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

[Kat]

Anastasia

"You're still preparing this place for a grand opening, right? Maybe you should hire someone to cook or have some food in stock. People will be more likely to stay here longer if they don't need to go buy food elsewhere." Anastasia started chatting with the bartender while unwrapping the takeout. The pigeon pie smelled and looked delicious, and now she had also some cool beer to wash it down.  Basically everything was as it should have been. "I'm no expert, but I've visited a fair number of taverns when I was travelling with my master."

[Kat]

Mordred

Even Mordred felt nervous around Breeze when she was angry like that. Admittedly in reaction to the guy calling her a loser, but still, she didn't feel too comfortable. Fortunately that passed and she didn't just go and punch the erratic behaving man into a paste. "Uhh, sure, I would trust Sakura about this..." She tried to defuse the situation further.

[Kotomine_Rin]

Methuselah

Damn, he just couldn't land a hit on her. It was fine if he went all out now, what mattered wasn't that the mall or propriety was damaged, but that the people are safe. As long as there are people, there can always be a city. What is broken can be rebuilt, but a city without people is no different than a graveyard. Even if he'd rather not flatten this whole place, another failure would not be tolerated.

Be it man, monster, demon or even a god, he would not let anyone desecrate the wonders of man.

He landed on the cold rock ground. Good, there was still strength to be pulled, this vessel was quite excellent. A spiraling gale blew the smoke and dust away from him, and his own shadow contorted and bubbled until it grew out of his body, charging and morphing into a fearsome beast. Dozens of crimson eyes opened at once, and an humongous hound of darkness bulged from his shoulders, twisting around and convulsing in a monstrous manner, surrounding the god's body before stretching and leaping at its target with full intent to devour her.

The shadow roared, what it lacked in speed in precision, it made up with sheer size. A cramped mall like this was ill suited to avoid such a massive beast. The only option was to power through and meet its charge.

[Thedoctor]

Neptune

She recoiled in utterly faked horror, exaggerating every part of the expression to a comical degree upon hearing the shocking revalation. "Hah. I see so you are a bad guy after all Mr. Gadreel. But I, Neptune has seen through your evil plan. You were going to kidnap me with pizza and have your way with me weren't you?"

" There was just one problem with your evil plan. I, Neptune will put an end to your evil plan right here and now, for JUSTICE!" The goddess was sending him the most ferocious glare in the history of ferocious glare....or at least she tried to.

[Kotomine_Rin]

RED

"N-no! It's fine, it was just surprising." She objected immediately. Even if she lied to her, if she left, she'd be all alone again. She didn't know much, but she knew she didn't want to be alone. She fidgeted for a bit, but in the end she beamed at her.

"We're still friends, right?"

[Aiden]

Neptune

She recoiled in utterly faked horror, exaggerating every part of the expression to a comical degree upon hearing the shocking revalation. "Hah. I see so you are a bad guy after all Mr. Gadreel. But I, Neptune has seen through your evil plan. You were going to kidnap me with pizza and have your way with me weren't you?"

" There was just one problem with your evil plan. I, Neptune will put an end to your evil plan right here and now, for JUSTICE!" The goddess was sending him the most ferocious glare in the history of ferocious glare....or at least she tried to.

Gadreel

Oh, Creator.

He laughed. The fallen angel laughed, the sound rising up out of his chest with a hint of hysteria at just how amusing the still-younger-than-him woman on his lap was being. "I-I see! But, you have forgotten something of vital importance about my alleged plan!" Then he tried to suppress his laughter for a coup de grace.

He held up another slice of pizza. "To stop me... you would need to refuse having another slice of pizza." Gadreel's face conveyed such gravitas, juxtaposed with the presence of a slice of pizza, as to breach the boundary to absurdity.

[Thedoctor]

Neptune

"NOOOOOO....Not that! Not my one and only weakness. Not pizza. HOW COULD YOU! HOW COULD YOU!"

The hero slumped over in utter defeat. Her bangs vocering her eyes casting a dark shadow over face. A shadow as dark as the cruel fate which had befallen her. Nothing could be done now, all hope was lost.

"Sniff..."

Her head slowly raised upwards, yet her face was still shadowed somehow. Perhaps it was her sorrow taken physical form.

"Will you....Will you at least be gentle?"

[Aiden]

Gadreel

She did look truly pitiful. So it was that the fallen angel Gadreel pat her comfortingly on the back, despite knowing the truth of this matter, and nodded with much solemnity to her question. "I will, indeed, be... gentle." It was the least he could do, he thought to himself as he tried not to twitch with mirth, when she had already brought him such entertainment.

And then he moved the pizza forward, closer to Neptune's face, that it might seal her benighted fate.

[SINIB]

Shirou

Really? thought Shirou as the girl explained the concept.

He'd expected that her use of "level" would be some kind of jargon borrowed from computer games the girl had played in the past, but it seemed like, somehow, the Pokemon he could buy would really "level up" through experience, just like an RPG character might. And, if it reached a certain level, it could change into a new and, presumably, more powerful form.

Before he could clarify things with her, though, her phone began to ring, and she turned to walk away. At the same time, he noticed a small dog-like creature on the floor where he had thrown the ball, just as the girl had said. There he saw a nervous-looking dog-like creature. As he approached it, holding his hand out to let it sniff, the dog began to bark. Shirou reflexively jumped for a minute, but did not back away, continuing to hold his hand out and let the dog sniff cautiously at it, before reaching out to stroke it.

Jin

"I'll see about it when I get there." He told her earnestly. There wan't much point in trying to determine this over the phone. She did provide him with another bit info that made him feek somewhat relieved. "That's great Oka, you know I'm not made of money." The woods were a bit away however but he could probably reach them fairly quikly. "Ok I'll be there in 15 minutes or so, bye." He hung up as he started to make his way over.

Oka Kurosawa

"Ok, see you soon!" She said in the most cutesy voice she could make as she hung up the phone and then returned her attention to her customer. She hoped she could sell him an Eevee, or even better, more than one pokemon! She loved it when that happened. She'd sold a gaggle of growlithes to some mercenaries recently, but her funds from that transaction were running out. It'd be really nice to make another thousand dollars or so to top her account off again.

So with this in mind, Oka sauntered back on over towards this Shirou person. He seemed to be getting on well with the poochyenna, which boded well. People who liked them tended to buy them more often.

"So, do you like him? He's a great guard dog, and mightyena is even better. Are you interested in any other pokemon? Eevee is ever popular, as is pikachu! I could show you them. If you want a pokemon that's strong, eevee evoles into some quite strong species that also remain cute."

Oka reached down to her belt and pulled out sylveon's ball. "I could show you one of them, if you like."

[Kat]

Rikuyo

If that black poser thought he would intimidate her a black beast that looked like a black hound, then a nice try. Unfortunately, he was facing something original and not mere imitation like that.

But still, the hound was large enough to corner her without any way to dodge. She then had no choice but to power through. The black man left her enough time to power up to her very limits. She would break her limits if she absolutely had to, but for now a powerful technique could be sufficient. Rikuyo didn't consider firing a powerful beam of energy directly at him because the shadow was too expansive. Instead, she discared her coyote form and shifted into the form closest to her original incarnation. Her hair color and the color of her tail shifted from golden to vibrantly red, her eye color changed to amber, her hair grew longer, her canines elongated and her muscles bulked up. Her aura burned with fierce red color.

Rikuyo then shoot a energy beam into the ground her left hand in order to gain momentum and proper herself towards her opponent. Then she focused her ki into covering her whole body, her aura most dense around her right fist. Someone who glimpsed her could swear he or she saw the aura taking a shape of enraged wolf, but was it's just illusion?

Nevertheless, she put all her spirit and determination in that move. A Pangean wolf deity with a body of a mortal would clash with that beast of shadow head on.

[Kat]

Mitsuba

She was seriously considering cutting him down and satisfying Muramasa's needs right now, but it was a broad daylight and there could be potential witnesses. That sleazy bastard chose a right place to hold "negotiations.".

"You didn't state the price yet. We cannot talk further if I don't know if that will be worth my trouble." And considering in how bad humor she was, he better made it worth.

[SINIB]

Jin

"I'll see about it when I get there." He told her earnestly. There wan't much point in trying to determine this over the phone. She did provide him with another bit info that made him feek somewhat relieved. "That's great Oka, you know I'm not made of money." The woods were a bit away however but he could probably reach them fairly quikly. "Ok I'll be there in 15 minutes or so, bye." He hung up as he started to make his way over.



Super-William

The most fabulous of all the mages was about to respond to the girls who were still trying to trick him when he felt it. It was a shift in the air like something raw, something primal had awoken. His sharp senses quickly detected the source. It was coming from a woman standing a bit further back who he'd noticed as part of this group but had seemingly mistakingly written off after she hadn't approached. He saw her clenching her fist in barely restrained rage, how curious. She was brave but... She had made a mistake though, a very grave mistake, gaining his attention.

He kept silent as he leveled his gaze at her meeting her challange head on.

Mordred

Even Mordred felt nervous around Breeze when she was angry like that. Admittedly in reaction to the guy calling her a loser, but still, she didn't feel too comfortable. Fortunately that passed and she didn't just go and punch the erratic behaving man into a paste. "Uhh, sure, I would trust Sakura about this..." She tried to defuse the situation further.

IRON=SAKURA

Sakura sighed at the lot of them. Clearly none of then had had decent parents who drilled the importance of good manners into them. She guessed it was just another reason she'd been lucky to be found and raised by Tager.

So Sakura gently grabbed William's arm, pulling him towards her. Wow, he's strong She noted, distracting herself. "Comeon, let's not all getup in arms and just get some milkshakes. We can figure out who's paying later."

[Aiden]

Auspicious Breeze

Breeze looked away once Sakura pulled the mean guy away, then turned her eyes to Mordred. She tried to get across "Are you okay?" without actually saying it, just with her eyes. Like her mistress used to do with her sometimes. Not that they could do it nearly as well as her mistress' demon servants who could carry on a whole conversation without words that way, but Breeze had tried to follow.

It usually got her giggled at.

[SINIB]

Rider

Rider smiled and nodded at Ron's story as she continued to savour her food, knowing from personal experience that it was entirely possible for multiple versions of the same person to appear in the Nexus. However, before she could follow up on that thread of conversation, she noticed her master suddenly twitch at the way Ron had talked about his girlfriend. Rider could tell that she was suspicious as she followed-up on that point, clearly wary of the hesitant way he'd described her. Was something wrong with her, perhaps?

However, when Rider heard his description, any worry she might have had disappeared, to be replaced with slight amusement. From the way he had described it, it sounded like she was taking their relationship far more seriously than he was. And, most likely, given the place they were living in, she was strong enough to make his life a misery if he just dumped her, so he felt stuck.

Given that, whilst Sakura's advice seemed reasonable, Rider felt caution was necessary.

I wonder if he's frightened of upsetting her if he does that, she said over their mental link. Perhaps she's stronger than he is.

However, she felt no need to speak up to Ron just yet, instead waiting for him to respond.

Sakura Matou

"Mhmm, I see." Sakura said, putting her fork down on her empty plate. "That sounds rough. If you're not comfortable living together, it might be good for one of you to move out, couples need their space." Sakura suggested. She could tell there was more to it, but he hadn't lied. He was just telling only part of the truth, she guessed.

Ron

"Or at least a bigger place." Ron said in agreement, still wincing at the thought. Actually suggesting separating in that sense, he didn't know how Anne would take it. She could just as easily shrug and be happy for the closet and cabinet space all to herself, or start wondering if he was gonna break up with her and start itching to her gun. "Studio apartments are not great for couples."

Definitely not a conversation to have while she's drinking, either.

Sakura Matou

Yeah, maybe. That'd be unfortunate. She responded to Rider somberly. She didn't like the idea of anybody abusing anybody else, and especially not when it involved someone she knew. Maybe she'd go and set up a nest near where he lived. To help him, of course.

But maybe that's too pushy, I just met him... But almost as soon as she began to waver, she decided to do it and throw caution to the wind. She thought back to her days of abuse, and how nobody had done anything to help her, how nobody had even ever asked her if everything was okay except Shirou.

I was a fool for thinking he'd abandon me or hate me, wasn't I?

Sakura smiled and then leaned back, content with her decision and plan of action. If anything bad happened, she'd know about it.

"I could help you with space issues, actually." Sakura began her proposal with a cheery smile. "I happen to own quite a bit of land in this city in the form of various houses and apartments. I'd be willing to negotiate a lower rent with you in exchange for help around the house when I need it."

[yinsukin]

Relius Clover

Relius reached into his cape and pulled out a small sac.  As he rested them on the table, the sac opened up, revealing an impressive collection of fine gems.  Relius gave the assassin a smirk.  "Of course, I can also pay you with more traditional methods.  Money is no object.  However, I will not decide on a specific price until you prove you can get the job done."

Both of the souls before him were rather interesting.  The blade seemed to have a similar structure as Theodore, a sort of cluster of different souls. Either way, if negotiations broke down, there would be plenty to dissect.