Event #003, Part I: The Symphony of Disruption

[magisteriamods]

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Magisteria Event #3

🌠 The Symphony of Disruption 🌠

Part I: The Darkness

CW: elemental disasters, madness, possible death, various forms of destruction and chaos, totally open-ended.

OOC Notes: Here it is! The game's first "Intense Event"! Some special notes for this event --

* Death is possible, and PCs can also kill citizens or creatures in the distrct. This event will have special revive mechanics which will be explained later, and PCs will not have to go through the usual revival process for an in-game death. "Light Sentinels" can even kill fellow PCs as a means of saving them, and this will be briefly explained to them, though the means of revival and specifics around this won't be revealed until the event's second half.
* For the corruption element: your character does not necessarily have to be corrupted. If and how they are is up to player discretion, as is the extent and manifestation of the corruption. They can just get lucky or manage to resist through will power, however you want it. Characters can be brought back to themselves by the power of Light Sentinel allies, or by the alignment switch Blessing from the game's third TDM. If you wish to engage with the event both corrupted and un-corrupted via separate prompts/TLs, that is Fine.

Dark City

Locals familiar with the Supernatural Undercity will tell the Otherworlders that, during the autumn and winter seasons, it’s not unheard of for Magisteria to feel different. The spookier residents have a way of making their presence more known, and those with spooky potential have a way of going… more feral. The succubi and the demon women of the Entertainment District are known to come with a lot more bite, and only the biggest of daredevils would be advised to purchase their services during the apex of the season.

It’s different from year to year, but these seasonal changes are always mitigated by the Authorities of each district and their powers. The spooky season in Magisteria becomes a respectful celebration of the diversity of the undead, demons, succubi, and other creatures, and both locals and Otherworlders are encouraged to cede respectful distance to those who may be experiencing enhanced primal urges during these months.

This year, something is different. One night, a darkness falls which overtakes the Bios in the Entertainment District and the bright corners of High Rise Village.

The darkness is as heavy as a tangible thing. At night, the stars and moon disappear. When day comes, the sky is grey as slate.

---

A Grey Day

Some citizens wear protective gear. It may be of assistance, but may not offer complete protection from the algorithms and the lepidoperatives' corruption tokens.

When dawn arrives, those living in High Rise Village will begin to hear notes of music. Dissonant, eerie, chaotic: disruptive. A symphony composed of a cacophony of sounds. Moreover, different people may hear different tunes. The only commonality is the lack of rhyme or reason, the lack of cohesion.

The songs play and weave through invisible algorithms, beckoning to the district’s citizens to unleash their inner turmoil, and other sides of themselves.

Holograms appear informing residents to take shelter and advising of the safest locations within the district. For weeks, most of the people and creatures of High Rise Village have been migrating to Evergreen Terrace, entrusting their protection to Arwyn. The apartments are brimming, full, and busy. The streets, by contrast, are ghostly, empty, and disorganized.

But not everyone can simply wait in the apartments and ride out the storm. After all, if this is an attack, someone(s) has to form a counter-strike. So Enforcers and other members of Magisteria’s various law enforcement agencies and vigilante groups are out and about, along with others who are not afraid of a conflict and who have sufficient training for battle.

No one demands that Otherworlders leave the safety of the apartments unless they have specifically expressed a will to do battle or unless they have a specific role to play in stopping – or ending – what’s coming, but should they enter High Rise Village, they will encounter the Chaos.

---

Chaos Comes to High Rise Village

Everything has the potential to become or manifest a twisted version of itself. The people, the animals, the buildings – even those in opposition, such as the fighters and those aligned with law enforcement. Even they can be Changed and altered by the chaos in the district.

Of course, those with powers are using them to resist in various ways, relying on their forces of will, but it’s like the whole district is in a trance, a hallucination, or perhaps a simulation.

But if that’s what this is, it feels all too real.

Throughout the district, spider-shaped lepidoperatives on thin, silver webs jump and move about. They’re fast and small and difficult to spot. Connected to the invisible mechanisms of Phantom Cipher’s Manifestation, these metallic insects can affect everything they touch by planting tokens on them: known as void imprints, wraith marks, and eclipse sigils, these tokens can induce a being to manifest or become a phantom version of themselves.

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I. Alignment Shift(ed)

Otherworlders, natives, and creatures may become, or manifest (or both) different versions of themselves. In keeping with the spookier time of year, this other version could be a werewolf, a vampire, a ghostly manifestation, or a cryptid, or it could be One’s Self, Inversed: there is no apparent rhyme or reason to what you may become or what you may apparate. There may even be more than one “you” at a given time, depending on how far the effects of the corruption tokens reach.

Affected Otherworlders may find themselves attached to the silver webs, becoming like puppets. You may find that allies are now enemies, or enemies are allies. Nothing is as before, and everything is thrown into Chaos. Your actions may no longer be your own, and what you do or whom you fight may no longer be your choice.

---

II. Mecha Monstrosities

The district pulses with cyborgs and phantom creatures, and those who, like Phantom Cipher himself, seem to be a mixture of both. The Fractured have returned. Only now, they are walking about in the daylight, or what passes for daylight in the corrupted district.

Androids with barbs and spikes patrol the district, and many are not shy for conflict. Like Lysa’s “pet,” Grimm, these androids are powerful and can regenerate a certain number of times when attacked. Some will attack on sight, and others may try to “play” with the Otherworlders, or with citizens or creatures in the district, whether the latter are corrupted or not.

Of course, alignment-shifted PCs may also be able to ally destructively with such entities. Those on the path of destruction may find common ground in trying to take down the infrastructure of the district.

---

III. The Party of the Damned

All around, people, organic and inorganic, appear with skull-like features. There may even be faces you recognize, from work, from the clubs, from elsewhere in the district. But now, their features have changed.

These skull-faced citizens of Magisteria insist upon partying just as they do within the clubs in the evening. They dance and sing along with the music, encouraging Otherworlders to join them.

If anyone speaks to them or asks what is going on, the answer is the same:

Nothing. Nothing at all. This is who we are, who we’ve always been. Why do you look so strange, Otherworlders?

This is the paradise city… the city of all our dreams. Magisteria. Light and Darkness.

Bios and Umbra. This is what’s always been inside all of us, all along. Inside of you all... inside of Everyone...

Are you only just now seeing it? But this is what we’ve always been. The skin hangs over the bones, but the bones are inside, underneath…

Party, party while the city burns... party like it's the end of the world...

They move and move, like puppets, but with a strange sense of freedom nonetheless. Beckoning. Whispering. Just let it out. Let out what has been inside of you, all along. It's inside of us all. The darkness that walks with the light. Bios and Umbra. Look at what we can become when not forced towards "Perfection." Inside of Magisteria, all along. And these party-goers do not slow or tire. Though their movements are haphazard, like zombies from films, still they keep moving, keep going, never growing exhausting, never ceasing...

---

IV. Elemental Nightmares

News comes that the source of the “hack” is Magisteria’s Elemental Control Center. This central zone is a bit like a giant brain that regulates elemental magic within the district. Now, the magic becomes chaotic. Giant tornadoes of raw elemental power sweep through the district. Alleys and buildings explode into gust-fed fires, and tides of water burst forth over the district. The ground trembles and all of the elements are out of control.

Those with magical powers are (if still in control of themselves) encouraged to work to stem these tides, to ebb the flow of the elemental disasters which are occurring throughout High Rise Village.

Comments

Event Questions

[magisteriamods]

[emet_sulk]

I'm having an Inversed Emet poke about the internal structure of the Fractured Sentinel of the Eye, is there anything particular that he might find/remember after the event or would it be moot since he'd forget (or something) later?

[magisteriamods]

He could remember it afterwards, but what he would most likely find would be code structures. Would Emet, a mage, understand this or be able to store the information to pass it along to techies or check it out on Magisteria's tech? But he could certainly find out information about that, if so. If you have any ideas or want to propose a "discovery" for the creature, I'm open-minded.

Bakugou Katsuki | My Hero Academia

[xploud]

💣 i. Chaos in High Rise City 💣

[Katsuki knew something was wrong the moment he woke up and began his day. It was too damn quiet, even for the early morning that he usually wakes and does his usual routine. Transportation isn't flowing as freely or quickly, shops are still closed up tight, and the atmosphere of Magisteria just seems uneasy, and tense. Needless to say, once the alarms blare to life via TV screens and holographic images, he rockets himself back home and immediately suits up for a possible fight, hesitating only a second to disregard his usual Grenadier Gauntlets and instead lock his new ones - the Ember Tempests - securely on his forearms. Might as well test these things out in a real fight, instead of just training dummies and holograms. He's curious to see what they can truly do against something with more mass, and when he really goes all out.

Alice, while he knows she's brave, strong, and capable, despite her small age...(and the fact she's been designated a robotic bodyguard that he may or may not dislike on sheer principle) he does instruct to stay at the apartment if she's already there. If not, well...then he has someone else to go and help, right? His little sister will always be his first priority, all day everyday. Of course, once shit really starts escalating, Katsuki is in full Hero Mode, scoping out what's happening as he soars through the air with his explosive quirk. Any of those mechanical bugs he sees get blasted with a swift AP Shot - a concentrated plasma blast that explodes on impact - though he does try and follow their pathing to see where they're coming from, and even keeps one in...a decent enough condition to see if he can take it apart and analyze, if possible. Hopefully these little bastards don't have a self-destruct mechanism or anything, or don't wipe their "memory", or corrode their processors. He wouldn't be surprised, if a Villain is truly controlling them, they're sure to install a failsafe like that. Clever fucks.

The actual issue is when people start getting...infected? Katsuki's not sure what to call it, but they're acting weird, different, and like something out of a fucking zombie survival movie, or video game. He hates that shit, dealt with a quirk that was kind of like that, and more than anything he wanted to tear the bastard's throat out that got him turned into one. Cocky pissant was even from a Hero Academy, a neighboring one. It was annoying as hell dealing with that, and he felt nauseous as hell for several hours after the quirk wore off. Not a snowball's chance in hell is the blond teen willing to go through that again. He lowers the output of his blasts, or just straight up clocks people with a hard enough punch to the gut, back of the head, or even right to the jaw. Anything he can do that's non-lethal, because even if those Enforcers or whatever the hell say there's no crime in "taking care of" the threat...he's got his own rules and moral code he follows, and Heroes in his world don't kill, or aren't supposed to. Not unless all other options have been exhausted, and even then it's...not exactly celebrated. Killing is unlawful, no matter what side one is on.

However, people are extremely resilient. If they can survive what they usually wouldn't, well...that's fair game.

So, if anyone is assaulting anyone else, or just needs someone to rescue them, they may find themselves either fighting or being saved by a very flashy young blond with a very comic-book like flair.]

Get back!!

💣 ii. Mecha Monsters 💣

[More things keep coming, and Katsuki's doing all he can to destroy each individual battle mech, but it's clear he's running low on steam, or is trying to be careful to mitigate property damage as much as possible. He keeps to the air, trying to goad as many of the flying mechs into chasing him, climbing as high as he can before detonating himself (gotta love that boost to his quirk so, so much) the moment one of them gets withing point-blank range. He is a literal, living bomb, and despite this being the first bullshit spectacle this world has to offer, the grin on his face is wide, wild, and slightly manic as he fights off hoards of automated beings, their smoldering carcasses starting to pile up as he cackles--]

IS THAT FUCKING ALL?! THESE SMALL FRY AIN'T SHIT!! LET'S SEE IF I CAN BREAK MY RECORD FROM THE ENTRANCE EXAM, AA?!

[Which was 70 points, meaning a multitude of battle mechs destroyed, each worth a different number of points. That, and of course he's not neglecting his rescue points this time around either. He knows that being a Hero is a balance of winning and saving, and with his speed, strength, and smarts, he's truly become a Hero of Heroes, even if he's still just a student. With a spring in his step, and a song in his heart, Katsuki is going a little feral as he counts with each crash of an android hitting the ground, the lilt in his voice almost poetic.]

Thirty-four! Come on, that's barely halfway!!

[The Fractured might give him some trouble though, as they begin to show themselves. The Matriarch attempts to cage him in her ribbons, or puppet his body, and while he does struggle a bit at first, he against just...detonates himself and blows it all back and off, his body smoking and his breath haggard and raw. That...actually took a bit of his stamina. A lot or it, actually, and he's uh. He's taking that personally. Wiping his face, and baring his teeth like a dog, Katsuki snarls.]

...Alright, guess I should get serious, aa?

mecha monsters (cw: spider imagery)

[lunardreaming]

[ Uh-oh, Katsuki! In your efforts to save people and fight the bad guys, you seem to have stumbled across SPIDER WEB TERRITORY!

Lucy has slowly been growing her influence ever since becoming corrupted, working from the heart of the Entertainment District outward. A solid few blocks in the center are wrapped in techno-web, fine material that glitches where it meets itself in its pattern, webbed bundles of Fractured and citizens alike, struggling, vocalizing. None of them dead yet; Lucy hasn't been hungry yet.

After the Matriarch has a go at Katsuki, all seems silent for a moment. And then a new wave of Fractured stumble out of the nearest street. Their eyes, glowing a white-purple, the same color Bios infused in the cracks of their armor and the edges of their weapons. One, a stretched tin soldier, opens it mouth in an awful gape, its glowing throat pulsating as its voice creaks: ]

You will be controlled.

[ With that, they rush forward. And in the very distance, a massive silhouette of a chrome spider rubs her forelegs together, watching. ]

[xploud]

[He's getting exhausted, but not near the point of overheating or needing to fall back - not yet. It's just a nuisance that he can feel his heart beat irregularly, a note that he has a fatal weakness to consider, and he can't go all out like he used to. It'd be easier if he could rely on the people here, but he's not close enough to them for that yet, and his friends...well. They're either back in Visium dealing with Vaeros and his own brand of horseshit, or they've been brought home, back to the War. ...Fun.

Rolling his eyes, and cracking his knuckles, as this new enemy rushes him, he rears back one of his arms - the good one - and pushes his palm right into the face of the Fractured. There's barely a second before his gloves make contact before--

BOOM!

It might not kill outright, depending on how sturdy this thing's armor is, but the shockwave of a point-blank blast like that is definitely going to scramble, or even overload its circuitry something fierce, and Katsuki will take that opportunity to grab the thing by one of its arms - using his off hand - and begin to swing it around as he pivots on his heel.]

X-Catapult! [Basically...YEET!] Tch...keep your mouth shut next time, dickwipe, you sound like a can opener.

chaos in the high rise city

[nogravity]

[Arriving at the apartment complex deemed a safe haven, Ochako felt the weight of exhaustion. The city was chaos—spider-like creatures weaving silver webs, random bursts of violence among citizens, and malfunctioning mecha law enforcement. Even the sky seemed to mirror the disorder, shrouded in thick, gray clouds that promised rain but never delivered.

She ignored the worried calls of those urging her to rest. The eerie music struck her as soon as she stepped outside, freezing her in place. It was just enough time for the spiders to attack. Silver webs shot out, binding her wrists and legs. She fought back, but it wasn't enough to stop them. Void-like imprints burned into her skin, and from the shimmering webs emerged clones of herself, their hero suits reversed in color, their eyes blank and cold.

The clones moved with relentless intent, attacking anyone who crossed their path. Especially their original. Ochako struggled against the influence as the webs pulsed with energy. Her heart raced, but she refused to give in. Each clone she was able to strike down with her martial arts only deepened her determination. These shadows of herself weren’t real—they couldn’t be.

With every ounce of willpower, Ochako clenched her fists and fought back. She wouldn’t let herself fall. She would fight—for herself, for the people depending on her, but there was too many of herself and the spiders; it was beginning to tire her out especially when they kept returning. It was a matter of time until the clones were able to turn the tables by flipping her over to the ground and pinning her to the ground hoping to help the spiders finish what they started. It was enough for the real Ochako to struggle some more while trying to groan out in frustration.]

Wildcard - Boss Battle time.

[knife_to_meet_you]

[Not everyone has been blessed with a chance to stay home. When everything started getting all out of control, Sunny was distant from the apartments and in his fragile mental state? It didn't take long for the corruption to sink in. People may have seen him as the kind but silent kid living alone in an apartment, rarely leaving unless needed and rarely socializing but... most of Sunny has been erased for now.

As he lies in wait in the middle of his cocoon, almost unaware of where he is or what he's doing, Sunny is no longer himself. He's a monochromatic version of the fragile kid, with red eyes and hands. And he's with his friends, having a picnic and having fun. Or, well, they were all having fun and being loud, he was merely there, trying to hold back a certain kid with a basketball from play-fighting with the only young girl of the group. They kept toasting each other, heh.

It felt... nice.

He wanted to stay with them forever. Part of him whispered 'especially with one of them', but he didn't care enough to listen to it. No, he ws content as long as he wasn't alone.

For anyone coming from the outside, tough? The world would warp once entered 'Omori's field of influence. Colors would drain until the world was merely black with red lights barely making the place visible. Buildings were distorted, bending on each other like hey were tubes spinning around unaffected by gravity. The floor itself would feel weird and unpleasant to walk on, cracking and moving like it was made with countless paper pieces folded on each other but without real structure.

The closer they got to Omori's spot, the louder a weird background music would grow, like it was some kind of videogame. Bunnies would bounce around, creatures of weird shapes would dance around and the paper at anyone's feet would change, slowly turning into elaborate origami recreating grass. In the middle of all that? Illuminated by lampposts placed in circle and blessed with pale flickering lights?

A picnic blanket and the kid. In the company of five plushies. One, with teal hair, laid stabbed countless times on the ground, melon bits and cotton all around it. The others? Purple, familiar? All five of them were sitting around the twelve years old. He seemed busy spreading jam on the face of the peluche with the checkered shirt, but as soon as he spotted someone else? He got up, still holding the stuffed 'friend' and turning around the invasor. One of the many monsters he fought in headspace, no doubts. Even if his party required rest, he was never going to let anyone touch his gang.]

. . .

[Not a word was spoken as the knife was raised in Bakugou's direction. If the strange furry creature he was currently seeing wanted a fight... Omori was going to deliver.]

lucy kushinada | cyberpunk: edgerunners

[lunardreaming]

✘ ⸻ alignment shift(ed)

( cw: spider imagery, brainwashing, exposed booba )

[ In the end, Lucy will later reflect, it was stupid of her to leave the apartments. They'd all been warned that chaos had descended on the city, and she's no hero. She's not the type to be out on the frontlines defending the innocent like she's some chromed-up Superman -- except for the various times in this stupid city where she's gotten roped into doing exactly that -- and she'd been fine in her apartment, except for... that transmission. It had seemed run of the mill until she'd caught a glimpse of that silhouette among the smoky footage, and her blood had frozen in her veins.

Lucy hadn't thought much after that. She'd just ran. Towards what, she didn't know. Away from what, the answer was clear.

That had been her first mistake. Her second mistake had been trying to slap aside what looked like a spiderweb.

Now--

Woe betide you if you try to enter the Entertainment District.

The outer edges are as abandoned as the rest of the city, neon lights flickering over empty streets, club stereos left on automatic playlists rattling the foundations of their lonely doors. The Fractured that roam this place are shuffling like zombies, their eyes glowing purple-white, attacking anybody with a frenzy. If any careless wanderer steps deeper into the district, silver strings of spiderweb draped over the streets, from rooftop to railing, from window to signpost. Deeper, it gets thicker, glitching out where it connects to each other like electronic thread shorting itself out. Some corrupted robotics are roaming freely; others are wrapped up in the web, dangling, struggling, warped shrieks and howls echoing through the empty streets. Here, a Fractured with long whip-like hair and a mouth full of fangs is streaked with that same purple-white over its skin, a broken tin soldier with limbs stretched like rubber wears cracks in its armor the same shade of Bios, the infection running deeper the more one ventures closer to the center of the district.

If one is very brave, and finds the center, they'll find Lucy. Perched mid-air on a web the size of a small building stretched between streets. All eight of her legs placed delicately, her hands smoothing deftly over the form of white-armored spiky Fractured, cradled in her web like a broken doll. What was once legs is now an elegant spider body of chrome and steel and neon, the skin of her torso pale and bare, the lines of her cyberware dark against her skin.

At the intrusion, she looks up. Lips peel back from sharp teeth in a snarl, but she doesn't move. Instead, the air is filled with clacking and cracking and scuttling, and a tidal wave of Fractured skitter over the buildings like swarming spiders, barreling straight for the intruder. ]

✘ ⸻ party of the damned

[ And once that unpleasant behaviour in the Entertainment District is dealt with and some heroic soul returns Lucy to herself--

Smash cut to: dance parties.

Cut to: Lucy, eyes rimmed in panicked red, trying to convince people to leave. None of the skull-faced dancers are responding to her. This is what we've always been, they hum contentedly, this is the Paradise City. Blacklight and neon flashes over the crowd, verve thick in the air, and it's the kind of scene that Lucy would normally love, but--

Adam Smasher is here. Trapped in Chrome Hills right now, the broadcasts are saying, but Lucy doesn't trust that. Doesn't trust that he can't just punch his way out and slaughter everyone in this city. She'd tried to warn people with a message from a scrambled ID, but she doesn't know if anybody paid attention.

The next Otherworlder she comes across at the edge of the crowd-- if they know her already, it's a very different Lucy they'll be seeing. She's obviously shaken, drawn, eyes wide, her hair and jacket rumpled, every inch of her normal cool exterior stripped away, though she's desperately trying to hide it. ]

Listen to me. We have to get these people out of the clubs and back to the Terraces, where they can be-- I don't know if it's safe there, but it's the best chance anybody has. That thing in Chrome Hills won't be contained for long.

for erichthonios⸻

[lunardreaming]

[ Lucy hadn't been able to get out many texts of warning before she'd gone running out of the apartments, determined to-- she doesn't know what. Something. Anything. Run. Hide. Fight. Whatever her plan was, she never got to do it, because the spider lepidoperatives had gotten to her first, planting a corruption mark on the base of her throat.

She had transformed. She had... unfolded. Legs splitting apart to grow a massive spider's body of steel and chrome and neon, her still-human torso elegantly welded to it. And all she had been able to think about was control, and terror, and wrapping people up to keep them safe. With her corrupted powers she had reached out and hacked every Fractured within a block, their eyes and gaping mouths shining the same white-purple as her Bios. And she had leaped, and crawled, and skittered her way up the side of the Terraces, a quickhack letting her know exactly which apartment he resides in.

She pulls back three legs and punches them through his balcony window, and as the glass shatters, hacked Fractured pour through it, leaping for the man and attempting to restrain him. ]

You can't go after that monster. I won't let you. I won't let anybody. I'll keep you safe.

[ Her voice is a hiss, warped from between sharp teeth. Six more eyes blink open on her face, metallic shuttered eyelids unblinking, every single one of them focused on Erichthonios. ]

The Saber and the Spider

[floweroftheapex]

Once her aXess machine had blinked back on, and she'd seen that message, Musashi had sprinted out of her room, and gone straight to Lucy's apartment. But she was too late; Lucy had already left, as Musashi feared. Rushed off into the night to...try and bargain with Smasher? Find someone else to deal with him? Did she even know?

But to go out there after her meant exposing herself to Phantom Cipher's webs, the ones they'd been warned about. The ones that could change you. Invert you into someone else. If Musashi rushed out there, as her Berserker instincts were screaming at her to do, and accidentally ran into one of them, what might she become? Could she help Lucy then? Would she want to?

But what if she could control it? What if it was impossible for her to change...because she'd already changed herself? Would the webs still affect her?

She's determined to find out. She returned to her apartment to prepare. The Kintsugi shows her the Entertainment District. That must be where Lucy ran to. Spider legs of chrome, webs stretched between buildings. So now she knows where to go, and what she's dealing with, there's only one thing left to do. The one thing Musashi wanted to never do. The thing she'd told Lucy would never happen. She's having to break that promise now.

The zen garden rests in a shrine in her bedroom, where she keeps her swords, and a small generated picture of her friends from the Waxing Moon Ritual. She brings it out into the main room, sets it down...and concentrates.

I know we agreed to let you sleep...but I can't save her like this. I need you to wake up...Tenma.

Miyamoto Musashi closes her eyes.

Miyamoto Musashi opens her eyes.

"Well. Time to get to work, then."

Later, when more precautions have been taken to help Lucy, she stands beneath the web where Lucy is sleeping. The outfit is new. Not what she'd been expecting. It called to mind her old traveling outfit, but in a style more suited to her other self. A sign that she was no longer the dominant aspect. Well, that's fine.

"Hello up there!" She calls towards the spider slowly unfurling above. "I made a promise I'd bring you home safe. I don't suppose we could do that with a minimal amount of fuss? It's just, I don't want to disappoint her."

After a moment, she slaps her forehead. "Ahhhh, where are my manners? Excuse me! I'm Miyamoto Musashi, Kushinada-san. But to make it easier...you can call me Tenma. Shall we begin?"

party of the damned!

[nogravity]

[Ochako stepped into the club, her breath hitching at the sight of skeletal figures dancing under neon lights. Their hollow eyes and eerie grins sent a chill down her spine, but she forced herself to move through the surreal crowd.

As she scanned the room, her eyes landed on Lucy, her disheveled appearance standing out among the crowd. Ochako approached cautiously, catching fragments of Lucy’s hurried words.]

The thing in Chrome Hills? What are you talking about?

[Her heart pounded as she waited for an answer, the unsettling atmosphere pressing in from all sides.]

Gilgamesh | Fate 👑-- Alignment Shifted to UBW-esque incarnation! With some Magisterian twists

[gilgamess]

Gilgamesh is Having a Day: That's It, That's the Whole Top Level

[ Truthfully, looking around Magisteria at the present time, the King of Heroes cannot believe that he did not attain his present conclusion sooner: namely, the forms of life within this city-state have grown far too abundant. They've become a sort of rabble, a humanoid litter. In a world in which every being claims to be exceptional, there can be nothing that truly is. And, in any case, such unique status is the right and prerogative of the King alone. At this moment, Gilgamesh has no faith whatsoever in the future of Magisteria. Just look at these mongrels dancing like something from some sleazy film. Just think about that carnage going on that has been broadcast.

Clearly, there is only one solution to mongrels who ruin their own city-state in such a manner, and that solution is Judgment.

The presence of that being, Arwyn, whose characteristic trait drives others in the city-state to "Absolute Perfection," suits Gilgamesh just fine. Having switched from his other class summoning, he may not have access to his magic, but his enhancements with technology, his charisma, and his EX-rank good fortune more than make up for this lack. In this world, the omnipotent wish-granter, the Holy Grail, is a being named Soraya.

Using the Magisterian technology Gilgamesh has learned and the upgrade of his gift to create a Miracle with Arwyn's power and his own, it is simple enough to clone data structures of that woman's magic into the translation of technical form as programming: Bios and Umbra. Simply imbue them with Gilgamesh's golden Bios and the Umbra of the Fractured, and he has coded himself up an approximate facsimile of a Grail. ]

This city... it's grown exceedingly unsightly.

[ He's been filling his vault with cyber-weapons, and now it even contains his own personal aircraft. It's not so unique as the Vimana, which is another problem with this world: again, that abundance of everything. In a world of luxury where just any mongrel can own their own aircraft... what is the value in any individual piece of technology or any life? There's too much superfluity; those "Fractured" are the proof of this concept.

But presently, Gilgamesh does not utilize flight. He will if he needs to, of course, to best use the Grail. But for the time being, he is simply strolling down the flaming streets. The flames, of course, part around him, for his Bios is blazing as golden as his soul, but if anyone gets in his path or irritates his vision, he simply shoots them down with his swords -- the smaller ones, preferring not to waste anything significant at such a moment. ]

It is time to desist with this modern world. Purge and begin anew.

It's Tenma Time!

[floweroftheapex]

"Aaaaah, what a mess this is." Streets on fire, monsters running amuck, and now a Rogue Servant bent on mass murder.

First, there had been dealing with Kushinada-san's predicament as a favour to her other self, but it seems her responsibilities don't end there! She's been given power to save all the people corrupted by these alignment shifts, and she feels compelled to see this through to the end. Even if it means tangling with the King of Heroes at his absolute worst.

"Miles to go before I sleep..." Tenma shakes her head, and draws her swords. "Let me guess; if your Caster self is the humbled, older and wiser King, then the Gilgamesh standing before me now is the young and foolish version, isn't it?"

[lunardreaming]

[ Lucy's had a stressful few days. First, Adam Smasher had appeared on the news. That was bad enough. And then, she'd gotten herself corrupted by a lepidoperative. She only remembers half of what happened during that, blurry memories of fighting Otherworlders and clinging onto the side of buildings, eight legs underneath her, her body modified in ways she'd never have anticipated.

Luckily for her, she'd been uncorrupted, and she's not a torso on a big chrome spider body anymore. Go team.

It doesn't solve her other problems. Smasher is still out there, though Lucy's doing her best to dissuade any Otherworlders from seeking him out. She's still running on sheer terror, but even her resilient mind can't function like that for long: days after Smasher's appearance, the terror has become blunted from exhaustion. Or maybe it's even worse. She can't tell. Her heart is still beating too hard, always, all day.

And then she sees fucking Gilgamesh on a city security camera setting fire to shit.

When she gets there, he doesn't sound like Gilgamesh at all, and-- shit. He's been corrupted, hasn't he? That's terrible fucking news, because when Lucy gets corrupted she can still be beaten by excellent fucking fighters. Who the fuck is going to beat a corrupted Gilgamesh? She stands precisely zero chance. But she's got to try anyway. ]

I think people are gonna have an issue with that plan.

[ She makes herself known behind him, blowing out a cloud of vapor from her verve vape, deliberately casual. ]

Besides. If you purge everything, who's going to be left to begin it anew? I think I found a flaw in your plan, goldilocks.

Adam Smasher

[fullborgboogeyman]

[ooc: First off, here's Smasher's capabilities.]

Chrome Hills Mall
This all read like a bad sci-fi flick or one of those shitty old isekai anime. Place doesn't even seem all that different from Night City. But it doesn't really matter. Switch out one paymaster for another, and they've given him lots of meat to play with. Never gotten the chance to kill real demons before. How could he refuse?

The mall is his playground for the time being. Phantom Cipher just wants him to cause a racket, make some noise, draw attention. He's good at that.

And it's only a matter of time before Otherworlders answer the challenge. The mall was locked down by Phantom Cipher after Smasher made his entrance, but Otherworlders will find that curiously, the lockdown lifts to let them in. The main power was cut, but the emergency lights are on inside Chrome Hills, bathing the place in a dim, eerie red glow. Distantly, there are shouts for help, proof that people are still alive in here.

But there's also a great deal of proof that Smasher has been busy. Many unfortunate civilians lie where the full borg left them.

He was not gentle.

But sooner, rather than later, a conflict between the Otherworlders and Phantom Cipher's contractor is inevitable. A stray shot from his Projectile Launcher announces his presence.

"Finally. Someone who might be worth my time." He growls through a heavily synthesized, mechanical voice, modulated to be as deep and menacing as possible.

"Wonder how fast you'll die, meat."

[xploud]

He intended not to make a fuss - scope the place out, make sure this outdated Macbook wasn't just mowing down civilians left and right - but after hearing people shouting for help, seeing the gory remains of the precious few who either tried to run for it, or were too bold for their britches, Katsuki decided he had no other choice than to step in. This guy is definitely strong, he can tell that just by sheer presence alone, but Katsuki is nothing to sneeze at either. Going up against All For One wasn't exactly a cakewalk, and the blond still came out of it alive. Besides, he doesn't have to win, he just has to goad this guy into playing tag long enough that people can evacuate. Seems a little too simple, but people--..no, Villains like this never back down. They're like cats - they love playing with their food.

Hope he can choke down what this spicy little shit's got to offer.

"Shit, I was about to say the same thing, but the sight of your ugly mug made me throw up a little in my mouth. Someone try to take a can opener to your skull or were you just born that way?"

[nogravity]

Ochako approached the Chrome Hills Mall with caution, Lucy's warning replaying in her head like a drumbeat. The eerie red glow of emergency lights cast unsettling shadows across the corridors, and her breath hitched as she took in the carnage—lifeless bodies scattered on the floor, blood streaked across shattered storefronts. Her heart clenched, but she forced herself to keep moving, straining to focus on the faint cries for help cutting through the silence.

Her steps faltered when she spotted him—a towering mechanical figure looming at the end of the corridor. Unlike the other mechas she'd seen wreaking havoc in the city, this one moved with purpose, its hulking frame radiating menace. It wasn’t like the training bots from school or any mindless drone; this one felt alive, driven by a violent, ruthless intent.

Ochako swallowed hard, pushing back the wave of fear creeping up her spine. She couldn’t afford to panic. There were still people alive in this mall, and she had to find a way to get them out safely.

Bracing herself, she glared at the villain, determination hardening her features. "My name is Uravity," she announced, her voice steady despite the chaos surrounding her. She pointed firmly in his direction, her eyes narrowing. "And don’t even think about giving me a nickname. We’re not friends."

With that, she shifted into a defensive stance, ready to face the monster before her. There was no room for hesitation. Lives depended on her resolve.

[strength_of_will]

There's a distinct sense of deja vu when the mall gate slams shut behind him. It's not the same feeling as entering Valacirca's lair - there's no wave of dread, no fear striking his heart to try and make him flee. He takes a steadying breath and performs one last check of his equipment before venturing forward.

He passes bodies. At first, he crouches thinking that maybe they're not beyond saving, but he quickly realises that this isn't the case. Grimly, William presses on until he finds the culprit. Glaive in one hand, shield in the other, and a Bursterfly hovering by his side, he faces down the cyborg.

He must look extremely underwhelming as an opponent. He's not dressed in any sort of modern armour.

"Were you the one who killed them all?"

Emet-Selch | Final Fantasy XIV (will match format)

[emet_sulk]

1. Alignment Shift

"Fascinating," he murmurs to himself as he examines the internal structure of the Fractured Sentinel. Unlike before, the mechanical creature is surprisingly docile, allowing him to poke and prod without retaliation. His Sight could already trace the circuits of Bios within but he hadn't had the luxury of time to truly understand its workings.

He remains engrossed in his mechanical dissection until someone appears. Perhaps someone looking for a fight, or someone...on the same side. He glances at them, putting away his tools and casually replacing the back of the Sentinel so that it can reactivate.

"Well, hello there. Do you have business with me?"

2. Elemental Nightmares

It's bad enough that the elements are raging out of control on their own, but what if someone is secretly helping things along? Emet-Selch is calm in the face of chaos, striding forwards where others flee. He watches with a dispassionate eye as a small twister chases down a civilian. Are they worth saving? What can they offer this star?

At the last moment, he makes a gesture and the winds veer off course. Enough for the person to barricade themselves inside a nearby shop. They will never know how close they came to dying.

Emet-Selch finds another in mortal danger, but upon examination, he incinerates this person himself. It happens in a flash: fire enveloping them utterly while they scream. Only a charred body is left behind.

3. Wildcard

Feel free to DM me or ping on the game's Discord server if you have other ideas etc. Other options I contemplated are having various flavours of Emet manifesting outside of himself because of the tokens (like vampire/werewolf/and so on).

1.

[xploud]

Now this is...curious. Katsuki's not sure what to make of someone just out in the open, poking and prodding at one of those derange mechs like it was nothing. Weirder yet, the thing actually looks like it's allowing it, still 'alive' enough to lays still and not self-destruct or lash out. Katsuki wonders if this is some sort of quir--eh...some sort of ability this guy has, his head tilting to one side curiously as he approaches, keeping just out of arm's reach as he stands and inspects the intricate circuitry and wiring from where he is. Way beyond his skill level, but he'd love to learn more...the databanks these things must have would be a treasure trove of information, and if that Phantom Cipher asshole is controlling them, too, he would definitely leave a cyber footprint. Probably not enough to track, but it's still something that someone above him in skill may be able to use.

"Not exactly. I'm more interested in what you're doing - what you're figuring out from that thing's head."

It's memory, processor, all that tech shit. How Katsuki would love to poke and prod himself, even if it's...a little strange, what with these things basically being mechanoid people in a way - androids - but...the information they may have is too valuable, sadly. Plus, they're attacking people, good people, so he's a bit biased when he thinks 'lol, fuck them actually'.

2. how many times must he teach you this lesson, old man

[lightduties]

Rhea'li had heard the broadcast... and the subsequent warning to not engage Adam Smasher. Which sounds awfully like he should get involved in putting the smash down.

But... he can't ignore the plight of the civilians before him. The raging winds, flooding, flash fires... With evacuation and search and rescue efforts hampered, Rhea'li does the best he can to save anyone he can, using Titan to help with freeing people trapped under rubble that his bursterfly finds. Every time he finds someone who is too badly wounded for him to save, he keeps his frustration inside.

Rhea'li catches sight of a familiar silhouette and he rushes over so he can join forces with Emet-Selch.

That is, until he sees the man incinerate one of the locals.

No...

"What are you doing!?" His shout of fury rips out from his throat, the sight of Emet-Selch betraying all they had suffered for twisting Rhea'li's normally inexpressive face into a rage he hadn't felt since a certain knight had lost his life defending him. Why? Why!? Why was he throwing away his second lease on life!?

[nightmare_fuel]

[ ... where are they...

... promised...

Shirou... Senpai... he had vowed to be a hero for Sakura, to stay by her side no matter what, to forgive and to punish her even if she was bad, to come to her no matter what happened, to be the Hero of Justice for Sakura; but where -- where is Shirou? And Rin, Tohsaka-senpai, Nee-san, her sister, had she not come to kill save Sakura? Her sister had spoken words of encouragement, telling Sakura she was not powerless anymore, but that was long ago, and then, now, everything has turned out this way once again, hasn't it? Where are they now?

Again, again, again, Sakura is abandoned by those she loves most. Again, they, even Senpai now, are nowhere to be found...

Somewhere, distantly, perhaps she remembers her vow to do her best in this newfound city, and to live in a way that would make the both of them proud of her, honoring her precious memories, but that... that may as well be another life, another person. Now, once again, all Sakura Matou knows is anguish. The memories rear to the surface: all that she has endured for years. Like fresh wounds, and that, her pain and her losses... these are all she can contemplate.

She's out in the streets -- walking, swaying from side to side as though in a stupor. Again, she feels everything inside of her beginning to boil to the surface. She feels that inside of her, as if waiting to be born, reaching and clawing its way out. ]

I... see...

[ Again, it's happening again. Just as it did that time. What she saw in her dreams, what she is, the shadows and the whispers.

The ribbons, the tendrils, black and red, start to appear, to unfold, to spill out. There's a part of Sakura, deep inside, still clinging on, thinking/saying, no, this can't be, that isn't here, it isn't here, and thus there's no way this can be happening here. It must be a dream, or perhaps a nightmare -- but the darkness, the black and the red, still spreads out. ]

You shouldn't come any closer.

[ She just may not be able to control what comes next. Not now. It's the same again, but not the same. Different. That mindset, and she cannot necessarily stop, or control, what that Shadow is doing. And it is a Shadow: a great darkness which spreads like red-lit black fire, whorls of it, around Sakura, as she tries to make her way through the streets. ]

[heartofsalvation]

[Instead of going to the core and raiding the facility where the disasters seem to be coming from, Elidibus has instead chosen the damage control route, walking the streets briskly and finding the various addled people that have made themselves easy to find.

Like this one right here. She's obviously not all there, so to speak, though hopefully it's something the gift he's been given will be able to clear up. Assuming he can get close enough for long enough...]

My deepest apologies, but I fear there's no avoiding this. Please understand it's nothing personal.

[That shadow, whatever it is, looks dangerous, and it also looks like she's having trouble keeping all of it contained by the way it overflows like stuffing from a broken plush animal. Obviously, light magic will do him good here if he's to wear her down, so he materializes his double-ended staff and flips it over to the light-imbued end, hoping the sterilizing power can fend off whatever shadows she throws at him.]

[xploud]

[More than ever, Katsuki has been on patrol - usually in the air, to get a scope of a situation before engaging - but even he has to touch down eventually. Most people he comes across are either trying to get their necessities and get back inside as quickly as possible, injured (or worse), or just...in some kind of trouble. This girls falls distinctly in the latter category, and the young Hero narrows his eyes as he cautiously and slowly approaches, suited up in his winter costume, which...probably doesn't do him any favors in looking less intimidating, especially with the rough droll of his voice. Even so, he's bound by his duty as a Hero to at least offer help to someone who may need it, and stop anyone who may be a threat.

...He just has to determine which side of the proverbial river this girl is on. He opens his mouth to say something, but is cut off and her narrows his eyes, tense but not backing down for a second. Well, that...kind of answered his question - she's a threat, or may become one - and he sadly can't continue to let her wander around, for fear of harming herself and others. His eyes scan everything about her, the tendrils, her complexion, her body shape and size, everything. He looks almost sickly...like that thing is draining her life force, and his brows knit together. Here we fucking go again!!]

Yeah? Well, sorry to say, but it's my job to make sure people are safe - either from threats around them, or threats to themselves...and I'm real good at my job.