Fantasy The Divine Conquerors Ⅱ - Main / Ravenscourt

[Juju]

Kotori, Wakinyan & SusanInteraction: Pseudo-nim Kaihaku YsFanatic | Mention: seasonedcat
​

Kotori watched as the others surrounded Captain Greymourne, relieved that she was in good hands. She resisted the urge to walk over and offer help herself, mostly for fear of making things worse, but also for the fact that there was nothing she could do. What healing powers she possessed was made manifest by the gifts of Wakinyan. There was no reversing his judgements after they had passed. It had been the first lesson she had learned when she became Chosen. Still, it did not help her feeling of guilt.

"You get off on murdering people you meet for the first time, huh bitch?"
​

The harsh words drew Kotori's focus to the girl with rabbit ears, the one that had driven Wakinyan into such a rage. What had she done to earn such a judgement, Kotori wondered, but not for long. Kotori shouldn't have felt the sting of her words, yet she felt it anyway. She took a step back, looking down at the finger jabbing at her. There was no defiance in her face, nor did she seem angered by the words, she only seemed sad. Even as the threats were thrown around, her gaze seemed glassy and far-off.

Wakinyan, on the other hand, was less than pleased. A growl emanated from him, causing the overhanging clouds to echo, though the ripple of thunder in Kotori's mind was much worse. She flinched and quickly did her best to calm down the divine beast before he retaliated, 'They are only words, Wakinyan. She is not going to hurt me... not yet...'

It had been so much easier in her world, where Wakinyan was known as the divine judge. He had been respected for his protection of the innocent, yet here in Valucia there had been nothing but fear and anger towards him. Nobody had ever questioned the will of Wakinyan, yet now all they encountered were the doubts of those he tried to protect. Was that wrong of them? They did not know Wakinyan. She had to show them... she had to make this right...somehow... yet after all they had done had anything changed?

Zasha's words sounded faint, and her face blurred slightly. Kotori shook her head, squinting her eyes into focus, her hearing slowly blooming back. She held her head. The girl was saying something about filling them with lead? Kotori did not need to know what sort of weapon that entailed to know the weight of such a threat. Her lips pursed together, staying completely silent as Zasha spat threat after threat at her. Then, with a flick, she retreated, leaving Kotori with a stinging nose.

"No HUGs yet, Charon." Kotori said, frowning as she rubbed her nose. She nodded at Charon's announcement, "Good, help as many as you can and make sure they stay safe. Wakinyan says it will not be long until the second attack begins."

It was around this time that a new face showed up. Thankfully, Wakinyan did not react to them. In fact, he seemed to be pointedly ignoring the human's gawking out of insult. His ears flicked back and he gave a snort. "A rhinoceros?" Kotori tilted her head in confusion, having never heard of such a thing.

"Yep, you're right magicman. Wakinyan the rhino god and his minion Kotori. That's Csilla over there and the android that ran off was Charon. I forgot the names of the knights." Susan gestured vaguely to Greymourne and Enzio before shoving her hands in her coat pockets.

"Are you a new summoned?" Kotori asked wearily, her expression one of guarded optimism. At least this one wasn't aggressive or evil. "Is it true what Charon said? Were you summoned by a god other than SIN?" she paused, looking down at the ground for a moment, "Look, I do not know who sent you here, or what mission they gave you, but I ask you to take a look around you; this city is on the brink of annihilation. The Mollug army is poised to march at any moment, and unless something is done the city will fall and thousands of innocents will be slaughtered or enslaved."

Kotori glanced at the group behind her, "Besides Ivan and Charon, you are looking at the only summoned allied with the city. The rest fled or took advantage of the city's weakened state to attack. There were others... but they are missing..." Kotori's face darkens at the memory of Hitori, Tobias and Dirk. Then it hardens, her eyes determined as she looks at Caedmon, "You have the power to help choose the fate of this city. Join us, help us to save Castellan."

 

[Juju]

Captain Greymourne & EnzioInteraction: Pseudo-nim seasonedcat Kaihaku YsFanatic​

Despite his best attempts, the young knight's face was flushed a light strawberry as he helped up the bunnygirl. She was unnaturally pretty, similar to Csilla, though on completely different spectrums. One was war forged, like steel, while the other was like the sky at twilight. Realizing he was staring, Enzio rubbed the back of his neck, laughing awkwardly. His voice was cheery but sheepish, "Ah... umm, you know what, don't worry about it!"

"Stay back, starskin, I can handle myself." Greymourne grunted, shooed Csilla away with a hand. She then pulled herself onto a knee and forcing herself up onto her feet. A pained hiss escaped between her gritted teeth, but she bit it back. One of her gauntlets floated up beside her and she leaned heavily against it. The other hung limply on her shoulder like a broken wing.

Enzio gave Csilla an apologetic look and sighed. He eyed Wakinyan carefully, still unsure what to think or feel. On one hand the beast had just attacked his fellow knight, yet he had not been aiming for her. She also did not die like the others. Did this mean that what Kotori said was true? If that was the case, then did Zasha really just blow up a portion of the city? He watched the smoke rise above the distant roofs, realizing once more just how much power each of the summoned possessed. All he knew was that he was glad Zasha had decided to stand with the city.

The guard captain turned towards Zasha as she was called, raising her chin slightly to give the bunny girl a cool look. A ghost of a smile appeared on her face at the 'manhandling' comment, but it was the gift that broke her stony expression. She took the strange syringe from Zasha, eyes widening slightly in wonder of the outlandish chemical. She listened carefully to what Zasha had to say then sighed, her tone amused "Well, if it is anything like those 'bullets' you fired I'm sure it will pack quite a punch. Consider it even, then."

She pointed beyond Castellan's walls, where the Mollug army readied themselves for the next attack, "The Mollug dogs are amassing beyond what's left of our walls. You'll know them from the black and red insignias and smug looks. Feel free to destroy as many of them as you'd like, and if you see any summoned joining them...send them back to whatever hell they crawled out from."

The thought of Zasha destroying the Mollug troops seemed to have brightened the captain's mood, but it soured back again when Charon spoke. Mostly for his annoying voice but also for what he said. "Another god? Virtue...hmph...well, as far as I'm concerned the less summoned the better. We will deal with them after we drive back Mollug." she glared at Charon when he declared he was leaving. With a sigh, she shook her head, "Go on then."

Enzio watched Charon leave, surprised at the Captain's response, "Shall I go with him?"

"No, you're staying with me so I can keep an eye on you." Greymourne growled, turning to glare at the new summoned. He said his name was Caedmon and started spouting other words the captain didn't care about. She didn't waste time cutting to the chase, "You, summoned, tell us about the other summoned that came with you. I want to know what we're up against this time."

 

[Kaihaku]

Caedmon
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. Cathedral Neighborhood.
Interactions: Juju (Greymourne, Susan, Kotori, Wakinyan) seasonedcat (Csilla)
Mentions: Juju (Nemu, Gloop, Goodest Boi), Snackofthefuture (Ivan), YsFanatic (Yunica) Lazaro1505 (Professor, Bloodied Guy) Pseudo-nim (Zasha, Ashe, Lich, Spirit)​

"Of course. I already accepted this mission from Ivan. Didn't he inform you?" Caedmon answers the Rhinoceros' keeper as he adjusts his glasses. His siblings had shared mission updates instantaneously but he was coming to realize that he couldn't expect that level of rapport here. Not in the near term at least. It seemed that he would need to introduce himself again, "I'm Caedmon. I'm an ESPer Nu Type 2149. I won an interdimensional war and then was summoned here by a moral abstract. I believe her title was Virtue. The moral abstract SIN was noted in the mission briefing..."

He is silent for a moment, reviewing the mission briefing again. It was still a sloppy mess. Field promotes. Caedmon sighs before continuing, "The mission perimeters are very vague... Oh. I think this segment may refer to you, Csilla. 'Also with them: a night-skinned girl with hope and optimism for the world, despite its countless misfortunes.'" He shakes his head, "I'm sorry, this mission briefing is embarrassing... It's not actionable at all."

"Rhinoceros is what these creatures were called on my creator's homeworld, but they all went extinct long before the war began. They were known for their regal horns, powerful physiques, and surly attitude." Caedmon explains reverently, turning back to look at the nearby deity with great interest. It was even more impressive than the crude likeness the regulars had painted on the sides of their spacecraft and exosuits. He recalls a story that a group of inebriated regulars told him once,"It's said they protected the land from fire in ancient times but that this brought them into conflict with primitive people who wanted to light fires."

Caedmon then turns to look seriously at the girl who introduced everyone but herself. He wasn't certain how she mistook him for a missile cruiser but he had to let her know the bad news, "I'm sorry, I'm not Magicman. I did know it but I'm afraid to tell you that it was lost at 10 Hygiea."

"There were many powerful warriors summoned here by the moral abstract. Some of them should be willing to accept this mission." Caedmon answers, turning to the woman who had suddenly interjected. Who was this? This demeanor. Oh. Of course. The rabbit girl had picked up a news reporter. He groaned. "No comment. Please contact the public relations office for an official statement."

Deliberately turning away from the reporter, Caedmon continued talking to the Rhinoceros' keeper. He wanted to ask her how to make friends with the Rhinoceros but now wasn't the time. "There are still are a few warriors back at the insertion point. The most important is Gloop, a powerful gelatinous construct created for war. There are also the two teenage girls. Ivan was talking with them. Then there was the bloodied one and the unconscious genius."

He takes off his glasses, revealing bizarre emerald eyes, and looks out over the city, "Ah. There are others still close by. The depressed guy and the big baby are over there. There's someone else.... Maybe? It's hard to tell... There's some kind of blinding bright light with them that's making it hard to sense anything else. It must be the one from the mission briefing." He points in the direction that the android had run off in, then slides his glasses back on. "The old man with the cheap telepathy ran off with the mecha dragon spirit. You know, the lich's maid. The bird with the malignant growth went with them." He sighed.

"Let's coordinate strategy. I can provide various psionic supports. Are we completely on the defense or planning a counter offensive? " Caedmon says as he pulls out two emerald crystals and offers them to the Rhinoceros' keeper. Oh, he hoped that the Rhinoceros would accept one but there was no guarantee. The old distrust going back to civilization's use of fire would be hard to overcome.

 

[Lazaro1505]

Professor Membrane

Location: The Cathedral

Interaction(s): Kaihaku

Mention(s): Everyone else I guess....

Ah, the wonders and achievements of all the known science... the possibilities are near endless of what one may discover next within each generation of humanity. Just the thought of what would be invented next, or what major discovery that changes the course of history would occur next, after all, being alive during the generation people has created something very important such as the wheel, agriculture, selective breeding, electricity, super-toast. Wait, what as that last option... ah, must have be really forgotten, right now within the darkness known as the inner-mind within a certain individual, they were rather having a peculiar nightmare, as shown within first person view, a man working upon some sort of microchip with with a couple of wires and for some reason, a blow torch as well... perhaps connecting the two. It was then a rather annoying voice, one that is all but familiar to him, the sounds of his sound going trying to show him some ‘evidence’ of the small little hobby he has taken up right now.

“What is it now Dib? Did you manage to find some vaporizing futuristic gun or some sort of model space craft.”

he said in a voice totally not his... considering it was a dream and all, and these of things are rather hard to get right with accuracy, within with a man that has a brain such as his, especially since dreams are not really all that important, especially since he could just get up right now and start working on that same microchip within his mind, but might as well stay a bit longer to watch the show. The dream him looked behind himself to see his son, with that same kid with a skin-disease he managed to befriend at school, the one he keeps calling a ‘alien’ (most likely a immigrant from another country) all the time. Why, he would of merely said something along the lines of ‘yes, I know this is your ‘alien’ Buddy, now go along and play some video games, I’ll be with you for a second later to prepare some toast’ or something along the lines of that, before Dib reached forward and grabbed the eyes of the green-skinned kid.

What he didn’t expect, was the eyes to merely pop out, revealing a set of red beady eyes upon the face of the alien, dream Membrane looking at it with shock of what he is actually seen, while the true form of Membrane watched the scene with... popcorn? He was dropping the yellow popped corn into his mouth through his lab coat, laughing at the sight of something so unbelievable and false right in front of him... dream him now freaking out at the sight.... before Professor Membrane finally awoke from that nightmare of his... and back into the real world, or so he thought.

Instead of being on a chair with a table next to him and a random project there, or at the very least, put into bed to rest his mind, he was rather laying upon the floor of a rather dull and broken building, looking all around him as he began to take in the sights.

“Rather strange... too strange, must still be dreaming after all, oh well, might as well explore the dream even further and see what is in store for old Membrane himself. Already gonna be a quite peculiar dream just based on the setting alone.”

the scientist said to himself as he gotten up from the cold stone floor, not caring the slightest of how it was actually reality he was experiencing first hand. Walking outside, he was met with the same sad sight of broken buildings, this possibly being one of those fantasy settings from those games that Gaz occasionally plays from time to time, albeit rarely.... still, he was wondering what was the exact estimate for the time he would be waking up soon, about a 1 hour, 14 minutes, and 19 seconds.... give or take a few nanoseconds. Walking down the streets, he found another peculiar sight that did not match the setting as well, perhaps even more than the classic ‘fantasy’ setting he ‘woke’ up within.

“So it’s one of those things... Hmph, I dealt with worse dreams... especially that shark one I had a week ago... merely gave me nightmares for another day... oh well, might as well strike up a conversation with these dream individuals before eventually forgetting them all as I return to the real world.”

He said to himself as he made his way to the group, rather speed-walking a bit over there. Once covering the distance, it was time to get their attention, as he said a small “ahem” before tapping the shoulder of the individual that would later be called ‘Caedmon’, strange name, but he doesn’t know that yet. Once they turned around to face him, Professor Membrane spoke out his question

“Greetings there scientifically impossible dream individual, but I was wondering if you knew of not only the area I find myself within, but also the general area as well, I am rather new to these parts and want to get as used to them as possible here.”

He finished, know waiting for an response as he crossed his arms behind his back, tapping his left foot in a rhythm to distract himself from the fact that his ‘dreams’ are seemingly getting weirder by the day. There was also that one with the alien kid and the robot horde, as well as being trapped within a intergalactical prison, before eventually saving the planet Earth by using a mechanical moose. Yeah, weird dream, but has a much weird explanation than he could think of as of now... oh well, might as well hear out what the man has to say... even if it would be as meaningless as the dream.​

 

[Kaihaku]

Caedmon
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. Cathedral Neighborhood. Interactions: Lazaro1505 (Professor Membrane) Juju (Kotori, Wakinyan)​

Caedmon turns as he senses an incredibly intelligent presence approaching from the cathedral. Ah, as he suspected, it was the unconscious genius from earlier. It seemed he was now a conscious genius. The genius looked very much like the regulars who had created Caedmon and his siblings, even wearing a white lab coat. The ESPers' creators had all died with the moon so the sight conjured up all sorts of nostalgia. It had been a long time since he heard words like 'that daemonic power should be scientifically impossible' or 'how can we escape this nightmare being'.

"I am Caedmon. I'm an ESPer Nu Type 2149. I won an interdimensional war and then was summoned here by a moral abstract." Caedmon replies as if those words have meaning. He then floats closer and looks over the scientist keenly, "Did you receive the mission briefing? It should have been uploaded into your brain." He leans closer, eyes narrowing as he searches for the mark of Virtue, "You should have received a confirmation mark. Here's mine."

​

"Well, between us, the Mission Perimeters are very vague. I'm afraid that our CO is a field promote." Caedmon sighs, shaking his head. He was embarrassed to share the rest of the mission briefing with a man of science but he could try to cut it to actionable intel. Basic geography had been included so he could start with that. "The local populace identifies this planet as Valucia. We are on the Eastern Continent in the Kingdom of Nortestra. Specifically, this is the capital city of Castellan."

"I just accepted a mission from Ivan to defend Castellan from the Mollug forces outside. I think you will find that this Rhinoceros' keeper will offer you the same mission." Caedmon continues seriously, gesturing with one hand at a very large horned equine a short distance away. The Rhinoceros was truly a great creature for being willing to participate in defending this city despite all the fires here. Truly a magnanimous being. Oh, he realized suddenly that the scientist might be caught off guard by the presence of a real life Rhinoceros. Caedmon could understand that. "It really is a magnificent creature. They were all extinct in my reality."

 

[YsFanatic]

As she neared the location Charon had directed her to, the same place she had originally met him, Yunica started to slow down. This allowed her to come to a gradual stop when she arrived, which was fortunate as there were far more people there than earlier and she needed the time to take it all in. Out of all the people there, only a few really caught her attention for the moment. First she noted with disgust and anger was the murdering girl with the odd ears, but thankfully a quick check against the images Charon had sent her confirmed that one of the others was this Kotori that she was supposed to meet. That would make the giant creature next to her the Horny Horse, which the Armor's computer tagged as being some kind of unicorn. 'Oh, so a unicorn is literally a horse with a horn. His name for it makes perfect sense!'

Lastly the knight that had tried to capture the soul-eating android earlier was still there, but she looked a bit unsteady on her feet, like if she was injured or something. As she felt bad for threatening the other woman earlier, the clone decided that some healing would be a good apology. With just a few giant steps, Yunica closed in close enough for her magic to be of use. "Medice," the word triggered the release of the energy she had been gathering, healing power washing over Greymourne.

Spoiler: Interactions and Mentions

Kaihaku Juju Pseudo-nim Lazaro1505 seasonedcat

 

[Lazaro1505]

Professor Membrane

Location: The Cathedral

Interaction(s): Kaihaku

Mention(s): Juju

After some time of waiting and taking in his environment, the individual he spoken to finally let out some words from their mouth, starting out with the name ‘Caedmon’, definitely one that will easy to remember, like Oxygen 15, as well as being classified as an ESPer nu type 2149 who won some sort of intergalactic war and was ‘summoned’ here as well. Professor Membrane merely nodded, wondering if this was his brain’s way of saying another idea coming to his head... giving people a strong enough psychic link from the brains of an human person and be capable of accessing other brainwaves and even possibly carry small objects or even larger with nothing but a mere thought. He put away that idea within his mental list of what to-make-next, but snapped back into ‘reality’ (still believes that this is one of the more high-quality dreams he is currently residing within) when the ESPer floated closer to the Professor, not giving much thought into the hovering man due to a few inventions he already have that can mimic this action, before being questioned about some sort of ‘briefing’ for a mission, one that his brain may have ‘made’ up in order to add some flavor within this dream, as well as some sort of Mark the individual had plastered onto his tongue.

Shaking his head no in response, the Professor said “Sorry... I have no clue about this ‘mission’ after arriving here sadly, and this Mark... hmm... let me look to this Mark to see if I share the same traits by those who have a confirmation Mark” as he began to check his form to see if anything else has changed, mostly raising one of his black globes to see if he had his fleshy arms again, only to see the familiar sight of the metallic limbs capable of exerting a high concentration of blue light as well as some modifications attached as well. Membrane then decided to check his face much closer, in order to see if it had any Mark, removing the glove on his right hand and revealing the robotic arm for all to see:



It wasn’t long for a few seconds later, the fingers retracted within the hand, before a reflective surface covered in iron outside and a glass mirroring the view of anything presented in front of it. It was an old invention, the porta-mirror attachment for his arms, not a lot of use unless he was focusing on something behind him as well as in front of him. Slightly lowering the right side of the collar for his lab coat, and right there one the top part of his right cheek was the same Mark as Cadmon, seeing it within the reflection before now being satisfied with his discover and now transforming his limb back into its normal self.

“Well, it appears I also house the same Mark upon the same location as my right zygomatic bone. Oh, and sorry for my lack of matters, I haven’t even spoken a word about my name, I go by the name of Professor Membrane, the smartest scientist on Earth... well, off Earth now that I am here”

he sorta lied for the last part, considering that once more, he believed it was a dream, but was actually close the truth, sadly, it would take a while for him to accept this fact. Now taking in the new information about this location, a planet named Valucia, and more specifically they were located within Eastern Continent in the Kingdom of Nortestra, even more specifically, it’s capital. It was the fact that both a war that was occurring in the area by the Mollug forces and being hired to defend against the soldiers arriving to the location. As well as a mention of a... Rhinoceros? Looking in the direction of the creature, this is not a Rhinoceros Sub-species he has ever seen with his own two eyes, maybe more horse like, if it warms for the horn it housed on top of its cranium. Caedmon then told him it was a magnificent creature that was extinct in his world, as Membrane them excuse himself by making a small cough and saying “Well, while my world contains a number of Rhinos and their sub-species, this sub-species of Rhinocerotidae does not exist from where I am from.” he finished, bringing a his right hand to his chin as he began to look at the creature, inspecting their outside physical features and wondering what they could do within the wild.

“Nonetheless, it is great to meet you two as of now... and I believe now that I should join both you and many others in defending the capital, and while I could simply walk away to explore more, I believe that staying with you people would be far better than some mindless wandering, especially in a war zone.”

He finished, bringing out his hand towards Caedmon, as a handshake for the man to accept. Being allied with these people, would definitely be much more interesting, especially if it’s what the dream wants him to do.​

 

[Juju]

Sir Frederick Night
> Leader of the 3rd (and only remaining) Nortestran Calvary

Nortestran Scouting Party(approximately 50 riders)
*yes things have changed*

Interaction: Lazaro1505 | Mention/around: seasonedcat Snackofthefuture
​

Waiting for a response was somehow more terrifying than he thought, the dread of the unknown making every second stretch out. The leading knight had half the mind to charge into the cathedral, just to get the damn waiting over, but thankfully something stirred from the cathedral. It looked like a man, but the knight had learned to distrust such appearances. In the past week he had learned that more often than not, demons wore the skin of men.

The nameless knight was noticeably uncomfortable as he laid eyes upon the bloody man. Despite having pledged himself to the Nortestran cause, there was something about him that seemed off. Somehow, he got the impression that this alliance was anything but charity. The summoned had his own agenda, but the knight and his kingdom was in no position to refuse such help.

Behind him, ripples of unease washed across the awaiting scouting party. Whispers and muttering sounded, along with the impatient tapping of hooves. The knight's heart was still hammering in his chest, but he felt a sense of relief that at least this summoned had decided to help. Even better; the summoned didn't immediately start slaughtering his men. There would be a wolf among them, but it was better than a wolf prowling the shadows.

"Very well, Flagellent. In the name of Athena and Castellan we thank you for your aid. You will be awarded for you efforts after the war is won" The knight called, wishing he was anywhere else, "My name is Sir Frederick Night, leader of the third cavalry in place of Lady Dawnheart until she recovers. Are there any other summoned in the cathedral with you?"

 

[Juju]

​

Nemu and Ice Dragon Gloop

Interaction: Snackofthefuture seasonedcat Kaihaku
​

Nemu blinked in confusion at Clementine, shocked that she was not taking this so well. "Ah... you look sick. Are you sure you're ok? Don't worry, I've seen this setting LOADS of times before! We're totally gonna get some secret power or something to help us on our quest!" she gasped, "Or some native will come along and act as our guide! This always happens! Don't worry, we'll be fine! Besides you're like super good at magic. I bet nobody can beat you in a wizard duel!"

Of course, she was oblivious to the reason why Clementine was so upset, and that she was talking to her murderer. The white-haired witch did not seem to be affected by Nemu's assurances and went off to talk to another summoned.

"Maybe she's just hungry...?" Nemu pondered aloud, pressing a finger to her cheek thoughtfully. Gloop bubbled, still not sure of the situation, "Oh, you know what, I think you're hungry too! Sorry, buddy! Here, have a snack!"

The witch dug into her hat and pulled out a vanilla cupcake and dropped it into Gloop, the sweet pastry dissolving instantly. She then plopped a candy into her mouth before placing her hat back onto her head. Gloop looked up at her, head tilted as Nemu held out a finger and commented brightly, "Don't worry, you don't gotta be shy around Clementine, she's pretty cool! Just a little scared right now, but we're working on it. You'll be best of friends in no time! Then we'll become the best team of adventurers, I know it!"

Nemu lovingly pat the slime's jelly head then suddenly seemed to tune into the conversation between Ivan and Clementine... specifically the bit about being a 'superhero'. Her eyes lit up and she ran off, leaving Gloop behind. The slime blurbed sadly, turning to see Caedmon's disappointed glance and comment about 'letting him fall on the ground'. Gloop's form lost its shape for a moment, becoming a gelatinous blob on the ground. When Caedmon left Gloop slid after Nemu.

"You're a super hero?! For real!?" Nemu asked excitedly, eyes wonderstruck as she stared at Ivan, hopping up and down. "What's your hero name? Did you ever defeat a super villain? Did they ever make comics about you? Are you a vigilante or part of an organization? Hi I'm Nemu by the way! Nemu Qwerty!"

Gloop reformed beside her, standing at about hip-height. Nemu swung an arm around the creature and pressed them against her face, "And this is Gloop!"

"Hey, you're from that other group right? So cool! Apparently one of the sidequests was to take down you guys, but I'm totally going for the pacifist route. Unlike those creeps back there..." She blinked, noticing the wound on Ivan's leg and gauze around his neck. "Oof...hey speaking of which, let me help you with that! My grandma used to make the best health and mana cookies! It's a secret recipe~! Here, take one! They're better than lame potions, or those stupid factory stuff they sell at the store...bleh!"

Nemu stuck her hand into her hat and pulled out a frosted cookie in the shape of a miniature Gloop. It was still warm, somehow, and sparkled slightly, "Here you go, mister! Oh, and Clementine do you want one too? You look sick! I've got mana ones too if you're interested~!"

 

[Kaihaku]

Lukas Nephus
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. En Route to Second Wall -> Half Demolished Shop in Third Ward Ruins
Interaction(s): Juju (Goodest Boi) Solirus (Jason) YsFanatic (Yunica, Charon)

​

Lukas breathes a sigh of relief as the other summoned, Jason, begins guiding the group towards the second wall. He wanted the survivors to get there safely but he had no intention of letting himself get conscripted into this war. It was always the same. Life was a wonderful gift that people threw away... Hurting and being hurt. Killing and being killed. He didn't regret helping these people but he doubted it would make a difference. If, by some chance, their nation turned the tides of this war they would be the ones doing this to the civilians of the other nation. No one ever learned.

He reaches down to rub the ears of the fluffy dog as it trots by and felt his cynicism lighten despite himself. This dog.

Then, without warning, another robot runs into the center of the group silently and the larger robot races off silently. Lukas stops walking. He surmised that the robots were communicating wirelessly. Maybe the large robot was operating as part of a team? That could explain the strange artificial intelligence, it just wasn't designed to interface with humans. It didn't really matter. Capricious deities summoning psychopaths, the insane, mute robots, a very good dog, Jason and, of course, him just for the chaos of it all. Maybe this was all over some stupid bet or a contest to see whose summoned had the most memorable deaths. It's the kind of thing deities did. Immortal, the gods didn't care, comprehend, or care to comprehend mortal suffering.

Lukas slips into a half demolished shop and pulls out his phone as he collapses against a wall. He smiles wistfully at the open browser. It was still on that soufflé recipe. Why did that feel like years ago?

 

[Snackofthefuture]

Ivan Federico​

Ivan continued to look suspiciously at Clementine, not very much considering she didn't really look like a threat, but he was still wary. He really had had enough of the random assaults for the day. He was still surprised at how hostile those other summoned had been. Then suddenly a new telepathic message forced its way into Ivan’s mind. He was hearing the voice of Tobias, the gravity manipulating summoned he’d met earlier before Wakinyan blew up some knights of Nortestra. He seemed to think the Nortestrans were traitors, which Ivan sort of understood but still didn't like. He could understand why Nortestra would be wary after getting some of its men fried the way they had. But they had saved the city. It was a complicated situation, that was for sure. Then Ivan decided he needed to clear up the misunderstanding. Tobias seemed to think most of the Summoned had gone to Mollug, but in reality he’d be fighting his own people if went to that side. Most of the old Summoned had stayed with the Nortestrans.

Sending a telepathic message to Tobias, Ivan said, “Hol Up, wait a minute, hold the damn phone. Tobias. We are not joining the Mollugs, we’ve made a deal with Nortestra and we’re gonna still fight for them. Come back and join us so we don't have to fight each other. You don't even know how the Mollugs will react to you. The Nortestrans and us will accept you though. Please come back man, we need you here. Or at least stop and talk before you go, we can work something out, I know we can.” Ivan tried to appeal to Tobias, hoping the Scientist Adrift would understand. They needed to work together and the Nortestrans were on the verge of annihilation, and Ivan knew that would mean a lot of unnecessary deaths for people who didn't deserve it. Back to the working together part however, Ivan was truly serious, if they were ever to understand why they were here or even come close to completing their assigned objective, they'd need to work together.

Turning back to Caedmon after finishing the message, the two shared a grimace at the thought of the violent new summoned. The bearded man and the bird man were allies, that was a fact given how they’d acted. Caedmon was with them apparently however, accepting the “mission” Ivan had set out for him. “Oh no? What do you mean…” The Gunslinger said as Clementine approached. Thankfully Ivan didnt connect the dots, that Caedmon was wary of Clementine. Caedmon then proceeded to pull a crystal from his pocket and hold it out for Ivan. Ivan raised an eyebrow but took the crystal anyways. He held it in his palm for a moment, feeling its weight and texture. Ivan gets all the information from Caedmon the moment he touches the crystal and the gunslinger smiles genuinely. This man was really going to help. Ivan shuddered as the connection formed, then placed the crystal in his pocket. The slime creature was also on the network though and Ivan felt immense surprise at this. He hasn't expected such intelligence to come from Gloop. But now that they were connected it was almost as if the three had become brothers. Understanding each other like never before.

Then finding Caedmon distracted by music, Ivan turned his attention to the teen witch looking characters. He waited for a response from Clementine whose name he did not know yet. The other girl noticed them however and began to approach. Then Caedmon reached the source of the music and Ivan’s thoughts were distracted, He sent a message to Caedmon after the robot ran off, leaving Caedmon filling their telepathic link with sad emotions. He told the psychic that that was normal for Charon and to not take it personally, the robot was very one track minded. Ivan hoped Caedmon understood.

Then finally the girl with the slime creature approached. She seemed to have stars in her eyes as she got closer and Ivaqn became slightly nervous recognizing the situation that was about to occur. She had overheard the part about being a superhero apparently. The girl was shorter than Ivan by a decent margin and had pink eyes and pink hair. Truly a strange combination, but Ivan had seen stranger; She was not so odd compared to many of the other beings on Valucia. He answered the rapid fire questions with determination. In his time as a superhero, Ivan had become fairly popular in his part of the world. Fans had come to him with questions about his life many, many times and he was now slightly accustomed to answering them. Nothing was really classified anymore considering everyone in his old world was dead so he was relieved he didn't have to skirt around those topics.

“Yes, I'm a superhero, former one now actually. My Hero name was Cowboy for some reason, I think it was a joke to be honest considering my name’s literally Ivan. Yes I defeated a couple, not great memories really. I didn't get any comics, I was sorta on the downlow most of the time. I joined an organization whose name was literally “Classified.”. I'm more a vigilante though if i'm being honest.” Ivan finished responding and took a fresh breath of air having answered as quickly as he could. Then he stuck out his hand and said, “Im Ivan. Ivan Federico.” He looked down at Gloop as he did so, feeling an almost familial bond with the creature. After shaking hands with Nemu, she offered him a cookie. Ivan once again raised a single eyebrow and took the cookie. He took a bite and felt strength flood him, old bruises fading, cuts disappearing as he gulped down the delicious treat. Goddamn, mystery hat cookies were the best. He looked down at his most recent wound from the bird of the birdman, and frowned as he realized it wasn't healing. That definitely could not be good. “Thanks for the health cookie I guess… So like does it work on everything? Cuz that bad boy down there does not look like its getting better. Honestly doesnt feel like it either haha...” He laughed nervously. The wound still oozed dark blood and Ivan’s frown deepened as he looked at it. The cut on his neck had healed but the wound on his leg still bled. Not a good sign.

Juju Kaihaku seasonedcat YsFanatic StaidFoal

 

[Kaihaku]

Caedmon
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. Cathedral Neighborhood. Interactions: Lazaro1505 (Professor Membrane) Juju (Wakinyan)​

Caedmon stares at the conscious genius' outstretched hand for a long moment. That was bold. He just assumed he could have a psicrystal? Well, he was a great intellectual so it was only to be expected that he ignored social conventions. Just like Caedmon's new sibling. The ESPer sighs but pulls out another emerald crystal and places it into the Professor's outstretched hand.

"Fine. When dormant, the astral network only provides a basic psychic connection. Minor empathy, thought, and sensory sharing." Caedmon replies in a conflicted tone, he was put off by the Professor's abrupt manner but also excited to have a brain of this caliber on the network. It would also help him to have a strong disciplined mind. His new sibling had an impressive mind but it was on a different level than most and that took extra concentration from him. It was very different from networking with his old siblings, that was practically effortless. "In combat, I can bring the network fully online. This will enable everyone who is connected to pool their psychic and spiritual defenses, access each other's mental skills, manifest powers from each other's location, and even transposition using teleportation."

 

[YsFanatic]

As the android surveyed the survivors, he wondered if music would help but not knowing of a song that would help the fleshies keep their acts together he ended up ditching the idea. While Charon noted that one of them had split off and wandered into a ruined building, he opted to first to make a small announcement to the rest. He stood with feet apart, hands on his hips as he spoke. "Never fear fleshies, Charon is here! I'm taking over.." There was a brief pause, maybe a couple of nano-seconds as the android formulated a nickname for Yunica based on what he'd seen of her so far. "..for Panic Princess in getting you to safety!"

Nodding once in self satisfaction, the soul-eater skipped over to where Lukas was and stuck his head inside the building so he could see the young fleshy. "Squishy people like you should stick with others for safety you know! Now, are you going to walk back onw your own or am I carrying you over there?"

Spoiler: Interaction and nearby

Kaihaku Solirus Juju

 

[GrieveWriter]

POMA & Rook

Interaction/Mention: StaidFoal Juju Solirus YsFanatic Kaihaku​

Poma looked out towards the massive Second Wall that stood before them, carrying Meira in her arms as they drew near. It was absolutely massive, reaching the height of towers in its bid to secure what lie within. Of course, Poma had seen far bigger structures before, Noxco's reincarnation division was essentially a planet-sized factory. That being said, she always found no small amount of humor whenever primitive beings such as these managed to conjure up impressive works with their comparatively limited resources. She had no time to enjoy the view, as soon Meira managed to recognize what Poma had done.

If Poma had eyebrows, she may have raised one at the quick slip-up she made, naming someone else almost out of instinct. Poma would not press her on the manner, there was much more at stake nowadays. But when Meira asked her to take her to the base of the wall instead of over it or on top of it, Poma slowed down. She came to a stop in the middle of the open air, shifting her hold on Meira as she tilted her head.

"I see I see, a soldier does have many obligations to fulfill, especially in a time of crisis." Poma sighed before lifting Meira up like a puppy and nodding towards the wall "But before we part ways, would you be ever so gracious as to point me in the direction of someone who could better aid my investigation? I'd be ever so grateful, after all."

But as she spoke, her eyes kept glancing down below at something, until finally she rolled her eyes, "A quick answer will be sufficient, as its fairly likely you and yours will have that to deal with soon enough."

She nodded down towards a massive straight line of destruction leading away from the cathedral right towards the very second wall that they were approaching. At the head of that trail of destruction was none other than Rook, who seemed to just casually strolling right through dozens of buildings on his way towards the wall. It wasn't even like he was attacking anything, he just walked into them and they fell apart around his massive frame, unable to hold him back.

Having run out of potential heretics to interrogate, Rook had made it his mission to target the biggest thing he could, that of course being that literal wall impeding his potential crusade. The Queen had asked that this world be conquered after all, and any one of her Rooks knew that the best way to conquer a place was to reduce as much of it rubble as possible. While he could fulfill such a task rather easily just by swinging his tower around, Rook knew that bigger targets were often preferable. Hell, they were exactly what Rooks like him were meant to topple, along with literally everything and everyone else the Queen demanded they sent their unyielding might after.

Even better, since it was a fixed structure, it wouldn't be able to run.

A fantastic target for a loyal Rook just doing his job. So he walked through the panicking populace, eager and willing to break down anything that stood as a symbol of the Kingspawn's unholy resistance. He walked through buildings, walked through toppled carts, and eventually broke through the side of a building right beside a group of fleeing civilians.

Rook took a moment to look down at them as they scattered, the building he had just stepped from already falling down upon them. He recognized at least a few of them from the cathedral, namely the boy and the canine that had been prancing about the cathedral moments prior. There were others, but Rook had no time to consider the small golem or the other summoned man who he'd overlooked during the Queen's Speech. He didn't have time for testing their loyalty to the Queen just yet, that was an inquisition for another time. Instead, he kept on his original path, walking towards the wall. The surrounding civilians could either flee, pray, or get out of the way; and only one of those options held a chance for guaranteed survival.

At least, it would've been guaranteed if Rook didn't walk through several buildings nearby to continue on his path, sending debris cascading as he made his way towards the wall, "OUT OF MY WAY, TINY MORTALS! THE DUTIES OF THE QUEEN BECKON ME TO THEIR FULFILLMENT!!!"

Unlike Rook, Poma was far more adept at simply turning and spotting the gate that Norstera's army seemed to be using for refugees and troops movements. She carried Meira down to this gate, which was a ways off from the portion of the wall Rook seemed to be targeting.

"Honestly, things out here seem to grow messier by the second." she noted, slowing down as they approached the ground below.

 

[Pseudo-nim]

Auron
Mentions: @ everyone in the city Juju GrieveWriter YsFanatic StaidFoal Snackofthefuture Solirus Kaihaku nighttimecatplayer ​

What purpose was he to be summoned upon this ravaged land? His age of conquest and revenge was a past he had long since forgotten, discarded after its usefulness had waned. Had he looked upon this scene, atop the massive walls of Castellan, when he still held those emotions of hunger for material possessions and base, earthly desires then perhaps it would have been right to send him upon this garden world. There came a time in the past that his thirst for power was rabid and obstructed by pure anger and hatred of his untimely demise. Those moments of uncontrolled fury and rage against a world he was destined to help had been eroded by time. Where he once was brimming with passion, Auron could only think back with apathy.

But rather than lack the sense of emotions, it could be accurately said that there was an absence of any. The knights behind him, unfortunate souls sacrificed for the creation of his phylactery, did not incite feelings within him. Their false bravery did not stir amusement. Their prone figures sobbing for mercy from a summoned did not create a surge of superiority or pity. There was simply the act of removing the obstacles that hindered his path. It was a cold flame that burned within his eyeless skull, apathetic of all feeling as an undead would as he tore their souls from their bodies and crushed it within his hand, letting their emotions, their memories, their very aspect and essence run through his mind before disintegrating as mana. They were brief and fleeting moments, one he did not cherish or hate, simply acknowledged as part of strengthening himself. But they were weak in mind and soul, fitting for dispensable troops.

So he looked upon the ruins of Castellan, purged of its fires by Varium's storm cloak and another, equally talented storm user. The old king had mentioned his motives in further confidence to him only, as Varium rarely ever cared for the intricacies of strategy. And he outstripped Auron of experience and lifespan in an overwhelming fashion, yet did not see the flaws of sharing such knowledge to someone as he. So he would simply bide his time, for he is not like these creatures of finite lifespans. An undead never truly ages, but simply grows in power and intelligence. It was simply a matter of time before he would outlive even the gods themselves.

But the drums of war beat to the sound of hearts. The flames that stir between both sides of this conflict will soon ignite their thirst for blood shed. A battlefield of bodies, of the screaming souls of the damned that would continue their service to aid their comrades upon the belief of camaraderie and brotherhood. It was a scene a necromancer of his magnitude would take an opportunity to cast one his strongest magics.

A surge of power coursed through his bones. Mana ebbed and flowed like a wave as the lich's gargantuan magic pool coalesced into the first visage of a grand spell. Below the storm clouds, the outer ring of the first circle glowed an ethereal blue, like flames hidden in a fog. The first circle. The cage that will siphon upon the deceased's second reckoning of life. His gift of a second life must be paid in full. For their service to those they knew in life, he would gain theirs upon in their death. He knew of such deeds during his time in his own world, where those risen from the dead choose to do so in order to serve after life. That even in death, they shall protect. A noble thought, but manipulated just as easily.

From the cage of souls were the runic symbols of his land, acting as the catalyst for the resurrection of the dead. To take from the afterlife under Auron's possession. No escape, no release, only servitude. The necromantic magic that bound their souls as unwilling engines to fuel a greater purpose. For each layer he creates, more ancient writings took the space between them, enforcing his control upon their souls to the point where their demise would simple empower the lich with their essence.

The third circle, a golden halo of his holy magic, weaved in tandem to the unholy energies of death. A greater purpose, an undying willingness to serve. Pure in energy, but malicious in execution. The brief sensation of finding their purpose in life, of feeling a sense of completeness. A holy magic perverted by a necromancer's mind. The captive soul willing to accept the warm light's embrace to find darkness beyond the holy veil and shackled upon chains of searing light. Divine magic is pure and just, as much as it dictates total control and suffocating sense of order.

The fourth and final circle, a condensed and bright vortex of cyan and gold. Balance in the divine magic of his priestly past and the necromancy of his current self, where upon two opposites converge comes the undiluted essence of life and death. In every death, and every risen soul comes the infusion of light and darkness, separated by a thin border. It lies as a core, of a body resurrected by the volatile nature of opposite forces. Their mortal shells balance upon a delicate strand of magic. To pierce their bodies is to disrupt this balance and they shall feel the full, hated strength of light and dark, for they are beings of both and neither. A violent destruction as a result of two halves of the same whole meeting without proper control.

Then a single beam of the fourth circle struck the center of the city, and a wave of light radiated upon the entirety of Castellan, washing over the living harmlessly. It did not seek those of beating hearts, but valiant souls unwilling to part this realm without their dues repaid in full. They are the tormented and damned, just and pure, lamenting and tired. Each soul would be shackled upon their forceful tear from the afterlife of this world and rise from their graves as soldiers to aid their army as engines of their fragile mortal shell.

Truthfully, Auron did not require the use of souls to infuse the corpses below with his necromancy and divine magic into walking bombs, no. These damned souls would become his first stepping stone to a life unbound by the limits of death. His lichdom was just beginning, but his soul remains within rather than without. A dangerous game to play, but one he's successfully won till now. But a war was the perfect chance to create what every lich he's encountered and learned from, be it through their personal teachings or untimely demise by his hand.

No, it was to ensure the beginning of his first goal in this world would start perfectly. This war would provide him the essences necessary to create a true vessel for his soul. An artifact as wonderous as a legendary blade for heroes or the staff equipped by most accomplished wizard of history. A lich's phylactery was not just the most treasured item in their life, but the source of their immortality. It was finally time to truly consider this act, for he was among others that could potentially be his peers in magic, and to leave his very soul in a fragile skeletal form without several forms of contingencies planned was simply asking for his nonexistence.

As the spell finished expelling the remainder of its energy into the city, the circle slowly faded away into nothingness. The patter of rain and rolling thunder overpowered most of the sounds, but in the distance, Auron felt the first of several thousands of undead scream. As more roared from their resurrection, others tore through the debris they were buried in, glowing the necrotic green of undeath with wisps of holy energy coming from their orifices. Those of Nortestran origin shambled out of their unmarked graves, many from their untimely deaths at the hands of Mollug dogs and howled as their bodies ran across the streets of Castellan. At first scattered and singular, but slowly converging into a massive horde of rabid undead, like streams gathered to form a rushing river. There was a single-minded rush within every Nortestran undead and that was to kill anything who bore the Mollug uniform and flag. The mass of bodies stampeded through the streets of Castellan, flowing like water around those of Castellan descent and bearing their uniform. Summoned were ignored as well, their one mission to simply search and destroy their hated enemy.

In the same vein, the Mollug army would come to find the broken corpses of their fellow soldiers slowly rise from the earth, forgoing any weapons. Those who bore the Mollug flag would shamble past their superiors and brothers and sisters. Their eyes, filled with gold and green undeath, would stare deeply into the ruined Castellan and let out a blood curdling howl to rally the dead. It echoed into the destroyed walls of the capital city before a similar horde rushed forward, eager to be given a second chance to destroy the city.

And just as two living armies prepared to go to war, two hordes of undead rushed forward to meet each other to exact their revenge. All under the fiery red gaze of the necromancer that started it all.

 

[Kaihaku]

Lukas Nephus
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. Third Ward Ruins
Interaction(s): Juju (Goodest Boi) Solirus (Jason) YsFanatic (Charon)
Mentions: GrieveWriter (Rook) Pseudo-nim (Lich) StaidFoal (Meira)

​

Lukas startled as the robot unexpectedly stuck its head into the shop and loudly demanded that he accompany it to the second gate. It even threatened to carry him there. That would be a sight. He could envision the robot lugging him there like a stack of potatoes and dropping him unceremoniously at the feet of the solider from before, Meira. Lukas wasn't normally concerned about his dignity but that would be too much.

"I'll come. Please don't carry me." Lukas answers quietly as he slid his phone into a pocket and got to his feet. It would be harder to escape this war from inside the second wall but maybe he could slip out through the sewers or something. Terrible things happened when an army sacked a city. He didn't want to want to see that again. Not when he was powerless to stop it. All his power did was prolong suffering.

Lukas steps through the broken doorway and pauses beside the android. What was that sound? Rumbling? More thunder? It sounded like a train... Lukas looked around to see the colossal construct Rook barreling towards the city walls. He stumbles back, bumping into Charon, and then immediately recoils away from the android. A second later Lukas has doubled over, coughing violently and spasming. A few seconds later he's fine but stares at the android with a mix of disgust and horror. There had been some kind of disease on the android. It was unlike anything he'd cured before...it was twisted, evil, and unbelievably powerful. It fought it him too, like it was intelligent?

"Wha... What was that... Where have you been?" Lukas gasps. He shudders at the thought of whatever hell this android must have visited to pick up a plague like that. Was it native to this world? He didn't know there even were diseases that affected robots. Well, it was gone for now. He'd cured the android but still felt dirty. This was a mess. He didn't plan to reveal his powers to anyone but he'd just made a scene. Wiping his hands on his trousers, Lukas quickly adds, "Sorry... I, uh, freaked out for a second there. Let's go."

Lukas is oblivious to the magical symbols shining in the sky above the city but he winces as a wave of magical energy cascades over the city. He looks around in confusion and then his jaw drops as corpses begin shuffle to their feet. His eyes flash with anger as his hands curl into fists. Necromancy.

 

[Kaihaku]

Tabby Cat
(Mother Voorjaar)
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. Second Ward.

​

The cat stands still on a street corner staring up the sky with narrowed eyes. Abruptly it darts into a nearby shop, knocking over several vases and somehow smashing a table, before leaping out through a window. The shop owner calls after it angrily as the cat sprints down the cobblestones and into another shop. There's a loud crash as a display case breaks and a moment later the cat barrels out of the shop with a gemstone in its mouth. An elven shop owner is right behind it but the cat escapes by leaping over a building.

Behind some crates in a nearby ally, the cat sets the gemstone on a cobblestone and quickly scratches a circle of runes around it. It's claws easily cut stone. The runes begin to glow softly as the spell in the sky reaches its crescendo and unleashes a cascade of magical light over the city. The gemstone gains a sickly glow as a small portion of the light is captured within. The cat purrs as it rubs its cheek against the rune circle and gemstone.

Then the cat carefully picks up the gemstone and trots off purposefully.

 

[Lazaro1505]

(Outside the Cathedral)
The Flagellant

Interaction(s): Juju

Mentions: Pseudo-nim

Professor Membrane
Location: Cathedral Neighborhood

Interaction(s) Kaihaku

Mentions: Juju Pseudo-nim


Flagellant:

Time has passed once more... the Flagellant kneeling for some time by now, and with each second that passes, the high amount of doubt and curiosity of what the remaining soldiers would next began to fill more and more of his very mind. Blah, he needed to push those thoughts aside, if the Light deemed them worthy to fight alongside with, then he will heed its word and do so with no question... but couldn’t help but feel a bit of unease and lack of trust to the Flagellant coming from the soldiers, hearing quite a bit of whispering he couldn’t truly make out, but it was quite possibly about not only him... but the ‘others’ as well. The all too familiar feeling others had towards him back in the Hamlet, even when shown that he was a valuable ally, they couldn’t help but feel like he was gonna reach his limit one day, and once it finally arrives, there would be no difference between a once fanatic man that endured their burden and suffering from a beast who prays to the Old god... but eventually, the man he introduced himself to finally spoke back.

They seem to thank him for the aid he was now providing, telling him that his efforts would be rewarded after the war is over, to which the Flagellant merely made a smirk similar that no sane man would ever create, and responded back with “I require no award for the effort I put into suffering the burden of your people... after all, what purpose would I have with material possessions if I require none at all... I just need the basic necessities during the war... all I request of you is to respect me like any other man of your kingdom, as well as allow me to practice my daily prayers and self-flagellation in peace.” the man finished, now listening to the rest of the conversation the man provided, telling him of his name, leader of the third Calvary until the true one recovers from her wounds... and questioned about any others within the cathedral. Shaking his head no, he said “I seen no others while I was moving here to answer your call... but perhaps they would still be in the area... after all, no one can travel that quickly out of this.... ‘city’ that fast, and there is a possible few who would side with you during the war...” but before he could continue on, a large flash of light came from nowhere, washing over his body harmlessly and the others, the Flagellant now in a stage of confusion, wondering what was even the purpose of that bright light, and where was its point of origin.

Thankfully, or not, the purpose of the beam came rather quickly, as some time later, hordes of the.... unholy abominations of the dead rushed forth, seemingly focused on going somewhere, bearing the same armor and symbols as the soldiers in front of him, and to the Flagellant’s surprise, instead of a battle between the living and dead taking place, they instead run past them, trying to go somewhere else the Flagellant presumed, it was good and bad, while yes, these things may possibly be in his side, and not trying to kill them this possible second, there was also the nature of these beings of the unholy nature he all but hated, these souls should be put to rest, not to be used as ‘tools’ to fight a war, even if these souls didn’t want to pass on yet, they must accept the reality of death, and move on to the afterlife. Or the fact that instead of these containing souls, someone else was using their bodies for a more... sinister intent... and the fact of what would happen next if whatever they were targeting, managed to run out in numbers.

Quickly snapping himself out of it, he turned to face the soldiers left, as he gave out a couple of sentences from his lips “Nortestran soldiers, it appears that we must make haste with collecting of the willing summoned and raise our forces up, something sinister is amongst us, and we must prepare for its arrival....” the Flagellant said with haste, wanting everyone to prepare to start moving out now. But a smile began to creep up on his face, for perhaps, he could have gain another purpose out here within a new world, and have a worthy fight once more.

Professor Membrane

“Well.... that wasn’t the result I was thinking off...” Membrane said out loud, as he now had some sort of green crystal within his outstretched hand, raising a brow at the item, and bringing his hand close in order to inspect the gem he now had within his grip. Now this was an interesting little crystal, but sadly, no matter what he can do, he couldn’t bring this back with him after wakes up once more, but good to see that his brain was capable of ‘thinking’ up with on the fly... he could give his brain some credit that it’s not only excellent at thinking of new inventions, but also a dream with many complex and strange things as well. The conversation continues on with Caedmon explaining about the gem, which provides a sort of psychic connection to those with any other gem, Membrane hypothesized for the last part, which also provides minor empathy, thought, and sensory when the ‘Astral Network’ is used. Strange object, but perhaps this could also be created by Membrane in the future as well, something that would increase the power of the brain waves created from the Human mind and allow them to quite possibly affect other brain waves as well, but also possible affect the environment as well. So, another idea that this ‘dream’ provided to him to be used much later... Caedmon continued on with a conflicted tone, perhaps it was the fact that he mistaken the hand shake for something else and accidentally gave him the gem instead.

Still, the conversation continues on, more and more information, in which its purpose within combat comes into play here, which fully activated, and to those who is connected with it, could pool their ‘psychic and spiritual’ defenses... confusing on how something like that would work but most deal with some crazy dream magic his mind was making up, now continuing on with the description, it allows others to access any other mental skills of an individual, manifest powers from each other’s locations, and even the use of Teleportation as well. Membrane could only nod and thought of all the useful qualities this single little crystal had... imagine something like that back within the real world, but Dr. Membrane returned back to reality and put the crystal away, as he voiced what needed to be said “Ahem, while thank you for providing me with the crystal, I had no knowledge of its existence, and was merely stretching out my hand for a ‘hand shake’, I take it you do know what a hand shake is? If not... I have much to explain, many things.... if you do not know anything about the customs of Earth” Membrane finished, now having to think of teaching someone who was quite possibly had a high IQ within the known scale, perhaps even high like his own IQ, but even then, just because in individual may be smart and had great knowledge on many topics, it doesn’t mean that they know truly everything.... but let’s hope it’s just only Hand Shakes that Caedmon doesn’t know about.... or strange rhinos with fur.... or

But then, Membrane was interrupted with a bright flash of light, now looking around and saying “I take it that you don’t know what this beam of light that occurred a few seconds and give or take a few nanoseconds ago....” he said to the person he was conversing with, and his question was answered in another way, as what he presumed was... undead humanoids rising from their ‘graves’ had appeared, but did nothing to the two, as the creatures merely ran past the two... Membrane raising a small brow during the entirety of it, turning to Caedmon once more, while the horde as starting to thin out now, and said “I take it that you didn’t know of this event as well, perhaps this was the cause of the non-living humanoids running past us with no harm done to use in the process. Perhaps something is occurring here, like the undead army grouping up before either striking against us or this Mollug empire outside the city... but maybe you know who could have caused this event, if not, we must either inspect this area for more clues or prepare ourselves for the trial ahead Caedmon...” Membrane finished, as he raised his right hand to his chin and began to think of the many possibilities that it could have been.​

 

[Juju]

Kotori & WakinyanInteraction: Kaihaku Lazaro1505 YsFanatic seasonedcat Snackofthefuture
​

Wakinyan ignored most of what Caedmon had to say, though for some reason the mention of fighting against fire caught the ancient's attention. He turned his head to stare down at Caedmon's otherwise moronic musings, seeming almost surprised. Yet as quickly as it had been caught, the beast's held interest was soon lost as the esper went on to babble about other things, but Wakinyan still watched him from the corner of his eye.

Kotori's tried her best to follow everything Caedmon said, though found herself in confusion at many of his vague or strange statements. She couldn't quite say what exactly she was dealing with, or how dangerous the new summoned truly were, but at least scraps of information were better than nothing.

"Thank you, Caedmon." Kotori said, taking the green gem and staring down at it. As soon as her fingers touched it she gained a very strange sensation, similar to the mark of SIN or even her own telepathic bond with Wakinyan. It made her fingertips feel numb, and her head fill with cotton. There were others she could sense, one familiar, and two that were unknown. "Ivan?" she muttered, slowly recognizing his consciousness within the network.

Caedmon would be able to note that despite never giving them any crystals, Csilla and Wakinyan were both faintly in the network as soon as Kotori was added. Though any attempt to try mentally connecting with Wakinyan would be met with with a painful jolt and deafening thunder inside his mind. The beast growled at the exchange of crystals, after understanding what they were, and summoned a swift gust of wind to knock the crystal out of Caedmon's hand as he offered it. Kotori managed to hold onto hers, but her face gained a small frown, "I will take this gift, to aid us in battle, but once it has concluded I must return it to you... my apologies."

She went silent after this, thankful for the distraction of the two newcomers. Wakinyan watched their arrival, his eyes resting on each of them for a moment before drawing away, seemingly content. He huffed impatiently as the doctor inspected him, begrudgingly accustomed to this sort of bafflement by now. So long as the whitecoat did not touch him, he would tolerate it. Still, Kotori could sense a bit of amusement and perhaps gratitude by how highly the esper thought of him. It certainly was a refreshing change from the Nortestran opinion.

A smile lit up Kotori's face when the scientist declared he would side with Nortestra. She bowed her head respectfully, "Thank you Professor Membrane. We are grateful to have another summoned join our cause." The girl then walked carefully towards the strange metallic knight. They had to be the one Charon mentioned. "Are you Yunica? Charon mentioned that you helped some of the survivors. I am glad to know Csilla and I are not the only healers. I fear our job is only beginning, however."

​

Greymourne & EnzioCaedmon was lucky that Greymourne was in such a terrible state, otherwise he would have felt a giant gauntlet wrap around him. She grit her teeth, anger flashing in her bronze eyes, "I asked you a question, summoned!"

Seeing her struggle, Enzio held his hands out, wanting to help Greymourne but clearly too afraid of her wrath. "Wait, wait, be careful Greymourne, you need to rest. Maybe you should use that-"

"What are you, some wetnurse? We're in the middle of a war. I can rest plenty when I'm dead. What matters is getting this information!"

"H-hold up! Listen, he mentioned a few already to Kotori." Enzio cringed at the death stare the captain was giving him. Sometimes, her silence was much worse than her barbed words. Still, she quieted and listened to what Caedmon had to say, though the scowl never left her face. She still clutched the stim Zasha gave to her, refusing to use it on herself.

Enzio saw Yunica's approach before Greymourne did and clutched his sword defensively. The captain caught on to this and followed his gaze, recognizing Yunica immediately. "You have a lot of nerve showing up after what you did back there!" The captain growled, jabbing a gauntlet finger towards the armored girl. "Try anything like that again and I'll turn that fancy armor of yours into a pile of rubbish."

Of course, as she stood there, a healing light washed over her and her strength returned. Greymourne's eyes widened in confusion, and even Enzio's jaw dropped. There was a moment of silence, then Greymourne simply stalked off, muttering angrily to herself.

"What she means to say is thank you." Enzio said wearily, watching Greymourne head towards the doctor and Caedmon. "Sorry about her... she's a bit rough around the edges, but there's nothing she won't do for this city. The name's Sir Ravencroft by the way, but you can call me Enzio. It's much easier to say when things go sideways... as they tend to do these days..."

Of course, as if jinxing it, a strange glow illuminated the city. Enzio looked up, muttering some swear word that was drowned out by a roar from Wakinyan.

Susan, Kotori & WakinyanMention: Pseudo-nim​

"Ah, great. Zombies..." Susan said blandly, watching a bloody hand break out of some rubble. It struggled pathetically, but could not get its broken little corpse out from its trap. In a way, it was kind of sad. To have been given a second chance at living only to screw it up just as badly. "Well, shouldn't be that much of a surprise, considering... yo Kotori? You ok there?"

The older girl was completely motionless as she watched half a corpse drag itself along the street, babbling nonsense and hissing. Kotori's face was almost as pale as the corpse's, eyes wide and glassy. She held a hand to her mouth. Susan thought she heard her whisper something along the lines of 'not this.' before she poked her arm, "Hey, Kotori. We should probably do something about this."

Kotori shuddered and looked down at Susan, eyes wild with fear. Terrible memories resided there. Her attempts at keeping a brave face were always so obvious it almost hurt. In a way, it was one of the things that fascinated her about Kotori. "Y-yes. Stay close."

Screeches erupted throughout the city, gnawing at the rumbles of thunder. Wakinyan's hide glowed for a moment, charging up, before a flash of heavenfire shot down from the skies, splitting to kill the nearby undead simultaneously. As soon as they were smited, they erupted in an explosion of energy. Susan effortlessly surrounded each of them in a void, the burst of power disappearing in a sliver of blackish purple. "Ah... well that's creative I guess.. A bit on the showy side. Eh, what a drag."

"Wait, Wakinyan" Kotori shouted to the beast, making him stop his chase after another, "Their souls are bound to someone. If we kill them like this they will only be further trapped. I can break them from it... so can Charon, we just need time." She glanced at the undead running in the distance, feeling her chest tighten. Would they be able to cleanse so many? She nodded at Membrane's suggestion about finding clues about whoever caused this, struggling to keep calm "J-just give me a moment."

As another undead shambled by, Wakinyan stomped them beneath his hoof, holding them down. Kotori walked closer, and Susan watched her head slowly turn towards the Castellan wall, as if following something. She noticed a golden light etched the rims of her eyes, but it faded as quickly as it appeared so Susan did not comment. Kotori pointed towards the wall, "There. All the threads lead to that wall."

​

While nobody else could see it, those in Caedmon's network could possibly see what appeared to be strands of golden gossamer trailing from each undead, condensing in one spot along the wall. The strands swirled tightly around the suspect, like a vortex, then solidified into a bright circle. From where they stood, it looked like the glint of sun on water.

​

Greymourne & Enzio"We need to rally the troops and prepare a defense. I don't know what bastard summoned these abominations, but I never knew a horde of demons to be passive. If these things can explode then I can only imagine what they've planned. Enzio, find the calvary unit and lead them from there. Keep these deadmen immobilized if you can, but if you kill them make sure you take out as many as possible. DO NOT let them near the wall. And by SIN's shit eating grin, try not to get yourself killed. I'll rendezvous shortly."

"At once, captain!" The strawberry knight saluted, then leapt into the air. Semi-transparent raven wings suddenly sprung from his back, trailing fading feathers as he glided above the rubble towards the cathedral.

Greymourne turned back to the summoned, her eyes afire, "As for you lot, you had best remember our deal. If you think swapping sides takes to your fancy you'll end up with a Mollug dagger between your ribs. They haven't a speck of honor to share between them and a hunger to match a Czarnikei ravager. They won't stop with Nortestra. If Castellan falls so will you. Remember this well, summoned."

 

[Solirus]

Jason​

Great, ok… I have to lead these survivors somewhere… they all have worried faces, some hide it more than others, but being stuck under rubble is not a nice experience… my clothing is very out of place compared to theirs… maybe I’ll try to get new clothing late…… I have no idea where I’m going…

I suddenly turn around and look at the survivors, “I have no idea where I am going… we are to go to the second wall, does anyone know a good route to make it there?” I ask.. Some people get even more nervous but one man, with a well built body and scars steps forward.

“Yes, know these streets like the back of my hand” He says confidently

“Good, then you’ll be leading the group with the second wall and it’s entrance, I was told you can seek shelter there… ” I look around and I don’t seem to find Lukas or the dog… The boy seems like he’ll be helpful… and sane… I look back at the group “I’ll be moving back and searching for more survivors… you don’t have to wait for me.” I proclaim.

The man looks back at me and Nods “Everyone follow me!” the man shouts as the group make their way

Ok that should be fine… now where did Lukas go off to… In that moment I begin to sense and see magic in display… very powerful magic… Almost instinctively I summon my attire and summon my book… my hand once again moves on it’s own as it begins to write… Doesn’t seem like I’ll be able to copy the entire spell… I can’t even see the caster… but I should get an idea of what is happening… the more I know the safer I'll be…

I read what I write and quickly figure out it’s a necromancy spell… a big one at that… however it suddenly stops, unable to add more from the lack of info… It is at that moment the rubble begins to shake around me and previously dead soldiers rise… I slowly pull out my knife but as I keep reading I realize that these undead won’t be attacking me… My hand once again begins writing only to abruptly stop again… So they’re given a simple command huh… If I want to fully copy this I’ll need to see the caster doing it… but judging by this… The caster just finished… At least the undead should be a good distraction…

I make my way inside of another wrecked building and make my way through the unknown streets trying to find Lukas.

Current Appearence:


Mentions: Pseudo-nim Kaihaku Juju

 

[Kaihaku]

Caedmon
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. Cathedral Neighborhood. Interactions: Lazaro1505 (Professor Membrane) Juju (Some Reporter, Kotori, Wakinyan)​

Caedmon looks at the Professor evenly. If he was stretching out his hand to shake it, why hadn't he shaken it? Oh. Of course. It was like the classified identity confirmation technique that the Regulars had taught him. The ESPer nods seriously then, suddenly, fistbumps the outstretched hand and tries to follow up with some overcomplicated secret handshake maneuver that includes wiggling his thumb and index finger. He seems puzzled when the Professor doesn't reciprocate but at the Professor's question turns to look at the undead beside them.

"The Lich just channeled an immense amount of spiritual energy from the dead. It is currently located on the wall." Caedmon answers the Professor simply, as if commenting on the weather. He glances in the direction of the second wall, pointing directly at the gathering point of souls, then folds his arms as he looks around at the undead passively. The location he points is the same as the one indicated by Kotori. "I am curious what stratagem it is planning with all those souls? Is it on a radio silent op?" Was a mission update too much to expect? This CO should have cued them in before this.

Caedmon spends a moment concentrating on filtering out the mental roar of the rhinoceros, only half paying attention as the others talk and intentionally ignoring the reporter. The psicrystal rejected by the rhinoceros floats back to his pocket. Once he has the filter established in his subcortex he nods with satisfaction. It would take more mental capacity than he'd hoped but what did he expect it was a mythical creature. Imagine if it had accepted a psicrystal and the connection were direct. It was an exciting thought. His scowl deepens as he realizes what the others have been talking about. "What? This was caused by the Lich. It was summoned by the moral abstract so it and it's reanimated dead are allied units." He looks confused as he does not sense relief from the others, "Isn't that correct?"

Caedmon thought back to the mission briefing and shook his head, the mission perimeters were as always painfully vague. But they had all been brought to the insertion point together and given the same mission briefing. So, of course, they were allied units. He'd never been allied with reanimated dead before...but it was a tactic that he'd seen daemon and traitors use. There was something wrong about it but he assumed the CO had made the call for a reason? Either way, use of force between allied units was forbidden. It's why he hadn't engaged in the playful tussle back at the insertion point. Regulars occasionally got into fights, it was just how they were, but conflict mediation was the job of the MPs not ESPers. Caedmon sighed. The CO really had messed up this operation.

 

[YsFanatic]

Yunica watched the captain march away, frowning in confusion within the privacy of the Assault Armor. “It was supposed to be an apology,” she says quietly, momentarily too occupied to acknowledge the greetings from Kotori and Enzio. Greetings that were then completely forgotten when the spell washed over the city, the vile nature of the magic making goosebumps appear on Yunica’s skin as she shivered, the Armor subtly mimicking her movement. Even as she gasped in shock and disgust at the rising bodies, the machine’s sensors and computer ID’d them as zombies and suggested fire and holy damage as the best means of dispatching them.

Accepting the suggestion, the clone mentally commanded the Armor to load the cartridge for fire damage into her sword, a process that was complete by the time she started to draw the blade. However the unicorn was faster to react than she was, something she was glad for when they exploded upon receiving his attack. When Kotori mentioned Charon’s name shortly before beginning her process of tracing the magic that bound the undead, the princess realized with a start that she better warn the android.

The soul-eater tilted his head in confusion at Lukas’ outburst. He had detected that something had happened, but couldn’t determine what. Answering the question however was easy. “Many universes and worlds!” Any additional explanation was cut off however when some of the dead began to stir due to the vile spell that had been cast. Charon observed the rising dead with some annoyance, their souls had either left or were in the process of leaving their bodies for the afterlife, but some asshole had apparently broken off fragments of the souls and shoved them back into the corpses, forcing them to rise again.

With an electronic growl of irritation, he grabbed the nearest one by the head and hauled it away from Lukas before crushing its skull. The android detected the energies contained within the undead mixing and becoming volatile, but the damage had already been done as it exploded and undid a sizable amount of the repair work his systems had done to his armor. Thankfully it didn’t appear that the rest had any interest in attacking him or the people he was supposed to be protecting.

"Yunica to Charon, Kotori seems to think that you might be able to help cleanse these zombies? Oh, and they seem to explode if killed."

While annoyed at the lateness of the warning, Charon kept it to himself and instead prepared a response to both Yunica and Kotori, utilizing his communication system and the SIN mark at the same time. "They only have fragments of souls, I’m not able to eat them in that state. They are not attacking the people here however."

While Yunica had heard Charon’s response, she was a bit busy being confused by Caedmon’s response. While she didn’t have quite the same revulsion that her family did with the nature of the undead, something she chalked up to her lack of experience, the magic itself didn’t feel right to her and that was enough for her to consider the things a threat. After all, both Dana and Sarah had told her to trust her instincts in such matters. “Being brought here at the same time by the same being doesn’t mean we are all allies. Charon informed me that many of the ones brought here by SIN are doing their own things possibly with opposing goals. He’s figuring that all of this is some game between the two gods, and I’m thinking he’s right.”

Spoiler: Interactions

Kaihaku Juju

 

[YsFanatic]

Kana had been patiently waiting for an opening for her and those working with her to be able to come to the aid of the civilians in the city when Auron's spell washed over it. A wave of disgust washed over the goddess's body as she realized what had happened, her guardian protectively edging closer. While she couldn't pick out all of the details, it was easy to tell that necromancy was involved, a practice that she found vile and had purged from the lands under her protection at every opportunity. Waving one of the soldiers sworn to her to come up, she passed along some instructions. "Get the stealthiest, fastest scouts we have. We are going to infiltrate the city, something evil is happening there and I mean to do something about it." The soldier may have had questions, but to her credit she ran off to do as she bid. Kana knew that the Sentinels' leader would object to this course of action, but it didn't matter. They couldn't wait any longer and she was going to go down there with, or without their support.

 

[Kaihaku]

Caedmon
Location: Castellan, Nortestra. Cathedral Neighborhood. Interactions: Lazaro1505 (Professor Membrane) Juju (Gloop, Kotori, Wakinyan) YsFanatic (Some Baby)​

Caedmon considers the big baby's words. Could it be true that the moral abstract had brought non-allied units and shared the mission briefing with them? It seemed like complete nonsense but the mission briefing did little to inspire confidence. Still, the big baby was hardly trustworthy. She spoke of 'Charon' as if it were an authority worthy of respect. Ha! The girl who hadn't introduced herself had indicated this 'Charon' as a nom de guerre for 'Hug Lord of Doom 3000'. Caedmon was not about to trust that seedy machine, no matter how much of an intellectual front it's muscles put up. It is true that Gloop's enemy was among the allied units but the feelings of guilt, self-loathing, and shame made him think she was a traitor. Traitors were a different category altogether.

"Gloop. Professor." Caedmon says seriously, turning away from the big baby and looking towards the cathedral where his gelatinous new sibling still abides. He needed to consult with experts, not some baby. He does spare a glance at the Rhinoceros but doesn't ask it. Their relationship wasn't there yet. "What do you think of this situation?"

 

[Snackofthefuture]

Nathaniel Klaus​

Nathaniel Klaus was a man covered from head to toe in armor, wielding a massive axe alongside his prominent size. The man was weighty, composed and dressed to kill. In his head, Nathan went over the reasons he had been sent to the siege of Castellan. To watch and analyze the new weapon rumored to have come into Mollug hands, potentially help any royalty who'd be escaping the ruined city and to study the summoned more. All of the work in the name of The Xact Empire. He had already checked his equipment a hundred times over since coming from their last camp, and he’d check it a hundred more times before they arrived at the first wall of Castellan. The knight of Xact was surprised he’d been selected for the mission, being sent with the Summoned of Xact and a force of 50 Xactian Paladins. He was a general however, and special forces might have been more adequate; But on the other hand, he had a connection with Aurora and Bai Ling. They were the only Summoned Xact had any sort of influence over, and this gave them an inside ticket with the summoned of Nortestra.

He looked out over the long rolling fields leading up to the ruins of the buildings right outside the walls. The ground was untended and the houses on this side were unguarded or watched. There were craters and old encampments, long abandoned by both sides pocketing the ground in multiple areas leading up to the walls. There were trees all along the perimeter of the fields, which was where Nathan and his men stood. There was a small camp, hidden by Xactian magics from observation, from which they had come. There were more soldiers at the camp, but Nathan would be bringing in only 50 troops. He placed his axe on his back buckles, the magnetic attachments and magical buffs holding the weapon in place behind him. The warrior was waiting for Aurora to arrive.

Pai Chan