DFederal Intro[]
Dick Grayson pats Hol Horse on the shoulder as he walks into the Iceberg Lounge. Rather than taking a seat at the bar or at one of the tables, he instead makes his way towards a wooden door in the back. He knocks, and after being told to come in grasps the handle – shaped like the grip of a pistol – and walks in.
Jason Todd, the owner of the joint, puts down a pen and looks up from behind his desk. He leans back in his chair, looking every bit the part of an actual business executive. An image ruined by the extra large fast-food cup of soda sitting next to the papers he was looking at. He takes a sip through the straw and gestures for his foster brother to sit.
“Look, Dick, I know I overreacted last time you tried this…”
“You literally accused be of being a pedophile, Jason.”
“Water under the bridge. But I also figured that would get you to stop. Permanently.”
“He’s your foster father. You should at least hear him out.”
“No means no, Dickie.”
“Come on, whatever you did to him can’t be that bad…”
“What I did?” Jason growls slamming his hands on the desk and rising from his chair, “No, Dick. This is about what he did. Beyond even flying off the handle because I injured Cobblepot – and don’t give me that shit that he thought Penguin died; no one thought he died. Remember when Damian was dead for a bit?”
“Yeah. Not exactly the best time.”
“No shit it wasn’t the best time. Fucker dragged me to Ethiopia, tried to have me relive my own death, and told me I was a bad son for not doing it,” Jason moves around his desk, taking a twisted pleasure at the shock on Nightwing’s face. He loosens his shirt, showing a scar on his neck before continuing, “And that’s not the worst of it. Remember when I came back the first time? My little war against Black Mask when I tried to get ol’ Bruce to kill the Joker? Well he fucking killed me instead. I don’t know why I was alive afterwards, but a batarang to the jugular sure as hell violates his no-killing policy.”
“Jason, I…”
“And in this little city, unlike the entire fucking world back home,” Red Hood continues, steamrolling over his predecessor, “Not everyone cares what Bats thinks of you. So your little reconciliation plan can get fucking bent. You’re my brother, Dick, but I no longer consider Bruce to be my father.”
“Point taken, Jay. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”
“Look, as long as you stop trying to ambush me with him or drag him here, we’re cool.”
“Sure, I can do that. You’ve made it pretty clear that it would be easier to get him to fuck the Joker than to get the family back together.”
“I don’t know, hate sex is a thing,” Jason says, picking up his helmet as Dick gags.
“Great, now you’ve made me think about it. I’m suing for damages.”
“Hey, you’re the one who brought it up,” Jason says, “Now I’ve got a Battle Royale to win, so you can have a round at the bar on me. Just. One.”
Swindler: Wayne (Mistborn)[]
| “ | Fortunately, I can change hats. While you, sir, are stuck with that face.
— Wayne
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” |
Wayne was born in poverty, and while aware of his powers was unable to access the necessary metals until adulthood. He was a natural pickpocket and thief, able to swipe nearly anything without being noticed. He put his talents to use, and made a living by stealing. His crimes escalated, until one day he tried to rob a man at gunpoint. The robbery went wrong, and he ended up killing the man by accident. He learned during the trial that the man was a charity worker. Due to this, he is unable to use a gun, and sends most of his earnings to the man's family.
| “ | I bought a ward against [logic] off a traveling fortune-teller, It lets me add two 'n' two and get a pickle.
— Wayne
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” |
| “ | It is lucky. I ain't never died while wearing that hat.
— Wayne
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” |
Wayne is a Twinborn, which means he has access to one Allomantic and one Feruchemic power. His Allomantic power is bendalloy, making him a Slider. Sliders "push" on time in a bubble around them, creating a small zone where time moves faster than normal. Events outside the bubble appear to be going in slow motion. The size and time dilation of the bubble is fixed when created, and can be manipulated at the point of creation by Burning the metal at different rates.
A "standard" bubble is at most five feet in diameter, and aside from the obvious temporal differences is nearly invisible aside from a slight shimmering in the air around the edges, only noticeable with careful examination. Bendalloy bubbles are not anchored to the user, but instead the user's location upon creating it. This location is relative to a large body, such as a train or a planet, but can't be made relative to smaller locations, such as a stagecoach. Wayne leaving the bubble will "pop" it, ending its effects, and projectiles entering or exiting the bubble will have their trajectory deflected in a random manner.
Wayne has enough bendalloy to utilize his bubbles for twenty objective minutes in ten vials. He will not start with any bendalloy ingested.
| “ | What? Why? Cuz' I can heal?
— Wayne
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” |
Wayne is a Twinborn, which means he has access to one Allomantic and one Feruchemic power. His Feruchemic power is gold, making him a Bloodmaker. Bloodmakers store their health, making them ill while storing in exchange for increased healing later. With Feruchemy, the amount of health is constant. As Wayne cannot Compound gold, he can only heal as much as he has stored.
Wayne will have enough health stored to heal from two fatal injuries. As Goldminds are incredibly difficult to fill, he will not be able to replenish these stores in combat.
| “ | But rich folk, they had a different word for the crapper. They’d call it a “commode” or a “washroom.” That way, when someone asked for the crapper, they knew it was a person they needed to oppress.
— Wayne
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” |
- Master of Disguise
- Wayne's greatest asset is his ability to disguise himself. He can mix and match accents, clothes, and gaits to appear as just about anyone from a thug in an extremist organization to an upper-crust Karen. Despite his usual loud vulgarity and off-putting personality, he can use his disguises to win the trust of others fairly easily.
- Kleptomaniac
- Wayne has a tendency to steal things, which he refers to as "borrowing," sometimes leaving another object in exchange. The exact logic as to what is left and why it's of equal value rarely holds up in the telling.
- Gun Hater
- Hates using firearms, and can barely aim a gun without his hands shaking.
Courier: Gene Starwind (Outlaw Star)[]
| “ | First a naked girl comes out of a trunk, and then those pirates come after us again! What the hell's going on around here?
— Gene Starwind
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” |
Gene Starwind is a pilot, outlaw, and general jack-of-all-trades. He runs an odd job business with the eleven-year-old prodigy Jim Hawking, though his jobs aren't always legal. Gene & Jim were then hired to find the Galactic Leyline, utilizing a state-of-the-art grappler ship and its biological navigation system, a woman named Melfina. They travel across space, recruiting an assassin and a werewolf catgirl along the way, seeking potential leads.
They eventually find the Galactic Leyline, though are pursued by a group of Taoist space pirates, a mad scientist, and a cyborg yandere intent on claiming Melfina for himself. They reach the center, but instead of the promised treasure they find that Melfina is part of the leyline, which grants wishes. The cyborg yandere is forced to retreat, the Taoist pirates die, and the mad scientist becomes an omniscient data entity integrated into the Galactic Leyline. Gene uses his wish to free Melfina from the Leyline, revealing he's in love with her. She reciprocates, and the combined effects of their wish allow them to free her. They then continue traveling the galaxy, having further adventures.
| “ | Look, it's just like jumping rope, except with planets! We can make it if we go right now!
— Gene Starwind
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” |
Gene's Caster is a specialized gun. Created as mana was disappearing from the galaxy, the Caster weapons and their specialized shells are the only way for humans to use powerful magic without using their own Chi and Tao chants. Casters utilize magic ammunition in the form of rare shells, which trigger unique effects and cause the spinning disks in the Caster to light up in different ways. The known shells are as follows:
- Number 3
- When fired, creates a red beam about the size of the user's torso. Triggers a large explosion.
- Number 4
- When fired, creates a small black hole which consumes the target. Uses the caster's life force if there is not enough mana to power its effects.
- Number 5
- Fires a blue beam, similar to the Number 3. Exact effects unknown.
- Number 9
- Creates then explodes a miniature black hole, sending out a wave of force. Uses the caster's life force if there is not enough mana to power its effects.
- Number 10
- Fires a medium-sized red beam that can obliterate the target.
- Number 11
- Fires a red burst. Can obliterate its target.
- Number 12
- Fires a blue beam that hits an opponent with electricity strong enough to kill a normal person
- Number 13
- Creates a strong electrical discharge
- Number 19
- The effects of this shell are unknown, simply that it exists.
- Unknown Shell
- Fires a blue beam the size of the user's body.
| “ | I'll pay you back when I make it big!
— Gene Starwind
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” |
Gene utilizes a variety of other equipment, including:
- Guns
- Unidentified normal guns. Seems to have at least 3. One is a miniaturized double-barreled shotgun, one is a revolver, and one is a simple semiautomatic
- Paint Bullets
- Special nonlethal rounds that coat the target in a sticky paint that's difficult to remove.
- Knife
- A simple knife in a leg holster, tough enough to slice through a cyborg
- Light Shield
- A protective barrier. Gene can focus the light shields at a point to catch a sword. Requires power to function.
- Grenades
- Makes both an explosion and a bright flash.
| “ | I have a bad feeling about this, but a job's a job.
— Gene Starwind
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” |
- Pilot
- Gene is an extremely talented pilot, able to drive vehicles ranging from a hovercraft to the Outlaw Star with a high level of skill.
- Improviser
- Gene is skilled with improvisational tactics, using the environment and quick thinking to get a win.
- Coward
- Gene's main priority is self-preservation. As such, he's not afraid to utilize the Joestar Secret Technique if he thinks he's outmatched.
Brawler: Sveta (Golden Sun: Dark Dawn)[]
| “ | I am not your enemy. I am as my instincts make me, no more and no less.
— Sveta
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” |
Sveta is a Wind Adept and the crown princess of Morgall, as the sister to its currently childless king. While traveling outside her country, she encountered Matthew, the child of Isaac and Jenna, and the rest of his party while exploring ruins. After guiding them to Morgall, she temporarily leaves the party to return to Belinsk, the capital city.
There, she is drawn into the manipulations of Blados and Chalis, who trick her brother and Matthew's party into activating Luna Tower and starting the Grave Eclipse. Sveta rejoins Matthew's party, determined to put a stop to the rampaging monsters. The party finds the Umbra Gear, specially-made equipment that can withstand large amounts of light, and set off to find and fire the Apollo Lens. They are successful, killing her transformed brother in the process, and save the world. Sveta then takes her place as queen of Morgall, hinting at the discovery of Light Psynergy.
| “ | Every moment that the eclipse does on, countless people suffer and die. At the center of that suffering are the Morgall people. Volechek, as their king, has a responsibility to them.
— Sveta
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” |
Djinn are elemental spirits that boost the power of Adepts. They have three modes when attaching themselves to an Adept: they can be Set, on Standby, or in Recovery. Each Djinn boosts power in a different way, and also has different effects when used in battle.
When set, the Djinn boosts the stats of their owner, modifies their psynergy pool as shown in the Psynergy tab, and can be utilized to give a unique effect. After they are used, the Djinn are then put in the Standby state. There, they have no impact on the Psynergy pool, give no stat boosts, and cannot be used for their ability, but can either be Set or used to fuel the Summons listed on their tab. When used to fuel a summon, the Djinn are placed in the Recovery state. There, they have no impact on the Psynergy pool, give no stat boosts, cannot be used for their ability, and cannot be used to fuel the Summons listed on their tab. They will, however, return to the Set state one by one after a short amount of time.
Note that putting a Standby djinn into the Set state takes time, during which Sveta cannot move.
Sveta will start with all nine of her Djinn in the Set state.
Sveta has access to the following Djinn:
- Geode
- A Venus djinn that boosts Sveta's health and attack power. When unleashed, it strikes the target physically, dealing Venus damage nearly double that of a basic attack from Sveta.
- Furrow
- A Venus djinn that boosts Sveta's health. When unleashed, it enhances one of her normal attacks against the target, dealing the same damage but healing her for half that amount
- Steel
- A Venus djinn that boosts Sveta's health, attack, defense, and luck. When unleashed, it strikes the target physically, dealing slightly more damage than normal attack from Sveta and healing her for half that amount
- Gears
- A Venus djinn that boosts Sveta's health, her ability to use psynergy, and her attack power. When unleashed, the target attacks one of its allies with a lot more force than one of Sveta's attacks, or hitting itself should it have no living allies.
- Magnet:A Venus djinn that boosts Sveta's health, her ability to use psynergy, and her attack power. When unleashed, it strikes the target with what appears to be magnetic force, dealing slightly more damage than normal attack from Sveta, possibly inflicting stun
- Flint
- A Venus djinn that boosts Sveta's health, her ability to use psynergy, and her attack power. When unleashed, it boosts the power of one of Sveta's attacks by more than half
- Chain
- A Venus djinn that boosts Sveta's health, her ability to use psynergy, and her attack power. When unleashed, it binds the target in chains while each ally attacks it independent of their own actions
- Bolt
- A Jupiter djinn that boosts Sveta's health and attack power. When unleashed, it strikes the target with lightning, doing medium damage and posibly stunning it.
- Puff
- A Jupiter djinn that boosts Sveta's health and attack power. When unleashed, it inflates the target, causing it to float before shrinking to normal and falling, turning into red mist should they die.
| “ | Sveta, that was astounding. I knew you had an extrasensory ability, but still, most impressive.
— Amiti
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” |
Sveta will have access to the Gladiator class. This class requires a mix of 7 Venus and 2 Jupiter Djinn in the Set state, and as such she will have access to the ones given in the Djinn tab. Should the Djinn be in the Standby or Recovery state, they will not count towards her class requirements. In addition to the stat boost from the Djinn, each "step" in a class series will boost Sveta's abilities further. The possible classes she may enter and the required Djinn are as follows, ordered from weakest to strongest:
- Scrapper Class Series
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- Scrapper
- Requires only 1 Venus Djinn and 0-2 Jupiter Djinn
- Grappler
- Requires 2 or 3 Venus Djinn and 0-2 Jupiter Djinn
- Brawler
- Requires 4 or 5 Venus Djinn and 0-2 Jupiter Djinn
- Bruiser
- Requires at 6-7 Venus Djinn and only 1 Jupiter Djinni
- Gladiator
- Requires 7 Venus Djinn and 2 Jupiter Djinn
- Beastling Class Series
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- Beastling
- Requires up to 1 Jupiter Djinni and no other Djinn
- Windrunner
- Requires 2 Jupiter Djinn and no other Djinn
Sveta does not have the required Jupiter Djinn to progress further in the class series.
The Psynergies granted per series are given in the tabs below:
Sveta has access to the following Psynergy in every step of the Scrapper class series:
- Speed Punch
- Deals Jupiter damage to target
- Growth
- Causes vines to grow under the target, dealing low Venus damage. Can also cause plants and vines to grow and create makeshift ropes
- Boon
- Restores a small amount of health to a single target
- Cure Poison
- Cures poison
- Nature's Boon
- Restores a medium amount of health to a single target
- Mad Growth
- Causes vines to grow under the target and those close by, dealing medium Venus damage
- Restore
- Cures sleep, stun, and delusion
- Revive
- Fully restores a downed ally to health
- Psynergy Slam
- Slams into the target, dealing Venus damage equivalent to 1.6 times that of a simple attack
- Vital Boon
- Restores a large amount of health to a single target
- Wild Growth
- Causes vines to grow under a small area centered around the target, dealing heavy Venus damage
- Psynergy Surge
- Grabs the target, leaps with it, and slams it into the ground, dealing extremely high Venus damage
Sveta has access to the following Psynergy in every step of the Beastling class series:
- Whirlwind
- Sends an electrified tornado through the target and those close by, dealing light Jupiter damage to all of them. Can also clear loose debris on the field.
- Slash
- Sends a blade of wind at a single foe, dealing low Jupiter damage to it.
- Boon
- Restores a small amount of health to a single target
- Ray
- Strikes the target and those close by with a few lightning bolts, dealing low Jupiter damage to all of them
- Cure Poison
- Cures poison
- Wind Slash
- Sends two blades of wind at the target and those close by, dealing moderate Jupiter damage to all of them.
- Nature's Boon
- Restores a medium amount of health to a single target
- Restore
- Cures sleep, stun, and delusion
- Storm Ray
- Strikes a small area centered around the target with several lightning bolts, dealing moderate Jupiter damage to all of them
- Tornado
- Sends two electrified tornadoes through a small area centered around the target, dealing medium Jupiter damage to all of them.
- Vital Boon
- Restores a large amount of health to a single target
- Sonic Slash
- Sends three blades of wind at a small area centered around the target, dealing high Jupiter damage to all of them.
- Destruct Ray
- Strikes a large area centered around the target with a bunch of lightning bolts, dealing high Jupiter damage to all of them
- Tempest
- Sends four electrified tornadoes through a large area centered around the target, dealing high Jupiter damage to all of them.
Sveta always has access to the following Psynergy:
- Slap
- Slaps the target with enormous force
- Track
- Allows the user and allies to "see" smells
- Spirit Sense
- Can read the minds of living beings and communicate with the dead. She doesn't typically like to use this ability.
| “ | These five items were left by the Jenei for their descendants in the event of another Grave Eclipse
— Encyclopedia
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” |
A five-part suit of armor and a pair of knuckles forged by an ancient civilization. It protects the wearer from high concentrations of light, and spreads this protection to those around them.
- Umbra Cloak
- Greatly increases its wearer's physical defense and moderately increases their Venus (Earth) and Mars (Fire) Resistance
- Umbra Gauntlet
- Greatly increases its wearer's physical defense and moderately increases their Mercury (Water) and Jupiter (Air/Lightning) Resistance
- Umbra Cowl
- Greatly increases the wearer's Defense and moderately increases their Venus (Earth) and Jupiter (Air/Lightning) Resistance
- Umbra Goggles
- Slightly increases the wearer's Defense and moderately increases their Mercury (Water) and Mars (Fire) Resistance
- Umbra Knuckles
- A pair of Fist-class weapons that greatly increases its user's physical attack and allows them access to the below unleashes. There is a 35% chance that the unleashes will happen, and a 33% chance that one of the below may be chosen:
- Savage Raptor
- Deals heavy Venus damage and may inflict the Venom status effect on the target. Venom deals heavy damage over time, and does not wear off naturally.
- Feral Rush
- Deals heavier Venus damage than Savage Raptor, and may heal Sveta proportional to the damage she dealt.
- Shadow Cannon
- Deals much heavier Venus damage than Feral Rush, and may inflict the Stun status effect on the target.
- Unleash Gallery:
| “ | Whoa! She's a kitty-dog!
— Tyrell
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” |
Using the Beastform psynergy changes Sveta's appearance and class to the Wild Animal class series. This immensely boosts her physical and psynergetic capabilities as well as changing her available psynergy. She can only transform for a limited time, which is proportional to the amount of Djinn she has Set prior to transforming. All Djinn will be in Recovery mode when the transformation ends, setting her to the Beastling class. Any attack or status that forces her Djinn into the Standby or Recovery states will immediately undo Beastform.
Depending on her class prior to transformation, her power is boosted to different levels. At the highest is when she is in the Champion class, placing her in the Savage Fiend class, followed by Bruiser, placing her into Brutal Beast, followed by all other classes she has access to in this match, placing her into Wild Animal.
She has access to the following Psynergy no matter what her class is prior to the transformation:
- Speed Punch
- Deals Jupiter damage to target
- Boon
- Restores a small amount of health to a single target
- Cure Poison
- Cures poison
- Nature's Boon
- Restores a medium amount of health to a single target
- Restore
- Cures sleep, stun, and delusion
- Psynergy Slam
- Slams into the target, dealing Venus damage equivalent to 1.6 times that of a simple attack
- Vital Boon
- Restores a large amount of health to a single target
- Psynergy Surge
- Grabs the target, leaps with it, and slams it into the ground, dealing extremely high Venus damage
The following are not Psynergy, but are abilities unique to Beastform:
- Maul
- A boosted normal attack, but cannot trigger weapon unleashes
- Rampage
- A normal attack that hits every enemy
- Pack Defense
- Boosts the defensive abilities of Sveta and all team members by 50% for a short time, though Sveta cannot act during that time
| “ | The might of the apocalypse.
— Description of Judgement
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” |
Should Sveta have Djinn in Standby mode, she can use them for summon attacks, which hit every enemy on the field and do more damage to tougher foes. Summons costing more djinn are typically stronger. The summons she can use and the Djinn combinations are as follows:
- Venus
- 1 Venus Djinni.
- Ramses
- 2 Venus Djinn.
- Cybele
- 3 Venus Djinn.
- Judgement
- 4 Venus Djinn.
- Jupiter
- 1 Jupiter Djinni.
- Atlanta
- 2 Jupiter Djinn.
- Flora
- 1 Venus Djinni, 2 Jupiter Djinn. Does less damage than other three-Djinn summons, but has a chance of putting all affected enemies to sleep.
| “ | Matthew, please help me. I will need to borrow your strength to reach the Apollo Lens...
— Sveta
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” |
- Stealthy
- Sveta has been shown to be capable of stealth, luring the rest of Matthew's party through a set of ruins and eventually ending up surprising them from behind.
- Honorable
- She also has a strong sense of honor and duty as royalty. She's willing to sacrifice herself to save thousands of people, simply because it's the right thing to do. She also hates using her mind reading abilities due to its invasive nature.
- Shy
- Sveta prefers to remain out of sight, and only reveals herself to the party once she things she can trust them.
Doctor: Mordin Solus (Mass Effect 2)[]
| “ | Had to be me. Someone else might have gotten it wrong.
— Mordin Solus
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” |
The very model of a scientist Salarian, Mording Solus is a physician, former actor, and former member of the Salarian Special Tasks Group, their special forces arm. His final assignment at the STG was studying the genophage, a mutagenic virus that lowered Krogan fertility. When his studies found that the Krogan were overcoming the genophage, he and the rest of his team created and deployed a new variant to continue controlling the Krogan population. He, and the other members of his team, left the STG soon after, and he instead started a clinic on the crime-ridden station of Omega.
There, he encounters Commander Shepard, who recruits him as part of his crew. He assists Shepard in his fight against Harbinger, assisting with technical development. Depending on Shepard's actions, he can encounter a former assistant of his, Maelon, who is researching a cure for the genophage. He can additionally either kill Maelon for this and destroy his research, or keep him alive and keep his data intact. Further depending on Shepard's actions, he can either survive or die during the assault on the Collector Base.
| “ | Trying to determine how scale-itch got onto Normandy. Sexually-transmitted disease. Only carried by varren. Implications unpleasant.
— Mordin Solus
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” |
A submachinegun, which uses Mass Effect fields to accelerate small pieces of metal to lethal speeds. While it's less effective against armor, it shreds shielding and biotic barriers. Rather than a standard "reload," it instead takes thermal clips to prevent overheating. And apparently can't be used without them because whoever designed these guns is an idiot.
- Fully automatic, 950 RPM
- 50 shots per heat sink
| “ | More patients than time. Impossible to save everyone. Go crazy if you try. So save who you can, move on. Save more if we hurry.
— Mordin Solus
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” |
A pistol, which uses Mass Effect fields to accelerate small pieces of metal to lethal speeds. While it's less effective against shielding and biotic barriers, it shreds armor. Rather than a standard "reload," it instead takes thermal clips to prevent overheating. And apparently can't be used without them because whoever designed these guns is an idiot.
The M-5 Phalanx has a built-in laser sight, and is
- Semiautomatic
- 6 shots per clip
| “ | Have killed many, Shepard. Many methods. Gunfire, knives, drugs, tech attacks, once with farming equipment. But not with medicine.
— Mordin Solus
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” |
- Incineration Blast
- The Omni-tool launches a plasma blast that explodes over a wide area. Is highly effective against armor.
- Full Cryo Blast
- The Omni-tool launches a wide spray of supercooled particles, freezing those caught by it. The freeze takes a little under two seconds to complete, and does not work against a protected target.
- Salarian Savant
- Passively improves Mordin's health, weapon damage, and shields
- Neural Shockwave
- Stuns an organic target. Does not affect targets shielded by armor, magic, or technology.
- Kinetic Barriers
- Barriers specialized in blocking small, fast-moving objects. Does not work on things with high mass, like blades.
- Omni-Tool
- A miniature smart device, worn on the hand. Can be used to hack, repair objects from a distance, or flash-fabricate small items using scrap materials. One prominent use of an Omni-Tool is creating an Omni-Blade, a flash-forged, superheated, superhard blade used for melee attacks.
- Body Armor
- Light personal armor
| “ | Flammable! Or inflammable. Forget which. Doesn't matter.
— Mordin Solus
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” |
- Ruthless
- Despite being a doctor, Mordin has no qualms about simply killing someone. He believes that the ends justify the means, and if it's for the greater good he has no qualms about any action, from assisting the genocide of the Krogan to mutilating and displaying dead bodies to deter attacks.
- Improvisational
- Is capable of combat with implements found in the environment if need be. Can kill a Krogan Warrior with a pitchfork.
- Mission Focused
- Whatever his mission may be, given by superiors or self-made, he will see it through with maximum efficiency.
Hacker: 9S (Nier Automata)[]
| “ | I'm not quite sure what it means to mourn, or even if we have a soul to concern ourselves with… But I hope you're at rest 2B. Sweet dreams. I'll be with you before long.
— 9S
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” |
YoRHa No.9 Type S, also known as 9S or Nines, is one of the protagonists in Nier Automata. As a newer scout model, he possesses a high amount of curiosity about the world around him, which sometimes leads to discovering things he was not meant to know. He has done so 47 times as of the start of the game, and each time is then killed by his partner, 2B. They would then pair up again, and are sent by YoRHA to aid the Resistance against the Machine Lifeforms. In connection with this, they traveled through the abandoned city headquartering the Resistance and its surroundings. They successfully fought and killed Adam and Eve, a pair of twins created by the machine lifeforms in an attempt to imitate the androids.
Then, during an assault on the remaining Machine Lifeforms, a majority of the YoRHA forces are infected by a logic virus, turning them homicidally insane. 2B is also affected, and is killed by the rogue android A2 before she can succumb to it. 9S only sees the kill, and swears vengeance on A2. He picks up her trail while investigating suspicious Machine Lifeform activity, and eventually finds A2 at the massive tower erected in the city ruins.
He fights her, and whether or not he wins is determined by the player. Afterwards, the pods may restore his functionality, alongside 2B and A2, again depending on the player's choices.
| “ | Its no-frills design gives it an aura of serious weaponry
— Description
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” |
| “ | Once we eradicate the machine lifeforms, us soldiers won't have anything left to do. We'll enter a new age of peace. And when that happens, we should go shopping together! I could buy you...I dunno. A T-shirt, maybe? Something that looks good on you.
— 9S
|
” |
| “ | Pod 153! I order you to halt all logical thought and speech! This order shall remain in effect until you confirm the death of either myself or unit A2!
— 9S
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” |
Pod 153 is the support unit for 9S. It can perform a multitude of tasks, from fishing to slowing falls to assisting in combat. This Pod has the following abilities:
- Machine Gun
- Can fire an inbuilt gun
- Laser
- Fires a laser in a straight line
- Wave
- Creates a shockwave by slamming into the ground from a height
- Wire
- Acts as a grappling hook
- Scanner
- Scans objects
| “ | You're thinking about how much you want to **** 2B, aren't you?
— Adam
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” |
| “ | ” |
- Curiosity
- 9S, as a Scanner unit, has a hardcoded sense of curiosity about the world around him. As a newer model, his curiosity is deep enough that he tends to ignore taboos and asks questions pertaining to secrets others would rather let alone.
- Sociopath
- 9S also tends to display sociopathic behavior towards anything that isn't morphologically similar to him. This extends most notably to machine lifeforms, who he denies have feelings despite evidence to the contrary.
- Emotional
- Unlike other YoRHa units, 9S displays emotion openly and frequently. He's cheerful, optimistic, and helpful towards other androids, and conversely is hateful and spiteful to those he deems his enemies. Despite this, 9S lacks a sense of modesty or shame, something I'm sure Laq is excited to hear.
Hoodlum: Red Hood (DC Comics)[]
| “ | You keep saying that it's yours, but I should remind you that I don't care.
— Red Hood
|
” |
The former apprentice of Bruce "Batman" Wayne, Red Hood is one of the more violent and brutal vigilantes that protects the people of Gotham. Once a car thief turned superhero sidekick Robin, Jason Todd's more brutal and angry perspective of the world made him a powerful but volatile ward to Batman. Todd's anger issues eventually led to his death at the hands of Batman's archenemy the Joker, who beat the young man to death and blew him up. Todd was eventually resurrected by Talia al Ghul, where he trained with the League of Assassins and the All-Caste to regain his memories and sanity.
Once his training was complete and he became disillusioned with both groups, Todd returned to Gotham City to destroy the Joker and seek his revenge. Over time, Todd managed to rekindle his relationship with his mentor Batman and began a loose alliance with the rest of the Bat family. Due to his violent style and lack of mercy to criminals, Red Hood continues to find himself working outside the traditional norms of his allies. After the death of Batman's son Damian and the resulting cruelty it caused, Red Hood left Gotham City for a brief period to rediscover himself, embracing his more brutal and violent ways of dispensing justice.
| “ | Just be happy I only killed the Nazi!
— Red Hood
|
” |
- Knife
- Has a Kris-like blade, and is sharp and strong enough to slice through Batman's equipment
- Assault Rifle
- Identified by Jason as an AK-47
- Submachine Guns
- A pair of submachine guns, somewhat resembling Skorpions
- Smoke Grenade
- A grenade that emits smoke. Visually similar to an M84
- Explosive Grenade
- Visually similar to an M26 Grenade
- Handguns
- A pair of handguns, resembling M1911s
- Tazer
- Sends a large electric shock, able to destroy cybernetics
- Grappling Pistol
- A pistol with an attached wire, which is launched via rocket.
- Red Hood Mask
- Rigged to explode at the press of a button
- Triggered Explosives
- Somehow always has these set up exactly right
| “ | Oh, my goodness gracious! I've been bamboozled!
— Red Hood
|
” |
- Genius Tactician
- Jason is able to outwit Batman during his time as a Gotham crime lord. Not just once, but several times. He also outmaneuvers most of the Gotham criminal element with ease, and while his plans aren't as complex as the likes of Tim Drake, he still fights with as much guile as muscle.
- Angry
- Jason is an angery boi. While his rage usually drives him to brutality and making sure his enemies don't get back up, it can occasionally cloud his judgement.
Cutthroat: Wei Zhijun (Darker than Black)[]
| “ | Do you know how humiliating it is to be defeated?!
— Wei Zhijun
|
” |
Wei Zhijun is a longtime employee of the Quing Long Tang, serving as the bodyguard and confidante of the crime family's heiress, Alice Wang, during her high school years. After the Gates materialized, he turned into a Contractor, with the Messier Code VI952. He continued to serve the Quing Long Tang, committing assassinations in addition to his bodyguard duties. He assisted Alice in her plans to take over the Quing Long Tang, murdering her father and the top lieutenants of the crime organization. He fights Hei during Alice's birthday party, seemingly winning.
He then betrays Alice, killing her and announcing his intent to take over the crime family himself. Hei, not dead, shows up and non-fatally electrocutes Wei. Embittered by his loss, he joins up with Amber and Evening Primrose due to Hei's opposition to them. While he does fight Hei a couple times as a delaying action, he does not get a true rematch until Amber is nearly finished with her plan. He loses, as she predicted, and he teleports a bigass wall out of Hei's way as he dies.
| “ | What's wrong? The show has just begun.
— Wei Zhijun
|
” |
| “ | Apparently, I'm faster than you are.
— Wei Zhijun
|
” |
- Logical
- Wei, as a contractor, puts attachments and other feelings last when making a decision. The best way to complete the mission is the way he chooses to act. This generally involves copies use of his powers.
- Battle Junkie
- Unlike most other contractors, Wei takes great pleasure in using his powers and testing himself against a strong opponent.
- Arrogant
- Wei thinks very highly of his own abilities, frequently gloating. This came back to bite him in his fight with Hei, where he overlooked a bamboozle.
Black Cat: Y'shtola Rhul (Final Fantasy XIV)[]
| “ | I am... not interested, little sun. Try again when you have become a man.
— Y'shtola Rhul
|
” |
Y'shtola Rhul is a Archon of the Circle of Knowing, and later a member of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn. A brilliant member of the Sharyalan Studium, she was then taken under the wing of the notably eccentric Matoya. She joined Louisoix Leveilleur in heading to Eorzea, and assisted him in stabilizing the land against the Garlean invasions. After the Seventh Umbral Calamity, she joins the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, a successor organization to Louisoix's, where she meets the Warrior of Light.
She assists the Warrior of Light in fighting Primals and stabilizing the realm. After another member of the Scions, Alphinaud, gets sloppy and trusts people he shouldn't, the Scions are framed for the murder of Nanamo ul'Namo, the sultana of Ul'Dah. She and Thancred Waters remain behind to hold off their pursuers, and are then believed dead when Y'sthola uses a forbidden spell, Flow, to escape. They are sent into the Lifestram, the general flow of aether around the planet. While Thancred was booted out at the cost of his ability to use aether, Y'shtola had to be retrieved by the Elementals, at the cost of her eyesight.
After Ilberd summons Shinryu and forces the hand of the Eorzean Alliance in liberating Ala Mhigo, Y'shotla joins the Scions' effort to liberate the city-state that least deserved it. She is severely injured by Zenos yae Galvus, and as such has to spend most of the liberation recovering. Her insight into aether proves invaluable for the reconstruction efforts, however, until she is forcibly pulled into the First.
There, she heads to the Rak'tika Greatwood, where she joins the Night's Blessed, a cult dedicated to restoring the night sky. Taking the name of her mentor, Matoya, she assists them in surviving until she reunites with the Warrior of Light. She then rejoins them on their quest, using her knowledge to help locate and slay the remaining Lightwardens to cleanse the First of the excessive light.
She eventually returns to the Source, where she assists in finding a cure for Tempering and gets involved in the fight against the Telophoroi. She continues assisting the Scions and the Warrior of Light in averting the second coming of the Final Days, and is currently researching travel to other shards to reunite with the Night's Blessed.
| “ | Truth is given shape in interpretation. When we seek to capture it with our words, it is invariably molded to fit a narrative - no matter how well intentioned the rendering.
— Y'Shtola
|
” |
| “ | Even if everything we love is fated to one day fade away, that does not mean we should forsake it.
— Y'shtola
|
” |
Y'shtola's class is "Sorceress," a highly versatile spellcasting class. She can cast spells of each of the six major elements, as well as the powerful unaspected AoE spell Foul. She casts the standard six spells - Stone, Aero, Blizzard, Thunder, Water, and Fire - as well as their upgraded, highly-damaging versions - Stone IV, Tornado, Blizzard IV, Thunder IV, Water IV, and Fire IV. She typically only uses the upgraded versions after casting Foul as a burst phase.
She also retains the use of her prior strong healing spells, allowing her to patch up her allies if need be. She is further capable of summoning water familiars to do simple tasks if given enough time - and privacy - to say the chant.
| “ | Water, water, froth and foam!
— Y'Shtola Rhul
|
” |
- Dedicated
- Should Y'shtola have a mission, she will stop at nothing to see it through. She is willing to stoop to dirty tricks, though this generally is instigated by Thancred. Her unwavering dedication, be it to save the world or her own studies, is nevertheless one of her greatest assets.
- Dignified
- Y'shtola always takes care to remain dignified and commanding, a trait which lends her well to leadership roles. This does crack on occasion with close friends, or if she has to recite any incantations developed during her apprenticeship, but she typically meets any excessive fooling around with sarcasm.
Executioners: Kirika Akatsuki & Shirabe Tsukuyomi (Senki Zesshou Symphogear)[]
| “ | Our hands clasped together… I’ll absolutely never let them go…
— Shirabe Tsukuyomi & Kirika Akatsuki
|
” |
Kirika Akatsuki and Shirabe Tsukuyomi are two orphans taken in by the FIS, an American research agency, as part of their plans to find a host for Finé. After the ancient Babylonian yandere possessed an entirely different person, the children were instead subjected to experiments with the Symphogears created by Finé to find capable wielders. Kirika and Shirabe were found compatible with Igalima and Shul Shagana, Maria Cadenzavna Eve was found compatible with Gungnir, and Serena Cadenzavna Eve was found compatible with Airgetlam.
After the death of Finé's current host, the FIS dissolved to escape government scrutiny for their wildly unethical experiments. Kirika and Shirabe, alongside Maria, joined up with two scientists on the project, Dr. John Wayne Vercingatorix and Nastassja Sergeyevna Tolstaya, to try and halt the moon crashing into Earth. To this end, Maria pretends to be the current incarnation of Fine, and comes into conflict with fellow singer and Symphogear wielder Tsubasa Kazanari and her allies in what would come to be known as S.O.N.G.
After several confrontations, and succeeding in returning the Moon to its proper orbit, Maria, Kirika, and Shirabe are defeated and recruited into S.O.N.G. Kirika and Shirabe act as the two junior members of the team, typically working together on their assignments. Their close bond proves to be their greatest asset, allowing them to match the other, stronger Symphogear users while working in unison. They, alongside the rest of S.O.N.G, prove instrumental in combating Carol and the Illuminati.
| “ | Your actions are illegal under some law whose name I can't remember!
— Kirika Akatsuki
|
” |
Kirika Akatsuki is a war orphan taken in by the FIS as part of their Receptor Children project. There is little information on her life before joining the FIS, as she knows nothing about herself. She was found to be compatible with the Igalima relic, which Finé then used to create a Symphogear for her. After Fine's death and the dissolution of FIS, Kirika fights alongside Maria, Shirabe, and the remnants of the agency to prevent the moon from falling. They are defeated, though the moon is set back on its proper orbit, and join S.O.N.G as part of the UN to mitigate supernatural disasters.
Kirika is highly empathetic and rather brash, frequently acting more quickly than she should. Shirabe and the rest of her friends frequently provide follow-up to bail her out of her mishaps, such as forgetting her LiNKER while leaping out of a helicopter. She also puts a large importance on birthdays, as she doesn't know her own.
Kirika's Symphogear is Igalima, named for one of the children of the Sumerian goddess Zababa. The US Government designated Igalima, along with Airgetlam and Shul Shagana, as weapons of mass destruction to justify their invasion of Iraq, and recovered them from the Iraqi government. The relic was then given to Fine, who used it to create the Symphogear that Kirika uses.
Shul Shagana is generally utilized as a polearm, and its Armed Gear is a massive scythe. This scythe can kill the soul rather than the body, but exactly how this is accomplished is never elaborated on.
| “ | Shul Shagana's blades can cut through anything! No matter the obstacles in our path, they'll make way for a brighter future!
— Shirabe Tsukuyomi
|
” |
Shirabe Tsukuyomi is an orphan taken in by the FIS as part of their Receptor Children project. Not much is known about her life prior to the FIS, and her current name is taken from a shrine charm on her bag. She was found to be compatible with the Shul Shagana relic, which Finé then used to create a Symphogear for her. After Fine's death and the dissolution of FIS, Shirabe fights alongside Maria, Kirika, and the remnants of the agency to prevent the moon from falling. They are defeated, though the moon is set back on its proper orbit, and join S.O.N.G as part of the UN to mitigate supernatural disasters.
Shirabe is fairly logical and level-headed, though is also very passionate about defending those she loves. She has a hard time talking to people, and as such tends to avoid trying to grow closer to anyone other than Krika or Maria. She is slowly growing out of this, as she is able to Unison with Tsubasa and is becoming close friends with Chris.
Kirika's Symphogear is Igalima, named for one of the children of the Sumerian goddess Zababa. The US Government designated Igalima, along with Airgetlam and Shul Shagana, as weapons of mass destruction to justify their invasion of Iraq, and recovered them from the Iraqi government. The relic was then given to Fine, who used it to create the Symphogear that Kirika uses.
Igalima tends to reshape its armor to create buzzsaws, and can additionally launch said buzzsaws from its twintails as projectiles. Shirabe's Armed Gear is a pair of saw yo-yos.
| “ | We may be dependent on LiNKER.
But there's no time limit on our bonds!
— Shirabe Tsukuyomi & Kirika Akatsuki
|
” |
| “ | I'm telling you that I love you!
— Kirika and Shirabe. To each other. In unison. While fighting.
|
” |
| “ | Gatrandis babel ziggurat edenal
Emustolronzen Finé el balal zizzl — Swan Song lyrics
|
” |
| “ | We are one, my twin heart
— Shirabe Tsukuyomi & Kirika Akatsuki
|
” |
As Symphogear users, both Kirika and Shirabe are capable of entering a boosted state known as X-Drive. This greatly increases their powers, but requires a similarly powerful source of Phonic Gain to initiate. It requires so much power that simply activating X-Drive once is comparable to a miracle. She appears to be capable of unassisted flight, in addition to the general power boost.
| “ | The two of us are one
— Shirabe Tsukuyomi & Kirika Akatsuki
|
” |
- Inseperable
- Kirika and Shirabe nearly always work together. Their relics form a pair, and are uniquely capable of combining to form unique structures, like beyblades. While they are capable fighters alone, they truly shine as combatants when fighting alongside each other. They further put the others' safety first, which causes the occasional argument.
- Nonlethal
- The pair tries to avoid killing human foes when possible. They are extremely aware of the massive bodily harm their Symphogears can cause, and thus tend to hold back unless forced.
Notes[]
The Akudama have to steal a briefcase from a vault inside a bank, and the Executioners must stop them. Akudama win by being the one to deliver the briefcase to the drop-off point. Executioners win by foiling the heist by incapaitating (1 minute) or killing all the Akudama, and either protecting the briefcase or retrieving it. The drop-off point will only be accessible when there's a single Akudama left. They will not know this initially, but it will be communicated to them once the retrieve the briefcase.
Both Kirika and Shirabe need to die for the Executioners to be eliminated.
I'm not providing a blueprint this time, but here's a list of obstacles other than the Executioners that the Akudama will face:
- Human Guards. Armed with a mix of electric batons and pistols.
- Automated Security, including:
- Infrared laser grids
- Security cameras
- Electronic gates
- The vault door, which has both electronic and physical components to the lock
Possible placements are as follows:
The initial heist is foiled:
1st place: Kirika & Shirabe
2nd - 9th place: The other Akudama, in order of losing
The Akudama retrieve the briefcase, but Kirika & Shirabe prevent them from reaching the drop point:
1st place: Kirika & Shirabe
2nd - 9th place: The other Akudama, in order of losing
Kirika and Shirabe die in the initial heist, 9S and Red Hood survive, Red Hood can access the drop point:
1st: Red Hood
2nd: 9S
3rd: Kirika & Shirabe
4th - 9th place: The other Akudama, in order of losing
Three Akudama are elimiated in the initial heist, Kirika and Shirabe survive, but Red Hood reaches the drop point:
1st place: Red Hood
2nd - 5th place: The Akudama who survived the heist, in order of losing
6th place: Kirika & Shirabe
7th - 9th place: The other Akudama, in order of losing
Three Akudama are elimiated in the initial heist, Kirika and Shirabe die during the fight for the drop point, and Red Hood reaches the drop point:
1st place: Red Hood
2nd - 5th place: The Akudama who survived the heist, in order of losing
6th place: Kirika & Shirabe
=
- Wayne: As of Shadows of Self
- Gene Starwind: Just prior to entering the Galactic Leyline
- Sveta: Just prior to the firing of the Apollo Lens
- Mordin Solus: During the events of Mass Effect 2
- 9S: During the events of Nier Automata, Route B
- Red Hood: During Under The Red Hood (comic)
- Wei Zhijun: Just before his death
- Y'shtola: As of Final Fantasy XIV Patch 6.1
- Kirika Akatsuki & Shirabe Tsukuyomi: Anime only canon, between AXZ and XV
- I will be counting votes by giving each warrior a score based on their placement. Their total score will determine their final rankings.
- Please give at least two sentences on why you think the warrior will rank where they do.
- Changing or making placements specifically to harm a specific warrior is constructing scenarios
- Evaluating the warriors used based on a different canon or different point in their timeline as given is constructing scenarios
- Counter-arguments can restore the half point
- Contact me via Discord if you think I made a mistake with vote counts
Battle[]
Ch. 1: And My Hat[]
Two guards stand outside a large bank building, trying not to shiver in the midwinter cold. A third strolls up, holding a cane and sipping from a steaming paper cup. He lifts a grey cardboard cup holder, which contains two more of the same.
“Howdy, gents. Thought you might like a sip,” he says, and the two guards take the drinks gratefully, “Not sure what kind of nutter would break in on such a cold day, though.”
“You got that right,” one of the guards replies, “Even ignoring the weather, our vault is impregnable. Wait, what’s that van doing?”
As the guard noticed, a black van throws its doors open, launching smoke at the trio. The guard is shot in the head, and as the other turns to look, he instead sees that time has frozen. He gawks as his friend’s blood and brains hang in the air, along with a cluster of other bullets to make sure he’s dead.
“And that, my man, is called dramatic irony,” the third man says, slamming his cane into the back of the guard’s knee. He collapses, only for the cane to slam into the side of his head, causing him to fall over, blood pooling at his assailant’s feet. Wayne doffs his hat, throwing it into the air as he lets his time bubble drop. Two muscular splashes of red spill out of the van, one masked with an assault rifle, firing at the security cameras; the other, red quickly revealed to be hair, tosses Wayne his usual hat and second cane as the alarms finally start to blare and an electronic gate crashes down.
A white circle forms atop it as it falls, and it halts. 9S steps out of the van, gesturing at the gate as it obeys his command and opens. A blade flashes behind him as Wei slices his wrist, flinging his blood at the door. As the other members of the heist team filter out, he snaps dramatically, causing large sections of the door to vanish and the structure to crumble.
Mordin combusts several of the guards waiting behind the door as Gene and Red Hood fire into them, cutting down the resistance. Sveta leaps in, slamming into the coordinator of the guards with her Psynergy.
“Stay down!” she yells, and the civilians within the front areas of the bank comply. A fireball streaks past her, setting another guard on fire.
“Let’s hurry,” Y’Shtola says, “We only have a few minutes before their backup arrives.”
Wei strides to the front of the advancing team, throwing a splatter of his blood in front of him, hitting another door and a couple guards. They scream as he snaps, bits of their flesh abruptly no longer there as the door collapses in another cloud of dust. The fine powder illuminates the lasers behind, glinting red as Wei stops. 9S slides forward, sticking out his hand as he hacks into the lasers.
The emitters combust in sequence as 9S forces them to overheat, leaving the net clear. Gene, Jason, and Mordin sprint in, guns blazing to suppress the guards. Sveta glows as several vines grow out of the ground, denying the guards cover. The hail of bullets finishes them off, clearing the corridor.
“Nice job,” Gene says, patting her on the head as the group spills into the now-empty corridor.
“Yes, remind me to call you when I want to wreck Bruce’s peonies,” Jason mutters, giving the massive holes in the floor an appreciative look.
“Well, if we’ve finished embarrassing the poor girl,” Y’shtola says, peeling Gene’s hand away from the blushing princess, “Let’s get moving.”
“Yeah, yeah, we don’t have time,” 9S says.
“Don’t think I can’t tell you’re rolling your eyes under that blindfold.”
“All right, ma’am,” 9S says, “There’s an elevator down the hall…”
“No,” Wei interjects, “They’ll cut the power the instant they think we’re inside.”
“We take the stairs, then,” Jason says.
“Each set only goes between two stories,” 9S says, “It’ll take some time, but…”
“But it’s better than being trapped in a metal coffin. I agree,” Y’Shtola says, “So let’s get finding it. Where’s Wayne?”
“Said he ‘had an idea’ and then vanished,” Gene says, “Let’s leave him.”
“All right, you lot,” a blowhard in a tall hat belts out at the less-than-pristine corps of guardsmen in front of him, “We’ve got intruders in this bank…”
Wayne rolls his eyes in the back as he palms a sheet with several names on it. This was a floor down from his co-conspirators, so it was probably important. As the guard drones on about protecting other peoples’ stuff, he swaps it for an empty flask. A fair trade; that flask was valuable to him. He looks around as the man continues droning on about how the vault would only open if he or an executive states their name as a password, before one of the other guards pipes up.
“Sir, if they can’t get in, can’t we just leave it to our backup?”
“Leave it to the two Executioners?” the man asks, incredulous, and goes on a spiel about stolen glory as Wayne simply processes the name, realizing he had to get to the others, fast. He looks at the flask he had just set down and flings it into the air as he creates a small bendalloy bubble, opening the door and slipping out while the guards were distracted by the flying piece of metal.
He swaps his hat out, creating another small bubble as a guard sees him and runs around the corner, appearing as a blur. The bubble pops as he leaves it, sprinting down a corridor and around another corner before halting, putting his hands up as he stares down the barrel of a gun.
“It’s me, Hood,” he says, “Your ol’ buddy Wayne.”
Jason puts the gun down, clearly still tense under the mask. Wayne started to reach for his flask, to offer the tense man a drink, before remembering he’d traded it for the sheet of names.
“So, that idea pan out?” Gene asks.
“Sorta,” Wayne says, “Got a lead on opening the safe, but the guard captain down that way said something about ‘Executioners’ coming in to hunt us down, and I thought I’d let you guys know.”
“I hear… music from above?” Y’shotla says, ears twitching, “Two girls.”
“He did mention a pair and something about singing.”
“I’ll stay back,” Wei says, face contorting into a vicious grin, “If they think they can stop us with just two…”
“I’ll stay back, too,” Sveta says, “We can each take one on.”
“All right, then,” Y’shtola says, “If you promise you won’t die.”
“Of course not,” Wei scoffs, and Sveta gives a small nod.
Mordin steps forward, only to get held back by Jason, who shakes his head at the Salarian. Mordin holds up a hand, brushing Jason off and walking up to Sveta, giving her a few plastic bags.
“Medi-gel,” he explains, “Use if injured. Heals fast.”
“Thank you,” Sveta says, storing the gel packets carefully.
Mordin returns to the group, waving as they sprint down the hallway, looking for the exit to the next floor. Sveta and Wei turn to the stairway as the singing grows closer, enough to make out one energetic voice and one more subdued one. A blonde bounces off a wall and lands as a black-haired girl rolls in beside her.
“Found you, DESS!” Kirika says, pointing her scythe at them.
“Please surrender,” Sirabe continues, holding a pair of yo-yos at the ready.
“Apologies, but we can’t do that,” Sveta says, taking a combat stance. Wei cuts his wrist as a small group of guards bursts through the same corridor Wayne had come through previously. The Contractor contemptuously flicks his wrist at them, snapping as the blood splatters across the men and walls. Their screams are quickly cut off by the collapsing masonry, and the expressions on the three girls’ faces harden.
Kirika strikes the ground as Wei flicks his wrist towards the pair, catching the blood spray on a set of rocks. A snap disintegrates them, making room for a pink yo-yo to fly past, aiming directly at Wei’s face. The Contractor narrowly dodges with a smirk, that quickly turns into a grimace as the projectile curves around. He ducks under it as Kirika leaps in to intercept Sveta, who leans out of the way of the slice.
The yo-yos continue their pursuit, leaving a tangle of pink lines in their wake. Wei raises his arm to throw some blood forward, but has to dodge another swipe. It cuts his arm, but as he attempts to snap the other yo-yo heads straight for his hand. He weaves between a flurry of spinning yo-yos, snarling in frustration.
Sveta launches a flurry of punches at Kirika, which just bounce off her armor. She ducks under a slice and tries to sweep her opponent, only for the Symphogear to jump, not even interrupting her song. Sveta glows as she jumps backwards, landing as she casts Slap. Kirika’s voice cracks in surprise as a giant hand slaps her across the hallway and into the wall. Sveta takes the opportunity to leap in front of Wei, punching the two yo-yos away.
Wei slips around her, throwing blood at Shirabe with a grin. He snaps as the blood flying, and it starts to glow as Shirabe creates a massive buzz saw in front of her. She spins it rapidly, creating a gale strong enough to blow the blood backwards, so that it splatters on the contractor. He hurriedly cuts off his ability as a roar sounds from Kirika, who activates the jets on the back of her Symphogear. She rockets past Wei, cleanly chopping him in half.
Sveta ducks under Kirika’s follow-up slash, changing into Beastform. The bestial warrior charges at the blonde, grabbing her and throwing her away. She spins and leaps at Shirabe, slamming into her sawblade shield. She bounces off and lands lightly, dashing forward to strike again. She unleashes several haymakers and kicks, striking the shield until it bends and starts to crack. She feels a wind behind her and jumps over the scythe that threatened to cut her in half.
Sveta flips in midair and kicks off of Shirabe’s shield, flying towards Kirika. Her leap is stopped by a pair of yo-yos which spin around her, wrapping her in a pink wire. Shrabe twists, slamming her trapped for against the wall. The yo-yos spin, tightening as Sveta’s Beastform transformation runs out, and Shirabe slams the weakened girl against the wall again, knocking her unconscious.
Kirika and Shirabe look at each other and nod, leaving the corpse and unconscious body behind as they pursue the rest of the heist team.
Ch. 2: Not a Four-Part 9S Sex Scene (Sorry, Laq)[]
“So why’d you give her the gel?” Gene asks, shooting a guard in the face.
“Tired of seeing good people die,” Mordin replies, shooting another.
“Explains why you didn’t give it to Wei. Or the rest of us,” Gene says, seeing a shimmering in the air fade as Wayne slides across the floor. He pops a shot off at one of the two guards the man was fighting, hitting him in the head as Wayne heals the broken bone. The other guard steps around him as the con artist stands and puts up another bubble of dilated time. A split second of blur later and the bubble falls, the guard on the floor and bleeding.
“I planned that,” Wayne says, “Thanks for playin’ along.”
Gene’s response it drowned out by an explosion in a side corridor as Y’shtola annihilates a group of guardsman. She glances at 9S, who throws his sword at another pair advancing towards the mage. He throws his hand forward as the spinning blade cuts through them, a white circle appearing in the air behind them. Two slabs of steel shoot through the walls, crushing an unfortunate foe between them, and let out a metallic screech before fizzling and sparking.
“Good, that should hold them for a while,” Y’shtola says, looking uncomfortable as she wipes the splattered blood off her face, “How’s that explosion coming along, Jason?”
“Almost there,” Red Hood says, putting another brick of C4 into a fist-sized hole, courtesy of Gene’s Caster, “Would be nice if Nines could do this for me, though.”
“Not with how it’s set up,” 9S says, “It looks like there’s separate controls all over the floor, and that…”
“Would take too much time, as you and madam cat-ears keep saying,” Jason grumbles, “Well, this should do it.”
He steps back, a small cylinder in his hand. He presses the button on top, and the remaining members of the heist team cover their ears as the explosives rip through the wall. As the silence returns, Y’Shtola tilts her head, listening to something. The rest of the party gasp in surprise – some few coughing from the dust – as they hear the same thing. The singing from before was growing.
9S sticks his hand out behind him as the others rush through the hole, dropping the dozen or so steel shutters he had raised as they made their way here. As the muffled screech of rending metal reaches his ears, he follows the group into the breach.
He looks around, not seeing the others in the metallic corridors ahead of him. He chooses one of the three corridors at random, expanding his senses slightly to see if there were any electronic traps around. Feeling one, he exerts his will slightly at it, feeling it give way quickly. Several panels in the wall sputter and smoke, the guns within now inoperable.
A smirk spreads across his face as he walks forward, sections of wall sparking and smoking as he approaches. At this rate, he might even beat his co-conspirators to the vault. The smirk doesn’t drop as a hidden door opens, and a small cadre of guards, all wearing night-vision goggles, stream out into the corridor. He tosses Cruel Oath, the blade spinning as it chops one in half.
He catches it as it comes back, his Pod firing at another guard while he slashes a third in half. He sees the fear in a fourth’s as he swiftly hacks and overloads the optics, blinding his foe to make time for a stab. The ceiling opens above him, and a mass of robots drop directly on him, finally surprising the android.
Pinned under the mass, 9S grits his teeth. There were far too many to hack, and he could hear boots running down the side corridor. He sighs in resignation, setting off his self-destruct protocols. A massive explosion surrounds him, shredding his shorts, crushing the robots, and causing the flesh-and-blood guards to collapse as their lungs tear and fill with their own blood.
9S pulls himself up, limping to the end of the corridor. He stops when he hears a click, grimacing as he realizes he triggered a mechanical trap. Several banks of green plastic flip up around him and burst, releasing a wave of electricity into his circuits. Injured as he is, he barely has time to scream before he falls, fizzling and smoking like the traps he had disarmed.
“Did anyone else just hear…”
“Yes, and we can’t help him,” Y’shtola says, firing off a spell at some guards, “We don’t even know where he is.”
“True. Guess there’s no point in waiting at the end, then,” Red Hood says, firing his rifle at a gun barrel popping out of the wall. It shatters, the mechanism behind it whirring futilely until Mordin freezes it in place. The gear shudder as they walk past, startling Gene.
“Geeze, it’s been nothing but a big fight since we started,” he grumbles, “I’m bushed.”
“Well, what did you expect?” Red Hood asks, mask hiding his own exhaustion.
“Anything other than assaulting a defended position head-on. Heard those can lead to killing planets. Perhaps something like tunneling underground? Maybe using the kickass spaceship I have to physically haul the vault out?”
“Tried that with STG,” Mordin says, “Vault infested with Varren.”
“With what?” Wayne asks.
“Like dogs with scales. And tusks. Bred for war.”
“Oh. That probably turned out bad,” Gene says.
“Yes, very vicious. Sick of meat after a few days.”
“Shh,” Jason says, sticking out his hand. The conversation quiets, allowing the rest of the group to pick up what his helmet already had: the sound of singing. Y’shtola gasps, turning and slamming her staff into the ground. A flurry of buzz saw blades slam against it, the light fading and fizzling out as the last one slips through, slicing into her shoulder.
Mordin activates his omni-tool, spraying the cut with medi-gel as the catgirl charges up some magic, raising her staff to the ceiling. A bolt of light flies out from it, and a portion of the ceiling collapses, burying the next volley of sawblades. She prepares the same spell, but as she casts a sawblade slices through her hand, throwing off her aim.
“Run!” she yells, and the remaining members of the heist crew do so as the ceiling falls again, burying her and the corridor in a mountain of rubble. Wayne and Gene look back regretfully, but continue onwards with Jason and Mordin.
The four of them quickly come to a large gate with a small security panel. Jason reaches into his coat for some more explosives, when Mordin holds his hand up.
“Faster to do this,” he says, activating his omni-tool and tapping furiously. In a few seconds, the panel beeps and turns green.
“Passcode accepted. Please state your name,” a computerized voice says. Wayne steps up, as everyone else looks at him expectantly. He clears his throat before speaking.
“I am Emmerson Valentine Eòghann Harris Barton,” he says, imitating the blend of posh British and guttural Gaelic accents he had heard back a few minutes ago.
“Acknowledged,” the computerized voice says, “Please be advised that there is an ongoing break-in. Take care.”
The door opens as Wayne poses dramatically, sporting a smug grin. Gene and Jason clap sarcastically as they walk through, Mordin trailing behind.
Ch. 3: Joke’s Done, No More Chapter Titles[]
“She’s dead, isn’t she?” Kirika asks, looking at the massive pile of rubble, “Like the man with elf ears.”
“You saw what these people did, Kiri-chan,” Shirabe says, clenching her fist, “And they’re not even being driven by an ideal, or being manipulated.”
“Still, I wonder if we could talk them down.”
“Hibiki probably could. But she’s not here now,” Shirabe says, “If it bothers you, I can knock them out like I did with the werewolf girl up above.”
“But then I’m not doing much.”
“You protect me, Kiri-chan,” Shirabe says, holding the other girl’s hand, “I can’t do my role if you don’t keep me safe.”
“All right,” Kirika says, smiling, “Let’s go, DESS! … I wonder if I can turn Igalima into a shovel.”
“There’s a side passage that way,” Shirabe says, pointing towards a door.
“Right,” Kirika says, and pulls the other girl forward. A whirring sound from Shirabe’s skates accompanies the slightly subdued singing; it seems to have given them away previously. They make their way through the hallway filled with destroyed traps, moving with increasing apprehension until they see a massive pile of destroyed drones. Their expressions turn grim as they see the bloodied corpses of guards crushed under the metal, as well as the two that had clearly died in agony a short distance away.
The pair continue on until they see 9S, lying face down without shorts.
“Pervert,” Shirabe mutters, readying her yo-yos as Kirika stretches out with her scythe, prodding the unmoving figure a few times. She squints as he continues to be unresponsive, spotting the mass of wires spreading from his body. She points this out to Shirabe, who nods. Kirika then walks forward, kneeling down and putting her fingers to the throat of the still motionless android.
“No pulse.”
The four surviving heist crewmen walk through a chromed corridor, its size and shininess disorienting them slightly. Red Hood whistles in appreciation as they near the massive, similarly reflective vault door. Gene wastes no time, drawing his Caster and loading a shell. He aims it as it whirrs and glows, setting the door in his sights. He then pulls the trigger, firing out a torso-sized beam of light. The four scatter as the reflective surface scatters the laser, bouncing it through the room.
“Maybe try something less likely to kill us,” Wayne mutters, “I can’t heal from that.”
“Wait, I hear…” Jason says.
“Shit.”
Kirika and Shirabe burst into the scene, continuing their duet. Shirabe throws a pair of yo-yos, one at Mordin and the other at Wayne. The first hits its mark, wrapping around the scientist Salarian. Wayne throws up a bendalloy bubble, changing the trajectory of the second as it enters. Shirabe lets it go as it veers off-course, instead spinning and slamming Mordin into the ceiling hard enough to knock him out.
“Give me time,” Gene yells.
Wayne puts up a bubble and looks at the field, events folding in slow motion. Gene was too far to reach easily, and Jason’s rifle bullets move through the air towards the black-haired girl. Leaving the other two to their tasks, he turns and sprints towards the blonde. He chains bubbles as he heads towards her, briefly considering that he probably could have done just this to get to Gene’s side.
He dismisses the thought as he catches up to her, deploying another bubble as he swings his dueling canes, well inside the range where she could move the long polearm. Kirika simply flips the grip of her hand, twisting as another scythe head sprouts from the end of the staff. In an instant, she now has a pair of scythes, ready to intercept the canes.
She hooks and traps the weapons, a quick pull slicing straight through them. A swift kick breaks Wayne’s kneecap, sending him tumbling to the ground as he taps into the gold bracers under his coat, rapidly healing as he rolls. He rises, punching at his foe’s unprotected abdomen, only for his fists to meet the flat part of a scythe. He grits his teeth as he feels the bones in his hand shatter and heal, pulling it back as the girl readies herself. He uses the same hand to poke at her eyes, forcing the unprepared Kirika to dodge out of the way.
She jumps back and puts her foot on his chest, shoving him back with enough force to break his sternum. Wayne takes a deep breath as his bones knit themselves back together, vision flickering from the pain. He braces himself as his foe charges in, scythes at the side, and blocks them with his gold bracers. The metal would usually be too soft to help much, but the attack was clearly a feint. The scythes touch the metal, and his healing suddenly halted. He gasps as the pain returns full force, collapsing and blacking out as the fall does even more damage.
The bubble collapses, and Kirika sees Gene holding his Caster, an ominous purple-black aura surrounding it. He pulls the trigger, sending a small black orb towards the safe door. It quickly makes contact, and all four combatants cringe as the sound of metal shearing tears through the room. The miniature black hole dissipates as the vault lays bare, its contents ripe for the taking.
Ch. 4[]
Gene whips around and draws one of his pistols, firing several rounds as the Symphogears’ feet. The sticky paint rounds spread and adhere their feet to the ground, and they fall. Jason fires a burst from his assault rifle at the pair, only for Shirabe to block the bullets with a buzzsaw shield.
“Leave them,” Gene says, “They’re not moving for a while.”
Jason shrugs, tossing aside the now-emptied rifle as the pair strides into the vault. Gene picks up the briefcase, looking at the loot appreciatively.
“Shame the rest couldn’t make it,” Gene says, taking it in one hand under his yellow cloak.
“Yeah,” Jason says, looking at the broken figures of Wayne and Mordin just outside the hall, “Guess we can use the dead guys’ shares to post bail for the others.”
The two freeze in place, locking eyes.
“We’re friends, right?” Gene asks.
“Yep,” Jason says, drawing his SMG and firing. Gene ducks under the spray and runs in a zigzag pattern out the vault door, keeping low and erratic as he crosses the corridor. Jason runs after him, firing his grappling pistol at the ceiling of the corridor. It anchors and zips him up and over Kirika and Shirabe, still trapped, when a flicker causes him to look harder at Gene. The space pirate had turned, pointing a shotgun at him as he flew.
Jason yanks the line, transitioning into a flip as the added momentum throws off his trajectory. The blast misses, and he lands on his feet. He sprints after his former ally, firing to disrupt the other man’s strategies. Gene continues moving erratically, throwing off Jason’s aim as his cloak spreads to obscure his body. One end of it flutters up, revealing a glowing Caster.
Jason throws himself into a roll, narrowly dodging the giant red laser. The maneuver lets Gene get ahead, and Red Hood scrambles to catch up. He turns into a side corridor, vaulting over the corpse of 9S as he fires at his quarry. His boots slam on the metal floor as he sprints down the hallway while Gene rounds the corner at its exit.
He crosses it in the span of a reload, cocking the SMG as he whips through the tight series of corridors, finally catching sight of Gene in a straight stretch. A spray forces the pirate to duck before Jason fires his backup grappling pistol over Gene’s head. The hook latches to the end of the hallway and the motor within the gun whirs, pulling Jason through the air as he lays down suppressive fire.
He spins as he passes Gene, landing a bit in front of his foe. He takes aim, but the pirate lifts the briefcase in front of him. As Jason hesitates, Gene tears off his cloak, tossing it over the briefcase and then throwing them both at his foe. Jason draws his kris and fires through the cloak on one side of the container while stabbing across the other.
The bullets rip through air as the knife collides with something hard, and his options cut off as the cloak covers his head. He feels a blade sink into his throat and collapses, the yellow fabric rapidly turning into a funeral shroud. Gene turns off his light shield as the blade slips away, grabbing the briefcase and leaving his dying foe behind.
He sprints through the bank, loading his Caster as he speeds out the front door and towards the police blockade. He fires, the magic this time taking the form of a barrage of red bullets. The hail of magic explodes, scattering the officers and demolishing their cars. He leaps into the still-running van, slamming it into gear and stomping on the gas pedal.
As he makes his getaway, he opens a small communicator, patching him to his ship, still docked in the planet’s spaceport.
“Hey, Jim, change of plans. Get the Outlaw Star ready to fly,” he says, “I’m going to shake them off then head to you.”
He chuckles as his partner squawks in indignation, nodding his head to the beat of a soft tune, the music gradually growling louder. Suddenly realizing that the van doesn’t have a radio, he looks in his rear mirror to spot Kirika and Shirabe on his tail, riding some sort of green, black, and pink wheeled rocket sled.
“Change of plans from that; take off and come get me. I’m in a…” Gene cuts off as Kirika levels her scythe at him, while Shirabe attaches one of her sawblades to it. He ducks as they launch the projectile, which shears the top of the car off.
“Okay, you’ll be able to see me,” he says over his friend’s cries of alarm, “I’m counting on you, partner.”
He closes the comm before the rest of the crew – especially Melfina – could ask him what the fuck he’s doing and swerves across the miraculously empty road to dodge a volley of buzz saws. He loads a random shell into his Caster and fires behind him, only for the girls to swerve around it. His jaw drops as he looks in the surviving side mirror to see Kirika brandishing a building-sized scythe.
He swerves again, narrowly dodging the attack and staying grounded on the road. Shirabe, however, steers their construct to the broken ground, using the rubble as a ramp. The jets on the bottom of the sled light up in the air, sending them sailing over Gene’s head. They turn as they land, Kirika holding her scythe forward, the head transformed into a scissor-like shape.
Gene grins as she opens it, a louder and more familiar engine drowning out the pair’s song. The red body of the Outlaw Star catches up to him, and the ship’s grappler arms latch on to the sides of the convertible. They lift him up, buzzing the younger girls as the ship pulls up into the atmosphere, depositing Gene in cargo bay.
“We can’t chase that, can we?” Shirabe mutters, grimacing as Kirika shouts incoherently at the escaping vehicle.
Expert’s Opinion[]
- 9th Place, Wei Zhijun, 8 points
- Wei was one of the stronger fighters, but his battle junkie nature means that he’s likely to seek out the Executioners instead of avoiding him. Much like Brawler in the show, his love of a good scrap gets him killed first.
- 8th Place, Sveta, 28 points
- Much like Wei, Sveta is a strong fighter who nevertheless has personality issues. In this case, she’s simply too good a person to get much farther; she was too likely to volunteer for a delaying action against Kirika and Shirabe.
- 6th Place, Y'shtola Rhul & 9S, 31 points
- Y’Shtola is a formidable asset to the team thanks to her natural charisma and leadership skills. Once combat breaks out, however, her usefulness is lessened. She’s capable of dealing great damage, but the cast time of her spells harmed her.
- Laq’s Husband was similarly useful to the team thanks to his hacking abilities, and should have been one of the central players in breeching the vault. Unfortunately, his innate curiosity got the better of him during the sim, leading to him getting separated. Most of the votes have him surviving the heist, but that’s not how placements actually worked out; his overall firepower was also fairly lacking.
- 5th Place, Mordin Solus, 41 points
- Mordin is similar to 9S in that he had useful skills to the team, especially in hacking. However, his firepower isn’t quite enough to survive when the party dwindles.
- 4th Place, Wayne, 49 points
- Wayne is perfectly suited for the infiltration phase, which he was instrumental in completing. However, once the battlefield got more cramped and other, more obvious targets dwindled, his abilities are nowhere near what’s needed to fight against either Kirika or Shirabe one-on-one.
- 3rd Place, Kirika Akatsuki & Shirabe Tsukuyomi, 52 points
- And finally, the Executioners place third. They have more than enough raw ability and durability to survive all the way through, but their combined efforts were delayed enough by the rest of the team for the heist to complete. And, since that’s their losing condition, they’re third.
Should have won, though. - 2nd Place, Red Hood, 61 points
- Jason hits his trauma button by being eternally second-best. He’s highly skilled and very competent, allowing him to survive the heist phase where most of the team fell, but he’s not quite good enough to get first.
- 1st Place, Gene Starwind, 62 points
- Gene Starwind was the winner of this match, thanks to his blend of experience, firepower, and the sound judgement to just fucking run sometimes. Nothing much else to say here other than a recommendation to watch Outlaw Star because it’s great.
Skippable DFederal Epilogue[]
Tybalt ambles through a lobby, making his way to the monthly User meeting. He was late, but the actual contents of the meeting weren’t anything to worry about. Cfp was presenting a category update, which would then probably have Appel poke at it, which would then devolve into a shouting match about ‘North Belgians’ and ‘Orange Cows’ for a few minutes before Laqqy swooped in to mediate.
Idly wondering why anyone listened to Cfp after the man got his cheeks clapped by empty air, he glances at the record of housing changes. Nine of them, made by █▛▋▇▟▋. He passes by the board and walks into the room, which was abuzz. With Appel nowhere to be found, the display at the back showed overwhelming support for Cfp’s measure. The user himself, grinning in triumph, takes a seat.
Only one other had recorded opposition, and Tybalt added his name to the list out of spite; Cfp had been getting a little egotistical lately. The buzz in the room grows louder, everyone focusing on the empty podium, before going quiet. The silence continued as everyone in the room stared at the empty podium; some nodded, a few rolled their eyes, some laughed, and Cfp’s triumphant smile slides off his face.
As they started at and reacted to the empty spot, the display behind it began to change. Once large, the number next to the green plus sign shrunk. First slowly, then rapidly as the red minus sign’s number grew apace. Eventually, there was only a single supporter of the motion, presumably Cfp himself. The man sighs in resignation, massaging his temples.
With the motion rejected, the tension in the room breaks. As the Users get up to take a break before talking about slightly more important stuff, Tybalt makes his way to his usual group, or at least most of it.
“Hey Laqqy & Cfp,” he says, waving.
“’Sup ho,” the admin replies, waving back, “You’re later than Skully.”
“Figured the usual category argument would be worth a miss.”
“Thought I could get it through with Appel gone,” Cfp grouses.
“Yeah, but… Hm? Where is he?” Laq says, breaking off and talking to the air between him and Tybalt, “Appel’s still sulking in his room.”
Laq falls silent for a few seconds.
“No, no, don’t do that,” he says, “Seriously, you’ll just make it worse.”
He falls silent again, shrugging at the air before turning back to Cfp.
“Anyway, it’s like █▛▋ said. You need a better idea of your scope.”
“I know, I know,” Cfp says, breaking off and staring at the same patch of space Laq had been talking to.
“Shit, █▛▋, you’re right. I could have used Cole and Delsin. That would at least have given me fifteen, with Evil Cole.”
Cfp sighs and facepalms, glancing to the side as a knock is heard at the door. He moves away, opening it to find a white-haired, red-garbed warrior waiting to talk to him. The User waves in apology before stepping out, and the small group disperses.