Capper Hofferson
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PL: 20
Zeni: 61,743
Tag: @sketch
OOC Name: Sketch
Posts: 833
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Post by Capper Hofferson on Nov 17, 2017 3:51:04 GMT
SOUL SEARCHING
GAIN BONUSES: Tier 4 Shop (* If possible) | | MULTIPLIERS: +200% Zeni Gains | | PL: 20, as usual |
PROLOGUE Capper's bicycle wheels turned upon the wet track, his speed bringing the cold rain into his face harder than it would were he walking. The grown saiyan's jacket gave up on keeping his lanky body dry a while ago and now his trunk was as wet as his legs. On a rainy day like this there was just no point in heavy clothes, the only thing that would keep Capper warm was his own movement, the pumping of his legs against the pedals. Head down, press on, thinking of the warmth at the other end. A part him was jealous of the car drivers, safe behind shatter-proof glass and painted steel.
Soon enough, as a distant clap of thunder echoed in the skies, Capper parked his little bike beside his workshop located on a trail orbiting the Bamboo Woods. The old, yellow and brown leaves hustled in the wind, as the sounds of dead, weak stalks of bamboo, creak at every push the wind gave. It's the end of fall and the air is colder than an ice cube, as it climbs through Capper's soaked jacket to the bottom of his ever so stiff spine. The saiyan shook his head vigorously, drops of water splaying out in all directions. With a sigh, the saiyan picked up his groceries from his bike basket and strolled into his home. A little bell chimed as the saiyan walked in- instantly cuing a rapid, cheery beeping sound.
Alpha scurried forwards like a hyper puppy, climbing up and jumping about on his creator. "Missed you too, Alphs." Capper smiled, picking the little drone off of his shoulder. The saiyan set down his bags of fetched food while promptly removing his soaked overcoat. What a day... But, alas, the grown boy had a project to work on, and a big one too.
With Alpha following like a baby duckling, the tailless saiyan trotted into his garage. Inside was a massive suit of mecha armor that dwarfed even the six-foot-tall Capper. Capper put his hands on his hips, admiring his progress for a few moments. With this, he'd be able to be a lot more useful in combat soon! Capper leaned back in his swivel chair, plucking his journal off of the shelves nearby, but he couldn't stop from grimacing at the page it was open to...
A picture of his family and a younger Capper was stapled to the first page of his old logbook. Memories, both good and bad, all flashed in a span of a few seconds. Capper closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead, grumbling to himself and sliding the book away. Alpha whirred in concern, managing to nuzzle right into his creator's lap. Things were better now- he had to move on. But...
"Stupid, stupid..!" Capper muttered to himself, torn out of his thoughts by a tug on his collar- an attention-seeking Alpha. The robot whined and buzzed, causing a weak smile to creep across Capper's face. The saiyan put a hand on his longtime friend, sighing. His family did say they would be back, but they weren't. Not yet.
What were they doing right now in the other world, anyway? ...Perhaps it was best to take today off from work.
In the distant the desert of Hell, the clouds above sunk into a violet sea of skylight. There lay the mighty desert, brown, barren, desolate—the desert with its dreaded sand storms and simooms. Wind stirred up the wispy sand and the sun’s never ending rays beat down on the residents of the lower world mercilessly. Not that heat was a big problem to the dead, or those of robotic composition.
Courgi crouched low, his hand tracing a strange trail in the reddened sands. The path was the only pale thing stretching into the gloom. He scanned for movement... Then the wind died, the dunes ceased to rustle, even the howl of the skies was absent. In those frozen seconds he could hear a wispy whoosh of air- the trademark sound of any passing soul. But who would dare reside this deep in the desert, where very few ogres even roamed?
"Hey, dude." Capper's grandfather whipped around. Behind him was a teal soul cloud without a body, flickering more like a spark of electricity rather than a flame. "You're that guy that made Xylo lose his marbles right? Because you've been the talk of the town for awhile!" The soul moseyed forwards, causing the elder saiyan's glare to only intensify. "You want something- so make it quick, puffball." He hissed callously.
"Well aren't you a talkative one..." The cloud mumbled, shaking it's form for a moment. "Whatever. I heard you and your family want to escape, right?" The cloud floated up, orbiting the android's form. Introductions were in order. "I'm a saiyan also. Or, uh... was." The puffcloud's sparking seemed to slow with it's drop in mood. Nonetheless, the saiyan cloud continued. "Name's Russel. I think I might know a way to get you and I out of here."
"...I'm listening." Courgi's scowl softened to curiosity. Sitting down on a dune beside Russel, the elder cyborg would listen to the cloud continue on. "Awhile ago, you see, my sister Roma went to find this hell witch that the Rhubarb Canyon, just a ways north of where we are now." The cloud's invisible brow perked up as it sparked with more vigor. "She must have found it-- she hasn't come back yet and I don't think the ogres got her, so I can only assume this is genuine!"
"So, uh, you scratch my back and I scratch yours. With you and your fellow Super Saiyans I've heard so much talk about, this is a surefire escape!" Russel's soul bounced about, floating closer to Courgi. The vigor sort of reminded the grandfather of his own little Capper whenever he had a new device to show him... He couldn't just deny this chance now either, could he? "Alright, alright." The grandfather calmed himself, turning around. "You can meet us there. We'll be there in two hours, sharp." The tiny cloud lit up like a light again. "Oh, thank you! I knew it!! I knew there was a way I could be free again!"
Courgi quickly took off into the skies. Perhaps this would finally be the proper route he, Chire, and Collard could take to reunite with their family...
"Got any sevens?"
"Go fish." "Barnacles."
Chire rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Honey, can't you let me win just one time?" She groaned, earning a smug glare from her husband. "I would, but you wouldn't be satisfied with that." The superior strategist folded his arms, but Chire had to admit he had a point- an artificial win was worth nothing. "Well, then, how about I--"
A gust of wind pierced the air, knocking the duo's cards out of their hands- Courgi was back, and he had quite the entrance. "Oh, come on! I was just about to win, Courgs!" Chire complained, though the robot saiyan was quick to approach. "You two- now is not the time to be playing games, first of all." Courgi dropped his remaining cards and pointed to Chire to put the blame on her. The female just made more incomprehensible sounds of irritation in response. Still, their old man got to the point. "I met another saiyan soul that seems to know a route of escape. We are going, and we are going now." The grandfather pointed to the outside of their little hellcave.
Chire instantly perked up, stars in here eyes. "R-really?!?! Oh man-- we're gonna go home, Coll! Can you believe it? Capper's gonna be so happy, and we can all play a round of Dungeons and Dragonballs together, and--" Collard put a hand on Chire's face, pushing her back when she invaded his personal space, though she continued to rant. "So, uh... How are we getting out of here anyways, pops?"
"There's a witch in a canyon nearby that seems to dabble in portals or whatever. Sort of like your nephew, I suppose." Courgi explained. "...It's a little suspicious if you ask me, but we don't have any other choice at this point, nor have we found any alternatives." The older android glared at Chire in particular- she had proven to be a magnet for ogres with her rambunctious demeanor and previous escape from hell in mind. "...Right." The mother of Capper rolled her eyes, playfully elbowing her husband. "What's the worst that can happen, anyways? I'm sure the three of us Super Saiyans can handle some old hag." Collard raised his brow- Chire did have a point, but every time she said that before, things... Never went right, that was for sure.
"Alright, but... Let's all stick together this time. No splitting up." Collard ordered, earning firm nods from his fellow Hoffersons. "So what are we waiting for! To the living wooooorrrllld!" Chire proclaimed, quickly rushing out into the open. Collard and Courgi exchanged glances, shrugging before taking after their super saiyan friend.
PART 1: TERMS AND CONDITIONS
After meeting Russel's soul as agreed to, the quadsquad of saiyans took off to the ruins. Chire's many runs of Metal Cog on the Baotendo Swap was proving to be useful with stealth somehow, as the team seemed to blend right into the shadows and sneak around the many ogres below that were patrolling for stray spirits like themselves. Russel warned the group that the canyon was a hotspot hideout for ghoulish ghost gangs as well. Russel found a few of his sister's belongings down by a mine entrance that was blocked by several boulders- more than likely the right way to go. After a superb distraction via Chire, the team would rush down the passage, hopeful to find what they were looking for.
"AH GOD WHO POKED MY EYE I'LL KILL YOU--" Chire yelled out as the team meandered through an extremely narrow tunnel. Collard covered his wife's mouth once more, shushing her quick. They couldn't let the ogres find them now. A brief grunt of dismay echoed through the darkness, though the mother complied for now. "...You never told me about this crazy lady, dude." Russel whispered to Courgi, who nodded in agreement about Chire's mentality.
Collard, the current leader after much debate, led the way with a ball of ki in hand. Even with the light source, the darkness ate up most of the energy- the saiyan could still only see about a foot in front of him. Down here, walls trickled into an odd assortment of brick colours and even the fungi this deep down was under orders not to grow. An occasional lamps or lanterns seem to give out darkness instead of light. Smoke from the strangling fire puffed into the passage and swirled about the ceiling, causing a cough every now and then from the mortal squadron...
Finally, a noise beside his fussy family took Collard's attention. A crunch, as if he stepped on a leaf, but... Down here? Lifting his foot and crouching down, the father plucked up a odd paper, inscribed with indecipherable runes and recipes over every inch. Just looking at it made the saiyan dizzy... Looking back up, the smoke seemed to part, and a distant light shone brighter than the rest. While Chire screamed again about the space limitations, Collard was quick to dash ahead, strolling right up to the upcoming stone building deep in the canyon.
The narrow walls parted into a wide, spacious cave that Collard couldn't see the top of, even with the fog gone. He wasted no time, only hesitating for a second before he swung open the door. At the very least, the witch was clearly obsessively compulsively neat with her first impressions. Row upon neat row of dustless jars labelled in the same neat script with even strokes of the quill, every label facing forwards. On closer inspection they were categorized according to the content and then alphabetized within their categories. Brooms, cloths and feather dusters patrolled the room slowly as if propelled by invisible arms, sweeping, dusting, wiping. Thick oak chopping boards lean against the white painted wall, an array of shiny stainless steel knives from scalpels to huge chopping blades are lined up next to a porcelain sink in order of size, each one looking cut-throat sharp. Turning to the other side, the father eyed shelves and shelves full of strange, glowing orbs that seemed misty and disformed...
"Collaaaard! Wait up!" Chire called again, quickly catching up to the eager saiyan. Courgi landed beside Chire. "...Yeah, that's a witch energy alright. Super magical and all. And weird." Russel chimed, using his energy sensing to survey the area. "But, uh--" The soul stammered, glancing to the side. Courgi interjected soon enough. "Whatever- who's going to engage this old creep first?"
"Not me."
"Nope, but, uh, you guys--"
"Wait wha--"
"...And it looks like you're up, kid."
Collard bit his lip, glancing to a door lit with an ominous red glow from behind. Russel seemed at a loss for words, though, glancing about the room with clear anxiety. "Fine. Fine. Whatever, clods." Collard shrugged, strolling up to the door. "Don't worry- we can keep watch for baddies out here! You'll be fiiiiine!"
Collard huffed, turning away ans slowly pushing the door open. The floorboards creaked beneath his black dress shoes, and a hunched figure became clear in the corner of the room.. Collard approached slowly, but was taken aback when the door behind him whipped closed on it's own.
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