Are you stupid?! [ directed at ichiban, although with a different tone of voice it could be directed at the thugs. throné is going for the stealth maneuver, so baiken stays focused on the primary group, even with their lousy 8. she'll leave some for ichiban since he so desperately wants to be the center of attention, but she's quick to sidestep and cut a thug along his side. it isn't deep enough to kill, because i also rolled a lousy 8, but blood loss should make him more manageable. ]
[ to be fair, it does seem like his tactic worked for throné to try and get the jump on her group. one of the guys with bats manages to nail ichiban in the shoulder, but he shrugs it off and swings his borrowed katana to try and sweep the offenders. if it hurt, he doesn't express it outwardly, focusing only on the task at hand. ]
That is the sound of Ichiban sweeping a guy mid-taunt, thanks Ichiban. He catches that hit in the shoulder, which encourages the group to begin pressing in... but his followup leaves them hesitant, which keeps them open to Throné and Baiken. Especially to Throné; Baiken and Ichiban's voices keep the thugs' attention largely focused there.
The thugs also aren't very strong, so getting a good enough hit on one is pretty much enough to take them out-- a heavy enough sweep can probably get two of them, so they're already beginning to collect a small pile of these guys at their feet. Some of the others begin to back off, a little warier of charging right in; one or two more desperate individuals encourage them forward, though. What have they got to lose? If they can get something, anything out of this...
It doesn't work on the right group, who haven't even made it into the fight and yet see that it isn't going the thugs' way. The [1] means they decide to live to fight another day, and make their escape while the other two groups are still engaged, leaving them behind to die. The left group that Throné has started stealth attacking has a [9] so they do not notice her, rip to them, while Ichiban and Baiken probably have an easy time fending off the shaken primary group [5].]
well she is going to try to just keep taking out these dudes until they're done for. if they get blood on her she's going to scream, so they better not. stabbity stab...
tbh if she finishes her group early she's getting back on the bus. goodbye.]
[ yeah they're toast. this isn't enough for her to go totally feral, and ichiban is, unfortunately, a good tank, so these punks are gonna get cleaned up in no time. business as usual. cut here, slice there - never deep enough to kill. it's almost harder to stay restrained.
but once they're all taken care of and stop attacking, baiken has to do that samurai flourish to fling the blood off (that i'm sure has a specific name) before sheathing the blade. then yes. back on the bus. ]
[ HELP WHY ARE YOU BOTH JUST REBOARDING. once the offenders are on the ground or just plain gone, ichiban sticks behind, half because he's keeping an eye out for any stragglers, half because that whack the bat guy got on him earlier is starting to sting now that the adrenaline is wearing off. owie :( ]
[He sighs, a very tired, annoyed sort of sigh, staring them both down even though he's answering Ichiban.
"Well, its inventor isn't here to explain the details, so... we'll leave it at this. The 'guys' are the only kind of fuel this bus's engine will take, and you won't find it just anywhere."
The side of the bus pops open with a groaning, metallic sound, revealing mechanisms that look very nearly like jaws.
"Throw them in. Mephistopheles will extract what it needs, and convert the rest."
He continues to stand in their way, but... he's not going to tell the ladies to help Ichiban, either. How they do this is their business, he's just not letting them back in until it's done.]
[there's... a pause, from throné, as she looks over her shoulder at the mostly dead men. it's clear she's hesitating.
... she has a strength of eight so she is not going to be able to move the men into the mechanism regardless, but. there's a little war going on her head about what she has to do in order to get past this, and what she is willing to sacrifice. maybe she should fight a little more on being told these things, but she is so very good at following orders.]
[ ichiban also stands his ground, growing angrier by the second. ]
No. I don't care what the details are. Sure, maybe they're not paragons of humanity, and maybe they would've killed us if we didn't knock 'em out first, but I'm not feeding people to some fucked up nightmare bus!
The hell's your problem? What has this City done where I'm supposed to give a shit?
[ she isn't even angry about the dudes. maybe she should be. maybe that will sink in later - but for now, all she sees is some pompous douchebag trying to give orders. ]
What, too afraid to get your hands dirty? Might want to try another profession then.
[ ichiban also has a bone to pick with their mysterious host, but baiken looks like she currently has that on lock, and he's not about to get in her way. no, instead he's veering toward throné as she stares down at one of the thugs.
there's a moment where he almost reaches out to place a hand on her shoulder, but vividly remembers the last time he touched her without warning and quickly withdraws, instead just saying: ]
My role is to be a guide, not a participant. To put it another way... I'm not paid to care how you get anything done. Just to make sure you do it.
[You know when someone has a palpable Aura of intimidation about them? He's got that, his eyes now a brighter red, but he isn't making a move. If they don't start any, perhaps there will not be any. Who's to say.]
except, sadly, baiken isn't as hotheaded as she used to be, and has enough sense to know that cutting this man down (well. attempt.) is not where her priority should be. it isn't even fun to insult him, because he doesn't care. ]
Stuffy bastard.
[ well it wasn't like she wasn't going to insult him, mild as it is in the grand scheme of things. she STOMPS off the bus to her other two companions. ]
ah, but then baiken is joining them, and she asks the million dollar question. ichiban looks between the two of them, his eyes lingering on throné's a little longer before he breaks his silence.
"you're a good man, ichiban." ]
Look, I wanna get out of this in one piece too, but I don't want murdering these guys to be part of the plan, either. [ . . . he faces the metallic teeth in the bus's newly opened hatch. ] We're not going anywhere until we get some fuel? Then I'll do it.
[ THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I THOUGHT YOU'D SAY YOU SHITTY PROTAGNIST PIECE OF SHIT!!!!! ]
Now that he's looking at the bus, Ichiban can tell it actually seems hungry. The driver was not simply using a turn of phrase; it's gnashing its 'teeth' like it's starving, after they've failed to give it any fuel, and when he approaches despite Throné's attempt to interfere...
It doesn't take much effort. He barely has to get near it before the mechanisms catch him, devouring him eagerly.
Ichiban is dead.
Wherever Throné has put her pocketwatch, she can feel warmth from it. A very faintly visible chain runs from it to her, through her to Baiken, to... well, right now, to the bus engine.
Oh, yeah, and if she was still standing close or if Baiken has gotten closer? They're splattered with his blood. Mephi's a messy eater. It's sowwy.]
well let me tell you a thing that you're going to very quickly learn on this cyoa - throné is not a fan of blood! she does not like it! so when ichiban's horrible meat remains splash her face and her white clothes, she kind of bluescreens. it's a loading screen up in there as she goes through all five stages of grief very quickly.
she is a little shellshocked? like. w - what do you even do with that? a man just died in front of her that she considered a friend and she doesn't know she's on cyoa so she just. thinks he's dead. like, for real, forever. maybe he is!
she feels the warmth of the pocketwatch where she has stashed it, unfortunately, in her... well i'm not sure she's wearing a bra, so just, like, there. in her bobbies. she is too shocked by ichiban being dead to care, and she stumbles back a step or two and just stares at the bus.]
[ for all her blustering, death isn't as easy to shrug off as she'd like it to be. there's a separation between her feelings and her actions, an acceptance of the kind of person she is, that makes it so she can swing the sword. cut people down. it is different in this context - a selfless choice, yet still a violent end that none of them can control. was it worth it?
she's shocked too, at the suddenness of it. the finality of it. no fanfare, no nothing. just carnage. she looks to throné, noticing the chain. great. awesome. she doesn't like that it leads to the engine, if only because she isn't sure she can convince throné to throw herself in, if that's what any of this means.
any other time, baiken would just walk away. but she can't.]
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[ to be fair, it does seem like his tactic worked for throné to try and get the jump on her group. one of the guys with bats manages to nail ichiban in the shoulder, but he shrugs it off and swings his borrowed katana to try and sweep the offenders. if it hurt, he doesn't express it outwardly, focusing only on the task at hand. ]
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That is the sound of Ichiban sweeping a guy mid-taunt, thanks Ichiban. He catches that hit in the shoulder, which encourages the group to begin pressing in... but his followup leaves them hesitant, which keeps them open to Throné and Baiken. Especially to Throné; Baiken and Ichiban's voices keep the thugs' attention largely focused there.
The thugs also aren't very strong, so getting a good enough hit on one is pretty much enough to take them out-- a heavy enough sweep can probably get two of them, so they're already beginning to collect a small pile of these guys at their feet. Some of the others begin to back off, a little warier of charging right in; one or two more desperate individuals encourage them forward, though. What have they got to lose? If they can get something, anything out of this...
It doesn't work on the right group, who haven't even made it into the fight and yet see that it isn't going the thugs' way. The [1] means they decide to live to fight another day, and make their escape while the other two groups are still engaged, leaving them behind to die. The left group that Throné has started stealth attacking has a [9] so they do not notice her, rip to them, while Ichiban and Baiken probably have an easy time fending off the shaken primary group [5].]
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well she is going to try to just keep taking out these dudes until they're done for. if they get blood on her she's going to scream, so they better not. stabbity stab...
tbh if she finishes her group early she's getting back on the bus. goodbye.]
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but once they're all taken care of and stop attacking, baiken has to do that samurai flourish to fling the blood off (that i'm sure has a specific name) before sheathing the blade. then yes. back on the bus. ]
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[ HELP WHY ARE YOU BOTH JUST REBOARDING. once the offenders are on the ground or just plain gone, ichiban sticks behind, half because he's keeping an eye out for any stragglers, half because that whack the bat guy got on him earlier is starting to sting now that the adrenaline is wearing off. owie :( ]
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"You still have to put the fuel in the bus."
He gestures to the unconscious, mostly-dead thugs, then to the side of the bus, which looks like it opens up somehow.]
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[stands on the bus step, staring mr. red eyes directly in the face. she's so short. help.]
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[ she is also. staring at verg. help. ]
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The guys are the fuel?
[ HE DOESN'T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH BEING TOLD WHAT TO DO BUT HE DOES HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THIS PART ]
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"Well, its inventor isn't here to explain the details, so... we'll leave it at this. The 'guys' are the only kind of fuel this bus's engine will take, and you won't find it just anywhere."
The side of the bus pops open with a groaning, metallic sound, revealing mechanisms that look very nearly like jaws.
"Throw them in. Mephistopheles will extract what it needs, and convert the rest."
He continues to stand in their way, but... he's not going to tell the ladies to help Ichiban, either. How they do this is their business, he's just not letting them back in until it's done.]
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... she has a strength of eight so she is not going to be able to move the men into the mechanism regardless, but. there's a little war going on her head about what she has to do in order to get past this, and what she is willing to sacrifice. maybe she should fight a little more on being told these things, but she is so very good at following orders.]
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Piss off. You want it done, you can do it yourself.
[ SHE'S HAD ENOUGH OF THIS 'VERG' GUY. she will fight you old man. though for now, she continues to glower. ]
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No. I don't care what the details are. Sure, maybe they're not paragons of humanity, and maybe they would've killed us if we didn't knock 'em out first, but I'm not feeding people to some fucked up nightmare bus!
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You do know how things work in this City, don't you... you've been told your options. Work with them or you're not getting anywhere.
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she wanders over to one of the barely alive guys, staring down at him like she's deliberating.]
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[ she isn't even angry about the dudes. maybe she should be. maybe that will sink in later - but for now, all she sees is some pompous douchebag trying to give orders. ]
What, too afraid to get your hands dirty? Might want to try another profession then.
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there's a moment where he almost reaches out to place a hand on her shoulder, but vividly remembers the last time he touched her without warning and quickly withdraws, instead just saying: ]
Necchan, c'mon. You can't be serious.
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[You know when someone has a palpable Aura of intimidation about them? He's got that, his eyes now a brighter red, but he isn't making a move. If they don't start any, perhaps there will not be any. Who's to say.]
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throné looks up at ichiban when he approaches.]
... If you and Baiken think that we can make it through this without dying, then I won't. [folds her arms.] But I will not die here. I made a promise.
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except, sadly, baiken isn't as hotheaded as she used to be, and has enough sense to know that cutting this man down (well. attempt.) is not where her priority should be. it isn't even fun to insult him, because he doesn't care. ]
Stuffy bastard.
[ well it wasn't like she wasn't going to insult him, mild as it is in the grand scheme of things. she STOMPS off the bus to her other two companions. ]
Figure it out yet?
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ah, but then baiken is joining them, and she asks the million dollar question. ichiban looks between the two of them, his eyes lingering on throné's a little longer before he breaks his silence.
"you're a good man, ichiban." ]
Look, I wanna get out of this in one piece too, but I don't want murdering these guys to be part of the plan, either. [ . . . he faces the metallic teeth in the bus's newly opened hatch. ] We're not going anywhere until we get some fuel? Then I'll do it.
[ THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I THOUGHT YOU'D SAY YOU SHITTY PROTAGNIST PIECE OF SHIT!!!!! ]
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Since we have determined this is happening...
Now that he's looking at the bus, Ichiban can tell it actually seems hungry. The driver was not simply using a turn of phrase; it's gnashing its 'teeth' like it's starving, after they've failed to give it any fuel, and when he approaches despite Throné's attempt to interfere...
It doesn't take much effort. He barely has to get near it before the mechanisms catch him, devouring him eagerly.
Ichiban is dead.
Wherever Throné has put her pocketwatch, she can feel warmth from it. A very faintly visible chain runs from it to her, through her to Baiken, to... well, right now, to the bus engine.
Oh, yeah, and if she was still standing close or if Baiken has gotten closer? They're splattered with his blood. Mephi's a messy eater. It's sowwy.]
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well let me tell you a thing that you're going to very quickly learn on this cyoa - throné is not a fan of blood! she does not like it! so when ichiban's horrible meat remains splash her face and her white clothes, she kind of bluescreens. it's a loading screen up in there as she goes through all five stages of grief very quickly.
she is a little shellshocked? like. w - what do you even do with that? a man just died in front of her that she considered a friend and she doesn't know she's on cyoa so she just. thinks he's dead. like, for real, forever. maybe he is!
she feels the warmth of the pocketwatch where she has stashed it, unfortunately, in her... well i'm not sure she's wearing a bra, so just, like, there. in her bobbies. she is too shocked by ichiban being dead to care, and she stumbles back a step or two and just stares at the bus.]
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she's shocked too, at the suddenness of it. the finality of it. no fanfare, no nothing. just carnage. she looks to throné, noticing the chain. great. awesome. she doesn't like that it leads to the engine, if only because she isn't sure she can convince throné to throw herself in, if that's what any of this means.
any other time, baiken would just walk away. but she can't.]
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