Fantasy New Oasis: Four Heavenly Kings

[angel doe]

celestine renee cadieux

CS Link

SCENE:

serpents arc 3: scene 2 [hunks in the city]

LOCATION:

central district

PARTICIPANTS:

everyone and their mother fr

HUNKS AND THE DRAGONS AND THE PHOENIXES AND THE POLICE IN THE CITY

Celestine had looked away for a minute, maybe two, and already Jozef had wandered off again. She knew he could take care of himself, but that didn't stop the immediate terror she felt not being able to see him, even if it was only for a moment as she spotted his mop of blonde hair seconds later. Hurrying towards him, she walked up and placed a hand on his shoulder to get his attention, but froze when she realized who he was talking to.

"Oh." This certainly was awkward and frankly, it's what Celeste had been hoping to avoid; clearly, that was out of the cards now. Scanning the area, she took mental note of every person there, recognizing a couple of them. The person who stuck out to her the most, however, was Yong-Yut; her eyes brightened, but she was careful to keep her expression neutral.

As much as she wanted to greet her friend, this obviously was not the time, as interrupting the group would be impolite. Mere seconds later there was an intense heat coupled with explosions that made Celeste flinch, covering her ears and taking a step back without realizing it. No, you cannot get frightened now, you are not that pathetic. You have to be ready to protect Jozef if necessary.

Celestine dropped her arms to her sides, clenching her hands into fists and unfurling them a couple of times before standing behind her friend. She stayed close behind him, watching the rest of the group with narrowed eyes, her expression cold.

Celeste couldn't afford to let her guard down or shy away, not when her friend was potentially at risk.


WhiskeyMarten gxxberkit Nobody Special AriAriAbabwa Damafaud Caffeine_Obsessed Elenion Aura (i probably missed some people. sorry about that lmao)

 

[gxxberkit]

YONG-YUT SOMSRI

CS Link

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Dragon and the Phoenix]

LOCATION:

Upper Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Too many
People here

The Four Gangs, and some cops.

"Spirit! No, that's not— Don't take— Stay he— Fuck. Spirit!"

Yong-Yut called out to the ball of darkness that sped through the group, taking Lyric with it— as she accurately assumed. Luckily, almost immediately, Kaede sunk the board to the ground and emerged from the darkness. Yong-Yut eyed the woman as she made her way back to the group as quickly as she could just by walking.

Both Kaede and the Dragon’s Ace called for a retreat, to Yong-Yut’s approval. Unfortunately, with the arrival of more people —and the fact that Markus didn’t really agree, holding the group hostage— it didn’t seem possible. Not with the entire group they started this outing with, anyway.

Her eyes moved over to the Burger Knight ma— no, the officer that’d taken down the drug deal there. Pressing her lips together with an air of irritation, or maybe anxiety, she gave him a short nod in response. “Yep.” She turned her head back to Markus, giving him the same action she’d just done for Chikage. “Yep.”

Her brows furrowed at the entrance of a passerby and.. Celestine? Her face softened, giving the woman a blink as sort of a hello. Her hands dragged themselves up their opposing arms.

She didn’t expect so many people she’d recognize here. She didn’t expect anyone else to show up at all.

No one offered an explanation to the curious cops and passerby. Instead, Rin had spoken up, eliciting a blank stare from the cloth wielder.

You know what? Sure.

The end of her scarf rose up behind her, vaguely facing towards Isaiah and whoever stood nearby him. It formed into an L shape, the ceramic diamonds clicking against each other. It wasn’t very discreet, but it didn’t need to be. It just needed to get the message across without getting the man targeted. Just as she began backing away from Markus and the police, the fiery bolt that she’d called a best friend made a grand entrance, bursting the ear drums of everyone around. She stepped back to cover her ears.


She never liked this side of him. It was always loud and unbearably hot.

Luckily, just this time, he gave her just what she wanted… some sort of distraction. He and Rin —Meirin, if she wanted to, too— could handle this on their own. What, it was… two or three against two against one?

Kaede, and Lyric, were more important to take care of, anyway.

The scarf pulled towards Rin, taking the body out of her arms. Once Kaede’s body was secured in their grasp, she made her way out of the crowd, and once at a reasonable distance, she started running.

They hoped KaeLyric would follow suit.

 

[Stros]

Ryoma Matsuno

CS Link

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 3: Scene 1 [Follow the Lightning]

LOCATION:

South District

PARTICIPANTS:

Giles, Noa,Tyr

FOLLOW THE LIGHTNING

"I'm sure it's cleaner than it looks."

Looking up briefly to meet Noa's annoyed gaze, the young Phoenix simply fixed her stare at Ryoma before then shifting her glinted eyes toward Tyr. Most likely sizing up each of them for a suitable punishment later on, for crimes they had just committed, Ryoma took the threatening silence in stride.

"Mostly." He added, with a shrug.

Squatting soon after, before there was time for further debate he began clamoring his way down and through the dated manhole. Sliding in feet first, Ryoma was forced to draw in his arms and shoulders as it was a somewhat tight fit for the bulky boxer. But, after a moment and some wiggling, he managed to slide on through and lower his body out of view.

Landing with a light thud below, it was evident at the very least that the waterways had all but dried up. Waiting patiently for the rest of the group to take the plunge after him, he wasn't surprised to see that Tyr was the next one to immediately fall in. Followed up by Noa who wordlessly dropped into the nimble arms of her bodyguard. Taking one final look up toward the open manhole, Ryoma hoped they would find an alternate route to return to the surface before choosing to leave that problem for later.

With little room to explore, the group wordlessly continued for a bit. Until they were eventually greeted by the sound of music and voices. Rounding a bend in the tunnel, upon spotting the somewhat surreal setting among the abandoned sewer of New Oasis, Ryoma's apprehension waned a bit at the evident signs of their previous adversaries. They had somehow managed to remain on their trail, but whoever this gang was clearly wasn't making that a difficult task. Given wherever they went, destruction always seemed to follow.

Raising an eyebrow at the mention of their "pals", Ryoma shared a silent glance between Noa and Tyr as the mysterious ring leader asked them if they were there to reek more havoc. When the man asked them who they were, Ryoma decided to answer him.

"We're Phoenixes..."

Pausing a moment to allow whatever shock or surprise that statement might garner run it's course, he continued.

"And that's what we're trying to figure out. ... So far, they're thugs from out of town."

Glancing over the man's shoulder at his friends or followers, as they nervously did as he asked and continued with their repairs. Ryoma further added.

"Who clearly lack manners. ... We had a little run in with some of them already, so they won't be back anytime soon. ... By the sounds of it... they've got our friend."

Giles( joshuadim ), Noa( Peckinou )

 

[Doctor Llamabean]

Disclaimer: no one is required to read this post, as it exceeds 2.5k words. For, at least, an understanding of what's going on, feel free to read from the marker placed within the post~

COLLAB: The Phoenix Five vs. Who the fuck is this guy?!

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 3: Scene 2 [Tactical Mayhem]

LOCATION:

Upper Central; CDPD HQ, Parking Lot

PARTICIPANTS:

Phantoms, Boltius, Ashley, Inigo, Eric, Gideon, Jericho, Bandy, Callista

TACTICAL MAYHEM

— — — Earlier… — — —​

“Wooo! They ain’t g- got to fuckin’ shit- shit up yet?” said the first Phoenix to exit the Hummer. Police unleashed immediate fire upon them. However, none of the bullets seemed to hit their mark. In fact, each projectile appeared to completely vanish when it got close. And the police were without loss of ammo, never stopping to reload.

“Are you blind?” asked the second Phoenix, who exited from the driver’s seat. “Look at the place.” Her gaze drifted to the police, a wrinkle of her nose to regard them with distaste. “Hmm… That’s annoying,” and she brought her hands up in front of her, arms fully extended, fingers splayed, palms down. The sleeves of her shirt seemed to writhe underneath as if harboring frenzied snakes, then, all at once, a dozen black serpentine cables with arrowed tips bolted out for the police.

Gunfire ceased. The uniforms scrambled to escape the oncoming cables but few succeeded as others were pierced or grazed.

From the top of the Hummer, rising through the sunroof, a boy who couldn’t have been much older than fourteen popped his head out and blinked around at the carnage. He wore a frog onesie. “Do I come out?” Despite asking, he was already doing just that, and he stood upon the Hummer’s roof without a discernible trace of concern for potential threats. “...Real messy… this place.” A frog was perched upon his shoulder. It croaked. “...Me too.” It croaked again and the boy looked toward the building where a horned officer was spotted dropping from a window. “I see.”

The officer approached slowly, blades of crystal extending from his arms. Melted clothes and raw, charred skin clung onto his bruised frame. Crystal armor covered a section of his torso, dirtied with crimson veins of blood spreading through its white crystal. His breaths were heavy, but steady. He was, as the five could see, a wreck.

“Hoh, hoooh?” Barbados took the front, dragging his sledgehammer behind him. “This one’s a brave son’bitch, ain’t ‘e?”

“Stuff it, Barbs,” snapped Boo, glaring hard skepticism at the officer’s direction. “...Looks a bit beat up, ya think?”

“Remember.” The officer lowered his pose. “You chose this.”

A collective “Huh?” erupted throughout the five.

At their confusion, the officer sprang forwards- he pivoted on his heels, sending a wild dervish of crystalline blades around him, sharp jagged daggers spiraling in a whirlwind centered on him.

He moved fast, that was sure.

Each of the Phoenixes reacted to defend themselves. Barbados; his arm came up to shield his face, crystal daggers driving deep into the bare skin of his forearm. Boo; instinctively, she dove behind Barbados. “Fuck! Dieter!?” she screamed.

As for the kid in the frog onesie, he was gone, replaced by a massive frog big enough to swallow two men whole. The daggers had bounced right off its exterior.

Dieter, the other adult male, managed only to erase the projectiles that directly threatened him. “Whoops~” Or rather, he caused them to return whence they’d come, renewed as a product of Inigo’s potential as if they had never been conjured in the first place. A quizzical expression came and went from the snow-haired officer, his realisation of Dieter's own Potential having been made apparent. A cold chill ran through Dieter’s spine, but he shook it off. There was no way that this changed anything. It was five on one.

Seranna, the other female Phoenix; she acted the quickest. She bounded high, lifted by her serpentine cables, suspended briefly in the air, away from the blades. Barbados recovered at that moment.

Dieter ran in.

“D, wait!” Boo cautioned, just as Barbados swung his sledgehammer from high, cracking the pavement, and sent forth a quaking force that fragmented the earth into a kaleidoscope of jagged splinters and geometric slabs.

Footing was near impossible to grasp- both the officer and Dieter faltered, the former having been worn down by the day's events.

From above, Seranna retracted her cables, and whipped them forth once more, each snake-like projectile flung forwards in hungering pursuit of the horned officer. The white-haired man attempted to evade, but it was too late. The spears plunged into his back, sending him staggering from the force. A satisfied smile rose from Seranna’s face, until she felt a tug on her cables. Was he–?

The officer swiped one of his blades across the ground, burying the scythe into the earth, and snapped it off his arm, his now-free hand catching onto the cables attached to his body. With a grunt, he wrapped his arm with the cables, and wrested them towards himself, yanking Seranna towards him. With his bladed arm, that Dieter had replaced for him properly, he swung at her.

She couldn’t withdraw the snatched cables, and so she could not move her arm to block the officer’s attack. The blade separated the flesh on her throat, going deeper as it half-completed its arc, gouging as momentum carried Seranna’s body the rest of the way until… Stillness. A sharp, crystal edge jutted from her nape, through silky black hair that fell over her shoulders, and glistened red beneath the warm sun.

Her eyes were locked wide with surprise, but there was no life there. Not anymore. Just a hunk of meat on a crystal stake. And the cables, they disintegrated. The officer barely reacted to her passing, and even less to the now-open holes leaking blood over his ragged body. He withdrew the blade, pushing the empty body onto the floor.

Another tremor erupted forth as Barbados swung his hammer, eyes lit with new rage, causing the already-busted concrete earth to undulate like ocean waves, whereas his rear remained unaffected. Another grunt of pain came from the officer as he fell to his knees, spilling more blood from his fresh wounds onto the floor. “I cannot…” a harsh whisper hissed out from between grit teeth. This allowed Boo to take her chance. She took a step out from behind Barbados and put her hands up—with them, framing her sight of the single officer, honing her focus on the crystal armor that protected his chest.

There, she created a weak spot as she’d done before to the 100-ft barrier. “Aim for the chest!” She had to yell to be heard over the surrounding cacophony of war. “Gotta get close first,” hissed Dieter, “fuckin’ Barbs!”

In the midst of swelling earth, as the geometric puzzle of concrete surged upward, the massive frog appeared behind the officer with an ominous, rumbling croak. It’s mouth opened slowly, followed by a rapid tongue springing out, wrapping around the officer. At long last, his face finally betrayed his emotions, his lips curling into a snarl, baring his teeth. All pretenses of being calm and collected had evaporated.

“OORRAA!” A guttural warcry erupted from his lips, as he plunged his blade into the tongue, stabbing it all the way through, pinning it to the ground, splattering ichor and blood onto his own. His eyes were ablaze with defiant determination. If it had been any way suppressed earlier, the only readable vibe that emanated from the officer now was that he was more than ready to slaughter all of them that stood here, and then some more until he was rid of his last breath. Giant frog or no, sharp pain shot through the beast, and it loosened its tongue from the officer, but found itself still jammed to the floor, with the threat of splitting the length of its tongue if it retracted it. The officer snapped his hand free from its blade, whirling around to the rest of the Phoenixes, prying himself free from the frog. Crystals forming once more, curling around his fingers, and shooting up into small, singular stakes upon both his hands.

They were wearing him down, slowly, but surely, that much was clear, but as much as the fire of the Phoenix may burn, the officer’s own matched theirs. The only way past him was over his dead body.

Despite the threat, the frog retracted its tongue anyway with a clean snap. The muscle was torn asunder, eliciting a nasty squelch as the frog executed a retreat, returning to the Hummer where it landed on the roof, rocking the vehicle. There, the frog vomited the young boy from before. He slid from its mouth, wet with the blood of its tongue, and touched feet-to-ground, hands in the pockets of his onesie.

“Dismissed,” he said to no one in particular, and the frog split in two, morphing into a duo of smaller frogs, each one the size of himself.

The Phoenixes regrouped, save for Seranna. This officer was more than he looked.

“All in,” Barbados ordered. The rest nodded. “GO!” Together, they advanced.

— — — Now… — — —​

It was an intense exchange. A near impossible undertaking on part of the horned officer, to hold his own against four unrelenting Phoenixes, and then three when Dieter mistook an opening and found himself down an arm. How exactly it happened, no one could say. It had been too fast, and when Dieter’s guts spilled from his shirtless abdomen from the coup de grâce, how it happened didn’t matter.

—Elsewhere, like-uniformed, masked individuals were beginning to fan out on the order of an unfamiliar authority, but there was time before they would reach this end of the lot. So, as it stood, Barbados and his posse were unaware of the coming reunion with their friends from the hurricane—

“Barbs, this fucker’s unreal! We should pull back!” Boo had tried. She took a crystal shard through the shoulder and was stolen swiftly to safety by one of the two frogs, taken behind the Hummer to caress her wound. The frog offered no consolation before returning to the fray.

Phoenixes and CDPD personnel were at war. One glance over the battlefield told that the Phoenixes were winning it, and forfeit wasn’t an option. Boo's suggestion fell on deaf ears.

Standby officers rushed in to assist, perhaps spurred forth by the lone officer's valiant and vain effort, attempting to restrain and impede Barbados where and when ever they could. Unfortunately, numbers were no advantage when the majority were NPs. It took but one swing from Barbados’ sledgehammer to dispose of their interruptions when he found a chance.

In the thick of it all, Barbados and the frogs still battled the horned officer, and their attacks were beginning to harmonize as the young boy observed from the Hummer. They rushed the officer together; traded in and out, covering each other where they needed it. A swing from Barbados’ hammer would be enough, if only he was more speed than brawn and could actually land a hit on the officer. The frogs, however, were all speed but lacked power, their tongues hot with acid, that each strike they managed, if only against the cold surface of crystal, sizzled. Pit against the officer’s inhuman savagery which persisted, if not further honed and refined by the oppressive opposition he faced, their battle was a deadly dance of each fighter attempting to pierce the other's defenses- the officer weaving between the frogs' attacks and the Barbados' powerful swings, as they evaded and parried his blows from his crystallised fists. Their battlefield was adorned with broken crystal weapons, each one ripped out from the officer's body as he renewed his seemingly unending vigour each time, rotating through his repertoire of instruments. Scars carved by the acid ran across his already torn physique, and yet he remained.

Boo grit her teeth, and tightened the bandage around the wound, the crimson already seeping into the cloth as she did. Barbs and the frogs were still going at it with the officer. As far as she was concerned, the man was fighting a battle for a war that he couldn't win. Was he simply doing this just for the sake of killing them all? She recalled the amber eyes, burning with deep, bottomless fury, the feral howls and beast-like grunts, and shook her head. She rounded the corner of the Hummer, peeking out to watch the ensuing battle. She half-expected to have a crystal stake shot through her head for the trouble, and exhaled a sigh of relief when none came.

Barbados was fending off each punch, each swipe of a crystal claw, masterfully. If the officer wasn't going to back down, then neither was he. She just had to offer Barbados a clear way forwards. She raised her hands, ready to grant him just that.

That was when time froze for her. The tongues lashed forwards once again, hoping to reach their target. The officer's eyes flashed with the glow of an opportunist, and he ducked under, prising out one of the crystal stakes he had broken off in the ground, and with a sweep of his arm, buried it into one tongue. He twisted around, bringing the tongue with him, and caught the other in its retreat back to its owner. The acid ate into his arm, and into the stake, but he ignored the pain, and took the momentary distraction for all it was worth. He charged in, bringing his hand over Barbados's face.

"Get off!" Barbados changed his grip on his sledgehammer, thrusting it into the officer's abdomen, the blow shaking off some of the dust and blood from the man's body. He reared the hammer back, and thrust forwards again, only to have it be caught by the officer's other hand. "Get the fuck o–mmphh!" His voice was muffled, then morphed into muted screams.

Boo realised what had happened. The officer had used his damned Potential to shape a muzzle over Barbados' nose and mouth. Like a dancer and their partner, he turned the man around, and shoved him towards the Hummer.

He stepped back, and coughed, sending out another splatter of blood across the sea of destruction at his feet. He raised his index finger with his thumb outstretched, indicating the number seven. "Seven…seven minutes," he spoke for the first time after his initial introduction. His voice was rasping, and he was struggling to keep his breath steady. "He will die…in seven minutes. Severe brain damage in less. You can still…you can still save him. Take him and go. Leave, and keep your lives." He turned towards the Hummer, towards Boo and her remaining ally. "Or do you plan…on going to hell with me?"

(Interacting w/ Inigo, NPC Phoenixes)
(Mentioned no one)
simj26 Lucem Coyote Hart @W I N T E R angel doe Roda the Red Elenion Aura ​

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Meirin Azuza

CS Link

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Dragon and the Phoenix]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Helva, Hou (inactive), Isaiah, Kanna, Maho,
Meirin, Ra (inactive), Rin, Shen, Soren (inactive), Vulken,
Yaroslav (inactive), Yong-Yut, Kaede

The Dragon and the Phoenix

It turned out catching wasn’t necessary.

Skidding to a stop, Meirin took a step back as the hoverboard slammed down to the ground with enough force to crack the earth and kick up debris. She couldn’t help but be impressed as Momo/Lyric strolled forth, her voice resounding with authority. She’d forgotten that Momo was a Phoenix. That, even if Momo’s mind occupied it, the body belonged to the Phoenix King. Rubbing her neck, she glanced at the ‘Spirit’-person who tried to escape with Momo/Lyric, shrugged, then turned to follow after the blonde figure, her body shrinking back to normal size as she did so.

Weiss had kept them too long. She could see others arriving. A police car.

Meirin rolled her eyes upon hearing Chikage’s question. “Why would we tell the cops anything? This is gang business.”

But then another asked.

The Tiger King clearly wasn’t going to let them go without an explanation.

Rin looked ready to fight. Vulken looked ready to fight. Meirin sighed. Phoenixes. She liked competitive fighting as much as the next gal, but couldn’t they read the situation?

YY ran, taking Momo’s original body. Understandable really.

She glanced at Isaiah, wondering his thoughts on the matter. If he ordered a retreat, she’d do as told. His illusions could definitely cover for them, but…

“Simmer down, Vulken. We’re just talking.”

Meirin shrugged, gaze drifting between the 3 people that asked the same question. It wasn’t a terribly deep secret they were trying to hide. Besides, the people disturbed in Central deserved an explanation for the flipped cars and whatnot. “The Dragon-Phoenix negotiation went sour so now we’re back to fighting.” As if Phoenix-Dragon skirmishes are new. “However, we have reason to believe the two Kings aren’t acting like themselves in this case, so we are trying to remove them from the battlefield before they cause more damage to themselves, each other, or their surroundings.”

Period. If the Weiss or the police didn’t accept that explanation, then tough. She readied herself to signal Isaiah and follow Yong Yut's example the moment anyone threw an attack, be they Tigers, Phoenixes, Police, Dragons, or an act of Heaven itself.

Peckinou Lucem FabulousTrash EmperorsChosen Elenion Aura Nobody Special gxxberkit Damafaud

 

[The One Eyed Bandit]

NPC Post - Stressed-Out Contestant E

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 1 [PASSERI PARK'S ULTRA PASSIONATE MELODY ONSLAUGHT]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Pascal, Gavril, Milo, Jackson

THE LAIR OF THE MIDDLER

Elizabeth bounced limply within the palm of Gav's hand. This was one of her better traits, she'd been told, her ability to adapt. Despite her instinctual quivering and tears, she was the sort of woman who always managed, or, what she was trying to get at was, she was already used to being manhandled like this.

Though the part where he'd turned into the spitting image of a Jotunn was new.

"M-maybe lay off on the pomp and circumstance?" Elizabeth sighed, and offered the painter-boy a sympathetic glance. She hadn't known Gavril for long, but she'd already pinned him as the willful type, so she had a feeling it wasn't rare for him to treat people in this manner. What she wouldn't have expected, on the other hand, was that he was nice. At least, he was for now. In her experience, this sort of person tended to throw people away just as quickly as they scooped them up, and in his case that would've been literal, but here she was, still in his clutches. It was a bit unfortunate that was literal too, though.

"Gavril... We can get by on our own, right...?" Her voice was tired, but not dispassionate. There was a part of her that wanted to be able to look back on this day with pride and a sense of accomplishment that she'd done her best. Somehow, mugging a halfway twink for a house key did not feel like it would be doing her best.

"Honestly, if we use our Potentials, I'm pretty sure we can clear this part pretty fast. A-at least it's more straightforward than that stupid hotel from hell." Brute force. Athletics. That was what she felt like this guy specialized in, and that was what this part of the show was about. "S-so let's just-"

Creak. Above, within one of the false ceilings, something twisted. A deep, metallic churning echoed throughout the hall, and the obnoxious musical track that had filled it cut out. It went on for a few moments, a deep, unbearable sound of twisting metal spreading through the hall, and then it stopped.

"W-what was tha-" Elizabeth started, but was interrupted again. It'd be hidden before, obscured by the constant bombardment of the senses that the show had entailed, but Elizabeth's voice was no longer the only thing trembling. A tremor ran through the hall, and some of the more loosely secured structures swung dangerously.

"I-i-i-i-is that supposed to be happening?" Whatever semblance of peace Elizabeth had found in the companionship of her new friend was gone, and a deeper panic than she'd felt even within Flo's presence had started to set in.

"Unfortunately not." Miles's voice entered the hall, though this time it was lacking its usual sense of showy bravado. "Sorry to disappoint, kids, but the show's cancelled." Another tremor ran through the hall. Wherever he was, Miles had triggered something, and each of the hall's doors had swung wide. He might have been a pain in the ass, but he wasn't about to keep everybody where while the earth was throwing a temper tantrum. It'd be terrible for PR.

"You'll notice some of the lights have turned red. Please calmly follow them to find your nearest e-" It was a rare act of altruism for Miles to offer such blatant directions, but unfortunately it was not one he'd see through to the end. Another tremor, heavier and more violent than the last, ran through the hall, and the delicate machinery that operated the various mechanisms that littered it could not hold up. There was a deafening series of snaps, and then from above them, a section of the Hotel's hall fell loose, and the floor beneath their feet jolted down, only settling again as a diagonal ramp.

The hall above plummeted through the air. People started to scream. Elizabeth was one of them.

Spoiler: Tags

Interacted With:@The Regal Rper Elenion Aura
General:@Anne Boolean BriiAngelic

 

[Roda the Red]

CAMILA GASPARI

CS Link

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Heist]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Camila, Ryutaro, Maria, Jennifer, Sylvie, Samira

THE HEIST

As Camila attempted to continue disarming the soldiers, a powerful stinging pain sprung up on her thigh, her eyes went wide and and her teeth gritted as she let out a light muffled scream, fortunately it didn't quite feel like the bullet had truly dug into her flesh, she was quite lucky just now. The loud call of the clackson caught the veteran's attention, realizing that it was the call so they could finally take their leave. Camila sprinted her way back, using the sound of the van as a guide through the thick gas, which at this point had Camila in involuntary tears. She hopped on aboard the vehicle, most likely being the last, groaning from the irritation as she finally took a seat, up to this point she hadn't been able to feel the rumbling due to her distracting discomfort.

"Just go already!"

A smile formed on her face as their transport effortlessly abandoned the loading bay, they had done it, despite the uncomfortable state of pain she was in, she couldn't help but let out a little triumphant laugh, but it did not last long, as the rumbles increased in strength, pulling her out of her work-induced trance.

"What the- Is this a fucking earthquake!?"

It was the first time Camila had experienced one, Amestria was not a country known for having earthquakes, last one probably having happened several decades ago. The veteran grabbed onto whatever handle or grippable surface she could get her hands on. Her nerves only got worse as the streets started to show a remarkable amount of collateral damage.

"Maria I'll haunt your fucking ass if you don't get us out of here alive!"

joshuadim @Beann @Uasal Shoya WhiskeyMarten

 

[WhiskeyMarten]

YUKITO & ZACHARIAH

CS Link

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 3: Scene 3 [Whole World Blind]

LOCATION:

Vantaggio Tower/Lucky Rabbit Casino - 1st Floor, West District

PARTICIPANTS:

Charlie, Hector, Hide, Raquel, Yukito, Zachariah
Alicia, Dante

WHOLE WORLD BLIND

Yukito crawled forward, leaving a trail of frost in his wake. Zach’s voice in his ear was all he had to guide him, with his sponsor and the others presumably occupied with their tasks now. The vent rattled as he went, but his own movement was almost silent as he made his way up, with only some quiet grumbling to be heard as his hands made contact with thick layers of dust that had long been trapped in the small space.

The instructions were fairly straightforward, soon being led upwards where the muffled sounds of human activity could soon be heard. From what he could tell from the length of his journey, he was only at ground level now, so further he climbed until the sounds became a lot louder. Not only the sounds of people, who were much more excited up here but the sounds of the casino in general, all the machines and music.

“Alright, I think I’m in position, Hawk.”

A few rays of light shone into the dark tunnel, prompting Yukito to station himself in front of it. As expected, another grate gave him a view of the floor. It wasn’t a great view by any means, but good enough for him to catch a glimpse of three men — One with blue hair, another with pink, and a brunette. They stood, walking away from the bar they had been sitting at. He recognized two of them.

“Should I follow them around?”

“Go for it! Do you recognize any of them?”

“Looks like the Queen, and Temperer, but I can’t tell who they’re with.”

As the trio left Yukito’s vision, he crawled further forward, deeper into the ventilation system, hoping to catch where they were headed.

“Can you see where they’re going?”

“Let’s see…not the way the target’s going, that’s for sure!” Zach’s laughter could be heard through the earpiece. “Take the next left to get to the hall-vent just outside the Tea room.”

“Got it.” Yukito continued to travel, taking glimpses into the casino at every opportunity. It seemed the atmosphere was changing somewhat. Though most customers and staff were behaving as normal, a few people looked bewildered as security guards stormed through the floor, disappearing through a set of doors.

“Don’t tell me they got caught already?” Even if someone did, it wasn’t going to stop Yukito from doing what he had been told to do, as long as he could still do his part. Without stopping to contemplate what may have happened, he pressed forward towards the tearoom.

“Haha, yeah they did. Gourmet just couldn’t help herself~ But don’t worry about it. Worse comes to worst, I’ve got the third floor window in my line of sight. It’s more important for you to know that Nico, the Tiger that Temperer and Queen Pharaoh are with, possesses the potential to raise and animate the dead. So freeze, but don’t needlessly kill if you can help it.”

“I’m sure the Queen won’t give him the chance.” Yukito sighed upon learning what his sponsor-sibling had done, hoping it wouldn’t detract from the mission. He wasn’t too worried about Nico, after all, it would be hard to reanimate anyone if they were turned into ice statues.

He could hear fighting before he could see it as Charlie began the attack and quickened his pace until he was knelt before an opening. “Thank you for the directions, I’ll talk to you later.” As he spoke, ice began to form over his body, giving him a bulkier, armoured appearance, and his wings and tail disappeared. Before he outgrew the vent, he busted a grate open with a swift kick, jumping out as his transformation to his Troll form completed.

As Yukito descended to the ground, a club of ice formed in his hand, and without wasting any time, as he knew his job, he took his position next to Charlie, weapon raised.

 

[joshuadim]

GILES

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 3: Scene 1 [Follow the Lightning]

LOCATION:

South District

PARTICIPANTS:

Hitoshi, Noa, Ryoma

FOLLOW THE LIGHTNING

The white-peaked man stared at Ryoma as he explained, but his reaction came almost delayed once the Phoenix finished explaining the situation as if he wasn't entirely there in the first place. It took a moment for him to quickly recollect himself as he shivered and wiggled his head slightly. It was clear the man was high. On what, though, it was hard to say. "Yeah they weren't speaking the *lingua franca* of this place, you get?" he then said, trying to make himself seem smarter than he actually was by using a fancy word. "Oranjese are always assholes from my experience. Especially back home."

He then twisted one of the hairy peaks on his head as he wondered to this 'friend', before his eyes lit up like fireworks. "Friend... friend... frizzy hair, red suit that looks like it wasn't washed, high out of his mind?" he then asked, and when he received a nod of the affirmative he then let out a laugh. His knees buckled slightly as he flung his arms into the air out of glee. "Haha! I fuckin' knew he wasn't just some bum! Hoo man, he *knows* how to party that's for sure."

He then extended a hand towards Ryoma and shook his hand: "Name's Giles. Kinda like Tiles, like the ones you'd see on a roof, but not really here. Everything's concrete and shit." the man introduced himself before putting his hands to his hips. "Yeah your pal was here last night... how'd he manage to piss off the Oranjese Mafia like that?" he then asked to the two Phoenixes.

Interacting: Ryoma ( Stros ), Noa ( Peckinou )

 

[WhiskeyMarten]

LUCKY RABBIT CASINO

CS Link

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 3: Scene 3 [Whole World Blind]

LOCATION:

Vantaggio Tower/Lucky Rabbit Casino, West District

PARTICIPANTS:

Charlie, Hector, Hide, Raquel, Yukito, Zachariah
Alicia, Dante

WHOLE WORLD BLIND

Even after the incident on the 3rd floor, the casino itself was still full of people. Some hated the disturbance and tried to resume their activities, some that were more curious were trying to find out why they couldn’t go to the bullet-ridden floor, others had sensed trouble, or fled it, and were making their leave through the crowded entrance. The staff at the door struggled to manage the situation, receiving orders not to let anyone else in, and after many had already passed through the doors, they stopped letting people out too. For the first time in a while, as the casino operated 24/7, operations paused.

The keener-eyed would’ve noticed the trembling of glasses, cards, and chips on tables and countertops, and the shaking of the chandeliers above their heads. Then, the trembling grew, until the rumbling of an earthquake could be felt underneath people’s feet. Many clambered for something to hold onto, waitresses dropped trays, and some cried for help as the tremor reached them.

Anything loose fared poorly, glasses fell from their shelves at the several bars, and bottles of liquor didn’t last either. The bartenders took cover under the counter, joined by some who feared for their safety out in the open, cowering from the broken glass that continued to fall in a ceaseless rain. All casino games were quickly abandoned, and patrons were led to take cover wherever they could. Security forces were split, some prioritizing the safety of the customers, others pressing forward to floor 3 where they had been called to.

In an instant, the dimmed windows across the casino shattered, exposing all to the sunlight above — for many, their first taste of it in a while. People continued to scream, moreso after some lighting broke free, falling onto those below. If it weren’t for the broken windows, many would’ve been shrouded in total darkness as the lights flickered on and off, though it did leave areas away from the windows a lot dimmer — including the tearoom.

Despite all this, the ground and walls remained stable so far, with the building being well fortified and away from the epicentre, though that fact provided little comfort to those who continued to experience the ceaseless shaking, not knowing whether they would walk out of the casino when it was all over. One area that suffered the most within the casino was the elevators. One was already under pressure, with a dented door and fighting within, and now it began to rock and shake, and an unpleasant groaning of metal could be heard as it continued to unsteadily climb.

The situation wasn’t good outside the casino either. Cars came to a halt and pedestrians ran for cover as they too experienced the earthquake, though thankfully they were away from the worst of the tremors as well.

Across the road from the Lucky Rabbit Casino was the Vantaggio Tower, being used as a sniping point for the Hawk-eyed Phoenix. It too began to shake under the earthquake. Though there wasn’t much there to be thrown around like there was at the casino, larger problems became evident. The building had sat dormant and incomplete for many years, falling into disrepair as nobody took responsibility, and as a result, lacked the structural integrity the grand casino had. There wasn’t much inside to show the damage, but from Zachariah’s now unstable perch, he would notice cracks begin to form in the concrete below him. Whether it would hold up remained to be seen, but the situation wasn’t good.

 

[Coyote Hart]

SEBASTIAN SE

CS Link

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Dragon and the Phoenix]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Literally half of New Oasis

Dragons and Phoenixes and Hunks, Oh My!

"A detour and a pit stop? Sound swell," Sebastian said. Of course, he knew that it wouldn't be a mere pitstop. Something big was happening, and there was no way in hell that the cops would miss out on it. As Chikage made his static-filled calls, Sebastian stuck his fingers into his ears to block out the sound that threatened to make his eardrums bleed. He shrugged when the police captain spared him a look.

Honestly, Sebastian should've called someone to tell the prosecution team that he wouldn't be arriving back anytime soon, but with the communication to the precinct blocked off, what was he to do? Ask them to send a messenger pigeon? What was this, the 18th century?

Chikage's dramatic method of parking the jeep caused Sebastian to get whiplashed toward the driver's seat, but Sebastian couldn't allow that to get in his way. Chikage was already out of the vehicle by the time Sebastian's head swung back, and so he had to catch up double-time (by clumsily clamoring over the central console of Chikage's Jeep and tumbling semi-gracefully out of the driver's window to land on his feet).

The way that Chikage confronted the mass of gangsters was so... cool. The casual mockery of the individuals that he recognized along with the coolheaded question asking what event was going on... the only way that Sebastian could think of even getting close to matching that energy was to recite laws like a nerd. With all the elements flying around though, it was going to be a dangerous ploy.

"City of New Oasis Ordinance δ-2016-007," Sebastian recited, his stance calm and tall as he took in the chaotic scene, "It is illegal to engage in any behavior that causes a public disturbance, including but not limited to blocking roads, making excessive noise, or, least of all unfortunately, encouraging fighting."

A wayward smirk glinted on the prosecutor's face as he surveyed the people gathered. Fire blazed in one corner, Markus's ice threatened to turn everyone into icicles in another. The promises of violence rounded about every corner. Some people fled the scene, others readied for the fight. Markus and Lyric, two Kings, were in the mix, along with Meirin who Sebastian knew was in the Dragons, and so it was fair to assume that perhaps there were at least three gangs, if not all four, all congregated in this one place. And even if it was all four gangs evenly divided in this mess, it still meant Sebastian and Chikage were severely outnumbered.

"Now, would anyone care to answer the Captain's question and tell me why there is less traffic here than during road work?" Sebastian asked. As he did so, a layer of gray, hexagonal armor-like sporopollenin spread across his torso, covering any unexposed skin. A length of hyphae stretched out from his right wrist, which he tangled into the shape of a whip. "Or would you rather we just throw the lot of you into the slammer?"

Despite the danger of the scenario, Sebastian was weirdly riled up. His heart pounded with adrenaline, and Sebastian couldn't tell if it was because he was aching for the fight or stressed by the situation. Killing gangsters was so much more fun than innocent civilians; they had a sense to actually fight back and pose a fun challenge. All he needed to do is wait until Chikage told him to sic them like a dog.

"Cause if you want, I can make you beg to be arrested," Sebastian finally said, cracking his whip against the pavement as the bloodlust threatened to show in his eyes. He was one messed up mushroom, and he was ready for blood.

Doctor Llamabean Nobody Special Elenion Aura QuirkyAngel Sei Shonagon WhiskeyMarten angel doe Lucem EmperorsChosen gxxberkit FabulousTrash Peckinou (idk I give up with the tags)

 

[Sei Shonagon]

Kaede Shimokōbe

CS Link

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Dragon and the Phoenix]

LOCATION:

Eastern Edge of Upper Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

alabama family reunion

The dragon and the Phoenix

Energy thrummed through her veins, or was it adrenaline, and her eyes darted. There were too many people to keep track of and too many potential variables that could go wrong. Silhouettes jumbled and the street suddenly felt crowded for being an open space; more akin to a town square now with the assemblage of quirky figures that begged to be noticed.

A few particular ones stood out to the impostor King, the man with the black raven's nest for hair was amidst them. Sour. Her mouth tasted sour. Tongue moved to press against cheek, she sucked the feeling out of it- until her breath ran out and gaze dulled.

Dull in comparison to the golden strands that weaved to life behind retinas. A breeze sifted through the imaginary warm wheat and lulled her focus back to reality where the figures had rooted into a standstill. His red hair zipped into view on the cue of her next inhale.

You came.

Well, she had called after all.

There was so much to be said, so much to catch up on and yet, her words died off before they could ever reach his familiar back. Burned by the heat that waved out from his summoned flames and equally red hair that fluttered in tangible embers. Hardened facial muscles thawed until only a frown remained.

She wondered if he had seen the text, the probable answer was yes since he had actually appeared as requested.

Then she wondered what his response had been, if any.

There was, like always it seemed, simply no time to find out. The eerie silence that accompanied the crackling blazes sparked shivers running up her spine. "Don't overdo it...Orangutan." Her shoulder turned away as the prelude of her upcoming actions "We need you to come back to us".

The Tiger King had both the police and the new arrivals to fend off, now was the perfect time to slip away. Sommy mirrored her thoughts into actions and grabbed her unconscious body from the shoulder of the oni. "Get away when you think you can." KaeLyric eyed their dragon companions, the ones that had been more helpful than expected.

She would have to thank them later. For both the help and the offer to catch her earlier. KaeLyric snorted invertedly. It was almost a little cute how the giantess had tried to reassure her. The King drained her body of her weight and jumped.

i give up on mentions

tldr: angsty moments of kaede remembering her dead friend and then some pining and then an attempt to yeet.

 

[simj26]

Dagger

CS Link

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 3 [Silence for the Damned]

LOCATION:

Dilapidated Clinic, North District

PARTICIPANTS:

Jack, Dagger, Roland, Charmy, Guinevere

Silence for the Damned

The violence stopped as suddenly as it had started. She felt Akela droop in enthusiasm, slowing her pace to a trot outside of the building. She would have to give the girl a treat later for her hard work, even if it hadn’t amounted to anything. Dagger wrenched her knife free of one of the dead…undead, and pushed the body over to one side. At the sign of safety, Alpha and Gunnolf returned to her side, circling her as a comforting gesture, before sitting themselves down on either side. Returning her weapons to their homes, she brushed both of their heads.

“Next time, you’ll be doing the retrieval, alright, Gunnolf?” she said in hushed tones to the bigger wolf. He nodded in understanding, and she responded with a pat and a rub of his head.

She didn’t quite care what the lady stranger was saying. He, she, it, whatever. This wasn’t related to her at all. All she had come to do was to make sure the rumours were true. “Hold up,” she ordered the man who held thrall over the undead.

“You.” She moved towards him, a hand catching him on the shoulder. Akela trotted in, her face looking like she had been thrown into a river and fished out. Gunnolf licked her face in consolation as she approached her family. Dagger kept her focus on the man. “Were you a King of the Tigers?” She just needed the confirmation. After that, she could leave and relay the information to Weiss. This wasn’t her dance to begin with.

Spoiler: tags

The One Eyed Bandit BluEndings Elenion Aura @Chaos Gallant

 

[WhiskeyMarten]

HIDE AND RAQUEL VS DERYN AND LADY SONNEN

CS Link

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 3: Scene 3 [Whole World Blind]

LOCATION:

Lucky Rabbit Casino - 7th Floor, West District

PARTICIPANTS:

Charlie, Hector, Hide, Raquel, Yukito, Zachariah
Alicia, Dante

WHOLE WORLD BLIND

Hide gasped as the winged lady crashed into the elevator, the shaking making his footing unsteady. His hands grabbed for any kind of purchase he could find on the walls. Everything was going wrong today! He backed himself further into the wall, getting out of the way of the lady’s attack on Raquel.

His gaze unknowingly drifted to the woman on the floor, eyes unintentionally latching. Hide’s eyes widened, a pained inhale leaving him as he felt like his body was baking in an overly hot sauna. Fuck! Who the fuck was she- Superman?! He roared, a hand going to his neck as he panted. With a snarl and a clenched smile, he lunged for her, aiming to snap her head back.

While Deryn went after Raquel, Lady Sonnen raised her arms up as Hide lunged. She didn’t have anywhere to go to dodge his attack, and it would quickly become apparent that she was no fighter. She squealed as Hide knocked her back against the wall, hitting it with a loud thud before falling. On instinct, she closed her eyes on contact, giving some relief from the burning.

The elevator continued to sway, and the lights flickered on and off. In a moment of darkness, a glow emerged from Lady Sonnen’s eyes as they opened once more, but rather than a forceful, constant stare, her movement was more erratic as she tried to kick and punch Hide, her rays resembling more of a rave in the dark.

---

“Hey! Watch the face!” Raquel yelped as she moved aside from one of the talons. She attempted to deflect the other one with her wrist, though it still managed to cut her skin. Despite being slowly pushed back, Raquel had a smile on her face. “That guy was your hubby, right?” Raquel mentioned offhandedly.

“You have good taste in men, because he tasted good.” With a taunt, Raquel dropped down to the ground and dodged the next hit. Using her arms to support her, the cannibal thrusted her heels up right at Deryn. Blades of metal jutted out of the heels and swiped at the avian woman’s arms.

“That’s none of your business, you scum.”

Deryn continued to swipe at Raquel, though only hitting one attack. Even that one successful swipe at her wrists was enough to put a confident smirk on the bird woman’s face, though it quickly dropped to a face of concentration as she focused on keeping up the momentum.

“I don’t know what your goal is…” she felt a sharp pain as Raquel’s heel slashed her forearm, letting out a pained hiss, “but he was a good man. He didn’t deserve to die.” As she spoke, her voice went from silky smooth, to more gravelly, as her facial structure began to morph. Her jaw creaked and crackled as it formed into a sharp beak, lined with razor teeth.

“But you do.”

Opening her maw, she went for Raquel’s leg, aiming to bite down on it to disable the cannibal.

---

Hide panted, his body nearly toppling over by the wobbling of the elevator. What in the hell was going on?! Please don’t tell him this stupid metal box was about to collapse… He grunted at Lady Sonnen’s hits, raising his arms to defend himself. A low growl left him, grabbing a hold of the glowing woman’s biceps, then lunging his head forward for a headbutt.

The lights flickered a few times again, and Lady Sonnen continued to wildly strike Hide, though her attacks did little against his defence. The burning rays continued but began to lessen in intensity as forming tears took some of their energy away.

“Help me! Help!” Near hysterics, the once brave lady that rushed in to try and save Pierre was being reduced to a blubbering mess as she pleaded against the Phoenix. Without putting forth much effort, she let Hide grab her, and had no response to the headbutt. Her body went limp as she tucked her head into her body, stunned and trying to comfort herself against the rush of pain in her head.

Hide groaned in pain, a hand coming up to hold his head. He looked down at the huddled form beneath him, a clenched frown on his face. Maybe it was best to get rid of her now, in case she made any more problems for him in the future. He took his crowbar from his waistband, lifting it up in preparation for the hit, but he paused. Was it really worth it?

“Please.” The stunned woman, now with her hands free, placed them up in the air and leaned back, eyes closed and rays shielded. She understood now the mistake she had made trying to be a hero. Tears continued to fall.

“Please don’t.”

---

In one quick movement, Raquel had her legs around Deryn’s neck. “Really now? In that case, indulge me!” Using her upper body, she thrusted herself up and used both of her hands to grab Deryn’s beak. “Oooh. Firm and nice. I’ve recently watched dog mukbangs, you know?” With her super strength, it made it easy for her to shut the woman up.

“Do you know what they do with duck beaks?” Her grip tightening by the second. She leaned forward at Deryn. “They crush them with their bite.” Opening her mouth wide, her head lunged down Deryn’s head.

Deryn growled as she tried to force her beak open, but her opponent’s strength was evident, even to an HP like herself. Her anger rose as she spoke more and more, in disbelief at what was coming out of the sadist’s mouth. As her bite drew near, Deryn used her body weight to try and flip Raquel off-balance, hopefully loosening the grip. As she did that, she drove her talon claws towards Raquel’s eyes.

---

Hide sighed. Normally he would have no problem with bloodshed, but this lady was just pathetic. He shrugged his shoulders, pulling a dagger that was previously hooked on his pocket. He dove towards her neck, aiming for a quick death. Maybe she’d be reunited with her dear Pierre if she was lucky.

Lady Sonnen sat there, waiting for Hide’s move. As the two women tussled near them, the elevator shook again, making a creaking noise as its movement stuttered. That prompted the Lady to open her eyes, face to face with the approaching blade. Her glowing eyes seared into Hide one last time before the dagger made contact. Immediately she looked down, seeing the blood that already dripped onto her elegant dress. She placed her hands on the wound as it bled profusely, only prolonging the inevitable as she trembled and cried.

---

Red.

That is all what Raquel saw. Yet the body didn’t go limp, nor did it fall. Deryn’s talons were stuck to where Raquel’s eyes should have been, and could have been seen poking out through the other side of the cannibal’s head. Though it wouldn’t be accurate to say that Raquel was conscious at all. She was dead. Her corpse, however, lived on.

“GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” It suddenly screeched out. No longer containing her rationality, the corpse only went on through sheer instinct. The legs around Deryn’s neck only continued to tighten and hands somehow even applied even more force than before. The flesh began to regrow around Deryn’s talons, causing them to grow stuck within Raquel’s head.

It should’ve been over. Deryn could feel her talons, they were in the place they were supposed to be, and yet the grip didn’t cease, and she began to feel pain in her neck. She knew she had made progress though, and it filled her with renewed strength as she began to thrash around. Her feet felt the metal ground beneath them and her knees bent. Then, in a move she’d practised hundreds of times, she extended her legs and was propelled upwards with great force, freeing her head, but not the talons lodged in Raquel’s. Weighed down, she couldn’t take full flight, but it was enough to launch her to the elevator roof before falling back to her feet.

Unfortunately, that didn’t make the elevator happy, and with the sudden force placed upon its floor and roof, it groaned to a halt. It seemed for a moment that it was broken. Beyond the sounds of battle, people could be heard, alongside the rumbling of the casino floor, but the elevator was silent.

The lights flickered once more.

A beep sounded.

The door slowly opened, stalling a few times.

Deryn raised her talon hands up, lifting Raquel with her. She could feel the sharp pain in her arm, seeing fresh blood spilt from the cannibal's ravenous teeth, and she clenched her fists.

“Die!”

She cawed at the cannibal, taking a glimpse at her partner. She saw the knife, and she saw the woman bleeding out below him. With a roar, she swung Raquel around with great force, hitting Hide in the process. Immediately, she could feel a relief of pressure, seeing her bloodied talons once again. Through the gap away from the death trap of an elevator, she ran, though she wasn’t fleeing the fight.

On a wall beyond the doors were two indicators of where they had ended up. A large 7, and text below stating “Leporid Stage”. It seemed somebody had called for the elevator when the chaos erupted. Outside the elevator were groups of people. Some customers, some staff, and many in tight, elegant clothes — dancers. Most didn’t pay much attention, as the earthquake was still as potent here, with the focus being on safety, but some looked up, eyes widening seeing the blood and gore. A few members of staff immediately rushed over but halted in their places as Deryn spoke.

“Stop! Get everyone to safety. They’re causing all this.”

With an air of authority about the woman that was regaining her breath now, clutching her thrice wounded arm, they did what she asked. Deryn then stared down the duo.

“You’re not getting away.”

She took a step back into a fighting stance as the crowd scattered. A pair of large doors behind her continuously slammed open and shut from the tremor, an entry to the Leporid Stage, and around them were fallen chairs, food and drink, and the rope fence that people once queued in to enter the stage. They had more space here, but the battle wasn’t over, and they were still two floors below their destination.

 

[Shoya]

Maria Hojo

CS Link

SCENE:

The Heist

LOCATION:

Central

PARTICIPANTS:

Camila, Jennifer, Maria, Ryutaro, Samira, Sylvie

The Heist

Spoiler: Radio Music that's blasting

Once the last person was in, she steps on the metal. Feeling the earth shake, she grits her teeth. She had driven in earthquakes before, but back then she would be driving special cars meant to handle anything, not clunky vans containing what she could only assume was a shot person in the back. With the debri beginning to fall, she expands her shadow over the outside of the car. With people in the car, she cant dip the entire car in the shadow, so for now the best she can do is use her shadow as a funnel. Any rocks that land on the roof of the car would flow through her shadow and go out the area on the side of the car. The only issue was debri a little ahead than that. Since she couldn't cover the windshield with a shadow, she would have to just dodge those instead. She turns the music to very loud, allowing her to focus on the path she was taking. By then, she had the map telling her where to get to, so it was full race mode from there. "Grab on to something! the cars going to be swinging a lot!" she says, as she recalls the most interesting part about driving in an earthquake. With the ground shaking, it was really easy to lose traction on tires, which would normally result in people getting into accidents as they slide out. But not here. Maria knew how to keep the car under control even in slides, as she had to use it to her advantage as she did wild swings to dodge specific debri. Eventually, she makes it to the tunnel Cal had led her to, saying "We're here!" in a somewhat excited tone. This was the most intense driving she had done in a while, and while she wished it had been in literally any other car, she was glad it had been her driving that got them out. Still, she keeps the speed up and maintains her shadow over the outside of the car.

 

[angel doe]

amari

CS Link

SCENE:

dragons arc 3: scene 1 [securing the future]

LOCATION:

east district, tech expo

PARTICIPANTS:

sophia, jesper, kasumi, “jane”, amari

securing the future

amari remained silent as she watched the arrest, glaring at ariadne with her arms crossed over her chest. her brow raised curiously, however, when the other woman threw some red-haired phoenix named carrion to the wolves; it made amari laugh, seeing how quickly ariadne turned on who she had been working with. she covered her mouth with one hand, turning her head to the side as she stifled the laughter as best she could, “fuckin' pathetic."

amari already had a feeling who carrion might be, the recent memories of "jane" popping into her head, and her facial expression became murderous, a growl rumbling at the back of her throat, “i shoulda never left that red-haired cun-" just as she was about to make a beeline back to where they had left the traitorous bitch, guardian's voice made her freeze.

“the drones aren't responding..."

“what? the fuck ya mean the drones ain't respondin'?" amari turned to look back at him, letting out an irritated groan when it was confirmed that the drones were in fact out of guardians' control, taking a step back as they shot the ground in front of them, a voice ringing out moments later.

“you are under arrest! do not resist... or you will be killed."

amari's patience was basically nonexistent, to begin with, and this was what pushed them over the edge. what were once human arms and hands, now took the shape of impossibly large wolf paws, dagger-like claws flexing as they lunged at the drones, “whoever ya are, yer a wastin' my FUCKING TIME."

they grabbed the nearest drone and smashed it into the ground, the others quickly following suit as they grabbed two at once and crushed them together; the fourth drone they snatched out of the air and demolished in one oversized paw, one eye twitching as they scanned the area.

“who fuckin' did that, huh? ya too scared to come out and face me? fucking pansy." amari yelled, shoving panicked civilians out of the way as she looked around for who could have possibly been the cause of this.

AriAriAbabwa azenva FabulousTrash

 

[Caffeine_Obsessed]

Matsuda Russo

CS Link

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 3: Scene 4 [Puzzling Directions]

LOCATION:

West District, Library

PARTICIPANTS:

Kiwi, Matsuda, Minato

PUZZLING DIRECTIONS

"Shit-" Matsuda fumbled with his phone, rushing to type down the titles Minato was spewing out. Once finished, he glanced over the order once again to make sure he copied them right. He hummed in thought, a hand coming up to scratch his head in confusion. What could these possibly mean? They just seemed like a bunch of random titles... Why had the dog pointed them out?

His lips thinned, eyes burning a hole through his phone. Maybe... It made out a story? The Greek god Apollo had an empire... that did crime? No.. Maybe the god Apollo's love life? No that didn't make sense either. He was sure a lot of gods and goddesses had.. interesting love stories to say the least, but he was sure that couldn't help them right now. He squinted harder.

With wavering confidence he spoke aloud, "Hey uh... Minatos? Min-clones? Maybe... try and get rid of a few of them? Some of them seem kinda... extra, y'know?" He laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. In all honesty, he was just throwing out suggestions. But it was true that some of them seemed to have no purpose. He sighed, he really should have gotten more sleep last night.

Spoiler: Tags

gxxberkit Elenion Aura

 

[Lucem]

Fade (Isaiah Spade)

CS Link

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Dragon and the Phoenix]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Isaiah, Celeste, Chikage, Helva, Jozef, Kaede, Kanna, Markus, Meirin, Nikolai, Rin, Sebastian, Shen, Toru, Tri, Vulken, Yong-Yut

THE DRAGON AND THE PHOENIX

With each passing second, more ingredients were added to the melting pot of chaos. One by one, people approached the growing circle, demanding answers and submission. The most troublesome individual was the chief of the CDPD, a powerful man who could be considered a King in his own right. There was certainly no shortage of those today.

In one location, there were three of the four Kings, as well as Chikage. All the big players in the city were drawn to this place, adding to the torrential tension that threatened to consume everyone in attendance. After hearing one of the newcomers mention their "boss", Isaiah had a feeling it would only become worse.

He didn't recognize the blond man, but with every other major leader already here, he could only picture the King of the Sable Serpents making his way over. Of course, an unknown party was entirely possible, but with the current trend, he had his doubts. It was probably best to leave before he and the others were forced to find out.

Thankfully, he and the Phoenixes were of the same mind. Shortly after the human inferno exploded onto the scene, Yong-Yut took the opportunity to make a hasty retreat, using their scarf to point at the possessed Lyric before rushing off with Momo's unconscious body. Believing the sudden movement would be what kicked off the clash everyone had been anticipating, Isaiah went to work.

With the direction of his gaze concealed by his glasses, he focused on the ground. In an instant, a massive wall emerged from the earth, its appearance intentionally timed with the tremors below everyone's feet. It wouldn't be able to stop any of the enemies from attacking or marching forward, but it would prevent them from targeting the fleeing Phoenixes.

Once the barrier was set up, he quickly shot Lyric a look. He squinted as he watched her leap into the distance, and after a moment, she disappeared from view, having become imperceptible. At the same time, a whisper would have reached her ears. "You're invisible right now. Try to stay safe." She and Yong-Yut were split up, but as long as she was safe, there'd be time to regroup later.

As soon as his temporary allies were taken care of, he called out to Meirin with the quiet voice only she could hear. "Let's go." This wasn't their fight. The goal was always to prevent a battle, not join one. If the Tigers, police, and presumed Serpents chose to stick around, their conflict would provide good cover for an escape.

Both Vulken and Rin seemed intent on fighting, but if that was their choice, he wouldn't force them to leave. However, before parting, he'd make sure they didn't fall for the illusion in front of them. Carried by his Potential, his voice crept up behind the pair, passing information to them in a hushed tone. "The wall is fake."

Having said all there was to say, he rushed to follow after Yong-Yut, motioning for Meirin to follow. As soon as he took his first steps, he created a second piece of false scenery behind them. It was a recreation of the same street they ran along, and they would only be visible to those who crossed the boundary. While it would have been preferable to simply conceal everyone like he had with Lyric, trying to maintain something like that while moving was a lot more difficult.

Spoiler: Tags

angel doe Caffeine_Obsessed Coyote Hart Damafaud Doctor Llamabean Elenion Aura EmperorsChosen FabulousTrash WhiskeyMarten gxxberkit Kneeto Nobody Special Peckinou QuirkyAngel Sei Shonagon

 

[Sei Shonagon]

Collab post- Kisara, Pey, August, Jul, Raph

CS Link

SCENE:

Serpents Arc 3: Scene 1 [Thicker Than Water]

LOCATION:

Mysterious Black Site (hall 1), North District

PARTICIPANTS:

August, Peyton, Kisara, Raphael, Julian

Serpents Arc 3: Scene 1 [Thicker Than Water]

At the usage of his name—an almost mischievous purr let slip from between pale lips—August looked askance at Julien, following alongside him, matching his pace, but he said nothing. And, eventually, he fell back a step.

Meanwhile, Peyton scrambled to catch up with the group. He wasn’t sure what to make of both Julian and August’s words. On one hand, he was happy to hear that Raph talked about him, on the other hand… what sort of impression did the foul-mouthed hemomancer impress upon the wispy bug man?

And with August, when he pulled his jacket collar over his face, he covered up his expression. No matter how much Peyton attempted to crane his head to see the snow-haired Serpent, even if he tried to crane his head to look at it. For all he knew, August was angry at him. And so that was the assumption that Peyton made.

"What? You're not going to say anything?" Peyton pouted as he rushed to catch up to be astride with August, "Are you angry at me, August? Was it something that I said?"

“N-... No, mate…” August shook his head. “...Theh’s just somethin’ about long… dark corridors ‘at really gets me goin’.” His eyebrows completed a lazy rise and fall as he looked at Peyton, peeking over his jacket collar, and away again. “Had tuh get movin’, else we’d risk missin’ all tha fun.” He wanted to go home. “Maybe ah’ll almost die again. ‘At’d be great.”

Peyton didn't think he said anything particularly weird. Crushes happened all the time, especially during high school. But they also lasted a finite amount of time, so it wasn't as if Peyton's exclamation of having a crush on August was the same as a love confession.

Julian was, truth be told, less than certain about their current destination and whether it would yield the results that the group wished for. It had been a while since the last time he had seen Raph and much less heard about him. The guards were tightlipped and his reputation preceded him to the point that the fellow prisoners didn’t dare nurse the name on their lips.

What if he wasn’t there? The blonde traced the wall with his fingers as he strolled down the hallway and counted cell doors. If he wasn’t there…well, it would be bad- in more ways than one. Familiar indentations soon met his fingers along with cold metal. The lone insect that had blazed ahead from earlier returned to his outstretched palm from the barred window. Darkness lurked beyond it, quiet and smothering. Similar to a pillow that was pressed down on your face.

He knew that sensation, his tensed throat told him so. Lanky digits pried the door open and disturbed rusted hinges from their coma. His smile went numb on his lips when he spotted the outlines of his silhouette. “Jeez, so this is where you have been hiding.” Bare feet slipped across the damp concrete and contrasted the feathery hand that reached out for the man. “Hey.” His thumb brushed over closed lids “Time to wake up sleepyhead. I’m taking the sand back”.

“Fuck… off," said a voice weakly. Raph’s mind was still far away, fighting the call to wakefulness. It was better in sleep. It was better in darkness. There he could still pretend that the horrors were merely nightmares, and that he’d waken soon to find that it had all been a dream. The chains that bound him by the wrists rattled with each minute move.

”Aiyooo, seems like he’s completely out of it.” The blonde spun on his heels. Maybe it was for the better that he was out of it. ”Can anyone get the chains off?”

August parted his lips-

“Out of the way.” The pink-haired lady finally broke her silence with a brusque order. Without waiting for any of them to respond to it, she forced them to comply anyway, pushing them out of her path as she trudged towards the dark-haired man, her footsteps heavy. The neon glow pulsed in the ribs of her armor as she took hold of the chains. She grunted as she clenched her fists, and ripped the chains off from their roots. She held her armored hand over the chain and a short burst of energy melted through the chains, leaving molten remnants on the floor.

She stooped down, ignoring whatever words of resistance that came from Raph’s mouth, and picked him up as if she was carrying a sack of potatoes. She staggered under the weight as her vision blurred again for just a moment, before she steadied herself and straightened up. “Let’s go,” she said quietly.

Julian watched the demon work her magic with slack jawed fascination, completely omitting the fact that it could’ve been him that was a melted pool on the floor. “Aye aye~” .

He assumed the lead once more and continued away from the labyrinth of illusions.

Spoiler: Tags + tldr

Julian leads da group to raph and they grab hiiim and peyton and august have cute moment

Coyote Hart Doctor Llamabean simj26 Elenion Aura

 

[joshuadim]

RYUTARO HASHIMOTO

CS Link

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Heist]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Camila, Jennifer, Maria, Ryutaro, Samira, Sylvie

THE HEIST

The truck came to the tunnel, alongside some other vehicles from civilians scrambling to get out of dodge from the devastation of central. It was a straight shot through and, as a building collapsed behind them, Maria put the pedal to the metal. The engine roared as the armored van accelerated into the depths, though there was the issue that the tunnel itself was starting to crumble from the strain as well. As it went under the river, the Tigers could see that water began to pour into the tunnel itself as pieces of the tunnel began to fall apart, crashing into other cars that were fleeing the devastation. Ryu was concerned as to whether or not they would be able to get through this without dying: "How long is this tunnel?" he shouted into his earpiece.

"You've got about 1400 meters-" Cal began to say, until the feed suddenly cut out and the region rumbled again.

An aftershock had just hit, much more intense than the initial earthquake, and caused the far end of the tunnel they had entered from to collapse entirely, revealing a flood of water that rushed towrads them. Millions of gallons flooded the tunnel as cars that were too slow, or too late, became swallowed in its wake. From under his mask, Ryu's eyes widened as he witnessed a coming torrent that was eager to claim them all. He turned around towards the driver's seat: "PUNCH IT! AS HARD AS YOU CAN!"

Maria would not need any other indication as she shifted gears to fifth, providing a sudden burst of acceleration to zoom them along through the tunnel and ahead of other cars that were fleeing in the tunnel. The pattering of rubble that hit the van was indicative that the entire thing was coming apart, with a large chunk of stone falling and hitting the windshield directly. Were this any other vehicle, it would have shattered it entirely. But since it was a reinforced vehicle, the glass cracked into spiderwebs as the stone bounced off and fell elsewhere. The problem was that, even with their new speed, the water continued to gain on them as they sped forward. The Tigers could see more cars get swallowed and consumed by the violent tide, and Ryu himself grimaced. "Oh shit, holy shit!" Samira yelled out in shock at the coming flood, gripping at what she could inside for some semblance of stability.

Fortunately for them, and many others that were fleeing, the literal light at the end of the tunnel appeared in the near distance. They were almost out, just a bit further. All things were indicating that their exit would be anything but smooth, and so Ryu gripped inside the van for dear life and gritted his teeth on approach to their exit. The rushing of water could be heard just close to them as the engine roared with its final push to the exit. The van practically flew out, both from the angle of the ramping as well as the collision of water to its backside providing additional momentum, as the tunnel collapsed entirely behind them and a few other cars and vehicles sprouted out from the exit as well into the open.

The van spun about as it hit the ground, before colliding with the corner of a building and spun into the street nearby before coming to a brief stop. The engine purred softly as the brakes came into force, and the Tigers themselves shifted in the van itself. The rumbling was still felt from the earthquake, but it was not as devastating as it was in Central now that they were in the West again. However, the buildings still visibly shook from the current disaster unfolding and the asphalt below cracked from the stresses applied to it. Ryu took a moment to reorient himself, looking on with concern to their current surroundings, before nodding to the others. "Status check."

"I'm fine," Samira spoke up first as she shook her head, "I hit my head on the van's side but... I'm fine."

Camila ( Roda the Red ), Sylvie ( WhiskeyMarten ), Maria ( Shoya ), Jennifer (@Uasal )

 

[Doctor Llamabean]

RECAP: NAKAZAJO CHIKAGE POV

CS Link

SCENE:

New Oasis Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Dragon and the Phoenix]

LOCATION:

Upper Central

PARTICIPANTS:

Chikage, Sebastian, Markus, Isaiah, Meirin, Rin, YY, Kaede, Libla, Celeste, Jozef

THE DRAGON AND THE PHOENIX vs. HUNKS IN THE CITY

“Oh, s'you,” uttered the Tiger King.

“Where’s your red-haired counterpart,” Chikage’s tone regressed to a throaty growl, “huuh?”

“Dunno, don't care.”

A twitch of the eye; the police Captain’s nerves jerked like a stallion rejecting its rider. His smile turned frown—a briefly grim countenance before he shook it off and scanned the rest of the faces about him. That’s when he recognized Yong-Yut, the Burger Knight employee he’d worked with some years back while on an undercover investigation. With a tilt of the head, “We meet again.”

She responded with a stiff nod. “Yep.”

“You know this clown?” The Tiger King directed a thumb at Chikage, Chikage who immediately regarded the gesture with visible repugnance. His mind was quick to supply him with a retort that never came.

Another, “Yep.” Then, like flies to shit, more arrived.

“AHOY-HOY!” sang the tan, freckled-face character, and Chikage rolled his eyes—For fuck’s sake—“Would either of you be so generous as to offer an explanation of the event? Perhaps a holiday I wasn’t aware of?” His tone was patronizing.

“Why would we tell the cops anything? This is gang business,” the Sleeping Giant rolled her eyes.

“It concerns me.” Chikage eyed her with a slim smile and dipped his head in a polite bow.

“City of New Oasis Ordinance δ-2016-007,” announced Prosecutor Se. Chikage had forgotten he was there. “It is illegal to engage in any behavior that causes a public disturbance, including but not limited to blocking roads, making excessive noise, or, least of all unfortunately, encouraging fighting.”

Chikage pinched the bridge of his nose as the Prosecutor went on, showing signs that he was ready for a fight, and reinstated the formerly asked question regarding the goings-on with the linger of a threat on his words.

The freckled boy again, “I wanna know what's happening too, but be careful before my boss gets here.”

Boss. Chikage could only make a guess, but it was a confident one. The Serpent King. This boy and the following latest arrivals; they were undoubtedly Serpents. It was either that, or another Dragon, but, by the Lieutenant’s description of the ‘fight in the skies’, that didn’t coax his intuition the same.

The horned, red-skinned woman spoke up to no one in particular. “The pretty-boy don't want us to leave. Should let me have a crack at'im... Hehe... I'll take the other dandy too if ya' want~ I ain't fighting with her over my shoulder, though, so someone's gonna have to take'er.”

Crimson hues flitted to the dark-haired, unconscious figure. A glint of recognition sparked in the Captain’s gaze, marked by furrowed brows, but he chose against addressing it.

Finally—though, not consequential to Chikage's status, he figured—an explanation was given. “The Dragon-Phoenix negotiation went sour so now we’re back to fighting. However, we have reason to believe the two Kings aren’t acting like themselves in this case, so we are trying to remove them from the battlefield before they cause more damage to themselves, each other, or their surroundings.”

But it only posed more questions.

Off to the side, Burger Knight Yong-Yut made a motion with her scarf, which Chikage noted with an oblique glance, making no sudden movements. Briefly, he suspected an attack. However, an elsewhere-disturbance requested his attention. Accompanied by powerful, booming eruptions—at long last—Draken of the Phoenixes had chosen to make his appearance, and a showy one at that. Chikage’s wrist-watch beeped a tick faster now.

The Draken rushed in to steal the space between all opposition and the Phoenix King. A wave of heat blasted the police Captain’s hair back and his tie into a frenzy, throwing it over his shoulder. Cracking his face, a toothy crescent for their fated reunion spread wide. “And what’ll you do, hm?” He couldn’t help himself.

“Simmer down, Vulken. We’re just talking,” said the Sleeping Giant.

The Phoenix King then spared her fiery comrade a few words—“Don't overdo it…Orangutan.”—before the Burger Knight woman swiftly, but carefully, scooped the unconscious character from the red-skinned oni’s shoulder. An act that urged Chikage to take an instinctive step forward as if to pursue them, his concern perceptible in the falter of his smile. Was she a civilian or a gangster? That much, he wished to know.

However, in that instance, the abrupt emergence of a massive wall rising to conceal Draken, Lyric, the Oni, and the fleeing Phoenixes, as well as the dark-haired man and Sleeping Giant, painted the world in its shadow, casting a grayness over them.

Not like themselves? Something wasn’t adding up. The Phoenix King appeared perfectly normal.

Retreating? He couldn’t tell.

Beep-beep-beep. — Beep-beep-beep. — Beep-beep-beep.

No matter. Chikage’s eyes went to the two assumed Serpents: Freckles and Delphinium. They then locked on the Tiger King. One at a time.

Beep-beep-beep. — Beep-beep-beep. — Beep-beep-beep.

“Prosecutor Se,” he started, voice low. “...I’m going to fight.” He withdrew the keys to his Jeep and dropped them on the ground, as he couldn’t be bothered to wait for whether or not Sebastian would accept them. “Take it or leave it.”

CHIKAGE/POST NOTES​

— —The majority of the front, right half of Chikage's body is badly scarred from burns, stopping halfway up his neck, covering his arm's entirety, ending at his shin. For this reason, he wears a black, leather glove always covering his right hand, and usually wears long-sleeved, concealing clothes. Reference (X)

— —What he's wearing: (Click) Formal suit with a red overcoat + Watch on his left wrist; Only the right hand is gloved

— —Chikage's Jeep: (Click)

— —POST RECAP: Literally just a dialogue recap from the moment Chikage arrived with added Chikage Blurbs. Chikage did nothing in the art of progression.

(Interacting w/ Sebastian, Markus, Isaiah, Meirin, Rin, YY, Kaede, Libla, Jozef, Celeste)
(Mentioned no one)
Coyote Hart Elenion Aura Lucem QuirkyAngel EmperorsChosen gxxberkit Sei Shonagon Peckinou WhiskeyMarten angel doe ​

 

[Doctor Llamabean]

Disclaimer: no one is required to read this post, as it exceeds 1.5k words and effects only the three characters involved. For, at least, an understanding of what's going on, feel free to read from the marker ("Now...") placed within the post~ ​

COLLAB: CALLISTA, JERICHO, AND BANDY

SCENE:

Phoenixes Arc 3: Scene 2 [Tactical Mayhem]

LOCATION:

CDPD-HQ, Upper Central District — Parking Lot

PARTICIPANTS:

Phantoms, Boltius, Ashley, Inigo, Eric, Gideon, Jericho, Bandy, Callista

TACTICAL MAYHEM

— — — Earlier… — — —​

“I was looking up files on the recent criminal arrests, one of which I gave to you,” Callista snapped.

Smirking with jaded amusement, Bandy clicked his tongue on his teeth, at the same time pointing a single-handed finger-gun her way before she gave her attention to Jericho. There was a noticeable difference in attitude as she bounced between the two, and Bandy found that funny.

Even as she and Jericho went on to refer to him as Jericho’s dad, Bandy stood entertained, watching the interaction with only the slightest perk of an eyebrow. Then, as they (Callista and Jericho) proceeded to take pictures of files and books, Bandy flipped through the journal he’d earlier tossed onto the Captain’s desk and began to peruse its contents.

“Huh?” However, there was little time to process what he’d seen. The bit that he did manage to grasp gave his upper lip a curl.

The disruption came in the form of distant booms and tremors felt underfoot—Ashley’s destructive maneuver and Callista’s butterflies spelling out Bolt’s order throughout the building on all floors—and Bandy quickly looked down, clamping the journal shut with one hand.

Purple eyes darting back up, they locked with the familiar pair of golds.

“We leavin' now, yeah?”

“Fashionably,” said Bandy, gesturing toward Callista as he made his way over to the windows to look out at the parking lot. At the top of the concrete wall that barriered them in, small figures, Phoenixes, climbed into view, scaling the other side, and leaped, each with their own unique methods, from the 100-foot high where, on the ground, they quickly overwhelmed the police.

Wonder how Lower Central’s dealin’...

— — —​

They had found the parking lot via Bandy’s lead some time ago…

And so… Bandy whirled on three approaching officers, a handful of bodies already littered about his feet. Some twitched with waning consciousness; some were still with no trace of life. However, they were not all a product of his abuse. Jericho and Callista were there, too.

The approaching officers each wielded their own weapon—one with a metal bō-staff; another with a standard police baton; and the third with a shield and mace. Callista eyed their weapons warily, moving behind Bandy and Jericho without conscious thought.

C’mon, ya medieval son’bitch. Bandy focused his attention on the shield-and-mace, the right-most officer, and sprinted forth to meet him halfway. With a leap, as the officer raised his shield and ducked beneath it, Bandy kicked off of it and landed behind the officer.

Meanwhile, the remaining two carried on to face Jericho and Callista. The bō-staff, the middle-man, honed in on Jericho while the baton wielder went in for the blonde.

A wide-eyed Callista retreated a few steps backward, eyes darting toward Bandy helplessly as the officer took deliberate steps toward her. The man moved with caution, skeptical whether the damsel was truly as delicate and harmless as she looked. Much to Callista’s chagrin, her potential had been fully exhausted, leaving her defenseless. Desperation finally made her swallow her pride, and she called out to him meekly, her voice barely audible above the sound of distant battles. “B-Bandy…”

Instinctively, Bandy sought Callista with his eyes before narrowly avoiding a blow to the temple as his opponent whirled around. Activating his potential, the world became washed, through his eyes, in glowing, blue grid-lines.

Jericho gritted his teeth, eyes narrowing as the officers approached, his gaze darting over to the one targeting Callista. “Oh, c’mon, man, she can’t hurt ya-” He raised his voice, hoping to get the other one to focus on him as well, but when that didn’t work he resorted to putting himself between Callista and both officers.

Although that was a potentially foolish decision in the long run, Jericho was 95% sure he could handle both of them at the same time; not really the type of two-against-one he was a fan of, but he’d done this plenty of times before and all they had were some sticks or whatever. He would be fine.

Especially when, all of a sudden, Bandy was the one running alongside the bō-staff. The baton-wielding officer; he now stood beneath the downward arc of the shield-and-mace’s swing, confused and unprepared when the mace came down and cracked him atop the skull.

The bō-staff wielder took notice of Bandy beside him and, eyes wide with a grimace, considered changing his focus to take him on. However, not soon enough. Bandy got close, shoulder-to-shoulder with the officer before a thing could be done about it, and he threw himself in the officer’s path, whirling face-to-face with him. All in the same motion, Bandy grabbed the staff with both hands, the officer holding it all the same, and fell backward. Carried by momentum and Bandy’s weight, the officer fell with him, but Bandy pushed off with his feet in the officer’s gut, flipping him.

When the officer landed, feet within arm’s reach of Jericho, eyes to the sky, Bandy rolled onto his stomach, twisting the staff from the officer’s grasp, and quickly stood tall.

“Still outta juice, Twinkle-Toes?” he asked Callista, twirling the staff before shoving it down through the officer’s shoulder, drawing out a pained gasp and snarl. He raised his voice over the elicitation, “What does you even do?” and paid no mind to the shield-and-mace approaching fast behind him.

“T-That’s —” Callista almost choked on her words as she stared at him in wonder, mouth slightly ajar. To her horror, the sight of Bandy swooping in to rescue her had brought unwanted butterflies in her stomach. Her maiden heart had no business swooning over a shameless, adulterous, married man. She scowled in an attempt to mask the stars in her eyes and the faint blush on her cheeks. “— none of your business. Now hurry up and end this so you can go home to your wife,” she said, the words leaving her mouth with a hint of bitterness that caught her by surprise.

Their nonsense was cut short by a guttural roar.

Eyes seething with rage, the last officer lunged at Jericho, seeking vengeance for his fallen comrades. The horned man, who had been watching Callista with slightly narrowed eyes as she got a dreamy look talking to Bandy, was momentarily caught off guard by the officer that targeted him. Jericho should have been prepared for that, he shouldn’t have let the others distract him; but he did and the officer managed to get a solid blow in with the mace, swinging and making contact with his ribs.

Jericho grunted, losing his footing briefly, but steadied himself just in time to catch the mace when the officer swung again, grabbing it and pulling the man closer. His other hand gripped the shield, a wild smile spreading across his lips “I’m almost disappointed I gotta kill ya… You’re a very pretty man~”

The officer didn’t have time to be confused by the compliment as Jericho ripped the mace and shield from his hands, tackled him to the ground, and used the claws that had formed where his hands once were to tear into him.

Rico took advantage of this moment to let out some of the emotions he'd kept bottled up, and, in mere seconds, had completely eviscerated the officer. Blood covered his hands and arms as he continued to shred the man long after his screams had died and his struggling ceased. A gasp escaped Callista’s lips, and she squeezed her eyes shut, turning away from the ghastly scene.

Jericho didn’t stop until he heard Bandy’s shout, “Yo, Fern!” A wide-eyed look that said, Really, man?, as he gestured pointedly at Callista to call heedance to her body language. She remained frozen in place, not saying a word as she cast her gaze downward.

Startled, Jericho sat back on his heels, blinking and looking down at the brutally mutilated corpse beneath him, “Huh. Whoops.” That was all Rico said, using his long forked tongue to clean the blood that had splattered onto his face. Looking down at the long claws that had formed in the place of his fingers, now coated with crimson, he had to take another couple of minutes to compose himself.

Taking a deep breath, Rico stood and turned to his companion with a sheepish grin, “My bad, man. Guess I was a lil too overzealous.” He let out a shaky laugh, not meeting either of their gazes as he willed his hands to return to normal, “I probably shoulda been more careful, all this blood ain’t really a good look right now…”

Bandy rubbed his nape and sighed, adopting a troubled countenance as he collected the right words. “Nah, it’s cool. Just…” Purple hues flitted toward Callista, who was being uncharacteristically quiet. Another sigh. “Just think Twinkle-Toes ain’t matchin’ that… that vibes, if ya know…” the rest was unspoken, conveyed, instead, in the sympathetic wince of his features. “Maybe… we just tones it down a little?”

“Yeah, ‘o course. Don’t know what came over me…” Jericho muttered and turned toward Callista, looking past her rather than meeting her gaze, “Sorry about that.” A pathetic attempt at an apology, but something he didn’t want to linger on any longer than he had to. Jericho forced another sheepish smile and turned around, his tail dragging on the ground as he took a couple of steps away to put some space between them.

— — — Now… — — —​

In the distance, easing carefully through a division in the 100-ft concrete barrier, a sleek, black Sedan marked the arrival of three unique-looking characters, upon which Bandy threw his scrutiny with squinted eyes. By the small motions he made, pained utterances rose from the body at his feet.

Bandy tapped the officer’s face with a boot, clicking his tongue. “Pipe down, wouldja? I ain’t gonna kill ya, ‘lest ya don’t stop the moanin’ an’ groanin’.” Though he said that, he had already decided this officer would live. At least as far as he planned to leave here knowing. Reason being—his gaze tore briefly toward Callista, then back to the Sedan. Masked figures peeked over the top of the wall, rising further, then descended into the fray, engaging Phoenixes in all directions.

Bandy had been there that day. He recognized them immediately.

A shadow cast over his gaze. “I takes it back, Lil’ Fern…” he ripped the staff up, out of the prone officer’s shoulder. Blood dripped from the tip. “Gonna need’ja ta tone it up. Tone it waaay up.” There was a spark of satisfaction born from the flint of answers that lit a fire within him, for his questions surrounding that day had been the oil in the pit of his gut. It made a little more sense now.

Jericho glanced at Bandy, his golden eyes brightening and a small smile beginning to form. He nodded and started cracking his knuckles, ”Yeah, thas definitely somethin’ I can do.”

BANDY/POST NOTES​

— —POST RECAP: Bandy, Callista, and Jericho fight, then their friends from the hurricane arrive. They prepare for more fight.

(Interacting w/ Callista, Jericho, Bandy)
(Mentioned no one)
Nobody Special Roda the Red Coyote Hart Lucem simj26 Damafaud @W I N T E R angel doe ​

 

[BluEndings]

OUROBOROS

SCENE:

Azure Dragons Arc 3: Scene 3 [Ripples of Stardust]

LOCATION:

Zhànzhēng Bay, East District

PARTICIPANTS:

Mirza

RIPPLES OF STARDUST

Zhànzhēng Bay | Boat​

The tall woman was nodding, as if in response to some non-existent beat. Her head would sway to one side when a contested topic came up, while her hands would snap in agreement to the more amicable. Her hesitant eagerness kept up until Mirza’s final words were finally laid out. It was in those moments that her form came to a standstill. Just her dark clothing, the expressive mask, and the weight of uncertainty in the air.

“No no,” she mumbled dejectedly.

“We’re not—”

“The situation has changed.”

The voice came from an adjacent pathway. A man—or at least what resembled one—stood unmoving. Their form was certainly humanoid, but the proportions were undeniably off. What looked like a mask at first glance was instead uninterrupted smoothness from the top of their head to the bottom. The bulk at their shoulders was not backed by muscle or build, just shape. And the source of their jovial voice was nowhere to be found.

“SHAM?! THE HELL? I’ve almost gotten through with him!”

“Doubtful. Unlikely. Irrelevant.” He huffed. “Someone other than us has the vicinity frenzied.”

“Is—”

“No.”

“Then—”

“No.”

The ‘man’ turned their focus towards Mirza.

“Your ensemble,” he took a step forward. ”Hiram, Ottilie, Kazue, Pasha.”

“Sham—”

“Which of your roost is responsible for the interferen—

His foot suddenly jolted back.

“Atlas.”

“Huh?”

“Finish up here. We’ve lost the means of a peaceful denouement.”

The green-haired individual apparently labeled ‘Atlas’ was undoubtedly peeved by the instruction, but the lingering delay in her movements were nowhere to be found. She looked around at her surroundings, yet there was nothing to give any peace of mind. Just the cold floor of the waterborne vessel, and Mirza who she was peacefully conversing with just moments before.

Indeed. The aberrant man speaking just earlier had vanished entirely, leaving the area vacant save the two.

“Your move.”

NAVIGATE

 

[WhiskeyMarten]

SYLVIE SLEZÁK

CS Link

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Heist]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Camila, Jennifer, Maria, Ryutaro, Samira, Sylvie

THE HEIST

Sylvie didn’t think they were going to make it. The earthquake was unlike anything he had experienced before, and it took all of his effort not to throw up over the other Tigers. As they drove down the tunnel, he could hear the sounds of gushing water and Ryutaro’s instructions to Maria. Then he made the mistake of looking out at the flood that threatened to swallow them up as it had to the cars behind them.

There was no end in sight to the tremors that rattled the van, and it seemed their escape would be hopeless. Sylvie brought a hand away from his head and looked to his left, where Camila sat, wounded. Without thinking, he placed his arm around her, pulling her close to him. It was the most he could do to soften the impact for her, as his other hand remained firmly gripped on the door handle.

“Hold on. Hold on. Hold on.”

He didn’t say anything else out loud, but mumbled words in his native tongue, eyes shut in resignation of their fate. He didn’t even see the end of the tunnel, and only felt their dramatic escape from it, getting jolted around in his seat while they spun to a halt.

“Status check?”

Sylvie dared to open his eyes, not making any other movements. His arm around Camila remained in a tight grip. What was his status? From all that happened, it was hard for him to muster up any words.

“I’m…”

He hadn’t realised he’d been holding his breath. He let out a sharp exhale.

“I’m okay.”

Then he remembered who was beside him and looked down at Camila. “Shit, are you alright?”

 

[Roda the Red]

CAMILA GASPARI

CS Link

SCENE:

Tigers Arc 3: Scene 2 [The Heist]

LOCATION:

Central District

PARTICIPANTS:

Camila, Ryutaro, Maria, Jennifer, Sylvie, Samira

THE HEIST

Camila was quite impressed by Maria's dexterity behind the wheel, it really showed that this was the woman that Camilla amassed a nice amount of pocket change with by betting on her through street racing, yielding very consistent good results. She made a mental note to keep going with those bets.

The veteran started to get more and more nervous as they traveled through the tunnel. Before she knew it, behind them was a raging tidal wave, flooding the insides of the tunnel and heading towards them at high velocity, arguably even faster than the van itself. Camila let out a scream shock, quickly cut short by some violent coughing, the aftereffects from the prolonged exposure to the gas still far from gone from her system.

" cough cough...HOLY SHIT, I CAN'T DIE HE-"

She wasn't able to finish her sentence, as Sylvie's arm reached for her shoulders, pulling her into a safety embrace. She stop talking immediately, taken aback by his sudden move, the warmth of his chest being surprisingly soothing. Her heart would've probably skipped a beat if she didn't know any better.

In the end, they managed to escape the tunnel just in time, the van may parked far from gracefully, but they were now all in the relative safety of west district, even the tremors now starting to subside a little bit. The veteran sighed deeply as the Queen checked on their status.

"Yeah...I think I'll manage just fine"

She looked a her junior, a sheepish smile now hidden behind her mask.

"Thanks, Sylvie, I...Appreciate that"

joshuadim @Beann @Uasal Shoya WhiskeyMarten