Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.
Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.
Name: Duskwing Origin: Spyro (Spyro) x Brightwing (Heroes of the Storm) Appearance: Duskwing looks mostly like her mother, but with a less chubby, more western dragon form with purple-blueish scales instead of aqua scales. Still has the frog tongue and butterfly wings though. Personality: Duskwing takes more after her father more than her mother, which is great for everyone involved. Background: N/A In the Now: One day while Spyro was doing his forever task of finding gemstones and freeing dragons in his ever repeating 10 year cycle, he bumped into and freed a peculiar dragon that looked like a mix of a frog, butterfly, and chamelion named Brightwing. Of course, the 'known to be crazy' Brightwing was enamored by her 'hero friend' and making a bit of a game of it, followed him around. At first she was... ok? A bit creepy with her sing song voice, but she was helpful. Especially with helping deal with Consul K, who had a vendetta against Spyro.
One thing lead to another, and the two ended up having Duskwing. Although they weren't around for too long to raise her before their cycle was up, but they could at least introduce her to the Lost Numbers before they went. Duskwing having picked up many of her mother's creepiness, but having more of her father's heroic but 'done with this' personality. Probably for the best, as Spyro never got to see Brightwing's dark side if they had managed to take down Consul K...
Job: Crowd Control Healer Specialty: Duskwing heals her allies around her while using her fairy magic to disable enemies trying to attack her and her 'friends', err... allies. Inventory: N/A
Lv: 5 Abilities:
Polymorph - Duskwing turns a nearby enemy into a harmless critter for a few seconds, making them take 25% amplified damage and being unable to move or take actions while transformed.
Phase Shift - Duskwing teleports to an ally within 5km, healing them for 35% of their hp. This has a hefty cooldown, but is reduced by any enemy attacked by Duskwing.
Fire Breath - Duskwing can breath draconic fire, dealing fire damage to even fire resistant or immune enemies although to a lesser extent. Can be done while running with no reduction in movement. This fire breath can be tuned to be harmless to activate devices if necessary, and will also cleanse specific curses such as petrification and time shenanigans.
Skills:
Healing Wind - Duskwing emanates a healing wind around herself every few seconds that soothes and heals the wounds of those around her. Duskwing can also concentrate to pulse a potent healing wind that will heal for more and cleanse light CC effects on a long cooldown.
Hover - Duskwing is immune to any shockwave or attacks that move along the ground.
Weaknesses:
Manic - While not as bad as her mother, Duskwing has episodes of manic laughter and is unnerving to be around.
Limited Flight - Without aid, Duskwing can only really hover off the ground.
Self illuminate - Duskwing, contrary to her name, is quite bright and can be clearly seen in the dark. This is especially true for her eyes and butterfly wings. She can't turn this off.
Although our Lost Numbers have defined origins, that doesn't mean we should just say that they're like one or the other parent in some department and leave it up to the reader to do all the work. You should still describe this character's appearance and personality. I know you mentioned that you're not so good at backstory-related stuff, but the In the Now section could really stand to be fleshed out. Maybe we could work together to put together something, I'd be glad to help. There's no reason to invoke a Consul if he ends up barely being utilized after all, and this backstory doesn't explain Duskwing's involvement with the Lost Numbers.
While I'm fine with having a passive Skill that can be actively intensified, weaknesses shouldn't also be strengths. Limited Flight should replace Hover in stating that she can fly low to the ground, with the limits to that skill explained within it. Likewise, having one's own light could just as easily be a benefit when trying to navigate at night or in dark areas. Regarding her abilities, may I ask for your reasoning for the power creep in her abilities compared to her parents? In Dota Brightwing's Blink Heal only travels 10 units, and Polymorph inflicts a slow rather than a root and damage buff. Spyro's fire breath doesn't have such special properties as far as I can tell.
Just to describe the overall philosophy, the Lost Numbers aren't meant to the cumulative strength of their parents and then some; if anything they're watered down because they're half one and half the other, and rather than try to tread the same ground but worse they'd be more likely to try their own paths, especially without the environments that their parents originated from. Neither of the children of Cloud and Tifa are hyper-competent supersoldiers for instance; they have their own distinct niches.
Level 13 Ms Fortune (171/130) Level 8 Goldlewis (71/80) Level 7 Sandalphon (62/70) Roland, Sectonia, and the Robot Girls’ @Archmage MC, Midna and the Koopa Troop’s @DracoLunaris, Geralt and Zenkichi’s @Multi_Media_Man, Pit and the Octopath Travelers’ @Yankee, Roxas and Ganondorf’s @Double, Juri’s @Zoey Boey Word Count: 4506
With the team’s time in Carnival Town suddenly rendered finite by Dawn’s news about incoming Moebius forces, the Seekers quickly queued up to make the most of the orb machines. It was a shame that their carefree adventure in Carnival Town was already being cut short, but such was the life of a soldier, Goldlewis knew. With the particulars of the pity system fresh in everyone’s mind, they fell into the pattern of stepping up to cash out their prizes three at a time, then lining back up if they wanted a second or third round. Of course, the expansive cosmetic section over on the north side of the Big Top’s lobby -arrayed like costumes in a Halloween store- offered plenty of tempting options as well, especially once someone’s stock of rift tokens fell short of reaching the next pity roll.
While Sandalphon never moved at an inelegant nor overeager pace, someone who valued optimization and efficiency so deeply could still make tracks when she wanted to. With her long strides she spearheaded the communal movement toward the orb machines and coolly inserted her tokens as the first in line. One by one plastic capsules containing colorful spirits rolled down the chute and into her waiting palm. Rather than obstruct her allies, the archangel moved on without so much as looking at what she received. Only once she’d cleared the way for the others did she pause a moment to scrutinize her rewards, especially that third one of supposedly guaranteed quality.
Her first was a cheerfully smiling woman with red hair, tight black and white clothes, and a massive hammer. Though her second appeared to be coquettish sharpshooter, featuring lustrous black pigtails and an enormous sniper rifle with a distinctive coiled barrel, which definitely piqued Sandalphon’s interest. In the end, though, she saw a semblance of truth in Ballyhoo’s promise, for her ‘pity’ roll was another sniper, this one a deadeye cowgirl in blue and cloud-white. Right away Sandalphon began to concoct a plan for her rewards, inferring what she could about her news spirits’ abilities. Regarding the snipers, it made sense to fuse with one and itemize the other to boost the ‘combat’ side of her ‘combat medic’ role, and the one that complimented her appearance would naturally be the better fit. The other she could trade, simply donate, or perhaps even soulbind as a Striker in order to offer her enemies an unexpected surprise at close range.
Regardless, usage of the spirits would need to wait until she returned to the Avenger. While the others got more spirits, Sandalphon quickly perused the aisles of cosmetic items. With her five remaining rift tokens, she could expand her selection of outfits. Since she did not care too much about fashion beyond presenting a professional and unified aesthetic, the archangel sought attire that would suit various extreme situations. Off the top of her head, she wanted to be prepared for extreme heat, extreme cold, toxic conditions, and aquatic conditions. A hooded heavy winter coat lined with snow-white fur was easy enough to find, and she nodded in approval when she found that it came with heavy white thighboots. While the store offered various swimsuits, Sandalphon chose a standard black wetsuit with scuba equipment instead. A white padded hazmat suit with a full-face gas mask would give her a better shot in hazardous environments, and not far away she found something to satisfy her trickiest demand: an ultra-shiny fire proximity suit for extreme heat. That expenditure left Sandalphon with just one rift token that she couldn’t find an efficient use for. As she strode through the aisles, though, she found herself lingering in the area with formal wear. While none of it seemed very practical, some part of her wanted to deck herself out in stunning finery. So in the spirit of an afternoon of enjoyment, she spent her final rift token on a lovely white dress with light blue accents.
Compared to Sandalphon, Nadia was a lot more enthusiastic when it came to splurging her tokens on hard-earned rewards. Since she didn’t scramble to the very front of the line, though, the feral needed to wait for a moment before she could take a crack at an orb machine. In that moment, Chucho reappeared from the ether with a burst of excited barking, much to Nadia’s delight. “Chucho! There’s my good boy! You been waiting for me?” Feeling bad about leaving her polterpup outside while she enjoyed Balan’s wonderworlds, she made sure to give her spectral pooch a super-sized portion of petting. In no time at all, though, Nadia’s turn to get her spirits arrived, and she stepped up to the plate with six of her eight rift tokens in hand. She wasn’t about to get in line again; whoever came after her would have to wait their turn.
She jammed her tokens in like a kid at a gumball machine, snatching each precious orb as it popped out of the mechanism, taking a quick peek at each. One she obtained a pile of six spirit capsules, she sauntered away with her haul, checking out what she got as Chucho frolicked around her. Her loot included a lightning-wreathed kunoichi in black armor, a smirking blonde catgirl, a stern but gorgeous desperado, a one-eyed piratess, a crazy-looking inquisitor, and a sensational wrestler. All women, funnily enough, and while not all seemed like winners, Nadia could see a couple right away that she really wanted to use. Still, she couldn’t indulge just yet, and so turned her attention to the other kinds of the rewards. With her new duds from Al Mamoon, though, she wasn’t in a big hurry to get any new clothes. She quickly settled for a flashy pair of sunglasses, then headed out through the Big Top’s main entrance into the afternoon sun. “C’mon Chucho, how about a quick game of fetch?”
Goldlewis was in much less of a hurry. After going over to retrieve his heavy coffin from where he left it, he lined up with the others and got to the front after a minute or two. When he plugged in his rift tokens, however, he ended up disappointed. His two random draws turned out to both be animals, one an emperor penguin and the other some sort of rat. “What in tarnation?” On the other hand, both wore clothes and clearly wielded guns, so maybe there was more to them than met the eye. Fusion was out of the question, but maybe they’d make good Strikers. If nothing else, he could crush that first one for its handgun. The veteran struck gold with his pity roll, though: a powerful-looking old man decked out in cowboy boots, ripped jeans, elaborate belt, and folksy hat. Goldlewis didn’t know about the black nail polish, but he could definitely appreciate the man’s style. The image within the spirit evidenced some sort of sorcery, which an outsider might not associate with Goldlewis, but the southerner hailed from a world of magic. That spirit seemed like a good candidate for fusion.
Having just one silver medal under his belt, Goldlewis started out with seven rift tokens, which left him with four after the spirits. He considered handing out the others, but after Bowser nabbed a fairly impressive biker outfit from the cosmetics store, the veteran gave the clothing aisles a second look. Goldlewis ended up getting his own biker set, along with a more humble, low-key gear set, a set of combat fatigues with urban camo, and a tall brown cowboy hat.
After collecting his spirit capsules and costume packets into a plastic shopping bag, Goldlewis joined the growing crowd that now gathered outside of the Big Top. He spotted Sandalphon talking logistics with Dawn, who seemed to be polishing off the last few layers of her Hundred Layer Sundae, then watched Nadia playing fetch with Chucho using her Hive Stone as a tennis ball. The organic artifact glimmered with a noxious energy even in the daylight, but the polterpup didn’t seem to care. As more people congregated, the question of how the Seekers would board the Avenger came up. Sandalphon, who’d already thought of this and asked Dawn, happily provided the answer.
“These Fulton devices will return us to the ship,” she explained, holding a sand-colored pack that looked like a parachute. “Each one is suitable for the retrieval of one to two individuals up to a maximum load of five hundred pounds. Once attached and deployed, they will rapidly elevate us into the atmosphere for airborne retrieval by the Avenger itself. After observing our reunion with the Under contingent earlier, Dawn was thoughtful enough to bring extras with her.”
Goldlewis furrowed his brow. “Five hundred pounds…?” he muttered, glancing down at the little pack he’d been given when he dropped from the ship. Last time he checked, he weighed at least fifty pounds more than that, but he’d also lost a decent amount of weight thanks to his two fusions. Hopefully it would be enough.
Meanwhile Nadia, who’d never seen nor heard of anything like this, treated the idea of being hurled thousands of feet skyward with bright eyes and bushy tail. Plus, she’d get to fly on a plane or something afterward! Taking to the skies had been an impossible dream of hers, and yet the World of Light was about to make it a reality. “That sounds awesome! Four of 'em could handle a full ton of fun!”
Some of the more egotistical Seekers present objected to fleeing from H’s approaching forces, which earned a disapproving look from Dawn. “I’m sure you’re very confident in yourselves, but the main risk is to the Avenger,” she pointed out for Bowser and Ganondorf. “Not everyone aboard is as strong as you people. There are civilians and young children aboard. Thanks to your efforts today, Moebius is on high alert. When they’re serious, they’ll take control of the storied and back each other up. I’m sure you can take one of them. We’re counting on it, in fact. But four of them, or eight, or twelve? And backed up by their armies, plus every civilian in Carnival Town? Forget it.” She sighed. “Above all else, we can’t lose the Avenger. So let’s be smart about this, please.”
The team couldn’t say much to that, beyond dubious blustering. While Sandalphon passed out Fultons, making sure to ‘inconspicuously’ drop one where Juri could yoink it, Dawn demonstrated how to put one on. “Just attach the straps on the harness, make sure it’s nice and tight, then pull this cord!” Slipping her thumb into the loop on the end, she winked at the Seekers. “See you aboard!” When she yanked the cord, a balloon popped out of her pack, rapidly inflating. She floated into the air, hung there for a moment while waving, then shot upward like a bullet from a gun.
Nadia stared with her mouth open, shocked by the sheer speed. Her earlier enthusiasm was fading past, but after a quick swallow she donned her characteristic smile. “Okay,” she breathed, tugging the straps extra tight as she tried to control her breathing. “No big deal. Haha. You ready, Chucho? Usually it rains cats and dogs, but today it’s the opposite, huh?”
“If anyone experiences an equipment failure, I can teleport to you and slow your fall,” Sandalphon mentioned to nobody in particular, staring off into the distance. “As long as you’re in my network, of course.”
Nadia pursed her lips. “Uh…am I?”
Sandalphon looked at the feral evenly. “Not yet. I can connect you easily if you like, though.”
“Uhhhh…” After a moment Nadia shrugged. “Sure. Couldn’t hurt, right? Hook me up.”
Once everyone was ready, it was time to start pulling cords. One by one the Seekers deployed their balloons and shot skyward, hurtling up into the azure blue at literally stunning speeds. Even hardened Goldlewis, for whom evacuation methods like these weren’t foreign concepts, couldn’t keep a hold of his consciousness when faced with the staggering g-forces involved. In seconds, the clear blue skies gave way to the black of oblivion.
When Goldlewis woke up, he sat up to find himself in the belly of the Avenger, stowed safely in the deployment bay not far from the Hellpod launching system. He could see the others around, taken care of by Lost Numbers aboard the ship once they arrived. Though blacking out in a situation like that felt like a weakness, Goldlewis counted himself pretty thankful that he didn’t have to experience the sensation of floating thousands of feet above the ground, dangling from a glorified balloon. The important part was that everyone made it safely, somehow. He breathed a sigh of relief and got to his feet.
Dawn waited for the Seekers to stir and compose themselves. “Whether you’re returning or brand now, welcome to the Avenger!” she greeted everyone, putting a hand on your chest. “For you first-timers, I’m Dawn, an ordinary soldier of the Lost Numbers here in our sky-high home.” She put her hands on her hips with a smile. “We’re already flying away from Carnival Town, so we’ve got nothing to worry about from the Consul’s forces. You guys have been busy, so take all the time you need to decompress. The whole ship’s open to you, so feel free to wander around, relax, grab a snack, or even find yourself your very own room. If you want a drink, you can find my brother Cirrus in the Stolen Moments bar, and I’m always up for a chat! Long as you don’t mind my kids, that is.” She giggled.
Sandalphon looked around at her allies. “I would recommend that everyone convenes in the Bridge in a little while, perhaps twenty or thirty minutes. Both teams have experienced a great deal, and the exchange when we first convened in Carnival Town is by no means sufficient. We should recount and compile all we know for the sake of a unified effort going forward.”
“I’m with ya there,” Goldlewis agreed. “In the meantime though, I bet y’all wanna make use of all the spirits we got.”
Dawn held up a finger suddenly. “Oh, right! Why not go to the spirit chamber?” she suggested. “That Mr. Deadman from Bridges ought to be there now getting set up. He said he’s a spirit researcher, so I bet he can help.”
Nadia bounced up and down, eager to get started. “Sounds like a plan to me!”
With a little help from various Lost Numbers, she, Chucho, and Goldlewis found their way to the Avenger’s spirit chamber. Sandalphon took a detour, having already memorized the ship’s layout, but planned to meet back up with everyone in a little while. Like most areas aboard the Avenger this room wasn’t exactly spacious, but the strange machines laid out in an almost ritualistic fashion and the dark, purple-tinged lighting gave it an oddly ominous appearance. It blended together futuristic, almost otherworldly technology with older instruments of an occult nature. In one corner, more dominated by mystical trappings than any other, lay the humble shop of the demon Vulgrim that Pit encountered before, but the skull-faced merchant didn’t seem to be in at the moment. Instead, Nadia’s eyes lingered on the eerie central chamber that housed a purplish glow not entirely explainable by the ring-light that surrounded it. “It’s like Alcamoth, but creepy,” she murmured, having very little experience with sci-fi to reference.
“According to embedded records, this chamber was once used for psionic research for the purpose of making super soldiers,” a distinctive but unfamiliar voice explained. Nadia’s ears swiveled toward the source, and when she looked over she saw an affable-looking man in his mid-fifties, with short gray hair and beard, wearing a red suit and shirt plus a black tie and glasses. He’d shown up unnoticed, as if he’d simply walked through a wall like a phantom when nobody was looking. “Good afternoon, and welcome to the spirit chamber.”
Goldlewis nodded in appreciation for his fashion sense. “Howdy. You must be Deadman. Dawn mentioned you’re a spirit researcher?”
The odd fellow gave a slightly wry smile. “Well, in truth I am more of a coroner. But I am fascinated by death, and in this World of Light, that includes what little we leave behind–our spirits.”
A coroner? Someone who investigates death for a living must have a hell of a time in a world without corpses. Goldlewis stroked his whiskers thoughtfully. No wonder he turned to spirits. “Well, we just so happened to get a boatload, an’ I reckon we’re tryin’ to figure out the best way to use ‘em.”
“Then you came to the right place,” Deadman explained, his frame seemingly possessed by a lively energy all of a sudden. “While Lost Numbers have no spirits of their own, their numbers have been bolstered by the destoried for generations, and since they’ve needed every advantage in their fight against Moebius it seems that they have spirits down to a science.” He went around the room, pointing out each gizmo in turn. “In the middle here is the stabilizer. Since spirits are semi-material info bundles, their energy components possess frequencies that can resonate one another, and this machine boosts their ability to harmonize.”
Next, he pointed out a machine that looked like an aquarium full of colorful vapor. “Over here is what we call the Dugout. According to past studies, bound spirits exert a tax on the host that can become dangerous at higher numbers, speeding up the rate at which we burn our ‘candles’. Two is the recommended maximum, but the Dugout is where you can deposit any extras, so you can switch them out between missions.”
Nadia’s brows went up. “Wow, uh, that’s good to know.” She rubbed her head. “I mean, I kinda forgot about the whole Striker thing for a bit, but still. Wouldn’t want to ‘strike out’.” She then furrowed her brow, glancing around at her allies. “Wait, some of you guys use a lot of strikers, right? If what Deadman says is true, you better offload ‘em.”
The coroner nodded. “I would heartily recommend it. We’re all in this for the long haul, after all. And every life matters.” Next, he directed everyone’s attention to Vulgrim’s corner. “I’m not the only one here with an interest in spirits. At this spot, you can invoke an entity that identifies itself as ‘Vulgrim’ that offers a selection of goods and secrets in exchange for spirits. His tastes may be a bit unsavory, but he has directed Lost Numbers to many locations of interest in the past, so consider spending your extra spirits with him.” Finally, Deadman pointed out a strange gizmo. “This is one of our more mysterious contraptions. It seems able to ‘reset’ someone to a base state, turning the various abilities gained during one’s journey into ‘possibilities’ that can then be reallocated. However, after we used it on Dante to defuse him, the machine overloaded and broke down. It needs some sort of core to provide a fresh source of resetting power, but that’s so esoteric a concept that we may never be able to use it again.”
“Oh, that’s too bad.” Nadia stood there, oblivious and arms crossed while several people stared at her, until her eyes suddenly widened. “...Wait! Waiwaiwaiwait! I have that magic ball!” She rummaged through her pouches until she finally found and produced a cloudy sphere that she held up in her hand for everyone to see: the Orb of Undoing.
Another half second passed before she connected the dots, her eyes going as wide as saucers. “Wait-”
In a veritable flashbang of prismatic light, the Orb undid her, slamming the feral to the ground with a yowl of dismay. When everyone’s vision returned, they saw Nadia on the floor with her default appearance, some of them for the first time. Around her floated the spirits of Massachusetts, Cat-5, Kronya, Kanna, and Rhodeia of Loch. “Dammit!” she wailed, rubbing her head with one eye closed and an agonized look on her face. “I can’t believe I did it AGAIN!”
Though Deadman glanced briefly at Nadia, she seemed fine, so he quickly turned his attention to the softly glowing orb that now rolled across the floor. “This…is perfect!” He bent down, scooped up the orb, and inserted it into the Respec Machine’s circular opening. Energy spread through the device in an instant, bringing it to life. “This should be just the thing for rolling back unwanted changes,” he announced, clearly pleased.
After confirming that Nadia was unharmed, Goldlewis took a step back to consider the revelation he’d just witnessed. Hearing that Dante somehow got defused a moment ago surprised him enough, but witnessing the full reset of Ms Fortune firsthand was quite the surprise. If this array of machines really allowed more customization and particularity in terms of spirits, the spirit chamber really could revolutionize the Seekers’ abilities. “This all seems mighty useful,” he muttered before turning to the others. “Well, no need to take turns watchin’. Let’s all figure out what we wanna do. If y’all want either o’ the critters I got, feel free.”
Every spread out around the room to sort out their spirits, sparking several conversations at once. Sighing, Nadia got to her feet and began to collect her spirits. “Ughhhh, felt just as nya-sty as the first time. But hey least my new clothes mostly stuck around. That Yuria gal wasn’t lying.” She put on a smile. “Well, if these doohickies can make spirit stuff better, I might as well give ‘em a try. Plenty of reasons to re-fuse!”
Her contradictory pun confused Deadman. “You…don’t want to?”
“Nono, it was a joke. Re-fuse, get it? Uh, nevermind, heheh…could I get a hand with this?” Nadia put the spirits on a table next to the resonator cylinder, then pulled out a couple of her capsules from the Big Top’s orb machine. “I liked what I had going on, but the whole copycat business just takes way too much brain power. It’d be more e-fish-ient to make that mermaid thing a striker, right? And honestly?” Nadia narrowed her eyes at the Kronya spirit in her hand, then crushed it. “I’m good on the creepy clown girl. Don’t need her making me pale OR kooky.” From Kronya’s spirit she received, somewhat to her surprise, a second Athame dagger. After putting that aside with her other weapons, she gathered up the spirits of Cat-5, Massachusetts, Kanna, Angel, and Rosetta, then plugged them into the slots on the resonator as indicated by Deadman. She took off her jacket and belt just to be safe, then stepped inside. “Okay, here goes!” she announced with a steady grin. “Hopefully for the last time. Get ready to meet the ‘mew’ me!” Then the door sealed shut and resonator fired up, its cylinder filling with a whirlwind of radiant light.
The Ángel spirit confers the Ability Unchain, which changes her Cat Scratch rekka into a customizable three-hit Unchain series composed of an Unchain Starter, an Unchain Circle, and an Unchain Finisher, many of which are new normals (two of the Unchain Finishers are also command grabs). It also confers the Weakness No Meterless Reversal, which removes all armor from her DP, Fiber Upper. The Rosetta spirit confers the Ability Roll and Gun, which allows her to instantly equip, fire, and reload a ranged weapon during a combat roll, then unequip it again. It also confers the Weakness Fire Bane, increasing the damage suffered by fire attacks by 30%
Appearance: Nadia is slightly shorter, but boasts a fuller figure. Her hair is fluffy and voluminous, reaching down to the small of her back (but shortened to a bob cut at the first opportunity), and has a distinctive calico pattern, primarily cream-white but with splotches of black and orange. This includes her tail, of which she has only one. Her skin is slightly darker, and her eyes are as electric blue as a TV screen. She wears a dark blue, fur-lined, leather bolero jacket with a lighter blue inside and fishbone badges over a small white shirt with buttons undone, with shorts that match her jacket and a leather belt with lots of pouches. The bell on her heavy collar, like her fishbone badges, is silver. Personality: A little bit more serious, but also a bit more catlike and liable to fall asleep anywhere, with a love of pure water, and a gentler soft side to offset her more violent competitive side.
When the light began to diminish and the glass doors slid open to admit a rush of steam, Nadia practically shot out and slid to a stop on the metal floor, full of excited energy. “Did it work?” she asked, twisting around to try and check herself out. “How do I look?”
Goldlewis nodded. “I reckon your new look came together well, li’l missie. No extra heads or nothin’, far as I can see.”
“Sick!” Nadia caught sight of her own tail, which prompted a big smile. “Oh, I’m calico! That’s awesome!” She glanced around at the others. “‘Orange’ you glad I got new joke material?”
Her humor elicited a shake of the veteran’s head. “I feel more pun-ished than anythin’,” he muttered with a smile. With the resonator proven, the next person who wanted to fuse could step in without worry. Nadia sidled off to the sidelines with her spirits to make her selection for spiritbinding and itemization, while Goldlewis shopped around, hoping to obtain more fitting spirits. In particular, he set his eyes on Pit’s Marduk spirit and some of the bigger spirits Ganondorf got, though he suspected the warlord would be loathe to part with objects of potential power.
Although Lewa sympathized with the plight of the villagers, attacked out of the blue and saved only by the chance intervention of benevolent strangers, he had his own villagers to worry about and couldn't linger here any longer. Instead he seemed rather antsy to continue on with the caravan as quickly as reasonably possible. His biggest takeaway from this whole incident was the fact that his own group didn't seem to be the only people brought here from other worlds, turning what he thought to be an isolated and unprecedented event into just one occurrence of a much larger and farther-reaching trend. Naturally this bothered him, since if his abduction wasn't a conscious and deliberate act of an individual that could be reversed and just part of an established trend, getting home might be a whole lot harder. On the other hand, it did imply that the little girl Millie whose desperate prayer had catalyzed his arrival here was probably not a person of pivotal importance to his quest, which was good since by now the otherworlders had left her far behind. The source of the phenomenon was still out there somewhere; he and the others just needed to find it. Livened up by the excitement, the re-energized Toa of Air prepared to get a move on.
Name: Dr Amelia Yu ( formerly specimen 27) Origin: A creation of Dr. Vahlen and Alex Yu combining human, sectoid and typhon dna
Appearance: Dr Yu is a human Sectoid hybrid, within whose veins squirm the black tendrils of a typhon rather than blood, giving her a rather sickly complexion, as if she is necrotized. She tends to wear form covering garbs as a result, generally a lab coat, surgical gloves and face masks, complemented by some kind of colorfully patterned head scarf.
Personality: She has generally a rather obliging personality, with a seemingly preternatural ability to get people on her goodside. Naturally inquisitive, she will attempt to examine and/or take apart anything new she comes across. A pacifist who is physically unable to be around death and violence, even if her work is often in the facilitation of such things.
Background: N/A In the Now:
Dr Yu is the result of dubiously ethical experiments performed by the scientist Dr. Vahlen in conjunction with Alex Yu. Having both found themselves trapped in a well fortified laboratory deep within the underground complex of Black Mesa, one infested with alien horrors from dozens of worlds, the pair used the facilities there to grow numerous biological weapons using samples acquired from within and without the laboratory.
The 27th of these was the future Dr Yu , who was designed to combine her two alien components' psychic abilities into something far more potent than that of either source species. In some ways this was a complete success, as the specimen exhibited numerous psychic powers, but unfortunately to use them it needed to feed the typhon aspect of her physiology. Not only was this the opposite effect the doctors had hoped for, intending for the sectoid component to provide the power source of the psychic powers, but the act of consumption was also highly distressing to the subject herself.
This reaction, however, essentially saved her life, as Alex Yu found this level of empathy in a subject so otherwise dominated by their typhon aspects to be fascinating. That, combined with a propensity for quick learning, is what got her put in the position of research assistant rather than being used as another soldier for her creator’s war for survival.
Though initially kept at arm's length, time and proximity slowly turned her, if not into the daughter she was, then at least into a well liked colleague, which was enough for her to be able to take on a name: Amelia.
There was certainly plenty of time for this closeness to build, for it was a long, long war, with there seeming to be no end to the extra terrestrial horrors. It was so long that Amelia’s creator’s time came to an unceremonious end as their 10 year clocks ran out, and she was left to carry on their work in their stead, being granted the title of Dr and the last name of Yu in her creators’, her parents’, respective dying words.
She tried to give her own creations, own children, some of what her own creators had only given her in her last moments at first, then tried to return to the old detachment she had had before when that broke her heart, only to find she could not. The arrival of the unstoried seeking to destroy the guardian at the heart of the facility was thus the only thing that saved her from withering away behind the locked doors of her birthplace, unable to make any more soldiers to fight in her defense or to even gather supplies.
After being shown kindness and telling their story, she aided the unstoried in reaching the guardian using her knowledge of the facility and then, at their side, at last escaped the palace that had become her parent's tomb, and saw the sun for the first time.
It was a brightness in her life that could not last.
The Consul came, her new friends fell, and she was left lost and alone in a dangerous world.
She turned her skills from creation to enhancement, finding an occupation as a biomodder and ripperdoc until one of the lost numbers coincidentally came to her for her services, and she without hesitation, joined them on their quest.
Job: Scientist Specialty: Reverse engineering and biological enhancement
Inventory: Dr Yu always has at least some surgical and engineering equipment, be it for fixing things, or taking them apart to find out how they tick. If she ever is armed, it will be a stun pistol with which she has only passing skill.
Lv: 5 Abilities: Psionic Empathy: The doctor’s one power that does not need powering by feeding on consciousnesses is the one that makes doing so repulsive to her. It does however help in social situations a fair deal, as she can passively read other’s emotions and the impact she is having on them. Elemental psionics: If fed, the doctor can unleash powerful kinetic, thermal, or electrical blasts as either long range bolts or shorter range sprays. Psionic necromancy: If fed, the doctor can reanimate the dust of the fallen into Typhon Phantoms, humanoid creatures able to use psionics of a single one element. The process takes only a few seconds, and can be repeated every dozen, but if she dies, or her concentration is disrupted by something like a flashbang, the phantoms will expire. Skills: Surgical enhancement: able to instal cybernetics, psymods, biomods, and other such enhancements if she has the materials for such things Surgical dissection: can ‘dissect’ a spirit, destroying it in the process but in return gaining knowledge on how to create an item that it would have given when crushed.
Weaknesses: Typhon feeding: Dr Yu’s well of psionic power can only be fed by feeding on the consciousness of others, a thing that can only be done with skin to skin contact, and which is also absolutely repulsive to her. Sectoid constitution: takes double damage from melee weapons Hybrid anatomy: the doctor’s insides are not in any medical journals, and would take extensive and repeated live dissections to chart out, meaning anything that requires surgery, be it healing or enhancement, is simply not on the table.
That's another very interesting and creative Lost Number. The only thing I'd want adjusted is the strength related to spirits. Your character can be good at reverse-engineering technology, but I would rather not involve spirits.
Level 13 Ms Fortune (166/130) Level 8 Goldlewis (96/80) Level 7 Sandalphon (57/70) Roland, Sectonia, and the Robot Girls’ @Archmage MC, Midna and the Koopa Troop’s @DracoLunaris, Geralt and Zenkichi’s @Multi_Media_Man, Pit and the Octopath Travelers’ @Yankee, Roxas and Ganondorf’s @Double, Juri’s @Zoey Boey Word Count: 1604
As the seekers sussed out the hiders one by one, the lantern-orange numbers plastered on the sky ticked inexorably downward, getting closer and closer to zero. The hunters ignored the timer in order to focus on the quarry, but their prey didn’t make it easy for them, with the vast majority running once found in order to try and waste time–some much more successfully than others. Both the seconds and the number of hiders dwindled fast, and in the end it came down to Blazermate’s aerial chase. Even with her cheeky resourceful and airborne maneuverability, however, the seekers’ speed boosts made any pursuit a foregone conclusion. Finally, with just under thirty seconds left out of the original three hundred and sixty, Rika and Kamek pulled out all the stops to take the medabot out and win the game for their team.
Before Blazermate’s confetti even settled atop the cobblestones, the Morgenstund wonderworld collapsed, crumpling into nothingness like the display on a CRT television set. Just like before, the process kicked everyone back to the lobby, that giant roulette table that acted as the liminal space between manic minigames. With all of the spectators -and several of the hunters- focused on the outcome of the game rather than the timer, then abruptly deposited throughout the lobby, not everyone could tell who won right away. Whether excitement, disappointment, annoyance, or confusion, emotions were high, and while several people started talking at once, others just looked around in search of answers.
“Maaan, I thought I did such a good job hiding!” Nadia pointed, trying and failing to be angry with Geralt for spoiling her carefully-laid schemes with such ruthless pragmatism. “Why you gotta be all smart and stuff? How’d you know I was there to begin with?” While the two had been companions all across the Deep Blue Seaside, from the sparkling waters of Heaven’s Edge to the eldritch depths of Carcass Isle, the feral and the Witcher hadn’t gotten very close. She’d been more chummy with Sakura, Mirage, and especially Ace. From Geralt’s stunt with the Helmaroc King over Blackwater Bay, and her general fighting prowess Nadia had known the Witcher was good, but sniffing her out in the Botanist’s House was downright scary.
Goldlewis rubbed the back of his head as he squinted at Kamek. Due to his remarkable dimensions he’d been up the creek without a paddle from moment one, so it didn’t come as a surprise that someone managed to suss him out pretty quickly. After all, Witch One was ultimately a magical derivative of a game for children, enjoyed by those for whom the households and items of the world were large, rather than small. And it had been a very, very long time since the veteran’s childhood. “Good huntin, partner,” Goldlewis told the Magikoopa in the spirit of good sportsmanship.
Conversely, Sandalphon said nothing to the person who found her, in part because her discovery had been an unfortunate accident perpetrated in ignorance. Though this might have frustrated the average hider, Sandalphon seldom felt strongly about much of anything, and this outcome was no exception. Given that her contingency plan ultimately came down to luck, failure in some form was to be expected. Could she have done better? Almost certainly, and in any other circumstance, abject failure would have been excruciating. This, however, was just a game. The stakes were low, and she didn’t need to spend her mental energy on a masterstroke plan. If anything, being able to fail and have it not matter came as something of a relief. If anyone glanced Sandalphon’s way after the fourth game’s conclusion, they would find her pupils in the shape of cheerful carets. “This was fun,” she remarked.
In short order, Ballyhoo arrived to sort things out. “Wow-wee! What a stupendous six minutes of hiding and seeking! Witch One usually favors the hiders, especially when the seekers don’t know the map, but you four sure flipped the script, ‘cause you four overcame some serious odds to seize victory! Congratulations on a JOB WELL DONE! Here’s a token of my appreciation–or more accurately, five tokens! APIECE!” Ballyhoo snapped his fingers, and in the distant sky behind him, four brilliant stars sparkled. The next second, five-token stakes shot down like blazing golden comets into Geralt, Rika, Kamek, and Pit, ragdolling them comedically.
Then the gamemaster doffed his hat, giving the rest of the players a bow. “But don’t feel bad, hiders! Your clever hiding spots and tenacity for survival sure were something! I appreciate you too–just eighty percent LESS!” With that he hurled his hat into the sky, which exploded into a red-and-gold fireworks display of Ballyhoo’s own face. More rift tokens rained down onto the remaining sixteen people, one each. “Now, who’s hungry for ANOTHER ROUND? You ready, Balan? Let’s spin. The. Whee-!”
“That won’t be necessary,” Sandalphon cut in, bringing the butt of her Aether Lance down against the roulette table’s center with a loud clack. “We’re done for the time being.”
Nadia crossed her arms as she sent an indignant look the archangel’s way, complete with raised brow. “Huh, why? We’re still havin’ a good time, right guys? Can’t roulette out just yet!”
Sandalphon’s pupils became inverted triangles. “Starting now, they intend to charge us all per game and present the grand total at the end.”
“Oh.” In an instant Nadia’s attitude changed, and the catgirl turned her narrowed eyes toward Ballyhoo, who’d donned his most innocent expression. “Yeah, forget that! Get meowtta here, chief!“
While Ballyhoo moped, Balan shrugged and created a white rift at the edge of the roulette table, which he guided the guests over to with a grin. Once the Seekers stepped in, they found themselves pushing out of the curtains and back into the spacious checker-floored foyer of the Big Top in reality. As soon as he set foot on solid group, Goldlewis let out a breath he’d been subconsciously holding, a hand on his slightly queasy stomach. The end of the minigame roulette came at a good time for him; he’d definitely had his fill of spatial distortions and whimsical illusions for a while. As the weight in his pocket could attest, though, the rift tokens that he and the others received were very real, and now that the gift exchange lay before them, everyone could put their hard-earned rewards to use.
As everyone stepped away from the curtains, a forlorn Ballyhoo waved a handkerchief. “I hope you all enjoyed yourselves! Please come again sooooon!” he called after them. Still smiling beside him, Balan tipped his hat, and like streams of paint washing down a drain the bizarre pair spiraled back into the surreal realm of whimsical wonderworlds just behind the curtain.
Given her tendency to scan her surroundings, it didn’t take Sandalphon long to notice the presence of someone else in the Big Top’s foyer. Having just obtained a fantastical Hundred Layer Sundae (Zero Calories) from the Big Top’s snack bar, a familiar thirty-something woman wearing black, white, and a good-natured smile made her way toward the gaggle of heroes and villains fresh from their minigame extravaganza. “Hey everyone!” Dawn greeted them. “How’s it going? You guys have fun in there?”
Sandalphon nodded. She couldn’t speak for everyone, and a couple of them certainly seemed to be in a rather foul mood, but the archangel had experienced something that would reasonably fall within the standard definition of ‘fun’. “Yes. However, further engagement would incur payments, so we declined to continue.” she told Dawn. “May I ask why you’re here? Has something occurred with the Avenger?”
“Straight to the point, huh?” Dawn chuckled before downing a big spoonful of ephemeral ice cream. “Well, nothing just yet. Our long-distance scanners picked up movement down near Zurvan Amp Station though. That’s Consul H’s territory, and he’s got a serious ace up his sleeve. Some of our poor Alcamoth survivors know it firsthand: a gigantic carrier ship, packing more soldiers and military vehicles than you could shake a stick at. Probably headed toward Midgar, but to get there it might fly right over Carnival Town, and we don’t want it anywhere near the Avenger. After a little scrying, that Mona girl said we shouldn’t risk it.” She took a big bite from one of the chocolate bars, then shrugged. “So, I figured I oughta come down and round everyone up. No big rush, but no dilly-dallying, okay? Grab a snack, some clothes, spirits, whatever you want, and let’s Fulton outta here.”
As Dawn spoke, Goldlewis listened in rapt attention. Even if he hadn’t witnessed the ship for himself, he knew firsthand just how much of a military powerhouse anything called a ‘carrier’ could be. “Got it. We’ll wrap up here ASAP.” He turned to the others. “Y’all heard the lady. Let’s grab whatever we can and extract on the double.”
Sandalphon nodded once more. Her expression had relaxed somewhat over the course of the minigames, but she looked totally serious now. “Let’s save usage of the spirits until we’re aboard, as well.” With that, she made a beeline toward the Orb Machine, ready to extract her allotment of spirits. Though her solitary victory and three consolation prizes in the minigame roulette had awarded her a total of eight rift tokens, she only planned to spend three on spirits, enough to reach ‘pity’ once. The rest she planned to spend on clothes, since outfits that could be quickly equipped or unequipped offered a lot of utility, and there was no telling where this journey would take the Seekers next.
Level 13 Ms Fortune (163/130) Level 8 Goldlewis (93/80) Level 7 Sandalphon (54/70) Roland, Sectonia, and the Robot Girls’ @Archmage MC, Midna and the Koopa Troop’s @DracoLunaris, Geralt and Zenkichi’s @Multi_Media_Man, Pit and the Octopath Travelers’ @Yankee, Roxas and Ganondorf’s @Double, Juri’s @Zoey Boey Word Count: 1596
Having never participated in a game like this, Sandalphon absorbed the rules of the upcoming game from Ballyhoo with an expression far greater seriousness than one might expect of someone about to engage in a game of glorified hide-and-seek. Concentrating completely, she internalized both the tasks and objectives of the two teams and the advantages both brought to the table, since she couldn’t be sure which side she’d be on until the competition began. Her daily operations in DespoRHado had demanded subversiveness from her from time to time, but never had she been obliged to hide her physical form. Even without the potential spirit rewards, this minigame roulette offered a lot in terms of novel experiences.
Her powers of perception had made her wise to one other important detail about the Witch One minigame as well: that this would be the Seekers’ last one on the house before Ballyhoo’s Big Top started demanding recompense. Having immersed herself in the modern world of computers and software since her arrival in Midgar, and found herself remarkably suited for it, the archangel had experienced her fair share of shady free trials. If he considered that little aside -barely a slip of the tongue- sufficient warning and planned to pull everyone into a fifth game right after this, Sandalphon would need to intercede. Without full knowledge of the price point per person per minigame, she and the others could not afford to be caught up in all the excitement. With that in mind, Witch One would be the group’s final minigame today, and after doing poorly in two of them Sandalphon wanted to end on a strong note. With only two teams in play, after all, this last game was for all the marbles.
When she and the others arrived in Morgenstund, the archangel spared only a moment to look around. Given the quantity of allies at her side, it looked like she’d been assigned the role of ‘hider’. While Sandalphon would have preferred the role of predator versus prey, she could only play the hand the gamemasters dealt her, and that meant finding the perfect spot to hide.
Despite the festive autumnal atmosphere, Sandalphon scoped out the town through a strictly tactical lens. Theoretically it would only take one hider to win the game for the whole team by avoiding the seekers for six minutes, but this town didn’t seem that large, and its overall quantity of sufficiently sized objects would be limited. While using the unicorn horns on ordinary items would endanger the Seekers, she didn’t see any reason why they couldn’t use their hands or other weapons to sniff out illusions, blitzing through all the viable objects in each building one at a time. This would not be as easy as it seemed, especially given the roster of Seekers. By process of elimination she identified Kamek, Rika, Geralt, and Pit as her opponents. The first two she knew less about, but one could fly and the other could at the very least jump high and fall slow, which ruled out hiding on rooftops. Pit certainly had a lot of energy, and if his light arrows could seek targets, hiding in an isolated spot could be a bad idea. Geralt, as mentioned by Zenkichi, possessed superhuman senses, and of the four she most likely wielded the greatest intellect, making her the biggest threat. My apologies, Pit. With all that in mind, a target-saturated environment or a hard-to-find nook indoors would be best. Of course, finding somewhere sizable enough to accommodate her -not to mention her halo- would be difficult.
Around her, the other Seekers scattered. For a moment she considered trying to rally everyone to actually fight the Seekers rather than hide from them, given the hiders’ far greater numbers, but after Ganondorf’s outcry Sandalphon quickly decided against it. Time was not on their side. As the others spread out around the town, the archangel gravitated toward the library, the building with the most indoor space. Moving with unusual vigor -for her at least- she followed in the footsteps of Bowser, Midna, and Junior, a contingency plan forming in her head. Zenkichi, Goldlewis, Roxas, Roland, Blazermate, and now Ganondorf…perhaps even Pit or Geralt, if need be. Once inside the library, she ignored the chaos caused by the Koopa Troop and headed up to the second floor to search for a suitable prop. Unfortunately she could not find many good options, especially given the second floor’s limited area. Most of it happened to be a balcony that ringed the central atrium. In the reading nook above the doorway, however, Sandalphon’s ship came in. She found a grandfather clock, blocky but tall and thin, perfect for her to hide inside. She couldn’t say the same for her halo, though.
“Hmm,” the archangel mumbled, eyeing the rug next to the coffee table. With reluctance she took it and threw it into the air, draping it over her halo. Doing this felt a little sacrilegious, but Sandalphon knew of no specific prohibitions, so it should be fine. After that, she used her Mimic Veil to assume the appearance of the grandfather clock, then headed over to another reading nook to get some distance from the original. Two in the same area would be highly suspect, after all, and any attempts to destroy or displace the original would be clumsy and obvious. The archangel did not feel confident about this disguise, but hopefully this strategy would give her contingency plans the buffer they needed.
Compared to Sandalphon, Nadia did a lot less planning and overthinking. Instead she grinned at Therion, told him “You too!” and darted off the moment she arrived, scouring Morgenstund for the perfect hiding spot. While typically the cat instead of the mouse, she figured she could play the part of prey well enough–after all, she just needed to think like the hunter. If I were a seeker, where would I look…? Of course, compared to the average hider Nadia wielded one major advantage: she could make herself very small indeed. Instead of a hidey-hole, she needed the spot that would allow her to pull off her idea the best.
Her first stop was the Potter’s House. All those jars, vases, urns, and pots would be perfect for the scheme she had cooking–a plan so simple and yet so devious that she could not help but snicker as she scampered around. Unfortunately, there turned out to be a couple problems with her first choice, and their names were Roland and Therion. Both of them turned up at the Potter’s House as well. Even if it seemed to be a promising location, too many hiders in proximity only worsened the chances for everyone. That would be putting too many eggs in one basket, and while Nadia wouldn’t hesitate one nanosecond to give away a friend if it meant escaping, it would be better not to give herself any disadvantages.
Leaving the guys to it, Nadia skipped the workshop and moved on to greener pastures, literally. The moment she slipped into the Botanist’s House, a gleeful smile spread across her space. “Purr-fect.” This building, half a residence and half an overgrown greenhouse, was just what she needed. With plants and pots of all shapes and sizes it presented a lot of visual clutter, but that wasn’t the only sense it stymied. This place was a smorgasbord of earthy, floral, and herbal smells, cut by the heady aromas of burning incense that also contributed to a smoky haze. Those smoldering spices, gums, and resins made for a potent mixture; just one deep breath of the dwelling’s funky bouquet proved enough to confound the feral’s own sense of smell. This was going to be easy.
With only so much time on the clock, Nadia moved quickly. She selected a hanging pot by the entrance, reached down, and detached her lower leg to stow her foot out of sight. After hopping over to a tall, grassy shrub, she planted her tails inside it. Bit by bit she scattered herself throughout the interior, ferreting away each part of herself in a plant or pot just large enough to contain it. Her torso, the largest part of herself, she inserted between bags of dirt and fertilizer beneath a table, where she hoped nobody would look. Finally, she hopped her head into an empty spot on a shelf of succulents, wearing the Mimic Veil stripped off her now-discarded witch’s hat. Once her hand -hidden in a potted rosebush- snapped, the illusion of a clay pot appeared around her head. Just in time, the cat burglar was good to go.
Meanwhile, Goldlewis had a much tougher time. He couldn’t find any objects anywhere both big enough to hide in and not hilariously obvious. Keenly aware of the clock ticking down, he jogged around and examined several abodes in quick succession, but he couldn’t find any feasible spots. After a couple tries he gave up on the houses and headed for the central tower, the largest building not occupied by Bowser. In addition to a small dormitory with bunk beds, the barracks included an armory, and it was there that the veteran found his best bet. Arrayed within were suits of armor of all shapes and sizes, and when Goldlewis used his Mimic Veil in there, a suitably corpulent armor appeared around him. This wasn’t great still, but with time running out he couldn’t find a better option now. He just needed to stand still and hope that whoever stumbled in here was…well, stupid.
Happy to leave conversing with these people of interest to his fellows, Lewa stood by and absorbed what they had to say. Anne had already given the Spirit of Air the impression of wittiness, but when her intuition about Gwen and Maokai turned out to be correct, the toa could help but be impressed. Her arboreal companion chimed in with some insights about the strange enemies that everyone faced, and since Lewa didn't expect him to be able to talk at all, he found the creaky timbre of the treant's voice particularly intriguing. While he didn't understand Maokai's reference to something called the Mist, Lewa did feel alarmed when his new acquaintance posited the existence of mortals inclined to harm the natural world.
Such a concept was utterly foreign to him; on Mata Nui, there was nothing that could be called civilization, just isolated pockets of tribal Matoran eking out an existence on their island home. While they didn't always live in total harmony with nature, its rules and patterns governed everything, an inescapable fact of island life. Really, Lewa didn't really know what going 'defiling nature' could even mean. At most he could conceive of harmful ramifications of say, Ta-matoran living in Le-wahi, where they might be inclined to fell trees to feed their forges. Or Ko-matoran living in Ta-wahi, where the cold-weather Matoran might seek to tame the lava flows' uncomfortable heat. But even a whole tribe working as one still probably couldn't inflict lasting damage on the ecosytem. Mata Nui was a wonderful land, but its natural forces were powerful. Here, though, Lewa had no idea. Could people really bend their environments to their will? Lewa looked around and the rolling fields, scarcely able to imagine it. 'Defile' was a scary word to him.
Some of his comrades had separated from the rest of the group, heading into one or another of the town's humble buildings. Hopefully Remilia would be able to help any locals who suffered injury during the attack, but Lewa didn't know what the others meant to do. If they'd resolved the crisis here, it made sense that everyone would continue on their way. Naturally the thought of sticking around to make Maokai's acquaintance occurred to him, but trees had nothing if not time, and while Lewa's homeland was under siege from the Bohrok his own time was precious indeed. "I don't imagine that the caravan would stay-wait here," he ventured after a few moments. "Perhaps we should say our goodbyes."
Level 13 Ms Fortune (160/130) Level 8 Goldlewis (90/80) Level 7 Sandalphon (51/70) Roland, Sectonia, and the Robot Girls’ @Archmage MC, Midna and the Koopa Troop’s @DracoLunaris, Geralt and Zenkichi’s @Multi_Media_Man, Pit and the Octopath Travelers’ @Yankee, Roxas and Ganondorf’s @Double, Juri’s @Zoey Boey Word Count: 1035 (Goldlewis) 1191 (Ms Fortune)
After putting Nadia and her spectacular wreck in his rear-view mirror, Goldlewis tried to pick up the pace. The timer in his cab’s dashboard marched ever closer to zero, after all, and if he meant to win he couldn’t afford to waste any time. So far his strategy had been a blend of speed and control, reasoning that any crashes or spin outs that resulted from an overabundance of haste would cost him a lot more time on the clock than caution. He didn’t overdo it like Sandalphon, but he still got outpaced by the likes of Captain Falcon and even Zenkichi. Now, though, he knew that he would need to pick up the pace to stay in the running. A little more familiar now with the city layout and the overall shape of its streets, he cranked up the music in his radio player and began to drive a little more recklessly. He flew off hills, skidded around sharp corners, and even took out small objects.
Goldlewis reached Payback Square, dropped off his current passenger, and drifted to a stop in a red zone just narrowly missing his next customer. “Southpaw Junction, and step on it!” the female NPC demanded. The veteran obliged, slamming his pedal to the metal to the sound of screeching tires. His arrow pointed him back toward Grapital Central, but while he knew he could weave through those twisting streets, the broader southbound avenue offered more room for acceleration. It featured one other bonus, too: ramp trucks. As long as he didn’t soar straight into the elevated railway, Goldlewis knew he could use those strategically-placed stunt vehicles to perform tricks, which he’d avoided in favor of solid fundamentals until now. “Better buckle up, ma’am!” he grinned, still not familiar with the concept of a non-player character. “I’m gonna take you for a ride!”
Now, with his engine roaring as the cab sped down the roadway, Goldlewis could really feel the wind in his hair. His heart pumped with exhilaration, and he couldn’t suppress a smile. Suppressing his common sense, he steered his taxi toward the first ramp truck he saw, and a second later he was in the air. “Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaaaaw!” he hollered, easily drowning out the screaming of the passenger in the back. All too soon the vehicle touched back down, with a quick rightward veer necessary to avoid a collision with a building. Just after getting the vehicle back under control, though, Goldlewis saw another ramp, and deftly drifted over to fly off it as well.
He reached Southpaw Junction ahead of schedule, his passenger shaken but still in the vehicle. “Thank ya kindly!” After snatching his cash from her shaking hands, he rounded up another customer that requested a quick trip to Jobber Flats, back where he last spotted Sandalphon. Goldlewis got there on the double, a little shaken by several near misses and a run-in with Junior’s paint hazard but satisfied with the extra dough. He didn’t see any sign of Sandalphon and reasoned that she must have barely left the area with the time she had left, though overall he had noticed fewer and fewer competitors around. Those with less driving skill, especially the few inclined to sabotage others instead of trying to win for themselves, were all getting eliminated. Already the relentless decline of the timers had thinned the herd by half or more. Those last two trips had bolstered his own time somewhat, so if Goldlewis could last just a little longer, a top spot could be his. Unfortunately, the saboteurs only got more dangerous once eliminated, using their own abilities to wreck havoc rather than their vehicles.
Unwilling to waste time hunting down a red, he settled for a yellow, only to find that the customer demanded a trip over Grapital City’s connecting bridge to Low Key Key. With Half-Nelson Highway a hotspot for saboteur activity, and too much of a detour anyway, he opted to go for the much narrower, much trickier southern bridge instead. He managed to avoid a drop into the drink, but he felt anxious to make up for the time spent on his cautious crossing, and after turning south Goldlewis entered the little town where he dropped his passenger off at a poolside. He spotted a red fare up the street, picked the NPC up, then had to pull off a three-point turn to head south again to get to the giant ice cream come. Unfortunately, this particular customer’s timer turned out to be incredibly strict, and just moments before Goldlewis reached the monument his passenger bailed. “You gotta be kiddin’ me. It’s right there!” He got no response, of course, and the veteran had to swallow his pride in order to find someone else.
Thanks to that incident, his timer suffered a blow that he never recovered from, even after two back-to-back yellow trips in Low Key Key (during which he saw, and waved to, Primrose and Therion in the latter’s parked car). His hesitation to attempt more reds ended up spelling his doom. Just as he drew near the tropical island’s lavish southeastern hotel, his taxi cab began to give up the ghost. “Gaghhhh, don’t you quit on me now, you stinkin’ clunker! Just a hundred more feet, c’mon, c’mon!” Unfortunately, his timer read zero-zero-zero, and no amount of coaxing would add more seconds to that fateful number. With a final sputtering cough, the car ground to a halt. “Awww, hell.” He smacked the steering wheel with the bottom of his fist in disappointment, only for the airbag to explosively deploy and flatten Goldlewis against the seat. “MMMPH!”
It took him a few moments to extricate himself, after which the veteran heaved a heavy sigh, shook his head, and moseyed down the road toward the hotel. While he waited for the game to wrap up, he could at least see if the drinks in this wonderworld were real enough to taste. Fortunately, he didn’t have long to wait; even if Falcon had the others beat by a country mile, only the person in second needed to run out of time for the game to reach its end. The moment Goldlewis reached for a mimosa, the tropical paradise around him began to collapse.
The moment Nadia got warped back into the giant roulette table that served as the Seekers’ minigame lobby, the feral looked around. All of her fellow competitors from Kooky Cabbies had reappeared alongside her, their positions seemingly random, but right now she cared about just one unfriendly face in particular. With almost everyone more or less relaxed after their taxi cabs stopped moving, it took only a second to identify her target by movement alone, given the warp-induced disorientation that led to directionless aggression. Now that Juri and Nadia were back in the real world -or a more real one than Grapital City, at least- they could give their feud a proper conclusion, and the feral planned to keep her word by showing the bully how dangerous a serious Ms. Fortune could be.
“Okay, let’s do this right,” Nadia muttered, drawing her dagger Athame from her belt with one hand as she sprayed blood on the floor from the other. When she hopped onto it, she could deploy her rigging, the mechanical arms unfolding from her backpack to swivel their cannon batteries in Juri’s direction. “I won’t miss you!” She fired missiles of condensed hydro energy like watery corkscrews, two salvos at once, and as all four shots homed in on Juri’s position Nadia transformed her legs with Fluffy Soft and sprinted after the missiles in an animalistic burst of speed.
Juri’s good reactions meant that she could turn and block the missiles the moment she spotted them, but burnout prolonged her blockstun long enough for Nadia to pounce. She lashed out with her tiger legs, first with a scratch and then with a knee. “Saved the beast for last!” A high guard reduced the empowered blows to chip damage, but the Marks they applied reduced Juri’s defense by a combined ten percent, which spiked to 40% when Nadia followed up with a wicked slice from Athame, even when blocked. “Knife knowing ya!” Finally, Nadia used her dramatic tension to unleash her classic blockbuster, Cat Scratch Fever. “Furserker Purrage!” She advanced with a relentless series of slashes, dishing out remarkable chip damage as she pushed Juri back. The final hit caused the martial artist’s back to slam into the roulette table’s central tower, stunning her. As Juri reeled and Nadia’s teammates looked on, either alarmed or just curious, the feral stepped forward with a Friend Heart in her hand.
“Haah,” she gasped, grinning. “You’ve had quite the slumber party. But it’s time to wake up!”
She drove the Friend Heart into Juri’s head, setting the vagabond free in a burst of light.
In just seconds the commotion was over, thanks to Nadia’s underhanded strategy. As Juri recovered, fully healed but also fully possessed of her memories, her attacker waved the others away with fingers crossed behind her back. “Nothin’ to worry about guys, just freeing my friend here.” Once she’d assuaged the others’ concerns, Nadia turned back to Juri. She didn’t bother insulting her with an offered hand to help her up. “Welcome to what I’ve been dealing with,” she told her old rival. Would the truth inspire her to rethink her ways and fight for the future, or sink her into a depression? Maybe it wouldn’t change much of anything. Regardless, the choice was Juri’s to make. “...Enjoy.”
By that time, Balan and Ballyhoo had appeared. “What an incredible, action-packed ADVENTURE!” Seemingly ignoring the violent confrontation, the gamemaster looked more animated than ever. “Good work transporting those travelers, everyone, but alas! There can be only one winner! And then several RUNNERS-UP!” His associate Balan provided a drumroll as Ballyhoo snapped his fingers, summoning a cloud of wallets with all the competitor’s pictures on them that contained their collective earnings. Cash poured out of them -though in a couple cases, a single butterfly fluttered out of them- and one by one they quickly ran out until only three remained. “In third place, Goldlewis Dickinson! In second place, Zenkichi Hasegawa! And in first place, Carnival Town’s very own CAPTAIN FALCON! CONGRATULATIONS!”
Though getting third took Goldlewis by surprise, it did lift his spirits. In the end, his focus on the objective had given him the edge over Bowser, who'd committed a bit too much to chaos.
Ballyhoo held out his empty palms, then turned up his hands, revealing rift tokens between gloved fingers. He hurled them like throwing knives, five at Falcon and four at Zenkichi, then did a backflip before launching the last three at Goldlewis. Finally, he took off his hat and threw it, which whirled through the air above the crowd dispensing consolation tokens to everyone else. Sandalphon received hers with a nod of approval. Now even those who had yet to place in any of the minigames could reach that slot machine's much-lauded ‘pity’ and get what should be a valuable spirit. The games weren’t over just yet, however, so everyone had one more chance to earn a real payout.
For the fourth time, Balan and Ballyhoo spun the roulette wheel. When the boo ball finally stopped, it lay in pocket number thirty-four. “GASP!” The gamemaster cried, using the word itself instead of the actual sound. “Could it be? The fourth and final minigame in your collective free trial session before we start charging you is none other than WITCH ONE!” He declared it with such bravado that it echoed through the lobby, though as it petered out the rising sense of anticlimax forced Ballyhoo to clear his throat. “...Ahem! It’s a fun new twist on an old classic, a favorite among gamers of all ages, time periods, and IQ levels! So listen up!” After landing and leaning on his cane in a saucy pose, Ballyhoo began his exposition. “The rules are simple. You will be divided into two teams. Four of you will be seekers…”
“Aren’t we all Seekers?” Nadia muttered.
“...And the rest will be hiders! The hiders will have ninety seconds to find somewhere to hole up in our quaint little town. When that time is up, the seekers’ hunt begins! They must find all the hiders within six minutes to win, and if they fail, the hiders will be victorious! How to find someone, you ask? Simple! Just poke ‘em with your very own unicorn horn! Just don’t poke something that isn’t a hider ten times, or you’ll eliminate yourself. And be aware: the hiders have a trick up their sleeves! The MIMIC VEIL!” Ballyhoo opened wide and coughed out a classic witch hat with a veil of cloth wound around it. “Snap your fingers while wearing it, and you’ll create an illusion of the nearest valid object around yourself to hide inside! You can adjust it a little, but too much movement will break the illusion! Use it to hide yourself in plain sight! Especially because we’re disabling all abilities that would RUIN THE GAME by making yourself unfindable! And the seekers will get faster the longer they chase someone, so you can’t run forever! AHAHAHAHA!”
Nadia couldn’t help but smile. “So it’s just hide and seek, huh? ‘Find’ by me!”
The terrible pun earned her a look from Sandalphon, her pupils briefly in the form of targeting reticles.
Goldlewis, meanwhile, rubbed his head. “There ain’t much I can fit inside, I reckon,” he muttered. “Maybe a wardrobe, or somethin’...?” Well, after unexpectedly placing in the last minigame, he couldn’t complain too much.
“Get ready to hide and/or seek then, gamers!” Ballyhoo exclaimed. “Let the minigame begin!”
Once immersed in Balan’s new wonderworld, those designated as ‘hiders’ found themselves wearing witch hats in a whimsical old town of cobblestone streets and wooden cottages at nighttime, decorated thoroughly in the pumpkins, hay bales, candles, and props of Halloween. The flickering flames inside oil lamps and jack-o-lanterns illuminated crimson leaves, orange grasses, and colorful candies nestled inside bowls on the cottages’ doorsteps. All these buildings, however, featured fully accessible interiors, furnished with a selection of small and large objects. Which ones counted as ‘valid’ turned out to be based on the size of those who used their Mimic Veils; a valid object was whichever one could completely encapsulate the user in his or her current configuration, which ruled out the small props for just about everyone.
Still, this own offered plenty of places to hide. The Potter’s House, full of ceramic pots and jars of all shapes and sizes as well as ovens and bushels of coal for firing them. The Weaver’s House, full of quilts, blankets, and tapestries hung all over the walls and furniture that filled the abode with ghosts of cloth. The Mason’s House, full of statues of various people and creatures plus slabs of uncut stone. The Botanist’s House, an overgrown dwelling with plant pots and pantries full of magical flora and fragrant incense. The Ironworks, with all sorts of cauldrons and safes on display. The Tavern, laid out for a feast, with its many barrels and cloth-draped tables bowing beneath the weight of giant fruits, vegetables, meat slabs, and pies. The Stables, where sacks of feed and storage crates surrounded pens where fake animals lay. The Barracks on the bottom floor of the tower, with various suits of armor and crates of ammunition. And in the center of town, the two-story Library, its bookshelves towering over sprawling study tables.
Meanwhile, the four seekers wound up in a waiting room to hang tight while their opponents hid themselves. This took the form of the otherwise inaccessible potion laboratory at the top of the town’s tower. It featured a large brewing table with a cauldron and wealth of magical ingredients that could be processed and combined to all sorts of amusing effects, as well as a talking skull that could offer explanation or advice when prompted–or scream when hurled out of the window. Each prospective seeker also got a rainbow-striped shank, evidently their ‘unicorn horns’. And if none of that tickled their fancy, the four soon-to-be-seekers could just talk with one another, though given who’d been selected -Pit, Ganondorf, Geralt, and Rika- any chat between the four of them was bound to be interesting.
Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.
Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">Current GM of World of Light. When it comes to writing, there's nothing I love more than imagination, engagement, and commitment. I'm always open to talk, suggestion, criticism, and collaboration. While I try to be as obliging, helpful, and courteous as possible, I have very little sympathy for ghosts, and anyone who'd like to string me along. Straightforwardness is all I ask for.<br><br>Looking for more personal details? I'm just some dude from the American south; software development is my job but games, writing, and trying to help others enjoy life are my passions. Been RPing for over a decade, starting waaaay back with humble beginnings on the Spore forum, so I know a thing or two, though I won't pretend to be an expert. If you're down for some fun, let's make something spectacular together.</div>
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