Invictus Maneo/Nine

**“**How unfortunate for you!**”**
— Invictus Maneo selection quip
**Konoe Ayatsuki Mercury**, or **Nine**, was the ninth member of the Magic Association's Ten Sages, an organization devoted to the advancement of alchemy and magic. During the apocalyptic Great Dark War event, she spread her knowledge of magic to mankind and smelted the Nox Nyctores so the humans could be aided in slaying the Black Beast. Following a long road of misfortune, she wished to destroy and recreate the world, determined to do what's right for humanity even if it meant taking things to the extreme. She is mature and independent, but impulsive and destructive if angered.

Nine originates from the 2009 game BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger (although she'd first be playable in Central Fiction), and her home stage is Purgatorium.

## Fighter Info

### Basics

Nine is a dynamic lightweight fighter infamous for her wide plethora of moves, standing out as one of the game's most varied characters. She can function well regardless of tactics, whether the player decides to play her like a rushdown character or a zoner type, and it can make her difficult to predict.

Nine attacks her enemies with three elements; namely water, wind, and fire, which can swapped through the parry command. Using any elemental attack will add it to her Magic Storage UI's Active Slot, and she can swap to her Stock Slot anytime by using Seamoss Gate. Any combination of elements in the Active Slot will change her Magic Trigger move, which is a crucial element of her playing style. Up to three colored ribbons will follow Nine around, allowing the player to keep track of what elements are currently active. Outside of her unique gimmick, Nine teleports upon dashing (wreathed in flames for her dash attack) and summons the fire elemental beast Hi no Kagutsuchi to crush her foes to death in her grab and throw attacks. Her Flame Punisher, Cardinal Nova, and Azurite Inferno, which are her heavy tilts, drain all her elements in both Slots to deal colossal damage.

Nine is insanely crippled however, having the worst defense in the game by a mile. Even her parry isn't helpful, since it requires nearly frame perfect execution to trigger. Furthermore, she has a very high learning curve and she is rather sluggish on the ground.

### Magic Spells

 **Heliodor of Humility**Nine will summon the skull of a ram, which will float before her and shield her from one attack before breaking up into pieces.
 **Celestite of the Covenant**Nine will place down a field on the ground that will prevent the foe from jumping if they step on it. Breaks after a few seconds.
 **Taaffeite of Temptation**Nine will summon a fairy that'll briefly pause before casting a few bolts of magic, teleporting behind the foe after each hit.

### Specials

* **Special A: Magic Trigger**
Whenever Magic Trigger is activated, Nine will activate a spell based on which elements are stored in the Active Slot. If she attempts to use this move twice in a row, she will use Everlasting Schorl, which requires no elements to trigger and comes out very quickly, catching nearby foes by surprise.
* **Special B: Flax Nurture**
Nine will buff herself with the last element borrowed from the Active Slot, which increases all the damage dealt by spells using that element. Because a lot of Nine's spells are better suited for dealing finishing blows to her foes' stocks rather than racking up damage, this can be used to help speed up the process.
* **Special C: Teleport**
Nine will teleport in whichever direction the player's holding in, with Nine falling helplessly as soon as the move's animation is done with. This move can be very risky as it puts Nine in a vulnerable spot, so it's recommended to be careful with it. If she teleports right onto the ground, she won't have to deal with that.
* **Special D: Seamoss Gate**
Nine will swap whatever's in her Active Slot with what's in her Stock Slot, which can be very beneficial for when it doesn't appear that Nine's current spell will help her much against her foe. By holding down the command, Nine's Active Slot will be formatted, allowing her to replace what's inside it.
* **Showstopper: Colorless Void**
Nine will close her eyes and snap her fingers, summoning Hi no Kagutsuchi if any foes are right near her. They will devour the foe and hurl them inside a fiery cage. She will then create a pentagram in the sky, which opens up to make a huge meteor strike through and hit the foe square on the nose to deal immense damage.