Fantasy Cross Blades: The Divine Conquerors Main

[nighttimecatplayer]

"The Silent Fawn"

Location:

Checking on Mia at the Mollug cliff.

(Third Summoning)

Interaction(s):

@Solirus @Juju @StaidFoal @Fluffykitty9000

Mention(s):

Xander, Bun Bun, Mia, Alberto.

Incidental Theme:

N/A.

- - -

Hush was not very surprised when the elder mentioned that they could read the boy's emotions. Hush could do the same thing with their deer since they shared souls, but it was still interesting to speak with another person telepathically.

...Not that Hush was considering replacing their shadows or anything, the boy loved their herd more than life itself and knew that they probably would not even be here if it wasn't for them.

Come to think of it, what was Xander exactly? They looked like a human, but Hush knew better than that.

...Also, why wasn't the therapist using their voice? Were they mute too?

Before Hush could let their mind wander too far, Xander said something that made them choke.

W-Wendigo?

Fuck, fuck...

No, no, no... How do you know?!

Hush paled as they frantically looked around, and their deer watched them with concern.

No one was supposed to find out, Xander!

Without thinking, Hush grabbed the elder by the shirt, desperation taking over as they begged the doctor not to tell anyone.

Y-You can't tell anyone...

Please...

Whenever people find out about my Wendigo, they either want my head, or they become terrified of me...

...Do you know what it's like to be feared and hated by everyone?

Although Hush wore a blank expression, their eyes held a large variety of emotions as they stared into the therapist's dark orbs.

It is one of the worst feelings in the world, Xander...

Hush's eyes slowly became unfocused as their mind drifted off, and they let go of the therapist.

No one was supposed to know...

Whatever Xander said next, Hush tuned out, but the boy was still conscious enough to see an unfamiliar hand approaching their antlers as they softly grabbed the person by the wrist and froze.

Blinking, Hush turned to the newcomer, slightly out of it as they observed the male.

...

...You're so...Colourful...

What are you?

Hush was astounded to see such vibrant colors. The boy came from an era without technology, and they had no idea where to even begin with this summoned.

Are you a human?

A demon?

...Are those bunny ears?

Tilting their head, Hush released their grip on the male as they took a small step back.

L:F2-01-BB?...

That is not a real name.

You deserve a real name.

...

You have bunny ears, so I am going to call you Bun Bun.

Hush heard Dancer snicker and sharply elbowed them in the side, earning a glare from the deer as something else caught their attention.

Out of the corner of their eye, Hush could see a tiny figure bump into Xander and fall onto the grass.

Although the little girl did not seem to be injured, they were still crying and...

...

K-Korra?...

Hush felt their heart stop, but on closer inspection, they realized it was just a girl who looked like their sister.

Oh... I thought...

...Wait.

Crying...

Little...

Girl?...

...

Springing into action, Hush slipped off their backpack and rushed over to the tiny distressed human, sketchbook, and pencil safely tucked underneath their right armpit.

"Are you okay? What's wrong? Can I get you anything? Does something hurt?"

Quickly scribbling down their message, Hush handed it to the girl and crouched down next to them, their worried gaze searching the tiny human for injuries.

Hush was so busy checking over the little girl that they did not even notice when another summoned joined the group and commented on their antlers.

...Please do not be scared of me.

I can help you.

Please let me help...

As of right now, nothing else mattered to Hush except making sure that this little girl was healthy and whole.​

 

[Juju]

Kotori, Wakinyan & SusanInteraction: Snackofthefuture Solirus StaidFoal
Mentions: Gohan510 YsFanatic Viper Actual seasonedcat

​

// Kotori was silent after Ivan blasted her cuffs, attempting to free her of her shackles. Though regardless of whether or not he succeeded, she remained where she stood. Her eyes were far off, unfocused after he had told her to ‘tame’ Wakinyan, as if one could catch the wind or cage lightning in a bottle. For now she was thankful she had managed to talk him into passivity for the time being. At least, she hoped she would be thankful for it. Seeing him in chains was borderline blasphemy, and it left an uneasy feeling in her heart. The way that the snake-summoner looked at her had also made her feel an unearthly chill down her spine. Even if it was only for a second, she could not hold his gaze. Everything felt wrong, even if she told herself this was the right thing to do.

// Wakinyan looked entirety unamused at the situation. His ears were pinned back and he tugged on the annoying chains once more, causing a nearby guard to stumble backwards out of caution or fear. The only one who dared approach was the commander Sulric, so blinded by his own crippled conviction.

The beast stared at him evenly through scarlet eyes, seeing the tears that threatened to fall from the commander’s own. At the mention of judge, Wakinyan let out an indignant snort. As misguided as the commander was, his devotion to his kingdom was admirable. Wakinyan did not forget what he had done for Kotori either, and for this he abstained from flooding the man's mind with thunder. It would be a waste of words anyway.

To reinforce the fact that he was going on his own terms, Wakinyan moved slowly in the general direction of the prison. Chains limply slunk along the cobblestone as Wakinyan stepped between the corpses he had made. He hardly spared them a glance, but he did eye the group of commanders whenever Ivan shouted out his defense of Kotori. He stopped to listen.

// “Yeah, they’re not gonna listen to you...” Susan said under her breath, watching Ivan while sitting on an overturned table safely away from the drama. She had distanced herself in an effort to mask her connection to Kotori and so far it had worked. Ivan did the exact opposite, trying to convince the minds of these backwards people. It was heroic, but she didn’t think such actions were going to help Kotori or Wakinyan. As far as she knew, the best and most peaceful plan would be to bust them out. It was also the easiest.

Susan plopped a candied sweet into her mouth and carefully watched the reactions of those who Wakinyan had attacked. The one who had summoned the snake had a shit-eating grin on his face while eyeing Kotori. Definitely guilty. On the other-hand, the older guy looked about as shocked as the others. Either he was a good actor or he really didn’t know how to detect a baddy in his midst. Either way, he was pretty dangerous considering how quickly he took down the fleeing robot-man. Susan chewed on the sweet thoughtfully, taking mental note of the strange coffin ability that had been used on Charon. Also Charon's strange skin-illusion. It made the girl laugh at how Ian reacted, but she lost interest after that.

Out of all of them Sulric was clearly taking this the worst. It was a little surprising to Susan, having only seen him as bright and positive. A shame the attitude had been broken so easily. Truly, it was a pity. Just the thought made her glance towards Kotori, standing at the center of this maelstrom. Susan blinked, tilting her head at the strange feeling of worry in her chest. Hopefully Kotori was doing alright. More importantly, she hoped Kotori wouldn’t do anything foolish before she and Csilla could rescue her.

// While Ivan snarled at the princess, trying his best to clear her name, Kotori couldn’t help but gaze silently at the carnage around her. Shards of glass and forgotten food had been scattered in wanton abandon across the ground. The sound of strange music had been replaced by a silence broken only by each of Ivan’s words, though she hardly heard them. The revelers had long since fled, leaving the splintered tables and overturned benches familiarly vacant.

The wind was calmer than it had been before, warm under the moonlight. It caught in the cape of a fallen guard, flapping over their face and shoulderguards. To all but Wakinyan this would be horror, not justice. They feared him… and they feared her too. She could see it on the expressions of the guards who remained, see flickers of hatred in their eyes. To them they would not be saviors, but divine conquerors, no better than those below the Mollug sigil. Were they any better? To Mollug they were an enemy of their nation... and now she must be an enemy to Nortestra too.

Kotori took a long breath before finally speaking up, her voice steady yet grim. ”No. I take full responsibility for the actions of Wakinyan and as such I will suffer the same consequences as him. If this is what their laws demand then I shall abide by them. I am not here to bend them to my will be it by force, or fear. Neither will I threaten them destruction for their differences. I told Sulric that I would protect his city, and I still keep to that promise.”

”There is no need for any more fighting... or defending. I will go willingly.” She then lowered her voice as she spoke directly to Ivan, an apologetic look of regret on her face. “Forgive me for bringing you into this…but if you fight them you will only further prove that you are here to harm them. I do not know if you care about them, but know that Tyranis will be imprisoned or worse for protecting you as well. I swear I will tell you everything but please, think of this.”

With that she turned and walked away towards where Sulric and Wakinyan stood. She didn’t look back.

 

[DrBones]

Bolivar Domingo​

It had been a very unfortunate--though not especially unusual compared to how things were before--week for Bolivar. His world was destroyed; by what exactly, he could hardly remember, nor did he want to relive those memories. Then, he had appeared good as new in front of a truly unusual cyborg, who promptly shanghaied him into some sort of plot to cause general chaos and terror. Aside from the desperate attempts on the cyborg's part to demonstrate his power and the unattractive tattoo-slash-implant he had imprinted on everyone, it was not the worst initiation Bolivar had gone through. He snuck out of the the meeting as quickly as he could, without taking even a shred of useful intel with him.

Bolivar's aimless wandering took him through hill and valley, all hither and thither. He blundered into bands of refugees, mercenaries, and soldiers, and narrowly avoided death and/or vague feelings of guilt at their hands; he picked through the remains of some of these bands, massacred by a variety of horrid means; he even made a couple friends... friends he earnestly believed he'd meet again soon.

It was a week since he arrived in this miserable pit of a world, by Bolivar's count, and he had only now managed to find some sign of civilization after so much time wandering through the wilderness. A brief--and nonviolent--interrogation of a trader hastily packing his goods next to the gate revealed to Bolivar that this was "Castellan", capital city of the nation "Nortestra". Neither nations nor empires held much interest to Bolivar, but this would make an excellent staging ground for him from here on. He pressed into the city, carefully making his way past the rebuilding Castellan cordon without drawing attention to himself. He would work his magic on the locals later; for now, he would rather have some hot food.

"No, no, you need to pay before you eat," the owner of Hargh's Noodles complained, holding a terribly empty bowl out of Bolivar's reach.

Bolivar considered this. He patted his pockets, searched the folds of a backpack he had looted days ago. They both had no money in them, of course, same as yesterday and the day before. He shrugged his shoulders, and made a counter-offer, "How about we barter?"

The owner--presumably his name was Hargh, but Bolivar didn't want to assume--snorted derisively. "Coinage only, bud. Nortestran coinage. I don't want any Mollug crap filling up my coinpurse."

Bolivar sighed. He did like arguing, but this kind of argument hardly ever made things fun for him. "You seem confident any coins I give you would be worth the price of these noodles," he noted, "I feel you'd find more value if you bartered with me instead."

"The coins're worth plenty," the noodleman scoffed, "we got news Castellan's treasury'd be full up soon just a while ago!" He squinted suspiciously into Bolivar's lone eyehole, hoping to catch a sign of weakness.

Bolivar tapped his chin in thought. This was some valuable info, though obviously not sellable if even the civilians know about it. "And... what makes you think that's guaranteed?" He planted the seed of doubt in his opponent's mind. "Of course, you've seen the state of the city, I don't need to pile any more worries on your head..."
Bolivar paused dramatically, and lowered his voice. "But what if the city doesn't last long enough for all that treasure to come in? If Nortestra's capital falls, surely the value of Nortestra's money would fall as well?"

Bolivar had shaken the man's trust in the--frankly, almost certainly still functioning-- systems he had slung his life and livelihood to. What if the Nortestran economy collapsed? What if Castellan was conquered? Would having even a fortune's worth of Castellan coins be enough to save his sorry hide? Wild fears and doubt plagued the poor man's mind. Finally, he relented. "You're right," the man blurted out, "what should I do?!"

Bolivar thrust his hand into his pilfered pack and pulled out the first thing he could find. He presented... a single day's worth of field rations to the man as if he was holding twelve pounds of gold bullion. "Practical products, like this, are going to be worth a lot of money when this place goes! You serve me up those noodles, and I give you this ration--and it's gonna last a lot longer and sell for a lot more than those noodles're worth!"

The terrified dupe was convinced. He snatched the ration out of Bolivar's hands, and hastily served him up a big, steaming bowl of noodles. "I'm cutting my own throat here," Bolivar lamented out loud, "but fine. You enjoy yourself, now!"

Bolivar grinned as he finished his meal. It was somewhat reassuring to see people so confident in their tyrant-- rock-solid faith leaves a handsome foundation when it's torn down. But perhaps it would be a better idea to lay low for now, investigate the world outside Castellan's walls. If that noodle-seller blabbed and Castellan was doomed, Bolivar didn't think he'd have the time to swindle his way out of jail. Besides, he didn't have money for a night in an inn.

 

[YsFanatic]

Spoiler

Made by Juju and myself

When the darkness reversed Charon found himself already in a dungeon cell with the arms of the spell working to restrain him. The android, perhaps surprisingly, held still while a group of knights worked to fasten chains to his wrists to supplement the ones already on his ankles. He was not idle however as his sensors were busy scanning for every trace of data he could get, not only of the cell but also that of the knights and the restraints they were putting on him. He also made note of the presence of one of the other Summoned in the same cell as him, the woman with the unicorn.

When one of the knights pulled the name sign from his neck the android turned his head to glare at the unfortunate man before playing a recorded voice clip taken from an ancient Earth show. The voice was that of a young girl and the phrase was rather short, a simple "You are going to die.".

Unnerved, the knight beat a hasty retreat and was soon followed by his peers as they finished with the chains and locked the cell bars behind them. With them gone the android started to look around the cell to study it in more detail.

He would quickly find Kotori sat against the cell wall, cuffed hands resting on her knees and shoulders heavy from both chains and exhaustion. In the half-light her eyes seemed dull, shrouded in skeletal shadows, but even still they flashed with mild bewilderment at Charon’s strange entrance. A girlish voice had risen from behind the towering knight’s visor, different from the one she heard during the fight with the Nortestran soldiers, but Kotori did not comment on it. Not yet at least.

“We meet again” She said to the android, giving her best attempt at a smile, “I never did thank you for what you did back there at the cathedral, and now I must thank you again for defending me. Forgive me for dragging you into this mess."

Charon tilts his head for a moment as he turns to face Kotori. "Mess? This situation barely starts to qualify for that designation. Things could easily be far, far worse in an infinite number of ways, fleshy."

His words earned a smile from the girl, not a forced one, but one filled with gratitude. She looked down at her chains and let out a breath, “Yes, I suppose you are right. We are still alive, afterall.”

The android falls silent for a moment as he detects something unexpected and he began to look back and forth between Kotori and the direction of where the unicorn was being held several times. "You and the Horny Horse are bound together. Why?"

The question took Kotori by surprise, for not even Hitorikage had been given that information. The armored man must have sensed it somehow. Kotori eyed him wearily, but decided she could trust him. He did fight with her on two several occasions, and it was clear that he could see the truth. An explanation was more than deserved at this point.

“It is an ancient and sacred ritual. The wor-… my old world was kept in balance by three divine beasts; Wakinyan, Gta'n, and Ugu-qamu but they could not manifest in the world without being bound to a mortal. These chosen mortals were known as Keepers, and I am one."

"And this requires linking your souls together? Odd weakness for a divine thing to have. A possession would have been safer, but whatever. You fleshies and god-things have a fondness for ignoring logic even more than I do." A long dramatic sigh emerges from his speakers. "Alas, the best chance to get out of here is to rely on help from even more fleshies. I am reminded more and more of my stay on Ravenloft the longer I'm on this planet "

As Charon spoke, Kotori could not help but think back to the words of Hakan; all about the dying world and lying gods. Her friend had been crazed at that point, the corruption having eaten away at most of his soul, but hearing Charon point out similarities made her shiver. Could there have been more to Hakan’s senseless babbling? Did it even matter at this point?

The mention of other fleshies and Ravenloft snapped her out of her musings. She looked up at Charon and tilted her head, “You call others fleshies? Is that a custom from your world, Ravencroft? You also say planet but… I do not know what you mean. Forgive me, there are many things I do not understand on this world.”

The Soul Eater shakes his head once. "There are infinite worlds out there. I was 'abducted' in a sense and dropped on Ravenloft like many others and had to rely on fleshies to escape." There was a pause as he confirmed there were no spells placed for spying on them, at least none he could detect. "I myself was built on some other world and then activated on a ship between worlds."

Turning towards the metal bars, Charon moved close to them and started a close observation, looking for any weaknesses in their construction. "Oh, and any food they bring is all yours."

Kotori wrapped her arms around her knees as Charon talked, letting the chains rattle gently. She listened to him intently, resting her head on her knees as she tried to understand. He was created on a boat between worlds? So at sea? No, perhaps he meant actual worlds? Like Csilla’s home and her own.

”You were built…” she muttered, frowning at the ground while trying to understand. Then he mentioned that he did not need to eat. Was he not a human? If so then what was he? She thought back to faded murals found in crumbling temples and dusted tales told by milky-eyed elders. “Are you a living statue?”

As soon as she said it her face reddened slightly, feeling silly for asking about a children’s tale. Then again she was transported to another world with showers and guns. Maybe this made sense somewhere else?

A brief cackle of amusement could be heard from Charon. "Nah, Norach is the mithril construct. I'm an android, a sentient being built primarily via advanced technology. Some are built with a particular purpose, like how I can eat souls as a way to permanently get rid of hostile ghosts, others are more generalized and more closely resemble fleshy people." Crouching, he began examining the ground for any signs of hidden passages.

“Eat… souls?” Kotori’s previous look of fascination and wonder soon sharpened into one of fear. She remembered the small glimmers of lights that had flickered above the knights Wakinyan had smited. Her stomach twisted at the realization but her mind refused to believe it. “No.. that is wrong. You cannot destroy a spirit. It is eternal, part of a great cycle.”

Eyes widened, she looked down at her chains but all she could see were the dead knights. “A-a soul is not created evil. When they are killed by Wakinyan their sins are burned away so that they may return to the cycle and be reincarnated once more. They will be pure again…”

As Charon slowly and carefully examine the ground his voice a more teaching like tone, something many would have thought impossible. "Souls work differently in different worlds. In some they go to an afterlife for eternity, in others they reincarnate, and yet others the soul dies when the body does. Even with an afterlife it reincarnation the process can be interrupted. Resurrection abilities and technology exist and some souls remain in the physical world, bound by intense negative feelings, regrets, or due to other reasons. They become ghosts and some are rather hostile to the living and will try to kill them."

The android stopped, looked at Kotori for a moment, commented "You need a haircut, I'm a barber," and went back to his study of the floor.

The more Kotori listened the paler her face became. She looked sickly, stretched thin. The chains felt heavier than she remembered. Technology was another strange word, one used to describe how the android was built on the boat. It must be a sort of magic, but if it could resurrect beings then it had to be as powerful as G’tan herself.

Everything she thought she knew about souls was being questioned in a span of a few sentences. It was all she could do to blink in surprise when Charon commented on her hair, intercepting the earth-shattering revelations momentarily. She might have laughed if she didn’t feel so ill. She listened in quiet discomfort as Charon continued.

"Some ghosts can be fought off easily enough, others are nearly impossible to fend off and that's where I come in. I can fight and destroy the ghosts that organics are unable to fight or purify, removing the threat before it can harm innocents. And then there are the specters of Ravenloft.". There is a brief pause as the android stands back up and organizes his information. "Specters were extremely hostile ghosts of a variety forms and powers governed by a hivemind. They were capable of corrupting the souls of those they killed into more of their kind on the spot, or just use them for food. Many considered oblivion preferable to the chance of becoming one of those monsters for eternity. There was also a case of souls being warped and meged into a pair of physical swords of unnatural sharpness that caused pain to the souls whenever they cut something." Charon, having to finished his study of the cell and not finding any hidden exits, walked over to the bars before saying one last little bit.

"The souls of the knights Horny Horse killed remained tainted enough to be valid targets for consumption, removing the risk of them becoming ghosts. His powers may not work as well in this world as you expect."

Kotori’s heart quickened at the description of the soul-devouring specters, terrified by their similarity to the corruption that plagued her world. She thought of Ugu-qamu and all the those who had been lost to its hungry claws. Wakinyan had struck them down… she had struck them down. Did that mean their souls were damned forevermore? What about the knights that had been consumed? She felt the cold of the cell pressing into her skin. Wakinyan’s power waned, evident by his lost wings, but she refused to give up just yet.

“What if they were purified? Would that mean you do not need to destroy them?” Kotori said weakly, looking up at Charon’s strangely luminous eyes. “You said they were souls that fleshies…like ah…me?… and tech-no-logy could not purify. I know the corruption you speak of. A-at least I think I do. I have seen it and everything it can do, but I have also seen a way to undo it.”

Kotori’s hands glowed for a second before fizzling out. She hissed as the magic dampening cuffs burnt her wrists, as if suddenly pulled from a forge. “I told you of Wakinyan’s sister, G’tan. She was afflicted by corruption and they said her soul was lost, but I managed to banish the shadows just before she died. I almost did the same thing at the cathedral with that winged man.”

”I know that it’s possible. I… I can do it. If I can help you maybe you will no longer need to destroy souls!”

The android tilts his head as he listens to Kotori's words. "Your purification speed is lackluster at best. You had a hard time with only single target. Against hundreds, thousands, or more coming after you at once you won't have time to purify any of them. Its destroy them or be killed. As such I don't see the problem with destruction of souls, especially in cases where there is no afterlife or some terrible fate awaits the person. Oblivion is no different than what will happen to me whenever I end up being destroyed since I don't have a soul to begin with."

Kotori looked away, chewing her lip and frowning slightly in anger. It was a funny thing, Charon was speaking but she could hear Wakinyan’s words. The two would get along rather well, if they got out of here in one piece that is. Each of of the android’s words made her own fragile sense of righteousness feel smaller and smaller. It sometimes became difficult to remember why she held onto it.

“No, you are wrong! I…” Kotori sighed, trying to calm herself enough to find words to oppose hard truths, “I am sorry your creators did not give you a soul. I do not know why that must be, but I do know that destroying souls is wrong! As long as something exists it can seek either good or evil, but if you destroy them then they cannot make that choice! Anything is better than oblivion! We do not know if there is an afterlife here. You said that yourself! Different worlds, different gods. If there is a chance souls may seek light again we should give it to them!”

Although Kotori knew her powers were minimal, it felt terrible to hear Charon comment on them. She often wondered if it truly mattered in the grand scheme of things. Still, she balled her hands into fists and sheltered her spark of a conviction. “It doesn’t matter how many I can save, If I can save just one soul then it was not all for nothing!”

Kotori's words vaguely reminded Charon of a conversation he had with a certain Templar decades ago on Ravenloft, but not quite as hostile as that young woman had been, and certainly far, far less hostile than the ghost that had somehow retained his sanity. Hearing similar arguments from yet another person he considered an ally was troublesome.

ERROR DETECTED

Turning, the android went up to the bars and stared out of them. He figured that he might as well stand as still as a statue, maybe creep out any guards that came to check up on them. "Androids almost never have souls, that would require taking one from -"

CRITICAL FAULT DETECTED IN SOUL EATER CORE

"-a person, be it living or dead."

ERROR DETECTED IN RED REACTOR

Charon's voice started to become gradually more static filled as he spoke, more and more of his processing power being taken up investigating the error messages appearing in his thoughts. "In the face of a threat like the specters you can't afford such idealism."

ERROR DETECTED IN SENSORS

"Clinging to those thoughts will only get-"

ERROR DETECTED IN NANO-REPAIR

"-get-"

ERROR DETECTED

"-get people-"

ERROR
ERROR
ERROR
ERRORERRORERRORERRORERRORERRORERROR-

SYSTEM FAILURE DETECTED

The android's speech would trail off into a cloud of static that lasted for several moments as his body trembled. Soon the soul eater collapsed to his knees and his upper body tilted forward, his head hitting the bars with a loud clang as his arms came to hang loosely at his sides. Charon's right eye slowly dimmed, and then as it powered back up the left one grew darker, they continued to alternate without end.

Kotori, who had been watching the whole situation in confused horror, forgot all about her frustration towards the android whenever she saw him fall to his knees. As much as they had their differences, he had risked his life to protect her. Now she could only hope she could return the favour. She gasped and moved forward to help him, only to hear her chains clip loudly, forcing her to stop an arm's distance away.

"Are you alright?" Kotori tried to call out to him (only now realizing she had no idea what his name was) but got no response. She tugged at her cuffs with little success, feeling them bite into her wrists. What should she do? Even without the dampening chains she wondered if there was anything her healing could do for a living st-- android. With little other options to help her new friend, Kotori called out to the guards.

"HELLO? PLEASE, SOMEBODY, WE NEED HELP!"

 

[Juju]

Kotori, Aldreg & Wakinyan

{collab with @Kai123}
​

After the princess and company left the building Aldreg grabbed his glasses cleaning them off with a white cloth. Putting them on he heads towards the dungeon, there he will seek the answers of the summoners. Walking through the streets those who walked it wave at Aldreg. He was perceived to be one of the nicest commanders, though what they didn't know was it was all a lie. Getting closer to the dungeon troops can be seen in the distance. Greeting them all, Aldreg soon stepped to the giant gste door as they opened it for him. Motioning that he needs no protection, Aldreg walked into the dungeon and the door closed behind him. Reaching the cells Aldreg noticed it was two chained down, one a woman, the other..?

"Greetings summoned, my name is Aldreg. Commander of research and development."

"Aldrég? I am Kotori, keeper of the Heavenly Beast. Please you have to help my friend he... I-i do not know what is wrong with him. He just suddenly collapsed!" Kotori hurriedly explained to the commander, panic making her breath faint and her head dizzy. She had stood up too quickly and already she felt her legs become unsteady. At least the chains, now pulled taught against her wrists, were good supports.

She glanced at the deactivated Charon, collapsed onto his knees with head pressed against the bars and his arms dangling limply from his sides. While she was unable to see it from her angle, Charon's eyes flickered in alternations. "Commander, I know we attacked your soldiers, but this one only fought them to defend me. He did not know what was going on and his involvement was my fault. Please help him."

The woman who was chained up mentioned her name being Kotori, keeper of the Heavenly Beast. Perfect, this was the person he wanted to talk to while coming here. Aldreg pulled out multiple keys opening the bar door entering the cell with the two summoned. Aldreg looked over to Charon which in his eyes was obviously a droid from the looks of his eyes flickering. Looking back to Kotori he fixed his glasses. "Your friend is okay, rest assured. In simplest ways of saying he's just getting rest, although it looks strange on how he's doing so. Just know all is well." Aldreg crouched down and lifted the droid's arm to show Charon was really unresponsive. "Now let's talk about that attack that happened tonight. What exactly went down? Oh! Also just call me Aldreg, no need to use formal wording with me. Let's just talk. I'm quite interested in you lot, but the most interesting is you Kotori, you and your heavenely beast. He might not even like me from what I heard he's very.. "judgemental", but that's okay. So." Aldreg walked over to one of the prison beds and sitting down. "Let's talk."

"Resting? Are you sure?" Kotori asked without taking her eyes off the previously lively android. However, the look she got from Aldreg was enough to tell her that he was sure. She slackened her tug on the chains, feeling awkward for questioning someone who probably knew a lot more about androids than her. "Right, okay...as long as you are certain..."

She took a seat on the bed opposite of Aldreg, giving Charon one last glance before turning her attention to the commander, her eyes rimmed in determination. "Comm--... Aldrég, the attack during the festival was a misunderstanding! Wakinyan will only strike those who have committed dark crimes. Those warriors he attacked must have done terrible things to have fallen so easily to his heavenfire. Please, you have to understand. Wakinyan is a guardian of the innocent, not a butcher."

"I understand quite well, but you have to understand this isn't your land to pick and choose who shall walk and who shall sink six feet under. Though don't take this is as me siding against you, otherwise I wouldn't be in here, rather this close to you. I'd be like the rest, cowering. Back on topic though. *clears throat* How does this power of his work exactly? Do you have any control over the beast or at least able to have him relax while you're both in a foreign country? You both have to remember, there's consequences when you make certain choices in someone elses home." The girl seemed fairly innocent, so what she was saying was for sure not a lie at the slightest. Aldreg kept a calm and warm welcoming attitude to the girl. "Oh! Are you hungry?" The guard that followed Aldreg into the dungeon to visit the summoned carried two plates of food not realizing one of the summoned was a droid.

Kotori fiddled with her chains nervously, "Wakinyan is a Divine Beast, he does as he wishes, but I have managed to keep him from attacking anyone else until the trial. As for his power, it springs from the divine and is strengthened by sin. That is all I know."

"Ah interesting. Divine? Is this something similar to Mana, or completely alienated? That massive holy presence is his no? Also the more you tell me the more I can help you in your trial. I like you Kotori, you're kind. I expected you summoned to be reckless, but I guess I was wrong to think so. Do you have any friends that are summoned too? Where are they? Sorry for all the questions. I'm a rather curious person, and it's in my commander title of research and development. I'm considering this conversation locked between us two as private. The giant guard you see this accompanied me from the princess's request." The guard walked in the cell placing the plate of food next to Kotori, it was some kind of meat, veggies, and rice. After that the guard walked out of the cell and off somewhere to watch post from Aldreg's command. Once the guard left Aldreg turned his attention back to Kotori and he smiled.

"I must admit that mana is a relatively new term for me. In my world magic was scarce and weak, held almost exclusively by the Divine Beasts and their keepers. I only heard about mana from Hitorikage and Susan, some of my summoned friends. I can only assume that it is similar to mana, perhaps a higher branch. At least, that is what Csilla says." Kotori looked down at the plate of food, feeling sick. In honesty the meal looked lovely, especially compared to whatever Hitori could cook, but she had lost her appetite. Since entering the prison she had felt ill, but speaking of her friends only worsened the effect. "Susan and Csilla are in the city, but I do not know where Hitorikage is now. He was with us in the defense of the city but after the battle ended he was nowhere to be found. I searched for hours but I have not found him."

"Such lovely names you all share, I assume Hitorikage is a nickname for the young man? If you don't mind me asking what they all look like so I can greet them accordingly. I might have information if the faces match that might peek your interest." Aldreg pushed his glasses up with a smile.

Kotori feared Hitori might be dead at this point, but she did not wish to say this. Still, there was a small hope that maybe he was still out there. Perhaps the commander saw him? "Csilla and Susan were with me at the festival. Csilla is a child of the stars, dark skinned and horned, with spots that glow in the night. Susan is a young girl with strange clothes and stranger abilities. Hitorikage is around my age... with dark messy hair and dark eyes to match. He carries a sword with a strange symbol on its hilt and is gifted at harnessing the power of fire. The last time I saw him he was heading into the city to fight an enemy." she laughed sadly, "He... always liked a good challenge."

Aldreg's facial expression shifted to a sadden face. Why such a kind girl had to experience such grief? What exactly did she go through over the time of being here? Aldreg took his glasses off and crossed his leg over the other. "So Csilla and Susan the two women you fought with against Wyman and Hodir? You aided Sulric as well as helped Nortestra survive. Thank you. You're a very strong woman. This Hitorikage, you both peek my interest you know? I want to get to know you both honestly, so I'm glad we get this chance to talk. Now. Be honest. This Hitorikage, you believe his dead." Aldreg said with a saddened tone to match Kotori's vibe.

"You are correct, Csilla and Susan were with me in the battle against the dragon and his rider." She smiled softly at the compliment, "I did only what was right. At least, I hope it was." Kotori nodded in acknowledgement of his thanks but remained silent when Aldreg spoke of Hitori being dead. While she did not answer, it was clear by her darkened expression that he was correct.

The expression she gave Aldreg was clear that she did believe the boy was indeed dead. He nodded in response to her mentioning what she did was only what she hoped was right. Everything she's done for Nortestra can be counted for. No one can say she didn't spill blood for this country. Though he has the answer that she'll truly enjoy. "Before I forget, dear god excuse my rudeness." Aldreg got up removing every type of shackle or cuffs that was remotely on the woman. Though the android Gen told him was ruckus. Even though Aldreg wanted the girl to trust him so favoritism wasn't the best course of action to take. He uncuffed the droid too. "You will be free while I'm around, now continue."

"Thank you, Aldrég." Kotori said, rubbing her wrists where the cuffs had bit into her skin. Now that they were off she felt lighter in more ways than one. It felt as if she could breathe clearly again and the gathering sickness seemed to lessen a bit. She could not help but worry for Wakinyan, so she asked Aldreg. "Do you know where they are keeping Wakinyan? Is he alright?" Usually she would be able to tell instinctively through their bond, but whatever was holding Wakinyan had made it fuzzy.

"No problem, about your Divine friend he's actually further down in this confinement. I will take you to him if you'd like? After we're done chatting. If you don't mind of course. Would you like me to tell you what happened to your friend? How much would you like to know?"

Kotori kept her composure at the offer to see Wakinyan, reluctant to beg, but she couldn't help but let her words blurt out whenever Aldreg brought up Hitori's fate. "Yes!" Kotori said a little too quickly before clearing her throat, trying to contain her feelings of excitement and dread. "Please, tell me all that you can."

"Before I continue, answer this. Do you believe in demons? Do you know of them or heard of them?"

Kotori eyed him wearily. "In my homeland we had a different name for it, we called it corruption. 'Demons' were the dark, twisted husks, but I never saw a true demo -- ones with minds-- until I fought at the cathedral against one."

"Ah yes corruption. They are indeed a hassle of a species I'd say so myself. I've been researching them on the side of my main agenda. I've gotten quite far actually, they're quite remarkable. Only issue is their hunger for constant conflict." Aldreg sat up as his legs were no longer crossed. His face changed again this time serious. "Your friend is one of them or at least has one inside of him. While I watched on the sideline, I witnessed as he went through the stages of 'demonification'. Where he wondered off too was to fight against a Ebony woman. One of the Commanders of Mollug, Synthia. She is also a demon, maybe we can say a princess of them to say. That explains why he left you so suddenly, his demon must've influenced his mental to jet to her. Though what you've told me, he seems to be a fanatic for combat as well so I assume he couldn't help himself, but to head to her powerful mana source. That does mean you might have to confront this demon one day. It might try to completely take over his body. The demon in him is very powerful, I was actually surprised to even be around one like it."

Aldreg pushed his hair back and cleared his throat. "Now to clear the gloom air. All is well, your friend was actually taken away by a group of misfits, who also share this demonification trait. Actually to add to that, the one who saved him was a former commander of Nortestra who was exiled for taking demon research too far. Turning his squadron along with friends into demons, Through miracle though they were blessed to see another day as human."

"No, that's impossible...Wakinyan would have attacked Hitorikage if he was a demon. Wakinyan does not tolerate creatures of darkness...h-he must have it inside him. I know Hitorikage and even if he longs for battle he is not a monster"

Back at the Outcast Hideout while Kinji watched Hitori train with Choji he randomly sneezed multiple times. "The hell?" ​

It was a lot of information to take in at once, and although Kotori felt a great relief to know that her friend was alive, it was tainted by the shadow of dread. If he was 'saved' by this exiled commander then it would mean that Hitori was in danger. Whatever he had done to his squadron he would surely do to Hitori. Kotori's hands shook in her lap and her face went pallid as she looked down at them. All she could imagine was Hitori falling into corruption, just like Hakan, his soul and memories eaten away by darkness. She was too late for Hakan, too late for Ugu-qamu. Was she too late for Hitori as well?

"I... I need to find him. I cannot allow this exiled commander to let the demon consume him. Who are they? Where can I find them... and what is the miracle you mentioned? Please, I need to save my friend before it's too late."

Aldreg smiled at Kotori and pushed his glasses back up again. Her concern for the boy did woe Aldreg's heart, so he will not lie about anything she asked.

"They are all former members of the Nortestra armies, most of them had solidified ranks while others were apart of squadrons. I'll start with the leader, aka the one who 'saved' your friend Kinji. Along with Kinji are, Choji, Hiyori, Yuri, Jugo, Yaha, and Lia. They go by the name "Outcasters" or something like that. Their whereabouts are still unknown so I can't help you there. Though after this war I will gladly take time to help you search for your friend. One thing I can tell you. Your divine friend will feel Hitorikage's demon's presence when they do turn him into one, if they haven't already. For the miracle that is another thing I truthfully cannot answer for you. I wasn't present to see it, but I was present of their return and trial. I wonder, could your divine friend purify, or even cure darkness?"

“Kinji, Choji, Hiyori, Yuri, Jugo, Yaha, Lia…The Outcasters” Kotori muttered to herself, committing the names to memory. Her expression hardened as she listened to Aldreg explain Wakinyan’s ability to sense Hitori should he transform. Hopefully it would not come to that. “Thank you Aldrég, I would be grateful if you helped me search after the war. As far as I know Wakinyan’s purification is one of divine wrath. A clean death by the power of the gods, a smite. But I… I discovered something shortly before my own death.”

Now that her shackles were off of her, Kotori was able to summon a glowing light around her hands. “I can harness his power in a different way… a purification rather than a purge. I can cure corruption. Well mostly, I am new to this, but I know I can do it. I will not let another one of my friends fall to darkness.”

As soon as Kotori summoned the glow there came a rumbling roar from deeper inside the prison. A faint breeze stirred the stagnant air of the cell, bringing with it the faint smell of rain.

Aldreg watched Kotori as she spoke, even as she got up Kotori surprised Aldreg with a bright light coming from her hand, in response he clapped in amusement. "I see, so you do the good, while he does the good, but casually bad haha. He kills you save. Interesting." Aldreg was caught off short as the smell of rain attracted his attention. "I assume that's your divine friend? I think he wants to know who's all here." Aldreg said standing up walking over to the bar door opening it to allow Kotori to walk out. The guard turned ready to jet over to Kotori, but Aldreg halted them with the palm of his hand, then prompted the guard to follow. "No need to attack her, she's with me under my care now." The guard nodded and followed Aldreg and the woman down the steep dungeon.

As they got to the entrance it was a brown gate door. Aldreg walked over to it placing his hand on it, in response the door shined bright with magic circles spiraling all over. Soon after dust kicked up as the doors slowly opened. Aldreg took a few steps back allowing the guard to stand in front in case anything happened. "Go ahead, I'll only watch from a safe distance." As the doors completely opened Aldreg's eyes open wide to witness such a beautiful beast for the first time in person so close. Rather then the distance he had watching the battle from earlier.

While Aldreg was struck by awe, Kotori was struck by dismay. Never in her life had she seen Wakinyan bound in any way, but now he could hardly move. His neck and legs were pulled tightly against the floor and a bloody muzzle was around his snout. It was clear he had struggled to take it off, and must have managed a roar at the cost of harming himself. All the fur of his mane was bristling, his eyes glaring through the doorframe towards Aldreg. While the muzzle prevented him from biting or roaring, he made his displeasure very clear with a threatening growl.

Aldreg watched as the beast glared at him making a growl making it clear that he did not trust the man. No matter though this is what Aldreg prepared for with all the information he got on the beast. Clearly himself as well as the beast both knew if it tried anything the guard would take the hit hence why he stood behind it. Aldreg remained silent until Kotori was done with her visit or spoke to him.

Kotori ran ahead, skidding to a stop beside the giant beast. She buried her face in his white mane, hiding the anguish of her expression. The moment she touched him she felt the sickness of the prison fade and the clarity of the bond restored. Most of all, she felt the guilt of having been the one to put him through this. "Wakinyan, please forgive me. We will get out of here soon... I am so sorry"

Wakinyan's growls rose up, louder than before. He hated being pitied, she knew this, but when he realized she was crying silently beneath his fur he let the thunder die down. She was afraid, he knew this, and also the reason why. He understood the conversation that had occurred and slowly leveled his glare with Aldreg. The beast did not trust the man, and the only reason he was still allowed to breathe in his presence was for the safety of Kotori. It was all he could do for her right now. The rage burned in his heart, hotter than heavenfire itself, but he knew when to hold back his power. Aldreg's involvement with Kotori was troubling, so was the news of Hitori, but he had to destroy these pathetic chains first. And before that Kotori must be unchained as well.

Aldreg looked at Wakinyan still not saying a word. Watching closely though. It was quite interesting seeing their bond, it seemed the beast respected the woman's feeling despite the fact of his pride. The guard turned to make sure Aldreg was fine, they nodded at each other and continued to watch. Aldreg was interested to see that Kotori was more lively with the beast then she was in the cell, could this mean they are linked of some sort? No matter he will figure that out in due time.

When Kotori regained her composure she stood up and gently patted Wakinyan's scaled side. A soft glow surrounded the beast's jaws, sealing up the small cuts made from his struggle with the muzzle. "We will get out of here soon. Then we will save Hitori" The beast blinked in reply and Kotori turned around, forcing herself to leave Wakinyan again.

"It's okay you shall return to your friend everyday, every time I come to visit I will allow you to come see him." Aldreg snapped his fingers as the door slowly closed behind him. All the magic circles spun again, then faded into the door. Aldreg looked at Kotori with a smile. "How do you feel now? Better? This Hitori, he's very important to you guys I assume?"

"Thank you Aldrég, truly, I will not forget this kindness. Yes, I do feel better now. Wakinyan and I spent months...or maybe a year... a long time together. It feels strange to be apart." Kotori glanced sideways at him. Wakinyan was hostile around him, but Kotori had seen no reason to distrust him as of yet. Still, if it was between her eyes and Wakinyan she would heed the beast's warning and be careful. "Hitorikage is a friend and the first person I met in this new world. Of course he is. And I know he would not give up on any of us, so that is why I must do everything that I can to rescue him from this Kinji and his Outcasters."

Aldreg nodded to Kotori's response. He smiled bright at her and patted her on the shoulder. Aldreg then patted her head believing her words to be as true. "So he holds value to your heart. Don't worry many things are unclear, but down the road you will remember my question and question it. Care to learn magic?"

Kotori blinked in surprise when she was patted on the head. It made her feel like a child again, but at the same time it was strangely comforting. "Learn magic? You have already done so much for me... are you sure you will not be punished for such a thing? I do not wish for another friend to suffer on account of my actions. I am not even sure if I can learn powers beyond Wakinyan's blessings"

Aldreg smiled at her and shook his head taking his glasses off to fix the fog in the lens. Putting them back on he looked at her then the guard. "I'm going to tell you a secret. Best keep it between us too, but no I will not get in trouble. If need be I can be at two places at once. Here with you and somewhere else. The secret is I don't like to abide by the Nortestrian rules or laws, I'm one to bend them for the right cause. I'm sure you can, it will just be your divine instead of being mana. We'll classify it divine mana, yes that sounds fitting."

"Two places at once? That is incredible! How does it work? Are you somewhere else right now?" Without much thought, Kotori reached over to touch Aldreg, checking if he was there or not. She blinked, realizing she was being rude and awkwardly apologized. "Ah, sorry... Do not worry, I will not tell others about this...gift."

"Of course! It's one of the magics I know." Aldreg watched as she reached over to him and he laughed. "No worries I'm the real me, currently the only place I'm at is here. Giving you my full divided attention."

She then tilted her head, considering his offer. It seemed like a pretty harmless offer, at least to her. "Perhaps I should at least give it a try. Thank you Aldrég, I doubt I can be two places at once, but I will be grateful for anything that you may teach. I am unsure how I will ever repay you for all this..."

"Repayment is never needed, succeed in the duty SIN gave you. That's how you can repay me. Oh! And by finishing your dinner hahaha!"

Kotori smiled, though felt a ripple of dread at the mention of SIN's duty. "I do not know if I can succeed in my duty, but I can definitely finish my dinner."

 

[Snackofthefuture]

SIN​

SIN sighed and watched as the Summoned all slowly began to disappear from the clearing he’d summoned them in. The grass continued to sway in the moonlight, the wind brushing it gently, rustling the trees as well, in their fall colors swaying prettily in the midnight aura. SIN swiveled his chair to face the cliff’s edge and sighed gazing at the vista before him, mountains jutting into the sky, rivers flowing in the valley beneath, some nice plains, but much forestry.

Then he turned to Letum, face to not really face with the deathly reaper.
She had offered him a latte.
This pleased SIN and he smiled.
“Big thanks my dude. Hella appreciate the coffee.”
He took the cup from her and , his other hand holding a cinnamon bun already.
“An excellent combo, those two, coffee and a cinnamon bun. Something nice about it.
Would you like one?”
SIN recognized the reaper, and enjoyed having her present for the scene. It was a strange universe the death spirit had inhabited, hopefully she would find Valucia to be a worthy replacement.
“Extra foam is appreciated Letum, tell me, how're the folks at the bureau doing? Things are still running smoothly? I've never understood your mechanical fashion of work, but I can appreciate the efficiency.”

SIN was an intimidating figure to interact with in the most normal sense of the word. He was a tall robotic looking figure with implants placed on both sides of his head and replacing his eyes. The form gave off a steampunk glow and the dark cloth with the golden and silver metal of the figure made for an impressive sight. The Reaper herself was also an interesting individual, faceless entirely with a athletic and lithe figure. Clad in a dark skin tight, patterned suit of sorts that covered the feet to the neck of its bearer. A cloak and several strips of fabric dangled uneasily off of the reaper giving the woman a mystifying and eldritch look as she stood there with her scythe.

Mitch Conner

 

[Mitch Conner]

LETUM

"No, no, it's quite alright-", Letum responded, "-have to watch me figure; I've an image to uphold, grim spectre of death, you know how it is."

Letting her scythe rest against her shoulder, Letum rummaged around in her sleeves for a moment before withdrawing her ballpoint pen, Fuckslayer, from a dimension where all screamed for naught.

Also a clipboard.

"Anyhow, let's get to business, shall we? For the purposes of... 'establishing world peace', the Bureau Of Death And Taxes hereby permits you to resurrect and subsequently summon one (1) person(s) from the afterlife. You've been cleared for all status up to and including legendary hero, first class with all the bells n' whistles, ancient prophecy, et cetera- comes in either hit-by-a-truck, flew-into-an-uncharted-wormhole, or accident-with-magic-lightning variations, your choice of. We've got a few candidates here..."

Paging through sheaf after sheaf of documentation, Letum plucked a trio of mugshots from somewhere in the center and held them out for perusal.

"We've got a few recommendations from the Home Office for your consideration- of course, if you've got someone specific in mind, we can always make arrangements."

She pointed to a bust shot of a large, dark-skinned man with a wide smile.

"We've got the mighty Marduk, warrior-king of an ancient civilization and thought to be the strongest man to ever live. Carved out an empire with nothing but his fists, forced apart the sun and moon, wrestled the tides, that sort of a thing. Bit rowdy, but his heart's in the right place."

Next, she pointed to a picture of a scarred woman with a number of cybernetic implants.

"Next, Commodore Mercy "Bulldog" Laine; hero of the Finno-Korean Hyperwars, she's a genetically-engineered superhuman trained from birth to be the ultimate soldier. Skilled with all weapons, strategic genius, survived three years on a desert world with no food or water... Well, the list goes on."

She pointed to a third picture- this time, a weedy nothing of a Japanese boy, dressed in slacks and a blazer.

"Lastly, we've Betamoto Kurosawa, a perfectly ordinary high school student."

She turned to look at SIN.

"Home office says he's a real winner."

Snackofthefuture

 

[Snackofthefuture]

SIN​

SIN nodded with understanding at Letum’s declination, dropping the cinnamon roll to roll around on the floor for a second.

“Figures are important, I totally understand.”

Crossing his legs in his recliner, the mad god rested peacefully for a moment as he watched Letum go about her business/job. He could totally respect a being that held onto its responsibilities even if given a second chance.

“To be quite honest Letum, I dont really care who you resurrect, hell you could choose at this moment. Thanks for the recommendations however, I do appreciate them. The commodore sounds like a fascinating sort in my humble opinion, but you've really got me stumped with Betamoto Kurosawa. I do like winners.”

Mitch Conner

 

[Damafaud]

Francising for a Week in the Same Place Will Annoy People -- Unsurprisingly

Francis!
Interaction: Mulv, Heather, Ezra, Alice, Wonderweiss
Mention: Solirus Pai Chan Gohan510 @Destructus Kloud​

Francis spent one whole week in Astor and boy did it show. At the event he and the rest of the 'fallen from the sky' group were invited to, Alice mentioned the presence of a huge dungeon underneath the city. She also mentioned many things about tourism and stuff, but Francis was no longer listening. His eyes were shining like mad. Oh, he knew what a dungeon was. A treasure trove.

He ran out of the dining hall and into the dungeon. When he resurfaced, he was somehow wearing a two people llama costume, dragging with him a ridiculous amount of monsters he killed inside, equipment and treasures he found inside, and ridiculous contraptions he made inside. He also reinvented his glasses.

If that was not surprising enough, Francis lost everything he got from the dungeon not even two days after he exited. A convoluted conversation with Wonderweiss, the town guardian, accidentally notified Francis of the existence of Alice's Gift Vault. In an attempt to win of the gift, Francis gambled every treasure he owned -- and lost it all. A genius mastermind versus a crazed lunatic in a game chosen by the mastermind? The very premise of it was one-sided. During the last match, however, when Francis put his Cybernetic Hovering Intelligent Compound Kryptid Bow of Undefeated Recklessness Great Engineer Rivtera (CHICK-BURGER), a miracle happened where every move he made somehow managed to net him a victory.

That was the first time Francis finally got the ability of his own. Despite his unprecedented level of faith, Francis was always a complete mortal (except for the blessings he had).

To celebrate his attainment of the Gift Iron Fortress, Francis held a sacrificial ritual toward the Tentacle Goodness of Luck Runareta and Tyche, the Goddess of Luck. Anyone hearing his ritual would hear Francis chanting about being lucky and wishing for more luck in the future.

That ritual summoned a fireworks dragon on the sky of Astor. Literally no one could explain how that happened. Not even Francis.

The fireworks dragon was beautiful. Its body shimmered and glow like an everlasting explosion of fireworks in the sky. People thought it was nice, and maybe Francis' ritual could do some good after all.

Then the fireworks dragon opened his mouth. In the most boring history teacher voice imaginable to all living beings, it started a lecture on the edibility of one-eyed monster. It got boring after the first 5 minutes. It got irritating after 30 minutes. It got maddening after one. Whole. Fucking. Day. The fireworks dragon was as large as Astor itself. It added to the city splendour and beauty from afar and nearby simultaneously, and it never stopped talking.

The annoying dragon was fortunately easy to dismiss; an assault with many water spells later, the dragon ceased to exist.

On the other hand, On the other hand, Francis proudly announced to the whole city his intention of leaving on a journey to celebrate his ascendance. He also invited anyone to join his pilgrimage and to enter his tutelage on the Faith in Chaos. And he really left, riding his own ridiculous contraption build from monster materials. Not that anyone was complaining. The faster that motherfucker left the town, the better it was for everyone.

 

[Mitch Conner]

LETUM

"Right, then. In that case, I've the forms with me now-", Letum said matter-of-factly as she buried SIN under a small mountain of paperwork, "We'll need you to sign here, here, initial here, divine seal here, another signature, notarize, I'll witness here, then you sign here, here- ah, this one's important, it's a Heroic Non-Compete. Now, what this means is that you're agreeing not to perform any other summonings- as opposition to your Hero, for example, should he make a choice you're not entirely comfortable with. Both miracles and plagues are fine, mind, but- Well, it's really just a formality anyways. Course, after they passed the Lazarus Accords it's all a bit redundant, innit? Ye couldn't summon without clearance anyhow, seeing as it'd be filed under Class I Soul Embezzlement."

Letum sighed and scratched her chin as she studied the Non-Compete Contract.

"Yeh, ye'd have to be an absolute twit to pull that sort of thing these days- be lucky just to lose your rank and license. I remember there was this one bloke, decided he was going to have hisself a great big holy war, only he didn't have anyone worth a damn to field- decided he was going to just snag some from other territories, make it a great big pointless nothing of a fight so he could play Puny Mortals, yeah? We're talking two, maybe three big mass-recruits in the space of a year."

She handed back the Non-Compete.

"Right, sign that for me, would you? So naturally, the Old Ones found out he'd been skimming and they buggered him- real nasty stuff, stripped him of his rank an' made him work two eternities as a Janitor."

Letum shuddered involuntarily at the mere thought of having to do such a degrading job.

"Last I heard, he'd been reassigned to some pitiful backwater shithole, all orcs an' elves an' such. I was interning when it happened- served on the cleanup detail, actually. It was an absolute mess, karate cyborgs standing side-by-side with ancient wizards, sort of thing- no cohesion at all. Come to think of it, it looked a lot... like..."

She grabbed SIN's shoulder.

"...You didn't. Please tell me you didn't."

Snackofthefuture

 

[Snackofthefuture]

Sakujo and Ithlyaenn

​

The warrior’s equipment clanged softly and gently against itself as Sakujo moved, the many pieces of armor, straps, pouches and sheathes jostling lightly with each stride. He was a very well equipped man, with tech and weaponry all over his person. Foodstuffs filled his bag and water was an abundant supply for the man at that moment. He had enough to last himself several weeks if need be. Though he planned to feast that night in celebration of his revival. For now however, he waited for Ithlyaenn patiently, a slight smirk covering his face.

“Lyaenn?”
The woman queried, a puzzled expression shadowing her face as she stared after Sakujo’s steadily retreating back.
Does he mean us?
Ithlyaenn coughed once into her closed fist, clearing her throat and her thoughts as she swung her glaive behind her back, the steel fitting neatly between her shoulders. Her gaze followed the mans retreating back a moment longer before she began to follow at a somewhat slow pace.
“Do you happen to know what might lie in this direction?”
Ithlyaenn would query as she looked around, admiring the view from the cliffside she began to first stretch out her arms- one over the other- to rid her limbs of the strange sense of fatigue she could only assume happened during this “summoning”.
Why are we following him?
Notus does it matter? What I want to know is where he got that armor.
Again, irrelevant. For now it's convenient.
For whom?


Smiling, Sakujo continued to trudge through the grass of the plain determinedly, calling back for a moment just to confirm her question.

“Yes! Lyaenn! It's a pleasant way to title you I find, easier than Ithylaenn at least haha! And no, I have no idea where I'm going as of right now. I'm gonna see if I can find some inhabitants of this world and get them to give me some directions. A nice fledgling army or mercenary band of sorts is my ultimate goal right now however, I need soldiers if I'm going to conquer this land. So yeah, some leaderless fledgling cause I can get to the center of. Would be nice right about now. ”

Night had arrived however, so Sakujo did not go far from the summoning site, finding a small wooded hamlet about half a mile away to stop and set up camp for the time being. As he set up camp and cleared the area of debris and such, Sakujo wondered what the path before him held. Judging from SIN’s speech the warrior could already tell glory and battle aplenty waited for him, he just hoped drink and the finer things in life would find themselves on his path as well. Women and men were among his tastes, but for now, as he gazed up into the midnight sky for a moment, the stars would suit him just fine. This did not mean he was satisfied, but as of that moment it made due.

“Hm. Emir is preferable if you insist on giving me a title.”
The woman responded, her lithe figure only now matching Sakujo’s pace as the two continued in a seemingly unknown direction, the sun beginning to dip beyond the horizon as the shadows stretched from the trees and hills, signifying that night was not far off.

“Oh fuck its already night what the fuck goddammit.”
They crossed a seemingly short distance for soon enough they approached a wooded glade and immediately set about making a camp. Ithlyaenn did not mind sleeping under the stars, nor did the subtle changes in the air temperature bother her at all but she always appreciated the light of a campfire and made it her duty to see to it’s construction. As she gathered a small arrangement of dry scraps of wood and grass she thought only of what the dawn would bring- a chance to stretch her wings and see this land of Valucia with her own eyes. Soon she crouched over the tee-peed bundle of sticks, her knees to her chest and her hands hovering above as lightning danced between her fingers, electricity crackling in the air though the sparks soon set the wood alight; their small campsite illuminated by the flames.

Sakujo took a seat next to Ithylaenn and cocked an eyebrow, “So, Emir? Nice magic first of all, second of all why that of all titles?” He asked in a low voice as the fire crackled before them. The glow of the fire light on Ithylaenn lent her already unique appearance an extra etherealness that was both disturbing and strangely alluring. He smiled and puffed out his chest for a moment, happy his comrade was such a unique and attractive figure.

“That is the way it has always been. I imagine you call yourself Sakujo Honomura because that too, is how it always has been.”
She replied quite matter-of-factly, tossing her coral hair with a slight shake of her head, one arm balanced atop her knee as her fingers began to work at the buckles securing the iron gauntlet to her forearm.
We’ll help.
The voices echoed in her mind as she slipped the steel from her arm; placing it on the ground beside her and she silently echoed her approval, her gaze turning back to Sakujo as four smokey tendrils began to snake out from the crevasses of her armour, the hazy images of four helmed women forming beside her- seemingly identical in appearance were it not for their wildly differing hair colours.

She ignored them as they too began to work at removing her plated armour and cleared her throat to speak again.
“And why do you seek conquest? What do you hope to achieve by bringing this world to your feet? Dominion? Power?”
The deity wore a steady expression as she stared at her companion, genuinely curious as to his motives for they would, in turn, affect her own response depending on the answer he gave.

Sakujo gazed in wonder and amusement as the wispy tendrils snaked out of Ithylaenn’s armor, forming into cloudy individuals, each identical to Emir save for hair color. Her magic was strange to the samurai, different indeed to Sakujo’s own Bushido skills. “Dominion? Power? Yes I seek these, but they are not my final goal. That high title belongs to the pleasures of the land below the heavens. My goal is to be a king among heaven and Valucia, a worthy ruler and one to partake in the greatest things within mortal and immortal grasp.” Sakujo smiled and leaned back, his armor whirring and clicking, adjusting to his position and placement. “Simply put Emir, I wish for everything that brings me pleasure, whether it be power, battle, riches, harems, food, or etc. and etc. and what-not. I seek what I desire and I get what I seek. And you, my new friend, what motivates you in this new land we’ve been brought to? I have made my direction clear from the beginning, and yet, I still know not what you plan on acquiring in this new world. Pray, tell me what you seek.”

“A reasonable response.”
Ithlyaenn pondered his question, lifting the helm from her head as the others worked to remove and polish her armour and she shook her long hair free; gazing at her blurred reflection in the helm held between her hands. In her silence, the darkest haired one of the group shuffled closer, her visage somewhat transparent and hazy, she skillfully removed the breastplate of Ithlyaenn’s Armor, her voice seeming to fill the small space between them, though not once did she motion to speak.

”Do we not seek a return to Rævaryn?”
Ithlyaenns eyes drifted over the woman, her stare unreadable in the firelight though her brows furrowed slightly.
“Notus it seems unlikely. I believe we are all aware of the fate that met both us, and our world.”
“A shame, the winter solstice was near.”
“Not everyone enjoys the cold Boreas.”

Ithlyaenn shook her head once more, clicking her tongue in disapproval at the lacklustre conversation, she turned her attention back to Sakujo.
“What I desire is to be useful and what I seek is a worthy purpose.”
She replied rather simply, holding one hand out in front of her where she pretended to examine her nails in the firelight.
“I find it difficult to imagine wanting something for personal gain regardless of the motivators.”

Sakujo laughed at Ithylaenn’s statement, having once been very similar. Death had changed the man’s mind on life’s more important features. “You desire to be useful huh? A worthy purpose eh? I'm sure I can find some use for you. Or at least grant you a purpose to be proud of. My army will need warriors and executioners alike among its ranks, I figure you would find yourself right at home leading a force.

Sakujo was enamored with Emir’s beauty, and the strange etherealness she carried herself with. The summoning of the four extra figures to assist her with her armor surprised the samurai for a moment, but he quickly calmed when he noticed Ithylaenn was calm herself. No trouble was apparent in the wispy figures stances. They were just there to assist the former executioner with the removal of her armor. Sakujo scooted closer as her breastplate was removed, grinning as the conversation carried on, this Emir was proving an interesting sort. “In my old world, I carried out the will of the Shogun, the divine personified in real space. It was a glorious task, but one fraught with peril and deviousness. I would not go back at this point; Here I can be Shogun, large and in charge as some might say. The position must exist first to be fair and so long as it does it demands a proper leader. I will be this leader, and will be praised for it. As a warrior in my coming unit, hell my army!”

“Ambitious. The winds tell us there are many powerful foes here In Valucia.”
Ithlyaenn nodded her head in acknowledgement of his ambition, his words not lost on the woman though she still doubted his overall tenacity; after all a mortal is still a mortal regardless of slightly better breeding and genetics.
“I see no reason to part ways currently,

Sakujo nodded, a smile plastering his face as the woman gave her answer. “I agree Emir, our foes shall be plentiful on this world, and most certainly good challenges at the least. Just from the summoning I can tell we will have much work to do.”

Lu-Lu

 

[Snackofthefuture]

SIN​

Looking at the reaper could be a difficult affair at times SIN found.

The being didn't have a face of course, being a grim reaper and all, of course it didnt have a face.

SIN already liked Letum, she was sweet and cared about her job, a sign of a good coworker.

They were not at all coworkers, SIN and Letum. That was fine however, SIN wasnt too arrogant of a sort, not much at least.

One thing was strange however. The continued mentioning of the bureau as if were on a level comparable to the deity. As if it were a thing at all? This Bureau of Death and Taxes was unknown to SIN. Perhaps it had been a thing in Letum’s old dimension, before it had imploded in on itself utterly and entirely. An entire reality gone just like that. And Letum had been the one he’d chosen, the one he’d saved. Most of the Summoned had a pretty good idea of what was going on in their world moments before annihilation. But not all of them had been given this same awareness.

“Ummmmm Letum I hate to break this to you, but your old world is dead, gone, vanished out of reality. Every aspect of the old world is dead and gone now, including this Bureau of Death and Taxes. There is only the here and now understand, your business is not here? Are you listening to me? What you choose to do is mostly up to you, but there is a request I have of you, conquer. That's all, simple, yes? I will give you more information about what's really going on here if you can do this for me. Haha just try and go with it, its not that terrible of a thing to put another man beneath your boot.”

Mitch Conner

 

[Snackofthefuture]

A week after the battle of Castellan...

• In Xact, near the border of Belldan and Mollug

-Nathaniel Klaus-​

Nathaniel stormed over the barricade to the passageway to the grand hall, arrows flying past his face whirling sounds buzzing to his ears. A man beside him fell face forward, clutching his pierced throat as he gurgled up blood. Nathaniel lifted his axe with both hands and with a single horizontal swing sent it hurtling into the defences of the castle. The archers standing at the wall were blown apart. The axe hit and bodies were sent flying, missing bloody chunks of themselves. Nathaniel climbed down from the wrecked blockade the enemy had set up. Spikes jutted out from it in all directions and blood stained the armored battlement on both sides. Nathan faced a long narrow pathway guarded by three roughly dressed soldiers. They came at him from each side and on each side Nathan blocked, one by one, their attacks, then he came at them tearing one in half with a swift hack from his axe, slicing another's throat out with the other end of the axe, before finally kicking the other last soldier into the ground with a couple good stomps for finishing measure.

He swiveled his head and watched as several of his warriors stormed over the barrier and deeper into the heart of the fort. He raised his axe to the sky as they passed and howled a battlecry to the dark sky above, shaking the weapon with bloodthirsty joy as the Xact Stormtroopers passed. They replied with howls and battle cries in turn, honoring their commander with salutes thudded against their chests. Blood leaked from a cut on Nathan’s neck, a dagger having nearly put an end to the warrior earlier on in the siege. The Xactian rebels had been on their way to seek asylum in the nation of Belldan and had stopped at an old fort from the war of the crucible, the conflict between Mollug and Xact several years earlier. The rebels were in the process of trying to escape from Nathan and his shock troops, but the berserker force was making short work of the renegade faction. Rebels were unacceptable to Xact, the nation needed to be united and strong for the coming cataclysm. The Summoned’s appearance was nothing but bad news to most within the empire. Nathan saw it as simply another challenge to overcome, and perhaps even use if things turned favorable. For now, however, he was focused on the battle at hand. It was nearing its end, and Nathan had no doubt his warriors would slaughter the remaining rebels. However, there were several noble warriors with the hostile force and that alone brought concern to the axe-wielder. They would prove dangerous and needed quick elimination. They'd be at the very back of the line, having outlasted all the other more normal rebels. This was a final stand as they had been chased and ambushed in the night. Few noble prisoners would be taken and their fates would be no less grim then their more normal peasantry counterparts.

Another squad of stormtroopers appeared, and Nathan joined the unit with a quick salute, moving into formation at the front of the group, getting a quick update from the commanding officer on the situation. Their force had all but annihilated the rebels with the few remaining having taken up final defensive positions in the main hall. Nathan adjusted the units movements to head in the main hall’s direction and went swiftly with them despite his heavy armor. They arrived quickly to a firefight exploding all about them. Shrapnel and earth magic shattered shields of warriors rushing forward as the Xactian rebels bombarded the force with as much firepower as they could. Nathan hurled his axe over the heads of the warriors and watched as it was blasted out of the sky, smoke swirling about as the explosion echoed throughout the hall. With several hand gestures more soldiers rushed forward from behind Nathan, hurling themselves screaming into battle with abandon. Then with another gesture, the whole unit surrounding Nathan charged forward into the fray, swarming the main hall with practiced discipline and furious savagery. Nathan followed them into the room and explosions echoed through the hallway as fleeing Nobles rushed about, casting spells and blasting here and there with energy projectiles. Soldiers flailed and jerked as the front line was riddled with explosive firepower. Then the second line entered, blessed crossbow repeaters and spear men moving forward from portable cover positions shooting away into the nobles ranks with deadly precision. Spellcasters behind these crossbowmen chanted and waved their arms about as they brought to life deadly ancient magics of the realm. These spells were cast often in around 2 to 3 seconds and brought flamethrowers and heavy explosives to the front line.The barrage of firepower tore through the nobles ranks and decimated the already meager force

The battle was over swiftly.

Nathan strode into the hall after the enemy was subdued, corpses and bodies of foes littering the grand hall of the fort. The last three survivors were nobles, royal rebels that joined with the insurgents in order to cause trouble and mayhem for the empire of Xact. Nathan was not much of a merciful sort to be entirely honest and these three despite their status would receive very little. As he walked past them, looking down, one of the prisoners spat, phlegm flying and smacking the side of Nathan’s armor. Nathan stopped for a moment then and looked down. He slowly turned to face the kneeling prisoner, watching from his full helm as fear began to finally appear on the individual's features. Nathan then brought his axe up and smacked the rebel with the haft knocking him down to the bloodstained floor. Nathan brought his axe up then and with one swift movement brought it down on the rebel’s now screaming head. Splitting the skull in half with the mighty stroke, Nathan wrenched the blade from the corpse quickly before removing his helmet. He spat on the corpse himself now, blood and spit mixed splattering amongst the new gore of the man’s cracked open skull.

Nathan turned to one of his officers and signalled for the men to begin after battle preparations. Clean up was most certainly needed now, it had been needed before at the fort, now it was even more important. The fort would be needed in the coming days; Mollug and Xact were to be at war once again very soon. A Mollug army was headed towards the border, bolstered full of Inquisitors and powerful dark mages and warriors of The Jaded Tome. The elite warriors would prove to be quite a challenge for the Xact Empire, even with its hundreds to thousands of ready spellswords

• In Mollug

Mollug is a dark kingdom, ruled over by the High Council. The High Council takes orders from the High Councilor who reads the Jaded Tome, the overarching commander of the nation. The Jaded Tome is a book of magic many thousands and thousands of pages long, some say it goes on for eternity in fact. Only The High Councilor knows in truth as he is the most powerful sage on The High Council, and the only being in Mollug (supposedly) strong enough to read and withstand the book.

The Jaded Tome is a book of spells and consciousness formed by the souls of several thousand dark sorcerers. It is an immensely powerful artifact that was around before The Age of Demons. The Jaded Tome directs Mollug in most endeavours and is the reason for its warmongering. The book can grant completely ordinary individuals magic abilities and enhanced strength and stamina giving itself access to a near endless supply of warriors and mages.

The Jaded Tome was discovered several years after Nortestra, the Fading Empire, lost control of Mollug. Mollug initially took the book and kept it as a secret weapon. However when it was discovered the book had obtained consciousness, it was brought before The High Council. The High Council recognizing the divine power of the book, instated it as a sort of ruler/advisor for the kingdom. Its first demand was revenge on Nortestra. So war was called and the book made itself a beacon to warriors and mages throughout the Eastern continent. Soldiers flooded once peaceful Mollug and these troops were sent off to wage a devastating war against the Red Empire.

In Mollug currently things were going as planned for the High Council. Armies were on the march and soldiers were being trained. A total of five major forces had been assembled, each one raring for battle and ready for conflict. Two of the armies were to head south and prepare a defense against Xact forces. One of the armies was to head into the mountains and prepare to take on rebel forces that had been whispered about. The fourth army was to head west and prepare for potential further conflict with Nortestra. The Fifth army was to await further orders at the capital of Verruk. Inquisitors and bounty hunters from throughout the nation were on the move, headed in the direction of The Summoned, itching to take names and skulls. The Jaded Tome, the reliquary of all of Mollugs most powerful knowledge and spells, the icon of The High Council itself, was being prepared for conflict and unleashed from its most sacred placeholders within The Black Academy.

The Ruler of The High Council himself was preparing to unveil himself, having been in meditation for the past five years, consoling the Jaded Tome and the thousands of magic souls gathered within. His name was Hendrik Ollo, greatest sorcerer within the The High Council and possibly within the nation of Mollug. After meditating on The Jaded Tomes wisdom for years, he decided now, was the time Mollug needed him, now was the time for him to return.

Kezathal the Summoned Xelithid has begun to raise an army to face off against Mollug and he has gained the support of many as his cause fights for the liberation of the common man. Lucy Kai the lightning Empress has also begun to raise an army, for an altogether different goal however, conquering the nation.

• In Nortestra

Nortestra is known as the Fading Empire of the Eastern Continent, once ruler of the Belldan Trade Confederacy and Mollug until a schism within factions led to a split of the three. The nation is currently under siege from Mollug who is waging a crusade of genocide and violence against their former rulers. Nortestra and Mollug have been at war for many years now and it truly shows for the Fading Empire. Nortestra is a ruin, a shell of its former self, ruled by a petty king and governed by a will to survive.

The nation has always been known for its grand cathedrals and many walled cities, having many architectural geniuses among Nortestra’s ranks. Many great warriors have also fought for Nortestra, including Gregory the Hero. Fire magic and martial pride reign supreme in this land, with heat based spells and witchcraft granting status along with knightly pride.

Battles took across Castellan, the capital of Nortestra. Forces that took part in these battles were Mollug, Nortestra, and the summoned. One of the Mollug commanders, General Wyman fell to the hands of Sulric, Commander of Nortestra. In perfect timing Cardoza Wyman arrived to the aid of the Mollug forces. Things have calmed down since the last heavy battle against Mollug and their siege. The battle that decided the fate of Nortestra, that took place within the capital Castellan. Athena wanted to introduce herself and her country to the Summoned, who successfully helped in the protection of Nortestera. Holding a meeting in order to meet them, things seemed okay until Wakinyan went on a rampage. Killing four Nortestra soldiers, then attacking a commander, which caused another conflict this time between the summoned and Nortestra. Those who were apart of the attack, which were mostly summoned were detained for further questioning on their actions. Wakinyan, Kotori, and Charon all spent their time within a dungeon.

The remains of the retreating Mollug army rest in camps all within the fifth wall of Castellan where they plan their next attack. During this time they got in contact with a providence member who gave them a device to control a battle mech, that could possibly help them in their next attack. Although the Mollug Commanders did not know that the Providence member was also in kahoots with the princess Athena. The Providence commander is not the only one in kahoots with Nortestra however, as the Mollug General Brother Beast also made a deal with Princess Athena. Betrayal is afoot at the capital of Nortestra.

• In Czarsnikei

In Czarsnikei another battle found itself finished after summoned from the first summoning and their ally Delilah journeyed north. Finding themselves under attack from demons on all sides the summoner Orobo attempted to bring forth a powerful demon to aid them in the struggle against the demons only to find himself with the uncalled for aid of SIN bringing forth an immense demon named Khaoul. They proceeded to duel with the demon eventually bringing him down with the aid of other summoned Skathi and Yamiko. The summoned were brought into the Solomon Fortress after the battle by Czarsnikeian soldiers in order to keep them from being devoured.

@ everyone

 

[YsFanatic]

From her position in the forest Kana watched the people in the distant camp mill around taking care of various routine tasks such as tending cook-fires and mending tents. Oddly enough in the center was a large wooden structure roughly square in shape. They were bandits who the Brotherhood had heard of only a couple of days ago when they raided a refugee caravan fleeing the war. Not having tolerance for those who would prey upon the innocent and weak, Kana had stated that she would take care of this problem herself. A small group of the Brotherhood's soldiers had volunteered to go with her, some simply seeking to see the goddess in action, others wanting to be on hand to protect her should it be needed. She was thankful for their presence though if for no other reason that they would help make sure none escaped.

"I'll take care of the bulk of their forces, any who attempt to flee will be left to you." Upon hearing Kana's whisper the soldiers near here started to relay what she said to the others and soon they started to spread out to encircle the bandit camp. While the scum were smart enough to setup camp in a clearing, they didn't do a good job clearing away the brush or keeping an adequate watch, giving the Brotherhood forces plenty of cover to move into position.

Once she got the notification that the soldiers had surrounded the camp, Kana stood up from where she had been crouched and started walking towards the camp with her guardian silently walking behind her. Once the bandits started to spot her, the guardian rested its bladed hands onto her shoulders before it started to break down into a golden glow that seeped into her. The shouts from the bandits quickly turned into noises of surprise and panic as Kana’s form changed, hair turning a blood red as what appeared to be heavy plate armor formed over her body as she returned to her divine form. Well aware of the limited time she could keep her body like this, Kana wasted no time in having dozens of barbed blades materialize and fly at the bandits. This method of attack caught the bandits completely off guard, many finding themselves skewered before they could react. Others tried to charge at her with shields raised but the divine power of the blades allowed them to pierce through the wooden and steel barriers as if they were but air, and the sole enemy mage found his attempt to cast a spell interrupted as he too was slain by several of the flying weapons.

Their morale broken by her display of power, a display that had lasted for just under ten seconds, the remaining bandits broke and fled for the forest. She paid them no mind as the goddess knew that the Brotherhood soldiers would take care of them, capturing those who surrendered and killing those who resisted. Instead Kana was concerned about the wooden structure, it just didn’t fit with the rest of the camp. Knowing that she was rapidly running out of time the goddess quickly made her way for the building and flung the door open. She had been ready to strike out against any enemies inside, but what she saw caused her to gasp in surprise and after a moment she released her divine power perhaps just a few moments before the strain would have caused her to fall unconscious. That fact however was not in her thoughts, her attention entirely taken up by the mass of cages that filled the building, packed full of people. Not only were most of them appearing to be in poor health, sick, starving, and poorly clothed, with more than a few corpses among the captives. And then there were the brands that had been seared upon the flesh of many, a practice that Kana had seen happen upon her own world before. The people running this camp had not been bandits, but slavers.

“Healers! Here, now!” she shouts back towards where some of the Brotherhood’s troops had no doubt been watching her attack upon the camp. Hoping that they had heard her, the goddess hurried towards the closest cage where she could see several people on the verge of death, including a child. She summoned a single blade, the limit of what she could do in mortal form, and had it pierce the lock, allowing her to enter the cage and kneel by the child. Picking him up, she noted just how skin and bones he was, the shallow breathing, and how little he responded to what was happening, making the goddess realize that she was witnessing his final moments. Tears poured from her eyes as Kana hugged the child to her chest, heedless of the shouts and noises of urgency as the Brotherhood soldiers saw what was happening and rushed to help the captives, and unaware of the woman who watched her. A woman awed that a goddess could display that degree of compassion and care about the lives of mortals.

--------

Later in the week Kana would note a curious development as there was always two female guards outside of her tent and she spotted others following her around the Brotherhood camp, albeit at a respectful distance as to not get her in way. Some careful questions asked to different people revealed that several members of the Brotherhood, primarily women, had taken it upon themselves to protect the goddess from harm, and that their leader was one of the soldiers that had accompanied Kana during the earlier slaver incident. While they were currently doing so while ‘off-duty’, a talk to Kezathal was in order before it somehow became a problem. In the end it was decided that these ‘bodyguards’ would become a new Brotherhood unit, the Sentinels, devoted to protecting Kana from any and all threats. The goddess spent the remainder of the week watching the organization and training of this new unit in addition to her normal activities. Kana wasn’t sure how she felt about this as she never had a bodyguard on her old world, but considering the unknown dangers of this world the goddess knew that she couldn’t ignore the chance that her life may depend upon these people one day.

 

[Freshet]

Pre-Time Skip
A Collaboration Between Snackofthefuture and Freshet​

SIN Sat in the illuminated darkness, under the large 21st century millenial Lamp he had with him on the cliffside. The lamps were not plugged into anything. They werent fucking plugged in goddammit. But this was less of an issue than the alternative for SIN. He wanted to sit in the easy boy recliner with his pipe and continue to smoke ethereal tobacco, it glowed purple. This was very cool. SIN was very cool. And the man he was about to summon was also very cool. Letum approached as he thought these things.

From Another Time and Place...

Perched on-top of a skyscraper, in the middle of downtown, Vincent Hawk peered down at the battered man laying flat on his stomach, a frail looking weasely creature that hid malicious intent in that scrawny frame and beady eyes. Dr Werner Meyers could not bring his eyes up to face Vincent, his pupils doggedly looked downwards and towards himself. Handcuffs jangled in Vincent's hands as he knelt down and glanced at the doctor.

"Give it up Wern." Vincent drawled out as he reached under Werner's chin and forced it up. "Your plan failed. There will be no escap-"

Werner immediately shot daggers as he stared into Vincent's eyes. "-FOR YOU!" There was a brief clicking sound as Vincent Hawk immediately kicked Werner and rolled him onto his side.

That was a detonator.

While Werner himself remained idly, unwilling to move, he was laughing up a storm. The building was rumbling as the sounds of explosives at the base of the tower had gone off. The once proud building was becoming naught but rubble as the higher floors were coming down and apart as the fiery wreckage went outwards. Vincent Hawk was desperately trying to stand his ground as the concrete structures around him fell.

"I SHALL SEE YOU IN HELL!" were the final words uttered by Dr Meyers as his platform collapsed and began the descent towards his death. This gambit would surely be enough to secure the demise of Vincent Hawk. If he was going down, then by God, he was going to take down the copper that stopped his nefarious plans.

"Been there." dryly remarked Vincent as he felt his particular platform collapsing. Jumping off of it at just the nick of time he hopped onto his motorcycle and revved up the ignition.

"LOOKS LIKE I'M GONNA HAVE TO JUMP!"

And so as quickly as possible, hoping to hit the roof of a nearby building, Vincent Hawk kicked his motorcycle into overdrive. With great speed it flew off the building as more explosives unleashed a grand fire-ball brightening Vincent out of view. And with that a title card came into frame, the words 'To Be Continued' present as things faded to black. While to many it would seem the story would reach its finale there, those assumptions would be proven wrong as the show must always go on.

...Flashfoward to the Present.

After what seemed like ages and like a veritable shooting star, striking down from the very heavens was a bird! No, a plane! It was neither of those things but it instead a motorcycle coming in at a sharp angle. The motorcycle's front wheel slammed into the dirt of the hill-side and cratering a chunk of it. Vincent Hawk felt the whiplash, thrashing back as he somehow stuck the landing alongside his bike. Rolling back his shoulders and removing his hands off the handlebars he took a moment to adjust his site. The engine was throbbing with energy as Vincent distinctively noted a lack of roof-tops, or other examples of the modern jungle.

"...Huh." Vincent Hawk dully noted. "I guess I overshot? Suppose that's premium gasoline for you." The engine continued to rumble as Vincent Hawk returned a few of his fingers to tap on the handlebars.

"I'm, I'm going to need some directions." Slinging one leg back over the seat, Vincent proceeded to slide off the motorcycle as he turned off the ignition and exchanged his keys for the loose cigarette that was in his pocket. Pulling out a light he ignited the cigarette and took a puff. Pocketing the lighter he noticed that there was another figure present here. Strolling up towards the man he thumbed back behind him.

"Guessing you don't quite know the way to Franklin Avenue? But I'll be glad to be proven wrong."

After responding to the reaper with a gusto reserved usually for the actually living, SIN turned in his lazy boy to face the newcomer. The private eye looking fellow was Vincent Hawk, action hero outta time and space. It was truly a privlege to have both him and the Grim Reaper with him at the same time. Vincent Hawk was by no means an insignificant figure in comparison to the two entities, but his look was definitely shall we say, more, restrained. Clad in a trench coat of the detective type, and a blue collared shirt with dark pants, the man was a figure straight out of an old action flick. SIN was happy in that moment. He took a sip of his latte and tossed a cinnamon bun at the private eye.
"Sorry not in this dimension copper. Have a cinnamon roll, theyre good"

Taking a final drag out of his cigarette, he flicked the remnants off to the side as he held out his hand to catch the cinnamon bun. Some would say not to accept food from strangers, but odds are good any time you'd go out to eat you'd be getting food from a stranger. With that noted, Vincent proceeded to take a chunk out of the cinnamon roll. It was chewed for a few brief moments before swallowed. "Much obliged. Usually I prefer a chocolate glazed with a cup of joe, but I'm not picky. Especially since I don't see any donut shops in this beat."

He took brief stock of the scene as his nostrils flared out with a deep breath. It was clear he wasn't in his usual beat, but a beat's still a beat. He just needed to get familiarized with it before he could truly get back to some form of duty.

 

[Lazaro1505]

The Fanatic​

Location: South Czarsnikei, somewhere in a snowy forest.
Interaction: Resting near a small campfire.

A week has gone past...... a week in this strange new land..... a week in a new hell and his permanent home..... a week in this new world to start his crusade against the unholy, the monstrous, and the Heretics in this world. He sigh as he looked at the dwindling fire from his campfire, the flames reminding him of the hell he used to live in, but now in a much more advance world, he knew that he must be careful now. But for now, he went to his knees and put both palms of his hands together as he closed his eyes, beginning to pray to the Lord above, praying for the power to smite all who stands in his path of righteousness and cleaning of this world. He was summoned here by some sort of ‘false god’, the reason of his summoning was to conquer the world he laid on. While he would happily agree to this due to this new but unpure land ready for cleansing and the spread of Christianity, but he is still not too trusting of that ‘Sin’ person, the only reason why was that he summoned anyone here with no mind of what they would do to the world if left alone, leaving him here to challenge them and gain his rightful place of Slayer of Heretics and the unholy. But for now, he simply continued praying, knowing for sure that the ‘Lord’ above always have a way of answering his prayers, no matter where he is.

After what seemed to be a couple minutes of prayer, he heard strange noises behind him. He slowly risen up, his eyes still closed as he heard the familiar sounds of the undead, eerie moans and growls behind him as he slowly removed the hammer from his belt. He then quickly turned around and opened his eyes, both his hands holding the hammer, the hammer’s head glowing white with energy, as he faced the zombie like creatures, a dozen of them here to spread their nature around. He smiled like an maniac as he finally found something to test his mettle against some of the Lord’s mistakes in this world. The closest of the ‘Zombies’ tried reaching out to him, but he simply grabbed the zombie mid-swing with his left hand by the neck and raised it into the air, before quickly crushing its windpipe and throwing it onto the floor, ending it by stomping on its head with his left leg. Another tried to swing at him with its arms, only to be met with an glowing hammer to the head, the Holy effect of the Hammer making short work of the ‘Zombie’, but even if the holy magic did not work, the crushed skull of the ‘Zombie’ would have killed it the same. He quickly jumped back to dodge the swings of two ‘Zombies’, countering back with a large swing from his hammer that launched them to the left of him, their bodies no longer moving. He turned to see four of them approaching him, The Fanatic simply chuckled as a small ball of fire forms in his left hand, before throwing it forward onto the small group of four, causing a small explosion that killed the ‘zombie’ it directly hit but still left three injured ones. The remaining ‘Zombies’ from the group slowly approached him as he began putting away his hammer, before calmly removing a book from its clip resting on the left of his waist. The creatures had gotten close enough when he finally opened the book and said out loud “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep......” as a strange white light began appearing from the sky and rested on the creatures, burning their flesh as they stopped and tried protecting theirselves from the light, failing miserably, as he continued “.....And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.“ as the ‘Zombies’ started to fade away as the Holy magic worked quickly to end their lives. He still held his book out and said “While you may have been turned into undead beasts that is considered the greatest sin..... I still wish your souls for eternal rest now that your souls are now free.” as he closed his book and clipped it back on to his waist and slowly went back to his fire, kneeling once more and began praying again for strength in this new world.

 

[Mitch Conner]

LETUM

"Of course it's dead, you bleeding idjit!", Letum shouted, "We're based in the sodding afterlife! The twilight space that lies beyond the gods! The Eternal Mystery!"

She stomped the ground like a bull ready to charge as she continued.

"You think, just because we don't send you the feckin' circular, that ye can just do what ye want? I work for the sodding Old Ones, you arrogant little twit! And yet, here you are, taking a massive steaming shit on every regulation passed since... Well, since before I was recruited, which is a very long time, believe you me! I can't believe you'd do something so... so... Argh, this is why I can't stand working with deities!"

Letum shouldered her scythe and hissed through her nonexistent teeth as the bloody idiot just... stole another soul, right there in front of her. He was either very stupid, or very cocky- but either way, there was no way this could stand. She pinched the edges of her facehole and took a moment to calm down. Then, with a deep breath, started again.

"Alright, that's it. You've made clear breaches of professional conduct- in front of me, no less- and as one deputized by the Department Of Death And Taxes I hereby declare that you, SIN, are under audit."

And with that, she pivoted on her heel, gripped her scythe in reverse fashion, and swung upwards- reaving the delicate fabric of time and space in twain as she did.

"There will be a reckoning-", Letum said as she parted the Curtain Of Worlds, "-The likes of which you have never seen. Billions will be claimed. The earth beneath your feet shall crumble. Taxes will be filed. And you-", she said, pointing at SIN, "-I give you, er... roughly four to six business days to put your affairs in order, depending on how long this case takes to file. BUT THEN, THE RECKONING."

And with that, she left.

Snackofthefuture

 

[StaidFoal]

Hecate

In the snowy lands a distance from Solomon's Fortress, the eye-watering aroma of a rotting corpse and vomit swirled in the air. Hecate, pale as ever, laid dish after dish on the shabby table. The guests had taken up all the seats, and three in particular were just squirming with terror excitement! "Peter, Peter, pumpkin-eater," Hecate sang as she poured some pitch black "tea" in front of the men, nudging some small, rock-like cakes over. "Had a wife, and couldn't keep her;" She walked over the table, pouring more tea for the maidens, stripped naked in gray skin with a metal blindfold over their eyes. They twitched, slumping their heads into the food before them. "He put her in a pumpkin-shell." The child hopped off the table, satisfied at everyone enjoying her tea party. "And there he kept her very well!"

She giggled at the guests. "Welcome to my tea party!" she shouted. There were 11 seats total, four taken by patrolmen from the nearby fortress, tied to the chairs by thick webbing. The maidens and herself occupied the rest. If the soul is sinful enough during the Doll-ification process, a True Eyeless will spawn instead of a Doll. True Eyeless have more control over their body, but their minds are in total disarray. They are obsessed with their looks, often covering their eyes with a garment and stripping naked to try and look appealing. These maidens underwent the same process, ending up at the tea party as per their creator's request. One patrolman sat motionless, not screaming and yelling like his comrades. He'd be the luckiest out of the squad.

"Let's introduce ourselves!" she suggested, sitting at the end of the table. Around the perimeter, a massive spider-like creatures crashed through the trees, its footsteps echoing through the forest. The monstrosity crawled behind the girl as she continued. "My name is Hecate, and this is my pet, Rosy!" The patrolmen were straining their vocal cords by now, tears clouding their vision as Rosy's breath made them vomit into the food. Hecate went on.

Spoiler: Rosy

"These ladies are my friends, Mary, Lauren, Evelyn, Rose, Penelope, and Jane!" The maidens started sobbing, curling up in their eyes. Their horrifying—almost pained—wails only brought the soldier's minds closer to insanity. Rosy stomped away, panting happily.

Spoiler: The Maidens

In a perimeter around the tea party was a ring of webbing. Within the ring were corpses, some human-like, some noticeably misshaped. "Don't mind the meanies who tried to ruin the tea party! They're just jealous! And fear not! I have some friends to protect us!" Hecate pointed at the Arachnes surrounding the party, the ones responsible for the webbing. A small army of demons had attempted to interrupt the party, only to be strung up by the half-human, half-spider monstrosities and devoured by the enormous pet. The patrolmen were near the battle and were roped into the tea party.

Spoiler: Arachne

Hecate pointed to the patrolmen. "What're your names?" After some time, she nodded. "Nice to meet you, Ohgodstopstopthis! Nice to meet you, AAAHH!! And nice to meet you, too, Pleasegodletmelive!" She looked over to the fourth patrolman, frowning. She walked over to him and grabbed his jaw, moving it up and down as she poured his cup into his throat. She tossed the "cakes" into his mouth, trying to control his mouth to chew the substances. The black liquid spilled through newly formed holes in the neck as his skin melted into black goop. Eventually, Hecate gave up on controlling his mouth, digging her hand in to mush up the food instead. A genuinely delighted smile found its way onto her face. "There you go, mister! You got to have fun, too!" The maidens' cries never ceased, some toppling out of their seats into a curled up ball. One of them crawled onto a patrolman's lap, running her decomposed hands over his skin. Hecate giggled. "You look like you're having so much fun!" she squealed.

She stood at the end of the table, ringing a bell. "I declare the tea party started!"

@Solomon's Fortress​

 

[EccentricFantasy]

Alice Everlast

Location: Astor
Mentions: Damafaud , Gohan510 , Pai Chan , Solirus ​

Alice stood on top of the massive floating coin that moved around her city. A smile on her face as she started to see the numbers slowly rise, meaning a little bit of money flowing into the economy. This was good considering she needed the money for about half of her abilities. She came to this new world with $300,000,000 in the economy. After spending money on the Assets to build and do other things, she had about $298,543,909. With the money now flowing in she just surpassed her original amount by a small margin and was continuing to increase it day by day.

She had decided her territory needed fortified as much as possible. Luckily she had five items to help. Using all five of her Instant Fortress items to increase her territory was the easiest way to make sure she could gain enough territory and fortify the city in one go. There were five specific areas now, made specifically to help the economy. Each one ready for people to come.

The first was the giant spiral tower on top of the dungeon entrance. This tower was specially designed by Alice herself. The bottom floor was one singular registration office. This office used dental, dental and DNA signatures to keep track of the many adventurer's to come and take on the dungeon. They also set up a payment system to allow the adventuerer's to trade items, dead beasts or materials for an amount of Astor currency. This not only gave them compensation for their work to spend money in the Astor markets and increase the economy, but since it is Astor currency, it gives them a reason to stay in Astor. Furthering the economy and city reach of Astor more. The next few floors up are dedicated to hospitals. All stations are affixed with her original worlds best medical technology. This being augmented nanotech medicine. This being the practice of having millions of nanobots placed on a person. Those bots in turn perform all necessary medical actions before leaving. They can fix broken bones, perform complex surgeries and even heal cuts in a fraction of the time surgeons can. The floor above those are dedicated to crafters for the materials found in the dungeon. It holds 50 forges for metal workers. There are also repair shops for firearms and even hard light creation stations that use light consolidation to fix catastrophic destruction to weapons. The top level contained energy conductors that use the energy given from the solar panels that made up on the outside silver panels. All together it was a fantastic center for the dungeon attraction of her city in this new world.

The second area was the farming area. This was not. A normal farming area. It employed the latest farming tech from her home universe. Specifically Automatic Light Reproduction Tech. Using magic stones and the latest Solid Light Creation engines. These engines take the light that is absorbed by the magic stones that the roofs are lined with. This magic light is then funneled into a supercomputer that creates solid light constructs. These contructs carry out all farming tasks based on a preset algorithm set up for each building. The bonus being that since these constructs are made of light, the plants get all the light they could ever need. Alice also specifically designed it to connect to the cities existing water flow from the Spring Sapling set up, so plants are watered automatically based on an algorithm.

One of the most important areas that Alice added was the market area. This would be the culture and hang out hub of the city. It took her a long time to design it with the Instant Fortress item, but it was well worth it. The final design was more height and offered great protection for the center of the city where the smaller markets, the massive center gazebo and park area and living districts resided. That being said, this was also made to be the transportation center of the city. Here is where she set up the cable car system that circled the entire city. On top of that there were also shops for repairs, furniture, food and anything else someone could want. There were even hotels and casino's to further enhance the economy.

The fourth area was information district. This was where all information could be gathered. It was now home to a 40 story tall library tower, a city hall where all legal documents are filed and stored as well as an underground jail system for those she needed imprisoned. This was the information distric, but also served as her justice department.

The final area was the housing district. This was not a normal housing district. This was also set up to be the social epicentre of the city. With vibrant plant life, fully furnished and even unfinished houses and apartments. Each living space has its own garden. The canal with ferrying services and walk ways loaded with street vendors. Not to mention the coffee shops and public parks. This place was already brining in money. A few adventures had decided to move in thanks to the constant work that Astor had.

Alice admired how far her city had come in a week. Thanks to the instant fortress items gaining enough territory to make her much stronger than when she arrived in this new world. There was only good to come.

That being said, her week was loaded with irritation. One of the other summoned she met, an interesting man by the name of Francis, was driving her up the wall. Firstly, Wonderweiss accidentally let it out to him about her gift vault and gift games. Ever since then she was challenged daily with the equipment he won in the dungeon in order to get the Iron Fortress gift she had. At first it was fine. She easily beat this man. She could make the games benifit her and since she was in her city, there was not any reason she would lose. But in classic Francis fashion, he somehow managed to beat her. She wasn't upset. She had effectively taken everything that man had. All so he could get the Iron Fortress ability. It wasn't a bad trade.

What really irritated her was the god foresaken fireworks dragon that he summoned in celebration. At first it was fine. It was pretty and attracted more people, but when it started to talk she wanted to strangle Francis. It was annoying like a child who would never shut up. It was easy enough to get rid of. Wonderweiss was a master of water magic, so it was simple, but it was still irritating. Luckily the others he had come with where not nearly as annoying.

After a moment she jumped off the coin, landing directly on top of the giant gazebo in the center of her now proper city. With a smile she looked down at her summoned golems. She bought a lot to fix the city, but they were well worth the money. They fixed all the damage to the original portion of the city and had even started fixing the streets. A specific team was working on widening the road that connected her city to the outside world. There was not much done, but it looked better. For about a mile down from the city, the cobblestone path was gorgeous.

With a smile she opened her fan and covered her face. Once again she was growing her city and knew she would be powerful again.

After a moment she remembered. Today she and Wonderweiss were going to set up her Tourist Lure. Not that her work was done, Wonderweiss' Lure would be much more effective and would last a bit longer depending on how much Alice paid for. So, Alice hopped down, landing almost magically without any issue on the ground. After less than a second, her personal Peacekeeper force assigned by Wonderweiss fell in behind her. With a smile she walked down the streets, looking for her precious little sister, who honestly might be busy.

 

[Freshet]

“...Alriiiiiight.” Vincent Hawk scribbled down some further notes. This current sheet of paper, unlike the other loosely gathered sheets held under by an inkwell on the dash, was firmly kept in place underneath his thumb. These implements were worth the trade of the razor since the other option of using his spare toilet paper for notation was just sub-optimal. That’d require a more gentle touch than the detective would like lest it be torn asunder. And what good would those pieces be? Needless to say that deal worked out for everyone.

“So-“ the officer flicked the current sheet of paper a few times so it’d nudge itself among the rest of the papers. The breeze pushed it up and down, alongside the rest of the sheets, but failed to dislodge it. Good enough. The detective circled around his vehicle and stopped a few paces in front of the witness. To say he wasn’t a looker did a disservice to those who could see. He was a spindly man who appeared shorter than he was due to a perpetual stooping. He had long, raggedy, and greasy dark hair on the top of his although there were quite bald spots present. There was a distinct lack of a chin on this man, as if his face was concave. He wore a loose fitting grey tunic, brown breeches alongside matching boots. They were all caked in grime and were thread bare at places. His arms were gangly and the calloused hands suggested a lot of work was done with them. It made sense as after all this man was a field-hand for the farm.

Glazed eyes with embolden, quivering pupils were gazing back at Vincent Hawk. “You were out in the pasture - “

The field-hand gnashed his teeth together grinding them slowly as he let out two quick breaths flaring his nostrils out. “ - How’s a feller ‘sposed t’sleep when that be war, an, an plunder right at their door-steep huh? Huh!?” After this the field-hand took a few steps closer, his body twitchy, to Vincent Hawk. The officer slowly unwrapped his left palm and opened it towards the field-hand.

“Relax.” Vincent interjected as he kept an open posture about himself. “I’m not here for what your intent was. It doesn’t matter to me why you weren’t asleep.”

The field hand grumbled, “It mattered to Gravin. He thinks I’m a blame of this whole mess! I swear I’m gonna...” Eyes flickered with a malicious intent as he balled up his fists. Vincent Hawk took a deep breath out as he kept his eyes on the man.

“Well, how about instead of thinking about throwing hands with your boss, as much fun as that might be, we go over what happened? If we’re lucky, maybe we’ll find the cow. At the least we’ll stop a repeat of last week happening again.”

The field-hand spit off to the side as he stared away from Vincent. He still wanted to make Gravin pay, however they’d all go hungry and starve if this kept going as it did. The field hand took a deep breath in and returned his gaze towards Vincent Hawk. “Right, so I’m outannabout when I see Bessie hoverin’.”

“And you didn’t see anything else until you saw those three lights?”

The field-hand grimly nodded. “Cannae help but blink since I figurin’ I were dreaming, but when I looked back I saw Bessie was missing and three orbs of light in the sky dart off. Then in t’mornin’ we find Bessie’s gone! I told Gravin and he accusing me of having daft thoughts!”

Vincent Hawk pursed his lips as he brought his index finger to tap at his head. “Right, well we don’t need to cover that again.” The detective rolled his shoulders around as returned to check on his notes. “So we’ve got three mysterious lights, missing cattle purported to be lifted upwards and then never seen from again.”

“You, you can find our cow right? Stop this? This is t’last thing we need worrying about.”

Vincent Hawk plucked out a cigarette and lit it. “Well I don’t have much to go on, buuuut I’ll do what I can.” He shrugged. “Least I can do.”

The field-hand let out a sigh of relief. Vincent Hawk flicked away his cigarette. “Keep an eye out. I doubt whatever this is, is gonna strike in broad daylight. But you still have some cows and I’d wager they’d want them to. I’m going to go ask around the area to see if anyone else caught a glimpse of what you saw or can testify to anything else strange like that.”

Sure this case had more screws loose than a Swedish manufacturer, but a case was a case. Vincent couldn’t damn well let a cattle rustler sneak away with any more livelihood than they already did.

 

[Pai Chan]

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Junko couldn't contain the rage from her voice, nor her actions, as she kicked over the chair a woman sat tied down to. The Hyenas' second in command, Trent, soon then stood the woman and the chair, back, right side up.

"They must have caught on and changed the schedule!" The middle aged politician pleaded. Junko looked from the woman to the several Hyena members.

"Did you tell them? Did you? Maybe you?" Junko pointed a knife at each individual and they all either shook their head or voiced their innocence. "It doesn't look like anyone on my end fucked up. And you're the only one that lives here. And I doubt there are convenient methods of spying around here. So that only means you must have let it slip somehow. Those explosives were supposed to be an effortless and easy trade off. We even paid up front like you asked. So, you either come up with a solution," Junko slammed a knife into the large hard wooden desk. "Or I'm gonna use this knife to pop your kneecaps off like a bottle cap."

"Check the caravans! They haven't left the city yet so they might still be here. It was only recently that this whole plan was set in motion so not that much could have changed." Junko looked towards Trent.

"You up for a little errand? Check any of those cargo couriers that are slated to leave. They only come in and out two times a day. You already know what our in between guy looks like. If you see him then off the brat. He probably knows too much at this point if there's already been some interference." Trent nodded and was out of the building. Junko smiled at the woman.

"You better hope he comes back with something. Cause my patience is worn out and there's gotta be some consequences dished out."

~~~~~~

An hour later Trent came back with a few other Hyenas' carrying a few crates. Junko was almost asleep from boredom but seeing her lieutenant come in with the goods brought a smile to her face. "So you got the goods?" Trent returned her question with a smirk.


"Turns out the little bastard was trying to sneak out and sell the cargo for himself. Someone told him what the cargo was because none of these crates show any signs of being tampered with."


"Loud mouth dealer?" Junko asked.


"Most likely. Well, the kid won't be collecting anything but dirt in a gutter, now. And we'll deal with the loud mouth the second we get the time to." Trent said with a smirk and some of the other Hyena members gave a chuckle of approval.


"You people are crazy. Monsters. He was just a kid!" Junko walked over to the woman after examining the goods in the crates and aggressively patted the politician's cheek.


"Hey, he was old enough to know right from wrong. And deciding to try and fuck the Hyenas in the ass is definitely a wrong. Let him be a lesson to others that we do not dick around. At least not when it comes to business. Money doesn't grow on trees. Even he knew that. But he gambled against the wrong people." Junko perked up. "But, hey! You're still alive. And it turns out you didn't try to fuck us over. Good think I didn't get on those kneecaps, huh? So, we'll take our leave. Deal is done. You get to keep your secret and we get our explosives. All in a good day's work." Junko said and exited the office. Trent followed after along with the others. After exiting the building and walking about half a block a thought occurred to Trent.


"Do you think we should have checked to make sure these were the real deal?" Not even a second after his question a huge explosion erupted from the building they were just in. And on the floor they were just on.


"I guess we know, now." Junko said without even looking back. Just a sadistic smile on her face.

 

[DrBones]

Bolivar Domingo​

For Bolivar, this week was much less eventful than the last. Thus far he'd been mostly biding his time, scouring the slums and sewers of Castellan's outer rings for resources, personnel, and routes. The city was, obviously, a fortress, but there were a thousand hidden ways to get past the walls-- and many, many more had been opened up by the fighting.

The sound of shattering pottery and broken furniture reverberated through Nork Street. "No, please! It's all we have left!" begged a Castellan man no younger than sixty. His complaints were silenced by a backhand from the Mollug soldier interrogating him. Just inside the Castellan's house, the rest of the soldier's squad were vigorously searching through his belongings, hunting for valuables and food. The man's wife cowered in a far corner, trying to avoid their notice. Soon, the soldiers would find that this homeowner had nothing of value left, and would take their frustrations out on him and his family.

Bolivar rounded the corner of a nearby alley, immediately catching himself in the soldier's sightlines. "Hold it!" cried the soldier, prompting his squadmates to flood out of the house. "You with this scumbag?!"

Bolivar thought good and hard about this as the soldiers closed in, their weapons drawn. "Yes," he said at last, "and I'm also with you all."

As soon as his words hit their ears, the soldiers slowed their pace. Something about this wasn't right, but they felt no particular threat from this masked man. He exuded a strange sort of confidence, as if he knew something they didn't-- something that would have terrible consequences if they dared to apprehend him.

"You see," Bolivar began to lecture. The soldiers took up position at a safe distance around him. "You haven't really gained anything from this war, have you? Your salary--and what loot you could gather from pillage-- isn't nearly worth what you deserve!"

Bolivar's words were preposterous to them. Just a short while ago, they could scarcely believe the riches of Castellan that were promised to them, and the glory they would reign in when the last wall fell and the Nortestran army collapsed. But now... now, they felt unsure that they would appreciate the rewards from following this campaign to the end, or that they would even live to receive them.

Bolivar's rambling lecture continued, covering a layman's understanding of Nortestran-Mollug politics. The information he spoke of was obviously secondhand and only partly-understood, but the implications he made were damning and infuriating. How could these poor soldiers be tricked into throwing their lives away?! How dare their higherups dispose of them like this!

Mere minutes after he began, Bolivar had turned this crack squad of indoctrinated soldiers into bilious revolutionaries, eager to spit in the eye of tyranny and impale the skulls of their deluded followers. A furious cheer rose from the squad, and they fell in behind him. Bolivar advanced on the cowering Castellan, and hoisted him up.

"Chin up, my friend!" Bolivar spoke, brushing off the man's shoulders. "You and your wife are victims--absolutely, yes-- but there is nothing left for you here. Nortestra has failed you." He spoke the truth-- or what he spoke sounded like inarguable reality. The man nodded, his eyes refocusing and his teeth gritting. "Join me--join us," Bolivar motioned back to his new allies, "and we'll ensure nothing like this ever happens again!"


Bolivar marched through Nork Street, joined by seven new friends. Five soldiers, and two civilians, had happily fallen under his spell, and now they were willing to give their lives to The Cause. But... Bolivar realized something. Surely he could make some friends among the other people summoned alongisde him. No matter their powers, Bolivar so dearly wished for them to see the light, and to join the war against the evils of Law and Tyranny. It would be a miracle if he found any, but miracles did tend to happen a lot in these dire situations.

 

[Juju]

Pre-timeskip: Charon and Kotori[featuring guest stars YsFanatic and Juju ]
​

Kotori lay awake on her prison bed, trying unsuccessfully to stave off the endless exhaustion. Her pale hair was unbound, something she had done to help with the chill of the cells, though she knew the cold was not to blame for her restless fatigue. When it became clear that sleep would not be visiting, Kotori settled with watching Charon, waiting for some sign of activity. It had become a habit of hers, and no matter how many assurances Aldreg gave her, it still made her uneasy to see him like this. Whatever 'this' was. As always, the android remained in his pose. Kotori sighed.

A prison guard making his rounds passed by the cell, eyeing into the dark depths wearily. They kept to the wall opposite to the cage's bars, trying their best to stay out of whatever reach they imagined the android to have.Kotori offered a small hello, which in the end only earned a flinch and a sour glare from the guard. With one hand on their sword they narrowed their eyes and then marched off to the next cell, leaving Kotori with the updating android.

Since Charon went into his slumber the guards had grown suspicious and fearful, though Kotori could not blame them. They knew what he was capable of, and the way he had crumbled against the bars was more than unsettling. Of course, Kotori had sadly grown used to it by now. She curled up on her bed and closed her eyes again. As strange and perhaps unethical as the android was, Kotori was thankful that she at least had someone in her cell. In the absence of Wakinyan she felt terribly vulnerable, and even if the android was unresponsive, it was a comfort to have someone nearby. Even if the someone was a soul-consuming android.

Charon's return to consciousness was abrupt, but only minimal power was available to most of his systems as an intensive system diagnostic was running. As such the movements of his arms were so very slow compared to his normal as he reached for the bars and grasped them with a metal-on-metal clang. Gradually he started to get his feet under him, the androids movements starting to speed up as more power was made available and by the time he was standing the diagnostic was over. All systems were running fine, but there was a curious change in the Soul Eater Core and Charon was able to detect that the two souls still in him were somehow being purified. In addition there was a new vent nestled between his thruster ports, presumably for getting rid of the cleaned souls and the fact that his system clock was now almost 24 hours . All of this left the soul eater with just one thing to say.

"The fuck?"

Kotori opened her eyes at the sound of metal clangs and movement, expecting it to be another guard. Instead, she was surprised to see that the source was none other than the android. Quickly, she sat up, brushing her hair out of her eyes so she could make sure this wasn’t just a dream.

“You are awake! It frightened me when you suddenly…ah…slept. Though I am glad Aldreg was right,” she said, laughing awkwardly and glancing at the android. It was unsettling to see him change from complete lifelessness into sudden movement. “Do all androids do that?”

"Most can't self-upgrade which means that I'm AWESOME," Charon quickly replies. Inwardly he was puzzled by the fact that the system in question had been able to modify the Soul Eater Core at all as that capability was nowhere in his design specs. "Though I wasn't expecting that one. I think you triggered it? Well you and two others from my Ravenloft adventures I suppose." The android gives head a shake. "To think fleshies could affect me in that way. What's next, talking cats?" A pause. "Wait, those exist."

"An upgrade...and I helped trigger it?" Kotori was more confused than Charon. She thought back to the moment before Charon had fallen asleep. They had been arguing over the inherent value of souls and the afterlife. Is this what he meant by trigger? And if so then...

"What was the change?" she looked at the android, anxious of his answer.

"Eyup, you, a Templar, and a frigging ghost who called me an abomination when he's the one who was a spirit. Stupid ghost."

Charon ceased talking for a moment when the footsteps of a guard could be hear approaching. Upon seeing that the android was standing upright and staring straight ahead the guard did a double-take and slowly backed away. Once he was out of ear shot the trololo song started to play from the android's speakers for a few moments before he answered Kotori's second question.

"Welp, I still eat souls, but not they apparently are cleansed? The tainted stuff pulled off of them is what gets stored and then used for power now and I just... exhale the soul? Something like that? Hell if I know what the fleshy equivalent is."

Kotori let out a shaky breath she did not know she had been holding, part laugh and part sigh of relief. She placed a hand over her mouth and looked down at the cell floor for a moment, taking in the android's words. No longer would he destroy souls. She repeated the words in her head, as if to fully convince herself. Did their talk have that much of an effect on him?

"You truly changed your mind? I... I do not know what to say. Thank you..ah...?"

"Oh don't get the wrong idea. I didn't change my mind, but somehow the self-upgrade system decided to modify the Soul Eater Core and somehow it worked with destroying me. I didn't get a choice in the matter, stupid, blasted, shazbot piece of..."

The android continued to mutter to himself for a few moments before changing topics. "I'm Charon, named after the boatman in Greek mythology who ferried souls to the afterlife. An impressive use of logic by the fleshies who built me when they decided to name me that. But if you want you could also call me Hug Lord of Doom 3000."

Kotori sat in awkward silence as the android proceeded to mutter various different ways to describe his displeasure, not sure if she should say anything. Thankfully he introduced himself and described the origins behind his name. It was fitting, considering the serious talk of his function, which was why the second name caught Kotori off-guard. She couldn't help but crack a smile and giggle at the ridiculous title.

"Well, Hug Lord of Doom 3000, My name is Kotori, keeper of the Heavenly Beast, Wakinyan. It is not a title equal to that of a Hug Lord, but perhaps we can be friends? If we both are capable of purifying corruption then we should work together to fight against it!"

Someone offering to be his friend? That was a first and the android didn't know what to do about it. But one thing is that he did know was that it never hurt to have allies, especially when you didn't know all that much about the situation you were in. "I'm in, but first we need to get out of here."

To that end Charon activated his communications system and started to broadcast a simple SOS. He would have liked to include coordinates, but without a valid coordinate system for the planet that wasn't exactly feasible, but with any luck someone would pick up the signal and attempt to reply.

"I am glad!" Kotori smiled as Charon accepted her offer of friendship, grateful to have found someone else with the rare gift to purify darkness. Charon was a strange android, but she did not think he was terrible. At least, Wakinyan did not freak out around him. There was always room for improvements, anyway. Kotori folded her hands on her lap and tilted her head. "Yes, i suppose it is hard to save any more lives in the walls of this cell. The trial is in one week... I just hope I can convince the Nortestrans that Wakinyan was only trying to protect them..."

"They had better let us go, otherwise I'm making my own exit and not taking 'no' for an answer. In the meantime I'm going to enjoy creeping out the guards who check on us by standing completely still and doing absolutely nothing while they are around." Charon hoped that with a little luck the guards wouldn't want to stand in their way when the time came to leave. But some fleshies did have a lot more bravery than brains so it wouldn't be the first time he had to club some idiot over the head. Or use said idiot as a club against other fleshy idiots. That was always fun.

"Ahah... let us hope it does not come to that..." Kotori said sheepishly. Wakinyan had a very similar plan. She sighed and watched Charon's gimmicks for a while before laying down on her bed again. This time, she was able to fall asleep.

 

[SirDerpingtonIV]

THE HUNDE
VIVICA
SIN
​

In a clearing far from the Third summoning, something truly dark was in the process of going down. Over the dark night sky a full moon shone bright and stark, few clouds nearby in the air to shroud its brilliant glow. Under that moon was a field, grass and weeds filling it to the brim with a green life oh so common in the world of Valucia. Next to this field lay a small village, ringed with a single and well maintained wall, maintained by several well-equipped guards.

SIN stood in the field, his trademark smile and relaxed demeanor gone, replaced with an eerily still and silent face. The amusement so normally placed upon his face was no longer visible. The third summoning was near finished, and with its completion, the village would cease to be. SIN loved Valucia, he loved what he could do to the world, he loved the change he could enact upon its small and unaware inhabitants. This field would bring forth some of his summonings most vicious combatants yet.

----

BLOOD. CLAWS. TOOTH. BONE.

The Wolf lowered itself onto all fours, claws digging into the rich soil. Saliva fell from the maw of the beast as it snarled, boiling fury in those glowing orange eyes. The creature thought little, but it knew this situation to be uncharacteristic. It had been howling into the void, the world destroyed, all consumed by the void. Yet, here it was, in a fresh green field. Blood still soaked its maw, wet on it's black fur, iron and strong In its mouth. It locked its eyes and its mind on the figure before it. The low, growling voice of its patron spoke out, low and serious. YOU OVERSTEP YOUR BOUNDS. It spoke not with the voice of the beast, but with the god responsible for it, a voice that echoed in the mind.

---

SIN smiled.
This was unlike his usual grin, unlike the usual smirk that plastered his features. In that this one was truly and genuinely real. The wolf hed brought forth stood on all fours, slathering, bloody and magnificent in its brutality. SIN laughed for a moment as the creature placed its eyes upon him, doubling over for a moment with a characteristic chuckle that was so very like him. He then stopped and looked the beast in its piercing orange eyes.

"I have no bounds to overstep foolish insect. I am SIN, and all is under my control. Why do you speak with such anger? I have brought you to a fresh world to ruin, you should be joyous oh magnificent creature. The Hunt continues this night."

----

YOU HAVE BROUGHT MY PRIZED TOOL FROM MY POSSESSION. THIS CREATURE IS NOT YOURS TO WIELD. The voice was that of Bar'Kagal, the eldritch void god that had created the Hunde as it's champion, it's prime hunter, the Ur-Wolf. In truth, neither the Hunde or its master were upset by the prospect of tearing through a whole world of prey, but when one was a void god, they had to be a little prideful at least.

----

"Bah, you will make more, dont act like that is beyond your abilities. I wish to see how this goes, so dont get in my way. I am sure this new hunting ground is sufficient to your desires. I am completely sure you will be satisfied with this new hunt." SIN stepped forward as he spoke, coming closer to the bloodstained beast. It was truly a sight to behold, he almost felt bad for the nearby vilagers in their peaceful hamlet.

----

The voice was silent. The void god was realizing the strength of the being it intereacted with. Bar'Kagal did not like the idea of being small. instead of delivering a response, the Hunde simply wheeled about and howled, moving off towards the village. It burst through the underbrush. Shoving aside branches and claws against trees as it went, growing faster, more hungry. The hunger was eternal, its wrath was eternal, as eternal as the god that has made it.

---

SIN chuckled as the avatar of the hunt made its way toward the village. It was a well defended little village, but it would stand no chance againt the apex predator. Now onto the next predator SIN would be bringing into the world, another being of immense power and capability for destruction.

---

The sudden light that came through from the summon forced Vivica to cover her eyes. For over 400 years she was fighting the reality eater in a void, which did not help the process of her eyes adjusting to her new worlds light. Once her eyes cleared she blinked a bit, trying to get her vision clear. Once she could see again she took note of her surroundings. A field of some kind. Was she in another world? That seemed to be the most likely case, but the only people capable of that were gods.

Turning her head her eyes laid upon the being she assumed was responsible for her being here. Turning to him, holding her massive sword in her hand she began to examine him. She kept an eye on the beings body, ready to calculate his movements or actions at a moments notice.

"It would appear your the one who brought me here. You have the powers of a god, but you are not like any god I have killed. What are you?" She remained cautious, keeping her grip on Executioners Rite strong. If she needed to fight, she would be ready. Fighting as she always had.

----

SIN breathed in and out softly, the evening air resulting in a cloud of mist forming around his mouth. He had looked forward to this one, this woman, she was truly yet another grand sight to behold. Vivica, slayer of deities and the fighter in the void, yet another of the last of her kind, the last of her universe. Yet another wonderful addition to his beloved Valucia; "I am indeed the one who brought you here Vivica! I am SIN, god of this world and of many others, custodian of the eternal and neverending. I have brought you here to conquer, as is your right as the last of your reality. Many others have been brought to this world for the same reasoning and they will be your peers, like none other ever have. What I am, however, is not for you to know, as of yet. What is for you to know however, is that another being of immense power has been brought to this world in this very same clearing. He is known only as The Hunde, and you will find him to be more of a challenge than any other creature you fought in your old world. I imagine you are not tired of combat yet? I imagine you still hunger for bloodshed as one such as you always does. He goes now, to destroy that which is both mine and yet not, he goes to destroy the innocent and the peaceful, and that leaves you with a choice Vivica. Stand here and let it kill and slaughter to its black hearts content, or go now, and fight for a cause righteous in its most base form. A beast waits at the door Vivica, and it is your choice now whether to go and meet it in glorious combat, or to leave it to its own murderous designs."

----

Vivica snarled as she turned. She stopped, hearing the cries of those innocent villagers the being talked about. She growled as she heard it. Of course a god was raining chaos onto his own world. These beings had to care for those who worship them. It was sickening. She was in a new world, but still the so called gods are still so indifferent to the suffering of their people. It was almost maddening.

She turned her head to the supposed god and the irritation in her eyes unmistakable "Your sick game does not interest me. I fight when I choose to fight. I will kill this monster, but know that after, I will not stop till I take your head too."

After making her point she turned and walked towards the village. She would save this world unlike her own. Now she had a new goal to accomplish. Kill SIN.

Vivica was calm as she walked. This beast had to be put down. If something like this was summoned by SIN, it was no good. It was her job to kill it.

----

The Hunde built up speed as it charged down the hill, and the villagers could hear it coming. They screamed, loud, shrill, terrified. Delicious.

Villagers ran about back and forth from one direction to another, behaving exactly like the prey The Hunde thought of them as. A town bell began ringing and more guards rushed forth from other parts of the village to take on the slavering beast. Several mercenaries and warriors appeared from the local inn rushing to the gates to quickly attempt a defence. The Hunde was before the gates now and the guards manning the walls felt a deep, primal fear invade their body upon sighting the beast. In the hamlet, folks rushed about gathering their belongings and family, hurrying as quickly as possible to prepare to escape the village. Doctrine in the hamlet was that when monsters or foreign forces attacked, the town guard, local militia and Mollug garrison were to spearhead the defence gathering every able bodied man and woman together to the walls. Then they would pepper the opposing force with as many projectiles as possible while battle stations were prepared behind the gate. The Hunde was not just any opposing force however, and all could tell, this would be a grim night.

----

On her way down she could hear the chaos this beast was sewing. The sickening screams of children and people being slaughtered. It was disgusting, but SIN was responsible. No one here could stop him. So, she would.

It was too much for her to take. She hated this terrible place that only the gods would enjoy. Gods do nothing but spread chaos and suffering. She wanted to be free. She wanted everyone to be free, but she would do it the right way. She would not carry freedom on the back of oppression. This was her way, but she knew it would be hard. That being said, SIN was the next god for her to kill. For now, this monster was the next head she would take.

----

The Hunde surged towards the walls, an avalanche of flech and claw, and it leapt form the ground. The beast simply soared over the wall before even so much as a single arrow could be loosed. It landed in the village, claws sliding across the stones. Sparks flew as it landed, its eyes even brighter than those flying lights. It roared, and lunged towards a smattering of militiamen that gathered across from it. The beast flew through their formation, scattering them like dolls as it swung its claws about, ripping and tearing its way through them. Flesh, muscle and bone were rended by its claws, blood splattered the ground. The Hunde snarled and howled, delighting in the killing. Yet, it did not simple revel in slaughter. It let them run, it let them flee, and it waited, as it tore the corpses it stood upon to shreds. It leaned down, and gripped the torso of a larger man in its jaws, its teeth punching through his padded cloth armor. It snarled, moving up one large paw to his pelvis, and pinned him down there, bones cracking beneath the weight, before it jerked its head to the side. With the sound of tearing flesh, it tore the body in two, the man's internal organs spilling onto the ground like so many dropped eggs. It leaned down, and tore into the torso with its teeth, pulling chunks of flesh and muscle from the corpse, the viscera hanging from its maw, staining its dark fur. The taste, the sensation, they filled the Hunde with life. To chase down the weak, to tear them to pieces. That was the purpose of the hunter.

It pulled back, and roared. Its prey had gotten far enough away, scattering throughout the village, their cage. Now, it would hunt.

The creature lunged forward, from a stand still to full speed in but a few seconds. It could see them, it could smell them, they could not escape it. The beast bursted through the wall of a village hut, its thatch roof collapsing inwards. The dried plant material fell upon the Hunde's head, and did not harm it. It moved through the collapsed house, hunting, following. A mother and a child, cowering by the fireplace. It lunged, its paw slamming the child into the wall, pulping it with nothing but a single muscle movement and a loud crunch. The wall shuddered, stones crumbling beneath the force of the blow, as the Hunde rounded on the mother. She screamed and squeeled as it gripped her leg in its jaws, teeth piercing flesh. It jerked its head again, and slammed her into the wall, the woman's spine shattering instantly. She fell to the ground like a sack full of rocks, and the Hunde moved swiftly, crushing her skull beneath another paw like a grape, as blood splattered across the room like an exploding grenade. Her very identity was gone in an instant, another innocent, another corpse. Her grey matter stained its fur, caught between the didgets of its paws.

The Hunde burst through the other wall of the House, stones flying across the village square, killing several militiamen on impact, the force throwing them back, or simply taking their heads off their shoulders, smoothed stone crushing bone.

The Hunde moved, primal and violent, as swift and deadly as the water of a rapids. With tooth and claw it tore through the villagers before it, finding a particular soul of interest. A blacksmith, with spirit, a will to live. He was balding, what little hair remained on his round head was greying. Middle aged, leaving his prime. His face was squat and square, with knowing brown eyes, and muscled arms. Another victim. The Hunde pounced, knocking the man off his feet, claws skittering across the stones as it slid to a stop nearby. He scrambled to his feet, running, panting, screaming. The Hunde was quick to move, slamming into him again. The hunde's bodyweight was far more than his, and he was knocked down, hitting his head hard against the ground, bloodying it. His nose was broken, and the smell only excited the Hunde. It stepped forward, and set a paw on his legs as he lie on the ground. He gasped, then screamed, and screamed, as it pressed down, shattering the bones in his legs, rupturing blood vessels, ruining muscles. It released him, and watched him crawl away, heard him silently beg. The Hunde rounded, biting the head off a militiaman and batting his body aside like a doll, before tearing a chunk from the corpse and wolfing it down. It turned back, the blacksmith crawling, leaving a trail of blood across the plaza as the Hunde moved closer, and closer. The blacksmith saw, and the fear in his eyes, it drove the Hunde forward. He had almost escaped the town, and if he had passed those gates, it may just have let him go. Yet, he did not. The Hunde lunged, and with one easy motion, ended the game. It pierced the man's lung with a singular claw, shoving the thing through his chest so hard it stuck into the ground beneath. The blacksmith gasped and wheezed, his screams turning to hollow, gagging sobs as blood filled his throat. The blood poured up his esophogus, bubbled in his mouth, poured from his lips. The Hunde watched him bleed, watched him wheeze and gasp, his lungs punctured. He sounded like a deflating baloon, air leaving his ruptured lungs as he breathed it in. It watched him drown from the inside out, and once he had expired, it turned once more, ready to continue.

The Hunde smashed through another building, tearing apart the occupants in several flat, horrifying moments, there was no music or depth telling background sounds to cover the horror. Only the symphony of screams, the cacophony of claws tearing through flesh, of snapping tendons and cracking bones.
Several soldiers raced forward, one clad in a red jerkin wielding a broadsword, another with a great helm and an axe, the last wielding a halberd in a yellow tunic. Each was armored lightly with leather and iron. Others came from behind, gathering in front of the ruined wall, watching in horror as the beast shredded compatriots and civilians alike. The soldiers then rallied and rushed forward, some howling war cries, others quiet with grim realization; the three comrades rushed in together, their cohorts behind watching with horror as the battle escalated. The soldier with the red jerkin dodged a swipe of a claw narrowly by stumbling, for which the halberd wielding soldier adjusted for defending afterwards with heavy long swipes of the spear. The axeman flanked quickly rushing to the left side of the beast attacking swiftly with several chops of the great blade. The axe landed true on the second swipe, hacking some flesh from the Hundes body before the man found himself with all the attention focused on him. The Hunde smashed the axe from his hands with one powerful movement and then with a second even more sudden one, gripped him with two hands and ripped his head off, helmet and all. Blood spattered everywhere and the soldier in the yellow tunic screamed and rushed forward, hate filled eyes glowing with their own brilliance. It was not to last however as The Hunde tore the halberd from his hands with its iron vice grip. The Hunde sliced the mans chest open with a ripping sound that echoed from hell.
More soldiers rushed forward as the broadsword wielding soldier stumbled out of the ruins, each equipped with their own unique weapons, a long axe, a spear, a crossbow and curved sword.

The Hunde bared its teeth, watching its new prey with glowing eyes. They were armed, but it would not save them. Nothing would. Even now, bathing in blood and dining on flesh, its wounds healed, its flesh knit itself back together. The Hunde would kill them, it would devour them. It would outlive them all. For it was the Predator, and they were the Prey. It hurled itself forward with abandon, towards the crossbowman first. He had set himself atop a pile of rubble the Hunde had made, a position that was in the man's mind, doubtlessly an advantage. He loosed a shot, and the bolt lodged in the Hunde's jaw, quivering as the man screamed as the Hunde bit him in half, and tossed his corpse aside. Then, the Hunde turned, crouched atop the rubble, blood pouring form its jaws, two halves of a dead man at its paws. It raised its jaws to the sky above and howled, before roaring as it moved again, surging back into the melee. The Long axe swung down into the Hunde's shoulder, steel biting into flesh, but the Hunde simply barreled through the man holding it, knocking him down. The Hunde balled its paw up, manlike enough to curl its fingers into a fist, as it slammed that fist like a stone through the man's abdomen, blasting straight through his stomach and cracking the stone beneath him. Shards of his spine stuck through the Hunde's paw as it turned, taking a sword's blade against the side of its face. It recoiled, then grasped the sword in its jaws and jerked, shattering the weapon, before it moved forward again, shattering the man who held it with the unimaginable pressure of the beast's jaws. He screamed as the Hunde bit down on him, as his armor crippled into his body, as his spine snapped. The spearman fled, and the Hunde chased. He leapt over a wagon, ducked beneath a signpost, and the Hunde simply blasted through both, sprinting after him. He dropped the spear and ran, before collapsing, tripping over a root, falling to the ground. He rolled onto his back and screamed as the Hunde flew through the air, landing atop him, impaling him through the stomach with his own spear, wielded in one paw like a large toothpick. The weapon snapped from the force of the impact, but the man was very much dead. The village militia was scattered, and very quickly dying, its numbers halved already. Then, the Hunde turned, smelling yet another presence, another victim.

---

Picking up speed as she started running through to the village. Her running starting to move her into the air. Each step moving up like she was walking on stairs, but only air was beneath her feet. Running up until she reached up way beyond the height of the village. Looking down she could see the beast causing chaos and death. With a look of rage she jumped and put her legs up. Using the air as a springboard she launched herself down. Landing in a blast of dust and rubble right in front of the monstrous wolf.

As the dust settled he stood there. The presence Vivica exuded was that of a warrior who had seen battles that even hell would run from. Looking around, the sight of what the beast had done was horrifying and made her sick. Her angered eyes looked at the wolf and pointed her massive sword at the abomination "You are the beast called Hunde, yes? Your life of chaos and murder ends here." She stood still. Her sword still raised and waited. This was not something she could rush. It was obvious that she needed to be cautious with the monster. If SIN was to believed, one wrong move and she was dead. So she waited. Making sure to keep track of every part of the wolf and the battlefield.

---

The beast locked eyes with its newest prey, a woman, with very apparent power. She had landed just nearby, already prepared to fight. It could smell that she was not of here, that she was a Summoned. The Hunde would cherish her death-screams. She spoke to it, gave the usual prattle of every would-be hero. They never understood, they never learned. Even if she slew it, it would come back. It would slaughter, its hunt would continue, eternal. Greater heroes than she had faced it, greater heroes than she from the annals of the history of Lumoris had attempted to end its hunt. The Hunde examined her sword, before it reached down, and closed its clawed fingers around a large stone, holding it close to its breast, before swinging the hand forward, hurling the rock at her. As it did, it pounced, soaring through the air, claws outstretched to grab her. The Hunde would waste no time on words, even if it could speak.

---

Vivica was less than impressed with this beast. She had no issue with the idea of throwing stones if it held some tactical advantage, but throwing the rock did nothing for this savage. The force behind the throw was nothing. It was so minimal the Vivica simply swung her sword to bat it away.

On top of that this creature seemed slow to her. When the beast lunged toward her she could see every possible move. It was relying solely on its ability to kill her instantly. Sadly for it, she was not like others it had hunted. Just as the creature was about to land on her, she moved her sword to the side. Swinging her free hand up she grabbed the wrist of the beast. In what seemed like a fraction of a second she tightened her grip, trying to destroy the Hunde's wrist. She also continued her follow through, dragging the primal werewolf through the air like a child swinging a toy. Finally her grip released, launching the creature behind her towards an already destroyed building. Her body quickly turned with a stern look of disappointment on her face at what a clear mismatch this was. Of course she should not have believed SIN. This monster was unlike any she had faced, but it was not a fair fight.

---

As the stone was batted away, the Hunde swung its claws out for the woman, taking cruel glee in the fact that she had been distracted. Yet, as its claws stretched out for her, she moved, fast, and gripped it by the wirst. The bones in the Hunde's wrist shattered, as the small humanoid thing threw the Hunde across the village. It was... almost confused. She bore no visible muscle, was small of stature. This strength was magical in nature. The Hunde snarled, teeth bared. Even now, the bones in its wrist healed. The prey would not expect that. The Hunde crashed through the wall, stone and wood shattering beneath its weight, and locked its claws into the ground. It slowed, coming to a stop, leaving deep lines in the soil and stone where it had skidded to a halt. The beast snarled, hateful orange eyes locked on her. She was strong, but arrogant. It could see it on her face. The beast fought every fight like its last, except when it knew it was stronger.

The Hunde moved, dragging its left arm against the ground, the wrist healing, although she could not see it. It would give her the idea that she was stronger, that her strength was sufficient. Then, she would die. The Hunde charged, on all fours as it charged across the plaza at her. Moments before it entered melee, it stuck the claws of the right paw into the ground and flung a cloud of dust and debris at the woman. It would, hopefully, obscure her vision and startle her, as the Hunde attacked. The Hunde changed momentum, skidding to the side, claws sparking and digging into the cobblestone as it turned, now at her side. It lunged once more, swinging its right arm about to tear through her. Were she quick enough to block the attack, then it would seize upon her ignorance, and it would feast.

---

Of ccourse Vivica was at an advantage, but her centuries of battle had taught her that it was ignorant to let your guard down at all. The moment your guard was dropped was the moment you simply lay your life at your oopponents There were many things she was capable of, but forfeiting her life was not one of them. She was made for war. No more and no less. This beast was a hunter. An apex among the mundane, but she had killed many like that before.

Vivica had to admit that she was not prepared for tge dust to be thrown into her eyes, so she did have to shut her eyes as the dust entered them. The dirt irritated her as she wiped them with her free hand. Distracted for just a moment she was unsure of this monsters next attack, but luckily the Hunde's own claws gave him away. Hearing the sound of scratches against cobblestone. She managed to open an eye just in time to catch her opponent attempting to cleave through her.

This was not going to happen. She switched her massive blade between her hands. Squatting down to avoid the strike, she took her sword into her hands like a bat. Using her legs and body like a spring, she leaped forward and torqued her midsection. This combined with the fact that she was now multiplying her own force through her sword made for an unmatched strike. Using the flat side of her sword instead of the blade. This beast seemed far too eager to jump in and something was not sitting right with her. Still, if this strike was not avoided, any bones in its path would be dust.

---

The prey had fallen for the ruse. The Hunde raised its right arm, simply taking the blow from her sword. Its bones shattered, crumpling beneath the blow, fur and flesh and muscle being eviscerated by the strike of the blade. Yet, the Hunde turned, eyes locked on her as she leaped through the air. It lunged, throwing its bodyweight into her, the two colliding in mid air, as it thrust the claws of its left, and previously broken hand at her face. It was sudden, and the Hunde was fast, further banking on the fact that she likely believed that arm put out of action by her previous grasp. The Hunde was relentless, able to take attacks in stride and continue, relying upon its regeneration until it could pull each part of itself back into the fight as it continued on, biting and slavering and swinging.

---

Now she was amused. Feeling the beast use all its force in the collision was entertaining. It actually had a decent amount of weight behind it. Not to mention she could see that it was attacking with the arm she swore she destroyed earlier. It was all this that brought her to the conclusion that the reason this beast was so ready to throw itself into a fight was because of the high speed healing ability it had. A smile formed on her lips. This made the beast much more fun to fight. So, she decided to see how far this ability of the werewolf could be pushed.

Firstly, since her sword was still between them, she slapped her hand against it and multiplied the force to shove the Hunde back about 20 feet. She then closed the distance in mere moments. One hand was up with her sword, ready for the attack. Multiplying the velocity of her swing it became even faster. This time she was using her cutting edge. She was attempting to directly cleave off the beasts right side. It was not enough to kill it, but it was enough to let Vivica see how far this ability of the Hunde's could be pushed.

---

The Hunde, its attack having failed, was thrown back. It slid across the ground, claws dug in to slow its momentum, readying itself to move again. Yet, before it could, its prey ran towards it, blade in hand. The prey was fast, and as it moved, a glint in its eye, swinging that sword, the Hunde moved too, lunging straight towards her, attempting to clamp its jaws around her head. As it moved, the sword cut into its shoulder, the beast's raw size and durability slowing the blade, the thing getting caught in the rib cage instead of slicing off a half of the creature. Blood poured from the wound, gushing, as internal organs were exposed to open air, stuck by the ribs of the Hunde's own body. Such a wound was doubtlessly agonizing, yet the beast seemed immune to the pain.

---

Seeing that the blade was stopped by the beasts body was fascinating. It was durable enough to stop her swing, but still it was trying to get her. This beast, if nothing else, was tenacious. It was fascinating to say the least. However, she was not willing to die to satiate her curiosity about this creature.

Taking breath she used her strength to force the beast back.She pushed it back until her sword drove into a wall. She let the sword go, knowing that the beast couldn't move it due to the magic that only let her wield it. She used her arm to wrap around the Hunde's. Jerking up to snap its elbow, but still holding it, having learned from the fight. She knew her sword had its other side immobilized, so with her free hand she began to strike its face. Her fist colliding into the Hunde's maw over and over again. She was not holding back at all. Each strike was calculated, and made maximum impact. Every now and again she would deliver a resounding blow to the beasts core, but always returned to beating the monsters face in.

---

SIN watched from a distance as the two summoned clashed, smiling to himself at their power and the chaos they would bring. He stood for a moment and inhaled, before blinking out of existence to another part of the world that needed his influence. He was a being always on the move and always on watch, and much needed his touch.

---

The Hunde snarled, teeth bared, as blood poured from those open jaws. Whether its own or those of its many victims, was impossibel to determine. The Hunde's claws dug into the grounds as she pushed it back, back against the wall of the house, pinned against the old stone by the magic sword. Were the Hunde any other creature, the immense and indescribable pain of the sword near splitting it inhalf would cause it to die from shock nigh instantaneously. But, the Hunde was the Hunde, and there was a gleam in those predators' eyes. The prey broke its arm, as it grasped the sword with its other. It pulled and pulled, yet the sword would not dislodge itself from the creature's body. As the prey began to hurl its fists at the snarling Hunde's face, her fist crashing against its muzzle, it waited; it took the hits, drawing her in. She was arrogant, so much so, so confident in her own abilities, she left her neck exposed, and now, the Hunde moved for the killing blow. As her fist came rushing towards the Hunde's muzzle, its jaws opened, and it lunged forward, The Hunde attempted to bite her arm as she flung it at the Hunde's open mouth. Its jaws closed like the jaws of a bear trap, fast and merciless.

---

Vivica saw this possibility, but by the time it was happening, she was mid punch and not even her reaction time could save her. That being said, as the primal wolf burried its teeth into her arm, she didn't react with pain. Rather, her eyes locked to the monsters. Her eyes radiated anger and an undying fire. There was no pain in her eyes, even as she felt the beasts teeth crush into her arm.

She kept her eyes on the beast, not wavering in the slightest "You show what you truly are. Nothing more than a beast in-"

---

The Hunde interrupts, and attempts to tear her arm off. The Hunde does not believe in monologues, and using its teeth, torn into her flesh as leverage, it rips its head back with violent force.

---

Vivica's arm was in a terrible position. This beast was strong and relentless. That being said, as the beast attempted to rip at her arm,her arm didn't budge. She felt the strength behind the pull, but she didn't move. Once again she looked into the Hunde's souless eyes "I am ending this now."

She needed her hand released, just for a moment, then she could do what needed to be done. So, she readied her stance and pushed her arm forwad, amplifying her force and attempting to break the beasts jaw. If she could, this manage this, she could finish this.

---

The Hunde was almost dissapointed when it did not hear the sound of tearing flesh, cracking bone, and snapping sinew. Her arm, bleeding as it was, remained attatched to her body. She once more, looked at it, speaking, yet the Hunde did not wait for her. As she spoke and looked, it jerked its body, and with her hand in its maw, slammed itself back into the wall it was pinned to, shattering the weakened stone. It couldn't remove the sword, but it could remove the thing the sword was pinning it to. Its momentum, moving backwards, negated much of the force of her arm's movement, the maneuver sending pain through the creature's jaw, but by no means breaking it. So, with the sword still stuck in its torso, the Hunde yanked its head once again, jerking to the side in an attempt to not tear her arm off, but instead to use her as a blunt instrument and swing her into the stone remnants of the wall it had just been stuck to.

---

She was a bit thrown off by the creature having enough awareness to push back with her and destroy the wall. However, when the beast tried to whip her around by her arm, she used that momentum of the Hunde's head and pulled thesame way. Rather than swinging her, she managed to get moving with the beast still latched to her arm. She still had a hold on its arm, so moving it was relatively easy. Running off with the creature she saw a massive boulder. A smirk formed on her face. Using all the momentum and speed she had, she swung the beasts head and tried to ram it into the rock. If this worked, she would get her arm loose and get her one step closer to winning this.

---

As the prey grasped the Hunde and began to move it, taking advantage of its momentum, the Hunde tensed and changed its motion. Yet, it remained thoroughly in her grasp as she dragged it along and tried to throw it a large stone. Yet, the Hunde simply carried her along with it, even as the Hunde slammed into the stone with bone-shattering force. The creature seemed momentarily dazed, although its grip did not grow any looser. With her arm still firmly in its mouth, it leaned back, and suddenly stood on its hind legs, lifting her up and off the ground. It reached out, swinging its claws out for her, trying to latch them into her skin. If it could, perhaps it could simply tear her in half.

---

Vivica was shocked that the beast was still able to move after such an impact. However, even as she was lifted, a smile formed on her face. She knew how she would win. As the creature tried to claw at her she swung her entire body up like a swing to avoid them. This also allowed her to grab her sword easily. With one pull she wrenched her sword from the Hunde's mutilated body, splattering gore and blood all around. With a smirk she reached up and brought her sword down. Even at this angle, by multiplying the inertia of her swing she was able to completely slice through the monstrous wolf's maw, freeing herself and removing the beasts bite as a factor. As she landed with the two pieces of the beasts jaw landing at her feet, she took advantage of the mere seconds she had. Swinging her sword down again, but this time cleaving a portion of the boulder away, making a smooth surface. With a spin she landed a kick to the side of the boulder and it began to fall on the abomination. She leaped back and smirked, knowing there was no way the monster could avoid the falling stone.

---

Mawless and bloodied, the Hunde stumbled back, an ugly gurgling in its throat. The creature was close to death now, yet it did not seem particularly disturbed by the fact. The thing turned, and attempted to flee, just before it heard the slice of the sword through stone. The beast turned its head only slightly, before the collossal boulder struck it. The Hunde fell, crushed beneath the boulder's weight. Its ribs shattered beneath the weight, and as the Hunde was pressed to death, its eyes locked on Vivica. There was a fire in those eyes, a delight. She did not know, but she would become its next victim. A powerful body such as hers, would become the Hunde's to command. Yet, before any of this could occur, a crossbow bolt, the final blow, came from across the square. It lodged itself through the gap in the Hunde's face, its iron head burried in the Hunde's brain. YOU HAVE DONE WELL, HUNTER. NOW, ANOTHER SHALL TAKE YOUR PLACE. THIS WORLD SHALL BE OUR HUNTING GROUND. WHEN YOU RETURN, INFECT OTHERS. TURN THEM TO MY CREATURES, INSPIRE FEAR AND DEVOTION IN THE MORTALS. THEN, SLAUGHTER. With this command from Bar'Kagal, its dark master, the hunde seized, and then gave its last breath, its vile eldritch blood staining the ground.

Yet, the Hunde would live on. The crossbowman had doomed himself, and a handful of other militiamen, those who would see miraculous recovery from the Hunde's blows, they too were doomed. The Hunde's curse would take hold of the crossbowmen, and those who were wounded by the beast would likely become lycanthropes themselves. As for Vivica... time would tell, if she too were to fall to Lycanthropy. The Hunde's Hunt was done... for now.

---

Vivica watched the bolt take the beasts life. It was sad honestly. Maybe if this Hunde character was a bit more intelligent and had a heart, this death wouldn't have happened. That was a thought she couldn't afford to have now. What was done is done and she had no real reason to be upset. Taking a moment to inspect her arm she thought about the possible affect. Infection was one. She remembered a beast that could turn whomever it bit into one of its own kind. That was an issue if this creature worked the same way. That being said, her Defiance ability should kill it off. Just in case she would take measures to handle it.

After she was satisfied with the inspection of her body she pulled out the long cloth that wrapped her sword outside of combat. Taking the time to wrap her sword she noticed a few people watching her. Figuring it was just praise for saving them, she simply ignored them. Once her sword was wrapped she placed it on her back and walked off in the opposite direction of the bolt that removed the Hunde from life. Walking off the villagers, particularly one girl that would be a person leading something for Vivica.

Now that this beast was done in, it was time. Vivica had a purpose. Walking down the path leading into a forest she was ready. She was on a mission. SIN was a scourge on this world. Another god that didn't care at all about his people. This being was a blight in existence and she had sworn to take his head. By her own pride and strength, she would kill and take SIN's head and free this world. That damned god would regret bringing her into his playground of his. She was not a toy and would not be controlled by that being who doesn't care about her world.

 

[Pai Chan]

TEAM PANDEMONIUM
Written by Gohan510 & Pai Chan

Vali stretched his arms out sitting up slowly scratching the top of his head letting out a soft yawn. Looking around he was in a room with four beds, in each bed was everyone he traveled with. During the week the group got far into Mollug even learning a bit about the country, how it was going through inner conflict with themselves as well as going to war with another country. This was perfect it meant the country itself wasn’t at its best state meaning anything can go. A word about a big revolution being led by a summoned is being built up somewhere north west from the group. Right now they were in a city of some sorts, still unfamiliar with the mapping Vali got up out of bed slipping his shirt back on and sliding back into his shoes. Leaving the bedroom Vali entered the kitchen preparing hot water.

Obito stood on the wall behind Vali and watched the guy boil water up. His steam left his mask which blew his cover making Vali turn to Obito.

“So where will we be headed next?”

“We need money. Best place is to head to that place that’s not too far off from here.”

“Tesirael?”

“Yeah that one. We gotta wait for Sowilo and Ain to wake up before leaving. That Hyena group was making some ruckus around us huh?”

“Are we going to handle them and their reckless behavior?”

“Yeah we should, and then that revolutionary group. Apparently there’s a duo that went into hiding in the other city some distance off from here, Boreal Valley.”

“That’ll take us four days to get there walking, two riding on Fenris with no stops.”

“I’m more interested in finding this Hyena group, expanding our forces could be good.”

“When I mentioned handling I didn’t…”

“I know. Though my idea is expand and grow. I want to watch this world burn on the sideline, as long as I can continue to fight strong opponents and become stronger that’s all I wish to do.”

“I see.”

While the two discussed Ain snoring loud in the room, he was sleeping like a wild animal. Blanket all over the place, he was in his draws and he was laying diagonal throughout the bed, constantly scratching his stomach as he snored. Ain had tattoos all over his body so it was really hard to tell which one was the one SIN gave them. An explosion could be heard far off into the distance which made Vali and Obito perk their attention up towards the window. Vali’s draconic armor instantly appeared on him and he blasted out the window, Obito jumped out the window after him. Ain on the other hand was far too deep in sleep.



Sowilo had a bit of a rough start in terms of adjusting. She wasn’t used to being in a number of cities, let alone living with a group. But finding out about the world she, currently, resided in was a must. As well as finding out about what magics resided in this world. As Sowilo suspected, magic was an integral part of this world. But with the team moving and the short amount of time the witch had been in Valcuia. At the moment she was driven by her curiosity. She had lived for such a long time, Sowilo couldn’t begin to explain how bored of her world she was. Magic was more scarce.

Vali waking up and walking out of the room is what brought Sowilo out of her slumber. Her horns made it to when she did sleep, it was upright. Often supporting her head on a pillow. This time was no exception. Back against the headboard with pillows and blankets piled up to support her head as she rested it on top of them.

If Sowilo wasn’t fully awake yet the loud explosion made sure that she was. The witch sat up and saw that Ain was still asleep. She gave a small chant and touched his skin. An electronic shock pulsed through his body to wake him up.

Ain jumped out of bed rolling grabbing his twin pistols aiming them all over the room trying to figure out what woke him up. Noticing it was Sowilo through mana sensing he laid his pistols on his shoulders and stood up straight. Ain tossed the pistols off on the bed grabbing his pants putting them on. “The hell you wake me up for? Where the hell are the other two?” Ain asked Sowilo who rudely woke him up.

Vali was flying at top speed making it to the scene of the explosion quite quickly landing in front of the building that burned now. Looking around there were no signs of visible foot tracks. His wings shined bright as he blasted into the building top speeds looking for any survivors. Bursting through the roof of the building there was no one. The one who was there died in the explosion. Landing down back in front of the building he noticed Obito finally arriving on horseback.

Once Obito arrived he jumped off the horse and put its lead around a wooden log. Scanning the area Obito noticed foot tracks, mostly coming from a group. “Footsteps going North into the town.”

“Hyenas maybe?”

“Most likely, if so we can crank down on whoever or whatever these Hyenas are. I plan on keeping the leader alive and kill the rest.”

“Why?”

“Too many people in groups are hard to control, especially a group with objectives like ours. We don’t have structure yet. No hideout, no anything. I suggest while we’re in Mollug to meet that girl we were told of. Orphis, the leader of the chaos brigade.”

“I see your point. First let’s find these Hyenas then let's do the rest later. Ain and Sowilo should be arriving soon.” Vali noticed many town folk arrived at the scene even, the towns militia troops arrived telling people to back up. By then Obito and Vali were already in hiding. The group agreed to keep their identities hidden from the world until they have a good footing in it.

The witch found Ain’s brief panic amusing. Seeing all of his tattoos was also quite interesting. Marga mostly only saw tribal tattoos in her time amongst people and that was because most of them were fellow witches or warlocks. Ain’s tattoos were definitely not of the traditional type. At least not that Sowilo could recall.

“Judging by the window that I heard get smashed up front, I’m assuming the other two are out to investigate that explosion you just slept through. It’s chaos outside. I thought I’d be courteous and at least give you a chance to see what’s going on. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s that terrorist group, the Hyenas, at it again. They’ve only seemed to have been the source of all the trouble in this area lately.”

“Man fuck the Hyenas, they keep destroyin shit around us. At this point if I find em I’m killin em all! Ha!”

Ain scratched the big of his head with an irritated look that showed through a frown. Putting his tank top then jacket on Ain’s pistols faded into green particles. Putting two fingers in his mouth he blew a whistle and in a moment Fenris landed in front of the bedroom window. Opening the window up Ain jumped on Fenris’s back ready to set off once Sowilo jumped on too.

Junko had the others split up. A large group moving together would have been too suspicious. And she wanted the explosives to be put to good use as soon as possible. She didn’t plan on sitting on them for long. At the moment only half a dozen men stuck with the Hyena leader. Trent went off to make sure the others did things properly. It would be a shame if they got caught in the middle of their plan.

Junko chuckled to herself. Plan? I guess it could be called that. Just to level a few buildings. Not really important ones due to the tightened security around them. But enough to make sure people didn’t sleep soundly for a while.

Once Ain and Sowilo arrived at Vali's hiding spot Fenris went into hiding within the forest surrounding the town like usual. It was bad enough people were already talking about sightings of a giant wolf. Ain sat down in a chair and tilted back crossing his legs on the table. “So what’s up? Find anything? I’m getting tired of not being able to sleep you know!”

Vali had his arms crossed and laid against the wall looking out the broken window of the abandoned building they hid in. Vali was trying to put together what was going on, but couldn’t. He had no real knowledge of the world, and the maps only helped so much, not even showing specific town details, etc.

Sowilo stepped up beside Vali to try and look down his line of sight to see what it was he was looking for.

“I forgot to ask before leaving but exactly what are we doing?”

Vali looked at Sowilo and had a smirk. “Trying to figure out who these Hyenas guys are. Probably subdue all of them if they don’t agree.” Vali looked back to the window. “What do you think? It’s been word around town. “We’ll make 'em listen.”

Sowilo reflected for a moment. In the week she had spent with the group she was able to find out some things. Like her, they didn’t really care about the “ultimate goal” that SIN had given everyone that was summoned. Or at least, it wasn’t top on the list of priorities. Vali only cared about fighting the strongest. Ain seemed more interested in seeing destruction unfold, in general. Obito and Sowilo were more alike in wanting to sit back and collect info first. Sowilo primarily only wanted to get stronger.

Between the others she felt quite content with the group in terms of how powerful they all were. And to only find out more and grow in strength as time progressed. Though, Sowilo was curious as to what exactly they would do once they met up with the Hyenas face to face. Vali said subdue. Did he plan on trying to make them all submit and become their new leader? This group definitely doesn’t have very many dull moments, Sowilo thought.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Junko had her group reassemble out of the gates of the city. There were many others that did the same, to escape the chaos within. After a couple of minutes several more large explosions shook the ground. The grade of those explosives were topnotch. The money Junko spent on them was well worth it. It wouldn’t be long until other people caught wind of this event and sought out the Hyenas services yet again and this time she’d charge more. They’d make back their money within a week if traffic was the same as before, let alone the heads this fiasco would turn.

“Alright!” Trent called out to the many others that were standing about looking at the smoke rise from the city. The Hyenas had already spread out amongst the people with merchant carts.

“While it was smart that you all decided to get away from that crazy mess within the gates of the city, it’s unfortunate you happened to do it at this moment and with us. We are feeling pretty generous today, so we’ll only collect a small fee from you lot so that you can be on your merry way and keep your valuables. When you can’t pay, we’ll take that fee in what’s on your person. This can go very fast and without trouble. The city’s guards are all preoccupied with the pandemonium towards the center so don’t bother calling for help.”

Luckily, very few people put up a fuss. Most people knew who the Hyenas were and knew what causing a scene would result in. Most of the people had the money. It wasn’t much because Junko wasn’t completely heartless or stupid. She just needed to keep up intimidation performances. That way people would still respect and fear her gang while at the same time wouldn’t be completely fearful of searching them out for services. It was a thin line to stay on.

After a few minutes, Junko flipped through the money. It would be a lot sooner before they were back in the black than she thought, in terms of finances. She looked among her Hyenas. They needed more updated weapons before Junko could take on the big leagues. She knew some existed here in Mullog but they were just so hard to get their hands on. Junko was the only one with them because somehow they managed to travel with her back when she was summoned.

She was also the only one with abilities out of all the Hyenas but she tried her best to keep that a secret outside of the group. After a few more minutes most people had left and Junk had gathered up her gang. It was time to leave. The day had been a very productive one.

As the explosions rang off all throughout the city, Vali watched from the window. On the reflection was the flickering lights and mass destruction. His usual smirk turned serious while watching. Ain watched from the rooftop. Obito was leaning against the wall. His steam released from the cylinders.

“What should we do?”

“Should I go alone and see who they are first and come back with information?”

“Going alone may be dangerous.” Obito stated, stepping off the wall. Walking over to Sowilo and Vali, he watched out the window. “People would have evacuated right?”

Vali snapped out of thought looking at Obito. He might’ve been onto something. “Yeah, which means the front gate?”

”That could be a gathering of people. Coming from my world situations like these, the groups would nearly trap the citizens.”

“Meaning.. We should hurry?”

“Yes.” Fenris jumped out of the forest into the front of the house. The sounds of his paws touching the ground could be heard.

“I’ll meet you guys there.” Vali stated as his draconic armor appeared over his body.

Obito looked at Sowilo, then running after Vali out of the building. Jumping onto Fenris who was laying down. They waited for Sowilo to hop on before taking off.

Vali already blasted off around the city for the front gate. To anyone watching from the ground, they saw a shining blue and white light. As well as moving fast.

“Soo… Vali wants to go to them, why?”

“My understanding.. An alliance? We don’t have much anyway. This could be an advancement. Vali’s taking a chance this will work.”

“Heh. For what? To build his own little army?” Ain said to Obito as they rode on with Sowilo behind them. They ran through the forest going a complete round about to stay hidden for the most part.

Vali noticed from the distance people gathered up in the front. Was this what Obito meant? Vali also could sense a powerful magic power coming from the direction. Without question he blasted off faster to the scene. How fast he moved left a white trail as he dashed through the sky. Crashing down in front of the Hyenas before they could escape. Vali raised his hand and mana started forming a purple and black ball. “Don't move.” His blue draconic wings had white particles sprinkling off of them.