Fandom Soul Eater: F.A.T.E

[Sir Les Paul]

Setup for a Lockdown​

Gauss watched as the flow of battle shifted entirely. On the precipice of what felt like their first victory in this fiery gauntlet of death stood a new opponent that he, and likely his teammates, were truly prepared for. At this point, he wasn’t confident that even Emmett and Zelda knew what was going on. This creature was unlike anything he had ever read about or hunted as an Agent. The closest thing it could conceivably be was some type of creature made by a rogue Witch or a Mad Scientist, but there was a fundamental problem with that theory.

Gauss could not pick up even a hint of magic in the air. It may not have been his strong suit, but he was confident in his ability to at least recognize traces of mana at a close range. As the creature neared them and his sight of it became more clear, there was nothing like that. Just a concentrated mass of turbulent energy unlike a soul. That, and this creature had no wavelength. Aside from surges and spikes that resembled solar flares, the core radiated nothing like a normal Soul.

It struck him that it was no wonder previous Agents had failed. Emmett was likely absolutely genuine when he described these things. Nothing Gauss had ever read about–living, dead, or even in-between–matched whatever the Hell this was.

And, with the realization of how little they knew, that they would need to double down on his approach to gather information.

With Noah, all he saw was some big boss monster from some video game. He clicked his tongue, glaring at the thing that stood amongst them. Unlike Gauss, he didn’t have any way to determine if this was magic-made or made by wavelengths, but he did know that it could be disrupted by wavelength attacks. At least the skeletons could. He wasn’t sure about this thing, but if this thing was made by the same skeletons and the meat of its bulk was around that core, then it still had a weakness.

Gauss halted his Resonance with Noah, shifting his focus now to the new target. Aside from it, there weren’t any other skeletons in the railyard that they needed to eliminate. Disturbingly, though, even many of the defeated skeletons seemingly sprang back to life if only to pull, roll, or otherwise just inch themselves over to this abomination and be absorbed into its mass. Sara was ready to spring back into action, he assumed Nadia would be, too. But, he wasn’t sure.

It couldn’t be random that only some of the skeletons were revitalized, in parts or not. He wasn’t aware of every little thing that happened on the battlefield, either, so he didn’t have a perfect set of data. Frustration seeped through him and into Noah as he realized how little he could infer from all of this. What little he could do is start with what he knew. The skeletons he helped eliminate. Noah hummed in consternation at the growing agitation, but he steeled his resolve, not wanting to get dragged down into a possible problem with resonance down the line.

The ones Sara crushed seemed to have risen. Anything he tangled with as well directly rose, too. What of the few that didn’t? Many were hit by his lightning. But, some were taken out by Nadia. It couldn’t be Resonance if she wasn’t resonating with Dani. The “cores” they were targeting played some role, but it wasn’t the only factor here. The cores had to both be somehow disrupted before being destroyed.

Sara was on to something with her commands… but there was a problem.

Gauss was pretty damn sure that even on his best day, he wasn’t going to be able to ram Noah through that thing to its core. Hell, he was pretty sure Nadia couldn’t either. Sara would probably have to wolf out. Unless there was some unseen chink on that bone armor, Gauss wasn’t going to be the one to get to the core.

While Sara’s idea was good, it was flawed. Noah knew didn’t have the piercing force to stab right through. He knew where her idea came from too, and the idea flowed as a sort of brief memory of Sara stabbing him through a crack in a golem during their EAT entrance exam, wrecking it from the inside and turning it into a heap of useless rock. However, they did not have such luxury. If the ball bearings barely wedged themselves properly within the flesh of these things, it had to be tougher than rock with barely any weak points to exploit.

Yet, the idea was still sound. It just needed to be someone else.

“Sara, you have the right idea, but someone else will need to do it,” Gauss told her, chiming in over the comms from under the respirator. “Distract it for a moment, I have a plan to get you or Nadia a solid chance at hitting it,” Gauss said, shooting back instructions with the reassurance he had a plan.

He wasn’t much of a front-liner this mission, but he had a plan. He always had a plan.

Gauss lifted his free hand and in doing so, pulled all of his loose ball bearings back to it. Once collected, he slipped them into the refill chamber on his belt, then started running back to the construction Witch.

‘So, here’s my idea. If we can get her to send some beams to that.. thing.. Then we can bend them around it. Lock it down. We’ll need to resonate again and we’ve never bent anything like that, but we won’t be alone,’ Gauss explained, offering up his plan to Noah for criticism before the others. He was sure Noah was hit with the emotions he felt earlier. Frustration followed by a brief, cold analysis of the situation. Perhaps also the disappointment they weren’t playing a more active role in the combat. More than that, however, was his stubborn perseverance to keep going regardless.

‘It’ll be both our abilities combined. Electromagnetism. Probably the hardest thing we’ve tried yet. You down?’[/b] he asked. Or challenged. The tone in his voice, even internal, was not one of despair or doubt. Instead, it was that same never-ending drive to do better. To push the bar and prove there was just one less thing they couldn’t do.

Noah gave him an amused huff, his steely resolve melting into a sort of giddiness as the staff lit up briefly in confirmation. ‘Sure thing. Jus’ try not to get too upset, aite?’ He was referencing those emotions Gauss had earlier. ‘The only thing keepin’ me from feelin’ frustrated’s the fact that this thing reminds me of a boss in a video game. Cool in a morbid way. I don’t care how this thing’s gone, I jus’ care we destroy it with any means necessary - even if it means we become support.’ There was a bit of relief in that statement, as if he would prefer to be fighting away from this thing. He couldn’t say he envied Eva at this moment. Noah took a moment to peek at whatever Nadia was doing while Gauss ran towards the Witch. ‘I’m not surprised Nadia’s fightin’ this thing head-on, but she seems a bit more tactical than before. She’s also resonatin’.’ He noted, his soul getting ready once more for a resonance with Gauss while also preparing the lightning he’ll need to utilize their electromagnetism ability.

’I noticed. Unfortunately, I don’t think a sword is going to do much to that thing, either. If Sara and Eva could resonate, it’d be far more useful here than either Nadia or I,’ Gauss commented, responding to the point Noah made. However, he had arrived at the witch, and didn’t have too much time for more discussion. While Noah prepared himself, Gauss stashed him underneath his arm so that he could pull out his phone, and type in his plan to the Witch. He considered pulling off his mask to tell her for the sake of time, but didn’t want to risk breathing any of this in, especially knowing they would be delving down into the deeps soon enough.

She was determined, though. Perhaps slightly worn out, too. She had been throwing the steel for the railway tracks at these things, and that couldn’t have been easy. It probably wasn’t what she was accustomed to with her magic, either. Regardless, her determination and the fact she hadn’t stepped away from this fight gave Gauss some hope this plan would see some success. So, he turned his phone over to her, which she took. At first, she was quizzical. But, after finishing off the paragraph, a resolute look shifted onto her face. Not the type of cocky smile one might have expected from Gauss. She was dutiful, but didn’t seem to take any real enjoyment from this.

She handed him the phone back and offered him a simple nod. With that, the plan was confirmed. Now he just needed to return to the front line and wait for her signal. After slipping his phone back into the pocket on his belt, he gripped Noah tightly and turned to run back to the front line closer to Nadia and Sara.

Noah, while they needed the help of this Witch to make their job easier and he wasn’t against asking for help, grumbled quietly to himself. ‘Can we trust she’ll do this? She barely even trusts us.’

’Noah, are you asking because she’s a Witch or because she’s one of those French assholes?’ Gauss responded, trying to pinpoint what his partner meant. Gauss had nothing against Witches, but he wasn’t fond of the cold shoulder the European Branch had given them up to this point.
Sighing, he shrugged within their soul space, his tone disinterested or tired-sounding in contrast to how he sounded just moments earlier. ‘I don’t care what she is ‘r who she works for. I just care ‘bout if she’ll let her biases ‘n’ feelin’s get in the way of helpin’ us. But also, I’ve heard the French side of the DWMA stuff ‘re kinda assholes, so I’m worried she may not help to the extent we want her to.’

’She’s been snapping metal at them the whole fight. I imagine she’s a Witch first and French second, if at all. I’d probably put more faith in her than I would half the agents we were supposed to work with,’ Gauss responding, giving him his insight into the matter. By that time, he had arrived at where he needed to be and held Noah out again to begin spinning. ’If we pull this off, it might just be the most badass feat of this mission. I’d worry less about if she helps and more about the payoff if she does. You ready, bud?’ Gauss asked, trying to do what little he could to pump up Noah after that slightly sour exchange.

Noah hadn’t taken the time to see the rails, but now that he did, the Witch had been helping with what she could, didn’t she? Finally conceding, a smirk appeared and he chuckled. ‘Aite. Ya said it, not me.’ He chuckled, finding Gauss’ lack of faith in the other agents amusing, but he shared the same sentiment. ‘Yup, sparkifyin’ as we speak.’ He snickered, his electricity crackling more audibly from the staff.

And, just like that, Gauss twirled Noah in a figure eight pattern in front of him, then shifted him again like a propeller spinning in front of them with a dazzling gleam of electricity coursing around in a circular pattern once he had built up sufficient energy. It wasn’t quite time yet, but soon. Nadia and Sara would need to time out clearing the way so the rails could get to it and the Witch would need to bring them there in the first place. And, by the sounds of screeching metal that permeated his ears through the thick respirator, that seemed to be in process.

”Nadia, Sara, the Witch and I are going to try and bind that thing with a few pieces of the tracks. Distract it as best you can, then clear the way once you see the rails incoming. If we can get it down, bust through it but Nadia needs to bust it with Resonance, I think,” Gauss announced over their comms. Hopefully, teamwork and cohesion would be better in the heat of the moment than in the vehicle here. Gauss was fairly optimistic, though. He wasn’t telling his dear rodnaya not to hit something, just when.



Prizzy Kriyze RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Merciless Medic Mook-LandStrider

​

 

[Meredith]

Chanterelle Fuir

In the Forest, interactions are Sir Les Paul Rand, RedArmyShogun Maria, The Regal Rper Ark, Merciless Medic Rand.​

The judgement of her peers felt… lonely.

It could have been all in her head. There was nothing indicating it wasn’t; nobody said anything about her part in taking apart the bodies whose material upset Maria and disgusted the others in sight and smell by the looks on their faces but Chanterelle’s reason fought against her frustration while the Doll Sorcerer complained about its ethics. It was no different than leather, really. The dolls that the mushroom witch had stitched in her youth had of course been made of tanned skin and sinew-thread; it unsettled her that a pelt so inhuman could affect them all in this way. Corpses were not pleasant. The witch understood that; this was different. This was survival. This was her part, their part, in the reason of the world. Humans sometimes called it the circle of life, she’d learned.

And they were fascinated rather than concerned, or unsettled, or violated by the eye. Chanterelle tried to forget about it. The idea that she was being monitored in an extrasensory way made her uncomfortable; its connection to Maba was only a sidenote. It was easy to pass it off. Maria didn’t really want to speak to her. The witch knew she was suffering from being mad, but she could not understand why, and Raphael stepped forward to be more helpful as Ark went off to complete his own work. Her task was completed first. It was not hard to shatter the shell along diced lines; there were still explanations for the others while she finished up. She did not encourage discussion while they worked.

The samples were done quickly, too, just bottled and labelled.
So, the witch split from the group and made her way down the bloodied beach to the water. She brought and washed her tattered stained-cotton gloves as she splashed down the water-resistant cloak so stained with spider innards and crab entrails; when she was done, she made her way to the forge, drying by its flame with a posture easily described as wilting. She shook the salt from the gloves when they dried and wet them again with her waterskin before slipping them back on. There was an almost obsessive checking of their supplies once her other tasks were completed. When they were gathered again, her gaze remained set away from the others, scanning the treeline while their mentor spoke.

They’d done well to get along – or done well to do what they were told, more accurately, first by Rand and then Maria. The witch knew she should not be bitter about such statements. Witches were susceptible to pride; humility was a virtue that the witch had been taught well and obedience followed strongly thereafter. Still, she would roll over to their expectations, and that fact was sour on her lips as she thought of interrupting him. It was not worth it.

His words were congratulatory and not meant to ire her. Still, though, she wondered with some despair about the state of the witches’ realm if such simple cooperation was foreign to them. An isolationism that separated them from the codependence of weapons and meisters because they had culturally ceded to the human majority and needed to somehow define themselves without some common enemy. Here, they had a common enemy. It didn’t feel like home, but in her mind, it entirely explained their temporary cooperation.

Their mission was one of obedience the same. To climb a huge tree, the Dall Oak, and to explore Lake Nordall to the East. They were laden and made formation; he explained the importance of their mission, the attempt to find the origins of the spiders paramount, but the preparation he set Ark upon was not so much different than burying food waste or things to be preserved. When they finally met the forest, Chanterelle’s focus dwindled, reaching instead into the far reaches of the life around her. There was an excess of wild mana here; she could feel it. It was obvious, she thought, to any mage.

“Everything becomes a crab,” she pointed out softly, “or, I mean, things that look like crabs exist in a lot of different ways. It’s a popular body type these days. If they are rapidly changing., I can only imagine that they would eventually become crab-like, at least for some period.”

Do Not Touch!

 

[Merciless Medic]

Raphael Valerias​

March 26, 2067
Location: Dall Island, Forests
Interactions: Rand, Maria, Ark, Chanterelle
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul The Regal Rper RedArmyShogun Meredith

Maria probably felt challenged by Rand’s comments, given her mutterings. Raph was glad that Maria seemed far friendlier, but the maddening look on her face had him worrying. The sickening grin reminded him from his reflection that one day after he came back from the tournament had his gut churning. His brow furrowed with a bit of an apprehensive frown as she said it was a good thing she didn’t stab him, then got even more worried when she said ‘give in to my work’. Though, at least she was wanting to make something for him. He’ll let her think about that, she had work to do.

After helping Maria, he got to work on those Magic Circles with Rand’s and Ark’s assistance when needed. Ark’s lava spells were a bit obvious, but he was glad for the assistance nonetheless because he knew he’d make the wrong rune. With a bit of time and effort and concentration, he was able to make his Magic Circles glow with power and utilize control of Ark’s lava in this way, which made him absolutely giddy.

However, he felt like he could be doing far more. Yes, far more. He wanted to do it all. Be the support and the one who needed the support. But no, that wasn’t good teamwork. He couldn’t do that. The maddening pride he felt helping someone began tempting him to try and go at it alone, but looking at Chanterelle, Maria, and Ark… No, he couldn’t. They were all nice people who had their own struggles, and he’ll be receiving a gift from Maria. If he went back on that, he wouldn’t know what gift Maria would give him! Yes, of course!

That’s what he’ll use to keep himself grounded.

Rand went about making a comment after they were all done about how they were better than a group of Witches. Considering the group had a hedge Witch and three Sorcerers, Raphael didn’t think that was much of a compliment, but he’d take it nonetheless. Considering they were all struggling from some kind of mental illness or madness, he guessed it had some merit. Though, the little devil inside of him laughed at how much better he was than the Witches who treated him like garbage for being a Sorcerer. He could teach them all a lesson when he was done with this blighted island - no matter how beautiful and awe-inspiring it and its natural magic was.

Rand went about explaining their goals, which was to trek to Lake Nordall and scope it out, and hike to Dall Oak and climb it. With Chanterelle and Ark on their side, that might be easy. He could probably use his anchor runes and have Maria use her wires for more than just manipulating dolls to make safety harnesses. He’ll have to say something about that later when they get there.

First was Lake Nordall.

Surviving came naturally to Raphael when he wasn’t trying to make a point or follow his madness. At least he had that in the bag.

With Raphael in the back with Ark and carrying extra equipment (which was quite heavy, but he was glad he didn’t have to carry water of all things), he began to fashion a sort of belt out of his chain to cinch the equipment around his waist so it wouldn’t kill his shoulders so much. With a glowing book in one hand, he made a slightly larger chain loop on one end, made the entire length lightweight so as to not incur too much weight, and then wrapped it around himself and pulled the chain through the loop and tightened it. It wasn’t soft by any means, but he’d rather have metal uncomfortably around his waist than deal with his shoulders screaming when he needed to focus. Once he could feel the pressure die down on his shoulders, he connected the chains together and could breathe a bit easier.

Apparently, this long trek wouldn’t get to the lake, but it was easier to camp out before they reach their destination instead of being ambushed at their destination with barely any energy left. Rand began talking again, something about how the Ley Line was like, Dall Island’s seasons, and the evolution of the species. Then he asked why spiders and crabs.

Well, that was kind of easy.

Maria spoke first, speaking of how spiders and crabs were better at surviving, or something like that. Chanterelle spoke next and her comment had Raphael snickering. Everything becomes a crab. That’s funny. Her idea was very similar to how Raphael’s was. He then spoke up, his voice sounding a bit more winded due to what he was carrying and the metal chains digging into his stomach.

“Well, I feel like it’s just how evolution works. The more simple an animal is, the easier it is to propagate in large numbers like rats and bunnies. Plus, exoskeletons are generally a better idea than having an endoskeleton for harsher weather and as natural armor, so you’re going to have a lot of crunchy bodies and chitin. Complex creatures tend to come about a lot slower evolution-wise, their gestation period is also slower due to how much is going on biologically to even make a complex baby of that creature, and those babies have to grow into complex creatures which may take a long while. The island is ever-changing, and you have to be prepared for just about anything, which means having an exoskeleton and changing either with the weather or making as much of yourself to keep your line going is ideal, like having babies ready to take care of themselves and be combat-ready as soon as they’re born is best. Being slow growers is not the way to live on a bipolar island such as this.” He felt like he was in a school field trip, Death help him. Did he use bipolar incorrectly? Probably, he didn’t care and didn’t have the means to check.

 

[The Regal Rper]

Ark | DWMA | Dall Island | Rings: 3/3

Maria had her quirks. Hearing her mutter to herself about the work she would be doing ahead, for some peculiar reason, was oddly endearing. Mages all had their vices, the Pull affected them differently, having obsessions wasn't uncommon. Maria's in particular clearly had a strong fixation in getting the best results in any work she took up herself or was commissioned to perform. So sharing in Raph's sentiment, he voiced his own input. "Same here. I can understand somewhat, since my father and I share the same Pull. I'd also be happy to offer an ear if ever needed."

He could get what it was like, considering he could get lost in the possibilities that a spell could be tweaked, still not finding perfect satisfaction even when he was done. It was how he created most of his current spells. Through the process of trial and error and combination- and even now, there were certainly other ways he could tweak them for the future. Especially with Rand's instructions on how both he and Raph could combine their capabilities to create a magic circle that would empower his own magic.

Regardless with her eye seeing the job done was acceptable he waited to see if she had more instructions. Getting the wood would have been easy and he wouldn't have minded holding off on refortifying the base for a few minutes to get some, then again they did have practice to do. So as she began turning to go, Ark said this: "If you need any aid, call and we'll come and help." he mentioned politely.

The girl certainly was a busy body, couldn't help but smile with a small shake of his head even at the rather brief odd expression she carried. He wondered if Raph would get like this later also down the road. Chant had her plants, so he couldn't help but wonder if Raph would have some unique vices that deviated outside of his pride. Deciding to instead just keep an eye out for it for the future, Ark stayed to begin his training with Raph and Rand's guidance. The utilization of his magic through the magic circle certainly made Ark curious in how he could apply the effect of magic circles to other aspects of his magic and how he could expand upon it even further from there.

That however was slippery slope when focus was required. Letting his thoughts wander as he channeled his strongest spell was a recipe for disaster. Overall when they were done he moved on by informing Raph he'd be off to do his refurnishing of the base.

The crabs really had done a number to the support system he'd used to level the base, even without having actually been nearby the underground movement and the nature of their magic had literally caused the support he'd used to lift the base up to essentially turn to mush and collapse on its own weight, creating the slight tilt that made the base shift in its position. It certainly was something to examine with his magic. Reconstructing it all took time since he had to destroy and then recreate the broken parts and then piece the whole thing back together almost like a puzzle.

Then came their next task. Survival through their journey to Dall Oak, the massive tree he recalled seeing in the displays of the island from on the plane, and Lake Nordall.

There was that tingle of excitement, this time with less of the budding anxiety behind it. Ark had to admit, he was eager to see this massive ley line just based off what he'd sensed from when they'd come to the island itself and moving around it. Suited up with their rations, upon Rand's instruction to seal their base, Ark nodded and did as such. He moved towards home base, stretched his arms out, opened his palms and closed his eyes.

He'd designed something of a moat around the base, comprised mostly of sinking sand, all of that turned to hardened hot rock and rose with a steady gradualness as it burned hot to create a wall. That wall stopped for a moment, only for Ark to pull his arms in, raise them up as closed fists and then take a large stomp forward which sent a crack towards the wall, that shifted into a rumble that sunk the whole base down into the floor of hardened hot igneous he'd made, only for the walls to shift and slant to become a pyramid that covered the base entirely, sealing it completely over a shell of still burning stone.

Good news was he'd made the base to be resistant to heat and the hot stone he'd created was only hot enough to act as a powerful deterent on the surface layer towards anything that touched it. Taking from the earth here had made the job easier, otherwise, as he rolled his shoulder with a wew, he would've been feeling a bit more drained.

Nodding to Rand with the task complete, he followed as they all set off. His rings back on.

He was feeling pumped for this next leg of their journey. If it weren't for the danger and the fact he now knew there was a possibility that creatures which existed could counter his magic he might have just suggested they all hitch a ride while he created a more mobile method of travel. At Rand's question and the following responses of his peers, Ark thought silently. Raph's answer really showed insight into being more knowledgeable about the biology and cycle of nature than he'd personally thought the guy would be interested in.

Then again he was close with Chant, perhaps he'd picked up a thing or two?

He decided to add his own input. "An outside factor or simply some sort of strange mutation making crabs and spiders the bigger predators here and more suitable for most of the species here to attain a structure like them for one reason or another?" It was his guess, not even a good one since he was throwing it at random.

Mentions: n/a

Interactions:: Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun Meredith

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Nadia Semyonov - Paris, France - The Rail Line
​

As the battle raged, Nadia did seem to be at least a physical obstacle for the abomination, even the werewolf was jumping in. Nadia was unsure how useful she would be here, though her strength was something else if she got transformed. Did they want that to happen though? Still sound like she had some sort of plan in mind with Noah, all she had to do was keep it busy. "Tch." Whatever, she would do her part, still she doubted it would be so easy.

Going in for another strike, she jumped against its leading arm, running up alongside it briefly in her enhanced state, blade scrapping alone it damaged the skin and bone as she swung a might swing towards its "face", it was then the other mammoth of an arm moved to punch her off, and Nadia was not feeling up to being the punching bag as she jumped off and rolled to the side, performing a side cartwheel, Dani would likely see as the skirt came down that she would be facing the uncaring Russian's undergarments, only for there to be a surprise.

Spats. Nadia seemed to listen for the sake of Dani rather than shame on her part. "Surprised?" She asks with a bemused smile as just as quickly she was right side up. With a few more exchanges and a thunderous roar, Nadia took some time and distance off the back foot as Gauss sent out another order. Still a bit calm the Russian listens.
And then lets out a sigh, "Ah yes, just stop him. How hard could that be? Da, da, got no choice but to do it. Hit me with those rails and I'll kick your ass when this is done."
With that she readied another swing of Dani, putting great force into it as she met the arm and parried it off to the side, smashing into a side wall for a boarding platform.

"Sara, let's keep the bastard focused on us, not looking down center, when we need out of the way and we land, I want you to hit it's chest. Break that flail in and get me a point deeper in, be ready to move. I will be jumping upon it and driving my Soul Force right into it through Dani. If this doesn't take out the core nothing else here will." With that she readied Dani once more and rushed under its left leg, slamming the blade down and into the weaker construct bits as she did so. Moving its attention toward the side of the tunnel as she jumped up to hack at it once more.

"Yeah, yeah, just hurry with your damn plan. Might as well try and learn the ranged function of this while I burn through energy." She says sarcastically on the comms. "Ah yeah, I got something about this beast that we should include the witch in on. But that can wait, and I could be wrong."


Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul Prizzy Kriyze EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

 

[RedArmyShogun]

-
Hiro & Rieko Tanaka
Death City - Tanaka Residence and Eastern Breeze Teahouse​

It seemed things were heating up a bit, a few shouts here, a few judgements there, chiefly from Zari, Jarvis, then the articulate shouting of Ashi, then Adrian. While she expected difficulty out of him, she didn't expect him to howl about all of this so much. Then there was Jarvis having a moment of truth, breaking what was meant to be a secret... Self admittingly she almost spat up her drink on that one... How in the name of Death do I explain that one? She thought to herself. Though with luck no one would ask.

Maybe the rest were hard of hearing, or they didn't expect her to just have a call going on with her husband, playing what was happening here. Elly was an interesting one, she was saying no more than she had to and none of them were joining in on Jarvis's sharing of why they were here. Nor did she expect them to do so, however the conversations were reaching an awkward place, even though it had calmed down. "Hiro, I think they've waited long enough, I'll come help if need be, but I think it's time they forgot work a little bit."

With an earpiece in his ear, he looked under the counter as the call was ended and he heads for the back-room kitchen. "Rieko!" His shout comes as he exits the kitchen holding a couple plates in his hand, setting out the first one for Elly and the second for Adrian, his wife comes around, stopping to stare at the group for a bit. Looking a bit Grumpy, she smiles thinly after a bit. "Well, time to help make those plates, I guess." With that she walks behind the bar and into the room beyond.

"Haha, I was worried you all were about to fight for a minute there. If anything is wrong with the food, let me know." On each plate was hibachi grilled beef, chicken, stir-fried vegetables and rice.

"Also, don't think too much on what happened out there. Have a meal and maybe a snack if you like and as silly as it may sound, the motto of this shop is, At the Eastern Breeze, be at ease. Though I'm unsure about serving most of you alcohol, mochi, and dango and other things aside are possible."
With that, he then looks at Ashi;

"Ah, would you care for anything? My wife told me about your situation in part." As he made the rounds and spoke to the rest, Rieko comes out with a couple more plates, setting one for herself and the other for Sage. "Need anything Jarvis, Zari?" Rieko says of the other nonhuman in the room.

Interactions/mentions: EmperorsChosen Sir Les Paul Azurian Dream Serei2477 QuirkyAngel Prizzy Kriyze

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Rand Mabason​

"Soundwave Sorcerer"​

Species Witch
Partner N/A
Rank Two Star

Location Dall Island, Western Beach -> Moving East
Mission Return to Dall Island
Status Curious

​

Mentions: Merciless Medic The Regal Rper Meredith RedArmyShogun

Rand listened quite intently to the answers everyone provided. Of course, prior to that, he picked up on the pointed comment Maria made at him, but it was neither the time or place. Just something he would have to address later, much like with Chanterelle. More important was the actual question he asked, at least in regards to the conversation he intended to spark. He wanted to see where each of their minds took such an idea. Each one of them had a significantly different background and upbringing, so he expected a fairly wide array of answers. After all, this question didn't really have a proper answer.

However, yet again, his expectations were fed back to him broken. For the most part, all of them leaned into evolution. Irony was not lost on him in the fact that a bunch of people steeped in literal magic had answered with such a scientific approach. Although once he gave it a thought, they were all quite young. They grew up with science being the standard and magitech being integrated into society. Centuries-old Witches could often harken back to a time before sterilization and the understanding of microbes was commonplace.

Maria served up a good point. Reports only informed them of the arachnids. Crabs were crustaceans and there were no reports of those. It was feasible there was far more to the island than this eight-legged threat. Still, there was a distinct lack of bio-diversity. Rand hadn't noticed birds, reptiles, amphibians, or even small mammals one might have expected here. He knew factually that when he was on the island, there were plenty of birds and reptiles, at the least. They also hadn't encountered an herbivore yet, leading him to wonder if her thoughts on predation had a deeper implication in that the animals had some very specific cycle of predator and prey here.

Beyond that, Chanterelle pointed out that evolution itself did often lead to similar outcomes. This was a phenomenon known as convergent evolution, and it could be seen all throughout the animal kingdom for even highly specific traits. Three years for evolution would imply an incredibly rapid amount of evolution in a short time. Massive changes between generations or extremely quick generational cycles. Ark chimed in with environmental factors, which was a factor he had been considering quite specifically. Dall Island was a hell of an environment to be in. Raphael brought up simplicity, which had its merits, but the two species they had seen thus far weren't what he would consider simple. In fact, Gigantism itself was naturally an incredibly rare trait. It was typically only seen in deep sea life where creatures needed it to store energy for long treks between meals and to slow their metabolism; the bigger the creature, the lower it was. He did, however, bring up the point that made the last two species the most similar: their exoskeleton. The crabs were especially durable. Even at face-value, that observation held merit.

What he saw most of all was how their ideas bounced off of each other. These four were fairly open minded, at least when it came to Witches. It wasn't a trait he'd expected from them, but it made the team that much more stable nonetheless.

"I wish I had a be-all, end-all answer for you guys, but I don't," Rand said after a brief bit of silence following Ark's short, but impactful answer.

"Most of the study on Magical anomalies had been done in the Witch Realm and there aren't exposed ley lines there. So... this is all fairly uncharted territory," he told them, explaining the fundamental reason why so little was known in a tone much more relaxed than the stern one he was taking earlier.

"I think you all had valid points, though. Magic may break the typical rules of biology, but it's still the study of life. There has to be some relationship there," he went on explaining, admiring their feedback. The idea of a relationship between magic and biology had been a hot topic in the last two centuries, but had become extremely contested after MIBVI. Some called what science could to a crime against God as it was, but bringing Magic into the mix only made that worse. Many Witches also found themselves in houses that were significantly more powerful with scientific understanding. His cousin Iris, if she applied herself, had as much if not more potential than Chanterelle when it came to applying scientific principles to their magic. It wasn't as simple as was in the era of who could just cast the most destructive spell.

On that note, Rand allowed the conversation to simmer down. Not that he would forcibly discontinue it, he just didn't intend on perpetuating the topic much further. They only had a few hours of daylight left and needed to get deeper into this jungle, which itself was changing in landscape. The deeper they went in, the larger and thicker the trees became. Most of the forest floor was absurdly thick tree roots, almost as if weaving a tapestry. No real signs of life, either. Spiders of any kind seemed absent. Where a forest floor might typically had a fair amount of foliage, it was even more absent here then it was near the beach. These trees were hardly giants, especially compared to the Dall Oak, but the proportions were getting absurd.

That was, until a distinct transition. As if it was a loading zone in a video game, there came to be an area of no more than twenty feat where the massive trees from before returned to their normal size and foliage returned. Bushes with bright blue hues, veins of a deep purple, spiraling vines not present before that seemed to have a golden fur growing off of them. It felt like an entirely different environment, and it gave Rand a reason to pause. He jogged ahead to Chanterelle, patted her on the shoulder to turn around, then lifted his hand for the others to stop.

"We need to assess our surroundings," he told them all. "If it were just a change in scenery, I would be less concerned... but a few hundred feet ahead, the entire area has almost no ambient mana. It's nearly desolate. I'm not even sure if our mana will recharge there, or worse, if our mana will be drained," he explained to them, forewarning them of what he saw. Soon enough, they would have felt it, too. The lack of ambient mana to a Mage is like thin air to an athlete. Comparing low levels of mana directly to oxygen wasd about as apt as it got. That would make everything more difficult, and provided him concern for Maria and her mana threads specifically.

"Chanterelle, I want you and Raph to scout ahead, but no more than fifty feet. See if you can assess the plantlife and find a reason for the sudden drop in Mana. Maria, I think it's best if we make another small base here to drop what your dolls are carrying. Ark can make small shelters. If we have to conserve mana, wasting it on carrying those containers sounds like a death sentence," Rand instructed, giving their next duties. He did slightly split up their duos, but only out of necessity given the arrangement they had in carrying supplies.

Rand then pointed back to a fairly tall tree approximately thirty feet back, well beyond where this ominous transition started. "I'm going up there to see to scout visually. If we need to reroute, we will," he told them, making sure the four would know his location at any given time. Separating out wasn't the best of ideas, but alone, he had the best escape options. If this deadzone of mana expanded too far, he had no problem taking them right back to the beach to camp out the rest of the mission. While he wasn't about to tell them that, he'd let this mission fail before he walked them into the maw of death.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Adrian Hackney​

"The Maiden"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank Fate Agent

Location Death City, Tanaka House
Mission Dinner?
Status Calmer, mostly relieved

​

Tags: The Regal Rper RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen QuirkyAngel Prizzy Kriyze Azurian Dream Serei2477

"Water is fine," Adrian answered, or at least clarified when it came to what he would drink. It was healthier, anyway. The food at least provided a decent break from the tension that hung in the air after his last comment to Zari. He wasn't sure how Zari would take it; if anything, now that he gave it some thought, it was something Zari would process with a little more time. He was like that. Intelligent. Analytical. Adrian was at times fairly envious given he functioned off of instinct and intuition most of the time.

"I'm pretty sure the majority of us here know Jarvis is a Bloodsucker. Asking what he would like seems more conspicuous than just bringing him something if you somehow have it on tap, doncha think?" he then added, pointing out something about how accommodating Reiko was trying to be. Adrian wasn't exactly displeased by the kind gesture, more so he was beginning to find it annoying how directed it was. Like, it was putting Jarvis on the spot. Adrian, like a pushy girlfriend, just decided to order for him. No beating around the bush.

With the food in front of him, and the sounds of knives and forks ready to go, all ready to be plated, Adrian had a few other questions in mind. Not that he wasn't against making his plate and sharing whatever was on a platter to anyone whom asked, just that there was something entirely off-beat from the previous encounter that piqued his curiosity. Before he could just bring himself to start digging in--despite being hungry, the effects of that sedative had made him ignorant to it, but now it was wearing off--he just had to throw out some questions.

Those bright blue orbs of his first darted over to Elly and he swung his fork around whimsically to point it at her. "Super Soul Perception, yeah? Rare as Hell. I'm kinda curious..."

Then he grinned. Wide. Almost devious. In almost rapid fire succession, he shot out some questions directly to her:

"My Wavelength is a Pain Wavelength. I can numb it or enhance it. What does that look like through 20/20 vision?

Or Madness? What does that look like?

How does it look when two souls resonate?

Do you get some super special insight to the soul? Like, Meisters get to see their Weapons when they hold them. Do you have like comic book style X-Ray vision and just see them nude all the time?

Oh, oh, what does a 'dead' soul look like compared to a living one? I can't tell too much of a difference, but can you?"

And then he rolled his head over to Ashi and spun that same fork around to point at her.

"And you, you're one in a million, too. What's that like? I've only ever been alive and you seem stupidly strong. Like I said, I can't tell too much difference in your soul, so you might as well explain what you can," he asked her, throwing out some questions at the table as if this were show and tell.

And, finally, Sage. Hadn't said shit this entire time, but there was one question on his mind.

"Also, what do you identify as? He/him, she/her, something else? I just don't wanna use the wrong pronoun here," he asked with absolutely no regard to social convention.

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Eloise Keegan - Rieko's Teahouse
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Glancing over her shoulder as Rieko's husband placed a plate down in front of her, Elly's expression then seemingly shifted to one of glee as she saw the food. "Nonsense, it looks delicious!"

After the past day, a plate of nice food was a welcome sight. This wasn't something Elly had to exaggerate in an attempt to get extra brownie points. The food looked, and tasted, good and the Irishwoman was appreciative of it. She wondered if their mentor was just trying to be nice or was attempting to lighten the mood. Either way, food meant less arguments via less talking, usually at least.

However, as Elly picked up a fork and began to dig in, Adrian spoke, having swapped to a more upbeat mood seemingly. Or, he was after that little chide to Rieko. Patient as the woman was, those prods may bring issues later. Elly hoped that habit would wear off as the sun set. Regardless, she chewed her food with her azure eyes watching the maiden as he sprung his questions.

Afterwards, she smirked a bit and set her fork down. "Mhm," She confirmed his initial question, reaching for a napkin to wipe her mouth before he continued on.

"Your wavelength is a bit like an inky green spiral around your soul. It's quite a contrast to the energy of your soul itself," Elly said, picking up her cup. "Madness on the other hand depends on the mental state typically. By default, it's usually like another entity entirely, hitching along your wavelength for the ride. If it's during an outbreak, it bounces around erratically. For a corrupt human, it's as though the madness has merged with everything else. Not the prettiest sight, that."

This seemed more in line with how his soul appeared, this active, invested person sitting at the table. From what else Elly could see of the state of his soul, she could only surmise that his wavelength, and the constant leashing of it, was draining in more ways than one. Perhaps that was why Grumbles was so crabby typically.

"Resonance is a bit interesting. The two souls edge closer to the other in terms frequency, to a near perfect degree. The beat and pulsation of the souls match up and the intensity of the wavelength flares. It's quite beautiful," Elly seemed to sigh a bit at that with a smile, then glancing over to Ashi and Jarvis. "Dead soul depends on the type of undead. Ashi's soul here is as pretty as she is~ Honestly, it's difficult to tell from a normal one in a lot of ways. It's condition is pristine and looks as young as she does, though her pulse is exceptionally slow. Not quite as slow as Jarvis', but noticeably more than a Human's. Lesser Zombies' souls are reminiscent of their appearance as well, and are usually somewhat decayed or weathered, like a dimming light almost."

Then she looked back at Adrian with a hint of smugness before picking up her fork and returning to her meal. "And~ I can tell a lot by looking at someone's soul and wavelength, but no... I'm afraid I can't sneak a peak at you, Ashi, or Jarvis here if and when you're transformed," Elly said with a slightly exaggerated tone of disappointed as she forked a piece of meat. "I only have the benefit of peeking at Sage."

Elly too was interested and eager to hear about Ashi. Greater Zombies weren't a common occurrence, let alone one from as far back as she. As for Sage--Well, Elly would let him answer that.

@Team Reaper

 

[Azurian Dream]

Ashi
Location: Café With Team Reaper​

Once the fires died down the conversation seemed to sun dial turn into a positive experience for the team. Thought the sparks were negative in contrast it seemed the burning embers ending things on a positive note. Everyone had calmed down who had been heated, and to Elly's praise had shifted into conversation about one another. Ashi had been fully invested to the voices that shared. She could see the heavy waves that laid bare, and how her own outburst had maybe been from her own resentment that towards a single fact... her own waves made her feel out of place to them all. The way people handled things now, the mentality towards it was so foreign to her one was suppose to be just happy to be alive, and even than she couldn't claim that herself. They had mental trauma's that in her life time would be waved away, and told suck it up to be better. Yet it was clear in this day and age such was not an appropriate response anymore.

So how was someone like her to interact truly to them? Maybe best to keep to formal/semi formal approach? It was indeed jarring to say the least thankfully a distraction came to her thoughts as Reiko, and a chef named Hiro. Her husband perhaps with the way they talked came out offering edibles when he directed his offer to Ashi though she lazily smiled with a respect wave of her hand.

"Unfortunately very little taste buds left on my tongue I don't wish to have your splendor of a talent wasted on me," she respectfully declined placing her elbow on the table to prop up her head peacefully against her wrist watching those that did partake. Seeming to garnish some idea of what it tasted like through her teammates reactions. She was amused by Adrian's play on her words though his legit meaning was not lost on her basically the two needed to work hard for each other, and that she could agree on. From there the conversation swapped up watching Adrian get excited over Elly's soul perception was a nice change of pace. Than the question of how things rolled was directed to her as she chuckled at the pointed Utensil her way.

"Unfortunately not a whole lot of fun to be had on my side. I do have a extremely increased physical capability. In the rare moments I can trigger wavelength amplifies even further to what I believe was commented by a scientist like watching a human hit like a... "tank". I believe it some sort of metal device you all use in present warfare," she expressed as best she could on her physicality side still having not caught up with the way the world was present on technological advancements to not garner what a tank was, but knowing she had been compared to such.

"I also can reattach lost limbs, and dig into the earth at well garnered speeds. My weapon form is a split chakram though do to lack of being able to link with a meister anymore I have garnered my skills in autonomous use," she finished her exposé as she listened to Elly's explanation of her advanced perception ability. Such as described was extremely intriguing Ashi had rarely heard of such talent in youth in her day. She smiled softly at the compliments Elly basked her in unexpectedly until she realized the girl was now glued on hearing more about her.

"Ah you want more. Well I can say what caused this infliction is by no means even close to any other zombies case. So much so that I fear discussing what caused this affliction on me might cause Reiko's, or Az's eyes to burn through my skull," Ashi expressed in full honesty what she could to them without breaching the agreement she signed with the DWMA over the happenstance of her scenario.

"Though trust me you wouldn't want to hear of it anyway," there was finally a change to her voice a morbid hint of torture. Yet it was quickly buried under a new smile as she directed to Jarvis.

"What about you can we dive a bit into your talents, and situation Jarvis," Jarvis had been the one she herself had been interested in hearing about do to being a fellow undead it would be nice to start talking to him with whatever he in turn was willing to share.
..................................................
Sir Les Paul EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun Serei2477 Prizzy Kriyze QuirkyAngel The Regal Rper

 

[The Regal Rper]

Gluttony's Paramour | March 29th, 1 PM

The text was really simple and short at its core. In summary it said: “Come to this address by 1pm, we will begin discussing a potential choice for missions the moment everyone has gathered.”

The details gave instructions, simple ones that explained where both the mentors would be within the building, but outside of that there were no other instructions detailing anything about the missions.

The address took them to Rattling Street. Rattling Street for those familiar with Death City, sat on the eastern side, not far from the more entertaining themed areas of business along the eastern district of the city. Where hotels and casinos, arcade centers and other buildings of leisure had established themselves as the city’s population grew. The rails themselves were busy, but it was the faster way of getting to this location than using the roads which would have taken longer.

For Adrian it might have reminded him briefly of his childhood home state of New York. Bodies pushed past each other once a destination was reached, people boarded or left, people busy and in a hurry to get to where they needed to be.

There was a ding as they reached their destination- for Ashi this all was still new, but it helped that the address was also displayed on a visual black screen above the doors, sliding open to allow anyone to go or leave as they chose.

It probably helped even more the automated voice would state when they had reached their destination.

There were people jogging, there were cars waiting to pass- the activity in the early afternoon was not terribly overbearing but it was enough to make one aware of just how busy things got in the day.

At the address written in the message sent to each member of the Reaper unit, the building they came to a stop at was called Gluttony’s Paramour. Decorated in a plaque of silver on a cement pillar, connected through onyx black metal; a stakewall standing tall. The plaque featured a cartoonish style pig, and the words: Gluttony is my deadly sin were displayed clearly in white stylish letters around the pig as well.

Gluttony’s Paramour was new, literally, it had opened only 2 weeks ago- and since then had attracted quite a number of people. A multi-cultural dinner that also served customers outside, where the group would be meeting. Yet at this exact time, at this exact moment, it was not as busy as the streets or roads had been.

The text message had also said, if they wanted- they could order here and it would be taken care of- but that was their choice to make in the end after all.

Past the entrance wall, to the back of the building, following cobblestones- they found an array of tables and chairs…three souls present, and a fountain featuring Lord Death standing at the center of an island, water pooling around his little standing place, doing the rarest thing of all-- smiling, in the direction of the building.

While sitting just to the left of the fountain, a little distance behind it, there sat Az and Reiko, with a young woman in a suit, obviously a waiter, all looking in the new arrivals direction.

“Anything you’d like to order, simply let Annetta know.” Was what Az said to those that approached.

Sitting there without the long sleeves on, the tattoos along his arms became clearly visible. Black serpents with red circular stripes, snaked around both arms. Whoever his artist was, they excelled at painting a picture of the snakes constricting both his wrists, almost giving a realistic like appearance to the way the coils seemed to flex with the movement of his arms or the twitch of the muscles. The pale complexion that Asmund sported only magnified the look. One serpent’s head peaked with the Japanese symbol for ‘Pain’ at his bicep, the other, ‘Death’ before the depiction was lost as the remaining snakes that coiled around his arms disappeared behind his torn sleeveless shirt.

On the ground next to him, sat a briefcase, no doubt where the mission folders lay.

"We'll begin as soon as we have everyone here."

Interactions: QuirkyAngel Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Serei2477 Azurian Dream Prizzy Kriyze

 

[The Regal Rper]

Collab With Sybil
Zosar & Adrasteia

It started as a chuckle, then it got louder.

He couldn’t explain it-- but it made his stomach roll, which made him turn his head and grimace as he fought back a second wave of nausea.

Seconds went by- and the nausea passed. When it did and he felt it was safe to voice words without threat of gagging or dry-heaving, he chuckled, coughed- spat.

“You almost sound just like him.”

For the first time since they’d gotten their prisoner, Eustace shook his head, let out a dry low laugh. Almost as if he were in agreement.

But Markus at least would have walked over to nudge him and see if he was actually alright- he couldn’t expect the same from Adra with how she’d kicked her feet up.

Yet even without having to look at her or any of the others- with him focusing on his senses and trying to regain some level of control to block out any future images flashing into his mind’s eye, their emotional auras- the very feeling of their soul’s was just a bit more noticeable. Enough so that he could keenly detect the differences, even as he breathed in and out and focused on blocking out all those negative thoughts buzzing around in his head.

With Zari, when his anger rose it’d be like stepping in front of an open furnace- with Adrian when his rage sparked, it was like being surrounded by crushing pressure- When Sara’s fury had ignited it was like a shiver that traveled up the spine from the awareness of something dangerous coming nearby-- With Midori, he just felt a sense of unbearable cold- magnified by the AW’s guilt.

A chill that made one feel regret, made one feel doubtful- and for that Zosar couldn’t help but feel bad, knowing what his current state was doing. For putting the guy, the one friend in a position to do anything for him, even if it was small, even if it was nothing, through something like this when he’d never meant much harm.

Midori understood him, unlike anyone ever could- ever will. As he knelt there, grappling with his own demons- Zosar came to understand that Midori wasn’t just a friend to him- he was like an older brother. So the fact he could detect his sense of regret spike as he personally struggled with his own demons-- it wasn’t the greatest feeling.

It made his smile twist into a sardonic mockery of what a smile truly was.

He wondered how the others were doing on their end since the split- the thought occurred to him that if he left, he’d never get the chance to apologize to them personally.

A part of Zosar recoiled violently at the idea of leaving things as they were- made him gag a second time that made him punch the ground in fury- let the pain in his fist from the impact take away the rushing thought of that time he’d failed a teammate on a mission, letting them get injured.

He gulped air- and sat on his heels, eyes closed and shoulders hunched.

There was another emotion under the surface- one that he didn’t want to think about right now.

And it was satisfaction at knowing the guilt Midori felt for what he was going through now.

That brief flare of anger as he’d spiraled downwards like a aircraft shot from the air into the abyss of the darker crevices of his mind, no longer felt a burning seed of fury at his metaphorical older brother- he felt satisfied- and Zosar didn’t want to think about what that said about him.

As hard as he spiraled, it was contrasted by the weapon he had brought along. She had yet to move from her relaxed pose, as reclined as one could be in a buggy with legs up on the dash. A testament to her flexibility due to the inflexibility in the buggy seats. She had let her recent partner not only exit the vehicle, but now seemed unwilling to get up and check on him.

She seemed perfectly comfortable doing so as well. It wasn’t until a handful of silent minutes past did she even register his existence once more with a click of the tongue. Her face scrunched in annoyance, yellow eyes looking to the side of her sockets to side eye Zosar.

“You seem to have your hands full, but we are not done yet. This isn’t a suggestion Zosar, get in the fucking buggy and drive. You are the one who just got free to do this, not me. If you can’t handle this personal baggage, whatever it may mean to you, then you are going to get swallowed whole by it. As small as Midori paints this ex-boy-band of yours, I can’t ever be sure we would never be assigned to fight them at some point. This is not going to be a one off, and I’m sure they will bug you in the future.” She paused, her eyes turning back to stare ahead. The situation had only made the whole mission more annoying, but it was seemingly unavoidable.

“…. Either way, whatever you decide to do you need to drive to the meet up first. Both outcomes require you to drive us there…. Whether I drive back alone or you drive us back is something you can decide there….”

There was the worry. It was small, but it was there. He couldn’t tell exactly whether it was worry of him leaving or worry for him personally, but he did detect the sense of worry as she spoke- mixed in with the irritation she made clear and the frustration.

She was right, they both were. He couldn’t avoid this- he’d always known, at some point after his capture, he’d have to meet the others again. He’d known it the day he woke up in the infirmary under DWMA’s care.

Knowing what was to come however was so different from actually experiencing it.

Sitting here and wasting time though, time that could be precious- wasn’t worth it in the long run though.

His arms felt heavy, even as he leaned forward and pushed himself off the ground and slowly came up to his feet. The burning in his throat was still there and the thumping in his ears had calmed down enough that he didn’t feel perspiration lining his forehead under his bangs like he had before.

Standing, Zosar stared out into the vastness of the desert- visualizing who he might meet once they reached their destination. It could be anyone- but some part of him desperately hoped it was NOT Hiroshi.

He wasn’t sure if he’d turn to statue or crumble seeing Hiroshi again.

He turned, made his trek back to the four-wheeler, got inside- and then with one word, said: “Thanks” the engine purred as he picked up back on the trail they’d left off.

---

Every step they took closer to their destination, his mind wandered.

How would they react if they saw him? How would they feel? Emotions were the gateway to understanding- and while you could fake emotions to throw someone off, Zosar had trained in learning to pickup on the clarity of emotions clearly so as not to be easily deceived. It assisted him in reading falsehood for sincerity, genuineness and deceit.

From Eustace he felt nothing but an urgent desire to be away. And it was only empowered through his actions.

The dark brown Demon Weapon said nothing- and part of that was because of the gag but the moment Midori had aided him in being freed from his bonds, the Demon Weapon moved to remove the gag from his mouth swiftly. He hardly spoke through the journey, hardly made a comment, hardly acknowledged anyone’s existence save for Midori who helped guide him along.

It hammered in the kind of stuff they’d done to traitors, hammered in the sort of welcoming he'd receive if he went back.

These thoughts were short lived however at the recognition of 3 new souls, before the appearance of three figures as they crossed into the meeting point.


Jose. Irene. Caleb.

Two men, one woman. Even with suppression, he knew the feel of their souls well. Two of them had been his sparring partners- one of them had been his instructor like Hiroshi.

Of all the people he’d expected- Jose had not been one of the ones he’d expected to see.


For the briefest moment he sensed something-- relief, it sparked like the flick of a lighter ready to light a flame before the sparks became embers that died just as swiftly as it had started. If it weren’t for his focus in emotional detection, he would have missed it entirely- but that brief flicker was there- even if it’d been there for barely anything of a second.

The only problem was he couldn’t tell if it’d been directed at him, Eustace, or both.

Yet his thoughts could not stay as before the exchange could begin- Jose or Captn, as they called him back in HQ- took charge immediately.

Unlike Midori, Zosar was not surprised- in fact hearing Jose speak alone, shifting topics away from the exchange to whatever news he had to deliver made Zosar straighten up, made his mind twist from the feelings the ENlighteners had for a deserter, and made him focus his attention on what was about to be said.

His eyes flicked to the briefcase even as Jose launched into his succinct explanation. And his eyes closed as he let that important line fit into the puzzle piece of information Midori had provided about the attempts on his life from earlier reports.

Madness is returning​

It was cryptic, but he understood what it meant.

When he’d been younger, when they’d started their mercenary work in Jamaica, they’d developed this theory. He didn’t know what it was- but it was the same theory that had led to the willful termination of his father when he’d been infected with the Virus.

For every infected by the Mad Virus, there is a chance that up there on the moon, Asura gains just a little bit more power- gains just a bit more of an upperhand.

It had been a theory- one that drove the OCF to act to eliminate so many infected individuals, but hearing how Jose stated how they’d had to take precautions in eliminating ANYONE with connections, only made him push aside his own concerns for what was more important now.

Yet as he listened, Zosar couldn’t help but think about what this would mean for the others. Becky, Riel, Mark, even Caleb, the one holding the garbs in his arms, had all been people that were once infected with the MIBVI virus, spared only due to the vaccine being around at that time- but if this was true, if Madness was now being weaponized and these Lunatics were targeting people--

He had a flashback--

--Sara hurtling towards Gauss in an enraged state of fury--

--The crushing weight of Becky’s sensitive state when they’d been using Soul Resonance to deal a fatal attack on a Corrupted they had been hunting--

He ran a hand over his hair.

People that could weaponize Madness and achieve greater forms of power.

Like Black☆Star.

His eyes widened as the thought popped into his mind.

Jose had said they’d eliminated everyone they found that had been connected- if the assassins or recruiters, whatever they were had been aiming for him and Eustace and had also infiltrated the Enlighteners, what had happened to his friends that were sensitive to Madness- what would happen to people like Zari, Sara, Adra and some of the others in the FATE program that fell under similar issues.

In that moment, Zosar’s concerns about whether he’d be welcomed with the Enlighteners or not, no longer mattered. People he knew were in danger- the Enlighteners had managed to solve their problem, but the others…He couldn’t stop himself from glancing in Adra’s direction and how important this also applied to her. A glance he would not feel reciprocated as she kept her eyes on the Enlighteners in front of them.

He’d yet to experience it- but he knew it was there. Could feel it, sense it- the ravenous sensation, that urge deep down- but given her newly strengthened mind, it was much harder than before to detect it.

As Jose continued Zosar returned his attention to the conversation at hand as Midori asked his question in relation to the Madness and the moon.

The response he heard made his brows furrow in displeasure.

He focused. Tuning his senses on Adra. The further delving made this vague sensation more clear, but only because he had resonated with her once. Had they never resonated, the walls she put up emotionally and spiritually would make it a maze to see. The focused look showed her first seal, holding steady…. With peculiar signs. It was as if the seal was a lid on a jar, and yet her lid had the smallest crowbar wedged. It wouldn’t budge the top with most movement, but one specific and intentional press could….

As he looked, the final back and forth between Midori and Jose came to an end, and the exchange finally began.

Eustace glanced at Zosar once- having kept the sense of shock minimal on his face, but could not help the twitch that came to his lips when he saw Zosar focused- locked tightly in concentration as if he was thinking.

The Demon Weapon’s disappointment rang out to Zosar clearly- just as his eyes snapped open.

”Decision time, bud. It’s now or never”​

He looked to Eustace, looked to Midori, and then glanced at Adra.

His eyes locked at last with Jose, and they stared at each other for seconds in silence.

Eustace who was already with Caleb and holding his cloak grimaced. And then opened his mouth saying, “Zo--”

“Make your choice” Was Jose’s cutting reply. Hard and firm, baring no hint of emotion. “Just like you did back then before me.”

He didn’t need to think to know what he was referring to.

Before he’d been cleared to join in group missions, there’d been a debate on whether he was ready or not to even go in the first place. Back then his control over his wavelength had risen significantly but it was still perceived as needing work even if he could resonate normally for a period.

Like then, he’d had a choice to make- his father, unlike Hiroshi who’d been against it- had pushed for it, and Jose had been the tie breaker that let Zosar choose in the end the path he’d take since he’d been the first to oversee his martial arts training.

It was like looping back all over again, except he wasn’t nine years old anymore- and most of his family was dead or about to be nothing more than a memory depending on the choice he made from here on.

“What is it going to be?”

“C’mon Zosar” Eustace snapped, and his eyes looked his way- he regretted it instantly. There was fury in his expression but then there was pain- a mixture of emotions all tied to anger.

“Eustace” Jose warned--

But Eustace yelled: “No! Zosar” he took a step towards him, grabbing the other hoodie that Caleb was holding, the one Caleb simply allowed him to take as he and Irene stood silently, watching behind their masks as Jose did.

“Take it!” He pushed the cloak into Zosar’s chest, ignoring Midori and Adra completely, uncaring of how this looked. “What are you hesitating for?”

“Eustace” Jose stated with heat of a different kind- a empathetic warmth that made Zosar close his eyes as the decision became clear.

“Don’t you get it? The moment you go back there, that’s it! Are you seriously throwing away this chance now?!” The lack of reply was astounding, and Eustace’s growing anger became apparent as he continued. “We’re lucky we got a chance like this at all, don’t you see that?! Are you really going to let the sacrifice that Lars and the others--”

There was a slapping sound- hard, as skin met skin.

The sting caused Eustace to drop the cloak and pull the hand that had been swatted back to look at Zosar in stunned surprise.

Caleb and Irene’s eyes shifted from the fallen cloak to Zosar, a pinch of surprise in their eyes as well.

Jose’s expression didn’t change in the slightest- he merely watched silently.

“Don’t” the venom in his voice said in a low threatening whisper as he took a step forward and picked up the cloak. “don’t use that here.” He stated bluntly. The tension in his voice matching his anger. “If you don’t want to start something ugly here, don’t go there Eu.”

And then the shock vanished and Eustace’s anger was rekindled, but just as he was about to speak- Zosar shoved him with a shoulder, moving him out of the way as he didn’t even bother to look back in either Adra or Midori’s direction. An action that didn’t go over Adra’s head.

Any retort he was about to make was shut down as Jose shot the other a withering look with barely any change in his facial expression.

He had made his decision. Cloak in hand, held tightly in his fist, he stopped, stared at Jose who looked down at him silently.

Adrasteia couldn’t tell half the time what her peers were thinking, a sentiment that was thankfully not shared at this moment. What was important to her was making sure he made the decision without lingering regrets… or at least ones that would hinder them. It couldn’t be something based on begging or pleading, or something using guilt. Adra didn’t dare try to guilt him, as his choice to be her partner was more than enough hell. She didn’t want another meister who was ill fitting. She didn’t want another failure. Another mark on her track record of partners.

It was all or nothing. No more babysitting. No more silence. Her lips finally opened, revealing the spikes she called teeth and letting her voice finally rise since arriving. She spoke only to the person she needed to, not bothering to reference Zosar and instead leaving it implied. “If you have any reservations get them out now. I don’t play with half assed efforts.”

It was harsh, devoid of any empathy as she sighed. But it was true. She didn’t want it half assed. She wanted all or nothing, and if Zosar wanted to stay? He had to let it out like he was. If he wanted to leave despite all his show just now thanks to her coldness? He needed to let all of it off his chest before they parted ways. It was his choice.

He didn’t respond to that, from the way it looked, despite hearing Adra, Zosar ignored her completely because right after she finished saying that, after another step he came to a stop in front of Jose instead and raised his arm- holding the cloak out to him silently.

“Zose!” Eustace shouted. Before he could make a move forward though, one of the cloaked figures placed a firm hand on Eustace’s shoulder and blocked his path, Irene shook her head. And with a grimace, Eustace turned his head away and jerked his shoulder out of her grip as he walked past Caleb with a scowl. Kicking a stone aggressively as he went on his way.

“Are you sure about this?” Jose asked, not yet taking the cloak but ignoring the dramatics around him at the same time.

He studied Zosar silently and noticed the way his hand clenched the cloak tightly, how his free hand was balled into a tight fist so hard that the vein was almost visible.

With his perception, he could see it-- the guilt was there, the desire to go back to how things used to be was there- but more than anything that shone brighter than that, was the clarity. The understanding- the awareness.

A deserter wasn’t going to get a warm welcome back into the organization, especially not one who had chosen to abandon the objective of their task.

“I am.” Yet even as he said it, the younger merc’s mouth was dry. “I’m not about to end up like Sisyphus, nor am I interested in losing the little I have here for naive daydreams. I know what happens if I go back.”

Neither Irene or Caleb could keep watching when they heard that, if anyone could’ve sensed the pang of understanding that echoed from the souls when Zosar said the name Sisyphus, codename or not, it would have been Midori’s acute Perception, instead- they turned their heads away the moment he finished speaking; Irene peeling off to go after Eustace who had his back turned to everyone, and simply seemed ready to leave.

“Hm” Jose’s stern expression shifted to partial amusement. “Just like Ram.”

The leader of the small group of Enlighteners took the cloak and the second, Zosar, opened his mouth again to speak. His voice controlled- but it was clear from his soul he was pained by what he said next.

“One last request, Sir. Tell them, I’m sorry for putting them in danger. And…let him know I’m alright. You know the ones.”

Jose didn’t nod or say anything to affirm it, instead he turned his attention to Midori as Zosar backed away.

“We’re done here. Remember, stress the urgency of what I’ve told you.” He said to Midori.

His eyes flicked to his old student once, and Zosar watched the Enlighteners regroup and begin making their way out of the woods one-by-one.

Not once did Eustace bother looking back despite his hunched shoulders, and aggravated body language.

Zosar watched silently with balled fists as one-by-one, the only thing he had to call family, left his life just as he’d left them.

“Hopefully that’s enough to show you my conviction” He said without looking at Adra or Midori, merely staring at where Jose and the others had vanished. Then finally turned to look at the two. “Cuz if it’s not, then I’ll just tell Cyrus or whoever to go fuck emself.”

And he meant it too. Then without a beat: “Let’s head back and report the dire news. No time to waste.” He said as he walked by. Heading towards the four-wheelers by the path they’d come. A hard look in his eyes- and a numb sense of acceptance at what had passed. Not far behind would be the demon weapon, tailing to get aboard the buggy.

“When we get back, if we get the chance, I want to meet Zari, Jarvis and Adrian at some point also.” He said to Midori in particular. Making a note of it for a future date. “I’ve got something to tell them also after whatever decision gets made when we return.”

He flexed a finger, and it popped.

The grim look in his eyes deepened.

Contrary to the fact it wouldn't help the dryness he felt in his mouth, for a brief moment, as they moved- Zosar sorta wished he had his old flask.

At least then, he could wet his whistle with a hard drink. Not that that had done him any good the first time around.

Mentions: Sir Les Paul

[/border]

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Adrian Hackney​

"The Maiden"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank Fate Agent

Location Death City, Gluttony's Paramour
Mission Lunch
Status Interested

​

Tags: The Regal Rper RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen QuirkyAngel Prizzy Kriyze Azurian Dream Serei2477

It did not in fact remind Adrian of New York.

What Adrian remembered of the City, the Big Apple as they called it, was the lockdown. Places like New York with massive populations had some of the strictest protocols. MIBVI took the world from nearly ten billion people and knocked that down to just below seven. It changed the entire economy. Not only did it cause a recession--which wasn't something that ever crossed his young mind--it caused flocks of people to flee these huge cities. Rural areas that were dying due to lack of industry suddenly became repopulated. The housing market crashed and new legislature was passed preventing it from being commercialized or bought by interest groups. In the United States, the centralization of commerce in cities that had preceded MIBVI for a century or longer had been reversed entirely. It was as if the mighty Mississippi ran backwards.

Adrian, nor economists, knew if that change was for better or worse. What he did know is how it all affected his childhood. His brother Arthur ran away from home just a few years after the strictest of the rules and curfews were in place. Schools went entirely online. It wasn't terribly uncommon, but the quality of education degraded heavily regardless. Structure was absent in his life--all their lives, really. And, without some type of structure, chaos ensued. Arthur fled into that chaos alongside hundreds of other rebellious teens. It was an expressway to a life of crime and plenty of kids ended up at their destination. Law enforcement had no real way of keeping up with the danger on the streets.

To this day, even, Adrian hadn't heard from Arthur. He was caught and sent to a juvenile detention center, but no one had heard from him sense. Plenty of kids escaped there and went back to the streets, some disappeared in the system entirely. No one in the family had heard from Arthur in years. Honestly, no one even knew if he was alive or dead.

Losing his older brother was hardly the only sad memory Adrian had from his young life. Many of his friends and even neighbors--the few he was allowed to play with--moved away. Following the trend of leaving the city and even larger urban areas, it made the cul-de-sac that Adrian grew up on feel more like a ghost town. His younger sister, Olivia, didn't even know there used to be kids to play with. For a long time, it was just them. The few that stayed in his area were either older couples or never let their kids out to begin with. And, sadly, they actually lived in a fairly nice neighborhood before MIBVI.

So, no, this place did not remind him of New York.

These busy rails--something he had only even seen a handful of times in his life back then--looked nothing like the ones from then. These packed cars and bodies roaming around were almost a picture perfect juxtaposition of then. Because then, there were boxes taped out on the trains that individuals had to stay in. That hardly didn't matter, though, because so few people risked public transit that even without them, sometimes there may only be four or five people on a car. It was a miracle they even ran at all.

These people bustling through the streets was hardly what he remembered. Back then, everyone outside wore a mask if not more and there were hardly enough of them to crowd the streets to bump shoulders. Even then, when it was even remotely busy, people were so paranoid that they would walk in nearly single-file lines just to avoid contact. Adrian was still young then, so it's not like he was just taken out into the city much to begin with.

Hotels were borderline barren then. The only four casinos in New York were entirely shut down, as was most other forms of entertainment. Entire industries died there from the restrictions. And, people out jogging? Absolutely not. Fitness freaks, which you could argue that Adrian now was, either stayed inside or found a private gym. The streets were dangerous, not only because of MIBVI, but due to the massive increase in crime.

If this place was anything like what New York used to be, it was lost on Adrian. There was a reason he was so shocked to see how active Death City was when he first arrived. And, it was because it looked nothing like this.

This place was familiar to him only because it was Death City. MIBVI lockdowns may have been lifted elsewhere and they were lightening up heavily by the time he left home, but that was nearly eight years ago. A place like this, though, this had Death City written all over it.

And, if Az was letting them order, Adrian was all about it. He took a seat down at the table and given the place was Japanese-inspired, from as far as he could tell, he hoped it served sushi. Those blue eyes of his darted over to Annetta once he finally sat down, and he was pretty quick to give an order. "Water, please. And, if you have sushi, two spicy tuna rolls," he said, following the instructions Az provided.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Midori☆Hoshi​

"Dark Star"​

Species Death Golem
Partner Various / Autonomous Weapon
Rank Two-Star

Location Death City, West Nevada Desert, Drop off Point
Mission N/A
Status Nervous

​

Tags: The Regal Rper Sybil Meredith (eventually)

Midori should have been more excited about the decision Zosar made. On their way here, he was incredibly anxious about it. But now, he stood there clutching the battered leather satchel he was given still reeling from the information he was just given. Not that Midori wasn't happy. For a brief while, when there was a back and forth between the Enlighteners whose names he had almost immediately forgotten during the exchange, time slowed just a moment. His focus shifted to the hesitant delay from Zosar before his decision was finally cemented in. His friend and student had elected to stay. A surprise even to him. And, in that moment, there did exist a weight off his shoulders.

The problem was that with one weight removed, it only made more room for the other. The information he received was well beyond his pay grade, and if not for the unique circumstances of its acquisition, chances are he would never be the one handling this message.

Still, the Enlighteners were leaving. Without Zosar. And, Midori had to snap back to reality. He had a responsibility now that extended far beyond a simple exchange of prisoners.

"I'll see what I do, Zose," Midori told him, specifically responding to the request regarding his former teammates. "I don't know what the others are doing right this minute, but I'll message their mentors," he explained. "Obviously... there's a lot I need to do beforehand, though," he added, referencing the debriefing he would need to give upon returning. There was a weight to his words that was rarely present. Almost somber, not quite sullen, but absolutely serious.

With that, Midori lead them back through the Oasis to return to their buggies. He didn't say much, but he thought plenty. He racked his mind for answers. He was a Monster Hunter. Perhaps not a Madness specialist, but he had killed plenty in his time. Yet, nothing came to mind that could describe what the elder Enlightener described to him. Chances are, Zosar would need to also debrief them to give some type of background on those present, if possible. This wasn't a claim to be taken lightly. If this were some one-off unique instance, then it might be less terrifying. But, this was described as systemic. Repeatable. Organized.

There were few greater dangers than that, especially when related to Madness. The only thing Midori could even remotely compare it to was Eros, his creator. Even that was truly nowhere near the same, however.

Once at the buggies, Midori hung over the railing of one, looking down at the ground a moment while the other two caught up. He was leading the pack, after all. Once they arrived, he had realized it had been silence since then. He felt bad. His mind was so overrun with concern over this new information that he felt like he was giving Zosar a cold shoulder, but it genuinely wasn't that. Midori was shook. If anything, he was confused as to how Adra and Zosar weren't disturbed by this more. Adra especially, given her dealings with Madness. She should know how dangerous it could be. Not only due to her mind state, but knowing how she was treated like a literal Madness Bomb due to her unique empathic ability. If she was considered such a threat, imagine what hundreds of her were like. She should understand that, right? She should know what type of damage she could do if she turned the tables. That was the reality of this situation.

Still, he needed to calm himself. He also thought Zosar deserved more. Not sure what more of, but just more. So once the two arrived by the buggies, Adrian lifted himself off the rail and turned around.

"Zose, I'm glad you made the decision you did," Midori told said. It didn't seem fraudulent or forced, but it was obviously half-hearted. There was just too much on his mind to avoid that. "It may seem like I don't care... but what they told us has my mind racing. I'm not even sure how to tell Cyrus--or how to even start. Just know, I'll make it up to you," he explained. Much like before, Midori opted for the only option he knew had some type of consistent result: the truth. It was enough last time, and he hoped it would continue to be.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Sara & Eva​

March 26, 2067
Location: Mouth to Hell, Paris, France
Collab with Mook-LandStrider
Interactions: Gauss, Nadia, Eva
Mentions: Noah, Emmett, Zelda, Dani
Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Prizzy Kriyze

So, it seemed like Noah wasn’t sharp enough nor was Gauss strong enough to pierce through. Honestly, Sara forgot Gauss wasn’t that strong at base, since she kind of thought everyone was as strong as she was. Well, at least the Meisters. Gauss said someone else would have to do it, so that fell onto Nadia, as Sara didn’t have the greatest piercing weapon. Her entire plan included her to distract it though, so that hadn’t changed. She noticed Gauss had run to the Witch and had her start bending the rails. He was going to get the Witch’s help to bind this thing, to which Sara nodded at his words.

The beast’s arms that went after Nadia had Sara smashing the creature’s face once again, only for one of those arms to swing up to attempt to hit her. She leaped back, using the ribs pointed up to hold herself in place. Nadia made some sarcastic comments, making Sara chuckle. She nodded as Nadia gave her a plan, to which she used the next raised arm as her target. She whipped Eva’s lantern flail around the wrist, then caught the lantern as she pulled hard to steer the monster to the side, facing the monster away from Gauss and the Witch.

Watching the scene unfold Eva managed to get her stomach back under control. ‘I appreciate the backswing but I uhhmm.. think I will be okay. Just thinking happy thoughts and keeping my mind off the smell.’ She admitted. Thinking back to the earlier encounters with the skeletons Eva considered her options. ‘While you wrangle this thing I have been thinking, while it's a collection of different bodies we may still be able to use my lights to distract it at least once.’ Eva spoke to Sara.

As they were wrangling the creature, her lantern began to click and snap. ‘Get me close to its face, I don’t know if it'll help but I have an idea.’ With that Eva’s lantern began to blink several times. With a burst of fire it came to life, bright and beginning to grow in brightness. “I am going to flash bang it. My flames don't really hurt stuff, but it will make one hell of a light show. Look away when I tell you to!” Eva shouted from within her weapon form, trying to reach everyone.

Sara nodded and grinned. ‘I don’t recall this thing having eyes, but hopefully it loses its ability to see or gets stunned for a moment regardless.’ Letting go of her lantern, she used the momentum from the flail flying off the arm to spin above her head and then direct it towards the monster’s face, yelling: “BLIND!”

Metal creaked and the noise of gears spinning finally ceased as the lantern swung down, striking the monster in the face. Flames flaring up within the hold of the lantern the windows began to creak. Pressure rising immensely the bottom of the lantern opened up. Immediately a huge burst of balefire erupted out of the flail. While it did not cause any harm to the creature it did cause a huge burst of fire to roll down the monster's body. If there was any sort of illusion magic about it, it would have been dispelled. This though wasn’t her goal, she hoped the overwhelming amount of cleansing flame would disorient or distract the monster.

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Daniella Ethalyn - Paris, France (Rail Line)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Dani clicked her tongue back at Nadia, rolling her eyes in the sheen of the blade. Ignoring the woman's smugness, the Demon Sword kept her gaze on the abomination in front.

"This ain't working..." She murmured after the assault. While she said 'rip and tear' earlier, they weren't doing much lasting damage to the thing. They needed to break the core, which they needed to expose first.

Dani sighed internally, frustrated that their efforts weren't bearing as much fruit as she'd have preferred. Her eyes glanced over to the wolf and flail, the latter of which was about to lose her lunch. Oh, how the pink-haired weapon would've hated to have been born into this world a weapon like that. Sara suggested Gauss and Noah strike at the core while she took care of the arms, but it seemed the dup of pretty-boys had another plan in mind.

'The hell's he up to now?' She questioned in her soul space as the two ran back toward the witch. When he returned and laid his plan bare, Dani let out a light huff. 'Well, chopping at it randomly ain't doing shit, so I guess it's better than nothing. Make it count, I don't want your cold-ass hands freezing my tits off longer than they need to be.'

Remarking that, she watched as the flail seemed to keep stable and blast the monster with a trail of blinding fire. Not bad for someone shaking in their boots earlier in the day and trying not to vomit, or so Dani thought.

@Team Stitches

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Francis Flynn​

"Starwulf"​

Species Human
Partner Abyss (Ilyes)
Rank Three-Star

Location Black-Star Dojo
Mission The Remaining Pupil
Status Intrigued

​

Tags: Nobody Special

Oh, she thought she was hot shit, huh? Purposely petulant, trying to get a rise out of him? He had seen that type in the past. He had trained plenty of students, though most far more capable as they had to rise through the ranks of the Dojo to train under him. The Fate Program was almost like an express ticket to exclusive training under an elite sensei. It was becoming more and more clear to him that these students didn't realize they were being given a privilege many in his community worked for over the course of years. He was but one man, after all, and the Amazing Star Style was world-renown.

He still taught classes a few times a week. Reality was, he had no lack of students. What he had was a lack of Fate Agents capable of functioning in his training regiment. It occurred to him as Gia mouthed off that he should really question whether or not to care. There is no bad student, only a bad sensei. Yet, the idea of catering to them was something he simply could not bring himself to do. Furthermore, the idea of groveling at the feat of some girl from a mob he most likely could have taken down with Abyss alone was laughable. She was a big fish in a small pond before. He gathered there might have been part of her that seriously believed she was that important.

But now she had the audacity to ask that of him?

No, he shouldn't, but he couldn't help but let out a laugh. Not the type of jovial laugh one shares with friends and a few beers. Not the escaped one in a nervous situation. But that short, quick type of laugh before something was said that somehow demeaned everything that preceded it.

"No, Gia, I don't think I will," Starwulf responded. His tone was light-hearted, not truly offensive and almost formal. Like a waiter a restaurant telling you they served Pepsi instead of Coke. "You can leave right now, if you want. Before I was a mentor, I taught groups of twenty-four a time during this time-slot. I'm sure the secretary could get about half of them here in an hour, so the day wouldn't be wasted," Starwulf suggested, being quite genuine in his alternative to her. More importantly, emphasizing the fact that he was still a teacher even if she wasn't there.

"Really, you wouldn't be a student here if not for the Fate Program," he said, seemingly pointing out the obvious. "My classes are taught on merit, not money. Compared to the others, you haven't even earned your way in," he added, explaining the actual meaning behind his initial comment.

"You're just hiding in the DWMA from a two-bit crime family," he went on, stepping forward through the floor of the training room and choosing more cutting words while maintaining that deceptively pleasant tone of his.

"If you were as strong as some of my actual students, you might not be on the run, if you think about it," he told her, "but that would involve some hard work and the only blood shed being with your sweat and probably a few tears. Doesn't seem like your cup of tea."

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Lockdown for a Setup​

A flashbang of light followed the shout from Sara. Gauss was far enough away that it had little impact on him, but could definitely see merit in the ability. If he wasn’t pushing himself in such deep concentration with Noah to set up for their Resonance, he would have questioned the ramifications of such an ability. Would it even work without eyes? Would it affect Soul Perception at a close range? Questions for later. Focus for now.

Anathema was not pleased. It had hundreds of eye sockets amongst the countless skulls that comprised it, but no organic eyes to be blinded. What it did have was an instinctual reaction to the sudden flare of wavelength in the flames that poured over its body. As anticipated, it did no damage, and there was no illusions to dispel, but it had some innate intelligence that alarmed it to the Balefire.

Unfortunately for Sara, the creature was only startled, not blinded. Its grotesque head turned to her with such impressive speed that the cracking sounds of bones supporting its size echoed through the air before it roared at her again. It was a terrifyingly loud sound, and hardly like any roar from the known animal kingdom coming from what little guttural flesh it had. What followed was a quick jerk of its entire head to Sara and a roar that revealed the real purpose for the maw-widening, physique altering feat. As if vomiting, black sludge shot out from its mouth and ignited onto the air, burning with an intense heat and directed directly at Sara.

The stench of rotten, burning flesh permeated the air with such an intensity that even the mask allowed the faintest of traces of it on. It was vile. The type of stench that if hit you unaware could trigger an immediate emesis of its own. Worse was the heat it radiated. The fire alone was intense, but whatever this disgusting black sludge actually was burned even hotter. The temperature of the surrounding air skyrocketed, even from the already hot, dry air created by the previous skeletons. Thankfully for Sara, the creature’s head snapping towards her had scared her to react quickly right as it vomited, and she lunged off before any of her body became a melting sludge of liquid flesh and blackened bone, somersaulting as she hit the ground a safe distance away.

The roar, the flames. It had to be ignored and sent to the back of his mind. The construction Witch had already brought over three steel tracks and had them en route to the creature. In this moment, he had to give everything he had to balance this Resonance with Noah. Both of them had to make sure there was enough of their respective wavelengths being amplified that the result was stronger than what either could do alone.

Once again, Gauss found himself in his Soul Space and Noah not far off in his own. Between them was a bridge of electricity, crackling through the spiritual dome their conscious selves found themselves in. For Gauss, this was a room of golden opulence above an inky black pit that reflected the radiance of his soul with all that existed in his soul revolving around its core, fighting the ever present pulling force.

For this moment, that had to become calm. To be stilled. He poured his Wavelength into Noah as he had done a hundred times before, but this time did so while bringing that pull in his soul to a weaker state. All that spun around him slowed down, the radiance of his soul dulled ever so, and with that feat of willpower, the bridge between he and Noah crackled just that much less. Stability was forming on his part. Hopefully Noah could match that until they reached a point of unison that could make this endeavor work.

For Noah, his soul space was a dreary, damp fog, yet it held the power of a thundering black cloud, crackling with electricity as he was the source. Though, it would be wrong to assume that the electrical bridge was all his doing. It was the combined effort between the two, and it began to stabilize with Gauss’s effort. And for that, Noah fortified that bridge with his own wavelength as he took Gauss’s wavelength, keeping it strong, even if the stabilization were to crumble on Gauss’s end. It was like gripping each other by their wrists in a firm grip - not in a tug of war, but ensuring the other’s safety so they could bounce back if either of them were to waver. Instead of the chaotic arcing of the lightning, he also streamlined the electricity, allowing the flow of their power to be shared between them in equal measure as he sent his own wavelength into Gauss. To make sure this connection didn’t falter, he also calmed his own soul’s pessimism, the fog becoming a calm backdrop as it lightened in color and gave an airy feeling of freeness once the dreary sidewalk vanished.

Noah had seen the vomit heading towards Sara, heard the terrifying roar, but he had to stay focused. On Gauss, on the metal, on capturing Anathema. If he did not, someone was going to die and he didn’t want to be the one who caused their downfall. Fear and worry rose to the surface, but he acknowledged them and stuffed them away, shelving it for later. ‘We good?’ He asked, hoping that what they were doing was right and if this was what it had felt like so they could do this again later in some capacity.

With Noah focusing and reciprocating the effort inside their Soul Space, what little tension within their souls had vanished. This was a level of Resonance and teamwork he had never established before. The energy pouring through him was invigorating. The feeling of wavelength going to and fro inhibited. Sure, it took effort, but the sensation following it was well-worth the investment. Even their surroundings morphed to reflect their connection. That spiritual bridge of sparks and lightning becoming still until appearing more as a stream of white dancing light. The fog drifting from Noah to Gauss, the radiating light from Gauss to Noah. All creating a beautifully illuminated golden mote below their bridge.

Gauss could only grin. ’We great,’ he responded, forgoing formality for the play on words.

What happened inside a soul did not happen at the same pace as reality. The Soul Space was an internal construct not subject to the same constraints as a physical body. The stabilization of their soul and balanced resonance took but a few moments to any onlooker, though doubtful there was given the ongoing combat. Even still, there was a reflection of their newfound feat of control. Noah spun much faster than ever before, his electricity becoming naught but white glowing lights. During this Resonance, he appeared more akin to a glowing saucer of LED’s than a pole of any kind. And, Gauss was a perfectly stoic statue despite the blowback from the wind and stress this put on him.

The incoming steel beams reached the hulking creature through the Witch and held there only a moment before their combined Resonance began causing them to become curved, taking bends and causing dull creaks to fill the air. This was as expected much more difficult than any feat they had done before. It was simple in theory, but the raw force they needed was well beyond anything Gauss had ever accomplished before.

Two of the railway beams embed themselves into the ground, though that feat was the Witch. Their subsequent bending to conform to the shape of the creature, however, was entirely the forces of Noah and Gauss. The final beam wrapped itself around the first two in a circular pattern around its midline, trying to create a basic cage to enclose the creature and limit its movement.

That was, right up until the first time one of the lumbering limbs of the creature came crashing down on the center rail, causing a sudden jerk to feedback to Gauss and Noah. Not quite enough to break their efforts, but enough to know this most certainly had a time limit. Realizing that, Gauss opted to restrict the creature as much as possible, including if this resonance failed. Stretching out his free hand parallel to the one spinning Noah, he grasped it tightly and with it came a tightening of the steel beams around the bone creature. In reality, he only tightened the one at the midline, but with it bent the other two. Now the creature had at most an inch to move within its constraints.

Now was a different battle. A match of tug-of-war between Noah and Gauss as Anathema pressed against the steel beams with such strength they would give way if not for the push back from the combined efforts to contain it. Easier to manage than the crashing strikes, but still strenuous nonetheless.

”Hit it. Smash its bones, I don’t know, but I can’t keep it held long,” Gauss told them via his comms. His normally sarcastic tone gone, replaced with a strained and almost desperate voice.


Prizzy Kriyze RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Merciless Medic Mook-LandStrider

​

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Eloise Keegan - Rieko's Teahouse
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

"A man after my own heart."

Rieko certainly wasn't joking when she gave warnings about her morning exercises, or morning boot camp as it was more apt to be called. After being dragged through the ringer, it was a nice treat to be able to relax at a restaurant and order whatever they want. Perhaps he was trying to make up for the first day fiasco. Either way, strike when opportunity presents itself.

Since they had arrived separately, Elly had taken the time to shower and change from her workout clothing. A pink ruffled neck blouse with a wide hem that one side hung on one shoulder while the other slinked partially down her arm, instead held up by a small strap. The top was loosely tucked beneath a black belt and dark skirt that overlaid a pair of knee socks and boots.

"Hot chocolate please. Oh!" As she seated herself at the table, Elly clasped her hands together excitedly. "If you have any pancakes, I'd love some!"

Not very Japanese-themed, but the meister knew what she wanted. Sushi was good, but it was hard to beat a pancake or waffle and some coffee or hot chocolate for breakfast. She could always steal a roll from Adrian and maybe trade him a piece of her pancake. Hard maybe.

@Team Reaper

 

[RedArmyShogun]

&
Nadia Semyonov - Daniella Ethalyn - Paris, France - The Rail Line
​

As the new assault began anew, Nadia held her position and shielded her eyes, speaking internally to Dani, she seemed to find some enjoyment in the situation. ‘Aww, what’s wrong, don’t want them to hear you? Still, some cold hands may do you some good with that temper of yours. But enough. I have helped them once…’

‘What, you wanna be fuckin’ social for once?’ Dani remarked sarcastically within the soul space.

‘No. I will not correct a mistake twice. As to being Social later, we shall see.’ And with that, Nadia’s words held true as the abomination snapped it’s limbs with sickening cracks, turning in anger and surprise, throwing up a black substance that burned and nearly caught the wolf.

“Fucking idiot!” They had not weakened it, there was only solid bone left and she nearly caught on fire once again, Nadia was actually a bit flustered at that to skip to english rather than Russian, the brief instance of anger enough to cause them problems if she did not restrain it. And so she did, steeling herself as she gave a scoff. “Just watch yourself better!”

With that it seemed Gauss and Noah, coupled with the witch were enacting some sort of plan with the rails. A cage of sorts was formed around the beast at its midline and sides, keeping it pressed one way, the smart choice would be attacking from the back, however she was not sure if she could puncture through the “spine” to hit where the heart would be.

‘Dani, we won’t Die here… But I will take you into danger.’

‘...I’m just the sword. You don’t die,’ Dani murmured back. She still felt fear and trepidation like everything else, but she was also more than aware of her partner’s vulnerability versus her own.

“UUURRRRAAAA!” And with that Nadia focused her all into four movements, first she jumped and moved forward at such a rate and speed that it seemed to be a flash, right into the direct path of danger. Landing atop the middle rail, second she swung Dani, or rather the sword upwards and directly into the lower jaw of the beast to turn its head upwards, then she let go with her left fist drawn back and clenched as one strike of Soul Force Icy impacted at where the sternum would be. Cracking bone and inflicting ice elemental damage to the target, just as quickly she then summoned Soul Conduction, pushing the same force and power through her partner to pierce through the break she made with her earlier attack, putting her back into it and then both arms she drove the blade through the cracked bone and internalized her Soul Force into a more precise and narrower channel aiming for where the heart should be.

“Zhri govno i zdohni!!” (Eat shit and die!) She would be overly exposed if this was not the winning gamble.

A shudder ran through Dani as the cold seeped through her. Letting out a terse huff, she shared the sentiment. “C’mon, die you piece of shit!”


Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul Prizzy Kriyze EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

 

[Mook-LandStrider]

Annika and Starwulf Collab
Location: Annika's apartment complex and IHOP​

Starwulf stood, arms crossed and sporting an unamused look in front of his eyes, gazing at the apartment complex in front of him. It was one of the many built en masse for DWMA students, particularly those on the grant system, and often continued to be distributed out to Agents for even years after with a housing voucher. It was a system he was actually quite familiar with; in no small part because it was one decades ago, he was part of.

That was the origin of his relatively sour disposition. His memories of these buildings were not what one might consider fond. Not that the place was some abhorrent slum, but with any building system that is subsidized like these, upkeep on them wasn’t always the best. Those memories were what made him so distasteful of these rows of identical buildings, not the actual reason for his arrival.

Still, he had to reminisce.

The often cold showers as these units were not upgraded in bulk, so what was replaced was as it went. Rumors were, some appliances were still working from when the senior Shinigami was around. Starwolf–then just Francis–hadn’t ever seen one quite that old, but there was probably a kernel of truth somewhere in there. It wasn’t just the cold showers, but virtually any appliance. Some weeks blowing money on take-out waiting for the DWMA to replace a stove. Or, trekking with your dirty clothes through Death City or at least a different housing unit because the laundry room had flooded. Not to mention, it wasn’t uncommon for things to go missing and locks to be busted, regardless of how the DWMA tried to keep things secure. There were cameras, but there were far more blind spots and busted screens.

Still, that wasn’t the worst. The dorms on campus were much better, but they were reserved for actual students. Typically younger, mostly there to learn about their abilities then go off to college. To them, the DWMA wasn’t a way of life as much as it was a boarding school for the genetically gifted, per se. Those dorms had overseers, people to enforce the rules. These apartments had virtually none of that. Plenty of parties and plenty of thin walls.

Plenty of daddy issues, too, and they became real evident through those walls. Back then, it was a recurring joke. It had since evolved into a desperate fear as he stepped into fatherhood himself.

On that dark, albeit determined thought, he ripped himself from the ancient memories of this place to supplant himself firmly in the present. He was here for his student, though she didn’t know it yet. Miss Lindstrom, he recalled. He didn’t actually have her full dossier yet, only the general info all Mentors were privy to. What he knew is she was removed from Group A-02 and moved to his group, and subsequently his team. Wasn’t even sure why yet. Just told she would be a better fit for him, and given he was down the majority of his team after the Ossana incident, the transition was smooth.

This created a problem. Some clerical work resulted in an eviction from premises. Misfiled paperwork showed Lindstrom removed from Fate entirely, not just moved teams. Behind Starwulf was a group of movers ready to help vacate the apartment, but this apparently didn’t go smoothly. Why would it? It was all a mistake to begin with and rightfully upsetting. He had documents from Cyrus that could smooth it all over, but that wasn’t his style.

He wanted to see what kind of Hell this student might raise upon a surprise, erroneous eviction. So, he came in person, donning a matching t-shirt the other movers wore, and opted to wait this one out. Though, he had to remain on his toes. Apparently this one blew off her mother’s hand at one point. He wouldn’t be letting anyone get hurt, especially for the sake of his… experiment.

Having been living in the apartment by herself for some time now, Annika had more than enough of a chance to turn it into her own tool infested and jerry rigged playhouse. It came as a shock, having only learned of everything that was going on. She had no time to prepare for it, and the suddenness of it left her reeling. She knew things weren't going well, with the repeated power failures she had caused the building. But, they didn't tend to just toss you to the curb for causing power outages… or did they?

There had been knocking at her door intermittently for several hours. At this point, it had to be rather clear that she was either not home or refusing to come out. She however, was very much aware, and home. The only tidbit of her that could be seen were the flecks of golden orange hair and the occasional set of eyes that peek over the bottom of her outward facing window. To the average person she was unlikely to be seen, but to the trained eye she could be noticed.

Having been watching those outside all morning with an almost odd fascination, she noticed someone new among the crowd. With her rather interesting brand of soul perception, she realized the new arrival was not quite as they seemed. Head darting away from the window, the blinds moved. Moving towards the center of her room, she began to unplug several of the Jerry rigged appliances. Using all of her weight, she pushed the largest, an old refrigerator she turned into a room cooling unit, towards the other side of her living area.

After several minutes, she managed to move two others haphazardly put together appliances to the same side as the fridge. Daisy-chaining them together, she socketed them into an outlet. Just as she expected, the old grid of the complex couldn't take it and tripped the breakers. With her task now complete, she moved towards the back window and opened it.

Like a lunatic she dove out of the second story window and through both technique and the use of her amplification landed like a cat on the ground. Scurrying up and onto her feet, she brushed herself off, having the idea in her head that the movers wouldn't recognize her, after all… they were here for the apartment, not her.

Slinking around the outer edge of the apartment complex, she made her way towards the grouping of movers and specifically Starwulf. “You know, that place is always turning off. It's amazing it hasn’t caught on fire considering everything.” Annika said, her soul scrambled. She was trying to blend in, and to most, she would likely have done a pretty decent job of it. But she didn’t know who Starwulf was and the fact that she could easily be perceived.

What a little treat. That must have been a side effect of her unique wavelength. Her acrobatics were unimpressive otherwise unimpressive. Despite nis namesake, Starwulf wasn’t precisely a fan of feral finesse. To him, they were unrefined and inefficient. Whatever she was doing with her soul, on the other hand, was intriguing. While he wasn’t entirely sure what this trait was, it didn’t escape his perception. Though, he estimated the vast majority of Agents would have issues making out whatever was going on inside her soul.

It seemed chaotic at first. Like hundreds of thousands of tiny surges blurring the normally well-defined lines of a wavelength, all cascading out from the core that was her soul. These fluctuations were so numerous and inherently small that finding and rhyme would likely come off as impossible. It wasn’t Soul Suppression in the slightest, quite the opposite. In a situation where she needed to mask herself as opposed to outright hide, this might be even more useful–with further refinement. Though, how one might refine that noise eluded him at the moment.

What he did notice as she neared was a pattern. Several, actually, overlapping, and in doing so creating the illusion of chaos. Her wavelength did not radiate out like most. Instead, it had some type of rhythmic movement with each pulse. It wasn’t one he had seen before, so attempting to adjust his perception to gain further clarity wasn’t something he could simply do from memory. He would need to review that dossier later.

Starwulf kept his ruse, at least somewhat, by not immediately giving attention to Annika. Instead, he kept his arms crossed and continued to monitor the movers. Once she made herself known, he responded then, although still not turning to her. He was, in a word, rude. Standoffish, even. Not quite to the extent of being militant, but a far stretch from welcome nonetheless.

”Fire department responds a lot faster than the Supers, in my experience,” he responded to her flatly. ”Cops even faster. Have to with the punks they let in these places,” he added, taking a not so subtle shot at her and relying on her ignorance to his identity to cover it.

Watching him curiously, she knew he wasn’t what he expressed, but she didn’t want to give away that she knew right off the back. ” I know what you mean, there's always a racket and things rarely ever get fixed. It's probably because everyone in there is unhinged in one way or another.” Annika spoke, having gotten close enough to pick apart his soul and get a read on what he was. He wasn’t a weapon, nor was he a witch trying to hide. He had to be a meister, and a rather hefty one at that. ”Why are you here? You aren’t one of them, unless the academy started sending agents to help people move things around.”.

She looked him up and down, he had the outfit and even the shitty demeanor most people in the business held. She tilted her head and finally blinked ”Maybe you are a mover…. Life really get that bad? Did you mess up bad on a mission and get kicked out? You’ve got quite the soul… eh, I know the feeling of being a screw-up. But uhh… can I let you in on a secret?” Annika pressed, leaning forward, “People there may not have anywhere else to go. The academy is brutal, and we don’t deserve much of what happens. If you are a mover, and you are here for an eviction… do mind your head. Things aren’t UL certified here.” Annika finished.

Glancing past Starwulf she looked at the movers heading back into the building and swallowed hard. “Uhhhh… excuse me.” Annika said, turning on her heel and beginning to make a rather expeditious movement towards the moving van. If she was going to get forced out, she was going to make sure they moved everything on their own. For better or worse, this was going to be interesting for everyone involved.

”Supervisor,” he responded quickly and bluntly. He wasn’t sure why she was trying to socialize with someone who was clearly a stranger. He speculated she was already onto him. He wasn’t exactly suppressing his soul and he was aware his was considerably different than any civilian. In retrospect, he should have considered that. He wasn’t aware what her aptitude was for the core skills of a Meister. Her perception was something he didn’t account for on any level, but specifically if it was a little keen. That, or she just had some spot-on intuition.

”I deal with the academy plenty. You ought not confuse a student with an agent,” he told her, still quite stern in his response. Granted, at this point she was buzzing around the actual movers. One of them in a bright yellow vest over an otherwise identical t-shirt as the others stopped to look at her.

”Yes?” he answered briefly.

Annika continued on her way towards the moving van, looking back at the ‘supervisor’ as she finally reached it. Looking back towards the apartment, she realized that all the movers were looking at her. Pursing her lips, she rose up on the tips of her toes for a second. “Uhm… I will let you all into my room sometime soon, and not a second earlier. I understand that may be bit of a let-down, considering you’ve all been here for a while now, but I don’t have a place to go, and I am not just going to go out onto the streets.” Annika spoke, her voice having gone from a inquisitive one to dead serious in a moment.

She began to walk back towards the apartment, “Come back tomorrow, and hopefully I can figure out what's going on and can at least let my father know.” she glanced towards Starwulf and smiled. “Also.” She said turning to look at one of the movers, “Is it common for your supervisors to show up late like that?” She asked, gesturing towards Starwulf. “Oh and uhhh.. Bring insulated gloves tomorrow. If I do have to get my stuff out you will really want to be careful. Ill try to discharge everything before you all get here, but it's never a guarantee with anyone I make.” Annika mumbled, rubbing the back of her head after admitting her stuff was rather dangerous.

”She’s a fate runt, boys,” Starwulf responded, though still not facing her. The man she was speaking to was in fact listening quite intently, but many times his eyes darted back over to Starwulf. Fact was, he was in on the act, at least for the moment. In either case, he was watching the man he personally knew to be quite high ranking in the DWMA. Their contract was with them and the movers were paid either way. It didn’t matter if Starwulf was effectively keeping them employed with the sole intent of looking busy.

”Per regulations, if you don’t allow them in willingly, they wait for the Super to come unlock the door; and if there is reason to believe it is dangerous to proceed, there is a dedicated team for unsafe scenes. You’d be surprised by how many deviants in these units totally disregard the well-being of others,” Starwulf added, quite sternly rejecting her request. And, finally, Starwulf caved insofar that he took a few steps to face Annika. He was a man of stone, really. Not only statuesque in figure, but with a face meant for poker and a soul that had no waver.

”For the record, miss, I wasn’t late,” he went on, this time addressing a personal comment she made. ”I’m never late,” he added, stressing this as if it were some personal vendetta.

“On time is late and early is on time,” he recited, shifting from his heavier tone to a more monotonous one. This repetition of his was almost militant, but at least was more neutral.

”Was it the attitude or the health hazard you seem to pose the reason you ended up in, then got kicked out of that program?” he asked. Despite the tone he took earlier, this one was also quite monotonous and matter-of-fact. Again, that soul of his was quite the opposite of hers. Eerily stoic, more so than any untrained civilian soul should ever be.

Left eye twitching Annika took a deep breath as she brought her mind back to a place she was taught in therapy could help her recenter herself. “You were preeeettty late. I was watching you know, like right up there.” Annika said pointing to her window. “If you couldn’t see me with my bright hair you must not be quite as capable as I thought. You have quite the exceptional soul, it's unlike anything I have dealt with before and I have been among some pretty significant souls throughout my mothers circle of sadists and my time at the DWMA.” she finally said, tossing her attempt at centering herself into the wind.

“As for a fate agent, yeah I am and it isn’t like it's a conscious choice I made. I didn’t choose to be born to a mother that views me as a biological robot rather than a child. Do you have any idea what that does to a person? Then, because I blew her god forsaken hand off I was hauled away. She fucking deserved it you know! Just like everything I make it works, but it's not exactly what I intended.” She finally managed to stop herself, realizing she was making a scene. She threw her arms up at her sides, letting them fall back against her body with a sigh. “I can't help the way I am. I don’t even know why this is happening, I didn’t do anything this time, at least I don’t remember.”

“Just what the hell are you doing here?” She said motioning to Starwulf. “You aren’t a mover, you know too much, your soul is of a caliber that wouldn’t be doing this unless you were a masochist. No offense to you movers but this stuff has to be grueling and mind numbing.” Putting her hands up in apology. “Are you here to take me back to an asylum or something? Why the hell would they send someone like you to deal with me? Am I considered that dangerous? Aside from the witch I took a hand from, I haven't even hurt anyone that wasn’t a mission target.” She questioned, her mind starting to assume the worst.

Starwulf cracked a smile and even let out a slight laugh right about the time she started asking if he was there to take her to an asylum. Just the idea she thought that was even a remote option in this scenario, it seemed so ludicrous to him that he couldn’t contain it. He lifted his hand from his crossed arms to rub the flat bit of his forehead with his index and middle finger, in part to help him concentrate but also to hide the continued chuckle.

”If I were here to commit you, or Heaven forbid you were a threat they’d send me after, oh… you’d probably be out cold by now,” he said, quite calmly but with a bit more jubilance in his voice. ”I’m not here to do anything like that. In fact, I told you exactly what I am: a supervisor,” he then added, clarifying the situation. He was aware some of his words might just be a trigger for this already-excited girl, so he thought at least some form of reassurance was probably called for.

”You know, miss… something -strom, I don’t actually remember, uh… there’s a bit of irony in the things you say,” he told her, immediately switching gears to a new topic derived from her ranting.

Face turning red it seemed like she was going to burst into flames “You think this is funny? I legitimately have nowhere to go in this situation. I am honest and ask for some time to figure this out and at least ask my father and you give me the spiel that you did.” She took a deep breath and turned around to press her palms to her face. After a moment she turned around again and pointed at Starwulf “You are an asshole.” she stated quite bluntly.

“So, what are you here for then? If you aren’t going to be taking me off to the loony bin, just what are you here for?” She questioned, her mind locking onto the supervisor part. “Are you some kind of handler? Are you here to supervise me? Do you want me to do a little dance or something? A little hehe, haha dance?” She grumbled, her voice cracking somewhat. At this point, her hair was starting to frizz up, giving her a somewhat disheveled look.

With that, Starwulf decided it was time to actually de-escalate this. As entertaining as it was to see her act so outrageous, he didn’t want to cause an actual scene. The hand he previously used to rub his forehand first slipped under the t-shirt he was wearing and into a vest that was under it. It was a touch awkward to watch, but after what looked like a worm crawling across his chest, he pulled out a slip of folded paper. Nothing fancy or elaborate, just a simple piece of folded A4 paper.

He then handed it to her.

”The proper term is mentor. I’m now yours,” he told her, fairly bluntly, but without that stern, rude tone he had earlier. ”They call me Starwulf. Rank 4 in the DWMA, Sensei of the Black Star Dojo,” he then told her, introducing himself. It was rare someone didn’t recognize him, so he got to relish in this particular moment. ”I’m not sure what a hehe, haha dance is, so if that’s still an option, do enlighten me,” he added, throwing in his sense of humor if only to again try to diffuse the situation more.

He then finally glanced over to the mover Annika was first talking to before saying, ”You can leave now. She’ll be staying as per the paperwork I gave you,” all before turning his attention back to Annika.

Standing completely still for a moment, Annika processed out what was occurring. She watched him like a hawk as he awkwardly rummaged around inside his shirt. Watching as he took out the paper, she took it and opened it up. Reading it over, she glanced up at him a few times, “You know, this whole thing really makes me want to just tell my dad I will come work for him. But the part of me that wants to finish off what I started, is going to make me stay.” She spoke, still flustered and relatively angry.

“So Starwulf, do you often antagonize students or are you trying it out on me?” Annika bluntly stated, folding up the paper and shoving it into her pocket. “Well, what now? Since I am not being evicted, I need to fix a few things. When do you want me to show up if you are my mentor or what are we doing?” she asked, looking back to her apartment.

”Ah, quitting now?” Starwulf responded, a teasing, borderline playful tone. ”Quitters don’t last long in my dojo. If they placed you with me, I imagine you have a bit more drive than that,” he added, offering about as minimalistic of a compliment as possible.

”And to answer your question, everyone goes through the rounds. Seven of my pupils are on the top one-hundred list, so you can call it antagonistic if you want, but it gets results,” he explained to her, offering what little solace existed in the fact that he wasn’t purely picking on her.

”Unless it’s about to explode or catch fire, whatever projects you have can wait. I have a few others I need to recruit after you, so we need to have a little chat. After that, you should have a few days until I call you all to the Dojo,” he told her, outlining the next few days. ”How about this. I go buy us breakfast and we discuss a training regiment. I’m a sensei by nature. I teach and I train, but I am not your therapist. Some other mentors act as if they have to take you on some spiritual journey or some nonsense like that. We all had to attend a few sit-in classes for this position, so there are some general guidelines,” Starwulf offered, but continued his explanation of how things would go moving forward.

Mulling over her options Annika looked back at her apartment. Her things would be relatively safe considering the way she had left them. If the movers had gone inside she was sure things would have gone south even if there wasn’t any electricity. Looking back to Starwulf she let out a sigh. Her stomach began to grumble and it dawned on her that she hadn’t eaten in… well she wasn’t exactly sure when the last time she had eaten was. She wasn't exactly all that hungry and all she could truly think about was what she had left on her workbench.

Rubbing her eyes she really did look rather rough around the edges, like she hadn’t slept in a period of time longer than was ideal… even for her. “You know, I really didn’t need this additional stress today. At Least this didn’t happen yesterday… or last night.” She spoke up. Putting a hand on her stomach she nodded “Alright, but you are buying for sure. We aren’t going to some small I-Hop or some half assed breakfast place either. I kinda want steak and eggs… and more eggs… french toast and well, I need to eat so.” The radiant haired woman muttered as she fixed her shirt and pants, trying to make herself at least semi-decent considering the circumstances.

From this interaction alone, Starwulf was fairly certain he had his work cutout for him. He was accustomed to students that wanted to be trained by him. Whether it was due to his fame within the Black Star style or his rank within the DWMA, there was no lack of eager pupils. The Fate Program provided him the opportunity–and more so challenge–of training students outside of his normal realm. Outside of his field of expertise, even. Regardless, this girl in particular had already shown him enough that she would be a challenge.Food motivated was well enough to work with, but her potentially hazardous knack with gadgets and her reactions to stressors were something he would need to adapt to. Stress specifically posed a problem as most of his students had already been through the rounds of mental conditioning in other martial arts or the Amazing Star Style.

”Nutrition is important. It’s one of the keystones to health. A sound body for a sound soul,” he told her, responding to her rambling of food. He wasn’t particularly keen on her choices–a lot of carbs and processed sugars in what she listed. But, that would be a discussion for another time. ”As for stress, you’ll need to get used to it. Mission or not,” he added dryly. He then turned around to walk a little ways down the street and to a blue colored crossover for a vehicle. It was fairly large, but by far not one of those three-seater minivans. The point was, it wasn’t sporty, nor was it huge and luxurious. It was a fairly standard family vehicle with some potential for off-roading, mostly for when the Flynn family went camping.

He pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the car, then stepped over to the drivers side to get in. It beeped following its headlights flashing, indicating it unlocked. ”If I catch you messing with the CR-Z, I’ll break your hand,” he warned her. It wasn’t as aggressive of a threat as it was matter-of-fact. Program or not, his kids loaded themselves up in this vehicle. He didn’t care about his position in the program enough to consider what would happen if he actually followed through.

“Stressors… you caught me on a good day. I am just happy this happened today and not yesterday or the day before. I have my ups and I have my downs… to be honest the ups are horrible and the downs can have me just sleeping all the time. Medication helps but it still isn’t entirely under control. But aside from situations like this, I tend to handle myself quite well. Uhh.. kinda.” she explained, getting into the car.

Arriving at the IHOP Annika didn’t take long to start eating. Having barely touched solid food in two days she quickly set to work shoveling food into her mouth. While she did eat a lot, she was more than well mannered and even took a short time between types of food.

It was impressive watching this one eat. She had to have devoured at least twenty-five hundred if not three thousand calories of food in one sitting. It wasn’t the most absurd indulgence he had ever seen, but coming from a girl with such a small frame, it was mildly off-putting. His own daughters often split a platter here at this very same IHOP. He himself only consumed a fourth of what she did, knowing what his own nutritional needs quite well. He let her continue on anyway, if only to make sure he had her full attention.

”After this, I believe I’ll be sending you a textbook over nutrition. You’re young now and will burn most of this off, but get to my age, and it won’t be so easy,” he told her, although there was a hint of his dry humor in that last line. ”I assume you’re the type to get lost in whatever you’re doing and not eat. I suggest healthy snacks and timers for meals. And uh… I guess put in a requisition to up the food allowance on your DWMA account,” he added, providing some actual positive suggestions given what he had assessed thus far.

”That aside, we do need to outline your training. All students under me will go through physical conditioning. It’s a requirement. And, it’s not just your body. We work on your Amplification skills. But, beyond that, we need a personalized regiment for you. Not just a martial art, but something to actually develop your skills,” he said, transitioning into the purpose for this entire outing.

”We don’t have a weapon partner for you yet, but that’s honestly trivial for now. I have been the sensei to hundreds of students that never had any intention on using a weapon, and they outperform plenty of agents in the Death Festival in the unarmed category each year,” he continued on, explaining further despite her finishing the last few bites of that fresh toast she ordered. He had to admit, the added fruit alongside flavored syrup did smell nice.

”The million dollar question is, how do you want me to train you? I can condition your mind and body, but to get the most out of my Dojo, you have to have a goal. A new skill to achieve or an old one to master. Or some facet of your current abilities that you want to hone. Blind training achieves far less than focused efforts,” he explained, and finally asking what precisely she wanted to do. This was the pivotal moment in their training moving forward.

“What do I want out of training?” She asked herself out loud. “Well, i’d like to have better control over my… ehmm.. tendencies.”[/b][/color] she continued on. “Its nice having someone who can sense out intention and location like I can. I have my mother to thank for that bit.” She hissed towards the end. “Still, I uhh, you already know most likely. But the bottom line, control. I can do alot of good but I can also level a city block if I am left to my own devices.” Annika explained. Taking a moment to eat what was left of her food she pushed the plate away abit and looked back up.

“As much as I consider myself well off, the reality is I don’t quite do things the way I should. I have episodes where I just do something for hours, most of the time its tinkering with something but sometimes I just exercise. I then eat a bunch and uhh… pass out which is likely coming real soon.” Annika admitted, referencing her own growing exhaustion.

Leaning back in her seat she crossed her arms “So control over my soul and madness. Im better than I was in the past but its not perfect. It leaves my life in tatters constantly and my body suffers because I get all weird.” she reaffirmed, referencing her manic tendencies. “I am sure you’ve felt out my soul and saw that its appears like a chaotic mess. But, there is a pattern to it. I can even project it onto a weapon partner, which is why I tend to wreck everything. I haven’t run into something I couldn’t shred. Like a knife through butter.” She exclaimed, using her knife to cut a small piece of butter.

Starwulf listened to her intently. Not only for the content of her answer, but how she answered him in general. It seemed that she was self-aware of some of her issues, which made this a fair bit easier. It seemed those soft punks like Salem earned their paychecks after all. Control was something he could work with, too. Not only in abilities, but in lifestyle. And, it seemed this girl most definitely needed that.

He rested his elbows on the table, then pressed his fingers together. His eyes glazed over for a moment while he was in thought, reviewing over what it might take to train someone like this. It wasn’t impossible. His methods were a bit more brute force than anticipated, but perhaps this girl needed exactly that: to face her problems head on. That was essentially the only way Starwulf dealt with anything anyway.

”First, let’s make something clear,” Starwulf started off, with a fairly serious but otherwise upbeat tone. ”You cannot level a city block. Just like Davis cannot tear apart a tank,” he explained, ”Some device you create may be able to, but that is not your power. Do not confuse the two.”

This was an important point Starwulf wanted to make. He was probably even more serious about it than he sounded. Inventions and technology were great, but in his opinion, they were not truly the power of an individual. Davis saved millions if not billions more lives by perfecting the Magitech Syringe. The impact from that was great. At the same time, Davis did not do that as an agent. He did that as a researcher. A scientist. If this girl wanted to rejoin the DWMA as an Agent, he wanted to make it perfectly clear that she wouldn’t be doing so by sitting at a desk playing with gadgets. She could go work in the labs if she wanted that.

”But, if control is what you seek, that much, I can do. It’s not easy, though. Sometimes, small changes that seem irrelevant matter more than you think. I told you about nutrition. Eating healthier is not easy. It’s not like I suggest going vegan–I myself love a good steak. But, eating the right foods at the right times instead of whatever and whenever takes a lot more effort than you’d think,” Starwulf told her, circling back to the point he brought up first.

”Yet, consider this. If you can change that one thing about yourself and keep at it every day, what else can you change?” he asked, posing her a question she would soon see was rhetorical. As he explained this, his demeanor shifted. His fingers collapsed on themselves and his fingers interlaced.

”Taking control one step at a time and counting up your small victories will do more than any attempt at sudden change ever could. I can give you the tools to a better lifestyle and the instruction to control yourself better, body and soul,” he said, ”but, you have to commit. A slip here and there isn’t the end of the world, but you must stay committed.”

“Ehh… if left to run rampant with a weapon and a target trying to flee I kinda focus and block out outside obstacles. Or ehm… go through them. I had an axe as a partner in the past and using my wavelength I could and would go through houses to get whatever we were hunting.” She explained, obviously not liking what she was saying. “It's not that I really mean to sometimes, and after all is said and done I realize what I did but it happens. Control I hope can help me rid myself of this. I almost always get my target, but especially now… the DWMA doesn’t need bad PR.”

Nodding along as he continued speaking she considered what he was saying. “I am glad you also enjoy food. Though you are right, I normally work myself into exhaustion and then forget to eat. I always considered the fact I eat like this as a way to offset my time not eating and just working myself into the ground. But yeah, I can see where a good diet would come into play.” she mumbled towards the end, poking her thigh.

She turned rather serious following her poking. “I think this is in my best interest. I joined up with the DWMA for a specific reason.” She began. Her face turned dark and the rather chaotic aura of her personality all but vanished from her soul. In its place was a grim determination “Due to what transpired in my past I've always been unable to get where I wanted, unable to gain the abilities and strength needed to achieve it. I have always been too chaotic, and scrambled. If I do this, I want you to promise me something, I want this in return.” She said looking him in the eyes. “I want my revenge.” She finished.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Midori☆Hoshi​

"Dark Star"​

Species Death Golem
Partner Various / Autonomous Weapon
Rank Two-Star

Location Death City, Hollowed Grounds
Mission New Beginnings... in Japan?!
Status Tense yet relieved

​

Tags: The Regal Rper Sybil Meredith (finally)

That report... was intense. Even Cyrus had a flare in his eyes after having heard it. Midori was ushered into the Death Room and had a confidential discussion with Lord Kidd over the matter. Of course, he handed off the briefcase and read nothing in it. But, as he feared, the information he was presented was unprecedented, and took a jab at how they currently understood and possibly soon even combated Madness. Experts were brought in, too. A Monster Hunter decades senior to Midori, a walking encyclopedia on creatures an anomalies. Nothing described at first glance, either orally by Midori or in the first review of the contents of the case, matched these descriptions.

There were, of course, a few outliers. A now extinct creature called a Hyde. Certain types of Madness could be suppressed so powerfully by certain personality disorders that one could appear without them. There were a few cases of disassociative personality disorder wherein a single personality was Mad, but others were not. Some souls were shattered or scarred, too, and that affected how Madness presented in them, if it did. But, in all cases, there was a constant: these were unique scenarios. Case studies sometimes. Not even a dozen in the last century. Even MIBVI did not increase this rate. According to the Enlighteners, however, they had assassinated nearly twenty suspects matching these same traits with over half having confirmed Madness.

Whatever this Lunacy ability was, if it existed, would require far more resources. To that end, they did in fact call Zosar to a conference room to thoroughly question him. Not only for the purpose of returning to the Fate Program, but also for as much possible information about the specific people that were feeding them this information. Zosar was part of them. His trust, even if misplaced at times, was something they might reliably use to gauge the credibility of this information. Unfortunately, his testimony only lent to it.

Fortunately, this was all out of their hands now. The higher-ups were on it, more resources were being pulled to investigate it, and there was no reason for them to be held up any longer. Granted, Adra was never really held up to begin with. No reason for her to be. She had a short debriefing, and was free to do as she pleased. Midori was the first to leave after he was questioned by a few experts. Due to the intense nature of what at times felt like yet another interrogation, Zosar was the last to leave. No new alias, no restrictions, none of the security detail. Given that the information had already been leaked about Lunacy and there was no more leverage with the Enlighteners--in fact, there was a tentative truce it seemed--they didn't believe him to be in any danger. And, if so, perhaps not valuable enough to continue protecting to such an extreme degree.

So... that was it. Another chapter of their lives down.

03/28/67 1742
Midori: Meet me at Hollowed Grounds as soon as you can. I got someone to introduce you to and we need to go over our next outing

Sybil The Regal Rper for the above message.

And, just like that, onto the next chapter.

Adra was the first to arrive. She was pretty reliable, and probably more relevant to her timeliness, less easily distracted. By the time Zosar had arrived, the two had already exchanged a brief but pleasant series of words. No heartfelt reminiscence over Project Paean, but a confirmation that she and Zosar were to remain partners. And some mutual bitching about the bureaucratic bullshit that was the DWMA. There was an intentional distance kept from their most recent trip in the dunes as well. Mundane as it was, it passed the time until Zosar arrived.

But there he was, man of the hour. Hollowed Grounds was a favorable meeting spot. Incredible coffee at decent prices, a hot place among Agents, and conveniently close to the DWMA without actually being near the academy. It was also the place of their first mission. Whether it was meant to be a throwback was uncertain without asking; the place had enough merits to justify its choice without any sentimentality.

"Well look what Shuumie dragged in," Midori said with a smile that had notably been absent since that morning. "You took long enough I bet half the place thought Adra and I were on a date," he added jokingly.

"But, down to business. Apparently, Zari, Jarvis, and Adrian are preoccupied with their mentors. I'm not sure how long that all will take, but we don't have time to deal with a tight schedule," Midori explained to them. "You see, your buddy Midori lined up a real special treat for you. You see..."

"...while the higher ups don't think you're still in any danger, Zose, they still think it might be best if you laid low for a while. Vanished, so to speak. And, I lined up an incredibly rare opportunity," Midori continued on, though as he spoke, a wide grin crept across his face. He was fairly excited and in this case, easy to read. That poker face he wore as an assassin was gone. If anything, he was like doting parent on Christmas just waiting to see those faces when the presents were unwrapped.

"The Hoshi Clan have agreed to host us for a while. They're also a little nervous about the news. Coming into a den of assassins is a death trap for anyone, so you'll be well-protected there. Of course, this does mean we're flying out to Japan. And, that's happening tomorrow morning," he explained, finally unveiling what he considered a gift. Few people were ever allowed to visit the Hoshi homeland. Hell, few people even knew its exact location. The fact they were low-level DWMA Agents only added to the rarity of this event. It's not like Midori had many strings to pull, either; he wasn't precisely prestigious in his own Clan as the Dark Star. But, still, his involvement here may have played a small role.

"And, yes, before either of you ask. This invitation was extended to every member of my team, so Adra is fine to come along. And, they have even graciously offered to train us. And, I do mean us. If I'm going home, you best bet that I'm not wasting that time--however long it may be," Midori quickly added, having forethought this particular news and what questions they might have had. He also consider the chance of them declining, but that was a low chance at that. The pros here vastly outweighed the cons. And, a chance like this was literally likely to be once-in-a-lifetime.

"Final point, too. The team isn't just us three anymore. We have fourth now; and, she's coming with us. She should also be here, not sure where though. She left for a smoke a while ago and I haven't seen her since. I'll shoot her a text that you've arrived," Midori told them, informing him of the last surprise he had up his sleeve. He was quick on the draw, too, already pulling out his phone to text Bella that Zosar was present. If she was just outside brooding, then it shouldn't be long before she joined them. She already knew of the trip anyway; she was primarily here to meet the team. Though before he hit send, Midori let his dual-colored eyes lift up and peak specifically at Zosar. "I'll warn you now. Her tongue is sharp and blade is sharper. And, apparently, her morning was entirely shit. I'd suggest you respect her like she's another Adra, partner or not," Midori told him, giving him fair warning for the storm that would be one Bellamira Ossana.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Raphael Valerias​

March 26, 2067
Location: Dall Island, Trek through Magical Forest
Interactions: Chanterelle, Ark
Mentions: Maria, Rand
Meredith The Regal Rper RedArmyShogun Sir Les Paul

Raphael’s interest in biology and the cycle of life and death, as well as nature in general, did indeed stem from meeting Chanterelle, but that’s not where it first came from. He had been studying biology and how it all worked even before meeting Chanterelle as he wanted to find weak points in that of a humanoid’s body. It led him down a rabbit hole of learning more than just what he usually would end up learning and he found it vastly interesting. Not like the magic he was learning, but the world of science. Given that chains and the creation of such were scientific in nature, he wanted to learn of it. Especially when it made him smarter and stand out among the witches and sorcerers within the school.

Of course, it left him lacking in how magic affected biology, but given the isolated world of Dall Island, magic could do just about anything and it wasn’t as consistent or easily quantified in scientific terms or for that of the layman to fully understand. Which was why Raphael used science instead of using magic as an idea.

When Ark spoke of his thoughts on it, Raphael couldn’t help but chuckle at the lack of uncertainty about life. Then again, life was still something to discover and learn from, he wouldn’t doubt that heightened levels of oxygen or magic would spur the growth rate of these things.

Still, compared to humans, werewolves, dogs, and cats, spiders and crabs were rather simple.

He didn’t think Rand had an answer for this, but he did bring up magic being a factor in accelerated biological traits and evolution, which Raphael had in mind but didn’t really bring up thinking it was obvious. Oh well. Thankfully, his chest buzzed with pride upon hearing his point had some merit.

Raphael would stop talking after that, the chain digging into his stomach and sides were starting to become unbearable, the changing scenery as things seemed to get bigger were barely registering. He was thankful that Rand stopped, only to realize what laid before them. Raphael looked around confused. Looking behind, he compared the sizes of the trees and leaves. They were no longer within the giant area of the forest… Weird…

But now they were in an area where Raphael would consider a fungal bush forest, which could be why the trees and leaves here weren’t as big. He looked at Rand with some worry when he said there was an area with no ambient mana and he sighed. Lovely.

Hearing his name being paired with Chanterelle, Raphael began to undo the chain length around his waist and set down the water, wincing as he rolled his shoulders and rubbed his belly where it was digging in. Looking up to where Rand pointed and saying he’d be going up there, Raphael nodded. He patted Ark on the shoulder to give him an encouraging smile and a wink covering his blind eye before lightly jogging towards Chanterelle, grinning widely at her.

“Ey, weed witch.” He cheekily grinned, chuckling. “What’s your guess here? I have some idea as to why the trees aren’t as big as they were back then. Magic can cause gigantism or accelerated growth, so something is taking all the magic. Given the fluorescence of the bushes, I say we should start with those and work our way to the dead zone, yeah? I’m thinking the bushes are the reason for the dead zone. Or it’s something else. Maybe they’re glowing because maybe it’s for decoration.” He offered a plan and his thoughts, hoping Chanterelle liked them.

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - Dall Island​

After what seemed like days, Maria listened on partially to what the rest had to say in regard to the mystery around Dall Island. The theoretics around the island and its whys and how would be more comfortably carried out once she did not have to contend with carrying all of the cages. As they penetrated deeper into the interior of Dall Island, the fauna seemed to shift and change, becoming even larger and more of a pain to cross. With the boxes in front of and behind her, Maria has to shift all of her focus to not tripping over the hostile landscape.

With a stumble here and there, she more or less made it through without issue, though focused only on what was immediately around her, when suddenly the landscape changed again it seemed, Rand held a hand up to stop them, but given her current state it was when she almost ran into someone and heard him speaking that she stopped.
"Huh?" Seemed he wanted her to put the cages down and help with making a new camp, following along with his words she frowns a bit.

"That is not the only problem, a much larger problem is what effect that will have on these weapons. I may very well have to fight for myself which is not ideal. Even if my creations are born from Ironwood, you yourself pointed out how limited that is." A pause was to follow as she turned her attention towards discarding the cages into a neat pile for the time being. "Though on that note, how did we plan to get any living specimens back to where we were on the beach? I doubt they will sit quietly in the cages."

Before she got an answer, Rand made clear his intention to scout up or was it around one of the larger trees? "Very well, Ark do you need my assistance with making an encampment?"

Merciless Medic The Regal Rper Meredith Sir Les Paul

 

[The Regal Rper]

Zosar | Death City | Hollow Grounds

Things were looking grim if being called in was anything to go by. Yet even with his concerns on just what kind of steps DWMA would take to handle this new issue, he seethed, knowing the risk the three had taken to come all the way out there with the greater purpose being to deliver the news they had discovered.

He did not go into details about the man himself. He stuck to the core details- if they could be trusted for the information that was being provided in whatever had been contained in that briefcase.

So Zosar started with his experience with Jose.

“Jose, was one of my mentors. One of many. When I was starting out as an Enlightener we were trained in groups with at least five to seven instructors- but given my circumstance I required more private lessons. I can say with certainty, from my time with him, that he would not waste his time pulling a stunt like this or even bother working to pull a level of deceit like this in the first place. It would be beneath him. ” Was his response to the question of credibility.

Making up lies, while was part of their business, to go to the extremes like this- was a waste of time- especially when it came to retrieving allies who had, essentially, chosen their own paths that had separated them from the group as a whole.

“I told you once before” he said to those in the room listening, “that my capture and failure to return with the other teams meant that I would no longer be considered part of the Enlighteners due to the risk I personally would cause. That wasn’t a lie, Lord.” He said to Lord Death. “I was being sincere- it wasn’t bravado. I won’t lie” he went on to add, “when Midori told me the Enlighteners were willing to take Eustass back for a trade in valuable information, I wondered what exactly it was they had that they’d worth risking agents for.

“If you ask me personally what I think the exchange was really about. Then this was a window of opportunity for them to pass this information off without it being implied as hostile or some form of subterfuge activity. Both Eustass and I made our own decisions, there was no reason for them to really take either of us back. They took that chance for Eustass and I because both of us were strong members of the organization- Eustass for his capability as a Weapon Partner, me for my ability on the field and tracking skills. Our decisions led to our own circumstances however, for that deviation, whatever happened to us, was an acceptable loss.” He informed, adding a bit of insight into the mentality the Enlighteners promoted.

“We’re not expendable,” he added to clarify any doubts or maybe it was just to stamp out the obvious line of thinking that followed whenever someone heard how the Enlighteners didn’t mind cutting off clear risks before they spread to damage the whole system.

Sort of like how he had, actually.

“But if we fuck up” he went on, “and it risks everyone else involved, then we’re better off as a statistical loss if there is no way to truly rectify. Jose, in our hierarchy, had the freedom to accept or deny whatever orders he’d been given- at least from what I recall of our rank he was high enough to qualify as a Three Star here, one of valued importance, like Dr. Stein. Call him an advisor of sorts to the organization’s functions or at least certain ones. Risking him would be idiotic, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he had come up with a successor to take over his duties if things had gone south in our meeting for preparation of a misfortune outcome. I’d like to think their actions here at least puts my ‘terrorist’ friends, in a better light at the very least.”

He sighed. Clearly exhausted. Mentally. Emotionally. All of it impacted him physically. There was still one more thing he had to do though.

“In the end though, I must thank you.” He said with the sense of neutrality in his tone fading just a bit and the hard grit he had in his eyes softening as he he took a second to gather his thoughts.

“You kept Eustass safe, and me also- when our lives were being targeted.” It wasn’t said in the same hard neutral tone he’d been using to answer the questions earlier, it was much softer. Even the pause showed he was still processing everything that had happened in the last couple of hours. “Thank you. You didn’t have to offer me the return back, but you did even if I did choose to not return to the Enlighteners. Despite how much I hate this collar, I can’t deny the good things you did for me and my friend and former colleague. Even if he’d rather get beat up than say it- I’m not so prideful as to ignore the kindness.

There was a pause as he cleared his throat. “So thank you…”

---

Madness is coming.

He was running towards the scream. Faster- then faster as everything blurred around them.

The moon, dark and sparkling in the inky night, empty of stars- shed its light down on their surroundings- illuminating their way.

Yet Zosar could not help but feel discomfort in the twisted light of the moon.

When he got to the scream site, he stopped.

Shaggy hair, eyes wide- dried blood on his cheek, in his old combat clothes- a mask hanging off the back of his head- they were the same height and they both stared at the dead body.

He walked forward and then they were face to face. Inches from each other. He was staring at his reflection.

They looked at the body of the human as it made an unholy crunch. It twisted. It writhed as if struck by a jolt of electricity. Fingers and bones cracked and human features warped- bones popping, skin tearing and reforming- changing into the Corrupted that they had hunted down.

Then Shaggy haired Zosar, pointed his bloody gloved finger at him, with a grin, he reserved only for prey that had been caught for the slaughter.

“You keep bottling up, and you’re going to let me out of my cage again.” He laughed at Zosar’s blank reaction. An alarm going off in the distance. “And when that happens, that partner of yours will get a taste of everything you’ve been keeping locked up.”

Then he’d blinked out of alarm, waking up- heart racing, and when he did- he realized the beeping was a warning from his collar.

It took a few seconds but in a moment he was calm.

Since their meeting with Jose had ended and he’d watched Eustass walk away with them- he hadn’t felt much of anything except a dull numbness, a sense of sadness- minus the indignant fury that had spiked at the conversations regarding the credibility of life saving information Jose and the other Enlighteners had probably risked a lot to give them.

Somehow, he’d managed to trade one organization for another- despite his pragmatic expectations that his return to DWMA would be met with unfavorable outcomes. He had swapped one group of friends for the next- and was now proceeding with the program once more.

That was probably the only good thing about any of this. Aside from that fact that he had Midori and Adra.

All he had right now, were Midori and Adra- that was probably the only comforting thing out of this.

As he got ready, he could not help but think about the implications of what Lunacity could do.

He’d seen what it was like on the field back when the vaccines were being mandated and spread out yet were being bogged down by multiple factors. Those early days, when his training had been complete after years of hard work, ten years old, chasing down the scummiest criminals of the earth due to police systems being stressed enough already- you ended up with some impressions. Sure, it gave him early experience- but it left him with a deep understanding. As strong as those who had personally suffered from losses of the virus itself. It didn’t help that most criminal activity had only seen a real spike due to the Mad Virus outbreak in the first place.

“Damn” he sighed as he started the shower. “Wish I could get a drink.”

He immediately regretted voicing the thought at all.

As he stepped in he was reminded of the few times Eustass used to get them drinks every now and then after missions. Nothing big. A shot glass at best. Alcohol, though rarely given to the youth, was its own reward. A small little sip- irresponsible but also a guarantee to stave many of his peers from drinking till much later.

It had also been used as a distraction, to help with the pain of stitching some wounds.

Not him though. He’d picked up his father’s taste for drink. And then later on- when his dad had died, horribly, got into his stash and began filling his flask and multiple plastic containers with it before certain missions.

He’d also picked up his mother’s unique ability to sever ties, it seemed. Even with the tattoo on his back, he knew any Witch of her House that saw it would oust him on the spot.

What a heritage he had gotten.

As he moved out of his current abode, Zosar could not help but think about his current situation and how he’d gotten to this point.

Ditching the Enlighteners had been the right thing to do, he rolled this thought over in his mind. That did not mean it had been easy to do, however.

When he was younger it hadn't been much of a big deal. They had lived in areas for the sake of a job and then left without much of a goodbye. He’d never been in one place for too long anyway- the attachments were short lived. The connections, though enjoyed and cherished in memory- shallow.

Yet here he was heading to Hollow Grounds to build up what he had with the only people present at the moment, he could call friends. Adding a stranger now to that equation.

He wondered if this sense of hurt- this subtle ache, though manageable- was what he’d done to a lot of people without ever really thinking about it in detail.

Perhaps in a way, this was its own karma.

He didn’t know. The numbness, though present- left him disinterest in diving deeper into the thoughts. Partly because he wanted nothing to set off his collar if he allowed himself to give into his emotions. Much like the numbness had left him disinterested in dealing with his father’s death aside from accepting the fact it had happened and that it was necessary.

The ding of the bell, brought him out of his thoughts as he entered the cafe- and like donning a mask, he erased the thoughts bouncing around in his head to focus on whatever it was they’d gathered here today to address. Obviously, knowing Midori- it was important.

And though he smiled and his spirits stirred slightly at the joke Midori greeted him with, his chuckle was short- and his smile was washed away quickly after the information of their former teammates given.

“Oh I see.” He nodded, a bit of a frown. Expected I suppose. Though he was disappointed it would be awhile, more than he felt like admitting.

The news he brought up afterwards however, was much more satisfying. An opportunity to learn Hoshi techniques was a treat he’d never thought he’d get. Even with the two Hoshi in their organization- he’d never really gotten to learn any real techniques under her. Let alone practice the forms of them while training.

“That will be exciting” he nodded enthusiastically. Yet at the last point Midori made, Zosar took note of the warning here.

Like Adra, he’d be finding little comfort in terms of emotional support. A bit disheartening to hear honestly, not that Adra probably couldn’t express herself in her own ways but with his experiences so far- his partner really was better at hitting with blunt force when it came to the more sensitive moments, or instead- distancing, for the sake of not mucking things up. Something he’d taken note of during the meeting with the Enlighteners.

She’d been straight to the point- never mincing words- so if their next addition was to be like this, then it’d probably at least be interesting to see how her and Adra got along.

He made a mental note to throw Midori into any conflicts that might arise first, before he stepped in.

“Thanks” he nodded with understanding- though honestly as long as their new arrival didn’t say anything to get under his skin- he’d play it fine. Or at least as fine as it could be played. “When do we leave? And what’s her name?”

Mentions: Meredith

Interactions: Sir Les Paul Sybil