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Not Playing With A Full Deck (Highschool DxD/Fate),AU SI

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I regret to inform you all that, for the time being, I will be taking a hiatus from this story. I am struggling with my current chapter, and my muse is tugging me in several other directions. Hopefully working on other stories will help me find what I want to do next in this story.
Additionally, I will be returning to college tomorrow, so that will certainly limit my ability to work on fanfiction as much as I'd like.

On that note, I have multiple ideas for what I should work on in the interim; would you guys/girls/attack helicopters mind helping me decide which one, if I post a list here?
 
Okay then, here we go:
  1. The Planeswalker Multicross SI I mentioned earlier (Tenatively named "Knowledge is Power; Sadly, I Know Nothing".) Pairing(s) undetermined at this time.
  2. When Darkness Rises [From Shadows], Silence Dies: The Dragonborn, a Dunmer Vampire Lord, is sent to Remnant by Sheogorath at his own request. The catch? This Dragonborn is the Listener, the Thieves' Guild Master, and a Nightingale. Because sometimes, the survival of mankind requires wading through an ocean of blood. Pairing would be DragonbornXNeopolitan.
  3. A Persona 3/4/5 linked pseudo-cross, in which Yu and Naoto are Shadow Operatives and are sent to investigate the mental shutdowns. Shenanigans ensue.
  4. Tenuem Magi Personae Magica (Phantom Mage Persona Magic): Zetsubō no Kaitō-dan (Phantom Thieves of Despair) 5 years after the conclusion of Persona 5, the former Phantom Thieves of Hearts meet up for a trip to Mitakihara. You could say that Kyubey will... Never See It Coming~
  5. Fate/Infinity÷Zero: Long story short, Bazzet Fraga McRemitz's older cousin joins the Fourth Grail war and summons a Caster/Berserker double summon. All other participants still summon Servants, though two are different (Ryuunosuke and Kirei). The Fraga in question fights alongside his Servant, much like Kuzuki did, though more effectively since he's got his own Magic to rely on along with Caster's, to say nothing of Fragarach.
To be honest, the Fate/Zero one is the one I have the most inspiration for at the moment, followed by the P3/4/5 and the Planeswalker one. For the other two, I still have ideas, but not as much inspiration (and I'd need to finish Madoka)
 
please, for the love of god, if you write the planeswalker one, don't make him/her into an incompetent scary cat. They seem funny at first but they really are not. It is like reading about Morty from Rick and Morty fumbling through NGE AU verse where every character is doing Gendo pose while plotting to kill everybody they know.
 
Hmm I like most of the choices but in the end do what you want to do...perhaps this time try a gen fic.
 
SleepyGuy12 said:
please, for the love of god, if you write the planeswalker one, don't make him/her into an incompetent scary cat. They seem funny at first but they really are not. It is like reading about Morty from Rick and Morty fumbling through NGE AU verse where every character is doing Gendo pose while plotting to kill everybody they know.
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This right here, I can't stress enough how much of a turn off it is to have SIs so scared of everyone as if they are going to kill them on a hair trigger.
 
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    • Not Playing With A Full Deck
    Draw For Turn- Finale​

    After the duo of Heiresses left to inform their respective Peerages of the situation, I retreated into my workshop. If I was to have any measure of safety in an encounter with Avenger, then I needed to make like the (Goddamn) Batman and prepare.

    To be frank, I wasn't nervous; I was fucking terrified. I had very little knowledge of the Count of Monte Cristo's disposition, so I had almost no idea what to expect from a meeting. However, I also knew that if I approached the situation expecting conflict, it would make the breakdown of peaceful negotiations far more likely. On the other hand, if I came completely unarmed, I'd be all but asking for something bad to happen. Moderation, I decided, was the word of the day.


    After about 40 minutes, I had something resembling a plan, and had secreted a middling number of ofuda about my person. I called up a few shikigami and had them lead me towards where Dantes had been detected. Naturally, he had already vacated the premises, so I had my shikigami spread out and begin combing the city for any sign of the reborn King of the Cavern. Thankfully, his energy was so potent that my shikigami had no trouble attuning to it, then tracking it.

    What followed was an exhausting chase back and forth across Kuoh. Every time I'd approach his location, he would vanish and reappear across town. Clearly, he was putting Enfer Château d'If to good use. However, as an unbound Heroic Spirit, he couldn't keep such a pace up forever, even if he had been eating the souls of Strays he'd been hunting. Eventually, the distances of his "leaps" began to shorten, and then, abruptly, he stopped running.

    I strode into the warehouse, Onyx tapping on the ground with every other step. A man in a dark green suit and hat sagged against the far wall, his scarf twitching erratically as the glowing orbs of light on it dimmed with every breath. His skin was a sickly pale, the grayish tan of a mannequin, and his pale hair drooped into his yellow-gold eyes.

    He regarded me dully, and spoke in a quiet voice. "Well, you caught me. Not an easy task, Magus. I suppose I should be impressed." He then closed his eyes wearily. "Very well, do what you came to do. Cleanse me, kill me; whatever you will call eliminating the stain of my existence on the world."

    I arched an eyebrow. "What makes you think that I wish to kill you? As far as I am aware, all you have done is hunt down threats to Kuoh and dispose of them with no collateral damage whatsoever. The fact that you probably consumed their souls to fuel your existence in this world is of no concern to me; you were likely doing them a mercy." As I spoke, I approached Avenger. "No, I have not come to kill you, Avenger; no, Edmond Dantes. I would have you join me, if you are willing."

    The pale man looked at me incredulously, then gave a short, barking laugh. "Hah! I suppose all of this running was pointless, then." I shrugged. "Meh. It was good exercise, and it was good to test the limits of my shikigami at tracking, which are startlingly few." I offered him my hand, which he took. His form was engulfed in light as he entered my soul. I texted Sona and Rias, informing them of my success, and returned to my home to speak with the voices in my head (and wasn't that an amusing turn of phrase).


    ??? PoV

    A pair of golden eyes tracked the man as he approached his home. The owner of these eyes had been observing Johan during their massive amount of free time. Seriously, their leader was strong and all, and the observer was quite… fond of this fact, for personal reasons, but their headquarters was so unbelievably boring! "Hehehehe… you are quite the interesting specimen, Johan Blair~"

    Dohnaseek PoV

    Dohnaseek was sweating bullets. He stood before the Cadre who'd put the idea of killing the Hyoudou boy into Raynare's twisted little head. Kokabiel, the Fallen Watcher of the Stars. He was not nearly as familiar with the Cadre as he'd have liked, in spite of his former position in Heaven's Archives. Regardless, the being sitting before him was incredibly intimidating, and he wasn't even doing anything!
    "So, Raynare failed, at the hands of some mortal mage, and the boy did not become a Devil, again due to the actions of this mage? Interesting… This Johan has piqued my interest." Kokabiel broke out into a grin that stopped just shy of being terrifying. Little did he know, Azazel had uttered the exact same words, with the exact same expression on his face. Dohnaseek shivered. 'Why do all of the powerful people have to be bugfuck crazy?!' The Fallen lamented silently.


    AN: Boy, it sure has been a while since I last updated!
    *Hides behind Tamamo's Mirror as Noble Phantasms rain down upon him*
    Now, now. I have a perfectly reasonable explanation, if you'd all put away your Gates of Babylon. One word: College. It's a major energy siphon, especially for someone like me, who is perpetually in search of actual, restful sleep. The sheer lack of energy I've had, combined with my muse dancing off to Zelretch knows where, has had me stuck for a while. Seriously, I had just the first paragraph typed for like three weeks. Hopefully, now that I seem to have gotten back in the swing of things, I'll be able to actually keep a semi-regular update schedule.
    Also, I'll be joining the Creative Writing Club at my college, so they might help.
    Beta Note: (Error: Beta Note not found. Recommend seeking new beta, as previous beta has apparently died of old age while awaiting update)

    …I kid :D
    Amen on the College deal being a big energy sucker, my Surveying class has outdoor lab sessions for 3 hours and it's been like a 100 bloody degrees in Chico the past few weeks.
    …
    On the plus side I now have a skin tone appropriate to one of 50% Peruvian descent, rather than my previous shade of Gringo-ass, state puff marshmallow man.

    Anyway, welcome back Xano!
    (Question, is Johan pronounced JO-HAN or YO-HAN? And yes, I'm only asking this after tens of thousands of words)

    AN: Ah, yes! A funny story with that one! It's Yo-han, after Johan Anderson from Yugioh GX. The reason for my character name is as follows: Johan Anderson's English Dub name is changed to Jesse Anderson, and my real name is Jesse, so… Psuedonym get!
    Anyhow, as always, enjoy, leave a review, and pwease don't kill meeeee~
     
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    • SleepyGuy12 said:
    please, for the love of god, if you write the planeswalker one, don't make him/her into an incompetent scary cat. They seem funny at first but they really are not. It is like reading about Morty from Rick and Morty fumbling through NGE AU verse where every character is doing Gendo pose while plotting to kill everybody they know.
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    hibiki6 said:
    This right here, I can't stress enough how much of a turn off it is to have SIs so scared of everyone as if they are going to kill them on a hair trigger.
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    Rejoice, because the character I have in mind is certainly not a "scaredy cat" by any means. How could he be? If he were sensible and cautious, how could he train under the Izzet? The Simic? Oh boy! Mad Magiscience and Squidcatdragons!
    His competence, however... well, as is appropriate, he will be more competent at some things than others, and his overall competency will naturally improve over the course of the story.

    Finally, as he will be world-hopping, I feel like I should say this: the SI will not hoard his future information to use at the right time, letting canon events play out as normal.
    Don't get me wrong: I get why other SI's have done it, but as the person I am I wouldn't be able to do that. My memory is shit, and my impulsiveness and "bleeding heart syndrome" would completely preclude me sidelining myself.

    Edit: Oh, I almost forgot: I've changed my mind on what to call it. It's going to be called...(imaginary drumroll here)
    Blinded By the Eternities!
     
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    I agree with the notion of not hoarding the meta knowledge but it would be hundred times better if your character simply did not care about the 'canon' timeline than spilling the beans on the nature of the universe and the meta knowledge concerning that particular plane. confronting the main cast, telling them of their future and trying to be relevant in the plot from some misguided attempt to be one of the 'heroes' of the story is one of the most dangerous pitfalls you can find yourself in.
     
    SleepyGuy12 said:
    I agree with the notion of not hoarding the meta knowledge but it would be hundred times better if your character simply did not care about the 'canon' timeline than spilling the beans on the nature of the universe and the meta knowledge concerning that particular plane. confronting the main cast, telling them of their future and trying to be relevant in the plot from some misguided attempt to be one of the 'heroes' of the story is one of the most dangerous pitfalls you can find yourself in.
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    Perhaps, but I'm too softhearted to do anything else, I'm afraid. However, "I" suppose all "I" can do is try my best to keep myself and the various people who "I" believe to be good safe. Whether "I" shall succeed or not remains to be seen.
    Do not worry, this will not be a "SI swoops in and miraculously fixes everything" fic; I'm not so arrogant as to think that there could exist an analogue of myself capable of such.

    "I" may succeed at times, and "I" certainly will fail at times, but such is the nature of life. This fact doesn't change, even if you become an ageless, plane-hopping, super-sorcerer with ALL the Lightning Bolts.

    If my intended approach displeases you, then I apologize. I simply write my characters as best as I know how, and I feel as though I am the most effective when I write characters that are similar to me, or are SI's.
     
    Xanothos said:
    (Question, is Johan pronounced JO-HAN or YO-HAN? And yes, I'm only asking this after tens of thousands of words)
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    Depends on where you're from. The traditional pronunciation, given that it's a Germanic name derived from a old Hebrew name, is the latter. But there are undoubtedly plenty of people who mispronounce it, or more accurately pronounce it correctly under English language rules or equivalent.

    So if you're European or from such a family in other countries, the latter is more appropriate.
     
    Akritedes said:
    Depends on where you're from. The traditional pronunciation, given that it's a Germanic name derived from a old Hebrew name, is the latter. But there are undoubtedly plenty of people who mispronounce it, or more accurately pronounce it correctly under English language rules or equivalent.

    So if you're European or from such a family in other countries, the latter is more appropriate.
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    Ah, that was my beta asking, not me. Here, I'll quote my explanation.
    "It'sYo-han, after Johan Anderson from YugiohGX. The reason for my character name is as follows: Johan Anderson's English Dub name is changed to Jesse Anderson, and my real name is Jesse, so… Psuedonym get!"
     
    Sir Gawain said:
    What if a wild kiara appeared
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    Oh god no. Not Beast! I can't handle that much cleavage!

    On the subject of Alters, someone just gave me a highly entertaining suggestion: to have a Spirit summoned improperly, so they swap between their normal and Alter forms. I will likely do this. It'll be great.
     
    Jeanne alter arguing with herself would be kind of funny and an arturia accidentally getting her ahoge pulled off would be funny.
    "I am a cute gothic lolita maid waitress, sir!"
    ~saber alter carnival phantasm
     
    Combat Step 3.1
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    Combat Step 3.1​

    Johan PoV
    After the incident with Avenger, things were quiet for a couple of weeks. During that time, I practiced more with my Magecraft, and got to the point where I could Include Assassin, Rider, and Avenger for 30 minutes at a time, and could maintain Install with Caster for a similar period. Additionally, I could keep Caster Included for a near-indefinite period of time.

    Assassin continued to train me, both at stealth and at swordsmanship. He would instruct me from within my soul, correcting any flaws that would develop in my fighting style before they even had a chance to develop.

    Caster offered more advice on developing my own Witchcraft style and new types of ofuda for me to use, while Rider gave advice on being more charismatic, as well as offering training in wide-scale tactics. More importantly, he taught me how to pilot Mesektet, the holy sky-ship that was said to carry Ra across the sky. He had yet to teach me about any of his other Noble Phantasms, however.

    Avenger was pretty quiet overall, not speaking to me much, aside from when he taught me how to use his Noble Phantasms. The easiest of his three Noble Phantasms was Monte Cristo Mythologie, for good reason. It was, simply put, his existence as a fictional avenger shaped into how his body interacted with the World. This was what allowed him to use his flames.

    The second one was a bit harder, but I had it pretty well in hand: Attendre, Espérer. This was the crystallization of his unceasing hope for escape in his story, and this became the means to bring anyone or anything back to prime health, even crossing the boundaries of death. I didn't think I could resurrect people yet, but I could heal mortal wounds on myself and others quite swiftly, so that was supremely useful.

    Now, his last Noble Phantasm was significantly more Prana-intensive to use. Enfer Château d'If was a thoroughly terrifying ability, formed of the crystallization of Dantes' escape from his prison in "The Count of Monte Cristo". It allows the user to escape any confine. The most widely useful use is to move outside of the confines of spacetime to attack a foe relentlessly, or escape swiftly. As I was, my Circuits could not handle me using it for longer than about five seconds at a time. However, as both DIO and Jotaro would attest, 5 seconds of "time stop" in the middle of a fight is hugely significant.

    Regardless, I made good progress in using the abilities of the Spirits sharing my soul, and finished the enchanted items that I had offered Sona as payment. She was exceptionally pleased with them, and Rias was incredibly jealous.

    The redhead began pestering me for such items of her own, so I offered her a trade: ask her brother to get me in contact with Ajuka Beelzebub, and I'd make one for her and one for Akeno. She immediately agreed, of course, and returned in a few days with a package from the Scholarly Satan. It contained a brief and efficiently worded letter, inquiring as to what I wished to discuss with him, as well as a small medallion that would apparently allow me to teleconference with him when he was in his workshop in the Underworld.



    That evening, I did just that. The amulet projected a holographic screen above it, depicting the green haired Satan jotting something down on some scrap paper. He looked up, a bemused expression on his face, before a look of recognition appeared.

    "You must be Johan. As you may know, my name is Ajuka Beelzebub, one of the Four Great Satans of the Underworld. I understand you are something of an artificer?"

    I nodded. "I am indeed. In fact, that very detail is related to one of the two reasons I wished to contact you." Ajuka gestured for me to continue, so I did. "As you can tell, I am missing an important part of my sensory suite, so to speak. While I have allies capable of healing my wounds, I thought that I might take the opportunity to… add to my arsenal."

    I retrieved the object that I'd spent many long hours carving from ametrine. It was a sphere, with each of the 24 Futhark Runes carved into its surface. It was set in a socket that, by utilizing a subtle form of Thaumaturgy I barely understood, allowed it to rotate 360 degrees in every direction. I held up the sphere so that Ajuka could observe it more directly.

    "Hmmm. Now what do we have here? Those are Elder Futhark Runes, that much I can tell easily, but what is that stone for?" Ajuka mused aloud, attempting to decipher the nature of my creation. "It rotates in the socket, and you are short one eye. A Mystic Eye of some sort?"

    I nodded happily. "Yes indeed! This will eventually become my Mystic Eye of Runecraft, if I have my way. I just wanted your input regarding the implementation of it into my body. You see, I don't think it would be advisable to perform a surgical graft of a magical object onto my own body."

    Ajuka nodded sagely. "Indeed. You aren't Azazel; you can't really get away with self-surgery." I snorted, recalling the fact that, in canon, the eccentric Grigori Governor would craft a prosthetic arm that had magical rocket boosters. "However," Ajuka continued, "It would likely be a better idea for you to ask him about this, rather than me."

    I nodded, acknowledging the wisdom of the advice. "Indeed. However, I have another project that I would beg your assistance with, though of course I would offer my services, such as they are, in exchange for your expertise."

    Ajuka cupped his chin. "Well, considering the apparent ease with which you produced those augmentation talismans, I am sure that we can work something out.

    "By the way, the efficiency of those talismans impressed me. Of course, I could make something of the sort, but it would be made of much rarer and more expensive materials, as well as take longer to create, if I wished to match your efficiency."

    At this point, an almost manic grin spread across the Beelzebub's face. "I practically salivate at the thought of what you could do with materials of the quality I could provide."

    I felt an equally manic grin spread across my own face. "You know exactly how to sweet talk me, Lord Beelzebub. I find myself as giddy as you at the thought."



    After the two of us had finished bonding over mutually beneficial maniacal cackling, I got around to actually asking about my project; namely, Tamamo's Incarnation into a physical body. Clearly, this puzzle was one Ajuka would revel in; the olive-haired Satan adored solving difficult problems.

    "Well," Ajuka mused, "You would do well to acquire some manner of anchor; something with both physical and metaphysical significance to the spirit.

    "Beyond that, you would need to have the appropriate amount of biomaterial to shape into a body; One option would be poltergeist ectoplasm. The stuff is tied closely enough to life that your spirit would not be sterile, but she would still be able to take a spiritual form."

    I blushed faintly at the reminder of one of the biggest reasons Tamamo wanted her own body. Verily, the voluptuous, vivacious vixen was vehemently voracious. However, I would never complain; I would be lying if I said that I wasn't looking forward to such an experience.

    I thanked Ajuka for his advice, then inquired the price of such a reagent. He informed me that he'd send me a sufficient quantity of ectoplasm, in the best possible quality, if I made him one of my charms from higher quality materials, that he would provide at-cost. I happily agreed, and my doorbell rang.

    On my doorstep stood a brown-haired man with a familiar face. He introduced himself as one of Ajuka's bishops, Archimedes. However, for the sake of simplicity, he bade me call him "Archie".
    In one hand, he held a box, the other clutched a notepad. He offered it to me, and I saw that it was a receipt for materials. The cost of the materials was high, but not unaffordable. I'd have to eat cup ramen more than usual this month, however.



    Once I'd shelled out the required cash, I returned to my workshop and began work on the charm. As usual, by the time I'd finished several hours had passed. After a latedinner, I packed up my latest creation, sent a message to Ajuka informing him of my success, and left my house. I set the wards of the house to permit one-time only passage for one member of the Beelzebub household into my foyer, where the package was waiting.



    After a short walk, I arrived at a bus station, and waited for the next bus to Kyoto. As I sat, I noticed a black cat in my peripheral vision. As soon as it saw that I'd noticed it, the cat darted into some bushes, but now that I was actively looking for it, I could sense the Demonic and Yokai energies emanating from the cat.

    Of course, I had my suspicions as to who it was, considering where I was, but I could not for the life of me think of a reason for Kuroka of all people would be following me! I muttered an instruction for Onyx to keep a figurative eye out for her energy signature, and then boarded the bus to Kyoto. My mission? Wheedle Yasaka, the Nine Tailed Queen of Shadow Kyoto, into allowing me to use a shard of the Sesshōseki, the Killing Stone that had formed from Tamamo's corpse in this world.



    ? PoV

    Three cloaked figures paused on the side of the road, having felt an odd sensation pass them by. To two of them, it felt familiar. After a pause, the trio made their way to a church that sat on a hill…


    AN: *Bursts from the ground* I LIVE! *Dodges thrown objects* KYAAA!
    *Ahem* I do apologize for my incredible lateness in posting this; College, and life in general, have been hell on my muse. On the bright side, I've made some new writing buddies, and four of us are planning a four-person RWBY SI collaboration. It's going to be a fucking trainwreck, and it will be GLORIOUS.
    Speaking of which, one of the four, Teninshigen, graciously looked over this chapter, as he did my newest story, Persona 4 Amber: Hermit's Fortune. I thank him for his assistance, and hope that he updates his Fairy Tail SI soon. As always, review if you like; it helps!
    Cheers,
    Xanothos
     
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    • one of the things that irradiated me about the canon and hopeful not in this story is the leaders of the factions their should be politics involved
     
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