Kore was already surprised by what was happening on this adventure. Seeing someone using their magic to clear a path was unique. She hadn't even considered using magic that way.
Sadly her magic wasn't really a long range attack so sadly she couldn't help that way. But if there were enemies that came along she was ready to kick their butt. After all not only did she have magic but she had her kendo and kickboxing skills too. She was known to pack a punch in her non-magical form. So she decided that until they had closer enemies she would be a protector.
"I'll watch anyone's backs too. I can pack quite a punch," she said aloud as she waited to see what might lie ahead. She was ready to fight.
Panacea got a momentarily dazed look in his eyes after Kiuchi's swooping kiss but he refocused to give a nod. "There are a lot of them but we got this." He shot his partner's a smile and a wink. It wasn't long enough he had to focus mostly on the shadows around them, though he did try to keep an eye on the other Senshi, mostly Kiuchi and Fulu though.
When Remarque called out his plan, Panacea watched as the Royal's magic shot forth and did exactly what the Prince claimed he would do. The basic Senshi knew he didn't have magic that would help from a distance, nor would his magic help get him to the crystal fast enough before the shadows that had parted crashed back together. However he did have a will to try and thanks to being on the active side he would at least be able to get closer to the crystal to help support better. "Let's go, we might not make it all the way but we should push as far as possible." He said to Kiuchi and Fulu before he took off into the cleared space, not looking behind him to see if the other two would actually be following him or not as impulse took over.
The small man would lash out at any shadows that he got close enough to, shattering them but getting small cuts here and there for his trouble. In the end he couldn't make it all the way much like he figured, but at least he would be closer be a distraction if nothing else.
Part of her wanted to run forward, she'd outrun a bear recently so she would probably make it quite a bit of distance. But there were so many shadows waiting to dogpile onto whoever went out alone. "I can run fast, but not that fast. What's the plan Muri? If we move together it'll be harder for the thingies to get us?" She was itching to make any amount of progress other than the defensive type. She had punched out a few shadows that drew closer but unless they figured out something soon, they were going to start piling up.
At least they seemed to be going down pretty easily even if there were a lot of them. It took everything in her not to laugh when she saw an eggplant flying forward though, Hybris really was staying in character for the whole eggplant senshi thing. Part of her wondered how many of those he had shoved in his subspace.
……Okay, well, there went Reiki’s big idea, though at least it didn’t leave him feeling useless. Instead, as Remarque cleared a path by throwing some tiara, Reiki couldn’t help but idly wonder if Ida, Cybele, and all the other White Moon princesses had tiaras like that, and if so, what could they do with them? (Distinctly not a helpful thought at the moment, Reiki realized that, but as long as he kept his negative and judgmental thoughts about how much better the White Moon senshi were to himself, who cared.)
He’d given his own little team orders before, but Remarque’s rose above the din of the combat, requesting something new. Taking a deep breath, Reiki glanced over his shoulder at Hybris and his projectile eggplants. “Fall in around Hybris, ladies,” he said, as gently as he could manage in the moment. From each according to their ability, to each according to their need, and right now, Hybris and his combat-avoidant self needed the most protecting. “Remarque says to attack the crystal, so I’m gonna go try.”
Lest anyone (but in particular Bélénos and Hybris, who seemed less than calm about all of this) feel abandoned, Reiki put on a quick smile and added, “Don’t worry, I’ll be back.”
As he took off running down the path Remarque had cleared, part of Reiki chided himself for saying what was probably the second-most telltale line that some minor supporting character was going to die, surpassed only by “I’ll tell you about it when I get back” and all variations thereof. No time to dwell on it, though. Between how seriously he took his cardio and the benefits of being a senshi, Reiki ran like a gazelle, perfectly balanced in his pumps. Maybe he didn’t know what he’d do when he got to the actual thing.
En route, hearing some senshi in purple (Kore) call out, Reiki called back to her, “Hey! Those three girls surrounding the pretty boy with the bone structure could use some backup!” He pointed back in the direction he’d run from, at Bélénos, Parysatis, Hela, and Hybris, but couldn’t tarry long.
Dawdling meant this unholy nightmare went on even longer.
As he closed in on the crystal, though, Reiki still didn’t have any idea what to do to it.… Oh, well. All throwing his magic at youma ever did was make them rip themselves apart. Time to find out if “Gnawing Hunger!”—cast with a jerk of Reiki’s hand through the air but without calling out its name—did literally anything to evil magic crystals.
Quote:
Sailor Scout Attack: Gnawing Hunger. Enemies within 10 feet of him begin to feel a powerful hunger or sense of craving, one they feel cannot be sated, and yet, they are compelled to try. This craving can be for anything—food, drink, affection/intimacy, alcohol or narcotics, the answers to the math homework, etc.—but it is quite distracting. This spell lasts for 25 seconds, and Murikabushi can use it three times per battle.
"I'm not sure that I'd be fast enough" Sadalsuud admitted toVardaas she managed to somehow flail-hit another of the shadowy figures causing it to shatter into black shards.
She hesitated before admitting "And I'm not sure whether my magic would be of much use here, but you're welcome to it if you want."
Sadalsuud made it a question, even as she sighed in relief as Mr Rem managed to clear a path.
She glanced around to see if Merkebhad followed her and Varda in, wanting to see how her friend had fared if she had–
And then found herself she pausing as another senshi (Mithra) used their magic on the shadowy creatures and it looked like the path might stay open a little longer.
Might, but there was no certainty.
Sadalsuud bit her lip anxiously and then said "I'm not sure if I'll be fast enough, but I can try" green eyes looked anxiously at her companions even as she stepped forward "We can try" she added.
He didn't have any ranged methods except his magic. The senshi that covered his rear seemed to be... new to this whole thing? Or at least to the limits of senshi magic. It was fine; not everyone had been in this for actual years. He did give the purple and silver covered senshi a raised eyebrow in the middle of a pause in the rush of shadows though.
"My magic is my ranged option," he said, untying the sash at his waist and using it as a whip to conserve his magic some what.
He didn't need to tell him that he didn't want to use his weaker magic because there was a high chance Hydrus would get hit with it and be completely useless and vunerable. Gotta love having your own magic trigger your hydrophobia ugh.
Another leviathan curled out of Hydrus' palm and surged towards the crystal as the source, crashing into it with the force of a wave.
Shadows surged through his arms and he winced as pain laced up his bones. That smarted. Damn.
He agreed with Telesto on that something else might be coming though...
His mind felt like it was the glass that was shattering around him. Shadows breaking into pieces, into dust, into nothing. Memories of a life he’d lived. Fleeting. There, in pieces, like the dust around him. Reflected thoughts and feelings in the fragments of glass glimmered all around him. Voices he didn’t recognize -- was it his mind playing tricks on him? He didn’t know, some days.
Another shadow was pushed back, shattering under his touch. They were everywhere. There were people inside the mirror with him. A voice he did recognize -- Remarque -- was there somewhere. Too far. Laon was right that Remarque would be too busy to keep an eye on either of them. They were on their own. And now Arawn was on his own because he couldn’t risk Laon getting hurt by following him in.
He knew better, of course. He knew Laon couldn’t just let him go. He’d hoped the others would keep him back, or would at least keep an eye on Laon. If Arawn could get rid of these shadows as quickly as possible, it would be safer for all of them. Or at least that was the idea.
Another shadow reached out and grabbed him, and he bristled at the sudden touch. Arawn spun around and lashed out at the shadow --
Except it hadn’t been a shadow at all. He’d thrown his fist at the Senshi who’d commented on his teeth before (Rana). A coldness fell over him. He didn’t know where he’d hit her. Her face? Her throat? Her shoulder? Maybe he missed her completely and hit a shadow instead. Why was she touching him in the first place? He was hurt? He couldn’t feel the pain. He could feel his heart in his ears, beating frantically as he tried to process what was going on around them.
Laon was there, and he felt like his heart stopped completely. Just for a moment.
He was going to get hurt at this rate.
He couldn’t bring himself to say anything to the Senshi he might have hit. The words couldn’t form on his lips. It was like he’d forgotten how to respond in a situation like that. Maybe because the last time someone had touched him without his consent, it had been for nefarious reasons.
Arawn heard Remarque’s voice again, and he reached out to grab hold of Laon’s hand, to pull him closer, to keep him out of danger. The crystal was the goal --
Crystal?
There. He could see it pulsing through the shadows. Through the path that Remarque was clearing for someone, anyone, as many as possible to charge through and attack.
Something resonated inside him. He wasn’t sure what it was, but he once again pulled Laon closer. He wasn’t going to leave him again. He picked him up instead.
“I’m fast, I can make it,” he didn’t have to say to Laon, but did anyway as he moved quickly towards the crystal, trying to keep himself from jostling Laon too much.
He could feel the resonation again. Like his magic before.
Digging his feet into the ground, and without another look back at the other Senshi who likely would want nothing to do with them after this anyway, Arawn felt a pulse of energy as he tapped into his magic, and was suddenly so much closer to the crystal than before.
They could both attack it from there. Would anyone be fast enough to join them? There were others trying at least. He could hear them calling out their magic. He didn’t know if his magic would do anything, but he would tear the crystal to pieces with bare hands if he had to.
“Death portent,” he growled towards the crystal, the words coming to him without even understanding where they came from.
Quote:
Super Sailor Scout Attack: Shadow Sprint - Enhancement Just as the Cwn Annwn from mythology were said to hunt wrongdoers into the ground until they can run no longer, Arawn gets an incredible boost of speed over a short distance, making it appear as though he is transported from one location to another in a fraction of a second. This attack can be used three times with a max distance of thirty feet. This magic has to be used in a straight path. Any obstacles will prevent the magic from being completed.
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Super Sailor Scout Attack: Death Portent When opponents are within fifteen feet of Arawn, they will see the illusion of orange eyes peering out through the darkness at them and hear the loud growling of canines. As the eyes draw closer, the growling becomes softer. The illusion invokes and greatly increases fear and horror. This could involve the magic causing shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat, sweating, dizziness, or similar effects of a panic attack left up to the player, with the potential for lasting effects. Arawn’s opponents will believe that death is coming for them. The illusion causes the target’s mind to perceive the environment as ominous and Arawn as dark and foreboding, or even as a feral canine of death or monster himself. This will last for thirty five seconds and has two uses.
Kyuseisha no Hikari
Sweenys_Revenge
Noir Songbird
Proximity
amorremanet
Proximity
Posted: Sat Sep 02, 2023 6:12 pm
Each strike to the crystal was one step closer to fixing their problem. Magic and physical blows alike seemed to strain it, and the sound of splintering glass echoed with each hit. The more damage the crystal took, the more the army of shadows thinned. The crystal stopped creating more, and the ones that already manifested began to disappear. They didn’t always explode, sometimes they just flickered out of existence and disappeared.
It was working.
It was impossible to tell what was the final strike; one attack worked with the next, and whatever defense the crystal had, it faltered.
It cracked.
Lightning struck. It had no source, it had no endpoint. It seemed to appear out of nowhere and shot down, and down, and down.
There was no thunder, only the blinding white light and the sickening energy that reverberated through the air around them. The energy clung to them, uncomfortable and prickling. It felt like static, but it kept building.
A shockwave rippled through the ground they stood on.
The sound of glass cracking was deafening and echoed all around them. Fractures appeared on the marble ground below them. Chunks of the platform began to break off.
And then, everything exploded.
Shrapnel flew in every direction, but the worst of it caught on the ruins and debris nearby. The pressure of the force scattered the platforms floating nearby.
The ground broke beneath them.
And then, they were falling.
Pillars and ruins fell along with them, but even if anyone could grab onto something, the nearest mirror was too far away to reach. There was no way to swim through the air–maybe someone could kick off of the debris and make it a bit closer, but with the way everything was moving it was impossible to get a clear path.
So, they fell.
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The good news: the crystal has been destroyed and the shadows have all evaporated!
The bad news: there’s nothing but empty space below you and you are falling.
A surge of energy has spread throughout the strange terrain and shattered the glassy marble surface you were standing on. Players may choose to have their characters sustain damage in the form of a blunt force shockwave (such as having the breath knocked out of them or blunt force damage), being hit by debris (such as rubble or crystal shards), or being blinded by flashing lightning. Damage is totally optional and not required.
The goal is to find some way to get to a mirror so you can Mirrorwalk out, but…
That’s not looking very possible right now, and the more you fall, the slimmer your chances of getting out of here are.
Outside of the strange realm, with Irenaea, the mirror rattled in its frame and was rapidly darkening.
The next plot based post will come at ~8 PM EST on Monday, September 4th and will be an exit post! Players can post as often as they like between prompts, and there are no repercussions for missing a prompt. You can join at any time before the next prompt to join. If you miss any prompts, you can handwave that your character was there in the group without needing to explain a late arrival.
When posting, please include your character’s name and rank at the top of your post and link to their journal!
Update: If you would like your character to leave before the conclusion of the event, you can have them locate a mirror in the falling debris that is large enough to pass through. While it was intended to be difficult to reach a mirror to exit, it is also possible that your character might have been near a mirror large enough to climb through. If exiting the ORP in this way, you can Mirrorwalk to your destination of choice as per normal, but you cannot return to the area. Characters who are exiting cannot return to the area.
One thing Kiuchi had always been aware of was Fulu's lack of shoes, or anything covering his feet, it was a weakness which would eventually bite them in the a** and now seemed like that time. He'd seen a wince, or two, from his and Panacea's partner. Maybe he should start carrying shoes in subspace so he could give them to Fulu each and every time he powered up, because how did he not have torn up feet by now? Yes, it was a very good idea and something he should have thought of sooner, and normally he would have as well, he didn't know why he'd missed this and he felt bad. He knew the other was hurting and he knew he'd make up for it later, once they were all home, he knew Panacea would help tend to and dote on him. First though they needed to handle this.
Another glance to Fulu and Kiuchi turned to see Remarque launch his tiara at the shadow figures in order to clear a path. He wasn't fast, even though he had better speed as an eternal, so instead he continued handling shadow figures himself, in the hopes of keeping the path open for longer. It would be good if they could keep it open longer for otehrs to get in there.
He'd followed Panacea's orders, even if he was the one with the wings here, and grasped Fulu's hand to lead the other dopwn the path as he worked to keep it clear. His free hand lashing out here and there to banish the monsters. "When we get home, warm soak for your feet." he called back, smiling to Fulu, before he refocued on things. That was a promise to his partner who was doing so well tonight, he was proud of them both.
As shadows stopped coming he was expecting a happy ending, an ending to the problem, but they didn't get that. They got another step - another problem. The lightening strike, and thunder, had been the first sign and he'd pulled Fulu to himself as he heard the ground giving and cracking. "Panacea!" Calling to their smaller partner as he picked Fulu up to the best of his ability, wanting to keep the others bare feet safe, he watched as everything, or rather everyone, fell away as they all started to fall. Fulu in his arms, thankfully, as the ground had shattered and the others feet were hopefully safe for now. Where were they falling to...was there a place to even land?
This was somewhere beyond a mirror...in mirrorsapce, so what was this place? Was there anything else here?
He was fairly certain the shadowy figures, which were most certainly not wraiths, were coming from exactly where they were all headed towards. It was something in the distance which needed to be dealt with, how he did not know, but Itokawa knew they needed to get there. He knew it because that's where Remarque was headed and where he said they needed to get to, hard as it was, and he worked on beating down the shadowy figures so they could get there and even tried to help even as Remarque cut a path for others.
His own magic was utterly useless when it came to attacking the crystal, it wasn't something his magic could do, and he wasn't the fastest either. So instead of focusing on the crystal, which he'd never make it to, the super senshi helped with handling the dwindling number of shades moving towards them. When the ground, which had been making rather omonious sounds for awhile, gave way he was reaching out to graspo at Bell's hand in order to keep the other close as they started to fall. "s**t, keep close." And he hoped tthey didn't die.
Telesto worked around Hydrus to handle the shadows his whip didn't catch, hoping that whatever they offered would be enough to give aid. Their magic and fighting style had never been much for distance, so it was a familiar sensation to be playing support to those better suited in the moment.
Their head whipped forward as the lightning without thunder landed. The shadows were fading away, the crystal was breaking. They had been victorious! The crisis was averted.
Then everything exploded. A new crisis had replaced the last one.
Their arms went up defensively around them, blocking away shrapnel and debris. They felt the shockwave of energy running through them, but their form was especially used to the effects of pressurized blasts. The energy washed over and through them with little to no effect, but it took their concentration to manage it in their weakened form. That concentration cost them as the floor gave way, and they were suddenly falling downward; well, downward as one could in this directionless space.
They didn't have flying or any such skills. Their hand pressed against the fractured crystal in one of their satchel pockets, but it was too untrustworthy. It was one thing to slash open a passageway in the main world and risk that strange dark space, but doing it in the Mirrorspace felt too dangerous; for now at least.
And so they fell, arms and feet going out wide as they turned to face the idea of downward, or at least into the direct they fell, trying to slow their descent as best they could and assess. Hopefully some of the winged senshi here could really use those things.
Laon probably would have been fine with just staying in the background and breaking as many of the shadow soldiers as he could. He wasn’t looking to be a hero, he didn’t want to be in the spotlight.
He wanted Arawn to be okay, he wanted to be okay, he wanted Mirrorspace to be okay, and he didn’t want to disappoint Remarque.
They had seemed like simple goals at the time.
Things just felt like a blur now. He’d been fighting the shadows one minute, and then in Arawn’s arms the next. He’d been briefly frozen in surprise when he’d seen Arawn attack the Dark Mirror Senshi that had been speaking to them earlier and he was already desperate to insist it was clearly an accident, but there hadn’t been time.
He felt small and lost and out of place, and even if he’d suddenly been swept off his feet, it was still immensely preferable to Arawn rushing off on his own.
Laon hadn’t even realized how fast Arawn could go, but he was glad he’d immediately clung tightly to him. He wouldn’t have been able to run this fast–especially not in heels.
He was glad he was there so he could stay with Arawn. So he wasn’t alone. So he could half turn his body to try and shield him from the exploding crystal.
His back stung and his eyes burned; the lightning had made his vision spotty and he closed his eyes to try and let them relax. He didn’t want to see Mirrorspace fall apart anyway.
He felt weightless when he’d been gathered up in Arawn’s arms, but there was something different about it.
He knew they were falling. He forced his eyes open and clung tighter to Arawn and–
His magic wouldn't help them. He couldn’t grab onto anything for them. He couldn’t do anything but hold onto Arawn tightly.
Falling wasn’t so bad when you couldn’t see the ground, but he’d really prefer to get out of here. He hadn’t even gotten to see what was so good about this place.
There was too much falling, he couldn't see Remarque. He’d had answers for every one of their questions so far, he hoped he had a plan for this, too. Laon gathered Arawn up in his arms as best he could and kissed his cheek, and his neck. He did it a few more times, too.
He wanted to tell him not to run away from him, or to tell him not to think that Laon was any better off left behind. He couldn’t find the words, though. Whatever happened next, he wanted to be with Arawn. Not much else mattered than that right now.
"No way I'm leaving you behind." The prince was a prince after all And he had plenty of people lapping at his boots to be recognized by him. As much as he did like Remarque, there was a time and place for prostrating yourself for someone, and this was not it.
A throw or two was hit to the crystal, of course, but the moment tremors began, he stepped back. In a split second, he grabbed Crocus, and then they fell.
What use were wings if they couldn't fly? What good were these mirrors if they just shattered under their weight? But what Avior DID know was his walls, and that the man in his arms was far more important than whatever nonsense was going on here.
A pillar came close as they fell, and he growled, giving it a punch and Pulling a large wall from it. At the very least, he could brace this, and use the wall that was above them to prevent them from being crushed by any further debris. After all, his walls would never crush their own master.
"I've got you! Don't worry, we'll be fine! We've gone through worse!"
Kyuseisha no Hikari
Super Sailor Scout Attack: Build that City! The wall from his first attack has increased in size to 15 feet wide that lasts for 20 seconds. It forms up thicker as well, and those who are 2nd level or lower cannot break through it. With a 3rd level character, they would have a hard time breaking through it, though a 4th will have moderate difficulty breaking through the wall. One can still simply walk around it.
There was blinding light, and a shockwave, and shrapnel --
Arawn immediately wrapped his arms more fully over Laon’s head and tucked him down against him, curled around him to protect him from any of the debris.
And everything was suddenly falling.
There was a moment of panic. This wasn’t supposed to happen. They were supposed to help everyone fix Mirrorspace and repay Remarque for giving them a chance when so few others would. Arawn was aware that he was the one who caused the most problems. Laon was sweet and could probably befriend just about anyone worth befriending. But in the end, Arawn had managed to push everyone away from not just himself, but from Laon as well.
And as they fell, a million things raced through his mind. He didn’t want to die. He didn’t want Laon to die. What was going to happen to them? Could he somehow manage to break Laon’s fall? Would Laon ever forgive him for leaving him like that? Was there anything to grab onto? Any mirrors still intact they could jump through? What about everyone else? Did they even care? Most of them didn’t even acknowledge he or Laon existed, so why would they? Especially not after Arawn snapped at anyone trying to talk to them.
Then he felt Laon’s arms around him, felt him kiss him. Tears welled in Arawn’s eyes as he held Laon tightly. Nothing was going to tear them apart. Not even the endless void of Mirrorspace and whatever was beneath them.
Everything was happening to quickly. Maybe if he'd ever been in a real fight he could analyze the situation they were in a bit better. But he was honestly distracted by the shadows in front of him, keeping an eye on Panacea and Kiuchi, and the pain of glass poking at his feet when he took a misstep.
Next thing he knew Pancea was calling them to push ahead through the path that their Prince had made for them. Kiuchi grabbed ahold of his hand and he was pulled along behind him. He couldn't be as fast as them though, even with Kiuchi pulling him along they lagged behind their fiery partner who ran ahead. Other attacks flew past and around them to hit on the crystal. A full afront against whatever was causing these shadows to mess with their mirrors. He wasn't sure if Panacea made it all the way to the crystal to land his own attack, but Kiuchi and himself certainly didn't.
There was a crackle of energy as the crystal broke apart and blinding light fill the once park space. "Panacea!" Fulu called out with Kiuchi as well, while being pulled into the others arms. Was he okay? He tried to reach out knowing full well he was no where near close enough to get to him and they had no way to reach him now that they were falling into nothing.
Avior's reply caused him to laugh just a little. Of course he wouldn't leave his side. Even with Crocus' permission. His husband was a strong member of their court, but he wasn't the only one. There were others better suited to attacking the weird oozing crystal then either of them. So they pushed forward just enough to help keep the opening, well open, while others pushed ahead to attack.
And their attacks worked. The crystal splintered and before long sent out a blinding shockwave all around. He instinctively covered his eyes and next thing her knew he felt strong arms around him. He barely had a moment to wrap his arms around the other before he felt the floor shatter beneath them and they began to plummet. He wasn't sure how long they were going to fall from or if there even was an end. The sounds of mirrors shattering all around them was distracting.
His mind was racing, trying to thing of someway to help as everyone around them fell as well. At least he had Avior with him and his magic was some help in their situation. It slowed them down just a bit and protected them from any larger debris that was falling with them.
He thought about their home in the city, where they could have just avoided all of this. But could he really have ignored such a call from his court? He couldn't say he'd been completely useless this time around. Although, he wished he could have done just a bit more now that he wasn't sure how they were going to stop this plummet.
"Just...don't let go." He couldn't find it in himself to be as positive as his husband. As Crocus held on to him tighter and buried his face in the others chest to protect it from any more splintering debris around them.
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