Voyage Through the Multiverse (Open) [IC]

[Skylus]

The Forbidden Act
Misty Peaks

With Doug now alone the remaining team decided now was the time to strike while he was distracted. One of the invisible drones fired another flash-bang and blinded Doug, letting the soldiers have ample time to rush towards him. Before Doug can react he felt his arms being pulled being pulled his back and was shoved on his jet. The soldiers tried to grab the drone but once more they saw that it won't budge. Furious all of them look down at Doug. One of them grabbed the slate and as Doug was recovering he would hear a voice coming from nowhere yet it was right behind him. "Tell us what you have done to our drone and how to reverse it. Also how much did you see inside the drone." The voice questioned. While the voice carried a cold and detached tone Doug could still sense some hostility within the tone.

Doug wasn't getting a response from back home, which was possibly normal, because of how damaged his jet was, however, the instruments appeared to be fine. Before he could try other methods, he was flash-banged again, he heard footsteps behind him, then he felt his hands being forced behind his back, then he found himself being shoved against his jet. Or what remained of it. From where he was positioned, he could see how damaged his jet really was and he began to wonder if it would ever fly again. However, the actual instruments seemed to be fine, which was good.
Once his vision cleared he saw - no one. it was obvious they were invisible
Then Doug heard a voice. "Tell us what you have done to our drone and how to reverse it. Also how much did you see inside the drone." The voice was cold and detached, yet carried some hostility.
The pilot smiled, despite his current situation.
Damn, they're good. They have cloaking devices? I want one....
"What I did was I caused it to stop teleporting everywhere by freezing it in place. That's all I did. It'll wear off soon. As to what I saw, I saw tech that's obviously more advanced from mine, and therefore i didn't learn anything about your drone, because, well, I have no idea what your tech even is."
He shifted a bit, because an air duct (vent?) was currently digging into him.
"Uh....Are you going to let me go now? I'd like to contact my superiors....At least let them know I'm alive....?"

Hearing that he saw the inside of the drone but didn't understand the machinery might have saved Doug's life as they couldn't allow technology like the drones to fall into unauthorized hands, not even if the designs were just simple plans. "We'll might let you go if you unfreeze our drone." The voice demanded.

Doug's gaze moved around the clearing, trying to figure out where at least the outlines where of the people around him, if there were even outlines.
"I already told you, it'll wear off."
Right on cue, the drone made a whirring noise and started back up.
"See? Your drone's unfrozen, now are you going to let me go?"

he soldiers seem to comply as Doug was released so he can speak to his superiors. However should he try to flee one of the still invisible drones would fire a taser at him. After he was done speaking to his superiors he would feel a heavy blow on the back of his head and be knocked out. The soldiers who knocked out Doug began to take his body back to the camp, once they are done they will return back to the crash site to salvage pieces of the jet and everything inside of it. When Doug wakes up he will find himself in a tent,his hands cuffed behind his back

Doug heard footsteps behind him and then he was let up. The pilot then reached into the cockpit of his jet and then began to push buttons, dialing back home. He almost didn't expect an answer, but yet, he got one.
He spent the next several minutes with Shakeal, telling him that he was alive, no, he had no idea where he was and that his jet was mostly likely totaled. Shakeal told Doug that his parents and extended family would be informed and then had to hang up.
As soon as Doug hung up on his end, something hit him. Hard.

---

A moving light of some sort. He watched it move back and forth as his vision slowly cleared, the object in front of him was soon revealed to be an electric lantern.
Doug bolted upright, or tried to. He simply fell over onto his side as he realized that his hands were cuffed behind his back. He tested how tight they were before giving up.
"Great.....Not even an hour on a new world and I get myself captured...."
Doug sighed and then somehow got to a sitting position and looked around. There wasn't anything nearby save for the electric lantern and the sleeping bag he was siting on. He briefly realized that he was in some sort of white colored tent, and that he was completely disarmed.

The tent open up as a small rover moved inside, it's camera lens looking straight into Doug's eyes. 'I see you have awaken Link. I was worried those soldiers roughed you up to much. Unfortunately the Reavers sometimes forget their strength." An older male voice came through the speaker. "I'm sorry for our meeting to end up like this but most people here don't like seeing their machines being examined by unauthorized individuals, especially those who do not work for my organization." The speaker said. Link can hear the sounds of paper shuffling.
"Now while we are understanding how some of your devices work I would like to ask you some questions. We know about you coming from a line of supposed heroes but we want to know about where you come from. Tell us everything you can about your world and who you work for and as to the nature of your worlds technology, politics, and culture."

"Reavers? Is that a specialized task group or something? Interesting...."
Doug shifted a bit.
"You know, it'd be really nice if someone came in here and undid the handcuffs....starting to lose circulation, you know..."
He looked around the tent for a few seconds before returning his gaze to the rover, noticing how similar it was to the ones back home.
"You want to know about where I come from? Well....I'm sorry, but this is going to take a very long time to explain. A very long time. The Slate has a lot of history on it, I suppose you've already looked through every single file though.That being said, do you want the long version or the short version?"

"I can't say much on the Reavers other that they exist and they are the ones to have brought you to this tent. I will forward that complaint to see if anyone will comply to that request." The voice said. When Doug mention that it would take too long to explain everything about his world the speaker replied back. "So that device is called a Slate. We are having some trouble understanding how it works. If you show us how it works we might let you go." A screen open up from the rover and it showed someone holding the slate trying to get it to work.
"As for the short version how about you just tell us who you work for hero and about the jet? Because we suspect technology wasn't the only thing used in that jet after finding that motorcycle and what you did with that Slate."

"Actually it's full name is the Shiekah Slate. It's a long story but this device is...well....very old, despite how it looks, the one you found is the original. One other existed besides this one for a very long time until around 20 years ago. That's when an ancient burial site was...rediscovered, so to speak and the people that found it discovered everything that an ancestor of mine used to save our nation. Although it was a kingdom back then....Anyway, a very long time ago, there existed a powerful, very advanced race called the Shiekah, no one knows what happened to them but the technology they left behind wasn't discovered until at least ten thousand years after they all vanished. The Slate was one such device. There's six Runes on it, which are basically magical abilities that can interact with the world around the device.
The six runes, which are - Magnesis; it lifts/lowers stuff; Sphere and Square Bombs, they blow things up, of course; Cryonis, it freezes things and harms them; Stasis, it stops time; and Camera, it takes pictures - have been converted into actual weaponry for the Slate, but are still a work in progress. The Stasis rune had been corrupted in the upgrading process, but I guess it works now., as that's what was used to freeze your drone. As to how it works, there's button on the bottom, just press it and it'll turn on. You just select the rune you want. You already know about the files, I guess."
Doug shifted again.
"As to who I work for....I work for the Hyrulialus Royal Air Squadron, that's the aircraft division of our military. I answer to General Shakeal for now. As to my rank, i'm a second Lieutenant, though you might know that from my dog tags, which seem to be missing....As for my jet, it's a prototype. The blueprints to it are on the Slate, but basically it has a hyperdrive, missiles, cloaking device....Do you need anything else?"

"... you have a hyperdrive for a jet? Why?" The speaker asked. "While everything you told us is fascinating we now need you to explain how these work." On the screen he saw his sword and shield. "Now as for the cuffs I got word those will be removed once you tell us how to get these devices work."

"The sword, you turn on by flexing it (however you turn on the Energy swords from Halo.) the shield works the same way. To turn them both off, flex them again. Quite simple, really. And thanks for honoring my request."
Doug grinned.
"As to why my jet has a hyperdrive, well, it's a prototype. None of the other jets have it. I suppose they were just testing to see if it'd work at all. Seems like it does indeed work."
He thought about it for a moment.
"Or maybe I have no idea if it does work and the portal just brought me here...."

"Interesting. Are you colonizing planets and are planning to go beyond your solar system?" The researcher behind the microphone soon decided to change the conversation. "Tell me are you an elf or in anyway related to faeries?" Link would see someone dressed in SWAT-like uniform entering the tent and removing the cuffs, quickly leaving before he can say anything to them

"Uh....No, not yet, at least I'm not aware of any plans, if that's what you're asking."
He listened to the man's next question and shook his head.
"I have a feeling I'm gonna be asked this question everywhere I go. I suppose we;re..uh.....somewhat related to elves and faeries, but no, I'm a Hylian. Other races that live in Hyrulialus are Zora, which are fish people, Gorons, which are rock people, Ritos, which are bird people, and the Gerudo, which are a tribe of women that dislike men for whatever reason, must be a cultural thing, anyway, they live out on the Gerudo Desert. Locations of where everyone lives are stored on a map on the Slate."
Once the cuffs were removed, Doug stood up and began to walk around to get the circulation back to normal.
"Anything else?"

"Yes. Is all of your technology derived from the technological achievement and remains of these Shiekah?" The man asked the reluctant hero of the air. "Also what sort of foods can your people eat? Because it will do us no good if we serve you food and it turns out to be poisonous to your kind."

Doug was actually happy to talk to someone. Maybe they could fix his jet.
"Yeah. We simply discovered more blueprints as the centuries passed and we've made modification. As to what food...hmmmm.....Depends on what you guys have. I'd imagine I'll be fine."

The screen began to show some of the foods on Earth to let him know what sort of foods humanity has. "These are just some of the foods we have. It will take too long to show you everything . As for the jet we aren't sure if we can fix it as we are still understanding the technology and writing on the blueprints. Thankfully it seems the Slate can help translate those words for us."

Doug stood there with his arms crossed, amused by the current situation.
"We're not that primitive. I guess you only have the information on the Slate to tell you that. Yeah, we have our own variants of all of this stuff. Anyway....How can we understand each other? And I never got your name."

"Classified. As for my name you can call me Doctor Price. Well we had to make sure that your foods matches with ours. Sadly we can't provide anything to fancy." The doctor said. "Now I'm afraid I must leave you because I must return back to my work. Hopefully we will have this little chat again."

Doug nodded a bit.
"Doctor Price.....Thanks for telling me your name. One last request. I'm still a bit injured. Do you mind sending someone to..uh....check me out for possible shock, heal me a bit?"

"That can be done. Now I must go." With that the rover began to leave the tent. Soon a doctor with two nurses enter the tent and began to check on Link. Once they were sure he will live they patched him up and left the tent

[Rostavykhan]

TERROR TIME

The midday sun beat down across the serene countryside; it was warm that day, or at least not freezing, though it wouldn't be warm much longer after sundown. It was one of the few "warm" days left before the first Autumn snow fell, and the nights grew long and silent.

That was why the coming night was going to be special. It was approaching the end of the month, and that meant Halloween. Though not commonly celebrated in Russia, it had become something of a phenomenon among some younger generations, and it was the ideas of scary stories, costumes, and trickery that had led a young woman to choose to attend a small party, one thrown by an acquaintance of hers, to partake in the festivities and have a memorable night of fun before the cold drove everyone back indoors for the next few months.

The location of the party was to be at the rural residence of her acquaintance, one Bogdan Manor. The Estate was tucked away in the countryside of Southern Russia, surrounded by bogs and brush, and the perfect spot for a lively party, where no prying eyes or spoilsports could ruin the fun. It was a good choice of location to the young woman, one Katya Pyotorovna, who found a lonely manor more atmospheric than the brightly-lit, bustling streets of the city, and the use of personal invitations made it all a little more exclusive and special. The only downside was that she had to drive all the way there, but fortunately, when she had a luxury car that went for more than some houses, road trips were hardly uncomfortable or dreary.

Katya really only hoped that she wasn't too late, although she knew the real fun didn't begin until nightfall. She was already quite close to the estate, following the only country road to it, and quickly approaching the edge of the woods that hid the manor within...

[Naval Monte]

The Forbidden Act
Misty Peak, AEGIS campsite

A young woman, her name tag reading Amailia Young, was looking over the Slate as she held a tape recorder. She was short in stature and held her hair in a bun as she adjusted her AR glasses. "After study artifact-278-B we come across a few discoveries on to its exact function. The first thing discovered by it is the high thaumaturgic energy readings coming from the item, going along with the claim of subject-277 but the builders possessing both a formidable degree of technological engineering and thaumaturgical knowledge. Our next observations was the glowing liquid within artificial-278-B. After analysis we have determined it to be distilled water as the water contained was highly purified. We have high traces of aetheric energy on the water itself." The woman said as she moved to a test tube containing a sample of the magic water within the slate.

"Our analysis on the water isn't fully complete but right now we heavily suspect that the water itself is just a medium and catalyst containing the real source of the data within the slate, of which due to some of the runes we heavily suspect to use DNA for data storage." Doctor Young stated as the computers in the tent, powered by portable generators, began to crunch down the data to finally give a clear answer on whether their theories are true. As for the functions of the runes while we are will to accept that great of thaumaturgy is used in it's functions we believe that natural scientific processes are also at play."

Doctor Young looked at one screen featuring the symbols of the runes. "Because of this possible DNA source we come to believe that most of the runes run on Nitrogen, both due to its abundance and because it can be found on protein. Moreover we have information to suggest that these Sheika were proficient in agriculture and as such they would have used Nitrogen as fertilizer for their crops." The doctor would see other computer monitors showing screenshots of images that were contained within the slate. "For its magnetic properties it uses liquid cooled nitrogen to freeze a magnetic metal such as niobium titanium or vanadium gallium that warped into a coil to act as a powerful electromagnet. As for how such temperatures are reached we suspect the thaumic properties of artifact-278-B are used. This same liquid nitrogen will also explained it's cryokinetic functions." Doctor Young explained as she heard some noise outside but ignored it.

"As for the bombs produced we believe that nitrogen gases are high superheated into a plasma which will then detonated by remote control. The material that makes the outer casing of the bomb is unknown if this time not are we sure how artifact-278-B creates them, but due to earlier stated properties we believe that a magnetic field must be inside the bomb to contain the plasma from exploding prematurely. As for the bombs research this can be easily explained as the artifact needing time to gather and store more nitrogen gas from the surrounding area. As for stasis this rune was the most difficult for us as it deals with stopping the passage of time, something that modern science can't do as of this time. We have debated on how this rune works and while the Quantum Zeno Effect was proposed due to the effects of Stasis it was rejected due to the rune affecting large objects. However that failed theory helped point us to the right direction as to looking at a possible source behind Stasis." Doctor Young smiled as cracking the mystery behind that rune was one of her more proudest achievements.

"We suspect that Leptons play a major role in the Stasis rune. While they still in theoretical science Lepton particles can explain how the object can remain in place as they are still affected by electromagnetism, gravity, and the weak nuclear force but not the strong force. This can explain how it remain in place while not being affected by the force exerted by another object. Because of artifact-278-B thaumaturgical functions we also believe aetheric energy and probably temporal anomalies might be assisting in the functions of the Stasis rune." Young heard a ring from the computers, telling her that they have completed their task.

The doctor copied the data and stored it on a USB drive. "Right now we will remain studying the fabrication process that artifact-278-B possesses and the materials it is made of. We will test to see if it can make other objects before we can begin testing it. I proposal in more research being funded for us to create our own variant of the device as it will be useful to both field agents, mobile task force units, and site researchers." With that Young turned off the tape recorder and removed the tape, placing it in her coat pocket. She walked to the slate and picked it up, leaving with it to do more tests on the device.

[Skylus]

The Forbidden Act
Misty Peaks

As some time passed for Doug the tent would open and a man stepped inside. The man had black hair swept up and a thin mustache, his blue eyes gaze on to Doug's. "Hello Doug, been a good prisoner I see." The man chucked. Aware on how terrible his joke is. "I guess this might be consider our second first meeting as before you only heard by voice behind a robot. Seeing as you didn't try to attack it I can trust that seeing me in person won't change your behavior." The man told him. Doug would see a tray with food on his hand. "Wasn't sure what you prefer so I just picked random stuff I found." He placed the tray down.
"Now to get on the matter as to why I'm here. My superiors are still deciding on what to do with you so unfortunately we can't release you just yet. But in the mean time maybe you can ask us a few questions. Namely on who were the other two people you were with before they deported to find the source of that roar?"

Doug had, to be honest, been bored out of his mind for the past two hours. Or it had been at least two hours. He liked Price as soon as he set eyes on the man, he seemed to be in charge of the Reavers that had brought him here at least.
"Yeah, you can trust me. I don;t have any reason to attack you anyway."
He thanked the older man for considering the fact that he was not exactly sure what he wanted to eat just then and started to sample whatever was on the plate.
"...Not bad. Meat tastes gamey though. Boar?"
Price then spoke again.
"Now to get on the matter as to why I'm here. My superiors are still deciding on what to do with you so unfortunately we can't release you just yet. But in the mean time maybe you can ask us a few questions. Namely on who were the other two people you were with before they deported to find the source of that roar?"
Doug waited to speak until he had finished eating and then spoke.
"The woman seems to be a native of wherever we are, she calls herself Nali. I didn't get a last name. As for the shapeshifter..... I don't remember if I got a name from him...."

Price thought over what he said. "Yes, the other Reavers have encountered another woman and a talking cat that wear attire that looks fitting for this world. No I'm not kidding about the talking cat." Price said to Doug, knowing he would ask about that. "As for the shapeshifter I have a few theories about him but I would need to see him personally to see if any of them are true." He began to pace around in the tent. "Tell me something Doug. Is magic used daily in your world? The slate and jet both have traces of what we believe to be magic, as that is the only was to best describe some of their anomalous features."

"Yeah. Always has been, probably always will be used daily, why? Can you possibly repair my jet?"
Doug eyed Price hopefully, getting his jet repaired would be great, as there was something else he hadn't told them yet, that, since the jet was broken right now, he couldn't show them anyway.

"We are still studying the jet. Right now the magical aspects and it's hyperdrive are the main focus. We just discovered the stealth systems built into it. I can't say for certain if it can be fixed yet." Price told the pilot. "However right now we haven't ruled out the possibility of repairing yet, sense we are still examining it and figuring out how every part work." He stopped to look at Link. "But tell me how does magic work in your world and what can you do with it?"

"It's varied from era to era - that's how we measure tech advances - but we use it for everything. Education, transportation, medicine, political disputes, national security...As to how it works.....it just does."
Doug shrugged h is shoulders.
It's hard to explain....I think there's a passage on the Slate that explains it a bit though..."

"I hope so because just saying it works just because isn't interesting to us." Price replied back, not satisfied with the answer he got. "You told us of there being other races. Mind giving me your opinion on them?"

Doug nodded.
"We get along, for now, there's the usual disputes but nothing too serious. As for my personal opinion, there's good and bad members of the other races and we all respect each races customs, laws, rules, whatnot."
He then added after some thought.
"The Zora tend to think too highly of themselves at times, the Gorons....Well, they're rock people. They're made of rocks, well, it's complicated, they eat rocks, fight with rocks.....The Ritos fly, are bards, great warriors...."

"What of the Gerudo?" Price mentioned

Doug rolled his eyes.
"Where do I even start....Even now they hate men. You can't even get within 20 feet of their main city without 10 armored guards running at you screaming at you to leave the area. Surprisingly, there's one pilot that I know of but I've never seen her personally."

"Any reason for this odd cultural hatred towards men and if they despise males to such an extent what happens to the males of their kind? Also are the Gerudo different in appearance as the other races you mention? Are there different ethic and racial groups among your kind and the other species from your world?"

"Not sure about the first question but everyone one hundred years, there's a guy that's born. All the Tribes...- Old name, sorry,races- live a very long time, around 150 if we get lucky, the males become....kings, of sorts. The Gerudos have olive toned skin from being in the sun all day. As for the last question, no?"
Doug thought about the last question some more. "My race, yeah. Different social classes, cultures...Rich people look down on the poor people, Business rivals try to undo each other, fight clubs....you name it, it most likely happens."

"The rich aren't a separate rich thought I imagine some wish they were, but nevertheless what you shared was good. So these Gerudo are like your people by appearance yet somehow they are distinct enough to be their own race? Fascinating, simply fascinating." Price was of course wired to record the conversation for notes for his research. "Do any of these races display unusual abilities?"

Doug grinned again. "Yeah. The Rito can fly, obviously, the Gerudo can turn into rolling stones that can get up to speeds of 60, if they're going downhill, they also have powerful attacks. The Zora had fins that they can use as throw-able weapons and they can swim underwater without needing breathing equipment and they can charge a super jump if needed. The Gerudo fight really well and are good at stealth."

"What about your kind?" Price asked. "Doesn't your kind posses anything of note compare to the other species?"

"I suppose our senses are heightened compared to yours. And we live longer. We're also the ones with more magical abilities."
Doug paused.
"Do you mind if I ask where I am? What world I'm on?

The doctor only let out a hmm. "I suppose the ears are a give away that we are not like your kind. As for where you are we don't know either? We just stumble across this one like you."

Now he was getting somewhere.
"Do you mind if I ask you if you're capable of space travel and cross space communications? If so I believe my superiors would like to speak with you."

Price was silent on that one. "I can't tell you what our technology is capable of but we can communicate with them if we want to. Right now my superiors don't see any reason to speak to yours."

Doug looked crestfallen for a moment.
"Oh....Alright then."
The 22 year old looked around the tent before moving his gaze back to Price.
"I don't suppose I can have my things back soon?"

He shook his head. "Sorry we are still researching those. We will return the slate back after our research has been concluded."

Doug nodded. "Right....Well, have you uh....researched my bike yet?"

"Still researching it but we are almost done with that."

Doug thought he heard a noise outside but ignored it.
"Well, can you give an estimate at least?"

Before Price can say anything he stopped as his ear piece came to life with an automated warning. "Later, I have to go somewhere right now. An emergency just came up." Price said, panic clearly evident on his face and tone. The doctor fled the tent quickly. Doug would hear gun shots follow by loud screeches and roars, soon he would hear people screaming and stuff breaking as a fight broke out in the area. Doug hear soldiers giving out orders to target what they called "Velociraptors" and he would hear the roars of those creatures as man and beast fought for dominance

Doug was confused by Price leaving so suddenly but then he began to hear screams, roars, coming from all directions. He shot to his feet and backpedaled but them jumped when his back touched the back of the tent.
At that moment, something huge hit the side of the tent and created a huge hole. Doug found himself looking at a huge lizard, it hadn't seen him yet but it wasn't more than five feet away, head moving slowly from side to side, drool and blood dripping from its open mouth....
The pilot stayed still until the beast left the tent and then he shot forwards, leaping over the hole in the tent, and then he was running across the clearing, dodging gunfire and whatever else. He stopped for a moment, breathing hard, trying to figure out where his things were - there.
Two men had been testing his sword and shield, but they had died horrible deaths. A lizard stood over them, its head bent. Doug was currently hiding behind a wooden crate, barely breathing. he slowly mvoed forwards until his hand was hovering over his swords hilt and picked it up, then his shield and then stood and powered both weapons up. The noise made the lizard lift its head and spin around to face him.
"RAAARRRRRRRR"
The creature roared at him and sidestepped, looking wary.
"Yeah. You see this?"
Doug lifted the glowing sword a bit and the creature's head followed.
He did this several more times until the creature shook its head and then Doug ran forwards and stabbed it, injuring it. He then darted past the creature and over to a table. His Slate was hooked up to wires and other things but he disconnected everything, grabbed the Slate, and turned around. And just in time.
The creature was running towards him, maw wide, Doug widely aimed the device in the creature's direction, activated it, and then closed his eyes.
And then opened them. The creature was frozen in place. For now.
Doug didn't waste any time sticking around to see what the lizard would do once it had unfrozen.
He raced across the camp and into another tent.
Moments later, there came a roar, a different kind of roar, something mechanical and a second later, the Master Cycle tore from the tent and out into the wilderness, its owner firing off Runes from the Slate to make sure nothing followed him.

[Slenderman The CreepyPasta King]

To Catch A King
Miria Bankhari
Outset Island

Miria jumped when another rift opened, startled by the boom, and baffled by the sight of a person falling from the sky. She was in a bad situation, she realized, since she wasn't the only one who had been whisked away without warning, and she just knew that it was a matter of time before something nasty came through, if it hadn't already - She didn't know just how friendly the talking animals and the Human were.

When she had the chance, she thought, she would need to learn if Madi's stone was the same as her own. When she had the answers she wanted, she would make a run for it.

Until then, however, she needed to act normal. Masking her anxiety behind a smug, nonchalant facade, Miria moved up behind Madi and the Elf, peering over their shoulders at the stranger who had fallen to the beach. She wanted to know who could survive such an impact, and what was causing his injuries to steam like they were. She was also mildly interested in the elixir that had been handed to the Human, and what exactly would happen if it worked, and the newcomer came to. Was it a good idea for the two of them to be doing that for a person who was steaming from cuts anyways? She'd never seen anything like that, and it worried her even more.

To Catch a King
When Naruto was force-fed the healing potion his wounds steamed even more, and closed faster. Though he was still out cold to the outside world. Inside his mind however, was a different story. Naruto was standing in what looked like a giant sewer system, looking at giant prison bars, behind the bars was a nine tailed fox taller than a giant

"So, the sage comes crawling back. Well too bad, my power is off limits. Not to mention i was SO CLOSE TO GETTING FREE! BUT YOUR FATHER HAD TO RUIN IT!!!!!!!" the fox said in a booming voice.

"Good, because i dont want it. What i do want though is to know what happened!" Naruto asked.

"And why should i tell you? Now leave me be." Tho fox demanded.

"Fine." At that, naruto left his mindscape and his eyes opened. Noticing he wasnt in konoha, he wondered if Pain did something before remembering that he beat the leader of the Akatski. He also remembered walking towards his sensei, then nothing. "Where am I?" Naruto asked

[The Dark Brotherhood of Deros]

The Forbidden Act

The Party - Misty Peaks

Moira watched on in surprise as the one called Cicero caused the entirety of his arm to morph into some kind of weapon, and then fired a blast of energy at the Deviljho. Yeah, he's not from around here. She thought to herself as she sent her kinsect out to collect red essence from the monster's head. The Deviljho flinched from Cicero's blast as it scorched a patch of its scales black, but all it really seemed to do was make it even angrier. It ran at the alien, swinging its body around so that it would bash its hip into his body.

Gesh in the meantime began to charge the beast, but before he got there he found himself suddenly picked up and moved at a rapid pace, and then quickly deposited by a tree. He saw a strange woman now talking to him as if concerned for his well being, and despite how illogical it was it seemed as if she were the one to move him. "What the?! What'd you do that for, blast it?! I'm fine! I may be old, but not brittle! But more importantly: how in the Sapphire Star did you move so fast?!" He demanded. But before he got an answer, the woman was already dashing away at an impossible speed toward the group again. Gesh was flabbergasted, and all he could really manage was a frustrated sigh. Then he started moving back toward the Deviljho, clutching his hammer tightly.

Moira in the meantime had managed to gather all three essences from the monster, and was now vaulting into the air and delivering several slashes to it's back, aiming to try and mount the beast. Meanwhile Nali was loading piercing shots into her bowgun, and was now firing them off into the Deviljho's hide, which pierced its scales and dug into the muscle below. Despite this, the Deviljho still wasn't showing signs of weakening, which greatly confused Moira. Gesh and Rex have been fighting this thing for a while now, so how on Earth is it so tough? The huntress thought as she watched Percy throw several boomerangs at the monster's legs.

Rex now had approached the beast's legs, and he brought his huge greatsword forth. He reared back with it at his side, and then with the click of a switch and the roar of fire, the rockets built into the blade fired and propelled it into the Deviljho's legs, striking with tremendous force and causing the beast to trip and come crashing to the ground, shaking the earth beneath it. "Hey old man, I brought it down for you. Try not to strain yourself when you hit it!" The younger man said in a mocking tone, causing Gesh to smirk at him as he approached the beast's head. "Uh huh, keep that talk up a bit more and I'll strain you!" He replied, winding his hammer back.

What happened next would almost appear to be magic.

A orangish-yellow glow began emanating from Gesh's chest, which then traveled up his arms and into the hammer. Then with a sudden flash of light, Gesh brought the weapon down onto the Deviljho's head with a resounding crack. The beast roared in pain, and with surprising speed it got up and bit at Gesh, who just managed to avoid the blow.

Now it was truly angry.

With another ear-splitting roar, the Deviljho's muscles bulged, and patches of it's skin began glowing a deep crimson red. Old battle scars once unnoticeable began to glow and pulse as the beast's rage brought forth it's true might. The monster reared back it's body, and then it unhinged its jaw and sweeped it's head from left to right, spewing forth a cloud of blackish-red fire; pure dragon element energy.

The blow sent Rex, Gesh and Percy flying backward, and the rest of the dragon energy was headed Avarice's and Cicero's way.

[Prusselanden]

Misty Peaks
"Look out!" Cicero scooped Avarice up and ran from the Devilhjo, diving behind a large boulder he saw to his right. This wasn't good. All they were doing was making it more mad....

He needed to stop it in its tracks.

Cicero set Avarice down and ran out from behind the boulder, running at the Deviljho head on. This was crazy. What he was doing was crazy....

Cicero leapt up into the air and aimed a kick at the Devilhjo, the force of the contact being large enough to create a small shockwave, slightly shaking the leaves nearby.

[Korhal IVV]

The Imperator Nox
The Shape of the Nightmare to Come
Karuma’s Parody

“I see.”, Captain Chosuke nodded to the Chapter Master after he explained how the Imperator Nox could be capable of destroying the enemy ship by ejecting one of its plasma cores. Chosuka would then turn on the comms channel in his helmet’s HUD once again and contacted the Scharnhorst, which was still engaged in combat. “Captain Kepler, do you copy?”, Chosuke asked over the intercommunications network.

“Loud and clear.”, Kepler replied as the Defiance’s sensor array was obliterated by an acidic attack from the Karuma. The acids consumed and melted the platinum alloys that made up the Defiance’s sensor array, and were soon stopped by a layer of ionic shielding, but the Defiance was effectively blinded by the attack. “The fleet will delay the Karuma’s onslaught until you can accomplish your task at ejecting the plasma core the Chapter Master mentioned.”

As the captain finished speaking to those within the Imperator Nox, he would turn towards the communications channel that led to the rest of the fleet. “All ships, fire at will! Do not allow yourselves to be stationary and keep moving to avoid getting damaged by the Karuma. The Scharnhorst will continue its course. Keep distance!”

Chosuke would then turn to the Chapter Master. “Shall we begin, Chapter Master?”


The Sonor Galaxy
Warp Transit
The Shape of the Nightmare to Come

As the stellar submarines careened through the screaming void of the warp, there was something peculiar within the hull of the Tidehunter, one of the lead subspacers within the fleet. Something… no, some-two just appeared within the ship’s holds, and their readings puzzled the Ensari crewman manning the ship scanner. It looked like a small dimensional tear opened and discharged two lifeforms before receding into the depths of eternity, and it was… strange. The Intergalactic Alliance was already aware of the existence of dimensional rifts, and was already hypothesizing the phenomenon of keeping one open and controlled. However, it was never thought to be possible to happen within a ship that was in warp transit, and it would be called to the attention of the High Elder at oncd.

“High Elder, two unknown life forms detected in the cargo hold.”, the crewman on the scanners reported as two strange blips appeared in the ship’s fifth deck. “Dimensional rift also detected moments before. It appears we have guests yet again.”

“Analyze the lifeforms.”, High Elder Shud commanded as he looked upon the scans. “We must know them better.”

The man obeyed immediately. “Analyzing… energy signatures indicate great power. Estimates place them at Alpha Level power, probably greater. Their readings somehow match that of Azrael.”

“Two more angels…? “, the High Elder pondered as he weighted the possibility that two of Azrael’s kind has come searching for her. What if they did? “Ensign, contact Azrael. I’d like to know about her opinion about this matter.”

Line Okinawa
Endless Battle
Asura is here

As the Republic starfighters scrambled from their hangars and flew towards the juvenile Planetkillers assaulting the 11th planet, they would soon be accompanied by Azerion heavy fighters. The Azerions contacted the Republic starfighters and stated that they will cover the Republic forces while they head for the Planetkillers, as despite the lack of point defenses on the Planetkillers themselves, Swarm fighters have been detected to be en route to the 11th Planet. The Azerion Heavy Fighters are more than suitable of preventing the Swarm fighters from touching the Republic fighter squadrons, and intended to do just that.

However, back in the 9th planet, a powerful energy signature was detected in space. Lord Admiral Lunor Sorkaya of the Ensari Astrofleet was perplexed by such a powerful signature, and ordered a closer view.

“Lord Admiral, the mass of the object is too small to be a ship or even a fighter.”, one of his subordinates said as data came in from the ship’s scanners. It was strange.

“Impossible.”, Sorkaya reeled as the data hit his intellect. “Even an arc reactor is larger than a man…”, he insisted as the cameras of the ship began to zoom in. It was a man!

“He’s heading right for us!”, exclaimed the Chief Informations Officer as another reading came in. “He is travelling at outer space speed. Orders, Lord Admiral?”

The Lord Admiral pondered his options. “Corvette Squadron Six, move and block the flying spaceman’s path. We have to contact him one way or another. For now, we have to keep ourselves safe.”

As Asura flew across space, he would see that a group of fifteen small ships have blocked his path. These Hurricane Class Heavy Corvettes began to do everything they could to communicate with Asura as per the orders of Lord Admiral Lunor Sorkaya. Radio waves, light signals, and every esoteric form of communication was attempted by the corvettes in an effort to speak to Asura. They sent out messages in every language available to them, clarifying that they are not hostile to the mysterious man who can fly in space, but now that they have tried it all, they were now unsure if Asura understood them at all...

[Naval Monte]

The Forbidden Act

As Hex's team debated on whether to join Moira and her party they got a message from the campsite, that additional forces were going to their location and to join the fight to claim the body of the monster for study. The team waited until their backup arrived and once they did Hex was glad to see the rest of her squad with them. "We know our orders troops. The doctors want a dinosaur to study and right now it is busy fighting off both natives and a shapeshifter." The group can see the fight thanks to the drones recordings.

"Our job. ke is to come in like a bunch of heroes and save their asses and make sure there is a body left for our researchers." Hex turn around and began to sprint towards the location of the fight, she and the others with the stealth suits vanishing before the others. Hearing the sounds of the fight they knew they were on the right track. When they reach the fight they remained hidden in the bushes. The cloak troops had the barrels of true weapons peak out from the bushes and as they awaited for the order to fire the drones flew high and prepare to open fire as well.

As the dinosaur like monster was hit by Cicero's kick and the shockwave rustled the leaves the team remained still, once the leaves stopped moving the team open fire. From the air a stream of bullets and grenades rain down in the Devilhjo as from the bushes more bullets poured out with a few grenades joining in. The party would see a bright flash come from some of the bushes and hear a loud explosion as the tungsten projectile tore through the monster and the trees. The cloak team ran out of the buses as they began to reload their weapons.

The other visible members of the team joined and while most had army style fatigues and armor others wore powered exoskeletons, some exoskeletons fully enclosed the wearer. Those with exosuits carried heavy weapons such as a mini gun and a bulky portable laser system, the invisible beam vaporizing the flesh of the monster as bullets, rockets, and explosives flew towards the monster to join in the carnage. The soldiers never staying in one spot for long as they only remained stationary to get a clear shot at their target, though some chose to fire on the Deviljho on the move as it was a very large target.

From the AEGIS campsite the Jigga's attack was being quickly routed as the defenders began to use both conventional, paratechnological, and thaumaturgical weapons against the monsters. The agent that brought Doug to the camp, one Agent Vega, slit the through of a Jigga with a monomolecular blade. The absurdly sharpened blade would normally be too fragile to be used as a combat weapon but thanks to reinforcement runes etched to the blade those concerns were not in Vega's mind. Instead his was on the monsters in the camp and the fact he saw their prisoner fleeing.

The agent shot another Jigga with his pistol as he began to run from the monsters. He found that the monsters had a good sense of smell and can pick up his scent even when he was invisible to them, a fact he found when one of his invisible teammates were jumped by those raptors. The Jigga chasing him were getting near when a stream of bullets hit all of them, causing them to fall and slide on the ground. As the injured monsters called out for help a group of soldiers approached them and began to shot the downed monsters, putting them out of their misery.

From the campsite a few exosuit wearing soldiers wielding special gauntlets containing offensive invocations unleashed the spells on the Jigga they were holding on to. One of the monsters combust into flames while another froze as all of the liquids in its body froze, another was electrical with a powerful jolt of electricity that it's skin blacken and charred.

Other Jigga either had their wills imposed by espers or were possessed by summoned entities and turned on their own kind. As Vega watch one exosuit trooper tear the lower jaw of a Jigha and began beating it to death with it the man sent an order to a few drones. As the drones got the order they left the camp site to compete their new mission, to find Doug.

[Naval Monte]

Secrets of the Raven
Branhwrn, Club Midnight

3 days have passed since Elizabeth and the group learned of The Fates involvement with the case. Those days were spent with Elizabeth formulating a plan to enter the club and find the one in charge of the club to get answers from them and either convince him to either stop working with the cult or to get rid of him, though in truth Elizabeth rather not go down that path as she rather not enrage the Fates encase the one in charge has close friends in the organization. Besides she was more hopeful on getting information out of him about the cult.

They bought everything they will need for their plan and Elizabeth making a few spells and amulets if they need magical intervention. After memorizing the layout of the building they found from the website, one Elizabeth was sure most likely had secret rooms that were not on the public map. The group was ready to set their plan in motion. The drive to the club was quiet. The sky was a a shade of dark blue as the inky black of the night sky was swallowing whatever colors was being made by the setting sun. Elizabeth's car radio was playing a talk show she wasn't listening to as the cars from the road drove by at the opposite side. Elizabeth stopped the car just when they were close to the club. "Here is your stop Kyle. I could wish you luck but something tells me you're not the type to rely on that." After getting her response from Kyle and him to depart Elizabeth drove on.

Elizabeth showed Kyle by both the club layout and the town map a good way to sneak into the club without anyone noticing, yet she still choose to drop him off not to close to the club to decrease the chance of someone seeing him. For their plan they chose a two prong assault, Kyle sneaking into the building while everyone with Elizabeth will go in the front and blend in with the guests, hopefully getting the Fates attention and to act as a distraction so Kyle won't be found by them. "Besides I feel like having some fun tonight. Just a small break to take my mind of the case until the mafiosos finally come to see me." a smirk graced her face as she switched the channel to play music.

When they finally reached Club Midnight the group was greeted by a tall and imposing gothic building that looked more like a church than a nightclub. The angled roofs, spires, and towers making the structure appear much taller than it is. Above the arched doorway to the clubs the words "Club Midnight" glow from a neon sign. "No one can't say The Fates have no style." Elizabeth said as she looked up at the rear mirror to check on her makeup and hair one last time before getting out of her car. She straighten up her dress and reach inside her car for her purse before closing the door. "Let's greet our stalkers gang." Elizabeth walked through the street and to the open gates to the club. Climbing up the steps she saw a bouncer guarding the door. The man was a big fella, he looked as though he took up wrestling before his current occupation or maybe he still does and the bouncer gig he has now us just a side job. As she approached him she gave him a smile.

The man began to check on Elizabeth and the group as they approached. His sight went to Elizabeth. The man saw a short pale woman wearing a heavily black attire. Her dress, jacket, leggings, ankle length boots, and gloves were black. The only thing breaking up the color scheme was the red scarf she wore around her neck. "You can go in ma'am" he told the witch after he determined she was acceptable for the club. Elizabeth thanked him and walked into the club as the bouncer began to check on the others. Once inside Elizabeth found a lobby with a small security booth and a ticket counter. She saw security cameras on the upper walls and can feel the power of wards in the building. She walked to the counter and after purchasing a entry ticket walked through the hallway. The closer she got the louder the music got and soon she can see two doors wide open to reveal the dance floor.

Once she stepped into the dance floor she found that it was dark with only the strobing lights and lasers illuminating the room. The stereo systems were playing loud music. Elizabeth looked around and found the bar adjacent to the dance room. Elizabeth also found a stage on the room with a large balcony with numerous seats faced the stage and overlooking the dance floor, the being a part of a second upper floor above the dance floor.

When the others arrived she turned to them. "Have fun everyone. If you need me I'm gonna get a drink. Maybe enter the dance floor later on if I'm not too wasted." She told the group as she walked to the bar, sitting on a stool and ordering a glass of wine. As Elizabeth enjoyed her drink she never shook off the feeling of strong magic and other anomalous powers in the building, letting her know that she was in The Fates territory. The witch didn't doubt that even know she was being watched by them. She just wonder how long will it take until they finally show themselves to her or they bring her to the boss of the club?

---

Pizza Terror Time

"It's official, the universe hates me." Phoenix thought dejectedly as he walked the boggy lands, thankful for the sunny day. Wright was looking for Looker in his home town to help him with his case but just as he walked through an alleyway between two stores a rift suddenly appeared just as he was walking through. As quickly as the rift appeared or disappear before he can turn around and go back through, stranding him in another world.

Of course this time I have to be thrown in the middle of nowhere. What did I do to deserve this?" the lawyer moaned as he hope to find a place to stay for the night. Looking around he can tell that Halloween was either close or it was here. Phenoix was puzzled as to why an invention appeared in his pockets but as he thought about it he would see a manor. "Maybe I can get some help in there?" He thought as he walked to the manor.

[Menschenfleisch]

The Forbidden Act | Avarice

Cicero grabbed her like some sort of fragile doll, doing to her what she'd promised to help others by doing. He left her behind a large rock, thankfully saving her the effort of healing her legs and running away herself but unfortunately leaving her with little to do other than watch as AEGIS appeared out of nowhere, completely burying the Deviljho in bombs and bullets. She could sympathise with the monster. She knew how it felt to be attacked with an endless storm of explosives and projectiles. It had happened to her quite often. Actually, come to think of it, she'd spent nearly fifty consecutive days doing nothing but being shot at. This amount of firepower was certainly not on the scale of a nuke though so she felt rather cheated of the opportunity to study how strong the beast was. She clutched the rock with one hand, waiting for the Jho's flames to subside before getting up on mangled shins and knees. The bones inside her had been pulverised and her blood vessels weren't doing much better. Even so, she was able to stand simply by leaning on her mutilated limbs, stumbling out the other side of the boulder and watching the fight.

"You don't look so good, lad. Maybe we're being a bit too harsh on you?"

It was true. The enormous creature was faster and more angry than before but even someone like Ava could recognise the telltale signs of wear and tear on its surface. The cumulative damage of hundreds of ground-shattering blows couldn't be ignored even for such a large organism. She could testify to the impressive effect that bullets could have, even upon the most armoured of foes. She redistributed her mass, withering her body and restoring basic functionality to her legs. Now that she was able to walk - and barely stronger than a regular human - she walked close to the fight again, turning round and round to examine the proceedings. Oop. There went Cicero, kicking the Jho with enough force to ruffle the trees. Nice! There went a rocket, a trail of blue smoke following the missile as it erupted into flames against their opponent's chest. She stood in the shadow of a raging colossus as it swung its mighty limbs and directed its energies against just as impressive foes, like wolves taking down a bear. And time was to tell whether they would succeed. She put a finger to her chin, regarding the conflict with a detached but intense interest.

"I wonder if I can eat it after this is over."

Secrets of the Raven | Jacquelyn and Kyle

Jacquelyn stared at her own lap during the car ride. She tugged at her hair, adjusted her muted green scarf and fussed over her fingernails. She'd always been very far removed from high society, or even the standards of regular civilian life. She didn't have any makeup nor any experience in prettying herself up. Despite Elizabeth's best efforts (and possibly because of Jackie's best attempts at resisting) she still looked rather plain and tomboyish. A long greyish sports jacket, brown cotton pants and a black shirt with some strange symbols printed upon it. She wore semiformal oxfords covered in blue felt and generally looked more like a hipster than a partygoer. Whatever. A feeling of nausea swept over her, bringing her head down and pulling her eyes shut. What the fuck was she doing? She felt weightless and indefinite, like she couldn't tell where her body ended and the other began. She felt sensations that should've been impossible. An imagination run amok, trying to reconcile itself with her reality. She swept one hand over her face and opened her eyes, relaxing her facial features and staring dead ahead.

The car stopped. Kyle looked away from Jacquelyn, reluctant to leave her alone. He could feel the blood roaring through her brain and hear the tick of each synapse firing off at once. He felt unimportant, foreign and distant. He couldn't relate. He didn't want to. He gave her a smile and stepped out of the car, carrying the Astra on his back inside a hollowed out violin case. He didn't understand why Elizabeth had such an enormous collection of weirdly specific concealed weapon cases but he wasn't complaining. He brushed off his trench coat, readied his bandana and checked that all his weapons were in place. Knives, iron pins and other nasties all over his body. Then, with practised grace he turned away and looked back at the vehicle, waving a brief goodbye.

"Yeah. Though honestly I could really go for some luck right about now. Guess I'll see the rest of you over at the club. Try not to start any fires, okay?"

Jackie lifted her head and met his eyes. His were hidden by shadow. Hers glowed like little circular orbs inside her head.

"Well, I'll see what I can do. I'm not helpless without fire. You know that right?"
"Then act like it. See you Liz. Try not to get smashed off your tits; I want to avoid having to nurse another hangover."
"I was thirteen and didn't know what I was doing!"
"You nearly shat yourself."

And with that delightful comment Kyle pulled his coat up behind him and strode forward, disappearing into a maze of bustling streets and glittering lights. They went their separate ways and looked out at the life neither had ever known. A world of glistening pavement, wet with liquor and rain; dewy grass and lush trees; parkbench beers with the person closest to them. That was what Kyle wanted for both of them, the long-forgone peace that he thought they deserved. That was what Jacquelyn could never stand, that she abhorred with such a passion that the thought of being normal didn't even occur to her. The stage was set and the dice were cast. Now it was time for the follow up.
Holy shit that is the purplest prose I have ever read in my life
Club Midnight | Jacquelyn

As their vehicle pulled up in front of the club Jack couldn't help but feel impressed but just how edgy the Fates, or rather the Fates' writers were being. A cathedral-looking spire with gothic architecture and a mysterious magical cult working inside? Next thing she knew they'd be fighting vampires in an ancient Indian burial ground for werewolves. She frowned for a moment as the thought occurred to her. Just how important was she to the story? Was she a protagonist, a villain, something in between? If she could only know what her role was she'd have a much easier time predicting the cliches that came her way. Then again if she was a meta-character then the writers would deliberately subvert her expectations so- oh fuck this, she thought. Get on with the story!

The building was on a raised stone platform, the entrance looming about a metre above the surprisingly large carpark. Guess this place gets a lot of customers, eh? In any case it wasn't that big of a deal. She could fawn over the aesthetic later, when Dawn or Liz started gushing about how "ancient" and "amazing" this place really was. The various patrons of the Fates' establishment were in no condition to be partying. A couple of them were middle-aged men and women, or even those in their early to mid 30s looking for a good drink. They were mostly holding someone else on their arm or otherwise looking like they had better things to do than drink and party. It wouldn't surprise her if there was some kind of underground business going on behind these doors: it'd be shocking if there weren't, actually. The majority were people in their early 20s though. It was like a revolving door; slightly drunk teens with forged IDs go in, very drunk and high teens without IDs or wallets come out. Simple!

"So, uhh... you need my passport, or, umm, my signature? I-"
He cut her off with one hand, raising his open palm and leaning back a little.
"Just go inside, ma'am. Enjoy your night."
"You too- I mean, thank you. Sir?"

He didn't respond. She pushed past the throng of scantily clad men and women frolicking or alternatively preparing to fornicate near the doorway. She didn't like alcohol. At least, she thought she didn't. The old Jacquelyn, the O.G J.C was a bit of a liquor licker. Right now though the last thing she wanted was to impair herself, especially when she knew every fuck up she'd make was being broadcasted to viewers all over the world. Considering the quality of her story so far there were probably like two or three people bothering to keep up. That made her sad, for some reason. The realisation that she wasn't being seen by as many people as she'd have liked. Jack clenched her fist and sighed, looking straight up at the roof. She made a promise to herself for the rest of the night. No. More. Philosophising!

Boom. Smack. Crick.

The blast of speakers, the sound of pounding flesh and the crackle of plastic and glass against itself. The walls were as slick as stone got and the marbled floor was polished and waxed to a shine. It took a lot of effort not to just slam her palms against her ears until she stopped listening to that godawful party atmosphere. Even though nothing was lit up she could still see quite clearly, basking in the light of the strobes and spotlights, her eyes twinkling slightly as they adjusted to the dark. Hey, if anyone asks, just say they're novelty contacts.

As Jackie was making her way over the bar someone tapped her on the shoulder, a shit eating grin on her face. Some kind of world this was, where... huh? Wait watch where those hands are-!
"Gah! No!"
She almost fell over trying to avoid the uncomfortably intimate embrace of this new girl. She was black haired and quite tall, sporting the classic not-giving-a-shit look of a basically sleeveless shirt and ruffled grey skirt. Open toed shoes? Jack would never be caught in those, let alone caught talking to someone wearing those atrocities. Wait, when did she start caring about fashion!? She cleared her head, trying to think critically. The dance floor was packed with people shuffling from side to side, swinging their arms around and nursing drinks like newborn babes. The constant thrumming of the base threatened to stop her heart and the dancing lights interrupted every thought she had. Ugh. The smell of bad cologne and perfume.
"Heeyyy, I just wanted to know you is all. You're kinda cute, you know that? You've got the tomboyish touch. I like it!"
Shit. Was this girl flirting? Jacquelyn's cheeks flushed red and her face scrunched up as she pushed herself away, fingers twitching with barely restrained strength. Accidentally hulk-smashing this woman through the floor wasn't going to do her, the investigation or the janitors any favours. She had to get away somehow, convince this girl that she wasn't worth talking to. She was trying to pursue a relationship, right? A one-night stand. She, she-
"Sorry, I can't: I'm gay!"
The girl was dumbfounded for obvious reasons.
"Yeah. That's like, what I'd think if I was trying to get into your good books."
Crap. That quizzical look was kind of endearing. What was this feeling? Oh. This must be love. It occurred to her that she'd never actually felt a true personal connection to anyone since emerging from that portal. Now that this stranger was hitting on her it suddenly seemed that even with Kyle, she'd never quite been able to reproduce this emotional coctail. This blend of bright music, loud lights and the intoxicating smell of alcohol and prettied-up bodies in the air. She couldn't identify the emotion but perhaps that was what attraction was. Complicated.
Jacquelyn keeled over and nearly hurled.
"Woah! Are you okay?"
The girl leaned in, clutching her shoulders. She instinctively slapped her hands away, stumbling back and clutching her abdomen like an alien was about to burst through her stomach. The girl in question backed away as well, lifting her hands in the air placatingly.
"Okay, okay! Jeez, I can see you're not interested. Still hope you have a great night though!"
They didn't even know one another's names. Jacquelyn stood up slowly, watching the girl disappear into the crowd. She blinked twice, her eyes regaining their familiar glow. She put her hand down, carefully examining her shoulders to see if anything had been planted on her. Nobody would ever come up to her and act so intimately if they weren't aware of who they were. It was a suspiciously cordial attitude to take to a complete stranger. That girl was definitely a spy from the Fates. A plant, a trick meant to drug Jacquelyn and gather information about their plans. She wouldn't fall for that trick, not in a million years. Hopefully she'd hidden her glowing eyes well enough to plant a seed of doubt in her mind. If that "party girl" wasn't 100% sure she had a gauge on Jack then they'd pull her in for a chat, rather than trying to kill her outright. Jacquelyn had to remain an enigma so that the Fates would want to learn more about her rather than trying to eliminate her. It was a difficult thing to balance.
She stepped up beside Elizabeth.
"Can I get a glass of water?"
Sure enough, she could. She downed it in one gulp, heating up the inside of her mouth and feeling the water bubbling under her tongue. She gulped down the water just as it reached boiling point. It wasn't some trick to get rid of drugs (mostly because it simply wouldn't work), it was just a matter of personal preference. Jackie liked her water hot enough to melt fat off a man's arm. She looked over at Elizabeth who appeared to be looking for some entertainment. Even so, the witch's face looked suspiciously dour. It wasn't easy for a PI to relax in an enemy hideout, huh? Figures.
"Okay then, Liz. I can see you're having a wonderful time. Try to tell me if there's any trouble, 'kay?"
Jacquelyn pushed herself away from the table and stepped into the crowd, disappearing into the throng, eyes full of focus.

Club Midnight | Kyle

The streets were busy tonight. That was actually rather good for him, since his ability to read their body language meant he could pick up just about the perfect way to exude "I'm a regular person who happens to be wearing a violin case into an alleyway" via his stride and his method of moving. His impressive intuition was always a boon in situations of espionage. He could even replicate other people's voices to an almost supernatural degree, wavering and clenching his vocal chords in such a precise manner that he could sound like anybody he wanted. That trick wouldn't be doing much for him tonight, though. He kept his hands tucked into his pockets, taking long and deliberate steps toward Club Midnight. The people around here irked him. Some were suspiciously stiff and others were distractingly limp. Being surrounded by the drunk and magically gifted wasn't the most conducive environment to perfect clarity, after all. He looked out across the city toward the shore, his gaze travelling over rooftops and through streets to watch waves lap against the beach. He could see for miles around and yet he still didn't know what was in store for him at this nightclub. His run-ins with those two, the precog and the psionic still stuck in his mind. Getting beat up twice in as many days by people with very specific skillsets made him uneasy on these streets, knowing that at any moment one of these pedestrians could whip out some new skillset and kick his ass without a moment's notice. It made him feel vulnerable.

He lowered his head and crossed the street, instinctively weaving around people he logically couldn't have seen and vehicles parked dangerously close to the crossing. What was he doing, playing along with this ridiculous charade? Why was he helping some mysterious woman take down a magical mercenary cartel alongside his insane partner? None of it made any sense and it shocked him to know that he wasn't surprised at any of it at all. It was like he just couldn't comprehend how out of the ordinary this was, how unprecedented the circumstances were. He worried for the future, for their home when he and Jack returned. But he held out hope. Sterling was gone, Jacquelyn was safe and their comrades were in a position to rebuild. He had to stay strong, even if it meant doing something as incomprehensibly insane as this.

His head whipped upward almost of its own accord as he reached the back of Club Midnight. The cathedral walls were adorned with gargoyles, carvings and reliefs that seemed to depict some kind of ancient battle or rite. A sacrificial production? Ugh. Occult imagery wasn't his thing. There weren't any back doors that weren't guarded by dozens of goons but the rooftop was mostly empty. His mind expanded, taking in the entire city. Hundreds of people whirled and stomped about inside the building and hundreds of thousands more took part in either the same kind of late-night fun or lay in bed, waiting for the grasp of sleep to take them away. Each and every entrance was accounted for, every minute detail and and potential threat was memorised in his mind, even down to each individual member of staff and what they could do. His plan was meticulous and perfectly planned out. With a series of incredibly complex and bizarre movements he scaled the wall, finding purchase on protrusions and indents that no sane human would ever consider viable climbing material. And yet, within just a few seconds his aching arms and legs pulled him through a meshless window far above the ground, landing in a mostly unlit hallway. The love hotel. Oh, this was not a good place for a person like him to be. The sound and sight of... no! Oh god, what the fuck? What was he doing!? WHAT WAS SHE DOING WITH THAT CANDLE!?

But before he could go any further Kyle stiffened, his entire body seizing up like a cornered animal. He didn't know how or why but... he felt eyes on him.

Illogical. There wasn't any way something could be following him. His senses were honed to a fine point, utterly infallible except in the most extraordinary of circumstances. But, despite his own reassurances, the feeling did not go away. Where would a secret watcher even be? Under the floor, inside one of the rooms? It was just a straight corridor. There wasn't anywhere for somebody to hide. It. Was. Impossible.

But maybe he really was being followed. He wouldn't be surprised, considering how many times he'd been fooled before. Regardless, things were already in motion. Giving up now wasn't an option. He began to make his way through the corridor, carefully drawing his rifle and preparing to fire. His senses still couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, besides the overwhelming noise coming from downstairs and... all around him. Ugh. For someone who was essentially fully matured in nearly every other way, Kyle certainly seemed to have a certain apprehension toward coitus. Whatever. Listening to people bang wasn't his assignment. He had a job to do. Keep an eye on Jackie and Liz and scope out the higher ups. The senior manager, or at least the person pretending to be, had an office around here somewhere. Weird having an office on the same floor as the 'Pleasure Rooms', but ok. He began to shuffle forward, eyes trained in front of him and ears perked up. Nobody was taking him by surprise.

Someone tapped him politely on the shoulder, causing him to curse under his breath.

"Crap."

[Prusselanden]

Misty Peaks
Cicero jumped back from the ammunition storm to avoid injury. He watched as it went up in a hail of bullets and missiles. This was it. It couldn't survive after all of that, could it?

Shape of the Nightmare to come
"Hm?" Azrael was drinking a carton of milk with a straw on her bed. "Two new angels? They probably fell through a rift. Though I'm curious...who are these two other angels? Take me to where you think they are."

Meanwhile....

"Quiet, Artiya'il! We'll be detected!"

"I think we've already been detected." Artiya'il pointed to a security camera.

"....shit. Ok, when they come, I'll attack."

"Attack a titanic ship full of armed soldiers? Good idea!"

Camael rolled her eyes. "What do you suggest?"

"We just talk to them."

[Naval Monte]

Secrets of the Raven
Branhwrn, Club Midnight

"You already there buddy? You look rather tense?" The man said. The man seem to be in his middle ages who was bald with both a beard and glasses. He wore a tiger printed blazer beneath a dress shirt and white pants with dress shoes. The man looked very out of place even though his clothing should make him belong in this den of hedonism and decadence. It was though he was only here due to a feeling to try and regain lost youth like some older men were doing in the club. "Let me guess. This is your first time in this part of the club? Yeah that happens a lot for some people. I had the same reaction as you when I first came here." The old man said to Kyle. From one of the rooms they can hear a man barking like a dog. The older man looked at the door which the noises were coming from with confusion, his lips spelling out "what the fuck" even though he didn't vocally say the words.

Down in the bar Elizabeth saw Jackie acting strange... well stranger than usual. "What's wrong firecracker? Someone asked you for a dance?" The witch teased as Jackie gulped down the glass of water. Elizabeth found the current state of Jackie's aura amusing. Her bright aura going off in sparks like fireworks as she barely contained her hectic emotions in check. When Jackie left the witch waved at her as she began to down glass of wine. Elizabeth looked at the dance floor, seeing people shuffling both in, out, and around in the dance floor, some dancing alone as they moved to the beat of the music and others danced with partners.

Some kept a good distance from each other so not to bump into each other and others were so close that they might as well be grinding against each other. Some were just throwing their arms and legs out wildly as though they were puppets being pulled by a maniac puppeteer, the high amount of alcohol in their system being the source for their odd movement as well for clouding the better judgement of some as a few try and fail to flirt, one failing miserably as they peaked in front of the woman they were hitting on, disgusting her as she ran as quickly as her heels allowed her from the puking drunk.

Elizabeth also spotted some dancers smoking, from typical cigarettes to new electronic cigarettes. Sge even saw some smoking weed in the building. It was clear that in the club the laws outside were suspended so long as no one caused any trouble. Elizabeth knew there were other activities going on, some more illicit than others, yet all of them have to be better than why she is doing right. Just sitting around drinking her troubles and worries away. Looking up at the upper level she noticed a few of the staff looking down at the dancer with one looking at her for a moment before resuming with his patrol. "I hope the other parts of the club aren't this heavily patrol by security." she thought as she finished her glass. Elizabeth turns her back from the dance floor and ordered another drink.

[Jraden]

Secrets of the Raven
The Kents

Based on the uproarious laughter heard by the utter swarm of men surrounding Skylar and Hope, they were the funniest people on the planet. On the bright side, so many dudes were surrounding them that the dance floor was actually much less crowded and far easier to navigate.

"No thanks!" Hope said, rejecting a drink from a massive black dude who towered over her and seemed to be angry about the fact that she rejected him. Hope didn't notice. "I don't accept drinks from strangers! Stranger danger, after all! Also, I don't drink, it's very unhealthy for my body! And besides, I've brought my own drinks!" She stook a bottle of... something out of her backpack...which was strapped over her sundress. Hope always was versatile.

"I told you to take my drink, bitch." The man hissed. Hope raised an eyebrow and said "Now that's very rude!"

"Hey now..." Skylar said soothingly, wearing arguably the most tight fitting and form revealing dress out of everyone in the bar. "Why don't we show you a good time in private, make up for it?"

Skylar and Hope led the man outside. They came back a short while late.

The man didn't.

"Elizabeth!" Simon said suddenly, appearing in view. "It's wonderful to see you!" He said smiling, still wearing a strange mix of jogger and winter clothes that he somehow pulled off. "Are you having fun? I sure am! I've met loads of wonderful people! For example, that's Bambi, Candi, Crystal Methany..." He pointed at a bunch of far too drunk and far too young woman who giggled relentlessly. "Neveah." He pointed at a woman who was twice as old as the others and twice as trashed. "And Steve!"

"Hi." Said Steve, who was just a normal looking guy awkwardly looking around and waving at them.

"They're all wonderful people!"

The gaggle of giggling girls, gay men, crossdressers, and most importantly of all, Steve all laughed...for no real reason.

"So now, who should we talk to?" He asked. "After all, we're on the..." He leaned in to whisper. "Super secret mission, right?" He looked far too excited.

[Skylus]

To Catch A King
Outset Island

The new guy had woken up, it appeared that the health potion actually worked.
The new arrival would find that a young girl wearing a blue dress with white flowers was right up in his face, asking him questions.
"Who are you? Where do you come from?"
Aryll was gently pulled aside by Madi and the Witch helped the man up.
"There. You should be alright. As to where you are, you're on Outset Island."

Before Madi could continue, however, a voice rang out from behind her. An old woman's voice, filled with anger, fear, but yet also relief and love.
"LINCOLN JAMES FORESTER, DO YOU KNOW HOW WORRIED SICK I'VE BEEN?!"
Madi spun around and saw a old woman running towards the group, straight towards Link, who had frozen and was looking a bit guilty.
The old woman reached Link and she looked as though she was about to go off on him but Madi quickly walked over.
"I can explain everything..ah...."
The woman looked Madi up and down.
"What are you wearing? Your mother lets you walk around like that? ....Pardon my manners, it's just that I'm so flustered...."
The old woman looked down at her grandson and smiled, then moved her gaze back to Madi.
"Clarice Forester. And who might you be?"
"Madison Goodwill, though you can call me Madi if you want. I'm not from here, nor is anyone else, if you haven't already noticed that....I'm guessing it's been longer than three days here?"
Clarice blinked.
"...Yes....Two months have passed since I received any letters from my grandson..."
Madi began to feel worried.
"...If it's been two months here, then how long has it been back home...."
Clarice laid a hand on the young woman's shoulder and smiled.
"I understand how you feel. I know if there had been anyway you could have contacted me sooner, you would have. I hope your parents think the same."

The old woman then smiled, moving her gaze to the rest of the newcomers.
"Come in, all of you, why, you must be famished!"
Ammy was bolting towards the wooden house before Clarice could finish speaking.
Madi could only roll her eyes and followed the wolf, looking behind her to find that everyone else would also be following her.

Once everyone was inside the house and situated, Clarice began asking questions and Madi suggested that the other new arrivals tell their stories first, due to the fact that Madi had already informed Clarice on a bit of what had happened.

---

The Forbidden Act
Doug
Unknown location

The Master Cycle tore through the undergrowth, breaking sticks and crushing foliage as the bike occasionally being jolted as rocks hit the bike the wrong way, Eventually, Doug stopped in the middle of the clearing, breathing hard. it was silent. Too silent.
The man took out the Slate and scanned the surrounding area, knowing that the people that captured him would be coming after him sooner or later.
Then he began to hear sounds of fighting. Roars. Weapons being used.
Doug got off the Master Cycle and began to walk with it, nearing the source of the noises.
He stopped an ducked down behind a bush, then moved its branches to find what appeared to be a massive lizard and several people fighting it - Nali and the shapeshifter, and other people.

Doug stashed his bike under leaves and made sure it was well hidden before he stepped from the woods, reached to his side, and drew his sword, turning it on and then hit a tree with it, catching the monster's attention.
"Pick on someone your own size, will you?"
He then activated the Slate and used Magnesis to pick up a fallen tree branch (it was huge) and hit the creature with it.

[Menschenfleisch]

L-Fel | Cassia

Having just been very rudely confronted by a police officer, Cassia was understandably (read: completely unjustifiably) miffed. He sighed and pushed past the investigator, stepping up to meet Julian and holding up one arm, watching as it shimmered. It flashed with light, pure information. Anyone who even so much as glanced in his direction could hear him saying: "That's a bit rude. I'm a psychopomp, a harvester of the dead and keeper of their minds. When someone dies I'm always there to preserve them."
"As for why I'm here. I was having a great time with our friend Fett before but now it seems that I'm just being dragged through the mud. I'm here to have fun, Yamada. I thought maybe helping you with your mission would give me something to do."

To Catch a King | Avenoir and Mnemosyne

Once everyone had met the old woman and been pulled into her home (context not included) it seemed that it was time to spill their life stories not just to Clarice but everyone there as well. Neither of them really wanted to share: Marcus because he was unable to really remember anything and Polly because she was far too reclusive to ever tell anyone about her life back home. In the end they decided that she should talk first, since she was the only one who had anything to say. Polly sat up straight and gently sighed, pinching her forehead and moving her hands around beneath the table, causing her ferrofluid to levitate above her section of the table, creating visual aids and images.

"My name is Polly K. Delilah, but you can just call me Polly. I'd prefer that, actually. I don't like people who like to get formal. I was born on Earth in 2040 and went to Holburner Secular College. I got a degree in study and field sciences and from there I guess it felt natural to move on to a job in exploration. I'm here to explore the universe, seeing what I might be able to salvage and bring back home for study. I guess I'm sort of the representative for the representatives. I hope I'm making a good impression."

She looked over at Marcus, begging him to step in and start talking about himself. He gave her a stare that clearly indicated that he had nothing to say. She rolled her eyes and turned back to the others, taking in the musty air. This house was in fairly good condition but that did nothing to alleviate her issues with such primitive construction. The only place anyone still used wood for aesthetic construction was in nostalgia-colonies and museums. She wasn't a stranger to adversity, since her profession was charting undiscovered planets, but come on!

"Anyway, umm, my parents were a male and a female. I got genetic engineering in the seventeenth trimester and developed my abilities at the age of seven. I have a Mq.L in biology and I'm a F.R in the physical sciences. I'm 22 solar years old right now. There's not much to say, unless you want me to start telling you about places you've never heard of and won't ever visit though. God, wish I could find a colony-candidate some day. The people who do get rich."

His time was up. Polly didn't want to say any more. Marcus stared at the table, gripping the wooden edge until his knuckles turned white. He breathed in and out, trying to remember anything. Did he just recount his last few days? No. He couldn't- he couldn't just tell them what he'd done in the last week. it felt wrong. It felt evil to let go of his previous life, like he would be condemned if he tried to disregard it. Tell them she whispered. You promised to remember.

The world swirled. His palms were calloused, covered in scratches and burns. Something heavy and immensely powerful laid itself upon his shoulder. Five long columns of stone dug into his neck, scratching away skin like plaster flakes. A voice which he thought he'd forgotten. Now though, it seemed obvious. He knew everything. How could he have forgotten? The memories surfaced like wooden boards at sea, seared into his mind like iron brands.

Then, it was over. He forgot again. He bled his memories like soap and water. He didn't even realise he'd cut himself on the table until the intense feeling subsided, leaving him alone in a room full of waiting strangers.

"I..."

He knew. He saw her laughing with him as they sat underneath the willow tree by the river eating chocolate and bread. How old were they? He couldn't even reach the top of the rusted truck someone left in the field. Mnemosyne. Her name. The name written on every slate, the name before every paragraph. Marcus clutched his head and sank into his chair, slowly withdrawing.

"I can't remember."

Polly stared at him for a couple of seconds, unsure of what to do. She shrugged and patted him on the back, taking a bottle of water from her pack and offering it to him."Drink this. Try not to make a scene, okay?"

She addressed everyone else, desperately trying to divert attention away from herself and Marcus.

"Well, everybody. You've heard our stories! Now for yours. How about natives start first? Kid, Lincoln, I think is what your nan called you. Where are you from? What's this place like?"

[Prusselanden]

L-Fel
Julian backed away from Cassius as he extended his arm towards her. She was trying hard not to be freaked out or rude, but Cassius's bizarre, glowing arm and announcement of being a psychopomp unnerved her. Finally, Julian grabbed onto a table and leaned against it.

"Ah....welll.....I, uh...I kind of want to solve this by myself, you know. I don't think anything is gonna be in this for you, to be honest-"

"Wait." The chief walked past Julian, up to Cassius.

"I have something for you."

"You-you do?"

He showed him a sum of money. "Yours. If you can help us close this case."

[Skylus]

To Catch a King
Outset Island, Forester Cabin

Madi had grown concerned about Marcus the moment she had sent eyes on him, and being in the cabin, sitting across from him, the feeling only grew.
Something's wrong. he doesn't think I notice, but I do. I'm gonna have to get him alone at some point and try to help him.
The Witch shot Polly a look.
"No one here knows what any of that is besides me."
She turned to address everyone else.
"Study and field sciences is exactly that, you study various fields of science. Wait you even know what science is? A college is basically more schooling, you can choose to move on to college or try to find work after you leave secondary school."

Clarice could tell that Madi was having a hard time trying to simplify everything and she waved a hand.
"That's quite alright, dear, I assure you, I'm smarter than I look. On the contrary, I'm eager to learn where you come from."
Madi blinked and then motioned for Clarice to get up from her chair and follow her into the next room.
Something was off about the old woman, and, if Madi was right, Clarice had a lot of tricks up her sleeves.

---

Link was sitting next to Po, who had somehow managed to fit into the chair. The panda looked uncomfortable anyway.
"Ah....I don't usually go by the full version of my first name, I go by Link. Anyway, I'm from....here."
The boy gestured to the building all of them they were in.
Po looked all around him and then looked down at Link.
"Wait. By 'here'," Po made air quotes when he said 'Here', "Do you mean this house?"
Link nodded.
Yes. Thirteen years ago."
He turned his attention back to the woman and her strange friend.
"As to what Outset is like....Well...It feels safe....or it did...."
Link's gaze grew distant for a moment, as if he was remembering something but it went back to normal.
"I never told you of my adventures before Madi showed up, did I?"
Po shook his head.
"Nope. To be honest...I never told mine either."
Link grinned.
"I suppose I'll start then."
And with that, the Hero of Winds started to tell everyone in the room how his adventure got started....

---

Clarice walked over to her favorite chair and slowly lowered herself onto the cushion, then gestured for Madi to sit nearby.
Madi instead stayed standing and grinned.
"I know."
Clarice didn't look up as she began to knit.
"Know what, child?"
Madi held an arm out to the side and caused a book to rise into the air and shoot across the room into her waiting hand.
"That you can do some form of magic."
That caused the woman to look up and she smiled.
"How did you find out?"
Madi had opened the book and was skimming its pages and looked over the book to the old woman.
"It was easy. You know that sense you get when other magic users are near? Well, you're obviously pure blood or something..."
Clarice set down her knitting and stood up.
"Come with me. There's something I must show you."

Madi followed Clarice to the old woman's room, where Clarice opened a glass cabinet and moved things around before turning to Madi and placed something in her hands.
"I want you to have this. It was mine when I was younger but I'm not suited for this type of magic now. Take it."
It was a magic dagger, at first glance, it appeared to resemble a certain winged sword but when Madi looked closer, runes were inscribed in the blade and various metals intertwined throughout the weapon itself.
"...Where did you get this?"
Madi turned around, expecting Clarice to be nearby but the old woman was gone.
".....Damn she's fast."

---

"...I found Atlas, the turtle creature my sister is holding, and then I walked into a portal, found myself back home with everyone else, then all of you showed up, and now we're in my house." Link glanced over to Aryll, who waved back, hugged Atlas tightly and began to swing him from side to side. The Pokemon did not look happy about his current situation and tried to escape before Atlas gave in and merely glared up at the wooden ceiling.
"You can let him go now, Aryll."
The young girl stopped hugging Altas and gave her brother a 'can I keep him please' look.
"But he's soooo cute!!!"

It was then that Madi came back.
"Link, have you seen your grandmother since she left?"
Both Link and Aryll gave Madi concerned looks and Madi sighed.
"...I guess that's a no then..."
Ammy had been lying on the floor nearby Aryll, dozing but suddenly got up and bolted out of the house, barking.
The wolf returned with Clarice, who was holding a package.
"I was only gone for five minutes and this happens?"
Madi merely stared at her for a second.
"....You apperated?"
Clarice only gave Madi a knowing smile before the woman walked back to her room, everyone's gaze following her as she left.
Madi broke the silence.
"You know, I think I like her."

[Rostavykhan]

To Catch A King
Outset Island
Miria

Miria didn't want to follow anyone anywhere, but...she also didn't want to just run off. She wanted to learn more about the Human's crystal, and she didn't know if she'd be able to find a way home otherwise, and then...well, there was the fact that maybe, maybe, she was wrong to assume that everyone around her was hostile. She didn't know, but nobody had tried to kill her yet, at any rate, and everyone had seemed to have the same story as her: Got sucked into whatever place they were via magical anomaly.

Going by what she had picked up, it made more sense to trust the strange group than to run...even if the talking animals did make her question her sanity. She'd certainly known stranger things, but still...

At least the home they'd been led to was nice. She was accustomed to such homes, though the style was somewhat foreign to her. Still, she knew no to turn down the hospitality of the elderly. She shuffled in behind the others, and stood in one of the corners of the room in which they had gathered, to listen as they settled in and told their stories. She wasn't sure what some of the things she heard were, but she still continued to listen, and found herself feeling bad that she had lied about where she had come from while everyone else was readily spilling out their life stories. It make her stomach twist a little bit.

That was why, once it came her turn to speak up, she did so tentatively. "When I ran into some of you earlier, I stated that I was a merchant, and that my crew had landed here earlier.", She said, sighing. She gave a short bow, and continued; "That was a lie. I said so, as I was uncertain whether or not anyone could be trusted when I found myself here. I should reiterate, I still don't believe I should trust anyone here, but as everyone else here has opened up, I feel I should too. After all, trust goes both ways."

That out of the way, Miria fumbled with her spectacles and spoke up again. "My name is Miria Bankhari. I'm a servant where I come from. I grew up in a small Duchy on the frontier, in my homeland, Janavar. I'm...I'm a slave, but under my Mistress I've taken up Arcane Engineering, and I trade and barter when I'm not taking on jobs for my clients. I actually think that I ended up here after I acquired a certain item from a shipment I received, after I made a trade with the crew of a Void Sailor from the moon."

To back up her claim, Miria reached for her utility belt, opening a pouch and producing the small, blue crystal that she'd been clutching when she ended up on the beach. "It's for transportation, but I shouldn't have been able to activate it, since I'm not able to use magic myself. I think something else triggered it. I'm hoping I can find another way to trigger it, but I don't know what sort of energy will work on it."

The young woman felt a bit lighter after she let that all out. At least, she hadn't felt quite as anxious as before, though she still felt quite panicked. She was relieved enough to pipe up once more though, raising a finger. "I recall Madi showing that she possessed a similar item to mine. I do think that it could be worth it to compare the two.", She said. She also nodded to Polly, the other Human. "I'm vaguely familiar with genetic engineering, if that involves altering living beings. My race was created artificially."

[Menschenfleisch]

Secrets of the Raven | Kyle

It'd been a while since somebody so normal had managed to get the drop on him. But now that Kyle looked at this kindly looking middle aged man he seemed no different than any other human. Maybe his surroundings had distracted him, or maybe this guy was cloaking himself somehow. He swore that when he'd entered there hadn't been any places where this person could've come out of, but now that he looked back at the window he'd fallen through there seemed to be a corridor that hadn't been there before. Consulting his memorised schematics confirmed that the corridor had always been there. A spatial trick? No, he was just being an idiot again. He mentally berated himself for trying to justify making a pure and nearly catastrophic mistake. Thankfully this man seemed to be little more than another patron.

"Honestly, I'm kind of here on other business. I was just checking out these floors out of curiosity. If you've got a room here, I'll, uhh, leave you be. I think we both want a little privacy with where we're going."

Kyle turned away quickly and stepped down the corridor, keeping an eye on the man the entire time. The Fates probably knew about his long-range abilities. The older man turning away and simply walking away was no indication that he wasn't secretly going to report Kyle to security or something. He had to make it to the senior manager's office and fast. There were documents in there that could either blow this entire investigation apart or give him the full schematics for the club, extradimensional and non-euclidean zones included. He ran through the velvet lined hallways, footsteps dampened and silent. His technique was as perfect as any shinobi's or soldier's. Replicating and improving upon existing skills was effortless for him, even though he kind of felt like a cheat while doing it.

He skidded to a halt before rounding a corner, already aware of a team of three people waiting around the bend. They didn't know he was there but they were very heavily armed and obviously guarding something important; namely, the senior manager's office. He'd usually be able to read the contents of the office without even having to be in the same building but the entire room was hermetically sealed off and warded, just as Elizabeth predicted. They were keeping something in there that couldn't afford to be leaked. No ventilation shafts, no utility lines, no windows and no doors but the one they had stationed with the best guards in the building. He could identify them by name.

Michael Wesk, thirty four, previously a member of the Yakuza enforcement team. Left along with his brother and fled to England where he found himself caught up in a series of violent crimes. Nicky Denver, btwenty seven, professional bodyguard ostensibly contracted under Hardstock Security Agency but actually working for several occult groups behind the scenes; Fates included. And Liam Cardon, fourty five, a veteran of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, convicted of over seventy murders as a result of his terrorist activities. Liberated from prison by the Fates. He didn't need to fight them head on. He had the Astra now.

Kyle slid the solar locus, wrapped in opaque cloth into the Astra's ammunition compartment. Infinite energy for its matter generator. If it didn't have a nearby source of matter or energy it would just start sucking up heat and light until everything in a ten mile radius had frozen solid. He lined up his shots, imagined the outcomes and stepped out into the corridor, holding the gun with one hand and pulling it three times in less than a second. It was funny. No matter what gun he was wielding the biggest limit to how many people he could take out at once was limited to how fast the gun fired, or how fast he could pull the trigger. Aiming was so easy that it was practically intuitive. Three iron shells found three necks, passing through the brainstem and killing the guards instantly. He regretted killing them but the Astra didn't really have a low energy setting.

He stepped over their bodies and tried to think of all the ways someone could've seen or heard these three guys' deaths. The rifle made no sound when it fired at lower settings and the bullets' impacts had been muffled by the guards' bodies. Them hitting the floor wasn't really out of place in such an establishment, either. All he had to do was stop anyone from seeing the bodies. Thankfully, he'd brought along rags for that exact purpose. He'd made sure not to hit any of the major blood vessels inside those men for a reason. He unlocked the heavy door and pushed it open with a surprising amount of effort. As the seal was broken he took the inside of the room in, noticing that it was far larger than what should've been possibly. A complex of doors, storage rooms and recreational facilities extended for hundreds of metres into the apparently empty, weightless void beyond the doorway. He dragged the guards' bodies in and closed the door behind him, cutting off the outside world from his sight. Feeling that he'd done enough Kyle set out into the maze of rooms, heading straight for the primary office, adorned with ornaments, filing cabinets and a solitary, suspiciously unattended laptop.

L-Fel | Cassia

Cassius took the money with one hand, passed it to the other and handed the entire sum back to the investigator. He knew he could probably just replicate the money at a future date but... oh, it was just so exciting and refreshing! Getting paid real money, rather than having to forge it, was a concept too novel for him to pass up.

"How about you pay me after the job is done? I was more than willing to help pro-bono anyway. Sorry Julian but it seems that my decision's already been made for me. I'm taking on this job for the money, not just because I need to have fun or because I want to help you."

To Catch a King | Avenoir and Mnemosyne

Polly blinked twice at Madi, dumbfounded by her response. She guessed she had gone into a rant which nearly none of these pre-modern people could understand, but looking at the audience she wouldn't be surprised if the world they came from had no overlap with her own at all. What was she meant to say? Talking with non-autochthonics was always a blast, by which she meant a confusing jumble of half-assed mnemonic studies and incomprehensible screaming. She responded to Miria rather quietly and diplomatically, being careful not to disturb the relative peace.

"Your race was artifically created? Well, that raises a lot of questions. Back in my universe of origin there's genetic engineering but mostly for infants and animals. We haven't experimented with creating sentient races, as far as I know."

[Naval Monte]

Secrets of the Raven
Branhwrn, Club Midnight

Elizabeth only manage to hear the laughter because the rock music was done. As the group that gathered around the Kents pestered them as new music began to play. When Simon walked over to Elizabeth and called out to her she was finished with her drink. Looking at his attire she gave the man a puzzled look. "That bouncer let you in dressed like that?" She asked him, wondering if the club actually had a dress code now after seeing Simon.

As he introduced his drunken new friends Elizabeth found their giggling annoying. "Great just what I wanted to meet, a bunch of drunk yuppies. Are they even in the legal age to drink?" She just have the women a lazy wave. When she looked at Steve she gave the man a puzzled look. "You know these women?" When they laughed again Elizabeth was somewhat disturbed, being reminded of a few cases when supernatural forces and beings made people unsettling cheerful. The witch shivered slightly from the scene.

When the man whispered on what to do Elizabeth was taking out a pack of cigarettes from her purse. "Did you drugged these people or your wife doing this?" She asked as she took out a cigarette. Before she can take out her lighter she heard a man's voice. "Need a light ma'am?" She turn to look at the main. The man seem to be in his 20s or early 30s. He had long hair with the tips reaching yo his shoulder and stubbles forming a beard and moustache. The man wear a dark blue vest with a white shirt underneath. A dark blue trench coat, almost bordering on being black, was above the other article of clothing and his pants and gloves were the same colors as his trench coat. Only his shoes, tie, and hat were genuinely black. On his hand was a lighter .

Elizabeth will admit the man was attractive, he possessed a roguish charm that she found alluring. "Sure thing mate." She said as she lean forward and allow the man to light her cigarette. As she pulled back the man pulled up a seat and sat next to her. "Thanks for the light." She said to him as she began to smoke her cigarette. "No problem." The man reply back as he put away the lighter. Hearing him speak again she noted his accent. "You're not from around here are you?" The man chuckled. "It was obvious huh? No. I was born and raised in Louisiana." He stated as he turned to the bartender. "Three drinks." He ordered. As the bartender prepared their drinks the man looked at Elizabeth and Simon.

"Are you two here together?" The man asked. Elizabeth blew out smoke before replying back. "We are just friends. If I was having an affair with him his wife will rip my tits off and shove them down my throat." Both the man and Elizabeth laughed at the grim joke. "I'm just here to relax after a busy day of work." Tge man extended his hand for a shake. "The name's Remy." Elizabeth shook his hand and gave her name to the man. Elizabeth saw his aura md while she hasn't found any clues of him being a member of the Fates she was still suspicious of him. "Hey it could just be a dude who wants to be friendly and probably get into my panties I still have to be weary." the drinks that were ordered finally arrived.
---

The hallway that Kyle was in had sigils and magic circles hidden behind the walls made to prevent thaumaturgical surveillance, intrusion, and attacks from entering the hall. In the office Kyle can see a massive magic circle within another circle over it with a triangle with a circle in the center at the northern point of the circle. While Kyle lacked any paranatural senses to sense arcane energies the thick concentration of it in the room was still enough to make the hairs on his skin stand on straight and goosebumps to rise, a feeling that he shouldn't be in the room was now weighing deep in his heart and mind.


Going to the laptop he found that it was still open, looking at the wallpaper it showed an old sigil. Looking through the computer he would find that his email was open. Looking through it he would find that owner called himself simply Magus. It seems that Magus discussed with a few people on either selling strange objects or using their services to make the demands of their clients a reality, most of them being the transactions between Magus and the client. What would annoy Kyle is the fact all of the clients had alias as well, it would seem that along with covering their tracks the Fates hid their clients as well.

Yet as he looked through the emails he would find that some deals were illegal, regardless of they were mundane or anomalous in nature. Of the crimes he found he had evidence to prove that the Fates were guilty of such things as blackmail, theft, conspiracy to commit murder and most likely follow through them, kidnapping, bribery, money laundering, human trafficking and trafficking illegal animals. The ones he would find pertaining to his mission were emails related to both selling drugs and weapons. Looking through a set of emails he would find one detailing a conversation between Magus and some called Red, the list being weapons that Kyle will remember seeing.

The more he looked the more he finds that Red has talked with Magus plenty of times about buying both conventional and anomalous items, yet he would be vexed to find that the contents were blocked ou by black bars for reasons unknown. The more he looked the more he saw the other contents of the emails being blocked out. Looking back at the others emails he read before he saw they were the same yet he felt that they changed somehow. The monitor began to blink rapidly and just as Kyle felt that the machine was breaking he would feel as though something went through him. Kyle will begin to have trouble breathing as he feels a heavy pressure on his chest. Kyle will have a metallic taste on his mouth and blood would begin to come out of his nostrils as a powerful migraine hits him.

[Prusselanden]

L-Fel
Julian frowned at the Chief as he smiled at Cassius.

"Sounds good. Please, do the best you can." He closed the case and headed back into his office. When he came out again, Julian looked at him. "Are you sure you're hiring this person we have never met before to help solve this case? We don't even know if...his...her intentions are good...."

"When you hear about this case we're on...you'll want all the help you can get. Now, Cassius, would you like a seat in the office?"

[Skylus]

To Catch a King
Outset Island

Madi was sitting in a chair near the group, the Eevee that had traveled with out cold beneath the chair.
"So....let's see...You're a servant, a slave, and your race was created artificially."
The witch blinked.
"Well, you had a very good reason to lie about where you came from."
She got up from her chair and walked over to Miria and knelt in front of her with a smile.
"You're safe here. You may not trust us yet and you have no reason to for now, but if there's anything I can do to make you comfortable, just say the word. You wanted to see my crystal again? To compare them? Uh...Sure? let's do it tonight, though, my crystal seems to work better at night."

---

The hours seemed to pass by swiftly, before long, the sun was setting and various members of the group had wandered off to find beds to sleep in, but not Madi. She was still awake, thoughts were running through her head, so many thoughts - What was that?
Madi got up from the chair she had been sitting in and walked into one of the spare guest rooms, then created a ball of magic for a light source.
"Hello?"
She was not expecting an answer back.
"Greetings."
Madi jumped and turned to her left and froze. A young woman was standing before her, completely nude, and she appeared to be slightly glowing, not to mention the weird red paint all over......
"AMMY?!"

Amaterasu wasn't sure how she felt. She hadn't been in this form for....How long had it been? She had lost track.
The goddess smiled and nodded.
"It is I, it is good to be able to speak to you properly, Madison."
Madi blinked and then shook her head.
"How long have you been like this?"
"Not long. I wonder what caused this to happen..."
Madi glanced towards the door and then back to Ammy.
"We can worry about that later, right now we need to find you something to wear."
The goddess smiled.
"Yes....I suppose that would be a good idea?"

After some frantic searching, Madi broke a few rules by summoning Asian robes from a Asian wizarding school and gave them to Ammy, who promptly put them on.
"There. Now you're decent. How do you feel?"
The Sun Goddess walked around in a circle and then summoned Thunder Edge, a Glaive that could channel lightning and swung the weapon, it created sparks as it hit the floor and Madi leapt back.
Ammy grinned.
"I feel wonderful. Wasn't there someone you were meeting?"
Madi's eyes widened.
"That's right! I told Miria to meet me outside!"
Madi ran out of the room but then came back.
"Do you want to come with me?"
Ammy thought about it, then shook her head.
"No. I must inform Issun of what transpired."
Madi smiled.
"That's gonna go over well. Good luck."
And with that, the Witch turned around and left the house, walked down to the moon lit beach, and waited for Miria to show up.

[Saint Morning]

The Wicked Witch

Land of OZ

The Emerald throne room glimmered in the wake of a ritual being performed within. The translucent green hue seemingly leaping from the crystals that made the wall and the flooring, eager to join in with the witch as her magic cascaded around her in fumes of spiralling purple smoke. Her hands danced over the surface of the cauldron without any set rhythm or tempo and with them, the bumping brew below spurred and leapt from the depths of its container-only a few metres, never close enough to even graze the delicate green fingers of the witch who commanded it.

She would eventually stop her hand motion, favouring clutching the crystalline pendant wrap so neatly around her neck, her blue eyes shut for the briefest of moments to think back onto her goal. With her sister’s impending return, she would simply have to take up residence in her now abandoned castle, oh she would miss ruling over OZ no doubt. After all, she had spent so much time making its inhabitants fear her, instilling the respect that she deserved into then, that it seemed almost wasteful to leave it all behind.

Her eyes fluttered open once more, a sinister smile creeping it’s way onto her lips as she spared a glance down to her cauldron, perhaps once this was all over and Regina learnt her place she could return to OZ. Being not only the ruler of this realm but of the Enchanted Forest as well… oh, the possibility was simply endless.

The magic around her seem to pick up more wild than before, and suddenly that the Wicked Witch almost lost her bearings, the smoke changing from a purplish colour to an ebony black. Her pendant sparking to life as a bright light shimmered from within, dazing her as she clutched at her chest. “What the hell?” The words echoed in her head as she fell forward gripping the edges of the cauldron to prevent herself from falling into the brew.

Expecting a burning sensation at her palms she was dumbfounded when a brittle sort of cold nipped at her fingers which curled at the edges of the cauldron. Her eyes opening to stare down into the pot, only to be greeted by a vortex from within that leapt up and swollen her whole.

SOTR

Tumbling as she was spewed out into an alleyway, the witch found herself spread out flat on her stomach and against the grimy floor. Her nose crinkled as she slowly pushed herself up to her feet and dust her clothing off. Her hands pausing in its motion when noticing that she was no longer adorn in her typical wear, instead of wearing a pair of black leather gloves couple with a leather jacket that hung over a dark green bodycon that reached just past her ankles. Upon looking down to her feet she would notice that her shoes were now a pair of ruby-red high-heel, which made her pause. At first, mistaking them for the ruby-slippers she had given Dorothy in her attempt to rid Oz of her presence, but two heel clicks with the intent of sending her back to the Emerald City and no effect afterwards was enough to tell her that was not the case.

“Where the bloody hell am I?” She muttered out loud. Taking a glance around before noting the putrid smell as it assaults her nostril, she fanned vainly at the air before her eyes caught the gleam of what appeared to be a piece of glance left near some sort of garbage container. Taking a step forward, she was so startled by what she would see that she hit the back wall of the alley. Slowly her hands rose to touch her face, feeling the smoothness of it, as her mind race and focused on the fact that she was no longer green. Indeed something was afoot.


 Focusing her attention to the exit she stripped forward and out of the alley, glancing around for a moment to take in the sight of what appeared to a realm far more advanced than OZ or the Enchanted. Strange contraptions carrying individuals inside them race on by, buildings were alight without any sign of a flame or lantern, and groups of people passed her, with only the occasional glance by a male member… who undoubtedly would’ve found their neck’s snapped if not for her current stupor.

Wherever she was, she most certainly wasn’t in OZ anymore. Had she messed up the spell somehow? It didn’t seem logical, she hadn’t even finished the ritual that would’ve enabled her to cross worlds in the first place. This had to be Rumple’s doing, maybe this was that land without magic that he had been so obsessed about going to all these years. Yet she was having her doubts, feeling the magic circulating inside her being, as strong as it had always been.

She was going to get to the bottom of this, turning on the sideways she would walk until her eyes caught what appeared to be this world’s version of a pub. Ignoring the bodyguard she walked in, flicking her hand and immediately incapacitating him when he attempted to stop her from entering. The doors flying open as she strides in with hands on her hips, and blue hues glancing around from place to place. Promptly ignoring any curious glances her entrance would attract as she moved inside, looking for someone who could potentially enlighten her about her current place.

[Rostavykhan]

To Catch A King
Outset Island

Without warning, a soft voice spoke up behind Maddy.

"Hello, Human.", Said Miria, emerging from the shadows. Her greeting was followed by a peculiar whine, sounding almost more of a purr than anything. She seemed happy at first glance, which was good enough, though should the moonlight have illuminated her face more, it would probably seem somewhat obvious that there was something off about her smile, as if it weren't quite genuine.

She approached quickly, her arms clasped behind her back, and stopped just in front of Madi. Like earlier, she acknowledged the girl with a short bow, before leaning in rather close to her. "So then, you say that the item you possess is more effective at night, yes?", She asked. Before even waiting for an answer, however, she reached down towards her belt, pulling her own small crystal from its pouch, and presenting it to Madi. "It was at night for me, when this was activated. The similarities between these certainly are intriguing, are they not?"

Her uneasy smile widened, just barely, and her brow furrowed. "Shall we study them closer, then?"