Cross Effects 3.0 - November 16, 2014—April 13, 2015

[Ivan The Mouse]

Sakura looked at the three carefully from head to toe. She stopped and stood still for a while, pondering her decision. Finally, she changed her posture, evidently having finished her deliberations.

"I'm sorry to say, but I don't think I am going to accept your offer. This is my personal search, and I don't appriciate you trying to but into my affairs. Now, are you going to allow me to continue on my way?"
Sakura responded, with just a hint of sarcasm.

Neo sniggered once more and told Rattus, "Hey man, she said it already. She ain't needing any fuckin' help no more. Let's leave that cray bitch on her Dora the Explorer moment and get the fuck outta here."

"Mou~" Yukina uttered disappointingly. "I guess it cannot be helped at all, could it?"

"I see." Rattus said. He then turned to the girl. "Indeed, it can't be helped at all. We cannot help those people who don't help themselves. That is their own decision, might it be that it is like digging their grave."

"However," the German continued as he finally kept his pistol back to his coat and pulled out a wallet instead. From it, he produced a business card, bearing only a phone number and nothing else. He then walked closer towards the girl and handed it to her before saying, "We are always looking for clientele. So, if by any chance you want our services, I strongly suggest that you call this telephone number right here. Bear in mind that I have lots of associates and resources on my disposal that can make your search easier and more efficient. And again, it's your own decision if you want to keep this calling card. But otherwise, I highly recommend taking this."

[YOLF]

Mr. Tar

Henry Barthow's hand twitched. The frown on his face deepened as his displeasure would've at being contested like this in such a situation. And yet, beneath his Cover, the Demon called Mr. Tar felt something else. That inquisitorial authority on the man's voice reminded him of something he had experienced before, several times shortly after his Fall.

There was nothing that roused his panic in those early days like the loaded questions of an Angel. And as he consulted that memory, it came back to him with perfect clarity. The tension. The metaphorical internal shaking. The mind chilling fear of being discovered by the God-Machine and compromised.

He felt the question inquire at a level more intimate than by all rights regular words should, shaking, but not disrupting the foundations of his very identity. And then those feelings of panic and fear filled his quantum core once more.

Henry's mouth should have opened to speak. But even that it did not do, frozen for moments by the words of the pale man.

"I don't understand the question." He answered with a slightly askew eyebow, simply, with less emotion that he realized he should have put into it. But nonetheless, as far as Henry Barthow showed, those were his genuine thoughts. "Now quit insulting my partner, and get out."

It was far from being a perfect answer. It was simply an attempt to sidestep the issue that he hoped Saber would back him up on. But he had never found an affinity in coming up with elaborate lies, despite his nature. At least, no more than it required him to. He damned his admiration of human honesty. It had never helped him more than given him trouble. And now, while doubt gripped his mind, it did equally nothing.

He could only wait and see, and be ready now. For the possible continuation to this grueling interrogatory, and perhaps a bloody discontinuation to it. So he gave his knowledge flight, and harnessed the pathways he knew existed, activating the Read Hostility embed.

[Panda]

As Forest was hauling ass to find out who had - or probably lacked- the stones to try to shoot her in the back, she just happened to look up.  Something red was shooting her way, moving impossibly fast.  So fast it was just a crimson blur rushing towards her.  A dull roar filled her ears and she pivoted to the side to avoid its path but . . .

It followed.

She tried weaving back and forth, but it kept giving chase until her vision exploded into bright red.

Pain seemed to explode from her stomach, firing almost all of her nerves at once.  Her vision blurred and her knees shook as she fought to stay upright.  A trembling hand went to her stomach to be suddenly soaked in her cold blood.  She looked down at the sword/arrow thing currently imbedded in her stomach and wrapped her hands around it.

The blades cut into her palms, drawing more blood, and a cry escaped her lips as she pulled the sword out.  Supernovas of white light exploded behind her eyes as she stumbled forward, gasping needlessly in agony.  The blade clattered to the ground and a hand went on the healing wound.

Red was filling her vision as she reached the skyscraper her sniper was on.  She charged through the glass door feeling it shattering around her as she made it to the steps.

Henderson cursed as his shot missed that hated cutlery, then cursed again as the cutlery hit someone.

Regardless, the person went and pulled the knife out, which Henderson couldn't help but respect them for, and then went into the building.

Never one to be outdone, Henderson parked the Buick near the building, climbed out, shotgun in hand, then reached in to take a bracing shot of whiskey from a flask stored in the door-side compartment before heading in after the person, checking Betty over for a moment, and loading one last birdshot shell, filling the magazine out. Henderson quickly made for the elevator, pushing the button for the highest floor it would go, and leaning back against the wall as the elevator music droned on.

[Kat]

It was high time to climb down the building, as Mordred did not have any business to do there anymore. Well, the murder scene was certainly something to worry about, as she did not want that to spill into her neighborhood. Though she tried to lead more normal life, she retained some of her old habits from her service in the Legion of Iron Wall, and treated the neighborhood like any other freehold to which the Legion send its members to bolster defense against the Gentry and other supernatural threats. However, at this point she recognized it was dumb to just barge in and have a better look at the crime scene, obstructing police would only make her suspicious.

Mordred climbed down without much difficulty, but... she failed to spot at all police officers surrounding the building as one of them spotted her watching the crime scene from afar. Being caught off guard, she was surprisingly easily manhandled by several cops and pinned to the ground, her hands cuffed and handguns pointed at her.

"Oh, you really do look like her. Relative of hers?" The police officer who spotted her on the rooftop in the first place was really intrigued about her resemblance to a certain officer "Don't expect to wriggle out of it easily just because of that, spying on the crime scene without explicit permission is obstructing the investigation. And you are carrying around a weapon, that's another suspicious thing."

The changeling was not overjoyed. She did not fancy the prospect of dropping soap in a prison, but even as she was in a bad mood lashing out at the police was not an option. She had to persuade them somehow.

 "If somebody hears about a murder, then it's natural to be curious if such aggro is going on in the hood?
Okay, I'm sorry for behaving like a dunce, but I'm worried as any other person would be."

Oddly, her argumentation convinced the officer. Maybe it was her natural charm or maybe the officer was not in that bad mood.

"Alright, I don't know your reasons, but we can release you. But you will wait here for the investigators tackling this case, I leave in their hands what to do about you".

This probably would lead to... an interesting meeting.

"Okay, I promise to wait here like a good girl" Mordred said resigned, not sure what to do when she meets with the identical stranger. But that was better than being hand cuffed.

[Kaze]

EMIYA SHIROU

Hrunting’s aim was true, as was natural. The vampire was impaled through her gut, the impact counteracting her momentum and stopping her cold. The blond wobbled for a few seconds, then grabbed onto the sword and pulled it out, allowing her blood to run freely down her legs and drip onto the pavement.

Shirou was astonished. He had expected her body to have been too damaged to move by this point, and yet she still came at him. It wasn’t just that she was resilient: the sword-arrows had clearly inflicted significant damage, albeit not as much as expected, so the undead woman was likely capable of bodily regeneration at an impressive rate.

The magus clucked his tongue as the dead apostle resumed her charge. There wasn’t time to project a weapon powerful enough to kill her before she reached his building, and even with reinforcement he would not be able to leave the area fast enough to evade the vampire, meaning he would have to fight in close quarters. This was not a favorable situation to be in. It was obvious that his own physical abilities were far inferior to the enemy, even when empowered by magic, and he had lost the element of surprise. Still, he had managed to inflict serious damage to the dead apostle, and regeneration always had a price. There was still a moderate chance of success.

At one time, years ago, he would have been amused that a “moderate chance of success” was actually pretty good odds by his standard.

His mind racing for a strategy, Shirou was grateful that he had left his sniper rifle back in his “workshop”, if it could really be called that. It wouldn’t do for it to be destroyed in a physical confrontation. Conjuring the prana he had remaining, the archer prepared a dozen blueprints, no-name weapons that he had passed by over his years of being a hero. He did not materialize them, merely holding on to their structure and concepts in his mind for a quick projection should the situation demand. Then, holding out both hands as if grasping an invisible object, he called forth the image of one more sword, chancing that its holy properties provided an edge over this particular undead.

“Trace, on.”

Analyze basic structure, draw out the concept of creation, select composition material…

“My blood is of iron, and my heart of glass.” Sweat dripped down Shirou’s forehead as he pushed himself to recreate the weapon as accurately as possible, as fast as possible. He was only going to have once chance at this.

The the blue distortion of concentrated magical energy appeared in the magus’ hands, then shifted hue into a shining gold. A weapon took form in his grip, and holy power radiated on the rooftop. Holding the golden sword of assured victory aloft, Shirou turned to the door that led to the stairway, expecting someone with her incredible speed to forego the elevator. Sure enough, barely two seconds later the door was roughly kicked open by a snarling, barely-clothed blond young woman soaked in a copious amount of blood.

"Here I am!  You got the stones to try to kill me to my face, you wanker?"

Shirou paid her words no mind, and materialized two of the pre-prepared blueprints into the air before she had even completed her sentence. Without so much as a gesture, the weapons shot forward at the undead like bullets from a rifle. Shirou charged in after the projectiles, prana empowering his muscles as he attacked with a two-handed swing from Caliburn.

[SINIB]

Neo sniggered once more and told Rattus, "Hey man, she said it already. She ain't needing any fuckin' help no more. Let's leave that cray bitch on her Dora the Explorer moment and get the fuck outta here."

Sakura twitched ever soslightly as she heard this.

"I see." Rattus said. He then turned to the girl. "Indeed, it can't be helped at all. We cannot help those people who don't help themselves. That is their own decision, might it be that it is like digging their grave."

"However," the German continued as he finally kept his pistol back to his coat and pulled out a wallet instead. From it, he produced a business card, bearing only a phone number and nothing else. He then walked closer towards the girl and handed it to her before saying, "We are always looking for clientele. So, if by any chance you want our services, I strongly suggest that you call this telephone number right here. Bear in mind that I have lots of associates and resources on my disposal that can make your search easier and more efficient. And again, it's your own decision if you want to keep this calling card. But otherwise, I highly recommend taking this."

Sakura snatched the card from Rattus and shoved it in her pocket.

"Yes, yes, thank you so very much for your kind offer, I'll never forget it. Now, can you kindly get out of my way so I can continue on my way?"

Sakura responded, her voice laced with sarcasm and annoyance.

[Ivan The Mouse]

Sakura snatched the card from Rattus and shoved it in her pocket.

"Yes, yes, thank you so very much for your kind offer, I'll never forget it. Now, can you kindly get out of my way so I can continue on my way?"

Sakura responded, her voice laced with sarcasm and annoyance.

"Sure thing, bitch." Neo interjected. "You gotta be so nuts not to get help finding your shitty senpai or somethin', ya' kno'? I mean, what's with the pride, huh?" He then scoffed. "What's wrong, you fuckin' whore? Too stupid to find someone to fuck ya'?"

"Neo, please." Rattus tried to interrupt him to no avail.

"I mean, look at this paranoid bitch, Ratt." The blonde pressed on, as if he was trying to greatly anger the girl. He then spoke in a mocking falsetto to imitate her voice. "'Oh senpai, please notice muh huge tits and ass! I'm pretty sure that senpai will only notice me because I think I'm the sexiest bitch in the world and nobody else!'"

"Neo-san, please stop." Yukina also tried saying.

"I nevah seen no bitch like this, man! Thinks she's the baddest and edgiest whore in the whole fuckin' universe since the Big Fuckin' Bang! Bitch, ah'm pretty sure you ain't even have the balls to kill somebody. I do and I've been doing that shit since I was 7 years old, so fuck your senpai and fuck you too!" He then began to walk away, saying "Let's get outta' here, boss. I'm pretty sure that stupid wannabe edgy bitch will just throw yo' fuckin' card away."

And as a result of his actions, Rattus and Yukina found themselves stumped by his vulgar display of his personality, creating another awkward silence as the blonde magus casually starts to walk away. Rattus then took out a hip flask from his coat and drank from it, as drinking was the only reaction he could muster during that time. Yukina just deflated herself and covered her mouth in horror and shame.

[SINIB]

"Sure thing, bitch." Neo interjected. "You gotta be so nuts not to get help finding your shitty senpai or somethin', ya' kno'? I mean, what's with the pride, huh?" He then scoffed. "What's wrong, you fuckin' whore? Too stupid to find someone to fuck ya'?"

Sakura turned to face Neo, quivering with rage.

"Neo, please." Rattus tried to interrupt him to no avail.

"I mean, look at this paranoid bitch, Ratt." The blonde pressed on, as if he was trying to greatly anger the girl. He then spoke in a mocking falsetto to imitate her voice. "'Oh senpai, please notice muh huge tits and ass! I'm pretty sure that senpai will only notice me because I think I'm the sexiest bitch in the world and nobody else!'"


"Neo-san, please stop." Yukina also tried saying.

Sakura clenched her fists, glaring daggers at Neo. Yukina's voice barely even registered in Sakura's mind.
How dare he say these things!

"I nevah seen no bitch like this, man! Thinks she's the baddest and edgiest whore in the whole fuckin' universe since the Big Fuckin' Bang! Bitch, ah'm pretty sure you ain't even have the balls to kill somebody. I do and I've been doing that shit since I was 7 years old, so fuck your senpai and fuck you too!" He then began to walk away, saying "Let's get outta' here, boss. I'm pretty sure that stupid wannabe edgy bitch will just throw yo' fuckin' card away."

And as a result of his actions, Rattus and Yukina found themselves stumped by his vulgar display of his personality, creating another awkward silence as the blonde magus casually starts to walk away. Rattus then took out a hip flask from his coat and drank from it, as drinking was the only reaction he could muster during that time. Yukina just deflated herself and covered her mouth in horror and shame.

Sakura's body suddenly relaxed; her sholders sagged, she unclenced her fists, and her body stopped trembling. However, in her eyes, one could see nothing but rage.
Die
Suddenly, three large demonic dogs lanched themselves from her shadow, sailing towards the throats of the three.

[Knick]

Rebeca

The man’s thoughts echoed though Rebeca’s head with no mercy, and so tried to focus on something else, something to prevent her from hearing more of that person’s mind.

Concern was the first thing she felt, concern for her. And she focused on it, desperately focusing onto it like a life line. She barely noticed the man begin to leave, until the backdrop of his thoughts faded. 

Then she let her hand fall as she began to pant, he face red and covered in sweet.

“I-I’m fine Donnel.” She said before she froze, realizing she just said the name that was in the man’s head as his identity. Something he has not told her.

Then, she began to panic, ‘please don’t notice, please don’t notice, please don’t notice, please don’t notice.”

[Elf]

Forest

Her witty taunt was retorted with more swords.  Her eyes narrowed as she ducked down, still running towards the man so intent to kill him.  If he hadn't been throwing swords from only the Morrigan knew where at her, Forest would have shut down to a stammering mess.

A distant part of her mind realized he was insanely attractive.  Asian but literally colored like a calico cat with marbled light and dark skin and white and red hair.  One eye was the golden-brown of fine whiskey while the other was steel gray.  He was also bordering on freakishly tall for an Asian, taller than even her.

A hiss tore from her lips as one of the blades tore into her shoulder while she charged the Calico Man.  In his hands was an incredibly beautiful blue and gold sword.  It doesn't suit him, Forest thought as she pivoted at the last moment, ducking under his guard and planting her knee solely towards his groin.

She made sure to pull the blow enough to where it would hurt, but she wouldn't cause any permanent damage.  He just might piss blood for a day or so. 


Saber

The former King bristled at the pale man's casual insult towards her.  He had called her tainted and impure.

Her green eyes were a pale, dull yellow.  Red markings like vines now stained her skin.  Once silver armor was now a sullen black.

Emerald eyes closed for a moment before Saber inhaled deeply through her nose and rained in the urge to cut the man down with her sword.  Instead she turned towards Barthow.  She tilted her head and said, "Henry, you do not need to answer his question.  It would be a great pleasure for me to do so for you."

Her eyes narrowed as she remembered a word that Forest threw around quite often.  It was a bit vulgar, but she reason it fit the occasion.  "From my observations I detect that you are a blighted wanker," she said, her voice raising about conversational level to get the attention of others here.  She noticed some of the uniformed officers standing meekly and staring at the pale man as if they were spellbound by him.

She folded her arms across her chest and her voice rang out, as clear as a bell, "You are the police of Nexus City.  It is your duty to protect the innocent.  He is hindering you from your task.  Are you going to let that stand?"

[Panda]

By now, the elevator ride gone on for long enough for Henderson to realize that he gave the last of his decent weed to that nice young man back in that Tim 'Orton's place.

"...Never was one for elevators," he admits to Rupert. Eventually, he gives in to fate, rolling a blunt from some substandard weed and starting to smoke it while the innocuous piece of paper in his wallet starts pulsing again as the damage done to it in the past starts to vanish, the page of the Necronomicon repairing itself.

Meanwhile, the elevator ride takes long enough that Henderson manages to hotbox himself, with a cloud of the delicious smoke following him out onto the rooftop.

The thing that catches his attention is not the bloody Blonde charging the Asian, seemingly intent on ridding him of the ability to procreate. No, Henderson finds something far more pressing.

"More cutlery?!" he slur-shouts in the midst of his weed high before walking over to the blades, Betty slung over one shoulder as he grabs each one and throws them off the roof haphazardly, some part of his mind noting that the second blade is sent back at the Asian as he turns to the pair, firing Betty off into the air for good measure.

"I bin askin' all over town, and ya owe me an answer for tossing all them pig-stickers around," Henderson shouts, briefly using Betty as a crutch, "Now would you youngsters quit yer horsin' 'round and tell me where I kin find me some Yellow gnome-stealing bastards?!"

[Ivan The Mouse]

Sakura's body suddenly relaxed; her sholders sagged, she unclenced her fists, and her body stopped trembling. However, in her eyes, one could see nothing but rage.
Die
Suddenly, three large demonic dogs lanched themselves from her shadow, sailing towards the throats of the three.

Neo felt a spike of prana rise in the air as the girl conjured three shadow dogs. He smiled, thinking to himself that his barrage of insults have finally paid off. He knew this was going to happen. On the other hand, Rattus and Yukina saw that the girl had enough of the insults thrown at her. There was no choice but to fight and suffer the consequences of their colleague's actions.

The blonde magus, in one fluid motion, turned around and pulled out his sidearm to defend himself, as he dodges the charging dog and shoots it from the side.

Meanwhile, Rattus dropped his hip flask and quickly drew out his sidearm too, to fire at the dogs charging at him and Yukina. The Japanese lady, being ill-prepared for the situation, had no choice but pull out her tiny dagger and hope that nothing gets to her.

[Mooncake]

Lucas Klein


The resident moved so fast that his entire form blurred - but it wasn't enough. The first bolt exploded on the first human to enter, the woman prepping another arrow to launch at Lucas's figure. Snarling, he moved forward, just as she let the arrow loose.

Six bolts of magic flew towards the resident who went into a slide, ready to push off the ground in order to rush at the archer. Lucas tried to change his momentum at the last moment, but it was too late - the bolts curved in midair and slammed home.

Each bolt buried itself in the center of Lucas's chest, sending him flying backwards as the bolts dissipated. He skidded back next to the pile of books, the wounds closing instantaneously, and refocused his gaze. The smoke from the explosion was only just clearing as his hand punctured a book, cracking its spin. In less then a second the book was drawn back and thrown at Caedia with enough force to embed itself in the stone wall.




Lord Drăculea patiently sat on his throne and waited.

He heard shouts, screams, and several loud thumping noises, which meant that his butler must be hard at work. The warlord gave a slight smile as Butler returned, carrying a tray with a steaming cup of hot chocolate and several biscuits in one hand, and maintaining an iron grip on the trash in the other. 

"Here is your beverage, sir."

Vlad gravely took the cocoa from the tray and gently blew on it, allowing the scent of rich chocolate to waft down to the intruder at his feet. His butler lowered his head to Vlad and spoke with reverence.

"I guessed you might wish to have words with one, my lord. The others are unable to speak."

"Very good."

An idle gesture dismissed his servant for now. He had done well tonight, but Vlad had shifted his focus onto the vampire groaning at the foot of his throne. He elegantly, slowly, sipped at his cocoa. His eyes were like ice, boring into the vampire's own and forcing the intruder to look away. It was, in a sense, a depiction of a mouse before a viper.

Vlad once again quietly drank from his coco, frowning.

"Do you like hot chocolate, vampire?" He addressed the young, dead man at his feet. The vampire hesitantly looked up at the lord, managing to muster up a bit of courage in the face of the monstrous butler and the heavy, cold presence of Vlad.

"Y-You can take your shitty drink and- !"

Just as the vampire made to glare at him, Vlad very carefully poured a small stream of the burning liquid into those rebellious eyes. Out of nowhere, as the young dead made to lash out in pain, a stake slammed straight through his form. Pinned to the floor like a butterfly, the vampire could only writhe uselessly until the pain subsided to a dull throb. The stake had avoided his lungs, allowing for speech but sealing off all movement.

There would be no escape, now. There had been no chance from the very beginning. The moment they had dared to enter the castle without permission had been their downfall, in the end. The vampire could only let out a pained whimper in response, the strange curse carried by the stakes filling him with fear.

"Now..." The eyes of the lord of the castle began to burn. "Tell me why you dared to trespass upon my castle."

----------------------

Vlad thought for a moment, before smoothly rising from his throne, avoiding the what little blood had seeped out. He had done the best he could to avoid a mess for his servant, but some additional... incentive, had been necessary before the end. Stopping by the tray of biscuits, he took the last one and thoughtfully bit into it.

"Exceptional, as always," Drăculea voiced his thoughts on the day a moment later. "I believe we shall try some recruitment, today. It was disgraceful to me that intruders could get within the castle to such an extent. The situation should, therefore, be resolved... shall we be off?"

The platinum glanced over at Butler inquisitively, awaiting his response.

[Kaze]

EMIYA SHIROU

Shirou had already committed to the swing of his sword, the weapon’s momentum powering the blow, when two things happened at once.

The blond vampire made an impossibly sudden pivot, ducking beneath Caliburn’s trajectory and setting herself up for an attack with a single lightning-fast movement. Barely even an instant later, the holy sword changed the angle of its swing to intercept the incoming strike, seemingly of its own volition.

It was a rare occurrence now, that the innate talent and skill in swordsmanship of Caliburn’s owner in life overtook his own in such a way. Weapons that Shirou projected came equipped with the same skill that their owners wielded, albeit slightly degraded. His own sword techniques may have improved greatly, but there were still times where the King’s decades of experience proved great enough to take the fight out of his hands, much like what had happened in the 5th Heaven’s Feel when the Sword of Assured Victory had been projected for the first time.

The result proved painful for both parties. Even with his own sword dragging him along for the ride it wasn’t fast enough to prevent the undead girl’s knee from ramming into his most sensitive area with such force that for all Shirou was concerned he may as well have been hit by a freight train. The golden sword instead caught her leg directly behind the kneecap, and cold metal cleaved flesh from bone in a gruesome display, shearing through more than half of the bone while leaving chunks of skin and muscle flopping uselessly as blood flowed freely down to the pavement below.

For a moment the archer felt nothing more than muted horror. The numbness was then gradually replaced with blinding agony, leaving him unable to focus on his projections. Caliburn slipped from his grasp and hit the floor with a clatter before fading into nothing in a quiet display of blue light. The miscellaneous blueprints were wiped from his mind as he began to kneel over, a trail of spit falling from his gaping mouth. To be a magus was to know pain, but there was nothing that could prepare a man for this.

The hilt of one of his own projected swords hit Shirou in the shoulder, knocking him flat onto the rooftop, but he was in no state to care all that much. He vaguely recognized the sound of a gunshot and angry yelling, but the freelancer’s mind was too far gone in a haze of torment to register the happenings of the world around him.

[SINIB]

The dogs all landed on the ground standing up, seemingly oblivious to the factthey had been shot. They growled and charged again, intent on the slaugter of their targets.

"Tsk." Fine, have some more!

She launched two more from her shadow, one at each of the two men.
------------------------------------------------------------
Faust
Faust was sitting and reading a book, half asleep. The book wasn't particularly interesting, something about tenant farmers moving to California. At that point, his connection informed him Sakura seemed to be fighting somebody. He stood up, dusted himself off, and said "Well, this should break the monotomy."