely on Sara anymore, could he? He’d always gone back to her for support, but now it was his turn to pick himself up, huh?

Fuck this.

His lip curled in disdain, hands in his pockets as he let the alternative rock music in his earbuds lull him into his thoughts without becoming irrationally irritated. Noah still didn’t like the expensive lifestyle Gauss had, but he was born into it. He couldn’t be mad about that, but maybe he was a bit more high strung recently ever since he arrived at the Thales’ suites. But, it has surprisingly grown on him, and Thaddeus wasn’t that bad of a guy.

Still, he felt like shit, even after getting breakfast and arriving just in time to the colosseum. He had no one to come and see him, except Sara’s family, but he didn’t want to see them right now. Hell, it would be interesting to see Trevis or one of his other meisters again, but he didn’t want to give them the time of day.

However, there would be no reprieve for him as he accidentally bumped into someone. That someone had blonde hair, bright hazel eyes, and pale skin dressed up in a green tank top and black shorts. The quick exchange of shoulders had their eyes locked onto one another and they both held their breaths. Noah immediately looked away, with the older man sighing and putting a hand on Noah’s shoulder. Then came the comment Noah wasn’t expecting. “Hey, good luck out there.”

Noah slowly looked up, meeting his former meister in the eyes for the first time in years. Letting out a sigh, Noah nodded, giving him a half-smile, to which the former meister seemed stunned. “Yeah, thanks, Trevis.” Though, Noah’s tone was still quiet and he shrugged off the hand from his shoulder as he walked towards the debriefing room.

Once inside, he realized he might have been a bit late. Everyone was here and… Were these refreshment stands? Tilting his head at the selection that was there, he knew this was Thaddeus’ doing. He was about to walk up to thank Gauss until he saw the getup he was wearing.

He laughed, of course.

The bo-staff decided to just go and get food, getting a small plate of sushi and sashimi, some cheese and carrots, and then a cup of coffee that would surely help with his electrical generation. Snacking on his things (and snickering over Thaddeus’ attire), his head snapped towards Emmett as he got their attention with a yell after his coughing fit, and seemed… Charged. Why? Was he upset about the colosseum? Intriguing. He decided to see if he would spill later as to why, as Zelda seemed to be there for his support.

Either way, there was the rundown of how the tournament and their matches will go, and then the magi they’ll be fighting. The Marionette Sorcerer sounded weird and he hoped they wouldn’t be fighting her. Her dolls would prove a problem, but if they were controlled by wires, that meant he could zap not only her dolls, but her, as well. Given that her dolls weren’t made of wood. Maria sounded dangerous, but so did Raphael. Granted, Noah was a weapon and he didn’t know how to protect himself beyond finding a meister to wield him and resonate with. Zelda took over for Emmett’s speaking and she continued. Raphael had madness, and he wondered who he’d fight. Provoke to get others upset? He looked to Dani and Nadia from his peripherals. Interesting. The Mushroom Witch, Chanterelle, was another odd one. He hoped they didn’t have to fight her either as his attacks were strictly physical and he didn’t know if her toxic skin would affect him through the demon weapon’s defenses. He also swore there was something to mushrooms with lightning, but he couldn’t think of it right now. Ark sounded exceptionally dangerous, and he seemed to be the one struggling moreso from his Pull as it seemed. And he had the same collar Sara had. Great. The last one to be brought up was Koiya, the Shrine Maiden. She used masks. Oh, death. He hoped they wouldn’t fight her.

While Noah was rather competitive, he was starting to feel less and less like they’d be able to fight off any of these magi. However, as Zelda finished and Dani interjected with a question that had him chuckling, he realized that there possibly was a way. Dani didn’t seem like she wanted to be here, and even her comment on how it was a dog and pony show only cemented that she didn’t think they’d win. Nadia was speaking to her about something before relaying her strategy-talk to everyone. Maria was the most reasonable bunch? Did she know her?

Nadia talked some stuff about how they used to do something like this before the whole treaty thing and it was just one political thing he didn’t want to speak about. But then she finally got to talking about strategy, then Gauss did, then Prudence, and finally Sara before leaving with Suzu trailing behind. He gave her a small nod before deciding to use his brain, his arms crossed with a hot coffee in the crook of his elbow to warm him up.

“Maria sounds like she’d be a pain. Multiples of her, ‘n’I’m hopin’ she can’t push her magic along her dolls ‘n’ make ’em use spells. Either way, I’m assumin’ if she’s gonna be a bruiser, she’s gonna wanna go against someone none of them have a chance to fight well against. That bein’ us.” He gestured towards Gauss and Prudence along with himself. “Gauss can control metals, ‘n’ if all of them have metals on them save for two, makes it pretty fuckin’ easy who they’ll choose to fight against. As Sara mentioned before she left, Chanterelle’s toxic skin sounds like a variable we don’t have th’ time to find out durin’ the battle, else we’ll fail. We’ll just have to avoid touchin’ her somehow or take a gamble despite the dangers it could put us in. As for Raphael, if he’s goin’ after which one of us is the easiest to provoke, he’ll most likely go after ya two.” He nodded his head towards Nadia and Dani. “Ya both’re exactly who he’d like to fight against if we all’re correct in assumin’ he’ll be manipulative and cause emotional duress. Plus, if his magic affects his chains, I dunno how yer Ice Blood’ll prevent. Last I read anythin’ about yer trait, it didn’t say anythin’ about attacks dealt by indirectly usin’ magic on somethin’."

He took a sip and looked out towards the arena. “As for how we’d best fight against ‘em, we don’t have much to go on besides what our mentors tell us. None of ‘em seem capable of flyin’, but Miko ‘n’ Ark have abilities that make me wonder if they’d attempt flight or jump high, but we dunno what they can do beyond the obvious.” Noah was insanely glad that video game experience was helping him out now. “If we’re goin’ up against those who are dangerous to be near, we should focus on confoundin’ ‘em with speed before hittin’ ‘em when they’re confused or dazed. Then there’s those who’re good defenders or prefer battlin’ further away. Speed ‘n’ avoidin’ as many obstacles to conserve yer strength ‘n’ stamina’d be the best to go. There’s also the thought of magical endurance. Does their magic work like how our physical bodies work ‘n’ can we exhaust ‘em enough to win if we can’t fight ‘em with brute strength ‘n’ speed alone?”

He took a swig of his coffee and set it in the trash, feeling the caffeine course through his system. If they don’t get out soon, he’ll be jittery. He looked at Gauss and Prudence, his usually lazy expression was filled with determination and vigor behind his half-lidded eyes of focus. He wasn’t going to back down either, even though he’d rather not be doing this right now. However, upon seeing Gauss’ get-up once again, he snickered with an amused grin. “I can’t not say somethin’, I get that’s all metal, but ya look like Kamen Rider.”

 

[Meredith]

Chanterelle Fuir

In the Meeting Room, interactions with Sir Les Paul (rand), RedArmyShogun (maria), The Regal Rper (Ark), Merciless Medic (Raph), Kyuubey (Koiya). ​

The news of a colosseum battle had not sat well in Chanterelle’s chest over the few days prior. She had not been provided a letter like the others; instead, a family member had visited her, smiling tightly about the opportunity with an air of apprehension. Are you going to freak out if they hit you?

The toadstool witch had waved off those concerns. There were others more important – anonymity chief among them – but the woman was quick to remind her that there was no safer place than the DWMA. Chanterelle wasn’t so sure about that. It seemed that there was a lot of conflict at the school; still, she’d yet to see an argument escalate to real violence, and once the initial spirits had been tempered things had of course continued to improve. It was harder outside the class.

It was hard to stray from old habits, especially the habit of caution, and she shifted the bitterness of alienation around in her mouth on her way through the crowd to their meeting spot. It had been nice to meet everyone in the library. It had been a good opportunity make friends. She’d met with a couple of her classmates since, though she’d stipulate those meetings as accidental, and it was easy now to blend into the back of the group with naught but a quiet murmuring of greetings.

It pleased her, though, that Rand seemed to have abandoned his habit of time-wasting. It was something Chanterelle understood she was not patient about; her hands were quick and used to being rushed and there was nothing quite so agonizing as unpurposeful silence. The small notebook at her belt was produced as he began to talk – she jotted a few quick notes about each person on the field. The colosseum was vibrating with a sort of potential energy; Chanterelle had no doubt there would be blood spilled today no matter how friendly the occasion. The anticipation sparked in the air. She held her breath as her attention turned to Maria.

The dollmaker spoke with a sort of constant resolve that Chanterelle felt she herself lacked. It was understandable to avoid fighting friends; still, the content of her words betrayed the conviction Chanterelle had come to expect, and she was stunned into a silence as discussion went around the table. She crossed out Maria’s name from the list of who she pegged to fight Nadia.

Ark was the next to speak up. He’d done his homework, alright, and that was a sort of dedication that she had to respect in one way or another. If anything, he didn’t give DWMA agents enough credit. Her heart beat faster in her chest as his logic came forward. Everyone else at the table was taking this extremely seriously. An exhibition. His ideas weren’t bad, though. She could get behind them. As long as nobody threw her in with some sort of frost devil, she was happy, and nobody seemed to want to. That was the best news she’d heard since throwing up in her mouth at the bare suggestion of the exhibition bracket.

Raphael piped up next. He wanted to fight Nadia, which evened things out considering that two of them didn’t at all, and Chanterelle breathed a selfish sigh of relief. She appreciated that Raph was trying to soften Maria to her at every opportunity. It was a hard thing, to be at elemental odds, and not something the toadstool witch had struggled much with before. Chanterelle… well, she wouldn’t say she understood it, but she felt much the same way about frost that Maria must have about her mechanics of decay.

But these brackets were hardly settled. Chanterelle cleared her throat. It took a moment to get the sand out of her mouth. Finally, she spoke, if only to dispute with what had already been said. “I’ll take Gauss. Maria, if you want to open that fight, I’d be happy to team up with you.” She flipped to the first page of the small pad, to Nadia’s name. “Raphael wants to fight Nadia. I’m a little apprehensive to send you in alone for that,” she addressed him directly with a bit of an apologetic smile, “not because of your ability but because of the magic fatigue. I want to say that Ark is a good fit to tag-in to that fight. Still, ice conquers earth, and the superstitious part of me…” she falters. A deep breath brings it back. “…it would also set Ark against Sara with Koiya. That’s why I’d put Maria in with Raph. But I don’t really want to do this exhibition alone, and if Koiya is comfortable with fighting by herself, that’s great. I don’t mind either way.”

A nervous smile plastered across her face, Chanterelle flipped the notebook to a new page. The witch was confident she could at least put on a show against Gauss, even if she lost, and that loss would not be nearly as devastating in a 1-v-3 even if it would be more likely.

Do Not Touch!

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Ulysses Stein​

"D-Stein"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank One-Star

Location Death City, Central Main Street, Death-Nova
Mission None
Status Aloof

​

Mentions: EmperorsChosen

Ulysses could not help but let slip a sincere laugh. While there was a definite confidence that lingered between the words Eloise spoke, it was matched by curiosity, and those cliché words that cut straight to the point; a complete lack of belief one would just want their company. Logically speaking, she had a valid point and in fact was correct, but it had become a trope to Ulysses at this point in his life. More interesting to him was that her soul was absolute static to him. He was sure that even if he tried to dig up his old skill of Soul Perception, his natural attunement to the sounds that souls sung was enough to tell him he wasn't getting any extra information from her in the slightest. That was normally his ace in the hole for negotiations or even just fleeting conversation, but such was entirely handicapped with the femme fatale in front of him.

Perfect.

"Oh, miss Keegan, you wound me," he replied, although with a whimsical tone that quickly displayed his playful nature. "I am but a man, really, am I somehow so great that your allure would be lost on me? Should my fame make me immune to the Gaelic charm of gemstone blue eyes and hair by far more vibrant than my own?" he asked her, clearly rhetorically, but serving a point to humanize himself to her as well. He didn't quite like being put up on a pedestal as he often was. The DWMA was full of heroes, and while he disliked violence, he would never deny what they put on the line that he did not. It is not their fault that the evils of the world had to be fought any more than it was a fireman that the natural adversary to fire was water.

"I hear words like that so often, and it does pain me so to think my presence makes others feel lesser. You are no lesser to me than you would be anyone in this city, love. Though I do admit, there are moments when that feeling is worth it," he explained, an eyebrow raised and his latte swirled in his hand, watching the unsettled bits of almond milk mix in further with the expresso. "A few weeks back, I had some meetings with the Make-A-Wish foundation. Pretty girls like yourself are delights, I assure you, but not much compares to realizing that when a child could ask for anything, they want to meet you. Fans whose names I never heard, yet by the end of the day it was heartbreak to see them go. Even if you stole my heart, miss Keegan, I doubt you could break it like their little hands do." he continued on, with an ounce of melancholy.

"I read souls quite well, by the sounds they make. Some women will say what you said, but in their hearts sing a song wishing I would confess some undying love. Others are full of absolute distrust. Others, just plain lust. But those kids, it is pure joy and elation--and it is humbling to know you somehow caused that. When I left the DWMA, it was because I didn't want to fight. I never expected my adventure in the world would cause that type of reaction in anyone, honestly," he still continued, seeming like a monologue at this point but definitely guided in a direction. "That is what is so unique about you, honestly. Hidden behind that pretty face is a soul I can't read. I don't know if your preferred poison is flattery, conversation, or a trip to the back room. You should have plenty of money, so I doubt you'd want that from me," he said, finally in a more direct manner, rounding out his story with both how it tied into the current conversation and progressing into the new one.

"If anything, I should be the one intimidated by you. My hands are tied behind my back, so to speak, in that the crutch I normally have when conversing with others is of absolutely no use with you. I normally can even read a soul through that fancy calm training you people have, but right now, I have no idea what you're thinking or feeling, so at root, this is just a conversation between a pretty man and a pretty girl, and I do say you likely have me beat in that field," he told her, leveling the field with the somewhat unique position of this conversation. He was a man that could literally read vibes, hear souls, thoughts, feelings from others almost effortlessly, but she just as effortlessly deafened him.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley, Prudence Montgomery
Rank Fate Agent

Location Death City, Death Colosseum, Right Wing
Mission Exhibition Tournament
Status Focused, slightly nervous

​

Mentions: Merciless Medic Mqueserasera Prizzy Kriyze RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Mineczka

An eyebrow raised. A smirk shared. Kamen Rider, huh? How vintage. The forefathers of all those little Power Rangers, though.

"Kamen Rider, huh? Isn't his suit bug like, though? Either way, I guess I do look like I'm straight out of some Japanese inspired anime, so that's about as fitting as it could be," Gauss responded in a fairly light hearted tone. "I guess call me Shield Rider Gauss. Right now, that's probably all we have going for us against these Mages," he added.

His thoughts did wander, though. Prudence and Noah had indulged in the food he brought. He was unsure if Zelda or Emmett would, and even more so on if Dani or Nadia would try anything that might be considered a kindness from him. But then again, food was food. Sara and Suzu didn't seem to excited by the food, but then again, Sara was treating this more like a social outing. Gauss was much more unsure of his sibling in the crowd. Their relationship was strenuous. She hated his father and the fact Gauss was still funded by him yet also joined the DWMA had a heavy weight on their relationship. She also apparently found it disgraceful he put himself in F.A.T.E., alongside the actions that got him there. The fact their father still favored him after all that, well... it didn't make for good family ties. Perhaps that why his other sibling wasn't there. Only one could bring themselves to see the shame of their family.

He had to get his thoughts back on track. Going into this spiral would only be a distraction, or worse, bring out anger within him that would dull his decision making. Gauss knew his faults. He was a man of pride. He didn't have to prove anything to anyone but himself, and this was something he had to constantly reassure himself of. If he allowed his siblings to be a distraction, that could cause illogical choices, which all could result in the loss of his matches. He deserved better. So did Noah and Prudence.

"If there is any luck, I will get the Mushroom Witch, and I will fight her first. My suit comes with a helmet, the weave is synthetic and fluid resistant. Unless it's compromised, which is no small feat, her toxins won't get to me. If I have to fight Ark, it's also fairly heat resistant. It doesn't do the best with raw impact, but it's designed to prevent cuts and stabs," he explained to them, going over pointless details about his suit if only to further distract himself. "If we all had something like this, even without the plating, the Mushroom Witch and Ark wouldn't be as big of obstacles. It's doubtful they know I have it, either, so with any luck, they'll pit someone against me without that knowledge. It's a cheap tactic, I guess, reliant entirely on surprise, but given we've had less than a week to practice and they've had their whole lives with magic, so fuck it," he announced, almost as if justifying his own cause.

In reality, he knew they fell short. Almost no time to acclimate to their partners. Not even a simple low-rank mission to test their combat efficacy. No real world applications. The Mages didn't have that disadvantage. Gauss felt this was all too soon. He didn't like to do anything unprepared, and that's what he felt like going into this. The realization that he might have to rely on his instincts sat on him, and he didn't like it. He was a man that thought everything out, or so he thought he was. The idea of relying on his gut for anything felt like a bad call.

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Daniella Ethalyn - The Colosseum
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Dani stared forward with disinterest at her partner's irritation, and her robotic tone showed that she had a guess as to what the other was referring to, and additionally didn't much care. "Oh. No. What. Ever. Do. You. Mean."

As far as the Demon Sword was concerned, it was payback and also deserved. The dollmaker obviously didn't know how much of anything worked if it involved other people and she should get compensated for what she does. Not that Dani cared—Nadia just pissed her off that day, of course. She wouldn't be going soft that easily. Though she didn't contend when Nadia began strategizing and named them friends.

"I would be more concerned with what kinda madness they have... Either way, if they try to zone us, the most I can do is try and boost you so you can blitz them. Until we can actually sync and you learn complex resonance, we won't have any range," Dani replied, narrowing her eyes slightly as she felt a hand upon her shoulder. The girl looked at the taller one as if she had just asked a stupid question, which she kind of had.

There was no question, as several would point out, who was the biggest target to anyone who was enough of an asshole to try enraging their opponent. This day was shaping up to be another shit one, or perhaps not. Today, at least, they would be allowed to punish the other without intervention.

After Nadia's analytics, the others spoke their turns. First was Gauss, who was not only accompanied by his partners and a buffet, but some kind of iron man suit. She looked at him with a deadpan expression, wondering if the mentors were bullshitting about this being a "training exercise" more or less, or Gauss was just taking it way too damn seriously. Perhaps both. Still, her eyes then drifted down to the food.

A conundrum.

Dani was an advocate of "beggars can't be choosers", but at the same time, she was also stubborn. So now she would struggle with the decision. To partake in the buffet and potentially have it lorded over her later on, brought up anytime she snapped at the prettyboy for getting a little too big for his breeches. Or to hard-headedly refuse on principle of the smartass being on her shit-list. The sweets did look good though... Why couldn't the wolf or the bell be the rich ones?

Other than the restaurant he brought along, he as well spoke a bit about strategy before explaining his suit. It made more sense now due to his wavelength, but still. The food wasn't the only overkill here, followed by the last comment. Dani wasn't even sure how to respond of if she should. Ultimately, her better judgement won this one and she remained silent, less another session of shit talk arises and she gets worked up before they even go out.

The shield spoke up next, and though Dani didn't outwardly agree, she was right. Their information was limited. Most of the strategizing would have to come in the moment as they analyzed their opponent and how their magic worked. Damn, witches were such a pain.

Following that was Sara, who very quickly gave her thoughts before whisking her partner away and disappearing. It seemed all but certain that they would be facing this chain guy. That was annoying, though there was a benefit to being in different pods. He couldn't know much about them save for basic abilities and he was unlikely to go after anything madness related if he was afflicted—Well, maybe not.

Noah spoke up next, pointing out that, again, they were likely to be dealing with the supposed chain troll. The chains as a medium would be a nuisance as Nadia's ice blood wouldn't be as effective, then it sounded like there were some of the others that could fly. That would really screw them up. Perhaps the Russian could jump with a boost, but what they really needed was complex resonance to deal with this. Even if they managed to sync up mid fight, however, there wasn't much likelihood that Dani could teach the other how to use complex resonance out of the blue with no prior experience.

Gritting her teeth a bit in slight frustration, though paused as the trio conversed. Primarily, it was Noah's comment of Gauss' outfit and his owning of it. The stupid-looking mental picture flashed in her mind, and for a moment, her pissed off face wasn't so pissed off. In fact, it elicited a subtle, suffocated chuckle from her. This was quickly stifled and played off as a cough as she turned her head to the side with a fist raised to cover her mouth.

Mentions: Nadia, Gauss, Noah, Sara, Suzu, Prudence
Interactions: RedArmyShogun

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Eloise Keegan - Death Nova
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

As he broke into a laugh, Eloise's smile broadened but retained its composed nature. After taking a sip from the cup, she sat it down in front of her and peered into him. The Irishwoman measured both his outward responses as well as his spirit with that ability he seemed to be interested in, aside from her wavelength that is. Elly had a hunch that he was somewhat of a kindred spirit, relying on his perception to gauge what was concealed beneath the skin. Though, she doubted their methods were rooted in the same purpose. Certainly, she would be far less comfortable if she were as blind as he was right now.

"Haha~ A silver tongue, hm? Seems you can pick your words as well as your lyrics and notes," She hummed in mild amusement.

Leaning forward a bit, the meister's elbows sat upon the table with her interlocked hands acting as a platform for her chin to rest on as she listened to his words with vested interest. It was interesting for one of his stature, both outside of the DWMA and within it, to be so humbled, more so with someone like her. It begged the question if he even knew of her current predicament and how much. At the very least, by peering within his soul she may at least garner the inkling of an idea of how genuine he was being. Perhaps he was simply that good-natured. If that were the case, then he certainly was better than her. She, after all, exploited people as much or more than she aided them.

However, as Stein began to speak of inner intentions and the fact hers remained undetermined, Eloise let a light giggle surface in response. "Well, if you intend to confess, then by all means~. I won't stop you," She teased in somewhat of a sing-song voice. "But I gather as much that you don't intend to do that, or whisk me away to one of your private rooms."

He may have backed out of the DWMA, but he was no fool or amateur. He passed the One-Star exam, after all, and his manner of talking depicted someone who knew how to deal with people, even without any techniques or other knowledge of them. It wasn't necessarily manipulative or with an exploitative nature, not like Eloise. At the very least though, he held enough sense to attempt to lower himself to her stature. He had to do that two-fold, first as a celebrity and second as a superior in rank. He famous, she was infamous, if that, and while she was in a program that not many held faith in, he was one of the DWMA's finest.

Unfortunately, Elly was far more tied than he was, and they both had to know. Stein couldn't read her, not really, but she was the one on uneven footing. Here she was, in another country, with a new surname, being placed in a special program because one way or the other, she posed a threat. Perhaps her analyzing of his soul may give her insight to his current feelings, but it would not help her in her overall circumstances.

"One would think that normally, but in this case I get the impression that you don't mind being tied up as much," Elly chimed a tad smugly, playing at the double meanings. "Not that you presently have much cause for distress. You asked if I knew to whom would be my handler, which tells me you know either... but, given that and everything else you commented about me, you certainly know who I am and why I'm here. I think I'm a tad more restrained than you are."

Interactions: Sir Les Paul

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - Death City the Colosseum

​

Listening to what each of the rest had to say in turn, her expression soured a bit as Raph went into some detail with his request and the logic behind it. Though, she had to admit it was sound logic even to her... Though the idea of using the remnants to feed the magic and effects of another was revolting in a manner. But still... The Devil's words were corrupting all the same as he laid hands upon her shoulder, something she did not seem to mind. Tempting and taunting, her own wishes to be stronger, her wish to put on a good show, her wish to make others proud, her wish to regain something she had fundamentally lost. A wish to gain what never was, the tug from the pull of creation, running at odds to the point she bit at the end of her thumb as the others spoke, she paced as she had from before.

When she suddenly stopped and glanced at Raph with what looked like a blank expression, at odds with a smile that looked so inhumanly fixed and false, yet eyes that seemed a mixed of tired, yet with the spark of bemusement. "Ah.. So you wish to be the final act.. Then Ark must not fall yet not try to win.. Yet if he were to fall, then that would be the end of it all? Don't you agree?" With that she tilted her head. "Yet do not forget about me. Or you or the voices of the crowds, of the pull, of the lost and found. Yes, for your own sake and that of the other fights I suggest the final fight. Our third and final Match, a spectacle indeed..." With that she heads back to him after his patting of Koiya, she maintains her fixed facial expressions even as she listened to Chanterelle and to Koiya in turn, addressing them as she went about the room, with a deft movement of her hand the humanoid sized doll shot forward, a grizzle looking blade briefly shown under the flowing cape as it mimicked the motions of Maria, her hand reaching out towards him, a hand with blade lowers it briefly to do much the same.

"Do know Devil of Words that those two are something else. Depending on how far they go, well the stage may be in an uproar, but you, something I sense, or maybe in a way I smell, the dog's chain around your neck aside.. I shall not aid you less I must. So do put on a good show, provided the jeweled eyed one stays in for so long. I'm sure you will excite, oh yes indeed."

As she looked at Koiya the other shifted again, answering her question on how many forms the oni possessed. Does she make three doll plushies of her, or combine the aspects of all three into one? That was not so important, what was important was that was the smile.

"When Witches Smile others frown, so it has been said and so shall it be. Not that all smiles of casters are bad. I like to think my smiles are welcoming. But..." Withdrawing her hand she looked at Chanterelle and decided to address her words, or rather to countermand them in a fashion.

"...It's okay. While I hate your fungus and the molds, rotting aging it causes to my woodcraft, the rust to my metal, the dampness and poisoning to my cloth, I can overlook it for this once. As in a manner all life is a form of creation, isn't it? Even those based upon death. I shall work with you, though..." With that she hovered a hand above the other, looked at her for a bit and then withdrew it.

"...ah, I cannot touch you, least not with bare flesh, how to tag you is the question, a glove I shall wear, or the poison I will endure, what are the rules of there? You worry too much upon the matches and winning. We all regardless of what we may be, are the students of the Magus. When has a Magus ever listened to reason and logic, or cared for winning? Has it not always been the purpose of us to defy reason and logic for the pursuit of Magic, the unnatural force?"

Seemingly a bit chatty, she makes a few motions of her hands, and the human sized doll takes up a position to learn behind her, akin to a shadow or a literal puppet, it's head turns to pivot on the side as Maria's started to do.

"Master Rand, least any disagree, the first fight shall be I and Chanterelle against Thaddeus and his pair. The Second fight shall be Koiya versus the Werewolf. The third shall be Nadia's team vs Ark and Raphael. When Witches smile, others frown, win or lose the great thirst of knowledge remains evermore, pulls and madness, so let us forget such things and put on the show with smiles for all to see. Just focus upon your craft and we'll see what happens. Do we need to win or test them and ourselves?"

With that, Maria starts to giggle and shows a wide-open smile, with her head tilt to cause it to be almost as vertical as possible by the human body as the golem behind her did much the same, a sinister smile carved into the wood that made up its face does much the same. A smile that was equally malicious and off putting as those by Koiya and arguably by Raph.

Interactions: Merciless Medic Kyuubey Mineczka The Regal Rper Sir Les Paul Meredith

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Rand Mabason​

"Soundwave Sorcerer"​

Species Witch
Partner N/A
Rank Two Star

Location Death City, The Colosseum, Left Wing
Mission The Exhibition Tournament
Status Observant, focused

​

Mentions: RedArmyShogun Mineczka Kyuubey Merciless Medic The Regal Rper Meredith Prizzy Kriyze

March 11th, 2067 | 1023​

Friendships over strategy. Not quite a factor Rand had considered, nor one he was fond of in particular. In the long term, it was probably best that his agents made some friends. He would quite prefer they were friends that weren't also Fate Agents, but it wasn't his place to micro-manage their social lives. This slight conundrum was not one he had initially considered, but ultimately not one that mattered in the grand scheme of the tournament. As the group cycled through options, he started drafting up the brackets for combat via a hologram in front of him before finally coming to the brackets outlined by Maria.

Then, completely breaking the aesthetic of the room, a massive projection appeared showing the hologram on one of the large stone walls. It wasn't a perfect display as it was slightly off-white, but otherwise it was quite high definition with crisp, clean lines and a more standard viewing experience than the holograms they were using prior. On it was a large screen in the center with the brackets and a timer starting at 5:00 and counting down second by second, following to 4:59 and so on. Around the center screen was twelve smaller boxes, all black for now, but later intended to show the arena from different angles and points of view. Had anyone been to a sports bar, this would have been an extremely similar experience.

"There are five minutes to change the bracket, then the information is sent over to Team Stitches who will send out their representatives. Cyrus will be addressing the crowd soon enough to get them ready for the tournament, and hopefully avoid any interference. Once the match begins, you can request anyone in attendance join us here for this viewing. It won't be ringside, but it's an option provided solely if you want their company," Rand instructed them, his stern tone returning and his anxiety getting all that much quicker. "There is surveillance in the room. Any outside help will result in a disqualification, so bare in mind. Originally, the rules were that others may only join you once your match had concluded, but given there's only one match after all of yours, that wasn't really fair to the final combatants, so that was lifted--for now," he explained, attempting to deter them from any less than savory activities.

"Unless anyone objects, that means Maria and Chanterelle will need to follow me. We head right to the Arena exit. Maria will wait to be ushered in at the stairway to the arena, Chant will remain with me in a separate Ringside bench for when or if she needs tagged in," Rand followed up, his voice a little quicker and higher pitch than normal. His explanations, while succinct, were a little less calm and reserved than his normal tone. He couldn't help but allow some of it to slip out. Regardless, he turned around and made his way down one of the right most exits to a further stone hall, illuminated primarily by the faux fire lamp torches.

"Some precautions have been taken. Edie will be acting as a referee and harnesses were made for both teams. Should one of you be in mortal danger, all refs including her will attempt to save you. Said harnesses will be imbued by her during the match. Don't think of this as an escape route, though, it is only for the worst-case scenario. Elite Anti-Magic Agents are here, too, and even if we wanted to abuse this--and we don't--they would catch it, and it would be a disqualification for us. I cannot stress this enough, a disqualification for either team is far, far worse than a loss. I hope you two understand," he explained more formally as he lead them down the halls.

"Oh, and just one last thing," he tacked on, this time his tone quicker and his response clearly an afterthought. "Please, it's just Rand.

At this time, both Emmett James and Zelda Zemo will receive a five minute warning notification with the tentative brackets. They are as follows:

Gauss/Noah/Prudence vs Maria/Chanterelle
Sara/Suzu vs Koiya
Nadia/Dani vs Ark/Raphael​

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Ulysses Stein​

"D-Stein"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank One-Star

Location Death City, Central Main Street, Death-Nova
Mission None
Status Aloof

​

Mentions: EmperorsChosen

Ah, what it felt like to be young again. Not that Ulysses was old, but he hadn't had such issues reading someone since as far back as the academy. The mild flirtation, the witty banter, the light laughter back and forth. These were things he was accustomed to, but not without the ability to read further into them. It came with an element of danger, a potential for failure that he was unaccustomed to. In a way, it was quite thrilling. Her words and mannerisms danced on his nerves, although not in a way that made him anxious. Ulysses thrived on the stage. There may not have been ten thousand in the audience waiting to see if he sank or swam, but this was a stage between them. He didn't exactly think of what he did as a performance as he was quite genuine, but he did have a purpose for being here.

His soul, should she choose to read that, revealed this as well. There was no deceit in him. No agenda. A flare, perhaps, from the fun he was having. He did enjoy this company, for now. Much more so than normal. Inside him, there was not a hint of malice or ill-intent. Even what secrets lay within him, for someone with Soul Perception, had not a seedling of negativity or evil. Not even a hint of selfishness. His soul was that of calm music, of the ocean waves gently hitting rocks, of the hum of songbirds in spring. His soul was music and serene, even at its depths. Under the most intense of microscopes, Ulysses appeared an honest man. Probably, because he was one.

A gentle smile, per perhaps a borderline smirk, either way playful in nature crept across his lips. Yet, it was matched by a whimsical shaking of his head. "Oh, El', you wound me still... you are in no distress, and as of now not restrained in the slightest. You may walk away any time with no repercussion. I do not use leverage or coercion for any means... I find it distasteful." he responded, yet again with that same tone as before. Playful, theatric, yet near the end quite serious and sincere. Manipulation was not his game, nor did it have any place on his stage.

"Now, do I know your history? Well, yes, some. I'm not quite as privy to information as some higher ranking agents, the DWMA is hardly my home these days. I won't paint some picture of knowledge being power, and weighing in on that. Instead, I will tell you this. Good people do bad things sometimes, and bad people good. Sometimes, people change. Whether you were bad then good, or always good stuck doing bad, I don't care. I believe, based on your actions, you're good now, or at least trying to be. Where you came from, this notion may be meaningless, but to me, it means the world," he explained, again his thespian nature and skill with wordplay letting him dance around the repeating words in such a way it was less redundant and more poetic. Simple, yet powerful words.

"As for myself," he trudged on, changing the atmosphere of the conversation by redirecting the focus. He then lifted his left hand, the free one that was never holding the latte, and from it manifest five strands of his Soul Stitches, each pouring out from his fingertips like wisps of spider thread and dancing now in the light, dry wind. Each were of pure, unmistakable manifested wavelength. Visible to the eye, a faint ghostly hue, yet more concentrated than most Wavelength any Meister would ever perform. There was no explosion of power from him, like with resonance. No massive fluctuation his soul. These impressive little threads were made as effortless as one breathes. That was the skill of Ulysses. "Most restraints I use involve these, and while I'm not exactly objecting to the backroom, I can only reiterate this point... you have the power here. You can get up and walk away any time, make this endeavor nothing but a fever dream," he explained in a more wry, direct tone. More implicative than before.

"The question really, I think, is can you handle the heat? Will you be good, bad, or somewhere in between? What is it that you value?" he said, somewhat as a question, but mostly rhetoric. This is where meanings were hidden between words, intents even from his soul were hard to read. It was no lie that the Meister meant every word he said, from the use of his strings to the backroom offer, down to how she had the power to end it all. Yet, as always, there was more. A powerful method of hiding an intention was to do without a single lie. Of course, he meant everything he said--at face value. But, why was behind that pretty face of this rockstar? He kept hidden.

It was clear, too, he was just having fun with the exchange. As serious as the topic might have been that he kept hidden, he was a man true to his word and his image. He enjoyed the journey just as much as the destination.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

The Opening Round​

The Colosseum | March 11th, 2067 | 1025​

Whether the students knew it or not, this pet Project from Lord Kidd had become a huge talk within the city. Within the first week alone, there were debates, controversies, and praise. This was entirely unlike the Paean Program which seemed doomed to fail from the beginning. This had promise. This had ambition. This had the infrastructure to make it happen and the leadership to see it through. This meant people had to take the Project seriously, and the ramifications of that echoed through the DWMA. A tournament like this, or any cross-group interaction, was not something he had in the works for months. He wanted missions. Stability. Progress reports. He wanted Emira to give him real world information. He wanted to see who benefited and who was a waste of these resources.

But the DWMA? They wanted more. They wanted to see these Fate Agents in action. Despite his protests, Lord Kidd weighed in and decided to give them their first benchmark in this controlled environment. Was it too soon? Absolutely. They all knew that. The Meisters and Weapons had no real time to acclimate, the Mages even less so, and there wasn't a single milestone between them that real progress towards being healthy agents was in the clear. But the investors? The Guild of Magic? The Magitech Division? They all wanted to see what this was about. There was pressure from all sides, and some of them where the money came from.

There were therapists in the audience. Professor Davis was there. Hell, even members from Team Arrow were invited to watch, and the only reason they weren't involved was essentially a coin flip as to which team would fight the Mages first. This entire endeavor was a massive sentiment. Not just about the cooperation and sportsmanship of Mages, Weapons, and Meisters, but that Mages were truly getting the same level of help as standard Agents. That the lines had blurred so much that they barely existed. This was a testament to integration, to cooperation. This Project became much more than an attempt to keep people from going down the path of corruption. It was the culmination of more factors than either Kidd or Cyrus could have dreamed.

While internally, Cyrus was in no good mood for this, he had to be a showman for the day. He had to be the Right Hand of Death. He was the figurehead making all of this happening, and his voice had to inspire those in the audience that this would work--despite every challenge it had faced and would face.

"The brackets are being confirmed as we speak!" Cyrus said aloud, looking to the giant C-shaped seats of the Colosseum. His voice, through the microphone he had pinned on him, shot out through speakers so that every single individual could hear him. There was, for once, excitement in his voice. A smile on his face. He was a ringmaster, and this was circus. "Ladies, gentlemen, friends, allies, this will be the first of hopefully many demonstrations of the new DWMA. We will waste no time once the brackets are confirmed. You will see all that Project F.A.T.E. has to offer. These Agents, Meisters, Weapons, Mages in no particular order, were once deemed unfit for the field. The reasons now arbitrary. What you will see is the potential we seek to bring back to our alliance, and how we have no blind eye to our allies," he continued on, explaining with an energy in his voice that no Fate Agent had ever heard. This hardly sounded like their Cyrus.

What they didn't know is that Cyrus was chosen because this was part of his skillset as well. The focus, stern leader of them all, yet the man that could rile an audience. The man whose honeyed words and reputation could ring true to strangers and allies alike. This was just as much part of him as the man that slammed Midori's face straight into the ground.

"Let me tell you what you will see today. You will see Agents with rare, incredible Wavelengths. You will see a trio, alone that is less than ten percent of all Meisters and Weapons. You will see a werewolf acting as a Meister--that's two percent. You will see a legendary Ice Blood giantess--there isn't a percent for that. And, our mages? You will see some of the most creative feats of Magic within the DWMA. You will see fighting at close and long range, Witches and Sorcerers, elemental magic and less conventional spellcasting. You will see that both sides have opportunities for Magitech that extend passed your stereotypical views of Agents of any kind. You will see Magic unlike any I have ever seen in my career. You will see also what this raw potential is like when cultivated by some our best," he went on, clearly pandering to the audience but continuing the show. All of this was intentional, too. It was not just a message to them. This rang through to the left and right wings where the teammates were, even before the brackets were announced to Team Stitches. Not even Maria and Chanterelle escaped the announcements in their walk down the hallway with Rand.

"You will see our veterans, Professor James--colleague of none other than the famous Professor Davis--and Zelda Zemo, taking charge of Meisters and Agents to bring out their potential in ways both inspired by the laboratory and the fields of battle. You will see how they work with our internal teams to bring out the absolute best in these Agents. And you will also see none other than Rand Mabason, a direct Descendant of the Queen herself, helping to sculpt young minds with knowledge of arcane mastery and expand their perspectives beyond that of a single linear focus. You will see the highest echelons of our community bridging the gap to bring our standards higher than ever. You will see that we are making ourselves stronger as a whole by both coming together, and not by hiding our faults, but by perfecting them!" he said, finally shouting at the crowd, with a now electric atmosphere. Agents, Witches, and every ally in between feeling the energy this man brought to this giant arena.

"This is not about victory, my friends. This is a testament to the future. Assisting me today will be none other than Riley Brant, Tabitha Bernard, and because I dare not butcher her name, the White Witch. We will all be acting as referees for the sake of fairness, and for the safety of all those involved. And, for yourselves, one of our miracles of Magitech, a barrier far more than capable of protecting you from anything this arena may see, and to keep the playing field even. In just a few short minutes, our combatants will approach the ring, and the White Witch shall imbue their harnesses if there is a need to secure them. The match will then begin a simple thirty paces from each other, and then ten seconds of grace before I call the round to begin. In this time, for the sake fairness, those involved may begin to prepare abilities or spells as they see fit. And, as many of you know, these are tag matches. Should one of our Mages need to tag out for any reason, all they must do is shout 'tag' and all combat shall cease. The round will reset, and begin just as the prior one started. But again, I say this in earnest, we are all winners of this tournament. This is a demonstration of potential, of the betterment of the DWMA and communities as a whole. Cheer for your favored combatant, but also give a cheers to our long-last alliance!" he shouted once more, beginning with explanation and ending with yet another riling speech. Applause followed, possibly because of the initial claps and wave thereof following from Lord Kidd himself, but nonetheless, it created the atmosphere that the first match would begin with.

Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun Mqueserasera @QuirkyAngel @Sybil Prizzy Kriyze Mineczka The Regal Rper Kyuubey

​

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[Prizzy Kriyze]

Emmett James

Sir Les Paul Merciless Medic Mineczka Mqueserasera EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun​

He made no attempt to appear unbothered today - simply let his thoughtful hand rest at his chin and his eyes stare off into nothing as Zelda took the reins from his hands. Absent minded enough to appear as though he didn't know he was in a room full of people, he stepped away in the middle of her monologue to round an open doorway out onto an exterior-facing balcony. There, he sighed to himself and sparked up a cigarette, making a vain point out of breathing away from the room.

He couldn't possibly be the only one critical of the decision to hold this exhibit so soon. Not to mention the pressure it put on the students, it was far too early to gauge the efficacy of the project when the agents hadn't even been integrated into the groups for a full week. Any agent under the definition of a type E agent wouldn't have it in their best interest to be exposed publicly so soon either, and he truly wanted to doubt that Lord Death and the rest of the deciding members of the DWMA hadn't thought that far. Even if the allegiances between powerful world organizations had been more tightly wound beneath the DWMA for the past years, the likelihood of some form of espionage was definite. It was more a matter of figuring out who stood more to gain from it, and whether it was really a matter of money and investors that pushed the motion.

But if he couldn't put his faith in the students, then he couldn't expect them to trust him. They were already coming up with plans and speculating about the brackets. Sound logic exchanged hands better than he'd have expected it to, and he leaned back against the wall and sent a sideways glance inside just as Zelda finished up and came out towards him. He gave her a gentle smile as she checked up on him, and replied with a shake of his head. "Thank you, but no. It's just my typical issue with not being able to control every variable."

Silence reigned for a short moment as he took another drag, then flicked the half-finished cigarette from the balcony. "Everybody has an agenda here, you know that as well as I do. It reminds me of back then, and just how little things have changed." Almost as if by pure instinct, Emmett reached out with his hand towards Zelda's, intent on utilizing his wavelength to the fullest and briefly reliving a shared old memory to invite her familiar gaze into his mindset - but he stopped as he heard the amplified speech of Cyrus', blaring out from within the arena.

"Wow, he sure isn't sparing any grandiosity for this event now, is he?" Emmett laughed, and retracted his hand. "We'll have plenty of time to align our wavelengths before... the grand finale." There was a thin layer of sarcasm to his words, but if it was to be stripped there wouldn't be a largely different meaning underneath. His communicator buzzed, and he produced it curiously. "It would seem we finally have an idea of what the brackets are looking like. Let's allow them to consider this." He reached for her shoulder to gently guide her along with him as he returned inside.

There was comfort in knowing she'd pick things up if he stumbled, and a spark of reassurance passed from his wavelength to hers in the touch. I'm alright, thanks Zelda.

"Our first look at the brackets have come through, come have a look." He called out, as he once again placed his communicator down to reactivate it's holographic projector. This time it projected itself across the wall, displaying the three tentative fights in the same modern and expressive style that the mages on the far side of the arena were seeing. Briefly he scanned the room for Suzu and Sara, but it would seem they'd already gone on their way. No matter. "If you need a reminder on the safety measures in place, you can listen out for Cyrus' briefing right now. Otherwise - five minutes 'til showtime." He pointed to Prudence, Gauss, and Noah with a warm smile. "Find your motivation before you hit the field. They like to hammer home that it isn't a competition, but that's undermining the importance of what victory means to you individually. Kick ass."

He stepped away from his projector and leaned against a well, then offhandedly added "I'm also contractually obliged to tell you that disqualification is way worse than an L, so stick to the rules." His tone was joking, but his meaning was not. Even if he was hardly one to follow rules to a T, it was much more important than personal pride that investors got to see that the F.A.T.E. Agents could still fall in line.
​

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Eloise Keegan - Death Nova
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

How interesting it was. No deceit, no manipulation. His soul was genuine. In fact, he seemed to be enjoying this. How long had it been, she wondered, since last gazing upon a soul so serene and pure. In a way, that was more unnerving than if his incentive was selfish. Eloise had trouble understanding people like him, those few altruists and good people. The selfish you could trust, in a way, if you knew their fancy. The heroes and philanthropists, however, had a very unique unpredictability. This was one such case.

While it was clear he held no malicious intent, he had brought her here for a reason, and while it seemed she suited his tastes, that wasn't his ultimate goal. It made it all the more intriguing, as well as worrisome even if it didn't show.

Letting out a knowing chuckle, Elly straightened her posture, grasping the side of her cup with one hand as her other tapped the against the handle. "Oh, but I didn't say it was you. You're a gentleman, after all~"

She listened to his speech with a neutral smile. This was another instance of her poor character. She was sure that a better person, or someone like him, would have felt a twinge of guilt for how misinformed he was. Good, had little to do with it. Eloise was moved for the sake of her survival and comfort. She had no interest in playing a hero and she did not necessarily regret her past actions. In fact, she had no qualms about her role in her family's activities, only that living amongst snakes was ill recommended for one's health. He held such an honest, high opinion of her. How flattering.

"If others held the same opinion as you, my life would be significantly less stressful... though I can't very well blame them," She said, a moment of downcast reflecting in her eyes before she brought the coffee up to her lips again. Though, by the time he brought up his Soul Stitches, the look was already gone. "Ah, the famous Soul Sutures. What a treat."

As she brought the cup back down, Eloise smirked once again and tilted her head a bit in curiosity. "Now, why would I walk out and leave you all by your lonesome?" She teased followed by a hum. He was still being honest, or so it seemed. Honest, yet still omitting something. What a strange one, this one was. Though, perhaps that ran in the family, given what she knew of the Steins. "Mm... I think I'll let it be a surprise. And what do you think? Am I here for redemption or simply to cause more trouble?"

Interactions: Sir Les Paul

 

[Merciless Medic]

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Zelda Zemo
The Colosseum | March 11th, 2067 | 1025

Zelda entertained the idea to eat the food from the rich kid, but decided that it would be better if she ate while she watched the fights. What was great was, compared to just a few days ago, everyone was talking amicably with one another. Making plans. Strategizing. Oh, how wondrous. She felt her anxieties lifting from the teamwork, thankful that they were working together for once.

But she had taken a moment from the children to see if Emmett was okay. The irritation she could feel made her wonder if he was really alright and she found him smoking. That was a sign he was very stressed. It wasn't often he smoked. She had a sneaking suspicion of what it could be, but then he said he was fine. Huh. At least he smiled. But then he spoke of agendas. She looked to him, understanding very well where he was coming from. Frigid winds and biting snow... The memory played in her head until Cyrus spoke. She was so close to taking Emmett's hand to share in their old memory.

That Cyrus speech couldn't be any better timed and she sighed. She scoffed in her form of amused chuckling as Emmett laughed at Cyrus' grandiose speech. The sarcasm could be heard in his tone, making Zelda a tad more concerned for him. Was he going to bust a rant soon? Probably, those were always fun to listen to and it helped him get it off his chest. Sounded like he really needed it. As the phone buzzed to alert them of the brackets, Zelda nodded and walked with him, taking his gentle guidance with a soft smile on her face that hardened to one of excited determination. The sentiment in his thanks within the wavelength had her breathing deeply in relief. However, she knew that wasn't always enough.

Back towards the others, Emmett produced the brackets. Sara and Suzu will arrive shortly, Zelda knew. She'll just relay all the information for them if Sara didn't already hear it through the crowd. She wondered how close they were.

She found herself actually chuckling at Emmett's 'kick ass' comment, and rolled her eyes at his offhanded comment about disqualification. She decided to say it anyway, given that some people needed a reminder. Like the 'need-anger-management' duo. "Disqualification can happen if one of you are knocked out but the other attempts to continue the fight after the match is over or if you fight with the intent to kill beyond what's normal for this match. There are precautions in place to separate all of you, but don't rely on them. Regardless, show them what you're made of. This may be a fight to show your 'potential', as Cyrus has put it, but put on a good show and showcase just how well you all are doing with such little time left to acclimate. Have fun while you're kicking ass." The battle-hardened weapon joked, clearly in a good enough mood to.

With that, she walked over to the corridor that led to entrance to the arena. "Thaddeus, Noah, Prudence. Once you are ready, you may follow me to the gate."

Interactions: Emmett, Gauss, Prudence, Noah, Nadia, Dani
Mentions: Maria, Raphael, Koiya, Ark, Chanterelle, Suzu, Sara, Cyrus
Prizzy Kriyze Sir Les Paul Mqueserasera EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Ulysses Stein​

"D-Stein"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank One-Star

Location Death City, Central Main Street, Death-Nova
Mission None
Status Aloof

​

Mentions: EmperorsChosen

There are many types of danger, and it made sense Eloise would be accustomed to most of them. Ulysses was hardly what one would call traditionally dangerous despite the bad boy persona of his media image at times. However, there was a type of danger about him. A lulled sense of security, perhaps. His soul was pure, so was his intentions, and he had made it remarkably clear that his ability to read souls was abruptly halted by her Soul type. That did not mean, however, that a brief shift in her mannerisms went unnoticed, and the reason behind it lost to him.

A neutral smile. A slight distance in the conversation. The subconscious need to look down at an uncomfortable topic. The timing of it all, precise like clockwork. Ulysses brought up how he thought she was good, but her reactions even if ever so subtle told him she didn't think she was. This was important. Some of the best people out there questioned themselves. They questioned their lack of guilt or remorse. They sought redemption--a word she herself used--for the things they had done. Whether she wanted it or not, what stood out is that she had the moral compass to know what she did was wrong. This put her a cut above plenty. To blindly believe one is good is often worse than to actually be bad.

While thinking this, to someone as skilled with perception as Elly, what came next could only be as cliché was wearing one's heart on their sleeve. Inside his soul stirred a few feelings. Sympathy. Pity. Understanding. There was no hiding it. Despite the words she said, his feelings reacted to the ones she didn't. There was a part of him that truly did hurt for the part of her that believed she was a bad person, warranted or otherwise. More so, this pity, this feeling, did not come from a condescending place, or that of authority. That much, she most certainly was also accustomed to. It came from a place as pure as his intentions were earlier. It came from the place that all leaked emotions come from a bleeding heart.

He looked to her again. His smile almost sullen. She did have pretty eyes, he had to merit her that, but now all he wondered is what laid behind their façade. "Maybe," he said in a more melancholic tone, his energy shifting entirely from before. His outward attitude was quite in line with his inward feelings. A congruence that was also quite rare in this world filled with deceit. "Just maybe, you're here for your own reasons. Maybe your last situation was dangerous, so much so that being untrusted in the DWMA seemed better by nature of staying alive. Perhaps, your reason for being here just feels like self-preservation," he responded. He had no way of reading her soul, but he did have his own way of reading people.

"It does not matter to me who you were or what you did in the past," he added. "We live in the now, and my intuition tells me that at your very core, you would rather be someone good than the person you were," he explained.

"That is redemption enough for me. To me, El', you don't need to prove yourself, and I don't intend on getting into any real trouble," he went on. Then, the hand he made his Soul Sutures with slid into his pocket for a moment. "I cannot give you a good reason for why. I'm sure you'll want one. I cannot tell you my faith in you is justified by some logical reason. I cannot wash away your sins, either. If I could, the most I would do is let you see yourself as I do; brimming with potential, and possessing the ability to do far more good to the world than you ever did harm," he explained. His tone didn't quite shift, nor did his soul. Part of him clearly ached for her in the sense that he believed she perceived herself somewhat poorly.

Out from his pocket, he pulled a box. A simple, black box one might attribute to jewelry. The same black velvet found at most stores, the same dull sheen within the bits of microfiber that actually coated it. He set it on the table, between them, but did not open it.

He looked at her still. His once radiant eyes a little more dull here. "I came here to offer this. Or, perhaps a request. The line blurs, I suppose. What is inside it is rare and valuable, far beyond its weight in blood diamonds, even. That said, just having it is a risk. I broke at least a dozen import laws getting it in from Egypt. I would not be upset if you opt not even open the box out of curiosity in fear of the alternative," he told her. He was, yet again, painfully honest.

"But I want to stress this. When I say I will not be upset or disappointed, I do not just mean because I won't get my way. I mean that you, El', will not disappointment should you opt for the selfish path. If you wish to protect yourself, to avoid all risk, it is only natural and human. You are no tool to me," he told her. He then smiled, faintly, but not without the sparked interest he had the entire time. He was sincere and kind in that regard. Even with his mixed emotions, it was clear that her presence was at the least appreciated.

And then, he rattled off one final quote, "What is better - to be born good, or to overcome your evil nature through great effort?"

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley, Prudence Montgomery
Rank Fate Agent

Location Death City, Death Colosseum, Right Wing
Mission Exhibition Tournament
Status Focused

​

Mentions: Merciless Medic Mqueserasera Prizzy Kriyze RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Mineczka

It coursed through his body. The excitement. The anticipation. Lightning struck thought his body, chaining from every dendrite and axon, skipping along the ganglia like stones in a pond, leaving ripples throughout his body. Cyrus announcing the battle and its value through the speakers, the idea of combat in front of an audience, regardless of his sibling in attendance. The spotlight would be on them in more ways than his mind could currently account for. This was the thrill Gauss adored more than anything. Kick ass, Emmett said. Oh, yes, that's the type of encouragement Gauss wanted. Even if there was no favor for their victory, Gauss had every intention of making those Death-damned Mages fight for it.

Pick me first? Am I your benchmark? He thought. Or, perhaps, get the worst of it over it? The trio. Hell, even if they draw a damned lottery and Gauss came first, the fact they picked him was enough to get him lit. This wasn't the paranoia from earlier, this was just his raw ego. You want me in that arena so bad? He thought, yet again.

So be it.

Gauss stood up from his seat and from under the box of drinks he brought pulled out branded case. THALTEK. Of course it was. A thumbprint scanned pressed, the lid opened, and revealed a slender helmet that had a tri-fold in it to make it collapsible. He picked it up with every bit of natural swiftness, he had tried it on plenty. He tilted it into a recess in the back of his suit, tilted it forward and against the back of his head, and with that the sides slowly closed around him, sealing together. The entire front was an emotionless black sheen, giving it a clean look with the rest of the suit. Once it was secured, two layers of zippers were pulled up over each other to connect to more of the weave that the helmet had around its neck, creating two different seamed layers for a secure seal around it. Not a millimeter of his skin was exposed.

His soul, however, that was something he could hardly hide. The excitement ran through him. Emmett, Zelda, Nadia, Sara if she were there--it was plain. Gauss was in a mood. This was an even greater spike in his soul than their initial meeting in Lot C. And, with that calm the pull of his magnetic wavelength. What Prudence and Noah saw when they were wielded by him, it was a little more obvious now. Gauss had an ego, this was true, but the pull of his soul was like gravity with an orbit around his ambition, and that ambition shone like a fucking star.

"Then let's give them a show," he said, now walking up to Zelda to follow her. His voice slightly muffled by the helmet, but surprisingly clear for what it covered. Without his eyes to see or facial features, it wasn't clear just how he let the excitement bleed out from him, especially when he looked back to see Noah and Prudence, but the action was there. He was ready. He was willing. He had a few battle strategies in mind. This doll sorcerer best be prepared for the force she reckoned with, and if he could enter the fight with the mushroom girl with his suit intact, he might actually pull out a win. He wasn't against what he considered the heavy-hitters. In his mind, or perhaps due to his own pride, he saw an avenue for victory. And, the idea of winning was sweeter than any blond he had ever bedded.

This was Gauss almost primal.

 

[Prizzy Kriyze]

Azariah "Zari" Vasher

The Shuumie was no harder to read than a person - in fact, as she stood and glowed, her attack was far better telegraphed than anything Zari was used to. He switched hands grabbing the roof, and held Jarvis' gauntlet with the gemstone facing outwards, aimed at the Shuumie. I need a shield. Echoed through his soul, and he watched the wonder expand in his periphery. A great red wall expanded from the gem, large enough to eclipse his entire body from view. A feeling of appreciation reverberated through their tightrope resonance, and then the shockwave hit.

It hit hard. The vibrations that rang through everything shattered windows, and softened the wood beneath his left hand until it crumbled, and Zari was forced to slide backwards against the force of the blast to avoid stepping on the damaged roof. His eyes fell halfway shut as the sensory explosion in his ears caused his vision to darken and his limbs to tingle, but Azariah was used to straddling the line between the conscious and unconscious in battle. Even if he wasn't around to control it, his body knew what to do. It had never done anything but it.

The assault let up, and Jarvis' shield retreated to reveal the damage caused by the Shuumie. The building was in shambles, in need of either demolition or extensive reparations. Hopefully, no one had been inside. As soon as his vision was cleared from the shield, Zari hopped aside, sliding down the broken shingles at the side of the roof, and leaping at an angle to land in the street a few paces from the Shuumie once more. His ears were still ringing, but he already felt he couldn't rely on those in this fight. I don't think we have to worry whether they know we found it anymore.

His stance was fluid, ready to move at the drop of a needle, and his face was neutral, calm, apathetic. Inside of their shared soul space, flames sporadically appeared out of the darkness deep below them, but Azariah seemed to be in control. More so than usually. This was what he knew. Fighting with murderous intention. Nothing more, nothing less. Only the feral, instinctual goal of killing before being killed. He flexed the hand encased with Jarvis' gauntlet. He hadn't considered it much before now, but Jarvis was the pinnacle of Demon Weapons he could ask for. Zari knew how to use anything, Jarvis knew how to summon anything. Even without the bloodshaping, Zari had always been equipped with his own two hands and feet. He was by far most proficient with them - and Jarvis' only added to their lethality.

He meet the Shuumie's savage glare with a bloodthirsty one of his own, goading it to attack. It was a wild animal with little reach save for the roar, and a physique less given to moving side to side than his own. Spear. He silently demanded, and held his arm out as the gauntlet crafted a long, sharp winged spear in his hand, then stepped back into a ready stance with the bladed end pointed to the tiger.

Let's enjoy ourselves 'til the other's get here.

Interacted: Sir Les Paul @QuirkyAngel

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Eloise Keegan - Death Nova
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Even through the verbal pause and despite her mannerisms, the young lady never quite took her eyes off his soul. He knew she had Super Soul Perception, so surely he predicted her to peek. Given its behavior, it seemed he did think quite highly of her, and even if he never said how much he knew, of what he knew he empathized with to some degree. Though, if he knew enough, he likely wouldn't take every downcast gaze and curl of the lip at face value like he seemed to be doing now.

She smirked a bit as Stein made a guess, though the smile faltered momentarily. It was fairly spot on, to be honest, begging the question of how ignorant of her past he truly was. However, her sharpened gaze peered within again and--still honest.

Good and bad. No, Elly never put up fronts in that respect. She never lied to herself as a manner of coping with everything she had done. She knew it was illegal, exploitative, morally bankrupts, and went through with it anyway as it best served her at the time. Even now, it wasn't that she wanted to do "good". She wanted to live. She wanted to not look over her shoulder at all moments, though likely that was a habit that would never die, or so she feared.

Nonetheless, her mask dropped for but a moment, and soon enough the smirk was back. "No real trouble... but trouble," She remarked. "You certainly have a lot of faith in people. I suppose you left the DWMA before the pessimism rubbed off."

Though, while deliberate in her mannerisms and responses, her eyes did widen even so slightly with a gleam of curiosity as he set the box down. She looked at him, listening to his words, then his soul, and chuckled. "I suppose it's a bit too soon and too forward for this to be a ring," Elly joked as she reached for the box.

However, as Stein spoke again, she paused. He stressed the danger and risk of it once again, and that she didn't have to open it. It wasn't risk that Eloise was afraid of. Risk was a variable she often had taken into account. However, she knew the variables as well, including the what the risk was. Plus, she would be lying if she claimed not to be curious. This was, after all, what the conversation was leading to and why this man with a soul that shared the purity of a puppy had asked for her.

"I'm not averse to risk at all, love, so long as the reward is there," Eloise spoke with a voice of silk, grasping the small container and popping it open. More valuable than blood diamonds; that was quite the promise.

Interactions: Sir Les Paul