Fandom Soul Eater: F.A.T.E

[Prizzy Kriyze]

Ilyes Zervas
Lot A

Ilyes held his polite smile for a good few seconds until his attention was snagged by another student coming along. The dancer, he recalled, from his very brief overview of the students; a student he'd been quite curious to come to meet. Well, at least up until he interacted with them, which consisted of welcoming Ilyes who'd been here literally for the better part of an hour and here broadly for several years, then patronizing Miroku before leaving both of them without waiting for a reply. As he walked away from them Ilyes leaned his head to one side and absent-mindedly signed "How nonchalant." to nobody in particular, before smiling back at Miroku and just giving her a nod instead of trying to communicate any more. He slipped from his spot perched on the the edge of the wooden pole, and landed gently in the sand while putting sunglasses on to hide away from the sunlight.

As more and more of the students started arriving in by the shoreline and Starwulf was nearing the completion of his arena, Ilyes tactically withdrew to appear as one of the students. In part to have the opportunity to interact with them on equal grounds, and in part because he didn't necessarily want to be all that close when Erikk inevitably challenged him to another slapping contest. He was fairly certain he could match Erikk to a more casual degree if he could substitute the wavelength slaps for water-embolstered attacks, definitely so if he had a bit of magic in his veins, but every single one of the devoted students under Starwulf were... horrifying.

But with the years of exposure came apathy towards the incoming display of extreme violence in the name of self-improvement. His attention stayed on the new additions from behind his sunglasses. He felt a little like a med student, accompanying a doctor for some work experience, as his attention passed each of them. Bella, Gia, Temperance - he'd put all of their names to memory, but one stood out to him. Not only because of her outspoken nature, or her bubbly personality, or her outlandish appearance - but because she wanted to ask a question, and it slipped by Starwulf's attention. As much as he liked masquerading as one of the students, he understood he had certain responsibilities as an assistant to the primary mentor. So, like a skinwalker in their midst, he appeared next to Juno with little to no prior warning, and gently reached out to put a finger against her raised arm.

"He's probably pretty preoccupied! You can ask me if you want!" He spoke over their briefly shared link. He didn't touch her for more than a second, but a telepathic connection allowed for a much quicker transfer of information that a typical conversation. "I might be mute but I can hear you just fine! I'm Ilyes!" His tone was overly cheery, and he smiled at her widely as he retracted his hand and put it back in his pocket and reassumed his 'incognito' stance - like he was pretending to be a celebrity avoiding paparazzi.

Sir Les Paul simj26
Nobody Special JellySquishies Meredith
Azurian Dream FireMaiden
​

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Eloise Keegan - The Deadly Trail
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So here they were. Elly could see the tower up ahead and presumably they would have some vague direction to begin their search in. Az spent a short amount of time going over the questions the Irish woman had thought of. So they weren't just NOT students, but special cases somewhat. It was a bit peculiar timing, Az choosing to go over that information. Almost as if he read her mind, or perhaps he simply expected them to wonder that.

She glanced over to Zari who finally decided to join them. For a tardy, he was rather bright it seemed. However, from the look on his face, let alone the deflation Elly could perceive, he wasn't that confident after proposing the idea. It wasn't a bad one considering they had an "area" to go off of and then likely some sort of landmark within the area, as otherwise the pieces could be buried in the mud who knows where. That alone would allow them to narrow it down and save time, and then they had her. Unfortunately, who was to say that this team would work better together rather than at a detriment?

Her own weapon wasn't a problem, but there was also the others. Elly didn't trust the spiky boy to work seamlessly in his own partnership, let alone with all of them. Death, she wasn't even sure if he would be receptive to suggestions with how much he was brooding over there. Ashi seemed open, if not a tad odd. Zari and Jarvis were also a dice roll. Even if they could work well together it didn't mean they could sync with the rest.

Ganging up might've been the best call. However, they might also get in each others' way.

Case in point, Adrian's response.

Elly let out a silent sigh as she glanced between them. "Well, Zari, I like your initiative, but I am hesitant," She replied. "My specialty is Soul Perception, so I should be able to pick out our guards fairly quickly. However, I'm worried all of us fighting one target out of sync may present more problems than advantages."

She wasn't even going to try to dissuade the iron maiden. Even without his soul, it was clear he was in I want to hit something until I feel better mode. Useful--circumstantially.

RedArmyShogun Sir Les Paul QuirkyAngel Azurian Dream The Regal Rper Serei2477

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Jarvis Briseis - Deadly Trails (March 28th, 2067; 10: 55 am)

Jarvis watched with mild jealousy as Blackie, who seemed reassured by Reiko’s words, curled in the Deathscythe’s arms and took a nap. If only he were afforded such a luxury. Alas, bloodsucking DWMA students like him had assignments to finish before they could rest for the night…err…morning…

Jarvis sighed.

Fortunately, Zari wasn’t too late–they’d ended up meeting at the airport–and Jarvis simply accepted his partner’s explanation with a nod. Seeing as Jarvis was usually the one late to their meetings, he didn’t really have a leg to stand on when it came to complaining. On the contrary, he was somewhat amused to learn that the blonde, glasses-wearing meister who seemed confident in battle was nervous around the cops.

Sadly the helicopter ride itself had been painfully tense as time that should’ve been spent strategizing and discussing the assignment as a team was spent silently instead. Adrian stewed in his rage towards Az, Ashi, and Reiko. Zari kept close to Jarvis, too shy to branch out and introduce himself to their new teammates. As for Jarvis, the bloodsucker had nothing to say and ended up following Blackie's example, taking a brief nap until the chopper landed at their destination.

Rubbing his eyes, Jarvis exited the aircraft with the others and leaned his back against a tree as Az further explained the details of the assignment. Red orbs wander to their flora-filled surroundings, noting the lack of deadliness in the “Deadly” Trails, but didn’t comment on it. Frankly, he wouldn’t be surprised if the opposing team set up some traps for their soon-to-be FATE opponents, since they had plenty of time to explore the terrain beforehand; They were the ones playing the defense role, after all.

Hands in his pockets, he listened quietly as the others talked; Zari asked a question. Reiko answered. Adrian added his input. Eloise added her input. Jarvis yawned. “Unless you intend to go around gathering all the parts on your own, we’ll have to work together regardless.”

Straightening from the tree, Jarvis plucked the leaf that had fallen on his head, and twirled it idly between his fingers. Reiko told them what she and Az had intended to do, but Zari–despite his lack of communicative skills–had brought up a good point in Jarvis’s mind. There was no need to divide the teams exactly as intended. They had a goal…and multiple ways to do it. “From what I’m hearing, our task is to get 3 items from three different locations. Whether or not we fight for these items is inconsequential, but it’s best to remember that FATE, EAT, or NOT, we’re all workers under the same Death God.” Jarvis glanced at Adrian as he said this. “If ‘fucking them up’ results in their death, you’d be doing the exact same thing that landed you in FATE in the first place.”

That was the only thing Jarvis would say on the matter. He’d come to consider Maiden a friend, and therefore didn’t want to see the Iron Maiden expelled, but it wasn’t as if he could control the autonomous weapon’s actions in a fight. Jarvis saw Az’s assignment for what it was–just an assignment. Like with the game in Lot C, Jarvis intended to win, but he didn’t intend to kill for it. Strong or weak, Az’s students probably weren’t evil souls…and failing an assignment paled in comparison to getting kicked out of the class. Hopefully, the Type A agent kept his temper cool enough to see that.

“Ignoring the spirit of the assignment for a moment,” Whatever that may be. “There are six of us, and three parts to get, so we can do this in multiple ways; We can send two agents to all three locations to get all the parts at roughly the same time, then convene at the tower for a 2-step process; We can send three agents to two locations to get two parts, then convene to the third location, to get the last part, before going together to the tower for a 3-step process; Finally, we all stick together to complete the task for a 4-step process. The first option is likely the quickest, as it only requires 2 steps, but it also requires us to trust that each team is able to get their parts. The last option is probably the safest, as we don’t know what we’ll be up against and can cover each other’s backs if we're all together,” At the very least, he could spear tackle Adrian if the Iron Maiden decided to give in to his temper/sadistic temptations. Torture devices tend to be like that. “so there's a higher likelihood of actually getting and securing the parts. But it’s also the slowest option as it requires all of us to travel to all 3 locations together…and as Eloise pointed out, some of us have never worked together before…”

Jarvis shrugged. He didn’t think they’d be so bad at working together that they couldn’t defeat 1 target if they ganged up on them…but anything is possible. At the very least, Maiden didn’t seem to be getting along with the zombie and was known for tunnel vision tendencies. “Regardless of what we choose, I’ll be sticking with Zari. Travel isn’t a problem for me. ” As if to demonstrate, a red gemstone appeared on the back of the hand holding the leaf. Blood poured out from it, warping and weaving into a pair of wings that fluttered lazily. “I can manipulate blood, both as a bloodsucker and as a gauntlet. I’ll fly all 3 parts up the tower if I have to.” Assuming he didn’t get shot down by one of the opponents that happened to be a canon, that is. None of the mentors actually said they all had to physically be there to complete the assignment–just that all the radio parts had to be together. “And Adrian is an Iron Maiden, so any item you have him hold in his weapon form isn’t likely to get retrieved. “

Unless the opponents decided to cut him open of course…though, given the defensiveness of the hunk of metal that kept Shuumie contained, Jarvis would have to wish luck with that. Maiden didn’t even like his full weapon transformation (likely due to its immobility) so whether or not that became a factor they utilized was up to Adrian…or whoever could convince Adrian to do so. Jarvis was just pointing out the possibilities. Convincing anyone to do anything was too much of a hassle. “Standard operating procedure for thievery is 1 person distracts while the other steals.” Though he wasn’t about to tell them how to do their tasks either. What mattered was that they got all 3 radio parts up the tower to finish the assignment. Then again, if they failed, then they failed. Jarvis didn’t actually see any consequences besides getting a big F and disappointing their mentors, but that itself wasn’t a terrible tragedy for him. He didn’t even know how the FATE program worked. Were there grades? Did the opinions of the mentors actually matter in whether they passed the program or not?

Unlike the game at Lot C, there wasn’t even an incentive to win.

Sighing, Jarvis released the leaf to the wind before squatting down to look at a trail of ants near his feet. He’d said all he wanted to say. The responsibility of making a decision, and dealing with the consequences was a pain. If asked to vote, Jarvis–like in the case with the Shuumie mission–would just choose the option he assumed to be the easiest and least work for himself…so the 2-step option; He’d only have to worry about getting one part of the radio before making his way up to the tower as compared to traveling with the group to get all three parts. If any of the teams failed, they all failed, but it wasn’t as if the teams that finished their task first couldn’t assist the teams that weren’t able to; They all had their communication devices.

Their opponents likely had communication devices as well, whether they were allowed to group up or not…and, regardless of their ranks, Jarvis wouldn’t peg them as stupid. The rankings didn’t even matter all that much to Jarvis, seeing as he wasn’t even sure if he had one anymore, and the last ‘one-star’ he’d seen was the Slitheris witch…who had managed to beat a werewolf and a two-star in combat. Stars were awarded differently for meisters, weapons, and probably witches anyway…though it’d been 20 years since he’d last been in school so he couldn’t say for sure. Either way, if they couldn't come up with a decision as team in 15 minutes, Jarvis would just leave with Zari. It had been constantly repeated, by both Az and Reiko, that time was of the essence, after all.

RedArmyShogun Sir Les Paul EmperorsChosen Azurian Dream The Regal Rper Serei2477

 

[Prizzy Kriyze]

Emmett James

Sir Les Paul Merciless Medic @Mqueserasera RedArmyShogun​

Thick clouds of smoke clung to the skyline. For the past three days while Emmett struggled with the necessary permits to get here, the European branch had been fighting back against the unknown enemy coming out from beneath the streets, the Fire Department was pulling 24 hour shifts just to get the fire under control, and the death toll was rising even now. Belleville had been successfully evacuated in the first day, but as another incursion of the fiery skeletons escaped the catacombs and broke through a DWMA checkpoint the fires spread all the way into Ménilmontant before a group of two-stars succeeded in dispatching of the hardy foes - but not before they'd devastated the square before the Notre-Dame-de-la-Croix, the local parish Church overlooking most of the affected area. Following the incident, it'd now become reinforced by the Fire Department, DWMA, and governmental representatives. While burn victims were hacking their lungs out and being extracted via stretchers, news anchors were doing live reports and firemen in sooty suits were running by shouting commands to civilians and colleagues alike. A helicopter flew by overhead as Emmett finished unloading the last crate of the magitech ordnance he'd gotten shipped in. Three-star Scythe Meister Mathéo Moreau had spent the better part of the morning learning from him and helping him get these to where they were needed, but it was clear that the their French colleagues were tired and stressed.

"Right. My colleague and the FATE agents are arriving any minute. Do you feel confident with the equipment?" Emmett asked aloud as his crate hit the truck bed, causing the entire vehicle to bounce on its suspension. He took a step back and leaned against the charcoal remains of a fenced tree to light a cigarette, as Mathéo turned to face him with one of many Permafrost-Grenades twirling between his fingers. His expression was inscrutable, and he continued staring at Emmett until he scrambled back to his feet and held out the pack of cigarettes to his french Colleague with an apologetic smile. Mathéo accepted one, turned on his heel, and headed up towards the driver side of his own loaded truck. "Ne nous gêne pas." He only muttered, before getting in the car and slowly beginning to roll off. Emmett couldn't be offended. They'd lost colleagues here, family even. It was a tragic time for the Parisians, and having to accept and devote time and energy to an experimental group of agents just to further the selfish interests of the American DWMA obviously rubbed them the wrong way. Still, scouting out the source of the issue was paramount, and this was no time to indulge in sympathies or pleasantries. He breathed out, and the smoke from his mouth mixed with the smoke from the city as he sat down on the bed of his truck. This would become a very important mission, especially due to the media coverage. Whatever the FATE agents managed to accomplish would be leaked to the public without fail, but that also meant it was an excellent opportunity for them to prove their worth. Now that they'd made more progress with their soul studies, Emmett felt a lot more confident in their chances.

It had been raining that night, so most of the on-hand staff had been able to take a well-needed rest, but as soon as the weather dried up in the early noon, the square began to clear out. It didn't take long before an DWMA special response vehicle rolled in, the armored vehicle he'd sent to retrieve Zelda and the others, and Emmett stood up to meet them. The heavy metal door slid open, and let his students and colleagues pour out on the street in front of him. He smiled widely, and gave a polite wave to the driver before he took off once again, leaving them alone the nearly entirely vacated area. "Morning, folks. Hope you've slept well." He crossed his arms and looked them over. There was some tension in the air, but he did not know where it had originated from. Thaddeus and Noah, especially. He glanced at them briefly, then decided he had no interest in delving deeper into the issue right now. After all, this a real mission, this was actual enemy territory, and there was less time to be so empathic. Eva however, he made a point out of addressing. "Nice to see you Eva. Glad to have you with us."

His voice wasn't as warm and friendly as it used to be. Really, his entire demeanour was slightly off from the usual goofy carelessness he displayed. His eyes just a little bit more callous, his friendly expression just a little more utilitarian. Zelda was more than familiar with the many concoctions Emmett used under the label of combat stimulants, including the types he utilized to expand the scope of his exceptional-but-not-quite-super soul perception. The hyper-awareness of his surroundings often made him more distracted than usual, but as per usual he managed to pass as mostly sober. Instead of his usual disheveled and tired look, he seemed alert and serious. Even his outfit had been replaced with an open white jacket, underneath which strange devices, knives, and hand grenades were visibly strapped along his torso. Even his Magitech 'thimbles' and gloves that were usually hidden by his sleeves were out in the open and ready to use. "I hope the severity of the situation has been adequately explained to you, because we don't have a lot of time."

He turned and raised the lid of the supply crate in the truck bed. Inside was a small treasure trove of Magitech and rescue gear: Gas masks with built in rebreathers, gas-heat-and-pressure detectors, GPS, Permafrost-grenades, electric lanterns, etc. "The local branch is on duty for defending the Fire Department and evacuating civilians. Our mission specification is scouting, perhaps even search-and-destroy if the situation changes dramatically. They haven't been especially cooperative, which was to be expected. In the interest of subduing the fire altogether, the teams we were to accompany have already made their way deep into the active areas so we'll simply have to catch up. An old metro tunnel was ground zero for the burning skeletons, and investigations have revealed a greater concentration of them there as well as tunnels into the catacombs just inside the entrance. I shouldn't have to tell you how dangerous it is to fight in confined underground spaces that are also on fire, so make sure to stock up on gear before you delve in."

With a swift motion he closed the back of the truck bed and the lid of the crate, then crossed his arms and summoned an uncharacteristic air of authority in an attempt to convey the gravity of the situation. "We're facing an unknown amount of unnaturally sturdy enemies with the physical might to flip cars. They expire from having all their flames doused or extreme physical trauma, so don't dare holding back if you engage with one. Mine and Zelda's mission is to keep you safe, document and analyze every abnormality we detect, and provide support to Paris. Let's work together to keep the mission successful, alright? Now get in the back of the truck so we can move out. We want you to be able to retaliate if we get attacked on the road over." Emmett flipped the car keys in his hands and proceeded to get in the driver's seat. "If you've got questions Zelda hasn't had the info to respond to, ask them now. Keep anything not in regards to the mission for after this is over."

The engine growled to a start, as a rain of sparks traveled down the alleyway ahead of them and laid to peter out on the cobblestone. In the distance, flames grappled towards an eerily dark midday sky. Helicopter searchlights were lit, alarms were sounding, and time was of the essence.

TEAM STITCHES: Mook-LandStrider Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen
​

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - DWMA Airfield Outbound Flight ​

With the arrival of the group, Maria quickly goes about seeing to her things as Rand issues his orders and made observations, looking at her materials, plus the spares and resources brought in with addition to the sealing wax. Opening the needed cargo containers Maria has also brought spare parts to partially rebuild her medium doll and to replace one small with some blocks of wood for additional spot repairs. Looking at each of her creations, if she took the time to coat them evenly and truly, she would be here at least for thirty minutes to an hour and thirty.

Glancing at Raph her jaw twitches a little, while on the one hand it would be amusing to make him suffer with heavy labor for a bit, she could just coat over the exposed sections of her dolls, where wood or steal was barred for all to see as a temporary fix and be able to assist Raph a bit earlier, then she could take her time removing clothing and armor to treat the wood more finely and evenly. If there were two things she did not like about this assignment. One, was the speed at which she was set to be operational, which in truth she could operate right now, the wood would degrade in time measured in days to weeks or even months, though a partial rebuild and wood treatment would be demanded upon their return. And two, the oppressive heat of this tropical paradise, even now her sweet was starting to pool, acting to cool her body in part, though with a muggy feeling.

Exhaling at that she popped open one of the cans and picked up a brush as she begun to paint the medium doll, followed up with the three smalls ones, careful yet quick strokes upon the exposed face, hand and leg components of the smalls, and the face of the medium. It was then that she paused, looking back and Raph, to Rand, then to her creation, with a frenzied look to her face as her fingers wrapped around her cheek bones beneath the eyes, palms resting on her chin. Her head turning or vision shifting. She had put a lot of work into improving this. Days in fact, while she wanted to change her ways a bit, this case presented her with a paradox, helping an ally meant weakening her creations for the time she may need to help an ally. In this case helping would be harming, would it not?

The smaller ones could wait, but Alicia had to be coated in full. Bit by bit she removes the armor, then the clothing, setting the armor to the side with the weapons and the garments with the cloak, taking it off was fortunately the quick and easy option. Beneath it all stood a wooden golem that bared the faint markings of leylines at the surface and points of articulation that was well beyond the reasonable, its mostly solid torso was shaped to mimic Maria herself with the rough form of a crash test dummy. Painting it bit by bit, the sealing agent darkened the paint atop the wood slightly as she went about securing her creation from the elements, thirty minutes later she is mostly satisfied but would hold off on finishing reequipping her doll once she had the chance to oil the weapons and armor, putting boots back upon her creation she hoists it up with her wires and joins Raph.

"Sorry, I can help now if much is left to do. I'm going to need at least an hour to finish up the rest, but I should help you with these boxes and cages, or did you fare better than I expected?"


Merciless Medic The Regal Rper Meredith Sir Les Paul

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Daniella Ethalyn - Truck to hell
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As Zelda continued on, Dani's eyes narrowed as she saw the hints of a smirk, or perhaps she was imagining it. Still, the woman's response seemed to sate the Demon Weapon paired with Nadia's expression of comfort. She pouted before sliding back into the chair with a huff. The fact that they weren't chasing down a Stein made more sense for why they were there. Still, the chance that it still involved the woman didn't inspire her with confidence. It smelled like more bureaucratic bullshit; something they were pushed into for publicity or some shit rather than because it was something they should handle.

Still, she couldn't completely blame Zelda. Bad joke or not, the woman had showed that she at least somewhat gave a shit. Whether that was out of some sense of duty or if she really cared, she wasn't anywhere near the same level as Cyrus, or Death, or anyone else in the program for that matter. Her and Emmett.

Still, nobody seemed to take it that well. Even Dani, a weapon with no spiritual ability to sense stuff like that could tell the shift in air. Particularly Gauss and Noah seemed to sour. Nadia as well. Still, she was less concerned with their morale. Even if she didn't quite hate their guts, all she was going to worry about was not dragging Nadia down.

Once they met up with Emmett, the so-called gravity of the situation was conveyed by the air around them alone. A gloomy sky depressed by both smoke and ash as well as rainclouds. Everyone around them was in a hurry. Even the teams they were supposed to go with had already left, causing Dani to click her tongue. Great, now they had to go searching for them before they searched for whatever else.

As Dani hopped into the truck, she thought on his offer for information, though her mind only turned back to Zelda's joke. "Do we have any friggin' clue at all what's causing this, or are we really blind?" She asked. "Also, if we have the same goals then how and why are these guys so uncooperative?"

Though, she wasn't all that particularly surprised. Who the hell would want a bunch of rejects working on a situation like this?

@Team Stitches

 

[Serei2477]

Sage Chauvelet
Location: The Deadly Trail
Mentions: RedArmyShogun Sir Les Paul EmperorsChosen Azurian Dream The Regal Rper QuirkyAngel
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​

This team's dynamic was, honestly, something Sage couldn't be happier with~

Who needed a boring team that was all happy with no issues or drama that would need to be sorted? A little bit of arguing here and some anger there always made a group dynamic just a little more interesting. Did it hurt the chemistry? Yes, but the entertainment more than made up for it! The mentors seemed competent, his teammates were also competent and a bit childish (save for the zombie), and he and Elly seemed to be tolerated by them. As stated before, they were the only odd ones out. The others had chemistry with one another. They already shared memories, antics, and whatever the hell else it was old teammates shared. But now they could make some new memories; or at least, hope they stuck together long enough to make them~

The helicopter ride he spent quiet, analyzing the group just as he had earlier. By the sounds of it, there was plenty of potential for something bloody, and if Adrian was the one getting his hands dirty, then Sage would be damn happy to be present when he did. The sleepy boy, unsurprisingly, took a nap during the ride. The others continued to strategize for the assignment and answering any questions his meister had. This was another reason he and Eloise would work together; she saved Sage the trouble of having to think and ask all of the troublesome questions!

Though, it was a shame the sleepy one decided to talk some sense into his friend. How can Sage see his favorite color if the angry one isn't trying to kill someone? But yes, gamer boy was right. If they seriously injured or killed anyone, they would probably be expelled. Maybe the next assignment would be more entertaining. For now, it was best they finished this as quickly and efficiently as possible.

He exited the helicopter and kept close to Elly. Gamer boy provided so many viable options, with all of them being great ideas depending on how you looked at things. Sage gave it a bit of thought before answering.

"I say the first plan is better. Less chance of getting in each other's way, smaller groups to cover more ground, and we can get in and out faster. It's riskier, but if we're careful, I'm sure we can handle it."

 

[Nobody Special]

GIANE LEONE
Location: DWMA, Lake near Lot A
Interacting: Juno, Starwulf, Team Praetorian
Partner: Juno
Shirt of the day: Here
Tags: Azurian Dream simj26 FireMaiden JellySquishies Meredith Sir Les Paul Prizzy Kriyze
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“You did well.”

Gia’s eyes moved just in time to catch a glimpse of the blue-haired boy with the shark tie shooting a respectful nod in her direction. His eyes seemed fixated on her for a moment, and so she stared right back at him, refusing to back down from a staredown. What did she do well on? Today was already shaping up to be confusing.

The eye contact between the two broke when a familiar voice rang through Gia’s ears. She slightly turned her head to face her sorbet-haired partner, who had quickly grabbed hold of her hand to show her where the group was supposed to be headed.

“Ah, Juno~ Goddess of marriage, protector of women, counselor of the state– and, most importantly, the prettiest partner a girl could ask for. Miss me?” She cooed, now walking along with the rest of the team and listening to the rundown Jun was giving her. Orange irises flicked onto this ‘Bellamira’ she had mentioned, but she opted not to greet the girl. Interesting.

Gia’s response to the rest of Juno’s explanation was cut short, initially by her jolting forward to catch her as her foot got stuck on a root, and then by a suit-clad man– who apparently went by “Starwulf”. Their instructor, so it seemed. She listened halfheartedly to the man's instructions.

The rule section of the syllabus had bored Gia. That was, until she somehow found her own name further down the list. Her eyes met the disappointed gaze of her new mentor when he mentioned her smoking, and it took a lot of restraint not to roll her eyes at him.

She’d heard the story plenty of times– smoking was bad for you. However, there were plenty of other things that were bad for you that barely anyone seemed to bat an eye at. Candy, sitting down for too long, cracking your joints– all detrimental activities that nobody ever really got bitched at for. So why the hell was she always getting her ear talked off over a stupid cylindrical piece of paper stuffed with some plant? She clicked her teeth at Starwulf’s recommendation to get a nicotine patch. No thanks, asino.

To show a shred of obedience– albeit a false one– Gia followed in their silver-haired classmate’s footsteps and knelt down to lift a log up with a ‘humph!’, hoisting it up and resting it on her shoulder before walking over and shoving it into the ground full-force. She’d blow her lips off before doing push ups at this man’s command.

After watching Starwulf’s display of “Star-Style Slap Boxing” with an amused grin like a spectator who had paid to see a spectacle, she listened in to get an idea of what his training for them would be.

“Grab a bandana off some old man’s arm, huh?” She mused, eyes now fixated on the colorful pieces of fabric wrapped around their instructor’s limb. “Can’t be too hard. But…”

She raised a finger at the man’s hand. “I dunno ‘bout you guys, but I don’t particularly wanna get hit by that little super-slap ‘a his. And I got a feelin’ that little exhibition they just did wasn’t for nothin’.”

She continued to stare at the man as he perched atop one of the stakes they had just driven into the ground. There were a lot of options, and even more people. Having so many options to choose from was probably all a part of Starwulf’s plan– it would either rip this little group apart, or cause them to waste so much time converging a single one that they’d all be ripping stakes out of the ground in the blink of an eye. She wasn’t the biggest fan of taking losses, and she definitely wasn’t going to be the reason her partner would be subject to such a tedious punishment.

“Well, you can all sit back and watch for all I care.” She uttered, lifting her foot off of the ground to take a single step towards their mentor. Her eyes were still locked onto him, like an animal stalking its prey before striking.

“I’m gonna get one 'a those bandanas. Hell, maybe I'll take 'em all. Better get movin'.”

​

 

[The Regal Rper]

Ark | DWMA | Dall Island

He chuckled at the last line there. Rand's experience here was hopefully meant that aside from the spiders, they'd find other things just as entertaining.

A small part of him was looking forward to seeing what kind of creatures would try to hunt them down. In open space like this, unlike at the Tournament, he wouldn't have to worry about the collateral damage as much- even more, with these armbands he had less reason to spend as much time focusing on the amount of magic he was using. The benefits were all in his favor, the task now was just ensuring he kept in mind all they had done prior to reaching this point. Not letting his nerves get to him so easily as they had by a simple innocent statement made by Chanterelle.

Looking at the Toadstool Witch, Ark considered going over to her and saying something. Clearing the air was the right thing to do. The entire flight and even on the ship he had been avoiding conversing with Chant after the brief misunderstanding at the airport. The smart thing to do here would be to clarify the situation a bit if she thought he had been speaking in a manner she might have misunderstood. That look had rubbed him wrong though, and it wasn't because of her being upset or even the notion of a misunderstanding- it was just the general sense of defiance she in that moment gave him, that rubbed him wrong entirely. It very much so reminded him of his experiences with other Witches in the Realm. That sense of 'how dare you' do this or that in this setting in front of these people, in front of that person-- Chanterelle hadn't given him that sense of being like those types of Witches.

Sadly, he didn't feel like trying to reach out when he thought about the way she'd been staring at him before. It hadn't been her fault- he knew that, maybe she had misunderstood. When she had introduced herself, she had mentioned lacking in cultural awareness on some degree, this was just an example of that. There was that pinch of annoyance though- that minor sense of irritation that was spiked from being aware of how she'd been looking at him before. It reminded him a bit too much of Realm Witches, the specific kinds he had been doing his best to avoid now that he was more favorable in the limelight after his status boost.

Still staring at her, he decided to look at the ground to avoid drawing awkward attention. It wasn't that he was scared on approaching her. Quite the opposite honestly. He just had no interest in ruining the current decent atmosphere trying to clear up a easy misunderstanding, and part of that was because he had this odd presumption trying to clear up the misunderstanding would be more of a headache than it was worth.

The number of times he had tried to clarify something to a Realm Witch back home, when he had been younger- it made it feel like he was already starting to feel a migraine build.

It was probably just the experience though, which made him feel that way. Maybe Raph who was a closer friend to her than he, could do the clarifying instead. The last thing he wanted to do was walk up to Chant and have to deal with some sort of cold shoulder. That would just irritate him- and he had no interest in dealing with that kind of social bicker when there were things to do.

Deciding instead to go to one of the crates and with a crowbar, break it open to get his gear, Ark checked the armor to make sure the pieces inside were all set accordingly in its casing. Once he'd closed it back up, he moved to the briefcase he had put down behind him, flicked it open, and then pulled out his Demon Tool gloves.

Clearing his throat he called out.

"I'll be starting the setup now! So for the most part, keep an ear out for when I tell you guys to stop moving!" Slipping one of the armbands off and then clicking it to a loop on his belt, Ark called upon his magic and the gloves burned a bright orange momentarily before dulling.

Inhaling deeply, Ark exhaled slowly. His arms coming together as he made an almost Taichi like motion of inhalation and exhalation. Only after a few seconds of doing this, did he stop, lift his foot up and then leaning forwards as he brought his weight down on that raised leg, did he slam the ground with his shoed foot.

A pulse of magical energy was sent out into the ground. Like a sonar, it stretched for a good four hundred feet around him, everything it touched painting an image in his mind. From Rand to the crates, to Maria working on her dolls, to the location of Chant and Raph, every one and everything- on land and under it, save for the very waves where his geo-sonar fizzled, became a clear painting with a clear estimation of the exact location in his head. With each living person struck by the wave, there was a something of a flash or a dot of sorts that formed on his 'map'. When the magical sonar reached its zenith of how far he wanted it to extend, it faded, leaving him only faintly aware of what was just beyond the radius.

Ark opened his eyes and looked around. If he was going to do this he needed to be aware of just where everyone was so he wouldn't end up making a mistake and shifting the sand in a manner that could hurt someone by accident. Earth manipulation looked easy with how he used his Demon Tools, but it took practice, precision, and a some patience to get as good at doing this as he had become. A small mistake and he could overshoot which could lead to accidents or wasteful expenditure. Though with these armbands, expenditure was the least of his problems now.

Flexing his fingers, Ark moved his hand up and took off the second ring on his arm, leaving the third there. Again, he slipped the ring onto with the next one where his utility belt was.

The runes on his gloves burned to life, and he felt the magic rush in through them, channeling it into his fingers, he kneeled down and then slammed both his hands, like claws into the sand.

There was a shift when he did it. Every grain of sand on the ground, subtly twitched- gently shifted within 500ft. It was unnoticeable to them, didn't even qualify as an earthquake, but to him- with this Demon tool sensor, it was like he was practically in water and feeling the vibrations of someone cannonballing into the pool.

Ark sighed, like a person did entering the spa. Magic was deeply rooted in the earth itself, Earth Shaman and their connection to the very nature itself, had been one of the very reasons why he had chosen to adapt his magic into this form. That knowledge that they pulled and adapted fundamentally from the Wild Mana that emanated from all of nature, was what made him think about how easy it would be to do the same by using his environment instead of relying on raw conjuration and construction. Right now, as he sank his hands into the warm sand, feeling it practically go up past his wrists, he had a sense of vague awareness of the mana here that was untamed and influenced the island itself. It made him wonder just what he could do here, what this Lull could allow him the freedom to do.

The runes on his gloves still glowed even as his hands came out. Slowly, Ark rose, hands up and the sand particles he was effecting, grew wider in the radius he was trying to reach.

Shoving his hands in the sand had only been to ground him, covering a small radius of four feet- now, now he extended it. On his feet, Ark shifted his footing stance- mimicking a karate stance, his arms pulled into his sides with how he spread his legs out to where they were almost shoulder length apart and his knees squared. The radius extended shooting out like a wave as he did this- not one visible to the eye but one that he could feel. Subtly, sand particles vibrated. To the others it sort of looked like he was doing what he had been doing last time, exercise- but what they did not see or physically feel from what he was doing, was merely just a small part of the experiment he was performing, and a piece of the show. There was a lot of magic here, and with the Lull- Ark was experimenting, testing on just what this current state would allow him to do.

Only once he had covered the range he wanted, extending past Rand and encompassing their base, did he exhale lightly from his nose and then shoot both his arms out, focusing it into a point and once he had, as he shot both his arms out, he brought two of his fingers down on both hands.

Instantly on the radius around them, a large moat formed as the ground collapsed into itself.

The earth mage however, was not done.

He stomped. "Hup", left. "Hup", right, like a sumo wrestler. A test. Each stomp sent out the tiniest tremble through the small little island he had created for them. The moat itself was deep- enough so that it would completely swallow up a child.

Once his other foot landed, Ark jumped, leaping forward- and when he landed- the ground underneath him, shifted into an orange-like stone. He stomped, and around him the sand rose up only barely and shifted again into orange-like stone before he flexed his fingers and they connected to his little island of stone on the beach.

He hummed nonchalantly. Observing his work. Casually he tapped his shoed heel against the stone, testing its sturdiness.

"Alright!" he called out. "Everybody pause what you are doing I'm about to shift this whole place!"

With a jump off his sandstone platform, Ark hit four feet into the air, landed on the ground and when he did- the whole place shifted. The tile shapes that had been made in the sand, shifted into sandstone- it coalesced then just suddenly solidified. Standing, sitting, whatever, whoever, everything on this little small base shifted- but as Ark rose bringing his splayed hands up along with his body to a crouched stance, he closed his hands into fists and the area evened out perfectly, hard stone replacing the sand that had once been there. The only sign he'd done anything at all, being a subtle little tremor that faded as soon as he released his magical hold on the little land he'd made.

Careful inspection would find he hadn't just changed the surface they'd been standing on- but had physically altered the whole little piece of land they had been on into hard sedimentary stone.

Rolling his shoulders and looking at his work he nodded to himself, satisfied. "I'm off to work on those defenses."

Mentions: N/A

Interactions: Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun Meredith

 

[Mook-LandStrider]

Evangeline Konstantine

Paris
Team Stitches:
Sir Les Paul Prizzy Kriyze Merciless Medic EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun​

What could be said? They were supposedly going after someone that could kill them and oddly enough, Eva wasn't overly upset with that. Her strong face hid the fact that she was somewhat scared, but she also knew that in the end it would all end up that way. One of the hardest things she had to deal with was letting go and coming to terms with that fact that death was just something that happened. Still, as much as she had worked through that all… she of all people knew that death wasn’t always the end of someone. Sometimes they lingered, like a phantom just beyond the veil, in the corner of minds and laying buried beneath grief and anguish.

Eva let out a small sigh before looking up as Zelda began to speak once more. She hadn’t expected Zelda to mess with them, at least not like this. The others were far more upset than she was, yet she felt their relief, annoyance and how much Zelda had managed to tick them off. That all was the least of her worry. She hadn’t been fully paying attention, so the truth of the situation only hit her once Zelda had finished speaking, her mind starting to put the pieces together like a large puzzle. A woman, using fire, and most likely a witch.

It was like time stopped, the memories of a claustrophobic flurry ripping through her mind like a series of buzz saws, rending rationality and sparking fear wherever the blades struck. Sitting in her chair, Eva seized up like a corpse deep in Rigor mortis. Taking a shallow breath, she began to tremble lightly, starting with her hands which she quickly hid under the table. Clenching her fists, she finally managed to take a breath, the tightness in her chest starting to make her uncomfortable. Finally, after what felt like excruciating eons, Eva took another breath.

Up and on her feet before she had even a second to process what she was doing, she must have seemed more in line with Gauss standing up a moment before her rather than the sudden gesture it actually was. She hadn’t even realized Gauss had stood up but was thankful he had done so, explaining what she was experiencing was never something she enjoyed doing… especially on a mission where others were expecting you to keep your shit together. If they were to go into the catacombs, Eva would have to keep it together. A light in the darkness was needed, even if she herself was barely keeping her own light lit.

Clinging to that thought, she looked to Gauss, then to the others, nodding in agreement. “It-Its best if we… if we get going.” Eva managed to get out, her voice a far cry from the confident dismissal they had heard only a minute or two before. Feeling like the walls were beginning to close in on her, Eva did the only thing she could do, which was getting out of the Café and into the open. Making her way out of the Café, Eva immediately put her arms up, hands atop her head, and took several deep breaths. Jumping up and down a few times, Eva did her best to get her body moving once more from the intense and paralyzing feeling of dread she felt fighting to take control. With the vehicle rolling up, she quickly got into the back and put her head down, leaning lightly against Sara and doing her best to remain relatively relaxed.

When the vehicle finally rolled up, and they all disembarked, Eva seemed somewhat better off, yet she remained somewhat distant, lacking the bubbly attitude she had emanated only hours before. Perking up at hearing her name, she looked over at Emmett and gave a small smile and wave. Listening intently to what was said, she once more felt a shiver of apprehension shoot up her spine. Tensing up, she took another deep breath, closing her eyes and managing to center herself. Despite it all, she promised herself she wasn’t going to run away. If this was as dangerous as was being said, she couldn’t and wouldn’t leave anyone… especially not now, not again.

Walking over to the back of the truck, she placed her hand on the back of the bed and took a moment to look towards the hellish environment they were heading into. Staring for a long moment, she took in the sights, knowing that innocent people were dying and that they and the other agents were the only hope the city had to avert a total catastrophe. Bouncing on the tips of her toes twice she finally got into the back of the truck with the others. Looking around, she actually managed to let out how she was feeling, “I'm afraid.” she admitted.

 

[Merciless Medic]

​

Zelda Zemo
Rendezvous Point, Paris, France | March 28, 2067 | Morning

Zelda’s attention was pulled away for the moment, something in her earpiece had alerted her of what was going on. Her face fell stoic and her jaw tensed. Fuck… Ignoring the irritation from the students, she immediately stood up and finished her drink. “We are leaving now. There’s a truck that will take us to the rendezvous point. Let’s go.” She jogged out of the cafe, leaving behind some money she had paid before they left. She made it into the truck and waited for the students to hop in.

Once they were secure, they were off. As they approached the rendezvous point, she realized it had been inappropriate to make an off-handed, but very real, joke about Astila being here. This was way more serious than she had thought. While she knew it only took a single second for an already bad situation to become far worse, she didn’t expect it to go so south and for the two teams to leave them behind. They were supposedly late and her eyes narrowed. Great.

Once they arrived, she stood beside Emmett, her expression grave. Emmett’s demeanor matched Zelda’s stoicism. After looking him over once, she realized Emmett had taken another dose of one of his combat stims. Always, she held conflicting emotions on the matter. It worked and it showed a net positive in results, so she couldn’t complain but she always worried about his health in the long run.

She felt a pang of guilt - one that made the corner of her lip pull down - at his mention of the explanation of the situation. She should have done better. Which she will start doing now. Emmett explained all that he needed to though, and even showed them their gear before they were to be shipped off.

Zelda took to the passenger seat before Emmett got into the jeep, her ear out for any questions she could possibly answer while her eyes watched their surroundings warily. Dani’s question, she wasn’t sure if she could answer. Though, she tried once they had all piled into the jeep. “I am not a hundred percent certain, but there are two possibilities. Either it’s nationalistic pride and they want to do it themselves as it is their home, or they don’t like us. Helping them should change their tune in time.” She shrugged. “As to being blind to who is doing this, we’ll play it by ear and adapt when the situation calls for it. That’s why we need you all to scout. We aren’t sure of who we’re fighting against besides a woman with fire abilities but the real danger is the spreading of fire by the pyromaniac skeletons for now. Obviously, the threat priority will change when you all find information we can use and we’ll change courses from there. Always be on your toes.”

Interactions: Gauss, Dani, Nadia, Eva, Sara, Noah, Emmett
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun Mook-LandStrider Prizzy Kriyze

 

[Merciless Medic]

Sara Middleton​

March 28, 2067
Location: Rendezvous Point, Paris, France
Interactions: Eva, Emmett, Zelda, Noah, Gauss, Nadia, Dani
Mentions: N/A
Prizzy Kriyze Mook-LandStrider Sir Les Paul EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun

As Zelda spoke, Sara realized how in the dark their mentor was in all of this. Was she in the dark because they just didn’t tell her or was she withholding information? The humor fell away into what almost smelled like melancholy. As she spoke that it could potentially be a witch, her eyes darted to Eva when she smelled a heightened sense of fear. Was she that afraid of witches? She put a hand on Eva’s shoulder, standing with her more so to calm her down and help her feel not so alone.

When Zelda rushed them out, Sara practically inhaled the rest of her food in record time before leaving, sitting next to Eva and making sure she was okay. Once they arrived at the destination, Sara saw the state this side of Paris was under. With a look of awe on her face, she spun around as she walked beside Eva, staring at the smoke-laiden sky before setting her eyes on Emmett. He seemed so different. But that was to be expected, especially in a situation as dire as this. She smiled at Emmett as he greeted Eva. That was nice at least.

Sara couldn’t help but think what Zelda had said before didn’t quite measure up to the severity of the mission, but she believed that Zelda didn’t know it got this bad, judging by Zelda’s more morose scent. Emmett went over the issue at hand and showed off what gear they had, and even gave room for questions. The thought that those guys could flip cars had her thinking back to the fight she had against Iris. At least none of them were witches. However, Eva needed tending to. She went into the jeep and sat beside Eva once more, leaning her shoulder against Eva’s and holding her hand. Even with the barest of connections, she tried to give her the calm she held within her own soul. Help her see that they can do this. At her admittance, Sara nodded.

“That’s okay. Fear is what makes some of us strive to be better. Fear is what pushes us. Sometimes, we need that. But you don’t have to think that you’re alone. I’m with you, as well as the rest of us, and we can do this. Our mentors can help us when we need it.” With an encouraging smile and a wag of her tail, she smiled wide and hugged her weapon partner and friend around the shoulders.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Noah Wiley​

March 28, 2067
Location: Rendezvous Point, Paris, France
Interactions: Gauss, Emmett, Zelda, Nadia, Dani, Eva, Sara
Mentions: N/A
Prizzy Kriyze Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen

She’s got to be fucking joking…

Who would use Astila fucking Stein as some motivational big bad to get them to work together and take this seriously? Eva looked shaken up more after she rescinded that it could be a witch and he found that strangely odd. Either way, Nadia didn’t seem as upset, nor was Dani. Or maybe they were just really good at hiding it now. He shared in Gauss’ frustration with his mentor. He already didn’t trust her and this wasn’t good for someone like him.

Death, how much he wanted to strangle this bitch.

He was about to speak, only for Zelda to usher them out of the cafe and into an awaiting truck. He ate the rest of his food, taking some for the road and hopping into the back. Once they arrived at their destination, the realization hit him like a sack of bricks. Well, someone didn’t do their job properly.

Emmett was doing a really good job at staying away from his distrust list, as he explained the situation and showed them what was in the box. Cool. Stuff to fight the fires and keep their lungs from breathing it all in. Cool.

Zelda? Not so cool.

The ice bitch and her meister retreated into the jeep and Noah hopped in, sitting closest to the jeep’s entrance and next to Gauss. He heard Sara’s little motivation speech to Eva and chose to ignore it, also ignoring Zelda’s explanation to Dani in the process. He couldn’t give two shits about what she said. He looked at Gauss before turning his head back to the hellish landscape they were passing by, the land getting worse as they traveled towards the center. “So, Gauss, got any plans? Or do we play by ear ‘n’ see what we can find first?”

 

[Merciless Medic]

Raphael Valerias​

March 28, 2067
Location: Campsite, Dall Island
Interactions: Maria, Rand, Ark, Chanterelle
Mentions: N/A
RedArmyShogun Sir Les Paul The Regal Rper Meredith

Raphael found himself bored and vaguely concerned. He ignored Rand’s statistic on flight crashes, not really caring to memorize that sort of knowledge. Ark dismissed his concerns, but Raphael still kept an eye on him. He got inside the plane, resting against a chair and looking up as the monitor displayed all sorts of beautiful scenery of Dall Island, before going to the spiders. He chuckled. He couldn’t really help it. Really? Spiders? The history of Dall Island was interesting, but that’s not what he cared to know. He cared to know what they were fighting and how to use the leylines to their advantage. While there, it seemed it was possible for them to just kind of go haywire with their magic.

He started to pay attention to where its main leyline was. The large lake in the western half of the island near its center. Hm… What if they were to go there and bathe in those magical, life-imbuing waters? If the creatures were more aggressive due to the Lull, they would have to be careful. The spiders were rather large and imposing, and the way they littered their home with webbing to alert intruders - each strand sending its own vibrations… It was rather inspirational…

Hm, he should copy that.

Apparently, the Orb Weaver had something to do with this though, with mana-draining thread. He realized it was probably a good idea to rip out that page he had of strength-draining chains…

The main spiders that were weak to mana were Greywalkers. Interesting. It reminded him of what a teacher of his long ago had said. ‘One who blindly clings to their strength and sustenance will soon become their weakness.’ Like him with madness.

Death damn it…

Raphael only bothered to look through the diary entries and diagrams of those creatures to better understand how to kill them. He didn’t really care about anything else and while that may bite him in the ass later, he didn’t care. With Ark busy learning about stuff, he focused on having chats with Chanterelle. At least she seemed better. He had noticed her tension when Ark spoke to her and he wondered what she didn’t know or realize. Was there a misunderstanding? Probably.

But he’d only really do it if Ark asked. Otherwise, it wasn’t his problem right now.

As they landed, Raph calmly got up and picked up his stuff he set somewhere, the bumpy landing he had grown accustomed to as he had plenty of plane rides with his father for his business. At the mention of looking at the construction of anchors for an aircraft carrier, Raphael indeed was curious, but he didn’t think that was important right now. Still, to humor him, he did so anyway.

The anchors, hm? Made with magitech inscribed metal? When it was explained to him, he was told it allowed the anchors to shift their density, much like his own weight change spell but more controllable and it stayed at the density they wanted it to be. All they have to be is taut to be in contact with each other and then with the boat.

Interesting.

As they got off the ship and got on the island, Raph only took a moment to relish in the hot sun’s rays, the sea breeze, and the atmosphere that hung around them. It was eerily beautiful. He looked over to see Rand had pulled out several packs of white powder. Cocaine? No, surely they weren’t doing drugs. It didn’t look like the powder he was accustomed to seeing his friends snort up their noses. When Rand explained what it was, he chuckled. “Oh. So, not snow. Gotcha.” He chuckled, figuring someone would know what he meant.

When he was given what to do, he nodded. Just undo the boxes and get out the cages and chests. That sounded easy. He explained further what the others were doing, then something about packs. The off-handed addition of ‘try not to die’ had him smirking. Ah, humorous.

He went ahead, grabbed a crowbar, and began to undo the lids of the box crates. While he wasn’t particularly strong, a crowbar did fantastic work in cracking open the lid. The cages were of interesting make. But he ignored that in favor of getting open as many crates as he could. From crates that could hold the smallest of basketball-sized spiders to that of the bigger spiders, he cracked them open one by one. Then he went to work cracking open a side of the crates so he may pull the cages out. He was almost done with the cages when Maria came up. He smiled at her, beads of sweat already forming on his forehead and he had to take off his black jacket, having it tied around his waist to show off lean, yet not really impressive muscle. “That would be much appreciated, but please do tend to your dolls first. Unless you want to help me get this done faster so I can help you tend to your dolls, yeah? Favor for a favor?” Did he ask this because he wanted to help Maria? Partially. He also didn’t want her to kill him.

That was when he felt something funny in the sand. Was it… Moving? Trembling? He looked over to see Ark doing some interesting movements. Before he knew it, there was a moat being made. Then when Ark said to pause, Raphael stopped moving - even breathing - entirely as the sand became hardened sandstone. Huh. That was cool.

He went back to the crate he was breaking down and flashed Maria a smile. “So, favor for a favor?” He asked as he cracked open the lid to one of the bigger cages.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley
Rank Fate Agent

Location France, Paris, Transport Truck
Mission Labyrinth of Flames
Status Frustrated

​

Tags: Merciless Medic Prizzy Kriyze RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

"It is hard to plan, Noah, when the source of your information isn't exactly clear. For a plan, we need objectives. For objectives, we need a clear idea of what is going on," Gauss replied, answering Noah with a transparent disdain of how they were treated prior to the arrival of Emmett. "I am no superior to anyone, but if left to formulate a plan of my own, I would start first with a scene evaluation. Unless there is some clear factor indicating the need for an immediate shift in priorities, my first choice for objective would be to assure the safety of civilians and ideally minimize damage. I personally find elimination of a target secondary to the security of civilians. Once we determine the gen pop is safe, I would then attempt to isolate a small few or even single one of these flaming skeletons to gauge their threat level. If they're a hoard we can defeat in swathes, but are in fact in huge number, combat tactics change. If each individual one is a beastly threat, then we need to approach with more caution. In either case, depending on volume, it would be wise to use the environment to our advantage. I wouldn't dare to plan as to how to proceed either into the catacombs, of which there are only a few entrances we can use, or to investigate their source further until those two objectives of scene security and initial target elimination are met," Gauss continued to explain, this time in a more serious tone with an actual idea of how to approach the situation. Once serious, Gauss much like Emmett sounded considerably different. The playboy was gone, the strategist was in. He was wordy, but accurate to a tee.

Once Gauss was given direction by Emmett, despite how quickly it made the research he had done prior moot, he was quick to follow. Get in truck, load up on equipment. That much, he could do. He took some time to toy with the devices in front of him. He wanted an idea of what it would actually mean to use the pressure sensor, and how this particular mask felt when slipped on. Any advantage Gauss could gain, he would. His suit in the tournament was a testament to that. If anything, the lake of details in this mission frustrated him as it was a scenario in which he could not use his wealth to fund some type of advantage. Perhaps a fire retardant suit, or something of the like. Tools for caving specifically. He considered getting them regardless, but ultimately decided not to blindly become reliant on that tactic in situations he wasn't sure to gain a net benefit. Besides that, it seemed Emmett had done a fine job providing them with resources.

"Fear is a survival instinct," Gauss said, once pulling off his gas mask for his test fit. "Fear is not weakness, nor is it shameful. You need not abolish fear, but instead weaponize it. Fight and flight are two parts of the same response. Control it, and fear can make you fight as hard as rage or anger," Gauss commented, adding what he could to the supportive response Sara gave to the emotional one Eva announced.

"I do have a few questions. What is the blast effect and radius on these grenades, and what is their delay? Also, do we know the names of anyone we will have to work with or under?" Gauss asked, yet again being quite serious in his demeanor. His questions were blunt, but useful. He got what little sarcasm he wanted out of his system with his first answer to Noah.

 

[Azurian Dream]

Team Reaper
Agent: Ashi Monsera
Partner: Adrian
Location: Lot E

Ashi sighed mentally at Reiko's response only stocking the fire that Ashi had almost calmed in Adrian, and now Adrian saw her words as an annoyance even trying to threaten her which caused a mused look on her face not in saying she would like to see him try, but in the moxie of the boy. With that said she followed him keeping her hands to her backside as she followed Adrian with or without his permission. The assignment was survival retrieval not a bad first run to gauge talents, and to regauge her field capability. Eloise made the notion of her skill to which Ashi noted as Jarvis gave his thoughts.

"Agreed we should split two on one item retrieval. Normal pairings would see trouble against the enemies, yet it would give us a better chance to gain all three components. We can all reconvene, and then turn to assist those who have yet to return if time validates it," Ashi added not seeing much to add as the most important ideas had already been covered, and placed out. Also given the violent urges Adrian needed to get out it would be best for fewer people to be around. The real question would be would she need to take her term with Adrian a bit more aggressively to get her point across to him... this mission's first half would decide that very quickly unfortunately if things would need to get chaotic.

"With that said I am a zombie weapon dual split chakram I have a few tricks up my sleeve via earth manipulation. I also am very resilient, and well "am built like a tank" I am told," Ashi smiled giving the just of her capabilities though it would be better to show in tell which she would be doing real soon.

.......................................................................

Team Praetorian
Agent: Artem Belouse
Partner: Bellamira
Location: Lot A Near The Pond

"Alright," Artem responded, not really needing much else on info for the objective other than bring over logs. Just as Miroku, Artem brought them over as instructed by Starwulf to be chopped in. The rest of what the man had to say was ramblings about what he thought was not okay for them to do, and quite frankly Artem saw no point to respond to it nor reason to be offended by it. Though it seemed rather controlling a list of what the man expected there was a line of they were things he simply didn't want them to do when they were in his presence which more or less was a fair request in the end. As he waited for Starwulf, and his friend to do their part he turned to Jun who much like Artem, and Bellamira had some prior interaction with her new partner Gia. It also seemed she had a question that made the shark teeth ponder if he really had one for their new mentor. As the boy straightened the log up he noted Temperance's question who up to this point had zoned out a little watching Miroku a moment ago they clearly had no interactions up to this point. Her question was something he had pondered as well. Was this an actual exercise or was this for an actual school structure?

It was here that Starwulf instead had a quick match with Erikk in a display of powerful single strikes that jolted very powerful momentum in a single moment. Erikk did well yet it was quite clear Starwulf was the master here. However, Erikk proved himself efficient by being able to get back up. It was indeed a strong display of firework force it however was not in full interest to Artem the method however like many other styles Artem was considering the many ways he could break it down to fit his own style having now seen the stance, and the effort he would garner some time with Bella to work out his own style to it... but that would be a venture for later. The bandanas were the challenge, and Gia in particular was the first to step forward clearly taking the challenge personally. Artem with the log duty over walked over to Bellamira.

"Shall we throw our name in for the bout," he asked his partner lazily looking towards Starwulf curious as to how such a fight could trigger his bloodlust, or would it be even able to trigger before the man could wipe them out? That thought brought a bit of spark of intrigue for Artem to take this seriously.

There was a bit of a laugh from the gothic woman across their circle of peers; she had been quiet barring a short response to their greetings on the walk to the park and silent again as she observed Starwulf’s scolding with a twitch of the brow. At first, she was painfully neutral; like porcelain sitting on a high shelf just out of sight. Keeping an eye on the group and judging their conversation. At his words, though, it was as if a switch had been flipped with the providence of a task to perform. She reached across for his hand, back bending in a sort of arc in a performative stumble, but as she caught his eyes and grabbed for his hand she spoke quickly- “catch this.”

Without much more words needed between the two, Artem caught her hand before jumping off of the closest log pole quickly getting up high to meet Starwulf gaze at eye level as he felt his bond with Bellamira latch to her walls with his blank slate. The transformation happened by the time they were a foot off the ground; it was a comparatively slow motion but one that indicated practice nonetheless. His stance was way different now as he took a ballet-like stance with one leg slightly off the pole. With a spin of his right hand, he brandished Bellamira’s scalpel form like a dagger his eyes now latching onto the target Starwulf like a snake ready to strike at the first form of movement. While Gia/Jun were ready to strike from below Artem/Bellamira were ready to strike from above. All that was needed now was to see how Temperance/Miroku would pine in. It was clear for Artem at least that this would be a group effort even if not to work together to get them all to make sure someone got one of those pieces of cloth off Starwulfs arm.​

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Nadia Semyonov - Paris, France​

Things would progress rapidly as Nadia found herself suddenly riding in the back of a truck while parts of the city burned around them. Though it wasn't apocalyptic, not yet and for now she actually could fight back. With her smirk back on her face, Nadia listens to the rest and digs through the collection of items in the back. It was a shame she wasn't a true ice giant, then she could just wave her hand and deal a blow to this if it were magical in nature, or elementally dampening it if it were not, in such much as the area around her becoming hostile to such flames rather than forming ice. Listening to Dani, Nadia gives a bit of a snort at that and chimes into the answer given by Zelda. "It's just the French being the French. Though I cannot say I much would care to have a science project around if Moscow were on fire."

Picking out a pair of gas masks and a couple of the lanterns, Nadia throws a matching set to Dani before staring at the grenades, all of the talk on them being a united team was about to be proven horribly wrong as Nadia took some issue with the unstable girl and her cowardice and Thaddeus and his plans. Letting them all have their own words, she in kind had some of her own.

"Debil... What are you on about with all these plans, we have orders, to rejoin our teams, venture below ground and find answers. We are to meet the enemy and annihilate them with force. If you wish to save the Civilians, then take care of the threats those firemen cannot. There is no time for an investigation or gauging the enemy carefully to gain some hidden advantage. We already know the strength of them, and the situation is pretty fucking obvious if you open your eyes. As funny as it may sound, I trust the civilians to handle things up here, I do not trust emotionally charged one stars down there anymore than they do our band of fuck ups. If it becomes too much we retreat and revisit planning, but victory favors the bold, not the careful." Against his notion in full, she was ready to just head underground and completing the task with as much force and violence she could muster.

With that all said she turned her gaze towards the front and adds on; "Keeping out of one another's way in that maze as we find what is left of the one stars may be for the best. We aren't meant to fight whoever is behind this, find them or whatever and report back. Unless I think I can take her or have no choice but to attempt I will just smash everyone that should be dead till I find what I need or reach the halfway point on this mask filter, and I'll bring a second filter or mask because I know how this shit goes. But yes, the question on those grenades so we don't use them on ourselves."

With that her gaze turns to Eva, she disagreed fully with the assessment Gauss had and she wasn't too keen to be supporting a fragile link. Still, she had seen fear once, she had watched it in the field over the years, in the camps and conflict that churned the city with the actions of abominations and heavy artillery. For that reason alone she bothered to offer the girl some advice, even as she rested soundly on the way to the front as she thought of it. "Fear is the great betrayer, the killer of self and others. Listen friend, I know it seems pretty bad right now, but it's about to get a whole lot worse.

There is also a third F to Fight and Flight, one I find very common. Freeze. I do not care if you are scared or not, piss covered pants or bravado, so long as you do the job I am pleased. Internalize your mind, ask what you should do next, or rather know what you need do and work towards that. Even if the tunnels become engulfed with flames, continue alongside your Meister, do not run alone and do not freeze."

Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul Prizzy Kriyze EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley
Rank Fate Agent

Location France, Paris, Transport Truck
Mission Labyrinth of Flames
Status Frustrated

​

Tags: Merciless Medic Prizzy Kriyze RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

Noah asked a question. Gauss answered said question. Nadia proceeded to tear that apart for absolutely no valid reason.

This did not make Gauss happy. Quite the opposite, in fact, it enraged him. Stacking on top of the pent up frustration he already had with Zelda, Gauss and his ego hit a boiling point that was just too much to remain silent.

He at the very least did listen. Of the remaining comments made by Nadia, the only one that held any merit was the freeze response. She was accurate in her description of what the sympathetic nervous system would do: fight, flight, or freeze. It did many other physiological things as well, and typically freezing before one acted regardless of whether it was fight or flight was a part of both systems. What this dumb ice behemoth of a bitch didn't seem to realize is that the concept of harnessing that reaction would in part include this freeze response. It was a natural instinct. It was the first part of a physiological system that if Nadia had ever read even the basics of an anatomy and physiology book would know. It's not even college course material at this point.

Not a single fucking word that spilled from her mouth was truly necessary, at least not in the contradictory tone she spat it out.

"Nadia," Gauss said, announcing his next series of direct comments at her. "You're a fucking idiot." he said, as if informing her for the first time.

"If you dug the frozen shit out of your ears, you would know both Mentors told us this was a scouting mission. We in fact don't know the strength of our targets. We don't know their number, their actual origin, or if they're even magical in nature. Whatever the fucking French have learned, they apparently haven't shared. And, I know this requires some critical thinking, but if shit was under control, you'd think parts of Paris wouldn't still be on fire after three days," Gauss replied to her, in a calm but vicious tone, as if scolding a child and and belittling a drunk all at once.

"What I don't trust is the dumb bitch that clearly isn't listening to the objectives outlined by her superiors, and that's second only to the heartless one with no consideration to the civilians of this city. If they weren't here to protect, there'd be no reason to stop all of Paris from burning to the ground. Get off that Russian pedestal and use you're fucking brain. You want to rush into a fiery death, so be it, but don't expect me to pull your ass out because you were the only one disregarding direct orders," he added, with no small amount of spite pouring out of his mouth. What he said, he meant. He would let her burn if she was going to continue on like this; not like he hadn't left others behind for less.

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - Dall Island​

Watching as Raph went about his duties, he seemed really into it and moving with speed and purpose that made her feel a little tired from just watching him... Though it was not like she intended to physically help to this extent at least. Though she was curious if all these boxes had cages, surely there must be other things in here. Boxes inside of boxes seemed a perverse waste of resources. It reminded her of packaging for 90% of the things from stores, she also bet the same companies then donated money to environmental efforts. "Hmph.. Boxes inside of boxes how perverse."

It was then that her attention shifted back to him as she made note of all he had done up till now, was this the work of his madness? He always seemed to try a bit too hard with any task he was given, point in case here now. But it was his offer of a favor for a favor that made her pause, well that and Ark working the earth and asking the rest do not move for the time being. The earth beneath them suddenly became much more firm, arcing a brow at this, her previous thoughts with Mirai seemed true, he had not went all out in that fight. Impressive.

Stomping at the ground below her feet, Maria connects strands to her medium doll and smiles thinly at that; "Alicia is how I intended to help you. I make use of her to move supplies and shipments often, though I too shall help." Though why was he so afraid? Ah yes, she had threatened his life, though she also left an apple for him, that should have shown she was giving him a chance, did she mess up again?

"Huh... A favor for a favor is it? As to helping the small ones, it's not personal but I will not trust just anyone in applying the coating, you could help in another way, that is oiling up the weapons and armor I've brought respectively. So yes, we can work akin to that." With that and a wave of her hand she sends her construct to pick up the largest of the crates and walks it over to stand among the rest as she then reaches for her tool belt to start opening it.

Merciless Medic The Regal Rper Meredith Sir Les Paul

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Adrian Hackney​

"The Maiden"​

Species Human
Partner Ashi
Rank Fate Agent

Location Nevada, the Deadly Trail
Mission Introductions
Status Seething

​

Tags: Azurian Dream Prizzy Kriyze QuirkyAngel EmperorsChosen Serei2477 RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper

​

"I am tired of waiting, Adrian announced. His tone carried all the message it needed: he hadn't calmed down in the slightest. If anything, said intensity was growing. "There are two options here, and I don't give a damn which you pick. Send me in the direction of a target, or become a target, Adrian added, explaining and in part even threatening what was about to occur if he didn't get some form of outlet for his frustration.

He breathed in deep for a moment, as if trying to calm himself, but internally, this had about the same effect as throwing a shot glass on a campfire. Things were taking too long. Decisions were taking too long. Planning was taking too long. His frustration didn't even allow him to consider the fact that he was, at least, out of the Lot. The Lot that had stirred so much of this frustration within him. The return to the start, this Sisyphean endeavor to make it through the program. These people just... judging him.

"You," he said, specifically looking to and calling out Elly. "I don't care about your plans. Use those pretty eyes of yours to tell me the location of the nearest target," he instructed her, not actually knowing if this was a feat that was within her ability but fuck if he wasn't hoping for some escape from this monotony. "I'm going there," he told them all, this time in a more general announcement, "And what the fuck you all do after, I don't care; just stay out of my way."

 

[The Regal Rper]

??? | Lake Tahoe | Deadly Trails

It was right after Adrian said that to Elly. The command to point him in a direction, that soul signatures sparked to life, becoming more noticeable.

There were 12 trails. 3 in the north, east, west, and south positions. On the eastern side, three trails signified the direction of Adrian's intended target. Northeast led to one group of souls. The direct east led to another group. Southeast, led to the final.

The most notable thing about these souls, was the fact that there was a heaviness in the air that came from the direction of each soul's group. It was thick, like being in a fog and feeling the thick condensation that lingered in the atmosphere. The strange thing was that each group had this sense of thick presence to it. Elly, being the most sensitive of the lot, picked up on this almost as quickly as she picked up on the sudden presence of the souls entering her range of detection.

Mentions: N/A

Interactions: QuirkyAngel Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Serei2477 Azurian Dream Prizzy Kriyze

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Eloise Keegan - The Deadly Trail
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Elly listened as Jarvis spoke next. For being apathetic about the whole thing and rather having not been dragged out of bed, he was quite intelligent. She suspected she would appreciate his company, as he wasn't an idiot, but also wasn't that eager to take the lead. He was correct. Were they a trustworthy and experienced group, the most efficient route would be for each pair within the team to go retrieve a part. However, that was if they were a trustworthy and experienced group. Eloise knew her limits well, and was confident she could make do even without the ability to resonate with Sage. However, the ability of the rest remained to be seen. Adrian clearly wasn't thinking, nor wanted to by how he would follow-up later. Jury was out on the zombie's applicability. She was level-headed and strong, but strong and skillful weren't synonymous. Zari and Jarvis worried her less, even though she knew next to nothing about the former. Truly, this was a test of Elly's stressors, her success relying upon others she couldn't adequately maneuver or control not screwing something up.

Sage appealed to the option of splitting, of which Eloise didn't see much option. Still, she couldn't help some anxiety given Adrian's state. She would just have to retrieve her part quickly and then circle around to potentially clean whatever mess became of their charge. Nonetheless, she wore a pleasant smile as if she weren't bothered. Even if the mentors and whomever else could hide from her, that didn't mean they could see through her. The meister could take solace in that fact.

Ashi spoke next, agreeing on that point. It would be her struggle alone, given she was paired with him. Whether she was simply confident or didn't consider how much her partner's angst would affect everything, Elly only hoped that she was right. Still, she nodded at her.

"Most undead are, or so I've experienced." Freedom from life meant freedom from certain limits as well. Either way, it was good to have one as an ally than an enemy.

And then, there was Adrian.

He was tired of waiting. Elly was certainly tired as well. Her expression didn't change much with his complaints nor his not-at-all-veiled threat. Yes, he would certainly be a project. However, midway through his speech, her eyes glanced slowly one direction, then another. The sudden onset of presences she could feel took more of her attention than the angry weapon in front of her. The Irishwoman couldn't say she liked all their tricks and games. Perhaps she was paranoid believing that it was a prod at her, but it certainly felt like it, especially given the weight of all their presences. Were they trying to show give them a beacon, or showing off? Elly could only guess at the moment.

However, as Adrian finished vocalizing his qualms and addressed her, Eloise perked up a bit and her gaze centered back on the group, and him in particular. She let out a bemused huff as she began walking forward before flashing a grin.

"Ah, ye still have some sense, hm?" She teased in a cheshire tone before moving along, not wanting him to explode before he was actually aimed properly. Elly spun around as she reached him, extending an arm vertically out due Southeast. "Only because you called my eyes pretty~ Straightaway in that direction. Southeast. Follow the trail and you'll get there, I surmise."

With that, Elly gave Adrian an "encouraging" slap on the back as she turns to pass him. "Have fun~ Try not to get us all charged, Mm?" She chimed before heading in the direction of one of the Northeast trails. "If there's no qualms, I think Sage and I will take the Northeast. The last group as I can feel them are directly East of here."

@Team Reaper

 

[Meredith]

An Unfortunate First Excursion

A Chanterelle post written in collaboration with Sir Les Paul for brevity.​

Interference from the island was in fact causing their earpieces to lose connection, and Rand wasn’t particularly happy about it. If they were so erratic here, on the relatively peaceful shoreline, there was no hope in them being reliable for the rest of the mission as they went inward when the fluctuations in mana flow and electromagnetic interference were sure to only intensify. This would be a problem that would plague them for their entire duration on the island, and communication was arguably one of the most important factors in both efficiency and safety.

It also delayed Chanterelle and her scouting, but at least gave Rand some amount of time to explain what he wanted her to look for on this outing. This close to the shoreline, it was likely to mostly only be vegetation. Given how different it was and Chanterelle’s expertise with plantlife in general, he wanted her to get a baseline of the flora native to the island and begin documenting what she found, how it compared to anything she might have understood about more regular flora outside of it, and persist with this journaling throughout their mission.

To assist with this, he offered her a handheld console of sorts. It could fit in the palm of the hand with a rest on the back for ergonomics, but opened up to reveal a scene that could be resized to eight, eleven and a half, or fourteen inches in height and five, seven, or nine inches in width. With it came a small stylus that could act as a pen to write on the transparent screen as if it were mere parchment, and a camera on it to document and insert pictures fairly easily. The user interface was simple and clean, and its functionality relatively limited as it was intended for this type of immediate field use. The learning curve was kept low.

And, aside from that device, she was given the first of several satellite communicators. Unlike the small earbuds and similar devices the DWMA used for virtually everything else, this device required being clipped to a belt or backpack or harness, weighed a fair bit, and was a solid two inches in thickness and five in width, all wrapped in a seemingly strong synthetic material. It worked fundamentally as a standard radio, tuned to the same channel the others would be on, but required picking up a small handset to utilize that clipped into place on the top of the device once its cover was unzipped. It would eventually become a cumbersome burden throughout their hike, but it was the only reliable form of communication they had, and in that sense was most necessary for the only individual that was leaving the immediate vicinity of the base.

The witch hadn’t gotten far before realizing the initial communications unit was.. Well, busted. The first test had been instigated without much preparation at all; just a foray into the trees, but their communications broke down as soon as they could no longer see each other, and so she returned to Rand and handed over her backpack while they discussed her kind of naturalistic mission.

For Chanterelle’s part, she first got rid of her gloves, pulling two long stripes of fabric from her bag and sitting down beside him to wrap her wrists and palms. Leaving her fingers free - they were much paler than the rest of her tan, and shone faintly in the sun - she stretched them first, moving through her wrists and ankles, her knees and elbows.

She palmed the handheld as she stretched, shoving it into a holster at her waist that had held her phone before: there was no need to bring it to the island when it wouldn't have reception anyway. There were half a dozen small rituals she observed before going out alone. She maintenanced each in turn, dutifully checking over her person, hair tied back into a tight utilitarian bun that ruined her curls with a thin layer of grey grease that smelled of embers and fat to keep the stray hairs close to her skull. There was no thought to changing out the overalls she'd started the day in; they had a utilitarian sort of cut only impeded by their suspenders adjusted taut against her shoulders.

There was something about her movement that marked Chanterelle as an animal, a large predator, hyperaware of her surroundings and deadly serious as she stalked from their port. For the half-dozen words the witch had spoken since they had left disembarked from the boat, her head tilted obviously as she focused to catch words murmured between her peers, but most of her focus ranged to seek the treeline with her wide eyes. "How far?" She questioned the mentor, not bothering to fix the flatness of her voice, already amping herself up for the walk alone. Her hiking boots sank deeply into the sand as the witch bounced impatiently on the balls of her feet, almost at the edge of the sand. "I assume this has a limited range?"

A few moments of silence hung in the air as she sent out that message. It was a simple relaying device. Press the button in, very low static, then speak. Release when done. Idiot-proof, really. Most of these devices were. This brief pause might have made one question whether or not it worked, but the voice of Rand came through fairly clearly after the delay. ”Shouldn’t be. These use a satellite uplink, so as long as you’re above ground, reception should be decent. It does have a delay,” he told her, his voice ending from the speaker on her handset. “Beauty,” she muttered back over the handset, holstering it back into place with a click as she pulled the small hand-device and fumbled with the camera.

The flora of the area was quite unlike anything that existed on the mainland, at least from the forests that Chanterelle would be accustomed to. It was tropical and that was likely new to some degree, but more so, each tree even on the outskirts of the island had large growth rings indicating rapid growth. Mana ran through them unlike virtually most plantlife–normally if plants had anything, it was minute. While the smaller foliage had less obvious signs of this, what remained the same were the signs of rapid growth and the lack of decay. The witch kneeled down in the lush grass, overimposed with the soft moss that was so common in enriched soil, taking pictures first of the scene in front of her and then moving closer: from the ground, to the specific blooms growing almost to her waist and the few leaves scattered and flipping live and wet and heavy in the wind, and finally a scattering of shots close enough to the ground that she was sure she had photographed more smaller bugs than she was able to even see on the screen. There, though, she holstered it again and ran her hands over the moss, tearing a piece off to drop it in one of the glass vials that had been in her waist satchel.

This shoreline was full of life. Absolutely enriched as if fertilizer had no limitation. But, where there was life, there was not death. At least, not a lot. Typically, a forest even of this kind would be a cycle of death and rebirth. To maintain a stable ecosystem, that cycle was intrinsic and this was a universal truth. Here, though, even the bacteria and fungi normally present for signs of death was so miniscule it was virtually starving. Sustaining this life without the death meant that this ecosystem was supporting all of this without one of the most important parts of the life cycle.

It was an uncomfortable realization, and the witch’s eyes narrowed, finger dipping into the lid of the vial. With a flick of her hand, she deposited a collection of spores into the container, willing them to magically grow and consume the moss. It rotted as she expected - the mold fed from the moss, and began to blacken, hardening from yellow to a brown-grey as she focused. With a light sigh, she searched her pockets for a pen, labeling the bottle as the moss deteriorated to rot: WARM FOREST MOSS + Fugilo Septica. There would probably not be much of the moss left by the time they returned to the school, but it was worth taking the proof of decay anyway. The witch considered writing down these observations, but they weren’t synced in any way; she had full confidence in her basic memory, she reasoned, as she pushed herself to her feet by the guidance of her fingers to counterweigh the pack.

This sort of steady motion into unknown space was familiar to her; the act made her feel like more of a cohesive unit of self than the uncertainty of the urban landscape could provide. Every ten, twenty paces, she stopped to listen to the forest around her. The low whispering of the heavy, humid wind - maybe it would rain tonight? - rustled through the long fronds of what she recognized as palm leaves, and disturbed the brush that crunched wetly beneath her feet. There was not much she could do there, in an area so thick with foliage, to dampen her loudness against nature. She creeped around the heavier brush, eyes searching for fallen trees, for the life-from-death she was most familiar with. The light filtered through leaves as the foliage thickened. Her hand reached back for the handset as she crept through the brush, stopping halfway through her sentence as she realized they could probably hear her moving through plants- “Everything here is full of mana, just bursting through the scenes, and enlarged to boot. Death must be slow; it’s hard to find rot. Thought you might be interested.”

She waited for a response, eyes searching along the ground in front of her, lowering herself to avoid the most of the blooming and her nerves spurring a sort of flightiness as she searched for motion. No animals yet. It concerned her, but at the same time, they were likely frightened of her if they had not seen people in a long time - even if animals were usually not threatened by her presence as compared to the average person. Her teeth played with her lip, checking over her shoulder instinctually.

”I would speculate that it’s difficult to find rot when it’s difficult for anything to die. From what my eye can see, the ambient mana on the shoreline alone is four times as dense as Death City. It’s not a far stretch to assume the plant life is using it for sustenance,” Rand replied to her, offering her his insight as to what was occurring. Three years prior, he had seen this type of rampant growth, but not this far out from the Lake. Dall Island seemed to be bright and vibrant anywhere that could support life in general. She didn't respond to that, electing to simply keep moving forward.

Further into the trees were a new sign of life. Not animals, but more present fungi. Small, but colorful shelves growing on trees in such abundance that anywhere else in the world, this would have resulted in fatal parasitism. There was a brief jump of delight in the witch; it faded as she began to fret. Virtually all of these shelves grew facing East. The trees here were thicker. Taller. More so than any tropical ecosystem like this would normally support, especially this close to shore, and with a keen magical sense, one could find their very core had a small, but dense amount of mana inside of it, which was unlike the trees closer to shore. There was the loosening of a long-held breath at that realization; the witch took a second to jot down those more specific points and even to draw a small diagram. Though this did not capture her attention for long - well, it took time.

More notably, however, was that these larger trees did in fact show at least some signs of death. Bark that peeled, a few fallen limbs, more dense undergrowth for the area. It was becoming thick enough that some type of blade might be necessary to further traverse. Yet, still, no animals. No birds, no snakes, and while a few minor insects were present, most were small and only near the mushroom shelves or undergrowth. This cycle of life and death, decay and renewal, it was still weak. Almost as if this was some type of artificial greenhouse. The only notable variation from this apparent norm was in a spike in this decay due North of her location, and even then such a spike only fell to within “normal” parameters for any normal forest. But the feeling of familiarity drew her forward. She found her woodsblade in her hands before she'd made the decision to use it; the witch held the blade in front of her like a defensive object as she pushed through the undergrowth - attempting to cut as little as possible from the bushes. The movement was quick, double-time and not sparing her hands from the thorns, as if she was afraid of being seen but not of being heard. Her mind flickered back to the radio as she clambered onto a fallen log and carefully climbed up its brambled stump to find a perch for drawing.

The foliage was thick. To call what was below a clearing would hardly be accurate, but it at the least was one of the thinnest areas of undergrowth that existed. And, for good reason. At the foot of a unique bush, or more perhaps a tree similar to a shorter Weeping Willow, was the carcasses of several arachnids, torn apart with white fungal veins growing through them, all seemingly intertwined with some of the drooping limbs from the bush. Some of these exoskeletons were cracked open, some torn apart, but in each case–no matter how otherwise brutalized–the abdomens of the arachnids were facing the bush. It appeared almost ceremonial. The bush itself, more so the mess of vines that appeared to be its body, possessed quite vibrant layers of a turquoise hue, as if dyed in a science experiment with food coloring. This went on for many yards, with many of the arachnid bodies ranging in size from small rodents to large dogs, and went beyond the initial field of view to the sides and back of this plant which itself was considerably out of place in this tropical environment. The witch leaned forward to get a better look, hanging from the tree stump by hand and foot, knife abandoned to her belt. Possibilities raced through her mind. This could be some advancement of a pathogenic fungus, leading the spiders to a host tree near which they would be inclined to interact and repeat the cycle, as a consequence to their webbing. It could be the organization of waste bodies by the spiders themselves, a ritual of some kind, or the decomposition of a mass number of casualties that happened close together as a group and rotted according to their environment . It could simply be magic.

This was a sight to which Chanterelle carefully leveled the camera, taking a selection of pictures from her view, both zoomed in and out to make sure she had fully captured the scene. As soon as that was done, her hand was on the receiver, pressing firmly on the button. “There are a slew of expired arachnids of several sizes scattered around a particular tree. The plant’s pretty vibrant, bright teal. Might I approach them?”

Letting the button go, she settled the handset back in its place, palming the phone again to check over the zoomed-in image in her palm - maybe looking for fine details she missed. The silence that normally followed a response was not present with this communication. Instead, it was overcome by a rustling of the foliage around Chanterelle. Unnatural, given the forest had been fairly silent up until this particular point. Not long after the rustling came an odd chitter, as if two pieces of hardwood were quickly being rattled in succession.

”Mark your coordinates, but do not directly interact with the plant. We will inspect it when we return through as a group. If you can investigate it with a spell from a distance, that is permitted,” Rand responded to over the comm link. His voice coming from the speaker was challenged by the sound of multiple bouts of chittering overlapping in the area around her, and the sudden unmistakable feeling of being watched. Or, more accurately, becoming prey. Her hand hovered over the comm device after the phone returned to the holster in a smooth motion. It took two seconds to formulate a response, and one more to check the coordinates on the watch stuck to the wrist holding her up-

“They’re here. H2, North side.” She raised her other hand from the comms unit, pulling herself back up onto the top of the stump, body turning as she tried to guess how many might be around her based on sound alone. Given the rhythm of the chattering and the overlapping sound, getting a precise number on the group beyond it being larger than a half dozen proved nigh-impossible. Her hand returned to the unit again in the moment before the storm, pressing down firmly-

“That is, H2, North side.”

Spiders, she reminded herself clearly as she enunciated her words, cannot usually hear. It was a chilling thought. They could smell, certainly, but she had only just-
There was no time to think. The witch sliced her hand across the bottom of her knife’s holster. It was open at the tip, just enough to cut, and what might have looked ridiculous to some (wouldn’t she jab her leg?) was exactly what was needed in this kind of situation. Ripping the blade across the tip of her thumb, deep enough to drip, she shook the first bits of it from her hand onto the tree stump behind her. With a deep breath, the witch rocked back and forth on her feet as if to garner momentum- and jumped.

The nearest tree was taller, and her fingers caught against its bow; as it bent with her weight the witch desperately expelled a surge of mana to harden its curve and her hands grasped it like a sturdy handle to keep her hanging. They could climb, surely, but evasion was not her only goal. The blood dripping down her hand was a secondary focus. She could afford to bleed, if it was ready. There was not an easy path back to the shore by any means, but there was a chance she could move further South, closer to the group she was sure would come to back it up - if she even needed it. As she watched below, a vine crept from her wrist up into the tree, winding around its boughs as she transferred her grip and sagged a few feet in the air. She could get down, she could go up, depending on whatever was intending on jumping her.

The dripping of her blood resulted in two reactions, one easily expected, the other not so much. The first was the emergence of the spiders, lunging from the foliage in pursuit. These spiders were far, far from typical. Some larger than others, ranging from that of a large dog to more wolf-like sizes, and unlike those in the clearing, entirely black and coated in a thick fur. They were quick, too, darting through the undergrowth at impressive speeds with agility one could only expect from a wild animal, or in this case, arachnid. The second, more surprising reaction, was the underwhelming effect of her blood. An initial reaction from it occurred, but the mana-rich ground it normally left behind soon faded, as if the forest simply assimilated it into its very veins. It was not encouraging to think that the spiders might be as buffed as any plants she could produce.

These spiders were large and did not jump, not like one might expect. They instead chased her on leg, scouring up the taller tree without any apparent impediment to climbing. Closing in with their rapid speed, these arachnids appeared perhaps closest in form to a wolf spider, with their second pair of legs behind their first covered in longer, finer hairs that seemed to sway as they ran, and the patterns on their bodies now a dark brown series of stripes with shorter black fur below it. A pattern, if noticeable, would be the largest of the spiders having thinner, but more overall stripes, and the pattern itself blending in quite well to the darker bits of foliage around. The source of the chattering became apparent as well as the palps of the spiders had larger fang-like protrusions that rattled quickly, hitting a satin black hardened area in quick succession. In Chanterelle’s most immediate horror, her mind conjured the image of a cricket’s sounding legs.

There was a blossoming from the vine itself; small flowers encrusted in glass-like dew that crunched underclaw and coated whatever touched them in sharp debris. The witch was sharp with concentration; this was anxiety crucially distinct from fear as a resource she could use. She used the vine to slide down the side of the tree-trunk, close to its bark and opposite to the slowest of the spiders, but she pushed off before she hit the ground to break into a sprint. They were faster, yes; the thick foliage impeded her in ways that the arachnids did not much seem to mind. But the pulling of the brambles as she found a defensible circle, up and around and outward from her, shaping and growing aggressively fast-
Her aim wasn’t very good, but sometimes, that didn’t matter.

The small hoard of arachnids had almost formed a stampede within the undergrowth, numbering at least twenty. Hitting them with these vines was far from difficult, given the thick trees and larger plantlife of the undergrowth made their environment fairly confined. The largest of the arachnids hit sported an exoskeleton too thick and dense for these mere vines to penetrate, but the smaller ones–still the size of large dogs–were not so durable. Each of the spiked brambles that broke through the exoskeleton not only ended the arachnid, but did so with relative ease. Once that hard outer carcass was broken, the arachnids had no resistance to magic nor defense mechanism to prevent severe maiming from these lethal barbs.

The largest of the arachnids, however, were not so easily dissuaded. Pushing forward like tanks impervious to the frontal assault made by the brambles, they continued to tread forward with full intent on making Chanterelle their next meal. The witch shirked back from the closest one, heels catching in the brambles and leaves, but her gesturing hand came empty on the first pass as she tried to go through her options. Next, a short piece of bamboo grew from her hand, point sharpened into a sort of spear. With a full-hearted but half-muscled effort the witch heaved it toward the arachnid, feeling the pulsing of spores eager to sow flesh on her fingertips.

The shaft of the bamboo quickly buckled under the force of the arachnid, splintering it without impeding the movement of the foremost spider, and only putting it in dangerously close range to the forest witch with its front legs attempting to slam down on her with no small amount of force. She dropped the spores gathering, clenched, in her left hand - trying to push back with the catching of her heels for a bit of extra momentum in her scramble to avoid the claws. The spores were pungent; they smelled vaguely balsamic and coagulated like a layer of soft jelly pollen on anything they happened to touch. They floated up in the air, though, propelled by their wet feathers and infinitesimally small weight. It was a mixture she used to melt other molds and growths off of metals like cauldrons and hoes; a sort of sludge that ate away at most organic matter.

In that moment, the predators became the prey. The caustic spores were not only capable of melting holes directly through the exoskeleton of these spiders, but seemed to have an even greater profound effect at eating through the soft tissue inside, doing far more damage than even the Witch might have anticipated. With a shrill shriek, the spider that was once attacking stumbled back, trying to use its front legs to wipe off what it could from its skin, but the singed hair of the spores caused a black, pungent slunge to form that only served to eat through the hard outer legs of the arachnid, causing it to stumble further until it fell over, twitching as a half-dead pile of sludge, a white and yellow internal goo that spilled from its carcass, and the shell of the exoskeleton left behind.

The witch continued to move, slowly like it would make them less likely to notice her against the pain, twigs snapping as she crawled back into the underbrush and scratched her legs to bits. Fumbling for the camera at her hip - praising what she’d cursed in that it automatically opened from the home screen for quick captures - three or four photographs before her thumb lifted from the trigger. It was a bit of a daze; a sickness from the infliction of suffering, but an intoxication, too. The others would know she had done this. It was an act to be proud of, something that breathed life, destruction, into her purposeful actions. The mages had been sent here for a reason and that reason was important enough to let her loose.

Other spiders, particularly the large ones, met the same fate upon reaching contact with these spores, leaving a mess of six of these wolf-sized carcasses and now a pungent odor not unlike a blue cheese or rotted meat permeating the air. Shriek after shriek filled the air, chattering following before slowing. Once the spores were released, these unintended slaughter of spiders created a grotesque scene of even more mutilated conditions than the original pile of parts within the previous tree and clearing. A handful of these large dead spiders sent a message to the others, having them retreat from the scene, their skittering through the dense foliage growing more and more distant.

There was a weakness growing in her knees, not from the stench (which she was used to), but from the mass death such a simple action had inflicted upon their rank. Surely, this was what they were here to do: extermination was unlikely but encouraged if possible. But the witch hesitated before she captured the aftermath of her struggle. In the heat of the moment, it had not looked so bad. It had been horrifying, crippling, loud and painful: fading euphoria left her a shell of emptiness. Her thumb covered the bottom of the lens, hiding the worst of it - the spider that had been coming for her - from view. She took the picture. Noted the coordinates in the app, though it took her a long moment.

As her hand lowered, tucking the piece instead into her bag, she extracted herself from the bramble bush back to the path she’d made amid bridge and brush. She pulled the handset again, pressing unnecessarily hard. Her voice was low, but irritated. “I have killed about a dozen spiders, ranging from labrador to cart pony. Am I to return if they’re on the run?” The delay on the headset was painstakingly long. Yet, somehow, it seemed as if urgency was on his mind, ringing through with an answer as quickly as the device would allow. ”Return immediately. Avoid engagement further at all costs,” his voice instructed, ringing through the device with a tone airing more importance.

The dead still of the forest had returned. The chittering caused by their unique forward appendages had disappeared, and the heavy atmosphere created by their predatory presence lessened. Compared to just moments prior, the area was eerily quiet. No forest should ever be so silent. When she pressed the handset again, leaving a shimmering silence before the words came, her voice cracked. “They’re huge.”

The witch moved quickly back through her tracks, running where she was able and ducking through the small passages she’d made in the underbrush. In a mix of sprinting and bushwhacking, the journey only took ten minutes, compared to the nearly thirty her careful procession had necessitated. By the time she was back to the wide open space she’d first photographed, the woman’s limbs were nicked and scratched, and sweat dampened her clothing - but the phone was still in her pocket. It was not far, from there, to go back to the beach.

Relevant to: Maria RedArmyShogun , Raph Merciless Medic , Ark The Regal Rper .​

 

[Sir Les Paul]

March 28th, 2067

Chanterelle arriving at the beach proved to be quite the relief to Rand. While she had described her enemy engagement as rather one-sided, it confirmed there was most definitely a hostile presence still on the island. And, the spiders encountered by the previous teams were still present. By this time, most of the equipment had been unpacked, Ark had more than sufficiently made their encampment defensible, and Maria would have most if not all of her dolls waxed and working--alongside having assisted Raph, of course. A favor for a favor it was, after all. In this time, Rand stopped his endeavors with the equipment packs to remain on the edge of the camp nearest the forest to scout for Chanterelle. He had at the least effectively distilled some of the seawater and started the preparation of a stew that had came from sealed, biodegradable containers and powders, but had set it aside while awaiting the return of the Mushroom Witch.

What no one might have expected was the series of events that followed. The pungent smell that remained on Chanterelle from the spiders had awakened dormant beasts of the island that were not mentioned in any single report. Along the coast of the beach, the ground itself shook and sand almost seemed to dance as the shoreline seemed to come alive. What began to emerge were enormous crustaceans, four of them in total, with one being significantly larger than the others. The three smaller ones were easily the size of fully matured grizzly bears, each with armor more spiked in nature, with bright blue shells and orange spots along their exoskeleton. The largest, however, was triple the size of the others, and had a larger, more bulbous shell with larger sharp protrusions but less of them in number, all with the same color pattern. Put simply, no cage they had was suited for these creatures.

Their emergence caused the entire shoreline to shift, as if it were truly a fluid, and losing volume in large swaths. Not unlike stepping out of a warm bath to see the water level lower, the shoreline appeared as if it had large some of its natural bulk. The shift in the ground was significant enough that even with the reinforcement Ark had created, the entire camp had tilted itself a few degrees, and was enough to cause anyone not steadying themselves to at least stagger. Unlike the spiders Chanterelle had encountered, these crab-like creatures immediately possessed a more than faint amount of trace mana coursing through them, and made their presence known with immediate screeches that were beyond what any normal creature should be able to muster--enough to cause pain and vertigo, enough to likely even cause eardrums to bleed if they were any closer.

And, they were coming closer.

Rand was quick to act. Quick to cast. Quick to think. Drawing his sword and making a mad dash across the encampment to the South side these crustaceans were approaching from, he muttered a single word which brought utter silence to the otherwise painfully intrusive shrieking. "Mute." Even the crustaceans were confused for a moment, never before having this particular defense mechanism interfered with. The problem, however, is that it also prevented everyone else from hearing as well. Rand was not without a counter to that drawback as well. Able to broadcast his sub-vocalization through his mute spell, his mouth need not even move nor did the air need to vibrate to send his next message to the eardrums of his team.

"Fate Mages, prepare for combat. Focus fire on the nearest small target," he instructed them. This technique lost a lot of the nuances of normal human speech, even more so than a cell phone or radio, but it came through plenty clear. There was a fight to be had, and they having it.​

RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper Merciless Medic Meredith

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Daniella Ethalyn - Truck to hell
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Dani scoffed at Zelda's response, no out of distaste for the woman, but the answer. "Fucking tools," She grumbled.

It made her a bit angry. All this fire, destruction, and panic, but they were too prideful or had a stick too far up their ass to work with them. Thinking back to her time with her family, trying to move from place to place, and eventually hunker down. Dani would've given anything to have been helped even a day sooner. She didn't care who the hell it was. One day, minute, or second sooner, and it would've been worth it. Obviously, these jackasses didn't feel the same way, and likely someone would get hurt or die that didn't need to.

Then again, with how the team was seemingly falling apart all over again, maybe they weren't wrong. Nadia went off, followed by Gauss. Meanwhile Eva was just worried.

Surprisingly, this time the Demon Sword was the one to put a hand on her meister's shoulder, as if urging her against a further conflict. "Time and place. Besides, telling someone not to freeze ain't gonna do much," She commented before glancing over at Gauss with a bit of a colder stare. "And you should fucking relax too. If you don't see something wrong with me being the one to tell you that, then you're pretty fucking stupid yourself. We ain't gonna do shit as part of evacuation aside from yelling at people to go in a direction. Maybe you have some relief skills that I don't know about. I don't. I'm a fucking sword. Even if I don't wanna fight I'd be more useful doing that or trying to find the cause of all this than the former. Other than that... they're flaming fucking skeletons, the fuck else are they going to be 'cept magic?"

Leaning back in her seat, the pink-haired woman folded her arms. "And if you heard our superiors' orders better, you'd know we don't have a choice in the matter. We have to go link up with those fucking One-stars that ran off and try to find the source of this shit."

The irony of her trying to keep the peace was not lost on her, but she didn't want to die, by Cyrus and the DWMA or these things for that matter. She didn't want anyone else to either.

@Team Stitches