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Hellfire Knight vs Supernova "Playing with fire?" She made a grasping motion with her arm once again, and brought her main cannon to bear toward where she believed Supernova to be. "Maybe you play with fire. . ." She made a sudden, violent motion as if she were throwing something at Supernova. Her Mantle transformed itself into a horizontal wave of plasma, spreading out in a rough cone formation toward her foe. "But that's why you're going to lose!" The Knight's guns all flared up at once, creating an absolutely undodgeable wave of plasma. "Because I don't play games!"

"I-I just said, I'm just getting rid of it because no one wanted to deal with it! Don't look at me like that!" Aya pouted at Yuki for a moment before shaking her head, perking up at the mention of shopping. "Well, um, that's up to you, Yuri-chan. It might be fun, but I don't know if you have any stuff left to practice or anything."

James and Archer "Simple. We scout out what their class and what methods of attack they rely on. If I can determine what method of attack they're using, I can block a hit or three, and then while they're trying to figure out how that's possible, you catch them with a barrage, activate your Noble Phantasm, and blow 'em up." He stooped to trace out another sigil, and then dragged a trashcan a couple inches over to cover it up. "If I can't, we'll pull back and I'll keep setting up this network. Hopefully, we can catch someone unawares using that - or track their movements so we can set something up." Saber and Nadia Masaru was silent for a moment. A legend he'd heard once came to mind; a man who had hunted evil wherever he saw it for so long that he became indistinguishable from the people he killed in the name of saving lives. But, that wasn't too different from what he did, the half-dragon supposed. Still. . . "Sounds like a plan."

what lexi said tbh

G2, heavy lance armor knight 2

Ice only hesitated for a split second when it was revealed that Ansuz was shielded. The party responsible would have to be eliminated at a later date; it would not be efficient to pursue that goal in the present. Merlin's safety took top priority. Her eyes seemed to burn with an inner light as she activated her Spark - a burning that may have been all too literal. "Pierce with frost. Break with ice." She sent twin shards of ice speeding through the air at two of Ansuz's runes. "Shatter with cold." A third, toward the cannon itself. "Beseeching the lords of winter. The knights of the cold leap at their call, and the lords leap at mine. With their authority, I pass my own judgement upon you. Let the will to fight be drained from your limbs, the courage leeched from your breast, and let the rage of winter shatter your body and feast upon your soul!" The final incantation was aimed at Ansuz himself, aiming to freeze him and the air around him in a good foot in any direction solid.

Hellfire Knight vs Supernova The sudden warp took Hiroki by surprise; she hadn't expected her foe to use such a maneuver so early. Most mechs couldn't pull that off more than once in a fight, if they could do so at all, so she'd been expecting that sort of thing to see use later in the round. The impact sent the Knight moving downward, and her feet spinning up toward the ceiling. Rather than trying to push out of the spin, however, she fired her jets and turned it into a twisting motion, aiming to bring the mech's clawed hand around to grip her foe. As she did so, she activated her special ability with a shout. "HELLFIRE MANTLE!" Supernova was close enough to get a quadruple burst of sound - the sound of Hiroki's artificial voice a split second delayed after the sound of her own natural one, and the faintest delay after those, both of them coming over the radio.

(Nobunaga INIT roll: 39!) Laver attacks Samantha with his mysterious weapon, healing her for [Overheal->18 HP]. Her Warsong activates, dealing [4] damage to each group of Archers and Soldiers, [7] to the Beasts, and [4] to Assassin. "You called for some advice for this old witch? Just optimize your magic flow a bit, and hit her! She can't stand up to direct hits, she's just a creepy old otaku with a new, edgy paintjob." Nobunaga buffs Bridgett's SYN by 41 for 3 turns, after appearing with a blue shimmer. LOTUS offers some pathing advice to Nessie. The first set of archers prepares a barrage. The third set of archers nocks arrows. The first group of warriors reforms its ranks. Assassin looks positively livid at Nobunaga's commentary - as livid as it was possible to look while being that pale and underneath a hood, anyway. "Why, you insolent. . .!" The mist surges once more, surrounding Laver, Aurora, and Isobel. [Fail, Fail, Fail] All three of them are stunned as delusions of paranoia make it nigh-irresistible to lash out against their friends, for fear that the same would happen to them if they didn't. Aurora recovers from her stun. She regains 4 HP. Bridgett begins charging her attack. [Pass] She also breaks her bindings! Assassin summons another trio of lasers, blasting them at Nessie, Samantha, and Atton for [4], [0], and [11] damage. Venus fires a shot at Assassin, critically striking her for [115!] damage. The two beasts in the first group take up flanking positions. Mitsurugi darts in with another Eruption, attacking Assassin for [46] damage. Assassin attempts to lasso Samantha again. [Pass] Her psychic power easily shatters the bonds before they can form. The second group of warriors splits into smaller groups. Three attack Samantha for [0] damage. Three attack Nessie for [19] damage. Two attack Atton for [22] damage. Two attack Aurora for [10] damage. Atton gives Nessie some advice, increasing her STR by 14. Samantha sends a gigantic lance of psychic power at Assassin, dealing [35] damage and taking 27 in backlash damage. Friedhold camouflages himself, Nessie, and Mitsurugi. Nessie unleashes her ultimate attack, Excalibur Reflect! It deals [86] damage to all enemies. Lots of skeletons fall apart. Assassin appears to be having a bad day. Initiative: Status:

Cu Chulainn's spear starts to glow more intensely. Silef shouts some words of rough encouragement toward Hikari, healing her for [28] HP. Cu Chulainn takes a step back. "Now your deaths are upon you. . ." Navin rushes forward and tackles Cu Chulainn, stunning him! Solomon drops a book on top of the first soldier, dealing [8] damage. Jade shoots the first soldier, dealing [9] damage. His INIT falls by 1. Edmond patches up Ritsu, fully healing her. Hikari casts a curative spell on Jade for [18] HP. Cu Chulainn shakes his head, clearing it of its momentary daze. He picks up Navin in one hand and hurls him away toward the rest of the group, narrowly missing Magnum's bus. "This isn't going to change your fates. You chose them as soon as you came here." Both groups of Dragon Tooth Beasts get the hell out of dodge, retreating toward the edges of the battle. Cu Chulainn lifts his spear above his head once again. The soldiers also elect to run for the hills, taking cover from Cu Chulainn. Wyvis defends. Sachi takes up a defensive position, protecting Ritsu and Magnum. She recovers 7 HP. Ritsu defends. Magnum instructs Sachi on how to defend against the incoming ranged assault. The ominous energy surrounds Cu Chulainn's spear once more. Initiative Status:

HK vs Supernova Tunneling? That was an. . . interesting strategy. And one that wouldn't work on her for long. She toggled the semi-automated barrage off, and instead channeled power into her big guns, aiming them up toward the ceiling where Supernova was attempting to disappear. A triad of beams lanced out from her cannons, burning into the rock and just ahead of where she'd seen her opponent start digging. She doubted that the lightly-armored mech could cope with her sheer output, regardless of how heatproof it was.

Hiroki uses Melt on Officer B (2d6+SYN damage, ignoring RES, Hiroki deals 50% more damage against targets below 50% HP)

Hellfire Knight vs Supernova "I don't need luck." Hiroki blustered into her comms through the voice changer, which fortunately for her did a good job of hiding her apprehension. Not about her odds of victory - with a name like Supernova, he had to rely on fire-based attacks, and it was doubtful he could heat her up faster than her mech could melt his. Lightly armored and highly maneuverable - she'd crushed this sort of build underfoot many times on her way here (sometimes literally.) But. . . she had to try and kill him. Could she do it? She simply stood where she was, lifting into her customary hover, and set a fire subroutine that ensured she wasn't going to be wasting power on shooting the terrain. An instant of the high-pitched whine of her reactor presaged her cannons flaring to life, sending a barrage into every approach to her mech.

Laver heals Atton for [15] HP. Isobel applies some medicine to the goddess, healing her for [11] HP. Four of the first group of archers lets loose at Laver for [25] damage total. The fifth fires at Venus for [8] damage. The third group of archers barrages Mitsurugi for [0] damage, their arrows bouncing off of Bridgett's ward. Four of the warriors in the first group rush at Aurora for [36] damage. Four hit Mitsurugi for [19] damage. Two hit Friedhold for [13] damage. Assassin notes Nessie's increasingly glowing sword and surging magical power and fires a trio of lasers at her for [12] damage. Aurora shoots healing beams that might have made Bridgett jealous, healing Friedhold and Bridgett for [18] HP. She recovers 4 HP. Bridgett defends. More mist surges forth. Aurora, Mitsurugi, and Atton begin to feel paranoid. . . Venus fires a shot into the lone Archer, destroying it and recovering 6 HP. One of the beasts bites at Venus for [15] damage. The other bites Mitsurugi for [4] damage. Mitsurugi attacks the second group of beasts with her Eruption spellcard, dealing [32] damage. Two crumble under the assault. Assassin, annoyed by Bridgett's warding, sends gossamer-like strings of magic to tie the girl up. [Fail] They pin her limbs to her sides, inflicting a 50% failure chance on attacks and [0] damage per turn until broken. Atton gives Laver some advice, increasing his STR by 14. Samantha activates her Corona, taking [11] damage and doubling her SYN. She increases her RES to a value that's really just unnecessary. Friedhold camouflages himself, Venus, and Mitsurugi. Nessie uses Holy Light. Initiative: Status:

Ritsu tasers Cu Chulainn, inflicting Shocked and dealing [9] damage. Ritsu takes [1] damage on his spikes. Cu Chulainn darts between Silef and Ritsu, dealing [15] and [9] damage with quick stabs. He follows up with a leap at Hikari, dealing [1] damage to her and [1] to Sachi. Silef sends out another wave of flames, dealing [12] damage to Cu Chulainn, [17] to Officer B, [11] to Soldier A, and killing Officer A. Navin unleashes a flurry of blows, dealing [22*4 = 88!] damage to Officer B, blasting the man apart. Solomon throws inexplicably damaging books at Cu Chulainn for [45] damage. Jade fires a bullet into Cu Chulainn's heel, dealing [7] damage and disabling his melee attacks. He loses 1 INIT. Hikari follows up for [8] damage. Edmond patches up Ritsu, healing her for [18] HP. Hikari heals Silef and Sachi for [14] HP. Cu Chulainn grimaces, eyes glancing downward at his wounded leg. His gaze hardens as it returns to the group before him. "So that's how it'll be, then. If you insist." He raises his spear above his head, grip audibly tightening on the weapon. The second group of beasts takes up flanking positions. The first group moves in to strike the party. Three of them attack Edmond. He dodges one, and the other two bite at him for a total of [13] damage. The two remaining beasts attack Magnum's bus again, dealing [14] damage. Cu Chulainn's hand slowly moves back. The spikes on his weapon dig into his flesh. The soldiers note Hikari's assistance of her teammates. Four of them form up and attack her for [17] damage. Sachi takes [17] damage. One of them breaks off to attack Wyvis, but his blade bounces harmlessly off of the ward protecting him. Wyvis attacks Cu Chulainn for [14] damage. He takes [0] damage from the man-beast's spkes. Hikari follows up for [7] damage. Sachi uses her Basic Defense. She recovers 5 HP. Magnum grants Hikari another action - unfortunately she already used that. Cu Chulainn's spear flickers, and an ominous crimson light begins to swirl around it, as if it was moving through some sort of field of the stuff. Initiative Status:

Hiroki uses Melt on Officer C (2d6+SYN damage, ignoring RES)

Sense wasn't the only one feeling uneasy. Ice watched the scene, face expressionless as always as she kept alert for potential incoming threats, but the bulk of her mind was devoted to considering what Merlin was doing at the moment. Merlin surely had a good reason for it, but something wasn't right about this. An execution of this sort didn't seem to be in-character for the woman. Some sort of illusion, perhaps? Or had Ice merely underestimated the practicality Merlin was capable of. And. . . if Ansuz was supposed to be such a threat, he couldn't possibly be taken down this easily. "Merlin. Something is wrong. Verify the identity of your target before striking." A pause. "We know they are using children."

Aurora sears Bridgett and Isobel with starfire that heals instead of burning for [19] HP. She regenerates 4 health. Isobel administers a quick bit of medicine to Atton for [11] HP. Laver strikes Samantha with his healing weapon, allowing her to recover [19] health. Samantha's Warsong activates, dealing [4] damage to Assassin and all groups of Archers and Warriors, and [7] to all groups of Beasts. Nessie takes [1] damage. The first group of archers prepares a barrage. The third group prepares a barrage. The first group of warriors reforms their ranks. Assassin conjures more mist, and it suffuses the battlefield. Nessie, Isobel, and Friedhold feel a creeping paranoid feeling. . . Bridgett casts Hustwic, tripling both her and Mitsurugi's RES for two turns. Assassin uses her Multilaser again, dealing [10] damage to Mitsurugi, [11] damage to Atton, and [8] to Friedhold. Venus's bomb explodes, dealing [120] damage to the second group of archers. He fires another shot into them for [18] damage, and recovers [6] HP. The two remaining beasts in the first group move into flanking positions. The lone archer fires an arrow into Mitsurugi for [3] damage. Mitsurugi attacks Assassin by blasting energy at her and then moving in for a strike, dealing [42] damage. Assassin fires another barrage of lasers, striking the same targets as the previous assault. All ten of the second group of warriors rush at Atton. Atton promptly springs up at the other side of the field, looking rather the worse for wear as they stab a dummy of him to death. Atton inspires the entire party, healing them for [14] HP. Samantha's Warsong activates, dealing [2] damage to Assassin and all of the Dragon Tooth groups but the Beasts, which take [5]. Nessie takes [0] damage. Three of the beasts attack Mitsurugi for [15] damage. The other two attack Friedhold for [22] damage. Samantha heals herself for [12] HP. She deals [1] damage to Assassin and the Dragon Teeth, and [4] to the Beasts. Nessie takes [0]. [Pass] She breaks her bindings! Friedhold tosses another Gravity Well, dealing [98] damage to the first group of Dragon Tooth Warriors. Two of them are destroyed; the rest [Pass] stay standing. Nessie uses Shadow Lash. Initiative Status

Hikari buffs a number of her allies. Cu Chulainn rushes forward and stabs at Jade, who takes [18] damage. Cu Chulainn attacks again, this time hitting Solomon for [12] damage. Silef sweeps a hand toward the enemy, bathing Cu Chulainn, both Officers, and one of the Soldiers in flames for [12], [9], and [11] damage respectively. Cu Chulainn darts between Jade and Wyvis, dealing [10] and [0] damage. Navin deals [1] damage to Officer B, and reduces his RES by 8! Jade fans the hammer at Cu Chulainn, firing [3] bullets at him for [0] total damage and lowering his INIT by 3. Edmond welds the first officer for [12] damage. The next attack will deal [23] more damage. Hikari casts another buffing spell. Cu attacks Magnum, inflicting [5] damage to his bus. Two of the beasts bite at Silef, inflicting [35] damage. The others target Sachi for [30] damage. The first group of beasts moves to circle the party. Cu Chulainn stabs Navin for [9] damage. Two of the soldiers attack Ritsu for [25] damage. The remainder hit Edmond for [17] damage. Wyvis uses Harvest. Sachi takes up a defensive stance. She regains 5 HP. Ritsu chainsaws the first officer for [47] damage. She inflicts [18] bleeding damage, and reduces his RES by 2. Magnum telestrates Cu Chulainn. [37 vs 24] His computer gives him the following information: "Heroic Spirit Cu Chulainn. Corrupted by unknown source. Wears bones of defeated sea monster as armor. Known for heroism across Ireland, and defending Ulster against an army by himself. Weakened and killed by enemies forcing him to break geasi. Likely susceptible to further curses." The first officer conjures a spike of ice in his hands, and flings it at Silef for [11] damage. Her INIT falls by 2. The officer takes 18 damage. The second officer throws another ice spike at Solomon, dealing [10] damage. His INIT falls by 2. Initiative Status

"I'm killing a lot of people? I suppose that's true. . . but don't pretend you and your group are any different. Tell me; how many soldiers did you slay to reach your safe haven?" Samantha smashes Assassin in the face for [2] damage, taunting her! LOTUS gives Aurora some advice on her chosen path. Aurora has First Strike next turn! The first group of archers aims a barrage at Samantha, dealing [11] damage. The third group fires another at Isobel & LOTUS for a total of [37] damage. One arrow whizzes at Samantha for [5] damage. The first group of warriors goes after multiple people. Two attack Nessie, three hit Aurora, and the remaining five hit Bridgett for [11], [18], and [45] damage. Assassin, a bit annoyed by the foot between her legs, wraps gossamer-like magical tendrils around Samantha. [31 vs 19] They tighten about Samantha, pinning her limbs to her sides and making it difficult to concentrate. Her attacks have a 50% miss chance until she breaks the tendrils, which she may do on her turn by making a STR or SYN check again as a free action. She also takes [6] damage per turn until breakage. Aurora boosts her power at the cost of durability. She gains 3 SYN and loses 3 RES. She regenerates 4 HP. Bridgett fires a series of magical bolts at Assassin for [19] damage. Assassin, seeing that Samantha is bound, fires a barrage of lasers, one of which strikes her at point-blank range for [6] damage. The rest target Venus, Mitsurugi, Laver, and Friedhold twice for [13], [11], [11], and [14] damage. Venus throws out a bomb at the second group of archers. The two remaining beasts in the first group bite at Atton for [33] damage. The second group of archers prepares a barrage. Mitsurugi targets the second group of Dragon Tooth Warriors with her Tempest, dealing [140] damage total and causing three of them to collapse. The second group of warriors forms up into tight ranks. Assassin conjures the creeping mist from earlier. It washes over Samantha, Laver, and Venus. They start to feel as if they could be betrayed at any time. . . The second group of beasts circles around to a flanking position. Friedhold's gravity well lands among the beasts, pulling them in and crushing them for [106] damage total. Three of the beasts crumble. [22 vs 20] The remaining beasts in the first group fall prone. Laver changes tensions to heal, and adds 5 damage to his next attack. Atton fires a shot into Assassin for [25] damage. Nessie uses Monstrous Strength. The footsteps are getting. . . quieter. Status:

Hiroki, somewhat eager to be done with her introduction, shuffled forward in her disguise. The display was impressive, but not really unexpected - it didn't make much of an impact, save for a brief comparison to the welcome they'd received on Sloth. As usual, the artificial voice she spoke in was harsh and grating, though this time it wasn't quite as low-pitched; she'd fiddled with the settings on it, as she was wont to do letting a bit more of her natural tone bleed through. "I am the Hellfire Knight." A pause. "It is good to be home."

It was a bit of a trek to get to the location of the party's wayward base of operations, taking them not only through the local hills but a small glade. A glade that appeared to have possessed a few more trees than it had previously, as the castle rested quite snugly in the side of a small rise and atop a few snapped trunks. It didn't appear to have taken outward damage; Lexiel might have figured that it had something to do with coming into what amounted to two worlds simultaneously that caused the crash in the first place. The apparent crash wasn't the only thing wrong with the sight; firstly, the thing seemed to glimmer slightly, particularly around the entrances. Closer inspection would have revealed shimmering chains wrapped around the structure, and extra sets crossing over the doors. The second was the enemies clustered around it, and preparing to lay siege to it, with what appeared to be a half-constructed onager already in place, as well as a rather ominous-looking magical circle etched around a shimmering, golden rod that held a crystal at its top, with the other end planted firmly in the ground. Objective: Defend the castle! It has 1000 HP and 10 RES. The castle can make one action per round, and moves last. (It is stuck, however, and cannot move, only fire its weapons.) The siege weapons are valid combat targets, as are the crews of Dragon Teeth or mages constructing them. Enemy reinforcements will arrive periodically. Initiative

It seemed that it was going to be a tense fight from the start. The enemy had already started to press forth as the gate opened to admit the team set to break the siege; a flurry of fire (of both the arrow and literal varieties) had pressed them backward enough for the heroes to get out safely, but now it was time for action; skeletons and soldiers en masse were already rushing toward the group. Objective: Drive back the siege! The team will receive fire support from the Asterlux forces at the end of each turn. Enemies will spawn in constantly; if they are not defeated at the same speed at which they spawn, they will move into another battle. Characters may retreat to the castle on their turn; they may rejoin the battle after a period of four turns of inactivity. Initiative

The team sent out to deal with the one known only as Assassin knew they were headed in the right direction; as they traveled, the impressions of the skeletons around them only grew stronger and more numerous. Still, it wasn't the hardest thing to miss the entrance to the witch's lair; a cleft in the ground, almost invisible unless one was directly atop it, that extended into a cave. It was hard to judge how far in and down the passages went, but fortunately the main chamber was not hard to find. Lit up with a nigh-ghostly light, bizarre shadows skittered across something best described as an atrium, with Assassin striking a stark contrast to the realm they had exploited to get here, as she did not seem to be washed out like the rest of her environment. "Oh? You've decided to come and visit me at my home, then? It's a good thing I've already prepared for uninvited guests. . . If you want to wait patiently there, feel free. You'll find the door has already closed behind you." Objective: Defeat Assassin! You can hear footsteps in the distance. Initiative: Status:

The strike team chosen to hunt down Berserker heads out as quickly as possible, making their way through the hilly landscape in Ghost's ethereal realm - after collecting a certain irritable noble who seemed to have cleared her attitude up for the time being. Silef stayed quiet through the journey; it seemed that the eerie method of travel was having an effect on the woman, even if she didn't show it. Soon enough, their objective was in sight, and a sight it was. The most striking thing was that he didn't seem to be distorted like the rest of the world around them - one that appeared to be the remains of what had once been a village, flames still flickering weakly in places. From there, though. . . The one called Berserker appeared to be a man, or at least his torso and head did. Red eyes faintly glowed from beneath a dark hood, and red tattoos drew downward from each. More tattoos decorated his chest, still in red; a pattern of three swirling circles, and tribal-like symbols on his abdomen. Past that, his form took a turn for a monstrous; blackened bone and claw wrapped around his legs like armor, and his feet were contorted with keen, bestial claws. His hands were similarly protected with spiky bone, though seemingly human enough to hold the wickedly barbed and spiked spear he held, a crimson to match the color of the mantle about his shoulders - both mirroring fresh blood. The second shock was how the man turned to look straight at the party, despite their supposed invisibility. "Come out and face me, then. There's no point in hiding." His voice was deep and. . . dead sounding. Almost as if the man was simply going through the motions. "Skulking around is only going to delay your deaths." As he spoke, the soldiers nearby readied themselves for battle. The skeletal beasts seemed to bay soundlessly. Objective: Defeat Cu Chulainn! Silef's Character Sheet Silef will act according to the party's wishes. If not given a command (can happen OOC without happening IC), she will default to whatever she believes will inflict the most damage, unless a party member is at critical health. Initiative: Status:

Hiroki was about to reply when Blink's entrance nearly caused her to jump out of her own skin. After an entirely undignified flapping of her arms (that probably would have resulted in things being thrown at Blink had anything been convenient), Hiroki replied to both of the other women in the room. "Um, no, nothing, um, untoward, I think. . ." She frowned. "So you, um, were just trying to help?" She wasn't sure whether she bought it or not. It hadn't felt much like it was supposed to be a feint, but Kagari did have a point; Hiroki wasn't likely to have attacked seriously unless she felt threatened. At the same time, trying to sidle up to her just to get an advantage made all too much sense. "How do I know you aren't lying?"