Everyone's reassurances were gladdening. Kerberos hadn't really thought that anyone was going to back down, not here, not now, but still, the confirmation was good to hear.
Ida's question made him pause.
"I noticed it all at once--but it might have been getting bad for a while before and I wrote it off." He sighed. "I know I noticed things wrong with me earlier. My temper got shorter, and I started wondering...if it wouldn't be better if I'd never left the Negaverse." Disgust wrote itself across his face. "Stupid, obviously, but...maybe the Chaos getting to me."
He hoped. He never wanted to go back to that, and he know that when he was rational. But he wasn't always rational.
"Alright," he said, and he pushed open the secret door, revealing the first First Flower chamber.
It was beautiful; marble floors and mosaic-tiled walls, a vaulted ceiling, and all of it built around a massive planter against the back wall that held the huge climbing asphodel his people had called the First Flower.
Growing from it was a strange, black plant-monster whose roots spileld over the edges of the planter. Its base was thick, with a stem growing upwards to a four-petaled bloom with a strange, glowing core.
And as soon as the door opened, it lashed out with thorny vine appendages, aiming straight for Kerberos.
As soon as he saw where the vines were aiming, LYonesse darted into action--he swung an arm around KErberos's waist and hauled them both through the door and out of the way, and then slammed his sword into the ground, calling on his own magic. The viny briars lashed out, twisting in with the monster's black appendages and tangling them up.
"My vines won't hurt any of you," he said, "so go through them and start shooting."
There was a steel in his voice, and in his eyes. This might not be his Wonder, but it was the world of someone dear to him--and Lyonesse would not let it be destroyed.
Quote:
Lyonesse Knight stabs his blades into the ground (it will pass, magically, through solid ground like concrete, asphalt, etc) to the depth of about three inches. Thorny vines appear to break up out of the ground beneath him, to a radius of ten feet. They tangle up his opponents, creating a stabbing sensation from the thorns with actual injuries at player discretion, and draw vitality away from them and to Lyonesse and his allies. Enemies are left tired and feeling defeated for the length of the attack, whereas Lyonesse and his allies are imbued with a feeling of confidence and virtue. It is possible to cut through or pull away from the vines, so opponents are not totally bound or restrained for the duration of his channeling. Lyonesse can channel for fifty seconds at this stage, and must remain in place while channelling.
Seiana_ZI
Orangeish Sherbert
Whimsical Blue
stari-maga
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 10:57 am
Oh, oh so it was just going to happen just like this, hm? Fine then. Albireo swiftly moved beside the Earth Knight. “I can help you keep those things off of Kerberos. If my magic works the way I hope it still does, they’ll go to attack me, so I um. Would very much appreciate some cover. I can’t do much else to help but be a decoy.”
And that was okay. If her role here was to keep the enemy focused on her, she could and would do it gladly.
Albireo gave a little grin and wink to Cybele and moved a few feet away from Kerberos, hoping that this would work and already feeling some shame at the fact she couldn’t do more to actively help but.
“Ugly Duckling Diversion!”
The quicker they could stop this, the quicker they could save Kerberos…the better it would be.
Noir Songbird
Sailor Albireo focuses on an enemy and lets out a soft cry, arching her neck, and opening her arms. A soft white light surrounds her, and if the enemy were in the middle of attacking another of her fellow senshi, so long as they were her rank or lower, they would end up attacking her in the place of the other. The power makes her seem out of place, and more like the true threat. Though, once used, this attack can not be used again in the battle. The effects last for thirty seconds.
Seiana_ZI
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stari-maga
Orangeish Sherbert
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staripop
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Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 3:46 pm
Cybele eyed the monster as the door swung open. It looked terrible, certainly. The way that it had attached itself to the asphodel flower made Cybele's stomach twist, although that vague disgust was not enough to make her hesitate. She had seen many terrible things. She'd been one, once. She'd stopped herself from going down that path, and then stopped other monsters.
Instead, she looked to her friends and allies. Lyonesse was giving them cover. Albireo was trying to protect Kerberos. The thought that she might be bringing attacks towards herself made Cybele's skip a beat, but she pushed down worry, too, in place of strategy.
She supposed all that left her for offense. Her other magic could come later, if she needed it to.
"Prey's Agony," she yelled, calling on her new magic. A phantom bow formed in her hands, glinting silver.
She sent the arrow flying towards the beast.
Quote:
Eternal Sailor Attack: Prey's Agony Cybele calls the name of her attack and an intricate ethereal bow forms in her hands, with a single arrow on the string. She can fire it at one target. The ethereal arrow gives the sensation of being hit with a real arrow. It hurts. On top of that, on a hit, the target will feel the sensation of strikes from secondary arrows, and being ripped at by the teeth of hounds. The magic lasts 45 seconds but can leave lasting damage at player discretion. Cybele can use this attack once per battle.
Orangeish Sherbert
Noir Songbird
Seiana_ZI
Whimsical Blue
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 8:10 pm
A monster.
It was in the faintest way interesting in that it was a clear and deep source of chaos, but it did not have the same feeling as a youma might have. It certainly looked more dangerous than a youma, forming and twisting around the core and immediately lashing out for Kerberos. He would have jumped in the way, but Lyonesse acted first, followed by Albireo making herself into something of a decoy.
It meant it was time to act.
Encke felt a bit uncomfortable with that, though, knowing that they were in closer quarters than he would have preferred with the way his attack tended to work. It tempted him to stick with kicks and punches and maybe a hit or two when it was dire -- but weren't things already dire? The planet was at risk from a monster that was trying to eat it alive, and--
He wove as close to it as he could, shouted a, "Sorry!" and launched his own attack at the thorned monster.
Quote:
Super Sailor Scout Attack: "Full Ionization!" The closer a plasma gets to becoming fully ionized, the hotter the plasma becomes. Encke points his left pointer finger at his adversary. As before, the air around their adversary begins to superheat and supercharge. This ionized 'air' is hot, and along with the shocks, characters now may feel as the air is burning them. When the duration ends, players can choose to keep lasting damage, such as soreness, residual shocks, damaging burns, and scarring, up to their discretion. (Uses: Twice per battle. Duration: 30 seconds Range: 10ft radius around target. This attack will hit other adversaries in the radius, but not allies.)
Following along at the back of the group, Ida was the last to get a look at the monster. She'd hear the others cry out as the door opened, and then a mad scramble with attacks launched.
Apparently, whatever it was had been ready for them... or just penned in enough they couldn't sneak up on it. Settling her resolve, she stepped forward with the others to stand next to Cybele, her face serious as the other girl drew a bow and launched her arrow. Startling, to see another with magic like that... but maybe not surprising, considering her sphere.
Squaring herself to the monstrosity that clung to Kerberos' flower, Ida threw a hand up before her, trailing glowing petals. Her orchid bow formed in her hand and she pulled back the invisible string till a glowing arrow formed, notched and drawn.
"Heavenly Orchid Arrows!" She called out as she released it. The arrow roared as it flashed across the space between her and her target, and when it hit, it exploded with percussive force. Ida waited only to hear the explosion before she was throwing up her hand again to call another arrow.
Eternal Sailor Attack: Heavenly Orchid Arrows!
[What it does] An out-flung hand casts a trail of petals that form a bow-like shape. She takes it up and uses it to fire arrows of light with hardened petals as arrow heads. The arrows have an 'aura' of power to them and explode on contact. The explosion is more concussive, causing a pressure that can push a target backwards a foot or two, but doesn't do much in the way of actual damage. Unbalanced enemies could be knocked over, if they were caught unaware. Particularly heavy opponents may not be moved by the attack, but could be distracted or slowed by the pressure of it. Each arrow takes a lot of power to cast and her limit is three, which exhausts her and can force her to retire until she's rested.
Seiana_ZI
Noir Songbird
Orangeish Sherbert
stari-maga
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2022 8:28 pm
Kerberos gently tugged himself out of Lyonesse's arms. There was no way he was going to stand on the sidelines and let everyone else fight it for him; this was his planet, his enemy.
"Thanks," he said, and Lyonesse gave a sharp nod, though he didn't move from where he channeled his spell. Kerberos moved through Lyonesse's briars, glad for the feeling of warm confidence that flowed into him from his boyfriend's spell. And better, the monster's vines were tangled in the briars--which meant that he could stand and call on his new magic.
"Thousand Asphodel Chorus!"
A storm of petals whirled up around him, slicing at the tendrils.
The monster howled, and its strange floral head jerked around, focused in entirely on Albireio. It reared back, and shot a blob of nasty black goo at her, clearly fully taken in by her magic. It was thick, and oozing, and carried with it a sort of hopeless despair that would be inflicted on anyone it hit.
The fact that her magic seemed to be working, that the creature was looking only at her. Only at the most useless one here. It was perfect. Everyone else was working so hard and she…oh…oh gross.
Albireo stiffened as the gooey sludge hit her and she moved to start throwing it off, her face twisting into a look of disgust but…
She shuddered.
…What…was the point though? This…wasn’t something that they could beat. She wasn’t going to be able to do anything to help, was she? All she could do was stand over here and do absolutely nothing and…
She swiped at her eyes with the back of her hand which had remained ooze free, thank goodness, and bit her lip to stop it from trembling. “H-honking distraction!”
Cybele had to survive this. And they had to save this world…if she died…that would be fine. She wasn’t…important at all…but she had to give everything so that they could…come out of this alive…
Noir Songbird
Sailor Albireo clasps her hands together and closes her eyes, opening her mouth and letting out the strangest sound, like that of a Trumpeter Swan. This then echos around the battle, seeming to come from all around, giving the impression that there are more swans or more people around. The effect can be confusing, especially if Sailor Albiero is not in sight of the battle. It lasts for fifteen seconds and can be used twice per battle.
Seiana_ZI
Whimsical Blue
stari-maga
Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2022 9:21 am
Everything was going well. They were strategizing. They were coordinating their attacks. Cybele even cracked a hint of a smile when she saw that one of the less familiar senshi, Ida, had an attack that formed into a bow like hers. They were pelting the monster with arrows, and its focus was only on Albireo.
Which was fine, until it actually unleashed some sort of attack on her.
Black sludge. Cybele had no idea what it was or what it was doing, but she saw the way that Albireo seemed to deflate when it covered her. She saw the strange, distant look in her eyes.
Cybele's jaw tightened. She'd come here out of duty, to help a friend and the cause of Order, but now this was personal.
Her most painful magic was gone, but that was fine. Cybele herself was still strong, stronger than she'd been before. With a snarl, she dashed forwards, fully prepared to rip the monster apart bit by gooey bit.
Orangeish Sherbert
Noir Songbird
Seiana_ZI
Whimsical Blue
stari-maga
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Seiana_ZI
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Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2022 8:35 pm
Encke had found it curious, when he called out his sorry, and then channeled his attack -- he was used to the pain from his allies even as he no longer felt it, and found himself surprised that it didn't seem as if the pain was coursing through them at all. Perhaps it was the adrenaline, the situation, the stress-- or perhaps it was something else that this was no time to ponder.
But perhaps...
Instead, the monstrous figure was aiming at Super Albireo, and Encke's attention was pulled out of his mental ponderings to defend her. He saw Cybele charge forward to punch it out, and it seemed like a far-out thing that perhaps he shouldn't risk, but then again--
He turned his attention to where he saw that goo spurt from and unleashed his same super attack again.
Noir Songbird
Orangeish Sherbert
Whimsical Blue
stari-maga
Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2022 9:58 pm
Steady and firm, Ida called her attack a second time and another glowing bow sprung to life in her hands. Jaw set, she aimed for the monster's... head, or whatever it was, and let loose an arrow that exploded against it, slamming it with force. A quick sweep of the others showed no major injuries... just the red-haired girl with black sludge covering her.
As Cybele launched herself forward, Ida dropped her stance and circled around the others, coming up on the side of the senshi as she let out a strange honking noise that flooded the air with sound. She didn't seem injured, but the attack looked like it had rattled her.
Reaching out, Ida put a hand on her shoulder, gentle and warm.
"Are you okay? Did it hurt you?" She said as she unpinned her brooch, sweeping the scarf from around her shoulders and pressing it to the dark goo. "Here, maybe we can wipe it off."
It might not do much, but hopefully it would do something.
The plant-monster reared back, as the initial distraction of Albireio's magic faded, and it could focus on all the other targets in its range. Vines lashed out at Cybele, aiming to batter her away from the core, and it reared back, making a strange, almost-roar, emanating from somewhere and nowhere at once. Electricity and arrows and petals lashed it, and the arrow that struck it in the "head" made it start writhing, flinging its trunk around and splattering its strange black ooze all over the room.
Lyonesse exhaled, heavily. His magic was running out, and he could tell--and as he pulled back his magic, hoping to hold onto just a little more, something else crept in. Standing in the monster's strange black sludge, he felt a growing sense of despair. He couldn't do anything, couldn't even protect the people dearest to him--
It was the ruined future all over again, except the black sludge was drwoning Kerberos, instead of Nile, and it came from some sort of Chaos monster, instead of Bischofite's burning, dripping tar.
He'd been a failure of a Knight then, too. But he forced himself to move, to get closer, to slam his weapon into the monster's base.
"What," Lyonesse growled, "is the point of a sword if it's got no damn blade? Honestly!"
He had, truly, never missed his kusarigama as much as he did in that moment.
Kerberos knew, in theory, what his magic did. Knew the weight of despair it put on people's shoulders, knew the hulking tides of grief it could bring. But he had never been exposed to it--and when the monster's strange black muck hit him, he realized that this was probably the closest he would ever come.
It staggered him, as the petals from his magic began to fade away--staggered him long enough that he couldn't defend himself when the monster lashed out again, tendrils freed of Lyonesse's magic whipping out to slam into him and send him flying, slamming hard into the marble floor, leaving him out of breath and stunned and puddled in black goo.
He had done this. He had brought all of them here, and for what? For the selfish hope that maybe he could save his broken planet--but was his world worth all of them?
His own life, Kerberos could trade--but someone else's? Four someone elses'?
What gave him the right to do that?
He took a sharp breath.
No.
Slowly, he staggered to his feet. The monster had reared back when Ida's arrow struck its strange gem-core, so maybe--?
"The head!" Kerberos gasped. "Encke, Ida, Cybele--do you guys have any ranged magic left? If you do, aim for that thing on its head!"
They weren't going to die here, no matter what the creeping despair wanted to tell him. They had to make it. They had to live. And so did his world.
Seiana_ZI
Orangeish Sherbert
Whimsical Blue
stari-maga
Posted: Tue May 10, 2022 7:28 pm
Albireo blinked, looking up at the purple clad senshi with some surprise, and then a warm, tremulous smile. “Oh…um…I’m okay. I’m just trying to do what I can…I’m not a fighter…if you are, you should go back and help finish this thing…but…”
Oh. Her eyes were stinging slightly and she wanted to cry just from the sheer kindness that she was being shown, but she managed to swallow it down.
“I’m okay, I promise! But I’ll be better when…when this thing is gone and Kerberos has his Homeworld back again…I think we all will, yeah?”
But. At least…now she knew that she really wasn’t alone here. Obviously not. Cybele was there fighting. And Kerberos…and just because she was the weakest…
She wasn't just…fodder for this creature.
…She was helping. “I’m okay!” Albireo said again, swallowing back another wave of despair. “I promise I’m okay. Please, let’s end this.”
Noir Songbird
Seiana_ZI
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Posted: Sun May 15, 2022 2:48 pm
The monster was powerful. Cybele could see that now. She could see it in the way that Lyonesse faltered, after touching the sludge. She could see it in the way that Kerberos was tossed to the floor like he was no bigger than one of her niece's discarded dolls.
It hadn't hit Cybele, not yet, but she was dodging tendrils more than she was actually punching, and she supposed that it was only a matter of time. It wasn't as if Cybele was afraid, not of pain, not of death, but she had to set her teeth a bit firmer as everyone else seemed to struggle ad she and Lyonesse were the only ones left near the thing.
Albireo's voice from somewhere behind her was sounding a bit cheerier, and that strengthened her resolve. She was saying to end it, and of course Cybele wasn't going to say no to that.
She did take half a step back, though, when Kerberos started talking tactics.
"I don't think I can shoot it again," she said, "But I can help someone else do it. Hunter's Deadly Grace!"
Hopefully it would be enough to snap someone out of the odd sadness that the flower seemed to be weaponizing.
Super Sailor Scout Attack: Hunter's Deadly Grace Cybele summons a bigger bow with three arrows. The speed boost they provide is slightly more noticeable than Hunter's Grace. She shoots the bow straight up, and the arrows automatically target her and up to two nearby Order aligned beings (including cats). However, if there don't happen to be enough Order aligned beings around, the remaining arrows will randomly fall, and can be easily or even accidentally intercepted by anyone else around, giving them the benefits. The arrows can target Order aligned beings within five feet of where they are fired from, but arrows without targets tend to fall closer to that spot. The effect lasts for 30 seconds. She can use the bow to threaten people, under the same conditions as before. She can use this attack twice per battle.
Orangeish Sherbert
Noir Songbird
Seiana_ZI
Whimsical Blue
Posted: Sun May 15, 2022 3:16 pm
Encke could sympathize with Lyonesse's complaint, admittedly -- the one advantage the Negaverse had in battle over any member of Order--besides for the teleportation and the starseed snatching, anyway--was their weaponry, and he shot a sympathetic smile over in Lyonesse's direction.
That was all he could manage among the press of sadness and the press of the chaos of people trying to stop the monster. He needed to stop being distracted, stop letting other things distract him, focus on saving Kerberos' world and Kerberos and everyone there. They could talk after, celebrate after, eat after, even--
Albireo was being addressed by Ida, so Encke would focus his attention on the monster.
That was what he was good for, right?
Offense.
"All my attacks are ranged!" shouted Encke to Kerberos, in turn, before turning his attention back to the monster. It meant business, and Cybele boosting them meant business, too-- "Watch out!"
That was the only warning he gave before he whipped out his finger and aimed the comet straight at the monster.
Quote:
Eternal Sailor Attack: "Cometary Burn!" Encke points his finger out towards the target. An ethereal comet flies forward, the tail of the comet detaching as it does. The comet slams into the ground at the feet of his target. This creates a shockwave in a fifteen-foot radius, potentially knocking people off balance. In the meantime, the air heats up, and a blast of plasma from the detached tail spreads out to fill that radius. It’s hot. It’s shocking. It burns. This attack causes the sensation of second to third degree burns to his adversaries for 45 seconds, with the potential for lasting damage. (Usage: Once per battle. Duration: 45 seconds. Range: 15ft radius around the target. Weaknesses: The shockwave doesn’t discriminate, and anyone except Encke within the radius can be knocked over by it.)
Ida pressed her scarf into the senshi's hands and smiled warmly, projecting as much comfort as she could with the expression.
"Do what you can, that's all anyone can ask for. You helped a lot." She said, hearing someone calling for her. "You going to be doing better than me in a moment, so keep an eye out for me, ok?" She gave Albireo one last squeeze of her hand before she turned away, sweeping her eyes over the battlefield and the monster.
Ida only had one attack left, and it was one she rarely used. The monster needed to be dealt with, so there was a very good reason not to hold it back. She'd have to trust that the others could take it from there, because she definitely wasn't going to be much use afterwards. Throwing up her hand, Ida murmured the words of her magic and the glowing petals followed, shaping themselves into the familiar bow.
Drawing back the glowing arrow, Ida sighted down the length of it to the creature's head, dead center. She drew a deep breath and released it, the arrow roaring across the distance to strike it's target. It took the last of her energy with it and exhaustion rolled over her, making her sag where she stood. The explosion of her arrow was followed by one of Enke's making and the burst of the shockwave slammed into her, knocking her backwards in surprise. Heat seared along her skin, pulling a cry of pain from her as she threw her arms up in front of her face and stumbled backwards, away from the source.
