[center][h3]Tora & Poppi[/h3]
[b]Level 8[/b] Tora (71/80) and [b]Level 8[/b] Poppi (44/80)
[b]Location:[/b] Sandswept Sky - Sweet Canyon - Parnasse
Primrose's [@Yankee], Fox's [@Dawnrider], Sectonia's [@Archmage MC] Midna's [@DracoLunaris], Yoshitsune's [@Rockin Strings], Red’s [@TheDemonHound], Laharl’s [@Dark Cloud]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1498[/center]

[center][hider=For Sectonia]Notable spirit consumed:
[b][url=https://mario.wiki.gallery/images/thumb/4/42/Bleck_SPM_art.jpg/1200px-Bleck_SPM_art.jpg]Count Bleck[/url][/b]
The host has gotten a bit smaller. She’s now wearing a golden-buttoned, white tuxedo vest on her torso and her heart crystal is more of a brooch, with silver encasing that extends around her neck. Her crown is now a fanciful crown ring around a short white top hat, with holes for her antennae. Though impossible to see normally, she can open a wide, jagged red mouth, and the very centers of her eyes glow a burning red. Her wrought-hold wings now have a wing membrane on the back, which is white on the outside and a purple spatial pattern on the inside. They can fold up like a cape when not in use, and she can float without having to use them. Her collar also stands up more. The host has become more polite and charismatic, simultaneously caring deeply and being forgiving toward allies while hatefully viewing enemies as worthless, even if wearing a smile. This spirit confers the Power [b]Dark Globule[/b], allowing the host to cast a tenebrous magic spell that cannot be blocked. It also confers the Weakness [b]Defense Down[/b], increasing damage taken by 15%[/hider][/center]

The remaining heroes refocused around the primary machine after a few of their number took their lumps. Sectonia electrocuted the Goliath with a spray of lightning before ducking away into a house under the assumption that the others would keep its aggression focused on them. Although the designated tank certainly tried, the stubborn machine managed to seize and hurl a lightpost of twisted black licorice her way. “Secty!” Tora cried out, seeing the makeshift projectile vanish into the building. He slammed the cakey ground with the Mech Arms to launch himself into the air, and as he fell swung wildly to deliver an unignorable flurry of punches. Multicolored light shone from inside the house, but Tora needed all his attention on the foe before him. 

Poppi projected an ether barrier to fortify his defense as the Goliath brought down its fist, burying him up to his belly button in the soft ground, but Tora held firm. That helped to give Yoshitsune and Red the opportunity they needed. The mercenary charged into action, and though her axe failed to pierce the machine’s leg as she flew past, the bullets she hammered into the joint right after mangled the metal. With a rumble it turned to try and crush her, moving its arm straight into the path of Yoshitsune’s Kamui. Although he targeted a limb with an untouched joint rather than the one Red softened up for him, he nevertheless managed to steer his katana straight between two of the moving parts with perfect accuracy.

At the end of the day, however, he was a man with unremarkable physical strength trying to slice through solid alloy from a time ten thousand years removed from his own with a katana. Yoshitsune’s blade wedged in the mechanism and was yanked from his hands as the Goliath moved on, unphased. The katana managed to jam the joint for all of a moment before the stress shattered it, sending razor-sharp shards over a wide area, and the machine moved to punch Red.

Tora grunted in anger. “Mean robot shouldn’t keep ignoring Tora!” He flipped open the Mech Arms’ silos and fired off a volley of missiles that exploded against the Goliath’s body. Up above, the Scout swung out from under Necronomicon with an exhilarated yell to land on top of the robot. He drove his pickaxe into its head, tore it off, and started unloading his assault rifle down its neck.

The sound of footsteps came from behind Red as Fox and Joker moved in, Arsene floating behind him. “Stop trying to cut metal! Use blunt or piercing!” the Thief shouted. After Fox zoomed in to impart a meaty explosive-enhanced kick to its damaged joint, and let off a few parting shots for good measure, Joker went low to slide under the Goliath’s fist and into its leg. He stuck his grappling hook through one of the bullet holes that Red left there. Arsene then raised his leg and with another strong kick finally bent the brutalized knee joint backwards. Covered by the Heavy as his minigun turned the Goliath’s torso into swiss cheese, Joker jumped back and along with Arsene took the grapple line in both hands. They pulled together, wrenching the machine’s leg out from underneath it. 

Only the blazing rocket on its back prevented it toppling over, but when he realized what was going on Tora had an idea. “Poppi time to shine!” he called, tossing the Mech Arms to the artificial blade. She grabbed them with a nod and boosted into the air. “Target back rocket, aim for fuel tanks!” He watched his companion soar into position and let loose a handful of missiles. The inventor’s intuition turned out to be correct as a huge explosion went off, the Scout went flying with his behind on fire, and the next moment the Goliath crashed face-down into the dirt among the other heroes, its back totally stripped of armor plating. “Meanie robot down, easy pickings now!” Tora sang, only to get slapped by one of the Goliath’s still very functional arms. As he rolled off and Poppi went after him, it fell to the others to finish it off, and both the Heavy and Braum certainly didn’t wait to start pummeling away.

Meanwhile, the other fight had also taken a turn. First to come to the aid of the Phantom Thieves was not an ally, but the very trapped bystander their adversary inadvertently freed. Despite his size the boy dealt a weighty blow to the ensnared Goliath that cratered a portion of its torso. The machine was knocked to the side, which both diverted the barrage from its gun and yanked Panther’s whip hard enough to throw both her and Skull to the ground. With its owner’s grip broken, the length of leather fell from the Goliath’s knees and into the flan pavement alongside the Thieves. Laharl’s intervention put a wrench in Primrose’s plan as well, causing her to waste a spell. When the machine came about with both hands raised to smash the boy in between them, however, the Dancer did not hesitate to follow up with a second that struck her foe dead-center and prevented Laharl getting pancaked. After arriving with a burst of damage from the other fight, Fox produced his reflector to spare the downed Thieves the robot’s leftover projectiles and instead return them to sender.

Midna wove through the danger zone with her Vibrava carrier’s help and found a perfect opportunity. She raked her target with Dragon Claw before extending a twilight shroud. Arcs of sunset-orange electricity suffused the Goliath’s many heads, and an instant later the Vibrava blitzed through them all in a blur of darkly flashing fangs. In a shower of sparks it lurched, disabled but not quite dead, and free for anyone to get a few hits in.

Seeing his opportunity, Mona struck a courageous pose. “That’s it! It’s time for an All-out Attack!”

Having already emptied his shotgun into the thing, Skull groaned. “Maaan, we’re effin’ gassed. Can’t you do something?”

“Hey, I’m tired too!” the cat protested, but at his command Zorro whipped up a wind to throw him into the air. Mona soared above the battle, silhouetted against the moon, and transformed onto a car that unceremoniously dropped onto the Goliath from above, horn blaring. A tremendous crash resounded across Parnasse as the machine’s legs flew sideways and its crumpled body sank halfway into the ground. The car remained stuck, nose down, in the wreckage for a moment before he turned back in a puff of smoke. “Ow, ow, ow!” He stumbled around dizzily before plopping onto his back. “Owww….I am NEVER pulling that again.”

He looked up to see Skull and Panther standing over him, with the boy giving a thumbs-up. “Hey, it was super cool though!” Panther picked the cat up and held him under her arm, which seemed to work wonders for his spirits. When they looked over they saw the other fight just about over as well. After just a little tidying up, the heroes were left with a quiet if someone roughed-up town and two Goliath spirits.

[hider=Results]
[b]Party:[/b] Primrose, Fox, Sectonia, Midna, Yoshitsune, Red, Laharl, Tora and Poppi
[b]Encounter Reward:[/b] +5 EXP
[b]Additional Rewards:[/b]Two Goliath spirits, refuge in Parnasse, local expertise, the fates of Crow, Peacock, and Sly Cooper[/hider]

The team consolidated after a few moments, gathered in the center of town beneath where the fairy’s empty cage hung. The fairy herself floated nearby with an upbeat smile, a half-eaten brick of chocolate under her arm. Having also been freed from their imprisonment, the chocolate tiger and rabbit took a moment to thank the heroes for helping them, and to offer them shelter in any of the vacant houses in their humble town of Parnasse. Pretty much nobody could deny the weight of fatigue pressing down on them, and on behalf of the general welfare Joker accepted the offer. The townsfolk returned to their homes, leaving everyone to their business.

Although things had gone well, Blue Poison looked annoyed. “I accomplished nothing,” she criticized herself, arms crossed. “That thing didn’t even notice my bolts.”

“Don’t beat yerself up, lassie,” the Scout told her. “Robots don’t care about poison, and that ‘un ate ‘eadshots like candy!”

Tora took in the general chatter, but looked like he was about to fall asleep where he stood. “Meh…” He flopped down onto his back, eyes closed, but opened one to see Poppi standing over him in QT Pi mode. “Take body back...to Torigoth…”

“No need be so dramatic, Masterpon,” Poppi smiled. She bent down to scoop him up and found that he’d really drifted off. She laughed softly, and with him cradled in her arms glanced around at the others. “Poppi not need sleep, so Poppi take watch. Everyone have good night.” With a polite bow of her head she headed for one of the destroyed homes and into the mercifully spared bedroom to deposit the sleeping Nopon within.

[center][h3]Ms Fortune[/h3]
[b]Level 3[/b] Nadia (12/30)
[b]Location:[/b] Black Bay
Blazermate's [@Archmage MC], Bowser's [@DracoLunaris], Ace Cadet's [@Yankee], Hat Kid's [@Dawnrider], Frog's [@Dark Cloud]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1606[/center]

As soon as Bowser’s grasp closed around it, the Herlmaroc King screeched and commenced its struggle. With wild strength it rained down painful pecks on Bowser, aimed for his mouth and eyes. That combined with its thrashes, powerful enough to rock the entire Atomos, meant he couldn’t hold it for long, but the Koopa King’s grip held firm long enough for his friends to put their plans into action. Sakura moved first, releasing her hold on a flustered Bella to deliver a high-flying series of attacks before she landed to keep the pain train rolling. Geralt climbed on, working his way upward across the beast’s feathered body with his iron grip and steel dagger. He called out for his comrades to help the desperate situation aboard Shippy, then began his assault. 

The moment he first plunged his blade into the bird’s body, it recoiled with such force that it wrenched free from Bowser and soared away, the Witcher holding tight. Its shrieks filled the air as it flew, its unwelcome guest burying his silver sword again and again, but for all its power the Helmaroc couldn’t get rid of the pest. As Geralt kept it up, he noticed after a couple less-than-perfect yanks that a twist of the embedded blade would cause the Helmaroc to veer in the same direction. Far above the naval battle and even the seaplane dogfights, the Helmaroc’s lunatic flight continued, with only the Midway Princess’s bomber fleet occupying the seaside heights.

[hr]

As Peach sped off, Nadia retreated back toward the center of the deck to avoid the bullets and shells that whizzed above. [i]Hold out ‘til then,[/i] her mind echoed as she looked left and right with frantic speed for any incoming threats. Her objective was no longer to fight, but to survive. Although no stranger to survival, Nadia never would have imagined a nightmare like this. Blazermate and Frog had gone below, so with Peach and Hatty gone, Brineybeard holed up, the Atomos and Navy a ways off, and poor Chao Hu dead, Nadia was completely and utterly alone. Alone, on the splintering deck of a sinking ship in waters infested by far worse things than sharks. 

The bruises, burns, and bullet holes across her back and limbs hurt terribly. Her chest ached from the strain of her lungs and heart, obliged to work overtime without so much as a hint of pay. Her wide, searching eyes found a new explosion of flame or wood every other second, chipping away at the doomed ship with terrifying speed. And like an approaching storm, the tide of bombers swept ever closer. [i]Survive?[/i] What a joke. It was so comically hopeless that she couldn’t help but laugh. “Nya...haha...hahaa..hahaha! Ohhh, crumbs. At least this can’t get any worse!”

A coating of green magic surrounded the ship. Nadia’s jaw dropped. Had she really just tempted fate!? But rather than annihilate her on the spot the sorcery seemed to take the form of a barrier, as if it were holding Shippy together. Her harrowed gaze turned upward to see one of Kamek’s clones, harried by a few stray Abyssal seaplanes but otherwise unnoticed by the enemy. More magicked magikoopas swooped in behind him, each carrying something bright. Her heart dared to beat again. “Over here! Help!” And help the clones did, by swooping down to implant their collected spirits into the ship itself.

Prismatic light shone across the surface of the Black Bay, blanketing Shippy in her entirety. Abyssals gawked at it in confusion as their shots pinged harmlessly off the radiant aura, and the shipgirls put the heads on their shoulders to use taking advantage of the distraction to get a few hits in. Nadia’s bewilderment, however, quickly turned to panic as the ship began to change beneath her feet. All around the edges of the ship closed in, and a layer of metal spread over the wood. To the feral’s horror the deck descended toward the ocean’s surface, bringing her even closer to the deadly waters, and fear for those below deck filled her. Were they going to be crushed? Drowned? In the span of a few moments, Shippy shrank from the size of a respectable pirate ship to little bigger than a [url=https://i.imgur.com/WwPwtlr.png]sloop[/url], her deck only a few dozen feet across and her ankle-high railing practically a suggestion. And everything was dilapidated to hell, having sustained the damage inflicted before the change. Nadia clutched her head and hunkered down as a shell exploded against the mast, toppling it over. How was this an improvement!?

Before she could despair too deeply, Blazermate’s Friend Heart took hold. With a bright flash, Shippy’s catastrophic damage popped like a burst soap bubble, and the boat was restored. The mast stood tall as if it had never fallen, its stringy black sails flapping in the wind. Shiny metal armor covered the deck, thin but whole, and to Nadia’s delight she found four cannon emplacements. She remained alone and sorely wounded, but now she had a chance, and she wasn’t about to question this blessing. Brineybeard stumbled out of hiding, his flabbergasted wonderment etched on his features. “...Blow me down! What the hell happened?”

Nadia couldn’t say she knew well enough to explain herself, but someone else beat her to the punch. In reply came a loud voice, female but backed by the bassy creak and moan of timber. “Captain? I am awake.” The brand-new, very realistic figurehead of the ship twisted around to look back at the pair above decks. All around, the Abyssals resumed their assault. When the figurehead winced, Nadia realized that it must be Shippy herself, but the new being did not waver, and focused on Brineybeard with absolute trust in her eyes. “What are your orders?”

Brineybeard clenched his jaw. Thinking could come later; the time for action was now. “We can’t waste this chance!” he roared, climbing up to the helm. “Make for the river on the shore! Full speed ahead!”

“Aye-aye, captain!” The ship, dead in the water until moments ago, began to move. Though the Abyssals trying to bite into the metal armor found tougher resistance, the ones barraging it quickly began racking up damage. Nadia eyed the new ordinance, wondering why they weren’t firing, but Shippy spoke up. “There’s some sort of cloud over my mind preventing me from fighting,” she reported. “I’m afraid you must man my cannons yourselves for now. And there’s...ugh!”

Roiling pain in the hold caused her to shudder. With a violent lurch Shippy ejected its contents into the water through her original mouth, and her figurehead looked down to see a mix of Abyssals, Abyssals turned undead monstrosities, and friendlies. “Guh...men...men overboard!” she warned weakly, one eye closed from the pain of a bombardment to her starboard side.

[center][hider=For Link]Spirit absorbed:
[b][url=https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/kancolle/images/c/cd/Light_Cruiser_Tsu-Class_Full.png]Light Cruiser Tsu-Class[/url][/b]
The host has gotten a bit taller, thinner, and paler, with his clothing modified to be darker and expose his midriff. He’s gained a non-integrated black metal helmet with a lining of teeth on the front edge, like an upper jaw. He’s also gotten enormous gauntlets reaching halfway up his arms with built-in cannons, one double-barreled battery per gauntlet, and very large gloves. Beneath the gloves his hands and forearms are also bigger, but not to the extent they fill the equipment, with tactical padding making up the difference. Personality is not much affected, with just a little extra aggression. This spirit confers the Power [b]Made in Abyss[/b], granting a propulsion system inferior to that of the shipgirls that also works underwater, as well as greatly enhanced breath-holding, water pressure resistance, underwater sight, and water resistance annulment. This spirit also confers the Weakness [b]Never to Port[/b], decreasing speed and stability out of the water

You have acquired:
[b][url=https://bddatabase.net/items/new_icon/03_etc/04_dropitem/00044289.png]Imp's Torn Ornament[/url][/b] - a light, highly durable bauble that a vendor would probably buy at a good price[/hider]

[hider=For Ace Cadet]You have Acquired:
[b][url=https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/roblox/images/2/25/SharkKnit.png]Shark Knit[/url][/b] - a nice hat with no special properties
[b][url=http://www.gyrostudiostechnology.com/minecraft/modpack/info/Ender_IO/minerals/dark_steel/Dark_Steel_Ingot.png]Dark Steel Ingot[/url][/b] x2 - a useful metal that’s stronger and more durable than steel
[b][url=https://www.vhv.rs/dpng/d/451-4512899_subnautica-mask-png-download-subnautica-mask-transparent-png.png]Rebreather[/url][/b] - a face mask that recycles the air exhaled by the user, replenishing it in the process to extend the usage of a limited oxygen supply. Comes with oxygen but will run out unless hooked up to a tank[/hider][/center]

Already seated at one cannon battery, Nadia looked up from her attempt to grasp the controls as fast as she could. She leaped to her feet when she heard that her friends were in the drink and dashed to the front of the ship, terrified that she would look down to see a feeding frenzy. Instead she saw Cadet, Blazermate, Frog, and Link(?) below the surface alongside a smattering of Abyssals. She exhaled her pent-up breath in relief, but the fact remained that she couldn’t do much to help them. If she jumped down she would only add to the problem, and even if her muscle fibers she had no idea if she’d be strong enough to pull any aboard. Then she noticed the hanging life preservers, and with a flash of her claws cut them loose. The inflatable rings fell into the water, hopefully to be of some use. As they splashed down she spotted Abyssals closing in, eager to devour the hapless prey fall into their clutches. 

Clenching her teeth, she jumped back over to the cannon battery. If she trusted that her allies were able to escape their current predicament, she just needed to keep the monsters off their backs so she could. The mechanisms in place made using the thing easy, so it was with a devilish grin that Nadia took aim at the bloodthirsty Abyssals. “Eat this!” She slammed down the trigger and blasted away. Taking turns to fire in a constant sequence, the cannons blew the Abyssals out of the water and into ashen chunks. “Nyahahahah!” Nadia unleashed all her stress as she relentlessly pounded them. Any that turned their sights on her got singled out first, rewarded for their attentiveness with solid metal slugs and a swift end. Still, Nadia was just one woman, and three unmanned batteries meant that plenty of pain continued to come Shippy’s way. Plus, being on the starboard side meant that any monsters coming at her friends from the ship’s left had free reign.

That was, except for a certain shipgirl. The Abyssals that rushed the ejected Seekers from the left found that there were worse monsters than themselves in these waters when Heinrich plowed through their ranks, catching a handful of the monsters in the serrated jaws of her mecha-shark before it snapped shut like a vice. “Graahahaaa!” she crowed as she surfed around for another pass, her eyes blazing even brighter than the cannons on her shark’s back. She faced in the direction of the beleaguered heroes and thrust her fist into the air. “As long as you’re alive, you can still kick some ass! Fight like you’re gettin’ paid for it!”

“The bombers!” Brineybeard yelled, steering Shippy to the left so that Nadia could cover the swimming heroes better. He pointed a finger upward to where the Midway Princess’s fleet would soon be able to start dive-bombing. “They be gettin’ close!”

“Oh?” Heinrich looked up to see the bombers halfway across the bay. Her shark chomped into a snarling To-class, and she leaped into the air as it did a corkscrew death roll to tear the Abyssal apart. When she landed she cast her hand toward the swarm and yelled into her radio. “Calling all hands for saturation fire! Light ‘em up, girls!”

“Yes, ma’am!” Came a chorus of voices in reply. All around the shipgirls of Heinrich’s division sped up and turned their weapons from their current foes to the bombers. A fusillade of missiles, bullets, and explosive shells hurled skyward in a remarkable display, filling the air with such a quantity of fire that a great many bombers were hit. Some of those that exploded sparked chain reactions, clearing out entire swathes of the swarm. The volley ended a moment later as the ships returned to their own problems, but the sight convinced Nadia of one thing. [i]They didn’t abandon us! They just kept their distance![/i] Better yet, a quick look at the bay suggested that the Navy was actually pushing the Abyssal Fleet back towards their bases. Filled with adrenaline, the feral kept up her own bombardment. Abyssal shots and seaplane attacks fell upon her, but she powered through. If she could just see her friends safely back aboard to resume healing or man the cannons, maybe, just maybe, they could make it through.

[center][h3]Edge of the Blue - Luma Pools[/h3]
[@Potemking][/center]

For a fortune-seeking, glory-hungry go-getter, the adventure never ended, but it paid to take a break now and again. And after trekking a long way, watching the sun set over the immense [url=https://www.gamereactor.eu/media/12/oriwillwisps_2121233b.png]windmill[/url] that stood between him and what every map in Limsa said would be the gorgeous Luma Pools, and spending the night in the village of the hospitable and playful [url=https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/oriandtheblindforest/images/f/f9/Mokitrailer2017.png]Moki[/url] that took uncommon delight in his jokes, Mirage had finally reached vacation central.

And even though the various descriptions he’d heard of the Luma Pools flattered the place, he quickly found that they did not pay this lush forest justice. He’d set out first thing in the morning with an agreeable Moki companion, headed to the Pools herself for some prime fishing. The early sunlight had made the [url=https://i.pinimg.com/originals/09/5c/58/095c587db6a6824592d835ad4e36ec3a.jpg]misty scarlet hills[/url] beyond the windmill a scene of breathtaking splendor, and as he descended along the river to the Luma Pools the trees and waterfalls just got more and more impressive. A spell of hiking through the [url=https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/024/907/919/large/leonid-koliagin-lagoon-13.jpg?1583928863]pleasantly cool forest[/url] of curving trees with broad pink leaves took him past [url=https://img.pokemondb.net/artwork/large/passimian.jpg]fluffy lemurs[/url] and [url=https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/zootycoon/images/1/13/Gibbon.jpg]crested gibbons[/url] at play near boughs laden with fruit. Finally, between two waterfalls overlooking a lake, in a clearing amid the towering trees he found his own little piece of paradise.

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/L9a0ipL.png[/img][/center]

The sight seemed to make the cheery Moki happy, even though she must have seen it a dozen times already. “What do you think? Didn’t I say it would be lovely? So lovely.” She splashed around in the crystal-clear water for a moment before heading toward the cliff. “Have fun, you!” A moment later Mirage was alone, with just the tropical birds and lazy bumblebees for company. In this spot the adventurer could relax in the shade and at his leisure look out across the Luma Pools. The waterfall below him emptied into a sizeable, roughly oval-shaped [url=http://unknownworlds.com/subnautica/files/2014/04/CoralReefZone_02_LowRes.jpg]lake teeming with fishes and corals.[/url] On the opposite shore [url=https://monsterhunterworld.wiki.fextralife.com/file/Monster-Hunter-World/mhw-wigglers_render_001.png]serpentine creatures[/url] extended from their holes to wiggle about. On either side of the lake, a river extended to wind through the picturesque pools toward the ocean. Birdsong and the low roar of water filled the air. All in all, it was a wonderful getaway from commissions work, well worth the cost of the planning and supplies to make it out here. The only sour note was a continuous noise, barely audible over the sound of water and difficult to identify, reaching a few miles from the coast where the left-hand river emptied into the sea.

[center][h3]Snowdin – Survive Bar[/h3]
[@Gentlemanvaultboy][/center]

Although feeling a little embarrassed that Linkle continued to attend his well-being, Albedo agreed with her suggestion. A bite of something warm would do wonders to chase out the cold that had settled in his extremities. He looked over to address the bartender, but the astute gentleman had already retreated to prepare a suitable dish, so that left the alchemist with little to do but watch Linkle take interest in the television. Although it represented no more than a novelty to him and in the end a distraction from his research, he could see how someone would be fascinated by the concept. 

However, his guess proved only partially right, since it turned out to evoke the memory of a lost ally. Albedo’s face grew serious as she tapped the buttons. One caused the screen to suddenly activate, and the [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVtFC6erxb0]image of a woman with a knife[/url] appeared in black and white. He froze, eyes wide, as the unsettling sight and bizarre music struck him. Luckily, Linkle didn’t seem overtaken by either fear or melancholy, and after dealing with the device, instead mentioned someone else putting her lost friend into a machine like this. Such an idea confused the boy, but he shelved that revelation when his new friend prompted him with a question. It was a heavy one, but hardly unexpected; if anything, he would have thought the matter might come up after his earlier demonstration. Could he bring someone back to life?

Despite his forethought it still wasn’t an easy question to answer, so he thought about it. For many such a feat would be not just a monumental achievement but a lifetime goal, but rather than for an accomplishment like that he aimed to learn about the truth in that world. And yet, in the course of his studies, had he not discerned a method by which the impossible could be made possible? The nature of spirits in this world simplified things, after all. So after some consideration, he looked at the Skullgirl square in her unsettling eyes and in a confidential tone told her, “Theoretically, yes.”

He then produced his sketchbook and rifled through it, adding, “Of course, there are some caveats. It starts with dust, requiring a copious amount from creatures similar enough to the one I would want to revive. Then to craft the body I need more expertise with biology than I currently possess. Then I would be able to create life, as I have before. But so far I have only created simple creatures, not meant to stick around, and without their own wills. If they have any behavior, it’s an effect of the ingredients of creation, like baking a flavor into food. For this to work I would need to make a homunculus. A fully functioning body of the same species as the subject, but completely devoid of character. So that when the spirit is applied to the vessel, its transformative power its totally unhindered, and the vessel is shaped exactly to the specifications of the data within the spirit.” He spoke with a sort of determination, as if defining for the first time a process that he hadn’t dared to before, for his own sake as well as Linkle’s.“

With crossed arms, he continued to add caveats. “Naturally, this is only theory. I’d like to say it’s sound theory, but its neither practiced nor proved. And I doubt I would get it right on the first try. Purity of the ashes, aiming for the quintessential qualities shared by them and the subject, and purity of the vessel, aiming for quintessential emptiness, are paramount. The ashes remember their past spirits, after all. Like paper that’s been drawn on, erased, and then drawn over again. Traces of the broad strokes remain. If either purity is off, there may be side effects. Lingering traits, or...or memories, even. So deeply intrinsic to the result that the contamination would be impossible to undo.”

If he had anything else to say, he fell silent as the bartender arrived with two boxes. Albedo peered inside and saw a mixture of noodles, vegetables, rice, and thin cuts of meat. He felt bad about the possibility of Linkle not being able to eat, but he pushed one bowl her way nonetheless. For a moment after taking his own into his hands, he allowed the warmth to sink in, and gave a relieved sigh as the chill bled away. Then he took hold of the utensils offered to him: a pair of thin, connected sticks. “Oh, like in Liyue and Inazuma,” he remarked. “I’ve been once or twice apiece, but I never quite got the hang of these. I hope I’ll have the appetite for all this...” Nevertheless, he tried his luck, and he relished the spicy flavor of the food.

After a few leisurely mouthfuls, he paused to wrap around to something the Skullgirl said earlier. “By the way...you mentioned being dead, and seeing other dead enemies. Maybe this is too personal, but did you really die to become the way that you are? Did you see any enemies die? I’ve encountered a few ‘living dead’, but it seems as though it’s just their state of being. So maybe ‘dead’ isn’t the right word, but I don’t know what I would call them, since ‘not-dead’ would mean alive, wouldn’t it?” He shrugged. Anyway, I would be surprised to hear if you did, since you spoke of resurrection as if it were an exotic concept.”

[center][h3]Edge of the Blue - Creature Beach[/h3]
[@Zavazggg]

[img]https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/002/589/399/large/stephen-dagg-spore-hero-c.jpg?1463431753[/img][/center]

Insistent rays of sunlight together with the gentle roll of foamy waves against the shore conspired to awaken Sephiroth from her stupor at last. She blearily blinked awake to find herself laying against a grass-topped knoll of sand, her rigging piled beside her. Around her, the expansive beach was empty except for a large, mostly buried creature. Though big, it didn’t do anything but look around, and appeared to be no cause for concern. Here and there were crabs, seabirds, tufts of grass, and discarded shells. Apart from the buried creature, things were normal. Peaceful, even.

Inside Sephiroth it was another story. The pleasant scene stood in such stark contrast to the horrors that flashed in her mind that she couldn’t help but wonder if the events of last night were just a nightmare after all, but no. Her hair and clothes were filthy and damaged. Scars littered her skin. Her hat was gone, and one of the arms of her rigging ended in a torn-off nub of metal rather than a cannon battery. But there were no bloodsuckers around her, no miasma, no derisive laughter or careless whispers. Just her. She must have staggered here during the night and passed out, and at the very least she did feel a little rested. All that remained, then, was where to go from here. She was disheveled, injured, a little loopy, and...thirsty.

Very, very thirsty.