{ battle against the story eater }

[dreamposts]

BATTLE AGAINST THE STORY EATER

The Story Eater has arrived.

More details on everything can be found here. We will request any thread submissions for certain prompts during AC and TDM threads will count. For more information, refer to the Game Notes.

Players who made boss submissions, if you are creating a prompt in your toplevel or wish to create a designated prompt for your boss, please comment here which will be used as a directory.

I. ON THE MOON

Those on the moon will at first feel overwhelmed, possibly even forced to the ground by the sheer enormous force of the nightmare energy that continues to pour out where the Story Eater had once stood. It feels as if they had extremely underestimated its power, and those of a weak mind will already feel the effects of the nightmare latching onto their worst fears. However, a cold air brushes over them and the ground beneath warms as it pulses white. In an instant, the oppressive feeling disappears, clarity returning to them.

It's too early to fall now, little dreamers, a sultry voice whispers in their ears with a laugh as another sighs, the softer voice like a melody. Quick, before the blessing loses its effect. The rest is up to you.

A. Tapir Calvary. The tapirs may have been hanging back for a while, but they will pop in, all eager to feast upon the nightmares that appear. Of course… Like anything, too much is dangerous for them as well. While they are able to withstand the seemingly endless amount of nightmare energy as if they are just swimming through flooded waters, after eating too much they start to wobble and complain of their stomachs hurting. This in turn makes them irritable, and instead of stopping to eat, they start eating more. Stop them before they eat themselves sick. Those that start to exude a dark mist and start turning black need to be quickly taken off the moon or sent into a dream. If they are not… They will disappear to somewhere unknown.

B. Slenderman and Cupid. There are two particularly strong foes that will be working with the Story Eater. "Slenderman" will be just like it was when it first appeared by the castle, feasting on nightmare energy and using shadows to its advantage. It will be a tough foe to kill, but explosive wisps and pure dreamotion light will be effective against it. Cupid will be insane and will try to inflict hatred upon any struck by his arrows. He is more unstable and will be more susceptible to those who try to purify it with love and kindness. (Cupid will most likely move to attack the town so he is available for On the Ground prompts.)

C. Wisped Away. With the amount of monsters and damage caused by the Story Eater directly and its creations, deaths are inevitable. Normally for those who have fully integrated into the world, like the fae and the dragons, this would have been permanent. However, perhaps due to the unusual nature of the Story Eater, they will be "graced" the same fate like the dreamers that inhabit Reverein. Their physical body may disappear, but their "soul" turns into condensed dreamotion energy and takes the form of a wisp. (Characters can and will be turned into wisps if they die so these can also apply to them.)

🛑 Because of the high likelihood of the original body suffering a traumatic event, the wisp will be extremely vulnerable and has a high risk of turning into a noctaere. They will flash red and black and the deeper the color, the closer they are to changing. Find and help purify them via dreamotion.
🚦 Escort vulnerable wisps to the portal so they can be taken to a safehouse and calm down.
💣 Some wisps will not feel negative emotions and instead will want to continue to fight. Although they are still vulnerable, because their dreamotion energy is so condensed they have the ability to explode without any harm to themselves to either inflict damage on the creatures OR to help purify those afflicted with pure dreamotion energy. These wisps will be gold in color.

II. ON THE GROUND

As soon as the Story Eater appeared, those of strong magical prowess had attempted to erect a barrier to protect the town and its surroundings from the brunt of the fallout, but it could not keep up forever, especially as those who try to keep it in place begin to quickly fall as their own nightmares take over. Thus while it's still safer than what's going on on the moon, the same afflictions can still be felt and experienced.

A. Support the Barriers. There are two different barriers currently protecting Reverein and the surrounding areas. Not only must they be defended from attacks, they also need help to stay up.

🧱 The sand walls erected earlier will stand tall and withstand most physical attacks, but eventually they will begin to crumble and create gaps. They must be quickly patched up and defended as the Story Eater's minions, creations, and those turned into noctaere start to push through.
🔮 The magic barrier is fueled with dreamotion and serves to help keep the effects of the nightmare energy lowered so that most of the people inside can withstand it. However, as those who are trying to keep it up fall, replacements are needed. To help, the moles from before bring up crystals that anyone can help channel and use to help as a power source to empower the barrier.

B. Aid Relief. Those who have been injured and brought back from the moon or from around town will be ushered into designated locations set up for healing. Be it physical or mental, they will be treated and protected by those who remain on defense. However, as the battle goes on and more people are afflicted, supplies and personnel will wear out, so additional aid will be needed. This may even require venturing out to get much needed herbs or supplies unless someone can dreamotion them up.

III. SPECIAL MONSTERS & BOSSES

The Story Eater is using its powers to take on the forms of an individual's worst nightmare or enemy. This could be anything. Below is the full list of special bosses and mob monsters that were submitted by players and can be encountered both on the moon and on the ground. Refer to the original links for more information. Players are still free to create and use anything that is not on the list, especially f their character's worst nightmare is something else. IMPORTANT! While any of these are capable of killing, those marked with the red flag (🚩) indicate that these are more likely to perform kills or destroy the individual to turn them into wisps.

A. Monster Mobs. Typical monster/mob creatures that while numerous are the weakest and easier to defeat. Physical attacks will be enough, but dreamotion or using Aspect abilities will inflict more damage.

🍆 Sinner Demons. They take on any form based on the type of sin they committed. Could take on the form based on the person they face.
😱 Devils. Takes on forms based on the fears of people.
🚨 Garlean K-9 Soldiers and hunting dogs. These soldiers aren't here to help and will be targeting anyone they come across.
👻 Cursed Spirits. Spiritual beings manifested from cursed energy as a result of the negative emotions that flow out of humans. They cause harm to humans and seek humans out to harm them.
💨 Redead. Emits a scream that immobilizes temporarily, moves towards target and jumps on back to deal damage.
🐍 Nagas. Breathe and spew toxic miasma and prolonged exposure to it can cause weaker beings to transform into nagas themselves. Archnaga's venom is corrosive in both liquid and gas forms. Can also swallow large objects. 🚩
🕶 Shadows. Shadow-like blobs and tables and headless dancers and things. Fairly weak.
💎 Zeugles. Aggressive genetically enhanced animals; must destroy the core inside to completely destroy them.
🤺 Sword Retrograde Army. Sword tsukumogami summoned for a cause to change history. Generally stronger than normal humans with some spiritual powers.
👹 Demons. Can hide their horns and wings to appear more human, otherwise their true form is more monstrous. They range from committing harmless silly pranks to more violent and murderous. 🚩
🎭 Four Masks. Drains one's sanity until they go berserk with potential to summon Atman (boss).
🔊 Noise. Affect people with weaker willpower and play on their negative emotions or nightmares.
📰 Xeroms. Monsters capable of attacking, infesting and draining emotions dry leaving the victim an empty husk.

B. Solo Bosses. Some nightmares manifest into one singular entity with greater powers and considered a higher leveled "boss." They do not appear as often or in number as the monster mobs and some may be controlled by players.

🍬 Gumball Waterson. Cartoon character turned creepy due to nightmare energy, but still on the sillier side. Body parts morphing or separating from him, getting into weird places, driving invisible cars, surviving crazy falls; basically whatever might be funny at that moment.
👂 Parrah & Nayo. Twin puppets that are not physically strong, but they're very annoying and are the "like to break people by talking" type of antagonist.
🙍‍♂️ Takaya Sakaki. Charismatic but otherwise a weaker enemy capable of standard Persona based magical and physical attacks and capable of summoning nightmare based Personas.
🐀 Rasputin. Can summon minions, destroy things, conceal nightmares within illusions.
🔥 Firelord Ozai. Can bend/generate fire and lightning, strong physical abilities.
🦋 Valentino. A charismatic moth demon capable of controlling smoke and has pheromones that can attract those to him.
🧝‍♀️ Gaea. Goddess of the Earth. Stronger when tethered to Earth. Powers include geokinesis, chlorokinesis (control of plants), creation of sentient life forms, atmokinesis (weather), control of animals, transformation.
🌱 Omega Flowey. Can grow vines, venus flytraps, plant stems that shoot, lots of plant based attacks.
🍐 Sephiroth. Sword fighting proficiency, shapeshifting, ability to cause hallucinations, telekinesis of medium sized objects, minor manipulation abilities, materia magic. Potential lethal backstabs. (Prompts available within FFVII toplevels). 🚩
⚡ Raiden Shogun. Scary lady with lightning based attacks, illusions, large-range attacks.
🤖 Shouki no Kami. Divine Automaton that uses lightning based attacks.
💃 Stella. Vile woman who thrives off mentally and physically tormenting.
👑 Paimon . Stolas' father, a powerful demon capable of shapeshifting, teleportation, grimoire manipulation, projection.
🧣 Ardyn Izunia. Has thirteen weapons at his disposal; can cast powerful magic such as striking down lightning, summoning blizzards, fiery explosions; has the power to heal; and is resilient to physical pain.
⏳ Kronos. God-like strength, specializes in sword combat, tough to take down. Has several types of kinesis magic.
💀 Nyx. Only has one main ability: cast death. However it's a slow windup so can be beaten beforehand. 🚩
😾 Wakaba Isshiki. Large sphynx with a woman's head. Heavy wind, almighty, and physical attacks. There can be riddles that are pertinent to those who engage it.
👮‍♀️ Makima. A woman who looks normal but is actually a Devil of immense strength, enhanced smell, domination, and can force manipulation that can damage weak targets by simply staring at them.
🖤 Atman. A very creepy giant mask that will disappear but then reappear after being defeated.
🤸‍♂️ Vholran. Fights with a waterblade. Acrobatic swordsman, mastery over water-elemental astral energy and can cast high power artes.
🎨 Creed Graphite. A Will Artist (spellcaster) capable of casting spells and summoning and controlling Xeroms.
🎼 Ganon. Hate and hunger for power in physical form. Can corrupt anything with darkness, will only be able to corrupt non-PCs unless players want to do something with that.
🌋 Calamity Ganon. Capable of creating Malice (poison substance that can cause other monsters or bosses to go aggro) and raising other monsters from the dead. Can be destroyed by any type of sealing dreamotion magic.
💔 Xehanorts (multiple). Control darkness and use darkness as a weapon; controlling people to his will by turning them into versions of himself, otherwise known as getting "norted" where victim gains yellow eyes and is controlled to his whims and the darkness in their heart/they will follow their darker side. Darkness meteorites can also be a thing.
➕ Emperor Demitrius (final boss form). Basically heal himself back up to full mid-fight so it will take a few rounds to defeat him.

C. Megabosses. Extremely powerful entities that may not even be defeated by conventional means and instead have powers that affect everyone instead. High chance of death. 🚩🚩🚩

🤖 Diaspora. Half the size of Dragon Island and up in the sky, it can disassemble dreamotion energy and knock someone out into wisp form without dying with a beam of blue goop. Has high regeneration, but will be vulnerable to prolonged attacks.
🐲 Dragons (Voids). Faces of dragons that coalesce in from the sky when they decide to attack with high concentrations of nightmare energy. Zhaitan will be capable of turning those who turned into wisps into noctaere in the form of Void Risen. Mordremoth will just descend and smash into small areas to inflict damage. Kralkatorrik will fire a giant beam of crystal fire breath that will encase anyone and anything in its path into purple crystal, and they must be freed before they turn into noctaere.

Comments

Asura | Onmyoji | All prompts open

[abyssbound]

[ After his incapacitation during the dark crystal incident a few months ago, Asura has been keeping a relatively low profile; he'd spent a few months recovering from his not-quite-death, and after that he'd simply stayed quiet for a while. That changes abruptly with the arrival of the Story Eater and particularly when one of the forms it takes is very familiar. To the point where Asura isn't immediately certain Orochi himself hadn't appeared within the dream world. ]

A. Nagas
[ They may look like Orochi's minions, but they lack the Snake's distinct Demon Force. Mindless drones of the Story Eater, thought their venom is no less potent. Asura's crazed laughter echoes as he leaps into the fray, his Spiritual Entity's Arms shredding through reptilian bodies. ]

Get away from here! [ Asura shouts at anyone who happens to be on the battlefield, his mind still intact despite the ferocity with which he fights the invading serpents. ]


B. Archnaga
[ Towering high over its comparatively smaller minions stands a snow-white serpent with a mask of a woman covering its face. The Archnaga is the avatar of Orochi in the world Asura came from, its venom pure corrosive malice. Its breath unleashes plumes of caustic miasma that burns the flesh of any it touches, and breathing it in can shatter minds and drive people mad. Weaker creatures are transformed into nagas themselves that add to the monstrous serpent's reptilian army.

This is a snake the size of a mountain with scales stronger than steel, and it will take the concerted efforts of more than one warrior to take it down. ]

A

[darkcharge]

Don't tell me what to do!

[ Vanitas is also quick on his feet. Ducking and dodging attacks while countering with powerful blows is just par the course for him. Of course he doesn't know about the venom - he hasn't been bitten or spit at or anything like that just yet.

But he does feel insulted by being told to just run off. ]

[abyssbound]

Vanitas! [ Asura yells at him like a father scolding his child, sending several of his Spiritual Entity Arms at a naga closing in on the young man. They harpoon into its hide and Asura yanks back on them to slam the monster's head into the ground with a sickening crack! of bone. ]

I know you're a skilled fighter and you can probably hold your own against these snakes. That's not why I told you to leave. [ Asura alights beside Vanitas, his Dark Arms remain poised defensively around his body. ] But unless you're confident that you can stop me if I lose control then you don't need to be here.

sorry about delay

[darkcharge]

[ Okay so that last comment? That's what gets him to actually stop. What does... ]

Doesn't that go for the both of us? You're not the only one that has the potential to suck in too much negative energy here.

[ Because it's Vanitas too. Asura knows that better than anyone at the moment.

Then Vanitas turns. Spins around and blasts another naga with ice magic to the face. ]

That makes two of us.

[abyssbound]

[ Yes, he knows, but Asura also shakes his head firmly. ]

I'm not talking about nightmare energy. [ The dark flames wreathing his tentacles incinerate naga viscera that clings to it, burning far hotter than usual for Asura. ]

My Spiritual Entity has a tendency to go berserk if I indulge in too much bloodlust, and I lose the ability to distinguish enemy from ally. [ His expression is stern; determined yet tinged with concern. ] You have a shard of it inside you--If I lose control then it will affect you, too.

emotions are hard lol

[darkcharge]

[ Those tentacles are creepy. Every time he sees them, Vanitas finds himself thinking about it. The way that they wiggle. Move around. Piercing through enemies - though that part isn't the creepy part. It's just like it has a mind of its own. ]

So don't engage in "too much bloodlust." Seems like an easy solution.

[ Vanitas stops for a moment. Just to look at Asura. ]

Me being near or far isn't going to change whether or not I'll be affected at this point. I don't make a habit of running and hiding.

Re: emotions are hard lol

[abyssbound]

[ Easy for Vanitas to say, maybe. Asura clicks his tongue dismissively at that comment and shakes his head. ]

You're willing to risk me attacking you for what? Do you have no sense of self-preservation? [ So long as Vanitas has his shard, it'll be extremely difficult to actually kill him without first severing the connection or killing Asura himself, but Asura knows from experience just how agonizing it can be for death to be removed as an option. ]

[darkcharge]

Maybe it is less about self-preservation and more that I believe in you.

[ That sounds so gross and contrite. But there's some truth to it. Just having that awareness that someone you really don't want to hurt is there? Might be enough to give the willpower a bit of a push. Retain a sense of self. ]

[abyssbound]

[ Wow, that was corny. ]

I've known me a few hundred years longer than you have. [ Asura says dryly.

As much as he's loath to do it, Asura takes control of the shard inside Vanitas's body and forces him to back down. ]

If you believe in me, then believe that I can handle this. I'll be fine, Vanitas.

A

[rokubro]

And let you have all the fun? No way!

[Seeing Asura go through the nagas with seemingly reckless abandon only emboldens Rokurou's fighting spirit, his blades cutting through the nagas with just as much ferocity and vigor. He's definitely not going to miss out on this kind of action!

Even if he might not be the best idea.]

[abyssbound]

[ Asura can understand that sort of enthusiasm--he enjoys a good monster fight himself--but other people tend to get in the way when he allows himself to truly cut loose. He can't go all out if he has to worry about collateral damage, after all.

Swearing under his breath, Asura stabs his Dark Arms into the skull of the nearest snake and uses it as leverage to propel himself toward the next one. ]

Suit yourself, but stay far enough away that I don't stab you by accident!

[rokubro]

[Pft. That just earns a laugh.]

Should say the same to you. You're looking about rough as them, almost made me think you were one of them.

[But he can honestly respect someone's targets, and there were plenty to go around, so he'll take off to deal with the other side, zipping over the ground as flames fueled by his overenergized dreamotion erupts from his path, burning any within close distance.]

[abyssbound]

[ Whether the crazed laugh that echoes over the chaos was intended to be in response to Rokurou's comment is anyone's guess, but the timing sure is convenient. Asura is long past the point of caring if people think he's a monster or not. Let them think what they want--there might have been a point in his life when he did care, but that was long before he fully embraced his own nature.

Whether it's because of the frightening efficacy with which Asura shreds through them or the fact that Rokurou is using a lot more dreamotion, the nagas apparently decide that Rokurou is a more appealing target and the majority of them turn their attention on him instead. An especially massive one rears back, sucking in a huge breath of air before breathing out a plume of violet miasma that billows and spreads out along the ground in all directions. Still of sound mind for the time being, Asura shouts toward Rokurou to warn him: ]

Get off the ground!

[rokubro]

[What a treat, they like him! He finds the nagas centering around him more of a thrilling challenge than something to worry about—which he probably should, but this is a war daemon in his element here—so he just continues to cut through all that approach him, his blades a blur as he makes no hesitation for his own massacre, darting in and out with speed and a bit of recklessness that might get him in trouble if he gets too into the fight.

Which it almost does. Were it not for Asura's warning, he would have missed the true threat of that miasma. It wouldn't have been a good idea to be in it to begin with, but he wouldn't have thought to jump farther away, so it's only thanks to Asura's shout that he clears a bit more distance, using the head of a naga to help propel him further upward.]

Whoops, close one!

Whoops, weekend happened.

[abyssbound]

[ Look, it's entirely possible to be both a meathead and also have a brain. They are not mutually exclusive.

While Rokurou slings himself into the air, Asura bears down on the massive naga that's spewing the toxin by catapulting himself toward it with his Dark Arms. He lands on top of the monster's nose just as it begins to open the massive eye in the middle of its forehead--alas the only thing it gets to see is the spike Asura drives straight through it into its cranium.

Despite having taken down this one, the gaseous venom it breathed still hangs in the air like mist, thicker near the ground and around their feet, but it still stings the eyes and throat as it drifts on the breeze. Asura rides the slain serpent to the ground but remains standing atop its corpse as he visually scans the area for Rokurou so he can issue a warning. ]

Be careful of the miasma. [ He says firmly, gesturing to a botanicat that was unfortunate enough to get caught within the cloud of toxin. The poor thing writhes in pain, its body already halfway transformed into a snake itself. ]

[rokubro]

[Rokurou could only watch extremely expressed by the display of skill Asura just displayed, and he would clap if didn't have to cut down one of the lesser nagas that tried to take the opportunity to attack him. Instead he can just laugh as the body falls behind him and waves a blade.]

Got it...though I doubt it would do much to me, might as well not risk something in this situation.

[Perk of a daemon is being immune to most if not all toxins and poisons...from his world, at least. Rokurou is not foolhardy enough to not realize that things could be a lot different in this world, especially with nightmares thrown into the mix—and his own malevolence in a weird state having absorbed some of that. But he otherwise feels fine, and if anything Asura bolsters that fighting spirit of his.

That said... While he doesn't care about the poor botanicat, he does have to ask—]

Any remedy for it? Or should we mercy kill it?

[abyssbound]

[ The poor thing really is quite pathetic, and while it is possible to save something affected by the toxin, there's a very narrow window to do so. It's unfortunate, but Asura gives it a quick jab in the spine to give it a painless end. ]

I don't have the ability to purify the venom, [ He says firmly, though it's clear he didn't relish having to do it. ] and there isn't enough time to find someone who can. Left alone, it'd become like the others.

[ Fun snake zombie plague, this. ]

A

[unbrokenoaths]

[ They might not be well-acquainted, but Baldr has an instinctive skepticism for people who yell things like that on the battlefield. It tends to presage either something catastrophic or else questionably-chosen sacrifice. ]

Forgive me, but I can't agree to leaving someone to fight alone!

[ Even if that someone appears to be in no danger... Baldr sidesteps a naga striking for him and buries one blade in the offending snake's neck. It's a bit more of an endeavor considering the size. ]

[abyssbound]

[ Or, option C: the one doing the shouting is a berserker who fights at his best when he doesn't have to worry about collateral damage if and when he loses his sense of reason.

No, couldn't be that one. ]

Stuff your noble sentiment! [ He yells back at Baldr before using his Dark Arms to propel himself toward the nearest naga and punching out one of its fangs with his bare fist. ]

[unbrokenoaths]

[ C is admittedly a new one on him, which is at least one reason why Asura is getting an unoffended but also uncooperative sidelong glance. ]

Understood. [ which apparently isn't agreement, because: ] I'll be taking this flank.

[ He has the sense to give Asura's unfamiliar weapon wide berth, at least, and lunging for another naga to the side instead. ]

[abyssbound]

[ Asura rolls his eyes so hard you could almost hear them, but doesn't argue the point. He already told him once, if he doesn't listen and gets himself killed as a result, he's got no one to blame but himself. ]

Watch out for their venom, [ He gives him the courtesy of a warning, ] It burns what it touches, and the vapors can drive you mad if you inhale them.

[unbrokenoaths]

[ Baldr is unfortunately immune to eyerolls; but not venom, so he gives that warning a brisk nod. He'll assume Asura just didn't want him to be a liability. ]

I'll use caution. If you need healing—

[ He doesn't exactly have the luxury to see how Asura's fang-punching fists are faring mid-fight. ]

[abyssbound]

[ When all of this is done he might need healing (the venom these snakes pack is nothing to scoff at), but Asura's fine for the time being.

The waves of serpents seem endless, but the upside to their sheer size is that they can't all come at them at once. The relatively narrow streets of Reverein force them into a bottleneck, making them somewhat easier to pick off for those with lesser brute strength. Even so, a purplish haze has begun to creep along the ground around Baldr's ankles, withering any plant life it touches and starting to fray at his boots... ]

[unbrokenoaths]

[ If Baldr had been the type to beat a timely retreat, he very likely would have lived to be older than twenty-five to begin with. He frowns at the encroaching haze, launching himself to dash up the nearest snake and make another quick slash through it. Climbing snakes seems like a viable strategy for a bit, but...

He covers his mouth with one sleeve as he drops back down again, frowning. ]

It's becoming too dense! I can try to disperse it with wind.

[ He's deferring to Asura on it this time, despite his stubbornness before; the last thing he wants to achieve is just scattering miasma over the entire area, and Asura seems to know the effects best. ]

[abyssbound]

[ Asura swears under his breath--he's strong enough to resist the mind-altering affects of the toxin, but it still stings his eyes and nose. Baldr's idea isn't a bad one, though, and he gives curt nod. ]

Try to blow it away from the town. The miasma is heavier than air, so it will settle in low-lying areas where it's easier to manage.