Ammokkx

Secundi Lux

---

Chie, naïve as she could be, hadn't expected to be caught like a deer in literal headlights. The four girls had just gotten done with the first wave of drones, it's true, but the threat had multiplied. Where there were three previously, twelve showed up now- well, to Chie's quick count anyway. It could've been more, not like she had much time to ponder on it as she sprinted out of their headlights, a trail of bullets nipping at her heels. She managed to duck behind her previous cover again- battered as it was- for a brief respite from the onslaught. She knew, however, these things could launch missiles. The quicker she got out, the better.

Speaking of missiles, a stream of hellfire raced by her and clearly made contact with something on the other end of the firing range, judging by the loud crash she heard. Rivka's ever-elegant performance, she mused. Chie began to think; that had to have taken one of the drones out. Each of them individually was strong enough to take out one drone by themselves, they'd proven as much earlier. But they were with five and the drones... not so much. They're more than double the girls' numbers. If they were going to get through this, then...

"How are we looking, girls?" Rivka's voice interrupted her thoughts. Chie looked skywards, briefly, to spy Crystal cleaning up a hither-to-unseen target quite nicely.

"Fine for now. We can't keep this up as long as they outnumber us," she flatly stated. Chie took stock of each of her teammates' locations, trying to work through a plan of action. Selma had done a number on one of the buildings in the area, its foundations looking shaky. Maybe she could use that to her advantage...

"...Selma, Rivka. If you can corral them together underneath that office complex, I think I can bring it down on them," she suggested to the first two. Keeping her hand on the earpiece, she voiced in: "Crystal, Aoife if you can hear me- if we gather and freeze the rain, we can bring it down on them like falling spears. We should-" she wanted to continue her train of thought, but an explosion near her from a stray missile caused Chie to fly back, rolling over the pavement as the earpiece flew out with it. Her ears ringing and head foggy from the impact, Chie still tried her best to gather her wits. She got blown back into a relatively safe spot, but she couldn't do much else rather than trust her team.

...Though maybe it wasn't too bad. She was going to need a lot of Nox if she wanted to bring down that building, even if it was already rickety. Chie took a deep breath and started to let it flow through her, rooted in place while she gathered the requisite amount of magic for her hopeful venture.

Character Interview Questions

Feels like an opportunity to write for some Dead Characters™ so I'll pick out a couple I like.
(some are also answered by characters that are very much not dead.)

---

- What do you like to do for fun?
(Tamatsu)

"I... like sitting in parks. The quiet is nice.
...
I just...
I just really like it."

---

- If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
(Yasu)

"M-my stuttering! I need t-to be more assertive..."
_{"Otherwise, he won't notice me at all..."}

---

- How much time to do have left to live?
(Tamatsu)

"...L...ive?
I...
...I'm... already... I...
..."
"...
Such a frightening question to ask her. I think I'm more suited to answering this. After all...
I'll live forever."

---

- Who's had the biggest influence on your life?
(Rui and Lumia)

"Who? ...Well, maybe two people?
I have a little brother- Sora, right? We've always been together, and I'd do anything for him. If anyone shaped me who I was, it's him.
But... those memories were stolen from me. And only Lumia can help me get them back.
And... I see her as a friend, too. She's turned my life upside-down, but I don't regret that anymore. I want to fight alongside her... I trust her."
"Nee-... chan...
...
I'm sorry."
"It's alright- we'll figure it out!"
"Right!"

---

- What gives you purpose in life? What drives you?
(Lumia)

"...It's dumb, right? I had this big dream that I thought I'd give anything for- even my life.
But now... I'm trapped and lonely inside of a card, because I was selfish and wished for it at the cost of others' memories.
...I need to get back to my body. No matter what. A-and I'll set things right... somehow...
...I'm sorry, Nee-chan. I'm sorry I need to lie to you to make that come true."

---

- What is your favorite animal?
(Nico)
"Hedgehogs!"

---

- Who do you consider closest to you?
(Chie)

"Well...
If you had asked me this earlier, I'd say my dad. And he still is, even if I can't see him much anymore.
But... Selma, Rivka, Crystal and Aoife... I care about them too.
We're team Kheper. I'll do anything for them."

---

- There is no question. Merely differing paths to a preconceived answer.
(Momoe)

"Bullshit."

---

- What power do you desire the most?"
(Serah)

"Cuddles and rainbows and sparkles- all the time!
...
Aha, I really can't keep this up, can I?
The true answer is the power to protect people. I... I already saw so many of my friends die.
...I already... nearly killed one of them myself..."

---

- What advice would you have for your younger self?
(Masked Boy/Nanashi)

"I don't remember him. I don't even remember his name.
But as I am now...
'Gaze up at the sky and remember. Hold tight to those memories.'
'And when the day comes you forget them...'
'Fight and struggle until you get them back.'"

---

If it was to protect something, someone or the world- for any reason whatsoever- would you suffer any punishment? Would you sacrifice yourself to save someone or something else?

Urban Starlight Wonderland: A Magical Girl RP

✫✫ Nico ✫✫

---

"Shun... is it?" Nico repeated after the other magical girl, staring down at the extended hand. It's not that her new feline themed friend didn't want to shake it- it's just that a big, black and fuzzy creature occupied both of her hands in the moment. Nobody ever has to worry with Nico though- she always had a solution! Magical girls are stronger than the average girl, so with a little bit of nudging like:

"C'mon, enough playing around. Up you go~!" she managed to convince the cat in her hands to climb on her shoulders instead. "W-whoa you're heavy-" she commented, still managing to get slightly off-balance from having the weight of an entire adult cat pushing down at a slight angle. Once she steadied herself, Nico finally managed to return the handshake to Shun.

"I'll be relying on you from now on, Shun-senpai!" Nico enthusiastically said back to the other girl, but when this new Senpai started repeating her name a couple times, she dealt a devastating blow to Nico's self-identity.

“Oh! Croquette girl!”

Such a brutal, precise strike. Nico, reduced to being associated with a mere food item. Her tail drooped, her shoulders slumped and her cat complained because it nearly slid off. "I'm ruined... I exist only to satiate the hungry bellies of the people around me..." Nico theatrically acted out, pretending for a moment she was actually, genuinely hurt. It didn't last long though; she sprang up soon enough again with a goofy smile.

"No- really, though, it was pretty obvious huh? Y'know that name- Neko-2? It's- it's like a pun. My name is Nico, right? Like that uh... the ani-chara, the one that says "Nico-nico-nii". So y'know... 2, as in, "nii", and neko... neko-nii... I'm funny."

Nico sniffed. Once.

"Anyway so here is my number-" she continued, pulling out her phone to start a private chat with Shun's screen-name (which she totally guessed at random but based on context clues could've only been 'Starry-Eyed'). "Here is my cat-" Nico said as she picked the burmilla up from her shoulders, then shoved it into Shun's arms to both her and the creature's confusion. And, finally, she finshed off with: "And here are my goodbyes! Let's get croquettes some other time~!"

With a final wave and a wink, Nico theatrically jumped off the building. A dull thud followed up by an "Ow!" came from that direction, followed by a decently bright light as the girl untransformed. Nico was surprisingly quick to flee the scene- call it the nerves kicking in- but if Shun peered over the edge, she could at least still see a dumpster with two dents in it.

Secundi Lux

---

Chie wasn't naïve enough to think the drones wouldn't come try search and flush her out, but the random spread of bullets flying in every direction suggested the split-off drone didn't know her exact location. A good thing, one would think, except with its sights set on the general location, Chie couldn't exactly move out and fight. Not unless she wanted to be shot through the heart with a drone to blame, in any case. All the chakram-wielding girl could do was patiently wait for her allies to cover her, an opportunity that came once she saw one of Rivka's bolts soaring by. It must've hit something, because whatever the musician had done, it caused the drone to halt its fire on Chie's location.

"Now!" she thought to herself, rolling out of her cover and surveying the status of the area. Selma stood over one wreckage, Aoife had engaged another in combat and that left just one unaccounted for. A slightly distracted drone, which seemed intent on re-aligning its target. Chie had to think and act quick, but finally having a clear look at her opponent, she knew exactly what to do. She de-summoned one of her chakrams, held up her now-freed hand and then violently clutched her fist, shouting:

"Halt!"

Two points of intense gravity rapidly formed, one each at the base of the robot's pair of feet. The intense forces exerted on its primary method of movement left the machine to be the one pinned this go around. Of course it wasn't naïve enough to let Chie do as she pleased; having detected it as an attack, the drone locked on and started firing in Chie's location. Chie, herself, was faster though: she sprinted off before even a single bullet could be fired, running with a trail of bullets firing constantly behind her. With the drone unable to fully turn, it couldn't move and realign its armaments fast enough to keep up with Chie, who had already begun the next stage of her attack.

Everyone in the area could feel a tug coming from the robot's location, though more accurately, from right behind it. The Nox in the area clouded Chie's fist like a dark energy, growing more ever thicker as she increased the intensity of her third gravity well. While she'd only done the bare minimum to keep the robot's feet pinned, this new well was much more severe. The stones of the street started to crack from being compressed against each-other, and even the immediate street light next to it began to noticeably bend. Chie couldn't maintain this for long; rapidly purifying the required Nox to keep up three intense points of gravity had no small amount of strain come paired with it. It didn't need to last long, though. All Chie needed was to get it clearly off-balance, because then she knew it was intense enough.

Chie slid to a halt once she'd ran off further than the drone's line of fire could follow and, while still clutching her magicked fist, gripped tightly onto her remaining Chakram. She took a split second to confirm her angle and tossed it skywards, at a bit of an angle, racing towards the sky above her target. Throwing her chakram directly would be silly; the gravity would dig it into the floor long before it'd ever reach the drone. But she could use that same downward momentum to her advantage. If her Chakram was in the sky, with the drone between its current location and her intense gravity? Well, only one result was to be expected.

Once it got close enough, attracted by the forces below, the chakram rapidly accelerated towards the drone. It didn't have to hit it cleanly, coming in at a bit of an angle, but slicing right through one of the legs before burying into the ground behind. The impact from that caused the robot to soon follow suit, aggressively being slammed into the streets from Chie's meddling with forces that never should be meddled with. The chassis caved in on itself under its own massive weight, crushing the inside circuitry. Most of what kept the machine running was scrapped from the impact. It was a good thing, too; Chie was forced to release her hold on that point, the intensified gravity rapidly returning to normal. It winded Chie a bit, but she was far from exhausted; the sensation was more akin to being unable to continue lifting a weight because one's muscles were too weak than it was of fatigue.

Chie took a small breath and looked over to the rest of her team. She summoned her gladius again, raised one up in the air and slightly unenthusiastically shouted that she "Got one too..." to the crew.

Urban Starlight Wonderland: A Magical Girl RP

✫✫ Nico ✫✫

---

Nico was... concerned. Whatever she had hit caused more pain to the girl other girl than Nico had intended, or even wanted to inflict. The heroine wanted to reach out and ask "Are you okay?" but she never got that chance. The cursed maiden simply declared the both of them would meet again, throwing herself off the edge in the same fashion Nico had earlier. Alarmed, the cat-girl rushed forward to try and catch the other. She dashed to the edge of the roof, too late to catch her quarry, and peered over the horizon. Below were the usual streets of Shinjuku, no girl in sight. Nico searched for a little bit, to no avail. She stepped back and mused on the slightly dour feeling that seemed to wash over her in that moment.

"When we do," Nico muttered to herself, "I'll be there to listen to your story."

Nico's musings on her possible fateful encounter were cut short when she was startled by a nearby meow. She peered down at her feet, finding an all-too-familiar black burmilla starting to rub itself against her leg. The still-transformed girl crouched down and scooped it up, face a little frowny as she let it gently bite her fingers. "Sheesh, you again...? Why do you always know where I am?" she complained, but her protests rang hollow as a soft smile belied how much seeing this dumb cat cheered her up. It was then Nico noticed the presence of another; particularly, a magical girl just like her.

"Oh!" the feline heroine cried in surprise. She didn't expect there to be another person. "Whaaa, you surprised me... and here I thought I was alone for sure up here!" Nico tried to play it off with a joke. Though she couldn't emote very well due to the needy little critter in her hands, Nico could still put up an energetic charade and say: "Are you the one who ka-plow'd that snake right in the eye? Thanks for that! I think I might've lost an arm, or a leg, or a head if you hadn't, miss... err..."

Nico may or may not have forgotten who this person was or is. If she ever knew in the first place, anyway.

"Sorry, sorry- I ain't great with names and faces... _{and socializing}... I'm, uh, Nico! Kaneko Nico! And you'reee...?"

Urban Starlight Wonderland: A Magical Girl RP

✫✫ Nico ✫✫

---

"Nyahaha! I'm the best!" Nico gleefully shouted as she tip-toed around the golden waves, playing herself up to be the invincible heroine. "Too slow, too slow!" she shouted while continuing to dance. For as much of a mockery as she made of it, though, her earlier assessment still stood: she can dodge, but not close the gap. Every time Nico got a little closer, she was forced to jump back in equal measure because of the following strike. Weaving around her opponent's attacks did let her catch onto something, though; there was something else at play here. The other girl wasn't alone. Nico could see it, vaguely, slithering between the gold; a snake with its gaze locked onto her, waiting to strike... its eyes full of malice.

"You're my target, aren'tcha?" Nico thought to herself. She jumped back after another attack, raising up one hand with an open palm. "Is that all?" she playfully asked. Nico winked, saying "If you don't watch out, I'll catch up in-" to her opponent, but as she was speaking, the other girl cast a new spell of her own.

"Curse Serpent: Frog Eater!"

The giant head of a great serpent, scales as white as the attire of the girl who summoned it, popped up above Nico with its mouth agape.

"...no time..." she finished her thought in a low, scared voice. Nico wanted to dodge backwards, but she knew as soon as its mouth startd closing in that there would be no escape. And instinctually she knew that, having let her guard down, this single attack would be more than enough to put her out of commission for this fight... or worse. Nico closed her eyes, but opened them up again just as quick when a bright flash and loud crash pierced her eyelids and ears respectively. The snake's eye had been struck, its whole image dispersing in the night sky along with the brilliant light of the arrow that had fired into it. The cat fairy had no idea where this shot had come from, but she didn't let the chance pass her by. She was already poised to jump; with a quick shift of her foot Nico pushed her momentum forward instead, conjuring pink claws at the edge of her fingers.

"Please let this hit!"

Our local ally of justice knew one thing: the cursed girl's arms were the key. Every time she'd attacked so far, that girl had extended, raised or pointed her arm. The ultimate attack required both. Therefor, whatever was giving her power, it had to be located there. The shock from having her move broken allowed Nico to get a single hit in, striking at the location she thought she saw the snake. Nico did hit something, but couldn't confirm if it was a barrier, the girl's arm or a lucky strike on her actual target. As soon as she had, Nico jumped back; partially because she didn't want to leave herself open for a close-range counter, but also for one more reason.

"I don't need the help," she muttered to herself in a low, but frustrated voice. Nico wanted, no, needed to do this by herself. There was no point otherwise. She wanted to understand the other girl; only the two of them and nobody else should've been trading blows! The heroine could already tell so far: There was hesitance from the scaled girl when attacking Nico. No matter how expressionless her face, she couldn't hide those shaky, tense movements. It all but confirmed to the magical girl something that she'd suspected from the start: Something was hurting the cursed girl. And the cat fairy was going to find out what it was...

...as soon as the other girl had made her next move, at least.

Video Games: The General Discussion & Community Thread Number Two

"Doki Doki Literature Club" is one of the dullest visual novel experiences I've had in a while. (But I like the song at the end.)

@SleepingSilence

preach

Urban Starlight Wonderland: A Magical Girl RP

✫✫ Nico ✫✫

---

Nico mimicked the other girl's confused head movements, still not moving from her spot. "A curse? That can't be right," she said, her tail swaying side-to-side. "After all, I don't like curses very much, but I don't think I dislike you at all!" she said with a beaming smile, before being blasted by the other girl's attack. Nico wasn't sent flying back or anything, though. As soon as the attack connected, her body frayed and unfurled like a loose bundle of string. The Nico that had been standing there was no more than an illusion while the real one still hid out of sight.

"Aaaah, wait wait wait just a little longer okay! I'll fight you if you want me to, but just let me say something else first! I'll even come out of hiding, forreal this time!" Nico shouted from her hiding spot, which really, was no more than the staircase she'd come up with in the first place. Before Nico jumped on top of the roof though, she stared at the phone in her hands and her message half-written.

[Neko-2]: I found the shade, it

She didn't have a lot of time to think on her next course of action. The smart thing would be to call backup, get a more experienced girl and take this new, unknown threat on two-on-one. But instead...

"...I can't just leave someone who needs help alone!"

[Neko-2]: I found the shade, its been taken care of!

Nico steeled her resolve and pocketed the phone, deciding to do it by herself anyway. Despite how hostile the cursed girl had been up to this point, Nico didn't hold any kind of grudge. Something was off about the situation, after all. And the girl... well, maybe she just needed a friend!

"Okay, I'm coming out now!" Nico yelled and jumped up to the roof again, perching herself on its edge. The other girl sure seem poised to attack, arm raised up and everything, but no golden beams were shot the magical girl's way yet. Taking it as a sign she could speak up, Nico put her index finger on her cheek.

"Sooo... I'm like, honestly pretty plain, not that good with my head, I haven't been a magical girl for very long and I'm kinda bad at this whole thing. Buuut! Even I can tell something must be hurting you if you're acting out this way," Nico began her speech, but was keenly aware of the hostile intent still radiating from the other girl. Whatever she said, it wasn't going to avoid the fight that ensued. "I don't really want to fight you, I don't think you're a curse or whatever. But I'll do it if you really want me to! Just... once we're done fighting, let's talk all about you, okay? I want to know more about you!" she earnestly said. And then, it was go time.

The young hero of justice got herself into a battle-ready pose, knowing that an attack was coming any second. Even if she tried to close the distance now and go in for a strike, Nico could never close the gap in time without getting blasted by some kind of magic. She just had to be on her guard and dodge. Nico crouched a little, shouted "Here I go!" and then kicked her feet off the concrete below her, dashing forward to the other girl. It was more of a feint, though, as Nico was keenly watching where the girl would strike. As soon as the attack came out, then she could dodge the other way. After that... well, she'd think of something!

Urban Starlight Wonderland: A Magical Girl RP

~~Nico~~

---

The stalemate was broken. After a bit of silence, the girl had finally decided to step away from the roof. Nico breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the situation was going to be okay now. "If it's okay with you, can I stay here a little longer? I want to know what was bothering you," she said to try and smooth into some conversation.

The other girl stretched out her arm. "In that case..." she said, pausing just long enough to let Nico see the flashes of something wrapping itself around the extended limbb.

"Prepare yourself, magical girl."

Nico yelped and jumped backwards a little, left to gawk in shock as the nature of the malicious aura finally made itself known. A sudden burst of energy- like the sun itself had dyed black- wrapping itself like flames around the other girl, completely transforming her look. Her uniform was re-forged into a Kosode, white as snow to contrast with the darkened light that had sewn it. The girl's face got covered in a scaly pattern, her eyes turned gold... and murderous.

"Curse Essence: Bounty."

With those few words, waves of golden energy sprouted from the girl's position. They arced outwards and shot towards Nico who, while managing to just barely dodge in time, was left to witness the impact of it digging into and crushing the concrete surface of the roof they both stood on. What's even worse, Nico hadn't taken that many steps away from the edge herself; the displacement of her jump caused her to be the one pushed right to the very edge. Since she had to dodge somewhat sideways, not just backwards, the drop behind Nico had no staircase to break her fall if she were to slip. She glanced down briefly, then back to the other girl. Nico was in shock from how fast it all happened, but her expression still softened a little once she saw the other girl. Nico, somewhat regretfully, said: "I'm sorry."

And then she jumped.

Nico closed her eyes and leant back, letting gravity pull her down below, her momentum rotating her so she'd fall head-first. To the other girl, Nico simply vanished over the horizon of the roof. A dull crash was heard a moment later, something heavy dropping down below onto the ground. The battle was over before it began; Nico deciding to end it herself rather than fight the other girl.

...but nobody really believes that, do they?

✫✫ Nico ✫✫

---

"Ooooone, two!"

Only about half a minute after Nico had jumped down, a new figure jumped up- though curiously, not from the same spot Nico had dropped down from. No, that was empty- no trace of her having been there other than the dent in the metal of the dumpster's lid below. The figure- Nico herself as a pink-haired, modern-day superpowered cat-schoolgirl hybrid- had come up from behind the snake-girl. She had to have transformed, looped around and climbed up the other way.

"Hi hiii, it's me~!" she said cheerily with a wave, making no effort to try and hide her being the same person as before. Nico then raised her arm as if she was in class. "Um, question! Why do we have to fight?" she asked, tilting her head curiously while her tail swayed side-to-side. Nico didn't make any attempt at attacking the other girl. After all, if Nico had so desired, she could've remained silent, jumped out behind the girl and gone in for a sneak-attack. Instead, this Nico simply stared at her with a smile.

...And, further, it didn't even sound like her voice had come from the direction she was standing in.

Urban Starlight Wonderland: A Magical Girl RP

~~Nico~~

---

The entire situation was wrong, weird and uncomfortable. Nico wasn't emotionally mature enough to know how to handle it and no small amount of panic was racing through her. She tried to think of something, anything to get the other girl to step away from the edge. If it came down to it, Nico wouldn't hesitate to transform and jump after her, but Nico had no way of knowing if she'd even make it in time. She wracked her brain for a solution, but before she could come up with anything, the mysterious girl spoke up instead.

"... Someone came to stop me?" was what she said, unmoving from the edge. A brief silence, then "How did you know I was up here?" was the followup. Their voice was monotone, yet a hint of hostility crept its way in anyway. "I didn't tell anyone. No-one's supposed to know yet." she grew ever more insistent. "So how did you know...?" they demanded an answer.

Nico didn't know how to respond, at all. But she felt it- felt the aura of malice emanating from around the girl. Nico didn't suspect it, of course; or at least, she didn't suspect the girl herself. It didn't cross Nico's mind this could be some kind of trap, or how unnatural it all was. She just wanted to save this girl, because that's what she's supposed to do.

"I felt it," Nico answered somewhat honestly. She said: "Something inside of me told me something was happening here." and took a deep breath. "I followed that feeling, and now I've found you. There must be some kind of reason for that, so let's talk it out! Just, please, don't do anything reckless..." Nico pleaded. She didn't know what to say to this girl; they're strangers! It wasn't like Nico was unaware of how weird and suspicious she must've seemed, but what other choice did she have? She couldn't just leave, not when someone was in danger- in danger from themselves.