| Let's try this dance again, Skull Kid~!; [Ask First] | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Nov 21 2013, 08:30 PM (541 Views) | |
| The One True Nobody | Nov 21 2013, 08:30 PM Post #1 |
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"...does this clockwork hand follow you... or guide you?"
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This thread takes place in the ruins, a few hours after Scavenging Corpses and the private message exchange that followed. --- Bored. Bored. Bored, bored, bored. The red-eyed entity still wore that stupid, uncomfortable mask, was still clad in a men's jacket, a torn-up men's shirt that was bloodied near the midriff and exposed its own mildly-muscled but unmistakably feminine stomach... the shreds of fabric that had once been the bottom half of the shirt (also bloodied) currently comprised its makeshift mask. Shadow Kyo had spawned wearing a ridiculous, revealing black lingerie-thing, but it was too cold down here for that kind of outfit, not to mention... bluh. She understood the significance of that, but if she was in this for the long haul, she needed something warmer. The heating in the ruins wasn't exactly in top working condition. So the masked apparition strolled along the hallway, its faintly-glowing eyes flat and dull with boredom, its mind full of things, annoying things, things it wanted gone, dead, vaporized from its consciousness in the most brutal way possible. But that wasn't likely to happen anytime soon, so it needed to find something fun to do. It had thought about fighting Shadows... but unlike the "her" outside, Shadow Kyo didn't have access to easy healing, or at least, it didn't unless it was fortunate enough to stumble on a Sleeping Manta or something, and no such luck today. Most of the Shadows didn't even feel an urge to attack it, so in most cases the Unremitting Doppelganger could just stroll on by. And in any case, Shadow Kyo didn't really feel in a fighting mood. Didn't really feel in the mood for much of anything it knew "she" usually did for kicks, either. Even what little food it had managed to get from that Wei fellow hadn't been satisfying in the slightest. The most satisfying things so far had been those private message exchanges. Oooh, it had sent goosebumps up and down her spine just thinking what Kazue might be wondering about this mysterious unknown troll who somehow knew who to contact about that power. The exchange with "FriendOfAFriend" hadn't been quite so... fun, but in its own way, that had been entertaining, too. As Shadow Kyo walked, it found itself pulling the phone out of its pocket again, contemplating whether or not it should turn it back on, pester another of those idiots who called themselves a friend of "her." But it needed to be careful... if it overplayed its hand, it would give itself away too soon. And the Persona-users of Bedlam wouldn't be happy to know a Shadow had access to their little forum, would they? No, no they would not. Probably wouldn't believe her if she said she didn't give a rat's ass about Miss Yellow or whoever the fuck, either. Really, it was fortunate that Ng Wei was such an opportunistic scoundrel... The Shadow's attention was pulled away from the phone in its hand by a voice from further along in the direction it was already heading... a voice it recognized! A voice whose owner the Shadow really didn't like! In fact, it figured it'd quite enjoy beating that person's smug face in. Yeah. So it decided to go do that! It pocketed the phone, cracked its knuckles, and picked up the pace. --- "Woo~!" Shane Spencer's blue longcoat flapped behind him as he rolled down a long incline in one of the first floor's less vanilla passageways: this appeared to be some kind of medical ward, specifically designed for actually treating people instead of just performing medical experiments, because what intact technology was down here all looked pretty benign, and a few of the offices were just standard doctor's offices. It seemed a bit excessive for what it was--a lot of the rooms also seemed to repeat in a weird way--but it was a part of the ruins that Shane could pass through without having to ignore any disturbing thoughts about what might or might not have gone down. But since it was a downhill passage, why waste such a perfectly good opportunity to abuse office equipment? So: he was surfing down the hallway. On an office-chair, crouched so that his head wouldn't bump the ceiling as he went. Air, floor, walls, doors--all rushed past in a glorious... rush of rushiness. Yeah. About three quarters of the way down, one of the open doors ahead produced a familiar shape: a putridly-striped round creature whose bulbous, balloon-like body was dominated by a large-lipped mouth, teeth, and a gargantuan tongue. It shot straight for him, and he was rolling straight towards it, and... ...and he leapt backward off the office chair, kicking it forward and going into a backflip. As the world spun around him, Shane flicked a hand at the bottom of the chair, firing off a Force-magic Summoned Sword, which blasted the office chair off the ground, into the air--and with its admirable amount of gathered momentum, the office chair collided with the Switching Hablerie's "forehead," if the space above its mouth could be referred to as anything. A flying office chair isn't exactly something you or anyone, man, beast, or Shadow, wants crashing into their forehead. The green-and-yellow abomination might as well have been blasted out of the air by a goddamned cannonball. It bounced and spun out, bashed into the wall, bounced off the that, hit the floor, bounced off of that, and came to a dazed, skidding halt on the linoleum floor, where it lay alive, but quite inert. Shane landed like a cat, albeit a somewhat clumsy one. He landed on one knee and one hand, at any rate. "...Heh," he chuckled. "Jackpot." |
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| Nonsequitur | Nov 29 2013, 06:05 PM Post #2 |
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Yellow Bubblegum
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It wasn't that long until her last time in the ruins. It wasn't the most pleasant of outings. Though it did prove fruitful as her companions found a document while they were hoping to rescue her. The cost was less than ideal: Chika's Arm, and Toru Motou's leg. Even if both were partially regained… She didn't have much time for thought. The woman came to the ruins as she a;ways did. In old clothes that offered freedom of movement, body armor and with a sawed-off shotgun. Her tactical vest now carried a truncheon and a first aid kit, both useful as lessons from her last time there had taught her. There was quite a commotion to her right. Enough that Maki decided to investigate just what was its source. She approached cautiously not sure what to expect in the ruins. |
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| The One True Nobody | Nov 29 2013, 10:24 PM Post #3 |
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"...does this clockwork hand follow you... or guide you?"
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As Maki came into view of the scene, Shane straightened up. "Heh," he said, dusting off the tail of his coat. "You're pretty bold there, Mouthy. You could play Chicken with the best of 'em. Does help much when something bigger than you comes barreling in. I don't need to play Chicken, you see." Shane turned around to face the Switching Hablerie, which hovered slowly up, off the ground, swaying in a dazed way as it did. It was between Maki and Shane, but it seemed to have very little intention of actually fighting Shane. Maybe it overestimated his strength... or maybe it had simply seen or heard Maki's approach (how it would do either of those things without eyes or ears was a mystery not even God could possibly solve), because abruptly it shot forward through the air--away from Shane, and toward the corner around which Maki would have to turn to join the fray. "Hey! Where the hell do you think you're going--" Shane began to protest, holding out a hand to created another Summoned Sword. He didn't have a chance to fire it off, though, because that was when a bolt of lightning, purple lightning, shot down the hallway and struck Shane dead in the back. His entire body seized up, he tried to scream but couldn't, and then he collapsed to the ground like a pile of bricks, twitching. The Hablerie's first act upon coming up in front of Maki would be to lick her face. This would deal some Dark damage, but, more importantly, it would leave a sticky coat of purple ooze on her face and hair... provided it hit, of course. |
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| Nonsequitur | Nov 29 2013, 11:02 PM Post #4 |
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Yellow Bubblegum
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Maki had been ready for anything. Well, nearly anything. Upon sight of the abnormally colored variant of a normal Shadow, she raised her gun and fired. There was a blast, and a report. It was a bit more resilient than what she was expecting of it's weaker cousins. The result? A bit of dark damage and covered in a film of purple mucus. Foul, and unpleasant but not beyond the pale as far as what could happen to one in the ruins. "Spencer? Is that you?" His personality could have used some work, but the blue-haired young man could be relied upon to know what he was doing, at least. |
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| The One True Nobody | Nov 29 2013, 11:58 PM Post #5 |
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"...does this clockwork hand follow you... or guide you?"
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The Hablerie managed to skirt to the side just before its tongue came in contact with Maki's face: the shotgun only caught it with a glancing hit, and the Hablerie was diverted from its course, a scorched tear in its right side the only thing Maki had to show for her attack; immediately, the creature halted in mid-air, did an about-face, and zipped back through the air, toward the downed teenager. Shane, for his part, was doing his best to push himself up, but he was also choking. He could feel a stinging burn in his back, and reflexively, he tried to reach around to touch it with his hand, but the two swords on his back--the broadsword, and the spare katana--were in the way. Or maybe they'd conducted some of the electricity, he couldn't be sure. Panting, Shane looked up, just in time to see the Hablerie speeding toward him. "Ggh--!" he grunted, summoning a small Vital Star and crushing it in his fist, spreading healing energy through his body. He wanted to find the source of that electric spell, but the Hablerie was bearing down on him, it required his full attention. If he could maneuver around so that this Shadow was between him and his attacker--! "Yeah, it's me, I could use a little--!" The boy stumbled to his feet, moving to run past the Hablerie. He swung a fist, hoping to bat the monster aside, but its tongue hit his hand first. And then he was suddenly holding a shotgun, and his voice sounded strangely... strange as he completed the statement: "--help here!" Shane blinked several times, glancing left and right. He was on his feet, he was holding a shotgun? He was... wait, hang on. There was something strange in his shirt. The boy let go of the gun with one hand and reached up to the chest pocket, wait, why did he suddenly have a chest pocket? Where was his coat? He lowered his hand, gripped the gun again-- --and then he realized what he'd felt beneath the shirt. He hadn't actually noticed it at first because despite the strangeness he felt, feeling it there on his body had felt as natural as feeling his own nose on his face... to his hand, at least. That was when Shane reached up to feel his face. Or rather, her face. And froze, his mind blank with shock. As for Maki? Well, she was suddenly mid-run past a Switching Hablerie, bearing a long, blue leather coat, two swords on her back, and a significantly different body. |
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| Nonsequitur | Nov 30 2013, 12:25 AM Post #6 |
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Yellow Bubblegum
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Obviously the first chance she got, Maki reloaded and prepared to fire again, she held when she saw the full scene, which was a very, very good thing. One moment, she is looking at Shane Spencer, freshly attacked by the Shadow that did the same to her. The next she is staring at apparently herself as she finished Shane's statement. As she watched this, she realized something, her point of observation was a bit off and her…was it her body? It felt heavier, a bit awkward at the moment as she looked down at the larger paler hands and the blue coat collars. This, combined with the reaction of her own body left her to suspect something. "…Spencer-san? It would appear that this Shadow has caused us to switch bodies." Maki had realized the ruins were a strange place, populated by strange beings. This one was new. But she'd seen enough old cheesy sci-fi and horror films to have a slight familiarity with the concept. Form is meaningless before purpose, defeat the Shadow, worry about the rest later! The body was not hers, but at least Xie Zhai was with her. And at least Merv Griffith was not involved, either. |
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| The One True Nobody | Dec 2 2013, 06:33 PM Post #7 |
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"...does this clockwork hand follow you... or guide you?"
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The calm statement of the ridiculous was enough to jolt Shane out of his (or her?) blank shock, and he spluttered, in Maki's voice, "You think?!" and then he rushed out into the open, leveling the shotgun. "Hey, you fucking rubber ball, put us back in our bodies! Can you understand me?! I will blow you to chunks if you don't... oh what am I saying, of course you don't understand me--" And of course it didn't understand him, because all his shouting did was momentarily confuse it--which enemy did it blast with magic now that everyone was all confused by the switch from one body to the next? This gave Shane an opening to summon Yamato--Maki's face probably looked quite strange with those blue-tinted sunglasses on, and in fact they weren't even properly fitted to her head; they fell a bit low on the nose, so that her eyes peeked over the top instead of through them. As the phantasmal Persona materialized above Shane, the Hablerie made its decision, turning toward Maki (as in, the person currently inside Shane's body) and opening up its mouth. A swirl of green wind, and almost point-blank Garula spell, gathered... Shane, panicking, thrust out his hand and sent a spinning Summoned Sword at the monster, but not in time to prevent the wind spell from firing off. So, first there was a potent blast of green wind directed at Maki, and then a blue sword made of Force magic sent the Shadow bouncing away again. And while this went on, the masked, feminine figure with the glowing red eyes casually walked down the hallway toward the ensuing fight. It came to a halt, just two feet away from where the Switching Hablerie bumped the lefthand wall and hovered, dizzied by the attack. "...Huh," said the red-eyed thing, reaching up to scratch at its nose through the fabric of the mask, other hand still in her pocket. "Body switching. What'll they think of next, yeah?" |
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| Nonsequitur | Dec 2 2013, 07:05 PM Post #8 |
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Yellow Bubblegum
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"Don't kill it yet, we'll likely need it to reverse this…process." Was she happy about now occupying the body of the teenaged boy? Why of course not. But as Maki understood it, there were more immediate concerns than existential crises. The incoming Garu spell, for one. Her own mask was not at all a comfortable fit for Shane Spencer's face. But in a flash she'd cast a Sukukaja spell upon herself and found Shane Spencer's motor memories were very different than her own. When a simple 'move out of the way' would have sufficed, before she knew it she rolled into a partial handstand that had Shane's body vaulting aside from the blast with a flourish. It was probably fun to watch, but in Maki's opinion impractical to the point of bordering on idiocy. "I see. It's you again." She was sure she saw a hint of red eyes during her ordeal with the Agent, but now she had a very clear look at the apparently feminine Shadow. "What is it you want, exactly?" If things go south, she only had swords to rely on while stuck in Shane's body. A half-dozen years of Kendo over a decade behind her with how to most effectively use them, great… |
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| The One True Nobody | Dec 6 2013, 05:27 AM Post #9 |
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"...does this clockwork hand follow you... or guide you?"
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Shane's reflex would normally have involved drawing his sword and pointing it; as it was, his body acted on its own--just about as quickly as his own one would have--but it did something else completely: it hefted the shotgun up and held it in a practiced, two-handed grip leveled at the red-eyed Shadow's torso. The Shadow in question stared at him, and looked at Maki, then shrugged. "What do I want? Not much," the Shadow said, shrugging its shoulders in a careless way, lazily walking past the downed Hablerie. "I have a score to settle with Coatrack there, but if you two've switched bodies, that's my fun for the day down the drain. You have no idea how dull it is being stuck down here with nothing to do and no way out!" As the tongue-monster started to stir, the red-eyed doppelganger stopped... and then began to fall backward... and then it landed in a sitting position atop the monster's rubbery, balloon-ball body, patting the side of it with a faintly-glowing hand. "Relax there, baby, no need to attack the big, scary humans~" the Shadow cooed, in a playful voice. "They just don't know what it's like, being a construct made of people's smelly, unkosher thoughts. Go to sleep, I'll take care of you~" Dormina, of course. Dormina magic, injected into the monster directly through the doppelganger's hand. As the Hablerie's struggling motions slowed and eventually, ceased--had it truly fallen asleep? It was difficult to tell with a creature that lacked eyes--Shane lifted the shotgun a little higher. "I've never seen you before in my life, babycakes. And I'd remember a pair of knockers like those. Probably," he said lazily. And then: "...No, I probably wouldn't. But I'm pretty sure I'd remember the glowing red eyes and bloodstained clothes parts. So, who are you again?" The red-eyed girl's red eyes twinkled, and she held a finger up to the place where her lips probably were beneath the mask. There was an audible smirk in her tone as she answered in a stage-whisper: "Spoilers..." |
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| Nonsequitur | Dec 13 2013, 10:16 PM Post #10 |
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Yellow Bubblegum
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She had hoped to settle this with the Hablere with a Marin Karin, followed by a demand it reverses whatever it did to them. Unfortunately that wasn't an option when it was asleep. So that meant they were momentarily stuck. "Spencer-san, do not say such things with my mouth in the future, would you? I would greatly appreciate it." Now, back to the red eyed Shadow. "No, I am afraid I can't say that I do. Usually when I'm here I'm too busy worrying for my own safety or expecting to stumble upon the remains of some unfortunate that was killed before help could have arrived." Fortunately, for the sake of Shane's reputation, Maki intentionally avoided feminine gestures when she meant 'business' which is why in Shane's body she stood with her arms folded. She glanced over at her and thought. Well, the possibility was that this was a doppelganger of someone sort. She understood the varieties of Shadows that assumed the form of people found there were numerous and they were all relatively sophisticated too. Even if this was the same one that helped her when she was dealing with the Agent it would have been foolish to assume no Shadows were hostile until she was presented with overwhelming proof to the contrary. Judging by her body shape there were few women that height and with those measurements. She also complained of boredom. She…she couldn't put away the possibility that this Shadow was related to Kyo Charinko. She'd once idly speculated a Shadow that had access to her memories and experiences was the one harassing her, but now she was glad she wore a full-face mask that gave her a good poker face. "What would you like us to refer to you as, then?" She waved Shane down. Diplomacy might have won the day this time. At the very least, she could have confirmed with borrowed ears and another's eyes if this red-eyed Shadow really was related Kyo Charinko or not. "Spencer-san? I don't think we'll be needing the gun for the time being." |
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