Lugubrious

Konosuba: This Wonderful World's Alternative Paradigm

𝓠𝓾𝓪𝓻𝓮𝓵

@DracoLunaris @Lunarlors34@Lucius Cypher

Like the lid of a chest being thrown open, Quarel's intended target opened wide its rubbery mouth and shot its tongue at him. Idiot, he concluded as the sticky pink tendril zoomed toward him. I was coming that way anyway, and now you're gonna get cut. He held one arm in its path, and dutifully the tongue latched on. With very little delay it began to pull, throwing him off and preventing a good overhead chop. When the strigiforme's blade struck the tongue, it was at a bad angle, and without enough power to cut very deep at all. Knowing he wouldn't get a second chance, Quarel gritted his teeth as the monster reeled him in, and its jaws snapped shut on him almost as string as a bear trap. Unfortunately for it, the toad wasn't giant enough to fit him completely, and the bottom third of his body poked out from between its warty lips. For his head, however, the world had gone dark and slimy, and despite its age and small size the toad turned out to possess quite the set of jaw muscles after all. Its squeeze nearly caused Quarel's eyes to bug out, and he couldn't stop himself from shouting in pain. Another feeling assailed him, though—the familiar sensation of adrenaline surged through his veins, just as it did whenever he, having gotten into a fight, realized that his opponent intended to kill him.

Quarel turned his cry of pain into one of rage, and with a strength enhanced by fear and anger used his free hand to shove his knife into the soft skin on the roof of the toad's mouth. Yanking back his captured hand, he ripped into the tongue with his sharp beak. Now that it had done its job pulling prey into the toad's mouth, the tongue muscles had gone slack, and he was able to shred it badly enough to essentially free his second hand. Into the bottom jaw went the second knive, with a splash of gooey blood and a meaty shluck. All that remained then was to push, but to his chagrin Quarel found his strength unable to repel the oppressive, bone-bruising force of the toad's jaws. Clocked into overdrive by the chemicals pouring through him, Quarel's mind found and in an instant accepted that there was only one thing to do. Groaning, he pulled his legs inside the mouth and performed, to the best of his ability, a split. His well-developed leg muscles went to work trying to pry open the toad's mouth, while he used his hands to more deeply embed his knives in the toad's flesh. He'd reached the limit of what he could do; all that was left was to test his energy and endurance, and see whether the owl or the amphibian would come out on top. For the first time, he wondered why nobody else was helping. Between his incomprehensible effort noises, he mused, Guess I'm not...as good a motivator...as I thought!

The Crucible - Winner Take All

Yeah, that'd be my preference. They don't have to be super long, but a dynamic story with a definitive beginning, middle, and end -with each part written at a different time- might very well offer a more interesting experience for both the writer and the reader.

The Crucible - Winner Take All

@Lugubrious is my opponent still in game? I couldn't find a post by them after my last one...and if they're out do you prefer me to get the fight over with or can I keep messing about for a bit?

@Sentel

No, Wild West is out, unfortunately. You can do either, but I'd gravitate toward starting the fight

Phoenix Wing (A Fairy Tail RP-Always Open, Open)

@Lugubrious@hatakekuro You think that Ariel would be part of Team Powder Keg by this point? That would put them back up to three. Or is that team pretty much gone?

@t2wave

That'd be fine with me!

The Crucible - Winner Take All

In preparation of my incoming post, it's time for another checkup.

@Sentel
@Kapuchu
@Propro
@DracoLunaris
@Deadnaut

I'm looking for something from each of you in the near future

Phoenix Wing (A Fairy Tail RP-Always Open, Open)

Fleo Plector

@Caits@Burthstone@Joshua Tamashii@Roseletta@TechnoWizROK@t2wave@Zarkun@Lunarlors34

Stories of other worlds never ceased to captivate. A war between angels and demons, a fated tournament, a gathering of warriors from distant realms, the trials of a young band of heroes...with every page Fleo turned, she couldn't help but read on. In the months since the end of the Grand Magic Games, Amaya hadn't been the only member of Phoenix Wing to nurse an interest in books. Fleo's newfound hobby, healthy for the stimulation of her mind had occupied much of her off time. Hers was a busy life, full of work and getting to know her fellow workers. Today began as a day seemingly like any others, but after her ordinary morning routine of exercise, hygiene, and breakfast, her day was shaken -quite literally- to its core.

”Whoa!” The tremor threw her, perched as she was atop the new heels of which she was so proud, to the ground. Her frayed, bold-print longcoat slapped across her head, and more irritated than hurt she pushed it away to get back to her feet. Without delay she examined the Guild Hall's first floor. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, except of course that pretty much everyone had been spooked by the sudden and severe earthquake. In doing so, she took a closer look at those present. There appeared to be quite the colorful assortment of people here today, including a few that Fleo was surprised to notice were strangers. When had that happened? Had over-the-top craziness become so commonplace in Phoenix Wing life that she had learned to tune it out whilst reading? Speaking of, the dusty woman knelt to retrieve her paperback from where it landed. Her furrowed brow spoke of her consternation: clearly, something was happening, but she hadn't been paying attention. Making an effort to appear composed and attentive, she turned her attention to Ariel with intent to answer, but Damian beat her to he punch. ”Well, yeah, but that doesn't help much.” Penny echoed the sentiment, and then in a rather odd tone added that such happenings were occurring throughout Fiore. ”Wait, how do you know?” Bereft of an answer, Fleo could only turn her attention to Sasha as she walked over and said something cryptic. Thoroughly confused, Fleo held her hands up. ”Why is everyone being so weirdly dramatic? Was that not just a normal tremor, like we've been having for months?”

Ariel shared her confusion, and for clarity's sake Fleo strode to her friend's side to stand with her bandaged hands on her hips, even as her companion sat. Instead of a reply, she received a blast of wind as the front doors flew open, and in the very center stood a showy guy with scruffy long hair and an opinion of himself so large that Fleo regretted that it didn't block the door and prevent his entry. The next moment, after fixing her hair and clothes, she caught herself and shook her head. Some people are just insanely emotive, she reasoned, like half the people in this guild. Which is probably why this dude came here. It's my responsibility to give him a good impression. Waving her hand, she offered Nico a smile, and called out, ”Hello!” A proper introduction, however, could wait. Mayt seemed intent on getting the story from Sasha, and with Amaya, Raiden, and Joshua also present, Fleo felt as if an explanation were owed.

However, Sasha and Pennys' revelations were delayed once again as the doors exploded open again for the second time in about as many minutes. A sarcastic comment lay on the tip of Fleo's tongue -hanging out with a platoon of wisecrackers had begun to mold her after this long, after all- until she recognized the new entrant as nobody less than the prestigious and pissed-off master of some other guild, Fraquar. Wisely, Fleo opted to put a lid on it, and left her master to answer that.

Soon after, to Fleo's great relief, Penny began to talk. Her speech, however, revolved solely around some new development with her Phoenix Magic. When it was done, the dusty woman could scarcely contain herself any longer. ”...Huh? I must be missing something. What's going on?” Head abuzz, she decided to pull up her own chair as well, and to sit with a dazed expression until the current situation became less baffling.

Cormorant Sanders

@Caits@Burthstone@Joshua Tamashii@Roseletta@TechnoWizROK@t2wave@Zarkun@Lunarlors34

Above Magnolia, a dark shape cast a wide shadow. Those who looked up, and managed to not be blinded by wonder, fear, or the sun, would find to their amazement the impossible shape of a ship in the sky. It floated, light as a dream and swift as a breeze, toward Phoenix Wing's guild hall. On its side, two symbols hinted at just what the meaning of this airbound vessel might be: the dual insignias of Pirate Lord and Frenzy Plant, the former redone in the latter's colors of green, black, and red. Coasting at an easy pace, the airship came to a stop in front of the guild hall, shielding the entire structure from the sun. A trumpet pierced the day's serenety -a peace already shattered by the repeated attacks on the structure's front door- and from the bottom of the ship a section of the hull began to descend. As it went lower, it could be identified as a platform suspended by chains from above, with three famous silhouettes on board. Motionless, the trio stood while the platform was gingerly laid on the concrete before the eyes of of onlookers. Together, the three stepped from the length of wood onto the cobblestone and marched toward the agape doors of Phoenix Wing's headquarters.

Most recognizable was, of course, the grandmaster general of the war guild Frenzy Plant, Cormorant Sanders himself. Clad in an impeccable but unadorned uniform and bearing a cane decorated to look like a thorny vine, he sauntered forward flanked on either side by two guards. Owen Whately, the fencer of the badlands and half of the dynamic duo that wreaked havoc on the battlefield during the Grand Magic Games' free for all, stood to his commander's right, with the former piratess Jane Putcher on his own right. Somewhat in keeping with that theme, Sanders walked in time to the autumnal witch Blair Ravencroft and the well-dressed war sphinx Mari Gatlock. Each one wore the uniform of Frenzy Plant, though modified with include extra blue and white for the last two ladies to signify their belonging to Aerial Ace, the division of Frenzy Plant formerly known as the independent guild Pirate Lord. The merger, it seemed, had been long completed. With his entourage on his heels, Sanders entered the Phoenix Wing guild hall. There, he gave a slight bow to both Fraquar and Jamie in turn. ”Fellow masters, I am pleased to see you once more,” his gentle voice affirmed.

Phoenix Wing (A Fairy Tail RP-Always Open, Open)

squirms

So... I have been trying to post. And...

Well, I need to do it in splurts.

I need to respond to Techno...

and some other things...

in one post....

and then in another... there will be a time skip of only a few hours so its like "later that same day"....

to then finally get this arch moving... so i do kinda need the guild masters and @lugubrious To... be present for that one as the arch I did hope would involve all three guilds... Do you guys have any objection to that?

I'll get the first post out shorty, but the second post depending on some things might be a bit longer... given that I haven't started either, and I lost everything that was in preparation for this arch...

@Caits

Alright, I'll get on that when I'm able.

Project Crossover [SMASH ARENA - Only PXO members allowed]

Slayer
Level 3
Day 2
Location: In-house Smash Arena
@Zarkun
Experience: |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| (27/30)

Aimed well and thrown with a hint of Slayer's dandy strength, the heavy crash that was Dead On Time careened through James' barrier to shoot him into the in-house arena's perimeter fence. Splinters of wood flew in all directions as he struggled to right himself. That said, the solder's parting gift did not go unnoticed. The two shots smacked his opponent down into the dust with an Hough!”, and splatters of red could be seen around his still form. Even as Teller rose, however, the bullet holes in Slayer's chest closed, leaving only the bloody stains in his suit behind. Of the two, the latter seemed to distress the vampire more as he lay, courtesy of the point-blank shots' force, on the ground. Folding his hands across his head, he gave a sigh as he stared upward. ”Ah...no excitement. Perhaps ye've some skill, but I've seen all I aim to. With only a few moments' knowledge of my abilities, ya see fit to shoot me through the lungs? It takes some brass to resort to kill shots in a petty arena game. If yer not playin' by the rules, lad...you bore me. I'll have to get this suit mended...a pretty penny, I'll wager.”

The dandy's concession was clear enough. For all he cared, the title of winner was James', along with whatever that entailed. Slayer himself continued to recline in the soil until James departed, to keep up the charade of being defeated. Once alone, the vampire got up, dusted himself off, and sauntered away puffing his pipe as though nothing happened.

The Crucible - Winner Take All

I haven't suggested that any of that was your fault, @Lugubrious. I was just making a point about my own mindset at that moment, and I don't think we need to be aggressive with one another over it. That said, you are perhaps right that leaving would be a bit selfish, and I've found myself some renewed willpower to keep pressing on anyway, so feel free to ignore my prior post.

@BCTheEntity

fig

Sometimes a little aggression is what it takes. I like your moxie, soldier. I'll look forward to your writing.

The Crucible - Winner Take All

@Lugubrious So, unfortunately, I feel like I have to drop out of this game. I've kind of been forcing myself to post in the games I'm in lately, for both personal and game-related reasons, and I'm burning myself out as a result. That affects this game in particular, because the quality and volume of writing it demands is quite high; this is a good thing, of course, but my more recent posts in it have ended up being pretty sub-standard compared to what I feel is my usual ability to write, which then ends up being that much further below the necessary writing standards you and the players are presumably looking forward to reading.

Furthermore, and considering the PvP nature of the game, it doesn't seem fair to ProPro to potentially beat him in this round, only to quit shortly afterward for lack of motivation when he seems to be one of the more dedicated players available to you. Having said all that, I deeply apologise for any disruption this causes; if no other players present themselves as replacements, I might suggest that Runch could face off against Motley as an NPC, just so that any interesting tactics Pro has come up with to fight Crue aren't wasted.

@BCTheEntity

That's your fault. The only 'demands' I've set in place regard the combat system, and submitting a post once every two weeks. Take a look at the average length of Banana's posts and tell me again how much I've been pushing you. You had the option to speed into PVP with Propro from the beginning, but you yourself opted for a series of posts with your character wandering around. If I didn't know better I'd think that you set yourself up for this.

There will be no more admission of new players. If you quit, Motley becomes an NPC to be trampled. Hash out any remaining details with him as you please.