(Non-Canon[?]) Halloween Omake - Spooks and Spiders
It was a quiet night in the IS Academy. Classes were over, the clubs were finishing up their meetings, and the students were either relaxing in their dorms or were out partying in Shibuya. Those who remained behind on the island enjoyed the night on their own terms…
"Come on, what's the harm in trying? It's not like something's really gonna come out!"
Cecilia shared a nervous look with Charlotte, both blondes clearly showing their worry by their unsure expression as Rin dragged them inside Haku Emiya's room. The shorter girl was all too excited with having a 'girls night' with them, especially when they learned from Ephraim that Chifuyu passed out from drinking some of his special Halloween-themed cocktails.
That meant that there was practically no one to patrol the 1st Year Dorms and prevent the students from enacting some shenanigans.
Which was just what Haku had done.
"I still don't know about this, Rin." Charlotte muttered as they crossed the doorway that led into the darkness of the redhead's room. The Frenchwoman was wearing an armored purple dress with an M-shaped forehead protector. Off to the side near her was some sort of flagpole that she, admittedly, disliked carrying around. "I feel like we really shouldn't tempt fate."
The Brit nodded quietly as she set her fake weapon besides the flagpole. It was an unwieldy thing, almost like a slab of metal if it were real. A single-edged mid-handled blade that was as big as she was tall.
At least the red dress she wore was something she approved more, it even came with it a pair of fake glasses.
The noblewoman took this time to scan the redhead's room. It was the standard room like the others; two beds, a joined table for their computers, a kitchenette, bathroom, etc. The most noteworthy personalization that Haku and her roommate had done was the scattered books around, as well as various blueprints full of nonsensical sketches of gadgets.
It seemed as if Haku's roommate was part of Arzenal.
…Oh, and the redhead apparently had a pair of swords above her headboard. Though, calling them swords would be a bit of a stretch. They looked more akin as decorational than something to be used in battle. One was black with a near-invisible red hexagonal pattern while the other was a pure stark white.
Speaking of said redhead, she was standing up from her crouched position as she nodded to herself. She was wearing what seemed to be an armor-like black top with silver detailing underneath a red crop-top like cloak that was apparently connected by a sole piece of metal at the back. Around her waist was a similarly red open skirt that reached just shy above her shins, and underneath said skirt were a pair of pants that had straps around the thighs and shins.
…And by her steel toed boot-clad feet was a thin piece of plywood that had 5 candles placed on it, all lit up.
Cecilia's eyes remained locked to the circle on the piece of wood and she felt her heart slowly crawl up her throat. While she wasn't one to fall easily into the trap of believing in the supernatural, there was this…certain vibe to the ritual in the middle of the room that had her hairs raising on end. She was aware that her friend's friend was odd at times, but delving into the occult..?
Amber eyes looked over at them as the redhead smiled. "The others are not gonna join?"
"Nah. They're too scared, I just know it." Rin snorted as she shut the door behind them, darkening the room further with only the moonlight streaming from the open balcony doors and the candles being the source of light. "Houki's sulking because Ichika is having a boys night with the three, I couldn't find Bodewig anywhere, and Sarashiki-san had her head buried in the newest chapter of Gundam: Red Fanged Vagabonds."
The short girl was wearing an orange sleeveless loose button Cheongsam with yellow outlines on the collar and lining of the buttons, black leggings, feathers around her shoulder holes, a mid-arm fingerless glove on her left and a black armband on her right. Instead of her usual yellow ribbons to tie her hair into its usual style, it was replaced with lavender flower hairpins.
"Orimura, train them! Don't just corner yourself, train the damn things!" A voice came from below, muffled by the floor. It didn't even take a second for them to identify it as Ephraim, he was really the only one of the three that called Ichika by his surname without honorifics at times.
"Hey, I can't figure out which one I'm playing as! Split-screen playing sucks!" Ichika's voice came after, not at all intimidated by the caustic tone of the scarred blonde. If anything, it was more panicked about something else other than Ephraim. It carried with it muffled gunfire, as well as some distorted sounds of screaming from something inhuman.
"You're the one with the RPG? How can you even forget that? Oh, by the way, watch out for the Hellhounds." Ryo's amusement was all too clear, which was followed by a squawk of surprise from the male IS pilot.
"Oh! Taste my rocket-! Ah cripes! I'm down! Davion, rez me!"
"What the-!? Did you forget that you could damage yourself with the blast?! Gah, you're lucky I have a Ray Gun!"
"Shame." Haku didn't even look fazed or at all disappointed as she lifted a perfume bottle, at least that's what it looked like in the candlelight, from her bed. "Well, we might as well get this started."
Pop!
Immediately, the two blondes recoiled, their faces paling as the telltale scent of blood entered their noses. Rin looked less sure now that the sanguine scent spread throughout the room, and she quickly looked over when the curtains began to flutter when there wasn't even a strong wind coming in. Despite it not being cold, a shudder ran up the three's spines as the redhead crouched down and began to draw the pentagram using the crimson lifeblood.
"You girls ready?" Haku asked them as she pulled out a small box from underneath her bed. "I have no idea what we might summon so take these bottles of holy water just in case." She pulled the lid off and revealed several clear rectangular containers of water.
"I'm suddenly having second thoughts about this." Charlotte declared, her face paling at the obvious heresy being shown before her. "Can we…not do this?"
"Y-Yeah, uh, that's real blood…" Rin cringed as she took a step back. "I didn't think that we'd go that far…"
"Oh come on, you're sounding just like Murakumo-kun if he were here." The redhead rolled her eyes. "And besides, we'll be fine~! I know how to banish them if they become too rowdy!"
"Excuse me, what did you just-" Cecilia looked at the amber-eyed girl in shock but her question was cut off when the pentagram suddenly began to glow.
Thuuum~
All three girls turned to look at it in slight amazement before Haku raised a brow.
"...Huh. I haven't even started the chant yet." She muttered as she set the box down on her bed, inching closer to the swords she had hung up above the headboard. Green, circuit-like lines then began to appear on her skin, crawling down from her right eye and then spreading down to her shoulders. "This…is unprecedented…"
The Frenchwoman immediately backpedaled, a hand reaching up to her neck in a panic. Fumbling with the necklace form of her IS, she moved it aside to pull out a silver crucifix on a chain. It was a gift from Ryo back in August, and she held it in a shaking grip towards the pentagram.
The taller blonde, however, merely quantized a rapier and unsheathed it slowly and cautiously. The tip of the weapon shined a dull gold even in the moonlit room, and she readied it towards the supernatural ritual before her.
Rin, however, quantized her swords, her brows having shot up high as she held them in a cross before her. However, there was no denying the subtle clacking noise as the two blades shuddered against one another.
Wind began to pick up, and the curtains and sheets fluttered, slowly at first but gradually becoming more and more violent. The flames were unnervingly still lit as they swayed and moved about, almost alive in their gyrations and even occasionally growing in size before shrinking.
The baleful crimson glow of the pentagram grew brighter and brighter, to the point that the girls had to squint or cover their eyes to keep from being blinded.
"Emiya, what have you done?!" Cecilia looked at the impassive redhead as she brandished the two blades, spinning them in her hands expertly as she lowered her center of gravity.
"I swear this wasn't supposed to happen! The IS Academy is very far from the closest leyline, so something or someone else must have been-!"
Whump!
Briefly, a mass of blue-ish energy formed above the pentagram before shortly exploding, a shockwave of pure force almost sending them back on their rears. Various items around the room were scattered about, and the balcony curtains had been torn down and were splayed out on the ground. The box that had the bottles of holy water had been knocked over, the glass containers having broken and the liquid spilled and leaking into the carpet.
Charlotte was the first to recover as she quantized Bread Slicer, the knife gleaming in the moonlight. "What just happened..?" She muttered as the other blonde lowered her rapier beside her.
"Haku, just what have you done?" The noblewoman repeated as she scolded the redhead, who was quickly looking around every inch of the room with glowing amber eyes. The oddity of which went by the two blondes as they had more pressing matters to address.
"I…uh…great," Haku began to mutter. "I guess I'm gonna have to hypnotize everyone after this."
"Wait, what-?" Rin couldn't even finish her question when there was a great deal of noise coming from the room below.
CRASH!
"What the hell is that?!"
Smash!
"IT'S GOT ME! IT'S GOT ME, GUYS HELP!"
BANG!
"NO, NOT THAT WAY! NOT BY USING A GUN!"
"RAAAAGH!"
Immediately, the door to Haku's room was thrown open by the twin-tailed girl as she rushed out. Bits and pieces of her IS were already forming on her as she hurried her way down to the floor below.
Cecilia and Charlotte, however, rushed to the balcony when the sounds of glass breaking echoed through the open door. They arrived just in time to see a huge dark figure landing on the grass a couple of floors below with a screaming Ichika in its grasp. He was easily recognizable due to his costume; an open red uniform-like jacket over a black shirt, blue pants, and leather laced up boots.
"GUYS!" The panicked boy cried out as white thread began to coat him. "A LITTLE HELP HERE?!"
Immediately, a blonde blur leapt off of the balcony below, spear in hand before he landed on the grass with a crouch. It was made obvious as to who it was when he spun the polearm in his hands expertly.
"It's a damn Jorōgumo!" Ephraim snarled as he leapt to the side to dodge a downward swipe of the yokai's claws. "How the hell did it get here?!"
The blonde was clad in an armored white shoulder cape that had a red inner lining and a high open collar. On his right arm were a series of thin plates that had red tubing in-between, forming a makeshift vambrace and leaving his fingers tipped off with metal claws. Underneath the shoulder cape was a black bodysuit, one that was strapped with numerous belts on the legs and with a tattered open skirt wrapped around his hips. His hair had been done up in a high ponytail and had a light blue ombré, all kept in place from all his moving by a headband that had two blade-like horns curving up.
Clang!
Gungnir was held in his hands tightly as he parried and deflected the wild swipes of the spider-like spirit. The upper-body of the yokai, that of a vile and seductive young woman, held the cocooned Ichika in her arms akin to a grand prize even as her blade-like legs tried to impale the blonde before her.
"GET ME OUTTA HERE!"
"Hold on, fratello! We'll get you free!"
A white hooded figure leapt out from the balcony below, this time followed by someone wearing plenty of gauze wrap around their arms and face.
Ka-chank!
The backpack on the former opened up to reveal large mechanical hands that were tipped with golden claws and, with a burst of then-unseen thruster verniers, he dove down towards the spider demon.
Crash!
Dirt and grass were displaced as the sheer force of the impact shook the ground. Even they, who were a few floors above, felt the floor shake.
Clang!
The clawed hands clashed with the bladed spider legs, sparks flying with each contact as the crimson eyes underneath the hood glowed with fervor.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Dashing off to the side was the bandaged figure, ethereal green eyes leaving a trail as he maneuvered around the jorōgumo. In his hands were two M1911's that were oddly far more silent that they should be, even as they barked and recoiled with every shot. With an almost ghost-like grace, the gunman leapt and flipped over the flailing limbs that were trying to ward him away before he leapt onto and then over the creature, his guns continuously firing all the way.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Bullets pinged off the toughened hide of the monster, but that had forced her to shield herself and her prize far more protectively. Landing before Ephraim, the dual-wielder finally reloaded before resuming his unerring barrage as sparks bounced off the covered face.
Shkrrrnk!
This allowed the hooded figure's claws to scrape along the side of the creature, spilling dark green blood along the grass that blended well in the darkness. With a feral howl, akin to that of a wolf, the claws became blurs as more and more blood was shed. A leg dove down to impale him but was caught between the mechanical arms, electricity arcing from the metal.
The hood was displaced from the impact, falling back from the head to reveal the familiar brunette hair of Davion Guele. In said hair were two fake wolf ears, customized by the mechanic to be able to twitch and move. On his face was a lupine gas mask, with glowing red slit-like lenses and vents near where the mouth would be that were spewing what seemed to be hot steam.
"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"
The booming roar displaced dirt and grass, a veritable shockwave coming from the teen as he dug his boots into the ground. With a heave and the sound of crunching carapace, the limb was shorn off with a violent movement.
Squelch!
"AAAAGH!" The creature screeched, rearing up high in pain as her beatific features twisted in pain and disgust. She raised a hand where dark purple energy swirled around as she glared at the hooded figure. "YOU BRUTE! HOW DARE YOU TOUCH ME!"
"Anzus!"
Like a bolt of lightning, Gungnir impaled the raised hand through the wrist, and before the spider-woman could even yell in pain, her mouth was struck shut. Following up like another lightning bolt, the girls could barely follow the movements of Ephraim as he launched a flying knee into the face of the monster.
Crunch!
As the human torso reared back from the impact, screaming all the way, the blonde retrieved his spear and the cocooned swordsman in almost a blink of an eye. With a kickflip, he distanced himself from the beast and set Ichika down, freeing him with a single swing of his spear. Idly, purple lightning sparked from his form and arced between the fake horns on his head.
"Thank you, thank you!" The swordsman repeated as he was helped up by the bandaged figure. "She just grabbed me so fast, I couldn't even react!"
"I think we were all too stunned by her appearance to do anything." The figure, Ryo, sighed as he reloaded once more. "This is one helluva Halloween, huh?"
Bash!
Davion was then knocked back by a wild sweep of a couple of legs, causing him to fly through the air and bounce off the ground a couple of times before he slowly arrested himself by digging his claws into the dirt. The solid mouthpiece, one that looked more like a wolf's snout, broke open into a jagged maw as the mechanic let out an animalistic growl.
"RAAAAGH!"
With another piercing shriek, the svelte form of the human torso warped and changed into a twisted mockery of what was once a woman. Carapace coated where there was once smooth flesh and six more eyes opened up on the forehead of the then-human face. The mouth stretched and broke open, revealing dripping fangs and a drooling maw with bloodied teeth.
Thwip!
A blue arrow-like projectile soared between the girls, startling them, and struck the monster right in the center of its forehead. They turned their heads to see Haku wielding a black metal bow, the likes of which they've never seen her with before. The redhead's expression was serious as she marched up to them and she retrieved a large spiral-like arrow from…somewhere.
"Geez, I guess this is going to be my mess to clean up." She muttered loudly for both blondes to hear. "And how the heck do those three have so much prana wafting off of them..?"
Crash!
"YOU GET AWAY FROM ICHIKA, YOU MONSTER!" Rin roared as she surged out from Ephraim and Ryo's room in the Shenlong. In her hands were her twin daos, and the Ryuhou's were ready and charging.
With a grunt, Haku leapt off the balcony and fired down at the creature below, numerous arrows made out of blue energy surging from her bow. Both blondes looked at each other in slight shock and bewilderment before they snapped out of it.
"Hold on, Ephraim, I'm coming!" Cecilia called out as she leapt off the balcony after the redhead, motes of light coating her form as her IS began to quantize around her.
"I've got your back, Ryo!" Charlotte followed after, first quantizing a Rain of Saturday shotgun before the orange IS formed around her.
And thus, battle was joined…
AN:
Happy Halloween!
Well, Happy Halloween to those of you who actually celebrate and enjoy it!
Oh, and here are that cast's costumes!
Costumes:
Lingyin Huang - Ling Xiaoyu [Tekken]
Cecilia Alcott - Satellizer L. Bridget [Freezing]
Charlotte Dunois - Jeanne d' Arc [Fate/Grand Order]
Haku Emiya - EMIYA (Archer) [Fate/stay night]
Ichika Orimura - Rean Schwarzer [Trials of Cold Steel 2] (Same JP VA)
Ephraim Sahaku - Revenant w/ Midnight Sun Claw Blood Veil [Code Vein]
Davion Guele - "Feral Innovator" [Original Outfit that he went to a Con in once. No, he's not a furry. Get that out of your heads.]
Ryo Murakumo - Joshua Graham [Fallout: New Vegas]
Sorry if it isn't the Episode chapter just yet, ProjectRyo and I got caught up with some personal stuff. That and University is a right bitch when it wants to be. With any luck, I'll be able to upload it within this week or the next, provided ProjectRyo manages to comb it over thrice.
In other news, I heard that this site would be shut down in a few years? If so, then I should really backup and prepare this fic and move to Archive of Our Own. That or QQ, both choices allowing me to link and show images. Perhaps once I complete the 1st Season of Gone Astray, I'll crosspost to Ao3 first.
...After I uh...do some reworking.
Yeah.
Oh, and this is obviously a crack omake!
To the reviews! (that I haven't answered since last month so I'll answer them here and now, yikes!)
RoyalTwinFangs: Thank you!
KnightOfZaku: Lath and Ephraim are going to have another talk for sure! As for Rau? Hah, wherever might he be at this point?
mega1987: Expect more HALPING! from Tabane as the story goes!
P.B.S: There will be an explanation as to how the pilots can and are connected to a mental nexus of some sort. Just...hints and bits and pieces. I don't really like going full exposition dump mode, I already am sort of unconsciously leaning towards it whenever I write so I do try to distance from that habit.
The Gold Frame's backpack, the Tengoku, got trashed by the Akatsubaki's shield bits. So, sadly, no Nebula Blitz.
...Yet.
Renashi-RE012: Actions will have consequences, just how big of a wave the ripple ends up as depends.
Commissar Baphomet: When I showed your review to ProjectRyo and Davion's Controller, I couldn't help but crack up. I could practically feel the deadpan stares they both had when they read it! That gave me some ideas on how to continue the Genderbent!AU...
With that, this is Cipher, signing off!
Peace!
.
.
.
"...Is it really alright unlocking some of their..?"
{...}
"Well, I know that. I'm not so sure if Gaia or Alaya would-"
{...}
"...Ah. I see."
A sigh.
"And what of this blatant reveal of the Moonlit World to the non-Magus present?"
{...}
Fwhip!
The ever-changing piece of parchment was caught between two fingers as red eyes deciphered the shifting text on it.
"I'll leave it to you. After all, you are the one in charge of them."
Another sigh.
"...Perhaps I should call my Apprentice. Her daughter is caught up in this..."
