Utrax

Final Fantasy: The Dark Crystal

Rakta

City of Thorne - ??? --> Slums

"No I must disagree--" shouted Kajad over roar of monsters and terrified screams "--this city is very interesting!" With swiftness, Kajad ducked the large swinging blade of a very large void beast, lobbed an orb of light, then disappeared in a bright flash, causing the monster to grunt in agony. Several imps began dashing after Kajad and it took Rakta charging bodily into them to catch their attention. As she swung her arms, one of the imps went flying, another was tread underfoot, but several more continued their advance toward her. "You're only saying that--" Rakta shouted as she bashed the heads of two imps together "--because we have yet to be in real dange--"

"--watch out!"

The sharp sound of magical bolts clinging against metal filled Rakta's ears. She didn't need to look over her shoulder to know that Ser Ellismore had likely saved her from a pretty nasty injury. "Where are they all coming from? This is impossible-- we need to seek a place to barricade the Phamet," Ser Ellismore managed between heavy panting breaths, fending off several approaching imps in the process. "Once more, as you were not listening, Ser Ellismore," Kajad spoke up. Light had gathered between Kajad's palms and when Rakta looked at them, a slight smirk came to her face-- "Promptly, would you!" Rakta shouted.

"We Phamet do not hide behind walls while others die," Kajad repeated for what was likely the thrid time since the city suddenly went crazy. When Kajad held their hands into the air, the beams of light burst from their palms, breaking apart, then scattering, before coming screaming back toward the ground as if they were comets. Explosions of light-- holy infused magic-- rocked the ground around Rakta, Kajad, and Ser Ellismore, in a proficiently casted display of magical prowess. Though every chance to hit an ally could have been possible, what with the nature of the spell, not a single one touched a creature not considered an enemy. The voice beasts screeched and roared, with several dissipating into shadowy puffs of mist but, though it all, Rakta could fully see that the spell, despite how powerful it was, would only buy them time from the inevitable.

Rakta turned to Kajad as the last of the beasts fell, unable to fight, thankful for the bit of rest, but she shook her head. "Phamet, it is wise to retreat," Rakta shouted, "We cannot kill them all. We will grow weary, our feet heavy, and they will pull us under." The sound of steel scraping against stone caught Rakta's attention-- she saw Kajad point to something behind her-- a woosh called out--

Rakta turned, threw her hands up to guard herself, as the Iron Giant swiped it's sword in a sweeping arc. Heavily, the blow landed on Rakta's side and she felt hers side flex and twist oddly, her feet lift from the ground, then the ground smacked her on the side of the head-- she felt quite offended. Dazed, Rakta rolled over, again, feeling her body moving strangely, and witnessed the color draining from the world.

Oh no.

Shaking her head, Rakta tried her best to fend off the beast taking over, but the sight of the Iron Giant, armor full of holes from where Kajad's magic had pierced through, frustrated her to no end. The numbness from pain quickly settling in fueled that anger-- how could she have been so foolish. That was how people died-- letting their guard down in the middle of a battle-- look, now the others were in danger-- Rakta scolded herself over and over again, spiraling downward into a pit of fury until...

Silence swept over the city-- Rakta's city-- and the beasts moved at nearly half their speed. First was the Giant, blade between her hands, then it shattered into bright silvery stars. The giant flew. Next were Imps, void-drakes, monsters, enemies, attackers, bodies, bodies, bodies... Buildings stood out sharply in her vision-- angles and points-- all else was wrong and soft-- monsters all of them-- this is a cage--

Rakta, though she did not know it, was cleaving a path through the market, to the slums, chopping down beasts and fiends as they stood before her, focused solely on this furious rampage. Behind her Kajad and Ser Ellismore trailed, trying desperately to keep up-- a flash of lightning drew the attention of all three. Nearby a mage was casting spells and in a brief moment of clarity, Rakta directed her charge toward them, figuring that perhaps they needed help.

^{Crossing paths with -- @Lugia}

Final Fantasy: The Dark Crystal

I was waiting around to see other posts, you know, to possibly hook on for interaction during the Monster Blizzard but maybe it's been a long enough wait. I'll crank something out either today or tomorrow...
Though, I gotta say, this seems hella ditched.
And I hate having the final post on an RP that dies lol.

Pokémon: Hoenn - Make a Wish

^{A brief reunion...}

Rustboro City

"Good afternoon, Mr. Selvaggio."

Theo opened his eyes slightly then looked toward the familiar-- Oh! Sitting up slowly while being careful not to wake his Pokemon, Theo grinned widely upon recognizing Hartwin-- sort of recognizing, that is. What was it about Hartwin that always made him seem a bit older than he should have been? Maybe it was the way he walked, a bit slowly, posture hunched over, and his hands behind his back-- perhaps it was simply his rather simplistic choice in fashion, that seemed to rely heavily on earth tones and bowler hats. Though they weren't very far apart in age, Theo felt as if he were a fountain of youth whenever he was around Hartwin. Movement in his lap caught Theo's attention before he could form a response-- it was Harmony, rousing himself from slumber, with an ear perked up attentively. Almost immediately after waking, Harmony leapt out of Theo's lap, then dashed toward Hartwin's Delcatty with excited chirps. It was then that Theo realized it really must have been a while since he'd last seen Hartwin.

Then Hartwin asked, "It's been a while. How're your parents?"

"Saying that it's been a while is a bit of an understatement," Theo replied with a soft chuckle. He remained seated in the grass, with Melody still in his lap. She was regarding the newcomers with curious eyes and notable timidity. Theo placed a reassuring hand upon her head, then turned his attention to Hartwin's secretary. "Greetings miss, I certainly hope this old man--" Theo said with a joking wink at Hartwin "-- hasn't been giving you trouble." Theo smiled in a charming manner before telling Hartwin, "And before you scold me, consider the hardship I've been through-- attacked by some trainer obsessed with Nick-- can you believe that?"

It was then that Theo decided to recount the battle. Hartwin probably knew already that Theo was nearly impossible to interrupt once he started a story. Whenever Theo began to speak, his desire to share seemed hungry, and quite firmly rooted in a natural storytelling cadence. For all the dramatic flair with which Theo described his encounter with the trainer and the Nidoking, there was a heaping dose of humor lurking beneath his words. Here and there he cracked jokes about how "terrifying" it all was and how "innocent" he and his Pokemon had been. Truth was, Theo still felt anxious about the situation, and this was the only way he knew how to decompress-- humor and sharing.

Finishing off with how heroic Harmony had been, Theo then asked Hartwin, "Do you suppose that he's getting close to evolving? How was your Pokemon leading up to their changes? And, I know it's going to sound ignorant of me, but I have no idea what a Whismur will evolve into."

Theo sighed then snapped his fingers and added, "Ah-- and my parents are fine." He chuckled.

House of Powers (reboot)

Marcus Bradley

^{Location: Hallway -> Testing Room -> Games Room}

---

Nervously, Marcus looked up and down the hallway. Athena seemed to be growing weaker as he stood there. Maybe there was someone else in the hall that could help her-- why him? Why did he have to be here now when-- THUNK. Marcus nearly leapt out of his skin at the sound. He looked toward Athena then took a step back. She was laying face first on the ground, motionless and soundless. Without a moment of hesitation, Marcus was on the move. Seriously-- why him? There were so many other people that could have been in this position that probably should have been in this position but-- him? He had to be the one around the girl that passed out? Who wanted to be around people that passed out anyway? Who-- oh-- Doctors, nurses, paramedics, they probably did, right? Whole jobs full of people that were more trained for this mess. But no, he had to be the one here right now-- that was bullshit.

When at last he came to a halt, it was outside of his exam room. What?
Of course he didn't want to be around that nonsense-- what if she had something? Sure they were all sick with superhero malaria but what if she had like... MEGAhero malaria? What if she were contagious? Hell no he was not going to deal with that. Then there was the possibility he could be blamed for that woman passing out. How was he supposed to prove that he didn't have "make people pass out" powers? What if he actually did and accidentally used them on her? No, see, the last thing he needed was to become a criminal or something while already being held like one-- which was actually sort of disturbing now that he thought about it. BUT WAIT-- what if there were cameras that already saw him? Marcus' heart began to hammer in a way he felt was probably unhealthy-- he could feel his mouth dry out. No no, this wasn't good. He could be guilty just because he was there but... wait!

Circumstantial evidence!

Marcus had seen enough episodes of Law and Order to know that was a thing that could maybe save him-- well, depending on if they found his fingerprints on like, the underside of her shoe, or something-- the door opened before him. Again, Marcus nearly leapt out of his skin for the second time today. With a brow raised Nkiru, Marcus' trainer, asked him, "Marcus, how long have you been standing here?" Narrowing her eyes she added, "And why are you so sweaty?" Was he sweaty? Marcus couldn't tell sweat from the waves of nausea suddenly washing over him-- his chest was tightening and he swore the ceiling was probably going to collapse on him. Numbly, Marcus shook his head at Nkiru, without saying a word. Concern twisted Nkiru's expression and she seemed to become thoughtful, before shrugging it away lightly. "I hope you have hydrated, because now is time for testing. Come in and remove your shirt. I will be attaching the electrodes to your skin, in order to collect data," Nkiru told him, as they walked further into the room, "Step onto the treadmill."

He could feel Nkiru staring at him as he took his shirt off. When he glanced over at her, that same thoughtful expression was on her face, and Nkiru seemed to sense his confusion. Unprompted, Nkiru clarified her stare, "Your face is pouring sweat but not your back-- is this normal for you?" Having been practically born and raised under the sun on the farm fields, Marcus knew extremely well that him not being fully sweating, especially when his head apparently was sweaty, was completely not normal-- he shook his head in response, surely looking just as confused as Nkiru probably felt. "Perhaps it is simply a matter of clothing," Nkiru mumbled thoughtfully as she began to attach electrodes to Marcus' skin. Quite firmly Marcus knew better than that-- this was a cotton shirt and it should have been at least damp. He'd already tossed it to the side of the treadmill but he didn't recall it feeling-- Marcus stumbled slightly.

"Are you paying attention? I have told you that this will increase in speed, Mr. Bradley."

No, he wasn't paying attention but now he was. As he walked, the pace on the treadmill was slowly increasing-- he was breathing heavily-- "How are you getting tired already? You are not even jogging yet--" paper rustled as Nkiru looked through a clipboard "--you were raised on a farm, no? I though you worked the fields. You should have more stamina," she concluded in a thoughtful manner. While Marcus would have loved to respond to her confusion with even more confusion, he currently found it difficult to breathe and impossible to speak. This was just as strange to him as it was to her but Marcus felt something was off. His legs felt as if they were made of lead. Every breath felt as if it were being taken through a straw. He could hear how audible his breathing was but his steps-- they were Godzilla heavy and even the treadmill was shaking more than it... probably should? Marcus didn't know-- he didn't have any gym equipment in his house or anything, nor was there one accessible within twenty miles of his home.

A high pitched rhythmic beep began to sound and Nkiru stopped the treadmill. She hastily walked over to a few displays as Marcus stepped off the machine, then doubled over. "Your heart rate is far too high to be safe anymore-- we have to count this testing session as complete," Nkiru told Marcus. She walked over to him then thrust a bottle of water into his face-- it was half finished and must have been her personal one. Marcus eyed it then looked up at Nkiru. "Drink. You may be suffering from heat exhaustion-- though I do not know how you could have it, in an air conditioned area, but I am no doctor," Nkiru said in a tone that seemed not directed at him. Marcus took the water and unscrewed the cap with shaking hands. With expertise, Nkiru began removing the electrodes from Marcus' body swiftly. "You should go rest, eat something, and find more water," Nkiru suggested in a rather motherly tone, "You are complete with our activities today." Breathlessly, after chugging the water, Marcus nodded then exited the room.

He wandered the halls distractedly and still shirtless. His breath did not come back to him easily but he roamed around long enough to where he was no longer panting. By chance, he found himself outside a set of glass double doors, through which he could see several arcade machines, a pool table, dart board-- Marcus opened the door the stepped into the room. Anyway-- corn-hole board, shuffle board, ping-pong table, air hockey table, a small karaoke machine from the looks of it, more than enough televisions and comfortable seating chairs for a football team, and lots of lights that made Marcus feel suddenly overwhelmed-- what didn't this room have? There was so much potential to do so many things that Marcus found himself simply sinking into a recliner without thinking about it. He settled into the chair, leaned back, and put his feet up. Nearly instantly Marcus fell asleep.

House of Powers (reboot)

Marcus Bradley

^{Location: Hallway... | Interaction: @wolverbells}

---

A yawn escaped Marcus as he made his way down the hallway, admitting he was a bit lost. Well-- not anymore it seemed. Upon turning a corner, he noticed the hallway became slightly more familiar, with there being the auditorium doors to his left. Now he knew exactly where he was and... he...

One of the others were making their way down the hall and she seemed to be having a hard time of it. Part of Marcus felt as if she were somehow familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on why. Sure, he'd seen her this morning-- right? That was the new girl, the one with the long brown hair, and the weird eyes. Something about light colored eyes always made Marcus feel a bit uncomfortable-- he chalked it up to his slight fear of cats. He never could get over being basically mauled by one that fell out of a tree in the woods...

"Mom-- it was a cougar!"
"... a calico cougar?"

Shaking the thought from his head as he neared her, Marcus felt oddly compelled to help her, but he dug his heels in against the feeling. So instead of reaching out toward her, as he felt he should, Marcus walked up next to her then tilted his head.

Realizing he didn't quite recall her name, Marcus gently cleared his throat, then asked, "Do you need help?"

She looked like she was having trouble walking and Marcus found it odd. Had they taken more blood from others? It was just two tiny vials-- that didn't do much. From what he understood, the hydration's purpose was solely for the fitness-- not because this was a massive blood draw, right? Then again... Marcus tensed slightly after asking that question, suddenly feeling foolish. Why was he trying to help her? Hadn't he come to the conclusion that he didn't want to even talk to these people? Marcus looked away from her then frowned, suddenly not feeling up to chat, but he felt obligated to offer his arm, were she to ask for it.

The Hidden People

Submitted the samsquamch.

@DeadbeatWalking

HELLO FRIEND!!!
Also, I mentioned a samsquamch that runs the local bait and tackle shop by the lake.
So Bill is not alone... and weirdly fits the "naming" conventions. Albert. Bill. Uncreative people.

House of Powers (reboot)

Marcus Bradley

^{Location: Auditorium}

---

Dazed, Marcus opened his eyes, then blinked slowly. A firm hand was upon his shoulder. He looked up to who it was attached to then swallowed hard. An intimidating woman, her hair cut close to the scalp, glared at him with dark eyes, from a dark skinned face, and a rather unamused smirk on her lips. Curtly, with a thick french accent, she asked, "Marcus Bradley-- are you done with your nap?" As she leaned away from him, Marcus rubbed his eyes, then cleared his throat. "As everyone has already proceeded on with their examinations--" she paused then chuffed "--which you have no idea, of what I am talking about. An update. Follow me." In response to a beckoning gesture from her, Marcus frowned, a deep line forming between his brows. At his hesitation, she curtly told him, "Up. Come. On your feet. You are due for examinations and a blood test. These things will be completed now." Again she gestured for him to stand, with notably more impatience, "There is no time to waste." A sigh escaped Marcus and he pushed himself to his feet. When he shook his head at her, Marcus figured she probably didn't see the gesture, as she'd already began walking as soon as he stood.

Warily, Marcus looked around the auditorium, then figured he was just so tired he didn't recall coming here. Last he knew, he had been standing in the cafeteria, but here he was. Clearly he had missed something important but oh well, it didn't matter now, he figured... but you know what mattered? This woman, standing at the door to the auditorium, holding it open for him, with an annoyed look on her face. While he had many questions for her, Marcus figured only one was important, and only one he should ask. She looked older than him-- everyone sort of did so far-- so that explained why she was treating him like a child, probably. He halted when he stood in the doorway, then realized he was taller than her, which was odd, because Marcus felt as if he were being looked down on.

Clearing his throat, Marcus gathered the courage to ask his question-- "What's your name?"

She held her chin higher then told him, "Nkiru. I will be your trainer for the duration of your time here." Marcus nodded once, satisfied with the straight-forward answer, then walked through the door. He trailed behind Nkiru as she lead him down a hall, then another hall, then into a room, and Marcus felt nervous. When Nkiru gestured for him to be seated, she told him, "First a blood draw-- two vials-- then you will commence a few, ah, physical tests." Quickly and without Marcus' protest, Nkiru drew the blood, then instructed him to, "Hydrate then come back in twenty minutes." Marcus sighed but didn't move. Nkiru arched a brow then asked, "What are you waiting for?"

Marcus really wanted to take a nap in the chair, but he complied. With a bit of haste, Marcus exited the room, tried to note it's location, then began walking toward his room. A twenty minute nap was needed.

The Hidden People

@Atrophy
Meanwhile C.C. Be like....

Hidden for Mobile

The Hidden People

Stella stopped in her tracks. She looked down at her feet, examined her shoes, you know, some custom Avia 880's in a pastel color pallette, then sucked her teeth. Who in the shit had scuffed her shoes? Also how did she even get out here? And why was she covered in sequins? Last Stella knew, she was steading in in the P Palace, which sounded like a ridiculous phrase in her head and-- wait. Calm. Reel it in. What was she doing outside? Squinting down at her shoes, Stella opened her hand, and stared at her car keys. For a moment, they didn't seem to be particularly important, but then she saw Rusty driving off on his necessarily loud vehicle-- why did people like him always have to have loud cars? High hairy men on big hairy vehicles were always calling themselves flirting with her-- maybe that was a key to repelling others. Next rotation, Stella vowed to take the appearance of the Biggest HAIRIEST man she could possibly be, then no one would talk to her. Fun. As she stared after Rusty for a quiet moment, she watched him turn, then finally recalled what she was doing-- hangover meal.

Eventually Stella pulled out of a garage in her car which, notably, was one of the most expensive vehicles in their part of town-- it was also one of the most ticketed vehicles in their part of town. Whenever Stella drove, it was without regard for traffic rules. Period. Full stop. NO regard whatsoever. She made it to Sally's Diner after running three red lights, driving twenty miles over speed-limit, and barreling through stop signs. When she parked, it was fully on the side walk, all the way up, because this car would have got tapped were in in the street-- people would understand. When she exited the vehicle, she tapped a few times on the outside of the door, and activated a few runes-- this ensured no one would put their dirty fingers all over her paint. She blinked. Looking back down to her shoes, Stella had the fantastic idea of putting such wards on her shoes! That way she would NEVER have scuffed shoes again. Scratching her butt as she walked toward the Diner, Stella felt something weird and itchy again-- what the hell was it?

Among one of the first to arrive at the diner, out of everyone else, solely because she drove like a Unicorn, Stella sat down in a booth, then ordered six chocolate chip pancakes with chocolate syrup. A waitress, as usual, gave her that look, but wrote the meal down as she usually did-- they didn't exactly oppose her appearance here but, they didn't exactly welcome it with open arms either. Notoriously picky about the state of her pancakes, Stella was known for sending them back, then moving into the kitchen to watch them cook. If they didn't want her back there then they should have cooked the damn things right in the first place-- who was talking?

"--do the Eternal Lord's bidding..."

Turning to look at the Satyr, Stella's brows raised, then she fox whistled at him. "How 'bout you come over here and do my bidding, hot stuff," she told the Satyr with a wink and... then.... C.C. Schwarzman happened.

THAT'S why she was itchy at P's place-- this guy must have been there. Something about Boogeymen made Stella's body have something akin to an allergic reaction. Sniffing slightly as her nose began to run, Stella shook her head as C.C. did his... what was he doing? Quoting manuals? Was that an intimidation tactic? Whatever. Hot Satyr still needed more encouragement. Immediately after C.C. was done speaking, Stella told the Satyr, "And you can get tried in my court, steel-buns-- you've been naughty!" Brow wiggling followed, preceding the most "undressing" look over of the Satyr that Stella didn't even attempt to hide. Another fox whistle. She blinked. Why was everyone sleeping? Huh. Weird.

House of Powers (reboot)

Marcus Bradley

^{Location: Cafeteria//Auditorium -Interaction:@HecateProxy}

---

"Let's go. There's no point in causing them problems."
What? Did this guy think he was the leader or something? Marcus overhead the dude say it and felt like not moving out of spite. He was already in the process of getting up even before the announcement was complete. He supposed someone would try to step forward as the "guy to follow" if they were all developing superpowers-- somebody had to stick to the trope, right? Scoffing when that guy-- Arthur as he'd just told the other dude-- passed by his table, Marcus shook his head and finished gathering up his snacks. Inwardly he admitted that it seemed everyone was doing little bits and pieces of things to get on his nerves. Maybe it was due to the fact that he didn't interact with people much on a daily basis-- there really wasn't much need to. Being out on the countryside, fifty miles away from the nearest market, tended to be rather isolated. Adding in the fact that he was largely home schooled well, the picture was clearer than he'd previously considered-- Marcus figured he didn't like people very much.

And then... a noise caught his attention-- "-- want to come with?"
That guy was starting at him. Within Marcus' head, all of them were "that guys" until he could figure out names, but this one was distinctly red. While he hadn't caught everything the guy said, there had still been enough noise to make Marcus stand from his seat, rather aggressively pushing the chair away from himself. He shook his head heavily at Red-guy, then took a few beats of pause to glare at him in a warning manner. Everything from the way Marcus gripped the table's edge to his tense shoulders, the look on his face and his fixed jaw, could read like a fine instruction manual titled "Why You Should Shove-Off And How To Do So". First step in this figurative manual said "walk by your damn self". Marcus picked up his unopened cookies after a couple of moments passed and began to work on opening them.