BrokenPromise

Symphony of Espers

“Famished make this meme, but I make meme good!”

— Su Fang

_{@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw@ERode}

Su hadn’t ruled out the possibility that the vines were intended to pull, but she had also hoped that Ashley’s own spell would have been enough to destroy them. When that wasn’t the case, Su quickened her steps.

”Got…You!”

Su must have been crushing Ashley’s hand between her fingers and her gun. But it was the only thing she could do to save her squad mate. Her shield was braced against her shoulder, but each blow caused her to sink lower and lower, and Ashley in turn sank deeper and deeper into the portal. Su wasn’t any stronger than most espers, it was just her determination to not let go that kept her strong, but determination could only go as far as one's ability lets them.

But once Jacqueline sealed the portal, Ashley was pulled to the other side. Ashley’s warm hand had been replaced by the cold tile floor. Su probably would have ended up falling in herself, but Iitwas hard not to feel a little upset with this outcome. Ashley was a young woman. Some would even call her a girl. She couldn’t have been too much older than Mika. Facing death was something the agents did on every operation, but dying was one thing and disappearing was another. One of the things that kept Su up at night was the idea of her daughter just disappearing. Ashley wasn’t her daughter, but she was someone’s daughter. If it cost Su her life, she’d find Ashley. Maybe if they wrapped things up here fast enough, she might even be alive. Su pushed her distress back into the recess of her mind. Now was not the time to worry. She needed to help those that she still could.

There were plenty of people for Su to help, the question was who needed it more. She couldn’t quite make out what was happening over by Jaqueline, save for the fact that the vampire was still alive. But Su’s attention was immediately stolen away by a flash of movement. Samuel and Silmeria flew past her left flank into a statue, which sprayed them with gas as soon as it struck it. She didn’t need to see the lamp getting sliced in half to know something bad was going to happen soon. She trusted in Jaqueline's ability, believing she could hold her own without additional assistance. Her other allies were just moments away from getting burned alive. And even more of them were going to be poisoned. She ran towards Silmeria and Samuel.

Broken tile swirled around Su’s hand canon, but she was merely preparing her melody. Su swung her gun over towards the nun and fired a bullet. Though she was not aiming at the nun herself, but the statue she was standing next to. Su reasoned that something like statues filled with gasoline were not the sort of thing that someone could actively scatter among their non-petrol-loaded statues. It would take a tremendous amount of forethought to decide which statues should be loaded with gas. If Su was right, then the nun would also be bathed in gas shortly. If Su was wrong, well, at least she knew one of the statues wasn’t filled with gas. And with that one shot out of the way, she would swing her gun back towards her ally.

”Silhouette!”

The tile fragments flew towards Samuel and, much like the plant debris did with Ashley, expanded outwards and shoved him away from the puddle of petrol before it became a puddle of flames.

But that was hardly the only thing that was going to happen.

As soon as Samuel was pulled clear of the area, Su’s melody transformed into a whittling vortex. The ground under their feet was getting churned up and turned into even more debris. Broken tiles, statue fragments, even bits of carpet were rapidly entering the vortex before being blasted under everyone’s feet. The vortex continued to spin and churn, and the floating debris piled up underneath them. Breacher, Samuel, Silmeria, Lilliah, and even the nun would be lifted into the air by these debris. Because the debris were floating on swirling winds, the toxic cloud had plenty of room to fall between the fragments. Despite how arid the debris cluster was, everyone’s footing was remarkably stable.

Once they were over the poison fog, it stopped and grew several pillars with a fair bit of space between them, which reached to the ceiling. The human sized creatures would have little problem maneuvering between them. Though the giant multi-limbed monstrosity would have difficulty squeezing its massive body around the pillars. But the floor continued to rise. Even a railing emerged, which was just tall enough to reach Su’s waist. Once the structure had finished, the winds would subside and the structure would remain, with a stability that could only be granted by arcane means.

The playing field looked a bit more agreeable to Su. She kept her shield raised and her gun focused on the nun. As potent as Silmeria’s shot was, Su hardly noticed more than a flash from her muzzle. She was her team’s shield, and she had been more focused on keeping Samuel out of the proverbial fire to gawk at her squad mate's use of excessive force. Besides, you’re always supposed to double tap your targets.

Su

32 | Female | Gemini | Steel Gaze
Bipartisan | Handgun, Greatshield | Physical | Bullet Window
Dragon Breacher | Kevlar Vest
Debris | Wind | Locally Sourced
[Storm, Flight], Push, Pull, Construct, Purify, Restrain, Damage

DAMAGE: D | SPEED: E | SENTINEL: C | 476

[Bronze Projectile][Pull][Construction]= 120

PHYSICAL: D | ARCANE: D | CHAOS: C | 356

Symphony of Espers

_{@Ponn@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw}
Tucked into a ball and arcing through the air, Orion was akin to the Sun itself, the light of the entire lobby dimming as they gathered around her wand, her arcane power manifesting into the purest form of destruction: a death ray made of solar energy. Prismatic power blasted out, vaporizing what vines were caught in the beam’s path, but before light could expose the innards of the rider’s skull, its steed acted. Twisting its six gangly limbs, the monster spun in the air, causing the beam to rip into the rider’s right shoulder instead, blasting off its bound arm and instantly cauterizing the wound. Not an instant kill. It was hard to even tell if it was a major one. What was one limb when one had a total of eight?

As the afterimage of her beam was blinked out of her vision, the Knight of Tomorrow found that her own shield was entangled by those vines that she had tried to block. Thorns meshed with each other, forming a link between individual vines, and with a snapping back of its head, Orion lurched forwards, downwards, towards the scything blade-limbs of the chimeric beast.

It wasn’t an attack, but a pull!

A shot sounded in that instant, echoing against her spine. Breacher’s melody struck moments before Orion could be turned into mincemeat, debris forming behind her and pushing her in a separate direction. Twinned pull spells accelerated vertical descent but reduced horizontal movement, sending the wand-bearing Esper past the monster she faced, and right onto the ledge of the portal. Her shield bounced against tiled ledge, absorbing most of the impact, yet was insufficient from stopping her from falling over the ledge into the portal. Moments before she could disappear completely, Orion had time to unfurl, reach out, and…

…Grasp Su’s hand.

Three-fourths of the way into the portal, and yet not wholly swallowed by it. There was a chance still, to pull her out. The Dragon Breacher’s muscles tautened, shield raised overhead to protect from any attack by the monster, while her other hand managed both a pistol and Orion, superhuman athleticism allowing her to keep the other woman from falling deeper, allowing her to pull the Knight of Tomorrow up higher and higher.

Then, they heard it. The whirring of a metal ball, the screeching of shrapnel, the humming of spell-slaying melodies reverberating through silvered spikes. Jacqueline’s melody, powerful as it was, was also slower by a single, decisive second. A half dozen what-ifs played out in that moment, a half dozen pathways. But the life of an esper was a one-way road, and melodies, once sung, could not be unheard.
The portal closed.

Orion’s hand slipped out of Su’s grasp, the newbie agent sucked into the other side of the portal.
Su’s hand pressed against a bare, concrete foundation, the original state of the mansion.
And above, hanging upside down on the ceiling, the rider opened its mouth once more and unleashed a cloud of toxic fumes upon those who remained below: Wukong, Valkyrie, Silhouette, Breacher.

“Thanks Jacky!” The armored nun called out, her voice chipper as a starling. “I’ll Paypal you the rest after this!”

A ringing clang resounded as steel met steel, Silhouette’s blade intercepting the nun’s as the shadowed assassin dove in to assist GEMINI’s sole sniper. Arcane sparks burst upon the encounter, but between a dagger held one-handed and a falchion held two-handed, the sheer difference in force caused Silhouette’s left arm to be blown off to the side, opening his entire body up to a second blow. If he was to survive, he would have to use Slash elsewhere or end up losing his head instead.

That, then, was the inherent weakness of a touch spell.

A mass of shadows thrust upwards instead of downwards, answering the beheading strike of a blade that gleamed with black light. Arcane restraints consumed the nun’s weapon in its entirety, yet that unholy light seared at it from within, dampening its effect while forcing Silhouette’s blade off-center once more. It was clear in two strikes who would hold the advantage, who would continue to maintain the advantage in this melee. In a one on one, he would doubtlessly be turned to minced meat over the course of multiple exchanges. But this wasn’t a one on one. Behind him, Valkyrie must be repositioning, must be aiming.

So why wasn’t she firing?

Silhouette noticed then, that this entire time, the nun’s eye was upon Valkyrie, gleaming that carmine sheen, and even though the steampunk sniper’s body shook with magically enhanced power, she couldn’t will her body to move back. A compulsion dominated her form, urging her to stand her ground or advance. She hadn’t moved an inch since Silhouette charged in, and subsequently, he himself had no room to retreat.

A foot planted itself upon his chest and forcefully kicked, sending both Silhouette and Valkyrie tumbling back. Together, they crashed into one of the gray statues, all three tumbling down as the statue broke to bits. A sticky, black fluid coated the two government esper’s bodies, a familiar acrid stench revealing exactly what it was.

Petroleum.

And Wukong, momentarily perplexed by how she could even go about fighting an invisible enemy, was summarily unable to respond when the unseen blade changed course and sliced one of the fire lamps in half. The object toppled. It’s contents spilled.

And the embers fell, glowing brighter as they neared the accelerant drenching the prone agents.

But whatever befell her allies were behind Jacqueline now. The Eternal Knight broke out from the toxic fog, sickly green trails slipping off her form as she hefted Havoc up. Upon the red carpet, between the different-colored statues, her sprint went unimpeded as she closed onto Arzendale. The vampire himself smiled wide at her, and only her advance, his left hand swinging out and snapping his fingers.

As Jacqueline crossed the spot of darkness in the center of the room, one head from each pillar dropped onto the floor. The bags fell off. The heads rolled. One an office lady in her early-twenties, freshly-graduated with unblemished skin. One a daycare volunteer in his teens, curly-haired and freckled. From the stumps of their necks, blood flowed smoothly, converging onto the tip of Arzendale’s wand to forming a shield of hot blood. Like that, two lives ended. Like that, Jacqueline advanced, her great axe curving through the air and smashing into the vampire mage’s barrier. A single blow sliced through the blood, but before the second could descend, the Eternal Knight felt her arms drop down, as if her Instrument had become immensely heavy.

This was no ‘as if’.

Her eyes flicked downwards, towards the sanguine mass that had coagulated upon the head of her axe, making it near-impossible for her to lift with the strength of a mere Esper. And Arzendale himself simply took a measured step back, his head tilting up to look down their nose onto Jacqueline, his wand extended still with a condensed ball of the remaining blood he had pilfered from those bound humans.

“Such impatience,” he chortled, leaning against the organ. It truly was a measured step. Too far for Jacqueline’s axe to reach, even on the off chance she could indeed lift her weapon back up for a swing. “The age of barbaric might and solitary heroics have long passed, child of man. Have you forgotten so swiftly, how it was that you survived the gauntlet within the gaol?”

The gem-studded tip of the Sovereign grew brighter, chaotic energies pulsating like a water cutter moments before unleashing its liquid blade, its raw power matching, perhaps even surpassing, Orion’s own beam.

Was there a melody Jacqueline could unleash to block the spell? Should she try to raise her weapon up anyways, irrespective of the damage she risked upon her joints, tendons, and muscles? Or was this time to forsake her Instrument and her transformation in order to save her life?
The seconds ticked. The seconds tocked.

.

..

…

Splat.

Orion struck some squishy, something wet. Her surroundings were pitch-black, the air smelling of rot and blood, feces and fear. It was comparable to her experience in the sewers, and yet there was something worse about it. The sewers, as much as they were in disarray, still had function, still had use. It transported garbage out of the city, into sewage treatment plants.

But this place? This dark place, suffocating and claustrophobic? What was the purpose of this place? Just to keep a monster before the time was right?

Chains clinked alongside the shuffling of rags. Coughs sounded alongside groans. Weak voices sounded, filled with desperation, filled with need.

“F-food?”

“It’s been so long…”

“God, not again, not again!”

“I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t”

“Justin, please, you’re there, aren’t you! I’ll do it! Just let me out!”

“Leave! Run! I, we, T H I R S T!”

Flashing one by one by one, sets of glowing red eyes filled the sinister surroundings. Orion knew where she was now, knew what she was encountering.

Vampiric thralls, their humanity, their dignity, robbed by their starvation.

And, as a GEMINI agent, the path was obvious.

Kill. Them. All.

Map

Floor 1

---

_{@OwO@mantou@ERode@Majoras End}

”Oh.” Was Tetrad’s response to Klava sealing away the pyromancers. She wasn’t sure if she agreed with her choice to force everyone into a bottle neck, but denying the enemy room to advance couldn’t be a bad thing. Luna looked at Apollo. ”I guess we’ll just stick to the back then?” It was quite the change from her last operation. Regina was more focused on making the team conform to her fighting style, and Marrie struck Tetrad as more of a follower. But Klava may have been a true tactician. She was acting as a leader, but it was more that she was adapting to her allies strengths. This was probably not the first time they worked together.

While Luna was running up behind Klava, melodies, barrels, and jackets were flying. A saturated jacket would burn regardless of how much you patted it, so Finn made the wise choice to strip it off and cast it aside. The temptation to say something like “too bad you’re not older” did come to Luna’s mind, but she figured that would be best to say that later. She could only screw around so much in the middle of an operation.

Barrel and spark collided, and an explosion of splinters resulted. Fable had successfully intercepted the barrel, and the spirits contained within fell to the floor. Protector used the opening to fire an ensnaring melody at the hunter/butler power couple. Her projectile split off and spread around one of Bob’s legs and the gunner’s arm.

”I do say, it’s a good thing- Gah!”

The older woman looked up just in time to see a bare chested faceless man hurl a ball of light at her. Even with her legs free, she was sitting down and noticed far too late that such a spell was coming at her. Her eyes widened, her brow flicked up, and her pupils shrank. But Bob’s arm came up just in time to absorb the blow. Light and sound filled the small corridor, but when the light faded, the back of bob’s hand had been dented in. But he wiggled his fingers, demonstrating the attack’s limited impact..

”YOU_RUFFIANS_HAVE_MADE_ME_FEEL_A_GENUINE_EMOTION.” The shaken “lady Jane” stood up and ran around to Bob’s back. It became evident how much larger Bob was than Protector. While he was only a few feet taller, he was quite broad, and each of his limbs were as thick as tree trunks. He dropped onto his hands, digging his fingers into the stone floor and preparing his legs for a sprint. While Jane was still struggling to free her arm from the web-like bindings, Bob’s hydraulics easily overpowered such meager arcane restraints, and snapped them with the extension of its leg. ”I_FEEL_PITY_FOR_YOU…HA_HA_HA_HA_HA_HA!” His eyes glowed a brilliant azure, and his body arced with arcane electricity.

Bob hadn’t even finished laughing before an explosion shoved several barrels into the isle right in front of Protector. A few flaming barrels bounced into the wall at Protector and Finn’s right flank before slamming into them. While the espers had been pushed into the wall, Protector’s spell had saved them from taking any damage. The barrels hadn’t been touching them long enough to catch them on fire.Though the path ahead was littered with burning debris, and Bob’s power only surged as time went on.

The red haired pyromancer lowered her hands and took a deep breath. White smoke wafted off of her hands as she regained her composure. ”Black, Brown, shoot anything that moves!” The three pyromancers positioned themselves so that they could look through the newly made hole in the wall of barrels and fire.

Billy balled his hands into fists. Even if he was critical to this mission, there might be something he could do without wearing himself down before the fight with Justin. He was prepared to break off a chunk of the foundation and send it down the hall, but then the barrels at their end started to shake, and false lids fell to the ground. Then more pyromancers scrambled out of the barrels. There were four in total, with two in each path. They were quite young in appearance, and couldn’t have been a day over sixteen. The two behind the group of espers fighting Jane and Bob (white and green hair) took turns hurling fire balls at Klava and Tetrad in the back line, while the two in the iceberg lane (purple and blue) bombarded Apollo and Billy. Billy snapped a chunk of stone wall off and hid behind it. He could throw the flat stone, but Apollo was right there.

”Geez!” Luna placed her hand on a keg and cast a weightless melody, which made it much easier to pull off the wall. It did this in a most unusual way, removing all oxygen around the vicinity. This caused Luna’s face to turn blue as she held her breath. Man she hated her magic sometimes. She didn’t wait, and threw the keg at one of the pyromancers. The barrel was struck and caught fire, but it was moving so fast it collided with the white haired pyromancer before bouncing away. The pyromancer stumbled backwards, but the barrel was floating along the ceiling now.. Luna opened fire with Pit Boss, but it was apparent the superior arcane defense of her mystic opponents was reducing the effectiveness of her weapon. They’d need to do something fast if they wanted to get the pressure off of them.

And still, more dangers rolled in. Something was happening in the path Klava had closed off. A ghost in a tuxedo rose out of the floor and hovered in the air. He looked human in all aspects but his face, which looked like a white blob of cream with lips and eyes attached to it. ”Hello beauties!” He said with a notable amount of lisp. ”I had a brunchen to prepare, but now that I’m all done, Handsome Gunter is here to serve you!” Gunter drew a book from his vest and cracked it open, causing a single white flame to fly out of it and hover around his hand. ”Oh you guys are just gunna love love love what I do next!”

And with all of this going on, there was still more. Among the burning barrels and fireballs was a lone violin player. Hair as white as snow, complexion as pale as marble, And a steady hand on her violin’s bow. At the back of the wine cellar, Finn could see just a glimpse of the girl he spoke with a week ago. Betty was here.

Tetrad

21 | Female | Maverick | Fortune
Pit Boss | Staff | Arcane | High Roller
Croupier | Graceful
Gambit | Gravity | Draw 4
[Weightless, Suspend], Stabilize, Damage, Push, Transplace, Extend, Heal, Zone, If: Friend, Else

DAMAGE: E | SPEED: C | SENTINEL: D | 750

[bronze touch][weightless] = 32

PHYSICAL: E | ARCANE: C | CHAOS: D | 728

---

_{@The World}

Marrie made the wise decision to not fight a powerful behemoth solo. While a bouncy projectile did allow her to blink much further than she normally would, it also meant she had to spend more time in front of the snake before she blinked to safety. Marrie had just enough time to run into one of the tunnels before Highway to Hell wedged its head inside of it. It hissed, sending droplets of acid down the tunnel. By this point Marrie’s melody had triggered, making her safe for the moment.

Or was she?

Now that she was closer to the noise, the sound was a bit more familiar to Marrie. It wasn’t just any two-stroke engine, it belonged to a chainsaw. And it was getting louder with every passing second, until she saw it.

”Ow! Owowowowowo!” a zombie cheerleader wandered out from behind a rock formation. She had a chainsaw run through her back, and seemed to be doing her best to hold her head on. The chainsaw itself didn’t seem to be causing her any harm, if the way she ignored it was any indication. ”I jumped off of that wagon just a little too early. Next time-” As soon as she noticed Marrie, her expression brightened up like the sun emerging from overcast clouds. ”Oh hey! A person!” She let go of her neck and and a circle or two around Marrie. ”Person person person person!” She stopped in front of Marrie, with the chainsaw in her chest hovering a few inches away from the esper. ”Are you here looking for that coin with everyone else? No matter! Wherever you’re trying to get, we gotta get access to the wagon system the goblins are building! Well, pretty sure they are just burrows, but you can ride wagons in them and build up a lot of speed! I’ll tell you more about it once we get inside! So we just need to punt the little green goofballs in order to get inside.”

The cave system had opened up into a giant cave, with two pillars and a pool of water between them. There was also a group of goblins huddled around a small campfire in the distance. Unlike the last group, these ones were armed with weapons and appeared to be standing guard. Behind them was a wooden door. It didn’t look especially durable, but it didn’t look like it was something a group of goblins could have made.

Regardless of how Marrie felt about helping the zombie, she could hear Highway to Hell coming closer. Perhaps the goblins were too good at avoiding it.

Symphony of Espers

Forgot to do tags so @Ponn@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw@ERode

Symphony of Espers

Su "Breacher" Fang

_{@Ponn@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw and that big mean @ERode}

"To expect the unexpected shows a thoroughly modern intellect." So went one of Oscar Wilde’s plays. It was a popular enough line that it was recited by those who never saw the play, frequently shortened to just “Expect the unexpected.” Su used to find the line tacky. Expecting something wasn’t being prepared for it. Even if you take the expected outcome off the table, there are an unlimited number of unexpected outcomes that remain. Though after she became an esper, she saw the wisdom in Oscar’s words. You couldn’t prepare for everything, and sometimes not getting surprised was the best you could do.

The left wardrobe, now at her back, was scaled by an assassin. Su groaned to herself as she realized this was likely a momentary diversion to catch the front line unaware. Though she barely had time to turn her head before the bone monster erupt out of the floor, stealing the rest of her attention. She was already beside Lillia, so it was a simple matter to step between her and the bone monster. She was able to deflect the attack, if with some difficulty.

An assassin nun at the back, a bladed bone/vine/human monster in the middle, and a vampire from afar, and an unknown number of other dangers that could still be hiding in the shadows. Su’s squad was getting hit from all sides. With little time to think, Su needed to decide what she was going to do about it.

The Vampire was a tempting target. Certainly the way he was trying to provoke them made him an attractive target. especially with his possible hostages. But Su would be ill equipped for that encounter.. G.E.M.I.N.I. may have been known for its monster slaying, but Su’s loadout was ill suited for fighting a monster directly. She didn’t have anything to threaten him with. This was also what made fighting the bone monster less than ideal. While her shield was useful against such a foe, her pistol or melodies wouldn’t do much damage to something so large. The nun may or may not be a monster. Her appearance was human enough that she could be an esper or a human under the effect of a dark blessing. It was possible that she would be more vulnerable to Su’s pistol fire, but then she ran the risk of shooting her allies who were also in close proximity.

But Su wasn’t thinking about what/who to shoot. She was thinking about who she could help, and few espers looked as in need of help as Ashley. While she was still airborne, she had invested all of her power into dealing a mighty blow against the monster below her. While Su could appreciate that kind of moxie, she didn’t think it was a good idea to let their medic fall atop a hostile monster.

”Orion!”

Su aimed over her shield and fired at Ashley, though no bullet came out of her gun. Instead, the crack of her pistol was followed by something hitting Ashley in the back. The fragments of tile and vine that filled the air after her attack had culminated behind her back and shoved her through the air towards Su. Since she was still in the air, the pull should have been pretty strong, she figured, and would pull her away from the monster and towards herself. Should Su’s move work, she’d try to catch Ashley in her gun arm before lowering her to the ground behind her shield.

Her allies could destroy the hostiles. She was just there to keep her squad alive.

Su

32 | Female | Gemini | Steel Gaze
Bipartisan | Handgun, Greatshield | Physical | Bullet Window
Dragon Breacher | Kevlar Vest
Debris | Wind | Locally Sourced
[Storm, Flight], Push, Pull, Construct, Purify, Restrain, Damage

DAMAGE: D | SPEED: E | SENTINEL: C | 500

[Bronze Beam][Pull] = 24

PHYSICAL: D | ARCANE: D | CHAOS: C | 476

Symphony of Espers

_{@Ponn@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw}

The muscled vampire chuckled at juvenile responses of humanity’s most “professional” guardians. Naught more but a gaggle of illiterate children, they’ve proven to be. Just pets with teeth too small to match their bark, taking actions without understanding the consequences of such.

“To let thine blood flow in the presence of a nightwalker,” he said, his voice dripping with pity, “is tantamount to the relinquishment of thine head. Such ignorance befits thine lesser race though, and at times…could even be charming.”

Even at a distance, the espers could all see it: the yellow irises of the vampire burning with a crimson glow.

Veins bulged out from his neck, muscles growing taut beneath the suit. Sheer, unbridled force surged, his muscular arms raising up to the side as if in preparation for an embrace. And from within the sleeve of his right arm, something slim emerged. Only a meter in length and perfectly straight, the very end studded with a gem. A wand.

The vampire was a caster.

“I am Arzendale, the Sanguine Sovereign! Pledge thine flesh to the Court of Carnage, or thine remains shall feed the wanton desires of His blighted kin!”

And with the world-silencing gravity of a conductor on the cusp of greatness, he raised his wand.

If this bout doesn’t triple my heart rate I will be very cross

God forgive us all

FIRST RECEIPT

BEGIN

🩸

But neither vampire nor esper struck first.

BOOM!

A tremendous force shattered the purple-hemmed wardrobe to the right of the GEMINI agents, wooden chips scattering in the air, some blasting against them. From the wreckage of the furniture, something shot for the group, their steps silent, but the unseen blade they dragged against the ground carving a line through the tilework, between the statues, and straight for the one on the right flank: Wukong.

And in the umbra of that chaotic, invisible assault, another individual slipped into the fray, their movements practiced as they vaulted over the wardrobe. A carmine eye, a different hue from a vampire’s crimson, widened as the adrenaline of murder surged through her veins, the eye-patched nun in an armored habit dashing for the vulnerable backline. With a wicked hiss, her two-handed falchion swung in a vertical chop towards Silmeria, and perhaps only Samuel was in place to assist the sniper before she found herself in the worse possible position to be.

Not that things were simple for so long.

There was no rumbling of a subterranean creature. There was no possibility of an underground attack, when the blueprints of the building itself did not have any space beneath the floor of the entrance. And the carpet had covered any sign of displaced tilework.

Right in the middle of the group, Ashley felt it before she saw it, and in a moment later, found that she was flying upwards, the world spinning as she was sent flying by a monstrous fusion of man and steed, of bandaged flesh and animated bone. Six bladed limbs swung out erratically, lashing at all the espers around it, while the bound humanoid atop the skeletal steed let out a sharp yell, before vines burst out from his orifices and rushed for the still-airborne Ashley.

And as for how a creature twice the size of a horse could appear from beneath without a single sound? The gaping hole in the floor answered the question easily enough: a portal gate, leading only into a fathomless darkness.

But could Jacqueline and Su, the vanguard force of the GEMINI agents, truly afford to turn their backs on the vampire caster and reinforce the scattered formations of their allies? When Arzendale continued to move his conductor’s baton, his gem-studded wand, back and forth, weaving some foul art that none of them could make sense before it was completed?

His sharp-toothed smile locked onto the two of them, and his mouth formed unspoken sounds.

‘Tick tock.’

Map

Floor 1

---

_{@OwO@mantou@ERode@Majoras End}

Tetrad looked a little happier than normal to be talking with Apollo. But she became more serious once she realized what they were going up against. Due to her party girl nature, she wasn’t too concerned about the barrels of wine. Beer, wine, and spirits all had different alcohol content. And even the most flammable ones weren’t combustible. Most of the accidents you hear involving burning cocktails involve people spilling or splashing burning spirits. That wasn’t to say it wasn’t dangerous, but it wasn’t like someone could just light a match and set the wine cellar on fire. There was no doubt the pyromancers' open-carrying flames could probably set the stuff on fire, but it would take a truly powerful flame to make spirits combust like, say, gasoline. They just had to avoid getting splashed and they should be fiiiiiiine.

Tetrad thought Klava’s ideas sounded good, even if her assertive nature reminded her of another freelancer who also thought she was hot shit. Her smacking Apollo’s ass wasn’t even worth batting an eye at. Espers were pretty eccentric characters, and it wasn’t like she had planned on asking him out or anything so childish. As freelancers, their loyalty was to the dollar. But Marrie seemed like a good sort, and if Protector’s actions were anything to go by, he seemed like a cool guy too.

”Well.” She looked at Apollo. ”If the hashtag squad gets split up, I’ll hook up with the half you’re not looking after, okay?”

The older woman scoffed. ”Of course you’re a vagrant! What other sort of rabble would break into my employer’s home with the intent to kill him?" A grin spread across her face when Protector moved to stand beside Fable. ”But I’m glad ‘Bob’ has caught your fancy. Perhaps you’d like a demonstration?"

Steam blasted out of Bob’s shoulder joints. ”THE_LOW_BROW_FILTH_WILL_BE_DISPOSED_OF! EXTERMINATE!"

The Book of Souls is missing your names.

THE CLOCK SAYS 90 SECONDS

First Regret

LET THE MUSIC PLAY!

This happened while Bob pulled a keg off the rack beside himself and chucked it at Protector’s shield. Though just before it struck, the sniper fired a round straight through it. The entire Barrel caught fire, and when the barrel blew apart on impact, its contents were set ablaze.

The burning spirits splashed every which way around Protector’s shield, This included Fable, who Protector had chosen to stand beside. Protector would not be able to avoid getting burned, as some of the burning liquid made it over their shield and splashed against their arms. Unfortunately, the blessing did little to stop the effects of the magical flame from taking. Bob was already reaching for another keg to throw.

The other corridor was not idle though. The two men were not as strong as Bob was, but they united their efforts to pull a keg away from one of the walls.

”Hurry up!"The woman behind them snapped her fingers. ”He’s going to turn us into thralls if we aren’t ready for the 11:15 brunchen!"

Once they pulled the barrel out, they rolled it toward the espers at the other end. Eventually the barrel was moving faster than the men were, and seemed to be gaining even more speed as it continued to roll.They extended their hands, and the barrel was struck with two fireballs, setting it ablaze.The female pyromancer stood at the back, focusing her magic on a more intricate spell.

Tetrad

21 | Female | Maverick | Fortune
Pit Boss | Staff | Arcane | High Roller
Croupier | Graceful
Gambit | Gravity | Draw 4
[Weightless, Suspend], Stabilize, Damage, Push, Transplace, Extend, Heal, Zone, If: Friend, Else

DAMAGE: E | SPEED: C | SENTINEL: D | 750

PHYSICAL: E | ARCANE: C | CHAOS: D | 750

---

_{@The World}

Before Marrie even approached the goblins, they became aware of her existence as soon as her clip light shined in their direction. They started screeching about half way through her question. An experienced esper might forgive Marrie for assuming some vaguely humanoid creature had the capacity and desire to speak with her. But goblins ultimately chose to live below ground so that they didn’t have to regularly deal with people. They were weaker than almost every other type of monster, and being discovered by humans just meant it was a matter of time before espers came to exterminate their nest. They shouted at each other before running from the scene, carrying whatever they could from the “camp site.”

The catacombs started to beat like a drum. Marrie could feel the vibration in her feet. It wasn’t strong enough to be considered an earthquake, but something was moving in the general vicinity of her area. That, or something far away was moving, and it was large.

Then she would see it. A massive snake as black as asphalt with segmented yellow stripes going down it’s back. Its head bobbed side to side as it worked its limbless body through the open cave system. The stalagmites crumbled in its path, being ground to dust under the behemoth’s weight. As noisy as the Bate twins were, it seemed that the cry of numerous goblins was a more appealing snack to the giant snake. It wasn’t long before it spotted Marrie with its single eye, which shined like a headlight. It lifted its head into the air and opened its mouth. Its body swelled, sealing the catacombs up behind itself, before a deep hiss rolled out of its body. This was punctuated by its cobra-like mast opening, which was filled with spikes. But none of them were as long as its fangs, which were dripping with venom that burned holes in the cave floor.

Highway to Hell had arrived.

It's Thursday, my dudes!

WHY DON'T YOU GIVE HER A CALL

First Engagement

MAKE IT HAPPEN!

Marrie couldn’t backtrack, as the giant snake had come from behind her. And it was only getting closer with every passing second. The path up ahead split in two smaller ones. The goblins could still be seen scrambling down the left tunnel, but Marrie could hear the sound of a two-stroke engine running down the right one.

Symphony of Espers

Su "Breacher" Fang

Su had been running G.E.M.I.N.I operations with Fritzi for a long time. At least, long enough that the little oddities didn’t stick out to her anymore. In the past, she might have questioned the ethics behind using a blood mage they recently acquired, She might have followed up by asking what kind of deal Fritzi made with them to make them cooperate. She might have further gone on to question the importance of getting to Justin when they could just sit back and let Maverick and the freelancers do the work for them. But Su’s experience told her that the answers to those questions were not important at the moment.

She ran through the blood tunnel like it was the most natural thing in the world.

It was not often that Su found herself comparing China to the USA, but if there was one thing her country did right, it was establishing their government in a clear position of power. The reason why they were trying to beat the Freelancers was because the government was partaking in these silly games. Were this China, there would be no reason to beat the freelance espers to Justin. The populace would already know and respect the government's authority, and they would have no reason to kautau to the public. But the citizens of this country were more rebellious. They had too much freedom to do what they wanted, even to openly mock the government that protects them. And because of this, they were throwing themselves into the den of a lion, too soon and ill prepared for the occasion. Regardless, Su worked for the USA instead of China. As burdensome as everyone’s freedom made her job, it was one of the things she enjoyed about living here. It was like Jaquiline had told her, she could do whatever she wanted here. That was a liberty she would gladly bleed for, much like her squadmates standing beside her.

Upon entering the mansion, it seemed the first guard was both ready for them, and a bit eccentric to boot. While Su had little problem following English conversations, the vampire's eccentric way of speaking was hard for her to follow. She got the gist of it, probably. But there was a lot more to be concerned with than her understanding of the vampire’s rehearsed lines.

Su’s eyes scanned her surroundings. Anyone could tell there was something very wrong with the foyer. The obvious things were the hostages/sacrifices, and the calm demeanor of their opponent. But the most insidious features were the things they couldn’t see. The hostages were standing over what looked to her like a magic circle. It was likely the agents were powerless to alter their fate. Then there was the darkness that obscured most of the room. The center of the room in particular looked quite ominous with the lack of light around it. There was also the curious placement of the wardrobes, which was probably the worst place to keep clothes, but they did create a barrier that made it harder for an entering party to observe their surroundings. The perfect place to host an ambush, if not a trap.

There wasn’t much reason for Su to respond to the others. Jaquiline was on top of things, and spoke better English anyway. Su nodded at Jacqueline when she mentioned protecting the hostages. In truth, Su wasn't sure if a wall would be of much use She also made some hand signs. Like most special forces, G.E.M.I.N.I. agents were taught hand signals to communicate ideas quickly and often without alerting the enemy, Su’s massive shield made it pretty easy to conceal her hand from their opponent in the event he could read their hand signs. She told her allies of a possible ambush/trap from behind the wardrobes. It was likely the more experienced espers were already aware of this, but Su would hate for something to happen to Ashley. It was hard for Su to look at someone so young without thinking about Mika.

Su allowed her shield to slam into the floor, pointing towards the left most wardrobe. Her gun was ready in her right hand. ”Go ahead.” Her eyes narrowed. ”See what happen to your head.”

Su

32 | Female | Gemini | Steel Gaze
Bipartisan | Handgun, Greatshield | Physical | Bullet Window
Dragon Breacher | Kevlar Vest
Debris | Wind | Locally Sourced
[Storm, Flight], Push, Pull, Construct, Purify, Restrain, Damage

DAMAGE: D | SPEED: E | SENTINEL: C | 500

PHYSICAL: D | ARCANE: D | CHAOS: C | 500

Grimoiric Heart

Mmmmm, I think I'm gunna peace out of this RP guys. It was fun while it lasted, and I'm sure you'll all have fun obliterating the pageless in my absence.

Grimoiric Heart

I mean if you're worried about some arbitrary power level, then sure, app some story everyone's heard a bajillion times. There's nothing wrong with it. Though you do already have a legendary magical girl, so im not sure why you're scared of making a fable.

You can also just get creative with how your magical girl's fable affects her powers. Is stripes arguably the weakest magical girl in an RP about huge groups of girls teaming up and beating on bad guys? Yea. Does she have really niche situations where she can punch way above her weight class? Absolutely. Anyway, it's just the start of the RP and Stripes managed to save someone already, so I don't think fables are automatically powerless trash tier plebs.

Symphony of Espers

Operation #2 is live.

This is more of a setup/banter round than the start of live combat, so there's a bigger focus on establishing where your esper is in the scene than going HAM on mo-fos. For this operation, I'm heading the Maverick/Freelancer operations while Erode is overseeing the G.E.M.I.N.I. one.

You know the drill, now get'r done.

Symphony of Espers

_{@Ponn@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw}

Everyone giving their opinion on the plan caught Binky off guard. Her eyes grew a bit with each affirmation, jumping from agent to agent. That was when Jacqueline asked if there was even supposed to be a vote at all. ”Ah, that’s right, we don’t really have a choice here.” Binky relaxed her shoulders. ”Fritzi does not consider the main entrance ideal, even with the backing of a blood mage. But the situation is a tangled mess of outside pressure, poor timing, and politics. If we try to go through the Bastion, we will have to fight an unknown number of Maverick espers. Even if their forces are weak, they are using many freelance espers for this operation. While they are technically going against us, their goal is altruistic in nature. They would be cornered between Justin and G.E.M.I.N.I. forces, and subsequently slaughtered. Our relationship with the freelancers would tank further, resulting in a PR nightmare. We might not have jobs after that.” Binky sighed. ”So Fritzi opted to take a more direct approach to the attack. Now our point of entry won’t be anywhere near the freelancers, which just means we have to get to Justin first. In an ideal world we would have had more time to assess the mansion and it’s threats. But time is of the essence.” With a groan, Binky mumbled. ”I hate politics.”

Binky addressed everyone’s other questions, starting with Samuel. ”Assisting me with Justin is going to be lower on your list of priorities. I have slain elder vampires before, and I am confident I can do so again. It’s crucial we make sure that Justin cannot escape or call for reinforcements. Your main goal once I start fighting is to ensure no one else can interfere. That includes stalling the freelancers and dealing with any other hostiles. Barring that, you are free to assist with Justin’s elimination.” She closed her eyes. ”As for the blood mage, Lada is under surveillance by other non-esper operatives. Should she turn on us, there will be swift consequences. Though Fritzi has spoken with her, and has assured me that she will do everything in her power to aid our mission. Though we can’t expect her help once we get inside.” She looked to Ashley when she asked about the barrier. ”It’s going to be a tube that leads straight to the front door. I’m told even esper weaponry has a hard time penetrating it. You likely won’t be able to attack through it, but from what Iunderstand, Lada and the other agents will assist with any threats attacking the barrier. But you just have to run inside and clear the foyer. I’ll remain outside until you’ve dealt with that.”

And they wouldn’t have to wait long to heed Binky’s advice. Their van, along with several other vans, pulled up to the mansion. Most people might envision a mansion being a giant house on some open plot of land, but this one was in the center of the business district. It had all the hallmarks of a mansion, from an ornate fence to fantastic brickwork. But there was no courtyard to speak of. The fence bordered the sidewalk, and the fence itself allowed the gates to swing inward without hitting anything. Though it seemed Justin had stationed people in nearby buildings to fire down on the vans as they arrived. The espers could hear gunfire before the door to their van even swung open. Who knew how many blocks around the mansion belonged to Justin as well?

Breacher was the first to step out of the van, leading with her shield. It was hard to tell where the bullets were coming from, but it wouldn’t matter. One of the vans opened up and spilled several corpses onto the street. Some of the espers would recognize them as the slain members of Cobra Gang. At least they were before their bodies gelled and floated into the air as gobs of blood. The blood would gather around the outside of the mansion, forming a tunnel straight for the front door. The inside of the tunnel glowed red, as the barrier of blood seemed to glow under the rays of the sun. Non-esper agents got out of their vans and fired on enemy positions. They had already taken the front of the mansion, and were pushing to the back to cut off all obvious avenues of escape.

The G.E.M.I.N.I. espers didn’t need to be told what to do. They ran through the tunnel of blood until they reached the door at the other end. It was reinforced, but it was nothing Jacqueline would have difficulty prying open.

…

…

…

As they pushed open the steel doors of the grand mansion, what laid before them was a scarlet carpet and the droning notes of a grand organ. Screeching with a torturous beauty, the brass pipes sang their miserable dirge, chills running through the flesh of the assembled espers. One by one, flames burst to life, firelight casting ghoulish shadows over life-sized statues of men and women, their bodies contorted in expressions of fear as their cowering position remained petrified for eternity. Each statue stood opposite of each other, lining up all the way to the very back of the grand lobby, to the great organ whose music continued unabated.
More flames set alight, bathing the rest of the lobby in dark warmth and exposing the checkerboard tiles that made up the majority of the room. Right beside the door were two towering wardrobes, lined with purple embellishments, but more eye-catching were the twin pillars that stood to support the high ceiling of the mansion. Carved into the marbled ground around the pillars were sanguine grooves, concentric circles with the design of a six-petaled flower within, and chained to those same pillars were twelve human beings, their limbs tied together and cloth sacks pulled over their head. They twitched occasionally, but that was all the movement that they could afford.

Hostages? Sacrifices?

Above, on the second floor that two curving staircases lead to, a wall-sized painting glared down at them. Imperious and disdainful, Justin von Carnage’s portrait glared at them from above, while the organ music that had been weaving firelight over the lobby stopped abruptly, the unseen musician standing up to reveal himself.

He was a tall man, broad of shoulders and chest, dressed impeccably in a light gray vest and a black shirt, the fabric stretched to smoothness by the musculature behind. His silver hair was swept back in short spikes, while his beard bordered his square jaw. The only signs of his inhumanity laid in the canines that peeked past his lips, the golden eyes that held the weight of centuries worth of disdain. This was not Justin von Carnage. This was another, a monster trusted to serve as the vanguard, a monster tasked by the owner of this mansion to hold off the barbarians at the gates.

Without effort, his deep voice travelled the entirety of the lengthy lobby, rattling even the crystals of the gorgeous chandelier that was suspended up on the second floor.

_{“Tis’ a strange time we’re living in, where words can put fear in you.
Greed runs parliament interior, yet justice seeks to make inferior.
So halt, if you may, you thieves and stooges, and consider other pathways before decisive hysteria.
Alas, blinded by illusions to choose, balls remain chained to your shoes.
Step forth and I’ll claim their heads.
Step back, it’ll be yours instead.
I’m pained, a crying shame, but…
The pursuit of our own wealth lights a flame.
That makes greed a game that lets the whole world turn.
As the world turns, the whole world burns.
Pay the blood price, and their lives may yet be earned.”}

He clapped his hands.

The chandelier lit up, crystalline brilliance coating the entire room, yet leaving a conspicuous area of dimness at the very center of the lobby. Twelve lives laid on balance. But how many more would be at risk, if this caused the operation to stop before it even began?

Floor 1

---

_{@OwO@mantou@ERode@Majoras End}

Luna took a quick glance at all of the freelancers. She was a little bummed to see that Marrie wasn’t here, but that was probably for the best. She hadn’t become accustomed to killing yet, and asking her to fight a vampire and maybe G.E.M.I.N.I. simultaneously was likely more than her heart could handle.

But Luna got over the absence of her missing friend as soon as she realized most of the freelancers were guys. There was a boy, who was as cute as a button, and two total studs that had their faces hidden. Well, the one guy had no face, but there was a taller guy in armor. There was only one girl present, which had to be the one Trixy was dating. She was tempted to talk to her for that reason alone, but decided to hold off.

Then she said something intelligent, prompting her to do so anyway.

”A party is a great idea!” She marched up beside Klava. ”In fact, I think I’ll call the pizza place right now!”

Billy lowered his arm with a chuckle. ”I’m doubtin’ many pizza guys have got enough salt to come to a place swarmin’ with G.E.M.I.N.I. agents. But if we take Justin and force ‘em out of the mansion, y’all know I’m down for an after battle feast. Otherwise, the Bastion’s got plenty of room for all!”

While Billy was getting ready again, Luna approached Apollo. A man without a face was a bit hard to talk to. Humans were naturally programmed to look for faces, as they were pretty important for reading someone’s mood. Though it was impossible to tell where he was looking or if he was even okay with being approached like this. Not to mention his abbs were right there. Though she resisted the urge to gawk. Best to keep her eyes on the blank canvas that was Apollo’s face.

”You’re going to keep us alive, huh?” She extended her hand towards the faceless man. ”I’m Tetrad! I also fancy myself as someone who can keep people alive. Oh! Which reminds me!” She turned to everyone. ”Justin has been turning people into vampire thralls. I doubt anyone we fight is going to willingly surrender, but if you can get them in critical condition without killing them, I can cast a stabilizing melody on them. That should take them out of action.”

With the freelancer’s accounted for, it was time for the operation to start.

Billy was only a foot or two taller than Protector, so no one was sure what to expect when he punched the wall. But the result would surprise anyone who hadn’t seen a monster attack a building before. A single punch was enough to crumple a concrete barrier like paper mache. The concrete itself broke up into fist-sized chunks while the rebar bent like straw. The attack created some dust, but it just took a few seconds for that to clear out. Billy threw his shoulder into what remained of the wall, which cleared a path for everyone to follow.

Soon the path led to a garage door, which Billy didn’t even bother raising his hands for. He walked through it like it wasn't even there, popping the garage door’s rollers out of its tracks.

The next room was a wine cellar Each wall was loaded with keg after keg of wine, and the center of the room was divided into two separate paths with a row of barrels going down the middle. Halfway down the room, the center row of kegs had a gap in them that could allow people to walk from one path to the other. At the opposite end of the room was a narrow corridor that led deeper into the mansion.

At the end of the right path was an older woman in regal clothes, and her giant metal butler. The woman’s outfit was bright pink and was lined with furs from some long extinct animal. The giant butler was dressed in a tux, but his size and obvious metallic nature made him look strange. An astute observer would notice his outer shell had just been painted to look like clothing, but was some metal plating held together with giant rivets.

Upon the freelancer’s arrival, the woman looked up from the cup of tea she was enjoying. ”I do say! It looks like we have some interesting game to hunt today.” Her butler handed her a pink sniper rifle which she aimed at the incoming espers.

”JUST_MORE_VAGRANTS." The robot cast its hand towards the freelancers. ”TURN_BACK_OR_YOUR_ASS_WILL_BE_ASSIMILATED!"

The left path had three pyromancers. One was a red haired woman, while in front of her were two men with black and brown hair respectively. They were dressed like bartenders with black vests and little red bowties. Beside the flames burning in their hands, they didn’t seem to have any other weapons on them. They remained silent as they looked down the length of the room at the freelancers.

Billy nodded once he observed the area. ”Welp, ya can earn yer keep now. I’ll be hangin’ back ‘till Justin shows up.” Billy stepped out of the room. Probably for the best, as magi and exotic weapons weren’t favorable matchups for a monster like Billy.

Tetrad

21 | Female | Maverick | Fortune
Pit Boss | Staff | Arcane | High Roller
Croupier | Graceful
Gambit | Gravity | Draw 4
[Weightless, Suspend], Stabilize, Damage, Push, Transplace, Extend, Heal, Zone, If: Friend, Else

DAMAGE: E | SPEED: C | SENTINEL: D | 750

PHYSICAL: E | ARCANE: C | CHAOS: D | 750

---

_{@The World}

Traces of Marrie’s magic were visible on the broken concrete barrier she touched, but it wouldn’t become a true portal until she made another one for it to link up to.

”Oh-hoh! Sneaky! And before I forget…” Pac-A-Fist handed Marrie a small clip light. ”It’s kind of dark, so, how about you take this? It was just a few dollars at the convenience store, nothing spectacular.” While not as cool or sexy as their hand held counterparts, clip lights did keep both of your hands free and could be worn almost anywhere.

It seemed that Pac-A-Fist was going to be staying back, as she made no attempt to follow Marrie into the bowels of the earth. She’d have to make the trek alone, with the Bate’s distant arguing filling the silence.

The small tunnelway led into a much bigger one. This path appeared to be made by water runoff instead of some giant behemoth snake. The rows of limestone stalagmites would have been flattened by such a creature. But that wasn’t to say the space contained no life. Just ahead, the glow of a campfire illuminated a tent and about five goblins. It seemed that they had discovered the magic of jiffy-pop. One of them was heating up the plundered popcorn until all the kernels popped. Then he passed the prepared popcorn to one of his buddies before heating up more popcorn to eat. It didn’t look like they were going anywhere soon, and the goblins had a patrol going, perhaps on the lookout for the noisy espers in the distance.