Penultimate_Pi

Hearts of Metal: A Giant Robot/Mecha RP

Just put up a collab post between Ariamis and I.

Hearts of Metal: A Giant Robot/Mecha RP

Lora had to admit, she was surprised that the position of team leader was actually split between two figures - if Krista was the one that actually showed the most prowess for teamwork and management, surely she would get the whole position? But no, Lora possessed some key critical ability as opposed to the other pilots, and her high Synch Ratio played a part in that. As the new tools and decorations were handed out, Lora took her share with a slight nod to Ritsu. She pocketed the handgun and quickly fiddled about in getting the pins on, while the lieutenant turned to speak with the other cadets.

---

"Carry on, Cadet," the Lieutenant greeted Koehler in return, and smiled. "Now you kids play nice, and make sure to relax. We'll start with full throttle tomorrow." She then walked away, with a much more casual swing to her hips.

Elora was quick to leave the briefing hall, still glum and pained by her faults, but Lora would have none of that. Before she could move to pursue the sullen girl, however, she noted Krista, the Archer's pilot, about to cross paths. That was right, Lora was one of the new leaders for Squad Sigma; still technically below rank of Krista, but a leader all the same. A hefty concern, certainly, considering this mismatched ragtag group of pilots, but she would have to attend to it later.

As Lora and Krista hailed each other, Lora took the first opportunity to say, "I wouldn't have guessed you to become squad leader. Congratulations, in this and the battle." A firm but gentle handshake was shared, and then, "I'd love to chat a bit, and we should discuss our roles, but I have some business of my own I'd like to catch up with first, If you don't mind, I'll meet up with you later." Not a hasty gesture, but hopefully a clear one, Lora dismissed herself and moved to follow Elora, walking just below a brisk pace of her own.

Elora managed to reach the mess hall, where she took the farthest table out of the others as she could. She had her tray fitted with some food, but she seemed to have trouble eating it. The fork she held dropped from her shaking arm, and she lowered her head on the table. She wondered how she would survive in this cruel place, filled with pain and sadness. She was starting to think that her affections were a curse; Stukov died, and Ryan was crippled. Elora believed it was her fault what happened to him; she answered wrong to the professor and was punished for it, causing Ryan to become angry. She lifted her head a bit to take a look at the other pilots, who seemed to have fun together. She secretly wanted to join in, but was too scared; she would just cause more suffering. She dropped her head again.

Lora finally caught a glance of Elora as the former entered the mess hall - the latter was sitting in a far-off table, he face buried in her arms. She looked lonesome and miserable, but at least she wasn't hard to find. Not bothering to greet the transferred replacement pilots or even get herself any lunch, for now, Lora made a beeline to Elora's table. Before she got too close, however, Lora stopped herself, taking up a smoother and more calm stride. She was concerned that she had come across as too fierce before, and she wanted to register herself otherwise. The junior leader hoped she could pull it off - being a big sister again, after so long...

Elora opened one of her eyes, and saw Lora approach her. She remembered how she gave some nice words to her, but kept to herself, making Elora unsure of what kind of person she was. She didn't know whether the new leader wanted to comfort her or scold her for making the wrong choice. She couldn't help it; the scary professor exerted tremendous pressure on her, and she didn't want to cause trouble for others by denying responsibility. Elora kept quiet, and waited for what the junior officer had to say, her head still buried in her arms.

A hand fell to Elora's shoulder as Lora slowly took a seat next to her. "Hey," the older pilot began, smooth and caring as she could first manage, "I know what you must be feeling, that this really is your fault, right?" Cautiously, Lora tried to knead Elora's shoulder in a meager massage.

"U-Uhhh-" Elora tried to voice up, still struggling to find words for what was happening. Her shoulders were stiff, so it felt uncomfortable when Lora kneaded one of hers, and she was briefly reminded of the kind of bullying she was subjected to. It soon started to feel better, though, when she started to relax, and ease up on being as tense. It was clear to her that Lora was only trying to help, and appreciated her for doing so. Still, she had doubts about herself. "B-But Ryan got hurt, and I didn't-"

"You're taking this all wrong," Lora insisted, attempting to sound firm while also keeping the softer tone in her voice. "Ryan... he was being over-protective and judgmental. He thought I was going to destroy you, and he broke off because of that." Lora felt a small lump forming in her throat, but she choked it down and continued, "He wanted to protect you, but more than that, he also wanted to kill me. And when Lorenzo hurt you... he wanted to kill him, too."

The older pilot took her hand from Elora's shoulder and moved to wrap around, embracing her in a half-hug. "Whatever you're thinking, you're not the cause of this." Lora shook her head, ensuring Elora was facing her. "Lorenzo... He knew you weren't guilty, but he also knew you couldn't refuse him. He simply preyed upon you, as a means to an end. Either you claimed it was not your fault and made Ryan get removed, or you got hurt and Ryan would remove himself."

Elora sniffled as she listened to Lora's mature reasoning. She didn't think about it from an outside perspective like that, and realized that no matter what she did, Ryan would have been hurt regardless. She embraced Lora's hug, which was a brief respite from the day's never-ending stream of nightmarish scenes. Lora was like a big sister she never had, who would listen to your woes and help you with them. Encouraged by her, Elora opened up:

"Th-Thank you, Lora. I've been so afraid, ever since I ended up here...ever since I started piloting that robot, I've never stopped being afraid...until now. How could I ever pay you for this kindness?"

Feeling and hearing Elora respond like this brought a certain wonderful feeling to her. Despite having trained for so very long to be a living tool of war, to pilot humankind's heaviest weapons into battle, Lora could still be human. She could still feel, and comfort, and convince. And just as Elora looked at her like a big sister, Lora too felt like that, and it was more than a truth. More than anything, she wanted to be strong... so that she could save others with her strength, her reasoning, her care.

"Don't," Lora finally responded after a few extended seconds. "You don't have to pay back anything. Just be strong; nothing is your fault unless you make it so. Alright?"

Elora meekly nodded. "I...I'll do my best, Lora. I learned a lot about being strong today, when we...umm...you know, so I'll continue doing that. I promise."

With a far more friendly nod, Lora stayed a few moments longer before relinquishing her grip on Elora and standing up. Elora was now starting to feel better after she exchanged a few words with Lora. She was really glad that someone like her was part of the squad. When Lora turned to leave, Elora tugged on her sleeve.

"Hey, um, thanks for talking with me...again. It means a lot to me."

Lora nodded in return. "Of course. If Ryan was truly wrong about something, it was that I meant to destroy you. I didn't... and I probably couldn't have, either." One more time, she turned, but then doubled back, feeling the shifting of her new decorations. "...Oh, and I guess you should technically start calling me 'ma'am' and 'leader' and such. But save it for business, okay?"

With that, Lora left, not meaning to leave Elora alone but simply wanting to get herself some food. After all the hard thought and exercise today, and with the physical and mental training to come, it was just nice to stay plain and indulge oneself.

As Lora left to her own devices, Elora couldn't help but cover her mouth with her hands and blush in embarrassment. She forgot that Lora was a junior officer now, and that she should have been greeting her formally, with a salute and all. But Lora didn't seem to mind too much, and in fact was fine with being on friendly terms outside of the super serious war stuff. Elora was fine with that, and smiled. Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all, she thought as she finished her food and left the table, trying to talk with some of the other pilots who were going to be her new family.

The Stand - A Fantasy PvE

Before Julian could roll out, a huge shield parked itself in front of his frame, and the hunter had a double take at the sudden occurrence. He was snapped back to logic when the arrows slammed into the new obstacle like a sharp rain.

"You needn't fear being struck, archer, I shall take care of that," A hard voice above him announced, and Julian looked up to the the flowing hair and golden armor of a paladin. He couldn't help but grimace a little bit - his current state didn't make him popular with practitioners of the holy, but if this man was willing to aid him, who was he to refuse? Enemy of his enemy, as it were.

"Alright, we'll compromise," Julian said, his raspy voice starting to really betray his humanity. "I'll take care of the archers, you handle the warriors." Without waiting for confirmation, Julian dashed out wide from behind the paladin's guard, nocking another arrow.

From his vantage, the phantom hunter could see that there was two groups of archers from each of the front side gates, each down to two orcs. While the paladin held the five orc warriors at bay, Julian drew his bow, channeled the arrows magic with a whisper of "Blast Shot," and fired into the two archers remaining from the left gate, to finish what he started. Regardless of whether or not it killed them outright, the blast would at least knock them asunder.

Julian then turned to the other group, already about to fire another volley, and prepared another Blast Shot. The orc bowmen might already have their arrows flying by the time Julian's own attack could get rid of them, but at least that would stop them from being any further of a problem. He at least hoped the paladin didn't get himself surround in the meanwhile, so he could fall back to a safer point when the arrows let loose.

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Is there a limit to how many magical tattoos can be applied to oneself? I know in Pathfinder and DnD they usually restrict you to one or two, but I was wondering if you were going to press any limit besides surface area.

I ask because yes, Hanzo is going to consider the tattoos. I haven't decided if that's immoral or improper for his culture yet, but I can go ahead and go on with it anyways because a badass warrior monk should deserve more badass-ness.

Cinder Sickness - A DnD style classic RP

Hanzo allowed himself to breathe with more regularity now that his body was being mended. The exhaustion still remained, and he wasn't getting back any of the blood he lost, but at the least his body was undamaged. Hopefully a good night's rest without too further interruptions would do everyone a bit of good.

With a fresh new array of corpses to dispose of, the monk sullenly began the work of dragging them over to the bonfire south of town, still blazing in rage. The heavy smell of burning at rot mixed together as he approached the fire again, one of the bodies in tow. Some of the men peeking out from their houses offered to help, taking up some of the other bodies for disposal. It was a gruesome crowd and a grueling effort, but it would get done in due time-

"Wha- hey! This one's still alive!"

As he was about to heave the first body into the flames, Hanzo snapped to attention at the sudden shout, dropping the leg he was pulling around and looking back to the village.

"The hell is he- augh!"
"He's getting away, quick, someone stop him-!"

It was the thief Hanzo had knocked down before. His company all brutally murdered and his ass beaten twice today, it was safe to assume he had lost this fight. The thief placed a couple of fingers in his mouth and blew a certain shrill whistle, calling his abandoned horse. His new plan was to to leave the town and escape into the forest while the adventurers were winding down; Despite his wounded state, he still had superior agility to the common townsfolk, and he had a horse to carry him regardless.

His mount came galloping out from one of the alleys, and he swung himself up into the saddle as quickly as he could afford while keeping them both moving. His plan was perfect, in his mind - retreat to the southern fort, take whatever supplies he needed, then run away before nightfall and under the cover of night. As long as nobody could intercept him-

A bolt of energy speared the thief in the face, knocking him off of his horse and to the ground, the mount fleeing off into the southern forest. The wind forced from his lungs, he was left breathless and gasping as the monk approached. A hand went to the thief's collar, and the criminal's eyes widened, a mix of exasperation and fear present.

"Please-...don't- kill me...!" The thief rasped out, his gaze meeting Hanzo's tired yet fierce visage. With a pained gasp, he continued to beg, "All the others... are dead-! I-isn't that enough...?"

The monk threw the thief aside, onto his back. Pinning down the man's arms behind him, Hanzo hailed one of the villagers to bring some rope. Then, in a more sinister tone, he announced to the thief, "If I could help it, none of you would've died anyways. The likes of you deserve a proper punishment for what you've done." The criminal groaned and succumbed to his fatigue as Hanzo removed all the loose items on his being.

Besides a purse full of silver currency and a couple of odd trinkets the thief intended to sell, there wasn't anything of note the thief had tried to make off with. It did remind Hanzo, however, that there was one more person whom hadn't explicitly died - the magician. As he allowed some of the local men to secure the beaten thief, the monk returned to where the fire mage lay unconscious. Already one of the men was observing him, seeing as the figure wasn't bloodied or cold.

"He's just unconscious for now," Hanzo told the person as he approached, who gave a doubtful but appreciative glance at Hanzo. "See if you can get some help to restrain him- tightly, so he can't cast anything." The man nodded with some hesitation, and left to grab something or someone. There certainly wasn't much need for a plain village like this to hold any prisoners, but Hanzo wasn't going to kill them while they were already beaten, nor was he going to allow them to escape and grant them the chance to do more harm. If the village so decided, the criminals might just be put to death in any case, but that wasn't Hanzo's matter.

Loose items from the magician included a potion of 'restoration' and a magical scroll with a emblem in fresh ink. The intricate text on the scroll read that it was an enchantment of barkskin that could be applied permanently to the body, by pressing the ink to the desired spot and reading the enchantment. Hanzo could see it being useful to himself, but he didn't want to use it immediately in case one of the others happened to want it - he wasn't the only one, after all, that went so sparsely armored.

Agnes and Wylsen had personally made accommodations at the inn for the adventurers, a simple gesture of thanks for defending their village. Despite being ever the miser, Hanzo welcomed the offer, but still offered up some of the silver from the bag as payment. Hanzo couldn't help but unleash a tired yawn from the day's efforts; he had a feeling he would rest well in a village he knew he had a part in protecting.

The adventurers retreated to the calm and quiet of the inn, and Hanzo followed. Quietly, he ordered another cup of tea.

---

The sun was already beginning to dip below the horizon as the second group returned to town. Sister Agnes hurriedly called Wylsen out to look, and as he sluggishly did so, Hanzo followed suit. He had almost forgotten about the group Sana had led out to dispatch of the northern camp, and as he saw them return, he could understand why. Drawn by their horses was a large coach wagon, loaded with miserable-looking but thankful people.

The slaves, Hanzo realized. They had rescued the slaves, not just killed off all the slavers. Now this town was truly a haven.

Not so much exhausted as he was sleepy now, Hanzo waved to the approaching group. Cheers and thanks were shared, and some were eager to retreat to the inn and rest. The adventurers had also brought back a tremendous share of money - the spoils collected by the slavers, most likely. Largely satisfied with the lives they had saved today, Hanzo gave a soft, almost dopey smile, for the first time in a while.

Hearts of Metal: A Giant Robot/Mecha RP

@LHG100@Ariamis
To be fair, I first thought of it like this:

Sergeant Ken

The Stand - A Fantasy PvE

If we can help it, sure.

Reboot: Please Select Player

I'd say a Mad Max world would start with us in a settlement, then proceed with us moving out in a war rig or other small vehicle fleet. Perhaps have it mostly play out like Fury Road (since that was the one movie of the series I enjoyed the most).

We wouldn't need to be familiar with Midgar as a whole - even in-game, we never visit more than two or three sectors, a couple of the Mako Reactors, and the Shinra Building. So long as we have an idea of that, we're good.

No Mercy or Dead Center would be pretty good scenarios for a zombie level, I think. Straightforward, while still being hectic.

Going to the worlds where our characters come from? While I guess my iteration of that should be Fortuna / Fortuna Castle, I could also go for the Temen-ni-gru from DMC3. Although both would probably just be damn confusing at times.

I say if we go for a Hell level, make it from Doom. It'll be the ultimate bloodbath of hellspawn.

Reboot: Please Select Player

I've got a few suggestions for worlds:

• Planet Zebes
• The wastelands of Mad Max
• Midgar (the city from Final Fantasy VII)
• Asgard
• HELL (interpretation pending)

I could name more, but let's start with that and see what's good before I start branching out into all sorts of zany stuff.

Reboot: Please Select Player

Nero's evil version would just look the same as himself, but even more of an asshole.