Moderator

As the viruses stared at Lyntael as she began her usual preperations, a soft breeze surrounding her, a casing wrapping around her body in preperation for attacks that the viruses could barely see...her words...falling on deaf ears as the Bark began to move inwards, slowly floating over the terrain as it got closer to the dancer, closer and closer it floated, slowly making it's way onto the grassy areas on the outer field and roughly a few meters away as it had circled around to her right.

The barrier went up and the Rapidfire, however, would immediately open up and send one of it's orbitals down the line, attempting to scorch Lyntael as the dancer darted behind the nearby metallic pillar, barely avoiding being scorched as her new suit warmed up almost immediately, not unpleasant, but would have been worse had she not moved as grass withered and burned away leaving the fertile soil unerneath and sand superheated into a rough glassy terrain, a little uneaven, but still unmistakably fragile, while it's Option unit would return with an audiable click. At that point the Bark would then open fire on the moving navi attempting to use the pillar as cover, while it would hit the pillar and the navi next to it, while her barrier stood against the threatening high pressure water wave, it was barely holding on as rivulets of water fell from her body.

Wet but undeterred, Lyntael would make her chance to heal up with a nice, deep breath...even if it took a bit of energy for a net positive. The NeoMet would take this lull in combat to hide away inside it's helmet and, with it, potential invincibility. The Shellnerd would stay clasped up in the same vein as it couldn't hit Lyn from where it was at just yet, her cover too much to pierce through with a couple needles.

-- Viruses --
Shellnerd EXShellnerd EX (ShellGeek)

Shellgeeks alternate actions between attacking and guarding. These are the only actions Shellgeeks may perform, and the first action of every battle is always guarding. Shellgeeks will not break from this pattern unless forced to by status effects. The secondary attack of Shellgeeks can be used to grant an ally of this virus a free movement, or even to knock an ally out of the path of an oncoming attack.

Area: Yoka, Sharo, Beach, Okuden Valley

HP: 160
Primary Attack Damage/Effects: 25 Null x 2 Spears
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: Fires two spears at one target.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effects: 50 Null
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: Fires a star tipped arrow. Can be used on an ally to move them. Causes no damage to allies.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): TripleNeedle, StarArrow2 (Rare), Zenny
Special: Attacks every other action. IronBody when not attacking.: 160 HP (Shielded) (In the west, about a movement away) (Grass) (2 Actions)
Bark EXBark EX (Lark)

Area: Electown, Yoka, Beach

HP: 250
Attack Damage/Effect: 60 Aqua + Wide Attack
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Fires wideshot.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): WideShot2, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes
Special: Can blind one enemy once instead of attacking.: 250 HP (Floating within a couple arms lengths away from Lyntael on the right of her) (Grass) (0 Actions)
RapidFire V4RapidFire V4 (RapidFire)

RapidFires are a combination of the Megalian-F, Cirkill, and OldStove viruses. They look like a Cirkill painted red with two arms instead of one. The virus is orbited by four flaming red option bits that assist it in attacking. The virus itself attacks close range opponents with flamethrowers, while the option bits launch volleys of fireballs at more distant targets or dash at enemies.... sometimes both.

Area: All

HP: 620
Element: Fire

Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 20 Fire + Seeking x 4 Shots
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: Bits launch a volley of fireballs at the enemy.

Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 80 Fire + Break + Piercing
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: Sends a flaming Bit flying ahead in a line. The bit may be attacked to damage the virus when executing this attack.

Tertiary Attack Damage/Effect: 60 Fire + Line Attack(3) + Panel Cracking
Tertiary Attack Accuracy: B
Tertiary Attack Description: Use Flamethrower on enemies that get too close.

Special: This virus has a 100 HP FireAura that regenerates at the end of every turn.
Special: This virus may attack while moving or dodging.

Possible Rewards (Per Virus): CircleGun2, FireAura2, Barrier100, FireBurn2, AuraHead2, Zenny: 620 HP (Expressing it's superiority in the rough center of the area, through high grade firepower) (Normal) (2 Actions)
NeoMetool2NeoMetool2 (NeoMetool)

NeoMetool not currently attacking will guard. Entering guard mode requires an action. Exiting guard mode does not require an action.

Area: ACDC, Electown, Okuden Valley, Kotobuki Town, Dentech, Beach

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 40 Null + Spread 2
Attack Accuracy: B
Attack Description: Spits out a bullet that penetrates an enemy to hit up to two other enemies behind and to the side of it, as if forming a V shape.
Element: Null
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): V-Gun, HiGuard, Zenny
Special: Can hide in its helmet to negate damage.
Special: If hit while hiding, it will counter with a Microburst effect as a free action. This does not lower its defenses.
Special: Can use Recover50 on itself once.: 100 HP (About mid-field, towards the western part of the sands) (Guarding) (Normal) (1 action)

-- Navis --
Lyntael.EXE: 290 HP (Behind the Metal Pillar, from the perspective of the Rapidfire) (Grass) (Charge1)(20HP Casing)(20HP ElecBarrier)(OffTarget1 next turn)

-- Terrain --
30% Normal

• No effects.

(Lightly scattered about, roughly a feint away from one another and in a 1x2 formation each inner field. with a larger 3x3 square towards the center)
25% Grass

• Wood Elementals get +5 HP/action.
• Fire attacks: +100% Source Damage, change terrain hit to Soil.
• PanelShot: Imbue Wood.

(Roughly in large chunks circling the outside of the sandy inner-fields)
5% Soil

• Wood Elementals get +10% Evasion.
• Wood attacks: +100% Source Damage, change terrain hit to Grass.
• 100 Damage Aqua attacks: Change terrain hit to Mud.
• 100 Damage Fire attacks: change terrain hit to Coal.
• PanelShot: Imbue Wood.

(Where the Rapidfire attacked at, in a straight line from it's position)
25% Sand

• -20% Evasion and reduced movement speed to all.
• Can Burrow as standard action, incurable Blind1 until turn after exiting Burrow.
• Wind attacks: +100% Source Damage + Blind1, change terrain hit to Normal, trigger Sandstorm for 3 turns: Lose 5 HP/action, Blind1, Fire attacks gain Slashing.
• Fire attacks: Change terrain hit to Glass.
• Terrain changes between Sand and QuickSand do not inflict damage upon burrowed entities, nor do they eject burrowed entities to the surface.
• PanelShot: Blind1.

(Mostly inner-field, mostly in one-chunk interspersed with the Normal within and bleeding into the outer circle of grass)
5% Glass

• Slip Effect: -10% Accuracy, -10% Evasion to all.
• Non-Ice Aqua attacks causes it to be Wet, doubles slip effect for Non-Aqua Elementals for 1 turn. Wet can expire early with Fire attacks. Can cause slippage for poor RP or heavy impacts on Non-Aqua Elementals, 1-2 actions to recover.
• 200 Damage attacks: Change terrain hit to Broken. Damage threshold cut in half for Ground, Break, and Impact, to a minimum threshold of 25 when all 3 are present. Null 25 + Slashing + Nova 2 per panel broken, up to 200 (8 panels).
• Burrow: Change terrain to Broken, 50 Null + Slashing to burrower, Null 25 + Slashing + Nova2 to surroundings.
• PanelShot: Spread1.

(Where the Rapidfire attacked in a straight line leading from it)
10% Broken

• Not bottomless.
• Reverts to Normal after a time, if no one is inside.
• Doubles dodge penalties for bad RP.
• 1-4 Movements actions to climb back out depending on method.

Where the RapidFire and the other viruses have broken the paneling

-- Objects --
PMD: 20 HP (Spinning behind the Neometool2) (Normal)
Stone Pillar: 40 HP (Half burried in the sand, to the Northwest, about a movement away) (Hardbody)
Metal Pillar: 39 HP (Standing tall, about 2 "normal" navis tall, extremely sturdy, near Lyn's position) (Metalbody)

The further she ventured from established access points, the more chaotic and dilapidated the network seemed to get, but Lyntael pressed onward and kept her eyes towards the more incongruent patches of unexpected terrain scattered along the coastal path. A word of warning from Rogan came just barely ahead of her own ears picking up the sound of something violent taking place not far off, and as she glanced in the direction of the sound it was answered by the emergence of a large and exceptionally dangerous-looking viral entity. She felt like she recognised elements of others she'd seen before but some parts, at least, were wholly alien to her.

Her steps quickened, darting across the soft grass, but the larger leading virus had clearly seen her and its first reaction was a salvo of firepower; Lyntael skidded to a halt, falling into a ready stance without thinking as she glanced at the encircling addition of other viruses on each side. There was a little cover, but in the brief moment before she would need to react more decisively Lyntael looked around at each of the new arrivals, her heart rate climbing to an active pace as the beginnings of a swelling charge thrummed in her chest. Around her, the soft breeze drew in to a tighter spiral, forming a whirling buffet, and she was briefly put off by how dull it felt, with the tight new suit covering most of her skin. She banished the thought for now.

“Alright... I see you.” She raised her voice enough to carry; her focus had to remain on the larger virus – she'd already seen what it could do – but she spared quick side glances for the others. “I'd rather not fight. I don't intent to hurt any of you, if you don't try to hurt me first. If any of you are willing to leave in peace now, you can.” There was a small part of her that was pleased at how level and calm her voice sounded, in the face of the clearly dangerous and violent virus leading this pack. She didn't have much hope than any of them would listen, but trying still mattered... and if the big one was as destructive as it seemed, then a fight now would be to the safety of others in the future.

The thought took only a moment to pass through her mind, before the reaction from the lead virus made her throw herself quickly to the side, spinning to seek temporary cover from the sturdiest-looking pillar as instinct and reaction drew the humming shell of her barrier out across her body, humming with a yellow glow for a moment before fading from sight. The virus itself looked military, if she had to guess... but clearly not controlled. If she could shut it down swiftly, the others might abandon their own violence too, with any luck.

With her back to the pillar for a moment, Lyntael closed her eyes long enough to take a deep breath. Across her body she could feel the aches of her past exertions still, as some of the lingering aches and pains from the day's strains. Self-exploration and understanding aside, she was already tired and no amount of enlightenment magically made that go away. Her charge hummed and pulsed in her chest, beating as it rose to match her heart rate and Lyntael let the breath out. Focus. She squared her shoulders and prepared to dart out from her cover and strike back.

Summary

L*) Turbulence (Auto-deflect on shot or lobbed attack)
L*) Gust (Knock Back effects are Double Strength, and attacks with them gain Wind type)
L*) First Armour: 20Hp Casing (Lets see how this new suit holds up ^.^)
L1) My Heart Falters, yet beats anew: Buster Charge, 80Hp Elec Barrier, Off-Target (1 Rank, 1 Round), 3CD (Overcharge -3)
L2) Dodge (Take cover behind Metal pillar)
L3) A Loving Heart, and a second chance: SupportBase(20) x4 Instances, 15Hp Sacrifice, 2CD (Overcharge -1 per instance effectively used)
L*) Fast Armour: 20Hp Casing Refresh

-=Turn Splice at 3 Actions, 3 Actions Remaining=-


Cooldowns and Overcharge

My Heart Falters, yet beats anew (3TCD)
A Loving Heart, and a second chance (2TCD)

Overcharge: Begin: +0, My Heart falters (-3) , A Loving Heart (-4), End: +0

Continuing through the area, past the forest and moving more into a small desert-y area, grass underfoot as a small circular desert was in front of her, a quartet of pillars within including a massive metal pillar near her, the other three being made of a smooth (if weathered) marble-like texture in a dull eggshell white after what looked to be years of exposure to the beach winds and sands. Unfortunately, a loud explosion came out from the west from another forested area, breaking the calm that Lyntael had been enjoying for the moment.

A large bright red Cirkill virus was thrown from the wooded area into where Lyntael had been standing, shaking it's head as it picked itself up from being thrown so far away. It wasn't long before Lyntael was spotted, the virus rearing up and pointing it's two large cannons at her, a quartet of flaming "option" units flaring up and unloading into the area with a viral screech, taking two pillars down in the hail of gunfire and explosions, causing rubble to fall and send debree all about, creating more sturdy platforms for others to stand on as, amazingly, Lyntael was completely untouched in the hail of explosions and bullets. The terrain, and two of the pillars however, were not nearly as lucky as cracks where sand had been opened up and drained away some of the sandy terrain into the network below.

This, of course, prompted a trio of viruses to come in after the commotion, a Shellnerd EX jumping down from a floating Bark EX onto a grassy area in the west of Lyn, while a NeoMet2 would jump down in the sandy area, landing on pieces of the destroyed pillars while it had haulled in a purple data cashe behind it. All while the Bark took a position to Lyn's east. Battle Routines set in for Lyn, and for Rogan, the blips on his PET all showed hostile viral entities hellbent on making Lyntael into a statistic.

-- Viruses --
Shellnerd EXShellnerd EX (ShellGeek)

Shellgeeks alternate actions between attacking and guarding. These are the only actions Shellgeeks may perform, and the first action of every battle is always guarding. Shellgeeks will not break from this pattern unless forced to by status effects. The secondary attack of Shellgeeks can be used to grant an ally of this virus a free movement, or even to knock an ally out of the path of an oncoming attack.

Area: Yoka, Sharo, Beach, Okuden Valley

HP: 160
Primary Attack Damage/Effects: 25 Null x 2 Spears
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: Fires two spears at one target.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effects: 50 Null
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: Fires a star tipped arrow. Can be used on an ally to move them. Causes no damage to allies.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): TripleNeedle, StarArrow2 (Rare), Zenny
Special: Attacks every other action. IronBody when not attacking.: 160 HP (Shielded) (In the west, about a movement away) (Grass)
Bark EXBark EX (Lark)

Area: Electown, Yoka, Beach

HP: 250
Attack Damage/Effect: 60 Aqua + Wide Attack
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Fires wideshot.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): WideShot2, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes
Special: Can blind one enemy once instead of attacking.: 250 HP (Floating about a fient away from Lyntael, in the north-east) (Sand)
RapidFire V4RapidFire V4 (RapidFire)

RapidFires are a combination of the Megalian-F, Cirkill, and OldStove viruses. They look like a Cirkill painted red with two arms instead of one. The virus is orbited by four flaming red option bits that assist it in attacking. The virus itself attacks close range opponents with flamethrowers, while the option bits launch volleys of fireballs at more distant targets or dash at enemies.... sometimes both.

Area: All

HP: 620
Element: Fire

Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 20 Fire + Seeking x 4 Shots
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: Bits launch a volley of fireballs at the enemy.

Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 80 Fire + Break + Piercing
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: Sends a flaming Bit flying ahead in a line. The bit may be attacked to damage the virus when executing this attack.

Tertiary Attack Damage/Effect: 60 Fire + Line Attack(3) + Panel Cracking
Tertiary Attack Accuracy: B
Tertiary Attack Description: Use Flamethrower on enemies that get too close.

Special: This virus has a 100 HP FireAura that regenerates at the end of every turn.
Special: This virus may attack while moving or dodging.

Possible Rewards (Per Virus): CircleGun2, FireAura2, Barrier100, FireBurn2, AuraHead2, Zenny: 620 HP (Expressing it's superiority in the rough center of the area, through high grade firepower) (Normal)
NeoMetool2NeoMetool2 (NeoMetool)

NeoMetool not currently attacking will guard. Entering guard mode requires an action. Exiting guard mode does not require an action.

Area: ACDC, Electown, Okuden Valley, Kotobuki Town, Dentech, Beach

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 40 Null + Spread 2
Attack Accuracy: B
Attack Description: Spits out a bullet that penetrates an enemy to hit up to two other enemies behind and to the side of it, as if forming a V shape.
Element: Null
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): V-Gun, HiGuard, Zenny
Special: Can hide in its helmet to negate damage.
Special: If hit while hiding, it will counter with a Microburst effect as a free action. This does not lower its defenses.
Special: Can use Recover50 on itself once.: 100 HP (About mid-field, towards the western part of the sands) (Normal)

-- Navis --
Lyntael.EXE: 225 HP (On the outer ring of the field, in the south, perspectively) (Grass)

-- Terrain --
30% Normal

• No effects.

(Lightly scattered about, roughly a feint away from one another and in a 1x2 formation each inner field. with a larger 3x3 square towards the center)
30% Grass

• Wood Elementals get +5 HP/action.
• Fire attacks: +100% Source Damage, change terrain hit to Soil.
• PanelShot: Imbue Wood.

(Roughly in large chunks circling the outside of the sandy inner-fields)
30% Sand

• -20% Evasion and reduced movement speed to all.
• Can Burrow as standard action, incurable Blind1 until turn after exiting Burrow.
• Wind attacks: +100% Source Damage + Blind1, change terrain hit to Normal, trigger Sandstorm for 3 turns: Lose 5 HP/action, Blind1, Fire attacks gain Slashing.
• Fire attacks: Change terrain hit to Glass.
• Terrain changes between Sand and QuickSand do not inflict damage upon burrowed entities, nor do they eject burrowed entities to the surface.
• PanelShot: Blind1.

(Mostly inner-field, mostly in one-chunk interspersed with the Normal within and bleeding into the outer circle of grass)
10% Broken

• Not bottomless.
• Reverts to Normal after a time, if no one is inside.
• Doubles dodge penalties for bad RP.
• 1-4 Movements actions to climb back out depending on method.

Where the Sledge and the other viruses have broken the paneling

-- Objects --
PMD: 20 HP (Spinning behind the Neometool2) (Normal)
Stone Pillar: 40 HP (Half burried in the sand, to the Northwest, about a movement away) (Hardbody)
Metal Pillar: 40 HP (Standing tall, about 2 "normal" navis tall, extremely sturdy, near Lyn's position) (Metalbody)

Battle mode: Elite! Kill the metavirus to win! Killing the other viruses adds to the reward pool!

-- Rogue Battle 12 Ready? Start!! --

The soft laughter faded but the sense of joy, and relief, remained as Lyntael turned to face the way she had been hiking. It was only a moment before Rogan answered, but his question left her thoughtful. What did she mean to do now? Finding the words to describe it took consideration and she spoke slowly. Whatever else had happened in those broken moments, everything that mattered was here, now... and everything that she was, here and now, mattered. She could feel the last of her reservations dissolving as Rogan relayed directions to her and she started off again towards the apparent source of the viral overpopulation. Compared to everything else, taking care of this duty ought to be easy.

((Ready for Battle 12))

It was only a few minutes before another courier arrived, glancing around near the cafe's front before Rogan caught his eye and raised a hand. The interaction only took a moment and the updates and adjustments only a scant few moment more; he had become adept at the process by now, though he had to admit it was only a small achievement considering how normal the practice was for the majority of people. By the time he was finished, however, Lyntael appeared to have made her way past her most recent encounter and was taking a break at the edge of the cliff she was hiking along. For a moment, Rogan moved to speak up, but something made him pause.

She had her eyes closed, but a serious, focused expression creased her features and he could see small flashes of light darting across her skin every now and then. A glance at her metrics showed nothing strange or unusual, save for a distinct fuzziness and confusion of the graph that usually represented her emotional state; it was only ever an approximation at the best of times, translated from her other bio-metric data, but now it was nearly incomprehensible.

It was a few moments more before the girl lifted her head and seemed to relax, but as she stood, Rogan could see tears streaming down her cheeks. He opened his mouth but she spoke first, softly, but with a smile that stilled the worried question on his tongue. Then her smile became a laugh, and a giggle, and Rogan felt something in him relax that felt like it had been tense for... a very long time. He nodded, looking for the right response, and settled for the simplest one.

“Well then, Lyntael... What do you want to do?”
“I don't know... I know what was wrong still, I understand... and I... I'm alright. I'm good. Better. I think... I think I feel like... I'm everything I want to be.” He watched her pause, turning to look out at the sea, then the sky, then away towards the direction they had been heading.

“I think I'm ready to actually find and take care of this viral threat now. I want to see this through, now that I'm here.” As the girl looked forward, Rogan took a sip from his lemonade and consulted the details Eurayle had given them. It was still a fair amount of network distance, for a navigator travelling off established transitways at least, but it wasn't as though they hadn't set this time aside specifically for the work; they could keep going at least until later in the afternoon. He relayed fresh directions and watched his navi press onward.

CHARACTER EVOLUTION, HO! Approved, looks good, looks fine

Lyntael watched the group begin to move away, a thoughtful expression working its way across her features. Her stance relaxed again and she shifted to stand straight while the motion led to her hands unconsciously sliding over her hips in a far more emphatic way than was really necessary.

Barely aware of the way she let her hips sway slightly with the pressure, Lyntael frowned, then shook her head and turned to move on as well, continuing in the direction she had been heading before. Rogan's comments about the way the weather behaved around her continued to linger in the back of her thoughts, and jumped forward again now as she strolled along the top of the cliffs, glancing out towards the sea every so often.

Clouds drifted by overhead in grey clumps, moving quickly in response to the quicker winds, higher up, but... for a moment Lyntael closed her eyes again, reaching her senses outwards... but no sign of actual storms or rain. These nets weren't as well maintained as the surface level public networks, pushed down and largely forgotten underneath the newest and safest public net layer – here the beach wasn't always sunny and bright, or the weather fair... but she had to admit that the Rogue beach had a certain... natural wildness to it that felt nice, in its way.

But no storms, not really. At least, certainly not ones that blew up in seconds and faded away again just as quickly after. It couldn't really be something she was doing herself, though, could it? Surely it had to be some interaction with the dilapidated weather subsystems of the Rogue beach net, just being triggered by...

Lyntael paused again, taking a long breath and stilling her mind so she could look more closely at what she was thinking, and why. She knew, if she was honest; some part of her did at least... She knew Rogan was right, and more intrinsically than that, even... Why was her unconscious reaction to deny it, or explain how it might not be her? When had it started? The memory surfaced in response at once and understanding came with it.

The first time, the real first time, had been back in the dark, in the place where broken things fell – the description came forward in her mind unbidden, but it felt right – a place of broken and scattered things, lost in the unformed mass of all that remained closest to the void. The rules were loose, down there; what was real and what wasn't was... fluid. She'd found herself and reclaimed the broken parts of both of her, and then they'd forged something impossible together, from the ruins.

Lyntael let her footsteps drift to a halt, then sat down at the edge of the cliff, letting her feet kick free as she stared out at the turbulent sea. Her mind replayed the conflict; two sets of vision seeing all they didn't have; two broken hearts, screaming their pain at one another, and in the unformed space around them, the storm of their fractured souls crying and blazing bright. A feeling held close, remembered and brought back.

Maybe that was why she had been pretending not to notice? If she'd brought something back from the dark, something that wasn't part of her... was that what her subconscious was worried about? Perhaps. She remembered every sensation that had strained both of her selves in those desperate moments, and the two halves made a complete picture, nothing more. Nothing outside herself. A moment of dissonance in her thoughts made her eyebrows draw down; was there nothing outside that didn't belong? No sense unaccounted? Something else that didn't fit, didn't belong.

She wasn't sure where the questioning thought had come from, but let herself dive into the memories more keenly for a moment anyway. She lay back, eyes closed and spread her arms out on the grass, relaxed even as she let the emotions of the memories roll over her. She had felt such different things, and in some of those moments, the pain had become fear and the desperation not to disappear, and it had become fury and a desire to take what was hers, no matter who she had to take it from... but... in the end each feeling, each attack and shouted demand, and each soothing touch, was something she understood from both sides now, and... As she listened to the crash of the waves far below, and felt the curling breeze flow past her, Lyntael's eyes opened staring up at the sky. No... There was something else.

She let her eyes close again, her head dropping to her chest as she focused inward. Just a feeling, not quite a voice but a sense; a desperate empathy and a consoling presence, there in brief moments between them, lost almost entirely in the building static of their resonance, but always a sense of care that was the other reaching out, no matter which side of the memory she recalled. What was it? A fleeting ephemera perhaps – an echo of self born at the clashing of their souls; something that only wanted togetherness. As she explored her feelings, Lyntael felt sure that some of the thoughts weren't entirely hers, or at least that they came from some part unconscious to her... Something that shouldn't have been, something that didn't belong. She stopped and cornered the thought in her mind, wrapped it up carefully and held it close. No. She knew that feeling; she had only ever felt that way about herself, not others. Not a thing that shouldn't have been; someone who cared. A flash of feeling given form – maybe the truest part of her; the voice that, at the most desperate point of everything still wanted, more than anything, to reconcile and to heal. Something welcome, cherished and not forgotten. Nothing that didn't belong.

Lyntael felt something relax in her chest; her eyes well and spill over with soft tears, but her smile remained as she lifted her head, opened her eyes and stood, taking a fresh breath as she did.

“Rogan...” Her small smile became a grin than couldn't be contained and broke into laughter that was snatched up and carried by the wind as she turned her face to the sky. “I know who I am.”

Lyntael is reaching a point where who she wants to be, and how she wants to be is something she can more readily define for herself, and though she's willing to fight to defend herself and others when it matters, she has come more strongly to feel that sometimes the easiest resolution is to take the quieter path.

Other questions emerge as she explores herself; when emotions run high, the world around her responds in ways far beyond the scope of a simple navigator, but care and the willingness to accept and embrace the parts of her that make her who she is reveal that though she may have brought something back with her from the deepest parts of forgotten data spaces, where reality itself becomes ephemeral... it is nevertheless a part of who she is, not separate but welcome.

Level 38:
(Overcharge thresholds: 0-7, 8-15, 16-22, 23-30, 31-38)

Lyntael's Buster is 5/5/5: (30x5/300/600)
Half-Charge Strike: Expend, +4
Full-Charge Strike: Expend, +8

ShotBase ratio deals 50 damage for 40 sig points
ChargeBase ratio deals 200 damage for 160 sig points
SpectralBase ratio deals 75 damage for 60 sig points
SupportBase ratio heals 20 for 20 sig points.

Unchanged:




















New Signatures:










Total Signature Points Used: 1580/1600
==

At the mention of beast hunters and unfortunate deletions the girl offered Suitachi a slightly more nervous grin and nodded her head to him as she took the manifest back and slipped it into her messenger bag, before heading back out the door.

It was a short while later in the day when the door chime for Suitachi's shop rang again, admitting another courier from the business that serviced his off-shore depots. A girl in her mid to late teens, possibly on a work experience placement, paused to look around the shop and check her manifest again with a small whistle to herself.

“Geeze, imagine spending this much on navi parts...” As she glanced over the order form, the small hologram of a navi, from the PET attached other uniform's belt, looked up at her and arched an eyebrow.

“Not that I'd complain, mind you!”
“If I had this much to spare, I wouldn't be parting as a delivery girl...” After another second or two, the girl appeared to remember she was on the job and jumped forward to present herself at the front counter with a bright smile.

“Afternoon! Um, I've got a release order here for some customiser expansions and some process upgrades.” She held out the manifest, passing it across towards Suitachi for his perusal. Like the earlier orders, the release, with its attached payment receipt, was for dispatching the products from a stock depot half a world away where the weather was probably much nicer than it was currently in SciLab, and needed only his confirmation and signature.

==
Rogan Buying:

NaviCust Expand (v21, 22, 23, 24, 25): 5500, 5750, 6000, 6250, 6500 = 30000z
Process Upgrade (v34, 35, 36, 37, 38): 3400, 3500, 3600, 3700, 3800 = 18000z

Total: 48000z
Rogan's funds: 50235z
Funds remaining: 2235z

((Lyntael's Level becomes 38, Navicust is now 165, Sig pool is 1600))