Raineh Daze

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

FEF698

The hour had grown late and it was time for members of the party to go to their rooms and rest for the remaining journey to Kugane. Chisaki had done her best to mingle amidst the members of Team Kirin, although the one known as Esben proved to be a thorn in her side at every chance. This was especially true every time that she tried to approach the small, red-haired Mystrel that had been giving her a distinct look ever since she first introduced herself. The Garden spy would have to sleep eventually, and that is when she would find her chance.

Chisa waited patiently inside of Miina’s room, listening carefully as her prey drew closer and closer. A sly smile grew on her lips as the door opened and Miina stepped inside. The moment she was clear of the door Chisa pushed it gently close, giving away her position with the soft ‘click’ of the door closing.

“Would you look at that, it seems we’re sharing the room tonight.” She took a few steps into the room. The metal chestplate and bracers of her armor had been set aside, leaving only the form-fitting leather armor underneath. A predatory look flashed in her eyes as she circled Miina on her way to one of the beds.

”Here I was thinking we would never have a chance to talk…” Her voice tenderly trailed off, hand brushing against the soft fabric on the bed.

“U-Um… h-h-hello?” Miina managed, freezing up with her hands halfway through unfastening the outermost layer of coat. She had known about sharing rooms, yes, but had thought that they would put her with Eve or maybe Izayoi, not this shinobi. And with nobody else in the room she had been hoping to undress and get into bed before they came in and avoid this small talk.

Now she was just fidgeting with the toggle, tail held low. Was Chisa going to pump her for information? She’d seen all the questioning and confusing back and forth with the others and had no idea what to say! Oh no, did she think Miina’s silence meant she knew a lot? Then the older woman might torture and kill her until she spilled her nonexistent secrets!

Escape, escape… maybe if she ran straight ahead she could blow a hole in the wall and escape through that? There might be a chance, Chisa didn’t look armed, though there might be something hidden in her cleavage… surely she could see a handle or something by looking, right?

A sinister smile creased her lips as she began to walk over towards Miina, hips swaying with each step. One would have to be blind not to see what the red Mystrel’s eyes drew to “I’m not going to harm you…but you can check me for weapons if you want.” Her voice drew into a whisper as she leaned her chest down for Miina just a foot away. Chisa giggled and playfully tapped her on the nose before righting herself. ”I haven’t had the pleasure of hearing you speak yet, so why don’t we start with your name or are those pretty eyes of yours going to start undressing me?”

Chisa didn’t actually expect Miina to be a treasure trove of information and she was interested in such. Her only concern was getting a reading on the members of Team Kirin, seeing if there was ill-intent harbored in any of them. Besides, she wanted to have a little fun before heading back into the capital.

There was a gulp and squeak; now the girl was completely red from head to toe.

“M-M-Miina M-M-M-M…” aaaaah, this was terrible! Normally her name was fine, she couldn’t let that pretty lady get to her that much, no matter how provocatively her bosom was presented! It was an effort, but that small girl pulled her eyes upwards. Still not really making eye contact, but close enough, right? “M-Miina Malina.”

Miina would not be the first to fall to her charms but Chisa decided to stop before the poor girl was a drooling, broken mess. She took a few steps backwards, this time with less motion, and lowered herself gently onto the opposing bed. Miina might have fainted straight away if she had fallen back onto it ”What a lovely name. Tell you what. I know you’re probably scared half to death right now thinking about what I might do to you….” Her voice trailed off at her intentional pause before she continued.

Chisa leaned back using her arms to keep herself upright ”...but let’s make it fair. You can ask me a question, anything you want, and I’ll answer truthfully. Then, I’ll ask you something. Not too bad, right?” This line of work made it difficult to make and keep friends. She loved what she did and was really good at it…but seeing the fear in Miina’s eyes. It did sting a little.

Yes, she was scared half to death. Probably unreasonably so? It didn’t seem like Chisa really had anything out for her, she was being very nice and had backed off and… well, there weren’t knives hidden there, that was for sure. Miina obediently sat on the opposite bed, fingers still playing with the top layer of her outfit and eventually removing it–not that this revealed that much, it was multi-layered.

“R-Right…” Miina replied, looking down at her lap. What did she want to ask…? Something about being a shinobi? No, no, that would just make killing her attractive, she didn’t want that at all, and she didn’t even know what to ask that would reveal useful information. So that was… well, she hadn’t met many Viera, right? They were very tall, but…

“U-Um, are all V-Viera so… um… b-big?”

Chisa idly kicked her feet off the side of the bed as she waited, preparing whatever question she might have. Her eyes traced the outline of Miina’s body as she shed her outer coat. Perhaps what stood out most was her chest…or lack thereof. They do say we are envious of what we don’t have and Chisa considered all the problems a smaller bust would solve for her.
She looked down at her own chest and then shook her head ”Mine were a gift from my mother. I’ve only met a few with similar proportions. You should see my mistress! ” A brief laugh escaped her lips. It wasn’t hard to understand Father’s type. Chisa cleared her throat ”Viera on average do seem to have larger in size whereas Mystrels keep a firmer shape. Sollans have the widest range of busts and Faye are usually one extreme or the other.” She spoke matter of fact, hoping to ease the tension by speaking about Miina’s interests.

[color=FEF69]”Now then, it's my turn.”[/color] A silver of innocent excitement slipped under her guise. This was really beginning to feel like genuine, casual talk between two friends! ”Did you have any trouble with the blight on your way here?” Chisa asked, wary of Miina mistaking a question for espionage when she had no intention of squeezing every bit of intel out of her.

Oh, so it was just this one? Well… that was good, right? It didn’t mean every conversation with every Viera in the country–so far as Miina was going to be starting conversations, obviously–would be going the exact same way. It was a shame, though, there really was just something… nicer about them this way.

The blight, on the way here? Thinking about it… not really; at least, not her in particular, and the small girl shook her head. Which reminded her… still had the hat on, so fiddling with that to take it off gave her something else to do other than stare. “N-Not much, the f-forest is b-b-bad but not… d-dangerous.”

Or, at least, it wasn’t too dangerous for one relatively agile traveler with magic on her side. Maybe others would have struggled more, or those unfamiliar with the terrain–it wasn’t like Miina had stuck to a formal route until she left the country at all, so if the Blight had started to interfere with what would constitute major paths, then it could probably have been a lot trickier.

Chisa listened intently, the tension releasing in her shoulders as she began to relax. It was…strange to say the least. Her response did give her conflicted feelings. Horrible as Valheim were, at least Osprey had yet to be ravaged by the Blight ”You must be pretty skilled then. I’ve heard a few travelers with stories that would keep you awake for days.” Her tone growing ominous towards the end.

While a compliment to her curves, Chisa had yet to fully exchange her armor for some more comfortable attire. The part about her rooming with Miina was only partly a lie. She had arranged it so the bed next to hers would be empty, but did not plan on sleeping in the same room. However, there was something that was alluringly comforting about Miina. The Vierea had initially thought that the Mystrel was enthralled with her, but having this conversation made it clear that her new friend was simply fascinated by breasts. A severe case it would seem.

”I would love to pick your brain more but it is growing late. Will you let me room with you? I could really use some help with a few of the clasps on my back here.” Chisa was only half-joking as she twisted until Miina could get a good look where some metal clips held the harder leather pieces on ”I promise I won’t bite.”

The girl tried to say something, but ended up stumbling over her words so much that she eventually resorted to nodding. Right, yes, she could share a room with the Viera, and help with these clasps, just… take it slow. And don’t stare too much.

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

Eastwards Road

At the falling cloud of smoke, the retinue fell back and away--thinner in the centre, now, if someone were to make a direct charge for it... but that would also mean that the Iron Roses themselves would be hampered by its caustic nature, possibly too much to effectively fight through where the line was weakest. It was at least doing more than the fireballs, where they were happy to thrust their shields in counterpoint, the attacks breaking and streaming around the individual knights to no effect.

In the melee, there was was a curious revelation: for all they were figures of story and legend, it was the Iron Roses that had the advantage here. After all the training, they were stronger, more skilled--and yet, still outnumbered, and the reason why this retinue was so famous became clearer. Even for all they could be overwhelmed, capitalising on it to actually injure one of them was proving to be difficult--

For all that many of their number had stood aside, they hadn't sent so many to the wings that their teamwork was compromised. It was less akin to fighting a larger team, and closer to a single enemy with many limbs. Where normally it would be impractical to step in so closely, these knights were able to intervene to deflect the blows aimed at their compatriots, even allowing them to regain their footing and have the original aggrieved part strike back. Being hemmed in so closely didn't seem like it was hampering them to any normal extent, which meant trying to break them in detail like this was only playing to their strengths: the Talderians could use their superior numbers to fend off damage, and then rely on the limited space to further restrict the Roses' options.

Although, seeing them strain against the heavy blows despite this ought to be gratifying.

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

Miina Malina

Not having to talk herself to get into the guarded city was nice, although something about being mistaken for a performer rankled. She hadn't learned magic and swordplay, however ineptly, to be mistaken for some common juggler or the like, and Miina had even gone out of her way to make sure her clothes made an impression that the rest of her didn't. Not that she spoke up to object, or anything that might jeopardise their progress--the girl just pouted a little instead.

Plus continued wondering why exactly she was travelling with this group. Well... if Zeke was anywhere in this country, looking in cities was probably the best place for it.

No other red hair around, so not right here.

Fortunately, she was at least somewhat forewarned about who they were meeting this time--enough to not fall into hopelessly staring straight from the offset. Not that she could think of many other places to look in this scenario, defaulting to staring down at her feet instead. Almost enough to miss the Viera's wink, but that just added another furious blush to her cheeks.

Reborn in a Fantasy World, This Time I Shall...!

Dort Road - Hikari

Seeing the size and armament difference--couldn't she have at least come through to this world as an adult?--there really was little Hikari could do except stand back and watch the fighting unfold. Not that this was entirely a bad thing; it was clear that the armoured knight knew what he was doing, which was pretty impressive given that he had been some random passenger on a plane until this afternoon.

The other fox, however... Hikari suppressed a wince at the flailing. Okay, yes, cutting things with a sword wasn't hard, that was their entire point. But there was a reason combat was more than people waving pointy objects vaguely in each other's direction, and this was an affront to the entire history of kenjutsu. There would at least be time to drill proper swordsmanship into his head after this, hopefully. Or at least "this is the basics of it all".

But with no enemy yet sneaking past to test her ability to surreptitiously knife them, Hikari had time to survey the other fighters. The bandits... looked like ruffians. No surprise there. It was interesting to see that some of the other fighters were wearing maid outfits despite the combat, however. Was this a normal thing, here? Battle maids? What a strange world they were in.

Qlippoth Shift: A Supernatural Action RP About Combating Otherworldy Anomalies

Samurai

The samurai didn't even turn to look at Tera's attempted advance--the final ashigaru gambit had paid off far more than whatever this ghost's intelligence expected, with the entire short-fused explosion hitting Tera. More than enough to derail any attempted rolling attack, and at least leave his back free to continue fighting against the invaders.

Aside from Tera's mishap, it seemed like they were winning: both the komainu shattered and crumbled, and that only left the samurai and the onna-bugeisha still standing, putting the numbers--at last--firmly in their favour. Seemingly recognising this, the warrior woman disengaged from Yuuma with alacrity, retreating to the bow-wielding samurai just in time to push him away from the searing flames.

Which meant they only had two more to deal with. Unfortunately, even with the slight pause of surprise at his rescue, the samurai remained undaunted, and the remaining goop continued to flow inwards. As for what this meant? Well, now each arrow released immediately split into a dozen more. And he showed no signs of slowing down the shotgun-like approach, especially with a sword-wielding guard to handle anybody rushing for him.

Reborn in a Fantasy World, This Time I Shall...!

Dort Road

Fighting? That was... no, no, these two gentlemen had woken dressed as warriors, it was only expected that the world they found themselves in was violent enough to warrant travellers remaining individually armed. Not that this improved Hikari's situation, digging blindly about in her dress only provided a single rather dainty knife, which she duly inspected before slipping back into its hiding place. A weapon of last resort, rather than one primarily intended for combat.

"Yes, I think it would be better if the fighting was left to the both of you. If I had a sword then maybe my old kendo knowledge might be useful but instead I must rely upon yourselves. I apologise for the inconvenience," the fox said, slipping behind Steven and... well, keeping an eye out for ambushes was probably the right idea? It wasn't like a maid would contribute much to a battle.

If they survived, those first aid courses might be useful, though.

From Realms Beyond — An Isekai Crossover RP (Now Accepting)

Fujiwara no Mokou

The look Mokou gave Sanae was one of near confusion. How what? Nothing she had done was particularly unusual, was it? Sure, using magical abilities for actual damage rather than playing by the rules wasn't allowed any more, but even a relative newcomer to Gensokyo ought to know that it was a polite agreement rather than an actual limitation. Everything else was just--

Ah, right. She'd been so used to everyone who actually came after her knowing about the immortality (or being so focused on fighting for other reasons) that it had completely slipped her mind that someone might not know. In hindsight, a flashy self-immolation to clean up some injury probably looked a lot worse than it was--

Okay, it looked exactly as bad as it was, that dull ache everywhere. Still vastly preferable to having her arm rot off entirely or being eaten by a centipede, of course.

"It's 'cause I'm immortal."

That should cover it.

Reborn in a Fantasy World, This Time I Shall...!

Abe Hikari - Dirt Road

Right. Yes, the plane had been crashing, that was what had been going on. But by being so absorbed in going over the presentation notes one last time it had been easy to... tune it out. It was unfortunate that there was no internet connection, it meant no chance to be able to send a quick apology in the time before colliding with the ground. Hopefully, her former superiors would be understanding about her inability to meet with the customer now, dying was an insurmountable difficulty.

One that didn't explain her current... not being dead. Also being a small girl, and a fox. It was hard to say what really stood out as the most important change the more she thought about it, only the most inconvenient one. That was probably still the fox part; how did you take care of this many tails, anyway?

"Yes, it seems that we were all on the same flight. I can assume that neither of you looked or were dressed the same before this moment?"

@PKMNB0Y@Sir Lurksalot

Reborn in a Fantasy World, This Time I Shall...!

Dirt Road

Hm. Lying face down...? That was a very unusual position to be waking up in. It also felt like the floor, which... might explain it? Although, if it was after some work drinking party, then surely there should also be a splitting headache to go with it? Plus, being en route from Japan to New York rather ruined the odds of that...

Standing up, Hikari was forced to take in rather a lot of things. Well, there was the strangely-huge man shouting at her, that was one thing. The next was...

Hm. Why was she dressed as a maid? Was this some sort of joke? That would be annoying.

Her tails twitched in irritation.

Wait. Tails?

Twisting a little--

Yes, tails. Plural. Counting them was quite hard, and being able to feel them didn't make it the easiest, but... nine. Nine tails. And her ears had migrated. Honestly, the other changes seemed less important than now having nine tails. No wonder this dress felt like it was sitting oddly... not that she had experience of that before this, but she would have expected it to hang more about her legs. Having all these behind her... yes, that explained it.

Right, so she was now a maid. And a fox. And... probably young? Or maybe very old? Either one could fit. Now, she should address this person that had been telling her to get up.

"Ah, I apologise, I was distracted by how much my body has changed," the small fox said, bowing.

Steven probably wasn't expecting the proper introduction he then got. Although a flicker of irritation passed over her face at not being able to hand over... something.

@PKMNB0Y@Sir Lurksalot

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

Candaeln

The night their collective teachers had decided that the knights were sufficiently trained in whatever talent they had been honing--from Cyrus's enthusiastic endorsement to Silenna's begrudging acceptance that maybe Rolan wouldn't blow his head up--there was a party at Candaeln. The guest list was mostly as expected, although the grouchy alchemist showing up before ultimately throwing herself at Florian as the knight went on probably came as a surprise.

And Gisela didn't attend, but there was no way for that to be particularly unexpected.

Prince Erion attending, along with some of his guards? That definitely caused a stir, even amongst the legendary knights--it wasn't like the prince to attend these things rather than throw them. But he seemed interested in speaking to them a little, starting with their captain.

---

Eastwards Road

In the morning, it was time to make their way through the city and out of the eastern gate. As promised, the Talderian prince had assembled his retinue--row after row of gleaming silvered armour, deep red half-capes edged in gold thrown over their left arms. The uniformity of their equipment was quite a contrast to themselves; their armour identical, every soldier outfitted with a straight sword, a dagger, and even a shield.

They were also outnumbered, even after half of them had bowed and moved off far to one side, where they wouldn't possibly get in the way.

And behind them, seated on an out of place carved throne, waited the prince. Their goal--as he had been quite happy to clarify in detail--was not to defeat his knights, and least of all himself. No, they merely had to get within striking distance of Erion. That was their first challenge.