[Ikimasho] - Athena Halloween Story

Chapter 1 – The Calm Before the Storm


“Let's pack lots of oreos for snacking Carol” an excited Toshiku said.
“Don't forget that we have the guys coming along too Toshi!” replied Carol. “We'll probably have to worry more about how many oreos you'll be eating compared to everyone else ^.^”  Toshi looked back at Carol with a contorted expression and stygian smile which made her regret her statement.
“We should probably get going” said someone from the next room. The door opened and revealed it was Kikysumi that said that. Behind her emerged Ecchirose and Harmoniclove, the lovely (and sometimes....pretty often sexual) couple. “ So the two lovebirds decided to come downstairs eh?”  joked Carol.
“We don't have to tell you when we're coming, just know that we're here ^.~ “ replied the two of them. Don't forget to bring those yummy bento boxes we all worked very hard to make!”
“We certainly won't; they're already in the bag” answered Toshi with a smile.
“It's almost time to go girls~” said a happy-go-lucky Carol. With that, the girls left their home and headed for Dunbarton. Unbeknownst to them, their spring-flowers-in-bloom attitude would be short-lived.

“Flame!!!! your pizza is here bro!”
“He's ten minutes late, tell him to give it to us for free or I'm going to hit him with my Harisen!”
“I don't think we can omit a $110 bill through violence.”
“Fine pay the scoundrel.”
With a thud of the door, Ikimasho carried 10 boxes of pizza into the living room. “This is what happens when you invite your bros over I guess..”, he said as he gently laid the pizzas down on the kitchen counter. “Food is here!!”
“It's about damn time!” I've been starving all day” said Fissrasuren as he emerged from the basement. “Get back down there dammit.” he said while kicking an octopus down the stairs.
“How in the world do you have the time and patience to take care of that basement Fiss?”
“It's called being the dominant species...as well as having a custom set of scalpels. They learn to obey after a while *_*”
Shortly after saying that, a group of hungry guildies stampeded their way to the kitchen. Shadowblast, Magus1623, Rajku, Suffix, senorcleen, Blackau, Kiraya, and Astralblue appeared from the dust and anime clouds of their rampage. “Thanks for paying for the pizza Iki” said Blackau.
“How'd you pay for it anyways?” asked Suffix who was already consuming a slice of delicious pizza.
“He totally worked at the local strip club for it” said Magus jokingly.
“F@$3 you man” replied Iki. “You have no idea how hard it is transporting goods these days. Speaking of goods, are you all looking forward to our Halloween Expedition tonight?”
“We most certainly are Iki” said Shadow. “We've been planning this guild expedition for weeks.”
As the guildies were conversing amongst themselves, senor, Rajku, and Kiraya headed outside to eat.
Despite the convivial meal and friendly atmosphere, senor felt a need to ask his fellow guildmates a question. “Don't you think this is a bad idea? Aren't you worried about the rumors surrounding that place?” he said with urgency in his voice.
“I swear on my title as 2nd in command that nothing will go wrong.” said Kira with confidence in his voice.
“Forgot about prudence for today senor” said Rajku. “We need to experience the wonderful pleasures this vista called life has to offer.”

Meanwhile, Astral was packing everyone's weapons and equipment into separate bags.
“They should have packed these earlier. I swear...they'll have to learn one of these days.”
“It's time to go man! We finished our pizza slices already. Your slices are in the box” yelled Kiraya from outside.
“I'll be right there” yelled Astral.
There was no doubt that Astral was strong, but carrying all those bags proved to be too much work for him. Luckily, Fiss thought he'd help and decided to lighten his burden by carrying half of the bags. “Let the giant take care of this =P.” said Fiss. “Thanks man” replied Astral.
The guys headed for Dunbarton with haste. 1. They were late. 2. They decided to burn off the calories by making it a race. Kiraya decided to give Toshi a call to ask where they were. “Hello. Hello? Hey Toshi.
“Hey Kira”
“We just left the house. We'll be there anon.”
“That's good to know. We're already here”
“!!!.......^^; ohhhhh you don't say”
“Yeah so you guys better hurry your butts here or we'll eat all the oreos while we're waiting.”
“Oh anything but that-w-w-w-we'll be there soon!” click~
Little did they know that they were racing towards death.

-End of Chapter 1-


Chapter 2: Entrance


“They're really late. It's to be expected of them.” said an impatient Burningsky.
“You really think so Sky? I say give them at least ten more minutes.” retorted Shizuhara.
“I say they should pay us 100,000 gold each for making us wait. Don't you agree Nigh?” joked Sky.
Off in the distance, a bunny head popped up and said “I second that notion.” It was Mandrake. With a skip and a hop he joined his fellow guildies.
“Heh, I love the togetherness our guild has.” muttered Musashi who had appeared out of nowhere.
Kyotaru who had kept to himself for sometime decided to join the group while Nigh looked up at the sky and said “It's going to rain soon. They had better not be late-wait...I think that's them over there...yeah that's them all right.”
“I can't believe you fell for that Oreo bluff Kira” said Toshi with a playful smile.
“Shush” retorted Kiraya, “Looks like the gang is all here ^_^...wait where is Demeter?
“He said he'd come late due to a part-time job in Tir Chonaill.” replied Nigh.
“Let's get going girls and boys. The fun awaits!” said Iki.

With that remark the guildies headed for a new area near Dunbarton that was rumored to be haunted. The group traversed through forests and passed by murky swamps until they happened to come across an old mansion. Fissrasuren took a few steps forward and read a few words from an old sign covered in leaves and dirt. “All are welcome. Don't lose yourself in there. Well that's a very humble welcome, but no thanks. We should all head back and set camp in the forest. What's this?” The dark clouds had come undone and released rain upon the ground, the damaged hallow trees, the dark mansion, and the guild. “All of you probably don't want to hear this but the best place to go for shelter right now is in that mansion” said Rajku. In fear Kiky decided to hold onto Rose and said “I don't wanna go in there but, Rajku is right.”
“Hey don't leave me out of this one ^.~” said Harmonic.
“Get a room you two errr three.” said Iki.
“Cut the chatter guys. We should head in despite the worries we may have” said Shizuhara.

Astral and Shadow approached the doors of the mansion and attempted to open them but to no avail. “It's no use. We can't get in.” said Astral after banging the door with his fist in frustration.
“Let me give it a try” said Fiss. The door proved to be unyielding to the behemoth giant as well. “Accursed contraption. Maybe there's a way to open it like some sort of secret switch or lever.”
“Good idea” said Tosh, “Everyone look around for some clues to open the doors.”
Every member present looked around the front yard for at least thirty minutes.
“This is hopeless” wailed Senor, “We're never going to get in there. At least I brought hand-sanitizing wipes for all of us. Who knows how many germs we've attracted to our hands.”
“Hey Senor.” said Magus, “You wouldn't happen to have any all-purpose cleaner on you would you?”
“I'd be lying if I said I didn't Magus.” answered Senor.
Nobody knew what Magus had in mind when he began to wipe an area of the wall next to the door clean, but it revealed a hint as to entering the mansion.
“I knew I wasn't imagining things. Here, look at this. Ring the bells in the heavenly skies. Bells?”
The archers in the guild immediately took notice of the multiple bells scattered around the top of the massive mansion.
“We'll take care of the bells” said Iki, “In the meantime, I think it'd be a good idea to gear up now.”
Fiss and Astral distributed the equipment to everyone at the party. The other members decided to be prudent and came prepared beforehand. One by one the archers shot the bells until they all rang together. The simultaneous ringing created a dolorous dirge that echoed through the forest. The birds in the area flew off which was followed by a wild gust that quickly departed. Suddenly the door in front of them came ajar. “Come on everyone let's go.” said Kiraya. The guildies followed suit and went in. A streak of lightning zigzagged across the sky followed with a rumble of thunder.
“Wait, wait for me” said a familiar voice.
“Is that Deme?”said Flame.
“You couldn't miss Deme anywhere.” said Magus. “Hurry the weather is getting worse.”
“It's a good thing I ran all the way here.” said Demeter closing the mansion doors behind him. Sure is a spooky place.”
The mansion had been abandoned for sometime now which gave it an ominous and decrepit appearance. Dust and cobwebs were seen all over the foyer. There was no source of light available so each person present lit the candles in the room to illuminate the area. The Athenians were now sitting in a large circle in the middle of the room passing towels to each other to dry off their now soaked belongings.
“It's time to divide the oreos~” said Tosh happily, “One for you, one for you, and one for you...”
“I hope there's one for me too” said an unfamiliar voice. “Welcome.”

-End of Chapter 2-


Chapter 3: Isami

Every head in the vast room turned in the direction of the unknown voice.
“Who are are you?” cried Flame.
“Me? I am your host and caretaker for this evening.” replied the mysterious man.
There were mixed responses to the genorous offer: some stared in awe, some waited for a name to be uttered, and some (Tosh and her fellow seniors) readied their weapons.
“No need for that right now. My name...is Isami. It is an honor and a pleasure to meet you all.”
The tension in the room had deceased but soon gave way to a new uneasiness that began to stir in the thoughts of the new guests. Who in their right mind would want to stay in a shady mansion that reeked of every noxious scent a household could contain; dustbunnies were hopping to and fro within every corner,nook,cranny,precipice,etc,etc. No one needed to hire a shamus to figure out that this mansion had retained its unkempt appearance for many centuries.
Isami sensed the skepticism eminating from the center of his foyer; each Athenian looked more offended than the last. Upon clearing his rather raspy throat he exclaimed, “Much time has passed since people walked through my doors. Please, let me tidy up a bit.”
Isami rolled his sleeves back and began to mutter an incantation. “This will only take a moment.” A magic seal formed around him that grew in size and magnitude with each arcane word uttered from his lips. In immediate response Iki loaded Magnum Shot hoping to stop whatever calamity this warlock had in mind.
“Please, calm down and lower your weapon. My only intention is to make my humble abode suitable to your needs.” said a worried Isami.
“Well we've yet to see that mon ami,” replied a threatened yet resilient Iki.
“Return your arrow to its quiver Iki. I sense no malice from this magic,” said Magus.
“But!”
“Listen to the man Iki. I too sense no imminent threat,” included Sky.
Mandrake (who was upset at his failed attempts of communicating with the dustbunnies) also assured Iki that everything would be all right.
“Thank you for your support my fellow mages. I'd hate to receive your praise and an arrow through my heart as well,” said a relieved Isami.
A few seconds after saying that, the seal had dispered-nothing had changed.
The awkward silence was broken by Suffix who loaded Final Hit in an attempt to pummel Isami for his useless magic. “You should have shot him Iki. I'll take care of him now.”
Iki responded in kind by adding “Oh...now I'm definitely going to shoot you-”
“Wait! Look at that!” cried Rose.
The rubble and debris scattered across the floor began to move back into their proper places; broken glass and damaged artwork quickly gained the beauty that was ravaged by the sands of time. Through a clear act of mystic magic, our guests ruddy hotel was now a palatial and ornate home fit for the richest of Erinn.
“All good things in time my friends,” said a very humble and pleased Isami.  “Come, let us wine and dine in the lovely dining hall.”
“Thank goodness. I was getting really hungry. One can only eat trail mix and oreos for so long,” said a starving Suffix.
“I think that applies to all of us,” added Senor.
Isami took pleasure in looking at his guests examine the now majestic mansion. Each ooh and aah fed the malnourished being that was his ego.
“Something isn't right about all of this,” muttered a circumspect Sky.
“I feel the same way as well. Let's keep an eye out for anything suspicious,” said Deme.
After every guildie took a seat at the enormous table, Isami stood up and instantly summoned food and drink to feed his guests.
“Psst,” whispered Nigh.
“What?” replied Astral.
“I bet you the food is going to be as ancient as this place was before he cast that spell.”
“Please don't say that...I'm genuinely hungry right now.”
What our guests didn't know was that Isami possessed the ability to read minds.
“You'll be happy to know that everything on the table is fresh and completely nutritious!” said an enthusiastic Isami.
“Yeah, yeah bla bla bla nutritious TIME TO EAT!” said an impatient Suffix.
The delightful delectable food was too good to resist: golden turkey, mashed potatoes drizzled in gravy, angus beef burgers buried in bacon, crispy french-fries and tater tots, thinly sliced ham, t-bone steak with A1 sauce on the side, twice-baked potatoes loaded with sour cream and bacon, and other heavenly pieces.
Shortly after our guildies had stuffed their faces in, Isami once again stood up and made the leftovers disappear. “Now that you're all satisfied it's time for me to lead you to your bedrooms,” said Isami.
“So f-full...can't take anymore can't move,” answered a completely satisfied Magus.
“I concur,” said Blackau.
“I'm so glad that all of you enjoyed your food. Now it's time,” muttered Isami.
“Time for...?” said a curious Kiky.
“Time for the main attraction!” replied Isami. Isami immediately prepared another incantation that grew in power much faster than his previous spells.
“I knew it. I knew it!” yelled Kira. “Stop him before he completes-”
It was too late. Isami completed the spell and used it against everyone in the room with him. The only one in the room now was Isami.

-End of Chapter 3-

Chapter 4: Pain
“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” cried almost everyone falling down what seemed like an endless hole.
“I hope this is a dream and we all wake up before we hit the bottom!” yelled Musa.
“What happens if we hit the bottom?” questioned Rajku.
“...We all die.” answered Shizu.
“Isn't there anything we can do?” demanded Mandrake.
“Guys we're about to hit the bottom. Think of something and hurry up!” screamed Shadow.
“Wait, wait. Everyone concentrate your mana into slowing our descent. We just might slow ourselves down in time,” said Flame.
“Good thinking,” said Sky. “I say we go for it.”
The ultimate test of faith and camaraderie. Athena had always worked together: dailies, hot-air ballooning, tournaments, and gm runs. This was a new test on the grand scale of teamwork.
“Altogether now.” said a confident Tosh.
“We can do this!” said Kiraya.
Luckily, all the mana that they concentrated into one massive point was strong enough to slow their descent to the point they floated downwards.
“It's water,” said Iki. “We would have fallen into water.”
Looking around, everyone noticed that they had fallen into a gigantic body of water encased in rock and steel.
“Look over there,” cried Astral. “It's a staircase. Maybe it'll lead outside.”
“Abandon all hope ye who enter here,” said a menacing voice.
Isami had appeared out of the blue. “I hope I didn't cut our little dinner party short. I was so looking forward to the cheesecake and moscato d'asti that was to come afterwards. Yet, my time is short and heheh so is yours.”
“I hate to say I told you so guys, but I TOLD YOU SO,” said an indignant Suffix.
“I bid you all adieu,” said an omnipotent Isami. A teal thunderbolt had appeared and touched the water the guildies were in. Each passing second felt like an eternity as millions of volts passed through their bodies leaving no cell unscathed. Each member of Athena now lay dead in a pool of blood-stained azure water. The dark behemoth that contained them instantly lit up in a brilliant display of neon afterwards.
“That was far too easy. Let's make it happen again!!” grinned an ecstatic Isami.
Isami pulled a simple object out of his pocket that glowed crimson in the light of the room:a party feather. After enhancing its capabilities, Isami threw the feather into the water in hopes of reanimating the bodies that invited themselves into his hellish abode.
“We're alive?” said Senor.
“It would appear so-look up there!” said Musa.
The eyes of the guild stared at a gigantic image of a woman on the walls. Her hair trailed along her body down to her feet. This crimson haired woman was lying in scorched ashes and feathers. She looked as if she was trying to release a river of tears, but every tear turned into white vapor from the intensity of her aura. Upon closer inspection, there was a dark figure in the corner of the picture wielding a scythe. It smiled at the woman who was doing her best to not look in it's direction.
“What does this mean?” asked Nigh. “Why'd you revive all of us?”
Isami let out a cynical laugh from his chest as he stared at the poor unfortunate souls.
“Why...why indeed. You don't know? Here let me try to answer that for you.”
“Hey! What's going on?,” yelled Kira. “The water i-i-it feels like it's crushing me.”
The water that was once lukewarm had now become as cold as ice. Everyone felt their bones break due to the intense pressure being applied. Isami used a new spell to crush and freeze all of them. Each guildie stared at the water that was now focused on crushing them.
“Forget this b------t!” yelled Fiss. “I'm taking you out!”
Fiss transformed into a Beast Lord and broke free.
“Everyone follow suit and transform!” said Fiss.
One by one, each guildie transformed into more powerful beings that were able to escape the frigid death that almost claimed them. The elves used their nimble abilities to shoot arrows at Isami as they leaped from wall to wall. The giants bashed the walls releasing a plethora of granite and rock from the ceiling. The humans loaded Final Hit in an attempt to instantly teleport to Isami. Despite their efforts, Isami had dodged all of these abilities with ease.
“Impudent pests! I'll teach you-ARGH!”
“Teach us what?” said Toshi. Toshi had landed a hit on Isami's leg which was now leaking blood. “This is it!”
Athena's vicious assault increased in momentum, which proved to be more than enough to slow Isami down.
“Damn you all! I've had many guests in my time, but none of them have put up a fight,” said Isami who was now coughing up blood.
“That's what you get for underestimating Athena,” said a resolved Shizu, “and now you're going to pay for it.”
The Athenians launched a flurry of arrows, bolts, kicks, punches, and slashes that were meant to take down their saurian host.
“How do you like that?” yelled Iki who had launched a Critical Magnum Shot that hit its mark.
Isami hit the ground with a loud thud that happened to dislocate his arm and break his ribs.
“That looks like it would hurt in the morning,” said a relieved Rajku.
“Let's climb this staircase and get out of here,” said Harmonic.
The Athenians slowly ascended the spiral staircase leading out of the light chamber that was now losing its luster. The image of the dark specter faded away leaving the crimson haired woman alone on the wall. Before the fading light claimed the woman as well, it looked as if she had briefly smiled at her heroes who had defeated Isami.
“And that's the end of that chapter,” said Iki as he walked out of the dark tower.
Suddenly a gigantic hand appeared and shook Iki's head.
“Iki. Iki!”
“What the hell?”

-End of Chapter 4-

Chapter 5: Prison

“Iki. Iki! Wake up.”
“Who w-w-ha-where am I?” said Iki.
Iki's sight slowly returned to him.
“Kiky?”
“Yes you silly butt. Get up! Everyone is waiting for you,” said Kiky.
Iki and Kiky were locked in a room with Kira, Senor, and Black.
“Well ain't you a sight for sore eyes?” said Black.
“We thought you'd never wake up,” added Kira.
After looking around for a while Iki asked “Are we in a dungeon?”
“Yes, yes we most certainly are. We've been in here for five hours.” answered Senor.
“Where's everyone else? Are they okay? How did we get in here?”
“One question at a time Iki, one question at a time,” said Black.
After pausing to reply, Kira looked up at Iki and said, “Everyone else is in an adjacent cell to our left, our right, and in front of us. As far as I can tell we're all okay. As for how we got in here though, that's the part I don't understand. Tell me Iki, does the name Isami ring any bells?
“Of course it does! He's the reason we're probably in this mess.”
“All of us agree. No one doesn't know his name. Now, this is a very important question: Did you have a dream in which you died at Isami's hands and killed Isami with the rest of the guild?”
“Yes, yes I did. I was going up the staircase with the rest of you. As I was heading out of the tower a gigantic hand came out of nowhere and shook my head. It was after waking up that I realized it was Kiky's hand.”
“Hee hee, sorry to disturb you. In all seriousness though we need to get out of here. There's no telling what he'll do to the rest of us if we overstay our welcome, which was the worst welcome anyone could ever hope for if you ask me,” giggled Kiky.
“I'm glad you have the ability to laugh even in a situation such as this. At least we're all together right?” said Kira. “That aside, your answer confirms it Iki.”
“Confirms what Kira?”
“It confirms the fact that all of us had the same dream at the same time. Who walked out of the tower first in your dream?”
“It was Tosh, followed by you, Sky, Kiky, Fiss, Senor, Astral-”
“Kiky, Fiss, Senor, Astral,” echoed Kira. “I know, we all do. The order in which we left is the order in which we woke up from that dream. The fact that we're all alive is very relieving, yet the pain we endured still lingers in my mind and body.”
“I've done it! I know how we're going to escape.” said Blackau.
“That's great! How?” said a doubtful Senor.
“With this,” replied Blackau who revealed a lock-picking kit.
“You brought a lock-picking kit with you for a guild adventure?” questioned Iki.
“You can never be to sure when you'll need one,” chimed Blackau who proceeded to pick the lock. Through several tweaks and twiddles the door opened revealing a hallway lighted by green flames. There were three adjacent cells near their own as Kira had stated. Black managed to open them one by one while Iki, Senor, Kira, and Kiky began stretching drills to loosen their recently awoken bodies. After Black released all of the prisoners, the Athena guild gathered for a quick campfire meeting to plan their escape.
Even if Isami had died in their dreams, there was no proof that the same would apply to reality. They unanimously decided that they would scout for an exit together as one unit.
Finding their way out of the mansion was a lot harder than it seemed; Isami had rigged the way out of the dungeon with booby traps and violent monsters. No matter what peril came before them, the Athena guild did not falter in finding their own way home, everything this place most assuredly was not. Upon reaching the bottom of a staircase, the guild came across a pair of double doors that gave way to the warriors of Athena as if it had been expecting them.
“If we're at the dining hall again the way out is nearby,” said Sky.
The sound of footsteps echoed through the dining hall as everyone ran towards the entrance hall from whence they came. No one cared about the gleam of the walls, the sparkling crystals in the chandelier, and most importantly the false safety that this mansion provided. It was all a big lie.
“We're almost out of here. Now to open these doors and-”
Bright blue flames emerged from the front doors. The room itself split apart and turned into a battlefield.
“hahahaha.....HAHAHAHAHAHA! I can't believe you were all able to push me this far,” said an angry Isami. "I hope you know that you're going to pay for what you did to me!"

-End of Chapter 5-

Final Chapter:Escape

“You killed me! I can't believe you actually killed me? How could you? NOBODY TREATS A HOST LIKE THAT!” with one swift movement Isami scattered blue flames around the Athena guild. “Death awaits you my friends.” Isami retained his battle wounds even if it was only a dream. In two quick hand motions Isami recovered to full HP.
“What?! How is that even fair?” yelled Toshi.
“Don't waste your breath. You should ask yourself, and your guild how you're going to survive.” retorted Isami.
“Don't let me down everyone. We beat him before and we can do it again,” yelled Toshi.
“You don't have to tell us twice,” said Kira.
“Do your worst and show me your best.”
A fierce battle took place between Isami and Athena for the second time. Swords, arrows, and many a risque word found its way across the scorched battlefield. Since the guild used their transformation abilities during the first fight, they weren't able to use it again.
“Let's see how you handle this!”
A large purple dome trapped the entire guild in a small area that included Isami as well.
“Goodbye forever”
Isami activated an advanced version of the Fomorian Life Drain ability which encased the targets in a dome so they would endure the full blast.
“It'll be okay, the move will have to end eventually.” yelled Astral. “Just hold on!”
“H-hey...it's not ending! He's still casting it and it's taking its toll.” yelled Kira.
“There's no escaping this art,” said Isami. “I almost feel sorry for you. The expressions you're making are too exquisite for my tastes. This is it for you.”
“Not so fast,” said Shadow. “Everyone activate Demigod right now.”
“Demi-god?” said a puzzled Isami.
Ironically, Isami himself didn't know of a special ability each member of Athena had: The power to become a demigod.
“What's happening,” said Isami.
“Your end,” said Iki. “Everyone!”
“This can't be-ughhh,”
The draconian wrath of Athena fell upon Isami in full force. Isami's dark aura was pierced by divine light in the form of dozes of spears.
“It isn't over yet. It can't be. I'm the superior being.”
“We'll see about that”
Fiss launched Isami into the air and impaled him through the chest with a Lance Charge. Everyone followed suit and proceeded to run through him delivering blow after blow which ended with a simultaneous eruption of Light and Dark energy.
“It's over,” said a relieved Toshi. The doors to the mansion opened and revealed the sun rising in the sky.
“Let's make sure we never go to any mansions like this ever again.” joked Iki.
The Athenians had survived their terrible ordeal in the mysterious mansion that seemed so welcoming at first, but led to many terrible experiences that none of them would ever forget.
“Oreo party time!” said a happy Carol.
“I vote we add pizza too” said Suffix.
“Pizza again?” said Flame.
Everyone laughed and proceeded to head back.
“Hold on guys, I forgot something,” said Iki.
Iki headed back to the sign that they had passed by earlier. He moved some leaves away from the sign and showed: Home of Isami Kho.
“Hee....Maybe it isn't the end.” said a smiling Iki.

-The End?-

I vote for Iki

  Votes for Iki   ^^

My vote goes to you.

I vote for Iki as well.