Dragon Sign [IC/PG-16/Not Accepting]

[Mr. Hyde 204]

With the lady now having woken up, she gave them the answer they had all been looking for this whole time.  They had been transported here for some salivating...salvationing...to salvate.  Everyone had their own reactions to this revelation, but Drake could only stew in his own head.  This lady was made out of water?  How was that possible?  What was a normal guy like him to do in this world?  What was the reason he was chosen?  Was it random?  Had other people been chosen before?  There really was no use asking the questions though.  However, someone asked another question out loud.  

“Why should I care about this world? What do I get out of it?"

Drake looked back to see what he thought was the smartest individual in the group, asking the dumbest question imaginable.  He walked up to Percy, glaring at him from the side.  Although the man before him was a couple inches taller than him, he had no problem tilting his eyes upward.  He wasn't trying to be intimidating either, but an air of disappointment emanated from his posture.  

"Listen pal, the fact that you're even breathing right now should be evident.  I'm guessing you wanna get back home, right?  Or at least get another shot in this world...maybe it would be for the best if we saved it, right?"  

“Oh my apologies, I had been under the impression my Lady’s gift was to serve as proper motivation, though I appear to have been under a misunderstanding yet again.”

Drake looked back over to their 100% water weight friend and smiled.  

"That's enough for me.  Your lady sounds real nice!  Tell her thanks for the gift the next time you see her, will ya?"  

"It's not about what you get out of it! A hero, uh, heroes because it's what they're meant to do! It's who the are! And...and...and if you're here, then that means you must be a hero deep inside!" The girl muttered, "maybe reeeeally deep inside..." The jab was an obvious reference to a particular individual of the group...maybe two.  Drake gave the girl a pat on the back.  

"You got heart, Dracona!  I like that!"  Another question revealed that the being in front of them was named River.  Pretty cool that her Lady that she spoke so highly of was Ocean.  Wonder if they'd meet Lake somewhere else...was pond the youngest?  Drake hadn't realized, but he was strolling towards the door, excited about this new opportunity.  Their mission was to defeat the 'Accursed Ones', huh?  They sounded strong, and he didn't feel any stronger like Superman or anything.  River had said that more answers awaited outside, so that's where he was headed, along with Marshall.  However, he turned around, walking backwards as he cupped his hands around his mouth.  "Last one out is a dirty, stinking mutt!"  He said to no one in particular, flashing a smile before he made a ran out of the church-like building at full sprint!  However, two children had appeared at the entrance, and Drake had to perform a rather perfect somersault to avoid crashing into them.

They introduced themselves as Rumian and Luca.  Thunder rumbled in the background, as he turned towards the two.

"I think we've only got like...4, maybe 5 heroes tops in there."  Drake made his best attempt at some sort of polite bow.  "Hero of Legend: Drake, Hospital Corpsman Second Class, at your service!  

Edited June 11, 2022 by Mr. Hyde

[yui 574]

After the initial bit of conversation, the whole dying thing started to really set in. And it was a lot to absorb all at once. On top of her previous concerns, it was just now hitting her that the odds of being able to go back home were practically zero. That this almost certainly wasn't her "original" body; she wasn't sure what she looked like after meeting that truck face-to-face, but she also wasn't keen on finding out. She'd always been good at processing stuff like this in no time flat and setting it aside for later, but this was still quite a lot. Like having a powerful computer, but shoving a ton of super-high-spec tasks down its throat all at once. Abby had to sit down for a bit, sorting all this info out in her head while paying enough attention to pick up on the other new info that was being spread around this little church. The gift, the god of a questionable name, her servant of a significantly less questionable and honestly rather cute name, and most importantly, her reason for being here.

To defeat some world-ruining bad guys, and save the day.

Now, normally, Abby loved to help someone out, but this was a bit... much. While she didn't necessarily agree with the phrasing of it, she had to agree with the good doctor at least on principle. She was saving an entire world for... what, exactly? That sounded extremely risky, and she didn't fancy having a second date with death after the first one had already spit her out into an unfamiliar world. She'd have to think about that one. It was as she ruminated on this and the myriad of other topics that needed consideration or just general thought that the door to the church had opened. She must have gotten too deep into thought for a second there, as she'd totally missed the furry of the bunch saying she was leaving.

Outside was... more furries? One girl with wolf ears, one guy with deer ears and antlers. At first Abby had passed them off as some kind of cosplayer or something, until she noticed the boy had literal hooves. Now, River was one thing - being the envoy of a god or whatever probably meant you got dibs on some animal features if you asked nicely - but these two folks outside were another deal entirely. Rumian and Luca were their names, apparently.

If some of the people from her world could see Abby in this situation right now, they'd be seething with envy, without a doubt.

"I think we've only got like...4, maybe 5 heroes tops in there. Hero of Legend: Drake, Hospital Corpsman Second Class, at your service!"

Well, sitting in this church certainly wasn't going to accomplish anything. At least for now, it seemed like Abby didn't have much choice but to play along, even if she wasn't sure just how far she was willing to go with it. And so, for the first time since showing up in this apparently-not-pagan church, Abby got up from her seat, and made for the door.

"I'm still not sold on the whole hero thing, to be honest," she shrugged. "But just sitting around in that church forever certainly won't do any good, and it's not like I can go home anyway. Abby Collins, med student, apparently some sort of hero, and overall a girl with very mixed luck. Charmed."

[Doggo 218]

Something about the genuine sincerity Luca asked the group about their being legendary heroes made it harder for Jocelyn to get as outright angry with her new furry acquaintances as she had her fellow dead humans. But that hadn't done much to halt the grip of exasperation that had a strangle hold on her heart. It'd be one thing for the weeb to suggest it, another for a servant of a supposed goddess to say it, she might even put up with these two saying it, but if everywhere she went she was going to be called some kind of chosen one, hero or anything else of the like her first mission might be to find a nice tall cliff to jump off. Through a groan and a sigh she spoke after Drake and Abby had introduced themselves.

"Fine, just call me JJ. Not a hero, neither are these two or anyone else on their way out. We're just a bunch of unlucky losers so don't get your hopes up too much. For your own good. Wouldn't want you to feel too let down when we don't manage anything crazy." Jocelyn said, trying to not lash out at these two strangers she assumed weren't caught up in her being here. But then she wondered, did they worship this god that supposedly called them here? Was this an answer to their prayers? Rumian made it sound like Luca often looked out for an arrival similar to theirs. Just the thought that these animal people, however cute looking, had gotten her into this mess was reigniting the anger she'd been experiencing. There were a million other people better suited to whatever nonsense was supposed to be happening here. Jocelyn clenched her fists and mustered all the self-control she could manage to stop from screaming before.

"I don't suppose" she started, clearly irritated in her tone. "Either of you could show us around, give an idea of where there even is to go where and all that?"

[Chaos Sonic 442]

True to his disbelief, the others (or at least some of them) actually followed after him...even rushing past him, in the case of Drake and after him, Abby. It also became apparent that there were two children before them...both had similar animalistic features like River did, but one was wolf like while the other was deer like. Perhaps most of this worlds inhabitants were of a mixed race of humans and animals? That did seem to be a fantasy trope he remembered seeing in quite a number of his shows and games...so it wasn't out of the ordinary for him...but witnessing it first hand, that was a different story.

Regardless, Luca and Rumian, as they were introduced, stood there as Drake, Abby and even the angry o-...er...JJ. Though, as she already displayed in her general angry tone, she already told them that they weren't heroes. What a bad thing to say, especially with the fact that they were the only thing this group of people had to believe in. Why just outright tell them that? Same time, Gene wasn't 100% for lying to their faces either and telling them that they were in fact legendary heroes for them, but giving them something to believe would've been alright...right?

"Uh hey there..." Gene rubbed the back of his head, giving a slight wave to the two. "Gene Eric..." He paused, realizing that both Drake and Abby immediately gave off stuff they could do. A hospital corpsman and a med student...then there was that other one who was a literal doctor. Gene felt a bit...out of place here at this point. At least three people had these amazing things to go for, though at the same time...the corpsman made him think back to his late father who died in the line of duty. Shaking his head, Gene tried his best to stay focused and not dissociate in the moment. That was the last thing he needed. "...uh, I don't have anything as cool as those two for a title...yet anyway...but it's really nice to meet you both!" Gene gave a smile, trying to move past it.

Same time, he did happen to hear it: the loud rumblings of thunder. Looking around, Gene tried to see if there was any cloud in sight, but he couldn't tell. "...so anyone else hear that rumble of thunder?"

[Skaia 578]

As the group got their answers and seemed poised to head out, River smiled and watched as they go. And if there were no more questions to be had from her at that moment, she would look to both Percy and Sabrina, the last in the room saying, "well, I would hardly want to get in the way or your conversations with the locals. If you ever have anymore questions for me, though, simply call and I shall do my utmost to answer them." The girl's form then took on a shimmer, before her entire body turned to water and faded into the air. 

Meanwhile, Luca's eye continued to look past Jocelyn as more and more of the now Exalted were exiting from the church. The excitement in her eyes, the girl waved to everyone past them saying, "hiiii heroes!" As everyone then went on to give their own introduction, the wolf girl seemed to have her excitement blended with a sense of confusion. Looking to Rumian for answers the girl asked, "so, um, Rumi? They're all the Exalted, right?" 

"Well, look at them. They all match the description. Besides, this is how it's supposed to be." 

"I see, I see." The girl ruminated on it for a moment, before looking back excitedly again. "Well, hello there again heroes and uh, unlucky soon to be ones! If it's a walk around town you want then we're just your two to do it! Rumi! Let's introduce ourselves again!" 

The deer boy sighed as he said, "very well. They seem quite lost so, be sure to explain to them where we are too." Looking to the crowd, the boy smiled saying, "once again, I am Rumian, scholar of Aersinn." 

"And I am Luca! Chief of Aersinn! And you are all in Aersinn, the one and only town of Aerstroff! Land of Thunder and Fang!" The girl spread her arms wide, as if to motion for everyone to take a look, punctuated by another rumbling of thunder. As the group was now properly able to look around, outside of the church proper they would see more of the large town properly. The roads were mostly of dirty, some stone here and there. The houses all around them were entirely made of stone and wood as well, and none of the buildings they could see, save a few, were taller than a single story. The only exception to this were the large spires that seemed to be through various point of the ground, easily dwarfing any other building they could see.

The church as well seemed to be taller than most buildings, if only a little, and at the top had a sign on it that read "Church of Awakening." Curiously, quite like the runes, it was written in a language that none of them had ever seen before and yet could perfectly understand. And thinking more on it, the two locals that had greeted them were definitely not speaking English and yet they had no issue in understanding them, and the other way around seemed to be true as well. 

The church seemed to be towards the edge of town, as if they were to look behind and to the sides of the building they would see a palisade wall. The rest of the town was a bit further away from the church as well, and as such to their sides they would be able to see various farmlands, some meant to cultivate vegetation and others livestock. Though most other people seemed to be far away, attending to their daily duties, and hadn't noticed them the group would notice something about the other townsfolk. While they couldn't make out specifics of form from distance, there were definitely some distinct differences from themselves, all of them having tails and some having horns. 

As Gene looked to the sky, he would be able to tell that there wasn't a single cloud that he could see. More, it was as if the sky itself was one enormous canopy of cloud. The immediate area around them did not seem to have the tell tale signs of black storm clouds, and instead simply being the dull gray of overcast. Rumian looked over to Gene saying, "oh, you have Thunder where you're from too? Well, that certainly makes one part easier to explain, but pay no mind to it. It is like the wind in how common an occurrence and noise it is and easily as harmless on most occasions."

"As for where to go, JJ," Luca began before stopping, and thinking for a moment. "Hmmm....hmmmmmmmm..." The girl seemed to be mulling on it before finally drawing a blank. "Where are they supposed to go first? Hmm...and after I practiced this for so long - Oh! I know! My place! I have a bunch of stuff there I could show you and Rumian brings papers there all the time. If you have anything else you want to ask feel free to ask on the way though, I am Chief after all!" The girl puffed her chest out in pride as she turned to lead the group into the town proper. 

[Cheshire Toon 139]

Percy was unsurprised to find his questioning was met with resistance from the others. People loved to pretend to be selfless, almost as much as they loved ridiculing anyone who was honest enough to admit to their selfishness. “How do you define a hero, Miss Dracona? Someone who saves others? By that definition, I suppose you could call me a hero, but I can assure you that I am not the selfless protagonist of this anime.” He tilted his head back and sighed. “In fact, if I were to label myself, I must confess that I tend to relate to the anti-hero of the story much more. They serve the same purpose without all the grandstanding.”

The doctor lowered his head from the ceiling and looked down, expecting to see the girl he had been addressing, but found himself face-to-face with the muscular man with the bright smile. Not that he was smiling anymore. In fact, while Percy was never very good at discerning the emotions of his patients, he was fairly confident in saying that the man looked angry. "Listen pal, the fact that you're even breathing right now should be evident.  I'm guessing you wanna get back home, right?  Or at least get another shot in this world...maybe it would be for the best if we saved it, right?"  

“Weren’t you listening?” Percy formed a gun with his fingers and put it to his temple. “I already took my shot. Bang.” He pretended to fire the gun. “I thought that would be the end. Finding out that the Christians were at least partially right and I was entirely wrong has honestly been vexing.”

Drake backed off and had soon run off. Percy wondered if he was just a golden retriever given human form. 

“I could ask you questions for hours. Unfortunately, I think it best if I keep pace with the rest of this group. Goodbye for now, River,”  Percy said as River took her leave. He followed the others towards the door and exited the Church. He was met with two more fascinating creatures. A young girl with the features of a wolf and a boy with antlers like a deer. They introduced themselves, respectively, as the chief and the scholar of Aersinn (which Percy gathered was the village they were in). 

“You said we matched the description of being Exalted. I take that to mean that you were expecting us. What was the description you were given?” Percy moved toward them. “Do you know who gave it to you? Also, does everyone in this world possess animal features?”

[LordCowCow 840]

"You got heart, Dracona!  I like that!"

Sabrina jumped at the sudden contact from the man, tensing up as she hadn't expected it, before giving him a shaky smile. "Um...thanks! Ahaha...I just, it's how I felt and...yeah." She, not as subtly as she may have hoped, took a few steps to the side and away from the boisterous man in the hopes he didn't decide to go in for a hug or something next. On the plus side it meant she hadn't had to answer the question of "what is a hero". Which, honestly, how could she answer that? A hero was a hero was a hero. If he didn't know, well, then she wouldn't be able to just tell him.

“So part of her gift, is likely our revival… Though whether that means here, as we are now, or in our world remains to be understood…”

Those words gave Sabrina pause. Revival? In our world? But they had just come to a new exciting world, would they really be sent back after all this was done? If that was the case, what would Sabrina do after returning?

She shook her head as though she could get rid of the thought by doing so and focused again on what River was saying. There was an oddly...video game-y feel to the task they had. Maybe this was actually the world of some game she didn't know about? That sort of thing happened sometimes in anime though usually it was one the characters were playing. The thought from before, having not been dislodged by her shaking, started to sneak back as she wondered what would happen when they 'beat this game' as it were.

River seemed set to leave which conflicted the young girl. She wanted to know more, so much more, but she also didn't feel comfortable forcing them to stay there much longer when they probably had other things to do. So she saw them off with a smile, "It was nice to meet you!"

Then, with some reluctance, she joined the others by the door. Staying as far away as possible from the angry girl Sabrina greeted the two with enthusiasm. "I'm Sabrina! Hero of the highest grade! No need to fear anymore because I am here!" She glanced at the others and muttered, "a-and, them too, probably..."

If the doctor didn't know what a hero was...she was going to have to just show him herself.

[Tiamat's Circus 116]

As the others progressed, so too did Marshall, clasping her hands behind herself idly as she walked, with slow, metered steps; each one as if it was perfectly measured to be an equal distance from the last. She only paused as she reached the outside, passing the two children, where her step paused, eyes squinting as she lowered her gaze further towards the ground; waiting for her eyes to adjust. It was like she had been in a train crossing through a tunnel, eyes having fully adjusted to the darkness before being blasted by blinding light, no matter the actual light level of where they stood. It was with this that they took a quick sigh, and brought their movement forward to a halt, doing her best to listen and catalog what the others had to say.

Luckily for her, she had just caught the introduction of the two children, one Rumian and Luca; and though they too had animal-like tendencies and appearance, their actions and mannerisms were far more human, coming off more expressive, and… Well, childlike, much like the lady Draconis had. She listened to everyone introduce themselves, again, before bringing a hand out from behind her back and raising her hat in a practiced gesture, doing her best to get a good look at the two children. “Marshall Wilton. Subway Conductor. It will be a pleasure working with you,” she stated flatly, as she lowered her hat down to it’s normal position and returned to holding her hands behind her back.

It was then, as the others began to ask for information, that the girl, Luca, and the boy, Rumian, said something rather interesting: that they all ‘matched the description’. If she had to guess, based on the appearance of the two of them and River, she would have ventured a guess that the ‘description’ was of humanoid creatures not bearing the mark of animals… Though, there was nothing to confirm or deny that. They continued by introducing themselves by their titles first, with Rumian calling himself the ‘Scholar of Aersinn’, and Luca the ‘Chief of Aersinn’; rather esteemed sounding titles, if she had to guess herself. They went on to explain that the town they were in, was situated in a land of ‘thunder and fang’, something which helped to explain both the rolling thunder and the animalistic appearance of its people.

As the girl began to walk, stating she would lead them to her house, Marshall walked cautiously herself to follow, eyes trained on the ground so as to make sure she avoided any of the larger stones that may have accentuated the road. It was only as she began to open her mouth, so as to pose the question that had been on her mind, but snapped it shut as Percy posed it himself, also following. Though part of her felt that he had asked the questions in a very… Blunt, and straight-forward manner; one that she worried could intimidate, or at least put the young girl on edge due to the almost clinical tone with which he asked them, she wasn’t actually sure of a better way to do so. “...I was about to ask the same thing, actually,” she agreed nonetheless, faithfully following as she spoke. “Though, I suppose I also was going to ask what the duties you held as chief were; and whether you know anything about the ‘Accursed’ River said we were to defeat, or why she thinks us capable of such a thing in the first place.”

[Skaia 578]

"Ah, the inquisitive type I see. Well, glad to see a kindred spirit amongst you all," though he seemed fine with the pace and content of Percy's questions, as the man moved closer with his overbearing and looming figure Rumian couldn't help but step a few paces faster for a moment.

"Of course we were expecting you." Luca's eye grew excitedly as she pointed to Sabrina saying, "you guys are heroes after all! We have all sorts of stories and stuff how Outlanders blessed by the Goddess Ocean will save us from the Great Curse!"

"More or less." Rumian followed up. "It's a story passed down from generation to generation so, well, we don't know when you were supposed to come, just that you were supposed to come when the bells ring at our church. Luca was only there when you all were because of her diligence. And dumb luck." 

"Hey!"  

"As for the description we were given, well, it's exactly what you might expect. You're supposed to be outlanders who only bear the blessing of Ocean, so naturally you'd look pretty distinct from everyone else right?" Rumian pointed to his own antlers and then to Percy's head as if to explain the subject. "Where I got it from is simply my notes-  well, not my notes. The notes of scholars beforehand. They're rewritten by each generation of scholar but each one seems fairly sparse on any real details. All we know is the basics of your task, that you're not from here, that you have a brand on your hand and that you lack any of the distinct features of our people."

Before he got to the next question, Luca looked to Rumian asking, "what's a 'Subway Conductor?' Is that a kind of hero?" Rumian looked as clueless as the girl on the subject. Looking back to Marshall, pride clearly evident on her face she said, "my duties as the chief are to be in charge! I tell people what to do and help them decide on stuff! Delegation!" The girl then thought about the other questions for a moment before saying, "you can beat the Accursed because you're heroes. Heroes of the highest grade!" She parroted Sabrina, still happily smiling. "And all heroes come with magic weapons and powers!" 

Rumian nodded, seemingly finding that answer satisfactory enough before saying, "as for the Accursed. Well, I only know of one of them. I'm sure I'll be able to go into more detail once we're at Luca's house." 

As the gang walked into the town proper, as if to answer one of Percy's earlier questions everyone, he would see others milling about their business, all with features of other mammals on their otherwise humanoid body. Luca smiled and waved to them, them responding in kind, though the group was definitely met with some looks of bewilderment, curiosity and joviality as whispers could be heard being directed at them. And then the thunder rumbled again. And then again. 

Luca's ears perked up and twitched at the second rumbling. Her excited expression broke way into a more concerned one as she said, "that's not thunder." Her ears twitched again and her expression turned more serious, as she stopped in place and turned.  Then, without another word the girl broke into a full sprint. The townsfolk, seeming to see this urgency in the girl's expression all had concern cover their faces as well as they swiftly left the streets and seemed to head into their own homes. 

"Luca!" Rumian shouted out, though she had already run off. Worry clear on his own face he said, "oh this can't be good. Um, excuse me, Exalted. You, well, uh I know you all just got here and all but she might be in trouble but well I - if you, if you could make sure she's alright? Please?" 

And thunder rumbled. 

[Chaos Sonic 442]

"And I am Luca! Chief of Aersinn! And you are all in Aersinn, the one and only town of Aerstroff! Land of Thunder and Fang!"
"oh, you have Thunder where you're from too? Well, that certainly makes one part easier to explain, but pay no mind to it. It is like the wind in how common an occurrence and noise it is and easily as harmless on most occasions."

"Oh, uh yeah..." Gene nodded, rubbing the back of his head. "I figure everyone has some sort of thunder wherever their from...but Land of Thunder and Fang? That's...that's honestly a pretty sweet name." He had to admit, the Land of Thunder and Fang sounded like an amazing name for a location...it beat any other name of a state or country he had heard of. But even still, with more of the thunder...

"that's not thunder."

"Wait...it's...not?" he asked, before seeing Luca run off...more like a full on sprint in the direction. Gene stood there in quite the disbelief, but at the same time, what could be awaiting them at this point? If it's not 'thunder', then what the hell is it? he thought, before hearing Rumian speak up.

"oh this can't be good. Um, excuse me, Exalted. You, well, uh I know you all just got here and all but she might be in trouble but well I - if you, if you could make sure she's alright? Please?"

Gene stood there for a good long moment, obviously a bit shaken by what was possibly taking place. Even so, something stirred in him and he began to take a step...and then another. "Don't worry. We'll make sure she's alright." he said, giving Rumian a firm nod and shooting a bit of a smile in the beastkin's direction. After that, he started to make his way after Luca. But why? Why was he going this far to help these people...these creatures? The simple answer: his dreams. Try as he might, this was what he kept dwelling on...and before him yet again was that image of who he truly wanted to be...that heroic soul wielding his trusty sword and protecting those in need from whatever danger would come.

...is that why I'm feeling more...free? Is that why...? Gene thought, trying his best to go after Luca.

[LordCowCow 840]

"you can beat the Accursed because you're heroes. Heroes of the highest grade! And all heroes come with magic weapons and powers!" 

Sabrina's eye sparkled as the girl spoke. She hadn't noticed anything of the sort but if they were going to have magic powers then that made this even more exciting! She couldn't stop herself from wondering what sorts of things she was going to be able to do. Explosions? Instant Transmission? Did they have Quirks now? There were so many possibilities that Sabrina just couldn't wait to find out.

So lost in her thoughts was she that she hadn't really noticed the thunder. It was as she was trying to figure out if she could suddenly transmute things with alchemy that she saw the wolf chief run off all of a sudden.

With a start Sabrina looked around at the others. Was something wrong? Were they in danger? Why was she running?

"Don't worry. We'll make sure she's alright."

This managed to make Sabrina take a breath and settle down. That's right, if something was going on, she was supposed to stop bad things from happening. "Whatever it is I'll handle it!" she declared and then began to run after Luca.

The girl was a lot faster than her but Sabrina was surprised to find that she could keep up. Usually she was pretty winded after sprinting for a short while but right now she thought she could go on for quite a while.

It only took a few minutes however to catch up to where the chief was going. Sabrina did have to avoid several townsfolk, all of whom were going in the opposite direction, but she did reach the destination at the south-eastern edge of the town. She could immediately see what the problem was. Part of the wall was broken and six humanoid, but bestial, figures were coming in from the breach.

They were far more animalistic than the townsfolk. In fact the only humanoid thing about them was their general shape and that they walked on their hind legs. Five of them resembled hyenas, an animal Sabrina mostly recognized from the Lion King, and were about six feet tall. Two had machetes, one an axe, all the weapons looking rather crude, and the other two had nothing.

The last of them was even bigger, at seven feet tall, and was wielding a large mace and looked like a lion.

The...creatures were heading for the residences and Sabrina was sure they were up to no good. However she found herself frozen in place as she looked at them. These...were bad guys. Real bad guys. With real weapons. All of them much bigger than her and probably much more used to fighting. If she were to try and stop them what would they do to her? Even the ones without weapons could tear her up with claws and fangs.

And she was just. Her. No weapons. No armor. Even her clothing didn't cover her entirely. She couldn't be more ill-equipped to deal with any sort of baddies. Let alone ones that looked like THIS.

Then she saw Luca. Who, while everyone else was running away, had continued on towards the invaders. She had stopped for a moment, to take off her gloves, revealing clawed hands, but it was obvious she was about to fight these monsters.

That's right. She wasn't just her. Not anymore. She was supposed to be a HERO. She was supposed to be THEIR hero. She couldn't just stand here and do nothing, otherwise, what would have been the point of being brought here at all?

Sabrina gulped and ran up ahead of Luca. Trying, and not entirely succeeding, to keep from trembling she stood in front of the chief and addressed the largest of the invaders, the lion. "Hark! Vile villains! You now stand before the great hero, whose veins run with the blood of dragons! Hear my name and tremble, for it is the name of the one who will strike you down! I am Sabrina Evert, guardian of Aersinn and your villainous ways end now!"

So she said. Yet Sabrina didn't know what she was supposed to do. She was unarmed and she had never been told what it was she had to do to use whatever magic powers she was supposed to have been given.

....Maybe she should have picked up a rock or something.

[Tiamat's Circus 116]

So she was correct, in her assumption: they were marked as outlanders, as heroes to save the world, by their lack of traits rather than anything else. She may have had more confidence were the descriptions more specific, as that may have meant they could explain in greater depth what set them apart as able to combat the accursed. But when that question came to be answered by Luca, Marshall couldn’t help but feel more than a little dissatisfied with the answer. While the young-chieftain was ecstatic, excited and jovial about the prospect of them being able to defeat the accursed…

Well, she seemed to have no more a concrete understanding of it than they did.

“...I see,” Marshall opted not to ask further, left hand absentmindedly trailing to the brim of her hat as they walked, lifting and lowering it as she felt was necessary for each movement. “Then I suppose I’ll wait to ask about the Accursed you know of, until we have arrived there,” she stated briefly and without a hint of interest or care. It was merely a statement of fact, that she would wait to ask until later. No bridge for conversation, merely… A statement, as they walked. Marshall found herself further lowering her hat with each step into town, as she realized more and more people were drawn to their appearances.

She never liked being the center of attention; nothing good ever came of it, she thought.

So it was no surprise when the thunder grew louder, and in intensity… Well, when it turned out not to be thunder at all. Marshall grit her teeth instinctively as the child-chieftain murmured the statement, and then, faster than expected, ran. Instinctively, Marshall opened her mouth as she threw her right hand forwards, beginning to yell something in command, such as reminding others not to run on the platform, or to ask her to wait for the rest of her passengers to follow, but… nothing came of it, save a sigh that would escape her throat. It was only after Rumian asked them to go after Luca, that Marshall lowered both of her hands, which had now balled themselves into fists, and she nodded in agreement with the others.

Now wasn’t the time to speak, after all.

Now was the time to run.

A sentiment that apparently was shared, as she found she wasn’t alone in running after the girl, with Sabrina and Gene moving the fastest among them. They had both said something in response, but what mattered first and foremost were their actions as they ran, Marshall slowing in her sprint to allow Sabrina past, so as to keep a better eye on the younger exalted as they ran, bobbing and weaving with relative ease even as her attention was split due to the hectic-nature of the subways of her home. It was then, that she found herself seeing much of the town and the locals for the first time, actually acknowledging many of them with short nods and ‘apologies for any delays’ the current catastrophe was to cause as she passed them.

However, as Sabrina came to a slow in front of her, Marshall had to be careful not to slam into the back of the human, as she squinted to see the problem for herself: while they were marked as Exalted for their lack of animalistic traits, the beasts in front of them may very well have been marked as the opposite, perhaps even a form of accursed, for their overabundance of these traits. The kicker was, however, that these creatures didn’t appear to be regular monsters, but rather bandits, sentient creatures of a sort, if the weapons held by a few of them were anything to go by. This meant that they weren’t simply creatures feasting for survival, but rather the sort to believe the strong shall rule the weak; that they can take anything as long as it was from someone weaker than them.

So it appeared it was time to do her job.

Marshall followed swiftly behind Sabrina as she once again began to move, passing by Luca so as to stand to the right of Sabrina, if not a little bit ahead of her in case she needed to get between the young girl and the crudely armed monsters. The idea was insane in all manner of ways, their weapons would surely plow through her and then Luca, hero or not, and yet… “...It is a Subway Employee’s duty to ensure the safe arrival and transit of all passengers, regardless of if they are in a locomotive or not!” she exclaimed, right hand flying forwards as her left shot up to raise the brim of her hat just a tad, so as to allow her to stare their foes down more effectively.

[yui 574]

Things just kept getting weirder and weirder around here. Part of Abby expected to just wake up in the hospital and be told it was a miracle she was alive at all. And the weirder things got, the more she expected it. Rumian and Luca had re-introduced themselves, and welcomed the so-called Exalted to the town of Aersinn. The only one in the region, as they told it. As Abby stepped out of the church to survey the area, even the overcast sky and the rumbling of thunder gave her that "it's all a dream" impression. It was raining when she got ran over. If it really was a dream, she was curious to see where this all would take her, and hopefully not wake up right as it got to the climax. If it was reality, however, it wasn't like she had much of a choice anyway. What else was she gonna do, sit in the church forever?

The town was nice enough. In a sort of "little fantasy village" way. It looked like something she might see in a painting, to be honest. The buildings, the farmland, those spires that she didn't really get what they were for. The people slightly less so. Not that they looked bad or anything, just that they had those animal features sticking out of em, not really something you'd likely see in a museum's art exhibit. That being said, overcast weather was the worst. Everything was all grey and gross. As far as Abby cared, it was the sky not wating to make up its mind on if it should rain or not, instead giving out the worst of both worlds. The thunder just made her confident - but certainly not certain - it would start raining soon.

Why, at one point it even sounded off twice in a row!

"That's not thunder."

"No?"

And then Luca was off. The other villagers seemed to pick up on her sense of urgency, scurrying off into their own little homes of sticks & stones. If not thunder, then what was going on here?

"Luca! Oh this can't be good. Um, excuse me, Exalted. You, well, uh I know you all just got here and all but she might be in trouble but well I - if you, if you could make sure she's alright? Please?" 

"Y... Yeah, sure thing." What on earth was with this place? Just in case it really was rain and Luca was just paranoid, Abby pulled up her hood as she hurried through the village with the others. And that's when she saw that it was indeed, not rain. But animal men things. Or men animals? They were more beast than man for sure, and they were armed, coming in through a gap in the wall that they had presumably made. This was very much not Abby's area of expertise. But she was here now so... what else could she really do? Might as well see it all the way through.

"So... what's the plan?" she asked, not bothering to make some grandstanding address to the villains of the day. "Knee the hyenas in the family jewels and take their weapons?"

[Mr. Hyde 204]

It took some of the stragglers longer than others, but they had finally all made their way out of the church building, taking the lead of Luca and Rumian.  They gave more explanation on how they knew they would be in the building, and stories that had been passed down through generations.  Drake wasn't the type of guy to get a big head, but he couldn't help but wear the cheesiest smile as he heard all this talk of being a hero.  It was a far cry from what he was told by most when he had come back home from war.  He could've blushed!  It didn't take long at all before the group meandered into a town, populated by mostly humanoid looking creatures with slight mammalian features.  This was Aersinn!   

"This really is a whole 'nother world, huh?"  He asked to no one in particular.  It really was a quite charming place, despite their infrastructure being rather archaic.  He probably didn't have much room to talk though!  Not like he was some sort of genius architect himself!  Maybe he could learn here?

His thoughts were interrupted by the rumblings of thunder, and it was close too.

"That's not thunder."  Luca said, quite ominously.  Drake raised an eyebrow, as the proclaimed village chief made a mad dash towards the sound.  

"WHOAH!  Hey wait up, chief!"  Drake's hand shot out, but it was a century too late.  Luca was out of sight, and the villagers were in a mild panic.  They rushed into their homes with such fright.  Drake couldn't stand to see all of these people scared...a sight he was all too familiar with. 

"Luca! Oh this can't be good. Um, excuse me, Exalted. You, well, uh I know you all just got here and all but she might be in trouble but well I - if you, if you could make sure she's alright? Please?" 

"Of course we can."  Drake grit his teeth, and made chase after Luca, as did most of the others.  They had just met these people, but Drake didn't need a reason to protect them.  The rumbling sound of thunder that was apparently not thunder drummed through the air once more.  Drake picked up his speed in kind.  He noticed that he was way faster than before...was this world's gravity lighter?

It took them no time at all before they reached the border of the town, evident by the large wall surrounding the place.  What was even more evident was the giant breach in the wall, created by those who stood before it.  They were real monstery-lookin guys too.  Way uglier than the scared villagers that cowered in their huts.  This was totally bad news.  They resembled Hyenas, with a Lion being their sixth member, and they all held medieval weaponry.  Their stature was quite imposing as well, easily towering over most of their group.  But Drake was never the one to back down from bullies.  

"Hark! Vile villains! You now stand before the great hero, whose veins run with the blood of dragons! Hear my name and tremble, for it is the name of the one who will strike you down! I am Sabrina Evert, guardian of Aersinn and your villainous ways end now!"

Drake shrugged.  He thought Drakona sounded cooler.  

“...It is a Subway Employee’s duty to ensure the safe arrival and transit of all passengers, regardless of if they are in a locomotive or not!”

Huh?  Drake almost laughed at the attempt at a cool line.  But that would've been a bit rude, so he held his breath a moment.

"So... what's the plan?" Abby asked. "Knee the hyenas in the family jewels and take their weapons?"

"Not a bad option."  Drake responded, before stepping out to meet the others who were making such a grandiose debut as heroes.  He crossed his arms, and pumped his chest out.

"I'd be careful if I were you, raiders!  The city of Aersinn is under the protection of The Exalted!  You won't make it very far if you continue your marching!"  Drake uncrossed his arms, and held a stance as if he were ready to grapple any one of the beasts.  He was well versed in martial arts after all...but he kinda felt naked without a gun.  "Turn back now, unless you want our legend to start with kicking your tails!"

[Cheshire Toon 139]

Percy was entirely unimpressed with the answer to his questions. He was about to give voice to that very thought—in what was bound to be a very witty but biting remark on the quality of the historians in this strange new world—when a peal of thunder cut him off. A second one followed a split second later, and the chieftain suddenly seemed worried, her ears twitching. Percy felt his curiosity peak again. How much sharper was her hearing than his? Was it comparable to that of an Earth dog? Better, even? What had she heard that had made her decide that wasn’t thunder? He had so many questions, but would never get to ask any of them, because she raced off soon after.

Percy looked around. The village folk—all possessing various smattering of features that would typically belong to a non-human mammal—were very obviously frightened by the way she had reacted to noise. He supposed he could only draw one conclusion from that when he combined everything he had learned since arriving. “The village seems to be under attack,” he said plainly. He glanced toward the deer-boy that had been introduced as Rumian. The others had rushed to follow the young girl. “And you want us to help your companion fight off whoever is behind this.”  His tone made it clear he was just stating the facts he had observed.

“How exactly are we supposed to do that?” Percy opened his lab coat up to show that he had no weapons on him. “We have no idea how to use whatever powers you claim we possess. None of us even have weapons.”

Rumian raised an eyebrow saying, "wait...you don't?" Concern, more of it, crossed his expression as he tried thinking on it, "but I was certain...truly, none of you have any ability to fight?"

Percy couldn’t stop the snide remark. “What part about us gave off the impression that we were skilled at fighting?”  He paused and then grimaced suddenly. “Were you even aware that all of us got here by dying in our past lives? Your dragon was choosing from the rejects to begin with.”

Rumian looked at him blankly, blinking for a second before saying, "how...fascinating...to think that she could even bring back the..." Rumain briefly lost himself in thought before remembering the situation at hand exclaiming, "right, trouble! Er, well, then...uh...well there has to be something the both of us are missing then! I can't imagine the Exalted would have genuinely no ability to fight monsters. That just wouldn't make sense!" Rumian, in his panic, clearly seemed to be trying to rationalize the situation more to himself then explain it to Percy.

Percy pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, his glasses falling forward slightly. He had very little faith in this mythical dragon goddess' plans. “Right. Well, in that case, come on then. We should catch up to the others.” He started forward with his long strides. A cursory glance behind him revealed Rumian rushing to follow. 

His long legs made short work of the distance they had left to travel. Percy glanced at the huge (relative to average human height) bipedal hyenas, then at his companions, before finally resting his eyes on Rumian. The deer-boy had stopped at the back alongside Percy, far away from what threatened to turn into a fight any second.

“Not the brave type I take it?” Percy asked. He reached into his pocket out of habit to once again find no cigarette or lighter, causing him to scowl. “Neither am I. What are those things? Any idea what they want from you all? Any known weaknesses?” Then after a moment he added, “They’re much closer to true animals than people. I take it that you all are only distantly related?”

[Doggo 218]

Maintaining a constant fiery anger was difficult and Jocelyn knew this well. That didn't make it less frustrating that she was already losing some of the venom she'd come out swinging with upon waking up in the church. She wanted to stay angry at this situation and everyone in it. At least in the case of her fellow heroes it seemed her initial outburst had kept them all at arm's length. The locals were then so caught up in serving as tour guides they wouldn't want to address her directly. So that left the young woman to slowly drift in the back of the group, not speaking or being spoken to.  All she could do in this situation was simmer in her own thoughts which were proving circular and almost as annoying as dealing with all of her fellow chosen heroes.

On about the tenth round of wondering why the god of a bunch of real furries wouldn't protect her while she was at a furcon Jocelyn could feel some of the more agitated anger reigniting this time aimed squarely at herself. As much as she didn't want to be here it was rude to not have listened any better to Luca who was earnestly excited for the whole procedure. But sincerity on her part didn't change how much Jocelyn hated everything that was happening. The more that was said and happened the more she really just wanted to punch something. And as it happened she was going to soon be presented with an opportunity.

The group had been hearing what some thought was thunder for a while now but as the sound continued approaching Luca and Rumian seemed to realize what was actually going on. Luca took off in a sprint and the group was quick to follow at Rumian's request. Jocelyn lingered a moment longer considering how much she actually cared about anything happening. But the sight of the villagers fleeing away from what the others were running toward soon prompted her legs to get moving on their own. Jocelyn brought up the rear of the group to see what they were dealing with. A pack of hyenas with a lion leader, all with various weapons. And standing against them, a group of seven unarmed humans.

"Well shit, I get the burn-to-death-get-mauled-by-a-pack-of-wild-animals two for one special today." Jocelyn spoke, breaking her simmering silence and train of thought. Everyone was hesitating, some making heroic declarations, others trying to strategize or assess what was happening. At least everyone seemed cognizant of how little they actually had to work with so it was understandable why they might not rush headlong into certain second death. But as Jocelyn saw it there was literally nothing here for her to lose.

"Well I'd say it's been nice knowing everyone but I don't wanna lie. See everyone in whatever other hell we get sent to next." She declared before charging in. 

[Skaia 578]

With her fangs bared and claws drawn, though she was heavily outnumbered by enemies far larger than her, Luca was ready to pounce on these attackers. Her fury briefly gave way to joy and relief as the Exalted, one by one, appeared next to her. Smiling with wonder, the girl looked over to Marshall specifically as she gave her declaration. "So it is a kind of a hero..." The girl muttered, before looking over to the others as they all got ready to fight. 

Rumian for his part had trailed behind with Percy, and at the man's first question he quickly shook his head. "Oh, no no, I am in no way a fighter. Not at all." As Percy began to rapid fire off questions once more, Rumian looked to him wide eyed as he felt very on the spot, trying to sort through his thoughts in his panic. "Oh uh, um, those - they - they're the Drengr. Well, officially, at least, lots of people like to call them savages, cannibals, or feral people or  - well, Drengr is about it." By the time he had answered Percy's first question, his mind had already skipped over to the last saying, "and well technically they're Stormblooded, like we are, but they - " Rumian's history lesson was cut short by the lion one's roar as he hastily shouted out, "uh, the neck! Try that!" 

The Drengr for their part had stopped at the sight of the Exalted. They seemed more curious then anything else at the sight of the clearly out of place outlanders. The lion indeed took a step forward, narrowing his gaze before he let out a menacing roar. Though they lacked words to their communication, the Exalted would be able to tell that these beastmen meant to kill them. And so with the Lion lumbering behind the rest of his pack, the group of hyenas charged forth at their foes, crude weapons and claws poised to slaughter them. One of the hyenas, with prey coming towards them, began to sprint even faster then the others, outstretching its clawed hand before swiping it at the girl. 

With next to no combat expertise among almost any of them and no weapons to speak of it had becoming increasingly clear to everyone that wasn't Luca that that this was a very much losing fight. However, those who had the determination to stand - or charge - and fight felt something deep within stir. A sensation from the back of their hand, from inside their hand; a pulse like a heartbeat. A soft white glow emanated from the Dragon Sign itself as they could feel the thing attempting to be freed from there. Though they had no idea what exactly this was, they would not feel it threatening nor dangerous. Though they had never had a sensation like this in their life they knew how to release it; to simply reach out with their mind and pull it free. And in doing so, make their will manifest. 

Spoiler

So yeah, if your character has any intention of fighting at all they will be able to just will their weapon to appear in their hand(s). Your characters aren't exactly skilled at fighting but in a similar feeling to how they knew how to summon their weapons they'll also know their weapon arts and if they figure out how to do magic, their magical ones too. Using magic requires your character to figure out what magics they should have, and they can read the Rune Grafts on their arms, and instinct should be able to lead them to its utilization. 

As eluded to in Sabrina's post all of you will likely feel yourselves being stronger, faster and have more stamina than you did in life. You aren't super human, at least not yet, and this will probably be less pronounced in people who were actually athletic in their life.

 

[Chaos Sonic 442]

What had he just gotten himself into? There he was, running head first into danger with no weapon, no plan...nothing. No, all that was apparent was that he and the other "Exalted" just ran in head first here without a single iota of a plan. At least the one guy, Drake, seemed to be willing to fight with the stance he took. Meanwhile, there was him...what could Gene do here? This wasn't like the dreams he had...he had no weapon to hand...no special abilities... Gene's fists began to clench tightly, trembling in what he could only assume was one emotion: fear. These Hyenas, or Drengr, were just charging with killer intent...so what, he was given another chance just to die right here again?

...that can't be the case... Gene thought, though his fears soon began to overlay itself as one of the Drengr charged at him, and like he remembered prior...he could only replay those moments before he died again. That purse-snatching thief rushing him, knife in hand. Gene could feel it more now than before...he was trembling...this WAS fear. But at the same time, he couldn't just turn away from this. So was it fear keeping him from running, or was it fueling his determination to try and stand against this? Gene couldn't tell, but he was trembling more and more now, his eyes fixated on the Drengr. What was he to d-...

Thump thump...Thump thump...Thump thump

That's when he felt it, a pulsing sensation...like that of a heart beat. He glanced down at the Dragon Sign on his hand, no doubt the source on where this pulsing sensation was coming from. A soft white glow emanated from it...and it was like...something was wanting to be let out. Normally, Gene had seen shows and read stories about something of this scenario and it ending up being like something that wished to be freed from a character and if it was ever let out, it would doom the world. But this? There was no malice, no dangerous or threatening aura about it. This feeling felt like something he was familiar with, but it was the first time feeling it. Like all he had to do...was simply reach out his hand...

"Not a whole lot of options at this point...is there?" Gene sighed slowly, before beginning to raise his hand in front of him. "...sure hope this works...release!"

BGM

What was once a soft white glow from his hand now began to grow and grown brighter with each passing second as he took the resolve to release whatever was begging to be freed. The light out that was forming in his hand began to finally take shape, elongating in length. Once the form it took began to stabilize, Gene gripped the part that was still in front of his open palm and the moment he did, the light shattered and within his hand...a weapon had appeared, more accurately, an ornate sword.

Bewildered, Gene held the sword, looking at it for a few moments. "A sword..." he muttered, slowly lowering it to his side. Now things were feeling normal to him...like his dreams. His grip on his newfound sword began to grow tighter, as the look in his eyes seemed more...focused and trained. There was also...a smile on his face? "I think I can do this now...there may be a few things different between those dreams and this...but..." His stance shifted, as he held the sword to his side. "But this world just did me a favor...in more ways than one."

Gene made his move, basically following Jocelyn's method and just charging forward towards the one Drengr that was rushing towards him. The initial sprint did surprise him, however. He felt...lighter...faster even. And he knew for a fact that he wasn't the best athlete back when he was alive...so something new was presenting itself here. Whoa...this...feels awesome!!! he thought, now closing the distance between him and the Drengr, catching the hyena creature off guard, the two clashing their weapons against each other...machete against sword. "...ngh...okay, you guys are pretty strong...guess I'm not as strong as I was expecting." he grimaced, seeming to struggle against his opponent's sheer strength. He disengaged in a swift manner, shaking his head. "Okay, let's not try to match blows with them...it may not work. Guess I gotta play this smarter..." A quick twirl of his sword in his hand, he adopted that stance once more, now just watching his opponent for the time being. Look for an opening...c'mon Eric, this is just gonna be like one of your puzzles...and you're a natural at problem solving!

[LordCowCow 840]

Sabrina was surprised that so many of the others had joined her in her declaration. She had made it in the heat of the moment but after saying it had almost expected to be mocked despite the dire circumstances.

Maybe they all really were heroes too after all.

"Knee the hyenas in the family jewels and take their weapons?"

Mostly.

Still she was shocked that they all seemed to be rather confident despite that none of them were armed. At least, that's what she thought at first. Soon the one who had been far too open about being a fellow weeb pulled a sword right from his hand and went to confront one of the animal monsters.

For a moment Sabrina stared in surprise at this display but then shivered in excitement. "Oh my god, steel is our bodies..." she muttered as she looked at her hand. She thrust her hand forward and called out, "From the depths of my soul, I summon thee, weapon to, uh, f-fight my enemies...with!" she shook her head and reached for the light that was emanating from her hand...

Then almost fell over as she suddenly gripped the weight of a large scythe. The weapon was much more unwieldy than she expected but once she had it gripped in both hands it felt surprisingly natural. "A scythe wielder...." Sabrina said, and her whole face lit up. "So cool!"

A more serious expression came over her as she remembered just where it was they were. She had never been trained in any sort of combat but, oddly, she was sure she could use this unusual weapon despite that. And she knew just what to use it on.

"If I take down the big boss maybe this attack will end just like that...Here I go!" Without a single additional thought Sabrina ran straight for where the lion was. She moved a lot faster than she ever had before and she was surprised how quickly she approached the enemies.

It was only then she realized that one of the hyenas was right between her and the clear boss of the group.

"Maybe, if I can use weapons, I can also..." And somewhere deep inside her she knew what to do. As though the knowledge flowed through her body as naturally as how to hold this weapon had come to her Sabrina cast her very first spell.

Wind picked up from underneath her and she launched herself up in the air and over the surprised hyena entirely. Carrying on towards the lion the girl nearly panicked as she realized how fast she was descending upon it. With an attempt at a war cry Sabrina swung the scythe down at the lion who let out a confused growl and blocked the scythe with his arm. The weapon cut into the muscular limb and the lion snarled in pain.

Sabrina was unable to celebrate her successful attack as the beast thrust his fist into her gut, knocking the wind out of Sabrina and tossing her back a bit.

The scythe cut into the villain's arm on the way but Sabrina began flailing mid-air and ended up landing awkwardly and falling onto her backside. "Ow...." She didn't have much time to process the pain in her rear as the lion was still right in front of her. So instead she scrambled to her feet and, unable to think of anything better to do, went for a frontal charge again. She swung her scythe in a horizontal, chest-level, swing which ended up cutting into the lion's waist. However she didn't slice nearly as deeply as she had hoped as her blade struck what could only be described as a wall of muscle.

The lion, using one hand to heft his rather large mace, went to swing at her and, with a surprised yelp, Sabrina tugged on the scythe and used it as leverage to pull herself away from the attack. Which ended up causing her to stumble her way right past the lion.

Not the most impressive start to her hero'ing career.

However even in such an intense and frightening situation Sabrina couldn't keep a single, giddy, thought from bouncing around her head. "I can use MAGIC."

[Doggo 218]

Having charged ahead of the group of Exalted and right into the burly arms of one of the hyena-men, Jocelyn found herself quickly having to scrap with it. That was fine, that was in the intention. In fact it seemed easier than ever as she ignored what martial arts training she had and leaned in more on her usual street fighting. The monster had no intention to dodge her attacks but it didn't take very many hits to realize why. As Jocelyn's fists made contact with the hide of the thing she could feel how dense the muscle mass was. Her punches weren't actually doing anything to the monster and it reacted in kind. That being that it didn't react and after a few limp noodles to the chest it felt like retaliating. The thing swung its claw at Jocelyn and it was all the woman could to do to brace herself to prevent the claws digging deep into her guts. For her troubles she got some nice gashes on her arm and some sure bruising to follow and she was knocked back a foot or two.

"Still got blood in the afterlife huh..." Jocelyn observed of her condition. There was a nagging feeling in her mind as she thought about how to actually hurt the thing in front of her. Her eyes were drawn to her hands. Normal enough given the way she liked to fight but also a bit unwise given the giant murderous ball of fur still interested in killing her. She'd felt faster and stronger than normal in her first exchange with the hyena even if just a little. There was something going on here. What she couldn't be bothered to figure out. Jocelyn just knew she wanted to kick the ass of the monster in front of her and go enjoy her second death somewhere quiet. The thought of fighting seemed to ignite something in her even as the others around her began to make similar realizations. A sword and a scythe to start. A glow surrounded both of her hands as the something she was feeling began to take shape.

"Sure what the hell. But don't you dare give me something stupid!" She shouted to the invisible force. With it the idea of her weapon crystallized and adorning both hands were now a hefty set of gauntlets armored primarly on the back of the hand and knuckles. The leather bits were black but the metal was primarily pink except for the prominent rainbows sprawled across each. Jocelyn examined each hand from several angles and began flexing her fingers to ensure she still had a good range of movement. Everything felt...

"Perfect... fuck" Jocelyn spoke, upset that she couldn't help but appreciate some aspect of the insanity that was this second life. But love the gauntlets she did. So much so she did no further inspections of herself or attempt to read any of the markings put upon her to set her apart as an Exalted. There was no room for magic here, Jocelyn just wanted to kick ass. She dove in and it was a repeat of her fist exchange with the hyena. Like before it made little effort to actually dodge her. But this time it paid for not taking her seriously. The body of the thing was as tough as ever, but with her newly armored fists Jocelyn could feel her fists actually sinking in some. Each blow elicited a grunt from the beast and clearly bothered it as it disengaged from the immediate brawl to use the length of its arm to swipe at her again with its claws. But like how she had felt the gauntlets pull, something else seemed to know what to do. She jumped just barely over the swipe and her right leg began raising up higher and higher until it was straight up parallel to the rest of her body.

"Wait shit shit shit I don't bend that far!" Jocelyn yelled futilely but felt no immediate pain as her leg took its position. The Axe Kick came down decisively onto the top of the beast's head with way more force than the woman should have reasonably been able to deliver. The beast was in obvious pain and staggered at the attack even as Jocelyn backed up to get her bearings. Her leg wasn't broken, her muscles didn't feel torn. But she did feel more tired than expected. Nothing seemed right about what had happened but if she could really beat this thing to a pulp with just her hands and feet, that much she could live with for the moment.

[Mr. Hyde 204]

This was the weirdest standoff of his life...or his newest one at least.  Drake watched on with hesitation, as the Beastmen looked at the lot of them with not so much as a hint of fear on their face.  Their leader, the lion, made a battle roar that sent a shiver down Drake's spine.  As if he had fallen into some sort of zoo exhibit back home.  He could feel the bloodlust dripping off each and every one of them.  But he wasn't prey!  He was Exalted!....Apparently!  This time, Drake was slow to react, as Gene, Sabrina, and the rough and rowdy girl had made their move.  

"Don't get started without me!  I'm exalted too, you know!"  Drake smiled, as he made a mad dash towards the second Hyena on his left!  Engaging him would prove more tactically sound, as he could offer assistance towards the loud lady, while also avoiding a pincer attack from 3 Hyenas all at once.  However, as he charged, he noticed the crude weapon the Beast man wielded.  He was charging into an axe fight with his bare fists!  His heart was racing, but he somehow knew he'd be able to deflect any hit coming his way!  He was probably the only guy here with actual combat experience after all!  The distance was closing in fast, as the Hyena began to take notice of his approach.  The beast brought up his hand, raising the weapon into the sky, preparing to bring it down with a slash.  

Drake watched on, time seemingly slowed down as he tried to think of options.  

"Tackle him?"  He thought.  This beast probably had way faster movements than he initially might have thought.  A tackle would lead to an axe in his back, or limb loss.  Not particularly the best idea.  

"Sweep the leg?"  Dishonorable, but getting low to the ground might cause a mistimed swing.  But there was another answer that was ringing in his head.  That's when he looked to his fellow exalted, already drenched in combat.  They held weapons of some kind!  And looking at them, he felt something resonate with inside him!  His plan of attack was set in stone!

"BLOCK IT!"  Drake said aloud, as the tattoo on his hand began to glow with a holy shimmer.  He gripped something in his hand, and pulled it out of the aether!  What he brought forth was his weapon!  A shield!  The Hyena brought his axe down with a mighty swing, but Drake met it with equal force.  The sound of metal clanking rang through the air.  Drake's muscles bulged as well, as he was able to put in a lot more strength into this effort than what he might've been able to do on Earth.  As a matter of fact, he could tell that he could overpower this beast!  With a grunt, Drake put a foot forward, and swung his shield out, deflecting the Hyena's attack entirely.  The Beastman's arm flung out into the air beside him, his tongue hanging out loosely as he looked Drake in the eye with killer fury!

In the meantime, Drake twisted his hips, bringing his shield in closer to his center of mass.  He could feel power surge into his body, as he sprang forward, driving his shield into the Hyena's chest.  

"SHIELD! BASH!"  He roared, as he followed through with his mighty tackle!  

[Tiamat's Circus 116]

It was hard to pin down what she was feeling. 

Above all there was certainly fear, of a type. They faced down creatures who had the air of believing the strong to rule the weak, and who were monstrous in every sense of the word. But it wasn’t fear of them per say, but rather what would happen if they failed. She had already died, after all; and that is how this day had begun. For her to really fear death would be another thing entirely, as she gripped her hat and watched some of the others come into their various strides alongside her. No, she was more afraid of what might become of those around her if they failed. There were clearly children in the village, including Luca and Rumian, and that wasn’t even counting Sabrina behind her... All of whom, would surely die if they couldn't stop the the beasts here.

But that fear was nothing compared to the pride, and need to protect those around her, that came from the muttered statement of Luca, from behind her. “...I suppose so,” a small, perhaps unobservable smile sprang to her face as she tightened the grip on her hat, and stared their opponents down. Her eyes trailed from body to body in front of and around her, doing what she could to estimate every piece of movement, If they were ‘exalted’, if they were heroes, they had to have some weapon to fight with; that much she knew now, more than ever, as she slowly began to take a step forwards.

And another.

And another.

It was only by that burning need to help, to save, spurred on by the words of the girl behind her that Marshall found the fear that had kept her from walking forwards melt away, as she examined their opponents. Again, each one was adorned with crude weapons, and they were almost completely animalistic in build; it made them almost the polar opposite of the ‘exalted’, in a way, she reasoned, who were seemingly not armed, and lacked the animalistic traits. But, key to this, was the assumption that they weren’t armed; something she already knew had to be false, for if their opposites were armed ‘crudely’, it would only serve that they themselves were armed well. A hypothesis that was confirmed by the shout of Gene from behind her as she continued her slow, metered walk. In fact, it was as she heard Gene yell, and observed the flash of light around her, that everything connected at once. 

The will to stand against insurmountable odds.

That was what they were adorned with, in comparison to the brutish, opportunistic animals before them. A burning passion that refused to wane pulsed from the center of her very core, as a tug that had pulsed from below the fabric of her right hand’s glove, turned to a subtle burn. Not a painful one, but rather a warmth that radiated a power as the courage that had pushed her onwards, yearned to coalesce into a physical form. “The very courage of a ‘Hero’...” Marshall mused beneath her breath, hand falling from her hat to her side as the faint glow, dimmed by the fabric of the glove, burned brighter with each passing moment. “What a strange weapon to give us.”

So, she had a weapon, and she had an instinctive knowledge of how to use it; or at least, how it was to be used once it was summoned. But she needed to see how the others would act before she made any sudden moves. Luckily for her, the excited voice of Sabrina saved her the trouble of turning around; instead prompting her to swiftly move three inches to the right so as to allow the excited warrior to pass, as she moved to make way for the enemy leader herself. Marshall’s stomach turned as she watched the girl rush towards both the enemy boss, and one of the Hyenas, a word of warning almost leaping from her throat--

But it never made it, as the girl leapt, and was carried by the winds themselves over the Hyena, proving another hypothesis: So our will can do more than simply coalesce after all.

It was as this thought sprung to mind, that Marshall once again began to open her mouth, this time in an attempt to get the attention of the Hyena as she walked, the beast briefly stunned by Sabrina leaping over it, only to… Shut her mouth all the same, an amused, half-smile coming to her face as the Hyena continued its charge, this time towards her, as it saved her the trouble. Now, she only had one objective...

Create, or find, an opening.

[BGM]

Instinctively, she tightened her right hand into a firm grip mid-step, light pulsing brightly around her as a handle materialized in her hand. Bound in leather, the handle was firm, but gave her the necessary grip to hold the rest of the massive weapon as it continued to form. A conical guard formed next from silver metal to guard her hand, which curved itself into a long, single point, as the Jousting Lance crystalized itself from her will, into her hand. The hyena, at this, would halt for a moment, briefly stunned by the flash of light, growling and snarling as it resumed its charge.

And Marshall, kept walking. 

Eyes trained on the beast, she swung the weapon upwards from its downward position, bringing the silver metal to rest against her shoulder in what appeared to be a lazy rest against her shoulder. They were close now, she realized, the beast gearing up for a swing as they neared each other… But it would need to be faster. 

A small burst of light resounded from her right arm as her walk turned into a sudden run, towards the swinging beast as she was spurred on by the sudden activation of something within her. In a smooth motion, she shifted her shoulder upwards slightly, knocking her lance forwards as she used gravity to help her level it with the creature’s torso moments before the beast’s claws could reach her. There was a crucial moment of resistance, followed by a sudden gasp of air from the creature as it impacted the tip of her lance, flesh and fur splitting apart as the lance dug into the creature's torso.

There was a moment then, where Marshall paused, eyes trailing over the Hyena as she watched for flight, or fight, the beast choosing the latter as, with no regard for its own wellbeing, it leaned forwards over her lance, swiping towards her arms in the process. Sucking her right cheek into her mouth, Marshall bit down so as to lessen the searing pain of sharp, yet somehow still somewhat dull claws raked themselves over her arms, shredding skin and flesh simultaneously… As she brought her left hand to join her right on the hilt, pushing the sharp lance-tip further into the hyena with an even, measured push.

The Hyena finally reacted the way she had expected from the beginning, howling in pain as the lance inched forwards, pushing more flesh and bone aside with each inch as the lance grew in diameter the closer it came to her hilt. Pain flared across her arm as she continued to try and push, as the Hyena’s howl turned to a snarling array of bites, teeth gnashing against the air as it stretched its head towards her face. She bit down again, hard, against her cheek as she weathered the storm of claws this time piercing the flesh of her hands as she tightened her grip on the lance. Leaning her head backwards, she yanked the lance out with considerably less force than she had used to drive it into the beast, before making a few quick hops backwards; her body moving with a speed and instinct even she hadn’t expected, before allowing her to resume her watch of the hyena. 

If she was going to win this fight, she was going to win it like this: by waiting for his next move, before she made hers.

[yui 574]

One by one, the others in the group stepped up to the challenge of the armed hyenas, until all that remained of the Exalted who had yet to step in were Abby and Percy. And the bold challengers summoned weapons out of thin air themselves! Like something out of one of Collin's comic books. Neat. From the traditional sword to the unorthodox scythe, it seemed they each got a unique weapon too. And while it was easy to infer that this was some fancy new ability they'd received in this world, there was a question that would bug her if she didn't confirm it, no matter how obvious the answer was.

Turning to face Rumian, Abby pointed to her fellow Exalted and asked "So is that just an Exalted thing or can people just do that in this world?"

"I um, well, I- " the boy examined the group's actions as he stammered saying, "I've never seen anyone draw weapons like that before and to have command over the wind is, frankly, unheard of."

"Got it. That's a relief." It would have sucked to get herself hyped up only for one of these guys to pull a shiv out of nowhere or something. Time to go save the village or something.

As Abby moved away from safety and into the fray, she felt something in her hand. Like something was in there, waiting to be set free. The closest thing she'd felt to that sort of sensation before was a really nasty itch, but this wasn't an itch so much as... something she couldn't really put her finger on. Like the shape of something she couldn't quite see was hovering in front of her, and her hand wanted to grab it. It seemed to work for everyone else. So Abby tried it, too.

If You Want Them...

Holy crap this thing's big!

In front of Abby formed a hammer, as big as its wielder. And whatever it was made of, it was way lighter than Abby had expected. She couldn't even dream of picking up a normal hammer of this scale, but this one she could swing around with relative ease. Just as well too, for it seemed there was one last hyena left unattended. Not on her watch! Between her short legs and general lack of athleticism, it was taking longer than she would have liked to reach the hyena. Perhaps if she too could control the wind...

"You. C'mere."

Abby pointed her rune-tattooed hand out at the last hyena, trying to imagine what that would be like. To have the very wind at her beck and call. As if pulling a yo-yo back to her by its strings, or yanking a rogue puppet by its own, Abby pulled her hand back, and lo and behold, a blast of wind followed her signal, blowing from the hyena to Abby. The sudden feeling of something hitting her hard in the face from out of nowhere was still an uncomfortable one after the last time that happened, but at least it was just some air this time.

The hyena - already on its way to confront Abby - stumbled at the sudden tailwind. Then it gave her a look. Some confused look, as if everyone else hadn't already done wild feats. Or at least, as if that scythe girl whose name Abby couldn't quite remember at this second hadn't already done wild feats. A look that Abby wasn't going to waste any time looking at, before bringing her hammer down over the beast's head to wipe it off its face. A strike which sent the creature even further down in its newfound chain of stumbling.

Okay. I gotta admit. That was kinda fun.

However, the hyena got back up to its feet with a snarl, lunging at Abby with claws bared, charging at her side. Unable to step aside in time, Abby settled for spinning with the attack's direction, to lessen the damage those claws could cause to her. This was also a good position for her to get another swing of the hammer in, slamming her hammer against the hyena's back.

[Skaia 578]

Though her face was filled with ferocity not moments ago, awe was all that filled Luca's expression now. Watching the Exalted summon weapons, seeing them use some long forgotten magic and throwing themselves at the Drengr to fight them almost immediately. Her eyes sparkled and she seemed to forget about her own duties as chief for a moment as she watched the group engage each of the enemies in their own series of one on ones. "Wow, you see that Rumian, they're real! Really real!" The girl practically was jumping up and down, however, seeing Sabrina stumble past the Lion the girl's sense of urgency snapped back. With renewed focus, the girl sprinted into the battle, bounding in the gap between Marshall and Abby's hyena opponents and making a beeline for the boss of the group. 

The Lion was well and truly frustrated with the girl, Sabrina, who had sought to fight him. Everything from her use of magic, her weapon appearing and even her strange choice of weapon seemed to only enrage the beast as it brought its mace up to go for another swing at her. However, before it did it felt a sharp pain go into the other side of its body. Looking back to see Luca with one of her claws driving into its side, the beast sent and elbow back before swinging its mace in a horizontal arc towards Sabrina. Luca, rather than dig her claws deeper, raked it across the side and freed her hand from the creature before and taking the elbow in her side rather than her face. Though she was knocked back a bit, the girl seemed to get back to her feet swiftly enough, ready to continue engaging the foe. 

The Hyena that was squaring off with Gene, while initially confused by this sudden appearance of a weapon from all the strange outlanders, was only emboldened by winning its previous clash with the boy. And so, tightening its grip on its machete in one hand and putting the other to the ground, it snarled at Gene before propelling itself forward and going for a wild swing with its weapon at the boy. 

The Hyena that Jocelyn had struck with its foot had staggered from the attack, wincing as the pain radiated all throughout its skull. It continued to snarl shaking its head as the girl landed on her feet before digging both of its claws into the ground and throwing itself forward at the girl, jaws open to bite down at side. 

The shield bash from Drake had struck true into the Hyena's chest, causing it to stumble back and cough as the mighty bludgeoning blow was brought against it. Yet it seemed undeterred as it righted itself after the attack. Inches from each other, having not moved very far from the tackle, it swung its axe in a horizontal arc towards Drake's unshielded side. 

As Marshall had pulled her lance back and stepped away from the creature it fell to one knees, blood oozing from the whole she had created with her strike. Though it seemed to be in a bad condition it still roared with bestial rage, doing its best to ignore the injury as it ran towards the woman. Rather than the other Hyenas who had continued to do more of the same, this one had been rather frustrated with the weapon that had attacked it, and moved to pounce, grab and pull at the lance. 

With Abby having successfully struck the creature in the back, it stumbled forward. Very frustrated, both from having having been hit by a large object twice now as well as just the notion of such a tiny creature wielding such a large object and putting up such a fight. And so it, with no surprise moved to claw Abby's face. Such was the intention though the attack was moving more towards the side from a combination of back pain and being struck in the head. 

[LordCowCow 840]

Sabrina winced as the lion prepared to swing its heavy weapon at her. But the weapon didn't come to her. The chief of the village had suddenly showed up to assist her in the fight. For a moment Sabrina was relieved but soon after a cold feeling washed over her.

"H-hey, we're supposed to be the ones helping you, be careful!" Did it look like she needed help? Well, she kinda did. But she didn't want it to look like that!

Luca, still looking determined said, "don't worry! You're in my village and as chief I also have to help you!"

She wasn't sure she liked that reasoning. But, if that was the case, then she just had to work harder so that Luca didn't have to. The lion was going to swing again and so Sabrina did the first thing that came to mind. She JUMPED.

The magic flowed through her and sent her up into the air once more. And up. And up! Too much up in fact and Sabrina ended up several feet above the lion. Even with the reach of her weapon if she were to try and hit the lion she'd just strike at empty air.

Sabrina flailed about as the lion looked around. Unsure where she had seemingly vanished to. For a brief moment Sabrina considered tossing the scythe at them but thought it might be a mistake to let go of her weapon just now. So instead she let herself fall and, just as the lion looked up and noticed where she was, she got close enough to swing down and catch the creature in the neck.

It cut into it yet still didn't manage to cut through. The lion let go of its mace, perhaps due to pain, and instead opted to punch her directly. His fist collided with her stomach and Sabrina's eye flew wide open as pain shot through her body and she was tossed backwards into the ground. However as she was gripping her scythe tightly her blade cut more into the lion's neck, causing it to gush blood. Something Sabrina didn't notice at first as her eye was closed when she struck the ground.

When she looked again it was to see that Luca had jumped onto the beast's back with her claws dug into its shoulders. She noticed then how much it was bleeding and for a moment felt sick. She had done that, made that thing pour blood out like this, with her own hands. It was a disturbing thought that was swept away as she realized that Luca would be in even more danger if the thing managed to grab onto her.

So she ran forward, shouting, "Doesn't matter how many times you knock me down I'm gonna keep coming at you till I beat you!" and swung the scythe, somewhat awkwardly and hastily, overhead to try and catch the other side of the lion's neck.