His Wonder was a dark place. He knew that. But it had gotten so much darker in recent weeks, and there was that monster, the last time—
But there was also the ritual. The lantern lighting he had seen Rin complete, brightening up the Wonder and leaving behind a remembered sense of calm and peace.
Aokigahara hoped that he had understood correctly. He strung four paper lanterns on the stick that held his weapon, and added the one he’d gotten from Almadel the year before. He tucked matches to light the lanterns with into the pocket of his jacket.
Lastly, he picked up the talismans he had made—inscribed with a simple abjuration in handwritten kanji. He hoped that the power of his Wonder might infuse them with more than just a symbolic ability—that they might banish the darkness there, if he only asked.
He closed his eyes, and recited his pledge, and when he opened them, he was in the shrine at the heart of his Wonder. He approached the place where the Code piece resided, and laid the talismans before it.
“Please,” he said, voice soft and desperate. “I need help. I want to fix things, and I can’t do it alone. Give me the power I need to cleanse my Wonder.”
For a moment, the talismans glowed with the eerie purple light that he associated with his weapon.
The light faded, and Aokigahara felt auras bloom outside.
It seemed the Code had heard his request.
—————
Aokigahara stepped out of the shrine, and was pleased to see a fairly motley assortment of Senshi and Knights before him.
“Hello, everyone,” he said, projecting his voice as well as he could, so everyone could hear. “I appreciate all of you for responding to the call of my Wonder. Two weeks ago, I visited it and found a creature lurking—a great skeleton, which I know I can’t beat on my own. So, I’ve asked for help, and the Code brought all of you here.”
He felt a deep sense of discomfort--he knew so few of these faces, and how many of them would even be excited oto help? But ah, well.
“I suspect I’ve discovered a ritual that will allow for me to not only eliminate this beast, but calm the restless spirits that have lurked at this Wonder since I began visiting it several years ago.” He hefted his stick of lanterns over his shoulder. “But I need all of you to hold off the beast while I light these in the proper places. To help with that, I’ve made these,” he held up his bundle of talismans, “and they’ve been infused with magic by the Wonder.” He looked out over the crowd, thoughtfully. “Take one or two each. They’re designed for banishment, but I imagine it will take more than one to clear up a spirit infestation this pernicious.”
He let out a breath, and stepped down the stairs, offering out the handful of talismans so that people could start taking them.
“Also, don’t wander into the woods. You won’t wander back out.” He paused, after that ominous warning. “Ah. Any questions?”
Quote:
This is an introductory post! You do not have to reply yet if you’re not feeling up to it, and you shouldn't be rolling any damage. I’ll reply to questions asked of Aokigahara until the next DM post, which will be coming in about 24 hours to actually start the battle. After that, round posts will drop every 48 hours, and I’ll do DM asides as the quotes come in to me! There will be no penalties for missed rolls except that you won’t be on my roll table for bane or blessing effects for the next round. Combat info forthcoming in next post. Happy hunting!
a-disgruntled-dragon
skoll, iduna
tatterpixie
gwales, puck
Amasis
basiluzzo, tikal, phaethon
Seiana_ZI
enke, hydor, viatrix, anser
stari_maga
cybele
SSBrosB
larissa, alphubel, sumner, voyager
xdeathxbyxlovex
tjilaki
Aurelius0815
tachibana, ara, arthuradel, hyperborea
Whimsical Blue
ida
Shanyume
acrucis
Strickenized
disposable velour
genovianprince
monoceros
Infinities
scylla, charybdis, imbrium
Indigo_Plateau
wild
EchosSweet
kitty, sawtooth
Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2021 5:10 pm
Welcome to Aokigahara!
It is the night of July 15th. Your character has answered a magical calling, and they have been summoned to the wonder of Aokigahara, Squire of Saturn. He has asked for their help stopping a very large, very nasty monster that's banging about his Wonder.
This Wonder is modeled off a Shinto shrine complex, with a great graveyard behind it, surrounded by deep, dark woods. Aokigahara is very serious when he warns you not to wander into these: without following the path, your character will be lost to the darkness forever. Please don’t do that. Aokigahara will be very sad.
This wonder is also extremely haunted! That means that during the fight, your characters may be afflicted with beneficial or baneful effects by the many residual Things lurking here on the Wonder. Have fun!
Combat Mechanics
Combat mechanics are straightforward, dice-based, and tied to stage. Each round will be treated as lasting one minute, so most magic attacks should only last for a single round!
HP
First Stage: 50 HP Second Stage: 75 HP Third Stage: 100 HP
Physical Attacks:
Physical damage includes hitting with fists or weapons, throwing objects, or otherwise attacking the creature without the use of magic.
Cats in Cat Form should roll 1d6 for physical damage First Stage characters and Cats in Human Form should roll 1d8 for physical damage. Second Stage characters and Sailor Cats should roll 1d10 for physical damage Third Stage characters should roll 1d12 for physical damage
Magical Attacks
Magical attacks are divided into two categories: direct damage and indirect damage. All attack magic will damage the creature, even things that only affect its many, many feelings! Direct damage magic is any magic that specifies either pain sensations or actual damage in its description. Indirect damage magic is magic that targets opponents with emotional or other nonphysical effects--most debuff magic falls under this category! If you’re not sure which category your magic falls under, feel free to contact me privately and I’ll make a judgement call!
Spell attacks are based on the level of the spell, not the level of the character! However, Chibi senshi should subtract one die from their damage. Older Senshi with unstable magic may have interesting effects; please quote me if you use it, and I’ll give you a DM post with a dice roll and information on how the outcome affects your magic!
Sailor Cats using attack magic should roll at Super stage.
Direct Damage
First Stage: 10 + 1d6 damage Second Stage: 10 + 2d6 damage Third Stage: 10 + 3d6 damage
Indirect Damage:
First Stage: 10 + 1d4 damage Second Stage: 10 + 2d4 damage Third Stage: 10 + 3d4 damage
Magical Healing:
Magical healing is any ability that restores characters in any way, including Transcendent energy sharing. You can use these spells with a dice roll based on their level.
Spell healing is based on the level of the spell, not the level of the character (except in the case of Transcendent energy giving)! However, Chibi senshi should subtract one die from their healing. Older Senshi with unstable magic may have interesting effects; please quote me if you use it, and I’ll give you a DM post with a dice roll and information on how the outcome affects your magic!
First Stage: 10 + 1d4 healing Second Stage: 10 + 2d4 healing Third Stage: 10 + 3d4 healing
Buff Magic:
Buff magic is any kind of magic that has an effect that boosts allies' abilities. When casting buff magic, roll as follows and quote any targets affected. They will add your total roll to their damage for the round. Chibi Senshi roll one less die!
First Stage: 2d4 Second Stage: 3d4 Third Stage: 4d4
Shielding Magic:
Depending on the type of shielding magic, it may simply absorb a round's worth of attacks or provide some damage mitigation. Touch base with me individually for shield spells; I'll give you an answer depending on how they're written!
If you feel your magic doesn't fall into any of these categories, hit me up and we'll work something out!
Banes and Blessings
I have a table set up of bane and blessing effects from the ghosts of Aokigahara! I’ll be doing private dice rolls for these to select people and effects based on an effect table I have set up that I will gladly release after the event is over if people want it! The list for each round of rolls will be made from people who posted in the previous round, and unless otherwise noted, banes and boons last until the next round.
Talismans
Aokigahara has given everyone two magical talismans to use during the fight. These are talismans of banishment, and can be activated during the battle. They can be used in three different ways: to amplify magic, amplify physical attacks, or to banish harmful effects on other characters. Please note if you are using a talisman in your post, and how many you have left!
Amplifying Magic:
When using a talisman to amplify magic, add one extra die of the appropriate kind to your roll. (An extra d6 for direct damage or d4 for indirect damage or healing.)
Amplifying Physical Attacks:
When using a talisman to amplify a physical attack, use the indirect damage magic roll appropriate for your character’s level. (10 + 1d4 for first stage; 10 + 2d4 for second; 10 + 3d4 for third).
Banishing Harmful Effects:
If using a talisman to banish a harmful effect, your character will simply succeed! The affected character can roll 1d10 and quote me, and a blessing may be bestowed, depending on the roll!
Thank you for participating, everyone! I hope this is a fun and engaging RP!
The situation was embarrassing. As much as she wanted to say that she was a good Senshi and that she was doing all she could as an Eternal to try and defeat the Negaverse... she hadn't powered up for a long time. It was almost at the point where she wondered if she would even be able to do so anymore. So when she tried to do so, it had worked out. And immediately she had been given a message that a Knight was needing help at their Wonder. She had woken Jason up to get him to join her and she only hoped that they weren't late for it.
They weren't, thank goodness. She, Alphubel, and quite a few others had been transported and were waiting at the Wonder, which meant that they hadn't missed it. She sighed in relief, and then took a look around the Wonder, as much as could be seen that is. "Amazing... I really should see if I can go to Homeworlds and Wonders more often." She said to Alphubel, attempting to take in the sight.
Jason hid another yawn. Larissa had gone outside to try powering up and he had been taking a nap inside of their apartment when she had sent him a message which had woken him up. He followed her outside and powered up himself, insisting on going with her. In part to protect her, but he had also never seen a Saturn Wonder before, and even if there were problems with it, he wasn't going to let the chance slip by to see it, even for a moment.
He grinned when he heard her compliment about the Wonder. "I think all Wonders and Homeworlds are amazing, I just wish I could see all of them." As much as he loved his own Wonder, he had to admit that it was more impressive on the inside than the outside. He hadn't ever gone to Larissa's Homeworld, but she herself had said she had only gone once. Apparently there was no sky to be seen and the entire thing was covered in plants.
Still, he would see it one day, the next time she decided to go.
Soon enough Aokigahara had come out to address the group and mentioned not to go into the woods. Alph nodded. Saturn appeared to be one of the more dangerous Homeworlds, and he wouldn't go disobeying a warning from a Knight whose Wonder was on it.
"Maybe next time we can see this place without having to battle a giant skeleton and whatever else."
One Raina Amada Araya had talked Viatrix into coming over to her apartment--not a terribly hard thing for her to do, admittedly--to play some video games that evening. As per usual, Raina was winning. Viatrix blamed Raina's wins on her own lack of thumbs and said that Raina had an unfair advantage. Didn't stop her from attempting to compete, though.
A message to her phone distracted her from the latest round, and Raina was letting out some whoops of victory while Viatrix thumbed through her texts. "Hey, Ray?" She turned her head to the adolescent next to her. "I was about to go human and kick your butt," she fished out her keychain to prove this, "but looks like a knight needs help--" Viatrix needn't say more.
Raina had barely gotten the phrase out that declared her as Sailor Anser before they were pulled into space.
Viatrix eagerly took her position on Anser's shoulder, headbutting her affectionately as Aokigahara began his speech.
Anser was the first one to speak, tilting her head toward her shoulder and asking, "So we're here to fight a skeleton?" She gave a side-eye toward where Viatrix sat. "Is it a Negaskeleton?"
"Don't think the Negaverse is in space, Anser," well, hopefully not. Viatrix decided it was best not to think about it. "Sounds like a problem in any case. A problem enough to summon all of us here!"
That seemed acceptable enough to Anser, though it didn't answer everything she was wondering about. "Guess I got one question," Anser remarked, as she snatched two of the talismans for herself. "Are we just heading off the evil skeleton or do you mean restless spirits as in angry spirits?"
Patrols had frankly gotten a little bit boring since Puck had acquired Eternal status. Fluffy buttwings and new uniform aside, he could defeat just about anyone now, even sometimes Generals, and of those there was only one that he specifically looked for: Faustite. But the fiery Negaverse agent hadn't been around for a while.
Sensing a communication coming in on his senshi phone, he retrieved the device from subspace. No sooner had he done that than he was whisked away to… someplace very dark and filled with foreboding. He was on alert until Aokigahara stepped out and explained what was going on. Puck didn't know much about Knights or Wonders or the Code or anything like that, but the man clearly needed help, and who was he to deny helping someone?
The Knight warned about the forest surrounding the place they had been assembled, and Puck gave a small snicker. Deep dark woods were his purview, after all, haunted and rife with things that might be malevolent. But the sincerity with which Aokigahara spoke of the dangers led Puck to believe that these woods were a bit more dangerous than the ones he could summon as an Eternal. Still, he stood prepared to take on any potential dangers this mission could produce. Even rescuing someone from the deep dark woods.
Prudence was quietly knitting and listening to a new audio book when the call from Aokigahara came through her ring. At first she didn't realize what was going on -- no one ever contacted her via the ring! And it had been so long since she had powered up as Gwales. Still, she paused the audio book and marked her place in the socks she was knitting and powered up. She was curious as anything about the summons and wanted to know what was going on!
Gwales had never been to anyone else's homeworld before; the menacingly dark forest surrounding the center of the Saturn Knight's Wonder fascinated her. Then Aokigahara appeared and explained that he was trying to save his Wonder! She didn't know what she could do to help -- she was only a page, and not a very active page at that -- but she knew if anything like what he was describing happened at her own Wonder, she would be moving the stars themselves to get help.
Approaching Aokigahara, she took two of the talismans, then smiled up at him. "I'm glad you reached out. I know we'll all do everything we can to help you." Even if it was just kicking the spirits with her boots or acting as bait to lure the monster out, she was up for it. Adventure!
Ignacio had been planning to spend a night on his comet with Richard.
Planning.
But sometimes plans go awry, and when Encke powered up, he found that he and Basiluzzo would be doing something else that evening. They would still be going to space, sure, but it seemed they would be spending time helping someone on Saturn instead, someone whose wonder was being haunted by a great skeleton.
"That sounds like a problem," murmured Encke to his husband--husband!--as he crossed his arms over his chest. The restless spirits bit sounded like a problem, too, but he was willing to let it go--
Well.
Someone else wasn't.
Encke could recognize that nearby voice from anywhere and couldn't help a wry, "My sister's here. Why am I surprised?" Because honestly, at this point, he really shouldn't be. He took a moment to look in her direction, spotting her holding enough talismans for her and Viatrix for the moment. Ah. Viatrix. At least it looked like Viatrix was planted firmly onto her shoulder. He trusted his guardian to keep her safe.
Plus, there were a bunch of other senshi and knights gathered. She'd be fine.
... Hopefully.
"Saturn's an eerie place," added Encke, as he glanced toward the forests Aokigahara told them distinctly not to go into. "As curious as I am, probably best we focus on the skeleton and stay away from whatever's out there."
Anniliese had a lazy week of doing nothing but laying in bed and looking through stacks and stacks of magazines. She hadn't been too interested in doing anything. Even doing anything Senshi related was not something that had caught her interest and invoke her to get out of bed.
She was about to go back to sleep when her phone pinged. It wasn't her normal everyday cell phone it was her other phone. This was the first time this had happened. She had never gotten a call or text or anything from it. She chewed her lower lip. She was afraid to see what the message that popped up would say.
But before she could even take the phone out to read the message she vanished. She was in her room one minute and the next she was in a dark strange-looking place. And she was powered up. Before was a man, talking about monsters and a wonder? She thought back to whatever training she had or lack thereof and of any whispering or whatever she heard about Wonders.
OK so he needed help with defeating a monster. Tjilaki thought about all the dangers that could concur. She sighed and nodded. She wanted to perfect her skills and get more training and learn all that she could learn.
"I'm happy to give any help that I can."
Her only concern at the moment was not embarrassing herself in front of the others around her.
Richard had been planning to spend a night on Ignacio's comet with him.
Planning.
But now they were there, on another knight's wonder, dealing with a skeleton.
"I don't plan on it. I've seen enough horror movies to know where that'd be going." As far as why Raina was there... "If you're here, are you really that surprised that she managed to find her way here, too?"
Phaethon rocked up onto the tips of his toes, looking this way and that to try and get his bearings. Spooky forest? Check. A lot of people around? Also check. This was not exactly the type of games he liked to play, but he was familiar with the premise. He could have guessed the advice not to go into the forest without being told, but appreciated the warning nonetheless.
Tikal stayed off to the side, arms folded across her chest. Wary glances were cast towards the woods, and she was in no hurry to explore it. She would go when everyone else did, of course, but the advice to stay out of the woods was hardly needed. She hardly had any desire to go into them in the first place.
It had been curiosity that got her out there in the first place. Maybe the chance to do a good deed or two.
The first question was a bit of a difficult one, but Aokigahara did give Anser a nod. "I won't lie or mince words: yes. The spirits here can be dangerous and angry, and I wouldn't be surprised to discover that lingering residue from whatever destroyed all our worlds a millennia ago contributes to the way they behave. My hope is that most of their malice is contained in the skeleton, but that doesn't mean there aren't still loose ghosts. I've witnessed all sorts of ugly phenomena over the years, and I'm never quite sure what to expect."
Better that they know, right?
Gwales got a nod as he handed her the talismans. "Thank you," he said. "I appreciate the assistance." Tjilaki also got a nod of thanks. At least no one seemed angry with him for dragging them here, which was a benefit. Anger or frustration could easily lead to other problems, with the Wonder being as restless as it seemed.
Unexpected things? Sounded interesting to Voyager! He had been out on patrol once again tonight when he he had received the message on his ring, though he wasn't mad about it. He hadn't been in a battle and he was about to head back home anyway, so being able to see at least parts of a Wonder was an exciting idea for him!
He had to admit though, he was pretty sure that Pluto was surrounded in a deeper darkness, but Saturn appeared to have it's own darkness as well. Maybe if he could talk to Aokigahara he could ask for a tour later or even take a souvenir for his collection! He didn't have to use the talismans right?
Though it would probably be best. He was just a page after all, it wasn't as though he had any magic. Out loud he said, "We'll gladly help you clean this place up if you need it!"
Then he moved over to Gwales, recognizing the symbols on her outfit. "I haven't met another Page of Pluto before! The difference between our outfits is interesting! I'm Voyager, if we don't get to here, I would love to talk later!"
It had been a quiet night and while he hadn't expected anything to happen, he wasn't mad that he had been transported to another Wonder. What purpose did he have, if not to help other Knights? Besides defeating the Negaverse that is. And at least his magic might be useful here. A boost to defense would be great for everyone else! It was just hard to use when it was just him.
He wasn't sure if he liked the Wonder or not. It looked interesting! But he wondered if the sun ever shown upon it. Maybe Aokigahara would be able to tell him later if he asked, but he didn't want to question such a thing in such a dangerous situation. They were here to defeat what was basically a monster, not have some snacks and tea. He gladly took the talismans. Even if his magic could boost or do something to the monster, it was good to have something that could help as well.
Amplifying Magic: When using a talisman to amplify magic, add one extra die of the appropriate kind to your roll. (An extra d6 for direct damage or d4 for indirect damage or healing.) Amplifying Physical Attacks: When using a talisman to amplify a physical attack, use the indirect damage magic roll appropriate for your character’s level. (10 + 1d4 for first stage; 10 + 2d4 for second; 10 + 3d4 for third). Banishing Harmful Effects: If using a talisman to banish a harmful effect, your character will simply succeed! The affected character can roll 1d10 and quote me, and a blessing may be bestowed, depending on the roll!
Getting abducted to outer space wasn't in her plans for a Thursday night, but honestly-- Scylla was going to run with it. The place in which she found herself was shadowed and full of trees; there were others already around, and the Transcended senshi allowed herself a moment to look around for any familiar faces. She recognized Puck, though it seemed he had grown some; other faces looked vaguely familiar but no one she could exactly name. Cocking her head to the side, she took in the others around- other Transcended, and knights and senshi of all stages. When the Wonder had reached out for aid, it hadn't looked for anything specific.
"You say not to step into the woods- what are the chances of being dragged into them? My powers will possibly allow me to help prevent that if I know it's a possibility- you could say I have a long reach to try and snag back those who are being stolen." she directed the query to the unknown knight (Aokigahara) before adding- "Scylla of the Kraken, by the way. Nice to meet you."
Her sister was tucked in at her side- though not for long. And her wisp? Chilling, drifting around her braid like a decoration, almost blinking in its wispy way, like it was.... excited?
HP: 75 Physical Damage: 1d10 Magical Damage: 10 + 1d4 damage (2d4 but -1 die for Chibi) - THREE uses remaining Tokens Remaining: 2
Quote:
Amplifying Magic: When using a talisman to amplify magic, add one extra die of the appropriate kind to your roll. (An extra d6 for direct damage or d4 for indirect damage or healing.) Amplifying Physical Attacks: When using a talisman to amplify a physical attack, use the indirect damage magic roll appropriate for your character’s level. (10 + 1d4 for first stage; 10 + 2d4 for second; 10 + 3d4 for third). Banishing Harmful Effects: If using a talisman to banish a harmful effect, your character will simply succeed! The affected character can roll 1d10 and quote me, and a blessing may be bestowed, depending on the roll!
A new homeworld! Charybdis' gloved hands clasped together as she looked around the scene, eyes catching on someone familiar. "VOYAGER!" Trucking ahead at full speed, the chibi senshi of seals flung herself at the nice knight who had consoled her one night when she was having a particularly bad day. "It's so good to see you here! My sister came too." He was talking to another knight (Gwales) and so the tall almost-11-year-old waved one gloved hand at the female knight. "Hi! I'm Charybdis! Isn't this place just the coolest? And did I hear someone say it's haunted? I bet the ghosts just want a friend."
The ghosts, in fact, probably did not just want a friend.
"Can I have one of those talisman thingies too?" this question, amongst Charybdis' babble, was directed to the one giving them away. "Am I supposed to slap it on the naughties like BAM in the animes, where the priests are like HIYAA, DEMON BE GONE?"
HP: 75 Physical Damage: 1d10 Magical Damage: 10 + 2d6 damage - - - - - NOTE: The shield will eat any damage done by the monster to people behind her shield and redirect it to Imbrium BUT the hit to her HP will be reduced by the amount of damage she does! (So if she deals 12 damage but "eats" 25, she will only take 13 damage to her HP) Tokens Remaining: 2
Quote:
Amplifying Magic: When using a talisman to amplify magic, add one extra die of the appropriate kind to your roll. (An extra d6 for direct damage or d4 for indirect damage or healing.) Amplifying Physical Attacks: When using a talisman to amplify a physical attack, use the indirect damage magic roll appropriate for your character’s level. (10 + 1d4 for first stage; 10 + 2d4 for second; 10 + 3d4 for third). Banishing Harmful Effects: If using a talisman to banish a harmful effect, your character will simply succeed! The affected character can roll 1d10 and quote me, and a blessing may be bestowed, depending on the roll!
Great. Imbrium had only been to her own wonder like... twice... and here she was being abducted to help protect or purify someone else's? Very rude, Code. Better yet, it seemed like the place was haunted and- her eyes lit on Alphubel, and Imbrium recognized him, though not the person next to him. Approaching, she waved her hand to him. "Every time I have to fight something undead, it's you." the words may have been harsh, but at least the tone was full of humor. "Last time it was a cemetery full of possible zombies, this time a giant skeleton- all we need are some vampires and we'll have to move on to werewolves or something."
There was a senshi with him, and Imbrium offered a short bow to Larissa. "Imbrium of Castor." she introduced herself. "Met this one once a few years ago."
SSBr osB
Alphubel for Imbrium and Voyager noticed for Charybdis
It was good to see so many powerful allies here. The Eternal Senshi who introduced herself as Scylla made Aokigahara's cheeks color slightly, because he realized he hadn't introduced himself. So he spoke louder, addressing everyone as much as he could.
"I'm Aokigahara of Saturn, by the way. My apologies for my rudeness in not saying so earlier." But to Scylla herself, he said, "not much of a chance of being dragged in. I've never seen the woods act hungry like that. There's risks if you wander foolishly, mostly."
To the Chibi sSnshi, Charybdis, he smiled as he handed her her pair of talismans. She reminded him of his little sisters, so full of enthusiasm.
Puck collected his talismans from Aokigahara. "Puck of the Woods, mate. Pleasure." Then he looked around to see if there was anyone he recognized. He finally spotted Scylla in the crowd and gave her a salute, then, never one to pass up an opportunity to flirt a bit, wandered over to her with a grin.
"Been a while, Scylla, hasn't it?" he smirked ever so slightly. "You may notice a few things have changed -- earned me bumwings, for one." The Eternal half-turned and waggled his butt, sending the feathers of the small feral-looking wings there rustling. "And I think we might be able to team up in this whatever-it-is-we're-doing. You with your tentacles, me with my native habitat being the woods. What say we patrol the outskirts, making sure no one gets the idea of haring off into the forest, and retrieving those who do?"
Looking around, Puck nodded at the others who had heeded the call to come here. "To be honest, I think we'll be more useful to the operation that way, and give Aoki-lad something less to worry about, so he can concentrate on setting those lanterns. You in?"
Gwales smiled and stepped back, looking at the talismans she had accepted from the Saturn knight. This was going to be an interesting adventure! Then she saw someone approach, and her eyes widened -- he was from all appearances another Pluto knight! A grin lit up her face as she turned to face him.
"Nice to meet you, Voyager! And a fellow Pluto knight to boot! I'm Gwales," she said, sticking out her hand to shake his. "Yeah, our outfits are so different! I guess that's because of the magic of Pluto itself -- all the timey-wimey stuff collects such an odd assortment of influences. Um, or something." She realized she was babbling a bit, and smiled sheepishly. Pluto knights were rather thin on the ground, so the chances of meeting another one must have been astronomical!
She looked around at their surroundings. "It almost seems inviting here, doesn't it, compared to Pluto? It's so dark there, and strange. Have you been to your Wonder yet? Oh, that was a stupid question, of course you must have or you wouldn't have heard the Code call…" She was babbling again, but it was so exciting!
SSBrosB
for Voyager!
Posted: Thu Jul 22, 2021 5:31 pm
The handing out of the talismans was proceeding apace, and to Aokigahara, it looked as if everyone present had their two. Good.
There was a rumbling in the woods. Or, perhaps not a rumbling, per se. A rattling might have been a more accurate description.
The distant rattling of bones, clanking against each other, and the lumbering steps of something large and heavy.
“It’s here,” Aokigahara said, and he went a little gray. “Thank you, all of you,” he said, to the group. “I have to go start lighting the lanterns, so I won’t be able to help with the fight.”
As he darted off towards the first lantern-post, at the western corner of the shrine complex, the monster he had warned them about cleared the treeline and let out a rattling, ghostly hiss. It was truly massive, even hunched over, and as it straightened, it seemed to go up and up with the open space of the Aokigahara clearing.
It seemed, as much as an empty skull could seem anything, surprised to see more than Aokigahara present.
Quote:
Welcome to the actual fight! Aokigahara has lit off (heh) to start lighting lanterns. Round posts will drop every 48 hours, and I’ll do DM asides as the quotes come in to me! There will be no penalties for missed rolls except that you won’t be on my roll table for bane or blessing effects for the next round. Happy hunting!
The summons had been a strange feeling on an otherwise quiet night, but Cybele accepted it without hesitation. Of course she would respond to a call for help from one of her allies. Of course she would go look at somebody’s Wonder. Ganymede and Scylla seemed convinced that there was something powerful in space. Cybele was curious to see it for herself.
She arrived quietly and listened to the Squire’s instructions, accepting the two talismans and looking at the others of the group that had gathered here. Her eyes lingered on each face for a long time.
There was only one senshi here that she was sure she had met before, but there were others that raised the odd longing in her chest, as if she should have remembered them had the Chaos not destroyed that part of her mind.
She watched a younger senshi for the longest time, one with dark hair and a feathered frill on her skirt.
“At least if most of the spirits are contained in this creature, it gives us a simple target,” she said, turning to watch the skeleton as it lumbered from the deep shadows. Looking into the twisted woods, she had to wonder how much of the darkness here was natural and how much was caused by the malovence.
Cybele might have learned her lesson about charging monsters alone, but it was a different story now, with allies at her back. She lunged forward at the skeleton, although her focus was still somewhat on the people behind her, and she only managed a glancing blow.
