In an alternate Nasuverse, those who awaken their Magic Circuits and wield the power of magecraft gain the ability to summon a Daemon, manifesting their soul outside their body as an animal based on their elemental affinity and personality. It is similar to the idea of creating a familiar, only this is a process that is automatically invoked when one's circuits are first opened, giving the fledgling mage something of an assistant and a guide towards understanding their affinity. One's Thaumaturgical Crest may affect this in some ways, conferring special abilities or "spells" to the familiar (much in the same way that some pokemon have egg moves), but otherwise, one's Daemon is one's own, "levelling up" as the magus trains and betters him or herself, as it is a manifestation of the soul.

Now, as a creature of spirit, your Daemon can only be harmed by magecraft or other supernatural means - with the death of a daemon having dire consequences for the mage in question. The least consequence tends to be the loss of the ability to use magecraft for a period of time, and that is rare. More commonly, you will fall into a coma from spiritual shock, and may even die. But such is a small price to pay for a mage, as those who seek to impose their will upon the world walk with death anyway.

This incomplete materialization of the soul was what prompted the Einzbern to seek out the Third Magic as a more perfect form of this natural process. Over the course of thousands of years, they tried to improve upon this in any way possible - and at last succeeded. Wishing to preserve this secret, they created a line of homunculi to guard and pass down the powers as the family saw fit, but they did not take into account that even if the soul would not degenerate, the physical vessel could. One millennium ago, due to mysterious circumstances lost to the mists of time, the secret was lost, and so the Einzbern have spent centuries trying to recover what they once wielded.

To do this, they eventually came up with the concept of the Holy Grail War, using portions of Heaven's Feel in an attempt to recreate it in its entirety. Based on the Daemon materialization process (and the ability of Dream Mist to turn wishes to reality), it takes a raw soul and copies information of Heroic Spirits in order to generate a Servant. Their hope is to reach Akasha and there, gain the knowledge that was once lost to them, that they might once again rise to greatness.

But five Holy Grail Wars have come and gone, and the Association has not been happy with the costs. To their knowledge, the Gate to Akasha has never been opened, nor the Grail fully summoned, so they are considering dismantling the Greater Grail.

The Einzbern (and a few other Families) opposed this, and so one more chance was given. There would be one more war, but this time, the Association and the Church would take a larger role in testing and preparing prospective representatives, to prevent the...issues that arose in the previous Wars, with Lord El Melloi II being put in charge this process.

For the purposes of this test, they are putting on a great tournament of souls, reasoning that one must first master one's own soul before one can reasonably be granted the right of command over another. Representatives of the Three Great Branches, the Church, and a number of other organizations have stepped forward to test the mettle of would-be competitors, with each participant required to win a number of"blessings" before going to Fuyuki, lest he or she not be recognized as a Master by the Holy Grail.

The Clock Tower, Atlas Academy, the Vatican, the Wandering Tomb - these places and more competitors must find, there to challenge those who hold the blessing of each, and perhaps win a token of victory to be recognized as worthy. Who knows? One may even encounter a wandering magician who takes an interest in one's existence...

Premise:

You are a magus of the moonlit world (whether of the Association, the East, Freelancer or otherwise) who has heard the call for Masters in the Sixth Holy Grail War, and for one reason or another have become interested in this. The events of the Fourth and Fifth War are now well known (at least as far as accurately as they can be portrayed in rumors), and the idea of a wishgranting machine without corruption is not...an unappealing one. Plus, it is said that even if one doesn't qualify for the Grail War, the experience of getting a "blessing" or two (or claiming an artifact or two) might help with making connections, improving one's career or learning new abilities - all valuable to a mage.


Skill Share

As you and your daemon are part of a single soul, at start, you will have a single Skill Point pool of 250 Points to select your initial skills. The stronger (more evolved) your daemon is due to things other than level up, the weaker you are likely to be. The more you spend on moves for your daemon, the less remains for your spells.

On Alignment: You may freely choose one elemental alignment from the standard Fire/Water/Wind/Earth set. If you desire an additional alignment, each addition will cost 15 Skill Points each. Substitutions of normal elements for unconventional elements will cost 10 points.

On Spells: By default, on top of basic reinforcement of inorganic objects, you have access to 3 D-rank spells and 1 C-rank spell. 3 of these (including the C-rank) must be of your alignment. To boost a D-rank spell to a C-rank spell requires 15 skill points. A new spell slot can be bought for 20 Skill Points, though this begins as a E-rank slot, and can be upgraded to rank D for 10 skill points. If you want self/organic/spirit reinforcement, this must be bought as a rank D spell!

On Mage's Other Abilities: You may have up to 3 non-magecraft related skills for free at base. Consult GM for additional abilities, or to make sure they aren't *too* gamebreaking, or a cost may be levied.

On Pokemon Starting Level: By default, this is 20, though you may pay 5 SP to boost it to 23, and 10 SP to boost to 26, or 15 SP to boost to 29.

On Moves: Moves gained through the normal level-up process do not cost skill points. Other, however, Egg Moves, Transfer Moves, Move Relearner or TM skills may be chosen through a cost of (30 - Move PP) Skill points (if the resulting value is larger than 0) or 5 Skill points if the resulting value is less than zero. You are limited to a single Egg Move for your Daemon.

On Pokemon Abilities: You may choose any of the normal abilities available to the pokemon for free. Hidden Abilities cost 10 Skill Points.

On non-level based evolution: Realizing that trading basically impossible in this system, with trade evolution also impossible, one may buy a stone, friendship, or trade-based evolution for 30 Skill Points.

On Hold Items: Consumable hold items are 5 skill points each. Others (like Eviolite) may be acquired during the course of the game itself.

On Pokemon Typing and your Alignment: Elemental types gain access to the appropriate pokemon types for free- Fire gets Fire, for instance; Wind gets Electric/Flying; Water gets Water/Ice; Earth gets Ground/Rock/Steel, with Normal and Fighting types available to all. Poison, Grass, and Bug are available for 10 Skill points. Psychic, Dark, and Ghost types are available for 15. Dragon and Fairy types will cost 20 Skill Points to unlock. In the case of dual typing, refer to primary type to see if you get it for free. If not, you must pay the unlock cost of the more expensive of the two types. If your elemental alignment is something other than some combination of the normal elemental types, consult the GM.

On IVs/EVs: By default, your pokemon starts out with IVs of 0. You may invest 10 Skill points to raise them to 15, 20 to raise them to 25 or 30 to raise them to 31 (or for a custom spread if you want a good Hidden Power). In terms of Effort Values (EVs), you will have the full value of 510 available to distribute at the start.

On Mega-Evolutions: You will receive a Keystone on joining the quest, but megastones are rarer to find. In addition, you may only use the Mega-Evolution ability once a day between level 20-30, twice a day at 30-40, and so forth.

With all that in mind, will you join the quest to become the very best, like no one ever was? :p


Template for prospective Masters* (to be PMed to me):

Name: (No Canon Characters)
Gender:
Age:
Location:
Elemental Affinity:
Spells:
Other abilities (no MEoDP):
Reason for participating:
Background:

Daemon Template:
Pokemon of Choice: (select from Pokedex, with no legendary pokemon permitted)
Level:
Hold Item:
Ability:
Move 1*:
Move 2:
Move 3:
Move 4:

Interested Masters:
mangafreak7793
Soldat der Trauer
Elyrin
Lycodrake
Mooncake
Katie
EnigmaticFellow

This is the coolest thing I've seen from this summer season. It has super powers and espers and shit. Also the song that played during the credits is balling.

Sharpen thy shovels young knights, for adventure awaits you. Now forward onto destiny before death comes to claim you.

Lea
Southern Mountain Ranges-Fort Cassio

Aldo Frei
Morale: 72
Supplies: 86%



“Looks like we have arrived, General Frei.”

The calm voice of your vice commander, Leissa Noissgard, brings you back from your mullings of the past. You and your small band of troops were sent down here, to the south mountains near the borders, to identify the recent surge of monsters in the area. The current lord of the area was an old, ailing count who was not capable of taking command of his own troops. Thus a request had come to the capital, for a capable general and a few troops, to come down and help sort out the matter.

Considering you were newly inaugurated and needed experience to prove your general-ship, the Emperor and the First General, Garmus Hassio, decided to send you along with your current vice commander, a graduate of the Officer Army with high rankings in Marksmanship and Commandeering.

Your first impression of her was a straight-laced soldier who followed orders to the word and worked her best. That image wasn’t too off, although she did tend to lecture you a lot considering her more ‘plentiful’ experience in warfare, especially against the monsters that plagued the lands as of late.

“As scheduled, we will first meet Count Nossi, and receive the commandership of his troops garrisoned at this Fort. If you would please.”

As the two of you clopped on your horses, followed by the few troops that you brought along with you, you noticed that the general air of the fort was rather...disheartening. Was there a food shortage or such? If that was the case, it may as well describe why the usually happy citizens of the empire had little life in their faces….

-----------

The conversation didn’t go too badly. The count was happy to comply with your needs - considering yours was a small force, it lacked the usual infantry that most armies had. The garrison had many footsoldiers, so that wasn’t an issue - although it would have been better if you could have had more troops with projectile weapons.

Troops:
Aldo Frei
Leissa Noissgard
1x Lea Cavalry
2x Lea Infantry (from the Count)
1x Lea Pikemen (from the Count)
1x Lea Archers

Replenished 10% supplies -> 96%
Recovered 5 Morale -> 77

With your newfound forces, your company moves out of the fort, heading northwest where the monsters were said to be sighted.

(Battle Map)

“The monsters aren’t in sight right now, so we should probably move as a group towards the northwest, while being wary about the forest parts, General. We don’t know if there are ambushes set up - highly unlikely, but it is possible to hide within those trees…we should advance with caution, sir.”

So... del Toro's newest show is about a vampire outbreak occurring after a head vampire feeds upon the entire crew of an airplane coming from Berlin.

In the show, vampirism is treated like the result of a worm-like parasite being introduced to a host and uses said host to spread. In short, vampirism is turned practically into the next bird flu.

While a good number of the passengers of the plane have turned into practically mindless zombies/ghouls while four 'survivors' (using this term lightly since it's very obvious they are infected) seemed to have retained their sense of self. Just what does this mean?

So... thoughts on the show? Please put book facts in spoiler tags for those of us who just started watching this thing.

Report any technical issues with the vanilla Realta Nua translation patch here (for issues involving Jacktheinfinite101's patch, go here instead).

(No off-topic chatting in this thread, please)

What happens when the fate worlds cross over?
"Hello. My name is Arturia Fate Pendragon. Nice to meet you." The short blonde greeted with a faint yet dazzling smile as she remembered what her father said this morning.

FLASH BACK START….

"Turia remember to smile! To become a great leader, you need to have a magnificent smile!" Arturia's father, Alexander Pendragon taught, as his radiant daughter silently ate her Western breakfast. She stopped for a moment, her empowering emerald eyes focused on her hyper-active dad.
"Yes father." Arturia proclaimed, practicing her newly developed smile. Alexander swiftly raised his thumb mere centimetres from her face and commented,
"Good girl Turia!"
FLASH BACK END.
The 'oohs' and surprising comments snapped a daydreaming Arturia back to the noisy Japanese classroom. Shirou, a red-headed boy at the back of the classroom stared straight at Arturia, his amber eyes carefully taking in her perfect features. Their eyes made contact and Shirou quickly looked away so as to not draw any attention to himself. Rin Tohsaka watched this little display, a cunning smile playing on her shining pink lips.




Rin Tohsaka was quietly strolling through the crowded corridors of the school as she reminisced and discussed, in her head, what had happened that morning.' This is very strange. Why would a Pendragon be in Fuyuki? Maybe…' She was distracted from her line of thought when he eye caught a familiar figure
"Oh. Hello Tohsaka-san" the figure began, her face showing little emotion.
"Hello Pendragon-san" Rin replied, pulling her hair behind her ear.
"Arturia is fine… being called by my last name feels different." Arturia stated, her long fringe hiding her expressionless face. Rin pondered a bit on what to say before clasping her hands with a small smile on her face.
"Very well. In that case, you may call me by my first name as well, Arturia-san"
"Thank you for acknowledging that, Rin. "Artuia thanked, "I apologize but I need to be somewhere at the moment, I shall talk to you later, Rin." Arturia gave a quick bow before leaving with her usual stoic expression spreading over her face. Rin nodded in return then continued on her graceful stride through the corridors.' Hmm. What impeccable manners! As expected from a Pendragon. However, I hope things do not get of hand; I must be even more careful from now on.'




Later that evening…



"I'm home!" Shirou announced, carefully taking off his shoes and placing them on the floor. He heard light footsteps and knew exactly who it was.
"Welcome back onii-chan!" the small silver-haired girl cried. Flinging her arms around Shirou's neck and using her legs to hug his muscly form. Shirou gave a painful chuckle before replying,
"I'm back, Ilya." Ilya retracted her powerful hug landing on her white sock-covered feet.
"Onii-chan, what are we having for dinner today?" Ilya questioned leading herself back into the living room. Shirou crossed his arms thoughtfully, tapping his index finger on his left arm.
"Hmm, I don't know, I was thinking of making a Western breakfast today but first I needed Sakura's opinion." Shirou remembered, now in the living room.
"Ok onii-chan! But I'm fine with anything you cook because it's you who made it!" Ilya blurted out playfully. Though her playful words were taken much more seriously than they ought to – Shirou was beet red!
"You don't have to flatter me Ilya." He retorted modestly, scratching his right cheek with his forefinger whilst looking up trying to avoid the cute loli's stare."Umm. I'll just go change and get ready to make dinner." Shirou managed to muster, Ilya slowly realised what had happened and let out a cute giggle.




Under the ancient church, a said 'house of God', was an abomination. About a dozen children in the church's basement suffering an undeserved punishment that even trumps hell itself! In the midst of the horrifying place stood two figures. One with long, golden blonde hair, the heavenly colour dirtied by the shadows of the underground. The other had short, dusty brown lock combed in a sophisticated fashion with a bit sticking at the back.
"My feeding is complete, Kirei." The blonde servant spoke," It may keep me in this world but I will never deny your methods are truly disgusting." She spat. The crimson eyed servant retreated back to the over ground of the church, trying to get away from the despicable sight.




The serene sound of the melancholic piano slowly echoed throughout the western room. It was a beautiful melody as smooth as running honey. The maestro of the fine sound was playing aside bay windows. The refreshing moonlight making its way through the transparent glass. Shadow shifted through the moonlit room towards the grand piano, applauding the maestro.
"Very nicely done Fate. A smooth and soft melody." It complimented. The soothing sound silenced.
"Thank you, Mother." Arturia said, arising from her seat then pointing a finger toward the piano " " she ordered. The angelic sound continued, very fitting for a night such as that. She made her way towards the large wooden doors on the other side of the huge room.
"Mother, I'm going to walk Sovereignty. I shall be back by dinner is that ok?" Arturia had asked.
"Of course," her mother, Magdalene Pendragon replied cheerfully before changing her happy face to a very worried one, "But be careful, the war is close to its beginnings some masters may have already summoned servants."
Arturia gave a small nod before walking through the door. In the corridors hung huge paintings and a few statues of knights holding up their long swords and pointing the tips to the heavens. She waltzed though the magnificent royal red painted corridors until she came up to three doors at the end of the hallway. One was in front of her, and one at either side of her.
She entered the room to her left – her room – and inside was amazing! The walls were painted a scene of faeries dancing on the grassy fields of Avalon.

On the walls were pictures of animals; small and large: lions, tigers, rabbits, even penguins! It was very interesting collage of the animal kingdom. At the edges of the ceilings and the walls were golden trimmings complimenting the blue paint very well.
Arturia loved her room. It was her very own sanctuary; a place she could model and remodel any time she wished. In the middle of the room stood a king size bed with three pillows stacked in a triangular order against the wooden side of the bed. At the corners of the bed were four posts with royal blue, silk curtains hanging for them. As well as a bed, in her room she had a desk for work and a bookshelf by the side of her room. On her carpe, by the side of her bed lay an animal in a doggy bed. The animal (a dog to be specific), Sovereignty, was a magical familiar of their family. She was summoned by the joint power of Magdalene and Alexander Pendragon to protect Aruria.
"Hello there Rei." Arturia whispered into Sovereignty's ear whilst crouching on the carpet. "It's time for your walk so wake up." Arturia poked the small dog on its cheek beckoning it to awaken. The pure-white ball of fur twitched a little before uncovering its gentian-blue eyes. "Good girl." Arturia continued. She stuck her hand to the side of Sovereignty's bed where she lay and brought out a lead. Wrapping the lead around Sovereignty's neck, Arturia picked up the small familiar and laid her on the floor. "Come on now" she implied.
Sovereignty stood up cutely, rubbing its paw over its sleep-filled eyes. 'Ria, where are we going today?' Sovereignty asked Arturia through telekenisis; master and familiar have a special bond allowing them to talk through their minds s their souls are one. 'Through the bridge then to the park.' Arturia smiled 'Ok Ria.' Sovereignty responded, walking out of the huge mansion.




"Shirou, more!" Taiga ordered, stretching out her right hand with her plate held steadily above it.
"Ok, Ok, I'm coming." Shirou whined, taking Taiga's dish from her hand. He slowly served the meat loaf and added the toppings atop it. He then passed it back to Taiga. "There you go." He presented.
After dinner, Shirou and Sakura washed the dishes then Shirou saw Taiga and Sakura out. Upon returning into the house, Shirou made his way to the dusty, old shed and changed to his work clothed before he started fixing the things he had promised. The first was an electric fan. Luckily, its structure was quite basic and the problem was quite basic so the problem was easy to work out.
'Trace On.' He thought, reinforcing the wires and returning them to their appropriate form.
"This should be good enough." He sighed, slowly wiping the sweat off his dust-covered forehead. He felt a presence behind him and swiftly spun around, only to find Ilya leaning against a wooden podium of the shed. She was wearing her usual outfit of a white shirt and a knee length, purple skirt.
"Onii-chan. What are you doing?" she enquired, trying to take peak at the reinforced object. Shirou stood up from his position before replying,
"Oh, Taiga and Issei gave me a bunch of stuff they needed fixing so I'm doing that now." Shirou let out a miniscule smile before walking up to Ilya, taking off his gloves, and ruffling her hair. Ilya looked up to him and spoke,
"Onii-chan, if you keep helping people like this, you'll break down and i don't want that to happen!" she pouted, her piercing crimson eyes staring at him in anger and worry. Shirou gave Ilya a small grin before reassuring her that he was ok.
"Don't worry Ilya, I'll always be here for you." He smiled again. Ilya acknowledged this and gave a quick nod and a huge smile before skipping towards the door.
"Ok the. Good night Onii-chan..." Ilya bid him, quietly walking through the shed door, asking her way to her room.
"Good night Ilya." Shirou whispered before continuing his work. He gradually drifted into a daze, remembering how he had gotten to know the girl of the name Ilyasviel Emiya.
Flash back start...
Kiritsugu Emiya had battled against an empowering snow storm. He won. Normally Kiritsugu wouldn't have enough strength to destroy the boundary, but here, he had managed to pass through an rescue Ilya. Jubstacheit von Einzbern had tried to stp him but Kiritsugu had used time alter and had managed to get Ilya out of the freezing country the Einzberns called home. The adventure and using time alter took a tow on Kiritsugu's body.
One day, Kiritsugu came back with a young albino holding his hand. Shirou had been surprised but also exceedingly ecstatic at having a sister. Ilya had settled in quite nicely. Taiga had accepted her and so had Shirou. But then the dilemma came. Kiritsugu suffered from the curse of the Grail and the results of using time alter in his state was him perishing a whole year earlier than usual. Both Ilya and Shirou were devastated at the lost of their fathers but had soon recovered as they had each other and nothing would change that.



Flash back end.


Shirou's small flash back ended when he realised a problem. He needed an extra art to fix the stove! At the revelation of this, Shirou sighed annoyed and went to change after washing his dirty hands and sweat-covered face. Shirou had worn his usual outfit of a blue and white long sleeve an blue jeans. He found his wallet and made his way out.




Whilst all this happened, Arturia and Sovereignty were playing in the park. Well not technically playing. More like combat practice. Arturia had set up an illusion boundary therefore any normal person who saw them would only see a dog playing with its owner. However, inside the illusion field wasn't a dog playing with its owner but a powerful magus training with her almost as powerful familiar.
"Goon Rei. Your shielding is becoming much better." Arturia congratulated, slowly walking up to Sovereignty and petting her fur-covered head. 'Thank you Ria.' She replied cheerfully.
"Now for dodging and agility practice. Transform to combat mode Rei." And as if on cue, Sovereignty leapt into the night sky and did a front flip in the air. A flash of white light coming from her. What landed though wasn't a pet anymore. It was a girl with long hair, up to her back, tied back with a black scrunchy. She had calm, energetic gentian-blue eyes. She also had tanned skin and was up to Arturia's shoulder in height.

Her body was covered in a bright light before it subsided and left a girl wearing a black, body-tight belly top and body-tight shorts down to halfway through her thighs. On her arms were purple arm bands and on her waist was a yellow belt with a bunny face as the clip. A short purple skirt flowed from the belt with a triangular cut through the middle. On her legs were black thigh-high stockings and on her hand black gloves without the sleeves.
"Combat mode generation complete!" Sovereignty exclaimed, jumping back to an open space. Arturia took one step backwards then began,
" fire " she chanted. Balls of flames appeared by both her sides, red, orange and blue. The spheres of fire were sent flying toward the white-haired familiar. Sovereignty swiftly jumped up and moved side to side avoiding and dodging the fiery fire balls.
Whilst this was happening, a certain red-headed individual as walking towards the parts and hardware store which just happened to be on the other side of the park. Shirou had reached the green park where he saw something unbelievable...

A/N

Second chapter updated! Also as you can see Sovereignty( my OC)'s clothes are made from a mix of Fate Testarossa's sonic mode and Counter Guardian ILYA's from Prilya. Also the chapters are gonna start getting much more interesting after all it is a crossover of ALL the Fate series. Did you see what I did with her name...*cunning smile*
Mirakura out!

read it here

Pretty much about a guy who can momentarily time travel ten years into the future when he falls asleep. He finds his future wife there, and uses his knowledge to try and get closer to her at the present time. It's a fun little thing, and having the protag actually be committed to a single girl (Woah! No "indecision arcs" here, folks! Just expect a page or two to have the man internally weigh his options) is actually kind of a breathe of fresh air (one I can stash along Bakuman, which is weird because they're two totally different beasts)

http://fenglee.com/game/aog

Any of you who watched the series probably though as I have that it would make a great game.
And there we have it!
It takes a while to master the controls (hey, it's 3D maneuver gear, you should be thankful you don't spend years of your life in training!)

This game is so addicting! If we have enough people I'll arrange a BL room.

*I recommend playing the game while listening to AOT OST for maximum pleasure :D

Kazehaya Kamito heads to Areishia Spirit Academy, an academy meant to teach young noble ladies how to be strong and capable spirit contractors known as elementallers. In a world where only young women can contract with spirits, he is the first to do so since a legendary demon king. Kamito runs into multiple troublesome girls upon arriving, and discovers there is a condition for his attendance - he must triumph in the Blade Dance, a battle festival of the strongest elementallers.

However, a powerful opponent is returning for the Blade Dance, and may be connected to Kamito's eventful past...

It has 13 light novels out, and the anime will hopefully get through four of them in the first season.

http://www.devolverdigital.com/blog/...remake-hatoful

go home other games, it's over.

I wrote this a little while ago. Figured I should post it somewhere.




So there was this girl, Suruga Kanbaru. We’ll just call her “Monkey”.

And she was in love with another girl named Hitagi Senjougahara. We’ll call her “Crabby”.

Yeah, they’re both girls.

Crabby was always a little hung up on that part. Maybe.

Anyway, when Crabby was younger, her parents – well, mostly her Mom – kinda got into this cult. Got really deep into it. Her parents started fighting a lot, for obvious reasons. And this guy Kaiki Deishu – let’s call him Crow – showed up, and....I’m not really sure. He broke up Crabby’s parents, apparently without involving sex and probably involving money, and she hated him for a long time after that.

Also he happened to be Monkey’s uncle, which is a pretty weird coincidence but not really relevant at all.

....hehe, “Monkey’s uncle”. Anyways.

After that, poor Crabby always had problems with people. Not with getting them to like her or getting along with them – she grew up smart and pretty and charismatic, if really weird. No, she just had a hard time being around people, had a hard time trusting them.

In middle school she became the star of the track team. She and Monkey met in Crabby’s second year; Monkey was one year younger. Like a lot of kids both male and female, Monkey quickly came to admire her. Much less like other kids, she actually managed to catch Crabby’s attention when she became the star of the basketball team. They became good friends, the pretty, mature Crabby and the brash, tomboyish Monkey.

Of course, Monkey was a lesbian. And Crabby apparently wasn't. It didn't take a genius to figure out where this was going.

Naturally Monkey was rejected. Somehow or other, they managed to stay good friends, even though Monkey never really got over her.

But in high school, something happened. For a little while, Crabby went completely cold to everyone. Which, to be fair, wouldn't usually have been all that weird, because she’s kind of emotionally unstable and a natural, grade-A tsundere kind of girl to boot. But she also did it to Monkey, her closest friend at the time, which was obviously a lot weirder. But of course, ‘cause this that’s just how these things work, she wouldn't talk to her (or anyone else, but whatever) about it. And so Monkey was left to wonder what had happened, what was going on with her friend, what she had done wrong and so on. And Crabby drifted away from everyone.

Naturally, ‘cause this is also just how these things work, the truth of the matter ended up being a hell of a lot weirder than anyone expected. Apparently, Crabby was possessed by a crab god. Yeah. Which didn't actually exist somehow. And because of some bullshit involving the kanji with which one spells “crab” or some shit it stole Crabby’s “weight”. Which literally meant she weighed about what she would on the moon (apparently supernatural beings run on wordplay) at all times, but it also apparently meant her emotions and bonds with people and such – so she was literally in danger of “drifting away”.

Because crabs somehow. I don’t really know, Oshino-sensei never really explained most of this shit very well.

Anyway supposedly this all happened because the somehow-nonexistent crab-god was attracted to Crabby’s emotional trauma from when her mother was involved in that cult that sorta drove her insane. This part’s more of a rumor, but supposedly Crabby got assaulted by one of the members, and her resisting, and her mother not doing anything about it, is was broke the family up. Bad shit.

So anyway, along came this pretty cool guy named Koyomi Araragi – we’ll call him “Moron” – who due to a completely unrelated set of circumstances is actually a partial vampire, however that works. He accidentally figured out that something supernatural was going on with Crabby, and got help from his mentor, Meme Oshino, who we’ll call Sensei.

So Sensei beat up the nonexistent crab-god a little and gave Crabby a chance to figure out some of her issues, and she got a lot better and the nonexistent crab god disappeared. She and Moron also started dating.

And for the record, no, I’m still not 100% on all of that. So feel free to skim back over things if you need to, I won’t judge.

So next, Monkey got possessed. But the funny thing was, this actually happened years ago. When Monkey was younger, she found one of those monkey paw things that grants wishes, but they always go wrong. She didn't know about those stories, of course, so she used it and a bunch of people got hurt – this one granted wishes based mostly on a combination of your subconscious desires and massive amounts of violence. This was actually why she was such a good athlete later, as it happens.

Fortunately, despite her image, Monkey is actually fairly smart and figured out the catch early. Less fortunately the damned thing tends to sort of act on its own initiative, rather than waiting for its owner to wish on it.

I mentioned that Monkey was in love with Crabby earlier, yeah? Well, I meant that. Pretty seriously in love with her. Enduring, strong, patient, loyal, yadda yadda yadda, all those great, long-lasting things love is supposed to be. So even though she thought she was ok-ish with getting rejected, well, turns out not so much. And all that came back with a fucking vengeance when Crabby started dating Moron.

So that monkey’s paw – turned out later that it was actually a demon’s hand or something, according to Sensei – ended up possessing Monkey. Good news was that it was a sort of time-share-ish arrangement – Monkey had control most of the time, and every now and then, mostly at night, the hand – which fused with her’s, because fucking demons – took over and....well, it mostly tried to murder Moron.

A Rainy Devil, that’s what Sensei called it. Sorry.

Luckily, as was mentioned before, Moron happens to be a partial vampire. And as it turns out, even a one-seventh partial vampire is close enough to the real thing that, while he couldn't actually do anything to the possessed Monkey and got his ass kicked, she also couldn't kill him enough to actually keep him down.

So while Moron was busily living down to the name we’re using for him and trying to fight Monkey to snap her out of the devil’s control, Crabby – who figured out some of this on her own and some of it from Sensei – showed up and helped talk Monkey back down, and the demon gave up control.

Stayed attached to her arm, though. Fortunately it did make that arm even stronger than Monkey normally was, which was saying something, and was oddly easy to hide under a good bandage wrap.

So Monkey became friends with Moron and sorta made up with Crabby. She also gained a disciple in Moron’s younger sister Karen. We’ll call her “Bee”. I actually kinda think that she and Moron have done it.

But that’s not really related, either.

....ehehehe, “related”.

For the record, there’s no moral here. Lessons, maybe. The story is what is because that’s how it happened.

So why am I talking about this, you may be wondering?

....man, I don’t know. Probably some kind of masochism or something. This shit just kinda pops in any time I talk to her.


"A Small Addendum"

In a small café in the center of town, a war was brewing.

Oh, we smiled, certainly; from the sides it probably even looked like an ordinary conversation between two friends. But it was far from it! Oh, we smiled, but they were hunter’s smiles, filled with….

....yeah, I can’t do this. The weird narration stuff is really more Moron’s thing. We were kinda glaring at each other, since we’re both pretty combative in our friendship. It’s just our thing.
Naturally we were talking about my problems. Because life is cruel like that. Or Senjo is, maybe.

I mean, we were sort of talking about my problems. “Actually, not only is it your responsibility to listen to me bitch about this, it’s your double responsibility to do so.” Talking about talking about my problems is more or less the same as talking about my problems, right?

....yeah, I know it’s not, but I don’t claim to have much emotional bravery. So sue me, we all have our hang-ups.

Senjo’s eye twitched. I think it was the smug ass, shit eating grin – I’m pretty sure she even knew I was affecting it. It’s just that effective a weapon. Even so, she was the school idol for a reason; Hitagi Senjougahara does not easily lose her cool when she doesn't want to. “Explain.”

“With pleasure. Point one-one: The subject of my bitching is my romantic misfortunes. Agreed?”

There was an unpleasant cast to her now definitely forced smile. She might not have known exactly where this was going, but she could see the general shape – it was actually kind of flattering to realize that she was probably mentally conceding the point to her mentally constructed hypothetical future me. “Agreed.”

“Point one-two: Without proper extenuating circumstances, the primary source of those romantic misfortunes – heretofore referred to as ‘seafood –’”, for one terrifying moment I thought that might’ve been pushing too far, but then she primly shoved the scissors back in her pocket and pretended that I hadn't noticed her considering stabbing me in public, “– is obligated to bear some of the weight of the damage they've caused. Agreed?”

She had that 'I am going to do something violent to you' gleam in her eye, and I knew before she spoke that she thought she had an opening and was going straight for the throat. “No.” Shocking. “Your broken heart, tragic as it is, is ultimately not my responsibility unless I-”

“‘Seafood’, senpai. ‘Seafood’.”

There was a short silence.

....during it took everything I had not to run away. I’m not proud, I can admit it.

“....I’d like to apologize for my previous interruption. Please continue with your statement, senpai.” Hey, I know when to fold ‘em. Sometimes. If the planets are right. Look, she’s scary, ok?

“Thank you. As I was saying, save under certain circumstances, I am, as the object of your affections and ergo the partial cause of your distress, I am only responsible to hear out your grievances on the subject up to a point – beyond the initial, basic airing of said grievances, further bitching is to be tolerated only at my discretion – which is to say, mostly as my goodwill and tolerance for the subject allow.”

She paused, looking like she wanted to continue but unsure what she wanted to say. Her face was a lot less fight-y, and a lot more trying-to-be-friendly. “Unless there’s something you particularly needed to say on the subject[ ]” I’m honestly not even sure what punctuation mark ended that sentence. It was either a period or a question mark. I don’t think she knew herself.

“Actually, um. That brings me to point two.” Great, now I was getting nervous. Just what I needed.

....quick confession: I was looking forward to this. I mean really looking forward to this. I wanted this, needed this badly. It was a raw, burning sensation in my gut, and for a moment I was confessing to her again, and the only difference was the rage and the tears that I suddenly realized were threatening to spill out. I hated myself for it, but I wanted to hurt her with this. I don’t think it was just some sadistic revenge thing - I needed to know that she cared, that she knew how much I hurt and hurt with me. I needed her to bleed with me.

God but I have issues. Fuck, I’ll be happy just getting this out to her. Just having her know.

“Look, you’re my best friend.” I couldn't even look her in the eye. “And therefore, barring extenuating circumstances, you’re the person I’m supposed to talk about this shit with.” I think I still had some kind of smile on. I’m really not sure. “But you. Um. You always kind of avoid the issue.” ....yeah. Really going for broke there, Kanbaru.

We sat in silence for a while after that. I munched on my burger and she sipped at her shake.

I tried really hard not to look like I was waiting for her to look at me.




I continue to not claim to be a good writer, and my war with tense continues. Feel free to comment.

It has Charles Dance so it can't possibly go wrong.

Also, I have a feeling this Dracula is going to be a lot like Gabriel Belmont.

Since time immemorial, humans have been fascinated by the primal spirits of nature - those of Gaia, and those which preceded Gaia. Arceus, the Original One. Giratina, the Creator's Shadow. Dialga, master of the Flow of Time. Palkia, master of possibilities. Rayquaza of the Sky. Kyogre of the Sea. Groudon of Earth. Ho-Oh, guardian of things above. Lugia, guardian of things below. These and more - the ancient legends - humans revered and feared. Once, in the Age of Gods and before, they simply co-existed, with humans and spirits working together, communicating with one Unified Language.

But soon enough, that language was lost, with Divine Words all that remained. Humans made pacts with various beings of power, who taught them the divine languages used to shape nature, and this worked...for a time. But when the gods themselves began to fade, as faith in the powers of earth grew distant when the belief in the Holy Church began sweeping the world, a new solution was needed, one that did not rely on the cooperation of the world.

And so humanity worked out a way to use themselves - and their imaginations - to make miracles possible, by changing some of their soul into the so-called Magic Circuits, so they were not merely a component of a greater system - but were systems in and of themselves. Before, Gaia or Alaya would have done the brute processing for change, with the Divine Words like commands run on a computer, but now, each magus had to visualize the effect one wanted, and hypnotize him or herself into believing it was possible. Yet as individuals, they knew themselves to be limited, and their craft difficult to pass on, so they crafted World Eggs, inscribing their abilities upon the world through rituals involving the creation of artificial Great Spirits - Mew, the Origin of and Pattern for the Lesser Daemons - and sealing it into a great World Egg, so that these abilities might be preserved.

The Regi - Regigigas, Registeel, Regirock, and Regice - were made at this time to assist in the creation of the World Eggs, which was the beginning of modern thaumaturgy as we know it.

Since the creation of those, and the linking to this artificial spirit, humans have brought forth Daemons upon opening their Magic Circuits, creatures of power and spirit that reflect their alignment, as a reflection of themselves as a System and Concept, just as Gaia has her reflections. Some rare humans even developed the ability to bind "wild" lesser daemons through the use of various spells and implements, becoming Daemon Masters...but the few who succeeded are legendary in their own right.

Even so, the system had limits. None of the legends could be brought forth or bound without their consent - though occasionally, they might bond with a human who reflected their concept well, or make a pact with an individual or a family. Zelretch, for instance, is known to be bonded to a Palkia, as Aozaki Aoko is bonded to Reshiram.

Yet for all the powers magecraft and daemons conferred, there was nothing that would extend the lifespan, aside from the heresy of becoming a Dead Apostle, a creature half-man, half-beast which ravenously fed on humans to prevent themselves from decaying, or through secret rituals, ensouling oneself in one's daemon and leaving one's physical body behind. Even this had limited applications, however, as one then no longer could have human form, and was very much an elemental.

The Einzbern sought a different way to immortality to surpass these limits - to not just incarnate in a daemon, but to change one's self into eternal spirit, able to shift form and function, to split and combine souls with ease. Through a combination of their work and a boon from the Sleeping One, Jirachi, they gained this. Their resultant line bore the power of wishes and possibilities - but in time, the secret of eternity was lost, and Jirachi was nowhere to be found. Thus, they have labored for over a thousand years to recover the power they wielded, the secrets of the lost Ages they once bore - until finally coming up with the Holy Grail War, which itself was an imitation of Jirachi's ability. True, it used 60 years of prana from a leyline instead of 1000, but even this crude imitation was coveted by many. Using something similar to a daemon's materialization process, the Grail would copy the information of a Heroic Spirit onto the template of an "artificial" Daemon vessel, creating the beings known as Servants for various Masters to use - superior, but temporary, creations - creations which in their death and return to Origin might open a path that could be followed.

But the Wars brought only tragedy, with the squabbles of the early wars leading to the tragedy of the Fourth, when the corrupted wish for a spirit that embodied evil itself led to the creation of a Beast in the place of one of the Servants - a Beast bound in service to Sajyou Manaka, the Witch of Calamity. She was one of the greatest Witches to have ever lived, an abnormality born with a connection to the Root of the World. Together with Kyurem, who she had bonded with, she was the greatest monster ever to fight in the Wars, requiring a coalition of every Servant and Master to bring her down at great cost. By the time she fell, Kariya, Berserker, Tokiomi, Assassin, Lancer, and El Melloi, all lay dead, with Rider and Archer grievously injured - and Rider having lost his mount and chariot. The Fifth War caused less in the way of physical destruction, but still, the gate did not open, and no wishes were granted.

Much of the Association, not being happy with this ritual that simply bled off talent - and had the potential to destroy the secrecy of the moonlit world - wished to dismantle the Greater Grail and call the Wars a failure, but the Einzbern (and some of the Noble Families) opposed this vehemently. Due to this, it was declared one more chance would be given - that that Tohsaka and others would sit out this fight - that the Association and the Church would take a larger role in testing and choosing prospective representatives, granting their blessing to those they deemed worthy of a wish.

Atlas Academy, the Clock Tower, the Vatican, the Wandering Tomb - these and more have stepped forward as places to test those who have desire a chance to fight, and possibly to recruit the more talented among them. Sites have been prepared, enforcers sent out, and soon the trials will commence.

Participating Characters:

Albert Welf of House Welf (EnigmaticFellow), partnered with Gyarados, who hails from a branch of the House of Este. Accomplished in the arts of spiritual evocation and invocation, they once admired the Einzbern, but the loss of the Third Magic has caused House Welf to look upon them unfavorably, believing they are unfit to continue in the prominence they bear. House Welf seeks to undermine the Einzbern and usurp their position as nobility through an understanding of Power. Power is their passion, their research, their obsession. He joins this War to bring an end to the Wars and allow the Grail to be dismantled, crushing the last hope of the Einzbern - with this feat allowing him to rise to the rank of Head of House.

Akimitsu Tsukino (Caster), partnered with Kirlia, a descendant of Shinto ritualists from the Far East who some believe have the abilities of a daemon master. An only child, he does not wield the usual elements, and has an uncommon affinity for spirits. He is one who wishes to change the world, and so has responded to the summons for Masters in the Grail War. His arrival has been noted by some in the Tower curious as to what the old families of the East might wish - and what their powers might be.

Himemiya Toshirou (lethum), whose daemon is Milotic, a Freelancer who seeks the Grail in the name of the Devon Ul-Mucel family, once relatively prominent during the early years of the Magic Association, but which has fallen to a lesser, intermediate role a few centuries in and never recovered. Their wish is inscribed in a Mystic Code given to Toshirou. He is known as a Steam Magus, the last survivor of the fallen house of Ealhswith, which was destroyed in an attack by Dead Apostles. Raised by the family maid, who went into hiding in Japan, he has completed a number of missions as a mercenary, and has been noticed by the Enforcers for his brutal - if efficient - work.

"John Smith" (mangafreak7793), whose daemon is an Alakazam, a self-proclaimed storyteller whose history is littered with gaps - and who the Association is fairly certain is not using his real name. His abilities are largely unknown, with the little information available on him describing him as being affiliated with a now-deceased alchemist on the run from Atlas, with connections to the underworld of necromancers and an interest in strange artifacts. He dresses oddly, combining the stereotypical wizard robe and hat with roller blades. He has occasionally been spotted around Aozaki Aoko, a source of consternation to many in the Noble Families, who do not know what to make of him and thus consider him a threat.

Lloyd Hadings (Lycodrake), partnered with Houndoom, a curse specialist from Greece - the unenviable second son of a magus family. In his youth, he would be used as a practice dummy by the heir to the family, who likewise practiced curses. These have resulted in permanent damage and muscle weakness that the best healing spells have been unable to heal. He seeks mastery of magecraft - and the power of the Grail - to purge any last bit of humanity ("weakness") within him, allowing him to transcend his limits and bring about the destruction of his family - and perhaps even himself.

Wikus Grylls (Soldat der Trauer), by far the oldest to join this competition - who the unkind might call elderly (but never to his face), is a late-middle age Freelancer who would usually never join something as chancy as Heaven's Feel. With his daemon Scizor by his side, he worked for the Anglican branch of the Holy Church for a time, training some of their more successful Executors in how to fight, how to react, how to kill. This last is now a bit troubling, as there have been a string of supernatural murders with his hand complicit in the methods used - methods he has taught to many over the years. While this does tie in with the suspiciously convenient disappearance of a former student of his, rumors have arisen to the effect that perhaps Grylls is showing his instability at last...

Alfredo PakPak (Wing), an odd magus of Metal and Wind from the Philippines, considered something of a magical backwater. With his Skarmory by his side, he is known in some circles for his superior reinforcement and control abilities, claiming that anything under heaven will fall before him. He does not tend to stay in one place, making it difficult to track his activities, but by all indications, he wishes to reach the Origin and learn the meaning of true power.

(there is one spot remaining, if anyone is interested)

---

Location [redacted]
In Media Res
July 21, 2014

"Touko. They're breaking through."

The unnatural blue of Shiki Ryougi's Mystic Eyes of Death Perception flashed in the grim darkness as she fell upon her foes with a ferocity unmatched by her words, her bone-white kimono stark against the dark, mist-like smoke which fell around her like drabs of paint. She spun, each creature she stuck with as much as scratch dissolving into smoke as if consumed by an invisible fire, leaving behind only a large stain of utter wrongness.It churned about her, relentless and malevolent, dissipating only before the onslaught of another flurry of silver slashes in the gloom.

In the distance, four immense forms did battle against shambling things oozed through gaps in reality, shapeless, ever-changing congeries of protoplasmic bubbles and eyes forming and unforming like pustules of filthy light, filling the very air with unearthly shrills, cacophonies, warblings that could drive one mad.

"UWOOOOOAAAAA!"

Bloodcurdling cadences, unutterable truths, crawling letters trickling down hundreds of dimensions on alien gravities like a cancer floating on quantum foam, it came. Anti-life. Anti-luminosity that crucifies sentience.

The foe was never static - it was change itself, flesh mutating, mind boiling to bilious madness, lucidity nowhere to be seen, daemonic pathogens pouring, pouring into this reality from a breach into the Outer Dark. Event horizons open in the mind...

Three of those who fought desperately against this foe were earthbound, two of them vaguely recognizable as a Mega-Gengar and a Mega-Alakazam with markings reminiscent of tribal tattoos, with the iridescent light of Psybeam mixing with the living shade of countless Shadow Balls. A living mist roiled on the ground around them, keeping the dark smoke at bay as another daemon joined them in battle against the malevolent idioplasm from beyond the stars, taking the form of living nightmares from humanity's worst fears.

This daemon was a vaguely deer-like creature with eight horns shining in seven colors: Xerneas, the Legendary Daemon which represented life, defended life, as it did now, launching an orb of crackling pink lightnings at the creeping miasma.

BOOM!

For a moment, the enemy was pushed back, but like a whispering tide. Could one kill an ocean? Could one destroy monstrosities that had consumed entire worlds before, which lurked in the infinite shade between dimensions? A cancer of worlds that could infect all those who touched them - if they were not protected? The Devouring Plague could never be truly stopped...

But it could be stalled for a time, as twin avatars of death struck out with combined attacks from sky and ground alike, whirlwinds of destruction with blade and wing.

"Yvetal. Oblivion Wing. Open a path."

A shill, piercing cry echoed as the legendary Daemon that represented Destruction complied, unleashing a spear of darkness-spears of wind that descended from the sky, ripping apart a mass of creatures standing in the Reaper's way, absorbing some of the fell energies they fed on. Immediately, they began to reform, empowered by the rift - but slower, now. Still, no conventional power could destroy them, and so even the greatest of daemons could only perform a holding action. Only the one who embodied the Void, the beautiful grim reaper, could end their existences - could end this onslaught - but she was but one person, and could be overwhelmed if not for the daemons that flocked about her.

She sped forward now, form blurring as she sought the rift, the foes which rushed into her range cut down by her shining, icy blade, and those around her knocked back. More rushed at her, anti-life, anti-sentience seeking to consume the One who could destroy them, becoming smoke, becoming flame, and despite the cacophony of the great Daemons acting as a kind of support artillery, they couldn't act fast enough.

"Kuh. Touko..."

A distant grunt sounded, and then three daemons launched their final attack. Something like a hundred - no, a thousand - bolts of light tore apart the darkness, raining down onto the evil-shaped forms being disgorged from the rift to the endless dark and wiping their physical forms from the world. For the briefest of instants, the field was bare.

"Shiki, now. I'm out of prana."

Spinning once, the Reaper accelerated. It was as if she was being propelled by an icy wind, footsteps racing across a ground crawling with black veins carrying corruption itself, a signal of anti-information broadcast by who knew what. In her wake, hundreds of icy blades shredded the veins, causing them too to vanish, even as the forms of her foes began to regenerate, only to be skewered by dark spears.

There there...almost there!

"Shiki!"

A monstrous spiked foot nearly splattered her as something erupted from the rift in reality - a vast, evil-shaped form that nearly defied comprehension. It was like a dragon in shape, but was formed from countless hooks of dark iridescence, its sheer presence enough to bring any magus, any hero, any god to its knees. It glowered and smoked and hissed, and sensing the true threat, attacked.

Lightning erupted from every inch of its surface.

Dark spears of wind sought out the form of the Reaper, tiny against its gargantuan bulk.

Living shadow and light mingled stabbed forth, to entangle, to rip, ensnare, destroy.

And the Filth rose with it.

Night became day, as all of these attacks - the sum total of everything that had been used against its minions - was launched against the one who was Death itself, blotting out her form.

Destruction rained down, shockwaves tossing every living thing besides that ancient Dragon to the ground, a mix of light and sound that would have shredded the rearguard, save that Xerneas had shared its well of life with them. Even so, they were sorely wounded, their defense shredded like tissue paper.

And Shiki...

"Can you do it?" Touko asked, from where her puppet lay, about to crumble, her voice but a rasping whisper now.

When the attack finally ended, the Reaper stood, unscathed, having "killed" the essence of every attack headed her way. She spoke with a quiet, solemn dignity that would almost be terrifying, no - was terrifying as she lifted her sword and moved.

"As long as it exists, I can even kill God."

---

Association Training Facility
London, United Kingdom
July 21, 2014

At the Clock Tower, Aoko Aozaki, the Magic Gunner Miss Blue, the wielder of the Fifth Magic, was engaged in a titanic struggle of her own. On any field of battle, she had never before met her match, but it seemed that this time, things might be different.

"Kuh...damn you!" she snarled as she attacked the foe before her, attempting to outspeed, outwit, outmaneuver her opponent as she consumed rib-eye steaks at a rate that most would consider decidedly unhealthy. Still, it was clear that she was beginning to slow, which her inhuman opponent noted with amusement.

"Psy! Psyduck!" her opponent warbled. It was an unusually variety of the species, and one which had on several occasions come close to besting her as an eating champion. Whether it was ramen, steak, yakisoba, pumpkin/cherry/apple or other pies, potato salad, pizza, ribs, pancakes, or even tofu, the daemon had a voracious appetite.

...perhaps fortunately, it wasn't hers, or it might have eaten her out of house and home. On the other hand, given the number of restaurants which offered challenges to consume certain dishes in exchange for free food, perhaps not.

Either way, she glowered at the fell beast, as it quacked happily, downing its portions as if oblivious to the ill-intent she radiated. And perhaps it was, as Psyducks had never been the most intelligent of daemons, even if this one was a creation of a Dead Apostle.

'I swear Sumire is up to no good again. Whenever this thing appears, it can only mean trouble. What does she need me for anyway? Have the denizens of Ry'leh stirred at last or something?'

That would be just what she needed, for the sunken city to rise. Besides, this should be a job for the woman who called herself Ciel, the one bonded to the Zekrom, the legendary daemon of ideals, not Aoko, who was bonded instead to Reshiram, the legendary daemon of truth...

'Though perhaps it is not a good thing for a Dead Apostle Ancestor's envoy to go to the Holy Church.'

"Tch. Alright, you bastard. We finish this and then you tell me what your Master wants, alright?" she growled at the duck between bites of her perfectly done steak. Hm. She'd have to compliment the Asssociation on their choice of chef this time around, one Gordon Ramsay, who was said to have learned his craft in a contract with a True Daemon.

"Psy!" the squat blue avian acknowledged, as both turned back to their meal, faces grim and intent with deadly purpose - to be the champion.

In their competitiveness, they did not really notice the third person in the contest - the enigmatic John Smith - also known to some as the Storyteller, who had arrived in London to take part in the Trials preceding the Sixth War.

---

Clock Tower, Mage Association
London, United Kingdom
July 21, 2014

Waver Velvet, the magus and lecturer better known these days as Lord El-Melloi II, the noble who commanded the El-Melloi faction within the Association, was a decidedly unhappy man as he looked upon the bane of his existence: paperwork. There were days when he wished he'd never decided to steal the artifact to summon Iskander from his former instructor, the late Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi, days he wished he had not killed El-Melloi in single combat after Sola had sought her own fortunes, days when he cursed becoming a noble - though to be fair it had spared him a grim fate. He was very troubled by the Archibald heiress, she who had inflicted this fate upon him, binding him to serve her family.

Really, he considered her something like a devilish black cat - his personal bringer of misfortune. Even if she had become rather attractive, with a sweetness characteristic of early womanhood, and blue eyes held the light of maturity. She favored blouses that were completely out of fashion these days, but she was surrounded by a nobility that was untouched by the vogue.

It was because of her that he now had to deal with the elite magi who called themselves Lords, and the power struggles between their various factions that turned the Clock Tower into a political minefield, with none willing to concede anything except for a favor or promise of recompense in the future. This was even the case with something as troublesome as the Grail War, as some resisted him because they wished something from the Grail - while some simply wished to be contrary to obtain concessions.

'I really hate politics. Some days I wish I could just smash my way through it...'

He smiled wanly at that thought, remembering how his daemon - now a Golurk - had smashed aside his former teacher, and how good it had felt to prove the older magus wrong. Then he sighed, shaking his head.

Remembering those days was foolishness, as he had no Servant now, even if Alexander lived on in his soul. His only major weapon of coercion was to mention his "boss", the notorious Vice Director Barthomeloi Lorelei, given that the Archibald family was one of the very few who possessed any ties to the esteemed "Queen" of the Clock Tower. Not that it did that much good when she was so often out on yet another Dead Apostle hunt, leaving him to deal with her responsibilities as well as his.

'Like finding out who this Lady Amber who has proven troublesome in the East is. Word is she has organized a new faction, one that is small, but exceedingly powerful despite that.'

Or dealing with the various incidents caused by two of his...students, the infamous duo known as "Mary of July" and "Poppins of July" - Rin Tohsaka and Luviagelita Edelfelt. What deity had he offended to be assigned those two?

At least with the preparations for the Trials, the Edelfelt and Tohsaka had been assigned to tasks that kept them physically far apart, so they would not come to blows.

He hoped so, at least, since the alternative was quite embarrassing for him.

He also hoped that an incident wouldn't result from the Tohsaka's and Edelfelt's mutual love interest now being associated with Atlas Academy, under the direct command of the Director, Sion Eltnam Atlasia. The last thing he needed, after all, was an international crisis on his hands, as he did not get paid nearly enough for this.

Not that that was unlikely in the matter of the Sixth Grail War and the trials. Dignitaries from all over the world would be coming to observe - either to lend support, recruit, or mark people down for execution - and there were security concerns to address. The Enforcers had been dispatched to keep order and help guide dignitaries, and the training facilities had been prepared...

At least the Three Founding Families had not squabbled too much at his proposed Trials for the War. Maikri Zouken had, yes, but the others agreed - and with Matou Sakura having disappeared, Zouken had no intention of participating himself. He suspected the Einzbern would seek out a champion from the group, but that was within their rights, and they had generously contributed Joy-type healer homunculi and Jenny-type enforcer homunculi to make sure the trials went well. Perhaps too generously, but then they were the richest of the Three, with the Matous trailing them, and the Tohsaka firmly in third.

His main concerns now were lingering frictions between the Church (which had agreed to send a representative, provide a powerful mediator for the War, and host a Trial), and some of the other branches. The Director of Atlas, for example, apparently had some bad blood with the Burial Agent being dispatched, and her close associate Emiya Shirou did not much care for many in the Church aside from Caren Hortensia - ironically the daughter of his former nemesis Kirei Kotomine.

The Trials would be an interesting mix of battles pairing magus and daemon, magi set against daemons, daemons set against magi, and free for alls, to assess how prospective "Masters" in the War would fare in different situations. After all, one must first have the will and ability master one's own soul before one could command something as powerful as a Servant.

So it was planned anyway, with an interesting cast of characters to participate - including the sister of the Witch of Calamity, an alleged "storyteller" with ties to the black market of magi, and a noble of House Welf. Who would advance? Who would fall? He didn't know. To be honest, he was rather curious to find out.

Rap-pap-pap-pap-rap! Rap-rap!

Interrupting his thoughts was a knocking on the door to the pattern of "Shave and a haircut, two bits!" a pattern only one person in the world used instead of the much more respectful two knocks - at least at his doorway.

"Come in," he said with a sigh, standing up as he saw the impish heiress to the Archibald family - and his fiancee - entering, with her Mismagius floating behind her silently. Not for the first time he was reminded of how beautiful she was - and how troubling he found that, since he could little resist her. In those moments, he found himself understanding the late Kayneth's fixation on the Sophia-Ri woman, but told himself that this wasn't the same thing, that she was the one who was interested in him.

The truth of the matter non-withstanding.

"Working hard, Lord El-Melloi?" she quipped wryly, somewhat amused to see the lecturer nearly hidden behind stacks of paper.

"...what do you want this time, Lady Archibald?" he sighed, giving the blonde an inscrutable look while knowing he'd be unable to refuse her. He was bound to her, after all, even if he was now 35 and she, 28. "Come to make me cross yet another boundary?"

"As if you haven't enjoyed it in the past," the blonde shot back teasingly, favouring the former Archibald apprentice with a smirk. "Besides, you know I don't like being called ‘Lady’. Its far too formal, especially coming from my fiance. I get the feeling you’re being subtly malicious, or it’s like your snapping, ‘that’s close enough.’ Call me Luna, as I've asked."

"No."

"...do I have to make it an order, oh benefactor of my family?"

"...no, La--Luna," Waver ground out. He just couldn't win against her - never could - wasn't sure if he'd ever be able to, really. "So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your company."

"Can't I just come to visit?" the girl asked innocently - too innocently.

A long sigh.

"...we both know that isn't why you've come..."

A raised eyebrow.

"I am bored," she declared imperiously. "The politicking of the old men can be so dreadful at times."

"Well yes, but that's what you have me for," Waver broke in, unamusedly gesturing at the stacks of paper that said politicking had resulted in. Really, he was going to have to assign Tohsaka to clerical work the next time her actions nearly caused a disaster.

"...well, yes, but you've also made a reputation as someone who can't be cowed easily, so they try to bother me with their boorish antics," the young woman groused, seeming a little agitated, since she didn't enjoy the false flattery and jockeying for favours they engaged in. "But well, since this is your fault again, I thought I'd have you make it up to, since you did swear to serve me for the rest of your life."

A slow shaking of the head.

"...and what do you wish of me that you couldn't get from anyone else...Luna?" the lecturer asked pointedly, a tiny frown creasing his lips.

"Something unconventional, something different...!" the blonde demanded, stamping her foot. "Something that isn't the corridors of the Tower, or a place with nobles. I mean, it's not that I want to go somewhere with you or anything, I just thought it'd be convenient since you're in this stuffy office all day."

"Something not related to magecraft, I suppose?"

"Please."

Wracking his brain for something, he seemed to remember flyers he'd seen around London advertising events, two of which sounded interesting in particular.

"Well, there is a new exhibition at the Barbican Centre which opens today," he noted, trying to recall the details. "If I remember, its about the Digital Revolution."

"...digi-tal?"

"Oh, you know, art, music, games--"

"Oh, you mean like that delightful thing you had me play. Journey, I think it was!" the Archibald heiress exclaimed, clapping her hands.

"Yes. Just so," Waver answered, smiling despite himself. Luna always had the ability to get him excited even when he didn't want to be - which probably boded ill for who wore the pants in their relationship, but he'd never held illusions about that. "Then after that, perhaps we could enjoy an evening of classical music at the BBC Proms at Royal Albert Hall?"

The world's largest music festival, featuring the finest orchestras and performers from around the globe, it was not something to missed.

"Its a date then! Let's go," she said, grabbing his arm and dragging him out the door.

Perhaps not too surprisingly for someone on the arm of lovely, enthusiastic young woman, Waver chose not to complain. Besides, it might even be fun.

Because this game is awesome and you should feel ashamed of yourself if you never played it.

Seriously though, why this game never got a sequel, or why Gene wasn't in the MvC3 roster for that matter? Just look at him, prime Crossover character material.

Because I found a nice picture of Altrouge and Murderdoge that I had nowhere to post. And, well, since syuget(s)u's old site is kill I figured I'd put up what I have of the DAA set somewhere, in case anyone hasn't seen it yet despite them being default avatar options. Speaking of which, were some of those designed solely as avatars*, or are there bigger versions sitting about in a dusty old HDD somewhere? *hinthint*

TATARI, Zelretch et al. have fanclubs already, so I skip them in the imagedump. I don't really think that people draw ORT enough for it to need a separate fanclub, but I digress.














inb4 FC's over, everybody go home. Even if it's sorta true.

Look at this once verdant field, now barren. Why? because we do nothing about the scourge! The scorge of cow abduction!
That's why I'm here today to inform you good people. To warn you! And after I have taught you of this horrible, horrible, problem,
I hope you will inform your freinds and families. And that they will do the same.

Please visit this website for more information.

Remember, only you can stop cow abductions.

I can't stop watching
(Share some good ones.)

*Fate/Heaven's Gate*

RP IRC

It was January 16, 2007 AD, two weeks before the incident that would become infamous in the Moonlit World as the Fifth Fuyuki Grail War. Four times before, a cataclysmic struggle had been fought for the sake of a wish, each occurrence spaced an even span of three-score years from one another - yet this had come in merely half a score. It was odd, unusual - unprecedented - and that made people worry. People like Tohsaka Rin, the Second Owner of Fuyuki, whose father had died in battle against the dread Witch of Calamity and her Servant, the BEAST, and had taken to the bottle like a fish to water in an effort to soothe away those memories. People like the Emiya Shirou, the adopted son of the Magus Killer, who knew of how the vessel could corrupt wishes after it had been cursed by the dying Witch - and who himself was part of that cursed legacy. People like Sajyou Ayaka, an Agent of Atlas and unfortunate sister of the late Witch of Calamity, who had returned to the town she left shortly after the War in order to monitor the situation.

All had powerful emotional stakes in the confrontation to come, with their Fate to be bound up in the events of those winter nights.

Of course, there were others involved in this, though they did not quite know all the details...

Matou Sakura, heiress to the ancient Matou clan, who was determined to make a name for herself and overtake her once-sister as the strongest magus in all of Fuyuki. Illyasaviel von Einzbern, the perfect homunculus, who sought answers from her father for why he had abandoned her - and of course, no small bit of vengeance. Bazett Fraga McRemitz, an Enforcer of the Asssociation, whose only wish was to save Cu Chulainn from his cruel fate. Luviagelita Edelfelt, heiress to the family styled the elegant hyenas of the battlefield, who wished to reclaim the half of the Crest stolen from her family during the Third War....

And these were just the magi.

For there were mundanes too, to whom the Grail had whispered, or whose fates were tangled up with the others.

Himuro Kane, President of the Homurabara Student Council and the best friend of Tohsaka Rin. Matou Shinji, the true son of the Matou family, who had cast aside magecraft as a useless tool and sought favor and power in the modern world. Mitsuzuri Ayako, Captain of the Archery club to which Shirou belonged, his best friend and would be lover. Ryuudou Issei, whose father and brother had died in a mysterious incident that prompted him to return from the circus to become the head of the temple. Kuzuki Souchirou - teacher to all of the Fuyuki magi mentioned, and former assassin of the Organization. Seo Akira, a university student at Kyoto and closet seer.

...and of course, Yumizuka Satsuki, the bad luck vampire, who was getting more and more desperate - or perhaps just more and more hungry.

But something happened that night - perhaps a rift opened between worlds - perhaps Yog-Sothoth had twisted about in his slumber and bent the rules of reality. And whatever it was, these denizens of the Moonlit world were about to receive....rather unexpected visitors.

Our story begins that wintry night, with...

Emiya Shirou (Mooncake) taking a nap after a long day of school and work, grimacing and twitching in his sleep as he dreamed of shadow and flame, and of a black sword with red traceries splitting the night. His head rests, of course, on the lap of his best friend...

Mitsuzuri Ayako (Kuroyuki), whose fingers errantly run through his hair as she sleeps with her back against the wall. She too is tired after a long day at the Archery Club, and of course, after their vigorous activities in the kitchen. Dinner time was always a big deal around the Emiya household - or at least Ayako made it so, as she knew that without that, Shirou would simply be alone. He was popular with people for his talent - a bit too popular with girls, she thought - but he never really noticed them, his attention elsewhere as if he was part of a different world. Sometimes she thought she could understand him - but she knew it was better just to stay by his side, and so she did - while her brother slaved away cleaning up the kitchen and scrubbing the house clean. She normally brought him along to prevent interference from that homewrecker...

Matou Sakura (Mormarth), who was not at the Emiya place that night, citing family obligations. In actuality, she is making various potions and taking care of other preparations before the Fifth War. She is scheduled to meet with Zouken about a catalyst and participation in this event - and has managed to gain some measure of approval from him due to her willingness to fight. She desires to claim Emiya Shirou for her own, but that desire is secondary to winning the Grail War and being recognized as one of the pre-eminent magi in the world. Not a Matou by blood, she took the position of heiress from...

Matou Shinji (Soldat der Trauer), leader of the Drama Club, who is having a late dinner at school after resolving a few interclub disputes and some other various business. The essence of power is not just in appearances - it also requires a decent amount of hard work. Though of course, there are perks as well, such as being able to decide what play or show to put on. This year, it is Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, a piece well-known to even people in Japan, who recognize the name of the Bard as iconically English. He desires that level of fame, of recognition - and so has taken some steps towards this. As such, his Juliet (in exchange for him doing some student council work) and current dining companion is...

Himuro Kane (Bloble), daughter of the Fuyuki Mayor, President of the Student Council, infamous love detective, Tohsaka Rin's best friend...and Matou Shinji's love interest. She rules the student body with...a surprisingly deft touch for someone who just wanted to be an artist, but given her heritage, it wasn't too surprising. While Emiya Shirou may be considered the face of sports at the school, and Matou Shinji the face of cultural and other activities, she is considered the face of the school itself, who others tend to defer to. Amusingly enough, she is more popular than...

Tohsaka Rin (Dark Pulse), Fuyuki's Second Owner, and once the great idol of Homurabara, before Matou Sakura began attending the school and grabbed attention for her exotic hair color and temperament. Nervous about the events of the past, worried about Emiya Shirou's intentions (she believes that he is waiting for her to confront him in his workshop, where he will have the advantage and be able to slay her), and uncertain of the future, she has turned to drinking as a sedative. Vain about her image, she doesn't want anyone else to see her drink, so this evening, she is laying on her couch, drinking alone as she peruses a copy of an old text called the Al Azif...

Illyasviel von Einzbern (Rin-chan Kaihou), as of the moment, is savouring the pleasures of food outside the Einzbern castle. Specifically, she is at Hongzhou Feast Hall: Taishan, enjoying a plate of mapo tofu, alongside some handdrawn noodles with oxtail. It is her first time away from the Einzbern estate, and she is carefully keeping an eye on the events in Fuyuki. Things are not quite...as she expected, and this worries her. One of the most worrying things is that she has not seen Kiritsugu, and after the trouble she went through to be seen in conspicuous places....

Sajyou Ayaka (mangafreak7793), on the other hand, is simply resting at home, editing some of her observations to report to her superior, Sion Eltnam Atlasia, Director of Atlas Academy. She has been in Fuyuki for two years now, watching for signs of abnormalities, but nothing has been confirmed - yet - except for increased ley line activity. An on the ground has its uses, after all...

Luvia Edelfelt (TheMegas) is in her workshop at the Clock Tower, going over some correspondence with...

Bazett Fraga McRemitz (Mellon), who is en route back to Ireland to summon her Servant, flying business class, of course.

Issei Ryuudou (Caster), is in his cell at the temple, meditating to purge his mind of all worldly desires after a day around the vixens (school girls) of Homurabara Academy. This is needful if he is to get into a mindset where he can serve as a channel for powers greater than himself, to be invoked through the sacrifice of blood. Teaching the students of Homurabara's drama club how to wield rapier and dagger has been a trying exercise, to say the least, and Shinji's enthusiasm is often a bit hard to deal with, but well, that's what friends were for, he supposed.

Kuzuki Souchirou (Milbunk) is enjoying a drink on a calm evening in Georgia, away from the shenanigans in Fuyuki. He sits down to a glass of Khvanchkara, a delicious semi-sweet red wine from one of the oldest wine growing regions in the world, accompanied by Fydzhin, a traditional meat pie made with a mix of minced beef and pork, as well as a refreshing bowl of soup made of new potatoes, cheese, sour cream and dill. It is fortunate that tensions with Russia have not yet errupted in to war...

Seo Akira (Usandru) of course, is currently standing in a graveyard next to her roommate Akemi Yamase, who chants from a grimoire under the silver moon, with the corpse of a recently killed cat in front of her. Both are students at Kyoto University, with Akira studying linguistics, while Yamase is looking into Anatomy, and has perhaps an unhealthy interest in the occult since the disappearance of her sister.

Yumizuka Satsuki (Jormungandr) has broken into a zoo and is drinking the blood from a recently killed panda, after she lost control from being so very hungry. It is filling for a time - but not what what she truly craves - not...human.

---

Emiya Residence, Fuyuki
January 16, 2007 AD 11:11 PM

Mitsuzuri Minori was not particularly happy with how he'd - once again - gotten stuck with cleaning up after his sister and Emiya Shirou. If sis was going to use this time to get closer to Shirou, she could at least have left him out of it, instead of treating him like a servant. Granted, the Blind Archer of Fuyuki was one of Ayako's oldest friends, but he couldn't shake the feeling that Shirou was taking advantage of his sister for a cooking service or something. Surely no one could think that someone would stay by his side for that long as just a friend?

'Or maybe he's just that dense. I mean, he is blind...'

He cut himself off there, as his unkind thoughts really wouldn't be fair to Shirou, blind people, or such. It was true that Shirou had been through a lot, and he didn't think that the Blind Archer asked for any of the attention he got, but still...he was a little protective of his sister.

'At least sometimes when she brings me, Matou Sakura shows up..."

He had a kind of goofy grin on his face at the thought of the stern, purple-haired girl...who also had a crush on Shirou, or so it seemed. At least Ayako usually made him run interference with Sakura, a role he secretly relished, for who else got to see the idol in a non-school setting?

'I don't know how the Matous do it, but they seem to be perfect at everything...'

Grades, charisma, Sakura's cur--his mind screeched to a halt as he took a deep breath, steadying himself as he put the last of the pots, pans and dishes back, and packed lunch for tomorrow. Chicken Katsu Curry Udon with a side of gyoza for dinner, beef sukiyaki for tomorrow, and of course rice - everything was aromatic and beautifully made, but a pain to clean up after. Especially curry.

Sakura hadn't come today though, and his sister and Shirou were both asleep - and he knew how cranky Ayako got if he just woke her up.

"I guess I'll just go home first, and leave a note. She'll probably be safe staying the night."

---

Mountaintop Graveyard
Kyoto, Japan
January, 16 2007 11:11 PM

Save for the presence of two college-aged women, the mountain was deserted, just as Akemi Yamase desired. It wouldn't do for others to witness the dread rituals she was to perform here, after all, as she sliced her palm and let blood drip down onto the ground, in a pattern had defined earlier. This was it - that which would prove her worthy of continuing her craft.

Her catalysts - bone dust, spirit essence, the blood of a virgin - had all been prepared, as had a suitable vessel, and now she chanted, with the wind whipping about her under the light of the moon, her hair wild and untamed, like the robe she wore.

"Blood and bone be the essence,
Earth as the clay to fill the flesh
May the darkness below be the darkness above
and the breath without become the breath within.
May the gates close - may the Will be invoked
may the cycle be overturned at last."

Her eyes were bright, almost too bright, as the blood she spilled began to glow, reacting with the catalyst she had used in a reaction of raw power.

"I declare this now - that your flesh will serve me,
your fate will be bound to mine
Submit to my call, from the world beneath
by the power of blood and spirit ties, now I decree...
...Undead Rise!"

...light shone both from the catalyst and from her grimoire - and when it faded...

"Meow," came a cry from Akemi Yamase's feet - when a creature once dead moved again. She'd followed the instructions of the book - and it had worked, just as V-san had written.

"It worked," she panted out raggedly, looking over at the friend she'd brought along. "Akira-chan, see? I wasn't lying. It works! I can do magic - I can bring back my sister!"

---

Location Unknown

In a pure white room, the Lady Amber sat in her chair, petting the white animal in her lap. It had been some time ago that she'd risen to power as the leader of a new faction, and since, she'd reached out to others who she'd found of interest. People in Mifune, Misaki, Fuyuki and others - people that could help her fight back the encroachment of Entropy.

"Yes, Inky-san?" she asked, looking over a great map of the region with her available assets displayed. Those bound by Contract, Oath, or Lien - or by lesser ties like friendship. She would need them in the event the worst should happen.

"The artifact is present and intact, but appears to be activating ahead of schedule," the creature responded telepathically. "I had not thought humans had mastered the art of Wishcraft, most fascinating. Wish-fulfillment is but a secondary function, similar to my own. The energy buildup is likely to serve a different purpose, though its current nature is unknown. Residual data does not match the residue of any known Witch."

"Fufu, is that so?" the redhead spoke, her golden eyes looking off into the distance. "Well, I suppose you would know the feel of a Witch best, Inky-san. Thank you. But perhaps it is time we contact our student, since it is better to have eyes on scene, so to speak."

She smiled then, a bloodless, hollow thing.

"After all, information is our trade - and debts must be repaid."