VitaVitaAR

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

"Ah---"

She'd been so caught up in her own thoughts that she hadn't quite noticed the state that one of their own was in. Esben quite clearly had a concussion, among other things.

Robin cleared her throat and stepped closer, opening her pouch and taking out a small bundle of cloth bandages. It was mostly meant to stop bleeding in an emergency, but at the moment it was both soft and thick enough to serve as a temporary pillow.

Kneeling beside him, she gently lifted his head and put the bundle beneath it.

"Rest up and relax, and you should be fine with a little time! Ah, and Lady Miina's assistance."

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

Ah---

Robin had tried to catch herself and land properly, tried to be steady so she'd be ready for anything down here, if they had to fall in the first place, but she'd only ended up landing nearly flat on her face.

When she rose, it was clear something had cushioned their fall.

Or perhaps it was someone.

The old man who identified himself as Cid had a lot to say, and at the moment Robin didn't have much else to do but listen. She didn't really know much about the deeper workings of the conflict, only that Valheim's forces were bad. They hurt people. If she wanted to be a hero, then it was her duty to intervene and protect others.

But this conflict went even beyond that.

Valheim had drained the light from the land itself, like some sort of parasite. Destroyed entire nations. They'd given rise to the Blight, even if it wasn't intentional.

It was an enormity of sin almost incomprehensible to her. The sort of thing you heard about in legends of dark and evil monstrosities that were destroyed by noble messengers of light.

And yet, those messengers had failed.

Again and again...

"Ah, wait---"

The Revenant had followed, and Cid had told them they were in too bad of shape to fight it. But that---

She could still fight! She'd already shown her ability to evade the monster's strikes, and she was only a little bruised from her awkward landing.

Robin was sure she could help. Why would she ever let an old man fight alone, even if he wielded this sort of power?

And yet he sending them away. The light beneath their feet glowing brilliantly, building and then---

It was all gone.

They stood in nothing more than ruins.

"..."

Her right hand was wrapped tightly around the hilt of her blade.

He felt like... he'd reminded her a little of...

Robin took a deep breath, the gleaming tip of her sword slowly drifting downwards as she turned to face the others.

The sheer gravity of the conflict had exploded even beyond her understanding. Valheim was always an existential threat to these lands, always a horrible burden on those under its thumb, always a foe of unjust tyranny.

But now that went even beyond the people and to the land itself.

Her fingers tightened on her lowered blade.

Robin took a deep breath.

"... I'll stay with you, no matter what," she began, as she turned to face the others, "I'll go with you to the crystals and I'll help you save these lands and everyone in them. We'll beat Valheim and end the Blight together."

It was the only thing on her mind. The only thing she could even imagine saying.

It was her path forward. Her whole existence.

A hero couldn't step away from something like this. A hero couldn't ignore something like this.

Fear had to be conquered. Doubt could be ignored.

Her hand gripped tighter.

This was the only path, and Robin would take it no matter what the future held.

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

Witch's Household

---

"... Magic beer?"

Ilsa gave a blank stare.

"If that's what you're going to make with alchemy then I'm not sure if you should learn," she commented with a sigh, "But fine. Mostly, Alchemy comes down to understanding the components of what you're trying to make. You can think of it sort of like a recipe, even if you're not trying to make a tonic or potion."

She paused for a few moments.

"It's not exactly my area of expertise, so I can't really demonstrate for you and I'm not really feeling like doing so anyway," she continued, "But you'd be best off starting with a simple tonic if you wanted to try it. Maybe something that can make your hair grow, or heal light wounds. Those are going to be simple and close to ordinary brewing. There's some books in the library that might help you."

Before Relki could butt in again, Ilsa was quick to step forward and continue, casting a glare towards the Raven familiar before she spoke.

"As for making a familiar, you need to have enough mana to sustain one and a lost spirit, plus an animal to use," she explained, "It's pointless to even bother setting up the ritual until you have these components."

The Substitute Witch of the Forest crossed her arms, inclining her head towards the goblin and narrowing her eyes. It was clear that she wasn't taking the information she was giving lightly, and at this point was starting to feel as if perhaps she had been too unreservedly helpful.

"You better repay me for helping you out this much, though. I wasn't planning on it until I learned just how clueless you are. And if you make a mess, I won't forgive you."

Before she could say or do anything else, Relki suddenly wrapped her arms around her from behind, hugging the witch and patting her head.

"H-hey?! What?! S-stop it!"

"Darling little Ilsa acts so standoffish, but she's a good girl," commented the black-haired familiar, which only seemed to make Ilsa struggle more.

"L-let go---!"

Meanwhile, in the garden, the little fairy looked quite upset at being spoken to in such a way.

"Muuuu, she said not to follow us! We can talk! Not that I understand why you're not supposed to follow..." folding her arms, the tiny girl pouted, looking away as she remained in the air behind the medusa, now.

The mushroom creatures, vaguely human-shaped and with shiny black eyes beneath their red caps, peered up at the medusa and silently tilted their heads. Given their apparent lack of necks, it seemed more like they were just tilting most of their bodies to achieve this outcome. There were six, the largest of which barely reached Colleen's knee, taking a spot at the head of the group.

Unlike the others, it was pointing in an almost accusatory fashion towards Colleen, with one of its stubby little fingers.

"I think they're worried you'll rip up the bush they live under," the fairy helpfully supplied, without bothering to explain just what the little mushroom creatures were.

@Rune_Alchemist@Pyromania99

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

@shylarah: Hmmm. That still feels a bit not tied to any preexisting mythology?

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

An opening. She needed an opening. Even if the demon could heal her body effortlessly, if she could get an even briefly disabling strike then that would give a greater opportunity for Sir Rolan to break away and reach the top without serious harm. As long as at least one of them was able to make it, and the others all survived, that was success.

But that meant-

... It was over.

Sir Rolan hadn't made it, but someone else had.

Fanilly's shoulders sagged, and she found herself inhaling deeply. Despite the switch-up from what she'd been expecting, it had worked. They'd reached the top of the hill.

The sudden damp fog to extinguish the fires lasted only a moment, and the hundi mage informed them of their success... though she didn't have such high praise for Lady Gertrude.

Still, there was no time to be relieved, for they had one more task.

A final task that promised to be their most difficult.

Fanilly had never before laid eyes upon a real dragon before these strange 'dreams', and although this one was presumably part of this strange constructed world that didn't make it any less real here.

Not to mention just who this dragon was.

Thrinax. Resplendent, Crimson Thrinax. The great and beautiful, the shining ruby of the skies. The heartstone inferno. Friend to the legendary Prince. It was said that the flames of Thrinax were instrumental in Prince Erion's campaign against the Undead Armies of Lord Karvell. That he devoured the orc warchief Ergok, ending his endless raids. That he and Prince Erion toppled the Black Tower. And, finally, that he bore the prince's body to a distant and unknown land after his death.

They first faced the Prince's knights, and now they faced his friend.

Fanilly's hands were shaking. She couldn't help it. Simply hearing the dragon's roar was enough.

But she was Knight-Captain. She had to remain steady. She had to remain clear of mind. She had to pass correct judgement.

She had to assemble a plan of attack.

They had to only wound him.

They could do it. They had to.

"S-Sir Rolan is right," Fanilly began, after taking a deep breath to try and soothe her nerves, "Remaining gathered until we can keep him on the ground is a foolish idea. Lady Gertrude, to demonstrate your prowess against a dragon is the height of a mage's talents, isn't it?"

She hoped desperately that flattery was still enough to get through to the other girl.

"But rather then attacking, do you have any spells that might make it more difficult for him to see, or to maintain altitude?"

She doubted that many attack spells would be very useful against a dragon unless they took it by surprise. If they were, then injuring him would be far easier then she expected.

Instead, making flight too difficult and forcing him to land made more sense to the young Knight-Captain.

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

It was so swift. So agile.

It was no wonder that Ranbu no Izayoi was such a famous, infamous name. Her shouted warning, the dance that unfolded before Robin's eyes---

If this wasn't a battle, Robin would have wanted to simply observe the technique. The analyze every step that the ronin made. Simply to appreciate it, as one who also wielded a blade despite the distance between their two schools of swordplay.

And then the giant figure's blade fell.

Despite all she had done, it hadn't been enough. The Revenant's blade had nearly killed Ranbu no Izayoi in a single blow, and now she lay upon the sands, bleeding.

Robin didn't really hear what was being said. Her feet were already moving.

Her pounding heart quickened, as she witnessed Sagramore intercept such a heavy blow in a manner she didn't fully understand. How and why didn't really matter, now, only that she now had an opening she could take advantage of.

Everything else could be considered another time.

It was a moment in which a hero acted.

Sparkling light flowed over the edge of her blade as she moved.

Her target lay ahead of her. A terrifying monster who hadn't been brought down even by such a skillful dance.

But she wouldn't stop.

Robin wouldn't allow herself to stop.

A blade isn't just a plaything. It's a tool for killing, no matter what your intentions are.

The old man's words in her ears.

She knew that plenty well.

And against an opponent with heavy armor, or thick skin, you need to target their weak points.

Her fellow Edrenian's block had opened a perfect path for her. A single place where she could strike as the behemoth's blade was locked in place.

Against armor, you want to go for the joints. You can cripple or kill if you strike in the right spots, no matter how well-defended they are.

Beneath the arm.

She didn't know if this monstrous figure functioned like a normal creature. But beneath the arm there were important veins and muscles, things that were crucial to the body's functions.

If Robin could pierce this monster there---!

Sparks flew, sand tossed into the air beneath her feet, as Robin thrust her sword firmly upwards beneath the revenant's sword arm---!

Final Fantasy: Lightseekers

Robin had been wishing that ice magic really did work how she'd thought for quite some time before now. She'd tried her best to prepare herself for the heat of the desert, but there was nothing that really could have made her ready for an experience like this.

And yet, not of that really mattered right now.

She'd fought monsters before, certainly. But the enormous armored warrior was something different. A human-monster, something that fought not like a beast, but as a soldier of the enemy.

A hero couldn't be frightened of something like this.

A hero overcame their fears even if everything looked lost.

A hero---

A hero---!

Her fellow Edrenian's words managed to cut into her mind.

That's right. This monster fought much like Izayoi did. Even if she'd lost that sparring match, that didn't mean that she hadn't been able to at least force an opening.

That's right---!

Her fingertips wrapped around the hilt of her blade, metal singing as she drew it smoothly from its sheath. The heat was momentarily entirely forgotten as she placed one foot forward.

She'd move fast. Faster then she had before. Fast as she could possibly manage, and force an opening any way she could!

"Got it! I won't let you down!"

Leaning forward, her needle-sharp blade glinting as she pointed it towards her foe, Robin inhaled deeply.

Her heart pounded. Her whole body felt tense.

But she was a hero, after all. She wouldn't let that get the better of her!

Sand burst in the air as she erupted forward and left a glittering trail of light behind her, hurtling towards the massive warrior's flank and twisting her body, a flurry of sharp thrusts aiming for any point that looked like it might require defense.

Robin's goal wasn't to hit, not necessarily. Instead, it was to threaten, to be concerning enough swiftly enough that the massive warrior would have to pay attention to her at least a little.

As long as she could pull his attention her way, then she'd have accomplished her objective!

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

Youmu inhaled deeply, flicking the black ichor from her blade as it began to dissipate and fade from existence. Whatever these creatures were, they weren't simply slime given form and some sort of murderous intelligence. She could feel them as spiritual presences, and the very air itself felt rotten when she was close to them.

There was no denying it, even if she wasn't as adept at understanding such things as the miko. They were some sort of evil spirit, or something similar, their oozing appearance a symptom of what they were rather then their core nature. The simple fact they vanished after death rather then leaving a body made that plenty clear.

The doll girl and the big... tree... man seemed to think they were curses, and while Youmu wasn't exactly familiar with the specifics of such a thing she couldn't exactly disagree. They felt corrupted and rotten at their very core, after all.

The petite half-phantom took a deep breath.

"Kochiya-san is a miko, so she might be able to do something about them," she commented, "I can cut them, but it'd probably be better to identify the source. If we can do that, then cutting the source should put an end to them, right?"

It made enough sense to her, at least.

Noting that the green-haired miko had proceeded into one of the buildings, Youmu sheathed her blades and followed her inside. If anyone were still here, maybe they'd be able to help.

There was a girl. A single, lone girl in the entire village. Had everyone else been killed? It was a terrible thing to think about, one that made the half-phantom's body tense and her teeth clench.

But still, if nothing else, one person was still here, right?

...

Something seemed a little strange, though. Something about this girl seemed insubstantial, somehow. Youmu couldn't really put her finger on it, but at once she seemed strangely familiar and yet entirely unfamiliar.

The way her body was curled, it was clear how she must have felt.

And yet, at Kochiya-san's words, she stirred.

"... It's all rot," she murmured, "It rotted the air and it rotted the trees and it rotted... it rotted everyone."

Her voice was barely a whisper. Her appearance was doll-like, fragile, as if a strong breeze could carry her away. Her limbs with thin, her entire body slender, clad in nothing but a white patterned dress.

When she raised her head, her soft features were utterly devoid of expression. Her eyes, a strange shade of gold and purple that resembled the sky at sunset, were completely lifeless.

"... You're not rotten," she murmured, again, "But everyone it touched rotted just like it...."

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

The shadows dragged even longer across the schoolyard.

By this point, a part of Hiromi wondered just how long they'd be waiting.

But then---

The air seemed to ripple. Something perceptible only to those who had been touched directly by the supernatural world, an invisible thing that was impossible to comprehend for the average person.

The ripple spread wider until it seemed to occupy the entire space between the two teams of students and the school, distorting the building housed within it.

Cracks ran out from the center of the initial ripple. Jagged fissures in an entirely non-physical surface that nevertheless had served as a barrier with one very specific purpose.

Soundlessly, it shattered.

Makimura-sensei had lowered the barrier.

It was time.

Failure wasn't a possibility. A powerful Grudge let loose in a place like this would be nothing less then catastrophic.

Hiromi stepped forward, hands tightening as she approached the school. With their dual approach, even if she didn't believe everyone here was of the same competency level, there should be no way for the Grudge to easily escape to a more populated area. That meant that it was a matter of destroying it before it might be able to harm anyone who was still inside.

They had to. Even if she had to do it by herself, she would.

There was no question in her mind.

There was no failure in her mind.

"Let's go," she said, glancing back at the other members of her team, "We can't waste any more time. We'll-"

She paused.

What was that? Certainly she felt the negative energy that emanated from the initial grudge, but there was something else? Another source of negative energy.

"---Tch, Hiroe-san?!"

There wasn't just a single grudge---!

The droopy-eyed, messy-haired, disheveled figure that was Hiroe-san appeared to materialize just ahead of them from thin air. Her clothing was oversized, her expression looked constantly bored, and her hair was as wild and unkempt as it was long.

As irritating as it was, her contract ability was inevitably useful for entering buildings like this.

"We need to get in now!"

When she spoke, Hiroe's tone showed absolutely zero understanding of the gravity of the situation.

"I can't rush it... my ability needs a little more care..." she half-murmured.

Hiromi was already sprinting past the disheveled girl, hand reaching into her bag.

But the lesser sources of negative energy weren't simply remaining in the school.

They were coming out.

It was as if black ooze was flowing out of the walls, dripping down, coalescing into distorted forms. Vaguely, one could describe them as canine, but they lacked any sort of fur. On closer inspection, it was more like a human body had been forced into the shape of a large dog's. But furless, with dark green skin, elongated head ending in a human-like mouth filled with human-like teeth. In place of their eyes were two smaller mouths.

Fully formed grudges? Lesser then the negativity inside the school, but they still should have detected them. What was the support team doing?!

Eyes narrowed, Hiromi reached into her bag, her fingers wrapping around her sword's hilt.

As it was drawn, the blade glittered in the late evening light.

She met the first of the Grudges and caught it in the mouth as it leaped, dragging her katana through its shadowy flesh and spilling dakr ooze from its body.

Hiromi tossed her bag aside, her left hand joining her right on the sword's hilt as the grudge fell in two halves beyond her.

They had to get inside as fast as possible---!

---

Thud.

It would be a strange feeling, one that reverberated through a person's entire being.

Thud.

Perhaps a difficult one to explain, too. What could possibly be making that kind of noise now? When there were so few people left in the school, when the festival was almost at its end?

Thud.

Yet it was a familiar noise, too. One that any person would recognize, even if they couldn't place it immediately.

Thud.

Indeed, perhaps Tenjou Seika would be first to guess, out of the scant few students still on school grounds?

Thud.

One needed only to place their hand to their chest to figure it out.

Thud.

It was a heartbeat. An enormous heartbeat, reverberating through the school walls, down the halls, through every single classroom.

But what could make such a sound?

@PKMNB0Y@vietmyke@Teyao@Rune_Alchemist@King Cosmos@Raineh Daze

Shadow Contract: An Urban Fantasy Action RP

@shylarah: Hey sorry I'm late.

Non-Japanese is okay but they'd need a reason to be recruited specifically to one of the Japanese schools. So they're probably living there at the very least.

As for contracts I'd prefer that they're at least based in existing mythology/folklore, but also a bit wary of future sight concepts.