Neko

[COLOR=Navy][SIZE=1]As a head's up, I'm gonna be making Nephilim's Heartless twin my other character. Since there won't be any heartless battles for a while yet, he/she might not make an appearance for a bit. Needless to say, there will be much fun to be had when Nephilim and her twin meet up. Oh, and I'm working on a drawing of Nephilim, so everyone can visualize her better. I'll have it up tomorrow.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR=Navy][SIZE=1][I]Mmm, so he?s a fighter?[/I]Nephilim thought to herself with a vague smile, looking at Domsu. An interesting choice, when there were so many drivers and gunners at the academy. His persistence in choosing the simple, elegant art of swordplay was admittedly admirable. If not impertinent. It was so rare that she got to see a fighter?s sparring style that she took another step forward, earning her an odd glance from the Senior girls next to her. They weren?t what she was interested in, though. She had seen hundreds of drivers and gunners fight, had already found the common weaknesses in them. She already knew how she would go about defeating one, if the need ever arose. On the other hand, her knowledge of fighters? style was relatively limited, so she wanted to learn as much as she could from this spar. She kept her eyes wide open in that haunting, vacant stare that so many people found more than a little upsetting. Domsu seemed to notice her staring at him, and she saw him smile as he turned back to face his opponent, no doubt comforted by the fact that she was paying attention to him. Nephilim understood perfectly the concept of ?affection?, for it was among the easiest ways to manipulate people to do what you want them to. Didn?t make it any less funny. Still, she had come here to study. [B]?Do your best, Domsu-kun,?[/B] she called, her voice so thin it seemed to die in the air. Nevertheless, everyone suddenly stopped to turn to her. These were Seniors after all, and had gotten somewhat used to her habits. Nephilim never spoke, but when she did, it usually meant something very important to her. Her cheer meant something important, at least to them. To Domsu especially. His smile widened slightly as he turned back to face his opponents, all the more eager to impress her, his arms twitching with anticipation for the action. Nephilim smiled self-satisfactorily. A half-motivated subject would not provide the study she needed to improve herself, after all. She needed Domsu to be at his best, pushing his hardest limits, if she wanted a worthwhile study. Her words of encouragement made him perfect for her needs. Grinning slyly, she looked on as the spar commenced.[/SIZE][/COLOR] Sorry if I'm seeming like a heartless little you-know-what, everyone...but you know, that's what Nephilim [I]is[/I], after all. :animesmil

Sorry it's a bit short, I need to practice getting 'in character'. [COLOR=Navy][SIZE=1][I]Click, click, click?[/I] Nephilim walked silently down the hallway under the shade of a lacy black parasol, wearing her usual attire. The day was unusually bright today, and she truly despised the light. The parasol got her a few interesting looks from other students, but she paid them no mind. It was no different from the looks she got from new freshman students who found it rather odd that such a young girl could be attending the Academy. Those who didn?t know any better. She made her way to the training area. Of course, she had no interest in training, but she took an especial interest in watching other people work themselves ragged just to get a bit stronger. As she watched all of the students running around, exercising, and sparring, that was all the training she needed. What better way is there to defeat your opponent, after all, then to examine how they work, break down what makes them tick, and know just the right way to crush them, even before a battle begins? She frowned, a black image forming in her mind. A familiar evil. [I]Even so, I?m still not strong enough?[/I]she thought to herself. She knew her strengths would be tested here, as well as her weaknesses. She was a Senior now, and she didn?t have much time left until she would have to start getting serious about fighting with other people. She shuddered at the thought. She hated fighting, getting her hands dirty, preferring to combat her opponents using other means. She only hoped that if she ever did get into a situation where she had to fight for real, that she would be strong enough to defeat anyone that got in her way. She turned her attention away from such bleak thoughts, focusing instead on a few boys. They seemed to be getting ready to spar. Silently, she stepped in a bit closer, taking a seat next to a few female Seniors, and looked on with interest. [I]I wonder what will happen?[/I]she thought to herself, smiling.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[COLOR=Navy][SIZE=1]After getting down on my knees and begging Forgotten-Hero a bit, he let me in on this, 'cuz I missed the sign-ups by like a half a day. Just thought I'd post this here to be polite and make it so people don't freak out on me when I make my first post. :animeswea [B]Name:[/B] Nephilim [B]Age:[/B] Technically, half a year. (When the Heartless stole her heart, she was 12. Her body has stopped aging since then.) [B]Blood type:[/B] None [B]battle Type:[/B] Drive - as a nobody, Nephilim?s natural abilities are extremely limited, as most of her power left with her ?other half?. For this reason she prefers not to fight directly, but instead to manipulate people into doing what she wants. However, if absolutely necessary, she can enter Drive form and call back some of the powers she once had as a complete being. The drawback is that every time she uses her Drive, her heartless gets closer to her, sensing her use of its power. [B]magic type:[/B] Chaos, summon [B]Weapon:[/B] Through a means that she never lets on to anyone, she has come to wield the Dark Keyblade, which once belonged to Ansem the Wise? heartless when it was possessing Riku, though how she can even wield any keyblade, let alone one so powerful, remains a mystery, as only Nobodies of keyblade wielders are able to use Keyblades. The Dark Keyblade?s look is immediately recognizable. The shaft is simple and straight, pure black, and extends right into the handle, which has a dark red guard pommel to protect the hand. The edge of the keyblade comes to a wicked end, the key taking the form of an ornate cut-out of a heart. The keychain is a Heart crossed with barbs - the Heartless insignia. [B] Abilities:[/B] [U]Chaos Phantasm[/U] - Creates illusions. [U]Chaos Masquerade[/U] - Completely changes Nephilim?s physical appearance to replicate any person she wishes. [U]Chaos Requiem[/U] - Summon - Takes the form of another Keyblade that takes on the properties of any of the three basic elements - fire, water, or lightning. Of these, her favorite form is the water summon. [U]Chaos puppetmaster[/U] (future) - Creates a replica of herself that retains all of her abilities. Maintains physical form, and is capable of dealing damage to enemies. Cannot enter Drive form, but if used while in Drive form, creates a replica of her Drive form. Since her ?anti-soul? is torn equally between each replica she creates, damage incurred by the replicas is channeled back into her. [U]Chaos Door[/U] (future) - Creates a ?door? through the Realm of Dark, allowing her to move instantly to any location on any world in the light or dark realm that she wishes. Common method of transportation for Nobodies. [U]Chaos Infinity[/U] (future) - Summon - Summons Chaos Requiem three times, once for each element, and proceeds to quadruple-wield Keyblades (Two held, two ?floating?). Only useable in Drive form, ultimate attack. [B]Personality:[/B] Nephilim shows absolutely no emotion towards other people, and in fact walks about the campus in a sort of vacant, wide-eyed, ?possessed-looking? way. In actuality she is cold and cruel, and loves nothing more than to see other people suffer. She has become very adept at ruining peoples? lives by using her abilities to impersonate them or people they hold close to their hearts. The reason she is so cold and full of hate is that she envies those who have hearts. [B]History:[/B] Technically, Nephilim shouldn?t even be in the academy. She managed to get in by using her powers to impersonate a student, thus gaining her entry into the school. Being exceedingly intelligent despite her age, she fits right in, and generally people simply write her off as ?having skipped a grade or seven?. She strongly suspects that at least a few of the Academy?s staff have become aware of her presence, but as of yet, no action has been taken to apprehend her. [B]Appearance:[/B] Nephilim?s true form remains a complete mystery to everyone but her. The body she takes on is that of a young girl with wide crimson eyes and silver-white hair, dressed in a lacy black gothic lolita dress. It has been commented on several occasions that she strongly resembles a ?hundred-year-old antique doll?. [B]Biography/character snippet:[/B] Even before she was born, Nephilim had nothing. When she was pulled into existence, she immediately looked down at herself and asked that question, ?who am I?? She came under attack by her former self?s heartless and nearly died, because it was so much incredibly stronger than her. She was found and saved by a family that had happened by, but the event had already traumatized her. The family took her in as their own child and raised her like she was the most important thing in the world to them. And slowly, she learned of her own non-existence through nightmare visions she had in her sleep in which she met with her heartless twin and slowly learned more about herself. Once she realized that the montage ?I think, therefore I am? didn?t apply to her, the last thread that she could call herself human by vanished. She sank into a psychosis and murdered her new family, entering Drive form for her first time. Afterwards, she sensed that her Heartless twin had detected her presence, and had drawn closer to her ?spirit?. Sensing her danger, she snuck into the Keyblade academy, hoping to become stronger so that when the time came that her Heartless found her, she would be ready to destroy it and reclaim that which she still does not realize she can never have - a heart.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

No prob ^ ^ I'l have to see if I can rework my character a bit, but I should be able to do that pretty quick.

Just to double-check... ...this isn't the same Gangirock that I signed up for a bit back, is it? (Named 'Trigger') 'Cause I was kinda bumming about it not starting...

---I found the lack of new posts kinda disturbing as well. I was gonna wait for one more post before posting my new one, but it never came...Ah, well at least that problem's been solved. Oh, and I feel really sorry for anyone that may have just incurred the Master's wrath...including myself, if applicable. X.X [COLOR=DarkRed][I]the Grand Dining Hall, 6:57 PM[/I][/COLOR] Mariko had long since wiped away her tears, scolding herself harshly for making such a fool out of herself in front of these people. Indeed, within a few minutes, there was so much crying going on that it was beginning to grate on her mind like a chainsaw. That...damn...noise...wouldn?t...[I]stop[/I]! She looked down and realized that her hands were shaking, her left eye was twitching. She could almost feel Wendy sliding away from her, even if only a few inches. No, she had to stop. She put her hands under the table and grabbed at the hem of her dress tightly, so tightly that she couldn?t even feel her hands anymore. That would stop the shaking. What was [I]wrong[/I] with her? It was Sena, she knew. She could almost cope with the fact that Wendy thought of herself as a witch, could deal with that Jennie woman, and how she thought she was so unlucky, even though she had never been through any of what Mariko had gone through. She could handle Allen?s homosexuality, she hadn?t lived long enough to be exposed to the world?s prejudices much, anyways. She could even almost deal with Ben and his...impressive womanizing streak, for lack of a better term. But Sena... Sena was, or at least had been, a godforsaken [I]rapist[/I]. Just like her [I]father[/I]. It didn?t matter if he ?hadn?t known what he was doing was wrong?. Of [I]course[/I] it was wrong, how could anyone [I]not[/I] see a problem with what he had done?! It infuriated her, but more than that, it [I]embarrassed[/I] her, because the video that had played had almost morbidly attracted her, in the sense that she could look at it without so much as even flinching. And it was alright that there was no sound, because she had already heard what a girl being taken against her will sounded like. Oh yes, she knew that sound [I]intimately[/I] well. And it sickened her. It sickened her so much that she could almost laugh about it. But instead she had just sat there, silently weeping, as everyone introduced themselves. [I]You?re ashamed of yourself,[/I] a voice in her head taunted. [I]You?re pathetic, breaking down like that in front of your enemies[/I]. Enemies...? Yes, yes, enemies. That?s right, she was in a competition here. And she was showing weakness in front of people who would probably just as soon send her back off to her cursed home with her family, just one person less to deal with in the end. No, she?d have to stop that now. She clenched her fists until her knuckles were ghost-white. The Master of Games clapped his hands together once to get everyone?s attention. [B]?Excuse me, everyone, I need to say something,?[/B] he stated politely, but firmly. [B]?I believe that shall be all for the evening,?[/B] he announced. By now, Mariko had regained enough of her sanity to be able to look up from her plate without bursting out into hysterics, and she stared at Dante, who sat barely feet away from her. He seemed...[I]irritated[/I], almost. As if he was utterly unsatisfied with how this first meeting had proceeded. Was he...[I]angry[/I], even? So hard to tell, with that casual, never-changing face of his. [B]?For now, let us retire to our rooms and get ready for bed. Your new cards will be delivered to you before you go to sleep.?[/B] And with that, the Master of Games stood up stiffly and proceeded out of the dining hall. No mistaking it, [I]something[/I] had irritated Mr. Lui?ci, and something about the...the air he spoke with told Mariko that whomever he was upset with was probably in some serious trouble. She could only hope that she was not one of those who had offended him. The moment Mr. Lui?ci had left the room, Mariko stood up with such force that she knocked the chair over backwards as she rose. The noise this produced caused several of the other guests to look her way. Her eye twitched once, and her gaze darted from the table, to the overturned chair, and back and forth about five times in the space of about a second. She reached down, set the chair back into its usual spot, and stormed out of the dining hall. [I]What in the world is wrong with me?![/I] she asked herself as she walked angrily down the hallway, her hands still clenched into tiny balls, shaking from nervous tension. There was something wrong about all of this. Was that everyone?s card? Was the entire point of this first meal to reveal everyone?s secrets to each-other, so that they might turn on each-other? Just what kind of game was being played out here? Whatever kind of twisted mind-game Mr. Lui?ci was trying to play at, she wouldn?t let it get to her, oh no. If she was to portray herself as any kind of contender in this game, she would have to be tough. She knew that every single one of the other guests had much more life experience, and were probably a lot smarter than her, and a lot stronger. She would have to stretch out and use every last ounce of her strength and cunning just to stay [I]in [/I] this game. No matter who she had to put down in the process. [I]Wait. Did I really just think that?[/I] Mariko stopped dead in her tracks. She looked down at her hands, unclenched and opened her fists, staring down at her palms. Watched in morbid fascination as the color slowly flushed back into her skin. What was happening to her? All she had ever wanted was someone to love her, and now look at her: she was turning into one of those whiney brats with no morals, no concept of the consequences they had on other people. The kind of brat that nobody could ever love. Was that the game the Master was playing at? And Mariko had almost lost it right there, and it was only the first day. [I]Deep breaths, Mariko,[/I] she commanded herself, resuming a slower, calmer walk down the hall. [I]Deep breaths. You?re here because you want to have a reason to live. Just remember that.[/I] By the time she had reached her room, all of the anger that had welled up inside her so suddenly at the dining hall had burnt itself out. She felt relieved. But more than that, she felt...exhausted. She could barely stand up, and she was having trouble seeing straight. But her mind was crystal clear now. She would play the game out, and she wouldn?t think of anyone as an enemy or anything like that. Everyone was here for a reason, and she respected that. Opening the door to her room, she opened her eyes, and was finally completely back to normal. She was ready to take the new day on with a clear mind and a smile - or at least the facade of one. She walked silently over to the corner of the room and stared across the room blankly. After a while, the door creaked open again, and Wendy stepped through the door. Mariko?s crimson eyes gleamed at her from her little corner of the room. Wendy sat quietly down on her bed, and the two stared at each-other for a very long moment. [B]?So,?[/B] Mariko decided to start. [B]?You?re a...a ?[I]witch[/I]?...?[/B] [B]?Y-yes...I suppose I am...?[/B] Wendy replied cautiously. [B]?A witch, that is...?[/B] [B]?Interesting...?[/B] Mariko mumbled. Some part of her still had trouble coping with the idea of sharing a room with someone who claimed to be a witch. She subconsciously threw back up that mental wall, refusing to let any emotion in or out. She shut herself off from the world. A long pause. [B]?...And you...y-you were...?[/B] Wendy seemed to be extremely apprehensive to talk about Mariko?s position. [I]Stupid people,[/I] Mariko thought to herself. [I]If you?re going to say it, then say it![/I] [B]?The term you are looking for is Pedophilic Rape,?[/B] Mariko finished the sentence for her sardonically. [B]?I looked it up on the internet once. What it [I]means[/I],? [/B] she continued, unaware of how cold her voice was growing, [B]?...is that the only thing my Father ever cared about me was that I was [I]soft[/I], [I]warm[/I], and felt really [I]good[/I] to get inside.?[/B] She finished her retort with a piercing stare straight into Wendy?s eyes. Wendy seemed almost aghast, and turned her head away. Mariko suddenly welled up with guilt, realizing how cruel she was being. [B]?I?m...I?m sorry,?[/B] she apologized, staring at the ground, burning with shame for herself. [B]?I-I just...it?s been so-?[/B] [B]?No, it?s okay,?[/B] Wendy said gently. [B]?I...I understand what it must?ve been like for you. I?m really sorry that I brought it up...and I?m really sorry about what has happened to you...?[/B] It was the worst thing she could have [I]possibly[/I] said. Mariko would have almost preferred it if the woman had stabbed back at her, made a retort, or [I]something[/I]. The fact that Wendy could remain so gentle and kind even in the face of such a cold, detached girl burned Mariko with shame. But...but it felt good, in a way. Finally, there was someone in the world that cared about her feelings, cared about [I]her[/I]. And that alone, at the very least, was good enough for Mariko to overlook the witchcraft. [B]?Th-thank you...?[/B] Mariko mumbled almost silently. [B]?That was...the nicest thing anyone?s ever said to me.?[/B] She looked up and gave a genuine smile. Then she turned and wiped the single tear from her face. Maybe...just [I]maybe[/I], it was possible to be both strong and kind in this game. [B]?I...I think I?m going to go to sleep now. Please don?t mind me...?[/B] Mariko picked up the silky bedtime clothes that had been laid out for her at the foot of the bed that could easily fit seven Marikos in it. She walked into the bathroom, closed the door, and changed into her night clothes. Before slipping into her night gown, she stared at the mirror in front of her. For a moment, that same naked girl with the hopeless eyes stared back at her, just like it always had since before she could remember. But then her eyes brightened, and she smiled at herself, knowing that if she could find one person that could understand her, then she could find others as well. She pulled the light, silky gown over her, gently folded her black dress, and came out of the bathroom with a more genuine smile than ever. She bowed respectfully to Wendy as she gently placed her dress next to her wardrobe before literally collapsing onto the soft, warm bed, the first bed that she could call hers since her early childhood. She crawled drowsily under the covers, yawned once, and silently fell into an immediate sleep. ---Oh, and Kairi, I didn't miss the 'you'll get your new cards before bed tonight' bit, I just figured that Mariko would be a bit tired after the evening's proceedings. I have every intention of retrieving my card before the night is out, though, so don't worry. [color=red]EDIT: (New character notes) Ah, yes, and you may have noticed that I've tweaked Mariko's personality a tiny bit. While she's generally drawn back and reserved, you'll find that once in a while she can get a bit...unstable...[/color]

The vast majority of Elfen Lied made me cry. Just seeing how those jerks at the lab treat those poor diclonius makes me wretch a bit every time it comes up. like, for example, when you're first introduced to Nana, the condition she's in. And that one nameless one in the Kurama's flashback that was [spoiler]shot repeatedly with a cannon to test out it's vector power[/spoiler]. Learning about Mayu's past was a bit unsettling. Lucy's battle with Nana that ended with [spoiler]Nana getting her limbs ripped out of her body - no, not 'cut', like normal, ripped the f**k out[/spoiler]. Oh, and then what does the general decide to do with Nana once she gets back? [spoiler]F**king lethal injection[/spoiler]!!! I cried for like ten minutes there. (Luckily, [spoiler]Kurama managed to save her[/spoiler]. But you don't find that out until the end of the next episode, so it sucks while it lasts.) What's next? Oh, yeah, then things get really 'good' at around episode eight, where you go into Lucy's past. [spoiler]That poor little girl! That poor little dog![/spoiler] I'd start running around killing people too if that was my past! Then, we get introduced to Mariko, who scares the piss outta me. But when they [spoiler]detonate her arm just to get a point across[/spoiler], I teared up a bit out of pure shock. Even all of that doesn't compare to the final two episodes, where I was crying non-stop (literally) throughout the whole thing. It started with Lucy's flashback of the festival, where she [spoiler]gives in to her evil side[/spoiler], then just gets better as Kouta [spoiler]regains his memory of the train ride where Lucy killed his sister[/spoiler], Nana gets [spoiler]the sh!t kicked out of her by Mariko[/spoiler]...and then at the end, Kurama's confrontation with Mariko...that entire bit just makes me bawl (hard enough that mom came in to check on me while I was crying). Finally, Kurama pretty much [spoiler]abandons Nana for Mariko[/spoiler], which made me cry, and promptly gets [spoiler]blown up with Mariko on the bridge[/spoiler], which made me cry even harder. Finally, Nana, almost the most depressed she ever looks in the show, makes her way back home whilst Lucy [spoiler]confesses her love to Kouta, gets his forgiveness, and runs off to put herself in front of a firing squad[/spoiler]. Basically, the entire last episode had me shaking my TV screen yelling NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! AH, THIS SUCKS! DAMMIT! which, I'm sure, was amusing to watch, had you been there. The problem with Elfen Lied (and consequentially that which makes it so effing awesome) is that nothing good EVER happens to the good guys, and the only person that can truly be considered a 'bad guy' (the general director) actually WINS in the end. ...Wow, that's a pretty scary-sized chunk of text. Sorry bout that, especially if you couldn't read it for fear of the spoiler tags ^^'.

Can't say I've seen a bunch of animes, but out of the ones I have seen, here are my favorites (counting down to my all-time fav). 5. [b].hack//SIGN[/b] - The unigue thing about //SIGN is that the show doesn't really have a lot 'going on' throughout the entire show, but it is still really deep and interesting. Not the kind of show you wanna watch if you're looking for non-stop action and lots of shiny explosions, //SIGN instead captivates you with deep characters and really beautiful art. The few, short, and far-apart action scenes there are in the show are pretty well done, but what really shines about it is how you can literally see how the characters mature and grow stronger through their interactions with one another. As an obsessive .hack fan, having collected everything there is .hack (even the freakin' trading cards), the original .hack anime holds a special place on my DVD shelf, because it's what started my .hack craze. 4. [b]Excel Saga[/b] - All of my friends are trying to get me into "Bobobo", or whatever it's called, but Excel Saga will always hold a special place in my heart, for its insanity, almost hilariously HUGE number of out-of-show references, and genuinely hilarious humor. Take a main character who is probably about as intelligent as a brick and talks at about six billion miles a minute, a martian princess who dies about eight times per episode, and a bishi organization leader bent on taking over the world (one prefecture at a time), and you get ACROSS, the three-member organization that is technically considered the 'good guys'. Add in all the other secondary characters, like Pedro, a foreign worker with the worst luck ever, a group of interns that work as civil servants while gallavanting around as the Power Rangers, not one, but TWO sexy female androids (not including several hundred clones of said androids), roughly three-thousand cute space aliens bent on world domination, The afro-sporting Nabeshin (the director of the show), the crazy Koshi Rikdo, author of the mangas, and the main antagonist (though you really don't see much of him), the nefarious That Man, and you've got what probably has to be the craziest anime ever, bar none. (

Again, sorry, but I'll have to 'pretty it up' later. It's all done, though. [COLOR=DarkRed]EDIT: Okay, it's good to go![/COLOR] [COLOR=DarkRed][I]the Grand Dining Hall, 6:20 PM[/I][/COLOR] Dinner was held in utter silence, save for the clinking of dining utensils against the fine china plates. Mr. Lui?ci, the Master of Games, seemed to command a sort of presence that snuffed out all the sound from the air. Mariko looked down at the plate in front of her. It was her favorite food, onigiri and soumen, but she wasn?t really hungry. Wendy?s question had put her off her mood. Why are you here? Why, when she had just been starting to like her, had she had to ask that question? How could Mariko explain what circumstances had brought her to this place? That she was a runaway? Questions regarding those circumstances would certainly arise, and?Mariko didn?t want to have to talk about her family. At least, not to someone she couldn?t one-hundred percent trust. Thankfully, Wendy had sensed Mariko?s unease at the question by the way she had stared blankly at her, and had dropped the subject. Maybe she was a little hungrier than she had thought. Anything to take her mind off of her parents. She picked up on of the steamed rice balls and nibbled a little on one end of it. Dante was good on his word, that was one thing for sure; these were probably the best onigiri that she had ever eaten. It was like the chef had been brought up in a fine Japanese restaurant, and had spent his entire life making them. But then, as she glanced around the table, everyone had their own special dish ? or most of it, anyways ? in front of them. The Master of Games had catered perfectly to every possible taste of his guests. Once she finished about half of her meal, Mariko gently pushed the plate slightly away from her, bowing in respect to Mr. Lui?ci for his hospitality. The man smiled gently at her with a smile that somehow didn?t quite reach his eyes, or at least not in the warm, friendly way his mouth did. ?Well, then, little Mariko,? he said politely, quietly, so that only she could hear, ?did you remember to bring your card?? Mariko nodded her head slightly, producing the little envelope from her dress? pocket. She noticed how Mr. Lui?ci?s cold eyes darted casually, but quickly, to the tear in the envelope. ?I-I didn?t open it,? she explained hastily. ?Honest. I just forgot your rules for a moment, and tore the envelope, but I didn?t look inside, I promise?? ?Think nothing of it, little Mariko,? Dante smiled warmly. ?I understand perfectly. Go on, read it.? Mariko slowly withdrew the card from its envelope. Her name was written in extremely fancy, rather loopy cursive, in pure gold on one side, as though someone had written her name in the molten metal itself. She carefully opened the card, her eyes darting quickly across the paper. The first part was so simple, it was almost absurd. She missed a breath as she finished reading the last line. She looked back up at the Master of Games, wide-eyed. ?Bu-but I?I can?t do that, it?s too soon!? she whispered urgently, pleadingly, to the Master, who smiled back at her in return. ?Think of it like this, little one,? he reasoned. ?The sooner you get this out of the way, the sooner you won?t have any secrets to hide. It?s best to be honest with the other guests, or they might?grow to?resent you.? He ended his reasoning by swirling one finger through the air lazily and tapping it against the table. ?Understand?? Mariko nodded. ?Yes, I?I understand.? The Master nodded gently and smiled, leaning back in his chair. He snapped his finger, and out of nowhere, a servant came from behind his chair and set an empty wine glass in front of him, along with a slender spoon. He picked up the spoon and tapped it lightly against the rim of the glass. A pure, crystalline sound rang softly from the glass, echoing and picking up volume as it bounced through the room. Everyone turned towards the head of the table. ?I?m terribly sorry to interrupt what, I?m sure, must be an excellent meal??? he trailed off the implied question and was rewarded with enthusiastic agreement. ?But, before we begin the rest of tonight?s proceedings, I believe our youngest guest has a few things she would like to say to us. Miss Mariko, if you would??? Mariko nodded, wiping a tear from her eye. I can do this, she thought to herself. I have to do this. I can?t just keep running away from it. She cleared her throat softly, and stood up, turning so that she could face the rest of the table. Dante sat at her side, smiling gently. ?Um?? she began. How was she supposed to begin this sort of thing? ?M-My name is Mariko?? Mariko what? It had been so long, she had forgotten her own last name. ?A-and I, I was brought here be-because I have no place else t-to go in this world. I?m here now b-because I have had to struggle on the streets of my home town to survive this long, all the while asking myself if it was really worth it.? ?The Master of Games saw this in me, and h-has brought me here because I...beause I want to find my reason to live again. I want to have a place to go that I can call home. You see?? This was the hard part. Mariko choked down what almost felt like a large golf ball before taking on this last part. ?Y-you see, I?I ran away from home. I ran because I was afraid of my father.? ?And why would that be, little one?? Dante Lui?ci asked softly, sincerely. He wanted everyone to hear this, and Mariko wasn?t going to get out of it. She could feel everyone?s eyes weighing down on her. She couldn?t hold back the tears anymore. Too many painful memories? ?I-I?? she tried, but she had to stop to stifle a sob. ?The r-reason I?m a-afraid of my father is?is because?? She paused to wipe her face on her sleeve. She didn?t want to say it, didn?t want to remember? ?But then it just came out, accompanied by a fresh outburst of tears. ?I-I ran away because every night my papa would come into my room and?and he?d take my clothess off and?he?d?he?d?do things...-!? She couldn?t finish, as she?d broken out into pure crying, but that was okay, because everyone in the room could draw the conclusion pretty easily, could figure out what 'papa' had done to the little girl. She sat down and buried her face in her hands, sobbing quietly. The Master of Games clapped his hands together slowly, as if applauding. ?Very well done, little Mariko. Very brave of you, to confront your past so boldly...? He settled comfortably back into his chair. ?Please do continue, everyone,? he added, gesturing politely with a lazy arm. ?The Festivities have yet to come...? ---Oh, and Mariko's, well...just don't try talking to her for a bit, 'kay? She needs a moment...Mental trauma, y'know.

One of the rules for this adventure was that you cannot divulge the information on your card to anyone, regerdless of circumstances. Although, I think Kairi modified this rule to allow you to inform other contestants on the contents of your card [I]via PM[/I] if your card [I]directly[/I] involved them. And what I meant in my earlier post was that I wanted to be the first person to post after Kairi made his entrance at the dinner table, which seems to be about now, so I'm gonna get to work on that. :catgirl:

[COLOR=DarkRed][I]Mariko's room, 5:40 PM, near dinner time.[/I][/COLOR] Mariko looked up at the clock on the wall from her little corner of the room. Only 5:40. Time seemed to pass so slowly here! And the other two girls weren?t helping the time pass very quickly, either. Nobody seemed interested in a little girl in this huge mansion. That woman who had introduced herself as Wendy, though, had managed to catch Mariko off guard, speaking to her in Japanese when Mariko was sure she?d have to use English to converse with people. Perhaps there[I] was[/I] at least one person here that Mariko might be able to confide in while she was here. But, no, it was too early to determine that yet. Mariko knew she had to be cautious around these people. She was suddenly finding herself in the middle of a contest with no clearly set boundaries, with a group of adults or near-adults, who were probably all much more familiar with the workings of competition than even her, for whom every day on the streets was an uphill struggle. She would have to be very careful about what she said, and to whom she became close with, if she wanted to have any hope of staying in this contest for very long. [I]Well,[/I] she thought to herself as she stared out at nothing,[I] I guess I should head to the dining hall, if there?s nothing left to do here.[/I] She stood up, stretching her arms out slightly to loosen up, and began heading for the door. After being silent and unmoving for so long, her sudden movement caught the other two girls by surprise. [B]?Hey, where ya goin? girl??[/B] the blonde girl asked in a cheerful, carefree voice. Wendy didn?t say anything, but the fact that she had kind of jerked where she was sitting betrayed that she, too, was interested in knowing where this girl, so quiet she practically didn?t exist, would be heading off to. [B]?I?m...going to head out and find the dining hall,?[/B] Mariko replied quietly. [B]?...Dinner...should be starting soon.?[/B] And with that, she walked out, closing the door gently, but firmly behind her. She took a short breath, turned to the left, and began walking down the hallway. As she walked down the lavish halls, so finely decorated and beautiful as they were, her mind simply couldn?t help but finally turn to the matter of the monetary prize that this Dante Lui?ci was offering, and what she could even fathom doing with it on the slim chance that she actually won? What could she, a homeless runaway with no family, possibly do with all that money? With no happier thoughts to turn her mind to, Mariko contemplated these new thoughts as they teased her imagination. But money was useless to her; she merely wished for a family, to be surrounded by people who loved her. [I]I?ve heard,[/I] she thought to herself, [I]of powerful men in the world, who have so much money they can do whatever they want, whenever they want. Could buy anything they want.[/I] Was that even possible? [I]Yes,[/I] a voice in her head said. [I]Of course it?s possible. In this day and age, you can buy anything with enough money.[/I] [I]Anything...?[/I] she wondered. [I]Yes, anything,[/I] the voice answered.[I] Even...love...[/I] [I]Even Love[/I]...the words echoed through her mind. A sudden determination set itself inside her mind. If she won, she could buy herself a new family. She could buy herself people who would love her as their child, not people who would use her like some sick toy, like daddy, or cast her off completely, like mommy. She could finally win the life she had clawed for tirelessly, day after day, out on the streets, the life she deserved after what the fates had cast to her. She had only to win. There was a servant-boy (literally, he couldn?t have been more than two years older than her) waiting at the next corner she absentmindedly turned. Which was convenient, because to tell the truth, she had no idea where she was. [B]?Oh, miss Mariko,?[/B] the boy said, noticing her before she fully registered the fact that he was there. [B]"Oh, hello, there,?[/B] Mariko greeted politely, bowing her head slightly. [B]?I was wondering if you maybe knew where the dining hall was??[/B] She felt a little embarrassed to have to ask something so simple, but this place was just so huge that she couldn?t really be expected to be able to find her way around on her own. The boy smiled cheerfully. [B]?Of course, miss Mariko, please follow me.?[/B] And with that, the boy turned around, glanced back, nodded his head, and lead her to the dining hall. ...Which turned out to be about a minutes walk from her room. She had gone in a big...[I]big[/I] circle around the room containing the dining hall without even noticing it. [B]?You?re a bit early for tonight?s banquet, aren?t you, miss Mariko??[/B] the boy observed. [B]?Yes, well...I had nothing better to do with my time, so I thought I?d take my seat early,?[/B] Mariko replied with an apologetic smile. [B]?Ah, I see,?[/B] the boy responded, nodding his head. [B]?Well, if you?ll excuse me, I must be off. Servant stuff to attend to, you know,?[/B] he laughed. With a respectful bow, the boy turned on his heel and disappeared behind the corner. A little disappointed that she hadn?t been able to return the boy?s courteous gestures of respect, Mariko turned around and swung open the door to the dining hall. As she walked in, the lights all simultaneously turned on, illuminating a room so vast to Mariko that it seemed to dwarf the size of any room she had ever seen before. Massive paintings of powerful historic figures hung from the walls, ornately carved furniture stood all around. A long, elegant table stood as the centerpiece of the room, with a grand, almost throne-like seat at the head of the table. As Mariko walked slowly up to the head of the table and took a seat on the right hand side closest to the head-chair, she smiled inwardly, for the first time in a long time, as visions of her goal swam back into her head. She had but to[I] win[/I], and that was what she would have to do. At [I]any[/I] cost.

Hullo again! I was just returning to submit another idea to aid the consistency of storyline, and also to help people figure out how close to important events the current time frame is. I'm thinking maybe we could each include a time stamp at the begining of each of our posts, like, for example, opening up like this, somewhat: [I]6:30 PM, the Dining Hall[/I] (insert the rest of your post here) The last adventure I was in (Monster Academy), though it didn't get very far due to lack of interest, seemed to flow really smoothly under this format. It helped avoid people posting after each-other with events occurring before previous posts, and helped maintain a sense of how close something was to happening. Like, for example, the last stated time in our story was 4:55 (in Nefertimon's post), so we have about an hour timeframe before the dinner meeting. [I]Looking back on what I just typed, I feel like I'm sounding like I'm trying to control the way the story's run a bunch, which I'm not, and I hope you guys don't think I am.[/I] [COLOR=Red]EDIT: Oh, yeah, I forgot to ask, does everyone have the Underground thread favorited? It seems to be playing somewhat of a more important role than most Underground threads I've been involved in.[/COLOR]

Oh, I'm gonna use this thread to help coordinate 'events' in the story. Like, last season, there were multiple story errors at the dinner table because everyone kept doing the same thing (the master entering the room) only in completely different ways. So, just as a heads up, [B]when dinner starts, I would like to begin the dinner...proceedings after Kairi has seated us.[/B] So, like, the idea is to make use of this thread to 'reserve' posts for important events. Does that sound alright to you, Kairi?

OOC - Sorry it looks sloppy, I'll pretty it up later tonight. EDIT - A'ight, it's good to go. :catgirl: The mansion was truly something out of a fairy-tale book, as far as Mariko was concerned. As she followed the rest of the group ? which had become considerably larger than she had anticipated ? through the ornate front doors, she felt a sensation that she thought surely must be akin to stepping into a completely different world. Never before had she gotten such an impression of just how massive the world could be. Back in Tokyo, even though it was a huge place, it was so crowded that it felt like a small box. This?this was amazing. The man who had approached them back by the ferry, Mariko presumed could only have been none other than Dante Lui?ci himself. The aged man had never actually mentioned his name, but something about his presence had commanded a sense of power, a sense of respect. It was the sort of feeling that could only come from someone who commanded unfathomable, absolute authority. It could only come from someone like the Host himself. He must be really kind, to come all the way out and greet us personally, Mariko thought to herself as she trailed behind the others. A few people left the group, as the other contestants began to find their rooms. Mariko skipped down the hallway a bit to catch up to the rest. In such a huge mansion, she would almost certainly get lost on her own. A few more people branched off from the group as everyone turned a corner. This hallway was totally different from the last one; all hung with ornate paintings, portraits of powerful-looking men and women from ages past, their faces staring out at the group from gleaming gold frames as they passed by. The red felt carpet stretched on for a little while down this hallway, ending with another hallway that disappeared off to the left and right. Still, Mariko was disappointed, and maybe a little scared, too. She hadn?t expected there to be more than maybe two or three people coming here, her included. And, there was nobody close to her age, so even though several contestants were here, she was still all alone. Lost in thought, Mariko somehow managed to fall far behind the rest of the group. ?Oh, no,? she mumbled to herself, realizing how far behind she was. She broke into a fast walk to catch up, turned down the left hallway, and was mildly surprised to bump right into someone?s back, bounced off, and landed on her back. ?A-ah?.go-gomenasai?? she stammered as she picked herself up off the floor. She looked up at one of the contestants, a pretty built-looking man, as he glanced over his shoulder to see what had bumped into him. ?Oh, uh, hey there,? the man replied, helping her back up. ?Oh, hey, you?re that girl from the ferry, right? The one that was just hiding in the corner the whole time?? ?O-oh, um?yes, that was me?? Mariko mumbled. She was completely embarrassing herself, and the man seemed to notice. He gave a polite nod and turned back around. ?Well, hey, good luck, huh?? ?Oh, um, yes?g-good luck to you, too?? Mariko mumbled. She found her room a little ways down the hall, and found the door already open. There was a girl already in the room, a somewhat?fashion-conscious-looking blonde girl. The girl looked up from the large four-poster bed she was sitting on and waved. ?Oh, hi there!? she greeted enthusiastically. Mariko stepped through the door into the room and walked past the girl. ?Hullo,? she replied absentmindedly. She stopped at the slightly smaller bed at the end of the room, where an envelope with her name on it was resting. She sighed, picking up the card and walking gloomily into the far corner of the room, sat down, and began to tear open the envelope. Just before she made a tear big enough to get out the paper inside, she remembered that she was supposed to wait until later. She sighed again, realizing that she?d just done something wrong again, and put the envelope down.

Mariko waited outside the door to the internet café for a full six hours,barely able to surpress her giddiness. And for good reason; after living out on the streets for the better part of six years, who wouldn't accept a gracious invitation to a beautiful mansio, and participate in such an interesting-sounding contest? It was almost too good to be real, and she wouldn?t have believed it If she hadn?t seen the e-mail with her own eyes. By the time the café closed, it was almost pitch-black outside. Mariko watched the door patiently, waiting for the last person to leave. She had kept very close watch over everyone that had come and gone since she had gotten kicked out earlier that day. Finally, the last person left, the door slowly creaking closed. In the blackness of the night, nobody would notice a little girl silently slipping through the closing door. Mariko checked, double-checked, and double-double-checked her surroundings, then did the whole thing again. When she was convinced that there was absolutely no possibility of anyone seeing her, even from outside, she pushed a button, and a computer buzzed to life, the moniter flaring up for a moment before displaying the desktop. Mariko smiled, clicking on the internet icon and accessing her e-mail. To: Dante Lui'ci From: Mariko-chan Subject: the Contest Dear Mr. Dante Lui'ci, Thank you for this wonderful offer! I would be honored to come to your mansion and play your game. I'm not sure why you picked me to come, or even really how you know about me, but...It sounds like a wonderful time! The rules you supplied in your e-mail seem a bit strange, but I'm sure it'll be explained when I get there. Once again, I'd like to thank you for this offer. P.S: Your escort can find me on a bench outside the internet café in the twelfth district of Tokyo. I'm sorry to say that I'm somewhat...lacking in a proper house at the moment. Mariko clicked the 'Send' button, waited for the message to be sent, and silently turned off the computer. She took a moment to glance at the station next to her; there had once been another girl in the same hopeless situation as her, who would find solace in this same place. They had been best of friends. Mieruru, had been her name. But one day she had said, with a tearful smile, ?I?m sorry, Mariko, but you won?t be seeing me anymore. Thank you?for everything.? And then she was gone. By the time Mariko made her way out of the internet café,the smile that had slowly been creeping across her face couldn't be contained anymore, and she let out a rather inordinately loud giggle as she walked toward the bench she said the escort could find her at. At roughly three o'clock that morning, she smiled once again as a sleek black limo pulled up to the curb right in front of her. The tinted window slid silently down, revealing two men seated in lavish leather chairs. The man sitting in the passenger seat looked briefly down at a slip of paper. "Are you...miss ?Mariko??" the man asked politely, reading her name off the paper. Mariko smiled and gave a polite bow. "Yup, that's me!" she answered happily, practically shaking with the excitement. "Please get in, make yourself comfortable," the man said politely, and the back door opened on it's own. Mariko nodded with another polite bow, and hopped into the limo. They slowly, silently made their way towards the airport with the lights off, as if they didn't want to be seen. Understandable, considering what they were doing, where they were going. The airport was completely uneventful and inconspicuous. There was already a small, private plane waiting for them, and the flight was totally perfect in every way - except there were no peanuts. Well, beggars can?t be choosers, after all. When they arrived at the mansion at around eight o'clock however, was a totally different experience. Mariko's eyes brightened in wonder. How could such a beautiful place exist in the world? Compared to the cramped, city-style atmosphere of Tokyo, this place was like heaven! And she hadn't even gotten to the front gate yet. She was, in fact, gazing at it from a pretty good distance away. She was actually at a port, in front of a small building where two other men, dressed in normal attire, were already waiting. Those must be the other contestants, Mariko thought to herself. She didn?t want to act conspicuous, so she found a nice quiet corner to sit down in. On of the two escorts looked down and spoke softly to her. "You may wait here. The other contestants will be arriving soon." Other contestants? Mariko asked herself. You mean there are even more coming? Mariko nodded, still in a sort of trance, and waited happily, if admittedly a bit nervously, for the rest of these contestants to arrive. Heh, if anyone who cares noticed, I managed to sneak in my other character with a relationship with Mariko. ...Hey, Kairi? What ever happened to Mieruru, anyway? ...Do I want to know?

Was your brother in charge of the season I was in? I hope so, 'cause that would give me someone to be angry with that it ended so quickly. :catgirl: I didn't see too much 'sickness' going down in season 3...except towards the end. I think I got a little 'glancing blow' there... Oh, and (to Kairi) [spoiler]you can't really keep the sicknes a secret as long as the search button is working[/spoiler] :animeswea

*Smile* I was wondering if I'd ever be seeing you again, Kairi. Up to your old tricks, I see? No matter, I like said 'old tricks'. Adventures like this are morbidly refreshing. ^.^ Name: Mariko (last name unknown) Age: 13 Sex: Female Location: Tokyo, JP Appearance: [IMG]http://www.ramuneanime.com/tsuk/_img/len.bmp[/IMG] Personality: Mariko is a shy, drawn back girl that acts more like she's eight than fourteen. She frightens very, very easily, and is usually something of a crybaby. She's very intelligent for never having gone to school, but she doesn't really like to demonstrate this too often. She is immediately both frightened and fascinated by anyone and everyone she sees, and tries very often to connect with anyone she isn't terribly scared of. Of course, this usually ends miserably, because she's rather childish. Bio: Mariko personality is the result of being literally hated by her parents, especially her father, who sexually abused her throughout her life. They hated her so much, actually, that they threw her out of the house at age ten. Since then, she's basically survived by wandering around the city, occasionally finding a generous person who will provide her with a place to stay. This sort of arrangement usually lasts for only about a day or two, afterwhich the person in question will usually get annoyed at how overly-affectionate she is. Her life isn't actually all that bad, despite how it sounds; she gets by well enough, and she usually spends her free time at the internet café. She started up an e-mail account when she was eleven, mostly on a whim and because it was free. She never got any mail, though she checked it every day, at least twice a day. Finally, one day it seemed her rather idiotic patience paid off, and she was kicked out of the internet café from the ruckus she made at actually getting a letter from someone. She remembered what it said, though. A contest. A trip to a beautiful mansion. And anything to her heart's desire. And a fabulous sum of money, though she really didn't care about that. All she had to do was reply with a smile, 'yes'. So she snuck into the internet café that very night and sent her reply happily. She also left the name of the street she could be found on, explaining briefly that she was 'in the market for a house at the moment'. And she waited right there on the bench at Hayatsou and 16th, never even once thinking about resting up for the trip, such was her excitement. Greatest Desire: To have someone to look up to that loves her. Greatest Fear: Dark, lonely places, her father. Haha! I'm back! And incidentally, with practically the same character as last time if, for no better reason, because season three never got finished v.v So here we go again, except with a slighly (as in VERY slightly) different character! Whee!!!

[SIZE=1]Mmmm, I like, I like! Very well, then, I'll try, too! And I'll use my favorite character type, as well! I doubt you'll be able to get away with just a PG rating with the whole war theme, though. ^^' [b]Name:[/b] Ren (Just Ren; last name unknown and/or undocumented) [b]Age:[/b]13 [b]Gender:[/b] Female [b]Appearance:[/b] [img]http://www.ramuneanime.com/tsuk/_img/len.bmp[/img] [b]Personality:[/b] Ren?s personality is completely unreadable, though the melancholic expression that she constantly wears almost seems to hint at a child with a grievous past. It is almost certain that she absolutely hates SATG and the research facilities that conducted experiments on her. [b]Gangirock:[/b] [u]Marble Requiem[/u] ? The pitch and tune of her voice, along with her special powers, can create illusions of anything she wishes, directed at another individual?s consciousness. If the illusion fools that person, the illusion solidifies into an actual object. [b]What did you lose after obtaining Gangirock:[/b] In exchange for Gangirock, Ren lost her ability to speak, and her muscles have decayed greatly from the awakening process, so she has to use a wheelchair to travel. Her Gangirock is activated by melodies she hums, and is always active. If she makes any noise whatsoever from her mouth, the Gangirock activates, whether she wants it to or not. To compensate for her inability to speak, she always carries a small sketchbook with her, and conveys her thoughts and feelings through pictures and simple sentences. [b]Bio:[/b] (In long-short-story fashion) The man in the white uniform glanced down at the girl as her parents handed over the papers. With these documents, the girl legally belonged to the research facility, a test subject to the Gangirock Phenomenon Compatibility System. Something didn?t seem quite right about the whole situation. He glanced down at the girl again, just barely catching the edge of her eyes as they snapped back to the floor, her slight frame slouching just visibly. His eyes darted from the girl, to the paper, to the parents, and back to the papers. ?Are you?are you sure you?re okay with this, ma?am?? he stuttered. ?Yes, take her. Take her and never send her back,? the woman replied. The man standing next to her merely nodded, mirroring her reply. The professor almost recoiled; the woman?s response had been immediate; she hadn?t even paused to consider. Even more, she apparently never wanted to see the girl again. And without hearing another word of it, the two left the room as silently as they had entered. The professor gazed down at the papers, giving a long, drawn-out sigh. Then back down at the girl, who was moving one of her bare feet in a circular motion around the marble floor. She was dressed ? if one could consider her even dressed, that is ? in what seemed to very closely resemble a pillowcase, although closer inspection revealed it to simply be a very loose nightgown. With a small hole between the legs. Of more interesting note, there was a collar around her throat, with a small bell attached to the front. He reached down to take a closer look, but the girl stepped back and covered the collar with one hand, shaking her head. ?No,? she said, a hint of a pleading tone in her voice, which seemed to have to struggle through the air to reach the professor?s ears. The professor shook his head. What exactly had those two done to this child? What kind of atrocities hid locked away behind those big, hopeless eyes? ?But still, money was tight, and new test subjects were hard to come across. He took her hand and led her down the hallway to the testing chamber. As per standard procedure, he withdrew a lollipop from his shirt pocket, promising that no matter what, he wouldn?t let anything bad happen to her. But the girl simply went into the small tube that would either change, or end, her life, without so much as an explanation or bribe. With a barely audible gulp, the professor tucked the candy back into his pocket. He nodded at the assistant at the control monitor. ?Go ahead,? he said. He closed his eyes, not wanting to watch what would happen next. The actual process of awakening the Gangirock is a terrible thing; few survived. Judging by the screams that always echoed from that tube, the process was almost certainly of a realm well beyond normal agony. It was terrible, and it was inhumane, yes. But then, this was a war, and the Gangirock phenomenon was the most powerful weapon SATG had to combat the insurgents. He only hoped that the ends would justify these terrible means. He opened his eyes, knowing that it would be futile to try to keep them shut once the screaming began. His eyes were fully focused just in time to see the glass tube slide shut with a vacuum sound, the imprint of a tiny hand against the inside of the glass. Then the machine gently hummed to life. The monitor flickered, and figures began appearing all over it. ?All readings from the subject are normal,? the assistant announced. ?Diagnostics check cleared. Beginning the startup routine.? The machine buzzed with energy as a light steam shrouded the inside of the tube. The professor hazarded a breath, as though his mere exhalation from here, in the observation room, might disturb the machine in the next. That was when it started. It took longer than expected, and even then, it was not the agonized scream they usually made. Instead, it seemed to be a faint mumbling, which slowly grew into a quiet pout. A few quivering sobs broke the relative silence. The professor could almost swear he heard the girl?s voice, quietly pouting ?It hurts?It hurts?? The screaming began at 64%. And that is exactly what it was: Absolute screaming. It was such a sudden change that, for the first time in thirteen trials, the professor and the assistant both recoiled from it. He could feel his heart beating alongside his adam?s apple in his throat. ?It hurts!? ?Seventy-six percent,? the assistant announced rigidly, keeping track of the numbers on screen. The girl?s readings were going completely crazy. Her heart rate was actually unreadable, because it kept flipping between 713 and flatline with no breaks in between. The professor could feel the blood pounding in his temple. ?It hurts, it hurts! No, no, no, no no no no NO! It HUUUUUUUUUURTS! NOOOOOOOO!? The shrill voice wailed. ?Break the operation!? He commanded. ?The process is past eighty-five percent, I can?t stop the process without killing her!? the assistant replied, though the finger hovering over the ABORT button made it all-too-clear how badly he wanted to stop the machine himself. The professor ground his teeth together, staring furiously at the machine. Inside, through the thick veil of steam, the outline of the girl within thrashed around violently, thudding against the smooth glass. And all the while, the overall progress readout patiently ticked. 87%. 89%. 90%. As though the machine itself got some kind of grim satisfaction out of the child?s suffering. At 95%, it seemed that the test had been a failure. Over one full minute, from 96% to 98%, all of the girl?s readings went dead. No heart rate, no pulse, no cerebral activity, nothing. If anything, the absolute silence that settled in was even more deafening than the shrieking that it had replaced. The professor sucked in breath after ragged breath as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. ?So?So that?s it, then.? The assistant nodded. ?I?m sorry. She?s gone.? The assistant stood up from his chair, and suddenly a beep came from the computer, signifying that the process had finished, unaware that its occupant wasn?t alive. And then, another beep. Both men wheeled around and stared at the monitor. Another beep, and a faint tremor in the heart rate. The two glanced at each other, and they were in the other room in a flash, even as the airtight seal hissed open and steam billowed heavily out. There was a thud, and a wavering in the cloud of steam, as the girl tried to take a step forward, stumbled, and fell. Her gown landed in a shredded pile around her, torn to tatters from her thrashing in the machine. She struggled limply to her feet. The professor was reminded disturbingly of a marionette attempting to move with all of its strings cut. ?Are?Is everything okay?? he asked weakly as she stumbled again, this time only saved by the glass tube as she sprawled against it. The girl looked up, her face a mess of tears and mucus. She gazed intently at the assistant, who suddenly stepped away. ?What the??? the man stuttered, taking another step back. And another. Suddenly the man tried to leap back, and instead tripped and fell on his back. He began waving his arms as if to ward away something coming at him. His scream lasted for only a split second as his head was blown completely off by an invisible force, his body slumping lifelessly to the ground. The professor shouted in surprise, and wheeled around to look at the girl. She was humming a lullaby tune softly, under her breath. Her Gangirock?What was it?! The girl shifted her gaze to him, and suddenly a form materialized if front of him. A creature drawn over in a thick black fog, wielding a cross that spread into a scythe at the end. It looked like death. Without thinking, the professor drew his gun at the oncoming figure. A quick though passed through his mind, and he adjusted his aim. With a deafening explosion, the gun fired. The girl?s scream became the creatures death-wail as it disappeared. She fell to the steel floor, clutching at the bloody, half-dollar coin-sized hole that had appeared in her left shoulder. The professor rushed to her side. Instead of helping, he pressed the barrel up to the girl?s temple. ?Alright, here?s the deal,? he growled, his voice choked up, but firm. He hated himself for using this kind of force on such a young girl, but it was necessary. ?I know you can understand everything I say, so listen closely. From this point on, you belong to SATG, and you will follow every order I give you. If you do not, I will personally kill you. Understand?? The girl simply looked up at him from over her shoulder, wide-eyed. That piercing stare burned into him for five seconds as it began to overflow with tears again. Instead of answering, the girl sobbed into the floor. And sobbed there for ten whole minutes. What horrible creatures we are, that damn one-another to lives of despair and death. That play God with each others? lives as If we have a right to interfere with God?s divine plan. I only pray that I can find a way to atone for what I have done today by using this child to help end the war, and that my ends can justify these terrible means. The professor got very little sleep that night, as scientists and soldiers rushed in, fitted the girl with a straightjacket, and hurried her off to a holding cell. This was only the beginning. Her training would start tomorrow.[/SIZE]

Yay, I'm glad you approve! This is going to take place in the OB Anthology, yes? Is it safe to begin posting?

Ooohhhh.....an Elfen Lied adventure? Sweet! Neko was hoping one of these would show up someday...here's Neko's entry!!! Maybe Neko can even whip up a quick sketch...for her appearance, that is... Hope I get in! :catgirl: [quote=T3h sign-up-thingy] [b]Name:[/b] Sixty-Six (official designation). [b]Age/Sex:[/b] 9/female. [b]Race:[/b] Silpelit. [b]Allegiance:[/b] None. She doesn't seem to even have her own free will, which makes her an incredibly useful test subject. At the same time, her body has been so badly damaged from the extensive testing that she isn't useful as a weapon to help hunt down Lucy. For the most part, GARN keeps her for experiments deemed 'too dangerous' to perform on more 'useful' diclonius and silpelits. [b]Alignment:[/b] None. For the most part, she just sits around in her cell with an odd melancholy look on her face. It can be unnerving at times, but she has been deemed by the researchers as 'tame', and 'safe to approach'. It cannot be said exactly what goes on in her mind, if, indeed, anything at all. [b]Vector Traits:[/b] Three vectors, approx. 1.5 meter radius. Vector strength classification: level 0.4 (unable to move objects with a weight of over ten pounds, little to no ?cutting? ability). Vectors are obviously underdeveloped or damaged, one is also apparently missing. As there has been no link established between a diclonius' physical condition and the performance level of its vectors, the reason for her atrophied vectors is unknown. [b]Physical Appearance:[/b] A particularly small girl with big eyes and the characteristic pink hair. On first glance, many employees at GARN comment that she bares a remarkable resemblance with the late director Kurama?s daughter, number 35, or as some better remember, Mariko Kurama. Extended experimentation by GARN has left her body severely damaged. Her right arm is a prosthetic that repeatedly falls off because it wasn?t fitted properly. Her face is entirely covered by a rather bulky metal helmet, save for a rather uneven hole from which she can see with her right eye. [b]Personality:[/b] According to the observation notes, none to speak of. There were several ?incidents? with her several years ago, when she first became aware of her existence, but she seems totally indifferent now. Upon inspection, several experts have decided that her lack of response is due to severe psychological or mental trauma, most likely as a result of the harsh tests she has been exposed to. Another sympathizer argued that GARN should cease experimentation on her as well as several other specimens, but these protests have thus far all gone ignored. [b]Pet Peeves:[/b] Unknown. Most likely none. [b]Special Possessions:[/b] While she has little ability to move of her own accord, or indeed even speak, she seems to covet the protective helmet she wears above anything else. She will not be separated from it unless it is taken from her by force, usually with the aid of a heavy dose of sedative to knock her out first. This is most likely because it is the only object that she has been permitted to touch since being interred at the facility. [b]Background:[/b] Whenever a silpelit is born, it is a time of great sorrow for the unfortunate family involved, and Sixty-six?s parents were no exception. Her biological father, who worked at GARN as one of the employees that brought specimens food during feeding hours, was infected by a particularly rebellious silpelit girl, and shortly thereafter fell in love with another employee at GARN. Nine months later, he was informed that, regretfully, his baby girl had been born with a pair of protrusions on her head, and that his wife had passed away during the birthing process as a result of complications from internal bleeding. Of course, knowing what she was, and unable to deal with the loss, Sixty-six?s father filed to quit his job, and when told he couldn?t leave, that this project was top-secret, he committed suicide later that night. With no biological parents, and no better use for a newborn silpelit, Sixty-six was transferred to the experimentation division as a new specimen. Eager for new subjects, the labs quickly took her in, designating her to cell number sixty-six (thus her name), where she is under constant monitoring, and from which she only leaves during certain tests that require more room. Aside from the obvious, being the daily experimentation including, but not limited to, being shot, vector responsiveness testing, vector reflex testing, chemical testing, DNA samples, and tissue harvesting (where she lost her right arm) for the duration of her life, the rest is, to coin the human expression, ?history?.[/quote]

[SIZE=1]Neko has been a good girl and waited. She's checked the boards every day! And, alas, she was beginning to lose faith. Bad Neko! Bad! DDG said we'd see this thing through to the end, and so by jingo, we will! Although, Neko must admit...*eyes twitch as she reads DDG's post*...DDG-chan broke Neko's brain... :animedepr Neko doesn't think she can top that last one, but she'll give it a shot. Oh, and by the way, that last post is now officially Neko's favorite section of this story or any story, and Neko thinks DDG wins about six internets for it. No, Neko doesn't know why she's speaking in third-person. She just is. EDIT: Oh, and the TRUTH stat graphic wins, as well. Could Neko have a banner-legal version pwease?[/SIZE] ---------- [COLOR=Navy]What was happening? Random, inane half-sounds, nonsensical strings of sentences patched poorly together into a static carnival of insanity. Ten million voices filled her head, shouting, always shouting. About what? Here was a Macha, there was a Mia, and in between thousands of fractured voices. A misaligned reality clashing with a misaligned fabrication. Mia, Macha. Mia, Macha. A Mia and a Macha. A Mia and a Macha! A Macha and a Mia! …A Mia and a Macha…? …[I]What[/I]…? Separate from the fighting, the hurting, the pain, her mind reeled. Two entities were fighting for control of her body. Neither of them were her. Mia? Macha? Who…? And while these other people were fighting, trying to hurt her, trying to kill her, one just stood there. But at the same time, that girl, too, was reeling. Shaking, falling over, writhing on the floor. Who was she? A word came to her. Kayla. But…but what was a ‘Kayla’, exactly? Oh, yes! Her best friend! How could she have forgotten? But…but she was in so much pain. Why? Mia and Macha. Macha and Mia. Macha, Mia. Mia, Mia, Macha. What the Hell…? She wanted to scream in pain, in frustration, in despair, in [I]hatred[/I], but she couldn’t do anything. Couldn’t scream, cry, or even blink, or even cover her ears, could only watch and listen to the shrieking voices drowning out everything else. What place did she have in this battle between two more powerful minds? Mia and Macha. Whoever came out on top, she lost. But why? What had she ever done to deserve this? What made her deserve to be a slave of her own mind, her prison, her body? Kayla, Sakura, Subaru, Balmung, Kite, Blackrose, Helba. Friends. Why? The Phases. Morganna. Bad. Enemies. Cursed Wave. Random words flitting through her head at twenty billion miles a minute, and still, she could only think about what everyone else was going through, could only concentrate on a girl superimposed on the Kayla, pulling herself desperately back up to a desk. And suddenly, she remembered. No, no, more like she [I]realized[/I]. There was no reason for any of this to be happening. The Hell with this Mia, this Macha. This is [I]my[/I] body, dammit! [I]Mine[/I]! With all her might, Kia managed to seize control. [COLOR=DimGray]Why are you hurting them?![/COLOR] She demanded. [COLOR=DimGray]What are you doing to Kayla?![/COLOR] [COLOR=DimGray]Your so-called friends are trying to kill you,[/COLOR] a thought from one of the other minds observed. Macha. [COLOR=DimGray]If this is what I’ve become, then let them kill me,[/COLOR] Kia shouted angrily back at…herself…? No, no. Macha. Must focus. Focus, Kia! [COLOR=DimGray]You deserve to die, too. You'll destroy the real world![/COLOR] [COLOR=DimGray]The ‘real’ world, you say?[/COLOR] the voice purred. [COLOR=DimGray]The [I]real[/I] world? Which world is more ‘real’ to you? Is it this world that is the fake one, or is it that one? You live here. If they succeed in their goal, you will cease to be. It will be [I]your[/I] world that is lost.[/COLOR] [COLOR=DimGray]Shut up![/COLOR] Kia shouted. That couldn’t be true. Kayla, Sakura, Kite and the others…they were her friends. Her [I]only[/I] friends. They were almost like family to her. They would never do anything to hurt her. They wouldn’t…would they? [COLOR=DimGray]It’s true![/COLOR] The voice laughed. [COLOR=DimGray]It’s true, it’s true, true, true, all true! All true![/COLOR] And the voice grew louder, and louder, and Kia thought she might die from the impact of the voice, and she couldn’t control her body anymore, and everything, the players, the field, the struggling girl, all shook and shivered and bent out of existence. And suddenly, although she couldn’t focus, could hardly breath, Kia felt a sudden, sharp stab, a painfully sweet puncture. She looked with shocked eyes at a deep cut along her stomach as Sakura jumped in for another, equally painful blow. Macha controlled the body, but the pain was all [I]hers[/I] to bare. She screamed silently inside herself. One last plea. Kayla was still being mentally assaulted by Macha, everyone else seemed unaffected. One last desperate cry before fading out of existence forever. One last effort. Have to put everything you’ve got into it, or it won’t get through. [COLOR=DimGray]Please…help…[/COLOR] And that was it. She could do no more than watch, and listen, and scream in pain at each and every blow inflicted on her as Macha relentlessly continued fighting, deliberately threw itself in front of every attack. Macha had sensed her silent cry, and the pitch, the noise, the nausea, had only increased. If Kayla was hearing what she was, then she was surprised Kayla wasn’t already dead. Another attack. Another deep pain. Another silent scream. And she knew that she was dying. And somehow, it almost seemed a relief. After all, she’d already died once. How could this be any worse? But then… [B]“Kia . . . Kia! She’s . . . in there! Trapped! Stop it! Stop it! [I]STOP IT[/I]! You’re [I]killing[/I] her, dammit!”[/B] K…Kay…that girl? She was defending her? What? [COLOR=DimGray]No…no, don’t try to save me, I’m already gone.[/COLOR] She held her arm out, a ring formed around her wrist, and fired a blast of light at the nearest player. The blue-haired girl wielding an axe flew back, lifeless. A few people might’ve shouted. With the pitch of that constant screaming, it didn’t really matter. But that one girl was trying to [I]save[/I] her! Suddenly, she felt a renewed energy. A shattering sound. Another Protect Break. The boy in red leveled his arm at her and powered up an attack. [B]“Kite, [I]no[/I]!”[/B] the girl shouted. [B]“You’ll kill her…you’ll [I]kill[/I] her! She’ll never come back!”[/B] The boy’s hand wavered, hesitant. A warm feeling inside. A mental smile. She had won. [COLOR=DimGray]We will beat you,[/COLOR] Kia said simply. [COLOR=DimGray]The others might, someday. As for you, you’re just like us. A Nothing.[/COLOR] She jumped forward in the blink of an eye, ran straight into the girl, and suddenly was holding her, again, a foot off the ground. Her wrist began to glow… Now or never. No strength left to try again. [COLOR=DimGray]You will never take my friends from me.[/COLOR] She surged up one last time, and seized control of just that arm. The entire battle froze. Macha glared hatefully into Kayla’s eyes. But a sudden change swept over her features. A friendly smile. A sorrowful smile. Best of friends. Do it now. [B]“…K-…Kia…?”[/B] Kayla choked out. [B]“Your call, Kayla,”[/B] Kite shouted, his outstretched arm pulsing with the energy that would end her. [B]“Your friend, your call.”[/B] [B]“I…I c-can't…”[/B] [B]“If you don’t do it now,”[/B] Kia whispered in her normal voice, [B]“You will never get another chance.”[/B] [B]“B-but I…”[/B] Kayla stopped mid-objection. The look in those strange eyes looked almost human. But they were set and determined and there was no changing her mind. [B]“Do it,”[/B] Kayla cried. Kite nodded, the blast loosed itself. Kayla closed her eyes, didn’t want to see it happen, couldn’t see it happen. Kia felt it, too. The sweeping rush of destruction racing to meet her. Racing to destroy her. [B]“Don’t forget me,”[/B] were the last words she whispered before being blown fifty feet through the air. ---------- Amidst the shimmering light of raw power, a girl floated, stranded in a raging inferno of blinding radiance. She could feel her body peeling away, could feel everything being torn completely apart. The voices in her head were gone, too. [COLOR=DimGray]You belong with us, Nothing,[/COLOR] was the last thing one said, before being silenced forever. Finally, the girl landed on the floor with a dull [I]thud[/I]. She was out instantly. [B]“Kia…Kia? Are you…are you alright?”[/B] The girl opened her eyes. There was a bright sun glowing up in the sky. She heard water nearby, too. Her vision was a blur, but it was coming into focus slowly. Six people were staring down at her anxiously. She sat up, shook her head a bit. [B]“Where…am I…?”[/B] she asked. [B]“Mac Anu, Kia. But don’t worry about that right now. How are you still…well...[I]here[/I]…?”[/B] One of them asked. The girl pointed to her chest. [B]“I’m a…[I]Kia[/I]…?”[/B] she asked slowly, trying to understand. [B]“Well, we certainly [I]hope[/I] so,”[/B] a green-haired person smirked rudely. [B]“I see…”[/B] the girl said in that same slow, hesitant voice. She looked around at the group of people, stared at them long and hard. She even tilted her head to one side. Finally, she pointed her finger at the brown haired one holding a staff. Her finger swept across until it had pointed at each of them, from left to right. [B]“And…who are [I]you[/I]…?”[/B][/COLOR] ---------- [SIZE=1]And so, Kayla has gone through the equivalent of having your brains smashed out by a slice of lemon wrapped around a relatively large gold brick, and Kia's just...well, Kia's being an amnesiac, and Neko would like it to stay that way until further notice. Try to avoid too much contact with her. Neko would say that even though Macha was destroyed, it pretty much won this battle, huh? EDIT^2: Oh yeah, and if anything important happens after the Macha fight (Neko hasn't played the game for so long now she can't remember), that can happen before Kia wakes up.[/SIZE]

La Pucelle could most easily be described as a 'gateway' for gamers who are new to the SRPG genre. The gameplay is different by a bit (everytime you attack it shifts into a sort of one-on-one battle screen, which I always thought was cool, but some people can't stand how long it takes), and overall, the core mechanics of the game aren't as deep as in Disgaea. (It's very difficult to find a really 'broken' map in La Pucelle) But I like La Pucelle's storyline better; it's rather deeper, and takes itself more seriously than Disgaea. If your going for gameplay only, though, La Pucelle will probably feel like you're taking a few steps [I]backward[/I] from Disgaea. (Being a hardcore SRPG collector, I'm perfectly okay with this)

[COLOR=Red]-*holds up a wine glass out of nowhere* A toast, to two years of fun! Hooray! *Drinks down the [I]apple juice[/i] that was in the wine glass, what the Hell did you [I]THINK[/I] was in it?!* -Edit: To hell with saving space, I can't read my own post on size 1![/COLOR] [COLOR=Navy][FONT=Tahoma][B]"iT'S gOInG To enD hERe."[/B] [I]Hah, what a joke,[/I] she thought to herself as she gracefully sidestepped another strike from her friend. What a fun game this was! [I]The power of a Phase is an amazing thing,[/I] Kia thought to herself. [I]Come, friends, let us play, once again. There is so much fun to be had.[/I] All fun and games! How could she have been so [I]ignorant[/I]? When she had fought with the Phases, they had seemed like agents of the devil itself, great and terrible monsters with immeasurable power and deadly killing intent. But she didn't have an urge to kill, or some greater evil driving her to fight. She was having [I]fun[/I]. Like the little child she was supposed to be. The phases were just [I]children at play[/I]. With her transfromation, She had gained an impressive arsenal against her opponents. Discontent with simply fighting them, she had opted instead to stand back and laugh as Blackrose had offed Kite just before he managed to dispatch Subaru. How disappointing, how pitifully weak they were. She stood back patiently and waited as the team revived Kite and healed Subaru. The whirl of blades that was Sakura, which had before seemed so threatening, seemed no more than tiny brushes across her skin as the Twin Blade tried to overpower her. [I]Fool[/I]. Kia lifted a hand casually and knocked Sakura away. In the blink of an eye, she was right there beside Sakura again, and with another blow, the player was gone. [I]Score another one for me[/I], Kia thought to herself with a smile, even though she knew that the others would surely revive her. Ah, well. Their ability to come back to life was nothing more than a balance to counteract her newfound power. After all, she wanted to play fair with her friends, or they might get upset and leave. No good, no good. But out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly glanced a familiar face, distant from the others. [B]"K...kaYLa..."[/B] Her voice was a deadly purr that threatened to tear the air apart. Of all people, Kayla was the last person she would expect to refuse to play. How could she betray her? It was almost maddening that this girl, whom was supposed to be her friend, refused to play with her. She jumped away and held out a slender arm, begging Kayla closer. [B]"iT'S gOInG To enD hERe,"[/B] she whispered, knowing that Kayla would hear her. The others were preparing another rallied strike, but they were of little importance. Kayla took a slow, hesitant step forward. [B]"COmE on, kAYLa, dOn't you wANt tO pLay wiTh Me...?"[/B] Kia asked. [I]It'll be lots of fun, promise,[/I] she added silently, in a voice only Kayla could hear. Kayla backed away for a moment, then resumed slowly creeping towards her. Kia grew impatient. She blinked, and a spell flew forward and hit Kayla. Charmed, Kayla's body was now hers to control. Kayla suddenly spun around, and whirled her staff dangerously in front of her. [B]"[I]PhaVak Don[/I]!"[/B] she shouted, and incinerating flames rained down from the sky, burning against the rest of her comrades just as they were about to converge on Macha. [B]"Kayla, what the [I]Hell[/I] are you doing?!"[/B] Blackrose shouted angrily as Kayla fired another spell. [B]"She's charmed,"[/B] Kite answered, nimbly rolling off to the side as more incendiary rain fell down like a torrential downpour. [I]Yes, yes, Kayla, this is where the fun is![/I] Kia laughed to herself as she watched the others dance around, trying to dodge Kayla's formidable magic power. Silver Knight died twice, Subaru once. The rest somehow managed to survive. She was in the middle of casting another spell when Kayla suddenly stopped. [I]No,[/I] Kia could hear her think to herself, shaking her head, [I]I won't let you use me like this![/I] Kayla suddenly turned around and unleashed the flames of retribution on Kia, raining spell after spell on her in rapid succcession. The others took advantage of the moment to dart in and score some quick hits. [I]Well, she seems to be enjoying herself now,[/I] Kia thought gladly to herself, still focused solely on Kayla, completely ignorant of the pesky little flies trying to beat her into submission. She let her mind wander a bit too long after all, and it surprised and worried her greatly when suddenly she heard the sound of shattering glass, and realized her protection was broken. Furious, she knocked the group away and jumped back. When she landed, Kite's hand was glowing with a strange power. The others wisely backed away, allowing him a clear shot. In an instant, she knew what he aimed to do. [B]"Oh, nO yOU DoN't,"[/B] she grinned, thrusting her own arm out. A similar ring of power glowed about her wrist. [B]"Kite, NO!"[/B] Kayla shouted as the Data Drain shot out. At the same time, Kia lashed out with her own drain. Someone screamed as the two streams clashed in midair and ripped apart the data there. Where once a distorted field had shown, now raw data shot through blank white space in the tear in coding. Slowly, the gap patched itself up, and Kite loosed another blast. Kia simply stared at the stream of ravaging data and smiled as her protective shield encased her again at the last second, reflecting the blast in all directions. [I]Oh, I'd forgotten about that,[/I] Kia laughed in her mind, holding out her arm in wonder. Of course! As a phase, she could use data drain just like Kite! [I]I've always been jealous of him,[/I] she thought smugly to herself. The group dashed back in to resume the battle, with the exception of Kite, Kayla, and Sakura, who sensed something was amiss. Kia took exception to the attack, and her blades suddenly appeared in front of her. Slender, delicate fingers wrapped around familiar blades, and as she touched them, the blades doubled, tripled in length, and grew serrated. This was more like it. There was a brilliant flash of movement as Blackrose brought her massive sword down in a crushing blow. Kia suddenly apeared behind her, and with three nearly invisible strokes, the heavyblade went down. Subaru met a similar fate. The twin blades whirled dangerously in Macha's hands before dismantling Silver Knight's sword. With a sneer, Her arm shot out, and she raised him up high into the air before firing the data drain at him. There was a collective [B]"NO!"[/B] as he fell to the ground. He got up weakly, but a slash across the throat laid him out on the ground. With a high-pitched laugh, Kia brought her killing arm down to bare on Subaru, and a similar blast shot towards her, like the judging finger of a vengeful God. Subaru reeled back, but could not escape the deadly beam of light stabbing at her. Down she went. Kia turned her eyes, burning white with power, to Sakura, who was gaping incredulously at Subaru and White Knight. She would be the next to go. It was almost unfair. It was like Kia had a God Mode cheat and her friends didn't. Oh, well. It was their own fault they hadn't ascended with the phases, when Kia had. She held her arm out. Another data drain set itself up. Sakura whirled around just in time to see the brilliant flash of light that would spell her doom. But it didn't. With an almighty shout, Kite dove in front of her, his own wrist glowing. His bracelet activated, but not soon enough. He skidded limply across the ground. [B]"Kite!"[/B] Sakura shouted. [B]"Don't worry about me, I'm fine,"[/B] Kite replied, staggering back up. [B]"It just knocked me around a bit. What about you two?"[/B] [B]"We're fine,"[/B] Silver Knight's voice bellowed as his faint silhouette stepped forward along with Subaru's. [B]"But we could go for a good ressurect."[/B] [B]"Thank god, she didn't kill you,"[/B] Kayla breathed. [B]"You gotta be more careful, Kite! You're the only one that can-"[/B] Kayla cut herself off, and that hesitant looked crossed her face again. [I]What's eating her?[/I] Kia thought to herself. [B]"You're the only one that can...that can kill her..."[/B] [I]What is with the drama?![/I] Kia silently shouted to herself, enraged. With invisible speed, she was right in front of Kayla. Before she had any time to react, Kia's arm lashed out and her hand wrapped firmly around Kayla's neck. She made a funny gagging noise as Macha hoisted her into the air. [B]"whaT'S tHe MAttEr wITh yoU, KayLa?!"[/B] she shouted. Her wrist suddenly began to glow with energy right under Kayla's neck as the Data Drain powered up. This time, she was serious. This time, she would tear Kayla from her body. Then they would both be forever, they could be friends [I]forever[/I]. [B]"iT'S OnlY A gAme..."[/B] she purred with a smile as the ring completed itself. She looked up into Kayla's eyes, exhilirated with the game. But as she looked up into Kayla's eyes, there was something there that made her hesitate. To Kia, this was all a great, exciting game. But Kayla's eyes were filled with terror. Kayla wasn't having fun. She...Kia struggled with the idea. Kayla...didn't want...to...die. [I]Kayla didn't want to die[/I]. Kia's eyes snapped wide open as she threw Kayla down, the ring of light shattering around her wrist. [I]What...What've I been doing...?[/I] She thought to herself. She gazed to the left and right, realizing for the first time that all the others bore a similar expression of fear. [I]I'm...I'm hurting them...I almost...Killed...[/I] Kayla slowly staggered back up with a cough - for Kia's reach had extended beyond the game, through the neural goggle and straight into her brain - and looked up at Kia, who stared back down with what almost seemed like sorrow, if such a conveyance was possible with no pupils. Her gaze shifted to Sakura, whose blades were quivering in her shaking hands as she held them up unsteadily in a defensive stance. [B]"Guys..."[/B] Kia whispered, her voice returning to normal. [B]"I'm -"[/B] [B]"Now's our chance!"[/B] Kite shouted, seeing her hesitate, lunging in with blades flashing. Kia screamed and jumped away, shielding her head with her frail, purple arms. [B]"Kite, STOP!"[/B] someone shouted. Kia wanted to scream, wanted to beg Kite to stop lashing out at her, but she couldn't move. Her hand began to glow again. Macha was taking completely over. Now Kia was truly helpless to aid her friends, would only be able to watch as Macha lashed out at her friends with even more ferocity than before.[/FONT][/COLOR] [COLOR=Red]-Ah, much better. It's fun writing up this story again, after so long. Do what you will, everyone, but if possible, I'd like to take the last post of the fight. If anyone wants to do anything immediately following the battle, my post will end pretty much right after the battle's over. Happy posting![/COLOR]

It's cool that it seems they'll be making it follow the game's storyline. The trailer I watched has Baal in it, I wonder if the other hidden bosses will also make an appearance? Must...Get...[spoiler]Prier[/spoiler]...to...level...9999... *runs off and goes back to mindless power-leveling*