[ like? these two blue people can do it. this is stupid. this whole thing is stupid. it's just courier-ception, and that thought makes baiken scowl even harder, as she sidesteps a mutant corpse. cool. great. loving this so far. ]
We're— not from here. We're freelancers, so we're not totally up to speed on all the details or technical terms. But, yeah, having that context might help us get the job done without too many hiccups.
[ quick thinking on his part from his days as an actual freelancer, in case their guides start to wonder why they're asking so many questions. he can only hope it's believable. ]
[Hopkins looks like he is quickly approaching critical mass of disbelief, so Aya steps in.]
Aya
Weeellll...~ We don't know! We're here to escort you to the lower levels, though, so I'm pretty sure our job actually stops there...?
[He can no longer be contained, however.]
Hopkins
You mean to say you work for one of the Colors, and you don't even know how valuable a resource Enkephalin is?! It used to supply energy to the entire City! It-
[There's a sound from further down the hall, and they both go quiet, hands to their weapons.]
[listen dude we just woke up on a vore bus and were told to go into the sewers to grind rats for xp, i don't know what you want from us
anyway. there's a sound, and throné vanishes. not literally, but she immediately tries to slip into the shadows of the hallway so nothing can see her. goodbye.]
[ he needed to get one quip in ok... but yeah, ichiban also readies up. this time, he does not immediately make himself big target #1 by yelling and drawing attention; instead, he holds his breath as he takes a tentative step forward. ]
[Hopkins and Aya will just kind of follow y'all on this one.
As Ichiban steps forward and they move toward the sound and the voices... they'll come across a small group of new friends in this gross ass facility. Much like the bugmen outside, they're all mutated, but these all wear similar military uniforms to each other, bandaged here and there; they're hunched over a monstrous-looking dead creature leaking green fluid, with a vial or two of the same substance nearby.
The first voice speaks again:]
Veteran 1
This floor's ours. But... heh. You move on along and go hit up the floor below us for the Enkephalin there, and we'll just let ya head riiight down.
throné is still hidden as well as she can be! she doesn't like these things, or trust them at all. she won't attack them if they don't attack the group, but. she's ready to, if they're going to try anything.]
[ baiken doesn't mind making it known that she has a sword and she isn't afraid to use it :) but since they're just kinda hunched over being gross, that's... fine. for now. ]
[ the green substance is very hard to miss in this light; ichiban stares at the nearby vials more than whatever the dead abomination they're crowded around is. looks like the question of what enkephalin is has been answered for them... ]
Yeah—it if was that simple, why aren't you guys down there yourselves?
[... okay, she's going to try and get around them, then. she doesn't have a lot of interest in the green stuff "you're supposed to collect it" doesn't have a lot of interest in the
[ ok so he's not going to IMMEDIATELY try to grab a vial and possibly incur death #2, but he will start to move closer to one. like. it's right there? ]
[When Baiken takes a good, hard look... the military uniforms look like they belong to these bug people. They all fit them, they don't seem stolen. They're old, though, worn and torn, and the people themselves-- they all have that desperate sort of glint to their eyes as they observe the party. They're all too thin. Whatever kind of living they're trying to eke out down here, it's not going well, and they might not be lying about preferring to stay up here; they look like they might genuinely lack the strength to deal with anything worse than the monster they're hovering over.
Ichiban inches closer to a vial, and their eyes narrow... but fortunately, there's a distraction.
Unfortunately, it's because a bugman they might not have seen crawling on the ceiling spots Throné trying to swipe a vial as she slips past.]
Ceiling Veteran
H-hey! Hey, we already said this is ours...! You can't take it from us!
[The others turn to look, and the first one, evidently the leader of this small group, growls-]
Veteran 1
Fine. No playing nice, then. Get 'em!
[Ceiling bugman drops down to try to attack Throné, while two each make a move on Baiken and Ichiban. I'm rolling this shit just once for the pairs because we're not going too deep here.
Ceiling bug, with the nat 20, drops on Throné with his scythelike bug arm aimed to pierce her. Baiken's pair, with their 11, hop to their feet and advance; Ichiban's pair had the nat 1, so they start to stand and find the dead monstrosity's limbs tangled around them. They scream, crashing back down as they fumble to slice the limbs away.]
[she did in fact try to swip the vial and teej didn't just make this up for later readers and also for me if i go back to read this in the future
anyway, throné is very confident about her ability to steal! she had a like 80% success rate with her 18. however, ceiling bugman was a surprise, and for whatever reason she didn't expect to be jumped on like that. usually when she fights things they are directly in front of her on a 2D grid, okay, she's from a pixel game. with a nat twenty i don't really see throné getting away without being absolutely pierced through, so the scythe just slips right through her torso and she collapses.
she doesn't make a sound, though. not even a gasp, even though that really had to hurt.
is she dead? not yet! probably! i don't know. she's scrabbling for both the vial (that's her PRIZE) and also for something else.]
[ out of the corner of her eye, she sees it: throné getting skewered and collapsing. this would spur her into action even more if she weren't face to face with a bugman.
the other slips, so just in case he didn't see it: ] Ichiban! Go get Throné!
[ THEN I GUESS SHE SLIPS BECAUSE I ROLLED A 5 SO THAT'S COOL. her stance is ruined. that 5 is not doing SHIT to this bugman. ]
Edited (those are exclamations) 2024-03-12 05:49 (UTC)
[ baiken doesn't need to finish her sentence; even if the guys going after him didn't eat absolute shit with their roll, throné was the only thing on his mind as soon as she fell.
despite everything, he is still only human, so he isn't fast enough to stop her from getting stabbed, but he can sure as hell retaliate and make sure it hurts. he doesn't even take the katana off his back to attack, because he's not really thinking so much as just doing right now. no, it's his own fist connecting with the bugman's nose thanks to his 18, the sickening crunch of breaking bone drowned out by his roar.
it's that same hand that cradles throné's head as he kneels down. ]
Necchan, hey, Necchan! Stay with me, okay? Me and Baiken-san, we're right here with you!
[Honestly, that was a solid enough roll and these guys are relatively weak. Ichiban takes them out by punching a bug INTO another bug, because it's cool that way...
Though as he rushes to Throné's side, someone might want to deal with Ceiling Bug still standing right there, scowling as he takes a swipe at Ichiban (17). The nat 1 crew have recovered enough to start coming at Baiken after she slips (15).]
she has been very close to death before. this isn't the first time. throné can feel the blood in her lungs and the way it rises up in her throat, she knows the smell of it. she hates the smell of it, hates the image of her hands covered in it, hates the way it makes her feel. it's so, so much worse when it's other people, though. at least when it's her, she deserves it. the sensation feels like a punishment, feels right after throwing bodies into a metal beast for her own gain.
but she made a promise. she promised. so she has to try.
ichiban has got her, and she chokes, coughing up a nasty clot of blood as she tries to say something. more than anything, it's frustrating.
but she thinks about healing. she thinks about castti, bringing her pain relieving herbs, she thinks about temenos gently bonking her on the head with his staff and murmuring, be healed, you reckless fool - and she tries to summon whatever strength she's got before the lights go out to tap into her ego.
if ichiban is listening, he might hear her cough out something that sounds like flame--]
[ the thing baiken knows best is the sword. even with more bugmen advancing, she sticks to her familiar tactics - with disappointing results. that 7 isn't going to get her anywhere. and her frustration builds, but instead of giving her unyielding focus, she just whiffs it again. this is bad. she isn't one to run from a fight, and it's not going to help bringing the fight to throné and ichiban. since she can't move forward, she takes several steps back hoping, if nothing else, it pulls at least some of these bugmen away from the other two. ]
[ ceiling bug can try all he wants, but ichiban refuses to go down easily. his 13 means his arm gets a little sliced, but he's able to block the brunt of the attack and push his attacker back by using his katana's sheath. it's just a scrape, nothing he hasn't dealt with before. throné's wound, however...
he hears throné's whisper, but has no idea what she's doing, what it means.
that's okay. he trusts her, just like he trusts baiken to trust him. ]
[Ichiban weathers that attack, and as he watches Throné...
She reaches for her E.G.O. She thinks of Castti, of Temenos, of healing and warmth, and she successfully draws upon its strength.
"I will pray for you, so that you will surely break."
The Abnormality this E.G.O. was extracted from is a symbiotic presence within her, in the moment; she can feel it, feel its desires and wishes, what it was meant for. It is full of radiance and judgment, but not only that-- there is warmth in it too, suffusing her as she takes on its power in order to save herself. Bright wings of light unfurl from her, gold and teal and glowing, and the wound through her glows with healing light as her body is knit back together.
It's enough to get her stable again after a fatal blow like that. She'll have a hard time, but she isn't dying. As the wings fade, the light and presence leaving her, the impalement wound is now just a gouge in her chest that's no longer bleeding freely.
While this is going on, Baiken is able to lead the remaining two bugs away, and both they and Ceiling Bug are disoriented from the light. Hopkins and Aya can't take advantage of this because so are they! Sucks for them.]
[and just like that, she's alive. or - well, she is at least a little less dead.
she coughs, trying to pull herself up to sit - instinctively, she holds onto ichiban as she does, expression gritted. she's not exactly focusing on it, but something in her laughs at the idea of telling temenos about this later. sacred flame, her ass.
I promise.
but no time to think about that now. no time to think about how absolutely wild it is to think throné of all people, managed to do healing, managed to call on any sort of light magic. she reaches for her knife, trying to pull herself to her feet so she can help baiken fight. unfortunately, she is woozy, and it takes a second.]
[ the frustration gnaws at her. through the void of detachment that has hollowed out her soul, the only thing she has left to keep her from her grief. a grief so deeply entrenched in her she only knew rage as a way to externalize her pain. it will never go away. and she's wasted her entire shitty life trying to find the one thing that should have put an end to it.
she's frustrated. she's pissed off. she's going to do as she's always done when she's indulged in her anger: she's going to kill these guys.
she can only focus on the disparity of her wasted life, when she should have stayed put, when she should have done anything else than pusue her vengeance.
"you're the only person who could talk me out of my revenge."
except that doesn't mean anything now. not when she's ended up here, doing this, facing down these pathetic excuses of opponents.
through that grief and hollow void she pulls out her rage. her regret. it doesn't matter, nothing matters, and that is very quickly going to be these bugs' problem. she is going to crush them like the insects they are. ]
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Why's it so important that we do it?
[ like? these two blue people can do it. this is stupid. this whole thing is stupid. it's just courier-ception, and that thought makes baiken scowl even harder, as she sidesteps a mutant corpse. cool. great. loving this so far. ]
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[ quick thinking on his part from his days as an actual freelancer, in case their guides start to wonder why they're asking so many questions. he can only hope it's believable. ]
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[He can no longer be contained, however.]
[There's a sound from further down the hall, and they both go quiet, hands to their weapons.]
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anyway. there's a sound, and throné vanishes. not literally, but she immediately tries to slip into the shadows of the hallway so nothing can see her. goodbye.]
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alas, it's not time to be snappy when there is a mysterious sound. baiken draws her sword, her stance ready. bring it on, whatever it is. ]
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[ he needed to get one quip in ok... but yeah, ichiban also readies up. this time, he does not immediately make himself big target #1 by yelling and drawing attention; instead, he holds his breath as he takes a tentative step forward. ]
(body horror in link)
Hey! Someone there?
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throné is still hidden as well as she can be! she doesn't like these things, or trust them at all. she won't attack them if they don't attack the group, but. she's ready to, if they're going to try anything.]
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[ baiken doesn't mind making it known that she has a sword and she isn't afraid to use it :) but since they're just kinda hunched over being gross, that's... fine. for now. ]
No way you're lettin' us off that easy.
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Yeah—it if was that simple, why aren't you guys down there yourselves?
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[She glowers at them as she says it, before turning her attention back to a vial.]
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goodbye! next floor.]
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baiken isn't quick to move to the next floor though (sorry throné) - she takes a good hard look at the mutants. not to intimidate just... observing. ]
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[ ok so he's not going to IMMEDIATELY try to grab a vial and possibly incur death #2, but he will start to move closer to one. like. it's right there? ]
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Ichiban inches closer to a vial, and their eyes narrow... but fortunately, there's a distraction.
Unfortunately, it's because a bugman they might not have seen crawling on the ceiling spots Throné trying to swipe a vial as she slips past.]
[The others turn to look, and the first one, evidently the leader of this small group, growls-]
[Ceiling bugman drops down to try to attack Throné, while two each make a move on Baiken and Ichiban. I'm rolling this shit just once for the pairs because we're not going too deep here.
Ceiling bug, with the nat 20, drops on Throné with his scythelike bug arm aimed to pierce her. Baiken's pair, with their 11, hop to their feet and advance; Ichiban's pair had the nat 1, so they start to stand and find the dead monstrosity's limbs tangled around them. They scream, crashing back down as they fumble to slice the limbs away.]
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anyway, throné is very confident about her ability to steal! she had a like 80% success rate with her 18. however, ceiling bugman was a surprise, and for whatever reason she didn't expect to be jumped on like that. usually when she fights things they are directly in front of her on a 2D grid, okay, she's from a pixel game. with a nat twenty i don't really see throné getting away without being absolutely pierced through, so the scythe just slips right through her torso and she collapses.
she doesn't make a sound, though. not even a gasp, even though that really had to hurt.
is she dead? not yet! probably! i don't know. she's scrabbling for both the vial (that's her PRIZE) and also for something else.]
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the other slips, so just in case he didn't see it: ] Ichiban! Go get Throné!
[ THEN I GUESS SHE SLIPS BECAUSE I ROLLED A 5 SO THAT'S COOL. her stance is ruined. that 5 is not doing SHIT to this bugman. ]
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despite everything, he is still only human, so he isn't fast enough to stop her from getting stabbed, but he can sure as hell retaliate and make sure it hurts. he doesn't even take the katana off his back to attack, because he's not really thinking so much as just doing right now. no, it's his own fist connecting with the bugman's nose thanks to his 18, the sickening crunch of breaking bone drowned out by his roar.
it's that same hand that cradles throné's head as he kneels down. ]
Necchan, hey, Necchan! Stay with me, okay? Me and Baiken-san, we're right here with you!
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[Honestly, that was a solid enough roll and these guys are relatively weak. Ichiban takes them out by punching a bug INTO another bug, because it's cool that way...
Though as he rushes to Throné's side, someone might want to deal with Ceiling Bug still standing right there, scowling as he takes a swipe at Ichiban (17). The nat 1 crew have recovered enough to start coming at Baiken after she slips (15).]
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she has been very close to death before. this isn't the first time. throné can feel the blood in her lungs and the way it rises up in her throat, she knows the smell of it. she hates the smell of it, hates the image of her hands covered in it, hates the way it makes her feel. it's so, so much worse when it's other people, though. at least when it's her, she deserves it. the sensation feels like a punishment, feels right after throwing bodies into a metal beast for her own gain.
but she made a promise. she promised. so she has to try.
ichiban has got her, and she chokes, coughing up a nasty clot of blood as she tries to say something. more than anything, it's frustrating.
but she thinks about healing. she thinks about castti, bringing her pain relieving herbs, she thinks about temenos gently bonking her on the head with his staff and murmuring, be healed, you reckless fool - and she tries to summon whatever strength she's got before the lights go out to tap into her ego.
if ichiban is listening, he might hear her cough out something that sounds like flame--]
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he hears throné's whisper, but has no idea what she's doing, what it means.
that's okay. he trusts her, just like he trusts baiken to trust him. ]
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[Ichiban weathers that attack, and as he watches Throné...
She reaches for her E.G.O. She thinks of Castti, of Temenos, of healing and warmth, and she successfully draws upon its strength.
"I will pray for you, so that you will surely break."
The Abnormality this E.G.O. was extracted from is a symbiotic presence within her, in the moment; she can feel it, feel its desires and wishes, what it was meant for. It is full of radiance and judgment, but not only that-- there is warmth in it too, suffusing her as she takes on its power in order to save herself. Bright wings of light unfurl from her, gold and teal and glowing, and the wound through her glows with healing light as her body is knit back together.
It's enough to get her stable again after a fatal blow like that. She'll have a hard time, but she isn't dying. As the wings fade, the light and presence leaving her, the impalement wound is now just a gouge in her chest that's no longer bleeding freely.
While this is going on, Baiken is able to lead the remaining two bugs away, and both they and Ceiling Bug are disoriented from the light. Hopkins and Aya can't take advantage of this because so are they! Sucks for them.]
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she coughs, trying to pull herself up to sit - instinctively, she holds onto ichiban as she does, expression gritted. she's not exactly focusing on it, but something in her laughs at the idea of telling temenos about this later. sacred flame, her ass.
I promise.
but no time to think about that now. no time to think about how absolutely wild it is to think throné of all people, managed to do healing, managed to call on any sort of light magic. she reaches for her knife, trying to pull herself to her feet so she can help baiken fight. unfortunately, she is woozy, and it takes a second.]
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she's frustrated. she's pissed off. she's going to do as she's always done when she's indulged in her anger: she's going to kill these guys.
she can only focus on the disparity of her wasted life, when she should have stayed put, when she should have done anything else than pusue her vengeance.
"you're the only person who could talk me out of my revenge."
except that doesn't mean anything now. not when she's ended up here, doing this, facing down these pathetic excuses of opponents.
through that grief and hollow void she pulls out her rage. her regret. it doesn't matter, nothing matters, and that is very quickly going to be these bugs' problem. she is going to crush them like the insects they are. ]
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