Magi Heart saw the Masked Man get absolutely gimped in moments. It looked like not many more words needed to be said. Just fighting now. Why hadn't Wendy at least tried to talk more with the man? To talk more with Szofrit...
Talking....
Isn't heroic is it?
She couldn't complain then. It was about doing it right. So now...
They think they've got him. No way. I'll have to eat later. They really don't need a hero do they? They need a savior. Not a hero, that's Raina's job. Corvella's the one that needs a hero now! Didn't you hear him? Don't you remember anything! She's just going to drop dead! Gee whiz! I thought I, uh, we were fateless. Then her fate doesn't matter when we do stuff for her! Where did you get that idea? ....it all ends anyway. Wowzers I don't know! It sounded cool?
The rotting effect overtaken by the regeneration. Magi was just a bit bruised now.
"Miss Corvella I'll support you from above!"
Magi ran straight at the wall, past Madison, grabbing her hand as she continued right up the side. The sparkles of light resonating from her shoes with each step. At the edge she pushed herself forward, letting go of Madison's hand and letting the tendrils of her skirt hoist her over.. Magi Heart retracted the tendrils, aimed and fired at the waiting Robotic dog/dino thingy.
It would have been neat to have one as a toy back in the day. Magias have ruined Transformerbots forever! Wendel wasn't sure what a Transformerbot was, those damn refreshes from that 'School Dream' weren't useful for staying on track.
Magi landed atop the wall just as the barrage connected and destroyed part of the wall in the process. Sending Edgier Rush tumbling to the ground below. Her dress lighter and her aura changing to a brighter one. A wall crumbling in one shot... was that Magi's growth or a problem with Astorea's governing?
Wendel twitched within.
Stop! I'm trying to eat! Don't you just FEEL how much this Necro Lady is dragging around? Second chances are rare... so eat later!
"We know how you guys work now. You don't have the advantage you used to."
"Tch. I'll be back with reinforcements, don't you dare die before I come back."
"Likewise, Beleg. Drinks on me later."
After the friends fistbumped, the elven violet whistle quickly fled the scene, looking to rescue trapped survivors and guiding them through the safe paths in Vintergard. The woman turned to the others, nodding at them as she finally understood what was happening.
"You're all not from here, aren't you?" Her eyes shifted toward the oncoming forces. "The masked man might have something to do with it. I'll hold the Skynet robots off, go get him."
Trying to hide from the invaders, the Masked Man was preparing a spell as the three maniacs quickly rushed at him, giving the magician no time to channel any of his magic. @Fiora Di Angelo quickly sliced off his left hand clean, @Yugam's ice-blood spikes prevented him from moving, and @Luthien's astral arrow released a powerful explosion that destroyed the roof that he was standing on.
When the astral mist subsided, only his lower body was left, still standing. But suddenly, a pitch-black shadowy figure sprouted back, replacing the destroyed upper body. "You don't know what you have done," The intangible shadow warned them, before slowly seeping onto the ground, joining the shadow between the rubbles. "You have made a grave mistake."
And then he was gone, leaving behind the blue-colored mirror shard.
"They seem to be fighting amongst themselves."
[Extensive scan complete. That next-generation unit is not ours.]
The big one referred to @Ronja Bubblyfoot. In turn, she also fully recognized its first-generation magia armaments. Perhaps something could be done against them...
"Affirmative, added to the directive."
"..."
In the middle of the battlefield, the commanding magia faced off against the defender, unleashing a jumping attack to get close to her, while its missile launcher locked on @Yugam, shooting multiple high-explosive seeking missiles at him. After JUGGER.NAUGHT's signal, the weaponry on the side of the Dragonship came alive, locking to everyone in the area before unleashing hail of projectiles.
Lupus-REX, moving quickly to minimize the impact of Magi's attacks, weaved around @Madison Freebird's skeletons and delivered one horizontal slash to the pair, before quickly dashing behind Corvella and stabbing her from the back between the gaps in her armor.
"Recovered DNAs, transmitting them now."
[Commendable effort, human. However, you stand no chance.]
With her golden gaze, @Magi Heart would definitely notice the amount of Dissonance suddenly spiking from within the shieldwoman. Beyond her visor, golden-red glowing eyes, and as the woman grinned, fangs. Sharp fangs.
"Really? It's getting late, and I'm feeling really hungry right now!"
Cycle 3 Objectives
Survive
Retrieve the mirror shard (Bonus Action, must be in A4, can be done while in motion)
Defeat the invader vanguard (?)
Greensquares are High Grounds. 80DC Physical Expertise Check (or relevant mastery) to attempt to climb.
While in High Ground, increase range by 1 and gain 10 mitigation. For each square apart from the enemy target, gain +20 damage bonus. (High ground buff)
Combatants
JUGGER.NAUGHT Prototype Annihilation Platform
❰ 1222 / 1222 ❱
❰ 1999 / 1999 ❱
Taunt DC: 110 Mastery Check
For every 250 SP damage, remove 1 Passive of choice. At 0 SP, becomes Vulnerable.
(Passive) Weapon - Missile Pod: Will lock on to the lowest hp at the start of its turn. Infinite range (Passive) Weapon - Railgun: Single target ranged attack. 3 range. (Passive) Boosters: Add extra 1 movement. Enable jump attack. (Passive) Dragonplating: Has 100HP mitigation each round. Does not stack. Break damage goes through as normal. (Innate) Field Commander: Enables dragonship guns to fire at everyone (Innate) Heavy: Oversized. Cannot be displaced or have its movement restricted. Moves last. Has 1 base movement and 1 base range.
Break Weakness: Order, Occult
Lupus-REX
❰ 335 / 555 ❱
❰ 783 / 1222 ❱
For every 150 SP damage, remove 1 Passive of choice. At 0 SP, becomes Vulnerable.
(Innate) Calculator: Prioritize vulnerable targets, with or without mitigation. Cannot be taunted. (Innate) Sampler: Takes the sample of everyone they damaged. Current: @Magi Heart, @Madison Freebird, Corvella (Innate) Lightning fast: 1 range, 4 speed, moves first. (Passive) Rover: You know what this does. (Passive) Predator: Deals 6d10 extra flat damage if the target is isolated.
Break Weakness: Elemental, Construct
X-0 Prototype
❰ 444 / 444 ❱
❰ 666 / 666 ❱
At 150 SP, remove Track or one of any gained Evolution. At 0 SP, becomes Vulnerable.
(Passive) Track: Deal 6d20 bonus damage to people in lower ground.
(Innate) Take Aim: Cannot attack adjacent target. Prioritizes dealing the most damage possible. (Innate) Sniper: Deal less damage to moving targets (-10 damage per movement used). Deal less damage to target under 4 range(-10 damage per tile). (Innate) Tactical: Infinite range, 3 speed, moves third. (Innate) Ultimate Evolution: Gained Stable Attack (Magi Heart), Coordinate (Madison Freebird), and Intercept (Corvella). Her number of actions becomes two.
Break Weakness: Occult, Physical
Use Knowledge Expertise Check to find out more about the enemy. @Ronja Bubblyfoot can always roll with an advantage.
Ally
Corvella
❰ 93 / 230 ❱
(Action) Intercept: Target one enemy. She may do any or both of these actions:
Taunt the enemy, guaranteed.
Negate the full damage of one enemy action of choice.
Mobile: 2 range, 3 speed
Cycle 3 Logs
Masked Man has fled the combat zone, dropping the Azure Shard behind.
High ground on A4 has been destroyed.
High ground on I4 has been destroyed, Lupus-REX takes 100 fall damage.
@Madison Freebird and @Magi Heart take 45 damage from Razor Slash 1. (Roll DC 80 Fortitude Save to not get 3 stacks of Bleed)
Corvella takes 6030 damage from Razor Slash 2 and 14 flat damage from Predator. Immune to Bleed.
@Fiora Di Angelo takes 6030 15 damage from half-covering Razor Slash. Cover doesn't get affected by Bleed.
Corvella takes 105 53 damage from One Shot and Track.
@Fiora Di Angelotakes 10553 27 damage from half-covering One Shot and Track.
Destruction retaliated against Ronja's friends and allies, but not a single harm was directed to her. She had enough time to take it to her advantage, but it didn't take long for the enemy to realize something was off.
"Too late." Ronja's eyes locked back on JUGGER.NAUGHT when it finally noticed her presence as a 'rogue' Magia, then swiftly traced the movements of the Lupus-REX, that was immediate on taking the new directive.
Her teeth gritted when despite @Yugam's finishing attack, the masked man managed to slip away, yet thankfully the shard was still there. "Yugam! The shard!" She asked, and then her eyes turned to @Fiora Di Angelo and @Luthien, allowing her Aid-Lings to gather around them, circling and forming a thin magical barrier—
❰ INFUSION - HEXSHIELD ❱
Quickly, she leaped to the nearest roof, using the rockets attached to her ankle to gain height enough to land on it.
Twisting an sphere, sparks of magic snapped out of it, letting out a cyan fume before Ronja threw it toward the REX just as a War-Ling sent a barrage of shots at will, piercing the sphere and allowing it to erupt— "Fire in the hole!"
❰ MANABLAST BOMB ❱
The explosion engulfed the REX just as the Hexshield covered Ronja, disrupting the magic flow of the explosion range, which would hopefully disable the magia.
Location Start: A7 -20 -10 from Rain Fire +25 from Ronja
Location End: A7 +20 from Ronja & High Ground
Her gaze couldn’t help but linger on the duo and the familiarity present between them, odd as it was to see a whistle much like her own around the man’s neck. She’d have plenty of questions for Beleg and Freya once they all figured how to get out of here, though her mind wasn’t the only one working overtime today.
"You're all not from here, aren't you?" A light shrug was given in response, the lightest of smiles curling the edges of her lips as the woman quickly picked up on the small clues. "Seems like it, but we’ll have time to figure that out when things settle."
At least she hoped they would, the records from the fall of Vintergard back in the League had been spotty at best... and she’d never managed to pinpoint when exactly the Immortal Heroine had fallen.
"Oh, for fuck’s sake...!" He was certainly chatty for someone who’s leftover remains had been from the hips down, and the blonde couldn’t help rolling her eyes as the shadowy figure materialized to have the last word. "Hurry on and shoo, dissipate into the air already."
He finally seemed to take the hint, the blue-tinted shard left behind gleaming among the rubble, before a barrage of missiles struck the face of the building where they stood. "Yu?!" Concerned flared in her voice as the remaining dust and smoke blocked her vision, the tension on her shoulders only lessening to an extent once she caught sight of her boyfriend and confirmed he was—for the most part—alright.
Ronja was the first to snap back into action, the magia reminding Yugam to pick up the apparent key item their mystery guy had left behind as the elf focused her attention on Fiora. "I’ll support Ronja, so go cut that Wall-E look alike in half." Between the fiery knightess and the hunter Lúthien was sure they could take that construct down, and Ronja herself was in the process of dealing a pretty number on the mechanical doggo coming their way.
Fingers swiftly wrapped around the fletching of another arrow and nocked it back just as the ball of cyan fumes landed by the creature’s feet. Her War-Ling was quick to fire precise shots to ignite the chemicals, her own arrow swiftly piercing through the air before embedding itself onto REX’s shoulder before a burst of verdant gales wrapped around the machine—effectively trapping the machine in a confined place so it was unable to escape any trace of the manablast.
A spare breeze broke off in Ronja’s direction, carefully wrapping around the brunette before expanding into a protective sphere meant to deflect any incoming threat that might come for Ronja.
Staying in I6
Taking 65 damage, regaining 5 from Ronja coordinate
Stored +67 buff to next attack from Ronja buff
It is through sheer luck that the lot of us didn’t die when that damned dragonship crashed into the city and these robotic monstrosities were unleashed. But it is through great wisdom and foresight that I turned off the one-to-one pain receptors in my UI to make me feel like I was about to die.
Hey, my HP’s fine. For the time being. I’m just starting to feel numb in certain parts. I’m pretty sure I have a cracked rib or two. Couldn’t tell you for sure–and I don’t think I want to know until we get the hell out of Dodge.
But now, priorities–the spirits of the newly deceased were drifting about, confused, upset, and ripe for the plucking. Manipulating their fleeting energies was like conducting a symphony. With each wave of my hand, I drew them to the alleyway, my focus solely on giving them one final purpose.
“Hey! Corvette!” –-wait, what was this bitch's name again? I’m starting to remember seeing her during the Titanius battle, but--hey, I'm just some idiot who keeps ducking out of the game for months on end and not hanging out with the cool kids. “Incoming! Hold still, this’ll keep you on your feet!”
Through the smoke roared thick wisps of greenish, bluish energy, the last vestiges of those crushed under the rubble or burned by the fires. The spirits of the fallen, ready to give what remained to the armored woman who was trying her damnedest to protect those who remained from the onslaught.
Rolls
Free Action
Coordinate with Madison, @Magi Heart , @Yugam +25 to next heal, buff, or attack action
Bonus Action
Range (+1 Range)
Main Action Roll Result 2d20 (9 + 7) 130= 146
Healing Corvella
Investigation roll:
Seeking on Juggernaught: 21+40 = 61
Mirror Blessing taken: The Dead Speaks. Your Coordinate can target anyone on the map. If the coordinate target is in range, double the bonus for damage only.
-20 HP from Rain Fire +10 MITfrom High Ground -91 HPfrom Half-Cover @Corvella +50 HP from Overdrive +25 Modsfrom @Ronja Bubblyfoot'sCoordinate +25 Break DMG from @Luthien
"No need to tell me twice..."She mumbled under her breath as blood begun to stain her back from the puncturing wounds traded out of Corvella. If the ranger's calls weren't enough to kickstart her gears, the sting of her injuries would push her towards that tincan of a sniper with murderous intent. She shared a quick glance back to @Yugam, certain a little slip and a bunch of rubble wasn't enough to put him out of commission, "Let's get to it. I'll set him up for a quick kill."
Once Ronja's Aidlings finally caught up to her and set up a little shield of their own, Fiora took a leap towards the nearest cracked wall, taking a split of a second to push herself out of it with enough force to break it apart, and to send her in direction to the sniping bot, using the large chunks of debris scattered across the floor as stepping stones, eventually picking up enough speed to skip the tedious climbing, both hands on her blade as she aimed a vertical, downwards strike mid-air onto the prototype robot, a thunderous, blunt sound ringing outloud as the very ground the bot stood up on crumbled alongside everything around it.
Her fingers dug into the tiles above the building next to it, slowing herself down as she landed on the closest roof still standing, at enough of a distance for Yugam to blow the ever-living hell out of the sniper with no worries over friendly fire, or flimsy mirrors either..
A6 D2 > showSummary() -43 HP - Missile Barrage
+50 - Coordinate (Madison Freebird) +30 Damage - Damage
+2 Movement - Rush
+1 Range - High Ground
+10 Mitigation - High Ground
+40 Damage - High Ground
>
Between their three attacks, the Masked Man was reduced to a barely propped up lower body, his top half-completely obliterated. At least until a strange phantom of him floated eerily out of what was left of his corpse. Well that wasn't foreboding at all...
"Yugam! The shard!"Ronja's voice interrupted the phantom's speech. "Right! On it!"
Not more than two steps were made before bright orange lights and hissing drew Yugam's attention. His body moved of it's own accord, instinct to fight and survive overriding any thoughts as his mind went blank. Blood seeped through the bandages of his right hand, encasing his arm in a gauntlet of red. Yugam drove his coiled fist into the rough, a crown of blood growing around him to shield him from the missiles.
The explosion rocked the crystalline cocoon, the bright orange lights wholly scarlet from within the confines of his shelter. And then the sensation of falling.
The crystals shattered as they made contact with the ground below, and Yugam rolled through the fall, coming back to his feet with a dissatisfied scowl on his face. He looked back towards the roof that'd been standing on only moments before, almost completely destroyed. A hole between Luthien and Fiora where he'd just been.
"These guys are really starting to piss me off..." the Huntsman muttered.
Fiora began to charge at the distant sniper, too focused on its target to see the berserker hurtling towards it. 'There's the set,' Unmei hinted inside Yugam's skull. "And I'm the spiker."
The black-clad lad sprinted across the battle-field, before leaping on the wall just beneath the less funny MRVN unit. Climb, climb, climb. Fiora leapt, and her crushing blow shook the bricks strongly enough that Yugam lost his footing, high up in the air.
He threw Unmei up, past the roof, blinked out of existence, and reappeared in a smoky haze, gripping her hilt. "Over here!" Bloodstone formed at his feet, and the man rocketed off the makeshift platform. Green, and blue phantom forms, each bearing their own armor and weapons chased after Yugam through the air, forming a phalanx of armed men and women as he crashed down on the bot.
The head popped clean off as the phantoms crashed into the body behind him, reducing it to scrap metal. Yugam picked up the oil-leaking head unit and threw it at the JUGGER.NAUT. "Come and get me you bastard! I owe you for that last one!"
The slashing attack of the Lupus-Rex hit clean and left their mark. Magi didn't expect it to just jump right back up here so quickly but what could you do?
[Commendable effort, human. However, you stand no chance.]
"Really? It's getting late, and I'm feeling really hungry right now!"
Giggle... What is so funny? Oh nothingggg...! I don't think anything going on here is funny! You say that, but your humor is mine too!
Magi aimed her bow and fired at the massive War Machine. Streams of fluctuating starlight pelted it's side and only more would come.
Magia and Dissonance, they were both constantly in the position of being the enemy... yet they seemed to fight each other a lot. Magi Heart stuck in the middle of a war with two evils again...
Where's the Revengers when you need them?
Rolls
Movement: I6 -> J5 (Stable Attack)
Fortitude Save vs Bleed: Roll Result
1d100 (46) 50 = 96 Cleared Fortitude Save | Magi Heart | 2167C3
—Or that was what was supposed to happen as Yugam delivered his attack. X-0 Prototype's evolved Astramancy saw this outcome, as she attempted to jump backwards. Unfortunately, the damage from Fiora's attack was too much, and it ended up not having the momentum needed to fully avoid Yugam's devastating attack. As she tumbled and recovered, her head was already dangling to the side, only supported by magitech tubes and exposed wirings.
Lupus-REX was quick. Its movement was calculated, jumping left and right as the Warlings attempted to damage it. Noticing Ronja's sphere throw, it strafed to the left, but Luthien was already tracking its movement, embedding an arrow of the gale that prevented it from escaping the radius of the high-powered manablast bomb, causing most of its circuit to lose power quickly.
"I see... So this is the power of the Starcalled." It spoke to Ronja and Luthien as it fell to the ground disabled, its audio unit glitched and stuttered. "I stood no chance. You win."
Still facing the knightess, JUGGER.NAUGHT attempted to stomp the human before an arrow of starlight struck its side, shattering its exterior armor. Then, it quickly assessed the unfavorable situation around it; outnumbered, with Lupus disabled and X-0 hanging by a thread, it had to make a strategic decision.
[This is vanguard commander. Vanguard zero two and zero three are out of commission.] It broadcasted to the Dragonship, the communication could be heard clearly by everyone as its booming electronic voice vibrates the surrounding. [Bypass protocol. Attempting to download evolution.]
The canine-modeled magia was unmoving, but it was still communicating.
"Negative, commander. That protocol is restricted to X-0 and DEAD.NAUGHT units only."
[I wasn't asking for permission, Lupus.]
"...!"
X-0's body stiffened and trembled violently as her eyes flashed red repeatedly, her synthetic scream pierced the air. The big bipedal magia knelt on the ground, as its body began to rebuild itself rapidly. @Magi Heart could even notice some dissonant tendrils coming out of it and even integrate with the electronics of the machine. If you tried to attack it during this moment, all damage seemed to be inconsequential as it kept repairing itself almost instantaneously.
"Whistles, attack!"
As Beleg shouted, multiple colorful magic projectiles rained from above, causing explosions that shook even the rooftops they were standing at. The elven ranger came back bringing reinforcements; Explorer League's finest spellcasters standing on top of the city wall. The barrage, completed by the purple whistle's own Plasma Lance seemed to have stopped the evolution process, but what came out of the smoke was something looking way different; it was now a humanoid, standing 30 feet tall gigantic magia.
Its grim, yet knightly features would remind you of the Immortal Heroine.
Corvella jumped as soon as she saw the opening, aiming for the morphed juggernaut's head, but one massive tendril appeared and slammed her. Thankfully, the spirits of the dead around her softened the blow and helped her back on her feet. At the same time, X-0 dropped to the ground, with the download process already completed.
[So, this is the little taste of evolution.]
Its voice became an eerie synchronized harmony of Magi, Madison, and Corvella's own. A high pitched beep then emitted from its shoulders, before numerous missiles locking onto Fiora and the shielder fired into the sky, bearing Madison's magical power in the warheads.
"How?"
[Such concepts as Directives stood in the way of my loyalty to Mother.]
With a swift movement, dissonant tendrils emerged from its left hand, pulling Madison from her high ground closer to the knightess below, before the gigantic magia delivered a earth-shattering stomp to both of them.
[This is Vanguard Commander to Dragonship, bypassing all permission.]
[Prepare the God-Searing Light.]
Cycle 4 Objectives
Retrieve the mirror shard (Bonus Action, must be in A4, can be done while in motion)
Lupus-REX is disabled but still functional. Only @Ronja Bubblyfoot may try to interface with it.
Mirror shard is still in A4.
@Magi Heart and @Luthien would notice the knightess' dissonant symptoms were getting worse. Perhaps you shouldn't push her any further... Or perhaps you should?
Greensquares are High Grounds. 80DC Physical Expertise Check (or relevant mastery) to attempt to climb.
While in High Ground, increase range by 1 and gain 10 mitigation. For each square apart from the enemy target, gain +20 damage bonus. (High ground buff)
Taunt DC: 150 Mastery Check
For every 250 SP damage, remove 1 Passive of choice. At 0 SP, becomes Vulnerable.
(Passive) Weapon - Necromissile Pods: Will lock on to the two highest hp characters at the start of its turn and potentially inflict Decay. Infinite range. (Passive) Weapon - Astral Railgun: Single target ranged attack. 3 range. Creates Darkfire Terrain.
(Passive) Shadowstep Boosters: Add extra 2 movement. Enable jump attack. (Passive) Dissonant Tendril: Pulls one target into jump range. 3 range. (Passive) Dragonplating: Has 100HP mitigation each round. Does not stack. Break damage goes through as normal. (Passive) Immortal Hero: Reduce 75damage and break damage from each attack. (Innate) Field Commander: Enables dragonship guns to fire at everyone. (Innate) Supreme Commander: Preparing the God-Searing Light. (Innate) Heavy: Oversized. Cannot be displaced or have its movement restricted. Moves last. Has 1 base movement and 1 base range.
Break Weakness: Order, Occult
Ally
Corvella
❰ 63 / 230 ❱
(Action) Intercept: Target one enemy. She may do any or both of these actions:
Taunt the enemy, guaranteed.
Negate the full damage of one enemy action of choice.
(NEW) Absorb half or full damage of God-Searing Light.
Mobile: 2 range, 3 speed
Cycle 4 Logs
@Fiora Di Angelo takes 57 damage from Necromissile Barrage (234HP). 80 DC Fortitude to not get afflicted by Decay.
High ground on E1 has been destroyed, @Fiora Di Angelo roll DC 75 Reflex Save to not take 20 flat damage from falling.
Corvella takes 50 damage from Necromissile Barrage (230HP). Inflicted by Decay.
Location Start: A7 -20 → -0 from Rain Fire +25 from Madison
Location End: B9 +10 from High Ground Vulnerable from Critical Attack
Hyper Insight active on Fiora
Deadshot active on DISS.NAUGHT
"Over here!" She’d never need to look to know whose voice that was, her ears so attuned to it Lúthien could pick it out among the cacophony of noises around them with ease. "Come and get me you bastard! I owe you for that last one!"
But look she did, the unamused expression on her face highlighted further by the furrowed eyebrows and the hands that now rested against her hips. { Babe, what. the. fuck? } Her voice resonated inside @Yugam’s head, crystal clear despite the distance currently separating the two, as a foot rapidly tapped against the rooftop she currently stood on.
He’d be the death of her one day, a thought that quickly earned an exasperated sigh from the blonde as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "I see... So this is the power of the Starcalled. I stood no chance. You win." Her attention turned back to the canine magia model @Ronja and she had managed to immobilize, its words causing her lips to tighten into a thin line as her mind wondered how different things could’ve been if the game hadn’t suddenly shutdown back then.
They couldn’t wind back time and change the past, Lúthien understood that much, and yet…
[Bypass protocol. Attempting to download evolution.] "?!" "Whistles, attack!"
A barrage of colorful spells rained down on the JUGGER.NAUGHT, the coordinated whistle attack spearheaded by the elven ranger and his plasma lance as they sought to interrupt whatever evolution the construct sought as it bypassed its protocols. "Never a dull fucking moment with those things around…" What had stepped out of the smoke was something none of them had witnessed before, and she could almost feel the change in the air as their priorities quickly shifted.
"Tch!" Her tongue frustratedly clicked against the roof of her mouth as Lúthien glanced back to the spot where the shard had fallen, before the elf rushed in the opposite direction as she sought a better vantage point. "Fall back Corv, we’ll cover you!!!"
It didn’t take a pair of perceptive eyes to see the blonde had sustained significant injuries, but even those paled to the odd symptoms that plagued the Immortal Heroine—dissonant ones from what her eyes could discern as she joined Ronja on a different rooftop. "Ready for round two?" She offered the brunette a smile, strained as it was given the circumstances, as Lúthien tried to make light of the situation before her gaze sought out her mentor.
{ Beleg! } Her voice blasted through his mind in the same manner she’d done countless times when barging into the man’s office for a complaint—caution thrown into the wind in favor of expedited efficiency. Urgency laced the rest of her words as she spoke, and Lúthien could only hope the younger version of whatever dream or alternate reality they were currently at was as quick witted as the man she knew. { Get Freya out of here, now! }
She wasted no time as two arrows were nocked back, seeking out any possible cracks or incomplete points that might’ve been left behind in the DISS.NAUGHT’s new form after the barrage it had sustained. She found one in the plate of its new armor, a mimicry of the familiar statue that stood among the Vintergard ruins they’d come to know, and another along the arm that supported the railgun Corvella had been in charge of intercepting all this time.
The steel tips buried themselves into each one, the arrows leaving a trail of magic and stardust that marked their path, before a bright light shone from the marbles embedded in them. It spread throughout the cracks and highlighted them with ease, burning brightly like a supernova in the night sky, before a deep rumble echoed as they erupted in a colorful display that threatened to delete anything in its path.
There was little time to admire her work or feel disappointed that her unnie wasn’t here to witness it as Lúthien prepared a third arrow. If Ronja had paid attention her eyes would catch the glimmer of a golden thread that wrapped around the shaft of the projectile, guiding the third shot towards the pods that housed however many missiles that construct still had left in them before exploding in a smaller but still powerful display of hues.
Location: A10 High Ground -20 -40 HP from Rain Fire (Vulnerable) +10 HP from Assist Vulnerable
Protected
Ronja tried to shield her eyes from the rain fire, with a worried gaze shifting to @Fiora Di Angelo and @Yugam, as both of them were way too far. Her concern also extended to @Madison Freebird and Corvella, as they were way too close to the titan enemy for comfort.
"We can't let this last for any longer!" She called for @Luthien, but her friend was already disrupting the enemy with her own heavy hits, with trails of magic and powerful arrows clouding the battlefield, giving room for Ronja to take further cover, letting her mana overflow and enhance her body, that shifted to adapt with the new power output.
❰ ULTRA MAGIA: WARLORD MODE ❱
Her hand sneaked to her bag, pulling out her slingshot and loading it with a dense metallic sphere before drawing it as hard as she could. Sparkles of mana crackled from her fingertips, and as it charged, her gaze fell to the fallen magia, noticing it still functioning before returning her attention to the larger problem they were dealing with.
'Ronja will take care of you later.' She muffled under her breath, locking her aim and glare to the titan magia, and making the sphere glow while it cumulated as much energy as it could, seconds before she released it, shooting it in the shape of a mana beam that struck against the thick carapace of the titan—
❰ OVERCLOCK: RAILGUN ❱
Rolls
Movement: B9 > A10 (Act)
(FA) Coordinate
+25 modifier to next attack, heal or buff action to @Ronja Bubblyfoot, @Luthien Summon | Ronja Bubblyfoot | 2167C2
Luthien's well-placed astral arrow unleashed the true power of the stars; the expanding energy glowed so brightly that it enveloped the entirety of the massive magia. Eventually, cracks formed, and its incomplete external armor crumbled under the pressure of the cosmic energy. Unfortunately, unsurmountable the power held by the arrow caused Luthien's bow to break in two.
As its attention was finally turned toward the damage-dealers of the group, Ronja was already going for the kill shot. The metallic ball escaped her slingshot, leaving behind a mana trail and cracking sound that was unmistakably something breaking the sound barrier. It was so fast that no one could be able to physically see the projectile that cleanly went through the core of DISS.NAUGHT, continuing into the sky and splitting the night clouds, still leaving the beautiful trail.
The giant fell on its back, its weight causing a massive thud as it impacted the ground. It was unmoving.
"Is it... over?"
The Vigil knight, having overused her power, fell to one knee while keeping steady in case the gigantic magia stood back up. The purple whistle didn't want to risk anything and quickly appeared on her side, pulling her up.
"Worry about that later."
This definitely wasn't over.
Dragonship to Vanguard Commander. God-Searing Light is fully charged. Ready to fire at command.
Detecting loss of communication with the vanguard team. Sending the assault squadron to your position. The firing of God-Searing Light on the last known position will proceed in fifteen seconds.
@Ronja Bubblyfoot and the elves could hear the message leaking out of DISS.NAUGHT's broken communicator through their connection or enhanced senses. Even if they somehow couldn't, a voice escaped the disabled quadrupedal magia.
"The main force is coming."
The white-haired explorer quickly pointed toward the south gate while helping the shielder walk.
"Hear that? We have to go. They are sending the actual attack team toward us. Let's move!"
As Beleg shouted, twelve flying drone-like magia already emerged from the Dragonship, quickly locking into @Fiora Di Angelo and @Yugam who were standing on top of the ship with their multiple guns. They really have to run (and grab the mirror shard) if they don't want to turn into Swiss Cheese.
Cycle 4 Objectives
Retrieve the mirror shard.
Cycle 4 Notes
Grid is no longer used, proceed with interaction as if you have access to free movement.
Combat is over.
Cycle 5 will be the last cycle. Or is it?
Cycle 4 Rules
No word limits, no minimum. Post comfortably. No one-liners if possible, though.
No double posts. You may post twice if you want, but you may only have one mechanic post per cycle.
Always include your chosen passive in the action section of your post.
There is no set time for the Cycle updates, but I am looking for a 5/6-day timeframe for updates to avoid maintenance.
You can use the Communication Thread for rapid-fire dialogues or simple conversation. You can also converse with NPCs using the comms thread.
Nat 1 events are a thing here. It's just funny ok.
This is a plot-based challenge. Doing IC actions/things that your character would normally do is encouraged. I reward roleplay more than optimization.
'Babe. What. The. Fuck?'
Yugam could hear Luth's voice in his head berating him this time. And it wasn't his own internal representation of her this time either, but the elf actually projecting her voice into his head. The man turned to look in the direction he knew Luthien to be, and knowing she'd be able to see it with her enhance sight, gave her a what-are-you-expecting look, before thrusting Unmei out and pointing at the massive robot, like he was blaming it.
It was the damned things fault after all.
"The firing of God-Searing Light on the last known position will proceed in fifteen seconds."
The what?
Yugam looked back towards the husk of the once offending robot just to see a swarm of airborne Magia burst from the ship he and Fiora were standing on.
"Oh fuck!"
"If you want a ride, get over here right now!" Madison's voice echoed across the wasted battlefield. "Fiora! C'mon, we gotta delta!"
Yugam was already taking off over the rooftops as fast as his legs could carry him, disappearing in puffs of shadowed smoke, as he leapt between buildings, and reappearing on the other side.
A glint of light caught his eye. The shard!
A quick detour, and appeared where the polished glass was, snatching it up before disappearing again.
The ghostly blue carriage rocked violently as Yugam reappeared on top of it, and slapped his hand against it's side. "Let's go folks!"
The final onslaught from the others felled the big robot before I could peel myself up off the ground. Good job, gang. Cheevos all around!
Then I heard it--over the ringing in my ears, through the fog of pain that clouded my senses. The actual attack team was headed our way.
It shouldn't have been a surprise that this big bastard and the others that came with it was just the beginning. As terrifying as they were in the short minute or two they were upright and actively trying to tear us apart, what leveled Vintergard (or what is about to level it, I guess?) promised to bring Hell itself along with it.
And I did not intend to stick around to see the city burn.
I shakily reached two fingers behind my ear, lightly pressing the symbol tattooed where nobody could see. A contract; a reminder of my duties to the underworld in exchange for the powers over the dead and dying it gave me. My skin tingled, turning as cold as the grave as I whispered softly into the aether. "Carol, I need a pickup! As quick as you can; I know you're a busy woman today."
My words had barely hit the air before the familiar ghostly stagecoach erupted around the corner, a smoky cerulean blur that pulled up beside me, the driver acknowledging me with a curt nod before blinking once and then looking at me up and down.
"Where are your guns, cowgirl?"
I already ripped the door wide open and had one foot inside the coach. "Not now."
"Miss Madison, where are your guns?!"
I leaned out and shot her one of those looks. "Carol, I don't know if you've seen what's going on out here, but--"
"--custom-forged single-action revolvers; which, mind you, are a very recent development in this world--"
"Carol!"
"--and do you have any idea at all how difficult it was to find a smith in our ranks who could make such monstrously ugly things?" Underneath the mess of wavy hair, I could see her face twisted in disgust.
"I changed my motif months ago now get us out of here!"
"You look like an Aristocrata's third wife, waiting for him to kick the bucket."
Yugam shoved his way past me. "CAROL!!"
"It's a damn shame what's about to happen to this city. We're three blocks away from a store that sold the best couches to faint upon." She gripped the reigns tightly, signaling that despite her misgivings, she was ready to ferry us outside the doomed city.
God. Fuck you, too.
"HURRY UP," I screamed at the stragglers, before shooting looks at Corvella and... the other guy? I don't know if it's a dream or if I'm about to cause a time paradox or what here, but-- "You two as well--come with us! Vintergard's going to be a crater in a minute, you might as well save yourselves!"
And as soon as everyone was inside, I slammed the door shut and we dipped into the underworld.
She’d known something had been wrong the second she’d fired her last arrow, an audible snap! resounding as the final projectile took flight before Lúthien was left holding on to halved remains of her bow. "Oh, come on...!" The magia’s attention was now on them too, but there was little it could do when Ronja followed up with her own attack—the metallic sphere piercing right through its armor before the astounding mana trail it carried decimated the DISS.NAUGHT.
"Nice shot, Ronja—" "The firing of God-Searing Light on the last known position will proceed in fifteen seconds." "Wait wha—but it's dead!?!"
She argued with the disembodied voice of the dragonship, her hands pointing towards the fallen giant as they held both halves of her bow in a perfect mimicry of her boyfriend just moments ago. "Que mamabichos son…" Frustration rose as she watched the airborne magias begin to head in their direction, the pieces of her weapon finally disappearing into the depths of her UI inventory as it became clear they needed to leave.
Now.
She could see Fiora and Yugam already making their way over, the latter taking a quick detour to pick up the almost forgotten shard among the rubble, before her attention turned to Madison as a ride was summoned. "Let’s bounce~" A nudge was given to the brunette at her side before Lúthien began making her way over, catching sight of Corvella and her not!mentor as the necromancer called out to them.
"Beleg, get her inside the carriage quick!" She leapt off the building without a second thought, the wind summoned to create temporary steps so the elf could reach the summoned cart. "We can have a Q&A after we're outta here!"
The ranger landed atop the stagecoach seconds after the hunter reappeared from the shadows, her head turning to their cabbie just as a small leather pouch filled with gold appeared from thin air. "Carol was it? Dunno how it works here, but we really need to get a move on fast if you don’t mind?" The bundle of coins was carefully lobbed over to the woman along with a pleading look, before the elf began to focus on manipulating the wind around their ride.
In theory mirages were simple enough to create, a mixture of hot and cold air layered against one another that would act as a temporary mirror as they reflected the sunrays back. However Lúthien had never attempted this trick before, plus there was no guarantee they would work against whatever sensors those drone-like magia possessed… and, while she could cool the air with zero issues, the ranger could only hope the fire that rained down upon them had heated the surrounding air enough for this.
After all, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take right?
With the big guy down and his ragtag team of dummybots down, the only thing left was to dip out with the shard before the next wave followed. Because of course, like the roaches they are, magias just keep coming back.
"On it." She retorted, picking up the pace right behind @Yugam, eyeing at the corner of her vision for the drones that started to come out of the ship. Unlike the hunter however, she tailed straight towards the...
She didn't even know what to think about it. At this point, nothing made sense, and neither would whatever they have chosen for an uberdrive this time around. Unfortunately their driver wasn't about to keep quiet, probably unphased by the threat of being ionized by a laser beam as much as the rest of the group were.
And with everyone on board, her gaze fell on these drones, then over to @Ronja Bubblyfoot as she sheathed her sword "Keep an eye out for these while I help this dumb bitch over here." She punctuated with a 'friendly' smack on @Luthien's back as the blonde tried to concentrate, pocketing her hands afterwards.
The end of her smoke shifted to a crimson red, using the accumulated energy from the beatdown she took earlier to help her channel her pyromancy, with the air around the carriage all heating up just enough to help out the ranger, trusting on Luth's cryomancy to match the rise on temperature and create this little illusion they needed.
Yet more importantly, Fiora focused on their surroundings, on anything flammable enough for her to lit right now and add an extra layer of confusion for any on-looking magia chasing after them, should they try to track them down through infrared.
As the Driver of the Dead arrived with her coach straight out of the Wild West era, some of the players were already making their way inside of it. Pushing the shieldwoman into the carriage, Beleg gave a hand signal to the Explorer squad on top of the wall, and they quickly scaled down and escaped the city.
Some efforts were made to make it harder for the pursuing magia flyers to track them. Unfortunately, they are not stupid. Of course they were going to fire on the last known position, perhaps Luthien didn't think that through. Fortunately, none seemed to hit the carriage, yet, but the buildings to their left and right were already exploding and crumbling from all the projectiles.
Then, the Dragonship siren blared loudly, and so did everyone's UI, showing multiple alerts of danger warning. If you were to peek out outside the carriage or still on top of a rooftop, you would notice something. No, not something; it's those trio, exiting the Dragonship through the landing ramp slowly, looking at the group menacingly.
When the handler said it was sending the assault squad, it wasn't kidding.
The Emergency Response. Hard Plume, Baby Magnum, Old Fashion. Anyone who fought them before would know how much of a threat they are.
When @Yugam touched the blue-colored shard of glass, it reacted and produced a bit of light, glowing faintly. More memories would then come back to him, this time surrounding the mysterious plot device:
Everyone in the group assembled just an hour ago at the request of someone. For Yugam, it would have been Beleg who trusted this task to him and Luthien. They would all touch the red counterpart of this exact glass shard and concentrate on the destination before being transported here one by one in the blink of an eye for one task: keep the blue shard out of the masked man's grasp and keep it somewhere safe before returning to ensure he doesn't have access to travel between the worlds.
Carol quickly threw back Luthien's leather pouch of coins back at her while ushering people who were still outside to get in.
"Your coin's no good here; you're still livin'."
The countdown to the firing of God-Searing Light was getting closer and closer, as the swarm of flying magias already surrounded the cart.
"Five, four, three..."
Ensuring everyone's already in, Carol cracked the reins and shouted "HYAH!" and from the perspective of outsiders, they blipped into nothing.
As for people inside the cart (which is conveniently big enough for everyone), the wagon began moving at a relaxed pace. The lighting outside changed, and when you peeked out, everything was black; the ground, the sky, the horizon. The only way you could make something out of the surroundings was the colorful outlines that made the landscape of this wilderness of valleys and hills.
"What... what's this place?."
"You're in Deliverance. That... how should I say... A small sliver of space in between the living world and your final rest. Now, normally it's a gondola ride and not a coach screaming through a black desert, and it ain't me but Synra herself you'd be talking to; but that little waif can't handle all the work herself. So there are those like me who share the burden of ferrying souls to the afterlife."
"Normally I prefer a nice boat ride down the river, but this one wanted something a little more yeehaw... Whatever that means." She reached through the roof of the carriage with a ghostly hand and pointed at Madison.
They traveled through the pitch-black desert, which suspiciously looked like Monument Valley for some reason. Every now and then, there were stations for people to stop at; probably for some poor dead souls to wait for someone to pick them up. But they weren't stopping or dropping someone down in the afterlife, or at least that's obviously not why Madison asked the chauffeur of the dead for a favor.
As the symptoms of Dissonance started to lessen, Corvella's wound reopened all over her body, and her breathing became fast. Her mind wandered toward what the masked man said.
This woman was fated to die anyway.
Was he talking about her? She wondered whether this was her moment to pass. But the rider read her mind and quickly responded to the knight.
"It ain't your time yet. I reckon someone like you, you still have some work that needs doin,' don't you?"
"Honestly? I don't know." She chuckled, taken aback by the mindreading.
After checking on the knightess, Beleg then confirmed to the others that her injuries were grievous, but not fatal. The ride continued for a while, allowing the group to discuss or banter on a few things, but long enough as suddenly light flashed from outside the cart, bringing them back to the world of living once again, just outside of the city, not a second had passed since the wagon departed.
"Alright, we're here. Should be a safe enough distance from the city for y'all to make a run for it. I gotta' head back in. Lotta' work ahead of me today."
If one were to look at the city, they would witness the God-Searing Light consuming the middle part of the city, the energy so bright that it caused light pillars to rise up high into the sky, visible even from this distance. People with enhanced senses would be too overwhelmed to keep concentrating on the ensuing devastation.
Speechless, Corvella stared at the destroyed capital for a while, flames still burning bright where thousands of people used to live. As much as their effort were, a lot of lives were lost, and they failed to protect the city. Beleg patted her shoulder, before motioning toward the group.
"I suppose it's your time to go?"
"Both of us'll be fine. You all should return to wherever you came from."
Cycle 5 Objectives
Go through the veil and return to where you came.
Cycle 5 Notes
This is the last cycle. You may post to interact with others or NPCs. If you don't post, you will still be considered going through the veil with the others.
Post can take place during the ride or post-ride.
I will probably be posting the closing post sometime next week.
Cycle 5 Rules
No word limits, no minimum. Post comfortably. No one-liners if possible, though.
No double posts. You may post twice if you want, but you may only have one mechanic post per cycle.
You can use the Communication Thread for rapid-fire dialogues or simple conversation. You can also converse with NPCs using the comms thread.
"Damn, so much for sneaking up my payment in advance then." She didn’t miss the particular caveat mentioned by Carol, and honestly she rather liked the vibes of their stagecoach. "I’ll get ya a few good quality spirits next time, surely that one’s allowed right?"
She would’ve offered them for after their trip was completed, but she hadn’t gotten anything of particular interest lately and highly doubted Vintergards breweries would be selling given the current events unfolding in the city. "Alright, we’re all in. Let’s go, let’s go, letsgo—!" She’d rapidly tapped the roofside closest to Carol as the last member had made it inside—or above—their carriage, her nerves rising as the countdown continued, before a gasp of surprise escaped the blonde as everything around them went dark.
"Woooah…" Despite the unsettling effect of the neverending darkness that stretched all around them she couldn’t help but admire how vibrantly the colorful outlines of the landscape shone against it. Beleg managed to beat her to the punch as he asked the very question dancing on the tip of her tongue, and she listened attentively to Carol’s explanation.
Deliverance huh... A faint chuckle escaped when Carol explained she’d abandoned the River Styx due to a particular raven haired member of their party, before the elf turned towards @Yugam with a light frown of concern.
"Underworld to Yu, still there…?" A hand reached out to gently squeeze his forearm, not wanting to startle the hunter from whatever thoughts might’ve been filling his head and kept him quiet.
The ride had felt both short and long at the same time, their surroundings offering no hints for them to tell how much time had truly passed. A mixture of sadness and guilt gripped the elf as they finally reappeared back in the “real world” of Terrasphere—just in time to witness the impressive display of power as the God-Searing Light struck the heart of Vintergard.
A haunting sight to behold, but worse still where the countless cries and wails that her ears had picked up seconds before they’d been permanently silenced as the brightness expanded.
It was her turn to be eerily quiet even as they dismounted from Carol’s stagecoach—at some point her hand had reached out for the hunter’s, fingers quietly interlaced and refusing to let go as Lúthien struggled to keep her own world steady against the sensory overload she was experiencing. Sure, Corvella was still alive and safe with them, but in the grand scheme of things their efforts had amounted to spilling a glass of water onto the sands of a scorching desert.
I stepped out of the carriage, gently shut the door behind me, and turned around just long enough for the driver to touch her hat in acknowledgement and then slipping back into Deliverance to do her work. I watched until the last wisps of cerulean disappeared, then turned to survey the smoking crater that Vintergard now was.
It's one thing to hear about the destruction after the fact. To see the sketches drawn at a distance once the fires died down, read the accounts made by those unfortunate enough to have died and have their memories trapped inside this game while the rest of us were locked out, wondering if we were ever going to get back in. Wondering if the world was going to be exactly as we left it, recovering from the scars made by the Titanius battle.
Now, I'm not completely heartless here. Thousands of innocent landers just got incinerated in a matter of moments. UI-locks, too. But... I would be lying if I didn't take some small comfort in knowing that there were no living Starcalled here.
My gaze shifted slowly to Corvella and her companion. "I know it's not any consolation, but..." I wasn't aware the words were coming out of my mouth until I heard them. "We're able to log back in in a couple years, and we wreck the magia responsible for this."
One by one, the others were slowly, silently pushing their way through the veil that led back to the present. Call it survivor's guilt, or call it gratefulness; but there was one more thing for me to do.
I clapped my hands together. Magical energy sparked between my palms as my fingers glowed in soft purple light. "At least let me take care of your wounds before I go. Won't take but a moment."
