Fandom Soul Eater: F.A.T.E

[Shotgunpenguin]

Wes Kraven
Outrigger Resort, Lu'au

Mentions: Sir Les Paul (Gauss), Merciless Medic (Sara), Mook-LandStrider (Annika), Peckinou (Arkayis), EmperorsChosen (Aki), RedArmyShogun (Feng)
​

Wes didn’t respond to the meisters instructions, at least not verbally. His own wavelength was already working it’s magic, slowly wrapping around the gong and working into the weapon. Inside of his soul space, Wes grasped onto the wavelength, ready to adjust and fine-tune the frequency of his sound as soon as it was needed. Even if their paring was spur of the moment, their shared desire to knock those assholes away from Sara seemed to be doing the trick. And as Gauss sent one of the men flying, it was clear to everyone present how this would turn out.

Taking a moment to address his own weapon, Gauss commanded for the dark-haired man to leave with Wes’s own partner. While he didn’t agree with how harsh the man’s words sounded, he couldn’t deny that he was hoping the weapon would comply. With him out of their hair, and Annika to keep him occupied, there would be no one left between them and Sara.

No one, except the remaining men who dared to try and defile Sara with their actions. The other two assholes shared a look between the thrown man, Sara, and themselves. For a second, it looked like they were going to bolt, but they seemed to steel themselves as they shared a nod, stepping forward and placing themselves at Sara’s sides. It seemed like Gauss’s little demonstration wasn’t enough to make them back down. They needed something more to show them exactly how screwed they were, and Gauss had just the plan for that.

Wes could feel Gauss’s wavelength pour into him, the feeling like a small electrical charge was running through his form. He was placing a large amount of trust in the weapon, and Wes wasn’t going to disappoint the man. He focused, fine-tuning the provided wavelength as if he were adjusting the frequency on a radio. The wavelength hummed in anticipation, ready to be released with just a single strike as Gauss aimed him towards the group. Even with a lower frequency, with the two men standing so close to Sara he was worried that she would be caught up in the blast.

All he could do was trust that Gauss had something up his sleeve. And there was something indeed, as Gauss struck the gong and Wes released the stored wavelength, the soundwave surged towards the trio. But instead of striking all three of them, the soundwave seemed to split right down the middle before it could reach them, causing it to only impact against the men while leaving Sara unharmed. The men were blasted backwards, hands coming up to cup their ears as they writhed on the sand. There wouldn’t be any lasting damage, he wasn’t going to risk it with Sara being so close to the duo, but they definitely wouldn’t be up and about anytime soon.

A large part of what made the technique so destructive was Annika’s unique wavelength. The constant oscillation made it unstable and difficult to contain, but with that instability came it’s enhanced power. With Gauss, the power was lessened, but with it came a manner of control far beyond what he and Annika could pull off. Still, their false resonance more than made up for the reduced power.

Of course, while the false resonance increased the duo’s abilities, it also came with the unfortunate trade-off. Despite the blast being far weaker than what he would be capable of with his partner, a wave of fatigue washed over him. Far less than the complete exhaustion he was accustomed to, but enough for his shoulders to begin to feel a little stiff and his eyes to droop slightly more than normal.

Still, if keeping Sara safe from those assholes meant feeling a little strained, he’d gladly accept that. Already he was imagining how grateful she would be, that they and got rid of those jerks who were obviously bothering her.

Which was why he was caught off guard when the peaceful and joyous sound of her soul being overtaken by something harsh. A heavy screech of anger and rage, anger at Gauss and himself. His heart dropped in his chest as Sara quickly approached, throwing a punch that Gauss hadn’t even bothered to block. Even if what the duo had wasn’t a true resonance, he doubted that the blow would have much of a physical effect. But even if it didn’t hurt him physically, Wes could feel the meisters soul whip into a frenzy of emotions as he suspended her slightly in the air with his own wavelength.

As Gauss spoke to Sara, admonishing her as if she were an unruly child, he couldn’t help but feel differently from his wielder. Their shared feelings of adoration remained, but where as Gauss had taken to questioning her, Wes began to question himself. She had brushed off his first attempt to capture her attention, and now she responded not with words of praise, but ones of anger and fury. What had he done wrong? What was he supposed to have done? Was he the problem?

Undoing his transformation, he landed with a small grunt, eyes turning to stare directly into Sara’s own. “Please Sara, we only want you to see how much you mean to us. How much we love you. Am I not enough?” Compared to the accusing tone that Gauss’s tone carried, his own was softer and filled with uncertainty, as if he was unsure of whether he wanted to hear the answer.

“Please, what can I do to-“

Suddenly, Wes was cut off as something impacted the ground in front of them, kicking up a small bit of sand and causing him to flinch. The source of the disturbance was a woman, her fingers extended out before her like a handgun. The woman than transformed into her weapon form, placing herself into the hands of another woman with red hair who dropped to a knee.

Three more shots rang out from the gun, one of which impacted directly into his chest, knocking the air right out of him and sending him flat on his ass. Taking a gasp of air, Wes brought a hand up to his chest, wincing as his fingers gently probed where he had been hit. It was going to leave one nasty bruise, but luckily that was probably the extent of it. There was a bigger issue however.

They had shot at Sara. They were going to pay.

“Gauss.” Wes spoke, reaching out and grabbing Gauss’s arm, once again transforming. The cord wrapped itself around his arm, coiling up until it reached his shoulder, resulting in the gong being firmly secured against the meister’s arm like a shield. “Give me everything and get me close. I’m going to blast those fuckers away.”

 

[Merciless Medic]

Sara Middleton​

Date: September 10, 2067
Location: OUTRIGGER, Kāʻanapali Beach Resort, Hawaii
Interactions: Gauss, Wes, Aki, Feng, Ark, Nadia
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul @Shotgunpengiun The Regal Rper EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun

Arky? Interested? Didn’t look like it to Sara. For once, she wasn’t trying to be delusional. She noticed he wasn’t interested in her, but she had a knack for getting people to like her, maybe even more. All she needed was to get him comfortable with her, not realizing her actions towards Arkayis would’ve impeded that quite considerably.

But her punch did absolutely nothing. She was too angry, had too little control over her wavelength even if she wanted to. She was shoved then held up in the air, deadpanning from how incredulous this was. Hearing Gauss and Wes saying they adored her… Sara realized that if she wanted any chance to find Arkayis and take him from Annika, she would have to choose her words carefully.

Wes’s concerns about whether it was he who was the problem made her feel a bit better. Being the kind person she was, she tried to see the good in Gauss, but found it difficult when all she could think about was Arkayis.

At least he wasn’t trying to kill her.

“T-... To be honest, I haven’t had anyone see me like that before…” Comparing her to a Goddess might have been a bit much. The flattery looked like it was working.

Then, shots were fired, and she felt a spiritual impact hit her after one hit the ground in front of the two men. She coughed and groaned, her mind completely failing for the moment as she was consumed by pain.

For a moment, she thought she was shot with a real gun, the April Fools’ event coming back to her mind and-...

This couldn’t be the same scene… Was she in a blissful dream for several months? Couldn’t be…

It scared her, making her wish she could run and hide. But Gauss and Wes were in trouble. People were in trouble by a rabid gunslinger. She looked over at the ones who shot them, unable to recognize Aki and Feng, nor Nadia and Ark nearby them or those Fate agents who came in to try and diffuse the situation.

She needed to stop them…

For a brief moment, she felt like she had control of herself, but it depended on what Gauss did with his wavelength. If she were not affected by Gauss’s magnetic control, she was going to pick up one of the knives Gauss had used earlier and throw it at Feng and Aki before ducking into the crowd. She didn’t know if her throw would even hit them, let alone be sent into their general direction or hit anyone else, but that’s what she did as a last ditch attempt before hiding in the crowd within the chaos.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Noah Wiley​

Date: September 10, 2067
Location: OUTRIGGER, Kāʻanapali Beach Resort, Hawaii
Interactions: Raphael, Nadia, Ark
Mentions: Midori, Adrian, Dani, Aki, Feng, Gauss, Wes
Sir Les Paul The Regal Rper EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun

Dots were in Noah’s vision as he tried to regain his breath, his diaphragm finding it difficult to handle the task it was made to do. Finally, as he was able to breathe again, he soon found himself getting some sense of clarity. He looked over to see someone using a vacuum, but stopped shortly after as Midori told them to. Everything was chaotic, some new people having come in to start a fight before being made completely useless. Nadia was wrestling Ark, Aki and Feng were shooting at Gauss and Wes, and Raph laid there unconscious. Noah didn’t even realize there was shifting sands until he realized more sand was sticking to him than usual.

He heard Midori’s tongue-lashing, of course. Everything felt so much clearer but now… He was terrified. What of the others there? What happened to them? Was it really the wine?

Sore, he coughed before standing up, taking stock of his surroundings before looking at Gauss and Wes. They were resonating? How?

He had to do something… He looked at Dani, who was on the floor, unconscious. There was an urge to take her away and put her somewhere safe, but he shook his head. He couldn’t do that. Right now, he noticed the mage was having a rough time as Nadia was trying to subdue him.

He was sure a lot of people needed to cool off, to get calm. Maybe he could help the mage? He looked rather stunned, not all the way there. He ran up to him and shocked him as he put a hand to his shoulder, pumping him full of his healing wavelength to see if it would do him any better.

His words, however, were for Nadia. “I dunno what happened… But yah, I think yer right. I’m not gonna go to another one of these vacations again.” He scoffed, shaking his head.

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Nadia Semyonov - Maria Mayer - Feng Long - Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii - Lūʻau ​

As Maria was left without any sort of response from the Mentor over what was said, she was somewhat relieved that he was back to normal, but he said little and less, other than for she and Elly to go help Nadia with Gauss, while he ran off to do damage control. She would have rather concentrated on the spell, given she barely sensed it and only then after the fact, and that Ark or Raph were not here, having likely fallen prey to the Magics incantation, that was enough proof for Maria to consider it the work of a very skilled spellcaster well beyond their own level. Likely one who carried out these actions in the spur of the moment unless this were an inside job... Or a prank of a person with too much spell control.

Still, she did at least have her Grimoire and one doll, but nothing else. She could try using her limited close-range stands, but still... Even that she was a little unsure of, considering the properties of Gauss, whom she fought before. "Er... Lead the Way, Elly was it?... Or no, I will, in case you don't know Nadia."

~~~~
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Nadia stopped just short of finishing Ark off and settled for kicking him back as turned quickly to see Midori had stopped Adrian's miniature Rampage, or to be more spot on, his torture of Raph, though in all honesty, she would have been her next target. Having heard the gunshots just prior and the other skirmishes breaking out, people trying to stem the tide, or a few sane souls running in a panic.

What a fucking shitshow, all I wanted was these jackasses distracted so I could face the water, I'm surprised no cops or Security have been by yet, then again, the hell are they going to do against Meisters, Weapons and Mages?

Then there was the issue of Adrian, who seemed a bit too eager to set about with his unique talents. "Easy there, killer." It was then that Noah came too, and seemed a bit more levelheaded. Was it because of the Anti-Magic duo and her own ice blood? His wavelength, or all of the above?" Too many people were still up with too many desires... It reminded her of the Pull she had seen with witches. All encompassing, yet different for each. Then there was the issue of dealing with TWO resonating pairs, even if one was false.

"Ark, get yourself up and control your damned emotions, Noah, Adrian, you three deal with Feng and Aki, I got the one that started this shit show to deal with. One of you, preferably Adrian, see if you can wake Dani up and see if she calmed down mostly like Noah has. Adrian anyone gets to being too crazy, do your thing. If Dani is fine, send her to me, provided she wishes to... Just keep in mind she still might be after Ark over you if this shit is till running."

Eying Elly and Maria in the distance, the later gave her a wave and made a "Come here!" gesture with her right hand, a book on her belt. "Right. Later." And with that Nadia dashed off at the speeds only a Meister could do.

~~~~
For her part and with the distraction that Adrian provided, with the weapon and meister pair now focused on them, Feng glared and was just a little too slow as the glint of a thrown knife caught her eye, seemingly stopping in midair not too far away from those that were fired upon with the spiritual bullets, scant few seconds later a warning was given to both her and Aki as the Ice Queen flew past them not more than a handful of seconds later, her blue eyes locked on the pair as she zipped past for the Doll Maker and the Irish Girl, Elly and Maria wasn't it? Ark was behind her, he seemed to have taken a bit of a beating, Feng was unsure of what to do, with her sense of self disrupted and conflicted, she was much like that Triad that followed many unsavory orders with little rebuke or thought given. And she lacked the ability to even pick up upon these facts.

"Aki... What do we do now?"

~~~~
Having caught up with Maria and Elly, Nadia nods. "Introductions can wait till later, for now lets get the gong away from the dumbass and Sara as well. Back me up. Maria if you can, let's see if we can ensnare one of them if we get them separated. Our Focus is just to beat him down, or calm him down if we can take the weapon away. Ah, yeah, he has some sort of magnetism power that isn't limited to just metal, and both of those idiots are after the wolf, make use of that if you wish. Elly yes? We can talk after this, but do as you would and support me."

"Right. So, we just go?" "Yeah." Maria shifted her jaw in thought, Nadia didn't seem to have too much of a plan, so she would put that upon herself. "I may be able to pull that Gong away from him, or at least blast it away with some air, or you could attempt turning the two against one another if they ultimately want the clueless Wolf... Though if she is under the influence of the spell..."

Nadia grunted. "Why I said Sara as well." Watching as a knife was thrown by Sara, it ran into the boundaries of what Gauss was doing and stopped, she had aimed it at Feng, well deserved as it was. With these few words said and waiting for a reply or additions from Elly, Nadia ran towards the pair and glared at Gauss, close enough to speak, but not within his field.

"Put the girl down, now. And the weapon while you're at it, you are under the influence of a spell, you and many others."

What good talking about it had done till now.

Interactions: Sir Les Paul (Adrian, Gauss) EmperorsChosen (Elly, Aki) Merciless Medic (Noah, Sara) The Regal Rper (Ark) Shotgunpenguin (Wes)

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Jose Aguilar​

"Ace"​

Species Human
Partner Tiffany Thompson, Hina Yumi
Rank Three-Star Meister

Location OUTRIGGER, Kāʻanapali Beach Resort, Hawaii
Mission A Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride
Status Disappointed

​

Tags: N/A

​

'You sure? Now?' Tiffany questioned, not honestly sure of the decision her Meister made to intervene.

'They've almost cleaned up the mess on their own. They'll feel cheated and catch on to the security if you act now,' she added, pointing out he drawbacks to his plan.

'Some agents have already intervened: Aiden, Galla, Eduardo, Midori. Besides that, there are seven active threats capable of resonance out there. Their feelings aren't my priority,' Ace explained, all while leaning back far up his perch in the forested jungle. He lined up the scope Tiffany was equipped with and centered it on his first target.

"Hina, when you hear the first shot, activate the collars I marked," Ace said, calmly providing an order to his other weapon.

Her bright blue hair bobbed up, having been scanning the phone for some time prior. Meekly, she responded, "Y-Yes, sir." She then returned to the phone and awaited for that first shot.

. . .​

Gauss had only truly recovered from the projectiles Aki had fired originally for a moment. He wasn't expecting it. Even with his resonance fueling him, that shit still stung. Rage poured over him and he intended to test just how destructive Wes could be. Sure, Gauss might be Annika, but he could certainly muster up something violent. The shrapnel alone from a wide range magnetic burst that Wes could muster was nothing to scoff at, even for other agents.

Alas, those ambitions would not see the light of day.

The shots were silent. Not the same type of silence that Midori utilized. Instead, more that by the time even the wind rustled from them, they had hit their target and seeing their origin was nigh impossible, save for but a few. Elly, Midori perhaps, capable of triangulating their source. Wes might have, had he not also been a target.

The first shot hit and hit Wes. In that brief moment of impact, it would feel like touching a live wire on a power pole. Gauss and Wes even in their current state lacked the power to endure that type of hit. The rejection that started coursing through them burned like fire in each place Gauss held onto Wes. It felt like being torn apart from the inside out. And, that just the first hit. There was a whole volley. Shot after shot hitting the two until they were completely knocked out of Resonance. For Wes, the sheer pain and instability of his soul would have made it agony to remain in his gong form. For Gauss, who was accustomed to this type of rejection after his run in with Noah, this was equal parts pain and surprise. Unfortunately, that only made him the target for a few more shots. Each pounding into him before he could even let go of Wes, and ultimately once the volley ended, leaving him to fall directly to the ground half unconscious from the barrage.

In the moment, it felt like getting hit by a truck. Over and over. In truth, nothing was broken on him and aside from some large bruises, he would have no major damage. However, the impact of a wavelength attack like that was just as much internal as it was external. His soul itself screamed in agony. He couldn't have used it to make even the smallest of magnetic fields if he tried. He couldn't have amplified a finger. His soul was in disarray.

Before Gauss even hit the ground, Feng was hit by her collar. Same with Sara. In fact, even Adrian. A complete knock out injection. In moments, they would all be unconscious. That pattern did not end with her. A dozen or so other agents that had not yet been cleansed were knocked out.

Soon followed were more duos being hit by the same mysterious barrage of blasts Gauss were. The bonfire at the beach soon became littered with unconscious bodies of Fate Agents alongside those writhing in pain. The chaos that ensued, the hell that broke loose just moments ago, it was quelled quickly by just one sniper. Well, one sniper with the assistance of the DWMA collars.

. . .​

After the scene was secured and all major threats were neutralized, Ace only then decided to send out a message to the magitech communicators the agents had. It simply read the following:

CLEAN UP YOUR MESS. THE CAFETERIA IS NOW AN INFIRMARY FOR ANY WOUNDED​

Midori pieced together fairly quickly what was going on. This is what he wanted to avoid, but it seemed he was too late. Of course, he was a victim of it, too. He sighed, defeated. Perhaps if he hadn't been caught in this spell, he could have done more to prevent this outcome. Realistically, though, there more agents there than he could cleanly neutralize. Ace and Tiffany were far beyond his skill level. Even if those collars were activated immediately, he wasn't sure if he could get a group together capable of herding a hundred other agents. Midori knew from his own priorities that keeping the duos that could resonate and the spellcasters separated, as they had the most potential to cause significant damage. Both collateral and personal.

It was a harsh reality. The only real way to tame them was to fight fire with fire, and that was precisely what Ace made sure didn't happen. More so, even if Elly was wielding him, what was Elly going to do with a bow that Ace couldn't do infinitely better with his guns? Truth of the situation was that Midori lacked the raw ability to truly help here. Or, at least help in the capacity to maintain the DWMA standards.

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Aki Kiyoko - Hawaii Beach Resort Lu'au
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Aki was ready to fight with Feng, however that was until the others began to show up. Gauss and Wes began gearing up to fight back and Sara seemed to throw a knife there way which was intercepted. As the new people arrived, she couldn't help but feel her mind become clouded. She wasn't as sure of herself as before and while she still liked Ark, she wasn't as concerned before.

She watched as Nadia charged him, prepared to react, but then the spiky boy approached them and said Feng would be hurt by the collar if they continued. Aki could feel Feng's unsureness and this travelled over to her.

"U-Uh..." She stammered, not quite sure.

Aki didn't want anyone to get hurt. She especially didn't want Ark hurt, but she also didn't want Feng to be hurt. Was there really something weird about what was going on? Would she shoot at someone just because they were annoying? She never had before. However, Aki was not able to continue this line of thought before she heard shots and Feng's collar activated.

The shock incapacitated Feng and interrupted their resonance, causing rejection to course through her. She could feel it throughout her body, an electric shock that urged her to separate from her meister. A light enveloped the pistol and shot from Feng's hand, growing into Aki's full form before landing in the sand with a huff and groan. Aki clutched her stomach, still reeling from the rejection.

"Oww..."

RedArmyShogun

Eloise Keegan - Hawaii Resort - Lu'au
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

"Well, I suppose your plan is all that's left, Nadia," Elly relented with a sigh, not very excited about the prospect of entering into a brawl in this circumstance. This is what, back home, her dad would have called a clusterfuck. She wasn't fond of clusterfucks. Unfortunately, Maria wasn't confident she could remove it without some examination, and that wasn't likely here.

At least they had Midori. As long as they could interfere with the resonating pairs, he could fairly quickly incapacitate them.

"If I can land a strike on them, I can instigate rejection. I know Soul Force and my wavelength's effects make it last much longer," Elly noted to Nadia, giving her a route of clear incapacitation of Gauss and Wes.

Thankfully, they didn't have to pursue that route, She felt the clear sudden expulsion and resonance of a gun-wielder, followed by the various collars of all activating. The clusterfuck was successfully reduced to the morning after of a frat party for the most part and Elly sighed in relief. She pulled out her communicator to see the message and shrugged. "Well, I suppose we're on clean-up duty then..."

RedArmyShogun

 

[The Regal Rper]

Zosar, Gav, Ark | Outrigger Resort, Hawaii

"What a mess."

Bodies strewn everywhere and more than a few of them left to clean up the mess from the announcement.

Zosar ran a hand through his hair, an exhale of exhaustion leaving his parted lips.

The good news was from what he had seen, no one died and that was thanks to the intervention of Nadia and the others following after. He would have to thank her for trying as much as she could, but knowing her, he doubted the thanks would mean much of anything. Midori at least he would thank, as well as the pairs that had provided an assist and followed his instructions.

As his eyes drifted, scanning, they landed on Adrian. Which only reminded him of Adrian's earlier thirst.

As much as a part of him still felt some feeling of disgust at having seen how he had taken a sadistic joy in doing what he has done to Raph and how he wanted to do the same thing to the Witch, Allura, he couldn't entirely fault him.

It must have been a side effect of his wavelength, he reasoned. A natural part of his soul that craved violence, especially when he got tunnel vision or was angry and trying to hold it back.

At the same time the drill instructions of Jõse rang loudly in his ears; Never let the moment, sweep you away or you'll have signed away an shred of control you ever had over yourself and the situation.

Honestly, it was disturbing to think how he and Dani were a match in a spiritual sense based purely on their respective souls, filtering out personality.

Her bloodlust drove her to insanity if allowed and Adrian's was no better, if he had to say, it was worse. Worse because he knew exactly what it felt like to want to savor the punishment you etched out on another, and had vivid memories of those times. Especially when he had been the one to deliver the final blow on targets or when he and his crew had been caught into a sudden fight of life or death or when it was nothing but Markus or Becky and him against some indulged Corruped soul.

While this instance and his early career experiences were for entirely different reasons, at the end of the day, even as Adrian joined the unconscious, he knew exactly what that felt like. His soul may not desire violence and bloodshed like Sara might in a frenzy against her chimeric instincts or Dani might in blind hatred or Adrian might caving to his anger, but he knew how intense his own emotions could be if he didn't reel himself in, like he had been taught for his own good.

So it was with mixed feelings that he buried the still lingering feelings of disgust and the newfound wariness he felt towards his friend.

He had to remember, he reminded himself, some of those feelings weren't even truly his. Maybe the disgust was and the wariness certainly so, but this wouldn't change how he felt about Adrian anymore than he would seek a relationship with Raph.

He wasn't going to let someone else change his perceptions that easily.

Out of all the things he had thought he might see on this trip though, this was a side he probably would have come to see one day out on the field, not on a vacay. It was probably better here than out there he supposed. DWMA couldn't fault all of them for drunken tomfoolery if there was clear foul play, and it preserved the status of FATE once word got out. The victory here was elsewhere.

If this did anything, Zosar analyzed, it would likely be to target team dynamics and relationships, and if that was the goal- he looked out on the array of unconscious, they succeeded.

Everyone would remember this for sure.

"Hey!" His eyes turned and he watched as Gav grunted and hoisted Adrian up over his shoulder. "Quit standing there and start helping out! Start with blueberry over there, she won't stop moaning about how everything hurts."

Following that instruction as he paused to give Ark a hand, Zosar moved to check on Aki while Ark brushed himself off, wincing as he rose and twisting his body in a stretch to feel it anything had been broken when Nadia tackled him then later kicked him after Noah had zapped him and he had already cut off the magic to the pit.

Honestly, had no idea what the kick had been aiming to do. He could let it slide for frustration but she seriously could have done some damage there. Luckily he wasn't feeling any pain, what he did feel was guilt.

Nadia was right he had played on the Chinese duo's state and made things worse. The fact he remembered it clearly instead of in broken pieces like a drunkard would, didn't help anything. It just made him feel worse.

With Nadia off to help Dani, and the mage himself feeling interaction with her at the moment wasn't right, he turned to Noah and reached out to him on the shoulder. "Thanks." Was the single worded thing he said. And then following Zosar, went to go help Feng as he swapped from Feng to Aki and gave the downed Weapon a more careful yet serious sweep over as he moved in to help her.

Offering an apology to Aki, and then frowning at Feng's current state, the mage's chest heaved with sadness. With some help from Zosar, Ark piggyback lifted Feng from the ground, and then took off to the meeting spot without more words shared.

Turning his attention to the groaning weapon, Zosar prompted her with a simple question, at the same time motioning someone he recognized from yesterday to come over and offer her a hand in return without much of a word of explanation. "What hurts specifically?" He asked her as he took a knee beside her, and though he wanted to, he didn't reach out to grab her hand, the one he had motioned over, Deborah did instead for him. Helping her at Zosar's instruction into getting Aki in a sitting position first, while the female Weapon checked if Aki could even stand or if any way she moved her was discomforting. Once Aki gave them the clear, Deborah, about a little bit taller than Aki herself, hoisted her fellow Demon Weapon to her feet while Zosar stood nearby but at a somewhat reasonable distance.

They moved together, Deborah supporting Aki while Zosar watched them go, reassuring he would be behind them shortly as he went to go get the downed Raph.

Mentions: n/a

Interaction: EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Nadia Semyonov - Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii - Lūʻau Grounds
​

Just as quickly as it all had begun, it was over, she didn't even get to land a punch. "Tch." She honestly was disappointed, and she doubted that Gauss wouldn't have fought her. It was what it was, as her steely blue gaze swept over the region, the distant firing of a rifle was likely at work here, as she balled a fist, unclenching it as the collars went into effect as soon as the first body dropped. Checking her own collar, she pondered if she was marked as an ally by the observers, or if it simply was not needed as Dani was no longer in action. By her own hand at that. She wasn't sure how to feel about that.

Was anything Harmful in what she did? Snorting at the very notion all would have been fine without her acting, she dismissed it out of hand. Dani, Feng and Aki were about to have a standoff, Ark ordered the confrontation that happened, taking advantage of the latter two, Raph stabbed someone, crazy bastard that he was, Gauss and Wes sent someone or more than one airborne, and judging by the wider commotion, far more was happening. It was good that she did not have to solve this all herself. Looking back at Elly, the girl had proven cooperative, even if it led nowhere.

"So, we both can use it. Though, maybe one day we can meet under more pleasant circumstances. You strike me as someone that would appreciate the fine arts, like Maria over here. Still, this is for the best, I'm sure we'll have cause to talk sooner or later." With that Nadia left all of this to those around her as she went back and scooped Dani, at first she thought of just carrying the weapon across her shoulders like a bag of feed, but Dani deserved better than that. In fact it would have been best if Adrian carried her, but he was out from the collar activation. Which honestly was for the best as she seen it. All of this was far too strange, as she opted to carry Dani in a princess carry, maybe she would wake up eventually... Well shortly and realize what she almost did. The Ice Queen would treat her out to eat or something to make up for knocking her out, if she was too sore about that as they made their way back to the hotel. She had no reason nor cause to give any of them more of her time and words... Still the fact a sniper was so far away, watching them, it spoke of the "trust", the DWMA had for them all.


Interactions: EmperorsChosen (Dani, Elly) (Maria)

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii - Lūʻau Grounds -​

Unlike Nadia, Maria took the lack of a battle as a good happening, and unlike Nadia, Maria would stay to help the rest. While Nadia was seemingly done with everything, it made Maria feel bad to do the same, considering why she was sent here, well, came here in the first place. While she was hot, miserable, and didn't much care for this party or the chaos after, she would at least help Elly.

"Don't take Nadia's leaving too poorly, she likely went for her partner... I'll stay and help, though I might should investigate the magic that was used here. I guess I can do that as we help, all I need is the wine and some samples of what else we.... Oh..." She says with a pause as if struck by something amiss. "I left my bag with all the things... But I guess that is true for half the people here. Let's start with Gauss, Sara and, well I don't know him. Though maybe he'll get up on his own? He had just rejection after all. Or are there some others you would like to help? There is no shortage..." Maria offered towards the redhead, as she searched about for the wine, grabbing a bottle.

"I think I'll hold on to this to see if we have any great Magus among us. I can tell there is magic at work, but it is very vague, akin to a fog, I'll also test the meat... Don't worry I'm not so foolish as to try either item. We have Alchemy after all."

With all of this said, Maria seemingly made up her mind to help out the knocked-out werewolf, she was curious if her animal features stayed or went away when she was in this state.. Sara was just a couple hairs smaller and lighter than Maria, and without a wavelength to call upon, the doll maker had to fireman carry the other as she made her way through the sand, suddenly regretting not running off like Nadia. "I wish I had brought Alicia...this would be so much simpler. Though maybe we are doing this wrong?"

Interactions: EmperorsChosen (Elly) Merciless Medic (Sara) (Indirect at Gauss, Wes)

 

[Merciless Medic]

Sara Middleton​

Date: September 10, 2067
Location: OUTRIGGER, Kāʻanapali Beach Resort, Hawaii
Interactions: Maria, Zosar
Mentions: Arkayis, Noah
RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper

Sara’s mind was a mess. She didn’t know what she was doing, all she knew was that she needed to get to that gunner and incapacitate them, maybe kill them if they continue to pose a problem. She thought her knife flew further, but she didn’t realize the magnetic field was still active. She walked, thinking she was running ahead, but she didn’t move out of the magnetic field. Not until she found herself suddenly on the floor from tripping when the pull stopped, then the collar activated. It made her mind woozy, and she clutched her ears in a subconscious bid to save her earrings - a memento for Allie - as her ears and tail disappeared.

In a death grip, she held the earrings, and as the figure of Maria came into her view, she thought she saw red hair and green eyes instead.

“Allie…?”

She fell asleep soon after, completely knocked out for Maria to take her back to the cafeteria.

---

Body sore, Sara’s eyes finally opened just a crack. There was a roof above them, but the atmosphere was similar to that during the April Fools’ Fest. Groaning, she turned her head, her neck still mighty sore from the injection. The world was hazy and blurry, but finally the events came back to her.

What have I done…?

The memories came back… Did she just throw a knife at Feng? Her mind barely registered her as Feng, but she couldn’t mistake her now for anyone else. She was unharmed though, for the most part. Her ears were also quite sore, and she had to pull a pillow over her ears to soften the sounds. Soon though, she lifted herself up, sitting up and hugging the cushion against her stomach, her tail coming up between her legs so she can also hold it for comfort.

Looking around, she realized - to a deeper degree - what had happened.

Someone got a hold of their emotions, and used magic to cause a strange desire for someone. Someone else that wasn’t what they wanted…

Zosar…

She had to apologize to both him and Arkayis, but she was too sore to move. She whined and stuffed her face in her pillow and softly sobbed, regretting coming here, regretting not taking greater precaution. She wanted to help people, and she nearly injured one and was predatory to another, especially that being Noah’s partner.

The horrible feelings coalesced as she remembered she just… left Zosar. Just like that after telling him the details about their possible future arrangement, if he ever felt inclined to do anything with her.

This event pretty much ruined it, didn’t it?

Quickly finding her phone within her top, she texted Zosar amidst tears, sobbing quietly until she sent it, and hugged the pillow even tighter.

“I’m so so sorry about what happened. I don’t know what happened, but I’ve never had my emotions toyed like that before. Please forgive me and for whatever I’ve done, I don’t know how that happened, probably some magic, I should’ve been more careful, please don’t be mad at me ”

She hoped he didn’t hate her, it would be the end of her.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Noah Wiley​

Date: September 10, 2067
Location: OUTRIGGER, Kāʻanapali Beach Resort, Hawaii
Interactions: Nadia, Ark, Gav
Mentions: Gauss, Wes, Sara, Adrian, Feng
RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper

Noah had listened to Nadia’s orders and nodded at Ark’s thanks, but felt so wrong. He went about to do as he was told, not dissimilar to how he felt earlier - like he was watching his body move despite him not doing anything to make it move. There was something very, very wrong about what happened and it was taking a while for his mind to wrap around it.

But then shots rang and collars activated, bringing him back to the world around him.

Gauss fell, so did Wes, then Sara, Adrian, and Feng.

He was just a boy who came from Portland, and he was supposed to witness and allow his meister do equally fucked up things to their enemies…

Yet, he felt himself back home, back in that cell, having watched everyone try and take out his father, affected by Madness.

Was everyone mad?

Were they all affected by something magical? Him included?

Noah tried to hold strong like he did in the April Fool’s Fest, going around and helping people up, using his healing wavelength to calm them before getting them to the cafeteria, at least that’s where everyone went. He even carried Gauss and Wes back, though it took a trip each.

But then he had to stop early. There was something his mind was specifically ignoring, but it came back. The memory of what he just did to Gav…

Sniffling, he took somebody else to the cafeteria and didn’t go back out there to continue helping. He felt his fingers go numb, then his face was tingling with that same numbing feeling. How could he just do that to him…?

Was Gav going to abandon him for it? What about Gauss and Arkayis? He didn’t go to their aid when they needed him…

Sniffling became sobbing. It was so rare to see him break down that wasn’t from anger, tears rarely left his eyes since that nightmare with his parents. But now, it felt like an old scar was cut open once again.

How would Dani or Adrian respond to what he did? Did Raphael mean what he meant?

He had attachment issues, both finding it difficult to feel comfortable enough to consider them friends while also finding it difficult to not let any loss affect him to a great regard once he found a friend.

He had to apologize to Gav.

Noah looked around, unable to find Gav, nor was he willing to leave his spot. His spot was probably the most secluded, he found. Which was good, he didn’t want everyone else to see him cry like a bitch, but he couldn’t help these damned tears from falling. Taking his phone, he texted Gav, body shivering from a sob threatening to break him down further until he was just a pitiful puddle.

“Fuck, Gav, I need you, once you’re done. Please come and find me. I need to apologize for what I’ve done.”

Of course, if Gav did show up, he’d have a pretty near inconsolable Noah clinging onto him, refusing to let go and babbling his apology and hoping he wouldn’t leave him for some magic fuckery he had no control over.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Raphael Valerias​

Date: September 10, 2067
Location: OUTRIGGER, Kāʻanapali Beach Resort, Hawaii
Interactions: N/A
Mentions: Zosar, Allura, Noah

Raphael groaned, his entire body was on fire. It left an agonizing ache that left him not wanting to move a muscle.

Then it all came crashing back and he wished he had a hangover over this. Oh, right, he also had a hangover, his mind pounding behind his skull. Hissing in pain, he curled over and pushed his hands against his head, the scene playing before his eyes.

He lost his fixation on Ark and fixated upon someone else instead - this Zosar Sara had been talking about.

It was strange. This obsession he had with the other sorcerer had disappeared. Unlike the others, who were wallowing in regret, shame, or sorrow, Raphael felt freed. Freed from this obsession he didn’t think he could ever get over, but now he had this lingering attraction towards Zosar.

After doing what he did, hurting Allura and hurting Noah as badly as he did, he didn’t think Zosar would be interested in him. He was still volatile and getting into a relationship with him would be a bad idea.

Raphael saw himself first hand, watching himself as if he were having an out-of-body experience. He saw just how horribly he treated the both of them, despite his attempts at trying to make it worth their while…

Honestly, how could anyone like him for doing that?

But this new perspective not only freed him of Ark and realized that other people could possibly be attracted to him as he could find attraction in others - even if fabricated, but he also realized his behavior wasn’t okay. But that, in and of itself, was freeing. He had hit a snag with his therapist, and chose to ignore his behavior, but now that he saw how damaging transactional relationships were, as well as how quickly he could devolve into something so savage and emotionally abusive…

She was right…

And Raphael held this perspective like an epiphany. He should probably apologize to everyone, specifically Zosar, Noah, and Allura. For hurting them the way he did, and for doggedly pursuing them. This was the work of magic, and he wasn’t sure if this attraction for Zosar was something from the magic or something else.

He’ll have to talk to him later.

Raphael, against his body’s screaming to stay still, sat up with a groan to look around. He didn’t know who carried him here, but he honestly should thank them. Groaning, he held his head as the hangover proceeded to bash what he thought was left of his brain to bits, his expression a lot more subdued.

 

[The Regal Rper]

Zosar | Outrigger Resort, Hawaii

Picking up the unconscious reminded him of a time where he had done the same for his own injured comrades, or in the rare case, fallen.

The only real difference was, he didn't know half of these people and the only thing that linked them outside of this program, was tonight's surprising experience. The chances of frankly seeing any of them again wasn't likely, but that didn't change the burning sense of anger and frustration he shared with them about all of this as instructions were followed.

After ensuring Aki was in good hands, Deborah ensuring she would keep an eye on her fellow Weapon ally, the meister moved on to depart Raph within the custody of Maria. The blonde mage he had seen earlier, associating with the one-eyed mage. Especially since Maria had brought someone he didn't immediately recognize in return, only to realize on closer inspection the one she was bringing in, was Sara, in her human form.

Tonight truly was full of all kinds of surprises. With both more or less in the same vicinity, Zosar merely spent some time checking on Sara's condition since he already knew Raph's state of being. And once he found out it was the collar that took her out and not the same sort of treatment Gauss and Wes had gotten, he relaxed only slightly, and then decided to move on. He passed over Adrian, who at the time still was knocked out, did a scan for Nadia but in the moment did not sense or see her or Dani, then circled back to inform Aki and Ark he would be heading back out.

And out he was, helping the others.

Sometimes he wouldn't take just one, he'd assist in two. Helping where he could, bringing in those that had gotten into a fight while under the effects of the Wine or had been pushed into one, or were unconscious by proxy of security measure. In each trip, he made small talk. Got a name for a new face he hadn't personally interacted with but had seen around.

From experience dealing with victims of traumatic events or disturbing ones, small talk helped to get the mind off things. It aided in providing a distraction, at least to give the person time to process. It was on one of those trips Zosar noticed, Raph was stirring, and having already thought of what he wanted to say to him in particular, Zosar turned his attention to Clyde, a Meister he had met during the volleyball game and been on the same team with Ark. Together, they exited the cafeteria to return supporting others, and together the two Meisters returned with new individuals in need of attention or rest at the very least.

Passing a note to Clyde as they deposited their latest charges, in short words, Zosar nodded to where Raph stirred, pointing him out, and with simple instructions, asked Clyde to deliver the note he had written down to Raph when he was lucid and looked less bleary-eyed than he had recalled him looking even in that pseudo infatuated enhanced state.

While Clyde agreed and elected to stay since his own Weapon partners had been carried in ahead of them, he assured Zosar he would deliver the note, leaving the meister to go back out and continue with any help that was needed.

At last all was done, and by the time he entered the cafeteria, more emotionally drained than he was physically, he felt his cell vibrate in the back of his shorts. Whipped it out, more curious to see who on earth would be texting him or could be at this time with all that had happened, and seeing it was Sara, paused.

He clicked the message, read it immediately...and felt nothing but pity.

Looking at all those coming out of their daze or those who had not been stunned, or were caught in some sort of heated exchange, he felt nothing but pity. This, as expected had ruined what should have been a good time.

And he felt not just disappointment but anger for it all.

Clyde made a move in this moment as Zosar stewed, appearance obscured by the activity to both Raph and Sara's eyes. And as Clyde got Raph's attention delivering the note, Zosar considered what to do about Sara.

For Raph the note was simple.

'I don't blame you for what happened. There's a chance I may be gone by the time you read this or I may be hiding in the backdrop. It's nothing personal. I'm just processing everything differently. Need some solitude. Give me some time, and we can talk later about this. You'll understand if I refuse any favors though. Sorry also, for however rude this may seem.​

And in the same instance the note made it to Raph from Clyde's hand, Zosar sent a text to Sara that read: I'm sorry too. Sorry that any of this happened and ruined our conversation. As far as I'm concerned, none of us are really at fault for what happened, and I'm not mad at you. I just need some time to process all of this. Was hit with it too. Had some thoughts run through my head that were influenced by the magic, but those thoughts are dead now. Don't worry, we're still fine.

He sent it, hoping that at least would reassure her that he held no grudges.

Mentions: n/a

Interactions: EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun Merciless Medic

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Daniella Ethalyn - Hawaii Beach Resort Lu'au > Cafeteria
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Dani didn't recall what happened at first. There was anger, jealousy, frustration... Ark, the chinese girls, Noah, Nadia... Adrian, then nothing. There was darkness for what seemed like a few minutes before her consciousness started to return. Her feet weren't on the ground anymore. It felt as if she was slung somewhere, or carried?

As Dani's eyes squinted open, she felt a throbbing pain in her head as every minor light just served to irk her more, as well as a dull pain in the back of her neck. She also felt rather cool, which she learned was from Nadia.

"...Fuck... what..." She murmured, a hand reaching up to cover her eyes and rub her forehead. It was hard to think, nonetheless she forced herself to and the evening's events started to flood back to her.

Dani froze as she felt her heart sink, a nauseaus feeling welling inside her that wasn't from the alcohol. Why the hell did she act like that? They said something before about the wine, some magic. Was it a prank or an attack.

Suddenly, her feelings of trepidation were replaced by seething rage that Nadia could probably feel. If she couldn't, it wouldn't require someone to see she was displeased by what happened next.

"What... the  FUCK-" Dani shouted furiously, the fiery scorpion tail she had learned to manifest doing so automatically from the base of her spine. However, just as quickly as the rage had come, so did a look of horror on her face as the tail dissipated. "No... no... Adrian-FUCK!"

She looked around, seeing they were inside the cafeteria now. Dani presumed this was where everyone was organizing from the aftermath and hopped out of Nadia's arms. "I-I’m sorry... and thank you-I have to find Adrian." She was scatterbrained and anxious, but evidently remembered what Nadia did to stop her and wanted to thank her before she ran off.

Thereafter, Dani rushingly stumbled through the others packed in the cafeteria until she did finally find an unconscious Adrian on a makeshift bed, presumably knocked out by someone or the collar. She let out a long sigh as she sat down next to him, resting her forehead in her hands as she nervously tapped her foot next to him.

RedArmyShogun Sir Les Paul

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Adrian Hackney​

"The Maiden"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank Fate Agent

Location OUTRIGGER Resort, Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii
Mission A Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride
Status Groggy, pissed off

​

Tags: EmperorsChosen

Adrian returned to the world of the living in one of the makeshift beds provided by the resort. He couldn't quite recall everything that was going on, but the familiar pain in his neck and grogginess was something he had experience with.

Those fuckers got him with the collar again.

Even without being entirely with it due to the injection, his mind was already piecing together what was going on. Someone, somewhere, probably decided to pull the plug on the whole luau thing. Whatever, he wasn't pissed about that. But, why the fuck get him? Adrian was helping. He was following instructions. Sure, there was that brief moment with Raph... and whoever the fuck the witch was. But, he was outwardly trying to help after that.

His mind was yet again tugged back and forth. He was sure there was some rational, cautious answer here, but he chose to be pissed at the moment. Primarily because... those fucking collars sucked. It took days for the effect to completely get out the system, the needle mark was a bitch. Last time his nearly got infected because of the sweat from jogging getting around it. Fuckers can think of every drug in the world to throw in their knock-out cocktail, but can't put some antibiotics on the loaded needle. Mostly, though, it was how it fucked with his head. Maybe he was just an absolute lightweight when it came to drugs of any kind, but whatever they loaded him up with made him feel ungodly loopy.

He didn't even recognize that Dani was present when he first woke up.

The world was still a haze and his eyelids were heavy. The world did not come to his eyes like a light switch being flipped on, but gradually in a blurred and distorted field of nauseating swirls.

"Death-Damnit all..." he murmured once he gained some semblance of control over his motor skills.

"Fuck-fuck-fuckity fuck fuck... I hate these fucking collars, I fucking hate wine, I hate whoever the fuck decided to activate mine," he rambled on, mostly just cursing the world.

God damn that injection site stung.

But, the world came to, and he did ultimately notice who was beside him. Dani. His brain was frozen for a moment. He was full of anger and rage, but looking at her, that became his second priority. Adrian was not so with it that he could piece together how it might have been for Dani. He was in no state of mind to put himself in her shoes. To wonder if she felt embarrassed, guilty, or ashamed. His thoughts were much more superficial. Whatever she did, whatever she felt, he was aware it wasn't her fault. And, given how she was right beside him when no one else was, he assumed she was there of her own volition and affection.

He inhaled deeply before locking eyes with Dani. His eyes were dilated, but not for the reason everyone else's had been. No, those eyes were the result of real drugs.

He exhaled smoothly, trying to attune himself to the situation and repress his anger.

"But... I don't hate you," he told her, offering her a half-smile from the situation.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley, Arkayis Misonuka
Rank Fate Agent

Location OUTRIGGER Resort, Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii
Mission A Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride
Status Meh

​

Tags: Merciless Medic Peckinou

Gauss was, in the simplest phrase, laid out. He wasn't unconscious, but he wasn't fully conscious, either. He was sore, battered, and had his wavelength disrupted severely. The best he could do to move was to wiggle back and forth on the ground; the impact of those projectiles caused what felt like a jolt of electricity to rewire his body. Nothing was immediately responding yet.

Before Noah was allowed to move him, Rudeus and Noelle were brought over to vacuum up and lingering magical effects. With that, his fixation was eliminated as well. Same for Wes and all the sick fucks after Sara that were in the area. In fact, same for Sara.

Gauss could hardly keep it together once Noah was carrying him. He appreciated it, but his entire body refused to listen to him. There were plenty of things he wanted to say and Noah was obviously upset, too. For the life of him, Gauss didn't know why, but given the chaos, it would have taken a feat of near omniscience to know the inner workings of every single agent there.

Gauss, propped up by his weapon, could only really manage to mutter a few words to him before he was dropped off at the impromptu infirmary. At this point, speaking via their telepathy wasn't an option with how tore up his soul was.

"I was..." he said, panting, doing his best to force out words, "a monster."

This was what was going through his head. He recalled most what he did to Sara. What he said. How he acted. How far he went. It brought out the worst of him. That unhealthy part he fought so hard to fix in therapy. Under the effects of this spell, he saw a side of him even he feared. He had never been that bad in his entire life, but then...

...he probably had never really been in love in his entire life. As sad as a realization as that was, what it meant to him was that at his most logical extreme, he was a tyrant. A cruel man that demanded attention, gratitude, and affection for anything he did. And, would even justify terrible things. He knew with his head clear now that what he told Sara was out of line, toxic beyond belief, and there truly was no justification for it. He wasn't sure if that was an effect of the spell or just an inherent part of the spell.

And, that terrified him.

"N-Noah... please.." Gauss continued, just trying to singularly focus on this one thing he had set out as important.

"Please... tell Sara.. I'm sorry.." he finished. Speaking drained him enough. Whatever hit him was no joke.

He had no idea or way of knowing it was Ace. If he did, it would have only put into perspective the massive difference that still existed between himself and Three-Stars.

. . .​

As time went on in the infirmary area, the immediate effects of those shots diminished. Gauss was hardly left in an invalid state, though this was only a step above how it felt when he and Noah went through failed Resonance. He had time to think. There were plenty of people to apologize to. Plenty of things he did wrong. That's where Gauss always seemed to go when something like this happened. What did he do wrong? What mistakes were his? Were they his alone, mostly his, shared? Sometimes it didn't matter. Sometimes it did.

But, this time, having seen that downright evil side of himself that came out when he was fixated on Sara, he was consumed by an overwhelming amount of guilt. It felt like a dump truck on his chest. It shattered his ego. It was all-consuming. He saw himself there at his worst, and what he saw, he hated. Inside him was a pack of wolves swirling, ready to gnaw at him. Wolves named guilt, shame, self-hate, disgust. The very things that Thea had called him time and time again.

Except this time, it wasn't her voice echoing inside of his head. It wasn't memories of her berating him. It was his own voice, and this was an active, ongoing process.

He wanted to do something. Anything to start making amends. That was all he knew to do at the moment. It was the only coping mechanism he was ever taught that had some modicum of success. In this moment, there was only one thing he could think to do.

He sent a text.

09/11/67 2041
To Arkayis
Gauss: Im sorry. You didnt deserve what i said. Ive heard it was all some spell and rumors but im still sorry. I kinda hate ymself for what i did there and i dont want to be that person

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Daniella Ethalyn - Hawaii Beach Resort Lu'au > Cafeteria
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Because of her nerves, it felt like an eternity waking for Adrian to wait, though it didn't actually take all that long. She heard him stir and start cursing everything, which honestly scared her as he trailed on, worried that he'd eventually list her name. Even if he never cursed her, she would. Dani's head lifted up to look at him. She wanted to blabber out apologies and tell him how sorry she was, but now that he was awake and looking at her, she couldn't speak, as if waiting to see if he would even tolerate her presence.

Her hands clenched together in her lap as her lips pursed together, waiting as he stared at her. Though, as he spoke, Dani felt one weight lift off her shoulders, though the guilt and overall anger was still there.

Suddenly, the Demon Sword leaned forward and wrapped her arms tightly around Adrian's neck to pull him into a hug. "I'm so fucking sorry. That wasn't me-I don't feel that way! I love you for fuck's sake... I don't even know how..." She began rambling off all her feelings at once, composing herself with a sigh. "I'm sorry... You should fucking hate me."

Whether she was under some spell or not was beside the point for Dani. It felt like a cop-out. The fact she said those things, dismissed Adrian, Noah, and Nadia, was about to kill those other two girls. She so easily went back to her old self just because of some shitty magic wine? That was less her and more the other her, the one she promised she would never be. Yet, here she was.

Dani would beat herself up over this, regardless of if Adrian forgave her or not. However, she would beat whoever was responsible significantly more.

Sir Les Paul

 

[Merciless Medic]

Sara Middleton​

Date: September 10, 2067
Location: OUTRIGGER, Kāʻanapali Beach Resort, Hawaii
Interactions: Zosar, Gauss
Mentions: N/A
The Regal Rper Sir Les Paul

Zosar sent his correspondences and they were both received. For Raph it was with some confusion but understanding. If that was the case, he went to lay back down and took this moment to get over his hangover, wishing he had more of that hookah right about now.

Sara, on the other hand, got her text message after putting the earring thing back on her ear and was overly delighted. She felt all the weight that was on her was gone when she read it. Whirling around, she finally spotted Zosar, trying to leave the scene and blend in. Well, with the way he looked (and smelled), that was impossible, at least for her.

She got up and found him, smiling with teary eyes before attempting a hug, then pulling away to regather her bearings. “I wanted to say this to you in person. I don’t hate you either, and I’m more concerned about what you’re going through right now. I will still come by your place and drop off food and maybe some care packages. Everything’s still on the table on my end, too. This experience we just had won’t sour any of what I said before all the shit went down.”

With that, she gave him a wink before leaving him with barely any time to respond, finding solace in getting that off her chest. But now, someone else needed her attention.

Gauss.

Now, her and Gauss weren’t relatively close, just that they both liked to tease Noah about his infatuation with wolves, specifically her. But she wanted to make sure he knew there was no bad blood between either of them.

Everyone was going to need reassurances at least.

Gauss looked to have woken up and looked like absolute shit. Noah had texted Sara his apology, but Sara wanted to talk to him in person.

“Gauss?” She called for him in a soothing tone. “I came over to tell you that I don’t hate you and that I accept your apology. You weren’t yourself and you likely wouldn’t have done that. Whatever happened brought out the absolute worst in all of us, so I won’t fault you for it, even if you think I should. Here.” She held out her arms, giving him a warm, happy smile. “I can give you a hug. Looks like you need it. I’ll need one too, as extra reassurance that you don’t hate me either for what I said back there.” She chuckled briefly, having bounced back relatively quickly (but still felt guilty) about what had happened but ultimately knew it wasn’t her fault to begin with and she didn’t like lingering on stuff like this for too long.

 

[The Regal Rper]

Zosar | Outrigger Resort, Hawaii

He could understand why Empaths like Raven Roth didn’t enjoy being in crowds.There was always so much to take in.

It was plain to see that everyone, in some way, had been left disturbed by all that had happened. Even Aki, who was hurting from the Rejection, felt the sting of tonight.

Adrian and Dani were patching things up but there was that anger, shared but there. Strong and ever present but for the moment not as intense as it had been before. And for that, he was grateful as he shifted his attention away and observed other interactions.

There was a lot of anger, the vibrating sensation of fury potent like perfume in the air, and he sensed it clearly without even having his Perception focused on the bird eye view.

Anger however wasn’t the only thing. Nadia had disappointment, he could see it like fireworks when she looked at one of their group members. Detecting it rise even as she kept her expressions cool and at ease. Feng with a mixture of anger, shame and confusion as she either came too and noticed Ark not far away or there were those like Raph with some form of exhaustion, or like Noah with sadness, guilt and shame, or like Gav with a strong sense of bubbling fury kept in check by the desire to focus on something else.


There was a lot of raw emotion in the air, and while he was no SSP, he felt it like currents in the wind or waves of the sea.

All it did was just make him angrier, but even more than that, it made him desire to want to know why.

So much ruined in the span of not even an hour, for what? As he lingered in the backdrop he talked to one person, one of the others who had not taken part of the wine, a brunette with gold eyes and freckles, a gap in her charming smile.

Seren had been the one to tell him that it had all been about twenty or so minutes, basically near half an hour where everything had fallen to hell. She had only known because of her watch, and had only kept track of it because like Maria, one of her group members, a Sorcerer, had sensed magic about ten or so minutes after members in her group started acting, as Nadia and those with sense would put it, bizarre.

All this really did was remind Zosar of what Jose had said.

How the Enlighteners had essentially had to deal with intruders in their own ranks. Something, he wasn’t unfamiliar with, it wasn’t like it hadn’t happened before when he was there. And just like those times, they had rooted out the problems and removed them all thoroughly. It’s just, he was reminded of how Jose had said it.

People wielding Madness like weapons; Things going haywire in Death City; Ark’s tale about the unique spiders on Dall Island, despite also knowing he had been keeping some details out also, and now this.

DWMA had always had a lot of enemies, but all of this seemed too well timed, too well placed to be just some simple prank. There was something more to all of this here, and it was infuriating to not have any leads, clues or inklings as to what the actual goal was.

His only hypothesis had already been proven a bit more of a theory from what he could see from all around the room.

Not everything was as smooth as it was with Adrian and Dani. There were some in other groups, unsure of their own statuses but from what his eyes could clearly see of the emotions, very sure that there was now a divide. Not some massive chasm, but a tear in what had been stable.

And for the second time, he couldn’t help but feel that had been the goal here. To create tears in these fragile bonds built over six months. Six months was enough time to form tight connections but it also wasn’t long enough to make it impossible to throw breaks in those links. Cause friction in those bonds. Whoever had done this, they had done well. It was morbid to have such a thought, but you didn’t become good at hunting the filth that paraded the world by not acknowledging their capability.

The execution had been good, any better and a lot of relationships here would have gone up in flames. Adrian and Dani or even Sara and he, were able to look past this but from what he saw of other cliques, this situation was not, in the least bit done being settled. Not with the investigation that would follow, nor would it be done with them as a collective whole. He could see it in the strained awkwardness and sorrow some felt, the fuming fury that others stamped down as they avoided looking at one person he could sense, still held lingering feelings for, or could detect the cocktail of anxiety with the mixed feelings that the Wine had created and caused.

So focused was he in analyzing all of this, that Zosar didn’t even notice his extra visitor immediately- not till her hand touched his arm and out of instinct, his focused, distant gaze changed with the drop of his brows and the hardening of his eyes as he looked down and--

His eyes moved to where he recalled Sara had been and found that spot empty just to go back to her immediately where she stood in front of him, a sympathetic smile offered his way.

The hard, cold almost detached look in his eyes vanished after only a second of staring down at her as the tension in every muscle eased, and his body relaxed.

“Sorry, guess I was lost in thought.” He apologized and with the blink, the coldness in his gaze traded for exhaustion and friendly warmth.

Seeing her gesture for a hug, he didn’t move forward, making it seem like hesitation when in reality he didn’t think more physical contact was something he needed, and that was all she needed to retreat into herself.

A missed opportunity, but for the best. If he had been ready to punch someone for touching him while he had been distracted, then being hugged would only leave his muscles more tense and leave him once again, itching to hit something once more. A feeling he still felt with all the repressed anger he was feeling with everything in the air right now.

Not interested in ignoring her however, the meister gave his werewolf companion the attention she sought.

He listened, but before he could get the word in, she was already moving on- there was a piece of him that didn’t like that. The fact she just bounced off to the next person without giving him a moment. Where she had spoken her piece before he could fully digest it and then say something in return but he stamped that feeling down, knowing that was something he had also felt when she had initially split off when the Wine took effect and when he himself, had also been fearing something wasn’t right.

It was smart though, leaving an opening for herself to come visit him, even if it was in her nature to do that sort of thing.

He didn’t know what to make of that last part though. The fact she still wanted something after all this.

There was a degree of respect he felt for her, leaving things open like that. Making sure she made the interests she wanted known.

At the same time, he wasn’t sure what to feel. There was too much he felt already and most of all, all he felt was a mixture of exhaustion, anger, and frustration.

Did he want to continue with her after this?

He found that, yes, he did.

At the same time however, he wasn’t sure if doing that now was a good idea. The Wine had revealed the worst sides of them all, sides of themselves they hadn’t known or had, and for him, he had seen a piece of envy, an aspect of greed that sparked with Raph’s focus and interest in Noah when he had wanted it, for the moment, to be on him- the sting of frustration he had felt for Sara before going off to invest in Raph when she had walked away as the spell took effect and kicked in, and the burning envy he had felt towards Ark when Dani, Aki and Feng had all been vying for his attention.


He had been at ease with Dani and Adrian’s relationship, but he had also known disappointment hearing of it. Happy for them, yes, a pang of disappointment had been there too, small, barely perceptible when Nadia had told him but now, he saw it clearly when he had felt that envious irritation towards Ark.

Despite that envy he had felt though, there was one thing Zosar knew for sure.

It was good the Wine hadn’t made Sara the one he had been after or vice versa where he might have been lucid.Had it been the Wine that tacked her onto him, it might have severely ruined their chances, taken time to repair that kind of damage for all the doubts it would put into his head about the attraction she felt towards him.

Scratching the back of his head, he sighed.

Whatever. This would take time to sort out. There was no point stressing himself out on the implications. Her interest had been plain from the start- just not as intense. Now that he knew she was an option, and even more, she wouldn’t mind his poly nature as much as he would hers, he would keep her offer in mind for the future.

For now, he looked at all going on, he needed to go out for a walk.

Mentions: EmperorsChosen Sir Les Paul Shotgunpenguin Peckinou Mook-LandStrider

Interactions: RedArmyShogun Merciless Medic

 

[Shotgunpenguin]

Wes Kraven
Outrigger Resort, Cafateria

Mentions: Sir Les Paul (Gauss), Merciless Medic (Sara)
​

It was his hearing that was the first thing to return to Wes, slow and muffled at first, but slowly becoming clearer and clearer as his mind slowly woke up. It had always been like that, ever since he was a kid. No matter how deep of a sleep he was in, or how much he tried to dampen it, it was always his hearing that woke him up. He was used to it at this point, waking up to an almost deafening barrage of souls from all around him. Fortunately, he had just the tool to help block them out.

Groaning, his hands came up to his neck to pull on his noise-cancelling headphones, only to touch bare flesh instead. Confusion seeped in as he felt around his neck, as if they would suddenly appear somewhere on him.

He slowly opened his eyes, only to clench them back shut as the bright ceiling lights blinded him for a second. Clenching his eyes shut until the spots went away, he turned his head to the side and once again opened his eyes.

He wasn’t in his bed, that fact was abundantly clear the second he opened his eyes. He was laid on a simple sheet on the floor, a pillow propped underneath his head. Some of the others were laid on quickly erected cots, although most were in a similar state as he was.

Letting out another groan, Wes’s slowly sat up from the floor, one hand moving behind him to grab onto the pillow and bring it up over his ears to try and drown out some of the noise. His entire body felt sore and numb, and there was a pounding in his head that brought in a wave of nausea that he tried to bite down on.

His mind was still in a haze, bits and pieces of the party slowly coming back to him as he clenched the pillow as hard as he could around his ears. He remembered showing up to the party and walking around, Gauss in a grass skirt, his horrible attempts at hitting a target with a knife, and then digging into the pork with a good helping of that sweet wine.

Things began to get hazy after that, the specifics were lost on him but he remembered the general gist of what happened. He had tried to flirt with that wolf-girl, Sara he vaguely recalled, and then he and Gauss attacked a trio before someone else had attacked them. The last thing he remembered before passing out was that soul shattering pain that pierced through the haze. He remembered feeling like every single nerve in his body was getting fried, and the pain was enough to knock him right out of his weapon form.

It was a horrible pain, but beyond that it was a pain that he had experienced a few years before. Rejection, the state where two souls were in such disharmony that it made pairing impossible. The fact dredged up shitty memories in his head, memories of his first partner Rebecca, and the utter look of betrayal on her face.

“...Fuck.”

Wes let his head fall back to the floor, the pillow still cradled tightly against his ears as he tried to dispel those memories. He messed things up back then, messed them up good, and he would probably keep messing them up. All of that was in the past however, and as painful as it might have been, it still wouldn’t affect anything that was going on now. For now, he had to try and focus on his brand new fuck up.

He heard that alcohol could turn you into another person, but how he acted was a far cry from anything he’d ever done before. Trying to cozy up to a girl that he barely knew, getting angry at someone just because they were getting attention that he wanted, and even getting violent when there was no reason to be. Not only that, but getting so worked up that he had pushed Gauss on to use him to attack the other agents.

Slowly getting to his feet, he let go of the pillow and allowed it to fall back to the ground as he took small, measured steps. He still felt sore and tense, so taking it slow was his best bet for now.

In time he would have to apologize to everyone, if only to make sure they knew he wasn’t normally like that. He was drunk off of the wine, as shallow of an excuse as it was, it was still the truth. Eventually, he spotted two of the people he had to apologize to on their own. Sara and Gauss, and it looked like the former was forgiving the latter. That’d make apologizing to them much easier.

“But-“ The thought came suddenly, stopping him in his tracks. "Do I really need to apologize?”

The thought brought a chill that ran down Wes’s back, a slow feeling of discomfort that slowly spread through his head. He turned and stared at the duo, Sara still holding her arms out as if to give the meister a hug. Another thought ran through his head, bringing with it another feeling of discomfort.

“It’d be a pain to have to go through it all. You barely even know them anyway, so what’s the harm?”

Wes wrestled against the thoughts, mentally chastising himself for thinking that way. He argued with himself, argued that he should at least apologize to Sara for acting like he did. But no matter how much he argued, how much he told himself that he should apologize, he couldn’t bring himself to move closer to the duo. He could hear their souls, although Sara’s had lost that almost hypnotic quality that it had when he was drunk.

It would have been so easy to just walk over and apologize. He felt horrible about it, they obviously felt just as bad, for anyone else it would have already been done and over with. And yet, instead of doing so, Wes turned away from the duo.

For the time being, he just needed to get away from everyone. Once again wincing as a new wave of nausea washed over him, Wes slowly made his way past the collection of bodies laid on the floor. There was always later, he could always just apologize later.

He stepped past more agents, making a conscious effort to try and avoid anyone who would recognize him from the party. For now he planned on heading back towards the beach. After what had happened, he assumed that everyone would probably want to avoid it for quite a while. Which meant that it’d be the best place to just be by himself. That’s what he did best, anyways.

 

[Mook-LandStrider]

Annika
Vantage Point and cafeteria.
Sir Les Paul Shotgunpenguin​

The whole scene was an absolute madhouse. She had gotten Arky away from the main scene before parting from him to return to the area. The raw chaos was more of a draw to her than any romance could ever be. While she stayed far to the side to avoid being considered a part of it she observed from a higher place with a barely withheld desire to partake in the madness.

It took far longer than she would have thought before the response arrived on scene to deal with the chaos. She saw Gauss and Wes go down and shook her head, they were going to get shit for this. With the scene coming under control she remained where she was and watched as people were carted away. Another clusterfuck, she had to remember not to go to another large scale fate event. Or to at least come prepared next time.

Laying back where she sat she closed her eyes for a short period of time, basking in the sun while she had the chance. Time passing she ended up rolling over and fell off of where she had been resting. Waking as she began to go over the edge she felt the feeling of weightlessness and managed to right herself like a cat before hitting the ground a moment later.

Throwing her arms up she stretched and let out a long and loud yawn. Hearing people come and go she saw the whole scene was being picked up and cleaned by the agents of FATE. Having not taken part she felt no need to fix or pick up the scene. Maneuvering herself through the mess with a dancer's agility she looked around for Wes and Gauss, seeing neither.

The memory of Gauss and Wes being taken out came back and she began to make her way to the cafeteria. Arriving the place was full of medically trained agents tending to those that had been hurt in the chaos. Reaching out she took in the souls of all there before pinpointing a very guilty looking one… or atleast a guilty one she recognized. There was still no sign of Wes. Taking out her phone she sent him a text "You still alive????".

Walking up to Gauss she saw him texting and waited a minute for him to finish before approaching. "Wow, you are up and somewhat together already. I saw you get hit." Annika began before looking him over "You all did one hell of a number out there." She continued on "They are cleaning it up now, I don't know about you but I think I am going to avoid these large FATE events moving forward." she said somewhat lightheartedly.

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - Nadia Semyonov - Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii - Outrigger Resort​

Having finished with bringing more people to the Resort, Maria takes the time to regroup with Elly, what with her having been her partner with a couple of the others in dragging off the collar cases or seeing to what few wounded there were. Though maybe Elly had other things to do. Or to see to? Maria for her own part had planned to head right back to her room, far too many people were gathered here. It was exhausting, but it would be rude to just leave. So there Maria stood, looking at the Irish Meister with an awkward.

"Er, so, what do we do now? What did you plan to do? I was pondering heading to my room, or studying the samples from this day, though I do not think I'll learn too much. But what I do not learn is also learning in it's own way."

~~~~

Nadia for her part simply watched Dani and showed not the slightest bit of fear as the tail went right past her arm and by her side, as Dani awoke in a rage. One that was quickly quelled as she thanked Nadia for what she had done. "Heh, he's still a crazy no-good son of a bitch by my measure, but he's your son of a bitch." Though, she was already gone by the time she mentioned it. Nadia had things to do on her own, and following Dani would not help the situation between those two. And the Ice Queen couldn't care less about most of the rest. These troubles were more than she cared to be involved with, plus there were things she wanted to accomplish still on this day, with a new addition to the list.

First was a walk about the beach to see if someone was being coy, laughing about all of this. And if so to pound them in the face, after a question or two. Further questions could wait till after the beating was delivered. And there was her own issue, she would confront the water. While Dani being there would be nice, maybe she could snatch away Maria, or she could put all of this off and speak with Elly and Maria. That was always an option, she thought, as she moved through the lobby.

Interactions: EmperorsChosen (Elly) (Dani)

 

[EmperorsChosen]

​

Aki winced as Zosar appeared next to her. The rejection stung and made her tunnel-visioned, focused on the pain in her soul than anything going on around her. Even Ark’s apology was barely registered, as was Zosar’s questioning. “...Everything…” She whined in response. While she knew what those collars could do based off being told, Aki had never actually been resonating with Feng when it activated.

She felt someone else reach and take her hand and shortly thereafter hoist her up before leading her to the cafeteria with everyone else. Once in the cafeteria, Aki was allowed to rest and organized herself not long after. She still felt sick, probably half from the rejection and half from the alcohol and food ingestion, but she could process now.

Everything that had happened was weird. She liked Ark and all, but, what was that? It wasn’t her actions that necessarily got to her, but the change in how she felt towards him. And she shot people without question, as if them simply annoying Ark was an offense worthy of that. They said something about magic wine, but was there really wine that could shift people’s feelings?

A headache was coming on that made Aki not want to think about any of it. However, she at least did think about Feng. Standing up, the Demon Weapon went off in search of her partner, eventually finding her passed out on a bed. Even Aki felt a bit of guilt. Feng was under the supposed spell, yet she was still questioning her actions. Aki just pushed her forward and this was the result. She frowned as she sat, wincing as a string of pain shot through her head from the sudden movement.

Stirring too, Feng processed what had happened till now and the effects of the collar, having her personality, her honor, her everything just turned off to what she was once before was a bit much, she had done some pretty harsh things and took a great interest in someone she otherwise would not have. No, it went well beyond that. It was then she noticed Aki. “Collar puts you down for a bit, I was one of the first to be tested with them, the DWMA doesn’t seem to trust either of us much, but after what we pulled because of some Magic? Well, how are you Aki?”

Aki rubbed her forehead, her normally bubbly face noticeably deflated. “Sorry…” She said softly. “I’m fine… My head hurts… Are you okay?”

”It’s not your fault, well… I’m alright I guess, I need to apologize to those three if they’ll hear it, well, provided we find them… You’ll come, yeah? And then there is the issue with Ark, I… Think it will be a bit till I’m willing to talk to him, I guess you can say I’m upset with myself… That and whoever caused all of this. Still, we all let our guard down.” Feng said, slowly rising up to sit up on the bed, her feet touching the floor. ”Who brought us here?”

Aki didn’t say anything to Feng’s assurance, though she gave a short nod. “Yeah… I feel bad for shooting them…” She admitted softly before shaking her head briefly. “...I don’t know… Zosar helped us and some girl he was with helped me here. I think Ark carried you?” She said, somewhat unsure.

Exhaling at that, Feng just really wanted to be somewhere else. “Well, none of us got hurt bad and I did have you hold back a bit when I shot them, still, I don’t know if we should reply now, or just leave it be.”

“I wanna at least say sorry for shooting them… it looked like it hurt…” Aki replied with a frown.

With a closure of her eyes, Feng seems to ponder what she said for a bit, before patting the other on the side, unsteadily getting to her feet. ”Not alone, you won’t… After that uh… Well, there’s Ark, I don’t have much interest in Magic so going from, well, whatever we all were doing, to just people at work…. Honestly I think the rest of the time here we should just go off, do our own things, bring our own drinks or whatever.”

“...I just wanna say sorry and go sleep…” She admitted, not having much of a response to the other’s patting. Clearly, there was more than just guilt weighing on the girl.

“Yes, not a bad plan, I might as well do the same, just ignore this unless interesting people want to do something lowkey Though I need to go say sorry to the pinkie.” Said Feng, steadying up as she found her footing.

“Who…? Oh…” Aki murmured in quick succession, looking around slowly as she stood up. Just as she did so, however, her head throbbed. She hunched forward slightly before slowly standing up straight. “W-Where…”

“Eh?” Feng said, as she observed Aki, the injection still had her a bit out of it, if not for her strenuous training, she would likely be laying down still. Then there was the rejection, that had not hit her as hard, mostly as she was down by then. Still, it didn’t seem either of them should be heading out for now, any apologies could wait… IF they couldn’t, well, it would be dealt with by then.

”Lets just do this tomorrow, could head back to the rooms, or just crash here.”

Aki did want to apologize, but her head was hurting worse by the minute. After a few moments, she gave a short nod to what Feng said. “....’Kay…” She murmured, pausing once again. “Rooms are… this way,” She mused, turning slowly as she lethargically began walking towards the elevators

”It’ll all work itself out… but yeah, think today was enough for both of us.Guiding Aki back as she delt with her own problems, Feng intended on facing her problems tomorrow rather than today.

"...Wine sucks..."

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley, Arkayis Misonuka
Rank Fate Agent

Location OUTRIGGER Resort, Ka’anapali Beach, Maui, Hawaii
Mission A Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride
Status Frustrated

​

Tags: Merciless Medic

He was still sore. Angry. Disappointed. The sweet words Sara offered him did nothing to dilute the bitter distaste he had for himself at the moment.

She thought there was a reality that existed where he would blame her for what she did, but that hardly scratched the surface of what was actually going on inside of him. She told him that he wasn't himself. Truth was, he didn't see it that way. In that moment, he felt like the truest version of himself. What he was when he was pushed to an extreme. When he felt the things every Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin song ever described. Love wasn't a kick in the head, it was a blast from a rifle--and it hurt like Hell.

Worse, it was a harsh truth.

A new fear grew inside of Gauss. A fear for himself. What if he ever did truly catch those feelings? Have that obsession with another? Bella, Annika, anyone really--they were just the first two that came to mind. If he was capable of what he did to Sara in this instant, he felt he was at core capable of it in the heat of the moment with anyone else.

Sara didn't understand. Noah might have given their long talks, but Noah was off somewhere else. Arkayis probably had no idea how to process it if he tried.

Sara couldn't have understood. Gauss had spent the last several years being taught about accountability and having it forced upon him. He had responsibility drilled into his head over and over again. He had to come to accept that he was the villain to some people. That his carnal desires with them had made him into a monster. That he was a living trap. That for all his honesty, for all the times he warned these girls about what he was and what he wanted, he still attracted them in and often many wanted more. He still hurt them. Even without the intention to do so, even being as transparent as he could, he still broke their hearts. He still caused distress that riddled lives with trust issues and anxiety.

He had been facing that fact and fighting an internal war over it for what felt like ages. It was a delicate balance. Not seeing himself as the monster that some of those girls called him--Hell, even his sister. Yet, at the same time, coming to terms with the fact that he had hurt people. And, worse, he went on doing so for years without remorse or a second thought.

And, now? Now, he saw the real monster. The man willing to gaslight and even restrain the object of his affection. The man willing to hurt others he was supposed to be close to for their sake.

No amount of therapy could have prepared him for this raw, unadulterated realization. It was as if every sharp word ever told to him was allowed to pierce his heart at once. Worse? With his heart pierced, it felt like all the progress he had made was undone.

At the end of the day, he was that monster. It was still there inside him.

"I don't... deserve a hug," Gauss replied lowly, his voice still dry and somewhat hoarse from the damage he took.

"I don't hate you either..." he continued, transitioning that comment right into, "just myself."

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Hallerbos Forest, Belgium

The Blue Forest

Monday, September 19th, 2067​

Yet again, Elly only narrowly dodged the incoming arrow from their target. Comprised of wavelength, their target was obviously a rogue Meister of some kind. Given her training with Midori, this shouldn't have been much of a problem. However, Midori and his soul were in a panicked state of turmoil, weakening their connection, and these arrows were both absurdly fast and oddly blurry, even for her Super Soul Perception.

A duck, a roll, landing beside one of the thin beech trees that filled the area. Not as if it would have projected her, just that they were ever-present in every direction around them. A shame, too, given her aggressive rolling left impressions and damaged the ever-present bluebell carpet of the area.

Zosar was in no better shape. Without the advantage in perception Elly had, he could only react once he felt the arrow in range. Luckily, with his focus purely on the defense, Wren proved capable of cutting right through these projectiles with relative ease. Zosar merely had to pay attention. It was hard to miss them given each time they passed by, a purely annoying whistling sound shot through the air. For Zosar and Wren, their Tuned Wavelength gave them some resistance to this interference.

Elly and Midori were not so lucky. Not only were they affected more directly, Midori was having some type of internal meltdown.

Maria meanwhile probably had the easiest time. As she didn't rely on any type of Soul Perception and possessed multiple methods of protecting herself, her senses were under no attack from these arrows. Given they were being fired so far out of range that their target wasn't even truly visible to the eye, she had plenty of time to defend herself. Not that she was the target often. A few shots were taken at her, as if to try and pick her off easily, and when proven futile, Elly and Zosar became the primary targets.

The mission was never intended to be a combat mission like this. What appeared to be a rogue Meister was never on the table. That said, their mentors had warned them that missions would become more dangerous and chaotic. Ever since the April 1st incident, the entire landscape of missions was changing. More criminals, more rogue agents, Lunatics, Infernals, even rogue Fae... the mundane missions of the past, a simple get in and get out, those were over for all but the lowest rung of the DWMA.

And, like it or not, the Fate Agents were far from the lowest rung.

This mission was intended to be a retrieval mission for a group of magical researchers in the area. This particular area of the forest was unique. The bluebell carpet of beautiful flowers normally only blossomed in the spring, but here it blossomed all year round. The cause had never been determined. It was never near any significant ley line nor could they find a cause. With the peace treaty in places, Witches finally had a chance to research it. However, recently, creatures in the area had become frenzied, flaming beasts of destruction, and they called for evacuation to preserve their data. In terms of danger, it was nothing even research Witches couldn't handle.

There was even sufficient time to prep for this mission. Maria had a chance to learn some of the natural flora in the area, converse with Chanterelle about how to better perceive these more natural magics, and get an idea of what to look out for in regards to dangers or magical phenomena. Zosar and Elly were given time as Meisters to get resources for this area of Belgium and plot out a course. Midori helped with that as well, but more so, he took some time getting to know the new partner of Zosar. The partner of his former pupil was a point of interest, after all. More so, she was an interesting character herself. A weapon-werewolf with a unique soul type. Not exactly a common combination, but seemingly perfect for his friend.

All the preparation in the world didn't ready them for this.

Throughout the ever-blossoming area of the forest were in fact those infernal creatures. Not the undead from Paris, more so corrupted or mutated. Not hard to kill, but dangerous to the environment and hazardous if ignored. Worse off, a portion of the forest before even reaching the researches was lit ablaze. Rushing to their destination only showed them rampant destruction. Beech trees turned into black toothpicks in the ground, the beautiful azure landscape turned into cinder and ash, heat and smoke pouring out. If not for how sparse this forest was, it would have been far more dangerous. Luckily, there was a lack of underbrush to worsen their mobility.

What they stumble onto was a surprise in and of itself. Magic in the air from the spells cast by the researchers and three immensely powerful wavelength signatures all seeming to be in conflict.

By the time they arrived, the small facilities were in ruin and half the researchers dead, burned alive it seemed. However, it was not by the dreaded infernals. No, this was something arguably more dangerous. Louis, the head researcher, had told them that it was none other than Astila Stein that had initially attacked. And, not long after, two other women then attacked her. The fight was intense and ultimately resulted in the facility being destroyed with only a small portion of the research saved. Worse, Astilla had managed to steal a container of seed specimens that the researchers believed to be part of the secret of these eternally blossoming flowers.

It was then that Midori insisted they pursue. His attitude had changed for whatever reason. His logic was that they needed to call in backup from the Western European Branch and keep tailing Astilla and her assailants. Unlike their fuck-up in Romania, he wanted to make sure everything was done by the book. There was more to his motivations, but through a convincing argument of avoiding direct conflict if possible and maintaining a long range with Elly, he was able to convince the entire group to go. It seemed Maria was content to follow orders and Zosar had trust in him.

This is what lead them to their current situation. Pursuing their targets Westward through the forest. They had in fact established contact with the Western European Branch and agents were being mobilized across the German border. If anyone managed to cross that border, it would change the entire jurisdiction to the Western European Branch and only further complicate matters. Not that the forest was near them, but South was Paris and North was the Netherlands. Neither would have proved any sanctuary. At best, the goal was to make it to Luxembourg which historically fell under the jurisdiction of both branches and hope to get lost there.

In any case, it was a long journey to any destination and they were still in pursuit in the forest.

'Elly, you have to reach them,' Midori pleaded, desperately trying to convey just how important this was to her. Sure, it was within their shared connection, but Midori has hardly hiding his emotions from her. His words were laden with confusion, sorrow, panic, and even a touch of anxious energy not normally present in him. Whether or not he was doing this intentionally or he truly couldn't compose himself was unclear, but his fixation on these three was impossible to ignore.

'We don't even need to get to Astila, just the others,' he told her, going on, as if bartering about how important this was. In truth, his tone came from the fact he knew how Elly was when it came to danger, and there truthfully existed no reason for them to pursue these three. He knew that. If that truly was Astila Stein--and if she had a weapon--then even this team might not be able to fight her, especially without losses. Worse off, if two other unknowns were after her and she was running, that was a problem in and of itself. If something made the Astila Stein flee, then it had to be terrifying.

Regardless, he wanted to press on. He needed to press on. Hell, even if Elly refused, chances are, he would go on without her.

Another flurry of arrows. Flurry being the imperative term. Prior to this, arrows flew in one-by-one at speeds that far exceeded what Elly could fire with Midori, save for their resonance techniques. Now came a volley of three and three and three, totaling nine.

Just after a narrow roll and duck to dodge one, now Elly had to dodge another three of these blurry bastards, only made worse by the fact they were in multiples. Zosar was in the same boat. Another three, though he had the advantage of at least being able to see his three coming sooner as they followed those after Elly. Maria was not left out as she was targeted by the final set of three. In each case, they were all fast, and more concerningly, deadly accurate. Aimed for the head, heart, and liver, they were spread in a lopsided triangle that gave little room to dodge either left, right or upwards.

Perhaps most concerningly, at least to Elly, is that technique was eerily reminiscent of the very same one Midori had taught her to use.

The Regal Rper @Haze- RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen​