Clockword: Invasion. [Johann]

Johann sighed, staring into the square mirror on the wall before him, one hand on his neck as he turned his head from side to side, gazing at his own reflection. How could something like this even happen in the first place ? Well, Mars knew the answer, but it wasn't like he was gonna spill the secret to the now not-so-old-man. Johann's body had not just been deaged, Mars had also taken the irreversible liberties to perform some "adjustments", and as a result, the life of Johann, the Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company, had been turned around completely in just a single day. There had not just been physical adjustments, like the removal of scars, the gunshot scar on the left side of his chest he had sustained in one of his first missions as a mage having vanished overnight, but also mental adjustments, thought it seemed like this aspect had been much more unpredictable, even for the self proclaimed demonic lord of war that had been sealed inside Jo, with side effects that had already been ... noticeable, to say the least, but would remain unexplored in entirety still, at least for the time being. Though, as one would assume, having the own personality, the own being altered by a being of immense, enigmatic powers in no more than a single day was quite the shock, and the Vice President still wasn't sure how to deal with this at all. Was this even still him ? Mars had assured that at least the mental changes had been made unconsciously when Ruvel, Jo's fellow Vice President, had tried to play with a matter he understood nothing about, modifying the runic seal on his chest without first considering the long term consequences for the cage that had Mars safely locked away and limited his influence over Johann to a minimum, instead of fixing the partially damaged cage removing it entirely, causing Mars to be instead locked to the old man as a vessel. Apparently, from the way the demon had explained it, their souls had merged. Just like that. And as things stood ... he couldn't exactly change that fact ... at all. He was neither powerful enough to lock away one of the 7 divine seals, nor was his understanding of runesmithing nearly advanced enough to even attempt such a feat on his own. He would need an entire guild worth of mages versed in the art to maybe, maybe get some results. But ... as far as he knew, there was no such thing here in Fiore, a guild specializing on runery, and so, he had but one option left: Live with the fact that how he looked like and who he was had forever been changed.

And not all these changes were positive, either. It was obvious. Where he had had a distinct preference for etiquette and formality before it had been replaced with a stoic, indifferent behaviour. Where there had been respect for the structures of authority before ... he could now care less. Perhaps it could be considered thinking more efficiently, outside of the mundane limiters of concepts such as compassion or morals, but at the same time ... thinking without feeling could be more than dangerous. One thing the mage was sure of, however. He had to get out. Right now. He needed time, he needed space. Somewhere far away from the West Fiore Trading Company on Tolgalen. A little venture to sort his thoughts. A little time he could use to find himself again. And there was but one way he knew that would help him do exactly that.

A short trip, a teleportation spell and a bit of time later Johann von Weiss, dressed in his white West Fiore Trading Company suit with the guild pin on his chest, the white, silken runed gloves on his hands and the azure rapier by his side found himself in the Cursed Lands, getting closer to the location the job had specified. To be honest, he hadn't even looked at the details of the job, his sole focus had been getting out of the guildhall as fast as possible and having an excuse to actually do so, signing up on the first thing he could get his hands on. Correspondingly to that fact he, although it maybe wouldn't be the best to admit, knew little of what to expect. He was confident that he, especially now that Mars had also modified is magical capabilities, could take on any thread coming his way, though ... sometimes raw, unrefined violence wouldn't be the answer. He sighed. Maybe he had acted with too much haste ? It was too late to turn back now, anyway. But ... he also had to find this assigned job partner of his, which could've proven somewhat difficult, even with his extremely heightened senses due to just the sheer vastness and nature of the Cursed Lands, had it not been for a peculiar little ball of floating light. At first Johann assumed it was hostile, these were the Cursed Lands, after all, and will-o-wisps were not unheard of, his hand rushing to the blade at his side, but at second glance the thing seemed nice, almost playful, or maybe that was just his imagination, floating away as soon as it had spotted him in a certain direction, the silver haired male deciding to take the chance.

And sure enough, the light had lead him to ... well, someone. He could neither confirm nor deny that the young girl, maybe around her twenties or so, was in fact the mage he was looking for, and so the best approach in this situation was to simply inquire with the person in question. "Good day, young Miss. Johann von Weiss, Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company. I'm supposed to meet a fellow mage here in the area and, uhm, would that perhaps be you ?", Jo having trouble to keep up the more well mannered approach this time. Where he would have had no trouble with this in the past ... now it just seemed so redundant to him. "And I'm Mars, Second Se-", a giggling, distorted voice rang from the same mouth that had introduced the VP just moments before, quickly interrupted by the man speaking up with his own voice "And I'm accompanied by a friend of mine, Mars, who due to unfortunate circumstances seems to be locked inside this body and should know better when to speak and when to keep to himself.", Jo spoke harshly. "Tseehehe, but where would be the fun in that ?". Jo sighed once again. He just hoped the girl wouldn't be turned away by this rather ... strange sight, lest he would have to complete a job alone.

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Word Count: 1.136
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Extending his own hand, the man shook the girls, "Heyo, Nessa. Just Johann is fine.", followed by nothing but another chuckle from Mars. The demon seemed pleased with his own introduction. "So, you're a Fairy Tail mage, hm ? Gotta say ... I'm not too terribly familiar with your guild, but I met some of your fellow mages before, so with that, nice to meet you" "Tssehehe ...". Johann already knew that this mission would become a feat, not due to the girl that called herself Nessa, but for Mars and his constant presence. It was truly a pain ... but it looked like the Vice President had to get comfortable with the demon, there wasn't really anything he could do about him, after all ... at least for the time being. "So this little ball of light is a companion of sorts to you ? Seems useful", Jo asked as Nessa talked to it, the thing reacting in the same playful manner before starting to float in another direction, responding "Right behind you, lead the way", following the Fairy Tail mage who, in turn, was following her light. It was now he took a first good look at their surroundings. Dark, as if in eternal twilight, befitting of a place called the "Cursed Lands", though not entirely convincing, either. It didn't really feel too threatening to the mage, but he wasn't exactly sure if that was Mars' doing, the merging having changed his sense of perception or if it was simply his nature. Slowly making their way into the woods, their surroundings, however, changed. The temperature dropped, the already dark environment got darker and the whole place had a rather eerie atmosphere about it. Jo didn't know if it was just his gut, or his heightened senses, but he could feel something was going wrong here, and that ancient magic was at work ...

Wondering to himself as he stared into the distance, daydreaming almost as he was lost in thoughts, the sudden sound of the girl's voice ripping him from this state "O-oh, yeah, I forget, The West Fiore Trading Company isn't really a legal guild per se, hm. Well ... Vice President essentially means second in command after the CEO of the WFTC, who leads Tolgalen. If the West Fiore Trading Company was a guild ... I guess it would be comparable to a position as a guild ace ? I share this position with my colleagues, Ruvel and Sol, though. As for what I do ... you could say the position is more paperwork than anything ...", he gave the girl a smile, "... but you gotta get out from time to time as well, don't you ? That's why I'm here. I hope that answers your question.", in fact quite happy that his job partner would show interest in what he had, over the course of the recent year, adopted as his family. Smiling weakly as he reminisced the time he had spent with his fellow guildmates he kept walking ... until, a little while later, a sudden, yet defined sound reached his ears. The grinding of gears. "Nessa. Stop for a second", he froze immediately, hoping the girl would to the same as he listened, closed his eyes, and activated his special sensory. Every breath, every tiny bit of movement within a good distance of him he could sense, envision, and locate. "Looks like we found something. There's a structure a good 100m east of here, behind those trees.", pointing in the direction, "Also, it seems like surrounding this structure are various ... constructs, I guess. They seem to be made of metal, though that is all I can sense from here.", he explained, eyes still closed before opening them again, revealing that they had turned completely black, his pupils the only thing retaining colour, glowing in a deep, crimson hue before the change slowly receded. "Finaaaally some action", a contrived yawn from Mars ringing through the back of his head as he turned to the girl. "So, any particular way you want to approach this ?", asking before determining the next course of action. If she already had a plan ... he of course wouldn't hold her back and join her in her endeavour.

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Word Count: 711
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When Nessa shook his hand Johann gave a friendly smile. At least his job partner turned out to be ... surprisingly agreeable. Thinking about some of the other mages he had had to deal with in the past ... well, everyone has their own charm ... in a way. Answering the girl's next question, he took a second to think, unsure if he had missed any mages in his head who hadn't introduced themselves as members of the famous legal guild, Fairy Tail, when he'd met them, but ... well, as it stood, he could only think of two. "Well, for one there would be Althea, who wore your guild mark. A most ... unique person, indeed. Then also someone who called themselves Aven Alveron, whom I couldn't help but admire for his brilliant use of magic ... but, in honesty, not counting you, that's about it", Johann laughed a little nervously, not sure if that was what the girl wanted to hear or if she even knew those people at all.

After that, when the topic shifted to the girl's magic, Johann couldn't help but smirk. It was truly ironic, he couldn't have found better words for himself. "Yeah, I can very much understand how it is when your magic seems to have a life on its own. I was born without magic, you see, and, well, it seems that all magic I possess at current comes from Mars.", the demon chuckled. Well, she didn't have to know it was a demon, and, to be honest, the lord of war wasn't really something that could be considered a curse or a blessing. Perhaps something in between those two states ? Jo had never really thought about it too much ... maybe because he didn't know that Mars had been there for most of his life ? Or maybe due to the fusion that had happened between the two he now had come to realize just how important the other entity inside him actually was ? He wasn't sure ... in any case, he wouldn't waste too much time thinking about it when he had a job to do and a fellow mage to assist.

A short bit of walk and conversation later, Johann was a little startled by Nessa's reply to his explanation. He had never really thought about what he meant to the guild, only what the guild meant to him "H-huh ? I-I mean, I'm sure ... I'm sure they do, heh", scratching the back of his head with a raised hand. Well, Cirven and Ruvel most definitely appreciated how they could load off their paperwork on his desk when the opportunity presented itself ... No, it certainly must've been more than that, he figured. He wouldn't be a Vice President otherwise ... right ? "T-thank you for the kind words", Jo laughed nervously. He truly did appreciate it. In times like these ... he sure could use them.

Another little while later, after Johann had asked about a plan, he listened carefully now that things seemed to have gotten a little more serious. "Uhm, I don't really know if my magic has a natural element of surprise to it or not either, but ... one thing, if this turns into a fight, it seems I have no choice but to either hand control over to Mars and he'll become the dominant personality or we'll share this body as equals. Just a fair warning, he's ... an odd soul, to say the least." Johann spoke with serious and somewhat distant voice. He hadn't used these newfound powers of his too much other than the whole recent incident in Minstrel, so he didn't really know what to expect and figured it would only be adequate to inform Nessa. But ... even though the girl had said that she commanded what the Vice President would think was light, she suddenly flashed with magical energy, speaking what appeared to be a name with a voice that indeed wasn't too far from Mars using Johann as a medium. And sure enough, just a moment later Johann's semi long, Silver hair was blown to a side as a strong breeze, a gust suddenly hit him, coalescing into a tangible form to form ... a woman ? Clad in armour, a sword by her side and wings on her back, her appearance being accompanied by a not very subtle whistle from Mars, "Well isn't she a beauty, hm, old man ?", ringing through the back of Jo's head. Johann only response was a sigh. "So not just a caster, but a summoner as well, hm ? Quite impressive, I must admit" Johann said with a friendly tone while giving the new arrival a short bow. He had seen the complexity and intricacy of summoning magic himself, Ruvel, his fellow VP, commanding it nigh perfectly.

But ... what was the rest about ? A triangle ? The VP definitely found himself lost at the sudden outburst of emotion from the Fairy Tail mage, but it wasn't really his business and if the girl would be uncomfortable talking about it he wouldn't really push the matter. It wasn't his place to know, anyway. The summon though would most certainly add to their strength, and that he would care about. Seeing her fly up, Johann gave Nessa a nod. "Alright. I guess I do have an advantage over whatever constructs these would be in sheer speed, at least it's likely.", Johann almost chuckled. He was known as the local speed demon in the WFTC. "I'll throw myself in the fray and create a distraction that you guys can use to advance. Before we storm off though ...", Johann raised a hand to about shoulder height, removing a glove briefly to reveal the runed hand beneath, the skin almost looking like a good portion of it had been covered by tattoos of blank ink scripture. A moment later, the runes briefly flashed with light and glow, sending out a soft, subtle, almost gentle wave of magic around the VP that rushed to his own and Nessa's form, forming around their right wrists what appeared like a bracelet of runes that glowed in 10 different, vibrant colours. "This you can use to infuse your magic with any of the runes' elements. I need not explain how it works or which elements to use, you simply need to focus on your magic, and you will know. It will provide you with great magical strength. So, guess that means ...", Johann turned towards the source of the noise, the smell of oil and rust, Mars cackling excitedly, his voice echoing through the VP's very being, humming gleefully almost "...Now we're going to waaaar, now we're going to waaaar, tssehehe...", the rune mage drawing his rapier "... see you over there. Mars, you know what to do.", from his mouth echoing the other voice "Won't have to tell me twice".

The air around Johann flickered for a second, booming with magical power before his form exploded into a stream of wind, Johann's body vanishing in a burst of extreme speed that instantly broke the sound barrier with a characteristic, audible crack. Reappearing in a burst of force, Johann blinked, his eyes seeing for the first time what had produced those sounds and smells from earlier. A shifting mass of machines, a few dozens, possibly, what appeared like artificially constructed avians dwelling on the ground while a few machines that almost resembled jellyfish in their build were floating, seemingly stationary, surrounding the structure he had sensed earlier. Now that he could get a good look, it was much more impressive than he had anticipated. An arc of clean, entirely black stone, the space within flashing with blue energy and sparks. Johann could tell what this was, for he used a similar method to travel to his "mansion", a dimensional gateway. The situation seemed worse than anticipated. Whatever this was ... it had come from the other side of this portal, most likely, and they probably wouldn't be too friendly either. Just as the VP finished these thoughts, the machines seemingly sprung to life, the attention turning to the new threat. So those were guards, huh ? Either way, didn't matter too much to either Mars or the VP. "Your turn, demon. Show them what you can do. Suscitatio", Johann spoke the command sharply as his eyes once more turned black, the pupils again shining with bright crimson colour, the runes that normally limited their presence to only the left side of his body digging across his skin, the scripture spreading, burning across all visible flesh before taking the same glow as the VP's eyes, "Showtime".

From the runes on the man's body it looked like liquid metal started to leak out, quickly shifting, engulfing every bit of skin before hardening into what appeared like a scale armour. A gleeful, toothy grin spread across the man's face as machine after machine turned to him, the rattling and shifting of gears suddenly popping up everywhere "Ah, finally, some fresh air. Hey, you metal numbnuts ! I'm over heeereeee ~", Mars shouted for every of these beings to sense, the horde of ... well, "robo-chickens", charging at him while what could only be described as mecha-jellyfish retreated back to the gate, probably about 30 or so avians producing sounds that were not entirely un-chicken-like, though very mechanical in nature. "So that's all ? You let me out to fight birds ? How boring" Mars faked a yawn. "You do not entertain me, artificial creatures. Begone !", waving his hand before him in a sweep motion, the runes on his body, along with his eyes, suddenly changing colour to a deep blue, a thin wave of water bursting from the runes on his hand. The first few rows of these robo-chickens were instantly torn asunder, ripped apart by the sheer pressure of the spell, the next ones simply cut into two pieces cleanly, falling to the ground, motionless before finally, the wave met the earth, throwing up dirt and grass as it dissipated. Mars cackled. If they all were this weak this would be, while not too terribly entertaining, a walk in the park.

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Word Count: 1.707
Word Count Total: 3.554 / 9.000

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When Nessa told the Vice President that the Fairy Tail mage he had already met, Aven, was closer to her than he initially would've thought he looked up, still smiling a little nervously. "Ah, I see, well, that certainly makes things more interesting.", he stopped for a brief moment. So there were the members of the famous Fairy Tail, hm ? He had read things about them before, but hadn't really dealt with any of them personally. He was pleased to find out that they seemed like a nice bunch. Definitely nicer than most mages he had met when he was still travelling, and certainly more well spoken and mannered than his old mercenary comrades from back in the day ... "The Company tends to not really get involved with other guild's business too much, but ... in any case, I'm looking forward to collaborating with you, Nessa of Fairy Tail. Let's do our best, shall we ?". With that, the introduction seemed done for the rune mage. He, however, was genuinely interested in not just her guild, but her magic and person, too. He would keep an eye out and observe to satisfy his curiosity, at the very least, walking alongside this new job partner of his. When the girl spoke of her family, the Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company couldn't help but chuckle, thinking of his own family back on Tolgalen. The other members of the Company, his adopted extended family, were certainly an odd group as well, the higher ups especially. "Don't worry, Nessa. I know exactly what you mean", the rune mage quietly grinned to himself. They were all quirky in their own sense.

A good bit later, when The Vice President had already thrown himself into the fray and the dominant personality had switched to Mars, the lord of war couldn't help but smile at the destruction he had caused. This situation simultaneously was a test of both the new magical abilities he had given Johann as well as the new body. The magical abilities certainly were more than satisfying, the first rows of robotic avians reduced to nothing more than bent and broken scrap metal, the bodies of the ones that had been sliced in half twitching and twisting mechanically for a few more seconds before, too, becoming still. It was time to test the physical abilities. Stretching playfully, Mars laughed out loud "Ahhhh ... It's good to be back. If I didn't know better I'd say it's been centuries, tssehehe". Glancing over, it appeared like the Fairy Tail mage now, too, had joined the fight, swinging a sword of pure, radiant light into the hordes of mechanical chicken creatures that surrounded the mages like an ever shifting swarm. He grinned. "Looks like I'll use, hmm, let's see ... this one", Mars in thought going through the runes that covered the VP's body, Johann silently giving the lord of war a nod, as much as it could be called a nod in his current state of existence, viewing the world like he was looking through his own two eyes as if they were the screens of a TV, his body controlled by someone else like a puppet, though still feeling every single move Mars made. Still, despite only recently having started to share a body, both the lord of war and the rune mage seemed oddly coordinated, familiar with each other almost, cooperating efficiently and without much talk. It was truly strange, even to Johann himself, but this was not the time nor the place to dwell on such matters. For now, all that mattered where Mars' words, who once more repeated the command for the runes from before, mumbling "Suscitatio" in his deep, echoing and distorted voice before once again the runes on Johann's body flared up, this time in a bright, blood red.

What followed was a choreography of destruction, the dance of death. Exploding from the VP's form came a wave of force, a faint crimson aura surrounding him, the outlines of his form blurring behind the mantle of pure, kinetic energy. The face of Jo once again formed a grimace, the wide, toothy grin appearing wildly out of place on the normally stoic face, and without much more, the man's form flickered for another second before he was once more launched forward at extreme speeds, the sound barrier cracking in the background as he appeared within the horde of robot chickens that, confirming his arrogant expectations, seemed to be entirely unable to keep up with the sheer velocity of the spell. His face still bearing the grin, Mars came to a stop above the artificial creatures, hovering over them for just a second before, with considerable force, bringing down his free left fist onto the ground, the earth cracking and the ground rumbling as dust and dirt exploded to all sides, launching away the mecha chickens that had been closest to the epicenter of this attack and showering the others with particles of dust and dirt. "Most satisfying", Mars commented to himself , his feet elegantly touching the ground as he regained his balance after the strike, not paying much attention to the chicken that had approached from the back, much like a human wouldn't pay much attention to a single ant on the sidewalk. It only took a second before, with a metallic sound, the elongated, sharp beak of the artificial bird pierced his shoulder from behind, the end of the "weapon" emerging from the other side of it. "Huh ?", Mars turned his head at the sudden, sharp pain. Of course, it wasn't even enough to make the lord of war flinch, on his face only an expression of mild confusion , cackling to himself "Oh, my apologies. Must've missed you, tsehe", before firmly grasping the thing with his free hand and pulling it, a splatter of blood shooting from the bright red hole in his right shoulder as the beak was removed, the crimson liquid immediately starting to taint the white of his company uniform. In this moment, the only thing that excessively pained the VP was the knowledge of having lost another one. He couldn't buy his clothes as quick as Mars destroyed them. A deep sigh echoed through both the men's minds. Mars however, who still firmly grasped the bird, now closed his hand, quickly doing away with the mechanical being, crushing it with ease, throwing the destroyed thing away like an old tin can. The wound, still present on the man's shoulder, instantly closed again and the grin returned to his face.

Mars turned around. His eyes wandering for a second he found the girl, who seemed thoroughly busy with one of the flying mechanical tentacle creatures. Mars cackled. It looked like the Fairy Tail mage and her summon were having fun. More fun with the chickens. In any case, they were below him anyway. He would eradicate them all and then move on to the fun part. Yes, that seemed like a good, no, great plan. "Tssehehe" he giggled to himself, once more going through the runes, stopping when he found the one. It made sense. Nessa was too close to use something like antimatter here, she would certainly take damage, but he still had light. Light, which would be benevolent to a friend, and devastating to a foe. Beautiful, scorching light, used in conjunction with his very own darkness. The grinning grimace on his face intensified. Mars sheathed the rapier he ha still been holding before spreading his arms, the black, tattoo like inscriptions on his skin glowing once more, this time in a hallowed golden hue, before explosively the area a good 100 meters around him was engulfed in a black light, simultaneously blinding and not. Johann's allies would only feel a slight warmth, perhaps even comfortable, while the smaller creatures would be incinerated, burned away by holy flame, reduced to nothing more than ash within a few blinks of an eye, leaving behind a thin layer of dust that covered the ground in the area before, suddenly, the light retreated to the VP's form, silence taking its place. Mars giggled. His eyes still on the jellyfish creatures, he noted that they too had been affected by the light, their forms heavily molten in places, heavily disfigured, but still floating and alive. "Looks like that was a bit overkill. Those things take a beating, though ... tsehe, this will be fun !". Again, he drew his rapier.


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Word Count: 1.419
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Mars grinned still, slowly stepping towards the few remaining jellyfish creatures that Nessa and her summon weren't fighting. They were barely hanging on. "Mars. You've played enough. We have a job to do, it's time that we move on.", Johann's voice spoke softly, "Time to put them out of their misery then ...", Mars whispered to himself, the arm with the blade pointing to the ground, golden runes flaring up all over the steel of the weapon, coating it an aura of holy light. "Was fun while it lasted though", Mars spoke before bursting into a stream of wind, his runes flashing in a dull grey briefly before he once more launched off, his blade cutting through the side of one of the floating creatures like through butter, separating the thing cleanly, the two broken, molten halves falling to the ground, the tentacles ceasing their motions. Mars turned, the large grin gone, a serious expression now dominating the VP's face as he marched towards the next monstrosity, it's tentacles flailing wildly as he approached, swung like bladed whips toward the approaching lord of war who, almost with ease, grabbed the tentacles with his free hand, grasped them firmly and pulled the jellyfish creature towards him, the azure rapier in his hands piercing the center of the creature's body before that one, too, fell to the ground, lifeless. Apart from the ones that Nessa and Tiphanae were fighting, he would let the two deal with these themselves, of course, there was one of these left, damaged, almost broken, a rather sad sight, truly. Mars decided to sheath the still glowing rapier again, putting it away safely and freeing up his hands, the runes on one of his arms changing colour, along with his eyes, one final time, this time glowing with a bright yellow, sparks of electrical energy soaring around the extremity as he lifted his hand, pointing a finger at the last of the mechanical beings. "Bye bye ~", a small smirk returning to the man's face one last time before, explosively and without warning, all electrical energy released in a bolt of lightning that burst into the creature, lighting up it's form with a brief flash before this last jellyfish monstrosity collapsed. The runes on the VP's body stopped glowing, while however still covering his entire body, and the aura of pure, magical energy around him died down. "Good work, Mars", Johann spoke to the other inhabitant of his own body as he turned to the Fairy Tail mage to see how she was doing.

A satisfied look on his face he saw that they, too, had defeated their opponents, with calm steps approaching the girl and her summon. "Quite impressive, Nessa. You're an experienced fighter, aren't you ? Your friend as well", he gave the valkyrie a friendly nod. "So, these things have been plaguing the locals, hm ?" he spoke, kneeling down to inspect one of the broken jellyfish creatures, turning his head to face the slightly glowing portal "If the things can make their way through the portal, we should be able to do so, as well, don't you think ?". The Vice President had a weak smile on his lips, determined to find the source of this scourge. He didn't know if the girl would be willing to join him at all, they were essentially diving into the unknown with what he would propose, but what other option did they have, really ? He was sure they just had to try. "So, I don't know if that's okay with you at all, but ... Nessa, let's go through the portal and put an end to this invasion for good !", approaching the construction with slow, cautious steps before turning to the girl, waiting for a reply.


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Word Count: 632
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"Humans on the other hand are unpredictable", the VP finished the girl's sentence in his head, giving her a nod. At times it left him wondering who the real beasts were. But ... that's why he had stayed in the Company and joined Onyx Moon, to slowly but surely make the world a better place. Through everything that had happened to him in the recent year, reflecting on it his whole life had been turned upside down completely, he still hadn't forgotten his original goals. "Oh, please, by no means. It is I who should be honoured to fight in the company of two such skilled magi. For your assistance you have my thanks, Tiphanae, Nessa.", bowing slightly as he raised his right hand to his shoulder, giving both a smile that shifted to a concerned look as he took another glance at the portal. It seems he still had some of his old etiquette left when it mattered. Good, he didn't necessarily want to lose that part of his life. It connected him to his father. It wasn't like he was lying, either. Nessa's and Tiph's magic intrigued him, for the girl, he had never seen something quite like it before, and for the valkyrie, well, he had used wind magic before himself, but then again, all magic was more than unique, being a representation of the user's soul. It was no wonder Nessa commanded magic that was bright, happy, while all of his own magic had a deeply black aesthetic to it. The lord of war probably wouldn't help his case, either. There would be time to ponder over those things in greater detail later, though, they had a job to do. Following Nessa to the portal, Johann's expression, too, was determined. He did not know what would lie behind this portal, he could only speculate, but he would find out soon enough, confident that anything that would stand in his way, Mars, himself and the mage from Fairy Tail could deal with.

Giving Nessa a nod at the next comment, Johann took a step closer to the glowing gateway, staring into the water like, vertical surface before himself. "We'll better give it our all, then", he gave back before taking one large, final breath, inhaling sharply before leaping forward, his form disappearing. Around Johann, everything turned black for a second, he felt as if he was falling into an endless void of darkness before being accelerated to warp speeds, flying through a tunnel of colours, his body pulled in all directions and collapsing inwards simultaneously before finally, he took one more breath, and opened his eyes. Surprisingly, there was no blinding light ... and no onslaught of mechanical beings either. The whole place had a soothing atmosphere, almost as if it had been designed to induce a feeling of coziness. The sky wasn't blue and there was no sun to speak of, instead, it was as if there was an endless, dark horizon expanding before them, a firmament filled to the brim with bright, beautiful stars. It was as if they were looking directly at an ever spiraling galaxy, the colours and glows, for a moment, completely taking Jo's breath away. But it wasn't just the sky. Before them lay a lush plain, the grass covering it almost glowing in an azure hue, only disturbed by the occasional small hill, ivory white trees with the same glowing, azure leaves dotting the place. For more than just a few moments, the Vice President took in the breathtaking atmosphere, speechless at the sight presenting itself. This was an otherworldly paradise. Johann turned to Nessa, about to say something when Mars audibly gasped from the VP's mouth, as if he had just remembered something important that had been long forgotten, only now recently resurfacing along with the realization that you made a terrible mistake. "It ... it cannot be. N-no, impossible !", the lord of war whispered, shocked. "Mars ? What's wrong ?", Johann asked back, more than just slightly confused at the sudden display of awe from the otherwise so calm and disconnected lord of war. A few seconds past, and nothing could be heard from Mars, but Johann, who shared his body with the creature, could feel the other tremble.

Before, however, he could get any sort of answer from him, there was a flash of light around the mages, Johann instinctively raising a hand to cover his eyes, lowering it to see that before them there had appeared what looked like a flickering, distorted image of sorts. A little startled by the sudden, new appearance, he could only make out minor details, but, gradually, the image started taking a more clear form, resembling ... a girl ? Before them seemed to stand a girl, her skin as pale as the ivory of the trees, her hair in the same shade of azure as the plants, more couldn't be made out like this, and though heavily distorted, Jo was sure he had heard a voice. A second time, it rang out, this time more clearly, though still sounding as if tainted by interference "Plea- hel- us, str-gers, ... this pla-, the Gard- of Eden, ... inva- by the clockwo- machin-, an-" before, with a zapping sound, the image vanished, leaving nothing behind but silence once again. "The Garden of Eden ?", Johann asked to himself more than anything else. Well, the girl wanted them to save this place from what she called the "Clockwork" machines from what he could gather. That would be no issue at all. It was basically their plan anyway, but ... there was something that more than bothered Johann. Mars had winced at the mere mention of the name of this place. Garden of Eden ? What exactly was this all about ?

"T-this place, we shouldn't be here. There shouldn't be a way to the garden. It is not allowed. Father has forbidden it. We-", Johann didn't notice, but for Mars, it was as if sudden clarity filled his mind. Of course, how could he ever doubt him. He had been lead here for a reason, for the explicit purpose of cleansing the holy gardens of these intruders. The second seal, harbinger of a divine apocalypse, had been brought to the invaders to answer their declaration of war not with word, but with deed. And an apocalypse he would bring them. If it was one thing and one thing only that Mars wouldn't, couldn't tolerate, it was blasphemy. Any of that didn't make sense to the VP, who felt the sudden shift from something he had only once before felt in the lord of war, fear, to burning hate.

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Word Count: 1.116
Word Count Total: 6.721 / 9.000

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Johann felt his entire body tense up involuntarily, he couldn't help it. The feeling he got from Mars was more than unsettling, as if someone, something had flicked a switch, his playfulness and fun the lord of war was having vanishing, a brutal seriousness taking hold in its stead. Mars' trembling had only intensified, though the fear was gone, the ever present, burning flame of hate in the hybrid's heart changing from an ember to a raging inferno. Johann, surprised as he was, could barely manage to hold Mars back from taking over the Vice President's body and storming off right now. "M-Mars ?! What's this about ? E-explain", he struggled. "I will explain later, human. For now, know that I tolerate your and your companions' presence in the holy gardens. You bear no fault for this circumstance, and father is benevolent, he will forgive you. Our priority is to exterminate the intruders.", the normally so informal voice suddenly  holding an unknown severity. "Hold on a second -", Johann tried to talk back, but he could feel Mars' grasp around his mind tightening. The lord of war was strong, stronger than himself, and fighting him seemed futile. Additionally, Johann was thrown off by the sudden appearance of a new Valkyrie when Nessa summoned once again, the orb of light that changed into a woman of towering height and impressive stature throwing of his focus for just a second. Enough for Mars to overpower him. With a sudden burst strength from the entity inside his body, Jo could feel his consciousness slip away, returning back to the dark room inside his own mind. There was nothing he could do.

Turning towards Nessa and her Valkyries, the white in Johann's eyes slowly changed to black, the dual coloured pupil's in his eyes changing to a glowing, crimson red once more, the bloodshot veins in and around them lighting up suddenly. "Unsettled ? My heart is bleeding, Valkyrie." Mars spoke, his deep, distorted voice giving the impression of a genuine feeling of discomfort. "Though ... with Father's permission, it is fine, will be fine. Besides, I haven't been called to service in a long, long time.", the grin returning to the Vice President's face, turning towards the starlit horizon, drawing the still glowing rapier from the scabbard on his side, the intensity of the hallow runes only growing stronger. "If it truly is war the intruders so much desire, then I, the second of the seven seals, Mars, shall give them one. It is my calling, after all ... tsehehe"

Without further words, the runes all over the man's body started glowing once more. Mars was back in his element, the grin spreading across the Vice Presidents face, looking out of place, yet strangely appropriate given the current circumstances. Lifting his gaze up, the light of the stars illuminating the features of the grimace, Mars vanished on the spot, a burst of sudden, extreme speed catapulting him high into the air, thin, long strings of pure, black energy materializing themselves behind and around the being's back to form a pair of twisted wings, the broken halo around his head lighting up one more time, swirling with negative force. Scanning the area using his heightened sense of sight, Mars took a few glances before finally, with a twist of his body, he laid eyes on the blasphemers that tainted the holy garden with their presence, a horde, really, just behind the other side of a bigger hill, broken and twisted machinations that marched ever onward without a real goal in mind, blindly destroying what was around them with their misguided actions. It was okay. Mars couldn't help but smile. He would make them see the light of the creator very soon, and repent for their sins. Using his ability to use an alternative method of communication, Mars was a good 100 meters up, after all, he snapped his fingers, Nessa and her summons would telepathically receive speed, direction and current location of the horde of robotic beings. He chose to deliver that information in the Vice President's voice, it was ... better suited for delivering messages, his own voice being that of a demon at current. In any case, he never once took his eyes of the creatures that had dared to leave behind them a wake of devastation in this, to him, one of the most holy of places, and would now receive punishment for their crimes. Gripping the hilt of the rapier tightly with his right hand, Mars still grinning, the air around him started to flicker before he angled his wings, a sudden burst of extremely pressurized air launching in the direction of their enemies at extremely high speeds, the sound barrier breaking instantly as he shot off.

The lord of war had already picked a target, a robotic creature closely resembling what appeared like a knight, his rapier and the free left hand simultaneously lighting up with roaring, scorching hot blue flame, leaving a trail as he burst through the air and into his foe with considerable force, the rapier piercing the thing's chest and throwing it off its mechanical feet, the area around the blade turning orange and melting away immediately. Mars grit his teeth. Despite putting all of his, or rather, the VP's power into this attack, the knight was still very much alive, grasping for the large metal axe it had carried with two hands and dropped. These things were sturdier, more durable than the lord of war would've liked, but then again ... it explained why the intruders had come this far. Simply walking into the Garden of Eden wasn't a thing you could do. No, they had to be more powerful than even this. Still, Mars hadn't lost his grin. Bringing up his left fist, the scorching flame still surrounding the extremity, he swung it down for a ground shaking blow that completely crushed the knight's head, blue flame shooting off to all directions as his opponent fell lifeless. Cracking the knuckles of his hand with his thumb, he stood up, now finding himself right in the middle of the mechanical horde, several opponents turning their mechanical heads, if they even had one, Mars spotted some of the jellyfish creatures from before in there, though this new mob seemed to largely consist of these knights. "Tsssehehe", Mars cackled, looking forward to all the fun he would have.

Like before, Mars readied himself. He drew back the rapier, the clockwork knights closing in, stepping towards him, their weapons held high, their metallic steps sounding like a never ending echo as they marched. The grimace on the demon's face widened, his teeth now visible, before swinging the sword, the runes on his body flashing briefly with a dull, bleached white, this time now element bursting forth, no fire scorching the knights, no electricity that destroyed their mechanics, only a wave of pure, kinetic force erupting, bursting forth from his hand as he swung. The knights were thrown back violently, crashing into each other, torn apart in places, the odd robotic arm or leg sent flying by the sheer force, the pressure of the blow, bunching up in a huge pile a good distance away from Mars. Satisfied with the effect of his powers, Mars stood up from his stance. It wouldn't take much more to destroy these ones, the first to fall in a conflict that would go on until either side was exterminated. A thing most honourable in the eyes of the apocalyptic Horseman of War. Spinning the rapier in his right hand he smiled, "Is this all you have to offer to me ? How boring, I expected more from those daring to cross into Paradise. Guess I'll just do my duty and stop toying then, tssehehe ... TSAHAHAHA", the rapier once more lighting up with flame before he burst forward at the bunched up pile of robots.

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Word Count: 1.322
Word Count Total: 8.043 / 9.000

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Mars still grinned fiercely, the ground around his feet exploding as he was launched forward by a sudden burst of extreme speed, the force he delivered with the blow of his unarmed left hand ripping the knights head off its shoulders and launching it away as the robotic foe collapsed forward with a metallic crunch. "Is this all ... ?", the lord of war muttered under his breath, turning his head to the next knight, the glowing red pupils in his eyes shifting from side to side as he followed the movements of his opponents. He sounded audibly disappointed. "I had expected more from an invader of Eden !", the deep, distorted voice echoing from the Vice President's mouth as the skin on his left hand was engulfed in a liquid metallic substance before hardening. A knight seemed to take this as an opening, lifting its sword, the two empty sockets that replaced the beings eyes staring at the horseman of war before swinging the weapon down. The grin vanished from Mars' face. He stopped the swing mid air, grasping the blade with his metallic hand, his irritated gaze upon the opponent that had dared swing such an inferior weapon at him, giving the metal version of a warrior an almost psychotic gaze. "Who is behind this, automaton ? Who is your lord ?", the robot, naturally, not giving any sort of answer, struggling as it tried to pull its blade free, the stare shifting into a gaze of pure anger once again, "IS. THIS. ALL ?". He let the weapon go, the knight swinging it back and losing its balance, Mars, with one large swing, drawing back his hand before bringing it forward in less than the blink of an eye, sparks flying as metal burst through metal and the robot knight was simply lifted off its feet and launched away violently.

"I feel thoroughly insulted. You dare not even send creatures of flesh ? Are you blinded by such naive arrogance you assume this is enough to stand up to me ? To stand up to the lord ?", he shouted, hoping that the someone, or something, that had sent these heathens into their demise would listen, and mark his words, the metal drones from before that had been damaged, anywhere from lightly to severely, quickly working to surround him, row upon row forming, weapons, shields and armor reflecting the intense starlight in the area. Mars felt nothing but disdain, and, strangely enough, pity for these beings. He wondered if they even knew what they were doing, he wondered if their creator had been as benevolent as his ? If they had feelings, emotions, if they felt the pain, or were mindless slaves, born to do the every bidding of a twisted being that pursued its own destructive demise. It made the lord of war grit his teeth. Creating beings of sentience without the means to express their feelings was the cruelest thing he could imagine, and creating beings without sentience to throw away the life granted to them was blasphemy. It made no difference in the end. Whether these creatures could actually be considered alive or not, they were made of metal, and yet, they moved, they thought, they bled, meaning someone must've made them, meaning they had a creator, just like he had one. It would be his honour to punish their lord for the sins committed. "I'll come to you in due time ...", he promised to himself. For now, though, they had the Garden to take care of.

Over the constant and continuous shifting and rustling of metal and gear he could hear that the mage from Fairy Tail and her Valkyries had joined the fray, too, smirking for a few moments. Indeed, what was a good war without alliances, without loyalty. Not better than a mere dispute among beasts, as far as he was concerned. And in his eyes, there was no need for the ferocity and mercilessness of a beast ... not yet. No Mars was not without mercy, most certainly. He would enjoy his life as much as he could, he tried to keep away from the mortals as much as possible, and he would hold onto his promise, the promise that he had given at the beginning of time. That he would save them when the time comes ... but first, the machines. He took a look over to where the girl was fighting, making sure she was outside the range. He grinned. "You are in my way, invaders. Are you not ashamed of yourselves ? Do you not feel bad about your sinful ways ? It is fine. I will forgive you, tssehe.", he spoke softly, his expression ironically almost gracious, caring even, as he extended both his hands towards the starlit sky "You need only confess, and repent. First things first, friends, kneel before your lord !", a huge, grey magic circle appearing beneath his feet, stretching a good 100 meters into all directions, easily covering all machines in his vicinity. Stretching his arms out to both sides as he brought them down to about shoulder height, his open palms pointed at the sky, he started cackling, the circle flaring up. Suddenly, from one moment to the other, lines started blurring, everything seemed to shift before robotic bodies were torn apart violently, a sudden, extremely loud, resounding metallic crush ringing out as dozens and dozens of metal knights and jellyfish were crushed by immense, irresistible gravity. The sound of metal being driven into the ground filled the skies, clouds of dust thrown up as each knight, each robotic being was torn asunder, one by one falling to the spell of Mars before finally, the circle vanished, leaving behind nothing but broken, mangled and still corpses of the once so numerous invaders.

There were still more than enough left, though. More than enough invaders to toy with. Still, his path was clear now. Stepping through the piles of what was now nothing more than scrap metal tainted by a black, oily substance, Mars quickly accelerated, pushed forward by an explosive elemental force at mach speeds, his target a group of knights at the other side of the horde, or more specifically, a certain knight. But before that ... he stopped, coming to a halt behind Nessa and her Valkyries, his runes and pupils briefly flashing with deeply blue energy before once again moving on, gone as fast as he had stopped. Around Nessa and her Valkyries a subtle, warm rain would begin falling, healing their wounds and damage sustained immediately. Without giving up his momentum though, Mars pushed on, his eyes focused on a single knight. He was visibly taller than the others, towering over them, in his hands a huge zweihander sword that was easily longer than one of the robot knights was tall. And, on top of that, there was the reason why Mars had picked up on this one in the first place: It was oozing with pure, magical energy. Obviously some sort of leader to the group. Mars grinned, coming to a halt before this other group of clockwork monstrosities, his flat palm pointed at the large knight. "Found you", the lord of war spoke before from his hand burst what appeared like a ray of pure, bright electricity, racing towards the enemy before, with a loud crash, slamming into its form.

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Word Count: 1.237
Word Count Total: 9.280 / 9.000 (WC met)
OOC:
No stats cuz meh, Jo healed Nessa and her Valks for 100 HP each and removed negative status effects if present

Mars' lightning spear slamming into the knights form, it let out what sounded like a long, drawn out groan, the surge of blue lightning sizzling all over the knight's body. It appeared like the sudden burst of electrical energy had somehow affected its mechanical body, the tall, robotic being violently shaking for a few seconds before all motion ceased suddenly and it, slowly, almost as if in slow motion, collapsed forward, intact, though seemingly paralyzed, turned off or short circuited. Who was Mars to tell ? Well, one thing was certain, the supposed "leader" of these invaders was just as much of a weakling as the others. The Lord of War shrugged to himself. Looked like this half hearted attempt of an intrusion was over here. The only thing left to do was exterminate the scattered remains of what could've been considered a sizeable force mere minutes ago, now reduced to but a couple dozen or so, not least due to the starlight mage's efforts. When Mars quickly glanced over after hearing Nessa's voice, he smirked, the sudden explosion of pure magical power catching him off guard. Not only did she release a powerful wave of pure light and flame, she also maintained the concentration to follow up with another, simultaneously cast spell to wipe out the foe once and for all. "Not bad for a human ...", the Second Seal couldn't help but think. Perhaps this girl was stronger than he had believed her to be ? In any case, he was pleased that his decision to allow their presence in the Garden had proven to not be to his disadvantage, no, quite the contrary. Perhaps she had received father's blessing ? No, it would be too early to presume such a thing. Father would take his time with something like that, like he always did. Mars was violently ripped from his thoughts when the ground below him started shaking.

The sudden, bright burst of magical energy had distracted not just his eyes, but also his magical sensory, the rapid surge of magical energy before him going unnoticed up until now, Mars swinging his head around, a mild look of surprise and confusion visibly dominating his expression as he laid eyes on the knight from before. The same knight was still there ... but, was it still the same ? No, something was wrong. The intensity of the quivering earth below grew with each passing second, the magical energy emitting from the mechanical corpse rapidly increasing before ultimately becoming visible in the form of an aura of silver energy around it. Much to the Lord of War's surprise, and admittedly, to his shock as well, he did not believe anyone going down from one of his attacks could ever get up again, the knight moved, first pushing himself off the ground with one arm, then grasping its sword to support its weight, then finally lifting itself back on its feet. The Second Seal had been both right and wrong. These things were indeed sturdier than one would imagine, and didn't appear like a simple bolt of weak electricity would knock them out. Drawing its arms back, the knight clamoured with deep, mechanical roar, the aura of energy around it flaring up, every knight, every mechanical being turning towards it. "So this is your true power ?", Mars grinned to himself, watching the events that followed unfurl passively. It appeared like he had triggered some sort of reaction from the monstrosity, the magical energy suddenly reversing its pull, the strong waves of power that had been bursting away from it suddenly beginning to flow inward before, in a huge squall of wind, every clockwork being still remaining was lifted off the ground and pulled towards it, even the lifeless remains of the already crushed and destroyed automatons beginning to move towards it, clashing, colliding with its form ... though appearing to mold into another shape. What Mars could see before himself was that the knights, living or dead, were absorbed, liquified, their bodies and the bodies of their fallen allies assuming a new, different shape, growing into a twisted mass of pure metal. From this mass of pistons, cogs, chains and metal a twisted, gigantic skeletal head formed, two arms shooting out from the mass that formed its body, though the base of its form remaining in place with no legs, it's body ending what looked like a huge, mangled, mechanical ribcage.

Mars couldn't help but laugh out loud in excitement, the beast before them letting out a deafening roar that shook the ground once more. "FINALLY ! Finally you show your true form, your TRUE POWER", the broad, toothy grin on his face forming a disturbing expression of contemporaneous hate and glee. "I must disappoint you, enemy of Eden, your trail of destruction will end here ! Seeing that you finally show your true form, the games end here. But ... you have my acknowledgement, monster ...", the huge, mechanical being's head slowly turning towards the Lord of War with loud, metallic creak and shatter, Mars stepping forward with slow, calm steps, gradually getting closer to the enormous robotic beast that resembled a broken, mangled corpse. "... for you have come this far to face me. Consider yourself lucky, for you will taste the might of the creator of Eden."

Mars slowly sheathed his rapier, extending one hand towards the monstrosity before himself that turned to face him, the massive weight of its body noticeably affecting the ground as it shifted, raising an arm and drawing back its gigantic fist before unleashing a massive swing towards the Lord of War. Mars kept up his calm pace, step by step getting closer to his adversary, the runes on his hand lighting up with dark energy, the glow slowly creeping up his arm and shoulders until it reached his eyes, both pupils flashing with pure magical energy,Mars speaking but one word, "Begone" before, on the intruders swung fist, a magic circle of pure, deep black appeared, booming with magical energy for a second before a brief, extremely bright flash of white light lit up their surroundings. The ground trembled at the enormous explosion that followed, the Lord of War himself barely managing to stay in place at the power of the shockwave, crouching down to not be simply blown away. The fist of the mechanical monster simply disintegrated along with its arm and shoulder, ripped apart in the smallest of pieces, turned to primordial ash and dust and scattered into all directions by the sheer force of the energy released by the antimatter reaction. The body of the mechanical colossus was thrown back by the sheer force, now missing an arm and part of its right shoulder, visibly damaged and heavily slowed down, but ... much to Mars shock, still intact. They beast had survived his strongest spell, and was still standing somehow. It appeared like this one would, naturally, be the strongest of them all. Quickly, his gaze shifted to look for Nessa. He had to be sure that the girl was okay, now that he realized ... that he might actually need her to assist in defeating their foe, no sure if he had enough magical power to completely and ultimately destroy the enemy.