recolle | Semi-Open

Entry tags:

Semi-Open

WHO: Freya, Pen, Luna, Felicia; others added as needed
WHERE: Campground, outskirts of Recolle, beginning of the road to Magatus
WHEN: May 20th
WHAT: Freya turns into Ragnarok, and Ragnarok is not friendly.
WARNINGS: Violence

[[Important! If you would like an encounter with Ragnarok, please contact me by PM or at

gsdragono and we'll work something out!]]

One arrow. Another. The next.

They came slower once Freya had sorted out her feelings about the cursed mark, but they still came. Every week, more of that reddening eye stared back at her in the mirror. It was thoughts of Ryoji, both of his monstrous side and his return from death that kept Freya sane.

But those thoughts didn't dismiss the fear of the creature that awaited her, or her other self's despise and heart-wrenching pity for the soulless things. She could put on a brave face all she wanted, but with each passing day, the hope that this time would be different from her other self's world--that the Brand wouldn't work how it should--became harder and harder to muster.

When a spasm rippled through her shoulder and the Brand burned, Freya knew her time was up, and the fear packed beneath the surface burst through to seize her. That was all the invitation the Brand needed. Ragnarok had come.

[Penelope - Morning]

The paint can clattered to dirt as Freya clutched her right shoulder, fingers clutching at the skin through the fabric as though she could suppress the Brand's blazing light if she just pressed hard enough.

"No," was out of her mouth before she could stop it, somewhere between forceful and quiet, and several more desperately murmured no followed as Freya fell to a knee. Not here. Not now, not where Pen could see, their little pact about Freya's curse be damned. She was lucky, probably, for this to happen at the camp grounds, away from the city, but...

A little more time. Just a little more time.

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Well that was a boss fight phase change if Pen had ever seen one. This is probably where her raid timers would be screaming at her to maximize DPS before an enrage timer, however all she can do is skitter to one side to avoid the stone. It rolls and bounces, ricocheting off the earth thanks to the force and slamming into a tree. The splinters fly everywhere, and it's only the bubble that keeps the party from being shredded.

"Right..." Pen panted, thrusting her hand out and lobbing another spell, this time at Gil. The Haste hits him and he moves like greased lightning, rushing at Ragnarok with even greater speed, swords slashing in a frenzy of blows.

The beast responded in kind, ripping more rock from the ground and chucking it Gilgamesh's way. It didn't stop there; as soon as the project left its hands, Ragnarok surged forward to meet frenzy for frenzy. It leapt and spun, vaguely reminiscent of Freya's spearfighting, but with an additional forward twist to bring that heavy tail down with savage momentum. Gil's head, his swords--it didn't matter. All that mattered was harm and destruction.

This time Gil was ready. He knew the creature had little care for self-preservation and instead of assuming it would back off, he pivoted and spun away. That had been a cover in the first place, as another Scourge spell, the last Pen could manage without some time to recharge, flew in towards Ragnarok. A feint.

Cu, on the other hand, simply surged forward after Gil, his bulk much slower than the hasted spirit.

"FIIIIIGHT!" he roared.

The tail split the ground where the Yahri should have been just in time for the next Scourge. Ragnarok recoiled from the pain but rolled with the motion, turning it into a spin and seizing a section of the split and fallen tree. And that section of tree went straight at Cu--or through, if the Esper did not stop.

It wasn't only Ragnarok's fury that grew as the fight (and it's injuries) dragged on; its strength, too, grew proportionally with that fury. A special hatred aided it against Cu--a faint echo of Freya's contempt of the Espers. The Cie'th, in this moment before something else drew its ire, wanted nothing more than to rip Cu into literal bloody pieces.

Edited 2018-05-31 06:46 (UTC)

The tree comes in hard, and Cu isn't stopping. The trunk slams into his midsection, and one arm bats what it can aside. It's not enough to arrest the motion, but it is more than enough to puncture his belly and reveal the rather...horrible...innards. The monster rumbles a laugh and from inside the hole an enormous scorpion-like tail explodes outward in a shower of black blood. It launches itself towards Ragnarok, spewing a boiling swathe of acid out towards it's attacker. The stinger aims right for her throat, glistening like red crystal in the morning sunlight. If it connects even slightly, the sheer explosive force of it might propel the monster backwards at a frightening speed.

Pen's stomach churns a little, the vile sight and stench enough to make her take a few steps back with Gil.

Ragnarok started to twist and clawed at the new appendage, almost like in some kind of overwrought slow-motion. It reached for that glistening tail as if trying to catch a striking snake and moved just far enough to avoid a strike to the throat, but the attack was too quick; it struck Ragnarok square in the chest instead.

The beast managed to grasp the tail just behind the stinger a split-second later, but the sheer force of the blow still sent it ragdolling unnaturally backwards, bending in a way something with bones couldn't. Ragnarok's grip never faltered, though, preventing it from rocketing backwards into the unpainted forest. The moment the monster found purchase on the ground, it sunk tail and legs and free hand into the ground, and yanked with a roar and all of its might in retaliation.

The fell Cie'th hadn't escaped unharmed; a small crack had opened on its crystalline form at the point of impact, about where the sternum would be, leaking light. The first visual sign of injury, but one the monster was all the more dangerous for.

The tail came free in a shower of ichor and gore, but rather than sticking around, it vanishes the instant it leaves contact with the Esper. A shower of green motes and then it simply vanishes. Cu sags a little, arms pressed to it's belly, but doesn't seem at all put down. Something about it just isn't right though, and it lists to one side.

Gilgamesh, on the other hand, is just fine. And taking advantage of the opportunity he rushes forward with his swords raised up, aiming for that crack.

All the beast had time to do was curl its elongated arms defensively around head and chest in face of the hastened onslaught, growling as sparks flew from crystal skin. The beast wasn't entirely without a concept of preservation; it was mindless, but not completely stupid. Ragnarok was a weapon, a walking purpose, and it would not permit threats to that single-minded purpose. But self-preservation? Cie'th didn't truly live. There was nothing of self to preserve.

It ducked further and dove forward into the strikes into an attempt to get within Gil's range. Then Ragnarok surged up, whipping its tail skyward to try and launch the Yahri away from it. The spirit was persistent, so endlessly, infuriatingly persistent.

Persistent is his middle name, because Gil partially deflects that blow, knocking it aside and nearly losing a sword in the process. It's only the Haste that lets him keep up, giving up ground, but he's in better shape than either of the other two creatures. His lower arms flicker and the long swords shift into daggers, better to defend in close if it tries that again.

Skipping back, he puts himself between Penelope and Ragnarok, watching warily, waiting for a response.

Ragnarok crouched low on all legs to protect that weak spot, heaving for breath it didn't truly need; it was a frantic motion more than anything, a vestigial human habit. With a lull in the action, it was less a pause on Ragnarok's end and more a distracted stare passed its two foes to the blank, white sky.

Empty sky. No floating nest, and no concave ceiling of the enemy land overhead.

The Cie'th let out another frustrated cry, and sent another spinning lash of its tail forward, this time cleaving the earth before it to launch another shower of stone.

(Earth. It kept resorting to weaponizing the ground instinctively, reaching for a phantom power it didn't possess; something fragmented and incomplete.)

And without further waiting, it dashed in the opposite direction, leaping from painted trunk to trunk, seeking the highest vantage point possible.

The stone flew in arcs, and a loud, metallic pinging and crunch made Pen turn around. And groan. One of those thrown trees had definitely gone clear through the roof of her car, and the stones hadn't helped. It was useless...and the monster was running.

"Okay. Guess we're hoofing it back to town."

Banishing summons, Pen took off after Ragnarok, though she wasn't going to catch up anytime soon.

Ragnarok may have moved quickly, and roamed widely, but the beast really wasn't difficult to find once someone landed in its general vicinity.

Ragnarok had a purpose--was a purpose. As its existence dragged on, so did its frustration; Cocoon was no here, nor Eden, nor Orphan. The sky that was supposed to bear those entities sat empty and mockingly blank. It was all the Cie'th could do to leap from and cling to the tops of partially invisible trees, roaming in search of greater heights, and howl at the sky.

Occasionally, it threw things, too. Boulders that arced impossibly towards the sky, and broken chunks of trees soared at nothing. The creature's search grew more and more frantic.

Frantic, and erratic. Ragnarok had stumbled deeper into Recolle's wilds, into unpainted territory, crashing into trees and branches and hillsides and tripping over roots. It was hard to miss the resulting fury; the thunderous cracks of wood, of stone, of earth and the monster's low screams could be heard for quite some distance. The beast clawed and thrashed its tail wildly, destroying anything in reach, trying to clear the area in a futile, petulant attempt to rid itself of all these invisible obstacles.

There was nothing here. Nothing. No land, no sky, no Cocoon, no purpose. The only thing left that it could do was destroy, and wallow in its miserable tantrum like any other Cie'th.

Penelope was not the type to remain idle, not when a promise had been made. Getting back to town had taken hours, but thankfully she'd managed to hitch a ride as soon as she'd hit the parkway. That had sped up her day immeasurably. Home had been a flurry, energy drinks and some of the other things she'd picked up from Tanaka's Shopping Network.

Getting on her armor, she hadn't wasted any time in leaping into her airship and taking off searching. Sweeps of the city and sweeps of the surrounding area, and passing over the forest had yielded little in the way of clues until eventually after dusk, her sensors exploded with sound. The entire console light up as it picked up on a powerful lifeform. Exterior cameras provided a sight, the monster rampaging through the forest, and that meant it was time.

Casting Float on herself, leaving the ship high in the air to provide light from it's searchlights, Pen leaped out, spear in one hand A soft crunch echoed in the forest, and she advanced quickly, looking for the monster. She didn't want to summon just yet, not wanting to attract it's attention with a lightshow. So this would have to do. She just hoped that it hadn't heard her land and was distracted by the floodlight.

Penelope's quiet landing went unnoticed with all of the Cie'th's thrashing, and the floodlight more than did its job. Ragnarok's head snapped up to the source. Its hands scrabbled against the broken, unpainted terrain until it found purchase, and hurled another boulder skyward with a spinning throw and a frustrated scream.

The boulder ricocheted off of the ships Mist refraction field, wanging off into the woods far away. And rather than waste time, Pen rushed out of the trees, spear thrusting towards Ragnarok's back.

The spear skittered across Ragnarok's back with a shower of sparks, much like Gil's swords. Ragnarok recoiled from the surprise strike, rolling with the motion and whipping around with a blind backhand.

Pen was prepared for that, already moving backward, Haste speeding her response time to superhuman levels. The spear twirled again and jabbed out, muscle memory making it aim for underarms and potentially softer flesh.

"I won't let you get away this time!"

No soft spots to find on the crystal monster. Ragnarok dodged to the side, then lunged at Pen in a half-tackle, half-punch, much like the beast had done to Gilgamesh earlier that day.

The ferocity of the charge surprises Pen but she holds her ground. Somewhat. Skill alone keeps the spear in her hands, and she falls onto her back, the weapon raised in a bar between the two of them. Her bubble absorbs all the impact, and while she's down she whispers the command word to release a Yahri off to one side to save her ass...but for now, down she goes.

The shield-bubble, unsurprisingly, seemed to offend Ragnarok, just like the existence of literally everything else. The beast slammed a fist against the offending bubble, the force rippling violently across the barrier's surface. Its claws scraped against the bubble, digging into the spell like some kind of giant egg. The creature roared, and begin to pull; a crack appeared, quickly widening into a fissure and sending magical sparks arcing.

If it were a movie, or one of those cheesy animated shows of Pen's... perhaps this is where there'd be some flicker of recognition, or maybe hesitation; but no, nothing sat in those blank eyes. Nothing but murderous rage could be found the beast's distorted cries, and the moment the weakness appeared in the bubble, Ragnarok slammed its head against the fissure in the shield.

The barrier shattered. The Cie'th's weight fell harder against the bar of the spear, and it reared a clawed hand, tail whipping wildly behind it, and drove its claws down at Penelope's head.

Edited 2018-06-03 06:24 (UTC)

Pen's eyes widen as the shield begins to shimmer and crack, willing the Yahri to hurry up and form. This thing...it could tear her apart and she knows it. The armor won't completely protect her, she's aware. It's the one thing keeping her from being crushed already, the physical strength enhancement that it grants oddly reminiscent of power armor in some of her Japanese animes rather than any simple leather.

Fear isn't as distant as she'd like, and pain too. The rage...the almost-Freya like face...and the blankness of it are troubling. It's little better than an animal, and being this close only solidifies that.

When the claw rises, Pen's enhanced reflexes are all that keep her head in place. She jerks her head to one side at the last instant, the claw catching the tip of her braid and shearing off the end.

...just as Shiva's attack slams into the distracted monster's side. A wave of ice a dozen feet thick and ten feet wide launched at the Yahri's waist height smashes into the creature, passing harmlessly over Penelope and moving with enough force to send Ragnarok flying. Pen kips up as soon as she's free, the bubble reforming quickly.

"Thanks, Shiva."

It's Ragnarok's turn to collide with a tree. The beast dropped the ground bonelessly, and for a solid two seconds... it did not move. Two seconds was a mere sliver of time, but before this, the monster hadn't given any pause in the slightest; no hesitation, no exhaustion, no agony of wounds.

But the spell is soon broken, and Ragnarok pushed itself back to a four-legged stance, glowering at the newcomer.

Then it's off again in a burst of speed, dashing towards Pen and Shiva, finishing the charge with a flip and downward strike of its tail.

This time Penelope is ready, braced and prepped for battle. And she has a dance partner. The tail comes down, and slides off a hastily constructed barrier of ice, the sheer force spraying chips of it everywhere. Pen's spear jabs in three quick, sharp strikes, a staccato rhythm to the attacks aimed at the monster's feet, knees, and shoulders. Disabling strikes.

Shiva follows up with a volley of crystalline shards, hoarfrost spears as long as a man's arm seeking to prevent the monster from evading Penelope's attack.

Ragnarok's interest was in the ice volley either way; it's rock-like flesh protected it to some degree against weapons, and Shiva's last attack had struck the creature with far more force than the stabs had.

Ragnarok swept it tail against the volley, smashing a majority of the shards out of the air; the foot and knee strikes connected with sparks, but the third... the Cie'th's hand caught the Zodiac Spear, elongated hand curling around the haft with a vice grip.

The most it could do from here was sweep its tail again, throwing a random assortment of unpainted ground debris at the Yahri.

The Cie'th might be surprised, then, when the spear suddenly shrinks down to it's carrying form and out of it's grip. And extends then, driving forward at full strength towards the crack Gilgamesh had left earlier if it was still there. Like something right out of a Space Wars lasersaber battle, Pen's using every trick she could manage.

The monster's attack on Shiva batters a hastily constructed cocoon of ice, the spirit taking a few shards of rock that don't seem to slow it too much. It answers with another attack, a massive icicle forming behind Ragnarok and driving down towards it's back.

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Late Evening

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