November Event Log

[kaisoumods]

November Event Log (Part I)
Dominant Element: Shadow
Waning Element: Light

※

The heavy fog continues through the start of November, making visibility next to zero. Meanwhile, the temperature begins to get colder and colder, and the nights grow longer. Besides the fog, it's fairly typical weather for November. And yet, there is an unshakable sense of unease within the city. If you stare into the fog for long enough, you swear you can see the shadows of inhuman beings moving about. If you try to go after them, you won't find anything at all. Is it the Shadow element playing tricks again? Just what is going on?

A Normal City (Opt-Out Option)

On the day the fog lifts, you're treated to a perfectly normal city. The weather is normal for November, people are going about their day. This is the city as the Normal AUs would recall it before they ever joined the app. There's no Spirit Vein in the sky, no floating island full of moogles. It's just an ordinary American city.

In fact, you yourself seem also completely normal. Any abilities you once had no longer work, and anything unusual about your appearance has returned to something more fitting for a normal world. You've also lost access to the Libra app, instead needing to use regular social media apps to keep in contact with folks. You can still recall the existence of magic, but as the days wear on, those memories feel more and more like a dream than your reality. The people that were a part of that magical community are no different - anyone tied to the paranormal, whether they were on the app or not, don't seem to be in the city. This will be alarming for many, but for others the memories of them may start to fade over time. Were those people really in your life, or were they just a dream?

After all, the life you're living now is a normal one.

The Other Side

♪- Onmyoji II

When the fog clears at sunrise on November 4th, the sun in the sky is no longer the one you're familiar with. During the night, the Spirit Vein (now glowing in hues of purple and black) cover the entire sky rather than just a band of it. The streets are not filled with children on their way to school or people out doing errands; instead, they're filled with raucous celebration and conversations from all sorts of yokai (Japanese spirits), and oni (Japanese demon). The only humans still remaining in the city are ones who are tied to the paranormal, all of whom are just as alarmed as you are.

There is no gate this month. The city itself is in the Spirit Realm.

Thanks to a certain post on the Libra app, app users have a good idea of who's responsible for all this. They'll also be easy to find: The University District. There they will find a rather human-looking daitengu, or great winged yokai, who calls himself Lord Ao. He has turned the University District into his new headquarters, though his long term dream is to get a proper mountain built for himself. He's protected by countless younger tengu - a type of bird yokai - as well as a few oni, so no one is getting near the area if they want to try and fight him. He's otherwise rather amicable, for a yokai, and is willing to talk to people! He's so damn full of himself, though, that if you want to get any information out of him you're going to need a lot of patience as you apply your very best ego-stroking.

If you manage it, however, you'll learn that he and the rest of his yokai genuinely do not think they've done anything wrong. This city was already poised to fall into the Spirit Realm at any time, and all they did was give it the final nudge. Lord Ao mentions that this is hardly the first time a city on Earth has been taken into the Spirit Realm, namedropping Atlantis, Roanoke, and Kêr-Is as some examples. At least the yokai aren't going to make anyone make any deals like the fae might. They're just here for a good time, and to make a claim before other beings from the Spirit Realm try to move in.

Any conversations with him will be cut off at this point, when a younger tengu comes in to inform his lord of that Yamata-no-Orochi approaches. Speak of the devil, huh? It seems the great demon serpent has also noticed Kaisou's shift into the Spirit Realm, and has decided to stake his claim here for himself and his demonic ilk. At the news, Lord Ao sends you away. He needs to figure out how to handle the snake.

After the meeting, one thing is very clear: neither the Yokai nor the Oni are interested in the fact that this city belongs to you guys. If you want to return the city back to normal, you're going to have to work amongst yourselves to send these interlopers packing.

Cathedral Hill and Undertown

♪- Crimson Sunrise

Regardless of whether or not you sought out Lord Ao, there's plenty of chaos in the city itself to try to tackle. Cathedral Hill and Undertown, thankfully, are safe. On Cathedral Hill, the various churches and temples, along with the statue of Barbatos, seem to be keeping the area protected from the yokai and other threats entirely. A great number of the non-app using civilians have chosen to take shelter here. The inside of the Cathedral and other temples are being set up with bedrolls and other emergency provisions such as food distribution, though it's unclear how long supplies will last. App users who are seeking sanctuary may also find respite here. Should you need some healing, touching the statue of Barbatos will magically heal you of any wounds once per day.

Meanwhile, in Undertown, the area has been adorned with protective wards courtesy of Zodiac, Cygnus Academy, and the area's other residents. While these wards aren't as powerful as Cathedral Hill's protections, they will still fend off any of the violent threats out there. Within these protections, Undertown is abuzz with activity from the people seeking shelter there and the merchants who are still hawking their wares. With the shops open, at least there's supplies to work with! Of course, this is Undertown, so the quality of those supplies can be questionable at best. Even worse, many of them have taken the opportunity to jack up their prices, because even being dragged into hell does not free one from capitalism.

Should you head over to the Zodiac headquarters, they are in full emergency mode. They've been trying to get in contact with folks outside the city, but they've had no luck. They are doing what they can to support the people in Undertown with supplies, but without those outside contacts... their resources are limited. Meanwhile, The Professor (fuzzy) definitely doesn't seem to be doing too well. The puppet is trying his best not to have a panic attack, because the last time he got dragged into a place by demons, he ended up being eaten by a dinosaur. He may even ask, in as low-key of a panic as he can manage, if anyone has spotted any dinosaurs outside.

A couple of yokai have managed to get into Undertown from outside, but thankfully, none of them seem interested in fighting. Notable among these are three tanuki: an elderly male who introduces himself as Tanukichi, and his nephews, Mamekichi and Tsubikichi. As soon as introductions are over, Tanukichi proclaims that he's less interested in hostile takeovers and more interested in by-the-book real estate. Kaisou's been on his radar for for some time, you see, and he's very interested in keeping it more or less intact. A place that both humans and yokai can live, you see! In fact, he and his nephews have managed to set up some smaller safe areas around the city by using the power of real estate - so keep an eye out for those if you need a breather!

Finally, there is one last safe area in the city: Persephone's garden. It's been home to Vash and company for the past several months, and seems to be completely unaffected by the chaos of the city. None of the yokai or demons seem willing to pass through it's borders, leaving it a small safe harbor for anyone who is staying here. A bright spot of fortune, for at least the people living there.

Midtown, Brick Alley, and Shopping Street

♪- Duel in the Mists

Midtown and Brick Alley, unfortunately, are nowhere near as safe as Cathedral Hill or Undertown. In these areas, you will find roving bands of boisterous oni - large yokai, topping out at seven feet tall, with horns on their heads. They will be carrying massive clubs, looking for a fight. They aren't picky about who they fight, even getting into fights with other oni. Oftentimes this turns into a gang-war situation whenever a band that follows Lord Ao runs into a band that follows Yamata-no-Orochi. It wouldn't be too difficult to egg them on and let them take each other out, as they are not the brightest and think more with their clubs than than their brains.

If you want to make this part of town completely safe, however, you will have to fight them. They are no pushovers, their clubs are massive and can destroy walls with ease. Be careful if you choose to take them on- it might be wise to do this as a group unless you can really take a hit. They are not an easy solo fight at all.

Over on Shopping Street, there's a different threat to be concerned with: tsukumogami, yokai which originate from cursed or abandoned objects. All manner of inanimate objects have come to life, and are now on the attack. Be on the lookout for items such as umbrellas, inkstones, sandals, and living paper that will come flying out of stores to swoop down on unlucky passers-by. They won't prove all that difficult to fight - they're still only objects after all! They aren't particularly intelligent, and don't seem to attack with any real strategy. They can be burned with fire, or sliced to pieces with a blade. Some can even be smashed if you hit them hard enough. The real challenge comes with their great numbers and alarming speed. How you choose to clear them out is up to you, but having dodging prowess will certainly benefit over sheer brawn in this fight.

If, during all this brawling and dodging, you find yourself needing respite, it'd be good to remember what that old tanuki in Undertown said. Sure enough, scattered about the various neighborhoods you'll find houses that appear safe and downright well-kept, despite everything going on around them. They even have nice flowers planted outside! Outside of each house, you'll also find a strange gyroid creature, waving its arms in welcome. They will explain that these are Tanukichi's properties, but that he welcomes you to stay here for free! Now, if you're hoping for things like electricity, running water, food, or any other amenities while you stay in these safe houses? That will require payment. The gyroid will gladly take either cash or credit for any of these services. Seems like even the Spirit Realm can't stop capitalism...

Kami State Park and the Beach

♪- Ushiwaka's Dance

Though it's hardly safe, there is one place in the city that seems almost normal... in a sense. Kami State Park has hardly changed from how it was back in October, with the Osorezan Festival still being run as it had been last month. The only difference is that the yokai that'd been running the festival aren't really bothering to hide their true nature. No one here will attack you, unless you attack them first, though they don't seem to particularly care that they assisted in taking over your city. The leader of the festival, Jenna Tayu, can be found in this area. She's now skeletal, pale, and sporting two delicate horns on her forehead. From her, you can find out that her group sports no particular loyalty to either yokai leader, preferring their own independence. As far as Lord Ao goes, helping him take over Kaisou was nothing more than an agreement of mutual benefit. She's no fan of Yamata-no-Orochi, either - she can be found grousing over his arrival, muttering something about how when she was still human, he was one of her pursuers, ugh. It's clear she is not his biggest fan either, by a long shot.

Should you be able to get past the yokai, you'll find that the island of Moghome is still floating and intact, with irate moogles who are pains in the ass like always. The gate to Hyrule is also still accessible, with the realm itself unaffected by the chaos in the city. The band of yokai in Kami State Park need to be dealt with somehow, however. Perhaps asking the Hyrulians for help wouldn't be a bad idea. The nature of this help though, is up to you.

Meanwhile, the beach has its own problems to deal with - or, more accurately, one big problem with eight smaller, tentacle-shaped problems attached. Akkorokamui, a massive octopus, has decided move into the harbor. His sheer size takes up most of Kaisou's natural harbor, making it impossible for any boats to set sail. How you handle this is up to you. No matter how you attack it, you can't kill it - it's far too massive and powerful for that. Perhaps you can try annoying it enough for it to leave? Or, perhaps, you can use the power of friendship to convince it to leave of its own accord, somehow? Whatever you do, just mind the tentacles. They hurt.

Blue Fish Lake Park

♪- Taking the Bait

Thanks to the residual magic from the faerie's takeover in March, the park has resisted the vast majority of the yokai invasion. However, it's not completely without yokai. There are a couple of kitsune, with varying numbers of tails, who have set up shop here and are turning the park into a marketplace. Their stock is limited, and not unlike what you'd see in Undertown - cursed trinkets, sketchy potions, and the like. Perusing the market are plenty of other yokai, either looking to make a deal or rob whoever comes their way blind.

If you're clever enough, you might be able to get something out of them. A lot of yokai here are familiar with Yamata-no-Orochi. They'll boast that they know the snake god's weakness, and they'll sell it to you for a price. This price could be anything. They might ask you to play a game of public humiliation with them - they do love to see their foes humiliated, and they'd love to do that to you. Alternatively, they might ask you to give up something precious to you, some valuable that you truly cherish. Whatever they demand, it might just be worth it for that information - after all, if you want to take back the city, you need whatever help you can get. It's up to you to decide what this information is worth, and just what you're willing to go through in order to get it.

If you so choose to gain this knowledge from the kitsune, you will learn that Yamata-no-Orochi's eight heads have a weakness for alcohol. The stronger the alcohol, the better. It doesn't seem like much, in fact, it seems like idle gossip more than anything else, but it is more than you may have had before, and one small advantage is better than none at all.

The Terrible Geese, as always, seem unbothered by any of this. A few of the yokai try to egg each other on to fight them, but it ends much the way any attempt to fight the geese does: badly for anyone who isn't a goose. The gate to Kanto is still accessible, and much like Hyrule, the realm remains unaffected by invasion within Kaisou itself. Bringing items through from Kanto might even spark the kitsune to want to trade with you, as they have never seen such things They have no more valuable information to pass on, but perhaps one of the items they sell might help you in other battles around the city.

Entertainment District

♪- Wayward Daughter

This is one of the most dangerous parts of the city, and a lot of the residents will find it best to flee to the safer zones rather than get caught up in the madness going on there. The yokai have chosen the district as the starting point for the annual Hyakki Yagyou, or Night Parade of a Hundred Demons. It promises to be an exceptionally loud and dangerous celebration- a real mark that they have claimed this city for their own. You will find them working themselves up in the lead-up - putting on smaller parades, dancing wildly, and altogether not caring who or what gets caught up in their merry-making.

Simply looking out of a window and observing the party can be enough to spell your doom. The yokai do not appreciate mortals gazing upon their celebrations, and catching a glimpse of it might be enough to kill you outright. If they don't immediately try to kill you, they will spirit you away into the middle of the celebration, forcing you to become their entertainment.

Unfortunately, being their entertainment means nothing good - this is a celebration meant for beings of much stronger mettle than most in the city. You might end up drowned in alcohol, or forced to dance yourself to exhaustion only for the dancing feet of the partying demons to crush you. Some of the yokai might try to fight you - jabbing you with spears or swords, hitting you with clubs, or challenging others to see who can hit you the hardest. If you bore them by refusing to fall, they may just swarm you all at once - a furious mob, ready to rip you apart. Unless someone is able to pull you out of it, it will be very easy to perish here, falling to their vast numbers and zero inhibitions. Those skilled in close-range mob combat will fare best in these battles, and will very much be needed to protect those who otherwise might not survive.

The yokai are extremely loud and have no concern for petty things like property damage. This is basically the world's wildest frat party - there will be no rest for anyone in this district. Practically nowhere in this district is free from the nonstop partying. You need to control this chaos somehow, before they destroy the entire sector.

You could do this through fighting - in which case, you'd better be ready to take on a whole lot of demons at once. But if you don't have the means to fight, eventually, one of the smaller yokai will unwittingly provide another possible solution.

A little drunk off his own ego and bolstered by the walkman he plucked out of some poor soul's pocket, he demands a dance-off. Beat the participants in their own game, and they will leave. Granted, this dancing also involves weapons and dodging projectiles, and more than likely a lot of fire... but if you have the stamina and the dance skills to pull it off, the yokai will abscond from the area.

One at a time. One down, hundreds more to go.

...On second thought, maybe fighting them would be easier.

The only area that seems to be safe is the few feet between where the Entertainment District ends and the way into Undertown begins. The revelers seem unwilling to go there, giving it a wide berth. If you find yourself caught in the madness of the party- a mad dash towards that part of the District will provide a legitimate sanctuary.

Central Square

♪- Battle of Orochi II

On the day that Kaisou was dragged into the Spirit Vein, a barrier went up around Central Square. Anyone who was in the area at the time was teleported to other parts of the city, and since then no one has been able to get close to the place without either being swarmed by Orochi's oni or being blocked by the barrier. And as the days wear on, it remains that way. Many may choose to ignore it for a while, because there's more than enough fires to put out in the rest of the city.

However, after a week of this, the situation starts to get worse. Corruptive energy begins seeping out and spreading from Central Square. Touching this dark miasma will cause you to start to lose your vitality, even petrifying those who remain in it too long. Only Orochi's forces seem unaffected by it. It seems they plan to use this energy to purge the city of any contenders.

Lord Ao, whose forces are starting to weaken after trying to take on both Orochi's forces and the app users at once, decides to reach out to the app users. No longer dismissive like he was before, he's now willing to strike a bargain - he can recognize a losing battle.

Defeat Yamata-no-Orochi, and Lord Ao and his forces will use their power to prolong Kaisou's fall into the Spirit Realm for one year. It's not a permanent solution - they don't have that kind of power - but at the very least, it'll buy you a bit more time.

Getting through the barrier is no easy feat, as you'll need strong magic to counteract it. It'd be good to pool your resources and see what you can come up with. With it being a shadow barrier, light magic would be particularly effective if applied right.

Once you have the barrier down, the real challenge begins. Central Square has already been altered, warped to suit what Yamata-no-Orochi's preferences. The square has become a massive serpent's den, and Yamata-no-Orochi can be found in his throne room inside it, at the top of a long flight of stone stairs. When you get there, you'll be confronted with a massive eight-headed serpent. Each head is at least 40 feet in length. There is a bell sitting with the central body, glowing with powerful magic.

Yamata-no-Orochi is completely unperturbed by your arrival. He informs you that he's already well aware of Lord Ao's offer, scoffing at it. He also counters it with his own deal: he will continuously use his dark power to let Kaisou remain outside the Spirit Realm, as long as you sacrifice one person of his choosing to him each year.

Clearly, that kind of offer won't go over well with many of you app-users, so it's time to fight. Yamata-no-Orochi is by no means an easy opponent. Each of his heads have the power to manipulate a particular element (fire, water, earth, lightning, poison, plants, wind, and light), and they will fight in coordination to one another. But worst of all, so long as that bell remains intact on his body, he will be completely invulnerable to any attacks. Characters will need to work together and figure out how to get past the heads long enough to destroy that bell, should they have any hope of winning this fight and saving Kaisou.

Aftermath

The Aftermath will be coming in a separate log that will be posted on the 15th of the month! Until then, do your best to survive.

OOC Notes

The dominant element this month is Shadow! Anyone with an affinity to the shadow element will find themselves boosted throughout the month. This could mean a boost to their power, having more energy, feeling more inspired with creativity, having better luck on different attempts -- the boost can manifest in all sorts of different ways. By contrast, anyone with an affinity for Light will be experiencing the opposite. Perhaps their powers will be weaker, they have less energy, they're having a creative block or general worse luck - again it can manifest in all sorts of way and players are free to play with this mechanic as they'd like.

The original OOC plotting post for this event can be found here. Another Zodiac Post will be going up November 15th to serve as an intro post for new characters and allow characters to react to developments over the network. In addition, a follow up log will be going up the 15th as well, which will contain the conclusion of this plot.

Comments

[beagooddog]

A Chat with Lord Ao

The demons don't pay all that much mind to the little old dog on two legs who hobbles up to chat with Lord Ao- some of them wonder if she's one of them, considering dog yokai are hardly uncommon. She sits herself down in the demon's chambers and pulls out her knitting, striking up a chat. "Well, it seems you've moved in quite quickly. Must be quite the undertaking, dear. How are you holding up?"

And, whoops, she accidentally left her device on so anyone on the network can hear the demon spill the beans. How clumsy of her.

Protecting the Humans

Now, Pansy would be the worst kind of dog if she didn't look out for the humans- and there are so, so many of them. Still, one can only do what they can, so that's what she'll do. Most of the time she'll be around the safer areas, patrolling and ushering people towards safety while brandishing a battleaxe at advancing yokai. She might even let you pet her, if you need cheering up.

Protecting Humans

[senorita_perfecta]

Isabela has been trying to get everyone to get to the safe areas, her magic bow being on hand for any attacks on the yokai. She doesn’t want to run into any of those creatures to come roaring in and try to attack anybody within her watch.

“Come on, everyone. We need to get you all to safety right now, let’s go go go!” she tells everyone as she escorts the people she is able to find to the safer areas.

[killerapp]

Midtown

[So after bolting out of the house in a fit of stress and anxiety and what he will refuse to call "the zoomies" but were absolutely the zoomies, Yuuki teleported back to the house long enough to get his magic hoodie and the weird shield he got at the Goodwill and then teleported right back out. He's not going to admit he was just panicked, okay? He's got this. He has his Soul Device and...no Pokemon because they're not strong enough in a fight, but he handled worse in his past life!

His past life had allies, and Yuuki may have forgotten this. He's just lucky the hoodie keeps his face hidden, since it means it's a lot easier to try and dodge the oni now out for his blood for daring to pick a fight with them. He managed to get a few shot off, which. Did not help.

So now Yuuki is running through Midtown, limping and painfully out of breath and this close to reverting back to full cat.]
Healermobile

[At some point, Yuuki is found by Josuke and the healermobile and has been ordered to stay right the fuck there.

There is no protest. He's just sort of curled up in the back of the magic car, shaken and sore and letting his Pokemon fret over him.]

Wildcard

[Yuuki will be around a few places in the city until he's picked up by Josuke! HMU if you want something specific.]

Midtown

[onahairtrigger]

[Josuke's been frantic, honestly.

He thought Yuuki would come back on his own. He thought Yuuki would be reasonable about this.

But then Yuuki did not get back and not only were Chibi and Maru worried sick, but frankly, so was Josuke. He let Dan Heng know he was going out, he and the Pokemon piled into the magic car, and they set out to search.

So if nothing else, there's at least a familiar car pulling up next to Yuuki, now that the driver has spotted him limping. Josuke leaps out, summoning Crazy Diamond as he does.]

Here, let me help!

[switchaxe]

Around the City

[Ash is a lot weaker than he was a few months ago, but fuck it he has a weapon, an ARCUS, a fire-breathing dog, and the Geo Vision so fuck it, he's going to be running interference and escorting.

He and his Houndour slide in between you and whoever is attacking you, Orthie baring her teeth and Ash's vision lighting up gold as a wall shoots up between you and him. It looks like it's made of amber, but it's hard to break.]

Get the hell outta here! Hey, ugly, lookit me!

[Time to rumble!]

Undertown

[Look, he's gotta take a break sometime. Ash can be found wandering around here, shooting off texts at random to check up on people.]

Around the City

[censorshipnutkin]

[Thancred's somewhat surprised when a blond kid throws himself between him and the yokai he's fighting.

Sure, his gunblade had just been knocked out of his hand, but man, he didn't think he looked that Bachelor in a Bind. (thank you Lassie) But, he also knew not to look a gift fighter in the mouth.]

I'm not going anywhere, but thanks for the distract!

[He runs over to grab his Gunblade and swing it up to his shoulder.]

Let's murder it.

Jamie Carter (Harry Potter) | Harry Potter | Modern Paranormal AU

[phoenixwiz]

Octopus in Your Neighborhood
What initially started out as a quick instinctual urge to swim at the beach (thanks selkie instincts) takes to a weirder turn for Jamie. As he lifts his head up from the water, he finds a giant octopus swimming far away from him. And what is up with those tentacles?

On one hand, the human side of him is begging to swim away, swim away, swim away, but the selkie side is also nagging to befriend the octopus. Maybe the octopus wants new friends perhaps?

Kitsune Deals
Now he was not expecting to be back at Blue Fish Lake Park after that life altering encounter with the Fae and the trip to Atlantis, but there he is: trying to seek out any help to stop Yamata-no-Orochi from trying to taking over or destroying the city. As he tries to look around, he then finds a magnificent Kitsune with 9 tails looking back at him with a mischievous smirk.

My, my. It looks like you are seeking a way to stop Yamata-no-Orochi. Is that correct, mortal man?

“Um, yes. Yes, I’m here to seek out any information regarding what weaknesses he might have that we Libra users can use against him,” Jamie speaks up as he faces the Kitsune.

Ah yes, that is good to hear. If you want to find out what weak points he might have, you must follow whatever deal I will ask you to do.

Jamie thinks long and hard about what kind of deals the Kitsune will ask him to comply with. Then he looks around for anyone who could listen to him and maybe help him fulfill the deal.

“Hey! Oh gee, sorry for disturbing you right now. I could use some help, the Kistune is asking me to fulfill a deal to get some vital information. Maybe you can join me in doing?”

Battle in Central Square (cw: snakes, alcohol)
Snakes, why did it have to be snakes? Jamie feels rather horrified as soon as he is able to get through the shadow barrier to find Central Square to look like a snake den. What a horrible makeover indeed. He would hate to see snakes in a room for days and he does feel sorry for anyone who has a legit fear of snakes.

After gaining some important intel from fulfilling the Kitsune’s deal, carrying some of the strongest alcohol he can afford on a student’s budget and holding onto his wand, Jamie begins to wonder if the Kitsune’s words on the alcohol is correct. The young man then turns to whoever is nearby and begins to ask them a very important question.

“Hey, is there a chance that we can distract this Orochi guy with all this alcohol? I just want to test it out and see if it can be to our advantage.”

Kitsune Deals

[godmaker]

[there's an otter hanging out of what seems to be a very large wooden pail filled with water. it stares at jamie. then pelts a seashell at him.]

Are you sure about that?

Elliot Craig | Trails of Cold Steel | OTA

[fiddlestick]

A. Midtown
[Everything going on was terrifying, but Elliot knew they really didn't have a choice to run and hide if they wanted to survive this. His home was in midtown, so he volunteers to help out there. He's smart enough to know it's not a good idea to travel alone, so he'll accompany anyone heading in that wants the support of a mage or a healer. He's got his staff at the ready as he wanders on the streets carefully]

...I think hear a gang of then around this next corner.

[His hearing was good, but not anything super human, so most people would be able to pick up on it if they're paying attention]

B. Cathedral Hill - Healing
[When he's not out on the patrols, Elliot's remaining in the sanctuary on Cathedral Hill. There's a lot of work to be done with preparing meals and looking after people. If you look particularly in bad shape, Elliot will approach]

Are you hurt? Do you need healing?

[He can provide that, at least.]

C. Undertown (Cygnus Academy) - Dragon Transformation
[Well, Elliot had tried to get information from the kitsune in Blue Lake Fish Park, but his negotiation skills really weren't up to par. What's worse, the trickster foxes could tell he was an easy mark to mess with. So while in the end he'd gotten some info...he really couldn't tell if it was worth the price he paid.

Once that's done? He'll head to Cygnus Academy? He's makes a bee-line for the men's bathroom, before even reporting in. He can be found in there, examining himself in the mirror with concern. Particularly, the growing pair of horns on his head.]

Thaaat can't be good. Crap.

[He's never talking to trickster creatures again. First the fae cursed him to be a cat and now this? Ugh]

D. Wildcard
[Got another prompt for me? Hit me up!]

3

[motiv8]

[Unsurprisingly, Rean's negotiation skills are also terrible, so even if he'd been there, he would have been no help at all. Probably negative help, honestly.

Rean does see his redheaded boyfriend zip by him at the Academy, though, and curiously follows after him. That look on his face did not imply he simply needed to use the restroom.

He pauses upon following him in as soon as he can see Elliot, blinking owlishly at the horns sprouting from his head. ...There is definitely a joke to be made here, but now is not the time.]

...Dare I ask what happened?

Waver Velvet | fate/ servantswap au | ota

[fionnuisce]

[i; network;]

un: silverrose
If you're having trouble finding shelter, the Academy's open and its bounded field should hold for now--I can't promise that will last forever, but right now it's stable. If you can't make it there safely, speak up and we'll figure something out. Don't do anything stupid.

[ii; midtown and around;]

[Thankfully, for once Waver was taking his own advice. Fighting roving gangs of seven-foot-tall youkai was a step too crazy even for him (at least, on his own.)]

[Instead, a streak of orange could be seen flitting through the streets and weaving past feuding oni, a small phoenix's flight leaving tiny sparks in his wake--more focused on finding anyone crazy enough to currently need backup or healing. Fighting on his own wasn't going to accomplish anything, but Waver sure as hell didn't expect everyone to keep that much in mind.]

[iii; wildcard;]

[anything else that comes up, yanno how it works]

text!

[poisontippedcure]

I could say the same for you.

After the cabin, I expect you'll keep your wits about you. No more heroic sacrifices.

[The pot is calling the kettle black here, especially after their most recent conversation. But still, she worries.]

Josuke Higashikata | JoJo's Bizarre Adventure | OTA

[onahairtrigger]

Here and There and Everywhere
[Rather than just taking his regular car, Josuke has opted for using Yuuki's magic car for driving around the city instead.

Flag him down, message him, or hell, be outside and in need of help and there he'll be. Anyone injured will see Josuke leaping out of the car, his Stand at the ready.]

Just give me a sec, and I'll have this fixed up in no time.

[But offering his services as a mobile healer isn't the only thing he's using the car for--he's absolutely dropping off supplies as needed, or if someone wants to get anywhere without being hassled by yokai. Contact him for transport purposes and it won't take him long to get there, rolling his window down.]

Alright, hurry up and get in so we can get going!

[Of course, if anyone's also a healer and interested in helping... well, Josuke is just one guy. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to offer your services to assist?]

Wildcard
[Want something that isn't one of the options above? Hit me up and we can talk specifics!]

[medicgunner]

[Josuke having a stand is something Eunie said she'd tell Fugo about, but now wasn't the time. It can wait till later unless some cosmic force tells her no.

She all but invited herself onto Josuke's healer mobiler even if she had trouble staying as a human at times. She could still summon her gunrod and the latter part of it is what she needed to heal.]

How you holding up? [Directed to Josuke most likely behind the wheel since she can't drive anything while birded.]

Scintilla Caminus | FFXIV [WoL OC] | ota

[sunforging]

[i; midtown+around]

[And then there was Scintilla, or at least the vermillion streak of motion that was weaving around an oni's wildly swinging club.]

C'mon, mate, gotta be a lil faster'n that! [The glowing focus snapped to the hilt of her rapier, a burst of lightning erupting around the oni.] Where'd all your friends go, I'd be happy t'finish what y'started-!

[...yeah, she's having fun, for a given measure of the term.]

[ii; wildcard]

[she'll probably spend most of her time on oni-fighting duty, such is the nature of FATE grinding]

I -! lemme know if this doesn't quite work :0

[standless]

Hooh!

[Suffice to say, as minutely battle-happy as Jonathan himself can get, it does not take long for a gold-glowing bat to start swooping around the fight himself.] Is there perhaps room for more to join in? A bout such as this can hardly be ignored!

[Who knows- perhaps it'll be akin to a duet?]

Ritsuka Fujimaru | Fate/Grand Order | Open

[prunedworlds]

[I. Around Town]

Ritsuka's mostly playing it safe, avoiding the more dangerous areas when she can help it, and trying to avoid stirring up trouble. She's not much of a fighter, after all, and is keenly aware of that fact. At least she now has a furbicorn only a whistle away if she needs a quick escape, but it's better to simply not get into trouble in the first place. When possible.

On the other hand, if there's someone to team up with, or if she comes across someone else who's looking to teach some of the youkai a lesson, she's more than willing to offer her help.

"If you think you can take them, I can probably help."

Or if you're the type to just leap straight into a fight anyway, if she happens to spot you, you can probably expect either some hastily-shouted but helpful advice and/or a simple support spell thrown your way.


[II. Downtime]

Not really having any magical abilities of her own means that Ritsuka, sensibly, is seeking out shelter in some of the safe areas as needed. Not wanting to impose means that she ends up not staying at any one in particular the entire time, instead either ducking into wherever the nearest one happens to be, or perhaps simply heading elsewhere if she feels like she's stuck around somewhere too long. Either way, at some point or another you might find her at almost any of the public safe spaces, should you be seeking her out.

What's more, if you actually catch her trying to get some along time, there's a good chance you'll see her drop her usual cheerful or focused demeanor, instead looking honestly kind of down. It seems someone still isn't fully over everything from last month...


[III. Hani-wha?]

At some point or another, Ritsuka decided to take the time to investigate the allegedly safe houses the clearly not at all suspicious tanuki was talking about. It should be a fairly routine sort of stop, taking a quick peek to see what it has to offer... but then, the peculiar statue(?) outside moves.

"Ah!!"

Ritsuka sure is giving the thing an incredibly suspicious look. There might be a story there...


[IV. Serpentine Showdown]

Of course, Ritsuka's going to be doing what she can to contribute to fighting the giant snake. And while she's not fought this particular version of Orochi before, she's certainly dealt with similar things a time or two before. Enough that she's well aware of the need for a plan instead of just an all-out, uncoordinated attack.

"Even if Orochi has a weakness for alcohol, I don't know if he'll just drink anything offered him. So maybe someone should bring it to him who can convince him it's a tribute?"

Someone who actually has those kinds of acting skills, that is. Ritsuka is probably far too guileless for that, herself.

"Then, if some people can distract the heads while others attack..."


When it comes down to the actual fight, she'll do what she can, too. She might still lack powers of her own, but she has support spells--both her mystic code and a few scrolls she's carefully stocked up on from Undertown--and plenty of experience in coordinating fights. So whether it's an attack boost right before a critical strike lands, or healing spell for someone looking in rough shape, she's there to have your back.



[Wildcard]

Have another idea? Feel free to just throw a tag my way! Or you can PM me (either this account or Altocumulus on discord) if you'd like to plot something/ask for a custom tag/whatever~

Orochi

[senorita_perfecta]

Isabela looks at the serpent in front of her and Ritsuka as she holds onto her magic bow with a strong grip. She hasn’t face a big threat like him before but she had managed to fend off a giant being in Duat a month ago so this isn’t anything unusual for her by now. Olivia, her Palisman, grunts in concern while hiding behind her back.

She could try to do the acting part as she has spent years trying to be someone she is not at home, so maybe she can provide the distraction onto the heads.

“Maybe I can go in to offer the alcohol to Orochi and tell him that it is a offering we’re going to give to him,” Isabela suggests that she can volunteer for the alcohol tribute.

Diarmuid ua Duibhne | Fate/ (servantswap AU) | ota!!

[twofoldfury]

i. mind's eye (various locations)

[They needed eyes everywhere, in areas most vulnerable or soon to be overwhelmed by yokai. Shortly after the Zodiac post went up, anyone with a mind to look up or stay above ground would find Diarmuid among the roofs in town carefully patrolling just what manner of spiritual creatures they’ll find in the coming days. Any irregularity to quash the moment they arise. These early days were the calm before a dangerous storm.

It was when the gangs made themselves more widely known that Diarmuid spent more time on the ground level, aiming to stop any fight in its tracks before it even began. With a display of his own power, though not the entirety of it.

A summoning of one of both of his spears and a twirl above his head, around his back, by his side and pointed forward. Fluid motions displayed as if they were easy as brushing a petal away.

While he was confident in his ability to quell rival groups on his own, if someone was by his side he would suggest the following:]

We'll have more success if we work together. [Provided they’ve displayed an ability to fight or at least support, anyway.]

ii. knight's strategy (central square)

[Yamata-no-Orochi. So this was the monster spoken of in the month’s prophecy. A monster was a monster in the end, though Diarmuid would not dare to underestimate this foe. And he would sooner break his Knight’s code than have someone in the city sacrificed to this demon.

It was this barrier that was an issue. Indeed, if it was formed through powerful Shadow magic this world’s cycles and weaknesses would cause it to fall to Light.

Alternatively… On his spears there were dark, wrapped cloths extending along that he stared down for a while, then back to whoever may be beside him.]

I will handle this barrier, but we'll need to be prepared for the assault the moment we push through.

iii. swords on a stick (wildcard)

[[ the anything else option lmk if you want stuff am bonpuns on disc and plurk i’m going to swallow some cough drops aaaaa ]]

ii

[fionnuisce]

[Of course, a magic barrier was nothing to them. Or at least, nothing to Diarmuid, who could cut through magic like it was air. There was absolutely no reason to question the path forward, with the problem before them crystal clear and everyone prepared to make a full assault.]

I'm ready when you are, Dia--ah-?

[And then he suddenly winced, stepping back and pressing a hand to his head like he was in pain.]

Blade | Honkai: Star Rail | ota!

[unreachableside]

[I. network; text; un: blade]
Hyrule is safe. The yokai in the park aren't immediately hostile, but they still need to be pushed out.

I have weapons, shields, and some armor I can hand out if you need equipment. Don't make me spell it out.

This is your city. Fight for it, or lose it.

As for me... I'm going to fight. Demons be damned.

[II. cathedral hill]
[Seeing as his condo is located in a place now overcome by patrolling trash mobs, Blade is essentially camping out in Hyrule for now. Still, he makes a couple trips to Cathedral Hill to share what supplies he can. Notably, he drags along some fuel and a couple of generators just in case they are needed. He also hands out flashlights for the dark, dark nights and helps with distributing spare blankets.

Funny work from a guy who says he's a danger to everyone.

He has a job to do, and he intends to slip back into Hyrule without being seen, but it's easy enough to catch him like this or staring at the statue of Barbatos in quiet contemplation.]

[III. central square showdown]
[When Blade and Varian originally set out to build this prototype, it was going to be much larger, not to mention beefier. But their timeline rapidly moved up when the entire city fell into the Spirit Realm, and they decided that it was time to make this a proof of concept rather than something that would survive a second trial. All of the engineering experience in the world can't let you skip the part where you fuck around and find out, and that time has come.

Whatever strategies people have put together, they are suddenly irrelevant as a nine foot tall suit of grey and red power armor takes the field. It looks hastily put-together, but there is no joking around when it lifts a ten foot long wind-aspected claymore and begins hacking away at the barrier. Progress is evidently too slow for whoever is inside this thing. A deep, seething voice rumbles out of the loudspeaker.]

Get back. I'm not asking.

[The armor tosses the claymore aside and raises its right gauntlet. An array of rockets launch into the barrier and explode. Hope this wasn't supposed to be a stealth mission!

... One of the rockets doesn't fire. The armor casually plucks it out of the gauntlet-- and hurls it at the barrier manually.

Don't worry about it.]

I: Network (UN: ragingbull)

[bullzerk]

I'm definitely interested, but I'm not accepting handouts; especially not from someone I don't even know. So what do you want in exchange?

Yasuho Hirose | JoJolion | OTA

[youwouldntdownloada]

{MAKE WAY, MIDTOWN - PROSE INTRO + UNDERLINED PROMPTS}

[Waking up to oni in the street and not a single person in the house is both more terrifying, and somehow less terrifying than it should be. Maybe it's the shock; the unconscious knowledge that if she takes more than a split second to panic, that'll be it. Maybe it's simply...not knowing how bad it is.

Doesn't take a genius to look at a great lumbering ogre of a Thing hauling a club around to say 'that's a bad idea'. But so's staying in her house, so it's with that grim thought in mind that she gathers what she can before the house is inevitably broken into. Sword, check. Apparent magic phone that seems to just act as Paisley's polly pocket mansion, check. Horse boots and cat-ear headphones, check.

Polly the duck, who will be a literal sitting one without her, check.

And she thinks she's doing a pretty good job of being stealthy, when she does leave! The back door seemed like a good idea, she didn't see anything out there but-]

HU-HU-HOOHHHH!!

EEEEEK-!

[She has enough time to scream before realizing what's in front of her. Polly the duck quacks and scrambles off from where the duck was dropped, happily ignored by the Oni. The Oni in question readies his club- Yasuho's phone, her ARCUS, rather, glimmers-

Actually so does the rest of her but she doesn't have time to think about how it feels like she's not wearing jeans anymore, because suddenly it feels a lot easier to avoid that club.]

AHHH...AHHH..!! [Not that. She can do that forever.

Fortunately she doesn't have to. Fortunately, while it takes a good 30 seconds for the Oni to wrench their club back out of the ruined back of the house, it takes her dragon half that to leap down from the roof, roaring.]

...Oh my god you were on my roof again!?

[Not the time!

A roar of light-breath, and gentle teeth- and if anyone's come to fight the good fight in midtown, they're in for a sight.]

WAIT-

No-

You could have put me on your back!!!

[The sight is a dragon run-flapping full tilt down the street toward the nearest seeming spot of safety.

One run later, and Yasuho's no doubt being released from her dragon's jaws though, as both catch their breath on one of the strangely safe properties owned by a certain tanuki holed up in Undertown. It's a strong relief- and honestly Yasuho doesn't even look too upset about the statements that electricity and the like will cost money in the house. It's not like she's actually staying here long term after all. No, instead she's talking to the Gyroid, looking ponderous.]

Undertown huh...

[The moment anyone approaches- rather, joins her on the lawn- she turns.] Oh-

...I'm guessing you got the same wake up call I did huh...

[Maybe. Maybe not. Hey Yasuho, what are you even wearing?]

{UNDERTOWN UNFORTUNATES}

[When she gets to Undertown, Yasuho feels much, much better.

...After about ten minutes of breathless panic and a venti-cup's worth of water.

But she's feeling far better once she makes it to the relative refuge of Undertown, and for once in her entire life she has never been so relieved to see Void Dennys. ...Even if the food is. Well.

It's not important. What's important is talking to the tanuki- Tanukichi that is- about those houses. She's just in the middle of asking if he thinks he might be able to stick around after this blows over when he has to hurry off to break up some kind of debate brewing between his nephews and one of the humans taking refuge here right now. Ah, well...

...Probably good timing, since she's just noticed another's approach.] Oh- ...You know somehow despite everything happening, the more people I see down there the more relieved I am... ...Has anyone figured out how we can get this fixed?

[Because...they're fixing this. Right? Right???]

{BREAK A LEG OUT THERE | PROSE + UNDERLINED PROMPTS}

[Staying in Undertown is ultimately not an option. Beyond the fact that it's a shopping district not a hotel, even glancing at the prices at all the stalls and shops down there is enough to say 'bad idea'. No, Yasuho thinks as her quiet thoughts translate to instructions for Paisley to eagerly beep out from the ARCUS- she needs to get out of here and find somewhere else to stay. The best bet is probably out of town, the woman decides...

But that's where her bad luck comes about.

Truthfully she's been feeling a little sick since the month started. Probably nothing, she tells herself, but she can't shake the feeling it's otherwise. Being here in the Spirit Realm though, that makes it worse- not because of anything affecting her, but rather because of what Paisley suddenly lacks. The Stand is trying of course- she's doing her best!

But a GPS isn't really connected to anything here, so when Yasuho turns a corner out from Undertown into the Entertainment district she has to pause and frown at her phone.]

Paisley this isn't-

[And then yelp when her eyes catch a glimps of a long parade of creatures...who very suddenly surround her.]

Oh no- Oh no- OH NO-

[Panic sets in quickly. Her stumbling around in her magical girl outfit at least lets the handy agility boost of her ARCUS kick in again, but that doesn't help a whole lot and if anything the various Yokai seem to think her blind sword flailing is funny. Hilarious even. 'It's like she's trying her hand at Dancing', at least one drunken little ego-monster crows, and in that moment the contest is suggested.]

'Dance Off! You and me, Strawberry-chan~'

[Something sparks in that moment. She doesn't like that name. She can't tell why she doesn't like that name. But somehow, for the second time since ending up here, Yasuho's clothes change.

And somehow, she doesn't find herself backing down immediately.] ...You're on..!

[..................Probably a Mistake. Something about this outfit makes dancing WAY easier- and within minutes she's actually singing in fact, and if this were any other time she'd be feeling more than self-conscious. But between the yokai loving it (or at least the peril she's in, between the ten minute cool-down on being able to dodge with killer style and the whole flailing sword), and the need to care about nothing but Not Dying...

She's doing great!

...But great won't get her through hundreds of these, and while getting ready to break into another song, she can see her way out. Undertown is right over there! If she just gets back there...

...Oh. And there's someone else in this parade stuck with her, so why not make this a-] Got any numbers about running away..?

[It's fine the yokai are drunk as skunks they won't clue in (Yet)-]

{SOMETHING IN THE AIR...AND PERSEPHONE'S GARDEN}

[Not so long ago, she described her take on the supernatural as essentially having seen thing so ridiculous in her mind, that she's just started numbly nodding along and saying 'yeah, ok, sure'.

Exhausted, holding a duck under one arm, still wearing that 'magical girl' dress while riding the back of a dragon and shakily holding a sword with her free hand, and she's pretty sure the word she was looking for is Shock.

She's just in shock, or something. Yeah.

People below will see her long before she comes- the dragon fortunately far more skilled at aerial gymnastics than she is at commanding them, and keeping her out of harms way as it flies. But once she's on the ground, the gritty details are there to see.

Injuries? Definitely. Calm? Gone. Do not trust the silence. She looks, if anything, like she might be sick- but she's pretty sure she's had too little to eat for anything to come of that feeling, so when she practically rolls off her ride she just stumbles on her feet.]

It's...

[Hurhk-]

...Is Vash... ...Actually..can I just stay here, anyway..?

[please she's so tired guys]

{ UN: MUSICOLOGYMINOR - TEXT }

Do we have details on getting this fixed yet..?

{O R O C H I}

[A great question for the day- how did she get here?

It started with helping to plan. Information gathering is her strong point. Actually organizing that information into some kind of strategy even more so. No doubt at least once someone suggests digging around for something to better buff that talent, but for now what she has is her phone, a sword, and a cute dress.

And, she supposes, a dragon and a Stand. Only the dragon has light breath however, and it's that same breath that ends up burning against the barrier at Central Square before she realizes she might have just walked into something far. Far too big for her.]

Hah...Hah...Hah...

[She's not really a fighter. Blind swings with a sword mean nothing to a dragon, but she can at least watch and bait the things while helping to figure out how to get to that bell. Not that she has many ideas of course but...well...]

Take...THIS-!

[Once it's clear that ALCOHOL of all things is the key?

She's throwing a few strong ones at the nearest mouth she can.]

YEEE-K!

[And running, running, running away, getting hit by literally any of these things will be very very bad-!]

not the time

[godmaker]

[said dragon. running full tilt. unfortunately runs over another dragon some poor guy, and he tumbles towards the pavement, barely avoiding a concussion.]

ragna the bloodedge | blazblue | ota

[centralfiction]

i. fucking around (brick alley)

[So, Ragna had fully intended to kick Lord Ao’s ass since clearly this is all his fault right? Well, because it’s funnier Ragna cannot find the guy anywhere because he keeps being caught up in gang wars. Many of the Oni taking pot shots at his appearance or other things about him such as how comparatively scrawny his six foot frame is compared to theirs.

And Ragna is nothing if not an easy provoke. Good thing he has his big dumb sword and he was in this area of town for a reason.]

The hell'd you say to me? Keep talking after I've kicked your ass out, you punks!

[For all his stupidity, outside of a fight he tended to linger outside of one Biskitti cafe for specific reasons. It was a safe zone that needed it. But on occasion he’d find a rare solo oni who might have been accosting someone. That was a free ass kicking and anyone around he’d actually acknowledge.]

Hey, hurry and get out of here unless you want more yokai up your ass.

ii. finding out

What'd you think I am, stupid? I'm not playing any kitsune games.

[Reader, we call that famous last words. Because upon learning the games he’d have to play to get any info on Orochi’s weak spot, Ragna began to walk away from them. But the kitsune weren’t taking that slight, no, no reader.

Maybe it was because they caught an easy and fun target when they saw one and the humiliation he’d feel from a small change would be enough. Maybe they’re in cahoots with the Gacha Goodwill shopkeep who knows.

But as he walked away, one of them in its medium sized fox form lunged for Ragna and pushed its magically charged paws into his back to make him stumble to the ground with a yelp and further out of their territory.]

OW. Hey, what the hell?! [Of course looking back they were or at least appeared to have left which Ragna wasn’t buying for a second as he rubbed his head to find.

Well. Something new.]

Oh hell no.

iii. we ball (wildcard)

[[ wildcard option for anything else am bonpuns everywhere THIS GUY IS NEW SO ENJOY ]]

I

[switchaxe]

Oh, please, this ain't my first fight.

[Because yeah, Ash is armed with his switchaxe and a Pokemon, plus whatever other nonsense he's gotten recently going on.]

I distract 'em, you kick their ass.

Vergil Vittore || Devil May Cry || Paranormal AU || OTA

[kowase]

1.__// a demon's territory

[ it's almost a familiar thing, in a way. to see the normal, quiet town he's used to living in suddenly turning into a place where the supernatural reigns, and where monsters start to roam the streets. maybe not in this life--but certainly in a past one, there were moments he can clearly remember where monsters started pouring out of cracks in reality, swarming the local areas and not caring for who or what they might be hurting or destroying.

Now, usually, Vergil's self-interest had him ignoring these monsters, pushing forward toward whatever agenda he had and caring little about who or what the creatures decided to fuck with--but this time, it was personal.

Because the moment the first oni enters his shop via tearing the door's handle out of its hastings?
Vergil is up, sword in hand, and outside to deal with the delinquents.

Which is where any of his family--friends, or aquaintences falling in on the scene will find a six and a half foot tall silver-haired antiques dealer chesting up to seven-foot tall oni--
And not being at all shy to show them whose territory they're barging in on by divesting one of the tall, horned creatures of one of its arms with a blast of that odd, slow-motion explosion of rapid cuts from that odd, white katana that's always at his side.

Get too close and he'll even cut you a sharp look. ]

Either find a way to help me drive them off, or stand back and I will protect you, as well.
These things think they can mess about what is mine? A thousand years too early, I am afraid.

2.__// a difficult trade

[ with either dante or nero at home and watching the storefront while vergil makes a trip around town to see what's to see with the city's... currently insane state of being. It's literally a hell-on-earth, and while a Vittore from seven months ago may be freaking out and trying to find shelter--he as he is today, a far braver man with a literal devil starting to act up in his veins--part of him is invested in figuring out what is going on. Who is causing this--and why.

...And perhaps, how to put an end to it.

Which is why he finds himself in the middle of Blue Fish Park. Perhaps it was the look of a supernatural market that drew him in--given his profession, but it isn't the wares he's here to buy.
No, he can be found with a pair of three-tailed kitsune sitting, bookending him with clever, playful looks on their faces as they wait for the man to make a decision.

His fingers gently touching a bracelet he's wearing--a copper band with a very slight magic tinge to it; a red gem set inside a sort of amulet that hangs from the mouth of some sort of dragon.

A bracelet that matches that of his brother's. An item that keeps them attached--a truly precious thing he hasn't taken off since the day he'd gotten it.
He'll cast a sideways glance on whomever may have accompanied him; or whomever he may have met at the same marketplace. A tired look on his face. ]

...The question is, do I trust these beings enough to give me proper information as trade for something so dear to me.

After all, these beasts keep saying they will take payment in the form as 'embarrassment', which seems much cheaper than that of a heart-owned trinket.

3.__// wildcard.

[ if you got any ideas or shots you wanna take, come at me. ]

[2] the devil's own bargain

[throwmoreswords]

[ Vergil Vittore does not deserve Gilgamesh.

it's audacious of the silver-haired man, really, to come prancing into the king's life and suddenly decide that they're friends after ten years of comfortable, arms-length interaction, and then upon deciding they were friends, also coming to the conclusion that Gilgamesh would be all too happy to do the emotional heavy lifting for Vergil with nary a complaint.

buddy, Gilgamesh doesn't even contemplate and consider his own emotions, let alone yours. who the hell asked you?

all the same, Gilgamesh is cursed with the sin of curiosity, and so he continues to throw himself at the fire to see what it does when he touches it--which is how he finds himself here and now, at the devil's side as the man fingers his fancy little bracelet and morosely contemplates trading away something that means so much to him, and Gilgamesh can't think of a subtle way to smack Vergil upside the back of the head for immediately jumping to the stupidest answer possible--so he just literally does it and throws 37 years of well-practiced scorn into his expression whenever his friend turns to face him (and yes, for reference, Gilgamesh is 38. ownership of the Hater's Club was all but his birthright. ]

You are far too versed in history and frivolity to think that lying to magical creatures is going to end well for you, [ he snaps, lying ] and acting like your fussy, obnoxious pride is less important to you than a copper bracelet that you can buy at a beachfront tourist trap for fifteen dollars.

[ please, for the love of all the gods that Gilgamesh would personally fistfight, stop being an idiot for two seconds and learn how to play poker, Vergil Vittore. ]

Dan Heng | Honkai Star Rail | OTA

[heng_like_a_dragon]

A: Before Blade Becomes Discount Iron Man

[Dan Heng can be found consorting with kitsune at Blue Fish Lake Park. To most people, he looks a lot different than normal. His dark hair is much longer in a swallow-tail style. Blue, draconic, glass-like horns sprout from his forehead and his eyes are no longer blue, but a light green with glowing, silver pupils. His ears are also pointed, reminiscent of elf ears for the fantasy nerds around here. Even his clothes have gotten far more elaborate, and a little more showy. Those who saw him post to Venti's Smash or Simp might recognize this as his "Halloween costume."

The kitsune he's speaking to has a somewhat masculine voice, but they don't seem terribly concerned by gender. They are, at heart, a fox.]

Yes, yes, we know all about Yamata-no-Orochi's greatest weakness! But if that's what you want, then we must talk about the price. After all, a valuable commodity such as this deserves appropriate payment, wouldn't you agree?

[Dan Heng doesn't seem to react much to this, but those who know him well enough might detect a subtle hint of annoyance in his eyes. Yet, his voice is even and reasonable.]

It is valuable, and I believe we'd be open to negotiation.

[... You may or may not be part of the 'we,' depending on if the kitsune is feeling spicy about it.]

B: Alcohol-Benders Anonymous

[Finding out about Yamata-no-Orochi's weakness being alcohol is definitely worth the price he gives to the kitsune. An eight-headed serpent with an alcohol problem... yeah, Dan Heng has an idea for that. As the other app users begin their assault, he takes stock of their alcohol situation and shouts out above the din.]

Those with control over water, over here! He has a fondness to certain drinks. Pick a head to "gift" with alcohol. I can take care of any that can't be covered!

[stripartist]

[Yusuke, who's been mostly just running back and forth trying to help people and delivering alcohol to the battlefield, hears Dan Heng's request.]

I've got the one over here! Goemon!

[He summons his Persona as back-up so he can focus on getting this snake drunk.]

Jusis Albarea | Trails of Cold Steel | OTA

[noblerise]

A: Acting-Duke Alicorn Albarea vs The Giant Octopus

[With the current Guardians short-handed as they are, Jusis has decided to put his talents of negotiation to good use by heading to the harbor. Convincing Akkorokamui to leave is a high priority when he's got people out on a fucking ship to Europe. That the Geo Archon and Jusis' father figure in all but name is horribly phobic of the creatures is, admittedly, also a factor in getting rid of the gigantic octopus.

Unfortunately, he's having a difficult time remaining human. As such, he's decided to keep to his alicorn form for now and flies out over the harbor to scout around, getting as much information on the situation as possible. Jusis does manage to skillfully dodge out of the way of any tentacles coming at him, but there are definitely some close calls before he finally lands on the pier.

This isn't the first time he's had to negotiate, but it'll definitely be a first with an octopus... god? Demigod? Something like that. Anyone from the app who is also on the dock, Jusis will turn to address them with his report.]

From what I've been able to gather, he's far too massive to even hope to defeat. The best we can do is either harry him until he leaves out of annoyance, or we somehow persuade him to leave of his own accord. What does everyone else think?

B: Wildcard!

[Jusis can be found doing search and rescue all across Kaisou after Akkorokamui is sufficiently dealt with, but more specifically in the Entertainment District. He'll swoop down to anyone struggling in an attempt to help them get to safety, with priority given to anyone seriously injured.]

a

[scourgingstars]

I think, among many other things, 'since when are you a horse'?

[when the fuck did he get here.]

And while it is certainly not the priority, the question does tend to linger in my mind at the moment.

Vash the Stampede || Trigun : Maximum || OU || OTA

[doubledollar]

1.__// The Mint Is Holy

[ it's probably the most cryptid vash has ever been inside the city. But here he is.
maybe you'll catch sight of the madman dashing around lawns and planter boxes anywhere around the city, all seven feet of him crouched over patches of dirt as he has, tucked in one arm, a large pot filled with several long mint plants.

He's taking a sprig from the one in the pot... and using his weird plant powers to encourage it to root, grow a little, then he's taking off.

To the next patch of dirt.

Not only does Vash spend most of the day doing this...
But he can be found doing it on several days.

You can either stop the Mint Menace and ask him what the hell he's doing...

...or maybe help him. ]

2.__// Can't Touch This

[ when Vash isn't busy trying to plant sprigs of mint all over Kaisou like a madman, he can be found very expertly dodging fights with yokai. It's very impressive how one man can run so fast, honestly--

But what might be even more impressive is catching him in an actual dance battle with a group of rogue youkai playing music loudly in the crowded streets of the entertainment district.

Vash isn't a particularly good dancer--but man, can he dodge and weave. Which is exactly what he's doing as the group of Youkai are trying their GODDAMN BEST to knock vash off his hot streak--throwing bottles and rocks at him, swiping at him with sticks and broken broom handles--

each and every strike being dodged with barely a moment before the last one ends.

Maybe cheer him on--or be there in the last moments before the Yokai decide there's no winning against this man who's clearly got a set of bones made out of liquid? Running off like cockroaches under a flood light, scattering in myriad directions... ]

--And stay out, the lot of you! Or there's definitely more where that came from!!!

Oh my god I'm so tired please don't come back.

3.__// Wildcard

[ Got any other ideas/things you wanna'do? Hit me up! ]

[fionnuisce]

That's definitely something I've never seen before.

[So remarked a familiar bird, perched a safe distance away on some powerlines.]

Doesn't look like there's a lot more where that came from, though I can't very well blame you.

Neuvillette | Genshin Impact | Paranormal Modern AU

[godmaker]

A. Pawn Stars, but Horrible

[If you manage to make it unscathed and unscammed through the droves of foxes hawking their wares, you might notice an oddly colored otter floating and/or lounging in various bodies of water - the lake, the duck pond, a really large wooden pail, if it can hold more than ten gallons of water, it's in there.

It is the least enthusiastic otter you have ever seen. It has also taken to pelting passerby who are seemingly making bad kitsune deals with shells.]

B. Fratboys Anonymous

[You can find Neuvillette out and about in Midtown, armed with a cane-sword and a flourescent pink, extremely motivational, gallon-holding water bottle, doing absolutely nothing. He's just sitting on vaguely horizontal surfaces, watching the madness. Someone getting bodied near him? He does not care. Someone bleeding terribly? Yeah good luck with that.

When the fighting gets too close he either leaves or stabs the closest fleshy thing.]

B. Wildcard

[Anything else you want wet grandpa for? Hit me up.]

b

[scourgingstars]

Well, this is fun.

[You know who else loves spectating from vaguely horizontal surfaces? The weird scruffy guy in the spotless black suit.]

What an astonishing example of unrestrained chaos.

yae miko / genshin impact / paranormal au.

[vexare]

i. network.

[ the feed opens to a stunning woman with notably pink hair, purple eyes, and even more notably fox ears. she waves at the camera, lips curved into a rather sly smile. apparently, the appearance of yokai and demons doesn't seem to bother her too much, in fact, the keen observers will notice that the backdrop is that of the blue fish park. ]

How are we all doing this fine evening? [ is it evening? maybe. the lack of sun makes it a little hard to discern what time it is. ] Now, I am sure many of you have already heard this but do be careful going outside. It won't do if you are snatched up by the roaming yokai and are forced into the Hyakki Yagyou, now would it?

[ it is difficult to tell if the warning is genuine or not, but something about the way her eyes glint in the light is almost off-putting. ]

Although, should you find yourselves being tormented by a yokai or hunted down by an oni... I may be persuaded to help. For a small fee. My name is Yae Miko and I happen to know a thing or two about our new visitors.

ii. a meeting of kitsune.

[ should your travels about the city during this time of crisis, you may find one (1) yae miko calmly resting amongst the kitsune of blue fish park. she makes no move to try and shoo them away, nor does she seem to be bothered by them trying to all but rob the unfortunate souls who happen upon them. she rests upon a ledge, fried tofu placed on a plate beside her, watching with those sharp eyes and sly smile.

it's only once she spots something interesting that miko's attention shifts, head tilting to the side as she crosses a leg over the other and leans forward. ]

Come to try you luck with the kitsune, have you?

iii. wildcard.

[ hit me up for anything else!!! ]

II

[stripartist]

[Fox lady meet fox man. One who looks incredibly unamused as he approaches, both tails twitching in annoyance.]

Are you one of them?

[Ma'am you are eating fried tofu and have fox ears. Yusuke is sus.]

nero // devil may cry // ota

[sassery]

[midtown.

There's a bit of a commotion on one of the ends of the streets of Midtown, a few spare oni making a boisterous laugh at what's in front of them. They had lagged behind the rest of their oni gang, finding some of the storefronts in need of "renovating."]

Hey, four-eyes!!

[To passerby, this suddenly looks like one of those shootouts in an old western movie. Nox stands as an obstacle in the oni’s path, unmoving. His arms are crossed, sword on his back and he’s shit-talking them in order to piss them off.

You talk loudly for someone without an arm. One of the oni snarls, irritated at the name-calling and not needing much to set him off.]

What, this? [Nox gestures to one of his robot arms, and just grins wider.] Trust me, I don't need one arm to beat you guys. Hell, I don't need any arms to kick your asses.

[One of the other few snaps at him, club raising with ease. You’re dead! He starts swinging towards the boy in a charge- I'll just kill you, you puny little-

Except that gets cut off suddenly, because Nox now towers over this oni by another foot in devil trigger, fangs bared as he growls.]

"Puny" my fucking ass, dipshit. [A claw grabs the oni's head before he goes and chucks it back into the group behind him.

Anyone who comes along to help will clearly hear his threat.]

You chose to fuck around in my city, now you're gonna find out!!

[He's your tank who’ll grab aggro for the evening, and this? This is what he lives for, in more ways than one.

kami state park. ]

The fuck do you mean, "it was a mutual benefit???"

[In the middle of the continuing Osorezan festival, a conversation is being had. A certain devil hunter is prodding Jenna Tayu for answers, already disliking what he’s hearing. There’s no hostility, at least, as Nox tries to take the more conversational route first. It’s going about as well as one would expect, especially when Nox’s temper is high.

(His demon roars at the indecency of it, of all of this, furious about its territory being invaded.)

Nox scoffs even as he hears her reply, keeping his angrier thoughts to himself instead of immediately snapping them out.]

If you don't like either of these assholes, why side with them?? [A beat as he listens, a frown showing on his face.] No offense, but oni traditions sound like they’re full of bullshit. [UGH. No amount of explaining will convince him that this isn't the stupidest fucking thing, and that oni are absolute morons.

Someone haul his ass out of this mess before he pisses off the group or makes this scenario so much worse.

wildcard.

Have an idea? Wanna shove something at him? Go for it.]

midtown

[hoshikiri]

[Did Takame have the same kind of strength given by a Devil Trigger? No. Was he here to be a Blue DPS while Nox threw the pathetic oni sods about like plastic cups? Absolutely.

Even as the one is thrown by Nox Takame was right there to follow the throw down with Lightning Shot from his Gunblade just to really drive the point home.

Takame sounded the same as ever, though there's the undercurrent of a growl in his tone. Keeping a human form was a struggle but having battle to focus on helped.]

They've picked the wrong city to trifle with. [Even as he spoke to Nox and another oni bastard tried to come at him from behind, Takame pointedly sheathed his blade and grabbed the guy by the arm and threw him over his shoulder without looking. A clear display of skill and intent to intimidate if his snarl was any indication.

His one liner's could use work, but he's ready to fight like a regular DMC.]

Lucy Westenra | Dracula

[honestyandpluck]

[network voice | un: livefromkaisou]

Oh no oh no oh no—

[There's the distant sound of something crashing outside, the laughter of yokai having a grand old time celebrating as they stomp through the streets. Much closer sounding, though, is the sound of Lucy's panicked breathing as she crouches under her desk, having fumbled with her phone to turn it on to the app.]

Hello? Can anyone hear me? This is Lucy Westen—Lucy West. [Easy to slip, when she's this terrified, when the demon inside her is scratching at the inside of her skull, whispering about the dagger at her hip.] I'm trapped in the radio station in the Entertainment District, I've been here for more than a day now. My sound engineer tried to go outside and they took him away, I'm afraid he's—he's—

[She chokes on her voice, then rallies quickly.]

I don't know how much longer I can stay here, but if I can't, I need to get the equipment out before the demons right outside decide to have their way with the station. I've done what I can, barricaded the doors and blocked the windows, but they're stronger than I and it's only a matter of time before they figure out someone's still in here.

[A breath.] And I refuse to stop broadcasting. We might be isolated from outside Kaisou, but we're not cut off from those still in the city, and—and people need to know where to go and where not to go.

But I need help first.

[cathedral hill]

[Having relocated to Cathedral Hill for the time being, Lucy's set herself and her radio equipment up somewhere with the best signal currently. True to her word, she keeps broadcasting regularly: mostly just updates on safe zones, news on what's going on in the city, and—perhaps the most heartbreaking thing—listing missing persons. Sometimes someone calls in with good news for the latter and she gets to watch a reunion. Most of the time, though, she doesn't.

This...isn't really what she thought she'd be doing when she'd accepted the radio host job. But talking is what she's good at. Keeping people's spirits up is what she's good at. This is part of her job now, and she's going to do it, dammit.

But once or twice, someone might find her staring down at a new list of names, her shoulders heavy, her head in her hands. Speak, and she'll startle.]

Oh! Uh, hi. Good morning. Or afternoon. I'm sorry, it's been—a long few days, and they're like to get longer. [She forces a smile onto her face.] What can I do for you?

[shopping street]

[She'd only meant to come down here to see if she could grab a charger for her phone. She'd plum forgotten it, you see, in her station, and despite her best attempts at conserving power, her phone's close to shutting down on her. Her usual go-to store for electronics is currently a total mess, so Lucy's walking around, a hand tight on her dagger, looking for one that's still mostly intact and/or manned.

One looks promising enough. She pushes it open and jumps back with a surprised cry as living paper comes flying out to attack her, flapping and crinkling and trying to cut her to pieces.]

Stay away! [With this shout, fire bursts from her free hand and incinerates some of the papers. The other hand pulls the dagger free, and something...odd seems to happen to her. Something seems to spark in her eyes, and she holds the dagger at the ready and all but snarls at the papers.] I'm telling you to stay away from me. I mean it.

[wild card]

[hit me up at either mollymauktealeaf or foggytealeafs at Discord if you want to plot something out! or just use this option instead.]

voice; un: shadeshift

[sunforging]

You stay right still, I'm on my way. [sure enough, there's already the sound of running in the background.] Get all your shite together and don't worry 'bout nothin', I'll be there quicker'n a chocobo with its tailfeathers on fire.

Goro Akechi | Persona 5 Royal | Paranormal AU

[bleakdecember]

[ midtown ]

[Akechi is not fighting... yet. He's been using his stealth abilities to follow around some of the crowds of yokai, avoiding confrontation when he can. But his hands twitch, itching to use his shadow claws. It's not worth it. He should... hang back. Evaluate, plan routes.

Should anyone bump into him, he presses a gloved finger to his lips. Stay quiet. There's a handful of oni just around the corner that he's been watching.]

There's an alley just to the left of them that leads to a safe house. If they'd just move...

[He looks like he's on the edge of just wanting to jump into battle, but barely holding himself back.]

[ around, anywhere ]

[He's not immune to needing some downtime in the safer areas. Anywhere that others are congregating, he'll occasionally take some time to rest. Well, relax.

It's becoming increasingly obvious that he hasn't slept... well, since this began. It's the only way to keep his unpleasant companion from trying to pull something while they're here. And the chaos means there's no time to fix his disheveled look.

The sleep deprivation is starting to get to him. You might find him, tucked away in a quiet corner, bandaging some kind of wound on himself and swearing under his breath.

He probably doesn't want company. Bother him anyway.]

[ central square ]

[He's joined in on the fighting, despite everything. Or at the very least, he's here. He's hanging back, trying to give advice and orders to anyone who will listen. After all, someone needs to be working on strategy, right? He'll unleash some boosted elemental attacks.... if the time is right.]

If we can stun all the heads at once, for even a moment, we might have an opportunity to get at that damned bell.

[ wildcard ]

[ persona jokes aside, go for anything or hit me up on plurk/discord for ideas! ]

[ around, anywhere ]

[dabi]

[ it'd taken him months to accept that supernatural shit was real. and now, the city has become... this. He'd had a bit of warning for it, thanks to Blade freaking out at him over a phonecall, so he'd had a bag packed with his most important belongings and anything he couldn't see left behind in case he needed to flee.

And flee he did, when a large oni crashed in through the front window of his shop. Without a sound, he'd bolted out the back door, duffelbag slung over his shoulder; and he'd put those new wings to use.

He'd be in the same sort of way that Akechi would be were it not out of sheer luck that he'd found a good place to hideaway until things cleared up or... well. he doesn't want to think about the alternative. He's out sneaking around rooftops, stealing into abandoned apartments to steal food when he takes notice of Akechi hiding behind a dumpster near the same house he was stealing from.

....Well.
He's bleeding. And there's a very small part of him that feels... obligated to help. Especially if Akechi moves to look at him: he'll recognise that exhausted look. Roll his eyes, and offer him a hand. ]

Yer gonna' get ambushed here. Come on.

I'll show you my hiding place. You can get a decent night's sleep there.

Rose | FFXIV | OU

[poisontippedcure]

[Lord Ao]

[Rose is staying out of the fight. She is staying out of the fight. After getting killed in the cabin, the last thing she's going to do is put herself in harm's way. There's no need for pointless danger.]

[But, despite what she may think, she's a hero, and that's how she finds herself in the middle of the fray. The night parade of demons is drawing close, and she so she leaps out of hiding to try to hit them with some holy magic.]

[It is, rather unfortunately, not super effective. Well, it is super effective at one thing--getting them to notice her. This is bad.]

By the---!

[At this point they're charging her, and the only thing she can do is draw her scythe.]

[Around the Town]

[Rose manages to make it away from the parade relatively unscathed, and she has thoroughly learned her lesson.]

[But she hasn't learned it enough to stop entirely. Now she's making her way around the town, doing what she can to make sure that people stay up and stay healthy. If she catches sight of you looking worse for wear, she'll stop what she's doing and rush over.]

Here. This should help.

[And she'll start channeling a healing spell.]

[Orochi]

[Rose hears Lord Ao's offer. She hears it loud and clear, though she's not quite happy about it.]

So we do all this work to buy a year? That hardly seems fair.

[Or sustainable. But, at the end of the day, it's far better than the other option.]

But I can't stomach seeing anyone else die, and I'm not going to let anyone be sacrificed.

[Not after everything.]

If it's a dragon, at least we can kill it.

[Wildcard!]

[boop]

around the town

[defendure]

[ Izuku is, sadly, terrible at staying out of things. He's at least not terrible at staying alive if only because he's blessed with boomerang luck: always getting into trouble but usually surviving it.

That said, his arm has borne the brunt of an attack and he looks pathetically grateful for the assist. ]

Oh, wow, thanks - you're a healer?

Ei Inazuma | Genshin Impact | OTA

[eiternity]

[Orochi, Part 1]

[Once upon a time, there were two sisters. They served as rulers of a nation.]

[While one sister walked in the light, another walked in the shadows. The one in the shadows was never much for people, but she knew how to fight. She trained day in and day out to protect her sister, and when that failed, she trained to protect her country.]

[One day, a dragon appeared. He fought against the sister of the shadows. It did not end well for him.]

[Nor will it end well for Orochi.]

You do not know the ground on which you tread. This is not your land--and for your transgression, you will pay with your life.

[Ei looks...commanding. She's donned her archon robe, and anyone with the ability to sense power will be able to see it absolutely radiating from around her.]

[Orochi, Part 2]

[Unfortunately, the dragon is immune. Like the others, Ei is able to notice the dragon's weak spot. She'll turn to the person beside her.]

Make me an opening. I can take care of the rest.

[There's something incredibly different from Ei's usual persona. She's determined. Fierce. She has a naginata in her hand, and she's not afraid to use it. All she needs to do is reach the bell.]

[Wildcard]

[she's easy to find around town. she's the purple girl who's going around and doing a big slash.]

Orochi, Part 2

[bullzerk]

[It's immune to their attacks? Cassandra doesn't seem pleased with this. After all, what kind of coward can't take a punch? Though something does seem to be protecting. The bell, perhaps? Nevertheless, she hears Ei and considers it for a moment. She's not exactly the trusting sort, but they're fighting a giant eight-headed serpent and this woman hasn't tried to pull anything, so it's probably fine. For now, at least. So Cassandra nods, turning to Ei.]

Got it. But you better save some for me! There's no way I'm going toe to toe with a literal kaiju and not getting a good hit in!

[And with that being said, she'll gleefully charge in. Let's see, that bell seems to be the target and thus probably the thing Ei wants to focus on. She needs to clear a path to it, which means distracting all eight of those heads. In the stories Orochi was defeated by getting it drunk and it seems like that will work here, from the rumors. Seems like a waste to use up all the good sake she brought from home, but if it helps them win this fight...well, she's not happy, but it'll probably be worth it.

Cassandra slides underneath the nearest head as it tries to bite her, pulling out a bottle from her dufflebag.]

Hope you're thirsty!

[Once the beast opens one of its mouths again, she flips the bottle to catch it by the neck and tosses into the nearest gullet.]

Shopping Street Chaos | Haku

[uppermoonthree]

Why, WHY, did I reply to that post on Libra help wanted? WHY? Smashing another cast iron pan down on a Croc that came flying at him. *Going out of town for a family emergency, need someone who can cook to maintain my taco stand for me. Please be able to cook, will direct deposit you via Libra for your time, tips are all yours to keep.* Yeah, should have known something was up. Was that a CROC? WHY ARE CROCS FLYING?

Haku just wanted to make some money to be able to afford a place to live, his tent is getting a little worn out at this point and he’s tired of having to sneak into gyms to shower. But when you make stupid choices, you win stupid prizes, and his prize is being broke and homeless due to bad choices.

“Fresh Tacos for sale! Made with real quality beef or chicken!” *unlike whatever was being cooked before, I couldn’t even tell you what that label said.* “Come and get them while they’re hot!” Looking around for anything else trying to fly at him and attack him, what is going on with everything today?