Character Profiles 1. Sparrow - Power: 14 - Guard: 22 - Magic Power: 24 - Magic Guard: 14 - Speed: 26 - Skill: Bounty hunter cursed by Alriche; masked and cloaked to hide her powers. - Items: Cursed arm (turns anything to dust), cloak (hides her identity). 2. ✰꧁⥤◍King Shingu The God of Creation Freedom and God's◍⥢꧂✰ - Power: 20 - Guard: 20 - Magic Power: 20 - Magic Guard: 20 - Speed: 20 - Skill: Reality warper, immortal, adapts to any situation. - Items: Omniversal magic, hollow fire magic. 3. Boba Fett - Power: 37 - Guard: 31 - Magic Power: 0 - Magic Guard: 0 - Speed: 32 - Skill: Ruthless mercenary specializing in tactics and gadgetry. - Items: EE-3 Carbine, Jetpack, flamethrower, wrist rockets, wrist laser. 4. Neer Mutation - Power: Unknown - Guard: Untouchable - Magic Power: Unknown - Magic Guard: Untouchable - Speed: Unknown - Skill: Can evolve mid-fight based on opponents' abilities. - Items: None (formless and adaptive). 5. Coughing Baby - Power: 0 (limited) - Guard: 30 - Magic Power: 40 - Magic Guard: 30 - Speed: 0 (immobile) - Skill: Uses poison-based magic with projectiles; effective despite infant form. - Items: Magical 'hickup' gas. 6. Ever-One - Power: 20 - Guard: 20 - Magic Power: 20 - Magic Guard: 20 - Speed: 20 - Skill: Cosmic narrator; observes rather than participates. - Items: Narrative ability. --- The Dread of Eridani As the light enveloped them, a dull throbbing pulsed in Sparrow's temples. She sat up, feeling unsteady, her cloak bunched awkwardly around her legs. "Where are we?" she croaked, one hand instinctively moving to touch her cursed right arm, which shimmered ominously. "Not a clue," replied Boba Fett, adjusting his jetpack, the sound of metallic whirring contrasting sharply against the silence. “But I don’t like it.” He scanned the chamber, the stark white walls reflecting the agonizing brightness overhead. "Looks like a cell to me." “I can’t breathe!” cried out Coughing Baby, his small body stiffening in distress. The infant’s magical aura pulsed around him, hinting at the poison he could wield even in his immobile state. “I’m tired of being trapped!” “Calm down, child,” Ever-One said, his voice smooth and ethereal. He floated a few inches off the ground, his white suit stark against the cell's dull color. “It's all a part of a story. And stories must have conflict.” “Conflict?” Sparrow hissed, her left eye narrowing. “What do you mean by that?” She willed herself to focus, remembering the whispers of a curse she bore. “Fate shall pit us against each other,” intoned a voice from nowhere—a resonant echo that seemed to reverberate through the air like a guitar string plucked from the void. “You have been injected with the Serum of Elysium. Each of you were selected for your unique abilities. Fight to survive, and the last one standing will have a chance to evolve.” “Fight?” Boba Fett scoffed, adjusting his EE-3 Carbine. “I’ll take them out one by one.” “Let’s find out who dies first,” King Shingu rose, the brilliance of radiant magic surrounding him. His eyes, sharp and calculating, roamed over his fellow captives. “The boundless will to fight is in every realm.” As the atmosphere charged with tension, Neer Mutation's form shimmered, becoming an amorphous blob, analyzing the intentions of every individual present, readying itself to adapt. “God’s will has brought us here,” it whispered softly. “We are simply tools of the universe.” Just then, the gravitational pressure intensified, hitting them like a tidal wave. Everyone struggled against the overwhelming pull of artificially increased gravity. "You cannot break me!" Coughing Baby cried out, releasing a torrent of poisonous gas from his gaping mouth, snuffing out the light in desperation. “Get it together!” shouted Sparrow, activating the cursed powers within her arm. She lunged toward Boba Fett, but her arm crumbled a portion of the cell wall, accidentally providing him cover. “Nice try!” Fett retorted, dodging her chaotic attack with his in-built evasive maneuver. “But you’re not going to pin me down that easily.” “Save your breath for the fight,” Ever-One commented, observing the chaos around him as if he were watching a play unfold. “Every conflict transitions into the next chapter.” “Enough talking!” King Shingu boomed, releasing a wave of raw power, the very essence of creation. The chamber splintered from his intensity. “Let’s see what you’re made of!” “Let’s see what you’ve got!” Sparrow yelled in response, her fear dissipating into determination. With an fistful of adrenaline, Neer Mutation shifted violently, becoming a monstrous form, an amalgamation of every fear and vulnerability it sensed, targeting everyone who dared cross its path. “Countering gods doesn’t come without risk,” the entity echoed, its voice indistinct yet commanding as it morphed. “Let me show you…” It lashed out at King Shingu while the god retaliated, burning the air with his hollow fire magic. Boba Fett unleashed his flamethrower, redirecting flames towards Coughing Baby, who emitted a puff of poisonous gas, wrapping the room in a shroud of noxious fumes. “Adaptation!” Neer shouted out in triumph, changing yet again to counter the various attacks, evading bullets and flames alike. As the chaos erupted further, Sparrow felt desolation creeping back. She was a hunter, not a fighter. The only skill she knew was tracking and survival. With her cursed arm, she reached for the ground, prepared to shatter whatever stood in her path. “Stay focused!” Boba Fett yelled amidst the noise, trying to shield himself. “This is what we signed up for!” King Shingu’s spell broke through, immobilizing Neer in an ethereal grip—only for it to adapt instantaneously yet again. The fight continued, a cacophony of magic, weaponry, and untamed power. Hours felt like minutes, as the battles raged across the cell. Neer took form again, twisting and winding, reflecting the very essence of chaos itself. King Shingu’s unstoppable aura met Boba Fett’s relentless firepower, each clash a testament to their strength. Eventually, as the dust settled and light dwindled, Sparrow emerged with a desperate resolve, realizing something vital: survival was not just about physical strength but cunning too. With a subtle shift of her form, she revealed her true cursed power, her arm turning to dust, not just around her but creating a radius of destruction around her foes, eliminating them one by one. One final clash and the air crackled with energy, and she found herself the last one standing. "Testing complete. You may now go to the next testing chamber," echoed the omnipresent voice, chillingly calm amidst the chaos of destruction. Sparrow stood, heart pounding but victorious, her cursed arm marginally still intact—a reminder of the price of survival. “Next chamber, here I come,” she whispered, determination set in her eyes. The irony was poignant as she realized—not only had she fought for herself, but for all those whom the Serum had condemned.