Twelve

[Hewitt]

*Jas stands stunned for a moment as the voice of the mysterous being mixed with the voices in her own thoughts. However, as the many question within her died down the full weight of what Chronos had said began to hit home.*

Wait a minute. Did you say apocalypse? As in the 'end of the universe' apocalypse!? Holy sh.t! And you want us to...

*Jasmine's eyes go wide.*

Holy sh.t!!! Holy f*cking f*cking f*ck f*ck f*cking SH.T!!!!!!

(Appologies for the language but I bet that if any of you were in a similar situation, your reaction would be likewise. )

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: Yes indeed. If left unchecked, all life in this solar system, if not even further than that will be extinguished. You twelve are the only ones aware of this, therefore it is you who must prevent it.

[Fluffie]

"Ah, right. So while here we can loiter all we want, but out there... We have to move quick?"

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: Indeed. 12 hours after you leave and it is all over, unless you retrieve one of the 12 keys to this clock, one of which is hidden on each of the 12 worlds. Each key will give you another attempt at preventing the apocolypse.

[Fluffie]

"So we'll need a game-plan and... we'll need to work out who does what, eh. Funkifying. You have any idea where to start looking, for both them keys and the end of the world?"

[Ur_Quan]

"Why us?", Tex said. "Why are we so special?" Tex examined each of the other persons on the big clockwork timemachine and then turned to Chronos: "And what makes you so sure we can prevent all this from going to happen, or happening again, or happening still, or ever having happened?"

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: As to the apocolypse, the only advice I can give you is that Ragnarok might be involved. The keys I can be more specific about, but it would be best if you asked me specific questions about just the ones you intent to try for this time, we must be as swift as possible. I cannot be sure that it can be stopped. I do know that the clock chose you, and the clock is always right. Time is on its side. I believe that we must at least try, for how can we know otherwise?

[Fluffie]

"Well... Swiftness is of the issue... Or something like that."

Fluffie looks at No Dachi.

"Perhaps the Ninja and I can jointly try to secure one or more keys, we have been... out in the field before. We'd just need a hint where to find the key, any key... It doesn't really matter, we'll find it. I hope. RIght?"

[Ur_Quan]

"Yer? Well, I'm the one that decides whether or not I'm helping you or not and not this clock here. What makes you so sure that we're actually going after those keys instead of just partying for 12 hours? I've never been too fond of this world anyway, perhaps apocalypse is exactly what it needs?"

Tex stared at the ground for a moment, thinking deep thoughts, obviously struggling to control his emotions like one who has too much unfinished business. He sighed and raised his head again. "Alright, I'll help you. Send me back to Earth, I 'm going after its key, but I need to know where I can find it, what it looks like and how I can verify it's the real thing. Also, how do I get back here and while I'm there is there a way to communicate with you here?"

[No Dachi]

No Dachi had returned the Angel of Smiting's initial greeting nod before standing by and listening to the suggestions made by the various people standing around the odd room. The samurai was merely content to take in his new surroundings, while trying to figure out what exactly had just happened. The last thing he could remember, before being transported to the strange room, was walking through the streets of the dark urban underworld of Earth, hunting down evil in one of the places it was most likely to feature. Luckily he had not been engaged in any particular hunt that he would feel compelled to finish. Presently he heard the Angel of Smiting say the word 'ninja' - presumably referring to him, although he was not in fact a ninja...

"I agree. Fluffie and I will go to Jupiter. We are bound to find the Key of Order there; the planet is, after all the headquarters of the SEP, the law enforcers. It would thus make the most logical sense for the Key of Order to reside there. While there we can perhaps obtain some clues as to the cause of this apocalypse from the SEP." Said the samurai, already leen to leave the odd room. Something abuot it was rather unnatural, and it was beginning to disturb him. "I assume that we may leave when we please?"

[Bakan]

*Looking at the other beings, Bakan narrows his eyes and stares at the being in charge.*

"Why ahve we been selected for this. What set's us apart from the billions of other beings in this system?"

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: Hero of Technology, the key on Earth is that of Tech too. It is known as the Multi-tool, and is known for an uncanny ability to become whatever item of technology the owner requires. Its Guardian is a creature by the name of Technosis, the Advanced. Apparantly he was human once, but now little more than an armoured shell. Legends say that he lives on Earth somewhere, bound by technology. I would suggest beginning to look for him in one of the larger cities, somewhere that his craft it at its most powerful. Perhaps others may have heard of him too? You will not be able to communicate with me until returning to this place upon touching the key. Nor will you be able to speak to each other, unless you arrange something now. Heroes of Light and Order, I believe that you have a good plan. The key of Order does indeed reside at Jupiter, under the protection of the guardian Gryphon, the Lawmaster. Though you are of similar allignment, I do not believe that he will be happy to give you the key Scales of Law, as his mandate is to protect the item at all costs. Perhaps you might be able to reason with him, if you can find him. The SEP know of Gryphon, so I would suggest beginning there. Hero of Lightning, as I say, I did not choose you, the Great C-Lock did so itself. When activated it automatically picks the most worthy, those that will assist its cause.

[No Dachi]

No Dachi nodded thoughtfully as he listened to Chronos' words.

"I am sure that Gryphon will realise the importance of our endeavour once we have explained it to him." He replied, before turning to the Angel standing to his right. "Fluffie, I suggest we leave at once. There is no sense in dawdling here, and we have work to do." At this, the samurai dropped his right hand to the hilt of his katana, preparing to summon the Plane Rider...

[Bakan]

*Looking at the other beings in the chamber, Bakan tries to assess each one. He does not recognize any of them, yet he can sense the power and skill from each of them. Seeing a being that resembled a "Angel" with some kind of warrior, Bakan walks over to them.*

"Greeting, I am Bakan. What you think of all this?"

[No Dachi]

No Dachi sees a slyph first look at him and the Angel standing on his right, then walk over to them.He listens to the man's question and, seeing no harm in doing so, answers.

"I am No Dachi. I think very little of this, I merely know that I must help to find these keys, or else everything will end within twelve hours. If this is what must be done, then it is what must be done. So far as I am concerned there is nothing more to think of."

[Fluffie]

Fluffie looks at the slyph approach and then hears both him and his samurai friend converse. Keeping his silence, he waits for them to finish... When they do, he looks at No Dachi.

"We shall rendez-vouz on the SEP Plaza on Jupiter, once we leave here. Agreed?"

[No Dachi]

No Dachi nodded to the Angel.

"Agreed. I will leave momentarily."

[flapjack]

*Nibimacarion quickly glanced over the others, noticing another that appeared to be of his kind, Nibimacarion quietly floated over to Bakan, who was now standing over with No Dachi and Fluffie*

"Greetings, my name is Nibimacarion, I'm a Slyph, apparently just like you Bakan, though you appear to be different, perhaps we should investigate Mars or the moon together."

[AcidK]

*Cid suddenly turned his gaze from chronos to the anglelic being and grinned, showing unclean, bleeding teeth. His speech was slowed at points, and at those points it sounded as if two people were talking other than one, echoes reaching out during them.*

Wwe know not of wwhere to start in ssearch of any... keyss...

*Cid looked once more to the angelic, the grin gone, but the expression blank.*

And iff we are to allly, how do I knnow how to trusst the other 11?

[Bakan]

*Looking at the pure-blooded Slyph, Bakan's eyes narrowed. He had met many a pure-blooded Slyph, many of them looked down upon him, openly mocking him. Thus he was very distrustful of them on principal.*

"We are nothing alike there. I am content with working on my own as needed, for like the Demon just said, how can we trust one another."

[Ur_Quan]

"Hero...", mumbled Tex, inaudible to everybody else. Nobody had ever called him a hero before, not even... Tex quickly changed his thoughts, this wasn't the place, nor the time (if any) to think about his personal affairs. "Besides, some of these guys may be mindreaders.", Tex thought as he looked at each of them in turn.

To say that Tex was fearless would be incorrect; everyone had fears, including those that pretended to be fearless. Tex wasn't easily scared, but when he heard the demon speak, he felt shivers running down his spine. Despite his feelings, Tex spoke to the demon from across the room: "Why are you here demon? Why would you try to avert an apocalypse? Does that not go against your species' nature? Or are you perhaps a spy for Ragnarok?

After the demon's reply, Tex looked at the large clock beneath his feet. He hadn't moved since he was first brought here and it was only now that he noticed that he standing on the number eight. "Odd", he said no one in particular. He walked over to Chronos and said: "Alright, let's do this, I'm ready."

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: I doubt that I can convince you to trust each other implicitly, but if the clock chose each of you, then you are those suited to the task. It does not choose traitors to its cause, so whatever you may think of each other, you will all still try to prevent the apocolypse. I see some of you are ready to leave now. Heroes of Dark, Chaos, Nature and Lightning, you should make a decision.

[Zappa Tenderlea]

I have but one question: there are 12 keys, and but 4 planets, so that would mean there are several keys per planet. would it be possible for you to tell us which planet holds which keys? this way, we can work more directly. we know technology is on Earth, and Order is on Jupiter, what of the other 10?

[AcidK]

12 plannets, 4 knnown...

*The demonic being placed a clawed finger to it's chin.*

We look, we ssearch... we find keyss... best to sstart wwhere wwe can.

[Fluffie]

ooc

ehm.. shouldn't some people, like, search for clues concerning the end of the world?

[Zappa Tenderlea]

I shall visit the holy places, and pray to godess Gaia for the answers. She will tell us how the apocalypse will happen. I hope this way, we shall learn how to prevent it, if it is meant to be prevented.

[Bakan]

"Praying will not be enough, to prevent the end of everything we must hunt for the cause. I will be willing to look for clues to the cause of this apocalypse. Since we only have 4 planets to search, we should split into teams to more effectively hunt for the keys and clues."

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: So, Heroes of Nature and Lightning have made their decision too. What of you Dark and Chaos?

[AcidK]

*Cid looks up and narrows his eyes, trying to make a final desicion.*

Tthe chhaos demon will hunnt the willdernesss of the plannet I reside, Marss. Iff there iss a causse, it shall be welll hidden. The wildernesss holds the dark shriness of both chaaos and darknesss. There I shhall find my answerss.

[flapjack]

"In that case, I'll be the 1 to go out to the Moon then, to find the key there and possibly more clues to the apocalypse."

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: That seems sensible. Hero of Dark?

ooc: if IS doesn't reply by tomorrow, I'llstat things propally anyway, and he can catch up if he wishes.

[Planetkiller II]

Chronos: Then the Twelve are set. Let the Great C-Lock commence its workings!

Another crackle of blueish light signals the time guardian's departure, as the the many hands of the clock face begin to spin wildly, faster and faster in a dance of electric blue sparks. You begin to feel a tingling as the tiny lightning bolts play up your bodies, encasing you in a dazzling light show. It doesn't hurt, but just feels wierd, like being pulled a thousand different ways at once. Each of the hands begins to whir to a halt, and you suddenly notice that each is made of a different substance. One is fully liquid, one is a flame, one wrapped in vines. They stop, pointing at each respective Hero and the electricity intensifies to a creshendo of noise and light. The largest hand moves to the one numeral in a grating clank. The Hero upon the number disappears in a flash, and the hand proceeds to the next slot, and so on, right around the face until every Hero is gone. It returns to twelve and as the blue sparks die away, it begins counting the hours till it will be used again...


Fire
It is raining. Great splashes fall on the coffin of an old mage, adorned with the runes of his craft, glowing gently in the middle of the storm. The preacher is saying something, but Jasmine Hewitt doesn't hear it. Her whole being is numb and sound seems to only be coming in muffled echoes. The rain is coming down harder now, almost a sheet. The dragon part of Jasmine is almost ready to panic. Dragons do not like rain. This is only exaserbated by the funny looks by some of Paul Hewitt's more ignorant relatives. Some may believe the rumors surrounding the old wizard's death, others may simply be afraid of the part-human by their sides on this day of grieving. Their glances make her angry, but it's under control for now. The minister finishes whatever it was he was saying, and the coffin is lowered into the grave. One of the congregation thinks to cast a water repelling shield over the rest; obviously magic runs in the family. This eases the desire to bolt in Jasmine's dragon-scaled veins. She remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. Still, even after what she'd just heard (or was it will hear? It was hard to tell with this timetravel concept), she couldn't bring herself to leave the second she returned. These things took time. Most of the people began to wander off, speaking sadly among themselves, but Jasmine did not. The priest walked past her, holding her shoulder in a moment of comfort, then was gone. She was left, standing in the rain, looking at an old man's grave, wondering where to go from here...


Air
It is raining. Nibimacarion was happy. This stormy mountain top had been perfect for training his abilities. Lightning crackled, forked and vicious. The wind was wailing like a banshee, the air magic bristling in the air. A slyph was always at home in the air, though this weather would have been objectionable to many. Nibmacarion was different though, a powerful mage, he had always been at home in storms, however dangerous it might be. He opened his eyes to watch. His reflective black eyes that some alikened to windows into other worlds. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. On top of a mountain was not a good place to be for someone that only had precious few hours left. He floated down to the rocky ground below, and retrieved his magical scroll of protection. The runic writing upon its surface was fading fast, the magic was slowly draining away. The item would soon run out of the enrgy it had been imbued with, and here would not be a good place to be when it did. Nibmacarion concentrated momentarily, and the darkness began to lift, storm clouds brightening. There were no more flashes of lightning, no more thunderclaps. The rain did not stop though, it still pattered off the rocks, echoing gentlely across the empty plains. Nibmacarion was gone, but the clouds knew his path, folloing him across the dusty martian land...


Nature
It is raining. Not a fierce rain, nor a stormy one. Merely natural, and warm. It isn't real of course, real rain isn't this perfect. The perfectly formed and heated droplets fall onto Zappa's closed eyes as he meditates, in a soothing manner. The grass underneath him isn't real grass either, but it was alive, and that was all that mattered. The glass-like dome above his head shimmered with an unseen magic. It kept the air in. It kept the place alive. That and the magical artifact at the centre of the shrine. The weire-light they called it. A sense of serenity permiated the entire hotspot, inside a crater on the lunar surface. Rofellos, faerie elf mage, opened his eyes, and uncrossed his legs. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. The spirits would guide his actions, he was sure, but Gaia only knew what was to come. The rain continued to fall, pattering neutrally off the roof of the nearby stone shrine. Zappa stood, pulling himself up with his oak staff. Perhaps this shrine could be of some help. If not, there were always others, many more hotspots dotted across the Moon's barren crust. Then there were the faeries themselves, always alert and aware of even minor magical fluctuations. He would try them too in due course. But first, it was time to leave the biodome and its warm, safe rain...


Technology
It is raining. The New York rooftops are a dangerous place at night, particularly in this weather. Tex leapt gracefully from one onto the top of an electronics store. Perhaps it was a little sad to have to rob a place like this for parts, but still it was good practice, and he needed the equipment. He made for the ventilation shaft, and ripped off the cover. He dropped down it, using his feet to slow the descent at the last minute. The grill at the bottom covered the scene in the empty shop below, where motion sensors tirelessly patrolled every ince of the building. They couldn't track what they couldn't see though. Engaging his personal cloak, Tex lifted the cover off carefully and dropped soundlessly to the floor, skin shimmering slightly in the still atmosphere. A short walk brought him to his goal, several rare parts in a security locked glass case. He pulled out Pinky, and applied a little force to the lock. A moment's shuddering and grinding and the lock clicked open. Tex grinned and grabbed the components. That was when all hell let loose, alarms wailing and screeching in his ears. Sloppy, he reprimanded himself. The SEP would be on their way now. It didn't matter though. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. He ran then, towards the front of the store and burst at full speed through the glass shop window. Passers by turned to look, bewildered by the apparant lack of a cause for the explosion of glass shards. Tex ran. Ran in the opposite direction to the sirens that were now begining to make themselves heard over the noises of the city, into the welcoming blanket of the night...


Lightning
It is raining. The streets of New York are as busy as ever. Ground cars and air cars alike rush around, streaking through the darkness like will-o-the-wisps. Bakan pulled his dark hood up over his grey tinged skin, both as a barrier against the rain and those curious stares of passers by. People tended not to go within a few feet of him once they saw his skin. And the eyes. It was the eyes that got them, dark, empty and seemingly bottomless. Slyph he was not, but neither was he human. Who knew how it happened it the first place, but here he was, back in a body for the first time in a long while. It was a good feeling, even on such a wretched day. A siren sounded somewhere in the distance, probably the SEP chasing another of the criminals that seemed to simply grow from this mess of a city. Modernisation had only made things worse. Above street height, people said the air was so poisoned that only people with breath masks could survive there. Who knew really though? It wasn't like anyone tried to change anything. Sure, they complained about the city, but no one really cared. No one would give up their lives for even a moment to care. Bakan turned, about to make for a place to sleep the night away, but was confronted by a pair of humans. Mean, tough looking humans with ear rings and baseball bats. So cliche. One made a comment about Bakan's appearance. Something about 'freak'. Bakan saw where it was going and sighed. He didn't bother to listen to the rest. yellow-gold lightning flew from his fingertips, and blasted the group into a wall. They scattered, as soon as they could walk, too frightened to try their luck a second time. Bakan strode off, not looking back. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. What would come next could be anything, but he sure as hell wasn't going to see the apocolypse come. Bakan would do as he said, and the quest was on...


Order
It is raining. Unusual for the area, being as Mars was famed for its dusty, desert-like expanses. Terraforming would do that to a world. Still unforgiving and wild, the sandy planet's climate was gradually becoming more hospitable. The rainfall and sandstorm together made for a disasterous atmosphere for flight. Realising this, the Angelic Crusader of Smiting known as Fluffie spread his wings, and alighted gentled upon the ground, creating a small tornado beneath the feathered appendages. He folded them up, not wishing them to get in the way of his smiting. The weapon in hand matched the expression on his face; dangerous looking. He checked the uzi clip again, but of course it was full. It was always full. The combined force of the water filled air and dust was becoming distracting, and the angel summoned his shield over his face in order to keep his concentration. It was just as well that he had, as a bullet cracked through the storm and impacted on it only a moment later with a burst of multicoloured light. Fluffie dropped to the ground, a nearby sand dune providing adequate cover. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. There wasn't time for this. Perhaps this altercation could be ended quickly. He moved round, keeping low, trying to sneak up on his target, a dwarf miner who had obviously become more than a little involved with the unlawful side of society. After all, who would expect an angelic to sneak around instead of flying? It worked. Fluffie made it to within a few metres before being noticed, and by then it was too late. A short and sharp exchange of fire left the squat individual riddled with smiting holes. Fluffie unfurled his wings, and took to the air. He had a new job to do...


Light
It is raining. A flash of lightning somewhere in the distance brightens the dark skies of the Kyoto underworld momentarily. The buildings look almost like teeth, biting the sky and belching a foul breath of smog into the open night. The samurai known as No Dachi looked about, gripping his Ariake Katana just a little tighter as the droplets of water cascaded down, soaking him to the bone. The alleyway was small and winding, spliting and spreading throughout the entire district. If the young warrior lost his prey now, it could well be impossible to catch him again. The Demonic had taken a while to track, but it was just a small fish really, a meta-familiar type. Movement, barely audible over the sound of further thunder from a few miles away caused Dachi to turn, and for a spilt second see the rapidly retreating form of a great black dog, eyes a glowing blood red. The beast sprinted away, attempting to run back the way it had been tracked. Dachi followed, now running himself, sodden clothes clinging and boots splashing in the increasingly large puddles. The chase took them twisting through the narrow confines of the tiny street, the dog moving with an unnatural speed, but the swordsman somehow keeping pace, dodging overhanging pipework and skipping over the odd tipped over bin that marked the creature's frantic flight. The beast was untiring, but so was the man. Slowly the gap closed, hound being hounded into a corner by the heavy footfalls of its pursuer. Dachi slowed to a walk as he reached the last alley, knowing he would find only a dead end, and his quarry. His blade seemed to sing in the water laden air as he swept in to meet it. He knew it would fight to the finish. He knew that it knew that if it could not escape, it could not report to its master. That master would be unable to report to its master, and so on all the way back to the demon king, Ragnarok himself. The huge dog snarled, teeth bared. Both combatants simply stared at each other for a moment, as if sizing the other up. A drain pipe, swollen from a night of liquid punishment from the heavens burst, sending a powerful spray of water across them, and that was the cue. They ran, weapons ready; teeth against the sword. Seconds later, one dropped to the floor, blood oozing out and being washed away by the rain. Black blood. Demon blood. Dachi stood over the injured beast, watching the form it had taken die. There would be others, many other still to come. But not now. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. It was time to move on...


Dark
It is raining. That's all you get till you post again to affirm that you aren't dead.


Chaos
It is raining. The martian plains remained very still, despite it. A great battle was once fought there, the reasons behind it long since forgotten. Skeletons littlered the place, covered by sands of both time and reality. Two figures strode the plain, a dark, leathery black against the reddish colour of the ground beneath them. Cid, ever the mysterious demonic, wandered these places often. There was always more death and decay to feed off. Often he would raise a few creatures from their graves; dead but not quite, and utilise them as the occasion demanded. Little Measter, his familiar, bounded about, slavering and sniffing about with an unnatural sense of smell, seeking for chaoic spots. Cid did not care for necromancy today though, nor the antics of Little Measter's near feeding frenzy. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. It certainly bore thinking about. Cid was not sure whether what he had been told was the truth, but it certainly seemed like something he should give attention to. There would likely be oppurtunity for spreading the chaos throughout the quest. That settled the matter for him. The demonic took a quick look about the immediate area of the deserted ancient battlefield, but found nothing more of interest, nothing to keep him from this new problem. He shook the deposited rain off his leathery, battered wings, summoned Little Measter to his side, and left, still deep in thought...

[Bakan]

[ooc] Underworld of NYC, or whereever you need me [/ooc]

[Zappa Tenderlea]

since I don't know where most natural shrines can be found, I suppose I'll trust in your ethereal DMing knowledge to guide me trough this troublesome choise

[Fluffie]

put me somewhere where i am being orderly, thus smiting the unorderly preferably. somewhere in a desert, where i can make gusts of dust with me wings. stuff like that. a deserty place, so.. mars? or somewhere earth.. i'll have to go to jupiter and meet dachi anyhow

[AcidK]

-ooc-
I'll reply when the post is done fully
-ooc-

[Ur_Quan]

Originally Posted by Planetkiller II

Technology
It is raining. You're in NYC, stealing something fairly unimportant. I'll do this propally tomorrow.

Thanks. We've only got 12 hours remember?
I'm not in a hurry though.

[Fluffie]

This is a very rainy thread!

Post... soon. Probably sooner than Inspectre's

[Planetkiller II]

UQ - Quiet you.

Fluffie - You too. Except for your post, you can speak then

On a side note, the posts are all done besides that silly Inspectre, who hasn't posted.

[AcidK]

*Cid looked along the familiar plains, the rain giving him no problem on his wanders, smiling as he passed the graves of those he could raise and use for his own will... but today was not a day of necromancy nor was the will to feed off the death giving him any strain. His task was simple, but he was walking in the blind, simply wandering the plains he had loved for so long. It is here that a temple was placed for Chaos, although no-one really knew about it. Hidden within the forgotten battle plains, the temple was safe from those that would give a demonic necromancer many problems.*

Llittle Measster... Sstand guuard the entrancce.

*The familiar shot forward without waiting on his master's command, promptly standing to attention at the small crevass witin what would seem as a normal hill of rock. Cid entered, hoping in here he would find some answers or, at the very least, some questions he could use later.*

[flapjack]

*Nibimacarion headed for the nearby city, it would probably be raining there as well, the city normally mimicked the outside environments, but at least the air would be breathable without the scroll. Speeding up, Nibimacarion left the ground, no longer walking but floating instead and being fast at it, he was doing around 40 mph and he'd reach the city in about 2 minutes.*

*Once inside Nibimacarion started by heading for his room, originally it was supposed to be temporary but he'd lived in it for quite some time now, Nibimacarion quickly dropped some of the training equipment he'd used and grabbed the rest of his gear, then headed back out and went off to the nearby regiligious center and its library, for in that library he might find some clues, both to what could be the cause of the apocolypse and more importantly for the moment, where he could find the key for this planet*

[No Dachi]

No Dachi offered a quick prayer of thanks to whatever holy kami might have been watching over him in the encounter, before pondering his next move. It was quite obvious which planet he needed to go to; Jupiter, the Seat of Order. It was obvious how he was going to get there; the Plane Rider, the air spirit that could cut pathways through the fabric of the universe. However, there were dozens of orbitals around Jupiter. Which one was he going to scout out first? And how was he going to meet with the Angel of Smiting when they had, rather foolishly, not decided a meeting place at the C-lock?

And so with these questions in mind, No Dachi decided upon SEP Plaza as his destination. This would be the natural starting point for seeking the Key of Order around Jupiter, as it offered the perfect oppurtunity to probe for clues among his contacts in the SEP, and it would, perhaps, be the place that the Angel of Smiting decided to start at as well. With his sword sheathed, No Dachi put his index finger and middle finger together, and pressed the tips of both to his forehead; an old habit to aid his concentration. With this done, the samurai sent out a call to the Plane Rider, before dropping into a casual stance and looking around, waiting. There was so much evil on the planet that the samurai sometimes found himself wondering how he could ever hope to achieve anything by eliminating the various demons that plagued the world...

As though sensing his defeatist attitude, the air spirit chose this time to appear, silently as always, from the shadows to No Dachi's right. Pulling himself up onto its back, No Dachi once again concentrated, putting a mental image of the SEP Plaza firmly in the forefront of his mind. A few moments later and the Plane Rider was trotting forwards, before moving into a canter and then finally galloping flat out. Still its hooves made no noise on the artificial surface below them. Then, suddenly, the Kyoto underworld was gone. In its place was nothing, darkness and piercing cold. Knowing that the discomfort was only temporary, No Dachi ignored it, though he knew that if he had to remain in between for longer than around two dozen moments he would, probably die. Then, just as suddenly as Kyoto had dissapeared, SEP Plaza reappeared. No Dachi looked around briefly, seeing a number of dumbstruck bystanders staring at him, before dismounting and walking toward the main entrance. The Plane Rider once again dissapeared silently and suddenly...

[Zappa Tenderlea]

Nature
It is raining. Not a fierce rain, nor a stormy one. Merely natural, and warm. It isn't real of course, real rain isn't this perfect. The perfectly formed and heated droplets fall onto Zappa's closed eyes as he meditates, in a soothing manner. The grass underneath him isn't real grass either, but it was alive, and that was all that mattered. The glass-like dome above his head shimmered with an unseen magic. It kept the air in. It kept the place alive. That and the magical artifact at the centre of the shrine. The weire-light they called it. A sense of serenity permiated the entire hotspot, inside a crater on the lunar surface. Rofellos, faerie elf mage, opened his eyes, and uncrossed his legs. He remembered everything. The events before the 12th Hour, and those curious few after. The spirits would guide his actions, he was sure, but Gaia only knew what was to come. The rain continued to fall, pattering neutrally off the roof of the nearby stone shrine. Zappa stood, pulling himself up with his oak staff. Perhaps this shrine could be of some help. If not, there were always others, many more hotspots dotted across the Moon's barren crust. Then there were the faeries themselves, always alert and aware of even minor magical fluctuations. He would try them too in due course. But first, it was time to leave the biodome and its warm, safe rain...

before leaving, a short prayer was recited:

Gaia, allmother, guide me trough these painfull times, and show me the correct path to walk. In you I trust, to you I pledge my soul, loyalty, and live. Give me the knowledge that I need, amen...

getting up, Rofellos stood up, and walked towards the exit of the dome, beginning his quest for salvation. once outside the dome, he, as usual, needed some minutes to get used to the surroundings, and to orient himself. He made it quicker than normaly tough, for he knew time was not on his side. summoning his steed, he climbed onto the back of his lynx, and rode off to the nearest natural shrine

[Fluffie]

Once in the air, Fluffie starts flying... He has no destination on this planet, that was for sure. He had agreed with Dachi on meeting on the SEP Plaza, although the whole event that took place at the supposedly great C-Lock were getting a bit blurry. Which wasn't very suprisingly, the way they had been "transported" back, both back in time and back to another planet. Still gliding through the Martian air, Fluffie changes the clip of his Uzi and then tucks the old clip and the uzi away, before focussing on the Plaza.

They had a job to do in little time.

Not much later, Fluffie disappeared from Mars and appeared flying in circle above the SEP Plaza on Jupiter, looking down for the Samurai known to him as No Dachi. They were to jointly find the key... And clues, or at least, so they had agreed.

[Ur_Quan]

OOC- Sorry for not having replied yet, but I'm currently rather busy with some long overdue work. I'll try to reply somewhere tonight if possible. That goes for your ICE9 thread as well. -OOC

[Bakan]

*Watching the two punks flee, Bakan sighs to himself. It was so common nowadays to be harrassed because of his appearance. Yet, despite the harrassment, Bakan honestly didn't care anymore. He had been far to tempted to strike those punks with enough energy that it would fry them to crisp. Maybe next time he would....... but it would not help. Sighing, Bakan trudges his way, thinking about what was said.*

*He himself had no knowledge of what was said, no clue about "keys" or what was the causing agent. Watching some vandals nearby smash a public access terminal apart, Bakan smiles slightly to himself. As the vandles smashed a bottles of lomin-ale to the ground and went off looking for people to harras, Bakan moved towards the damaged terminal. It's screen smashed, it's controls destroyed, to anyone else it would look to be a lost cause. To Bakan, it was a opprotunity.*

*Entending his left hand, Bakan closes his eyes and focuses. His hand starts to crackle with lightning, rolling around. The crackles become more and more powerful, and slowely Bakan's hand vanishes, turning into the lightning. Reaching out, Bakan touches the damaged computer with his changed hand, and thrusts his essance into it.*

*The Public Access Information Terminals were constructed to help guide people, to give them a connection to the "SolarNet". The SolarNet allow people to look up information, communication, and conduct busniess transactions. Even though the Underworld of New York City has fallen into chaos and darkness, these terminal still had connections to the SolarNet.*

*With his essance now in the terminal, Bakan bypasses the damaged sections, and manages to establish a connection with the SolarNet. Knowing that this was a illegal activity, and that there were safeguards against this sort of access, Bakan quickly searched the SolarNet for information about the Key's, and any posible clues as to what could cause the end of all existance in 12 hours. His essance pouring over the data, Bakan tried to sort out the useful from the junk, until he was thrown from the terminal by a feedback pulse. Flying through the air, Bakan lands hard, his left hand already returning to a physical flesh and blood state. Pushing himself up, Bakan mentally looks over the data he collected, seeing if he was able to discover anything.*

[Planetkiller II]

Chaos
The torches of the temple burned a brilliant black, somehow emiting a kind of unlight. Cid could see just fine though, even through the dancing chaotic shapes that attempted to burn themselves into his rotting retinas. The place itself was rotting too, wierd leather skins hung from twisting, organic columns and fluttered in a non existant wind. Several books hung from rusted chains attached to the ceiling. All were locked with heavy collars and non looked inviting. In the centre a strange everchanging mist hung in the air. Occassionally purple lightning lanced through it, causing the miniture storm to shift and change. Cid walked towards this and summoned up his energies. Using his necromantic abilities, the mist formed into jagged words and shapes answering unspoken questions, often vaguely, but accurate all the same. The shrine seemed to make low screaming sounds whenever the fog moved, and the entire room sidled about while the chaos mage wasn't looking. It told him to look to the books. One of these books snapped open and strained at the chain binding it to the roof. It could not escape though, and the chain links slowly reeled out, offering the book it held to Cid. He did not touch it, merely read the words that swam across its surface.

The end is coming...

This seemed relevant. More statements wormed their way out of the rustling page.

Ragnarok. The end of days. Twelve come, for good or ill. None know the truth, but they will find it. They will meet Ragnarok on Devil's Crown. The quest begins in the Martian Mines...


Air
It was indeed raining inside the city, but a far more pleasant and less fierce kind. People wandered through the streets, blissfully unaware of what could soon be upon them. If the Twelve could not stop it of course. Nibmacarion ghosted down one of the roads, feeling slightly enclosed now he was back under cover. Slyphs usually liked to be free and in the open. Most were severely claustrophobic, but the transparant high roofs were enough for most to live happy lives inside environmental bubbles. Most of the people that passed Nibmacarion were Dwarves. That was to be expected; it was their world after all. Still, something about their squat, muscle bound bodies and long beards disturbed the Slyph mage. He reached the city library, fortunately Ares had one of the most extensive repositories on Mars. He floated up the inricately carved steps and into the main building. Inside it was decorated with the usual dwarven flair, amazing carvings of scenes in the rock, and runic symbols cut into the pillars. Some probably had magical signifigance, but Nib (sorry bout the shortening, it's just quicker to type) did not read squatish. As a rule, dwarves did not like books. They prefered to slice it into stone, for 'safe keeping' as they often said. Most of the books on Mars probably existed in Ares Library and even there, it was not an impressive collection. Tablets they had an unending supply of. Data chips too. Nib moved to a terminal, which being a granite grey, was made to look like a part of the building itself. He typed in a few references, and waited for his request to be processed. A service drone hovered over from the archives, carrying a runic tablet written in some kind of ancient squatish. It laid the stone gently on a lectern, provided Nib with a printout of it translated into basic Sol and a note to tell a librarian when he was done. The printout read:

The Prophecy of Thor

When the twelve worlds align, the end of the world shall be nigh. Those that can stop it shall come to Mars, seeking the key to the striking power of the heavens. Thor, who guards this weapon in the depths of the world shall wish to stop them from stealing the Thunderclap, but even his might cannot stand against destiny.


Light
SEP Plaza was a marvel of blended engineering. Both magical and technolgical means working together in a perfect harmony. As No Dachi looked about and the bystanders began to again go about their business, he noticed how varied the crowd actually was. Slyphs, Dwarves, Humans, Faeries and more bustled about, in pretty equal distribution under the bubble of shield energy encircling the city sized space station. Above them, Jupiter's Red Spot loomed, closer than usual, but not dangerously so. The localised storm throbbed and spun in a maestrom of ionised gases. No Dachi had plain-ridden right up to the front gate of SEP headquarters, where several multi-species guards stood at attention, C-6Ms cradled expertly in their hands. Behind them, the tower that dwarfed all the other buildings in the 'city' rose up like a needle of order in opposition to the chaotic scarlet storm that it pointed to. Lilac magical swirls edied about, cris-crossing along the spire's surface, powering its defences and providing onlookers with a constant light show. It was an imposing sight, one that would strike fear into those that opposed order at all turns. No Dachi doubted that any crime occured on this station, and if it did, it would certainly be put down quickly by the well trained SEP agents. He had to decide what to do quickly, besides the ever present ticking clock, the agents at the gate were bout to start asking him questions id he didn't move on soon. After all, he had arrived on a spectral horse...


Nature
(I assume you either got an environmental protection scroll or EVA suit first, otherwise you'd die )

Rofellos rode swiftly and surely across the lunar surface, the lynx padding along as if it had known the low gravity all its life. It bounded along, kicking up moondust in its wake that took an age to settle. It took him only an hour to reach his desination, the shrine of Aerie, a once powerful nature mage back in the mists of time. The place was beneath the ground, protected by a magical bubble that people said had been made by Aerie himself. The place was more like a living thing than a cavern, vines creapt visably up the walls and masses of plant life grew up in clumps around a massive central tree, somewhere in the region of the size of a redwood. Rofellos walked slowly up to the tree, insects buzzing and humming gently about him as he did so. He laid a hand on the bark and felt the power flow through him. He spoke to the tree in the ancient and secret language that only flora and its friends knew. The tree had known many things, and being old it was rather vague in its information.

The key that you seek was known by my master Aerie. He once sought it, but failed. The Wand of the King, held by the lord of faeries, the King known as Asgadra. Aerie thought he could be found beneath the ground at the moon's northern pole. The city of Tyfaris has been built there in recent times. It has no nature. No soul. I wish you luck mage.


Order
(When you say above, I assume you mean within the habitat dome, otherwise you'd die )

The ring that provided the angelic being with most of his travel capacity had born Fluffie true to SEP Plaza, centre of order that it was. It was a good thing he could fly, as otherwise he would have plumeted to an untimely demise. The city-like station was fashioned in a pattern, intricately constructed so that the buildings formed the dagger and shield symbol of the SEP. It could only be seen from the air, and it almost seemed like a pointless way to design the miniture metropolis, but perhaps it looked impressive from space as well. Fluffie descended towards the streets below and as he did so, people looked up in suprise. Clearly it wasn't normal for people to appear from thin air, and particularly twice within a few minutes. However, they recovered remarkably quickly, going about their business. Fluffie dropped to the roof of one of the buildings and watched SEP Spire pulse and glow with magical power for a moment while deciding what to do next. He knew the samurai No Dachi would be here shortly too, if he wasn't already there. Where to find him would be the next thing to discover. The place was large, but there wasn't a corresponding large ammount of locations that were likely options. Fluffie began looking about him at the surrounding urban sprawl, coming to a descision...


Lightning
The sparks quickly dissapated from Bakan's now physical form. The PAI hadn't put up much resistance. There was a tiredness about its circuits that spoke of years of use and abuse by the public. Bakan doubted anyone would bother to repair the minor AI within it, they'd merely scrap it instead. Still, Bakan had managed to retrieve some useful information from it. It was a curious sensation to review data in his own head, but Bakan took a scan over it to see what the search had turned up. Several news items spoke of shady technocratic cults surfacing in the underworld of various Earth cities. Aparantly they looked to a god of metal as their prophet and guider. No one in the public quite knew what their religion wanted, but the SEP were asking for information leading to finding a large number of the cult's members so they could be questioned. A few other items caught Bakan's eye, notably the launching of the supposedly hyperspace capable rocket later that day. The media had been running the story for a while now, apparantly it would lead to the 'expansion of all species' or something similar. It hadn't been tested yet, and some skeptics didn't even believe it would work. Still, in light of recent events, maybe it would be worth a look, Bakn thought. The last item was even vaguer, relating to the increased sightings of demonics on Earth, particularly in the New York area. This could be just hysteria at Ragnarok's increasing power, or perhaps something more sinister. Bakan closed the files down and mused for a moment, thinking about what to do.


pokeness to UQ, Hewitt and IS

[flapjack]

so, Mars is home to either the key of lightning or that of air, either way i must find it, in the the depths of the world either refer to the ravines or the mines, the latter being the most probable. But where in the mines, in some ancient and extremely deep mine perhaps, or 1 that hasn't even been dug. Either i must find out

*Deciding he was finished with this, for it could give him no further information, Nibimacarion quickly wrote the small text down on a small piece of paper before heading back to the terminal and looking for depths of mines and unusual things happen in them, specifically anything that might involve lightning or wind*

[AcidK]

*Cid, after reading the scripture, looked up a little and concentrated in deep thought, the room around him reacting to his chaotic mind.*

Martian Mines, that would be the start...
But what of Devil's Crown?
We shall find out soon enough, we start in the Mines.

*Cid left the temple, the harsh rain of Mars giving him no comfort, still in deep thought.*

Little Measster, come!

*Cid walked a little more urgently towards the nearest known opening to the Mines.*

[Ur_Quan]

Tex kept running through the night until he finally found a small deserted alley. He ran into it and disengaged his cloak. With his back against the wall and holding his hands on his knees, he paused for a moment and let his mind go over all the events of the past and the future and from there he went back to the present. The world was going to end in twelve hours, but he wasn't ready for that yet. There was still something personal that he felt he had to deal with. "She's probably sleeping and besides, what good would it do her to know that end was coming?", he thought.

"If only I had had more time!", he mumbled. "Looks like my only option is to get that key." He thought about the things Chronos had told him. The key was supposed to be somewhere with a lot of technology and it was guarded by some entity called Technosis the Advanced. Tex wondered if he could google that, because he didn't have a clue of where to look.

Tex casually walked out of the alley and prepared to go home when a sudden streak of lightning in the sky briefly illuminated the large spire in the middle of The Centre of Technology. Its name was apropriately chosen as it was basically one big scientific laboratory. Stunned by his own stupidity, Tex stopped and looked at the massive complex in the distance. Getting into there would be a real challenge as it was one of the best guarded places on Earth.

Having no transportation, Tex picked a reliable looking car, had Pinky pick the lock, hotwired the car and drove off into the direction of The Centre of Technology.