Fantasy The Great Games of Nye

[Jet]

​

Mischa faced the redhead and slowly nodded in response. "I'll do what I can," she said before closing her eyes, honing her mind until vague, pulsing signals came from a gate.

"You're correct." She opened her eyes and looked at Nyall. "I can feel them... screaming."

"We should go help," she said without emotion in her words, despite knowing exactly how they suffered. Hearing their cries with magically enhanced ears and yet, no matter what she still didn't care. It was all so numb and apathetic, like watching a sad movie she didn't care for.

Even the crying boy didn't connect to her cold heart, and deep down, her own apathy disgusted her.

"Come here little one." Mischa forced a poor excuse for a smile. "When I merge with Napa my legs are very strong, so I'll carry you."

Mischa kneeled and let him climb on her back, looking at Rat with a small nod. She wanted him to know that she was still on his side. That despite her personality change and sudden coldness, she would still do the right thing. "Now go to sleep little one, and don't look at the dead. There's nothing we can do for them now." Her gaze drifted to her sister. "They're gone and nothing will bring them back, all we can do is help who's left."

Without another word she marched to a gate, but as she walked, her resting brain dreamed of death and suffering. Her crushing loss and the announcer's explosion. The men in dark armor and matching black cloaks, killing thousands of innocent people. Mischa felt pain leaking in from her dreaming half, and for a moment she faltered, grabbing the nearest seat for support. "My other half is — dreaming, it's no concern."

"But how should I process my loss?" Mischa glanced back with confusion in her eyes, like she was holding a puzzle she couldn't quite grasp. "Is there any way to make it hurt less? I don't want to break when my other side wakes up."

"Or is it hopeless? I've never lost someone before, so I don't know."

Emphoa Lost Echo Anne Boolean

 

[Lost Echo]

~Esther~

“Right. So all that before was lip syncing?” Hell, even if it was, Renn was surely skilled at looking pretty, and she knew how to drum up a crowd. “Cuz if you sang, you did it well enough none of the contestants tried to kill themselves.” Esther frowned. “That was too soon, wasn’t it?” she nodded to herself, “way too soon.” Shaking her head as if to deny that ever happened, she continued, “Just think about it. You want to find answers, well, people’ll answer your questions more than mine. Especially since I have the tact of a hammer.”

Accepting Kilderkin’s stream of water, she used her wind to dry off everyone’s hands and the soap, she returned the latter to her pack, resisting the urge to stroke Dart before nodding and starting her job. She was pleased that Renn seemed to have successfully pulled out of her funk with work. Keeping busy was always the best way to deal with trauma. She’d learned that from the kidnapping, she could use that here.

Keeping her stitches even, Esther focused on her work, blocking out memories from before. She looked up, surprised by the song. Not one for music, she was surprised when that knot inside her seemed to loosen. “Well you definitely can sing,” she murmured under the protection of her voice. Moving to another, she knelt then flinched, realizing this one wasn’t bleeding because he was dead. Standing once more, she moved to a third, grateful for the pained breath the man let out.

After the song, Kilderkin filled the silence. “You’re right. It’d be better to flee. No terrorist would attack a forest in the Congo. There aren't enough people to make an impact like this.” Glancing at the woman, she continued, “Maybe if I thought I could outrun Nye’s authorities, I would. But as fast as my ship is, I doubt we could make it. Nye’ll know I was here. If my body’s not amongst the dead and I’m not there, they’d assume I was with those monsters. I might not care much about my reputation, but I refuse to be associated with them.” Shaking her head, she laughed ruefully, “I’m just saying what you know.” Still one thing was clear, “They’ll strike again. They didn’t leave a message. They want the fear to get out of control. Then they’ll list their demands. They’re worse than pirates.” She glanced over at Kilderkin as she said the last, a smirk on her face.

rozukitsune Fred Colon

 

[Goliath]

Elriel gave a breathy chuckle seeing his friend's enthusiasm. The shining brown eyes looking up at him. He also did not care about the cameras currently, reaching out to meet Adamaris. He couldn’t help but smile at the compliments as his cheeks picked up a slight red hue. “As did you, Ada, you made it look easy. Truly,” he spoke, staring back at the smaller.

“I cannot ask for much more. Keep winning and doing your best. We are just getting started.” Elriel looked out at the crowd, the celebrations had already begun with a performer, but he did not care, turning back to Adamaris again. “As it has always been, my family is just as proud of you as they are of me. I know father is going to be eager to talk to you,” he reminded, staying focused on Ada until they let go.

Elriel took a moment to scan the people across the stage - everyone from their locker room was standing on the winners' side. But he already knew that. On the losing side, however, he did see a familiar face, Nyaall. They had a few conversations over the years. Nyaall was famous and had attended a few of his shows, getting backstage access afterward. Elriel gave a slight head nod at the male.

He looked back at Adamaris, staring at the crystal in confusion, “A gift, you say? That is not anything I have..ever seen. Maybe we should..” he stopped speaking, seeing it start to buzz? His eyebrows raised in confusion. Since when did crystals vibrate?

He looked out at the center stage again as he heard the screams, his stomach sinking as Dyus collapsed. ‘This is bad.’ He thought, taking a step back as well. Pardus moved behind him, not that he noticed, too distracted by everything in front of him.

And then nothing.

Elriel blacked out as the explosion knocked him backward. Waking up with a sharp inhale as he hit the ground, coughing up blood. It seemed that the wound to his chest during his fight had caused more damage internally than he had thought. “I’m..” he coughed. “I’m okay..what happened?” He spoke, staring at the wall Ada had constructed to protect them from any additional attacks from the front.

He turned his head around only to see something straight out of a child's nightmare. People fell by the thousands as their familiars were ripped from them. He felt as though he was about to throw up. Unable to do anything at all.

Elriel could hear someone screaming. It was a horrible sound. Echoing in his ears, his head. He looked around for the source of the sound. But couldn’t find the person..only to realize it was coming from himself. Covering his mouth with his hand as the tears pricked his eyes.

“Father..” was all he said. He tried to get up but his body wasn’t working properly making it difficult. Elriel hit the ground with his fist in frustration before finding his footing and standing. His hand pressed against his chest. He didn’t try to run; it was a slow, almost dead walk. Up the stands to his father.

He saw him; collapsed forward, now laying on the concrete in front of his seat. Somehow managing to miss the rubble that had fallen. A peaceful smile on his face. Elriel didn’t need to touch him to know he was gone. His familiar warmth was no longer here.

He reached down, pulling his fan from his hip. Taking his father’s ponytail in his hand, he cut it at the base before bowing. For the men of the Whitlock family, their hair symbolized many things. Cutting it at death was a sign of respect. To release the soul from its body so it could find peace and move on.

“Thank you; for not only being a man with integrity and grace. Fairness. You were an amazing father.” He spoke, kneeling beside him, “If there is a place for the souls of good people, you will no doubt be there.” He laid the ponytail down next to his father’s dead body, bowing once more, before moving into Ada’s arms. His chest heaving as he hid his face from anyone else, tears soaking into his friend's shirt as his fingers gripped into the fabric.

Elriel wanted to stay and grieve. He wanted to continue to cry and question the world. But deep in his heart, he knew that was not what he should be doing right now. His father would not want that. If he was alive, so were others — People who might be able to be saved. Elriel sat back, his hands shaking as he reached up to tighten his ponytail before he fused with his familiar, which helped lessen the pain from the ribs broken in his chest. “Let’s go. We need to see if we can find any survivors.” He spoke to Ada, putting on a brave face and standing up.

Elriel looked around, spotting a man a few rows away. But more than that, he could see a blue macaw squawking as it flew around in a state of distress trying to help him. Which only meant one thing, he was alive. Probably trapped beneath a pile of debris from the bombs, though it was hard to tell for sure from this distance. Elriel turned to Adamaris. “There,” he pointed before they made their way over carefully. Nothing about these stands were safe, with crumbling rock and metal rods.

Elriel crouched down once they were next to the stranger, his demeanor calm as he assessed the situation. It was manageable. “I’m Elriel. And I’m going to need you to stay still. We will get you out. I promise,” he spoke before nodding to Ada and waiting for them to construct something made of Earth to lift the rubble off the man.

Emphoa Arcanist

 

[Emphoa]

Rat was careful while everyone seemed to help, shifting the young boy in his arms and letting him rest against him. He was glad to have these few individuals with him- especially since they were so keen on helping out the people around them that it made it feel... not hopeful but somehow better than if he had been with people who were too scared, too engrossed in what had happened to do anything. He puffed out, glancing away as he tried not to look too closely at the bodies- think too much about the loss they were all suffering and his chest tightened at the thought of how much people would have to pick the pieces up afterwards.

The boy snapped back to reality and into the conversations they were having as they spoke about screams, his eyes flitting over towards the direction with furrowed brows. He wasn't certain he would be able to help much, really. "I can see if any of my tools can help." He finally stated, glancing between the three. "I can't really... merge with my familiar well, so I can't help much on that end." He offered up a small, apologetic smile before it fell as he looked back to Mischa and his eyebrows furrowed just a little bit.

He knew that she was trying, trying not to think about it and push through however she could. he was relieved that despite that she could offer at least a tiny bit of help and comfort to the other child they had managed to find and he shifted his grip as he moved over to the red head. Careful around the bodies- the rubble. He let out a breath, holding the boy in his arms against him just a little more to keep his eyes away from all of the loss. It wasn't until Mischa faltered that he stepped forward, concerned but hesitating as she seemed to speak up and hold herself up.

"Dreaming..." He pursed his lips together at the thought, glancing back to Vixie and Nyaall before his eyes flitted back to his new friend and he let out a deeper sigh. "It... It's not going to be easy, Mischa." He spoke up, finally, and he gave her a little look as he opened his mouth and then closed it. "I've never... lost someone like this, but I know how it is to mourn. You're going to have to let it out, but time heals- and we... we will find out who did all of this. I'm sure this won't lay to rest, not now." He glanced back to the others and his eyebrows knitted together tighter at the thought of it all. "That's really all we can do, right?"

Jet Lost Echo Anne Boolean

 

[Lost Echo]

"I hear people in pain... they're coming from the eleven destroyed gates."

Vixie flinched, turning toward the closest gate. She groaned, closing her eyes against as the sudden movement raised the mild nausea swimming in the back of her throat. Opening them again, she studied the exit. It just looked like a pile of rubble. But she knew from learning about earthquakes that people could be trapped under there. “That makes sense…” she whispered, wishing she had Philos-o-fur to hug. She knew when they got closer she’d have to see things worse than the scattered limp bodies. Some of them had red marks, step marks, but all of them were intact. Vixie didn’t want to see any blood. Hugging herself she nodded ignoring the spike of pain, and set her jaw as Mischa confirmed what Nyaall said.

"I can't really... merge with my familiar well, so I can't help much on that end."

Turning to the boy (whose name she was still lacking), she smiled, “But he’s a rat right?” She asked nodding to his front pocket. “Maybe he can check for things in small nooks and crannnies?” She suggested, imagining it. “That way he can check on those who are trapped, let them know someone’s coming for them.” She reached out and touched his shoulder, squeezing before stroking a hand down the injured boy’s back. “We can practice your merging later, I’ve tutored before.”

She watched as Mischa let the child onto her back, Philos-o-fur situating himself over her shoulder, then nuzzling her ear. And then, stilll with that cold death tone, she told the little boy the truth. Something Vixie knew, she did, but it sounded awful coming from her. Tears grew in the corner of her eyes, but she rubbed them away. She was about to suggest they split, two taking the kids to safety while two checked on the gates, but the zoned out girl immediately marched over, seeming to not care of the hundreds of bodies they were stepping over. Glancing at the other two, Vixie could do nothing but follow, not wanting to stretch her familiar bond at a time like this. She had to be careful of the people, but every time she looked down her head hurt more. She had to keep looking up, for relief and to track Mischa.

But then the other redhead stumbled, grabbing onto a seat to steady herself and the boy. Phil had to dig his claws in to her coat to stay on. She brushed it off, but then asked the group for help.

"Is there any way to make it hurt less? I don't want to break when my other side wakes up."

Was that confusion in her eyes? Her tone remained the same. Vixie shivered, looking around automatically for an answer and just seeing more death. “I…” she whispered, overshadowed by the full answer the young boy was giving. When he checked in with the rest of them, she added on “You have to focus on the present. Not forget the past or anything, but be in the here and now.” That’s what the grief counselors said over and over when her dad died. She had been little, and had her moms now, so it was an old thought that rarely surfaced. What she remembered most was it had taken weeks for him to die. He’d been trapped in the hospital bed, coughing and coughing. And the doctors would help him, but never enough. He’d seemed so tired in the end. These people died in an instant. Terrified but quick. Which was better? Could there be a better death? Her head hurt. Without thinking, she stepped closer to Nyaall, knowing she wasn’t allowed to touch him, but finding comfort in his presence.

The catboy wrapped an arm around her shoulders, giving her a squeeze of comfort. Vixie looked back up at him, surprised but then relaxed under his touch. It was like a brother helping keep her up. It made her feel safe. Strong enough to help. Turning, to give him a proper hug all of a sudden, she let go before he could react, stepping away before she could see his face break into a soft smile. Could she survive without a crutch?

Shaking her head, then grabbing a seat of her own for balance, Vixie announced, “You aren’t going to break because we’re here. You’re not alone.” Stepping up to beside the rubble that was once the gates, she asked, “How many do you sense Mischa?” Alive at least. She could see parts of people scattered amongst the crumbled cement.

Nyaall's sensitive golden ears twitched, taking in the cries. He might not be able to distinguish how many people were there, but he knew where the nearest cry came from, "Over here," he ordered, moving to one side of the gate, where a foot stuck out. It was kicking out wildly, trying to get free. "Stay still. We're here to help." he soothed, laying a hand on the ankle. His sharp eyes could make out the details of the shadows, checking what could be moved without disturbing the rest. "We need to be careful, so hold still."

Edited: added the paragraphs in italics. Everything else is the same

Anne Boolean Jet Emphoa

 

[ZackStop]

Ilana sat their as her mind started to recollect. "Damn... That really rattled my brain." She mumbled to herself while rubbing her head, and as she stood amongst the chaos she glanced around. She saw so much loss and tragedy and all these people trying their best to pick up the pieces. She was torn. She hated Nye and what it represented to people like her. The unwanted people, the broken people. Things that would harm their little reputation as this perfect society of wander and splendor. In her mind this was well deserved, a blemish on a false sense of perfection, a step in the right direction.

But then there was the truth of the ordeal. All these people, hundreds if not thousands were snuffed out in a brutal attack. "Why?" She thought to herself. She wondered if it was some sort of vendetta or other act of revenge. Whoever orchestrated something like this had to have been someone powerful and wicked enough to murder so many, some of which were not even people of Nye but were killed off all the same. Maybe it was bigger than just Nye. Ilana was sure that this attack had everyone still alive wondering who it could have been so they could take their revenge. She too wanted to meet them but for other reasons. But right now, she was simply lost in all the madness. She had no idea where to go or how to even leave.

In the process of recollecting herself, she was drawn to a sink hole that had formed from the blast. There were screams of agony and cries for help, and so, Ilana walked to it with careful steps. She wasn't yet sure if she was alright herself. She approached the sink hole as a boy from earlier called out to everyone within ear shot.

Ren turned away from the crowd as he tried to peer into the dusty darkness for a way down, but as he looked he couldn't find a feasible way to make a safe decent. Even Phalanx who was much more nimble and well balanced could only make it so far down along the edges of the hole. He simply sat on a broken ledge and too found it impossible. Ren could hear the man calling out to him from below and could barely make out a shape of the man named Jiang. It was clear the man was in great distress. His voice was loud and he words came quick and panicked. He had to find a way down there to help him and the many others found trapped at the bottom. "D-don't worry, I'm on my way sir!" He called out, before becoming more panicked himself as he still could not find a way down without breaking his legs or worse. Ren just knew he had to do something and quick. Too many people had died and he had to act fast.

He was just about to make a terribly rash method of climbing down before Ilana had arrived. "Can't find a way down, hero?" She said looking down at him with her arms crossed, and a viscously mean look on her face. Ren was already one foot off the edge supported on his opposite knee, ready to attempt solo climbing for the first time, a hobby Ren knew nothing about. "I- uh-" Ren couldn't get the words out. It was a high stress situation and her judgmental scowl wasn't helping him at all. Ilana simply scoffed. "If you're just gonna make a plunge at least judge the fall. Let me give you some help." She unfolded her arms before slapping the ground below her, and in doing so activated her earth magic. She honed in on the tremors she felt beneath her, inspiring the power within her to move it in accordance to her will.

And just like that, thick pillars of rock and other stone materials provided came popping out like a game of 'whack a mole.' The first one popped out right under Ren's dangling foot, startling him a bit before he unintentionally put his weight on it. The rest quickly followed making appearances five or so feet apart from each other, leading down in a zig zag before ending somewhere near the bottom.

"Oh wow, thanks!" Ren said before standing on the first pillar, before Ilana soared overhead to a lower platform. "Don't go thinking about it too long. pick up the pace if you wanna help." She called out to him with a particularly unexcited tone. She was hopping down like it was second nature, like she had done this before. Ren shook himself out of the amazement and followed her down with his own agility, thinking to himself, "Wow, earth magic must come in real handy!" By the time he made it down, he had lost sight of his new comrade he found in Ilana, but was close enough to the man he had heard before to run over to his aid. "Hey! I'm here!" He quickly slid across the ground as he tried to assess the damage.

It didn't look good for the assassin. Of course, Ren had no way of knowing exactly what kind of man he was. All the boy wanted to do was help save as many as he could. Ren looked around hopelessly for a way to get the man out of the rubble, but he was losing blood from his head injury, as well as whatever damage was hiding under the large rock on top of his right side. Ren didn't know what to do. He had never tried to be so heroic before, he never had to. He wasn't equipped to save someone in the state of this man, and to make matters worse, Jiang was in critical condition, telling Ren that he was priority. He was simply too naive to accept that this man was practically already dead.

"H-hey! Um... Earth girl!? Hey where are you!? There's this... rock! Can you help me please?" He whipped his head around for her. "It's Ilana," She spoke up from the distance. "and the moment I use my earth magic there's no telling what might collapse." Ren felt like he ran out of options right before the man he swore to himself to save. "Shit." He thought to himself as he lowered his head. He had never sworn much before, even in his own head, but in a situation like this there was no help being absolutely frustrated.

rozukitsune Jet

 

[rozukitsune]

Narzas lowered herself down carefully, alighting on a flat bit of rubble while surveying the surroundings. She didn't have long to really mentally tabulate everyone who needed help, however, when someone from her past called to her from the darkness near her feet.

Her head swiveled and her eyes focused on Jiang as he called to her like she owed him a rescue. This murderous, soulless asshole had joined the ranks of the assassin's guild she was a part of and was immediately celebrated as a prodigy of death - earning his full assassin status years before Narzas had even been given the opportunity to try. She shook her head at Ren as the young man caught up alongside a new woman that she'd not yet seen - introducing herself as Ilana - and knelt beside Jiang promising him he would help.

She decided to take a page out of Tefra's book and kneeled down beside the Jiang before Ren and his new friend could get any heroic ideas. With a smile quirking the corner of her mouth, she slid a dagger up from her long sleeve and shoved the tip up into the man's soft underjaw, slicing his jugular and pushing her dagger as deep into his nerve center as she could while softly shushing him like a mother coddling a child as she stole the last of his life.

"No one tells me what to do anymore, least of all you." She murmured as his blood drenched the nearby rocks. Rolling back up on her heels, she dusted off her still-clean hands - leaving the dagger where she'd plunged it. "Trust me... we're all better off without this one." She said calmly. "He enjoyed killing people. Thought it was a game. Would have more likely than not stabbed all three of us in the back as soon as we got him out from under here. We need to save our strength for those here who are actually innocent." She said flatly. "I'm Narzas, by the way."

ZackStop

 

[ZackStop]

Ren gripped his fist, just about ready to give up, but he figured if he could just get the rock the move just a bit he could get the man out from under there. He didn't care about the riches promised by the suffering man, all Ren wanted to do in the moment was getting Jiang and everyone else out. It was a lost cause, but he wasn't going to sit there and do nothing. He recognized the woman coming from behind him, the same woman who helped them survive the likes of Tefra, but all she did wasn't helpful. She just simply murdered the man coldly. It was about all Ren could handle in this moment.

It was a strange feeling. Ren was usually so patient and well mannered, but something about today had him boiling over, only for him to simmer back down again. He shoved himself away from the corpse that had been made, pushing his hands against the ground to gain some distance. He only could look at Narzas with confusion and anger, or whatever he was feeling could be called. "Why the hell would you do that? Why!?" He rose his voice as he threw himself up onto his feet. He choked up and went quiet as she tried to assure him that her act was justified. But was it? The way she was acting and the words she said made it feel more like a personal vendetta than some sort of justice. "We're surrounded by death... we're breathing it in! It's in our lungs and you want to cause more!?" He tried to take a breath as he hung his head. "Can you not see what's around you? Do you have time for little acts of revenge!?"

"Hey!" Ilana yelled out over them. Ren whipped his head towards her as she spoke up. Her face was riddled with surprise seeing what just happened, only Ilana's reaction was more tame. It wasn't her problem. "It's over. If the two of you are really concerned about time and energy then he was a waste of it either way. He would have died soon enough with or without the knife, so lets just move on. I'm not gonna stick around to have this be my grave!" She slammed her tail on the ground with a loud 'thwack' for emphases before turning and finding some people to help get out.

Ren stood there in a somber silence, he couldn't bring himself to make eye contact with Nazras. Their outlooks were completely different but their goals were ultimately the same, and so Ren went a different direction as he spotted some people in dire need of assistance. "Hey! I'm coming!" He yelled out as he dragged his hands under some rock, and with some struggle and Phalanx's help, managed to bring it up just enough for the small group to climb out. Ren moved to whoever else he could find and used a combination of his strength, water magic and any other means necessary. He couldn't save the assassin, and that truly broke him a little bit, even knowing how bad of a person he must have been. He was truly clueless of the real world he was thrusted into, but he believed people could change and that they deserve another go at it. Even if Jiang was a horrible person, the worst of the worst, Ren kept him in his memory as a reminder to be better.

Ilana was much more physically strong as apposed to her new allies. She couldn't speak for Narzas per say, but Ren was certainly scrawny for someone who wanted to be a Centurion. A Centurion... What did it really mean to be something like that? Was she just after the status she wondered. The power it gave her, the sway it would lend her. Would she be able to fulfill her long term goals? They were strange thoughts to be having right now for sure, but it got her wondering what really motivated everyone and possessed them to come here to the games.

The muscles in Ilana's arms flexed as she forced large chunks of concrete off of civilians, pushing her to the extent of her capability. It was all fine and good, but she needed to know how these people are going to get back to the surface. "Hey, Narzas." She spoke over, seeing he somewhat close by. "How do you plan on getting these people out of here? I can lift boulders all day but we're gonna have to get these people up quick." She was not at all furious with the other woman like Ren was and willing to work with her in order to get these people to safety. Ilana wasn't the hero type, she lived her life just trying to get by, but at a time like this she was lost and needed a purpose.

As she spoke with Narzas, Ilana couldn't help but glance over at a Mother and her small child huddled up against a wall, holding each other in petrified fear. They were both covered head to toe in patches of black dirt that was smeared all over their skin. She had seen it before in different circumstances. Ilana tried to stay cold to it, but the sense of urgency was becoming apparent. She took on more challenges to lift and move and carry people into the center of the hole where it was logically the safest place. Things were less likely to fall and put someone's eye out, and rounding them up made it easier to focus. "This sucks." She said to herself plainly. This was a clear understatement.

rozukitsune

 

[Jet]

​

Adrian watched Howard with growing anger and frustration, not understanding how he was so completely clueless, so unaware of threats to his own kingdom. Exactly like the ruling class he despised so much; otherwise why run the games? Why expose thousands to terrorist scum? Why not lock down the perimeter at the very least?

Adrian despised them as much as the attackers did, furiously looking around for someone — anyone to blame. Wanting to take his anger out on whoever he could, even the shaking noble beside him.

"You don't know anything?" He stared through the man as adrenaline filled his veins. Wrathful eyes burning through strands of red hair and settling dust; a calm tone hiding the rage inside him. "Nothing at all huh?"

He scoffed and gradually, painfully stood on legs that barely worked, bending at the hip with hands on his knees. "What a shame." He stood straight and brushed back his messy hair, picturing his hands around Howard's neck as he screamed accusations. The paranoid delusions of a madman but for some reason — for some reason they just felt right.

"But I find your ignorance hard to believe." He said as Brynwyr approached from the side, hearing what she said without processing it. Eyes locked on the annoying man with a slick tongue. "Surely Nye has enemies?" He stumbled to Howard and stood over him, heart pounding as he looked down and finally met his gaze.

Within he saw something that surprised him; the sadness of a lost man filling his emptiness with pills. The shock of one sheltered by attendants and surrounded by fake friends, but there was honesty too. And in that moment, locking eyes with the dumbstruck man, he saw the truth about Nye.

It was complacent after centuries of peace and prosperity, too arrogant to notice the dangers overhead. Almost like a child with an invincibility complex, undeserving of his hate.

If anything he pitted them, brow furrowing as he looked down on the man. "Nevermind," he quietly said. "I'll believe you for now, so I'll ask someone else." He relaxed his fists and faced the panicked woman, eyes widening by a hair. "Not dead yet I see?"

"Hopefully luck runs in your family." He looked through the stands for her missing cousin, scanning every face with his mutated eyes. "I can't see them anywhere, too many bodies for—

"Hmm?" he murmured. "I guess it does run in the family." He pointed at one of the ruined exits from the ring, marked with crushed stone and metal scrap. "I can't tell if he's wounded, but his gecko's still there. Must be alive."

He looked at Howard and finally pulled him to his feet. "Now stash the pills or I'll throw you in the sea." He walked towards the stands and glanced back with a thin smile, hesitant to feel happiness in the grim, soul crushing place. "And I'm glad you made it Bryn, would've missed having a debate partner."

Fred Colon Arcanist

 

[rozukitsune]

"Do you have any ideas on what's next? Certainly no funding for your safari here anymore, I think." She said to Esther. She also looked at Renn, but she had more or less already said she didn't know what she was going to do. "Might be safer to flee. The culprits got away. They could strike again."

~Esther~

“Right. So all that before was lip syncing?” Hell, even if it was, Renn was surely skilled at looking pretty, and she knew how to drum up a crowd. “Cuz if you sang, you did it well enough none of the contestants tried to kill themselves.” Esther frowned. “That was too soon, wasn’t it?” she nodded to herself, “way too soon.” Shaking her head as if to deny that ever happened, she continued, “Just think about it. You want to find answers, well, people’ll answer your questions more than mine. Especially since I have the tact of a hammer.”


After the song, Kilderkin filled the silence. “You’re right. It’d be better to flee. No terrorist would attack a forest in the Congo. There aren't enough people to make an impact like this.” Glancing at the woman, she continued, “Maybe if I thought I could outrun Nye’s authorities, I would. But as fast as my ship is, I doubt we could make it. Nye’ll know I was here. If my body’s not amongst the dead and I’m not there, they’d assume I was with those monsters. I might not care much about my reputation, but I refuse to be associated with them.” Shaking her head, she laughed ruefully, “I’m just saying what you know.” Still one thing was clear, “They’ll strike again. They didn’t leave a message. They want the fear to get out of control. Then they’ll list their demands. They’re worse than pirates.” She glanced over at Kilderkin as she said the last, a smirk on her face.

Renn really was just doing without thinking at the moment. Thinking would inevitably draw the despair and loneliness back. The sheer crushing weight of witnessing so many die all at once was not something she had been prepared for. It wasn't so much that she was sticking her fingers in guts that was odd at the moment. When she had some time to process this she'd probably be washing her hands for a week straight... but for the moment it was distracting her and giving her a purpose - and so that was good.
When Esther called her out for lip syncing though, that was also a distraction. She glared up at the woman in annoyance, "Of course not... but you really think they allow you to just sing whatever you want up on stage?" She asked in annoyance, flipping a bloodied hand through her hair and staining the auburn curls with flecks of red without thinking. "I am supposed to be good to look at. A trophy for some rich bozo to take home without worrying whether or not I have thoughts and feelings." She snorted, then sighed - returning her hands back to their job with a grumpy pout. "I'd much rather sing folk music than pop, but you do what you gotta do in life or else you end up in the Undercity." She shuddered. "I'm too pretty to be tossed in the trash." It was... admittedly a selfish and shallow sentiment, but it came from the very real fear she knew of the stories of what happened to people like her who wound up there.

Nightmarish illustrations of helpless star idols, dancers and artists basically being tossed to the wolves because they refused to conform. Being made to be slaves. Or forced into sexual servitude to multiple masters. It was bad enough to know she'd someday belong to one man who would do untold vile things to her because he could. The idea of a full team of them doing the same and no rules existing to stop them had made her toe the line throughout her life.

She didn't bother replying to Esther's second comment though. She honestly didn't know if she had it in her to be a leader and take control. All she'd ever done was follow the path laid out for her. Not having one now was terrifying. Too big to really handle on her own. As to the final question about what she would do next, she simply shook her head. "I don't know." She admitted. "I'm scared. Is Nye really going to fall from losing the games? Or should I go home and see what my parents want me to do next? They weren't here after all... maybe they have a plan..." She trailed off, hating that idea but not really having any better ones. She was too well trained at this point to be easily shaken from doing what others told her to do. Surely Nye would just rebuild... start over like nothing had happened. That seemed more realistic.

Fred Colon Lost Echo

 

[rozukitsune]

Narzas didn't have time to sit around and listen to Ren whine about the unfairness of things. It was the sort of sentiment a Civilian would have upon seeing death, regardless of the circumstances - and thus his cries of frustration and on morality didn't really phase her as she followed Ilana to those still alive. She simply shrugged as she started working a thick cord of webbing between her fingers and weaving it into a makeshift hammock using her fused familiar's knowledge of webs and building - highly useful at a time like this. "Not revenge, kid." She corrected calmly as she worked and Ilana started moving rocks out of the way and into a pile that would hopefully be structurally sound enough to not fall over anew. "Some people just aren't worth saving, even at a time like this. Or why else do you think any maniac would do something like the destruction here in the first place?" She waved a hand briefly to encompass the sheer numbers of lives lost. "Some sentiment like: This world allows terrible people to just do whatever they want and I'm sick of it so I'm going to put a stop to it - probably. He'll know he's turning himself into one of them... but until he succeeds in his mission to cause a full restart of world politics - he will ignore the irony until he's done. Be honest, if he hadn't zipped off to who-knows-where just now and had gotten caught in his own trap - and that had been him calling out to you for mercy just now, would you have saved him?"

At Ilana's question, she showed the more reasonably-minded woman her hammock. "It's not exactly fast, but we can wheel up top one at a time with this." She attaches the hammock carefully to the strands already around her waist. "I need to head back up to make more of a pulley system out of this, but then you two can load folks on and hoist them up. One of us should probably stay up top anyway to receive them. What we do after that though... I'm not really sure. Probably use your earth powers to try and make a safe path to the one gate that didn't get destroyed and send them on their way if we can." She sighs. "Those who can't walk under their own power are going to have to wait for healers to converge on the scene. I know a little bit of field medicine from having to patch myself up during trials back home, but that's about it. We'll be able to save the lightly to moderately wounded... but anyone else is either going to have to hope that a team of Doctors, nurses and EMT's realized what happened here and are already on their way - or they'll be dead whether we help them now or not." She answers somberly.

ZackStop

 

[Huntertabbysandshark3]

Ava Marco
interaction: Lost Echo EldridSmith​

having to climb ava Missed Anya, annoying as the large woman tried to get her legs to her sure it was a pain in the ass to climb while holding them but hey Ava cared for the girl.. then again if she was running about like this she'd be fine wouldn't she? yeah no Mark would probably be pissed if she just shrugged about the situation and let her run off like that. "ANAYA dghghsd9igfhg" she'd say with serious annoyance watching her fly off towards the gate damn it she'd need to chase here again the thing she did for friends hey? welp least she caught up with Anya at the gate or collapsed gates really. "hey guys... everything going well now.. also what the fuck happened"

 

[ZackStop]

Ren listened to what the woman had to say while he looked for more survivors, but she was ultimately wasting her breath. All Narzas seemed to be concerned about at that moment was making a point and trying to sound right. The way she tried to justify what she did and disparaged him for thinking different just reminded him of Tefra. Maybe all these killers were the same. Maybe Nazra was just like him despite what she was doing here.

"Would you quit trying to ask me questions about ethics? This really isn't the time!" He said with his back turned as he was trying to find anyone still alive. It really just felt like she wanted to prove him wrong rather than help the numerous people in need of saving. But that was all the attention he was willing to give Narzas though, he wanted undivided attention on the people in need. He really had to wondered what they thought about the two bickering while they were pinned under debris. Probably something like 'That's nice, but what about me?!' He didn't what them thinking that their only saviors were so dysfunctional.

He continued to jump from place to place with Phalanx following him, lifting and shoving slabs of concrete and pieces of metal, but the more he ran the more exhausted he got, not from the act itself, but the smell of death that lingered. These survivors were the smallest fraction of everyone who was here. He places his hands on his knees and took deep breaths, but almost didn't want to breathe at all in a place like this. He wipes his face with his forearm and continued to help those who called out.

Ilana held her head for a moment after hearing what Narzas said. "Damnit, this is gonna take too long..." She picked her head back up and made her way to the wall where she had original made some stepping stones and placed a hand on it. She closed her eyes and focused, once again attuning to the natural tremors made around her. Footsteps, running machinery, any small heartbeat this floating land of Nye gave all culminated into a voice that she could hear. And when she needed it's power, there was an answer. Ilana pushed her had against the wall to make more platforms appear. It was a slow process, but slowly a stair case began to form, and Ilana used it to make her way to the top. Her range was only so far and had to be close enough to a surface to manipulate it. "This should give them some hope." She thought.

Ren checked for anymore survivors before finding a wall that had been carved out in the destruction, not quite a tunnel but almost like a large cubby that he could walk into. He didn't see anyone there but did manage to find a piece of metal, shining a golden hue. It was something he recognized but he didn't know what at first. It was only when he picked it up that the memory started to become clear. The chain hung through the gaps between is fingers as a decorated key rested in his palm. He stared at it for a while, mindlessly standing there in a daze, only to be startled when he heard a ghostly voice wheeze out his name. He jumped at the sound, gripping at his chest as the chain dangled from his hand. He looked around from the source and began walking in that direction.

 

[Arcanist]

Faraji Aguta

Mentions: Goliath Emphoa

Once, the mines collapsed in Odiegu. Mind you, it was far before Faraji was a thought in his parents’, even his grandparents’ minds. His father sat him on his knee and recounted the same tale his own grandfather spun after being caught in collapse.

“Man thinks he can control nature, Faraji. But one false move, an incorrectly calculated explosion, and Nature will take its course.” He warned, while Faraji’s feet dangled, thoughts somewhat pointed towards what his mother was making them for dinner. “My babu was lucky to escape with three of his limbs after everything crumbled in those mines. He was trapped for days before they managed to pull him out.”

Faraji wasn’t sure why he was telling him this. Warning him, perhaps, that you could not control everything, that man was not invincible. Perhaps to instil fear of the mighty force of Nature Like most children, he did not consider the warning for what it was.

“Why do you work in the mines then, baba, if they’re so dangerous?”

His father hummed, almost as if he expected the question. “It is easier now than it was in my babu’s day. The money is getting better, even if the labour is not as tough.” He scratched his beard, and Faraji shifted, uncomfortable at the sound it made. “Dewanma’s machinery improves it. But it does not prevent the same thing happening again, even if it lessens the likelihood of it. Remember that Faraji.”

The little boy would remember it in time, though, for now, he kicked his legs and commented, “I don’t think I want to work in the mines. It’s very dirty work.”

His father laughed. “It is. I don’t think the dust and dirt is destined for you, Faraji.”

He almost laughed at that now. Faraji wondered, under the rubble and infrastructure made by man, if he himself had quickened Nature’s great revenge. He let the stranger Taust through on the principle he would not last beyond their most seasoned fighters. Most appraisers had a few every year, so not to make the games so unpredictable, easily digestible for the masses. How many people saw this? When did they cut the transmissions to so many across the world? His greatest failing televised across the airwaves.

And now he lay under debris and near bodies, listening to the screams and shouting and shrieking from grown adults and children. What he couldn’t imagine his great-grandfather suffering through became a sickening reality for him, something he never in all his years thought would be possible. He wished he was sitting on his father’s knee again, not caring and not knowing such a horrifying reality.

“PEEK-A-BOO! PEEK-A-BOO!” He listened to his familiar squawk, rock crumbling occasionally, which he could only imagine was shifting debris from the macaw’s talons. Most people thought Lapis’ timing was never appropriate.

“Peek-a-boo,” Faraji mustered up the strength to call back a few times. People took his words and imitations at face value. Faraji knew better. He squinted around him with one eye, the other stinging and shut. Blood had run into his eye. He would have wiped it away, but any time he tried to move his hand, he remembered it was pinned down. It provided a good distraction for him from thinking of his fellow appraisers. He was sure they were all dead. If the bombs and destruction hadn't killed them, their familiars being snatched from them was almost sure to put the final nail in their coffins.

He thought of Casimir. His precious boy. Faraji was glad he insisted Myra keep him from the Games until he was a little older. Perhaps he could be shielded from this horror for a little longer. He thought of Myra too. ‘I wish it could have been different.’ He could have treated her better than he had. Things could have been different. How apt, to go over his regrets now, but never consider them when there was no threat of danger.

Faraji heard more voices. He did not hold out for their owners to find him, but to his own surprise, two people had stopped by him, blocking out the light of day as they stopped beside him. He squinted at them as he was reassured, he would be pulled out, but he wasn’t to move as they attempted to get him out.

“Thank you, Elriel,” Faraji smiled weakly, chuckled even. “I’m not going anywhere, so you needn’t worry.” He was desperate to crawl out, but he wouldn’t fight with the man. “Faraji. A pleasure…or rather, a displeasure, given the circumstances…”

 

[Jet]

​

"Focus on the present. Keep moving forward. Free my emotions and let time heal the wounds… I think that's everything." Mischa looked down the hole of twisted metal and shattered stone. The acrid plumes rising through bent rebar and sparking wires. The abyss that was blacker than a dull moonless night, hiding untold horrors of human suffering.

Mischa wiped a tear from her face and curiously blinked twice, blankly staring at the fox on her shoulder. She hesitantly pet his head but there was no warmth in her touch, only reflex. "Strange, why am I crying?" she she mumbled before facing Vixie with a stare. "I wonder though, how can you stop a person from breaking? We're all alone in a locked room." She knowingly tapped her head. "And you can't fix what you can't touch, even if you can see it."

"But your help is appreciated. I'll give a proper thanks when my other half's awake." Her gaze slowly returned to the smoldering abyss, squinting as smoke burned her eyes. Her face glistened as hot air blew from the hell far below, almost like opening a hot oven's door. It was baffling how anyone was alive at the bottom of the pit, but that would change in minutes. Mischa sensed their fading energy and heard their sad cries for help. Their painful moans and prayers for divine intervention, mixed with the names of lost friends and family.

Mischa felt another tear roll down her face, but she wasn't sure why it was there. Not when her emotions were neatly tucked behind a wall. "Must be the smoke," she said, crouching beside the abyss as she answered Vixie. "Nine survivors; one is unharmed but the others are fading."

"I won't be much help with moving rubble either Rat, but—

Her lips suddenly trembled as she felt warmth in her chest; her sadness and pain loomed over the wall like a wave. Her neurons sparked alive and then she realized, grimly as ever, that her mind was waking up. "It seems… the nightmare was enough to rouse my better half."

"But I won't hold us back again." Mischa's second half awoke and her first instinct was to run away. To bury herself in blueprints and books for hours and hours and hours, hiding in the covers until she fell asleep. She wanted to escape everything. To rewind time and pretend the games never happened — but then she remembered what the others said.

"Keep moving forward," she whispered, thinking only about saving innocent lives.

"Focus on the present," she said, clutching the mission like a raft on stormy seas. Knowing that without it, without purpose and a reason to keep going, she would curl into a ball and die.

"Just focus on the present," she repeated before looking down the hole, her mouth twisting into a sick smile.

"Even if the present is this... shit." She looked at Rat and harshly chuckled. "We're no better off than you; a dolphin, cat and fox with no earth magic between us, but we gotta—

Her words caught in her throat for a moment. "We gotta find a way to save those poor bastards, one way or another." She looked over at Nyall with the same lingering sadness. "Make sure he's okay and join us at the bottom, we gotta go before it's too late."

She walked away from the abyss and gently lowered the boy from her back; thankfully he was out like a light. "Sleep well little one." She removed her jacket and covered him like a mother beside his bed, before finally facing the others. "I can lower us down with a bit of wind castin, unless anyone else has a better idea?"

Emphoa Lost Echo Anne Boolean

 

[ManofManyRoles]

𝓜𝓪𝓿𝓲𝓸𝓻 '𝓜𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓲𝓬𝓴' 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴𝓮𝓻
Mavior alternated between mumbling nonsense to himself and coordinating with Anya to remove slabs of rubble, blocks of brick, and the occasional twisted piece of metal here or there. Unfortunately, now and again they were prone to finding 'bits' of another person, oft just charred flesh that one couldn't really call a person. Mavior seemed hauntingly unbothered by such a sight, grabbing it with a gloved hand and tossing it aside on the ground with as much respect as he could. As they continued to work he had to pause, looking over the collapsed rubble for but a moment, mumbling softly to himself as he thought aloud. What first seemed like nonsense mumbling had some meaning to it, and if Anya bothered to listen to him between his calmly stated orders of where next to pull, it might start to draw a bigger picture. Every piece so far had earned a pause as Mavior mumbled arithmetic and advanced mathematical theorem to himself in rapid-fire order, numbers a tapestry of madness that, honestly...wasn't so mad after all. Though the rate at which he was able to spit out such information was perhaps atypically fast, usually one had to take a moment to think on these sorts of situations. The entire time he'd been running numbers and probabilities on where to pull, far more than just 'pull this because it looks safe'. It was all a process that was being built in his mind each step of the way, even if some of their movements seemed more hazardous than others. He slowly shook his head, goggles going up to look towards Anya, voice softened to a whisper. "We need to move the massive slab on top, but I don't think either of us is strong enough to lift such." The slab in question was a massive piece of stone that, up until now, they'd only worked to uncover, with other sets of rubble right beneath it that looked far easier to grab and remove...though in truth, there was a solid chance moving those other stones right now could cause the entire thing to come tumbling down with how the jigsaw puzzle of collapsed stone had fallen.

Ace, for her part, was blessedly distracted by the younger boy at her side. For better or worse, Brian was a distraction to the half-lucid older woman. A distraction from total numbness and cold, somewhere her eyes naturally wanted to rest as opposed to looking over and finally seeing the charred side of her body. "Sandy? Plural? I uhm," she muttered as she tried to understand his logic...nope, couldn't follow that one right now, not with her head currently. And yet, he was already infinitely less of a headache than her kid brother, at least he had the excuse of still being young. "Oh...the familiar? It's a Mantis Shrimp...likes to punch. See's a lot more colors than we do," she mumbled again. She still sounded understandably terrified to some degree, but this was a distraction, and she'd cling onto it for dear life. Unfortunately for Brian, for whatever reason, the mantis shrimp appeared stuck wandering around in circles on her midriff. Perhaps that was for the best, as such a creature's tail had a hidden spike on either side...and it only took one clumsy grab from a child to regret it. "She's...out of it. Kinda like me. Doesn't know what's going on," she mumbled.

Mavior looked over to Anya as she leaned over to whisper a promise of a doctor of some kind to him, even as maniacal cackling could be heard down in the arena below. That was a lot to unpack down there, but they didn't have time for that right now. "An offer to keep on the table. I need to get to her, first. The blast...she's in direct sunlight. That's why we need to get her out." As far as reasoning went, that was as vague and mad as they came. Though to Mav, it made perfect sense. Any balm she may have been wearing would no doubt have run the risk of outright cooking off of her in the heat, and if that was the case, they wouldn't have long to get her out until whatever wasn't charred would become a less abysmal shade of angry red. But there was still the chance she still had a protective coat, it was impossible to properly tell right now without wasting precious moments. As an impressively large woman made her way over, Mav had to look up...and up just a bit more to see her face. Well, saving graces, perhaps? "It's unclear to the specifics of the event. But there's a woman beneath the rubble. Please, can you help with the slab? It needs to be removed, gently." Mav motioned toward the aforementioned large slab of stone, under which was indeed a woman who looked very similar to him. Same extremely pale skin tone, and same goggles... the difference being the extremely charred side of her body that she perhaps hadn't noticed yet, given she was speaking to a young boy at her side.

Lost Echo Huntertabbysandshark3
(Mention of EldridSmith 's Mark down there in the arena)

​

 

[Lost Echo]

Anya

Having returned to the rubble, Anya wasn’t thinking. Or she was thinking too much. It was a challenge to breathe, but was that the dust or the tightness of her throat? Every so often she squeezed her eyes shut to release the tears blurring her vision, but still, she worked. It was awkward. It was hard. She couldn’t figure out where to put her feet, or how to bend to reach the next piece. For while, it took all her concentration to just move, nothing but this boy’s orders came through. But slowly, for time meant nothing will pressing down at the same time, she adapted. She figured out it was easier to shorten her legs, out of proportion, so she wouldn’t need to bend so far. She spread her feet out, lengthening the toes, to create a stabler base.

As the movements grew natural, Maverick’s words trickled through the onslaught. As soon as she heard numbers her attention broke long enough to stare at him. Those few seconds let the equations register. Turning back to the horror, she kept her focus mostly on the fast string of numbers. She would miss things, either not knowing a theorem or it was simply lost in his pace of words, but slowly she could look at the wreckage and overlay the angles in her mind. She began to predict his next order, saving time with a short smile. She only went for the safe ones, letting him decide which to hazard, but she found the work easier when she could tell the plan.

Finally, they were at the tipping point. Together they stared at the massive slab on top of the slender girl. Her mind was racing. She could probably break it with a sharp downward kick though she’d prefer her real legs to do that. It was easier to control the force. Regardless, that concussive force would just transfer through to Ace beneath, never mind the crumbling dirt getting into her wounds. Sounding really doubtful she said, “I’d be better kicking it than pushing…” After she offered Mark’s help, he spoke of a need to move her first. Looking up, she frowned. Sure it wouldn’t be dark for a while, but the sun was going down. Still, she’d seen his mind working. If that’s what he believed, then she would follow him, “If you’re sure…” She returned her gaze to the slab of concrete. How could they move it? A lever would reduce the force needed, but then it’d be an uncontrolled fall. What to do…

Beneath them, ignorant of the looming slab, Brian had given up on picking up the familiar. Putting his hands back in his lap, as he belatedly remembered not to touch people’s familiars without permission, he asked, “How does it punch without fists? And wha’d’ya mean sees more colors? Like…” He scrunched up his face in thought. “Imaginary ones? I have an imaginary friend! Maybe she can see him! His name is Harry.”

Anya turned from the seemingly hopeless problem to something like her name. “Ava?!” The last thing she was expecting was the massive woman to have been chasing behind her. “What are you doing here?” Then she spotted them, “My legs! Thanks!” She was surprised, knowing the legs were heavy, the woman carried them with apparent ease. “Let me see them,” Turning she ran over to her friend, looking comically small with her shortened legs. Growing up to her normal height (barely her shoulder) she took the heavy limbs from her, as she asked, “Why aren’t you with Mark? Is he okay?” Having already assumed the two of them were, she sounded unworried.

Returning to Maverick’s side, she quickly inspected the legs. Frowning, she noticed the halter was broken. Not unexpected, it wasn’t built for that directional force. She’d have to fix it later. Ace first. Stopping at a seat, she dropped them across it. “I can’t wear them yet. I won’t be stable enough to help.”

Hearing Maverick speak to Ava, she bit her lips, keeping her confusing experience back until a better time. Depending on how involved Nye got, she’d try to tell all the survivors, but Ace came first. “Yeah, we need your help. C’mere.” As she neared the trio, she introduced them, “This is Maverick, Ace, and Brian.” The little boy’s eyes were wide at the woman’s size, and he forgot to wave. “Everyone, this is Ava.” She led the way to Maverick’s side, “Okay, tell us what to do.”

ManofManyRoles Huntertabbysandshark3
EldridSmith

 

[Fred Colon]

"So you're worried about Nye, too, then? You don't think they'll just let you go after a debriefing?" Kilderkin had her suspicions, too, but she wanted to hear someone elses thoughts.

"There are lots of worse things out there than pirates, I'd think." Kilderkin said, smirking back at her. Despite herself, she was beginning to like Esther's snappy, sarcastic, no nonsense demeanor. Even if the other woman was, apparently, intent on ferreting out everything Kilderkin wanted to hide. But that was just another challenge, wasn't it? Kilderkin did enjoy challenges. And if she was wrong about Kwame, then everything would be out in the open soon anyway. Or she'd be dead. It seemed like everyone in Nye had a high chance of dying sometime soon, though. So that was nothing special.

"Anyway. I'm interested in finding out whose behind all of this. Why some of us are still alive." She said as she wrapped a bandage around a lacerated knee.

Kilderkin realized she was being too cold and clinical about this, but Esther seemed like someone who responded better to straightforwardness. Besides, as much as she put pride in her ability to stay in character... what she'd just seen had shaken her. It was easier to be in control when she was cold.

She turned to the singer, whose spine seemed to have evaporated.

"Go back to your parents, if you must." Kilderkin shrugged. "But times of chaos are also times of opportunity. The rules of society... become blurry when people are scared. Truly scared. Social norms turn out to be not so important as people make them out to be in times of peace. Laws, too, can suddenly be bent further or broken completely." She paused, and then corrected herself. "Well, more than they're already broken by those in power. If you liked your old life, by all means, try to go back to it. If not? Well. My gut says there is more to come. None of it good, but that's the best time to make changes. You could stick around with me. People working together tend to get more things done. Or forge your own path. Whatever you prefer. "

rozukitsune Lost Echo

 

[ZackStop]

There in Gem City, a lonely little shop stood, the only sound within it was a small plasma TV. A muffled sound of cheers and excited speech played from it as fighters from the games fought valiantly. The sun shined through the big glass window where decorative engine parts and other things of the sort sat. You'd know what the place was all about with one small look at the humble establishment. Only one man sat in the shop, finishing his work. It was only 10 in the morning and the past few days have been slow as a snail crawl.

The older man behind the counter stood up, ticket in hand as he got up from his finished product. It was a hand sized windup toy he had been fiddling with in his boredom, but he was old, feeling the time and ware slowing him. He couldn't coop himself up inside any longer and no one was coming to the shop anyway. Everyone was at home watching the games.

Tetsu Shimamoto, Ren's grandfather, put on his coat and hat that stayed on the coat rack and closed down the shop early. He had contemplated it for a long time, going to Nye to watch his grandson fight. It would mean so much to him. The worry of manning the shop was such a worry to the boy that he convinced Tetsu to stay, but it wasn't worth it. The older man just had to go and experience Nye at least one more time in his last few years. He locked up and headed for the train station, the same train station Ren went to when he shipped himself off to the great city in the sky.

On that train, Tetsu wondered about the past, deep in thought as he watched the endless blue sky beneath him. He wondered about Ren and Phalanx and how they were doing, before thinking about what happened that day. The younger Ren had run home crying that day, the day Phalanx came to be. "To think a boy his age would have the courage to walk across a railroad above the clouds." Tetsu said to himself before letting out a raspy little laugh. The story Ren told just never made sense to him. He fell through the track and found himself in Gem city again. That is what he claimed at least, but how that could be was beyond Tetsu's comprehension. It was just a young boys tall tale.

Tetsu reached into his buttoned up shirt to pull out a bronze key that hung around his neck. It dangled back and forth as it's shine reflected off into the man's eyes. "He's going to do great things." He said under his breath.

---

Now dangling from Ren's hand, the same key his Grandfather was wearing was now down here. Ren's heart sunk as he stood there in this grim pit of rock and corpses. he didn't want this to be true, it couldn't be true. Why would his Grandfather be here?

Ren heard a voice call out to him. "No-" He looked to the direction it was coming from and walked to it. A pile of rubble, a mix of large and small rocks on top of each other. Ren stared at it when he heard the voice again. "Ren..." It was weak and raspy, but he knew the voice. He didn't waste time to lift some rocks and dust the rest away, and his fears were realized. From the waist up, his grandfather laid with his head covered in dirt and blood, scuffed up from the fall, but still holding onto life.

"Grand dad...?" Tetsu reached out to his grandson, and Ren clasped his hands around it. "Hey, Ren." He gave a smile but he was weak. "Why- Why are you here?" Ren said with some shakiness in his voice. "What happened to manning the shop?" His grandfather just laughed and coughed. "You thought I would miss your fight with business so slow? I had to... cheer you on." He struggled to move his legs, but they were trapped. Ren tried to keep his composure in this grim moment, cracking a smile with his grandfather. "I- I let you down. I didn't even get to fight, you know? I was DQed for being late." Tetsu hoisted himself up the best he could. "Some bad luck huh? Us Shimamotos. You miss your fight, and I get caught in a pitfall-" He coughed some more, this time finding blood on his sleeve.

Ren began moving rocks up and out of the way, he dug the pebbles out of the way with Phalanx' help so they could free Ren's Grandfather. "I'm gonna get you out of here, don't worry Grand Dad!" Tetsu grunted through his teeth as the rocks began to move off of him. He knew without a doubt they were broken. His bones weren't as strong as they used to be, and it was apparent to him that he wasn't getting out of here. "Hello Phalanx, ah.. good to see you." He looked down at his legs then back to his grandson. "Ren... you did a good job... You would have made your Grandmother proud... Your parents too..." Once the rocks were off of him, Ren reached out to pick him up. "Come on, lets get you out of here." Tetsu sighed, his energy starting to dwindle to nothing. "Oh Ren... how did you grow up to be such a selfless young man...? Ren, I think we both know I'm not getting out of this pit..." Ren's spirit didn't want to break, he only insisted his Grandfather take his hand. "Come on, I'm not leaving you here!" He carefully got under Tetsu's arm and hoisted him up. His grandfather smiled as he found some strength left in his leg, just enough to hobble along with his Grandson, but he knew he hadn't much time left.

"You've made me proud... Ren. All these people you're helping... It's greater than any victory the games could offer..." He coughed some more, feeling as though each one was breaking something inside him. "I'm just glad I found you Grand Dad." The two made it out of the dark and into the light. By now the dust had settled enough to let in the light. "I was thinking about the day Phalanx came to be. How you came home crying... Do you remember the story you told me? How something in the clouds protected you? I've thought of that day for a long time and still can't wrap my head around it..." Ren lifted his Grandfather up some more before speaking. "You shouldn't speak right now. Save your strength okay?" He didn't listen however, Tetsu continued with his story. "I think you're going to do great things in this world Ren... Let that adventurous spirit take you to hell and back if that's what you're meant to do, Ren..." He reached up and patted Ren on the chest. "I believe... someone is looking out for you... So don't be afraid of what's out there..."

The older man suddenly went weak in the leg, nearly forcing Ren to the ground trying to hold him up. "Hey! Grand Dad stay with me now! We're almost there!" Ren wouldn't let himself buckle, he wasn't the strongest but managed to keep his Grandfather up. "Ren-" He reached up weakly, pointing at the key in Ren's hand, the same hand he held his arm. "That key goes to a lockbox. It was your grandmother's..." He tried to explain everything what what life force he had left, but it was draining fast. "Inside it... it... belongs to you now..." Ren listened, looking at the key, but none of this made sense to him. "Grand Dad- I-I don't understand. Why are you telling me this now?" The color in Tetsu's eyes were fading. All became black but he could feel his consciousness lingering. "You have to o-open it- It will lead to- your-" He went to take a breath, but it was too late. What little he had left was gone, and all that escaped his lips was the smallest wheeze of air leaving his body. Tetsu Shimamoto was deceased.

Ren just stood there, the key making the smallest jingle as it swung back and forth as it had before. The words his grandfather spoke burned into his mind. He was quiet and somber, but no tears were shown. All he could do now was get him out of this pit, so Ren covered his Grandfather's eyes and kept trudging along with the limp body. He kept his head down, the light lending his face a shadow to hide his expression. A mixture of different feelings swirled around in his head making it hard for him to tell what emotion he really had.

One way or another, Ren made it to the top and escaped the pit. He didn't say a word, all he did was walk away, doing his best not to have the body's feet drag too much. Once he felt they were a safe distance away from the destruction, Ren laid his Grandfather down in the arena. He took the cowl he had around his shoulder, and placed it over their face. All he could do now was wait for paramedics to find their way into the colosseum, or a mortician, or maybe a Centurion. He didn't really know, but after everything he had done, everything he had lost or failed to do, it all came to ahead with the last person left in his life being taken by the destruction. He was just so exhausted, so waiting for someone more equipped for the situation was all he could hope for right now. He needed time to process and regain his strength. Ren and Phalanx just sat there, staring blanking at the deceased man.

 

[Huntertabbysandshark3]

Ava Marco
interaction: Lost Echo ManofManyRoles​

ava just smiled cheerfully her sharpish teeth showing off as Anya walked up to her. "yeah couldn't leave you haven't seen mark anywhere.. but.. im sure he's fine he's made of tough stuff so i doubt he'd been that badly hurt just glad i found you oh and your legs too" she'd say with a hearty laugh before looking at the situation at had damn it was kinda shit.. there was someone stuck under the ruble too no clue who that was but ava was happy to help, after all one of them was asking her to help out once again flashing a toothy grin. "oh sure easy enough to move now kids mind standing back iv got work to do" shed say happily using a bit of magic to help her lift the stone slab then her own insane strenght along with it she manage to raise and flip it to one side freeing the person beneth. "there we go tada"

 

[Arcanist]

Brynwyr Protheroe


Mentions: Fred Colon Jet ​

“Quite alright...” Brynwyr scoffed. She was sorry she asked. Thousands of bodies, and Jeston was one in waves of them. Rhys probably was too. She clenched her teeth at the thought, sobering and practical, and stinging as any wound. It wasn’t fair to direct her anger at Howard. It wasn’t fair to direct it to anyone here, other than herself. But she had to take it on the chin. She would stop and lament only when she knew Rhys was safe. She owed it to his father.

She did not feel compelled to leave as the conversation continued between Adrian and Howard, her eyes scanning the bodies again for dark hair. Perhaps if she ignored all the possible markers, she could delay his death. He would be dubiously alive for a moment longer. That was all Brynwyr could do for him and herself in this moment. She would never forgive herself for his father’s death, but she was not sure what she would do if she knew Rhys suffered along with him.

Brynwyr’s gaze moved to a pill that Howard swallowed, and she wondered if grabbing the whole bottle would sort out the mess in her head. That lapse in her emotional psyche disappeared as soon as it came. She shook her head, in answer to Howard, and in a quiet scolding to herself. “Keep them.” Sedation was as temporary as armour. It only shielded you from the elements so much until they lost their effect.

Adrian had visibly lost all patience in dealing with Howard. No answers, and the offer of pills was enough to turn him away. She nodded to him, still alive, she indicated well enough, and followed his gaze into the crowd, murmuring, "Hopefully Rhys has been afforded the same amount of luck as myself." She tried not to seem so dejected when he wasn’t recognised, though, she realised now she did not give an apt description, only so little to go on.

His hum pumped a new course of adrenaline into her. She held her breath. Bryn followed Adrian’s gesture, recognising the spotted gecko that he pointed out. She blew out. No, she could not be relieved yet. But she could hope, and that was enough for her. “Good spot, Adrian.” If Petrie was still here, Rhys was here, regardless of whatever state he was in.

Brynwyr started advancing the steps, though, she paused and looked back to Adrian. She felt hesitant to break the dead silence with any sort of laughter, to think back on the conversation which certainly hadn’t aged well in the past few hours. But she managed something of a smile back and nodded. “I’m glad as well. To see you unhurt,” she added. “And I was too stubborn to leave unfinished debates behind. I won’t be going anywhere for a while yet.” She let herself smile that bit more before she looked at Howard, seeing him gather himself.

“Howard,” these were no longer times for pleasantries and titles, “perhaps you’ll join us. I can imagine there are many people here that will need your assistance too.” Better to make him feel useful, because she believed he could be, in some sense. People here needed every shred of help that they could get. They owed it to them for surviving alongside them.

Brynwyr ascended into the stands then, having followed Adrian’s gesture towards Rhys’s familiar. Petrie was no large thing, but stood out enough with her spots to be noticeable. “Petrie,” she called to the gecko, who raised her head and chirped. She jumped willingly into her hands. “Where is Rhys?”

The gecko circled in her hand before stopping, pointed towards a hole this ruined gate had also left behind. Brynwyr’s mouth twitched, in worry or irritation, it was not easy to tell. “Bloody fool,” she murmured, moving toward the hole as Petrie climbed up her arm. She heard conversation, shouts from the hole, and she shouted, “Rhys! Rhys, are you down there?”

There was a pause, some stirring below - she couldn’t see so well with how dark it was - before she finally got a response.

“Brynwyr, is that you?! You’re alive!”

The woman sighed, some relief releasing despite that coil that wrapped itself around her chest. “Don’t be so surprised,” she told him, “I thought I was more than capable.” How she wished they were walking to the stadium again.

“Ah, well…I did say that, didn’t I?” He admitted.

Brynwyr swallowed back. Their reunion could be short lived. “You’re a bloody fool, Rhys, finding yourself down there. How do you expect to get out?”

“The same way I got in - by climbing up with Petrie. I thought perhaps I could help get others out…I just…need to figure out the logistics. And I need the extra hands to help get these people out!”

A bleeding heart as always. Brynwyr always thought he would have made a better knight than scholar in that sense. But kind-hearted knights did not often go far. She sighed again. “Okay. Of course. It’s going to be alright. Just try to keep everyone calm down there.” He was braver than her, going down there, with the damage to the people that had been done.

 

[Emphoa]

Adamaris did their best to blink away the shock and pain from the explosion that had happened. The ringing in their ears was almost deafening but what was worse was the scream that erupted from their friend, shutting their eyes tightly as they pushed down the panic that wanted to overtake them in that moment. They did their best to focus on Elriel, his words and his expressions. It was then that he processed that yes- Elriel's father was there and their chest tightened at the realization as they dropped the wall and they followed after their friend. It wasn't hard to spot him from a crowd, a man he had hoped to be able to see again. Yet, they only felt they had brought some sort of a curse on Elriel as they watched their friend properly mourn and they let out their own shaky breath.

Is my master here too, among the sea of bodies?

They bit their lip at the thought, and part of them did not want to find out- did not want to see what had become of him. Because they knew this loss well, and they did not want to experience it again. They stepped forward instead, placing a comforting hand on Elriel's shoulder and giving a slight squeeze to reassure him that they were there, their eyes glancing over the older man- now lifeless, on the ground in front of them. It was hard to think, now, this was the last time they would see him.

They let out another shaky breath, holding back their emotions so that they could be strong- like Elriel was being. Their eyes flitted back to the white haired man, pursing their lips together before they gave a curt nod. They followed, almost numbly as they tried not to think about all the dead surrounding them, about the very few who had survived. They covered their ears, briefly, and snapped out of it once their friend had pointed out someone trapped within the rubble with a flicker of surprise.

"Don't worry- both of you." Ada spoke up, their voice soft but firm as their eyebrows furrowed and they focused. "I can move it- I can control the Earth." They spoke up, and their focus became solely on saving this stranger, someone trapped from the explosions no doubt. At least, they had been able to survive and at least there were people able to survive at all... And at least...

Elriel was still here.

They clenched their teeth at the thought, carefully continuing to move the rubble from the stranger as they glanced back to him. "... I am Adamaris, I am glad to see you relatively well, Faraji- you are better than most." They admitted, stepping forward once they had gotten some of the heavier rubble off and they glanced back to Elriel. "Help me get him out? That should help well enough..."

Goliath Arcanist

 

[Lost Echo]

Esther was going through the bodies. She *investigated* each to see if they lived. Most of the dead were reporters. Their notepads scattered like leaves around them, some readable while others were smeared with blood. Ignoring them, she went from body to body like a bee with flowers, stopping just long enough to check before moving on. Finally, she found one whole, with little damage though he was unresponsive. Grunting like a pig to drown out her curses, she turned him over onto his back. Then she worked to get her arms under his shoulders to lift.

you do what you gotta do in life or else you end up in the Undercity."

“That’s usually what someone already in the Undercity does. What they must.” Esther muttered, dragging the unconscious man with too many meals, to their pile of tended patients. She admittedly didn’t know much about that. Her parents were well off in Albion. Nye was a cesspool of greed and wasted money entirely. She knew more of the corruption in its upper levels than what the desperate had to deal with.

Taking a break, she turned to Kilderkin at her questions, she deadpanned, “I hate it when you ask stupid questions. We survived and they aren’t gonna let us go until they know how.” Shaking her head, Esther admitted, “If I could just leave and let it be, I would. There are enough mysteries in this world, I have already decided to focus my curiosity on animals.” It was a bit of a lie, not in the action but that she could keep herself from wondering wtf had occurred.

As Renn began to speak of her worries, Esther dropped the man, wincing when he grunted loudly. Still, she stared at the woman, “You hadn’t sounded too eager to be Mrs. Rich Bozo. Why the hell would you want to go back?” Picking up the man, with a muttered apology, she finished her trek letting him rest half up against a block of cement. She let Kilderkin speak, agreeing with her take on the change. What she disagreed with was, “If you aren’t careful protections can be lost. Nye can use this as an excuse to control even more of its citizens and probably the world’s.” She nodded to Kilderkin, “A pack is stronger together.”

 

[Jet]

​

Walter opened his eyes and squinted in the low evening light, vision blurring as he looked around the arena. "Christ on a cross," he said as pain shot through his head, almost like nails were piercing his skull. "This is truly miserable." His nose wrinkled at the lingering smoke in the stands, a familiar smell after years of reporting overseas. Like an old enemy who never seemed to disappear, waiting patiently for a descent to madness.

"But where are my manners?" He stood and stepped over corpses and chunks of concrete, approaching Esther with a sheepishly weak smile "Many thanks," he began. "It seems we're destined to live through interesting times." He reached into his pocket and withdrew a pack of cigarettes; a bad habit he wanted to stop before it killed him, but that could wait for now.

"Might be too interesting though." He winced at the distant screams of dying men, another enemy he never wanted to see again — and especially not here. In a haven through years of reporting distant wars, profiting from pain like an arms dealer.

He was sure there was irony to be found there, but he was too tired to reach it. Too numb to care about the suffering he was accustomed to, so he did the one thing he knew best. He raised his camera, loosely hanging from his neck by a strap, and started taking pictures.

Click

Click

Click

He captured the many corpses piled around him, their faces twisted into sick parodies of emotion. Yet he was unbothered by the familiar carnage. "What's a good hook?" he mumbled to himself. "War is a coin standing on edge, with both sides only seeing their own." He took a picture of a collapsed gate. There were people scouring rubble and looking for survivors, a touching story for the associated press. "No no, that's too moderate."

He swiveled to the group who'd pulled him from the dead. He recognized them all from his coverage of the games, snapping their picture while musing, "War is a pendulum, no matter how far away it swings, it'll always return with a vengeance."

"I like that." He lowered his camera and lit a cigarette, blowing a cloud as he said, "Name's Walter Murrow, foreign correspondent."

"I see you're having quite the debate? Funny how pain wakes our inner philosophers." He chuckled and slowly tapped his black camera, a nervous tick from the Hellenic wars. "If you're all willing, can I join your conversation? Historic moments deserve proper recording, including the thoughts of those present."

He paused to consider his next words. "As far as Nye's concerned, Lord Vincent is — well — certainly an ambitious man. He will use the chaos to increase his personal power, but the same can be said of the council and high nobles. Who gains the most ground is anyone's guess for now, but my wager is on the nobles."

Lost Echo Fred Colon rozukitsune

 

[Emphoa]

Rat was quiet for a long moment while he was watching, listening to both Vixie and to Mischa. Pursing his lips together as he glanced between them and his eyebrows furrowed as he focused his attention on the red head, letting out a breath as a tear dropped from her eyes and he only frowned much deeper. He didn't say anything, not yet, as he kept following the two and he let out a breath as he approached the abyss, he didn't need to look inside to know itwould be bad, it was going to be hot and he could hear people from deep inside that needed their help.

Would they be enough?

They would have to be, he decided.

Rat carefully started to set the boy down that he was carrying with the other, his expression softening as he wished he could have had something to at least cover them with. But he supposed this would just have to work.

It wasn't until he was directly spoken to that his eyes snapped back to the young woman, he stepped forward, careful as he reached out to place a hand on her shoulder and he gave her a gentle squeeze. "I know." He spoke up, his eyes watched her as he spoke up. "You're being strong." He let out a breath, releasing her shoulder as he let her move on- for now. She could grieve later, when there were people safe from this... disaster, when they were alone with their thoughts. That was when they could all let their emotions get the better of them. He brought up a hand, giving a nod as he brushed his finger through his hair nervously.

"Right- we'll be able to help them. I hope, at least." He sweat at the thought, and he hoped his magitech would serve to be moderately helpful. "No- I think that's the best bet that we have." Rat finally stated, and when it was all said and done- he squinted against the heat of the abyss as Mischa had lowered them down. Thankful that she had some sort of wind magic that would allow the small group to be able to get down. It was a gruesome sight, and his stomach twisted as he coughed out, trying to hold himself together as he waited for the others to join him with Mischa's help.

"... This is a lot- we're going to need you to help us get them back up out of here Mischa." He finally stated once she had joined them, his eyes glancing between everyone. "Let's do what we can to help out, right?"

Lost Echo Jet Anne Boolean