[GAME] [RP] Incarnatum Mȳthologiae [SIGNUPS ALWAYS OPEN] page 22

Rosalyn Lightfell

Rose

Technically, I don’t really need eyes to see… So I vaguely feel Adrian sitting down about a meter away from me. Is he perhaps…?

No… I’m expecting too much from him. He’s just a stranger, after all; I doubt he’s interested in how I feel. And I don’t want to bother him with my own problems…

I try to stay as quiet as possible. But that’s getting harder and harder…

Adrian

Rosalyn begins to sob out loud. She has either failed to see me, seen me and hasn’t reacted, or something else. I don’t really know which one, but I am willing to bet that sobbing is clue enough.

breaking the ‘Silence’, I say, quietly, “Rose, I lost my home and family once. The first thing I did was cry and run. Mostly cry. People survive, because thats what we do. You’ll be okay.” I continue to stay in my sitting position, a meter away from Rosalyn.

Coal

I smell something dead. I stand up, look around and see a piece of a dead bear lying on the ground. “No point letting food go to waste.” I say as I look for wood and rocks to use. I set up a fire ring in the middle of the clearing and create a wooden spit to roast the bear. “Now I just need an actual fire.”

[Knoob is no longer playing due to a lack of inspiration and creativity. He said I can modkill his character.]

Daryl McDowell

“You! Youuuuuuuuuuu!” An indignant expression is on Daryl’s face, as though someone took her favorite teddy bear. Or took a peek at her panties. “You’re so meeean!” Several ice shards pierce her body, but they draw no blood whatsoever. An instant later they all burn away like vampires under sunlight, not even leaving any wounds behind. She then catches a glowing ethereal blue seed in her left hand. “You plagiarized Touhou and you don’t even know where you got it from! Bad meanie! Bad! Delusion of Enlightenment, desu!” As she huffs, she throws the seed into the blue nebulous aura on the ground, and out grows have a dozen huge ethereal blue trees that stab their glowing branches into the man. “You will feel Miku-chan’s wrath! 秘曲「ゆめゆめ」！”
[“Hikyoku ‘Yume Yume’”, or “Secret Song ‘Dream Dream’”. This is a completely made-up Touhou spellcard named after a song by Hatsune Miku.]

The man, already dizzy from the mind-shocking energy branches stuck in him, is suddenly blasted by a solid wall of rapidly flashing, seizure-inducing, psychedelic colors. Some of the colors feel like they burn too, probably, though it’s not clear exactly which ones. And there almost seems to be music mixed in the rainbow colors, an upbeat little pop song sung in some strange variation of one of the languages in the Eastern Kingdoms by an overly cutesy girl’s voice that sounds a little synthesized. The situation rapidly begins to feel surreal.

Until a blood-red blade abruptly impales him through the heart.

“Gaaah!” The man screams, his skin quickly taking on a sunken, desiccated look. The red blade embedded in his chest pulses with crimson power. Moments later he is dead, every drop of blood in his body sucked dry.

“Why have you not disposed of him yourself, Daryl?” Carmilla’s voice is icy as she pulls out the blade of congealed blood from the man’s chest, formed out of the same material as the blood red opera glove that encases the Crimson Lady’s right arm. The blade gleams in the intense sunlight overhead, seemingly not affected at all despite its vampiric origin. The vampire herself looks very unaffected, and very angry. “Remember why I tolerate your presence within my castle.”

“Millie!” Daryll squeaks out in horror; the fancy light show she’s putting on instantly disappears without a trace. Her whole body trembles as she stares, wide-eyed, from Carmilla to the man’s husk of a corpse and back to Carmilla herself. Tears begin to form in her eyes. She gives one furious look at Carmilla, then seemingly at a spot behind the elder vampire’s left shoulder. “How… How c-could you! You’re so m-mean! I don’t wanna play with you anymore!”

And with that she is gone. Suddenly, without a trace, as though she’s never been there in the first place.

Carmilla lets out a regretful little sigh. Glancing at the corpse, she hoists it up with tendrils of blood. The human has to have been quite powerful to have been able to break into her castle; perhaps his genes will be of use to her and Novus Ordo Synthesia.

…

“Well, that was unpleasant…” Darryl mutters as she looks around in the forest that she is now in. “Time to find someone new to hang out with, I guess.”

[Saris debut. For future reference, Saris’ voice has a minor Irish accent to his voice, because that kind of accent is sexy apparently; Dex speaks in a voice that would make a British upperclassman proud; and everyone else has an American accent appropriate for them unless otherwise noted. And Jezzika doesn’t speak to most people.]

Saris Kataras
‘Saris, please pull over. Jezz is looking like she’s going to be sick.’ .
‘Oh, she’ll be fine. She’s never-’ .
Sounds of vomiting fill the inside of the Party Van, swiftly followed by a reasonable number of yells of disgust, and one person screaming "OH MY GOD I NEED A JAR’.
‘…oh, okay, then.’ .
The wheel-less vehicle slows down and stops, eventually lowering itself to the forest floor beneath. Moments later, a reasonably-sized group of beasts and shifters pour out of the container, with another group visible about five hundred meters away behind the van. Shortly, an otherwise human-looking character with black hair, including a goatee, and small horns protruding from his skull climbs out, followed shortly by what appears to be a fairly dessicated corpse dressed in black rags, the only visible sparks of life being literal yellow sparks in his otherwise hollow eye sockets. And the fact that he is moving, of course.
And then I get pushed out, stumbling slightly before correcting my motion. Turning back, I see Jezzika’s angry (and, for obvious reasons, slightly dishevelled) face in the gap.
‘Jezz-’ .
The door into the Party Van slams shut.
‘Jezz! Come on, I’m sorry!’ I yell, to no obvious avail. I’d say more, but… gah, the elf is slightly touchy even at the best of times. She may well hold this incident against me for a while.
‘You know, Saris,’ the demon shifter behind me says, ‘she was only sick because of your crazy driving.’ .
‘Hey, hey, now. There were trees. I have to avoid the trees, Dex.’ .
‘Yes, but you could have done so at a lower speed. Or by driving along the track we were on earlier.’ .
’Where’s the fun in using a pre-determined road, though? No risk, no reward! Besides, it’s quicker driving through the forest.’ .
‘Not if you make our band members throw up!’ .
‘And, let’s be fair, here…’ the lich says in a slightly crackly whisper, ‘The track probably wouldn’t have taken that much longer, relatively speaking. Maybe an hour or so, at the speed you were going…’ .
‘Well, we can’t exactly turn back now, can we, Faeyr. It’s not that much longer ‘til we’re out of the trees, anyway… I would suggest that we take a five minute break, then move on. How’s that sound?’ .
‘Wonderful. I’ll spend it cleaning up whatever’s left after someone turns my girlfriend’s puke into a collector’s item.’ .
‘You could totally ask them not to do that, you know. That jar’ll probably get smashed whilst we’re driving, anyway.’ .
‘No, no, let them have it. It’ll probably be sold for a ridiculous sum in the next city we pass through anyway.’ .
Then the van door opens, and a banshee head peers through the opening – Jaxxy, with her purple spark eyes and strange rainbow-ey choice of clothing.
‘So, uh, if anyone wants to help out with the cleaning up in here, I’d reaaally appreciate it.’ .
’I’m coming, don’t worry…’ Dex states, heading into the van after tearing a strip from Faeyr’s clothes.
‘I wish he’d stop doing that to my clothes…’ .
‘I don’t.’ .
‘Yes, well… you don’t have to buy new rags on a regular basis, do you?’ .
‘Dude, come on, those things are so cheap, you could beg for the money to buy them in ten seconds flat. Besides, the damage shows off your physique nicely.’ .
I receive one firm lich-glare for my compliment.
‘I barely have a physique anyway…’ .
‘But what you do have is sexy.’ .
‘I still don’t comprehend how you can get off to… hell, with just about anything.’ .
‘I am an open-minded man, Faeyr. Also, partially-undead. That tends to give a person a much larger range of sexual options.’ .
‘I am undead, in case you forgot. And I don’t find most undead sexually arousing…’ .
‘Most undead are practically braindead, and hence not suitable sexual partners, on account of lack of consent. The ones that aren’t are great, and you are weird for not liking them. Did I ever tell you about this one zombie chick-’ .
‘Okay, stop there… please…’ .
‘Pfeh. So boring.’ .
’I’m not boring… I just have more specific tastes in pretty much everything than you.’ .
This is a semi-typical conversation between myself and Faeyr, in case there was any doubt. He’s a very fun guy, once you get past the whispery undead lich thing. But also a cynic of sorts. But fun.

Samael

Another unnecessary murder, another pointless death… Samael sighs, jawbones and teeth clenching briefly in bitterness and anger.

Necessary sacrifices, Simon… A soft, ephemeral, feminine voice of indeterminate age whispers within the undead angel’s mind. It pains me as much as it does you, but such are the prices the world must pay to be restored to some semblance of order…

Don’t lie to me, Eris, the Angel of Death almost snarls. You do not feel sorry about this. Not one bit.

The female voice is silent.

The leader of Novus Ordo Synthesia shakes his head, and takes a moment to compose himself. Anyways… If he still possesses actual eyebrows on his bleached skull of a face, the Angel of Death would be frowning. That vampire girl… She couldn’t have…

We once snuck past Justinian XXI himself, didn’t we?

He was not expecting us, Samael responds as the machine begins to fasten various elaborate mechanical parts onto his skeletal frame.

Neither was the little vampire, Simon, the female voice, Eris, says. Nor does she seem to be even aware of Carmilla’s true affiliations and goals. Are you really willing to reallocate resources to track down one of Carmilla’s pets?

Perhaps not… Samael sighs. A click, and his body is now fully encased in machine and magic, its darkly gleaming surface appearing as the magitech armor he has previously worn. Last comes the skeletal mask, twin motes of glowing violet smoldering in its eyesockets as it attaches to the creature’s now-metallic face. Wings spread, darkly gleaming metal skeleton extending membranes of purple darkness and twilight. Experimentally he flexes his metal-encased skeletal fingers. This… Will this be enough to take on the Magus Supreme?

You know the power as well as tools and weapons he has at his disposal, Simon. More so than anyone else.

Of course. But we will have our Synthesis Spawns. He is getting ready for war… But so are we. This is a chance that must not be missed.

Coal

After a few minutes of searching I find a combination of rocks that can start fires and light a fire under the bear meat. “Alright the bear should be ready to eat soon.” I say to myself when the fire is lit.

Saris Kataras
‘I don’t understand why you can’t help me out here, Bern. It’s not like the incident was that insulting to her, surely?’ .
‘You seem to not understand why Jezzika is angry.’ A deep voice, slightly reverberant like a bell, and apparently originating from nowhere on account of the massive steel golem’s lack of mouth. Berneshh’s speech is quite soothing, once you get used to its apparent lack of source.
‘I accidentally made her throw up. Once. I’d understand if I’d done it several times before…’ .
‘You nearly have. And you had a good opportunity to stop when Dexter told you she was about to throw up. In front of a good number of her fans, no less.’ .
‘I heard the jar person collect her vomit. They weren’t that distressed by it.’ .
’It’s a matter of gossip. If people outside the groupies hear about it, which they almost certainly will, her reputation could be damaged quite badly. And yours, for that matter.’ .
‘…well, yeah, but-’ .
‘No more buts. I suggest you try to make as good a peace with her as you can, as soon as possible. The sooner, the better.’ .
‘…alright. So, uh, just before that… is your brother alright? After the whole city fell to the ground, and all…’ .
’He’s fine. Just about. I heard he literally had to rebuild himself from nearby scrap metal… he’s not gonna be the same until he gets the new chest piece, is all.’ .
‘Okay, cool.’ .
…this conversation is now getting awkward. I stand, then walk back towards the Party Van and climb in. No trace of vomit remains; only a couple of groupies are still in here; and the only other people present are Dex and Jezz, the latter holding her knees to her chest on the floor – in an annoyed fashion, I note, rather than a depressed fashion – and the former holding her in what appears to be a fairly firm hug. I almost envy their relationship, if I’m honest… somehow, Dex, of all possible beings, was the one who broke through Jezz’s shell and got close to her like other people don’t seem to be capable of doing. He’s the only one she talks to, even, and then only in whispers that nobody else can hear. But enough introspection; they’re both looking at me now. Jezz’s face is slowly twisting into a grimace…
Alright. Here goes.
‘So… Jezz. I just wanted to say I’m sorry about accidentally making you throw up. And, uh… I’ll try not to do it again. I’ll drive slower, or on the roads or whatever from now on. Once we’re out of the forest, obviously. But yes. I hope you can forgive me.’ .
A tense, drawn-out pause.
And then a slight smile and a nod from Jezz, and thank goodness I can relax now.
‘Phew. Awesome. That’s… yeah, alright. Thanks, Jezz.’ .
Hooray, I’m not hated by people. I didn’t expect it to be so easy, actually. Strange… maybe Dex talked to her. I’ll have to ask him later. The groupies in the container with us are apparently "d’aww"ing… I expect there’ll be some kind of heartwarming fan work made by one of them later on.
‘So are we gonna head off, or…?’ .
‘Oh, right, right. Yes, that might be useful, uh…’ .
I run back to the door of the Van and shout out of it:
‘Okay, everything’s fine now, guys! We’re heading off in a couple of minutes! Hop aboard, or prepare to follow, or whatever!’ .
The nearby clearing promptly bursts into activity – the band members not on the bus move back on to it, along with the majority of the groupies who were on it before the stop, and some who weren’t. As for myself, I head to the front of the box and sit down in the driver’s seat, ready to start it up.

[Band member names other than Saris, by the way: Jezzika, the elf; Dexter, the demon; Jaxxy, the banshee; Faeyrisil, the lich; Berneshh, the steel golem. So yes.]

Amie

“You’re back quicker than I expected,” I say, noticing Desmond’s shadow approaching. He remained quiet, probably because of the countless thoughts running through his mind all at once.
“I’m not sure how much longer Hephirix will be, but we ought to wait for him.”
He nods in reply, sitting down next to me.
I didn’t like the fact that he wasn’t speaking much; I wasn’t able to read him as well. Maybe he would cheer up sooner rather than later, but for now, we would continue to sit in silence and eat.

Adrian

I still sit next to Rose. Her crying has gone on for longer than I thought it would, but, alas, there is nothing I can do. I don’t know what started it, but I found myself thinking about what I had lost.
My network of hiding spots that I used to stay out of the way of trouble. My ‘houses’ that I used to sleep in. The coffee shop that I went to. The small park where I had first caught a bird. Those all hurt, but not as bad as my friends.
Had any of them survived? Had any of them been as lucky as I to fall into a group of survivors who got out?
Did Justinian get them?
I shed one quiet tear. I knew that I would never see them again. Never again will we play cat and bird. Never again will we cause havoc in the markets, just for an apple. Never again.
A shed another tear, just one.

Hephirix-Zatherex Ullulos
AAAA THIS GUY IS BEING A PIRCK. He tried to steal my knife and my second bear corpse, this one being a normal bear, and when I tried to stab him with the former, he turned into the naga, then went and started attempting to kill me. Like a doucheface. At the moment, I’m doing okay. The only problem is that he’s bitten into my ear, and won’t let go. Wait! No, hang on… okay, he just stabbed me in the eye repeatedly, then pulled the ear off of my face. Plus some skin.
‘Bwahahahaha! Now I shall kill you, and claim everything that you own, for I! Am! SIVILUSSS!!!’ .
I ignore him, and with a crazy grin, slowly touch the ear that got ripped off.
‘You broke my ear. That was my favourite ear.’ .
I wait for him to say something else, cooling the air around me as I do so. When he doesn’t, I decide he’s finished talking, and promptly form several large icicles and fling them into his body and rip it to shreds. Mothersucker.
‘…no, wait a minute.’ .
I briefly transform into fire, then back again.
‘Ohhh, I could have fixed my ear… hwhups.’ .
…oh well. More meat for ze partay. I grab the pieces and place them with the nearby bear, then pick up both and head back to the location of the people’s man man man men women. Yes.

Saris Kataras
Right. We’re still driving along, then… slower than before, I hasten to add. I don’t want to make Jezz throw up again, not so soon after I already did it once. That’d be…
‘Kyaaaaaaa!’ .
I immediately stamp on the brakes, lurching the Party Van to a halt, and throwing forward everyone who isn’t secured to something. Which, fortunately, is limited only to people who won’t be horribly injured by it. Of course, now everyone is annoyed at me, probably.
‘Dude, what the hell?!’ .
Including Dex. Understandably. I turn to him.
‘I… thought I heard something? Did, uh… did Jezz-’ .
‘No, Jezz didn’t say anything out loud.’ .
‘…hmm…’ .
Now, I don’t know very much of the language of the Eastern Kingdoms, but I’ve watched enough pornographic cartoons with bad plots to know when someone is trying to futilely prevent their own sexual violation. This seems to be one of those situations.
‘…’m gonna have to drive a bit crazy for a moment, guys. Hold tight.’ .
‘No, wait-’ .
The box launches forwards, travelling in the direction of the yells at a relatively high pace. Eventually, I stop the van, and listen out again.
‘Right, then.’ .
I lower the box to the ground, then remove my seatbelt and stand.
‘Everyone in here alright? Nobody about to throw up?’ .
Everyone nods their okays, except for Jezz, who has turned ever so slightly green, and is glaring at me.
‘Sorry, Jezz. Necessity and justice called. By the way, anyone who wants to partake in such justice, follow me.’ .
I slide the door of the container open and leap out, immediately taking flight and heading towards the yells in question. Looking down, I see the majority of the groupies and band members following me, those who can fly doing so to keep up, and those on the ground doing their best. Shortly, I find myself in an appropriate clearing, where…
…how old is that girl? I mean, if she’s very young, it’d explain how cutesy and high-pitched her voice is. And what’s with the creatures with tentacles, too? I don’t…
‘YAMETE~!’ .
…whatever. Time to dispense justice. I land in the clearing, drawing the attention of just about all of the monsters and the girl, who holy fuck she’s a vampire. Okay, whatever. She’s in trouble, apparently, and I – amongst a number of other people, soon to be a much bigger number of other people – am here to help.
‘I suggest you put the young lady down, tentlemen.’ .
‘Bluur-hurr-hurr. Good joke,’ one of them states. Probably the ring leader, possibly. ‘But we’re going to have to decline, seeing as how there’s more of us than there are of you.’ .
‘And I am female.’ another one interjects.
‘So there are more of you than there are of me and my fellows, is that right?’ .
‘…duh…?’ .
The sounds of an angry mob stampeding are getting louder and louder by the second.
‘Let me put it this way: you have a few seconds to drop the girl and leave, or a big ol’ horde of various creatures are going to come over here and beat you all into the ground. I’d say about fifteen of those time period things at this point.’ .
About five of those time period things pass.
Then a couple of them break, fleeing into the forest; it doesn’t take long for most of the rest to get out of there, the girl being let go as they do so. The last two, with maybe two seconds to spare, fling a couple of blue slime balls at the people facing them down before they flee; both are successfully dodged, and no trace of tentacle remains as the horde breaks into the clearing, yelling for a bit before realising that the danger is no longer present and quieting down. I clap for them, with a genuine smile on my face.
‘Awwwwwesome job screaming, guys. Those tentacle guys practically pissed themselves with the sound you were making. Very nicely done… feel free to pursue them if you want. Make sure they don’t do something like this again, or what have you. Now, then…’ .
I stroll over to the vampire girl, who, having stood up during my speech, seems to be staring at me with… her eyes. Which are adorable as anything, it seems. Reaching her form, I kneel down slightly and look at her.
…God, she’s adorable.
‘You alright, missy? They didn’t actually do anything to you, did they?’ .

[Why haven’t I done anything? Well… Because my character is depressed, in a state of mind which she wants to curl up in a ball and not do anything else. I don’t want to make her act out of character. Not my fault that no one else in the group has any initiative. Either way, things will get moving, possibly literally, once Saris and his big floating van runs into the main group, possibly literally.]

Rosalyn Lightfell

Hey, come on… Lynn is saying, though weakly, tone subdued. Didn’t you hear what he said? We’re gonna be okay…

Are we…?

Even she doesn’t believe that, and we both know it. No use hiding things from yourself… Normally, in situations like this, Lynn would be angry. But now, we’re just too tired…

What are we going to do…?

Everything I had ever known, if not loved, was gone. I… I don’t know my place in this world anymore. Before, when things were peaceful, I had wanted to become a professional healer. Or maybe some kind of law enforcer, though that’s more Lynn than me. Or a singer, even, which was just a pipe dream, a wishful fantasy… But now? I’m beginning to think that nothing I do will ever make a difference in the way the world is…

Fuck, Lynn growls, but tiredly. That… That’s just Chris talking. We…

A part of me realizes that this is just psychic residue from contact with Christopher’s mind. But the rest of me seems like it can’t help but to agree with his bleak views…

I… I’m scared, Lynn, I whisper with a shudder and a sob. The world is so big, and…

Lynn isn’t sure what to say. Of course. She’s just as overwhelmed as I am… What she said to Christopher now sounds empty even to ourselves…

I shudder again, crying all the while. I can’t keep curling myself into a ball forever, and sooner or later I’ll have to do something, but… I don’t know.

I really don’t know.

Daryl McDowell

“B-Baka!” Daryl huffs furiously while blushing furiously, pushing down the hem of her very short skirt to attempt to make it cover more of her legs. “I c-could’ve beat them, desu!” She glares and waves her arms around. “A-All of them!” Then a string of some strange words roll out of her mouth quite rapidly, sounding vaguely like a garbled version of one of the languages spoken in the Eastern Kingdoms.

[She just spoke real life Japanese. But obviously I can’t show it, since I don’t really know Japanese myself. And yes, the gratuitous fangirl Japanese is entirely intentional.]

Saris Kataras
On the cue of the girl pushing down her skirt to cover herself, I begin to take notice of her… quite frankly strange outfit. Like, Jaxxy’s outfit is all sorts of psychedelic, given its colour scheme, but this is just completely insane. For instance, how are her hair ribbons keeping such ridiculously long pigtails- or hell, just the hair as a whole in place without even touching them? And where in the name of generic deific being here did she obtain an outfit like that? Big cutoff sleeves with a bunch of stuff on them, a school shirt of some kind apparently, cat ear headbands that move of their own accord… and again, the skirt – if she’s so keen to not reveal her underwear, why wear something like that? Especially given the literal tail on her. It’s like… I dunno, her whole attire is just weirding me out. Especially the wings, which are apparently made of crystals or something, and look like they could go either way with regards to how real they are. And she’s saying she could have taken on those tentacle creatures on her own, which is blatantly not true, given how much she was struggling and yelling for help…
…but. I get the impression that she has some form of… hidden depths. I dunno, maybe the adorable factor is somehow obfuscating a different side of her what the hell kind of language is that she just used. Okay, okay, just focus… actually, that sounds like an Eastern Kingdom language, although it’s not a variant I’ve ever heard. Maybe she learned it somewhere remote and obscure? But in any case, certain questions will be more important than that at the moment…
‘…uh. Okay. So, uh… what are you doing out here by yourself, then? And furthermore, why would you travel alone in an outfit like that? You… draw attention to yourself, y’know.’ .

Coal

“Anyone want some food?” I ask as I finish roasting the bear.

Daryl McDowell

“I’m, um, on an expedition!” Daryl says dramatically, staring at the shirtless man with a comically serious expression on her face. “I’m actually an alien from another dimension and I’m here to scout out the environment so we’ll know how to invade this planet and wait no I wasn’t supposed to say that so can you just pretend you didn’t hear anything and what do you mean this outfit is obviously suited for hiking, desu!” As if on cue, the Sun peeks out from behind clouds and shines upon Darryll a ray of light through the canopy, bathing her in a cloud of rainbow sparkles. Her stare then becomes accusatory. “You have no shirt! Are you in Team Jacob?”

Saris Kataras
…Team what?
‘Uh. Who or what is Jacob, why is there a Jacob team, and what team are they up against? Oh, and what are their philosophies, too? That’s an important point.’ .
‘I think she may be… missing a few gears, if you get my meaning…’ .
‘Hey, Faeyr?’ .
‘Yes?’ .
‘Please don’t sneak up on me like that. You nearly scared the living- actually, ma’am, your eyes say you’re a vampire, and I tend to believe a person’s eyes more than their words in the case of vampirism. Unless those words are convincing, which yours, I’m afraid to say, are not.’ .
‘Like I said: missing gears…’ .
‘Dyu-buh-buh! Stop insulting her, man. Come on.’ .
‘Uh, guys? You realise she’s standing in direct sunlight, right?’ Jaxxy interjects. ’There’s no way she can be a vampire.’ .
‘Sure she can! She might be excessively old, and have the ability to withstand sunlight like that. I heard somewhere that that can be done, or something. I- is that the case?’ .
‘I am five billion two hundred ninety-seven million four hundred thirty thousand and six hundred eighty two years old, desu!’ She suddenly pipes up.
‘See? Far more than old enough to wait a moment there wasn’t even a planet that long ago. Probably. Someone needs to figure out how old our planet is, actually.’ .
‘If I made it my life’s work, I could manage it…’ .
‘Why haven’t you done that yet, then?’ .
‘My time is better spent on the musical arts… apparently…’ .
‘…probably not, but hey, you’re popular for it! Everyone likes a rock star in sparse clothing. I mean- technically you’re a metal star…’ .
‘Can you just get back to asking the vampire girl questions, please? My clothes are starting to lose dye with how long you’ve been wasting time… or hell, introduce yourself, even. You haven’t done that yet.’ .
‘Oh! You’re absolutely right, Jaxx, I haven’t! I- uh… ahem.’ .
I return to my standing position from the half-crouch I’ve been in.
‘The name is Saris. Saris Kataras. And you?’ .

Daryl McDowell

“I’m Super Ultra Mega Ultimate Incredible Beautiful Amazing Sexy Wonderful Cute Ultimate Pretty Ultimate Ultimate Ultimate Sparkly Magical Girl Dariru-chan, desu!” Daryl does a little twirl, a wink, a V-sign with her right hand, and a cutesy pose. A shower of extra sparkly sparkles bursting into existence at the gesture of the magitech bardiche she’s holding… which then suddenly sputters and coughs, releasing wisps of smoke that smell like burnt rubber. But there’s no rubber in the slender black poleaxe. “Um, wait… I probably am missing a few gears…” She suddenly pulls, out of nowhere, a small blackboard with a really crude drawing of a typical “PLEASE STAND BY” screen drawn on it, and plops it onto the forest ground. Then she turns around and begins muttering to herself, pulling black gears out of nowhere as she does so. The gears range in size from as large as her palm, to bigger than her whole body, but it is clear that none of them should possibly fit on the small weapon she’s holding. Sounds of extremely heavy-duty machinery can be heard.

A few second later she turns back to face Saris and his gang, taking the blackboard and stuffing it back to whatever pocket dimension she pulled it from. “Um, lemme try again, ‘kay? I’m Super Ultra Mega Ult-” Daryll suddenly realize that she’s holding a sleek, wicked-looking, black and gold electric guitar, with almost blade-like edges, rather than the bardiche that she’s supposed to be holding. Her eyes immediately go comically wide with horror. “Noooooo! Please forgive me, James-sama!” She pulls a giant hammer again out of nowhere and begins to bash at the guitar repeatedly. A moment later both disappear in a puff of white smoke… which makes her cough uncontrollably. That goes on for a few moments. “S-Sorry… cough cough I’m Daryl cough McDowell, and cough cough…” She takes a deep breath. Then she seems to remember something. Her eyes suddenly brighten with excitement, and the three locks of idiot hair on her head stand up straighter than they’d ever been. “Did you say that you’re a musician, Sarisu-san? I’m a musician too, desu!”

Saris Kataras
For a time, nobody talks. Then…
‘What the actual fuck was that shit.’ .
‘Wonderful request, Dex. Rest assured, literally everyone else has the same question in their minds. For now, though… let me think for a second.’ .
My curiosity is piqued. Clearly, this is no ordinary vampire girl. Regardless of anything else, she’s got blatantly ridiculous levels of power to be able to casually pull hammers and guitars and giant gears from what appears to be thin air, and/or create things from what appears to be nothing – at the very least, she’s either old enough to be capable of ignoring the effects of sunlight, or one of her abilities can perform a similar task for her. I’m thinking that the sparkles might be the cause of that…
Actually, what if they are? If I disable them, she could die horribly. Or at least suffer some degree of pain, even if only momentary, which invoke some form of unseen wrath against me later. Best not, in that case.
‘…you said you’re a musician, Daryl? Would you mind awfully if I asked you to play a sample piece?’ .

Christopher Athánatos

The landscape around me is dotted with craters within craters within craters. Even now those purple crystal drones, each half the size of a human, keep hurling their energy spheres at me, each blast of violet power stinging like icy flames on my skin. When they strike anything, each sphere explodes, creating another crater inside the huge crater we are already in. And the Magus Supreme himself constantly sends toward me his energy beams, digging into the ground so deeply I cannot easily judge how far the holes go whenever they miss.

My whole body is now a humanoid shape with draconian features, seemingly made of some golden gemstone that glows and burns intensely like the Sun, various adamantines interlaced together and thoroughly hypercharged with magic. My spiked tail lashes out to impale one of the drones through its core, and unleashes a burst of golden energy; the purple crystals that the drone is mostly composed of dissolves into energy and fades away. Vicious claws dig through a drone’s chest, ripping out its core, causing its crystal body too to dissolve and fade. The core itself is approximately the size of a human heart, a smooth steely gray sphere etched with myriads of complex runes.

Testing a suspicion that has been growing inside me ever since the battle began, I inject some of my own magic into the sphere, some energy from my False Creation spell. The runes abruptly burst into golden brilliance. An instant later the drone forms, now made of golden crystal similar to my own body, and…

“HOW DARE YOU!” Justinian XXI screams. “HOW DARE YOU CORRUPT MY CREATION WITH YOUR VILE MAGIC!” At the same time, all of his purple drones immediately begin focusing fire at the golden drone I have apparently just created.

My drone is destroyed almost in an instant, but that is already enough for me to have a clue as to what is going on. That core, whatever it is… It is designed to sustain a construct made from my False Creation spell, independently of the caster’s will and focus. And looking at all the attacks the Magus Supreme has thrown at me so far, as well as the glowing purple powered armor that now coats his entire body…

“HOW IS IT THAT YOU KNOW THIS SPELL, HUMAN?!” I bark out harshly while rushing forward to grasp Justinian’s armor-clad throat with my talons. “IT WAS MY INVENTION!”

“BLASPHEMY!” I begin to wonder if this man can possibly get any louder or angrier. “THIS POWER WAS GIFTED TO US BY THE ALMIGHTY DEUS EX MACHINA HIMSELF, INHUMAN TRASH! YOU WILL SUFFER FOR SULLYING HIS NAME!”

He lies, a voice hisses in my mind, an instant before a flood of images and memories wash over my mind.

…

The girl stared incredulous, her heterochromatic eyes wide with disbelief. “…wait, let me see that again,” she shook her head.

“Come on, Silvia,” the boy said with a smirk. With a thought, the ball of scorching flames floating above his right hand abruptly transformed into a cloud of frost and icy energy with the greatest of ease. “I win, and you know it,” he said with a cocked eyebrow.

“But… But…” The girl reached out to grab the boy’s right hand with both of her own. “One more time! No funny business!”

“If that’s what it takes to convince you,” the boy continued to smirk. The ice split into a dozen small chunks. Each chunk enlarged, and transformed into a different substance or type of energy, ranging from wood to bone to crystal to metal to electricity to pure destructive magic. “All this with just one spell. No tricks, I swear!”

The girl stared intently. Then, unable to find anything wrong, her shoulders slumped. “Fine… You win this time. But mark my words, Chris. Next time it won’t be so easy!”

“Never expected it to be,” the boy grinned. “You have no idea how long this one took me…”

“So what are you calling it?” The girl asked curiously.

“Hmm…” The boy mused, idly scratching his chin. “I think I’ll call this spell… False Creation.”

The girl rolled her eyes. “Always such over-the-top names.”

“What else would be suitably awesome for a genius such as I?”

“All right, all right, Mr. Genius,” the girl shook her head. She then lied down on the bed, a hand on her chest in an innocently provocative gesture. “You won. Aren’t you gonna claim your prize?” She smiled.

…

The flashback only takes an instant, not enough time to put me at a disadvantage. But one thing is for certain: I, or at least that previous incarnation of mine seemingly from so incredibly long ago, invented the False Creation spell that the Magus Supreme is somehow able to use, not some hateful, prejudiced deity whose very existence is dubious. “YOUR SUPPOSED GOD,” I snarl in Justinian’s face, “CAN GO FUCK HIMSELF.”

Upon hearing those words Justinian XXI literally explodes with berserk rage. The waves of purple energy that burst forth from his body force my grip loose and push me back, spreading an agony all over my body that simultaneously feel like searing flames, freezing ice, electrocution, and scalding acid. I barely see the flashes before no less than a dozen metallic cores are summoned to his side, each one transforming into a fully functional drone in an instant. All of them open fire, a dozen massive energy beams that all converge upon me, the unbearably intense destructive energy quickly reducing even my form to slag.

For a second fear begins to seize me. No… Surely it isn’t possible that he is stronger than me…?

Listen to yourself, that same voice says. You cannot possibly be having this much trouble, not with that.

A burst of power erupts from me, fully pushing away even the full might of Justinian’s onslaught. My body has changed. Six wings and a halo of golden yellow electricity appear on my back. My upper body is still humanoid, but my lower body is now a serpentine tail, both made from bright golden electrical energies and shards of clear crystal. I remember having taken this form once before, when I confronted that arrogant creature who dared proclaim himself a god, but I knows not where this form comes from or what it is. And I do not care.

Bolts of golden lightning lash out from me with such power that a single strike is enough to obliterate one of Justinian’s drones. A flap of my three pairs of energy wings, and I ram into the Magus Supreme with a burst of extreme speed, lightning-coated crystalline talons piercing through his armor and digging into his bowels. With an entirely inhuman hiss, and a grand motion, I rip out the pathetic human’s vulnerable fleshy innards.

“GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

His agonized scream is music to my ears. But the joy is short-lived, however, as I discover that the innards I hold in my hands are made of not human flesh but some gray, synthetic material, covered in blood. I cannot believe I failed to notice this the last time I’ve driven a blade through the man’s stomach…

“HEH HEH… THINK YOU’VE WON, INHUMAN TRASH…?” The Magus Supreme says with a gasping voice, while clutching the bleeding hole in his abdomen. They do not seem to heal. “THIS BODY… IT IS ONLY A MACHINE, A PUPPET CONTROLLED FROM WITHIN MY SANCTUM! HA HA HA… YOU MAY HAVE DEFEATED THIS PUPPET, MONSTER, BUT MY TRUE POWER IS A TRILLION TIMES GREATER!”

For a second my heart lurches, but I quickly see through his bluff. He cannot possibly be that powerful, for there is not enough energy on the planet to support that kind of power. But regardless, for me to have had this much trouble against a remote-controlled puppet that must have only contained a fraction of Justinian’s true power… I must not be at anything less than full strength if I’m to even hope of winning against the real Magus Supreme. Against this little puppet, however… The victory will be mine.

“BUT TOO BAD YOU WILL NOT LIVE TO EVER SEE MY TRUE POWER, MAGGOT!” Justinian XXI screams. Blood squirts from the gaping hole in his stomach, but he no longer seems to care. “YOUR MISERABLE EXISTENCE ENDS NOW!”

My eyes widen at the sudden frightening spike in power. The skin of the robot that is Justinian’s temporary body cracks, a blindingly intense iridescent purple energy bleeding forth from every surface. For a briefest instant I see the body break down.

A flash of golden power that consumes the entire world. When it fades, my surroundings have been replaced by the dense canopy of a forest. Seems like I’ve managed to teleport away before being struck by the Magus Supreme’s final attack… I am not sure if I could have survived it.

…why did I dodge it? Was it not death that I longed for? Was I afraid that it would only trigger another Rebirth, another new cycle of suffering and torment?

I sigh. Did I not promise Rosalyn that I would try to change the world? But now I am sure that there exists at least one entity on the planet capable of matching, or perhaps even surpassing, myself in power. Can I prevail against him? Are there more? And…

I collapse onto the ground, utterly exhausted. How to change the world… That is something to be thought about later. Now is the time to rest… and recuperate.

[Uuuuuuuuuugh… I feel that this post is extremely sub-par. I thought I really should post something today, but for some reason it was extremely difficult to squeeze anything out. Blegh.]

Rosalyn Lightfell

Rose

“I… I’m sob not hungry…”

[I’d imagine that it was kind of difficult for Coal to roast a bear by himself with only one arm.]

Adrian

I inwardly sigh. I knew that my small saying was slightly sub-par, and unlikely to yield results, but I had still hoped. Which now seemed stupid, with the result shown. I think that at some point in the future, Rose, or Lynn, for that matter, might want to talk about it, and I am as good a choice as any, I guess. “If you want to talk about it” I say to Rosalynn, “I’m here.”

I probably should eat something, but the events of the past hour has…destroyed my appetite. “I’m not hungry either.” I say, thinking to myself that I’ll hunt later. “Feel free to give someone else my share.”

With that said, I transform into my ocelot-self, and lay down where I am, careful not to get within a meter of Rose. Trying to get to sleep, even cat napping, would be difficult with all of today weighing on me.

Hephirix-Zatherex Ullulos
Weeeeeell, I’m walking along my flesh and food and stuff. Yes, I am. Life is good, and all of the forest fears my wrath now probably…
…woah, woah, WOAH WOAH HOLY CRAP, IS THAT-
‘Ooooooohhhhhhhhhhh! It’s the wanna be the guy! Haaaaaaayyyyyyyyy!’ .
I rush over to his form as fast as I can with two meat sources on me, noting his expression of tiredness and obvious contempt towards me. Maybe I could eat his stomach. Then he’d get less contempt at me- no, wait, what am I even saying? He’d just kill me later on, somehow. Soooomehow. Yes.
‘Duuuuuude, you look like the awfulness! What happen, brah? Did you meet the man?’ .

Daryl McDowell

“Yaaaaaay, Dari gets to sing! Wheeeeeeee!” Daryl jumps up and down in excitement.

Suddenly, a particularly bright pulse of sparkles emanate from her, and everything around them changes. They seem to now be in some kind of stadium, with Daryl standing on the center of a stage, multiple stage lights of various colors focused on her. All the trees around them are now apparently people, cheering wildly, but their faces are indistinct. The subtle thrum of power can be felt in the air, and those more observant may realize that all this is likely the product of some quite detailed illusion magic.

The music begins, mainly heavily distorted guitars that seem to come from nowhere and everywhere at once. After several seconds, the heavy metal introduction fades away, replaced by a softer, gentler guitar melody. And Daryll begins to sing.

[For reference, she’s singing an English fandub of “Hope” originally sung by Hatsune Miku. Daryl’s own voice sounds kind of like this.]

Where am I now? It’s black and white.
All I want is to see you by my side.
As I wait for you, I just break down and cry…

Deep in the middle of my heart,
brutal memories lurk and linger.
And all the voices struggle to be heard without a sound…

I believed in you with all my heart and my soul,
thought this happiness would last forever.
And since then, I’ve lost you and I have lost the light.
I needed to survive these depressing nights.

The voice that flows out of the girl’s mouth is high-pitched as usual, but very bright, clear, with a tinge of heart-wrenching melancholy perfectly fitting for the song and its lyrics. And as she sings, her features seem to shift and blur.

I can still recall your smile in my mind,
feel it in my heart. You were tender and kind.
I will treasure all of the memories
that I have of you. I’ll keep your smile forever…

Somehow, the person standing on the stage has stopped resembling Daryl McDowell somewhere along the line. Only her general facial features remain the same, and even those have taken on a sad, sad expression in stark contrast with her previous cheerful grin. She appears to be taller. Smooth, unbound dark hair swishes behind her like wisps of shadowy night interspersed with rainbow strands. A simple, flowing dress clings to her slender form, the fabric seemingly made of a night sky aglow with myriads of multicolored stars. All her extraneous decorations are gone. A pair of angelic wings flap gently on her back, its pitch black feathers shimmering just like the rest of her. And her eyes… They’re a deep, bottomless black, one that yet simultaneously cycle through a thousand different colors.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh…! The fallen angel lets out a shriek that would make any screamo metal artists proud. The cry echoes, mingling with the heavily distorted guitars like a dull throbbing wound.

My happiness has long faded, but I’m still here.
New life is born, while sometimes death is near.
I can never see you again, because you’re gone,
but now I see the light.

I can still recall your smile in my mind,
feel it in my heart. You were tender and kind.
I will treasure all of the memories
that I have of you. I’ll keep your smile forever…

The last cold, clear, hauntingly woeful sound of her voice slowly fades away, lost in the guitars and other background instrumentals. Then it all just abruptly cuts off.

For a moment there is only silence.

A heartbeat later, they’re all back in the middle of a forest. The wide-spanning illusion fades, its residual magic still lingering in the air. “How’s that?” Daryl grins while striking another cutesy pose, once again looking like herself.