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Post by Zane on Jan 6, 2021 17:57:53 GMT -8
At first the floor seemed empty, as if the great pressure from on high was just a false alarm. A trick of the mind very likely that just hadn't occurred here. And yet the weight in the air began to return slowly but surely, threatening to collapse everything around them from the gathered might. For what one alone could do, now over a dozen were capable of doing. And the voice echoed from within the chambers yet again, amusement ringing in his tone.
"You need only advance a couple of floors now to come face to face with the failure of a Mother. You need only overcome the children she had according to her whims. You should at the very least be capable of that much, correct? Or am I asking too much of you? If so... then you certainly will have been a waste of time on our part."
At first it was but one divinity that began to spark forth with a powerful blaze. Surrounded by spiraling flames as a piercing gaze shone forth from the being wreathed in red and black. The first of the power that Feint had seen Burai display, Apollo Flame in his entirety. Four more followed suit, having a difference in color and some features to show their differences from the first son of the Great Being. Five more would do so, and then ten more as each of them arrived in their entirety. There was but one being that was different than the now gathered twenty that were here... a stark contrast from the others at that. Like gazing into a mirror except without, the last of the now twenty one grand figures here would be of Burai himself.
This was to be the ordeal of the second floor. An ordeal that almost anyone would shirk from. An ordeal that anyone should shirk from. But it was one that they weren't allowed to shirk from. So their options were laid out for them plain and simple: to topple the divinities or be cast to the wayside like all the others who would dare such a challenge.
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Post by Gaia on Jan 8, 2021 21:58:01 GMT -8
#s://cdn~discordapp~com/attachments/340189121500938240/728347473344725113/113~png At first, Burai felt perplexed, unsure of why the room felt so empty of the power he felt from down below - it felt reminiscent of some previous thoughts he had, and remembered the words shared between him and Xion of some of their new capabilities.
The cackling laughter from on high reminded him, though, that such thoughts were foolish. What followed was a crushing weight that began with the arrival of the first.
He arrived in the form of sparks. Motes of fire crackling and sending cinders into the air, appearing from nothing, before the sparks ignited the air into a conflagration in the shape of a man. The flames burned brighter and solidified as the first of the divine took form in all of his glory: Apollo Flame.
The first time Burai fought Apollo Flame, he was alone, but he was still a dangerous endeavor. He alone had the power to wipe out an entire world, capable of summoning a literal sun into his palm and using it as a weapon. The weight that followed after his arrival, his own presence already crushing, confirmed that this would not be that kind of endeavor. They were fighting not against one divinity, but multiples.
Mirroring Apollo Flame, motes of moonlight descended and took form from the reflective surface as Artemis Quarry, goddess of the hunt. While Apollo lacked his bow, she did not, and her flowing black hair reflected the starlight she gained from her brother's prominence. A thunderous peal and a flash of lightning brought with it the crisp scent of fresh ozone as Zeus Surge took into being, his illustrious form channeled with electricity several feet above the temple's floor.
Whatever moisture in the air that wasn't choked out by Apollo's presence converged into a single point and gave way to a giant spout of water, which solidified and gained features to form Poseidon Torrent, wielding a terrible trident from his in the center of his own personal whirlpool. From the minerals of his waters, a great grove of trees erupted, and the trees converged into a single point from which their vines and roots grew into Demeter Bloom, the personification of the wilds wielding a terrible sickle to reap her harvest.
From the uprooted trees, the very stone seemed to move and give way, as the floor rose up and took humanoid form that towered over the rest of the gods gathered by twofold; meaning that the colossal form of Atlas Monolith dwarfed the three gathered against them. From the long shadow he cast in Apollo's radiance, a dark set of red eyes gleamed forward, and the shadows shifted and moved like a river to rise up and form Hades Gloom, adorned with a horrible helmet that spread fear like waves.
The raw divine power in the air seemed to call another into being, as the energy radiated from each of them intensified and then erupted into a large flash, Hera Potence forming close at hand to Zeus Surge, her mighty scepter wielded in her hand as she radiated divine power, looking down on them condescendingly. As these beings of pure divinity gathered, a dark calling pulled within Xion's own soul, as the darkness of his own heart felt small and betrayed. From the depths of his own soul, three ephemeral flames were lit, and took form into an ominous candle that floated just out of his reach. Flitting away, the candle suddenly appeared in the hands of she who carried it, a woman with flesh like twilight: Nyx Void, the epitome of darkness herself. She carried her mystical candle aloft as she rose, seemingly tethered to Xion's own darkness, and yet carrying a depth of her own that he could not fathom. In a word, it was humbling; it was terrifying. Her eyes were covered, as though she could not see.
A chilling winter breeze carried along with it the winter princess, a beauty of snow and rime, Khione Frost, with a blizzard raging around her that contested the solar prominence radiated by Apollo. The leftovers of her breeze did not peter away, but continued to kick up into a powerful tornado that produced a daring runner, a god that was different across timelines, as the Murian aspect of wind in this world was instead Hermes Burst; a running figure with wings on his feet and a curved helm to grant him ease of movement, the deity seemed in constant motion, vibrating even when standing otherwise still. From the light of Hera Potence and Zeus Surge, more of the divine were wrought: A puddle of purple liquid gave way to a large drinking flask, from which Dionysus Bile ascended, using the flask much as a genie would their lamp and with laurels of grape vines covering his form; Athena Pierce and Ares Cleave appeared as an illustrious duo, one crimson and the other sapphire, Ares Cleave wielding a mighty sword alongside his shield and Athena Pierce with a great spear alongside her own; a crashing meteor of pure metal descending from on high broke down and transformed before their very eyes, the plates of metal shifting and moving to reveal the form of Hephaestus Alloy underneath, his multifaceted armor constantly shifting and his horse stance dominated by the mighty hammer he wielded.
Walking from the shadow of the other divinities, a hulking mass of what appeared to be sentient muscle, Heracles Brawn walked forward with nothing more than his rippling muscular system and his own two fists to use to pound them into oblivion with. Not too far behind him, coming off from the shoals of Poseidon Torrent's waves, was a beauty beyond compare; a beauty that in each of their eyes appeared different, but the beauty of Aphrodite Choir was not to be denied, and yet no two people could admire it the same.
Finally, from the light radiating from Apollo Flame off of Poseidon Torrent's whirlpool, a great rainbow cast. From this rainbow fell two women, one dressed in incandescent robes of scintillating hues and rainbow eyes that denoted her as Iris Radiance, and the other with black flowing robes that seemed to shimmer and rearrange constantly that denoted her as Hecate Mirage.
They all possessed the same basic regalia as Apollo Flame, with the motifs of spikes and regal attire covering a body of black trim colored to match their dominion. None of them possessed the same unique quality; Apollo Flame had the powerful prominence that circled around him without end. Poseidon Torrent was immersed in a gigantic whirlpool. The lower half of Dionysus Bile was suspended in his drinking mug. The differences continue down the line, each one important in knowing how to fight the divinities they represented.
The weight in the room was choking, but Burai somehow found the strength to speak, as the conglomerate force of 20 divinities stared them down. The added effect of what remained of this world's version of himself, the Murian's last survivor, just reminded him that they had breached every possible limitation, and recreated life with their efforts. His blood didn't feel like it had the room to boil any further.
Apollo Flame's presence could do that.
"Each of the Murian Divinities represent a different aspect of the world they inhabit - the essential elements of the powers that be. They will represent the apex of the elements of power available to the Navis of your world.
"Their control of these elements is not simply to be explained as mastery - they control it as a dominion. It is their power, and before them, no one else can wield it. Basic means of controlling their dominion in their presence will result in them simply nullifying it. Doing so callously, or using a power that even they hadn't considered, may result in them redirecting it back at you. Even the most powerful of attacks, if not prepared properly, will just result in them being restored by it.
"In my world, we call the height of abilities Giga Cards or a Giga Force. The very height of Navi power - that is the only tool you can wield against them if you wish to use their own power without being struck down.
"Keep your head high, and don't take your eyes off of your quarry for an instant. One alone has the power to unmake your world in a flash of divine destruction - they are specialized to this, and that is their only weakness - alongside the natural weaknesses of their represented elements, of course. Their power is such that it is unwieldy against such small forces.
"The strongest of their number is Apollo Flame. He is the first born of Le Mu, and was sent to eradicate an alternate reality of my timeline. His prominence acts as an unyielding defense that rapidly restores itself when harmed - his ultimate attack involves him throwing a literal sun at us. That's all I have time for, though - because here they come!"
A sparking wave of electricity suddenly cut across the room as this world's Burai lifted up a replica of the Thunder Berzerker's sword, his own form taking the appearance of the ancient knights of the Murian tribe with a large crested helmet and powerful, militaristic plates coating his body. With the power of the Murian Berserker Tribe in one hand, and Laplace appearing in his other, this Burai charged forward as the first into the fray, aiming for the imposter he saw on the other side.
Holding the Thunder Berserker sword aloft, a great bolt of lightning rained down from the sky and extended the blade. Granted incredible speed by the lightning coating his form, the Alternate Burai dashed through the three of them as a primeval bolt of flurried strikes trying to cleave them down. Wreathing black energy coiling off of his blade sent off powerful sonic booms with each swing of the Berserker Sword, as his opening move released a whirlwind of sword, lightning, and dark sonic booms across the battlefield, and culminated in a massive upheaval of the blade that resonated in a tumultuous strike of raw electricity through their ranks.
Alt. Burai Set Phase:
[Combat Arts] A skillful and capable combatant, Burai performs fluid movements that allow him to strategically chain attacks together in a way that leaves his enemies confounded. - Burai only ever requires a 1-Turn Charge for any Avoid Separately Attack, and he decides how many hits the attack has on use. Each hit of Avoid Separately strikes at full damage, but must be made as a part of a separate attack slot. - Being struck by any hit of a C-Range attack with avoid separately makes any hit that the opponent could not reduce to 0 Damage impossible to avoid. - If all hits of a C-Range attack chain in a turn successfully deal damage, Burai applies 1 immediate charge to that attack chain.
[Frequency Shift] Accustomed to his wave form, Burai is capable of modulating his frequency in order to become intangible, even to other beings like him. Using this control, he can move through attacks, defenses, and even modulate his frequency to escape restraints or move through physical barriers. - Burai may sacrifice one attack slot to Triune Avoid one attack aimed against him. Burai may sacrifice three attack slots to instead Fully Avoid one attack aimed against him. - Burai can automatically avoid any attacks without aimers. - Burai is immune to any effect that would reduce his damage, attack slots, or impact his ability to avoid. - Burai may modify the aimers of any C-Range attack on use, and, if he uses fewer than half of his total attack slots for unique attacks, any aimers become omni-aimers for the turn. - Burai can designate a single type of HP-Entity that he bypasses entirely when attacking enemies. Auras selected. Auras cannot be used to defend against Burai's C-Range attacks.
[Wave Predictor] His visor detects ambient energy flowing from his enemies and displays information about EM Energy present in his surroundings. By tracking the flow of energy, this allows him to predict an opponent’s movement. In this world, he must first flood some of his own energy into an opponent to force them to emit EM energy as they move. - Each full C-Range avoidable attack that hits a target grants the attack +1 Hit, until the attack misses. This can apply to Avoid Separately. - When avoiding the same attack in a turn, each sacrificed Attack Slot allows him to evade one additional instance of that attack.
[Laplace] Burai summons forth his most powerful weapon, and his only accepted ally: Laplace, a sentient blade, and an ancient artifact of the Murian people. The Laplace Blade has the ability to absorb the energy of the EM Beings created by Mu, as well as many other murian artifacts, making Laplace his most powerful tool. - Burai gains access to his attacks that specify Laplace’s use. Grants the skills Blade Fury and Wave Arc.
[OOPArt - Berserker Sword] The ancient artifact of the Berserker Tribe, this small stone sword looks at first glance like an old relic. While appearing as a simple rock to the untrained eye, it radiates with intense wave energy, and when supplied with another's power it courses with electrical energy, and grants the ferocity of the Berserker tribe to its wielder. -- User gains the benefits from Elec Lv5 as an additional Primary Element. -- User's attacks with Avoided Separately gain +1 Hit at Full Damage. User can target one additional target with all C-Range attacks. -- User’s Elec-Element Attacks benefit from all Base Damage Calculations increases by 10% more, added to all hits. -- Optionally Charged Attacks can be chained together in a single attack slot, all effects of the attacks responded to separately and all hits as avoided separately. -- Enables Thunder Slash, Cleaving Arc, Berserker Soul, and Thunderbolt Blade.
3 Preemptive Charges: Murian Combat x1, Cleaving Arc x1, Murian Knuckle x1
Auto-Charges: Cleaving Arc x2, Murian Combat x2, Murian Burst x1, True Finisher x1, Laplace Slash x1
Attack Slots: 30. Sacrifices 4 Attack Slots to increase damage by 200% per use.
[Darklight Harvester] An incredible dark power that resonates from Burai's hand, channeled into high-density bursts of dark wave energy. -- Any attack can be charged additional turns over its required charge to gain effects. --- 1 Charge: Releases an S-Attack with its damage and "Hits All" on use. Gains full damage for the total turns of charge applied. --- 2 Charges: S-Attack gains Cannot be Naturally Avoided and upgrades all Aimers to Omni-Aimers. --- 3 Charges: S-Attack Disrupts Multi-Instanced avoidances. Can target its primary target up to two additional times at half damage, avoided separately. --- 4 Charges: S-Attack’s Damage cannot be mitigated below 50% of its total damage. Gains all hits of the charged attack; these hits are never avoided separately. --- 5 Charges: S-Attack Destroys: All, Pierces all Survival Effects, and immediately ends the advanced form of any target hit.
[Blade Fury] Burai uses his incredible speed and skill to unleash a flurry of attacks on his opponent, all the while the Laplace blade launching itself about. -- Each Blade-Element C-Range attack charged for more than three turns or used by sacrificing half or more of his attack slots have two additional hits added to it at S-Range.
1-5. [Tribe Force - Thunderbolt Blade] @ Xion An incredible show of raw ferocity, the Berserker Sword calls a bolt of lightning into its edge to increase its length and power. Mustering up their strength, the user dashes across the battlefield and delivers three horrifically powerful gashes in rapid succession, each slash more devastating than the last, and finishes the maneuver by stopping and slamming the blade into the ground. This releases all of the electricity built up within it in a massive torrent of electrical power. Base Damage: 710 * 3 Hits Avoided Separately Final Damage: 4,360 * 3 Hits Avoided Separately C-Range, * 2 Hits Avoided Separately S-Range Elec/Blade Damage ° Shocks, Paralyzes, Cannot be Naturally Avoided, Cannot be Countered, Cannot be Intercepted, Disrupts Multi-Instanced Avoidances, requires a different avoidance type to be used per hit. ° Can be reused any number of times in the same turn. Each use still requires attack slots, and must target a different opponent. ° Each successful hit reduces all Damage Mitigation the opponent possesses by 15%, permanently. ° This attack only deals 50% of its total damage. All damage buffs are applied at 50%, and then applied to all hits. As its last use during the turn, the user releases an attack with 'Hits All, Destroys: All, Inflicts Permanent Shock' that deals damage equal to the total damage dealt by the attack across all uses that turn. Any avoidance skill used to defend against the three hits cannot be used to defend against this one. ::o:: Ignores all Immunities, including Gigas. ° Can be optionally charged for up to 5 turns. ::o:: Used Once/Transformation regardless of charge or restrictions, but consumes a Giga Chip use. ::o:: Requires 3 Full-Turn Charges. 5-CD.
== Darklight Harvester == 26,160 * 5 Hits S-Range Dark Damage ::o:: Hits All, Cannot be Naturally Avoided, Breaks Unbreakable Shields, Cuts Uncuttable Auras ::o:: Disrupts multi-instanced avoidance. Aimed two additional times at half damage, avoided separately, @ Burai. ::o:: Cannot be mitigated below 50% of its total damage. ::o:: Destroys: All, Pierces all Survival Effects, immediately ends advanced form of any navi.
6-10. @ Feint
== Darklight Harvester == 26,160 * 5 Hits S-Range Dark Damage ::o:: Hits All, Cannot be Naturally Avoided, Breaks Unbreakable Shields, Cuts Uncuttable Auras ::o:: Disrupts multi-instanced avoidance. Aimed two additional times at half damage, avoided separately, @ Burai. ::o:: Cannot be mitigated below 50% of its total damage. ::o:: Destroys: All, Pierces all Survival Effects, immediately ends advanced form of any navi.
11-15. @ Burai
== Darklight Harvester == 26,160 * 5 Hits S-Range Dark Damage ::o:: Hits All, Cannot be Naturally Avoided, Breaks Unbreakable Shields, Cuts Uncuttable Auras ::o:: Disrupts multi-instanced avoidance. Aimed two additional times at half damage, avoided separately, @ Burai. ::o:: Cannot be mitigated below 50% of its total damage. ::o:: Destroys: All, Pierces all Survival Effects, immediately ends advanced form of any navi.
16. @ All: 39,240 Elec S-Damage, Hits All, Destroys: All, Inflicts Permanent Shock. Any avoidance skill used to defend against the three hits cannot be used to defend against this one. Ignores all immunities, including Gigas.
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Post by Zane on Apr 18, 2021 1:14:39 GMT -8
(One Discord discussion later and we're adjusting our approach here)
And just as Burai surmised, briefly but surely, each divinity took to action. The suffocating weight in the air and room was palpable in the catastrophes that were set loose by each one. While they should possibly nullify some of their calamities out given their opposing natures among the patheon, those natures would instead weave along not in teamwork, but coexistence with one another. Against the prediction, Apollo Flame had already conjured up his sun in its full glory and then some that he hurled forth as twisters of flame swirled along with it as if the filters of his power were even more unhinged than before. The goddess of the hunt had unleashed a hail of arrows that could be said to blanket the very sun, but with such precision that the world felt like it was behind crosshairs as it fell down with impunity.
Zeus had raised his hand and as in the mythos told of him did he herald down a surreal bolt of lightning followed soon by thunder that another would utilize as well. It could almost be argued that if not for the mark of Sigma that Apollo carried, the searing might of the bolt would eclipse the sun's surface a million times over that fell down upon them, emboldened further by the artifact that had been drawn much like Apollo's flames were bolstered by the fury Burai had unleashed before. And Poseidon who was as a brother to Zeus brought the very ocean upon them to swallow them up, as if the waters of the Earth just came down upon them in this isolated location. Demeter's approach was a bit more on point, as the forestation appeared to start growing from them to in fact give them greater vitality until the scythe was brought down, turning that which seemed as a bountiful harvest into a vile drought to rip the life clean from them in one fell motion. Atlas had lunged through the mayhem without missing a beat, plowing straight for his targets in order to slam into her with the weight of the world he once shouldered, striking as the very landmass became uplifted as the attacks moved along with them, as if he moved the very world itself just then.
Hades was making movement the entire time this was going on, perhaps even before that. As the shadows that were overcast had him passing through as though it were the River Styx met in person. The shadows sought to take from them their life and if not that, their very mobility to make into his own. Hera's pool of divine power surged at its peak without missing a beat as raw power was unleashed additionally into the mayhem that was happening before their very eyes. And the darkness that set its possibly unseeing eyes upon Xion moved the very tether it possessed. It was a kind of darkness that could very likely be said to be despised by both wielders of darkness that were here: depraved, twisted, parasitic in nature. Yet divine all at the same time, as though that were the true nature of it all as it would consume absolutely everything it so coveted. This bond had a new twist to it as well as night fell upon the tumultous sight before them and threatened to engulf them in its devastating veil. And in that night was a dreaded winter as that very same ice from Khione sought to freeze them for an eternity they wouldn't live to suffer through.
All the while Hermes beat through the chaos as he seemingly moved through attacks themselves to buffet them in what appeared to be an unavoidable frenzy as he was there yet not. Always moving, always active, always there yet gone as the ever constantly moving wind was. Dionysus with their very gaze seemed to bring down the vitality of those before them, as the toxic presence was all too absolute and with certainty that should one remain in their presence for overly long, their abundance of life would be cut short and not rise up again with the grace of their gaze alone. Ares and Athena moved in tandem as Ares unleashed masterful bladework befitting the lord of all blades, Athena unleashing a flurry of precisely timed blows to catch each in a moment immediately after they avoid another calamity that beset them. Hephaestus would swing his hammer and bring it down for metal to meet metal, and the offending blows seemed to grow even mightier in tandem not because they were his kin, but because he willed those that he chose to have even further strength at their disposal.
Heracles made no move from his position given his own mythos. Instead he brought back his arm and swung it forward as the space between him and his victims seemed to shatter under his might to in turn break them underneath that very same force. And the destructive forces in play would let Aphrodite's choir continue unabated as the sounds would lull them in and out of reality while also tearing them apart from the inside out. Iris and Hecate weren't without action as well, as light would cascade about and even from the various attack forms taking place while they passed through a variety of mirages taking place all at the same time.
To stand against leagues above an old genocide for long would be a testament to many. But here, it was merely a matter of time before the tide swallowed them whole.
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Post by Gaia on Apr 19, 2021 19:10:38 GMT -8
#s://cdn~discordapp~com/attachments/340189121500938240/728347473344725113/113~png
To answer this world's Burai calling upon the ancient Berserker Sword, Burai further enhanced his own form. Black waters, like pulling from the very depths, surged around him as the power of the Aqua Leviathan took form. Merged with the mights of the two previous tribes he channeled, Burai's form shifted once again, ancient sigils forming over his body as his arms became coated with scales and spines, his large boots receeded to form boots in the fashion of webbed claws, and the dinosaur head mounted on his hand adopted terrible spines and fins. Now held between his hands was the power of the Aqua Leviathan, the majestic stone spear taking on its full form of flowing water, a point of solid, black ice making up the leviathan's tooth upon its tip.
"In the ancient days, the Murians looked across at their expanse of land and wondered what mysteries might lie within a previously uncharted expanse - the seas. Though its waters birthed them, they had yet to conquer it in stride with the land, and so they mounted a crusade against the waters. The deeps answered them with beasts of gracefulness and adaptability; beasts of the deep that fought on land and wave as easily as the other. The Murians utilized their own fangs to subdue the Leviathans, and many of our number took to their ancient dance and learned from their technique - with their flowing moves and aquatic mastery, the Leviathan Tribe dominated the waves that once scared us away, and they would go on to conquer expanses of the unknown beyond."
With the power of three tribes made into one, Burai's own surge of power felt surreal. He had to remind himself what he was up against, and could not allow himself to think that their power made him unstoppable. As the other Burai's power, and then the power of all the divine, crested towards them, Burai turned back to look at Feint and Xion. "I hope all that power I feel from you isn't just for show. I'll be able to keep pace with them for at least a while, so prepare what you can. No one need endure this other than me."
The dark waves of energy that surrounded Burai coursed from him, and Feint and Xion lost their color, going gray scale, as the world around them became dull and unclear. It was as though no one else existed, except for the two of them, as Burai imbued the loneliness within his heart into each of theirs. Even so, his isolation was even greater - even with their isolation, he seemed beyond them.
With the power of the Saurian Tribe protecting his chest and giving him strength, the power of the Shinobi Tribe sharpening his form and giving him deftness, and the power of the power of the Leviathan Tribe honing his eye and giving him flexibility, Burai felt his power surge as he tapped into another reservoir within. No limit was too grand, not against this threat, and with Xion and Feint removed from peril, the dark ring that surrounded his body and permeated around his flesh like a menacing aura was more safe to use now than it ever was before. To further accentuate the seriousness of this moment, Burai tapped into that last shore of power from within, his eyes widening and glowing red as the energy coursing through him mixed with the elements that charged him, the deep black that was his own power, and the crimson of the beast whose power he tamed.
If he were to fight against Divinity, he could unleash his full strength, too.
The boosters on his shinguards flared to life, releasing a massive vernier of crimson energy as he set off, his body shrouded in a magnificent whirlwind as he charged the calamity head on. His Rejection Barrier relentlessly flared to life against the power of the other Burai, wave after wave of electricity, blade, and darkness crashing against his barrier in lieu of those they could no longer find, and each one completely nullified by its strength.
Against the final shot that came down, Burai stood still and seemed to brace for impact, as the sword itself came crashing down on top of them and released a massive wave of electricity. The sword seemed to cleave Burai in two, before a puff of smoke formed and dropped a piece of wood in his place, Burai reappearing next to his inferior alternate with a shinai in hand. A master of all blades, this terrifying weaponry in his hand was more lethal than most, and was further amplified by the workings of three tribes as he jabbed the blade into the other's shoulder.
He didn't have much time to continue his onslaught, though, as he created a veil of darkness that pushed the other Burai away from him in time for him to pay attention to the wall of power that his rejection barrier could not nullify. His feet not even touching the ground at this point, Burai spun in place and raised his hand against the first, unleashing the roar of the captive beast as he held up his palm and created a sphere of intense crimson, a shooting star to match the sun thrown at him. The two massive spheres of power collidied, but Burai's wasn't to best it, just to hold it at bay. The sphere of crimson spread across the sun, and absorbed it into its own field of corruption, which then allowed Burai to absorb its power into himself, nullifying the sun in its entirety. He continued to breach the impossible from there, the surging power cresting from his body as he weaved around. The air fizzled with the might of multiple powers from his singular body.
Against calamities like Artemis, Zeus, Hera, and others that rained down on him from above with incredible intensity, the air seemed to distort from both the static of the crimson and the intensity of the Shinobi's whirlwind, bursts of power allowing him to move his body in just the right directions at just the right moment to evade disaster that any other would have fallen before. Propelled by the power of his energy expulsions, Burai's control over his own wave emissions proved impeccable and unmatchable all at once.
Against the tides of the elements brought on from Atlas, Poseidon, Hades, and others, he instead rose above and danced through the air, the wind becoming a stepping point as he spun and weaved about to make room for his thin body in the midsts of the madness. He phased portions of his body into and out of tangible frequencies where necessary to phase through portions of the floor and even against portions of attacks that he could, proving that not only was his control of his energy but also the control of his body and spatial surroundings were still as keen as they ever were.
For divinities such as Nyx, Dionysus, Aphrodite, and others, who released cresting calamities centered from them and filled the very air around them with their devastation, Burai maintained the energies that surrounded him, summoning the Leviathan spear to twirl it about on all sides of him as he moved. Carefully placed movements of the spear, alongside bursts of energy from those emitted by the winds or his own waves, granted him safety from terrors that had almost no safe zones within them.
For divinities such as Hermes, Athena, Hephaestus, and others, who came forward to unleash more personal calamities, Burai met them as equals on the field of battle. He weaved around their blows, parried their strikes with his own, and phased through their strikes to keep away from them.
Against Ares Cleave, Burai rose to the occasion. Ares was Burai's personal conquest, a proof of his own strength and skill, and he banished all other weapons he wielded and raised Laplace against him. Their blades clashed, Burai's honed by his own war against Ares in a previous time, and with each cleaving blow released shockwaves as their blades clashed. Burai met him blade for blade to once again prove his own might; even against the additional might within Ares' swings from the augments, Burai was able to cleave through his swings.
With each carefully made weave, turn, parry, spin, and burst that took him away from harm, or battered harm away, Burai's body continued to react to the flow of energy. He took the time after each successful catastrophe avoided to toss a storm of shurikens at the aggressor he dashed away from, their edges imbued with no element that the divines could deflect back at him. When he parried instead of dodged, he impressed the force of his aggressor back against them, responding with a burst of crimson power that formed into the shape of a crimson missile to meet them. Normally, Laplace would be about, inflicting carnage with its blade, and his darkness would be released in destructive outburts, but, with Ares and Nox present, Laplace and his dark powers would only be dangers to them.
All he could do was make every effort to avoid the calamity all the while counterattacking where he found the room to do so. The power of the Crimson Dragon flowing through him allowed him to withstand the withering gaze of Dionysus Bile, as the Crimson Dragon cared not for any force that would wither it away by proximity, and neither would he. As for anything else, he continued to amass power absorbed from the energies of the divine to supplement his own strength, storing away the power he had collected to prepare for what would surely follow.
He had survived the first rounds. The Laplace blade within his hand glowed with further intensity as he charged it with power. He had much to do with little time. What came next had to be the finale. He did not have the energy to withstand another round such as that.
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Post by Genesis on Apr 19, 2021 19:37:49 GMT -8
*A waste of time even if they couldn't topple what Burai would describe as some of the pinnacles of Murian life, huh? This guy certainly had high expectations of others for someone so conceited. Each divinity brought with them their own respective pressure and while he understood that was to be expected of them given their stature as designated world enders, given what he'd known and seen this was about right. But his left hand clenched into a fist at the sight of Nyx Void. Because the feeling she was showing off to him let him know which deity she stood for without Burai's interjection. There was a feeling within him that began to override the others that he felt. What once left him impressed and curious became an old fury instead.*
"Another one like this..."
*Time and again he would find one. It all began with Toxin in the beginning, that time he held him under his heel for his own amusement. When Aero, Talek, and Saikikka all lorded themselves over him. Nebula, Samhain, Gospel, Caliga... so many who would present to them that he couldn't fathom their darkness. That he was lesser than them. And time and again he made strides to prove each of them wrong. Toxin he missed his chance thanks to Turbine, but he knew that both understood how that turned out for them. The Chaotic's founding members all collapsed in short order and never returned to take what was once theirs after the three that they looked down on: Xion, GuitarMan, and Toxin took down Saikikka. Years passed and nothing amounted of it. ShadeMan, LaserMan and the rest did the same. They showed up before them once to gloat and then stayed out of sight once they realized that gloating was a mistake. He had no qualms with others doing that. Once one earned the right to brag, go ahead and brag if that is what you want to do.*
*But never look down on him as you do. Never claim that he isn't your peer, your equal. Because in that moment, he'll make sure to go out of his way to correct your incorrect assumption. And this time, the epitome of darkness itself would learn that error just as harshly as the others that fell before.*
"I'll keep your details in mind for later, as we'll likely require the foresight. I'll show you something that even these divinities cannot fathom."
*To Immortalis, these gods were throw away constructs. Things that could be thrown away could often times be easily replaced. So Burai giving them the required information that he did was good even as he put them within their isolated space. But he wouldn't need long to turn these calamities into an afterthought. He crossed both of his arms in front of him as the gray space around them began to tremble, as if the gray that was there was losing its color for all new reason. And what was once gray became as pitch black, making it as though Feint couldn't even see or hear anything else, yet alone her own voice and thoughts. The world itself grew silent, and the seconds that passed would have felt as though an eternity occurred in those brief instances. He wasn't exactly one for being flashy, so even this technique that he devised with his rudimentary knowledge of his newfound strength would still be about the same level of spectacle that he was used to showing. He was simply confident in the results it could produce: an assured win against these would-be genocidal beings. And as sound steadily began to return, Xion chimed in without missing a beat.*
"Feint, this one'll be on you. As soon as we're out, go all out as callously as you like. We'll unmake their world in a flash."
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Post by Warrior on Apr 19, 2021 20:04:42 GMT -8
#s://i~imgur~com/8w4a7DV~png Feint's eyes darted among each deity as she sized up their affinities, taking note of which ones caused her the most trouble (beyond the fact that each of them could warp reality in ways no human was quite built to handle). Still, no amount of supremacy would shake her pride, and if she was to go down then she had no fear about fighting to the end. There'd be no squirming and bending of her knee if that's what it came to, either, but she'd make sure there was a hell of a display before they earned her defeat.
" !! "
But suddenly, her color began to fade and she was being separated from the scene, much like what had happened during their fight with Plesio Surf.
" Bastard! "
She spat her insult to Burai, as if he wasn't sparing her a great deal of hardship.
" You know how I fight! "
Take a hit to give a hit -- he'd seen it plenty of times by now. She wasn't even sure that he'd hear her through the isolation field they were in now, but it was certainly her anger speaking and it'd be no mystery to any of them by now that her mouth was a loose cannon in the heat of things.
"Feint, this one'll be on you. As soon as we're out, go all out as callously as you like. We'll unmake their world in a flash."
" ? "
It was now that she started to realize what was going on. While she had her merit when it came to thinking before acting, it wasn't to the level of planning that Burai and Xion had already done long before the decisions leading to their actions came to fruition. To say they were several steps ahead of her was an understatement, but as the expression of her face changed, it became clear that she was able to catch up pretty quickly with what was going on.
This was a fight to the death alright, but not to theirs.
" Understood. "
Her militant response made it sound like she'd taken an order.
After the darkness had faded, she turned back to watch the scene -- Burai's isolation serving a twofold purpose that was clear as day to her now: in a decisive moment, she would certainly take a hit to give a hit back, but it'd need to be done in the most efficient manner possible. She needn't waste any of her potential just surviving up until that moment came.
And in this bubble, despite not having any self-provided means of charging herself up like the others did, she instead had the freedom to survey their enemies without interference. That additional time that was afforded to her could be used to study and learn that information that Burai didn't have the time to finish explaining to them beforehand: watching him to see how certain attacks could be handled, which should be outright avoided, or which deities' powers could be absorbed and utilized against another.
The more she watched, the more the plan began coming together, and like clockwork she knew what they had in mind despite none of them saying it out loud. She didn't have to know the intricacies of their roles, just the understanding of what her part was when it came, and as the time for her spotlight drew near, she built the mental preparation required to carry her weight for the torch that'd be passed among all three of them.
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Post by Zane on Apr 19, 2021 20:18:42 GMT -8
Their target this time was of a singular nature, something they weren't accustomed to. While destroying was in their very nature, destroying but one thing was not. So as he would resist, they would resist in kind. Apollo's flames served as a wall of their own, as even when it was halted by the might of the Crimson Dragon did it serve as an oppressive force as the lingering heat left behind from it alone was enough to stave off the returning offense against him. Hermes phased through the attacks with his momentum while evading those that almost caught up to the impeccable speed he possessed. In fact, the more that Burai denied their divine rights, the more oppressive and surreal did their own power appear to become. From Dionysus Bile back to Ares Cleave, each seemed to reach another apex the more he was able to outright deny their encroaching annihilation that they beset upon him and in turn, respond in kind to his offense as he evaded the catastrophe. And yet it was in this way that they also planned to end this sooner rather than later, as their gathered strength did not wither after its culminated might was unleashed. It instead would surge to even grander heights as Apollo Flame lifted his hand, the sun that formed taking on a golden hue and growing many times the size of the previous as he cast it down. Where their attacks weaved and intertwined before, they would seek a different approach this time as the sun continued to grow in size, but not simply because of the weight of Apollo's might alone. Rather than weave around the attack or even work together to grant it even greater strength, they simply would all pile it down from the same direction. The sun would simply withstand their combined attack against it and bring it down to unleash the great calamity. Rather than be focused on simply destroying the insect that they considered before them, if they wiped out everything all in one single attempt no matter how he approached the matter, their problem would be solved. So they would just have to unmake everything all at once and bring this battle to a swift conclusion instead by unleashing their most powerful destructive force all at once to end the present world altogether. An inherent strength that they possessed was their immense strength, but an inherent weakness forged by their own isolation and belief in their supremacy could just as easily be their unmaking. As while there was no unity here, no allowed unity here on top of it along with Burai, and with Feint able to survey how their attacks worked before...
Even in this attack made to decimate everything would she be able to clearly perceive what she needed to do to withstand it and prevent their desired outcome. The weight of the torch that she would carry through the swift and decisive choices made by Xion and Burai could lead to this turning in their favor instead of the results the gods had decided upon when they chose to smite the very world itself.
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Post by Warrior on Apr 21, 2021 0:58:45 GMT -8
#s://i~imgur~com/8w4a7DV~png Burai's Isolation Field began dissipating as the calamity approached -- this was their final strike, after all, so it made sense that it was her turn to step up to bat. Surviving a civilization buster was one thing, but standing up to a planet-buster and then fighting back with not a rivaling, but an overwhelming counter-force wasn't exactly something she woke up today expecting to add to her resume. More than just Netopia was at stake here though: these deities had their sights set on the entire world.
" ... "
Darting forward, her suit's own variation of the Mu Rejection Barrier sprung to life as she challenged the incoming star. While the barrier crumbled almost immediately, its short lifespan gave her suit just enough time to absorb a fraction of the star's energy and begin its absorption process: discharging energy as it was received to counteract the incoming force with itself. It still wasn't fully understood how Feint controlled the interaction, but it was a calculated series of unequal exchanges of force that caused it to work, and as the sun in her hands stopped cold in its path, it was clear that it'd get the job done.
How differently things would have been if her pride had led her to discard the Isolation Fragments just before this encounter.
" You lot believe you can crush us like insects; thinking our worth inferior to your own. I'd thought you'd be humbled by your allegedly new creators. "
Flaunting their divine strength to eradicate a species and begin anew was nothing if not self-righteous; a surprising observation for Cherish to make considering her previous outlook on Net Society. But disdain was nothing more than a blindness to another superior.
She couldn't see her hands infront of her face as she held the globe -- its brilliance encompassing everything down to her wrist and its radiance so bright that she'd have to close her eyes and turn her head away. There was no denying that the power behind the falling sun was billions of times greater than her suit could contain, even with the Murian augments. But as she slowly raised her hands, grasping onto what could best be described as a magnetic force within the crust of the star, and as the colossal orb rose slowly with her arms, it's girth seemed to shrink from a sphere to an oval, eventually resembling more of a tower that appeared to be pouring into her body rather than falling downward as it had been before.
" So I'll teach you the lesson that they couldn't... "
The excess that couldn't be contained instead spiraled around her -- not fully consumed, but she broke through that limitation by controlling it instead. It was like a serpent that obeyed her command as it wisped wildly around her body while the dimming star continued to feed it; the gravitational force of that star now emanating from her body so that it moved and traveled as she willed it to rather than how it was meant to. And when it was fully converted into the ribbon of light that encompassed her, she vanished from sight, taking the brilliant light along with her.
Those with keen enough eyes would be able to track her ascent as she rose above the gods that sent a calamity toward her, calling down to them now as she instead held that same calamity in her own hands. Her voice was like venom as she spat her final words upon them.
" ... I'll remind you how it feels to look up. "
They could instead hang their heads low in defiance, but she'd like that even more, really.
Her Phantom Waltz was well known to scale to the power she'd absorbed from her enemies, but the ribbon of light from the excess energy -- the amount that she couldn't contain but could still control -- chased her movements and brought with them the cataclysmic power of the gods.
With her speed and strength escalated beyond divine heights, she teleported madly around the field, each swing of her fist or kick of her leg bringing behind it earth-shaking might: the Earth trembling in fear of the deadly force it had just been spared. Each strike was immediately succeeded by the extinction-level force of the ribbon that orbited her: the power of each deity surging through it.
Its properties would change to directly counter each one that it collided into -- the power of Zeus brought against the body of Poseidon, the nova of Apollo burning into Demeter -- each of their own strengths being leveraged to exploit anothers weakness.
And when the lightshow ended, she reappeared once more where she had started, looking back up to them herself, but this time with her gun pointed in their direction and the divine power spiraling around her outstretched arm, coiled like a serpent ready to strike.
" ... "
In the same silence they arrived with, they would be sent off with as she pulled the trigger and unleashed their own fury back at them, amplified to the point of eclipsing their original force, bursting through the ceiling of the floor that they were on and every floor beyond it, and etching into the sky a constellation that would proclaim her own legacy for generations to come.
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Post by Genesis on Apr 21, 2021 1:25:28 GMT -8
*As their time in timeout was meeting its end, it was right on cue. He had reached the heights he needed to in order to pull his own stunt off. While Feint had a way with words, they would be of like-mindedness this time. For those who had forgotten what it was like to look up and to their sides, they would be reminded by her dazzling reprisal. He could see why she would pique the interest of prying eyes. Many would assume that the humans had their merits, but not exactly a role to play in any of the constant battles that took place. She was here to prove that at the very least, humanity too was possessed of their own outlier. Now then... his part in this was counter to what many would believe him to choose to take. Many would consider him as one who stood on his own or even one who always led from the front. In his time with The Chaotic it was never above him to support the endeavors of the others. This was what led to their exploits whenever they called upon his assistance to see a task through. And here he would take that same supportive position, this time with a different twist applied to it. Those times in the past were always for sport of some kind, be it entertainment or the usual contained antics of the beguiled minds he knew. She called this for exactly as it was meant to be: the twilight of the gods before them.*
"Since you said enough to cover my part, I'll be short and sweet with this."
*He would show part of those depths he kept under wraps from others. Two lights shone from his backhand, bringing to spiral in a colorless hue before he held his arms out to either side and those rings of light came to an abrupt halt. This time, Burai, the gods, Feint, and all there would find the world take on the very same colorlessness of those lights before it would all fade to black. The world was in black while those who stood within it was without color for as far as they could perceive. The silence was deafening yet calming all at once, the sight of one another blinding but soothing at the same time. And then he brought his arms back in, slamming his fists together as the brightest light itself was cut off in this black realm.*
"And so I bring the curtain down upon your dominance. This complete eclipse."
*It wasn't exactly a perfect technique as it possessed an inherit flaw. Using it didn't exactly have any merit for him in the least. This eclipse was indiscriminate and encompassed everything, himself included. This was the lynchpin of this craft and the nail in this proverbial coffin. And while he would lie in the same bed he made for his enemies... it meant that those that weren't encumbered were free to bring forth their own retort to this ridiculous self-righteous these gods held. "He" would be the "Feint" in occasion, and she would be their assassin. Well, they would be, but he was confident that they were just making certain in this case more than anything else.*
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Post by Gaia on Apr 22, 2021 16:41:24 GMT -8
#s://cdn~discordapp~com/attachments/340189121500938240/728347473344725113/113~png
The gods raised up their power. Usually, after releasing their calamity, the gods would need time to recover. Instead, it seemed that their calamity only emboldened them, and they stepped forward to work as one to release a calamity that surpassed the one they released before.
One of those strikes was enough to destroy the entire world. The way that Burai was able to defend against the previous, and how they used them against them, allowed him to avoid the previous ones without much harm to the world below. This one, however . . . if Burai avoided it, the world would crumble underneath it. If the wrong person tried to be the hero, it would eradicate them and take the world beneath it with it. With the intensity of the sphere, Burai wasn't entirely certain if he would be able to avoid it - where would he go to avoid it? What would be left?
There needed to be one strong enough to stand that tide on their own. There needed to be one willing to take the weight of the world on their own shoulders, and be able to survive that. There was only one he knew of with that set of skills.
The color returned to Feint just in time for Xion's own plan to move into effect. As Feint stepped forward, he saw her movement, her resolve, and the way she stood with such stoicism. As the sphere of pure divine power surged towards her, the backlight that it cast upon her shrouded the whole world in her shadow. In her suit, the darkness of her hair, the energy that seemed to cascade off of her body, and the stance she took to stand against the forces that would oppose the world, for a brief moment, she looked familiar to . . . well, to him. He, too, would have stood against this threat, even if it meant his doom. For the sake of the world beneath him, there was nothing he wouldn't do.
Burai grimaced, his scorn impossible to hide, his rival's shadow impossible to escape, even in another reality. Mounting up her power, she took the blow for the sake of the world, and weathered the storm. What came next was impossible to describe, as the world descended into darkness, Xion's eclipse creating for them what would become the gods' own tribulations.
He also wasn't much for words. He proved his meaning in combat. He did find what came next poetic, though, as the power of the final tribe flowed over him. None would see the transformation, as the power of the four main elements surged through him. He took on the same legendary form that his rival once took to beat back the god that threatened their reality. He rose, dressed in the holy regalia of the Murian Tribe King, its incredible power flowing through him. As Xion descended the world into his eclipse, the ultimate void of potential, Burai's power still flowed. Within the veil, he coursed his full power into the edge of the laplace blade, no longer needing to hold back. He lept up, spun once in the air, and brought the blade down in one incredible cleave.
"The power to break all bonds . . . your unity is your weakness, your solidarity is your downfall. To raise your hand against the world, you hold the same position the ancient tribes held against it so long ago - that your power will surmount all of them, and in your wake, they would bow or be eradicated.
"They met a similar fate. Their power turned against them. Their might dwindling to nothing. Their power as they rose against the masses . . . meaningless."
The resolute cleave that followed brought upon a catastrophe that Feint had only seen the repercussions of, before. From the force of his blade, did surge out the power of all the loneliness within his heart, the spiraling energies of darkness coiled from his blade and arced up in a powerful wave of energy. None would see its full power, but the gods would feel it, the energy built up and stored over the past few endeavors, and strengthened by his fury for their crimes, and the power of the Tribe King that he adorned.
No matter his nor Feint's strength, the Murian continent was not pierced. Any damage done to the terrain seemed to almost immediately repair itself. Even with each of them gathered, here, the power of the Great Being was greater than all of them.
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Post by Zane on Apr 22, 2021 22:36:11 GMT -8
There was no doubt or hesitation in their actions. Burai's knowledge that Feint was capable of what she set out to perform, Xion's willingness to take on the role of bridging the final gap to their goal, and Feint's own valiant stand against their might. In what would surmount another who tried to make this stand, against her the opening move was the critical mistake. And while it would try to topple her and crush the very world itself it would find that her defiance in the face of the divine was greater still. It was almost concerning, but nothing that they wouldn't be able to stop from toppling them in the end no matter how her counterattack would be performed. As she took to the sky and their collective group was at last forced to look up from their high perch that they were born upon, the sky they looked upon was one of utter darkness.
Nyx Void would immediately see about besetting that darkness with her own... to obtain naught in return. What Xion returned to the deity was the very same thing that she showed him when she arrived. She was possessing of a depths that he could not fathom, so he returned the very same back unto her. And in this foreign phenomena that had taken hold, the concern that they at first felt nothing of had begun to settle in. One among them had already come to terms with what this had shaped up to be: Apollo Flame. It was the right of the stronger in a contest to see things through exactly as what was about to be set upon by Feint and Burai alike. Many among them would try to muster a return in kind save the one who knew all too well where they now stood in their situation at hand.
And blow after blow assailed each one in their failed attempts of retaliation. The waltz that was a calculated frenzy would ravage them as she prepared to pull her trigger exactly as Burai would bring down the Tribe King's sword as the world ending threat was neutralized within this sublime veil with nothing of them to remain. The feats they performed would go unsung and unheard by others, but likely the claim to fame was never in question for what was done this day. What was done was a bid of survival for not just themselves, but for the very world. And to do so without a shred of doubt to her form was a valiance that should be cherished. The dust hadn't even settled yet before they could hear the voice chime in, sounding rather chipper despite the fact that the obstacle impeding them had been so thoroughly overcome.
"Bravo! Quite the show of talent indeed. See? I didn't ask you to accomplish some insurmountable task in this endeavor. Plus this time instead of the masses conquering the few, the few have conquered the masses. Such del--...
It was as the dust cleared and the scenery finished unraveling itself that Immortalis stopped speaking. Something about it must have been outside of his expectations, as the silence felt more palpable and threatening than even the divine might they just finished facing off against and saving the world from their wrath. And there was no attempt to coat the venom at which the next few words were spoken with.
...What a disappointment. I know I stated this to be a vain attempt for you, but at least try to prove me incorrect."
Agitation. Annoyance. Irriation from a result that was desired not being achieved. That was his own fault for beginning to get his hopes up. He would have to contain that irritation as it had no place here. No, he simply placed those expectations of his a tad too high, that was all. He shouldn't have expected them to be able to do something so simple when they weren't even at the starting line of simple functionalities. When next the voice spoke, it was an unfamiliar one instead of Immortalis who would make himself known instead.
"The third floor is clear of obstacles. Make yourselves comfortable and whatever else you want for as little time as possible. You should fully understand the ramifications of wasting time at this stage."
It was a familiar voice to one of them, but it wasn't as though his presence was unknown by him to begin with. He wasn't making an effort to hide himself anyway. And while he spoke, he betrayed nothing but a calm and neutral tone for them. This would either be another adversity to overcome on the following floor or a reassurance of exactly the opposite. They would find out right when they reached the next floor the answer to this inquiry of theirs.
Rewards:
Feint 1 Element Overcap 1 Giga Program 1 ? -- Core ? ° ?
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Post by Genesis on Apr 23, 2021 0:48:14 GMT -8
*So Burai's isolation was in part due to the eradication of his people and to make his own statement that unlike those people, he could survive without solidarity against the masses. It was a stubborn way of living, but honestly they all had their own gripes and at the very least being a loner wasn't the worst of them. He'd spare the barbs this time and not put that out into the air. He was certain Immortalis would do that for him. That aside it was quite the display put forth by each of them, but the star would certainly be the human who stood tall for the world this time. There was a solemn look in his eyes as opposed to the bit of scorn that Burai would have looking upon that visage she held. She certainly wasn't the one he was reminiscining of as she was much smaller and still in fact not a male assuming his eyes weren't deceiving him... but he could see it there all the same. That ever-present light from that annoying little brother of his who just loved standing up for others.*
"Certainly is just as much of a rebel as he is too."
*It was a whisper rather than a thought kept to himself as he would close each of his hands back into a fist as the darkness began to recede, allowing day to return back to the world instead of the night of ended potential. As it was about to complete that particular assignment did Immortalis chime back in, though this time rather than keep the pep in his voice, it was clear that he wasn't pleased about something. But to be fair, neither was he so at least on this one he could in fact relate. It wasn't often they would find common ground, but he at least had a feeling he understood what caused the trigger to go off this time. It had gone off loudly enough for someone else to speak up rather than the Unending that was their "guide" up until this point. It would be out of character for him to not take a shot back now, but there was no need for that. Taking a shot at someone for failing to meet their expectations was all fine and good when the situation wasn't one where the expectations was of someone you were planning to fight. That was just a bad look given it meant you were a few cards short of the deck they were expecting you to bring rather than possessing a few cards more than they would have otherwise seen coming from that deck.*
"Not going for the ambush, Rosso? Fair enough I suppose."
*It would only take a fool to not see that despite the dismantling that occurred here that neither were particularly alarmed. If anything they were performing just as could be expected of them up until a point where they instead were underperforming rather than meeting the level of required performance. To say that shouldn't worry him would be folly with how telling it was of how they currently stood in their situation, but he wouldn't exactly be taking steps back either. As far as he knew thus far from Rosso the guy had a lot of labels probably thrown on his back now, but none of those labels could be a blatant liar. If he said nothing but a rest stop waited for them on this floor then no doubts about it, it was nothing more than a rest stop. He would argue he didn't need the break, but he could still feel the influence of the technique he just utilized and wasn't personally aware of how long that would be just yet. He knew how it would work, but test runs were test runs for a reason. Burai could get tired but at best from this would require a five minute break on account of being flesh and blood with the typical limits applying to that particular attachment.*
"I'd sing your praises, but I'm sure you etched your grand legacy into the very stars and as such, will spare you the accolades, Feint. You good to go?"
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Post by Warrior on Apr 26, 2021 6:40:29 GMT -8
#s://i~imgur~com/8w4a7DV~png So that's what they had planned. Xion's "complete eclipse" subduing even the gods and Burai's executing cleave finishing them off after Feint had been given free reign to reciprocate their own strength against themselves. Immortalis' voice echoed into the room afterward, Feint's usual-grumpy demeanor not having to change much in response to hearing his full opinion of them.
" Arrogant prick. "
That was quite rich coming from her, even if she said it to no one in particular, not even bothering to be loud enough to be heard by the subject of her ire, much less those around.
But something else in the aftermath caught her eye as well: it was the very instrument of power that she rebuked others for using, now being presented to her to take for her very own. A "Giga Program", as it was dubbed, was a supposedly incomparable source of power for digital beings. While a human obviously couldn't just install it into themselves, their digital body could while they were Pulsed In -- or in this case, whatever electromagnetic circus business was allowing her suit to utilize its cyber-world features would also let the suit format this powerful source code.
It'd take the shape of a Giga Mystery Data for now: essentially just a larger, whiter version of your typical run-of-the-mill mystery data.
" ... "
For a while, she just stood still and held it, the expression on her face never changing from what it had last worn during the whole ordeal that had come before this. In fact, for most of their "break" she would just look at it -- the indentations of her fingers showing that she was applying some force to it as well, as if trying to crush it like she had nearly done to the Isolation Fragments in the last scene.
If one didn't know any better, they'd probably assume that she just liked to break stuff, especially particularly nice stuff.
" I hate these things. "
She answered Xion a little late. Well, it was less of an answer and more of a report, but it was in acknowledgement of him all the same.
For anyone that could have seen into Feint's inner monologue this entire time, this fact would come as no surprise. But this was her first time actually voicing those feelings out loud. And for anyone that had been with her throughout this venture, particularly Burai, it would make sense out of a lot of her past actions as well.
She was no power seeker, but rather a power hater if such a term even existed. It was why she didn't challenge Nightshade's initiative to claim the orb that housed Burai when he first arrived, why she never showed any semblance of desire for the artifacts Burai was collecting -- even when the Leviathan Tribe reached out to her specifically, and why she showed such ungratefulness toward the Isolation Fragments that empowered her suit.
She opposed the notion that she "needed" any of them incredibly harshly, but couldn't deny that if others kept them while she herself threw them away, she wouldn't be able to stand up to those folk. So she didn't destroy the Giga Mystery Data for now, perhaps she could even somehow utilize it to destroy other Giga Programs, but that was a bit of a silly afterthought as she stowed it away instead for the time being.
" Let's go. "
She didn't have anything else to add; her dialogue on the matter once again being mostly internal rather than external.
Also amidst the rubble was another power up, and while it did require the Isolation Fragments as an energy source, it at least let her use her gun a lot more liberally than she'd been able to up until now. Up ahead were bigger and greater challenges if she was reading the room right, so it was best to get moving as the second voice had implied.
She picked up her things and moved with Burai and Xion then, advancing yet another floor in this divine realm.
Feint is claiming:
Element Overcap: Stone
Giga Mystery Data A special and powerful mystery data. Contains one object of masterful power; a Giga Program. NPC Value: 0z. Can be sold to other players when unused.
** I'll choose a GP later; I don't care if she doesn't like it, I'm shoving it down her throat
Mortal Paragon -- Core A true form yet unseen? ° Feint cannot be ejected from Advanced Forms. ° Desolation Trigger can ignore one of its innate drawbacks. ° Can disable an equipped, non-passive Crest. If so, gain access to Mortal Paragon. This effect is locked in its current state. ° Can be utilized by disabling or destroying equipment gained from Isolation Fragments.
** Mortal Paragon (Core)'s effects are subject to change in the event that Desolation Trigger or Feint's Advanced Forms are later modified
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Post by Gaia on Apr 26, 2021 23:04:16 GMT -8
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As the darkness receded, so to did the power he called upon. Only able to maintain its might for so long, Burai had long since trained his Wave Form to answer to his commands, and to his commands alone. He could dictate how much of any given power he used at once. He unmerged with the Zerker sword before the darkness fell, standing as the combination of Leviathan, Saurian, and Shinobi to stare back up the stairs at those voices that taunted and jeered at them.
Whatever they had witnessed, it was somewhat of a success, and somewhat of a disappointment. Burai was not here to entertain. He looked to Xion and to Feint, as they took a moment to celebrate and rest from the efforts of their accolades, and as soon as it seemed that they were ready to move forward, Burai stepped ahead. "There isn't any time to waste. You can choose to stay behind if it is your preference. I'm not slowing down."
Whatever this power was, he was tired of hearing it call down at him from above, and even more blood-boiling was the knowledge of yet another manipulating the Great Being for their own needs without giving it the time to awaken. He passed through the gateway, and up the stairs to the third floor.
This was the floor he liked the least. He passed through the center chamber quickly, walking across the dark stone with purpose. The Murian people were connected intimately to their language, which held great power, but the presence of the language within this room was something entirely. The floor was an unending depiction of the alphabet, of the history, of the uses, and of the power of the language itself. The ancient script curled up the walls, lined the pottery, even danced over the Wave Roads. Where other rooms had spaces in between, or would only emblaze the Crest of Mu, this room had the surface area covered in ancient script and had deep alcoves descending from all angles that housed the inert forms of the Murian soldiers that once guarded its halls.
Burai did not need a new reminder of those that were lost. He did not pay attention to the script on the ground. Others saw the script. He could read it. He could read their names.
He pushed forward, ready to end this. Up the final flight of stairs, he went towards the entry chamber to the throne room.
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Post by Genesis on Apr 26, 2021 23:38:57 GMT -8
*Many would think it was a curious statement to make. They'd ask questions such as 'why' or preface it with the fact that Feint was lucky to find one after all this time. Those were the ones who were either just good natured or sought the power and hadn't obtained it themselves due to a lack of fortune or a lack of effort. Some would even consider it a misfortune that they obtained one. But it didn't stop him from chiming in at least.*
"You hate them? Well isn't that easy to understand? For the multitude who have it, they often rely on it. For the many who covet it, they seek it as a crutch to fill in their gaps. It's ultimately an excuse at the end of the day from either side of the spectrum. The only "power" you should ever have to rely on is your own innate ability. Our Burai being blown away like a toddler is a testament to what having to rely on other sources of power can get you."
*He patted his hand on his chest twice for his reference to their innate strength. He could add to the argument that she's proven she's fine without it as it couldn't be a crutch if you never needed crutches to begin with, but he'd leave that to her imagination. As for the proof of eventual reliance on another power source, even with the same Tribe Relics on deck the result was a swift end due to lacking the rest of the upgrades that Burai picked up over time. While it could be related to combat experience, that was largely unlikely. The fact remained that the alternate Burai who traveled with them and the Burai they had were possessing of a different quality, simple as that. That difference led to a harrowing experience but a simple fight all the same. Of course, everyone around him would label him as one of those power seekers too, but labels were just that. Labels given to you by others were irrelevant in comparison to what you believed in yourself and what you were doing compared to what they believed you were doing. Some people were too stubborn to be convinced, so there was no point in doing so.*
*But they could go into the debate of the pros and cons of needing power another time. When he tried hard enough to require real rest, he would rest. For now he would follow after them just as fine, glancing at the language about the floor but not commenting. Either they weren't going to fight here to preserve it or it was their own way of voicing that this had no worth to them. This was the more likely case when all was said and done, as even if they understood its value, the value lied in the eyes of the beholder. What was priceless to Burai could be worthless to Feint, proven by their own travels thus far. To him it wasn't without value as he understood that the Murians were a great many things... chief among them was that this was still a problem in his eyes. One that was forced to take a back seat, but a problem all the same. He could amend that problem long before the more chaotic individuals caught wind of it. An ironic thought for the leader of The Chaotic to possess.*
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