[Episode 4] The Worth of a Soul

Archives of Occultus Magica's beginnings, ten years prior to the current story.
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Kokuten
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Re: [Episode Four] The Worth of a Soul

Post by Kokuten »

With everyone rested along the floor and walls, Modeka turned her attention to the adults standing in the room. Elizabeth went to sit down as well, adamant to be there when they found her boy, but Alistar stopped her. She turned her head back to him, her eyes weakening. He reached down and wrapped his arms around her, helping her stand into a comforting a embrace that warmed the chilly atmosphere of the room. The two agents on the aside nodded their head, and opened the door to allow the two parents to exit. The two Caxton's turned to leave the room, but before they walked out completely, the once boisterous and powerful Elizabeth turned to speak.

"Please... Please find my son."

After those words, she left with her husband, and the children were left with Miller and Modeka. The tiny goddess of plantae curled her head one way, and then the other. All the players were placed, and the mission was set. Modeka brought her tiny hands up to her mask and curled her fingers under the creases, peeling down her white mask and revealing a pair of lips that the rest of the group had never seen before. The lower part of her face seemed to be a little brighter in tone and color than the rest. This development wasn't to be enjoyed for long.
I remember the first time I stepped in, it was exhilarating.
Modeka opened her mouth. Air inhaled into her lungs.
A place so vibrant, yet so frightening at the same time.
In that sudden instant, everything went dark. No matter how they felt in that moment, slumber rose and snatched away consciouness.
Magic filled the very air, you could even breath it into your lungs.
Slumber was replaced by dreams, of a gate, swallowing them up.
The creatures, the plants, everything. It was like a mirror to our world, but different.
Light burst in their visions as their sensations warped and tumbled. They were falling, falling from a sky.
A world made on a need, and maintained on the whims of all-powerful beings.
The air rushing over their bodies felt different from how it should have. They didn't feel things on their skin, they felt it in their magic. The mana that permeated through them, that they felt shift to their whim was catching the air alongside the physical form.
You don't come to this place as you would come to your house or some distant land.
For that matter, their clothes were gone, replaced with something else.
Your soul takes form. Perhaps not in the way you want, but in the way it wants you to be.
A platform approached quickly, a bright white thing, that looked like stone. It was coming at them fast.
In simpler terms. You are the worth of your soul.
As the floor rose to meet them, everything became dark again.

----

The pattering sensations of rain awoke them. From the floor they had settled on, one Miller could recognize from his first time to the Elementalia, they could see a vast expanse beyond them, of land and mountains. They were hovering over an entire world, something like their own, but not quite. The rain that touched them rolled down their clothes, but they didn't feel the chill. Instead, there was a small suffusion on their mana, as if the rain was not truly landing on their skin, but the mana under it. The air was somber, as it had been in Percival's room, but now it was on a limestone platform in the sky, being rained upon by the heavens ever so gently.

Miyuki, once she would give the time to look down at herself, would see she was wearing a white robe sashed into the form of her normal magical girl form. The trim and intricate designs along the edges were a gold color, and shimmered gently in the light. Her earrings had been replaced with a pair that bore the symbol similar to what Zulan wore on her forehead.

Ruarc was draped in a white robe, runes speckling up the back. He wore something similar to his normal druid attire, but it resembled the same colors as Miyuki's uniform. Save that his was designed like a tunic, with green strings of a strangly durable vine securing all of his clothing.

Raiko would find herself rather comfortable in her own attired, a typical Miko's outfit, made for a priestess of her kind. Japanese characters seemed to be stamped in gold up the trim of her upper body wear, while her hakama was one of the few articles of clothing among them that wasn't white and gold.

Riley's cloak still covered her, but she found she was wearing a fresh shirt underneath. Though most importantly, she was also wearing a fresh-pressed, pleated skirt, with girly stockings stretching from her thighs to her cute little girly shoes.

Sakura would find her vision momentarily blocked by a thick hood which rolled over her vision. She wore a comforting shirt, and a pair of archer's vambraces. She was like a white ranger, but without a bow.

Miller stood out from the rest as being not only armed, but armored. He was dressed in full plate, which shined in a bone white color, and was accented and curled with golden filigree that glittered against the water around them. A helmet had seemed to roll away from him, resting and being pittered on by the rain. He could recognize the design. What he was wearing was Michael's armor, except the metal was pressed and clean, and of different color. To his side was the shard-angel's sword, no sign of the shard-angel himself.

Coco had been the most interesting case of all. Before them was not the little girl they had come to know as the adorable undead, but a living one, who seemed about to be the age of her brother, Duncan. Her clothes were much akin to those she had worn when she was dueling Adrienne, but little red ribbons curled off on pockets and sleeves, giving it a bouncy look.

The had all come here, changed in some way, but now they were here alone, left to adjust to their new form and clothing.
Last edited by Kokuten on Sun Dec 16, 2012 5:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Straken
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Re: [Episode Four] The Worth of a Soul

Post by Straken »

The next set of events were very interesting to Ruarc, and the druid scholar did his best to mentally note the experience as it wasn’t one many of his order would be familiar with. The new world in which they were transported to, at least in spirit, could best be described as magical; as the mystic Druid was unable to word it any better at the moment. Diverting his attention on to the rain, Ruarc raised his arms as he observed the new phenomenon. His eye, which was still active in order to detect mana, was clouding his vision more than usual due to the high levels of ambient magical energy in this realm, so for the time being he switch it back to passive detection for the sake of avoid a headache.

“So this is spirit magic? How very…ephemeral,” he contemplated to himself as he watched the droplets roll across his clothing. This led him to his next observation, namely his attire. His brown and red cloak had been replaced with a rather comfy, if not a little wispy, vibrant white robe embroidered with gold and many runes; some of which Ruarc could only vaguely recognize. As he examined his new fashion he felt that the robes were reminiscent to the robes presented to Sages within the Order; Druids of such advanced age and wisdom that they were said to be able to commune directly with the spirits of the Land, so in a sense this was somewhat humbling and raised his morale.

Amidst spinning around like an excited dog, Ruarc could also see his allies had new outfits as well. Some were striking while others were modest yet endearing, but the one he focused on was Raiko’s. While modest in appearance, Raiko still looked very refined and rather fetching. Turning his head to hide some blushing the Irishman cleared his throat as he went to speak. “That outfit looks good on you, Raiko.”
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Gwathdraug
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Re: [Episode Four] The Worth of a Soul

Post by Gwathdraug »

(Kyle's Post)
Sakura opened her eyes, glancing about her surroundings with the eyes of a curious child. She could feel this rain, against her skin and her face, but it didn't look like any kind of rain she'd ever seen, it was mysterious to her, odd, yet somehow familiar in a way. Instinctively, and without realizing it at first, she pulled the hood off her head and stared up at the sky.

"What is it?" she asked, her mind not yet contemplating that it was actually mana. As she raised her hand to it, to catch one of the droplets, it was then that she realized that she was no longer wearing the clothing that she'd been wearing when she had laid down. The clothing she now wore caught her by surprise as she looked down, noting it's appearance with a blink of the eyes before nodding slowly to herself; she didn't mind this at all - though she was wondering 'where' she had gotten the clothing...
CadetNewb
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Re: [Episode Four] The Worth of a Soul

Post by CadetNewb »

The rush of movement and chorus of words - this, and many other exotic sights and sounds rang in her mind like a dream.

And, like with all dreams, she had to wake up.

Opening her eyes, Coco found herself looking straight up into the darkened, overcast sky. Rain poured and pattered on the girl as she lay there on the hard ground, feeling oddly bloated and dizzy. The sounds of the others stirring started to rouse Coco too however, and she slowly sat up, rubbing a hand against her face to ward off the vertigo she felt. "Ughh...no more sugar bars," the girl spoke to herself, listening to her own voice It was rather odd - not only did she feel big and bloated, her voice sounded different too! She waved that discrepancy aside and thought back to the tasty sweets. Though her own body didn't even work that way anymore with sugar and food, she still did like to think it did, if only to comfort herself. 'It must have been the magic - it should wear off soon, since I'm practically my brother and sister's finest work yet anyways. I'll fix myself up, just like I always do,' Coco thought to herself.

As she groggily got to her unsteady feet and balanced herself on shaking knees, something felt wrong. Horribly, horribly wrong - everyone else had gotten a little bit shorter! "I don't know about you, but if this is Spirit Magic, I think I should stay away from it like dad should with spicy food," Coco commented on Ruarc's contemplations. Glancing around, taking in the sights, something was very, very wrong. Her vision - it was clear. What was normally slightly clouded by the decay was completely, utterly crystal clear! Her eyes worked quickly, blinking rapidly in shock before the girl brought her hands up to rub at her eyes. No, it was still all crystal clear. Something was horribly, horribly wrong. Or...had it gone right? Taking in the scene around her, still unsteady as she stood with knees together, Coco realized that everyone didn't look right at all!

It was like they all went shopping, and didn't invite her!

Of course, she wasn't so dense - the girl looked down at herself expecting something new for herself too! It was magic after all! What she saw made her jaw drop; yes, the clothing wasn't the same school uniform she was wearing earlier. Rather, it was the red with white fluffy trim Christmas themed outfit she wore earlier. Except...with some modifications. Her hair was now just neck length, pleasantly framing her face. Meanwhile, the parka was still trimmed with white fur, but slimmed down so that it fit her form better - it was even more decorative than before with numerous ribbon-like lengths of cloth coming from the pockets! But that wasn't the end of it; the over-garment's front was open, and underneath, she wore a red form fitting turtleneck sweater. The previously knee high boots were now thigh-highs accompanied by a pleated red skirt - just a flash of thick, white thermal legging could be seen in the gap between tall footwear and short skirt!

This wasn't what bothered Coco though - the clothing was great! Rather, it was the presence of some changes she had never, ever anticipated before, things that The Littlest Litch thought she'd never, ever see. The faint beginnings of curves at her waist. A heightening to her form. And...Coco grabbed the neck of her sweater and the shirt underneath, stretching them out so she could look down the collar of both and stare at herself underneath all the clothing. She simply stood there, feet apart, shaky knees together, and stared.

When the 13 year old Coco looked back up at them all, her cheeks had gone a bright red.
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Kai
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Re: [Episode Four] The Worth of a Soul

Post by Kai »

When Miyuki opened her eyes, she stared in wonder at the new landscape- or rather, cloudscape- before her. It was somewhat awe-inspiring, and combined with the rain of mana cascading down upon them, seemed quite surreal. Briefly, the Japanese girl looked down to see her magical outfit, or at least, some form of it. Somewhat longer, and devoid of color, it was pure white save for the gold trim and designs. She couldn't see what was on her ears, but noticed that the small studs she wore for school had most certainly been replaced by something else, possibly more meaningful. "Wh- Where are we?" she asked, puzzled.

When Ruarc looked over at Raiko, the first thing he'd notice aside from her outfit, was that her usual, almost smug self-assurance seemed to be missing. There was something in her eyes, as if she was searching for something, a feeling that she was used to, or perhaps that she was lost. Maybe it was all the mana in the air, that she was perhaps not used to, or maybe it was something else. She did, however, move closer to the Druid and cling tightly to him. Despite the fact that she had remained poised, even as her eyes looked lost, when the girl clasped Ruarc's hand in hers, he could feel her trembling, slightly. "Well... This is... new..." she mumbled, looking up at Ruarc for comfort.
Luca
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Re: [Episode Four] The Worth of a Soul

Post by Luca »

The two were now one and the same. Justice with a vessel to carry its will - and best of all, they agreed with each other. They had a common mutual interest in serving and protecting the innocent - no matter how big or small the task was. Just here in the Elementalia Magicus, Mr. Miller and Michael were standing and taking in the atmosphere. It never rained all that often in the Elementalia Magicus, but he could feel each drop of it plink against his armour in an uncertain rhythm.

"Children, stay close." He cautioned before looking back at the group. Somehow, his voice seemed richer, deeper and stronger. There was command hiding beneath his helmet. "The bodies you've taken on here aren't physical - they're a representation of your mind and your soul." His glance eventually shifted to Coco, and he turned away, shrugging his shoulders. He knew he had to move. "Hurry. Adjust yourselves and get used to how you are. We can't let Alistar and Elizabeth down." He took the first steps forward, drawing the side-sword and holding it upright, close to his helmet.
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Gwathdraug
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Re: [Episode Four] The Worth of a Soul

Post by Gwathdraug »

As the rain came rolling over Riley's cloak the piece of cloth began to waver back and forth as if each rain drop was ammunition fired from some heavenly bombard. Blinking rapidly in confusion, after a second of taking in the scenery, the stage magician looked down – and let a displeased scowl slip unto her face at how girly the Elementalia's issue footwear was – to see that as each little bolt of water rolled down her mantle the cloak seemed to be thinning and twisting.

Sighing in annoyance Riley grumbled about “things you gotta do” and concentrated on dismissing her only remaining loyal piece of clothing. Closing her eyes and waiting for the final feeling of warm embrace that always signified the disappearance of her cloak Riley instead jumped back – slamming into the back of Miller's armoured form as she did so – and simultaneously bit her tongue as instead of the familiar friendly feeling a backwash of outrage and anguish stabbed into her mind.

Worse yet when she opened her eyes – despite them being a bit bleary from the multiple collisions – it was quite clear that her mantle was still present and suffering quietly in the rain.

Riley shook her from left to right as blood seemed to rush to her head and began trying to pound its way out through her ears. Stripping off her cloak as the world still seemed to swirl the stage magician folded the piece of grey cloth into a small square before stuffing it down her shirt where it would hopefully be safe from the rain.

Regaining control of herself Riley looked towards Miller with a lopsided expression that was glowing red in embarrassment plaster across her face – he had only just mentioned how they should get used to the local environment and she had already bumbling the whole 'adjustmet' thing.

But still, Riley shook her head again before the spoke. “I don't like this place.”

She really didn't.
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