The Grail Works Mission Dossier (Discussion & Ideas)

[pureauthor]

Duly noted on the 'accidental summoning' thing. Would changing it so they're working together when an accident occurs that disrupts their link to the GW be any better?

(To be honest, the 'accident' part was because I wanted to include Sakura for this story, and according to the premise she doesn't go on missions normally.)

[MWkillkenny84]

Duly noted on the 'accidental summoning' thing. Would changing it so they're working together when an accident occurs that disrupts their link to the GW be any better?

(To be honest, the 'accident' part was because I wanted to include Sakura for this story, and according to the premise she doesn't go on missions normally.)

For what I've understand, she CAN do mission for the GW, but the mission MUST include Rider, who's linked to her as her Servant and NEED the prana supply from her.

[Kieran]

For what I've understand, she CAN do mission for the GW, but the mission MUST include Rider, who's linked to her as her Servant and NEED the prana supply from her.

Actually, it's more because Rider refuses to let Sakura do anything dangerous without her - but as to the rest, you're correct.

Sakura generally doesn't do the missions, at least when it involves combat - she's just not inclined to fight. But if you can initially present it as a mission where she won't have to fight, and it becomes dangerous, that'll work.

[Lyric Rome]

As I recall, Sakura specializes on dealing with immaterial things like spirits. One of the reasons Sakura and Rider got paired up with Will was because of the possibility of other hostile non-physical beings that could have managed to hitch a ride on him.

[Kieran]

Handy for working with Eidolons or Black Mage spirits . . .

[Elf]

Part of me likes to think that Rin used the Kalediostick and pulled a version of Archer out for herself. Not that she'd let anyone borrow him or anything.

Plus, it would explain why she's not answering Shirou's letters about being Ai's godmother.

[Kieran]

Interesting idea, but the wrong thread - though I see you've corrected that already.


. . . On another note, if you guys are tired of my SIs being werewolves, it occurs to me that I could screw Kurai over by making him a teenaged mutant (non-ninja) turtle - handy for realities where humans aren't exactly common or welcome, like Sonic the Hedgehog or Kung Fu Panda, and completely screwing him over for everything else . . . (I've been marathoning the old movies, and it's early - the coffee hasn't hit my brain yet.)

[Kieran]

Kurai sighed. The Japanese word he'd chosen as a nom de guerre was kind of ironic, now, as he stared at the creature in the mirror. About five feet tall, emerald green skin, with a bald head, beaky mouth (with teeth, oddly enough) and a great big shell. Were it not for the lack of a coloured headband, he'd been a dead ringer for a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. Minus the whole "ninja" part, of course, but his name would make people assume that he was.

Kurai wished he could remember the exact sequence of events that led to this. He thought he'd gotten that proprietor to combine him with Kieran Holt, the D&D druid/fighter, but he'd ended up as this. Because he'd wanted to be a hero, maybe? And Ninja Turtles had been his heroes, in his childhood. Even the grim and gritty originals were in line with his attitudes these days . . . But whatever the reason, it made things kind of difficult for him now - he couldn't exactly go outside without causing a panic, or possibly setting off Godzilla alerts, since this was Japan. Still, he wanted to do something for the help that the Works had given him, if only he could think of what . . .

"I've got a job for you!" Ilya announced as she appeared literally out of nowhere.

The shock causing the mutant turtle to jump about six inches into the air. When his heart was no longer trying to tear its way out of his skin, he asked, "What kind of job?"

"There's a universe about to be conquered by an intergalactic empire - and we can't pass as natives, but you could," she explained. "Here, let me show you."

Kurai blinked. "Bucky O'Hare and the Toad Wars" - that takes me back . . .

"Yeah, I can see where humans in the Aniverse would raise a few flags," the turtle said drily. ". . . OK, I'm in."

[crystalwatcher]

*star4es at the last post* Oh my god. *bangs head on desk*

[Wing]

Just wanted to ask but how does anyone feel about Grail Works helping out in Guilty Crown.

[Vigilantia]

Just wanted to ask but how does anyone feel about Grail Works helping out in Guilty Crown.

I don't know the universe. What were you thinking of doing in the GC universe and how would GW help?

[Kieran]

I don't know the universe. What were you thinking of doing in the GC universe and how would GW help?

Pretty much my response, as well.

*star4es at the last post* Oh my god. *bangs head on desk*

What can I say? I'm a child of the '80s and '90s, and occasionally I get nostalgic - the fact that I actually have the TMNT RPG doesn't help, either.

And being visibly non-human would be an interesting challenge, both for Kurai, and in terms of having actual uses in some universes, but significant problems in most. It's occasionally quite tempting.

But if you're interested in a more modern challenge . . .





Hungry Like the Wolf








Kurai had held back throughout this entire damned mission. He'd had to restrain himself from using any of his flashier abilities, as a result of effectively being on camera 24/7 almost from the day he'd arrived - and for the most part, he'd managed. He hadn't been able to save the little girl, which still tore at him, but the primary objective was being accomplished. The other girl was still safe, still surviving . . .

And when it was all done, he'd disappear, literally. The tracker wasn't dedicated - it couldn't follow him into the Shadow. And once it was removed from his body's biorhythms, it would go dead, signalling him as "dead." Mission done, just at he'd promised. But the girl was stubborner - she didn't want to kill him, or him to kill himself, and he couldn't tell her what was really going to happen. So she'd refused, repeatedly, to finish it - and now the overseers had sent an incentive.

They were crude imitations of Garou - genetically or surgically accomplished, he wasn't sure - but nowhere near the size of his own Crinos form. But there were a lot of them - bigger than any Garou pack he'd seen. Over twenty of them . . .

Twenty-two, he suddenly realised. And he knew that shade of the one female's fur - he'd seen it on another, roughly that size -

Ice formed in Kurai's heart as he suddenly understood what he was seeing. Understood what they'd done. And the ice quickly turned to fire. To Rage.

"You monsters," he snarled. "How could you do this to them?"

"What?" his companion called. "What is it?"

"It's the Tributes - they're the Tributes," he snapped. "The monsters made them into these . . . But I'm the monster that was born to kill monsters."

No more holding back, Kurai thought, as he felt the change overtake him. No more hiding - and rules be damned.

Against this, he would Rage.

[Xamusel]

Huh. I'd like to be able to write for the Grail Works Ltd., but I don't know whether or not my idea would work well, in any extent.

My idea goes like this: Take Shirou and Rider, add a mysterious client who only goes by "Rah", and throw the two personnel into this particular world (link goes to TVTropes page) at around the time of the Heaven's Fracture incident... what do you get?

You don't get the personnel curb-stomping people, no. Instead, you get them as people training a batch of heroes to do the job for them.

Oh, also, it's gonna be like this: Make Frodo a Jedi, give Sauron the entire Galactic Empire instead of Palpatine, if you know what I mean.

One other thing I'll be doing is providing a sense of history and lore in the event that people start asking questions... and I know you guys have a lot of them in regards to this.

[Vigilantia]

Huh. I'd like to be able to write for the Grail Works Ltd., but I don't know whether or not my idea would work well, in any extent.

My idea goes like this: Take Shirou and Rider, add a mysterious client who only goes by "Rah", and throw the two personnel into this particular world (link goes to TVTropes page) at around the time of the Heaven's Fracture incident... what do you get?

You don't get the personnel curb-stomping people, no. Instead, you get them as people training a batch of heroes to do the job for them.

Oh, also, it's gonna be like this: Make Frodo a Jedi, give Sauron the entire Galactic Empire instead of Palpatine, if you know what I mean.

One other thing I'll be doing is providing a sense of history and lore in the event that people start asking questions... and I know you guys have a lot of them in regards to this.

Uhh... huh...

Looking at the TVTrope page... ABF looks like a regular(ish) fantasy setting with Anime thematics (which is fine by itself). However, I'm not quite seeing how you're introducing LOTR into it, not unless those were metaphors you used in place of characters in the lore that we wouldn't know yet are a close enough comparison?

My opinion... it sounds interesting. However, since this setting is more obscure than any other that I've heard of, you'll be putting a huge Onus on yourself to introduce elements to the reader. It seems from the way you put it you'll be putting the GW into the role of Resistance Leaders to overthrow an evil empire. Intriguing premise but if the setting is as obscure as I think it is, you'll be doing a lot of world building/retreading material to make people new to the series familiar.

[Kieran]

If I'm understanding correctly, Vigiliantia, the LOTR reference is an old writer's analogy on how to properly scale power levels between a protagonist and antagonist in order to keep the story interesting. As for Xamusel's idea itself . . . I don't see anything wrong with it, off the top of my head. You're aware that you'll need to fill in a lot of information, for those of us who've never heard of it - so you might as well go ahead and try.

One point, though. You might want to coordinate with Hymn of Ragnarok - he's got plans for Shirou, too.

[Xamusel]

Yeah, Kieran, I get the idea now.

Also, Vigilantia, the LOTR reference is as Kieran described it.

I'll be sure to contact Hymn of Ragnarok about using Shirou in this.

[Kieran]

Continuing from here . . .








Kurai had learned a few skills since becoming a teenage mutant (non-ninja) turtle. He knew how to use energy pistols, and cockpit-mounted maser cannons, and could otherwise pass himself off as a war correspondent - a journalist capable of operating in war zones. With the advent of the Internet and digital technology, he had even managed to make the Works a certain level of money, as a freelance journalist - enough to pay for some of its operating costs, at least, as well as his own room and board.

He had also, somewhat reluctantly, added a grey mask/headband to his face - because it just did not look right to be a mutant turtle without one.

The fact remained, though, that his appearance limited his usefulness to the Works. Most people were liable to run screaming at the sight of him, if not outright attacking him as a "monster." Any world with anthropomorphic animals, he could move through, but not too many others. Not, at least, without gaining sufficient stealth training to actually be a Ninja Turtle - or an alternative measure like taking an image inducer from the X-Men, such as they'd used on Nightcrawler in the '80s. But that was Shi'ar-based tech, and not easy to get a hold of . . .

Regardless, it left Kurai a bit confused as to why Ilya wanted him on this mission, because so far, he'd run into a lot of humans (and hidden from them). He just didn't see what good he could do here -

Until he was drawn by screams he wasn't causing, and saw a monster throwing energy bolts in the middle of the street . . . Only to be confronted by a bunch of multi-coloured streaks that shot through the air to land, and resolved into multi-coloured, but unmistakably human forms.

"Oi . . ." the turtle muttered, massaging a sudden headache as he got a suspected glimpse of Ilya's plan. After all, they looked human in battle form, no matter what their original appearance - and there was an automatic boost in their fighting skills, as well. Both things he could make use of . . .

But seriously - how on Earth did Ilya expect him to become a Power Ranger?!

[Nicktendonick]

Well, that's quite a interesting end to it. A power ranger turtle sounds like something, well, crazy and awesome at the same time. I'd like to see how this comes to it's conclusion.

-----------

I'd like to throw my non-existent digital hat into the ring and give a few ideas that came into my head thinking about the concept for this. Hopefully, you guys kinda like them. The ideas are all comedy stories. While dramatic ones could be done, episodic comedy seems to be more in line in my head for this.

First, is well a generic "I need help" type story. Value's games seems like prime fodder for that, A certain ex-potato AI needs a few subjects for "testing". With the promise of cake, they accept. Or somehow everyone gets roped into a match for Team Fortress 2.

Second is an idea for a "Adventure Time" story(which is quite good, if you haven't seen it.) .
Pretty much, the initial request is actually something simple. Someone lost their hat (He says it's a really, really awesome hat), and hires the to help find it for him. And so Shirou and co enter into the wacky world of Ooo and try to find this lost hat. Oblivious at first they'd turn them down, but get talked into it due to Shirou's desire not to let a person (or living candy, in this case) down. a hero doesn't say no. So, he gathers his allies for this story and he'll have to go to deathdying fields to retrieve this hat.

After surviving Deathdying fields, they find out it was taken by a entity that's planning to destroy the world. Obliviously, now with a bigger and real threat, they can't just leave this world. So the group has to team up with the cast of Adventure Time (if they're not already), find this new evil, get through his fortress and vanquish it.

Turns out, this "new evil" wants to destroy the world because he too can't find his lost awesome hat...which he really really likes and losing has sent him into world destroying despair...which turns out to be the exact same hat they had to get it the first place, and the questgiver guy does not want to give up his awesome hat to the guy who wants to destroy the world.
Eventually they convince him to change his mind (maybe a fetch quest?) and he gives the awesome hat back to the "new evil", who now happy, stops his spell to destroy the world.

So the questgiver gets depressed, accepts he'll never get that awesome hat back...and walks up to a nearby vending machine and buys a exact duplicate of the hat.
After realizing they went all through this because both of them were cheapscapes, Everyone facepalms, end of episode.

(Do you think that would capture the flavour of Adventure time? the whole story is kinda silly. I think it'd fit.)

And two crack/funny ideas.

the megaman one) Pretty much, the Grail works LTD. answer the door with their newest client...and it turns out it's the blue bomber himself, megaman. It's time for him to take on the evil Dr. Albert Wily in his latest attempt to take over the work, and Megaman isn't able to fight and can't do it this time. And so, he finds the Grail Works LTD and asks for help. In need of a substitute, and someone accepts and takes his place for the "latest megaman game, or fangame, or whatever".
By the time the "replacement megaman" meets his foes... the rest of the Grail Works LTD. Turns out Dr. Albert Wily kinda had some issues and "was kinda screwed over by his contractor", and doesn't have enough time and money to build the eight robot masters for the next megaman game, so he also hires the grail works LTD to stand in for them.
What ensures is a megaman parody with lampshades over the series, with Shirou and co taking everyone's place.

That could probably use a bunch of a work on it, but I feel that's got potential (use/steal if you wish)

The cracky meta one) Shirou, and a few others head out on one mission, all seeming generic and blah blah nobody cares. During this, a second request and a second door open. the heroines / Shirou's love interests and Ilya all take that one and see what it was. Turns out it's the author of the story, and he's completely out of ideas and has no idea what to do and would rather play videogames (using the heroines, for extra comedic value), so he asks the heroines to finish the story so he can go play videogames. And as such, he shows the girls his computer and leaves...
Leaving the heroines all controlling shirou's fate in this story, and cooperation goes right out the window the moment they realize one of them could write shriou falling in love with them.

Again, another idea I think has potential. Again, if you can make something cool out of this, go ahead.

[Kieran]

I don't know "Team Fortress," but you seem on-target with "Adventure Time" (I've caught a couple of episodes).

Most of this, I'd say, is more omake than full fic material, but if you can find somebody who does humour well . . . Esgalia or Mozco, maybe?

[Kieran]

A prologue/reboot, of sorts, from here . . .








In theory, Ilya's Doors aligned him to precisely when and where he needed to be, every time. And for anyone else, this would be true - but as of late, Kurai had had problems in that department. As such, he was not at all surprised when he found himself suspended twenty feet in the air after stepping through it.

Bloody hell . . .

The good news was, he'd stuck to his Glabro form, so the damage was quickly undone - but it still freaking hurt, and he spent several minutes cursing a certain Olympian for cursing him, and wondering how much longer he'd have to put up with being the interdimensional equivalent of Ryoga Hibiki . . .

Speaking of which, where the hell am I now?

It would be somewhere he was needed, Kurai knew that much - the curse didn't override that much of the Doors' nature, it just made them unpredictable, and unsafe. He still ended up where he needed to be, just never where he expected to be. It made trying to accomplish anything for the Works tricky, to say the least.

At least Rin's amulet still works, or I'd be really lost.

The Garou got up off the ground, grumbling mentally all the while - and resisted the urge to curse at the top of his lungs, along with a surge of Rage, as he saw what was waiting for him. The Japanese kid in the school uniform could've been anybody, but he only knew of one bus driver with glowing eyes . . .

Friggin' Yokai Academy?! You've gotta be kidding me!

Sighing, the Theurge gave in - obviously he was needed here, and his survival was, after all, a secondary concern. It would have to be, because this place was liable to kill him.

"Ohayo!" he called out. "Heading to Yokai Academy? I could use a lift!"

"Oh?" the bus driver murmured. "And who are you?"

"The new English teacher," he replied. "Kurai Springfield." Not his best alias, but it'd do.

". . . Hmph," the bus driver said at last. "Get on."

While on board, he made small talk with Tsukune - enough to determine that there wasn't any obvious change in him, so whatever was set to go wrong, it had to be rooted in one of the other characters, or in an event that went differently. Given the number of near-fatalities in the weekly fights, though, that wasn't much to go on -

The bus lurched suddenly as they passed through the tunnel, and Kurai felt an odd wrenching sensation - odd, but familiar . . .

Oh, come on - twice in one mission?!

When the bus emerged from the tunnel, the driver hit the brakes - hard.

"This isn't Yokai Academy . . . " he muttered.

"No," Kurai groaned, realising what he was likely here to fix. "In some ways, it's worse."

He sighed. "Aono-san, Driver-san . . . Welcome to Monster High."