@Holy Soldier I am still here, yes. Alive?...depends on the day. XD
Will get in a post as soon as i can.
And in any worst case scenario, i can whip up a Din character (only if you want/need one and are willing to accept). No issues there for me in such a case.
This also includes a facemask, ninja-style one, for purposes of hiding her features and most of her face.
Name: Sophia Andersen
Alias: Wonderland
Age: 15
Alignment: Hero
Loyalty: Wards
Appearance: A maturing girl with a sizeable bust and long, blonde hair that goes a bit down her back. She has soft skin and a very pale, caucasian skin tone, complimented by her hair and her vivid green eyes. She boasts a maturing, lean, and curvy frame, along with a very suitable metabolism for a hungry teenager. She keeps her fingernails trimmed to a normal length, a noticeable thing on the end of her long, slender fingers.
Her costume is black, with green lines and designs on it, a black cape, and a black ninja-like facemask to hide her facial features and most of her face both comfortably and effectively. The cape detaches easily if pulled on too hard, a safety feature to keep it from being a vulnerable point.
History: Sophia and her family have lived in Denver for half of her entire life, before having lived in the Southeast USA before moving due to work-related reasons for her father. Sophia has lived a rather charming middle-class life and with a generally good upbringing, and even her home life was normally rather calm life in many ways. Her father being a very adept computers/IT kind of guy, though, it eventually influenced Sophia into a bit of tinkering with computers and other things like robotics.
Her mother, a former ROTC student in her time, is a stay at home mom who isn't bad with a firearm in her hands (and has taught her some about cooking). Albeit, her mother was a 'bit' of an anime and robotics fan like her father (aka, two geeky things the parents bonded over before marriage actually). Sophia had an older brother who went into the Marines, named Jackson, and an older sister named Melanie who worked in Denver at a restaurant and is trying to save up to one day open her own food truck. Though her brother was usually gone most of the time, she and her older sister bonded over food and learning to cook it as well in what time they had around each other.
Aside from her personal hobbies and interests, she came to have overall good grades as a scholastically “average” individual among her peers. She did join the robotics club, though, but at the same time she has lately been gunning to get into the school's swim team (who have been promised a trip to hawaii this upcoming summer). School itself was interesting somewhat otherwise as well, as she had a few friends but also had a share of asshats around some of her classes as well. Once she even got punched in the face for trying to stop a bully, and then punched said boy between the legs in retaliation.
Since coming to Denver, her father's work pushed him harder than before, though, and he often would getting home very late into the night when all the others were asleep. A lonely kind of life, though Sophia many a time tried to stay up to greet him when he got home. It was one of the little, if not few, ways they tried to bond with each other...especially since it sometimes meant making a dessert together in the kitchen, or occasionally ordering out delivery if she hadn't had dinner yet.
And like many other kids, she has had some childhood incidents, none of them being strong enough to trigger her though. She has accidentally cut her face running with a knife, which left a scar on her right cheek too where she had to have stitches. Got bit by an angry neighbor dog back down south, but managed to kick its face enough to get it to let go so she could run. Accidentally set a small fire when wiring failed on a project...which was put out seconds later by her frightened mother who was coming to peek in on her with a glass of water in hand.
She even once tried to make a giant sandwich from a cartoon when she was 7, end result was a messy kitchen and a lot of slippery bologna on the floor. And several years later at 13 she later drunkenly made out with several female friends at a party, due to one friend spiking the fruit punch with a bottle of their parents’ stolen alcohol to make it "adult"...and see what happened to them all. It was an experiment to try to be “more adult”, as it were. This occurred much too their embarrassment and awkwardness for the next week after that. She nor her friends have since looked at fruit punch the same way again since, nor told their parents about that night due to the alcohol.
But whilst her life was seemingly to go well enough, one thing would come to change it forever: Behemoth. The Hero-Killer. An Endbringer.
This wasn't supposed to be happening.
The thought ran circles through her head, repeating itself like a demented mantra as she weaved through buildings in an attempt to escape.
Sophia had been separated from her family, gotten lost, and now the fight against that titanic monster was seemingly mere feet away from her. She stumbled outside, tripping, and suddenly it was all too close: the heat, the power effects, the noise.
Terrified, she stumbled backwards through a door, slipping on something wet and smacking down into a warm pool. In shock she turned about, following the trail of red around her...only to see the crushed, mangled, impaled bodies of her family.
”This can't be real, they can't be dead. It can't be, this isn't real! None of this can be happening!!!”
She couldn't believe it. She couldn’t accept what was going on around herself anymore. She Triggered.
Personality
She's someone with a strong will to live, but also a desire to "do something with herself" that she believes in. Loves her family members to death. She can geek out at times when the right things come into her path, and has a voracious appetite and love of food to match her high metabolism that keeps the fat burned off very well enough (she isn't some total pig for food, but she likes it).
She isn't a lazy kind of person, but also is not one who will say no to a nice nap either when she feels like she needs it. She’s someone who will stand up to things and others for what she believes in, and hold her ground even to try to help others, but also has a strong self-preservation instinct that can potentially conflict with this if the situation is intense enough.
Her mother tried to teach her about self-sacrifice a bit, good things like that, etc. Some of this has sunk in by the time of her trigger event.
She's someone with a strong will to live, but also a desire to "do something with herself" that she believes in. Now that she’s become part of the Wards, she plans to do her best to help others as best as she can. She loves her family members to death, and ever since their death she has tried to “move forward” from that point...though the wounds of that are still lingering within her. Its something she has pushed forward to try to overcome, and her strong will has helped a good bit so far. She’s also someone who will stand up to things and others for what she believes in, and hold her ground even to try to help others, without hesitation. She also has a strong self-preservation instinct, albeit one that has been somewhat more diluted since her triggering.
After the loss of her family, she has been more humbled as well, taking seriously into mind her mother’s words about self-sacrifice and such lessons.
She can also geek out at times when the right things come into her path, and has a voracious appetite and love of food to match her high metabolism that keeps the fat burned off very well enough. This being said, when not using her powers she lives for the majority of days that are “okay days” and very rare “good days” where she feels the most normal and capable. She has even made a system of writing notes and tinkering with her phone to help her remember/remind her of things and better handle the “bad days” whenever they hit her.
She isn't a lazy kind of person, but also is not one who will say no to a nice nap either when she feels like she needs it still. This being said, on the “bad days” she tends to do a few small things to make them more “comfortable”, such as wearing noise-dampening (but not canceling) headphones to be able to handle the outside world, as well as a pair of sunglasses to deal with light issues. Memory-wise she tends to jot notes into her phone these days, though the mildness of the memory issues aren’t too hard for her to handle otherwise.
In regards to her power, her stubborn self has dedicated a lot to resist the addiction of her power. Use it once or twice a day to make most days okay, perhaps a form of personal training, and then leave the form to train coping with that addiction. That being said this “addiction” her power pushes on her is called that for a reason, but at the same time one can’t call her lazy in her efforts either.
Motivations: She wants to become a hero, a big hero, a real hero who can help protect more people from Endbringer attacks. She can’t reverse what happened to her family no matter what, she knows that even though it hurts, but she wants to help others in that case. Though forced to accept her humanity and mortality by the death of her family, and such things, it seems to have made her resolve that much stronger overall in part as well.
Sexuality: Bisexual
Likes:
Robots
Vacations
Naps
Sandwiches and Cooking
Dislikes:
Sauerkraut
Behemoth
“Bad Days”
Backstabbers and Bullies
Parahumanism
Skills: Cooking and Robotics are her two strongest areas of skill, ones which she enjoys quite a good bit. Even on the “bad days”, some recipes for her are virtually on the level of instinct when it comes to her cooking.
Classification: Breaker sub Trump | Shaker | Master
Details: Wonderland can enter a breaker state centered around an elemental 'theme', creating a relatively large area of effect. The form's appearance is dictated by the chosen element, such as a smokey ghost-like appearance for Fire and a frozen statue for ice.
When in this form, Wonderland has access to a wide array of abilities centered around the chosen element, including:
Minion creation, which instinctually protect her and attack hostiles.
Elemental Blasts and Waves.
Constructs such as Walls and other simple structures.
The longer she maintains the form the larger in size she grows, and the stronger her abilities grow. She can also chose to activate a "elemental rain" effect, though with the knowledge that it will eventually become devastating and should be used as a last resort.
Upon the time limit being reached, Wonderland's breaker state will erupt in a powerful, but normally non-lethal, explosion of the element.
Limitations: The breaker form has a relatively short limit of ten minutes. Upon reaching that time limit and forcibly ejected explosively, Wonderland will be left unconscious for several minutes. -Her range of influence is set at 500 feet. In order to move her influence, she must exit her breaker state.
-This alone is not easy as the power is addictive. For the first several minutes of her state, her minions, blasts, waves, and — if she chooses to deploy it — rain abilities are all fairly weak. They may knock someone over, but they're slow, easy to avoid to someone paying attention. By the end of those first few minutes things begin to hit harder and move faster.
The middle minutes things have the power to punch holes in walls, crack bones, and move faster. They're more powerful, but they're harder for the cape to control, to direct, to be accurate.
The final minute things ramp up to being lethal in the right direction. They will crack bones, they will break things, and the minions are fast enough that they're hard to evade and still focus on fighting offensively. This stage enemies are left on the defensive, and this is when Wonderland could start releasing massive attacks through her rain.
-Her form, being elemental, is incredibly hard to damage without elemental attacks themselves, and she can't be forced out of the form this way. It can disrupt her focus, however, and force her to focus on piecing herself back together.
-Debilitated when outside of the breaker state on “bad days”: Sensitive to bright light and loud sound (she usually wears noise-softening headphones for this and sunglasses), mild memory issues, and what amounts to ADHD. Frequent use of the breaker state makes the bad days rare and the okay days (where these are all barely noticeable) more frequent. There aren’t really good days where everything's perfect again, though.
-If she used her powers, say, twice a day she gets the "okay days" the next day. This was the case at first, at least. By this point in time, two months later after Behemoth’s attack, she has more “okay days” than she used to have after using her breaker state.
Equipment:
-Protectorate Communication Earpiece
-Holographic Computer Interfacing Tool built-in to her costume (courtesy of Decoy)
Its very tempting to join for a simple seeming, fun, and easy beat em up in the street kinda game.
I can submit a rather tentative interest, but i gotta sleep on it to say for sure so i don't rush myself too fast one way or the other (since i am in a few RPs). @_@
Title(s): “Trickster of Ancient Greece”, “That Asshole”, “Hey Didn’t He Steal My Cows?”
Class: Assassin
Gender: Male
Attribute: (This will be given to you upon approval.)
Era: Age of Gods
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Personality: Someone who would inevitably be considered a “troll” of the highest tier in the future, enjoying making black of white, framing others, and performing thievery and other sorts of mischief. He is a sneaky kind of “asshat” who can usually be seen in an upbeat mood and smiling, but don’t let his mischievous and playful nature fool others into thinking him as being ‘dull’ as he wants them to believe. The man is a clever individual who fooled even “he who tricked the gods and was sent to Tartarus for it”, and his machinations are not something to sneeze at the more serious he gets about things.
He does have a sense of pride about being “the best thief ever”, though if he felt it came to his survival or pushing just a bit too far for his own self he’d keep his lips shut tight. Further, he adores one-liners and terrible puns, especially when seeing the frustrations and eye-rolls of others...though if they laugh along with him genuinely he does appreciate the humor. He both is willing to help, as in the case of teaching Heracles and naming his grandson Odysseus, but at the same time is less concerned about the after effects and consequences of his actions unless they personally will affect himself. Though as a servant...one can say his desire for the Holy Grail is very selfish indeed.
-Hides one's presence as a Servant. Suitable for spying. It is possible to disappear completely and become almost impossible to be detected, even against a Servant's perception. However, efficiency will decrease once preparations to attack are taken.
Effectiveness does not lower when he is thieving/stealing, however.
Personal Skills:
Misdirection: -
-The faculties of a true master trickster and thief. Turning good into bad and bad into good, to throw things into disarray, redirecting punishments and blame and even fate itself away from one's self entirely, and to bring misfortunes to others and take great fortunes into one's self. Like a stone tossed in the path of a hapless traveler, enemies are tripped up and tricked, the wise are made foolish, the vigilant are blinded, and all are deceived to no end until they are brought to ruin.
Autolycus can escape any and all retribution or punishment, redirect curses away from himself to others, overturn order and bring about chaos and utter disarray, shift the threads of fate and blame about, steal from under the watch of even the most keen and discerning without being caught, and even trick and fool even the wisest among men even if the world went mad. He can always make black of white, and white of black, a horned animal into a hornless one, and from a hornless one into a horned one. The depths of his trickery are a mystery, and shall go down in history. Even the greatest of heroes are not immune to him.
Divinity: B
-is the measure of whether one has Divine Spirit aptitude or not. At high levels, one is treated as a mixed race of a Divine Spirit, and the level declines when the Heroic Spirit's own rank as a Monster or Demonic Beast raises. It can also decrease due to one's dislike for the gods. Those who have A Rank Divinity or above have reached the Throne of Gods. It also has an effect which reduces special defensive values called 'purge defense' in proportion to the Divinity's Rank. It can break through Skills such as Protection of the Faith and Enlightenment of the Sacred Fig.
He is a son of the god Hermes and the mortal woman Chione.
Pankration: A+
-Ancient greek martial arts, including what in modern times would be called wrestling and boxing.
He is the man who taught Heracles himself how to wrestle, and was able to survive the ordeal to boot. He is a highly skilled individual in this area.
Noble Phantasm:
Name: Helm of Invisibility
Title: “Cloth Garb of Concealment”
Rank: E
NP Type: Anti-Unit
Range: 0
Maximum Number of Targets: 1
Description: Normally kept in the form of a sash, anything covered or enclosed by the cloth cannot be observed through magecraft and optical means. Using optical magic to block all forms of magical detection and any presence of magical emanations from the wearer, it is incredibly effective against those relying solely on magecraft to detect enemies. It does not obscure sound, smell, body temperature, or the wearer's tracks, so its usage is mostly situational. Without such indicators being readily apparent, it is possible to easily walk by enemies while keeping quiet, and it allows for the easy kidnapping of others through Bounded Fields without detection. While in its sash form, it can be held by multiple people at once, and it can wrap up itself automatically to return to its cap form. The cloth of which it is made of is of a very complex weave estimated to have "reached five dimensions", and complete reproduction of the cloth is impossible for humans.
-------
Name: Formshift
Title: “Make Black of White and White of Black”
Rank: B
NP Type: Anti-Unit
Range: -
Maximum Number of Targets: -
Description: Autolycus was granted the ability to change the form of himself and other things. In this he would be able to hide the things he stole, as well as himself, as he desired. It is considered a power evolved from “Shapeshift”, and is the blessing of a god that combined with the potency of his Presence Concealment makes it possible to fool even keen-eyed and clever foes. The transformations he undergoes or applies to other things lasts for as long as Autolycus desires, just as it was in legend, though. Changes he can apply can even be as simple as altering the color of an object or himself in “transforming” it.
Autolycus is efficient enough overall that he has no issues using this Noble Phantasm in general use.
After speaking with Regina, Soth had moved his final pieces into the now-sealed crypt. Specifically, onto the single, great lower level that had been dug into it when it was originally built. A great and spacious room, its floors and very walls were covered in sigils and symbols of strange and alien make, defiling what had once been a resting place for the dead with nothing short of a Greater Horror's influence. Dark forms, some walking on fours, some moving about on long yet slender tendrils, and others moving about in cloak and hood as they skittered about in anxious anticipation of what was to come.
In the center of it all lied a stone-carved altar, carved with immaculate and inhuman levels of skill. Designs of eyes and tendrils caressed the altar's curves protectively along the sides, almost seeming alive, as dark sigils glowed upon it with a black yet soft light. Edges of it were inlaid with gold, silver, and jewels originating from Earth and other alien worlds. It was indeed a sight to behold, and lying on top of it was the most important part. A large white sheet, under which the still form of a human corpse could be perceived. The body of a dead magical girl, prepared with implanted organs and fluids and magic beyond what mankind could hope to grasp...at least, not without going utterly mad in the process. Multiple beings were looking over it, making magical marks upon the sheet and speaking to each other in a hushed but alien tongue.
Further, the room was lit in an eerie glow, purple orbs around the area lighting it up well enough to easily make one's way about.
'Good, good! Now then, it is time to begin the ritual. Now.
Our guests are being entertained, and deployment from the school to targeted areas is going smoothly. The fodder is doing its job nicely as well.'
The Greater Horror's words rung against the walls, an eerie echo that bounced about the greater chamber like it was some kind of chasm.
A certain magical girl, who had been leaning against the far wall across from the stairs since her arrival, then stepped forward. White hair glowed softly in the light, and her red eyes were a striking fire amidst the fleeting shadows. An orb floated next to her, inky black like the abyss it had come from, and her attire stood out like some kind of cultist garb. However her face wore a mixed expression, filled with concern and worry, and tinged with hints of curiosity and frustration alike.
"Boss...you'e not saying everything. I've helped you all this time, and nothing's been bad i mean, but after getting here i've been getting a strange feeling more and more.
I want to know what is really going on here...what is this ritual supposed to do? Are you just making another magical girl?"
Annabelle's words caused the great horror to seemingly take a brief pause, and the air seemed to ripple about her as if something was...thinking. No, debating something? It was hard to read the mood of a Greater Horror all of the time, even when one had been mentally warped by him. Monster parts, people parts, tricking her, and now the body of a magical girl?
'Listen well, young ones.
For the longest time, i have destroyed worlds, removed civilizations. I have seen the stars be born in all their brilliance, only to watch their lights fizzle out into an empty abyss.
When i emerge in full, the erasure of what i touch is inevitable.
So I eventually came to a curious question...what would it be like to experience things myself? To see all of this through a mortal’s eyes, without any danger to myself?'
As he spoke, Soth produced several tentacles from a portal forming on the ceiling of the chamber, and several eyes came out alongside them. One tentacle gestured towards the sky somewhat, as if to help illustrate his point. His tone, as ever, seemed relaxed and cordial, though somewhat perplexed if not fascinated in a fashion as well.
’Thus i came here, this little planet so many seem to glance at with...opportunity. You may call them gods, or ‘lesser forces’, or ‘puuchu’, or ‘horrors’, but regardless their petty squabbles have been most amusing to watch. Such narrow perspective...so, mortal. So much like the sapient flesh-bound creatures dominating most of the planet, i sought out a mortal of my own.
Eventually, i found a mortal compatible with my power, fueled with the desperation and despair that made them a worthy candidate. So i extended myself to them, sought to make them a vessel, an avatar if you will....'
Soth’s eyes seemed to then look between the body on the altar, and then to Annabelle, before he continued once more.
’….but the first one failed miserably. Of course, that failure was what became you, “dear” Annabelle. Of course, it was but an experiment, nothing that which has seen the movement of all time would dare to fuss over.'
Annabelle’s face went as pale as a ghost at the words, and a tremble rocked through her body. She...she hadn't been intended to be a magical girl?! W-What had happened at the stadium made sense then....she was part of him, he was part of her. But then-!?
’Yet after that event I searched for this place, a nexus of magical energy and phenomenon, and brought my influence here.
I secured the essence of spirits, the parts of monsters, the furnished flesh of some humans….
I also acquired a black coin from a foolish member of the Ebon Mint as well, and finally now this body of a deceased magical girl to infuse it all with.
All of this to make...a more useful one ultimately, one even more compatible with containing some of my essence to act as an avatar.'
"Then why am i here?! Why keep me a-around if i am some...some failure! Why want me here at the ritual site if you have all you need-!"
Before Annabelle could finish her outburst, tears nearly coming out of her eyes as the anger and frustrations finally peaked within her, the voice of the Greater Horror cut of her off in a heartbeat.
'Because, young one, you have been of great use to me...and the greatest purpose you can serve is here and now.
The body cannot be made my avatar if it remains...deceased. And your life force is most fitting for this task of reviving this deceased form. After all, you survived the failed possession of your body, though your past was quite lost in the process. I had to rebuild that personality and such things, even.
Then as agreed, once i am within my avatar your body will be released from my service and handed to that 'Regina Bates' as she calls herself.’
As the horror finished, Annabelle acted instinctively and attempted to lash out at the altar itself with magic from her left hand. It was an action that came from the basest desire of humans, that primal urge that had led their species to take over this planet...life. The will to live, to continue onward, to avoid the penalty of death, as it were. Equally as fast, the tentacles of the greater horror appeared from the orb next to her in a heartbeat, grasping her left arm. Then another tentacle shot out and grasped her right arm, then another to wrap around her mid-torso, and then two more respectively to grab each of her legs.
The tendrils held on with a tight grip, gentle enough to not break her body, but hard enough to stop her movements physically. The inky black orb moved around behind her, holding her up in the air by the tentacles themselves. It was like she had been chained to a wall, but in this case it was the tendrils of her own patron tying her down and keeping her still. Like a parent, scolding a foolish child.
"You...you bastard!!! You lied to Regina...you lied to all of us dammit!" Annabelle shouted, teeth gritted in a look of pure rage as she attempted to struggle against her bonds, albeit fruitlessly in this case, "You knew what your were saying, you knew it all along!"
'I lied not in my promise to her, though i fear the human tongue has failed to convey the true nature of her agreement with myself. One cannot truly say i lied, for i told nothing but truth to all of you. The fault lies with this 'language', though the concept has its useful points.
But it is truly nothing to worry about. In fact, i must thank you all, if i am to properly practice and learn about mortal standards for after my incarnation.
With this, i shall grasp many a good millennium of amusement from examining the mortal condition. To see that which will only return to my domain in due time, but through another lens i have not yet been able to see through. Albeit, it will be fascinating to see if this world can handle my arrival, haha!
Though even if it does not end up so, i have anchored this place here in space-time just in case. It is but one world among the sea of stars, but this mere token of my power guarantees my vessel remains intact at least. You mortals would call it a 'precautionary measure', as it were.'
Annabelle merely glared back daggers at the Greater Horror as he spoke, before a small but swiftly growing laugh rung out from Soth himself.
It was an almost guttural and primal sound, inexperienced, something unlike any other she'd heard from him or others before. It reverberated through the earthen walls, through even the walls of the crypt itself. Those close enough to the crypt could perhaps even hear it as well, almost like an earthquake as it shook the land. The calm and ever-existent cordiality never seemed to fade with this Horror, but this was different. It felt like more than that...like a child learning to laugh for the first time after seeing a goofy cartoon.
It was the most terrifying thing she had ever witnessed in her life.
After speaking with Regina, Soth had moved his final pieces into the now-sealed crypt. Specifically, onto the single, great lower level that had been dug into it when it was originally built. A great and spacious room, its floors and very walls were covered in sigils and symbols of strange and alien make, defiling what had once been a resting place for the dead with nothing short of a Greater Horror's influence. Dark forms, some walking on fours, some moving about on long yet slender tendrils, and others moving about in cloak and hood as they skittered about in anxious anticipation of what was to come.
In the center of it all lied a stone-carved altar, carved with immaculate and inhuman levels of skill. Designs of eyes and tendrils caressed the altar's curves protectively along the sides, almost seeming alive, as dark sigils glowed upon it with a black yet soft light. Edges of it were inlaid with gold, silver, and jewels originating from Earth and other alien worlds. It was indeed a sight to behold, and lying on top of it was the most important part. A large white sheet, under which the still form of a human corpse could be perceived. The body of a dead magical girl, prepared with implanted organs and fluids and magic beyond what mankind could hope to grasp...at least, not without going utterly mad in the process. Multiple beings were looking over it, making magical marks upon the sheet and speaking to each other in a hushed but alien tongue.
Further, the room was lit in an eerie glow, purple orbs around the area lighting it up well enough to easily make one's way about.
'Good, good! Now then, it is time to begin the ritual. Now.
Our guests are being entertained, and deployment from the school to targeted areas is going smoothly. The fodder is doing its job nicely as well.'
The Greater Horror's words rung against the walls, an eerie echo that bounced about the greater chamber like it was some kind of chasm.
A certain magical girl, who had been leaning against the far wall across from the stairs since her arrival, then stepped forward. White hair glowed softly in the light, and her red eyes were a striking fire amidst the fleeting shadows. An orb floated next to her, inky black like the abyss it had come from, and her attire stood out like some kind of cultist garb. However her face wore a mixed expression, filled with concern and worry, and tinged with hints of curiosity and frustration alike.
"Boss...you'e not saying everything. I've helped you all this time, and nothing's been bad i mean, but after getting here i've been getting a strange feeling more and more.
I want to know what is really going on here...what is this ritual supposed to do? Are you just making another magical girl?"
Annabelle's words caused the great horror to seemingly take a brief pause, and the air seemed to ripple about her as if something was...thinking. No, debating something? It was hard to read the mood of a Greater Horror all of the time, even when one had been mentally warped by him. Monster parts, people parts, tricking her, and now the body of a magical girl?
'Listen well, young ones.
For the longest time, i have destroyed worlds, removed civilizations. I have seen the stars be born in all their brilliance, only to watch their lights fizzle out into an empty abyss.
When i emerge in full, the erasure of what i touch is inevitable.
So I eventually came to a curious question...what would it be like to experience things myself? To see all of this through a mortal’s eyes, without any danger to myself?'
As he spoke, Soth produced several tentacles from a portal forming on the ceiling of the chamber, and several eyes came out alongside them. One tentacle gestured towards the sky somewhat, as if to help illustrate his point. His tone, as ever, seemed relaxed and cordial, though somewhat perplexed if not fascinated in a fashion as well.
’Thus i came here, this little planet so many seem to glance at with...opportunity. You may call them gods, or ‘lesser forces’, or ‘puuchu’, or ‘horrors’, but regardless their petty squabbles have been most amusing to watch. Such narrow perspective...so, mortal. So much like the sapient flesh-bound creatures dominating most of the planet, i sought out a mortal of my own.
Eventually, i found a mortal compatible with my power, fueled with the desperation and despair that made them a worthy candidate. So i extended myself to them, sought to make them a vessel, an avatar if you will....'
Soth’s eyes seemed to then look between the body on the altar, and then to Annabelle, before he continued once more.
’….but the first one failed miserably. Of course, that failure was what became you, “dear” Annabelle. Of course, it was but an experiment, nothing that which has seen the movement of all time would dare to fuss over.'
Annabelle’s face went as pale as a ghost at the words, and a tremble rocked through her body. She...she hadn't been intended to be a magical girl?! W-What had happened at the stadium made sense then....she was part of him, he was part of her. But then-!?
’Yet after that event I searched for this place, a nexus of magical energy and phenomenon, and brought my influence here.
I secured the essence of spirits, the parts of monsters, the furnished flesh of some humans….
I also acquired a black coin from a foolish member of the Ebon Mint as well, and finally now this body of a deceased magical girl to infuse it all with.
All of this to make...a more useful one ultimately, one even more compatible with containing some of my essence to act as an avatar.'
"Then why am i here?! Why keep me a-around if i am some...some failure! Why want me here at the ritual site if you have all you need-!"
Before Annabelle could finish her outburst, tears nearly coming out of her eyes as the anger and frustrations finally peaked within her, the voice of the Greater Horror cut of her off in a heartbeat.
'Because, young one, you have been of great use to me...and the greatest purpose you can serve is here and now.
The body cannot be made my avatar if it remains...deceased. And your life force is most fitting for this task of reviving this deceased form. After all, you survived the failed possession of your body, though your past was quite lost in the process. I had to rebuild that personality and such things, even.
Then as agreed, once i am within my avatar your body will be released from my service and handed to that 'Regina Bates' as she calls herself.’
As the horror finished, Annabelle acted instinctively and attempted to lash out at the altar itself with magic from her left hand. It was an action that came from the basest desire of humans, that primal urge that had led their species to take over this planet...life. The will to live, to continue onward, to avoid the penalty of death, as it were. Equally as fast, the tentacles of the greater horror appeared from the orb next to her in a heartbeat, grasping her left arm. Then another tentacle shot out and grasped her right arm, then another to wrap around her mid-torso, and then two more respectively to grab each of her legs.
The tendrils held on with a tight grip, gentle enough to not break her body, but hard enough to stop her movements physically. The inky black orb moved around behind her, holding her up in the air by the tentacles themselves. It was like she had been chained to a wall, but in this case it was the tendrils of her own patron tying her down and keeping her still. Like a parent, scolding a foolish child.
"You...you bastard!!! You lied to Regina...you lied to all of us dammit!" Annabelle shouted, teeth gritted in a look of pure rage as she attempted to struggle against her bonds, albeit fruitlessly in this case, "You knew what your were saying, you knew it all along!"
'I lied not in my promise to her, though i fear the human tongue has failed to convey the true nature of her agreement with myself. One cannot truly say i lied, for i told nothing but truth to all of you. The fault lies with this 'language', though the concept has its useful points.
But it is truly nothing to worry about. In fact, i must thank you all, if i am to properly practice and learn about mortal standards for after my incarnation.
With this, i shall grasp many a good millennium of amusement from examining the mortal condition. To see that which will only return to my domain in due time, but through another lens i have not yet been able to see through. Albeit, it will be fascinating to see if this world can handle my arrival, haha!
Though even if it does not end up so, i have anchored this place here in space-time just in case. It is but one world among the sea of stars, but this mere token of my power guarantees my vessel remains intact at least. You mortals would call it a 'precautionary measure', as it were.'
Annabelle merely glared back daggers at the Greater Horror as he spoke, before a small but swiftly growing laugh rung out from Soth himself.
It was an almost guttural and primal sound, inexperienced, something unlike any other she'd heard from him or others before. It reverberated through the earthen walls, through even the walls of the crypt itself. Those close enough to the crypt could perhaps even hear it as well, almost like an earthquake as it shook the land. The calm and ever-existent cordiality never seemed to fade with this Horror, but this was different. It felt like more than that...like a child learning to laugh for the first time after seeing a goofy cartoon.
It was the most terrifying thing she had ever witnessed in her life.
The girl gasped for air with the first sudden boot kick to her ribs, her eyes shooting open as some adrenaline was dumped into her body. She hastily looked up at the...oddly dressed and mad sounding individual who had kicked her. That and a campfire that was long cold and put out. It was far from Joy's warm bed and lusty company, but at the same time she'd expected something to happen eventually like this. Well...ok, not this specific situation whatsoever, but merely waking up to find herself in another location. Perhaps by the graces of a certain "Lord Talus" as it were, which is where she placed her guesses.
As the elf pulled back for another kick, Aerith instinctively rolled away. At least, before trying to get up off of the forest floor. It took a minute to get herself up and properly steadied, her body reeling from the sudden change in sleeping spot it had become accustomed to for...she couldn't tell how long really. She could recall all her time spent with Joy, just not how long it had even been. Perhaps a side effect of whatever space they had been in? She couldn't tell for sure, but she was glad she had her clothes on right now.
"I sure as hell don't get off on masochism, if that's what you are thinking," the girl said casually, at the same time attempting to catch her breath as she stood tall and observed both her surroundings and this strange new figure.
However, based on her time with Joy and what she'd thought about in the meantime...yeah. She had a few guesses as to what this man meant, and a lot of questions to go along with it. Among the latter were questions such as 'where the hell am i' and 'what kind of witch did you get in bed with to be like this'. More things were along the lines of 'where are Chieko and Hiro' among a few select questions beyond those about her immediate situation. Yet she also needed to think this through, even if for just a moment to gather her words right. She took a second to think back on what Joy had said about where they were, at least after she had first arrived and met her, and what little she knew by this point as well.
Based on his words the nickname of "Lust" wasn't very surprising, however....she had to agree it kinda fit after the last while. She had been sleeping with a witch for heaven knew how long, and admittedly it had been the pleasure trip of her entire lifetime until this point. Not that it had all been "that"...just, er, stuff outside of talking or things not related to that. Admittedly the time had answered some questions, only to open up an overflowing cask of other ones yet to be answered (much less asked). It...ugh, it was all pleasure, power, questions, and like a big blur in regards to any sense of time in that place.
"I'm going to hazard a guess you meaning freeing a witch, but what do you mean by 'the city of water'? Some coastal city? And where are we right now?" Aerith said, following up with the first questions that came to her mind, breathing normally now as she finally focused her gaze more on the man in front of her.
Two survivors. Lilianna felt a wave wash over her body, and even some tension release from her shoulders. She'd had her mech scouring down to the forest floor for evidence, floating and crawling almost like a predator out for prey. It wasn't intentionally an eerie manner of searching, as much as an attempt to be in-depth to a certain extent in the searching just in case the beacons were off. But soon enough, however, the voice of Roxanne once again rang over the comms about finding two survivors and searching for the other agents. Lillianna's appendages and herself seemed to perk up at the latter thing.
"Ouroboros calling in, will continue to look for survivors. No life signs or signals found yet, but will keep you all updated."
Lilianna leaned back in her seat, letting out a slow but ultimately unnecessary breath. Against the interior lightning of her mech, the strong corpse-like color tint on her skin stood out like a sore thumb, as did her expression of mixed relief and exasperation at the situation.
So far...things seemed to be going ok. No one had found out what she was just yet, or seen her outside of a mech.
Maybe, just maybe, she could prove herself here and then...ah. Perhaps she was getting a bit hopeful there, and to the one who had been her caretaker the signs of that hope were as obvious as daylight.
"....Hope isn't a terrible emotion to feel, but you have gotten at moderating these things since we first met at least." Dr. Chamberlin's floating form said, robotic voice ringing with the tint of empathy.
Lilianna's body jerked slightly at the doctor's words, stopping her mech cold for a moment. A tremble. Then another tremble...and then she took another deep breath. Memories flashed in her mind for just a moment, some she...would rather not have wanted to recall at this point in time. Or ever again, for that matter.
"Apologies...i didn't-"
It was then that the Undead Gazer heard Maria's announcement over the comms. The moth girl had found another of the mechs.
Lilianna immediately put her mech into gear, its many arms and thruster pushing it as it scrambled over to get to the scene. It was good news, potentially, but at the same time she was perhaps a bit desperate to get her mind onto another matter. Another topic entirely, for that matter.
"I am nearest to Maria's location, am en route to assist in investigation of crash site.
Maria, please hold your position until i get there."
Lilianna's tone was somewhat laced with tints of concern as she made her message over the comms, as professional as she was trying to sound otherwise. The undead gazer cursed at herself under her breath after getting off the comms, mainly for letting some of that mood leak in. However, more than this she was cursing those old memories for ever coming up from the abyss she had banished them to years ago. She cursed what had happened back then, what THOSE people had done, what the hell it had been like at that time.
The Kraken moved through the forest like a bat out of hell, however, until Lilianna eventually came upon the crash site as well. The tentacle armed mech pulled itself out of the treeline carefully, engaging flight mode fully again and beginning to calmly float over towards Maria and the crashed mech. The gazer took a few more unnecessary, yet calming, deep breaths as she made her approach before tuning into the comms once more. The last bits of the hectic emotions seemed to finally subside, all having been focused into her rush to get here to Maria.
This would be fine. The crash site seemed rather normal as she observed it through sensors and the like, though she hadn't taken a good view of the crashed mech yet. Besides, she couldn't hyperventilate herself into a coma even if the stuff came back. Her body was an immortal undead, something that in many ways was always going to be the same. In some ways...she was actually glad for that, to be frank.
"Maria, have you found signs of the pilot?" Lilianna spoke to the moth girl over the comms, just as she would be moving around to the side of Maria's mech to get a view at the crashed carapace.
Xaltwind,
Ryik,
Renose,
Joshua Tamashii,
Azure Bubbles,
Shazamrock,
Savo,
Tortoise,
AtomicNut,
Sigma
