ERode

✧ Talrae S2 ✧

Cecilia Tonitrus

_{Female | 17 y/o | Human}

Appearance

Slender with an ample bosom, Cecilia stands proudly at 5’10, her very countenance exuding the sense of someone who’s accustomed to being noticed. Her pearly complexion and vibrant amber eyes can frame her appearance as either cute or mature depending on her expression, and her hair, a pale lilac that turns silver in the right lighting, is left long enough to trail down to her waist. If Talrae was still a game, such a vibrant appearance could perhaps be overlooked, but now that they’ve fallen into a virtual reality composed largely of men who could afford the absolutely stupid price that the Talrae pre-orders went for, Cecilia’s appearance really draws more attention than she wished it did.

Background

Claire Silverstein was born into privilege as the daughter of the CEO of a pharmaceutical company with ties all over Europe. As far as the opportunities available to her were, she was largely free to make any of her desires manifest. Her parents spoiled her, after all, and while her childhood was spent in the olden countryside, where she could turn her fantasies of being a princess into reality, Claire quickly learned that if ‘objects’ could be obtained whenever she wanted, then the only thing that was valuable in the world were ‘skills’. At first, she learned ballet and piano and painting, skills to fuel her elementary school fantasies. Then she really got into dystopian YA novels and picked up a bunch of martial arts, while her parents found her a personal trainer who knew how to handle younger people. Junior high pulled her into the world of competitive team sports for a short stint, before the majority of her friends drifted into more artsy stuff instead, Claire following them into the glitz and glamor of the drama club. A ‘She Slays Dragons’ production later, and the young girl was hooked on musicals. It was as if everything was lining up for her, from her childish fantasies of being a princess to her late-elementary years of being enamored with badass choreography to her core desire for something beautiful, something tragic.

Her mother introduced a couple of her showbiz friends to her, and it was with their tales of the glittering stars of Broadway that convinced Claire she simply had to move to America. And of course, who were her parents to simply deny such a request? A few days of paperwork and a farewell party later, and she flew off to a private school in North America with a prestigious arts program, ready to stretch her wings for the next three years and see how far she could fly.

It turned out, she could only fly as far as she worked to. A half-hearted interest wasn’t enough. A half-baked passion wasn’t enough. So many things weren’t enough, and her passion began to burn like an obsession, Claire turning to as many outlets as possible for practice, some of them more ridiculous than the others. She was in her school’s drama program, got into a neighboring university’s Arthurian Society to try out medieval re-enactment, busked outside subways as a cover artist, joined a group of girls in her school in the creation of short films on a Youtube channel, made her own channel where she used the new Virtual Youtuber fad to create an excess of ten different personas, and did the same sort of acting in survival simulation games. Claire’s constant theatrics became her eccentricities, and she wore masks as easily as other girls her age switched to new outfits.

Somewhere along the way, her online circle of friends surpassed the amount of people she knew in real life, and when one group had managed to all snag a copy of the world’s first VRMMO, Claire hit them up, deciding to up her fantastical, dramatic shenanigans even further. Her school was setting up a modern dramatic production, after all, so some high-fantasy thing would be a good way of making sure there was some balance in her life. It didn’t take too long to convince her father to purchase one of the scalped pre-orders on E-bay for an exorbitant (but still insignificant) price, and on the launch day, the wannabe-actress found herself amazed at the virtualized fantasy before her.

Until the sky turned red and those bastards locked her in there.

Then she found herself worked up into a homicidal rage instead.

She didn’t have time to waste here, not while her body wasted in reality.

Character Status

Level: 14
Renn: 109
Experience: 0

Class: Lancer
Subclass: None

Attributes
Health: 22 [2200]
Mana: 33 [3300]
Strength: 30 (+5 Power Treads)
Agility: 60 (+5 Cutthroat Gloves) (+5 Skirmisher's Bucklers)
Intelligence: 0
Stamina: 10

Skills
Polearm Wielding 45
Acting 15
Beautifying 10
Music 5
Light Step 15
Sewing 30

Spells

Optical Mastery (6) _{User gains better eyesight during daytime, when the sun is present. They approximately gain 3 times clearer vision. Passive.}
Light-speed Escape (8) _{User's body automatically moves a medium distance away at the speed of light when they fall below 10% of maximum HP. Passive.}
Redeeming Glow (14) _{User glows in soft light for a few moments, restoring 500MP. 100MP.}

Actions

Sprint (1/Universal) _{User's running speed increases by a bit for a few minutes. 50MP.}
Charge (1/Universal) _{User charges shoulder-first, briefly stunning the first target hit. If the user is equipped with a shield, it deals low damage in addition. 50MP.}
Sidestep (1/Universal) _{User steps aside. Low chance of evasion. 20MP.}
Accelerate (5/Universal) _{User's movement speed increases for a bit. 200MP.}
Relentless (5/Universal) _{User removes 1 weak status effect on themselves. 200MP.}
Quick Reflexes (5/Universal) _{User gains +10 Agility for a while. Can only be used once a day. 200MP.}
Evade Missile (5/Universal) _{User evades incoming ranged attack with medium chance. 100MP.}
Greater Accelerate (10/Universal) _{User's movement speed greatly increases for a bit. 300MP.}
Greater Dash (10/Universal) _{User dashes to a close location incredibly quickly. High chance of dodging. 150MP.}
Bounty (1/Universal) _{User gains D10 extra Renn whenever they receive Renn from GM. Passive.}
Greater Bounty (5/Universal) _{User gains D10 extra Renn whenever they receive Renn from GM. Stacks with Bounty. Passive.}
Grand Bounty (10/Universal) _{User gains D10 extra Renn whenever they receive Renn from GM. Stacks with Bounty and Greater Bounty. Passive.}

Cleave (1/Lancer) _{User slashes out in a cone, dealing damage to nearby units infront. 50MP.}
Iron Pull (1/Lancer) _{User pierces target and pulls it in closer, dealing moderate damage. 100MP.}
Flexible (1/Lancer) _{Whenever an opponent misses a melee attack against the user, user may immediately move backwards or counterattack to deal low damage. Passive.}
Pole Jump (1/Lancer) _{User uses their polearm to lift themselves off of the ground and jump forward. Small chance of evasion and moves forward. 50MP.}
Devastating Charge (5/Lancer) _{User charges forward, ignoring all movement impairing effects. Deals heavy damage to a target. 200MP.}
Piercing Lift (5/Lancer) _{User pierces target and lifts it up, dealing moderate damage and disabling it. 100MP.}
Heavenly Talon Strike (5/Lancer) _{User jabs 3 times very quickly, dealing low damage the first 2 times and launching the target into the air with the third strike, disabling it for a bit. 200MP.}
Practiced Steps (5/Lancer) _{User gains a low chance to evade melee attacks if the target is holding a short-ranged melee weapon. Passive.}
Piercing Strike (10/Lancer) _{User pierces a single target firmly, dealing heavy damage and stunning it. 200MP.}
Shield-Breaker Jab (10/Lancer) _{User jabs out strongly, aiming for an equipped item. A defensive item equipped to target has a chance of breaking. 200MP.}
Polearm Mastery (10/Lancer) _{User's normal attacks deal additional damage. Passive.}

Items

Equipment
Zenon Spear (Uncommon) _{-10% MP Cost for Lancer Actions}
Cutthroat Gloves (Uncommon) _{+5 AGI}
Light’s Bane Cloak (Uncommon) _{Increase Hiding Chance}
Leather Armor (Uncommon)
Fancy Clothes (Uncommon)
Skirmisher’s Buckler (Uncommon) _{+5 AGI}
Power Treads (Uncommon) _{+5 STR}
Ring of Protection (Uncommon) _{Small Damage Reduction}
Teleport Ring (Common) _{Teleport small distance, once per day.}
Jewelry x2 (Common)

Boots of Travel (Uncommon) _{2x Walking Speed}
Langley’s Spear (Uncommon) _{10% Crit Chance}
Raincoat (Common)

Adventuring Gear
Tent (Uncommon)
Sleeping Bag (Uncommon)
Backpack (Common)
Sewing Kit (Uncommon)
Waterskin (Common)
Rope (Uncommon)
Flintstone (Common)
Charcoal (Common)
First Aid (Common)
Pots and Pans (Common)
Hatchet (Common)
Shovel (Common)
Small Knife (Common)

Consumables
Observer Wardx1_{When placed, allows User to telepathically see the area. Lasts 1 hour.}
Greater Red Potionx3_{Replenishes 50% of maximum HP.}
Greater Blue Potionx3_{Replenishes 50% of maximum MP.}
Green Potionx5_{Gives +10 Strength for 1 day. Cannot be stacked.}
Yellow Potionx5_{Gives +10 Agility for 1 day. Cannot be stacked.}
Potion of Mightx1_{All damage dealt is increased by 30 for one day.}

Food
Fruit Preservex5
Dried Biscuitx5
Nuts and Seeds x5
Dried Fruitx5
Salted Fishx5
Milkx5
Waterx10

Jigokuraku Academy

Zone 1

@Delta44@ShwiggityShwah@Scribe of Thoth@Stern Algorithm

Pixel Boy and Thunder Thighs vs The Mastermind: Stop the Runaway Bus!

Haruishi Mari

Staying in Zone 2, chasing after the now moving bus

As Mari noticed the bus start rolling away, she kept pace with the door, banging on it occasionally. "Hey. HEY! We had a deal! The other heroes have left! Now you have to leave the bus too!." At the time, she wasn't sure if she was negotiating with a 'teacher' or a 'villain', but now she was sure that he had villainous intent from the beginning. She chided herself for leaving a villain alone with a large group of civilians as she kept pace with the bus. As the bus accelerated, so did Mari as she kept looking for any sign the villain was going to comply. Still, as long as he had to focus on driving, he couldn't harm any civilians so easily. Mari decided to pick up speed, hoping she still had Kaito's boost. Soon she began to outpace the bus, as she headed towards rubble, looking for an exposed rebar she could pick up and use as a weapon. Ideally, she would pick up to three metal sticks, if possible.

Shun perked his head over the rubble as he heard the bus start moving, subtlety be damned. Of course! The villain sent the driver away so he could hijack the bus. Disregarding his earlier plan, Shun rounded the rubble and took off at a panicked sprint while the bus was still moving slow enough for him to catch up. When he was nearing the side of the bus, his stride turned into a leap; his body rapidly disintegrating into miniscule cubes before disappearing entirely. His quirk reassembled him on top of the bus near-instantaneously, where he dropped to all fours and frantically scrambled for something to grab onto before the acceleration caused him to slide off - an extended exhaust pipe or raised light on the roof's surface, anything he could get a firm grip on.

With the bus's own speed hampered by the driver's caution, Mari was easily capable of keeping pace with the bus, her legs pumping up and down, accelerating until she broke off from it to the nearest pile of rubble: that of a collapsed building. To the side, there was an uprooted stop sign that she may be capable of wielding despite its obviously unwieldy appearance. The chunks of rebar stuck in concrete appeared to be easier to grab, but rather than the slim poles she would have preferred, they were more squarish bits of concrete with bits of rust-coated rebar sticking out. More promising were broken plumbing that could be torn off the wall with some effort, but they ranged from plastic to copper and were definitively hollow. Mari could search more, but behind her, the bus was already turning elsewhere, the wheels turning faster and faster in order to avoid driving towards her, if nothing else.

If this was a public school bus, he doubtlessly would have fall off the moment he shifted onto the vehicle, but Shun was fortunate enough to grab onto a protrusion above the bus, where the rooftop emergency exit laid. It taxed his arms greatly whenever the bus made a turn, and his legs scrambled against nothing occasionally, however his small size worked to keep most of his weight ontop of the bus rather than off it. Now if only he could force open one of the windows or the exit, he'd have the small crack he needed to pixelate inside the bus.

But how would he do it?

Haruishi Mari

Staying in Zone 2, intercepting the civilian bus, attempting to stop it with a makeshift concrete-rebar hammer

Noticing that the bus was starting to pull away Mari abandoned her initial plan of finding three or four rebars, and instead opted to just grab one that still had a chunk of concrete stuck to the end, holding it like a sledgehammer. This might prevent her from reaching her top speed, especially now that Kaito's boost had worn off, but she could at least reach 75%, so 45 mph, probably. She began accelerating after the bus, hoping to cut off its escape. As she passes 30 mph, her back starts to emit arcs of electricity like normal, different from earlier when she had still had Kaito's boost. A puzzling detail that she would have to think about later. Her plan now is to overtake the bus, and then to run at the bus from the side, where the engine was located, as fast as she could and swing the concrete-rebar hammer at the engine, letting go of the hammer just before impact and peel off so that she doesn't receive any of the shock. In this way, the speed of the thrown object should create a collision powerful enough to destroy the engine.

Shun squirmed forward as he dangled from the exit, uselessly kicking his feet against the slick roof as he attempted to pull his body weight closer to the protrusion to reduce drag. These things don't open from the outside, do they? This was a pain. He didn't want to risk something crazy like trying to slip into the bus through an AC vent either, lest he end up recomposing himself in a dangerous position due to lack of space to travel through. But he also couldn't risk trying to pry open the exit with the bus swerving like this. Not that he'd likely be able to anyway. Shun peeked over the edge at Mari, who seemed to have picked up some kind of weapon. Possible solution. "Hey, break a window with that, yeah?!" he called, hoping to be heard over the hum of the engine and wind in his face. Except, she didn't look like she was aiming for a window. In fact, she looked like - was she aiming for the engine?!

Though the sockets of her arms protested against the sheer strain that accompanied building up centrifugal force for the hammer throw she had in mind, Mari's legs were more than up to the task, lightning arcing through the fog as she ran towards, then past the runaway bus. Twisting at the last second, she tossed the chunk of concrete like an oversized ninja star towards it.

The effects were immediate, both to the bus and to Shun himself.

Having seen what Mari was planning on doing from the rearview mirrors, the man in the too-small suit clicked his tongue and pushed on the brakes immediately, killing the engine as soon as possible. Above, that sudden shift in momentum took Shun by surprise, the side to side motion suddenly pushing him forward instead. Wrenched onwards, the wiry youth found himself tumbling over the protrusion, rolling over and over and over until he fell off the front of the bus.

At the very least though, they seemed to have stopped the bus from moving at all, a mass of heat blooming from the damaged engine from which a chunk of concrete remained embedded in.

Shun let out a yelp as he was flung from the front of the bus, curling up in a not-so-graceful attempt at a roll to cushion his fall. He rose to his feet unsteadily, both from the shock of the impact and the jitteriness brought on by the adrenaline rush he was currently hopped up on. He stretched his tired arms a bit as he flanked toward the door, keeping his eyes pinned on the front windshield to try and see what the villain was planning now that his transportation was disabled. The boy moved to wedge his fingers in and pull the bus door open from the outside just a crack, enough to let him pixelate inbetween the villain and the dummies. "Give up, you're cornered and outnumbered. Those hostages won't save you this time." He put on his best hero voice, but he really didn't look the part. He looked more like a child playing pretend as All Might.

Mari couldn't hear Shun over the din of her thunder and the bus' engine, but she did see him tumble off the front, causing her to reailze for the the first time that he had been on top of the bus. "Datari-san?!" She watched as he pried the bus door ajar and teleported in to face off against the large man inside. She needed to go in and help him. Kicking the car earlier helped Mari come to the conclusion that she needed weapons and tools to be effective, since her own body couldn't handle the force of her own high-speed collisions. She checked to see if her 'hammer' was stuck inside the engine, or if perhaps the concrete head had shattered on impact, liberating the rebar. If the hammer, or just the rebar, could be removed she would pull it out and either attempt to smash the bus door open with the 'hammer', or pry it open with the rebar.

In front, Shun's body reformed almost instantaneously, multi-colored dots of light translating themselves into the form of a young, spry land. Behind him, Mari was able to force her way into the bus as well, smelling of the smoke and exhaust-heat that was released from the decimated engine. After the heavy impact, that makeshift hammer had broken into more manageable bits, leaving her a piece of slightly-crooked steel the length of her forearm to wield. It certainly did seem as if the jig was up, and in the back of the bus, the proctor raised an eyebrow at Shun's declaration.

"Alright, alright," the large man said, unbuckling himself from the driver's seat, "I suppose two against one is far better odds than what it was to begin with." And, with one smooth motion, he pulled a gun out from behind his belt and fired twice into Mari's chest.

Two loud gunshots sounded through the fog as Kuuki, Hiroki, and Azukina deliberated on their actions, the violent burst of noise ringing over the general din of chaotic screams. Though the Beast that laid before them did not stir at all, their attention were simultaneously drawn down the road, where the fog lights of the bus still shone, much closer than it was before.

Between fully securing their current villain and investigating this new development, what would the trio choose?

Zone 3

@AdmrlStalfos19@Lugubrious
To say that it was a gross place was an understatement. Though there was no longer any human refuse flowing through, that terribly disgusting stench still lingered as Umi dropped into the sewers, her only proper source of light coming up from Goro’s warm gaze. The water that flowed through was murky and untreated, but as long as there weren’t any dangerous liquid components inside, she could certainly absorb it, at least temporarily. The dummies within were a boon as well, their voices echoing through the tunnels but all of them being relatively nearby. Three total, two children and an extra-large adult.

The greatest boon, however, was that parts of the metal rungs that must have been broken off by whatever disaster struck this part of Kirisama still remained, jutting out in a haphazard collection of somewhat-plausible foot and handholds. Though it would be completely unfeasible to reach the surface with this, perhaps she get high enough up that she could lift the dummies to a position where Goro could pull them up the rest of the way?

Before anything could be decided upon, however, something fell on Umi’s head.

Something black. Something wriggling. Something hard. With a scritchscratch, it moving its little legs around frenetically, chittering all along as its wings flicked, flicked flicked.

A cockroach.

A cockroach had fell on her, and soon, the sewer water and the whimpered cries for help from the dummies became wholly insufficient to mask the sound of other denizens of the sewers. Gods above, this place was infested.

Zone 5

@TheWindel@Sho Minazuki@zelosse
Before the Ruler could launch off into another speech to try to coax SOME sort of reaction out of the poor, terrified kid before her, another attack came from the fog, this time twin beams slicing through the fog and striking her right in the side. It seared through her thick fabrics and elicited a cry of pain (faked or not, you decide!) from her lips before she wheeled away from the path of the beams, her expression turning into overexaggerated wrath.

“So that’s how it is? Is this how you heroes deign to fight, as cowards hiding in the mist, launching off attacks at a distance? This disgrace shall not stand! Very well, if you lack the fortitude to stand in my presence, then I shall be the one to hunt you down! As the Apostle of the Apocalypse, Queen of the Lands of Shadow and Sin, may this awe-inspiring countenance be the last you see before being sent to the tainted waters of the Styx!”

With that, she left Kaito where he laid, her thick skirts and high heels and open parasol doing nothing to impede her mobility as the brunette sailed through the fog like a scepter, approaching Houki’s hiding spot quickly. The laser-shooting student would have only a few seconds to steel her resolve before the villainess was upon her.

Hopefully, that amount of time was enough.

Altera: Of Departures and Deliverance

Everything hurt. The human skull was one of the toughest bones in the body, and a goblin’s true physical might was still only that of a child, but everything still hurt. It was bursting down the base of his neck now, the spikes of pain that reverberated through his cranium. Nausea and dizziness were basic annoyances compared to the blood that was pouring over his face like a mask as the naked beast pounded with a frenetic pace, muddy waters splashing everywhere. He must have blacked out once, twice, maybe even more. It felt like an eternity.

But he committed. Matteo held on. Tight. Unbudging. A dead man’s grasp.

And the violence that Ash brought to reward his dedication ended everything in what must have been only a few seconds. The first slash cut into the goblin’s wrist as he lifted it up to block the blow. The second slash did as well. Then the third. Fourth. Fifth. Cutting away until fat coated the blade and she cracked through the arm and pounded away at the throat until thick redness bulged from the throat that bled internally and a dark, nauseous crimson spilled from the monstrosity. He gurgled, struggled still for another five blows, and then slowly, painfully, grinded to a stop. Monstrous as he was, he was so much smaller in death than he had been in life.

It was the deathrattle of his ally that made the goblin hesitate in his bareknuckled assault on Muu, giving her the opportunity to crack a stone against the monster’s skull. Blood spurt immediately from the wound as the green-skinned freak tumbled off, and Muu could have sworn she felt something give away at her blow as well, but though she braced herself for a renewed attack, the monster turned tail and fled instead, bounding away on four legs into the bushes. He couldn’t win, after all, not in these circumstances.

A “Wuoracc wuoracc” sounded while he tried to escape, the only noise left in the scene outside of the blood dripping and the lungs heaving.

In the fire pit, charred wood crumbled and crackled.

Do they pursue?

Jigokuraku Academy

Zone 5

@KoL
Though it may have been a bit cruel to consider them as such, Minami definitely made better time as she travelled through the difficult terrain of the central zone by herself, feline agility carrying her easily over piles of rubble. After the gruelling task of carry so many dummies over this damaged landscape, she practically flew over the somewhat familiar routes now, unburdened by everything else in her search for more rescue targets. And so too could she begin with focus on targets that were accessible with her own Quirk’s specialties.

Though Minami had no easy answer to situations where crying dummies were pinned underneath rubble, the cat-like girl could see plenty of ways to climb up the sides of buildings in order to rescue dummies up top and, with some improvisation, her more light-sensitive vision would work in her favor for plunging into that large hole in the ground as well. And even if it was stunted by the sheer volume and variety of sounds around her, Minami’s ears could, with some effort and tine, track down those smaller voices that sounded within labyrinthine apartment complexes.

She had a glut of options. It was simple a matter of which one was the easiest to pursue.

A Certain Variegated Pseudepigraphum [Toaru/Raildex RPG]

_{Main Stage Audience Area, Dianoid, District 15}

“Is that so –de arimasen ka?” Yu-Ri nodded, her eyes growing a little wide at the sheer apparent size of her target. Though she did spy a few other foreigners in the con, the executive’s height, as well as his Indian ethnicity (well, another assumption, really), certainly would narrow her search down even further. Tall, dark, possibly handsome, and definitely a man of some wealth. What an absolute dreamboat this Orbital fellow was turning out to be. The schoolgirl in mourning clothes let out a low whistle, before bowing. “Thank you for your help, Megumi –de arimasu. Hope you get many more people interested in the OPC after this –de arimasu.” She bowed once again, and then turned off to slip into the crowd once more.

Taking slower strides, Yu-Ri marked faces with her eyes as she strode about. There were a few familiar faces in area, more acquaintances than friends, but as she pushed further into the crowds in search for the elusive dreamboat executive, she realized that going into the crowds was a terrible idea to begin with. At only five feet tall, even the average Kanamin otaku was taller than her, after all, and in her attempts to escape from the jostling herd of merch-purchasers, the girl found flowing into a moshpit of overenthusiastic idol fans instead.

Were they doing some Battle of the Bands event on the main stage now? Some cover competition between amateurs? Yu-Ri frowned, trying to push through the crowd towards the outskirts instead, but of course her karma was biting her back in the ass again. A hip check from someone and she tripped, catching herself with her hands as her knees smacked against the pavement.

“Ow….de arimasu.”

Rengoku

@Burger

---

It looked like the site of a mass burial. Or maybe just the site of inconsiderate adventurers not shifting destroyed skeletons out of the way. Still, even this deathly silence was enjoyable, and Nano continued his slow steps through the castle ruins, his eyes widening only when four intact skeletons appeared around the corner. Stopping, Nano tilted his head at their unmoving nature, before removing one of the stones in his pockets. He kept to the walls, speedwalked towards the cover of those fallen bricks, and, once he was out of sight, tossed a rock over in the general direction of those skeletons before waiting for a reaction.

The coal-eyed youth could, of course, have simply slipped past them, but if he was going to have to run away through the same path back, he certainly didn’t want to crash into any ‘living’ skeletons along the way.

Re: Zero: The High Council

_{The Golden Quarter, Priestella}

And here they were again.

He hadn’t froze this time. No it was the world itself that had frozen, and then reverted when he blinked. Yuuki placed a hand against his chest, as if trying to summon up some sort of phantom pain, but ultimately, he came up with nothing. Did he die so fast he didn’t notice? Or was there a different trigger this time? Blue eyes flickered towards the small group that one of the girls was forming, before narrowing slightly.

Yeah, he understood what had happened now. And it was certainly tiring. He had only relived this day twice, but even then, the mental cost was beginning to bear down upon him, even more so than the pack strapped onto him. No interval. No break. No sense of safety. Nothing at all. He closed his eyes, counted to ten, and then said to Aer, “I don’t know them at all, but it certainly seems like they know each other very well, hm?”

Tired. Too tired to even feel that cold terror spread through his core again, at how easy it appeared to be, brushing against death.
“Sorry if it sounds like I’m rushing you, but could you just go ahead with me, and have, say, Wisp, lead the others to the guards station afterwards? I think the sooner I get this done, the better, honestly, Miss Pacifica.”

He knew what end awaited him on that particular route, after all, and though it wasn't turning out to be the best possible route...Yuuki knew that it was a route that didn't end up in death or alienation.

Beyond the Looking Glass: A CYOA Magical Girl Roleplay [Completed]

@Ariamis@Rune_Alchemist@Shifter_Master

---

Each sundering stroke left another silver scar upon the wretched behemoth as Amaryllis cavorted over the monster’s body, somersaulting over, and then landing on, one of its flailing tentacles before dashing up it and dragging the massive sword alongside her. It was weakening. She could feel it shudder underneath her heels, could feel it shake as that tank smashed into it.

But before the deathblow was dealt, her Sword called her back, a wave of dread forcing her away from the lunatic waltz moments before a black miasma burst from Behemoth’s orifices. Even with just a single whiff, the Knight of Rose’s fortitude failed her, repulsion clear on her expression as purple veins stretched up over her pale skin. One last thrust buried Katarina’s great sword into the base of the greater horror’s throat, before she kicked off, diving away from the beast as it squirmed and writhed.

It was trying to escape. She could feel it in her bones, felt it as sharply as the magical remnants she left behind on its body.
Tumbling gracelessly back onto the Earth Bastion, Amaryllis pushed down the vomit building up in her throat, anchored her rapier onto the top of the machine and closed her eyes, summoning whatever magical might still residing in her body. “Machinist! Hunter!” she cried, rusted roses bursting in full bloom around her. “Saintesses of Steel, lend me your arcane might, so that we may pull this foul creation back to the pit!”

And with that, a dozen chains of silvered ivy burst from the wounds Amaryllis inflicted upon the beast, heading towards the Earth Bastion to grasp and take control of.

A Certain Variegated Pseudepigraphum [Toaru/Raildex RPG]

_{Orbit Portal Company Investor Booth, Dianoid, District 15}

Yu-Ri paused thoughtfully, her index finger tapping against the side of the phone. Of course the VA with the most star power and brand recognition would be announcing something as hype as a brand new season. It was enough to know that one of the executives did have some sort of physical presence at the convention, however, rather than just being the sort of person to be cooped up in some dreary room surrounded by other dreary boring people.

Then again, maybe one of the requirements for being hired by the Orbital Portal Company was to be an interesting person? The schoolgirl in mourning clothes offered a slight bow and an appreciative smile. “Could you describe him for me then, Megumi –de arimasen ka? Any notable physical traits –de arimasen ka?”

Her posture shifted slightly, as if egged on by the pink-haired representative to take a more private investigator role.

Jigokuraku Academy

Zone 2

@Scribe of Thoth@Stern Algorithm
Though the difference in temperature inside and outside the bus had caused the glass windows of the vehicle to fog up, Mari’s eyes could still make out the form of the large man standing there, his bulk unmistakable even when seated.
Wait, seated?

Suddenly, the bus’s engine rumbled, lights flaring up in the slowly fading fog. With a waving motion, the Mastermind pushed the accelerator and launched the bus off onto the road again. It was only gradually picking up speed, either due to the care one had to take when driving on potentially damaged roads or simply to give these student heroes an opportunity to try catching up, but if they hesitated too long, it’d definitely be impossible to.

And that direction…that man were heading in the same direction those three villain-hunters had gone. To assist in whatever monster had roared so brazenly just moments ago? Likely. Very likely. And who knew how dangerous it would be to have two villains working together?

Zone 3

@Lugubrious@AdmrlStalfos19
For all the chaos evident in the other areas of the disaster zones, the residential area was as hauntingly quiet as ever. Somewhere along the way, the two of them lost track of where that horned student had gone, turning their group into just a pair now. But no matter the number of heroes, their tasks remained, and Goro and Umi found themselves navigating the complex alleyways once more. The going was easier due to familiarity, and with Goro’s facelamp, more dummies were in sight easily enough.

Up above, a dummy cried helplessly as they laid suspended on top of a network of crisscrossing power lines. Further down the road, an open manhole revealed a child-sized dummy within, but the lack of any ladder leading inside made it difficult to determine whether it would be possible to leave. Water could be heard within the sewer system as well, but whether it was rainwater or sewage water was difficult to determine, even if Goro craned his head down within. There were also houses with barred windows and locked doors, crying children within, easy enough to hear but more difficult to find when they were so muffled by the plentiful walls in the area.

It was the same old game of prioritizing again, and this time around, they weren’t in the luxury of ‘saving everyone’.

But on the topic of heroism, were these meager pickings worth it to begin with, when there was potentially a larger group of dummies to go after, somewhere in this entrance exam?

Zone 5

@zelosse@Sho Minazuki
Practically weightless, the glowing knife flew through the thinning fog and struck the oddly dressed woman in the back, before the impact undid whatever strange force kept it together and the object burst in a bright flash of light. She stumbled forward at that, more surprised by the ambush than anything else, before her eyes flared with soul-crushing intent again.

Pragmatically speaking, Hikari would have been better off throwing a rock for all the help his fragile, weightless knife offered him.

But though she whirred around, the low visibility, combined with his own position behind the rocks, spared the blond student from immediate detection, and instead, the Ruler curled her lips in a distinctly exaggerated manner. Turning back towards Kaito with scorn, she spoke, clutching one of her eyes melodramatically, “Ohohoho, so that’s how heroes are made these days! Naught more than cowards striking from shadows, thieves stealing cheap shots in the night! Do you and your godless friends believe that you can save anyone with such little resolve? Where is the courage to stand? Where is the resolve to fight? Where ARE you, Ninjas of Fractured Light?!” Kaito’s heart threatened to burst out of his ribcage, the woman’s silly words inspiring monstrous terror within him.

“Come, and meet your obliteration!”