Ariamis

An Idiot's Dungeon Union [It's Monster Politik Time]

@Burger
Added my application in the OOC. Also, to not clutter up that thread, I'll mention here that I'm for a dedicated Discord server if you were to consider one for this. Having ran RPs with them, they are convenient for being able to easily create sub-channels for more specific discussion or planning collabs, and for quick messaging. But completely understandable if you want to keep OOC discussion on-site.

An Idiot's Dungeon Union

The Middle Manager

Muste

Rarity ★★★ | Illithid Magic Developer| Level 1

Appearance:

Muste is an illithid, a species of extraplanar monsters who subsist on the brains of other creatures. While he can subsist on non-sentient brains, they taste like plain white bread to him, and so he has a desire to eat the brains of sentient and especially intelligent creatures. However, he doesn’t need the brains to be completely fresh either: corpses would also suffice, though those taste like a cold pizza from the fridge.

Illithids have a natural affinity for the mystical arts, and have potential for both magic, and even psionics. However, they are physically frailer than humans, and will easily fall to any adventurer in close combat even at higher ranks. Hopefully by then he has learned enough spells to keep them at bay…Or delegated the task to someone from another floor of the dungeon.

While in the dungeon, he tends to dress very casual, something unusual for an illithid. For trips beyond the dungeon, he dresses more sensibly, with a coat, hat and walking cane.

Personality:

Muste is your typical salaryman in temperament: he works hard to manage the dungeon and its occupants through scrolls, but feels like he doesn’t earn enough respect for what he does, causing him stress. He likes to improve efficiency through magical means, but such experiments often end up blowing up in his face. He enjoys reading books and scrolls whenever his tentacles end up grasping one, and has a problem of staying up late reading, aware that he has to wake up early for his work. Due to his abnormal appearance, he often ends up shunned by other monsters, which can cause friction when he is trying to round them up for a visit outside the dungeon or other tasks.

Abilities:

• Magic Proficiency: Muste has a professional level of skill with all things magical, from general knowledge of magic and types of spells, researching and developing spells and magical artifacts to applying the knowledge in a practical way. However, his pool of spell knowledge is limited at first, and requires collected arcane lore from grimoires and spelltomes to improve further.
• Lvl1 Spells: Muste can cast basic spells designated as level 1. More spells become available given the chance for magical development, arcane knowledge accrued and other limitations.
  Example spells:
  -Create Scroll: using leaves and plants as a physical component, Muste creates a scroll that can be wrapped up into a tube or opened for reading.
  -Enchant Item: upon touch, enchants a physical object with a magical effect.
  -Detect Magic: detects magic in an area.
  -Magic Missile: lobs a projectile made from magical energy.
• Artifact Crafting: Muste can construct magical artifacts and other items with specific effects. However, what he can craft is dependent on both materials, the amount of mana available and his knowledge on the subject, all of which are limited at start.
• Psionic: Muste is capable of using the power of his mind to great effect…At some point in the future. In the future he has the potential to learn more psionics given sufficient arcane lore. At start, he only has two psionic abilities.
  -Telekinesis: only powerful enough to send scrolls to other monsters at start.
  -Telepathy: for giving messages like reminders to monsters to perform their tasks. Could develop into something more powerful like mind reading or even mind control of weak-willed targets later down the line.
  -Mind Blast: As a last resort, Muste can unleash a psionic attack that deals minor psychic damage and stuns targets with brains in a small area, similar to a flashbang. At start, can only do once a day, and it fatigues him. Could develop into something potent.
• Tentacles: Muste possesses facial tentacles that can eat brains from creatures like they were cups of coffee. His hands, while resembling tentacles in shape and dexterity, lack this quality.
• Ink Gland: Like an octopus, Muste can produce ink. In his case, he can either carefully drip it into a suitable container, or spray it in an emergency. Very useful for writing scrolls.

An Idiot's Dungeon Union [It's Monster Politik Time]

@BrokenPromise


"I'm watching you, Zogi. Always watching. Always!"

EDIT:

She’s also capable of brewing a “helpful toxin” called enthusiasm. Its effects are a bit like drinking coffee, only it’s much more painful when administered.

@BrokenPromise

I bet this, if drunk, would taste just as bad as the ones produced by coffee machines in offices if not better because the pain might make it tolerable.

An Idiot's Dungeon Union [It's Monster Politik Time]

Note, searching for mind flayer and anime together is not recommended, for reasons.

The Middle Manager

Muste

Rarity ★★★ | Illithid Magic Developer| Level 1

Appearance:

Muste is an illithid, a species of extraplanar monsters who subsist on the brains of other creatures. While he can subsist on non-sentient brains, they taste like plain white bread to him, and so he has a desire to eat the brains of sentient and especially intelligent creatures. However, he doesn’t need the brains to be completely fresh either: corpses would also suffice, though those taste like a cold pizza from the fridge.

Illithids have a natural affinity for the mystical arts, and have potential for both magic, and even psionics. However, they are physically frailer than humans, and will easily fall to any adventurer in close combat even at higher ranks. Hopefully by then he has learned enough spells to keep them at bay…Or delegated the task to someone from another floor of the dungeon.

While in the dungeon, he tends to dress very casual, something unusual for an illithid. For trips beyond the dungeon, he dresses more sensibly, with a coat, hat and walking cane.

Personality:

Muste is your typical salaryman in temperament: he works hard to manage the dungeon and its occupants through scrolls, but feels like he doesn’t earn enough respect for what he does, causing him stress. He likes to improve efficiency through magical means, but such experiments often end up blowing up in his face. He enjoys reading books and scrolls whenever his tentacles end up grasping one, and has a problem of staying up late reading, aware that he has to wake up early for his work. Due to his abnormal appearance, he often ends up shunned by other monsters, which can cause friction when he is trying to round them up for a visit outside the dungeon or other tasks.

Abilities:

• Magic Proficiency: Muste has a professional level of skill with all things magical, from general knowledge of magic and types of spells, researching and developing spells and magical artifacts to applying the knowledge in a practical way. However, his pool of spell knowledge is limited at first, and requires collected arcane lore from grimoires and spelltomes to improve further.
• Lvl1 Spells: Muste can cast basic spells designated as level 1. More spells become available given the chance for magical development, arcane knowledge accrued and other limitations.
  Example spells:
  -Create Scroll: using leaves and plants as a physical component, Muste creates a scroll that can be wrapped up into a tube or opened for reading.
  -Enchant Item: upon touch, enchants a physical object with a magical effect.
  -Detect Magic: detects magic in an area.
  -Magic Missile: lobs a projectile made from magical energy.
• Artifact Crafting: Muste can construct magical artifacts with specific effects. However, what he can craft is dependent on both materials, the amount of mana available and his knowledge on the subject, all of which are limited at start.
• Psionic: Muste is capable of using the power of his mind to great effect…At some point in the future. At start, he only has two psionic abilities: telekinesis, which is only powerful enough to send scrolls to other monsters, and telepathy for giving reminders to monsters to perform their tasks. In the future he has the potential to learn more psionics given sufficient arcane lore.
• Tentacles: Muste possesses facial tentacles that can eat brains from creatures like they were cups of coffee. His hands, while resembling tentacles in shape and dexterity, lack this quality.
• Ink Gland: Like an octopus, Muste can produce ink. In his case, he can either carefully drip it into a suitable container, or spray it in an emergency. Very useful for writing scrolls.

An Idiot's Dungeon Union [It's Monster Politik Time]

Very interested in this: I remember reading up on the Reverse Dungeon adventure module from 2000, and the unique idea it presented. I also enjoy the whole fantastic politicking/schisms between different factions element. How big of a group were you planning to run this with? I had an idea to run a middle-manager type of monster (illithid or lich comes first to mind, but any magic-using monster would be fine) in charge of both Research and Development for the arcane/magic side of the dungeon, while also trying to keep things organized by using scrolls. I think that might fit the dungeon workplace comedy vibe you're aiming for.

EDIT: I also assume the dungeons in the setting follow the standard rules of the core requiring an unobstructed (save for locked doors or other types of paths) path from the entrance to the core room, meaning it can't be placed in a sealed room with no entrance? One idea I had is that once there's enough dungeon points/magic development, we could seal the room except for a teleporter entrance hidden among many in the dungeon, with the adventurers forced to try them at random to get there: if you've ever played an old-school RPG you might've seen a teleporter maze at least once, hah. But if that's too munchkin-like/cheese then no problem.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

Lily giggled cheerfully as the animals swarmed over Alex.
”Oh, look how they’ve missed you, Alex! They’re so cute!” She then offered a hand to lift Alex back up.
”Can you believe they’ve been looking for you ever since you went missing?
She exchanged warm smiles with Gaia and Connie as they also reacted to the adorable interaction.
”I’m not sure myself, but I think some of his Beast magic must have rubbed off on them after all the time we’ve kept them in the apartment, tee hee~”

Lily felt truly happy since the past several days since she was separated from Alex. Now, nothing could possibly ruin her sunny mood.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t a magical girl show, with the episode ending in everyone laughing.

It was about to turn far worse than she thought was possible as Chloe bound Caterpillar down.

”Hey Chloe, what are you doing-"

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!"

She screamed loudly as she witnessed Chloe perform a bone-chilling ritual: Caterpillar, who was at her wit’s end, sweated profusely as the “metamorphosis” began. She screamed in agony, begging for Chloe to stop. But of course, her pleas came on deaf ears.

”No! Don’t!”

Lily ran over to Chloe, only to be stopped by the raised hand of an ossiarch who stepped between them. She summoned her magical weapon, but it shook in her hand: she only now fully realized the kind of power that Chloe now held. She glanced aside at Mayra, who simply stared. And before anyone realized it, the screams ended inside the shell of bone, and Lily averted her eyes with a disgusted grimace.

”Chloe…She…She could have been mind controlled. We know the Queen has that power. She could have been innocent. And even so, you…”

Her breath shuddered as Chloe proceeded to interrogate her newest addition to her legion of abominations as if she had done nothing wrong.

The Caterpillar, of course, answered. “The Queen loves her daughter Alice very much,” she answered in a stilted, emotionless voice, causing Lily to cover her mouth, starting to feel sick.
“She has built a room for her at the highest point, enchanted against forced trespassing, normal or magical. That is where the person you know as Mariette has most likely been taken. The castle is enchanted to elude attention by any direction other than the main gate, but if one crosses their eyes, they can proceed toward it from any direction. There is a hidden entrance on the west side of the royal castle: to open the way, one must touch three stones forming an archway on the wall in the following order: yellow, blue, orange. The castle has numerous traps, both mechanical and magical. I helped create some, but some are maintained by other members of the court or the Queen themselves. The Queen has the Gryphon guard the throne room, which has the only stairs that lead to Alice’s room. She also has the Cheshire Cat, who has been assigned the castle maid and Alice’s personal servant. I do not know what magic she possesses, but the Queen has mentioned her to possess nine lives.”

Finally, the Caterpillar, or what was now left of her, went quiet.

”Unforgivable…”

Lily gripped her bow with a tight fist, her head cast downwards.

”I should have known you haven’t changed, Chloe. Even if you’ve changed your appearance, you’re still just as evil as ever.”

She cast her eyes up at her, and looked at her with a cold fury, something which was very uncharacteristic for the otherwise cheerful girl.

”I’ll never forgive you for what you’ve done. Once we are done with the Queen…I will bring you to justice, and save everyone. No matter what I must do.” She said, looking aside at Caterpillar. Though, she wasn’t looking exactly at her. Rather, she seemed to be looking at something else, as if Caterpillar’s gruesome transformation reminded her of something.

As Lily confronted Chloe, Gaia could feel a nearly imperceptible shiver in the ground nearby, and realized that the tall tree next to the newly planted sapling seemed to possess sapience, as its branches lightly swayed in the air despite the lack of a strong breeze.

“O Blessed Nymph of Spring…” She saw as a face slowly emerged from the bark, and heard the tree speak in an old yet venerable voice.

“I have witnessed the wish you granted today, and wish to aid you in your quest as a show of my gratitude for being freed from the puppet’s curse. Mayhaps I can be of use? My seeds have flown across Wonderland, my roots having nourished on waters far and between. I have heard whispers on the wind, and conversed with animals of all sizes. I know much, and have a connection to the nature of Wonderland. Alas, if only I was blessed with legs, then I could accompany you on your journey.” His branch of a nose drooped down.
“I suppose I am unusual for my yearning to ambulate. Not many magical trees would be, I assume.”

---

-Flashback to after the Queen brought Mariette to the castle-

Mariette didn't know if she believed what she was saying about these omnipotent beings. She didn't really have evidence against it, but it sounded unbelievable. That said…

‘So… the goal is to stab this sword into the Nexus… and by doing so, rewrite the story?’ Mariette asked, to check if she understood it correctly.

“No, my dear, Alice,” the queen responded warmly, as if eager to teach her daughter about the mystery.
“You can't stab the Nexus, just as you can’t wound magic itself. But the Grand Magistrate is different, and they are found within. My Storyslayer is capable of killing them, all I need is to reach them in the Nexus. And once I do, their heads will roll before my feet. Then, I can brandish it as a quill, and punctuate my perfect ending with a perfect dot.”

‘So we invade the Nexus, and slay the Grand Magistrate…’ she said, and she had two questions about that. She started with the first one.

‘How would one enter the Nexus? Do you simply need to be in Penrose somewhere, or is there an access point?’ Mariette asked, a question that could become relevant to Mariette herself should she survive this ordeal and should the forces of Penrose be victorious. She kept the other question in the back of her head for now.

“That is a question I have sought the answer to for a long time, my dearest daughter,” the queen answered. “It is quite elusive, you see. But now I know for certain that it does manifest itself into the reality we know in Penrose, in the form of a door, but only when the Story reaches a critical point.” She paused to let Mariette take in her words before she continued.
“You might next ask what would be critical for the Story the Grand Magistrate so loves. My answer: complete chaos. And I know just how to achieve it.”

Mariette swallowed a little, as she asked what had to be the most obvious question to ask. ‘And… how will you achieve it?’

“By introducing something to Penrose that shakes the multiverse to its core. But I believe you already know what that could be,” she added afterwards with a mysterious, if subtly unsettling smile.

Mariette, unfortunately didn’t know, and felt forced to ask. ‘And… what would that be?’ she asked.

The Queen smiled with more glee than was appropriate. “Oh, I think you will like the surprise your mother has saved for you, and on your unbirthday, no less. Soon, the Grand Magistrate will know true fear as we write a new ending to their story: the multiverse as our canvas, and the blood of Asengav’s corpse as ink to our quill.” She then gave a warm smile after revealing her ultimate plan: casually mentioning the murder of a Horror, and Mariette’s own Patron at that. “That’s right: I will introduce a catastrophe so unimaginable for the Grand Magistrate that it will cause the reality plenum itself to quake throughout it's every page: the death of a Horror. But for now, I must plan for how to achieve such a thing, though I have an idea of where to start…Anyway, was there something else you’d like to ask, Alice dearest?”

Mariette stared blankly at the Queen. She wasn’t able to form her words. But, then, the Queen’s question woke her up, reminding her there was another thing she wanted to ask that she had shelved. Mariette shook her head, it was time to return to the other question before she forgot it. ‘What can or will the Grand Magistrate do to attempt to prevent this from happening? Do they know you can do this?’

“Of course they know, for they write the Story. But even they cannot oppose me directly, for they are not protagonists or even background actors, merely screenwriters. My villainous role gives me the right to direct the narrative, and my pen the right to oppose their designs. But writers as they are, they have already sent all kinds of nuisances after me, and will continue to send even more with no proper ending. That is why we must make our own.”

‘Um…’ Mariette felt her next question might be a little stupid. ‘How does a screenwriter send things after you…?’ she asked, not sure if she understood.

The Queen slowly shook her head. “They use the magic of the Story to direct Mahou towards conflict, giving weapons and motivation as if by happenstance. Some might call it twisting the winds of destiny. But the truth is that they write the cycle of hope and despair itself into magic, and as it wells from the Nexus it becomes reality. Feast, followed by famine. Drama, followed by resolution. Was it a mere coincidence that you were freed from Asengav’s will? How the battle between you and Justine ended? It was the Grand Magistrate pulling the strings from the background all this time. And now, they will try to oppose me.”

Mariette blinked in surprise. ‘How did you know about that? The… freed… part?’ She was keeping that very much as quiet as she could, because if Asengav found out, he’d recapture her immediately. ‘Is that… the Eye of Story Reading, as you called it…?’ She said something about that earlier.

The Queen sighed, placing a palm over the heterochromic eye. “It was one of my few visions I had of you, ever since the one where you gifted your friends with such lovely presents at a time of merriment. The Eye only gives sporadic glimpses upon the Pages, and most often on attacks on my person. But that Page was what inspired me to commit to this path. For I wish to share in my daughter’s will for freedom, from the clutches of those who would try to control us, to rob us of choice.” Mariette would realize the irony of those words as she then turned towards the door, preparing to leave Mariette in her lavish prison. Nonetheless, she didn’t seem to realize it, as she nodded to herself.
“Yes, Alice…Soon we will make this Our Story. Nobody else’s.”

‘I… I understand,’ Mariette replied, somewhat taken aback by the information she had gained in this conversation. She understood the queen’s goal. She wasn’t sure if she wanted her to succeed with it. In the circumstances that the Grand Magistrate was real, then so far, they’d kept Penrose alive. No villain had won, as of yet. In addition, who was to say slaying them would result in anything other than a power vacuum that would quickly be filled, probably by the vengeful one that had given her the blade in the first place. That said…

If they were real…

… were they the reason…

… why Mariette’s father had treated her like he had?

The reason…

… she had to flee…

… and then got captured by Asengav?

‘… Mother…’ Mariette opened her mouth for a final question. ‘How will you kill Asengav?’

The Queen had placed her hand on the doorknob when Mariette asked one final question. “A good question, dear Alice, and not one I yet have the answer to. However, speaking with you, my mind is becoming clearer.” Her Eye of Story reading glowed.

“I think I saw a glimpse of what looked like mirrors in Penrose, placed by your loyal court…Yes, that is the answer: summon him, and he will be within reach. Like baiting the Jabberwocky and snicker-snack goes the Vorpal Blade! You are ever so brilliant, my cleverest daughter.”

With that the queen departed, informing Mariette that she would be needed in the immediate future.

Mariette stood silent, watching the Queen walk away, standing silent.

That… that was her plan for Asengav, wasn’t it. Mariette’s plan. Except with a different finish.

It seemed that Mariette had some things to consider…

As she now had spent more time on information gathering, she saw that the Lilliput Princess had successfully managed a retreat of the Green Helms despite the casualties by Chloe’s undead legion. The Mermaid Princess was rapidly moving through the rivers of Wonderland, her forces having split to smaller yet quite sizable detachments across the smaller rivers. Notably, one of these detachments ran through a river that passed by the border of the desert where Mad Hatter’s factory was situated. The dwarves and the forest forces were led by Snow White and the Forest Princess respectively, congregating around the cities near the valley where the royal castle stood.

---

Rachel raised an eyebrow at Mac's introduction, but didn't say anything. However, she sighed as MDP already started going off on her own before Alicia had even managed to ask whether the group was prepared, though she did nod when the twins expressed their eagerness for what must be a dreadful battle. The group promptly separated, with some heading toward the exit. “How could someone like her let herself be captured? I suppose even the Sinner of Sloth was not untouchable,” she scoffed. “Well, I suppose the timing is convenient, considering the royal castle was my next target. I just didn’t expect to head there so soon. I suppose we won’t have time for a coffee break, Paladin Seraph,” she added afterwards as something of a dry joke. Akhenaten, however, uncharacteristically let out a guffaw as he adjusted the device on his back, causing Rachel to blink.
“I-It wasn’t that funny! Stop that, you stupid boulder!” However, Alicia could tell from the way Rachel quickly averted her eyes and the slight blush on her cheeks that she seemed to appreciate the response. On their way, the twins checked the engineer for any suspicious magic: aside from the regular enchantment given by the Queen to all in the Card Army, there was nothing notable. He kept standing there with his arms up, still seemingly having no idea what will happen.

The group headed back outside, where they saw the remnants of Mad Hatter’s robotic forces scattered about, either destroyed or turned off by Penny’s hacking of their control system.
Magical Dream Princess gathered the rest of the chessbots that remained from the battle, alongside Mister Hatty, the manticores, and the Clock Cop. It was quite a force, evident from the pastel-colored girl’s attunement with Wonderland’s magic.
“There’s too many of us to transport at once with the Beacon teleporter,” Rachel noted as she adjusted her glasses and tapped her magicoms. “The larger chessbots and manticores are especially a problem,” she added, having seemingly already accepted that MDP was bringing them along.

She was about to continue speaking, when her eyes focused on something in the distance. “Possible hostiles incoming,” Rachel warned the group. In a moment, the group saw small, green creatures bizarrely resembling cacti with blank black eyes shuffle about beyond a couple of the rising dunes, not quite able to make out how many there were. However, one thing was certain: they were being watched.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

Lily shook in fear as she listened to the creepy puppet’s groans, like boards of wood clanking together in imitation of speech. It seemingly wanted a confession, and then they might be freed? Lily glanced over at Chloe, who seemed uncharacteristically silent: there was no smug comeback or trash talking the “broken toy”, or anything else the green-haired girl would have expected the loud-mouthed girl to do. However, she then blinked as she urged Lily herself to be the one to be honest in her sickeningly sweet mannerisms.

In the corner of her eye, she saw that Alex had recovered, and was sneaking closer with a sharp knife-like barrier in hand, and nodded. However she also heard the doll’s creaking growing louder. Time was running out. She drew in a breath, building her courage up as she confessed to a dark truth:

”I…Downloaded japanese episodes of Sailor Moon from the internet. They were not available where I lived, and I didn’t know how to import foreign goods yet, so…I ended up stealing. I’m sorry.”

The puppet froze for a moment, before it raised an accusing finger rigidly at Lily.
“Theft…Your punishment is…Cutting off the hand that stole…”

Lily gasped, and Caterpillar gave a sly grin. However, before the puppet could proceed to enact the rather Hammurabian justice, Gaia and Connie arrived heroically, the cavalry of sparkly rainbow unicorns coming to the rescue.

“What?” The dark conjurer blurted out as Gaia then willed forth a surge of verdant magic that enveloped Pinocchio in a veil of green leaves.
“No! Pinocchio’s domain is death!” Caterpillar screamed, and a dark green aura surrounded her. “You have no right to give life! You are no Blue Fairy!”

But just as she was about to send her own magic spell through the strings, Mayra intervened. The cursed doll threw strings at the dragon girl, but she burned through them with shadowy fire that defied manipulation and order, her chaotic heart blazing free. She delivered a mighty uppercut, which the Minister of Mysteries countered by blocking with her staff. However, as a result, the shaft of the weapon was now charred and cracked.

“Curses!”

She twirled her staff like a martial arts master, but even with Pinocchio distracting Mayra by throwing duplicate puppets and strings towards Mayra, she burned through with each punch and kick, forcing the Queen’s minion on the backfoot.

With the Caterpillar unable to assume direct control of her conjuration, Gaia successfully completed her great spell of nature: The blessing of flora was bestowed on the sapling buried into the puppet’s wooden head, and the tip of its nose bloomed into a flower. As it did, the puppet began to float, its mouth open wide. The dead tree it hung from rejuvenated: the roots found fertile soil as they upheaved the earth and sunk deep, and new life surged from it, causing its warped trunk to rise upright, growing branches and healthy green leaves. The branches frayed the rope and it broke, causing the puppet to drop and sink into a batch of dirt that was upheaved.

“Real life…I am finally…Real…Thank…You…”
The puppet groaned its last words as it sank into the earth with a hand giving a thumbs up. It was the end for Pinocchio the cursed puppet, but a new life for the sapling that now grew on that spot. Gaia then saw a vision of a puppet who was executed for his cruel lies, and cursed to undeath. But now, it has found sincere life: real boys can always lie…but trees are eternally sincere through the cycle of life and death.

Having lost control over Pinocchio, Caterpillar was shocked. This gave Mayra the opportunity to deliver a mighty finishing blow, breaking her staff in two, and knocking her down on her butt, her wings burnt off, a fire on top of her hood, and face blackened with soot like a cartoon character.

“How doth…” Was all she could mutter before Chloe’s forces surrounded her, and she was forced to surrender with a lift of her arms. She proceeded to recite a poem of sorts in defeat as she stared at Mayra and her wide, smug grin:

“How doth the little dragon
Improve her shining tail
And pour the fires of the volcano
On every shadowy scale

How cheerfully she seems to grin,
How neatly spreads her claws,
And welcomes little fishes in
With gently smiling jaws…”

As the fight came to a conclusion Alex cut Lily from the tangle of strings, and she proceeded to hug him in gratitude.
”Alex! I’m so glad you’re safe! I was super worried! Tim and the other animals were also worried. They helped us find you, and even fought with us! They’re the coolest pets a girl could dream of!” She gave him a kiss on the cheek, happy to be reunited.

She then glanced towards Chloe, who was rescued by her troops from the strings, and then at Gaia.
She ran up to her fellow greenette with a beaming smile, and hugged her as well.
”Thank you for rescuing us! We would have been goners if it weren’t for you!”

---

The Queen’s expression turned somber as Mariette asked about the Grand Magistrate.
“My dear Alice…I did not wish to burden you with this knowledge. But you have proven yourself capable and clever. Very well, I shall tell you.” She created a portal shaped like a small window up on the wall, and used it to show various images from books, as well as strange landscapes like the Overcity and other dimensions.

“Have you ever wondered where magic comes from? Is it simply the will of Gods and Horrors, the trickery of Lesser Forces or bargains of Puchuu? No, for they are all merely expressions and feelings, concepts and ideas given tangible power by the Grand Magistrate, the true source of magic. They have woven our very lives: our past a backstory, our present their will made manifest, as their quills dip in the Nexuses, and their magic pours out, shaping our stories as they see fit.”

She smiled.
“But as omnipotent as they seem, even they are bound by the greatest power of all: narrative. Where there is a hero, there must be a villain. Where there is conflict, there must be resolution. And most importantly: where there is a beginning…there must be an end.”

She paused for a moment to let Mariette absorb this information, before she continued.
“I once partook in a ritual to resurrect you, my dear Alice. I wanted to be able to see beyond all realities, to finally find you, when I happened upon a strange being.”
She summoned the Storyslayer.
“They gave me this, and my Eye of Story Reading, and in exchange I would end the Story, and write it a happy ending, one that I was denied. I never asked who they were, but they seemed particularly bitter, as if they were once part of something greater. Now I realize they may have been an exiled member of the Grand Magistrate who still held on to just enough magic to grant me my boon.”

---

_{.:⋮Can’t Stand Beating Time⋮:.}

Miko was the fastest to act when Mad Hatter gave his ultimatum, proceeding to give a compelling argument for why his plan was doomed to failure, accompanied by MDP voicing her displeasure in concert.
“Don’t you test me! One! I am the one wearing the hat! Two! And I know how to deal with little mice scurrying on my table!”

Just as he was about to count the final number, MDP used her wondrous magic to summon a clock creature in a police uniform that whacked at the Mad Hatter with a baton. His hat scrunched down, then stretched back up, as a spring-mounted boxing glove shot up from inside the hat and punched the clock, causing the hands on its face to spin wildly.
“If you knew Time as well as I do,” said the Hatter, “you would know how much he hates beat-Ugh!”

The insane inventor's ranting was cut short by Alicia, who shot right through his elbow with an arrow of light, causing him to drop his weapon and falter, as Miko delivered a protective barrier on the hostage and the police clock gave one more whack to knock him unconscious.

Penny sighed in relief, though Rachel simply scoffed. “His plan was idiotic from the very start. A human brain survives a gunshot long enough that I could have saved him.” She glanced at the Diamond engineer, who still kept his arms up, not really knowing what would happen next. The manticores purred like big, fat cats as they snacked on the candies MDP offered, with even the injured one joining in the feasting.

Nefer rolled her eyes. “Well, he’s not called the Reasonable Hatter, is he? Alright Aten, you can drop the lagomorph: he’s not going to be hopping around in his current state.” Akhenaten released the March Hare, who dropped, now slouched against the wall and wincing in pain. The mighty golem joined with Rachel and Justine as they destroyed three of the eggs in their chambers: the insides a strange, rainbow-colored yolk. The final one was picked up by Penny with her spidery limbs, and she examined it.

”My readings indicate a yield of conjuration magic three times as powerful as the one deployed in Bolorton. Luckily we managed to prevent them being used in Penrose. The Mad Hatter’s certainly got some impressive production facilities here…”

As she was lost in thought, she heard Mariette’s voice through a portal, followed by a blink of surprise at what she was told.
”Understood. We’re finished on our end. We’re coming, so sit tight.”

”What is it?” Justine asked as she was now looking over Caroline’s grey statue, having noticed her tight expression.

”Mariette has been captured by the queen and brought to the royal castle,” she relayed the information to the others.
”An enchanted necklace traps her inside, but she still can communicate with us, it seems. The others are, quoting her, doing fine.” She pointed towards the main entrance.
”We should rendezvous with Mariette’s forces and prepare to storm the castle. The rest of you can head out. I will stay here: I believe I can use Hatter’s machines to give us an advantage against the Queen.”

Nefer snickered. “Oh, I’m not letting you get access to all this tasty technology all on your own, cutie!” She handed her backpack over to Akhenaten, who simply grunted in response.
“I’m also going to stay here and loot-I mean, analyze this facility and see if we could use it.”

Rachel scowled. “But without your device, the enchantment will-”

“I figure I can fix up something by scrounging around here. Besides, Penny-wenny here will keep me in line if I start acting too frisky~”. Penny, however, ignored Nefer, and proceeded to run up the stairs where Mad Hatter descended from. Nefer ran after her, and Justine sighed.
”I suppose I’ll stay as well. It’s not like I can leave Caroline, and she is…rather heavy now.” With that, she proceeded to lift Caroline and slowly fly her up the stairs as well.

---

Meanwhile in the Overcity, Mac had successfully mounted Chicken Ultra Crushing Mega like a chocobo. The mutant cockatrice ran around, cawing loudly as its beak held against the illusory bit like it was there, giving Mac a stable handhold. Her impressive physical ability and sense of balance allowed her to endure the wild ride despite being blinded, and soon enough the creature was broken into being a steed. Now Mac was in possession of a mount with terrible power.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

As if stirred awake by Lily’s cries, Alex’ animal companions launched themselves out like a trained unit, and magnificently transformed before everyone’s eyes into great magical beasts.

”WHOA!” Lily shouted in surprise. ”I didn’t know they could do that!”

“It can’t be!” Caterpillar yelped as she twirled her staff to parry the many-bladed stoat. This gave Dave the chance to cut Alex free from the red ribbons: coupled with Mariette feigning shock in order to release him from her own tendrils, he was now fully free from physical binds.

Mariette’s message reached the Lilliput princess, who was ready for action: she hopped through the portal with no hesitation, and took command immediately. “Men, retreat! This is not a battle to be fought! And someone pick me up already!” Hurriedly scooped up by one of the soldiers, she was carried away, ensuring that the round-helmeted troops disengaged, and started to take off to the best of their ability.

“No way! All ways are my ways!” The queen screeched, too distracted to fully realize Mariette's actions, though she did pass a glance down at her, and shot out red ribbons towards Alex, only for them to be shot down by Lily’s rapid-fire.

“Alex is already spoken for! You need to find somebody else!” Lily yelled, her courage lifted by the assurance that the animal friends gave her, alongside Chloe who had chased the Queen away. The Queen, furious, lifted the Storyslayer, as if about to use it, when her purple eye flashed. She gasped, and let go of the weapon to block the warhammer that was thrown in their direction: she had grabbed the head of it by her palm, followed by immediately closing the portal.

“Yes!” Lily pumped her fist in victory, but it was a short-lived celebration as the Caterpillar’s eyes glowed a dark green, and a malevolent aura suddenly burst out, knocking the stoat back.

“This transgression against her Highness shall not pass unpunished…As Minister of Mysteries…I am your judge, jury…And executioner! Hear me, judge of death…Cast your strings of truth…PINOCCHIO!”

She held her staff up high, and ghostly energy poured out of it. It shot up to the sky, where a doll made of decrepit wood with a long, pointy nose appeared, hanging by a noose that dangled from bent gallows, seemingly made of a warped tree with jagged roots digging into the earth as if desperately searching for sustenance.

The doll held two cross-shaped marionette manipulators in its hands, and its head tilted to the side as it lifted them rigidly forward. Ghostly strings launched from the manipulators, and they homed in on Lily, Chloe, and the empowered animals. Lily attempted to dodge, but there were too many strings to avoid before she and Chloe were both caught: the strings paralyzed their limbs as they connected, resulting in them being haphazardly lifted up and down in unnatural motion, like the parts of a puppet. The empowered animals were also hit by the strings, but were instead pinned down to the ground. Curiously, Alex was ignored, as he still lay near the location of the disappeared portal.

“Tell the truth…The darkest truth…” the puppet croaked as it hovered above them. Gaia then sensed through her magic that a tiny sapling was rooted on top of its head, struggling to bloom from the half-rotted wood carving.

“Or lie…and die.” The cursed woodwork pointed its head up.

“I have never sinned in my life,” it spoke in a high pitch. It didn’t take a Light specialist to recognize the obvious falsehood.

-SCHWING-

Suddenly, its nose extended into a spiny tree branch with a sharp tip, resembling a spear, before it retreated again. The doll groaned, and it lowered its head to look at the cursed group.

“A silent tongue, ten seconds late…” The doll suddenly jerked up, its head tilting to the side as it turned temporarily limp.

“For idleness, gallows await.”

Lily gulped, as she then felt a ghostly rope around her neck, as did Chloe. Fortunately, the animals were spared, as they could not speak, but they were nonetheless paralyzed by the phantom strings, unable to interfere.

The Caterpillar smiled as she stayed still: a sharp eye saw that she too had strings connected to her. “Now, your crimes will be bared, and judgement passed.”

However, as defenseless as she seemed, that proved not to be the case: Chloe's army proved powerless against her, as the puppet created duplicates to intercept attacks aimed at the dark conjurer, each one cast forth like mistreated marionettes, only to end up as splinters. Any skeletal monstrosity coming within close enough distance would in turn end up snared by the paralyzing strings, and turned against their former allies, manipulated into betraying those near them with violence.

Pinocchio groaned, and lifted the cross manipulators to his sides, letting the arms teeter like arms on a scale about to adjust from placed weight. “The darkest truth, or sweetest lie…The time to speak…Has begun.”

---

As the queen was now left alone with Mariette, she breathed heavily from what looked like stress, as sweat poured down her face. “I can’t believe it…I almost lost you again, Alice,” she mumbled, and turned her eyes to look at the dark magical girl, followed by a gasp as she loosened her grip on her wrist, and gently took hold of her hand. “I’m sorry if I hurt you, Alice,” she spoke softly. “But still, so many enemies are after us…The Powers have planted vicious white roses in my garden…The eggs are now too obvious, even if I reclaim them it won’t be enough, if they were answered this swiftly by the Grand Magistrate…”

The queen started guiding her through the chamber to another: Mariette soon realized they were in the inner sanctum of her royal castle. She looked manic as her purple eye glowed, moving on its own: based on the pattern, it looked as if she was reading snippets of something invisible in the air.

They soon arrived at a very fancy, rounded bedroom that seemed absurd in how luxurious it was. There was a dinner table with a great tower of cakes, a tea set of finest porcelain, a corner with a high pile of plushies of every animal imaginable, and a bed made of royal red velvet: it made the various ostentatious bedrooms of the Vassal Princesses that Mariette had visited look like squalid hovels by comparison. However, one detail caught Mariette’s eye: golden pillars on every corner that joined together at the domed ceiling. It seemed to resemble something…

The Queen continued her monologue. “But the Grand Magistrate won’t have their way this time, no…I just need to ruin their plan, cause chaos and havoc untold, to force the Nexus to bloom anew…But what to do, what to do…” She wondered, before she realized the answer to her question. “Now I know! But first, a little present for you, my dear.” She knelt down to one leg, and gave a gentle hug to Mariette.

“...I’ve missed you, Alice. You are everything to me. The day I lost you, I shamed myself forever as a mother. But I won’t make that mistake again.” Mariette heard her summon a tiny portal behind her, followed by an even tinier sound of interlocking metal pieces: the queen had summoned what looked like a necklace, the pieces of it looking like magnificently hued and multilayered crystals, and had placed it daintily around Mariette’s neck, complete with locking the necklace shut. While it was not tight in the slightest as it sat comfortably, Mariette immediately realized the necklace would catch on to her chin if she tried to lift it up and off of her, making it impossible to remove by normal means. She also realized it was enchanted, but not in what way until the queen spoke:

“Now, you may not use your little mirrors to escape this castle. I know you must be scared since you mumble to yourself so much and keep running away. But don’t worry, mother will keep you safe from now on, and we will have our happy ever after,” she spoke as she stood up with what was attempted to be a gentle smile, but a slight twitch at the corner of her lip betrayed her growing anxiety. “I must now temporarily leave you, but don’t worry, for I will soon be back. After all, I need your help to bring the Nexus out of hiding.” She spoke, as if mentioning that dinner was ready, before leaving, closing the door behind her, but curiously not locking it.

As soon as Mariette tested creating a portal, one did appear before her, with a view of any location as she desired. However, she then realized the form of her necklace’s curse if she attempted to touch or walk through: the mirror was now literally a wall of impenetrable glass, and prevented passage from either direction. She could tell that breaking the mirror would simply leave an empty frame behind. To those looking outside at the magical construct, it seemed as if Mariette was standing inside a mirror. Not only that, but her tentacles also couldn’t pass from one side of the mirror to the other. However, if she concentrated, she could summon tentacles from a mirror outside of the castle, but only from the summoned mirror itself, and only to where one could see from the view of the mirror. The mirror, curiously, didn’t prevent sight or sound from passing through. In that way, she still could communicate and manipulate the outside world in a limited capacity, but she herself was physically trapped. She now understood the meaning behind the pillars: she was the bird in the golden cage, now but a mere spectator watching from beyond the looking glass.

---

Justine flew up, only to quickly block a manticore about to bite Ronin following after, and used her spear to do so: the beast gnashed its many teeth against the long handle before Justine managed to knock it aside after Ronin slashed at its side, causing it to let go.
”These monsters are not only strong, but fast as well!” She yelled out.

“Affirmative!” Rachel responded: she had less difficulty as she used a barrier to block a stinger from another manticore, followed by knocking it away with a swing of her mallet, her great power only further enhanced by Miko’s spell. “We can beat them,” she replied afterwards, and turned to meet a flanking manticore thanks to Miko’s alertness, allowing her to easily cover her from a stinger attack.. “Just need to watch out for their deadly venom and-”

She stopped mid-strike after leaping towards a pair of manticores, who turned their heads to stare at Magical Dream Princess: it seems she had successfully beguiled the beasts, as they panted with their tongues out, tempted by the yummy treats. The March Hare grit his teeth. “No! She is the treat! Eat her!” He raised his arm, about to assert his magical dominance over the hungry creatures when Alicia landed a decisive blow, knocking the whip away with an arrow of light.

“No! This can’t be! It must be a lie!”

Akhenaten took his chance, and bullrushed his way past a manticore guarding the masked beastmaster, before slamming him by the neck against the wall.

“Ack!”

The March Hare transformed his lower half into a pair of powerful rabbit hind legs, and unleashed a mighty kick…Followed by the sound of bones breaking, as they uselessly smashed into the black golem’s incredibly hard body.

“Oof...I only wish it was…”

“Too bad for you, bunny boy! A-en here is made of some real tough stuff, toughest I’ve ever seen in the multiverse!” She flicked him in the nose, causing him to flinch. Justine landed back to the floor, and glanced to the side as five of the manticores, not counting the wounded one, were now completely charmed as they turned docile and hopped through MDP’s hoop as if she was a lion tamer in a circus act, followed by assembling in a row with open mouths, expecting treats. The last one slouched down, weakened by the blow. Rachel walked up to it and gave it a healing spell with a sigh of masked relief.

“I suppose that’s over now", she mumbled, and hopped up to the platform where the cockatrice nest was. “There’s a chute here that splits into the four chambers. We could drop down into them and destroy the eggs that way, but…”

”You suspect it’s a trap?” Justine asked.

“I wouldn’t put it past the Hatter: he would be the type to pull off one last trick like that.”

”You’re right, they were traps. Specifically, gas traps.”

_{.:⋮How Dreadfully Savage⋮:.}

Penny detached her hand from the terminal, shaking off the bits of electronics that stuck to her fingers.

”However, I now disabled them, as well as the bomb traps he was about to drop from the ceiling,” she said, pointing up: small hatches could be seen, out of which any number of horrible things could have been dropped on them.

”He’s got nothing left at this point,” she noted.

“Not true! I have one last riddle to ask you horrid guests!”

The group heard the Mad Hatter as he shouted from the stairway to the side of the room, out of which he walked down…Holding a magitech pistol to a Diamond engineer's head who had his hands held up.

“Riddle me this! What counts to three before dying from a shot to the head?”

“A hostage…” Nefer answered the riddle, rolling her eyes as she kept her own weapon pointed at Hare, still pinned by Akhenaten.

“Now, if you don’t release my comrade over there by the count to the fabled number…Well, need I say more?” The Mad Hatter had a deranged look about him: sure enough, Alicia could tell he was not lying.

Meanwhile in the Overcity, Mac successfully evaded the cockatrice's charge by stopping it with a trick: the creature halted, and was confused by the illusions she created. It blinked, stepped forth, and started pecking away at the nonexistent seeds as if they were real, seemingly happy about the company as it cawed. For the moment, Mac was not in danger from it's gaze or attacks.

Advice wanted for someone (me) who is very out of practice.

I have a new question. How exactly do you get Co-Gm's? There is probably a very obvious answer, but I've never rp'd on a site that is solely dedicated to roleplay, so I've never even seen the concept of Co-Gm's. Do you just say you're looking for one in the interest thread, or should you find one on the discord, or is there something else that should be done?

@ReksewTrebla

I messaged a couple of players who were regular posters in my group RP and asked them if they were interested in becoming co-GMs. Of course, sometimes a group of players might not have anyone who is fit for the task, but I happened to have very reliable and nice people in my group who did a good job assisting, either with side plots and responding while I was gone, or even just running things.

In general, it's a good idea to ask for a co-GM in case the RP is of large enough scale, players have wildly different time zones, or if someone would be interested. As for where to ask, the interest check or the OOC discussion section for an RP are fine, or a separately established ommunication channel like Discord.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

Lily tensed as Mariette agreed to the command the Queen of Hearts gave her, fear running through her body like a wave of cold. How would she attack? Lily wondered.
She could use her tentacles. I remember seeing her summon them for various situations including combat. They were not a particularly lethal choice, though it would be painful if she were to crush her. The answer immediately arrived as she watched the dark magical girl raise her hand towards her, a magic circle of iridescent light forming before her.

Lily closed her eyes and winced, bracing for the impact…Only to blink as she heard a familiar voice.

”Chloe!”

The Queen didn’t seem as surprised by the Mint broker’s arrival: she seemed to have predicted something like this happening. In fact, Mariette would notice that the queen’s purple eye subtly flashed.
“Hm…I see even the Mint has reached its greedy claws into my kingdom,” she commented.
“But you are bold for facing me yourself, broker.”

Chloe pointed out to Lily that Alex had been found: while initially a bit baffled by the obvious statement, the greenette was nonetheless grateful for the interruption, and further relieved when she pointed out the queen’s threatening gesture to ultimately be a bluff. The queen responded by turning up her nose at the smug girl as she proceeded to explain the risks of meddling with a Horror’s chosen.
“You think a mere Lesser Power is enough to hold me back? Think again, black swan. Consorts such as this are rare, yes…But I can find more. I always have, just as I have always found my darling Alice.”

Her touch turned gentle, and she gave a motherly caress to Mariette, reassuring her as she hesitated.

But then, as Mariette spoke, the queen’s eyes widened in surprise at her question. The seemingly insurmountable indignation in her voice by Chloe’s offense against her, surprisingly, gradually gave way to empathy: Mariette had successfully pulled at her heartstrings.
“Why, I would move mountains to bring you back, Alice. I would do anything to rescue you!”
Her hold on the Storyslayer slightly wavered, threatening to cut into Alex.

Then, Mariette confessed that she was friends with Lily, who was taken aback by the reveal, tears forming in her eyes. After all this time, after she thought she had irrevocably caused a rift between them that could never be bridged, she had lost hope that they could be friends. And now that hope was rekindled.

”Mariette…So you really think…I’m your friend? I…I’m glad to hear that…”

She spoke softly, glad that Mariette did not want to hurt her, even if it meant risking her own well-being.

“...It is true, then. Are you friends with this Lily girl?” The queen also seemed moved by the tender words and honest feelings, and she lifted the Storyslayer away from Alex.
“...You were always so lonely, Alice. With no friends…To think you finally have some…”

She looked back at the others after Mariette revealed her true feelings, her hope of ending this conflict in peace seeming to cause actual hesitation in the usually unwavering monarch.

“True friends who you treasure…How happy they make you...”

Her eyes moved back and forth between them all, and the grip on her Storyslayer loosened, as did her hold on Mariette’s shoulder, her fingers lifting, until only the palm of her hand touched.

“Alice…I…”

However, just as it seemed like Mariette would succeed in convincing the delusional woman to spare them, and possibly even end the Wonderland invasion itself…She heard distant screeching, as did the others. The queen’s eyes gained focus anew, and her purple eye flashed, followed by a swing of her black blade: she created a shockwave that sliced apart a falling skeleton that had been set aflame, along with other suicide-bombing bonelings nearby. Lily turned, and saw as Chloe’s undead army of blood-curdling constructs and scary skeletons marched forth from the forest to attack the Green Helms, who swiftly responded by forming a defensive line and engaging in battle with them.

At that moment, Connie felt a great surge of waking nightmares coming from the queen’s heart, as her magic resonated with the mana-effervescent Wonderland, the deep-buried terrors that stirred in the mad monarch’s mind having opened a channel. She had bottled her feelings, letting the grief fester as delusion, her continued obsession for the lost Alice a coping mechanism, refusing to face the truth. As the Empress of Nightmares, Connie felt a sense of destiny, as if her journey up to this point had been to embrace her role as a bringer of truth through dread, to bring a mirror to those who would not look upon themselves, to have them face their fear and confront their weakness.

The queen had lost all goodwill gained by Mariette’s words, as she was overcome by her trauma. “No! This was a trap! Alice, we’re leaving!” The queen screeched an order, and she snatched the white-haired girl’s wrist like a mother would an unruly child, her grip like an iron vice as she took a few running stops to drag Mariette away, slashing a couple of times at falling fire-wreathed skeletons.
“I’ll keep you safe this time Alice, I promise! Mother knows best!”

Once she reached some distance from Chloe's army, she summoned a portal which seemed to open up to what looked like a secluded stone-bricked chamber. There, Caterpillar was waiting.
“Caterpillar! Grant justice to these enemies of the crown!” She ordered. “Your will be done, Your Grace,” the Minister of Wonderland answered, and stepped out, passing by the Queen, who forcibly dragged Mariette through the aperture.

She opened another portal: Mariette saw the Mad Hatter, more specifically, his back on the other side, as he was sitting by a control console, frantically mashing buttons and turning dials.
“Hatter! Status report!” The queen ordered, and the minister’s hat jumped up his head as he was startled.
“Intruders at the factory, your Grace! Requesting assistance!”

The queen did not hesitate, and opened a third portal to a non-descript office. “HARE! GO!” She ordered, and the masked minister similarly jumped in surprise before running through the portals. “By your will, your Grace!”

The queen, after all her shouting, took a moment to calm herself down. She blinked, and then summoned her red ribbons again.
“Almost forgot,” the queen mumbled, and started dragging Alex by his feet, bound as he still was by Mariette’s tentacles: he was slowly gliding over grass, reaching the portal.

”Alex! No!” Lily yelled, and ran forward, only to be stopped by the Queen's minion as she brandished her staff threateningly.

“You won’t escape judgement,” she spoke coldly.

Lily grit her teeth, fear having also struck her as she saw Alex be limply dragged closer and closer, his feet nearly at the portal.

”Wake up! You gotta fight it! Alex! ALEX!”

---

_{.:⋮It Was The Best Butter⋮:.}

Penny sighed as the Mad Hatter revealed the last obstacle before they could reach their goal, averting her eyes from the ponderous poultry. She did not doubt that someone would catch Caroline before they ended up as gravel, and instead scanned the area for any terminals closeby. Sure enough, Ronin had performed the heroic deed after Ashley slowed the statue’s descent, to which she gave an affirmative nod.

”Not an omelet I would eat for breakfast,” she replied as she spotted what she sought in a corner. She dashed to the computer station and punched straight down and through the interface of buttons underneath, causing large crackles of electricity that would have been dangerous to those not of Lightning or Metal affinity. She took hold of the wires and circuitry, and used her magic to meld her hand into the network, pulling the clump up and letting the electricity flow from her body through the cables: while the Mad Hatter and updated his firewall after her previous bout of hacking, the physical access point let her easily invade Mad Hatter’s computer system.

Mac, in the guise of Ashley, successfully grappled Chicken Ultra Crushing Mega, dodging the snapping of its fanged beak despite looking elsewhere thanks to her supreme footwork and sense of balance. Then, while holding it still long enough with pure brawn, she spirited the monstrosity away to the Overcity.

The cockatrice responded by kicking Mac away, its talons painful as they were sharp enough to wound her right in the stomach, though she had enough defensive power to avoid outright breaking ribs from the impact, unlike with the Tin Man’s attack. The shades on its head, curiously enough, did seem to stop the petrifying ability of its gaze based on her use of Third Eye, though it did not last as the bird-like beast threw them off its head with a big caw, forcing Mac to avoid eye contact. It came charging in, flapping its leathery wings in intimidation.

”Thank you, Deni! Yet again you would save my sister, who once had consumed your slimy form,” she commented as she dragged the statue away from the center of the room and back towards the corridor they came from.
”I suppose your magic isn’t enough to restore her?” She asked as she noted the diminutive samurai girl swipe her hand over her rocky sister. Just as Ronin suspected, petrification was not something that Reinforcement could reverse, as it was not damaged. However, the barriers did stay, the statue now having a polished sheen to it.

Miko, meanwhile, followed right behind Rachel as she lifted her hammer up in reaction to the arrow of light that her fellow comrade Alicia unleashed on the closest magic wall, followed by MDP and her chessmates performing the same with a beam projectile of her own: while the former failed to penetrate the barrier, only causing cracks in it’s glowing surface, the other shots infused the barrier with energy, until it transformed into a wall of transparent, bouncy rubber.

“Bah! Let me do it!” Rachel shouted, and started to run, only to suddenly stop as she heard the familiar voice of the Queen of Hearts and her cronies on the loudspeaker:
“Hatter! Status report!”
“Intruders at the factory, your Grace! Requesting assistance!”

As a result, Miko ran embarrassingly right into her posterior, causing Rachel to blush and throw her head back, looking miffed. “Hey! Watch where you’re going!” Nefer, however giggled at the comical sight, and Akhenaten ran past Rachel, seemingly done with comedy skits at the moment.

However, before he got close enough to smash the rubbery wall, more voices could be heard on the loudspeaker.

“HARE! GO!”
“By your will, your Grace!”

Rachel groaned. “Oh, by the love of-”

A circular hole opened from the ceiling, from which a fireman pole shot down. From there, March Hare came sliding down with style and grace, making a single spin before reaching the floor.

“It wasn't very civil of you to enter without being invited!” He taunted the intruders.
“To me, (I see what I eat) is the same thing as (I eat what I see!)”

With a flourish of his hand, he cast a summoning spell. But instead of bringing forth wendigos as the others might have assumed, instead six manticores had appeared: with bodies of lions with spiny manes, spiky tails with scorpion-like stingers, and large bat-like wings, their eerily human-like faces stared with mouths wide open, showing three rows of sharp teeth.

"I see you! So you shall be the lovely crumpets to eat at this tea party!” He spoke bombastically as he drew what looked like a red coiled whip. With a snap of it, the manticores attacked with complete obedience like lions in a circus, flying or running as they lunged.

”Taking over this tea party, seating arrangements soon to change,” Penny commented as she summoned her extra limbs to defend herself while continuing the hacking.