- Pronouns
- He/Him
Happy holidays, QM.
Summoner Quest (Celestial Menagerie)
- Thread starter zagan
- Start date
- Crossover IC
Hope you have a happy holiday. And don't be sorry since you deserve it for keeping the quest going for more than 2 years 
- Location
- USA
Glad mom won out in the end even if i voted for something else, a really nice look into the person who is probably closest to the MC and some nice background build up. Also making me go reread the quest now
GamingandReading
Browses and Replies With Haste
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Oh naw. Alex had a Ride or Die? No wonder he sounded melancholic when he tal-.. no. When he THOUGHT about her. Damn, that's sad.
AntaeusTheGiant
Child of Gaea
- Location
- Lawrence, KS
Hmm.
There isn't a chance in a few years for a knock at the door and a "Sorry I didn't tell you before, but this is your ...." is there?
Edit: I just had a much more horrible thought than that.
If we had voted for a Bakuda interlude, there isn't a chance we would have found out her name was Akemi, is there?
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That was a lovely end cap to the first (season/book?) of the story.
One hole though... didn't he assign a certain Panda Konichi to body guard her? She needs to make not of that or otter people's reactions to it.
No no they'd likely get angry or annoyed that a heroine was hiding instead of fighting or put a spot light on why this old woman was getting a Parahuman guard.
Perhaps a paragraph of Zei giving her hand a squeeze before remarking on Zei finding her then carrying her to a shelter a ways farther away from the bay than she'd have normally gone before disguising herself as a human?
One hole though... didn't he assign a certain Panda Konichi to body guard her? She needs to make not of that or otter people's reactions to it.
No no they'd likely get angry or annoyed that a heroine was hiding instead of fighting or put a spot light on why this old woman was getting a Parahuman guard.
Perhaps a paragraph of Zei giving her hand a squeeze before remarking on Zei finding her then carrying her to a shelter a ways farther away from the bay than she'd have normally gone before disguising herself as a human?
- Location
- france
- Pronouns
- He
I'm back! My batteries are fully charged up and I will get started on the next chapter soon.
I'm not sure I will ever use Akemo (on screen) but if I do it won't be that way.
Thank you.Hope you have a happy holiday. And don't be sorry since you deserve it for keeping the quest going for more than 2 years
I hadn't considered the possibility. I don't think it's something I would do.
Don't worry no.
I'm not sure I will ever use Akemo (on screen) but if I do it won't be that way.
I strongly considered having Zei appear in a roundabout way. Like an angry guy gesticulating and nearly hitting Alex's mom but falling to the ground for no reason before he could. But I couldn't make it fit.
GamingandReading
Browses and Replies With Haste
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Don't you mean "Panicking"? I wouldn't understand why someone was angry when a damn endbringer is at your front door.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
I have a question. If Alex had a supply of QP, would he be able to Ascend Shadowmere? I assume not as he would need Assassin Pieces apparently, but it is worth thinking about. I do not play F/GO so I do not know how the game mechanics work past what is written on the wiki.
- Location
- france
- Pronouns
- He
I don't know much about the game mechanics of F/GO. I know it's possible for Servant to evolve/ascend/whatever but I don't know how it works.
I'm not opposed to it but I won't go looking for way to do it.
GamingandReading
Browses and Replies With Haste
- Pronouns
- He/Him
From my understanding of F/GO, ascending is basically bringing a servants myth into actuality. For example, Hercules(Archer) was said to shot at the sun and hit Apollo. Ascension would bring that into being, where 5 star Hercules(Archer) can shoot a speed of light arrow. Or at least that's my understanding.
- Location
- Wisconsin
- Pronouns
- He/Him
That's a good summation, and not far off from what it does in game. I actually brought this up when Shadow was turned into a Servant, here's my quote and zagans response.
To better elaborate, a Servant is not capable of wielding the entirety of their legends as a whole, they need Class Containers to actualize those specific qualities relevant to the Class in question. This is because they are not bringing back the dead hero in question, but the legends of that hero into a Spiritual Core, a quote from the wiki.
"Even the Holy Grail lacks the power to summon a true Heroic Spirit, so the process is facilitated by summoning them into one of seven vessels prepared beforehand. The Greater Grail makes a copy using information from the "main body" of the Heroic Spirit, an "emanation", that returns to them as information, in the form of a soul, upon the death of the Servant. Disconnected from the "main body", they are able to know of the actions of the Servant through records, as if reading a book.
Similarly as to how Daemons require a form invented by humans in order to take shape, Heroic Spirits need a form to exist in the world. The vessels, Classes, act as their temporary name and method of existing. Acting like a "passport to the present", the vessel prepares them for their role as a Familiar in advance, allows them to take on that role to help them take form, and brings them forth into the world. Each Class identifies only the core Skills of the Heroic Spirit because replication of all their abilities is impossible. Their main traits align with the Class and are given form, matching the principal nature of the Class. Only heroes matching the attributes of the Classes are brought forth, allowing them to be summoned into any reflecting their abilities."
The example I used was Siegfried because of how drastic the change in his abilities was between Gordes using the Grail alone and Ritsuka using Servant Ascension. He essentially raised the rank of his Noble Phantasm Balmung and brought out two more Personal Skills for Siegried to utilize.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
To be honest, I only brought up the question because I noticed that there were several entries in the TYPE-MOON category that only seem to exist to drop QP and Ascension materials. I have no idea what else QP could be used for, but the idea of Alex force-feeding his Assassin horse them in the hopes of leveling up was funny to me. It likely wouldn't work but still, I find the image funny.
- Location
- france
- Pronouns
- He
Yes, that was it. I knew that the question was asked previously but I didn't bother looking for it. Thanks for the explanation @JumpFail200.
If we ever get creatures that give QP I might reconsider the matter but I don't think Shadow is a good candidate for it. For the simple reason that there's unused Legend to add. I already need to get creative to reach the current result.
However, if we get a Servant with a richer Legend, a "real" Servant from F/GO that has potential for growth, then I would be more open to it.
Only things I could think, but might not count, are it reviving any time it dies and maybe the effect it has in the card game where it gets stronger if it dies. Combined they seem like a decent boost for an Assassin Servant.
Edit: Removed the first Assassin.
Edit: Removed the first Assassin.
Chapter 188: Aftermath
- Location
- france
- Pronouns
- He
[X] Alex's Mom
[X] Power
Power Roll: (690 points)
Entry Roll D41=36
0 Bonus Point (100),0 Debt (Already one in reserve), 0 Exchange
Power ReRoll: (690 points)
Entry Roll D41=36
0 Bonus Point (100),0 Debt (Already one in reserve), 0 Exchange
Sub-vote results: Reroll Exchange => 300 Displace Damage
Banked: 390
[X] Power
Power Roll: (690 points)
Entry Roll D41=36
0 Bonus Point (100),
Power ReRoll: (690 points)
Entry Roll D41=36
0 Bonus Point (100),
Sub-vote results: Reroll Exchange => 300 Displace Damage
Banked: 390
I want to have this chapter out earlier, but Super Marios Wonder. Do I need to say anything else?
If so I can add that this may be the biggest chapter I ever wrote, so that may be a factor too. Enjoy.
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Friday, 05/06/2011 (20 PM)
The past five days were a blur of colors and sensations, an unending series of meetings, reunions, reports, interviews, and questions, so many questions. And of course, one can't forget the celebration, the parties that just won't end. Even now, all over the world spontaneous parties were still happening and didn't look like they would end any time soon.
Despite my enhanced endurance and regeneration, I could feel phantom soreness from my wrist and I knew that my throat should be raw by now. While I could enjoy a party like anyone else, by nature I was more of an introvert so after a while it got old. And I could do without the numerous girls, and the few guys, blatantly hitting on me. I wasn't currently looking for a relationship and certainly not one based on hero-worship.
While intellectually I knew that killing an Endbringer was a good thing, if this was the reward I should expect every time, I might not be so eager to do it again. What was the saying again? The reward for doing good work is more work.
This was nearly the first time I had a few minutes to myself in the past five days. Even with the ability to have some of my Minds sleeping in the back of my head all the time, I would really like to sleep for real.
I was finally able to take a breather if you could call it that. I was in the Orb's dimension as four of my partners were choosing their classes for their first Dungeon run. I would have loved to do it much earlier, but I want to be there to supervise the very first run. Nimue doesn't like waiting much either but she accepts my reasoning with good grace.
Choosing who to send first proved to be tricky. After much reflection, which served as an excellent distraction during the endless meetings, I ended up choosing Caradoc, Zap, Kuja, and Star.
My Trainer instincts were telling me that those four had immense potential. They were focused on screens that only they could perceive, making a very important decision, so I let them do it.
It allowed me to rememorate on the past five days and what happened in the aftermath of Leviathan's death.
Once the euphoria that first followed Leviathan's death passed, the flying capes around us were unsure of what to do. It was Alexandria that took control of the situation.
Legend was sent to link back with the civilian authority. Eidolon and I were sent to check on the damage dealt by what was left of the tsunami on the edge of town. The other capes were told to return to the PRT headquarters and that transportation would be arranged so they could go back to their home. As for Alexandria, she would contact the PRT Director, Rebecca Costa Brown, to inform her of the good news and decide on how they should handle it. Surprisingly there was no plan or even an inkling of an idea on what to do if we ever managed to kill an Endbringer. As if the possibility never occurred to anyone.
In a way it was understandable, but also a little sad.
Instead of splitting up, Eidolon accompanies me to the north side of town, while I send the pandas to the south.
Both of us were still overwhelmed by what happened and the role we played in it. The adrenaline ran its course and we were now paying the cost. As we flew it was Eidolon that broke the silence.
"I need to thank you. I couldn't have done it without your help."
"Nah, I'm sure that your disintegration beam would have worked even without my boost. I just want to increase our odds."
The man shakes his head, stops, and turns to face me. I stopped too, beating my dragon wings to maintain my position.
"That's not what I mean. We did our best to hide this but for years now I've been weakening. I lost access to my most powerful powers a long while ago, and I was forced to rely more and more on lesser options."
I was struck dumb by that revelation. The most powerful hero in the world was weakening. This was a catastrophe, we couldn't afford to lose him.
At the same time, the knowledge granted by the Menagerie about Shards made this statement sound wrong. Shards were incredibly efficient energy gatherers and storers. They should be able to function at full power for centuries. Even taking into account the high-intensity powers that Eidolon has access to, less than three decades should make no difference. Was his Shard sick or damaged?
Before I could formulate a reply he continued.
"The disintegration beam that I used today, has been lost to me for nearly ten years."
Putting a hand behind his back he retrieves a very familiar empty bottle from a pouch hidden by his cape.
"I could only use it again thanks to the bottles that you created. Years ago, I included this high-priority request in the Protectorate and PRT network for anything that could give Parahuman energy. I'm still pretty far from the top of my game, but those bottles already reopened so many doors for me."
He put away the bottle. And spoke solemnly. "So from the bottom of my heart, Thank you."
Coming from the standoffish hero this touched me deeply. I licked my lips before responding. "It was no trouble." I paused in contemplation before I had an idea. "I may have access to a more reliable means of energy replenishment for you that I gained recently. Let's talk about it when things calm down."
The man looks excited at the prospect and I can tell that he barely holds back from pestering me about it on the spot. Instead, he turned his attention back to our task.
We surveil the damage dealt by the tsunamis. While impressive in truth it wasn't that bad. This part of the waterfront was devastated, no warehouse remained standing, the pier was in rubble, fishing boat carcasses were spread around, and water was everywhere.
Even with Parahuman's powers helping, this may take a while to repair. Thankfully no residences or shops were present in that zone, only industrial infrastructure. Even better as my partners searched they found no trace of bodies. That didn't mean that they were none but it was a good sign.
Eidolon offered to use a kind of reverse time flow power to help with the damage, but it was a very energy-intensive power, slow, and only able to affect a small area at a time. We deemed it to be not worth it. Repairing everything would give some work to people in the area.
Considering that Brockton Bay was now the place where an Endbringer died, I had little doubt that funds and investments would be pouring in from everywhere.
Satisfied with that outcome, I checked with the pandas on the south side. The situation wasn't as good there. While yes the majority of the damage concerned industrial assets, a fair number of houses were also affected.
Before I could even formulate an order, the panda clan was already looking for any survivors or bodies. A few also started clearing the road of debris.
With that situation handled it was time to return to the PRT headquarters to regroup. We received a message that a meeting was being organized to discuss the battle and the aftermath. On the way, I dismissed Tonzilla and a few other partners without an obvious use for the cleanup. I don't want to frighten the civilians when they come out of the shelters. At the same time, I also removed the themes and the modifiers applied, they weren't necessary anymore.
Looking through Zei's eyes, who was hanging from the ceiling of the shelter invisibly, Mom was doing fine. She was tense but calm.
Before landing Sapientia, called for my attention and flew up to join my side. His deep voice resonates through the air. "Avatar, this victory was a testament to your strength. It will figure prominently in the Book of Compendium. I thank you for the privilege to participate in such a glorious moment."
Nearby, Eidolon shot me an inquisitive look when he heard that. Wisely I choose to not respond.
"In addition, it's my pleasure to present you with a trophy to celebrate this glorious day."
With his claw, he extracts from his mouth what turns out to be the tip of Leviathan's tail that he bit off earlier.
Like a dog that brought back a thrown stick, he proudly presented me with the fifty-centimeter piece of crystalline flesh.
Gingerly I pick it up with my right hand, intent to store it away for later perusal. When I did it flashed before dissipating, absorbed by Devil Bringer. "Fuck!" I should have expected that. Of course, Devil Bringer would eagerly absorb an Endrbingger's body part.
"What was that?" Eidolon looks wary, he moves backward and his right starts glowing with a black aura.
Yeah, I could understand that reaction. In his place, after seeing that I would expect the worst too. Like Leviathan taking possession of my body or draining me of energy to regenerate.
Speaking as calmly as possible I explained in as few words as possible how Devil Bringer functions. That it was a symbiotic creature shaped like an arm, that could absorb some materials to gain power.
I demonstrate some of what Devil Bringer could do. I gave him some examples of powers gained that way. Even if he had no way to verify, it was in my reports. And lastly, I tried out the new power.
In addition to my spectral arms, I could now also manifest a water arm, similar to Leviathan's infamous water shadow.
Eidolon appears wary when looking at the floating mass of water so I dismiss it.
"A symbiotic being that grants powers. That's… interesting." There was a beat as if he wanted to add something before he shook his head. "Anyway, we shouldn't let the others wait for much longer." Another pause. "By the way, would you like to spar with me sometime? A serious spar I mean? Once I learned of my power weakness I stopped training altogether, I couldn't afford to waste an ounce of energy. But now that it's not a problem anymore, I felt the urge to practice against a peer." The thought that Eidolon would consider me a peer prevented me from responding immediately. "And it would be a good opportunity to explore the limit of my own powers, I could never push them to their limit and look for alternate use. So what do you say ?"
I swallowed my saliva and managed to respond. "That would be great yes." One of my Minds brought up a good point so I continued. "Finding somewhere to hold it might be an issue, however. A full power spar might be destructive for the environment."
"Good point." He shrugged. "Eh, I'll think of something."
When we landed in front of the PRT building, everyone present, capes or not, gave us a wide berth, respect shining in their eyes. The silence was soon broken by the sound of clapping hands, which soon turned into thunderous applause.
It took only a second before we both were surrounded by a laughing and cheering crowd.
The celebration lasted a while. My smaller partners joined in and multiple people enjoyed flying rides.
Being in the middle of all that was more than a little overwhelming. Eventually, after one last heartfelt tap on the back, we managed to enter the building where we could breathe a bit. And even there everyone we came across in the corridors wanted to shake our hands.
Before going to the meeting I took a few minutes to secure the Butcher. I used Shadowstep to recall Princess and then summoned her back in full health, spending Mana Crystals to do so. With the Orb once again in place, it was easy to hook back up the Butcher in her temporary prison.
Shortly thereafter, we managed to reach a meeting room, every member of the Brockton Bay Protectorate was present in addition to the rest of the Triumvirates, plus a select few Protectorate leaders like Chevalier and Myrridin. Dragon was also there, visible on a screen hanging from the wall. And from the PRT, Director Piggot and Deputy Director Rennick were sitting on the opposite side of the table from the Triumvirate. For my part, I sat between Eidolon and Colin.
The last person to join us was Narwhal. It was my first time seeing the statuesque woman wearing nothing but her semi-transparent forcefield in person. And I must admit that it took the focus of all my Minds to not stare blatantly. A glance around shows that I wasn't the only one affected.
After another round of congratulation from everyone the meeting started for real.
There was a lot to talk about. The vast majority of the questions were addressed to me, and to a lesser extent to my direct superior, Colin.
The first question, coming from Alexandria, was why some of the partners I called on and some of the power I used weren't in my daily reports.
Colin shouldered most of the blame for this, saying that it was a security measure against the Simurgh, under the assumption that she could monitor the going on on Earth to an unknown degree and that she could communicate with her siblings.
Gulps could be heard through the room and a few nervous glances were thrown toward the ceiling. There was no debate, everyone agreed that this was a good decision. I add that I still kept some powers in reserve that I didn't get the opportunity to use on Leviathan. There was some grumble at that, a lot of them were intrigued that I could still have some surprise left, but nobody pushed further.
This naturally segued into a long explanation of the powers I revealed and the capability of my partners. It took a while to go over everything. Zodiark and Diablos were subject to a lot of questions but the bulk was about Tonzila. Or as I explained the fusion between Rex and Tom.
As we talked, Olky brought food for everyone, my elf was much happier in the kitchen than in the battlefield.
Then the subject of future Endbringer battles was brought up. Could the same strategy be applied? The answer was yes and no. Leviathan was perhaps the Endbringer most vulnerable to Mundane Equalizing, with the Simurgh not far behind, without his Hydrokinesis he was mostly a big Brute. Certainly deadly, but no longer a walking natural disaster.
The Simurgh without her telekinesis and scream was in a similar situation, though as a flyer pinning her down could be harder. We may not be able to finish her off, but forcing her to flee was on the table.
Behemoth would be at the same time the most problematic and the easiest to handle. Problematic because we couldn't stop him from coming up from the ground wherever he wanted. Mundane Equalizing may only have a limited effect on him, it would block lightning strikes and blasts of fire but maybe not the Kill Aura, and redirecting kinetic energy would almost certainly remain. He was also physically the biggest and strongest of the Endrbingers, so even without power he could still deal massive damage. Rex could certainly oppose him but the damage would still be massive. Easiest because he was far too slow to evade my most powerful attacks.
There was also the matter of the core. Did the other Endbringer function in the same ways? Thinkers would be tasked to analyze all the footage from previous battles with this new parameter in mind to try and find out.
Narwhal suggest recruiting the Thinker that revealed this weakness, a certain Tattletale that was from Brockton. She was part of a minor gang called the Undersiders. Director Piggot didn't appear to like the idea but she caved in and said that an offer would be made if they managed to contact the girl.
Hannah brought up another important matter, how does Leviathan's death affect the remaining Endbringer's schedule?
It was impossible to know, but Legend decreed that a heightened state of alert would be maintained for at least a year to better react in case the other accelerate their rate of attack to compensate.
We didn't reach any conclusion on what strategy to adopt during the meeting, but hope was palpable in the room.
Then it was time to address another point, Public Relations. What would the official statement contain? How much detail should be given?
That discussion took a while to resolve. There were too many witnesses to hide much of anything. And as much as I tried to diminish my role in things, it was a lost cause. Eidolon and I would be credited for the kill, and the gist of the battle would be revealed to the public. There would still be some manner of obfuscation, however. Koraidon would be credited with neutralizing Leviathan's hydrokinesis. There was no need to give the villain too much information.
Alexandria strongly advises me to reserve that power for extreme situations.
Before the meetings concluded I spoke up.
"If I may, I know it's getting late, and we all want to join the festivities outside but there is one last thing I would like to talk about?" Turning to the left I look toward Alexandria. She gestured for me to go on.
"Thank you. While it's not entirely a concern for the PRT and Protectorate I want to propose that a monument be built to honor Leviathan's very last victim, Collonade. Maybe a statue?"
I expect my proposal to be a mere formality. I expected respectful nods. I expected understanding acceptance. I didn't expect a firm shake of the head from Alexandria.
"Out of question. While her sacrifice was honorable, she was a villain, if a minor one. If there was a lot of victims she would be included in the list of course. But as the only one, we can't make a monument dedicated to only her. We cannot afford to give such spotlight to a villain." She looks apologetic but firm. "I can appreciate the intent but I'm sorry it's just not possible."
I was left speechless for several seconds as rage rose in my chest. I turned sharply in my chair to face the woman head-on. "What?!" My feelings must have shown on my face because a lot of people winced at my tone.
"I'm sorry what? You do not want to honor a woman who sacrificed her life while fighting one of the strongest monsters on earth. I never heard of Colonade before today, I didn't even know that she was a villain. But unless she was as heinous as Jack Slash, her status as a villain shouldn't matter."
Alexandria didn't seem to appreciate my tone because her response was swift and brutal. "Do not take that tone with me Compendium. Despite your powers, I'm still your superior. You're too young to understand the importance of image. How much impact such a move could have? Valorizing a villain could have disastrous consequences. We would lose a lot of political support if we make such a statement."
While her words made sense, this didn't gel with me. That woman died honoring the truce and trying to protect others. Unless she was a serial killer of untold proportion, and Clank checked for me she wasn't, her allegiance shouldn't matter. And if that was the case she wouldn't have been there anyway.
I surprised myself when I responded firmly. "No. I cannot accept that. We should be above such petty consideration. Honoring someone that died in the line of duty, shouldn't be a matter of convenience. I'll build it myself if needed, but this monument will see the light of day."
I don't think Alexandria was accustomed to people on her own side opposing her. She didn't respond immediately. Everyone else in the room exchanged uneasy glances.
It was Dragon that broke the silence. "I think that we can reach a comprise. A monument is always built to commemorate the losses after an Endbrionger battle. There is no reason that this one should be different. There will be only one name on it, that's all. No specific emphasis needs to be put on it."
After a beat, I nod. "I can agree to that, it's more than fair."
With visible reluctance, Alexandria also nodded. "Very well. I'll allow it."
A collective sight of relief passes through the room. I didn't expect such a thing from the heroine. In my mind, she was the ideal all heroes should aspire to, a paragon of justice. To discover that she was flawed, that she was human it skewed the way I view the world. They say never meet your heroes, maybe it was the truth.
The meeting concluded soon after each of us going our separate way. However, before leaving I approached the monitor projecting Dragon's image. Here was a heroine that I knew wouldn't disappoint me, a heroine that remained human at heart.
She spoke up when she saw me approaching. "Was there something else Compendium?"
"I want to thank you for your help here. I didn't expect such resistance from something so simple."
"There is nothing to thank me for. Wanting to honor the dead is never wrong."
I nodded in acceptance. "I also want to extend my thanks for your role in the battle. I'm grateful for your help."
The woman on the screen appears confused. "I'm not sure what you mean. My role in this battle was extremely minor."
"On the contrary, I think it was key. You propagate and repeat my warming about my partners for each new arrival. Without that, I fear that some trigger-happy capes would have attacked them. It could have been catastrophic."
"It was my pleasure. Don't worry about it."
I left soon after, Dragon was far too busy to spend much time exchanging pleasantries.
Still, that short exchange helped my mood after the unexpected confrontation with Alexandria. The emotions come from partners that participate in the festivities going on outside. The pandas and red pandas were pretty popular with the public, dancing and singing to the music playing everywhere.
Not wanting to appear as a recluse I joined an impromptu party in PRT's underground garage. It was nice to relax after such a stressful battle. And in the evening I return home to see Mom. The crushing hug she gave helped drain the stress right out of my body.
The days that followed were far less pleasant. Everyone and their grandma want to talk to me. I was invited to a talk show, I received accolades from all over the world particularly those victims of Leviathan. The Japanese government wants to organize a ceremony to reward Eidolon and myself.
I wasn't consulted over the matter of accepting or not, the decision was taken by the image department. One big ceremony would be held at a later date, with representatives from all countries and towns that were targeted by Leviathan. While it would certainly be cathartic for the victims, I wasn't looking forward to it.
My only respite on Tuesday was when Eidolon came to find me and remind me of my promise. So under his authority, I managed to escape from a debrief with a stubborn paper pushed about why I didn't use Backward Teleport sooner. We absconded to the Orb dimension, and after a brief visit, I presented him with a Star in a Bottle. Compared with a potion the rate of regeneration was pitiful, but it was constant. I advise him to keep it on his desk or near his bed.
The man once again thanked me profusely before leaving in a hurry, he was forced to go to multiple debriefings of his own.
On Wednesday in between a lesson on public speaking and a reunion with the legal department, I managed to carve half an hour to explore the gains I had during the battle.
The Lava Eel was a curious fish that somehow lived in lakes of lava or in underground pockets of magma. Useless on his own, but extremely useful with Environmental Adaptation if I ever need to fight in such an environment. Not likely but not impossible considering Behemoth's existence or other parahuman weirdness.
The second thing was the Corral, a structure that generated four copies of a given slime and then fed them regularly. This massively increases the production of plort. I would be using it mainly for Rock Plort.
Another partner was Quartz the Crystal Worm, it was a big and strong creature that would be particularly useful underground.
Then there was Kupuna Wa a kindly ancient spirit inahibiting a floating mask. In her home universe, she possessed an impressive mastery over time. As part of the Celestial Menagerie, her power was reduced but still very useful. She could slow down the perception of time for her wearer. I was sure that I would call on her regularly. But it was the sense that she granted that intrigued me the most, the ability to perceive the duration of esoteric effects. I knew someone who would be extremely interested in such a thing.
And the last thing I gained was a modifier called Champion. It could grant a variety of benefits but it was random and not all of those benefits were family friendly. I would need to remain on guard when using it. The other thing was that when a Champion was dismissed it had a small chance to leave behind a bag containing various things. I didn't have time to analyze what I gained, so I just put it in storage. It was another thing that I would need to be careful about, leaving magic items lying around after a battle could have disastrous consequences.
In the evening of the same day, there was a meeting only for the Brockton Protectorate. We hadn't seen each other much since the battle. And even during the battle, only Dauntless was nearby as a flyer. The other just couldn't participate, even if Colin's role as an organizer couldn't be underestimated.
Before we even began I was inundated by congratulations and thank you. Assault boasts that with the Endkiller, the title that the press settled me with, no villain would dare show their head in town.
Colin dissuaded him of that notion quickly. While yes, it would scare off some of them, it would draw in others. Thinkers would come, thinking that with less overt crime they could scheme in peace. Masters may come to try and influence or control me. Strangers spying on me to sell any scrap of info to the highest bidder was also a strong possibility.
And of course, there were the ones who would dream of beating or killing me to increase their reputation, even just being able to escape after an encounter with me would massively boost a villain's notoriety.
That sobering thought calmed down everyone and the meeting got underway for real.
For now, things were calm, extremely calm.
There was some posturing from the ABB, they proclaimed that Lung was a key to the victory against Leviathan. That without him to hold back the monster I would never have been able to catch him. It wasn't entirely wrong either, order may.
The Merchant's capes were nowhere to be seen. Understandable, considering the failure of the Teeth attack on the Rig which they help facilitate. Their drug pushers on the other hand could be found in every party in town.
Uncommonly we received a message from the Adepts members that we knew were in town even before the attack. They wanted to arrange a meeting with me but didn't say for what purpose. Velocity joked that they wanted to join the Protectorate, in keeping with the current trend of villains wanting to join after hearing about me. For now, they were told to wait, they're just wasn't enough time right now.
On a more positive note, the cape temporarily called Giza, Theo Anders was found. Well, he found us when he came to help with the attack. He helped with constructing a barrier against the tsunami. He called himself Plato, and as it turns out he could do more than just pyramid. He could generate all the platonic solids, plus a few more less regular solids.
In any case, it was interesting because after the attack he met with Purity, rebranded as Luminance. We didn't have many details, heated words were exchanged between the two before but as the tension lifted, they fell into a hug. It was apparently a very heartfelt moment.
In the end, matters appeared to be resolved between them and Plato left with the woman when she returned to New York. He would probably join the Ward there.
Knowing that this matter was resolved lifted a weight from my chest.
Apart from that nothing much of note happened in town and we parted way shortly thereafter.
In the evening I had a brief encounter with Doctor Yamada, and we scheduled a session for the following week.
This morning during an interview with a journalist, while I was mainly repeating the official statement, the Menagerie triggered for the first time since the battle.
Displace Damage was in theory a very strong power, allowing me to transfer any damage I received to one of my partners. Making me functionally immortal for as long as I had a partner to absorb the damage. But I didn't like the concept much, it objectified my partners and made them into sacrificial tools for my survival. It didn't sit well with me.
Still after talking with them, I ended up selecting Solar as the target. It was happy to do it, and it could more than afford it.
The interview was followed by a visit to the Mayor's office, once more thanking me for saving the town. Being privy to some of the footage from the battle he knew about Tonzilla, and asked if moving the tanker blocking the bay would be possible. I responded that it was conceivable but that it would require a lot of preparation, notably for the logistics and the environmental impact. And there was the matter of knowing if he preferred to have the tanker moved inland for recycling, move at sea and sink to create an artificial reef, or even be destroyed on-site, with appropriate precautions of course.
We spent an hour just discussing the specifics of how this would go. Nothing definitive could be decided today, Mayor Chirstner would be contacting experts in salvaging to put a plan in place.
And now I was in the Orb, right before the entrance of Camp Camelot. Caradoc was the first to pick his class. After one look at the list of options, he zeroed in on one called Heroic Swordmaster and didn't waste any time selecting it. As could be guessed it was a class focused on using a sword.
Zap hesitates a little more, mainly between Wizard and Lightning Disciple. One would give versatility while the other would give pure power. His love of lightning won out and he opted for the second one.
My snake weapon, Kuja, waffled a bit. Rogue called to her for the stealth aspect, Verdant Avatar, and Hive Queen for the link with the wild. Reptile Imitator would have been perfectly in line with her very nature too. But when she saw a class called Living Weapon she knew that was what she wanted. While I could understand why she chose it, the benefit granted appears to only work when someone wields her as a weapon. By herself in the Dungeon she wouldn't have many new options.
And Star was the one that hesitated the most. Early on they reject a mysterious class called Starspawn. It looked intriguing but it didn't appear to be for them. No, instead they were quick to go with Cleric, a class focused on healing. What took a while was choosing a deity or a concept to follow, and the list was endless. It contains gods from all Earth mythology and some that I didn't recognize from anywhere. Surprisingly it also includes some of my partners, like Bakugami and Zodiark. After much searching they opt for a Hawaiian deity called Kanaloa, a water deity with dominion over sailing and marine life.
With the class selection done, it was time for the four of them to enter the Dungeon. For mobility's sake, Star attaches themselves to Caradoc's back. That way they wouldn't slow down the group and would act as a lookout.
The first floor was nearly a walk in the park for the group, even with only a level zero in their class, their innate ability made their progression easy. Caradoc did suffer a shallow wound from a Frog squirrel and Zap wasn't careful enough around a Mudcrab so he received a painful pinch on his right antenna. The boss was easily beaten with the simple expedient of throwing Star at it. Once under control Caradoc and Kuja could beat his motionless form with ease.
They were rewarded with their first-class level. This allows them to go wild on the second floor, completing it with even less trouble than the first. Star healed what little damage they took. Caradoc's spin attack was devastating against groups.
I was satisfied with their progress and congratulated them accordingly. That evening, I returned home to rest and tried to not think about the meetings that would continue Saturday.
Wordcount: 5642
Excess words: 240
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I hesitated a lot when I started this chapter, a timeskip with a flashback may not be what you expect or want, but for me, it was a way to advance time by a few days and only skim over what happened. I did go into a number of details despite that.
I'm pretty proud of the conversation with Eidolon and the one with Alexandria.
For the roll, 390 (Banked) + 600 (Chapter) + 120 (Excess words) + 240 (Interlude) = 1350 points.
[] Creature
[] Power
Voting will be closed Monday at 3 PM GMT
Note: A lot of things in this chapter.
Concerning Devil Bringer absorbing a piece of Leviathan that was a plan since we gained it. I think it was inspired by what a post I think. The Water Arm idea was extremely obvious. If you have ideas for the other Endrbinger I'm all ears.
I will update shortly the informational about the classes with info about Heroic Swordmaster, Living Weapon, and Lightning Disciple. Cleric will come a little later it's not quite finished.
edit: Classes have been added. They can be found here.
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- Location
- USA
[X] Creature
Let's see if we get another Powerful Partner
Let's see if we get another Powerful Partner
AntaeusTheGiant
Child of Gaea
- Location
- Lawrence, KS
[X] Creature
[X] Creature
- Location
- USA
That is a lot to unpack, also neat bit of absorbing part of Leviathan. Hmm really wish we had an Alexandria interlude, I wonder how she views Compendium (perhaps too naive?) and as it is with his power set she cant act directly against him because they likely need him vs scion plus it is hard to trap him.
[X] Power
[X] Power
there was a hero with weapons that could also absorb endbringer parts, making him triumvirate tier. maybe save some for him next time? most worm fic hoards power and we already started givkng some out. i think more top tier heros would be interesting
also good chapter
also good chapter
- Location
- france
- Pronouns
- He
Yes, there's Chevalier. In canon, he fused one of Behemoth's claws to his Canonblade And I had some plan for things to give.
In that case, it wasn't on purpose for Alex, he just grabbed the tailbit and Devil bringer decided that it was a perfect snack.
- Location
- New York City
[X] Creature