So, I really want to avoid letting any post go over 4 days without being answered. ... So I'm posting for only Eklispe to buy myself two more days for the other posts.
Dawkin could move on from the Pokémon Center, out onto the streets of the partly flooded town that still seemed to be pretty bustling despite this. The main attraction of the town were the tours of Dragon Lake and such, but of course, they had other services. Such as the one he was heading to right now to gather more information.
The Explorer’s Guide Service building itself was but a small dent into a building, a door and windows full of advertisement for the service. Inside was a cozy little store-like room where lots of fliers advertised the accomplishments of several presumably employed individuals while good reviews of their services hung around like newspaper articles, the walls covered by papers, maps of Isson and the likes. By the door stood a sign with some info for a visitor.
“Lakewatch residents live somewhat out of the way, meaning we need to travel to find our callings! On our travels, we have learned a lot! Here we offer our experience for you to use!”
There’s also a map of Lakewatch under the message with a “Our guides live HERE!” showing small arrows pointing at various spots throughout Lakewatch Town. It was vague enough that’d it be somewhat hard to find the person based on it, but with the number of arrows and how spread it was it delivered the message that this was an honest occupation in this town.
And, in the back on a chair behind a desk covered in paperwork and a strange small stone-statue of a Trapinch sat a girl staring at her mobile phone. Though, when Dawkin came in, she lifted her gaze and stared at him, looking at him a little curiously. The girl’s wearing a jacket, hood and a large backpack lies packed on her right. She looks like she’s basically already on a journey.
She has something in her mouth. What it is? Who knows. Heh.
‘Mmm? Heading somewhere?’ The girl asked in a casual tone, looking over Dawkin as he entered.
Now, a list of the place’s services are listed to the girl’s immediate right.
1. Tips! Get a tip about any of the serviced areas! Small tip - 50P. Considerable tip - 200P. Masterful tip - 500P. 1.1. Wet Caverns. 1.2. Route 6, a.k.a, the Vast Plains. 1.3. Frozen Cave/Route 9. 1.4. Dragon Lake. 1.5. Mt. Strength. 1.6. Mt. Chill. 1.7. Route 7, a.k.a, the Desert Eye. 1.8. Endless Forest.”Tips” don’t help in Endless Forest. 1.9. Anywhere else! Name a place, and we’ll see what we can do! 2. Maps/guidebooks! To ensure you’ll never feel lost on your own! 2.1. Wet Caverns. Shows paths and water-ways. 300P. 2.2. Route 6, aka, the Vast Plains. Habitat guidebook. 500P. 2.3. Frozen Cave/Route 9. Maps and survival tips. 500P. 2.4. Dragon Lake. Habitat guidebook. 700P. 2.5. Mt. Strength. Maps. 1000P. 2.6. Mt. Chill. Maps and suggestions. 1000P. 2.7. Route 7, aka, the Desert Eye. Maps, and guide to finding the Oasis. 1000P. 2.8. Endless Forest.Any attempt at making a map or guidebook to Endless Forest is doomed to fail. We have hundreds of attempts, feel free to take one for free. 2.9. Anywhere else! Name a place, and we’ll see what we can do! - Price varies. 3. Hire a guide! To accompany you and help out with your needs in said area! - 2900P. 3.1. Wet Caverns. 3.2. Route 6, a.k.a, the Endless Plains. 3.3. Frozen Cave/Route 9. 3.4. Dragon Lake. 3.5. Mt. Strength. 3.6. Mt. Chill. 3.7. Route 7, a.k.a, the Desert Eye. 3.8. Endless Forest.Service discontinued due to complaints of getting lost despite having a guide. <There’s a drawn face rolling its eyes next to this one> 3.9. Anywhere else! Name a place, and we’ll see what we can do!
So. Minor tips about Route 5 and Frozen Cave, as ordered.
‘Ah, you just want to know what you could expect to meet.’ She gave a little smile, putting her phone aside as she leaned forward, her hands grasping together in front of her as she looked at Dawkin. ‘Route 5. There are lots of Oddishes and Deerlings on the route. Look in grass for Scatterbugs and Caterpies. The route hoots with Hoothoots during night, same as Route 4. Look in forests long enough, and you can find small gatherings of forest-dwelling electric Pokémon in both Route 4 and 5, like Pikachu. Careful wandering those forests, though. It’s spring. Sawbucks are more active than in other seasons, and they’re more inclined to attack than Deerlings are.’ She says, smiling a bit. Then…
‘And the Frozen Cave… Dress warmly. That’s a minor tip.’ She giggles a little. ‘Nah, I jest. The most common Pokémon there are Zubats, Swinubs and Delibirds, with the occasional Vanillite. They’re harmless enough, but those slippery caves hold places where you can accidentally slide deeper into the cave without any easy way out. And deep in those caves occasionally prowls Glalies way stronger than the area average, who may sometimes attack without warning. Always enter the cave with Escape Ropes at the ready. But, the cave does hold its own amusing secrets. Like, frozen fossils. Hm, is that still a minor tip? Eh.’ She sighs a little. Then, she regains her smile.
‘That’ll be 100 P. Unless there was anything else?’
While Eli scouted that, Mariette had another business to attend to.
She lifted a hand and gathered her power. It took a little longer than her other portals, on account that her destination was not of this world, but soon enough a portal opened to her interdimensional apartment. From apartment to apartment, Mariette treaded.
The apartment was as boring as ever. False windows out to a false city gave a false sense that it was a part of a larger world. There was a table in the middle, with three chairs around it. A fridge, a cabinet, a cooking area for whatever they needed to eat. A couple of places to sleep, in case. How she greatly prefered Joe's place for that. Here was closer to Asengav's core of power, the whispers were louder, and it became much harder to relax. Asengav had given this to her as her safe place to relax in, yet it simply showed how little the Horror understood about what allowed a human to relax. Besides, Sonia had already proved this place wasn't safe.
In one corner lay the crystal she had been given by Justine, since she had thrown it there after their most recent meeting. It could stay there, Mariette would eventually have use of it, but she was wary that perhaps the Visceral could spy or eavesdrop through it. No conversations about their recent actions could take place close to it.
In the corner opposite of it, stood Asengav's great mirror. Her one gateway to Asengav's dimension, and her way of contacting him. Which was what she was going to do now.
Mariette wandered over to the mirror, lifting a hand and placing it against the mirror. She was going to start transmitting her message to her master, that she wished to speak with him. She'd then be made to wait, because Asengav had no requirement to actually grace her with his presence until he saw fit to do so. It was reasonable that he may be expecting her to contact him after what just happened, his tentacles had been burned, but perhaps he'd leave her hanging a bit just for the principle of it.
Regardless, Mariette now stood with a hand on the mirror, focusing her call, considering the words she'd say...
"Mirror, mirror, on the corner..." Mariette heard a voice, and one she knew all too well.
"Who is the fairest in the betwixt border?" A giggle then ensued, and Mariette saw the crystal glow. The flaming eye projected from it's side, staring directly at her. "I must say, it was quite rude of you to throw away my gift to you, Reflective...No...We should be on first-name terms now, Mariette."
The moment she heard the first tone, Mariette stopped sending her message. ... Asengav would have noticed and understood. She hoped, anyway. Regardless. She slowly turned and faced the source of the voice, the flaming eye coming from the crystal in the other corner. She saw no need to reply to her addressor's words, merely glared back. And as much as Mariette would have wanted her look to be blank, her brow frowned and body tensed up a bit, her look nothing short of hostile.
The eye blinked. "You must be furious, with the way your eyes look. I suppose that disgusting slime of yours held more value to you than I expected. Well, we can't all choose our slaves, I suppose. And it seems the other one is missing...How bold of you." Her tone was polite, yet that only sharpened the insults.
‘Bold, Justine? For Eli missing from my side?’ Mariette scoffed, ignoring the rest but replying to the last bit. ‘They are my scouts, not my bodyguards. Now that one of them have been stolen from me, the other will need to double her efforts. Each second by my side is a second not gathering information for me, therefore wasted. I have no need for constant companionship.’ She told, her tone sharp. She wouldn't deny being riled up, but she prided herself on her ability to remain focused.
"Hmm, that may be so...But is it also true of them? We live in a dangerous world after all..." Justine sounded like she enjoyed the banter. "Anyway, I would like to share a little secret...Or should I say, I already have?" A sound of clinking ceramics and a sip then ensued. "A little leak has now happened you see, and your veil of secrecy has been lifted. Now, the magical girl community knows of Mariette Pedersen the kidnapper, complete with a description of appearance and abilities. Now you have no allies, Mariette. You are all alone."
... So, either Justine is talking about when Mariette herself spoke to Alicia, or something has happened beyond her own knowledge. Perhaps Amber. Regardless, it was something she had already accepted when she had chosen to speak with Alicia. But for the fact that she had no allies...
Of all the people her mind could wander to... She thought of Violet and Sakura, who had somehow managed to befriend her. She thought of Sue, who had offered to care for her. And she thought of Lily, who had so dearly wanted to connect to her. It wasn't much, but that mere fact, made the slightest smirk appear on her lips for the briefest moment. There are things you don't know, Justine...
‘And?’ Mariette let the smirk vanish, raising her chin a little. ‘I am the agent of a Horror. From day one, I never expected to have any allies. I never needed them. I was always alone. The difference is that now they know of me, which in some ways make it easier for me to move. After all, who could catch me? My scouts have searched throughout the world for Magical Girls, I know what they're all capable of. I know a grand total of two Magical Girls that could ever catch up to me. I'm speaking to one of them. I have nothing to fear from the common ones.’ She told, her voice confident.
A silent moment passed. "Is that so? Well, it will be an entertaining display when the Beacon comes after you. They surely have members capable of finding you, so you can only run." Her voice was showing a slight change to a less composed one. "You will know fear, soon enough."
‘...’ Oh, she was aware. There really was a difference in pressure, knowing there were people out there that now knew of you and wanted to hunt you down. But... ‘Perhaps, Justine. Then again...’ She had to restrain a little smirk.
‘Are you not in a similar position? They learned of Stephanie. Helga had her body destroyed. People unknowing of my connection to you sought me out to try to have me ferry them to your base. I shoed them away, of course, but knowledge about you is spreading as well, through sources I do not know. Beacon surely will have learned by now. I know you have your collection of followers, but...’ Mariette tilted her head a little, looking at the eye curiously.
‘Other than those, are you not alone as well? Will they not come hunting for you, too? What's so special about me being hunted, then?’ Mariette asked, honestly curious as to what Justine's answer to this might be.
The answer was a bout of laughter, noble yet unnerving. "My dear Mariette, you are a fool for thinking you can play my game; I will always be two steps ahead." Another sip happened, this one a bit longer. "I have no concern for the Beacon anymore. In fact, I should thank you for it, Mariette; without you I might have had to work on my plan for another decade. But now, nobody will be able to stop me. This world...shall be one with purity..."
That was roughly the reaction Mariette expected, but it was nice to have it confirmed. It was a little distressing how little she seemed to worry about the forces of this world, but... Hm. Mariette regained her neutral look she preferred as she watched the eye...
‘... I couldn't convince you to wait a little, then?’ She asked. ‘I simply need to achieve my goals, then you can have this world. I'll be jumping to the next world where Asengav needs me. I feel like you owe me at least a little for that, since you killed my underling. You'll be ahead of schedule, either way. When I'm done or die, feel free to make this world "one with purity", if you feel like. I won't care anymore. What does that mean, anyway?’ Mariette asked, holding an expressionless face as she looked at Justine.
"Tsk tsk. I did no such thing. How impolite of you to accuse me, Mariette. Also, like I've said during our meeting, your objectives matter nothing to me. But if you are desperate enough to survive, then there is a way out; surrender, and swear yourself to me." Another sip, and then the sound of ceramics clinking, as if the teacup was removed. "So what will it be, Mariette?"
So, Mariette was aware she was at a bit of a disadvantage. Asengav was investing in many worlds, Mariette wouldn't know how many. It felt like Justine may have more support from Father than she herself had from Asengav, putting her at a distinct power disadvantage. But...
‘That I cannot do, for I already serve a master.’ Mariette spoke with an unchanging tone, meeting the eye steadily. In her mind, even at the price of death, she could not go against Asengav. ... That this was the result of being Mind-Bent to be eternally loyal to him, was not something Mariette was aware of in this case.
Another silent moment, only accentuated by a sound of tapping fingers. "An expected answer. I did consider this a foregone conclusion. Well then, I suppose that...You have outlived your usefulness. Farewell." The eye projecting from the crystal began glowing, and shortly after, so did the crystal itself. A strange sound started emanating from it, as if it was gathering energy. The glowing accelerated, until-
Mariette listened intently to the foreboding words. Upon confirming that she would likely be in danger she was prepared, quickly reaching behind her and touched Asengav's mirror, a powerful artifact of portals, which immediately opened while she let herself fall backwards through it. Her tentacles, faster than her own fall, gripped her and threw her through into that same apartment she had entered her dimension from. As quickly as she could, she swung her hand and the portal above her swung with it to direct itself upwards rather than at her, for she didn't trust that she could close it swiftly enough before she landed on her back in the apartment.
An explosive force pushed rapidly out of the portal, bright red energy shooting out like beams of searing fire, up into the ceiling of the room Mariette escaped to. The ceiling started to crumble, and chunks of it fell on top of Mariette; while she survived, she definitely didn't escape unscathed.
Mariette, with a start, realized that perhaps indoors hadn't been the best of choices as the beam cracked the ceiling. She opened another portal above her as a shield while she defended her sides with her arms and curled up, while the debris of the ceiling crashed down. Considerable weight crashed down on her sides, from the piles, even as she was spared from straight above her. Also, dust had been thrown all over her. With a bit of a peeved expression, she crawled out after the dust had settled, brushing a hand over her face to escape having to cough.
Well. How nice to have been right about Justine's future intention to kill her.
Once Mariette managed to pull herself up again, she saw through the portal that the dimensional apartment was utterly wrecked, scorched beyond recognition; if she had stayed inside, she would have perished.
She carefully gazed into the interdimensional apartment. Okay, wrecked. It didn't matter, being in there was a death-trap, now. The entire point of it was to keep her safe, but since Justine could reach in there anyways, it instead became a prison with no escape. Looks like she wouldn't be returning. But...
There was another reason she hadn't closed the portal. She focused her power, and instead of using the mirror to make a portal she made a portal of her own, bigger, behind it in the apartment. Then she dispelled the portal on the mirror itself, grabbing it with her own arms to lift it out. The frames had been completely destroyed, but by making it a portal she had saved Asengav's mirror from being destroyed as well. All in the little victories.
Mariette sighed as she put down the large frame-less mirror onto the floor. That was probably the first serious effort she had needed to put into actually lifting something herself in... ever. She'd made Deni do it in the past. ...
First she quickly portalled herself into one of her numerous apartments that she knew was empty in the city, to escape those who'd come looking to see what that sudden noise had been or if anyone had sensed the magic. Then from there...
She placed the mirror aside and collapsed in a chair. She needed to relax a bit. ... Then contact Asengav again. ... This had all turned way too intense for her liking. It would have been so much easier to accomplish her goals if there hadn't been another dimension-travelling Horror-girl wanting to achieve her goals in the area. Now, she was truly at war with Justine von Visceral... ... ...
Mariette settled, leaning forward with a frown into a thinking position as she considered her next move in this game Justine thought her a fool for trying to play.
Now that everyone's switching from the first-person perspective, maybe I'll stealthily switch to first-person perspective and make myself the protagonist. *shifty eyes looking around so nobody has discovered my plan*
@Sickle-cell@Banana I wonder a little if Knight's just poking herself into the conversation when it was supposed to just be between the Wards. Also, getting everyone depressed talking about the worst day of their lives just before a battle? What can go wrong? XD
I also realized as I wrote the line about her making the sword, briefly. The VTOL is in motion, isn't it? What then happens to her frozen air? Does it stay where it was and completely breaks the moving craft? ... I'm just going to say she created it in motion and that it somehow understands the plane of reference that it's being used in. In worst case, she's controlling it telekinetically to stick to her hand. XD
… Hah. Asking about the worst day of our lives, are you, huh, Anomaly? Knight gazed out over the city as she thought back to her own triggering… … … … … Well. She had a story.
Gestalt started. Knight paid attention. … Oh. Well, that sounded dreadful. She wasn’t sure if it was in her place to ask, but…
‘Did it work out after that?’ She asked Gestalt, silently, sitting in place on the side.
She simply nodded at Septima’s unwillingness to share her own trigger. She knew other examples of terrible triggers that one might prefer to keep to oneself.
‘Myself…’ She took a deep breath for a moment. ‘I was mourning my dad. I was home alone, and didn’t know what to do with my life, felt vulnerable and scared without him. That’s when a couple criminals started breaking into my home. Without means to protect myself from them, without my dad when I felt the most vulnerable, I panicked. Perhaps more than I would have if I hadn’t been in the midst of mourning and loneliness. I triggered.’ She held a hand forward, and she formed her own dull blue broadsword by pausing the time in that shape, gripping it and holding it steadily.
‘… I got my means to protect myself, and with that, my future was decided.’ She smirked a little, then let the sword fade away, back to air. ‘All in all, I was fortunate and got away without much harm. No particular therapy required.’ Obviously. Now, there was the explanation that second-generation capes triggered more easily, but she never made it clear if she was one or not. Sure, she was the child of Retribution, but were they related, power-wise? … Unclear, she had said to anyone who asked.
@Joshua Tamashii Oh, my. Alright. This was what I was asking for, wasn't it? Hahahaha. Yeah, nicely posted. Now for me to determine what'll happen in all of these cases. Most are pretty simple, but... heh. Yupp. I like the effort. I know I kinda demanded it, but. XD
@Rune_Alchemist ... Erika's in a very interesting spot for a sudden phone call. XD ... Well, at the very least she's just starting out the challenge, and not mid-challenge. OR IS SHE? ... I'm going to leave it to @Pirouette when exactly in her post she might get that call. Haha.
Anyways. Nicely posted. Let's see where Claire might find the one she's looking for.
Because I received a random compliment on my character by PM, I now feel obligated to comment on their character in turn. … Which, in turn, makes me feel obligated to comment on every character that everyone has made, so let’s go.
I’ll note, most of these were written a little while ago, but here it is.
@ProPro Whelp. Collin now terrifies me. Ya know, I was kind of entertaining the idea of using Wisp again at a later age, but decided against it because I didn’t want to have a potential future for her set in stone. Good thing, too, he’d hear her right away. Anyways. I’m interested in how you’ll play him. Very interested. Heh.
@hagroden I’m digging your theme song. So upbeat and… bartendery? Somehow fits him just because, despite how he is. Cool. Haha. … Also, those threads are scary. But, does he like, need to bind them to another thing before he can cut with him, or can he actually slice with them from himself, too? Not-tightened-threads typically cannot cut easily, I’m thinking. Perhaps those rules don’t apply to him? Heh. Anyways. Scary. Yikes.
@FancyHats Whelp, she scares me too. That’s an interesting way to tell her story. It doesn’t actually tell the whole story, more like, hints at it all, yet we still get a bit of an idea of where she came from. Interesting. Alright, then. Let’s see what kind of games she’ll be playing, then. Heh.
@Kiddo Whelp, that’s an extraordinarily creepy theme song. … Okay. I must admit I am a little confused. Are they still in Douglas body? Or did something very odd happen when they triggered? Clearly, they got a mass-trigger on a single person, which is a bit hilarious. So, the twelve personalities split up, but only two survived? Are they separate now? I’m a bit confused. Haha. Oh, well. I suppose it’ll get clear when you start posting? You could have explained a lot of that with an “appearance” section. XD
@Lasrever Oh. That. Oh, now THAT… that is a Tinker trigger. Niiiiice. … Yupp. I agree with Sickle-Cell. That’s an amazing character you’ve got there. So relatable yet still unique. Heh. I do wonder though, with as many capes as there are, will her story truly be something special? Only the future will tell. Teh-heh-heh.
@Old Amsterdam And that, is a Shifter trigger. Oh, damn. That kind of cape. Yeah, there are those too. Hahahahaha… oh, damn. Okay. Did I make Rosaline underpowered compared to the powers of all the capes around here…? … … … … XD Oh, well. Well. I’ll look forward to see what you’ll do with her. Heh.
@Banana … Oh, that’s cute art. Nice. Now, then. Oh, she’s pretty cool. So, um. Those hands. To they have particularly strong strength? You mention them able to grow, so I’m curious. Also, looks like we’ll be working together. I wonder, should I decrease Rosaline’s age so they can work together as Wards? … Eh, I kinda like Rosaline on ‘slightly above Ward age’, so I’ll leave it as it is. Slight feeling of such things just not entirely working out feels like Worm, anyway. XD
@Duoya Um. I can’t see his image. Could you upload it to Imgur and then link it from there? Anyways. Yeah, that’s a proper Master/Stranger, yupp. It’s going to be amusing watching what kind of clever things you can do with this. Because, with a certain level of cleverness you can do a LOT with that. And most are defenseless against it. … Oh, yikes. Okay, you frighten me, too. Heh.
@knifeman Ooooooh… Yeah, that’s cool. Definitely Shaker. That art is adorable. I’m a little confused as to how she’ll enter the story, the history seems to cut out before that, but we’ll see, eh? … Heh, that trigger for that power. I like it. It carries Wildbow’s irony in powers. It gives her a tool to deal with the intruders, but also ensures she won’t actually stop being vulnerable and need to hide. That feels so Worm. Nice.
@POOHEAD189 I’m not sure it’s needless to say she picked up drinking just because she was made pregnant and then left at 15… but oh, well. … Oooh, I see. He was shot, and got a striker power that can make him tougher because of it. This makes sense. Yeah, that’s a reason to wear a titanium ring, heh. He’s probably really just a Striker/Changer, but since he can always turn into titanium he’s effectively a Brute, too. XD
Savo,
Xaltwind,
adncod,
ppppppp,
Framing A Moose,
Ariamis,
Not a Sayan,
SkyeOfStars,
Remram,
Apollosarcher
