- Location
- England
She is already doing this, she makes sure to transform well before she is actually in danger.
Magical Girl Quest - The Fire That Burns
- Thread starter Rukia
- Start date
- Original
- Location
- Earth
Then she would have used it before attacking the last three monsters, seeing that she transformed long before the enemy was even in her sensing range.
I really think you are slipping into shadowrunning; Cerys is not stupid, she will not wait until the enemy stands right in front of her before she uses the phrase to transform.
Spectral Waltz
Scatterbrained Writer
- Location
- Walking the Endless Corridors
I have voted a couple times, but @Naron is right about me mentioning not bothering any more. Even if I do get a vote out before they do, I usually haven't given it enough thought or put it together well enough, mostly because I'm busy with something else and playing the quest on the side. It's easier for me to just suggest modifications and alternate phrasings than it is for me to fully craft votes from scratch.
- Location
- England
What I am getting from this, is that it would be better if I started detailing the choices more?
Instead of just [] Barracks
I would write [] Visit the Enforcers in the Barracks
or Instead of [] Check up on the overall situation
I would write [] Visit the commanders and ask about the clearing effort
Like this?
Instead of just [] Barracks
I would write [] Visit the Enforcers in the Barracks
or Instead of [] Check up on the overall situation
I would write [] Visit the commanders and ask about the clearing effort
Like this?
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Codex
Fantasy Addict
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Yeah, honestly a little more detail doesn't hurt anyone. I'm fine with that.
Spectral Waltz
Scatterbrained Writer
- Location
- Walking the Endless Corridors
A little more detail might be nice on that level, try not to go too granular though.
- Location
- England
Most of the reason they are so undetailed is actually me being lazy.
After I've finished a chapter, I'm usually tired, so I just throw out a couple of thigns you could do. (Unless they are important chocies ofc)
Explain further?
- Location
- Earth
This should be okay; it helps with figuring out what we are supposed to do with some choices (i.e. barracks) and we can modify them if we need to.
What I use those preset votes for is a pool of choices anyway, something to build the backbone of my vote with.
But... yes, I agree with this:
What I use those preset votes for is a pool of choices anyway, something to build the backbone of my vote with.
But... yes, I agree with this:
Spectral Waltz
Scatterbrained Writer
- Location
- Walking the Endless Corridors
I guess I mean... Don't include a level of detail that might require a vote for a location or activity to be split by the specifics?
I mean, I think you probably wouldn't do that anyways... But that is what I was referring to by that.
- Location
- Cara Fahd
Same. Especially if you consider that when my vote passed and I made it using the most logical option to me in the situation, it resulted in upping the overall difficulty of the quest. Don't really want to go for an encore and screw us up even worse. Unless a vote would be blatantly stupid, I prefer to simply give suggestions.
- Location
- Earth
Which one was that? I tried finding it, but figured just asking would be easier.
How did it increase the difficulty?
- Location
- Cara Fahd
Big Scamp. I chose Alpha-Omega in my plan to kill it since it was the less likely to attract attention from the nearby town and capable of bypassing its armor. Result: Hell noticed, so I'll probably be responsible for 1 more Hell legion swinging by or swinging by earlier...
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- Location
- Earth
Big Scamp. I chose Alpha-Omega in my plan to kill it since it was the less likely to attract attention from the nearby town and capable of bypassing its armor. Result: Hell noticed, so I'll probably be responsible for 1 more Hell legion swinging by...
First of all, that plan was not from you. We just both voted for it.
Secondly, there was no other way we could have killed that Scamp. It no-sold all our other means of attack.
Thirdly, we had no idea A&O would have this effect.
- Location
- Cara Fahd
But I was the one who heavily suggested for A&O to be used and had it added to the plan, almost forcibly I might add. We could have used Plasma Sphere, though it wasn't entirely stable at the time, and it should have still been able to damage the big lug and I kinda feel responsible for that.
As for not knowing: in the end hindsight is 20/20. Now we just need to deal with it.
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- Location
- England
No need to feel bad about it D:
It was a hard situation.
- Location
- Earth
Besides, I have the feeling I made far more mistakes over the votes I brought in over the course of this story. It is a part of votecrafting that you are sometimes just wrong... and sometimes you can not even know it is wrong.
Thus, I can assure you that if you made a few more votes, you would stop worrying about this kind of thing. No one will be mad at you if you try your best.
Additionally, if anyone had suggested using the dysfunctional Plasma Sphere in a forest, with people still somewhat closeby, I would have argued that person down and probably suggested A&O myself.
Thus, I can assure you that if you made a few more votes, you would stop worrying about this kind of thing. No one will be mad at you if you try your best.
Additionally, if anyone had suggested using the dysfunctional Plasma Sphere in a forest, with people still somewhat closeby, I would have argued that person down and probably suggested A&O myself.
- Location
- Where I need to be
Besides that:
1. Hell's legions are kind of unable to get here until the barrier falls down anyway.
2. Canonically they still invaded and tried to take over the world.
3. We are also the source of knowledge that demons are coming anyway. Without us having killed the demon and revealed it was there to Morgan, they would not be as prepared for what is to come. The Light knows, but it seems like they sure as hell didn't send confirmation to the other magical societies. Humanity's armies are no joke and I highly doubt that Karen isn't preparing the European armies from the shadows for this. After all she is the true power in the EU.
4. Honestly, Hell's legions could have been tipped off any time we picked to practice Alpha and Omega. That someone was in place this time to actually see it happen this time/it was in a less isolated area of hell, was just chance this time.
5. We can't really afford to not use our super ability, and getting a reputation, or making people focus on the most powerful person in the area will just save more lives in the end, assuming of course that we survive it.
6. I don't think Rukia ever intended us to not use Alpha and Omega before the barrier went down anyway once we figured out what it was. A person doesn't give a super ability then expect players to ignore it.
In the end feeling bad about that decision is… kind of pointless. Alpha and Omega was the best choice there and it tipping off Hell was pretty much inevitable from the moment we got it before the barrier fell.
1. Hell's legions are kind of unable to get here until the barrier falls down anyway.
2. Canonically they still invaded and tried to take over the world.
3. We are also the source of knowledge that demons are coming anyway. Without us having killed the demon and revealed it was there to Morgan, they would not be as prepared for what is to come. The Light knows, but it seems like they sure as hell didn't send confirmation to the other magical societies. Humanity's armies are no joke and I highly doubt that Karen isn't preparing the European armies from the shadows for this. After all she is the true power in the EU.
4. Honestly, Hell's legions could have been tipped off any time we picked to practice Alpha and Omega. That someone was in place this time to actually see it happen this time/it was in a less isolated area of hell, was just chance this time.
5. We can't really afford to not use our super ability, and getting a reputation, or making people focus on the most powerful person in the area will just save more lives in the end, assuming of course that we survive it.
6. I don't think Rukia ever intended us to not use Alpha and Omega before the barrier went down anyway once we figured out what it was. A person doesn't give a super ability then expect players to ignore it.
In the end feeling bad about that decision is… kind of pointless. Alpha and Omega was the best choice there and it tipping off Hell was pretty much inevitable from the moment we got it before the barrier fell.
- Location
- England
Regardless, vote locked in.
[X] Standing vote: With how it feels wrong not to... use your transformation phrase once in a while, when you feel like it
[X] Keep lying with Una a little longer
[X] Have breakfast
-[X] Ask Morgan if there are any places where you can train your reflexes; if something like that bird comes up again, you really need to up your speed
-[X] Talk about what Una was doing while you were gone
[X] Go do training after your meal (Preparation for High-Speed Combat)
[X] Check up on the overall situation in the afternoon
-[X] Then go check the barracks; you will work with those people later, so you should at least get an idea of how the general mood is
[X] Spend time with Una in the evening
-[X] Read a book together
Number of voters: 10
[X] Standing vote: With how it feels wrong not to... use your transformation phrase once in a while, when you feel like it
[X] Keep lying with Una a little longer
[X] Have breakfast
-[X] Ask Morgan if there are any places where you can train your reflexes; if something like that bird comes up again, you really need to up your speed
-[X] Talk about what Una was doing while you were gone
[X] Go do training after your meal (Preparation for High-Speed Combat)
[X] Check up on the overall situation in the afternoon
-[X] Then go check the barracks; you will work with those people later, so you should at least get an idea of how the general mood is
[X] Spend time with Una in the evening
-[X] Read a book together
Number of voters: 10
SOLDIERS SCRUMMY
- Location
- England
You close your eyes and shift slightly, Una pushing closer to you in her sleep. After the last three days, the chance to just lie in and rest was great.
You stay there for as long as it take Una to wake on her own, watching her slowly crawl her way from asleep to awake. When she sleepily opens her eyes, you greet her with a soft smile and gently stroke her hair. She lets out a sleepy murmur and closes her eyes, but she's awake now. You both get up a little while later, stumbling through your morning routine and entering Morgan's room, to find her still asleep.
You blink in surprise, but go about making breakfast yourself this morning. The smell wakes her from her rest, and she shambles into the kitchen like a zombie, pitifully slumping down at the table with a long groan.
She gives you a smile from her bowl, speaking around her food. "Thanks for breakfast, I got called out last night to go recon this place up north." She stretches and lets out a high-pitched whine as her muscles loose. "Man, I'd forgotten how much getting night duty sucks, I was getting used to a normal sleeping cycle." She shakes her head as she settles back into her seat. "Not much happened, but we're getting a little thin on Scouts. Lot of us have been working 24/7 or gotten hurt by something. It was probably a one off call-in, but you never know, maybe she'll put me back on duty properly soon."
You let out a curious hum as you take her plate from her, stacking it atop yours and brining them to the sink. "I thought you were completely off duty for some reason?"
Morgan steps up and leans against the doorway as you run the water. "No, I just got a break for a while, no clue when I'll be back in action properly." She shifts a little. "Honestly, all this sitting around is kind of driving me a little crazy, I'm not used to being stuck inside for weeks on end."
You smile as she takes the wet plates from your hands to dry them. "I'm sure you'll be back at it soon enough, probably." You place the last plate back in the cupboard and spin around to lean on the counter. "Anyway, I was wondering something." Morgan gives you an affirmative hum as she steps out of the way for Una to come through the door, carrying her mug. "Do you guys have some sort of reflect training or something for fighting fast creatures. I could barely even see that bird, let alone keep up."
Morgan lets out an ah noise before nodding. "Yeah, we've got something like that, it's over in one of the rooms by the Gym. It's basically a bean-bag cannon that fires faster and faster as you ramp it up. I think we used to have some mobile dummies or something, but they broke a while ago and the guy who made them died." She shrugs. "I dunno, was before I was here."
You nod as you gently ruffle Una's hair, getting a playful swat in return. "Right, I think I'll book some time in there later today if that's ok?" She nods and turns half-way to let Una back out of the room.
Now she's out of earshot, you lean a little closer to Morgan and lower your voice. "How was Una while I was away? She seemed really stressed when I got back."
Morgan presses her teeth together and lets out a long breath between them. "Honestly? She spent all the time you were away glued to the Radio, I went to find her a spare headset because she kept asking me questions at the lightest shush of static." She shakes her head. "I was getting a little worried, but she's mostly back to normal now you are here, I guess she was just worried about you."
You let out a slow hum as you think about her words. Oh Una, what am I going to do with you? You shake your head as you respond. "No, thank you for keeping her company, I wasn't aware of how bad it was." You were going to have to do... something, to help or fix this. You just didn't know what. For now though, training. You weren't running away, you were just... giving yourself more time to think about it? That sounded better.
You make it halfway out of the room before you remember, you don't know which room it is in. You sheepishly poke your head back through the door and call out to Morgan. "Hey, Morgan, what room is that reflex thingy in?"
You hear her drop something and curse quietly, before she calls back. "Third door on the left, it's got an triangle with an X through it, don't ask me why."
A short trip later and you are standing inside a fairly big room. It reaches back a good distance, maybe eight or nine metres? Regardless, there is a panel on the wall, with a set of instructions next to it. Push this for low speed, this for high speed and this of stupid speed? What kind of instructions are these? Still, you tentatively press the low speed button and set yourself into a stance, summoning your sword.
You see a green light begin glowing on the wall in front of you, and a timer begin counting down. When it reaches zero, you hear a phwuf and see a beanbag move towards you at perhaps slightly slow underarm throw speeds. You don't even bother hitting it, just letting it fall to the ground next to you. You move back over to the machine and set the speed to High.
This time, the countdown last barely even a second and there is a loud crack as the beanbag is sent flying at you. You manage to fumble your sword up into a guard position, a slightly melted beanbag falling to the floor. Ok, this is better. You hear a beep from the side, and glance in that direction just fast enough to see the Beanbag before it smacks you right in the face. You stumble back, but spin around for the next, catching it with your blade before it touches you.
Ok, now I get this. You set your stance as your ears perk, listening for the sound of the countdown starting from any direction.
Three hours later, and your feet are constantly stepping over charred beanbags. The shots are coming constantly now and from random directions, sometimes even from above or below. You are panting harshly as you just about manage to drag your body to intercept a shot, already twisting to reach another as you spin, swatting another two beanbags out of the air. You finally lose your balance on the uneven flooring, falling to the floor, where you lay panting. The canon evidently senses your submission, since it stops its attempts to pummel you to death, letting you catch your breath as your muscles scream at you.
Eventually you crawl to your feet, clumsily making your way over to the control panel, turning it off properly. You let your sword go, and tiredly make your way out of the room. You have never been so glad that transforming cleans your clothes for you, otherwise the smell of sweat coming from you would be lethal.
You clumsily make your way back to your room and ask Morgan a question. "Hey, do you have a war room or something?"
Morgan looks up from her push-ups and nods. "Yeah, we have something like that, want me to take you there?"
You nod appreciatively, gently tapping Una on the shoulder as you pass. "Hey want to go see a war room?" She looks up at you with wide eyes, before nodding frantically, marking her place in her book as she jumps to her feet and runs to the door. You laugh a little as you follow after her, holding the door for Morgan before she leads you. She takes you up to Karen's room, then past it, through an open door from which you can hear a great deal of noise.
Morgan looks at you from the side of her eye as she leads you to the corner of the room. "Don't make too much of a fuss ok? Everyone here is really busy." You nod as you stand there, taking everything in and trying to get a good look. There are uniformed people, in actual military uniforms, you note, working alongside the Clocktower's uniformed people. Oh? You lean to Morgan and whisper to her. "I didn't know that the military was this heavily involved with things, I thought they were just on call." Morgan just shrugs at your questions, apparently no more informed than you.
Still, you get the opportunity to look over the central map and take a note of all of the many, many markers on it. You can see, in a rough line, Enforcers moving upwards through England. Scouts are in front of them by a good distance, and you see some areas highlighted with marker. Is that? That looks like the mountain you had been at yesterday. Is it. The marker has changed from a bright red to a faded yellow. Huh. You glance across the map, taking everything in before you see that it actually extends to cover the whole of Europe, you had just been focusing on England.
You see so many little markers, and more interestingly, you see plans. Lines between markers, areas that are bright red, where markers avoid completely. These little lines go all over Europe, criss-crossing borders without note. Jesus Karen, you don't lack Ambition do you? You quirk your mouth as you look back towards England, the Enforcers were about half way through the country, though it was looking like there were more and more encounters occurring as they travelled further north.
They work fast, I expected this would have taken longer. Then again, if they already knew where all of the nests were, it's not that surprising that they would be capable of just jumping from place to place. Must be wearing themselves out going this fast though. You don't know that, but the thought makes sense.
You see more and more people starting to take notice of you, so you take the opportunity to quietly slip out of the room before it becomes a problem. Una is still bouncing as she walks, excitedly chattering about all of the different things in the room, and it did indeed have a lot of things. Papers stacked, files open on desks and computers humming away quietly in the background. Actually. While you are having a walkabout, why not stop by the Barracks? You've never actually been there after all.
"Hey Morgan, you two can go back, I want to stop off somewhere else on the way." She sends you a confused look, but you just smile. You kind of want to do this on your own, to prove that you can still deal with talking to people. So, you split up and go different directions, Una only hesitating slightly before leaving your side. You make your way up to the door and stop there, hesitating for a moment before taking a deep breath and stepping through.
The room is abuzz with noise, people moving about to and fro, people exercising without shirts to show off, people playing some sort of card game around a small table. You stand there, feeling distinctly awkward before you are noticed by someone. He pokes the woman at his side, and she turns to look at you too. Suddenly, every eye is turning your way and a quiet hush is spreading through the room.
After a minute of silence, you see a man stand up from somewhere near the back and make his way over to you amidst quiet muttering. It takes all of your effort to stay standing there passively as he approaches, but you manage. When he closes, you can see him more clearly. He is pretty tall, slightly dark skin and big muscles all over his body. He is wearing a trench-coat with some sort of armour covering his chest, it makes his steps heavy you can almost feel them as he moves.
He stops in front of you, and you get the impression that you should remain silent, just letting him look at you.
Eventually he reaches forwards, settling a strong hand on your shoulder, you have to strongly repress your instinctive action at that. But he just gives you a rough smile as he pats it solidly, the force enough to actually stagger you slightly. "There you are, we were wondering when you'd come and join the rest of us." The silence in the room abruptly fades as people return to their normal routine, sending you smiles and turning back to whatever they were doing, "We were worried Karen had locked you up, good to see you out and about. Now 'cmere."
When he walks, you follow him almost by instinct, desperately confused but not threatened in the slightest. He leads you back to the table you were sitting at, settling his weight down and patting the edge of the table behind him, an invitation to take a seat. You gingerly set your weight down against the table, more heavily when it doesn't move an inch. "This is Barry, Davis and Mary." He points out each of the people who where sitting at the table with him. "I'm Chris, but you can call me Buck."
You stare at him, open mouthed before the woman of the group reaches over and gives him a firm hit to the side of his head. "Don't you listen to this idiot, nobody calls him Buck, it's this thing he's been trying to do for years."
You see Chris rub the side of his head as he looks at Mary. "And I wouldda gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling kids!" He lets out a strange, clearly fake laugh, but it still makes the corner of your lip peek up slightly. Which is evidently enough for him to be satisfied, since he lets out a loud chuckle and leans back in his seat. "Now, what brings you down here? Not that your not welcome of course, but I didn't think you'd bother."
You wince a little, but nod. "I was just, curious, I guess. I don't really know why."
Davis nods sagely, stroking his blond goatee with an obviously practised move. "Ah, I see. Lost on the road of life then, young grasshopper." Seeing a fully grown, pasty white man with bright blond hair somehow sets his Chinese impression perfectly. You nod, leaning back a little to set your palms flat on the table behind you. He smiles through his beard. "Well then, we have cards, grumpy women, dice, grumpy women, board games and grumpy women, take your pick." He receives a dangerous glance from Mary that promises payback, but it still makes you smile.
"Uh, no. I was just... Yeah." God, why is this so awkward.
Chris shifts in his seat and throws an arm at the table before him. "We'll want, to 'ave a go then? We're playing blackjack."
You shake your head before you can think further. "Umm, no, thank you. I'll just, watch or something."
He lets out a grunt as the still silent Barry starts shuffling cards at an impressive rate. He flicks them out between the group and the game starts. You only watch them for a little while, eventually you start feeling just... out of place. You excuse yourself after the second round, and Chris waves at you as you step off. "Come back here whenever, we might not be here, but 'aint nobody gonna treat you bad here. Especially when you're fighting all of them nasty fuckers for us." Mary gives you a much softer smile that is much more comforting as you walk through the room.
People glance up as you pass, some of them offering you waves or smiles, but most of them just giving you nods. You quicken your pace until you exit the room, slumping against the door back first. You take several deeps breaths before you stand up, quickly walking back to your room, confusing thoughts running through your head. Seeing Morgan and Una reading together on the sofa is a relief, a sense of stability and normality that helps you catch yourself.
You settle down and spend the rest of the evening reading with Una, Morgan occasionally calling out a joke from the book she was reading. When you were tired, you moved off to bed, feeling much more relaxed than you had before.
When the sun rises, you take your morning bath and get dressed. Morgan is waiting for you, actually awake today, with a folder before her. "Hey Cerys, last big thing left on the list, that we know of at least." You nod as you come to stand beside her, fingers flicking the page open, taking in the picture on the front.
"Hey, isn't that the thing I killed the other day? Over in that town I pulled into?"
Morgan nods and shifts the folder to the side, opening it onto the informational page. "Yes and that is why we are so worried, it was clearly artificial and now we've done some digging, we think we've found the source." She points out a set of photos near the bottom of the page. They are fairly blurry, a security camera of some kind. It shows a hooded person wearing a cloak and billowing robes, stepping out of a building, followed by one of the creatures, before stepping out of frame.
"This building was recently the sight of a ritual suicide, or so they are calling it. In reality, we are pretty sure that this is a dark mage of some kind that we've flushed out of hiding with the big push. He probably got panicky when so many Enforcers came over, and it made him set his plans off earlier." She flips the page again, showing a more detailed picture of the creature. "This creature, tentatively named 'Scrant' by the team that discovered them, is some sort of regenerating absorption creature. It regenerates endlessly, well, more likely it regenerates by consuming it's creators Mana. But still. It also dissolves anything it touches, though this has been discovered to be a mild acid, rather than any sort of magical effect."
You take a long breath as you look at the picture. It was kind of... bloby. It was like someone had taken a blob, attached the seeds of a dandelion to it's entire body and then coloured it in military urban camo. In short, fucking weird. "This is my job today then, taking down these creatures?"
Morgan nods, but still looks reluctant. After a minute, she continues speaking. "Yes, but your job is also the destruction of all dark magic on the premises."
You blink at her words, thinking them through for a minute before you come to a conclusion you really don't want to. You take a long, slow breath as you keep yourself calm. You turn to Morgan fully and look her in the eyes, before speaking clearly. "Morgan, I just want to be sure here. You want me to destroy these creatures and kill this man?"
She nods slowly, clearly reluctant, but answers. "Yes, it is the duty of any who are still sane to destroy those who fall to the dark. It is a mercy." She still looks like she has swallowed a lemon.
You lean back, setting your weight on the table behind you as you fold your arms. You don't say anything, looking straight at her as she sits there, waiting for you to respond.
[] Fight to kill
[] Refuse to kill
You stay there for as long as it take Una to wake on her own, watching her slowly crawl her way from asleep to awake. When she sleepily opens her eyes, you greet her with a soft smile and gently stroke her hair. She lets out a sleepy murmur and closes her eyes, but she's awake now. You both get up a little while later, stumbling through your morning routine and entering Morgan's room, to find her still asleep.
You blink in surprise, but go about making breakfast yourself this morning. The smell wakes her from her rest, and she shambles into the kitchen like a zombie, pitifully slumping down at the table with a long groan.
She gives you a smile from her bowl, speaking around her food. "Thanks for breakfast, I got called out last night to go recon this place up north." She stretches and lets out a high-pitched whine as her muscles loose. "Man, I'd forgotten how much getting night duty sucks, I was getting used to a normal sleeping cycle." She shakes her head as she settles back into her seat. "Not much happened, but we're getting a little thin on Scouts. Lot of us have been working 24/7 or gotten hurt by something. It was probably a one off call-in, but you never know, maybe she'll put me back on duty properly soon."
You let out a curious hum as you take her plate from her, stacking it atop yours and brining them to the sink. "I thought you were completely off duty for some reason?"
Morgan steps up and leans against the doorway as you run the water. "No, I just got a break for a while, no clue when I'll be back in action properly." She shifts a little. "Honestly, all this sitting around is kind of driving me a little crazy, I'm not used to being stuck inside for weeks on end."
You smile as she takes the wet plates from your hands to dry them. "I'm sure you'll be back at it soon enough, probably." You place the last plate back in the cupboard and spin around to lean on the counter. "Anyway, I was wondering something." Morgan gives you an affirmative hum as she steps out of the way for Una to come through the door, carrying her mug. "Do you guys have some sort of reflect training or something for fighting fast creatures. I could barely even see that bird, let alone keep up."
Morgan lets out an ah noise before nodding. "Yeah, we've got something like that, it's over in one of the rooms by the Gym. It's basically a bean-bag cannon that fires faster and faster as you ramp it up. I think we used to have some mobile dummies or something, but they broke a while ago and the guy who made them died." She shrugs. "I dunno, was before I was here."
You nod as you gently ruffle Una's hair, getting a playful swat in return. "Right, I think I'll book some time in there later today if that's ok?" She nods and turns half-way to let Una back out of the room.
Now she's out of earshot, you lean a little closer to Morgan and lower your voice. "How was Una while I was away? She seemed really stressed when I got back."
Morgan presses her teeth together and lets out a long breath between them. "Honestly? She spent all the time you were away glued to the Radio, I went to find her a spare headset because she kept asking me questions at the lightest shush of static." She shakes her head. "I was getting a little worried, but she's mostly back to normal now you are here, I guess she was just worried about you."
You let out a slow hum as you think about her words. Oh Una, what am I going to do with you? You shake your head as you respond. "No, thank you for keeping her company, I wasn't aware of how bad it was." You were going to have to do... something, to help or fix this. You just didn't know what. For now though, training. You weren't running away, you were just... giving yourself more time to think about it? That sounded better.
You make it halfway out of the room before you remember, you don't know which room it is in. You sheepishly poke your head back through the door and call out to Morgan. "Hey, Morgan, what room is that reflex thingy in?"
You hear her drop something and curse quietly, before she calls back. "Third door on the left, it's got an triangle with an X through it, don't ask me why."
A short trip later and you are standing inside a fairly big room. It reaches back a good distance, maybe eight or nine metres? Regardless, there is a panel on the wall, with a set of instructions next to it. Push this for low speed, this for high speed and this of stupid speed? What kind of instructions are these? Still, you tentatively press the low speed button and set yourself into a stance, summoning your sword.
You see a green light begin glowing on the wall in front of you, and a timer begin counting down. When it reaches zero, you hear a phwuf and see a beanbag move towards you at perhaps slightly slow underarm throw speeds. You don't even bother hitting it, just letting it fall to the ground next to you. You move back over to the machine and set the speed to High.
This time, the countdown last barely even a second and there is a loud crack as the beanbag is sent flying at you. You manage to fumble your sword up into a guard position, a slightly melted beanbag falling to the floor. Ok, this is better. You hear a beep from the side, and glance in that direction just fast enough to see the Beanbag before it smacks you right in the face. You stumble back, but spin around for the next, catching it with your blade before it touches you.
Ok, now I get this. You set your stance as your ears perk, listening for the sound of the countdown starting from any direction.
Three hours later, and your feet are constantly stepping over charred beanbags. The shots are coming constantly now and from random directions, sometimes even from above or below. You are panting harshly as you just about manage to drag your body to intercept a shot, already twisting to reach another as you spin, swatting another two beanbags out of the air. You finally lose your balance on the uneven flooring, falling to the floor, where you lay panting. The canon evidently senses your submission, since it stops its attempts to pummel you to death, letting you catch your breath as your muscles scream at you.
Eventually you crawl to your feet, clumsily making your way over to the control panel, turning it off properly. You let your sword go, and tiredly make your way out of the room. You have never been so glad that transforming cleans your clothes for you, otherwise the smell of sweat coming from you would be lethal.
You clumsily make your way back to your room and ask Morgan a question. "Hey, do you have a war room or something?"
Morgan looks up from her push-ups and nods. "Yeah, we have something like that, want me to take you there?"
You nod appreciatively, gently tapping Una on the shoulder as you pass. "Hey want to go see a war room?" She looks up at you with wide eyes, before nodding frantically, marking her place in her book as she jumps to her feet and runs to the door. You laugh a little as you follow after her, holding the door for Morgan before she leads you. She takes you up to Karen's room, then past it, through an open door from which you can hear a great deal of noise.
Morgan looks at you from the side of her eye as she leads you to the corner of the room. "Don't make too much of a fuss ok? Everyone here is really busy." You nod as you stand there, taking everything in and trying to get a good look. There are uniformed people, in actual military uniforms, you note, working alongside the Clocktower's uniformed people. Oh? You lean to Morgan and whisper to her. "I didn't know that the military was this heavily involved with things, I thought they were just on call." Morgan just shrugs at your questions, apparently no more informed than you.
Still, you get the opportunity to look over the central map and take a note of all of the many, many markers on it. You can see, in a rough line, Enforcers moving upwards through England. Scouts are in front of them by a good distance, and you see some areas highlighted with marker. Is that? That looks like the mountain you had been at yesterday. Is it. The marker has changed from a bright red to a faded yellow. Huh. You glance across the map, taking everything in before you see that it actually extends to cover the whole of Europe, you had just been focusing on England.
You see so many little markers, and more interestingly, you see plans. Lines between markers, areas that are bright red, where markers avoid completely. These little lines go all over Europe, criss-crossing borders without note. Jesus Karen, you don't lack Ambition do you? You quirk your mouth as you look back towards England, the Enforcers were about half way through the country, though it was looking like there were more and more encounters occurring as they travelled further north.
They work fast, I expected this would have taken longer. Then again, if they already knew where all of the nests were, it's not that surprising that they would be capable of just jumping from place to place. Must be wearing themselves out going this fast though. You don't know that, but the thought makes sense.
You see more and more people starting to take notice of you, so you take the opportunity to quietly slip out of the room before it becomes a problem. Una is still bouncing as she walks, excitedly chattering about all of the different things in the room, and it did indeed have a lot of things. Papers stacked, files open on desks and computers humming away quietly in the background. Actually. While you are having a walkabout, why not stop by the Barracks? You've never actually been there after all.
"Hey Morgan, you two can go back, I want to stop off somewhere else on the way." She sends you a confused look, but you just smile. You kind of want to do this on your own, to prove that you can still deal with talking to people. So, you split up and go different directions, Una only hesitating slightly before leaving your side. You make your way up to the door and stop there, hesitating for a moment before taking a deep breath and stepping through.
The room is abuzz with noise, people moving about to and fro, people exercising without shirts to show off, people playing some sort of card game around a small table. You stand there, feeling distinctly awkward before you are noticed by someone. He pokes the woman at his side, and she turns to look at you too. Suddenly, every eye is turning your way and a quiet hush is spreading through the room.
After a minute of silence, you see a man stand up from somewhere near the back and make his way over to you amidst quiet muttering. It takes all of your effort to stay standing there passively as he approaches, but you manage. When he closes, you can see him more clearly. He is pretty tall, slightly dark skin and big muscles all over his body. He is wearing a trench-coat with some sort of armour covering his chest, it makes his steps heavy you can almost feel them as he moves.
He stops in front of you, and you get the impression that you should remain silent, just letting him look at you.
Eventually he reaches forwards, settling a strong hand on your shoulder, you have to strongly repress your instinctive action at that. But he just gives you a rough smile as he pats it solidly, the force enough to actually stagger you slightly. "There you are, we were wondering when you'd come and join the rest of us." The silence in the room abruptly fades as people return to their normal routine, sending you smiles and turning back to whatever they were doing, "We were worried Karen had locked you up, good to see you out and about. Now 'cmere."
When he walks, you follow him almost by instinct, desperately confused but not threatened in the slightest. He leads you back to the table you were sitting at, settling his weight down and patting the edge of the table behind him, an invitation to take a seat. You gingerly set your weight down against the table, more heavily when it doesn't move an inch. "This is Barry, Davis and Mary." He points out each of the people who where sitting at the table with him. "I'm Chris, but you can call me Buck."
You stare at him, open mouthed before the woman of the group reaches over and gives him a firm hit to the side of his head. "Don't you listen to this idiot, nobody calls him Buck, it's this thing he's been trying to do for years."
You see Chris rub the side of his head as he looks at Mary. "And I wouldda gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling kids!" He lets out a strange, clearly fake laugh, but it still makes the corner of your lip peek up slightly. Which is evidently enough for him to be satisfied, since he lets out a loud chuckle and leans back in his seat. "Now, what brings you down here? Not that your not welcome of course, but I didn't think you'd bother."
You wince a little, but nod. "I was just, curious, I guess. I don't really know why."
Davis nods sagely, stroking his blond goatee with an obviously practised move. "Ah, I see. Lost on the road of life then, young grasshopper." Seeing a fully grown, pasty white man with bright blond hair somehow sets his Chinese impression perfectly. You nod, leaning back a little to set your palms flat on the table behind you. He smiles through his beard. "Well then, we have cards, grumpy women, dice, grumpy women, board games and grumpy women, take your pick." He receives a dangerous glance from Mary that promises payback, but it still makes you smile.
"Uh, no. I was just... Yeah." God, why is this so awkward.
Chris shifts in his seat and throws an arm at the table before him. "We'll want, to 'ave a go then? We're playing blackjack."
You shake your head before you can think further. "Umm, no, thank you. I'll just, watch or something."
He lets out a grunt as the still silent Barry starts shuffling cards at an impressive rate. He flicks them out between the group and the game starts. You only watch them for a little while, eventually you start feeling just... out of place. You excuse yourself after the second round, and Chris waves at you as you step off. "Come back here whenever, we might not be here, but 'aint nobody gonna treat you bad here. Especially when you're fighting all of them nasty fuckers for us." Mary gives you a much softer smile that is much more comforting as you walk through the room.
People glance up as you pass, some of them offering you waves or smiles, but most of them just giving you nods. You quicken your pace until you exit the room, slumping against the door back first. You take several deeps breaths before you stand up, quickly walking back to your room, confusing thoughts running through your head. Seeing Morgan and Una reading together on the sofa is a relief, a sense of stability and normality that helps you catch yourself.
You settle down and spend the rest of the evening reading with Una, Morgan occasionally calling out a joke from the book she was reading. When you were tired, you moved off to bed, feeling much more relaxed than you had before.
When the sun rises, you take your morning bath and get dressed. Morgan is waiting for you, actually awake today, with a folder before her. "Hey Cerys, last big thing left on the list, that we know of at least." You nod as you come to stand beside her, fingers flicking the page open, taking in the picture on the front.
"Hey, isn't that the thing I killed the other day? Over in that town I pulled into?"
Morgan nods and shifts the folder to the side, opening it onto the informational page. "Yes and that is why we are so worried, it was clearly artificial and now we've done some digging, we think we've found the source." She points out a set of photos near the bottom of the page. They are fairly blurry, a security camera of some kind. It shows a hooded person wearing a cloak and billowing robes, stepping out of a building, followed by one of the creatures, before stepping out of frame.
"This building was recently the sight of a ritual suicide, or so they are calling it. In reality, we are pretty sure that this is a dark mage of some kind that we've flushed out of hiding with the big push. He probably got panicky when so many Enforcers came over, and it made him set his plans off earlier." She flips the page again, showing a more detailed picture of the creature. "This creature, tentatively named 'Scrant' by the team that discovered them, is some sort of regenerating absorption creature. It regenerates endlessly, well, more likely it regenerates by consuming it's creators Mana. But still. It also dissolves anything it touches, though this has been discovered to be a mild acid, rather than any sort of magical effect."
You take a long breath as you look at the picture. It was kind of... bloby. It was like someone had taken a blob, attached the seeds of a dandelion to it's entire body and then coloured it in military urban camo. In short, fucking weird. "This is my job today then, taking down these creatures?"
Morgan nods, but still looks reluctant. After a minute, she continues speaking. "Yes, but your job is also the destruction of all dark magic on the premises."
You blink at her words, thinking them through for a minute before you come to a conclusion you really don't want to. You take a long, slow breath as you keep yourself calm. You turn to Morgan fully and look her in the eyes, before speaking clearly. "Morgan, I just want to be sure here. You want me to destroy these creatures and kill this man?"
She nods slowly, clearly reluctant, but answers. "Yes, it is the duty of any who are still sane to destroy those who fall to the dark. It is a mercy." She still looks like she has swallowed a lemon.
You lean back, setting your weight on the table behind you as you fold your arms. You don't say anything, looking straight at her as she sits there, waiting for you to respond.
[] Fight to kill
[] Refuse to kill
High-Speed Combat
-50xp
-Training
Cerys can track objects moving up to 90mph.
-50xp
Cerys can track objects moving up to 90mph.
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[X] Fight to kill
[X] EXP Plan Speed
-[X] High-Speed Combat (50 EXP)
[X] EXP Plan Speed
-[X] High-Speed Combat (50 EXP)
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I'm hearing a good argument for trying to send her to school right now actually. Although maybe trying to start with half-days or something.
...
Nice job talking to them there Cerys.No opinion on the Killing thing right now. Cerys is very reluctant to kill like this, possibly linked to having been (tried) to be hired to kill people before, but at the same time...
Also, found a neat Hibiki/Una pic:
On a similar note, when do people usually start learning magic? Morgan made it sound like she's been taught since she could walk almost. I'm just wondering if Una might have started getting taught the basics or not.
Lone Courier 6
Devilish Fool
- Location
- United States of Quests
[x] Fight to kill
[X] EXP Plan Speed
-[X] High-Speed Combat (50 EXP)
[X] EXP Plan Speed
-[X] High-Speed Combat (50 EXP)
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- Location
- Earth
Okay then, this is what we signed up for. We knew it would happen eventually and Morgan is right.
However, I will make a slight addition... because this should be adressed sooner rather than later. Additionally, EXP.
[X] Fight to kill
-[X] Before you leave, have a talk with Una about how much she worries; try to reassure her in that nothing will stop you from coming back, so she does not need to be this concerned
[X] EXP Plan Speed
-[X] High-Speed Combat (50 EXP)
Seeing that her birthday is in March, I think this would make for a good birthday present
Additionally, it is actually pretty heartwarming to see how friendly the common soldiers are to Cerys; it shows that they appreciate what she is doing for them.
I am also in favour of visiting them again, and again and so on. Not every day, but maybe once every two weeks or something like that.
However, I will make a slight addition... because this should be adressed sooner rather than later. Additionally, EXP.
[X] Fight to kill
-[X] Before you leave, have a talk with Una about how much she worries; try to reassure her in that nothing will stop you from coming back, so she does not need to be this concerned
[X] EXP Plan Speed
-[X] High-Speed Combat (50 EXP)
We should wait until this operation is over, though. @Rukia, when does the school year start in England?
Morgan said to wait until Una is a year older when we asked her about this before, so I guess they start at around ten.
Seeing that her birthday is in March, I think this would make for a good birthday present
Additionally, it is actually pretty heartwarming to see how friendly the common soldiers are to Cerys; it shows that they appreciate what she is doing for them.
I am also in favour of visiting them again, and again and so on. Not every day, but maybe once every two weeks or something like that.
