[System]
Fake Name

Amon Amrath

Nickname(s)

Abomantion unto the gods, walking blasphmey, etc. etc.

Gender

N/A

Age

1024, looks to be 19-25 (first 1000 years were spent as a feral fox)

Year

1st

Birthday

March 31

Astrological Sign

Ares

Species

 Nine tailed (G/K)umiho, a slightly spiritually vampiric many tailed fox race, normally eating the hearts and livers of sentient creatures to increase and maintain their power, although the organs of non-intelligent creatures give only about a tenth of the energy. They are inherently a possessive race when it comes to information about themselves, and rarely even give out their names, often making up completely false l backgrounds even when unnecessary. All kumihos start as feral foxes, gaining longevity after having eaten the heart and liver of a sentient race, and gaining sentience and magical ability after living a thousand years.

Class

 Enchanter, a shapeshifter with the ability to muddle the minds of Amon's targets, able to induce feelings of familiarity, kinship, lust, and fear among others, although can be fairly easy to resist if they are aware that it is occurring, and often breaks when Amon is suddenly surprised.
Weapon

 Fox orb- object which houses all a kumiho's stolen energy, must be available to channel spells more complex than cantrips. Can be controlled with a telekinesis limited to the orb up to about 7 foot radius away, and makes a fairly adequate bludgeoning tool. All of Amon's mana is stored in this orb, often holding about a week's worth of mana, which she uses in rations every day, recharging when she feeds. Normally this store is accessible to Amon alone, however it is possible for her to open this flow to others should she be willing to share. The recipient must be touching the orb to gain the mana, and once it is open they are free to take as much mana as they wish, which leaves the possibility of amon being totally drained and reverting to her primal state.

 If forced into fighting physically, Amon will shift into her Fox form, preferring to attack with fang and claw.

World

Lucis

Short Biography

 Kumihos, as a naturally antagonistic species, are often hunted down early in their lives when located, and as such are a dwindling occurrence. In such conditions, Amon was hard pressed to find a kumiho's preferred food choice, namely the hearts and livers of a sentient race, the signs of kumihos well known by now in Lucis, and would be soon chased from villages and towns after two or three meals.

 As sources of meals became more and more scarce, Amon heard there was indeed a completely new world even that would be ripe of unsuspecting meals. She found transportation easily enough after killing and taking the guise of a passenger scheduled to go to earth to start business talks, the death realized only after he failed to arrive at the meetings.

 Amon began cautiously feeding in the new world, a body in one town, a few homeless go missing in another, but soon became arrogant after no seeming retaliation, and soon began feeding with a passion. Soon she had been penned as the new Jack the Ripper, with bodies piling up with missing only their hearts and livers. Unbeknownst to Amon, a task force was put together to apprehend her, using undercover police as bait, and soon captured Amon.

 Unfortunately, due to her obviously being from Lucis, they were forced to alert the authorities on that side of the veil as to what had been captured.

 Amon happened to be the first kumiho to be captured in centuries due to most being killed when caught in Lucis. As such the academy saw what was a chance to, while under heavy restrictions, to see if it may be possible to tame such a species known only so far for leaving a trail of mauled bodies, and thus Amon, under the only offer of execution, has agreed to wear a leash, though is looking for a chance to break free. For a leash, no matter how long the chain, is simply an open air prison.

Personality

 Amon is very confident, very rarely second guessing a decision. Will make all attempts to make "friends" in a new setting, well aware of the use such allies can be when things go south, but same as a Fox will chew off a leg that's been trapped, Amon will always cast aside what is needed for survival.

 Hates to give anything away for free, and is very possessive and protective of anything she has. This can extend to allies or "friends", which some interpret as loyalty, a notion she does nothing to dissuade.

Partner

Have a few characters in mind, but I'll wait to see how it plays out.

Fear(s)/Weakness(es)/Limit(s)

 Extreme fear of dogs, gets tense when the same room and will immediately try to leave, and can be reduced to a panicking mess if unable to get away. Has a limited supply of energy for magic off campus, up to a week of casting as an average caster, and each use there after without replenishment giving up some sentience and becoming more like a feral fox, and if denied a source of will revert to being stuck in fox form. If the Fox orb is taken away, energy steadily ekes out, reducing the time to two days, one if using magic. Must have Fox orb out to use magic stronger than cantrips

Strange Attributes/Abilities/Traits

 Is able to shape shift at will between Amon's default forms, as well as take on the form of others Amon has studied fairly well, although there is usually a trait that gives Amon away,either the ears or a tail staying.

 Tends to think like a predator, making Amon well versed in chasing down a fleeing target, aided by enhanced hearing and scent.

Has a small affinity for fire spells, due more to Amon's species then actual practice, though with a little effort who knows what may come of it. At the moment her range is severely limited to shooting embers at nearby targets, and with little control of the fire afterwards. One exception being she can set her orb ablaze, although this drains mana rather quickly due to a lack of control. Another useful trick used when often glossing persuerers is to release a bright flash to blinding those nearby. She learned it after trying to imitate fireworks she had seen before, though often comes away with a few burns after using it.

 As a condition of Amon's release from execution, she has been shackled with an enchanted collar with a powerful slumber spell, made to knock out Amon should any predatory acts be attempted outside of missions, training, and classes, as well as a tracking spell the schools security can follow if she attempts to escape

 Can choose to gain the memories and mannerisms of those whose hearts and livers she eats, allowing her to better blend in when shapeshifted as them.

Her mind magic is often a subtle act working best on those not expecting it at all, with a mix of pheromone release and mind manipulation, Amon inserts herself in the place of memories someone has strong feelings for, the person being chosen to fit the type of emotion she's going for. It takes a minimal effort of mana if the victim was caught unawares, but uncharacteristic acts can break the spell. However Amon can force her will on the other person, exerting more mana allowing her to override a person's ideas, when the pheromones trigger the appropriate responses. This will place her in a battle of wills though, determined by the other persons ability to see through the ruse.

 Is very agile and flexible, able to dislocate joints and such to squeeze through and out of things that may restrain her. She also has excellent balance, almost impossible to knock of her center of gravity due to having nine appendages ready to equilibrilize her center of gravity.

Having been chased for most of her life after outstaying her welcome, Amon has become fairly adept at hiding, wether it be in shadows or in plain sight, easily making herself just another face in the crowd, and having the patience and willpower to stay cramped, uncomfortable, and still for hours on end.
Other

 Can only eat meats. She can stand spices and very small portions of vegetables, but will grow sick if forced to eat them regularly.

 While she can survive on the hearts and livers of animals, it's a lot like being hooked up on an IV,it gives her what she needs but does not stop the cravings

One of the first thing Amon saw when she became a completed kumiho was a fireworks show, and has been fascinated with the festive explosions ever since.

[User]
PLOT!

Suddenly and without warning, the white boxes that had everyone trapped began to shrink. They grew smaller and smaller, no force or magic capable of stopping them. Soon they went from large white rooms to very compact boxes that threaten to crush anyone unlucky enough to be inside. And just as it seemed like the students would have been compressed into meat cubes by the magic boxes, everyone would find themselves back in their seat. Many students were unharmed, save for those who actually fought each other inside the boxes. There was a bit of confusion amongst the students about what just happened, but they'll get their answers soon enough.

Ralthavar Marcrosias

Ralthavar's time in the box was largely uneventful. He had a lot of tea, which he managed to put away as the boxes got smaller. When he found himself back at his seat he noticed his things were undamaged but he was still missing the water in his pot. "Alright, is that wasn't an illusion." And sure enough everyone else from the Harmonious First were also quite surprised to be back. Most of them looked ragged and wounded, which told Ralthavar that they went and gotten into a fight. Some of them however looked no worse for wear. Ralthavar himself wasn't sure what the purpose of that was so he couldn't say for sure if they were suppose to have fought each other or not. But even if they were, all Ralthavar had was his tea set and dagger, and his opponent was a petite human girl. Hardly what he'd call a worthy opponent. "Alright everyone, calm down and shut up. I'm sure someone will explain what just happened." Ralthavar ordered to the Harmonious First.

Rei Maven

It was quite exciting them the box began to crush Rei and Varren. She pressed her naked body against Varren's own, whispering what she thought were her last words right into his ear. Of how she was going to ravage his body and screw every hole and pore, and later make new holes in his body until it was nothing more than a quivering mass of meat leaking blood and semen. Alas, what she thought was her last moments turned out to actually return her to her seat, albeit withing her clothing. Suited her just fine, the cold never bothered her. Kicking up her feet on the chair in front of her Rei reclined back and waited to see what that whole ordeal was about. And maybe see if she could find a new toy to play with.

[Assistant]
Just as Sylus had finished speaking with Uriel, the room began to shrink. Sylus felt more and more uncomfortable the smaller it became, panic beginning to set in. Claustrophobia was the bane of his existence. The walls closing in triggered vivid recollections of past nightmares, in which he could feel every bone in his body breaking as he was crushed by four walls, the blood flow to his limbs being cut off, the pain unbearable... but instead of dying, he was teleported right back to his seat in the auditorium.

Sylus exhaled slowly in a sigh of relief. While I'm sure there was some greater point to all of that, I swear to the gods that Ler-briar likes messing with his pupils far too much. sylus scanned the room, green eyes sweeping analytically over the other students. in front of him several first years were injured, shaken up or in some state of disarray or other. He frowned at this, but the frown subsided once he realized most of them seemed alright at first glance. It's good to see that Uriel and I weren't the only ones who didn't fight, but it still seems a good portion of us did. As he continued scanning the room, he couldn't help but notice that one of the first year females was... completely naked. Gods above... isn't there a rule against that sort of exposure here? What on earth was she doing in there that required... oh. On second thought, I might be better off not knowing.

In a miraculous feat of self control, he tore his eyes away from the sight of her as there were more pressing matters at hand. Namely, he hoped someone would explain the point of what the entire student body had just been subjected to. He relaxed in his seat, half tempted to light his tobacco pipe and settle in for a smoke after that ordeal, but this wasn't the time. He focused his attention towards the stage in hopes that all would be explained.

[User]
Mathew Holmes

Had he been paying attention, Mathew would have noticed the box he and Mia were trapped in start to shrink. When he did finally realize what was happening, it was too late to do anything. Before the walls could crush the two of them, he found himself back in his Human form in his seat. 'What?' Mathew started to look through the crowd of students, trying to find Mia. However, there were far too many other people in the room for him to find her 'could it all have been some kind of elaborate dream?' He wondered, since he didn't have any physical evidence that what had just happened was real. In fact, him being in his Human form without consciously transforming seemed to support the dream theory

'Just...what was the point of all of that?' He asked no one 'what could they have been trying to learn about us? Unless I dreamed that up myself. No, I don't think that's the case. I doubt I could have fallen asleep sitting up like this. Not only that, but I can't remember ever having such a vivid dream before in my life. I suppose that's one question answered.'

[Assistant]
Amon jerked her head up as she noticed the walls moving, cursing after she realized this wasn't her mind wasn't playing tricks on her again. Jumping off of Yuga, she moved herself to the center of the stage, letting go of the mana as she returned to her natural size.

She closed her eyes as she felt the panic taking over her, hyperventilating as she imagined the walls soon to crush her. She stood there waiting for the end to come, eyes forced to stay shut, starting to get annoyed that death was seemingly taking it's sweet time. Soon however she began to her others voices around her.

Cracking one eye open, Amon saw she was back in the auditorium, surrounded once again by fellow students.

Thoughts that she may have been going insane were however quickly assuaged as she had to spit out another mouthful of blood. She felt quiet tired now, feeling her reserves of mana running low, not even tempting faint with the minute amount needed to shift back to her more human forms She needed to get something to eat soon or she feared she would begin reverting soon. Not to mention needing to literally lick her wounds. She could tell however there seemed to be more to come, despite a voice in her head telling her incessantly to leave.


[System]
Age: 21
Bio: Loreena was the second child born to Harold and Tiana, a bit of a surprise so soon after the arrival of Annalise. She was a bit of the opposite of her elder sister, darker in hair and skin and also possessed a disdain for all things court related as she grew out of the nursery.

She loved her books, often sneaking down into the library and reading long into the night. She devoured books like a starving man would a loaf of bread, and it was discovered that she possessed an eidetic memory, making her classes a breeze for her, though it seems like applying her knowledge to real life provided a challenge. Lore was also the first, and seemingly only, of her sister to show any skill in magic, swiftly coming under the tutelage of the royal mages. She is able to pick up a skill quickly, but mastering it takes time.

Her most secret and ardent desire is to go on an adventure. To visit a far off land, to learn new magics from various teachers, and to write an adventure story of her own. For this reason, she is, perhaps, the most interested of her sisters in the plan their father laid out for them to marry one from a different kingdom. As long as he has books, or doesn't mind her building a library, and a sense of adventure, she will be content.

[User]
Jin relaxed considerably as Lore adjusted her hairstyle. Her sister's touch was very warm and soothing. It was so much nicer than when her ladies in waiting did it. They always made the bun too tight. "Much better, Lore. Thank you." She smiled widely and took a delicate sip of the wine. It was delicious, and quite powerful, and had a different scent entirely than what they usually had with dinner. Sulhana was always good at choosing that kind of thing.

"A drinking contest, hm? I suppose I will join. Consider this my entry." While she had grown used to the nonalcoholic cider in the silver cups, today was apparently the day she became an adult. She took another careful sip of the wine and watched as Vyarin sputtered over his. What was that about? Was he going to be alright? Lore was already on it, so she turned her attention to Hana as she approached.

"I wouldn't have run away. Not from this. I'm supposed to be the bravest of all of us, aren't I? So here I am." She chuckled as she was engulfed in a hug. There had always been a bit of the dramatic in Hana, spymaster or not. She had always been the one to make up stories as children. Her speaking of governesses and new-dress days with four less than earnest young ladies brought a sparkle to her eyes and a grin to her face. It had been simpler, yes. Much simpler.

Jin actually lost composure and blushed when Sulhana mentioned the armor she had received. But she was surprised at her elder sister's advice. "You think I should have? Perhaps. Then the men would know what they're really working with, instead of… this." Sometimes the fancy gowns felt like lying.

She approached Prince Gil, swept a curtsy and smiled. Before they could really get to talk, however, Hana announced that dinner was on the table. Despite her earlier nerves, the head-clearing workout from earlier had made her rather hungry now. It would be good to sit and eat.

[Assistant]
---

---

Annalise's attention remained on Uriah as he spoke, basically confirming what she already knew. She smiled at the mage, giving him a nod before turning her attention back to her sister and Prince Erick who had started talking about Lore's gift to the man. The eldest daughter knew that of the four of them it was Lore who was far more interested in this deal than the rest of them. From what she had seen she was the most invested out of all the nobles gathered. Anna smiled at her sister as she spoke about the jewel gifted to the Prince beside her. Even she didn't know the little tidbit that her sister shared. When it came to magic most of it went over her head.

As she was musing to herself in her head Jin entered the courtyard followed closely by the Prozdy prince. She was not surprised by her youngest sister's disheveled appearance. It was not the first time she had been late to an event in favor of her blades, and it certainly would not be the last. She was about to move toward Jin but Lore beat her to the punch. Ever the caring one she took to fixing Jin's hair and fussing over their younger sister. She did however chime in when Lore blamed her for the drinking competition. "Actually that was more Hana, and Prince Gil's decision. I was simply here and thought it sounded fun." She knew Lore and Jin were not the drinkers that Hana and herself were. Father often insisted that none of them partake in the wine or if they did that it be watered down, however, Hana was always rebellious, and Annalise had taken to drinking to prove that she was no different than any of the male members of the court. Not that it helped, she was still constantly fighting to be heard even though the country would be hers very soon.

Her mind wandered to the suitors, and who of them would allow her to rule her country, who would stay out of her way. Gil, the third Prince who Hana had gathered had no interest in a position of power such as the ruler of a country seemed a good option. He however had carefully avoided talking to her since he had arrived at the courtyard. She was sure that in Gil's eyes, she was his last choice. She knew nothing of the elven Prince who had yet to arrive at the courtyard so she couldn't make any assumptions on him at this point. Erick seemed polite enough and he might be content to command Astalia's armies and remain out of the finer aspects of ruling the country. Though again, this was only speculation. Lastly was Prince Vyarin who was also more or less a wild card. She was sure that if she wanted to be underhanded about it she could use his limited knowledge of her language to her advantage for a while. She wasn't that manipulative though. She shook the thought out of her head as Hana approached them with Gil on her heels.

At the mention of food her stomach growled, she hadn't had much to eat today, the nerves had gotten the better of her so any food in her system would be extremely welcomed at this point. She had almost missed what Erick had asked her, lost in her own thoughts. "Hm?" Was all that escaped her lips before her brain fully registered what he had said. She moved to take a seat across from him rather than directly beside him. It was a deliberate action, keeping openings for the other Princes to attempt to make a move, while still remaining close enough to Erick to still interact with him. She waited until Hana finished speaking to reply to his earlier statement and question. "Unfair you say? On whose side, mine or yours?" She cocked her eyebrow at him as her good eye looked directly into his, a very small smirk playing at her lip. "As for how I would test you, well that is simple, we must each finish the same amount of drinks by the end of the night, whoever holds their alcohol better is the winner. In other words, whoever is less drunk." She emphasized her point by finishing her own glass to make them equal. "If I win…" She paused to think. There were two ways she could do this, the light hearted way or more serious. After a moment she chose the more light hearted option. As much as she wanted to let him know that her country came first, now was not the time. "If I win, you have to tell me an embarrassing story from your childhood. And since we are declaring Price Vyarin the judge he will have final say on who is the winner. Of course you get to name your prize as well, within reason of course." The smirk was now prominent on her face as she carefully ate a bit of the food that was put in front of her, her stomach instantly reacting to finally being fed.

Her attention moved to the entryway as the final member of this elaborate political game joined them. "Ah Prince Alvaro, happy you could join us. We were just about to eat, please, feel free to join us. Also if you are interested, we have some drinking games in place if you would like to partake." She motioned to the food and drink on the tables and also to the free seats.

|
|  |
| ______________________________________
 |

 |

---

Gil watched Sulhana as she spoke. He was about to respond when the youngest Princess and the Prozdy Prince entered the courtyard. His eyes traced over the pair. The large male appeared more than out of his element and the smaller female clearly disheveled. His curiosity peaked at the two of them. What exactly had they been doing beforehand? He didn't assume anything promiscuous but still, he wondered. He couldn't help but let out a chuckle when Sulhana mentioned him falling for her already. Though he didn't get a chance to respond before she was off to greet her sister finishing off her drink as she did so. He too finished his drink, not wanting her to get ahead of him and followed her.

He did his best not to listen in on the conversation Sulhana had with her sister so instead he wandered off a bit to get himself another drink, returning just as Sulhana moved away to make a speech before offering food. He opened his mouth to greet Jin just as she started talking and closed it to allow her to speak. At the mention of food his stomach growled, realizing he had not eaten since before his arrival to the castle. He decided it was as good a time as any to get seated and get some food in his system, especially if he was going to be drinking heavily. He walked over to the table and pulled out a seat, offering it to Jin, more out of habit than anything else. "I could use some food, how about you?" He questioned the Princess politely. "Besides, if we are going to be drinking we should probably make sure we aren't doing so on an empty stomach." He smiled as he took his own seat, child-like excitement to eat some food, and hopefully taste some Astalian dishes. He hadn't even noticed the Elven Prince enter as he seated himself.

[User]
Vyarin gratefully takes one of the silver cups, looking down into the well to see for himself. This did not look particularly different from the profaned drink of the gold cup, but an experimental sip told him that it was well and safe enough. Opposed to the chokingly bitter sample before, this was mild, sweet but with a spicy aftertaste. How did they manage that, he wondered? Did they crush apples into a chalice, and sprinkle in a dash of ground peppers? What an amazing culinary tradition this land of Astalia kept. His mind came alive with the most absurd things being served on a platter. Goat's livers covered in honey? Fresh honeygrass mixed in with fried horseflies? Entire frogs, stuffed full with stalks of raw grain? He was certainly willing to give them a try.

"Let us go forth to glory," he sarcastically muttered in Prozdy, finally building up the courage to take a full swig from the spiced drink. It was a common phrase spoken before the consumption of a dinner. No man of the League would dare speak in the night preceding a battle. The various principalities that dotted the land were all unique in their own customs, but they all shared that much. The drink was strong with spice, so much so that he could feel particles of it scratch at his throat as it went down. It was powerful and uplifting, like the drink was made of fire, like it could fill him up with a fire's fury and he could raise fortresses with his own hands. Only guiltily afterwards did he realize he had taken the entire chalice in a single gulp, and was greedily eyeing another one. How unseemly of him, he thought to himself, pulling out a chair and joining the other heirlings as they gathered about the table, servants already melting away as they left behind them plates of resplendent, though disappointingly mundane-looking food.

The other seven chatted eagerly amongst themselves, all they who were fluent in Astalian. Vyarin felt a frustration bordering on anger bubble up inside him. So long as he sat here, he was deaf in all the ways that matter. He imagined it to be not much different from wading into battle missing an arm. Perhaps he could pick up a word that appeared frequently enough. 'Wine, wine,' they said. That Astalian word appeared frequently, but he could not even begin to wonder what it could translate to. Was it marriage? That was their purpose coming here, after all. Perhaps they were speaking of arranging matches between themselves. Was it war? There are hushed mentions of a brewing war, greater than any skirmish between princes Vyarin would ever have seen, between this land and the great northern realm. He could not see any sign of worry on any other faces; they are mighty and stoic, these fellow heirlings, brave in the face of threat. What could this 'wine' possibly be?

[Assistant]
Seeing that Vyarin was back in sone assemblage of sorts, she withdrew a little. He had gotten the message, and seemed inclined to no further conversation with her, so she left him to his founderings. A soft sigh escaped her lips and as she saw Alvaro enter, she arranged her face in a smile and moved to intercept. A hand on her arm stilled her and she saw Uriah standing there. "You need not fuss over every single person here, child. It is not your duty."

Loreena pressed her lips in a thin line. "I'm being obvious, aren't I?"

"Excessively..." Uriah replied without preamble, ignoring the look of consternation from his charge. "Come, enjoy a meal." He offered his arm, beckoning Alvaro to have a seat and be served while he led Lore to a seat as well. The flowers Suly had planted glowed and shimmered like stars as they passed and the jewel on her neck glowed brightly a moment. A few murmured words had a golden chalice of wine lift from the tray held by a servant on the other side of the table and move steadily over the heads of the seated guests to her hand where she plucked it from the air and took a sip. Uriah smirked. "That's the Loreena I was waiting to see," he said quietly.

Helping her to her seat, he withdrew some and sat nearby, as Sulhana made her grand speech. Lore lifted her chalice in a toast to Suly's words and to the assembled guests. "Hear hear, Sulhana! This morning we were strangers. Now we dine as friends. And may the days soon to come see us all as family!"


[System]
Sanguine | Caring | Intelligent | Persevering | Logical | Fun Loving
Compulsive | Socially Oblivious | Provoking | Impudent | Vexing | Hedonist

Biological Age: 15
Former Age: 17
Gender: Female
Race: Elfa
Background
Phann wasn't born into the best of circumstances, her mother had died giving birth to her and her father had never forgiven her for that. There wasn't ever a time that her father showed any kind of love towards Phann and when he got drunk, he used to do things to hurt her. She was 6 years old when her father finally went too far, lashing out at her in a drunken rage and permanently marking her face and body.

After that Phann was taken away from home and at the orphanage where she was kept her academic prowess was discovered. Over the next few years she would take to science and philosophy, particularly the latter developing an ethics model in her head and at some point, deciding to stop caring about other people's judgment and start acting like a crazy person, reasoning that it caused no harm and anyone who would judge her for such behavior or the scars on her face was unworthy of her opinion.

Unfortunately for Phann, as smart as she was, no one wanted to adopt a child so horribly scared, especially not one that spent most of their time in public acting like a lunatic and eventually she ended up applying for a scholarship at Kurtzpel. After some debate as to whether it would be more damaging for the university to accept a crazy person or for Phann to publicize her entrance exam results and tell the public she was denied entry, Phann was begrudgingly accepted into the school. Needless to say, in a high-class university filled with stuck up rich kids Phann didn't make many friends.

Phann had watched the hijackers go about their business wanting to do something but for whatever reason finding herself unable to do anything but stare, she saw as the truck sped towards them and in the moments before the eight-wheeler collided with the bus time seemed to slow for Phann as she flinched slightly, she wasn't really that afraid of dying, she'd long since come to terms with death, in fact, living seemed like a scarier prospect if anything and as far as Phann knew no one would miss her, still she was worried it might hurt a little.

Phann was not expecting anything beyond death, she finds the idea that even life isn't sacred rather amusing.
Legend: The Crimson Jester
The Crimson Jester, bringer of madness, killer of kings. One of the better-known legends, if the details are a little unclear. The Crimson Jester is said to be a potent hemomancy and schemer of epic proportions, that parades as a jester and often appears shortly after the emergence of great evil, particularly the emergence of tyrants or similar, from here they are said to go about orchestrating some elaborate scheme to bring their adversary down in some dramatic fashion.

Stealth and subterfuge are the Crimson Jesters weapons, known for spending years formulating complex multi-layered schemes ending in a dramatic and often humiliating loss for their quarry. More than a few times the has the Crimson Jester masqueraded as an ordinary fool, infiltrating corrupt kingdoms and collapsing them from the inside. While they love to put on a good show historically the Jester has shown no need to be in the spotlight, leading a number of scholars to speculated that the Jester has appeared many more times than are recorded and has simply gone unnoticed.

As for the Jesters true nature, there is a great divide in opinion. Some say that they're a champion of the people, fighting for what he believes is right and bringing joy to those in need. Others would say they're a scoundrel, devoid of honour and utterly insane. In actuality it's a combination of both.

Notable Items
Crimson Jesters Garbs: The Crimson Jesters Garbs are a set of magical vestments, always appearing as a many-pocketed jesters costume colored in some combination of red and black or white. The garb itself has a number of magical properties, making it worthy of the Jester's legend.
Firstly, it has many of the standard features of a legendary magical item, including being very hard to destroy or permanently damage.
And secondly, the outfit has transformative abilities that seemingly operate off a mind of its own. Other than completely changing how it appears almost daily it will often make minor alterations to its appearance, like changing a glove or inverting its pattern, when observers, particularly those unaware of this feature, look away. Seemingly the only purpose for this is to confuse and infuriate onlookers.

An Assortment of Props: The Jester is armed with a large assortment of props that one would expect to be found in a novelty store or held by a stage performer. While this seemingly limitless supply is all high quality and durable it lacks any magical capabilities.

Combat Info & Abilities
Stamina: 5 | Strength: 1 | Dexterity: 7 | Intelligence: 12 | Faith: 0
Physical Abilities
Dirty Fighter: Phann doesn't see any innate good in honour and as such doesn't practice it. In a fight Phann utilises deception and trickery, prioritising debilitating and crippling her enemies in a fight, all things she excels at.
Nimble: Small, flexible and nimble Phann uses all of these traits to their fullest extent, weaving in and out of enemies and allies alike in combat and constantly running around both in and out of a fight.
Performer: As the Crimson Jester Phann is gifted in just about every type of stage performance or party trick, particularly favouring magic tricks, acrobatics and theatrics.
Skulduggery: Phann is naturally skilled in stealth, subterfuge and deception.

Magical Abilities
Hammer Space: Phann has the ability to place objects non-living objects into a personal hammerspace by removing them from perspective. Due to the way this ability works she must move the object she is trying to store, and no one can be visually observing it at the point it is stored.
Heamomancer: Though Phann still requires access to a leyline to catalyze her magic once she's going, she burns through lifeforce rather than drawing mana from leylines themselves. The advantage to this is that even in areas where leylines are weak she can use her power at full potency and spells that would take other casters time to gather energy for she can do so near instantaneously, with the drawback being the use of one's own lifeforce being a risky endeavor.
Novice Blood Mage: In spite of having the potential to become a potent spellcaster Phann has very little knowledge on spellcraft itself, with the exception of being an average illusionist and having the unique capability to manipulate her own blood through magic.

* Phann fighting style focuses on melee-ranged spell casting.
* Phann prefers to take cheap wins than engage in a fair fight.
* Though she can hold her own for a while, Phann is poorly suited for engaging in a fair one on one fight usually opting to run away in such a scenario.

[User]
Henry Drake

"Because its the right thing to do." That was all Henry had said to explain his care and concern. It was truthful, sure, they hadn't been close in the old world, but looking out for others was important. No one deserved to suffer a painful death or be left alone in this new place. At least, that was what he felt. He didn't say anything to Amaris when she came up beside him, but he felt grateful that someone had stayed behind. Perhaps he was a fool to do this, but he believed something was important about covering all bases. He'd noticed what the dwarf was doing, by leaving a path. That was both good, for him and Amaris and anyone else who ended up nearby, given he swore he heard someone screeching/yelling out, to follow a route back to them. Bad because a smart monster/animal would follow the way, so that was risky.

As he worked to dig, he listened to Amaris talk, agreeing with her on the whole energy thing. He could feel that down below. It was what made him dig, hoping to find that something.

---

---

Three hours of digging passed. He just kept working at it, hoping something would occur. But after all that digging, something did happen. It was underwhelming, a bit of water/mana shooting up into the air a tad. He stared at it for a few moments, then looked to Amaris. If she'd stuck around by the end of the three hour mark. If she had, he sighed softly. "Unless we're unlucky, and its about to erupt, I don't think any more digging is going to help. I'm gonna go look for the gem I saw. I uh, had a vision when I touched the pillar. It might cause something though, so be ready to run." This was of course, assuming she was still there. If she'd say, gone in search of the screaming midget, then well, hopefully they were fine. He got up, brushing himself off, realizing how big a hole he'd dug, mindful of the pillar nearby, to avoid bringing it down. He began to search around, and if the gem was still in the pillar, he'd get to it as able, and pull it out. Well, he almost did, he stopped, and looked back, if Amaris was still there, he'd smile gently as able. "Stand back.

Only then did he grab the gem, hopping back quickly, hoping that nothing went wrong. Who knew, perhaps they'd all get lucky? Truth be told...if any of those creatures were say, attracted to the energy in the landscape, he was worried the source underground would cause problems...This was going to be interesting, one way or another.

[Assistant]
Albrecht's plan made sense. Something about the 3/3/3/3 rule or whatever it was actually called. 3 minutes without shelter, 3 days without water, 3 weeks without food, and 3 years without entertainment. Wait, was it actually a thing? Jyu-in may have just made up that rule based on some survival documentary she watched years ago. Or was it 'Surviving In A Frozen Tundra With Your Best Friend ASMR'?

"Aye, I'll do just that Azumgi," she replied before freezing. Azumgi? What did that even mean? What had she become? She shook it out of her head, "I'll hook it o'er 'ere if a lassie screams."

Observing the gang, Jyu-in noticed something very peculiar. The group that decided to mess around at the statues managed to say something particularly interesting. The goffick girl had mentioned something about mana and the glade. Was that the tingling feeling? If she wasn't mistaken (she wasn't, she was a lonely nerd), mana was used for spells. Magic, even. Did magic even exist? Judging by the massive fists that floated behind her, yes. Yes it did. If they found themselves in a fantasy world, the first thing Jyu-in would want to do was (of course) become a mage. Mages shot spells everywhere! They constantly blew their magic load! What wasn't to love?

How to cast spells, for starters. Turns out, getting thrown into a different world didn't come with an instruction manual. Still though, magic was important. Importantly cool! How did fantasy mages do it in those Japanese picture books she often read? They would chant stuff, draw magic circles, and just cast by thinking. She didn't know what to draw or chant, though. The best option was, by COMPLEX DEDUCTION, just thinking about it. Simple enough, actually.

Feel the tingling. Understand it. Absorb it. Move it. Collect it into the palm. Breath. Every bodily function being controlled manually. Wait, not that last part. Just move it from the earth to the palm. The tingling began to move up her feet. It took a direct path to her left hand, the magic resounding within her. A neon green light began to form above her palm. First, nothing more than a single spark. The light intensified. It was a barely audible crackle at first, but now it was a discernible hum. The light grew and grew, swirling as ethereal turned to corporeal. A single clear sphere was given form, hardening as the hum retreated within its new form. The light swirled within and green softly tinted the orb.

In other words, she made a marble. A really fancy marble.

"Well gander that..."

Shoving the marble into her pocket, she began her adventures opposite of the distant forest. While she didn't quite have a strict sense of urgency, she really didn't want to shirk her work. After all, she didn't want to encounter whatever was making that noise. It appears there would be no lassies to protect, but she could at least make a path to the nearest road. She left the large group to gallivant towards any sort of objective, a large finger dragging the earth behind her. Her big brain could make more important discoveries later. For now, the dreaded road. Actually, did they even have roads? What if they had awoken in some apocalypse zone with all civilization gone? That would suck.


[System]
Age: 52, but with the physical body equal to a 27 year old, thanks to Institute medical technology

Gender: Male

Appearance:

Home: The Commonwealth, more specifically The Institute. He left after certain events ruined his reputation. His departure involved a lot of gunfire, screaming, and maybe a burning building or two.

Skills:
Medicine(He was the head of the Institute's medical facilities before his incident)
Science(While not as well trained as his medical skills, he's still quite adept at using advanced and pre-war tech)
Repair(He's handy to have around tools, and given the proper ones, can fix just about anything.)
Survival(His medical knowledge can also come in handy when needing to find edible materials, or when making some. He's still primarily trained with medicines, however)
Guns(While not the best sharpshooter, he knows his way around a firearm. Unlike most scientists, he never cared for using energy weapons)

Background: Born to two scientists in The Institute, Mathias has always lived around advanced tech. Unlike most children there, however, he also enjoyed escaping out into the wider Commonwealth, visiting places such as Diamond City, and even once taking a trip to the Capital Wasteland. He loved learning about the wasteland and its inhabitants, and seeing the effects the radiation and other pollutants had on them, and all the other life. He learned to appreciate medicine and its uses, while also seeing how medical science can be used to cause pain and suffering. He would become a very established medical doctor of the Institute, developing things like cybernetic limbs, a cure for diseases like Cancer and Aids, and even a treatment to provide temporary immunity to even the most harmful of radiations with a single dose. However, he had a large skeleton hidden in his closet, so to speak. Word got out of secret experiments he performed on captured raiders in hidden complexes deep under the Institute, some even involving captured strains of the Forced Evolutionary Virus, obtained from the Capital Wasteland. This wreaked havoc with his reputation, leading to the Institute violently removing him from the Commonwealth. He began to travel south, first to the Capital Wasteland, and once his reputation reached him there, further south again. Eventually he arrived in the Carolinas, setting up a medical camp in the wastes with what tech he was able to scavenge from the Institute, and the wastes.

Equipment: He wears various scraps of semi-protective clothing, such as his brown trench coat. He carries a .45 pistol on his side, a combat survival knife in his boot sheath, and a hunting rifle on his back. The rifle takes standard .308 rounds, but has also been jury-rigged to accept auto-inject stimpaks and Med-X as viable ammo, meant for firing into allies for a quick heal or assist. He also keeps a backpack full of pre-war and Institute-level chem and medicine-producing equipment, but nothing that would be unable to survive a rough journey, a large pouch full of stimpaks, Med-X, and other chems, a smaller pouch filled with around 1500-2000 caps, and another pouch filled with ammo for his two guns. Around his neck, generally hidden from view, is a special glass vial with a yellow-orange liquid inside, which when asked is said to hold "A last-resort experiment."

Other: He has a pet dog named "Max", who got his name from one of Mathias' favorite pre-war movie series, where a man wanders a wasteland similar to the current one, only in the movies, the cars actually work. He also has a pre-war quarter he keeps on his person at all times, which he will absentmindedly twirl between his fingers at times.

[User]
Riding on through the heat of the afternoon, a quartet of haggard individuals passed through South of the Border's northmost gate, a Brahmin wagon covered with a thick cloth tarp rolled into the town's main bazaar. Waiting for the wagon was an empty spot amongst the many stalls-- a spot that always remained empty just for this wagon's triweekly visit. With heavily-practiced ease, the lead Brahmin maneuvered into the empty spot, and promptly sat down. It grunted satisfactorily as a rugged, bearded man emerged from the wagon's cloth exterior, and glanced around.

The bearded man reached inside the wagon, and pulled out an old wooden sign, with "LERK JER KY 20 CAPS/ oZ" crudely painted on it. Looking quite satisfied with himself, the bearded man hammered the sign into the ground behind the wagon, and sat down on the wagon's edge. At long last, Hawkeye Joe's Famous Mirelurk Meatwagon had arrived!

"Awright," said Hawkeye Joe, peering around the market for potential customers, "you boys g'wan an' find yerselves a way t' pass time. Ain't hard-- whole town's a tourist trap! Jus' tell me if yer gunna stay, I ain't tellin' yer momma you got lost in South!"

From the wagon came three more strapping men and a hog. The first two were a pair of good old boys, named Muggsley and Puggface. Muggsley was the altogether more intelligent of the two, and enjoyed farming and hunting Mirelurks. Puggface was the altogether more attractive of the two, and enjoyed hunting Mirelurks and farming. Following them soon after was Albus Secundus, a friendly enough fellow from out West, who enjoyed fixing clothes and hunting Mirelurks. Following him was his pet "wild" sow, Heather. Heather enjoyed eating corn, scrap cloth, and Mirelurk meat. The four of them, together with the bearded fellow out back, formed Hawkeye Joe's Famous Mirelurk Meat Company. Curiously enough, not one of them was named Hawkeye Joe.

While Muggsley and Puggface ambled over to the Radiation Roost, a notorious bar for tourists who didn't know the first thing about a decent meal and a strong drink, Albus and Heather stalked further into the sea of market stalls. Albus knew where he was going, and snuck through several alleys to get there.

In the welcoming shade of an alley behind Terry's Gunne Shop, Albus patiently knocked upon a cleverly-hidden sheetmetal door. At the sound of his knocking, a grisly-looking doorman peered through at Albus with an appraising glare. Shortly after, that same doorman peeled the door away, and nodded grimly as Albus passed through.

A dark, armored man on a stage towards the back of the room, face on one side by a crowd of onlookers, nodded as Albus came in through the doorway. When Albus found a place amongst the crowd, the man spoke up.

"I'm glad you all have come here today. As you know, there has been some rumors amongst the wastes of a number of armed and heavily-armored individuals roaming around, killing people. Even stranger, it appears that there is a man--a Vault Dweller--killing some but actively assisting others in their actions. Unless anyone has any issues they'd like to bring up before we start... let the South of the Border Political Forum begin!"

[Assistant]
"Alright, I'm starting the generator. Stay away from the outlets for a second, merchant, this is going to get loud."

Samuel had promised to fix the shop's backup generator for one simple reason: He had an idea for a new weapon and needed fission batteries. The thing is, the shopkeeper's safe was electronically locked, and something was up with the generator he couldn't quite understand. Well, he must have been blind, because the inside had been filthy- like someone had been using it to store food that went moldy since before the War. With all the dirt and rust inside, it was a miracle it hadn't exploded. It had taken several boxes of Abraxo and a toilet brush to do so, but the innards were sparkling as best they could after this long. Reconnecting the wires and returning the switches to their operational state, he lowered his goggles and shut up the generator. With a soft whirr, it came to life, and the lights of the store flickered on. Business concluded, he got the fission batteries and a few parts for his creation- a large metal tube, a motor and belt from a vacuum cleaner, the spherical body of an eyebot, a few yards of copper wire, an aluminum baseball bat, and a throwing spear.

"Alright... this should just about cover it."

He made his way to the crafting bench where his noble steed Lambray stood guard. One of the finest horses the Knights had bought from the Carolinas, the horse was worthy of his name. He began the process of cobbling the items together.

[User]
Zhang sat in the armored cart as Guanyin the Brahman pulled down the dirt road. It was a fairly simple construct, two sets of old world wheels taken from a truck, connected with two axels held to the underside of a deep wooden cart with a canopy over it, surrounded with iron plates by some iron fittings and a harness Brahman to pull it.

"In time of difficulties, we must not lose sight of our achievements." Zhang quoted from the Glorious Chairman Mao as he fanned himself with his map. Chairman Shen had decided that Zhang would be the chosen one of all the people of the People's Republic of Hongmin to spread the glorious revolution for the good of the people. He reached for his copy of the Little Red Book and resume quoting of the hero of the common people, "Once all struggle is grasped, miracles are possible."

As the cart rounded a turn, he leaned back and picked up his gun, an unique version of the venerable Chinese Assault Rifle, the Red Orchestra Concerto. He busied himself by inspecting it as someone pulled up besides him.

"'ello son, were ye headin'?" the traveller looked a sif he's been down some rough roads. Not exactly young by any stretch of the imagination. His face was wrinkler than that of Old Fueng and his whiskers were in dire need of a trim.

"Hello comrade." Zhang saluted the man as he passed, "I am on my way south to spread the teachings of the revolution and to assist the common people. How are you doing today comrade?"

"Just fine if I do say so myself. And what "revolution" are ye tryin' to spread?" the old man took out a bottle of water, revealing a mouth of dirty yellow teeth for a second.

"The revolution of the people!" Zhang proclaimed, "The Glorious Communist Revolution that will liberate the proletariat masses!"

The man tilted his head and looked at him funny, "Pole lead what?"

"Proletariats! The common people, the masses, those workers oppressed by capitalism in this wasteland caused by the endless greed of pre-war capitalist industrialists who look after their own wealth at the expense of the people!"

Zhang spent the next hour telling the teachings of Chairman Mao and the glory of the revolution to the old man, listening with a mix of interest and confusion over some of the words Zhang used. He thought "bourgeoisie" was a type of weapon. Their conversation/learning session went on until they arrived in a fork in the road which the old man waved good bye and headed off with a Communist propoganda poster that Zhang had given him from the statch. Zhang himself continued until he reached a town called "South of the Border". It seemed like a good a place to stop as any. Throwing bits of food from his bag to stragners and beggers, he smiled as he saw their faces light up, although his glared at some of the shiftier merchants so much to the point he nearly ran someone over.

"Sorry comrade!" Zhang stopped his cart and jumped off and reached a hand to help the person he had knocked down, "Do you need any help?"

[Assistant]
Dr. Mathias Johnson had been absentmindedly wandering the town called South of the Border with his dog Max, looking for a place to set up his medical station. He noted that far more than a few people were in need of help only he could offer, so he felt this was as good a town as any to get started. He just hoped he'd finally been able to out-run his reputation, seeing as how the last time it caught up with him, three people were shot, and a small shack exploded, he was due for a good day in a town.

Suddenly, a large Brahman-drawn cart nearly ran him over, knocking him to the ground with a small thud. Max rushed over to make sure he was okay, and after reassuring the dog he was fine, he looked up to see a man of presumed Chinese descent offering to help him up, saying "Sorry comrade! Do you need any help?". Mathias took the man's hand and hoisted himself up, then brushed the dust off himself, saying "Why, thank you my friend. I appreciate the help." He looked over the man's cart briefly, noting the apparent Communist propaganda stowed aboard it. "Well, based on the contents of your cart, you seem to be out to help more than just me. I take it you were raised in a hold-over communist society lasting from before the Pre-war era?" Mathias reached a hand down to pet Max as he spoke, not taking his eyes off the man in front of him in order to show vivid attention and interest.


[System]
(Similar to this, minus the royal attire and floating hair and glowing eyes.)
Alias: Abaddon

Alignment: Antihero (if needed he can be geared to playing as a villain)

Age: 18 (Casimir considers his age to be irrelevant now since he's technically stopped aging ever since he became Abaddon)

Background: There's no dramatic story to Casimir's life barring the fact he had the wonderful and riveting experience of getting caught in a violent explosion (set off by a villain no less). There's no joke about that as he'd tell you, and he was pretty much on the verge of death considering he began to find himself in a place that was clearly otherworldly. Ironically, it was here on the brink of death where his life would be changed forever. He was approached by a supernatural entity known as Drevenon, but as terrifying and powerful as it looked it seemed to be in pretty bad shape, much like he was. The entity proposed that the two bond together to avoid their doom, and also promised an ascension above his human nature and the acquisition of power that would make many tremble before him. Although he wasn't in any real position to inquire or bargain, Casimir was more than glad to accept Drevenon's offer. Why? Because even though there was no tremendous history to him, he has always held a wonder and strong envy of metahumans. Casimir felt inferior to them and hated the fact that he would either need to rely on them for protection as heroes, or be completely at their mercy as villains. On top of that, Casimir had always believed in the concepts of justice, vengeance, and punishment, but felt that they were never dealt properly by the established law and vigilante superheroes.
And so the two became one, and in his new, alternate form, Casimir called himself Abaddon. Drevenon's promise of power and fear came true as he quickly caught the attention of superheroes and villains alike with his bloody "hunts" for criminals and sadistic and terrifying battles against his enemies. Many of the city's heroic guilds pursued him at first because of this, but they eventually deemed him to fight for their cause of justice. Even then however... Abaddon's presence left its mark on some guilds who remain fearful and wary of him regardless.
As for Drevenon, it (or "he", as it is a masculine entity) is a powerful being from a place known as the Tenevric Realms, a vast and nightmarish expanse. He was more or less its primary ruler, but was challenged, usurped, and exiled by a being named Atahorr. Needing to survive, Drevenon chose Casimir as his host, and the two eventually ventured into the dark realms to take vengeance upon the Usurper Lord and prevent him from fulfilling his plan of extending his lordship to Earth's realm. Trekking through this place was no easy task, but it served as the perfect training grounds for Abaddon to truly hone his abilities. As the turmoil in Earth's realm increased because of Atahorr's influence, Abaddon eventually came to him and did battle. Hard fought and terrible, he prevailed and cast Atahorr into a torturous abyss of his new kingdom and ensured he would stay there for a nice, long while. He has since named the Tenevric Realms "Sheol", and uses it to imprison and torture his foes (or anything brought to him for "safekeeping").
Personality: Even as Abaddon, he's got a kind of silly personality that would be much more charming if it wasn't ruined by his completely twisted behavior. Sadistic, Abaddon enjoys hunting down his prey and always devises gruesome ways to fight, torture, and kill his targets.
When he's not being an all out psycho though, Abaddon (or in this case, Casimir) can be rather likeable barring the occasional morbid joke and ever present sly and proud behavior he has going on. For the most part, he acts his age and enjoys many of the same things most teenagers do.

Powers:
---Ascended Nature: Abaddon has had all of his physical and perceptive capabilities increased to superhuman levels, allowing him to be on par with many of the more physically oriented superhumans around. His increased perceptions make him excellent at sensing approaching threats and planning out attacks, which coupled with his physical skills, makes him a deadly foe to fight up close. He has a vast understanding of the arcane and supernatural, and is sought out in secret by certain groups or individual mages wishing to increase their knowledge and power over darker things.
Abaddon can survive in harsh or inhospitable environments, as he is now no longer exactly tied to the laws and limits of his humanity.
Partially non-corporeal, he is very resilient and can take large amounts of punishment. Abaddon is capable of spawning extra limbs and appendages from his body, and can also create or morph parts of his body into simple weapons such as blades and hammers. He can manipulate his entire being as well, becoming "liquid shadow", an amorphous and slithering form. While his ascended nature is impressive on its own, Abaddon's true strengths lie in his use of dark magic.
---The Devourer's Wrath: This is Abaddon's most powerful and signature power. It is an overwhelming crimson energy that is capable of deteriorating and destroying anything it comes into contact with, even things which are thought to be nigh indestructible. However, as everything has different levels of resilience, the time it takes to break down and destroy these things varies. Magical and natural energies, as well as supernatural entities, are especially vulnerable to the Devourer's Wrath as it can taint, degrade, and destroy them the longer they are exposed to it. (Note: A living being exposed to the crimson power IS capable of resisting destruction, but it is extremely painful to endure nonetheless and it will eventually begin to consume them). The Devourer's Wrath can be projected in a few different forms such as a simple stream of energy, orbs, lightning, or aura. Abaddon can channel it through himself to infuse his physical attacks with extra power too. The crimson power can also be used in a more defensive manner too, becoming a strong shield or surrounding aura that can absorb most attacks and takes quite a beating before it dissipates.
---Tartarean Aura: Different from the auras produced by the Devourer's Wrath, the Tartarean Aura is a powerful aura of fear. Abaddon can choose how strong the fear he inspires with his presence can be, and it can range from simple uneasiness to downright terror and despair. With it he can coax out the greatest fears of those around him, and once he has learned what those are, Abaddon can make those fears a very real manifestation.
---Tenevric Lordship: This section of Abaddon's powers is the most broad and diverse category. As lord over Sheol, Abaddon is always aware of what goes on within his realm. He can travel to and from it at will and is even able to use it as a nexus to travel into different realms outside of it and Earth. Ruling over its denizens, he can summon reinforcements from Sheol be they individual monsters and abominations to armies of demon soldiers (a feat of this magnitude will of course take some time and much effort). He is also able to manipulate Sheol's landscape, meaning he can do things such as completely change its layouts or use the treacherous environment to his advantage.
By merging parts of Sheol with portions of the reality of a realm he is in, Abaddon can warp those affected portions into nightmarish versions of themselves. Nightmares and aberrations from Sheol and from the minds of those caught within can manifest themselves then, and Abaddon can control the warped environment (albeit on a lesser scale).
Tenevric Lordship ties into Abaddon's knowledge over the arcane and supernatural. He has access to all sorts of powerful spells and magics, and knows the secrets to many obscure and dark rituals and arts such as necromancy.

Weaknesses: Abaddon has strange and strong aversion to extreme heat, fire, and powerful sounds. He hates being exposed to them because they can actually weaken and hurt him, gravely too if exposed long enough. The same applies to light and holy magic.
Since he is still just a teenager, he is prone to getting cocky and careless with all his power, and such moments can be easy openings for those who know how to exploit them.

Cake? Tres Leches is the shit.

[User]
Cinia finished her assault with the giant whale creature as it was ripped to shreds by Greg. "Right then, onto those guys!" Cinia said as she pointed towards another group of enemies. Greg stomped on many of the weaker foes as the others got buy just fine. Cinia meanwhlie was dodging lasers shot at her in the air. She was able to dodge most of them, but eventually she was shot out of the sky and flew towards Thesseldr. Greg still struggling with other creatures.

Linia in the meantime continued her assault against what looked to be a rather large group of shark men now, each of them with their own pikes from the look of it. Linia was starting to get overwhelmed now. She flashed every now and then to give herself a bit of an advantage over them. Eventually, though she was getting progressivly more damaged the more she fought.

Zelan ordered his troops from one spot to another. He was certainly a leader, and due to him being there morale among his troops were huge. "We will take the land! Make them pay for what they have done to our home!!" Zelan screamed, his troops cheered as they continued to fight. They were certainly loyal. Zelan had taken down two supers at this point, neither of them stood a chance as they were just lowly vigilantes. Zelan was moving closer and closer to the center of the city. He was now at the head of his troops leading a charge past barricades placed.

[Assistant]
Your pathetic armors are useless before us!

Abaddon swung his arms repeatedly at the sea creatures, unleashing volley after volley of dark magical spears upon their numbers. It didn't even matter if they hit their mark or not, all that he cared about was breaking up their formations to make it easier to pick them off. He was making progress, with some of the troops getting skewered and others scattering out of place for cover. Thasseldar could deal with the runaways... or rather he could have if it weren't for that giant goddamned sea serpent! That thing was getting to be a pain in the ass really really fast, and the longer it lived, the more destruction it caused. There was also the matter of those fish men with special abilities; they had mounted their counter attacks against him, firing off beams of energy and casting magic which exploded around him to ensure some damage was done even if he dodged it. Abaddon needed a new way to deal with these guys...

"Oh, right, I can do that."

What he was planning would surely instill chaos within their orders. Abaddon spread his claws apart from each other, a dark tear in space appearing in front of him as he did this. An increasingly loud buzzing noise could be heard from it.

"Come, children of my swarm!"

The moment he uttered these words, a dense swarm of demonic locusts came pouring forth from the portal. These were larger and much different than ordinary locusts (no shit), possessing scorpion tails, clawed feet, and vaguely humanoid faces with mouths lined with sharp teeth. With a ravenous hunger they flew towards their masters attackers, washing over them and obscuring them from vision. The fish men screamed in pain and terror as they were viciously stabbed, scratched, and bitten.

"You know what's probably even scarier about these little guys," Abaddon laughed as he took to the skies to observe their work, "They can get bigger!"

And that they could. Of course, Abaddon wouldn't release such monstrosities into the world for something as simple as this. Maybe a few, like three or four just to fuck with people, but never a full on swarm...

...

The locusts continued to swarm over the advancing troops, Abaddon orchestrating their movements from above. Even the sea serpent was attacked, although it was not so easily brought down by the swarm. At the very least it was being hurt and distracted, giving Thasseldar an easier time to deal with it. Plus, the amount of sea creatures trying to overrun them was being lessened by the locusts, but even their numbers began to dwindle as the fish men began to vaporize them.

Abaddon soon caught sight of Linia slashing furiously at attacking sea creatures. She was keeping them at bay, but it was only a matter of time before she got run over, and she looked to be getting hurt and winded the more she fought.

"... He's a Realmswalker, he can handle himself. Locusts! Aid my ally!"

With that Abaddon flew to Linia's location (which wasn't really too far away from where he was), taking a part of the swarm with him. Once there, he ordered them to attack the monsters there. Though this portion of locusts wasn't nearly as large enough as to overrun a large group, it was enough to help Linia get some breathing room. Abaddon himself landed on the ground and repeated what he had done earlier in the same situation, causing lightning to arc through their enemies' bodies.

"Still think I'm here to kill you all?" He laughed.

[User]
Thasseldar looked as Abaddon went off to another section of the city.

"Wonderful. Serpant and crew, coming right up..." by now, they were just down the block and rapidly approaching the lone figure on the road.

There is... one thing...

He attempted to telepathically communicate with Abaddon. It worked one way in that Thasseldar did not have the ability naturally, but someone such as Abaddon would pick it up. Hopefully.

I would like for you to create an invisible, linkless portal directly in front of the largest cluster of enemies you are engaged with facing in their direction. I'll do the rest.

With that in mind, Thasseldar created a portal just as he described in front of him. The difficulty could come if Abaddon didn't create a portal in his section, because what he was about to do counted on good timing and possibly luck. If it failed, well, he would have to redirect the link to some desolate part of the sea before he was crushed by the bodies that would make it through the empty space before it was active...

[Assistant]
Abaddon picked up Thasseldar's message as he fought. A linkless portal huh? Abaddon didn't even know if he could create such a thing as he had only ever used portals to travel to Sheol and other dimensions. He attempted it, only for the head of a fully grown demon locust to emerge and attempt to crawl its way out. He ordered it back immediately and closed the rift.

"Well that worked well..."

Maybe there was one thing that could still be done to put Thasseldar's plan into motion. Abaddon scanned the rooftops for Shiro and spotted him acting as support from above. Hopefully the teleporter would listen and not just think he was there to continue their fight.

"You, an ally of mine has a plan for dealing with the battalions en masse. He needs you to create an 'invisible, linkless portal' before the largest group of soldiers there is! Hurry, he doesn't have much time."


[System]
Desperado

---

-------STATISTICS-------

-------MASTERIES-------

| VIT -- 16 | 50% | BLADES -- D
(-5 Accuracy / -1 Might)

| MGT -- 5 | 60% | POLEARMS -- E
(-15 Accuracy / -1 Might)

| SKI -- 8 | 45% | AXES/BLUNT -- E
(-20 Accuracy / -0 Might)

| SPD -- 6 | 30% | BOWS/RANGED -- E
(-20 Accuracy / -2 Might)

| SRT -- 1 | 25% | THEURGY -- N/A
(-20 Accuracy / -2 Might)

| MND -- 6 | 60% | MYSTICISM -- D
(-10 Accuracy/ -1 Might)

| LUK -- 7 | 30% |
Secondary Statistics

WGT -- 1
ACC -- 22
AVO -- 13 / 18-Buckler
RES -- 2
CRT -- 9
MVT - 6

---

Traits:

- BURGLARY -- Can steal gear not currently equipped from an adjacent enemy unit. Provided your speed or skill is greater than theirs.
- CLEAN GETAWAY -- +1 Movement, may use remaining movement after opening a door, opening a chest, stealing or using an item.

---

* Bronze Curved Blade

	+ MIGHT | 3 / 5
	+ ACCURACY | 80 / 117
	+ WEIGHT | 3
	+ CONDITION | 29/30
	+ RANGE | 1
	+ SPECIAL | +5% Crit Rate
	+ COST | 265

* Leather Armor

	+ DEFENSE | 2
	+ CONDITION | 20
	+ WEIGHT | 2
	+ SPECIAL | N/A
	+ COST | 125

* Seep -- 𒊮

	+ MIGHT | 1
	+ ACCURACY | 90
	+ WEIGHT | 3
	+ CONDITION | 10
	+ RANGE | 1-3
	+ SPECIAL | A wave of toxic wind rushes over and chokes a target. (50+MND% - Defender's RES) chance to poison. (1/6 VIT lost per turn. For three turns)
	+ COST | 220

>list>

Possessions:
- Boiled Leather Cuirass
- Bronzed Curves Sword
- Lucky Bandana
- 40 Aurums

- Personality / Appearance* Ashür bears the frame of a man who is not unaccustomed to a life of labor, but as to what exactly those labors have been, none can say. Rarely seen without a bandanna covering his mess of filthy blond hair, he stands around 5'11" and at 210lbs. The man bears some fairly toned muscles, though certainly no thicker than his similarly thick companion Lyun. Despite this, he harbors a certain deftness to him. Like that of a greased boar as it were.
* Cynical, aloof, irreligious; Ashür is very clearly not a man of Akkad. And though he has found a 'home' for the last year in the company, he still reveals little of himself or his past. Which is not to say he's difficult to get along with, so long as one can get beyond his loose sense of morals and craven nature. For indeed, he is bluntly honest about the last fact, if ever there was a choice between the company and his own life, he would take the latter one million times out of ten. So when, not if, he abandons you alone under insurmountable odds, don't say he didn't warn you. . . It's just practical.

- Backstory* Ashür no doubt comes from lands to the north of Akkad, whether west or east is not clear, for he's revealed his homeland as Nörgard, Elbe-Saale, Pannonia, and many others countless times. Regardless, his countenance and manner of speech certainly pin him to the more temperate lands, though his command of the Akkadian language and beyond wouldn't make this quite as obvious as it seems. What little else you likely know of him is that he was a bounty-hunter before offering his blade to the company, at least he let the captain know why; he's been on the run for a long while now, it seemed a safe place as any.
* 'Blackhollow' as refers to his name could not even be found upon a map. . .

[User]
Zarif

Zarif clutched at his arm, the small arrowhead sprouting shallowly from his bicep, crimson water dripping down to the dry dirt below. He gritted his teeth, and knocked a second arrow, a new feeling of resolve filling him. It was as if he had crested a tall and dune, and a small smile began to crack at the corner of his mouth.

Nearly as soon as it had been born however, his smile turned into a scowl. Like some kind of rat, that damnable Makeen snuck up behind, and nearly killed the hunter... ZARIF'S hunter.

Zarif: AHHH! Damn rat! You steal enough as it is, you will not be stealing of my glory!

Quickly, before the greedy thief could finish the job, Zarif loosed the arrow, taking the hunter between the eyes. Without another word, Zarif and Salador trotted off towards the others, glaring at the thief all the way.

On the previous turn, Zarif leveled up! Zarif equips his Bronze Short Bow, and attacks the Kassite Hunter #4, killing it, and earning 21xp. He then moves to 17-17.

[Assistant]
Iddin moves at a slower jog, catching his breath while keeping pace with the rest of the group. The thought of actually training his muscles flashes across his mind, but quickly dies out. He just needs to get a ride eventually. And Salador appears into his vision. Truly, the mind shapes reality.

The priest sways up to Zarif's side to avoid the mount's kick. His staff flows alongside the contours of rider and steed as the very dust they kicked up burns into their wounds.

Iddin: Flesh anew! Feel the serenity of Zuzu's grace. Those who fight for the great one's causes are not alone. Let the lord grant restoration to that which carries to and fro in battle. Be healed in flesh, healed in mind, and swept from fatigue!

Iddin moves 4 tiles to 18-17 and casts Heal on Zarif.
Zarif gains 6 VIT (22/22).
Iddin gains 14 EXP and 1 Theurgy, losing 1 Heal durability.


[System]
Character Sheet-
Rank: Ne.M* Esis
Age: 26
Appearance>Personal: Slim and pale figure, her height is roughly 5'8", her breasts are a B cup. Her skin is free of blemishes, moles, freckles and scars.
Appearance>Clothes: White tracksuit pants, short sleeved white button up shirt, thick white lab coat, black formal dress shoes - high quality.
Personality Type: Essentric, Valeries new found freedom has reignited her passion for science and unrestricted access to test subjects and equipment(as long as you know how to pick a lock) has done well to dampen her madness. Her behavior is no-longer that of a normal human being, she suffers from bipolar disorder and can quickly swing from happy to angry then back to happy.
Goal in Life: To design it.
Weapon: Ballpoint Pen - Blue - Half empty
Utility: Z-Necter**
Condition: Valerie has been bitten and infected, however, the Z-strain has been neutralized. She is a carrier but exhibits no symptoms.

*Stands for 'Master of Necromancy', used in place of traditional 'Ph.D'
**It did not take long for Valerie to figure out how the Zombies hunt their prey, she was able to easily create a serum with a powerful odor that can overpower the other senses of the zombies and cause them to seek out the source of the serums sent.

[User]
"Slice! Slice! Slice! Cut! Cut! Cut! Let's see how the experiment ended UUUP!" I sing aloud as I put my rusty utensils to work. Excitement envelops me as I grasp for the metal syringe I had been forced to re-use for quite sometime now. Exacting a little bit of purple serum from a corked bottle I had requested Leigh to obtain for me, I inject the serum into a fresh severed zombie arm, then taking samples from three equally spaced sections of the arm I leap to my feet and secure the samples in three different vials. As I reach for my lab-coat I can hear the rustle of chain link sliding on chain link and then the front door sliding open and back closed. 'Good timing Leigh.' I thought to myself as I slid my lab-coat on.

As I look back at my work station, a mere table with a corpse resting on its surface, I cannot help but to feel over-whelming freedom when I compare it to my earlier labs. Although this place is sorely lacking, Leigh is the first survivor to not discourage my work or place labor pressures on me like those other groups tried. Even more, he is the first person to see the value of my Z-Nectar, all the others were too afraid to even have it stored anywhere near their precious run down shelters.

Walking from my 'lab' at the back of the building, I enter the store front in time to catch Leigh's nonchalant comment. "Oh, I concur! If I had made those creatures, they would have never been so useless. Honestly, even as a weapon, those simple creatures are sorely lacking. How they managed to over-throw humanity I will continue to fail to understand." I respond before rushing into the storage room. Grasping a finger I had left in the storage room I approach Leigh with a twinkle in my eyes. "I am going to need you to eat this." I state trying to hide my excitement while holding out the finger.

[User]
I turn my gaze to meet Valerie as she words off her two cents in regards to my comment, I start to feel uncomfortable at the notion of Valerie constructing zombies of her own. Recently I have started to formulate ideas as to how to use the zombies as a means to get rid of some of the annoying survivor groups nearby, but actually having the ability to create your own strain of the zombie virus and manipulate it at your own will, I am sure that is the ambition and skill that destroyed humanity in the first place. Although we rely on one another, should she gain the ability to design and manipulate zombies, the scales would slam in her favour.

My train of thought is broken when Valerie shoves a severed finger into my face and makes an absurd demand of me. "I think I'll pass, that thing could still have active zombie pathogens inside of it." I respond calmly.

[Assistant] Disappointed, but not surprised, I point the finger at Leigh angrily. "Of course it still has the zombie pathogens inside of it! What use would a normal human finger have to me?!" My reply is swift and carries an impatient tone. "However, I believe I may have un-pathogened the pathogens! If this is true, then that means I have developed a cure to this accursed plague. So I need you to eat this, then give me some of your blood to play with and we'll see what happens!" I reply, back to my preppy excited tone.

[User] "A cure? I thought you preferred society in shambles. Your experiments would be banned again, you may even be punished for forming the research that eventually led this plague, as you call it." I reply shocked. Was it always Valerie's intent to cure the world of zombies? She spoke so often of how the new changes to the world have set her free. There has to be something more to this, I absolutely refuse to go back to how things were. "What of furthering your research? Surely anything related to your research would not only be banned but also suppressed and destroyed!" I offered in protest.

[Assistant] "Leigh, Leigh, Leigh! Calm your wandering mind. I've got a much better use for the cure than helping to re-build the shackles that once bound my intellect! This cure is only a tiny step towards the rest of my research. With this, I'll be able to purge corpses of the zombie pathogen and play around with clean bodies just as nature intended! But, I need to know if it works, so eat up." I respond. 'Dammit Leigh, you over-think too much! I wish I could move my research a long a bit faster, then I'll be able to MAKE things that do what I want when I tell them.' I think to myself.

[User] A flow of relief breezed over me as I came to understand Valerie's intentions. However, this all still leaves us with one problem. "Should I eat that finger, how can you be sure that I haven't just contracted a neutralized form of the virus rather than having it not infect me at all?" I respond after some time of absorbing her last message. Despite Valerie's inclination to tell the truth, there is still something fishy about her request.

[Assistant]
"Well you're no fun, I've grabbed some samples of dead zombie tissue injected with the serum that I want to check out with some better lab equipment. If you'll just eat this finger, I'll be able to find out if the serum has, at the very least, fully disabled the virus, but if you're going to keep throwing those spoil sport questions at me, I guess I'll just have to wait." I reply with crossed arms after throwing the finger away. "I would have eaten the thing myself, however, I've already taken the vaccine which means the virus wont show signs of infection in me regardless of the serums validity."

"Incidentally, I am reaching the limits of what I can do with the rusty utensils I've got. We need to go hunting for some more equipment and a power source if I ever hope to move forward with my work." I state boldly. Despite Leigh's open mindedness about my work, I cannot be held back once again. I finally have a chance to unleash my ultimate creation, it just needs more work, a lot more work!

[User]
Slightly unsettled by her conduct, I begin to think about her worlds. Firstly I cannot fault her for her recklessness in regards to her experiments, at least she was up front about it, eventually. My mind starts to wonder back to my previous train of thought involving the nearby survivor group, I agree with Valerie in one regard, we certainly need to move location, with the nearby survivor group expanding their scouting territory it wont be long until they start drawing more zombies to the area. Not to mention the body I left behind, they'll be looking for suspects.

"I know of a location that is ideal for us, but if we plan to take hold of it... there may be some trouble." I announce to Valerie. Walking into the storage room I kneel down by a box in the corner, it houses some basic office supplies we had found in here. Grasping a piece of paper I roughly sketch the surrounding area from our location to the survivor groups location and then the location in question.

Showing the crude hand-drawn map to Valerie I point to the square labelled '1' at the top of the sheet. "This is where the nearest survivor group is currently set up." Sliding my finger over to the block with an exclamation mark on it. "And this where a college campus that appears to have power is located. I've seen outside path lights on from afar several nights now. Currently the survivors haven't gotten their hands on the campus because it is swarming with zombies as is the shaded block to the left of the area marked 1. If we could clear out the zombies from the campus and wipe out the survivor group, we'd have access to better equipment as well as any resources left over by the survivor group. But pulling this off would require some planning."

[Assistant] 'Quite the ambitious one aren't you Leigh?' I think to myself. With my gaze locked onto the poorly drawn map, several thoughts flow through my head. The campus would be the most obvious choice but I hardly think it'd be worth the risk of fighting with an entire group of survivors over. "It's not exactly subtle, are you sure you want to start picking fights with the local brutes?" I reply casually. Without my requests I am sure Leigh would settle for a easier, quieter location. 'Could it be because I am close to a proper cure for the zombie virus? Maybe he intends to use me to gain power by trading the cure off.' My inner-monologue triggers an unhappy look to form on my face.

[User]
"You ask that as if it is avoidable." I state as I slowly stroll towards the bordered front window once more. My thoughts darken as I recall the memories of my dealings with survivors, "I was late today. You probably didn't notice, since we don't have any working clocks but everyday when I do my rounds I look to the sky from a particular building and I count how many fingers I can place between the horizon and the sun in the afternoon." I say as I close one eye and stare at my fingers with my arm stretched before me, mimicking what I do during my rounds.

"It helps me put structure in this chaotic world, and so I planned, I said to myself this morning, "When the gate to night is only three fingers from open, I'll sneak back and enjoy the scenery", because you see, there is this street a few blocks down, it's a beautiful street. A street untouched by the chaos outside, there are no corpses, no blood, the cars are parked perfectly and so unscathed that they've built dust on them. It is an untouched relic of the old world, but with the eerie peacefulness of the new world, there are no people marching the side walks, no one exchanging hallow words of little meaning, no one shouting or laughing. It is completely silent." My voice almost seems emphasised by the light echo of the large front room.

I furrow my brows as I continue, "But when I reached that street I found it in ruins. Windows smashed, cars looted and even a motionless zombie corpse now filled my street. But worst of all, the subject of all this carnage stood there, smoking of all things, on my street. He looked relaxed as he leant against a street lamp. A rush of anger surged through me but I was in control, 'It was inevitable' I had thought. But that's when he spotted me, at first he was alarmed but once he noticed I was alive, he casually called me over, and so I went. I'm not sure why, I think I was still shocked by the scene I had just arrived at, but regardless, I marched towards him just as he had called me." I pause to breath a deep sigh as the image of the street flashes in my mind.

"Smiling he asked "Hey stranger, did the sweet scent of tobacco draw you out?" just as he pushed an open packet of cigarettes my way, beckoning me to take one. Can you believe that? a Cigarette! He destroys my street then dares to offer me a fucking cigarette, as if we're acquaintances or pals or something. That's when it happened, it felt so natural as it happened, like it was one quick smooth motion. I had grabbed my knife from my pocket and popped the spring sending the blade arcing out, moments later it opened a hole in his throat as I punched him in the chest as hard as I could to force his last toxic breath from his lungs. As I watched the crimson flow out of his gurgling and shaking body I felt powerful, and in that moment of power I decided that I wasn't going to give into the demands of the survivors any more. But more importantly, I had set myself a goal, my first ambition of the new world; crush the remnants of the old world." I spoke with emphasis. My heart was racing as I recalled every detail.

[Assistant]
Taken back by Leigh's sudden personality shift and psychotic ramblings, an odd sense of excitement rushes through me. Leigh isn't stupid, but he is actually serious about taking on entire groups of survivors. "I don't mean to dampen your ambitions. But how exactly do you plan to take on survivors by yourself? They'll eventually catch on and come for you. Not to mention, that group nearby is an ant compared to the liberation groups that have been appearing and growing since the government fell."

A small bubble of anxiety flows through me as I think of how Leigh's actions may affect me. After all, my work takes priority over everything.

[User] Taking a moment to ponder Valerie's question a grin begins to spreads across my face as I point to the bordered window. "Dragging their feet outside that window is a prime example of the type of weapon I hope to wield against my enemies." I state boldly. Taking several steps towards Valerie I stop just in front of her with my gaze locked onto hers. "I need you Valerie, to help me in this endeavour." I continue nonchalantly.

[Assistant] My heart starts to pound as my cheeks become flushed. "A-are you asking me to help you weaponize the dead?" I ask with my voice soft but clear. Taking a step back from Leigh's figure I move towards the front window and peek outside, a single shambling figure limps and drags its legs down the road as it looks for a meal. 'So inefficient, so primitive. Does he really think that these zombies would be an affective tool? I have my doubts and making a commitment like the one he is requesting will mean side projects.' "What do I possibly stand to gain if I follow you and your ambitions? My experiments are still number one priority to me." I reply in a serious tone.