Scene #6219: GH - Prelude to Hope

Owner	Pose
Sanary Rondel	LAST TIME: A sword embedded in a stone had been left at a temple by a mysterious benefactor, offering a generous donation in exchange for holding onto the artifact. Elites from around the Multiverse gathered to heed the temple's call for assistance, learning that the kingdom had banned the unlicensed use and possession of swords. Serena, a swordswoman revealed to have been the Royal Knights' former commander, warned the Elites about an impending attack by the kingdom's Royal Knights followed by said knights setting fire to the temple. The Elites went in several directions, some fighting their way through town with the sword in tow, others choosing to investigate the knights and the town, and yet others seeking to ally themselves with the Royal Knights. The sword was brought to a cemetary at the outskirts of town where it revived a skeleton warrior clad in gold. _______________________________ NOW: With the dust cleared from the Royal Knights' robot being finished off by the golden warrior's flames, the Elites and Serena are now faced with yet another oddity: The golden warrior lashing out at the red swordswoman as she parries its mighty blows with her shield. "What the hell is this thing? Is it working for those knights, too?" Sanary furrows her brow as she steps forward with her axe drawn, watching the undead warrior and Serena closely. Oddly enough, the skeleton doesn't seem to even notice Sanary, and Serena seems reluctant to do anything more than push the warrior back or step aside to avoid its blows rather than fighting back outright. It's a stalemate!
August Kohler	August Kohler and the Tin Soldier are here. They had helped in getting the sword to safety, and fighting the robots, but when the sword revived a skeleton, August was very confused (and also a bit injured, though Sanary's recurring heals are helpful). Regardless of his confusion... He can't allow Serena to get hurt after she helped them. The Tin Soldier dashes forward, moving to body slam the skeleton's waist and push it backwards, trying to create distance for Serena. "Hey, skeleton!" August would shout out after the body slam, despite knowing it might be futile. "The hell's your problem?" To the others, August would speak as well. "Check to see if any other knights are coming. We don't want to get in a three-way battle."
Krusty	Once the large robot is finished off, Krusty turns to watch as the skeleton warrior proceeds to shift over and engage Serena. He shifts his large two-handed sword to rest on his shoulder as he observes the former Royal Knight's moves. Not bad. At Sanary's questions, Krusty doesn't bother with the first one. The answer to that should be pretty evident. As for the second, he hmmms thoughtfully, "I doubt it. I suspect it actually dislikes the Royal Knights." To Serena, Krusty advises, "I suggest you yield to the skeleton, my lady. It would appear to be singling you out due to your former association with said knights."
Note	There's a SECOND 'golden warrior' at this battle. Young Note's joined with the gang by this point, still in her Super Saiyan blaze. Her aura's waving about wildly while the fight commences, showing little control of her Ki in this state. On the other hand... "C-creeeeeeeepy...." Though she HAS plenty of power to go around, the sight of an ANIMATED SKELETON is easily enough to have her just standing there in shock, shaking a bit. Not so much fear as complete and utter disgust and confusion.
Orchid	Robot out of the way, Orchid is recovering her wits. "Well, whoever skullguy is, I think he's on our side, at least in terms of keeping the sword from being destroyed," she says, moving to give the skeleton some cover with her body. "What I'd like now are a few more answers about this sword, so if he comes with us..."
Tomoe	The robot is down Tomoe isn't down an out of it and they have managed to get away for the moment. "I got no idea it was a mecha of some sort but it was one hell of a glass cannon really. Other than that I have no idea." She looks to the Skelton for a moment. "Okay this is new...I'm used to being like that trying to kill me not seemingly trying to help." She turns to the green haired woman for a moment. "So just what is going on with this Sword and those Knights?"
Sanary Rondel	As with Sanary, the skeleton warrior doesn't pay any attention to August's question. It continues lashing out at Serena who continues defending against its attacks, albeit not with the same gusto nor screaming it had done when confronting the robot from earlier. Krusty's suggestion draws an odd stare from the green-haired swordswoman as she parries another swing from the golden (skeleton) warrior, circling around it to try and give herself a little more breathing room. "I can't yield here. No.. This warrior is the one that's been foretold to bring light back to this world of darkness. So why...?" Serena hops back as another swings comes her way, prompting an irritated grunt from Sanary as she steps forward again. "So this thing's supposed to be on our side, yeah." Nodding to Orchid, Sanary crooks her mouth slightly. "So if that's the case, cut it out already!" The healer shouts, getting ready to kick forward at it with or without Orchid in her path when the skeleton abruptly stops swinging. It plants its sword in the ground, leaving the healer hanging there with one foot raised until she just sort of stomps forward awkwardly. "... Huh. That worked. So what's this about bringing back light?" Sanary mirrors Orchid's and Tomoe's questions, and Serena turns to the group once more now that she isn't in danger of being decapitated. "I'm the former commander of the Royal Knights. There's been legends passed down by the royal family's ancestors that a magic sword would be what's needed to free ourselves from the darkness. That's why it doesn't make sense why the kingdom is-" Before Serena can continue providing much needed answers, the sounds of battle start to rise from further down the path heading out of the cemetary. A strange, jester-looking man arrives flanked by several soldiers in pink armor, yet more of them advancing steadily to keep a physical wall between the jester and the Elites. "Where did they get that big golden freak? What are you waiting for!? Attack! Do not disgrace me!" The jester shrieks, smacking one of the soldiers on the back of the head before gesturing wildly at the Elites. "And don't forget about those green shmucks Valgar's dealing with, either! Today's just one mess after the other, really!" As the pink soldiers advance on the group with their swords drawn, Serena brings out her own as she shakes off the last of the battering from the golden warrior. "We'll talk about it later! Hurry! Give him an order!" She calls out, starting the fight with a flurry of fireballs towards the soldiers.
Note	Since Serena, Sanary, and the others all seemed to have the situation with the Golden-Skeleton handled, Note... well, Note's about to interrupt what looks like a pretty great duel. Fights should ideally be one-on-one, right? And she's never seen this kind of swordplay before. So the youth's actually pretty content to just watch and be amazed! Up until the Skeleton decides to stop on request. "Huh.... was it just testing her?" Note vaults forward, landing with ease near the Golden Skeleton. She's shorter than it by a full head and a half, but she looks up at it, tail restlessly swinging and curling this way and that behind her. "You're pretty tough! ... but you can't talk, huh?" Of course at this point, here comes the angry Jester. She turns to look down the distant path. "Don't you guys know when to quit? We already beat up a hundred soldiers and blew up that robot." She looks over a shoulder up at the skeleton, having gathered her courage, and says, "Come on goldy, let's knock the wind out of 'em!" Ducking low, Note enters a speedy dash. Speedy enough that the ground's practically torn up beneath her into a dust cloud. In the time between heartbeats, she's -- FWOOOOOSH! Reappearing with her arms folded, right behind the jester-dude, back turned to him. Still transformed, aura still illuminating the ground behind him. Might be a little ominous to feel the wind of aura right behind you! "I'm gonna paint you some new colors - black and blue - unless you wanna take your friends and go!" Assuming that the answer will be 'no' though, Note's not just been standing idly there. Her tail's moved to wrap around the jester's legs. If he DOESN'T answer favorably, well... that tail will LASSO tightly and she'll swing the guy into the ground a few times! Or try to, anyways.
Tomoe	Tomoe has questions for she's fallen into some kind of serious situation here and she's hopefully going to get some answers well she ges a few. Not as many as she'd like. Also what's up with this Skeleton it's hard to tell whose side they are on, as she's about to say something else when more knights show u-p. 5R "Damn it this is going to have to wait till later to talk more." Tomoe gets her shield ready and has her blade out again, she'll move to get into the knights' way as she moves to engage she calls to the Skelton and says "Engage the enemy and help us friend them off." Maybe it wasn't to her but what's the worst it could do, she's now cashing into the enemy sword on should and blocking with her Shield when she can.
August Kohler	The skeleton is revealed to in fact be a friend, and to in fact take orders when commanded to. "Alright, looks like we have an ally now." As answers are provided, August listens, but they get interrupted by a jester and his guards. As Note teleports to trip up the jester, August moves to engage with the mooks, shouting out to the skeleton knight. "What they said! Try and mow down the soldiers in pink!" And then, the Tin Soldier forces forward, fire spraying from its gun to blast into the soldiers and try and melt their armor and force them to surrender (or possibly immolate them in it if they don't, which isn't August's intention to kill them, but it's highly possible because he's playing with fire). August stays behind the Tin Soldier, also watching the skeleton knight. Does it fight like a human...or like a monster?
Krusty	Krusty shrugs as his advice is dismissed. Although, the questions compound as the skeleton appears to follow the order given by Sanary. It's not like Krusty hasn't seen such a thing before. But it's usually reserved for the magic user who summoned the undead in the first place. Krusty glances in the direction of the healer for a moment. Thoughts of potential plots are pushed aside as another group of brightly coloured soldiers arrive to try and attack them. Krusty shakes his head for a moment, starting to walk towards the advancing soldiers, "It would seem they are incapable of learning." Reaching a point some distance in front of the enemy soldiers, Krusty raises his large blade up into the air, causing it to glow. He then swings it down into the ground hard. The light explodes forth, ripping through the terrain and opening a large crevasse that quickly spreads out the further it goes. It'll quickly grow to be large enough to engulf many of the soldiers, cause them to fall quite some distance and potentially become trapped should they survive it.
Orchid	"Of course. Whenever we get to someone about to provide the critical exposition, something comes in to interrupt them," Orchid says with a sigh. "Skull guy, come with us, and keep those soldiers from getting the sword," she directs the skeleton. She also looks at the others... yes, they'll handle fighting, she can help with the healing, depending on how things go.
Sanary Rondel	The Golden Warrior has received its commands, and it begins its advance. Charging alongside Sanary, Tomoe, August, and Orchid, the undead warrior slams into a cluster of soldiers and bowls the lot of them over while smashing whoever's in reach of its magic sword. The golden warrior's weapon is not merely for show, although it seems to function more like a sledgehammer or massive club in the skeleton's hands as it sends soldiers flying with each mighty swing. Those swings it makes aren't random, though, as it even manages to parry multiple blows at once before knocking away another crowd with a two-handed swing in return. As if Sanary needed more things contributing to her complex. Now she's got a skeleton with no physical meat on it showing her up on physical strength. She's working on keeping her allies bolstered with healing magic with Orchid's assistance, though, occasionally embedding her axe into an unlucky soldier's head should one come too close to either of them. "We'll have time to ask about all this later. You got any... I dunno... Robot laser guns in there?" The undead warrior doesn't simply stop where it is, of course. With Note appearing besides the jester, the undead warrior continues charging towards the Saiyan's position as the current frontrunner of the group. As it runs, even more skeletons begin rising from the ground! They're armed with swords and lack much in the way of general mobility, but they attack everyone indiscriminately! The soldiers battle valiantly against the Elites and undead alike, but as with last time? They're way out of their league. They have some skill with those swords, but they can't come close to Tomoe's skill with sword and shield, especially when they dont' have their own shields to match. Those unlucky enough to face August and the Tin Soldier have their armor speeding up the burns at best, forcing those soldiers to fall back as they tend to their injuries. The truly unlucky ones don't even get that chance as they're simply encased in their melting metal cofins. The ones facing Krusty, meanwhile, scatter as they try in vain to escape his earth-splitting blow, several being caught in the earth below while others teeter and become split off from their own reinforcements. "Wha...what now? Eeek! Skeletons! And they've got an overgrown monkey with them, too?! Protect me, you fools!" The jester screeches as Note's tail wraps around him, but he proves to be a slippery one when, instead of being slammed into the ground with a satisfying crunch, he somehow manages to wriggle free and land with a light tumble and starts running. He's incredibly fast, too. A lanky one, he is, and definitely not the sort that looks like he'd stick around for a fight! With Note where she is now, the source of the earlier din of battle becomes more visible: Soldiers in pink as well as soldiers in black are fighting a much smaller force of warriors clad in green. The pink and black soldiers are better equipped with their armor and swords, but the green ones are bearing simpler axes and spears while ducking into the trees and around smaller mausoleums to outmaneuver their better-armed foes. The jester, meanwhile, is weaving through them like a slippery eel given human-ish form. Just how used to running is this guy?
August Kohler	August's fire forces some of the soldiers to fall back...but it kills others, painfully and horribly. August almost pauses in regret, but Sanary's words of 'soldiers are soldiers' surprisingly...help him? They were in his way, after all. As allies can be seen nearby, August ducks towards the smaller mausoleums, moving to assist the green soldiers. "Hey! You guys with us? Actually, as long as you don't attack me, I'll assume yes." More fire sprays out at the pink and black soldiers, aiming primarily for legs and limbs to avoid turning their armor into coffins, but if that permanently cripples or still kills them...well, that's life.
Krusty	Krusty leaves those who fall into his crack in the world be. They could theoretically climb out, but for now they've been rendered ineffective. So the knight turns his attention on those that managed to scatter in time to avoid it. Krusty shows some impressive mobility in his armour as he leaps through the air towards the first soldier, large two-handed sword in one hand sweeping out as he lands. He then spins around, cloak fluttering behind him as he brings his weapon up to parry the next soldier, before smashing the hilt into the soldier's faceplate with enough force to cave it in and likely send him flying. As there is a brief pause in the opponents trying to attack him, Krusty catches sight of the jester trying to flee. He frowns at the sight, "Such a cowardly commander does not deserve the loyalty of those who follow him."
Note	"Say Orchid, I don't suppose you know what's going on in this world anymore than I do?!" Note asks while she watches on, mystified, at the jester who somehow slipped from her grasp. What the heck happened there? She's so amazed at his slipperiness that for a few seconds, she forgets where she even is. In fact, it's almost double when she regains her senses.. and processes what she just heard. Small hands are tightly clenched, turning all but white from the intensity. Note begins to shake with indignation and -- "WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!" An unearthly, pissed off battle roar follows, her golden aura swirling outwards and blazing even more brightly and thickly for a few moments. The ground beneath her's cratered and flung away in no time. Now powered by INDIGNATION, Note blitzes from target to target, wasting only about a tenth of a second on each to deliver a pulverizing but mostly-controlled blow to soft points, heedless of any armor. In fact, with strength like hers on display, the armor might not have a lot of meaning. It might just crumple inwards on impact and restrict breathing. Pink and black alike are her targets!
Orchid	"To be honest, I don't like using my guns," Orchid admits to Sanary, her hands in 'shield' mode to keep incoming attacks away from the flanks of others. "So what is known about the darkness that this sword is supposed to help defeat?" she asks. She's not too worried about the lives of the enemy soldiers, but she isn't going to do anything to hasten their ends. "And Note, let me recap as best I can. This kingdom has a prophecy about being saved by a guy using this sword the skeleton has. The local government has banned swords. And we're trying to figure out what the sword does, and to figure out what we should be doing. I think that covers the critical details."
Tomoe	The undead warrior is taking orders okay good, Krusty does his own tactic to do some serious crowd control, which is awesome and should make her life a heck of a lot easier. Shes' locked in close combat bearing them back, she's not intent on killing the soldiers, but just tieing them up and getting them the heck out of the way. She keep fighting now throwing in a few shield slams but she sees as they start to run, she'll let them run, however. "Oh so you want to play that way!" HEr rubs wings flare out taking form from her back. She'll rise up from the ground and she'll move to dive bomb at more of the soldiers in Pink who are still seeking to keep fighting. "Come on boys do the smart thing and RUN!"
Sanary Rondel	"Eh? Y-yeah, we're... We're with the Resistance!" One of the green warriors responds to August, sounding absolutely winded from all the evasive maneuvers and breaking an axe over a skeleton. "The kingdom's gone to crap, so we're taking it back. If you're with us, then we'll back you up!" THE RESISTANCE HAS JOINED THE PARTY! Do you want to change their name? [Y/N] August's continued flames have the soldiers starting to flee for their lives, their swords unable to even reach the Persona-user with Krusty's deft movements with such an oversized weapon stopping them in their tracks or blowing right through their attempts to parry him outright. As more soldiers regroup to try and compensate for Krusty, however, they find themselves being picked off and their armor crumpled inwards as Note's rage spurs her on to beat the ever loving crap out of them. Those who haven't gotten pounded to a pulp, smashed into mausoleums, or set on fire are then faced with a winged Tomoe bearing down on them along with the undead warrior pulping them with punches and swings alike. This is not a good day for the soldiers at all. Sanary, for her part, has shifted her focus towards assisting the Resistance, healing them and caving in the soldiers' heads that come too close to these... Farmers? Townspeople? And even they're being bolstered by the presence of the Elites. "The... Darkness? The kingdom's been kind of crazy lately with all this sword business, but it's gone too far. Our homes are being wrecked, and it's that damn wizard's fault!" One of the Resistance warriors replies to Orchid, getting heated just mentioning it before charging back into the fray. Said Resistance warrior is sent hurtling backwards moments later as Valgar delivers a straightforward kick into their helmet. Far, far behind him, the jester is gesturing wildly. "Hey! What's going on? Where did those monsters come from?!" "It's not surprising that Kanon ordered us, the Black Knights, to seize the sword. I always thought this mission to find some old sword was meaningless. I didn't realize it had the power to summon such a monster." Valgar chuckles as he regards the golden warrior, drawing his twin blades and settling into a proper combat stance. "This will amuse me. Leave at once, Zur." That stance is followed by more gesticulating from the jester. "What?! You must be joking. I am the leader of this mission. You are here only to aid me. You shall not take the credit from me! Everyone attack! Do as I say, or you will pay for your disobedience!" Valgar sheathes his blades after a moment, glancing back at Zur and a trio of wrinkled mages hidden in robes as the latter usher a massive blue humanoid into the graveyard. "Tch. Do as you wish!" Valgar leaps away as the one-eyed creature roars and charges towards the Elites, battering Resistance soldiers out of the way in its haste to bring the fight to them! The magicians aren't content to leave their cyclops alone, meanwhile, as they launch fireballs and lightning towards the group as well!
Krusty	Krusty feels it before he sees it. Glancing around as the ground shakes. The roar draws his attention, quickly turning to face the large creature as it makes its presence known. Krusty stands his ground against the roar, before quickly starting to dash towards the creature. It doesn't take Krusty long to get within range of the cyclops. But as he does, he doesn't show any sign of preparing his weapon to strike. Nor any indication of starting a skill. Krusty simply leaps, turning his body to the side to smash into the cyclops with his large pauldrons, attempting to leverage his great Adventurer strength to knock the cyclops over.
August Kohler	DO YOU WANT TO CHANGE THE RESISTANCE'S NAME? N August accepts his newfound allies with a thumbs-up. As they fight the soldiers back and the others assist, he listens to the various people speak...especially Valgar and the jester. August doesn't pursue either of them, because a giant cyclops is attacking. And it has mages with it. August considers what he wants to do, and decides he'll take down the cyclops. He can focus full lethal force on it, because it's apparently a mindless monster. The Tin Soldier proceeds to charge forward, weaving around fireballs, trails of flames burn into its metal, and lightning hits head on, surging through the armor. As Krusty shoulder charges the cyclops, August moves to join him, having the Tin Soldier aim for the head if the cyclops gets knocked off balance and towards the ground, throwing its own two-handed downwards hand strike at the monster. "Hey, royal knights! We're with the Resistance now, and I suggest you back off...or you'll end up like your cyclops here." If everyone together is able to knock down or defeat the cyclops, the Tin Soldier's gun-leg will raise, and move to place a bullet through the creature, as many as it takes to down it.
Note	"S-so.... I was right. That's all we've got to go off of..." For once, Note's 'feeling like she is in over her head here' isn't justified. Not if the others here are just as confused as she is! As she piles up wounded, winded, and KO'd soldiers with terrified, Note's anger begins to cool. So, left standing atop of the heap, she's left to observe the battlefield? And her attention PERKS UP IMMEDIATELY. "I feel... something decently strong's coming!" And that's worth a mood boost! Her tailtip curls and uncurls repeatedly with EXCITEMENT. She's long since given up on trusting that sense for giving accurate readings, but if it feels STRONG it might be HELLA STRONG. "Alright. So these weirdos DO know how to put up a fight!" That's... probably not something one SHOULD be getting excited about. But Note's a little weird that way, huh? "Huh?" But then, one of the mages sees fit to send a few fireballs her way. Which is obviously a smart choice, what with her just standing there and all. "---Aaaaah!!" Note's not sure what to make of FLYING FLAMES and just gets blasted head-on by it. Blown straight off her VICTORY Pile and tumbling down it. She goes rolling and rolling in reverse somersaults, eventually coming to a halt face-down in the dirt. "Gggggffffff." A few tail hairs are smoldering, but as she picks herself back up it's revealed that her exposed flesh suffered some decent burns. Chunks of clothes were charred, but she's still... well, still able to function. With a gasp of a kiai, not flying-somersault-leaps back over her VICTORY PILE and remains hovering in the air. Energy cracka-THOOMS back into a rage around her with a quick shout and flex of her muscles! "Alright, that's the only time you're gonna blindside me like that! My turn!" One moment, she's a glowing person. The next, she's a streak of light moving almost too quickly for the eye to follow, zipping in at the Cyclops for a TUSSLE. She'll try to punch, chop, and kick it from all kinds of different angles!
Tomoe	She's just wondering how she fell into something like this? It's too late not as she makes for another dive at the soldiers but if they are going to run she's going to let them run. Seeing Sanary and Orchid on helping the Resistance? It's a good start but they might need someone to be able to take hits for them. As Tomoe is debating starting to make another dive bomb at the troops when the frekaing big monster shows up and Auigust makes a good call. They might break and run if their big bad summoned monster is taken out, right? Tomoe swaps weapons, her shield and sword vanish as she pulls a Naginata out of her inventory now. With it in hand she'll fly right at the Cyclops trying to do a dive bombing impales she attempt to evade the incoming fireballs at the same time. "DEATH FROM ABOVE!"
Orchid	Well, that's part of the answer, at least. Any government being this violent to its citizens isn't one that the Paladins will support. At least, that's Orchid's take. She decides to do something about the mages, sending her drones to web them. Or at least web their eyes. She's only got a few of the drones available, but they'll help.
Sanary Rondel	The cyclops barrels right into Krusty, digging its heels into the paved stone as it meets his challenge head on. A giant blue fist meets Krusty's armored shoulder, and the cyclops is stalled long enough for the Elites to press the advantage. The Tin Soldier's hammerblow catches the creature's head, drawing a pained roar from it as it swings its free fist in a giant hook towards the Tin Soldier to try and halt August's Persona's gunfire. With both hands occupied, however, Note has her own opportunity to bash away at it unhindered. Said opportunity doesn't last forever, however, as the beating of the cyclops serves only to enrage it further. It grits its teeth as it doesn't even attempt to follow her movements, instead opting to fire a blue laser from its eye, trailing along the ground and leaving flames in its path as it sweeps sideways to try and catch the speedy Saiyan! One of those wizards is unlucky enough to also get caught in that path, soon rendered little more than a burning pile of robes and wood. The other wizards redouble their efforts to support the cyclops with so many Elites proving to be more than a match for it, launching yet more fireballs at Note and Krusty while lightning bolts are fired towards the Tin Soldier. Their attacks don't last for long, however, as Orchid's drones blind them and render them unable to aim their magic. They're also rendered unable to avoid getting cleaved by Sanary and Resistance soldiers. Serena, meanwhile, focuses on supporting the Resistance in fighting back those soldiers, and the undead warrior hacks away at the cyclops with the Elites until the blue-skinned creature is unable to hold itself any longer. It launches a last-ditch attack at its surrounding foes, letting loose with one more sweep of eye lasers while holding its arms aside and spinning around, but even swinging that way isn't enough when Tomoe comes down at it with a naginata. The bladed stick is driven into the creature from above, and it falls from the combined efforts in a bloody and scorched heap. Zur, seeing all this, cackles madly even as sweat trails down his forehead. "You... You fight well. But you are still no match for me! I shall let you go this time!" He flaps his cape once, ducks down, and disappears in a pillar of light. The surviving Resistance soldiers glance towards each other, then let out a whooping cheer as the graveyard has finally been cleared of enemies!
August Kohler	The bullets are blocked, but the group is still able to take down the cyclops and force their enemies back. August sighs and takes a breather, briefly crouching to his knees before he desummons and turns to the Resistance warriors. "Good work. Name's August Kohler, Cloak of the Watch. That means I'm a leader of a group that helps resistances like yours." August wipes his brow, wincing in pain from the lightning as he moves to continue. "You mentioned everything was a wizard's fault. Who is he and what exactly is he doing, besides destroying your homes? We'll need info if we're to stop him." It seems August's made his mind up - the Watch is helping the Resistance.
Tomoe	Tomoe pulls for from her attack once the Cyclops is dead she'll pull her weapon free to turn her attention to the Zur for a moment looking at them as she makes ready with her weapon expecting him to keep fighting but that does not seem to be the case here. She'll move to clean off the blade of her long arm before she'll stare at the way that Zur left. "Did he seriously actually /do/ that?!" What kind of world is this, really what kind of world is this? Either way, there are people in need of help and she'll move to join the group and will be wanting to get some more information from the locals about what's going on. "I would be nice to know what's going on, what's the deal with this Wizard?"
Krusty	That wasn't quite what Krusty was expecting as his charge is met by the cyclops's fist. But the result is sufficient enough, giving the others an opening to get their own strikes in. Krusty himself skids back across the ground from the blow, steadying himself before raising his blade to tank the dieing shot from the large creature. As the laser passes, Krusty's sword and part of his armour still glow from the laser's burn. Seeing the clearly overhelmed jester flee, Krusty shakes his head once more, before returning his blade to his back as the enemy forces are in full retreat. Some of the others begin to address the resistance members. Krusty leaves them to it, turning his focus back to the undead warrior and the sword he wields. Krusty walks up to the skeleton, looking it over. So far it's shown no signs of being able to talk, or any significant level intelligence beyond being able to understand battle tactics or follow orders. Krusty doubts they will get much from it specifically. So instead he reaches an open hand out to the skeleton and orders, "Hand over the sword."
Note	Note's getting some SATISFYING WHAMS in on the Cyclops, and is doing her UTMOST to provoke it into a counterattack so she can get in a PROPER FIGHT here. But with it dealing with Krusty too... she frowns. So much for that. Maybe she should just challenge that warrior later to a one-on-one and it'll be interesting! But then.. ---"YGGGGHHHKKK!!" Spinning around just in time, she scrambles and slams out her hands, catching the eye beam! Somehow. Fat lot of sense that makes, but she does. A thin layer of glowing energy from her palms may be the only explanation anyone's going to get as she's FLUNG backwards and slammed into the ground, briefly engulfed in the beam with a short-lived KABOOM, and yet emerges from it panting and gasping for breath after the smoke clears. "Awwwww... EYE BEAM... that is SO unfair... I don't know how to channel anything outta my eyes..." Angry now, Note slams her palms together in front of her and draws them to her side, stance deepening... but... just as she's readying beginning to focus ki-- "--AAAACK!!" Nope. She abandons the kamehameha stance and instead enters a series of speedy backflips to take herslef out of the Cyclops' range... only to see it tumble to the ground in a heap after its desperation maneuver. Note... heaves out an agitated sigh at this development. But, oh well. At least everyone seems to have survived!
Orchid	Okay. Fight over, now time to make sure no one dies who doesn't have to. Orchid goes to work giving the first aid treatment to friend and foe alike. (No need to burn bridges) "Okay, Question time. What is this sword supposed to do? Is the government possibly controlled by the darkness? And what else might be going on here?"
Sanary Rondel	With the threat of the Royal Knights and the reviving skeletons ended for the time being, the Elites finally have an opportunity to relax and figure out just what had happened here. One of the Resistance members takes the lead for the others, resting the end of a long axe against the ground while turning to the Elites. "It's good to have you all with us. There's a wizard named Kanon who's been working with the royal family for..." A glance back at the other Resistance members who simply shrug. "Too long. He's had the King's ear for as long as we can remember, and the Royal Knights through the King. They've torn our homes apart, imprisoned our people, and even staged executions to keep us from fighting back, all to keep those wizards in power. But we've had enough of it!" The Resistance member strike a pose not unlike that of the soldiers from earlier, apparently enthused by the support offered by the Cloak of the Watch in particular. "We're going to fight for our homes even if it kills us, and we'll do it with the support of the Watch and the former knight commander on our side!" As the attention shifts towards the golden warrior with Krusty approaching it, Serena watches it closely as that order is given. It holds the weapon out, but instead of handing it over, just grunts and shakes its head. Although it can't speak, it does sound like it's refusing to comply. "So this is the sword... This golden warrior wielded it long ago." Serena murmurs, stepping around the undead warrior slowly to examine its armor. "Legend has it that this sword possesses the power to wipe out the darkness. I never dreamed it would resurrect its former wielder, though. For centuries, the kingdom has been desperately seeking this sword, and now I know why. This warrior has the power to end the evil reign of the kingdom!" Sanary doesn't seem quite so enthused, raising an eyebrow questioningly after a moment. "Isn't that the same th...? Eh." She shrugs, opting to stay quiet while Serena continues. "How this sword should do that, I am not sure. This knight was a loyal retainer of the royal family, and his mastery of the blade was second to none." Serena sighs lightly, turning away from the golden warrior to the Elites once again. "I did not plan to involve all of you... But when the royal family discovered I was going to rebel against them, I did not think they would send so many troops and pursue me for so long. I cannot fight this battle alone, and neither will they." The green-haired swordswoman gestures towards the Resistance soldiers, taking a moment to steel herself before turning to the Elites once more. "Please... Help us. Do not be fooled by the royal family, either. If it's a reward you expect for finding the sword, they will only fill your wallets with blood. You'll be targets of theirs as well, so we'll need to leave here soon." She ignores the questioning look from the healer. "If you need time to rest and recover, there's a forest nearby that should give you enough cover to get home. From there, though... We'll need a plan on where to go next. There's a village where the Resistance is operating from not too far from the forest. You've proven yourselves to be capable fighters as well, so a frontal assault on the castle would be unexpected. And... I have heard of an old hermit in the forest that may be able to help us as well." Where will the group go next time?
Note	After returnign to the gang following the hasty retreat... Note lands near Serena, and finally... exhaaaaales slowly. The golden aura raging around her dies down, and her spiky hair drops back down to being normal - and fades to black. Her eyes also return to their normal color... and the sense of all that raging energy and tension goes away as she starts to do a few stretches while listening. "I could use a good meal but... okay for now. But nah, I'm not helping those royal knight people! Jerks, the lot of 'em. You guys definitely need the help instead... but I hardly follow what's going on. Is it THIS sword they're after? And all for what? Is there something special about it?" She glances at the distant skeleton... "... He really CAN't talk, can he?"
Krusty	Krusty lowers his hand as the order is disobeyed. He suspected as much was possible, though he is still mildly disappointed, "A shame." He has no overwhelming desire to try and take the sword, not finding it THAT interesting. At Note's question about the sword's worth, Krusty admits, "I did feel some power within it. It is no ordinary weapon of steel. Though detials of the exact nature of its power would require some research. And it seems this fellow is unwilling to part with it." It would seem they have a few options and after the group discusses it, Krusty nods in agreement with the final verdict, "It would seem that visiting the old hermit is the agreed upon course of action."
August Kohler	The exposition is useful to August, who soaks it all in. He nods, and rubs his chin. "Kanon, is it? Alright. We'll have to take him out. Glad to have you fighting with us. We'll start preparing for an assault, but..." The skeleton knight won't give up the sword. "Let him keep it. It's obviously his, and he knows how to wield it, and he's on our side, so. We'll call him the Skeleton Knight or something, SK, pending everyone being okay with that. You fine with that, SK?" AUGUST ATTEMPTS TO CHANGE SKELETON WARRIOR'S NICKNAME! And then, they discuss where to go next. "Let's see this hermit then and learn if he knows anything. We'll have time to march the castle later, and especially if we can get some advantages they don't know about. Sounds like we're in agreement, yeah?" And a glance to Note. "Sure, join us. I don't know who you are, really, but you've been helpful lately, so, thanks."
Tomoe	The group seems to be making up their mind to find the hermit first, she intends to help the locals but getting more intel will would help them be able to make a better plan in dealing with this mess it would also give them some time to rest as well before they charge into another fight.
Sanary Rondel	Serena back up slightly as Note settles down from her golden form, looking bewildered by that hair shift before nodding towards the undead warrior. "This is the sword. IT has to be. It contains powerful magic, although... I still don't understand how it got here. Why /this/ town. Why the warrior was in /this/ graveyard." Serena shakes her head as a thoughtful look crosses her face while the undead warrior continues to stand there in all his imposing, bony golden glory. August's suggestion draws another grunt from the skeleton warrior that sounds almost exactly the same as its grunt to Krusty earlier, but... Somehow, this one feels like it's a grunt of approval. SKUH HAS JOINED THE PARTY. Serena raises an eyebrow slowly at that little exchange, then finally remembers to sheathe her blade before nodding towards the rest of the group. "You're all in agreement, then? We'll regroup at the forest soon." The Resistance members nod in agreement as well, the 'leader' stepping forward to salute once more. "And we'll keep things under control at the village. This should help everyone's morale, knowing that we'll finally be able to turn all of this around." Should there be no other questions, the Resistance members will leave the Elites to their own devices, and Serena will lead the Elites into the forest to a warpgate that will provide them a safe exit and entry point for their next foray into this strange kingdom. SK will stay behind as well, following Serena's orders as she takes care of things on the back end of all this business with the kingdom and the mysterious sword.