This thread shall house the time-skip scenes where characters who won the lottery will summon.
In order to start your scene, simply post your opening post for that scene, and I shall deal GM updates like in a regular RP situation.
More information may come. This opening post is just a placeholder so that we can get started quickly.
Alacia Starward
Location: Crystal City
Time: 23:45 - Night
Day: April 5th
The night air was crisp and filled with bright moonlight. Lacey was wearing a dark blue hoodie over a t-shirt from a band called 'Counterfeit Noiz' that was mostly blacks and blues as well as plain jeans. Her sneakers made barely any noise moving through the formations of crystal even with the small bounce and skip to her step. She hummed ever so slightly to herself, fingers tapping against her leg to an unheard rhythm.
She was here to test out some theories and possibilities. Her friends were still mostly dealing with the aftermath of the 'Night of Crystal Shards', but had managed to devote some down time to their investigation into the Summoning process. Luthor and Lacey being the ones not involved directly with the night in question had done most of the work. At their meeting three days ago, Luthor had said how he didn't like relying on others and wanted to be the one who led the investigation. He certainly threw himself into the task. Lacey helped where she could and they often contacted Shizuka, Mei and Satoko to fill them in on the progress as well as ask for opinions.
Shizuka and Mei were still recovering while Satoko was busy dealing with the ARES aftermath but collectively they all agreed that the various rumours had more to do with each other than not. So while Luthor had some duties as a Lord to take care of tonight, Lacey had offered to venture into the Crystal City to test out some of the rumours. She didn't think much would come from this which is why she was alone tonight, but she wanted to pull her own weight and not let her friends down.
Honestly she herself didn't think much would happen, hence coming out here alone. It was Luthor and the others who had put these ideas together. Everyone else (especially Satoko) was not exactly happy with the idea of her going out alone at night. She managed to convince them when she pointed out they needed the information and that she would leave at the first sign of trouble as well as calling ARES if anything turned ugly.
She got to a good spot and pulled out the HECATE phone. It was a solid brick of a device that lit up on all sides. It was currently a fairly subdued tint of blue more or less completely masked by the moonlight and light reflected off of the crystals. Lacey checked the time 23:47. She was early. There were so many rumours to pick and work from. They had learned that time was important to some of them. An Aria on the hour. Extending it further, midnight was a logical leap.
She put her phone away and checked her supplies. She had some potions of varying effects in her backpack. In her pocket was a small collection of semi-precious stones to act as other catalysts for some of her witchcraft. Satisfied she walked up to some of the nearby crystals. She couldn't really see anything different in her reflection and gave up trying to spot differences in the warped image after a few minutes.
She checked her phone again. 23:54. She sighed. This waiting was getting to her. She remembered a conversation her brother had with her papa. Her papa had said that "sometimes plans just hit the fan on first contact and there was nothing you could do about it". Lacey wasn't entirely sure why she thought of this now, but the waiting was giving her time to think and the thinking was leading to wariness.
The minutes ticked by as her anxiousness grew. Until she looked down at her phone, took in the artificial light and gulped. 23:59.
Everything looked the same as she walked up to the crystal but something seemed off. She suspected it was the strange sense of anticipation that had filled the air and a growing paranoia. Then she spotted something on the back of her hand. More precisely on the back of the reflection. She looked down at her actual hand. Nothing. Lifting it up to get a better look, it was unmistakeable.
Her heart thrummed. This... this might be dangerous. Her common sense screamed at her to leave. But then she realized she was also thrilled. This was exciting! Should she leave and tell her friends what happened? Absolutely. But standing there staring at her reflection that was so very wrong, she had to try the one last thing. Her phone already had the number put into it. Staring straight into her reflections eyes, she hit dial and brought the phone up to her ear.
Last edited by Blue; December 1st, 2013 at 01:19 PM.
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:00 - Night
Day: April 5th
The phone rang once.
It rang twice.
It rang thrice.
Then, an audible click at the other end of the line told that someone had answered that call. A faint breathing could be heard before a very familiar voice let out a low giggle, before finally forming words that were like crystal clear echoes.
"Hello. This is Alacia Starward."
The lips of Lacey had not moved, nor had any sound been made by her. The source of this disturbingly familiar tone was both far away and right in front of her. Like a nightmare, the reflection had spoken up without any indication that real thing had done the same. The blue eyes of the reflection, colored by the hue of prana, stared straight at the young girl. But there was something wrong in them. No, it would have been correct to say that her facial expression, her whole demeanor, was very, very wrong for an existence known as Alacia Starward.
Boundless cruelty. Toxic and unadulterated ruthlessness flowed from those eyes.
"And here you finally are, standing at the precipice of the truth. Tell me, how does it feel?" the reflection asked. "Exhilaration? Excitement? Fear? No...know perfectly well what you are feeling right now."Iyou
The reflection licked its lips like a predator in heat.
"It's longing. It's desire. To be finally able to cast off this awful mask off innocence... ahh~, what a sensation! You are simply trembling from the pleasure! It feels likewhole body is going numb from pleasure--! Aah, ahhh, aaaaaah~!" The reflection was now caressing itself with its free hand, writhing in pleasure it was experiencing. "So good, so gooooood~! Such a pure bliss!Myyourno longer have to play that part of meek fool...!"IYou
The hand of the reflection suddenly slammed against the surface of the crystal, making cracks appear on it like it had been but feeble glass.
"can finally be free ofIYouinhibitions, right!?" The reflection growled like a beast.Myyour
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:00 - Night
Day: April 5th
Lacey was still thinking about what to tell her friends when she reported back as the phone rang. And then the ringing stopped and she heard a voice.
All of her previous thoughts ground to a screeching halt. The voice was almost as familiar as her own. It reminded her of hearing recordings of herself. It was familiar yet somewhat alien and not at all unpleasant to Lacey. It was seeing her reflection speak to her that was entirely surreal. Lacey's eyes were locked onto the eyes of her reflection that almost seemed to burn blue. She didn't know if she could look away if she wanted.Originally Posted by Verg Avesta
The words Wrong Reflection kept repeating in her mind. She wasn't uncomfortable or unfamiliar with her reflection normally, but this thing in front of her...
"I-" Lacey squeaked, unable to form a proper reply. The reflection was right about the fear, exhilaration and excitement. Every muscle in her body was tense. This was far beyond her expectations of tonight and she wasn't sure how to react. But her reflection wasn't done speaking.
The reflection licked its lips like a predator in heat. Again something that just looked and felt wrong.
The hands of her reflection roamed her body, as if it needed to feel more and more! Not simply content to stand there.
Was she right? In the heartbeats that followed, Lacey tried to sort out her mind and emotions. To her slight surprise and horror, she realized that she was shaking and shivering. "Her" hand slammed against the crystal, cracking it from the... inside?
She shook her head as her reflection spoke as if to shake off the doubts and clouded thoughts.
In a strange reversal of roles the Lacey outside the crystal drew closer, mimicking her other self. Perhaps somewhat unconsciously she placed her palm where her double had placed hers. She leaned in and stared straight into her own prana lit eyes. "You're not wrong" There was a very apparent quaver in her voice as she spoke. She was spooked. She was scared, but if it was herself, she thought she could face it. Something her image had said earlier stuck out in her mind now. Her other self talked about the precipice of truth.
"I am afraid. I am excited." Its as if she was testing the words. Was she just agreeing with everything her image said? Was everything her reflection said true? "I... don't resent being 'the fool' as you put it." But of course she wasn't denying that she did that. "Is it a mask I can cast off though? Is it something that I can just stop?" Lacey honestly didn't think she has been acting, but if her reflection said so... Worse, if her reflection was true!
What then? Was she actually someone completely different who had been lying to herself her entire life? She didn't think so, but here was a chance to find out. She stared long and hard in her own eyes, waiting for her reflection to answer.
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:00 - Night
Day: April 5th
"Of course it isn't. It has never been! It's always... always... always...! Always, the one trampled upon! The one spat upon! The one left behind! That's why"I am afraid. I am excited. I... don't resent being 'the fool' as you put it. Is it a mask I can cast off though? Is it something that I can just stop?"long it, whyIyoudesire, whyIyoucrave for it...! For it can never be true!" The reflection screamed with an expression of ecstasy, it's body convulsing in some horrific realm between pleasure and unfathomable anger. "That is whyIyoucame here, to fail once more, to fall back on mediocrity and spendIyoudays as a side-note of history, never daring to step onto the toes of others...!"Myyour
Something broke. Something shattered. Like a monster crawling out of hell, the insane visage of Lacey pushed its hand through the crystal, disintegrating part of it in the process. It caught hold of Lacey's hand that had been resting against the surface of the crystal, and gripped so hard that it's nails dug deep into her skin. Then, wearing a grin of pure sadism, the reflection drew back its head and swung forward, shattering the rest of the crystal that separated the two...
... and continues straight into the forehead of Lacey-proper.
Having performed a headbutt that sent Lacey flying backwards to the ground, the reflection stepped forth from its transparent prison, where now only a crater of smoke, dust and fragments remained. The reflection threw aside its phone, and allowed both of its hands sweep upon its own skin, letting them slide upon it like it had been the body of its lover. There was no remorse, no sympathy, no kindness in those blue, burning eyes: simple desire without mercy.
This was a creature that would never let anything stand in its way; a beast with no qualms about stepping over others to achieve what it wanted.
As Lacey-proper gathered herself on the ground, the reflection clutched its head, let out a shrilling chuckle and bent over, as if in pain. Sickening sound of flesh ripping could be heard, and once the reflection raised its head, one could see that a third eye, like a dying star burning out, had opened in the middle of its forehead. A robe, more like a cape of a tyrant than anything else, materialized from nothingness and landed on its shoulders. The strange garb was the color of bleached sand, with blue, zigzagging lines running across its hem.
And finally, just like the robe, from thin air, a book appeared and landed on the reflection's hand. It was a twisted, loathsome tome, bound in the skins of countless creatures and with pure hatred floating from every page. The reflection raised its hand, opened the book, and eyed the words written on it.
But the third eye was locked on Lacey herself.
“I think, therefore I am. My thoughts are myself, therefore my existence is me.”
Like a demon, the hand of the reflection reached out, straight towards Lacey. Prana roared within the strange existence, and for a moment, the pages of the book in her hand trembled slightly, as if something powerful was driven through them. Then, the hand that was like a talon of a raptor grasped shut, clenching the air like it had been a living creature. Blood dripped from the wounds caused by the nails that dug into their own skin, but the predatory smile never once flinched on the face of the reflection.-------------------------------------Alacia Starward vs. DASEIN: Alacia
Call of thy soul raised a legend
Reflection of victor only in crystals of thy anima
Yes, this is fight or fall
Let this be a battle of the death of thyself
Battle, BEGIN!
Alacia –AGI D- vs. D:Alacia –AGI D-
TURN 1: DASEIN: Alacia
-------------------------------------
Prana was actualized, mystery was executed, and thus did the weight of the world, enough to make the battleground tremble, fall upon Lacey. It was like the burden of becoming Master, gravity increased by the gravitas of her ordeal.
It was the weight of the ruthless desire that the reflection now directed against its original.
Last edited by Verg Avesta; December 1st, 2013 at 09:45 PM.
Alacia Starward
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:01 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 2
"Guuaaaah~" Lacey was caught completely off-guard by her reflection's actions. On the flip side, she landed pretty flatly and since she wasn't tensing for the hit she only felt a few aches. Unfortunately it was never that simple. Something akin to instinct and the desire for survive kicked her circuits into life before she even fully realized what was happening.
As she gathered herself and looked up, her reflection - no, her other self? - had warped. It was somewhat strange because where the reflection had been wrong before, this was just different. Imposing. Bigger. Something Lacey never was. Lacey opened her mouth to speak, but was silenced by an unbearable weight. There wasn't even breath in her left to exclaim.
She had been on her hands and knees, staring up at her... self? What happened? Lacey quickly took stock of her situation. Her head ached slightly. Probably from the headbutt. Her body ached slightly from the fall. Her hand hurt a bit more from where the 'claws?' of her other self grabbed her. And on top of it all, something was weighing her down, almost crushing her. She was sprawled out on the ground.
All of that realization happened in an instant and she realized that she was not down or out quite yet. As she looked at her own face twisted in an expression Alacia Starward had never shown in her entire life, she realized what had happened. The decision of what to do was made in the next instant, silently wondering if her other self would give her the time. Instead of focusing on such things, Lacey threw all of her attention into the spell.
Tit for tat. Moving would hurt, but she already knew that so she didn't waste time trying. She called to mind and her aid old, ancient and powerful forces. The very same forces that held her down! What answered was diminished, incomplete from a perfect actualization but hopefully enough. Her double was not constrained to the proper rules, but she was. Her lips mouthed out the spell as quickly as she could. Almost quicker than her mind could process. In response, her nerves and circuits sang and burned.
With a grunt of mental effort, she threw the spell into the world, twining it around her other self.
All of that left her no time to speak, but she wasn't safe to speak until she had some form of defense anyway. Thus she chose to cast her spell instead of talking. Maybe now she had a chance to do something else.
Gravity Drive
Last edited by Blue; December 3rd, 2013 at 10:05 PM.
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:02 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 3
"Grovel in fear, kneel in meekness, surrender in weakness! That's all I have ever been good for!" The reflection laughed.
As Lacey's spell hit the area covering them, it seemed that momentarily, the battleground had had enough. With the combined forces of the two spells pressing down on it, the ground lurched slightly downwards, as if it was about to break under the huge pressure. Feeling this shift in balance below them, the reflection raised a questioning eyebrow, before smirking condescendingly. With a snap of her fingers, the pages of the book in her hand came alive again. And when they did, two things happened.
The pressure that had been holding down Lacey was momentarily released.
The pressure that had been holding down the reflection seemed to have no longer effect.
Its muscles cracked and grew, its posture straightened, and though it seemed more sluggish than before, it was clear that the oppressing burden was no longer immobilizing the cruel visage. Spreading its hands in a maniacal cackle, it aimed all of its three eyes towards the skies.
"This all that shall happen! This is all that shall ever be!" the reflection roared. "For the sake of others, I will forever be kind, forever be pure! Even my power, I shall achieve only for the sake of others, for them to throw away when they deem that I have lost my purpose!"
The right hand of the reflection was raised high, and somewhere above, thunder was rumbling like a distant drum of war. Clouds were starting to gather in a form of a spiral above them, drill that pierced through the atmosphere for the sake of the ruthless desire of its caster. The words written in the forbidden tome sang with their devilish tone, and prana roared towards the heavens.
All of a sudden, the world was engulfed in a momentary blinding light; following it, only fraction of a second after, was a monstrous roar of lightning. Like a crackling explosion, deafening everything around it.
"So just fall under the hooves of the stampede of destiny. That's all I am good for, anyway."
As the vision of Lacey slowly returned, the scene that was now before was straight out of a nightmare. Her reflection stood there, her robe flapping in the wind like a cloak of a lunatic king, sickening grin without remorse adorning her face. Her hair stood up like it had been a crown of thorns, and the look in her burning blue eyes was that of a maniac. There was nothing in that tyrannical despot of a reflection that reminded of the girl who had given form to it. Just simple, raw desire of power. No, not specifically that.
It was, truly, an incarnation of cruelty.
The hand that had been previously raised was now straightened forward, pointing straight at Lacey. In that talon of a hand now resided the power of the sky's hammers. Lightning cracked and growled around the hand, the high-pitched burning of the thunder resonating from the charged prana. The purple light, destruction in its purest form, was ready to annihilate everything in its path... a path on which Lacey right now was.
"That is the truth, is it not!?" The reflection growled in glee.
And the hand cloaked in thunder started shining with even greater light.
Wise Up!
Last edited by Verg Avesta; December 2nd, 2013 at 07:59 PM.
Alacia Starward
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:02 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 4
The reflection laughed and mocked Lacey as she was casting the spell. Once it hit though, the reflection seemed to decide that it was not worth having the two spells interact and cancelled hers.
Lacey gasped as the pressure eased up. She didn't take her eyes off of the reflection as she stood up. She felt battered, but otherwise fine. Her reflection wasn't done though. The caricature of Lacey twisted even further punctuated by the strange sound of muscle growth. The face of the reflection was twisted in maniacal glee. Despite the pressure that she must have been feeling, the reflection was moving without any difficulty.
Lacey had a sudden twinge of fear that this would be the face that looked back out of every mirror for the rest of her life. A cold part of her brain reasoned that 'the rest of her life' may be the next few minutes. She turned her mind to options. What did she know? What could she use? As she was thinking the reflection spoke and acted.
The reflection's hand was raised to the sky which answered the exclamation as a light briefly blinded Lacey. She stumbled back and shielded her eyes from the unexpected flash, cringing at the thunderclap and crackle of electricity. She managed to stay on her feet but was also worried that by the time she could see again it would be too late.
Lacey's sight returned with spots of white. She shook her head instinctively to clear her vision. Her reflection was so far removed from herself that she wouldn't have recognized herself in there if she hadn't witnessed the transformation first-hand. That thought and trying to understand the last two actions of the reflection made Lacey blurt out "You're not me...? Or at least, not just me." As she said it, she was more and more confident in that statement.
The reflection levelled a hand to point straight at Lacey. Lightning wreathed it. Not simple electricity, but lightning. Lacey gulped. She didn't know if she could defend against that. As surreptitiously as possible, she reached into her pocket for one of the stones and held it at the ready.
Her mind organized the flow of prana in her body for a spell. She uttered the word to activate it as her reflection spoke.
She felt the muscles in her body tighten and strengthen, reinforced by prana but not going overly taut. The hand pointed at her glowed brighter, but she didn't make a move to dodge. She doubted she could. Instead she spoke "I'm okay with living my life for others!" she almost shouted. Quieter she added "Its a good way to live. There's so much hurt in the world. Why shouldn't we live partly for the sake of others? But that does not make us weak!" She locked eye contact with her reflection.
"I'm not a smart person, so I don't understand a lot about destiny or difficult concepts like that. But at least for now I don't feel I am sacrificing myself for others. If I have power, I want to help others. If you're at all like me, don't you feel the same way?" If the reflection discharged the lightning, could she do anything? Would she survive? She didn't think so. But if she was going to die, she wasn't going to flinch away from it. Her stare at her reflection didn't waver, and she had a very intense look on her face. It almost seemed out of place on her features. The reflection marred Lacey's face with cruelty, but the original was showing a side of her that didn't show up very often - intensity.
Bio-enhancement
Wise up!
Last edited by Blue; December 3rd, 2013 at 10:04 PM.
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:03 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 5
"Indeed. Used up and thrown away by others, smiling as I am violated because I simply a so kind... that is who I am," the reflection spoke, and its voice was like a growl of a beast. "A frivolous thing, not needed other than for its purpose. Why, if it came down to it... I would die just so I could be gentle!""I'm okay with living my life for others! Its a good way to live. There's so much hurt in the world. Why shouldn't we live partly for the sake of others? But that does not make us weak! I'm not a smart person, so I don't understand a lot about destiny or difficult concepts like that. But at least for now I don't feel I am sacrificing myself for others. If I have power, I want to help others. If you're at all like me, don't you feel the same way?"
With its final words turning into a monstrous roar, the mad reflection clenched its hand into a fist, and the lightning wreathing it sang. It sang a song of destruction, of annihilation, of utter obliteration that was about to come. Screeching of the crackling energy intensified, and for a moment, the blinding light emitted by the energy shone so brightly that one could see the bones within one's arm.
But all that came to a breaking point.
The trigger had been pulled.
Like a concentrated tidal wave of death, lightning and thunder spiraling into a column of brute force, the spell wrapped around the reflection's arm was shot forward. It became a beam-like projectile, shooting across the battlefield and carving a path into the field of crystals. Both ground and the mockeries of buildings that it touched were disintegrated in an instant, charred by the severity of the spell's power. Blue lines of energy ran on the ground, electrified currents flowing through them.
The earth quaked. The sky screamed. With that single spell, the reflection swallowed up its original in an path of light that destroyed everything.
And what was left behind was simply a half-circular path carved into the ground, smoke rising so thick from the burnt ground that it engulfed the whole scene of destruction. It was a line of black clouds and falling rubble, starting from the reflection and ending over 50 meters away into a particularly large crystal.
"That is the type of incomplete existence I am," the reflection hissed, its mad eyes staring at the spot where Lacey had once stood.
Wise Up!
Alacia Starward
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:04 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 6
The intent behind the words were clear. Even as the reflection spoke, Lacey organized her mind and brought the circuits in her to life once more. She would not be able to dodge this. Not something like lightning. She had to pre-empt the strike. She used the roar of her reflection to time it and prayed that she was right. Her senses recoiled from the destructive burst of power. She uttered the single word of activation as she flung the stone lightly in front of her.
The natural world resists unnatural events. Every aspect of reality likes reality to stay the way it is. On a very fundamental level that she would not be able to describe, Lacey understood this concept. Using this spell, she gives objects the power to reinforce their desire on the world. Using an unnatural spell to allow objects to resist an unnatural force. This was the paradox that she threw at the oncoming destruction.
The tidal wave of death moved at the speed of lightning, but the reflection gave Lacey just enough of an indication of when the spell would be released. The torrent of electrical fury collided with the dispelling field of the stone she had thrown out.
Lacey's focus narrowed into a point. She refused to look away as the two spells collided. Or perhaps she couldn't because everything that was happening now was beyond her ability to react to. Her vision burned electric blue as the beam of lightning scythed right through her defense, into her and through her.
It was so quick and decisive that she didn't even scream until after the bolt had already depleted itself tens of meters behind her. The stone she had used was completely destroyed - used up by the spell and burned out by the onslaught. Even so, there is a lot to be said about acting upon the basest aspects of a spell. While the reflection's beam was not stopped, it was certainly diminished.
As the smoke cleared, even Lacey herself was surprised by the fact that she was still standing, holding her right arm up in the gesture of throwing the stone, palm up to her opponent. As her mind finally caught up to what happened to her, she gasped and clutched her right arm close to her body. Her hair was swept far back from her head and singed at the ends. Her entire body felt like it had been battered the way a baker beats down bread. Her entire right arm however was a different story. Every pain, pressure, heat and cold receptor in it was firing. The muscles ignored any commands from her brain.
But more importantly, she was still standing. She grit her teeth against the pain and sought to organize her mind into a state capable of acting again.
"Th-that's-" Lacey had to stop and work moisture into her mouth. "That's not entirely true. That's not how it has to be. Kindness is not a weakness. Compassion is not a flaw."
Her arm hurt. But while it hurt more than almost anything she had ever experienced, it was not so bad that she couldn't ignore it. Or maybe she couldn't afford to ignore it. Regardless, she continued speaking as her mind sought to organize itself. "Helping is a privilege! Sometimes... Most times I don't have enough power to help." The smoke was still thick, but Lacey could make out the burning blue eyes of her reflection easily. Her look softened from the intensity it had before and filled with the very same compassion she was talking about. "Maybe I am incomplete. Maybe you are too. Help me? Let me help you!"
She was running out of time. The reflection would act again soon and Lacey needed to recoup some of her strength.
Evoker
Wise Up!
Last edited by Blue; December 3rd, 2013 at 10:04 PM.
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:05 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 7
Those words of determination, those words of intensity, those words of steadfast resolution... they were shot down by a delirious laughter, one echoing from the mouth of the twisted reflection. The reflection bent back like a marionette that had broken joints, hanging simply from the threads that reached up to the heavens. The blue eyes reflected the moon far above them, enhancing the lunacy that broke their calm surface with violent ripples. Its body, convulsing in the fit of laughter, tensed suddenly up."Th-that's... That's not entirely true. That's not how it has to be. Kindness is not a weakness. Compassion is not a flaw. Helping is a privilege! Sometimes... Most times I don't have enough power to help. Maybe I am incomplete. Maybe you are too. Help me? Let me help you!"
"Ah, aaaaaaaaah~!" the reflection moaned, as if reaching a climax.
The body borrowed relaxed, and the reflection hunched forward to look at its original. It was now hunched over like a beast. The breath of it was moist, the look in its eyes was partly clouded, and saliva drooped off the edges of its mouth. The emotions, the ruthless vigor without remorse, had reached the boiling point inside the reflection. Now was the time. Like a chain shattering, the last vestiges of familiarity disappeared form the reflection's face, and it became nothing more than borrowed appearance, housing inside something that, truly, no longer was Lacey.
With her words, the young magus had separated the existence from herself.
The reflection was no longer bound. It was no longer forced to conform itself to the moralities set by its originals. It was no longer required to even act like her, not in the slightest.
Like a hound released after the prey, it now eyed Lacey with its ecstatic eyes.
"Help? Who? You, who cannot even help herself, would try to help someone? Don't make me laugh!" the last sentence was accompanied by a lashing motion from of an arm, creating an arc of lightning that shot across the battlefield with fury. "That pitiful attitude, that pathetic tone, that pointless worry in your eyes...! It is all that what forms your slow-witted self. And it is all that which spells your doom. You will die. You will lose. You will fail. And you have nothing but your stupidity to blame for it."
The cursed book sang, the skies roared, the thunder roamed; lightning came down as arcs that once again wrapped itself around the reflection, this time engulfing her both arms. In the midst of her insane laughter, the power of the storm enveloped to its full potential, bringing forth a wind with it that lifted the fog and sent the debris flying.
Illuminated by the purple light of the crackling energy, the reflection gave a single crushing glare at her original.
"And thus, nothing changed."
Alacia Starward
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:06 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 8
What's happening? Lacey wondered to herself. Every reprieve from the reflection twisted her further and further away from the original. Now as Lacey stared at the caricature in front of her, she couldn't see any more of herself in there.
The look in the eyes of her 'reflection' was unnerving to the young girl. Some unspoken rule was now broken and Lacey couldn't help but feel impending death. More so than when the avalanche of lightning had thundered down on her head.
She couldn't afford to stop now. Her circuits came alive once more. She had used a lot of energy and the drain and fatigue was adding up. She had used up so much prana in the span of a few minutes that every nerve in her body felt like it was on fire. She pushed herself to use more. Once more she muttered the words to actualize a mystery almost faster than she could understand it. Exora!
The prana ran free as it released from her only to immediately sink into her right arm. The biting cold, searing heat and stinging pain gave way to a coolness. The spell didn't completely undo the damage, but at the very least she could control the arm again.
Lacey's heart sank as the crazed caricature of herself laughed, calling down the same spell from before. The beam of certain death that she cheated. But this time, she gripped two of that spell, one in each arm. The smoke and debris from the previous strike was blown away.
And yet Lacey stood firm against it. Even in the face of the glare from her 'double'.
She had no options. She could not run. She was right before when she didn't think she could dodge the spell. There was no way to get out of its range either. She was battered. Even with another dispel, she would not be able to mitigate enough damage let alone stop two of those beams. She palmed a stone from her pocket anyway.
But she wasn't done yet. She didn't want to die here. She wanted to live. And in order to do so, she would have to bet on one small hope. "I... I don't want to die here. I don't think I can stop you from killing me if you wanted." Her voice choked a little and she had to bite back tears of fear at that admission. "But all the same, I want to live. Please, if you're anything like me at all," and she thought back to how mere minutes ago the reflection was an almost perfect copy of herself. "Please help me."
Exora
Wise Up!
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:06 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 9
Nothing but the raging winds and the cracks of thunder answered Lacey's plead. Her eyes, trained right at her reflection, saw no emotion now on the face of the existence. It stood there, arms raised, wrapped in the unearthly energy. Down the ridge of its nose, it looked down, back at Lacey. Like a meeting between a man and a demon, an unholy pact agreed upon that would be only for the door the man... seeing these two, so alike yet so different, face each other would have made anyone gasp in awe."I... I don't want to die here. I don't think I can stop you from killing me if you wanted. But all the same, I want to live. Please, if you're anything like me at all. "Please help me."
"............................................. ..."
An utterly oppressing silence, one eventually broken by the reflection itself as it lowered its hands, and took a single step towards Lacey. Then, another. Then, another. Like walking across a floor of glass in a theater, the reflection made its way towards the real Lacey. Eyes hidden beneath the shadows cast by her hair, power still rumbling yet momentarily subsided... it was truly the approach of a predator, one who would either pounce at the slightest hint of fear, or showcase something truly rare:
Compassion.
"............................................. ..."
Finally, it was there. Before Lacey, as Lacey. Two existences which sprung from a single point, two equals who were nothing but exaggerated reflections of each other. After their battle, the time had come for the two of them to finally stood face-to-face once more.
After all...
What would have been...
More appropriate...
For an execution?
A hand, hungering like a raven's talon, swooped forth. It caught hold of a face so fast that its owner could not react. With the blazing brilliance of the lightning still wrapped around it, the reflection's hand moved faster than Lacey could anticipate. Undeniable power. Unquestionable speed. Unlimited force. This was truly the showcase of the creature's independence, as it lifted the girl up from her face, like a monstrous executor of a far-away kingdom.
"... Nothing but someone made to die," the reflection growled. "Never advancing. Never gaining. Never succeeding. Alas, for she was always left behind in the wake of others."
It was a solemn announcement. The reflection, ignoring all of Lacey's attempts at freeing herself, had lifted the girl up with ease. The pressure put on the girl's head must have been tremendous, as the reflection had done so with a single hand. It was like a prince holding up a skull in a play, looking back at someone they had known long ago, but could not barely recognize. Nothing like recognition was in those eyes anymore. Simply contempt of their very existence.
"One meant to die will have only one end left to her," the reflection said, and tightened her crushing grip on the weakly flailing girl. "You understand that much, don't you?"
The madness had ascended to a state of tranquility, at least for the moment. For there was a task left for that madness to perform. Only then was it allowed to take the final step into the unknown territory.
The lightning screamed. The prana roared. The light illuminated the night, momentarily. The hand grasping rapidly weakening Lacey glowed with ever-growing presence, until it was like a single point of light which one could not look upon. The purple tint only served to remind of that power's origin. Whether it was the magus, the reflection, or something else entirely.
That did not matter anymore, however.
After all...
"And thus..."
... It was the end.
"... Nothing changed."
A sound of impact echoed throughout the battlefield, and leaving behind only the silence of a guillotine after the blade had swung down.
Alacia Starward
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:07 - Night
Day: April 5th
Turn: 10
Lacey's plea was met with silence from the 'reflection'. The spells held in each hand continued to rage, but the reflection itself was silent. After some consideration, it lowered its arms and began walking forward. Its expression was hard to read, but Lacey held out hope for a possible end to this. She was battered and honestly did not know how much more she could take.
Lacey made no move to intercept, unable to properly read the reflection's intentions. It stopped as the two came face to face. Lacey waited for something in her double. There wasn't outright malice at the moment, and the instant that Lacey let her guard down the reflection lashed out with her talon-like hands.
Lacey scrabbled at the hand on her head, but the reflection was stronger and simply lifted the struggling girl off the ground, gripping her by the skull. The angled and twisted hand squeezed down tight and the sharpened tips cut into her flesh. She squirmed and fought, trying to break the grip but she didn't have enough leverage or the sheer strength necessary to do so.
Despite the tremendous strength of her opponent and pressure on her head, Lacey still had a look of defiance on her face. Not like this! her mind screamed as she physically exclaimed trying to fight the pain. She wondered if there was any mercy in her double. She didn't think so. The reflection already knew what it would do. There was no way around it.
The spell that harnessed the destructive force of lightning kicked up once more. Lacey's vision was obscured by the hand that gripped her still, but all the same the proximity of the spell lit up her sight. Lacey's hands stopped fighting and swung down to her sides. She couldn't break the hold. This close with no options, she would be obliterated. The realization of impending death hit the girl harder like a one tonne weight. Death! Her face still scrunched up from pain and effort, she grit her teeth.
As the spell reached its fever pitch, Lacey put all of her remaining strength into her arm and swung, open palm striking bare skin. All of a sudden, the ground rushed at her as she flailed her arms to buffer her fall. Silence reigned as assessed her injuries. Her head throbbed and she was bleeding from several places. Her body was still battered from before, but she could still fight.
She raised her head to look at her reflection. It had stepped back with an expression etched with anger, malice, cruelty but dominating those emotions was a look of surprise.
"Not like that" Lacey practically spat out the words, voice hoarse from screaming. The ground beneath her crunched as she set her legs under her, ready to spring. "I may not be able to stop you if you really wanted to kill me I think, but I will not go down like that. Not without a fight. If you give me the chance, I will fight with everything I have."
Lacey took stock of her options. She was feeling really drained in terms of prana. She doubted she had more than two spells if that left in her. At least she still had a slight augment to her strength and speed. "You better believe me when I say that if it comes down to you or me, I am always going to choose me first. I am not going to give up until I have nothing left to give. If there are no options left, I can be as ruthless as I need to be. So if you want to take me down, you better be ready to carry through."
She couldn't afford to die here. She had friends who were counting on her. She got in over her head with this whole mess, but there was no way she was going to let it end like this without a fight. Her reflection still stood over her. Was still in a position of power. But the look on Lacey's face said that she would do anything and everything necessary to survive this. In a quieter voice, she added "If it hinges on it... I will kill you if I can."
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:07 - Night
Day: April 5th
The rage, the anger, the fury... all of it dissipated with that single sentence. The roaring display of power quieted down abnormally quickly, whisked off by the dying winds. The clouds stopped their dance above and vaporized, leaving behind nothing but the moon bearing witness to the two combatants. Silence that the battlefield had not seen in quite a while descended, and for one electrified moment, nothing moved. No sound, no killing intent, no threat of impending death."If it hinges on it... I will kill you if I can."
All of it disappeared when the innocent girl announced her resolve to ruthlessly trample over someone if it meant her survival... her happiness.
“………………………………………………………………………………………………………….Tha t’s it.”
Thus spoke the reflection, the possibility, the outcome, the one who broke free.
The reflection straightened its back, and slowly it spread out its hands. The book that it had carried melted away into the night, along with the cape. The source of her power was gone. Flesh etched back to the forehead, and peacefully the third eye, only moments ago filled with fury, closed once more. The hair that had been ravaged by the electrified currents straightened out and with the moonlight that shone upon it, it gained back its silk-like texture. And, most importantly, the twisted facial features eased up and the sneer without mercy was replaced by a quiet, solemn smile.
Along with the dying hostility, so had the reflection once again turned back to resemble its owner.
"That's just it, isn't it?" the reflection whispered. "No matter how kind we want to be... there are times when it is simply not an option."
The reflection took a single step towards Lacey, then another. It put its lithe hands upon her shoulders, and most gently, lifted her up from the ground. Now that the two were finally, once more, face-to-face, it was no longer like looking at a broken mirror. Despite their differences, they were still the same existence. Like twins sharing the same soul, or an image of yourself at the back of your mind. Not once during this night had it been clearer than now.
"We want to show kindness, we want to be merciful, we want to help people... but things shouldn't be done that way. They cannot be done that way. They shouldn't be done that way," the reflection continued her gentle admonishing. "Dreams, happiness, brighter future... no matter where we want to go, the road will still be paved with the hopes and lives of the others. And it this those things that we have to trample to continue further. Not out of malice, not out of selfishness... but out of necessity. We must learn to do things simply because they have to be done for us to continue, no matter what anyone says, no matter how hard anyone cries. In other words... we must learn to be ruthless."
Giving a sight that held within it a deep, unfathomably deep sorrow, the reflection looked Lacey straight in the eyes. There was no blame, no pity, no expectation in them... only love; love that human can only show- for him or herself.
"To save someone who does not want to be saved... we must be ruthless. To survive so we can laugh again with our friends... we must be ruthless. To cling to hope so that we are not crushed by despair... we must be ruthless," the reflection spoke. "It is the horrible truth of this world that we must learn, understand and accept. Not for the sake of our own desires, not for the sake of freedom... but for the sake of living how we want to. Even if we are to devote ourselves to other people, we must do what is necessary to continue that service. You understand this... don't you? I know you do. That look in your eyes, announcing my death... there was no hesitation, no concern for my well-being. You simply wanted yourself to live, and for me to die; just so you could see the faces of your loved ones once more."
Then, out of the blue, the reflection caught Lacey in an embrace. It was like a mother would hold a choice, cradling her head and softly petting her head, as if to calm down the last vestiges of fight within her. It was an embrace so full of warmth that many humans only could dream of one.
“I think, therefore I am. My thoughts are myself, therefore my existence is me. But…”
The reflection whispered gently to Lacey's ear.
“…I am not alone.”
Then, tightening her grip only slightly, the reflection sniffled as if it was holding back tears.
"And I'm sorry. I'm... so, so sorry. But sometimes for the sake of not being alone................. we must be ruthless."
Alacia Starward
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:08 - Night
Day: April 5th
Whatever Lacey was expecting as a response, that was not it. She blinked in surprise, but didn't ease the tension in her body. One by one the reflection shed the additions that helped twist the image. The book, the cloak and the eye each faded away in turn. And in the span of moments the reflection was now something that was simply uncanny and all too close to being Lacey without actually being Lacey.
Lacey let herself be helped to her feet by the reflection, still a little unsure about what was going on. The reflection continued speaking.
Slowly, Lacey thought she was beginning to understand. She searched the reflection's eyes. Her own eyes. What she saw was... comforting. Love, acceptance, humanity. Everything she was looking for the entire fight.
Lacey was still processing what her reflection said, comparing it to what she was thinking and how she felt. Yes it was true that she would do whatever it took if it came down to life or death. She would choose herself and then her friends if they were an option over others. That's what she had told herself before. But before it had been academic. She had never been put in that spot before. Until now.
Caught up in her thoughts, Lacey was taken by surprise as the reflection threw its arms around her. Warm was all Lacey could think and feel for a moment. The scene was a strange contrast with Lacey in her battered and dirtied clothes while the reflection was still more or less pristine. She let the tension flow out of her and into the hug.
If ruthlessness was the lesson here, Lacey would always temper it with warmth and compassion when possible. She would do what needed to be done, but she would not throw away her humanity for it.
The reflection whispered in her ear and sniffled. Lacey came to another realization then. When you balance ruthlessness with kindness, all of the hate and pain that you cause is shared between you and your target. Lacey gripped her reflection tight then. "No. Thank you... thank you for teaching me." Unlike her reflection, she didn't hold back her tears. She cried for the pain that her other self suffered. Silently she shed tears for the reflection that had tried to kill her just a short while ago.
Levy is not impressed.
Eco Rider!
Location: Crystal City - Moonlight Circle
Time: 00:08 - Night
Day: April 5th
A breeze flowed through the clearing, but unlike its violent predecessor, this was a gentle one. With it, it brought a certain sense of finality and hope. With that wind, like a phantasm vanquished by the rising morning light, the reflection of Lacey began to slowly fade away. Like a group of fireflies startled by something moving through the grass, she slowly started dissipating from her feet. Still, the supporting weight stayed, though there was no leverage for the reflection to still keep cradling its original.
There is no one that can survive alone in this world. That is why we have friends. That is why we must do anything we can for the sake of those precious friends, no matter how cruel those actions the disappearing reflection spoke. That is why we must be ruthless. To obtain that kindness we so desperately yearn for. And as we accumulate our sins, the only way we can atone for them is to show kindness when we can... but only when we can. It is not about ourselves, never has been. It is about the world. It is about life.
The shoulders of the reflection had already disappeared, but it still lifted Lacey's head gently, and wiped away her tears with her fingers. Then, showing a compassion that could only be found in a girl named Alacia Starward, boundlessly kind, she planted a soft kiss on her forehead. In that moment, a sharp warmth in Lacey's hand informed her of the appearance of her reward: three red marks, pulsating with power. Her Command Spells. Her proof of being a Master.
It is about the bonds between friends.
And with the last words of the reflection still echoing in the air, it disappeared completely, Laceys body absorbing the energy it released.
I hope you will do better
And so, lacey stood alone in the clearing.
-------------------------------------VICTORY
To Another World!
Alacia Starward
Master Level: 1
SP Earned: 1
AP Earned: 15
Items Acquired: 1
~Command Spells~
Your proof as a Master
-------------------------------------
Suddenly, the direction of the wind changed.
Suddenly, the force of the wind changed.
Suddenly, the fragrance of the wind changed.
Like a gust from the ages past, a whirlwind straight out of a storybook, the wind rushed around Lacey with the invigorating atmosphere of legends filling the world around her. Prana soared towards the skies like a fanfare of victory, announcing that a new chosen one had been born on that very moment. It was an inaudible, uplifting tune, enough to fill the heart marred with sorrow with hope unparalleled. The crystals began to shine with deep power, reflecting the light from Lacey's hand.
It was then that it appeared. A figure forming in the middle of the wind, bringing with it the scent of deserts and magic, knowledge so deep that it would shake the world of the young girl now bound to that formidable existence. The crystals came alive, and on their surface, a myriad of characters, symbols and numbers ran like a wildfire.
In that storm of information, once batch of information was clearer than any other.
DOWNLOAD: 100%
SUMMONING COMPLETE
INITIALIZING
SERVANT CASTER
The wind roared. The wind raged. And from inside that wind, cleaving it in two with his mere presence
A person stepped forward.
And spoke the words
I ask thee. Art thou my Master?
Felix Caelum
Location: Crystal City
Time: 23:40 - Night
Day: April 8th
The night air was cool in the Crystal City tonight, it might not have been my best idea to bring nothing along but the clothes on my back and my mind. Yet it seemed that the planned had worked out, the only sound in the city was the howling of the wind before dying down again. Even then, if trouble did come up, there was always the backup plan...though hopefully it wouldn't have to come to that. Better to just get this over with quickly before something happened though...
This would be all in vain if I was wrong. The 'hint' that Firo had given me made no sense at first but after putting it together with what I already knew, I did come to one conclusion. It certainly was a 'test of knowledge' as he put it but not in the sense I understood then, now did I pass the test? It was time to find out,
The city itself was already like something from another world in the day but at night it felt even more so, still something like this wasn't going to make me run and even then I'm already in too deep to even think about it. Continuing forward, I arrived at the first step of the test: one of the many crystal pillars that littered the city, in the day I wouldn't think much of it but at night the blue crystal, illuminated by the moonlight, was different just like the rest of the city. My instincts seemingly roared at me as if there was an unseen danger here but at this point I couldn't heed such a warning and so I looked forward at the crystal.
And as I gazed at the pillar, what greeted me was my reflection.
But there was something...wrong to it.
The eyes. Blue like my own but seemingly blazing with prana stared back at me.
This had to be a part of one of those mysteries people were going on about, but other then those eyes, everything else seemed to be in order. The clothes, stance, headphones, everything was a perfect mirror of myself other then the eyes, it was after all just a reflection.
Shrugging to myself and crossing my arms, at the same time a flash of red danced across my reflection before hiding away.
It couldn't be?
As I uncrossed my arms, the red anomaly appeared once more, clearly etched into my right hand. Still unbelieving, I lifted my right hand up up to the crystal as if to dispel any doubt I might still have on what I was seeing. There I saw a symbol, something that I had only heard about the Holy Grail War but a key part of it.
Command Seals. Blazing red in the reflection, elaborate patterns intertwined with one another to roughly form an image, an image of a sword.
Now, the pieces of this puzzle were falling into place, it was time for the next step of this 'ritual'. Fishing my HECATE phone out of my pocket, I stared at it for a moment, considering just what could happen next.
Steeling myself, I slid open the pure black phone, the screen lighting up as I did so. My ever present reflection did the same, slowly the time ticked closer to midnight. Even as my instinct continued to advise me against it, I looked back at my phone.
There would be no second chances if I missed it here, with a few quick taps I was ready the code I had managed to figure out was on screen.
1212333454
As the minutes passed, there was only silence and then as the hour finally arrived, taking a deep breath, I steeled myself for what might happen next.
And then hit dial.
Location: Crystal City
Time: 23:46 - Night
Day: April 8th
The phone rang once.
It rang twice.
It rang thrice.
A click echoed in Felix's ears as the call was finally picked up. The sound itself was not loud, but in the silence of the city, it rang as loudly as a gong hit by a gigantic mace. For a moment, nothing but calm breathing could be heard from the other end, perfectly in synchronization with Felix's own breathing. But then, after giving a barely audible sigh, the one who had received the call began talking.
"Hello. This is Felix Caelum."
The lips of the reflection move. It spoke. Unlike Felix, who stayed silent, his reflection clearly and audibly spoke out, though the voice could only be heard in the phone. However, while the movements of the lips were a perfect mimicry of how Felix himself would have acted, there was something clearly wrong, obvious from the first syllable: the voice, while familiar in all aspects to the boy, contained a lying undertone of something else. Something that should not have been there, something that sounded almost unnatural to be coming from Felix's mouth.
It was apathy and scorn, mixed into a blend of indifference to the world around the speaker.
"... Figures.here at last. Despite everything,I'mYou'remade it here. Not that it makes any difference, of course. Truth andIyounever went hand in hand, did they?" the reflection spoke. "Yet, despite everything,IyoucarriedIyoucarcass here... congratulations?"Myyour
Putting the phone between its shoulder and ear, and tilting its head to the right, the reflection began a slow, almost mocking clap at Felix. While the sound itself did not pass through the crystal surface that separated the two, it could still be heard quietly from the receiver of the phone. Eventually, after a few uninterested claps, the reflection stopped, and furrowed its brow a little bit.
"What, were you expecting something more? A fanfare? Sorry, but that's allgonna get. Try being a better person next time, wouldI'myou're?" the reflection lazily pat out those words. "But it's not like it matters, is it? No matter what happens,Iyouknow the end result."Iyou
The reflection allowed itself to slump forward, letting its forehead bump against the surface of the crystal, leaning against it. Then, it heaved an audible, tired sigh.
"Everything will be back to square one soon enough, right?"
Felix Caelum
Location: Crystal City
Time: 23:50 - Night
Day: April 8th
The phone rang and rang until there an audible click confirmed that someone had picked up on the other end, however the only indication that someone actually was on the other end was what seemed to be breathing as if synchronization with my own. Continuously, I shifted my focus between the crystal and the surroundings, regardless how well this may had been set up I couldn't help but feel that something-
"Hello. This is Felix Caelum."
A voice that sounded like my own yet wasn't suddenly spoke from the phone. No, it would be wrong to simply say it was just that, from the corner of my eye I saw the reflection itself speak, as if having a life of its own. Now all my attention was focused on this 'reflection', if one could even call it that any more. Whatever it was, it had gotten my full attention now, and with that continued on.
"... Figures.here at last. Despite everything,I'mYou'remade it here. Not that it makes any difference, of course. Truth andIyounever went hand in hand, did they?" the reflection spoke. "Yet, despite everything,IyoucarriedIyoucarcass here... congratulations?"Myyour
'He' continued to speak with a voice so familiar yet foreign and as if done, some words about truth that made no sense as is and such. I could simply stare at the reflection as he continued on talking though apparently not satisfied with that, began to clap, mockingly with a bored look on its face and almost as if trying to be rid of my presence. When there was no indication I'd move on or impressed by the demonstration, with a furrowed brow it addressed me again with the same tone as before.
"What, were you expecting something more? A fanfare? Sorry, but that's allgonna get. Try being a better person next time, wouldI'myou're? But it's not like it matters, is it? No matter what happens,Iyouknow the end result."Iyou
"What are you talking about? Better person? End result?"
Without a bother, the reflection slumped forward without a care and rested his head on the crystal as he continued to look at me. There was no reply to my question, just a silence as I waited for it to speak again. A moment passed before the reflection spoke again, the burning blue eyes staring at me the entire time.
"Everything will be back to square one soon enough, right?"
Again, another line that made no sense...though there was little chance I was going to get an explanation from this talking reflection I had to try again.
"And what is square one? Is it even possible to get back to this 'square one' after moving forwards?"
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