I pull up! Where the hell am I? Am I dead again? I looked around to see the burnt-down remains of a mansion… this seems oddly familiar.
"Our house burnt down again." I looked behind me and saw a random female villager sharpening Mel's singular, infinite arrow. Oh god, is Mel dead? "No, she's not."
"Oh… who are you?"
"My name is Melika. Yet another Side Character. Specifically the non-descript village girl. Nothing special, just the way a Side Character should be."
"I still have no idea what's going on with your Sacred Power."
"Don't worry, the others don't know either."
"And you?"
"I know more than I should, but less than you think I do."
"Very specific, thanks. So what now?"
"Now? We wait. Some help will come, probably."
"Okay…" I stood up, grabbed a nearby pile of ash, and sat on it. Huh, surprisingly comfortable and very warm. I like this. Speaking of ash, "So how'd the mansion burn down?"
"The literal reason, something to do with kidnappers. The meta reason, it's probably a running gag. This isn't the first time and probably not the last. Now, if you don't mind, I will monologue about myself, okay?"
"Will there be anything about Mel?"
"Specify which Mel."
"My Mel."
"I was just messing with you. I knew you meant Melanie."
"Oh… why did you ask then?"
"Because you annoy me. Simple as that."
"Huh, been a while since someone hit me with that annoying tag."
"People should hit you with it more often. Now shush, child, the adult is going to tell you a story."
"Ooh, I love stories."
"I know you do. Once again, I'm Melika. Your everyday, average village girl."
"Hi Melika, I'm Madeleine."
"I know. My whole character is that I'm just a village girl. Nothing more, nothing less. It's quite the versatile character due to how bland it is."
"I don't think you're bland."
"I'm not going to comment on anything you say from now on, okay."
"Aye aye, captain!"
"I, just like the others, exist to fulfil certain roles. Melody was a prickly noble, denouncing others and building herself up as something grander. She's usually a rival type of character. You know, the type that once you punch them in the face, they become nicer and your friend. Mellow was a know-it-all merchant, just ask her anything and she'll somehow know. Probably say some shady or creepy things here and there too. I'm a villager, I exist. There are others, like an orphaned kleptomaniac, a lonely bandit or a piece of shit elf, but they're not coming out. Sucks to be them."
"They sound like my friends."
"Your favourite, Melanie, is a bit different. In fact, she's probably the reason Side Character has been out of whack for a while."
"I didn't even know it was out of whack."
"We're not supposed to have… hmm… how to describe them… I wouldn't say personalities… ah, character traits. Well, more than we're supposed to have. Let's examine me, for example. I'm supposed to be a literally blank slate. That boring childhood friend from the village, you know?"
"I don't. I grew up in the Maid School."
"Yet now, because of Mel, I have memories of another life. I've become one of those mob protagonists, except it's even weirder because Side Character still affects me, so I'm still a side character, but also a background character with main character traits."
"And I'm the crazy character!"
"So basically, I'm going to kill you to ensure my story ends."
"Huh… wait, what?"
"Just kidding. Anyways, that rant is over. I wanted to let more out, but that would ruin the fun, and by ruining the fun, I meant I forgot what my rant was halfway through. So, how's life, Madeleine?"
"So-so. There's been a lot of action, adventure, and eyes to admire, but not enough tea."
"Soup, tea, sandwiches. Maybe I should pick up a food obsession. You wouldn't mind telling me what the others love?"
"I only know what May likes. The rest have normal appetites."
"So what does the dragon like? Apricots? Beef? Chocolate?"
"Human meat."
"So I figured out where everyone else went."
"Complete topic change, huh."
"Merida, Myka, and Merry were kidnapped, and the kidnappers came on over to burn down our house and kidnap the rest. They took us by surprise since it felt like their own shadows grabbed their legs and dragged them down and took everyone, even that tree spirit and tiger girl. There was also a bright blue girl, I have no idea what her deal was, but she was just there. She was also taken. The only ones not taken were you and I. Your shadow clones seemed to make your shadow unable to grab you."
"And how did you end up untouched?"
"Side Character kicked in, turning Melanie into me, and I ended up blending into the villager group with us, watching the mansion burn down. There is no way they'd think a normal villager was part of that group."
Suddenly, three shadow clones popped out, dragging a fourth shadow that looked nothing like me. It also weirdly wore a metallic black ring embedded with a black gem. Black on black doesn't look good when as jewellery. Villager Mel stood up and walked towards the shadows. "That ring looks important. Let's take it." She took off the ring, and the fourth shadow dispersed, revealing a demon inside it. "I have a feeling…." Villager Mel threw the ring at me, which I quickly caught. Superior combat maid reflexes.
|
Umbrakinesis You can manipulate darkness. Side Note: Edgelord ability. |
Umbrella?
"Umbra. Dark in some random ancient language from Melanie's world. Guess someone is turning Sacred Powers into rings."
"Uh… how'd you figure that out?"
"I know more than I should, but less than you think I do. Oh god… am I becoming Mellow? Are we all merging together? Can I get more existential crises? These are kind of fun."
"So… are we going to stop them?"
"Maybe. Although we don't have any leads. In the meantime, I guess you can just go on some adventures with Melanie again. I'm done here." And so Villager Mel turned back into Mel. Lovely.
"What happened to the house?"
"Kidnappers."
"Oh… where're the others?"
"Kidnappers."
"I want to sleep and wake up to find out this was all a prank."
"Kidnappers."
Item profile: Ring of Lurking Darkness
Sacred power: Umbrakinesis
Former Owner: Nero Kuro Noiro Schwarzo Darknessso 0
Description: A recently made ring that allows anyone to utilise the Sacred Power of Umbrakinesis. The methods of obtaining Sacred Powers are varied, varying in difficulty. The most common is being born the same day a Sacred Power holder dies. Due to how Sacred Powers work, there must always be at least one holder of it at all times. Sacred Powers can also be passed down, like Shadow Cloning. Some are determined by certain feats, such as Music Reference, given to the musician considered the greatest in the land. Others are given through items, such as Umbrakinesis. A forbidden technique allows one to turn a Sacred Power holder into an item, like what happened to poor Nero.
Chapter namesake: Hell of a Life by Kanye West
More shadow powers for the Maid school graduate!
you know, i havd the distinct feeling that what side charecter is has changed from when mel was first introduced