Letter Bee

Abberant Dawn - A Mecha RP (BeeNCQuest Reboot)

Hmmm....

I wanna still be interested because mechs, but I'm picky about my mechs and fast things don't appeal to me at all.

@Sierra

I presume that my statement that slow mechs do exist alongside fast ones doesn't make up for it?

Isekai - The New God | A Re:Zero based Roleplay

If I'm permitted to join, I could make the time.

Abberant Dawn - A Mecha RP (BeeNCQuest Reboot)

It does seem about time for another go at this. is All Nerves still valid?

Edit: Also, it sounds like you're talking earlier series Gundam if you're equating them with CodeGeass.

@ArmorPlated

All Nerves is still valid.

Abberant Dawn - A Mecha RP (BeeNCQuest Reboot)

When you say "mecha" are you thinking things that move impossibly fast (Gundam), things that obey some laws of reality (Battletech/Mechwarrior), or something kind of in the middle (Pacific Rim)?

@Sierra

First two; High Sync Ratio NCs are like Gundam and Code Geass, Low Sync are Battletech/Mechwarrior. The information about Sync Ratios are in The Lore Thread.

Also, note that as per my status, this RP is not 18+; Romance is permitted, but anything too racy should be in PMs.

Abberant Dawn - A Mecha RP (BeeNCQuest Reboot)

Interest Check

Aberrant Dawn: A Mecha RP (BeeNCQuest Reboot)



The Lore Thread

The year is 2577, 500 years after a Nuclear War that ended the Age of the Nation-State. Now, the world is split between Independents; settlements and towns living a hardscrabble life in the wastelands, and the Ruling Corporations, eight large organizations that have seized large portions of the planet and its people for themselves. The majority of the Ruling Corporations' personnel are tyrannical and arbitrary, twisted by long isolation from the masses whose work supports their way of life. The average person in Corporate territory lives in fear, bowed down by heavy burdens in a soulless environment, before a quick and painful death.

Complicating the picture are the Neural Combatants (NCs), giant humanoid machines left behind by the nations of the world before everything burned in nuclear fire. Using technology that binds together brain and machine, all NCs have Cores that cannot be duplicated by even the most advanced Corporation; these Cores, when attached to a body, allow the pilot to conduct feats of strength and speed that borders on the supernatural. In essence, Neural Combatants use technology that makes Mecha work; the impractical made practical. The more NC Cores a Corporation has, the better they are in the constant warfare that covers the planet today.

But NCs are also what allow Independents to maintain their remaining autonomy, and Mercenaries to operate without excessive restrictions from the MegaCorps. One such outfit of Mercenaries is the Electrum Company, a motley group of veteran pilots from various Independents, mid-level defectors from the MegaCorps, and new recruits that show exceptional potential as pilots. Leased the island of Socotra by the rulers of the Middle East, Al-Amir Group of Companies (descended from the Agha Khan Development Network), the Electrum Company is tasked with doing various jobs for whoever can pay; whether they be Independent or MegaCorp.

In essence, you guys are Mecha Pilots-for-hire who do missions for various savory and unsavory parties and may or may not stumble into a conspiracy that can shake up the whole world.

Consult the Lore Thread linked above if you want more info!

Rules

1.) No godmoding, metagaming, or mary sues.
2.) Be civil.
3.) No Anti-LGBT stuff.
4.) Post length is five sentences minimum, but longer posts are encouraged, of course. GMs are also bound by this rule.
5.) If your character is a spy trying to bring down the Electrum Company, please give the other PCs a chance to discover you, and be helpful to them when you can; we only have one group of PCs and one main base, and being obstructive to them IC will reduce their fun OOC.
6.) Consult the Lore Thread (linked under the picture) if you want to know more about how NCs, Independents, and Corporations work!

-----

And yes, Inkarnate permitted this.

Royal Rumble!

Anna Suvurova (NPC)

Name:

Anna Suvurova

Age:

65 but looks 25.

Grade:

Teacher at St. Laurel's.

Biography:

Anna Suvurova was born in the Tsardom of Yekatrina, to a military family that had distinguished itself in wars against Demons, other Superpowered Humans, and bandits. The Tsar of that time, Boris VIII Nikiforov, had dreams of conquering the world out of megalomania, and instituted a regime of propaganda, conscription, and harsh military training for his people to turn them into conquerors. He also began programs to experiment on people who had promising Blessings or Mutations in order to gain 'the secrets of the Gods'. The Suvurov/Suvurova family was part of that plan, and as Anna demonstrated strategic and tactical thinking in her youth, she occupied a place in the Tsar's agenda.

When she grew to adulthood, Anna rose up the ranks quickly as the Tsardom interfered in the affairs of a dozen smaller nations, claiming to want to protect them from 'demonic incursions' in exchange for 'closer ties' and 'border adjustments'. In time, this interference became open war, a war that drew in another dozen nations and a few 'military advisers' from Rhea. This war caused the deaths of tens of thousands, and it was seemingly a stalemate until Anna was promoted to 'Lieutenant General of the Yekaterine Armies'.

In a swift and relentless campaign, Anna crushed the armies of the coalition opposing Yekaterina, capturing several of Rhea's military advisers. Then, Tsar Boris VIII suspected her of plotting for the throne because she was too successful, and tried to arrange an accident for her. The accident failed to kill her; the resulting revenge was swift. With the help of the Rhean advisors that she had taken prisoner mere weeks earlier, she launched a military coup against Boris VIII, kicked him out of power, and put his not-so-bad nephew, Viktor, on the throne.

Then, when everyone was expecting her to stay on as the power behind said throne, she eloped with one of the Rhean advisors - one Rain Spring - and went to Rhea with him, asking the new Tsar Viktor for the grace of Dual Citizenship between Rhea and Yekaterina.

The following years were of retirement into 'security consulting' and teaching jobs, including her new and cushy assignment in St. Laurel's, where her son, Snow Suvurova - Rain had taken her last name instead of the reverse - studied. But now, Anna hears whispers of a new threat, a Greater Evil than the Ancient Evil, and an Alien named King who brought warnings of it.

Will her past catch up to her, and if it does, will her family be destroyed in turn?

Powers:

Core Power - Real Time Tactics: Anna can make a contract with the God of Games, sacrificing gold, silk, cash, or something of great material value like fine paintings; this causes them to vanish into a vortex to be (presumably) lost forever. In exchange, the next time she accesses the Internet, she gains access to a mysterious site called 'Creator's Assembly', which holds the following three functions:

First Power - Hire the Divine Host: Anna can spend further sums on hiring squads, platoons, and even battalions of the divine creatures that live in the heavens; angels, nature spirits, psychic beings, and even dragons (for 1,000,000 Rhean dollars). These divine creatures are obedient to her commands for 24 hours; an extension of said time will require more money.

Second Power - Money Contract: Whenever Anna gets money from a legal source, such as a business deal or a lawful job (such as teaching), Anna can double the money gained from said legal source as long as she has a copy of the actual contract; the money just magically appears in gold, silver, or other valuable items just after her pay day.

Third Power - Potion Shoppe: Anna can also buy Potions of Healing, Cure Disease, Life Extension, and Cure Poison in exchange for cash. Needless to say, it is expensive.

Relationships:

Rivals and nemeses, reputations preceding, perhaps even some special feelings for a special person. This section is optional, but it's nice.

To be added.

---

Royal Rumble!

Two and a Half Weeks after the Midnight Tournament

To: William Chekova Ascot
From: *The letter's sender is blank*

*Written in a exquisite way, but obviously forged and not very consistant*

William,

Now you've done it and there is no bridges left for you to burn. But I am not without mercy for an adversary such as yourself. You will do what I say.

If you do not. Then I'm afraid Vittorio will find his lifeline cut permanently. Not to mention that I will let the entire city know where the Mephisto school is located and dedicate the find to you. Earning the ire of every skulking figure in the dark. You and your family will experience pain beyond your comprehension and all because of you. Every little fight, every injury or death that would occur would be on your hands.

If you don't like that idea. You will come to the eastern district main park, and you will go there alone, to the bench marked with an X in the back. You will come alone and you will not be harmed (a small section has been erased here, it seems to have read the word 'much'), nor will your dear friend Vittorio be harmed or your pestersome family.

But if you get any foolish idea and arrive with allies, survelliance equipment, involve the authorities or some other matter then I shall make you, and everyone dear to you pay dearly for it.

I always get what I want. I win, William. You on the other hand will always lose, if it is bigtime or small is now up to you.

@Dezuel

"So," Gilgamesha Ascot asked, "What are you going to do, Will?"

The boy grinned as he took out his smartphone and began photographing the letter, saving the photos on it - he had already uploaded the data he had taken from Mephisto's laboratory into his computer. Then, he would forward said letter to Vernon, saying:

Galbrek's at it again. I'm sure Vittorio would not like his life threatened, nor would the people at Mephistos' want one of their own threatening to betray them. So, I think we should publicize this letter to the other Mephistos' students as soon as possible; Galbrek might have hidden his handwriting, but anyone with half a brain would know that it's him. After all, he was the one who tried to get me hunted down.

Gilgamesha would interject: "Him getting thrown out of Mephistos' would also harm his family's defense against our case; meaning that we can press them for a lucrative out-of-court settlement. To use for hiring Cyan and the Vigilantes, of course."

A nod from the boy, even as he wished that his mother would stop embarassing him sometimes. But yes, this would probably lead to a very hard fall for Galbrek.

The boy felt a stab of pity that was swiftly suppressed.

Royal Rumble!

Two Weeks, Two Days, After the Midnight Tournament

((Collab post between Gentelmanvaultboy and Letter Bee.))

Note: This is set a day or so after the 'Present Day'.

Shattered Illusions

It had been some time after he, Wolf, and Aram had explored Mephisto's abandoned laboratory, and William was still troubled. First by his' guilt at allowing Andras and Vera to be almost taken by Galbrek's minions, then by Galbrek's minions' plight themselves, then by the situation with Vittorio. He needed to save both the young man and the other Mephisto's students from Mephisto himself, not only for their sakes, but for the sake of the city. For the Evil Greater than the Ancient Evil was approaching Rhea, and the best and brightest were stuck in feuds among themselves.

And with that, William Ascot looked for another connection to form, a mutually beneficial bond that would allow him to forge another link in the protective armor of Rhea. In the early morning before classes, the boy would wake up a few hours earlier than usual, drink some extra strong coffee, and stroll to a park close to St. Lucifer's in civilian clothes. Other than said civilian clothes, he did not declare himself, but he did not make any further efforts to hide his identity, either. He would also carry a white flag of parley, which he would pull out of his backpack and wave around every so often...

He wasn't there for very long before he heard a shout, a yowl, and a resounding explosion shook the trees around him.

A cat, old, scarred, full of piss and viniger and still slightly smoking from the tips of its blue ears suddenly tore ass around the corner like the devil himself was chasing it and bounded into a nearby tree. The rythemic thuds of heavy footfalls resounded around the park, followed by the appearace of something that might very well be the Devil to the delinquint scum that attended St. Lucifers. Bak's heavy frame skidded into view, he gun already spinning up still apsent its counterpart on her bandaged arm. She leveled it at the cat.

"Is nowhere to be running now, blue eyed mongrel!" She shouted, ignoring William, tunnel vision seemingly focused on the enemy in front of her. The cat stared back, it's glassey blind eye refelecting only scorn for its pursuer. It cocked its head, seemingly taunting the girl, then began cleaning itself in its private areas.

This disrespect seemed to enrage the metal girl. "You and your horde of skanks will never darken the doorway of St. Lucifers again!" She opened fire, the bullets ripping through the tree and scattering its branches around the base. The cat, homever, had other plan. With a graceful leap that should have been impossible for something that looked so much like roadkill the cat tumbled out of the tree, leaping from falling branch to falling branch, a bridge that led it right to William. With a final tumble in landed directtly on his shoulders, and he could feel the fleas in eminated as it raised one paw and placed it uncofortably close to his neck.

Bak had followed the creatures trajectory, but seeing it land on another person gave her pause. She stared intently at the cat as she let her gun wind down, and held her hand up in the universal sign to be calm. "Do not make a sudden move." She said, in the voice of someone trying to talk another person through defusing a bomb. "Do not turn your head. Do not look at it in the eye." The artiller guns on her shoulder slowly lowered downward. "Turn, slowly, till the animal is facing me if you want to live."

The briefest of nods, before William turned around as slowly as possible, resisting the feeling of gnats on his skin, until the feral cat faced the girl's artillery. Bak Tsarvena from the last tournament. The name itself sounds like it came from The Tsardom of Yekaterina. Once his back was fully turned on, well, Bak, he would wait for the sound of gunfire.

He didn't have to wait long. The cat let out a low growl as her turned, looking between him and Bak, before she let out a "GAH!" that caught its complet attention. As it fliched she let lose with both barrels, catching the beast in a miniture explotion by Williams head. Its claws were yanked out of him as it tumbed end over end, landing in a momentary heap before wriggling back to its feet and bounding off into the underbrush.

Once the thing was off Bak wasted no time and running up to asses the condition of the boy. She held him by the shoulder to steadie him. "Are you allright? You are lucky, I have seen him slice a students nose in three."

William laughed good-naturedly, smiling widely at Bak. "That was awesome! Such precision is to be envied. And yes, I am all right; thank you."

Well, this is new. It seems that like most people, Ms. Tsarvena has a different side than she shows in battle.

"No, no, it was nothing." Bak said bashfully. "I do this most mornings. His guts are not fit to string violin." She took her hand off his shoulder, then scowled at it. Little red spots had sunk into the glove, and when she looked back at his sholder the reason became apparent. Old One Eye's claws had sunk in deeper than she'd relized. "You are bleeding. This should be dissinfected. I have alchohol in first aide kit. I will go fetch this. Stay right here." She started to stomp off, hurrying toward the gym. There was no telling what was on that old mongrels claws. He could be dying of going insane at any moment from some yet undiscovered strain of hyper-rabies.

Besides which, he hadn't flinched when she'd walked up to him. That deserved some special treament, didn't it?"

---

Bak handed over the kit, basically shoving it into his arms. "There. I am not so good at bandaging, so you will have to do it yourelf. Why were you out near this place so early in the morning? Normal students avoid area around St. Lucifers like it is plague infested. It has well earned reputation." Despite the fact that she seeminly spent every waking moment fighting agaist that reputation it was impossible to miss the hint of pride that crept into Baks voice when she spoke of the seedy underbelly of her school. Suddenly an idea struck her. "Were you meeting girlfreind? It would be so romantic to tell her you braved danger such as Old One Eye to see her so early!"

As William cleaned his wound and bandaged it, he felt at ease around Bak, before saying, "No. I have a boyfriend in the school, but he'd rage at me in worry if he knows I went anywhere near it without protection. Said boyfriend is a brown-skinned hottie with ice powers, by the way."

A smile at that. "No, I came here for the sake of the city. I need to meet more people from all three factions if I am to...expand my horizons." A pause. "The fighting between all three factions; two schools and a private group, it's gone beyond friendly competition to a blood feud. That is dangerous for us all, especially if there is a Greater Evil than the Ancient Evil, or just new machinations by the latter. Then again, I might just be seeking meaning beyond the conflicts and causes presented before me.

"Point is, I came here to meet someone, and that someone seems to be you." William then faced Bak. "Life is more than just tournaments and battles between superpowered students."

As the boy talked about his hot boyfreind Bak's eyes wandered down from his face to his flat, flat chest. The gears turned in Bak's head as she put two and two together, recieved an error message, and rounded back down to one. Good gods, she is even more unfortunate than me.

The rest of the speech, though, was something else. Fighting for the city? A blood feud? A greater evil? What was all this all of a sudden? Wait, no, before any of that, "You were here to meet with us?" She asked, then she arrived at four. "So you knew we would be around here?" She asked, a little more suspitious. That meant this person knew where Mephistos was. At least the area. That was...unusual. Had she made a mistake?

"I..." she started, nervously. "I do not know anything about great evils or creatures like that. If you would like to know about such things, Tovari-, Clara would know more than me. If you can find her."

William blinked as Bak stared at his chest, and decided to head off a rather humorous misunderstanding in the bud. "I'm a boy. Who likes other boys. And girls too. As for Clara...I can't do that; we've never met, but she'd regard me as an enemy the moment she sees me. More to the point, I don't plan on revealing myself to her yet. The other two of 'The Triad' already know of my existence but hold me beneath notice; Clara won't."

A pause before he resumed. "Clara, King, and Alto - yes, I said his name - are either the linchpin of the city's defense or its main weakness. They are the triple suns that the planets - and by planets, the superpowered children and teens of the city - revolve around. That is dangerous as they're trying to undermine or destroy each other, or at least Alto and Clara are. And King is enigmatic, a mystery. I do not feel comfortable just waiting for the mystery to be revealed."

Saying such words, do I look like I am craving the same position of importance that they have? That I want to be the Sun that the superpowered people of Rhea revolve around? Am I really such a narcissist and all my desire to protect just a cover for it?

He then remembered how sad Vittorio looked, and the sorrow that the young man held, a sorrow and brokenness that wrung tears from his heart. He remembered Christine (Baumann) as she agreed to an adoption she was skeptical of. And he looked at Bak herself, and saw the kindness in her voice and actions.

Another smile. "You're a kind person. That's why I want to protect this city."

Bak's head was sort of spinning. A whole lot of concepts were being thrown at it all at once that she wasn't really comfortable with parcing. She was a simple, straghtforward sort of girl. She shot at things. It's all she did. It's all she was ever going to be able to do. Protect the city? That wasn't in her range. Her bullets didn't fly far enough for that. She could only protect this, here, the life that was right in front of her. That was within her range.

She struggled until she found something to latch on to, like a sailor adrift in a storm. "How do you know Tovarish thinks you are enemy? You say yourself you have never met. How could she hate you then? It does not come from nowhere, if someone hates you you must have done something to them first."

The laughter from William's tone was loud, clear, and lasted a few seconds more than what was comfortable. "You actually think that? This world is more complex than you give it credit for. People hate each other for all sorts of petty reasons, like what powers they have or don't have, where they live, what language they speak, and even what clothes they wear! And Clara hates me because of the school I go to, the people I am studying with, and if she watched Galbrek's dumb video, my name."

He then faced her. "William Chekova Ascot. Of St. Laurel's. That's my name. And if you hate me because of this, even though I haven't done anything to you...well you know what that means."

The spinning suddenly stopped, the world coming into sharp focus as the boys laughter dragged across her confusions throat like a knife in the dark and left it choking on its own blood in some forgotten gutter. The whole girl seemed to stop, eyes raising up to look at him with none of the kindness he had seen in them before. "You are wrong." she muttered. "You have done something to me. And now you should leave."

William knew not to press further, and made to turn away, but not before saying this: "Make sure to make friends other than your 'Tovarish'. Vittorio desperately needs a connection to this world. And if you decide that the city - all of us - are more important than this current feud, have Vernon call me. And now I should go."

And with that he began to walk away. He felt the impulse to run, to stew in guilt over what he had done to Bak. But illusions had to be shattered; he can only hope it was worth it.

Bak watched him go. She wanted to scream out that there was no need for him to tell her that. She was already doing everything in her power. But she could only watch in silence, fuming. He wasn't a bad man, she didn't think. Not like Galbrek made him out. If he had been brainwashing her she would never have gotten so mad. But they were never bad people, were they?

The villagers wern't bad people.

Her parents wern't bad people.

She just brought out the worst in them.

The boy stopped as the girl's silence got to him; a signal that something was wrong. Turning back to Bak, still finding her within shouting range, he would say: "And if you don't hate me forever because of what I did, I just want to say: You're not a bad person! So think for yourself and all will be well! Also, if you want a proper kitten, ask Vernon if I can smuggle you one; I know a place!"

And with that, William Ascot would run off into the sunrise.

Royal Rumble!

((Collab Post between RoflsMazoy, KillamriX88, Bartimaeus, and Letter Bee))

Two Weeks after the Midnight Tournament

Secrets, Hopefully?

Wolf grit his teeth as he realized his mistake. Had he been alone, he may have ended up truly paying for it too. He'd grossly underestimated the beast's resilience. But he wasn't alone and somehow he hadn't paid for his foolishness. Still, it was humiliating... but he'd make use of that.

When the monster collapsed from its own thrashing, he saw a chance to make-up for his failure. He hefted his trident and found the beast's shoulder. If he went against the grain of the scales, under it's legs where the scales should have been much thinner, his weapon should be able to penetrate. He shoved his weapon into the beast. Even if the weapon wasn't currently at its full potential, if he drove it into the beast, the paralytic effect should spread and spread for as long as the trident could stay lodged in it.

Ascot, meanwhile, would rush at the monster from the side as the paralysis took effect, drawing his sword with both hands and trying to chop its neck cleanly. Hopefully, he and Aram can salvage it for Reagents later on...

Aram frowned as Ascot's sword failed to hash through the beast's tough scaled hide. "No dice, eh? Maybe we need something more restrictive!" he jeered, before throwing both hands to the floor. The energy was back again, crackling around him. The floor rumbled as the mass within it shifted around, finally rising from the surrounding area and arching over the beast, forming close to its body as it hardened into steel. He stood, dusting his hands.

"Bet you fellas are glad you brought ol' Aram, eh?" he said, a slight, cocky bow passing towards his companions.

Aram wasn't given too much time to congratulate himself however, as a stream of fire came aimed at his head. Sleipnir was bound, but it was still rather capable. It thrashed around in a frenzy, its deadly hooves swinging this way and that as it frantically breathed fire.

Aram jumped back from the flames, a small bit of them licking the brim of his fedora. "H-hey! Watch it! This is some classy merchandise, ya big gorilla!" he yelled disdainfully.

Wolf had a moment to think but not speak. Aram... his powers really were a lot more reliable than his. He'd acted confident, but each time Aram had one-upped him. There was jealousy there, sure, but nothing so spiteful. Just a painful recognition of his own shortcomings.

He was about to say as much,and complement his friend accordingly, but Sleipnir only needed a few moments it seemed to realize its situation and begin flailing. Wolf's, foolish, first instinct was to try and keep the trident in place, but the trident was literally right next to legs ending in thrashing hooves.

Wolf was slammed against the nearby wall and stunned. And in his daze came a bit of... honesty. Honesty with himself. Honesty brimming with doubt and self-loathing.

And all the power that such pain brought him.

Anyone worried about Wolf would soon lose sight of him as a vortex of thick, black smoke engulfed him. Next came the echoing THUD-THUD of impossibly heavy footsteps as the titanic armor of Sorrow lumbered forth. There was a hollow clang as a hoof ricochetted off the helmet, only causing Wolf to list to one side momentarily before descending bare-handed on Sleipnir.

One guantletted hand crashed down on Slipneir's nose, clamping down around mouth and nostrils to keep its flames at bay. Next, the net he'd cast earlier returned to him before he wrapped it around his other fist. The weight of the armor now comibned with the weight of the net soon came crashing down on Sleipnier's skull as he grappled the beast. And then once more. And then...

If he couldn't stab it -- he'd crush it.

The damage was reaching the beast's brain. Armour 101, blunt force can damage internal organs without necessarily having to destroy armour. Sleipnir had a thick skull, but not thick enough. The light had not faded from its eyes yet, but its thrashing was getting weaker, and it was clear it would die soon.

However, before Wolf could deliver the last blow, there were different cries. They were surrounded again, but this time by a multitude of different creatures. They stuck to the shadows but their intention was clear.

Sleipnir, their terror was bound, helpless and dying. A vertiable feast, one that would be shared, unless the party wasn't willing to give it up. Then it would be taken from them.

"I think we should go to the Second Floor's room right now!" Ascot shouted. "Remember what we came here for!"

Secrets, Hopefully? Part 2

"Gumshoe's right, Wolfie-boy." Aram nodded.

Wolf stood up straight, Sleipner no longer a threat. He was a good foot or so taller in the armor. He recalled his trident and walked directly toward a portion of the monstrous swarm. He swung his trident, striking the floor and letting sparks fly. The message was clear.

Step aside.

"I'll lead. Keep close." his voice echoed deeply from inside the armor. If they'd only gotten brave once Sleipnir was killed, then logic dictated that instinct would tell them to back away from him too. The armor would slow him down, but not nearly as much as fighting their way through everything. He'd take it off once they were clear.

Aram would follow close behind his now much taller friend, while being sure to keep William between the two. He'd try to ignore the eerie feeling he got from so many eyes staring at him, that he couldn't stare back at. He was walking backwards, because he knew what animals of prey were like. They'd take any advantage they could get. especially if they were hungry...

Aram caught a glimpse of his light glinting off of the black armor that covered his left arm. Compared to Wolf, this is nothing, he thought. Wolf might not be able to control his power night and day, but who cares? He's strong...without help, he thought. I...I have to rely on people to "help", if I can even do that. Alchemy...it's strong. In the right hands. They told me I have the right hands, but how can I believe that when I feel so...so Hu-- His thought was interrupted by a hiss nearby in the dark, startling him.

"C-C'mon.. let's split." he managed to cough up.

William knew this; that their goal was coming into view. With Wolf and Aram's help, he was going to reach the desired destination - the Second Floor's special chamber. Once the running stopped, once they finally arrived, he was going to examine, then open the door, though slowly and not without caution...

The door was a door like any other in the facility. It was shut tight, but the panel for the manual override was already half opened. There were other doors like that but so far they'd each been on a path to an exit of some sort. This room was most definitely a dead end.

Nevertheless, the party strode onwards. The room was dark, like the rest of the facility, but the lights were specifically different from the rest. Stepping into the room was indeed like stepping into an entirely different place.

Yet inside it were still very familiar equipment. There was monitoring equipment, a bed, surgery tools, and a lot of things the party didn't recognize. One thing that leaped out at them however was that the room felt like a room made for one subject.

There was a large test-tube/vat in the back of the room. The bed was nearby, with the monitoring equipment either surrounding it or facing it. They could tell that there would normally be just one subject with some researchers studying them.

In one corner of the room there was a cabinet with some files. Upon looking at them however, it seemed as if they were encrypted using a code of some kind. Other than those files, there was nothing else in the room.

They could take some pictures of the equipment hopefully to study it and try and track down the manufacturer to perhaps find some more information in the future.

Ascot took out his smartphone and began to take pictures, first of the equipment, then the various pages of the files. When his smartphone's memory ran out, he used various USBs from his pack to store more photos of the files' pages. He would then say to Aram: "Don't ask why, but two things. One, I think that the vat was used to manufacture an Artificial Human/Clone, and two, this technology would be useful once my boyfriend and I get married."

Aram raised his eyebrows at that, blinking as if he'd just been pegged in the head with a rock. "Um.. Okay? Hope you get your info so we can scram.." he said, scratching his head. So Gumshoe's got a lovebird, eh? Wait, isn't he with that Vernon kid? Something's off about that character..

This must be where Christine - Baumann, not Abigail - was born. William though as he went to the Generator. If it still worked, he could try and reactivate it and so gain access to the data stored in the monitoring computers...

He'd need some fuel to start the generator. There wasn't exactly a guarantee the generator was alright, or that the computers would boot up either, but if they did the data would most likely be intact due to being relatively isolated from the facility's main power grid.

It was likely the generator had simply run down in this room, or that it had been turned off before the researchers had met their doom.

William Ascot turned to Aram, saying: "Alchemy can be used for basic repairs to electronic equipment, right? Nothing fancy, just a few reconnected wires here and there. But more importantly, you can transmute generator fuel and use it to power up this room for a while. We can then leave and come back with even more numbers."

"Er, well...electronics are a bit sketch. But if it's just simple...I can give a swing at it. Need to lay eyes on the insides though...But the gas'll be easy as pie." he responded.

Aram looked around, looking for disposables he could use for transmutation fuel. There were quite a few. He walked over to an IV stand, grabbing it along with a blanket that had lain on the bed, and threw it on top of the stand. He unscrewed the cap on the side of the generator, then performed his alchemy once again, turning his gathered equipment into fuel of the appropriate composure for a generator, which he luckily knew the the components for. He then controlled it to flow into the old generator, until it filled to the brim.

He let the rest of the gas fall to the floor, turning it into water to avoid any unnecessary hazards. "There ya go, Gumshoe."

Ascot would then turn the generator on, hoping for the best...

The generator spluttered, but it started. As it got to work the lights flickered to life. The computer screens flickered on one by one, but each one only showed a blue boot error screen save for the last one. It seemed to contain surveillance footage, but most of it had been taken.

They were recorded with dates, and there were clear month-long gaps in between certain dates. The likely conclusion was that footage of any experiments taking place here had already been transferred elsewhere. However, there was a recording for the day the facility had been overrun.

Opening it showed a lit room almost the same as they saw it now. It was empty, the tests having long concluded by now. The time ticked on, but it wasn't even possible to hear any sound coming into the room.

Suddenly, there was a burst of static. Something had entered the room, but slices of static obscured it constantly. It was as if it was emanating it. It moved around the room, seemingly doing nothing. It came to the generator, then the recording stopped.

Ascot nevertheless used more USBs to take what data was available, including knowledge of the gaps in surveillance and the final day. He then made copies of said final day and sent them to Eleanor, his sister-in-law, to show to Alexander later; the latter should be in Mephisto's presence right now. Looking at Aram, he would say, "I think I know what this part of the facility is for; it's creating an artificial human for an unknown purpose."

Then, to Wolf, the boy would say, "And while I think that you're a combination of skeptical and disappointed right now, as the files we have are encrypted and the surveillance footage is inconclusive, let's just say that I came to this conclusion because...the artificial human is my adoptive niece. Michael can confirm; he was with me on a previous trip to see the Spirit of the Facility for the first time."

I have a niece. And I presume that Mephisto might want her to be his' if he knew of her existence. I have family I want to protect now; the rest, including Liliana, can take care of themselves. Liliana Ascot was William's younger sister. "It seems I've been selfish. Trying to save Vittorio's soul and prevent his life from becoming a tragedy, when I have someone who needs me almost as much, someone who needs me more." A sigh. "But then again, Vittorio's still the one who's suffered more than anyone else in Rhea, and winning him away from Mephisto...it'll protect my niece as well."

Aram sat for a moment, taking in all that they have gathered. "So this trip wasn't a fiasco afterall, eh? That's swell on your part...but do you think you can help that empty soul? I hear he's pretty hard-headed.." he inquiried. He'd never really met Vittorio outside of a brawl, and especially hadn't talked to him head-on, but he'd heard rumors on how stubborn he was. How obsessed...he was.

"But wait, they made phony people here? And your family adopted one?" Aram asked, "That's not possible...It shouldn't be possible."

William glared at Aram, his right fist clenched as he grit his teeth, "Call my niece 'phony' one more time and I'm smacking you in the face. Understand?"

"Woah, cool down, Goomba. We're friends, aren't we? I came to help you, I meant no harm..." he said apologetically.

Ascot's face softened as his fist unclenched. "That's all right; it was a mistake. Anyway, yeah, my niece was born right here. I hope she's adapting well to the adoption..."

A pause. "Anyway, we should go."

Aram looked over to Wolf. He seems off his wig today... he thought. He blinked. "You did swell today, Wolfie-boy." he said, then looking at William. "Let's scram. This place gives me the jitters."

William then turned off the generator, then the trip back outside started...

Royal Rumble!

((Collab Post between RoflsMazoy, KillamriX88, Bartimaeus, and Letter Bee))

Two Weeks after the Midnight Tournament

Laboratory stuff

William entered the laboratory's entrance, before making his way up the stairwell to the roof, though not before saying to Aram and Wolf: "We're going to need to consult the building's spirit first."

As they reached the roof, the spirit flickered to life sitting on its apex. It had seemed to be waiting for them.

"Hello, are you here to keep me company?" It asked.

William waved to the spirit, saying, "Hi, and for a while, yes. We've come to see what remaining secrets the facility holds."

Turning to Aram, Ascot said, "Anyway, this is the Spirit of the Place." Turning back to the Spirit, the boy continued, "Spirit, this is Aram; he's an Alchemist."

"C'mon now, William...don't go giving out my secrets on the arm like that, chum..." Especially not to one of these creepy things... Aram thought. He was never really fond of the presence of ghosts or the like...well, maybe nobody was, but they gave him a bad case of the heebie-geebies. Made his hair stand on end. Which it was now.

"Hm... Secrets...?" It said slowly. "I'm not aware of any that are remaining, but..."

She paused for a second and looked into the distance.

"I can feel two rooms which aren't a 'part' of me. One on the second floor, and one on the fifth. Perhaps you'll find some things there."

First demons, now spirits. At least this one seemed friendly. Well, it was a little to late to be complaining about things being weird. They were already trying to raise the dead, after all.

"So... if you're the 'Spirit of this Place,' how can any part of this building not be part of you?" He was far less well versed in spirits, but the logic here seemed fairly straightforward and what it had just said, fairly contradictory.

"Well, I don't really know. I can't see into them, but I can sense my halls leading to them, and a door without an other side." It shrugged. "They've been there since I was born, so maybe they were remnants from something else that was on this land."

William blinked. "The case thickens. What place would be easier to reach? Second floor, or fifth floor?"

"You'd think it'd be the second floor, eh smart one? Unless of course...there's some goons inside that could slow our progress?" He said the last part with a hint of curiosity as he raised his eyebrows at the small girl of a phantasm sitting upon her perch.

"Oh yes, the research specimens all escaped and are roaming the halls, even now." She said. "There aren't as many of them left as there used to be. The only food down there is each other, after all, but the ones left are fairly ferocious."

". . ." Wolf's jaw just dropped and then his pinched the bridge of his nose. "So I'll be going first, then..." No one else was really equipped to be playing the front line, after all.

"Geez Louise...what has this Gumshoe gotten us into..." Aram muttered under his breath.

William smiled at the Spirit, and said, "Thank you; hopefully, we'll see each other again if we survive."

A look at Wolf and Aram. "I think we should head to the Second Floor, then depending on the difficulty or the value of the secrets found, we continue on to the fifth or leave said fifth for another day."

The party nodded in agreement and they went to enter the facility.

Before dissipating, the spirit had left them some key information. Power throughout the facility was off. It had been some years since the facility had been abandoned, so not even emergency power would still be functioning.

There was an elevator which could have taken them straight to any floor, and if it were still functioning, the fifth floor room would be the easiest one to reach since it was fairly close to the elevator exit. There was still a way down on each floor however.

They arrived on the door to the first floor via the emergency ladder in the elevator well. It was a large cargo elevator shaft, so it was fairly roomy on the way down.

The elevator doors of each floor were sealed when the facility had entered a state of emergency. Each one could be manually released through a panel on the side. The doors served as a cargo entrance for large pieces of equipment or specimens, so when they opened those doors they would get a pretty good view of the lab inside.

Entering would be a fairly large and open space, but it would quickly turn into winding corridors as they travelled. The spirit gave them precise directions to the room they were after, so they wouldn't be exploring too much.

"How's this gonna go down, boys? We gonna muscle our way through, or lay low? I don't dig the idea of croaking in this hole, so choose wisely..." Aram was well aware of Wolf's potential. He'd seen what could happen when the boy's emotions got the best of him. As for William...he had no clue. He didn't seem like the kind of guy who could take a hit to the kisser...but you'd be surprised. And as for himelf...of course he could take a few freaks...probably.

"Avoid trouble unless we have no other options. There's only three of us and who knows how many of them. Even if it is only a few, if they're as vicious as the spirit says, it might not take that many," Wolf said, deciding for them. If necessary, he'd take charge of this whole trip. His job was to keep everyone alive, and whatever else was secondary in his mind. "Aram, cover our rear. William, stay behind me." Aram was less of a straightforward fighter than him, so he'd give him some extra space. Hopefully any threats would come head-on so Wolf could intercept them.

William nodded, and his sole addition to the discussion was, "I'm going to use my third power - the one I used to increase people's luck, strength, and speed back then - on Aram; that ought to help."

Aram would then be surrounded by an aura of golden light that would last for a few seconds...

"Oh? Haha..not that I need it, of course...but thanks!" Aram exclaimed before a golden light engulfed him. He felt energy surge through him as he became more in-touch with his own body-if that was even possible. "Oooo, that feels weird." he squirmed with a funny expression.

He grasped a hilt that was sticking out from under his suit over his right shoulder, drawing the connected short sword he'd held there. Swinging it a few times, he could feel the strength difference in his strikes. "Now we're cooking with gas...you men ready?" he said, looking to the others.

"One can only hope," Wolf frowned, his pessimistic side not doing him any favors at the moment. At the very least, William was able to shift the odds ever so slighty more in their favor. It was something. "Just stay alert." And with that, Wolf began steadily walking deeper into... one could only guess what.

The facility was desolate. The spirit's words had painted a grim picture, but it wasn't quite clear how grim. The floor was literred with skeletons. As Aram's light approached, various tiny creatures screeched and skittered out of sight. Bones but no flesh made these small creatures scavengers. It would seem that they also did well to reduce any rot that might be in this place, it'd be relatively painless to move around.

But there weren't only skeletons and scavengers here. Ahead of them, the skittering became more frantic, until there was a sound like claws slamming and scraping against the ground, and the some of the screeches stopped. Then there were the sounds of an animal tearing into a fresh corpse.

As they approached they saw the true form of the creature. A mutated fox with glowing yellow eyes and scales covering its body. It hissed at the light, blinking desperately and quickly escaping into the shadows of the beyond.

"I'm going to assume that was one of those things..." Wolf pursed his lips, tension showing plain on his face. He wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, but it hadn't been that.

William turned up his nose, then said, "Fresh corpses smell like meat. Wait, why would there be fresh corpses in this abandoned facility? Oh, wait, the Spirit hinted at a breeding population..."

As if right on queue, many more sets of yellow eyes peered out from the darkness. They formed a semi-circle around the party, held at bay by the light.

Aram repulsed at the smell of new and old corpses alike. He couldn't see much, but what light they did have illuminated the place just enough to be about one-hundred times creepier than it really was. Soon enough, the creepy environment wasn't the only thing they had to worry about.

"Uhhh, something smells fishy..." he said as the eyes revealed themselves from the gleam of his light. He moved his shoulder bag into a position where it was more comfortable for him to reach into it with one hand, and did so, placing his hand against one of the many transmutation symbols within it.

"Looks like it's too late to lay low now, boys." Black energy crackled from his left palm to his right, which was still grasping his short sword.

The foxes made their own screech and began to attack. They were plenty in number, but lacking in intelligence somewhat. They could dodge attacks, but they had only one singular target, the hated light. Years underground had made them accustomed to the darkness, and now a new, painful force was among them.

Predation was these foxes only method of survival until now, with nothing to forage, and faster scavengers claiming the excess spoils from their own kill. There was no longer any room for anything else, and now the hunt was on.

Whether their eyes adjusted or numbers simply gave them bravery, they no longer seemed dissuaded by the light. Rather, they seemed hellbent on getting rid of it and then making a meal of those who'd dared to bring said light into their domain.

They charged, and Wolf know he was going to have to rely on Aram for this one. Even William might have to fend for himself to a degree. One fox charged right at him, but Wolf couldn't deal with it right now. He raised his shield, letting the creature slam face-first into it. It gave Wolf the sparse few seconds he needed to lash out with his sword, tearing open another as it attempted to go past him toward the two behind him.

He couldn't stop all of them, but if he could at least limit the number that got past, it'd be something...

William didn't want to waste the inventory of 'Imitation Andras Cards' that he had been able to acquire thanks to the God of Stories' power, but what he wanted didn't matter right now. Raising his right index and middle fingers, he pulled out Incremental Blight, a card that would cause one fox to be afflicted with a painful disease as it tried to flank the group, while the second and third behind it would suffer crippling and fatal ones. The boy would be morbidly glad that he didn't have to use this on sapient beings.

He would then check if the mundane sword given to him by his mother was still there; it was and he was able to end the suffering of the first and second foxes afflicted.

Breathing hard, he would then prepare to imitate any First and Second Powers Aram and Wolf used; he had already 'stored' a use of Aram's 'Fine Water Manipulation' when the former had made his pentagrams outside of the building.

Aram's tone shifted as their engagement began. His movements seemed more springy, and he made sure to never catch himself flat-footed.
"You fellas watch yourselves, who knows what nasty festerings these things have-" Even as he said it, one of the creatures lept at him from the shadows, barely giving him enough time to raise his left arm, thanks to William's speed enhancement. It snapped down quickly through his several layers of sleeves. And was met with a hard clank as it bit into his armor.

"Ha! How's that for a mouthful?!" he said, quickly dispatching it with a simple swing of his blade. But there seemed to be a lot of these things. Aram didn't fancy seeing who would last longer. He dropped his sword, quickly crouching and throwing both of his hands to the ground. Jagged, slanted, stone spires erupted from the floor around them, shooting into the shadows behind him and to their flanks, earning screeches of pain and the sound of stone piercing through the beasts, hopefully hitting most of them who weren't in front.

Then the spires shrunk back from the darkness, covered in blood, and some bringing pierced creatures with them, before melting back into the floor.

There were a lot of enemies, but their number wasn't unlimited. They were thinning out as the party cut through the horde. Suddenly however, there was a deep and guttural sound. It sounded like various animal calls were recorded and choked through a filter.

It was almost impossible to tell what animals were in the mix, but they were all underlined by a very distinctive sound.

The monster horde reacted with visible fear as they heard it charge. They couldn't see where it was coming from, but they could hear it. Rapid, mad hoofbeats. The frequency was too high for a normal horse, if they were able to count the steps and recognize the pattern, they'd realize it was 8 legs striking the ground with enough power to make the ground shake.

And before them, it appeared, Sleipnir.

It reared up on its hindlegs and unleashed a stream of fire from its mouth, scorching the ground and sending the foxes scurrying away in fear.

The spirit had warned them of this creature, amongst some others. It was no simple horse, it was a chimera created by fusing together a multitude of creatures, which was then further twisted by magic to create a true nightmare.

It stood 8 feet tall, and had tough scales all along its body, and a large cobra for a tail. It had the ability to breath fire as well. Normally it would be housed on the 4th floor, but it had the speed to be able to travel wherever it wished within the facility in a matter of minutes.

The spirit had advised that if they ever ran across it that they should run.

Run. From that? They'd have to find a suitably narrow area, assuming they didn't get run down the second they turned their backs on it. So much for avoiding trouble, trouble had hunted them down in record time. He was going to need more than his sword for this one.

He just needed to focus. To draw on the right emotions. His father had very clearly told him how -- he just needed to stop hiding. To go back.

A simple task, deep in the forest. CRACK!

He shook his head. No! There was no time to sort through that now!

Still, the trident should be simple enough. He took a breath and in a swirl of black, the trident and net formed in his hands.

"Aram... I'm gonna try and keep it still. Can you follow up?" he asked, not risking looking back to see if he was listening.

Aram blinked as he stood from his crouch. "You? Hold...that still?...You?" he asked. "You've got Moxie, guy... but fine. Don't get us whacked." he said as he came up behind Wolf, standing to his left as he reached into his satchel, the black energy crackling from his hands once again.

Wolf took a breath and stepped forward, wanting to make the beast focus on him. Once he thought he had it gunning for him, he attempted to goad it into running right into his net, thrown at the beasts head. His hope was to distract it and unbalance it while then stepping aside and swinging at its legs with his trident. He didn't have the power now to sned the pralytic effect coursing through its whole body, but with that many legs, he could only imagine the havoc numbing one or two would do.

If he could slow it a little bit now, he could do even better on his next pass...

The tip of the trident rattled and slid across Sleipnir's thick scales, but the edge point caught on a space between some scales and pierced flesh. The horse quickly reared up, and let out its strange call with a snort of fire.

Even with 2 legs raised, it had 6 left to stand on. Unlike horses who couldn't deal with mice effectively since they couldn't keep their legs up, Sleipnir could attack underneath himself without worry. Its nostrils glowed with imminent death, and he unleashed his fire breath at wolf.

Aram wasn't sure what Wolf was trying to do, but it seemed it was right for him to doubt whatever it was. The other Vigilante's weapon barely seemed like a poke to such a large creature. As it reared, Aram saw the undeniable danger staring Wolf in the face.

He thought fast, thinking over his choices. Oh bilge, this'll be groddy, he thought. Aram focused his energy, channeling his willpower into the blood spilling from the deceased creatures around them. The crimson liquid flowed from the body into a large glob that congregated quickly, and then was sent flying at the Demon's face as Aram willed it. Aram aimed for the blood to explode all over the demon, filling its nostrils to prevent its fiery discharge, and hopefully its breathing.

Sleipnir recoiled from the sudden influx of blood, which ended up getting into its eyes as well. It jumped back blindly, denting the steel floor, but it misjudged its jump height and the height of the facility. It hit the ceiling which wasn't too far above its head and fell.