[IC] Kingdom Hearts: The Lights of the Multiverse Redux [No Longer Full]

[Letter Bee]

[Collab between Rex, Arty Fox, Gentlemanvaultboy and Letter Bee]

"Guys," Tocsax spoke, "enough banter; we're going to where the others are."

And with that, he opened Corridors of Darkness to where the rest were fighting for their lives at the hospital, emerging towards where Mark was fighting v2 and Damien was attacking Taka. Tocsax would then give orders:

"Cheese, Mac, help v2; I and Drake will attack that old man facing Taka." And with that, Tocsax opened another CoD towards the roof of the hospital, and, once he went through, drawing his Keyblade and launching a Dark Firaga at Damien and his swarm of bats!

Replacing her box of tricks for her blade Cheese stepped through the corridor and Mac followed on just behind after summong his keyblade again. The pair didn't even look at each other when they stepped out into the damaged courtyard as V2 launched his attack from above them.

Cheese didn't bother turning invisible this time and in a flash she propelled hersef forward, then behind the enemy out of arms reach. She ducked under the spinning Keyblade as it sailed past her before she fired her own dagger at the enemies back with a fair amount of accuracy.

Mac was uncertain of next move so stayed where he was.

Damien smiled as he snapped his fingers. In a split second, Damien was standing next to Tocsax while Drake stood across from then in the cross fire of the Dark Firaga. Drake quickly jumped to the side and took his revolver from its holster and fired three bullets towards Damien. Damien simply smiled and raised his hand and the bullets stopped in midair.

“Shit,” Drake cursed before he yelled to Tocsax,” Just teleport all of us back to the emperor. We have the princes. We need to formulate a plan or we’re just fighting blind!” he stood back up and added, “Besides, we can’t win against Damien. At least not us three, but I know who can.”

“Oh, I’d like to see who you think can actually kill me,” Damien stated before his pocket watch seemed to go off. He took it from his pocket and looked at the time, “guess my job is over, I’ll see you all later so please excuse me.” Damien bowed before he scattered into bats and the swarm flew away.

---

Mark seemed not to care if he got hit as V2’s Keyblade slammed into his abdomen as Cheese’s dagger pierced into his back. He soared backwards and bounced on the blacktop before skidding to a stop. Mark lay on the ground for several seconds before he slowly started to stand up. His whole right arm had its flesh torn off from skidding on the black top as blood dripped from it. However, Mark seemed to keep his smile as the skin on his right arm began to repair itself.

“Now this is getting fun,” Mark said before he coughed out blood and added, “However, I’m sure you know that won’t work or has that idiot Drake not told you about me?”

Cheese felt her lip curl with annoyance at yet another enemy trying to stall their efforts. Considering how the multiverse encomposed everyone in existance, it was a wonder that some were trying to stop their efforts to stop the heartlesss. Her eyes flickered from Mark to her dagger lying beside him and then finally to Mac sneaking carefully up behind him. Cheese hopped V2 also had an idea of what to do next.

"Why would he tell us of an annoyance?" She sniffed dismissively. "You're just a one trick pony from the looks of it, almost like a hydra."

Cheese had never fought a hyrda but had heard of their biggest weakness; in order to regerate more heads they needed to still have at least one. The same theory could be applied here if she got the chance.

"Why don't you give me your name?" Cheese gave a smile and flexed a bit of magic in her fingertips. "We haven't all been introduced."

Mac meanwhile was thankful for Cheese trying to stall as he edged closer to Mark. He had seen it in movies where a hard blow to the back of the skull knocked someone unconscious, and so after gathering all the strength he could muster Mac swung as hard as he could.

Mark smiled as he introduced himself, “Names Mark love. As that baster Drake is called the Death Hunter. I’m known as The Immortal, but instead of telling you how I got my name, I’ll show you!” Mark said. He was about to charge at Cheese when Mac’s Keyblade slammed into the back of his head. He staggered forward and stopped before he shook his head. He then glared back at Mac with his smile still on his face.

“Nice try boy, but I’ve been shot in the head 32 times. Did you honestly think I can be hurt that easily?” Mark said before he boasted, “Hell, I’ve regenerated so many times. My nervous system shot. I can’t feel a damn thing! However, let’s see how much pain you can feel!” Mark then launched himself towards Mac.

"Nope." said v2, leaning forward and letting his rockets work, shooting toward Mark from behind as he keyblade spun back at him. He caught it out of the air and unleashed a flurry of stabs at his back, his head, his arms, every bit that v2 could try and put the blade in.

Tocsax

"Understood," Tocsax said to Drake, before he opened another portal, one that led back to the Manisa League.

Once they were in the ship again, he would say:

"So, who can beat this Damien guy?"

“V2, I think anyway,” Drake said before he explained, “I need to confirm something with V2, but that’s not important right now. If Mark’s fighting V2, we need to get the rest of them out of there.” Drake looked towards Tocsax and added, “He’s immortal Tocsax. His body regenerates at a molecular level. What takes people weeks to heal; he can do it in seconds. We have to fall back and formulate a plan.”

A nod at that.

[Arty Fox]

Mac and Cheese

Mac suddenly felt his stomach plummet several feet when Mark bore down upon him with a savage grin. He took several steps backward hoping to stay out of reach, not trusting the shield charm to hold off many more hits after those bullets.

“Wasn’t really the plan.” He lied with a voice like sandpaper.

Suddenly Cheese was beside him and she tugged him sharply out of Marks war path. Her face was contorted into an ugly look of triumph. Mac had never ordered her not to take an enemies name.

“Well Mark. Stand still and die!” Cheese barked.

Tight in her magical grip Cheese held the name, pouring what little power she had into it hoping against hope it was his. To Mark it would feel like something slipping into the back of his mind; an impulse to obey her.

Mac also hurled his own Keyblade spinning towards Mark, but lacking the same accuracy that Cheese and V2 possessed.

“Cut off his head. Quickly.” Cheese ordered V2.

In the back of her mind Cheese pulled together a backup plan to simply keep pummelling Mark until he could be contained, or driven off. Cheese constructed the illusion of hundreds of blades rising up behind her, her focus on Marks Name slipped slightly, waiting feverishly to charge. Cheese waited with her fists filled with the little fire gems to throw, just in case.

[Letter Bee]

GM Post

Suddenly, a tiny Corridor of Darkness would open in front of Mai, depositing two small, green bottles containing a liquid of the same color, but deeper.

"These are Hi-Potions!" Tocsax's voice boomed out from the small portal, "drink them and it'll heal your injuries!"

-----

In the Manisa League, Tocsax would then turn towards Drake, and say:

"I'm going back in to help v2 so he can focus on Damien." He would give Drake some time to stop him, though.

-----

Suddenly, at Mac and Cheese's end, another small corridor would appear, and a carfeully wrapped package with the explicit message: "'This is a Medusa/Gorgon Head, use it - Hakim the Wise", written in English, would be deposited at their feet.

It remained to be seen if they would use it.

------

Sayaka, in the Ruler of the Sea, was with Madoka, pounding the doors of their holding cell while Kyosuke Kamijou looked terrified.

"Get us out of here or I will call the Cops!"

@Double@Arty Fox@SMS@Rex@Ryteb Pymeroce@Gentlemanvaultboy@ShadowVentus@supertinyking

[Rex]

Marks body stopped as he tried to move. He tried to will his body to move as he yelled, “The hell is this shit!” Mark struggled to move before he glared at Cheese. V2’s sticks hit his back and body, but Mark never took his eyes off of Cheese. A smile formed on his face as she ordered Mac to cut his head off. The concert around mark shook and rose up. It began to take shape and morph into a large hand. It quickly grabbed Mark and lifted him high into the air. Mark seemed surprise and let out a yell of both shock and anger as he cursed, “Damn it. Put me down!”
“Please excuse my companion for his rude behavior,” a man’s voice said as a swarm of bats flew around the group before soared towards one point and morphing together to form Damion. He bowed and said, “Please excuse my interruption but we will take our leave.”

“Like hell I’m leaving, I haven’t ripped anyone apart yet!” Mark screamed. Damion looked back at Mark before he tapped his cane on the ground. A white door appeared on the ground and opened. The hand rose up and flung Mark into the door. He phased into the door before it closed and fizzled into white fog. Damion then turned to the rest of the group and apologized, “again, I’m so sorry for my companion.” He bowed and scattered into bats before they flew into the air and slowly disappeared.

---

The hamster millipede quickly turned tail and scurried towards Alice. It wrapped around Alice to protect her from the attack. It hissed in pain as the heat from the strike made its metal plate glow red. Lighting zapped through its body as it kept its body around Alice. Alice smiled just as a white door appeared under her and opened. She let out a scream of joy as she fell through the door. It closed as it fizzled into fog. The hamster millipede fell to the floor as its lifeless body sunk into a ripple. The spider cat lay on its back, legs curled as smoke rose up from its charred body. Unlike the hamster millipede, its body didn’t fall into a ripple. It was left there to die.
As Zack rushed towards Ryteb, a white door quickly appeared and opened. He sighed and ran through the door before it closed and fazed into fog.

---

Drake didn’t stop Tocsax, however, he did ask, “When everyone returns. They need to know who they’re up against and.” Drake seemed to stop before he sighed and added, “they need to understand the severity of what might happen.”

[Arty Fox]

Mac and Cheese

“For crying out loud!” Cheese bellowed. “How many of these gits are there!?”

She had thrown her fist full of fire charms when Damion had appeared but sadly all they had hit was the wall beyond and dotted it with scorch marks. At the very least they had managed to scare off Mark and help V2. Even without a face Mac manged to look somewhat peeved at her, she could easily tell by the way he with his head tilted to the side, and it annoyed her in turn.

“What?” She huffed. “You said I couldn’t take the names of customers, your friends or acquaintances.” – Cheese counted each with her fingers - “You never said anything about people trying to kill us.”

“yeah, yeah, yeah.” Mac relented with a croak, rubbing at the bruises around his throat. “Just…make sure it’s only bad guys whose names you take. How’re you doing V2?”

“That was the plan.” Cheese collected her dagger and thoughtful twirled in her hand. “GUess Mark didn't have much willpower considering how well it worked. What do you think Drake will give for his name?” A glimmer of a smirk appeared on her face.

“I forbid you from asking him for a favour.” Mac snapped as fast as his voice box would allow. “Or anyone else for that matter!”

Cheese simply grunted in response whilst she wondered over to the strange package lying on the ground. It was a box wrapped in cloth with a strange smell emanating from it that Cheese recognised and made her stomach twist. She grimaced and proceeded to gently kick the parcel towards the other two.

“They sent us a head of a Gorgan.” Another kick. “or a Medusa whatever that is.”

“Jesus Christ, they have one of those?” Mac too flinched away from the parcel.
@Rex@Gentlemanvaultboy

[Ryteb Pymeroce]

Ryteb groaned and pulled himself up. By dint of his affinity with the elements, or just pure luck, he had survived the encounter mostly unscathed, save for a few minor burns. He unsteadily pulled himself to his feet, the impact with the ground having jostled his brain and made him feel quite discombobulated. Walking similarly to a drunk person, he moved back to the room Mai was in.

"Okay, is it the world spinning, or is it just me?" Ryteb joked, swaying from side to side, "Imma gonna pass out now, nighty night."

The young mage's body folded up like a deck chair, before sprawling itself on the ground. A bit of drool came out of his mouth, as he dipped straight into a dreamless slumber.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

v2 didn't say anything for a moment, his eyes resting on the spot where the door he had let his opponent slip through while the most confused expression masked his face. "Yeah." He said slowly, a slight tremble in his voice. "Yeah, I'm fine. He didn't even lay a hand on me." He shook his head, trying to fight against this lack of composure being imposed on him by his programming, before turning to Mac and Cheese. "You guys must have finished your mission if your here. I hope everything went well."

He reached down and scooped up the damp box on the ground, placing it carefully under his arm. He didn't know whether this thing could turn him to stone and wasn't in any mood to experiment. "Come on. Lets go see if my teammates had as much fun as I did." He said, walking toward the hospital.

He was still unsteady as he walked, all efforts to regain a composure that should be as effortless as breathing failing him. It wasn't the pathetic pervert Mark that had inspired this, nor his theatrical master. This was something that had shaken him to the core because it had come from the core. Another aberrant thought, but one that he could not possible rationalize. One thought that was entirely not his own, that he would never have thought even under the influence of this programming. An utterly irrational thought. A thought that had slipped in when Mac and Cheese had arrived to reinforce them.
Back off, he's mine.

As he entered the building he raised up his other hand and placed it on the glowing heart containment unit on his chest. He would never think like that, but there was someone else who would.
@Arty Fox

[Letter Bee]

Relevant to Everyone

With the Surge Guardians gone, those still in Madoka's world would be teleported to the Manisa League, in order to get their bearings and some medical attention for Ryteb. The fleet itself, once it had replenished enough energy, would travel back to above Madoka!Earth, kept hidden from the people below by magic. In the large, blue whale-sized dreadnought, the group would have downtime...

Not Relevant to Everyone

((Collab between Letter Bee and Arty Fox))

Cheese now walked calmly through the corridors of the almost laberynthian Mansia Legue unlike earlier when she had been skulking around one of the common rooms Ruler of the Sea, after a brief encounter with Mac outside the medical room.

She had apologised for nearly strangling him and stated she would try not to lose her temper again, and he in turn had begrudgingly accepted her apology. But sadly the conversation had returned to Mac refusing to use magic and after several very rude words were shouted the pair stormed off in seperate directions.

"Excuse me." She stopped a passing crew emmber. "Any idea where the Emperor might be right now? And if he is available for an audience?"

"He is resting from the exertion of using Planetary Stopza," the crewman said to Cheese. "But the Empress is available; she's in her chambers."

"Thank you." She said simply and made her way towards the Empresses chambers. Arriving at the doors Cheese gently knocked upon the elegent doors and awaited a reply.

The doors would then open, and Cheese would find Empress Maria D' Italia, now in a simple white shirt and black pants, her long hair tied in a bun, waiting for her, seated on a chair of plastic. There was another seat of non-metallic material close by, and the Empress would say:

"Cheese, I'm glad you can see me. Have a seat."

"Thank you, your Majesty." Cheese gave a small bow when the Empress guided her into her chambers and bid her to sit. "I do hope I am not intruding but I was wondering if I might ask you of something? Unless my..." Cheese thought of what word she should use. "Associate. Has already seen either yourself or your husband."

Cheese felt a prickle at the base of her spine but refused to acknowledge it;Mac was safe on the Ruler of the Sea.

"Althought I would still like to discuss it with you." She continued and lifted her hands from her lap ready to illustrate what she had to say. "Me and Mac are trying to shatter our curse and the two of us feel that, given what you have already been able to do, with your rescourses you could help us."

"I don't know how much you know about curses but in our world there's a difference between Breaking a Curse and Shattering one." She held up bother her hands to illustrate. She gestured with her right hand before continuing. "When Breaking a curse you are fulfilling it's criteria be that either simply expending the required amount to remove it or meeting a specific set of circumstances.

Next Cheese gestured with her left. "Shattering a curse is another way and to do so you just need to hit the Curse with enough magical energy for it to break.But even the smallest curses take a large amount of magical power, I think it has something to do with how complex the Curse is or who laid it but I'm not entirely sure I'm afraid."

Letting her hands fall Cheese paused and looked almost defeated but still held a very sharp stare with the Empress "I should make the scale of how much power is need clear to you; the only known succesful Shattering of a Curse took place many, many ages ago, even by Fae standards, and where it took place there are now multiple villages surrounding a lake."

"I know it's a lot to ask but." Cheese steadied herself, despite everything she couldn't help but let her hopes rise slightly. "I was wondering if you might be able to help, even a little bit both I and Mac would be immensly grateful."

"My husband, albeit drawing power from this entire fleet, was able to stop time on a moon-shaped mass, and is theoretically able to do the same to something as large as Earth," Maria D' Italia said. "We are thus capable of what you want or need, but the backlash might cause massive destruction, which is why we waited for you to ask us. Nevertheless, I do have a solution." She then looked at them.

"We will have to take a brief detour back to Renovation -we will teleport there. Underneath the Palace of the Blachrenae is the Cornerstone, a relic of such power it might shatter your curse easily...but I'll have to bring Damianos with me, and request Hakim the Wise and Sharukh Mirza the Fifth to come so that they can contain the excess power and prevent it from killing large numbers of people. But yes, we can do it right now, if you want..."

Cheese felt as if she had just been slapped in the face and all composure had quickly left her. She stared slack-jawed at the empress.

"I..." Cheese closed her mouth and tried again. "uh..." "umm..." "Sorry..." She frowned heavily firmly believing that it was too good to be true.

"No." She finally spoke. "No, it can't be that simple. It just can't!" Cheese leapt up with such force, slamming her palms down onto the table, that her chair was sent clattering to the ground.

"This isn't some simple little curse that can just be whisked away! It was laid by The. Goblin.King." Another slam for each word. "And not just on one person but on two, plus Mac lost his Name and Face for crying out loud, there are rule even to magic that need to be followed!"

Cheese stepped away from the table and swore several times under her breath, and then bellowed several more.

"Are you telling me that you have had a solution for goodness knows how long without even telling us!?" Cheese bared her teeth, hissing out every word with barely controlled rage. "You do realise that if Mac gets his sorry ass killed I die too! We have been trying for years to fulfil our Curses criteria and you're saying you can just shatter it? Like it's just..." Cheese had burnt herself out. "Like it's just this mildly dangerous thing."

For a minute at least Cheese stood, staring at the Empress, almost pleading with silence for a different answer. Or maybe just say it really was that simple. Cheese didn't know, in fact she just felt very empty.

"I'm sorry." She said very quietly. "The Goblin King will know, and I think they'll try to stop you from taking his thing."

"The Cornerstone of Light is located under a city of 16 million people, 2 million more people than the city in the original timeline, the so-called 'Istanbul'. I waited for you to ask because I wanted to know whether I should risk the lives of my adoptive city for the sake of the Multiverse. So, no, not mildly dangerous; more like the danger is such that I would have been betraying my own people if I failed," Maria was tranquilly furious.

"Because I actually care about my own subjects, unlike your Goblin King, much as I care about the welfare of the Multiverse. I needed to know first if you would ask me to take up the burden of putting the latter above the former before risking anything..." A pause.

"As for the Goblin King, Giorgios Kyros and the elite guards - Athanatoi/Immortals, we no longer use Varangians - can be deployed to protect us..."

Cheese huffed and considered trying to regain some composure and goodwill with the Empress. She ran a hand through her hair in thought trying to figure out what to do next; she didn't want to betray The Goblin King, but after the years she had spent in the Mundane Realm she had slowly begun to consider them less and lesss her King. To Cheese the words The Empress spoke sounds very much like theirs always saying how much they cared about their subjects, that they were better thanany other being in power. Cheese held her toungue though.

"The Goblin King themself won't appear, doubt they would even fit." A dark and exhausted chuckle. How long had she been holding in that outburst? "They'll use Mac, and then through Mac they'll use me."

"The Goblin King owns Macs name so they can pretty much control him, and use him somewhat like a conduit for magic." She explained but didn't meet the Empresses icy gaze. Cheese also decided against mentioning the missions she had undertaken whilst in the Mundane. "But given how far away we are from the Fae Realm their old on him is weak. In Madokas world The Goblin King could only keep hold for a minute so if we're quick we could..."

"Your Majesty. I would like to formally apologise for my outburst moments ago." Finally Cheese met the Empress' eyes and bowed. "Given the risks my request holds I completely...understand if you do not wish to grant it." Cheese felt a horrible clench in her chest and her voice wavered slightly but neither were from the Curse. She knew the Empress could help. "If you do however, in your great kindness, decide to despite my actions I would like to take a while to speak to Mac. As well as make a phone call home."

"For the sake of the Multiverse, I will shatter the curse," spoke Maria D' Italia. "You and Mac don't deserve the fate you got. So, very well, I'll begin preperations right away while you talk to...your partner."

"Associate." Cheese corrected respectfully, even with a smile trying to peak past her stoic mask. "But thank you ever so much your Majesty. If this works then I will be in your and you husbands debt, for as long as you shall require my services." Her eyes flashed violet as the contract wrote itself into her being.

[Double]

((Collab between Double and Arty Fox))

A cloaked Seth lay on one of the comfy couches in the Ruler of the Sea's lounge room. True, he could have gone back to his quarters, but there wouldn't have been food or drink there. At any rate, the Nobody appeared to be asleep, his hood pulled down over his eyes like a cowboy does with their hat. There was minimal activity around him. A handful of moogles were playing cards on the other side of the room, but apart from that the lounge was more or less empty.

"Hey has anyone seen Seth." Mac asked peeking into the common room.

The moogles simply jabbed a finger(?) towards the snoozing mound on the sofa.

"Thanks. Hey Seth, you awake?" There was an odd edge in Macs tone that wasn't quite anger as he stood over the sofa and jabbed Seth a few times in the shoulder. "Seth wake up, I need a favour."

Seth grinned at the computer-head's first question, "Hmm... nope. Don't think so. But if you'd like to leave a message with your name and future whereabouts I'll get back to you as soon as I-" but Mac clearly wasn't amused and asked again in a more frustrated tone, "Alright, alright, what do you need?" Seth sat himself upright and popped some joints in his neck before lazily pulling back the hood.

Mac very much wished he had eyes to roll at Seth's reply but sadly as he didn't and he settled for just moving onto the favour he was about to ask.

"I want you to punch me in the face." A short shrug as if the request were an everyday thing. "Well more accurately I want you to help teach me to fight without magic." Mac spat out the last word like it were something extremely bitter and his hand strayed into his pocket. "The person I was training with said it was a bad idea, but I thought you might take at least some pleasure in beating the stuffing out of me."

"I want you to punch me in the face."

Seth gave a small shrug and then his fist went flying. Then Mac spoke again and the punch that would have went right through his computer-screen face instead stopped just short of it. Well, shoot, and here Seth thought this would be a simple favor. Clearly that wasn't the case, instead Mac wanted him to... teach him? At this, the Nobody offered his signature shrug.

"Fighting's not necessarily about being the faster or stronger combatant." he said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "To be honest, as long as you're smarter than them, then strength isn't as much of a factor." that sounded strange, coming from the guy who consistently showed himself to be inhumanly strong and agile when he needed to be. Clearly he'd learned his share of tricks, "But if you really want to learn some tricks, then I have to warn you first. The techniques I practice are very tricky to use. Fail to use them right, and you end up harming yourself more than you harm your enemy. Still interested?"

He had flinched when Seth had almost thrown a very hefty punch. "But being smarter won't do you much good when you're a bloody smear on the ground." Mac gave a frustrated sigh. "Anyway really it's not like I don't have enough power or anything, or at least I like to think so."

With his other hand Mac scratched at the back of his head where the cable emerged next to all the little ports a computer screen had. Even without a face a thoughtful look washed over him and the glossy surface of the screen almost appeared to glaze over.

"Nah, wouldn't be a useful thing if I wasn't. Wouldn't worry about the getting hurt thing either; repacked my own innards once which was fun" Mac quickly snapped back to the present. "So mate, what sort of techniques have you got up your sleeve then? Hundred man punch or something along those lines?"

"Oh, good." Seth responded, his wide grin not faltered. He didn't say anything when Mac asked about the techniques. Rather, he just stood and nodded for Mac to follow. Better to show rather than tell, he decided. But as they walked he did decide to give a hint or two.

"Incidentally, did you know that whenever you strike an opponent, their body always puts forth a natural resistance to the force of your attack? That's perfectly normal, of course, since the skin and bones tend to act as a natural armor of sorts for the more vulnerable inner organs." as he said this, he led them to the ship's holodeck, and after a moment he opened the door and in they went.

"This natural resistance can be found in just about any matter, organic or not. And it makes damaging them more difficult, where you would otherwise require a much greater amount of strength than you can physically muster. At least... that's how it normally is." by this point Seth had started a simulation that would put them in a rocky canyon of sorts, surrounded by rocks and boulders.

"But if you can find a way to circumvent the resistance, you can damage an object or person far beyond what you are otherwise capable of. Like this!" And without warning, Seth casually punched a boulder, and it dissolved into dust. It didn't crack, it didn't break into smaller rocks. It literally dissolved into a pile of dust.

Watching Seth had caused a level of fear to stir in Macs stomach that he hadn't visited for a long time. It was that hair raising mixture of equal parts desire for the power the thing to be feared had and the natural instinct to run very far away.

"Jesus..." Mac whispered in awe. "How did...how did you?"

The logical part of Macs mind, what little wasn't suddenly wondering why he wasn't running away, took a moment to point out something to him; they were in a holo-deck.

"Wait a minute this is a holodeck." A phrase Mac never thought he'd live to say. "Are you pulling my leg or something?" He then strode up to another boulder and gave it hard knock fully expecting it to shatter as well.

it did not. "Never mind, continue."

Mac didn't buy it at first. He tried to repeat the action against another boulder, rightfully pointing out that this was a holodeck. He banged his fist against the rock only for nothing to happen. Now, Seth could have explained beforehand how the holodeck works. That it uses its energy supply to generate the physical mass of objects within a simulated environment, and then used a holographic projection to give it its color and texture. For all intents and purposes, these were real rocks. Seth could have warned Mac about this, but chose instead to let him learn on his own.

"What I pulled off is actually simpler than you think." Seth then held up his left hand, letting it form a hypothetical wall that he slowly collided his free fist into, the knuckles all striking simultaneously, "This sort of punch, while efficient for some opponents and some obstacles, still faces the issue of having its true power severely reduced by the target's natural physical resistance. But what if you had a way to strike twice in a single punch? Like, say, this..."

He repeated the punching motion, but this time made the row of knuckles closest to his fingertips touch his hand first followed instantly by the back row touching second, "If this were sped up into a full speed strike, the rows of knuckles impacting separately would turn one impact into two. Plus, the first row of knuckles are the ones met by all the resistance. Timed correctly, the second row strikes immediately after, when the natural resistance has already been used up against the first row. A single punch can then become a devastating weapon capable of breaking an opponent's body from the inside out. That's why this technique was given the name Fist of Destruction."

Mac tilted his head to show his confusion as he tried to understand how the Fist of Destruction worked. In some vague way it made sense but even after many years surrounded by Fae magic and wondrously ludicrous things happening to him his mind continued to cling to logic. At the very least Mac was happy to see that the move focused on punching, which Mac considered himself to be fairly decent at.

"Okay, I think I get it." He didn't sound certain but clenched his left hand into a fist and held it up. "So I hit something with my fist but try and focus on hitting with the knuckles of my index and middle finger." He gently punched the air before twisting his fist to let the other knuckles hit the same space. "And then twist like this?"

"You're not messing with me are you?" Mac tried his best to hide the accusatory tone from his voice, he was understandably a bit weary of Seth known for his tricks and pranks. "Because I'm fairly certain punching like this would probably break someones fist rather than actually do anything."

Seth offered his trademark shrug, "Well, I did say it was tricky to use, didn't I?" he turned as if to leave the holodeck, but spoke up once more, "In fact I remember saying that it could harm you more than your enemy if you don't do it right. That wasn't an exaggeration. You really do have to have crackerjack timing with the impacts in order for the technique to be useful for you. But I'm sure you'll figure that out on your own." with that he was gone, either back to napping again or perhaps even to grab a bite to eat.

[Letter Bee]

GM Post

To everyone who were not Mac, Cheese, Ryteb (who was still unconcious) or the independent-minded Seth, Emperor Michael Sideros would say through the speakers:

"You guys might need to go back to the Ruler of the Sea; Sayaka and Madoka need to be apprised of their situation. Also, you might also need a battle plan for taking care of Walpurgisnacht in five days; we cannot have final victory in this world without destroying her. Also, Tocsax, if you can, please take a trip to the world's Keyhole and seal it up, if needed. Finally, take Kyosuke Kamijou into the ship's medbay so that his hand can finally be healed; Hi-Potions alone won't do it."

"Or, I can do it," Judah bin Issac's voice interrupted, also using the same speakers. "If you'll grant me and Lucille an escort, I can heal the Japanese brat."

In the ship's holding cells, Sayaka was still raging, while Kamijou was still scared out of his mind, and Madoka was strangely calm.

This was going to be a job for v2 as well as Judah and Lucille, as v2 was built for negotiations. Taka, if he wasn't awol most of the time, can also accompany them.

@Double@Arty Fox@SMS@Rex@Ryteb Pymeroce@Gentlemanvaultboy@ShadowVentus@supertinyking

[Rex]

While the others were in the other world fighting the Surge Guardians, Drake was working on a battle plan. He had two options for fighting the Surge guardians, but he would need the opinion of the others. However, he knew he’d need to explain everything: the Surge guardians, why they knew him, and of his past. He stopped as he placed a small disk the size of a dinner plate on the floor. He had already set three of them down before the thought occur. He stood back up and sighed as he took of his goggles and sighed.

“This isn’t going to be good,” he placed his goggles back on and continued to place the disks on the floor. When he was finished, he had placed nine disks on the ground. He lifted his right arm as the hologram from his watch appeared and he scrolled through the images. He stopped on one image and sighed again, “This is really going to be a bad idea.” He looked around and noticed the group hadn’t arrived yet, but he heard the emperor ask them to talk with the princesses. He looked back at his watch and thought; I have some time before they get here. I might not be the best person to talk with them, but I’m better them making them think they’re prisoners.

With that Drake left the disks on the floor before he walked towards the holding cells that held Sayaka, Kamijou, and Madoka. He heard one of them raging in the cell and took a deep breath and mumbled to himself, “Just remember: they’re just kids. Think how you’d feel in their situation.”

He made himself known to them with a clearing of his throat before he introduced himself, “Hey there. I know all of this is staggering and kind of inconvenient, but I can assure you this is all for your protection.” What Drake had forgotten was he looked like a space cowboy or at least that’s what Cheese said he looked like. His right hand was still bandaged and small drips of blood would v fall from his still healing wound. He also forgot that his Sniper Rifle was still strapped to his back. To anyone not from his world, it looked futuristic and out of place.

[ShadowVentus]

@Letter Bee @Rex
Despite Damien not laying a finger on him during their fight, Taka felt like he had been dealt a beating. Memories he could not fully remember were drowning his other senses, his attacks not as accurate nor as hard-hitting as he normally had them be. As a result, his spells would be reflected back towards him and his strikes would be sidestepped, exhausting him both mentally and physically. He was about to consider dishing one of the more dangerous attacks among his arsenal when suddenly, support came through a Dark Corridor. Taking this open window of opportunity, the Nobody decided that Drake was right, that it'd be in his best interest to return back to the ship to come up with a better strategy for dealing with this new enemy.

[Ryteb Pymeroce]

Ryteb was falling. He had felt like this before when the dark copies of himself defeated him in the room of awakening, but now it was like a dam inside him had burst, releasing all the pain, grief, and anger he had locked away in the depths of his heart. It was not a straight fall, as he kept bashing into invisible barriers that sent pain shooting through his entire body with every crash. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally landed... though it was not a happy site for the young mage.

There are many views on what hell looks like. For some it is a fiery inferno, for some a dark pit. Many veterens regard the battlefields of whatever war they had served in as hell. For Ryteb, hell was an idyllic looking Irish village called Llychbaen. It had been ten years since he was last there, but it couldn't be here. Not just because his world was gone, but because he himself had razed the village to the ground.

A robed figure walked over to the boy. It was the green of an apprentice, but had the symbols of an Archmage embroidered onto it. He looked to be as old as Odin, with hair the colour of ash, though some streaks of red gave it a look of a dying flame.

"It's funny how the universe- hffph- works." The old man wheeled, coughing up a bit of blood, "The tale ends where it all began..."

His words confused Ryteb, putting him in a state of fear. The threat of imminent death gave him a chill, like icicles running down his spine.

Coughing up a bit more blood, the old man gave a chuckle. "Relax, youngster, your time is not up just yet, though your life is in peril. The darkness you have been cultivating inside you had burst out, and you are in danger of becoming a Heartless. That's why your Ninetailed Flame brought you here."

"Ninetailed what now?" Ryteb asked, more confused than ever, "And where is here?"

The old man sighed, and gazed over at the idyllic village before him. "Of course, you haven't attained your true blade yet... this is the centre of my greatest failure, though I suppose it's proper name is the Dream World. Worlds consumed by darkness come here, as they sleep. Your keyblade brought you here so that you may expel your darkness, and turn it into a Dream Eater. This is your trial, for you to unlock your blade's real power."

Ryteb turned to the man and looked at him. "If that's the case, why are you here?" He asked.

"Pride, mostly..." the old man coughed, the blood staining the bottom of his face, "I thought that I could finally fix it... but when I saw you I knew the truth. You'll understand in time..." As he was saying this, he slumped down against the rock. A raspy breath showed he was still alive, but barely. Ryteb looked to the village again and ran into the woods behind him. He wasn't going to put himself through that again, test or no.

[Arty Fox]

Mac

Mac exited the holodeck massaging his left hand trying to wring out the horrible painful twinges. Annoyingly his attempts to learn the Fist of Destruction hadn’t gone anywhere near as well as Mac had hoped; the only he had managed to even put a crack in so far was his knuckle. Halfway through another insult at Seth Macs phone rang.

“They can do it.” Cheese didn’t even wait for him to speak. “I spoke to the Empress and she said they can break our curse right now in fact.” She sounded like she was walking very quickly somewhere. “I’m heading to my room quickly to grab some things before we do. Chalk for whatever I can think of that might protect us from the explosion or something.”

Mac felt like he had been punched in the gut just then with such force that it left him feeling light headed, the pain in his hand now barely an annoyance to him. He felt his stomach twist and chest tighten with excitement and just a little bit of terror. Many times, both he and Cheese had discussed ways of breaking their curse and even attempted to fulfil its criteria.

“They can?” Mac took hold of the locket around his neck. “Seriously, right now?”

“Apparently, they can.” There was a snarl in her voice. “The damn gits I’ll tell you about it later. I’m going to give Estel a call. Meet me outside your room, twenty minutes.”

The call was cut and Mac was left alone in the silent hallway wondering what he should do next. He felt very out of place like he was standing slightly more to the left of where he was and every seemed slightly less real to him. Maybe he was in shock, that it was nearly all over? Maybe he was scared he wouldn’t be able to keep Cheese under control anymore? Mac didn’t know.

Feeling a little lost Mac simply decided to meander the halls not caring if he walked into anyone. But as he did so he pulled out his phone and decided that he should at least talk to a friend about it, or in this case text. He tapped Carols picture and began to type.

Curse is getting shattered. How are you?

Wait wait wait isn’t shattering bad?

Apparently not, Byzantine people know how to without me or Cheese dying

OMG that’s brilliant! I’m so happy for you! <3

I guess :(

?

I’m scared. I’m scared she’ll try to kill me or do something she’s a fairy she can’t be trusted. At least with the curse I can protect everyone.

Dude, we’ve talked about this. Cheese wouldn’t kill you and you’re not protecting everyone you’re just punishing yourself

You don’t know that, you don’t know her like I do

Maybe not but honestly the sooner you two are out of each other’s lives the better. You’ve been stuck together for years now and finally you two can be separated, isn’t that great?

I guess

When you getting back btw? The nightclub has changed a bit since you left.

No idea. How so?

Well for starters is like a hq right now with people training and stuff to fight the Heartless

WHAT!? :O You know about them?

YEAH! MURMUR have gone public and everything we have giant posters around the place and even an emergency hotline for if people see them. The Moogles taught me some magic too, look out world Carol can throw fireballs now >:D

You shouldn’t be using it! Magic is bad and always bites back!

Calm own, the Moogles use a different sort of magic. Plus, I think MURMUR are keeping an eye on who they sell spells to and with the Underground and some streets completely closed off from Heartless infestation I honestly feel a lot safer having at least something to protect myself with

Still not happy about it! >:( Are my family okay? I didn’t realise it had gotten so bad recently, please stay safe xx

Don’t worry I will xx Spoke to your sister yesterday MURMUR are trying to send her and family to Fae realm saying it’s safer but your mum’s too old to move so they’re coming to stay here with us instead. They all send their love

Thank you. How’s everyone else coping?

Okay as far as anyone can be when shadows made of negative emotions are swarming all around you :P (that’s not true is it? Saw it on the posters), pretty much all of us have become like heroes round here saving people from Heartless hordes.

Afraid so :( and you said you were staying safe!!

We are! Just kicking ass at the same time. Gtg it’s gone 2am here and I’m on patrol tomorrow. Talk soon. You take care of yourself too okay? <3 xx

Night, will do xx

Mac sighed heavily feeling a strange mix of relief and worry. It was nice knowing that his friends and family were still safe but worrying that in the past week things had gone from bad to worse. But then again, he hadn’t spoken to Carol for a while so maybe things had been going downhill for a while now.

Slipping his hand into his pocket Mac felt the little silk bag Cheese had given him, he could feel something inside it but still hadn’t dared to look. During their argument outside the medical bay she had shouted that it wasn’t even one of her spells she had given him. He withdrew his hand without the bag and decided to maybe give it a look after the curse had been shattered. Feeling a bit more sure of himself Mac began to make his way to his room.

---

Cheese

Cheese sat down at one of the seats in the Communication room and pulled herself a little bit further into the alcove. The ‘phone’ was comprised of a holographic screen and a plastic handset to the right of it although some did look different depending on what features they had. In one hand Cheese plucked the handset off the wall and held it to her ear as she navigated the screen with the other. With baited breath Cheese listened to the dial tone ring again and again and again…

There was a click. “Hello?” A distorted voice replied through the static.

“Estel. Can you hear me?” Cheese clutched the handset and saw several warning signs appear on screen. “It’s Cheese. Can you hear me?”

“Barely. I wasn’t expecting you to call again so soon…” Estel sounded tinny and very far away even with another message flashing onscreen proclaimed it was trying to fix the connection. “How in the Hell are you calling me? I’m in Aitken right now, in Three Peaks.”

“Uuuh…I have no idea.” Until just a second ago it had seemed that telephone commination between the Fae and Mundane Realms was impossible. “Magic or multiverse loophole or something. You should ask the Empire about it. How are you? Is everything okay in the Fae Realm?” Her voice laden with worry.

There was such a long pause that Cheese was worried that the call had dropped until the line crackled loudly.

“A lot better than before Cheese.” Cheese could almost picture Estel twisting a curly strand of hair around her finger. “The number of Heartless is increasing both in the Fae and Mundane Realms but, thanks to you and Mac putting me in contact with the Byzantine Empire we’ve been able to develop several ways to fend them off. Although, it seems that in addition to the variety of Heartless listed in the Data MURMUR received there are several types that are unique to our world so…documenting them has been a bit of a hassle; not only do I have to look out for Grimm in the field but Heartless too!” Estel chuckled.

Cheese sighed with a frown concerned for her friend’s safety but ultimately knew that Estel wouldn’t take any unnecessary risks. “And my Family? Are they okay? What about my Friends?”

“They’re doing fine from what Jaun has told me, he’s on one of the patrols The Goblin King put together that go past here, though your parents are worried sick about you. Additionally, I think they asked one of the moogles to bring you a care package but I’m not entirely certain so don’t quote me on it.”

“Oh, that is fantastic to hear.” Cheese felt waves of worry roll of her then with a very deep sigh. “Can you tell them all that I said hello, that I miss them too and…” Her voice caught in her throat.

“And…?” Estel repeated.

“And after this war with the Heartless.” Cheese wiped away a tear with a sniff unaware of the warning signs multiplying on the screen. “I’m coming home. The Byzantine Empire are going to shatter the curse and I can come home.”

“Wha-” Static drowned out her reply. “—n’t hea- ----.”

“Estel?” Cheese frantically pressed the error messages swarming the screen. “Will shatter curse. Will shatter curse. Tell family love. Tell family love.”

“---- do. Wi-- --.” Estels voice was barely audible now and Cheese struggled to make out the words “G--d lu--. --od l--k. ---te -oon. Wr--e so--.”

Cheese felt her heart drop along with the connection leaving her with nothing but silence and a great red X across the screen. A little part of her decided that it was prophetic in some way but she ignored it, casting her doubts aside when she stood up to leave the Communication room. She still had some time to prepare and Cheese wracked her memory as she strode purposefully down the halls, trying to remember as many recipes and spells her grandmother had tried to teach her as a child.

She also wanted to have a word with Drake too once she got back.

[SMS]

Everything moved so fast. Although she was poised to defend Ryteb from the rushing Zack, the creatures Alice had summoned appeared in front of her. A few blocks of claws and arms swinging at her and getting pushed back, everything around her was blasted with electricity, probably Ryteb's doing. Then, the perpetrators just... disappeared.

"W-what just happened?"

A moment later, two bottles were suddenly given to her from a portal, with Tocsax's voice coming from the other side saying that they should use them to heal their injuries. "But I'm uninjured though?" Just then, Ryteb dragged himself back into her view and crashed onto a chair. She contemplated using one of the potions on him based on his burnt appearance, but she decided she'd scold him for using his magic very recklessly later on despite her being thankful for his help.

Timeskip

After asking around for directions, she eventually found herself in the ship's holding cells alongside Drake and whoever else was present. The girl noticed that the blue-haired individual was fuming, the boy looked out of it, while the other girl inside was being... uncomfortably quiet. She was worried that Madoka might have been the worst off of the three.

She didn't know how she could contribute to the situation, but seeing as Drake took the first step, she'll try to follow up on whatever happens.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

The ship wasn't any better than on the ground. There was some sort of problem, some conflict in his programming response to Japan and Japanese civilians that didn't quite gel with the concept of Japan's of other worlds or going directly from the island into space. The end result of this conflict was that he was normal when he was alone in the halls of the Ruler of the Sea he was fine. Functioning normally. However, whenever his finely tuned sensor picked up even the hint that someone else was around, something booted up in his head and he felt his mind and body slow down. It booted on. It booted off. It would boot on again as he started to turn the next corner. It was like a toddler had discovered his stupid switch and was eagerly flicking it on and off for her sick amusement.

It wasn't just the constant switching that was irritating him, either. Every single second he spent in "user friendly" mode was a second where it would be harder to identify the aberrant thoughts flowing from Souji's heart into his head. There was the uncomfortable notion that this might have been going on all along, that he had simply never been "himself" long enough to learn how to properly distinguish between his thoughts and Souji's. There was another possibility, however. One he wouldn't have acknowledged if he was a human but his robotic nature would not allow him to turn away from. What if these aberrant thoughts had only begun recently? What if Souji's heart was becoming stronger somehow? This seemed far more likely to v2 than him simply missing these signs for two years, and this possibility brought to mind one last question related to this unprecedented situation. If Souji's heart, his personality, became too strong what would become of his replacement?

It is because of these fears that v2 took a circuitous route through the ship, making his way through the more quiet and unused parts of the ship to remain as himself for as long as he could. Too make sure none of those aberrant thoughts slipped through. If he heard someone coming he would move the other way. If he saw a door open he would duck around a corner. He even resorted to concealing himself within empty rooms and closets at a few points, waiting until the footsteps and voices vanished before continuing on his way. This was frustratingly impossible as he came to the living quarters, and he felt himself fall into Souji's slow, easy going gait as the sheer density of people destroyed any hope of further resistance.

He stored the box containing the head in a trunk at the boot of his bed. He would have to confirm that it was indeed what he thought it to be, but if his suspicions proved true he wasn't stupid enough even in this form to take this anywhere near the princesses. Just to make sure he acquired a pen and wrote CONTENTS HIGHLY RADIOACTIVE across the top. He took a moment to appreciate the perfect handwriting afforded him by privacy before heading back out into public.

As he opened up the door to the holding cells he saw that he wasn't the first one here. "Drake. Mai." He greeted with a tired little wave before entering the room. "I sort of thought this briefing thing was my job?" He said, then gave them both a weak smile. "Just as well, I really don't feel up to this right now. So I don't mind the help. Have you started yet, how much do they know?" He turned to the scared kids in the room. "How much do you already know?"

@SMS@Rex

[Letter Bee]

GM Post

"Protection?!" Sayaka was still outraged at Drake. "From what?! The only thing I need protection from are guys like you!" Then, at v2's arrival, the girl said:

"We know nothing except that we got taken from our homes supposedly so we can be 'protected'! Who are you?! Are you with the Witches?"

"Sayaka, stop..." Madoka trailed off, "I don't think they look like bad people..." But before Sayaka can respond, Judah bin Issac, who had arrived behind v2, would say:

"All right, time to end this farce, Japanese Girls. I will open the cell door; any attempt to run out will be stopped," he turned to Sayaka, successfully intimidating her with a glare. Then, the young, white-haired eighteen-year old would do as he said; open the cell door, and conjure up his Keyblade, before walking towards Kamijou, who would back away fearfully. Judah, nonplussed, would then point said Keyblade at the other boy's maimed hand, and then say:

"Regenra, Local." And Kyosuke Kamijou's hand would then glow brightly for a second, before the bandages fell away. Kyosuke would then instinctively flex said hand, finding it restored to the dexterity it once had before the accident.

"My hand, it...it's fixed! I can play the violin again!" he said. Sayaka forgot her anger for a moment to say:

"Wow, that's wonderful!" she then looked at the group. "All right, I'll bite; what do you guys have to say to me, Kyosuke, and Madoka?"

@Double@Arty Fox@Rex@Ryteb Pymeroce@Gentlemanvaultboy@ShadowVentus@supertinyking

[Ryteb Pymeroce]

Ryteb rain through the Llychgrove, as the woods surrounding the town were known, trying to put as much distance between him and the village as possible. Being so caught up in running, he didn't notice the shadows stalking him until they pounced. The creatures looked like Heartless, but had a weird symbol on their chests. They were Wolf like in appearance, but the power they radiated was akin to a Darkside. Ryteb tried to fight them off, but the wolves overpowered him in a matter of seconds. Just as Ryteb was about to give up and accept death, a man jumped in and punched the wolves away from Ryteb. He looked to be in his early thirties, wearing a sleeveless version of the magi robes, with a hood added on. It had the markings representing a scholarship but was again in green. His hair was black, though the roots showed that it had been dyed from a paler colour like brown. Most strangely of all, his fists appeared to glow with some form of imbued energy, that dealt massive damage to the creatures. As the wolves fled, he whistled and another of the not-Heartless creatures appeared. This one looked akin to an owl, but had an almost friendly expression. The owl flapped his wings and a feeling of tranquillity passed over him.

"Well... you just had a close encounter with the Wolf pack." The man laughed pulling the young mage up and giving him a good slap on the back, "The nightmares of Terra Atum are something else, huh?"

Ryteb looked over where the wolves had run off, but there was no trace. "Those things... are nightmares?" He asked, thinking back to Cheese explains her magic. Somehow it didn't seem quite as innocent.

"Technically, no." The man explained, trying to reassure the youth, "They are called Dream Eaters. The wild ones eat good dreams and cause nightmares, but the ones that have been purified can consume nightmares. They are the main inhabitants of the Dream World... and you're going to have to learn to fight them if you want to get home."

"Ah, so that's where young Ryteb got off to." The elderly man said, having come from the direction the wolves originated. He seemed to have recovered slightly in the interlude, though the occasional bloody cough did occur. "Have you told him about the training yet, Ronin?"

The younger man grimaced slightly, and replied; "No I haven't, old man, I was about to when you walked over and interrupted."

"Wait, what training?" Ryteb exclaimed, "I have to get back quickly, my friends need me!" As he said this, both men cracked up in a burst of laughter.

"Time is not an issue here." The old man explained, "Terra Atum's magic caused a temporal disturbance when it became a Dream World. Time moves slowly here. By my estimates, only five days will have passed in the real world."

Ryteb weighed his options. On the one hand, he wasn't sure he could trust what these men were saying... but on the other, furrier, hand the woods were probably full of these powerful enemies, and they did suggest a way of saving himself from becoming a Heartless...

"Alright, I'm in." Ryteb said, starting what he would look at as the most hellish training he had ever encountered...

[Rex]

Drake rolled his eyes at the sudden outburst and said, “Trust me when I say this: you want me as your protector because if I really wanted you all dead. You’d be dead. These witches you talk about are nothing but wild dogs looking for a meal. I’m nothing like them. You have no second chance or even a fist chance. You’ll only hear a pop and then you’ll see nothing but a bright light at the end of a tunnel.” Drake was about to add something, but was cut off by Issac.

He looked at the three when Sayaka when she spoke and sighed before he took off his goggles to rub his eyes. He tapped the ends of his goggles against his watch and a green light engulfed them before they disappeared into the watch. He then turned to the three and stated, “Tocsax will tell you what’s going on. Trust me, he’ll sugar coat it for your brains to understand.” Drake turned towards Mai and V2 and added, “Once that’s done. You all will need to know what you’re up against. The Surge guardians are nothing to scoff at. They were just testing the waters before. However, now they’ll be out for blood. You’ll need to know their abilities and their weaknesses if you have a snowballs chance to survive.”

He turned back to the three princesses and said, “Also, you three will need to be trained. You might think you know how to fight, but you don’t. You know nothing about true fighting.”

[Double]

Ruler of the Sea ~ Lounge

A hooded Seth could once again be found lying on one of the sofas in the lounge. And once again he was napping, complete with his hood pulled down over his face. But with no interruptions he was free to have a little dream. One that, for once, wasn't quite the usual nightmare he was accustomed to.

Unknown Location ~ Five Years Ago

A kid lay unconscious on the beach, looking like he was washed ashore from a shipwreck or something. Nothing on his personage but the clothes on his back, and even that was mostly limited to a blue hooded jacket and black shorts for the most part. He lay face down, his head turned just right so that it was smothered in the sand. As waves slowly rolled up to his waste before receding back as usual, a pair of legs appeared, someone having walked down to the shore from further inland. The man knelt, appearing to dressed like a monk of sorts, but with no beads and the only religious symbol he wore having been carved into by a knife of some kind. Where the man came from, this was symbolic of one who had renounced their faith. He still had a shaved head, though, the breeze of the beach blew cool wind over his bald head.

"Can you read him?" the fallen monk said, it turned out he wasn't alone. He was accompanied by another man, this one younger but still not a kid by any means. He was dressed differently too, drastically so. In fact standing next to each other the two may as well have come from completely different worlds... which they did. The younger man's garb was a more form-fitting outfit, mostly a black sleeveless shirt of leather and a bottom that was mostly combat fatigues and boots. He also wore gas mask oddly enough, that made it impossible to see his face or hair. He knelt down as well, hovering his gloved hand over the unconscious kid's head for a moment. He stood back up, even stepping back as if surprised, "What's the problem?"

"...Nothing." spoke the younger man, his voice sounding somewhat distorted by his mask.

"If there's no problem then what-"

"That's not what I mean. The problem is nothing. As in there's nothing to read." he gestured to the sleeping kid, "Minds are supposed to be like books I can read, but this kid... he's got nothing. It's like trying to read a book with blank pages."

The former monk narrowed his gaze somewhat, then gently picked up the unconscious boy and started carrying him inland, "Well whatever the case, it looks like we have ourselves a new resident. If you can't read him we'll just have to learn about the kid the old fashioned way." the apparently psychic man followed after the monk without raising any objections.

An unknown amount of time later, the kid awoke, "Where...? Who...?" he clutched his head as if suffering a headache. He tried to think... to remember, but then nearly screamed out loud. There was... nothing! Every time he tried to remember or think back it was just a painful blank. The kid wasn't even entirely sure he even remembered who he was. In a panic, he fled the room and found himself outside. He was in a town, or at least it looked like one. Small shacks and other humble buildings and abodes plus a nearby diner with a sign that read "Monty's". With no clue where this was or even if he was supposed to be here, the kid was about to run in another panic when something silently grabbed his shoulder. He turned and nearly screamed at the sight of an armored person who had apparently been standing guard at the little house he'd awoken in.

"Who are you?" the kid exclaimed. The armored man offered no response, "Who are you?" he repeated. Still no answer, "Where is this? What do you want with me?" but still the armored figure said nothing. Now the boy was getting frustrated, "Answer me, already!" he went to kick the armored person, but his shoe just clanged against what he could have sworn was merely an empty suit. Not that he noticed this fact at the time.

"He can't." someone spoke, finally offering an answer, but it wasn't the armor guy. It was a... monk? Or at least... someone who looked like one. He was accompanied by another guy in black clothes and wearing a gas mask of all things, "You don't have to be afraid. I merely asked him to guard you while you rested. Nothing more." the monk then nodded to the armored guy who merely offered a nod of his own in response before silently walking away.

"Where is this? Who are you? Who... am I?" the kid tried to think again, but like before it was a painful blank and he instinctively clutched the sides of his head in response to that pain.

"As I thought. Mantis couldn't read you because there was nothing to read. But let's start from the beginning. You're in Nexus Town. Whatever world you came from is one of many. Well, actually, they're all just variants of the same world connected in a multiverse. Nexus Town is... unique in that shares a connection point with all worlds. Any of the worlds can reached from here in some form and vice versa, in other words... like a nexus, hence the town's name." he sighed, though, since the next part was never easy to explain, "Every world also has a parallel realm this is nothing but Darkness and void. Sometimes this realm invades its sister world and swallows it into Darkness. Those with a strong enough heart or will to survive more often than not end up here."

"Hmph, more like the unwanted freaks end up here..." the guy called Mantis muttered.

"The point is..." the monk said after giving Mantis a brief glare, "...everyone in this town is a castaway, lost from their world. Or... simply rejected by it. Most of the survivors who end up staying here were outcasts in their own world, unwanted by their own people for one reason or another, and so they've little desire to return and live here instead among others who've also known what it's like to be unwanted and cast out."

Nexus Town. Multiverse. Darkness. Outcasts. To be frank it was completely overwhelming. Coupled with his rather unique situation, it was honestly too much for the kid to process. He wanted to scream. He wanted to scream so badly that he barely even realized that he had done just that. He screamed, cried out in confusion and agony. Before he knew it, white creatures began to appear in mass, who then started taking the shapes of bowguns and shooting energy shots at everyone around. They didn't do much damage though. In fact a great deal of them were quickly dispatched by various individuals with strange and sometimes scary-looking abilities and skills. As for the monk, rather than fight he instead approached the boy and knelt in front of him and placed his hands on the kid's shoulders.

"Calm down! You'll be alright." he said, having realized that the creatures he recognized as Sniper-type Nobodies were appearing and attacking in response to the kid's distress. That let him know in that moment that whoever this boy was, he was a Nobody, which meant he was still processing the concept of having no Heart or capacity for emotion on top of being unable to remember anything about himself. The monk's comfort seemed to calm the boy down, and the Snipers slowly vanished until none were left.

"I don't even know who I am... much less how I'm here... or even why..." the kid said with a bit of a hiccup from sobbing.

"How and why you're here makes no difference to any of us. But we'll be glad to help you discover the truth if that's what you wish. By the way... my name is Ganma. Can you at least recall your own name?"

"I... think... my name is..."

Ruler of the Sea ~ Lounge

Seth shifted about on the couch, the Nobody having awoke from his nap. He yawned, even standing up and doing a little stretching. Like most dreams, the events of this one didn't stick in his mind for long. Still, he thought about it briefly, thinking back to when that really did happen. The only response to it he could offer was his usual grin and, of course, he chuckled.