Blooming From A Seed To A Tree (Project Moon Crossover Quest)

[WilyMachineKing1]

You sighed as you faded, watching Angela enact her revenge. You weren't sure if she had a well-thought out plan, but its probably a plan nevertheless. You watch on you faded away, your body dissolving into the Light, descending into the collective consciousness of humanity. Already drowning into the mass of colors and thoughts, voice and emotions overflowing as you struggled to maintain some sense of control over your form before giving up and just letting your self float through it.

You don't know how long you have been here nor what was going in the physical world. A second here could be a century outside. But you digress. Time to time you did get a glimpse though it was too quick and out of context to get the full picture. The last one you saw involved a Clown. Not like the monsters from the Crimson Ordeal, but just as creepy.

Also on occasion you spotted A but seemed like he was busy with something and was often too far from you to reach or call him, and so here you are, drifting amongst the waves of ideas, thoughts and concepts. That's how its been for you, and it's left you.... wondering. About yourself actually.

Who are you really? That was the main question. Where you your own person? Or just another copy of Ayin? Meant to be his stand in for the plan's completion. You have the same appearance, same knowledge as he has, you think on the last part. But are you really you are your own person? The only thing you can truthfully say is your own name is X.

Despite how ridiculous the name was and it was more of a letter really, it was still your name, something you held onto throughout your drifting. But was that all you had? Were anything more than just a copy of the man who orchestrated both the plan and the numerous tragedies. It just.... felt wrong.

However, sometime, your musings was stopped when you felt something. It was... something new. Something that has attracted you and found your swimming towards it, fighting against the strong tides that were trying to drown you. No more, this something was the one that could lead you to your answer. So, you swam, for how long you don't know, you just kept swimming, trying to reach the goal that was there, no matter how far it was or what got in your way. You just wanted to reach it, and soon, for what seems like an entirety, you found it.

It was purple tear, stretching across the sea, the Light going into it, and you knew that whatever was on the other side was your chance to discover more about yourself. And so, without any hesitation, you lunge yourself into it, falling into the purple tear and seeing multiple lights. You let yourself be taken to wherever it may lead too.

As you descended further, you decided to at least take a form as you descended through multiple possibilities. Your previous body gone and into the light, it is better to make one to better serve for your quest of a answer. Taking inspiration from your memories, you decided to take the form of.......

[ ] Ayin: Both the original and your father by technicality. You were a copy and so it would best to use that a while longer. Looked like a nice guy while you chatted, but did scripted a lot of what everyone went through.

[ ] Carmen: The one started everything. Someone who had a great charisma, intelligence and a good person all around. Well, everybody said that. You wouldn't know. You haven't met her due to her being dead.

[ ] Angela: Your sister and AI Assistant made by Ayin to help you out. Intelligent but not much on feeling empathy for others. Also was planning to betray you from the start, something that was obvious. Despite that, went through everything Ayin put everyone through so probably understandable.

[ ] Malkuth/Elijah: A woman who wanted to be helpful in anyway she can, which lead to her death. Despite this, you managed to help her once again, leading her to be more determined than ever to help others once more. You were grateful for her suggestion of using a notebook.

[ ] Yesod/Gabriel: A man with a stern disposition and words filled with venom that earned him the name Viper. Despite this, he cares much for his employees despite his attempts to appear cold and ruthless. Your ordeal with him have made him become more honest with his feelings. You did not like his addiction for everything neat and tidy. Not your fault your necktie was hard to do.

[ ] Netzach/Giovanni: A man who drowning in addiction and hedonism in order to avoid this life. He gave his life for the one he loved the most and yet has been called back you to help you with the plan. He does throw some mean parties and knows his booze.

[ ] Hod/Michelle: A nervous but kind woman that wants to help others out, if only to atone. So when had her face what she does, she finally began to move on and improve herself. She was also the one who gave you the ideas to improve the safety of your Agents.

[ ] Tipherath A/Lisa: Loud, insult and commanding, Tipherath A was a girl who was not afraid to give her piece of mind to anyone. Despite this, she did had a soft spot like her brother Tiperath B/Enoch. So, when you promises to make sure Tiperath B will not come back to suffer more, she agreed to help out and the two of you attended his funeral with some Agents, mostly form her Department.

[ ] Tipherath B/Enoch: A boy who was kind and paitent with everyone. Willing to encourage and support others. You.... you miss him, and hope that you honor his memory with this form.

[ ] Chesed/Daniel: Your fellow coffee drinker and Head of the Welfare Department. A man who was worn down by by the hell and all the deaths. But still determined to help, something in which you agreed on. After that, it was coffee time when you can. Though you hated the extra bitter ones.

[ ] Geberua/Kali: The Head of the Disciplinary Team Deparment. A blunt person who prefers the more straightforward, and often violent approach. However, you managed to bring back her original personality when she was Kali, her desire of protecting the weak. She was also rather blunt with you which was honestly kind of refreshing too.

[ ] Hokma/Benjamin: Benjamin, also known as Hokma, is the loyal friend of Ayin, even when he was killed all those times by his Script, and uncle/godfather of you and despite his stoic front, you could tell he cared about you and Angela. You hoped he was doing okay after Angela's betrayal.

[ ] Binah/Garion: The Head of the Extraction Team Department. The one who you respect but also fear the most. An Arbiter of the Head who speaks in cryptic terms and only does things in enjoyment, even the Meltdown she underwent was something she did voluntarily. Despite this, you felt respect for her nature in a way, along with her tea. It was, rather good. If only she didn't speak in cryptic riddles all the time.

[ ] An Agent: Write in description of an Agent. Example being BongBong as an example.

As you took form, you noticed you have finally arrived, just as you finished up as well. Well hello there world, hope you have answers or at least, ways to find said answers for the questions you have. Not matter how long it will take.

Where do you land?
[ ] A World of Mystery and Moonlight (Nasuverse)
[ ] A World of Spirits and Monsters (Bleach)
[ ] A World of Adventure and Will (One Piece)
[ ] A World of Masks and Shadows (Persona)
[ ] A World of Cards and Entities (Yugioh)
[ ] A World of Law, Chaos and Neutral (Shin Megami Tensei 5)

AN: Inspired by "Human Resources" Shouldn't Be This Literal Quest, which is a very good quest done by @Lepidoptera, so here you are, X, Manager of Lobotomy Corporation and Clone of A/Ayin. You have one thing to do, find out who you really. Are you just a clone of A? Or are you something more. Oh and also a bunch of side quests as well. But I am sure that can be handled by you Manager. So, remember have fun with this and ask any questions you have. Also thanks to @Kalibrius for helping me come up with ideas for votes, thanks man.

 

[WilyMachineKing1]

Book of X


(Art done by @Mercy she did pretty good.)

Spoiler: Inner X/Typhon

Appearance: Wise, you now look like Tipherath A, but with some changes like purple and black parts on your long golden hair, golden eyes with some purple in them, but mostly Tipherath.

It's you! The Wandering Entity trying to find out who are they are. Where shall your journey lead you I wonder? What answers will find you?

Theme:

View: https://youtu.be/_Cg_DkU4j4s

Traits:
Crown of Roots: The symbol of authority of the one who rules over the Tree. All branches, while locked, still obey the rule of the Crown. It also allows one to bring aspects of The City to where they are.


Keter: The Crown: Heavy is the weight of your birthright despite it's Emptiness, the empty facility is your to do with as you see fit. A lantern to place your flame within, it is your home and kingdom.

Tiperath: The Bridge: Your roots hold strength to allow esoteric effects and resources to exchange between the tree and all that it's roots have been entwined to. Your domain also allows the worlds to interact with each other safely and for you to call on your power wherever you go, all that is as Tiphereth is under your purview.

Observation: All that you perceive you shall know and understand. You will not bend nor break no matter what you behold. All knowledge is yours to hold if you desire with the commensurate of effort of what you seek.

Memory Imprint: Your history is etched in stone upon your wake. Time and death are not impediments, significant points in time you have come to will be yours to move to once more.

The Thrones of Emptiness: The ability to adapt to things outside of your Facility, such as containing new forms of entites and the usage of new forms of energies such as mana, all to allow the Light and yourself to fit in much easier with other realities without causing a mess, and allow traits of the universe to be added to your Facility.

 

[WilyMachineKing1]

As your shell was slowly being constructed to contain the now luminescent being that you are now, you felt a presence as you got closer to the end of the tunnel. You were unsure of it, but as you felt it fading, you swore you felt confusion and the mutterings of said confusion. Hmmm, this may be interesting to investigate where you are gong to land, you thought as you finally arrived, the light slowly unravelling to revel to you where you are.

It was nighttime, the moon was already out, shining down onto you as you have arrived to... a City? No, not the City. While similar, there is.... something not quite the City, and judging by the way the buildings were built and the fact it just felt not so City-like.

Regardless, judging by your surroundings, you have seem to at least have arrived to what is clearly a Nest, judging by the people and the environment itself in general. You were glad that it wasn't the backstreets, especially considering you were now kid-size and looking like a kid. Because you were sure that things did not grow, and instead you shrunk. Though, regress into a more child like state is more accurate a word, you thought as you looked at yourself at a window at a nearby building on the roof, and saw your reflection.

You were surprised to see you were a combination of Tiperath A and yourself. While male, technically your choice since really, being made of Light can change perspective on things like that after spending so much time in it, you were fundamentally an almost an exact replica of Tiperath. Blonde hair and sassy look. Of course, you were quick to notice the differences between her and your new look.

First off, there was a few patches of purple in your yellow hair. Along with some purple in your eyes, with it being mostly golden/yellow like Ayin's. Huh, weird. Must be from that purple tear. Understandable and plus, there is much of the Light you don't know about, so further research is required of not just this place, but yourself. After getting a living arrangement of course. As while this place might not be bad as the City, it doesn't mean it doesn't have dangers.

==============
​

You sighed as you have exited the building, it was not a hotel unfortunately. But oh well, your luck can't be that great. Regardless, you were to find your answer to your question and most of all, was it worth it? You needed to know if the Seed of Light was worth everything, the horror, the hope, the despair, everything. You just needed if it, and you, was worth it. And so, here you, walking through a city that probably has it's own troubles but would have to be a nightmare beyond the City, something you hold doubts. With A's and Tiperath's memories, that would be a tall order to complete.

So here you were, marching through the streets of the new location you were in, ignoring the looks and whispers you have begin to get. You now at least understood the constant snappy and annoyed demeanor of the Sephriah of the Central Control Department. You were lucky enough to not get to annoyed as you kept a stoic expression on your face. Must be a combination of you and A to balance out with some of Tipherath's traits. For now, it was best to find out where you are, so it's time to find out, and it seems you had some luck because you saw a newspaper flying to you.

'Well, how convenient.' You thought with bits of sarcasm but you were not going to look a gift horse in the mouth, so acting quickly, you quickly grabbed it and began to read it, learning that you are in........

[ ] Fuyuki City, with the newspaper detailing about Gas leaks that have been occurring lately. (Fate/Stay Night)
[ ] Fuyuki City, with reports of a serial killer have been seen and only just getting more and more kills. (Fate/Zero)
[ ] Translyvania, and the reports of women being murdered by what is dubbed as the New Jack the Ripper. (Fate/Apocryhpa)
[ ] Snowfield, and that there was a rise of a mysterious disease along with other such rising incidents. (Fate/strange fake)

AN: Tada, srorry if this not much, I have tried my best, all I can say. And also very excited for Limbus Company have preregistered it on Tap Tap to play and so, who else is feeling ready to play with Sin?

 

[WilyMachineKing1]

Hmmm, seems this place has a serial killer on the loose here. Not so dissimilar to the City where such events have occurred every week, but at least the Fixers here seem to be doing a much more active job of trying to find and stop this..... Ryuuosuke Uryuu. Or is it Uryuu Ryuunosuke? Whatever, point is that that's at least one point to this place. Which was probably easy to do really in comparison to your old home.

Still, for now you had to find a place to rest in rather than just sleeping on the streets, you would like a bed thank you very much. So, time to find a nice hotel!

You would soon relate to Tiphereth even more as you were treated just like a child, honestly annoying, and yet, you found yourself enjoying it a lot. Maybe it was because you never had a childhood before or anything like it, considering you are just a clone of Ayin instantly in your adulthood. Maybe this form was from deep-seated desire to have a childhood and Tiphereth A was the perfect fit? But why her and not her brother? That was part of your endless questions you have in your mind and the answers were needed for them.

Regardless, you needed a way to get into a hotel room. And the way you were going at it did not seem to be working so far, so a better plan was needed, and so here you are, sitting on a bench thinking of the best way to convince any hotels to let you in. Hands on your chin as you mulled over ideas and plans.

As you did, you looked up, and looked around. You were just taking a glance, not expecting, but you soon felt something was here, what you were not sure but you soon turned your idle looking into a focused search.

Eventually, you had your attention onto.....

[ ] Am Albino woman with a woman in a suit, her bodyguard most likely. For some reason, despite the weird feeling of the bodyguard, most of your stare went into the woman she was guarding.
[ ] A young man arguing with a giant red hair of man, who was carrying a tower of books. The former of them was loud and yet there was a strong sense of charisma from him.
[ ] A golden hair young man, already you feel great power and arrogance from him, however, there was also something else. What it was, you are not sure.
[ ] A young man dragging a bunch of children with him..... Wait a minute....
[ ] A man in a hoodie, stumbling and all in all have a difficult time. His face also seems to be suffering from side effects from whatever it was, could it be the use of this place Singularity or something else?

With your interest peaked, you soon got up, and began to follow them. Your thirst for knowledge now controlling you as you went off towards a now uncertain future.

AN: Right, so first things, sorry for the rather short update. But on the upsides, here is the update earlier than I expected, thanks to the bunch of snow blocking me from going school so here we are. Anyways, Limbus Company is a fun game so far, having trouble with Chapter 3 at the start but all in all, good stuff. Gregor is officially my new favorite Sinner. All Hail Bug Man!!! But anyways, I hope you enjoy this and have fun with this. Take your time and all that.

 

[Arkio]

First steps 1​

---

Walking across the streets of this… not-City filled you with such strange emotions. These are your very first moments outside the Facility, wholly yours and separate from the lives and memories of A and Tiphereth A which you hold within you. From the sight of the pavement upon which you walk to the cold, fresh air flowing in and out of your lungs, each moment engraves itself into your memory. These are going to be your memories, after all, and though they may be small, feather-light pebbles now, they will, you feel, gather to be a mental anchor of your person, in time.

Each step you take is filled with a bounce that had never been there before, excitement and joy jumping through your body like an electric current. You can feel how your mouth curls into a smile that would have been comically out of place on your past body, your facial muscles jovially ignoring whatever attempts you try and fail to make to contain them.

Still, reminding yourself of Yesod, you keep them restrained to just that. This newfound emotiveness of yours does not chafe, but it is good to remember that it is an all-but-open invitation to those seeking to harm others.

Then again, you are no longer in the City - or, at least, you do not feel as though you are there anymore - so, who knows if there is a price to be paid for it. Should you even care if there is?

Well, no, but you have to admit that even this much is just so… embarrassing in a way you have never imagined you could feel. Did this embarrassment come from the looks and whispers random passersby's directed your way? Attempting to form an answer to that question had you step into a territory far too unfamiliar for you to succeed. A failure you would gladly bear.

If only that was the extent of the emotions you were feeling.

The only name, the only past, the only identity you may rightfully lay claim to is that of your role as the Manager. X. One of the cogs in the machine of suffering that was the Facility, forever turning forward in the hopes of one day reaching a scripted conclusion.

Yet for all the sheer evil it had caused, you could not extricate it from your world.

Wherever you looked, you could not help but feel that the darkness of this night is cast not by the absence of the sun's light but by the fate of the Seed of Light. It was the ultimate justification shielding every atrocity committed, the excuse equally dismissing and accepting each sacrifice.

It was the purpose of your life.

Not knowing if it had succeeded despite Angela's betrayal or if she had truly torn down all hope of its realization…

It was a return to an anxiety you were far, far too familiar with. That twisted, cold viper coiling itself around your limbs as the workday began, its fangs sinking deeper and deeper into your neck with every passing second of ominous quiet, the pressure paradoxically only letting up when everything finally started going to shit.

A shuddering breath slipped past your lips, breaking the otherwise jovial tint your visage had taken.

You had not given the sentiment of leaving the Facility serious thought, in retrospect. You were made for it, after all, so that may or may not be a coincidence. Regardless, even if it had not been your entire existence, that single thought banished all notion of simply leaving your past to be the past and embracing the promise of a future.

"You were made for it, after all."

What a terrifying thought to echo, and wholly yours to boot.

The moon gently casting its light onto the world below felt like your only companion, beckoning you to spread your wings and soar in the open sky. But how could you, when your young wings were drowning in tar?

Stopping your walk for a moment, you dragged your hands across your face, some indescribable emotion overpowering every other sensation. A part of you wished to once more wield the TimeTrack protocol, if only so that you could give yourself all the time you need to process this.

You wanted - needed answers, if you were to face the world. There was simply no other option for you.

Trying to argue with yourself about that would lead you nowhere, especially this soon.

You simply had to keep walking forward, hoping that your path, whatever form it may take, would lead you to the outcome you were seeking.

 

[WilyMachineKing1]

You decided to quickly follow the man and the children. Something was wrong here, you could feel it intensify more as you approach them. The children did not seem to be fully aware, if anything, they seem like they were more like sleepwalking than actually following him of their free will.

You frowned, despite being used to see death and horrors wrought in your time in the facility, you did not enjoy this, perhaps because of the memories of Tiphereth A doing this, but you could not leave those children alone with that man. Something about him seems off. Like, it was something dangerous and just... wrong.

So, you quickly entered into the group of children, pretending like you were in a similar state, hoping he didn't notice you being the odd one out. Luckily, it seems it works as when he glances back, another child in hand, he didn't bother to count. If anything, it seems he was trying to get more and more children before, for whatever purpose it is was, and you knew that it was bound to be a gruesome one.

And you were proven right when you all arrived to what you assume is the base of the most definitely Serial Killer. How fitting it would be the sewers he would hide in, along with any accomplices and tools for all his murders as well. Now then, you just needed to now find a way to quickly escape and alert the local authorities, however, you would soon find yourself not going through it.

Why? Because right now, you saw the murderer's accomplice, and he was much more dangerous than what you suspected maybe he was the real serial killer. A tall figure clad in black and purple robes with flaring pieces of cloth, reminding you of a flower. His skin reminded you of a corpse. Bulging eyes looking around everywhere akin to a fish as black oily hair barely reflected the lights down here. In his hands was a book that reminded you of a few Abnormalities like Skin Prophecy due to how it seems to be made of flesh with screaming face on the front.

All in all, he was the definition of evil murderer.



"Hey Mister~! Got the latest batch~!" The man who has captured all the children said happily like he had just gone to an amusement park and had the greatest time of his life.

"Good Ryuunosuke." The man said and you shivered in disgust from it, it was wrong, so wrong......

As you were dealing with how to get a better grip of yourself, it seems that they already beginning..... Oh no.... no.... no! Already they have begun, starting off with another group of children they had.

You had thought you were prepared, watching deaths after deaths, horror after horror, and you were. But that was due to a combination of memories and the perception filter easing the shock of them all, however, when you see in person.

SPLAT!​

A child's head was smashed into a bloody pulp with a wet and meaty squelch.

SQUELCH!​

Another was thrown into a wall, splattering against from the Mister's strength.

CRUNCH!​

Two were smashed together to form an obscene shrine of depravity, as if to mock some sort of God in a blasphemous mockery. Bones were crunched and grinded into dust from the sheer force of their bodies being bent that way behind what is humanely possible.

One more was thrown into a pile of a crude structure, the bodies bloodied, battered and forming a high tower, reminding you absentmindedly of another tower you saw.

On and on this depraved show went, you could have moved or screamed, but you couldn't..... the shock was overwhelming you, you thought you could handle this with the aide of the memories and the perception filter with the experience they brought you, but it turns.... you couldn't. The death, the blood, the torture, the screams, oh god, the screams were the worst of it all.

Soon, what was a veritable group of children, soon turned into only a few left And once the two got ready to start once more, discussing this as though this was some art gallery or a coffee break, you snapped. Something deep inside you roared out, and something answered.

Light gathered around your hands, you clenched down at the weapon, rage filling your body as reason was swept away with only one thing in mind.

Kill the two in front of you with the weapon that whispered to you, numerous voices whispering chanting and driving you.

One such whisper that stuck out to you was.....

[ ] In the name of Love and Justice~ Here comes Magical Girl!
[ ] People have been committing sins since long ago. "Why do they commit sins, knowing it's wrong?"
[ ] Where does one go when they die?
[ ] I am coming to you. You, who will be reduced to ash like me.

 

[WilyMachineKing1]

You felt a presence merging with you. A familiar one, albeit one that was faint and a sliver of it's former self. It was still one that you knew instantly, and the butterflies flying past you just cement that truth even further.

Funeral of the Dead Butterflies, a HE-Class Abnormality, has lent it's aide to you. Why, you don't know, and you also don't care as well. You just wanted to kill the two in front of you. And if he agreed, then all the more As the butterflies began to gather, they began to surround you, forming a small tornado around you. seemingly protecting you from the blasts of energy from Mister. Hmm, seems like, if you are to place Damage types from your old life to here, it is most likely that this Mister may be using White Damage, hence why it's not breaking through the wall of butterflies.

However, that was not much cause of concern, as you felt yourself grew. You were slowly growing taller and taller, until you reach around at least what you assumed was the average height for teenagers.

(In actuality, you have grown around the same height Tiphereth A would grow during when Angela made the Library. You are however, still short for a teenager.)

Your clothing has also changed as well, resembling what the Abnormality your using. Gone was the clothing that reminded you of those depiction of children of nobility. Instead, you wore the suit of the Abnormality you were synchronizing with. A black suit with a white shirt underneath complete with a white smock around your neck. On top of the suit was a coat that was also of black coloring as well, with a insignia of a butterfly engraved on the right of your chest.

In your hands were two pistols, though there were probably not exactly pistols given their size. They were more akin to giant slabs of steel, a crude cannon made for creating holes in your enemies. but it's best description for them.

One was black and the other was white, both had the markings of butterflies on them. Already the knowledge on how to use them filled you and the moment the butterflies disperse, the sound of a single shot was the only sound that occurred, and the falling of a body.

The serial killer was dead.

All that was left, was the Mister.


View: https://youtu.be/ddKfEGU63R8

Already, you were firing upon him, your bullets formed from the concept that was The Funeral of Dead Butterflies, as the Raving mad man began complaining and accusing you of such hypocritical things.

There was also troublesome abilities that the Mister, or Gilles De Rais as he called himself, was displaying right now. Besides the energy blasts that were like the dark magic of the Azure Hermit, who you watched a recording of when you heard about a fourth Magical girl abnormality, he also began summoning things that he called Horrors, these ones reminding you of the Indigo Ordeals, mainly because it felt eldritch, really like how when you caught glimpses of the Indigo Midnight Ordeal. The thing was something beyond human.

Still, they fell all the same to the bullets and you were getting closer and closer to actually hitting. You allowed yourself a small smile as you finally hit his shoulder, and then it grew when you hit his left arm, the appendage flying in the air. Finally, you allowed yourself a full one slasher smile as you hit him in the stomach, sending him flying. His book dropped onto the ground with a loud clattering as you approached his collapsed form.

"You-Youuuuuuuuuuu!!!!!! How dare you!!!!!!!!!! God must have sent you here!!!! It must be so!!! Who other than that bastard to torment me even further! Was taking my beloved saint not enough!?!?!?!? Answer me, damn you!!!!!" He roared, his fish eyes filled to the brim of rage as he continued his rambling, but when he talked about God, you stopped.

An image flashed into your mind. White and red with the arrogance of one who calls himself God. Anger and annoyance filled you as you finally spoke.

"I met a being who called himself that ........ he was a constant inconvenience." Was all you said as he just stared at you in confusion before falling unconscious from all the bleeding.

As you stared at the scum in front of you, you felt two choices in front of you, and you soon chose.......

[ ] Contain
[ ] Execute

Once you were done, you headed to the Children, picking up the book Gilles had along the way. You were hoping beyond any hope that some of the children would be alive enough to be saved and able to see tomorrow, if not....

You shook your head at the thought, you will get to it when you can. So, began your work of saving the children, at least those who can still be saved, as for the ones that can't..you had Funeral of the Dead Butterflies help you make their passing easier. Each one turning into a butterfly of pure white and black that flew into the air.

You sighed as you watched the swarm of butterflies fly high. The feelings of both you and the Abnormality were fully in sync with each other for this single act to do. You made their passing peaceful as much as you can, turning them from pain into butterflies so that they can return to their families.

So why?

Why did it not make the pain you feel lessen?

Why did the sorrow only increase?

Why?

Just why? You continued to think of it, even as the synchronization with the Abnormality ended, returning back to your previous form, though you can still feel the connection between Funeral and you.

You sighed, tears already leaking out as you tried not to cry. You didn't have the time for that as you looked for a way to call the Police and luckily the serial killer had a phone on him and so you called the police, hoping they can be here in case anything else might happen. Once you were done with the call, you felt so tired, like you were going to fall into a deep sleep, must have been from the synchronization with Funeral of the Dead Butterflies.

What do you do with this current problem?
[ ] Sleep, you need it
[ ] Wait until the police come to find other places to sleep. You need to be awake to help the other children.

OBTAINED: PRELATI'S SPELLBOOK

[CONNECTION ESTABLISHED. WELCOME BACK MANAGER]
​

AN: Welp, here it is. I hope I did the battle justice, as for the other stuff. I will leave to you all to puzzle it out and see what answers you can give to me on what's the meaning they have. Till then, have fun~~~

 

[Arkio]

First steps 2​

---

As you aimlessly searched for a hotel to house you for the night, the evening chill crept in through your admittedly inadequate clothing. At first, it was something not exactly delightful, but new. The closest thing you felt to being cold within the Facility was the clamminess that emerged from a sweat-laden body. This was something different, natural in a way nothing in the Facility was.

Even as the chill turned to pain, the sensation passing a certain threshold within your body, you still did not find it disagreeable. Again, it differed from your past, limited experience, an odd heat underneath your skin as opposed to the thunder-like drumming of a migraine.

Rubbing your hands together for warmth, you pointedly ignored the stare of yet another passerby. It had taken you a little bit to connect the dots, but in your defence, neither Ayin's nor Tiphereth's memories were of much help to you here. All those stares and whispers were probably aimed your way because you look like a child.

It was strange. The general character of the City's populace insured that such a thing as even the most passing of compassion or concern felt, let alone shown, to a lost child were things of exceptional rarity. At least, if they were honest. Ulterior motives, extortion and betrayal were, in contrast, far more than plentiful. Which just went to further prove your first point.

Or so Ayin's memories informed you.

Tiphereth A, or Lisa, rather, had lived in the outskirts. There was no nugget of wisdom hidden in that hellscape, only monsters not even the City was willing to stomach.

Was there some sort of rule or taboo pertaining to children here to invite such attention? This seemed to be a Nest or an equivalent thereof, so sighting a child should not be a novel experience.

Your brows furrowed at your thoughts. You were no longer within the City, so relying on Ayin's memories to guide you was not what you could call a "winning strategy". Still, you lacked any other means of reference for the environment around you.

And there was another tangled feeling inside of you you needed to address. You even said it yourself already; you look like a child.

Your reason for choosing this form escapes you, however. Your final moments within the light were wholly dominated by the effort needed to reach the purple tear, the matter of your physical form an afterthought in comparison.

You would not dare insult Tiphereth A or yourself by calling your final decision a whim, but you could not deny that the fact of the matter was closer to that term in nature than a deliberately constructed and weighed choice. Still, if conscious thought and rash impulse were both equally incorrect, where did the answer lie?

While you were lost inside of your mind, one of your hands had come to lay on your chest, right above your heart. Ascribing any meaning to this unconscious movement was nonsensical and superstitious, supported by nothing but blind belief.

But, well.

That was it, was it not?

You could easily dismiss it and return your arm to hanging by your side, drawing yourself back into the confines of your mind to ponder your not-decision.

Or, you could stake your faith on… you do not know what exactly, but it is not as if you will lose much of anything by doing so.

And so, you considered it. At first, your mind blanked, with no concrete piece of information to attract its focus. Such was faith, you supposed; investing yourself into a thing without any assurance of its realization, but forging on nonetheless, spurned on by nothing but an underlying belief that whispers to you of greater causes.

It was all very abstract and not at the same time, making it quite difficult for you to put your finger on the reason for your listlessness.

Yet, once your frustration cleared from your head, the answer presented itself.

Superstition, which is what you already dubbed your current cognitive undertaking, is ultimately the act of an uncomprehending mind ascribing meaning and ritual to the happenings of the physical world in which it is placed.

It elicits a knee-jerk rejection from the more erudite, seeing as it seems to stand in opposition to the materialistic principles they may seek to embody. Of course, they may not be so erudite after all, if their reaction to knowledge and behaviour so apparently foreign to theirs is immediate ridicule and dismissal.

Ah, but you are veering off-topic.

Superstition is born into the world when possessed knowledge can not explain surrounding events. Its fantastical explanations merely describe what is unknown rather than something fundamentally incomprehensible. It simply fills in the otherwise empty space.

If you look at faith through this lens, and avoid the mistake of ascribing unnecessary symbolism to what you are analyzing, then you can use it as a guiding light to lead you in the direction of the answer you are seeking.

Therefore, there was a reason behind the movement of your arm and the placement of your hand. You simply had to bridge the gap between your lacking conscious understanding and the implicit promise of unconscious - oh. Oh.

You had answered your own question before you had even posed it in full.

Unconscious.

Subconscious.

One begets the other, and so your answer lies within.

The corners of your lips curl downwards at the thought, frustration much deeper than what prompted your internal inquiry flowing through your veins like quicksilver. Your self is shrouded to you, leaving you to blunder like a drunkard in a thick fog. It is the reason why you are here, the motivation behind your breaking of the Light's warm eggshell.

To realize that the reason for your choice of form lies behind the daunting fortress of your identity is not surprising. It still does not make walking in a circle like this anything less than deeply unpleasant.

You try to expel your frustration with a sigh, but you only waste your breath.

Though it leaves a sour note to play in the back of your mind, you pull yourself away from this trail of thought. You have just arrived in this world. Your answer is waiting for you, in the future. For now, you should focus on the present.

 

[WilyMachineKing1]

You stubbornly kept yourself awake, if not for yourself, but for the children. Comforting them as best as you can, which you probably failed but still you tried. Eventually, you managed to succeed in both calming the children down and making them sleep, all the while you kept watch over them as their protector, having generating some Light to manifest one of the pistols that make up Solemn Lament.

You glared at every corner, tightly gripping the handle of the pistol out of trying to keep yourself awake and when you need to shoot. You soon heard the sound of movement, frantic and in a rush. Acting quickly, you brought the gun up, ready to open fire if it turned out to be an enemy. But that tension turned into relief when you saw they were the police. Gladly, you smiled at them and soon fell asleep, the cries of the police, one being the closet grabbing and saying reassurances and such.

You just quietly fell into the peacefulness of sleep, uncarning of everything right now but you and your dreams.......

==========​

The situation was grim. Ever since Angela did her thing, you and those, both Agents and Clerks, have been here in this version of the Facility. Fighting off Ordeals and any Abnormalities that managed to not get into Angela's Library, which was quite a few, because most Abnormalities were coming from that well. Most of them were weak and barely formed, like those Peccatulum, those things were at least able to be put down. Which was weird really.

But they digressed. It's been not easy but not hard, it's just been just another day at the office. Of course, that all changed. First up was the arrival of 10 of what someone called as Phantoms. Entities similar but not quite to Abnormalities or Ordeals, each one taking place in each Department. To say those things were powerful were an understatement, at best they could match when Binah or Gebura entered their Meltdown states. Not to mention that somehow, the Ordeals that took place in any Department along with some Abnormalities seemed to fallen sway to these Phantoms.

And then today, there was something made it's home here. Something not belong, more so than the Phantoms. Strange creatures reminiscent of the Indigo Ordeals began to appear and it just made things harder. Right now, almost everywhere was under the control of the dark, with the only place left is the Employee's Quarters being safe.

To be honest, the only reason they made it this fair, besides not actually dying, immortality here was useful, still made it a bitch when they were killed in frankly gruesome ways, they had help from an Abnormality of all things. Though not the one they expected it to be and quite frankly, they forget the thing existed at all.

It was Standard Training Dummy-Rabbit. Yep, the Abnormality everyone took as a joke was helping them. Holy shit it was fucking effective without the Qliphoth Deterrence weakening it, because it can not only pack a mean punch, but apparently it can multiply like how rabbits do and be smart on how to use their strengths to the fullest advantages. It was honestly terrifying, reminded him of both the Rabbit Team that was hired when things go scary or like that that one scene in the movie about a vicious man eating rabbit.

They are also rather upbeat fellows as well, constantly cheering everyone they can, as well saying that the Manager will be back to fix everything like he always do. Heh, wish they shared their optimism, but every day seems bleaker and worse. At least, it seems so, they don't how long has past and has since stopped caring at this point.

But one day, something changed. Or rather, something exploded.

Light. Pure Light was seen and bursting through the Facility, with most forming a large tower originating from the Manager's Office. Whatever it was, power seem to be returning as well to some of the Departments, mostly heading to here and the Central Command Department as well. Whatever it is, it was certainly stirring up everything right now judging by the increasing noises now.

The Training Dummies in particular were very excited, hopping up and down, shaking left right, front and back, all kinds of motions their bodies can provide as they all chanted non-stop of "He's Back."

"Whose back?" Someone finally asked as one of the Rabbits turned to them, face, usually a blank, now in the widest smile that it looked like it could break the materials covering it's face.

"See we told you, He would be back!!!!! The Manager's back to help us!!!!!" was the answer the beings said as some of them rushed forward to the Manager's office.

Well, guess that explains what was going on, you suppose.

==========​

You woke up with a start, heavily breathing as though something has startled you or violently shaken you awake. You looked around, wanting to know what has stirred you so crudely from your slumber. But this is not where you were you expected to find yourself. Instead of the backseat of a vehicle, the brightness of a hospital room or hell, even the warehouse once more.

But not your office. You would never forget this place, this was where you were born, lived and eventually left to join the Light. It still looked the same as you left it, even to your cactus which was probably the one thing that was really yours to be honest. You did wonder what had happen to it, feeling a bit guilty for leaving it, but here it was.

But now you have a bigger question, why were you here again? As for you were aware the Facility has vanished into the Light as well? Maybe this is a dream? If so this is the most realistic dream you ever had.

You looked at your Cactus, and deciding to see if this was truly a dream or not, prick your finger on it.

Ow. Yep, this is real. But this just left more questions than answers, however, especially when you found yourself holding Penitence, the EGO Weapon of One Sin, in your hand.

Whatever the case was, time to find you as waiting here and just pondering would answer any questions and it was not like you are being restrained here either as you were before.

So, determined, you headed out and saw two choices before you. Two hallways promising you two different locations from each other.

One was the Employee's Quarters. The place where Agents and Clerks that either have no home, can't afford one, too tried to head back or other reasons. Perhaps that's where you can find some answers there as is the sound of what is excited children heading to you, you think at least.

The other was the Central Command Department, where the Tiphereth's resided before the Light's release. There you can visit there to refresh memories and also find out that music, already you are reminded of a certain annoying ordeal that had a similar music to it, making yourself nashing your teeth in pure rage.

After a moment of thing, you have decided to take......

[ ] Employee Quarters
[ ] Central Command Department

AN: Well here it is, bet your surprised by the inclusion of the Standard Training Test Dummy-Rabbits right? Well Kal and I have been thinking over this and decided why not, especially with new possible information that came to us, we decided why not. Also have deicded to base the Rabbits off of not only the depicition in And the Show Goes On, but also off of the Tachikomas from Ghost in the Shell as well. Now, have fun voting you guys~

 

[WilyMachineKing1]

Employee Quarters it is. It's a lot more safer you can tell, and also filled with a lot less clowns as well, so less likely chance of both rage quitting and death, but mostly the former. So, you headed down the more safer tunnel, safer begin the relative word here, hearing the chatter, talking and various methods of communications of your Agents that you liked to hear from.

Good, you needed something more familiar than this place slowly falling into ruin. As you got closer, you soon arrived to your desired location, and to your joy, you saw your Agents and Clerks there, who all stopped the moment you have entered. Looking at you in shocked surprise as they all just stared at you.

"...Hi." Was all you said awkwardly, waving you hands in front of them all, and instantly you were jumped on by what is best described as a horde of white rabbit shaped dummies who were constantly chanting your name amongst other things as well. Well, you can say you didn't expect to find this Abnormality here. You honestly forgot about it. or rather they know that you see it has the apparent ability to duplicate itself, to be here.

"So, this is what you look like manager?" An Agent said as you managed to finally get yourself out of the pile of rabbits who were still clamoring around you happily, The Agent, known as Sam, said to you. Sam was wearing the EGO Gift of Today's Shy Expression, the reason why is because he believed himself to be ugly so he had to hide it behind a mask, that mask was currently Today's Expression. "Well, I'm glad to finally put a face to the name, Sir, but something tells me that the reprieve is only temporary before the shit storm starts again. So let's get you up to speed over a meal, let the others rest as we do so." Sam then turned to one of the Rabbits, gently tapping it's head to get their attention. "Hey, you guys think you can handle perimeter duty as me and the Manager talk?"

"Yes! Yes!" It chanted before zooming off as it was followed by others, and soon you were taken to the Cafeteria and you had some food being ordered as Sam turned to you, the mask shifting into a curious expression.

"So, what do you want to ask?"

What Questions do you want to ask? Pick 3
[ ] What has been going on in the Facility right? What's the current status of each department and rooms?
[ ] Are there other Abnormalities loose in the Facility like Standard Training Dummy-Rabbit?
[ ] How are you all here?
[ ] Write Ins

AN: While this is short, I thought this was fitting since you will be asking quite a few questions. Also, while this is happening or after the voting, I will be doing an Interlude, who, you can take a guess as I do it. So, have some fun voting, plans are welcome as always.