4679/The Easy Way To Meguca

The Easy Way To Meguca
Date of Scene:	15 October 2016
Location:	Great Ocean - Vast Gulf
Synopsis:	A raid on a magical research facility turns into a pilot for a new anime! STAR GUARDIAN! TRANSFORM!
Cast of Characters:	39, 1041, Sanary Rondel, 627, 824

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Jinx (39) has posed:
    The target was a bleak, imposing fortress stuck in a bend in a river near the sleepy village of Heimstadt in some alternate universe of Prussia, an old castle still retaining the pomp and grandeur it had while hosting the local Prince of the city state. Now privately owned, the group running the place still hasn't left it idle. The Magischeforschungcenter or MFC was a low rumble of activity.
    The gates stood open for now, a slow trickle of workers moving gear in and out of one of the drawbridges. No overt security at the place, though the guards on the wall are set in some very well managed observational patterns... and they aren't moving, at all. Not even a little.

    Jinx huffs and puffs and grumps a bit in a stand of trees across the river from the castle, on the back side away from the town. A set of trees is obscuring her from regular vision, but she's got no way of telling if she's being scryed on or anything. "I think is is as good as we're gonna get. They're supplying up, and I think that's just another half hour or so that they're open."

    The plans had been laid out for the group at large. "Okay, so. The thing I'm after is in that Wizard Bunker. The castle is mostly just a front for the stuff they've got going on inside. Golems, multiple walls, wizard traps, that sort of thing. Security isn't very visible cause they don't want to tip the locals off cause torches and pitchforks are still a thing in the region."

    A look to the others, and Jinx beams. "And it's nice to have a team behind me for once~"

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
The creature sent by Alice this time is a tall, musclebound figure. Seven feet tall, skin covered in a thick armour of what looks like scale-mail made out of fingernails. Bone coverings protect his head with only mouth and single, central eye peeking out from behind that organic helmet. That's not the most interesting thing about this cyclopean fellow, however.

The most interesting thing is that his massive arms don't end in hands. Where normally the hands would be, feet-wide beams of flesh and bone stick out, both those beams are a total of four feet long, and on both sides end in what appear to be giant hooves. It lumbers up to Jinx and asks, "Where smash?"

Sanary Rondel has posed:
"Got a couple of ways we can do it, then..." Sanary comments as she lowers a pocket telescope from her eye, having observed the castle below Jinx from the base of the tree. She's dressed in a fuzzy white and blue set of 'armor' today, apparently opting for something with a little more mobility than her usual sieging fare. The healer's still carrying her usual giant gunaxe and an ornate oval shield, of course, but she does look like she's ready to move at a moment's notice.

     "Sneakin' in's one way. But... Uh." She looks back and forth a few times, notably at Jinx, their giant cyclopsy companion, and even gesturing at herself. "... Yeah. Could try and get 'em to surrender the thing. Or... Plan C, we smash the place."

     A glance at her shield, and then Sanary grins at Jinx in return. "Plan C sound good? Should be easier with this kinda team, huh?"

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Where Smash, huh? Jinx's thoughtful eyes spot... well. There's a 'seam' of sorts, a straighter line in the closest wall, where a drawbridge might have been in one point in time. "What do you suppose they sealed that up for, then?" She taps her lips, and looks to the BigGuy, pointing. "Go smash. Get their attention please~" Somehow, she doesn't think Miss Rozenbach will be... too worried about not getting her creation back in one piece.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Sanary gets a smile, and a bump of hips. Nice having friends, yes. She huff puffs, and fiddle with her guns, Pow Pow's barrels spinning slowly with anticipation. "Once he gets doing his thing, we'll move in, k?"

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji is present. It's been a while since he's attended to things outside his homeworld, and Jinx, well..

It's Jinx. He seems more inclined than usual to assist the little maniac.

He stands quietly amongst them and considers the initial defenses. He nods. "At this point, short of a sniper removing the roof observers and entering from above, a frontal assault is as good a choice as any. We will need to move with speed in order to breach the front gates before they can be locked."

He looks to the others, nodding. Seems like he agrees with the current... plan.

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
And thus, the cyclopean fellow lumbers towards the seam, picking up the pace a little as he gets closer, one arm moving forward and the other backwards, and when he gets close enough he twists his upper body, throws the arm that was behind forward and the other arm backwards as a counter-weight. "Someone smash!" Those things are heavy and quite clearly prove that this fellow is a living siege engine. Should it not be enough, Someone follows it up by twisting his upper body the other way and smashing with his other arm, at roughly the same spot.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Souji... well. Souji's words get a smile out of Jinx, as does his presence. Latent crush still there, folks. That hasn't changed.
    Though as Someone moves in to start smashing, the 'roof observers' shift and turn and... they seem to be golems themselves, or at least automatons. They turn as one, orienting on the lumbering Flash Beast, and start to fire conventional rifles at the Thing, peppering it with bullets that smack into it with heavy, earthy thawcks.

    And now we're going. Jinx hisses out a breath, her red eyes glowing... and she smiles, very Excited. "COME ON, BOYS." Her legs limber out, and she charges down the embankment, skidding parts of the way on Fishbones as a sled. The open gates are now a flurry of activity, well dressed men and people in armor clamoring for some sort of information, as more of those roof golems move to fire on Someone.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji moves after the others, channelling magical power. Having his own magical abilities might be an advantage in this case, though they are fairly... straightforward.

There is a flash of light, and Souji holds out his hand. "Haste-2." He states.

Time warps around the assault team, orange glows rolling around their form as as a clock appears, spinning up faster around them and their action accelerate dramatically.

Souji then bolts forward, streaking across the open area in an effort to blitz the gates before they can be shut to the assault team.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
It's been a while since Sanary's gone on an outing with Souji, but she's still just as ready to move in step with the heir as the titan begins to move. "I'll take point, then. Er. Behind the big one, anyway." Or Someone, even. At least Sanary's not the only one that's bad at names. Nodding once at Jinx, the healer raises her shield to provide some cover as she charges in behind Someone, aided by Souji's Haste-2 and channels her magic energy outward, 'linking' herself with Someone to provide him with quick regeneration and a heaping helping of raw magic (her own!) to draw from for whatever magic's powering him.

     She's also yelling unintelligibly. Sanary couldn't think of anything witty to shout this time around, so she's quite literally just yelling as loudly as she can while running ahead, trying to draw attention to herself with how loud she is. Hell, maybe it'll even confuse the defenders or... Something. She's not quite sure, but at least she's another target that they'll have to worry about!

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    The odds are, admittedly, not in Fiora's favor. That much is clear as she arrives via a nearby warp gate, and manages to arrive at the facility on horseback. By now, Jinx and her allies are already beginning their attack. She stands in the main courtyard of the fortress' keep, sword and dagger drawn. Oh yes. Definitely outnumbered. Whatever they're after, she can at least slow down their efforts in doing so.

She has no intention of just allowing them to take whatever they've come for, naturally. She narrows her eyes some, as she spots the intruders, moving with considerable speed, towards the shutting gate.

"I will not allow you to proceed any further." She states, raising her sword and pointing it at the first offender to come within reach. "You are unwelcome here. I doubt you will leave of your own accord, but I will not make this easy for you."

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
As bullets dig into Someone's skin, though not as deep as they might, the nail-mail doing a decent job of protecting the living siege engine, black ichor starts to seep out of the wounds, but he keeps smashing, the pace picking up as Souji and Sanary use their magic to aid him. Every smash has a little more power behind it than the last, every smash comes a little faster than the last, as he gets into a rhytm.

He's leaving himself totally open to attacks from side or back, but that's why the others are there, aren't they? At least there's actually nobody at the front to poke Someone's eye out.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Souji's magic... does a fine job of speeding the three human sized attackers into the gates, the armed guards at the entrance moving to pull swords and guns and weapons... but Jinx is faster. She still has to plant her feet to fire properly though, and scream happily as Pow-Pow opens up, spraying down the men with bullets- oh, wait, the Golems, because now all of the 'men' are bleeding quick silver as they're shot, and not falling over as easily as they should be.

    Souji is going to be confronted by a pair of golems, one with an assault rifle and a second carrying a polearm of some sort, looking to bar his path. Sanary gets a pair of men herself, all charging at her with axes and swords.
    Outside, Someone as beaten a hole in the side of the building, the gap widening as he works his way inside. It's not a courtyard on the other side though, but more rooms. Someone's retrofitted the castle to get rid of the open space on this side of the faiclty and add... research. Men in robes and cloaks scurry away from tomes and magical alchemical Stuff, fleeing from the creature that's beating its way into the facility.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Fiora... is now in the center of a frantic scene. There's wizards rushing past her, carrying armfuls of notes and books, golems wandering around trying to keep the peace and protect the researchers... and then a stern looking, heavy built Wizardman find the woman, grunting. "We're thankful for the help, we're unpacking more of the guards as we speak."
    Out in the courtyard though, Jinx cna be heard screaming happily. "HI IN THERE, OMLETTE DU FROMAGE! I'LL BE WITH YOU IN A JIFFY!"

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    "As many as you can manage, though I'm not sure how much help they might be, against this lot." Fiora replies with a sigh. The grating sound of Jinx's loud voice causes her to sneer a bit, but she stays where she is. If they get this far, she'll defend this location. That's about all she can do, given the advantage of numbers that Jinx has, at the moment. "She's playing this smartly. That's.. concerning."

Sanary Rondel has posed:
As expected, there's the defenders! "Was wonderin' when one of you'd show up...!" Sanary shouts as she keeps barreling straight for the duo coming towards her, her gunaxe crackling with electricity as she injects magic into the Bolt shell contained inside. As she charges, however, her gaze is focused on Fiora and Jinx, watching her ally and... Wait. Did she just call Fiora an omelette?

     Probably some backstory there she doesn't quite understand. Whatever the case is, the healer refocuses her attention on the men now, stopping abruptly to lash out at the sword-wielder with the shield aimed right for his junk, and then sweeping around with her gunaxe at the axe-user. She might be just a liiittle biased towards properly fighting a fellow axe user, but just enough to try and smash her weapon right into his instead of targeting a weak point!

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
As the lumbering monster makes his way in, and people start fleeing, there is only one thing to do. Someone picks up his pace and tries to bash convenient targets to paste against the next wall he starts trying to break down. Doors, well... he doesn't really fit through them, so he makes his own. "Someone is coming!" He yells for the sake of the ones he's fighting alongside with.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Well that just made things a whole lot more interesting. Jinx's Haste is wearing off, and so she simply swaps over to Fishbones, and starts lobbing rockets at the Golems, blowing them into fleshy, gooey, silvery chunks. Mmmmmmh. She's gotta get inside, after all. One or two of the golems tag her with attacks, casting blood across the stone, but she's disappearing into the facility... leaving her backup behind.
    It is Jinx. Now she's French-y hunting.
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Jinx (39) has posed:
    Sanary's Golems seem more than surprised to see the axe and shield being used as more than simply a board and weapon, but independantly of each other. The true showing of a Shieldmaiden, after all. Unfortunately Golems do not have weak spots in the groin, but the first strike still pushes the Fake Man backwards a few steps.
    The Gun axe comes around, and bites into the other man's weapon, sundering it in a worryingly easy fashion, and lashing a massive gash into the golem, a gout of Not-Mercury splashing all over Sanary.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Bullets whiz past the accelerated swordsman, and Souji finds himself streaking directly for a pair of Golems. He frowns at the creatures, and pulls his sheathed blade up, spinning it in his hand as he raises his other. "Thunder-2." He states, a sudden bolt of lightning crackling towards the pair. He doesn't expect that to be enough, however, as he strikes first for the Golem with the assault rifle, blurring past on one side and smashing his weapon into the entity with the force of several hundred pounds of metal, trying to break the weapon. And then the Golem, when he gets the chance.

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    Fully expecting to be accosted by Jinx, now that she has the crazed girl's attention, Fiora readies herself for such. Namely, the inevitability of lacerations and whatnot, from the rockets and bullets she'll be sending her way. The defenses aren't really holding all that well, aside from Fiora herself. A shame she's the only defender, or she'd be able to make better use of her talents.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    SOMEONE'S IN THE RESEARCH WITH DINAH~
    Another crash through a door, and this time the big Thing finds a residential section of the facility, dorms and wizards hastily etching runes into walls and teleporting away with their shit. There's a worrying sound of a spell flickering, and then an electrical explosion goes off at the Beast's foot, a charged mine detonating there.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Souji's attacks hone true, as usual for the Samurai. There's a sickening crunch of bonestuff and weapon as that Impllacable sheath smashes into one of the defenders and then that lighting bolt shorts out the other enough to make it drop its rifle. It opening its mouth in a silent scream of anger, and starts trying to punch the swordsman, swinging for the fences now.
    Inside the gates though, Golems are rallying inwards, rushing for where Someone Is.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Luckily for Sanary, having all the fuzzy armor is good for not getting burnt or poisoned by whatever it is that splashes on her from the Golem's gash. Is it even dangerous? She's not sure, and it's not doing either of those things yet, but she's not going to take chances and touch her face or something!

     She does, however, keep on the offensive, lashing out the unarmed golem with the axe once more before focusing on the sword user and trying to smash her shield right through it. Not into, but through it with magical energy augmenting the strength of her strikes! Alas, Someone's probably too far for her to reach with that magic link from earlier, and Souji and Jinx seem to be holding their own well enough. She's still going to try putting down the duo quickly, though, in the hopes of catching up with her companions sooner rather than later.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Jinx's Haste finally runs out, and she charges inside anyways, entering the courtyard to find... Fiora. That blue hair dangles at her back, those red eyes go wide, and she smiles happily, rolling her head to the side. "Hey you." Is that a note of affection in her voice? It has been a while since they've fought, after all. Not that they do anything close to friendly stuff anyways.

    The explosion comes from Jinx first as she tries to run, firing rockets at various walls, trying ot find something. It's giving Fiora a blessedly open shot at the Canoon's back though.

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
Someone's foot explodes with electricity, it looks burnt and pained, and some more black ichor comes through. It doesn't slow him down much, and he makes a confused noise right before changing priorities, looking around for anything that might be a vault and making his way there. If he can't see anything, he'll keep smashing walls until he does.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Sanary's partners are not faring too well, honestly. Axeman is already crumpled to the ground with a pile of broken limbs and Not Enough 'Blood', and Swordman just gets smashed into the nearest wall the wthe force of that second blow against the shield.
    And Sanaray's now got a blessedly clear view of Jinx trying to book it away from Fiora, running deeper into the facility.

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    Fiora doesn't reply to the greeting. Her foe is in front of her. Words don't really hold much meaning to her, at this point. "Hmph." The woman notices the almost haphazard firing of those rockets, aimed far more at the structure around her, than at her, in particular. Indeed, an opening that almost blatently presents itself. This girl, she has a lot of dangerous firepower.

But in close? It's her advantage. All those guns and explosives won't help her if she's forced into hand-to-hand. She lunges forward, a streak of silver and white and black. Her sword arm aimed like a missile, at the other girl's weapon. If she takes that out? She'll be helpless. With only that zap pistol, there's no way she'd be much of a threat. "You never were one to prefer a straight up fight. Why come and confront me, directly?"

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji flips, engaging in absurd acrobatics as he tumbles about the gate area. The punch, however, forces Souji backwards, the powerful blow being taken on the blade itself and sending him skidding backwards along the bridge. "Tch!" He emits, grimacing at the creature as he comes to a stop a good fourty feet away. "Stupid, but powerful." He mutters. "I no longer have time to delay with you." He states, turning the blade in his hands. "Murasame. It is time to feed."

As he speaks the crimson ribbon comes free, untying itself as he pulls the black leather sheath from the sword, revealing the black ancestral blade of his family. The incised magical conduits and runes glow with an ominous crimson... And he strikes forward, shearing with an explosion of wind as he strikes through the pair with three swift blows. "Die." He instructs them, simply.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Jinx was... only slightly prepared for the first incoming strike from Fiora, but it's a good prepared. She smugly grins... and then Flashes. A sparkly golden burst of Ezreal-like energy and she's a good 30 feet away, pulling out a handful of flame chompers and tossing them between herself and Fiora.
    But Fiora knows it's about her only defense at this point. "...Cause I miss fighting?" Jinx faux-pouts, and... tries to run some more.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Someone is having an interesting day. He's getting to Smash. People are running from him in terror. And his boss is giving plenty of good ideas to him! It's great! If only he could appreciate it, at all.
    It's about the third wall he busts through, one with a Jinx-like rocket divot in the side, that resists his first few strikes. If he looks and is observant enough, he'll see a heavy steel door built into the side of it, lights and runes twinkling on the surface. Hmmm.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Souji's unleashing the beast now, Murasame coming free, the awful sword uncoiling into the air like a great dragon, rising from its slumber. The Golems... seem to realize something is wrong, and scream that silent scream again, moments before the blade comes around and cuts the puppet strings short again, the magical robomen falling like so much fake meat to the ground.
    The entrance way is blessedly clear now, and no more roboguards present themselves, for the moment.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Smashing through the two golems, Sanary hoists that axe back over her shoulder with a heavy grunt before catching sight of Jinx being pursued by Fiora. Glancing between that pair and Souji as he moves to try and finish off the golem opposing him, Sanary sends off a light cloud of healing energy Souji's way before taking off after the dueling women.

     Well, the objective is presumably that way, if Jinx and Someone are trying to break things in there. Taking a quick breather to steady herself, Sanary adjusts her footing, then takes off once more to move to Jinx's aid a heaping helping of human shield! Once she... Actually gets over there, anyway.

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    Fiora just smirks a bit. Those traps would be a problem, for most. She swipes at the nearest one with her sword, which seems to glow softly, as it cleaves the mine in half. "You may not, momentarily." Thirty feet? Fiora can cover half that just with another lunge. And when she does so, a pale blue aura surrounds her body. She's now rushing at Jinx, at twice the speed she was before, just at a run.

Not her usual, but Ghost can be quite useful. "Delaying you is about as much as I can do, by myself."

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
Someone sees the vault's door, and he knows exactly what he has to do. He lumbers over towards it, and then immediately starts getting back into a smashing rhythm. A little weaker than at the front gate because his foot hurts, and he needs to shift his weight to the other foot to compensate, which reduces the amount of force he can put into each swing.

It's still quite a lot.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Sanary and Someone are both nearing the Vault now, and Jinx... is running deeper, away from the place. Is... is she actually leading Fiora away? Maybe.

    Though the 'leading' part is going to be awfully rough as Fiora closes the distance, and then finds a Weak Spot, that rapier slicing in and sliding through Jinx's ribs easy as you like. She lets out a anguished little squeak, and turns to blind fire at the Duelist, the zap pistol coming up to try and stun Fiora. This was a bad idea, a bad bad idea shit shit.

    The door to that vault is sturdy, very sturdy, but the facility is clearing out. Apparently the lives of these scientists was worth more than whatever was inside of this place. A welcome sight for the Union, maybe. No human casualties for now.

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    The shot from the Zap pistol is Fiora's biggest worry, when it comes to chasing down Jinx, right now. It grazes her side, but that's more than enough to send a jolt through that whole half of her body, making her arm and leg go a bit numb. Certainly enough to slow her some. She hobbles a bit, but tries to shake it off as quickly as she can.

She lunges again, trying to keep pace with Jinx, even as that numbness starts to wear off a little bit. "Damn. Have to keep her busy."

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Did those two just start getting away from her /faster/?! Groaning in frustration, Sanary channels magical energy into her legs to amplify the speed of her legs. That should her catch up in no time!

     And then she immediately faceplants. Turns out being able to run faster with faster leg movements doesn't mean shit without the coordination to handle it properly! Grumbling while trying to get up and pretend like nothing happened, the healer instead turns her attention to the door, then pours more energy into Someone when he begins pounding away at it.

     "Sooner we get this one open, sooner we can get out! Maybe. Uh." How's Someone so sure the item's even here? Sure, vaults usually have important stuff locked away behind nigh-impenetrable doors, and this door just happens to be freaking strong, so...

     ... Oh. Stepping back a little more, the healer starts channeling energy into her eye instead, then firing small blasts of explosive fire at what she can only assume are the door's hinges.

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
While Sanary blasts at the hinges, Someone keeps alternating bashes with those flesh, bone and hoof battering rams. A steady, consistent rhythm that is absolutely relentless. This creature was made to do one thing, and it does it well. It's fortunate it doesn't have to face someone who can do more than shoot a couple bullets from above.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Jinx keeps on running, but suddenly runs out of hallway. She can hear the banging down the hallway, and turns to face Fiora, her hands gripping Pow-Pow. She plants her feet... and starts to fire in Fiora's direction, trying to pin down the lunging, speedy girl. "Shit shit shit shit." The vibration of the Minigun is jostling her insides, and more blood starts to flow from that cut in her side as clotting is interrupted.

    The door, however, is not faring so well. It was designed to keep out spies and thieves, not attacking armies. There's a crumpling, smashing sound, and then the door falls inward on its hinges, half hanging from the top side. Inside... there's a wide array of containers and boxes, all neatly arranged, save for the stuff closest to the door that just got kicked in, and the wall where Jinx's rocket landed. Across the room, in a glass case, is a sparkly wand... with a red ribbon motif, that gently starts to emit sparkles as soon as soemone gets close.
    A neat and tidy label underneath reads Ändernmagischenmädchengerät. That seems like it's what Jinx is after.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
The Golems fall, and Team Break Crap Get Paid seems to be continuing on their spree of destruction. Souji rushes forward, hearing the travails Jinx happens to be experiencing. His eyes narrow as he changes his route, plunging through the chaos.

Just when Fiora thinks she's got Jinx by the braids, she might suddenly hear a growing roar behind her. A moment later, a sizzling wind shear rips through Fiora's position, announcing the arrival of the requested gank in the form of Souji Murasame.

The samurai's eyes narrow as he bears down on the fencer, immediately surging forward to follow up with a blurred slash past her. "You should have realized this battle was lost from the beginning." He states to the fencer with all the warmth of a glacier.

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
Someone waits for Sanary to grab the thing, he's got no clue what they're looking for, but on the side of his good leg he lowers his arm somewhat and says, "Someone carry Snarry." Yeah his pronounciation isn't quite up to par, but presumably Sanary knows what the guy means. As soon as Sanary either leaves or takes the ride, he starts backing down the path of destruction he left on his way here.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Sanary takes cover behind her shield as the door starts to move, breacing at first until realizing that the vault isn't going to shower them with explosions the moment it's opened up. Fancy that. She's still keeping her eye open even as she heads inside, however, just in case there's a lurking log about to swing down at her from the ceiling or harpoon-trap hidden in a wall somewhere. Once she's confirmed that she isn't going to get splattered or skewered, however, she finally steps in properly and spies...

     ... A wand? Since when did Jinx use magic? Well, Sanary certainly can't blame her for trying to expand her horizons. Grateful for her choice of the fuzzy padded substance to wear today, she checks the glass case to see if there's a way to lift or open it. If not, she'll just smash the thing open with her axe handle before reaching in to grab the wand, then hopping onto Someone and giving him a pat on the head as a signal.

     "Close enough. Let's get the others and get outta here!"

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    Fiora knows she's outnumbered, however. She was aware of that from the start. She hears it before she sees it, which is enough to give her some time to roll out of the way of Souji's first attack. He's fast. Just as fast, even. Fiora's blade meets his, sparks leaping off her rapier, as she's able to turn that blade aside, so that it just grazes her arm. "What sort of ignorant statement is that? I'm aware of what my odds were. Victory is not my objective, here. I have two of you occupied now, no? None of the people here were killed. I am sure that, whatever you might be after, they will be able to tell me about. Gloating about winning a battle, with odds heavily stacked in your favor.. quite unbecoming a warrior with your sort of talent."

This notwithstanding, Fiora stands again, her sword at the ready. "If, however, it's a duel you want, I have no problems obliging you. Perhaps when those odds I spoke of are not so tilted."

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Oh good Souji's here. Jinx sucks in a deep breath, and now has the chance to let off her last desperation attempt, a wave of healing energy washing over herself and Souji. That slowly gushing wound seals up, and the Cannon staggers to her feet, trying to sneak away from Souji and Fiora as they have their Swordly Conversation About Honor.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    The glass case busts open easy enough.... and... as Sanary grabs the wand, she's going to have the most peculiar urge to scream somethnig about Henshin or Moon Makeup or something equally silly like that, or start making contracts with strange tiny creatures. Oh dear. Careful there.

    Someone... is not going to have much of a problem getting back out of the path of destruction. He made it, after all, and despite the bad leg, there's nothing actually stopping him any more, except for a few vaguely twitching golems that have already been smashed or handled otherwise.

Adele Rozenbach (1041) has posed:
Once outside, Something kneels to allow Sanary to jump off his battering arm, and as soon as she's off, he starts lumbering off. His objective is complete, and he's just not built to actually fight properly, so even if he wanted to fight there wouldn't be much of a point to it.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
There's an odd twitch on the side of Sanary's face as she keeps a tight hold on the wand, having set her gunaxe back on her belt to make sure she has a firm grip on that thing. Something's compelling her to shout, but... No, that's just post-mission jitters. That's all it could be. That has to be it.

     Getting off Someone's arm actually takes her mind off that, and she's soon able to focus a little better on the task at hand. Jinx and Souji are still inside!

     Hurrying back inside, the healer keeps on running at her usual not-augmented speed, not wanting to suffer another trip when she's fairly certains he's going to be seeing someone sooner or later. Not Someone, but... Yes. She's even got a cloud of healing light ready to throw should that person happen to be Jinx or Souji, and she might even be heard muttering something under her breath with a vaguely excited tone to it.

     It's probably just the wind.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji just stands there, his own sword upright as Fiora speaks to him about honor and Warrior Behavior. The healing spell from Jinx washes over him, closing the wounds he's received so far.

"Incorrect. You have one person occupied. A different one." Souji replies. "Killing the people here was never the point. If it was, I would have brough far heavier artillery and simply bombarded the castle into rubble." He spins his blade, shifting stances as he holds his scabbard in the opposite hand, hunching lower. "I do not gloat. It was simply a statement of fact. It would have been more efficient for the people here to yield immediately, and nothing would have been lost. Instead we have adopted a minimum-force approach to penetrate the facility and accomplish our goal. Your inane warrior culture has nothing to do with it."

There is a thin smile that spreads across his face. "If you attempt to interfere, I will stop you. I assure you, I am a far better swordsman than Jinx. Else, you can stand here until you feel your demands of... honor... are satisfied, and withdraw."

Jinx (39) has posed:
    And then Jinx is past Souji-Yi, and taps him on the shoulder, running as fast as her lanky legs will carry her. Huff puff huff puff. Out she goes, not even anythnig to Get Excited about to get her there faster. She hurts all over, but apparently they got her thing and that's good, right?
    She gets to the massive hole in the wall, and pokes her head outside to see Sanary with Her Thing. "Ah! You got it? C-Careful, that stuff's potent!"

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    "Call it whatever you like. I'm already interfering, am I not? Are you done?" Fiora doesn't wait for an answer from her opponent. She hadn't mentioned anything about 'warrior culture'. Like he, she'd only stated facts. Whatever they're after, likely they have it by now, if the crashing of that vault door is any indication. She is not the sort to stand aside or run. If Souji wants to waste his time with her, then Fiora doesn't really seem to mind. She sneers a bit as Jinx turns to run, and, well. She hasn't used hers yet.

She /was/ in Souji's path. Now she's 30 feet away, in front of Jinx, who /has/ none of those spells left. "Where do you think you're going? I, like your friend, stated facts. I have the both of you occupied, for the moment. As arrogant as he is, I think I'd very much like to test my skill against him." Sword in her fighting hand, and dagger in the off hand, she slashes at Jinx once more.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    FLASH - GANK

    Jinx barely has time to register the fact that she's been intercepted, that she's not safe and that Souji isn't between herself and Miss Scary Omlette. There's a ragged intake of breath as she raises the Zap Gun again, pulls the trigger... but her shot goes wide, smacking into the back of Someone instead.
    Jinx whimpers a bit, and looks down to see the dagger in her chest, blood seeping, and everything hurts. All of her things hurt. Everything is bad right now. "...huuurrrhhgg?" She looks up to Sanary and the others, and starts to crumple, held up by Fiora's blades.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Sanary directs that healing cloud she's prepped right over to Jinx! And more muttering. "Potent, huh? Y-yeah, I.. I noticed." She flashes Jinx an odd smile, definitely not trying to consider talking about THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP or anything like that, then catches sight of Fiora as she seemingly appears out of nowhere . "Wha... How the hell?!"

     No time to try and figure out how that worked. Instead, the shield-bearer springs into action with her shield, her eye narrowing as she breaks into a charge for Fiora. She lets out a distinctly unladylike (and definitely unmagical girly) shout, trying to smash right into her with the shield and her own weight behind it to separate her from Jinx.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji doesn't answer immediately, but he does grimace lightly as she vanishes in that short range teleport that many of them seem to have. The fact that Jinx is suddenly making unpleasant noises nearby causes the normally stoic man to inhale deeply, his expression cracking into a mask of anger.

And as Sanary intervenes to separate the pair, Souji turns, his tone firm. "One could ask you the same." He says, leveling the blade. In a smooth motion, he drags his hand along the blade, the runes surging as he intones, "Flare Blade."

A colossal surge of power swirls around the weapon as Souji dips into his Mystic Knight training, the black blade exploding into a seething bar of white flame. Colossal heat radiates from the weapon, grass shrivelling in the area as Souji brings the weapon to bear. With a lunge, Souji leaps towards Fiora, bringing the weapon down and tracing a white-hot arc with the weapon's path.

Fiora Laurent (824) has posed:
    Oho. Three, now. Fiora decides to leave the dagger as-is, letting go of it, and focusing on dodging the incoming Sanary. "Hm. Definitely not in my favor. Goodness." She springs to her feet quickly, now facing down the three of them. No doubt that creature is somewhere nearby, making things all the more unfavorable. If it was strong enough to break into that vault on its own, more or less, it might be an issue. Still..

"Are we done here? That dagger isn't going anywhere, anytime soon. And honestly, I'd like it back. Removing it here might be problematic, however." All things considered, she doesn't seem to want to budge. "If you want to keep fighting, I won't back down from the challenge. Clearly, by now, you have what you want. I'm sure I'll find out what it was, and what it does, soon enough. Your samurai friend seems to have misunderstood me. I did not expect victory. Just a minimization of casualties, damage. Enough to find out what you're all doing here. I have what I want. The question now, is, do you?"

Souji seems fine with answering that question for her. "Hoh.. I look forward to facing you again, definitely. She has no intention of staying, nor just.. sitting still and letting that attack strike her. Trying to block or turn that blade aside would be quite foolish. So would continuing this delaying action, since it seems they've achieved their objective. Using every bit of momentum she can manage, Fiora leaps to the side, rolling several times. Even then, her leather bodysuit is smoking, and the cape on her shoulder is alight. She shrugs the latter off, and makes herself scarce, ducking into some of the ruined structure of the fortress to slip out. If they really want to follow her? Probably not too difficult. That dagger in Jinx probably can't wait, though.

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Really it's a 2v1 because Jinx is pretty much toast at this point, a hand moving to hold the Dagger very, very still. She's been stabbed before she knows you don't take out anything you don't have to, that keeping it in can keep you alive long enough to get help but that... oh this is bad, this is shitty, this is awful.
    The loose cannon sinks to her knees, and tries to breath as best she can with a hole in her. It's not going well. The burst of healing helps... but she's still got a dagger in her.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Gritting her teeth as she (sort of) separates the two, Sanary turns her attention back to Jinx before huddling over beside her and setting the wand next to Jinx to keep her hand free. "Easy, easy. I gotcha... Cover us, boss!" She gives the Cannon a gentle pat on the shoulder and glances back at where Fiora had been, keeping that shield around juuust in case before gripping the dagger. "This is gonna suck a lot, and then it's gonna get better. Ready?"

     It's not going to matter if she's ready. "One." Sanary starts directing healing magic into Jinx, keeping it low intensity at first so as to not make the wounds heal /over/ the dagger itself. "Two. Three." Once she pulls, she pours more healing energy into the wound, trying to close it up as the dagger's being drawn out. It might not be the ideal method, but it's a method!

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Jinx just... looks up at Sanary with glassy eyes as she starts to do her thing, whining in assent as she's treated.... and then that dagger starts to come out, and the wound closes up behind it, for the most part. Jinx staggers against Sanary's hands, and grips at one of her wrists... and that wand. Like, grabs it hard.

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji grimaces as he sees Fiora lives up to her livelihood, avoiding getting sheared in half by the Flare Blade. He doesn't even bother answering Fiora, letting his actions speak for him. His weapon is pulled around to a ready stance, energy gathering in a vortex around his weapon as he begins to focus....

But Fiora disengages, heading out of the battle. Slowly, carefully, he straightens, releasing the energy as the blade winks out, returning to a seething black weapon. He looks at the blade, and to Jinx, and sighs, closing his eyes.

Slowly, he puts his palm on the edge of the weapon, and runs it along the blade. Blood wells up, trickling onto the weapon and immediately being absorbed into the evil-looking metal. As he does so, the glowing runes dim, the hunger of the weapon apparently sated for now. He sheathes it, letting the blood drip from his hand from his open wound as he looks to Jinx and Sanary. "Will she be all right?" He asks the healer.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
"Eaaasy... Easy." Sanary keeps her expression steady while letting Jinx take hold of her wrist, keeping that energy flowing even as she finally pulls the dagger out entirely. "She'll be fine. Probably just gonna be out of it for a while." She sighs lightly, then reaches back to hook the shield onto her back along with that dagger.

     "Still.. Er. Mission accomplished, I think. If Egg Bread ain't around, wannatakin' another look inside that vault in case I missed anything?" As she says that, she redirect some of that healing magic Souji's way, keeping it hovering in the air in front of him once he's finished doing... Whatever it is he's doing with that sword and cutting himself.

     She hasn't figured it out yet, has she?

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Jinx laughs weakly from her place on the ground, and lifts up her hand with the wand it it, holding it up to the dim light. "I'll be fine... Souji... Sanary's a good healer." A soft smile though, as she examines the way the jewel in the tip of the rod catches the first stars of the evening sky....

    There's a sudden flash of light as the Wand turns white hot, a searing sound against Jinx's palm. The same white hot color that her big old Insitute tracking bangle suddenly becomes. An interaction of some sort?
    Jinx's eyes go wide, and she involuntarily shouts "STAR GUARDIAN... TRANSFORM!" Oh this isn't good, this isn't good at all.
    She suddenly starts lifting up into the air by her chest, as if that dagger wound was lifting her up and into the air. Her already skimpy clothes start to turn the same white, fading tastefully out of existence into a dull glowing haze. There's... music, why is there music? Where is it even coming from? Something heroic and peppy and inspirational, slamming through the courtyard and bouncing off the walls and the golem corpses. Oh geez, Jinx, what did you do?

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji nods to Sanary as he is healed, the wound on his hand closing up. "Thank you." He replies... Though to Jinx's healing or to his own, he isn't specifying.

Bastard, continuing to be nonspecific on things!

"Feel free to loot what you will. My objective here is accomplished." Specifically, keeping Jinx from dying on contact with enemy AD Carries. Mostly successful. Ish.

Well, she's not dead.

It's when Jinx suddenly starts transforming that Souji actually looks surprised, stepping back. "Was... Was this /intended/?!" He asks, his eyes going slightly wider as he looks on the peppy, cheerful theme music. "What kind of artifact /was/ that?"

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Sounds like a plan. Alright, holler if anything happens." Before Sanary can get up to go on her looting spree, she's interrupted by the odd sight of Jinx's new wand doing something and Jinx doing... Also something! THe healer gawks wordlessly at what's unfolding before her, glancing over at Souji momentarily and giving him a brief shrug before continuing to stare at Jinx dumbfoundedly.

     "Bh... Wh... Gh?" Words are meaningless! Also, not coming out properly. Just what the hell is going on?! "Jeh... Huh?"

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Now Pow Pow and Fishbones are getting into it too, disintegrating into flashes of black and white fog. The mist around Jinx's body starts to swirl, faster and faster, turning into long white ribbons of light that start to wrap around her skinny frame, fastening themselves in strategically de-lewding places. It looks like... some sort of halter top with a jacket built in... thigh highs, a different set of her short shorts.... And ribbons. A whole bunch of ribbons.

    And then the music swells to a crescendo, and Jinx lands, looking confused and excited and doing a Super Sentai Like Pose, V-Signs at her forehead and belly. A cascade of red hair is in place of the blue she had before... and she looks... Not horrified.
    "...It worked? It worked? IT WORKED! AHAHAAHAAAHHAAHAHAHAH!" She starts hopping up and down happily, wobbling a bit as blood, or lack of it, rushes or doesn't, to her head. "Oh... oh gosh, oh geez, Souji! Sanary! It worked!" Two fluffy puff balls, one white, one black, float around Jinx's head, chirping and squeaking.

    What the fresh hell, Jinx???

Souji Murasame (627) has posed:
Souji looks, probably for the first time in recent memory, dumbfounded.

"What... What is this...?" He asks, unable to take his gaze off Jinx. He pauses, and then finally tears his eyes off of the manic magical girl, looking away and nodding. "Yes. It... worked." He agrees. He's not sure if he thinks this is 'working', it seems.

Still, he gestures. "Our... Our work is done here." He says, quickly trying to regain his equilibrium. "Finish up what you wish to do here and we will leave. I... Will make sure the way out is clear." He says, beginning to withdraw so he can find a way to let Jinx magical girl spaz somewhere not in his vicinity.

Sanary Rondel has posed:
Sanary continues to sputter out nonsensical nothings as Jinx settles down from her transformation, just staring at her at all the... EVERYTHING. The bubbliness, the energy, the outfit that she's never going to admit is actually kind of cute...

     "... S-so. You... Uh. You got magic now or somethin'?" Sanary keeps a hand out just in case the Magical Cannon Girl needs that extra bit of support, although the healer does cast a wary glance back towards the entrance of the vault. On one hand, Jinx /is/ standing on her own, and Souji is clearing a path for them if anything else shows up. On the other hand, with Souji leaving so hastily...

     "... I'll catch up with you two in a sec, then. Gotta be thorough, right?" And then Sanary heads back towards the vault with the goal of checking for anything else that might be similar or valuable-looking in there. It's not because she wants to get one of those things for herself or anything!

Jinx (39) has posed:
    Sadly, there was only the one Ändernmagischenmädchengerät. There's a bunch of other magical trinkets and research in there that will pay for this visit and then some, but... none of the other devices are here.
    Jinx... pouts as Souji walks away, being Souji and wilts. But only for a moment as the Power Of Positivity swells up inside of her. "Right. This is fine, this is great! I know I needed a way to beat up on Magical People better this is how I'mma do it!" She's... she's talking but herself now, though, looking slightly... well.

    Genki.