Mythos: The Return of Magic - RP Thread

[TheCharredDragon]

Chapter IV:

Here Be the End

...

Salazar Daniel Drake
Sagramore Descendant
Drake Estate, Daniel's Room -> Super-Myth Club Treehouse -> Not too Far from Treehouse, Wanderer's Forest

Daniel stared at the ceiling, which was somewhat blurry as he was lying on his bed without his glasses on right now but it didn't matter much at the moment. The storm was still coming and there was no announcement of school resuming so he had decided to stay in bed a little longer than usual, mostly because he didn't sleep well last night. He had a nightmare, this time not only involving his mom falling to her death before his eyes, but also his friends dying...because he went berserk and killed them with his own hands. It shook him to the core. He was a little scared to go out and meet them today.

That and Svarog had promised them all armors and weapons. If he was afraid of what he could do with his bare hands, what more damage could he do with a bow and arrow? A lance? A sword? If knight blood flowed throuh his veins then there was a chance that, with magic being what it was and all the craziness that was happening, he might have the skill of swordsplay from his ancestor. It was hard to block out the imagined images of what he could possibly do with that power. He didn't want to cause more damage, most of all to those he cared about.

But as he stood up to go to the bathroom, his sister called out to him and said, "Dan, dad said he's going to be back late tonight. I'm going to be at Robin's house until dinner, okay? Our music club's going to practice."

Then he heard the main door close and he knew that if he didn't do something, his family would be hurt. He couldn't let that hapoen, not after the death of his mother. So with some hesitation, he got himself ready, getting dressed, having some breakfast and telling his sister his plans for the day through a text before heading out to the clubhouse in the forest. It took him about a good thiry minutes to get there. When he did arrive though...

Daniel blinked. He then gave a deadpan expression. "Really?"

Anima had received her armor. She didn't have much of such on her though, only chest armor, shin guards, vambraces and a helmet. Most of the pieces were colored dark grey while the vambraces had some yellow stripes on it. She also had a metal staff with her, also colored yellow, likely more for self defense than anything. That wasn't what made him react that way though, or the fact that she had been incredibly early, it was her helmet. Anima's helmet looked pretty much like how Anubis was usually depicted, a dark grey jackal's head with yellow eyes, the "mouth" letting her face be visible.

"What?" she said, turning to him as she paused in testing out her staff with surprisingly careful swings.

Daniel sighed. He wasn't surprised. "Nothing."

It was at this point Daniel looked at the rest of the room. Many of the others were here, including some of the dieties they had managed to recruit yesterday which consisted of Svarog, Brynhildr, Ammit and Pan, though he could see Hodur was hiding in a cloak, remembering that most of the others didn't like him too much. It wasn't a surprise mostly because he had taken his time to get here, both out of tiredness and wanting to do so. They all were testing the armor and weapons Svarog made for them, all of them customized to an extent, like Anima.

Most of them just had different colored knight-like armor, like Marti's which was mostly orange and a little white, but some of them were more customized, particularly the helmets, like Anima's, looking very different from the usual knight or Ancient Rome helmet the unmodified ones were. The only ones who didn't wear armor were of course the dieties present and Caliburn, despite the fact that she was probanly younger than all of them, likely even Kit. Then again, she was descended from King Arthur and from what he remembered from the stories of the once and future king, Excalibur's sheath made sure he wouldn't lose a battle by healing his injuries, or something like that.

Though speaking of legendary ancestors, Svarog had been observing them all with a pleased expression, likely happy his creations were being put to use. Then his eyes landed on him.

"Ah, there you are. You must be Daniel," he said.

Then Svarog moved out of the way to reveal one more set of armor and a weapon. He knew he had requested that he didn't make it look at all like a knight yet still be practical but...he hadn't expected this. The whole armor set looked rather futuristic and streamlined, the helmet reminding him a lot of a certain cyborg ninja from some game called Overwatch. Not only that, it was in his favorite color, sky blue with white streaks on it. He opened his mouth as he could resist asking how he found out about his favorite colors when Anima spoke.

"Like it?" she said with her usual smile.

"Uh, I... I'm surprised it's blue," he said.

"I asked Svarog for that. Seriously, no custom color? You're part of the Super-Myth Club! Your armor should be made just for you."

"But..."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. But come on, when does anyone ever get an opportunity like this?"

He sighed again, knowing that Anima wasn't going to budge on this and decided to just put it on. First he did the ones for his body, finding that, despite Svarog not taking his measurements, it fit him perfectly. He reasoned it was magic. He was about to take off his glasses so they wouldn't bother him as he put on his helmet when the Slavic smith god interrupted him.

"Oh, you don't need to do that, young man. Just put it on."

Daniel paused, not sure how that could work but then again, so was what was happening recently, so he did as instructed. He blinked in surprise. Like the rest of his armor, it fit him just fine, comfortably so. It was almost like there wasn't anything in front of his eyes even though he knew there was, like a one sided window. It was then that Daniel lifted the sword that was against the wall and pulled it out of its sheath. From what he could tell, it was a double edged broadsword, its weight like it a stick in his hands. And it seemed Svarog noticed his thoughtful look somehow despite his face behind a mask.

"Heard from your friend that you're stronger than most. So I tried to make it as heavy as I could, but even with that wyrm's help to find some good metals, the ones in here aren't heavy enough for you."

Daniel just gave him a level stare. It wasn't like he understood what significance there was to the weight of a sword, other than it being heavy.

Svarog realized his mistake. He just shook his head. "Never mind."

"All right everyone! You done with trying your stuff out?" Hansel said. Daniel sheathed his sword and hung its case from his hip. "'Cause listen up! I know a lot of you are used to your powers by now, but I want you guys to train with your armor and weapons for today. NARF's going to be here really soon, like really, and it'd be best if you get used to fighting with them. And our new team mates too."

From what he remembered yesterday, they were told Cerberus would only come when the threat was here while Yinglong would come when summoned by either Sullivan or Kaede, so he guessed that Hansel wasn't too worried about the little amount of gods, goddesses and so on who were present and why she didn't mention them or the like.

"Practice here in the forest so we can keep track of each other. Oh, and try not to make too much of a ruckus."

With that, everyone headed out, Anima, of course, rushing out first in excitement...on Ammit's back.

"Onwards, Ammit!" she said. "To the training grounds!"

"Yes! Let us shall!"

Daniel shook his head in exasperation as the pair jumped from the entrance and landed without much of a problem. He just climbed down with the ladder. When he reached the bottom, he started to head in no particular direction but away from the others—unless someone followed him, which he doubted would happen. Once he was far enough that he could barely see the treehouse anymore, he stopped and took out his sword again.

He looked at his own reflection in the blade for a while. Should he do this? He looked down at his chest where his necklace should be, but was covered by both the armor and clothing. His grip on the handle tightened. Yes, he'll do this, for everyone. He got into position, looking at a nearby dead tree for his target. A few more moments passed as he stared it down. Then he dashed at it and started to train. He needed to see what he could do first before he asked help on how to improve his skills.

 

[Vern]

Kaede ‘Maple’ Shonozaki
Nekomata Descendant
Arkwright Family Residence -> Super Myth Club Treehouse -> Forest.

Kaede sighs, stretching out on her bed and looking lazily at the storm clouds gathering outside her window. The time hasn’t yet come for her to leave the comfort of this little bedroom - although it will come soon - so she decides to relax in here for as long as she possible can. All of that business with Yinglong and the others has drained her, and she’d be deep in the comfort of sleep right now if not for a growing sense that something very very bad is about to happen to her, very very soon. Butterflies in her stomach. That sort of thing all the naive kids talk about before going to the waste of time they call ‘prom’.

She had gone with Sullivan to visit Svarog a while ago, and the god had promised them some armaments to suit their needs. That had been the easy part. The hard part is actually fighting. While it had once only been a nuisance, the strange sense of exhilaration she received from tearing into people with her claws is no longer something she can just ignore. Bloodlust, like all other forms of lust, is a terrifying thing - and every time she fights, she slips closer and closer to being consumed by it. But what choice does she have? After all, she’s a Nekomata, a cat spirit born from a thirst for vengeance and rage. It’s in her nature to hate, her nature to delight in the pain of others.

I guess that makes me no better than everybody I’ve hated for so long.

She sighs, unable to relax, and gets to her feet, reaching for her headphones and slipping them around her neck. She walks into her bathroom, examining herself in the mirror and marvelling at how haggard she looks. Her orange hair is all messed up, and her eyes have sunken bags under them. Her skin is pale, and she’s unnaturally thin, even gaunt. Looks like her health is getting worse, which isn’t a surprise, considering everything she’s gone through this past week. She shifts her ears back and forth between human and cat several times, examining the way her skin morphs so fluidly from one form to another. Just like her, driving herself mad trying to change, trying to fit in with people she doesn’t even like. A question that she asks herself often swims into the surface of the roiling sea that is her mind - Why do I even bother?

Once again, she has no answer for herself.

Shaking her head slightly, she washes her face and tidies herself up, changing out of her loose, crumpled pyjamas and into her standard attire. When she’s done, she looks herself in the mirror again, a routine she has gotten used to over her years of pretending. Not the best she has ever looked, but at least it’s presentable enough. Nobody would question her looking a bit frazzled, but it’s still better not to go around looking like some sort of sleep-deprived drug addict.

Her adopted brother Sullivan is waiting for her in the living room, tapping his finger impatiently on the armrest of the sofa he’s slumped down on. Occasionally, he’d give a contemptuous chuckle or a dismissive snort at all the ******** that’s on the news playing on the TV in front of him - one of the few things that they would sometimes do together. Watch the news and shake their heads at the sheer ridiculousness of it all. She hates to admit it, but there are times where she enjoys spending time with him. After all, despite the fact that he’s an arrogant *******, they do share certain other, unsavoury traits. Sometimes, it’s good to take comfort in the fact that there is someone just as evil as you are, and that you both know it. In a way, it’s almost like a bond, and unspoken contract that they will accept each other for the bad people they are.

“Sully, I’m ready to go.” she says, sitting down on the back of his sofa and waving her tail in his face.

“That took you long enough.” he growls, sitting up and stretching.

-~-~-​

They arrive at the clubhouse about fifteen minutes later. Anima and Daniel are both already there, each one dressed in their own set of armour. Kaede allows herself a giggle at how funny Anima looks in her Anubis hat before waving energetically at them. “Hey, Danny, Ani, how’s it going?” she calls, bouncing forwards and leaving Sullivan behind, “It looks good on you. Both of you.” Out of the corner of her eye, she sees some other unfamiliar people gathered there - probably all the deities that the others went to ‘recruit’. Twirling around, she makes her way over to Svarog and, after thanking him and exchanging some pleasantries, retrieves both her own armour and Sullivan’s, tossing it to him over Anima’s head.

She quickly slips into her own ‘armour’ - a traditional japanese yukata. It’s fabric shimmers slightly under the pale sunlight. While it doesn’t exactly look like armour, her few attempts to scratch at it with her claws leaves absolutely no damage, sliding easily over the fabric. Sullivan slips into his as well, which is simply his normal clothes, but with the same, ethereal shimmer. They had both asked for something less heavy and more cloth-like, trading protection for comfort and ease of movement. Neither of them have a weapon - they’re both used to fighting barehanded. She hops around a bit in her new outfit, testing out how it feels and finding it satisfactory.

"All right everyone! You done with trying your stuff out?" Hansel says, "'Cause listen up! I know a lot of you are used to your powers by now, but I want you guys to train with your armour and weapons for today. NARF's going to be here really soon, like really, and it'd be best if you get used to fighting with them. And our new team mates too. Practice here in the forest so we can keep track of each other. Oh, and try not to make too much of a ruckus."

On cue, Anima springs onto Ammit’s back and rides out into the forest, as psyched as ever. Daniel follows, but he takes a different path, disappearing into the forest. Deciding that it would be better to stick with everyone else, Kaede walks forward and jumps out of the treehouse, her robes flowing out behind her, landing lightly on her bare feet. She quickly bounds into the forest, following Anima’s tracks. Every now and then, she’d hop onto one of the trees, and jump around the branches, overtaking one of the other members.

Sullivan, meanwhile, stays at the very back of the procession, ambling along unhurriedly with his hands in his pockets, his eyes darting around, his gaze resting on one person for about a second before moving to the next, examining their armour and weapons. The fact that Caliburn isn’t armoured despite her knight-like ancestry surprises him slightly, but he reasons that it must be because of the whole business with the healing powers of Excalibur’s sheathe. Pointy stones, rotten berries, and animal faeces on the ground quickly slide to the side of the path as he walks, making way for him.

 

[TheCharredDragon]

Salazar Daniel Drake
Sagramore Descendant
Wanderer's Forest

Training went without complications. In fact, as far as he could tell at least, it went rather well. He found he was rather good with a sword. How, he decided not to question. So many things have happened over the course of a few days it almost felt like months have passed since that night where they tried to investigate the Ceresa farm only to get their first warning of things to come. He did notice that, at one point, Caliburn was watching him, as if she was the leader making sure her subordinates were doing well. Considering she has the powers of King Arthur, he wasn't too surprised.

Still, a girl that was likely younger than Anima having the abilities of the King of Knights? If he hadn't seen how good she was in battle, and coincidentally how much she acted like a knight, he would've been extremely worried about her fighting.

It wasn't long before Caliburn left, likely to observe the others. For a moment, Daniel wondered how Anima was doing. She was probably having fun with it, despite how she often seemed to have her head, he knew she could take things seriously. Sometimes too seriously.

...

Anima Maria Juarez
Anubis Descendant
Wanderer's Forest

Surprisingly, as soon as she set out to train, a certain "little girl" decided to come with her. She thought Brynhildr would go and train with Danny since, well, he had recruited her after all and she figured he was the one she trusted the most, compared to the others, herself included, that was. But it wasn't unwelcome. Besides, she was a using a lance as well so it was all good. The whole morning involved the girl teaching her how to use it. Using while riding Amit on the other hand...

Anima grunted as she fell flat on her back.

Brynhildr's flinch was noticeable.

"You all right there?"

"My apologies, Lady Aura!" Ammit said as she made her way back from her charge.

Anima groaned as she sat up. "I'm fine. The armor's doing good."

Byrnhildr, however, raised an eyebrow at the name Ammit addressed her. "'Scuse me, but can I ask why Aura? I get that it's your 'superhero' name but why that?"

By this point, Anima got back up and was dusting herself off. "Because it's fitting, as far as I'm concerned, and simple." She looked to the Valkyrie. "All right, let's—"

Then the distinct whoosh sound of an object slicing through air reached her ears as Brynhildr blurred for a second and was suddenly not nearby her anymore. It took about a second to realize she was a few meters away from her...her lance against Caliburn's summoned sword. There was no tension, but the Valkyrie was clearly surprised as she relaxed her battle posture and looked at the white dressed pre teen.

"Whoops. Thought you were an enemy," Byrnhildr said.

Caliburn dismissed her sword before waving her hand dismissively. "I understand and no harm was done."

"Gotta say, you're pretty good. Who're you descended from exactly?"

"Do you know of any legends from England?"

"Uh, maybe. Try me."

"I am descended from King Arthur."

Brynhildr whistled. "That explains the sword."

Though she wasn't that much older than Caliburn, as far as she could tell, and even after seeing a bunch of supernatural stuff, it still was rather surprising to see a pre teen speak the way she does. She sounded a lot older than she seemed. Perhaps another thing that being the descendant of King Arthur did to her.

And that's when the lightning struck.

...

Caliburn had observed all of those training. Of course, because of the fact many of them split off, she didn't see them all in one place but she watched them nonetheless. It seemed to go well, as far as everyone's capabilites were concerned. She knew none of them were going to be an expert in mere hours, this Anima girl especially though she was admirably kept trying to use a lance while riding on the deity Ammit.

But, as much as she wished she didn't, she had kept a wary eye on the club member named Sullivan. There was something about his presence that...irked her, for lack of a better word. Though he seemed rather lay back, there was a glint in his eyes, an intelligent one. And one of superiority. The fact that anything filthy, both literally and figuratively, was being pushed away now as he walked, did little to settle her dislike of him.

The fact he was descended from Gilgamesh certainly didn't help either. She didn't really like the stories of the hero too much.

But that, as well as the training, mattered little in the grand scheme of things because the air seemed to get heavier.

Caliburn's eyes widened as fear gripped her. She knew this feeling. She summoned her sword and dashed forward, right where Anima stood. Shoving her to the side, she raised her blade just in to strike another, the tell tale ching ringing loudly in the air. With a slight shift of her stance, she manager to push the assailant back, making a sonic boom in the process. She changed her stance to a defensive one, standing before Anima and staring down at her opponent.

All of this happened in the course of one second.

Choker Chain looked absolutely wrathful at her with a snarl that could bring fear to even a dragon.

If she hadn't been wearing a mask over her mouth, her scowl would've been a good contender for the category.

"Anima, Brynhildr. Go with the others and defend the town. I will deal with this."

"What?!" Brynhildr said. "But—"

As much as she didn't want to, she knew it was neccessary and sent a glare that shut up the Valkyrie. Thankfully, she seemed to understand it as she looked back and forth between her and Choker Chain.

"All right. Just don't do anything stupid, all right, kid?" The heavily armored girl turned to Anima and said, "Come on, let's go help your friends."

Brynhildr dashed off but Anima hesitated. But after repeating the girl's earlier action of looking back and forth, she nodded in a subdued manner before silently having Ammit go off. All the while, she had kept her eyes on the dangerous predator that was Choker Chain, her sword at the ready and humming with energy. It was only when she heard the sound of their footsteps gone did she speak.

"Hello...father."

For a brief moment, the predator flinched. For a moment, Caliburn's hopes went up. But that was only for a moment. As soon as it passed, if it was even possible, Choker Chain's snarl became worse.

"Don't play tricks with me, bitch," he said, brandishing his blood red lance. "I'll get you for killing my daughter, mark my words."

Within herself, Caliburn sighed. It might have been short, but at least her attempts were having some effect. Now if she could only find out how to break whatever is making their eyes glow red and controlling their minds. And maybe regroup with the others. She might not be as smart of a strategist as Tactician, she knew that, thanks to the giant cloud that was now surrounding the area, they were at the eye of the storm, and NARF was going to send their forces on all sides.

These thoughts left her as soon as Choker lunged at her. In return, she mimicked his action, as well as readying her blade.

And so the fight between the White Sword and the Blood Lance commenced as the rest of the forces of NARF were on the verge of entering the town of legends.

...

The other forces of Choker Chain ignored his battle with Caliburn and went through Wanderer's Forest, many of them having powers befitting of the commander and the forest, all of their powers of the beasts that roamed this environment. As such, their pace was swift and their demeanor like a predator, some of them tunneling through the ground. Their total numbers were enough to make seven packs of fifteen each.

On the east, if anyone had been inside the school building of St. John High School, they would see something in the distance, soemthing filling the sky other than the dark storm clouds. As simple as it could be put, they were all descendants capable of flight, whether from the power of wings or magic. And they all of the twenty five of them together formed a triangle angled straight at the city, lead by what seems to be lead by a flying blue serpent with serene green eyes, easily matching several buses lined up end to end.

At the south, even more of NARF's forces came out from the storm, this legion numbered much smaller than the others, only fifteen strong. But that didn't matter when half of them had the blood of demons and monsters in their veins, monstrosities that sent terror from the mere sight of them, some of them brandishing weapons, like the oni, and some of them not, like the ogre. The other half had the power of sorcery to them, holy or not. All of these were lead by a young man in white clothes with yellow trims. His face was obscured with the hood he wore, but his eyes, his glowing red eyes, were still as easily visible as his troops.

And finally, at the shore of Highcliff Coast in the west was a host of NARF with the power of the sea and its inhabitants, numbering about the same as the the ones in the north. And even if their powers were connected to the sea, it was obvious that being on land affected them very little from how easily they were scaling the cliff, both using the established path and climbing the cliff-face. It wasn't obvious, but it was clear they were also being lead...

...except their leader was merely floating upwards, a cloud of mist fogging his feet, holding a staff in his hands. His red, glowing eyes flashed when he reached the top. He scanned the place that was Keydeus with a neutral expression. Then, with a voice somehow booming across the entire area, he said,

"Attack!"

 

[Andydemon]

Kitai 'Kit' Hayashi
Kitsune Descendant
Super-Myth Club HQ

As she promised, Lily was able to get Kitai out of the tunnels and back to the treehouse. Much to his delight, the others had succeeded in recruiting their targets as well. Once everyone was gathered, Hansel told them that one of the new recruits, Svarog, was crafting weapons and armor for the group. This created a bit of a dilemma for Kit, as he wasn't sure what he would want Svarog to make for him. He felt that he didn't need a weapon as his offensive capabilities were primarily magic based, and any physical benefits he had gained along with his powers only served to increase his speed, not his strength. On that note, any 'armor' that was made for him would have to be light weight as well, so as to not hinder his mobility, which made Kitai wonder if such armor would really be able to provide him the protection it was meant to, but at the very least he didn't have to worry about his normal clothes getting damaged in battle anymore as he has been up until now.

Renard Residence

The next morning, Kitai had woken up and started his morning as he always did, casting an illusion over himself to make himself appear completely human before stepping out to meet with his father, who was going about his morning routine as well, watching the news with coffee mug in hand, wearing his police uniform, which told Kit that he was getting ready to leave for work soon.

Soon after he had stepped into the living room, Alex noticed his son behind him. "Kit..." He started before turning back to the TV. "Come here, there's something we need to talk about."

Kitai let out a quiet gasp upon hearing those words. Could his father have discovered one of the many secrets that he's been keeping from him, and if so what was he about to say or do over it? These questions frightened Kitai more than anything he had gone through so far, but now that he's in this position the best thing he can do is listen to what his father had to say and hope for the best. "W...What is it, Dad?" He asked as he approached his father.

"Kit...I have to know, has anything strange been happening to you since that incident at the school a few weeks ago? Anything at all?" Alex asked with genuine concern in his voice.

"Strange? Like what?" Kitai asked curiously while tilting his head slightly. He had a feeling he knew what his father meant by strange, and indeed strange things have been happening to him and his friends, not to mention dangerous, but he wasn't about to tell his father that unless he absolutely had to.

However, Alex shook his head and place a hand on his son's shoulder telling him, "Nevermind, I'm just worried about you, that's all." He then let go of Kit's shoulder and sighed before he continued, "The truth is...we talked it over at the station yesterday and they decided to set up a task force to investigate what's been going on...and they want me to lead it."

"You?" Kit replied at the sudden revelation. "But why?"

"I don't know...They must think that whatever is happening could effect the entire town somehow if left unchecked, and they know I'm determined to keep that from happening, especially with you on the line. They know I'll do anything if it means keeping you safe." After saying this, Alex turned away from Kit and lowered his head. "To be honest though, I haven't been feeling like much of a father to you these days with how much I've been working. I tell myself all the time that I do it to protect you, but in the end I can't help but feel like I've been neglecting you, leaving you all alone."

"It's okay, Dad. I know you have a lot of work to do." Kitai told his father reassuringly, "and I'm not alone. I have my friends from school."

"That's a relief, at least." Alex replied with a light smile, which turned back into a small frown as he said, "Still, I..." He then stopped for a moment before turning back to Kitai and telling him, "I'll make all this time I've been away at work up for you, Kit. Once this whole mess is cleared up and things aren't so hectic at the office, I'll get some off time during the Summer and we'll go on a trip together. How's that sound?"

"A trip? To where?"

"I'm not sure yet, but we still have plenty of time to plan it out before Summer." Alex said eagerly before turning the TV off and heading for the door. Before leaving he turned back to his son and told him, "Well, I have to be at the station soon. It looks like School's out for the day again with that storm coming. I've never heard of a storm like that coming to this town, but it sounds like it'll be dangerous when it hits. Stay safe, Kit, and I'll see you again as soon as I can."

Once his father left, Kit was left on his own to think about everything. He couldn't help but smile at the thought of going on a trip with his father, but he knew that the threat coming their way needed to be dealt with before anything like that can happen, and as far as he and his friends could tell it was going to be here very soon, and he needed to prepare.

"Heading off to meet with your friends again, are you?" The cat, Diana asked Kitai after jumping up on the back of the couch in front of the TV.

"Ya...Something very bad is gonna happen soon, and we need to get ready to fight and stop it." Kit told her as he headed for the door himself.

"Do be careful out there, child. I won't forgive you if you get hurt out there." Diana said sternly.

"I'll be careful, Diana. I promise." Kitai replied before leaving. Once he was outside, he shifted into his fox form and sped off to the treehouse as fast as he could.

Super Myth Club HQ

By the time Kit had arrived at the treehouse, it appeared that some of the other club members had already received their armor and weapons. He soon noticed Svarog beckon him over, prompting him to approach the recruit, who then presented him with what was supposed to be his armor, but it certainly didn't look like it to Kitai.

It was a white haori that looked like it would come very close to touching the ground being worn by Kit, a black hakama, and what appeared to be a leather chest guard. The hood on the haori had holes in it for Kitai to fit his ears through, and there were holes in the back of the haori and the hakama for his tails. While he found the Japanese style outfit to be fitting given that he was a Kitsune, and appreciated that Svarog made it for him, Kit still wondered how this could help him in a fight until he noticed Kaede in the yukata Svarog had made for her. Seeing her scratch at her new outfit and cause seemingly no damage to it whatsoever brought Kit to believe that his clothes were made to be just as durable as hers.

Once he had put on his 'armor', Svarog went onto to show Kit a protective harness he had made for his fox form, prompting him to change into said fox form and allow Svarog to put it on him. After the harness was on, Kitai moved around a bit to find that it didn't hinder his movements at all.

Once everyone had gotten geared up, Hansel told everyone to train with them, as NARF was going to attack very soon. Hearing that worried Kitai, but Hansel was right about them needing to train as best they could beforehand. He didn't have a weapon to train with, so he settled on getting accustom to moving around in his new armor. With everyone heading out of the treehouse, Kit opted to jump down in his fox form, from which he landed without so much as hurting himself from the fall. Once he was on the ground, he shifted into his human form and turned back to the treehouse just in time to see Anima jumped down while riding on Ammit's back. Like Kit, the two of them made it down unharmed, followed by others, who either came down via the ladder or jumped down.

Kaede in particular, caught Kit's eye when she jumped into one of the trees. Seeing her leap onto the branches made Kitai wonder if he was capable of that as well, as he and Kaede had very similar abilities despite being born from different mythical beings. Wanting to put his theory to the test, Kit went ahead and headed up to one of the trees and leapt as high as he could, which turned out to be higher than he remembered from when he first got his powers. Before he could reach the branch, but would have to grab onto it with his hands and swing onto it from there, now he could simply land on it from his jump, thanks to the increase in his agility that him now having three tails provided. Kit hadn't had a chance to truly test the extent that his powers had grown since he got his new tails, much less his speed, and now that the group had been ordered to train as much as they could, this was a perfect opportunity for him.

So Kitai went on to alternate between jumping onto tree branches in his human form and running around the forest in his fox form. Thankfully, his new armor and harness did not hinder his movements at all, allowing him to act at full speed.

That was when Kit heard the conversation taking place between Caliburn and the others around her along with the sound of blades clashing off in the distance thanks to his enhanced hearing, prompting him to come to a sliding halt before looking around. Though he didn't find Caliburn, he did find Daniel, whom he quickly ran up to and shifted into his human form before saying, "Mr. Daniel, I...I heard fighting! I think Ms. Caliburn is in trouble!"

After he said that, Kitai heard his phone go off. Wondering who could be calling him at a time like this, Kit looked to see that it was his father calling. "Dad..." He said under his breath before hitting the answer button and bringing the phone to his ear. "Dad?"

"Kit, are you alright?! Where are you right now?!"

"I...I'm with my friends! Dad, are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, but listen to me, Kitai! These monsters just started attacking the station and we're getting reports that whole swarms of these things are coming in from all sides! The whole town's about to go to Hell! You and your friends need to find someplace safe and stay there! Once you do, tell me where you are and I'll find my way to you, okay?"

After his father finished talking, Kit heard the sound of what he could only assume was a door or wall being broken down followed by the sound of gunfire. "Dad?"

"I'll be fine, kiddo, just get somewhere safe, and be careful, you hear me?! I-" Kit didn't hear what else Alex had to say as he was abruptly cut off.

"Dad? Dad, what happened?! Dad?!" Kitai cried out with worry. When he didn't receive a response he slowly lowered his phone as he looked towards the ground. "Dad...."

Whatever Daniel might've had to say on the matter, Kit turned to him and said, "They're attacking the police station. I...I think Dad's in trouble. I'm going there to help him, I have to!" He went on to put his hood on to cover most of his face then shifted into his fox form and started to head off towards the south part of town before turning to Daniel one last time, "I'll be okay, I promise! Please be careful, Mr. Daniel!"

Keydeus Police Building

Making it all the way from the northern edge of town to the south was a journey, but Kitai made it there quickly thanks the speed his fox form provided, especially now that he had three tails. Once he was there, he could see the police fighting off what he could only assume were NARF forces. Though it looked like they were indeed having trouble as their firearms didn't seem to be having that much of an effect on the creatures, and the building in particular was heavily damaged. Soon after he arrived, Kit managed to spot his father fighting alongside other officers, they were currently shooting at an incoming Oni.

"What the hell are these things, Renard?!" One of the officers asked as he shot at the Oni, which appeared to merely shrug off the bullets as it continued forward.

"It looks like an Oni from Japanese folklore, but what the hell would one be doing in America?" Alex replied in a somewhat calmer tone than Kit could hear the others speaking in at the moment.

"Dad...." Kit said as he watched the fighting ensue. As scared as he was, he knew he had to intervene if there was gonna be any chance of the police fighting off the oncoming NARF forces. With that in mind and the fact that his father's very life could be at stake, Kit, still in his fox form, moved in behind the Oni and engulfed his body in flames before jumping onto the club wielding monsters back and biting his shoulder. After that he heard the Oni cry out in pain before seeing his giant hand coming down to grab him, prompting him to jump off before he could do so. Once he was back on the ground he could see the Oni struggling to put out the flames now burning his back.

"A fox?!" Kit could hear his father exclaim once he saw their unexpected helper.

"Another one of those things?!" One of the officers cried out in surprise before pointing his weapon at Kitai, frightening him greatly.

"Hold on!" Alex ordered the officer before looking back at Kitai. "It attacked that monster, I don't think it's one of them!"

"How can you be so sure?!"

"I...I just have a feeling." Alex replied before calmly asking the three-tailed fox. "Who are you? Are you here to help us?"

Kit didn't dare say a word as he knew his father would recognize his voice almost immediately, so he instead opted to nod in response to Alex's question. Much to Kit's surprise, it seemed as if his father somehow knew he would understand him despite looking like an animal at the moment.

Upon getting a closer look, Alex gave a somewhat shocked expression. "Those eyes...That fur color..." Kit could hear his father mutter under his breath, causing him to flinch. Could he have figured it out?

However, he would have to wait for an answer to that question, as the Oni regained his composure and started coming after Kitai, swinging his spiked club down on him. Kit managed to jump out of the way and shifted into his human form in the process, knowing that his father wouldn't be able to see his face as long as he kept his hood on. Kit then proceeded to let loose a large stream of blue fire towards the Oni, one as powerful as he could possibly make it.

 

[Vern]

Sullivan Van Daal
Gilgamesh Descendant
Wanderer’s Forest.

As the man’s voice rings out over the land, Sullivan feels the hairs on the back of his neck prickling up. But he doesn’t panic - if there is one thing he doesn’t do, it’s panic. Instead, his mind goes to the more important matters first. Where are the others? As if to answer his question, Kaede comes bounding through the forest, her movements possessing an incredible speed and agility he hadn’t seen before. “Whe-ew! Things really went crazy there, didn’t they?” she grins, her tails waving around in the wind behind her, “Hey, Sully, reckon we’re all going to die or something?”

“Where is everybody else?” he asks, his tone serious and containing a hint of irritation.

“Well, that Lance dude from before? He just appeared in the forest, and a bunch of people are headed our way right now.” Kaede replies, still hopping around, “Caliburn is fighting him back there somewhere. She asked us to scram, so I assumed it was personal. As far as I know, all the guys from before are swarming around everywhere. So we’ve sorta just gonna have to punch whoever we see and hope for the best.”

Sullivan nods, processing the information. Unfortunately, there isn't exactly a lot of choice. One option would be to see if they could fight the man with the Lance along with Caliburn, since he’s nearby and also seemingly an important leader figure, but if Kaede was right and the matter was personal, she wouldn’t want any interruptions. Besides, she seemed to be good in a fight, so that isn’t a worry. Another method would be to call Yinglong and get him to scout the area, but he doesn’t know how willing the Dragon God would be to follow any orders, and there’s also the matter of pride involved. So that leaves one option - move into the city, and make plans from there.

“We’re going.” he growls, turning around, “I’m going to look around the city, see if I can find out what’s going on.” With that, he tenses his legs and breaks into a run, a golden aura flaring up around his body. The ground bends and convulses under his feet, acting as a sort of trampoline, catapulting him into the air with each step he takes. Kaede runs along behind him, her natural agility and speed enough to keep up without much trouble.

But they don’t get far, as the first of the ‘grunts’ appear in their paths not long before they start moving - a man with distinctly panther-like movements and dark-black skin. He leaps at Sullivan, catching him in midair and sending the two of them tumbling onto the ground, trading blows. Sullivan growls, encasing his entire body to burst into golden flame and forcing his attacker to pull back, giving him time to jump onto his feet. Before the panther man can react, Sullivan grabs onto his face with one glowing hand and throws out a leg, attempting to trip the man. Before he can complete the movement, however, two balls of ghostly blue fire finish the job, sending the man flying through the air and landing face-down, unconscious, on the ground.

“That was a pretty cool combo move, don’t you think?” Kaede grins, several more fireballs swirling in the air around her, “We should do that more often.”

By now, the rest of the fifteen-man pack has made it into the clearing, surrounding the two of them in a tight circle. Kaede and Sullivan stand back to back, facing down their attackers. At this rate, they won’t be able to make it into the city in time to stop things from going to hell, but if they had some way to speed up the process, or at least gather some more information… “You should summon YingLong.” he mutters, keeping his voice quiet as to not be overheard even as the aura around his arms glow even brighter in preparation for battle, “You two can go and scout out the area and identify the threats. I’ll stay here and deal with these mongrels.”

“What about father?” Kaede asks, sounding not the least bit concerned. “It’s all right if you want to stay and play the hero, but-“

“Father will be fine.” Sullivan snaps, feeling slightly irritated, “He’s paranoid enough to prepare for something like this. Summon the Dragon.”

“Fine, fine, whatever you want, master.” Kaede sighs, her tails flicking jerkily from one direction to the other as she slips her headphones over her sensitive cat-ears, before raising her voice into a loud yell, “Hey, Dante Long, can I have some help here?”

On cue, a massive thunderclap resounds through the forest, causing some of the attackers to flinch away from the loud sound. A Chinese man in a business suit and a yellow tie descends into the clearing from the sky, the winds forming a sort of platform for him. His golden eyes flash ominously in the darkness brought about by the coming storm. He lands casually in the clearing, the air around him almost crackling with energy. “You called?”

“Yep!” Kaede replies, forcing a convincingly friendly tone despite the terror being around a being of that power level tends to inspire, “Can you, uh, turn into a dragon or something? I’ve always wanted to ride a dragon. Besides, my onee-chan here wanted us to go and take a look around while he stays behind to impress a girl - I’m joking, of course. I’m pretty sure he’s asexual.”

Yinglong lets out a short laugh, one that contained genuine (if only a little contemptuous) mirth and amusement. “Both of you are full of surprises.” he says, “Very well, then. I suggest that you cover your ears.” With that, his face contorts itself slightly, and his suit and necktie begin to stretch and bend as a golden light pours out from his eyes. A loud roar and a massive burst of wind flattens the first ring of trees around the clearing, the Chinese man is replaced by the form of a golden oriental dragon, its golden body coiled in a massive spiral. “Hop on and hold tight.” the dragon growls, its voice resonating strangely in the air.

Kaede lets out a delighted laugh and jumps onto the serpent’s back. The two of them take off into the air, disappearing into the storm clouds and leaving Sullivan alone in the clearing, surrounded by fourteen incredibly surprised and confused grunts.

 

[TheCharredDragon]

The sound of steel against steel was all that Caliburn paid mind to. She knew there were others around her, no doubt Choker Chain's troops, but they weren't bothering her, or their leader. They didn't need to. They were after all of the others in town, all of the gods, descendants and magic within. But that wasn't her goal right now. Besides, it was only the beginning of the assault. They didn't need her right now.

Right now, she needed to snap her parents out of whatever controlled their minds.

Of course, considering they were her parents, she was outnumbered two-to-one and her mother had long ranged attacks, the odds were seemingly against her. But she had the power of King Arthur flowing through her veins, a facsimile of the legendary Excalibur and its sheath in her hands. And, once again, they were her parents. There was no way they would kill her. She would make sure of it. She just hoped her gambit would pay off...

As she expected, Magi Fae stayed far, trying to snipe her with blasts of high pressure water, while Choker engaged her with his lance. She was forced to be defensive as she needed to dodge the spells and defend herself from Choker's slashes. But, after some quick calculations through her head, she put her plan into action, being more aware of her placement in relation to her parents.

At Choker's next blow, she leaned back, catching him off guard just enough for her to strike him at his shoulder. With the holy properties of her attack, and his grimace, it hurt him more than most would. And now she had her chance. She didn't let it go. Soon, the tables were turned the tables and now was on the offensive, constantly swinging at him.

Right on cue, she heard Magi Fae shout at the turn of events before rushing in towards them. Caliburn allowed her attention to focus on the woman long enough for Choker to recover. He saw his chance and reared back his arm, ready to slice her. At the same time, Magi was mere inches away from her, about to let loose her magic. Choker was on her right, Magi was on her left. Most would take this chance to have them attack each other.

Caliburn didn't.

At that moment, Caliburn dismissed her sword and sheath...before pulling down her mask and letting herself get hit. For several moments, the world was blurry, all she felt was the sensation of little air and burning all over her body. Thankfully, her vision returned and she realized she was still standing, but was slouching from the pain. And she saw Choker and Magi froze, their eyes wide.

"What...?" Magi said.

"It...can't be..." Choker said.

Caliburn let herself have a small smile, even if her body hurt more than it had since her powers awakened. But it soon changed to worry and shock as Choker and Magi screamed, clutching their heads as if with a headache.

"Mother! Father!"

Caliburn moved closer and held them up, one hand for each, as they writhed from pain. The seconds felt like hours as their shouts sounded more hurt. But then they stopped, panting. For a while, they just stood there, ignoring the rest of the world around them. And then, she heard in a soft tone she hadn't heard for months,

"Gwen...?" her mother said.

Tears threatened to come out. "Yes, Mother, it's me..."

She felt the strong yet gentle hand of her father caress her face, an unbelieving, and sad, smile on his. "Heh, it is you..."

Guilt was written on their faces as her parents embraced her, no doubt realizing who they were really fighting.

"We're sorry, Gwen," her mother said.

In return, Caliburn, or Gwen, hugged them back tighter. "It's okay, Mother. I know you weren't your usual self," she said. But as much as she wanted to stay like that, she backed away, already feeling the regenerative healing effects of her powers. "But we're still in a battle."

Gwen brought her mask back up again and summoned Faux Excalibur. Her mother had an amused smile while her father chuckled. And then another familiar voice spoke, one she hadn't expected to hear.

"Yo, Gwenny!"

She turned around to see that the silence hadn't just been because she blocked the sounds out. It was because there were many bodies around them, surrounding a pre teen boy wearing an eclectic mix of clothing. And beside him was another boy around the same age, but much more slender and formally dressed than he was.

"Ivan?" she said. "Raphael?"

The first boy, her best friend, smirked, likely because of the fact he had come to help along with her other friend...and he wasn't alone.

"Yup! And the cavalry's here!"

...

The fifteen predators were putting up a good fight against the descendant of the first known hero. Not enough to kill him, that was for sure, but it was clear that Sullivan wouldn't be defeating them anytime soon. Perhaps because of that, and his ancestry, that fate favored him at this moment for after a minute into the gang fight did something tip the odds to his advantage.

Or as Ivan would put it, "Blitzkrieg!"

None of Sullivan's expected it. A blood red lance struck at them, wielded by the familiar blue tracksuit form of their commander. Calling it a slaughter wouldn't be entirely inappropriate as the lean man proceeded to knock out all the men that were still standing after fighting Sullivan, except that Choker didn't kill them, the steady rise and fall of their torsos showing they still lived.

The lance user stared at the bodies for a moment, his Faux Gae Bolg still brandished, making sure there were no enemies nearby. When he was sure there were none, he lowered his weapon and looked to Sullivan, his eyes noticeably red but not glowing.

"Hey there, Sullivan, right?" he said. "Don't worry, I ain't attackin' you anymore. Long story. Either way, I'm on your side, and so's my wife." He was preparing to leave as he said, "Oh and we've got some help coming our way. I suggest you go to the others."

With that, the hound of Culainn descendant left just as Caliburn atop the head of a wyrm that was easily twice the size of Lily passed by.

...

Salazar Daniel Drake
Sagramore Descendant
Keydeus Police Station, South Keydeus

Daniel grunted as the blow from his opponent pushed him back. But he stood his ground. He used that momentum to swing back around and slice at the demonic man's torso. His enemy staggered, just like he did. Daniel pressed on his assault. He struck at the man's midsection again before hitting him with thr pommel of his sword, sending him down on the ground, knocked out.

He had decided to come with Kit to help him, seeing as Caliburn was much, much stronger than any of the Super-Myth Club members. He also had Svarog come along, but it was clear that the Slavic god's power has diminished. There weren't many opponents, certainly not enough to make an army, but their individual power was enough to consider them such. It took a lot to defeat one and the others were still tanking hits from both Kit, his father and the police officers. He briefly gave his thanks in his mind to having a helmet that concealed his face.

But the worst was this group's commander, or he assumed it to be. It was a lean man completely covered in white, and modern, clothes, wearing a jacket with a hood that shadowed his face but made his glowing red eyes all the more noticeable. That was who Svarog was fighting, keeping him focused on him alone while he, Kit, Marti, who he had passed by on his way here, and Lily, who had followed Kit, fought against his troops.

To say the least, they were having trouble, even with a wyrm with them.

As such, he quietly cursed when a wyrm came out from the ground, startling everyone...only for his jaw slacken when it spoke.

"GET AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER!"

It clamped its jaw on the ghoul looking woman that was attacking Marti and threw her into the air. Then he transformed into an angel, white bird wings and all, holding a staff with him in mid air. He winded up, much like a baseball batter, further punctuated with his next sentence.

"Batter up!"

He sent the woman flying towards the ocean before he floated down and changed into a human form. And if Marti's words were any indication, it was indeed in the visage of her father.

"Dad! Wha... How'd you escape?"

Marti's father smiled.

"I had a little help."

Then, just as suddenly as the shapeshifter appeared, something struck a nearby demonic descendant. Daniel was able to see it was a girl, around the same age as Caliburn in fact. Her clothing reminded him of Japan with its patterns with no armor whatsoever and wielding a katana. The girl then proceeded to give the man a beat down, not letting up. It was at this point Marti's father transformed again, this time into a giant wolf that reminded Daniel very much of Daciana when she "wolfed out".

"Look, I know you wanna catch up Marti," he said. "But let's focus on this fight first!"

Marti smiled in return, one filled with relief and determination.

"Right!"

Daniel soon returned to the fray as well. But even here, all throughout the town he could tell reinforcements have arrived. In the east, he could see the familiar form of a Chinese dragon, its scales golden and its forearms with feathered wings, fighting off what Daniel assumed to be the bakunawa from what he knew. To the west, there were massive explosions, as well as another wyrm, much larger than Lily.

In hindsight, it made sense. Caliburn did mention she had a friend with her, also a descendant, when they met Hansel. Or had it been Hansel who said that? Either way, now they had a better chance. He just hoped it was enough.

...

Yinglong watched Keydeus from above, high in sky with a grim expression. He knew an attack was coming, he had felt the storm. He had sensed the same power over storms that he had that summoned it. Even now, he could feel it, and now he could see its source coming towards them, a dragon like him except her form was even more serpentine than him, like a wyrm. He hadn't expected such large force to lay siege on the place he has come to call his home. There were enemies all around them, emerging from the seas at the west and flying through skies with the blue serpent from the east. Down south, he could see sorcery and monsters heading to them on foot.

It was a good thing he had just put his wife and daughter in a safe hiding place when Kaede summoned him, otherwise he would've been very irritated as well as worried.

So it came to him as a surprise that something nearly struck him in the sky. When he turned to see the culprit, he was rammed into. Thankfully for Kaede, he wasn't pushed back and whacked the assailant. It turns out to be some sort of bird, the thunder bird of Native North American legend, if he can remember correctly. He was going to attack the bird when someone shout,

"Cast! Blizzard!"

A gust of snow and hail hit the avian, sending it crashing into the ground. Yinglong turned to see the user and saw a young woman atop a griffin, a young boy, no older than thirteen, with her. For some reason, there was a barest hint of familiarity coming from him. It was the boy who spoke first.

"Yinglong, was it?"

Seeing he was surprised that someone recognized him yesterday, he let the feeling slide this time. Besides, he didn't want to reveal the name of his soul, the one he told to Kaede and Sullivan. "Yes."

"This is Hansel, leader of the club Miss Kaede is a part of," he said. "I am Raphael Moore, codenamed the Tactician. We will assist you here while my friends deal with the rest of the forces."

Tactician? The oriental dragon dove into his memories of the royal families of China. One name, despite being in the bloodline through marriage, came to mind.

"Hmm, interesting. A descendant of Fu Hao..." he couldn't help but say.

Raphael raised his eyebrow but said nothing to that. Instead, he said,

"Kaede, Yinglong, we need to face off the aerial forces. Once they've dwindled enough, Hansel will hold them back while we head for the west at the coast."

Now Yinglong was curious. "And why is that?"

"We will strike down their leader along with his last commanders in one stroke as they will aid him in combat."

...

Anima Maria Juarez
Anubis Descendant
Highcliff Coast, East of Keydeus

Well, things escalated real quickly. First off, not long after she and Brynhildr started fighting the forces coming from the west, reinforcements came along in the form of a wyrm and Caliburn, rhyme unintended. And they weren't the only ones. The rest were helping in the other parts of the town. Apparently, that included Caliburn's parents and her friend, while some guy named Raphael, aka the Tactician, and Hansel to the east and another friend of Caliburn's, a girl with a katana named Kelsey, aka Swordmaster, and Hansel's parents to the south.

Oh, speaking of the King Arthur descendant's parents, turns out the pair who nearly tried to kill them two nights ago were the parents of Caliburn who were brainwashed. So that meant pretty much everyone with red and glowing eyes—because some of them had their eyes turned red for whatever reason, like Danny going berserk or the eyes of Choker Chain, aka Mark—was brainwashed; brainwashed and crazy.

Which leads to where they were now. The others had managed to lessen the enemy troops on the other fronts so that most of their forces were fight in the west where the leader was, who, by the way, was a freakin' reincarnated god and it was freakin' Vritri. And that wasn't all. After they had managed to beat the guy, as well as the Phantasm who had come over from the south to help his leader, with the help of another NARF commander, who turned into a freakin' bakunawa...turns out, there was something worse than a reincarnated god who nearly destroyed India.

It was Cronos himself and none of their attacks did anything, even Caliburn's only made a scratch at worse and a dent at best.

To say the least, things had gotten really bad.

The titan lived up to his name, easily towering over all of them, likely as tall as your average skyscraper. His body more resembled like a muscled mannequin made of clay, bright, white glowing clay, his face barely human. He probably should've been bigger but Anima was grateful he wasn't. It did surprise her that the ancient giant didn't try to squish them then and there. Instead, he said,

"I HAD HOPED TO ABSORB ALL THE MAGIC IN THIS WORLD BEFORE I REVEALED MYSELF, BUT NO MATTER. I HAVE ENOUGH TO FINISH MY PLAN."

He then made his way for the center of Keydeus, not bothering he was destroying buildings along the way. Not too far from her, she heard in a trembling voice,

"By the gods... What have I done...?"

She turned around, straining somewhat due to her injuries. The one to say that was the very leader of NARF they had fought just moments before. It was a young man, his eyes filled with guilt and reminding her so much of her eldest brother. It had been quite another surprise that Vritri, reincarnated into a human named Oswin, had been brainwashed all along, as well as his best friend and commander, the Phantasm, Sethlans. The only one from NARF who hadn't was his other friend, a woman named Shina.

Speaking of the woman, she knelt down near the distressed god, Lance—apparently Sethlans's nickname—not far behind.

"You didn't do it, Oswin. It was Cronos."

"But..."

Lance joined in. "And you're not the only one, Oswin." He gestured to Caliburn's parents and himself. "We all did some things we didn't want to do."

Shina continued. "And we know if you had the choice, none of this would've happened."

Oswin frowned, silenced by their words but didn't seem completely convinced.

In the meantime...

"Any ideas on how to beat a titan?" Anima said.

"At our current state," Raphael said. "We stand little chance, if at all, against him."

"But..." Marti said. "If we don't do anything, he might destroy the world!"

"Or worse," Ivan said.

Surprisingly, Daniel butted in. "What about...if we all work together?"

Everyone turned their attention to him. Raphael was the first to comment.

"I'm guessing you don't mean just us working together."

Daniel looked to Oswin, who flinched at that, only to stare at the staff he still held. "That staff...it can channel energy, right?"

"Uh, yes..."

"If we all put our energies into one single attack and aim right at his heart, maybe...we can defeat him."

"Uh...but isn't he a god...?" she said.

Yinglong answered her, still in his dragon form. "That may be true, but he has not been fully restored. He might be powerful, but he is not immortal."

"So that means..." Anima said.

Raphael finsished. "It might work."

"Then what're we waiting for?!" Brynhildr said, clenching her fist with a determined smile. "Let's get to it!"

Oswin looked back and forth, rather surprised at how things have turned out, and how they were putting their trust in him. He still looked unsure, at least until a hand came down on him, one on each shoulder. It was his two friends. A silent conversation was hadas the trio locked their gazes. Then, with a reassured smile, Oswin nodded then stood.

"Everyone, I need you to hold on to each other and someone holding onto me. It will be easier to channel our energy that way."

Daniel, surprisingly, was the first to place a hand on the reincarnated god's shoulder, followed by Caliburn on his other. The rest of the group started doing the same as well, making two chains. Even the deities and such joined in, Percival imcluded. Anima was about to...but she paused as noticed Oswin's friends were doing something. Once again, Anima listened into it.

"Look, uh... I know this is a bad time but..." Lance said. He sighed. "...in case this doesn't go well..."

"Lance..."

"....there's something important I want to tell you."

Shina's blinked. "Okay...what is it?"

Lance took a deep breath. Then he said, "I love you."

The part of her that loved Disney movies screamed in her mind in delight, and she nearly did that physically if not for the fact she didn't want to ruin the moment for the two. She was not disappointed.

Once again, Shina blinked before an amused smile came on her face. Then she followed it up with grabbing him by his collar and planting a kiss on his lips. Anima squealed in her mind again. Lance's eyes were wide for a mere moment, then they closed as he savored whatever sensations he felt from it. It might have ended not long after that, but it was clear both enjoyed it, though Lance was a bit befuddled for some reason.

"Shina... You...?"

"Yes, I love you too, silly."

"But... I thought you..." He shook his head, his smile returning. "Never mind. Let's go save the world."

Shina's own widened. Seeing that the romantic moment was over, Anima took hold of the hand that was nearest to her. After a few more moments, Oswin said,

"Ready?"

"Ready!" Anima said while everyone did their own version of confirmation.

And then she closed her eyes to focus, imagining her energy being like water, swirling around, then she heightened the pressure, increasing its strength. She could only guess what the others were doing and thinking, but from the brightness that she could feel even with her eyes closed, it must have been quite a show.

Then she heard Hansel say, "Cast! Excalibur!"

Anima dared to open her eyes at that and saw that Hansel had been holding onto the staff, outside of their two chains. The bright light that covered everyone began to swirl around her, gathering at her outstretched palm. The luminous energy formed into a sword, gleaming and humming, before it burst forward, the shockwave powerful enough to send them all tumbling backwards.

Next thing she knew, a terrible and reverberating scream filled the air as the ground shook from the titan stumbling. One final quake sounded when the titan fell over the cliff, his body landing on the beach below. Several quiet and heavy seconds passed. Everyone was still, even Anima. Then, with some hesitance, she said,

"Did we do it?"

Raphael and Daniel were the first ones to stand and head over to the edge. Anima was a little worried for the latter from what little she knew of the death of his mother, but thankfully, no fits or anything similar happened.

Instead, Daniel smiled. "Yes, we did it."

The first thing Anima was cheer at their success, many following behind her. A large part of the town might have been destoryed, they would have to rebuild, but they had managed to save the world with no deaths on either side. And that, in Anima's book, was the real winning condition.

...

Eight years later...

It was a simple office like room. The walls and floor were dark brown and made of wood. A desk was situated near the other end of the room, opposite of the door. The place was rather Spartan, but the few chairs that were there were meant for comfort. The desk itself only had a few pens and pencils as well as some papers, both blank and with writing.

There were three people currently in the room. One a man on a chair in front of the desk, his dress professional with a suitcase by his side on the floor, the other a young woman behind the desk, wearing a mask that looked like a jackal head and the third also a young woman, wearing white and blue clothing with a mask over her lower face, seated beside the second.

"And that's how we beat Cronos before he went off to take over the world," Anima said with a smile.

The reporter raised an eyebrow. "I know a lot of things that would've been impossible before aren't anymore, but that sounds a bit far fetched, don't you think?"

Gwen turned to the reporter. "I realize that, but you must know that this is a condensed version on how that battle the world has dubbed, 'The Battle of Magic' occured. If you want a more comprehensive view..."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, I gotta talk to the others for their side of the story." The man proceeded to pack his things into his suitcase and made his way for the door. "Thank you for you time, Aura and Caliburn," he said before he exited.

It was a few moments before the relative silence was broken.

"Did you must add in the Poliosos' first kiss?" Caliburn said.

Anima, or as the world has come to know her, Aura, just smirked. "Hey, you know I'm a sucker for Disney films. Couldn't help."

Gwen just rolled her eyes at the antics of her friend before glancing at the clock. "Ah, it's almost time for my next appointment." She stood up, careful of the small bump that was her belly, and made to leave as well with slow and cautious steps.

Anima said before she went out, "Tell Raphael I said congrats on the baby!"

Even with a mask, Anima knew she was smiling with amusement. "I'll be sure to pass your belated congratulations."

"Hey! I was busy, you know and I haven't seen you for a while."

The King Arthur descendant chuckled. "Make sure you don't explode anything in your next class."

Then Anima was left alone. She stayed seated for a while before making her way to the window. It was nice sight, seeing all the students training. So much has happened over the last few years. It took a lot of red tape and many of the political issues to ne resolved from the sudden appearance of super powered people and the return of magic before she, several of the former members of the Super-Myth Club and those who fought with them in the Battle of Magic managed to make a school for descendants about two years ago. And hopefully, it won't be the last.

Anima looked back to the clock when the bell rang.

"Well, looks like I got some work to do. Now what class do I have to do again? Oh yes, science class!"

And the Anubis descendant made her way to her classroom, looking forward to the future.

 

[Andydemon]

Kitai "Kit" Hayashi
Kitsune Descendant
Keydeus Police Station

Fortunately for Kit, he wasn't alone in helping his father and the police fight off the ones attacking the town. Daniel, Marti, Lily, and even Svarog followed him to the Police Station to help out. Though they seemed to be having trouble despite the aid until back up arrived in the form of Marti's father and a girl wielding a katana, whom Kitai couldn't help but wonder who she could be descended from, or who Marti's father could be descended from to be able to take on multiple forms.

By the end of it though, Kit and his friends had won, and their enemies, who had apparently been brainwashed the entire time, turned back to normal. Kit sighed from exhaustion once he had a moment to breath, or at least he thought he did until someone pulled his hood off from behind, prompting him to gasp while placing his hands on his head.

"I knew it." Kit heard a familiar voice behind him say before turning around to see that it was, in fact, his father, Alex. He could already hear the other police officers around them talking.

"No way, Alex's kid is one of them?" "He can't be, he fought them with us, he and those others are on our side." "I know Kit, he's a good kid and all, but seeing him like that."

"Enough!" Alex called out, stopping the discussions taking place. "The Police Station is secure and as luck would have it we have allies in this, let's help our wounded and then get ready to drive...whoever these guys are out of our town!"

"Dad?" Kit said questioningly, confused about how well his father was taking all this.

Much to his surprise, Alex turned back to his son, not at all looking angry or frightened by what Kit now was as he placed a hand on his shoulder telling him, "We'll talk about this later, Kit. I hate that you've been put in danger like this, and I hate to have you put yourself in more danger, but it looks like we need your help. You and your friends have a better shot against these guys then we do."

Before Kitai had a chance to reply, everyone suddenly felt the ground shake around them, the source of which turned out to be a titan like figure that emerged and was now heading for the center of the town. Once it appeared, the other descendants and mythical beings had gone off to face it, but Kit hesitated as he looked towards his father. "Dad...I..."

"I know, kiddo. Go ahead and help your friends. I think the rest of us would just get in the way against something like that, but promise me you'll be alright. Tough fight or not, the last thing I want is for you to get hurt."

"Okay, Dad. I promise." Kit replied before shifting to his fox form and following the others to face the titan.
__________________________________________________________________

At first, it didn't seem like anything was harming the titan, Chronos, until a plan was made for everyone to pool their energy into one attack aimed at his heart. As planned, everyone, including Kit, who shifted into his human form as he took his place amongst everyone, joined in until the attack was fired and Chronos was defeated.

Once Daniel confirmed that they had won, Kit, who was standing behind everyone let out a sigh of relief that it was finally over. That was until he heard his father's voice saying, "Kit," behind him, prompting him to turn around and see his father approaching him.

Remembering that now he had his father discovering what he was to deal with, Kit gave a look of uncertainty as he approached his father and told him, "Dad...I'm sorry, I..."

Whatever else Kit was about to say, he stopped as Alex knelled down to be at eye level with his son, grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him in for an unexpected hug. "No, Kit. I'm the one who should be sorry. I should've told you about your mother so much sooner..."

"My mother?" Kit replied in a questioning tone. "You mean she really was a..."

"That's right, she's a Kitsune, just like you are now." Alex answered. "You see, back in the day I set out to travel to different parts of the world, just like my father did. Japan was one of those countries that fascinated me, so I inevitably ended up going there. Not even a day after I arrived, I decided to explore the forests around Kyoto. There I saw a man with a gun chasing down a silver fox."

"That fox turned out to be a Kitsune?" Kit asked.

"I didn't know it was at the time, but when I stopped him that man rambled on about how the fox was a demon. I didn't listen to him, and once I drove him off the fox appeared to me again and brushed up against my leg, like it was thanking me for saving it before it ran back into the forest. Later on I was approached by a woman that called herself Kasumi Hayashi, who seemed all too happy to show me around so I let her, not thinking much of it back then. Now that I think about it, you could almost say that was our first date, even though I barely knew her at the time. Then one day that man from before showed and went after Kasumi, saying she was a demon too, even ended up shooting her. I would've just written it off as insane rambling like I did last time if I didn't see that the wound she got closed up so fast."

Kit gasped when Alex told him about how his mother actually got hurt, even saying, "Someone shot Mom," in disbelief.

"Ya...Once the would healed I confronted her while we were alone and asked what was going on. She asked me not to be scared then turned into a fox right before my eyes, a silver nine-tailed fox, that I realized was the same one I saved from that hunter back then. It shocked me at first, but I knew from the time we had spent together that she wouldn't hurt me, especially since I saved her life. Regardless, one thing led to another and we ended up having you, except you weren't born a Kitsune like I expected. Kasumi told me it was because magic had all but faded from the world, and any traits you might've had from being descended from a mythical being like her wouldn't manifest unless you were exposed to it."

"So...Why did you take me and move here? Couldn't you have raised me in Japan with Mom, or brought her with you?" Kit questioned further.

"Since you were born as a normal person, I thought that you deserved to live a normal life. I told Kasumi this, and she accepted it, but decided to stay behind, she never told me why, and in the end I didn't question it." Alex answered.

"So I was descended from a Kitsune all that time..."

"Hey..." Alex started as he place his hands on Kitai's shoulder and looked him in the eyes before continuing, "This may not have been what you wanted, but you've done a lot of good with the power you've gained from it, and as far as I'm concerned, no matter what you are now, what you become or what you decide to do later on in your life, you'll always be my son."

Hearing his father say that after fearing what he would do if he found out what Kitai had become for so long brought so much relief to the boy that tears formed in his eyes as he threw his arms around his father and told him, "Dad...I love you!"

"I love you too, Kit." Alex replied. "I always will."

Once Kit and his father finished talking, Kit proceeded to introduce Alex to his friends, to whom he thanked for being friends with his son and looking after him in everything that's happened since their powers manifested, grateful that Kitai wasn't alone.

In the months that followed, Alex and Kit discussed their trip for the summer now that everything was settled. If anyone from the group had decided they wanted to come along, they and Alex would've kept it a secret from Kit until the day they were leaving, leaving Kit surprised but happy that he'd be spending summer with his friends as well as his father. After their initial summer trip, Kit and Alex went to Japan so that Kitai could meet his mother for the first time, their meeting went off without a hitch and this time Kasumi went with them back to Keydeus, and they've lived happily together as a family since then.


Eight years later...

In an old treehouse somewhere in the forests north of Keydeus, two men were seated around the table conversing with one another. One appeared to be a simple reporter with a suitcase by his side, the other had his face partially hidden under the hood of his haori, from which fox ears can be seen protruding from a pair of holes cut into the top. This man also had nine golden fox tails casually waving back and forth behind him.

"And what are your parents doing now?" The reporter asked once the man finished explaining how he met his mother for the first time eight years ago.

"My father became Captain of the Keydeus Police Department about a year or two after the Battle of Magic, and he's made sure that the police remain fair to descendants like myself to the best of his ability. As a matter of fact I've recently been hearing that he's being considered to become the next Commissioner." The hooded man answered. "As for my mother, she's a history teacher at that descendant school that was established a couple years ago."

"A history teacher?" The reporter asked.

"My mother's been around for centuries and has traveled around the world to witness its most significant events. Who better to teach history than someone who's seen it take place firsthand?" The hooded man asked rhetorically.

"Touche." The reported replied. "And what about you? From what I understand, you've become quite the urban legend in Keydeus. I've heard people call you things like Ninetails or Kyubi, but they all describe you as The Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit of Keydeus if I'm not mistaken, and sure enough, out of everyone I've spoken to you've been the most elusive so far. I had to ask one of your friends to call you so we could meet like this"

The hooded man, Ninetails, chuckled a bit upon hearing the nicknames he's gone by in recent years, but couldn't help but feel sorry for how much trouble the reporter went through to speak with him like this. "Well, I am a Kitsune. If I appeared before humans on a constant basis in my true form you see right now, I wouldn't be much of a mythical creature, would I? In all seriousness though, I've heard people describe me as a guardian spirit of sorts as well. It's true I do undercover work for the police to help catch criminal groups in the act, and it helps to have a descendant around to help catch any other descendants that have fallen into the wrong side of the law. I'm happy to do my part and make sure everyone knows that not all of us that have powers are bad."

"Undercover work? That sounds dangerous, even for you."

"Of course." Ninetails replied. "I remember one time I was nearly caught because someone saw through my illusions. It turned out they were a descendant of Loki, a trickster god versus me, a trickster fox. Luckily I always have a friend ready to back me up if that ever happens, so I got out of there alright."

"I see." The reporter said out loud before standing up and preparing to leave. "Well then, Ninetails, Kyubi, whichever you prefer, thank you for taking this time to speak with me."

"It was no problem at all." Ninetails said reassuringly before leaving the treehouse along with the reporter, who he proceeded to escort out of the forest.

Once the reporter was gone, Kitai stood just outside the forest for a moment before taking his hood off and looking up at the clear, sunny skies. He then shifted into the form of a golden nine-tailed fox before speeding off towards the cliffs. There he would find a system of caves in which a friend, Lily, has resided for the past eight years.