Soldiers of Light Sequel Pre-RP Discussion

[Astral Harmony]

Because we hit the 100-post limit in that 10th discussion thread, we got this.

I guess we know what we need from here on...

First, I'm not sure how much of the story before the death of Talkatz that wasn't RP'd we want to talk about. Since I'm sure we do want a general idea of what did happen, it's best to start by having Raiden set up a sort of timeline of events that had to happen with a general description of how these events played out. You know...something we can wrap our own stories around.

Secondly, I prefer Arhra's story about how the sequel should begin, but we should still decide on that. Ultimately, I think Raiden makes the call on that and he preferred Arhra's story, too.

Thirdly, it would probably be best to know who is going to continue on to the sequel. I can guess that myself, Raiden, Arhra, Garud, Inbred Chocobo, Darth SS, and Krylo will all be going from the posts in the previous thread.

Fourthly...does anyone want any gum? No? Okay, just checking.

At any rate, once that's all squared away, I'm sure the rest will be cake.

[lazy man]

I might continue. I really lost interest in the last one because I was always behind, which led to me just not really caring. I really did like playing Suzume because of the concept, though. I mean, c'mon, who wouldn't love being a living gun that runs on souls for ammo?

Yeah, I might just post what Suzume does after the last one tomorrow or some time. Got nothin' better to do, so why not?

[Raiden]

The first post of the new RP will be the battle between Kurama and Talkatz, simply because that post has been saved on my computer for months and I NEED to use it.

To make it easier for people to wrap their stories around, here's the basic storyline:

The last battle was a great battle. Not only did the Kimonos bring their Homonculi army, but a great army of humans from every class, from monks to samurai, from ninja to ronin, gathered to fight the demon army. Eventually Kurama made his way to Talkatz, and through events made in the post, defeated him.

After the defeat of Talkatz, the world seemed to be in better shape. For the humans anyway. Team Good went their separate ways to live their lives, while Kurama buried Vance, who was killed in the final battle by his grandfather, with the heroes of Tama's party at the battleground.

Two years pass. Kurama has spent that time trying to put the world back in shape. The demons had begun to recede back into the depths. The humans had taken this as a good sign. However, the bad signs began to show.

It slowly became harder for priests to cast curative magics. The kamis were more resistant to the calls of the magic wielders. Strange humans were being found in the forests and wastelands. These humans were animal-like in nature, very violent, and for seem reason believed to possess powers that they didn't have.

It was then that Takin came to Kurama and told him the details of some research he had been doing. The wild humans they had been finding were actually weak demons that had changed into humans.

The basis of the world, the very existence of life as is known in that universe, is based off of one principle. There must be balance. Black and white, up and down, ying and yang. There must be negative with the positive. Talkatz was the embodiment of negative magic in it's most powerful form. By destroying Talkatz, Kurama not only left a power vacuum the size of the Grand Canyon in the demon hierarchy, but he also erased a large amount of the negative power in the magical realm. And without the negative, there cannot be the positive. As such, magic is slowly dwindling from the world. And so, Kurama goes to search for a way to restore the balance in the world.

Now, by this time technology has advance more. Takin is still the only man with a flying boat, but steamboats have become more popular over the years. Rifles and the such are common for soldiers now. It had gotten out that Talkatz feared the ability of a human's creativity with weaponry, and they figure that anything Talkatz feared is worth having. As such, the world is somewhat separated into two factions:

The Revolutionists- These are the people that accept the loss of magic, and believe that technology is the way to go. These are the guys running around with rifles, pistols, and cannons. Their armor shows the influence of western expertise, losing the traditional bushido wear for the more military-like uniforms.

The Traditionalists- These are the people that are truly depending on Kurama to return magic. These are the priests and monks that wish for the ability to communicate with the Kami to continue, and the bushido system that does not like the Revolutionist's way of throwing tradition to the wind.

While these groups won't have a large influence on the RP, it does show that times are changing.

Demons are in a chaotic time. The high generals of Talkatz that did not die in the great battle have begun taking pieces of Talkatz's territory and distributing it amongst themselves. There is no King of Demons anymore, and without an ultimate demon in the role, there is no one to follow. Plus, with the losing of the magic, the weaker demons are beginning to turn into humans. The stronger demons are beginning to feel the effects also, except since they're more evolved than the weaker ones, they begin to develop senses that clash with their entire personality.

They begin to gain feelings.

They feel compassion, regret, guilt, everything a human feels. And their nature is purely aggressive, which means they're battling their instincts with their new found consciences. The power vacuum is being taken advantage of, and a new figurehead is needed.

I'll leave it to Team Evil to cover what's happening in the demon section.

[PyrosNine]

Say, can we make all the magic altars have elemental lords lording over them? I think that'd be kinda cool, and since Raiden doesn't get to post as much as he wants to, I'm here far too much for my own good, so I could write those parts and we'll get over important plot points without as much a hurdle.

[Dragonsbane]

Are the medium-to-strong demons growing weaker in magic? If so, is it noticeable?

I had a post typed up that showed where and how the Air Demons live...a flying city cut off from the rest of the world, in a part of the sky that had been separated from every other part by ancient magic. If that is getting weaker, there will be no Air Demon reinforcements, but the magic of the living Arashi and Windspeakers should be strong still.

[Raiden]

Actually, Pyros, I don't think I'll include the altars. We can have it be that we look into an altar hoping to find a solution to the problem, but I don't think we'll go with the altar storyline.

People can throw in suggestions for the storyline anytime they want.

DB- The weak demons, basically the grunts and the cannon-fodder guys, have lost all their demonic magic because they didn't have much to begin with. And like I said above, the stronger demons are beginning to feel the affects of the loss of magic. Only, instead of changing directly into humans, they are beginning to change on the inside. For example, while in the old days Raikotsu would have easily killed a mother in front of her child to get information he needed, he would now hesitate, and might even choose against it, which will infuriate him to no bounds because feelings like that are not something he's used to. If too much magic is lost, then he begins to lose some of his powers. He can't ride the wind anymore, and he needs to concentrate much harder to move air. Eventually he'll become human altogether. Which is an incentive for demons to try to look for a solution, and, in extreme cases, even work with members of Team Good in a situation.

And yes, ancient magics will began to fade away. The more ancient the spell, the sooner it will give way. Which leaves it open for creatures that had been sealed away by monks and such to break free and begin rampaging. So if the air city has been there for centuries, it will start breaking down pretty soon.

[EDIT:] The digression of magic in stronger demons will only be noticeable currently in the presence of feelings of compassion and the like. Right now, your characters will still have all their abilities from the old RP. If the RP takes quite a while, then you'll start losing abilities.

[Mintaro]

Vance attained his highest form of power, using love and calm instead of Ruthlessness. His markings became white. He and his grandfather become sealed in a deep casm. and fight for the rest of eternity. Just so you know.

[GARUD]

I got an idea. How about, both teams looking to replace the magic, but both teams are looking for a different type of magic to oppose Positive. Initially, both sides will be looking for the same thing, forcing them to work together in some cases. However, later, they both find out two options, seperately. It's that there is an option that will still turn demons into humans, but will replace the negative. The second option they find out about is one that turns humans into demons, and totally eliminates the need for a positive magic. So, both teams look to instate their brand of magic. But, new creatures are starting to appear, when this magic is being placed. The world has been turned upsidedown, and is becoming something akin to hell.

what do you think?

[Arhra]

I'm happy to see my idea is popular. Anyway, on to my thoughts

I feel somewhat opposed to the positive and negative magic thing though. The age of magic was already ending when the quest was begun. That's why such things as the airship were even possible. Also, where is the counterpart to Talkatz? This kind of duality can be fun to play around with, but I think it really jars with the RP.

While I think of it, I'm fairly certain that Kirakiri would have slain Takin. If he'd been able to execute Plan Ram Airship Into Castle, he would have had to gotten Takin out of the way somehow. The easiest way to accomplish that is to do away with the inventor while its just the two of them (Pyros isn't that hard to encourage to leave given his general demeanor). Kirakiri's not the arrogant type of villian who'd leave someone bleeding to death or something similiar. He makes certain of his kills. Anyway, where was I?

Ah, yes. I'm a little uncertain about the demons turning into humans too. After all, demons are... hmm, how to put it?... exemplars. They are essentially personifications of certain qualities or concepts. Often twisted towards evil but still, they are elemental creatures. By that I don't mean something a basic as the classical ones but you get my general idea. Kirakiri for example has a subtle water linkage but also is very closely tied to lies and deception as well as a slight mirror quality.

Aside from this, I think my dislike for the idea is because it removes some of the mystery about the demons if they simply turn into humans. I was considering something more along the lines of the fading of the elves in the Lord of the Rings - they diminish and pass into realms beyond the reach of humankind or remain and reduce to something barely tangible and rarely seen.

Emotions are also something I have to wonder about. It seems to me that most demons already have them. The idea of the demons 'diffusing' away from their true nature is an interesting one though.

Side note again. So, your character is out of the way now eh Mintaro? Pity, I had a little thing I wanted to have Kirakiri do to him.

Somewhat condensed post fragment:
Vance leaps forwards again, his face twisted with rage and his wounds already closing. "You cannot defeat me - I am Vance the Eternal!" he cries as he attacks recklessly, giving little thought to his own defense.

Kirakiri calmly steps around the attack, one hand flicking out his wakizashi and with the same fluid movement he stabs the short sword into Vance's forehead, right between the eyes. He watches as Vance slumps, "You are Vance the weak, Vance the fool. I can not kill you, yes, but you are far from invulnerable." He releases his grip on the blade, leaving it firmly embedded in Vance's skull, and cups Vance's chin gently, speaking softly to him. "You cannot die, but with that sword in your brain, you cannot live either. All that remains now is for me to flay you open and find that which sustains you. With it destroyed, you will truly die."

*cue dramatic rescue*

It's a nasty tendency of mine to think of nifty things to do far in advance. Of course the rage isn't necessary, its just an easy explanation for Kirakiri jamming a sword into Vance's brain with relative ease. Now then, on to Kirakiri's accomplishments.

After the events on Vance's island, Kirakiri began the interogation of Sila. He managed to thoroughly confuse her by not mistreating her in any way and actually treating her quite well for a prisoner. He also was frustrating her escape attempts with infuriating ease. Still, he managed to make her open up by talking to her about his own life and confiding the true reason for his aid to Team Evil - his desire to prevent the coming age of technology from coming to pass. He managed to draw out details about Sila's life - his caution about not showing he was a shapeshifter having paid off. Eventually, some point after the recovery of the torso, he judged himself ready to infiltrate Team Good.

Well, I'm not certain what should have happened with this and Sila's final fate, any suggestions?

In the final battle, Kirakiri shed all deceptions. He used 'Flow', his personal combat style that only a shapechanger can use, to the utmost - a synthesis of the qualities of the combat styles he has learnt over the long centuries. Although cutting a bloody swathe of destruction through his enemies, he was critically wounded. Step up if you want to be the one who inflicted the injury Desperate for time to heal himself, he used his shapeshifter abilities to exaggerate the appearance of the wound and feign death.

In the aftermath, he crept into the chamber where Kurama had slain Talkatz and disposed of Talkatz's corpse. Not desiring to move too soon, he seeded rumours of Talkatz's survival. When he eventually emerged from hiding some months later to declare himself the reborn emperor of demonkind, he was able to gather a sizeable force to him. He set about consolidating his might, creating an inner cadre aware of the true nature of their 'Ressurected Emperor' and expanding it with time. With his spies spread across the land, he turned his focus to reversing the turning of ages. He believes he has now discovered a way to revive the age of magic and is seeking allies amongst the demon generals for this quest. Most simply believe him mad or deluded.

[Astral Harmony]

Hmmm...

Yeah, I know where to go from there. I'll be doing new characters myself. Probably only one, but I think she'll have a sidekick or two and they'll all be kunoichi who serve Tsubasa. Early in the RP, I'll take care of mapping out the Kimonos but then unless Yuna makes a major comeback, it's doubtful anybody will see them soon after.