MULTI_MEDIA_MAN

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Limsa Lominscuttle Town- The Bismarck

Lvl 6 (61/60) -> Lvl 6 (64/60)

Word Count: 1,290 words

@DracoLunaris

Geralt let a small frown cross his features when Bowser declared that Peach would cover the cost of the damages, but he figured the two royals could hash that out amongst themselves when it came down to it. Blazermate's offer was much more reasonable, frankly, though that was largely because she'd be the one paying it out, unlike Bowser's "offer". The robot girl also took a moment to tease the Koopa King, which Geralt inwardly smirked at, but didn't respond to for fear of worsening the situation at hand.

Thankfully, Link also stepped forward and explained what had actually happened, which was information Geralt was sorely lacking. He'd done his best to skirt around whether they were actually in the right by vouching for their character and leveraging what they knew, but if they believed Link (he did) as to the cause of the fight, they'd hopefully have better chances of convincing the Admiral of their intentions. And the boy legend was right in calling it a tragedy, because if the unfamiliar spirits in the Bismarck meant anything, their were more casualties to this fight than the original aggressor.

Altogether, their pleas and explanations, Bowser's and Frog's offer to pay as well as the latter calling on his reputation, and Peach's own additions, bought them the reprieve they needed. Merylwyb ordered her men to stand down, and even the previously-irate proprietor of the Bismarck was willing to accept the loss of his beloved restaurant if it meant that the war could be won. Then, Peach said something that struck him. "Because I don't have to." It was that selfless, heroic attitude again. Now, Geralt had turned down plenty of coin from starving peasants in his time, but it...felt different. This wasn't letting somebody keep a few crowns that would still probably barely allow them to eat well for the next few weeks, this was willingly sacrificing a massive sum of money to fix up what was almost certainly a luxury to these people. Of course it was how some people made a living, but a fancy restaurant was different than the town's only skilled butcher or blacksmith. There were other places to eat, and it wasn't outside the realm of possibility that the owner and employees could find work elsewhere.

And despite all that, Peach was still giving them what they needed to rebuild. Whether it was out of a sense of guilt, or selflessness, or some calculated move to make them look good to these people, she was doing it. The witcher wasn't sure he'd have done the same in her position.

Pushing the thought away and focusing on what they had to do next, Geralt nodded as Merylwyb made their move for them: reconvene at a not-destroyed restaurant, eat, drink, plan their attack. He stuck with Kamek and Bowser, the former asking Peach about heading to the Atomos and helping their new allies. Geralt thought over the plan for a moment before nodding. "If anybody can get those two through the city, it'd be Princess Peach and Sakura." He agreed. "It might not be simple to explain exactly how we got them to stop killing each other long enough to make nice, though, given the red-eye business." Geralt wasn't looking forward to that conversation, no sir.

The news about Linkle, on the other hand, made him scowl. "She what?!" He seethed, fists clenching for a moment. He barked out a hoarse, sardonic 'laugh', shaking his head. "Figures if it ain't one it's the other..."

Still, what Bowser said gave him pause. "Wishes, curses, idiot heroics...thankfully, I'm an expert at all three." He sighed a little, plenty of memories rushing through his mind. "I've broken enough curses in my time to know there's no such thing as an 'unbreakable' curse. Maybe nobody's figured it out, maybe nobody's been dumb enough to try it, but every curse has its counter. I'd need to think on it, talk more to this Striker of yours. All else fails, we find something that grants wishes and that isn't cursed, and just use that." He paused for a moment. "That's how I, uh...met my wife, kind of. Djinni bound our souls. She caught another one. Broke the bond, and we were still in love, so..."

Coughing into his hand and going back to the topic, he sighed. "Not too keen on trying to find a third Djinni, though, so we might have to get creative." It was good that they were at least somewhat optimistic about their chances. It never paid to give up before you got started, after all.

With the most important topics seemingly covered, Geralt decided it was time to go talk to Merylwyb. "Alright, Kamek, I think it's about time we started this war summit." Gesturing to the table the Admiral was sat at, he made his way over.

"Admiral," He started, "I'll try to cover as much as I can, as quickly as I can. Spirits, are, to put it simply, the corpses of the dead, concentrated into a form that the living can use to their benefit. And there are a few ways you can make use of them. The simplest is to just crush the Spirit, and it'll turn into some object you can use. I've mostly turned the Spirits I've come across into items this way. This," He said, pointing to the weapon currently strapped to his shoulder, "Is one of them. Speaking of which..." Geralt frowned, trying to point it away from those at the table.

"Anyway, the next way to make use of them is to turn them into a Striker. It's not quite as simple as crushing them is. You have to, one way or another, convince them to work with you, to give you their power. Many of us have at least one at our disposal." Looking back at the rest of his group, he thought over the different Strikers he'd seen them use. He knew Kamek used one of the long-ranged fighters they fought when they recruited Link, and Bowser had that girl who was apparently intimately familiar with Linkle's situation. If his eyes didn't deceive him, Link had actually made one of the copies of that sorceress into a Striker, as ill-advised as Geralt thought that was.

"Now, if you look at Bowser, the big guy, over there," He pointed in the Koopa's general direction, "You'll see the result of fusing with a Spirit. There's two main ways to do it, and I'm fairly certain the big guy mainly uses his heart. By absorbing a Spirit into your heart, you'll gain some of its power, at the cost of some of its weaknesses. What those are obviously depends on the Spirit. And taking it into your head, you'll gain some of its strengths, at the same cost. The difference is that absorbing through the heart will typically change your body and its physical capabilities, while absorbing it through the mind will grant you its knowledge. Sometimes the results are rather interesting. My own experience was...off-putting, to say the least. I've been reluctant to do it again."

Geralt sighed, rubbing his head. "And that's what you ought to know about Spirits and how they work. As for the Abyssal Fleet...I'm still not sure how they use the Spirits they bring back, but I have a few theories, ranging from mechanical to magical in nature. Unfortunately, resurrection is exceedingly rare where I'm from, practically unheard of. To do it on such a scale as to keep an army running perpetually was unthinkable."

Well, that was a lot of info to dump on somebody. Hopefully Kamek would be more willing to answer any questions the Admiral had.

World of Light

From what I remember a bunch of Frog's speech was edited in after I'd already posted, but it was like 2 AM, I was on a roll, and I genuinely may have missed it. I honestly can't for the life of me remember what the original post even said. I've added a bit mentioning Frog's plea, but it ultimately isn't gonna change what Geralt's said. He's too angry to really make note of what the others are doing, especially one of the people he's never met before.

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Limsa Lominscuttle Town- The Bismarck

Lvl 6 (50/60) -> Lvl 6 (61/60)

Word Count: ~688 words

Sighing in relief as he removed himself from Bowser's grasp and seeing that the battle ended just as he was doing so, Geralt first set about collecting his dropped sword and checking it quickly for damage. Not noting anything that worried him, the Witcher looked about, frowning. They'd certainly made a mess of the place with their little rescue, though some of that damage was undoubtedly not their fault. Not like the locals would care, they certainly never did back on the Continent. Bracing himself for the upcoming bluster, Geralt pieced through his bag and pulled a few of the Spirits of the Abyssals free. From what he remembered, these poor saps didn't even know that the Abyssals left behind Spirits when killed, and they'd been fighting as long as this place existed. Hopefully, it would be enough to turn the conversation the way he wanted it to go.

As expected, not only the presumed owner of the restaurant, but Admiral Merlwyb herself came storming over, the latter with backup, to tell them off. Once Frog was done with his own bit about how she could trust him, Geralt stepped forward and lobbed the Spirits at the Admiral. "That's what I have to say for myself. Those were Abyssals. Your little army here's been fighting for how long, and they didn't know something as basic as what happens when you kill them. They turn into those, then get pulled out deeper into the ocean by the currents and by creatures manipulating the flow of the water. From there, they'd be rounded up and either brought back to life, or turned into equipment or extra power, and sent back out to fight." Removing the Spirit of the Shipgirl, Hermes, he held it with a bit more care as his tone gained a bit of sympathy, but still held its critical edge.

"I also recovered one of your lost. I'm not one to use Spirits lightly, especially not on myself like some people, though our Princess has her ways of undoing the damage they can cause." Geralt let that hang in the air, the implication that hap hazardously using Spirits had consequences. Part of him wondered how much of a spectacle this silver-haired stranger's transformation would be. If this Admiral was worth that title, she'd realize that she needed them and what information they could give. "There's a lot more to this than I care to explain staring down the barrels of your cannons and spears."

Pointedly ignoring the furious figure of the owner, Geralt continued. "I can't speak for how this whole thing started, but I can guarantee you that everybody still alive here was doing their damndest to keep the bystanders out of the line of fire, which is more than I can say for her." He didn't even know the name of the sorceress, not that it mattered to him. Having a name to put to the face usually only made killing them harder. "Now, Admiral, I have a question for you: What are you willing to give, to do, to put an end to this war once and for all? Because those little things, right there, are your key. For every one of them you kill without losing one of your own, which, if you check with the girls you had on that sortie, we were quite capable of doing in a ship not even designed for combat, you can deprive them of power while making your own army stronger. And any good tactician will tell you that finding and exploiting your enemy's weakness while shielding your own is vital to waging war."

Geralt stood there, between his party and Merlwyb's, ready for what their response. He was loathe to repeat Blaviken, especially knowing that Sakura the budding hero was waiting for them, but he wouldn't let some blowhards who couldn't get their heads out of their asses long enough to see what was right in front of their eyes stop him. He hadn't then, and he wouldn't now. He was ready to draw his sword once more, but his hands didn't move quite yet. No need to piss them off any more.

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Limsa Lominscuttle Town- The Bismarck

Lvl 6 (49/60) -> Lvl 6 (50/60)

Word Count: 301 words

@Gentlemanvaultboy

Relieved that his gambit had worked, Geralt released his connection to the Sign of Axii and let out a short breath. They were down to one opponent now, the Red sorceress. He had since stopped paying attention to the...rather bloody ways in which Nadia was destroyed and reconstituted herself, deciding that if she could survive that, it would only be insulting to worry after her safety. Maybe if he had that think Blazermate used to heal people, but otherwise she seemed more than capable of handling herself.

What he did pay attention to, however, was a very familiar scene: powerful sorceress meets skilled, famed, handsome warrior, falls helplessly in love, and becomes irrationally jealous when the object of her affections doesn't give her every minute of her time.

It was a tale as old as time, as far as the Witcher was concerned. His heart went out to Link, a kindred spirit in that minefield they called romance. Geralt had been wise to extricate himself from it, long as it may have taken.

His mind back on the fight, Geralt cursed as Cia summoned a shadow puppet to attack Blazermate, and he started to move towards it when a wave of something sent him reeling, only for a second wave of what he saw was some kind of dark energy to knock him aside and over the edge of the hole. His desperate scramble only delayed the inevitable, as he fell from the Bismarck, sword left on the restaurant's floor.

Only to land with a grunt in a rapidly-ascending Bowser's arm-tentacle things. He looked up at the Koopa King with a shrug. "Huh. Thanks, boss." He said, now looking about to get a look of what had occurred in the moments since his attention was pulled from the battle.

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Limsa Lominscuttle Town- The Bismarck

Lvl 6 (48/60) -> Lvl 6 (49/60)

Word Count: 310 words

@Gentlemanvaultboy

Geralt nodded as Nadia clambered up the awning and ripped a hole in it, revealing that their opponent had actually placed a horridly ill-conceived barrier, failing to account for literally any level of creative thinking. He was almost embarrassed that he hadn't come up with it, but vertical movement wasn't necessarily his favorite way of getting around. Sure, he could climb and jump better than damn near any regular human, but he was also wearing armor and other equipment, whereas the catgirl was...not.

Quickly following after the new addition, Geralt clambered up to the now-ruined awning and dropped inside the restaurant just after Bowser and Kamek. Quicker than the oversized and heavily Spirit-mutated turtle that he called a boss, Geralt picked out their target: The four Sorceresses that were absolutely wreaking havoc on the place. He'd only arrived in time to watch Hat Kid, Nadia, and the guy with the really, really long sword have a bunch of magic bombs start going off, and the Red one floating down to the ground.

And behind the Red one, the Blue one climbed onto a table and took a seemingly combat-inefficient pose as she inhaled slowly. Eyes flicking back to what the Red one had just done, Geralt drew his blade with one hand while the other traced a familiar pattern through the air: a triangle, its point downwards. The Sign of Axii, directed at the Blue sorceress. Just like in the fight against Link, all he needed was a second to turn the tide, especially in the chaos of the battle. That was even more true with Bowser about to land directly on her head, now even more oversized as a result of his own sorceror's power.

Careful not to lose concentration on the sign prematurely, Geralt advanced slowly, sword at his side and free hand outstretched towards the Blue copy.

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Limsa Lominscuttle Town

Lvl 6 (46/60) -> Lvl 6 (48/60)

Word Count: 803 words

@DracoLunaris @Archmage MC

Geralt followed after Bowser and their group, not particularly worried about the obese man following after them, loudly complaining about his wine and announcing that he wasn't finished with them yet. Nobody who'd been there prior to his arrival seemed particularly worried, and Geralt had more important things on his mind. Namely, the revelation that they were not, in fact, getting lunch or dinner or whatever meal it was, but going to rescue Link. Bowser's return to this portion of the group helped explain a bit of the lack of organization, as their newfound size made it a little easier to get sidetracked.

The explanation that the city Red Team had gone to was going to explode was a bit strange to Geralt, but he figured it would either be explained later, or completely forgotten about until it was once more relevant. How the entire city was going to explode was well beyond him, but he'd learned to accept that strange, fantastical things happened in this place, and that he'd likely never come to a complete understanding of it all. Shrugging off the curiosity, Geralt frowned as they finally reached the Bismarck, only to be blocked by a strange wall. His medallion was also starting to vibrate, and it only got more intense as they approached the wall, until the wolf's head was practically jumping off his chest. "Well, it's magic." He deadpanned, after both Bowser and their hanger-own tried to brute force their way through.

And that was when the drunken stranger slammed his jug onto the ground, and Geralt found himself both covered in wine, and drunk as a skunk. The world around him swayed, and he held a hand a little out to either side of his body to keep his balance. "Never....got to play Strip Gwent..." He slurred, backing against the wall of the building and taking a deep, shuddering breath as he watched the chaos. Kamek slid down his magic flying broomie and it bonked him on the head, and Bowser slipped on it and fell, making a real loud boom noise, while Blazermate tripped and landed on top of Peach, who herself had also taken position against the wall for stability.

And the cat lady that was following them got her head kicked off, but she seemed fine. Right? Yeaaahhh, she was fine. And not in the way that would make Yennefer hurt him. But also, yeah, kind of in that way too. She wasn't dead, though, which was weird, what with the whole decapitation thing. Usually when people got decapitated they weren't alright.

Geralt was trying to contemplate just what that meant when the drunkenness just wore off, and he frowned. "What in the...?" The frown became a scowl when he realized what exactly had happened, and as he rounded on Bacchus, who was in the middle of raising his jug, he got to see the extremely strange sight of Nadia's head running over, using its ears like legs, and biting him on the ankle while her body gave him a double side-kick that launched his jug into the ocean below. Seemingly too obsessed to care about the consequences, the reveler chased his booze off the side of the pier, launching himself into the sea.

Pushing off the wall, Geralt looked around as if to confirm with the others whether that had, indeed, just happened. Seeing a mixture of emotions, he shrugged as the guard explained that the man was a frequent troublemaker, but would almost certainly be back.

Nadia was the first to really do anything, offering a hand to Kamek and Peach to help them up. The mage had to poke Bowser to rouse him back into consciousness, and Geralt himself went over to Blazermate and crouched beside her, careful to not shove his hand into her mouth...thing. "Let's get you up, now. First time ain't easy." He mumbled, offering his shoulder and arm as support.

"Uuugh. Is THAT what its like to be drunk? how do you people handle it?" Blazermate whined, earning a chuckle from the Witcher.

"Lots of practice. And sitting down."

Once everybody was up, Geralt frowned again, looking at the barrier. "As I was saying before we were so rudely interrupted, it's definitely magic. Medallion's about burning a whole through my chest with how much it's going. You said it's like the doors in the Dead Zone? Won't open till the enemy's defeated. So...they're on their own, then." Sighing, the Witcher studied the barrier, not necessarily giving up, but not quite hopeful that he could find a way through or around it, though. "You think there's a back door or something? Or are we really just stuck out here with our thumbs up our asses?" Was the complaint juvenile? Yes. Was it completely correct? Also yes.

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Limsa Lominscuttle Town

Lvl 6 (45/60) -> Lvl 6 (46/60)

Word Count: 375 words

@DracoLunaris @Archmage MC

With little recollection of that particular part of the tour they'd received, Geralt could only shrug when Kamek mentioned it supposedly being a good restaraunt they were searching for. His response to Kamek's own quip in regards to age was a snort. "Oh, if I had my way I'd get another century or three, settle down with the lady and watch the kid grow up, hunt a few times a year to keep busy. Maybe retire out to Toussaint if Old Duny got that stick out of his ass." Purposefully leaving out any explanation as to the geopolitical reasons that might be difficult, Geralt moved on to the next topic of conversation without delay.

"Might be. Known my share of older knights who just couldn't give it up, though I've seen a few ready to throw the blade away and be done with it all by that point. As for the ship? Well, suppose that depends on what Spirits we can find and what they do to the thing. Can't imagine one of those girls giving a damned ship legs to tread water on." Though the mental image was admittedly hilarious, a bloody ship on tiny legs trying desperately to balance itself.

Having Kamek able to float up and scout ahead was monumentally helpful, as the bustle of the city gave Geralt's hearing a hard time picking out individual voices. Sure, he would probably be able to locate Bowser when they were closer, but by that point, Kamek's birds-eye view would probably have found him. And speaking of the turtle-devil king, Kamek's voice rang out from above. A quick glance upwards revealed their relative position, and Geralt set off, moderately appreciative of the gesture Kamek made in staying rather close.

Between his stature, his Resting Witcher Face, and the manifold weapons he was carrying, Geralt was at least able to slip through the crowd before him with extraordinary ease, catching up to the Koopa King and his entourage just in time to hear a question about worship and gods, as well as Cuphead urging the group away. "No Link. Something tells me this isn't the Bismarck." A dry observation, not intended as a serious remark, was all Geralt gave as introduction aside from a nod.

Heroes of Beacon - the Next Chapter

<Snipped quote by Prince of Seraphs>

One of these days there'll almost certainly be a continuation, if I have anything to say about it. In a year or two if enough of the old crowd is still around and interested. It's hard for me to get some of the characters and interactions in this game outta my head.

Good to see you around!

@Plank Sinatra

Well, I don't think I'd say no to polishing off old Ozzy if I get the chance.

Also I miss you Prince </3

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Open Ocean-> Limsa Lominscuttle Town

Lvl 6 (44/60) -> Lvl 6 (45/60)

Word Count: 658 words

@DracoLunaris

Geralt smirked as Junior complained about being hungry. Truth be told, the kid reminded him of Ciri, in a distant sort of way. They were both stubborn and demanding, both raised as royalty (At least until Geralt got a hold of the girl, that is), and both were tougher than one would've assumed. "Won't lie, I'm a little hungry as well."

Kamek backed up his and Sakura's assurances that Peach would be able to remove any Spirits they weren't keen on having in them, and it seemed especially important for Ranger, given the whole 'Looking like the Town's Sworn Enemy' and all. The Shipgirl seemed extremely relieved at that, as well. Geralt thought back to when he had the Enderman Spirit in him, and almost shuddered at the thought. Making people's stares have that sort of power over him was not something he was keen on experiencing ever again.

As the others brainstormed ideas on how to keep Seaplane Tender from being killed on sight, Geralt frowned. Sakura's intuition might have been right, or the Abyssal might have been a better actor than expected, but Geralt couldn't quite seem to hold on to his frustration at the girl's actions and the monster/Shipgirl's presence. She seemed downright contrite about the whole situation, and seemed to want to avoid putting anybody out for her sake.

The other Abyssal, the 'Heavy Cruiser', whatever that meant, reminded him of some soldiers he knew, but...more innocent. Those men 'just followed orders' because they were either brainwashed into believing their cause just, or relishing the excuse for wanton slaughter. The 'Ri-Class' just seemed like she'd literally never thought of anything other than doing what she was told. The very idea was so foreign to Geralt that he couldn't really wrap his mind around it. Her and Kamek just went in circles talking on the idea of who she was and why she did what she did.

Thankfully, it wasn't long before they reached the Town, and Geralt was eager to report back and make plans on their next course of action. They'd learned quite a bit from the skirmish, and were not, in fact, facing an enemy whose numbers could not be depleted. It wouldn't be easy, of course, especially if his assumptions about some powerful mage or necromancer were correct, but it also wouldn't be impossible. He'd faced odds like that before and won, anyway.

Kamek was going ashore, leaving both Junior and Sakura with Ranger to hold down the ship and hopefully keep an eye on the Abyssals. Former Abyssals? Abyssal Deserters? Seaplane Tender and the Ri-Class. Or, as Sakura suggested, Catherine and...Riri? Seaplane and Cruiser? Shaking his head just a bit, Geralt dismissed that line of thought. He and Kamek would be going ashore, which he quickly confirmed as he fell in line with the older mage. "I'll be going, as well. Need to brief the Admiral and Peach. Not sure what order we'll be doing things in, but best not to force any delays."

Peach and the others seemed to be getting lunch. Without them. While they hadn't exactly given a timeline for how long it'd be, it still irked the Witcher. Sure, they signed up for the whole 'Fight for our lives while the others go shopping' thing, but the timing was just insulting! "Well, I'm sure they won't mind paying for our lunch once we get there. Seems only fair after what we went through." Geralt's tone was dry enough that Kamek would undoubtedly be able to see through it, but he couldn't resist a snarky comment or two in this kind of situation. "We only came face to face with an Abyssal Captain and nearly got sent to an earl...roughly on time grave." He kept up the joke with a smirk.

"They did manage to get that Brineybeard guy working with us, though, so it's a good start." Two ships were better than one, after all.

World of Light

Geralt of Rivia

Edge of the Blue- Open Ocean

Lvl 6 (33/60) +10 Combat XP -> Lvl 6 (44/60)

Word Count: 311 words

Geralt nodded at Sakura as she spoke, at least somewhat heartened to know that she was only somewhat more familiar with the intricacies of the technology around them. He supposed it made sense, in a fashion. He knew how to swing a sword, and how to sharpen a dulled or slightly chipped blade, but making a sword was a bit beyond him. As was the ideal carbon content of steel. He remembered Hattori mentioning something about that when he was muttering about making a sword for him.

It didn't matter. Apparently that thing he did with Isabelle-apparently called karaoke-was invented in her homeland of Japan. It was...interesting. Enjoyable. Maybe if they had time, they'd do some more later, but they had more important matters to deal with. He followed the conversation, nodding along when she mentioned magic and monsters, but his eyes unfocused a bit when she started listing off different kinds of foods.

He recognized two words out of everything she listed. Chicken. And Bread. Wait, did she say she was a- "Did you just say you were a competitive eater? How does that work?" Thankfully, the conversation was interrupted by the Shipgirls, and Geralt took that chance to avoid learning what was probably some strange otherworldly ritual based around a lack of scarcity so great it was worrying.

Seaplane Tender's absolutely humiliating entrance almost made him feel bad for her. Almost. He regarded her warily, unsure if this was some sort of ploy to appear harmless, or if she had genuinely just fallen flat on her face in front of them all.

Disregarding those concerns, with Sakura taking care to seat the Water Princess and try to alleviate Ranger's concerns, Geralt nodded in confirmation. "If you'd met me yesterday, I'd have been a few feet taller and with arms down to my knees. You'll be fine."