Cross Effects 3.0 - June 23, 2016—April 02, 2018

[yinsukin]

Medaka

"For now perhaps." Medaka retorted.  Her voice was still a bit deadpan but there was a modicum of actual playfulness in it.

After they had traveled some distance from Ron, Shinobu ascended from the young vampire's shadow.  She stopped walking as she felt the elder vampire's soft body pressing agianst her back.  As her arms wrapped around her waist, Medaka rubbed her eyes, as if she had already cried.  "I know!  I left Theodore alone and now my soul is screaming at me, urging me to go find him.  If something happened to him....."  She trailed off for a moment.

"I just.. Goodbyes are still hard.  With you and Theodore, I can tell when something happens but Ron could die without me ever knowing, without ever giving me the chance to save him.  Just like...." She trailed off and wiped her eyes again.

Relius Clover

"As a matter of fact I do.  However, just because we are buissness partners does not mean I will excuse you from the proper payment."  He said with a grin.  All of the sudden he heard the puppet's voice echoing through his shop.  It seems he was here right on time.

"My, it seems you have a visitor. Shall I greet him?"  Vanguard suggested, branding a suggestive smirk.

The scientist dropped his grin, reverting to a more neutral mouth position.  "If you so desire.  Please no brawls.  My shop contains very delicate instruments." The scientist continued to walk at an even pace.

[Aiden]

Gadreel

Well, the osseous bandit appeared to be quite thoroughly disoriented. However, the sensation left tingling on the side of Gadreel's face reminded him of the nature of the woman he was assisting at this time. She was most provocative in the worst way he could conceive of. Actually, before he began with recriminations he should determine who she was.

"I did not catch your name earlier."

And then he was asking that while ducking into alleys with her, seeking to evade the skeleton in case he returned to his original trajectory.

[SINIB]

Mordred

Mordred sighed, hoping that nothing would escalate from that point, after all it's enough that Oren was around. Though, if Sakura threw Oren into a rocket fired into the sun, she wouldn't mind such a replacement as long as if that suspicious bitch was out of the picture.

Still, she had no intention of interrupting that. Sakura had clearly complexes about her strength and needed reassurance. "I don't care about you being a cyborg either, so don't fret about it. We're friend, right?" Mordred patted her shoulder in a reassuring manner.

IRON=SAKURA

"Oh, um... Thanks... I guess." Sakura said awkwardly, averting her eyes. She'd never really considered herself cute, really. She didn't really see how any man would consider a several-ton superhuman monstrosity like herself cute. Other than Tager, but her dad didn't really count. He was even bigger and more ridiculous than her, after all. She could get cool, maybe, but cute?

Tears began to stream out of her eyes, and she didn't understand why.

Auspicious Breeze

"You're welcome!" She said it with a big smile, but then something went wrong.

Oh. Oh crap, did I just make a girl cry?! No no no no, this isn't right! Auspicious Breeze did not make girls cry, that was the worst possible thing she could do right now. Something was very wrong here if just that was enough to make Sakura get upset, and here and now wasn't a good place to ask. So before it could get worse Breeze just moved her chair and sat it down next to Sakura and put a friendly arm around her.

IRON=SAKURA

Sakura appreciated Breeze's show of comfort, but she wasn't really feeling sad at all. She had a warm fuzzy feeling in her heart. A good feeling.

"I'm cute, huh?" Sakura muttered. She didn't really believe that it could be true, but if Breeze said so, it must be true. She didn't seem like the sort who would lie.

Knowing it was true made her feel really good, though.

Suddenly, Sakura grabbed Breeze in a hug, and pulled her close with strength that may or may not have been a bit excessive. "Thanks." She said with a smile, still crying.

Auspicious Breeze

The return hug almost caught her off guard and choked her out, but Breeze was prepared! She had a keen instinct for potential danger, so she made sure to reinforce herself as best she could right before Sakura did that. That way it was just a regular tight squeezy hug and not a 'ow my ribs got crushed' hug!

"Ah, hehe, you're welcome!" She patted Sakura on the back a couple times.

And then dessert showed up. Chocolate cake ice-creamy dessert goodness.

IRON=SAKURA

As soon the food arrived at the table, Sakura remembered her promise that she'd made on impulse. She instantly released her friend from the bear hug, and deftly grabbed her spoon, twirling it around with two of her fingers before she dug into the ice cream, pulled out a big spoonful, and finally brought it right up to Breeze's mouth.

"Say ahhhh~"

[Umbra of Chaos]

Lucy

She looked up at her 'hero' and gave him a little smirk. As she considered how exactly to answer that question she absentmindedly stroked his cheek. "How about..."

Lucy snapped her fingers and nodded sagaciously. “And I saw one of her heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and her deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. Does that help?”

[Aiden]

Gadreel

He required a moment to process her statement. Merely a moment. The Beast?! His face shied away from her touch.

Gadreel's arms remained solid enough in their strength to continue holding the creature despite his body's slackening in momentary fear and revilement. Was she a madwoman? How could the Beast possibly be this girl, in this place, being manhandled by some skeleton pirate and held in an angel's arms without him being able to sense it?!

He stared at her a moment. "You... no, I have seen the Herald of the Beast once before, and brought death to Its armies. You are a creature of our Lord's creation, not some horror from without. You cannot be It."

[Umbra of Chaos]

Lucy

Good, good. It was all going as expected. Now just- Wait. What. And then she grabbed his head with both hands. "He let some illegal immigrant take my job? I'll destroy both of them."

She paused for a moment, body trembling in rage. Then she slipped a finger into Gadreel's mouth and a flash of light turned his saliva to wine. Popping her finger out and giving it a cursory lick assured her that she still had her stuff. "Hmm. You sure about that? I still seem to be me, so I should still have my job."

[Kotomine_Rin]

Lorenzo Remei

Already after a few seconds, the birds above began to chirp. The pirate grinned and laughed, such fools!! Did they really think they would be able to stop him with such a cheap trick, did they really think they would stop the great pirate Lorenzo Remei with an ILLUSION!?

Very well, he could play that game. Thanks to his flawless navigation skills, it was easy to maneuver through buildings and slip around the alleyway through a shortcut. There were a couple of houses parallel to the other side of the street where they were, but mere walls wouldn't be enough to stop him!

A couple of birds followed them along, gathering speed until they charged downwards upon the couple.


Dave was about to leave to work after a delicious breakfast consisting of grain. He kissed his lovely wife in the cheek and put his coat on.



  _{Hey     honey        I'm      going      to      work,     I'll      be     back      at    7.    Okay?}
"Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep. Cheep?"


  _{B-but       Dave,      it's     not       safe      out      here-}
"Ch-cheep cheep, cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep-"



The bird gave his wife a comforting hug, letting her cry on his chest. Her tears were painful, but this had to be done.


  _{Hey,      relax.     You      know   everything   is     going      to      be      alright.}
"Cheep, cheep. Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep."


His wife sobbed and shook her head, gripping at her man tighter, not letting go.


  _{*sob*    No,    it's     not    safe     out    there     honey I}
" *cheep* Cheep, cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep"


  _{I    have    to    do    what   I    have    to    do.     I     have    to     provide    for     the    family.}
"Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep. Cheep cheep cheep cheep  cheep cheep cheep."


  _{I    know     baby. *sob* I     know...}
"Cheep cheep cheep. *cheep* Cheep cheep..."


Suddenly, Dave let go of her, only to hug her himself, kissing her lightly on the beak. Smiling, he tilted his head and posed coolly, which made her laugh a little.


  _{You     know     I     love    you,      and      I'll      be     able    to          take    care     of     myself.        And     I'll     be     fine.}
"Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep, cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep. Cheep cheep cheep cheep."


  _{I     know...    *sob*}
"Cheep cheep... *cheep*"


Dave turned to his son, his beautiful son, and rubbed its fuzzy flaming head with his feathery wing before kissing him on the head.


  _{Don't     worry     about     me.     Worry     about     taking    care    of       Dave     Junior.}
"Cheep cheep cheep cheep. Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep."


  _{Cheep    cheep.}
"Cheep cheep."


She was surprised to hear that, her own son was smiling so. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad, but...


  _{O-okay....    *sob*       I will.       *sob*}
"C-cheep... *cheep* Cheep cheep. *cheep*"


  _{It's     going       to        be        hard,       but        I       love        you       too.}
"Cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep, cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep."


Dave gave his wife one last kiss before leaving. This would be a hard day.


The birds following them crashed in their path, exploding on the ground in order to impede them with their remaining fiery bursts. In his last moments, Dave thought of his wife, his child, and thought that he had a pretty good life.

[Aiden]

Oren

The dragon lurked for a bit longer now. That kind of hurt! Well kinda. Her tail wasn't that important. Maybe it was time to be a bit faster. So Oren swam back up so that she was at the edge of the surface. The earth beneath her feet solidified to form a concrete surface for her. Then she lunged up as her maw snapped at the woman's legs with crushing force before immediately retreating.

Muramasa Katase

The demon sword's puppet attempted to leap up and away from the terrible maw, but was caught at the ankle at the last moment. Making a split second decision she rescinded the flow of demonic energy around the armor and flesh below that point, and tore hard enough to allow the foot to be removed outright. It was a victory for the dragon.

At least, it should have been, but Muramasa Katase simply created a new foot for her shell, and retreated further. She had to keep moving lest the dragon just swallow her whole. Then again, she might well benefit by allowing that...

[Aiden]

Gadreel

With the taste of wine still in his mouth the angel leaped out of the way of the sudden barrage of suicidal firebirds. It appeared that their pursuer had located them once more; such poor timing. He put the question of who and what this girl was out of his mind again for a moment to focus on evasion and re-positioning, only to stop after ducking into another parallel alley. Gadreel released a sigh, took stock of their surroundings again, and turned his intense attention back to the girl in his arms.

Perhaps... "It is possible that my world was not your own. It appears that this Nexus takes in comers from all places and times. Still, in any event you are no Beast or Adversary with which I am familiar."

He frowned, and swallowed. "Still, you are clearly a demon... and a particularly mocking one at that. Water into wine? Truly?"

[Thedoctor]

Shirou Emiya

If the woman had been expecting him to blush or act embarrassed, she would be sorely disappointed. He lazily wrapped his arms around her midriff and nodded affirmatively. "Of course, it's a rare honor to have the chance to sodomize a saint, after all." He said matter of factly, hoping his confidence would throw her off.

"And on top of that, you did want to know who had the better ass, didn't you?" Shirou teased her. Something felt off, though. She felt... extremely light for her size, and he wasn't sure why. Or maybe it was Sakura who was heavy... probably best not to bring it up, however. If the news leaked to Sakura who knew how she'd react.

Jeanne

He was good, but he wouldn't be able to talk over with mere words. She smiled lewdly at him, trying to egg him on. "Then why don't you come and get it, you don't seem to eager to take it....or could it be you want me to do it? How naughty, wanting a saint to sodomize herself." She slid her ass back and made sure it grinded against his hard dick through their clothes. "But it looks to me like you're ready to burst right now~"

[Umbra of Chaos]

Lucy

"I'm not a demon! I'm a very lovely and easy to blend in human. Even my soul says so!" She pouted a bit. But it didn't take her long at all to brighten again.

So she stayed still this time while occasionally shifting her legs. "And it's not mocking! It's my job. The beast will be given the authority to bring forth miracles and all the world will be in awe. It's not my fault God is lazy with your world. If I was there in all my glory it'd be over real quick. Promise. I can show you a bit later if you show me yours."

[Aiden]

Petra

"I'm not good at sneaking around. Chances are that we're going to alert them anyway. Let's confront them. If they shoot back, we'll shoot back." Petra shrugged. If she had Martha on her side, they would just blow the front door and scare them straight. "If they're too many of them, we will retreat and maybe bait them into area where we can pick them off more easily."

Liam

"Alright." He moved to the fire escape and started climbing on up. "Normally I'd say ladies first, but I'd rather have ya watchin' my back on this. Follow me on up, we'll move through the windows." Well, actually it was so if anyone shot at them he'd be the one getting hit first. Liam could take a few rounds without any issue. It weren't as certain with whatever cheap armor they gave Petra.

He checked the window and noted it was locked down tight. "Huh. Guess they're worried about worse sorts than us breaking in..." So he broke the window with his bat, moved it around a bit to round off the sharp edges so neither of them got cut by broken glass, and moseyed on inside. It was dark in the apartment and no moonlight could reach it from here so it would be hard for Petra to make out much more than a bed by the side of the room and a person scrambling out of it trying to reach for a gun.

The vampire moved to smack the guy about with his baseball bat, making him curse and cry out in shock and pain. The sound of other people in adjacent rooms was something he left to Petra for now.

[Aiden]

Gadreel

Human? Surely not. The reservoir of celestial might he sensed lurking within the girl could only come from a seraph, or the mightiest of blessed or damned souls. At least, that was how such matters worked in Gadreel's own world. But if the fundamental assumptions were not accurate he was uncertain how to proceed from here.

He would not reveal his relative weakness, the absence of his wings, to her until he was certain she would not seek to destroy him. "Very well then, 'human.' What is your name?"

[Kotomine_Rin]

Lorenzo Remei

The skeleton grinned at the hearing of the explosion, followed by more chirping. So they took the bait, in the end it was he, Lorenzo Remei, who won this battle of wits! BWAHAHAHAH!

But while showing up would be one thing, just crashing in wouldn't be enough. He had traded the element of surprise, now was the time to show off just what a pirate was made of!

Knowing that they were in the parallel alleyway, he discreetly climbed the wall as subtly as a burning skeleton can be. With nimble catlike agility and some degree of stealth he leapt over the wall, performing a flippant somersault and landing on his feet right outside the alley. Dead end, it was hopeless to escape! It was-

Crap, wrong alley.

So with nimble catlike agility and some degree of stealth he leapt over the wall, performing a flippant somersault and landing on his feet right outside the alley. Dead end, it was hopeless to escape! Haha!

"Yo." He said friendly, waving to the cute couple. "You done running now or what?"

[Thedoctor]

Shinobu

Shinobu became more unamused as Medaka went on with her worries. "Do I like the type who gives emotional pep talks? That was never my thing, never will be. Can you not just deal with that they way you usually do? Giving your all and all that. And you are are a vampire now, you will eventually have to go trough those goodbyes whether you want it or not. It is one of the downsides of immortality."

She stepped back from the younger vampire and let go of her waist. There was something wrong here. Something very wrong. A foul energy blew past her. How strange, she stopped feeling the usual discomfort that came with being outside during daytime. Looking up she got the answer.


William

The work on the castle was going along smoothly. At this rate all the rubble would be cleared out before the sun went down. The holes shouldn't take much longer after that, not when you had the convenience of magic on your side. The dark mage was currently in the courtyard observing the gate. Apparently some kittens had gotten curious and snuck by to have a look, but they were probably scared off as they never went further than the gates.

As for what he was currently doing, well that was something that was going to change everything. He raised his hands dramatically to the air as he begun chanting. A massive magical circle appeared beneath his feet as a massive pillar of pure darkness shot towards the sky. Not once since he had gotten to this place had he ever flared his magic so high. It could probably be sensed far and wide. Not that he cared, they'd be too occupied with what came next anyway.

It was the sky.

A dark mass was spreading across the clouds, growing outwards from the castle, turning day into night. It grew and grew without end. His breathing grew heavier as he visibly exerted himself. For a moment the dark miasma in the sky halted. Then it pulsed and grew explosively until it covered even the farthest reaches of the Nexus.

He breathed out as the spell was finished. Let's see how you'll deal with this. Not that they would need to. It would fade in mere moments, unless he made an active effort to sustain, but that was enough for what he wanted.