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Cantio Two calls for help from the same town is a sign of bad luck. Three is a sign that maybe this town isn't in the best place for avoiding monster attacks. Perhaps it's extremely bad luck, being built on a cursed burial ground, or even foul play. Whatever the case is, the coastal town made of boxy buildings and off-white plastic is under attack once more, this time by horned wolves with blue and pink fur with massive tails led by a giant purple spider crab that's shooting balls of lava out of its face.

It'd almost be a normal day if not for the fact that this town still doesn't have much in the way of defenses. Its walls have been built up even further than last time, and there's even more gunners in the battlements to pick off the smaller Viruses, but their armaments still aren't of much use against the giant thing.

As promised, however, any Elites responding to this call for help won't be fighting them on their own. Cantio's already on the scene, flanked by a pair of strangely rubbery knights mounted atop similarly rubbery slime-blobs with doglike features. The silver knight, wielding a flaming sword, and the red knight, wielding an electric lance, mow through the swarm of wolves while Cantio backs them up, largely overseeing the pair as they slay the agitated Viruses and carve a path towards the giant spider crab. With each slain beast, however, the mounted knights and their mounts take time to inhale the clouds of pixelated matter left behind, so actually reaching their target might take a while at this rate.

Still, with the knights making a good show of eliminating so many Viruses on their own, Cantio's looking quite pleased already. "If they keep this up, then..." She breathes a relieved sigh in between slicing a wolf Virus in half. "Maybe this town will rejoin us without any issues."
Shotaro Hidari                 CYCLONE JOKER

There is a flash of green and purple before Kamen Rider W bursts forward from next to Cantio, his fist collides with one of the larger crabs before he repeatedly follows it up with another and another, before aiming to kick the creature into the sky, following it up with a wind filled punch, aiming to either launch it or destroy it.  

W looks right and left, hooking his head back towards Cantio.  "If that's what you think, then you didn't listen to Shotaro very well," the Green side of W's body says, to which the Purple mutters to someone named Philip to cool down.  

"He's not entirely wrong, Cantio.  There's more to what's going on with the people here than just feeling safe.  You're going to have to hear them out or.." he says, but interrupted by a wolf virus charge him.  He's already engaging with it.  

"We'll have to chat later!"
Rubi-Kan Vagrants      Some would say this town was built in a great place. People like that would have to really like fighting.

Bercilak de Hautdesert is listening to Black Sabbath on] Discoverize. Listen along? Y / N

     The Wraith's pulse detonation engine is in full force--having had such a great time on his last visit, Bercilak has the accelerator pressed all the way down. The armored hoverbike's wash kicks up virtual dirt and detritus in its path. A cloak of helenium and feather reeds billows wildly behind a heavily armored rider in green, as the light of day gleams brightly upon the bike's green chassis, illuminating golden motifs of hounds after alien prey.

     He makes a pass over Cantio, reaching behind him to remove his axe from its special mount behind the seat, and lifts the weapon in a salute to her and her two knights. "AT-REN THEIM HONDS! BAHAHAH!" His free fist beats against that massive harness on his chest, hard enough to draw sparks.

     He pulls the bike into a sudden dive, using the cowcatcher at the front to plow a path through the thick of the viruses on the way to the crab--but he's deliberately taking the most circuitous route possible, to draw their attention towards him. As they are driven to either side by the bike's armor plating, Bercilak makes powerful, yet precise crescent swipes with the axe, using its edge and its haft in equal measure to hack and bludgeon his way through the teeming mass of wolves, all the while doing his best to avoid those globs of lava from the crab.

     It's going to make fighting the crab and avoiding the lava a lot harder for him--but judging by the laughter and shouting, he isn't bothered by extra work. "EI, W! HAU ART THOU?! BAHAHA!"
Staren     A big flash of white and orange races from the warpgate to town at, well, racecar speeds. It leaps over walls and buildings, is briefly visible running through town, and then leaps over the front gate...

    What drops down from over the wall is an 11-foot-tall mechanical humanoid, painted white with Concord Orange accents. With a neck guard on the right side, wide shoulder guards, twin searchlights in the chest, and a helmet with a distinctive T-shaped visor, this is the most recognizeable and iconic power armor of Staren's world!

    What? No, the OTHER most recognizeable and iconic power armor of Staren's world! The Northern Gun Samson!

    Anyway, Staren's also added an obviously holographic, glowing, Concord-orange scarf, dramatically over-long. It doesn't actually look like fabric, and the shape is abstracted somewhat, giving the impression of a ragged piece of fabric rustling in the wind.

    From above, Staren fires a couple of mini-missiles at the pack of wolves before superhero landing dramatically in front of the gate, then standing while the scarf billows dramatically. "Don't let them get you down, Cantio. You're trying to help people, and that's not wrong. A show of force may not win people over, but you're making sure the town is still *here* so we can find a diplomatic solution."

    And then the armor crouches and leaps again, flying high on jump jets and pulling its right arm back in a telegraphed punch. "Now, let's crack this crab!" At the top of its arc, something warps in attached to the right forearm... and as Staren comes down, aiming to land all her suit's weight with that fist on the crab's back, at the moment of contact there's a very loud BANG, a flash of light, and smoke as the new, bulky vambrace extends a metal stake at high speed to try and make a hole in that armor!
Tamamo     Is Tamamo no Mae here only because there was a distress call, and she wishes to save those who might be saved? It's possible, but would be a miraculous coincidence, if so. At least one other factor is made obvious by the company with which she arrives. Further connections may be intuited.

    "Well, though that old promise has yet to be fulfilled, I suppose today is not an appropriate time." She looks over the several knights on the field, two mounted on doggoos and doing something suspicious with their slain opponents, and briefly ignores that pair to wave to the third.

    "Oh, sir Bercilak! Good fortune to you." Immediately followed by, at a conversational volume, "Hm, can he hear me? The crashing and shouting of combat makes for a distracting din. Let us carry the message in more definitive form, then."

    Tamamo pulls out one talisman from her sleeve in particular, and tosses it in the direction of the Green Knight. If nothing interferes with its flight path, it'll stick somewhere on his armor, granting the 'good fortune' Tamamo wished him, here manifesting as a tendency for every strike of his weapons to be guided toward a target's weakest point.

    Her contribution to the battle handled, Tamamo then goes into town to begin snooping around, making frequent, mysterious gestures in the air, as she focuses her senses and craft on finding some mystical, or at least some reactive, reason by which this town should be attracting monsters, in particular. Is there some malevolent force, buried beneath it? Is there murder hidden in the hearts of some handful of residents? Do spirits roil in the air? Has some sleeping god been woken by a lack of offerings? There are so many possible reasons, but she can eliminate many of them, one at a time.
Lilian Rook <J-IC-Scene> Cantio says, "It should be okay. My forces are already there, but more hands are always appreciated!"
<J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "Your 'forces'?"<J-IC-Scene> Cantio says, "The Bugster Defense Force. Cadenza's security forces aren't able to deploy as quickly, so we're handling things ahead of time."
<J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "The-- beg pardon?"
<J-IC-Scene> Lexicon says, "What the *actual hell* have you been up to, Cantio?"

<Tac-Paladins> 4 Lilian Rook says, "Did that purple creature always have an army?"
<Tac-Paladins> 4 Lexicon says, "Not that I'm aware of. Not more than the usual guards. I thought only Theurgus had a big force."

<J-IC-Scene> Cantio says, "They don't have any issues with the military itself as far as I know. And the Bugsters-right. They're from..." Long pause "They're from that world with the Gamer Virus and Kamen Riders that aren't Mister W here."
<J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "I'm *aware* of your involvement with them."

    §But of course it had to be kaiju again.§

    This situation is, in many respects, one day going to be something like Lilian's regular. If anything, on the mild and simplistic side. However, her patience with giant monsters, and people who are more or less giant monsters playing coy about it, has worn exceptionally thin. Not only are there plenty of other people qualified to sort this situation out with a lot of guns and rider kicks, they're already here anyways.

    Instead, when she first appears, without about as much battle dress as she can assemble on this kind of notice (the suit she gets to own at her rank), Lilian first has a more salient question.

    "What, precisely, are your 'BDF troops' doing?"

    It's laser targeted at Cantio, unmistakably about the part where her rubbersuit monster minibosses are inhaling particles. "Are you so desperate that you're willing to try and pretend at the grandiloquent necromancer thing now? 'Fear not my people, for my ravenous ghouls are here to feast upon the enemy's flesh'? You expect me to believe those are your soldiers?"

    "Who runs this 'village'? Practically."
Cantio W arrives, and Cantio barely flinches as he punches the shit out of the spider crab. It's much sturdier than it looks, though, taking the beating head on and even landing with a heavy thud before flipping itself over moments after landing. It retaliates with a huge ball of lava that splits apart in midair into smaller globs that might actually reach him. It's still kind of far away, though, so the bulk of the lava ball just ends up melting a hole into the ground that Cantio has to sidestep so as to not walk directly into it.

"I know. I'll be speaking with them once we clear out the Viruses here, so we can finally lay everything out and-" She glances towards the Bugster knights as they cleave through another set of wolves. "-Address any concerns they might have about my methods."

Bercilak speeds right past a group of wolf viruses as they try to pelt him with ice spells to no avail, his motorbike maneuvers drawing their attention all too easily already. Cantio actually chuckles lightly and returns his wave in greeting despite not quite knowing what it is he just said. "Draw them away from the town if you can! The further away from the walls, the better!"

His methods of in clobbering and cleaving through swaths of them is met with the wolves outright trying to chase him, running after the knight on the bike and trying to bite right into his ankles in passing. Some of them even spit large ice bricks at him, as if trying to get him off the bike ahead of time.

The strange magics behind Tamamo's talismans, however, benefit him greatly by making it even harder for the wolves to reach him. His axe just happens to come in at the right time to catch several of them at once, and his bike ramps off others just in time for bites to meet the air.

Bercilak isn't the only one grabbing attention, though. Staren's decently large armor-not-giant-robot has the wolves circling around it as she blasts them with missiles, and the town guards  have to be reassured by their captain that she is, in fact, not a giant robot-styled Virus so as to not start firing on her themselves.

It does take them a bit more convincing once Staren reveals she's an acquaintance of Cantio, but their larger concern is still the Viruses actively trying to kill them. It might even be helping, too, since they actually call out when the spider crab starts to turn towards Staren. "Fire incoming!" As if on cue, the spider crab slams its front claws into the ground, calling up a burst of flame right in front of it to try and intercept her before she can punch right into the crab's dense carapace.
Cantio In the town, Tamamo finds that there's actually not much in the way of ancient curses around here. Even though it's one of those worlds where things are more digital than organic, it's still easy enough to sense that things would otherwise be peaceful if not for what's happening outside right now. There's a sense of unease among the townspeople and guards alike, though, although it's less of the 'plot to murder the problem' variety and more 'how do we get out of this' sort that doesn't fade even with Elites arriving to handle the physical threat present.

When Lilian appears, Cantio's first instinct is to flinch. She doesn't, but there's a noticeable pause before she turns towards her with about as neutral of an expression as she can muster. "They're protecting this town, and they're managing their own energy levels. Like a-" She breathes in slowly, trying not to let her discomfort show too much even as one of the knights slices a wolf in half and already starts inhaling its essence before it's even finished fading. "-solar powered flashlight."

"I've tamed them, so they're well within my control. And who are you to say that a..." Grandiloquent? "... Necromancer can't accomplish great things even with those methods? I'll be meeting with the leader of this town after this is done, so I'll find out later." Cantio swallows lightly, then directs the lance knight to join the group attacking the giant spider crab as some of its wolf accomplices spread out, giving it more space to spew lava while the wolves fire off bursts of ice and hurl themselves at Cantio and Lilian. "So are you here to help or what?"
Rubi-Kan Vagrants [Team] Tamamo: Oh, sir Bercilak! Good fortune to you.
Friendly program detected.

     "AH! TIDINGS, TAMAMO!" He's too busy having the time of his life fighting off wolves to notice that she dips into town. He does, however, making a wide-arcing drift to slam the side of his bike into several of those wolves with increased precision, notice that Lilian is here, and speaking with Cantio--which is decidedly not fighting.

     "WI WHIPPE, LILIAN, ELLES I SHALT QUELL YON HOUNDS BIFORE IFIRST THY STROK OF SKIRMERIE!" He knows she doesn't like it as much as he does. He knows most people don't like it as much as he does. But he's really feeling it, right now, especially with Tamamo's blessing making his mounted combat all the more deadly. Ice spells break and fragment against his armor, splitting where they strike him or the bike's thick plating. Some manage to pierce the tough bodysuit to which his armor plates are affixed--and though blood is drawn, his stride isn't slowed in the least.

     Holes in that weave knit themselves closed as surely as his wounds, and he nods at Cantio. He can surely do as she asks. "Staren! Thou ofhered her!" He and Staren, in this moment, are the most physically imposing--so the task of drawing the wolves away from town should be perfect for the two of them. He chokes up on the grip of his axe, holding it all the way up at the beard and using its massive edge as a target shield to shatter one of those huge ice bricks. The force of it shakes the axe in his grip.

     As others blast into him, he plants the haft into the ground and guns the accelerator. The bike becomes a green and gold blur, the hot white lance of fire from its thruster circling at blistering speeds and spot-melting what ice spells don't shatter against the Wraith's armor or his. Gnarled roots grow and tangle beneath the earth, until they violently burst outwards in spiked formation.

     These spikes radiate outwards, the Green Knight's power attempting both to drive them back, and to impale or launch into Staren's firing angles any wolves not quick enough to retreat. He yanks the axe from the earth just as he reaches the apex of another high-speed loop, rocketing forward to plow through their ranks, catching with the heel and beard of his axe any unlucky enough to be in his path, and hurling them towards Staren's mech for a one-two setup. As Cantio asked, he's trying to corral them away from the town, into a copse of trees made by his axe--where their numbers will afford them less of an advantage compared to his speed and the height of Staren's towering mech.
Shotaro Hidari W lets a salute out towards the descending Bercilak, but before he can say anything, well...a few things happen.  The truth about the Bugsters is revealed to him, Cantio's own part in it has been as well.  The ball of lava is launched, catching the rider off guard who is nearly hit hard enough to venue change, but thankfully the nearest gravel pit is hundreds of miles away.  

Rolling across the ground, W stands up and brushes himself off.  He can't get a good shot on Cantio, so he can't pose at her.  That's fine, they'll be time to tell her to count her sins up eventually.  The immediate threats of the bugs here are more important.  The Bugster's can come afterward, freeing them from their purgatory existence.  W releases a sigh, though the Philip half says nothing.  

"Let's do it, partner," Shotaro says to Philip, and the two of them, speed run right towards the enemy crab.  He aims a powerful punch towards the right side of the bug, trying to tip it over.  This is followed up with another wind forced kick towards one of the wolves, aiming to try and land it nearby to Tamamo.  
Seras Victoria     From absolutely out of nowhere, a staccato barrage of HOT METAL flies through the air - top-quality 30mm explosive shells, to be precise. They're coming from the town's battlements if anyone turns to trace their path, and their target? Why, of course, the gigantic crab. The accuracy is absolutely uncanny for anything coming from that distance, though the target's sheer size probably helps in this case.

    Because there, on the battlements, space has been made for a new defender to the scene. Seras Victoria stands there in the dimming sunlight, wearing a hooded jacket over her Hellsing uniform. Her eyes are glowing red and fixed on that crab...

    But the real kicker is her weapon. Twin gigantic ammo drums as big as her, belt-feeding a stream of ammunition into twin cannons. Each shot is a thunderous BOOM, and leaves a spent casing rolling along the battlements...

    She might be late, but that's because she brought the big guns for this one.
Tamamo     Lilian had asked who was in charge of this place, and Tamamo goes to find that answer. Hopefully, whoever is in charge can explain to her why this place keeps getting attacked. Of course, if they knew a clear answer to the question, it would have come up by now, but whatever information they do have, it might indicate to Tamamo just why this place is so dangerous. Assuming, of course, that Kamen Rider W is wrong, and this wasn't Cantio's plot to make her questionable military build-up look good. There are plenty of other possibilities.

    But she can't take too long to look into that. She'd asked for someone to send a weakened monster her way, and so she hurries to go and retrieve it. Usually, it would be difficult to both safely and quickly capture some hostile beast with curses alone, but it's a different matter if they've already been knocked around a bit. By pinning it under her mirror and slapping its face with sleeping curses, she can ensure the thing stays in one piece long enough for her to some deeper analysis. It won't hurt! Mostly.

    Discovering 'weaknesses and resistances' is valuable in some respects, but that's not really her aim. Divining how the wolf will react to different forms of sacred barrier magic is more important. With that knowledge, she could begin constructing a more effective wall for the people here.
Staren     Yeah this dramatic punch stake move is gonna look SUPER COOL! But then the crab looks up at her and sends flame and lava upwards... She has to hold her limbs in position if she's going to keep up the attack... but she can still mentally direct essence through techno-wizard circuits built into the armor... Blue-white light flashes over the Samson just before it passes through the fire and the flame...

    After delivering the punch, the light flashes again as the magical forcefield flickers off to let accumulated lava drop off onto the crab. The white-and-orange paint job is badly scorched in front, and there are a few places where heat started to melt into the armor, but at least she avoided some of the potential damage...

    She's perhaps *more* worried about emotional damage, to Cantio. Cadenza's mad scientist princess reminds her of herself, lately. It's not that Staren doesn't think there is a valid point to be made about means with good PR comforting the populace better, but every dig at Cantio's methods feels like old wounds threatening to reopen. An echo of the pain and fear from back then that turned her into someone who could barely trust, who let others control what she saw as people, until she was fighting herself, against her own heart, because she 'had to', because it was the 'right thing to do'.

    And for what? She could never *really* appease them, and appeasing them what little she could never brought her acceptance. She can imagine her enemies hearing she died on the Mountain and just saying 'Good riddance to that idiot', and even her 'allies' just shaking their heads and saying 'What a shame, it's tragic but it was only a matter of time until he did something so stupid even he couldn't get out of it.' There are very few people in the Multiverse who would cry for her as she was, back then.

    Hidden behind the T-shaped visor, Staren's eyes water and a tear runs down one cheek. She won't let them make Cantio feel like that! She can't let them make Cantio feel like that! "Don't let them get to you, Cantio!" Words come with barely a thought, rising out of a well of impotent pain and desperation, and Staren tearfully shouts, "When all you know how to do is punch, it's easy to deride anything else people try that doesn't work out! And when political manipulation and words come as easily to you as breathing, it's easy to put down anyone who can't do that!"

    Staren's not done with the crab just yet, though! While lashing out verbally at W and Lilian, she continues to attack the virus physically--Staren raises her left arm and warps a vibro-sword into it, which surrounds itself with a high-frequency shredding energy field as she tries to plunge in next to the stake to try and saw out a weak point in the armor for others to exploit, before jumpjet-assisted-leaping off the crab's back!
Lilian Rook     "A solar-powered flashlight?" Lilian's delivery is about as scathingly incredulous as possible. She almost reels from the weight of so many exciting varieties of disbelief competing all at once. Eventually, she just arrives at:

    "Who uses a flashlight while the sun is out? Even your analogy is useless. Can you do anything right?"

    So great is her dispassion for this topic, that she finds time to turn and call back to Bercilak, one hand cupped to her mouth, "Don't wait on my account, jolly green psychopath! Try playing with the big one and save me some trouble! I'm in the *middle* of something!" She goes back to Cantio. "Yes, I am saying you can't. Did I not make that clear last time? Was I not 'convincing' enough for you? But it seems like all that's changed is that you've made greater pretentions at this fucked up little attempt at clinging to relevance being 'your own power'. Save your shitty excuses. I feel nothing but pity for those people who lost their terminally ill dice roll and ended up as the Concord's experiments instead of helped in any way. And I feel nothing but contempt for relying on the powers of things that should have been eradicated from the start."

    "'With whatever's left of them in these Bugsters, I can still protect people'. You really can't help but admit it, can you? That you aren't good enough to protect anyone without using someone else's power."

    The viruses that Lilian has been arrogantly ignoring up until this point catch her in a moment of indiscretion. There is a specific way that Lilian fights, and a specific way that she talks to people, and in this skewed frame where she is talking to someone very differently, so too does she fight differently, for just a bit.

    "I said I'm in the middle of something! Cleasa Iontach-!"

    It's not clear when she even de-glamered her sword, but she must have, for the ice chunks flying her way to have been obliterated into so much steam, and for the already smoldering blade in her hand to have corresponded to the field of perfectly straight, and egregiously deep slashing gouges scattered through the horde, literally glowing white hot where they've been cut and gushing searing smoke tinged with pale blue light. It takes her a half-second to find enough control to stance down.

    "Do you think you're entitled to my help now? That my insistence on fixing things is equivalent to being at the Concord's beck and call? I'll be helping. That village, not you." Lilian presses her radio switch, and drops smoothly down from the wall.

    "Newbie. Keep working over the big one. You have the right idea. Tamamo, when you find the leader, please notify me. I've got some work to do, but it shouldn't take long."
Cantio Although Cantio still has trouble comprehending what Bercilak is saying at times, context clues still help her get the gist of it and breathe a little easier. The townspeople are breathing easier, too, as his charge into the ranks of the viruses makes it all too easy to draw their attention further and further from the town itself. They cheer him on, but not too loudly compared to the sound of gunfire erupting from the town walls as they join in mowing down the encroaching Viruses.

His axe bisects those unlucky wolves he targets with little resistance beyond what should be the crunch of flesh and bone, but ends up just feeling like weird meat as they burst into clouds of pixelated gore. They're still unable to catch up with the bike-rider, and those that might even get close get caught up in the roots impaling them from below.

Multiple series of words are exchanged between Cantio and W, but they still manage to do so without interrupting the flow of combat. Her expression does darken considerably, but she keeps her focus on the Viruses as W makes his way towards the spider crab. It lets out a terrible shrieking noise as it raises its claws, ready to slam them down upon the Kamen Rider as he draws near, but it's not quite fast enough. He slams his fist into its side that gets his target staggering, if not necessarily in much pain thanks to its bulky shell protecting it from blunt force trauma. That still buys him more than enough time to safely punt a wolf over towards Tamamo no Mae, though!

Tamamo gets her answers from multiple sources. Finding the leader is easy enough, as there's a moderately older looking person overseeing the battle that's easily distinguished by stray gray hairs and also not wearing a helmet (or any armor whatsoever) to indicate that this person is not a fighter one bit. Although Tamamo's in a hurry to go, she does at least get some confirmation that actually backs up some of what Cantio said earlier: Virus attacks are fairly common in this world, even in the face of overwhelming defenses like those in the cities. Combined with the fact that this town was just built here instead of somewhere more remote, it's not too hard to conclude that such distress calls are going to be common until they get their defenses really built up.

Looking for potential barriers through inspecting the wolf, meanwhile, is a smidge more difficult even in its weakened state. Its energy has some similarities to the local variety, but its distinct enough that it'd be easy enough to tell that a Virus is a Virus and not someone from one of these digital cities. A barrier, then, would probably be more effective if made to trick such creatures into thinking that the town itself is inhabited by Viruses rather than anything else, especially with the wolves working with the spider crab despite neither of them being related in the slightest.

Staren weighs in with her own words of encouragement, and Cantio doesn't respond right away. She observes the battle for a bit longer, then raises a hand to her earpiece that's totally there and not just hidden under multiple layers of giant anime hair.

<Tac-Concord> [4] Cantio says, "Thank you, Staren. I... I needed that. I can't be the best wordsmith or the best fighter, but I can at least do this much and take the steps nobody else wants to."
Cantio She really does need that, too, as Lilian lays right into her, bringing back some of that deep-seated uncertainty still lingering within Cantio as she shrinks back at the unending layers of mean girl beatdown. She opens her mouth to say something, but stops as Lilian keeps going, and she nearly jumps back when ice turns to steam and wolves turn to also-steam-but-pixelated.

It's just like before. It's always going to be like before, isn't it? Living in her sister's shadow, the shadows of greater fighters, the shadows of those with more convincing arguments and better wordsmithing to catch people's inconsistencies in even the slightest degree.

It's an infuriating feeling, and Cantio's attention falls off the battle entirely. Gritting her teeth, she struggles to get any words out, only managing to utter something vaguely resembling a word long after Lilian's already left.

Before the crab can right itself fully, Seras' explosive shells strike the crab and the ground underneath it. Instead of falling back onto its legs, it just kind of gets stuck in the ground sideways, flailing the legs on one side in the air while the legs in the ground slowly push it back up. It's not helpless in such a state, however, as it's still more than capable of spewing lava around itself like a...

Spider crab spewing lava around itself. It's shooting it out far more wildly this time, too, as though the creature knows it needs to bust out the big guns before it eats complete shit against all these Elites. Despite its efforts, however, it gets stabbed pretty hard from the top and the underbelly by Staren's sword and the lance-wielding Bugster knight's previously mentioned weapon, respectively. The former carves a massive gash into its top it while the latter pulses lightning directly into the giant crab.

Eradicating the Viruses attacking this town proves to be surpisingly quick thanks to the efforts of the Elites here. The wolves are scattered or fleeing already, and the crab is in no condition to keep fighting despite continuing to thrash about and do as much damage with its lava spittle as it can. Before it can do much more, however...

"Eat."

Cantio commands, and the Bugster obeys. It tears its lance out of the spider crab, then starts feasting on its innards even though it hasn't actually died yet. The spider crab shrieks as the lance-wielder howls in its hunger, and it doesn't take long for the spider crab to start disintegrating into that pixelated mist signifying its death.

Almost as quick is the Bugster's transformation. It grows in size until it's just slightly smaller than the crab was, with the dog slime mount sprouting multiple spider-like legs while the knight's armor cracks to make room for more arms and spears despite the armor and its flesh still looking distinctly rubbery. It raises those spears as it sweeps its gaze across the Elites gathered, and then it starts calling lightning down upon them. The lightning explodes in bursts of fire wherever it strikes, but it's far more targeted than the lava blasts or the ice bricks from the Viruses earlier in that they're actually targeted at people at all.

This one might actually be a problem.
Tamamo     Tamamo finds someone in charge, and relays the position and brief description to Lilian, before occupying herself with the puzzle of the wolf-virus. "What a strange creature you are. Are you not like a curse, yourself, or are you a cursed beast?"

    Her usual methods might be difficult to implement, but that's why she made sure to check. Proper preparation is key, as ever it is. Confusion and misdirection are the specialty of her barriers, rather than the hardness of solid walls. Something that makes those affected believe 'there is nothing here to eat' isn't so much more difficult than the illusion of a road that travels in only one direction.'

    Tamamo leaves the wolf locked down, for now, going back into town to stop briefly by that leader she found, "I shall be crafting something to aid in hiding your town from those hostile eyes, though it shall only be effective against hunting beasts, rather than..." she cocks an ear to listen for what's happening in the battle, "...the ill wishes of those more powerful and directed." But that matter is being handled, so it doesn't bother her too much, at the moment.

    There's a lot of work involved in setting up a town-wide barrier, even when she knows what sort of magic it is she's crafting. At minimum, she has to walk all along its edges and through its center. She can do that in quick, superhuman leaps, but not too quickly. While she can allow herself to be a bit hasty, this time, Tamamo takes pride in her work, and won't have it be represented by any shoddy example. That means studying things like mystic geometry and checking for underlying currents of mana, beforehand -- though she'd likely have found any of the latter while she was checking for ancient burial grounds, if those had been available.

    No matter. It might not do them any immediate good, with the wolves already scattering, and it won't do anything until the full array is activated, but the only way to finish any large task is to begin it, one buried charm in a cloth bag or plastered over a tree at a time.
Shotaro Hidari W moves to try and avoid the lances, but the elemental attacks followed by the explosions cause sparking and toss the Kamen Rider back.  Rubbing the bottom of his chin with one hand, and standing back on his feet he is quick on his feet again.  Philip comments about the tactical situation.  

"Seems like it's attacking everything," Philip says, "And our current elemental power is best suited for this.  We should stick with Joker too," To which Shotaro agrees with a quick grunt as he's closing in with the Bugster.  

"It's more powerful too," Philip chimes in, "Yeah I noticed.  I think we got this with who's here though...and if it's attacking Cantio and Staren too, then it's likely going to try and destroy the town right after."

Getting right before the Bugster, he jumps right into the air in front of it, aiming to drive a series of kicks across its face, specifically aiming for the nose.  He spins, midair aiming another kick, but with the power of WIND behind it, aiming to try and knock it senseless.  

Landing, W keeps his eyes open, trying to see if the other Bugster's have gone beserk.
Rubi-Kan Vagrants      It's not that he's not still having a great time--but some things have come to light which will have Bercilak mentally switching gears.

[Local Broadband] Bercilak: Staren, thou anferm that Cantio didst profren 'deth with worthihed' to theim that Bugsters art--and not neu lif?
[Local Broadband] Staren: I CAN'T UNDERSTAND YOU RIGHT NOW!
[Local Broadband] Staren: Yes! There was a chance, of course, but even if they'd survived the bugster virus it wouldn't fix whatever else they were dying from!
[Local Broadband] Kamen Rider W: Instead it created a half life, one that will never grow or change. That's not living, Staren.
[Local Broadband] Bercilak: Hau art thou toknoue that, W?
[Local Broadband] Kamen Rider W: They barely talk, they follow every order that are given without question. This is confirmed with people who know them better.
[Local Broadband] Staren: They're gone. Lilian's necromancer comparison is more apt. We have powerful psychics, we'd KNOW if the people they were were still in there, suffering.
[Local Broadband] Bercilak: Hath thy strengthi psychics loke, if thou wouldst, and bitell me, whanne ends oure batail.
[Local Broadband] Bercilak: I would be ascertened bifore my deminge.

     If she doesn't look herself, or have her friends look, he'll just have to get the answers he's looking for himself. It would be better for everyone if that doesn't come to pass.

     The wolves are driven before them, now--the crab pinned and shrieking as the lance-wielding bugster eats its prey. The roar of the Green Knight's bike dies down, slowing into constituent detonations before those, too, end. Its lifter is actually quite silent, only the rushing of air. When he kills the ignition, the bike slowly drifts to the ground with a -thunk.- He dismounts, as the Bugster begins its transformation.

     He is in the middle of a slow, plodding approach when lightning strikes. The bolt hits him dead on, as his bike dematerializes. Green armor is melted in places, molten slag cooking the Green Knight--but he remains standing. Molten metal cools and coaxes itself back into a rough approximation of its original shape. The scent of burning flesh and hair dissipates, and the flames licking at his cloak of plants are suffocated.

     "Sware mine questiouns thri, Bugster. Preve thy mortalhed." They barely speak. But they do obey commands. He loses nothing by testing whose commands they obey. "Wherefore dost thou ifighte and iete?" Why keep fighting and eating? For what reason does it carry on?

     Bercilak himself stands at seven and a half feet--so while this Bugster does tower over him, he's not exactly tiny. His axe was made specially for him, and is perfectly sized for sweeping the legs of its 'mount' from under it. Bercilak makes a gradual advance, using the weapon's reach to try and catch limbs and jabbing lances alike.

     "I am ben knoued of what thou ifele in thy stomac. What dost thou ifele in thy herte?" They are difficult questions for something like a Bugster. This is why he asks them. He wants to see if it even can answer them, much less whether it will or what its answer will be.

     The final question is delivered and he doubles down on the aggression, making a thruster-assisted leap into the air. With microthrusters assisting him in making sharp barrel rolls and alarming flips, he looses a masterful flurry at the multiple-armed Bugster, trying to keep those weapons occupied--deflecting thrusts with the eye, catching lances with the beard, swatting aside with the haft. "Art thou fered?"
Lilian Rook <Tac-Paladins> 4 Lilian Rook says, "Ah, new girl. If I may make an additional request."
<Tac-Paladins> 4 Seras Victoria says, "Yes? And, please, my name is Seras."
<Tac-Paladins> 4 Lilian Rook says, "I'm glad for having sufficient heavy firepower on the scene for this now. But watch the smaller purple creature too. If she starts moving in an unpleasant way, please blow her legs off."
<Tac-Paladins> 4 Lilian Rook says, "You can't trust her."
<Tac-Paladins> 4 Seras Victoria says, "Un... unpleasant way? You think she'll come after us?"
<Tac-Paladins> 4 Lilian Rook says, "I wouldn't say it's out of the question. She may also simply do something profoundly, dangerous stupid, though."
<Tac-Paladins> 4 Seras Victoria says, "Understood. I'll... I'll keep an eye on her then!"

    "Ah, zero to one hundred percent correct in six seconds." Lilian ostensibly says to herself. "That might be a new record." Lightning drops down on her. Lilian is also frankly pretty sick of lightning attacks, but she has that down too. The trick to it. The moment the attack takes shape and its energy concentrates into its bolts, locked into position. The minimum distance she has to be relative to the resistance of the air and the ground. She can keep walking until the crackling energy coalesces overhead, and then step forward a little more, allowing the normally unavoidable bolt to crash into the ground thirty feet behind her. "You want some too? You have my pity for being the instrument by which your seething creator projects her impossible fantasies. I'll correct that right away."

    Lilian pops one of the hardcases on what little harness she has, plucks out a fistful of marble-sized stones between her fingers, patterned in calligraphic runes engraved with exacting care, and pitches the majority of them at the Bugster and viral steed turned mini-kaiju with three slashes of her arm, being such a large target it'd be hard to miss even without her dexterity and practice. Where they make physical contact, they merely break, but leave glowing patterns, not dissimilar to the talismans Tamamo is currently busy placing, imprinted on the Bugster's surface, arranged into circles that gradually connect with lines of script.

    The layered curses open a metaphysical spigot, and the monster's energy pours through it. Lilian draings away its energy through all of those contact points at once, coalescing into an outstretched hand, which turns into a clenched fist around a pulsating orb of light, and is then unleashed a roaring lance of reflective, seemingly semi-substantial energy, like a beam of mercury or blown glass lit from within. Where it splashes on the Bugster, it fractures into a glassy spray of prismatic beam-shrapnel that tricks the eye into seeing faded, colourful things within it, from other places and times, but mostly it just dissolves matter into clouds of cold mist like some kind of disintegration beam.
Seras Victoria     Globs of HOT LAVA flying everywhere is a terrible thing. The skies become full of hot molten rock, and Seras is far from happy about this. Normally, dodging that wouldn't be a problem. They move pretty slow. But... she looks left and right. This town, she's here to defend it...

    So, with a hiss of determination, she steels her grit and takes aim... firing swiftly and surely. More explosive shells are launched at the ones most likely to hit the town or the battlements directly. Upon contact with the lava the shells instantly explode, filling the sky with explosions. These blasts scatter the lava globs in all directions - and some of that will definitely still land on town and the battlements, but likely not as much to pose a danger. Nothing that a few buckets of water can't put out, unless someone ends up with a glob on their back...

    But this plan has its problem. A few splatters are still headed straight for Seras. She's forced to block one with the side of a cannon. But a second slips through her defenses and strikes the unused rounds of her exposed feed belt...

    "Aahh-- everyone get away--!" With only a half-second to realize the impending doom, Seras moves with lightning speed to ditch the bulky harness and leaps away but--

    but the cacaphony of explosions engulfs her before she can leap away.

    She's hurled from the battlements as a dozen shells explode. Flying like a ragdoll, only to crash and roll and clatter along the ground, clutching one of the two cannons in pain and terror. She's covered in burns and cuts and bleeding nastily from several of them. For a human, these wounds would easily be fatal.

    For about ten seconds she just gasps in agony there on the ground, struggling and groaning. And yet...

    "Hhhhhngggggh... I'm... I'm still okay... I think...!" She pushes up onto her feet, blood dripping down every limb, but she seems to be fairly... intact. And she still has one cannon and a good dozen rounds to work with.

    "Walter's... not going to be happy. I hope the Paladins cover that one." Really, she can only imagine what sort of cost goes into making hardware like that. And it's not a happy number.

    She takes aim again at the beast, and this time takes much more careful aim. Another few shots fly out towards it, aimed carefully towards what she HOPES are vitals.
Staren     Old memories and emotions have put Staren in a bad place. Arguing on the radio, she sounds increasingly unhinged, bitter anger and uncertainty creeping into her voice as she's pushed again and again. She can see she's losing, but isn't thinking clearly enough to shut up, throwing increasingly desperate verbal punches to keep the horde back. It's bluff and bluster -- it wouldn't have gotten to this point if she weren't already out of her competence zone.

    And then something reminds her that before the dark times, there was an age when even a naive, teenage Staren wasn't completely hated, when she went out and made friends. Even if none of them are here now and a certain cheerful but often-flustered voice just happens to remind her of someone from back then.

    'Cheerful but often-flustered'? Where'd *that* classification come from? Is that kinda how Staren seems to people now? No time for *that* introspection now.

    Pulled out of that emotional pit for a moment, Staren's able to notice that... Bercilak actually *agreed* with her? A logical argument was *listened* to? Woah. The truth is, though, that she doesn't actually KNOW Cantio had a psychic check the bugsters; that was a desperate bluff. Bercilak is right that it'd be a good idea to have a powerful psychic double-check after the fight, but...

    There's a part of Staren urging her to put her mind at ease by checking now. If she can just get a moment free to...

<Q-Conversation> Persephone Kore says warmly, "Hey, Staren! You're 'powerful psychics' now."
<Q-Conversation> Staren says, "Heh. Did you read my mind?"
<Q-Conversation> Persephone Kore says, "Ahaha. Maybe!"

    Staren lands a couple dozen meters away from the thick of the fight, and turns towards the BDF... only to see one grow into a larger monster and

<Tac-Concord> 4 Staren says, "W-why is it attacking us?!"
<Tac-Concord> 4 Cantio says, "Dammit. It ate too much, I think. That's... Unfortunate."

    Honestly, a panicked 'I don't know!' might have been more reassuring. Did Cantio know this could happen? Oh, Cantio, what have you done...?

    An amber dome of force surrounds the armor, and underneath that blue-light white flashes over the Samson again as Staren pours power into defenses and tries to focus on the ocean of stars and pick out the bugsters' and their surface thoughts and emotions, if any.

    FIRE LIGHTNING rains down on her, the outer forcefield cracking, thinning, and glowing whiter as it starts to overload; parts inside the armor spark and smoke as it shuts down to avoid completely breaking. The invisible armor spell over the armor can be sort of seen as FIRE LIGHTNING heats it up and melts holes through it, scorching and melting the physical armor underneath.

    Staren raises her left arm. It's dramatic with the sword and all, but it's the missile launcher that fires, twin mini-missiles arcing through the air to come down on the rampaging bugster while Staren draws some kind of power-armor-scale rifle with crystals on the bottom of the magazine and the barrel; looking close one could see the wires running close over the surface, painted black to match it, this one looks more professional and finished than a rushed prototype.

    She aims at the rogue Bugster's slime mount and fires on full-auto, jamming magical essence into the gun to fire an endless stream of telekinetic force-bolts, imitating the railgun slugs the weapon originally fired. Targeting and tracking systems will move her arms automatically.

    Right now she has to focus on asking why they are the way they are, although that's not quite how Staren's mind phrases it, this time:

    First, on the bugster still doing its job:

                                 What Are You?                                  

    And then, on the one now going on a rampage:

                            Why are you doing this?                            
Cantio When the lightning comes down, even Cantio isn't spared its wrath. She brings out her sword and flings it over head, dispersing the bulk of the lightning while shielding her head with her other arm from the flames that follow downwards. Although she grimaces in pain, her expression is considerably less animated than it was moments ago.

"Dammit. It ate too much, I think. That's... Unfortunate." She looks resigned to something, but it's not clear what yet.

Tamamo's inspection of the wolf reveals that the Virus is something else entirely, even if she were to ask other people. It appears that these creatures are a mystery to basically everyone, although the Bugster eating one of the larger types certainly seemed to do a number on it if the fighting outside is any indication. The leader of the town is rather focused on that fight, too, barely responding at first when she approaches.

"Huh? Oh, perfect. Great. We don't really have any enemies out here, so this should be perfect if it works." The oldster breathes a sigh of relief. "And if nothing comes around, then there's no reason for Cantio to bringing those monsters around!" Indeed, Tamamo has it fairly easy going around the town to set up this barrier between her superhuman abilities and the fact that this town is largely made of right angles.

The buildings are boxes. The walls are boxes. The streets are straight lines. It's easy to get around, if a little dull.

W takes the high road, aiming right for the transformed Bugster's face. It watches him as he ascends, and it barely even moves as he starts kicking the shit out of its face. It brings up many of its spears as he does, but its initial thrusts go way off course thanks to the aforementioned kicks to the head and the power of WIND throwing its aim off, leaving its face even more open to yet more kicks to the face that have it staggering around.

When those kicks stop, however, the spears all point at W at once. They come in like an iron maiden, aiming to skewer the Rider before he can even hit the ground! When he does, though, he'll be able to see that the untransformed Bugster is remaining safely away from all this bullshit. Even without speaking a word, it seems to possess a far greater sense of self-preservation than the lance-wielder.

One advantage the lance-wielder seems to have, however, is the ability to understand what Bercilak's saying (mostly). It actually listens when he speaks, and it actually raises a fist to pound its chest to signal 'itself' for the first question. "M... Me! It's for me!"

Also, it can speak. "I'm... Free. I'm going to be... Free!" It screams in response to the second question, bringing one of its arms up to try catching Bercilak in mid-flight as it recognizes the threat of getting chopped up by that axe. It can't quite keep up with the green knight at its size, though, getting each swung hand and lance battered aside before carving into its rubbery-metallic armor with smoking gashes forming in the aftermath.

"... And speak English!" It also doesn't have much patience, apparently.
Cantio When Lilian approaches, the spider lancer actually laughs. "Confident, aren't you... Shut up!" It bellows with little tact even compared to what it was displaying earlier, kicking up its front legs as she starts hurling those weird marbles forward. When they don't seem to do anything (immediately) visible, however, it laughs again while spinning its weapons overhead.

"Too easy... Too easy!" It cackles, but its actual swing is slower than even it expected. Some of those spears even drag along the ground before it swings them up to try and catch her with those miniature trees, whirling itself around to really add some momentum to that blow.

Unluckily for the giant Bugster, its spinning maneuver has it facing Seras right about when she fires those giant shells right into its gut. They come out cleanly through the other side in an explosion of sparks, and it lurches back a few steps as it recoils from the pain. It tips backwards, too, as if it's about to keel backwards, then straightens up suddenly while using that momentum to bring a spear up over its head.

".. Psyche!" And then it flings a lightning-lava infused spear at Seras, nearly flipping itself over with the force of that toss. That leaves its mount undefended, however, when Staren's shots start tearing into it and ripping it apart. It falls over from that completely, opting to abandon its mount and instead running at Staren on its own feet. It's not as fast as before, but it's still got massive strides thanks to its size. It leaps at the last moment, keeping itself suspended in midair from the force of its stabs  as it tries impaling each of those spears right into the power armor.
Cantio The silver Bugster, watching the battle alongside Cantio, has already stopped trying to eat all of that floating data in sight. It rumbles quietly as the red Bugster continues raging about, and it doesn't notice that Staren is probing into its mind.

It's a knight. That's what it was created to be, something to protect what it can no longer remember clearly. It remembers beds, and it remembers small bottles. It remembers charts, and frightening people in coats. It remembers being given a choice. It no longer remembers the choice.

The red rampaging Bugster, meanwhile, has thoughts far easier to parse. It craves violence. It always craved violence. It remembers being violent even before now, but it doesn't remember why or how. It remembers liking it. It remembers steel bars, manacles, and eating sludge. It remembers being given a choice. It no longer remembers the choice.
Shotaro Hidari The lances close in like an iron maiden.  It's impossible to get out of this, but W tries regardless of the odds.  Sparks clash where the lances hit, and the Kamen Rider hits the ground /hard/, incurring more damage but avoiding being completely skewered.  Rolling to his feet, Shotaro's body is starting to approach its limit, and both Shotaro and Philip know that.  "Try a Memory Break, Shotaro...they're not Dopants, but it might work to free them just the same."

"Yeah, alright.." Shotaro says in response and pulls out a purple USB stick.  He pushes a button on it, and the memory speaks out.  "JOKER." It says as it teleports from his hand into the side slot on his belt.  "MAXIMUM DRIVE."

W rises into the air, the wind itself carrying him.  It's a localized tornado at this point until he reaches a height at least a story or two over the Bugster.  "JOKER EXTREME!" two voices call out as one, as the Kamen Rider splits perfectly down the middle, the purple side with a slight lead.  This is followed by the green half, aiming a one-two punch of RIDER KICK into the Bugster.

Post explosion, W stands, directly behind the Bugster.  
Seras Victoria     Lightning and lava spears?! It happens so fast that despite being in the wide open field, the spear catches Seras straight through the gut. She howls in pain as the thing goes clean through her, barely missing her spine, burning and zapping her all the while. With a HOLE THROUGH HER, Seras topples over, gurgling in pain. The wound isn't bleeding too much thanks to the searing heat partially cauterizing it, but the injury has her dropping to her knees and hissing in agony, crying bloody tears from the pain and trying not to scream.

    What to do...? Really, no, what?

    Seras unsteadily stumbles back up to her feet, still clutching her weapon and what's left of her ammo...

    Too many more hits like that, and she might really die. The thought has her terrified and vision narrowing in panic.

    That thing. That thing which ate the gigantic crab and became a crab, it has to die first. It must die quickly and decisively. It has to die. There's no running from that thing, it will just gun her down with more spears.

    The Draculina's eyes narrow with a streak of renewed determination and something between survival instincts and battle fury. She leans forward and enters a hyper-swift dash, swinging that cannon around in one arm like it weighs nothing. She arrives in no time at all at close range and moves in an uncanny way, leaping up onto its body and taking a few more short leaps to get onto its back. Once atop it, she takes aim at whatever chinks in the armor she can find, and attempts to RAM the Harkonnen cannon's barrel down and wedge it between the plating, to aim clear at vitals.

    From there, it's just a simple feat of pulling the trigger. Again and again and again.
Rubi-Kan Vagrants      Are they the most eloquent answers? The most well thought out? The most profound? No. It didn't even answer all three questions before losing patience. But it did give answers. It does have patience to lose. Something is going on in there, more than just animal intelligence. In such matters as mapping out the exact extent, Bercilak trusts that Staren has it handled.

     Perhaps it is a person, or closer to one than the earlier discussion would imply. If that's true, then it means that this betrayal is a willful act, not the lashing out of a mindless beast. Its heart yearns for freedom--freedom, perhaps, from Cantio. Bercilak's fist rears back and collides with the Bugster's, sending out a shockwave of force that rattles the chest. Its fist slides past his and strikes that massive chassis, turning him around.

     He cuts off his thrusters, falls to the ground and cracks it with his bulk when he lands on his feet. His back is turned to the Bugster. "Al men lest of frenesse." His healing field sweeps over W when the rider lands from making his attack. Despite the explosion, he remains on his feet, prime target for a backstab from one of those lances. "A gret mani mo hath it alredi thanne wouldst ithinke so--thyself so als. Thy felwe," he says, motioning the axe towards the Bugster near Cantio, "Usen thire mo witfulli than thee." It's too late to make a covenant with this one. If W's kick doesn't kill it, then Lilian certainly will--she's got that look in her eye.

     Whatever last-ditch attack may come his way, whatever umbrage the towering Bugster may take at being ignored, Bercilak strides over to the one near Cantio. "Thy felwe," he says, gesturing to the bigger bugster, "Lest of frenesse. And thee? What dost thou coveit? And what wouldst thou do, wert it yeven unto thee?" He's gotten close enough, step by plodding, clanking step, that he doesn't have to raise his voice over Seras' Harkonnen. Much.
Tamamo     The viruses are strange creatures, but that's fine. All that Tamamo really needs to understand about them is what they look like, both to her and to each other. The ability to identify 'a virus' is what she builds into her talismans, making slight edits to a stack of unfinished barrier talismans she'd kept on-hand for just such an occasion of field customization. That way, they won't interfere with anyone else coming or going from town, even if she doesn't supply them with keys or passphrases, which have their own vulnerabilities.

    While walking about, Tamamo looks for anyone who might have the resources to help her. These don't seem a particularly religious folk, so she has little hope of finding an appropriate emplacement in which to enshrine the center of her array. But if she can convince someone with the raw materials to aid her, even a collection of stones, placed together, will serve. Such is beyond her usual inventory, as far-reaching as the secret compartments of her clothing are, but even if only some stone is supplied, or if there is a very conveniently placed tree, she can supply the rope and hemp shide, herself.

    At least the simplicity of the place makes the measurements quick and simple. There are only so many ways one may need to section a collection of squares. The corners are the most important, followed by the South, and then the East. And, lastly, "All lines cross at the center, and from here, the haze of illusion, and its message of harmonious peace, will reside."

    The center is the most important point, which is exactly why she arrives there last, completes its talisman last -- almost entirely constructed on the spot -- and activates it with her own, outflowing power, unmistakably of the Goddess of the Sun. "May the eyes of beasts be blinded, and turn aside."
Staren     They don't remember who they were. The people they were are, indeed, basically gone, not trapped inside and suffering. Half-alive might be an apt way to describe the bugsters' states, but whatever they are, they aren't tortured by existence. The rampaging one has somehow become entirely focused on violence, though. It needs to be put down.

                                      PAIN                                      

    Someone screams! They... they hurt... so badly? Wait, no, that's

    Pain. Flesh isn't where it should be. Something hot and wet is running down her body. It hurts to breathe. It hurts. EVERYTHING HURTS!

    Staren opens her eyes. Medical warnings flash on her HUD. Stop trying to breathe, IT HURTS! Inject oxygenated-- wait, no, will it just bleed right out of her? IT HURTS!! Inject oxygenated synthetic blood cells into neck arteries only. The brain has to keep going. IT HURTS Medichines kicking in. But something still stings. IT HURTS

    Everyone else, of course, could clearly see the spider-lancer-bugster just driving spears into Staren while she was distracted. If that's armor and her body's inside it, that's... not good.

    The world comes back into focus. There are spears in her and a rogue, violent bugster in her face. Am I going to die? I made sure I wouldn't. Focus on the fight! If its weapons are stuck in her, she has a rare tactical opportunity. Mentally controlling the power armor directly while her body is yanked around like a doll inside it, she twists her torso slightly to yank him off balance IT HURTS and screams, or she would if she had any air left in her lungs, instead making a sad, creaky 'aaaa' sound that barely escapes her helmet. With the sword in her left hand she tries to skewer the bugster through the side, with her right she just holds the gun up to it point blank and lets loose with full-auto again, technology converting and amplifying magical energy into unrelenting force. Persephone often laments that this sort of 'reality' is more real than fragile minds; now that Staren has asked why, her inventions ask many more questions about the stress tolerance of bugster flesh and bone.

    Behind the visor, Staren grits her teeth and glares, but even if the Bugster could see it any intimidation might be somewhat ruined by the whole 'coughing up blood' part. Well, more like sort of gurgling, it hurts too much to cough.

    There was something important. I have to tell them! She has to breathe. OW *cough* OW *cough* fortunately, her voice on the radio can be synthesized:

    <"They're not who they were anymore. They're not suffering. All they know is purpose. That ones' is 'Protection' but it has forgotten what. All this one knows is violence. Put it down.">
Lilian Rook     "Well well. I certainly didn't expect you'd get an *answer* from it, jolly green." Lilian says to Bercilak, now thoroughly, extremely, unamused. "But I suppose I have to take back what I said before. I don't really feel that pity anymore."

    She is currently in a point blank crossup between a half dozen flaming-crackling spears that are each several times her size. For the sheer scale and quantity to the whirlwind of attacks the giant Bugster is able to throw out, it barely has to aim. The spaces, the moments, for Lilian to be are narrow. She can fade backwards from an initial volley of stabs, leap high under an earth-churning sweep, then use her aerial movement to sharply flatten her trajectory back beneath a wild swing through the air, but then she is at the midpoint of enough charged points that tongues of lightning leap and crawl from the lances themselves, and swirls of fire collect between the thrashing weapons.

    She has to accept the inevitable damage to her suit's boots and legs to suddenly spin around in mid-air and kick free from a wild overhead, spin herself to gather momentum and clash with the next thrust by striking it with Night Mist herself, hurling the spear and herself in opposite directions, and then break her collision with the ground into enough of a tumbling roll to leap back just in time to avoid being skewered by the following stab. Material blackens and peels below her knees and past her wrists, but she continues to remain close enough that the energy will still flow from the giant and into her.

    Then, seizing the perfect opportunity, Lilian blips backwards from one more lung and uses her own powerful overhead against the side of the lance to drive it into the ground, and then use her own blade's leverage to launch herself parallel past it without touching. With another of its weapons arrested by Staren's body, Lilian kicks forward against the Samson's shoulders to accelerate further, a streak of ghastly red light developing in her wake, and then in the same motion, passes by the Bugster's head for a decapitating strike, and bluntly tackles Seras around the midsection as the ammo runs low to carry her far away from the monster about to eat combined finisher shit with her momentum.

    Back on the ground, she removes her own rifle from its hardpoint across her back, and tosses it to Seras, saying "Take a shot once you have one. If you can't stand, just stay on your back. There's no need to get that crazy on your first mission; we're all plenty impressed." She raises her voice for Staren, ostensibly not entirely aware of how much pain she is in at the moment.

    "I could have told you that already. I suppose I could commend you for finding out yourself, no matter what, but now look where you are. You've taken that spear from your own ally, just to try and prove that she isn't as useless as we know she is. That deranged experiment is a failure. It was never going to succeed. It shouldn't have happened from the start. So for your own sake, drop the theatrics now, and stop getting yourself half-killed by the one you're trying to protect. She doesn't deserve it."
Cantio That's not a good place for the Bugster to be. Those shots from Seras' cannon are enough to tear right through the monster's body from top to bottom on their own, never mind the fact that she's doing it at close range. Its thrashing grows considerably weaker as it tries to get the vampire off its back, swinging one hand back to try and flatten her with its spear against her.

That doesn't quite work, though, as it can't even muster the strength to pull that weapon away once it realizes someone's pulling it forward. It looks down, and it realizes that it's being yanked right into Staren's counterattack. It weakens further as she adds to the shots going into its face and body, sparks bursting from top to bottom as the repeated stabs turn it into a physically unstable mess.

In its thrashing, it tries to reach Bercilak, but it can't quite reach him as he steps away to address the silver Bugster. Instead, it finds its last spear quickly arrested by Lilian slamming that weapon into the dirt with her own. It looks up at the streak of light, spotting it just in time for that slash to the neck to nearly cleave it right off. Indeed, its head is hanging on by the seams. It reaches up to try and steady itself, but there's little else it can do when it sees W rising into the air.

Although the Bugster might not be a Dopant, it certainly has several characteristics of one: Monstrous, rubbery, fully capable of gravity-defying acrobatics. It has many of the weaknesses of one, too: Bug-headed men in funky suits, flying kicks, and explosions that nobody's looking at. It thrashes around as JOKA EGGSTREEM double kicks it right in the everything, grasping the spear in the ground to try and force itself to stay upright. Alas, the ensuing explosions from everyone beating the everloving shit out of it turn it into little more than burnt rubber and pixelated gunk.

The Red Bugster explodes to the cheers of the townspeople, but Cantio doesn't join in that revelry. Instead, she's staring at the silver Bugster as it stares at Bercilak. Its head tilts slowly to the side after he finishes speaking, and Cantio catches on eventually, leaning over to translate for the Bugster. She looks rather curious, too, as it rumbles again while leaning over slowly in thought. Eventually, it does speak in a more eloquent, if slower tone than its red compatriot.

"I... Will fight. I want to protect..." It struggles to finish that answer, visibly distraught despite its face being a rubber-metal mask. "I don't know. I need to protect... It. That is my job. What is it...?" Whatever it is, it's certainly in line with what Staren said.

As that awkwardness continues with the silver knight, things are considerably less awkward inside the town. The townspeople and guard alike are relaxing visibly when it looks like the red Bugster is finally destroyed, and it's child's play for Tamamo to get to work inside the town. Thankfully, she doesn't actually have to do the work herself, as there's more than enough people loitering around (whether to watch the fight or gawk at Elites from outside) that are willing to aid her in Stone Quest. The barrier is completed without much problem, and with any luck, it should remain in place to protect this fledgling town from further Virus incursions. All that's left is sorting out the considerably more uncomfortable situation outside.
Cantio For better or for worse, Cantio has yet to approach the town gate directly. She's stated a clear intent to address the people prior to this whole mess, but now, she seems uncertain. It's not until she sees Staren's injuries that she snaps out of her funk, approaching her power-armor'd ally to offer a shoulder despite the size difference.

If nothing else, at least she's not heading into the town during this high-tension state in all of this. She's certainly not hiding her animosity towards Lilian, though, as the latter's words have her grimacing and looking about ready to lash out. It's probably one of the few times anyone's seen Cantio show actual anger and not just fight-frowning.
Shotaro Hidari A gust of wind blows over the Kamen rider, as the rider suit is blasted off leaving Shotaro there.  He grabs his hat to keep it on his head as he walks to stand in front of the town, and turns to face Cantio.  What is said happens over the radio, but he stands there making his point seen as well as heard.  

"I will protect these people then, they want to stay independent, because of what you're trying to do," there is a long pause, "And because of what you're doing to yourself."

Shotaro does not call her out on something, but she likely knows exactly what he's saying to her, and not just the 'doing this thing everyone here mostly considers evil'.  His face stops trying to be hard, warmth creeping into it.  He tries to keep his composure, but he's not his boss.  Shotaro is his own man.  "There are other ways...but if you think you're too deep down in whatever you are doing..."

He points a finger at her, "Then I'll have to drag you out of it," He says all but Jojo posing.  
Rubi-Kan Vagrants      "One god turn erns an other, Lilian," says the Green Knight, looking over his shoulder as the smoke clears. -Was- the experiment a failure? There are other Bugsters. This one, in particular, he would speak with. His gaze slowly, heavily fixates on the remaining knight.

     They want to protect 'it.' That's something. "Verily?" His voice inflects upwards in interest. The axe disappears. "Profren I to thee a covenant--a combre weghti shalt thou bere, ak in eschaunge I shalt lift an other from thy schuldere." The bugster is the only figure reflected in that pitiless black T-visor of his bucket helm. "Twice shalt I fraist thee, whanne and quar and hau I chese; enjugien thee."

     He doesn't say so, because saying so would invalidate the whole exercise--but he knows the manner of the two tests already. He knows what he shall judge. Righteousness, temperance, generosity, friendship, and compassion. To truly demonstrate these things is often a difficult trial even for those with full command of their memories, who are themselves fully awake. But this Bugster agrees, and proves itself capable... that would poke another hole in the notion that they're half-people.

     It is an incredible burden, to prove that one is a person in the face of those determined to see otherwise. The Green Knight knows it is a burden others may ask of this knight anyway, by the very nature of the situation here. Cantio's eagerness to prove herself. Staren's desire to stand by her friend. W--or at least, one half of them--and his desire to turn Cantio down a different path, and to destroy the Bugsters. He has always known Tamamo to look deeper than the surface level, and to show admirable commitment to it, even in times of danger. And Lilian... Bercilak figures that she's the sort who tests people simply by being present.

     If the Bugsters are to endure all of that scrutiny, they ought to have someone who can be their voice. The Green Knight extends his hand. "If thou'rt ben greed, thanne take my hond, and make we oure covenant."
Tamamo     With ample help from willing townsfolk, Tamamo has built what may be fairly called a 'charmingly quaint' shrine. The primitiveness does nothing at all to dampen its effect, of course. Greater temples are ever constructed because it is humans who wish to demonstrate their skill, rather than because the divine would not visit blessings upon those of simple means.

    She claps happily when it's done, forgetting entirely to ask for any sort of payment or reward for her services. Lilian will doubtlessly remember such things for her, and handle the messier business. She usually does.
Seras Victoria     One moment Seras is pumping that monster full of explosive shells in some kind of dizzied panic, and the next... her instincts flare. She turns to look at Lilian mere moments before the tackle, and gives Lilian a wide-eyed 'WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?' look with red glowing eyes shifting back to a calmer blue - then is promptly tackled clean off the Bugster.

    With an 'ooof' she hits the ground again, rolls for a bit, but scrambles to her feet just in time to see WHY Lilian tackled her away from the ensuing onslaught. "God, that's crazy!" Yes, she considers things like Rider Kicks pretty crazy, not at all sure what to make of what she just saw. Her jaw does drop a bit. It's like her own feat of wielding the Harkonnen isn't crazy at all in comparison. "Thanks for getting me clear... I'll be alright... as long as I don't take more hits like those. Owww." Even now, the bleeding has stopped, although she certainly LOOKS to be a mess.

    But she grabs the rifle with her free hand, grateful. Her Harkonnen is now out of ammo, after all, and the other cannon and whatever remaining ammo are in it is kinda all the way over in the battlements, likely doused by a bucket brigade by now.

    With the main threat down, her gaze sweeps across the battlefield, looking for anything else that might be moving towards the town in a threatening manner. If there are any more of the little monsters left, she'll use Lilian's rifle after getting a feel for its heft.
Staren     The power armor's visor remains expressionless. For better or worse, Staren's not letting people see the state she's in at this juncture. Her words come out oddly spaced for the neutral, synthesized inflection. "How... dare... you... The Concord... is... family! SHE didn't hurt me..."

    '...as useless as we know she is.' Lilian said. It is exactly how I felt the Concord saw ME, back then. No. No one should be made to feel that way. Not ever! Not my worst enemy, let alone Cantio!

    "She's NOT. USELESS. How dare you say that... about anyone..." Under the helmet, she gurgles up blood. Need air. Can't breathe.

    Lilian snipes: 'I suppose abusive relationships are like this.' Staren had venom earlier, but Lilian really does seem to do this as naturally as breathing.

    "Persephone said you're a good person. You just get frustrated sometimes. Please, stop it, cool off, and you can verbally beat me up when it doesn't hurt so much to breathe if it'll make you feel better."

    Cantio comes close. More quietly, Staren asks, "Do you know how to properly carry a patient? Call medics here. No, on second thought...if you can just get me to a medbay faster... You can't hurt me worse than time will..."

    The power armor pulls the spears out of itself, which is fortunately too loud for Cantio to hear the faint 'aaaa' sounds of pain. Then it opens up, Staren's bodysuit soaked in blood below the holes and under her chin. How is she still conscious?? She must be full of an awful lot of drugs... She's not bleeding so much any more, at least, thanks to the surgeon micro-machines. Staren pounds her chest and sputters up blood until it stops and she can take small gasps. When she's breathing somewhat stably albeit shallowly, she nods to Cantio and cooperates with however she's being carried.
Lilian Rook     Lilian, with her immediate business concluded, turns to the next item: the other Bugster.

    Which Bercilak is doing an entire Green Knight routine with. Lilian presses her fingertips together over the hilt of her sword, and stares over the both of them, making a face like she doesn't know how to explain something to him, and then apparently just gives up.

    "You're an unhinged one, you know that? And not for the fighting or the awful motorcycle. Whatever. If nothing else, I've not known 'the legendary Green Knight' to break his promises."

    And then, as promised, she heads out to check on the person Tamamo had informed her is the town's leader, now *very* justifiably upset by the premise of Cantio's 'defense force' defending them at all; which, of course, plays right into her hands. She's going to have a nice discussion about footing the bill for a private security force of the town's choosing, to be stationed alongside Tamamo's barrier for the immediate future, and this whole 'withdrawing from Cadenza' thing. Specifically, the attractive benefits of declaring an alliance with the Commonwealth instead.
Cantio Luckily, there don't appear to be any more threats approaching the (still unnamed) town as Seras sweeps the area. Anything wandering by in the distance is still fair game, of course, but that's up to Seras to weigh the risks of drawing more attention from things that aren't actively approaching this town.

"I... I appreciate what you're doing, Mister Shotaro. You, Hibiki, Mister Bercilak..." Cantio rubs her face as she looks over the field briefly and all the destruction that took place from the battle. All the destruction that could have been, but stopped just outside of the town's gate. She even manages something resembling a smile, but it's rather haggard despite barely fighting much herself today.

"... But I'm afraid it's not as simple as just that and letting these people be independent. It's whether they realize what it means to claim this territory within Cadenza as their own. To... Declare this territory as their own within another Drive's borders." She looks uncomfortable saying that, and she doesn't elaborate further on just what that means, although she seems confident that the meaning is clear enough.

Plus, she's got her hands a little full with trying to assist Staren. Healing magic only goes so far when it comes to closing up wounds, but proper treatment will have to wait until they've actually left. "I've got a way to get us out of here... Ah. Where's my..."

While Cantio holds a finger to the side of her head to speak with someone on another line, Bercilak addresses the silver Bugster again. It once again levels a blank rubber faced stare at him until Cantio remembers to translate for it. It maintains that look for a while, as though weighing its options, but it noticeably doesn't look at Cantio for guidance before nodding slowly. It also seems to be speaking a bit more casually, too, as though it's getting more accustomed to speaking. "I will take it. Your tests. In my time... I went uphill twice in the snow."

Once the silver Bugster is finished speaking with Bercilak, Cantio finally takes hold of Staren's arm and the Bugster's head gingerly. "Alright... Let's go." And then, unless she's stopped or Staren asks her to hold off, the trio are teleported right into Concord's medical department next to...

Another Cantio, but in medical scrubs. Weird.

Tamamo's shrine, quaint as it may be, will reveal its worth in the coming weeks. With the town disguised as 'some Virus hole', it'll be easy enough for the local defenders to just shoot the few things that come by instead of having to fight entire groups of them at once. Conveniently for Tamamo, however, the townspeople are also rather insistent about trying to find her and give her adequate payment for these services. If nothing else, the people here do insist on actually rewarding people actively instead of just hoping someone will come by to save them time and time again out of the goodness of their hearts.

That, or they just don't want to make any enemies when they're already in a precarious position out here. There's still the looming threat overhead of what it really means to declare themselves independent for all the Drives the of this world to see, and that concern seems to be the only thing stopping the leader from jumping on Lilian's offer of aid as far as making such a declaration goes: They don't want to declare war on Cadenza.

As with Tamamo's forgetfulness in being owed a debt, meanwhile, the town's leader is also wary of creating a new one with Lilian offering to foot the bill (although she is thanked repeatedly for the offer). They do, however, try to look for a way to reciprocate such potential aid with something they can do, although it's pretty clear that they don't have much to offer as of yet.
Rubi-Kan Vagrants      Bercilak removes his helmet, cradling it beneath his arm and throwing his head back in a sonorous bit of laughter. Unhinged? "Yea, verily." His blood red irises gleam with mirth. Someone ought to be--someone ought to get in the weeds and bring questions like this into the light, even if it's not the original reason for coming someplace. The answers are often illuminating, in more ways than one.

     There's one last thing. Staren has skin in this game, sticking up for someone she cares about, for one, and for two, seemingly wanting to believe in the Bugsters' personhood as much as in Cantio. She wanted it badly enough to get skewered. That is worth a token of his favor.

     His armor disappears, after the covenant is made. Cantio and the Bugster are the first to see the stretched black slogan tee beneath it. A bodybuilder flees from a classic flying saucer UFO, the tractor beam of which sucks up great portions of a cityscape in chaos. MY SMILE IS REAL, reads the top half, and across the bottom, AND SO IS MY ASS. Heavy motorcycle boots beat prints into the digital earth as he strides over to Staren.

[Local Broadband] Staren: What is it, Bercilak?
Executing nanoprogram Ambient Regeneration...

     Simply being in his presence is being awash in microsurgeons specifically designed to keep his unhinged ass alive. An army of nanites bolsters Staren's, spot-synthesizing anaesthetics, disinfectants and fabricating purpose-built bots to treat her wounds and any complications thereof. "For what it may esteme, thou hath todai oferned som mesure of my respect."
Staren     Seriously, this sucks. Drugs and nanosurgeons are keeping her conscious but life is balancing pain with her need to breathe and she has to deal with Lilian too? It's enough to wear anyone's patience to the bone within seconds. She has no reason to be mad at Bercilak *in particular*, her glare at him is entirely due to how she's feeling *in general*.

    After he heals her, her eyes widen in surprise. She cautiously, hesitantly, breathes in deep... and then sighs, relieved, leaning against Cantio just a second or two longer before standing up, and brushing a hand over where fresh skin is exposed, surrounded by bloody bodysuit. She takes another deep breath, then smiles at Bercilak, "THANK you." Beat. "...For being reasonable, too."

    If she's in good enough shape now, she thanks Cantio for the offer of a ride but says she'll hang out here for a bit to talk and then walk her power armor home.