[System]
Fatima

"Wild woman are an unexplainable spark of life. They ooze freedom and seek awareness, they belong to nobody but themselves yet give a piece of who they are to everyone they meet. If you have met one, hold on to her, she'll allow you into her chaos but she'll also show you her magic."
― Nikki Rowe

---

---

Character Summary:
Aliases:
None
Age:
316
Birthday:
June 21st
Race/Species:
Hyllian (But pretends to be Dhemlan)
Gender:
Female
Birhtplace:
Eldan
Jewel Color:
Birthright - Sapphire
Offering - Grey
Class/Caste:
Healer Queen
Languages:
Dhemlan, Common, and Hyllian.
Occupation:
Queen

---

---

Appearance
Height:
4'10"
Weight:
120lbs
Body Type:
Curvaceous
Eye Color:
Pale Gold (nearly the silver of white gold)
Hair Color:
Black, wavy
Skin Tone:
Bronzed

---

---

Character psychology
Sexuality:
Heteroflexible
Relationship Status:
Single
Personality:

She behaves in an airheaded and foolish way. Rather enjoying tea parties or galas. She appears to be easily manipulated or controlled by her Court and others around her. She smiles often and giggles too much. Good, kind, and benevolent. Her knowledge of the world seems rather closed and her trust in people naive.

But, behind the mask of stupidity hides a happy, bubbly, and vivacious woman. In her heart she is wild. She would much rather be riding horses and running barefoot through grass fields than spend another day doing needlepoint and watching theatre. She loves to feel the wind in her hair and the dirt between her toes. Dancing around a fire, drinking, and carnal delights are her preferred form of celebration. Climbing trees and getting dirty are second nature to her, but this has been stuffed down and tied tightly into a corset. She is a woman who believes in violence and sacrifice if it is for the right cause. Death is just as an important part of the cycle as life. She loves a good joke.

She doesn't have any qualms or misgivings towards any other living being, except perhaps Dorothea and her pets. However, if she is crossed or someone she cares about is hurt she will hunt down the offender and flay them, heal them, and then flay them some more. (By no means is she a squeamish woman.) She cares not what would happen to her own person as long as vengeance is had. She is also willing to sacrifice for the sake of her goals. The loss of one is nothing to the loss of many. That being said, she is compassionate and understanding. Her hatred is hard earned and she will always attempt to put herself in the other's shoes. There are actions those take in order to keep those they love happy and healthy. It is just as important to understand that their actions do come with a consequence.

Habits:
* Sneaking off to do something fun for a change
* Waking early and sleeping late
* Stopping to pet adorable animals

Hobbies:
* Mushroom hunting
* Potion making
* Herb collecting
* Horseback riding
* Soap and Candlemaking
* Dancing (in the rain or around the fire sort, though she can do proper fancy dancing.)
* Falconry

Fears:
* Death of a loved one
* Loneliness
* Loss of her jewels
* Centipedes

Likes:
* Being outdoors
* Thunderstorms or sunny days
* Carnal, earthly pleasures
* Getting dirty
* Howling at the moon
* Bathing in rivers

Dislikes:
* Stiff, thick clothes
* Skirts
* Shoes
* Clothing in general really
* Cabbage
* Sweet foods
* Curmudgeons

Skills
General Skills:
* Herbology
* Horseback riding
* Bandaging and suture (knowing traditional ways of healing are important)
* Creating salves and potions
* Cooking

Combat Skills:
* None

Magical Skills:
* Healing

---

---

Histoy
Background:
She was born to the court and to a family that aligned themselves with Dorothea. She was the daughter of a Queen and herself a Queen. She was doted on and spoiled as a babe. As she grew older she showed strong promise in her abilities but was wild by nature. It took many punishments to finally groom the girl into being able to sit still long enough to read a book. Once she discovered the magic of the written word she was insatiable. At her birthright, she received the sapphire jewel. She was in love with it, cherished it, and would often stare into the blue depths. She studied healing both through the jewel and more traditional versions of healing, believing a place should be had for both. She also soaked up information regarding the ruling and caring for her territory. She studied economics, agriculture, and diplomacy. She wished to do right by her people.

Seeing her daughter's power, her Queen mother hid her away - often sending her to nicer areas of the realm. Fatima was never allowed to develop her own court. For the first time, her mother actually feared Dorothea and what she might do to her daughter. But, Fatima being the wild thing she was, would often go off and play with the other children. And as she got older, began to see the hardships her people were put through. And her heart was saddened.

At her offering, it was the Grey jewel that chose her. Her mother felt more desperate to hide her, using members of her own court to keep her safe. She was made to wear her Sapphire for the sake of her safety and to always keep her Grey hidden. No longer was her guard lax enough that she was able to slip away - though she tried. She was truly awakened one day when a small, dirty street urchin was run over by her carriage but no one seemed to care or give a second thought to it. The lack of appreciation for life outraged her. And she disappeared from the realm to go among the people of her territory and to pay back the life of the child that was killed. Though Fatima was small, she worked fields and sewed clothes. She learned to cook during these adventures and lived as the people. She came to truly understand their hardships and the lack of love the reigning class had for this realm and its people.

Fatima was eventually found by her family after about 50 years (at about age 205) and returned to her home. She vowed that she would do all in her power to make things right and change this realm for the better. The time for decadence was over. She had to focus and forget her wild ways if she wanted to help her people. Her mother's death has left her in a position to gain the sort of power she requires as the Queen of her village. Now she must navigate the nuances of the court and attempt to rise in power.

---

---

Additional Information
Other:

Theme Song:

[User]
Blood's Jewels
"Terreille in Trouble"

---

"You'd have to ask the barkeep about the ale, I'm afriad." The younger of the brothers started with a gruff voice. Denar raised his brow at Gen as the latter replied. The Warlord Prince hiding a smile in his own tankard. It seemed guests had come for the Lady Ashke. A pet name to those who were in her inner circle. To the rest of the valley she was Healer Faeril. To the rest of Terreille she was Healer Ashkervan. A woman whose feelings were locked behind shields of ice. Giving a slight nod of his head, Denar rustled in wings slightly. Flexing them and letting the two escorts of the Queen see the powerful body beneath. "But I believe out resident Healer might have a few tales to tell. She is a fan of traditional tapestries." It was all true, every word. Faeril even had a collection of tapestries her family had spun across the ages from time to time.

Denar set his mug on the table with a slightly apologetic frown at the woman and her companions. "You'll have to leave your men behind, Lady. We wouldn't want to cause our dear Healer distress with all the work she's been doing." Or cause the men distress at having to deal with Faeril. The witch could be down right testy at times. At best they would go beneath her interest. At worse? She'd have them out back under supervision chopping wood. Darkness only knew how poor Belor was faring with their sharp tongued friend. A week in bed had only honed the edge of her dagger sharp tongue.

Jassen and Beneth both looked outraged at the possibility of Fatima going alone. "Lady, it is too dangerous and I don't trust these Eyriens." The scorn of her Master of the Guard was palatable in his psychic scent. Jassen while less talkitive due to his slightly sweating visage nodded in agreement. While he had been traveling the man had been without drink and it was taking it's toll.

The remains of Karlianne's Court numbered four others aside from Lucivar. Each looking battle weary and sporting wounds of some such or other. Their eyes were hollow with hopelessness. Kayner was hardly the worse off, but even he was looking with despair at the smoke that was staining the sky over Greyhaven. "Roland and Kelvand both fell at the gates. Taken out by a green Warlord Prince. Hyallian I think." That was Strum, or so he had called himself. Doubtless it was his real name, but the Warlord Prince was most likely protecting family he didn't want known to the rest of them. The man looked dazed as a gash bleed beneath a towel he pressed to his head.

"Davios was holding the gate last I saw." The words were gasped out, as Trystan held his side. Most likely suffering cracked ribs. His jewel looking lifeless on his chest. "Didn't stick around. How did they get to Karlianne? How did they get in Greyhaven?!" the man looked fierce despite his wounds.

It was Kayner who answered with a glum expression. "We were betrayed." He didn't name names, but would that hurt or help matters? Or did any of them about the table care? Their Queen was dead and their lives were at stake as Grayhaven burned. "What of Wylnard?" Wylnard was a Prince who was a tactical genius. It had been he more than anyone else who had kept the Queen's Court with fresh members when a old one was killed. Many times he had been offered the position of Master of the Guard, Steward and First Escort only to refuse each time. Claiming it would paint a target on him.

The fourth and last man, Nigel shook his head. "Arrows got him. He managed to give the guard time to rally. But they had stronger jewels and more of them." The man's head sank into his hands. "Darkness bless that he did not feel Karlianne's death. Wylnard was the best of us."

[Assistant]
Artemis Fleur
Dena Nehele

---

---

At the boy's words, Vaclav sat up a bit. "Artemis…" He tried getting his friend's attention. If Beneth's murmurings were true, they needed to get out of here quickly especially with a dead body in their house. He could smell some of the smoke filtering in too. Hobbling up to a window, Vaclav peered out into the distance. The fires seemed far away for the time being but he knew how quickly those fires can travel especially if they were magicked.

Artemis let out a sigh of relief when she saw that Liran did not have any major wounds. She wiped her hands dry and thrusted the cup of tea into the boy's hands. "Drink some. You'll feel better dear." Artemis glanced at Beneth, worried for his state of mind. She wanted to focus on him to help him come down from his state of shock but knew she had to help Vaclav first. "Get away from that window before you get skewered again," she told her friend as she walked over to him. Artemis quickly got to work, peeling off the dressings she put on the wound earlier. She knew that she couldn't heal the wound as thorough as she wanted to for she too could smell the smoke in the air.

"There. That's all I can do for now." Artemis met Vaclav eyes. After all their years spent together, the two friends could have a conversation without needing to speak. It saddened Artemis that she was going to have to move again, but, in her heart, she knew that everything had to end eventually. Vaclav squeezed her hand, understanding her thoughts. He didn't want to leave either when they were starting to get comfortable.

"We'll make do." He stood up to go to upstairs and grabbed a few things.

"We always do…" Artemis turned back to the bothers. She slowly came up to Beneth and put a hand on his shoulder, trying to soothe him. "What are your names, dears?"

[User]
Either the men had understood her completely and were going to lead her to help. Or she was just going to get told some stories. In the end, she wasn't dead yet. At being told she would have to leave her Court behind, she stiffened and looked down into her mug as a frown tugged at the corners of her lips. That was dangerous. Beneth seemed to agree. She lifted her eyes from her drink to look the Warlord Prince over. A wry smile forming. "It would be more accurate to say you don't trust anyone, I should think." She teased him lightly. It was a good instinct to have in such a cruel world after all.

She took a few more beats to consider the offer. If they had wanted the trio dead it would likely be easier just to do it now. It was not as if leading her away from her people was going to make her any weaker than she was. Then again, there would be less resistance wouldn't there? Fatima sighed and glanced at Jassen. Poor thing. He was trying his hardest, wasn't he? From the folds of her dress, she pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his cheek. She kissed him there and pressed it into his hand. She kissed Beneth as well and gave him her coin purse.  "I'll be back soon," she murmured to him. "Take care." Of yourselves. Of my people. Of my land.

The young Queen downed what was left of her mug, tapped it onto the table and stood. She accidentally let her facade fall as she clasped her hands in front of her and a regal air came over her form. "Gentlemen," Fatima said with her most gentle tone, "I would be quite pleased to meet your Healer. I shall take you up on your offer. Please lead the way." She tilted her head to the side slightly and a playful look came to her.  "Unless, of course, it is much too late in the day. A woman needs her rest after all." She laughed softly.


[System]
AKA: Talley, June

Age: 32

Race: Furtim

Appearance:
Tahillie may stand a few inches taller than the rest of his brethren species, making him stand at Six feet and three inches tall and weighing at 179 LBS. With dark smooth scales covering his entire being, Tahillie can be seen wearing light clothing. The colouring of the clothing consists of cotten Slate blue vest, Burnt grey slacks, Eggshell white shirt that can be seen underneath the vest, and midnight blue shoes. With wide, but feline like yellow eyes, are hidden behind a metallic silver visor.

Faction: Marauder, Ex-Committee Soldier, Hacker,

Role in Team?: Scout/Intelligence

Bio:
When Tahillie was rather young, no older than two years of age, his mother had taken him away from their home world, not wanting him to be a hired hand. Tahillie did not know why at the time, but shrugged it off as any other thing that his mother would do. That was til their little ship was raided. His mother, to Tahillie at the time, thought that she was going to play hide and seek with him, after that she told him to hide and that she'll come looking for him. She never found him, nor he never saw her alive.

Shortly after the loud commotions stopped, and being as brave as he can, Tahillie mustered all of his strength to wonder out of the cubby hole in the cockpit of their little transporter. To his surprise, he found his mother laying in a pool of dark liquid, though he thought that she was simply sleeping. He kept telling her to wake up, that she won the game, but she never responded. He was caught shortly after he was found poking at his mother. The Pirates that had boarded their little transporter, had an idea forming in the back of his head; sell the little Furtim off in the black market.

After being sold off in an action, Tahillie shortly became a fighter of sorts, fighting for his life against other extraterrestrial beings in Underground Fights. He was praised by his first Master, enjoying the praises that he also had gotten from his mother before she was killed. He enjoyed the way that his fists made another's skull crack open, or how the sound of bones breaking made him shiver with delight, he enjoyed all the praises that his Master had given him. That last for thirteen years, till the Committee Soldiers had taken down the Underground Fights that have been happening on the outer most rimmed galaxies. He was taken into the Committee's care.

Shortly after he was taken to the Committee, Tahillie became distant with everyone around him, even with the ones that called him Brother in Arms. He turned hostile towards the Soldiers that had killed the only being that took him in, even if he was bought as an Underground Fighter. He lost his hatred after being in isolation for six months with nothing but a hologram for entertainment. Sure, the soldiers came to bring him food, trying to get the mentality of being a slave out of his system, and left whenever they felt they've failed to do any of the above. This was until one of the soldiers became his friend by constantly coming to see him. Not that he minded the company.

Roughly two and a half years after he came out of Isolation, he had found another interest for hacking into the Committee's data bank, but only stopped when his friend had caught and scolded him for doing the wrong thing. He did enjoy the thrill of hacking into others personal information, along finding out other things during the two and a half years. He was then later trained to hack into other operative data banks, this considered with the Black markets, slave auctions, and other criminal syndicate that we're almost hidden well from the Committee's eyes.

Four years after his training, thus close to the age of twenty five years of age, Tahillie was praised for another Black Market findings in another sector of the Galaxy, giving his higher up (his best friend) the wear abouts of the Black Market. When his Best friend had ventured off to stop this black market, Tahillie had found out that his best friend was murdered by one of the Auctioneers, who was also the same being that had bought him when he was only two years of age. While rage build up in the back of his mind, Tahillie became quickly aware that he was being watched by the other soldiers, the trainees, and by the higher ranks. He was cold towards them, not their fault to be exact, but he was not the most friendliest of being to be around.

Roughly searching for the one that killed his best friend, Tahillie gave up on being a Soldier for the Committee, he needed the freedom to search for the Slave owner, to find and end the poor saps life. He left the Committee while he was Twenty Nine years of age. Four years after his training, and a littler over a decade with the Committee.

When he gave his letter of Leave, he volunteered himself for the expeditions to the Unknown, this was a way for himself to find the one that killed his friend. However, even to this day, Tahillie is still estranged to the crew, seemingly to ignore and cold to most of the crew.

Personality: While being cold himself, Tahillie Junta is a standoffish type of being, with this said, he may seem to ignore one that is speaking to him, unless it is a meeting or someone that he feels comfortable with. Along with a cold demure, he will walk by someone without the proper greeting, unless it is the Captain. He may seem shy and unsettling, however, he will be brutally honest about his own personal feelings. He maybe brash at some points, but will remain calm under all situations, including dealing with beings that may get in his personal space.

Weapon(s): Two plasma knife hilts can be seen sitting on his left hip, a simple energy pistol can be seen sitting on the other hip.

Family/Relationship?: Not particularly close with anyone as of right now.

Other: Tahillie usually hides in his little room that is usually messy with holographic parts, cables, or things that may seem like junk that litter any space available.

[User]
So many things were going on. One of the aliens jettisoned himself out the airlock and. . . Boarded the rats' ship? Impressive, if not a little brash or bold. "Nothing for me to do now, lest the rats board our ship." No one really told her to do anything nor did she really have much to offer other than the occasional "Go team!" or "KILL THEM IN THE NAME OF SCIENCE!" Still, now she just had to do whatever it was that she needed. Some were going off ship after that one alien, Captain included. "Guess I'll just-- Ugh. . ." Her head felt. . . Well, discomforted. It could be one thing. . . "Damnit, I do not like it when people go into my head." It was a small info dump and she was curious about how their species did it, but nonetheless. . . "Ugh, damn. I guess I'll go do it. For the future of science."

With the information, she went off and went to take all of the tracers from hull. She wasn't too sure how a stupid group of rats could do that, but it was what it was. With that done there woul be little else for her to do. Maybe she could repurpose the tracers for her own purpose? That seemed easily possible. "Alright, now for the rest to get back."

[Assistant]
The amount of people screaming about how stupid they were were continuing, and Raymond simply listened to it, and gave a grin to Terry and Rae. Right now Addy and Tango was getting the ship positioned for the safest and shortest way into the enemy ship. The three of them inside the airlock right now were some of the oldest survivors of the Monroe from the beginning. Although they would give Ray an earful on how stupid this might be, they would follow him to hell if he asked them to. Not that any other crew members wouldn't, but it was obvious that some had more confidence in Raymond Chase's stupid ideas.

"'You of little faith, why are you so afraid?'" Raymond recited back to everyone on the ship. "I know the dangers of this space walk, believe me. But the suits will do more than hold, and we won't let the bastards get close enough to bite us. Tango, how much time do we have?" He looked down on his touch screen on his wrist. "A little over six minutes, Captain." The robotic voice replied. Raymond looked up, gave Rae and Terry a nod. "Open up the hatch."

"Roger."

The three of them held on to the railing, their magnetic boots kicking on, and then the giant WHOOSH! happened. There was officially no sound except the sound of their own breathing. "Comm check." Raymond said, making sure their helmets' communication system worked. Looking back at the touch screen he activated the small rocket thrusters on the back on his own suit. "I'll take lead." Raymond said, the sound of just only his voice always left him feeling a bit weird. In the void of space everything was pitch black except for the specs of light, the large lights coming off the Monroe, and the enemy ships. The three started to float quickly towards the enemy ships, them being too small to notice.

"Last known location was in the farthest back, farthest left vessel. We go in, find him, and get the hell back to the Monroe befo--"

Of course they didn't hear anything, but the giant flash of orange and white stopped Raymond from talking. The main ship went up in a giant fire ball, debris crashing into their own ships, even going towards the Monroe. Luckily the Monroe was bigger, so it wouldn't leave too much damage... But they had some troubles of their own. Raymond grabbed on to both Terry and Rae's suits, his jets boosting himself backwards as they just missed a large piece of metal from hitting them.

"What in the hell...?" Raymond muttered, his eyes scanning the area until he saw something that surprised him. A humanoid body was drifting into space. That definitely wasn't a mole rat creature... and, it also wasn't dead! He watched as the figure landed towards the back of his ship, staying on by the sword he just pulled out. Shit.

"Monroe be advised: An unidentified object has latched itself onto the back of the ship. Looks humanoid. Someone needs to check it out before we warp out of here." Raymond broadcasted into the ship once more. The three of them avoided the debris as they made it closer and closer to the ship where Shasoon was... Raymond scanned the debris, the HUD on his helmet showing any form of living object near them. Raymond's helmet gave him an alert, and then he pointed. "There."

The Marauder crew mate was floating next to a large piece of metal, no signs of movement. The poison has been in his body for far too long. They had to help him, and fast. "Doctor, get to work. Terry, you and I are gonna have to move any debris that comes at them, and keep our eyes open for scouting parties. Rae, tell us when he's good to move."

Rae was now in charge at the moment. Anything she needed them to do was for the better of the mission, and Raymond knew very little about medicine. Raymond gently kicked aside a part of the ship that had just recently blown up, then back at the Monroe, praying to get back there on time.

[User]
Panting heavily, Tahillie knew better than to jump into Cyberspace with little to no sleep. His body convulsed with nerve spasms, trying to calm his nerval system by leaning into his seat. A slight growl left him as he shot a look at Addy, trying to calm his body and mind at the same time. He shook his head to the offer to get to the med-bay, Rae was needed else where than to tend to him.

"The after affects of going into Cyberspace with no sleep and being attacked by an Anti-virus Program while looking for information," his body jerked a little as he finally calmed his mind. "Not the first time, and probably not the last time it'll happen..." He muttered the last part more to himself than to the human woman.

"However," he paused for a moment as his hand twitched violently, causing pain to shoot up to his spinal cord. "Going into Cyberspace is not easy as one thinks. It takes from thirty to one-hundred-eighty seconds to gather information without getting undetected. About forty five seconds if caught and causes pain to the neural pathways at the base of the skull from Antiviral programs and firewalls..."

He hoped that she understood what he was saying, even though that he did catch himself trying to fall asleep; sleep deprivation is no fun. He leaned back into his chair to hear a soft clanking noise shortly before Raymond said anything, he was in no condition to fight off anyone or anything for at lease a thirty minute rest. A snarl left again while the soft clanking noise we're getting to him; clawing under the arms of the chair before getting up.

"Monroe be advised: An unidentified object has latched itself onto the back of the ship. Looks humanoid. Someone needs to check it out before we warp out of here." He heard Raymond say before stopped clawing his ship.

A simple, but toothy smile appeared as he stood up. His left hand still twitching with each step, but he needed to vent his frustration on something from his trip into Cyberspace. He sighed again as he slowly placed the coordinates for the Canborus Galaxy. He sat back down while pulling out his hologram for a direct comlink to Tymea.

"Ms. L'Cint, can you see if anything from the explosion or anything else may have hit the ship? There's still time left." Tahillie said over the comlink to Tymea.

Still hooked up to his holograph, he closed his eyes again as his subconscious sunk back into Cyberspace once more. He pulled out the information on the Space rats, placed it into a folder for later, but he was interested in the Anti-virus program. He took a deeper look into the coding of the program, too far advance for the space rats to program and set up.

"Given a few days of fiddling with the program, and possibly finding out who gave this to them, I can probably set this up so that we won't have Hackers or bounty hunters getting information of the crew." He said to himself.

Still playing with the program, what he did not expect was a virus malware embedded itself into the program. How stupid can he get? He did not have time to think as his physical body began to convulse, his subconscious going back into the as he pulled the cord from his hologram and himself while panting heavily. A millisecond later, he would have infected the ships AI, Tango, and they would've been stranded in the middle of nowhere. He would've been in trouble if he had played with the program more. He took off his silver visor that still had the cord attached as he carefully detached the neural link from his visor to the base of his skull.


[System]
Species: Human

Gender: Female

Age: UNKNOWN

Nationality: UNKNOWN

Weapons and/or equipment: UNKNOWN

Backstory: UNKNOWN

[User]
"Hoo fuckin rah." 595 purred through a wide smile. Her Cradle-light eye augmentations switched on, bathing Vreta in a sickly blue glow. "Lets deploy from the bow loading bay - I'll head down there now." She turned and clanked down the ladder they'd arrived up, holding both handrails with her gun magnetized to her chest.

Freyr looked up at the ceiling, mulling over her low-tech solution one more time before voicing it. "Marae, how confident are you we can open a hole without triggering any potential countermeasures? The thought has occurred to me that we could try physical cabling to capture the data and tandem the transit station with the rig. Might leave less of a footprint on the cube?"

[Assistant]
Marae tilted her head when she looked at Freyr. "A physical cable, that…I'll be honest, that's not the kind of solution I would usually think of." She admitted. Given that Rothians had the technology to solve a great many of their society's problems, low-tech solutions did often go under their radar. It took her a moment to consider the logistics of Freyr's suggestion, but she did end up giving a hesitant nod. "I…think that will work. Potentially. It depends on if the jamming field is designed to be able to block a signal through a wire. And provided we actually have that kind of cable. It will need to be pretty long, and I certainly didn't requisition it. If not, we can request it be sent in, though I do still suggest waiting on me to finish this program. Just a few more minutes. We'll want to have it as a backup, in case something goes wrong with the cable."

Meanwhile, Vreta followed after the Agent, only mildly groaning at her attitude. He squeezed his way through the rig's passages down to the loading bay. He was already fully equipped, so he had no reason to delay. The Rothians were taking every precaution they could for this mission; even the scientists were equipped in some measure of combat armor. Vreta's armor was of mostly the same quality as that of Eti's team, just fitted to his smaller stature. His shield strength was not quite as good, since the power source and emitters were smaller, but it was not a great difference. He was armed with a standard issue Rothian rifle, a sidearm magnetized to the holster on his thigh, and a plasma sword holstered on his hip. He and the Agent still had to wait for their transit station to be prepared, so they simply stood across from one another in the loading bay for the moment.

"We're in the loading bay at the moment. Do you want to join us with your team, Eti?" Vreta asked.

"My team is still up top. We'll join you on the ground once you're outside." She answered.

After a few moments, Vreta finally looked up from checking his rifle to make eye contact with 595. "So, what do you expect us to find? Your Institute is supposed to know quite a lot about the Cradle, yes? Is there anything in the Cradle that might be similar to this entity?"

[User]
"Yes, of course. Once you're happy with the program, we'll set it ready to go in if the cabling doesn't work. Fortunately, there's miles of the stuff in storage. We can feed it through to reels on the front of the rig." Freyr explained, taking a holo-pad from its mount to check inventory. She deftly scanned through and selected the necessary cabling, along with a spectrometer and two mobile transit stations. "Nirann, can you activate the cargo conveyor and send that down to the team please?"

"Rübezahl ready to launch, Doctor." Zimmermann reminded her. Freyr looked up quickly from her holo-pad. "Launch it."

---

595 firmly thrust her sidearm back onto its mag-plate after checking the battery and looked over at Vreta, a sly look on her face. "Really, Vreta'Sori…Your reverence is flattering! But I'm afraid I'm just as clueless as you, sweetie."

The agent flexed her fingers, arms and neck vigorously at this point. Strips along the thinner points of her armour pulsed the same blue colour as her eyes. Electricity crackled softly between her digits, and 595 inhaled deeply through her nose while biting her lip. "Ooh, wow…These upgrades are magic..."

The loading bay lights switched from bright white to deep red. Klaxons sounded from everywhere as the equipment around them was brought online. A compact conveyor belt began whirring frantically in one corner of the room.

Freyr's voice crackled over the team chat. "Loading bay - you should see the spectrometer and transit stations arriving now. Take it. In a couple of minutes we're going to lower the ramp. Head outside and hook up to the cable housing.

595 moved over to the conveyor belt as a few bulky objects appeared. The first was the spectrometer, a spherical device contained within a lightweight metal cage with a handle on the top. The other two were modified transit stations, with handy arm straps. She grabbed a transit station and bashed it against Vreta's chest so he took it off her. Then she strapped the other station on her back and held the spectrometer in her off-hand.

"Ready."

[Assistant]
The Agent was certainly a curious one, but Vreta saw through the facade she tried to put forward. Friendliness, levity, it was a mask she wore over her true self. In many cases, that was exactly what Vreta himself did through the course of his missions, so it was easy to recognize his own tricks. Of course, it would be naive to expect that she could not see the same in him. Indeed, he supposed it was funny, in a way, that they were both obligated to continue to lie to one another in ways that both of them were aware were entirely ineffective.

After a few minutes, the loading ramp lowered to allow them outside, once Marae was able to finish her work. Vreta deployed his helmet, then stepped out just behind the Agent. Rhia monitored every sensor available to him to keep watch for danger. The flying creatures were still certainly present, but as of yet, they were not making any moves to approach the rig. Once the pair were outside, Eti and her team jumped down from the walkways far above to join them. Their suits' thrusters slowed their falls to a safe descent to set them down gently, and without too much noise.

"We should make this as quick as we can. Your concerns about the creatures are valid. I will take point, and my team will form up around you. Stay between us as we move." Eti instructed.

[User]
The noise outside was eerie after the reassuring hum of the lab. The wind and snow howled, and a loud 'ftftftftftfft' sound swooped and ducked around them in the dark.

Keeping her cool, 595 jogged heavily to the cable housing, just off-centre from the rig's vast front elevation. She put the spectrometer on the ground, unfurled a thick cable from one of the massive reels, firmly spun Vreta around so his backpack was facing her, then plugged the cable into his transit station. She then motioned for him to do the same to her, while she dealt with the spectrometer.

Once she'd received the green light from the bridge that all the equipment was working, 595 pulled out a thinner cable from the cable housing and handed it to Vreta. "This one goes in your butt." She explained, before retrieving another cable which went into the small of her back, just underneath the transit station backpack.

595 had already created a sterile compartment for the video and sensory data to run through, taking out all metadata from her suit or biology. She gritted her teeth when the cable went in, with her suit fighting to reject it. "Enough!" She hissed under her breath, overriding its complex defense mechanisms. "Got to play nice with the friendly Doctor, haven't we?"

Once everything looked functional, Dr Chanthara took the lead. "Ultrasonic package primed. Search lights?"

"Standing by." Knossos confirmed, standing by an external control panel which gave him control of the rig's large work lamps. He looked up the enormous swarm of flying creatures in the air around them.

"Ok. Deploying."

[Assistant]
Lacking an actual explanation from 595, Vreta took a moment to figure out what to do with the cable. Rhia performed a quick scan, then adapted a compatible input on his suit. Though, any data sent back to the rig was first filtered by her to cleanse it of anything they might not want to share. With a nod from Vreta, Eti started to lead the way towards the ruins of the structure.

Vreta followed the plan closely. He kept up a slow, steady pace and took particular caution not to allow the cables to become caught on anything. The other two members of Eti's team moved close on either side of himself and 595, trailing just slightly behind them. Like Rareth, the three of them towered over the pair, and they had far more than just their eyes with which to keep watch on their surroundings.

High above them, the swarm of creatures were starting to fly more erratically. The rig had started to shine its lights to the sky and deploy ultrasonic countermeasures. Vreta even had to tune his own echolocation sensors to use a much different frequency for them to continue functioning. However, with the measures that they were using, none of the creatures seemed to be flying any closer to the group, even as they moved farther from the rig. With all that was disrupting their senses, it seemed that they had not actually been noticed. At least, not yet. They still had to complete their objective, and make the walk all the way back.

[User]
595 shuffled through the snow in formation with the others. The transit station on her back and the spectrometer in her left hand were heavy and unwieldy; she had to lean slightly to her right to maintain good balance. The Agent could probably have moved faster if she'd gripped the sensory equipment in both arms, but then she wouldn't have been able to wield her sidearm.

At any rate, her load became noticeably easier to bear once they crossed onto the top face of the cube. Either something was making the objects she was carrying lighter, or something was making her suit stronger. 595 smiled under her visor and pressed on with renewed vigor.

"Ground team, can you read me? Come in, please." Freyr crackled and hissed over comms, kept open purely via the cables connected to Vreta and 595. "I read you." 595 answered, looking at Vreta to check he'd heard it too. "Good. We're getting readings from the spectrometer now too. Proceed to the structure - we're going to check the field for booby traps."

"Copy that. Good work on the countermeasures, boys. Keep it up." 595 purred, looking up at the fingers of light stabbing the chaotic swarm of creatures above. A few of the things had peeled away from the pack and were flying about frantically at a lower altitude, seemingly confused. 595 observed that they definitely weren't bats. She'd never seen anything like them before.

"Is your gear still working?" She asked the team around her.

[Assistant]
Vreta gripped his rifle tightly, his eyes scanning the area ahead of him. While the structure had not been reduced completely to rubble, it was still in much worse shape than the recordings he had seen. Unless this was a particularly elaborate ruse, it did seem like the entity was genuinely at risk. Whatever the truth might be, they needed to play this very carefully, not only for their own sakes, but fore the sake of the mission as a whole.

The soldiers, naturally, had their attention more on the living parts of the simulation. Eti herself was focused on the path ahead, while the others she directed to cover other angles. "Mar, eyes to the sky. Kelest, you're on ground-level threats. This energy field is interfering with comms. Seems like we can still communicate over short distances, but I don't want to risk a blackout at a critical moment, so we'll need to do things analogue. If something attacks by surprise, shoot first and defend yourselves. Same goes for you two. I know you're both trained, so I'm not expecting to have to pamper you like hatchlings." She said in an even, commanding tone.

Before the group could move too close to the structure, Marae quickly interrupted. "Wait! Hold on just a…moment. I'm getting something through the spectrometer just under the surface ahead. Hard to say what it is, exactly, just from this data. Still, probably best just to go around, to be safe. Here, let me plot you out a route to avoid the anomalies."

With a brief acknowledgement, Eti changed her course, then continued to press ahead. Since Rhia was taking care of watching for danger, Vreta focused more on the mission itself. "I don't like this. If there are actually traps, then we clearly would not be welcome here. Perhaps we should call this off?"

[User]
595 awkwardly changed course in line with the rest of the team. Part of her wanted to investigate the patch of snow Marae had warned them of, just to see what happened. But she restrained herself, and tried to focus on the mission. She had been tasked with running interference on this expedition, but she could sense there was still so much for her to learn from the Navigator. This might be the last chance she got, before handing over to the Institute back on Outremer…

---

"Sorry, 'traps' might not be the best word for them in this context." Freyr chuckled over comms, closely watching Rübezahl's progress on the holo-map at the same time. Their creation was trickling through the mountain structure, heading towards the underside of the cube - the part Freyr suspected wasn't being protected. It had detected a couple of symbiotic organics inside the mountain, which were causing low-level vibrations they'd been querying. "There are just a few spots we can't access that we'd best steer clear of for your safety."

Freyr then switched to the rig-only channel, to avoid distracting the ground team. "Marae, can we isolate those dark pockets with your program, to avoid messing with them?" She looked at Artek, who had joined her on the bridge to work more closely on the alien structure. "Any thoughts on the architecture? It looks different from the recorded video, right? Damage excluded."

---

The temple ruins loomed over them in the blackness. The roof had collapsed, and 595 saw piles of debris through the open entryway. "Woah…" She whispered, when she noticed the mess of vine-like growths winding their way over the masonry. The temple had lost its clean lines and classical shape, to become more...organic. They made their way toward the front steps. "Are you seeing this?"


[System]
Gender: Male

Appearance: A tall, strong, hobgoblin. Has pitch black eyes, and stone gray skin. Visibly restless when unoccupied.

Personality: Very intuitive/Curious; Likes to learn how things work, has a passion for creating things, CANNOT STAND BEING IDLE. Will toy, tinker, and experiment to learn all he can about any given object. Also very adventurous; likes to explore. Typically compassionate and friendly; despises pointless cruelty.

Past Life History: Was once a very skilled engineer, his innate need for knowledge fueling his endless innovation. Met his untimely demise when the energy output of his new engine design was too much for the materials it was made of during a test; the resulting explosion leveled a 3-block radius.

Skill: Master Engineer: Can design/build/create items/machines/contraptions twice as fast, with less materials, and have them be much more durable than they would normally be.

Other : I'M A MIGHTY GOBLIN
EXP: 0

Inventory: Wolfblade, Needle, thin rope, bark disguise helm

Acquired Skills:* Defensive strike: this goblin has learned that the best offence is a good defence. This goblin is able to take a defensive posture and still make a powerful strike either in the hopes of killing said opponent or to run away easier
* Military Strategy- Centurian position: The goblins have unknowingly used a formation of perfect defense and defensive strikes. This position when used in a funnel or with a group can wreak devastation to the enemy forces
* Gravekeepers spirit: All goblins are able to feel the strength of those that have long since passed. When near a dead body or a skeleton the goblins are able to draw strength without the requirement of being necromancers. Even carrying a skull as an adornment allows the goblins to be stronger, faster, lighter as they draw strength. However, drawing all the strength of a certain dead body or their parts will cause it to disintegrate into dust.
* Knowledge of the 3: Knowing the names of the god and goddesses of the world they live in they can now properly worship them. Ramos god of light and the sun, Duvelna goddess of death and the night, Shirila the goddess of the earth and nature.
* Pack Leader: With the blood of an alpha on the goblins hands, he has proven he could fight in a pack. Now if a pack of wolves appears without an alpha he can assert his dominance and take over. However, this has a high chance of failing as well, can be upgraded until all wolves fall under the goblins control
* Stoneskin: stone skin is an active ability that can be triggered to increase defense dramatically making ones very skin harder to cut or penetrate. Can be upgraded to steel skin for increased protection
* Unique ability: Gained great strength and higher resistance to melee attacks. If parried correctly the steel arm could break weaker weapons with ease
*
*
*

Titles:

Blessings: Son of the forge father,

Curses:

[User]
Hobgoblin Luz

@Crusader Lord@Wildman13@Jangel13

Luz followed suit, carefully moving in a crouching position as she followed Gird from the side avoiding moving near the strands of webs as best as she could as she moved. It wasn't long before the two found tracks which Gird found it necessary to sniff around the tracks like a canine. Luz couldn't help but look at him weirdly but decided to write it off for now and follow him as he led them to some noises which suggested that there was some action going on not far from here.

Luz then moved more quickly which still remaining crouching down while Gird moved hands and feet sneaking faster than her. Luz then tried to push herself faster but she ended up tumbling over a few times as she crouched run. It was apparent that Gird's evolution didn't just give him an odd skin tone it made him more animal-like. Which begs the question? What makes her new form special? As the two moved closer Luz could help but notice that they were getting close to three light them for whatever reason shining through trees.

As it turns out two of those light seems to be coming from two different goblins, it was almost like the horned animal from earlier only their lights were somewhat bigger than the rabbit, and the last light she assumes was coming from another hidden individual which she was betting was a spider judging from the clues laid before her. As for why she seeing colorful lights inside living things she didn't exactly know.

Luz then looked through Gird and whispered "Do you think we should help them?". Luz whispered to him before taking the spear off her back and holding it above her shoulder looking like she was planning to throw her spear like a harpoon. She was itching to test her new strength by hurling the spear at the individual, but she was only planning on inferring in the battle if things start going south for the two goblins. But it seems Gird had other plans that had her staring in disbelieve as she rolling her eyes at what he was doing.

[Assistant]
@Wildman13 @Darked13 @demonspade64 @Guy0fV4lor@Kheliop@Crusader Lord@ReusableSword
Hogoblin Zats

Eventually, though as not fast as when he wasn't concentrating on sensing any potential plant energy, Zats arrived at the tree stump nest. As he hoped he found Gina near there, as well as what seemed like an Alpha rabbit. His first instinct was to attack it but he soon realized that it's calmness probably meant it was Gina's pet. He was glad he figured it out when he did cause otherwise he might have ruined his chances.

Still he wasn't sure so he calmly and slowly walked up to her while keeping an eye on the possible threat. "Hey, uhm I thought I might find you here, you wanna talk or something? Either way before I forget I brought this along for you, it works with the Gravekeepers spirit  skill we got." He grabbed one of the skulls he brought along and presented it to her.

EXP:

Inventory:

* Rabbit-spear,
* Rabbit hide-loincloth,
* Sharp bone,
* Everoak Shield
* Skeleton skull

Acquired Skills:

* crush,
* knowledge of the three,
* pole arm combat beginner Through training has learned how to better strike at an enemy weak point and able to keep their enemy at a distance
* creaturologist Through training has learned how to better strike at an enemy weak point and able to keep their enemy at a distance
* Military Strategy Centurian position
* Gravekeepers spirit  All goblins are able to feel the strength of those that have long since passed. When near a dead body or a skeleton the goblins are able to draw strength without the requirement of being necromancers. Even carrying a skull as an adornment allows the goblins to be stronger, faster, lighter as they draw strength. However, drawing all the strength of a certain dead body or their parts will cause it to disintegrate into dust.

Titles:
Blessings:

Curses:

[User]
Goblin Barth

---

Day Five: Early Morning

---

Lord@Jangel13@demonspade64@ReusableSword

Barth was pleased by the results of his most recent plan. Even if some would chalk it all up to luck of the draw, everything he had done thus far had lead the spider directly into Nyma's spear. He in fact was among those who believed that luck was on his side on this day and much like the wordless prayer he used moments ago he sent out a silent thanks to whatever deity had answered him. So far they had both managed to avoid any injury at the fangs of the spider and if his luck continued to hold steady they would make it through the rest of this with minimal injury.

Rather than continue to mentally praise himself he turned his focus back to the task at hand. Following Nyma's second successful blow to the creature it had quickly scuttled off back into the mass of trees and webs that surrounded the pair. His first instinct was to follow his gut and come up with another method to garner the critters focus. However this was taken over by Nyma this time as she altered his previous plan. There wasn't much he could do to aid her in this endeavour as she set herself to task and he was at the moment weaponless so he couldn't provide another point for the spider to impale itself upon.

With the thought of his spear on his mind he cast his gaze towards where it had been thrown with the intent to retrieve it. The mass amount of webbing separating it from him threw a wrench into that course of action. Even if he had the strength to rip through them with his bare hands it would take too much time to be of any use. He would simply have to get it after the battle reached a conclusion. Unable to pursue that action he was left back at square one, which for the moment seemed to indicate sitting around and doing nothing.

Just when he was about to satisfy himself with doing nothing he changed his mind as a thought occurred to him. In the event that Nyma's plan only worked as well as the two prior attacks it may be beneficial to be in position to force the spider to remain in the open. Such as being able to jump down on top of it. He found a tree near Nyma's position that not only had branches low enough to scale, but was rather scarce of webbing. He made his way over to it quickly and climbed to a branch that was hanging close to Nyma, but a few feet over her head. Getting comfortable as he could he remained completely prepped to leap down on it if it survived Nyma's spear.

EXP:

Inventory:
-Wooden walking stick/staff
-Rudimentary Spear

Acquired Skills:
-Knowledge Of The 3: Knowing the names of the god and goddesses of the world they live in they can now properly worship them.

***God of light Ramos he is the god of light and he gives us the very sun we see during the day he is purity itself and as such is mostly worshiped by most creatures in one form or another.

***Duvelna she is the goddess of death and night. She is death itself and must be respected if not feared.

***Shirila the goddess of the earth as she is the embodiment of the earth and life itself, she is also known as the eternal mother.

-Fairy Knowledge: Now knows of the fairies (and nymphs) that inhabit the forest around him

Titles:

Blessings:

Curses:

[Assistant]
Hobgoblin Ren  Hunting >>> Prepwork >>> Hunting /// Early Mourning >>> Late Mourning // Day 5

---

His quarry was nearby, now all he needed to do was prepare. From what he had been told, these creatures hunted in packs, which Ren knew he couldn't take; he had to thin their numbers.

Quietly, the Hobgoblin gathered and sharpened reasonably sturdy sticks, before planting them in the ground at around 45 degree angles in multiple spots. Once he place around 20 of these, he used bushes to conceal each planted spear; hopefully, if the wolves tried to chase him, they would impale themselves on these traps.

Next, Ren took half of a nearby hollow log, and began to dig several pits, spaced out around his trapping area. Each pit roughly 4 feet deep, the ingenious trapper then collected more sturdy sticks, sharpened them, and outfitted each pit with around a dozen spikes before concealing his pitfalls. The leftover dirt was then pushed to the exact center of Ren's staging area, being packed down, and pushed into the shape of a platform.

Finally, his preparations were complete, all that was left was to find these creatures; and so, after taking careful note of where his traps were placed, he continued searching for the wolves.

EXP:

Inventory: Pristine Sword,

Acquired Skills:* Defensive strike: this goblin has learned that the best offence is a good defence. This goblin is able to take a defensive posture and still make a powerful strike either in the hopes of killing said opponent or to run away easier
* Military Strategy- Centurian position: The goblins have unknowingly used a formation of perfect defense and defensive strikes. This position when used in a funnel or with a group can wreak devastation to the enemy forces
* Gravekeepers spirit: All goblins are able to feel the strength of those that have long since passed. When near a dead body or a skeleton the goblins are able to draw strength without the requirement of being necromancers. Even carrying a skull as an adornment allows the goblins to be stronger, faster, lighter as they draw strength. However, drawing all the strength of a certain dead body or their parts will cause it to disintegrate into dust.
* Knowledge of the 3: Knowing the names of the god and goddesses of the world they live in they can now properly worship them. Ramos god of light and the sun, Duvelna goddess of death and the night, Shirila the goddess of the earth and nature.

Titles:

Blessings:

Curses:


[System]
Species : Elf
Gender : Female
Age : 54
Height : 175

Jazdia is a tall elven woman with a pale complexion, blue eyes, and long, waist-length platinum blonde hair that she often let untied. Elves are all born beautiful and Jazdia was no exception. Her attractiveness is often described as an eternal winter barely touched by the sun's embrace. But that's just another way for the gentlemen to adore her face that seemed to always sport a perpetual frown. At least that's original.

Former leader of a peacekeeping organization, Jazdia understands it would be in her best interest to omit such details from her MO. Not that she is a wanted criminal or anything; she ended her tenure on a relatively high note actually. The thing about working as law enforcement is you will have no shortage of old enemies who would persistently try to even the scales with you even after retirement, and Jazdia does not wish to be tangled with such... nuisances.

So now, she is just Jazdia. An adventurer, restaurateur, and tea connoisseur. Yeah, just put that in her business card.

Traits and spells:

-Blood Phobia (passive)
Taking damage would result in lower combat efficiency. Jazdia will start sweating, having a shaky aim and blurred vision. At a certain threshold, her Ultravision cannot be activated.
-Curse of the crimson flame (passive)
Resting near any fire or under the sun would slowly regenerate her power and heal her wounds. However, any healing magic cast on her would instead deal damage.

-Arrow Enchantment.
Channels magic into her arrow. Can only use one type of arrow in a single turn. Has three flavors:
A. Crystal Arrows.
Glorified fireworks with an equally destructive explosion contained inside. Can be programmed to either explode upon impact, delayed, or remote detonation.
B. Crystal Arrows
Non Explosive variants, but hot as hell it pierces through plates and mails like a hot knife through butter. Armor Piercing, nuff said.

-Counter
Any close-range attack will be answered with heavy retribution. Figuratively speaking, sometimes this extended to the non-combat situation. Proceed with caution.

-Ultravision
Channeling magic to enhance her vision, Jazdia can see pass through solid objects and magical manipulation such as illusion and darkness. Imposes varying degrees of strain on her body depending on the area covered and elapsed duration. Prolonged abuse of this skill might result in myopia and gradual blindness.

-Vengeance
At this point, taking heavy damage would no longer weaken her. Now she is faster and deadlier and angrier. The third flavor of her enchanted arrows unlocked:
C. Poison arrows. Deals heavy damage over time. The enemy killed by this arrow will have their body burst into a swarm of black lepidopteran that attacks nearby hostiles until either they or the caster died, or the effect expires. At the end of its fleeting lifespan, the insect will return to the caster and heals her wounds. Has 3 days of cooldown.

Equipment
-Lurea
A recurve black bow adorned with gold and silver linings on its limbs. Has an absurdly light draw weight of 44 pounds.
-Maugrim
A long knife with ivory handle and elven runes inscribed on its blade.
-Medium-sized satchel bag
A plain-looking bag that doesn't seem too out of fashion despite being designed with function in mind.
-Pocket watch
A momento from her father. Well maintained and functioning properly.
-Medikit
Generic first aid kit.

[User]
Solomon Sparrow
Location: Hdur, Kindeance

---

 Solomon knew that the time frame to regroup with Jazdia had changed. That wasn't so much an issue. What caught Solomon was the condition in which they'd appear. Shortly after deescalating the scuffle between Matilda and the hunters, Cedar had led them back to the farm where it looked like they had started prepping the stew. It was a little of an awkward encounter, but the farmers were receptive. They were still so when Jazdia and her group also appeared. How they knew to come out east of the village center wasn't important, it was again their condition. Cedar was as ready to take care of them as much as Matilda was ready to ask questions.

 Solomon insisted the party move to somewhere cleaner as much as those in Jazdia's charge wanted someplace more private for the conversation that needed to take place. So with another farewell to the farmers, the party departed Gerhard Adebert's farm. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on who was asked, the stew would not have been ready for hours still, should it still be desired. The party walked the bendy path among the farm lands back towards the town center. Solomon could see some of the wounds the party had endured. Yvonne favored one side relying on Chounan for support. Jazdia's arm was bandaged, and a guard carried a very sickly looking girl. Furthermore, he noticed that Henri was missing, and instead replaced by three others. There was the aforementioned guard and girl, and another more affluently dressed man who walked by Jazdia's side.

 Silently occupying the dining area of the inn, the party started to converse. Many questions were had, and there was enough injured to keep both him and Cedar occupied. Solomon worked with what he had, applying salves to help sooth sore muscles. The trek from Rascade on foot probably didn't help their comforts. As Solomon examined, Cedar used his healing magic, which great accelerated the party's recovery. In tandem, the two were able to quickly and surely return Jazdia's team to a stable and comfortable condition.

 "This girl is in not fighting condition. She breaths, but she is stunted. Her color and tone. I would say that she was locked from the sun or even activity for an extended period of time. I'm surprised she was able wound you as such, Yvonne." said Solomon as he unrolled a cloth he pulled out from under his garb. Among the various tools and first aid supplies was a small vial of alcohol. He cleaned the wound and worked meticulously to remove the splinters that remained. While he worked, he kept a close ear to the conversation. The comment about another bear man was interesting, but surprising that was not the cause of her injury. That would make more sense for Yvonne over the atrophied girl. Solomon kept further comments to himself. He didn't have to see it to know that Yvonne was not amused by either comment. Instead, he changed the conversation back towards their recovery and learning of the incident.

 "I have some salves that should help with the pain. Apply as needed." said Solomon. If healing magic coulndt nullify pain, then hopefully the salves Solomon carried could. "Once I remove the last of these splinters, you can probably cast some healing magic to fully close the wounds, Cedar. An archer's hands are her most important tools." Solomon had finished removing the last splinter, covering the wound with another clean bandage to keep it from infection. He didn't push the idea of Cedar's magic, though he felt it would be beneficial, but given Jazdia's disposition on it, he respected her wishes.

 Solomon turned in his chair towards the others. The unnamed girl was quiet, almost sleeping even, unmoving. She was in the worst condition of them all. As for the other new comers, they seemed mostly fine, if otherwise battered. And then there was the samurai, who had some bruising, but was stabbed in the arm. Low priority, time would be of best benefit save for the samurai who appeared more distant.

 "What say you, Chounan? Does your arm need treatment? I can see you were involved in whatever conflict was brought to the others, what would you require. As I've said. I have a salve here for pain, and other such medications to help ease your recovery. As for news to help sooth the mind, we have a lead towards the location of the kidnappers. Those three hunters the next table over was going to lead us there. With us reunited, it should only be a short time for recovery before we are ready to depart." Solomon also gazed towards Kaito, unnamed to Solomon, and also to the guard. Though they seemed less injured, they appeared to have been in combat recently.

[Assistant]
"Really naow? Ya dun say?...." he drawled with a cross between bewilderment and amusement. "Well-- At leas' yas all still alive. ... 'an still gots all ya arms 'n legs."

He moved to the ribs on that same side of her chest, just below her breast, and placed the other hand on her back.

"Breathe in-- slow an' gen'le-- All da way in naow... hol' it a minute... Aright, now let i' out..."

He moved his hands to the opposite placement, to work the other side of the chest.

"An' what 'bout 'at 'Enry fellar? 'E e'r make it up ta ya?"

[User]
"Silver linings and all, eh?" Chortled the mercenary with amusement. "What does not kill me is going to die. Hah!"

Treatment continue. Breath in to the maximum, hold it, and... that's one side done, huh. Very efficient. Old boss would pay through his nose to have Cedar in the company, instead of the couple of borderline quacks that sometimes couldn't even distinguish a break from dislocation. Breath out, breath in, hold. And it's done. A big meal and a night rest and Yvonne would be back in tip top shape.

"He did. He got... I dunno, actually. Any other man would've died a dozen times over, he fell into the sewer's aqueduct and we couldn't find him. But he ain't no man. More like a golem, I guess? Probably will show up again in a while. Shame he couldn't make it here, he's tough as iron."

[Assistant]
"Well.. I's can think a be'r ways ta go ifn' he din't make it... Sound' like 'e made a good call ta run off 'n join ya. Were awful sudden like. --Leas' he left a note."

He took his hands away from Yvonne, then stretched.

"Got any o'der takers? Od'erwise, I'mma gunna take at 'ole damn platter an run off wit it." he chortled, pointing at the charcuterie tray the inn keeper had left.

[User]
They barged into the place like the place was their own. It was a tavern, with a long common room, homey and generic. Jazdia's eyes immediately glanced at the fireplace at the end of the room.

Nobody home it seemed. It was still considered morning anyway and the usual patrons were still plowing their farmland or hammering their irons. As Jazdia walked, a fragrant smell of freshly baked bread permeated the air.

Quickly sitting near the fireplace, Solomon approached her to offer his medical service. Jazdia duly obliged and let him remove her bloodied bandage and fix her right hand.

"I have some salves that should help with the pain. Apply as needed. Once I remove the last of these splinters, you can probably cast some healing magic to fully close the wounds, Cedar. An archer's hands are her most important tools."

"No need to do that, stay away!!" Jazdia exclaimed, she yanked her hand away and shivered.

The situation became so awkward, it took a while for Jazdia to regain her composure. "I will settle with conventional healing only, please don't trouble yourself. I will take the salve, I assume it has mo magic properties in it?"

"It doesn't," replied Solomon solemnly.

" Thank you. I... I need to talk to the barkeeper to settle our check-ins. Please stay here and wait for matilda if you don't mind. I will be back shortly."

Jazdia walked to the counter and politely called for the barkeeper, and the one who answer was the perky brunette girl with freckles across her face.

"Coming!"

The girl stared at the looney crew with mouth agape, and when the bear dragged the bench, she seemed about to jump over the counter.

"Young miss?" the elf halted her. "I am deeply sorry for the sudden inconvenience, but we are willing to book your establishment for the next twenty-four hours." Jazdia plucked four gold coins from her purse and placed them on the counter. With a weary smile, she continued. "I hope the amount is right. I will use the space near the fireplace. Don't hesitate to reach me if my... friends broke something, I will compensate you fairly. Also, when the owner is available, would you kindly tell him that Slyph is looking for him?"

[Assistant]
[GM Post]

For one particular Nina, the day was looking to be another dreary one. Everyone in the village had their own lodging, while travelers were scarce. Thus it was to her great surprise when what looked like an entire mercenary company came in, immediately making themselves comfortable in the dining-slash-common area. Though on a closer look, they were even more colorful than average. Not like she had seen many, but there's plenty that passed by for one reason or another over the years.

"Of course, ma'am!" The girl quickly agreed, collecting the lump payment in advance. "It's two silver per person per day, this covers the room and three standard meals. You have some excess here but if your group need some extra services we'll deduce from it and you can collect the change when you check out." Polite, clear, and professionally done. It may just be a humble inn in an out of the way little village, but Nina was taught well. "Fa- the owner is out of town, have been for some time but I'll relay your message. For now, would you like some food or drink?"

[User]
Glancing back at Jazdia with her brilliant emerald eyes, the girl was so cute the elf wanted to pinch her cheek. She too was very smart and attentive and everything about her just radiates positivity. It seemed Wilyadin 'Baker' had taught her well. Quite surprising for a bookworm.

"For now, would you like some food or drink?"

"Yes, please." said Jazdia, returning the optimism. "That would be a pot of tea. Some garlic bread and blueberry croissants." the last request was as unusual as it gets, but Jazdia knew the expertise of this old acquaintance of hers, and the girl quickly nodded to confirm it and smiled. "Coming right up. Please enjoy your stay, ma'am!"

Returned to the table Jazdia, only found Matilda sitting there. Standing nearby was the confused police who seemed unsure of why he was here. One thing for sure though, he recognize Matilda, but didn't make any interaction yet. The orc paladin waited, her expression was impatient.

"Greetings, Madame Matilda. I presume my party is not so late?"


[System]
Appearance:

Dimitri is approximately 5'11" in height and weighs approximately 164 pounds (or if you use the metric system, 74.5 kilograms). He's typically seen dressed in shirts that are various shades of purple, occasionally with a black or grey hoodie. Will alternate between jeans or cargo pants which are usually either black, dark blue, or grey. Shoes will alternate with the weather- boots for the winter, sneakers/running shoes or converses, colors for these are generally black, grey, purple, white, or any combination of these. No jewelry to speak of beyond a single black ear hugger on his left ear and a black wooden bead bracelet
"Wanna cookie? I baked 'em fresh this morning."
Super Name: Alloy

Age: 16
Human/Machine/Other: Human

Powers: Dimitri is capable of generating a metallic substance from his pores at will. The metal comes out as a liquid, however it immediately solidifies upon contact with the air, coating his body like a suit of armor. Oddly enough despite not being able to control the solidifying effect Dimitri can somehow change how brittle the metal is, which allows him to break it off after he's done using it. The metal is unique in that it contains properties found in both titanium (light yet quite strong) and coltan (very heat resistant)

Weakness: The metal coating process is quick, but it is most definitely not immediate, a gunshot will put him down just as easily as anyone else if someone fires at him before he can begin to generate metal. Further adding to that, a gun can still kill him just as it would anyone else even if he's fully coated, provided that the caliber being fired is of a sufficient size (say, above 9mm for a handgun, and 7.62x39mm and above for a rifle). Dimitri's slow building anger means that he's also pretty slow to react to threats, a fight with him can be over before it even starts if he can't get his head into it. Also extremely allergic to bees.

Personality: Dimitri is a very free spirited child in more ways than one. He's a particularly mellow guy who's deliberate and somewhat slow mannerisms give him the appearance of being a bit of an airhead. Do not let this deceive you, Dimitri is actually a pretty smart kid provided that the subject at hand is something that he's interested in, and he'll often unintentionally surprise people by giving answers to seemingly impossible problems in a matter of seconds. Dimitri is a very friendly individual, quite slow to anger and typically benign even when aggressed upon, however this does not mean that he'll allow himself to be toyed with forever. Dimitri has a serious passion for cooking and is extremely good at it, not to mention happy to have people around to try recipes on. Friends of Dimitri can expect to be bombarded with some new dish or another at least once a week.
Grade: Second year
Club: Culinary club
Other: Received the scars on his nose from a mountain biking accident before he developed his powers.

[User] Allunajack manages a laugh and says to Gretchen:"yes, my power is melanokinesis, the power to manipulate ink in any way I please, I can even turn my body into ink,which opens the option to'inkshift' as I call it, judging by the notebook I'm assuming you intend to write down things about my power, therefore,by all means pester me with questions if you want, I'm aright with it"jack says as he smiles.

[Assistant] Gretchen smiles. "That's awesome! I haven't met anyone with that power before, this will be perfection! I've been waiting for a new power. I think I'll be seeing a lot more, there are quite a few newbies, or at least people I've never met before around the place." She furiously writes down Jack's information into a new page. "I might be able to create a few sweet technological pieces for you to use to help with your power."

[User] Allunajack raised an eyebrow"you lost when you mentioned melanokinetic technological pieces"

[Assistant] "Hm? What do you mean?" Gretchen says, her eyes not leaving the paper. "I'm thinking some sleek motorcycle gloves, maybe with vials, or perhaps they could be ink themselves... You don't happen to drive a motorcycle, do you?" She looks up, smiling sheepishly, and stopping writing. "Er, sorry about this. When I get into a power, I start going crazy with inventions and ideas. It's okay if you don't want me to do any of that."

[User]
Dimitri managed to squirm back into his seated position and place the lid over his cookies just before the bars locked in place. He laughed with childlike glee as he watched Zaheer spring about, greatly amused by the antics of the wild spirited newcomer. With one last chuckle Dimitri decided to humor Zaheer's power inquiry by holding up his hand. As he couldn't exactly turn around with the safety bar holding him in place Dimitri resorted to sitting up as far as he could and turning his head to at least try and look at Zaheer, "I like to think my powers are pretty cool. Take a look for yourself.". At first nothing happened, however after about three seconds Dimitri's hands began to take on a glitter like quality as the sound that could best be described as ceramic tiles rubbing together filled the air. The glittering effect on Dimitri's hand was soon replaced by an outcropping of silvery patches that continued to expand as his pours pumped out more and more of the metallic substance. For a moment his hand looked to be covered in wet paint that threatened to slid off of his hand and onto the floor, however the substance solidified without so much as a single drop running off of Dimitri's body.

Dimitri was careful to leave the joints on each finger metal free to ensure movement, giving his hand the appearance of a skin tight armored glove that shined in the light of the morning sun. He uncurled his fist, the action accompanied this time by the slightly more refined sound of smooth metal sheets rubbing together. "So what do you think?", Dimitri asked as he turned his hand this way and that to give Zaheer a full view, "Pretty neat, yeah?".

[Assistant] When the bars came down Erin reclined in the bus seats and smiled at the sudden acceleration of the bus but started laughing at the boy who had flown back. Since Gretchen was talking to the new kid she busied herself with an experiment and started matching her body's kinetic energy with the energy of the bus. She looked out the window then closed her eyes after a minute of getting the feel for the force and gradually increased her own till it was perfectly even with the bus's, "I bet I could go head to head with this bus and stop it" she said in a low tone and pushed the seat watching it bend without offering any resistance. After she pushed it back up Erin looked at the boy who's whole hand was almost completely covered in a shiny coat of what looked like metal, wow that's pretty amazing.... and flashy" she said.

[User] Alluna"hmmmm,I think ill play along with this, and no I've never drove a motorcycle, though I could construct one I've never thought to,the techno ink things sound cool, thank you Gretchen,"jack says in a thankful tone.

[Assistant]
Eve was sitting next to the window when the bus started to move by road then flying. "isn't this fun Al?" asked Eve, looking her sister who was watching a boy who's whole hand was almost completely covered in a shiny coat of what looked like metal, then listening to her sister.
"AL! listen to me!" shouted her sister, loud enough for everyone to hear. from hearing her sister yell right in her ear "what?" said the other sister, while watching the hand turn into metal. not paying attention to her sister, she turned to the boy with the metal hand. "how are you doing that, is that your power?" she asked, knowing another girl writing noted on the one side, while Eve was blushing and watching the one girl with her eyes closed, moving the seat. to her other side to see ink flying around in the air, to another boy fly from his seat to the back of the bus hitting the window. "Cool!" Eve stated.

-------

The Bus flying in the Sky, until the school came into view on all side, as the bus flew around the school to land, opening the doors.

-------

PTA SYSTEM: "Welcome everyone. We are looking to an exciting year. Please make your way to the gym. If you don't know where the gym is, We have Teachers standing by. I look forward to meeting all of you in a few minutes." said the voice over the PTA SYSTEM.

@Melodia Alluna@Blizz@The ghost in black@King Tai@Saarebas

[User] Jack stood up and pulled his hood over his head"let's get this over with"he said as he made his way to the gym,as he stepped off he looked up and said"it's earlier than I though"and made his way to the gym,after a minute he found it and took the nearest seat

[Assistant]
Dimitri beamed as two of his fellow passengers made note of his ability, and would have been happy to explain it to them were it not for the bus' arrival to it's destination. He pulled the bar that secured him off once the safety latch was released and quickly gathered his things, "I'll explain when I get the chance. If this year is anything like the last, then we'll have the opportunity to show what we're capable of during or after the assembly.". Dimitri shuffled his way off of the bus and broke into a light jog to reach the gymnasium, stopping briefly to break away the metal that he'd coated his hands in into a nearby trash can.

Dimitri moved through the crowds of people that made their way towards the gym, occasionally pausing long enough to greet a friend, offer a cookie, or give directions to the newcomers. Eventually Dimitri made it into the gym and took a seat a bit closer to the top of the bleachers in order to get a good at people as they filed in.

[User]
"No worries, I enjoy this type of thing." Gretchen smiles.

---

When they arrive, Gretchen packs away her notebook and gets off the bus. Upon hearing the PA, she looks around, locating the gymnasium before heading to it. Hm, I could probably design those gloves based of the flame resistant ones I made for Finn... They'd be so good for a motorcyclist! Hey, wait a second, I could probably design a motorcycle itself! That would be amazing!

Lost in her thoughts, Gretchen pulls out her notebook once more and begins sketching while walking.

[Assistant]
After the bus started going, he tried crawling over on the ceiling to where Jack was but he was too far back but caught sight of Dimitri trying to help him. When he answered about who may have the coolest power, he looked about with all his focus like a child saying "wait for it, wait for it". He saw the process of his ability where his hand was looking like liquid metal in his eyes as it hardened a bit. Zaheer's eyes widen from what he was seeing Whoa-hoho! Thats was crazy! What is that? You're a metal man or somethin!? he asked. He was still curious what the other guy (Jack) could do along with the others as the bus was already reaching the school.

Before he could go any further with anything with the red of the students, the announcement came about to meet up at the gym. Zaheer, after the bus landed, flipped down off the ceiling and went with the rest of the group to meet in the gym. He followed the "metal kid" keeping up with his peculiar scent and followed him through the crowd until he reached him again after bobbing and weaving and climbing onto the sides of the bleachers to sit near the top. ah! There you are, metal guy. I would've got to you faster if everyone was not in my way. Name is Zaheer.....people call me Wildside! making quick conversation.

[User]
Ptolemy | Tiger Shark---

---

He liked to be left alone first thing in the morning. In the past, he was what one would called a "morning person", but his new land-dwelling circumstance had left him in a less than ideal situation. While he did have the benefit of being able to sleep while submerged in water, it was not the sea - nor was it spacious. It sounded minor, but it made his first few hours awake more difficult than it should be; fuzzy thoughts, a throbbing headache and drowsiness. To that end he'd learned how to fade into the background to the best of his ability, sitting somewhere in the bus that left him undisturbed other than whomever sat beside him.

Of course this social camouflage technique of his would only last so long as he was in a crowded bus and not really moving. Dual-lidded eyes blinked at the bus came to a halt and he reached up to take his earbuds out. He did not know of this land-bound musician "Killer Mike" until the day before, when his caretaker had given him an album, but the "Killer Mike" had made a positive impression on the Atlantean even if he could not understand the subject matter of the music.

Standing and making his way quietly out of the bus was enough to draw enough stares during his first year, and it was no different this time around. A few glances at his finned fingers, long ears and noseless features, but he did not blame them this time either. He let out a deep breath, the flaps of dark skin on his neck lifting and showing their gill-like nature.

Another year, he thought, moving towards the gymnasium. Time to get it over with.

[Assistant]
Alluna
Erin followed Gretchen out of the bus and dumped the kinetic energy she had stored up into her knee length hair almost like storage container; as she did her hair began to turn white starting at the tips and ending about halfway up her back. "So what did you mean by modifying equipment?" She asked then followed up with "also what's your power if you don't mind me asking?". When the announcement played she decided that it would be best to hurry and picked up pace, motioning Gretchen to do the same.

[User]
ghost in black

Gretchen kept moving alongside Erin, writing a couple more details in before once more putting away her notebook. "I've always been really into powers, and I've been researching them for a while. I've been analysing them and finding ways to utilise them and improve them, and turning my ideas into reality."

[Assistant] Having been absorbed in trying to see the entirety of the student body at once, Dimitri hadn't noticed Zaheer approaching his person until he'd been on the receiving end of Zaheer's enthusiastic greeting. Dimitri gave a small jump, but quickly regained his cheery demeanor as he realized who it was, "Zaheer..." Dimitri said, trying out the name for himself a few times to make sure he remembered how to properly pronounce it for future references. Once he was certain he'd gotten it memorized, Dimitri cracked open the lid on the tupperware container again and offered the contents to Zaheer, "Nice t'meetcha Zaheer, the name's Dimitri. A handful of folks call me Alloy though.".


[System]
Age: 16
 Gender: Female
 Appearance: don't look at me
 Personality: Tokiko does not like you. Tokiko does not want to be your friend. You're irritating her, go away!
... you're still here? Heh, someone probably paid you to follow her around and make a nuisance of yourself. How much? She'll pay you double to screw off and go bother someone else.
... what do you mean, you weren't paid? You're actually interested in her personality? Creep. There's no way someone like you could ever understand her. You should keep to mingling with the other sheep. Having an airhead like you around would only slow her down.
 Skills: She's book-smart, one of those people who sails through high school with zero effort, who can solve any problem almost intuitively.
 Brief Backstory: Tokiko came from a well-to-do family, and turned out to be fairly smart as well, so it wasn't like she had much to worry about. She just had to get good grades, go to a good university, get a good job, and everything would be okay. It wouldn't even be hard.
There was only one problem: everything was so boring.
School: too easy. Parents: disconnected. Peers: an irritation. Adults: sheep. The world: a grey and dying place. Reality: uninteresting. Tokiko had every opportunity she could have asked for, but nothing seemed to catch her eye, to light any kind of fire within her soul. Pushing day by day through an existence that held no meaning for her, she began to wonder if she'd be better off just dying and getting it over with already. Before she could, however, a certain someone appeared before her.
Maybe there was something fun in this grey world, after all...

 Magical Girl Appearance: KNEEL, PEONS!
 Concept: the Mad Scientist
 Archetype: Frankenstein's Monster
 Abilities:
- Malefic Mechanical Mastery: Tokiko's magic isn't the kind that can be used for direct offense. Rather, she channels it through devices, creating insane machines which shape her magic into various effects. By touching almost any man-made appliance or device, she can rapidly dismantle and reassemble it into an upgraded form with vastly superior capabilities. She can further enhance her creations by combining multiple devices into one, or turning machines into components that can be added to existing creations.
- Loudest Lunatic Laughter: Her evil laugh lets her temporarily increase her magical output, supercharging one of her creations and pushing them past their limits. This can allow for extremely powerful effects, but risks damaging or destroying the affected device depending on how far she tries to enhance it.
- Monstrous Magical Minion: Her Archetype, Frankenstein's Monster, is the ultimate creation: an artificial living creature. Though the Monster lacks proper magic of her own, she's immensely strong, extremely agile, and completely obedient to Tokiko. As an Archetype, the Monster is almost impossible to kill, and while sufficient damage can incapacitate her, she can always be repaired with enough time and resources. The Monster possesses intelligence on par with a human, but she's a bit of a goofball and pretty gullible, which makes her easy to trick despite her high combat power. She also relies on Tokiko's magic to remain animate, and if she gets too far away from her master she'll start to get tired and eventually fall asleep.

[User]
Just as Tokiko had expected, Hikari wasn't backing down. After a quick message to their respective parental units, they turned aside from their homeward course and strode quietly into the night.

Some parts of the city got noisy and bright once the sun set, but this wasn't one of them. Here a deep silence descended with the dark, and window lights shone few and far between, dim rectangular stars in a gaping black sky. It was the kind of atmosphere that brought to mind things lurking just out of sight— criminals, or feral animals, or perhaps something worse. Even in the heart of civilization, there were wild places, forests and jungles where only the bold dared tread after sunset.

Tokiko moved forward without any hesitation, as only a magical girl could. What had she to fear for them things that might be creeping in the night? She was a star, a light of judgement. She didn't fear the dark, the dark feared her.

And besides, she knew this route well. Soon enough a blocky shadow loomed before the two girls, a grey and ugly building tucked away where few would look for it. At first its walls appeared featureless, but as they drew closer a small side-door could be seen amidst the gloom, and Tokiko strode towards it, pushing it open without a second thought.

At first, the inside was even darker than the outside had been. Then Tokiko flicked a switch, and dim lights flickered on high above, revealing a huge open space, its paved floor entirely barren. During the height of the summer months this place would be packed with busy workers and massive crates, but right now it stood quiet and empty, just waiting to be put to use.

"Ta-daaaa!" Tokiko exclaimed, spreading her arms out wide. "Tokiko-sensei's secret training grounds! Pretty cool, right?" She ambled forwards a ways, her footsteps echoing through the massive space. "There was a nasty shade hiding out in here a few months back, so I busted my way in to take it out. And then once I was done, I thought, 'wouldn't a place like this be useful?' Nobody else was bothering with it, and I'd already trespassed, so..." She shrugged. "I just left the door unlocked. Sometimes life really is easy!"

With a quick burst of crackling green, she transformed, the lights flickering for a moment as she did so. The huge metal coffin materialized beside her, and she rapped on its front with one knuckle, eliciting a low groan from inside. A moment later, the monstergirl from earlier pried her way out, yawning into one huge hand and blinking blearily at the lights. "Waaaah?"

"You ready?" Tokiko faced Hikari with a grin, waiting a moment for her to transform. "Okay! You remember what I said about how barriers work, right?"

While the magical girl talked, the living Archetype stepped forwards, rubbing her eyes...

"I took the time to explain everything clearly to you. Which, I have to say, was very kind of me." Tokiko's face suddenly turned serious. "So you'd better have been paying attention."

... and then a massive fist filled up Hikari's field of vision, as the monstergirl swung at her head-on!

[Assistant]
Really, it was a miracle that Himeko could face this arrogant girl without letting a trace of fear show on her grinning face. Even as the Shade was brutally destroyed, with an overwhelming power the fox could not hope to match, she simply puffed on the strange pipe held in her fingers, slowly exhaling a cloud of strange, purple smoke as Kagami's generous offer was made.

Internally, Himeko was frantically trying to find a way to placate the situation. Giving up the orb was out of the question, combat would invariably lead to defeat in her current state, and those lasers would be a tad tricky to outrun. It looked like she would have to throw Kagami for a loop, but before that...

"Well," Himeko began with a cheerful tone, "I suppose that's a fair enough deal, but is that really okay with ya? I mean-" the sudden interruption of an adorable catgirl threw Himeko's tactic into a bit of a pickle. Given Kagami's apparent disposition, there was a very good chance she'd take on both of them - it was saddening to believe that the combined powers of a fox and a cat were nothing to this condescending girl.

as long as the lasers weren't flying though, the fox would just have to improvise and keep things as civil as possible. She wavbed cheerfully t othe pink-haired newcomer, "Hiya~! Just having a friendly chat, don't mind us!"

Less than a minute until she gained her second tail. If nothing else, it gave Himeko just the tiniest bit more power to work with, should this girl decide to engage in combat.

@VitaVitaAR

[User]
Hanako

A child... the children thought she was a child too... as if there wasn't anything more soul-crushing than her appearance, it would be that. Surely Hanako had grown at least a bit since she was in elementary school? Not that an outward observer would really be able to pick up on it, with the girl sullenly doodling in imaginary dirt on the shrine floor. "I'm seventeen..."

[Assistant]
Of course her parents had been okay with her going out for a little longer, though her mother had cautioned her not to stay out for too long. Hikari had assured her that she wouldn't, before following Tokiko to whatever destination the other magical girl had in mind. This all made sense... If she was going to participate in the Hex Night, that meant she needed to know everything about how a magical girl could fight, every single little thing a magical girl could do, right? She'd already seen enough to know they were all different, though, of course. But the point was that she needed to know what similarities they did share, and how to use them. And Tokiko could help her with that.

This place was kind of creepy, to be honest... but it also made some kind of sense. A warehouse seemed like it would be a good place to train, right? Out of sight, mostly open on the inside! That was the sort of place a magical girl could really test out her abilities? As long as they weren't so destructive they would take out the whole building.

Hikari transformed for the third time that night. At this point, the brunette was still sort of in awe of the feeling of magical power, the fact that she really was a magical girl. Her hair red, and eyes orange once more as she gripped her hammer.

"Eh? Of course I was paying attention, I'm no-"

Before she could complete that sentence, that fist came hurtling right towards her!

Thankfully, Hikari really had internalized the idea of using a barrier. Magical energy seemed to flow through her body, through her arms, and a circular barrier of crisscrossing symbols, encircled with kanji, materialized ahead of her! There was a distinct bell-ringing sound as the fist slammed into the shield!

---

"... Oh?"

Kagami, who had been listening to Himeko with an amused expression on her face, cocked her head slightly as she turned to face the approaching magical girl. Her mirrors turned in place, aiming towards the other girl, instead. They glinted in the steadily-setting sunlight. The fact was that simply being near her gave a feeling of pressure, as if she was somehow exuding some amount of power simply by existing.

"Another newcomer? Very well," she said with a grin, "I shall extend to you the same offer. Lay down your hex orb, or be crushed. Not even the both of you together can hope to overcome me. At best, you can expect to be crushed to the ground beneath my foot, trash."

But there wasn't any time to try and respond to the purple-haired girl's arrogant proposal. There was suddenly a that twisted feeling, the sensation of something evil coming to be... nearly on top of them! There was no question, it had to be another group of shades!

"Oh?" Kagami tilted her head the opposite way. Indeed, in the forest, strange four-legged, almost dog-like creatures were flitting between the trees, large orange eyes running across their flanks. Their heads appeared to be rounded and without mouths.

"... On second though... entertain your empress," said Kagami calmly, "And perhaps I shall allow you some time to contemplate my proposal."

@Ammokkx

---

"Uwah!?" exclaimed Hina, eyes widening as she stared at the now-proven-to-be-older girl. Immediately she hurried towards her, looking her over closely, "You're really that old!? I thought you were our age!"

Chise simply sighed behind her, evidently picking up much more quickly on the fact that Hanako wasn't pleased by that fact. Instead, after a few moments, she approached. She had a considerably more serious expression on her face then Hina did.

"So, how do you know the miko-san that runs the shrine?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Oh yeah!" declared Hina, "We really want to talk to her a lot, so we want to know more!"

Daze

[User]
"I know not."

She answered back. As she rolled up to the intersection she came to a stop both because she wanted to make sure no vehicles were crossing before she used the crosswalk and also because she was considering her next words with care. There was a tenuous balance as to how much to let on that she needed to strike. To yield a full understanding of how she operated meant that later on such knowledge would most likely be used against her. She had approached the subject however and thus needed to provide an answer of some satisfaction.

"Last I had seen her she was under attack from other magical girls. I could not remain, circumstances would not allow it."

With no cars in sight she started across the road, her wheels taking her across to the sidewalk parallel to the park.

"She was in the company of another one however. A magical girl who sported a lab coat and fought with an assembled companion that served as her archetype."

Sophia took a moment to contemplate before looking back up to Fuyuko.

"Since you reside in the area would you happen to know of her?"

An innocent question. Perhaps Fuyuko might suspect her of trying to interrogate her for information regarding the competition. Perhaps not.

She'd just have to see what came of it.

---

[Assistant]
"Ooooh..."

The Archetype blinked once as the shield came up, then stopped, staring at the bright symbols with eyes full of innocent wonder. Her fist was still pressed up against the barrier, but it couldn't move even an inch closer to Hikari, who stood completely unharmed even in the wake of that sudden attack.

The echoes of a ringing bell were joined by the loud clapping of Tokiko's hands. "Ohohohoho! That wasn't bad, Hikari-san!" She raised her index finger, pointing upwards. "With this, you pass Lesson One: how to block a hit!"

Obviously, she'd expected Hikari to be capable of pulling off such a basic spell. But there was more than that. The newbie magical girl hadn't shown any hesitation or surprise, and had deployed her newly discovered defense almost intuitively. Which means it's time to turn things up a notch. Tokiko's grin widened, and another finger flicked up to join the first. "Now it's time for Lesson Two: knowing the limits of your own defenses! Get her, my loyal Eve-chan!"

"Grrr!" The monstergirl grit her teeth, then threw another punch, slamming her other fist straight into the barrier. "Ora!"

The second strike didn't break through either, but it was swiftly followed by a third, and then a fourth, coming faster and faster now, a chorus of ringing bells accompanying Eve's enthusiastic shouts. "Ora ora oraaaaa!" That shield might have been able to protect Hikari so far, but how long would it hold up against such punishment?