Spirit Pulse : Mugen No Sekai [IC]

[Zurvan]

Ludwig Karlfeldt
SLEIPNIR
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Evening

"Indeed, awfully specific. To place it in context, it was the Karlfeldt Empress whose exact words were: 'The last time the World was this twisted up, we drifted for 46 billion years.'"

Ludwig's expression darkens as he continues.

"Even if it sounds insane, I would have no reason not to take her words seriously under normal circumstances. But the circumstances under which she told me thus were far from normal..."

After all, it had been moments before the boy had resolved himself in the face of death. To stake his own dwindling life force in the slightest chance to at least glimpse at the true nature of events. To see with his own eyes the entity, the Single Will, that had been the cause of the Alcheringa.

And later, had rewritten the most recent weeks of Xanadu entirely. Or perhaps... had forced the multitude of dreams to resolve around a single possibility.

A world that never learned of the plight of other worlds. That had never seen fit to venture to the North Pole, and learned there what would drive Xanadu into a grim fate of their own.

And surprisingly enough, the Telepath had certainly seen the face of the Administrator before he expired. While the memory of said face was taken away, that he had seen it was an immutable fact.

More surprising still, he had remembered the events, while others of this world certainly did not share such memories.

"I died shortly after she told me. Or rather, as my connection to the world was severed... and Cognition was altered on a global scale."

Yes, certainly insane.

However what's worse, is that it's the truth as Ludwig knows it.

Reality was surprisingly brittle, influenceable even, once enough power is obtained. All the moreso when one considers the events that had led to this were placed in the realm of dreams, simulated by quantum field theory turned practical.

"...Any chance either of you are familiar with a place called the Astrolabe?"

[Katie]

Aster
Saint Vivienne ~ Nightmare
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

Aster blinks, absentmindedly stuffing her hands in her pockets. That, she didn’t expect. But was it truly a problem? Aislynn certainly knew the lay of the land better than her, and more importantly, it wasn’t as if Aster didn’t have time to spare. Maybe she’d learn something useful.

“Fine,” she says, trying to make it sound as if had to think about it. Really, really think about it. “You know a nice place to take a gal around town?”

Looking around at the macabre school and its husk of students, she can’t help but sigh.

“Honestly, I don’t think this is it.”

[Satehi]

Eva Ellet
Saint Vivienne ~ Dormitories
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

"Aren't you a religious girl? Don't you already live in a world where some asshole on his heavenly throne can snap his fingers and change everything about your world without warning?"

"Since when do miracles have to explain themselves?"

“… I’ll ignore that insult against my faith, since you seem to be at least a little genuinely curious.”

Despite the reluctance present in her voice, Eva decided to let Liesl’s comments slide. Hearing her faith described that way was unpleasant- but it was clear that getting upset at the girl for it wouldn’t do Eva any favors. She felt bad about it, but considering the circumstances, she hoped that the Lord would be understanding.

After all, conversing hadn’t been completely pointless. World War Two, a star… that description brought to mind the conversation she had earlier with Alexia about the Master System.

And it didn’t sound like Liesl was doing this entirely to annoy her. Though she hardly felt qualified to preach to others- as a member of the church, she felt it was her duty to try and correct the misunderstandings that others had about them. And so, speaking in a softer tone of voice than what she had used up until now (even if Liesl had been irritating her plenty, it felt inappropriate to Eva to discuss this topic with the same agitation she had earlier), she gave it an attempt.

“It is true that scripture teaches us that His plans are beyond our comprehension. That the Lord understands the world on a level we cannot match. That at times, all we can do is have faith that His grand design has a place and purpose for everything we undergo.”

In this sense, Liesl was not incorrect- no explanation was necessary.

“But we are also taught to be grateful for the gifts we have been given, to never taken them for granted. To interpret these two facts as in favor of willful ignorance as the height of faith is an idea I find hard to agree with... If anything, the fact that people are gifted with intelligence and free will suggests the opposite- devotion requires applying these gifts, allowing one to develop a deeper appreciation for the world around us.”

It was a shame that their surroundings at the moment were not the type that most would consider worth appreciating, Eva thought.

“If I may use a rather crude analogy… the Lord is similar to a painter, and the world a canvas. To glance at it and say it looks good is certainly one form of appreciation, but to analyze its strokes, the balance of colors, and the intent behind it… I believe that is a way in which one can arrive at a deeper sense of appreciation than the former. Even if one can never become a painter nor understand the mindset of the original artist, there is still value in that pursuit.”

Having done her best to imitate how she would have imagined a more reputable member of the cloth to present the issue, Eva returned to a more normal tone of speaking.

“… or something like that. I’m not human, so maybe it’s inappropriate for me to give a sermon like this.”

With that said, she continued.

“And, regardless of whether you agree with that idea… I don’t see why scrutinizing miracles would be a problem. People should feel free to search for an explanation if they want. Miracles are miracles because they are the genuine article- they rely on neither deceit nor tricks, but simply are.”

[Airen]

Ayra Lilygrove
Saint Vivienne ~ Grounds
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

---Catherine Thornely.

A tall girl with brown hair, described by the principal as "a mature, responsible, caring, but kinda bossy teenager," with an invincible smile on her face. It's the sort of description that's fitting for a class monitor, the responsible types are always the ones that are told to look out for their fellow students, and the maturity that tends to come with that responsibility also means they typically don't care too much about their popularity with the other students suffering due to their interventions in the more dangerous thrills of college life.

In other words, she sounds like that kind of girl.

The hall monitor type, a bit of an emotionless stickler for the rules who probably also has a heart of gold...

That's good right?

You can work with those types, all about smiling and nodding and agreeing until they give you what you need or leave you alone.

Resistance just makes them lecture harder...

Still...

The rain doesn't seem far off now, thick grey clouds covering the once blue skies; the sun has disappeared behind it some time ago, the humid chill of a swiftly cooling evening brushing across your face as you emerge back onto the grounds. The final bell of the day had gone off a few minutes ago, crowds of students pouring past you (none paying too much attention thankfully) talking amongst themselves, some running, others walking at a blissful sort of pace back towards the dorms, although strangely...

A group of students seems to be heading in the opposite direction of the dorms, back towards the school building, supporting some sort of weight between them all as they move with obvious haste towards the main entrance...

Which was... A bit strange...

But up ahead, at the entrance-way to the girl's dorms, checking names off of a list and yawning with tired, almost bloodshot eyes...

That...

Looks like a Catherine.

---

Aislynn Wevere/Aster
Saint Vivienne ~ Nightmare
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

"My charms strike again, nice."

That's totally probably not what just happened here, but I guess I won't look too deeply into things for my own sake if nothing else; if I just pretend I'm really cool and that's why this just worked, I think I'd be able to sleep a bit easier at night.

Not that I'm not asleep right now.

This curse kinda sucks that way.

Body is just collapsed somewhere and unlike everyone else, most people can't see me-! I never wake up in a warm hospital bed, oh no, oh no no, I have to get up off the cold-hard floor and that's just killer on your back. Never realize how fragile your body is until the mundane abuse starts doing stuff to it...

Oh wait damn, I'm doing it again.

Someone is talking to you Aislynn, keep your sanity together-! Stop all this nonsense monologuing to yourself-!

"I think I know a few ways to entertain a girl under normal circumstances, but hmm..."

I speak gently now.

I can turn down the sass a bit, since it seems we're having a sort of breakthrough-!

"Can't say any shops are open right now, skating is also a bust, I'd try to cook but something would kick the door in before we're done, so..."

I snap my fingers.

"Ah, got it."

A grin that's probably a bit too wide crosses my face.

"Could always do a little breaking and entering! See what a certain other knightess has in her closet eh?"

I wink-

"And by her closet... I mean in a literal closet in the abandoned dorms just down the street, right now, while no one is really around to catch us-! Weird eyed, staring students not counting for obvious reasons of it probably being best to just ignore em..."

-then extend a hand for the girl to take.

"It's a bit of a delinquent date, but I don't want to seem too similar to Primrose, you know? Gotta be a bit wilder~"

[Rafflesiac]

Logan Starbright
Starnberg Lake - Germany
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Afternoon

Did she just pat my head?

Logan blinks the last lingering drops of wetness from his eyes as Rice spins in a fluster in front of him. A hint of a smile quirks his cheek as he reaches down for the fallen hat and replaces it on his head. She seems embarrassed; I’ll have to gloss over this moment. What was she saying before? That something used worldwide wou-

"Gah I can't just say nothing-!"

“Hmm?” Logan frowns in puzzlement. “Is something wrong?”

"You're too hard on yourself! Way too hard on yourself! Everything will be fine! We'll beat the bad guys! No need to fall into your knees every couple of minutes!"

“It’s not every couple of minutes. I’m not that weak.” His voice sounds painfully petulant, please that be all in his head. Get it together Logan, you’re inconveniencing others.

"You're the brooding type, I can tell! Well that stops here bucko, we'll have ourselves a fun adventure! No time to mope! I'll send you back to reality with a smile and a song in your step! You'll catch up to your sister no problem! I'll coach you myself!"

“You don’t have to worry. I won’t falter again.” Rice leans toward him, hands on hips as she huffs; at this distance he can see the colors shift in her determined gaze. “But coach me, was it? I’ll take you up on that, then.” Maybe she can teach me a way to improve Eye of the Fates. There was the possibility of event manipulation, after all.

Rice floats back and nods. Despite her leaving her seat to float, the boat didn’t even ripple. The stabilizing mechanics at work, no doubt.

"Don't worry about the legal stuff, worse comes to worse I'll take the blame! Alexia isn't the type to get mad anyway! She'd think it's funny! Probably."

Probably? You emphasize the positives in risky situations quite a bit, don’t you?

“Probably? Pretty cavalier about the downsides, aren’t you?” says Amelia teasingly.

Logan eyes the setting sun behind Rice, setting her hair and the water aflame. The wind gusts once more, slicing warmth from his torso and casting it into the fathomless depths of the lake. It’s probably time to head back. I should follow up on that matter from before, though.

“Earlier, you were talking about the conditions for an artificial Administrator. Something used by most of the World… Something like the Harmonizer Towers or the Spirit Pulse Network, then?”

---

Spoiler:

Spells Selected: ???, Eye of the Fates, ???, ???, ???, ???
Spells Used: Eye of the Fates
Heat: 3/10

[Airen]

Logan Starbright
Starnberg Lake - Germany
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Afternoon

“Probably? Pretty cavalier about the downsides, aren’t you?”

"You can't live life always thinking about worst case scenarios! It drove other me crazy apparently, so I've decided to have faith-!"

A chipper response, said with one hand shooting up into the air in a fist of excitement.

“Earlier, you were talking about the conditions for an artificial Administrator. Something used by most of the World… Something like the Harmonizer Towers or the Spirit Pulse Network, then?”

"Hmm..."

The floating girl hums to herself, unconsciously shifting one leg over another.

"The Harmonizer Towers... Probably not, everyone is under their influence, but people don't directly interact with them enough... The Pulse Network is a maybe... It does have a few connections with the Soul Sea..."

She frowns, gradient eyes burning in the afternoon light.

"If I had to make a guess, it'd be something people pour their emotions into... If something was going to randomly attain sentience it would do so after continuous interactions with people. My sisters and I basically 'came to life' after being dropped into the Soul Sea... So the internet maybe? That's a sort of pseudo Soul Sea. People pour enough of themselves into it that it already has supernatural properties at times, it wouldn't shock me to find out some sort of Divine Spirit was born from it, people practically worship the place already..."

The frown deepens.

"...Maybe the Arayashiki? All COMP communications run through the RAILS network and the Arayashiki manages that network, but..."

Ultimately, she just sighs, plopping back down into the boat in a way that finally broke it's eternal stillness.

"Hard to say anything with any real certainty. Lots of hiding places are in plain sight, although, in other news..."

She pauses.

Her gaze drifts back to the ship, and a bizarre expression takes over her face. The tired frown becomes a thoughtful frown, eyes lighting up with visible data, some sort of processor-like sound whirring into existence out of what seems to be nowhere, before...

"There seems to be something... Odd... On the ship."

Shoulders twitch in a small shrugging motion, somehow, in spite of the casualness of the act, it comes across as adorable when she does it.

"In Ludwig's room. Something strange. Not sure if it's connected to any of this though, it's just... Sitting in there. He was talking to whatever it is an hour ago and didn't seem to be worried... So it's probably not dangerous, but it is new, wasn't here yesterday... And I think it's a woman."

She snorts for some reason you can't quite identify...

"With all this commotion, I figured it'd be best not to talk about anything strange in front of anything I didn't recognize, so... Keep an eye on him, I suppose."

One eye closes.

"Can never tell what that guy's thinking."

[Katie]

Ayra Lilygrove
Saint Vivienne ~ Grounds
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

Does she… not see them walking off?

Ayra can’t help but look back at this obviously suspicious incident, the throng of people carrying who knows what. If she had to investigate, she’s certain she could catch up to all of them in a heartbeat, but since she’s an honored guest… Better to do things the right way. Or at least, most of the right way, and then do whatever she feels like.

“Catherine, right?” Ayra says with a wave, walking up to the tired prim and proper student. She can empathize with that pain. “Everything going alright?”

Aster
Saint Vivienne ~ Nightmare
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

Sure. She can work with that. Aster can only assume Aislynn is talking about Tsukiko, but that’s fine with her. Ayra would certainly have her qualms with it, but Aster will always have a different set of priorities. They need to know how much Tsukiko does know, if only to save her from whatever she is digging herself into.

"It's a bit of a delinquent date, but I don't want to seem too similar to Primrose, you know? Gotta be a bit wilder~"

“Don’t compare yourself to her,” Aster says, trying her best not to sound obviously hostile. She’s managed to negotiate her way to this, no need to break this fragile, mutual trust so quickly. Still, the comment slips out, but only because she feels they are both sick of being compared to anyone.

“Lead the way.”

Aster takes Aislynn’s hand and hopes for the best.

[Airen]

Ayra Lilygrove
Saint Vivienne ~ Grounds
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

“Catherine, right?” Ayra says with a wave, walking up to the tired prim and proper student. She can empathize with that pain. “Everything going alright?”

"...Hmm?"

---The girl blinks.

Eyes that are both bloodshot and faded, like those that would belong to someone who was battling some sort of chronic sleep disorder. It's something that comes to mind immediately, the most likely candidate for why the young woman isn't chasing down her oddly placed cohorts, instead just staring at you in a drowsy sort of haze, eyes lighting up a bit in inconclusive thought, before-

"Oh... You're... Lilygrove. The Knightess."

She straightens her posture, forcefully returning a sort of sharpness to her gaze.

Some of the other students stop at this interaction, curious eyes making all sorts of connections as whispers erupt all around you both, but Catherine seems fit to ignore them for the most part, or at least, she doesn't have to do much more than shoot a flicker of a look in their direction for them to move on ahead...

That's certainly hall-monitor esque quality.

Still...

"Sorry, feeling a bit drowsy. I'm alright."

Her voice is even and unshaken, although there's a certain tired quality lurking just beneath everything else, and...

Was she giving you a strange look?

A curious look? Like she was trying to figure out something about you?

Seems like it...

"...We didn't meet at some point earlier today, did we?"

Strange.

---

Aislynn Wevere/Aster
Saint Vivienne ~ Nightmare
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

Hmmm, seems I struck a nerve...

The moment she touches my hand, the area around us shifts in a blur of color as my previous ability activates. I'd like to say the colors are of the whole spectrum of light and all, but these Trauma Cells have a distinct love for the colors of red and black, no idea why that is, if you asked me to take my best shot at it, I guess I'd say the people responsible for it's creation are kinda edgy. Real Hot-Topic shoppers you know? Not that those have really been relevant for what... About twenty years now? Something like that? Can't be bothered to check the specifics of course, this is just one of those random little tangents that come to mind and, damn it Aislynn, keep your thoughts in order-!

Point being, the next time she blinks (do COMP spirits blink? Not actually sure) we've arrived at one of the old dorms. Right on the edge of the academy city, boarded up doors and windows, relatively clean as far as abandoned dorms go, nothing on the streets that would hurt the kids (not that much could really hurt this haven of supernatural kiddos) but it's still got that old-timey sort of feel to it, a relic of the original manifestation of this academy, for better or for worse.

"So..."

I start after letting go of her hand and striding forth towards the closest of the doors; I'm pretty weak physically, so prying them off might take a bit, so...

"Really don't remember me, huh?"

[Airen]

Mokujima Chris
Himawari ~ Dirac Sea
??/??/????

---The fae's smile widens.

"If I couldn't tell where my summoner was, wouldn't that make me a poor familiar?"

Soft words, but spoken in that gently teasing way that is the norm for this entity. Fae do love being theatrical in their actions, as creatures of whimsy, it's not uncommon for them to do things simply because they want to see how others would react, and yet...

"But very well, I will share with you what I experienced~" She chuckles, one hand rising to cover her face, "One moment please, I need a second to prepare myself."

There is something in the way she spoke that hints at a certain sort of... Mischief...

A lyrical tone that appears moments before the fae does something particularly strange, or rather, does something with which you might not agree 100%; of course, you could never quite call it open defiance, in the end, this entity is not actually malicious towards anyone, it's surprisingly counter to her nature to do lasting damage to others, but-

"Eve. Is there... a bridge?"

"Of course, you've been there once before I beli-"

The android starts to speak, but...

-her interpretation of commands is often...

Whimsical in it's own right.

---

Mokujima Chris
North Pole, ???
??/??/????

---The Fae had done something, that much was clear instantly.

A flash of white light exploding right in front of your eyes, the darkness that follows, then the return of a white so pure it feels like your eyes have caught fire.

But no, the World is a cold place now.

It's filled with snow and ice, dark grey clouds drifting just about the horizon, a canvas of white snow on white ice that would have given off a remarkably empty feeling if not for the scattered buildings in the distance. Tall, dark and grey, a mishmash of different structure styles from all over the world, brick alongside wood, traditional Japanese shrines alongside what seems to be some sort of Catholic Church... It's a clear melting pot of sorts, something that wouldn't have been out of place in America, but something that absolutely stands out here, the only sign of human civilization of any kind in what was otherwise a perfectly frozen hell...

---Yeah, it's cold, very cold, somewhere below freezing, and yet...

"As you can see, it began in the heart of a storm of ice and snow~"

...An arm wraps around your shoulders.

Naturally, it's Robin's arm, but less naturally...

Is this... Ability...?

What had she done to you? Was this some sort of vision?

She did have affinity in that regard, but...

This seemed like...

Something that should have been a bit too powerful for the fae as you knew it...

[Bloble]

Mokujima Chris
North Pole, ???
??/??/????

Fey do tend to grant wishes in the strangest way. The union of 'wanting to know what had happened' and 'wanting to get a better view'... is this what that prankster came up with?

Mokujima Chris stands in the middle of the freezing cold, with dark clouds above and strange buildings in the distance that do not belong on the North Pole. She stands on legs that are either whole, or so taken by frostbite that numbness has overcome pain. Not that it matters. This is not real, she is not here, and it will suffice to be able to walk and observe.

Already there is strangeness. Those buildings should not be there. Then again, neither should she.

"As you can see, it began in the heart of a storm of ice and snow~"

The limb wrapped around her shoulders is warm in comparison to the cold nipping at her extremities. So Chris gently lays her fingers around Robin's forearm, closes her eyes a moment, gathers her thoughts, opens then, and...

"You know I hate this sort of thing."

Delivers a sharp pinch to the centuries-old being, much like a mother might discipline a child who has devoured too much cake. Or if viewed in a different light, it is a reward for a prank well done. Got her good, she did.

Chris sighs, then straightens her glasses and intertwines her fingers around Robin's, holding her familiar's hand as if they're a pair of twins or a couple on a Christmas date. She casts her gaze in all directions, making sure she didn't miss something of interest besides the buildings in the distance.

"Very well. I do see," Chris says, breath becoming vapor in the cold, but not a shiver passing through her. "Please continue, merry wanderer."

[Airen]

Cosmos Fairchild
LOVELESS, Rooftop
12/22/2026
Evening

"What... is going on...?" Cosmos finally asks. "Did you... save me from Chokmah's attack? Or is this just... something that is happening in my mind?"

"..."

Silence.

The wind roars, as does the light, and yet the taller woman does not say anything in response to your words. While her figure has come across as comforting to you here in the depths of whatever this moment was, the feeling that you get from this person is almost entirely ambivalent, while she does appear to be another form of 'you,' well...

That doesn't seem to be enough for her to form affection for you.

---There is nothing motherly about her form, nothing that declares she is actually here to save you in any way, no...

If anything...

There's just a vague sense of curiosity.

Like she had seen something in you that had sparked an interest, and was now poking at that spark to see if anything else would happen, if a brief spark might become some sort of flame...?

"...I only exist inside of your mind, child."

---In the end, that's her answer.

"I cannot save you, at least no more than you could save yourself."

She still doesn't turn to face you.

"Time has... Simply stopped for the moment. Perhaps we have stepped outside it's flow? Perhaps we are simply perceiving things differently? Either way, this is an ephemeral moment all the same, an intermission of sorts."

The staff in her hand is tapped against the ground, once, twice, three times...

Rhythmically.

Like the second hand of a clock, eternally ticking away...

Counting down?

"...Did you wish to be saved?"

Even so...

The woman's tone is casual, like she's not stressed in the slightest...

"It's quite the change, some time ago you were wishing for the end, some sort of end, an invitation to the abyss."

Her face turns towards you, ever so slightly.

"No, even now... This is fine. I did my best, and everyone else should be fine, so it's okay if I lost... Something like that crossed your mind, right?"

She turns back away.

---The wind roars ever louder.

"..."

She waits for your answer.

---It's impossible to tell what she wants to hear.

If she even wants to hear anything at all...

[Airen]

Hiyori
Aoyama, Tokyo - ??? Residence
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Morning

"Your plan is... To break into the conference?"

---Alexia frowns.

It's the frown of a police officer that has just heard something difficult for them to ignore, like that awkward moment of hearing a friend brag about preparing to perform some sort of minor crime, the sort of thing that puts one in conflict with one's own self, where morals and job obligations get into combat with friendship and cuteness, but...

"...Heh, would be pretty funny to see someone get the jump on her..."

Instead...

The brunette chuckles a bit to herself, letting out an evil sort of laugh that is not very fitting of an NWAB agent...

Or perhaps, very fitting?

Hard to tell with these types.

"Very well, sounds like a plan to me! I'll overlook the premeditated breaking and entering, since it's all in the spirit of good fun-!"

She crosses her arms and laughs at the heavens.

...Should you be happy you got away with this so easily...?

Or rather, that NWAB agents are so willing to just break laws?!

"Although-"

After a moment, she stops in an abrupt sort of way, her villainous cackles fading away as she looks back down at you with a smile...

"Shouldn't you get your partner's OK first?"

Another chuckle.

"Wouldn't want to make her an unwilling accessory to a crime, right?"

---

Rossweisse
Aoyama, Tokyo ~ ??? Residence
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Morning

"Bah, you're no fun kiddo."

Winking at you, the flame-haired woman comes out of her fantasy with surprising grace (even as a certain doctor in teddy-bear form remains mostly catatonic, muttering something about how being around this family is gonna drive him mad) one hand reaching out to ruffle your hair like you were still twelve years old...

It's a pretty familiar motion, sort of... Fatherly... In spite of her otherwise feminine appearance...

Maybe it was the muscle tone...?

"Details, details, you SLEIPNIR kids are always getting hurt anyway, I swear."

She finishes with a huff.

"You especially, always had a habit of getting yourself hurt even when you were kid," she starts off towards the still-retreating tree, although her voice carries easily enough to you, "You and the Davis kids, running off into Aokigahara together of all places."

She shakes her head.

"Honestly..."

...Eh?

[Airen]

Blaise Pendragon
Soba Shop -Gen- (Trauma Cell)
11/16/2026
Night, Thunderstorm

---The moment it strikes the beam, the snaking of metallic chains can be heard amidst the flames.

They snap out of nowhere the moment they encounter resistance, spinning hungrily around the remnants of the wooden structure as the wheel's momentum reverses upon contact with your magic; the chains pull on their own, pulling the beam to itself, sounds like impacts rocking the structure as something happens to it, squeezing tightly with an active malevolence all it's own until...

It snaps.

Even as the wheel spins away from you, back towards the vampire and then up the far wall towards the ceiling for a different sort of approach, you can hear the moment the beam snaps in it's grasp, torn apart by the invisible impacts that can be clearly heard even amidst the inferno-!

Some sort of... Torture device...?

A Catherine Wheel that enacts the method of death it was known for upon the one it touches?

Hard to say without getting a clearer look at it, but...

It doesn't matter really.

"..."

---A certain light has reappeared in Fia's eyes.

Whether it be because of your joke about the wheel, your continued reassurances, or simply because of the sudden realization that the entity itself had admitted it wasn't actually the thing she was so scared of, the girl's trance like state seems to fall away, the eyes more focused, flame appearing at her lips as eyes harden into a glare at the shadow, but...

"..."

...It doesn't say anything in response to this, it just continues to stare at the both of you.

Why?

Talking had been an effective method to bully the child before, but that couldn't be all of it, right? Humanizing itself like this does make it inherently less scary, less of a horrible unknown, so what had been the point of all the talking earlier? Was it just to bully Fia, or...?

Had it been...

To buy time for some reason...?

"...The walls-!"

Fia notices it herself, right before you do...

Just beyond the flames, all around you, hidden behind the combination of smoke and flames...

The walls and ceiling had begun to grow... Spikes?

Pitch black metallic spikes, rusted in blood... All around you...

If the thing she had tossed at you a moment ago was some sort of Catherine Wheel, then was this, the entirety of the house itself...

...Some sort of giant iron maiden?

---In the flames, the figure wrapped in shadows smiles to herself, and in that exact moment, from right behind her...

"...!"

---An office chair comes crashing through the invincible wall, an attack out of nowhere that has the figure simply moving her head to the side as it shoots past her, embedding itself onto the spikes on your right...!

???

Ability

-Elizabeth Bathory-
Rank: ???
Element: Curse

An ability possessed by ??? that allows the evocation of various torture devices, further information is unknown.

[palad1n]

Cosmos Fairchild
LOVELESS, Rooftop
12/22/2026
Evening

"..."

While Cosmos Fairchild is quite happy to see her past self, it seems the same cannot be said for Cosmos Semesta Preciel.

It's not like she could blame her. Assuming that her other self is somewhat "aware" of what is going on, but helpless to do anything as she could only watch from the deepest recesses of her mind... what could she have felt, seeing essentially a different person living a life different from her own using her body?

That's why Preciel's reaction is understandable, and that is already better than the worst-case scenario.

Maybe Preciel doesn't show affection, but she doesn't show resentment either, and that is admirable.

... The staff in her other self's hand is tapped against the ground rhythmically, like the ticking of the clock.

Come to think of it, Preciel's hat when viewed from behind resembles a clock, doesn't it? She wonders whether that signifies something. A countdown of their time in this ephemeral moment, perhaps? Or something else?

Either way...

"...Did you wish to be saved?"

She asked a difficult question.

Cosmos remembered reciting a short prayer before that final charge at Chokmah, asking for something from the Lord... but she couldn't really remember what she prayed for. Was it for her distraction to succeed? For her to survive the next few seconds and land a blow on Chokmah? To keep Alyx, Sariel, her mother, and everyone else safe?

Did she pray to be saved? Or did she pray to die a meaningful death?

Cosmos couldn't really say for sure.

But if there is one thing she's sure of, it's that she's prepared to die. She didn't necessarily went into that charge hoping to die, but she acknowledged it as a very real possibility and made peace with that fact.

--The wind howls, and Cosmos finally speaks to answer Preciel's question.

"The moment I learned that mother is alive, I no longer wished for oblivion." She began. "Not only that, Aunt Alisa made sure to give me a new mission, something that perhaps only I can do... so I can't afford to seek death so brazenly anymore."

There is no need to lie to herself.

"However, even with all that... as you said, some part of me seems content to accept the end at this moment. But isn't that only natural?" She asked. "Even if I want to meet mother again and gets to know her better, asks her lots of questions, and truly understand each other... Chokmah is a very real threat that can destroy everything. It must be dealt with, and it seems intent on killing me - killing us - specifically. Keeping in mind on what it can do, what it had done, and what kind of attacks need to be used against it... it's only natural to volunteer to be a distraction so that the others can prepare to destroy it in one go, right?"

"And besides..." Cosmos shifted her foot. "I tried my best to survive, to distract it as long as I possibly could, to attack it myself and then return alive. It's just that, in the end, it is not enough. When I saw that barrel aimed down at me, that Chokmah didn't fall for my little trick... as far I know, there is nothing else that I could do at that point, and death is imminent. So if you ask whether I wished to be saved at that moment... then my answer would be no."

"But... is it wrong to make peace with the fact that I'll die? To intentionally seek death is a grave sin, but making peace with it when it is imminent is a noble thing to do, isn't it?" She looked at what little she could see of Preciel's face. "Someone once said that if we are to die, we should seek for the least shameful way for it to end, to die in a way that could benefit others the most because we only have one life to give... and if my death here can protect the people I love and countless others from suffering the same fate, then... that's a much better way to go than to commit suicide, isn't it? Rather than crying or cursing God because all of my efforts to survive seems to end in vain, isn't it much better to accept my fate? To thank God that He gave me the chance to die in a way that I could be proud of?"

"Of course, the situation now is a little different." Cosmos closes her eyes as the wind picks up even more. "If you ask me whether I want to be saved now, and if you truly could save me from this situation... then I'd want to. I want to meet mother, Aunt Alisa, Alyx, Sariel, Illia, and everyone else again." She opens her eyes. "But if you can't, or don't want to... then it's alright. I have done my duty as a Spirit Tamer, and I'm happy to have given my life for such a noble cause." She clasps her hands together. "I can only pray that everyone manage to finish Chokmah, and for the Lord to protect them."

[Kuroyuki]

Hiyori
Aoyama, Tokyo - ??? Residence
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Morning

"Your plan is... To break into the conference?"

Alexia frowns upon hearing my plan. She was taking things too seriously yet again and if she goes turbo NWAB police officer on me right here. She’ll actively stop me from trying to approach Miss Smug by herself. Then probably as a fitting punishment, she’ll actually force me to LISTEN to that whole self-assured, arrogant lecture she has planned at the conference. Then I’ll have to approach her in some degrading handshake, meet and greet line to get some time to interact with her!

‘N-not necessarily! Um… I…’

So I backpedalled hard and tried to figure out how to make my mischievous and definitely not criminal plan sound not criminal. But honestly, how do I explain that I was planning on breaking into the convention to avoid sounding like a whiny brat.

"...Heh, would be pretty funny to see someone get the jump on her… Very well, sounds like a plan to me! I'll overlook the premeditated breaking and entering, since it's all in the spirit of good fun-!"

‘Eh? I mean yeah! It would be funny to see someone wipe that smug look off her face for once. And I intend to be one of the first to do it!’

Whew… For a second there, I thought Alexia was going to serious NWAB cop on me or maybe I was getting the family friend pass? I mean she seems really really close with everyone here and she knows that I really wouldn’t do anything. Besides a harmless prank or two. But that’s just to spice things up every so often!

"Although- Shouldn't you get your partner's OK first? Wouldn't want to make her an unwilling accessory to a crime, right?"

‘Oh that’s right I really should! I mean Ross may hem and haw about this, but she’ll start pulling out building schematics, guard schedules, and stuff for me. If this was a sim or even a game, it probably would’ve been more fun to do it all blind. I’ll just send over a quick message now…’

---

Rossweisse
Aoyama, Tokyo ~ ??? Residence
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Morning

"Bah, you're no fun kiddo."

That’s when the Flame-Haired Woman ruffled my hair in a very familiar, nostalgic, and even some annoyance… The last bit surprised me, because I wasn’t easily annoyed yet I did. It was like an instinctual reaction to this person’s surprisingly… fatherly ruffle. Because the second her hand left, I stopped being annoyed and felt more shocked.

“Details, details, you SLEIPNIR kids are always getting hurt anyway, I swear. You especially, always had a habit of getting yourself hurt even when you were kid,”

“It’s not like I want to get hurt…”

But there are times, I need to let myself get hurt on purpose. Sometimes I can’t dodge an attack. Maybe I need to take an attack. If need be, I have to be willing to damage myself to temporarily surpass my limits.

“You and the Davis kids, running off into Aokigahara together of all places. Honestly..."

“I did that?”

I look at the Flame-Haired Woman in shock. Aokigahara? Why would I go into a place such as that with others? Especially as a kid. Aokigahara wasn’t a place, a new Spirit Tamer should be visiting. Let alone, a bunch of kids. The fact that I ran off with a bunch of other kids into it. Worried me immensely. What happened? Did the Davis kids get hurt? What was ‘I’ thinking?!

[Airen]

Rossweisse
Aoyama, Tokyo ~ ??? Residence
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Morning

“I did that?”

"You did."

The woman chuckles, although you don't actually find it all that funny...

Aokigahara.

Suicide Forest.

In other words, a place that was absolutely haunted, especially in the modern day, with Aoyama as full of ambient spiritual energy as it was; you couldn't remember going personally of course, memories other than life aboard the SLEIPNIR were completely absent from your thoughts, but now that you really thought about it, well...

...Some sort of image does come to mind, some sort of shrine out in the woods, although without context...

Rather meaningless.

Still-!

"Three of you liked to explore, did it all the time when you were over in America too."

The muscular woman rests a single hand on her chin in thought, her hair -still shimmering strangely like the fires of dawn- falling over her shoulders in a lazy sort of way. Of course her expression is vaguely inquisitive, like someone that was surprised they were having to tell some story back to someone who should already know it, but-

"Looking for mysteries to solve, crimes to fight... Well, little Lexie always did like her anime... Could see where you all got the ideas from, can't say the way the world is really discourages it either."

-she shrugs her shoulders in the end and tells the tale anyway.

"But yeah, into the woods you went, against every rule your mother and I had set for you... Said something about needing to find some sort of shrine inside it, one dedicated to some... Roman Goddess? Think it was like... Aurora? Something like that..."

She waves it off.

"But while you were exploring, you ran into some things and came out a little bruised up... Freaking out about ghosts, shrine maidens, endless paths and laughing lights... Poor Myra fainted outright."

She sighs.

"Naturally, I grounded everyone for the rest of the summer when you got back."

Wow.

A little harsh...

But as she was going on about that...

It seemed you had a message coming in from...

Hiyori?

[Katie]

Ayra Lilygrove
Saint Vivienne ~ Grounds
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

Did… Aster slip up? With how silent she’s being, what she has to be doing is important, right? Better for her to resolve this than bother her AI right now. Surely she can just lie her way through things, as shaky as it may be.

“Maybe you caught a glimpse of me earlier?” It’s a remarkably half-assed response from her, but she has no idea what Aster did and what Catherine saw, so better to play it safe?

“As an aside,” Ayra says, hastily deflecting the topic, “you saw that group of students going the opposite way, right? I can wrangle them if you need some help.”

There, an excuse to flee too.

Aster
Saint Vivienne ~ Nightmare
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

In a blink, Aster is back at the old dorms, old yet not completely decrepit. Politely unused, politely unkempt.

“Nope.”

Aster doesn’t bother sugarcoating it. If she forgot, was it deliberate? Who did this, anyway, and for what reason?

“Though, if you’re asking that, you probably don’t have anything to do with it,” Aster muses aloud as she helps Aisylnn tear down a board or two. “Feel free to correct me on that premise, though.”

[Airen]

Aislynn Wevere/Aster
Saint Vivienne ~ Nightmare
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

"Nothing to correct, you're right on that one. Nothing to do with it."

Figures.

I'd been hoping being around me a little bit might jog some of her memories awake, but it seems like things just aren't going to be that convenient, they never are of course, I think this whole disinformation campaign was part of the idea behind this messed up dream world, but...

Kinda pisses me off.

Still, she doesn't seem to be struggling to see me, so this doesn't seem to be a fluke either...

"X-Cross members don't attack each other, so I have no reason to do anything to your brain," wood snaps beneath my fingers as I speak, I'm weak in comparison to Tamers, even this much is only possible because I reinforced myself with the tome, but such things are always fleeting, "Even without that, I mean... Look at me, do I scream well-adjusted to you? Isolation kills me. I'm mature enough to admit it. Immature enough to bribe someone into hanging out with me, but mature enough to admit doing that makes me immature, you know?"

I nod, as if this makes sense and isn't actually just rambling, I mean...

X-Cross?

Does she even know what that is?

I don't think any of em remember, of course, I stopped paying attention awhile ago when I realized my curse had gotten even worse when it came to them, hard to really care about people when you can't really interact with them properly, but she and Ayra seem to have come here to hunt me down, so that's progress right?

Right?

Maybe?

Who knows?

"But let's see... Our relationship... I was an old classmate of yours. Human form sometimes, data form other times, not really either of those of course, but I can fake it till I make it."

I laugh, and for once it's sort of sincere.

Been awhile since I could talk this freely after all-!

"Course, Ayra and Tsukiko were all over each other back in the day so I can't say I was ever too important back then... Well, except for that time Tsukiko wanted to make a deal with me right before graduation.... Can't really talk about that one though, just between me and her, and even I can't remember it all that well..."

Makes me wonder why I brought it up at all, but I suppose my brain just gets carried away sometimes-!

"...Think it had something to do with doing a day over though, but it's unclear."

I snort.

"Think she might have jinxed me right after, or my forgetting was part of the terms... That girl loves to keep information to herself."

Boards gone, we step into the hallway.

Dust, dust and dust, ancient carpets containing even more dust, and rooms upon empty rooms...

---A decent hiding place, considering how no one seems to have been in here for years, but...

Magic can form these sorts of places too, you suppose...

"A very, I know what's best, so just stop questioning me and do what I say, kind of girl."

---

Ayra Lilygrove
Saint Vivienne ~ Grounds
11/16/2026
Monday - Evening

"...Oh yes, I saw that group."

Her gaze doesn't leave you.

If anything... The curious gaze grows even more so as you continue to talk, or rather...

As she seems to pick up on the haste in your words...

"Someone collapsed over here some time ago, those students volunteered to carry her to the nurse."

She nods, voice stoic and even, almost entirely emotionless even through the curtain of fatigue.

"Physically she was fine. No wounds, no detectable curses or jinxes, but she was found unconscious anyway. She seemed stable enough, but better to be safe than sorry, right?"

Her head tilts to the side, then...

"...She looked a lot like you though, kind of uncanny, now that I think about it..."

...No blinking, and even her breathing comes to a silent halt, yes...

It's like... She's looking to see how you respond to this information...

[Airen]

Ludwig Karlfeldt
SLEIPNIR
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Evening

---And so, you do it.

You explain the bizarre circumstances of the past few hours to those across from you, well aware that to do so was inevitably going to have some form of consequence; at the most mundane, the most banal, people might just take your claims of dying as a sign of vivid delusion (you are, after all, alive right now) and even if they believed that, well...

Someone altering global cognition?

The thoughts of everyone on the planet?

Madness.

And yet...

"Astrolabe?"

Strangely-

"Like the handheld model of the universe? That sort of astrolabe?"

Chiyoko raises an eyebrow.

"Don't think I know about anything like that in context of a place..."

-they only seem to really acknowledge the question at the end, rather than any of your other claims.

It's quite strange.

Are they deliberating ignoring the implications behind the words? Did they just not understand you properly?

Something else?

Either way...

"Sounds like Theresia is running around being needlessly cryptic again."

Chronos does seem to acknowledge your grandmother's existence at least...

"Good for her, she was getting far too detached from life, just sitting around in that chair of hers all day and night."

[Zurvan]

Ludwig Karlfeldt
SLEIPNIR
11/16/2026
Monday ~ Evening

---There it is.

The element of play, as Ludwig gradually pushed further and further away from the Common; from what made sense to the insane, comes to an end as both Chiyoko and Chronos don't acknowledge what had just been plainly stated.

It's only natural, after all, one has to actively part with their notion of reality in order to fully face the facts. Then again, are the events that happened to Ludwig facts, or moreso the product of a fictional dream-simulation that was shattered?

For Ludwig's conversational partners, to acknowledge his words is akin to shattering their perception. The human mind naturally seeks to protect itself from things that don't make sense. By eroding such defenses, one opens themselves up to phenomena that defies logical sense, things teeming at the edges of insanity.

In the first place, the events that set the ESPer's demise in motion in all likeliness never happened in this world, and even if they did... clearly the dead don't just sleep it off. Revival of the deceased isn't a magic that man has figured out yet, so a lone Tamer wouldn't have unlocked such an ability as they lay dying.

However, this was somewhat fortunate all things considered. Explaining how he had died is almost as insane as what he had seen and learned as the inheritor was dying.

Besides, something clearly fueled Binit's confidence, it was never going to be quite so easy to remove the veil of deception as if by simply conversing.

"Lydia mentioned it looked like a paradisal scene, more specifically, it was a cliffside castle overlooking a world of white flowers below, with up above stretches of starlit skies."

A place that sounds like a dream... how fitting.

"Supposedly Sarah Starbright and my sister were present there, though they were halted by a lady in a labcoat... someone named Leah."

Well, that should be enough for them to draw the conclusion that both Ludwig and Lydia had dreamed most exuberantly.

...Doesn't quite explain the knowledge that the boy shouldn't possess, but Theresia could be blamed for that much perhaps.

---Actually, why does Chronos know of her?

"Chronos, may I ask how it is you know the Karlfeldt Empress? She... didn't seem the sociable type, if that makes sense."