They arrived back to Seto, the strange underwater quality of the area still not failing to give a strange impression on the nature of this place, though this time they entered a torii gate that acted as a portal to the last checkpoint, which happened to be this village. Unlike the ones they were running into though, this one was very well setup, halfway to a town so it would seem. Like the other villages, there were glass shards floating in a pillar towards the end of it... If they defeat it as per normal, then they should clear to the next area.
There was one thing unsettling about this place however, and it was the phantoms walking around, but the longer you looked at it, the more you realized that these phantoms were emulating married couples and happy families, and that they all looked the same, but more importantly like a fading memory, they blinked in and out between actions, and sometimes disappearing completely, before new ones would appear. An echoing of laughter and murmurs was present here, much more strongly than when they had unlocked this area.
The party’s focus had been cleared as soon as the shrill cry of a hawk brought them back to their senses. Zeke was stirring around the sky waiting to do his thing it seems... Kami seemed more perturbed by these phantoms than others.
“Right then, Kami I’ll take a group to face the Mirror Shadow, while you standby to back us up”, he requested. It was agreed, he then turned to Kazuki, who seemed to be looking around.
“I will be exploring this little village then, have Zeke call if you need some support”, he stated. It seems there was something he thought was worth looking around for.
“Very well. Okay then, Ryan, Sato, Kotori, you three with me. The rest of you are under Kami, be ready to give us backup”, he ordered, and with that he walked forward with the chosen party and stood in front of the pillar of floating shards, as it began to form into a shape, it was somewhat familiar, except it was completely black. A Black Shiki-ouji. Though as that began, shadows began to form from the numerous phantoms as they began to surround the party in back. Though it was all or nothing, they can’t just leave the Mirror Shadow alone now.
“We’ll let them take care of everyone back there, if we take this down then the rest should retreat too”, he ordered, and with that they entered battle.
ENEMY - Black Shiki-ouji, Servant of Denial
Ryan stepped up to the plate first, cracking his neck with a brash smile on his face as his Persona card materialised in front of him. He snatched it out of the air, crushing it in his hand to summon Geraint as it unfurled it’s mighty wing. “You guys ready? Because I’m starting this battle with a bang!” Ryan called out to his friends and comrades as Geraint pointed it’s sword at the Black Shiki-ouji, a blinding white light glowing at the tip of the rapier as Ryan called out his move. “Geraint, fire your Beam of Justice!” A minor blush rose to his cheeks as he said this, he had spent all day coming up with a name for this super attack and this one felt the most right. Even if it was something straight out of Phoenix Ranger Featherman R. As the beam hit the Shiki-ouji it would explode into a mighty pillar of light, reaching far into the sky above.
---
The Mirror Realm never failed to unnerve Kotori, no matter how she tried to tell herself she was getting used to it. Whilst she didn't spend quite as long looking around nervously to see if there were any shadows skulking about anymore, that didn't mean she didn't feel ill at ease as she followed the others further in. Though they'd been to this place many times already, no one had come to any real understanding of just what it was - and for all she might love a good mystery in a book, being faced with vaguely threatening uncertainty at every step turned out to not suit Kotori's tastes at all.
But even so, she continued on, stepping through the torii and blinking in surprise behind her glasses as she found herself in a village - and not a small one at that. She never quite knew what to expect - but around every corner she came across, the Mirror Realm seemed intent on not being it. As the group cautiously moved forward, she became aware of the strange shades occupying the place. Tensing up momentarily, it would take a while before she realised that they were no threat and she'd relax - or at least try to.
In fact, the phantoms didn't pay them any heed whatsoever - instead quite preoccupied with each other. Hard though their features be to make out, Kotori believed she could see the faint outline of smiles on their faces as they moved silently about. Some were holding hands, others were seated together - in fact, wherever she looked, Kotori couldn't help but see flickering images of happy couples and families. Were they not seemingly fading from existence, she might have taken some joy in such a sight - but as it stood, it only added to her unease as the group approached the pillar floating fractured glass at the end of the village.
A cry from above pierced Kotori's fretting thoughts then and her eyes shot up to see Zeke circling above them. It was all the reminder she needed that they weren't here to just marvel at the mystery - instead, she locked her eyes on the pillar up ahead as Rui began to lay out the plan going forward. As he called upon her to assist him, together with Ryan and Sato, in taking on whatever might be lurking within the strange glass, Kotori blinked in surprise - with everyone else present, she'd assumed he'd want someone with some more fighting ability than herself. However, she was quick to nod and slow to clear her mind of doubt. Thankfully, circumstances conspired to speed that up too.
As if it sensed Rui stepping up to the challenge, the slow back and forth movement of the floating shards of glass ceased - and then began to coalesce with a constant crackling sound; ending in a strangely distorted crack as a figure manifested out of the mass of glass. The strange light within began to fade - and increasingly fast, as it instead turned to black. And from this, the Shadow finally took shape. The Shiki-Ouji was not alone however - all around the village, the phantom villagers too began to darken and twist into shadows that bore down upon the group. Were it not for the fact that Kaminari's group was ready to take them on, Kotori would most certainly be feeling even less confident than she was right then and there.
Rui calmly told them to pay no heed to the smaller shadows and instead focus solely on the Shiki-Ouji. To this, Kotori nodded before taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself - an attempt that wasn't met with all that much success - before raising a hand. A faint blue light began to emanate above her palm as it took the shape of a card in the image of the Second Arcana, The Priestess. And just as soon as it appeared, it was shattered as a single word crossed Kotori's lips:"Kikuri-Hime."
With the flowery shrine maiden that was her persona forming behind her, Kotori felt the lingering doubts make way for the comforting calm as she focused her attention upon the black figure before her - even as it was suddenly engulfed in a blinding column of light as Ryan made the first move. With the Shadow not having had an opportunity to attack yet, she too was free to go on the offensive and hoped that her limited capabilities in that regard might at least be able to do some good in following up on the opening Geraint's attack had hopefully created.
For with another word, the fading pillar of light was replaced by a far briefer flash as a bolt of lightning crashed down upon the Black Shiki-Ouji: "Zionga."
BLACK SHIKI-OUJI
The gigantic pillar of light and then followed by a blast of lightning with a blade of wind expelled from Rui’s Persona following Ryan and Kotori’s attacks seemed to find their mark… But as soon as the smoke cleared, the Shiki-Ouji was completely undamaged. This seemed… To be quite a problem. In a retaliatory manner the Shiki-Ouji swung it’s arm, firing off blades of paper at Sato, dealing a fair bit of damage to him, but it didn’t seem to be anything major… Yet.
“No damage…? Ayano, what are the results?”, as per usual, Ayano was always scanning at the beginning of battles automatically, a perk of deepened understanding between all of the party members. It seems Matthew and Shizuka weren’t the only ones with a special moment down at the beach, Kami and Ayano were busy off-screen.
“It… It keeps changing, but…”, the coverage was huge even if it was changing, it seems it only had one weakness at any one time. That time just now was Ice.
“It has only one weakness at any one time, and it changes with each turn”, she informed them. Rui took a look at the Shiki-Ouji… So far what elemental coverage did they have, Wind and Curse on him, Bless on Ryan, Lightning from Kotori, and more Wind from Sato, not to mention Pierce and Slash, and then Nuclear from Zeke up above. It appears they had at least around half of the coverage… So it was a near 50/50 chance they’d get something they can deal with. Once they caught the weakpoint, then they can dish out an All-Out Attack, or if they had Almighty on them they can just spam that.
“Alright then, so what’ll it be soon? It looks like it’s changing”
“It won’t last for long but… It’ll be one of the cardinal elements”, this meant fire, ice, lightning, and wind. Well that made his and Kotori’s next action simple.
“Kotori on my mark”, he ordered, grasping in the air in front of him as a card appeared, only to be crushed as his Persona took form once more, it’s sword wreathed in a green wind as he took a stance at the ready.
-------------------------------------
Sato had withheld from attacking immediately, seeing as his allies seemed to be much more eager to start dishing out damage than him, and instead drew his bow carefully as he watched Ryan and Kotori blast the Shiki-Ouji. For a second, the explosion of lightning and holy laserbeam was aweing, and Sato felt a twinge of confidence, but when the shadow steadied itself again, it seemed to have barely been scratched. In a bit of a panic, Sato drew back his bow and notched an arrow to fire, but before he could summon his persona, the Shiki-Ouji launched a flurry of razor-sharp papers at him. The blades cut up his body, painting the floor behind him with thin lines of blood, but Sato managed to fight through the pain and stay standing. It wasn’t too bad of an injury, but it was definitely a bad start and something more major would really do him in next time.
He took a moment to regain his breath, and as he took a battle stance again, Ayano explained what she could about their opponent. Apparently it was switched its elemental weaknesses over and over while blocking everything else. Seeing as Rui was already moving in to hit it with a wind-embued blade, Sato took a step back and summoned Chronos behind him. If they had to keep guessing which element the Shiki-Ouji was weak to, it’d be best to get as much leeway as possible, so Chronos spun its scythe and cast Marakukaja. With that, an ethereal shield surrounded each of them. It wouldn’t stop an explosion or anything, but it would keep the Shiki-Ouji’s retaliations from wearing them down.
---
Kotori strained to see what the result of the opening barrage had been after Rui followed up with a sweeping wind slash - only to go wide-eyed when it turned out that theyir combined attacks had done exactly nothing. Furthermore, the Shiki-Ouji took their momentary confusion for an opportunity to attack - and managed to catch Sato, who'd stood back to assess the situation before diving in, off guard before he could summon any real defence. Kotori winced as dozens of razor-sharp paper blades were hurled at the upperclassman who could do precious little to avoid the worst of the barrage. Kotori's confidence quickly sank at the sight - but thankfully, he remained standing; if looking a little worse for wear.
Kotori's first instinct was to call upon Kikuri-Hime to heal his wounds - but before she could do so, cooler heads prevailed as Rui, upon convening with Ayano, announced that she should instead target the Shiki-Ouji once more. Kotori's eyes flitted between Sato and the Shadow in a moment of hesitation - but finally, she swallowed hard and nodded. "R-right," she said, even as she mentally added a concerned 'please stay safe' toward Sato as she fixed the Shiki-Ouji with her bespectacled gaze; trusting that Rui's assessment would carry them through as she nervously held another lightning blast at the ready of his mark.
--- Ryan frowned as the Shadow took absolutely no damage, brushing off one of his strongest attacks as if he had thrown a wad of wet paper at it. Which is exactly what it proceeded to do, albeit it's paper wasn't wet. But it was very sharp. Sato took a deep cut, prompting Ryan to summon Geraint for medical support. All he knew was Mediarama unfortunately so he was going to be wasting a bit more energy than necessary doing this, but it was better than nothing.
“Geraint, Mediarama!” He shouted as a gentle light emanated from the king, showering the party in a healing aura. Ayano soon revealed the kicker, this Shadow only had one weakness at a time. It's next weakness was going to be either Fire, Wind, Ice, or Lightning, so he was playing support this round. “Let's make this next hit count!” Ryan shouted as he cast Heat Riser on Rui.
-------------
BLACK SHIKI-OUJI Combat
The lightning and wind erupted around the black shikigami, and as it cleared it’s body was contorted, slightly shredded and folded in various ways as if it was scrunched up, twitching, struggling to reform itself. It seems it worked, by the looks of it, it was Wind that made it through.
“It’s down!”, without delay, Rui made an order.
“Now go! Before it recovers!”, he yelled, leading the charge.
The Black Shiki-Ouji was attacked from all sides as it struggled to recover, and soon it was visibly quite damaged. A combination of physical attacks by the group of Persona users and their Persona’s added attacks did a number on it, but Rui had no intention of letting it properly recover. He raised his hand, and formed a fist, following this was the shrill cry of Zeke as the Mirror Shadow erupted in an azure-white explosion, which was then overtaken by a vermillion hue as the shadow was completely engulfed.
As the dust cleared, the Black Shiki-Ouji was visibly quite torn, and bending on one knee, struggling to stand. This wasn’t going to take much more. In a desperate attempt to fight back, the black paper shadow blasted everyone with blades of paper, dealing a somewhat noticeable amount of damage to everyone.
“Alright then, Ryan, you and me this time”, he ordered. So next was dark and light… And it can only be one of those two. Next turn will be it’s last.
----------------------------------------------
With her attention fixed squarely on the Shiki-Ouji and waiting on Rui's signal, Kotori was momentarily confused when an oddly familiar golden glow began to envelope her - before she could feel her breathing grow easier as Ryan's healing spell manifested itself among the whole group. Sparing a glance over to Sato, she saw that he was in a better shape thanks to it, much to her relief - but there was little time to enjoy that fact when Ryan proceeded to empower Rui for the upcoming attack.
This was all the preparation Rui needed as he gave the word. Immediately, Kotori let Kikuri-Hime unleash a lightning bolt upon the Shiki-Ouji; hopeful for a moment that it would be enough to break its strange resistance - but her heart sank when she realised that the thunderclap was more impressive than the damage inflicted as the magical lightning arced all around the Shadow before harmlessly dissipating.
Thankfully, Rui's attack faced no such problems - and strengthened as he was by Ryan's Heat Riser, his own wind attack struck true. The Shiki-Ouji reeled under the blast, folding in on itself and barely remaining standing - and entirely unable to maintain its impressive shielding. This was all the heads-up the group needed as Rui called for an immediate all out attack. Kotori quickly nodded as she proved that lightning did not strike the same place twice - instead, this was the third bolt to be sent down onto the struggling Shadow; a mere first strike among the many that followed courtesy of the other three.
Unfortunately, however, the Shiki-Ouji was deceptively tough for its paper looks - and managed to stave off the final blows that were to follow Zeke's air strike by reforming its protective shield; forcing the group to fall back and wait for another opportunity to strike. The Shadow was not done yet, however - as everyone disengaged, it used the brief moment to get in an attack of its own; swinging its crumpled arms in a wide arc that sent razor-sharp pieces of itself to slash everyone.
Though Kotori already stood at the rear of the group, she had no time to avoid the attack and instead instinctively threw up her arms to protect herself - an instinct that carried over to Kikuri-Hime who materialised in the path of the paper projectiles. Though this did stop them from reaching Kotori herself, the damage was sustained through their shared link; forcing a pained gasp from her lips. Though unused to the pain, Kotori took but a moment to shake it off as she knew that she wasn't the only one hurting.
As Rui called upon Ryan's aid to pierce the Shiki-Ouji's shield, Kotori was already taking a deep breath as she mustered her own energy to call to Kikuri-Hime once more. This time, however, it was not a lightning bolt that she sought - but a more restorative spell: "Salvation." And with that single word, Kikuri-Hime raised the thorned rose in her hands high - before bringing it down with what should have been a crash.
However, the only thing emanating from the impact was a golden radiance that momentarily lit up the entire village. Golden tendrils of light streamed outward and coiled themselves around the four fighting the Shiki-Ouji. Yet despite glowing with an intensity that should have been both burning and blinding, the only thing that they would feel was a soothing warmth and healing calm as any pain faded into the light; their wounds coming undone as if they had never been inflicted. It was over in a mere few moments - but following the healing spell, all four were back at the peak of their physical strength; even if Kotori's breathing was a bit quicker from the mental fatigue that calling upon many spells in quick succession was wont to cause.
With both dark and light hitting the shadow, it didn’t matter which was the actual weakness, it was going to be one of them, and sure enough it buckled back into itself, collapsing beneath the weight of the attacks.
Ryan wasted no time as his Persona took the charge, the long laser blade piercing the heart of the black Shiki-Ouji as it was down, before the blade pulsed in a pillar of light, enveloping both of them. As the light cleared, like ashes to the wind, the Mirror Shadow was scattered and torn in the air, but Ryan’s Persona Geraint was missing.
At this moment everyone would notice the bright light emanating from above, and it was as many would expect, Geraint himself, laser blade raised high in the air, before diving down, becoming a blade of light, enveloping and eradicating whatever was left, and landing with wings spread, breaking the fall. Brutal and righteous as it was elegant, and with that the battle was concluded.
The shadows surrounding the support group were beginning to retreat as Kami looked forward, spotting Ryan’s finishing blow on the Shiki-Ouji. It was a sight to behold, ultimate forms of Personas possess such raw power. Well regardless, with the battle concluded they regrouped before the floating mirror shards. Kazuki had returned from his exploration, he seemed somewhat satisfied by the look on his face, but they can inquire about that later.
As though they were hearing it in their head… It began with some laughing and murmurs like before, until it became more legible,
“I vow to always be with you, even till death do us part”
“I too…”, two voices seemed to be taking their vows, at a wedding it seems, but soon the sappy moment was broken up by shattering glass.
“No… No no no no….”, the man’s voice was manic, and soon became unintelligible before silence… And then… The glass shards reflected an image of a man. In his research, Kami would recognize it as the cult leader, though, younger… Gathered from this, it appears this was a memory, of sorts, referring to the death of his wife. This matches up with what’s on the files Kami had been searching through.
“I will… See her again, I can see her again, with this… It’s… Possible”, and with that, the glass shards disappeared into a fine glowing mist, and then clearing up entirely. The large doors at the end of the village swung wide open, showing them to a foresty valley.
“I suppose we should get used to that… For now it seems best to go home and rest. We’ll explore the area up ahead another day”, suggested Rui. So it seems that the cult leader’s presence in this world was while faint, very clearly here. But what relation did he have with this place? Well for now, it was best everyone just head home and rest up.
Though this excursion ended on a note of success, there was a gnawing feeling about what the truth about all this was... There suggested something tragic, yet bewilderingly confusing, was Seto just another dungeon like everyone else's? Or something more? Regardless, they can mull over it later.
They had the advantage for the moment, but given their target's both tenacity and foresight, he probably shouldn't be underestimated, even so to a seasoned swordmaster like Sordan, such opponents were still manageable, but it was few and far between skilled opponents such as this, and so he felt his blood pumping, this was someone worth killing.
Though it seems his opponent was not used to someone with skill, the wide swing he simply kept just a mere step away before he would close in with the axe. This swing was short, much shorter than what he'd been doing, and as his eyes aligned he saw the axe's vertical form align with his head. A horrible place to aim unless he was close enough, but he wasn't close enough to hit someone who could read it coming. Sordan simply tilted his head, avoiding the strike with minimal movement. It was expected he would continue off of it, likely swinging it to catch him, so Sordan wasted no time to use this opening he had slotted himself into. With him so close his blade would no longer simply graze like his previous attempts to ward off the axeman's swing, but it was a deep, fatal slash, swinging his Killing Edge up, an then back down so quickly it appeared like a single movement, forming an X across his opponent's massive form.
Batta the Beast, well a certainly fitting name. His mooks were made short work of, the thunder spells from Rionach made it all too simple, it was more like cutting down training dummies than it was a battle, but things changed when they reached the leader. Turns out it was probably just strength is why these men even followed him. Simply getting in a strike may not be the ideal way to deal with him. His type was the tenacious sort, if he was to make a strike, he would need to ensure it ripped through the target's vitals, a single stroke leading to a clean kill.
As Jerod would move in, Sordan kept in his shadow, a fair distance behind and to his side, ready to exploit his target's weakness. while not cluttering each other's movements. As a honed swordmaster, he was able to pinpoint moments and spots where he can deliver a critical blow with a single strike, and that was what he was looking for, though he was not picky, ideally he wanted such a moment. He could neutralize a powerful threat right away like this after all.
The Beast insisted on using force, barrelling into the two of them. Being in Jerod's shadow was a blessing though, for it allowed him to step out of the way, preventing the two of them from crashing into each other, allowing him to at least maintain presence between the two fighters, essentially switching their positions with Sordan at the front now.
As Batta took his axe on high, Sordan wasted no time to sweep past him, trying to block such a blow would be foolhardy, but as he did, he slashed at his arms in the exposed portions, this would at least off-balance the swing and let Jerod easily slip away.
As soon as this manoeuvre ended, it should result in Jerod facing him from the front, while Batta's back was faced to Sordan. In such a position he would simply remain outside of his line of sight, and then deliver a killing blow.
Old thread died because half the players disappeared, though it was out of 8-10 players, and it kind of slowed down greatly, some missions got cut because of that.
Right now the player limit is pretty vague, but you can assume there is none.
I expect once every few days if it's a normal length post or less, and if you're working on a collab with someone then a fair bit longer is reasonable. If you'll be gone for a long amount of time due to obligations or circumstances, I expect to be contacted and informed of this one way or another.
Elibe, Sordan had hoped to pay this place a visit on better terms. He had heard of their swordsmen from the plains, the same plains he beheld with his own eyes. Tellius was still going to be a trek, but here he was coming up near Jarde's party. He had shadowed them for the most part, seeing no need to step in, but as soon as they reached the roads, watching a brigand party pass by, they stopped. Sordan got himself a view of what they were seeing too, stepping up beside them as if it was natural, listening to the prince bark orders.
"Dear scion of Staudinger, take a much closer look at her stance, and that gaze of her's", he suggested. He himself a seasoned swordsman recognised the skill in which she possessed from this alone.
"Those bandits would made short work of by her alone by my estimates", giving his evaluation he looked over her again... Besides her being an unusual beauty, almost picturesque, he recognised her... He had heard of a female swordsman of the Sacaean plains, one who held incredible skill, known for her hair a lush green like her home... Was this her?
"Ah yes, my manners, Sordan of Tellius, at your service, suppose just call me a wandering swordsman. I drift from group to group so to speak, I have merely chosen this one, you all look a nice lot", he definitely looked the part. His normal combat attire always hid away his symbols to make it more difficult for his targets to identify him should they even escape, though it was still a Tellian garb, just not military. His name was not as well-known as the other Tellian generals, in fact due to his designation, his name is rarely mentioned.
"Though you have the right of it, we help her, but not because she needs it, because we need her. I'm sure she'll appreciate altruistic passersby and help us through these plains, besides look closely at her garb. It is rather ornate. She likely holds some status around here", he shared his observations.
"Now then, apologies for my interruption. Please consider me as a part of your forces for the time being, I am much a skilled swordsman myself, so please, do not worry for my safety. Let me worry about it", with a bow he then awaited the next move.
I do commissions, specializing in character design. Ask me for prices, or make an order on my Ko-fi.
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I also play FF14 and PSO2 so yeah.
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">I do commissions, specializing in character design. Ask me for prices, or make an order on my Ko-fi.<br><br><a href="https://www.artstation.com/sq5" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">artstation.com/sq5</a><br><a href="https://ko-fi.com/sq505x" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">ko-fi.com/sq505x</a><br><br>I also play FF14 and PSO2 so yeah.</div>
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