Flower Drum Song (Closed)

[Paragon]

The demonic warrior known as the revenant emerged from his wooden cocoon as beastly as ever, returning to the fray, his focus so strong that even Dorian couldn't get a word in edgewise.

You're not the only one trying to stop it, William.

Dorian had heard Lillith's message, but he could not comprehend it. It was then that Neko had made his way to the dragoon, finally bringing him into the I Ching spell that joined their minds as one.

"You must hurry, the lady is giving you another chance to strike!" said little Neko.

Dorian replied, "My lance is broken, unfortunately. All I have left is my spear, and I need to be directly wielding it for it to do enough damage."

"Don't worry! Believe in us, and we will believe in you."

Dorian paused, watching the little creature exhume such confidence. They thought he had a shot at this, and if such a small being could be so hopeful, then so could he. He nodded, turning around and jumping up onto another thatched-roof house. It didn't take him long to once again stare down the vicious Greater Oni. It was getting dangerously close to the temple now, and while he did not know the significance of it, he trusted that there were apocalyptic consequences.

When he caught sight of William, he prepared to send the mental communication that would coordinate his efforts when he saw the revenant was moments away from executing his own attack. Dorian knew what the monster hunter was doing, and only realized the implications when his eyes scanned around Crab's immediate area. The school still had survivors.

He wouldn't... would he?

<"William, don't do it!"> he sent out a telepathic message. Lillith and Neko did not see what was going on. <"That building isn't evacuated!">

<"Don't get in my way,"> came a stern reply. <"It must not reach the temple.">

The monotone nature of the reply bothered the dragoon. The rod was sapping the revenant of his emotions, did that mean he had no empathy either? Or was this cold, calculating William his true self? If the monster hunter really could not stop himself, then someone else would have to. Dorian took out his collapsed spear and lengthened it, tightening his grip. He was no match for the revenant, he knew that, but he had to make William come to his senses. Aiming his spear like he would his lance, he threw it towards William. The weapon landed mere feet in front of the revenant, the blade embedding itself into the ground. Dorian followed up this distraction by jumping down and running towards William.

<"We're not going to kill innocent people! Stop your attack and let's work together!">

[Lillith]

Yanbo, seething with hatred, reached its boiling point. The cacophony of screams, drumbeats, and dwindling madness swarmed the streets. As each tumultuous blow from the Warscythe, spear, and ancient sigil tore into the withered and diamond hide of the Crab, its resolve faded, slowly, but surely, until it could no longer continue its advance inland.

With keen, but distrusting eyes, Lillith took in the scene as it unfolded. She saw Dorian stream towards the demon, but realised his attempts to quell the fires of his wrath would be futile. He was, as Lillith knew all too well from experience, far too gone beyond the pall.

“Neko,” she hissed, “we must do the ordination, now.”

Centuries ago, when the tribes of Spirit Warders that dwelt in the Comb Mountains had first begun to learn ways to trap their gods, the ordination ceremony, the most dangerous ritual of all, was performed only by the High Priestesses, and the Shokuenzens, the priest kings. Times, fortunately enough for Yanbo had changed. The spirit warders had disbanded their ways, much like the Kami and Oni had disbanded their oaths, and with its power, the people of the harbour had a single ray of hope.

“What, here?” the Nekojin snapped, bouncing mid-stride to a halt that spoke psalms about his hesitance. Every black hair on his body stood on end, and every whisker bristled with anticipation. “No…we cannot.”

They could, and Lillith would. “Collateral damage is,” she pointed north to the toppling Crab, who was on, quite literally, his final kneel, “unavoidable.” She clocked Dorian, still attempting to catch William’s eye, and shook her head. “We have gone beyond a clean sweep of the harbour.” She still smelt of charnel crabmeat to stand testament to their efforts. “Now, there is only a swift end.” She glared up to the still glowing eyes of the oni.

“Hundreds…” Neko whispered, shaking his head. “Perhaps more, each one will die a death undeserved by even the most horrible of Junta…” his words, though stern, were full of remorse. To the Nekojin, to die without your soul was to hang in limbo for aeons. It was a dark, nightmarish planescape to inhabit that would forever mar your essence. Some lingered on, for centuries, haunting the places where their bodies fell, but their karma did not.

“Neko, listen to me,” she stepped closer, fatigue setting in, and pressed her hands firmly onto his feline shoulders. “Our task here is to seal the Crab into the soul stone…” she did not offer him a chance to argue. “If the Greater Oni are not stopped, then the War in Heaven shall begin again, and Akashima…” she seethed with hatred at the thought, “if not all of Akashima will know All Soul’s Betrayal…” which, amongst the Spirit Warders, was the name for the end of days.

A great cannonade sounded to the east, a flurry of futile shots launched from long abandoned cannons. Their barrels smoked like dragon’s maws, thundering with an echo that thumped into Lillith’s chest. Somewhere, out in the chaos, the people of Yanbo were fighting back. She nodded with a smile.

“I think Yanbo can survive anything,” and it had, several times, no matter how maddened the Greater Oni or mortal foe had been when they tried to make landfall. “Even this…” without hesitation, she stepped away from Neko, and took both her red-hilted tanto into her hands. They spiralled through several, blood soaked flourishes, until they came to a stop crossed before her, at waist level.

Together, the spirit warders arranged themselves so that they stood ten feet apart, feet wide, and hearts beating in spiritual union. Another cannonade sounded, and this time several of the shells found their mark. The outer shell, knees, and rear end of the Crab burst into clouds of fire and brimstone, smoke and ash. It roared a sound that pierced the very fabric of Akashima, and knocked Lillith and Neko flat on their backs.

The Flower Drum stopped.

“Fuck me,” the assassin spat. Despite her lithe form, she struggled to right herself, and when she did, the drums had restarted, and Neko was upright, bristling, and ready to begin. “Well, at least you’re ready.” She clicked her spine into its normal position. “<Let the shadows reign.>”

Neko placed his palms together, burst into fire of dark olive hue, and bowed.

The Flower Drum burst into life, and with it, Yanbo begin its last aria, a last defiant cry against the gods of old that had once sought to enslave them. With a mental push, Lillith sent one final, poignant, hopefully understood message.

“Dorian…get William away…if you can, hit the Crab in its eyes…just once…” She sighed, and she too conjured fire about her form, though her soul was purple in colour. “Then…”

Her lips turned blue.

“Run!”

[Revenant]

William grudgingly relented, allowing the magma shot to disperse harmlessly between his claws. He was loathe to expend the energy so uselessly while Crab was still a threat but Dorian’s interference had already intruded upon his passion. There had been a moment, as Dorian’s spear had struck the ground in front of the Revenant, where the full attention of his wrath had been turned upon the young general and he had contemplated simply destroying the impudent man so that he could finish his fight with Crab unimpeded. Instead, William gritted his teeth until slips of molten blood ran from the corner of his mouth and forced his mindless rage aside. As much as it galled him to admit it, without free reign to do as he pleased, which Dorian had clearly made unavailable, he would be unable to stop Crab on his own before it wrecked the High Temple.

Still, Yanbo’s defensive cannons, if not actually dangerous to the creature, had stalled it momentarily and had given the trio a second to re-center themselves. Rage still coursed through William’s veins, urging him to renew his assault during this momentary respite but he clamped down on the instinct with an iron grip of will and hauled it away from his consciousness.

“Fucking children,” he hissed at his Ixian counterpart, plucking Dorian’s spear and tossing it at the blacksmith’s feet. “You beg for my help whenever there’s something you can’t handle and then whine about me not playing by your rules. Did you ever think that there’s a reason why you need my help? That sometimes a man’s job in life is to die for the benefit of another?”

A horrid screeching blasted across Yanbo as Crab regained its uneven stance, and gained its first purchase on the steps leading up to the High Temple. Another round of fire trained onto the oni’s carpace, hewing the creature towards it’s injured side, but this time the creature was prepared and weathered the assault.

“Fine then, I’ll play by your rules,” he sneered, his eyes casting up to Lillith’s elevated position. “Whatever cursed magic that the whore is working is going to take time to finish, and you’re going to need a distraction if you’re going to get ahead of that thing as she wants.” William turned back towards Crab only to be stopped as Dorian grabbed his arm.

“You need to back away,” Dorian said, echoing Lillith’s command.

“Or what? That spell of hers will fry me alongside the water bug?” William sneered, tearing his arm free. “Don’t make me repeat myself, Captain?”

“You honestly plan to give your life for the High Temple?” Dorian asked incredulously.

“Don’t be stupid,” William growled, “I plan to kill that bastard.” Not knowing what else to say, Dorian simply nodded and retrieved his spear, unsurprised to see the Revenant’s charred form running once more towards the giant oni, another blast of cannon fire leading his way.

Crab was even less hindered by the third round of fire, having adapted completely to absorb the barrage. With enough time the cannons would have proven a hindrance to the massive beast, but as with William’s earlier blows, the time they needed to punch through the beast’s armored hide was too much. The High Temple’s best chance remained whatever baneful magic but that too needed time.

William was going to make sure she got all that she needed.

He charged the beast, letting everything but his focus fade into the background. This time however, it was not blind fury commanding William’s actions but a cold, purposeful desire to see Crab stopped, see it put down. Summoning the full measure of his strength, William leapt upon Crab’s armored form, climbing the beast like a rough pillar as it staggered lumberingly up the High Temple’s steps. Dark lines webbed across Crab’s carpace in William’s vision, the damage he had already done to the shell compounded by Yanbo’s cannon strikes.

Perhaps he thought as he ascended to the top of Crab’s magnificent height, claws hardened, Perhaps I can do this.

[Paragon]

Dorian took a moment to catch his breath, leaning against his spear for support. He managed to deter the revenant from his attack, but William didn't seem to see anything wrong with his actions. The Crab was nothing more than an opponent to him. The dragon knight decided to drop the matter in his mind, as stopping the Greater Oni took priority.

He jumped up on top of one of the houses, this time making sure to land without sliding off the roof. William was on top of the crab, driving his claws into the Crab's back and cracking through its shell little by little. The Crab's pincers were flailing wildly above its back, trying to knock the revenant off, but he was too fast. Maybe William could have even beaten it by himself, but he didn't have enough time. Dorian readied his spear in both hands, aiming it at the Crab's remaining eyes. One of them still had the severed tip of his lance embedded into it, while the other was still glowing brightly.

He couldn't reach it from here. The second he let go of the spear, it would lose all of its power. He had to keep it in hand after all. He looked around and jumped to a nearby temple, hopping to the top so that he was on the same street as the Crab. The temple was at the edge of a dead end street, so to each of his sides were buildings, and down the street the Crab continued poking holes into the ground. He was convinced that its footsteps would crush adamantine. The day was waning, and smoke lingered in the air from the cannon fire. The drums were drowned out by the commotion below. Dorian readied his spear and closed his eyes. The tiles on the temple were cracking from the force of his sabatons.

The next moment he opened his eyes and jumped. He landed on the side of the first building and skipped off of it after just barely making contact, flying across the street and skipping across the side of that house as well. He continued bouncing along the buildings, gaining momentum until he was soaring full force at the Crab's eye, who noticed him but was too slow to respond due to its pincers being occupied with William. Dorian held the spear's shaft as hard as he could, his hands bruising from the grip, and the tip of the spear pierced through the Crab's remaining eye, with Dorian hanging off of it. The scream and earthquake that came after nearly shattered his ear drums, and he let go of the spear and landed on the cracked streets below.

The sightless Crab felt his presence below and tried to impale him with its legs, but Dorian jumped out of the way and retreated to safety.

<"Now, Lillith!">

[Lillith]

Lillith watched the final death throes of their valiant efforts unfold. To the merit of her companions, they did all that was asked of them, and so much more. When the dragoon’s spear penetrated the Crab’s eye, she felt the world wake. She felt all the Oni in Akashima cry. She felt alive. She rocked on her heels.

“Lillith-sama!” the nekojin roared, every hair on his body standing on end. As a creature born of the land, the spirit-warder would feel the wound much more keenly than the assassin could ever hope to.

They were one, after all. They were of the same blood.

“Yes, yes, hold your horses,” she said wearily. She watched the Crab raise its front pincer, and quite casually, drop it on a nearby building. The ricocheting rubble and tumultuous cavalcade of debris that rained down over the nearby houses caused her to utter a prayer for the dead, dying, and terrorised.

“If we do not act now, then all will be for nought.” He said, cock-sure, and all knowing. He rubbed his paws together gingerly, impatiently conjured the wisps of spiritual energy he would need to draw the kanji of sealing.

“I think William is rather adamant about tearing it limb from limb…,” she said, almost wishing she could watch and wait a little while longer. She watched the flickering flames of ruination smoulder about the demon. He swung his scythe with such fury she felt each blow.

“Let him,” Neko snapped. He punched her jokingly on the arm, to knock her out of her daze, and gestured for her to stand opposite. She did so, legs parsed, and hair eschew in the kicking breeze. “You remember all I taught you I hope?” he raised an eyebrow inquisitively.

Lillith nodded. She began to draw the symbols for life, death, and the ocean in the air. He followed suit, and when each formed, the six symbols burst into life. His were bright red, the colour of the oni. Hers were bright azure, the colour of the kami. Ancient magic, far older than even Akashima herself, began to formulate in their ritual.

She held the symbols in check whilst she reached out, one last time, for the young lancer. “Dorian, you have to listen to me.” She waited for the all too familiar echo of acknowledgement to ring in her head. “What we are going to do will be dangerous. You need to go.” She gave him no time to object. “Draw the symbol I showed you, and slap it across that idiot’s face.” She gave him no room to misinterpret to which idiot she was referring.

Neko stood on his haunches, and twitched his whiskers.

“Thank you…” she added, before severing the connection for a final time. She felt the remnants of the glyph strengthen, and then fade, and strengthen again. It fizzled out, left the scent of cinnamon, chives, and fried cod head in the air.

As Yanbo realised its invader was defeated, the drums returned. The staccato of the early morning celebration returned with gusto. Though much of the population near the harbour had fled, or been killed, people who had merely watched and danced the in the sun’s rise took up whatever they had to beat skins and barrels with. The beat of the Flower Drum Song imprinted in their minds, their hearts, and their souls.

Whips of canon fire turned into plumes of celebratory fire. Triple shots rang out from the north, south, and the west. Lillith waited for the fourth, but when it did not come, she knew it was time.

“<By heart divine,>” she began.

“<By light reclaimed,>” Neko continued. From then on, they together, a common voice united by a common need to survive.

“<Return the child of the Ancient to the stars. Devoid of body, carry his soul on a ray of peace, knowing his deeds be forgiven, and his trials exonerated in your resplendence.>”

They clapped their hands. Warmth filled them. Fear left them.

“<We vow to forever guard the soul of the Crab, his mortal body, and his essence.>” Lillith unsheathed a clean tanto from about her waist, it’s hilt still damp from their ocean arrival, and it’s blade polished with wax, and held it up to the crab’s toppling form. The sound of its claw snapping fustily sounded hollow and dull in her ears.

There was a snap, a crack, and a low rumble. The Crab lurched.

“<Or may the Children of Akashima be damned eternal,>” they said together, twice, and with thrills and exaltations on the tips of their tongues. Both the spirit warders felt elated, to the point of mania, that they were still alive. Less said for thousands, but they would be mourned in due course. Their songs sung by worthy mouths.

From the bloodied eyes emerged a glowing effervescence. It was full of vitriol and poison. It was heaven personified, and corrupted, and left to decay. It streamed down towards Lillith, tapering through ruined rooftops and once profitable harbour restaurants. Neko and Lillith watched it as it snaked towards the tip of the tanto, and in a moment of beauty, they became one.

“<Amen,>” she said, alone, knowing that the malapropism from the secular religion of Scara Brae would not meet the nekojin’s approval.

She felt shortly sick, and then shattered, and then rested again.

She dropped the Crab to her side, and sighed.

Then she slumped forwards, too fatigued to live through Yanbo Harbour’s most resplendent feast in centuries.

[Paragon]

The grandiose corpse of the Greater Oni lay before him, and in its death Dorian could no longer see what was so magical about it. Everything that constituted its mystic presence was gone, leaving behind its mortal body. With each step closer his body ached, sweat rolling down his face and dripping onto the hot street. The first thing he did was pull his weapons out of Crab's eyes, raising a brow at the lance which was shattered in half. He had the means to repair it, but maybe an upgrade was in order. William jumped down off Crab's back near him, shooting him a sideways glance before walking away. He looked disappointed, like a man who had his prey taken from him.

That night, the city was so bright that it could be mistaken for day. Crab had been completely cleared from the street, and in its stead was a festival so loud that street shook with each beat of the drums. While Lillith rested, William, Dorian, and Neko enjoyed the festivities before the two Ixians returned to the castle. It was cultural tradition to celebrate those who were lost instead of mourn, to shout to the heavens their remembrance and show them that they meant to live on. Dorian was a little apprehensive toward the idea of eating something that came so close to destroying the city, but he wanted to join in. This was the Akashiman way of life, after all. Leaning against a wall, he peered into his bowl. Big pieces of Crab's meat floated around in the soup broth, coupled with an array of vegetables. The dragon knight plunged his chopsticks in and fished out a piece, eyeing it for a moment before sticking it into his mouth. To his surprise, it tasted better than anything he had eaten before, the flavor running up and down his spine.

The pleasant sensation did not last however, as he suddenly found himself weak in the knees. His eyes unfocused, and his body felt hot. He dropped the bowl, the Crab meat spilling out into the street. He closed his eyes as a pain surged in his head, and when he opened them he was in realm of darkness, only illuminated by the countless threads that were infinite in height. They flashed many different colors, and he realized that he had inadvertently activated his second sight, the means by which he crafts fate. The Crab meat overpowered him and entered him into this state, although he noticed that this was only happening to him. He was about to close his eyes to try to calm down and return his regular vision, but he noticed a particular strand of fate that was familiar. Images were flashing from it, past, present, and future. He couldn't really see until he got closer, but he knew that such a strong fate was associated with a person, and using fate-crafting on living beings was strictly forbidden, not to mention extremely dangerous.

He somehow knew it was William Arcus, however. If he got a bit closer, if he focused a bit harder, he would have the answer to his mission. Was The Revenant dangerous? Was he a force of benevolence or malevolence? Dorian had never before seen a thread of fate like this before, and his blood boiled with the prospect of touching it, feeling it, living it. He resisted the temptation and closed his eyes, forcing himself to return to his regular sight of the bright streets of Yanbo. It was not his place to ascertain William's fate, nor was it his to judge.

The celebration lasted until wee hours of the morning, and the next day Dorian said his farewell to Lillith and the rest of the city, who decided to donate much of the Crab's hide to the Ixians for research as thanks. William was long gone by this time, opting to return to the castle by himself. This ordeal did little to improve their relations, although Dorian was starting to understand him a bit. Dorian was the only one to not accept William's challenge, but thinking back, they were never around at the same time. The dragon knight saw firsthand the kind of power it took to protect people, maybe he had something to learn.

When he arrived at the castle some time later, he made his report to Sei.

The Ixian Leader was very interested in the matter, but Dorian made it very brief, "I don't know."

"What do you mean?" Sei asked.

"I don't know when, why, or what, but William is going to do something important soon. I don't know if it's in his capacity as a soldier or something else, but I'm not the one to judge him. I believe that he can be a good person, but I can't tell you whether or not he will meet your expectations. I'm sorry."

"It's alright," Sei assured. "Thank you for doing this for me. We don't get to meet like this often."

Dorian nodded, and went back to his workshop. He had a lot on his mind, and the strange hide of the Greater Oni filled his head with possibilities. The most important thought however was his dragonling friend Fallow. Without even getting a chance to settle in, he packed his bags and prepared to go to Salvar.

During his travels, he could still hear the beat of the flower drum song.

Spoils:

Hide of The Greater Oni, "Crab".

[Max Dirks]

This was a fun boss battle. As far as general tips go, I would advise each of you to attempt to simplify your characters' actions in the future. I frequently lost the sense of urgency the thread was trying to convey while getting caught up on who did what. More specific comments are below:

Story - 20/30

Strength: Pacing. You each did an excellent job of building actions off one another to advance the story.

Weakness: Setting. Individually, your use of the setting was excellent, but together it was inconsistent. For example, early in the quest Paragon noted it was nearly impossible to see underwater while Revevant said the Crab's glowing eyes illuminated the area until his failed attack.

Character - 20/30

Strength: Communication. The communication between your characters was stellar, particularly given the limitations caused by the underwater setting. T’ung Jen was both natural and creative.

Weakness: Persona. Some parts of the story seemed to be added simply to improve character scores. For example, Revenant's encounter with the school and his rather anticlimatic withdraw of his move. Similarly, Lady Oni's ultimate dispatch of the Crab seemed rushed and out of sync with the development between Lillith, Neko and the others in the thread.

Writing - 18/30

Weakness: Run-on sentences. All of you, particularly Lady Oni, overused commas. This caused the reader to detract from the sense of urgency you all tried to convey in this thread. There were also multiple spelling and grammar mistakes, mostly likely brought upon by auto-correcting Word Processors. Read through your posts before you convert them.

Wildcard - 5/10

Total 63/100

Lady Oni gains 1005 EXP and 250 GP
Paragon gains 739 EXP and 250 GP
Revenant gains 1344 EXP and 250 GP

Spoils are not approved.

If you would like more specific tips and tricks, please contact me personally. I'll keep my notes for a week.

[Max Dirks]

EXP and GP added!