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 Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2022 5:27 pm
Palatine, Knight of VenusAt first, Palatine wasn’t sure Cybele heard her. She didn’t hear a response. Then the arrow released and flew through the air, splitting the debris.
Cybele was still there, then.
Unless that, too, was an illusion.
“Why’d you have to go and do that?” Henri asked.
Palatine chose to believe that the arrow had been real. Henri wasn’t. Perhaps most of her surroundings weren’t. But the arrow was. The debris was. The violent shaking it caused as it struck the ground was. Even separated from one another by illusions, they could do this. Somehow. If they could focus.
She reached for another arrow and loaded it. She couldn’t see Cybele, couldn’t hear her, but Palatine knew she was near.
“You didn’t answer my question,” Henri said.
“Which one?” Palatine asked.
“What the ******** you’re doing here.”
Palatine offered a sarcastic smile. “Being a pain in your a**.”
Henri snorted again. He took another sip of beer. “Not like you care about any of this s**t anyway. You never did.”
“I care enough.”
“Sure. About Paris, maybe. About Rhiannon, too. But this place? And the rest of these people?” Henri waved a dismissive hand. “Nah. You don’t give a s**t. If you fail, it won’t matter to you, so long as Paris and Rhiannon make it out alive. Chris, too. Wouldn’t want Paris miserable. Again…”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” Palatine said.
“I do, actually,” Henri countered. “It’s that thing you’re always doing. Running away. Abandoning people. You left me. You left Paris. You left your niece with that shrill harpy you call a sister. ******** us all up in the process. All ‘cause you thought you could be someone. Didn’t want me or a couple of kids holding you back. Then you waltzed back into town and thought things’d be different, thought you could make up for it all, only you can’t, ‘cause the damage is done, so instead you figure you might as well not care about anything.”
Palatine refused to look at him. She looked out over the field, or up into the sky. She looked around her, searching for Cybele and Siegfried. If she reached toward the weapon, where Cybele should be standing, would she feel her there?
She reached out a hand, but another grabbed her wrist and yanked her back.stari_maga Tagging so you know Palatine loaded the next arrow into the weapon!
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Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2022 3:56 pm
"No..." he said, staring down at Albireo and Cybele. He crouched, gently touching both their faces. "Rest now. You've done what you can." He pecked Albireo's cheek.
Then he stabbed both women through the chest.
He would follow in short order; better to die with your sense of self intact than be tainted by Chaos again.
First though, he had vengeance to take. Cybele had said before the shadows over took them about the Core. The tree the lightning had hit. The eyes he could not see the body off burned as it moved slowly towards them.
He'd destroy it.
Or die trying.
Someone on the wall was still able to fire the ballista, and he saw the giant debris fall to the ground with force. Nope wasn't lost, not yet.
The Space Cauldron He would like to go fight the shadow man pls
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Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2022 6:09 pm
The wind went louder. Rocks slammed into the ground, shaking Cybele's footing. She couldn't hear anything more, beyond the wind and the debris and the ringing in her ears. At least, she didn't hear anything else for a few seconds. After that, she heard Ganymede. She didn't particularly want to hear Ganymede. Her heart pounded. If she turned away from Ganymede, she saw Valhalla's corpse. If she turned away from Valhalla, she saw Ganymede, eyes flashing angrily and her clothes becoming consumed by darkness. What if, her mid asked, and it didn't stop asking. What if?What if you killed him? What if this is all your fault?Before she knew it, tears were dripping down her face. She bit her lower lip, but it wasn't enough. Her breathing was heavy. An arrow clicked into the crossbow. It didn't snap her out of things, not completely. She was still crying, but it was a sign that there was still someone else there, someone else real, someone else not wanting her to fall for this. "I didn't kill him," she said flatly, her eyes still on the sky. "Chaos did, and Chaos made you, and I'd really appreciate it if you'd either fight me or just stop."
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Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2022 8:52 pm
Albireo let out a startled scream. Cybele could manage little more. They slumped together, and the shadows washed over them.
But the man in the darkness, with fire in his eyes and his heart, burned.
He was a smoking, black shape, drenched in darkness and despair, and when Siegfried attacked the two senshi, he laughed.
He was in front of the knight in a second, and what he lacked in height, he made up with in presence. The shadows swarmed around him, and his touch burned like fire. He shoved Siegfried against the wall with such force that the wall seemed to crack behind him.
“Oh, isn’t this a sight.” He gripped Siegfried’s wrist so hard that the sword dropped to the ground. But then–sword? When had he gotten that? It looked so familiar, felt so right in his hands. Black shadows and smoke oozed from the blade, noxious and burning.
“Once a killer, always a killer, aren’t you, Jarosite? Did you enjoy that?”
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Posted: Fri Oct 14, 2022 6:41 pm
Palatine, Knight of VenusIt was not Henri she saw when she whirled back around, not either of her daughters, or her niece — either of which might have gotten more of a reaction, might have made her believe. No, the figure there was herself, younger, dressed in cutoff shorts and a plaid shirt, with her hair split into two braids. Back when she was reckless, and more prone to mistakes. Back when she thought she knew what love was.
Attentioned gained, the figure dropped her wrist. Palatine felt frozen in place.
“Why do you care?” her younger self asked.
Palatine had no answer for her.
“No one cares about you,” the figure said. “Your oldest daughter replaced you with her mother-in-law. Your youngest would rather be with her father. You had your niece for a while, but now she has her own friends. You can’t keep a man. Even the ones you use for a good time wander off to greener pastures. It’s almost funny. You, who abandoned everyone you ever loved, have been abandoned by them now.”
The girl laughed. She didn’t seem to know how to stop. Whatever she saw on Palatine’s face made it worse, had her laughing harder, until tears fell down her face and she was almost doubled over with it.
“Now you know what it feels like,” she said.
“Go away,” Palatine sneered.
“Why should I?” the girl countered. She gasped and tittered for a while longer, then recovered and drew herself up again. “Why don’t you leave? Henri’s right. You don’t care about this place. Even if you succeed here, you’ll go home and feel as empty as you always have.”
Palatine grit her teeth. She clenched her fists. She looked at herself as she’d been as a teenager, and she wondered how she ever liked herself at all.
Then she grabbed the figure by her hair, fingers gripping the back of her head, and she slammed the girl’s face into the stone rail guard hard enough that a loud crack split through the air.
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Posted: Fri Oct 14, 2022 8:39 pm
The air was thick with humidity, and electricity, and chaos. But, for a brief moment, there was something more.
Order. Magic. Something powerful. Something familiar, something good. A light in the darkness, Ganymede’s Purification magic surged from the Core of his world and the shadows, all connected, carried the blast throughout the Hall.
The shadowy illusions hummed, and for a split second, light shined through. It flickered along the illusion, like fire burning a thread. For a split second, there was a clarity that hadn’t been there before, an understanding–
There was a reason they were here.
They were supposed to do something. Defend–something...
The illusion was quick to restore, but it wasn’t quite perfect. The barriers between them thinned and it was almost possible to see the others on the wall. And, maybe there was something just a little off about their would-be companion–like looking in a mirror, or like they had a filter over them.
For a brief second, they looked almost transparent, but they corrected quickly. Lightning struck above with blinding force, as if to distract them from any distortion.
But, it was too late; the illusion concealing the sky faded and they could see the dark storm clouds. A shower of wet rain poured in, refreshing and clarifying. The wind whipped around them with so much force that it could have knocked them to the ground.
The illusion regenerated above them quickly.
Just, maybe not quick enough to avoid detection.
Cybele was sitting at the crossbow, armed with what she needed to strike again. She could see another moderately sized chunk of debris much closer now than before. It wasn’t as large as the other, but it still could have done significant damage–and with as extensive as the spread of Chaos was already, that still could have been catastrophic.
“Chaos made me?” Ganymede asked, but her voice was hollow again. The shadows were wrapping around her and she seemed like she was melting into the darkness. It crept up her shoulders, her neck. Inky blackness staind her skin.
It wasn’t as convincing when the real Ganymede had used her magic. But this one rose, like a broken doll, covered in darkness. She rattled like a puppet and her head lolled just slightly before righting itself.
“You’re nothing without Chaos,” she said. “We’ll be one again.”
And then, she lunged at Cybele, and wrapped her hands as tightly as she could around her neck. Smoke danced off of her, thick and sulfuric. She squeezed tightly, but her fingers cracked like brittle glass.
Siegfried was still under the full wrath of his fiery foe, but there was a brief moment where the shadows malfunctioned and warped his form, and then a plume of black gas shot out and smothered the Knight. He manifested quickly again and pushed harder, but for a brief second the illusion of someone really there faded.
…Unless he could convince himself that the Negaverse had certain skills.
Or that half-youma were not bound by conventional rules.
Quote: Characters can use this opportunity to have a clarifying moment that allows them to break through the spell of Chaos! If you are playing your own chaos manifestation, it may turn into a mirrored reflection of itself, or may shift forms in front of you; if you have any questions or want to see if something works, please let me know! If you want to continue speaking to your Chaos character or engage it in more than one post, please let me know when you quote me and I will try to tag back as soon as possible instead of waiting for the next prompt! If your character has already broken out, they might be able to help others in their group but please make sure this works for them before posting! If your chaos manifestation is not destroyed by the post on the 16th (sometime after 8PM EST) the Chaos will be forcibly destroyed around you. If you defeat your Chaos before this prompt, you can attempt to defend against the shadows creeping over the wall, try to take down more debris in the sky, or try to reunite with the others!
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Posted: Sat Oct 15, 2022 12:46 pm
Cybele's eyes were on the sky in the moment that the Chaos flickered, but she felt it. It was like a weight lifted off her shoulders. It only lasted for a second, but that was long enough for her to catch a breath. It was enough to quiet the doubts in her head down to whispers, and they stayed down as she looked over and saw Ganymede begin to dissolve into shadows. She knew how corruption worked. It didn't work like that. She saw the hunk of debris in the air, but she hoped that she had a moment more before it got dangerously close, because she was going to have to do something. As the not-quite-Ganymede stood up like an unhinged toy, Cybele un-nocked the oversized crossbow bolt from the ballista. The Chaos was fast. Before she could turn around, it was wrapping its slim, darkening fingers around her throat. Cybele coughed and choked. It might have been weakening, but that was still going to bruise. "Shut up," she wheezed, and then she spun the bolt around, and she stabbed it through the chest.
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Posted: Sun Oct 16, 2022 8:58 pm
Something pure, something powerful surged through the area again.
At first, it was a wild blast of magic, strong and destructive.
The chaos in the air drew back significantly, like it was recoiling in pain. Stretched thin from the blast of Phantasia’s Court Magic at the West Gate, and battered already by Cybele, Siegfried, and Palatine, its hold at the North Wall was weakening. The illusions faltered; the walls between everyone came down.
The chaos manifestations evaporated, some with a flourish
But it wasn’t just that the Chaos was losing its foothold, it was that they were getting a second wind. A Royal Senshi’s signature flared, and then Ida’s Royal Magic spread in all directions and gave every Order ally a boost of strength. They weren’t completely revitalized, but it helped restore some of the energy they’d lost.
It helped focus them.
As the Chaos manifestations lost form, it became crystal clear–they still had something they needed to do.
With the shadowy walls down, they could all see each other again. A little worse for wear, but alive. The shadow completely coated the forest but it looked like it was torn between trying to slide past them or retreating. There was only one piece of debris that looked like it could do much damage, and they still had time to stop it.
The wind roared around them, and the clouds were darker than ever. The world around them was dim, and all of their lighting seemed to have lost much of its potency. The flames were nearly burned out, and the lights were flickering badly. The rain was coming down in sheets, as if there was still hope to wash Alastor’s allies away.
Cybele’s decisive choice meant that the imposter Ganymede went rigid; her head tilted back and her arms pulled back to her sides. Her fingers turned to talons but before she could react, she dissolved. More than just the inky blackness pooling to reconnect with the other shadows, it was gone--replaced with a sulfuric stench that was quickly pulled away as the wind carried the smoky remains away from her.
Siegfried’s would-be Negaverse General went rigid and a strange light carried through him. His eyes were embers and then flames and then heat and as he exploded, he screamed. It was a haunting bellow, but after only a second he was no more than smoke–and the wind scattered the illusion like it hadn’t been anything at all. Siegfried was alone on the wall outside the Hall, but he could see Cybele at the wall–even if it was too tall to jump or scale easily.
But, near Palatine, there was a coiled rope she could throw down to help Siegfried back up.
Quote: The chaos manifestations have been destroyed; if you are playing your own you can write out how you want them to disappear or assume they exploded in a burst of black shadows. There is heavy residual chaos in the area–and a large projectile that could do a lot of damage if the winds carry it as they are. A Court Attack has been unleashed on the battlefield and done heavy damage to a wave of shadows trying to breach the wall, and Ida’s Royal magic has given everyone an energy boost; due to the fluctuations of magic in the air, it can physically restore a character or restore some previously used magic. The closing prompt will be some time after 8PM EST on the 18th and will lead to an optional closing ORP!
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Posted: Mon Oct 17, 2022 4:31 pm
Eternal Sailor CybeleThe Chaos that wore the face of Ganymede cracked and shattered. Cybele swallowed, hard. It had been attacking. It had warped itself. She'd seen the flickers in its form. She'd seen the claws. That had been what had kept her from freezing up at the last second. It had still looked enough like her sister in the end that the image of it screaming and dying at her hands was going to be burned into her mind for a long time. She sucked in a breath, and tried to bury that down to deal with when they weren't in a crisis. More had been destroyed than just the creature. Something had shifted. The shadows were still around, somewhat. The lights were flickering in a way that made her stomach twist, but she could see better now. She could breathe. There was nothing walling her in. When she looked down towards the courtyard, there was no dead Valhalla, either, just- "Siegfried!" she called out. "Are you all right?" He didn't look hurt, so she decided to leave him to Palatine's care for the time being. Later, she'd probably collapse into his arms, and let herself actually think about everything she'd seen tonight, but she had her own mission for the time being. The crossbow bolt was still in her hand. She snapped it back into place on the string of the ballista. Then, she hauled the weapon around and tried to shoot down the final piece of debris.
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Posted: Mon Oct 17, 2022 5:21 pm
Palatine, Knight of VenusThe image of her younger self dissolved with another loud crack of its face against the stone railing. Palatine could not pull back quickly enough and ended up smacking her hand there in its place. She swore, but other than a skinned palm and a sore wrist, she didn’t think she’d done much damage.
More importantly, the Chaos was faltering. Magic swept through. Powerful magic. Magic Palatine couldn’t quite identify, except that she knew Ganymede was here, defending the Core, and the only magic that strong Palatine knew of came from a Royal.
Palatine took a breath. She let anger and frustration fade away, then took stock of her surroundings. Cybele was at the weapon, taking aim at another piece of debris. Siegfried was on the ground. Had he fallen? Jumped?
Grabbing the nearby robe, Palatine threw one end to the ground.
“I can help you up,” she called to Siegfried through the storm.
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Posted: Tue Oct 18, 2022 12:12 am
Siegfried's head cracked against the wall, wind knocked out of him. Pain radiated from the back of is skull, coupled by a searing pain in his wrist as the shadows gripped and squeezed. He felt a grinding of his bones, pinching his tendons and forcing the sword - for it was a real sword now, so familiar and so right - from his hand. The shadow in front of him looked like a Negaverse General, if an approximation of a generic one.
Isn't that right, Jarosite?
Silver eyes snapped open. Jarosite. That name slammed into him with the force of the Chaos around him. With it brought a feeling of power, of chaos, of hunger from a time not so long since past. He knew the name, had looked up what information he could on who 'Jarosite' had been. A completely forgettable General of the Negaverse who had a starseed problem. Never made a name for himself, no one ever cared outside of Albireo.
He'd been a terrible boyfriend, a terrible General, a terrible son, a terrible brother.
One thing 'Jarosite' had never been though, was someone who enjoyed killing.
"Oh, I'm quite sure they'd agree they're happier this way! Besides, I've never once enjoyed killing!" he shouted back, throwing his head forward to slam into the shadow's face. He felt something shift as he pulled back. The shadow shifted and reformed almost instantly. Well, wasn't that clever.
There was a flare of energy, rushing up his arms and reforming his sword, sea water rushing down the edge.
"FEEL THE RAGE OF THE SEAS!" he shouted, sword swinging through the shadow as it exploded. Pain radiated through his wrist and head - he was pretty sure the bones in his wrist were cracked, if not broken, but the shadow was gone. He panted through his teeth and looked up at the wall.
Cybele shouted down at him and he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Cybele! Thank god! Palatine! You're both alright! And yes, I think my wrist might be fractured, but I'm alright!" Siegfried looked down at where the shadow had been and clenched his jaw.
"Chaos only ever brought me despair... I'm never returning to that."
He turned and using his good hand, he let Palatine get him up the wall.
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Posted: Tue Oct 18, 2022 6:50 pm
Cybele struck true for the second time; the projectile arced through the air and collided with the debris with what sounded like a distant, faintly audible thud. It splintered into a dozen smaller pieces, and though it rained down on the ground, it managed to avoid hitting either the ruins or the river.
Palatine was able to angle the rope down so Siegfried could work his way up. The chaos was stunned and weakened enough that it could do little more than dance around the outskirts and retreat.
But then, for a split second, the chaos surged again. It was overwhelming and felt like it might get a greater grip and recuperate, but whatever footing it almost had was lost. A shockwave rippled from multiple locations, simultaneously. Within seconds, or a moment at most, the chaos anomalies were destroyed. The heart of the chaos was destroyed.
The natural threats seemed to lessen, too. The winds carrying rocky debris in the clouds seemed to slow; though the debris hovered in the air, they were no longer projectiles. The gusts closer to the ground no longer stung. Thunder dulled and then diminished, and the lightning stopped almost immediately.
The rain fell harder, but only briefly. It was long enough to put out the fires sparked during the storm. The river was surging, but the current seemed more controlled, and already the water level was lowering.
And then, the rain turned to a trickle and then faded altogether. The monstrous clouds thinned, and then pockets of them began to clear, and then they faded, too. Alastor’s world had been covered in dark skies for centuries--and now, the sunrise. The sky was already lighting up with pinks and oranges, not unlike Earth, but the colors were so vibrant and pure.
There were no shadows to block it. Alastor was a fresh, renewed world, thanks to them.
The great oak in the courtyard by the Hall had nearly a thousand years to grow to its immense size, and its roots had buried themselves deep into the ground. They cradled the Core of the world, and it was the greatest beacon of their success.
The liquid gold light of the Core stretched up through the oak tree and gave it a magical glow and–more than that, little golden lights bobbed through the air around the Hall like fireflies. They ranged in size from marbles to golf balls, and coming into contact with them felt like passing through soothing, warm pockets of air. There were thousands, easily–like the world was celebrating their victory with them.
It was peaceful now, and the oppressive, hateful chaos that had been smothering them before was gone. Now, the only thing left to do was take a moment to catch their breath, and then meet up back at the Hall.
Quote: This is the last prompt based post for the roleplay! If you would like to continue writing you can, but this can also count for the close. All characters should head back to the Hall; the following roleplay is completely optional and players don’t have to post but their characters can be handwaved as attending. If your character would rather teleport home or otherwise leave Alastor without attending, please let me know! Thank you!
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