Maxine "Max" Crown's Story

Max woke up to the sounds of a snake hissing at a TV. The people on the TV where speaking in Japanese a language Max knew just enough in to greet someone and a few other things. But the Images told the story quite well.
Max had heard of the murders and had wanted to cancel her trip to Japan. But the museum she worked for back in England had insisted on her coming here to help set up a deal with a Japanese museum. Trading Egyptian artifacts for Japanese ones or some such thing. Max as the head of the Ancient Egypt exhibit was chosen to oversee this.

"You will do fine Max." Nefertari's voice assured her. "And I know we can defeat anything that tries to harm us."

"I wish I had your confidence..." Max said as she pulled herself from the hotel bed.

Rubbing sleep from her eyes Max made her way to the bathroom. She set herself to the task of getting ready showering and all the rest that goes into getting one ready to venture into the world. Having hours to kill before her meeting with the reps of the Japanese museum she dressed casual and prepared for a bit of tourism before. So dressed in a simple t-shirt, jeans, a hoodie and her favorite "lucky" boots she headed out into town. She made sure to tuck her black snake ankh amulet under her shirt so it wouldn't be seen.

Max took in the sights and sounds of the city mixing in with the crowds of natives and tourist as much as she could. She soon found herself at a shopping center of some kind she decided to head on in.

"What ya gonna buy me?" whispered Nefertari in Max's head.

"I think I'm going to try real Japanese ramen." Max thought back.

"Like that stuff you ate all the time in college?"

Max laughed in her mind "I hear the real thing is much better.."

Max made her way to the food court it was time to sample the local cuisine...

To all in the area, they might feel a strange pull enacting upon them, a force even, as if an instinct, that would want them to go closer to something...to anything that seemed unusually dark, regardless if it seemed dangerous or suspicious...it might not look like it to normal people, but a spike might shoot out to stab through someone, or it might pull them into one of many Spirit Zones.

"They are all quite foolish, just by thinking that they enter one room of our palace, our base, that they can reach the rest. It will be quite impossible for them to reach this inner sanctum and stop what must be done, so you max relax a bit boy...and leave everything to me..."

"Un...okay. I will just start making these people feel some pain".

At that point, the boy's eyes which appeared unusually blank took out a small pocket knife, and approached one of the boys.

Meanwhile, as Jaune and Shinku fought off some of the creatures, they remained in their Level 3 forms, and had now taken out their weapons too. HOwever, with the overwhelming numbers, they were forced to stand back to back with each other.

"I see you copied my look".

"Wait, it was customizable?"

"Only before you generated it the first time. Guess we are stuck as matching!"

Suddenly, Jaune ran out forward...and as if by magic, multiple Jaunes appeared and all attacked at once.

"Are those...wind clones?"

"...impossible..."

"Eh?"

"This kid...he figured out how to make wind clones?! That was believed to be impossible! You could make Smoke Clones, Shadow Clones, Light Clones, Water Clones, Earth Clones, but from my time, no one had ever successfully created a Wind Clone...this kid...he must be a natural talent, or a genius!"

As Jaune moved through the air with his clones, they cut through several Goblis at once, but more just continued to spawn, and some charged at Shinku. Shinku however blocked, using his Reverse Blade. As Jaune looked at it, he could not help but admire the blade's ability and design.

In a way, the hilt was held in the way you would properly hold a knife or dagger, in the backwards position rather then the forewards position. Forwards was when you wanted to use the knife or dagger to eat dinner or cook, while the backwards position was a sign of combat.

However, Shinku's blade was not some normal dagger. It bent in the reverse way one would expect, and ended up stretching alongside his forearm. Because the blade bent in a way reverse of what a normal blade would, Shinku named it the Reverse Blade. But this weapon he created might just be revolutionary. It allowed for quick and clean stabs, quick slashes, but it also allowed the user to defend itself. Sure, it had a small range, but it was a blade that you could block with one second, attack with another, and quickly move back into a block.

Just like how Shinku, and other people who prided themselves in their cooking, showed how flames could be used to create instead of destroy, this blade proved that a blade could be designed in various unique ways, and still be useful.

So as the two boys ended up going back to back once more, as more spirits began to spawn...

"Ahhh! Look at those two cuties!"

"They look adorable!"

"Matching outfits?! Do you think...BL?!"

"So adorable!"

And then, suddenly they found themselves surrounded by...girls? Furthermore, a huge swarm of girls, saying all sorts of embarrasing, demeaning, and dangerous things about them, had gathered around them and would not let up.

That said, indeed in terms of charisma, they certainly had qualities that made them attractive like that interms of boyish looks, however...

Jaune stomped his foot on the ground, and the illusion was dispelled as flower petals fell around them.

"Honestly, wasn't that overkill?"

"Seriously, did he think flattery would work?"

He made two seriously stupid mistakes. He used illusions against Fox Spirits, and he tried to use flattery on Shinku and Jaune, who were ultimately oblivious to that stuff.

"Now...where the hell is the main boss?"

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"Oh dear Rayn, it seems you really do never learn your lessons. But here, have a refresher course...Goblis are not enough, so lets throw in some Ogres for good measure. By the way, by any chance do you mean those boys who have also infiltrated. Well, they are boys, so most likely they will either become indulgent to the flattery of those girls, or maybe embarrassed and such, or..."

At this time, Darth sensed one of his illusions breaking.

"...shut up. I specialize in revenge, not pleasure".

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With all of the supernatural energy gathered, it was not surprising that the clashing supernatural energies had created a weird sort of quasi barrier on a massive level, and was currently compelling everyone to stay out of the main halls it seems and inside stores, particularly those with thick curtains on their windows. For El Moreau, this would probably be convienent, as it meant there were no witnesses as a Gobli spawned in front of her. Outside of the Spirit Zone, and in a totally public area. Any fight here seemed guaranteed to attract attention.

But, as quickly as it spawned, it then fell with what appeared to be several steak knives coated in intense Spirit Power had been thrown into all of its joints and vital spots. At first, this ability and skill might suggest a decently skilled Armor Spirit user...but the one who came out was a girl. A girl who stared directly at the other Spirit in the room, and had unfurled her fox tail and ears.

"Hello, visitors. My name is Midorimaru, partner and loyal servant of Nazku-sama. Master Nazku has sent me here to ascertain the situation. It appears however, things may get progressively worse without haste, and no one on the inside has yet to notice the trick of this Spirit Zone they are in. The fact that it is not one Spirit Zone, but several folded over each other. To get to the center, you have to get through the layers though, but if you spend too much time fighting the guardians inside, you will run out of energy and probably die".

Midorimaru's voice, unlike Akamaru and Kimaru, was full of experience and wisdom. Although certainly one might think it was strange that these two strangers were who she walked up to...

"If you are wondering why I am asking you, its because it would take too long for Master Nazku to get here on his own, and I am only an Armor Spirit..." Who could kill a Gobli in seconds on her own without a human partner present. "...so it would be best for a pair to go. And you are the only ones in the immediate area I could find. Keep in mind, if we let him grow any more inside his dimension, he may no longer be contained to this complex, so please hurry".

Midorimaru...even though she was being helpful, honest, and kindhearted...she seemed a bit scary in her ability to do all this effectively. And she also seemed pretty persuasive.

"Now if you will excuse me, a Gobli will be spawning down that hall in a few moments, and I need to properly destroy them so no one notices them or gets harmed".

And like that, Midorimaru left to go deal with another Gobli...on her own...

She definently seemed more powerful then other Spirits, that was for sure.

(Okay, I think this gives something good for everyone. Sorry it took awhile, school stuff and all. Anyways, hopefully its all good and not jumbled, for some reason my brain be acting wonky today...)

Max was enjoying her meal when she started to feel uneasy as if something was watching her calling to her... just like that one tomb where an evil spirit had been left to guard the tomb....

Suddenly Max's thoughts where broken by a gobli jumping at her. It was intercepted by a glowing snake that sunk it's fangs into the creature's neck.

Max jumped from her seat as she saw more of the dark spirit creatures charging her. She spoke in Ancient Egyptian and then prayed "Wadjet give me power..."

A poison mist spread out around Max as her form shifted to that of an armored female mummy two voices her own and another spoke hers in English the other in ancient Egyptian. "Prepare to face your death!" the two female voices shouted.

The spirits that came within the mist began to cough and choke as they breathed in the poison. Others where dispatched by the snake staff that had appeared in in Max's mummified hand. The goblis started to back off only to be shot down with balls of acidic poison.

"There are other's fighting." Nefertari whispered in Max's mind.

"And we should go help them." Max said aloud...then muttered "I should have stayed in England.."

Max shifted Into her giant cobra form quickly slithering though the hall until she came upon El slashing her way though a group of Goblis.

"Akkadian..hmm they where mostly dead when I was alive..." Nefertari said.

Max simply smashed though the horde of goblis smashing a good many into the wall before taking again her Mummy form and aiding El against the goblis that kept coming at them.

"Looked like you could use a hand" Max said her voice echoed by Nefertari's saying the same thin in ancient Egyptian.

In terms of progress, Darth was rather surprised to see them all doing...rather well. The conflict on the outside was being managed, as well as that on the inside. Someone troublesome seemed to be around as well, but she was surprisingly well hidden...perhaps, was this land designated as her domain? So there was a Sentinel in this area? That meant there had to be a sanctuary...

No matter, it was not like they could bother him either. In the first place, this was his own realm, and it was under his control, in his domain. There was no way he would allow himself to be defeated, let alone severed from his bonded partner. However, as Rayn began to say some things, Darth decided to reveal the truth he had kept hidden...not knowing Midorimaru had already figured it out actually.

Suddenly, the setting around Rayn seemed to dissipate, and illusions of Darth, the boy, and the others appeared and disappeared in front of his eyes.

"Please. You have not even gotten close to reaching me yet. Do you think your words can reach one who is not even present? Do you think I would make it so easy for one to enter and reach me?"

As Midorimaru had figured out previously, and told El, Darth had created a Spirit Zone with multiple layers. The first layer was the one people entered first, while the center layer was where he existed. That said, he had only recently been released, so it was not like he had made it complex...other Armor Spirits could create something far more complicated, but this suited him well enough.

He could just keep massing opponents in the first layer, the shell, while he stays safe in the core. Of course, to keep his energy up, he was sucking up the Spirit Energy of the bullies, as well as a few other bully like people they had captured.

"He cannot hear you, he cannot even recognize you as anyone other then one who stands up to bullies. Besides, what are you doing right now? Your power is so low...you have chosen to possess a human then have a harmonious bond? At least I have not truly suppressed his free will, unlike yourself. What happened to your ideals? Were you always such a hypocrite?"

Provoking him would also suit Darth. After all, if this kept as a test of endurance, he would win. Yes, and so he looked at the others...

"What...the hell?"

It appeared that two more people had appeared in his dimension at some point, during his chat with Rayn, destroying the creatures he spawned. That was bothersome, but he would handle it soon enough.

The issue was...the insolence of the other two. While still in their level 3s, they had their shoes off and were sitting on a blanket with their spirits, eating lunch...they were having a picnic.

"So wait, you made your magic to cook these?"

"Yeah...what do you think?"

"I am amazed you didn't destroy your kitchen, to be honest".

"Hey, flames can do more then just destroy. Fire can also create. Ah, you got some crumbs on your mouth".

Shinku helped at Jaune by wiping them off while they continued to eat, and this sort of carefree attitude was really ticking him off. Also, he was getting a tad bit jealous at their good looks for some reason...that being that he, who never had a human form, would get jealous of anyone who looked amazing.

Incidentally, part of that was just a side effect of being Bonded to an Armor Spirit. It improved various physical qualities.

"...the fuck are they doing...eating? Acting carefree and friendly? Seriously?!"

Practically erupting with rage and annoyance, he decided to attack them directly. Countless tentacles erupted right from under the blanket to destroy it...when it all disappeared, as if it was an illusion.

No, it was an illusion. In the first place, neither of them brought a picnic blanket with them.

And then, a large piece of metal was slammed into one of his tentacles and pinned it down, which was followed by the feeling of two people running on the tentacles. Not only that, but the two attacked the actual Spirit Zone boundary itself in the process, making the inner layer where he had been sitting accessible to all of the others as well.

In retrospect, Darth was having quite a few fumbles right now...but, he decided to let it go for now. After all, he was still confident in his victory...

He would just have to create something massive, something that even if they all joined forces, they could not defeat...

(Sorry if the end seems a bit...not as great as the start, wanted to get this done before I did some RL stuff I have to deal with)

[Another collab post, all Darth parts by LookingAtPerks.]

Rayn's expression blanked and he tilted his head, before he swung his good arm up and clasped his hand over his face and stood there quietly for a moment. His body began to shake, at first it seemed like he was trembling, but then an audible sound came from him. He had begun to chuckle, and his chuckling became a laugh.

"Wow... haha... you really don't get it, do you?" Rayn said, peeking through his fingers.

"Hmm. Compared to you, who chases shadows and cant accept change?" Darth responded.

"Heh, won't deny the former, but the latter, well, more a you thing, isn't it Darthy-boy? A literal... unchanging relic of a time long gone... obsolete in a world far crueler than anything he could even imagine." Rayn retorted, twirling his fingers. "But no, I digress, I've never claimed to be a hero, or saint, or anything of that matter... and this whole thing between us? Not about justice. I simply just... don't like you... you are a parasite, a worm, a bug, something to be stomped underfoot and forgotten. Every era requires a monster to defeat, and remind people of their virtues... but you, you are not even that, you are just... nothing but a shadow of a long outdated sentiment."

"You seem to forget, about the fact that unlike you, there are people greateful for my existence! All you do is cause trouble, fight people, punch them in the face, and occasionally just blow up entire cities! I have provided far more to this world than you, I let people settle their grudges and give what is coming!" And then, he would attempt a direct attack using a tentacle against Rayn out of annoyance while safely in the inner layer.

Rayn in turn just stood there, glaring at it coming between his fingers. He then sighed, lowering his head, closing his eyes, and let his arm down like he was reaching for his pocket. The blue fire sprites gathered around his arm as the tentacle got close, and he swung at it, splitting it open. It wasn't just that, however, a portion of the air itself seemed to... catch ablaze with ghostly blue flame, as a seemingly invisible barrier begins to burn open.

"Oops," Rayn uttered sarcastically.

Darth seemed to panic a little at this sudden event. It seemed that Darth did not expect Rayn to actually start tearing though the barrier to his real location. As expected, he was more of a manipulation type of person then one with pure power. Otherwise, the need to use so many pawns wouldn't quite make sense.

"You think you can beat me, in your weakened, shriveled state?! YOu can try and reach me, but all you will do is make your own tomb...ahk?!"

From that sound, it seemed as if someone had done something rather painful to it...no, wasn't he already in pain?

The truth was, Darth did not have a high pain tolerance.

"You do realize that once they realize what you are, they will kill you next right?"

"And?" Rayn uttered, stepping through the hole as blue embers float around him. "Unlike you, I've fully come to terms with this... in fact, I look forward to the day a righteous soul emerges from the ash to strike me down. It is what I deserve."

"Then why dont you go die in a hole somewhere instead of bothering me? I only grant the desires of those I bond with. I simply give the power to act on their desires," Darth responded.

"Spare me the shit," Rayn responded, smirking. "You don't care about the kid or his suffering, you just feed off the kid and his victims. Hell, you say bond, but what is it really? Something forged on half-truths and outright lies. This isn't even a complete bond, the only point you link on is the desire to lash out. For the rest? You're just a puppeteer. Why else would you have to use all the smoke and mirrors, you... can barely even reach level 1 on this."

"You think that this is only Level 1, do you?" Darth said with a smirk, as countless spears appeared out of the tendrils and immediately charged at Rayn. "I wont claim to have as much raw power, but my ability to manipulate is top notch. And dont you dare ever trample on my beliefs, you muscle brained moron! Perhaps, do you want to hear the truth of his heart?"

And then, the voice of a child could be heard all over, reverberating across the dimensions.

"I am so tired of this! I dont want to be picked on anymore! I want strength! I want vengeance! I want them to suffer and wither like they made me suffer! I want them to leave me alone, to see me as better, not worse!"

Darth just smiled at Rayn.

"This is what the boy wants. Did you know? These people have been terrible to him. I admit, this far surpasses normal bullying...even if they only made him think he was burried alive, it was still terrible for him...he deserves vengeance!"

Darth seemed unusually passionate about it...it seemed as if those were his true emotions, although it was still clear he was corrupting in some way...he shouldn't be able to summon Goblis or ogres.

Rayn shrugged. "So you help the kid by amplifying his negative emotions and turn him into a murderer, bravo," Rayn said, his words dripping with sarcasm. "Doesn't quite explain the minions, now does it? Tell me, if you are so noble, then how come you have such a corrupting touch? And... why are you so afraid to let the boy hear my words if they don't actually matter..? All you really do is help perpetuate a cycle, to continue to direct humans to lash out at one another, blood for blood. Me? I give people a target, something to hate and fear other than each other, and I do it up front, in person. No cowardly smoke and mirrors, no minions, no hiding... just... me."

Unbeknownst to Rayn, he was being shadowed by somebody veiled from the rest of the world.

"Seriously..? How is that even possible? What, you have like the same spirit mom or something?"

"I... dunno? But I'm totally sure of it!"

"He looks totally beat up. I thought you said he was strong."

"He is! Was... was-is..? Bah, he's just weak right now for some reason... and possessing somebody..? Wait, does that make me the stronger sibling now?"

"Shouldn't we like... stop him?"

"Oof... u-um... well... I suppose? I mean, he's still... like, my brother and all."

Rayn looks behind him, thinking he felt something for a moment, only to shrug and move on forward. Odd, it felt almost... familiar.

(Blargl. Ended up getting busy, but I was also trying to let others post. But cant let this inactivity continue!)

At those words Rayn spoke, Darth had an evilish grin and smiled mischeviously.

"Whoever said I was amplifying his emotions? You have possessed someone, so you have forgotten Rayn, but humans are creatures built on emotions. You must be able to feel it right? The emotions of your host, erroding at you? At your control? Maybe you can keep control, but do you really think that you can defeat me as you are now? No Rayn, because while I have accepted humanity, you have rejected it entirely. You simply do not understand...the glory and value of humans, of their emotions and spirits. And the strength that they hold. Meanwhile, I have a healthy respect for it".

At that point, something unexpected happened, even for Darth. A large explosion went off, and suddenly the dimensional walls began to shatter and break. It was as if the entire setting shattered around them all, and in exchange, everyone appeared in one location.

"What the..."

"Where are we?"

This included Jaune and Shinku, who were now in the same space as Rayn and Darth. Now, the three of them could totally ally and...

"Oi, Shinku! This is no good! The amount of enemies increased! Not only is that thing with that boy, but that man is also possessed!"

Darth, who saw this, realized it instantly.

"Of course. Rayn is fully possessing his body, but the boy...this is as much his will as it is mine...because of that..."

"It looks like the thing over there has some power, but his bond doesn't appear to be one of domination. Which means...you must be the final boss!"

Jaune and Shinku turned towards Rayn. Darth was not sure what caused the barriers to shatter, but it had ended up working in his favor. Because of the fact Rayn had not chosen harmony, but domination, the two were mistaking him as the enemy. A rather reasonable decision too, if one thought about it.

"I don't care how strong you think you are Rayn, I wont let you hurt this boy! I will help grant his wish! I wont allow you to kill him!"

Darht threw all of his passion, and technically truth, into his words that he shot at Rayn. He was totally painting Rayn as the bad guy here, to get his enemies to fight each other instead of him...although, that red haired boy...he seemed to have a bit of hesitation, as if he felt like something was wrong. But, it might just be because this was his first fight.

Rayn stopped, glancing around, two other kids had entered the field as the veil broke down. He slouched over, looking at the two, then back at Darth. It was an annoying predicament, while it did look bad for him, did it really look that much better for Darth? This had become... a big joke. Rayn slapped his hand over his face and began to chuckle bitterly... or was it really Rayn..? He was right, it had begun to erode at him.

"What is there to deny? Honestly, you think I'd sweat? Panic? I am a monster, and as one I've known the darkest parts of humanity since I was conceived. Born of hate, born to be hated, thus is my fate. I'll take my judgement when it comes," he says, tiredly slouching over, black feathers dropping off of him. He then looked over at Shinku and Juane, pointing out at Darth. "This armor spirit here? It thrives on the act of revenge, ranging from severe to petty. He revels in pointless feuds, feeds off the victims, and indulges the darkest aspects of his... partner's psyches, all as part of some weird idea of justice. I mean..."

Rayn turned back to Darth, tilting his head to the side.

"Why don't we speak of the children being held by Darthy... since he's so proud of himself right now, tell me, as cruel as they were, how does that justify draining them to husks as you slowly torture them? Children can be cruel, but please, tell me how this fixes anything? Honestly, as much of a bastard as I am, torturing and killing children... and reveling in it..? well, haha... it's... pretty messed up." Rayn chuckled bitterly again, then sighed, going limp again. "This may be what the kid wishes for... now anyways, but he doesn't yet understand the consequences of his actions... I'll take whatever price I am to pay... just..."

Suddenly there was a loud snap sound as a spotlight out of seeming nowhere gleams down upon Rayn, causing him to shield his eyes.

"Golly, you sure got chatty! Both are technically telling the truth, or at least, to an extent of what they believe to be the truth!" a young cheery female voice yelled out, echoing as if through a speaker system. Then the spotlight disappears, and another snap as it now centers in on another figure. This one was strawberry blond haired, pink eyed, pinkish nosed girl with freckles, with a long ponytail. She was only dressed rather casually in a rather oversized, long-sleeved white hoodie, with a large pink bow on the back of her head that somewhat resembled large rabbit-ears. Atop her head was a rather out-of-place black tophat. Cheerfully the grinned and waved at Shinku and Jaune, she radiated some kind of feeling of... positivity. "Hiiiii~! Such a lovely audience out there! Hey, wanna see me pull a rabbit out of my hat!?"

"What... what are you doing?! D-did the sugar go to your brain!?" a voice yells out from a corner of the area. Luci reacts by slouching over and sighing loudly. Over there was a woman dressed in a strange black rabbit-themed jumpsuit and rabbit-skull mask.

"Saaaaaaiiiiiph... I got boooored! Remaining unseen all the time is boooooring!" Luci whined. "And keeping up a veil all the time is exhaustiiiiing! And there's so many people here, its time to make friends!"

"Yeah... uh-huh... sure, Lu, just tell me when we get to the fighting part," the other woman says, now engrossed in playing some kind of handheld game.

"Ugh, seriously?!" Luci yells, raising her arms into the air.

Rayn raises a brow, opens his mouth to speak then just slaps his hand over his face and sighs. "So you... have a bond now."

"I knoooow! Weird, huh?" Luci responds, leaning forward and grinning widely at Rayn. She then leans back, looking a bit concerned as she twists her mouth. She then looked at Shinku and Jaune. " Um... hi? Look, my brother may be a bad guy, but he really was trying to talk the kid out of vengeance, not trying to kill him! I mean, really look at the situation here! Look at my brother! He's been beat up, by the ogres Darth summoned! That shouldn't even be possible... unless..."

El was surprised by the arrival of the other woman, taken completely off guard by both the arrival and her support in the fight. And an Englishwoman to boot? Or at least she thought she caught a familiar accent in there. There was a slight smirk on her face as she caught the other strange voice speaking. "Oh, still very much dead, but that hasn't seemed to stop Mr. Sargon, or myself for that matter."

If Sargon's face were visible, it would be showing a rather neutral, yet pleased smile. Almost somewhat confident, or amused, or maybe just pleased. "They both seem very polite I must say." He whispered in El's mind. A moment later, his voice could be more audibly heard lilting into El's. "I suppose you could say the Akkadian spirit is rather indomitable. Or perhaps indestructible."

El grabbed another Goblis, picking it up and smashing it head first into the ground, watching the skull crack as it began to fade away. "Lots of these nasty pests. I think we need to keep moving, but we might have to fight our way through." She smirked as she brought her sword down into another Goblis's head, turning to the newcomer with a grin on her face. "Name's El by the way. The Akkadian is Sargon. Pay him no mind though, he's terribly paternal."

"Well seeing as my soul is tied to your body, one would hope you'd understand my interest in keeping it mostly in tact." He responded in a slightly teasing way.

"Oh shut it."