Nanami Touko

Without any hesitation, powered solely by her selfish goals and the magic of the sword, Talulah brought it down hard on Miria's shoulder, dragging the weapon back for another blow, red eyes glowing and watching for Miria's maneuver...! "Huh? Fight now?! W-Wait--!" Miria was still trying to process what was going on. Why was she being targeted right now? Was this a Shroud too? No time for that now...! Miria took a defensive stance but this new individual was quick. Her sword came down hard and despite blocking it from dangerous damage, the cub's shoulder was easily sliced into. She grit her teeth and pushed back her assailant. Miria felt the wind in her blade, and made a slash to center-mass. "If you want a fight I'll give you one!" The blow connected, solidly, Miria's sword tearing into Talulah's coat and spilling blood... but it was like she didn't feel it, not flinching, recoiling, pausing, as a flurry of blows rained down on Miria: shoulder, leg, arm, and as the final swing spun around aimed at her neck--! "Khhh...!" The blade was held at Miria's neck, trembling in Talulah's grasp. "I... s-said, you... Would not, kill... her...!" With a straining in her voice and a clear struggle on her body, Talulah forced the sword away, ramming it back into its sheath! The shroud swiftly began to fade away, the elf coughing as she fell to her knees, veins pulsing red, edges of her hair fading to white. "Eat wh-what you, must... you damn, greedy sword... We, kill on m-my, orders. Not yours..." The woman in gold was likely going to be confused. Talulah would explain later... Hopefully Lati stops anyone from killing me after I pass out... Only a matter of time, now. She stuffed two fingers into her wound from Miria's blade, slathering her blood across the weapon's sheath. It slowly began to disappear. "That, will buy me a f-few minutes. Healer. We, need one." I can't keep up-- Miria was simply outperformed and outplayed. Despite her attack connecting, Talulah was too much. Multiple hits were against her. She was already down. She hadn't felt so afraid, so beaten... The blade of her opponent stopped at her neck, and she said something regarding not killing her. Miria, confused, only backed up a smidge, trying to keep herself up. "W-What?" Miria took the opportunity and poured the vulnerary around her body. Her breathing was heavy, and she could only come up with more questions. "I-- huh?! Who, what, why--" Miria held her blade at the ready again. She didn't know what to think now. "Who the hell are you? W-Why did you attack me?! What are you talking about?" "Hey! Hey, hey there, uh..." Lati wasn't sure what to do now, walking up on the scene, trying to fix the mess that Talulah had suddenly created... "I'm, my name is Lati. I came here to deal with Kazran... She's, Talulah, I found her along the coast, collapsed, helped her back onto her feet, have been traveling with her... I don't know what this is all about, but... She's not, bad? I think? I, I don't know why she attacked you, just... She didn't kill you. Held back. So let's... Let's just... I don't know. T-Talk about it...?" Talulah coughed and staggered herself to her feet. "Talk once, sword's... satisfied. Gonna... Pass out, few minutes. Need a healer." Miria listened as the other woman approached, and explained their situation. "You're here for Kazran too?" She shook her head, and pressed her fingers to her nose. "Well, okay... If that's the case then, I would've appreciated the heads-up first." She sighed, and thought about Talulah's strange words again. "L-Look." She poured some of the vulnerary onto Talulah's wound. There was some frustration she felt but... If this person needed help... "Look, that should hold for a little bit. We have some healers just, don't try to dig your sword into the next person to turn the corner, okay?" Talulah pushed Miria's hand away, shaking her head. "No! That won't... Help, anything. You don't, get it. Healer. Need a healer..." Her steps were dragging, but she did her best to begin moving, eyes ahead. "Any, h-healer will, do..." Lati ran a hand through her hair, raking a deep breath. "Yeah... I would've appreciated some heads-up too..." "A-Alright, jeeze. Come here then, you're dragging your feet." Miria took one of Talulah's arms and wrapped it around herself. She gave an exasperated sigh. "We should be just about finished up there, and we gotta hurry. The fight's not over yet." She started moving with the other Shroud-user in tow. She could only hope Lati was right and Talulah wasn't too bad.

"Quarry this you useless scum suckers!" Alvira charged up another light spell and dashed around the corner, blasting it into one of the axe men hiding their bow toting leader! "You hid back here this whole time, huh!? Some fucking boss you are! Can see why Kazran stuck you down here in the dungeons, but I bet his bitch ass is gonna hide behind his men too!!" Alvira to 11,34, Light Fighter #5 "Now, now, Alvira." Versaris stepped forward, casually, flicking his blade towards the other axe man, a jolt of lightning sending him to the floor. "It's not polite to yell at the dead. Alriana!? I'm ready for you!" Versaris to 12,33, Levin Fighter #6 Talulah draws Yscavelne, activates shroud fully! "Kakugo!" Between the sword's demands to fight this person, and Talulah's own drive to become stronger no matter what, she resisted the call of combat no longer. But be warned, blade, I am NOT killing this individual... And if you take issue with that, you know what you must do. HRRRAHHHH!? Foolish wielder! Foolish! I will feast upon your mana instead! Talulah could already feel the draw of the blade sinking into her own skin, wincing, but it mattered not. To battle! Talulah to 15,16, attack Miria with Yscavelna! "H-Hey! Talulah!? What the fuck!?" Lati had been confused since the other individual showed up... They hadn't barked at them, threatened them, made it seem like they were a part of Kazran's forces, so why was she jumping them!? "Hey! Hey, stop!" Lati to 14,16, panic!?

"Yeah I bet you'd like to finish a shot... Maybe later, cutie." Krystal winked at him and then sighed as he moved along with his machine. "So taxing... Just gotta make myself look small, maybe Tyson won't notice mmmmEEEE!?" Suddenly, gravity was gone, and Krystal was staring down a rather irate looking tiger woman. "I, I-I was working under Kazran to stay alive! Gawd, p-put me down! You, you have to do whatever you can as a clouded in Islexia, y'know!? Little wink of the eyes, shake of the ass-- doesn't matter if I have horns, they just see meat. A-Alright? But if you, people are seriously here to seriously kill that fucker, seriously... Then I'm just trying to help." She whimpered and stopped struggling in Tasha's grip, whining a little. "All I did was give him some of my magic so he'd get all... adrenalined up, y-y'know? See for yourself... He's working that machine twice as fast as normal. It's just some help. P-Put me down...?"

Kagi swings down as hard as they can! [NA,95] 8 damage! The draco is felled... Kagi gains +38 EXP, +2 axe WEXP Willow socks the bandit into an early grave [NA,41] 12 damage The bandit collapses... Willow gains +30 EXP, +2 brawling WEXP SIlvano SCHWING! [NA,45,66] 13 damage! The bandit fights back! [56,31] Schmiss! Silvano gains +12 EXP, +1 sword WEXP Rina brings out the tome! [NA,40] a light touch, but enough! 9 damage! The bandit collapses... Rina gains +34 EXP, +2 light WEXP Cyrus heals Rina +15 EXP, +2 staff WEXP Jilyn approached slowly, sword at the ready... but her ears picked up the far off sound of hooves. "We must hurry..." Jilyn to 11,14 Enemy Phase/Turn 4 "Go around him, boys! We'll crush his tagalongs and then swarm him!" The bandits nod and ignore Rivane! "Mages, engage him!" Mage #4 comes for Rivane! [63,69] Miss! Mage #3 does the same! [99,17] Miss! "Tch... Why are you even here, Rivane!? You know this is our territory! Get outta here! More at stake than our lives my ass, you just want more for your own!" Marcos skirts around Rivane! The pegs loom in menacingly... Player Phase/Turn 5

"Well... Th-This isn't so bad... They're winning. That's good... I guess I can help them to keep winning. Gold Armor still didn't thank me... I'll get my due after this is over. Hmph." She sighed and then looked around the group, eyes falling on... "Oh. Oh, my~" Another clouded individual, it seemed... Cute girl... Or, guy...? Krystal squinted some. It didn't matter much, they had a rather large and impressive ranged contraption. Range meant safety. "Heyyyy~" Time to work the magic... "Hey, cutie. Nice toy you've got there... Wanna show me how it works? You're probably pretty good at handling it... I'm good at handling a few things, too~" Krystal gently touched a hand onto their back, smiling with severe intent... Then glancing to the left. Geh!? Tyson! Fuck. If he sees me helping them he's gonna knock my block off... He was always one of the more aggressive people around here, rrrrr... h-help, anyone...? Krystal to 18,25, brave Chris, panic Sylm to 17,23 M to 15,24 Cass Idle Amera to 6,26 "I'll hold these stragglers off with y'all! Lemme at 'em." "And that's their leader..." Versaris pulled the magic sword out once more, not wanting to get caught unawares by an errant knife again. That had been too close. "Let's see if people right under Kazran are worth anything..." Versaris to 9,33, equip Levin Sword

"...o can hear me... ...od. To the Wes... I'm trapp... ...o hav... ... sav... m..." The voice was fading back out, though with one final surge... "Miz. Miz'Githon. Find me... And I will teach you the secrets... anima magi... when... ... stron...r ... Con...ct... Y... ...gain..." The voice faded away into nothing, leaving Roxanne with her thoughts.

There seemed to be someone up ahead. Someone in golden armor... Talulah had been about to call out to them, when Yscavelne began shaking in its scabbard. Release me. Release me! Feed! I must feed on this armor! Now! NOW!! "Kh!" Talulah gripped the sword, but that only made things worse, her hand clenching tightly against the blade, unable to tear it away! "Rrhhh... You, I don't know who you are... But, prepare yourself!" The blade was drawn, half against her will, but... Anything that makes myself and Yscavelne stronger... Is worth doing! "...llo... hel... ... ...ead... e..." A voice slowly sounded into Roxanne's mind, quiet, distant. "If... ... an... hea... ... resp...d..." It was so faint, so distant... Ever so slowly becoming more clear. "Hello... Hello? Are you... mmm... Can you... ...r me...?"

One arrow had been annoying enough, but two? And one the size of her arm!? "What's wrong with you people!? Rrrgh!" Feeling Roxanne's healing on her and words behind her, Alvira rushed up to the archer's face! Remember what Tio taught you... Magic takes the shape you want it to. Spells listen to what we think and what we say... so...! "Light...!" Pushing her intuition to its limits, Alvira encased her claw in a light spell, punching the magic I to the man's shoulder, before reeling back and punching another into his face! "And stay down! Huhf... I wonder if Cin would be proud of meooouch...! P-Punching hurts...!" Alvira to 10,30, deck his halls "Alright, forward. Let's see if we can catch up to whoever attacked this place..." "Acknowledged. Moving forward...." Lati to 14,11 Talulah to 15,12, engage Elixir

"Heeeeeeeyyyyyyyy!!" Krysral shouted after the fighter in gold, waving her staff at them. "Where's my thanks, huhhhhh? Saved you from the brink and you didn't even turn around!! Ungrateful lot, Gawd... What, you still need MORE, or something?" Krystal idles and Physics Miria

"So rude." Thesephine sighed... But... Even she could see that he was getting incredibly tired. He ran another simulation, a simpler one. She would've complained if he didn't seem so worn out, but even she had something of a conscience, slowly leaning back and resting properly against him. "Daeran," she began to speak, her voice softer and calmer than it had been, "I've told you something of a lie... I didn't recognize you at first, of course, because I had only heard your name. But, as soon as you mentioned who you were the son of, things clicked... I am well aware of your position on this moon, and your father's. I'm spoiled, yes; I'm not so blind as to think that I'm well behaved. I just don't care about that-- what I'm getting at is that I, am not just some girl that wants to see how a machine runs... I'm plenty informed about how HEX machines work. I look into my father's work all the time... And I had been..." She huffed, twirling a strand of her hair, "hoping to meet you and hoping you would, be excited to meet me as well. Know who I was already... I suppose I shouldn't have, assumed that, or... Something, anyway!" She huffed, voice getting a bit angrier again, but only for a moment, calming herself once more and crossing her arms. "If you require rest, then get it. I won't touch anything. You can shut the machine down and lock the controls... Just... M-Make sure you show me more later, okay!? These machines are amazing! This next generation is so much better than the last that they can't even begin to be compared and I MUST see how well they perform in all areas! I'm far too curious. And you can... Can, a-ask, me about, my dad's work and, if... If you're interested-- you SHOULD be interested, as a CEN pilot, you know!?" She huffed again and turned some to face him, face ever so slightly red, gold eyes staring up at him, small frown adorning her eyebrows. "So just. Just, sleep. Okay?" "I can just do extra credit to make up for it if I fuck up, no?" She pouted a little as he talked about doing things 'properly', almost groaning at how much he sounded like a teacher. "It wouldn't hurt you to take things a bit less seriously too, daddy." Vivien slammed him with the pet name and stuck her tongue out before leaning away and sighing. "Sure, I can look at stuff with you... I know a little bit about HEX machines. Saw it in those documents I got access to when I-- ah. Hm. 'Spose I shouldn't talk about that stuff so openly... Well, whatever." She then re-latched onto his arm and squeezed tight, clinging onto him with all the effort her little body could muster! "Let's go then! You can be my good luck charm... Alrenne equipped, plus ten to social anxiety resistance. Even if it adds a negative modifier to your embarrassment, mrhrheheh." She stuck her tongue out again, but had no plans to let go, leaning into his arm as hard as she could without making it uncomfortable for her-- if he was uncomfortable, that was too bad. He'd signed up for Vivien and was going to get the full package. The information came at them like a punch to the face. Beam weaponry, beam weaponry that couldn't possibly had been registered to a battleship with how precise and small the hole was. Small in relation to a battleship's cannons; the Dawn's beam weaponry would've melted the entire top half of a HEX model if it were struck unprotected. No. This was a rifle... A proper, working, beam rifle, technology that the CEN had only begun testing on mobile suits. Louise covered her mouth to hide her shock, gently hugging herself. "This is... That's too much, all at once. Beam weaponry, and... And what, is that? Those kinds of boosters, that kind of precision, all on... It has to be a mobile suit, a HEX of some kind, something-- but, that's impossible. We flew here on the Imminent Dawn, sporting the latest in CEN technology. Is someone on this moon beating us in the arms race? And this drastically? What the fuck... I think I'm going to be ill. That kind of precision and power is... The devastation... And you sent the Ensign back out knowing this...?" Louise had to bite her lip behind her hand to stop herself from snapping at the commander, knowing her place in the rung. Even if she was with Sia on this occasion, she was still just LTJG; an outburst at a superior officer would result in serious reprimand. "We're lucky she survived," Louise managed to say, the ire still present in the back of her voice, but she did her damndest to not look at the Commander while she said it. "This is... not good. And if you didn't find the Ambassador at the site of the attack... It's safe to assume he's either dead, or they took him. With beam weaponry like that, there might not even be a body... Fuck." Louise had used her rifle in the previous engagement, but it was bulky, slow, required recharging, it wasn't the most precise, it was easily countered by a close engagement-- she could have continued the list in her head, but it wasn't a weapon like this. Fast and precise beam weaponry in the hands of mobile suits would change the face of war forever. Not in a good way... "Captain, we need to return to the ship as soon as possible and inform everyone of this. We need people on this... If we have any hope of finding the Ambassador. Or what's... left of him." She grimaced again, her face having gone pale a while ago. Dammit. Dammit! This is the worst news! How could... WHO could... Argh! DAMMIT! "I know exactly what I'm getting myself into, Catrin." She reached a hand up and gently flicked the woman's nose, smiling somewhat confidently. She'd never had someone after her this severely, or at all... It felt good. It felt great. All she had to do was wear stuff like this and she'd have Catrin all over her like she'd lost her mind? I like this... I really like how this feels. I should do this more often. Sure, she's gonna drive me into the bed harder than an industrial drill later, but... I like that too~ She hopped off the counter with a wide smile, leaning into her girlfriend and holding her hand. "Let's go to the arcade, then. Set some unfair scores on the machines. You're augmented and I'm a great pilot. I'm sure we can ruin some stuff on there, yeah~?" She tugged Catrin along, smiling even wider, even giggling some. "Today's already been great, so whatever we do, it's just gonna make it better~" "Heyyyy, don't say it like that... You're gonna make me seem irresponsible." Azame grew a bit red at all of the things Marianne was pointing out, squirming some in her seat, her ears flattening a bit. You ARE irresponsible! You're offering too people-- one, barely an acquaintance, and the other, a STRANGER, a free tour of a military vessel!! Azame!! Think!! Senri screamed in his brain, still all smiles, Azame looking towards him. "You can come too, Sensen. I'm sure you're interested-- and if not, it's gotta be better than sitting here trying to look cool while you swirl around that glass. I know you've only had one drink. He did the same thing at the other bar, Anne, I tell ya, this guy's a real card. Urhgk. He flinched ever so perceptibly, still smiling, letting out a chuckle. "If you're determined to get us onto your ship, then, by all means. I've never seen the inside of a CEN battleship... Even if it's just the hangar, I'm sure it's quite impressive." She's not going to think, she's just going to think about Marianne's ass. Jesus. Somebody save this woman... "Right~? Well, you two think on that. Don't you worry about space, Marianne, I know exactly how to make us both fit." She winked again, having cheered right on up, glancing at Senri's empty cup. "Speaking of only one drink... You two want me to fetch you something from the-- y'know what? I'm gonna~ And I'll surprise you both. This place makes a great Ring of Jupiter." Azame pushed herself up, bounce quite pronounced as she sprung up, hips swaying to show off everything. "... Lord. Good luck, Marianne," Senri muttered as he sunk into his seat some. "That woman is a hurricane... And you're in the eye of the storm. Anyway. Please don't panic. The person at the bar speaking with her red headed associate isn't human, and I noticed it far too quickly... their tail," he continued, leaning forward and speaking quietly, glancing towards the helmeted individual once again, "moved far too biologically to be a prosthetic. I've been around plenty, aesthetic or otherwise... It's too organic. I don't know what they are, but we should really take Azame up on her offer and not, be here." It seemed Amy had caught his intended meaning and shirked away from it quite readily. He wasn't sure he could blame her... It seemed quite the sensitive topic, so it would likely take a bit of gentle prying. Still, he was determined, so he didn't let the diversion get him down. "All the important things that we need to make sure the ship and the pilots can keep running. I've just been charting the Dawn's paths around Callisto, making sure that any of the flight paths we take while we're lifted off don't go through civilian areas or cause too much disturbance. A ship can be quite loud in atmosphere... Mmm..." He leaned a little closer and gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head, staring down into her eyes. "I did mean your other work, to be candid about things... But, given how quickly you swerved, I'm going to assume that's off limits for now. That's fine... Promise. Not at all bothered. I just am interested in what that mind of yours is cooking up, Amy. You're beautiful, funny, fun to talk to and plenty knowledgeable about your work, so I know whatever it is has to be incredibly impressive." He couldn't help himself, winking some to try and sell the deal. "Just think about it. I think I could be a good wall to bounce ideas off of." "I think that if anyone expected this to be easy for you, they'd be off their rocker," Cheryl said with a small wink, being a touch unprofessional for a moment. "Let's have you avoid that individual for now, yes. Later is a good idea... If you're not feeling anything wrong with your medication or your head-- anything to do with your response to Newtype weaponry, I'm not going to send you over to Rosa yet, okay? You just let me know if I'm wrong about that, or if that changes, and we'll have you examined right away." Cheryl took a few more notes and then set down her notebook, leaning onto her desk some. "This is going to sound a bit canned, Esther, but... You're young. Off the cuff, if it were up to me, the military wouldn't be turning children into soldiers because of aptitude at being Newtypes... but, you still want to do your best here, and I respect that. I suggest, that you buddy up with one of your crewmates, especially during combat. Have someone both to watch out for, and to watch out for you. That sort of camaraderie goes very far in situations like this. It might sound cheesy, or like something out a movie, but the Dawn is a very unique ship... And those sorts of unique relationships between pilots mean life or death on the battlefield sometimes." She let out a sigh and leaned back. "Listen to me rambling-- is anything else troubling you, Esther? I feel like I'm doing so much more talking than I should..." The arcade was much louder and full of people than she'd expected, all kinds of machines going at once, plenty lighting up. It seemed they even had a section for ticket games where you'd be able to test your physical skills and win a prize. "Skee-ball..." She eyed that for a hot minute and then slowly let go of Markus' arm, swaying hers behind her back and bending over some. "Well, we should get separate cards, for sure... That way, I get to beat your butt at some of the games here, right~?" She chuckled menacingly before heading in, waving for him to follow. "Come on, come on!" Up at the counter, Miz was already buying herself a card and loading it up with tokens to play, stuffing her wallet back into her purse and then cocking an eyebrow back at Marky Mark. "You ready, shades? Cuz I drive a mean race car... Probably. Heheh~ I know I can beat you at the ticket games! I don't go to the gym every morning for show. These guns are gonna give you a run for your money~"

Sylmaria was breathing heavily. This was the most combat she'd ever been through. Her throat and lungs were burning... And she finally felt alive. Like she was doing something right for once. Every time Kazran had ordered her to do something for him, it felt sickening. Like a part of her was doing something that she couldn't ever take back... Had it felt right to kill Clouded under his command? Yes, but it hadn't felt good. Her psyche had always been at odds with itself taking lives... But now? "I'm going to enjoy this until I collapse." Sylmaria to 16,22, Blast Wyvern #6

"Hhhsshhhhrhhhh, flying vermin..." M had been unloading and reloading her revolver with excessive accuracy, fingers not missing a bullet as they fell, out and slid back in. "Nothing like reloading a revolver in the heat of battle... the feel of a silvered bullet into a well oiled chamber... Hhh..." M shook her head and slid around the corner, smile wide, gun raised. "Quit flapping your wings... You'll blow the dust up into my gun." M to 13,24, .38 Special into Wyvern #2 "What the fuck, wyverns now? You boys are late to the party! It's almost over!" Cass sighed. She'd been about to chase after one of the priests, but with a much more immediate threat, he could wait... Cass doubles back to 17,24, Light on Wyvern #5 With the archers where they were and the danger of them, Amera grumbled in place and fidgeted some, knowing that she couldn't advance, but not wanting to retreat... Amera Idles "If you're gonna kill someone, you've gotta put more into it than that. I thought Islexians were meant to be some real tough bastards. Working under Kazran soften you up? Don't get to see combat that often? Guess it doesn't matter." Lati casually ran past the man and then let loose another arrow into him. "You won't be seeing combat again." Lati to 13,7 shortbow Wyvern #7 Talulah watched as this woman casually took the heavy thrust of the man's spear against her armor, then removed it, fired back, ran off like it had been nothing and fired again. "Speak for yourself," she scoffed, clutching at her side some, "these are not foes to be trifled with, Lati... You, say you are in awe of me, but in effect, you just stopped a raging bull. You are a terrifying woman." "I'll take that as a compliment." Talulah to 16,8

Sari snapped his wrist and flung the blood off of his sword, sheathing it for the moment. "That's that, then... Take care while you advance, I'm going this way. I'll see you around the corner, hopefully." He moved past the water and turned face first into a cavalcade of archers... That was swiftly being broken down by the rest of the group. "Well. You've always been bad with archers, Sari... here's your chance for some practice." Sari to 6,31, levin sword equip

"Archers..." Alvira was never a fan of archers; a fan of things that fired back on her magic. There weren't many others around, though, and they couldn't just cower in case more reinforcements showed up... "Urgh, whatever. An arrow isn't the most painful thing, anyway!" Alvira to 10,28, Light Bow Armor 2!

"HAH!? Do I look like I belong with those damn, worthless sea dogs-- Ah!?" She was suddenly clothed by the woman with... a rather heavy accent, only barely making out the rest of her request between her ire and her outrage... "F... F-Fine! I guess! I can do that much... You, people owe me. I don't work for free, you, y'know!?" She was still a bit jumpy, between all the ragged emotions and adrenaline, but she could still heal. "Hey, shiny! You better be happy that I chose you folks~!" Krystal to 15,26, Physic Miria!