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

[SINIB]

Sepulchure

"Gah!", Richard yelped in pain as he felt the rushing wind gushing at him like a torrent. The man could see but a blur, he had not even the time to flinch as he felt a violent impact crushing his chest, sending him flying backwards like a cannonball.

Such a blow would have punched a hole in a normal man with ease, but thankfully, Richard had just enough reflex to do something. The moment he saw the blur, he made his gourd explode, water bursting violently and covering his chest in an attempt to shield him somewhat. Not that it prevented anything, but the protection coupled with the dissimulated kevlar shirt could protect him to an extent.

Being flung backwards at incredible speeds, Richard hacked blood. No good, my ri-

Of course, he had no time to finish his thought. Instinctly, he used his energy to melt the surrounding snow, just enough to create a wall of water just thick enough to cushion the impact, his back violently slamming the wall, but barely withstanding the impact.

With that said and done, Richard coughed blood once again, his vision burry and breathing hazy.
Bollocks, this bloody trouble is going all to pot...

"Nice one mate, I felt that. But I'm not in a mood to fight, so would you kindly be proper and answer my question?", he grunted, still pained by the prior attack.

Sepulchure turned away after he saw the mage cough up blood, satisfied he’d taught him a sufficient lesson. Ignoring his continued babbling, Sepulchure finally left the scene of the massacre.

[Panda]

"Huh?" Adjutor mumbles as he makes his way to his feet, still a little groggy. He takes a moment to regain his bearings. Kitchen. Third Floor. Forest's...Compound? Whatever.

"I don't really see why I'd hate him," Adjutor admits, "But-"

Then he got a good look at him, not through the mana-sight, but through his normal eyes instead.

"...Nope, still don't hate him. He looks like someone who's been burned more than once, but...cynicism alone is no reason to hate someone."

Unless...

Adjutor unseals his eyes again, only to find that nothing's changed about him aside from...hmm...

"You're low on mana, and considering that you spirits seem to use it to sustain your existences..."

Adjutor took a moment to check his own stores and was rather disappointed by what he saw. Laying a hand on Tyrfing, he has the Elemental break down one of the many souls it's carrying at this point, dropping the count to twenty-nine as a rush of mana flowed through the teen, filling up just enough of his stocks for Adjutor to stop worrying. With that, Adjutor makes his way over, gathering a fair amount of mana in his hand and offering it to the Spirit for the other to shake.

"I suppose we should get to know each other a bit better if we're apparently going to hate each other."

Transfer should go fine if he shakes it, and that should be enough mana to keep him going for a few more days, judging by his current consumption rate.

[Kotomine_Rin]

Richard Maxwell

"Tsk, leaving so soon?", the hydromancer muttered under his breath. Deep inside, Richard was thankful he didn't end up losing any limbs from that exchange, that thing was a complete enygma, but one thing was sure.

...bloody strong wanker.

He knew he needed to prevent such a massacre from occuring again, the mere thought of how the armored fiend slaid these men was sickening. To let such a thing keep existing in the world, his world, would be unacceptable.

"Aaargh...", Richard wailed in pain just when the freak gained enough distance to begone from his sight. Removing his glove with his teeth, a silver ring revealed itself under the sunlight, a brimming shine almost painful to bear. Without an instant of hesitation, Richard plunged his ring finger in the snow, an azure light shone for an instant, and a small portion of the touched snow turned into a bright blue substance.

Drinking this very liquid, he grunted as his whole body twitched and spasmed for an insant. Feeling the effects of the ring taking over his body, Richard hacked and coughed, more blood dripping from his mouth which he proceeded to spit out with haste.

Rising with a little difficulty, Richard resumed his walk as if nothing happened, limping with a certain grace. After all, there was a place he needed to find, and someone he needed to meet...

"A compound eh?"

[Cherry Lover]

Rider could see the annoyed look on her opponent's face as she threw her weapon to the floor. The instant she did so, it de-materialised, before quickly re-materialising in Rider's hands.

“I am wondering if I should even bother", the woman said, sourly. "Thought you both would be able to give a challenge, but that purple thing has probably the worst combat sense I have seen.”

Violent moron, thought Rider.

She was, of course, perfectly capable of fighting, but she had not expected the woman to have the abilities she did. Further, her primary goal was to protect Sakura, and her secondary goal was her own survival. Beating up some woman who was spoiling for a fight wasn't high on her priority list.

Of course, she wasn't going to inform the woman of this. If the woman realised what it would take to force her to fight, she might make an attempt to harm Sakura, and that was not something Rider was willing to risk. Whilst she found the woman's disdain somewhat irritating, she could live with it if it kept Sakura safe.

Soon after, she received a reply from Sakura.

I don’t have any spare mana Rider, it all goes to maintaining you and Caster and letting you two fight. I can’t repair him, Sakura said through their mental link. Rider, I want you grab Vanguard and try to escape! She’s trying to keep me away from Shirou, I can’t let that happen! Nothing good can come from it! I’ll meet up with you after this is resolved!

OK, understood, Sakura, I'll try to get him away from this idiot so we can continue the search, Rider replied.

Rider thought for a moment whilst Vanguard and the woman talked to one another, unsure how to handle the situation. She could outright tell Vanguard and the woman that her master needed them elsewhere, but if she did so then there was the danger that she might go after Sakura to force them into a fight. Alternately, she could just lie and tell Vanguard they needed to find Sakura to heal him. However, it was clear that he wanted to continue the fight, and also that he was a generally "honourable" person. And, whilst Rider couldn't care less about his sense of honour and wasn't overly-impressed by his "punch it hard, if it's still standing then punch it harder" school of tactical thought, she could see that he filled a niche that neither she nor Caster could easily fill. He could protect Sakura whilst she and Caster manoevered theirselves into better positions, or act as a useful distraction. Keeping him generally happy with his position as Sakura's servant was definitely beneficial, and outright lying to him would pose a problem.

Before she could come to a conclusion, though, he turned to her and spoke.

"Rider, what would our master say? Do you know if she is capable of recovering this body to it's original state at once?"

Of course, she knew that the answer was "no", but she wasn't sure how best to address the issue. Suddenly, though, she had a brainwave.

Wait, he doesn't know I can speak to her mentally, or that I already have the answer, she realised.

Taking advantage of this difference in information to find a way to escape, she addressed the two fighters.

"I am unsure if she will be capable of healing you or not, she was running somewhat low on magical energy before. If we go and find her together, we can ask", she said to Vanguard.

Then, she turned to Suiren.

"I will have to ask you to remain here, though. I do not wish to lead you to where my master is located, in case you intend to cause her harm", she said.

[YOLF]

Sarse

Sarse had to pause at the transformation that occurred before his eyes. Ann's appearance and form slowly changing, shifting close enough to him that he could tell every detail as it settled, before she flashed that almost convincingly sincere expression at him. He blinked, taking in the face that could belong to his female twin if there was such a thing.

He flashed back to a memory of his old friend, Sarasvafiel. The Mercurian of Janus master of the Song Of Form had a whimsical tendency to mess with her amorous partners by changing her appearance in the least opportune moments for the most, as she put it, delightfully catastrophic and hilarious results; and the current situation reminded the Seraph of Yves of that in many ways.

It did not help that he could not exactly lie, and there was a chance Ann would obtain her answer by means other than his spoken words.

"Well," he mumbled out, before straightening out his voice. "I can tell you that I do find it quite aesthetically pleasing."

Sarse had, in the end, chosen the look of his current vessel because he appreciated its features. So it stood to reason that he would find a female form with the same details enticing in a similar way.

[Ivan The Mouse]

Michael watched this spectacle for a moment, then bursts out laughing uncontrollably.

"So even bird familiars put up a decent fight around here?! Oh that is a mark of shame against you that you can never wash away, sir. Well, at least we know of someone willing to defend a woman's honor. Or at the very least ready to maul someone who insults her."

With that, the stick is drawn once more, held casually in the palm of his hand.

"Though, I must admit that I can't really appreciate such a coward myself..."

"Don't fuck with me, dipshit." Neo insulted him. "I already told you, I'm not in the mood for bullshit like this. I'm high as a kite, you fuckin' nigger. If I did what you're fuckin' asking me for right now, it ain't gonna be a fair fight because I really can't even fuckin' balance myself right now."

"But if you really want to fuck with someone like me, I could get you a blunt, you start blazing it and then we gon' talk, asshole. If you want a fair fight with a drunk, you should become drunk yo'self. How's that sound?"

[Kat]

Gintoki

N-no, don't take the bait, you are an exorcist, right? If the Stand and its summoner disappeared Gintoki would not be troubled by their presence, but what if he ran into such creepy thing once again? What kind of unreliable exorcist would be one who would let a Stand go? He had to take things into his hand and overcome his fear. If the Onmyouji would fall to their ruse, he would gallantly stop the BDSM pervert, if one can call gallant a samurai with soiled pants.

Mordred

Mordred sit on a bench and reached for her pack of cigarettes. She learned tobacco was a great stress reliever, even if she became slowly addicted to that habit of hers. "Want some?" she offered, puffing a cloud of cigarette smoke.

[Panda]

"Don't fuck with me, dipshit." Neo insulted him. "I already told you, I'm not in the mood for bullshit like this. I'm high as a kite, you fuckin' nigger. If I did what you're fuckin' asking me for right now, it ain't gonna be a fair fight because I really can't even fuckin' balance myself right now."

"But if you really want to fuck with someone like me, I could get you a blunt, you start blazing it and then we gon' talk, asshole. If you want a fair fight with a drunk, you should become drunk yo'self. How's that sound?"

"Nah. Drunk wouldn't go well. I wouldn't be able to hold back. How about if I was blindfolded?"

[Ivan The Mouse]

"Nah. Drunk wouldn't go well. I wouldn't be able to hold back. How about if I was blindfolded?"

Neo grinned smugly at the idea. However, he had something else different in his mind.

"How about this? I've got something better than a fuckin' blindfold. Want it?"

[Panda]

"Depends on what it is. So, come on, let's hear it."

[Ivan The Mouse]

"Depends on what it is. So, come on, let's hear it."

"Okay, I'll be right back." Neo said, as he was about to go back upstairs.

However, it seemed like he hasn't been paying any attention to some unusual spectacle that was happening to his messy hair. Specifically, Yukina's new firebird pet has been attacking him from above, given his usual attitude to the Japanese lady.

"And goddamn it, get this fucking bird outta my head! My hair's too shitty already!" Neo complained, which established that he simply didn't care about the fire familiar tearing his hair out. "Yukina, why the fuck is this goddamn bird angry at me? I din' do nuttin'!"

"Eh!" Yukina was startled by Neo's complaints about the bird, so she quickly went closer to the blonde and cooed the familiar. "Please stop attacking him, Hitori-kun. He's a friend. Please calm down."

[Panda]

"You insulted her master, trampled on her honor, and were, in general, a complete asshat to her, as per the usual it seems," Michael points out.

"As for your hair," Michael continues, "You could do with losing some of it, long hair isn't all too good in a fight."

[Ivan The Mouse]

"You insulted her master, trampled on her honor, and were, in general, a complete asshat to her, as per the usual it seems," Michael points out.

"As for your hair," Michael continues, "You could do with losing some of it, long hair isn't all too good in a fight."

"Shut the fuck up, nigger. What do you know 'bout this retarded bitch?!" Neo quipped back. "She ain't even got the balls or self-respect to go get what she really fucking wants. How the fuck am I supposed to respect her, huh?"

"And as for the damn hair, let the bird fuck with it. I have a potion that can make it grow back."

[Kotomine_Rin]

Birdy Bird Bird of FAIAH

The magnificent majestic creature of flame was soothed by the lovely voice of his lovely master. As if nothing happened, the bird chirped merrily and joined Yukina’s side and began to sing an incredibly sappy bird love song that would make snow white look like a slasher film in comparison. But this adorable display was once again interrupted by the suspicious man’s venomous words.

The bird chirped loudly at the shithead who dared to insult him. But to only do so, he could buy, he could almost let it slide. But what that man said afterwards, not even the goddamn pope could forgive.

          _{Oh,    that's    it    you    fuck.          You      are     going     to    DIE!}
« Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep. Cheep cheep cheep cheep CHEEP! »
 
Dashing furiously, the burning passion and rage that filled the bird’s intense soul. Like a NASA rocket, the bird broke the sound barrier to reach godspeed, intending to blow the fucker’s face off and roast him like a KFC family special.

Or rather, that’s what he would’ve fancied, but the amazing fire bird thing stopped mid-flight, a look of sheer horror and fright carved itself on the familiar’s face. Whatever he saw must’ve been so frightening the flames of hell themselves would freeze solid. To make a long story short, he was very, very sp00ked.

To make it even shorter, whatever he could’ve done to the poor scoundrel would’ve been merciful compared to the horrors that awaited him at this point. So the bird did the most logical thing he could’ve done, and hid behind his master.


Lorenzo Remei

The pirate had now recovered somewhat, his seared wounds covered by bandages and having gained consciousness, he had decided to pay Yukina a visit before going off to work.
He was a bit surprised though, the manor’s door was not locked. He figure dit wouldn’t be too rude to walk in, thus he decided to enter the manor once again and give the good folk a visit.

« My my, what is this commotion? », Lorenzo muttered, hearing his familiar’s ruckus and other unfamiliar voices. Standing before him was his flame bird, Yukina, and two strangers. One of them looked quite irritated and ill proper, rambling like some madman and being overall unpleasant.

But the pirate overheard something, words that injured the lady’s very honour. Such a thing, he would not forgive easily, perhaps it was due to teach that scoundrel a lesson.
Slowly walking towards the blonde stranger, Lorenzo laid his hand on the man’s shoulder, the pirate standing behind him, his smile not unlike a demon's.

« Good grief, do tell, who would this retarded bitch be? »

[Arch-Magos Winter]

Abigail

"Yes. It would be bad. I have quite an attachment to all of my parts." Lawrence said.  He grabbed the cup before swallowing the potion all in one gulp.  Abigail winched and grimaced as the potion worked its magic.  There would be a rush of extreme heat at first, drank that fast, almost as if he had eaten a ghost pepper, then that slow, steady warmth that spread through his veins.  He sputtered, his green eyes watering before gasping for air.

"So-so can we go then?"

She held up her index finger, still winching, and said, "I should have warned you, you need to sip.  Lord and Lady, I just surprised that you didn't just spew it out everywhere."

Then she chuckled and pulled out her goggles from her bag and secured them over her eyes.  The frames were heavy and dark brown, somehow harmonizing with her bright red hair.  Her peridot-green eyes sparkled as she smiled at Law.  "Well, come on, let's ride."  Then she lead him out of the station, grabbing her broomstick on the way.  Once outside, she let it go, but instead of falling to the ground it hovered at the height of her waist. 

Making sure she had her gloves on, her coat was zipped, and her scarf around her face, she mounted the broom.  "Ready to break into the Danger Zone?"

Lawrence

"Y-y-yeah, a w-warning would have been nice." Lawrence coughed out. "B-but I'm fine. Perfectly fine." He followed the redhead out of the police station, catching a grin and a thumbs up from the man at the detective's desk.

As Abby swung her legs - not that he was taking a good look at them no his eyes were just looking in the general direction - over the broom, she asked him a simple question, "Ready to break into the Danger Zone?"

"Good to go Maverick."

Eager to ride bitch I see.

Well it's going to be not the most enjoyable experience either way. So I might as well get it over with.

Forest

Forest watched Archer's motions, surprised at how normal he looked. Well other than the butt cape, body armor, and bondage pants. Saber moved like a pixie, almost as if she was dancing all the time even dressed in jeans and combat boots.  Lancer moved with predatory grace before he vanished.  Dress Archer in jeans and a T-shirt, and he could have been just some exotic guy from the street.   

An absurdly attractive guy from the street.

She said, "Well, this is Nexus.  There are a lot of magic users here so it's not that big of a thing.  Unless you don't . . ."  She left the sentence open.  Saber had told her one of the reasons she had bonded with Archer was they both wanted to end their existences.   Something something paradoxes and maudlin regrets and ideas betraying them.  It was all very Whedon-esque tragedy without the funny.

Then Adjutor appeared, right out the shadows, reminding Forest of both Wynn and Gabriel, giving her a pang.

"Ah, speak of the proverbial devil.  Archer, this is Adjutor.  Adjutor, this is Archer.  You two will probably hate each other," the blond said, a sardonic smirk curving her lips, remembering Saber's extensive prattle about Archer and what she'd seen of Adjutor so far.

"Huh?" Adjutor mumbles as he makes his way to his feet, still a little groggy. He takes a moment to regain his bearings. Kitchen. Third Floor. Forest's...Compound? Whatever.

"I don't really see why I'd hate him," Adjutor admits, "But-"

Then he got a good look at him, not through the mana-sight, but through his normal eyes instead.

"...Nope, still don't hate him. He looks like someone who's been burned more than once, but...cynicism alone is no reason to hate someone."

Unless...

Adjutor unseals his eyes again, only to find that nothing's changed about him aside from...hmm...

"You're low on mana, and considering that you spirits seem to use it to sustain your existences..."

Adjutor took a moment to check his own stores and was rather disappointed by what he saw. Laying a hand on Tyrfing, he has the Elemental break down one of the many souls it's carrying at this point, dropping the count to twenty-nine as a rush of mana flowed through the teen, filling up just enough of his stocks for Adjutor to stop worrying. With that, Adjutor makes his way over, gathering a fair amount of mana in his hand and offering it to the Spirit for the other to shake.

"I suppose we should get to know each other a bit better if we're apparently going to hate each other."

Transfer should go fine if he shakes it, and that should be enough mana to keep him going for a few more days, judging by his current consumption rate.

Archer took a look at the proffered hand before disregarding it. He'd never been one for handshakes as greetings anyway. The magical concentration that built up in his hand simply made it look even more unappealing.

"Thank you for noticing the obvious. I'll deal with the issue when it becomes an issue."