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

[Kotomine_Rin]

Vanguard

Fast-!

The warrior swung his blade forth to meet her charge. She was quick, incredibly so. Logically, her flag would reach his throat before his blade could parry it, but logic didn't apply to such a man. Despite the vast difference in speed, each and every blow was met with his blade, ringing a song of clashing steel. He never struck or advanced from his position, merely deflecting her blows as they came with minimal movement.

How beautiful, a skillful woman's form was something to behold. However, such futile beauty meant little in the real battlefield. As soon as her weapon came to breach his defense once more, his axe brushed past it, and with a slight twist of his wrist, both weapons came crashing down the earth like a comet and shattered it with a boom that shamed that of cannons.

Her flag was mercilessly pinned pinned by his blade, there would be no further strike as long as he willed it. Vanguard glared at her with a look of pure disappointment. No, that wasn't quite it. To say he was disappointed would mean he expected more from her.

"Are you done?" He asked her calmly.

[Umbra of Chaos]

Jasey

She scratched her head. Then she shrugged. "If you're fast enough that I can't stop you then there's no point in fighting. And I really don't like dying. It's a real pain in the ass. So can you not? I'd be fine going off and killing other stuff though. That's good."


Paladin

"It would be a shame on anyone of my order if they could not do such a thing. If one cannot protect themselves then they can protect no one. A weak body is a flimsy shield." He gave a definitive nod at that before addressing Oka next.

"In some ways yes. In others no. This land lacks the capacity for large scale teleportation, its city lacks the levels of self organization that the Northern Cities do, and there are a few other things. But there are certainly things that are new to me."


Oren

"Yep, yep!" She said to the mage person. "I can become anything in the world! So long as it's dead. One of my cousins even became a small god! She was pretty cool. I was actually thinking of getting another skin soon. I heard a forest dragon was around here...." Oren was talking as if she was a girl shopping for clothes more than anything else.

[Thedoctor]

Jeanne

He seamlessly parried every blow she made. But that wasn't what was so impressive about it, she could see that he was actually slower than her. Every move she made, Vanguard had already anticipated long in advance, already there to block before she finished moving. His skill, his skill was beautiful. There was no other word describe it. Her heart skipped a beat with every swing of his axe, infact she had to concentrate to not just stand there and gawk at his seamless form.

After a few more exchanges he masterfully pinned her flag to the ground with his magnificent axe, locking her in place or so it seemed.

So strong

His skill wasn't all there was to him either. There was a ferocious strength in him too. No doubt forged by countless battles against relentless foes. However in his drive to show his superiority he had made one mistake.

"No, Not at all Lord Vanguard."

And with that she did something that would be considered absurd by most. The lithe blonde stepped onto their crossed weapons and jumped right at him. Attempting to knock him away while a second weapon materialiized in her hand, a sword this time.

[Kat]

Anastasia

"Eh, I got used to it. I pick up knowledge quickly, and we had guns and even steam engines, so not completely foreign for me to see people carrying around sidearms. And one of southern craftsmen even invented tanks. Slow, unwieldy, but it's convenient to have a cannon that can move itself." Anastasia explained how developed her world was in relation to the city. "While we do have magic  it's not something readily available to the public, so there is a drive to innovate. Plus the ever shifting landscape is not really confusing to me. The city where majority of human wizardly schools are located shifts its layout randomly from time to time from the sheer amount of magic flowing through leylines."

[Kotomine_Rin]

Vanguard

The warrior's eyes widened, not in surprise, but in amazement. He was not used to being gifted with human lips, so he couldn't notice he was smiling himself. Ah but if he let go, she might just try to take it. How troublesome, to think she would corner him so.

So he stood his ground, letting her tackle him but not as much as budging from his place. And then his free hand came down in order to keep her in.

[Kotomine_Rin]

Costin

There was a surge of malice that emanated from the eating girl, unlike anything she had ever shown before. There was no way to describe this other than pure killing intent, something far beyond the mere thirst for blood. At that moment, her face was more like that of a beast readying herself to leap at her prey.

"Don't touch her. She is mine, remember that."

[Thedoctor]

Jeanne

Ooof.

It was like slamming right into a wall, a massive unbudging wall, but she struggled through the pain. Her chest especially stung, as squished in as it was. His countr almost surprised her. He chose to draw her in closer with his monstrous strength, quite foolhardy in his current position.

As demonstrated by the blade she now pointed at his throat.

"I believe I'm done now. Your skill is superb, I can see why think so highly of yourself." Her features had softened from before and she graced him with the same bright smile she had when conversing with her master earlier.

[Kotomine_Rin]

Vanguard

The warrior returned the smile in kind, it looked like his grip was loosening as well. She had won, there was no mistaking it. It was the bane of all warriors to think that one's own abilities are impressive, this was a lesson he had yet to learn. But even a child could prove an effective teacher, thus he decided it was only fair he returned the favor.

"Not quite."

Only for his other arm to come below her and flip her over his shoulder. If she could see his expression, it would be one of pure and condescending smugness.

"When your opponent is weaker than you physically, it is preferable to take advantage of that pure gap in strength. Wouldn't you agree? Let's go, this duel has made me quite hungry."

[SINIB]

Sakura Matou

Sakura turned to Rin and began to pout in a cute manner. "Nee-san, what did you tell him about me, to put him so on edge..."  As she finished her question, she looked through her familar, and saw that they seemed to be finishing up. So Sakura turned back to Joe, waved, and then covered the wall with her shadow. "It's been nice meeting you, Joe. Please feel free to contact me, I'm not like all the other landlords~" With that, Sakura walked through the wall, and popped out of a nearby tree's shadow.

"I'm back! Did you sort out your differences?" She asked cheerfully.

[SINIB]

William

Her complaining was a bit amusing He flashed over to the black haired goddess and stopped her. "Do you really have to complain so much Noire? I only teach people with actual potential. If you were awful I'd have stopped by now. And you aren't, not by a long shot. That you're so damn cute is just a big plus on the side."

Noirina

Noire turned away, breaking eye contact from him and turning her nose up at him. "Well, thanks. I guess." She muttered out the last bit awkwardly, having trouble showing her true feelings to him. "I appriciate your help." She said when she suddenly threw the clod of dirt at him, hoping to at least score one hit on him.

[yinsukin]

Medaka Kurokami

Medaka fell silent, unsure of what to do next.  She stared at Noel and Shinobu with a frown, unsure if she should be jealous or turned on.  The younger blond's rear did look nice, especially when she was on all fours like that.  On the other hand, she wasn't sure if she wanted another woman on top of her like that.  Men were one thing, as they can pleasure her in different ways, but what if she was better than her?  Sure, her chest was bigger, but what if Shinobu had a craving for flat chests?

The young vampire let out a sigh, releasing her stress in her breath.  Her frown curled into a relived smile.  She walked over to Noel and extended a hand.  "Well now that this matter is settled, why don't we find something fun we can do?" she asked, her tone polite and soft.

It didn't matter to her, as long as she was doing what makes her happy.  Probably.

[YOLF]

Julius

"There is a lot of monsters and monstrous people alike. Some weave a web of lies to pull their victims into their plots and machinations, some cow people into submission by threats and fear, and others just prey on the body and the soul. To be honest the first are the most problematic. It takes more than a good weapon and a sharp resolve to crush their nefarious plans." Julius explained the situation to the lady while grabbing the menu to have a look at its contents.

Irene

A frown softened over her eyes as soon as he finished speaking, and she tapped on the polished wood with the fingers of her left hand. What rarity, to find someone who shared these perspectives so plainly. "I agree with you, but do not sell those things short."

She picked up her glass and gulped down a sip before turning fully in her seat, resting her face on her palm to look at him. "There is no lack of manipulative cur in the world, but the worse of all are those that don't know how to die. Standing true can allow justice to reassert itself, courage and ingenuity can bring low a beast, but it takes will and honed arms as well to bring an end to the most terrible of abominations."

The barman had only an ear honed to the conversation, and waited patiently for Julius to pick of their myriad of drinks or meals.

[Kat]

Julius

Do not know how to die? That was pretty... vague. Many things came too his mind after all.

"Lots of beings come to my mind. There are shapeshifters who will regenerate even most terrible blows unless they're exposed to silver or blessed objects. I know that there are sorcerors who seem to stave off the passage of time with their magic. I've heard of ancient immortals who slumber until the stars are right and awaken to enact their mysterious goals." One of his New World allies ran into a one of such ancients who was allegedly quite unnervingly flamboyant and worshipped by the local indigenous population as a god of physical well-being. "There are also formerly alive humans who cannot bear the sunlight and who have to sustain themselves by taking something from others, whether it's blood or even breath."

To not disappoint the bartender, he ordered a bottle of wine from Alsace.

[YOLF]

Irene

And she thought her life was colorful. These stories almost sounded like something out of a fairytale compared to the ones she might've told, she couldn't deny their familiarity. It was that 'almost', dangling over the precipice of disbelief, which safely asserted itself through the matching descriptions with her memory.

"You know a wealth of things, Sir Julius," she said, her baritoned English accent barely making itself heard.

The employee of the establishment returned a moment later, setting down a glass in front of him and opening a branded bottle, serving the wine carefully and letting it rest. Irene tilted her head knowingly at the monster hunter. "Have you fought many of them? Vampires, that is."

[Kat]

Julius

"A few cases. A vigilante who meted out disproportional retribution for sins committed by mortals. He took the name of god in vain and that didn't protect him from blessed weapons. There was also a coven of undead witches working together with another monster I pursued. But I cannot say I have a particular experience regarding vampires." Incidents involving them in his experience weren't particularly common compared to some other supernaturals.