Lugubrious

World of Light

@Lugubrious For Centurion's level 3 power, I was thinking he could get the ability to heal off kills. He has the feat in the game called Body Count. The bigger the enemy, the more health he gets back. That way it gives him more sustainability. Does that sound fair/ balanced to you?

If not, maybe his new ability is just being able to summon and create a new, heat resistant gladius that matches his size.

I'm not sure which one.

@Stekkmen

That sounds balanced. I would go with Body Count, since he can just be made a new gladius

World of Light

The Convoy

Location: Peach's Castle, Out Front

A very very very bored Bowser was sitting still in the bowser mobile waiting for everyone to be ready. He had his feet on the dashboard and his hands folded behind his head as he stared up at the sky and tried to avoid being driven insane from the periodic beeping of Blazermate’s sentry.

After a while however, the beeping turned from annoying to almost hypnotically peaceful. He could almost doze off to the sound of it...

Bowser awoke to the sound of Kamek shouting ”Young master are you alright?!”

The king bolted upright and looked around for his son till he spotted a scratched up jr roll up in his wheeled clown car.

”I’m fine, I’m fine. Don’t worry about it jeez.” jr responded, brushing of the concern.

A relieved bowser snapped his fingers, summoning heel to heal his son. While the rabbid did his thing Bowser asked ”Did you get him?”

”Huh? Oh! Yeah.... Well kinda?” jr responded before showing the king his now filled pokeball with the not pikachu inside.

”Good job.” Bowser with a thumbs up before asking Kamek ”Are they done yet?”

”Ah, well… they’re closer to being done?” the magikoopa responded hesitantly.

”Gahhhh. You know what? I don't care, we are leaving!” a new very frustrated Bowser responded before hammering his fist against the horn of the Bowser mobile a few times to get everyone’s attention. ”MOUNT UP ALREADY YOU MOOKS, OR GET LEFT BEHIND!” he ordered the team, before stomping his foot to the gas. The bowser mobile roared as it lurched into motion, wheels tearing up the earth as its master bade it head east, taking the mage and medic along for the ride.

”Hay wait up!” Jr call after him before his making his own tiny vehicle wizz after the titanic muscle car.

The Centurion looked up and narrowed his eyes as Bowser led his koopa troop forward. Agoston was thinking the same thing. He was just staring blankly at the sky and not really doing anything! Bowser’s initiative reminded Agoston of his own.”Yes!” He shouted, hunching clumsily into his drill kart. He took a moment to prevent himself from sitting on his slightly tattered cape.

“Come forth! Galeem isn’t going to destroy himself!” With that he put his boot down on the pedal sped after the koopa troop. One hand on the steering wheel, he used his free right hand to point dramatically over the horizon.

The kart wobbled uncertainly, and he put his pointing hand down on the ground and pushed off of it to steady it.

”Forward!” He shouted back over his shoulder, pushing the kart like a skateboard every few seconds.

The first shout Tora could dismiss as Bowser being somewhat petulant, but after he rolled out with Kamek and Junior, and the Centurion echoed the call to leave, the Nopon couldn’t dillydally any longer. “Meh!? Are going?” As fast as his tiny legs could carry him, he rushed to his landship. One by one, the vehicles began their engines and started to roll out, but Tora couldn’t reach the pedals without squashing himself against the floor. He needed Poppi--both to drive and for other reasons, but at the moment to drive. “Poppi, where are you!?” he cried out, scanning the fleet of karts and other contraptions for any sign of his mechanical partner but turning up nothing.

However, the sound of jets turned his gaze skyward. The artificial blade cruised in from the direction of the scrapyard, expertly decreasing her boosters’ power until she landed softly on Tora’s landship. “Right here, masterpon!” she said, holding up her new pokeball to show him. Tora peered at it quizzically, unable to see anything interesting about it. “Poppi caught little brog-creature inside. Will make good pet, I think.”

The sound of a motor roaring by caused both to look behind Tora, just in time to see Peach drive by after Bowser and Agoston. An expression of relief could be glimpsed on her face as she got up to speed; perhaps she was grateful Bowser hadn’t offered her a ride in his giant, spike-ridden roadster. To Tora, however, the sight confirmed that every moment not in motion was another moment he was falling behind, and as the team’s tank he needed to be up front. “That nice, but come on! It go time!” Kamek mentioned hostile ‘cars’ in the area ahead, after all, and if those resembled karts in any capacity, the speed and weight of a collision could be terribly injurious. Moving to the back of the landship with his shield, the Nopon swapped places with Poppi, who put her more human proportions to work operating the vehicle. After a false start and its ensuing cloud of smoke, the duo took off after the party’s leaders. Everyone else would surely follow suit.

---

The road ahead started off easy, with a few slow turns over mostly grassy field. Any animals, pokemon, or monsters of low import could hear the convoy coming from a ways off, and made sure to clear the road before Bowser’s enormous rumbler could steamroll them. Before long, the ground began to incline slightly upward, leveling off again after a couple dozen feet of altitude. From there, past the cylindrical pastel-covered ‘hills’ that marked the borders of the new Mushroom Kingdom, the terrain got a bit dicier. The road itself degraded in quality and started evidencing the twists and turns that Kamek spotted before, as well as the rocky ravines and rises that necessitated them. This continued for a good way. Nobody really planned for the dust kicked up by the convoy’s collective wheels across the highway, which the low-profile, minimal-protection karts sported little defense against. As the terrain got rougher, there even appeared a jump that everyone needed to speed up to make, or else fall into a craggy pit. Still, the going never got truly hazardous until the lead vehicle rounded a plateau into an open area and got some unwanted attention.

Instantly, the bowsermobile caught the eyes of the area’s denizens, and a few vehicles turned to speed the convoy’s way. They grew nearer and nearer, their offroading kicking up a whole lot more dust than the highway-bound convoy. Once close enough, their individual features could be made out; two appeared to be ordinary buggies, fairly shoddy in construction, while two more looked similar but sported mounted guns, while the last -much sportier than its fellows- bore both guns and blades. None of them really oozed deadliness or sturdiness, but even the unarmed ones posed a serious threat to the smaller karts thanks to their size alone. Even worse, given the karts’ general lack of protection, those mounted guns would be a problem despite the difficulty of aiming them.

Once in range, music began to blare from the enemy vehicles. Raucous, grating, and overall nasty, it still couldn’t drown out the rattle of gatling fire that followed soon after. Since the guns could only be aimed where their host vehicles pointed, they could only fire in the heroes’ general direction, but sooner or later one or many of those shots would have to hit their marks.

Tora grit his teeth and held his shield steady. So these were cars. Being much bigger than any of their own vehicles save the Bowser Mobile, any sort of impact would be disastrous for a convoy member. His foes knew it, too. Why else would they be gunning straight for them? The Nopon waited as the enemies grew closer, biding his time until the right moment arrived to strike.

World of Light

Planning to shift things into gear tomorrow afternoon. Anyone who can't post before then needn't worry, since things can be handled retroactively, but we will be rolling out at that time.

World of Light

The Dawn of the Second Day

Location: Peach's Castle, Out Front
@DracoLunaris@Gentlemanvaultboy@thedman@Stern Algorithm

A couple of the up-and-coming adventurers turned out to be interested in Steven's offer. Linkle, 6, Din, and Bowser Jr all stepped up, several of them requesting all three of the pokeballs in the young man's possession. “Er...” Stalling for a moment, he glanced between the bunch of them. He didn't exactly have a bottomless satchel of these things; in fact, only eleven lined his bag. The little dragon creature seemed impertinent and demanding, liable to throw a fit and get his big dad involved if he didn't get his way, but didn't mean he deserved them. Steven held up a placating hand. “Hold on a moment. Sorry, but I didn't expect so much interest. For the sake of fairness, I'll give all of you two. Just throw it at Pokemon to catch it.” With a practiced hand, he dished out the amended portion of balls to each. The rest he kept, meant for whoever else evidenced a desire for training. The rough-looking, suspicious-smelling one asked about the heracross that lurked nearby, and Steven proved happy enough to share what he knew. “That's a heracross. Bug-fighting type. Single Horn Pokemon, high physical attack and special defense, ability...Guts, I think. Or Swarm. When he's under duress, he'll either get stronger or enjoy more powerful bug-type moves.” Clearly Steven knew his stuff, but he thought nothing of it. Instead, considerations about these new trainers occupied his mind. If these folks held such eagerness for Pokemon without even really knowing what one was, he'd need to get busy. Making more currently lay beyond his means, but perhaps he could acquire some in other ways...

Momentarily engrossed in thought, he almost missed Din's question. When he did notice her, his eyes went wide for a moment, and he reddened in embarrassment. “Beg pardon,” he said. “It's absolutely possible to ride a Pokemon, though size and temperament may make things more or less difficult, and safety equipment is recommended. Not that I have any.” He considered the garden the young woman mentioned, which -due to its share of Pokemon- he'd visited earlier in the morning. “That said, I don't know where you'd find large enough for riding. Perhaps a...Linoone...?”

“Poppi does!” came a bright if somewhat monotonous voice, its owner's manner of speech giving away her identity instantly. The artificial blade stood close by. “Little field just east of scrapyard side where Tora not go. Saw last night during break. Very interesting creatures!” Stone-faced, she extended a hand toward Steven, who seemed somewhat taken aback. After a moment, he handed her a ball, which seemed to be what she wanted. With a smile Poppi turned to Din, and fired up her thrusters to loft a couple feet into the air. Her free hand went down for Din to grab. “Here, friend dancer. Poppi fly to location of Pokeypon, be back with time to spare.”

A few moments later, Poppi cut her boosters to land at the edge of a grassy expanse, just over a hill of junk littered with robot husks from yesterday's firefight. It appeared to stretch back through 1-1, connecting to rabbid territory, though the undergrowth grew thicker the farther south it went. More importantly, the lack of Megadragonbowser-mandated warfare since yesterday allowed some of the region's inhabitants to return. Many small things skittered among the grass, but more prominently the two would-be trainers could see drilbur, buneary, diggersby, sunflora, and rhyhorn. Near an apple tree -the only one in sight- grazed a small flock of skiddo, and under that tree dozed their guardian, a huge, majestic stoutland.

Poppi watched them for a few moments, content to observe for a little while despite her allies' imminent departure. She remained engrossed until something bumped into her foot, and when she looked down in alarm she found a plate-sized spider not even an inch away. Her eyebrows shot up, and while she said nothing, she lifted up her foot and stomped it in a panic, instantly killing it. Only when its spirit floated up from beneath her heel did she realize her potential error. “Oh.” Glancing at Din, she said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Where Poppi from, wildlife attack all the time.” Gingerly she took the spirit and slipped it into her pocket. Not seeming terribly bothered by the encounter, she cast her gaze about once again, walking away from Din as she did. After a little while, she chanced upon a little croagunk leaning against a stone. It seemed unbothered by the artificial blade, keeping casual until she got too close, at which point it jumped up and released a cloud of poison gas in her face. Frowning, Poppi waved it away. “That not nice.” Baffled as to why the human-looking intruder wouldn't be affected by poison, the croagunk didn't move in time to avoid her pokeball, which snapped it up in a flash of light. Curious, Poppi watched the ball wiggle back and forth three times before it emitting a popping noise and fell still.

After staring a moment longer, Poppi let out a thoughtful noise and tapped her chin with a finger. “Hmm. Poppi wanted a pet, but not really know what to do with one. Maybe should ask Tora.” She grabbed the ball and turned her attention to Din.

Word Count: 804
Level 3 Poppi - (9/30) EXP

Tora & Peach

Level 4 Tora - (18/40) EXP
Location: Out Front
Word Count: 423
@Gentlemanvaultboy @Archmage MC

Peach, meanwhile, enjoyed her own share of company. After a few words with others, she let Franklin know that he could take the strange pistol, then found herself faced with Linkle. The girl seemed eager to get her hands on the ordinary-looking milk jar that flew from the box she opened, even going so far as to suggest a trade. When Linkle offered her a blaster, which she actually recognized, Peach shook her head. “Oh no, please go on and take it. As for me, I'm already armed.” So saying, the princess reached down and promptly pulled a shotgun from hammerspace. While cartoony in design, the Barracuda packed a fiery wallop thanks to the burn core in its top. With this bizarrely kid-friendly take on a shotgun in hand, Peach meant business.

Tora, who'd finished his demonstration and begun wandering around to say hello to everyone, had found his way over to the remaining loot items just as Peach manifested her weapon of choice. The Barracuda took him aback -never would he have expected such a brutal instrument of war in such dainty hands- but intrigued him as well; now that Poppi could by modified through Poppiswap, he could change her elemental core if he got his hands on the right materials. Ether crystals, the principle component of Poppi upgrades, would be hard to come by, but he'd already been keeping an eye out for substitutes. The rabbid-made cores in their weapons could be just the thing, though he wanted better-quality ones for Poppi. “Meh meh!” he piped up. “If Peachypon have big boomy gun, will be very strong in close quarters. Am looking forward to work with you!” He gave Linkle a smile and a wave before moving on.

Next, he waddled up to his friend Blazermate, still bearing her modifications from her fusion with the Engineer spirit. For his part, Tora didn't know what to think of the whole process, but as worrying as nigh-random alteration of one's self was, it presented a great many interesting possibilities. The sound of breathing coming from a robot, of course, hinted at just how extreme the changes could be; some part of the Medabot, now, appeared to be truly alive. He resolved to only fuse with spirits that either resembled him already, or bore such a weak or generic character that it couldn't possibly misaffect him. Putting those thoughts aside, he greeted her. “Hello, friend! Blaze-Blaze looking very quaint this morning. Did finish project with weird cat man that Tora definitely not forget about?”

Sky Near the Castle

@DracoLunaris

When Kamek looked eastward from high above Peach's Castle, he could see a road stretching out for quite a way. The terrain, a mix of badlands and grass known to some as chaparral, forced the highway to wind to and fro around little valleys and infrequent miniature mountains of earth and reddish stone. A few clumps of trees scattered the landscape, but more interesting were the roving gangs of dangerous-looking cars frequenting the whole area. Beyond that stretch of land, the road forked. The north way led to a shadowy city, referred to on the map Kamek saw as the Dead Zone, while southward the country grew progressively more colorful and cheerful—no doubt the Land of Adventure. At the fork, however, there appeared to be a couple buildings, which given his origins and the obscuring distance the Magikoopa couldn't possibly recognize as a gas station and diner.

Warped Earth, Twisted Air (An Urban Fantasy Dungeon Crawler RP) — Now Open!

Norway – Skiafjell Peak Approach

@Lugubrious@Rune_Alchemist@Anonawrimo@TheFake

---

Getting underway did not, unfortunately, mean a moment or two to relax. The snowcat's speed, the uneven terrain, and the sudden turns led to no small amount of jostling, forcing occupants to hold on for their dear lives as the driver vied to catch up to the other two. Still, some of the rift divers saw fit to shout over the dual roars of the engine and the wind. One of them, a man spotted by Marxion in the ski resort, raised his voice first, talking as if he'd been part of the conversation the whole time, when in fact this instance constituted his first actual association with Marxion's makeshift team. Understandably, this put the brawler off a touch. “Uh, don't take this the wrong way, but who the bloody hell are ya?” he questioned bluntly, eyebrows raised. While the man's demeanor seemed nice enough, something about him rubbed Marxion the wrong way. Maybe it was the two goons watching him like hawks and accompanying him closer than ticks, or perhaps the shotgun he brandished in extreme proximity. Did he recognize, maybe as a result of eavesdropping, the budding partnership between the golden-eyed men and want in? Thinking himself accepted was one hell of an assumption to make.

Soraya managed to install herself in the snowcat as well, somewhat to Marxion's chagrin. He wouldn't have been unhappy if she got left behind, and now -judging by what she said- she thought herself along for the ride, too? “You sure you ain't got too much class to 'ang around the likes of me, miss?” That woman who inexplicably agreed to Soraya's coercion sat nearby too, sour of expression but pretty of face and refreshingly quiet of demeanor. Her choice of words and weaponry suggested a strong, down-to-earth sort of attitude, which Marxion didn't mind working with. Still, more wasn't exactly merrier. But for better or worse, their fates were bound the moment she -and for that matter, the others- climbed aboard his snowcat.

After another few minutes of hurtling over the snow at high speed, the snowcat came around the edge of a slope overlooking a vast expanse of trees, and saw for the first time a rippling, otherworldly globe sitting atop a hill. “Ah,” Marxion observed, “There she is. Means it's just about go time, I reckon.” Getting up from his sitting position, he crouched on his seat and watched the other snowcats pointedly, tracking their movements as they got closer and closer to the rift. For one reason or another, they'd outpaced his own vehicle by a fair margin, meaning that his group would be the last through the wish. However, were one to look at Marxion's face, they'd notice him wearing a smug grin.

After one more curve, there lay only a relatively straight path ahead down a slight incline, with the rift another quarter-mile away. A few moments more, and the other snowcats reached its edge. Marxion saw them begin to slow down. “Our friends over there ain't playin' around,” he said aloud, still smiling. Holding up both hands, he pointed finger-guns and the opposing vehicles. “But neither'm I. Ba-bang!” He pulled the trigger, and all of a sudden the snowcats jerked backward at impossible speed, becoming vague blurs as they zoomed in reverse. In quick succession the blurs shotby, flying back, up, around, and down the mountain, with their baffled occupants inside. Hollering, Marxion turned around to watch him go, clapping his hands. “Bahahahah! Enjoy the resort, fellas!” Just like that, the opposition was gone—returned to where they started.

A moment later the snowcat ground to a halt beside the rift. In high spirits Marxion leaped out, clapping the driver on the shoulder before sauntering toward his goal. “Whoever it was that Prospector mentioned will lose time dealin' with those chumps,” he explained, “So we've got free reign in the rift.” Turning back briefly, he glanced at Edison, his escort, Reese, Soraya, Jules, and the three other random rift divers who'd also gotten into their snowcat. Their faces showed confusion, amusement, amazement, and excitement. They found him, meanwhile, incredulous. “Whats'a matter? No gratitude for me single 'andedly delivering you this rift?” With a smirk, he waved his hand. “Ah, s'alright. You'll thank me later.” Despite the substantial advantage afforded the group, they didn't have all the time in the world, and needed to get going sometime soon. Now, however, all that remained was to take a few steps, and set foot on the grand new frontier.

Inside the rift stood a great castle, majestic and imposing. The sight of it evoked a whistle from Marxion. “Now that's a pretty sight. Wonder what all's in there.” Reaching up, he tapped his temple, creating a Save Point on his skin. A brief yellow flash cooled down to leave a dark brown mark, a clock face with an 'X' across it. If anything went wrong, he could return to this state and this position. As a reminder in case it did, he then proceeded to draw an 'X' in the dirt before him with his shoe, a symbol he would see after a rewind and know meant that he loaded a save. When braving the unknown, one could never be too cautious; only then, with insurance, could one go wild and truly live in the thrill of the moment.

World of Light

The Dawn of the Second Day

Location: Peach's Castle, Out Front
@Archmage MC@DracoLunaris@Stekkmen@ProPro@Stern Algorithm@Lmpkio@Simple Unicycle@Genon@Dawnrider@Gentlemanvaultboy@thedman

For a world only recently stitched together, the night passed with remarkable peace.

Of course, not all was perfect. Outside, once the last of the sunlight faded away, certain monsters started to appear in especially dark, lonely places, wandering the opens and filling the air with loathsome squeaks, titters, and moans. But within the safety of Peach's castle, its many different denizens could sleep soundly. The Princess opened up every room for whoever wished it, barring the treasury; a number of lounges, small bedrooms, and various other chambers provided secure and even comfortable rest following dinner and whatever other business her guests wished to attend to. It was late indeed when the Scrapyard crew trudged in, dirty and tired but happy and triumphant, to plop down and snooze the night away.

No formal call went out in the morning to awaken everyone, but communal effort and the reminder of important duty bore the heroes out from their various beds to greet their second day in this bizarre new world. Pancakes, bacon, eggs, and fruit -with some particularly ripe specimens set aside just for Gene, after he'd demonstrated his love for them last night- awaited them in the kitchen, but after a while toads began to circulate to ask that everyone head out to the small lawn that lay between the castle's front and the moat, where Peach waited to address them.

Those who arrived earlier could take a gander at the fleet of karts parked on the eastern lawn. Racing machines of all shapes and sizes stood ready for action, repaired -and in some cases, enhanced- the night before. Of special note was the huge and imposing Bowsermobile, refurbished with painstaking effort by the king's little tyke as a special present to the best dad a little koopa could ask for. There was also Tora's latest project, a Landship kart decked out with functional cannons in the sides and a chain-attached speargun on the prow. The Nopon, having woken up early to glut himself on breakfest and then head out to put the finishing touches on the karts, could be found among the earliest to arrive on the scene, checking out his Landship and proudly showing it off to whoever got too close. The collective direction of the karts seemed to imply that the suggestion last night to take the castle's eastern bridge and head toward the Land of Adventure had won out.

Some of the rabbids that worked with Bowser Jr, and in general hung around the group before, could be seen out and about among the karts. They appeared to mean no harm, despite the lingering sunset-red in their eyes; if anything, they appeared remarkably genial. Among them was the Buckler who made a truce with the heroes in the scrapyard the day before when faced with a horde of robot engineers, along with his surviving troops. They acted cautiously around the heroes, but remained their amicable, goofy, scatterbrained selves for the most part.

When everyone arrived, Peach stood up from her dainty wrought-iron bench to address them. “Good morning!” she began, smiling warmly. “I hope you all enjoyed your visit to my castle. I'm sorry to see you go, since it's so dangerous out there, but...that's just what has to happen.” She blinked twice and cleared her throat. “A-anyway! There are some things everyone should know. First, not everyone is going with you.” She held up some fingers, and began closing them one by one. “Luigi, the little kid who won't tell us his name, Spyro, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, the rabbids, Wario, Henry, Minako, Junpei, and the man called 'Master of Masters'. However, you'll be able to welcome a few new faces to the active team, like Banjo and Kazooie,” she pointed out the bear and bird. “And Donnie and Gene, who joined us last evening. Plus, if you didn't already meet Franklin, Poppi, Henry, Clank, the little miss with the hat, and Junpei, please do. I hear they joined just before the big fight, thrown right into the thick of it.”

She then raised a hand, giving a signal, and from by the door stepped an unfamiliar young man with steely blue hair. As he walked forward to stand beside Peach, wearing a courteous smile, Peach said, “I would also like you to meet Mr. Steven Stone. He arrived very early this morning, and was unbound by Master of Masters. He wanted to give a few words about 'Pokemon.' Steven?”

“Thank you, Princess,” he said, and raised his voice. “Good morning to you all. Like many of you, I harbor a lot of confusion about this world, but I may be able to help you with a part of it. By now, I'm sure you've seen all sorts of creatures. Among them are Pokemon. It is possible for anyone to recruit these creatures, like pets, without any sort of spirit meddling, using pokeballs like this one.” He produced a spherical object from a pocket, half white and half red separated by a black band. With a flick of his wrist he tossed it onto the ground, and in a burst of light a little aron appeared. “Throw a pokeball at a Pokemon like this, capture it, and you'll be able to train it. If striking them down and taking their power into yourself puts you ill at ease, this is a good way to increase your fighting power. As a representative of Devon Corporation, I plan to set up a sort of shop here at Peach's Castle to sell items like this for training and raising Pokemon. However, I'll give away three pokeballs for free to whoever wants them. I look forward to working with you to help save the world.” With that, he stepped back again.

Peach took the spotlight again. “On the matter of 'spirit meddling'. Master of Masters told me all about it, and said I should probably let you all know, in case someone had no idea. Everyone has a 'spirit' inside them. If you...um, I mean, anyone duh..dah...er, stops...being alive, then the spirit will be let loose. You can connect with spirits to make Strikers who'll assist you when you call on them, break them to get some kind of gear, or absorb them into your heart or mind for new powers or skills. Those last ones have side effects, though. But he said that if you want to be able to defeat Galeem, you'll need all the power you can get, so...yeah.” Clearly, Peach didn't quite know what she was talking about, but the effort she made was laudable nonetheless.

Something occurred to her, and she perked up again. “Oh! Master of Masters also made another discovery. These things.” She reached down behind the bench and picked up a strange box. “They're supposedly scattered around the world. They have equipment inside, like the kind you'd get from...crushing spirits, I think? But you have to put money in. Look.” Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a green bill with a number of fives on it and inserted it a slot on the box's front. A moment later the box reacted, and began to open up with a series of clicks. Four streaks of light shot out of the top, arced through the air, and hit the ground in front of her. There was a bottle of milk, a box of rifle ammunition, a little gun of unknown origin, and a cool-looking hat. Peach didn't know whether to be impressed or let down, so she just continued. “So if you're rich, you'll probably be able to win do out there. But let's move on. I should let you all should know: I'm going with you!”

A beaming smile radiated from her for all to see. “It's the least I can do to help. Toadsworth can handle things around here, not that there's much to handle. And I know how to fight. Been to every Smash tournament but the first, after all.” She tossed the empty box down, which popped out of existence, and punched the air a few times. “This time, I'm not just standing around waiting for the save. I'm going to get as powerful as I can, and save the world too!”

Settling down, she took a deep breath, then clapped her hands together. “So! The plan was to go to this 'Land of Adventure', right? According to the map, which is now rolled up inside the Bowsermobile's trunk, just follow the road going east until you hit the branch, and go south until we reach the village. It sounds easy, but we should be careful out there! Once we leave the Mushroom Kingdom, anything could happen.”

With that, it seemed that nothing remained to be said. Everyone could go make their final preparations. From his perch atop his Landship, Tora called out, “Okay then, meh! Big adventure just about to kick off. If friends not drive before, there no need for worry. These karts so simple in design that actual idiot could drive, no problem.” Poppi cast a sidelong glance at him, knowing that with his teeny tiny legs he couldn't reach the pedals to drive himself, and that she'd be piloting their Landship. Regardless, she went ahead and demonstrated by pushing the 'on' button, then pressing down on the pedal while turning the wheel to drive around in a little circle.

It wouldn't take much to get going, it seemed, but not everyone was quite ready to rumble. Some needed to fix their gear, or talk to someone like Steven Stone, or get a feeling for the karts. Of course, some would be using their own transportation, like Geno and Donnie, who'd be flying, or Hat Kid with the little motor scooter stowed in her ship, or Bowser Jr if he recovered his Clown Car from wherever it might have ended up.

Warped Earth, Twisted Air (An Urban Fantasy Dungeon Crawler RP) — Now Open!

Norway - Skiafjell Ski Lodge

@Lugubrious@Rune_Alchemist@Anonawrimo@TheFake

---

“Heh,” Marxion smirked, rubbing his chin in contemplation, as his new acquaintance tried to explain his attribute. How perfect was this? The kid could patch him up if he got hurt, and make his fistfighting even more potent? The two of them formed a perfect team. Anyone else would just be icing on top of the cake.. After glancing back over at Soraya, however, Marxion found himself having to amend that conclusion: most anyone else would be icing on top, but some would be a nasty crusting of improperly-mixed sugar around the edges. He didn't let the haughty snob put him off, though, and instead resumed trying to think of how Jules could enhance his own attribute. There wasn't a lot he could do in terms of strength, but...if he could, say, boost the range at which he could apply Save Points, that'd be something else. He'd be invincible. Unbeatable.

An idea occurred to him, rooted back in the recesses in his mind. Depending on how the kid did, he might be worth mentioning to the organization. While increased core membership wasn't on the table, adjunct members already existed. Jules' attribute could be useful indeed. However, Marxion shook his head and put the thought out of his mind. From what little he'd seen of Jules' character, good-natured and innocent, he deserved better than the organization.

“Well then mate,” he started, bringing himself from his thoughts back to reality. “Looks like we'll be a killer duo. The way I see it, the only way we'd ever go down is if someone took us both down at the same time in one hit. Otherwise, we'll come back from anythin'.” Two methods of restoration meant that neither would fall so long as the other remained conscious. It was an exciting prospect.

There came a noise from the far end of the resort's main hall. Marxion glanced over to discover the source of the commotion, and spotted a still image of a daytime forest on the section of wall above the grand fireplace, where no screen existed before. A quick glance confirmed the source of the feed to be a projector on the second floor balcony above the reception area, where a portly red-haired man stood managing the device. Every mouth fell silent and every neck in the room craned upward to watch as the video began to play.

The Prospector moved into frame, wearing a frumpy hat and looking a little worse for wear than he did on the ad that played the day before. Without hesitation he launched straightaway into speech. “Good morning, ladies and gentlemen of the new frontier. By the time you see this, it will be half past the hour, with thirty minutes until the main event begins. But history isn't made by sticking to plans and schedules, and besides, even now masked men with guns close in on Skiafjell Peak to stake a claim of their own into the promised land for which they have waited—this one-of-a-kind, legendary Rift. But do not let your spirit of adventure falter. Behind the resort are three snowmobiles, ready and waiting. Hurry now, and follow the trail of marked trees. To the brave new world!”

Well before he finished speaking, Skiafjell Ski Resort was a bed of chaos.

---

Unrepentant when it came to barging past others and throwing his weight around, Marxion proved to be among the first few outside. Just as promised, three snowcats -not the smaller snowmobiles- with engines already started stood close together on the fresh powder. Marxion sprinted toward them along with the other frontrunners, an idea forming in his head. While he didn't have anything against the others, this was a competition first and foremost. There would be winners and losers, dust makers and dust eaters, and Marxion planned to get results. In front of him, the speediest members of the Metalhead and Tactical groups claimed one snowcat apiece for their whole units, with other loners hard-pressed to cram in or forced to take the third. Marxion visited each one of the opposing vehicles one after another, slapping a hand on each like a car salesman before climbing into the last snowcat. Once in, he stood up to wave at Jules, likely attracting the attention of Soraya, Reese, and Edison's little group as well. “'Ey! Over here! Y'better choose this one!” If they didn't join him, he didn't particularly care -other than about Jules- but they'd be sorry once his plan came to fruition.

After only a few more moments, every potential rift diver had piled onto one of the three, and one by one they roared to live, surging forward up the snowy hill. A bright blue cloth hung around a tree half a mile up, and the convoy sped its way through the biting mountain air.

Warped Earth, Twisted Air (An Urban Fantasy Dungeon Crawler RP) — Now Open!

Norway - Skiafjell Ski Lodge

@Lugubrious@Rune_Alchemist@Anonawrimo@TheFake

---

Soraya's less-than-courteous observations evoked a scoff from Marxion, who rolled his eyes at her snobbery. Then, as suddenly as she'd come, she was gone. Pretty unphased, he watched her go and begin to bother some random, irritable-looking chick. The look on her face as Soraya approached filled Marxion with sympathy; she seemed to tired and fed up to be disgusted and insulted. Not everyone could fly in on some luxury jet with beds, after all. He heard clearly as the spoiled princess demanded the stranger's help and couldn't help laughing softly in disbelief.

After a moment he leaned over to Jules, shrugged, and told him, “Women, eh?” Then, he leaned back and stretched over the area Soraya left behind, as though to say 'more space for me.' Jules, however, didn't give him any time to relax. “Yeh, I'm here for this rift...” Marxion began, only to be inundated by his new acquaintance's questions. One after another struck him, far too quickly for any to garner a response, until the young man stopped to catch his breath. “Easy there, mate,” the brawler chuckled. “You'll wear yourself runnin' your mouth like that. But um, sure, Defo goin' in. No team though. Wouldn't mind someone watchin' me back, that's for sure. Now, attributes, heh...”

Marxion leaned in again, this time close enough for confidentiality. He spread his fingers wide, as if signifying grand scope. “Do I ever! Check this out, mate.” Grinning, he slapped Jules on the shoulder, sat up, and without a moments hesitation lifted a leg and planted a foot against the ornate glass vase atop the coffee table before him. It sailed over the floor, careened into the ground, and shattered loudly enough to draw eyes from all over the room. When they looked, however, they say nothing out of the ordinary at all; the vase stood on the table, perfectly normal and in one piece, while Marxion stared off innocently into space.

After a few moments, and the various more-or-less confused onlookers put the event out of their mind, Marxion's face broke out into a smile again. “Pretty sick, ain't it? The name's Marxion. If we're gonna be diving together, we oughta get familiar.” He reached out a hand for Jules to shake.

Warped Earth, Twisted Air (An Urban Fantasy Dungeon Crawler RP) — Now Open!

Norway - Skiafjell Ski Lodge

@Lugubrious@Rune_Alchemist@Anonawrimo@TheFake

---

A few minutes slipped by in relative peace, allowing Marxion to doze off where he sat despite the general hubbub. With barely any time at his disposal, he couldn't even come close to sinking into the deep sleep where real rest happened and dreams could filter through, but it was nice enough that the sensation of an impact right next to him felt like a rude awakening. After a moment or two of coming to his senses, he realized he'd already gotten stiff somehow and groaned. Once he'd straightened up and wiped at his eyes a bit -which had leaked a couple tears once well shut- he found himself greeted by the voice of an unfamiliar woman. Naturally, with it being so close and all, he looked to the side. There sat the very picture of posture and etiquette, slender and short and glamorous despite not being outstanding. And with yellow eyes...remarkably similar to his own. Of course, he could barely tell since she was...not looking at him?

Were he the anxious sort Marxion might have looked away, letting the moment turn awkward, but instead he gave a sharp exhale through his nose and a wry smile. The young lady wouldn't have parked herself by him if she didn't want his attention, or at least cared about receiving it. He came with the territory. “Yeh, she's alright. Beautiful. Empty. Cold. Mis'rable. Without anythin' real interestin' to see or do...'til now that is.” He glanced over at the other Rift Divers at Soraya's mention of 'this whole business,' then back at the girl. Now she was looking his way, with a toying sort of look. With a shrug, he replied, “Real piss up, sure. With teams like them around, I'm gonna be flat out tryin' to snag my share from the Rift.”

A few words reached him from a trio not far away: do we have assigned groups or are we finding our own like last month in New Mexico? An opportunity—a path to greater glory waiting ahead. Clearing his voice, Marxion upped the volume a notch and said, “'Course, nothin' stoppin' folks like us from workin' together against those big teams. Fair's fair.” As if on cue, a little man in blue appeared and installed himself on the other side of Soraya. Under normal circumstances Marxion might have felt intruded upon, but people weren't in Skiafjell Ski Lodge today by accident, and his current gambit needed as many members as he could get. Still, he didn't know for sure until the new arrival turned to talk to Soraya, found Marxion already leaning forward and staring pointedly at him, and revealed another set of yellow eyes.

What a coincidence.

But what the kid said made him pause. Was this some sort of joke? He unpaused the next second, steamrolling right over whatever Soraya might've been fixing to say without a care in the world. “You ain't here for the Prospector's Rift, mate?”

World of Light

I'll be looking to move forward past the night and into the next step of the adventure come Saturday. Until then, I'll look forward whatever you folks might have in store. Remember, if you're wanting to explore or interact with NPC's, I'm happy to help.