Welcome to Gaia! ::

How did she get here? Time was slipping or at least part of it was simply missing. She was lurking just outside a building. It was too warm, and the air tasted off, like a lack of FEAR? No, it wasn’t so bad that she felt crippled, but it was strangely familiar to that of Deus Island.

Still she had no other place to go, so she pushed ahead towards the building. She placed her hands on the heavy front door pushing slowly against it, the door didn’t look like it should stick, yet somehow it did taking all her effort to slowly press it forward. Inside the three story building was dark as it was outside almost, the only difference was the flickering blue lights that seemed to emit from runic lamps above head. She stood in an empty foyer glancing around.

“Anybody home?” the question echoed around the empty hall as her boots clicked rang against the hard floor. Her eyes flickering circles of flame trying to pick out anything useful from the darkness. “Hunters? Students? Where the hell am I?”

Yo̢u̵͘ ̸͘͝d̢͘o͟n̛'̛́͢t̨͜ ͜be̷l̸̛̕òn̡g͏̛ h̷͞er̵̷͝e͏̷.̸̴

The voice echoed just as much as Sammy’s own had but seemed to be distorted far deeper. She crouched down shooting her gaze around the room again. The door behind her suddenly slamming shut sending dust wafting through the air. Dust? She looked around again, the place seemed to shift to be out of place in time. Suddenly much more worn and old. The look on her face grew grim.

“Who said that?”

Yo̧ư͞ ҉҉̴t҉͢r̨e͏̶s̕p̕̕͜a̕̕͜s̨ś̸ ̧ǫ͏̧ń̵ ̸͟͡g̨r͜ó͢͡u͝nds̴̨ ń́o̸̕͝t̶͘͜ m̶e̶͘a̴̸̕ǹ̴t͠ ̵̛f̶̸ǫ̸r̢͞ ͜y͏o̴̶u̕.̷́

From atop the stairs something moved, the darkness seeming to bulge as something walked out of it, no something broke away from it. It looked to be a human, or human-ish. Easily six feet tall it strolled towards her a coat of shadows spreading out behind it as it raised its hands up towards her, palms up.

“G̀͡i̵̢͜v͟͠e͞͏͡ ̵yo͘͢u̕r͝se͏l̸f͝ ͏̡ù̕p͜͟. ̶W̶̵e̸ ̸͠͝w̵i͠l̶͘l̶ ͘͝m̵̢̢á͠ḱ̡é ̴͞i̕t̨͜͢ ̵qù͝i̡̧c̀k̢͠.̨̛ ̷͜A͟b̛͘o͟mi͢n̨at̨͟i̕͟o̡n”.̷

Sammy didn’t move, she simply stared frowning deeply. The shadow of a hunter was looming at the top of the stairs. Suddenly without warning it moved, its weapon shifting into the shape of a familiar hammer. Ferros? No. The shape of the hunter was wrong, too tall, too sharp. Still she rolled to the side as the hammer cracked against the floor.

Y̛o̷͘ư̡ ̴͟҉ca̴n̶'͘͠t̕͢ ̵̸e̢̛s͢c͜a̶pe͘͟.͟ ̡R̸̢͜ư̸͟ņ̕,̀͜ ̡͟r̛u̸n͠,̷͜ ̸̧̨r̷̢͘u͜ǹ,̡͝ ̛w̸e ̢͡w̧͠i̧͠l̴l̵̵̀ ͠͡k̨̕i͏̢͘ĺ̵l͜ y͢o͏ú.̨

The shadow finally slowed in its strikes twitching, flickering, the edges stretching out before pulling back into its ‘human’ shape. Slowly it stalked towards Sammy as she skipped backwards from their last exchange of blows whispering it’s strange threats again. Y͏́o҉͏u͢ ͡ẁi͏̴l̷l̸̀ ̨b̡e̕̕͜ ͏l͏̨͡o͢c͡k̢͘͞e͏̷̷d̕͠ ͏̶h̸̴e̕͟r̵e̵̕,̨ ͠͠i͠n͢͞ d͡e̛͠a̸th͞,͏ ̢͞ý̶o͝u̕ ̛w͏̶i̵̷l̨͟͟l̵͟ ̧n̸͟o̡t ͢f̸͏̀iņ̢d ̸͜a̸̶̶n̢͜ ̸͞es̷ca̡̛p̵̢e.̶͢ The threat echoed softly around the room as Sammy continued to back step fist raised, bone buckler turned to face the hunter unsure of how it would attack next. It’s bladed boots gone.

Suddenly it was lunging forward, a great scythe flickering into its hand. The disturbing shape of Caleius weapon sent a chill down Sammy’s spine. She only had a moment to react, she ducked low just as the curved blade cut through the air where her chest had been but a moment ago. The dodge left the shadow open. Purple flames chilled the air between them on her left fist as she rose up from the crouch, her fist digging into the shockingly solid shadows stomach. The fear poured out of her and into the shadow causing a splash of inky darkness to erupt from its back as it howled in pain.

"̨̕͠Ḩ̵͞͡͏O҉̀W̷̢̡͠ ̀͜͠͡Ḑ̶Á̧̧̛̕R̷̀̕É̶̶͢ ̕͞Ý͏Ơ͘̕Ư͡ ̛́R̸̨͘͞Ȩ̨̕͜͟B̷Ȩ́͠͡L҉͜"҉́

The shadow flickered, it seemed to stretch as it moved backwards putting space between them again, in the same moment Sammy drew her owne weapon the flickering blade of blue and gold appearing to fill the space ******** off you cheap knock off. Caelius would have killed me in one blow, and Jordan is far faster than you. Whatever the ******** you are, whatever this is. I’ll find a way out and back home.”

Knowing the shadow would strike again soon Sammy flipped her sword, holding it more like a knife as she plunged it into the ground. The blue rune burning bright as the sword slipped into the ground, the blue light bleeding out in a series of runes in a ring around her. Purple whisps of spent FEAR lingered in the air around them. She didn’t have to think, she reached out grasping a fragment of her own fear from before pulling it back into herself. Her fist burned once more, bright and cold as she moved to meet the shadow.

"Ìt's̵ nơt͡ ̡en̶o̶ugh̢. W͞e͟ ̸h̡av͜e m̶any.̛ ̛Y̵ou h͠a̶v̴e̴ few."̸

That shadow chided as it moved to meet her a very familiar and very large winged axe appearing in its hands. Rep would have been disgusted at how lazily it swung Tracey, like swatting a fly with hardly any of the vigor the real hunter would have used, still, it hit hard knocking Sammy down to one knee. She didn’t hesitate she brought herself up crossing her hand between them cracking against the shadows jaw. The distorted shadow of a hunter staggered back a step, Tracey gone from its grasp as the head seem to splatter and stretch out into the air before reforming again.

“But I still have just enough,” she growled as the borrowed fear was spent leaving her alarmingly weak, but slowly catching up to the strange shadow.

They stood staring across the dim lobby of the hunter HQ, Sammy barely able to stand, the shadow hunter seeming to leak thin strands of its substance into the air. It brought back Circe once more, the curving scythe scratching the floor as the shadow moved towards her. Each step a part of it dripped away splattering on the floor in a shimmering patch of darkness.

"̣̭̱̘͕̦W̥̭̰ͫ͋͒͑ḛ̴̞͓͈̫̦̝̇̓̈̋ͭ.̻͉̫̎̍͆̔̑ ̩̝͖̻͓̙̏̃́͊ͅW̼̼̥̹̙͖͗͜i̸͉̥̹̥̣̜ͧͣl̄̌̇ͫ҉l̖͊́͆̎̉.̻̝̤ͥ̇͌̇͞ ̮̾̽ͫ̈̒͞Ǩ̲̗̄̿̎ͫ̒ͨị̛̦̳̰̤̫ͤͪ͑͗l̜͎̩̣͉͈̍̌̒̒̀̿̔l̟ͧ̈͟.̺̜̰̦͎͍͉̈́̎ͯ̂ͪ̈ ̡ͪ̌̇̌Y̘̪͉̅̎̀ͨ̑ͮo̼̺͒̆ͫ̅̆ù̟̭̼͉͗ͫ̌ͥ̂ͯ́.͎̙͍ͩ͋̊̽̏̆̈́ ͨͮ̆͋ͫẀ̲̫͚̦e͌ͦ̃͒͂̇͏̥̺͈̫̼̤̟.̻̠ͮͥ͐ͥ ̝̮͔̖̤̩̤͂͜W̻͚̞͙̯͇̫̃ͬ̋ͩ͛i̙̍͊ͪľ̢͍l̙̦̫.̪̺͔̮̈́͜ ͉̟̣̭̏͜K͖̼͉͓̻͔̋ͣͣ̓ẽͨ̒̒̏̃̉e̯͎̋̈ͪ̓̌̇p͓̤ͯͪ̐͋.̞̥̮ ̔ͬ̒͑̚҉̳̻̯̺̜̥̦Y̩̱͉̻̦̿̈̀õ͈͖̳̳͇͓͆͛̊̅u̸͉̯̯̜̳͈ͥ̓ͦ͒ͣ͌.̣̖"̶̘͇̪̣̓̾̓

The voice grew more distorted. Only able to choke out a single word at a time as it moved to cut Sammy down. The shadow of the Hunters most deadly weapon raising into the air high above her head.

Sammy laughed weakly, “******** you.” she spat as she lashed out one more time cracking her knuckles against the shadows gut, even as she did the false Circe swung down biting into her shoulder driving her to the ground, even as her blow struck and the shadow fell apart breaking into smaller puffs of darkness that simply burned away in the dim blue light of the foyer. All the while it laughed slow and heavy till even that faded leaving Sammy on her knees, just barely alive, and very much afraid.

Reality snapped together again, her mind clearing, the dim room became bright again. She wasn't sure WHAT she fought if what she saw was real at all. Yet now she was looking down a hall something chiding her in the distance. She froze. Reaching into her jacket to crush the glowing light from a dream. She felt her FEAR restore as she slowly stood up.

"I just know I'm real. And that's what I have to believe in if I want to survive."

Sammy continued to eye the darkness twitching slightly as she thought there was movement. Something moving closer now. That blade lashed out and she did the only natural thing she could.

The blade struck great shield made of some large twisted skull. The shield took the brunt of the blow as purple tinted frost built in the room around Sammy even as the blow hit her.

“Real enough to know I’m going to kill you”

Her sword manifested again driven by the stored up fear in her shield. She lashed out at the shadow, a burst of pure purple fear cleaving towards it.

Anepou was coming down the corridor of HQ, when he saw some unknown Zombie fighting a BIG ShadowThing. He stared, horrified, then charged down the hall, ready to help. He threw a hard right hook at the Thing, but seemed to barely make contact. "Leave us ALONE, you bastards!" He yelled.

((Ane HP: 36/40
Ane To Hit: 4 - 6 = 0 + 3 = 3 Damage to boss
Ane's Bonus Stuff Listed Here))

The sickle shaped blade twisted, swung violently, suddenly towards Sammy first, then came directly towards Anepou without stopping. There was still laughter, but the figure was sliding back away now, melting into the shadows. Her voice remained, taunting and mocking, derision dripping with every word.

"You will never win against us. Run along now and I will find you again."

And then she was gone.