[System]
Former faction: Decepticons
Role: Engineer/medic

Normal Appearance:

Do not let her streamlined looks fool you - that only means that her weapons are protected in retractable pods. Nightscream stands about 9 meters tall. Her 'helmet' has a retractable visor that covers the entirety of her face when deployed and serves as a HUD.

Alternate form:
Cybertronian jet. As the word 'stealth' is not even in her vocabulary, Nightscream was against hiding on the human world from the get-go, not wanting to 'downgrade' to any human design. Her vehicle mode has the length of about 6 meters and top speed in atmosphere of about Mach 6. As usual with Cybertronian strikecraft, she is fully spaceworthy.

Weapons and tools:
2x retractable blades (Forearms) - Only available in robot mode. A last ditch weapons for when somebody manages to get too close to her.
4x energy blaster (Wings/Wrist pods) - The basic cannons. Not really powerful unless the target is hit with several shots, but with high rate of fire and good energy efficiency.
2x null ray (Hull mounts/Shoulder pods) - High-power weapons that can disable target's electronics (or nervous system) in a single shot and permanently fry it in few, depending on the target's size. The downside is the reload which can take from 60 seconds to five minutes, depending on how much power is Nightscream directing to her other systems.
2x Fusion bomb (Bomb bay) - Only available in vehicle mode. Nightscream's cargo bay can either hold 2 guided glider bombs or minicons/capsule transformers.
Disruptor field (Minicon/Cyber key/...) - When connected to a strong power source, Nightscream gainst the ability to generate an energy barrier around herself that protects her from harm for 60 seconds of continuous fire before it overheats and needs to cool down for 2 minutes.

Personality:
Nightscream is not a very pleasant fellow, having her own ideas about how to do things. Her loyalties lie first and foremost with herself and her own well being. As far as decepticons go, she was loyal to Soundwave who has been her mentor and master since the beginning, but despised Megatron and Starscream for being incompetent. She is often indifferent to the actual battle between the 'Cons and the 'Bots, only on the 'Con team because she doesn't feel like dying for the greater good.

In combat however, she is relentless. Wherever she goes, loud booms follow, as she doesn't believe in stealth, only in raw power. She can focus to the point of the world becoming nonexistent save for her objective, making her very determined, sometimes downright stubborn. Nightscream had an idea of forming a splinter faction within the decepticons, hoping to gain independence from them and the war.

That was before Cybertron was abandoned by both of its leaders, leaving her to realize her plans without any disturbance from a high pitched voice commander demanding her to join air patrols and waste her precious time and intelligence.

History:
Nightscream is a veteran, being an engineer long before Lord Megatron rose to power and serving the decepticons as one and also as field medic and air trooper for decades. Even from the beginning she chose to side with them more from wanting to be on the winning team rather than having the same ideology, always working on her own agenda. Thus she managed to survive to present day.

Nightscream welcomed Megatron's departure as the war seemed to quiet down. With the uncertainty of survival, she is vigilant and on edge, trying to take over of as much of the decepticon intelligence network to get her eyes and ears everywhere she can so she could put her plan to motion. She started gathering followers that could help her find an alternate source of energy for their planet that would render them independent on supplies sent by those that left.

Extras and additional information:
- She is a combat engineer. As such, Nightscream most of the time stays out of a fight or participates indirectly, however she will intervene if she thinks her skills are needed or the situation is rather dire.
- Nightscream has a weird interest in Human culture and is especially fond of the movies.
- Voice actor: Alix Wilton Regan
- Theme: Jinki Extend OST, 18 - Game Kaishi
Name: Nightscream

Former faction: Decepticons

Role: Engineer / Medic / Mad Scientist

Normal Appearance:

When choosing an Earth form, Nightscream was hard pressed to keep her body's power consumption low enough. Thus she chose to make her actual body rather small for the day-to-day things and capable of powerlinking with additional parts attachable to her vehicle mode in a larger, more armored and armed Brute mode. In this form she is almost universally grey and silver with purple and yellow accents. Unlike her cybertronian form that was designed to work in labs, Nightscream's Earth form is bulkier and more armored and also capable of flight in a proto form. Her face has a deployable visor and faceplate.
(Same shape as Armada Jetfire)

Brute Mode:

Nightscream can combine with the unused parts of her alternate mode that take the shape of the boosters and external tank. Her main body collapses it's limbs to form attachment points of the larger limbs and additional armor made out of the disassembled ET. The boosters split in half, the bottom transforming into shoulder mounted cannons while the top transforms into a new set of arms ended in a heavy-duty three arm grapples for hands. In this form she is mostly purple with yellow accents and grey cannons and arms

Alternate form:

The space shuttle. Still not a proponent of stealth, Nightscream kept her usual color scheme. The main body of the shuttle is mostly grey, connected to a purple tank and grey set of boosters. The alt-mode is capable of functioning without the parts that form Nightscream's Brute Mode, sacrificing thrust power for increased agility.

Weapons and tools:

Plasma blaster (Protoform): A gun firing plasma bolts. Trades in rate of fire for heavier hit.
Shield (Protoform): A simple bit of heavy armor that serves as a shield.
2x Missiles (All modes): Wing mounted missiles. Nightscream can swap the warheads if she has alternatives available, but usually she will keep one armed with high explosive and another with an EMP warhead.
4x Energy blaster (Vehicle mode): The standard ranged weapon of choice mounted in the leading edge of the wings. Low energy consumption and damage, high rate of fire. Nightscream has the habit of cycling the barrels on her weapons, virtually quadrupling her rate of fire.
2x Rocket blaster (Brute mode): Monstrous cannons capable of bringing down buildings. They require several seconds of charge before firing and five minutes to cool down and consume unhealthy amount of energon, but one or two hits is all it takes to bring down even larger transformers or to disable a key system on a spaceship.
Null field (Minicon/Cyber Key/...): When connected to a strong power source, Nightscream gainst the ability to generate an energy barrier around herself that protects her from harm for 60 seconds of continuous fire before it overheats and needs to cool down for 2 minutes. She can expand the field's volume at the cost of its longevity.
Laserbeak: Nightscream took possession of Soundwave's deployer for the time being. He can launch out of her cargo bay in vehicle mode or chest in her protoform. She is unable to deploy laserbeak in Brute mode.

Personality:

Nightscream is not a very pleasant fellow, having her own ideas about how to do things. Her loyalties lie first and foremost with herself and her own well being, followed by other Seekers, her mentor Soundwave and then maybe some greater causes. As far as decepticons go, she was loyal to Soundwave who has been her mentor and master since the beginning, but despised Megatron and Starscream for being incompetent. She is often indifferent to the actual battle between the 'Cons and the 'Bots, only on the 'Con team because she doesn't feel like dying for the greater good.

In combat however, she is relentless. Wherever she goes, loud booms follow, as she doesn't believe in stealth, only in raw power. She can focus to the point of the world becoming nonexistent save for her objective, making her very determined, sometimes downright stubborn. Nightscream had an idea of forming a splinter faction within the decepticons, hoping to gain independence from them and the war.

That was before Cybertron was abandoned by both of its leaders, leaving her to realize her plans without any disturbance from a high pitched voice commander demanding her to join air patrols and waste her precious time and intelligence.

Her projects came to be used in a different manner than she intended, having to give up her prototype chassis to extend the life of one of her new 'comrades' and in the wake of the threat of Megatronus, she is willing to enter the battle if it means liberating her brother from his grasp and making sure his influence will never extend to Cybertron.

History:

Nightscream is a veteran, being an engineer long before Lord Megatron rose to power and serving the decepticons as one and also as field medic and air trooper for decades. Even from the beginning she chose to side with them more from wanting to be on the winning team rather than having the same ideology, always working on her own agenda. Thus she managed to survive to present day.

Nightscream welcomed Megatron's departure as the war seemed to quiet down. With the uncertainty of survival, she remained vigilant and on edge, trying to take over of as much of the decepticon intelligence network to get her eyes and ears everywhere she can so she could put her plan to motion. She started gathering followers that could help her find an alternate source of energy for their planet that would render them independent on supplies sent by those that left.

Extras and additional information:

* She is a combat engineer. As such, Nightscream stays out of a fight most of the time or participates indirectly, however she will intervene if she thinks her skills are needed or the situation is rather dire.
* Nightscream has a weird interest in Human culture and is especially fond of the movies.
* Voice actor: Lexa Doig
* Theme

Relations with other characters:

* Prsim: Nightscream is neutral to the autobot, often amused by her at times naive and always straightforward approach to things, usually involving explosives or other causes of heavy damage. Suffice to say the seeker know whom to call upon if there is a building block that offends her. She enjoys schooling the younger autobot with mean and harsh devices, but does it in fact out of the goodness of hešr spark, trying to expand her ways of thinking.
* Turbulence: She approves of him being in the autobot minority to actually use a flight capable alternate mode, as well as being amazed at his internal design. Unfortunately for her, it doesn't look like she would be able to perform experiments on him any time soon.
* Sklog: Having invested lot of her research resources into the former dinobot turned something greater than a predacon, Nightscream is interested in seeing if Sklog's mind would be able to make use of the newfound processing capability and to what potential he can bring her invention. She does harbor some personal bond to the other decepticon, what with seeing him through his reincarnation.
* Cyclonus: Primus! And I thought I was the relic of an old era here!
* Blackarachnia: Ah, my favorite toy. Too bad it got infested and had to be burned.
* Soundwave: Despite bonding to the point of referring to each other as siblings, one look will identify Nightscream as a seeker when the second will identify Soundwave as anything but, disproving the theory of them being related. Their bond goes just as deep though.
* Trine: Nightscream did not share the names of her trine, whether they are still alive or what faction they fight for.

[User]
"As soon as I do the shuffle in front of Sargent Kup." Prism replied dryly to Turbulence's question about having the problem brought up to nightscream. "After what I just did, I can't just follow it up with 'Yeah, the reason most of that happened was because, with the steady and strange return of my old memories, also comes my old, dangerous personality." They had to take care of this on their own, or at least just Prism. She couldn't let Nightscream allocate any more resources to fixing everyone because of her problems. However, going topside did sound like a good idea. Hopefully solving the case of 'what fell out of the sky today?' would be enough to distract her from her problems for now, and with that, she left for the staircase.

She wondered what it could have been that fell from the sky. Obviously, it must have been more than just debris to have survived entry into the atmosphere, but she could say no more than that in terms of what it was. Too small to be a ship of any sort, she wasn't quiet sure. As she walked up the stairs, she looked to her aerial friend. "Hey, any ideas on what could have made impact?" She asked him, hoping to have a lighter conversation on their way there.

[Assistant]
Turbulence gave a audibly disapproving groan, expressing his displeasure with Prism not wanting to make this issue known with Nightscream. It seemed she did not want to bother the 'Con any more than she already has, first with repairing Turbulence and now saving Sklog. Prism didn't bring up the scenario any further just has she hit the stairwell to the surface. Turbulence however simply stared before following behind her; it was perhaps the safest position to be in for the time being, especially Prism having admitted he worries about losing herself again.

"Could be anything really," Turbulence replied upon being queried about the sky-hailing debris from before, "There is plenty of space junk in Cybertron's orbit; spaceships, satellites, hell, even Cybertronians for that matter. I wouldn't be surprised if whatever fell from the sky was from Trypticon Station."


[System]
Character Sheet
Age: Around 247

Legion: Unknown - Suspected to be the Death Guard

Planet of Origin: Unknown - Terra or Barbarus

Physical Description:Standing at an average height of seven feet and three inches, when out of his armour, he has the look of an experienced pugilist and wrestler - not at all strange, considering he is both - his shaven cranium of dark stubble sloping down to an almost Neanderthal brow line, two eyes of stormy grey glaring out from deep-set sockets and brows of black hair as if challenging anyone and everyone.

Continuing from the top, his nose and ears are certainly that of a fighter, the former having clearly been broken a number of times, and the latter both formed into the well known 'cauliflower ears' of the martial man. His thick-set jaw is kept equally as hairless as his head, crossed with faded scars, and nearly as square as the remainder of his body, his torso very much seeming like a solid slab of rock...except made from muscle, bone and sinew; each limb is like the trunk of a tree, stretched psychically as far as the unique physiology of the Astartes will allow them to go, muscles rippling clearly beneath his rather pale skin as he moves and his hands more than able to crush the skull of both mortal man and Space Marine both.

In battle he girds himself in his not-always-reliable suit of Mk III 'Armorum Ferrum' Pattern power armour, the entire construct a walking edifice to brutal frontal assaults and wars of attrition; from the numerous pits left by solid shells and projectiles, to the deeply burnt scorch-marks of more laser based weaponry, Ferreus accepts them all on his re-painted armour of deepest black - however, if one looks close enough, they may be able to see through the murky and well worn layer. Just under the surface of those colours which obscure his true origins, if you look close enough without becoming a target of his ire, one may peak the crimson shoulder plate, gauntlet, knee and stormy coloured ceramite of the obsolete Dusk Raiders.

As a loyalist member of a so-called 'traitor' legion, and as one of the re-minted blackshields, the sturdy armour of this Astartes goes completely unadorned apart from several Imperial Aquila to show where his loyalties lie. On the other hand battle scars are the only decoration that a warrior needs, and he has plenty of them as well.

Skillset:Oddly enough, Ferreus combines the skill-sets of several differing legions - the stoic attitude and casual aloofness of the Dark Angels, the ferocity and thrill for close-quarters fighting of the Blood Angels and World Eaters, and the immunity to biological substances and extra ordinary constitution of the Death Guard. In hand-to-hand conflict or a close-range fire-fight he is truly to be feared, whether using his weapons or his fists alone, coming at his enemies directly and without hesitation or mercy.

His specialisations include trench warfare and wars of attrition, as well as warfare in harsh or toxic enviroments.

History:Istvaan III...the Choral City...

The whole sordid affair was where the life of the Astartes known simply as Ferreus had truly began, a rebirth if you will, the final awakening of a once loyal soldier and follower of his Primarch to the depth and breadth of corruption and betrayal which had slithered its way into the heart and soul of the once-beloved Warmaster and his now twisted brethren. It was here that the loyalist, primarily Terran-born elements, of each of the legions was to be purged from existence by their own former comrades - thereby destroying any inner revolts, and showing the utter loyalty and commitment to the cause of the traitors. Loyalty to the Warmaster and their Primarchs over the Emperor, and commitment to the cause of placing this maniacal pawn of Chaos at the head of the burgeoning Empire of Man.

Well, needless to say he believed he was dead; rising stiff and alone on the dead surface of a dead planet, digging his way through fallen rubble that had buried him for over three weeks before finally reaching the surface once more, wary to the point of paranoia and mistrustful of any other he came across whether purported loyalist or one of his blood-enemies of his former legion and their allies.

While not Istvaan III itself, each and every one of the loyalist combatants massacred on that damned planet as far as he knew, Ferreus had been forced to turn his gun on at least half of his own company to save his own skin. It had been on a planet called Leandros IV, he and his company - for he had achieved the rank of Lieutenant, before being placed down to Sergeant for an unspecified infraction, and was trusted to complete his tasks with efficiency - that formerly jovial and friendly brothers-in-arms had turned their weapons upon he and his own in just another attempt to thin out the ranks of those more loyal to their Emperor than to their Primarch and his cause.

After fighting his way through his 'brothers', leaving those he could not protect to the tender mercies of the enemy, he fled into the thick undergrowth and forcefully boarded the Thunderhawk which had been used to land upon the planet, urging the pilot at gunpoint to take him up and away from there even as he began to scrape the paint and insignia of his legion from his ceramite.

Upon learning the full extent of the atrocity on Istvaan III, and with every intention to do his utmost to bring the Emperor's wrath to those he now saw as nothing more than prey, Ferreus painted his armour black and marked himself with several hand-painted aquila to show where his loyalties lay to any that would see.

Between then and his meeting with the Rogue Trader Balixus Kyros, a meeting that would turn out to give him a goal for his efforts and a chance at seeing justice meted out in full, he took part in numerous guerilla actions against traitor formations - it was in once such action that he claimed his chainaxe, plucking it from the still twitching fingers of a World Eaters officer and spitting upon the corpse as he did so. Sieges, ambushes, and frontal assaults, he took part in any and every action that he could if it would damage those that he had once counted as allies and peers.

Such things take a toll even on a superhuman warrior, and the respite now given to him after being picked up and bought to relative 'safety' aboard Balixus' vessel is a blessed relief...and yet there is always the tugging at the back of his mind, the primal need to pile death upon those who wronged him, and perhaps he is once more let loose against the traitor Horus and his cronies there will be no more peace for him. Only war.

Psychological Profile:Ferreus is almost as dour as they come; although his demeanour is rather without emotion, fatalistic, and black, there are plenty who have seen this as a sign that he must therefore be mentally slower to boot! This, as those many have found, is certainly not the case and Ferreus is actually in possession of a rather keen, logical, and cunning intellect that has allowed him to foresee many things that others cannot both on and off of the field of battle. When the bullets and dirt starts flying is when he truly comes alive, amidst the cries and screams of his enemies, fighting alongside his brothers and in the name of his Emperor - who he still considers his true liege - and in the rarest of circumstances he has even been known to sneer, which is as close to a smile as he can get.

Equipment:
* Phobos-pattern Bolter with attached combat blade.
* Ikanos-pattern Bolt Pistol
* Chainaxe - taken from a World Eater
* Standard issue gladius (the blade coated in various poisons to which Ferreus is immune)

Notes: Accompanied by four Astartes armed in a similar manner, with a bolter, close-quarters weapon and sometimes a sidearm;

- Sergeant Gentian
- Apothecary Lőrinc
- Brother Kazimir
- Brother Tihomir (is the squads designated heavy weapon expert, carries a Multi-Melta)

[User]
No Quarter Given, None Received

With all sounds of screaming extinguished unto the final breath, Brenard was satisfied his sector was clear. The sounds of gunfire elsewhere in the chateau seemed to have also died down, which likely meant his brothers had too finished their work. "Sector clear." Brenard acknowledged in a grim voice by vox as he turned to regroup at the entryway with the others. He was not the least bit surprised when Kurak ordered the purging extended to the rest of the complex. It only made sense.

Cold unfeeling red light shone from his helm as Brenard stood close behind Kurak's World Eaters. The door broke open, shattering like the lives they took by bolter and blade. The vision that met them on the otherside was somewhat unexpected, but not at all unfamiliar. All of the astartes had the same reflex, to dodge the inevitably oncoming storm of fire. Yet the narrow hall was unforgiving, pitting the warriors between the wall and merciless arms. It was the armor and bodies of his traitor-son brethren that provided Brenard with the cover he needed to pull a grenade. He threw it forward as he dropped down with his pistol. The fire was so bright and the explosions intense at this close distance. Only his sensory modulators kept him from going blind or deaf, even briefly.

Brenard couldn't stop himself from uttering a reflex prayer, for which he immediately kicked himself, btu there was no time to think of it. The grenade he had chucked in the general direction shredded through a dozen lives and injured at least as many, throwing the guard into disarray behind a cloud of smoke and failing ceiling tiles. To their credit, guns still blazed into the hall. The autocannon choked to a halt as its handler fell, spattering bullets into the wall in an off direction. Brenard got up. He brothers got up. The Emperor's wrath had yet to be be brought.

[Assistant]
The lone knight heard the sharp repeat of bolter fire, he knew instantly a fight had begun outside the garage. Having locked the front doors and garage door he moved to the door at the rear of the repair bay. Kicking it sending it flying clear of the doorway. He broke into a sprint, he did not pause when he saw the strange red creatures. He saw them attacking his brothers and knew that they were a foe, so they would die. Letting off rounds from his bolt pistol as charged into the massive bringing chain sword biting into from the side as another fell under the fire from his pistol.

"We are the Emperor's angels of death! And you will die scum!" He cried, while he might have been younger warriors present, he was one of the most devout and unflinching. He had survived trials on Caliban, the trials to become a space marine, fought with one of the most tactically renown Primarchs. Has was the only son of the Lion currently taking to the field against the enemies of the Emperor. His fury had to be enough to stand for his entire legion and no traitor or their pawns would overcome his wrath. His brothers, his leaders, and his mission were failed, to him only thing left was redemption in death and joining his brothers their.


[System]
General Information
* Gender: Female
* Sexuality: Heterosexual
* Age: 21
* Home Nation: Half Hearing, Half Touch

Appearance
Penetrating green eyes, a delicate and elegant face and immaculately white skin and hair give Karina quite the unique and exotic appearance. Her body although small and apparently delicate hides a surprisingly agile, dexterous and flexible frame, fruit of her training. Usually wears an military style uniform with her hair tied and a cap. On formal occasions she unties her hair and prefers to wear dresses.

Bio
Karina was born out of the unusual union of a scholar from the Nation of Hearing and a general from the Nation of Touch. By the choice of her father, she went to live on together with her mother on her home nation as he wanted her to have a peaceful life, away from the chaos of war. On the Nation of Hearing, Karina would show her love for knowledge as her and her mother often passed their time studying together.
But unfortunately, having a life away from the was wasn't something that Karina would be able to enjoy for much longer... When she was only 10 years old, her mother fell ill with a very serious, contagious disease. Without any other option, Karina had to go to live with her father on the Nation of Touch.

There on the Nation of Touch, Karina's father became cold and even more distant, dedicating his entire time to his work trying to forget the pain from losing his loved one. Karina on the other hand was literally raised amongst soldiers and other high patent officers. Her education was already very good, in fact, it was better than most people, since she was herself the daughter of an scholar, but there were some things that her mother couldn't teach her in the pacifist Nation of Hearing. It was only natural that being so instructed and intelligent, she would learn certain military knowledge fast as she heard her father talking with other officers. But another one of those things was Fencing. After seeing two high patent officer sparring, she immediately fell in love with the Rapier. It didn't resemble violence, it was almost a dance. The way the officers moved almost effortlessly through the room, their rapiers singing as the edges kissed themselves... It was the perfect balance between violence and art. Since that moment, fencing became another one of Karina's hobbies, other than studying and debating with other officers about military strategies & etc.

As she grew older, as the General's daughter and after proving herself to be knowledgeable enough that not giving her a patent was deemed an absolute waste of talent, nobody dared to mistreat her. Known as the 'flower' of the military due to her beautiful looks and because she was always walking around the headquarters, either reading, talking with seasoned officers (often surprising her due to her intellect) or practicing her fencing, her influence grew both by her father's position and her patent.

Maybe because of her mixed blood or maybe due to her spending half of her life on the Nation of Hearing and the other half on the Nation of Touch, when Karina turned 15, a very unique magic awakened on her. Completely the opposite from the usual Tempraisionism magic that was common to the Nation of Touch, Karina was able to use the humidity and the cold on the air in various forms. Incredibly dangerous against other Tempraisionists due to her strength being their weaknesses, it was almost an irony that an officer from the Military of Touch having such magical talent... After that fact became known by the others on the Nation of Touch, she started being referred by some people as "The Ice Flower of the Nation of Touch".

Personality
Despite her nickname as 'The Ice Flower', Karina is actually not that cold when around friends. Enjoying a good conversation and often seen with a mysterious, but enchanting smile on her face, she is a real treat to look at.

Despite her quiet demeanor, she certainly has a very strong personality, maybe due to her father or to the fact that she was raised in the military, but her enchanting smile can turn into a real cold stare when angry and her cold but firm words are famous around the army for being able to frighten even a seasoned soldier.

When amongst other soldiers or in a combat situation though, Karina is almost a completely different person. Really living up to her nickname as the Ice Flower, she is practical, logical and cold both regarding strategizing or fighting herself.

Quirks:
Karina has a soft spot for sweets and hot beverages such as hot chocolate.

Skills
* Fencing: Karina developed her own style of fencing. More agile and elegant than the normal fencing, it's characterized by it's high mobility, deadly lunges, feints and extremely fast movements. While it lacks brute, raw strength, it more than makes up with agility and dexterity. Hence why the Rapier is the perfect weapon for her.
* Adept of Hearing: Just like her mother, Karina is an adept of hearing. Unlike her who used it for music and to distinguish the small difference in musical notes, Karina uses it in a much finer and complex way. By concentrating herself, she can go as far as hearing someone's heartbeats or their movements in order to be able to react much faster than she normally could.
* Natural Resistance to cold: Due to her magic and the fact that she trains so much with it, Karina developed a certain resistance to cold. Enough to allow her to use her magic for some time before she needs to stop.

Magic
Cryomancy:

Using the surrounding air temperature, or even her by lowering her bodily temperature, she can create ice in a myriad of ways. Be it creating blades made of concentrated ice to control through the air and cut her enemies, lowering the air temperature in order to counter Tempraisionists or even by lowering another person's bodily temperature in case she hits them with one of her ice blades or with her rapiers. Coupled with her fencing, it is incredibly dangerous as she can overpower opponents much stronger and tough than herself by lowering their bodies' temperature with each cut.

The drawback is that if the air temperature is high, she will have to resort to lower her own body's temperature and depending on how much time she does it, she can even pass out with hypothermia. Using clothes that preserve the bodily temperature like gloves, coats & etc. can allow her to use her magic even when the temperature of the air around her is a bit higher than the necessary for her to use her magic. In the other hand, when the climate is cold, Karina can use her magic almost freely.

Weaknesses
* Heat: Exactly the opposite from normal Tempraisionism, if the air around her is too hot (for example... if she is around a fireplace or something like that) She will need to use much more energy than normal to use her magic.
* Brute Strength: Karina is not that heavy or tall. In a contest of brute strength, she will most likely loose. This also means that if someone pins her down, she won't be able to get out by herself without resorting to magic.
* Too many blades: When creating concentrated ice blades, Karina can only create and maintain a maximum of 4 blades at the same time.

Equipment

Almost a piece of art, this rapier's blade was forged with an special method. It's dark red colored blade has an intricate pattern, formed naturally due to the way the steel was forged. It was a gift from her father when she became an officer. A little something he did trying to redeem himself for being such a distant father.

[User]
Chres

---

Quiet were the tunnels under Shimmertown. Quiet and empty.

Chres, the rest, along with unit of soldier at Karina's command, followed the two guides cautiously as they traverse the cavernous labyrinth. They had planned for this the night prior. Planned for another trip through the tunnels in the event that it became necessary to sneak in close to the Cult's base of operations, A ritzy inn near the center of town, in order to attack the Seed.

Greeting them at the entrance of the tunnels were two females wearing clothes native to these lands. However, judging from their accent and the broken way the spoke the language, it was clear that these two women were one of the Kharu-Natjer's people rather than being native to this country.

Chres eyed them curiously as the guided the group through the tunnels. The Hue of their skin did not have that Orange-tan hue to it, unlike the rest of the Kharu-Natjer's people, nor was their hair silvery either.

Ferris and Octavio had mentioned that during an earlier excursion to buy salt from a trader, one of the Kharu-Natjer's people had used some type of magic to change their appearance so that they could fit in. Chres idly wondered if that was what they were doing now. Hiding their appearance. Perhaps less so for Chres, Jen, Karina and Octavio, but more so to hide their differing appearance from the soldier who towed behind them.

"Something's different here..." Sil whispered, cowering a top his shoulder. "It feels... scarier..."

Chres drew his mouth in a line. As curious as their guides appearance was, it was not the only thing curious. Sil was right the tunnels did seem different. The only echoes throughout the caverns came from their own footsteps and voices. And the numerous crystal jade candles that use to litter much of the tunnels seemed absent. Here and there, they passed a jade candle, but for the most part there were none. It was almost as if the Kharu-Natjer cleaned house.

"Where are your friends?" Chres asked one of the women leading the way.

"They be." Was all the woman answered.

"They be where?" He asked more persistently.

"Not they be this tunnel." The other woman said.

Chres narrowed his eyes but took it that he likely wouldn't get much more from them. Instead he turned his attention to his comrades.

The army of touch had graciously tended to their wounds, providing the few touch healers that they had to spare. Still though, He had little doubt in his mind that, they like him, were tired from today's earlier battle. It was a fortunate thing that the army spared them soldiers for this last battle. The question was, would it be enough?

"Its been a long day." Chres said wearily to the others. "How are you all holding up?"

[Assistant]
Jen had managed to reunite with the group amidst the din of the invading army versus the cultists' legion. He noticed that among his fellow pactmakers that they were accompanied by soldiers. It felt odd being in the presence of military member, but it was unsurprising given who one of their members was and the nature of the situation. He figured, that it might help to have additional members with them. He was afraid his encounter with Syella would have delayed him, but it seemed he had arrived more or less on time.

Ahead of them lay the tunnels beneath Shimmertown. Once again, they'd have to go in again, and once again they'd have to rely on the Kharu-Natjer's people to guide them. He didn't care for going back in again, but it sure beat the alternative of a head on attack against a horde of cultists. Chres would speak, asking about how they're feeling. Jen would look at his direction as he was reminded of his deal with Syella. That was a thing he was going to need to work out sooner than later.

Pocketing the lone jade crystal, he'd be the first to answer Chres' question, "It's been surprisingly productive. But I worried I was going to be late. I wonder how many sightless are going to greet us? The good news is we should be plenty equipped to take them on." He'd give a coy smile as he was obviously hinting at something.

[User]
Chres

---

"Equipped?" Chres repeated. "It seems Sil unfortunately lost our crystal jade during their fake-out. If I'm not mistaken, Lynx, Octavio, you've lost yours as well, correct? It also seems that crystal jade is rare amongst our soldier friends. I personally worry we aren't equipped enough. How about you Karina? Do you still have yours?"

[Assistant]
"Even though you have all been briefed about what the cultists and most importantly, the sightless can do, we don't know the exact limit of their powers, so keep your eyes open and expect the worse." Karina said with a firm voice to the soldiers she was leading as she made her way together with the group down the tunnel they were supposed to meet the Kharu-Natjer.

Meeting with their guides, the group proceeded as they guided them through series of tunnels. While Karina did notice that the two females that were guiding them didn't seem to have the common characteristics most Kharu-Natjer had, like the silver hair and the tanned skin, she didn't think much of it. She knew just how secretive the Kharu-Natjer were and the presence of the soldiers probably made them be a bit more careful with their secrets and their own identities... That was, until she noticed that the many crystal jade candles that previously dotted the tunnels weren't there anymore, saving for a few. With the arrival of the Military of Touch, the Kharu-Natjer knew how serious the situation was about to become and disappeared like smoke, taking their things with them. It seemed that these two guides were the last help they would be able to expect from them for now.

With a discreet nod and a few hand signals, Karina informed the soldiers behind her to be alert. While she didn't really expected the Kharu-Natjer to betray them, it didn't hurt to be cautious. Besides, even if they didn't have the intention of betraying them, it was clear that they could not expect any other help from the Kharu-Natjer other than guiding them. Their very guides might as well be disposable, for all she understood about them.

"They're gone, Chres. This is probably the last bit of help we can expect from them." she said in a serious tone.

"Well, at least they're smart. If I were in their position, I would be gone as soon as possible too. It would be insane for them to hang around while the Military and the Cult are in what basically is an open war..." Akai said, shrugging as she followed Karina, flying just behind her.

Karina was about to reply to Chres when he asked her about the crystal jade candle when Akai began to search for something under the folds of her kimono.

"It should be somewhere around here... Oh, here it is!" she said, producing a crystal jade candle from under her kimono.

"Next time you guys need someone to be the bait, don't count on me. I already did enough and even brought back the candle." Akai said as she handed the candle to Karina, with a rather smug expression.

"Thanks Akai." Karina said, getting the candle and handing it over to Chres.

"It is as you said. We are not exactly well equipped regarding crystal jade candles, but we will need to do the possible with what we have." she said, sighing.


[System]
Appearance:

No especially unusual features except for his Darkness Wielder glove and his signature pen and scalpel.
Age: 20

Gender: Male

Birth place: Galio

Weight: 175 lbs/ 79kg

Height: 6.1 ft/ 1.84m

Personality: Olivier is a soft spoken and formal individual, with a penchant for being condescending. Hard to surprise, frighten, or excite, he keeps a stiff upper lip about most anything. He is a determined person who knows exactly what he wants and how to get it, and won't be swayed by petty things like empathy or remorse (although he does possess the former, it's just that he prioritizes himself to the point where the feelings and even lives of others become background noise). When someone else starts becoming a key component in one of his schemes, he will adopt the behaviour most conducive to luring that person in. As a result, Olivier has developed a high proficiency both with lying and knowing when he is being lied to over time. He can be very patient and friendly if someone is of great importance to his machinations, and might even develop feelings over time, but he will always be out for himself first and foremost. Lastly, Olivier is both amused and angered by gullible people.

Bio: When he was a young boy in the city-state of Galio, Olivier was thought to manifest an affinity for fire wielding, and was trained appropriately. He was quite mediocre at the art of bending the flames, however, much to the chagrin of both his mentor and himself. Olivier just seemed to have plateaued hard after easily mastering beginning techniques. Eventually, the school for young wielders where Olivier was then studying had to endure some budget cuts in light of the new war tolls, and the number of students had to be reduced accordingly. This was done in a series of one versus one fights where students that wielded the same element were pitted against one another.

Olivier had to fight against one of his old friends. None of them minded that a loss meant being expelled, they were both highly competitive. Even before the battle started, they mockingly decided it would be a "battle to the death" and shook hands over that. After half an hour of thrashing, where Olivier won purely on the grounds of superior stamina and tactics rather than wielding, his exhausted friend conceded. Then, "The Contractor" was born.

The moment Olivier's friend conceded, shadowy arms started coalescing around him, tearing him apart with numerous amorphous mouths with razor-sharp teeth. It was a massacre. Even as the teachers tried to intervene, the shadowy appendages consumed the student whole, as though immune to the teachers' wielding. After there was nothing left to be devoured, the shadowy arms faded away.

A disturbed Olivier was quickly moved to the Principal's office, where the latter explained to him all about the advanced Dark wielding type and the way his special power worked. He was thereafter made to promise never to consciously make use of that power again, or even speak about it. Even at that age, Olivier was considering his new-found abilities with curiosity and apprehensiveness rather than abject horror, so, when he did accept the Principal's demands, it was not sincere.

Then followed years of honing his skills, both general-Dark and related to his unique talent, leaving many dead or scarred in his wake. In the interlope world, he became known as simply "The Contractor". Amused by this moniker and his call to Fame, Olivier decided to give himself a distinguishing feature: As such, wherever he travels, he wears a black suit with a small, white notebook protruding from one of his front pockets, next to a sharp, thin scalpel.

Olivier decided to follow Rohad Academy for the specific reason that he had gotten intel from his various sources about the oncoming war, and sees participating in that event as a way to further push the limits of his power.

Wielder or Dual Wielder: Olivier knows a tiny bit of fire wielding through sheer repetition, which has gone down from lack of use over the years. Now, without straining himself, he can barely light a cigarette. So, for all intents and purposes, he's almost completely a Darkness wielder.

Element: Darkness. He uses Darkness wielding in two ways:

1. His unique power, Contract. Once he strikes a deal with a person wherein whomever loses has to give up either their life, a limb, a sense, or years of their life, the contract cannot be interfered with. The catch is that the people who enter in contracts with Olivier have to do it willingly, of their own accord. Now, if there is a breach of contract, the penalty will be exacted by horrors of Darkness, greatly empowered by the Contract to the point where they cannot be defeated, not even by Darkness wielders with more power and experience than Olivier himself. The contract can be two-sided (like a fight to the death) or one sided (like Olivier going on a quest for someone or vice-versa). For the sake of drama and to give himself authenticity, Olivier often makes small cuts with a scalpel on the fingers of himself and whomever he is making a contract with, and having the contract meticulously written down in his notebook with a pencil and then signed in blood. This is however optional (something which many people do not actually know about The Contractor, and a way in which many have lost their lives). It is said that The Contractor himself never lost any of his own contracts, but whether this is genuine truth or hyperbole, nobody knows.

It is important to note that over half of the people who make contracts with Olivier (aside from two-sided ones) DO NOT lose them. This has helped him become quite respected and trusted with the black market folks and the criminal underworld, not just feared and avoided.

2. Other more normal Darkness powers. He can envelop targets in darkness, jamming their senses, elongate his fingers into blades of darkness useful for both slashing and piercing, tap into the surrounding darkness at night to improve his senses, and create illusory eyes to spy at a distance. Whenever Olivier wins a contract that results in a death, or wins a number of contracts that total up to a death in a weird way of Dark mathematics (for example, having three people bet their eye sight away is equivalent to having one bet his life away), his normal Darkness powers improve by 0.5%. Olivier is currently 47.5% more powerful than the normal Darkness wielder of his age and experience, having killed (or equivalently maimed) 95 people with his contracts.

Weapon: His wielding and he sometimes hires henchmen, either with money or secrets.

[User]
Nova stood back away from the conflict, watching from a safe distance. With all of the Wielders at each others throats Nova knew that she probably wouldn't stand a chance is they all started fighting again, especially now that her weapon had been destroyed. Poking her head out from behind a nearby tree, she watched with wonder at Olivier's dark and mysterious power. She had never heard of another Wielder with abilities like his, so terrifying and fascinating at the same time. "I'm sure glad I'm on your good side." She mumbled to herself with a chuckle, hiding as yet another Wielder showed up, spouting flames where flames should not have been. "This is getting ridiculous."

Sensing Olivier's rage, Nova stepped out, hoping to see the situation to a conclusion. She hesitated, looking at the others before rushing off after Olivier, recognizing him as her only ally at that moment. "I'll give you some company." She smiled warmly in an attempt to make him feel better, not liking to see people she considered friends upset.

[Assistant]
Rhea looked towards the dark magic wielder. He was just as much of a cocky ass as their captive, but he was ultimately strong, and willing. With a small sigh, Rhea sheathed her whips, keeping her gauntlets on. She stood up fully, confidently, and started to walk forward. Before she did though, she noticed how the darkness wielder had lingered on the girl with blue eyes, and she felt like gagging.

Romance? Already? First he tries to kill someone, now he's all starstruck. What a creep. Albeit a successful creep. With a roll of her eyes, she caught up with the dark wielder and the blue eyed lady. She looked at them, her expression blank. "I don't know how you like to function. I do know that you like to lead though, so as long as you stick to my directions, you can command. Just until we get out of here. I can help you, and I'll make a good follower. For now. As for you, lady friend. I don't care about how we interact." She started to recall her map that she had made in the dirt, although she had veered to the left, she knew it was the same idea.

She waited patiently for a response, her hands feeling like small weights under her gauntlets. She didn't hate the accessory, and excepted it as her sign of power. She wondered what others thought about them, and the thought made her tune out. She forgot about the dark wielder and sighed, her rapid thoughts taking over. "If you need gauntlets to wield, who found this out? Did people keep dying? Or was it just fashionable and it worked. What if I took off my gauntlets?" She muttered, talking to no one but herself.

[User]
Adeen's eyes flitted back and forth between everyone who had gathered here.

Hm . . . I don't like him, I maybe don't like her, she's alright I think, she's wierd, aaaand I like his fire! thought Adeen about Olivier, Nova, Rhiannon, Rhea and Lao, respectively. Of course, most of her judgment came from how they looked like and ow they acted - she didn't bother too much to listen to what they were saying. Her impromptu judgment was of course not created on who would make the best allies but on who looked like the friendliest. Lao was of course, on the same level as Rhiannon in this case, he just got bonus points for letting Adeen witness his blue flame.

Adeen just stood there and waited, her heels bouncing about, anxious for them to stop talking already. Of course she wasn't concerned about their topic of discussion and would much rather run to where Lao was and pester him endlessly with questions, but she thought of herself as a girl that was raised properly, and girls who raised properly don't interrupt other people's conversations.

And so, she waited.

. . .

For about a grand total of one minute, then she took off. Then again, given her usual patience, this was an accomplishment

The twelve year old shot forward towards Lao, right as Olivier turned around. Her excitement agitated the fire inside her, and as she ran towards the other fire user, various things in her path were set ablaze. Rocks, plants, trees, water - if it was near her, it was probably already on fire.In fact, a good portion of the jungle around them was lit up and on fire.

Of course, as she had no intention of actually burning anything and was just excited, the fire reflected that; nothing was consumed by the flames. They stood as they were, seemingly unaffected, but still radiating heat. It was quite suffocating really.

Then Adeen reached Lao and set herself on fire with excitement - again, literally.

"That blue fire wash - I mean was - so pwetty~!" she exclaimed, pausing momentarily to correct her lisp. "You have to have to have to HAVETA SHYAOW ME HOW TA DO DAT~!"

[Assistant]
Nova looked at Rhea with confusion, sensing some of her agitation, though at what she couldn't tell. Instead of dwelling on it Nova chose to wear a smile and extend her hand in greeting. "I'm Nova, it's a pleasure to meet you." She hoped that she could become friends with the Wielder too. She didn't seem to be as unique as some of the others with her Wielding element, but the skills and quick thinking displayed by the girl were brilliant in her eyes. The eyes that had begun wandering now that things had cooled off between everyone. Nova had reached her limit at suppressing her extra 'sense', all of the feelings of the jungle now pouring in.

She could feel other students in the distance, animals and plant life alike, the life of the very forest surrounding them were all things she could "see". Usually it was toned down, but this was the result of trying to ignore it all... Even if it were only for a brief amount of time. Her distracted gaze wouldn't hinder her ability to keep up with Olivier and Rhea, however she had begun humming a song softly to herself, admiring the scenery as they walked on.


[System]
Nickname: The Gruff (Human)/ "The King Of Monsters" (Beast)

(Minus the Sword)

Age: 35

Gender: Male

Guild:  Vyper Bolt

Rank: S-Class

Personality: Matt is a proud and honorable member of his guild Vyper Bolt, despite usually being silent most of the time. He is a very kind and protective person towards his guild mates and will protect anyone that are in harm's way, even if his opponent is stronger than him. Yet if a person harms his guild or anyone he cares for deeply, he will go full berserk on his opponent and would show no mercy on him/her until they are permanently broken.

History:  Matisuki Kiryuin was born in a small and quiet village with his parents, his dad being a retired wizard for the Vyper Bolt guild. As a child, he was born with special powers that would allow him to sometimes grow reptilian, beast-like scales and parts at will. The reason that he was able to do such feats, was because his father had the same abilities, which was the Take Over magic ability. When Matt was old enough, at age 8, his father began teaching him how to control and wield this magic to his advantage.

By the time he was 18, Matt had already mastered the ability of Take Over, having the ability to transform his arms into massive reptilian ones. So he was taken into the Vyper Bolt guild and served as his father's partner. Yet several years into his acceptance, utter tragedy broke out. While serving his father on a mission to stop a rampaging demon from destroying a village, it managed to crush and ultimately kill his father. Matt saw the whole event with his own bare eyes and was most devastated by this.

Rage and adrenaline built up within Matt's body and transformed him into a giant reptilian beast, the Lizardman Beast Soul. Thanks to his new powers, he was able to avenge his father's death by going fully berserk on it, ultimately destroying it. The next day after the fight, his father's funeral then took place. For several days Matisuki became depressed over his father's death, until making a vow that he will continue his father's work and serve his guild with pride and honor. He has been doing so for over a decade, resulting in his promotion as an S-Class Wizard and is arguably one of the most powerful members in Vyper Bolt.

Magic: Take Over (Kaiju Soul/Lizardman)

Other:

The Honorable Warrior

Awakening Of The Beast

The Beast Berserks!

[User] Kyuuten stood over the felled demon his flanges settling. "Oh yeah, who's next? I'll barbecue the lot of 'em!!" He celebrated with wide grin as Kara's persona took over momentarily. Kyuuten's much more relaxed demeanor returned as Black Mamba called for him. "Yeah, let's go lend a hand." He sheathed his sword and rushed over to her with Meteor taking her hand swiftly.

[Assistant]
Matisuki Kiryuin - Cedar Town

Matisuki continues to charge through the demon's, almost totally unaware of the nightmares that affect the rest of his guild members. It seems as if nothing could stop him... until Matisuki stopped dead in his tracks. Just several feet away from him, with his vision going blurry, he sees his father standing motionlessly. He couldn't believe his own eyes. How could he be alive? He looks so real, so pure, just as he remembers him from long ago. Matisuki begins slowly walking towards his father mesmerized, blocking out any demon that tries to get ahold of him.

Suddenly, without warning, a giant demon forms out of the black fog and roars at Matisuki. It looked exactly like the one he and his father fought so many years ago... when they were partners. Yet this was the same demon... that killed Matisuki's father. A horrified reaction run downs the warrior's face as his soul runs cold with fear.

"Father!" he calls out as he begins running towards him with all of his fight, transforming his fists into Kaijrian fists. Yet alas, the demon's fist crushes down on the old nobleman as blood splatters across the floor, some landing on Matisuki's face. The warrior's face begins to tremble as he looks upon the remains of his father. Then with a violent outburst he leaps in order to punch the demon in the face, only to punch nothing but smoke and dust. This was nothing more... than a nightmare. Matisuki was already on the verge of breaking down, realizing that he was fooled by his own memories. Yet he remembers the rest of his path... he overcame that horrible memory and brought honor towards his father. He would be proud to see him as a strong S-Class warrior.

As demon's began to swarm around him, Matisuki's emotions turned from grief into what he would call 'honorable anger.' With another violent roar, he manages to smash the demons around him and tries to find the demons responsible for this deception. More demons try to push him back, but seemed to fail as he pushed them right off. He was PISSED. And he will smash the ones responsible!

[User]
Ajax Thera - Council Member

As dangerous as it was for the hooded figure to place his hand so close to Ajax's face, the large Wizard Saint didn't bat an eye. Rather, he simply kept his thousand-yard stare on the mystery man. "You've shown us more than you think," Ajax responded simply, setting down his empty mug. "You aren't the first of your kind and you won't be the last. After you run away with your tail between your legs in... fifteen minutes or so, you'll take the information you gathered on Fiore's mages and try to work a way around their strengths."

The large man stood up from his seat. "Only your new plan will be worthless." Ajax let out a sigh and began walking away. "Where's the restroom here? And make sure he doesn't escape while I'm occupied. That was directed to you, Alec." After being given the directions Ajax walked calmly out of the room. It was only when he was out of the Masters' sight did he break into a sprint. Drinking too much hot cocoa had its side effects.

Piper Hatfield - Ms. One Shot

After informing Aiden and Oriel, Piper was again abandoned as Aiden carried Oriel away and used a spell to travel faster. "Ugh, of course," she said to herself. Out of politeness, Piper gave a reassuring look to the storeowner that seemed to care about Aiden before taking off in a jog. She wasn't unfit, but running around like some kind of errand-girl seemed to exhaust her a lot more than, say, running for her life.

[Assistant]
Sable Rhodroth - Wretched One

Ethereal light vanished into the air as the teleporter finished its job, leaving Sable amongst a bunch of crazed guildmates. He sidestepped a feral slash from Cynthia out of instinct, his eyes narrowing in her on hysterical expression. Something was off, everyone that had just arrived was acting like dogs in a corner and that didn't even begin to explain the sudden color change of his scarf. He gripped the black scaled-cloth.

He had to figure out what was going on but he wanted to save Cynthia first. It would be tough, especially if it seemed like she'd be attacking him with everything she had. He'd have to do something to snap her out of it but what?

Smashing his fist together, flames barreled over his forearms before releasing outwards in the form of a shocking but harmless heatwave. "Wake up, Cyn! I need you on my team!" he yelled out.

[User]
Cedar Town

"Two woke up, and one seems immune, should I head in there, Acedia."

The raven haired teen shook his head, already working to solve the problems. In front of him were 3 dozen captives, each one scared out of their minds. Good.

"Nightmare Terminal."

Acedia made a sweeping gesture, and several lines shot out from it, stabbing through all of their heads. While there was no physical harm, they were all trapped in a hortible nightmare, their fear growing exponentially.

Acedia took a dozen of these minds and focused it into one nightmare beast, a shadowy demon-esque figure, increasing it's power by a large amount. Also, it wouldbe able to reform 3 times before one of the hostages died, which meant the creature could revive itself 36 times off of the hostages' mental energy. It would be facing Maitsuki, providing him with a tough fight.

He had another 6 and focused them on Cynthia's nightmare, intensifying the emotions she felt to a maddening degree, as well as covering her in a dark gothic armor. As long as she was suffering from the nightmare, she gain an increase in strength, magical power, the potency of her magic, and speed. Sable's cry's would fall on deaf ears. He did the same to Oram with the other 6, leaving a dozen spare minds for him to draw in.

"Avaritia, go out to the area and start sniping at them from outside the dome, but don't go in. I'm not skilled enough to keep the nightmares from you. . . and there is no way in hell I'm putting you through that again. Do you hear me!?" Acedia asked, his voice stern and unflinching.

"I got ya,. . . . Acedia, please be careful, okay. Don't over do it." Avaritia's response lacked it's usual mirth, the sadness hitting him harder when the teen failed to respond. Wordlessly, Avaritia left the room, standing a top a building with abords eye view of the area with in the dome. Pulling out a knife from out of nowhere, Avar focused his energies on his arm, which took on a soft glow as he did so.

"Celebres Duae: Sonic Rifle!"

The boy yelled out as he rapidly launched the knife, his arm not even a blur he moved so fast. The blade moved even faster, breaking the sound barrier as it passed though the dome and went straight at Matisuki. Avar sent 3 more his way, as well as one each at Gwen and Sable, all from different directions ashe moved from vantage point to vantage point in the blink of an eye. By the time he was finished, he had to catch his breath on one of the buildings, doing all that movement was exhausting, though he'd recover in a few seconds.

[Assistant]
Matisuki Kiryuin - Cedar Town

Matisuki was finally coming from out of his nightmare, when suddenly he feels a sharp pain coming from his side. He grunts as he looks to his side and finds several more knives coming at him at blinding speeds! With a quickly dodge, he lands on the ground and rolls out of the way. Once he got back up, Matisuki's right side was beginning to bleed a bit, but he ignores the pain as he growls at whoever attacked him. He then a boy who seemed to be the culprit of the attack. Not only had he thrown knives at he, but also at Gwen and Sable! With a grunt he runs towards the boy's location and with tremendous power he leaps towards the building he was. In the air, he raises his arms and fists up, preparing to smash the puny boy below him with a loud enough roar to make people just a few feet away from him to become deaf for a good minute..


[System]
Age: 21

Appearance:

Though opinions vary on how beautiful Artemis is, no one can deny she's a striking figure to see, with her brown skin, starlight hair, and aqua eyes. She's a tall, slender thing standing at 5'9", with long, willowy limbs and subtle curves beneath her clothing. Her wardrobe is eclectic, with various scarves, jewelry, and feathers. She paints different markings on her skin and arms, adding to her unique look.

Occupation: Traveling Mystic

Personality: Artemis is whoever she needs to be to get by. But whether she's quiet and mysterious, or flirtatious and inviting, the one constant is that she's always looking out for herself. Though not particularly interested in other people, she enjoys using them as her primary source of entertainment. It's difficult to know who Artemis truly is or what she cares about, as she keeps everything truly important locked away – especially from herself.

History: Before she was Artemis, she was Emira Janan Mathilde Basira Felicity Lujayn Cosima Airtifae-Alqamar, Grande Duchess of the Silver Valley. Young Emira and her little brother Idris grew up with all the advantages that came with nobility. Idris, though younger than Emira, was the heir apparent. This was just fine with her – Emira was not quite suited for nobility. She was clever, worldly, and even charming when she wanted to be, but she had no interest in politics and governing. Idris, with his patience and generosity, would do well, while she entertained herself with seeing how quickly she could insult a dignitary and how long she could keep him from storming out of the palace after that.

When she was fifteen years old, a plague swept through the valley. They called it the Climbing Vine for the slow, crawling way it choked the life from its victims. Their mother was the first to catch it. Then their father. Emira and Idris were quarantined from their parents for more than a year before their died. The night before Idris' coronation, he fainted.

Preparations were being made for Emira's coronation even before Idris passed. Half a year after he first started showing symptoms, Emira charmed her way past the guard and crept into her little brother's room, as she had so many times before. Sometimes he had good nights, in spite of the sickness. His eyes would be bright and his laugh would ring out like a bell as she gossiped with him about the stuffy dignitaries, so full of themselves it was a wonder they fit through the palace doors. But that night was not a good night.

His eyes were glassy and his smile was weak as he clutched his big sister's hand with his waning strength. He whispered how proud he was of her, and how wonderful a ruler she'd be. Emira was the cleverest, strongest, funniest person he knew, and the people would adore her. They'd love her as much as he did. Emira looked at him for a long moment. Then she placed a kiss on his damp forehead, careful not to let any tears fall on him. She ran from the palace that night.

When she was eighteen years old, Artemis locked Emira away with her guilt and tried not to look back.

When she was nineteen, she heard a rumor that the Grand Duke of the Silver Valley had finally died without an heir.

Artemis traveled from one town to another, making her living as a mystic. In reality she was little more than a charlatan. Her ethereal looks, intelligence, and the skills she learned at court – languages, dancing, and singing, among others – helped her sell the facade. Before waking up in the forest, she made her living telling fortunes, selling "enchanted" baubles and sometimes outright stealing. Artemis played whatever role was required to entice her customers, and dazzled them with petty revelations about their futures or innermost thoughts (either flat out lies, generic statements that were easy to read into, or educated guesses based on how the customers presented themselves).

She told herself it was easier to forget over time – easier to push away the guilt. She could turn into someone else and feel nothing at all. After all, it was Emira who'd turned her back and ran from her Valley. Her little brother. Not Artemis.

Maybe if she said it enough times it would make it true.

[User]
For Anise, releasing the light felt perfect. As if everything could be made right. She felt warm. Clean. Happy. She looked at herself to see the dirt and wounds on her appeared to be washed away. She found herself paying little mind to the squabble going on behind her. Then one pulled ahead of her on a larger and older gryphon.

She nodded once with a smile. "Very well, go ahead."

As Anise watched the lady walk away the blue egg whispered to her. She listened as hard as she could, but she couldn't tell what it had to say, and something seemed wrong. This instantly put her on guard, and while she waited for the lady to return she decided to keep glowing softly. She could still see the green lantern from here. She then remembered Rhea and the purple lantern from before. Perhaps it was here as well.

She closed her eyes and whispered to herself. "Peck, I promise I will do everything in my power to save you."

When she reopened them she saw an old man standing before her with a skeptical look on his face. She considered for a moment how she should introduce herself. She understood that not everyone believed that she was the new Lady of Light. She would have to earn that, and she knew for a fact that wouldn't be easy. However, she felt she would lose all credibility if she just used her real name to introduce herself.

She smiled and looked the old man in the eyes. "Greetings, I am the new Lady of Light. I know that the previous Lady was slain by the Lord of Shadow. I understand the challenge that is before me because of this." She paused to let him think about what she said. "I am here because a friend named Peck has been taken by the Lord of Shadow. I would like to gain possession of the Lantern of Scales to save him." She stared off towards the mountain feeling that time was pressing. "I am afraid I cannot stay long. I know this is no small decision to make, but time is of the essence."

Anise felt certain that the urgency of the situation got across to him. She faced the old man again. "With or without your help, I must save him. I must do it by myself, but that doesn't mean I can't get help from others before I arrive." Again, she paused. "Even if the answer is 'no', I thank you for your consideration."

[Assistant]
Naia smiled, partly to be polite, as the man was laughing, and partly because it was a joke. Gryphon's Roost, huh? That sounded like a good name. The man continued, and Naia looked at him as she listened, until he mentioned the glasses adorning her face.

"Oh, they're just my glasses. They help me see," she said. His next words after glancing at the lantern intrigued her. Sun-child? What did that mean? However, before she could ask, another girl interrupted. So he was a captain? Naia listened to their conversation, not wanting to interrupt. She didn't understand some of the information, but that didn't stop her from storing the information away for later.

Then the old man addressed her. She listened intently to his instruction, picking up the lantern when she was told, holding it close. He had been nice to her so far, and he was a captain/leader, meaning he clearly knew what he was doing. She watched as the man hurried past the other girl, whom she now gathered was Palla, lightly tugging on one of the fingerless gloves she always wore, as they made it more comfortable to hold a quill with and kept her hands warm during the cold nights when the only heat came from a single candle.

When Palla motioned for her to exit the tent, she began to stand. Upon the mention of covering the lantern, Naia quickly grabbed the sheet that had been wound around the man's legs, wrapping it around the lantern as she began to walk out of the tent.

"Oh, um, my name is Naia, and, er, I've been told I can run pretty fast. But if we're running, maybe you should save the explanations for later?"

[User]
Lucky for Erin the door to the cabin didn't squeak or creak as she made her way outside. By the red light of the Lantern she could see a clearing spread out in front of her edged by the looming trees of a dark forest. She paused a moment to listen to the sounds of the forest around the clearing, and to try and hear if the people were still talking or not. She could see a path through the forest ahead, a relatively straight shot across the clearing. She could make it in a few seconds if she ran.

Before she could though, a sound directly behind her made her freeze. Looking up, her fractured green-and-gold eyes met a pair of bright yellow ones, accompanied by sharp fangs and, as her eyes adjusted to make it out of the darkness, a huge, monstrous body. It looked like a giant wolf and, despite the stab of fear she felt, Erin had to wonder again where exactly she was. Could witches make such creatures?

She was glad her instinct had been to freeze, because now as she thought what to do next she was sure that if she had tried to run or hide back in the cottage she would either be caught in the wolf's jaws now, or trapped in the cottage where the witch would be able to find her. Slowly, Erin began to back away from the wolf, into the clearing. If she ran, it would probably chase her, but if she could get close enough to the trees before it realized...

She kept eye contact with the beast as she backed away, until she felt she was about halfway to the treeline. This had to be enough for her to have a good chance at getting into the forest and away. The wolf didn't look like it could maneuver the dense trees very well. She took a breath- her only attempt to ready herself before she ran for it.

[Assistant]
Artemis mirrored the citizens' urgency as she moved through the streets, careful to try and look like she belonged. It was dark, people were frantic, and fog was rolling in from the sea – hopefully that would all be enough to keep eyes off her. She didn't like how she stood out though. Her uncommon features usually drew at least passing attention, and Artemis knew even without those she looked odd. Her clothes were wet, torn, covered in soot, she was barefoot, she somehow had picked up a Kith of all things who looked up to her for being a murderer or something…

At least the soot dulled the white shine of her hair to an ashy grey. That was… something, at least.

Artemis needed to blend in better if she was going to spend any more time in this city. And she needed to figure out how to ditch the creepy kid before a Pirate noticed her and zapped them both with lightning.

She looked up to see lines of clothes hanging high above the streets. Well, it was a start.

Ducking into a deserted alley, Artemis started rummaging through her bag.

"I'm sorry, did I invite you on this adventure?" she said to the Kith girl as she pulled out her stolen knife and a persimmon. Shame. She liked persimmons. "Get lost kid. I don't need someone catching me with a Kith." Her hands were busy carving a crude, sharp-edged rune into the skin of the fruit. She looked up one more time to make sure the coast was clear and then peered high above at a line of clothing. Artemis set her jaw. She'd always had terrible aim.

Artemis cranked her hand back and threw the persimmon. It didn't even come close to hitting the line. For one thing, it flew at least a yard below the line. Artemis tried to not close her eyes at the embarrassing display. The persimmon landed on the cobblestone ground with a muffled splat and… and another sound. A sound like cracking stone. Artemis blinked in surprise at the half-squashed fruit. Then a small smile began to curl the corner of her mouth. Hurrying forward, she bent down and picked it up with careful fingers. One side was completely caved in, the skin torn apart on the impact. The meat of it, once hard, was more of a squishy pulp. But below it, almost hidden beneath juice and bits of fruit on the cobblestone, was a small, clean cut.

Damn, but Artemis loved runes. A new idea came to her then. Knife in hand, she drew another small, plane rune under the first one (it hadn't been on the side that'd been destroyed at least) and stood back up. Artemis cocked her hand back once more and threw.

This time even her terrible aim couldn't stop the persimmon's flight. The second rune guided it up with perfect aim to the line. The moment the fruit touched the cord it severed. The persimmon fell to the ground again, but Artemis wasn't looking at it. She was beaming, watching the line fall, bringing the clothes with it. It wasn't quite long enough to reach the ground when it was still attached at the other side. But Artemis was tall with a long reach, and her prizes were well within her range. Artemis ran and plucked clothes from the line. At least now she'd have something better to wear than her heavy, ruined skirts.

Looking around the alley once more she ducked behind some sort of large trash bin. It'd have to do for. Artemis started stripping out of her old clothes and putting her stolen goods on.


[System]
Character Sheet
[VICTUS STYLE]
Nick Name: Shelley
Age: 14
Gender: Female
Appearance/Physical: Shelley is rather petite and doesn't have much of a figure. She has black eyes like shining onyx gemstones and long black hair that she sometimes braids into a ponytail or into pigtails. She tends to play with the ends of her hair with her hands when she's nervous or absent-minded which looks an awful lot like fidgeting. Her skin is porcelain pale.
Appearance/Attire: Shelley prefers comfort and modesty, so wears loose-fitting or baggy clothes with dark, dull or subdued colors, which can make her look a bit trashy. She's been pressured into wearing contact lenses in public even though she doesn't like putting things in her eyes, so when she is at home, she prefers her big, round, thick glasses that make her look the part of her inner personality, that of a soft-core nerd. Shelley never got into make-up. Shelley tends not to attract attention and prefers it that way.
Bio: Shelley is quiet and non-confrontational. Shelley has difficulty connecting with other people but wants to help them. She has compassion but not empathy, which means that she can see that people need help, and she wants to help them, but she usually doesn't know how to help them and doesn't know how to comfort them. This makes her feel pretty powerless at times. On the one hand, she is motivated by approval and will do anything to please those around her, on the other hand, she has an instinctual fear of this desire to please being exploited, so she avoids social interactions so that she only gives her all to the people that are truly close to her. She cannot stand arguments and disagreements and deeply resents those who disturb the fragile peace of her life, which she will do all in her power to preserve. Shelley tends to take everything personally and does not respond well to criticism, often internalizing her emotions and pretending she's 'just fine'. Shelley is an 'external locus of control' person. Though Shelley has never been diagnosed (her mother believes psychiatric care is costly and pointless and that her daughter is 'just fine'), it is possible that she falls somewhere on the Autism Spectrum.
History: Shelley comes from an upper-middle class family. When she was young, her father had an affair, resulting in her parents' divorce. Her mother who was a pharmacist, raised her alone and couldn't spend much time with her. Shelley's grandmother (from her mother's side) also lived with them. Shelley's mother and grandmother often argued. Shelley developed an isolated independence and learned how to take care of herself in a very basic way (simple cooking, laundry, etc.) and contributed to house chores as much as she could. Shelley's mother was something of a typical Asian 'tiger mom' so Shelley was pushed to excel at academics. She did remarkably well in elementary and middle school, but has started struggling in high school. Shelley never picked up a musical instrument despite the stereotype. She has instead immersed herself in popular media as her hobby, enjoying comics, manga, cartoons, anime, etc. Being socially awkward, Shelley finds history and English classes as fairly pointless, and only sees utility in science and math classes, in which she does better than her other classes.
Weaknesses: Shelley is easily manipulated, and even though she may look stoic, is actually quite emotional.
Strengths: Shelley is dedicated and loyal, sometimes to her own detriment.

[User]
Shelley stood in front of her locker at the end of the school day, taking any materials she would need for weekend assignments and leaving behind anything she wouldn't need. It had been a bad week. She had found a strange parchment and the people in her class created a rumor of how the mysterious note came for a psychopathic stalker. Before people usually ignored her, but now she had a lot of unwanted attention, and could only hope for everything to blow over. Still, as silly as the rumor sounded, the possibility of being stalked put her on edge and made her feel unwell and slightly paranoid. Out of a strange fear, Shelley hadn't yet thrown the parchment away, which spawned another ludicrous rumor that she actually wanted to meet her stalker. She closed her locker and hoped that everything would be back to normal after the weekend and the class' short attention span would find something else to latch on to.

As she made to head out of school, an older student stood in front of her. "Are you Shelley Cao?" Jonathan Hyre asked, mispronouncing 'Cao' as 'cow' instead of correctly as 'tsao', which is what everyone did anyways.

Shelley nodded weakly and replied, "Y-yes..."

"I heard you got a strange parchment," Jonathan said.

"I-I did. It's not from you...is it?" Shelley asked, shifting backwards apprehensively.

"No, no. I got one too, so have others," Jonathan replied, trying to calm Shelley, knowing that the rumors surrounding her parchment involved a stalker. "I take it you don't know anything about the parchment then?"

"I don't," Shelley replied.

Jonathan decided to be blunt, "Everyone I've talked to doesn't know anything about these parchments, so I wanted to gather everyone together tomorrow at 2PM, right here at this school." Sensing a bit of emotional vulnerability, Jonathan dialed up the pressure a little, "Everyone's going to be there, so if you don't come we'll all have wasted our time. You'll come, right?"

"I-I..." Shelley hesitated. She had planned on finishing her homework quickly and vegetating the rest of the weekend. But she was also a little curious. Maybe the whole thing was just an elaborate prank, but maybe at least after Saturday, the rumors would finally stop. "Y-yeah, I'll be there..."

"Great! I'll see you at 2!" Jonathan said as he went on his way.

"He didn't even introduce himself," Shelley thought, feeling suddenly a little used.

[Assistant]
The sun was kissing the horizon by the time Hoen made it to the rather large estate he begrudgingly called home. Marching up their long drive way Hoen paid the lavish garden beds full of flowers no mind, the sight would no doubt draw awe from others, however, living in the estate he found their appearance more superficial than anything, just another decoration aimed at showing others that Hoenhime's family had what others did not, or so he thought anyway. Hoenhime stopped briefly and looked over the place he called home, it was a large three story building adorned in a pale yellow white, complemented by marble pillars that held up a small covering protruding from above the front door. From the front you could count six rooms by their large windows dotting the structure in two vertical rows perfectly symmetrical from one another. The house contained a basement, attic, large kitchen and dinning room, three bathrooms, a huge living room as well as two studies, a dedicated entertainment room an ensuite and several other rooms, however, had you asked anyone who lived in this building for these details, save for the housekeeper, you'd likely get a very different response.

Hoenhime's parents worked a lot, their illustrious careers keeping them from home for prolonged periods of time, this made the estate an unpleasant place as it often felt quite empty without a proper commanding presence. For this reason Hoenhime and his brothers tended to keep to their own areas of the house. Though without fail most evenings his brothers would have guests over causing a mess in the living room and entertainment room on the first floor. It was for this reason Hoen felt blessed to be have the only occupied bedroom on the third floor, this was also where his father's study rested, housing several old and worn books covering the greater part of two walls.

As Hoenhime entered the estate a slim women in her twenties, dressed in a black frilly blouse with black dress pants rushed from down a hall to welcome Hoen. "Good evening Hoenhime." Marie said politely. Her long blonde hair sat tied back into a bun while thin square rimmed glasses sat elegantly on her face. The housekeeper always seemed to have a professional look about her, despite her rough and sometimes brutal nature.

"Hello Marie, it's quieter than usual, please tell me my brothers are in the hospital or some similar fortunate situation has come to be." Hoen stated sarcastically. His disdain for his brothers and theirs for him was no secret.

"I'm afraid not, Marcus is in his room listening to music while Wayne has yet to return home." Marie replied quickly. A concerned look grew on her face, she too wasn't a big fan of Hoen's older brothers, their spoilt nature and position of power often came to ill effects for Marie, though she knew how to enforce a degree of respect from them when ever they stepped too far out of line. That said, she was clearly chosen for this position due to her ability to handle Hoen's brothers rather than any particular skill in regards to housekeeping, this often meant that she'd come to Hoenhime for help regarding certain matters. Although an annoyance, Hoenhime didn't mind too much being relied on, it gave him a sense of responsibility and he appreciated the idea that there was someone who needed him in the world, even if it was for such minor affairs.

"Looks like it'll be a good day after all. I'll be heading to my room now." Hoenhime stated as he began walking towards the stairs.

"What should I do if Wayne doesn't return before sun down?" Marie asked with a concerned tone.

"Don't mind him, hopefully he wont return at all." Hoen replied.

"I'm serious, should I call him?" Marie snapped. After all this was not a joke to her, it was apart of her job.

Feeling somewhat annoyed at her incompetence, or maybe at the fact that even when he wasn't here Wayne was still in some way demanding his attention, Hoenhime responded sternly. "I doubt he'd answer, if he doesn't then..." Hoenhime looked at his watched. "Call mother in an hour and she'll take care of it."

"Are you sure it is okay to pester Mrs. Exentia with something like this?" Marie responded. Her inexperience was abhorrently clear, but it couldn't be helped, she was hired only a few months ago after all and she wasn't yet used to how things operated in this household. She'd no doubt get a response from Hoenhime's mother that Wayne told her he was spending the night at a friends house and that would be that.

"Well what would you prefer? To leave Wayne to his antics or pester Mother to find out what he is doing?" Hoenhime responded sharply. He turned back towards his path leaving Marie to weigh her choices. As he shifted towards the stairs on the 2nd floor leading to the 3rd Honehime could hear loud rap music resonating from Marcus's room down the hall, he felt relieved that his brother had decided to keep to his room this evening. Between the two Marcus was definitely the more obnoxious while Wayne was more conniving.

Hoenhime shifted his way to his bedroom, it's door nestled to the far east of the house. This is where his today would end and the his tomorrow would begin, he'd dwell on the happenings of his day as he did his homework, then he'd go to sleep expecting a similar experience tomorrow, after all Jonathan's sly little antic seemed to impose a degree of responsibility onto Hoenhime, whether it is warranted or not.