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Vibrant Self-Righteousness
*At the center of Arakawa resides a mysterious mark that takes after the sun. The ward has remained host to the mark for a while now yet it's own people know little of it. As far as they are concerned it's nothing more than a tasteful design created by delinquents.*
*A few disappearances have recently plagued the ward as well. The missing always seem spirited away and are never found.*
*In spite of this life continues on in peaceful Arakawa.*
*With the sun mark continuing to reside upon a marbled statue in the local park.*
*The sun mark practically glows underneath the visage of a famed general and it's effects can be seen. In the raised stature of the plants, the vindictiveness of the animals, and the passionate protests of the people.*
*Just another day in Arakawa.*
*Geist looks at the sun mark on the statue with curiosty*
Anyone notice this?
Sure, it was nothing more than stories, yet these kinds of rumors were the only lead people like Sayaka had to follow up on. So the young girl got on a bus and headed to Arakawa, after questioning a few locals about the park location, Sayaka Miki soon finds the statue in question. The girl takes a close look at the mark, before looking at the ring on her left hand, Sayaka closes her eyes in her standard routine, and attempts to sense a nearby Witch
*Geist looks to Sayaka*
Greetings there. Seems I'm not the only one who sees this odd mark on this statue.
Sayaka immediately senses a witch with her attempts.
Some people stop at Geist's question yet they mostly shrug as they have grown accustomed to the mark. They simply continue going on with their day as the mark brims with life of it's own. As if sensing Geist's stares the mark itself moves forward from the statue as a circular gate. Animalistic shadows creep around the now encircled mark and at the center of it is an inky blackness. The center of it appears almost tangible with it's constant rippling state.
Sayaka immediately jumps back, she hardly even expected it to work at this point, yet here we are. The young girl jumps and pumps her fist in the air
YES!! I'VE GOT THIS ONE.
Its only then that Sayaka realizes she isn't alone, scratching the back of her head and turning to Geist before laughing nervously
Y... Yeah, uh... Look, this might be a bit dangerous for you, just... Let me have this one, alright? Fighting monsters like this is my specialty.
Without even waiting for Geist's reply, Sayaka pulls the silver ring off her finger, causing it to morph into a small, blue, egg-shaped gem. After tossing it a few inches into the air and catching, the girl is briefly engulfed in a faint blue light before emerging in her Magical Girl outfit. Without further ado, Sayaka reaches into the mark, focusing in hopes of gaining access
*as he sees the mark acting up, he draws out his sword, a blade that radiates an almost sinister green glow and its hilt wrappings unraveling and around his shoulders, legs, and arms begins to be engulfed by green flames*
This is interesting... and my father taught me on the art of war...
(edited by Voidwalker_Geist)
*Colton happens to be walking by when he notices the small group, realizing that something was going to happen with that group. He walked to the group with his gun ready... just in case something tried to attack him or anyone else in the group*
Once Sayaka's hand reaches a certain depth within the mark it practically explodes in a cacophony of rampant shadows and ebony fangs. Sayaka, Colton, and Geist melt with the shadows as they are dragged through an array of symmetrical shapes in liquid form. The long shadow-like journey ends with the three falling into the center of an orange sun tipped with spikes. They are jarred back to their normal state of being on the steps before a shrine arc. The full moon lies behind the arc and a loud mesh of sounds can be heard from where they stand. A soft breeze reeking of various foods wafts around and at the very top of the steps is a girl eating some takoyaki.
The girl appears to be perfectly in peace as her black hair bobs to every eating motion she makes. Yet her eyes appears to be telling a different story as they stormily gaze out while her black clothing hints to a serious affair.
(edited by DemonicHomura)
*Geist rises from the sudden transition and he uses his sword as a support and sees the girl snacking*
I would never expect of me to melt a flood of shadows... and who in the world is that girl.
*After being melted and being transportnet somewhere else*
*The Pantheon would first check himself, before looking at the girl who is eating food while thinking (What just happen, why did that happen, where am I, who is that, who are the other two here... why is this my life.)*
Sayaka braced herself, such a transition wasn't too abnormal, though she can't help but flinch every time. The girl initially closes her eyes and takes a deep breath as they fall through, after a moment, she opens them again, only to find... A rather more normal scene than she was expecting..... And not only that she's still with two strangers from outside. Sayaka sighs, looks like she'll have to keep an eye on them, but for now... Sayaka steps in front of her companions and waves
Ok, neither of you have any idea what's going on, so I can fill you in on the basics. Because you decided to ignore me, you just got drawn into a Barrier, think of it as a home for a certain kinda monster. There's not much more consistent between them, but I kiiinda specialize in this stuff so just stay behind me, follow my lead, and it'll be alright.
With her little pep talk over, Sayaka grins before walking up to the girl at the edge of the shrine, and waves cheerily with her right hand, all the while Sayaka keeps her left under Sayaka's cape, just to be certain
Hey, do you happen to know if anything's happenin' around here? I'm... Kinda new to the area so I was wondering if you could tell me anything, you look a bit glum, so I kinda thought something might be up
[A symbol of the strange figure. I wasn't sure what this figure was. It seemed solid in nature at least by looking at it. Looking and observation were a strange thing to adapt to. The shadow around it. I didn't much care for the darkness or shadows. I followed the light. The light was my guidance but if there was a place covered in darkness perhaps it needs my liberation. The light had to spread. I wouldn't let other beings be trapped in it as I was for so long.
During my inner thinking, I realized the nature of the mark had changed as a group of particular beings seemed to be dragged into it. I wondered if they did the same as I. To think and feel, I wasn't used to it but I craved it more and more and to think that beings share this 'thought' interested me.]
(They appeared to be male in nature but it was hard to tell with their almost bland looks. They were by no means generic but they wore almost all white with pale skin and hair. It was as if their skin had never touched the light yet their eyes shined brightly to the point where it was almost impossible to see them clearly.
Seeing the others they would approach the portal carefully as if wary of the shadows. Perhaps they weren't even aware of the fear in their eyes. Finally, they would approach it and begin trying to reach in first to see if it was safe.)
The quiet rumble of a motorcycle draws near the statue, and the feminine voice of it's rider softly carries on the wind. It would sound a bit annoyed to any that caught it.
It's always something here. There's never a moment of reprieve. I think this solves the disappearances however.
The rider, one Mituru Kirijo, had witnessed three individuals be sucked inside of the mark of the statue, though she had been too far away to see how exactly. Quickly looking the piece of marble over, it wouldn't be long before she noticed the glowing mark of the sun on it's visage. Taking off her helmet to get a better look, she'd almost unconsciously let her curiosity get the better of her and lightly brush her hand against it in wonder. Too absorbed in her light investigation, she'd fail to notice Meian.
The girl focuses her stormy gaze on Sayaka and sighs in annoyance.
Oh i'll tell you whats going on. You hear all that ruckus up there ...
She turns around to point a disdainful finger toward the arc of the shrine.
The people are all celebrating New Years like they deserve it.
Humph even if they know that nothing really improved around these parts.
The girl suddenly stands up and shouts with both her hands up. It's clear that she wants her voice to reach the partying people up at the top.
How can you all just be happy with bare minimum effort!
She stamps her foot as if making a point.
The world is still filled with all sorts of stuff like crime, theft, murder ... and ... and
just everything bad!
Reaching in Meian triggers the mark once again allowing for it to swallow both he and Mitsuru whole. The two undergo an intense process of liquification as their bodies traverse many symmetrical patterns of shadows. Until they once again solidify upon the same steps that the rest of the group are currently at.
OOC: can I still join?
OOC: Yep
*While behind Sayaka, Colton starts to talk*
"I don't know what this new year is but I think they're happy since they are alive and remember all the good things that have happened and try to forget the bad... What I may save not be true but I don't really know but while they may be bad things happening in the world making it a shit place... At least there are people trying to stop those who do wrong but really all of those things is just a matter of perspective of someone... like you may think that you are doing something right, to someone else they might think its wrong... now i'm going to stop talking so that I don't die
[Upon emerging I soon began to fear that I had permanently become emersed in shadows. I felt odd at the notion of fear. It was still such a new concept to me and I had no idea how to even react to such a state. Does one even react? I wasn't sure and thus left with another new thing, confusion.
I would look around myself trying to see what was around me. It seemed similar to before but different. Others were here but what were they exactly? This idea bugged me as I wasn't sure how to react or communicate with them properly.]
(The stranger would simply look at everyone else with a confused expression. They didn't speak a word as if staying silent was their defense or perhaps they simply didn't know the difference between silence and talking. He'd just continue looking at everything with a slight sense of awe.)
Naoya walks till he reaches the statue...he takes some interest in the sun mark and foolishly decides to touch it, resulting in him being absorbed.
*he slowly walks up to the mass of symmetrical patterns and shadows*
Easy... I understand the point.
After this liquification process, it's all Mitsuru can do to remain standing. Clutching her head and attempting to shake off the disorientation she garnered from this sudden transition, the woman would take note of her surroundings. Finally noticing Meian next to her, her eyes would drift away to find Sayaka, Geist, Colton and the girl stomping around.
Could this be a nest of shadows similar to Tartarus? No, there haven't been any cases of Apathy Syndrome or anything like it cropping up. And Tartarus was never... that surreal.
Muttering a bit too loudly to herself, Mitsuru would finally snap out of it upon noticing the look on Meian's face. With a sense of duty, she addresses the awestruck individual.
Pardon me, but you don't seem very used to any of this. While we may not know each other, I ask that for your safety, you stay close to me. If you can put your trust in me I'll do my absolute best to keep you from harm.
She tries to look reassuring and dependable, but all it would take is a slightly closer look to notice the bags under her eyes. Placing a hand on her rapier, Mitsuru would approach the others with caution.
Sayaka listens to the girl for a moment, sure the world's not such a great place, but that's part of what Sayaka's here for after all. Sayaka takes a deep breath, not a good way to start off a meeting, that much is certain. Sayaka sigh and puts both hands on her hips, casting the girl a sideways glance
Y'know, its not about deserving or earning a break or anything, festivals like this are a way of being thankful for what you do have, in spite of all the bad stuff. And besides, its not like no one's trying. Its everyone's concern, at least a little bit. What matters is that you don't let it ruin your life or anything.
Sayaka grins confidently and leans back, both hands behind her head
And besides, its not everyone's job to deal with every problem, we've all got different ones to look after. That crime and stuff you mentioned mostly for police officers to stop, can't really expect everyone to drop what they're doing, who knows what would happen then?
Having said her piece, Sayaka looks around... Noticing two more.. Companions... Well, at least the red-haired lady looks a bit more... Competent at least... Hopefully she'll be able to help Sayaka keep the group together, though there's little time for conversation now
A young woman wanders into the area... She's already sensed there's a Witch somewhere nearby, and that odd mark over by the statue seems to be the main source of her readings. With a wary look on her face, Homura would transform into a Magical Girl and walk up toward the mark.
Shield at the ready as she prepares for an attack/
"Well, guess it's time to see what new spore of madness I'm dealing with... Hopefully, it's not as bad as those last few Kyubey lead us to were."
Upon not being attacked instantly, she'd begin to look over the sun mark more. It's a rather curious thing to see in such a town, and she's not sure why it hasn't come up before... Homura stares at the thing, simply pondering what exactly it might be.
The girl merely huffs with anger at the words of Sayaka and Colton.
You don't get it! This era is immoral with all the laziness of the people!
As human beings we are supposed to try and make the world a better place everyday but oldies like you guys ...
She bites at her nails with growing frustration and passion.
You only rely on others to do it. Other people to fix everything while you just sit behind and watch. I don't know how anybody can stand that!
She places her hand against her chest and fiercely looks at the group.
Which is why I, Saito Himari will become the true hero this place deserves. You will all see!
After finishing her impassioned speech, Saito runs up the steps with an elongated shadow behind her. Her black hair spreading in the wind. In under a few seconds she is gone from view. Presumably having entered the festival with an intention to act on her speech.
The mark now being very active makes quick work of absorbing Homura in and then disappearing once it's final victim had been claimed.
(edited by DemonicHomura)
OOC: Am I still in there?
OOC: yes
*he rubs the back of his head as he sees Saito run off and looks back at Sayaka, Colton, and Mitsuru*
Seems she sees something that we can't.
Naoya sees himself with multiple others as he was liquified and transported to where everyone is.
"Wha-where am I...?"
Sayaka's mouth hangs open for a second.. There's no way that Saito kid was much younger than Sayaka was yet... Did she just call Sayaka old? That's not going to fly that much is certain. She hardly even notices the rest of the speech, immediately chasing after the girl into the festival
Hey!! We're nowhere near done here, got that Saito?
Sayaka hardly seems to remember that the others are even there, instead she's focused entirely on setting the record straight with some random kid she's literally just met
"If she is going to hurt the good human or reploids life just because she thinks she's right, im not letting that happen*
*Colton would take out his HK g3ka4 and being the run up the stairs clearly going to try and stop her from doing any evil... well if she does any evil and was kinda mad at Himari for kinda calling him a human which hes not a human at all*
OOC: I might fall asleep
(edited by Colton_Pantheon)
[These beings seemed to be making a noise of sorts. It was strange the way they seemed to almost be directing the noises at each other. Was this how they communicated? Suddenly I noticed one had attempted communication with me directly.
I wasn't sure how I should react but I didn't want to miss out on my chance to communicate in response. Just like before, I would change myself in order to understand myself more. The noises began to slowly make sense but I still wasn't sure how to make them myself.
Of what little I could decipher from the noises I understood a few concepts.
"Stay Close"
That much I understood and nodded in response. I decided I would remain following this being as they seemed to be more knowledgeable than I in this instance.]
(The stranger would remain close to Mitsuru as if understanding what she said but would not respond apart from a slight nod. As for everything else they still seemed confused about the situation on a whole.)
Having caught only the tail end of the girl's speech, Mitsuru pieces enough together to gather that letting the girl get too far away could spell trouble later on.
I normally like to have a proper briefing, especially with so many unknown elements, but we'll just have to work out the details as they come up. Follow both of those girls if you want answers! There's no time to waste.
With that being said, Mitsuru begins to chase after the two girls, expecting the others to keep up.
Homura would stare at the newly formed area in front of her... Mitsuru Kirijo? She's seen that woman on the news a few times, some head of a big company or another is chasing people down... Sayaka too? And who's that strange quiet one, she's got no clue.
"What the heck is going on here? Well, um if we're trying to keep something from happening I guess you can count me in! I sensed a Witch down here, so there's no telling what we're going to find!"
With that said and done, Homura rushes off after Mitsuru at a breakneck pace. Putting all of her inhuman speed to work in order to easily keep up despite the woman's headstart.
*he lets out a sigh of frustration after he felt that he was ignored*
Well... might as well listen to her...
*he runs after Mitsuru in an attempt to not get lost*
"I-I still have no idea what's going on..." Naoya said as he started after everyone else
Chasing after Saito and consequently Sayaka the group arrives at a the front of a massive fair being held on temple grounds. Red lanterns line the trees as a variety of booths cover the entire area taking up any empty space that once existed. With this occupation of color and sound the booths provide all sorts of fun activities from netting fish to trying on scary masks. A certain warm feeling accompanies the lively setting as many food aromas combine into a rich assault upon the nose. To top this already festive scene are the constant bangs of fireworks creating traces of light within the pure night sky. However, in spite of this event there is certainly an oddness tinging every festive aspect of it. The people or more like beasts taking human form that are committing to all sorts of acts. With the heads of animals these creatures are certainly reveling in merriment yet they are doing so at the expense of everyone else. With acts of theft as clear as day and obvious signs of substance overdoes. A few even appear to be in the middle of an all out fight in the center of the fair.
Saito's shadow dominates the area beneath the fight as her small stature stands out clearly between two creatures. Her hands are curled up into fists as she watches two of the creatures fight and her hair is very messed up with hints of something to it. There is now a cross around her neck that wasn't visible before.
(edited by DemonicHomura)
"A festive place...? Why that of all places to go?" Naoya ponders upon this as he sees whom the group is chasing after... A small girl that was running into that area. "Is that whom we're chasing after?"
Arriving upon the scene, Sayaka takes a deep breath, ok, this is a bit closer to what she was expecting... It almost looks.. Halfway between? The Witch is probably somewhere nearby. Regardless, its time to spring into action, Sayaka dashes through the fairgrounds, weaving her way towards the combatants in the middle. Sayaka begins by lashing out at one with her foot, hoping to kick them in the face in order to knock them out, before spinning around and directing an uppercut at another, we're not entirely sure how safe it is to hurt them yet, so for now Sayaka goes with a non-lethal approach as she shouts to the others
Just stay a safe distance back and be careful, don't underestimate anything here, or you could end up regretting it alright? Try to find the source of all this conflict, and if you do, make sure to tell me. Got it?
Coming to a halt not too far from the fight, Mitsuru is jut in time to witness Sayaka attacking two of the strange beings. She sighs at Sayaka's brashness, before approaching the girl they had been chasing. Couching down to be at eye level with her, she tries her best to be a calm, reassuring voice, having noticed how elongated the girl's shadow is.
Are you alright? It's a bit dangerous over here, don't you think? Why don't you come with me some place safer, away from the violence?
This witch... That cross, the shadows, even the sun mark suddenly adds up and clicks inside of Homura's head. She'd begin shouting out rather loudly, aiming to make sure everyone hears...
"Crap, I know what Witch this is now. She mostly attacks by using shadows formed into various things, animals, trees, whatever the point is you can expect her shadows to be the main threat here! Just get in close and Hack away if you can, assuming that you break past her defense it's not too hard to finish the job!"
Speaking of getting up close, Homura's shield clicks for a moment as time grinds to a halt and a black katana with burn marks over it appears in her hands. She'd quickly begin rushing toward the Witch and simply ignoring the fighters in this place, instead, she'd get close to the thing before allowing time's flow to resume once more, her blade held toward it and a wary look on her face as the girl prepares to strike.
"Now, I guess there's no way we can just talk things out? I'd prefer not to have to come to blows, but if that's not an option... I'll fight."
[How strange, were these beings enacting violence on one another? Violence wasn't something I was used to either. It seemed strange but I too felt I had things in which violence might be necessary to guard. The light had to be protected, it was meant to be mine and mine alone. It was my duty to shine that light upon others but I didn't want to give it up. It was always to be my own.
I would continue to follow the being from before with the red 'hair'. Yes, hair, I was beginning to understand this concept as I had 'hair' of my own. I wasn't sure of its purpose but that wasn't to be the first thing I would think about. Everything else happening was much more interesting. I wasn't too aware of the other noises the beings were making and translating them was too difficult a task for me yet.]
(The pale boy would continue following Mitsuru seemingly ignorant of any danger that might be nearby. He was told to stay close to her so that's what he would do seemingly regardless of what anyone else said.)
*Geist manages to catch up and sees the witch*
I will apologize in advance...
*he throws his still glowing blade at the witch with lethal accuracy*
Sayaka's blows find effectiveness with both creatures and the two of them fall next to each other on the ground. With the loss of violence the crowd begins to panic striking at anyone within the now frenzied mobs distance. Meanwhile, Mitsuru attempts to lure Saito out of the mob with reasonable questions yet those words fall upon deaf ears. Saito watches all the violence with an almost reverent gaze and her lips curl into an especially pleased smile. She enjoys the violence around her that never seems to reach. She almost even revels in it without having to stoop as low as the creatures themselves.
I can't leave for I am the hero that is supposed to save all these people.
Saito turns to Mitsuru as the arms of the creatures begin to grab at her.
Sometimes violence between the innocent is needed for true heroism.
You understand. Right?
The hold of the arms grow tighter as Saito looks to Homura in confusion.
Why must we fight? I'm only trying to save people from the true enemy!
Her gaze once again grows feverish and she shrieks.
Humanity!
The sky breaks into a ceiling of white as the creatures continue to meaninglessly fights over each other. Saito's shadow instantaneously elongates until it covers the entire temple ground in a pure black. The liveliness of the fair is cut off by triumphant marching music that plays to the tune of increasingly apparent lines in the white expanse. A perfect setting for the official savior of the human race and the rest of the world.
Sayaka looks around the frenzied mob, doesn't look like they're going to get any better at this point, especially after a quick glance at the sky signals a major shift, likely into a true barrier now. Satisfied, Sayaka pulls out a pair of her swords from beneath her cape and begins slashing about the crowd, entirely missing the point of much of this encounter in favor of stabbing familiars in an overly fancy and probably well-animated fashion
I was hoping it wouldn't come to this.
Standing back up, she brandishes her evoker and places it at her head.
Artemisia!
Pulling the trigger, she summons her Persona in all it's glory. Artemisia readies her whip and moves closer to Meian.
She'll protect you, so don't panic. I think I understand enough of what's going on now.
With a quick motion, she draws her rapier and stands at the ready, waiting to see what the witch and her familiars had in store before rushing blindly.
[I began to get better at translating their noises as they were all shouting about. My mind adapting to their 'language' as the concept formed within me. It seemed this 'language' was how they conveyed feelings to one another as well as ideas. The being with red hair's 'language' had become more clear to me. The being stated a few ideas that weren't completely familiar to me.
'she'
'protect'
'panic'
I had the general understanding of 'protect' and 'panic' but 'she' was completely unfamiliar to me. Was this how the being referred to another? Yes, this was the first idea maybe I could form into noise myself.]
(The strange boy would back up a bit seeing Mitsuru pull the weapon out. He would stare at her in curiosity as if still trying to understand her words. Suddenly he would speak. His voice sounded almost like a whisper and he seemed to struggle to form his words.)
"She..."
(edited by Meian)