Titanomachy (IC)

[RacingeR]

Group 5: Sally, Adam, Jordan, Lizbeth, Shelia, Sarah
Location: The Hall – Left Flank
Morale: 55, Students: 11

Adam:

You stepped towards the monster, defiance impressed in your every movement. It was the last move of a dangerous game, not quite sink or swim, but something still dangerous. You stopped in front of the monster, provoking it to attack you with all of its might.

And the monster complied, in a way that you hadn’t expected it to. Instead of instantly attacking you from this distance, it jumped backwards at the same time its aura augmented in intensity to a level that resembled its attack from before. Having placed itself at enough distance from you to avoid your counter, it unleashed the massive current of power upon your person.

Battle calculation

Faceless One’s Speed
-18 (Rotten Burst’s SPD) > 12 (Adam’s EVA)
Faceless One’s Attack
-50 (Faceless One’s (SPI+5)x2 – 27 (Adam’s SDEF) = 23 damage.
Adam’s HP: 58 – 23 = 35 HP

Compared to all the wounds you had received until this point, this was almost easy to bear, although the pain inflicted by the enemy’s spell was enough to almost make you drop to your knees. However, your indomitable will was still burning strong, and you found within yourself the strength to continue forwards. Wounds and injuries, even the budding exhaustion that was menacing to take over your body, none of that mattered. All that was left was to crush the monster that had made the mistake to push you so far.

Man Mode activated

Why the Faceless One… no, Legion, had not employed the stronger attack instead of this one, became obvious when you took a look to your side. One of the students, that had been way too near you, had also been hit by the attack, and had succumbed to his wounds.

You prepared yourself for the second throw of this fight… but that never came. A pair of hands had come from behind, grabbed the monster’s head, and twisted it nearly off from the rest of the body with sheer brute strength. Silently, the creature dropped to the floor, all movement ceasing at once.

Faceless One has been slain

The one standing behind the slain zombie was none other than Sally, your bodyguard. Covered in wounds and blood, she had nonetheless managed to drag herself to protect her protégé. Not that you had needed the protection at this last moment… but time was running out. You had to continue forward now or perish.

-----

What remained of group 5 bunched up together. Jordan, Sarah and Adam, bleeding, wounded, but having managed to take care of all their enemies. Sally was there, and so was Lizbeth, also heavily wounded after her clash with the zombies. Of the normal students that had accompanied you to the fight, only ten remained, tired and wounded, but still grasping their battered weapons and obeying your commands. Shelia, meanwhile… it seemed that while Jordan’s words had reassured her somewhat, her attitude was all but gone. All she had done was to meekly follow behind him and Adam, silently sunk in her own thoughts, waves of gloom coming from her. It seemed that at least for the moment, you’d have to do without her cheer.

As one, you charged forward towards through the darkness, and towards the last group of zombies, killing and dispersing most of them with ease. Only a few had been left behind harassing the terrified group of humans trapped behind enemy lines, and they were taken care of pretty easily. What was behind them… was a group that had once been a hundred persons, now reduced to a bit less than half. As you arrived, messages gotten through your telepathic link indicated that group 1 had also accomplished their objective.

It was time for the counter-attack.

Robert Dawkins and Angeline Skyes
Location: The Hall – Left Flank

Your day had started normal enough. Since classes were out, you had quickly returned to your room and started your internet crusade anew. You had been busy posting arguments against a particularly obnoxious ‘rival’ of sorts who had even chosen the handle ‘LoveMachine’, presumably to get in your nerves even more. You had been penning a furious answer that implied (subtly, in your always objective opinion) that his mother had screwed a regiment of drunken orangutans whose combined prowess had sired him, when the world, presumably in complete agreement with you, had gone completely batshit insane. It probably was unable to accept so much wrong in the Internet and had collapsed.

Waking up in the big Hall of your school surrounded by terrified students and terrifying fucking zombies of all things had not been a very pleasant experience. The undead creatures had not attacked you or your group, and you personally had seen how more students of Zeus High School kept spawning, one after the other, in the floor, only to be awakened and face the horror. You had seen a boy, member of that gang of red-haired shitheads, attempt to escape from the zombies, only to be ripped member-by-member by the horde. That had put an end to any attempt to escape by the people around you.

The time you had spent there, in the darkness, wondering when you’d be all devoured by the surely ravenous horde, was impossible to measure, and all you remembered was a nightmarish stretch of time in which people had barely talked, awaiting sure death. You had seen that another group of humans had been formed away from this one, and then you had seen how another, bigger group had entered through the Hall’s doors and had started to fight the zombies. You had heard Legion’s announcement as if they had spoken to your mind, and then darkness fell, taking away the vision of other groups, and the monsters surrounding you had started to attack and massacre everything on their path.

And at some point, during the violent struggle that had ensued… you had become something else, something very different than a normal human. You had obtained a power, via means unknown, a means to participate in this fight despite your dismal physical capacities. How, you did not know, although you were sure that you had received yours when someone else had used their power near you.

You were now in the backlines of the fighting, standing near one of the few people that you knew here, Angeline Skyes. A NEET girl, and over all things, a genius hacker who had managed to notice your identity through your website. Nearby, near the frontlines, you could see that loudmouth of Howlitzer fighting the enemies, as well as that white-haired girl, a new arrival in your class whose name you did not know. And then, slightly behind were the two track team girls… those five were the only ones apart from you that had powers (although you weren’t very sure of how you knew that, apart from the fact that Howlitzer was firing blasts of electricity).

All of a sudden, there were no more zombies, and soon other humans, battered and covered with wounds, approached your group. Easily enough, you deducted it was a splinter of the ‘army’ that had entered through the doors, probably in an attempt to rescue you and those like you, trapped by this ‘Legion’ as you were.

And the moment these thoughts crossed your mind… something else connected with you, and in the inside of your brain, you started to hear Rose’s words…

NPC info!

Angeline Skyes:
A genius hacker of worldly renown... although not a very well known figure in Zeus High School thanks to her extremely reclusive attitude, as she only ever leaves her room to attend to class, which she just attends enough to have the minimal assistances required to pass. Her ability with programming and hacking is so insane that for most people, she looks like some sort of electronic wizard. Her personality and attitude are very deadpan, and she is a person that is very hard to shake, and not someone very prone to show emotions.
She hacked Robert's website on a whim, and contacted him upon learning they attended the same school. Apparently, Robert amuses her, which is probably the closest Angeline can express as being "friendly"
Relationships: Robert = 2.

-----

Rescue Group
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (The Final Push– 4th Floor)
Time: Day 1 – Evening
Zeus High School vs Legion
Turn 7

“We are almost there.” Rose’s first words were spoken directly to the mind of each one of the humans still alive in The Hall.

“We have finally rescued those who were trapped by our enemy… no, that is not true, we haven’t rescued anyone yet, because first, we have to rescue ourselves. We cannot fight Legion here. If this continues, we’ll be overwhelmed. Our only hope is to get out of the room and fight our enemy in a more advantageous place. And the only route of escape possible is through the door of the Hall.” She continued speaking, barely pausing to take a breath.

“We have to power through Legion’s blockade. Our enemy is not an idiot… it knows what will we do. We will have to break through with all of our strength… it is the only way we have to survive.”

Moved by these words, and the orders she started to transmit, the newly joined groups followed the left flank and the vanguard groups, all of who quickly integrated themselves into the core, and started advancing forwards, towards the barrier in front of the door. Legion did nothing to impede these movements, having now retreated the majority of its troops back towards the blockade. Apart from the Hand attacking Taichi’s group, there were at least four golems in the blockade, two other Hands, and a construct that resembled a gigantic foot in the very center of the blockade. Legion only had a handful of adult zombies left, which were used to hold the extremes of the barrier, but it still possessed many Ghouls, distributed along the line. An avalanche of zombies still attacked the right flank, covering the reinforcements creeping in from the room’s right.

“Those in the right flank, keep defending it, and move the superhumans to the frontlines! Those who excel at fighting up close, charge ahead! Those who possess ranged powers, cover them! The normal students will keep moving along with you all! The enemy has to hold the entire barrier, while we only need to break a point in it to escape. They might outpower us, but we have the strongest will, the will to survive alongside our friends! Keep going ahead!”

And with these final words… the telepathic link was finally broken. Back in the core group, Rose held the unconscious Bryanna with her right arm. It had been too much effort for the poor girl, who had finally lost consciousness after linking up with the rescued. No… on the first place, Bryanna didn’t possess the capacity to link up with so many people. In Rose’s opinion… she was like Rika and Alexandra… obtaining power through a source completely unknown to her. However, that power had vanished, and what was left was a weakened girl whose mind had almost snapped to help accomplish her objective.

“You did well” Alexander approached her, covered with wounds, but alive. She smiled at him weakly, comforted by the presence of the man she loved. However, the smile soon vanished, replaced by worry and sadness. There had been so many dead because of her expedition, and so many of those who had been under her charge had perished following her orders, because of her orders…

There was a sound near Alexander. A sound that resembled the crackle of TV static.

“What was that sound?” She asked, looking around.

“Hm? What sound?” asked Alexander, also looking around with confusion visible on his face.

“… It must have been just my imagination. I’m kinda tired, I guess…” Rose attempted to smile again. “Take care out there, please!”

“I will. I have to go now… the fight is about to start.”

“Yeah… see ya later.” Rose mumbled at his back as he walked away from her.

The battle was starting again.

It was time to break through.

Wise up!

Name: Legion
Race: Undead
Attributes: Unliving, Hivemind
Spiritual Rank: -10

HP: 20 x Horde Number (currently, 20 x 313 = 6260)
SP: ???

STR: 35
AGI: 35

Perks:

Painless One [Unliving Trait]
As an undead being that has abandoned the realm of the living, this creature is now a shambling monstrosity, a decayed spirit moving the decayed husk of what used to be its body. Due to this, undead beings are unable to feel any pain, no matter how much their body is battered. Breaking their limbs is useless, as only complete destruction of said limb would be able to stop them from using it. Their body will keep going no matter how gruesome or severe the wounds are, until it is damaged enough to become unable to serve as a vessel for the decayed spirit.

Terrorize
The ghoulish, uncanny visage of what used to be an human being is able to terrify even the most valiant of humans, reducing all their physical stats by one. Only those who possess defenses against mental attacks of the Terror type are able to focus enough on their own survival to ignore the sight before them. Only affects those with Human Attribute.

Will of the Horde [Hivemind Trait]
All Decayed Beings under control of Legion are standardized to have 20 HP. Meanwhile, creatures of lower Spiritual Rank have the HP multiplied by said Rank (for example, Ghouls have 40 HP). They conserve all their other stats and abilities intact, but their Terrorize ability is reduced to the Terrorize perk if they had a higher form of it. Same happens with Painless One if the undead creatures happened to have an evolved form of said trait. There might be other reductions suffered by higher forms of undead that come under control of Legion, but those are unknown.

Bad Company
Given that all of the zombies of the horde are under control of a single, composite mind, they are able to move and attack in a very coordinated manner, like they were all different limbs of the same body. Furthermore, their sheer number is able to easily overwhelm targeted enemies, meaning that facing the horde alone means unavoidable death. For every two undead creature controlled by Legion near a target, said target have their AGI and EVA reduced by one, and for every single one the undead have their STR boosted by 1. Furthermore, if a target wanders away from allied company or is separated from their allies, their stamina loss is heavily augmented, and the stats reduction counts for every undead instead of counting for every two of them.

As One
Legion is an amalgamation of uncountable souls into one, with the bodies being all left to the control of the resulting ‘creature’, a will that is embodied into each one of these decayed shells. Being basically all part of a single creature, they are able to act directly as if they were one being, ‘fusing’ with one each other to form shapes composed by their bodies, which are able to accomplish more than the sum of their parts. Different shapes have different effects. Damage caused to said shapes hits the undead composing them directly, and once half of the zombies composing the shape is dead, the shape is undone.
[The Hand – Requires 30 zombies. Forms a hand shape which deals STR AoE damage when attacking, and can trap one or many targets between its grip, smothering and crushing them for STR damage while leaving them unable to act]
[The Fist – A special attack done by The Hand. Sacrifices one third of the total zombies to deal a STR x2 AoE attack]
[The Foot – Requires 50 zombies. Forms a foot shape that deals STR x1.5 AoE damage when attacking]

Labyrinthine Darkness
By becoming an accumulation of massive amounts of spiritual energy, Legion has become an entity that passively affects the world around it, creating a labyrinth of spiritual darkness on its surrounding area, that parts said area in many little sections, creating what can only be called a veritable labyrinth. This darkness possesses the property of absorbing sounds and vibrations, making it impossible to hear of perceive anything through it, although intense vibrations or sounds (like a dragon roaring) might be able to go through. One can walk through the darkness, as it is immaterial, but without some sort of reference, one will get quickly lost. Luck-based skills may be able to reduce the effect somewhat.

[Kuroyuki]

Kyle Dunn | HP: 70/70 SP: 0/195 | Self: 90
Location: The Hall – Center
Morale: 80, Students: 17/30 | Turn: 8

I was closely watching the battlefield when I noticed that all of the enemies withdrew from my knight's group. So they decided to give up on pressuring us to accelerate their blockade. That's both good and bad for us. Good because we have reached the trapped groups and we only have to present our force in one direction. Bad because they got their objective still which means we are dealing with a prepared enemy.

I was going to order our forces into an arrowhead formation converging on the Foot of the Legion through the mental link but it seems like person using it has hit their limits. A king should direct his forces to victory from the back. It's only logical because at the front you cannot see the whole picture. However, I liked using this phrase during a chess match. 'If the king does not lead, how can he expect his subordinates to follow.' I turned to Rachel before I started.

"Rachel. I'm going to lead our forces directly at the front. I believe that you can defeat the Legion's strategies even without my help."

I turn away and start ordering people around for a rough plan.

"Send out messengers to each of the groups! We need to form an arrowhead formation for maximum initial penetration of the Legion's blockade! Tell them shift to the right side and aim for its hand. Only engage the ghouls and golems as needed!"

Hm. It's also time for my pawn to be promoted. Since we're focusing on penetrating power, there is no piece more apt than the Rook.

"Promote Pawn to Rook."

I sprint to Group 4 to tell them of my rough plan. However before I could reach my knight and her comrades, I found a zombie blocking my way to them. There was a group of normals coming to fight it, but I can help them a little bit! I run towards the zombie and slice at it with my knife. Instead of stopping and fighting it, I continue on until I meet up with my knight.

"Hello my knight and Group 4. I am Kyle Dunn the Black King. I have devised a rough plan that will help us break out the Legion's blockade."

I then gave them my rough plan to shift our units right in an arrowhead formation.

"So any questions before our forces organize themselves for this plan?"

Wise Up!

Kyle Dunn
HP: 70
SP: 0/195

Attributes:

• Enhanced Human
• Unbound

Strength: 9 + 3 (?) + 3 (Leadership) = 15 + 1 (Knife) = 16
Defense: 9 + 3 (?) + 3 (Leadership) = 15
Spirit: 15 x 2 (Game: King) = 30
Spiritual Defense: 11
Agility: 13 + 3 (Black) + 3 (Leadership) = 19
Evasion: [13 / 2 (Game: King)] + 3 (Black) + 3 (Leadership) = 13

Perks:

??? - ???

Black Doesn’t Have A Disadvantage (Focus): Most chess analysts say that White has a significantly better win chance even when a chess game is played perfectly by both sides. However, Blake seems to subvert this analysis. When Blake moves later than an enemy, he’s given a slight insight into the enemy’s strategy/attack pattern allowing him to dodge better. This analyzation is from his brief study of body language and psychology. This perk works as a normal analyzation perk when he moves first.
[Whenever Kyle’s turn is after the enemy’s, he gains a +5 to his EVA, and gains insight into the enemy’s attack patterns and tactics. It also allows to analyze the enemy and obtain information and hints regarding them, as a normal analyst perk.]

If the King Does Not Lead, How can He Expect His Subordinates to Follow?: A rather interesting playstyle for someone who generally looks down on his opponents. If Kyle makes the first move against the enemy, it inspires those fighting with him and make them more likely to listen to his orders.

[Whenever fighting enemies, Kyle’s allies gain a general +1 to all their stats. Whenever Kyle moves first of all against the enemy, said allies get another +1 to their stats along with a +1 to their general rolls]



Awakened Power:

Game of the Black King (Support): Game of the Black King is best classified as a support power due to the fact that Kyle typically designates himself as the “King.” Kyle designates who becomes a King. The King has their spirit doubled but their evasion goes down by half (2x SPI. ½ EVA). The king then decides who becomes Pawns (1.25 times all stats), Rooks (1.5 * STR/DEF)), Bishops (1.5 * SPI/SDEF), and Knights (1.5 * AGI/EVA). A queen is only available after each piece was used at least once (2 times all stats).
[A person can have only a single piece buff on them, and Kyle has 8 pawn pieces, 2 rook pieces, 2 bishop pieces, 2 knight pieces, 1 queen piece and 1 king piece. Using a Pawn piece costs 20 SP, using any other piece costs 35 SP. The piece buffs remain until dispelled.]

Castling (Rook/King): A rook and a king can swap positions if they are reasonably nearby. [Costs 15 SP to use. Can only be used if they are on a maximum distance of 300 meters of each other.

Polished Diamond (Pawn): After six turns, the king can promote one of his pieces to a Rook, Bishop, or Knight. Instead of the normal one and a half (1.5x) times bonus, they receive a 1.8 times bonus to their stats.

Shock and Awe (Knight): A knight’s initial attack towards an enemy does one and half (1.5x) times more damage and has a chance to demoralize them.

Impregnable Bulwark (Rook): For a single turn, this rook is invulnerable to physical damage. This ability can only be used once a day. [Costs 40 of the user’s SP.]

Black Magick (Bishop): In addition to their normal power boosts, a bishop gains a magic spell.

• Dark Arrow: A simple magic attack that allows the user to form a dark arrow to attack their enemies. Each attack does (¼ * SPI) and costs 5 SP. The good thing about such a weak attack is that the user can launch multiple arrows at the same time. [A maximum of 6 Dark Arrows can be launched at the same time.]

True Power (Queen): The queen has had time to polish her skills whether it be making tea, negotiating with the enemy, or even defending the king. All of the queen’s skills, perks, or techniques have been improved and are more likely to succeed.

[I3uster]

Robert Dawkins | HP: 100/100 SP: 130/130| Self: 90
Location: The Hall – Left Flank

Physical excellence in itself was a contributing factor to the human superiority. Everybody (or at least the rational kind of people that believed in evolution and not some kind of set of primitive brainwashing rites) would know this. The endurance hunting hunters of primitive tribes had done in the darkest of times sustained the human race, fed it and nourished it. And yet we learned to adapt and select, slowly elevating our most excellent trait over them all. Our intelligence.

In this particular moment my sharpened intellect told me something else. This time, in this bizarre microcosm beyond human understanding (at this point, I must add. There is nothing that we could not in the end comprehend and fit back into our world view. Adaptibility, our strength, is after all also the strength of our greatest achievement, science. But I digress.) physical strength and endurance was again our most sought-after trait.

Because of this, I understood that my next move had to be one that I would despise. I would work against the hand of nature as it was in the process of delivering a great show of irony. The buffoon who relied on this relic of the past, the physical, would die at the hands of beings that clearly did not care for his meager display at all.

His words, meant probably to impress us more than his opponent, were clumsily chosen, probably from some kind of summer blockbuster action movie or whatever entertained his plebeian mind. And if it were not for my grace, he would die with them being the last ones he uttered.

But well, that would have been an emotional reaction. And a true renaissance man like me, who strived to become the best he possibly can, beyond societies ideals of "fairness", beyond good and evil, could not let his emotions act for him. My ratio had won this battle, and I hope it will do so with all further ones.

As I fixed the position of my trilby in a more comfortable one, I brace myself. For what I was about to do did not come free. It came to me easily, the toll it took on my power itself was small, but oh was that reward bittersweet.

And what else was I supposed to do? Heap the pain upon the members of the fairer sex that accompanied us?

"H-hey, Adam or...whatever. You should...get up. I'll take a bit...of that...you know...the...shit."

He understood what I meant, and that was what counted.

I point my left index finger at the boy, the other at myself. That was all I needed. And I braced myself for the incoming pain.

Transferred 76 HP to Adam

Spoiler:

Abilities:

Specialty: Support

Spiritual Power: The Red Pill
Being an always objectively thinking intellectual that knows when and by whom sacrifices have to be made, Bob utilizes this ability to grant his group a massive tactical advantage. While at first sight a healing ability it does nothing to actually make an affliction or wound disappear, as they are simply shifted on another willing target. Allows for the reallocation of wounds and maladies among willing participants without limit (= can put any amount of HP from character A into character B, SP cost depending on HP amount). Even the slightest bit of willing resistance stops this ability from working.

Further it allows the reallocation of spiritual power between willing participants. While this part of the ability does not cost SP in itself, the transmission is not fully efficient, so the sent SP are not equal to the received ones. As before even the slightest bit of active resistance stops this ability.
[For every 5 HP shifted around, 2 SP are paid]
[For every 5 SP transmitted, 1 SP is lost]
[Shifting around Level 1 Wounds costs 20 SP, and shifting around Level 2 Wounds costs 40 SP]
[To shift Bleeding Level 1, the target it is being shifted to needs to lose 10 HP, and for Level 2, it needs to lose 20 HP. Shifting Level 1 costs 10 SP, and Level 2 costs 20 SP]

[Bloble]

Jordan J. Jones | HP: 30/70 SP: 30/90 | Self: 90
Location: The Hall – Final Push
Turn 7

He ran.

Exhausted, wounded, and drained in ways he didn't even know existed, Jordan ran.

It was a comforting feeling, despite the pain it brought, because when Jordan ran, he was in control.

In his arms was a girl who would have much rather not been there. He hadn't given her a choice.

Jordan stopped next to a weary Rose and deposited Shelia gently onto the ground, making sure she could stand. "Yo," he said to their leader. "Mind watching her for a bit? I think she's done enough today. Any more fighting wouldn't be a good idea. Maybe she can help you yell out orders or something."

He didn't doubt that Shelia would follow orders, but Jordan had seen that look before. Sometimes people simply reached their limit as human beings. It happened during the game, it happened during war, and it happened in any high-stress life-or-death situation. This was as far as she could go. Shelia's eyes were almost empty. They opened widely, taking in everything and doing absolutely nothing to filter it, resulting in the equivalent of an automaton with the bare minimum of will necessary to take orders and keep moving. The personality that occupied her body wasn't there anymore, or it had been so shocked by the events it'd had to process that it was stunned. He hoped it was the latter and not the former.

Either way, he wasn't going to expose someone in such a vulnerable state to any more of the toxin that was Legion, no matter how useful their abilities were.

Then Jordan forced another tired grin onto his face. If he wasn't careful with them, he was going to start running out. "And... nice speech," he told Rose. "If we make it out of this, I'll owe you one."

"But right now, I've got a plan."

Perhaps Rose had an objection. Certainly, she'd said what she could, knowing what she knew. Her orders had been solid and easy to understand, with very little in the way of flaws. The Student Council was essentially running the show thanks to their advanced knowledge and management experience, and because they were the most qualified ones for the job. They hadn't failed even once.

And yet, in the eyes of Jordan J. Jones a spark had appeared. A small thing, nurtured by war and suffering, grown from the taste of defeat and victory and pain. Something men had killed for, and others would go their entire lives without glimpsing. One of the frailest and greatest things one could have.

Rose, with her talent for leading others, recognized it immediately, and knew nothing she could say would change Jordan's mind.

It was the same thing that led certain great people throughout history. What had driven Jeanne d'Arc to save her country. What had brought Ghandi to start his peaceful protests. And... the same insane spark that had allowed dictators to slaughter millions without remorse.

It was absolute, unshakeable certainty.

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

It was a cold day, and Jordan's shoulder burned.

He wasn't sure what was wrong with it, but it couldn't be anything small. Whenever he tried to move the limb, there was a resistance, and it felt as if he was rubbing sandpaper on raw muscle. He didn't try to move it anymore.

Lavrenti looked it over, and nodded to himself. He paced around the locker room until he was facing the battered runner. "Heads up," he said.

Jordan looked up. One of his eyes was almost swollen shut. His good arm pressed an ice pack to it. "What's the verdict, doc?" he asked.

"Go see the nurse, that's the verdict," his captain said. "I'm not a doctor."

"Then is it-?"

"Not dislocated," Lavrenti said, leaning against one of the closed lockers. "I can tell that much. But I don't think you'll be using it for a while. Shouldn't be any permanent damage though."

Jordan seemed to deflate, a long sigh escaping his lungs as the fear he'd been nursing was blown away into the cool AC. "Fuck," he concluded. "Fuck."

"Don't get all mopey. I've seen people with worse laugh it off a week later."

"Adam ain't people."

"Adam wouldn't have been hurt in the first place, doing what you were doing back there." The harsh, accusing implication Jordan was waiting for didn't materialize. His captain was as calm and collected as ever. "Of course, he wouldn't have been smart enough to try it. Stupid enough, maybe, but you're not stupid."

"I feel stupid." Jordan admitted. His eye, shoulder, and head throbbed in a bizarre rhythm he couldn't quite seem to capture.

Lavrenti shrugged. "You feel what you feel. I'm telling you it wasn't a bad play."

Jordan laughed, and then winced as the movement agitated his wounds. "A play? I just acted on my own." He was a complete mess. Muddied, bloodied, and exhausted.

"You got the lineman off of our receiver. He got the game-winning touchdown. It worked. Granted, as a runner, that's a pretty bad move, but..."

Jordan looked up again. His mouth was set in a line. "But?"

Lavrenti looked at his runner, mind running. Eventually, he delivered his conclusion. "You're not exactly an ordinary runner."

"'Course not. I'm the best."

"You're not a runner at all."

A chill swept through Jordan's body, and it wasn't from the ice pack or the adrenaline leaving his bloodstream. "Are you... you kickin' me off the team, Captain?"

"No, I'm putting you in as a reserve QB."

It was the last answer he'd expected. After completely failing at his assigned role and almost costing them the game, the last thing Jordan thought he'd be getting was a transfer to a completely different role. "I... I'm a runner, Cap. That's it," Jordan said, not sure what else to say.

"I know runners," Lavrenti wasn't convinced. "A runner runs, occasionally passes or catches, and that's it. You observe. You scan. You've got an awareness of the field most in your place don't. I was expecting you to apply for a Quarterback position at the beginning of the year, based on your performance at the tryouts, but you went straight for the simplest one instead. I'm fixing that."

"C-cap, I'm a runner." Jordan didn't know why, but he was begging. "Don't take that away from me. I promise I'll never go outside the rails again. I'll keep my eyes and my head on the ball and nothing else."

Lavrenti frowned. "Jones," he said at length. "I'm telling you that it's not your legs I want, it's your brain. You've got talent, and you're squandering it. You're a thinker. Acting like an idiot isn't going to make that go away."

Jordan stood up abruptly. His eyes were down again. When his head came back up, it was sporting an awkward grin. "Sorry, Captain," Jordan said. "I'm gonna see the nurse now. If you want me off the team, let me know. But all I can do is run. That's it. If it ain't enough, then go ahead and kick me out."

"Don't be afraid of yourself, Jones." Lavrenti's parting words chased him as he fled.

As Jordan limped out of the locker room, his mind stung more than his body. Because he knew that Lavrenti was right, and it terrified him.

A leader? A thinker? No, he couldn't become that. It would mean caring for lives other than his own, and Jordan J. Jones simply couldn't do such a thing. It wasn't in him to withstand that kind of pressure.

Him, leading others?

Him, coordinating movements?

Him, taking responsibility for the team's victories and losses?

Maybe when Hell froze over. Until then, all he could do was run.

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

Hell was freezing, but Jordan's mind burned in tune with his body. For once, everything was perfectly synchronized. He let the almost inaudible beat sweep him along, running smoothly with the flow instead of against it. He'd been famous for that kind of run as a football player, but now it was the only thing keeping him alive.

That, and his brain.

The fear was gone, Jordan realized. His own hesitation had been one of the things discarded with the Self that had been lost. It was the reason he'd kept going, the reason he could fight so fiercely after a lifetime of pacifism. It was the reason he was still alive.

And now, without it clouding his thoughts, he could see.

Variables. Equations. Paths outlined in gold and grey. Possible strategies. Pros and Cons. Jordan's mind burned. It burned because for the first time in his life it'd been pressed to the limit. He took in everything. Every word that had been transmitted over their mental link, every single detail he'd seen or felt from Legion, ever minute speck of information that could possibly be of use to him shone like a firefly in the night. Perhaps Rose's blessing was doing even more for him than he'd initially expected. The awareness that he'd been holding back was brighter than ever.

It came, fully formed, out of that mess. An ideal path. Not perfect, but as close as one could get with that level of mental acuity. It was an answer that had been birthed by a being driven to its limits.

Thus, Jordan knew exactly what to do.

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

First stop was Alexander. The boy's golden aura was easy to spot in the crowd, and Jordan had no trouble reaching him, slipping through tired students as easily as one would walk through the woods.

"Hey, Pres," Jordan said, clapping his hand on Alexander's back. "Or Vice-Pres. Sorry, I forget sometimes."

Jordan's other hand pointed straight at the giant Foot, visible in the enemy's lines. "If that thing's anything like the Hands, it'll have a nasty trick up its sleeve. You can take care of that, right? Do it. That plus one of our own tricks should stop that Foot from kicking our asses."

It didn't even occur to the boy that he, a lowly member of the Football team, was ordering around the most powerful boy in Zeus. And frankly, had it occurred to him, he wouldn't have cared. They were just players in the game, and each one would do what they needed to or die, Jordan included.

Before Alex could even reply to Jordan's instructions, the boy was gone in a burst of golden light.

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Hi Tomomi, Tomomi's Onii-chan." Jordan waved brightly at the two siblings. "Looks like we both got a bit fucked up, Taichi. Keep trucking, aight?"

Then he pointed at the Foot, trembling in the distance. The seething mass of zombies was huge, even from afar. "Tomomi," he said. "Remember that wall thing you used when we fought that giant brain earlier? Can you use it again? I've got the Vice Pres keeping that Foot from stomping us, so you should be able to hold it and the zombies back once we take care of the Golems."

"Taichi, I kinda saw that thing you did to the Golem out of the corner of my eye back when one of those Faceless fucks had it's claws in my guts. It was pretty sweet. Can you do it again, maybe to the one right of the Foot? We need at least one of those Golems sliced and diced or the whole plan goes south. Kung Fu Slime Girl's gonna be helping out, and I'll be there to distract it so you can get a good hit in. I think between the three of us, we'll manage it."

And then he was gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Rosalin!"

Jordan smiled as he finally found the stern girl. "Hey, we've got a plan going on to break through in one fell swoop, and I'mma need your help to do it, okay?"

He wished he could stay and talk, but there was no time. He had to explain and run off as fast as he could. "We're gonna do a kind of arrowhead maneuver around that group of big dudes in the middle, but we still need to take care of some of them. If you could do that vine thing I heard the folks talking about, and finish off that Hand near the front of our lines, that'd be sweet. And try to keep Jozefa from jumping in there. Tell here we've got people who're gonna take care of the big guys, so there's no need to be a hero. Have her clones hold the line or something."

And one more... no, there was no time. Asking for a date would have to wait for later.

Jordan was already moving.

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Hiyori, right? Mind trying to hamstring that far off Golem with one of those Kamaitachi things I've been hearing the guys gush over? Thanks. You're a doll, babe."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"HEY ZHONG, THOSE GHOULS OVER THERE WERE TALKING ABOUT HOW MANY DICKS YOU'VE SUCKED!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Hey Alexandra- holy shit girl, you've had some work done. I ain't staring or anything, but damn. Uh, here's my number. Don't melt it or anything. Anyway, since apparently you've got some kind of Slime Kung Fu going on, it'd be fucking fine of you to go over there and Karate kick that golem in half. And uh... corrode it or whatever it is that gooey stuff does. Watch out for the magic knife dude. I think he knows Sword Fu, and his sister's gonna be pissed if you accidentally melt his face off."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Rika! Really dig the armour. You've got this whole Joan of Arc thing vibe going on, minus the burning. I saw that stunt you pulled with the huge spear thing back there. Impressive stuff. Think you can do it again? We need to try and get rid of that Golem to the left of the Foot. If you can keep the damn thing from coming back to life too, that'd be wonderful. The group's gonna try an Arrowhead through the right, so we've gotta neutralize the middle to make sure it doesn't trample us. There's gonna be some ranged support backing you up, so don't hold back."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Sarah. Hey."

Jordan panted as he was forced to stop. His legs were screaming at him as if it was the last 5 minutes of a tough game, and he knew his limit was rapidly approaching. Still, he was on a runner's high and nothing was gonna stop him except complete and utter inability to move.

"So uh... see that Hand to the right of the big group? We're kinda... gonna be charging through it. So if you could clear the way and maybe keep the zombies from rushing in to fill the gap, that'd be... swell."

His lungs were on fire too. It was almost as if the more he pushed himself, the hotter his body became. Soon, nothing would remain but a pile of ashes.

Yet, he wouldn't stop running. The taste of freedom, of life was on his tongue. He could feel it with every one of his senses.

And there was no way Jordan was gonna die here.

"See ya. Don't get fat now."

And all that remained was a golden glow that soon faded.

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Yo A-Bomb! Bet you can't gather up all the biggest, strongest dudes here and break through that line!"

This one was difficult, because Jordan knew it was practically sending someone to certain doom. But that was a hard decision, one a leader had to make. Besides, if anyone could survive, it was Adam.

"Well, there's something else too," Jordan wasn't joking around this time. "See that fatass all the way to the right? We'll be walking right past it. And you're the only one that can hold it back." Yes. It was a death sentence. And Adam had beaten Death before. "If that bastard gets through, he'll squash us all flat. We need to stop it. It's probably gonna fuck you up even worse than the last one. And we've got no other choice. So hold the line, even if it kills you."

"And don't die, you idiot!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Uh, Lacie, right? Sorry, I don't really know you at all. You kinda remind me of this one guy, though. I'll introduce you later. He's totally your type. If you could tell that big shadowy dude standing behind you to go clear the way of Ghouls and zombies for the normal students, I'd appreciate it."

"And uh, Miss Demon Lady? Well... actually, never mind. I'd probably lose my soul."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Sweet sword, man. I don't even know how you're lifting that thing. You a fan of Final Fantasy or something? I really like the whole darkness theme you've got going on. Anyway, no need to push yourself, but try cutting up some of the Ghouls and Ghosts in our way instead of accidentally chopping off someone's head, yeah? Hang a right at the giant foot."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Raaaaaay! I actually have no fucking idea what you can do! So just know we're busting through to the right! I... I dunno. Maybe do something about those Ghouls if you can? I'm glad your face isn't fucked up anymore. See ya."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"You're the chess guy, right? The one that gave me this 'Rook' thing? Just want you to know that if this doesn't work and I end up squashed to a pulp, I'll haunt you forever. And I can be a vengeful fucker."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

"Uh, agents? Yo, I'm Adam's teammate. Anything he may or may not have said about me is totally false, I assure you. Just wanted to let you know your client'll be charging through first with all the tough guys. I probably don't even need to tell you what to do here but... well, good luck."

~~~~~~~~~~~~>

And even more. The rest of the orders were similar. If you were superhuman, you'd either fight the Ghouls or support Rika at range. The names and faces blurred together. Jordan knew most of these people only by name, and had done his best to memorize what they could do before the fight began. He only hoped that the rough plan he'd thrown together would be enough.

And finally... it was done. Just him left.

Jordan panted from the exertion. His muscles and lungs protested every movement. He told them to shut the fuck up.

He raised his head.

There, right beside the Foot and on the corner of their offensive, was a Golem made of Flesh. There were two great fighters about to attack it, but they wouldn't be enough. Not unless Jordan helped them.

He marched forward, through the throng of students and undead. As he passed by, he left a word of advice and and encouragement for each student he met. Most of them he didn't know, but he knew all of their names. It was something he'd forced himself to do, knowing it would hurt even more in the end.

"Push through at all costs. Don't back down. Don't worry about killing them. Just open a path."

All of the other superhumans had been warned. The ranged ones would assist Rika, and the rest would focus on the Ghouls among the undead, making sure the elite forces were occupied. That was the best plan they could come up with on short notice, and it would have to do.

And then he was on the front lines, staring at the Golem that would surely come charging at them. It was a horrifying abomination that he'd never glimpsed properly before. There was no way for him to kill it. Most of the ranged attackers were busy dealing with the other monsters. So it was up to Jordan to make sure his allies finished the job.

He could do that.

"Hey, you fried fuck."

Jordan raised his hand, middle finger outstretched and pointed at the thing's beady eyes. Jordan's other hand held a staff he'd pilfered from someone with no use for it. He wondered, idly, if he was about to know what Atlas had felt when he'd held up the sky, or what Adam had felt when he'd kept the Hand from killing them all.

Jordan ran forward. He ran under the legs of the beast, pushing here or there, getting it off balance and grabbing its attention. Anything to open up a weak point, to distract it for the moment they'd need to deal a lethal blow. He was in the midst of the enemy offensive, and one wrong move would kill him with absolute certainty. Even the act of the thing falling over, dead, could squash him if he didn't get out of the way in time.

And yet, he would bet it all on survival.

"Now!" Jordan roared, signalling Taichi and Alexandra to attack, just as his maneuver was finished. He dashed out from under the Golem's feet and back into the relative safety of the lines, leaving it off balance for a split second.

In that brief moment, the Spear of Zeus would strike with absolute certainty.

[Assist Crash] activated. Enemy's DEF lowered by 4 for a turn. Greatly increased situational awareness. Greatly increased bonus for team maneuvers.

"Come and taste the lightning!"

--------------------------

Wise Up!

Name: Jordan J. Jones
Race: Human
Attributes: Human, Unbound
Spiritual Rank: 1

Stats:

HP: 30/70 --> 25/70
SP: 30/90

STR: 14*0.75 (Exhaustion 1)*1.8 (Rook) = 18 + 3 (Leadership II) + 6 (Xth Gear) + 5 (Queen's Decree) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) - 1 (Terrorize) + 8 (Point Analysis) + 2 (Weapon) = 42 (44)
DEF: 10*0.75 (Exhaustion 1)*1.8 (Rook) = 13 + 3 (Leadership II) + 6 (Xth Gear) + 5 (Queen's Decree) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) - 1 (Terrorize) = 27
SPI: 10 + 1 (Leading King) = 11
SDEF: 6 + 1 (Leading King) = 7
AGI: 20*0.75 (Exhaustion 1) = 15 + 3 (Leadership II) + 6 (Xth Gear) + 5 (Queen's Decree) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) - 1 (Terrorize) = 29
EVA: 20*0.75 (Exhaustion 1) = 15 + 3 (Leadership II) + 6 (Xth Gear) + 5 (Queen's Decree) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) - 1 (Terrorize) = 29

Roll Modifier = +3 (Inspiring Blade + Leadership II + Queen's Decree)

[Mormarth]

Alexandra Gray
Location - The Hall - Final Push
Turn 7
HP - 53/90 SP - ??? Self - 73
I took a small breath, sliding down the slowly crumpling flesh construct as Rika's spear and my own hands pulverized its inner workings, out of the corner of my eye, I spot an anomaly within the countless ordinary zombies making up the construct's body, a more decayed-looking one, almost like one of the rotten shambling ghouls down below.

I landed, relatively gracefully for the fifty-ish feet I'd descended, and promptly turned to see the enormous Thing we'd just brutalized get back onto its feet like it was nothing.

For fuck's sake. What the hell was this thing even made of?! Could we even kill it?

But, strangely enough, the enormous thing didn't surge back at us in a counterattack, rather, it retreated back into the darkness generated by the consciousness that was our enemy.

As did its ghostly entourage, the last remaining spirit of the initial assault cut down by Arthur's sword.

The remaining zombies took this as a sign, and came down upon us in a deluge, I braced myself against the coming tide, ready to fight to the death.

And then Rose spoke up:

"We are almost there."

Oh, finally, some good news.

“We have finally rescued those who were trapped by our enemy… no, that is not true, we haven’t rescued anyone yet, because first, we have to rescue ourselves. We cannot fight Legion here. If this continues, we’ll be overwhelmed. Our only hope is to get out of the room and fight our enemy in a more advantageous place. And the only route of escape possible is through the door of the Hall.”

And if my thought earlier was right... Hm, so we were fighting off the main flow of reinforcements to the front, probably to shore up some sort of wall, locking us in.

“We have to power through Legion’s blockade. Our enemy is not an idiot… it knows what will we do. We will have to break through with all of our strength… it is the only way we have to survive.”

“Those in the right flank, keep defending it, and move the superhumans to the frontlines! Those who excel at fighting up close, charge ahead! Those who possess ranged powers, cover them! The normal students will keep moving along with you all! The enemy has to hold the entire barrier, while we only need to break a point in it to escape. They might outpower us, but we have the strongest will, the will to survive alongside our friends! Keep going ahead!”

Tch, alright, there's no more holding back anymore.

[Leadership 2 copied, Accel Strike discarded]

"Alright, everyone huddle up and listen to me. You heard what she said, yeah? All us crazy people got to head up front to bust out, but you guys are the ones with the real fight here, your job here, is to Hold the Line. Zombie comes at you, kill it, Five come at you, hold them back. Each and every single one of you, are here for a reason, and that's because you're the toughest, best, most sick-nasty dudes on this line!"

I pointed to the oncoming horde, "You see that? That's a bunch of shitheads coming to fuck you up, but they don't even know what they're messing with, do they?! They're coming to mess with the best, the best who are going to get out of this room, get out of this place, and go eat pizza or something!"

"Because I'll tell you something, with out all of you, there's no way we would've gotten this far, you've bled, you've suffered, and you've been kicked aside, by this stupid hive mind sonofabitch, that doesn't know when it needs to fuck off back to whatever hell it stuck its collective asshole out of!"

I stomped my foot firmly on the ground, "You see this? This is the line! The only line in the world that matters, and you've got to hold it for the rest of us losers, everyone's going up front, you know why? Because they're too chicken to fight it out, to hold back everything this bastard has got. This is the Red line! It is the only Line that matters! The last line in the world! And you've got to burn all you've got, it's going to be hard, but there is only one thing. ONE. THING. THAT MATTERS RIGHT NOW. HOLD THIS LINE."

I paused, and then coughed, shifting slightly, "So, uh, yeah. Punch all those guys in the face, please."

"Also if someone could give me a shirt that would be really nice thanks."

I turned around and was promptly greeted by a stiff-looking black-haired guy, looking past me at Rika.

"Hello my Knight and Group 4. I am Kyle Dunn the Black King. I have devised a rough plan that will help us break out the Legion's blockade."

...

What?

Okay fine whatever, I only barely recognized this guy from the Chess Club I think it was. I'm just going to pretend I wasn't offended about being shoved away as somewhat unimportant compared to someone else.

I'm not upset about it.

He let out some speech about moving in an arrowhead or whatever, and I guess it made sense, I did a quick shoring up of the lines, trying to ignore the bodies of the fallen on the ground, especially that red stain that used to be that guy who the Golem squashed.

Hope it was quick.


I shook myself out of the depressing line of thought and began moving the lines back with the assistance of the so-called 'Black King', whatever you feel like calling yourself, guy. When another guy popped up, I couldn't remember his name, guy on the football team, fast, what's his name again...

"Hey Alexandra- holy shit girl, you've had some work done. I ain't staring or anything, but damn. Uh, here's my number. Don't melt it or anything."

I stared blankly at the slip of paper in my hand.

Wha-

"Anyway, since apparently you've got some kind of Slime Kung Fu going on, it'd be fucking fine of you to go over there and Karate kick that golem in half. And uh... corrode it or whatever it is that gooey stuff does. Watch out for the magic knife dude. I think he knows Sword Fu, and his sister's gonna be pissed if you accidentally melt his face off."

And he breezed on past to go speak to Rika chattering on pleasantly and basically giving out something that seemed like a plan.

"Buh."

I coughed, shaking my head around, it had come loose, i'd have to deal with that later.

Oh, that's right, his name was Jordan.

I took off for the front of the line.
-------------
I'd managed to get to where Jordan had directed her and another boy, Taichi, she recalled, the three of them faced down the giant, the golden auras of the boys almost overwhelming her, the almost imperceptible glow of her spirit surrounding her limbs, while less impressive, no less potent.

I readied myself quietly.

Strengthening [10 SP: +4 to STR, AGI]
Martial Arts [10 SP: +5 to STR]
Slime Whips [10 SP: STR + 4]

I could feel the quiet hum of the Monk's most potent ability in my mind's eye.

I'd have to go full-force, there was no more time to hold anything back.

"Try and hold his attention, I'm going to go in for the kill."

I say this firmly and without room for negotiation. I'd seen that Ghoul from earlier, I had my target, but i'd have to be fast.

I took one more breath.

Jordan barked out the order to charge, and I surged forward, every muscle in my body tensed, like the hammer cocking back on a gun.

He dashed under the Golem's legs, attracting its attention.

I raced up the Golem, flinging myself upwards, finding the familiar footholds from my previous climb, swinging around to the back, I found myself gazing into the rotted core of the flesh golem, the ghoul-like zombie.

"Take this!"

[Precision Strike used]

I brought my hand back, middle knuckle sliding forward in a spear-like protrusion, and everything stopped for a brief moment, I felt a brief tingle of phantom, distant discomfort, and thanked the undead constitution I had acquired.

The hammer fell, and my fist flung itself forward like a missile aimed directly at the heart of the Golem.

[Fist of the Gray Monk used, +10 to STR/AGI]

Wise Up!

​Name: Alexandra Gray
Race: Human
Attributes: Human, Unbound, Slime
Spiritual Rank: 1

STR: 15 (Charisma: 15 + 3 - 1 = 17, 17 + 2 = 19) + 5 (Unliving) = 24 + 10 (Martial Art) + 4 (Strengthening) + 4 (Whips) + 1 (Kyle) + 1 (Kaitlin) + 10 (FotGM) = 54
DEF: 12 + 3 (Leadership) - 1 (Terrorize) = 14 + 2 (K's) = 16
SPR: 12 + 1 (Kyle) = 13
SDEF: 14 + 1 (Kyle) = 15
AGI: 18 + 3 (Leadership) = 21, -1 (Terrorize) - 2 (Bad Company) + 3 (Unliving) = 21 + 5 (Martial Art) + 4 (Strengthen) + 10 (FotGM) = 40 + 2 (K's) = 42
EVA: 17 + 3 = 20 - 1 (Terror) - 1 (BC) + 3 (Unliving) = 21 + 4 = 25 + 2 (K's) = 27

Eye of The Mind (False): An ability derived from Alexandra's keen observational abilities and natural instincts, it is the ability to ascertain the most appropriate path in combat before her.

[Increased ability to feel incoming danger. Enemies whose physical stats she knows receive penalties of -1 on their rolls against her, and her EVA is increased by 3 when she fights them. One GM hint per fight can be received]

Strength through Adversity: A natural talent Alexandra has acquired and strengthened over the years, for it turns out that trying to be the center of attention at all times makes enemies. It is the ability to gain an advantage through being attacked by an enemy, to find a way through an attack, a counter to a cruel remark and so on.

[When in a very adverse situation, Alexandra’s general rolls obtain a bonus of +1, which might increase to +2 if in an extremely dire spot. When Alexandra’s HP is under 25%, she obtains a bonus of +2 to all stats and the success of her actions is increased]

Awakened Power

Tabula Rasa - The Blank Slate Upon Which All May Be Written Type: Support

A heightening of Alexandra's own [Imitation] abilities to inhuman levels, taking on aspects of an enemy's nature to strengthen herself, to the point of altering her own body to counter an enemy's attacks and over-power them. The supreme adaptive ability, adjusting the body to overcome any obstacle, using any available resource to grow and achieve victory.

[Alexandra is capable of remembering and imitate Attributes of enemies she had seen, and by spending 25 SP, she can modify her body to take on that attribute and receive the perks involving said attribute. She can however only imitate a maximum of 3 attributes at the same time, and is subject to the same weakness and strengths of said attribute. Alexandra can also spell 15 SP to imitate a perk of a nearby creature, be it ally or enemy. Said Perk can only be imitated for 5 turns.]

[Slime Trait – Allows Alexandra to transform the external layers of her body into acid, effectively receiving the Acid Constitution perk, and also allowing to manipulate said layer of acid in a limited way. Gives +2 to STR and AGI]

Acid Constitution [Slime Trait] As a creature composed by acidic slime, touching it without care can be very perilous. If touched by bare skin, the slime will cause a violent burning pain. 5 HP is lost regardless of DEF when touching the slime, and repeated contact with it may disable a limb, or destroy a non-magical weapon.

Slime Manipulation: Ability to manipulate its own monstrous shape. Many things or shapes can be created out of the acidic slime.

[Slime Whips - Spiritual Ability. Creates a maximum two whips of acidic slime that augment STR by 2 each. Acid Constitution applies to them. Costs 5 SP per whip]

[Unliving Trait – Causes Alexandra’s body to decay slightly, causing 10 HP damage when activated, but giving her the Painless One trait, and, by removing part of the body’s own self imposed limitations, +5 to her STR, and +3 to her AGI and EVA]

Painless One [Unliving Trait] As an undead being that has abandoned the realm of the living, this creature is now a shambling monstrosity, a decayed spirit moving the decayed husk of what used to be its body. Due to this, undead beings are unable to feel any pain, no matter how much their body is battered. Breaking their limbs is useless, as only complete destruction of said limb would be able to stop them from using it. Their body will keep going no matter how gruesome or severe the wounds are, until it is damaged enough to become unable to serve as a vessel for the decayed spirit.

Third Eye: An extremely high level ability, of which many details remain hidden. Seems to have originally been a technique of sorts that allowed one to see what normally cannot be seen, but the only part of it that has been passed down to Alexandra allows her to see the ‘weak points’ in the opponents body, allowing her to strike in a way most damaging. For opponents whose ‘weak points’ can be seen, their DEF is reduced by 10 when hit by Alexandra’s attacks.

Martial Arts - ??? An unknown martial art that feels extremely strange to Alexandra. Its principles and pretty much everything about it remain shrouded in mystery. This martial art seems to depend in using spiritual energy, focusing it from the interior of your body and expanding it outwards to generate increased force. It can be used to accelerate, hit harder, and so on. However, as Alexandra has no training whatsoever in martial arts, the power of the Gray Monk is out of her reach, and she can only use a little of it. Passively, she gets +5 STR and +5 AGI, and she is able to add another +5 to either stat by spending 10 SP.

Fist of the Gray Monk: A technique that seems to have coalesced the whole essence of a martial art in a single punch. Executed by using a massive amount of ‘ki’ or spiritual energy and enhancing this single punch beyond the limits of possibility, it becomes a true one hit kill attack… that Alexandra cannot access of yet.

Well, at least she can add a +10 to both STR and AGI when executing this punch, and having heavy chances of inflicting status effects and wounds to the enemy. Precision can be used along with the technique. Using this technique is greatly exhausting, even in Alexandra’s half undead state, and can practically be used only once before falling into high levels of Exhaustion.

[Erlkonig]

Masaki Tomomi | HP: 37/60 SP: 30/200 (5) | Self: 90
Location: The Hall – Final Push
Students: 191 | Turn: 7

They had held on to the final push.

The Hand's last attack had rocked Tomomi's body with pain, but that had been the last attack it could manage before the vanguard of their forces finally managed to rescue the other Survivors and regroup as a single force.

After surviving a constant onslaught by fearsome enemies, they had not come out well. Like she had done before, Tomomi did her best to support Shinoko's weary body, placing what weight she had below the girl's shoulder. Besides her Taichi dragged along, helped with his own bleeding by a concerned Rumiko.

Tomomi couldn't help but keep Taichi within the edge of her sight, and smiled wryly when she noticed Rumiko doing the same towards her sister. The two of the little sisters couldn't help keeping their eyes on the reckless older siblings... The mirthful thought was as bitter as it was sweet, and it left a mixture of emotions swirling inside Tomomi's stomach.

She turned her gaze towards Hiyori- The girl had refused aid of any kind, finding herself to be in a mostly uninjured state and walking measuredly behind them. She kept her distance, keeping an eye on them but seemingly keeping to herself.

-Even so, Tomomi felt that was fine.

She hadn't been sure of how reliable Hiyori would have been, but after the dozens of enemies they had faced together, she felt that she was a reliable person who she could leave her back to. Even through all the danger they had gone through, Tomomi had never truly felt as vulnerable as the others had been. She did not doubt that was in great part due to the martial artist's constant watch over her.

Still...

The battle wasn't over yet.

Tomomi took a slow, good look at the fourteen students that remained from the rear group, out of twenty plus whatever reinforcement they had been given. All of them sported wounds on their bodies. Large gashes from a ghoul, singed clothes and skin from tongues of ghostfire, and bites and scars of all kinds. Where they had once bore the face of cowardice, their expressions now ranged from fear, to determination, all the way to a burning, fierce rage shining inside their eyes.

They had changed. For some of them it had been their first battle, and it had changed them all.

Tomomi knew that she had changed too.

She had joined the rescue party for the ideal of 'rescuing the family of those who had lost it', but now she wasn't sure if that had been the whole truth. She had been sure of her words back then at the initial meeting, but after the battle she had become less certain of her own decisions. For whose sake was she truly fighting...?

Tomomi shook her head quickly, dispelling the thoughts from her mind. She didn't have time for a monologue.

"Onii-chan... I still have some power left." Tomomi spoke up, suddenly cutting the not-silence that had surrounded them. "I don't know if it will be enough to help... But I can at least do something from here."

She stared beyond their own forces, at the blockade of undead that awaited them. It was a horrifying sight, worthy of falling to despair. Tomomi had read many zombie apocalypse books and watched a scant few movies about them, and it all paled in comparison to the real deal. No movie or prose could truly convey what it was like to see the dead's soulless eyes.

But...

She still had to do something.

"Onii-chan, Shinoko, Rumiko and Hiyori-san... You're all going to help, right?" Tomomi addressed the group of superhumans. "...If so, then you should go ahead and join the other front-liners. I'm a long-ranged fighter, so I'll most likely be staying here." She worded herself carefully, then turned towards her brother. "Onii-chan, please go see Millia-sensei- Tall, doctor's coat, red hair- about your wounds. I know you're strong, but you won't last anymore if you fight while bleeding like that...!"

After she pleaded this, she turned towards the others, directing a few words for them as well. "Shinoko-san, Rumiko-san, thank you for helping Onii-chan- No, thank you for protecting everyone. After this is over, I'll give you my phone's Hachiko-san strap, ne? You did tell me he was really cute on yesterday's practice, after all." After saying this, her grip on Shinoko tightened and she whispered more words over. "Be careful, Shinoko-san. Please don't push yourself."

With that, she turned to the last member of their group. "Hiyori-san... Thank you. Please don't mind Onii-chan's rude words. You saved me, and all the people that are still alive here. I trust you, Hiyori-san, and I hope that we can be friends." Tomomi smiled brightly at the girl, her words honest and shaded by all the pain the two of them had weathered together.

And finally...

After making sure Shinoko could stand on her own, Tomomi walked towards the fourteen normal students. The last survivors of the center rear group. Emboldened, she approached all of them, a determined look on her face.

And before them all... She bowed.

"Thank you very much!" Tomomi lowered her head at them, bowing deeply in a profound expression of gratitude. Her voice trembled as she spoke to them. "We've all gone through so much, lost so much...! And yet, even through all this, you protected us...! If not for you, my brother really might have..."

Tomomi fiercely shook her head to clear the image from her mind, and continued with her head still bowed. "-I can't thank you enough. I know nothing I say can change what you've gone through... But... I want you to know I'll do everything I can to help you out of this place." Pulling her head up, Tomomi gazed at them through trembling eyes, filled with determination and anger. "For everyone who they've taken from us, and for everyone who's still alive, we'll push back this monster and return to the school alive. I... will never forgive it!"

Tomomi was sometimes a cold girl. At times she rejected those strange to her, and focused her emotions solely on those important to her life. However... she had lived and died with these very people. People who had risked their very lives, perhaps just in self-preservation, but in the end for the preservation of all of their group. People with no power whatsoever, who had nonetheless stood up to the terrible monsters before them.

Just as she trusted Hiyori-san, and she trusted the twins- Tomomi felt that she could trust the rest of the Zeus students- To live, and stay alive. For their friends, and for their family.

For that reason, she would believe in them.

-At that moment.-

Jordan showed up.

Tomomi blinked. The jock had appeared before them in the blink of an eye, at an eye-blurring speed that could even be compared to a bullet. A golden and black aura coated his body, a blend of the power Taichi and herself had recieved from the Core Group's aid.

"J-Jordan...?"

Her eyes were wide in disbelief.

---

Tomomi watched as the jock ran off, shaking her head in exasperation. Really, he ran all the way just to say that instead of sending an envoy to every part of the group...? He was impossible.

-But, at the same time, he had a good idea.

"Onii-chan. If you're alright, then Jordan's idea is good. But..." She cooly stared at her brother, pouting a little with her lower lip. "Please don't forget about what I told you about. As for me... I know what I can do now. We'll meet each other soon, ne?"

With that said, Tomomi watched as the preparations for the blitz started. Everyone fell into place, as Jordan raced through the whole group, randomly shouting orders and commands that slowly seemed to connect with each other to form what was becoming more and more a very solid plan.

He was a dork.

But she had to admit, he was the most impressive dork she had ever met in her life.

"Now then..."

Tomomi turned her gaze towards her enemy.

"What should I do with you...?" As her words cut through the air, Tomomi focused.

In an instant, Tomomi's senses seemed to completely halt... Before they suddenly all coalesced together, forming a perfect image in her mind. Her senses received data, and Tomomi processed it at an almost conscious level. She listened to her heartbeat, the rampaging footsteps of the entirety of Zeus as they moved into action, and the shuffling of the barricade as it prepared to make its own counter-strike.

If all senses were nothing but data that her mind could recall and touch upon, then so was her spiritual sense a form of data. Tomomi focused inwards, looking deep within. She began to pull into her power, casting a dark sphere of energy over the aether, overwriting the region of space it inhabited.

As the process extended, Tomomi focused on the data recieved. Instantly, she saw them- Minute imperfections, inefficiencies in the work that she had realized solely through a fascimile of muscle memory. Individually, they were small and insignificant. Together, they were a large net loss.

Tomomi focused, and eliminated those flaws.

Masaki Tomomi is Focusing. +10 SPI for the next action taken.

Additional heat consumed when displacing the Aether was put off.

Time wasted between manifesting the sphere and starting the production of crystals was minimized, shortened to an interval that approached a time length of Zero.

Energy fluctuations in the sphere were regulated by her manual efforts, preventing extra mass from being shaved off the crystals during production. Wasteful processes redirected for useful goals.

Excess power- Returned. Stored. Processed. Converted. Recycled. Reinforced. Injected.

Aetherial distortion minimized, physical projection stablizied. All flaws cleared.

Tomomi opened her eyes. Behind her, her sphere of power shone with a transluscent black glow. There was no difference in raw power between this sphere and all the ones she had previously manifested. However, that had never been important in proof.

An enemy like the one before her was one she would never be able to defeat using brute force.

Efficiency was required.

Without hesitation, Tomomi grabbed her sphere and swiftly slammed it against the ground. In the moment of impact, without even a tenth of a second of delay, its energy pulsed. Given thought and direction, it immediately executed its given task.

Crystals spread.

Invisible to the naked eye, imperceptible even to those who could sense tremors, impossibly minute crystals the size of molecular compounds spread through the floor at the speed of thought.

Tomomi recalled her image of the battlefield, from several different angles and a few choice heights. Everyone's positions perfectly played out in her head, from not even one hundredth of a second before she had activated her power. Even with her eyes closed, she could see the frontline clear as day. Without any delays, she carved out the choice path that would best suit the blitzing group at large.

The crystals reacted. In an imperceptible timespan between Tomomi's command and their movement, they positioned themselves. They moved past the ranged attackers, past the support units, even through the menacing presence of the front-liners. With machine-like efficiency, they zeroed in on their target.

Tomomi did not speak. Her intentions needed not be relayed through words.

She merely willed.

And like extensions of her mind, the Crystal Wall answered.

Between their left flank and the horde of zombies, right before the almighty Foot of Legion, it rose. At a speed impossible to be processed, crystals surged like a liquid torrent. Thousands- No, millions of them quickly overlapped each other, entangling and fusing and solidifying just like the neurons in Tomomi's mind fired and created the image that she desired.

A bulwark of black gemstones rose like a veritable fortress, high into the air. It cast a large shadow across the horde of zombies, towering over the zombies and the ghouls and even the Faceless Ones of Hundun, and even the Flesh Golems could only glimpse the other side through their tiny head and shoulders.

Many more times as long as it was tall, it was a formation of crystals that could only be called a work of precise calculations. It was not only raw power- It was efficiency. The weight of the crystals was evenly distributed at the top and highly reinforced at the base, so that even if one part took damage the rest would not fall.

Tomomi had promised she would do everything she could to make sure everyone came out alive from this. She had promised, to those normal students that had fought tooth and nail for her safety, that she would protect them.

This was it. This was the role she could fulfill as part of Zeus' machine. Her crystals, which had been used all this time as weapons of offense, had suddenly been turned into a defensive bulwark.

This was... her best shot!!!

---

Actions Taken:
-Focus
-Crystal Wall (25 SP)

Wise-up!

Masaki Tomomi
HP: 60 SP: 200
Strength: 8-1+8 (15)
Defense:10-1+8 (17)
Spirit: 20+1 (31) -Black Bishop- (41) Focus
S. Defense: 12+1 (19) -Black Bishop-
Agility: 16-1+8+3 (26)
Evasion: 16-1+8+3 (26)

Attributes: Human, Unbound

Photographic Memory
Tomomi can perfectly recall every single second of her life that has transpired while she was conscious. She can look back at any moment of her life as if she had taken a photograph of what had occurred, with infallible efficiency. This means she could recite texts or books she only read once to the letter without looking back at them a single time. Her ability to register all conversations and actions and then recall them at later points also helped her immensely when defending herself from verbal assaults, and it also got her an invitation to the experimental school.
[Ability to analyze and understand better attacks and enemies you have already seen before. When fighting enemies you have already fought, you are able to remember their attack patterns, and obtain +3 to both AGI and EVA. Furthermore, by recalling clues you have already seen, you are able to obtain hints for facing mental tasks]

Focus II
Tomomi’s great memory retaining ability was also a gift that needed polishing to be able to be used to its max efficiency, and that polishing appeared in the way of focused mental concentration. The high demands of the experimental school meant that she had to strain her intelligence to be able to recall several past facts at the same time and piece them together quickly and flawlessly. This sharpened her ability to concentrate, and makes her able to take time to analyze a situation and drastically increase her precision and focus.
After her experience in the Warped World, forcing to focus in facing powerful enemies, Tomomi’s ability to focus on the situation has increased.
[By spending one turn focusing on your surroundings and analyzing the variables of the situation, you are able to augment a single stat by 10 points for your next action, whichever it is. ??? Interrupted if hit. If used many times, it might cause you to become exhausted]

???

Awakened Power (Offensive Specialty)

Crystal Garden - Crystal Manipulation: Tomomi is able to warp the aether to create and manipulate numerous crystals- These crystals are magical in nature and are solidified through Tomomi’s power. Once created, however, they are extremely durable and can withstand high magnitudes of force, but like real crystals are more vulnerable to unrelenting volleys of attacks that produce vibration. As of yet Tomomi is only capable of shaping the crystal in limited ways, such as erecting a wall of them to shield herself from harm or shooting them at the enemy in a volley of dangerously sharp magic spikes.
[Crystal Wall - Spiritual Power. Creates a wall of HP equal to SPI. Can be used to block the enemy’s attacks and their path. Costs 25 SP]
[Crystal Bullets - Spiritual Power] Shoots a maximum of five spikes of crystal, each doing damage equal to SPI. AoE. Speed = 25. Costs 5 SP each spike, for a max of 25 SP for the five of them]
[??? - Spiritual Power]
[Crystal Teeth -Spiritual Power] Shoots a rain of jagged of crystals in a shotgun-like blast. The crystals bury themselves in the muscles and joints of the target, reducing a stat by 3 depending of where they hit. Deals SPI x2 damage. Speed 18 Costs 20 SP]

Co-op Move (Taichi): Crystal Sword DanceA special move born from Taichi and Tomomi's ability to work in perfect sync. Tomomi hurls a latent crystal orb using her spirit sphere, that upon impact flash freezes the enemy for a brief amount of time. In the close window of time between the moment of impact and the enemy breaking free, Taichi dives in and attacks the enemy with all his power, completely ignoring their evasive abilties. Taichi's blows then drive the crystals into their body, making them detonate and shear their insides with shrapnel. An explosive offensive move that combines the two siblings' greatest strengths.
[Tomomi hurls a sphere that has Speed = 20 to the enemy, and instantly freezes it, rendering it unable to move and reducing their EVA to 0. While on this frozen state, all of the enemy’s special defenses by perks and or skills are deactivated, but no precision attacks can be executed against them. Taichi then attacks the enemy, automatically succeeding all of his Sword Dancer rolls, and causing a bonus 5 damage per hit due to driving the crystals further into their body. Afterwards, the crystals detonate, causing Tomomi’s SPI x2 damage. Can only be used once per day. Tomomi Cost: 40 SP | Taichi Cost: 20 SP]

[Snax]

Rescue Group
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (The Hall – 4th Floor)
Sarah Vale | HP: 29/100 SP: 95/180 | Self: 90
Location: The Hall – Final Push
Turn: 7

The pain was real.

“Haa- haa - Shit, I think I nearly passed out there for a bit.“

Grasping at her wounds, Sarah grimaced slightly. Here they were, at the verge of death, and yet still going strong. The ‘prey’ had been quite lively to conjure up all these new terrors, only to have even more fall down the gullet of Sarah’s newfound power. While it hadn’t been that fun of a hunt, it had sure been one hell of a bloodbath. Sarah counted up her 19 kills - this was by far the biggest record, considering she had never really had to kill these many beasts. She had compared this to the wolf pack from before, which was honestly the worser scenario, having gone solo against at least a dozen or more. Still, they scattered once their leader was down and a few others had also been torched to death - these zombies were different. Like moths to the flame, they just kept on coming.

That was soon coming to an end though.

The team had achieved what they had come for. The people were rescued. A high price had been paid in order to rescue these people, but their blood had not been in vain.

“Haa- fuck, blanking out here…”

The darkness crept forward, almost seeping into her wounds as the lifeblood dripped from her veins. Her flesh ached with every step she took, threatening to give in. She only stopped it with an iron will, along with a pride that she would never abandon. It was her heritage, her life, and her only proof that she was the best in what she did.

She was the hunter.
She was the predator.
She was the eater, not the eaten.

Panting and dripping blood from her wounds, sarah bit her tongue slightly. The blood trickling in her mouth, the iron taste it left behind, all of this reminded her that she was still alive. The pain was nothing - the pain was merely a signal to keep her awake. Spitting the blood out instead of swallowing it, she teetered to and fro, as if waiting for something...

“Now then, it’s about time…”

Soon enough, she felt the strength rushing to her body. The spoils of her last kills were here. The energy poured into her body from the spiritual link she had with whatever that was the base of her power, the origin of the black holes which took in the victims and broke them down into her flesh, blood, and energy.

Sarah has regained 10 hp and 10 sp.
Kill count : 18
+2 Buffs to SPR added.


“Haaah, much better.”

Grinning like a mad dog, Sarah’s eyes came back to life. It was but a brief respite - but still, it was all she needed to gain back the fire in her spirit. She didn’t need much. Just a small pick-me-up to bring up her day, just a small boost of energy to further her prowess. She longed for a good hearty meal of real meat afterwards, though - that would totally be worth her time. Some good steak would be the best, no doubt. Or bison thigh. That sure was tough meat, but juicy and godly good.

“Now, time to kick some more zed ass-”

As she opened her mouth, though, a golden flash - and Jordan was there, relaying a message. Slightly surprised at the sudden appearance, her mouth was left open slightly, her canines flashing in the glint of the jock’s aura. She had not expected such an entrance - her vulnerable face was indeed a rare sight, but it seemed the jock didn’t really have time to notice. He was exhausted, nearly burnt out, but still going hot. A commendable tenacity, really.

"Sarah. Hey."

"So uh... see that Hand to the right of the big group? We're kinda... gonna be charging through it. So if you could clear the way and maybe keep the zombies from rushing in to fill the gap, that'd be... swell."

"See ya. Don't get fat now."

And all that remained was a golden glow that soon faded.

Still slightly taken aback by the sudden burst of speed the dude was showing, Sarah looked into the distance he had disappeared into, her face blank for a second. However, her eyes snapped back into their intense glare, her mouth crooked and grinning. That had raised her own spirits high enough.

“Hmph, as if these rotten meatbags would serve as even a proper appetizer. I couldn’t get fat on these even if I wanted to! I’ll show you a real gourmet meal when we finish up with this, Jordan - just wait.”

Muttering in a low voice and cracking her fingers, Sarah looked into the distance, finding the target hand her friend had so nicely pointed out. It was a large squirming mass of zombies, as distasteful as ever. Boring. Icky. To the point, she just wished to be done with this once and for all, in search for a more worthy prey instead of these walls of corpses.

“Well then, it seems to be my duty to take you out - “

Not like the mass of zombies would hear her from this distance - but hey, one had to try. Concentrating, Sarah stared into the depths of the hand’s ‘body’.

‘Focus. Focus on the areas with the most bodies intertwining. Think of it as hitting an animal’s vitals, only with a large bomb that will blow out all their insides. No, it’s not a waste - this isn’t that kind of game. Focus. Focus. One near the center of the palm, a bit lower down to where the arm would originate. Focus. Another near the joints to the fingers, where the bones would originally intertwine - ‘

Analyzing and taking her picks, Sarah locked on to her targeted areas.

“Well then, it’s a mixer - dunno how many gals and dudes you got mixed in that jumble, but I’ll gobble you all up~Not gonna let you sleep tonight, not in one piece at least, hihyahahaha-!!”

Sarah used Dimensional Lunch x2

Cackling maniacally, Sarah clicked her fingers while moving forward with the group. Two large black holes blossomed from within the Hand, swallowing all the mass inside it. Many a zed disappeared into the black depths of her power, disassembling the hand slowly but surely from within with brutal efficiency--

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“NOT DONE YET!”

Sarah focused harder. She hadn’t just the power to summon these spheres of death - she also was blessed with the power to move them around at rather high speeds. It had never been too useful in this fight up to this point apart from some point in the beginning, but when the enemy wasn’t too mobile - !!!

“Spin a waltz, motherfuckers!!!”

Raising her hand high, she clenched a fist. With that as a signal, the two black balls of death started spinning around clockwise at their maximum speed, ravaging the insides of the Hand as well as creating a zone of death around a certain perimeter. Any zed moving around that area would be swallowed up and destroyed unless they got out of the way, which would be highly impossible unless they split up. The balls would never relent, unless at least till the survivors got close to it, which then, Sarah would put them to a stop, as to let survivors through.

----------
Wiseup

Spoiler:

Sarah Vale
Race: Human
Attributes: Human, Unbound
Spiritual Rank: 1

Stats:
HP: 29/100 -> 39/100 -> 36/100 (bleeding)
SP: 95/180 -> 105/180 -> 65/180

STR: 18 + 3 (Leadership) - 1 (Terrorize) +1 (Kyle) = 21
DEF: 8 + 3 (Leadership) - 1 (Terrorize) + 1 (Kyle)= 11
SPI: 20 + 6 (D.E buff) + 1 (Kyle)= 27
SDEF: 8 + 1 (Kyle) = 9
AGI: 17 + 3 (Leadership) - 1 (Terrorize) +1 (Kyle) = 20
EVA: 18 + 3 (Leadership) - 1 (Terrorize) +3 (Wild Sense) + 6 (D.E buff) +1 (Kyle) = 30

Revealed Perks:

Wild Sense:
A danger sense honed by Sarah from her long treks and hunts in the wild, which allows her to sense danger and react accordingly.
1. Greatly increased senses of danger perception.
2. When enemy abilities are more or less known, +3 to EVA.
3. ?

Revealed Abilities:


Dimension Eater
A power that eats 'space' itself. In other words, anything in a certain targeted area is 'eaten' and 'digested' by forces unknown. The speculation behind this is of a 'localized black hole' which swallows everything, fully disintegrates them, and spits them out as molecules to be absorbed by the ability holder.

Previously summoned black holes may be molded into another type as long as activation costs are paid that turn.

1. Dimensional 'Lunch': Targets a wide area (AOE, multiple enemies) and deals SPI damage per turn as long as the enemy is in that area. Has a small chance to cause lv 1/2 wounds. This 'devouring field' can be moved at 15 speed. Costs 20 sp to activate, 10 sp to maintain. Speed of activation is 20.

2. Dimensional 'Snack': Targets a small area (single target) and deals SPI damage x2 per turn as long as the enemy is in that area. This 'devouring field' can be moved at 15 speed. Costs 15 sp to activate, 5 sp to maintain. Speed of activation is 20. Also has wounding properties.

[Airen]

Rika Griffin
Location: The Hall – Final Push
HP: 29/SP: ???/Self: 57

In the end, this was probably something that had always been destined to occur between us and the undead. A last rush, all of us attempting to burst through all of them and escape, and while this is something that should bring out some sort of emotion in me, whether it be fear, or the rush of a last adrenaline burst, my thoughts are still rather scattered at the moment. The wave of silver that had taken residence in here had been overwhelming, the second rush of power scattering my thoughts, and leaving me blinking at the things around me as I once again have to gather the pieces of myself in order to function.

It takes but a moment, and shaking my head once as if to clear it, I do not respond to the implications behind the words of the Silver Paladin, or even the words of the young man who had come over and introduced himself as the Black King, despite the fact that, instinctively, I can tell that his power is the one that's currently keeping my legs in a functioning state.

If I am a knight, then like the others, I must continue to push forward, nothing about the situation has truly changed.

If the Silver Paladin pushes her powers any further, I'll burn out as a consequence.

Alright, I suppose it's good to know the limit...

But that doesn't matter.

I don't need any more power.

So long as my body can hold out for a bit longer, I'm sure I can make do with even this much...

I replace the empty sound of my momentarily discarded thoughts with that of shattering glass, it's comforting, to be able to just keep the door to my world, the world that lay beyond the Looking Glass open to me, and while I do not pull anything out of it yet, simply staring for now at the gargantuan force that was blocking our path to freedom, it was not an inaction taken from a lack of will, rather...

"Rika! Really dig the armor. You've got this whole Joan of Arc thing vibe going on, minus the burning. I saw that stunt you pulled with the huge spear thing back there. Impressive stuff. Think you can do it again? We need to try and get rid of that Golem to the left of the Foot. If you can keep the damn thing from coming back to life too, that'd be wonderful. The group's gonna try an Arrowhead through the right, so we've gotta neutralize the middle to make sure it doesn't trample us. There's gonna be some ranged support backing you up, so don't hold back."

One of the few people in the school who was as fast as me, had made his appearance as a flash of black and gold. His words are somewhat familiar, carrying a warm tone that seems to be trying to reach out to me in a friendly way, before leaving as fast as he had come, dashing away in a flash like this was some sort of tactics spreading hit and run.

I didn't even have time to say anything in response.

"...Well, alright," smirking slightly, I raise a hand to my head as I regard the monster, the distant Flesh Golem that he had wanted me to strike down, "I'll see what I can do about it."

Joan of Arc, huh?

Looking down at my legs as I quietly raise my arm, I can't help but think that's a darkly accurate thing to call me.

Being set on fire hurts like a bitch.

At least I hadn't been tied to a stake first though...

The door to the Mirror World still open, I exercise my will, and once more, a sheet of concrete, broken apart by my resolve into the shape of a spear, appears, hovering, above myself and the others.

"..."

Right...

I extend my arm, pointing, quietly, not at the one she was attacking, but at the distant abomination, one that had yet to reach us, and one that, if my aim was true, would never reach me or the other students at all.

I just had to pin it.

Attack it in a way that left it unable to move.

The spear aligns itself as I aim it with my thoughts, miniscule adjustments, a slight increase in height so that it can come into the being from above, and perhaps, pin it to the ground. I don't know if it will work, with the chaos being what it is here, a single obstruction could throw off the balance enough that I wouldn't be able to directly impale it to the floor.

But even so...

Even if I miss the kill shot...

[Precision Attempted]

"Vanish."

...This will still hurt it like hell.

Queen's Decree.

----

Status Screen

Name: Rika Griffin
Age: 16
Gender: Female
Class: Enhanced Human
Spiritual Rank: 1

Stats

STR: 11 -> -1 (Terrorize) + 3 (Rose) + 5 (Silver Paladin's Sword) = 18
DEF: 8 -> -1 (Terrorize) + 3 (Rose) + 8 (Silver Paladin's Armor) = 18
SPI: 19 -> + 10 (Contract) = 29
S.DEF: 8 -> + 8 (Silver Paladin's Armor) = 16
AGI: 21 -> 31 (Knight Piece) -> -1 (Terrorize) - 1 (Bad Company) + 3 (Rose) - 5 (wound) = 27
EVA: 21 -> 31 (Knight Piece) -> -1 (Terrorize) - 1 (Bad Company) + 3 (Rose) - 5 (wound) = 27


Focus Perk

-Acrobatics (Heavy Parkour Influences)-
While officially labeled as a form of acrobatics in the school, Rika's most impressive abilities lie within the field of parkour, and she is a master when it comes to getting her body to do what she wants it to do, no matter how difficult the task may seem. Rapid-fire flips, handsprings, wall runs and cartwheels are child's play for the girl, and she's practiced enough that "unconventional" movements such as those come as naturally as breathing to her, allowing her to recover seamlessly from positions and terrain that would leave others scrambling on the floor.
[Allows creation of two speed-centric techniques or maneuvers that are set permanently once created. Also allows to recover from falling－or being hit within a single turn, and penalties due to unfavorable terrain are greatly reduced. Further allows to travel through unstable and otherwise unreachable－ terrain]

Techniques

-Accel Strike-
While the strength of Rika’s legs is at an excessively high level, her arms do not share this strength, and consequently she is not much of a fist fighter normally. Unwilling to just run from bullies and the like however, she developed a method of attack that put her momentum behind her attacks, turning the speed she specializes in into the physical strength she lacks, and making her attacks far more powerful than they appear.
[+10 STR for a single kick, and adds 5 AGI. Place to gather momentum is needed. Higher rate of exhaustion than Elora.]

-Elora/Light-
The culmination of Rika’s physical ability, and a technique that greatly resembles the fabled “flash step” of anime. It is not actually teleportation, as Rika does in fact travel through the area to reach her destination, but because of her borderline superhuman physical ability, as well as her in-depth knowledge of how people ‘perceive’ speed, she has managed to create a technique that allows her to move ‘instantly’ from one place to another in short bursts, thus fooling the human eye completely. Named in gratitude after her cousin, who not only possesses a name that means ‘light’ but also consistently pushed for Rika to better her abilities, it is a familiar technique to Rika, who downplays it as “just moving really fast,” (It’s a pseudo-flash step and she knows it) and probably her favorite, with her using it to not only intimidate bullies (“You missed because I’m behind you, jerk.”) but also as a party trick of sorts.
[Gives +10 EVA for a single turn, when avoiding an enemy attack.]

Perks

-Marksmanship-
The ability to accurately strike targets from a distance. Contrary to what the name of the perk implies, Rika has never even held a firearm, let alone fired one. Her prowess with projectiles actually stems from things that she is able to throw, and was born from a "game" she used to play as a child, where she would try to knock fruit from a tree from the back porch of her house, using only rocks as projectiles. Eventually extended to dart throwing when she was forced to move to a different foster home, but she still finds pleasure in being accurate in her throws, and is rather proud of her impressive accuracy.
[When throwing an object, whatever that is, damage +3. Chances of causing status effects with the thrown object are slightly increased.－ Also, speed of thrown objects is increased by 1]

-Uncanny Reflexes-
The ability to react to changes in the environment almost as soon as they occur, and thus become able to taking advantage of the 'delay' that exists in all actions. While not something Rika has really refined over the years due to living in a somewhat stable environment, it is still something that she was born with, and has been quite useful in mundane things over the years, such as sports, or crossing the streets during rush hour. After being put to the test in the actual field of combat, Rika’s reflexes have become accustomed to the dangers she has to face in the－ Warped World.
[Effectiveness of surprise attacks is greatly reduced, and it is harder for a surprise attack to actually occur. AGI and speed of enemy－attacks that can be predicted due to the reflexes are reduced by 2. If put on a situation where falling from an high height, or similar, chances of grabbing into－ something or recovering are increased]

Awakened Power


-Replication Eye ~ Shattered Mirror Gaze-
The power to bring forth flawless replicas of objects, and control them with her thoughts. Given it's name because it can only bring forth things that have been “reflected in her eyes,” it is a mistake to think of the objects as simple replications, rather they are a manifestation of their mirrored selves, shards of a mirror that can all reflect the same object individually.

[Physical attack. Creates small objects that are thrown towards a target from Rika’s direction, and cause SPI damage on impact. When－created, or in-flight, said object can be created up to 5 times in a turn. If only a single object is thrown, it has speed 25 and deals SPI x0.5 damage. If more are－ thrown, it becomes an AoE attack with 20 speed, that still causes SPI x0.5 damage. Each object costs 5 SP to create, and a total of 25 is spent to create five. Depending on the object, level 1 status effects have chances to happen]

[Physical attack. Creates a medium object that is thrown towards a target. It causes SPI x2 damage, and has high chances of causing a－level 1 status effect, depending on what it is. Costs 15 SP and has speed 17]

[Physical attack. Creates a large object that is thrown towards a target. It causes SPI x 3 damage, and will almost always cause a status－effect on impact. Costs 30 SP and has speed 14]

[Sei]

Marissa Eren
Location: ???
Time: Day 1- Night

More words. Thoughts cycling. Running back to and from. Roundabout and standing still. Lips move, air stirs, wind parts, and minds sing. What is there remains there but cannot be seen from both angles so the luster is not recognized. However, it's a trivial thing because none of it really mattered to begin with. The wind is still and the fairies have calmed. What remains is night.

The deal has not been changed, it says. My importance has been overstated, it says. So if this is true, then the day will not come back to me so easily. The wind will continue to cycle through the chaos for a while longer... Words worth wording- sounded by silence- will do nothing more than echo through solid medium for a while longer. The heart in my chest creeps, I say.

Looking back at the paper once more, I still find nothing of personal interest laid out in its print. Truth be told, this is just a silly scheme by some thing masquerading in a tacky suit looking out for its own benefit. If it can find someone else, then I have no interest in this task as is. Life or death makes no difference to me. It's all just par the course. But...

"I'm tired of being 'human'."

My mind is made idle by this singular thought... If only for a moment.

"If you can do something about that, then I'll run your silly errand. ...But if you can't, stop wasting my time and let it end."

[hero]

Masaki Taichi
Location: The Hall – Final Push
HP: 48 |SP: 0 | Turn: 7


Tomomi, you are far too kind.

As I wait for Jordan to create an opening Alexandra and I can exploit, I can't help but to think back of what my little sister said. Even after being hurt and driven to the point of exhaustion, the reason why she continues to push herself to continue is so she can help others. From the beginning, my reasons have not been as noble hers. I cared about my group and nothing else... Deep down thinking that that kindness of her will someday become a weakness. But... That doesn't stop me from being able to admire its beauty from afar. I might be the oldest sibling, but its clear who was the one to inherit the will of our parents. The same will that saved us that snowy night burns within Tomomi's heart like flame.

"Heh..."

In the end, I didn't dare to ask for help. That's just like me, though. I may be bleeding, I may be hurt, but I am certain I am not going to die here. I'm not the smartest, not the strongest and I definitely lack points in the areas of leadership and creativity. But once I put my mind into something, I see it to the end. Millia-sensei can use her powers on the other students and rest assured that I don't need it.

I am no pushover.

I am sorry, Tomomi... For now, you'll just have to believe in the only thing your stupid older brother can do well: Be stubborn.

"..."

Can't say I like working with people I am not familiar with, or people like Jordan for that matter. He sounds so friendly that sometimes I can't help but to wonder if what he's saying is what he really thinks or just what he wants me to hear. He is way too upbeat for his own good and I am not sure if he's capable of coming up with a plan that isn't reckless as hell... Because he has the face of a guy who does stupid things.

But at the same time he's the guy that looked after my sister when I wasn't there. For that alone, I trust, I will point my blade at his enemies, even when death draws near. Plus, he said it himself... My contribution is needed if we want to overcome this obstacle.

So I will push my body to the limit on more time, not because I care about this school or what it represents, or for the lives of those who I don't even know, I will raise my sword for those close to me, so they can keep walking by my side.

"..."

That is the path I have chosen.

I can feel it growing within me. This power is my own, and at the same time it's is something brought forth by others. Though I've never asked for their help, their support continues to exist and I am unable to pay a blind eye to it. No, in the first place, that's the reason why I chose to stay with the group in spite of not trusting most of its members. For our survival, I chose strength in numbers... And what I feel right now is nothing more than the proof of that strength.

Legion, through this battle you have proved to be a daunting foe, both mighty and intelligent. Some may claim your sole mistake was to underestimate humanity. I share a slightly different opinion. If I had to put it in a few words...

---You simply happened to mess with the wrong bunch.

"Now-!"

I respond to those words with a determined charge of my own.

Our attack isn't perfectly synchronized. Through Jordan told me that Alexandra worked with Martial Arts, he never told me which style, and even if he had, I wouldn't have had enough time to react anyways. To be blunt, I expected to be the one to reach the giant first and weaken it so she'd be the one to deal the final blow, but as it would turn out, it seems I'm somehow the slowest in this duo. In the space of an instant, the Golem which was previously standing still is tossed forward by an blow on its back. Naturally, it's not strong enough to send the thing flying at me, but it manages to catch me by surprise nonetheless.

"... Working with people like you will always be a pain in the ass."

I mutter under my breath as somehow climb my way up the monster while dealing as much damage as possible with the small blade I carry. Like any weapon of its type, its range is short, which makes it not my kind of weapon, but thanks to the enhancements I've received, I am able to adapt my own style to it using Einherjar. The result is a weapon as fast as the thrust of a kriss and as deadly as the dance of a sword. Against this creature, I do not show any mercy. For all the suffering that it put me and the others through, I'll kill it beyond its point of death. It will deliver a message to its owner to never come back.

"Owarida, Legioooooooooon-!!!"

Finishing off the combo with a descending thrust, I quickly disengage to avoid being caught again within a pile of corpses.

-------

Actions

Sword Dancer
Difficulty: 0 (3 additional Attacks Granted)

Precision Strikes
Difficulty: 16 - 4 (Einherjar, Leadership x2, Inspiring Blade)

Wise Up!

Stats

HP: 48/140
SP: 00/50Strength: 18 - 5 (Exhaustion) + 6 (Leadership) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) + 1 (Fighting King) + 5 (Dark Twist) + 5 (Einherjar) + 3 (Sword Dancer II) + 5 (Queen's Decree) -1 (Terrorize) = 38
Defense: 19 - 5 (Exhaustion) + 6 (Leadership) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) + 1 (Fighting King) + 5 (Queen's Decree) - 1 (Terrorize) = 26
Spirit: 10 - 3 (Exhaustion) + 1 (Fighting King) = 8
S. Defense: 8 - 2 (Exhaustion) + 1 (Fighting King) = 7
Agility: 19 - 5 (Exhaustion) + 6 (Leadership) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) + 1 (Fighting King) + 2 (Einherjar) + 5 (Queen's Decree) - 1 (Terrorize) = 28
Evasion: 10 - 3 (Exhaustion) + 6 (Leadership) + 1 (Inspiring Blade) + 1 (Fighting King) + 5 (Queen's Decree) - 1 (Terrorize) = 19

[Dranes]

Arthur MacKnight
Location: The Hall – Right Flank
HP: 67/95(100)/SP:70/150/Self: 74

With those last words, the president's voice left Arthur's mind.

A rousing speech was not something he was used to nor did he really expect to hear in his life, not like this at least. It was all as if this was a story from one of his books, living the part of one of the characters in the story.

Maybe it was all just a dream? Maybe Nick just played a trick on him and this was all happening in his head, at any moment he would awake from the nightmare.

A pleasant thought but one that even he couldn't fool himself into believing. This Twisted World was reality, if there was any story to be told here that he was a part of it could only be one kind.

A tragedy.

His thoughts were disturbed by the arrival of another student, introducing himself as...the Black King? Regardless of his entrance, it wasn't really the time to question just what was going through the man's head and instead listened to the plan. From it he could at least gather their original goal was fulfilled...or their losses were too great to keep on going but regardless the main objective had changed from rescue to survival. In the end the goal had never been the destruction of whatever beast, it was an unseen occurence and now it was time to get the hell out of here.

With a heave he lifted the blade over his shoulder, there was only a wall of undead left between them and escape now.

And then someone else happened to show up.

"Sweet sword, man. I don't even know how you're lifting that thing. You a fan of Final Fantasy or something? I really like the whole darkness theme you've got going on. Anyway, no need to push yourself, but try cutting up some of the Ghouls and Ghosts in our way instead of accidentally chopping off someone's head, yeah? Hang a right at the giant foot."

It took a moment for him to get what the young man had said, though he had sped off by the time already.

The man he couldn't tell which ran faster, his feet or his mouth: Jordan. J. Jones.

Final Fantasy, huh? Funny.

He shaked his head slightly. What a way to go about it.

But a simple enough instruction.

No matter what, he'd make sure to get it done. He would clear a path through for the others no matter the cost, in the end he could do that much at least.

Arthur reached to his chest once more, he could only hope this would be the last time he needed to do this.

The blackened blade sprang into life, as if in anticipation for its next meal.

And so another part of the being known as Arthur MacKnight was lost to the depths of The Dark.

The dark plate formed and covered his right leg, though the sturdy appearance was but an illusion.

At least he was ready now.

No turning back!

With that thought he charged forwards, the others could deal with the stronger individuals so he had to make sure he could clear at least a path for the rest.

With speed unseen before he moved ahead of the rest of the super humans, whatever support that the rest were doing allowing him to do so with ease. He wouldn't risk allowing one of the others getting in the way of his blade.

He readied the blade as he drew closer, his target being the densest cluster of undead in the wall. He'd pierce through them all with this one strike, it didn't matter if it was a simple zombie, a ghoul or even a ghost.

He would strike them all down.

[Use: Grand Blade]

Once more against all reason, the blade grew in mass. With ease he drew it back once more, both hands grabbing at the handle as unnecessary as the gesture was.

"Get out of the way!"

The dark blade was swung and with it cut a path through the rotting dead to salvation.

------------------------------------------------

Target: Anything in the way (Ghosts/Ghouls preferably but hey.)

Wiseup!

Name: Arthur MacKnight
Race: Enhanced Human
Attributes: Human, Unbound
Spiritual Level: 1
Self: 69

Statistics:

HP: 67/100
SP: 60/150
Self: 69
Strength: 16 +3 (Leadership) -1 (Terrorize) +1 (Avid Reader) = 19 +16 (The Dark) = 35 + 3 (Leadership II) +1 (Fighting King)+1 (Inspiring Blade)=40
Defense: 12 +3 (Leadership) -1 (Terrorize) = 14 + 3 (Leadership II) +1 (Fighting King) )+1 (Inspiring Blade)=19
Spirit: 16 +1 (Fighting King)=17
Spiritual Defense: 10 +1 (Fighting King)=11
Agility: 16 +3 (Leadership) -1 (Terrorize) -1 (Bad Company) = 17 +3 (Leadership II) +1 (Fighting King) )+1 (Inspiring Blade)=22
Evasion: 16 +3 (Leadership) -1 (Terrorize) -1 (Bad Company) = 17 +3 (Leadership II) +1 (Fighting King) )+1 (Inspiring Blade) = 22

[Perks]

Avid Reader
Reading has always been one of Arthur's favored pastimes, the type of book never really mattered and because of that he has read a wide variety of books ranging from sports to martial arts. Because of this, Arthur has knowledge on a variety of subjects and when put together with his Focus, allows him to put that knowledge to practical use. Though he would not be on the level of someone who has put their all in a specific subject, the practical knowledge is enough to get him through most situations.

[Because of reading and obtaining knowledge about many things, some positive modifiers when executing normally unfamiliar actions may be obtained (+1 to STR obtained when wielding a sword or fighting an enemy barehanded). May have other uses.]

[Awakened Power]

The Dark - A Necessary Evil
Specialty: Offense

A spiritual power that takes the form of an oversized greatsword that continues to exude wisps of black, standing as tall as Arthur himself. For Arthur even with its immense size it seems he can easily wield it with one hand if necessary. The true nature of the dark blade is an unknown but it seems that anything that it touches other then Arthur begins to corrode into nothingness and exudes a malicious aura as fitting its appearance...the question remains if it is truly just a sword?

[Costs 50 SP to activate. SPI is added to STR to calculate damage, and all damage caused by the sword counts as Dark attribute. The blade corrodes what it touches, and deals SPIx1.5 damage to an enemy, calculating against its SDEF. Every turn The Dark is active, a dice is rolled to determine if one point of Self is lost. The blade is active until the battle ends, and unlocks the following abilities.]

[Grand Blade – By concentrating spiritual energy into the sword, its size is duplicated to create a gigantic blade that can be used to sweep at enemies in front of the user. Damage is actual STR x2 AoE, and costs 10 SP and 5 Self to use. Corrosion damage is calculated afterwards as normal]

[Black Corrosion – Concentrating spiritual energy and a portion of his own Self into the corrupting powers of the blade, the user’s next hit with The Dark causes SPI x2 corrosion damage for two turns after the next hit. Costs 10 SP and 5 Self to use, and can be used in combination with Grand Blade.]

[MssrNeko]

Adam Baumer | HP: 101/180 SP: 40/60
Location: The Hall
Zeus High School vs Legion
Turn 7

Adam's vision wavers as he walks towards his position. He hears the frantic speeches and rushed preparations but pays no attention to it. He never paid attention to complex plans in the first place, wasn't his forte. You just tell Adam where to go and what to do and leave it to him. Although it was more due to Adam's low intelligence. Not that he minded, people can talk mad shit but when it comes to heads, Adam shows them why he's the Big Man on Campus.

Fuck this hurts Adam thinks as his body throbs in pain with each step.

Intense sensations threaten his consciousness as he grits his teeth. The kid did some weird magic trick and toke away some of the pain but it had drained most of the adrenaline from Adam's system. Now all the pain from his broken ribs had returned and it was hurting like bitch. But no way in hell was Adam gonna show he is in pain. Pain is weakness leaving the body Adam recites from memory as he trudges on.

The large blond lineman arrives in the midst of similarly built students (not as big as me, though he thinks with a bit of pride) and takes note of the group. Some were part of the Football team like he was and he knew them while others were either apart of the other teams or were just big enough dudes sent here to help. Lizbeth was here as well and Adam could at least rely on her to help with most of the push but he realizes that this motley crew would need all the help they could get.

"Tch." Adam had to work with what he had.

"Huddle up!" Adam shouts. The group around him stare at him with faces of panic, confusion, exhaustion, and fear. "HUDDLE THE FUCK UP, FAGGOTS."

The ragtag group quickly huddle into a tight-knit circle as each of the members look towards their so-called leader. So this is how it feels to be Lars...

"Alright, losers, listen up. No, fucking listen to me assholes, not to the other idiots outside of this circle. Here's the deal: we all form a wall and push through these undead faggots and get to the exit. Get it?"

Several members voice their fears and opinions but Adam drowns them out.

"ARE YOU RETARDED? We are gonna fucking push through that fucking mob and get through this fucking shithole. Why don't you fucking man up and get some backbone? Look..." Adam pauses as he realizes that not everyone here had the same testicular fortitude as he did. "Gonzales? Gaga? Whatever your name is? Get this through your goddamn skull. We," Adam gestures to the group and himself. "We are the Line. We make sure that the Team acts like it should. If the Line can't push then the Team can't score."

"It doesn't matter if your QB or Receivers are fucking amazing, if the Line doesn't push then we don't. Fucking. Score. We make the plays happen, people. We carry the Team and the Team carries the Line."

-----------------------------

The Line assembles in a vanguard of muscle and grit as they ready themselves for the push.

In that moment, many things happen at once.

"DOWN." Adam bellows.

A brave samurai from the East clashes with a fury of a million steel blades.

"SET."

The crystal maiden summons a bulwark of protection and division.

"HUT."

A streak of black lightning strikes the earth and its enemy reaps the whirlwind.

"HUT."

A martial artist unleashes the power of one punch.

"HUT."

A black knight shines darkly with his obsidian blade cutting through foes.

"HUT!"

And the Line moves as One.

As one unit, Adam and his Line move forward as a one body towards the horde ahead of them. As Arthur's grand attack strikes his targets, the Line crashes on the approaching mob of undead like a wave on the sand. Moving aside and letting the lone Black Knight through, the Line shows no mercy for its foes. The burly line of students rip and tear the oncoming wave of undead but holds fast. One student rips off a limb and tosses their opponent beneath them as two tag a bigger one with combined toss. Adam takes the brunt of the foes, shouting all the obscenities he can muster while ripping and tearing through his foes like paper as Lizbeth punches with unfettered power, obliterating zombie after zombie in her wake. Those that are tossed aside are quickly trodden to death or disposed of by the students behind the Line. And in the middle of it all, Adam shines like a golden beacon in the darkness. The keystone in the Line that would not bend. Two zombies. Five zombies. Ten zombies. It did not matter. Adam ripped one, tore another, tossed three, trampled the rest.

The Line carried the Team. And the Team followed the Line.

But in that chaos, an unholy bellow of dark wrath sounds over the din of the battle. Adam spots his target, a giant being made of corpses, rampage through the right flank towards the group. If the Line fell here, than the Team was doomed.

"YOU'RE MINE!" Adam detaches himself from and with surprising speed, jolts at the approaching giant. A scream of worry goes unheard as Adam roars with the fury of a madman.

The two giants trample everything in their path as they rush towards each other with frightening speed. Adam tosses aside zombies and ghouls with power swipes and blows, clearing his path towards his target. The Golem of Flesh swings its arms in rage, grabbing fellow undead and eating them as an appetizer for the Main Course. Blood and gore caking their feet, the two meet in a cleared area.

With a yell of defiance, Adam launches himself at the Golem, his fist glowing with golden energy.

"OLYMPIANS. HOLD. THE LINE!"

He strikes at the core of the flesh giant with all his might.

Behind him, without his knowledge, his father's chosen bodyguards bring up the rear. With burning hearts, they attack with their charge to defend both him and his fellow students.
---------------------------------

ONE TURN AND ONE TURN ONLY.

​A-BOMB

VS

Flesh Golem

----------------------------------
Adam punches Flesh Golem!
Bodyguard Detail Support Activated!

TEAM PRECISION ATTACK ATTEMPTED!

Wise up!

Adam Baumer
STR: 20 (Base) => 34
DEF: 22 (Base) => 38
SPI: 5 (Base) => 6
SDEF: 22 (Base)=> 23
AGI: 8 (Base) => 20
EVA: 8 (Base) => 20

Perks
Man of the Hour
With his natural charisma and big stature, Adam commands the attention and respect of everyone in his area. With just a shout, he can call attention to himself and away from others.[Relationships with others are slightly easier to increase. The chances of Relationships going negative are reduced. Has a higher presence that makes monsters favor attacking him]
[Technique – Taunt. Can shout to try and attract the attention of opponents. The level of intelligence of the opponent influences the effectiveness of this technique]

Man of Steel (Focus Perk)
Due to his life of sports and athletics, Adam’s body is of the perfect conditioning for physical activities. It could be said that his body is the peak of human excellence.
[By steeling himself, Adam can augment his DEF and MDEF by 5 each, at the cost of being unable to attack or move that turn. Chances of getting negative status effects are reduced, and he is completely invulnerable to Level 1 sicknesses]

Man Mode
Even with his back against the wall, Adam will always push against any force against him. With a second wind, Adam gets some energy to immediately fight back even with injuries or exhaustion.
[When in a critical situation with 20% or less of HP left, all limiting wounds and injuries (with exception of those caused by limb loss) can be ignored, and all physical stats get +2]

Special Skill
Aegis - With his power, Adam can increase some of his physical stats for several turns with the emphasis on Defensive stats. Allies near Adam will receive some of the bonus stats according to their relationship with him.
[Empowering – Augments all physical stats by 3, and his DEF stat is further increased by 5. Costs 5 SP per turn. Allies with Relationship 2 or higher will get +1 to all their physical stats, and +3 to their DEF stat]

[Mooncake]

Lacie Rowan | HP: 63/70 SP: 35/120
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (The Hall – 4th Floor)
Time: Day 1 – Evening

​
“Well, there goes all the energy I had left.”

...Well, that was certainly impressive.

Sherry's spell ripped a hole the size of a large truck through the ranks of the undead around us, the damage noticeable but quickly replaced. There's really nothing to do now but fight, as I see it. Most of our group is dead, there are waves of zombies everywhere, my energy is rapidly draining and our heaviest hitter is out - but, most importantly, there is nothing between me and these zombies anymore, save for Demios.

I look up at the shadowy, creepy figure, its goat's head bobbing along silently as it watches the crowd of zombies. It is an extension of myself, I can feel that much. I don't know why it looks the way it does. Maybe it's just coincidence. Maybe it's a surrealist representation of this psychological issue or such and such...

Max would, no doubt, love to talk about it. He won't shut up about surrealist art - merely bringing it up around him seems to be a terrifying thing. I shake my head as I contemplate; gotta focus, and all those lovely extras that entails. Like tuning in to the smell of rotting flesh that completely surrounds us, for example. If I see another zombie again after this, it'll be too soon.

A golden blur registers in the corner of my eyes, and I turn to meet the newest threat, but it can only be-

"Uh, Lacie, right? Sorry, I don't really know you at all. You kinda remind me of this one guy, though. I'll introduce you later. He's totally your type. If you could tell that big shadowy dude standing behind you to go clear the way of Ghouls and zombies for the normal students, I'd appreciate it."

"And uh, Miss Demon Lady? Well... actually, never mind. I'd probably lose my soul."

I move to answer him, but Jordan Jones has already disappeared in a burst of the speed that made him famous. A guy that fits my 'type', huh? He must be talking about Max, then. He thinks highly of Jordan's ability, and intelligence, even though he doesn't always say it out loud. He's a bit of a foolish boy that way.

"You don't need to tell me that," He's already gone, but I keep going anyways. "Not when I was planning on doing it anyways!"

I really don't have a choice now; I'll have to follow the group's plan or get eaten alive. ...Working with them like this doesn't appeal to me, but as Demios's wings flare to either side, I have to say that it isn't that bad.

Demios's mouth unhinges as it roars, something I thought it couldn't do. The echoing, unnatural sound rings out across the battlefield, which means it's time for me to go. Maybe Max and I aren't as completely different as it seems at first glance.

I think I'm looking forward to this.

"Come on, you mindless slobs!"

With that, Demios's wings lash out at the zombies closest to me as I charge with the rest of the group. I'll trust Jordan's ability for now, but his plan had better work!

Status Screen

Name: Lacie/Max L. Rowan
Age: 17
Gender: Female
Race: Enhanced Human

Stats

STR: 16 -4 (Lacie) *1.5 (Rook) = 18
DEF: 11 -4 (Lacie) *1.5 (Rook) = 10
AGI: 15 +2 (Lacie) = 17
SPI: 18 +2 (Lacie) = 2
SDEF: 8 +2 (Lacie) = 10
EVA: 20 +2 (Lacie) = 22


Perks

Two for the Price of One
Since Max was diagnosed with multiple personality disorder, the two personalities that make up “Max” share equal time in his/her body. (???)
[When Lacie is on, STR and DEF are lowered by 4, and SPI, SDEF, EVA and AGI are increased by 2. ???]


Invocation: Demios, the Queen of Hearts
The Queen of Hearts takes the form of a bubbling, blackened shadow that vaguely resembles a tall woman before it physically manifests from that shadow. When physically manifested, Demios takes the form of a giant skeleton with the head of a goat, wrapped in rags. It has two large, razor sharp wings which it uses for its main method of attack. It can also defend Lacie somewhat, as it can be placed in front of physical attacks to deflect them. It must remain within a certain range of Lacie at all times. ???
[15 SP is used to summon Demios, which costs 5 SP to maintain. If Demios is hit with a physical, Max/Lacie receive damage as normal, but said damage is reduced by 10. Attacks with Demios sharpened wings deal SPI damage, and can cause level 1 bleeding, with smaller chances of level 2 bleeding. Demios’ speed, overall, is 20. ???]

Rooks (1.5 * STR/DEF)

Castling (Rook/King): A rook and a king can swap positions if they are reasonably nearby.
[Costs 15 SP to use. Can only be used if they are on a maximum distance of 300 meters of each other.]

Impregnable Bulwark (Rook): For a single turn, this rook is invulnerable to physical damage. This ability can only be used once a day. [Costs 40 of the user’s SP. Has been used today.]

[RacingeR]

Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (The Final Push– 4th Floor)
Time: Day 1 – Night
Zeus High School vs Legion
Turn 7

Intermission
Alexander Tanner (Part 1)

“This is all I can do,” the being shrouded in static had said, voice still tired and weary, “if I try to interfere even more, my kin won’t remain inactive.”

“Is that so? Seems like you aren’t going to bet all your chips on us quite yet.” Alexander smiled wryly in response to the being’s statement. “Not that I’m complaining. This is enough for what we need.”

“Indeed… the rest depends on the strength and will of humankind… whether you will be able to push through or not…”

“I trust them.” Alexander cut the androgynous voice out. “I trust the students of Zeus High. They will be able to push through. All that matters to me now is that no more people pay for our mistake, and that they all escape alive from here.”

“… Is that the truth, Alexander Tanner? Is that what you truly feel? Is that truly the guiding reason behind your actions?” The voice, lacking in emotion, questioned him without any mercy.”

“Yes…” It was a lie. And both Alexander and the entity called Unknown knew it.

All that mattered for him was that if more people died, she wouldn’t be able to take it. She’d break. She had been the one that had wanted to save the trapped students in the first place. She had been the one that had wanted to save everyone in the first place. Rose Deschamps was just too good for her own good, despite having no real confidence on herself whatsoever.

And for Alexander, that she had wanted that was enough for him to want the same. All that had mattered to him were the wishes of the girl he loved, and to do the impossible to accomplish them, to make her happy, to make her have some sort of confidence in herself. For him, Rose was a priority over everything else.

That was all there was to it. Or at least he tried to convince himself so.

It was, after all, something borne out of both debt and love.

His thoughts wandered, all the way back to the now distant past. To that forest in Maine, to the sound of that falling tree, and to the scream, the cry that would follow him until the end of his road. He tightened the grip on his sword, and turned his back towards the being of static, facing the darkness of the undead that waited ahead.

“Let’s go.” He mumbled to himself.

And go he did.

Alexander Tanner has used Fate-Breaker

Intermission End

It was the combined power of will, the power of the speeches given, the encouragement of each other. As the whole of the Rescue Group, the heart of Zeus High School, charged ahead like they were one man, they roared in unison, bringing their voiced and spirits up as they faced the enemy.

At this very moment, their spirit was like a naked blade brought to bear against the Legion of absolute darkness.

Morale +20!
Willpower Overload activated!

It was a frenzy borne out of willpower. Like a blade of unbreakable folded steel, like a tidal wave, a tsunami from the depths of the ocean, a roaring massive wave smashing down against a defenseless coast, so did Zeus High School fall upon Legion, shattering its frontlines with absurd, overwhelming force. The Hand at the front of everything, already weakened in previous combat, was surrounded by Rosalin’s thorns, which started to eat away at the composition of the construct. Then the sheer strength of the charge crushed it and its remnants, killing them off a short yet brief skirmish.

The very frontline of Zeus High, with Adam at its helm, followed closely by Zhong’s gang, smashed at the front of the Legion blockade… and then crunched through, brutally ripping their way through, putting a wedge of life amidst the hordes of the unconquerable dead, and then expanding with sheer force of will, sending the undead reeling back with the tremendous force of their fight.

A sudden appearance of a long and tall wall of crystal disrupted the movements of Legion, completely paralyzing the movements of the Foot, inconvenienced by the sheer mass of undead suddenly wedged between it and the wall. The flow of reinforcements coming from the right of the blockade to the left was greatly reduced, many zombies being reduced to attacking the wall, scratching at it, trying to push it down. It would only hold for a single, vital moment. And that was all they needed.

The first wall of Legion had been defeated: the zombies at the very front had fallen, at least fifty killed through the initial charge, in comparison to only five dead humans in total. The first stage of the plan had been a smashing success, and the students now split in well coordinated task forces to accomplish their designated objectives, attacking the elite forces of Legion in an absurdly fast blitz, killing whatever they found on their way.

It was too much for it.

From the very beginning, this Legion had not been Legion. It had been naught but a mere fragment of a consciousness that was much older and much more powerful than any of the humans it was fighting against could imagine. But that had been all. It was lacking in many important abilities its original had. It had made many mistakes, mistakes that the other Legion would have never made, even if reduced to the same troops it was wielding now. It had lost its chance to accomplish a quick, clean and easy victory, and was now paying the price.

It was Many that were One. And now this One was facing against Many. It was an integration of hundreds of consciousnesses woven together into a single one… and because it was a single one, it was truly outnumbered. As the number of fronts and situations kept increasing, Legion, emotionless as it was, started to fall apart. The enemies were too many.

And it was only a single entity.

Following Jordan, some of the students split apart, crushing through the files of Legion, and reached the first of the Flesh Golems, which was already charging through the forces of Zeus, wounding and killing many with its mere charge, the massive body crushing everything in its path.

But even this immense, massive and bulky body was no rival for the fist of Alexandra Gray.

Precision roll

Difficulty = 16
Roll = 4 + 4 = 8

Battle calculation

Alexandra’s Attack
-54 (Alexandra’s total STR) – 16 (Flesh Golem’s DEF) = 38 damage

The attack did not reach the ghoul attached to the rest of the Golem’s structure by a few centimeters. Instead, it slammed on the rest of the corpses that seemed to serve as a protective carapace of sorts around it, creating a rippling shockwave through the creature’s flesh through sheer strength. The body of the monster trembled, stopping it for a second, almost making it fall forwards with the impossible strength concentrated in Alexandra’s fist. The same movement makes her fall off from the creature’s body, throwing her away against the floor, her undead constitution protecting her slightly from the ensuing impact.

Alexandra has lost 5 HP

“Not bad, girl. You have an interesting potential… although all your efforts are doomed from the very start, your struggle is not bad at all…”

No sooner had the Gray Monk said these words in her mind, another figure, coated in a golden aura, went up the Golem’s body, cutting it apart as it went.

Precision roll

Difficulty = 16
Roll = 19 + 3 = 22

Battle calculation

Taichi’s Attack
-38 (Taichi’s total STR) – 26 (Flesh Golem’s DEF) = 12 damage
-Precision attack. 12 x 1.5 = 18 damage.

Precision roll

Difficulty = 16
Roll = 4 + 3 = 7

Battle calculation

Taichi’s Attack
-38 (Taichi’s total STR) – 26 (Flesh Golem’s DEF) = 12 damage

Precision roll

Difficulty = 16
Roll = 12 + 3 = 15

Battle calculation

Taichi’s Attack
-38 (Taichi’s total STR) – 26 (Flesh Golem’s DEF) = 12 damage

Torn apart by the series of slashes, the Golem fell backwards, and slammed against the floor. Very shortly after, it started to get up again… but by that moment, the normal students had flooded the premises, standing above its mass, and smashing it with their weapons over and over again, until the monster vanished under them, replaced by a mountain of corpses.

Flesh Golem has been slain

Meanwhile, Rika and Lara looked at the distance, towards the Flesh Golem at the far right of the foot. Nicholas and Ray, along with some others stood there. You were going to be the ones trying to take it down before it could reach the wall.

With a single use of her power, Rika poured silver colored energy to create a massive spear from the ground’s matter, aiming it at one of the Golem’s legs as it maneuvered through the zombie horde in an attempt to reach the main battle.

Precision roll

Difficulty = 16
Roll = 17 + 3 = 20

The massive spear of concrete tore through the corpses that made up the limb, and struck the ground below, eliciting a great roar from the giant as it struggled against the sudden shackle. However, its efforts proved useless, and then Lara fired her attack, aiming her intact hand towards the Golem’s chest, and with a scream of pain, shooting out the bones that composed her fingers. The improvised projectiles struck the Golem, stopping it struggle for a moment, in time for a lightning bolt, courtesy of Nicholas, to flash-fry it. Finally, a hail of stones, one of which exploded with green-colored energy, brought the great giant down… only for it to get up once again. Giving up trying to free itself from the spear that had jammed its leg to the ground, it instead started to grab nearby zombies, stuffing them in its mouth, and then to shoot them at the Zeus’ students, with middling success.

Finally, Adam’s charge had torn through the enemy lines, and the Ghouls had tried to attack him, only to be rejected by his bodyguards and pushed away. Now, those who had been in charge of taking them down had initiated their attack, creating a screen between the injured and exhausted linemen that accompanied you and the tough guys of Legion’s army.

However, the last Golem this side of the Foot came charging down towards you, breaking any illusion of safety apart. Crushing the cadavers of the zombies you had slain with your very hands, it bore down upon you like a massive mountain. You pushed away the undead between it and you, and finally met it alone, by yourself, amidst a circle of dead and undead, the blood of the fallen staining both you and the creature.

Your fist impacted against it. And at the very same moment, the fist of the Golem met your chest.

Precision roll

Difficulty = 16
Roll = 9 + 3 = 12

Your attack struck the Golem at full strength, but it didn’t manage to stop it or make it even flinch. Meanwhile, the Golem’s punch buried itself on your body, striking your whole torso backwards with its sheer strength

Precision roll

Difficulty = 16
Roll = 12

Battle calculation

Flesh Golem’s Attack
-50 (Flesh Golem’s STR) – 32 (Adam’s DEF) = 18 + 5 = 23 damage.
Adam’s HP: 101 – 23 = 78 HP.

You were pushed back… and at the very same time, your bodyguard detail opened fire against the giant, unleashing a hailstorm of bullets upon the monster, raining hot death on it. Lead pierced through the many corpses composing it, destroying even the ghoul-like one on its back. When the agents finally ran out of ammo, the Golem roared, covered in many wounds, but still moving forwards towards you. At that very moment, the Line arrived. Pushing back the undead with sheer force and willpower, it got to where the Golem was, and immediately swarmed it. For a brief moment, you could see Lizbeth leading the charge, covered in greenish-blue fire, striking against the creature again and again, until it finally ceased moving and disappeared under the humans taking it apart.

Flesh Golem has been slain

The charge of humankind had been devastating, but the momentum was beginning to be lost. The Hand that had been blocking the center of their path had managed to wound many before Sarah disassembled it, and the leftover zombies annihilated by the humans. Legion’s numbers were overwhelming, and it still had many Ghouls and Decayed Souls to employ. The wall that Tomomi had put forward had contained the blast caused by the Foot’s stomp, which still had managed to kill a few students, and wound many. Still, many gaps had been opened through the wall, and the reinforcement started pouring through the gaps.

The Faceless Ones, champions between the undead, had arrived, and people in front of them fell or cowered, unable to deal with them. The rush of morale and euphoria that had made possible that first fateful charge had finally run out.

Morale -30

The battle redoubled in frenzy and energy. The plan was falling apart at the seams, the Ghouls and Faceless Ones proving to be too though for the normal people to handle. Arthur’s massive swing had killed many of the former, but the ghosts had started bombarding the forces of Zeus with their flames, forcing him to chase them and take them down one by one.

In the frontline, Adam’s charge had been finally stopped by a line of tougher undead, and the Line had been almost cut-off from the forced advancing behind. Gonzalez had died, killed by a Faceless One, and the rest of the line was too wounded to keep going thanks to the bombardment of the ghosts. Only Lizbeth and Adam, along with his bodyguards, were able to keep fighting at full strength, although even them were starting to slow down with exhaustion. Zhong’s gang, a bit more ahead to the right, were in a similar situation, having been caught up in their own momentum, and struggling to not lose terrain.

Nearby, Jordan led forth a charge to try and break through what was left of the blockade. Alexandra and quite the few other superhumans were with him, taking down zombie after zombie in a battle that seemed to have no end. All of them were falling apart with tiredness, wounds littering their bodies, but kept going ahead, refusing to lose against the relentless tide of the dead.

A group was formed near the wall, attempting to contain the reinforcements coming from the right of the blockade. The Foot was unable to do much, its powerful technique sealed by Alexander, but that didn’t mean more and more troops didn’t keep coming from there. Rika was in that group, and she had been forced to use the thin sword that the Paladin had given her many times. Lara had covered her for most of it, slaying many zombies with her pale blade, although having been wounded by them just as much. She was finally running out of fuel, both spiritual and physical, and her friend was not much better. Whatever strength the Silver spirit had lent her, it had run out, and she was finally starting to become tired, her limbs becoming heavier movement after movement. Other superhumans were there, but they were mostly trying to not get surrounded by Legion, with Lacie and Arthur attacking the Ghouls and ghosts that tried to come from farther in the blockade.

The ones who lacked the physical strength to participate in the melee and had otherwise run out of energy were in the center of the army, advancing behind the vanguard that was trying to push through. Tomomi, Robert and Kyle were there, with the later helping push away the zombies that attacked from the flank, killing many off, but suffering wounds meanwhile. The twins had stayed behind with Tomomi to protect her, and were also helping with the melee.

Further in the vanguard Taichi, Kaitlin and Alexander fought alone, maintaining a bridge between the Line and the other units at the vanguard. Wave against wave of the enemies crashed against the trio, only to be cut apart by their swords. Ghouls were pushed back, rejected by the powerful blades, if not outright cut to pieces. But the enemy did not falter. This was the weakest point in the enemy line, and Legion decided to smash it with all of its strength.

It was the last mistake it did in this battle.

It was fighting too many enemies. It had underestimated their strength, their force of will. It had not only underestimated humanity… but it had also messed up with the wrong bunch. After all… Zeus High School had always been intended to draw upon the best of the best, the pool of the greatest humankind had to offer, with the greatest potential to achieve greatness.

The moment it shifted its troops to attack the swordsmen, Adam and Zhong’s groups simultaneously broke free, overwhelming the weakened blockade, and finally going through, hitting the empty space behind, sweeping many of the tougher zombies away with their movement.

Legion hesitated. For a single moment, it only paid attention to those that had broken through, attempting to catch them back before they could truly escape. And then, the Rescue group roared and charged as one, the center column suddenly breaking through in a stampede, crushing Ghouls and Faceless Ones underfoot, headed by Jordan and Taichi, who barely noticed when Alexander slipped away from the group.

They crushed the remnants of the blockade at the left, finally opening a massive gap between the leftovers at the far-left and the reinforcements that came from the right or that assaulted the rear-guard of the group. Without stopping, despite everyone being exhausted, despite every single human in the group being wounded, they finally broke through, and did not cease going until they were at the doors, left open by their early entrance in what seemed like a life ago. The humans poured through the doors in an insane charge, fighting off Legion’s last attempts to kill them, and finally exited the Hall in midst of a great battle. When the last of the humans went through, he and some others swung the doors close, in a futile attempt to stall the follow-up forces of Legion.

Immediately, the column of people, under Rose’s orders, shifted around and prepared themselves to contain the horde of enemies that was sure to attack at any moment, coming through the closed doors. But Legion never came.

After all… a sheet of blue energy appeared, starting from the door and then spreading through the wall, until it covered everything, and then continued even further, until it had covered each of the four walls and both the floor and the roof that constituted the Hall of Zeus High School.

The battle had ended. The enemy would not be coming through these walls. You understood that instinctively. Someone counted. Of those of the Rescue Group that had survived until then, twenty-two perished during the breakthrough, an incredibly low number once one observed how many wounded there were overall. And all of the superhumans had made it through alive.

All of them…

… except for one.

“No… you idiot… why…?” Rosalin said, and at that moment understanding dawned in those who were present.

Intermission
Alexander Tanner (Part 2)

Alexander Tanner stood alone, facing the endless horde of zombies that attacked him from all directions. After using his Invocation, modified and enhanced by the mysterious Demiurge, covered in a static-like mist, he had fought by himself, cutting and stabbing down zombie after zombie. Legion was furious, so it took its sweet time to kill him, little by little, tearing his body apart second by second.

He looked at the sky, the darkness-covered ceiling seeming so far away from him as if it was the true sky. His sword had been broken in half as he stabbed a Faceless One in the head, bringing it down for once and for all. His body was covered in wounds and blood, mostly his. His other arm had been almost bitten away by a Ghoul, whose claws had almost taken off his left eye in the same attack, leaving him unable to see through it. The blood that covered his face and body kept flowing, and he knew he was dying. There was no escaping this; there was no scurrying away from death this time around. But he still smiled, as the enemies tightened files around him.

“I am sorry it had to end this way… I wish there could have been more that could have been done…” The voice apologized, a patch of static actually opened behind the boy. He merely shrugged, and then laughed, as if proclaiming his defiance to the Legion before him and the words given to him by the Demiurge.

“You don’t need to apologize. You already did more than enough. You gave us a chance, and that was all I asked for. I do not regret this outcome at all, Unknown or whatever you choose to call yourself.” Smile still on his mouth, he turned his head back towards the approaching enemy.

“I have nothing to blame you for.”

He took a step ahead towards Legion, ignoring the presence of Unknown completely. The patch of static shifted slightly, as if nodding in respect, and disappeared along with the presence. Now Alexander was truly alone, but he grinned as the enemy surrounded him.

After all, his wish had been accomplished. His survival mattered not, even if that had been what he had to give away in order to save everyone else. They had gotten through the files of Legion with their own effort, and all he was doing was ensuring that victory would be permanent. It was a small prize to pay for him.

From the very beginning, all he had wished was that Rose’s wish would be accomplished. All that had mattered to him was that. The people trapped by Legion… the people that he had saved by establishing the safe-zone in the Lobby… all of those did not matter to him compared to Rose’s wishes. And Rose’s wishes had been to attempt to save all of them. To save everyone. That was what both Cyrus Ferdinand and the being that humans had called Unknown had noticed that was ‘off’ about him. After all, he merely had acted as an extension of that girl’s wish.

And finally, he had done it not only out of debt, but also out of pure love.

He cut down another zombie as the last rush was upon him. Claws cut through his arm, but he spun and managed to send the Ghoul that had wounded him tumbling down. He started to laugh again, as Legion finally decided to kill him off by applying all of its strength to bring him down.

“Hey Rose!” He suddenly shouted, his voice echoing upon the whole room as the zombies surrounded him again.

“I hope you survive. I hope you manage to get out of here and that you live on. I really do!” His sword stabbed for the last time, burying itself on the chest of another Ghoul. The creature moved, tearing it away from his hand. The surrounding zombies suddenly moved as one, and fell on him one after the other, teeth and claw tearing him apart.

“I hope you move onwards. I hope you lead them and drag them towards life alongside you. I hope you survive this bloody world and return once again to the world filled by the light of the sun and the moon and the stars. I hope you lead them there, Rose! You are the only one who can do it!”

The last shout was smothered as more zombies crawled on him, burying him in a writhing living mound of the undead, crushing his body under their weight, snapping his bones, snuffing out his consciousness and his life like it had been a flame before an hurricane.

“I……. love……. you………………………………. Rose!”

…

…

Alexander Tanner has been slain

Intermission End

There was a massive sound as The Foot slammed against the wall of blue light, which had remained even after the one who had put it up had died. Even after it was kicked, the wall resisted. Even as the zombies hit it, it did not allow them to come near the door. Alexander Tanner’s sacrifice had not been in vain.

There was another slamming sound. There was another crashing sound.

There was a beat.

And then there was a roar, an absolutely inhuman roar of frustration that came from hundreds of undead throats.

Legion, the Horde of the Unconquerable Damned, that had killed so many and for so long, that had won every battle it had fought again and again until entire Kingdoms gave up on defeating it… had finally known defeat.

Rose ran to the wall of blue light, and started punching, screaming and crying, calling for the one that was now gone. And she was not the only one that was crying; everywhere you could see, students finally broke down after the harrowing experience they had gone through, crying for their dead friends and classmates, or the siblings they would never see again. Crying for those that were now gone, zombified or eaten by said zombies, for those that had perished in the fight, or merely out of pain and exhaustion.

Not even the rush that indicated that a new part of your powers had been unlocked could make any of you feel better, battered and exhausted as you were, tired out beyond anything you had felt in your whole life.

You had survived, for now. You had won against incredible odds.

But it had been a very bitter victory.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Zeus High School vs Legion
VICTORY!

Invocations have been unlocked for everyone in the Sea of UNKNOWN
All participants of the fight have leveled up!
The world has been unlocked for exploration. Be careful of the dangers that wait ahead.
Optional Boss – Fragment of Legion is now in existence, become stronger and discover how to unlock the wall to fight it!
A certain boy now rests in peace…


-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Crookyln Gang vs UNKNOWN
TIE!

Cyrus’ Yellow Slime has obtained a seed of growth…
All of the gang has obtained a Relationship of 1 with UNKNOWN
An Abraxas Stone has been acquired
A certain path has been unlocked…

PHASE I
Shattered Horizons

END

WELCOME TO TITANOMACHY

Wise up!

Name: Fragment of Legion
Race: Undead
Attributes: Unliving, Hivemind
Spiritual Rank: -10

HP: 20 x Horde Number

STR: 35
AGI: 35

Perks:

Painless One [Unliving Trait]
As an undead being that has abandoned the realm of the living, this creature is now a shambling monstrosity, a decayed spirit moving the decayed husk of what used to be its body. Due to this, undead beings are unable to feel any pain, no matter how much their body is battered. Breaking their limbs is useless, as only complete destruction of said limb would be able to stop them from using it. Their body will keep going no matter how gruesome or severe the wounds are, until it is damaged enough to become unable to serve as a vessel for the decayed spirit.

Terrorize
The ghoulish, uncanny visage of what used to be an human being is able to terrify even the most valiant of humans, reducing all their physical stats by one. Only those who possess defenses against mental attacks of the Terror type are able to focus enough on their own survival to ignore the sight before them. Only affects those with Human Attribute.

Will of the Horde [Hivemind Trait]
All Decayed Beings under control of Legion are standardized to have 20 HP. Meanwhile, creatures of lower Spiritual Rank have the HP multiplied by said Rank (for example, Ghouls have 40 HP). They conserve all their other stats and abilities intact, but their Terrorize ability is reduced to the Terrorize perk if they had a higher form of it. Same happens with Painless One if the undead creatures happened to have an evolved form of said trait. There might be other reductions suffered by higher forms of undead that come under control of Legion, but those are unknown.

Bad Company
Given that all of the zombies of the horde are under control of a single, composite mind, they are able to move and attack in a very coordinated manner, like they were all different limbs of the same body. Furthermore, their sheer number is able to easily overwhelm targeted enemies, meaning that facing the horde alone means unavoidable death. For every two undead creature controlled by Legion near a target, said target have their AGI and EVA reduced by one, and the undead have their STR boosted by 1. Furthermore, if a target wanders away from allied company or is separated from their allies, their stamina loss is heavily augmented, and the stats reduction/augmentation counts for every decayed being instead of counting for every two of them.

As One
Legion is an amalgamation of uncountable souls into one, with the bodies being all left to the control of the resulting ‘creature’, a will that is embodied into each one of these decayed shells. Being basically all part of a single creature, they are able to act directly as if they were one being, ‘fusing’ with one each other to form shapes composed by their bodies, which are able to accomplish more than the sum of their parts. Different shapes have different effects. Damage caused to said shapes hits the undead composing them directly, and once half of the zombies composing the shape is dead, the shape is undone.
[The Hand – Requires 30 zombies. Forms a hand shape which deals STR AoE damage when attacking, and can trap one or many targets between its grip, smothering and crushing them for STR damage while leaving them unable to act]
[The Fist – A special attack done by The Hand. Sacrifices one third of the total zombies to deal a STR x2 AoE attack]
[The Foot – Requires 50 zombies. Forms a foot shape that deals STR x1.5 AoE damage when attacking]
[The Kick – A special attack done by The Foot. Sacrifices one third of the total zombies to deal a STR x3 AoE attack]

Labyrinthine Darkness
By becoming an accumulation of massive amounts of spiritual energy, Legion has become an entity that passively affects the world around it, creating a labyrinth of spiritual darkness on its surrounding area, that parts said area in many little sections, creating what can only be called a veritable labyrinth. This darkness possesses the property of absorbing sounds and vibrations, making it impossible to hear of perceive anything through it, although intense vibrations or sounds (like a dragon roaring) might be able to go through. One can walk through the darkness, as it is immaterial, but without some sort of reference, one will get quickly lost. Luck-based skills may be able to reduce the effect somewhat.

All enemy perks and stats have been revealed..?

[RacingeR]

Rosary Flowers
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (The Dorms – Rosary & Angeline’s Room)
Time: Day 1 – Night

You recalled what had happened once the fight against Unknown had finished. It had been quite simple, really.

You had gotten out of the room were the battle had happened, feeling really tired, and walked around a bit, when you had reached people coming from the big fight on the fourth floor. The wounded and battered survivors had given your group a summarized yet pretty comprehensive tale of what had transpired, from Legion’s ambush to the breakthrough and Alexander’s death. Soon, more and more survivors of the fight had poured from the stairs, and at that moment you had notice that the darkness that had invaded the school and the grounds, that had caused so much weird shit, had vanished completely, apparently sealed behind that wall alongside that Legion.

No Monster was left alive on the campus of the school, or at least so it seemed. You heard later that they had gotten some of the guys that had been left behind to scour every place in Zeus High to make sure no nasties were around for now, and apparently Miss Static had made a good job of clearing them all out.

This meant, of course, that your group had not much to do. You were all tired; Johnny looked like he needed to actually pass a night at the Nursery. Well, despite it all he hadn’t received any major wounds despite being beaten to within an inch of his life, probably thanks to Unknown… somehow, so you were able to sneak him back in the Dorms with nobody noticing his state between all the wounded going there. The adults had finally taken charge of everything, and were ushering everyone that wasn’t seriously wounded to the Dorms, and even for your group that seemed the better option for now. At least today you weren’t going to go any further.

Once you had gotten to the building, you were faced with a new problem. Namely, your room looked like that gigantic eldritch mist dragon Joaquin had talked about had decided to specifically take a shit in there just to spite you. Problem that seemed to be shared by a lot of people. And with the boys coming over because their building was completely fucked, space was now a problem, even with a lot of people having vacated their rooms due to a sudden case of the deads. Or the undeads, rather.

The solution had been simple. Pair floors, for boys. Otherwise, for girls. Was simplistic, but due to the dorm’s structure, you had to go through a thick wooden door to get to the hallways the rooms where actually at, so that basically ended satisfying everyone’s sense of shame, more or less. You actually had to wonder how long that’d keep on working before society’s norms went out the window, but for now it was functional.

You had decided to room up with Angeline, whom you knew from the very few times she had shown up at the computer club. Logical thing would’ve been to room with Jayden, but you had been sort of avoiding her. Or she had been sort of avoiding you. You weren’t really sure, and something told you that you’d probably need to talk things out at some moment. You weren’t sure you could keep avoiding her forever. Or she couldn’t keep avoiding you forever. Whatever works.

Angeline hadn’t been very happy; the NEET girl really liked living alone, but after some grumbling she had declared “Better you than anyone else” and left it at that. Now that Legion was sealed, electricity seemed to be back up, though you had no idea whatsoever of how the fuck it kept working given that you had been apparently thrown into topsy-turvy world, but you weren’t in any state to question shit.

You had left Angeline in the room proper after translating all of your shit down there, the blonde girl was on her underwear, at her laptop, which seemed to be how she liked to spend most of her days. You weren’t sure what she was doing on it since apparently it was impossible to connect to internet in this place, but you didn’t think much about it as you entered the shower.

At least there was an advantage to this whole superhuman gig: after what had only been a few hours, you were feeling less like a truck had punched you in the face during ten minutes straight, and more like it had merely punched you for five minutes instead. You were sure that if you decided to take a run or something, you’d probably feel exhausted again after two steps, but something was something.

The pleasantly warm water washed away all the blood, sweat and dirt of the day, and your body started to slowly relax. Danger had passed for now, and you expected to at least look forward to a night of sleep before you had to deal with any more supernatural bullshit…

That was, of course, too much to ask for.

You did not have any time to react. You felt spiritual energy go off behind you, and immediately after two hands appeared from behind you and took a strong and cruel hold at your breasts. You felt two horrible eyes, full of power, lock themselves on you, examining every inch of you with clear lust and sadism.

You have been afflicted with Unnatural Exhaustion (Level 1)
(All stats reduced by ¼)

“Yep, as big as I said they’d be” cheerfully commented the voice of Robin Gardner, carrying a tone to it that sounded even more unhinged and insane than it ever did before.

Encountered Robin Gardner


Rika Griffin
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (The Dorms – Rika & Jane’s Room)
Time: Day 1 – Night

Just after you had gotten through the door, the Silver Paladin had hurriedly said she had to go. Before she went, she had done something, and healed your body, or at least the external wounds that had covered it. However, when she went away, as you could feel her consciousness leaving yours, so did the gifts she had bestowed upon you. Which included the silver armor that had covered your body during the battle.

Of course, that had left you completely naked around a multitude of people. Thankfully, both Rika and Lara had quickly noticed the issue and had covered you as best as they could, with Lara giving you her jacket, more or less of your same size, to use provisionally until you got to the dorms.

Once you got there, it had been easy to decide things. You’d room with Jane, while Lara would, of course, stay with Marie. Both sisters had looked sad, and had acted distant when you had interacted with them, and you knew what the motive was. After all… they had found no traces whatsoever of Martin Klein, their older brother. That probably meant he was dead, and was either killed by the mysterious static, or part of Legion, if his zombie had not been killed elsewhere in the school. Basically, there was no way whatsoever he could be alive.

As Jane went to take a shower and change her clothes, you had tried to keep the sisters’ company, to be there for them, although you weren’t sure your presence was even getting to them at this point. Later on, Jane had returned, and told you to switch with her. Covered with blood, dirt and unpleasant fluids in general, you had been forced to agree, and had left her to tend to the sisters as you showered.

You were busy cleaning yourself, when you had felt a sudden burst of spiritual energy in the other side of the bathroom’s wall. The way the rooms in the Girl’s Dorms were structured, you knew the wall in front of you was shared with the bathroom of the room next door. And feeling a burst of spiritual energy from there… well, it was strange. It could just have been another girl superhuman just fooling around trying her powers… but you felt a very horrible sensation from it. There was just… something really wrong about that spiritual energy, something that instinctively scared you.

There was something really weird and bad happening in the other room. You just… knew it.

[Katie]

Rosary Flowers
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (In A Distorted Night)
Time: Day 1 – Distortion
HP: 50/60 SP: 120/150 Self: 90

Oh shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit.

God, fuck, how? He couldn’t have just snuck past—damn, he coulda—and now I’m in this situation because I seriously pissed off a serial rapist to be. Is that how he got into Zeus? Serial rape? Fuck. Shit. I can’t even squirm, I’m just so fucking tired. His fault. Fuck. Is this how hoes on the corner feel? I saw lots of ‘em being molested like this.

Damn. I can feel their pain. But not their AIDS.

Dunno how to get out. I’m in a shower. Dude’s molesting me. Fuck. Wait. Shit. I can become intangible. Fuck me. Brain frazzled, it’s those two’s fault. Fuckin’ swear their shit drives me stupid. Thank God they’re not here. Fuck. Need to stop thinking. Be calm. Think about a way to not get molested. He had to have got me somehow. Run away? Leave Angeline alone? She’s in her underwear. Oh God. I can’t run. If I leave her alone I am the worst shitter ever.

I can’t run.

Why does this keep happening.

If only I can—shit, I can. Make other things intangible. I made Jayden intangible.

Sorry, people below me. You need to deal with this asshole for a bit. I’ll get help as soon as I can get a towel. Fuck, sorry. Sorrysorrysorry.

Still touching my tits. Okay. Rosary. Say something witty. Something stupidly flirty.

“If you like them so much, fall for me, would you?”

Get the fuck out of this shower. Off my tits. Fuck. You.

uguu

Turn Robin intangible.

Stats
STR: 7 -> 5 (Unnatural Exhaustion)
DEF: 7 -> 5 (Unnatural Exhaustion)
AGI: 20 -> 15 (Unnatural Exhaustion)
EVA: 20 -> 15 (Unnatural Exhaustion)
SPI: 12 -> 9 (Unnatural Exhaustion)
SDF: 8 -> 6 (Unnatural Exhaustion)

HP: 50/60 -> 55/60
SP: 120/150 -> 105/150

Perks
Path of UNKNOWN

Having received something unknown in her body, Rosary’s power has been slightly changed, and so has been the effect caused within her soul when casting it. As she now has a deeper synchronization with it, beneficial effects are achieved when the power is casted. If this something unknown is allowed to grow, something interesting may happen.
[When using her Spiritual Power, Rosary recovers 5 HP. Her Spiritual Power has been slightly improved.]

Awakened Power
[Ghosts ~ With a Fading Touch]

The ability to render things intangible. As a result it is very effective in terms of escaping or avoiding blows but can only work on Rosary herself and items she can see within a ten meter radius. She can make another person intangible, but she has to have tactile contact.
[Can make a person she is touching or herself intangible, becoming immune to physical damage, and gaining the ability to go through physical obstacles. Costs 15 SP, and has a duration of 2 turns. Can be deactivated at will.]

[Airen]

Rika Griffin
Location: Rika and Jane's Room - Bathroom
HP: 50/SP: 0/Self: 57

It was the first warm sensation in a long time.

Sitting on the floor of the shower, my knees pulled up to my chest, and my hair sprawled across my shoulders, I find that I can't quite bring myself to rush out of the shower. It feels nice, to not have to worry about anything, to just sit here, in a familiar bathroom, and pretend like I was back home in my world, where monsters didn't roam the outside, where I could take my time in the shower, mess around with my hair, laugh with my friends, go through my nightly exercises in my room...

It was a nice illusion.

I'm not quite ready to leave it... But...

There are a few people who could use my help right now, so as nice as this is... I know deep down that I have to go...

"..."

The smell of soap is heavy.

Reaching for the bottle of shampoo, something that, thankfully enough, seemed to have survived along with the contents of my old room, I prepare for one last lather and rinse, to make sure that I had gotten absolutely everything out of my hair, when...

"...Huh?"

I felt something odd, not in this room, but the room beyond the distant wall.

A burst of spirit power.

But not something clear like mine, not a vibrant silver... Something.... Murky...

Slowly, I turn the water off, and step out of the shower.

I don't like it.

It's a bad feeling.

Like an aura of mud, a feeling of dirt, something I just can't help but want to avoid invading this place through that distant wall. If I recall correctly, that wall should also be the wall of the neighboring bathroom, but...

I doubt anyone here would have a spirit that dirty.

"What the hell..."

...I can't trust it.

Whatever is exuding that... Is doing something that needs to be stopped...

Grabbing the closest towel, and silently swearing to myself, I step out into the room in search of something to wear, not anything particularly complicated, but something...

And a few moments later, I'm out and into the hallway, zipping up a crimson jacket as I move through the familiar hall in my pajama pants, my hair still wet, and my mood somewhat ruined by the fact that, no matter what I did, it seemed all the weird things happened to me...

Reaching the door to the room I believed belonged to Rosary, I don't stop to knock on the door like I usually would, driven instead by this disgusted feeling to simply open the door.

"Hey... Uh, I heard some weird sounds in the bathroom next door, you guys doing alright in here?"

A tiny lie.

But people wouldn't listen if I said it was just a "feeling."

[RacingeR]

Rosary Flowers & Rika Griffin
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (The Dorms – Rosary & Angeline’s Room)
Time: Day 1 – Night

Your power was activated. You felt the small rush of pleasure that accompanied it, and your wounds being healed by the gift left by that Demiurge. However… even though Robin Gardner had been made immaterial…

His arms kept cruelly grabbing at your breasts, now with even more strength than before. He did not fall, he merely remained there, as if floating somehow or attached to the space he was into. You could see in the mirror his cruel smile, and the mad sheen that covered his eyes, that now looked more inhuman than ever. Shit, they didn’t even look like something that belonged to him. There was no sign of physical alteration, but maybe because you were an Enhanced Human, you could feel something spiritually wrong with them, as if they just… were not his.

“Oh, so trying to sneak out of your just deserves, you bitch? But there’s no escaping now. Not for you and not for anyone in this little school of pretentious imbeciles. Did you think you could laugh at me and despise me and then get away with it, you little asshole?” He laughed, a certain feral madness showing up further on his face. As his eyes kept on staring fixedly at your body, you felt the weight on your limbs increase, tiredness taking hold of your body even further. Merely struggling against his grip felt like it took an insane toll on your stamina.

“Time to pay up, sweet tits.”

Just as Robin said that, the door of the bathroom was opened and Angeline stepped forth, having finally noticed the outpouring of Spiritual Energy coming from the bathroom.

“Rosary, is something wro-“ The moment she saw Robin, and the madness on his face, she stepped back, but it was way too late to avoid what was going to happen. In the mirror, you saw Robin’s expression change, as if bored. One of the hands that had been gripping your breasts suddenly moved in a flicker of speed, so fast that it was almost invisible to your eyes.

Suddenly a massive, long and thin nail appeared from thin air, and crossed the space between Robin and Angeline in the blink of an eye. The weapon, thrown without any warning whatsoever, buried itself deeply in her left leg.

“KYYAAAAA!” Angeline let out a sharp cry of fear, pain and surprise as she fell backwards, her leg pierced so badly that the cruel nail had gone through the other side, and literally impaled her against the floor. Blood poured freely from the wound, staining the floor. Through the mirror you saw the terror in Angeline’s eyes, and then she fell and you lost view of her face.

She had fallen, left defenseless on the floor, out of energy to use her power, her body now exposed to this… monster’s predations. And at that moment, rushing through the door Rika Griffin arrived just in time to see the scene.

Robin’s smile spread even further through his face, deforming it until it became a mask of complete madness. His hand returned to Rosary’s breast, and then he, painfully, lifted Rosary with impossible physical strength, and turned towards Rika, still intangible but able to interact with the material world somehow, holding Rosary between himself and Rika.

“Well, if it ain’t there yet another pretentious bitch of my class? Was planning to pay you a visit after I was done here. But hey, this is convenient too. Start stripping, if you don’t want something bad to happen to this bitch or the one so gracefully giving me a show on the floor?”

Wise up!

Name: Robin Gardner
Race: Human?
Attributes: Unknown
Spiritual Rank: Unknown

Stats:

Unknown


Perks:

(Focus)Eternal Mystery (Enigma perk evolution?)
Robin Gardner is a true enigma. No matter how hard one investigates, no matter how hard one looks, his past seems to be impossible to figure out. This perk has somehow evolved to acquire extremely supernatural characteristics, obscuring everything that has to do with Robin Gardner as if a veil of pure darkness had been pulled all around him. Be stats, other perks, details about his spiritual power, or just any other data about him, it is all impossible to get by normal means. Even when he uses said things, the details remain still obscure.

Magic Eyes of Exhaustion
Magic Eyes obtained via unknown means. By staring at a target, he is able to inflict the status effect Unnatural Exhaustion on the victim, worsening its already existent exhaustion if it already exists. The more someone is under Robin’s magic eyes, the harsher their spell will become…
This does not seem to be something actually of Robin’s, but rather..?

Nail Generation
Ability to generate extremely long and sharp steel nails, to either throw or use in melee.
At which point does an human cease to be an human?


Spiritual Power - ???
Wat.

[Katie]

Rosary Flowers
Location: Sea of UNKNOWN – Zeus High School (In A Distorted Night)
Time: Day 1 – Distortion
HP: 55/60 SP: 105/150 Self: 90

Fuck. No running. I fucked up. He’s deplorable. Worse than hell. I’d rather be with the Two Stooges and confessing to Jayden I left her brother for dead this fucking instant because goddamnit it hurts. Fuck, I got Angeline hurt too. Fuck me. Fuck this guy. Fucking Rika is in my room too. Fucking seriously. Fuck.

He’s no longer intangible, not that it matters. Hurts to think, breathe. Breasts aren’t meant to be held like this. Fuck, distracting myself. Rika, help? Can’t say anything. Hurts to think. Tired. Want to give up. Pop my new advanced superpower? I don’t know. Do my toes touch the floor?

Fuck. I don’t know if I can do anything at the moment. Do what? Save what? Nothing. I can’t run away.

And Rosary who can’t run away is useless. Worthless. Like trash. Trash. The same as the prostitutes form earlier. Trash.

I try to move my head, a sort of half-hearted nod. Maybe Rika will get it. She’s the punchy social justice type anyway. I dunno. Fuck. I wish we were better friends, but Brooklyn never leaves. I’m still a ghetto bitch.

“You don’t need to do anything, Rika.”

Bait. That’s a lie. She’s bound to do something. If we both get hurt I don’t know what to say. Really, what do I do? Once you run, you fight, right? But how can I fight? I can’t even protect myself. Son of a bitch. I should have gotten shot up in that alley with Hayden. Would have saved me a whole bunch of shit that’s happened over today.

God damnit, Rosary. So fucking useless.

I take a deep breath and scream. Loud, shrill, like in the media. People who run have good lungs, I know. And because I have nothing better to do. I'm as bad as a ragdoll now.

[Mormarth]

Alexandra Gray
Location: The Dorms - Alexandra and Sarah's Room
Time: Day 1 - Night

It was to be said, I thought to myself, that the deprivation of the sensation of pain, and the sudden return of said sensation, is really fucking painful.

Kind of obvious, in retrospect.

Ow.

After we'd crawled our way out of Legion's hellpit, Alexander giving his life to seal it away behind some sort of seal-barrier-thing, it was time for the next great goal of the hour.

Getting some damned clothes.

After some cajoling, I managed to grab a shirt off of a bulky-looking guy, one of the ones who remained behind in the lobby, and thus mostly intact. I did not think about the flash of light that went off as I put the shirt on.

With that out of the way, the next crisis asserted itself.

Where the hell was everyone going to sleep.

I ambled off to go and move my things to the nearest empty-ish looking room that wasn't horribly wrecked, and flicked on the light to see a great collection of heads and furs lining the walls, various trophies and mementos detailing the room's occupant as someone who was quite proud of her (I assumed it was a her, judging by the underwear hanging around) accomplishments in the art of tracking and killing various denizens of the animal kingdom.

Oh, Sarah's room.

Well, alright. I didn't need to sleep much tonight anyway.

I made my way to the bathroom, frowning over a mostly-unconsidered fact.

You see, when the entire surface area of your integumentary system, that is, your skin, is temporarily combined with a shockingly corrosive acid, it does wonders for your skin, not a speck of blood, dirt, or various things-I-didn't-want-to-think-about on me. Even my hair was still as coppery as ever, if hanging loose in my face and smelling faintly of ozone and that weird smell you get from the drier when you dry your clothes too much.

Anyway, I was pretty much clean, shockingly so, actually.

So I made my way to the bathroom, clutching a towel to my now normal-skinned self, wincing from the various aches and pains, and slowly immersed myself under the comforting hot shower, aches and pains from my strains during the day, and the last spurt using the now-departed Gray Monk's power.

Least I turned out better than Rika, I wasn't entirely naked, beat that.

I frowned, considering the events of the day, I wonder how many of the... normal people, I guess, made it out, those guys I yelled at, did they make it? I wasn't sure.

So many had died, and we didn't even kill that fucking thing. We saved a bunch of people, but, was it worth it?

Hm, well, I'd certainly like to think it was, I'm not sure others would feel the same way, though. Thinking back on my earlier motivations makes me feel a bit sick, to be honest, I go into that room just wanting to be cool, and then I sit back and watch people die in front of me.

Sorta takes the wind of my sails.

I turn of the shower and grab my towel, drying off and coming face to face with my new roommate, Sarah Vale.

I most certainly did not make a noise not dissimilar to a small rodent and instead calmly stared her down, scrubbing at my hair. We'd met up before on a few occasions, and I think we'd gotten along, at least I think that bison leg left on my desk was friendly, and not a 'you're next' situation.

"Uh, hey. Decided to crash here, f'that's cool with you."

I shamble over to the little nest I've made for myself, and curl up against the wall, my favorite blanket in hand. It was comforting, really, reminded me of home.

Wonder if i'd see 'em again.

I shook my head out of that line of thought, had to keep focused, "What's your take on... All this?" I waved my hand broadly at the surrounding area, "Where the hell even are we? How'd we get here? And..."

I frowned for a moment, twisting a strand of hair, "Hey, Sarah, if we're not in the real world anymore, why do we still have hot water, heck, water, period?"