Fantasy Z O D I A C | Umbra [Currently CLOSED]

[Azukai]

A single candle light flickered from an early morning breeze that settled into the room through a cracked window. As a result, darkness reclaimed its hold on the night--the light of the room doused by a lost flame; yet the abyss was momentary as a sudden spark rekindled the elements and re-cast the shadow of a lonesome man. There was a small creak from a rickety chair as Kaivant leant forward and settled his elbows against the desk. Soon, a small, frustrated sigh escaped his parted lips as he observed the small photo which rested on the wooden surface at hand. The photo was discolored and its once vibrant hues mostly faded; though that did nothing to mar the scene which depicted a pair of youths who frolicked in a castle courtyard.

"Where are you..." Kaivant growled; his emotions flaring through more than his voice as the candle's flame suddenly exploded in size. The reddish-orange fire began to meld with hints of blue and white, all while its sudden intensity left the height of the candle plummeting towards its base. In a matter of seconds, the gentle glow which filled the room was once against lost to the night; while droplets of wax began to seep off the edge of the desk and onto its reformation below.

Another breeze drifted through the window; though, this time much heavier as it carried the weight of a man in the form of smoke. The cloud which hovered in the air above the desk remained seemingly complacent, at least until it suddenly rushed forward, purposely flowing through Kaivant who began to cough and sputter from his inability to breath. The smoke settled above the bed of the room, where it began to form itself into a solid shape that soon sat on the edge with a fatigued glare directed Kaivant's way.

"How many years has it been..?" Kaivant began in a neutral tone, his body unshifting as he directed his words to the man at his rear. "It seems they have not been kind to either of us...Dominic..."

 

[Boss]

| Tom B. Stone |​

???
Limbo?
​

"I've watched your life with great interest." returned the voice. There was no clear indication of it's source, other than the tone and bass that hinted of a male's. Coming out of the darkness was clothed arm that reached down and swept it's hand across the table, dropping two cards faced down as it retracted back into the unseen.

"Thousands of years ago, your type would best suit a king's lapdog, the only blindside he has, until that same lapdog would murder the king in his sleep. History may yet repeat itself."

The cards the hand placed weren't blank. One card stylized the sun in a mystical way, while the other represented the moon in the same fashion. "Here, you have two choices. You can pick the sun, and accept death. Or, you can take the moon card, and forever open your soul for all of Limbo."

 

[Boss]

Evening
Host Village | Outskirts
The Inn | Kaivant's Room
​

Silent as the night itself, Dominic arrived. A wave of darkness followed like a shadow. Kaivant and Dominic exchanged glances through the reflection of the framed photograph. "I had half the mind to kill you." Backing up his words was the murderous intent that Kaivant could feel. "But despite how many lives we've taken as if they were nothing-.. There are some that mean the world to both of us." Dominic leaned against the wall beside the window sill. He had no intention of staying long. Not in the presence of an enemy. "My little girl," He started. "-what did you and your people do with her?"

 

[Solemn Jester]

Tom B. Stone

Tom had to do a double take. If he was dead then the reaper, or devil, or whoever this mysterious disembodied pair of arms was it was making Tom a deal. Although he did not care to be called a lapdog, although the deal was far to good to pass on. Even if it was a trick, the alternative option was death."Very well, I suppose I'll enter into this deal with you. I hope this is the start of a long beautiful relationship. But I hope you know, I may act as a lapdog now. But my path is of that of a king, I shall reach my goal, one way or the other." He moved towards the table staring down at the two cards on it. "The sun, and moon huh? Life or death, he found it ironic that the moon card would be the symbol of his rebirth, rather than the sun. Although be supposed both symbolized rebirth in their own way. After all, the moon did have phases, so before the floating arms changed their mind Tom grabbed the moon card, ready for what it might bring.

Boss

 

[Boss]

| Diana Young |​

Daylight..?
Limbo | Tundra?
Armored Train
​

Axel clicked her tongue in annoyance. "What part of this is a game to you, Diana? Huh?" Axel's anger brought her to plant her heel on Diana's chest and force her down with an unstoppable force. Like magnets, the cuffs scraped across the flooring and reattached to her wrists. "This was never supposed to be about fun. You need to get real, or else you WILL be out of your league." Hissing through gritted teeth, Axel spun around and turned her back to Diana to focus on the sights. All the while, the conductor observed. "You Maidens always have a temper." "Shut it."

As Diana got more angry, everything around her would feel lighter.

 

[Boss]

The Next Day

| Akano Tsubaki |​

Morning
Brookfield | Suburbs
Diamond Residence | Akano's Room
​

A blanket of morning fog rolled in over the course of the waking hours. Through that fog, beams of the sun's light had snuck in between the curtains and lit Akano's face. Roughly within that same hour, heavy and inconsistent knocking boomed through the girl's room, followed by a young man's voice. "Miss Tsu-.. -Diamond. Miss Diamond? You have work in thirty minutes." It wasn't customary to have the girl awakened by a stranger's voice. Come to think of it, nobody had done that before. Who was the man on the other side of her door?

 

[Boss]

| The Clown |​

Morning
Brookfield |Red Light District
Diana's Casino | Meeting Room
​

Not much time had passed since the casino was attacked. In those few hours, Clown had been found on the roof of the building next door and patched up properly by a veteran on Diana's payroll. As if the situation couldn't get any worse, today was also the day Angel was scheduled to arrive for Diana's report on the investigation for Dominic's daughter. With Diana missing and her representative presumably dead, all eyes were on Clown to rectify the events of the night before.

"Explain it to me again, much clearer this time." Angel questioned Clown. The two had been in the same conference room for half an hour while Angel repressed her frustrations. Sitting across from Clown, she expected a good explanation as to why Clown's boss was suddenly missing.

 

[TerraBooma]

Samantha: Rogue Spirit​

Fortunately, just as the spiders began to overwhelm Lucy and Camilla, a shark riding a torrent of water arrived into the field of battle. Samantha had spent her time building up water around her, and as she surfed along to the others she morphed forms from that of a great white to that of her much more familiar feminine form. She jabbed down at spiders with deadly precision as she passed, piercing them and ending their exsistance. Those she missed found little refuge, as the torrent of water following her path, as she skid to a stop in front of the pair, she raised her hands up, and the water extended outwards. It flowed around the group and encompassed them, creating a protective barrier that would at least last for as short time.

"Well here you are! damn little ones, getting into all the fun without me!" She let out a hearty laugh as she floated in place in the air, bouncing slightly as things impacted the barrier only to be swept away. "Off to a bit of a rough start though eh? What are you doign girl!" She looked to Lucy. "Does this look like a picnic? We're in limbo! Sitting there sorry as a mouse in a trap will only get you and those who rely on you killed. So press forward! You may be afraid, but everyone's afraid to fight. Find a reason to push through and fight past that fear. That's what it means to be a warrior girl. A class you may find yourself reluctantly placed in. "You ever use a harpoon girl? it's...similar to a knife I suppose. Use the pointy end, stick it in the thing that's comign for ya!"

A small blob of water carried Samantha's harpoon to lucy, where it waited patiently to be taken. Camilla would know that unlike Sam, Samantha could only manifest her single harpoon. Tossing it to Lucy was a sign of trust, and more importantly, a sign that Samantha thought the girl had potential. Her teeth started to elongate and sharpen, and her skin bristled into a more shark-like looking skin. Water droplets fell from the top of the bubble, and coalesced into a building pool on her left arm.

"So tell me girl, what's it going to be? For once you've got a chance to choose your own direction. I ain't telling you what to do, just giving you a tool. Fight? Continue to cower? Look to the other here! She barely knows you, yet she fights to protect you because she believes in the person you could be! Can you live up to that? Surpass it? Regardless, make your choice and stick to it! That's what it means to be alive!" She laughed wildly before continuing. "A choice that us spirits don't have! Bound by laws and contracts, our very state of being! The freedom you have, you just have to reach out and enforce it! How I long for a time when I had the same. So tell me. Tell me girl! When does the rest of your life finally start!?"

 

[Randomfella]

Lucy Black
???????????​

The way it felt to watch as Camilla fought against the spiders, her amazing efforts only leading to reveal the hopeless situation they were in. There were just too many, and Lucy knew in her core there was nothing she could do to help her. They were going to die here.

The girl's body was stiff, barely standing, eyes hollow as they stared into the numerous maniacal maws gaping toward them, thick drops of venom coating their fangs. That was until... "W-wha..." Lucy gawked in disbelief, a shaking arm hardly lifting toward the encroaching tsunami, and the creature above it.

Lucy didn't instantly react to the change in their situation as Samantha landed, hollow eyes still watching on as she struck the arachnids down, the spirit's mouth never seeming to close. Eventually, Lucy snapped back into this strange reality as Samantha spoke to her, her gaze moving up toward the woman's visage. A frown spread across her face as the spirit's words went through. She was right, Lucy knew that much, but what could she...

"Nghuh?" Lucy's gaze was met by the weapon, confusion spreading across her face as her hands moved toward it. It was clearly oversized as the girl's small hands wrapped around the harpoon's shaft. Lucy's face strained, expecting an overwhelming weight to pull her down, yet no such sensation seemed to come as she brought it toward herself.

Staring from the corner of her eye, the girl almost jumped back at the sight of her. Her words continued, Lucy's gaze moving toward Camilla, before looking down in shame, her face tensing similarly as her grip on the weapon tightened. "I-" Lucy didn't understand everything Samantha was trying to convey, of her life starting, being a warrior... But she couldn't continue to sit idly by as others continued to risk their lives, even if she never truly wanted to be here.

The sound of the creatures approaching, however, had not died down. Lucy's gaze moved toward it, her face distorting from the sight of the beasts. That was until one of them took the group's distraction as an opportunity to strike, leaping toward the girl with a screech as more flowed in from all angles. "Ngah!" The girl suddenly yelped at the sight of it, her eyes closing as she crouched down in fear, sticking the pointed end of the harpoon out toward it. The screeching stopped, at least for that one, a splash of purple fluid slapping across the girl's face from the fresh wounds she had created.

One eye slowly opened in a fearful anticipation, only to see a fresh corpse on the other end. The sight sent a strange chill down the girl's spine, a feeling accompanying it that he couldn't explain. Her whole self seemed to pause, wide-eyes staring into the empty creature with.. Surprise? It was a short moment before Lucy recollected herself, pathetically attempting to shake it loose.

Boss TerraBooma

 

[Azukai]

Kaivant listened in silence, up until Dominic mentioned the name of his daughter. At that point, a smile formed on his face--not one of happiness, but rather of somber misfortune as his mind raced through memories of the past. He reached forward and grabbed the photo with his right hand, only to lightly brush the pair of twins with the fingers on his left. "Tell me, Dom...in all of your infinite wisdom about our curse, how much did you ever attempt...to push yourself...past your immediate troubles." Uncouth emotion flared in Kaivant's voice, notably towards the end of the statement, when he spat the words with vehement anger. Surprisingly, however, his flash of emotion faded as quickly as it came; his face returning to a neutral expression as he shifted his gaze towards Dominic.

"I apologize for my outburst. It is pointless to throw the sins of our generation needlessly at ourselves. Though, I truly believe it is our duty to repent, through our actions towards the future. There is a new generation among us, Dominic. You cannot run...hide from this fact." There was a pause, all while Kaivant stared deep into Dominic's gaze where he saw the truth behind the murderous intent. "You are dying..." Suddenly, laughter filled the room as Kaivant broke into a hysterical fit that bordered the line of his waning sanity. "It all makes sense. She doesn't know does she? All the hard love you've been giving her...all of it to try and hide the truth...that your whimpering and cowering like a wolf who knows his time is up...pathetic."

Pure, white flames erupted from his body and cast a blinding vibrance that filled the room with its flash of sudden light. Kaivant watched as Dominic lightly averted his gaze away from the brilliance that had taken the form of a phoenix. With a shrill caw, the flaming bird, no bigger than a larger sized eagle, perched on Kaivant's outward, extended arm where it began a judgmental glance towards the man by the window sill. "There is a war coming, Dom, and it won't be anything like the one before. There are too many players on the field, us, the Dominion...him..." Kaivant's voice trailed at the mention of him.

"Once the dust is settled, and the world is in ruin, we won't be the ones left standing...neither will it be the Dominion. You know who he is, Dom." There was another shrill caw, this time annoyed as Kaivant rose to his feet and released the perch he had offered the bird. For a moment, it fluttered in mid air--droplets of fire flickering from its wings--just before it settled atop the rickety chair that was seemingly immune to the fire which danced above it. Kaivant flicked his wrist, which sent the photo in his hand fluttering Dominic's way. "Today, I saved your daughter or at least gave her a fighting chance. Now, I must save those twins, lest everything we have worked for crumble to dust."

 

[Boss]

| Tom B. Stone |​

Morning
Brookfield General Hospital
Morgue
​

Darkness would once more envelop Tom the moment the moon card's face-down side was revealed. Moments of silence followed, then the shift of gravity at his back coupled with hot, humid air. Tom would find himself in a dark metal box, laying naked atop what felt like a metal surface. Muffed voices too distorted to make out had leaked, confirming what Tom probably already knew - he was out of Limbo, and alive, at that.

For how long was next question. Beneath him, an igniter ticked once, then twice. Suddenly, a small flame had burst and began to grow steadily over time. Tom was in an incinerator. The moment Tom struggled, he felt an aching pain along his body in response. A pain that didn't stop for some time.


Outside the incinerator, the lone early morning employee typed away at a computer. Tom's information had to be logged, but without an I.D, he was put into the system as "John Doe", who died from a freak accident. A sudden bang on the metal door locking the incinerator's door had startled the employee. Another bang followed, forcing the door to bend unnaturally. A third bang ripped the door clean off of it's hinges, and the machine's oxygen sensor had cut the flame off.

A long, dark tentacle slithered out from within. "..The hell..?" Scared and confused, the employee grabbed for the phone and dialed in an emergency at the morgue. All the while, Tom was pulled out of the incinerator by numerous tentacles forged by the very corruption of Limbo. Now in the light, Tom would notice that he only had one leg and a single arm, and one of the many tentacles protruding from his back was supporting him.

"Rise and shine, Tommy boy."

Terrified at the sight of a naked man wielding fleshly tentacles, the employee bolted for the door. His own fear made him stumble and collapse on his way to the exit. A tentacle slithered around to face Tom, though eyeless, a horizontal slit opened, revealing a set of sharp, needle-like teeth. "From now own, you're mine. Bring me the souls of others, and I'll bring you your girl." Though it wasn't the tentacle that spoke, but a voice in Tom's head - the appendage grinned nonetheless. Tom wouldn't have any control over the 15 foot long tentacles that shot out of his body. This wasn't a Zodiac that Tom had made a contract with - this was a hollow.

Looking in any reflection would reveal to Tom his own burnt body. Hairless and mostly limbless, he saved no physical features from his past self other than his eye color. What would happen if he gave into the hollow that had his soul? It clearly wanted the fleeing employee. All it needed was permission.

 

[Boss]

Evening
Host Village | Outskirts
The Inn | Kaivant's Room
​

"You must take me for some kind of joke." Dominic sneered. It wasn't the fact that Kaivant laughed at his misfortune. It was the vagueness of his answers and the never-ending warnings. "First you attack this city's underworld and disrupt stability, then you attack my home, the only sanction hosts have in this country, and if it wasn't enough, you go after my daughter? Being that you people murdered her brother? MY ONLY SON?!" Every fiber in Dominic's being screamed at him to let loose on Kaivant. Even the whispering of Kenshi motioned him to kill the man. Even if he had let it overtake him, the village wouldn't survive the aftermath.

"I'm going to ask you one more time, Kaivant. Where. Is. My. Daughter?"

 

[Kisaki]

Akano Tsubaki "Diamond"
Diamond groaned as the sunlight hit her face. She placed her pillow over her head, hoping she could get a couple more minutes of sleep without the light in her face. Unfortunately, a sound of a voice and knocks on the front door kept her from going back to sleep. The man didn't sound like any of her co-workers at the bakery. Tsubaki slowly pulled herself out of bed and peeked through the door hole, determining if the stranger was a threat. After her accession of the man, she decided to open the door."Who are you? " Diamond asked while leaning against the door frame.
Boss

 

[Solemn Jester]

Tom B. Stone
Fire, that's what Tom felt as he slowly woke. Having been consumed by darkness only moments before. Was he in hell? No, this wasn't nearly hot enough for hell. At least not the hell Tom deserved. It wasn't long before Tom realized he was in an incinerator, about to be burned alive. Before he could do anything he found himself being pulled out of the incinerator by something. Only to be introduced to his new talking appendage. He watched, as the employee ran tripping as he did so. Then turned to his talking appendage."Huh, guess this is Karma aye? Well, killing that man won't accomplish anything. If you want souls, I think we can find worthier prey. But I will take his clothes."Tom said as he attempted to move closer towards the man. Stretching one arm out towards the man. Sure he wanted this power, but only to take the lives of those who stood in his way. As far as he was concerned this man was innocent. So he'd try to take his clothes, then make his way out of the place, and begin his hunt.

Boss

 

[Azukai]

Boss

Kaivant sighed in response to Dominic's outbursted demand--it was obvious the man hadn't processed most of what had been said; his only concern focused solely on his missing daughter. Naturally, it was an understandable reaction, given the circumstances among them; nonetheless, there was nothing pleasing for Kaivant to say...Camilla was awol.

"My people came in peace, a proper political negotiation. We were struck against, to which retialization was given as due." Up until this point, Kaivant had remained amicable in both tone and posture; however, suddenly, his eyes narrowed and his voice turned cold as he continued to speak. "As for your daughter, I would be known of her where abouts had she not murdered one of my own. Blood for blood, Dom."

For the first time in the night, Kaivant had reached a level of anger that matched the man across from him. Gone was his soft tone, replaced by a harrowing growl that was fueled from the growing fustrations he held within. "I think its time you step off of your fucking pedastal. Don't even begin to act like you're the only person who has suffered at the hands of the world. You've lost no more than any of us. At one point you were strong...ambitious...willing to fight no matter what was thrown at you..."

There was a pause in his tirade as he reached into his inner robe, where he retrieved a folder that he was furiously tossed Dominic's way. A flurry of papers filled the air, many of them internal reports filed theough the Dominion. "A new species of humanity...a new species of hollows...the cult of Nephthys...Azrael, son of Fushinsetsu...Cecilia, the Couturier of Life...just a couple of the worlds current problems, and here we have you...sitting your ass on a throne and playing dad for the underworld of Brookfield."

Don't.you.ever.insult.me.again

 

[Sinny The Fool]

Clown
Swinging back & forth in his chair and tapping the conference table impatiently, Clown had been acting quite frantic ever since they got into the conference room, the thoughts lingering in his head ‘I CAN’T BELIEVE TODAY! First I lost all my last pay, my ‘boss’ shot me and now everybody has gone & vanished, leaving everything to get pinned on ME!!!’

"Explain it to me again, much clearer this time."

“Okay, okay, okay…” Recollecting his thoughts of the events which transpired, he leaned forward & making arm gestures which painted a picture along with his words “So...Me and Tom finished off our last game of Blackjack and went up to see Diana to discuss our next move...But out of nowhere some TELEPORTING LADY APPEARED!! Lots of ‘BANG! BANG! BANG!’ from Tom...Then Tom shot ME!!” sharply pointing out the area of the gun wound on his body and carrying on “Well...The teleporter uhh, saved me?? Then left me on that rooftop you found me on, and she jumped to go hunting down Tom again..I didn’t see it happen, but I saw the results…”

((~Clown Flashback - *BOOOOM!!!!* “AAAAAAAHHHHH!” Clown shuttered and hunkered his body down in fear after hearing what sounded like an explosion going off not far from him and squirming in pain from his gun wound “Argh! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAAAT!?!” looking in every direction frantically, he peaked over from the ledge down to the scene below - the very sight gave him extreme anxiety, not just because he was afraid of heights, but because down in the streets below, he was able to make out the fiery wreckage of Tom’s car…”Is...Is Tom DEAD?!?!”~))

After explaining the scene he ‘witnessed’, he continued “BUUUUT!!! At that thought I came to a single realization..” crossing his arms firmly and nodding in agreement to himself, before bursting out with frantic flailing arms “TOM ISN’T DEAD AND WHEN HE COMES BACK HE IS GOING TO HUNT ME DOWN AND MAKE ME PAY FOR THIS PLEASE YOU HAVE TO STOP HIM AND HIDE ME!! Do you even KNOW what kind of human he is?!? LET ME ANSWER - BARELY, HE IS A DEMON!!!” Cradling up to his knees and digging his masked face into his lap with overdramatic muffled sobs “The type of demon to crawl out from under your bed at night, and SNATCH ALL YOUR STUFF AND SLIT YOUR THROAT WHILE YOU SLEEP, eating the potato chips you worked so hard for on your dying corpse..” his tone turning into a shudder as he rocked back & forth “I AM THE VICTIM HERE!? I am just a young, talented and beautiful employee looking for his way in the world!~”​

(Mentions - Solemn Jester Boss )

 

[Boss]

Camilla Ferrari | Lucy Black​

???
Limbo
Dark Cave
​

Samantha's arrival couldn't be better timed. The tsunami had effectively swept the surrounding spiders up and carried them further down into the cave. The spiders that survived by sticking to the walls and ceilings were either deflected by the barrier or finished off by the least likely of their party - Lucy. Camilla was relieved, and partly proud - to witness Lucy's first act of self-defense. From what it looked like, it surprised Lucy just as much. It made the grey-eyed girl wonder what a Zodiac could ever want with such a nervous girl. After all, it was the attention of a Zodiac that brought Lucy's conscious into Limbo to begin with. Brushing that thought aside for now, another loud, echoing screech roared from the depths of the cave. That larger monster was coming back, and it wasn't happy.

Crawling out of the darkness was that same horror from earlier. Gone was it's gentle voice that had temporarily coaxed Lucy. "What are the faces..?" Camilla questioned when she had gotten a much better look at the hollow that slowly approached them. A rogue thought told Camilla to pat herself down for weapons. She knew that Samantha was a mere spirit and couldn't manifest more than a single harpoon. She didn't want to guess what would happen if her skin made contact with the black mass.

Two crab-like claws extended outward from it's mound of black, using them to hammer on the watery barricade that Sam's summon had put up. The first strike had gotten halfway through. The second, three-quarters of the way. The third strike came down with purpose, shattering the barrier. In a quick flash of lightning, Camilla tackled Lucy out of harm's way as the claw slammed down, making an imprint of it's claw where Lucy once stood.

"This is just like that other hollow.. Song Jun-Yeol.." Just uttering that name brought back memories of the fight. Nonetheless, this hollow was different. It.. felt. It could think. Crawling up to a crouching position, Camilla gripped the harpoon Lucy wielded and shut her eyes. Taking another page out of Byakko's book, she discharged the energy she built up from saving Lucy just now to infuse the harpoon with an electric charge. Camilla's yellow lightning bounced between the tips of the harpoon, frying the skewered spider with pure energy. "This should help." She noted, as the lightning did nothing to harm Lucy.

"Samantha, we have to be careful with this creature. It's not like the others."

"Not like the others!" The creature echoed. "It's not like the others?!" it shouted again, it's tone beginning to pitch and morph with each repeat, until.. "We're not like the others."

"..Don't.."

The creature had perfectly mimicked Logan's childlike tune. "Father says that they'll never understand what we are. That's why we can't play with them."

"Stop it."

Camilla's hands balled into fists, her anger beginning to take hold of her.

"But we'll have each other to play with, right?"

The color in Camilla's eyes grew dull.

The Arachnid

 

[Depresso Espresso]

Diana Young
( Boss )
As the rings were put back onto her ankles and wrists she immediately scowled, a confused and surprised look before trying to lift them again, her face moving from a scowl to fuming in a few short seconds as she kept lifting them, her eyes fixated on Axel, "You stupid... Bitch..." Hissing out the words as she was seething with anger being able to stand up and raise her fist to punch towards Axel, blind rage taking over her senses as her face was that akin to something of a rabid animal.​

 

[Boss]

| Akano Tsubaki |​

Morning
Brookfield | Suburbs
Diamond Residence | Akano's Room
​

A second passed where the guard felt as if she wasn't speaking to him. "D-due to uhh, recent events, the streets aren't as safe for the Yakuza, nor it's relatives. Your father hired me as your bodyguard and driver from now on. I am Hideo Ozaki, pleased to meet you." The guard offered a courteous bow to the indifferent girl. "I must also confess that I am a host." He admitted, raising his head. His demeanor was a tone less flustered. "Now please, we must hurry."

| Tom B. Stone |​

Morning
Brookfield General Hospital
Morgue
​

The tentacle tilted it's head, clearly disappointed in it's host's choice of action. Nevertheless, the numerous limbs carried out it's task. Some limbs acted as a means to float Tom around the room, while the rest snapped wildly at the air as they maneuvered to force the employee into a corner. "God, please, don't. I don't wanna die like this.." He stammered as the tentacles neared.


It took some sneaking, but with a crutch, a employee's uniform, and the tentacles retracted back into his body, Tom was once again reborn onto the streets of Brookfield.

 

[Boss]

| The Clown |​

Morning
Brookfield | Red Light District
Diana's Casino | Meeting Room
​

Somehow, Clown's second attempt to explain last night's events got even worse. "Oh my god.." Angel leaned her face into her hands and sighed as Clown finished his story. "Can you at least give me a visual description of how this teleporting lady looked? Was she an older woman? Caucasian? Asian? What was she wearing-" An alert from Angel's phone cut her off. She took a moment to peer at it's screen before putting it away.

"Look uhm, 'Clown'. Until Diana Young is back in your possession, her gang and all of her assets are yours. If Tom isn't dead like you claim, then he'll be the one in charge. I expect you to find both of them. Do what you do and get them back." Rising from the leathery chair, Angel gave Clown some parting advice. "If I were you, I would look over the security footage and put those hacking skills to use."

Angel soon disappeared behind the door, leaving Clown alone to his devices.

 

[Azukai]

Boss TerraBooma

The southwestern side of Brookfield, known as the Combine, contrasted heavily with the bustling growth of the main city, namely due to the fact that it was reminiscent of the term, slum. For most citizens, it was a taboo area--one that was somewhat lawless in comparison to the districts that were under the influence of the police and Dominion. Petty gangs filled the streets with occasional violence and uncouth deals that took advantage of the poverty stricken locals. More important, however, was the veil under which particular individuals could hide--a haven for a small number of hosts, particularly ones that were capable of co-existing with the primitive nature of the land.

In the case of August and Sylvia, neither were the type one would expect to see in an area such as this. Two fresh out of middle school aged teenagers, fragile and pretty; they were the prime targets for harassment...at the bare minimum. Yet despite this fact, since their arrival a few hours ago, not a single individual had crossed their path, much less had a chance to jeer at their presence. The pair had taken solace in the courtyard of an old, run down complex towards the center most region of the Combine. The area had been overrun by the rampant growth of nature, and crumbled sections of the neighboring buildings were littered all throughout the field. It was a sore sight for the eyes to see, but it was void of any sentient life...the most important aspect.

"I am growing tired of this life, brother..." Sylvia spoke in a higher pitched tone, that was lathered with notable frustrations towards their current state of well being. "I miss the warmth...food...security...how much money do we even have left anyways..."

There was a moment of relative silence as August reached into his tattered trousers and rummaged for what little funds remained. After a few seconds, his hands reemerged with a measly few coins and single dollar bills. "The usual" he eventually replied with a sullen expression and sigh. "This is where fate has brought us, and at least there is plenty of life which surrounds us. It's always been the small things for us."

Sylvia cracked a small smile at at her brother, just before energy began to gather in the air around her. Black swirls danced within her immediate space, then exploded in a gentle wave of mist that crept along the life-filled ground. Slowly, plants and insects that touched the mist began to whither away, while a contrasting white energy began to emerge from their death. As if drawn to his existence, the white energy began to gather around August, who in turn began motions which were reminiscent of an exotic dance. All around his feet, the energy began to swarm until it molded itself into the presence of new life. Lush, towering mounds of clover and soft vine erupted from the ground--effectively creating their makeshift bed for the night.

"This will have to bide us until the morn. With luck..." As soon as August spoke the word luck, a smile came to both of their faces, and soon they were stricken by a fit of giggles that left them rolling around on the pile of plush. "With luck, this will be over soon." August finished once their composure had returned. "We're close...I know it..."

 

[Solemn Jester]

Tom B. Stone
Having left the employee naked, and shivering in the building. Tom searched through the pockets of the clothes he had taken until he found a phone. He smirked, glad his luck wasn't complete shit today. Speaking of shit luck, he typed Clowns number into the phone. Then texted him with a simple message.

Clown

me

I'm coming.

With a totally not creepy, or ambiguous message sent from a number Clown wouldn't know, Tom addressed his new roommate."So, if we're going to be working together I'm going to need a name. I refuse to call you Mister Tentacles. Oh, and do me a favor. Get me one of these cabs. Without hurting anyone."He said, finding it ridiculous he had to add that. Once he had aquired a cab, while still listening to the entity, he'd tell the probably confused Taxi driver to take him to the H.Q. he had a school girl to take care of, and he had the perfect equipment for the job now.

Sinny The Fool
Boss

 

[Boss]

| Diana Young |​

Daylight..?
Limbo | Tundra?
Armored Train
​

Axel was taken back by the amount of force hidden behind her swing. Diana's punch hit like a truck, forcing her to create a large dent into the steel wall. Surprise boiled into anger as Axel pulled herself free from the the wall and approached Diana menacingly. A quick uppercut to Diana's chin sent her into the air despite the weight of her restraints weighing her down. Diana would land on top of the passenger car behind the engine, soon joined by Axel who had nonchalantly hopped up there. "Show me that you're worth the trouble." Axel taunted.

Axel, the Rogue Maiden

 

[Depresso Espresso]

Diana Young
( Boss )
Diana groaned slightly sitting up from the position she was basically punched into. Turning her head and spitting some of the blood that she could taste in her mouth before wiping her mouth with the back of her hand as her face had returned to normal, she was still seething with anger and the punch didn't help with that. Being taunted almost immediately she stood up straight and raised her metal arm, turning it back into the weapon she spent a ton of money to get as it made a whirring sound aiming it directly at Axel before smirking, "I'll show you worth you discarded piece of shit!" Saying that she fired the weapon multiple times. A smile that looked more like a smirk had taken it's place on her face, her eyes reflecting the amount of anger she had as well.​

 

[TerraBooma]

Samantha: Rogue Spirit​

"Haha! yes! Perfect girl! we'll make a warrioress out of you yet! now come! the day is not yet won!" Samantha grinned as her barrier broke, despite the obvious negative effects of losing such protection. "The big one? Fantastic! We'll take it out and be done in time for dinner! Her teeth flared, and the spirit didn't clarify if she meant food in the real world, or the hollowed thing in front of them. "Let's bring down the freaky monster eh? I'll start!"

"Without that harpoon girl, I don't have much of a bite, so do be a charm and show that thing what for! Remember! pointy end enters its face, and your good to go!" The spirit gave Lucy a confident thumbs up before waving her hands. Droplets of water that fell from the barrier began to follow her more closely. She flew up into the air a few feet, enough to get bearing over the situation, and tendrils of water shot out in two directions. The first two down towards Lucy and Camilla, and the second towards the monster itself.

The tendrils reached Camilla and Lucy first, but instead of harm, the water quickly enveloped the two completely. Instead of drowning however, the pair would feel themselves protected. A coating of adaptive armor capable of holding off blows and attempting to throw them aside. For what it couldn't deflect, the armor would attempt to freeze and at least stop the blow from having direct impact with skin and flesh. Channeling her energy into it, Samantha had some measure of influence on it, but it would mostly protect those who donned it. It was an...odd feeling, to be encompassed in physical water, but after a few seconds to adjust , Samantha figured they would be fine. More importantly, it would let them at least attempt CQC with the monster, for as long as she had an ample supply of water, she could ditch any contaminated water to the floor by the mysterious black ooze.

The other tendrils flew towards the monster in a concussive attack, though they'd likely do little more than batter it around and keep it off balance. Samantha's offensive capabilities were...lesser, on heartier creatures. She laughed as tentacle after tentacle slammed into it.

"C'mon girls! I'll knock it off guard, and you two follow up!" She cackled wildly and started flying through the air. "We've got prey to hunt!"