Casual busting and Catching up

[LynFXP: 362 > 376]

"I've never seen any camera like that, either. Might be really old," said Aurora, though how she was able to even see the little prize wasn't immediately obvious. On the other end, turning around the camera in his hands, Eternalis inspected the item once more, his thoughts interspersed by mental instructions of which part to inspect next. Nothing too much of interest... except for a tiny hatch on its underside. Clicking the part open with a press, he found a small roll of film inside, and closed it back up, just in time for Lyntael to stumble on an enormous felt toy that looked like a recreation of a Scuttle virus, except less dangerous and more cuddly.

"Oh, that's pretty cute," he commented. "Odd that they'd be making these virus plushes when we're supposed to be deleting them when we find them."

His comment was punctuated by the introduction of a deep growl, and his head snapped up to attention, to be greeted by an enormous bipedal virus amalgamate. "What on earth--" he managed to blurt out, before it fled away, leaving behind a crack of lava that flooded the area. He scrambled backwards from the expanding lava flow in surprise, only to find himself separated from the girls. Viruses then began to pop up, fly in, and land from various areas of the field. The sound of approaching viruses did not die down with the first four; he could hear more on the outskirts.

"Lyn, careful!" said Aurora. Her partner's beat flowed through her; Aurora could sense the tension in Lyntael's electrical current. Curiously, Lyntael seemed to have a quicker grasp of the situation, almost excited for the fight. There was no time for psychoanalysis at the moment, however, and she replied promptly. "I'm here with you."

...

Staring down the Shooter, Eternalis made a snap decision. "Sparky, on me!" he called, prompting the pup to bark in affirmation, transforming into his carrier board form, and Eternalis to jump onto him. "Harke, I'm counting on you for chips!" he continued.

"On it, I'm sending in MediumCloud and ClusterShot," reported Harke. "Try to get a high point of view."

"That's the plan," replied Eternalis, as he eyed down the two Fire-type viruses on the field. As soon as the chip data was sent down, he took control and sent it down across the lava gap, quickly enough so he could have a chance at taking the Spikey and Swordy off guard. He then stepped back on his Sparky-board, and the microthrusters roared to life, sending him soaring upwards into the sky, trying to scope out where their earlier visitor had gone, along with any further viruses that might also be crashing their party.

...

Aurora felt Lyntael's body suddenly light up to life, and it was all she could do to withstand the strain she suddenly felt. It was unstable, very much so, but it hadn't gone out of control yet. The flood of energy made it feel like hairs standing on end. Lyntael moved, and she along with her. Without being fully integrated into Lyntael's system, Aurora wrestled with the unfamiliar energy distribution, right as she received some battlechip data from Harke. The data's energy flowed through her fingered form, supplying it with more capacity, extra circuitry.

"Okay!" she called out. Lyntael's strike went out, and simultaneously, Aurora danced with it, following up the crackling energy strike with a surge of multiple lightning jolts, which followed the initial attack and spread out in two directions. The second strike came immediately after the spin, and Aurora felt her systems overwhelmed, unable to respond to the larger surge. It almost stole her consciousness for a brief moment, before she received a mental tick from her other partner, higher in the sky.

She pulled herself together, but soon, she felt Lyntael's energy levels draining, and she internally kicked herself; the lapse in her assistance might have let the voltage fall down too quickly. Still, she saw that Lyntael was in no immediate danger - whether by instinct or intentionally, there was already a reactive barrier up in place. Shouldn't hurt to reinforce that herself, she thought, as she activated her own defensive module, but only on herself. She also took the cue from Eternalis to access his healing reserves, and funneled it into Lyntael, if only to numb out the pain somewhat.

"Heh, this is a little different in the co-pilot seat!" she said.

-- (Eternalis: 2 actions @ Aurora, 1 action @ Sparky)

[A1] Equip @ Lyntael
[E1] Take Aim
[S1] Equip @ Eternalis

[A2] (All for One) ClusterShot2Damage: 10 x 8 Shots + Variable Targeting
Accuracy: B
Description: Launches a volley of eight plasma spheres at targets designated by the user.
Duration: Once
Element: Elec
Special: Variable Targeting: Allows the user to select a target for each individual hit of an attack. This means they may strike the same target multiple times, multiple different targets, or a mix of the two as they wish.
Trader Rank: C: 10 x 8 Shots + Variable Targeting (Acc: B) @ Nailer (3x), Spikey2 (3x), Swordy-F2 (2x) (+15 Element)
[S2] Move into High Alt (Overclock/High Gear: Evasion=50%+10%)
[E2] MediumCloudDamage: 90 + Wide Attack + Drop Attack
Accuracy: C
Description: Cloud moves up and down three enemies, raining on them for two turns. Enemies can move out from under it if possible.
Duration: Two turns
Element: Aqua
Special: Drop Attack: This attack originates above the battlefield, and falls to the ground. It gains one rank of accuracy against High Altitude targets.
Trader Rank: C: 90 + Wide Attack + Drop Attack + 2-Turn (Acc: C) @ Spikey2, Swordy-F2 (+15 Element, 100% vs Fire, Take Aim: Acc+) (Turn 1/2)

[A3] Extraction Module @ Self: 20HP Barrier + 20HP Casing + 1-Hit Shield
[E3] Influx Aegis @ Self (Stage 1: Support Base x2 (40), Stage 2: Delay (3 Actions): Support Base x2 (40), Stage 3: Delay (6 Actions): Support Base x2 (40))
[S3] Dodge (High Gear: Evasion+10%)

[A4] (Unify: Eternalis) Influx Aegis @ Lyntael (Stage 1: Support Base x2 (40), Stage 2: Delay (3 Actions): Support Base x2 (40), Stage 3: Delay (6 Actions): Support Base x2 (40))

The two navis and SPs would be quick to ready themselves as their foes came raining down upon them, the Shooter adjusting it's aim at Eternalis as Sparky equipped himself onto his owner, whilst Aurora would take a secondary role in the fight this time as she wrapped around the electric navi's hands. Crackling with electricity, whilst Eternalis took aim, Lyantel was soon assaulted by the Spikey from the south, a blast of fire sending the navi reeling as she was struck on her side, stripping away her First Casing, only for her electricity to lash about in retaliation (45), causing the Nailer to be forcibly reeled back and, unfortunately for it, into the molten lava with a light splash. As this happened, the Nailer began to flail about in pain as it was quickly burning away within, causing it to give up it's original plan and instead quickly leaping from the lava onto the quadrant with the Swordy for the time being.

As this happened, Aurora was quick to launch some balls of lightning out towards the various viruses, two hits on the Nailer, two on the Spikey and one on the Swordy to help soften the targets up (50, 50, 25) as the Shooter finally took it's shot. A hail of bullets raining down upon Sparky and Eternalis as they began to ascend up to high altitude, several of the smaller shots managing to smack against Etrnalis unfortunately (60), as inaccurate as they were. But Etarnalis would make sure to rain upon the viruses parade as he sent out a cloud of heavy rain in turn, sending both Spikey and Swordy into a tizzy at the sight of water as well as the Nailer by accident due to it's close proximity with the Swordy, drowning both Swordy and Nailer in the rains as the Spikey quickly dodged away before the rains could put a damper on it, poor thing just didn't want a bath now did it? But as Eternalis made his way to higher altitudes, he could see traces of what seemed to be the charcoal burquete that was their assailant headed off towards the east, leaving behind melted slag wherever it had landed, making for an easy enough trail to follow when they could escape.

As things continued, Lyantael would make sure to refresh her defenses, fienting towards the edge of her quadrant as her intended target was torn apart by heavy rains on Eternalis' part, she was quick to strike out at the Spikey in turn, causing the dog-like virus to howl in pain as it was quickly struck in the side by the rejection of her fears, with some splashback smacking the Shooter in turn, knocking it off it's perch and tumble down behind the boulder of metal (45, 45). The Spikey would growl in turn as it launched another ball of fire at Lyntael, leading to her evading the attack deftly and causing the hound of hell to howl in anger at the navi. Whilst the Shooter took another potshot at Eternalis, using the more accurate Vulcan ammo this time, but fortunately for the blob, only one hit struck (15) as the battle slowed down briefly, Eternalis, Lyntael and the SPs taking a chance to patch themselves up. Eternalis' form slowly rehealing itself (+40) as Aurora would send the same kind of healing into Lyntael, allowing for both navis to stay healthy for the next wave...as Lyntael's original target had already been destroyed, she retained her charges for the time being, full and ready to strike at a moment's notice.

And then, as they took a breather and a chance to servey the field, the quartet would feel a loud rumbling, from on high another boulder worth of trash would begin to fall into their field...just between both the Southern and Eastern quadrants, lava spewing upwards and to the sides briefly as it rolled in, another figure from above could be seen towards the south, but it wasn't remotely close to the first figure, even at a brief glance. But that wasn't all, as another trio of viruses rained down upon them. A charcoal-black Pulsebat landing atop the boulder in the middle of the area, ready to strike, a firey colored Metool rolling down ass over teakettle and landing in front of the charged up Lyntael and Aurora, quickly making sure to hide within it's helmet...and a bog standard CannonGuard would land base down next to the Spikey, shuttering it's cannon quickly as it waited to strike in turn.

-- Viruses --
Spikey2Spikey2 (Spikey)

Spikey viruses are a little faster than the average virus, allowing them to cover more ground than normal with movements and dodges. They may attack while moving, but as normal, they cannot attack while dodging without expending a second action to do so. Spikey viruses are also able to use something called 'pack tactics' when 3 or more of them are present. Simply put, the Spikey viruses attack and dodge as a wolf pack. In addition, they are treated as having a reduced power Haste and Accuracy Enhancement effect which grants them a +5% bonus to evasion and accuracy while this effect is active. The effect is passive, and only expires when their numbers drop below 3.

Area: ACDC, Kotobuki Town, Yumland, Netfrica, Hades Isle

HP: 190
Attack Damage/Effect: 45 Fire + Spread 2
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description - Fires Heat-V
Element: Fire
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Heat-V, Zenny
Special: Uses pack tactics when with at least 2 other Spikeys: 95 HP (Southern quadrant) (Normal) (Mid-Cloud attacking next turn)
NailerNailer (Needler)

Needlers only attack forward, left and right. They cannot attack targets above and below their position, nor can they shoot backwards. Needlers do not move (aside from aiming) aside from their secondary attack, though they will use it to reposition themselves if they find it necessary.

Area: Okuden Valley, Kotobuki Town

HP: 170
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null x 2 Shots x 3 Targets
Primary Attack Accuracy: A
Primary Attack Description: Fires needles in 3 directions.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 30 Null + Movement + Impact + Knockback / 15 Null x 3 targets
Secondary Attack Accuracy: C / A
Secondary Attack Description: Rams forward with surprising speed, then fires a burst of needles while the enemy is still startled.
Tertiary Attack Damage/Effect: 6 Wood x 8 Shots
Tertiary Attack Accuracy: C
Tertiary Attack Description: Shoots a storm of wooden needles at a single enemy.
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Needler2, NeedleCannon2 (Rare), Zenny: UNFORTUNATE ACCIDENTAL KILL! FOR IT!
Swordy-F2Swordy-F2 (Swordy-F)

Area: Kotobuki Town, Netfrica, Hades Isle

HP: 160
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 45 Fire + Long Range Attack + Slashing
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: When this virus is 2 panels away from the target, or its enemies are 2-deep, it will attack with Fire Blade.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 30 Fire + Wide Range Attack + Slashing
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: When this virus is standing directly adjacent to its target, or diagonally from it, it will attack with Fire Sword.
Element: Fire
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): FireSword, Zenny
Special: Swordy-F's are immune to Blind Status.
Special: Uses Area Grab to get into attack range.: RAIN'D!
ShooterShooter (Gunner)

Gunners attack every action, if able. They don't bother attacking enemies they can't hit or enemies they can't damage, but they can select Objects as targets. Their accuracy with the machinegun attack is bad because it scatters everywhere. They are aware of this. They are also aware of the fact that their Vulcan attack pierces objects.

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Dentech

HP: 120
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Spay Fire x 9 Shots
Primary Attack Accuracy: E
Primary Attack Description: Targets an enemy and sprays the area with twin machineguns.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Spread1 x 3 Shots
Secondary Attack Accuracy: A
Secondary Attack Description: Targets and enemy and attacks with Vulcan.
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Vulcan2, MachineGun2, Zenny
Special: Immobile.: 30 HP (Northern quadrant, behind boulder) (Soil)
CannonGuard2CannonGuard2 (CannonGuard)

CannonGuards are automatically in guard mode unless they are attacking. When guarding, the turret is protected by a shutter that will stop any and all non-breaking attacks from the front. This shutter cannot be destroyed, even by a breaking attack, so long as the virus exists. The shutter does not protect the turret portion of the virus against attacks from the back or sides. The base of the virus is also immune to non-breaking damage.

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Netopia, NAXA

HP: 150
Attack Damage/Effect: 45 Null + Lockon
Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Locks on and attacks
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): MarkCannon2, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: Target's evasion counts less against this virus.
Special: Can guard against attacks.: 150 HP (Southern Quadrant, near Spikey) (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 (Next to Lyntael) (Soil) (Hiding)
PulseBat2PulseBat2 (PulseBat)

Area: ACDC, Okuden Valley, Kotobuki Town, Sharo, NetVegas

HP: 160
Attack Damage/Effect: 70 + Seeking
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Uses a sonic screech to damage its opponents.
Secondary Attack Effect: EchoLocation
Secondary Attack Description: Launches a sonic pulse to reveal hidden or illusory targets.
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Pulsar2, EchoLocation, Zenny.
Special: Airshoes. If PulseBat hits an object, its attack spreads to up to 8 other targets at half damage while dealing full damage to that object. Every other turn, this virus enters High Altitude (dropdown) status and does not attack.: 160 HP (On top of Trash "Boulder" A) (Metal)

-- Navis --
Lyantel.EXE: 330 HP (On the Eastern quadrant with Aurora) (Soil) (Casing20)(ElecBarrier40) (Self-Slow2)(Off-target1)(Target destroyed before charge attack, half-charge retained) (Influx Aegis, Part 2, 3 actions left before trigger)
Eternalis.EXE: 565 HP (On the Northern Quadrant with Sparky) (Normal) (HA)(Influx Aegis, Part 2, 1 action left before trigger)
Aurora.SP: 100 HP (On the Eastern quadrant with Lyantel) (Soil) (Equipped to Lyantael)(Casing20)(Barrier20)(1-hit shield)
Sparky.SP: 80 HP (On the Northern quadrant with Eternalis) (Normal) (Equipped to Eternalis)(HA)

-- Terrain -- (Terrain is divided into rough quarter-ish chunks. You and your enemies are always within melee distance of attacks, if on the same chunk of land due to tight fighting conditions. May attempt to move quadrants by way of narrow ledges connecting all four, but being hit while traveling may send you into the lava and stop your movement action, jumping is not guaranteed either with a higher chance of being sent into the lava's surface)

30% 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.

(Grass that has been burned away from the Lava's heat, Northern and Western sections of the field)
30% Normal

• No effects.

(Eastern and Southern quadrants of the field, lightly scorched, connects the outermost sections of the field)
40% Lava

• Non-Fire Elementals lose 5 HP/action standing, 10 HP/action submerged. Doubled for Wood Elementals, nullified for Fire Elementals.
• Aqua attacks: Panel explodes, +100% Source Aqua Damage, change terrain hit to Normal.
• PanelShot: Imbue Fire.

(A rough X-shape across the field, dividing the field into rough quarters with the outermost edges being untouched, about two panels worth of distance separating each quadrant diagonally and about three in the middle)

-- Objects -- (More boulders will fall at each turn, each is about the size of the two navis put together, with enough space on top to support a single entity, the tops are considered Metal terrain)

Trash "Boulder" A: 40 HP (Submerged in lava about half-way, can be used as a stepping stone to the other quarters of the field to avoid the Lava as a "safe" alternative to jumping over the lava or using the narrow ledges to get into a different quadrant) (Heatbody) (Lava)
Trash "Boulder" B: 40 HP (Situated on the Northern quadrant, roughly in the middle making tight quarters even tighter) (Soil)
Trash "Boulder" C: 40 HP (Between the South and East quadrants, can use as a stepping stone to get between the two) (Heatbody) (Lava)

As the bolt of fire winged her, Lyntael was spun about part way from her stance, gasping as the protective structure in her clothes robbed it of stopping power but the feeling or heat and force splashed across her body all the same. She felt her body respond, gritting her teeth with just enough time to steady her footing and brace before the reflexive recoil burst from her body and scattered across the nearby quadrant. It was one release, drain and rebuild cycling within the greater pulse of her charge and it stole her breath and sight for a moment.

By the time she recovered, the viruses nearest her were already dispatched and she rounded instead, releasing the blast that yearned to escape back towards the one that had struck her. Somewhere nearby, Eternalis was raining his own attacks down on the field, but it was growing hard to keep track of everything through the building static that was already raised to breaking point again.

There was nothing close enough for her to release the pent up charge on and the girl stumbled back from the edge, hugging herself for moment instead while the charge pulsed again, demanding release on something, anything, before it scoured her away to nothing. Fighting it was futile; that was always the trouble. Embrace it instead, that was what she'd said. More viruses were pouring in; she rounded on the first one to catch her eye, barely registering any conscious through to the action as she turned. Both of her arms lifted towards it, wrists slamming together with a metallic clang that she didn't really register, before the rush of sudden, almost blissful release.

The full weight of her charge poured through her, draining from every part of her body in a self-obliterating sear of light, force and static; a broad beam of rending lighting flared from her strikers as the current unified between them and lanced outward across the field, towards the hapless turret that had only just arrived. The relief of the strain giving way to flow passed quickly as the energy coursed through her, taking everything and dragging a grit-tooothed growl of effort and pain from her along the way while it lit up the battlefield.

Then void again, and aching, desolate emptiness, for a heartbeat that let her body sag and almost stumble... then surging, roaring static as her inner charge answered the void with ever more rapid rebuild. Why did it have to hurt like this? The beat of her hear,t her pulse, her charge, filling her with enough power and enough energy to actually do something useful, and drowning out her ability to even think about anything worthwhile in the process. Hang on; fight. The thought pushed through the static as she struggled to clear her vision and take in her surroundings.

She couldn't keep this up; that would have normally been her next thought. She knew that. But as much as the strain seared at every fibre of her being, she wasn't whiting out yet; it wasn't as bad as it could get. She could still think, somewhat, and focus. She tried to take note of the viruses that surrounded them as she recovered her stance and her body fought to stabilise itself; where were her friends? They'd be fine; she had to hold onto this and keep pushing, and that meant letting all the little pulses free to balance her out. The others would be fine. As she stepped back towards the centre of the area, circling, her body pulsed with static again – the smaller, stabilising pulse – a more even scattering of electrical fall-off that balanced out the spikes, at least a little. Her eyes were already starting to sting badly and she tried to blink it away. Fight it; push through. She could do this.

As Lyntael took her stance again, firmer and more grounded now, rather than light and loose, her hair crackled and her skin shone and danced with lighting patterns, already straining under the surface again. It was burning in her muscles and making her skin ache like countless needles dragged across it, but something was helping keep her thoughts clear, at least a little, and she held back the next reflex pulse for as long as she could.

Maybe she was just getting used to it? Either way, she focused and extended one hand in front of her; the answering pulse of her barrier sprang up as she called it, expanding from her chest to cover her again and exchange energy with her strikers as it formed the protective shell that helped keep her more aggressive expenditures in check. She blinked the stinging sensation from her eyes and turned her attention on the virus closest to her – something like a metool, but not quite. She darted in the extra step to get close to it, measuring the distance between the virus, and the lava behind, then skidded low, twisting her body to the side and putting one hand down as her left foot swept around. The first kick was simple, aimed just at hooking and lifting the virus up enough to expose it to the thrusting follow-up kick that flowed through on the other end of her twisting motion. This one came with another release of energy; not the full force of everything that had rebuilt already, but much of it. The same torrent coursed through her, drawing in, unifying and racing out again to explode in a forceful flare of electricity that she oped might be enough to shove the silly thing into the lava. As the lighting burst, it flared back from her body as well, branching into lines of excess fall off that split and arced across the arena behind her, tracing destructive lines towards other unlucky viruses behind her, though Lyntael herself wasn't really able to pay attention to the splitting trails.

Even if it wasn't everything, the burst left her gasping air for a moment, before she could gather herself and spring back to her feet; the drain wasn't total, but the gap it left was filling in again rapidly as her charge cycled. By the time she turned her back on the metool-like virus to see what other threads there were, the ache was at breaking point again; despite whatever greater endurance was letting her keep focused here, it was still overwhelming her bit by bit; her steps were sluggish, almost numb, and though she couldn't see it herself, light trails of excess sparks were beginning to spill from the corners of her eyes as excess static began to obscure bright green with electric yellow. She had to put an end to the fight soon. Just make all of it go away, so they could say they'd won, and she'd done well. Sooner, rather than later; it had to be sooner.

Summary
L*) ((Failed to Expend and charge retained from previous turn) (Overcharge +1))
L*) Subtype: All attacks containing Knockback or Pull gain Wind-Type.
E*) Influx Aegis: (40 Healing)
L1) Action Precluded: Buster Charge
L2) My Anger Directed: (Take Aim, 180Elec, Knockback, Break, Impact, Slashing, Shot-type, A) (Charge-Burner 2) (Overcharge +6)) @ CannonGuard
L3) A Manifest Spirit: (Multi-Stage: (First: (15Elec, Nova2, A), Then: (Time Delayed (15Elec, Nova2, Per Turn, for 3 additional turns)), (Overcharge -1 per pulse)
L*) Fast Armour: 20Hp Casing Refresh
E*) Influx Aegis: (40 Healing)
L4) Lingers After: (Self-Slow1, Counter(On Hit): (45Elec, Nova2) (Overcharge +1 On Set, +1 On Trigger)
L5) My Heart Falters: (80Elec Barrier, Buster Charge, Off-Target1) (Overcharge -2)
L6) My Thoughts Collected: (45Elec, Knockback, Impact, Spread2, Shot-Type, A) (Charge Burner1)) (Overcharge +3) @ NeoMet, Spread to PulseBat and Shooter
E*) Influx Aegis: (40 Healing)

Cooldowns and Overcharge

My Pain is Real, (2TCD)
And Lingers After. (3TCD)
My Heart Falters, (3TCD)
And Beat Anew. (1TCD)

My Fear Rejected, (2TCD)
My Thoughts Collected, (3TCD)
My Anger Directed, (6TCD)

A Manifest Spirit. (3TCD)

Overcharge: Begin: +6 , A Manifest Spirit (-1), Lingers After (+1), Trigger (+1), My Anger Directed (+6), My Heart Falters (-2), My Thoughts Collected (+3), End: +14 (but it only feels like 10?)

With his vantage point, Eternalis was able to track the escape of the viral amalgamate, though with the approaching viruses around Aurora and Lyntael, he figured it would be best not to pursue by himself. "Guess we can deal with whatever that thing is later; seems to be leaving a pretty obvious trail to follow anyway," he mused by himself, though he was also interrupted by a brief salvo of gunfire coming from below. Absorbing a few bullets in the meantime was all in a day's work for him, though, with his slime body rippling in place where the bullets penetrated through.

While his body began to repair itself, Eternalis reported swiftly on the situation from above, only to receive a pained emotion in response, though it was soon followed up by Aurora's end reaffirming that she was okay. Trying to act as Lyntael's assistant directly was more taxing than she had anticipated, and Lyntael herself wasn't even talking back to her now, which didn't seem like a good sign. Eternalis's worrying cropped up, but Aurora rebuffed him with another affirmation that he should stay where he was, and provide aerial support for the moment.

"Everything good?" Harke's voice chimed in. "Looking at her status, Aurora seems to be trying to do a lot on her own."

"Seems like it's still fine... but I'll keep an eye out. Pass us a couple more chips while I keep watch, could you?" he requested, to which Harke replied with a pair of Battlechips. The closest one that he could see might be a threat was the PulseBat, perched atop one of the fallen metal boulders. He extended his hand out before him, and a chunk of his hand swirled about and split off into a blob that floated about above his palm. The separated blob shifted colors into a more yellowish tint, crackling with energy, before hurtling down towards the bat virus.

"Lyntael! I'll try to hold off a bit of the charge from going back into your body!" Aurora's efforts on the ground was trying to direct the chaotic spray of energy from Lyntael's haywire systems from feeding back into her own body. It was all she could do to do it once, but it was worth trying again. The Battlechip data from Harke came in, but she held it off momentarily. It had to be something different. Perhaps she could discharge the excess through her own innate strength.

One strike towards the CannonGuard turret. Seeing this, Aurora released some of her own charge towards the nearby PulseBat, but it didn't quite work--the attack only took from her own charge, and not much from Lyntael's run-off. Another attempt, this time trying to line up her discharge with Lyntael's self-accumulating charge--she aimed towards one of the chunks of iron that had broken off instead, perhaps something more grounded would work. No dice there either, but at least it was ruled out again.

Out of options, Aurora took the chip data that she had been entrusted with from Harke, and lined it up with another of Lyntael's breathless discharges. Come on, she prayed. This time, she was able to pull some of Lyntael's pent-up charge to augment the attack the latter was doing, and the burst of lightning that was arcing back into Lyntael's body was captured, and shot out with greater force. It was frustrating that she was only able to effectively assist with this runaway charge with Battlechip assistance, but it was a step in the right direction. More important was that Lyntael hadn't been responding to her much at all... They needed the viruses out of the picture, and fast, before it got out of hand.

-- (Eternalis: 3 actions @ Aurora)

[E1] Take Aim
[A1] Attack @ PulseBat2: 50 Elec (+100% Metal)
[S1] Dodge (High Gear: Evasion+10%)

[E2] Arrow2Damage: 130 + Homing
Accuracy: B
Description: Summons an Elewasp virus, and sends it flying at an enemy. The Elewasp is tenacious, and will hunt down its prey. It vanishes after stinging it's target, or after two turns.
Duration: Once
Element: Elec
Trader Rank: C: 130 + Homing (Acc: B) @ PulseBat2 (+100% Metal)
[A2] Attack @ PulseBat2: 50 Elec (+100% Metal)
[S2] Dodge (High Gear: Evasion+10%)

[E3] No action
[A3] Attack @ Boulder B: 50 Elec (+100% Metal)

[A4] Take Aim
[A5] (All for One) ElecReel2Damage: 100 + Spread 3 (Side + Behind)
Accuracy: B
Description: A small bolt of lightning that spreads sideways and behind the target upon impact.
Duration: Once
Element: Elec
Trader Rank: C: 100 + Spread 3 (Side + Behind) (Acc: B) @ NeoMetool2/PulseBat2/Shooter (+15 Element, +100% Metal, Take Aim: Acc+)

Battle continuing along, Lyntael was not as quick on the draw as her partner, Aurora sending off a shot of electricity at the resting Pulsebat before it could try to make a move, striking and shocking the creature (100!) as Eternalis' form slowly recooped it's mass (+40) as the viruses were firmly on the defensive against the navis. Twitching and stuttering from it hit, the Pulsebat retaliated against the navi wearing Aurora and launched a piercing shriek at the navi...which, Aurora managed to block in time with her shield, stopping the soundwave in it's tracks as the aformentioned navi finished her charge whilst Eternalis' MidCloud would drown the Spikey despite it's best efforts, breaking the flaming dog's resolve and eliminating it from the field (180!).

Between everything, the Shooter was still hot on Eternalis' trail, taking aim at the flying blob and taking it's shot again, using it's vulcan rounds for more accurate shots as two of the three managed to pierce Eternalis' goopy body (15x2) despite Sparky's best efforts. But Lyntael would quickly lash out at the guarding Cannonguard, the beam piercing through it's entire form without a second to think, a spectacular explosion erupting from it's body (360!) as it died, leaving only a trio of viruses left on the field.

Etarnalis would strike next, sending out an electrified blob out to hone in on the Pulsebat whilst it was still exposed, but despite his best efforts, the attack went wide and would have to try and hone in on the virus in a moment...or at least, that's what WOULD happen, if Aurora hadn't sniped it with a second well placed shot (100!), deleting the virus wholesale, as it sputtered from the electrical currents forced through it's body, falling into the lava as it broke apart. Her Spirit Manifested, Lyntael was right to set herself up, the NeoMetool would immediately take a potshot at her, not knowing what was about to happen, as it left it's defensive state...and blasted her barrier off, sending shockwaves roiling around her and countering it's attack (15) without a way to evade the explosive nova, restoring her own strength and refreshing her casing (+40).

As the NeoMetool stumbled back from it's shock therepy, Aurora would shoot her shoot at a boulder on Eternalis' part of the field and cause the junk to disperse and fall apart, scattering bits and bobs about the area. Whilst this happened, the Shooter would take aim at Lyntael without thinking about it's ally on her part of the field, the Metool trying in vain to stop the attack already set in motion, a peppering of shots exploding outwards as it tried in vain to hit Lyntael...and whilst a few shots got through (15x3), breaking her casing and partially damaging her in the process, Lyntael exploded outwards again, causing the Metool to shriek in pain as it stumbled back (45) in pain. Whilst Lyntael let her Heart Falter, barrier restored to working order and stronger than ever, Aurora took the kill shot at the Metool with a well placed ElecReel, elimiting it and the Shooter in short order, letting Lyn take a little breather and keeping her charged.

Of course, as per usual, another boulder fell onto the field, crashing between the north and east quadrants, another stepping stone for them to use. In addition, another trio of viruses fell from atop, looking to put an end to the quartet. Two falling gracefully on flaming wings, one being the Blazer variant of the Fishy family, the other a blue flame coated phoenix spreading it's wings widely atop the boulder in the middle of the area. Then a Swordy landed hard on it's bottom, holding it's sword aloft...even if it was barely able to move for a moment.

-- Viruses -- (Kill Count: Spikey2, Nailer, Swordy-F2, CannonGuard2, Pulsebat2, Shooter, NeoMetool2)
Blazer2Blazer2 (Blazer)

Blazers are a modified strain of Fishy virus made to fully exploit their previous possession of Burner battlechip data. While they retain, for the most part, the appearance of a Fishy virus, their fins are more heavily rounded and there are a set of specialized gills on either side of their underbelly that can spew flames. In addition, all Blazers are now a stark reddish color, with the intensity varying from a charcoal-ish gray-red at the first tier to a violent intensity with the Omegas.

Area: Kotobuki Town, Netopia, Netfrica, Hades Isle

HP: 140
Attack Damage/Effect: Movement + 45 Nova 2 Fire Damage
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Flies forward and then SPINS, unleashing a gout of flame from specialized vents on its' flanks.
Element: Fire
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Burner2, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes: 140 HP (Southern Quadrant) (Soil) (Omnishoes)
Swordy-N2Swordy-N2 (Swordy-N)

Area: ACDC, Kotobuki Town, Netopia

HP: 120
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 60 Null + Long Range Attack + Slashing
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: When this virus is 2 panels away from the target, or its enemies are 2-deep, it will attack with Long Sword.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 45 Null + Wide Range Attack + Slashing
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: When this virus is standing directly adjacent to its target, or diagonally from it, it will attack with Wide Sword.
Element: Null
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): WideSword, Zenny
Special: Sword-N's are immune to Sleep Status.
Special: Uses Area Grab to get into attack range.: 120 HP (Western Quadrant) (Normal)
BluePhoenixBluePhoenix (FirePhoenix)

FirePhoenixes are medium sized birds, constantly emitting fire from their body. Despite being able to fly, they lack some of the grace other flying viruses, and have only average dodging capability. Higher versions are truer to their name, and are capable of reviving themselves. However, a Wind-type attack will blow away their ashes before they can regenerate, and if they're deleted with an Aqua attack, the ashes don't form.

Area: Hades Isle, Kotobuki Town

HP: 180
Attack Damage/Effect: 50 Fire + Wide Attack
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Launches a wide wave of fire, shaped like a bird.
Element: Fire
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): PhoenixShot2, Zenny
Special: OmniShoes
Special: Rebirth: When this virus is deleted by a non-Aqua attack, it fades to ashes, then rises from them at the end of the turn at 70 HP. This effect only works once per virus. Does not trigger if the virus was deleted by a Wind-type attack, or if a Wind-type attack is used on the ashes prior to revival.
Special: Can use FireAura1 once.: 180 HP (Atop Boulder A) (Metal) (Omnishoes)

-- Navis --
Lyntael.EXE: 350 HP (On the Eastern quadrant with Aurora) (Soil)(ElecBarrier80) (Self-Slow1)(Off-Target1)(A Manifest Spirit: 15 Elec in Nova 2 for 3 turns) (My Thoughts Collected unused, Half-Charge not used)
Eternalis.EXE: 600 HP (On the Northern Quadrant with Sparky) (Normal) (HA)(Influx Aegis, Part 3, 3 action left before trigger)
Aurora.SP: 100 HP (On the Eastern quadrant with Lyantel) (Soil) (Equipped to Lyantael)(Casing20)(Barrier20)(1-hit shield)
Sparky.SP: 80 HP (On the Northern quadrant with Eternalis) (Normal) (Equipped to Eternalis)(HA)

-- Terrain -- (Terrain is divided into rough quarter-ish chunks. You and your enemies are always within melee distance of attacks, if on the same chunk of land due to tight fighting conditions. May attempt to move quadrants by way of narrow ledges connecting all four, but being hit while traveling may send you into the lava and stop your movement action, jumping is not guaranteed either with a higher chance of being sent into the lava's surface)

30% 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.

(Grass that has been burned away from the Lava's heat, Northern and Western sections of the field)
30% Normal

• No effects.

(Eastern and Southern quadrants of the field, lightly scorched, connects the outermost sections of the field)
40% Lava

• Non-Fire Elementals lose 5 HP/action standing, 10 HP/action submerged. Doubled for Wood Elementals, nullified for Fire Elementals.
• Aqua attacks: Panel explodes, +100% Source Aqua Damage, change terrain hit to Normal.
• PanelShot: Imbue Fire.

(A rough X-shape across the field, dividing the field into rough quarters with the outermost edges being untouched, about two panels worth of distance separating each quadrant diagonally and about three in the middle)

-- Objects -- (More boulders will fall at each turn, each is about the size of the two navis put together, with enough space on top to support a single entity, the tops are considered Metal terrain)

Trash "Boulder" A: 40 HP (Submerged in lava about half-way, can be used as a stepping stone to the other quarters of the field to avoid the Lava as a "safe" alternative to jumping over the lava or using the narrow ledges to get into a different quadrant) (Heatbody) (Lava)
Trash "Boulder" B: TRASH'D
Trash "Boulder" C: 40 HP (Between the South and East quadrants, can use as a stepping stone to get between the two) (Heatbody) (Lava)
Trash "Boulder" D: 40 HP (Between North and East quadrants, can be used as a stepping stone to get between the two) (Heatbody) (Lava)

Survival Turn 3, survive for a voluntary escape from battle!

As each virus in turn shattered into broken data around her, and leaving her nothing to focus on, Lyntael dragged another step back towards the centre of the enclosed space holding back the prepared charge. The current in her body swelled and pulsed, drawn to the point of release and then stymied as she turned about, searching hurriedly for something else, anything else to release the charge upon before it burned her alive. A growl in her throat echoed the frustrated tension as another wave of of overflowing sparks washed off her body and scattered into the air around her.

“Rraghh.... Stop.. Stop breaking before I can... I can...” As she turned, she came face to flaming beak with the newly arrived phoenix and lifted both arms above her head. The charge surged then flowed as, palms together, she sliced her hands down to draw a broad line white lightning that leapt forward like a curved blade of crackling light towards the virus. As her hands came apart, excess flares from her fingertips continued to vent wild streams of less controlled power, thundering west and south in the rough direction of the other viruses.

It wasn't enough. The rending blast she'd been holding only put a dent in the rebuilding charge as it cycled every more rapidly low – the emptiness didn't even come after the short relief of release, and it was instead answered by the roar of the pulse from her chest. The pain and the strain made her teeth grit and she could feel it searing in her muscle sand up and down her spine – how was she even thinking clearly at this point? Aurora had to be helping, like she said. The bracers were warm against her wrists, but something in her flinched as she looked down at them and felt the coursing of her own current running through them. She shoved it down; there were only the enemies, and her charge, and she hadn't burned herself out yet. It had to be close; the searing pain in her limbs and the stinging in her eyes were so bad; almost worse than she recalled feeling, but the static filling her mind wasn't everywhere yet.

“Hey. Aurora... Whatever... Whatever you're doing... I'm okay... I'm good... I just... I can't stop.” The flow of small electric sparks from the stinging corners of her eyes made crackling motes in the air and the lace of electricity completely covered her eyes now, but she did her best to ignore it; each pulse only made the next come faster. Each release was temporary relief, and a worse return. She was past the point of slowing it down now; past the point of stopping. It strained to bursting again, filling every inch of her body with searing light. Thought itself would have been gone by this point. Should have been, but seeing what was happening to her didn't help to stop it. She moved a few more paces toot he very centre of the space, holding her combat stance as best she could.

“I can't... I can't slow it down, like this. I can't... can't control it like this!” With another shriek of effort, Lyntael let the charge flow again, already well beyond her ability to hold it back. This time there was no target, no direction, no thought towards who or what might be around – all that mattered was the need to release the force and spare herself the destructive burn of holding it all inside, even if only for a moment. A thunder-crack of sound accompanied the burst of arcing lightning lines that lanced out from her body in every direction as the release arched her body up on her toes and made her eyes roll upwards for the sudden relief of the power flowing freely through her; it was too much, too overwhelming, but it was relief all the same. Bolts of lighting cracked outward, striking the ground and dissipating into the air wildly, while others attempted to ground themselves on viruses, rocks, and anything else they could find.

Where the storm of bolts couldn't find targets to ground on, they cracked through the air, dancing back and forth as they intersected with each other and parted again, handing in the air and continuing to seek some other outlet, but after another second or two of holding her arched, flung-back pose, Lyntael felt her body sag and collapse, stumbling down to one knee as she clenched her fists and tried to force herself back up. The emptiness came, and the aching void, but it flashed by her without even giving the cold time to touch her – the beat of her heart, or her pulse, of her charge; it answered like a storm, lightning and rage incarnate in the heart of her being, swelling to fill her again and demanding needing more.

She couldn't focus, couldn't think; even with Aurora's help, her thoughts were overborne by the weight of static that was burning at her now. It was hurting her – a fragmented thought as she kept her eyes squeezed shut to block out the needle-like pain stabbing at them. It felt like she was about to burn out, but hadn't yet, and she was more aware of it than normal, now. She couldn't stop the build – couldn't hold it back enough to slow it down; it was going to happen again, she was sure of it, but maybe this time, she could handle it better. That was the goal, wasn't it? The thoughts chased one another as Lyntael fought to stand, her awareness of the battlefield around her reduced to a distant sense of light and sound.

Summary
L*) ((Failed to Expend and charge retained from previous turn) (Overcharge +1))
L*) Subtype: All attacks containing Knockback or Pull gain Wind-Type.
L1) Action Precluded: Buster Charge
L*) Manifest Spirit: (15Elec, Nova2, A) (Overcharge -1)
L2) My Thoughts Collected: (45Elec, Knockback, Impact, Spread2, Shot-Type, A) (Charge Burner1)) (Overcharge +3) @ BluePhoenix, Spread to Blazer, Swordy
L*) Fast Armour: 20Hp Casing Refresh
L3) Buster Charge
L4) Feint (to centre)
L5) As I look to the Sky: (45Elec, Knockback, Nova4, Homing, Shot-type, Charge-Burner 2)(Overcharge +6)
L6) Action Precluded: Buster Charge

Cooldowns and Overcharge

My Pain is Real, (1TCD)
And Lingers After. (2TCD)
My Heart Falters, (2TCD)
And Beat Anew. (Cooling)

My Fear Rejected, (1TCD)
My Thoughts Collected, (2TCD)

My Anger Directed, (5TCD)
As I Look to the Sky, (6TCD)

A Manifest Spirit. (2TCD)

Overcharge: Begin: +12(8) , A Manifest Spirit (-1), My Thoughts Collected (+3), As I look to the Sky (+6) End: +20(16)

Despite her now non-humanoid form, Aurora felt as if her chest was tightening. The viruses around them were disappearing, sure, but Lyntael wasn't going to hold up. There was something about this time that was different from their previous excursions now, she felt it in her heart of hearts. If the buildup she was sensing from Lyntael's body was going to go any higher, she felt it would not go well. "Lyntael, we've got to leave!" she shouted out.

Lyntael was saying something now--an improvement from before, but her condition still wasn't improving. It didn't look like she would be able to do much about the retained charge by expending it for her, but perhaps it would be better to store some of the wayward electrical potential inside of her instead. But to do so would simply be a stopgap measure. Aurora felt the only recourse now would be to pull out before the load inside of her would erupt, and recuperate somewhere where her internal core would stop its activity.

As she held in some of the charge that Lyntael was suffering from, Aurora felt her thoughts fill with indistinct pins and needles, evidence of the erratic energy that was running amok inside Lyntael. Then, from her mental link, a tick of concern. Amidst the mental static, she made out that the viruses that were coming in weren't letting up. She managed to return the thought, that they could clear out the remaining viruses, and he could swoop down to make a break for it, to let Sparky take their friend to safety--but they needed to wait for her signal. A short moment, in which they could come in without risking too much friendly fire from Lyntael's discharges.

"Gonna need some crowd control, Harke," said Eternalis. "These viruses keep on coming in with those boulders. We'll try to make a break for it. Some offense to thin them out, too."

"Got it, I'll send in the Timpani, and some AoE," replied Harke.

With the communication relayed, the empty space in the four corners of the field below glowed briefly, before a blob of blue rose from the ground, swirling into the shape of a Timpani virus. Its trumpet mouth sucked in the hot air before a deep, bassy tone that echoed throughout the artificial gorge that they were in. Aurora flinched slightly, but for the moment, she had to deal with the situation at hand. Lyntael was already directing some of her offense towards the newly-arrived blue bird, and in time with Harke's battlechip assistance. There was nowhere near enough output, she sensed through the crackling voltage racking her senses. A snap decision made, she let loose the DollThunder chip unto the BluePhoenix as well, but she only felt the energy inside Lyntael grow ever wilder.

"I'm trying to hold some part of it in myself, but we've got to leave!" she called out. Somewhere nearby, she saw a jet of water burst from underneath a nearby virus... or whatever it was, across the field from them. It looked vaguely greyish, but that's all she was able to make out. From the pulsing lights that went down her gauntlet form, current began leaking out indiscriminately, though she managed to direct them towards another part of the battlefield that seemed to have something on it. Whatever it was, it couldn't be friendly, as the only allies they had now were still up in the air.

There was something she had to do--what was it? In between the lightning storm that Lyntael was producing, and the Timpani's cacophony, and the uncontrollable static she was holding in, unawares, her mental process began to slip.

-- (Eternalis: 3 actions @ Aurora)

[E1] TimpaniHP: 50
Properties: Heavy
Object Damage: 50 + Impact
Damage Method: Throw, Telekinesis
Status Effect: Hold + To-All-Clause(Enemies)
Accuracy: S
Description: Stops all enemies from moving with a powerful sonic wave.
Duration: 1 turn or until destroyed.
Element: Null
Trader Rank: C: 50HP Heavy Object, 1-Turn: Hold + To-All-Enemy (Acc: S) @ Northern Quadrant
[A1] Take Aim
[S1] Dodge (High Gear: Evasion+10%)

[E2] Take Aim
[A2] (All for One) DollThunder1Damage: 80 + Line-Attack5
Accuracy: B
Description: Fires a powerful bolt of lightning that pierces through objects and enemies alike.
Duration: Once
Element: Elec
Trader Rank: D: 80 + Line-Attack5 (Acc: B) @ BluePhoenix (+15 Element, +100% Metal, Take Aim: Acc+)
[S2] Dodge (High Gear: Evasion+10%)

[E3] WaterLine2Damage: 130 + Ground Attack + Wide Attack
Accuracy: B
Description: A wall of water gushes from the ground, drowning up to 3 targets.
Duration: Once
Element: Aqua
Trader Rank: C: 130 + Ground Attack + Wide Attack (Acc: B) @ Swordy-N2 (+15 Element, Take Aim: Acc+)
[A3] Attack @ Blazer2: 50 Elec

[A4] Attack @ Blazer2: 50 Elec
[A5] Attack @ Blazer2: 50 Elec

As Lyntael's spirit manifested, the nearby Phoenix would flap itself away out of the pulse, barely escaping the pulse as she struggled to hold the charge within her body. All the same, Eternalis would summon a helper in the form of a gooey Timpani, the viral helper quickly blasting out a deep, bass filled tone that quickly locked the viruses down, the air vibrating heavily from it's sounds. The Blazer and Phoenix trying their best to stay airborne whist the Swordy could barely keep it's arms up at the opressive noises.

As the two navis prepared themselves for attacks, the Phoenix would make an attempt at Lyntael's life by shooting forth a blast of azure flames, attempting to roast the electrical navi...and managing to strip away most of her barrier away in the blast as well as tearing apart Aurora's in the same breath (50). But was swiftly clocked by Aurora and Lyntael in return, ripping apart the Phoenix in a one-two punch of attacks, leading to it's demise, as well as hitting the Blazer and Swordy in the process, through the latter managed to avoid getting hit by the DollThunder as it passed through the Phoenix's body, falling to ashes atop the lava. (90!)(45)(45)(190!)

As the Timpani raged, the two living viruses tried their damnedist to try and destroy it, the Blazer raging fruitlessly around and around, flames exploding out of it's back as it was pinned down, whist the Swordy was in much the same perdicament, unable to teleport and fight where it needed to. Unfortunately for both, they were beset upon by navis and SPs, Eternalis quickly washing away the Swordy with a well placed waterline, deleting it outright (145) as Lyntael and Aurora made their way to the middle, with the latter firing off a shot towards the neutered Blazer, but her shot going wide as she took another shot and barely managing to hit (50) whilst the former sent out a massive blast of electicity around her atop the boulder, managing to send enough energy outwards to hit the Blazer as Aurora attacked it a third time, deleting it outright (45, perfect kill!) as the Phoenix's ashes were blown away in the explosion.

With the threat seemingly neutered, the quartet had a chance to breathe...before, once more, another Trio fell from the skies, slamming down onto the ground one after the other. Another Swordy-F2, Shooter and NeoMetool landing on the field in various ways, all primed to kill the quartet. And once more on cue, a boulder fell from on high, crashing into the East wall of the gorge, a seemingly recently dug tunnel being unearthed from the force as the boulder crumbled away from the impact and scattered junk electronics and parts across the soil. If the four wished to escape, now was the time. It seemed like they could get away before the viruses recovered from their fall from on high if they went now.

-- Viruses -- (Kill Count: Spikey2, Nailer, Swordy-F2, CannonGuard2, Pulsebat2, Shooter, NeoMetool2, Swordy-N2, Blazer2(ping!), BluePhoenix)
Swordy-F2Swordy-F2 (Swordy-F)

Area: Kotobuki Town, Netfrica, Hades Isle

HP: 160
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 45 Fire + Long Range Attack + Slashing
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: When this virus is 2 panels away from the target, or its enemies are 2-deep, it will attack with Fire Blade.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 30 Fire + Wide Range Attack + Slashing
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: When this virus is standing directly adjacent to its target, or diagonally from it, it will attack with Fire Sword.
Element: Fire
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): FireSword, Zenny
Special: Swordy-F's are immune to Blind Status.
Special: Uses Area Grab to get into attack range.: 160 HP (Northern Quadrant) (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 (Western Quadrant) (Soil)
ShooterShooter (Gunner)

Gunners attack every action, if able. They don't bother attacking enemies they can't hit or enemies they can't damage, but they can select Objects as targets. Their accuracy with the machinegun attack is bad because it scatters everywhere. They are aware of this. They are also aware of the fact that their Vulcan attack pierces objects.

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Dentech

HP: 120
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Spay Fire x 9 Shots
Primary Attack Accuracy: E
Primary Attack Description: Targets an enemy and sprays the area with twin machineguns.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Spread1 x 3 Shots
Secondary Attack Accuracy: A
Secondary Attack Description: Targets and enemy and attacks with Vulcan.
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Vulcan2, MachineGun2, Zenny
Special: Immobile.: 120 HP (Eastern Quadrant) (Normal)

-- Navis --
Lyntael.EXE: 350 HP (On BoulderA with Aurora) (metal) (Casing20)(ElecBarrier30)(A Manifest Spirit: 15 Elec in Nova 2 for 2 turns)(Half-charge)
Eternalis.EXE: 600 HP (On the Northern Quadrant with Sparky) (Normal) (HA)
Aurora.SP: 100 HP (On BoulderA with Lyntael) (Metal)(Equipped to Lyantael)(Casing20)(1-hit shield)
Sparky.SP: 80 HP (On the Northern quadrant with Eternalis) (Normal) (Equipped to Eternalis)(HA)

-- Terrain -- (Terrain is divided into rough quarter-ish chunks. You and your enemies are always within melee distance of attacks, if on the same chunk of land due to tight fighting conditions. May attempt to move quadrants by way of narrow ledges connecting all four, but being hit while traveling may send you into the lava and stop your movement action, jumping is not guaranteed either with a higher chance of being sent into the lava's surface)

30% 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.

(Grass that has been burned away from the Lava's heat, Northern and Western sections of the field)
30% Normal

• No effects.

(Eastern and Southern quadrants of the field, lightly scorched, connects the outermost sections of the field)
40% Lava

• Non-Fire Elementals lose 5 HP/action standing, 10 HP/action submerged. Doubled for Wood Elementals, nullified for Fire Elementals.
• Aqua attacks: Panel explodes, +100% Source Aqua Damage, change terrain hit to Normal.
• PanelShot: Imbue Fire.

(A rough X-shape across the field, dividing the field into rough quarters with the outermost edges being untouched, about two panels worth of distance separating each quadrant diagonally and about three in the middle)

-- Objects -- (More boulders will fall at each turn, each is about the size of the two navis put together, with enough space on top to support a single entity, the tops are considered Metal terrain)

Trash "Boulder" A: 40 HP (Submerged in lava about half-way, can be used as a stepping stone to the other quarters of the field to avoid the Lava as a "safe" alternative to jumping over the lava or using the narrow ledges to get into a different quadrant) (Heatbody) (Lava)
Trash "Boulder" B: TRASH'D
Trash "Boulder" C: 40 HP (Between the South and East quadrants, can use as a stepping stone to get between the two) (Heatbody) (Lava)
Trash "Boulder" D: 40 HP (Between North and East quadrants, can be used as a stepping stone to get between the two) (Heatbody) (Lava)

Escape from battle avalible!

FXP from the fight so far from virus kills: 24
Bug Frags from the fight so far: 52

From Aurora's perspective, the shift to trying to syphon power from her friend came far more easily than her other efforts – too easily almost. The first beat of energy came rapidly and like the bridge of a willing conductor it flowed to her, and flowed, and didn't stop, beginning to override the rapid pulsing with this continuous connection; only when she couldn't hold any more would the flow relent. Somewhere close, Lyntael shrieked – a cry somewhere between pain and fury – and the pulse surged again.

For her part, Lyntael staggered, keeping her feet through grim determination more than anything else. There wasn't much thought or awareness left in a mind full of raw current and static – she should have burned out by now, a thread of thought struggled to reach through the fog; it was going to burn her alive. She couldn't stop; this one was more an impulse than a clear thought – there was still danger, so she had to keep going. She could feel the power flowing through her as a constant stream now; her wrists felt like they were on fire, and as she wheeled about, blinking through static-blind eyes, sympathetic flares and crackles of lightning spider-webbed madly from her ankle strikers.

Something moved, close by, and she rounded on it, letting her body move as the charge demanded. One step, a half turn and then both hands coming around together towards the blurry shape she could barely make out. Wild streaks of electricity trailed from her extremities as she lashed out and as the power surged through her she distantly heard it tear a shriek of pain and rage from her lungs. The release didn't feel good any more – it burned through her, lighting up the field again in a tempest that seared her sense of self to ash. There was no girl in the middle – just the source and the destination, and the conduit that the power flowed through. She screamed as the blast continued for a second, two, that took an age to pass, then, suddenly, like the crack of a circuit-breaker, emptiness.

Her cry cut off into the tapering end of a silent breath exhaling and Lyntael felt like she was falling, dragged into blackness by the leaden void in her chest. She didn't feel her body waver, or her knees hit the ground, nor even the harder impact that must have followed as she fell the rest of the way. The void of sensation consumed and enveloped her – a soothing cold that still felt like dying.

She felt herself blink; light and noise. Voices. The cold emptiness in her yawned where the comforting beat of her charge should be, but she'd been here before. A thought pushed its way through the black; they were still in danger. She had to move.

Lyntael struggled to push herself up; details were still elusive and the dead, emptiness dulled all of her senses down to the smallest of points – for now, get up. Focus on that. Her wrists hurt – small spikes of pain, like the skin was clinging to something and tugging any time she moved. She felt her body react, with a sudden viscerality she didn't quite understand; she shifted to begin reaching for the feeling of something metal against her strikers, sticking to her skin.

“Get it off... get it off get it off...” her fingers clawed, trying to get the metal away from her skin as the words came out in a barely legible slur. Somewhere in the motion, she had gotten to her feet – not her though, someone was helping. It was hard to focus, but her eyes slid across a figure that her mind suggested was almost certainly Aurora. They were moving, and she tried to help, but moving her limbs felt like lifting mountains – like the signals weren't even getting through. She had to focus; there was danger. A feeling like rough fur against her cheek; her eyes drifted to take in a very large sparky. She'd seen that before, hadn't she? Something like it. Yes. She'd seen Sparky get big before. Everyone had a special awesome 'get big' transformation but her. That was right. She gripped at the fur as other hands tried to help her on.

“Have to... keep going. 's danger. need to... need to fight.” It came out better that time; not quite a slur and more a weak mumble. That was improvement, right? She was improving. As she paused to be momentarily proud of this, another more urgent thought tried to battle its way to the front of her awareness, but it was still fuzzy, and it was hard to really feel like thinking of anything at all, when everything was so cold and empty and dead.


Summary
L1) Action Lost to Overcharge
L*) Manifest Spirit: (15Elec, Nova2, A) (Overcharge -1)
L2) Action Precluded: Buster Charge
L3) Full-charge Buster Strike (480Elec, Disarm, A) @ (Nearest Target; Lyntael can't tell) (Overcharge +6)
L4) Burn-Out Triggered
L5) Action Lost
L6) Trying to assist her friends in getting away for now. (Escape)

Cooldowns and Overcharge

My Pain is Real, (Cooling)
And Lingers After. (1TCD)
My Heart Falters, (1TCD)

My Fear Rejected, (Cooling)
My Thoughts Collected, (1TCD)

My Anger Directed, (4TCD)
As I Look to the Sky, (5TCD)

A Manifest Spirit. (1TCD)

Overcharge: Begin: +20 , A Manifest Spirit (-1), Full-Charge Strike (+6) End: +25; Burn-out triggered

"Aurora? Hey, Aurora!" yelled Eternalis. Whatever was coming through their mental link was devolving into a slurry of thoughts, and an intensifying haze of static. "Let's go, Sparky! Paws on the ground, size up!" he called out, tapping his heel onto the board. The pup's head barked in excitement immediately, and the board's thrusters whined in readiness. In the blink of an eye, the two vanished in a trail of light, leaving a brief afterimage of them as they moved too fast for the eye to catch. The trail zoomed down to the ground like a meteorite, but swerved right as it hit the ground, with Eternalis appearing from it in a rapid dismount.

At that moment, the viruses were landing all about, along with even more debris. Lyntael's instinctual discharge surged through her extremities. "Whoa, shit!" exclaimed Eternalis, taking all of his reflexes to try to move out of its way. An empty cry from his friend's lips, and he threw himself out to catch her before she hit the ground. Wayward static coursed through his hands as he made contact, but he held fast through the jolt. There were more pressing matters.

"Lyntael! Aurora!" he called out again.

Debris raining all about, one splashed into the lava, the splashback threatening to engulf the two. Suddenly, a sudden gust burst out in front of them, blasting the lava away in a show of force. Sparky's larger form shaded them, standing proud between the Navis and the newly-arrived viruses. "C'mon, let's get you two outta here," he said, hefting Lyntael as she struggled to remove Aurora's gauntlet form from her hands. Eternalis tried to restrain her from doing so, but it seems like there was no need; Lyntael was so weak she could barely muster any actual resistance.

This made it easier to help her onto Sparky's back. Right on cue, a boulder raining from above crashed down onto a nearby hill, revealing what seemed like an exit. "We'll go through that way, Sparky," he instructed. There was no affirmative bark from Sparky this time around, only the hound lowering his body to spring into action the moment they were ready, which wasn't too long after. Eternalis hopped on, holding tightly onto Lyntael's limply reacting figure, and gave the signal. "Go!" he called out, and Sparky's legs bounded forward as fast as he could carry them.

-- Eternalis: 1 action @ Sparky
[S1] Movement: Next to Lyntael (Overclock+High Gear: Evasion=60%)
[S*] GMO Change: Bloodhound
[E1] Help Lyntael to her feet

[S2] Equip: Lyntael
[E2] Mount onto Sparky

[E3-5] Escape!

Flying in as Lyntael and Aurora began to be completely consumed by the former's exertions, her inability to keep ip with everything as electric haze filled the area as the viruses looked on, unmoved...but smelling blood in the water so to speak, as the Swordy quickly capitalized on Lyntael's weakness, teleporting in towards her and sending a blast of fire down her body, cutting through her barrier with a longblade just missing Aurora as it was in turn blasted by her aura, sending shocks down it's spine towards the edge of the blast (15).

Shooter and Met looking on as the met would hide within it's helmet, the Shooter would rev up it's main turrets and begin shooting out towards Lyntael and the others, but it's inaccurate firing would only strike twice, once being blocked by Aurora's shield, the other by Lyntael's casing. Lyntael, on the other hand, would wind up striking the Swordy with little trouble, sending her attacks straight into it's chest and right through it, sending the Swordy to fall into the lava as it began to disentigrate. Sparky and Eternalis getting Aurora and Lyntael ready to escape, the quartet were able to make their move towards the makeshift exit, even if the Shooter tried to send a trio of more accurate bullets through Eternalis' form, but thankfully the quartet were out of there long before the shots could connect, ending the fight as they hurried through the passage into a wider plateau they could take a breath at, overseeing smaller trash mountains and some thin footpaths they could take towards...once Lyntael could properly move again.

-- Viruses -- (Kill Count: Spikey2, Nailer, Swordy-F2, CannonGuard2, Pulsebat2, Shooter, NeoMetool2, Swordy-N2, Blazer2(ping!), BluePhoenix)
Swordy-F2Swordy-F2 (Swordy-F)

Area: Kotobuki Town, Netfrica, Hades Isle

HP: 160
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 45 Fire + Long Range Attack + Slashing
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: When this virus is 2 panels away from the target, or its enemies are 2-deep, it will attack with Fire Blade.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 30 Fire + Wide Range Attack + Slashing
Secondary Attack Accuracy: B
Secondary Attack Description: When this virus is standing directly adjacent to its target, or diagonally from it, it will attack with Fire Sword.
Element: Fire
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): FireSword, Zenny
Special: Swordy-F's are immune to Blind Status.
Special: Uses Area Grab to get into attack range.: OVERKILL
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 (Western Quadrant) (Soil) (Hiding)
ShooterShooter (Gunner)

Gunners attack every action, if able. They don't bother attacking enemies they can't hit or enemies they can't damage, but they can select Objects as targets. Their accuracy with the machinegun attack is bad because it scatters everywhere. They are aware of this. They are also aware of the fact that their Vulcan attack pierces objects.

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Dentech

HP: 120
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Spay Fire x 9 Shots
Primary Attack Accuracy: E
Primary Attack Description: Targets an enemy and sprays the area with twin machineguns.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Spread1 x 3 Shots
Secondary Attack Accuracy: A
Secondary Attack Description: Targets and enemy and attacks with Vulcan.
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Vulcan2, MachineGun2, Zenny
Special: Immobile.: 120 HP (Eastern Quadrant) (Normal)

-- Navis --
Lyntael.EXE: 350 HP (On BoulderA with Aurora) (metal) (Casing20)(ElecBarrier30)(A Manifest Spirit: 15 Elec in Nova 2 for 2 turns)(Half-charge)
Eternalis.EXE: 600 HP (On the Northern Quadrant with Sparky) (Normal) (HA)
Aurora.SP: 100 HP (On BoulderA with Lyntael) (Metal)(Equipped to Lyantael)(Casing20)(1-hit shield)
Sparky.SP: 80 HP (On the Northern quadrant with Eternalis) (Normal) (Equipped to Eternalis)(HA)

-- Terrain -- (Terrain is divided into rough quarter-ish chunks. You and your enemies are always within melee distance of attacks, if on the same chunk of land due to tight fighting conditions. May attempt to move quadrants by way of narrow ledges connecting all four, but being hit while traveling may send you into the lava and stop your movement action, jumping is not guaranteed either with a higher chance of being sent into the lava's surface)

30% 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.

(Grass that has been burned away from the Lava's heat, Northern and Western sections of the field)
30% Normal

• No effects.

(Eastern and Southern quadrants of the field, lightly scorched, connects the outermost sections of the field)
40% Lava

• Non-Fire Elementals lose 5 HP/action standing, 10 HP/action submerged. Doubled for Wood Elementals, nullified for Fire Elementals.
• Aqua attacks: Panel explodes, +100% Source Aqua Damage, change terrain hit to Normal.
• PanelShot: Imbue Fire.

(A rough X-shape across the field, dividing the field into rough quarters with the outermost edges being untouched, about two panels worth of distance separating each quadrant diagonally and about three in the middle)

-- Objects -- (More boulders will fall at each turn, each is about the size of the two navis put together, with enough space on top to support a single entity, the tops are considered Metal terrain)

Trash "Boulder" A: 40 HP (Submerged in lava about half-way, can be used as a stepping stone to the other quarters of the field to avoid the Lava as a "safe" alternative to jumping over the lava or using the narrow ledges to get into a different quadrant) (Heatbody) (Lava)
Trash "Boulder" B: TRASH'D
Trash "Boulder" C: 40 HP (Between the South and East quadrants, can use as a stepping stone to get between the two) (Heatbody) (Lava)
Trash "Boulder" D: 40 HP (Between North and East quadrants, can be used as a stepping stone to get between the two) (Heatbody) (Lava)

Battle 3, Escaped!

Rewards
3750z, 57 Bugfrags, 34 FXP (Between Lyntael and Aurora's teamwork and Eternalis and Sparky helping get Lyntael out)
Lyntael get: EchoLocationEffect: Nullifies Invis on all Enemies and Objects, and dispels illusion effects.
Accuracy: S
Description: Sends out a sonic wave to bounce off of objects, revealing hidden things and illusory targets as what they truly are.
Duration: Once
Element: Null
Trader Rank: C
Eternalis get: FireSwordDamage: 80 + Slashing + Wide Attack
Accuracy: B
Description: Creates a sword imbued with flame energy, and capable of effective wide slashes. Can hit up to 3 targets per slash with good RP.
Duration: Until Overridden/Broken. Breaks automatically after 3 swings.
Element: Fire
Trader Rank: C

[LynFXP > 414] (Recalculated from scratch.)
[Z: 60595 > 64345]
[BF: 895 > 952]

Even though Sparky's speed was almost second to none, time felt slowed down as Eternalis spurred him onwards to safety. The shots fired at them from the back didn't even register to him, as fast as they were going, until light came at the end of the passageway, opening up to another clearing, this time looking like it would be clear of uninvited guests. "Up ahead there, boy," said Eternalis, and his ride smoothly came to an end, circling around the plateau a couple of times to slow down before fully stopping.

"Alright... seems safe here, at least," he said, looking around. "Rest up, Sparky."

On command, their enlarged canine companion knelt down, allowing Eternalis to dismount with Lyntael and Aurora in tow, the latter still attached as the former's equipment. After allowing Lyntael to lie on the ground, Eternalis hesitated to inspect her, and eventually settled with simply sitting next to her. The girl looked quite worn out, but there was no more static running across her skin as there was before. The latter's condition was more opaque, as there was no external indicator of any damage. The undercurrent from their mental link was silent, but there was a lingering bit of activity, little murmurs of thoughts as if he was simply watching her sleep.

"I hope they're gonna be okay... I'll check on Aurora," said Harke.

"Alright, I'll try to heal them up," he said. Holding his hands over Lyntael's body, a cool blue glow wrapped around her, working his restorative functions as best as he could. But there were no clear wounds or anything that he could patch up, so it was simply to settle his running mind. The silence was palpable as he could hear Harke's keyboard typing from their communication link.

"Seems like Aurora's signals are nominal, just that her core electrical-handling routine got seriously overworked. She'll probably wake up soon."

Then, a response from the recesses of his mind. It was weak, but it was there, saying that it hurt, and that it hurt a lot more than she thought it would. His side came through with feelings of relief, and a little bit of worried anger. Some bit of quiet followed, before a sense of amusement came back to him, and a feeling of warmth. Let her rest for a bit, she replied, and tend to their friend. Eternalis's healing had not stopped, of course. Unbeknownst to him, and everyone else, the Navi emblem in his back began to glow...

Lyntael's awareness of the travel was distant at best; a sense of swift movement as she clung weakly to Sparky's back with hands she could barely feel. The void of feeling and the dull ache of emptiness narrowed her senses down to bare fractions of experience, but at some point the motion slowed and then someone was helping her slide down to solid ground. Her limbs still wouldn't hold her and she settled into a prone recovery position. Had they dealt with the danger? The thought was distant while some detached part of herself still struggled to find the motivation to fight.

She heard her voice mumble something, half in response to the nearby voice; she was fine, or she would be, at least... she just needed a moment... the words didn't really make it to anything approaching clear language, and she couldn't make herself care enough to try harder. Pain in her wrists lingered and she shifted, fumbling with slow, heavy motions at the metal encircling her strikers; opening her eyes properly was too much effort to bother with right now, but some unconscious need insisted that the metal against her wrists had to go. She didn't know why, but the instinct lingered, and so she fumbled at them.

Long seconds passed amidst the deadened feeling, her senses barely connected to the world around her, before a spark flared in the heart of the void. With a pulse that carried life and feeling with it, the comforting beat of her charge resumed and filtered through her body like a sunrise. Her body relaxed – where before she had lain limp, she shifted now into something more approaching comfortable rest and drew a long, slow breath.

As she let the breath out again, Lyntael opened her eyes, then sat up, looking around. Her eyes fixed on Eternalis in between scanning their new surroundings, and she managed a small, slightly self-conscious grin for her rescuer.

“Whew... That's better. I'm okay now... Sorry about that... what happened to that spooky creature?” She resettled her position to pull one knee up and rest her hands on it, then double-checked that her skirt was still behaving. “Wait, where's...” She glanced at her own hands, the hurriedly back to Eternalis.

“Is Aurora alright? I went... a bit too far, and she was helping, but then I... ah, lost it...” She looked at her hands again and winced unconsciously; it felt uncomfortably tender. Beneath the metal, as she carefully extricated her hands, the skin at and around her strikers looked red, with the smooth shine of burns covering where the metal had been in direct contact with the discharge points. She frowned at the marks. That hadn't happened before, had it? She rolled her wrists and flexed her fingers experimentally; it still felt tender, but nothing seemed to actually be hurt. The lingering, soothing energy from Eternalis had been working on the spots, but the other navi would note that the girl wasn't registering any actual damage, statistically, and his healing was working only very slowly at these spots – though it was working.

Lyntael cradled the gauntlets in one arm carefully as she got to her feet, dusting herself off with her other hand and rolling her shoulders.

“Ah... Thank you, for getting me out of there. I thought I could push a little harder, but...” She shook her head and stretched with her free arm, beginning to walk a slow circle around the area they'd settled in at the end of the corridor. “Sorry for scaring you... I hate burning out like that. It feels like dying... no, like... like being dead. Like nothing exists and nothing matters. Like it's more trouble than it's worth to even breath... Last time was...” her words trailed away as her thoughts drifted back to a dark, indistinct memory and skipped around the edges of it before she shook it off. “It happens when the charge gets to be too much... I think it's that, or... or else it would actually destroy me... Ah, anyway...” She tried to shake the disconcerting picture off and grinned for Eternalis.

“You saved me again. I really do need to get better at this... we should track down whatever that dark, sword creature was, while we're here, don't you think?” Her eyes darted to the side and she bit her lip, letting the bravado slip for a moment. “But, um... I'm sure he'll still be around after we take a rest for a little bit, maybe? Where has this tunnel led us to...?” Her cautious wandering brought her back around to Sparky in his large form and she reached up to ruffled at his fur and nuzzle him. “And you saved me too, Sparky! Yeah... you did! You're awesome, hehe, yeah you are!” Amidst brief distracted giggles, she glanced back at Eternalis with a small wink, and another concerned glance down at the gauntlets in her hands. Hopefully Aurora would bounce back quickly too. She really hoped the other woman hadn't been hurt by everything that happened.

When Lyntael started to show signs of movement, Eternalis drew backwards slightly, stopping the flow of healing, and the glow from the emblem on his back grew dim again. He noticed Lyntael fiddling with her gauntlets idly again. The pulsing glow that normally ran down its length in lines was very dim, he saw, but they began to move once more. Sparky started to sniff at Lyntael, but was interrupted by Lyntael sitting up, and the beastly-sized pup gave her a small lick to greet her.

"Come on, boy, give her some room," said Eternalis, to which Sparky obediently stepped backwards as well, resting his head on his paws, waiting while Lyntael got her bearings.

"Well, glad you're okay, at least." Eternalis looked around, down the tunnel through which they had escaped. Nothing was following them, but he hadn't quite judged how far they had gone. He recalled the path that the strange creature had taken, at a different angle from their escape tunnel, and tried to hazard a guess at the general direction.

"The thing that made that crater should've gone about that way, I suppose." Out of the corner of his eyes, he glanced at Lyntael's hands, which had been carefully pulled out of the gauntlets. As soon as they were removed, the glowing lines going down them dimmed once more. Trying not to let the worry show on his expression, he turned back properly to face Lyntael. "Well, she says she's fine, she just needs some time to catch her breath."

Lyntael's explanation of her "burnout" seemed to sail over his head, his eyes kept wandering to the gauntlets that were now cradled in Lyntael's hands. There was an acute awareness of how much he had gotten used to sharing his mental space, and now there was a sense of something missing. Before he realized it, Lyntael was reaching towards Sparky, who was all too happy to receive snuggles from the recovered girl, tail wagging hard with licks generously offered.

At that moment, Lyntael would feel the weight in her hands vanish, and a mote of light would appear next to her, landing firmly on Sparky's fluffy underside. Aurora's form solidified shortly after, and Sparky wasted no time in giving the girl a happy lick. She tiredly laughed, wriggling away slightly from the pup's affections to little use.

"Aurora! Are you okay?" said Eternalis, getting up to his feet quickly.

"Ahaha, hey, don't look so worried, you two" said Aurora with a smile, waving her hand about. However, she didn't seem to do much more than that, choosing to continue to lie in Sparky's bed of fur. "I... think I bit off a bit more than I could handle, though. Let me just sit here for now, okay?"

As Aurora returned to her normal self, Lyntael felt a small knot of worry between her shoulders loosen again and she cast the other woman a relieved glance in between diverting Sparky's attention towards her. After another moment or two, though, the agreement to break for a rest made the temporarily massive dog's midsection seem ever more tempting She circled around and then dropped down on the other side, settling in next to Aurora with a gentle sigh and snuggled against the fur. With a grin she rested her head on the other woman's shoulder for a few extra moments.

“I'm glad you're okay. I felt... whatever it was you were doing, and I thought I could push a bit harder, but... Oh well. The flow from my wrists felt like...” her body tried to flinch as she thought about it, but she pushed the reaction away, looking for something to compare it to. “Oh... like I was telling you, when I was doing tests with DragonierMan and his allies? It was a bit like that. They had me test with a lightning rod at one point... I put my hands on it, and then when I started to channel the charge, it just raced, and I couldn't stop. It was hard to even pull my hands away, once it started – I think I only managed it because I melted the lightning rod.” She shook her head, looking out at the rubble and ruin around them, then resettled herself. “I still don't really understand why it happens. I have this... feeling... like it would really bad, if I did that with all four points. I don't know...”

She flexed her fingers, looking at them while her eyes passed over and away from the red burn marks at her wrists, then reached up above herself and back, scritching at Spark's side as she flexed the small of her back and pointed the toes of her shoes in a progressing full-body stretch. As she relaxed again, Lyntael grinned, summoning a smile back to her features for her companions.

“Oh, but hey, I had some better news than that!” Her eyes flicked briefly to Aurora then focused more on Eternalis, since he hadn't herd the news at all yet. “Rogan's finally given up on trying to tell himself that I'm not a person, and that I'm not real! That's good, right? That's like, the best thing I could have ever hoped for!” Already, as she shared the news, the thoughts running underneath it turned it more into a question, seeking reassurance. Without realising it, her gaze dropped and a pensive furrow creased her brow. It really was great, and she was so happy about it. Wasn't she? She was, but at the same time, it wasn't... right. It wasn't how it should be. She's had the circle of thoughts often since they got back from Eric's home. Rogan was still struggling with everything that had happened there, so that was probably the reason, but she didn't feel sure. Absently, one of her hands crept up to begin rubbing a small, slow circle around her emblem.

“Ever since we got back from our last visit to Eric's place... He's been treating my like I'm actually here. Worrying about me, even. I think.” She should be overjoyed by that. And she was; she was. It wouldn't do to complain. She glanced at her companions and grinned again, unconsciously seeking a better affirmation than her own thoughts were providing, from the ones she knew she could trust.

As Aurora made her condition known, Eternalis went from completely wound up in worry to nearly falling down in relief. While the girls were taking their places on Sparky's fur, however, he made do with simply sitting where he was while listening to Lyntael expand on what Aurora had tried to do from her end. "Guess trying to help pick up some of the charge is a bad idea, then..." he murmured, looking over to Aurora. There didn't seem to be any lasting external effects, at least, but that might be due to the different form she had taken.

"Yeah, it's a good thing I didn't conduct any more than I did. I don't think I'm physically melting, but my legs sure feel real tingly right about now," joked Aurora, running her hands down her thighs. Small sparks of static crackled between her fingers as she did so, though the little jolt now couldn't compare to what she had just gone through not a minute ago. Her eyes went over to Lyntael, who had taken to resting her head on her shoulder. Aurora then pulled her hand away, waving it about to dispel any errant charge, before giving her a rough tousle on her hair. "You've been handling all that current yourself, dummy! I can't even do nearly that much! Way too strong for your own good!"

Meanwhile, Eternalis watched the two girls rest and recuperate. He shifted his sitting about, resting his arm on his knee, just as Lyntael informed them about something else. It was good news, for once! Yet somehow, it felt like the kind that was given before the bad variety came after. Lyntael still smiled before them, but there was a hint of worry still in her expression. If the news was so good, why had it taken her this long to tell them? He read the mental currents between him and Aurora--nothing from her end. She was still recovering from her ordeal, most likely. Still, he prayed that there was nothing more to it and it was overthinking.

"Oh, that's great news! Did anything happen that made him change his mind?"

At the light tousling of her hair, Lyntael grinned and pushed her head back into the gesture for a moment, but shook her head as her smile turned slightly rueful. Aurora might have her limits, in the situation she was in with Eternalis now, but the other woman still had far more experience and competence than her, and Lyntael knew she'd give one for the other in a heartbeat.

“Maybe, but power's no good if I can't control it, or if it kills me first.” She shrugged. “I think it helped, but I don't really know. I'm going on instinct for most of this still, you know...”

Once the conversation moved onto her other news, though, Lyntael didn't quite break out of the pensive body language she'd fallen into as Eternalis questioned her about the latest development. She reached back to rub and pat at Sparky's mid-section one more time, then pushed herself to her feat in a single smooth motion, beginning to move slowly around their impromptu camp.

“Yeah... I guess there was. It's weird though...” How much should she really tell them, one set of thoughts pondered. The last thing she wanted was for them to... She pushed the worry away; these were her friends. She frowned again and looked across to Eternalis, then down to Aurora, rubbing a the back of her neck with one hand. Her steps carried her out to the edge of the wreckage and back again while her eyes played absently over the tortured metal and stone that surrounded them. Her hands fidgeted, plucking at her vest and skirt, linking behind her back, stretching above her head and lacing fingers behind it in turn, before she continued.

“So... After... after the fight we had, about what he did... it took a while, but we made up again, and he told me all about...” She paused, then shrugged to herself and went on. “The work he really does, for who, and against who... and why. It's pretty heavy. It took me some time to... you know...” Without thinking, her hands made a gesture in front of herself while she walked; there was no obvious meaning to it, other than something difficult. “Just, process it, I guess. I remember thinking that I've been in a lot more danger than he ever let on.” She paused and shook her head. “But that's not true, no. I remember feeling that, but that's silly. Not like there's something 'worse' than getting killed, and I knew that was possible. I don't know why I felt like that.” She tried to wave the thought away, brushing it aside with a hand in the air as she ordered her thoughts and resumed her pacing.

“Rogan's investigating a group, and under all the legal and normal covers they're doing some really messed up stuff. They want navigators, as one part of it. It's not the only thing, but it's part of it... and the more advanced, the more custom, the more unusual, the better. They're doing things that they can't legally do to sentient navis. It's bad...” Her steps turned and she paced back in the other direction, turning her head to look up at the sky instead.

“But the people he's working for... The ones he's being paid by, to investigate this... that's... that's Sharo. Sharo Family, and that's what I meant when I told you that his work could get him killed on more than one side. He's trying to walk this tightrope down the middle, and keep his freedom from them, and the only thing between him and falling off that rope is how well he can smile and make them believe he's worth it! That mask that he wears, that I hate... it's the only thing keeping him alive sometimes! And now... now...!” Her hair snapped quietly as her voice rose in frustration at the situation. Her fists clenched by her sides and after a moment she realised she needed to take the conscious thought to unclench her jaw. Now he was having trouble functioning at all, and she didn't really even understand why. Why couldn't she read him like she always could? What was different? She kept the angry questions to herself. Instead, she shook her head and ran fingers through her hair with a sigh, scattering sparks to the ground with a flick of her wrists.

“Doesn't matter. Anyway... after we made up, he took a job, a real important one. Dangerous. Off in Yumland, where they have some off-charter research facilities. It went...” Her thoughts skittered at the fuzzy edges of the things she couldn't remember and she shook her head again. “Badly...” She didn't want to think about it; it didn't really matter anyway. What mattered came after. After the fight with Eric. That was when the looks started, and the stares, and the change. Her agitated pacing stopped again in the middle of the area and she took a long breath.

“Hey, Aurora, how're you doing? You must be feeling better by now, right? Want to go find that dark knight virus and punch it up?” Without realising it she'd paused with her hands on what passed for her slender hips, leaning forward slightly to check on how her friend was doing, unaware of the drastically avoidant shift in her tone.

Eternalis's fears were confirmed as he saw the drawn out response to his outwardly cheerful question, and Lyntael began to expand on what had happened since they last met. From what they had already gotten out of meeting the operator in question, there was no doubt that he was investigating some people that would have no qualms taking drastic steps to keep things under wraps. Knowledge on NetNavi weaponry research was something the Ezarith facility was well-equipped in, and there had been no shortage of incidents in the past where she had been entrusted with prototypes to test out. Still, she knew Reverus, and he had kept live tests out of the equation--until they were to be "field-tested".

Eventually, as Lyntael went on, at the mention of Sharo itself, Aurora shifted in her posture slightly. From the angle she was at, Lyntael wasn't in her line of sight, but she turned her face away from the sound of her voice nonetheless. It was true that she was no longer a part of those kinds of operations, but the more frustrated and angry Lyntael's tone got, the more her inner voice reminded her of memories she had, of those that crossed Sharo's path.

Eternalis's gaze switched between the two girls. Lyntael relaying her fears and thoughts externally, and Aurora to him, unconsciously. It was a maelstrom of emotion that he was caught in the middle of. Before he knew it, Lyntael had stopped talking, and the sound of crackling sparks resulting from her agitated motions had paused. She was stopped in the middle of the area, taking stock of Aurora's condition. By all accounts, Aurora's physical condition had recovered mostly, but as she saw Lyntael bearing down on her, she felt a lump in her throat.

"I-- Well..." her voice cracked. She made eye contact, and her fists unconsciously clenched. "That is-- I'm-- I'm fine to, but..."

Her stretched out stutters were interrupted by someone walking up to Lyntael from behind, and placing a hand on her shoulder. "Lyntael, I'm sorry, but... let's sit back down for a bit. Okay?" said Eternalis, a complicated expression over his simple-looking monster-like face. "I know you think you can handle yourself, but... if you go out looking for blood like you are now, I don't want to see you hurting yourself--or us--being too reckless."

He paused for a moment, looking over at Aurora. The latter nodded, and he turned back to Lyntael, offering a hand to her, which he would take to pull her back down to sit if she accepted.

As he may have anticipated, reaching out to Lyntael had once again become a static-filled experience for Eternalis, but as much as it was a clear sign that the girl had bounced right back from her earlier crash Lyntael herself wasn't focused on monitoring her state. She started, briefly, at the gentle touch from behind, but relaxed again and relented, rolling her head to one side as Eternalis suggested waiting longer. Aurora did seem to be upset by something at least – it was a level of hesitation and uncertainty that she had never seen where fighting and combat were concerned; was there something more going on there? The thought played through her mind and found its way into a small frown and a furrowed brow as the other woman seemed to have some initial trouble making proper eye contact.

The real reason for their hesitation showed itself a moment later, however and as Eternalis continued speaking, Lyntael felt a spike of more immediate agitation cut through everything else. It didn't matter how much they talked her up, they still didn't really think she could handle things on their level. With a tug, she pulled her shoulder away from him and took a couple of steps to clear the space. Unconsciously her arms folded across her chest as she turned away.

“I'm fine. I know I'm still learning, and I need help sometimes, but I can keep up, okay? I'm fine! I'm not a child!” The words were clipped and terse, but a thought whispered underneath, in her mind, that that wasn't really what he'd said. It was hard not to hear it though. Aurora was the one who needed time, so why was he turning it back on her? This wasn't how it was meant to be! Why was she fighting with her friends?

After another second she unfolded her arms, bringing them up to her head briefly and running them through her hair with a harsh, frustrated sigh. She put one hand up, palm out and fingers spread just to ask the pair to wait for a moment and hopefully give her a chance to breath.

“Sorry. That's not... Not what I meant. Not what I wanted to say. I just...” the words weren't there to properly shape the problem. She didn't even understand what it was, just that it was there, and it made everything else that much more annoying. She took a few more breaths, then turned back and moved to sit down again, crossing her legs opposite Aurora. She didn't know what was bothering the other woman, but at least asking about it might give her time to work out how to talk about everything else without shouting.

“Okay... I'm sorry. What's up, Aurora? I... I didn't mean to shout. Everything's just... wrong... and I don't know why... and I... I've felt like shouting, a lot, recently. I didn't mean it, but... I said something that upset you. What's wrong?” Even now, in the back of her mind, a thought murmured that she shouldn't have to ask... It was happening here too; she just didn't understand what was upsetting the other woman, and she should have, and she couldn't tell why. Hopefully words would work.

Despite being pushed away, Eternalis stood between Aurora and Lyntael. Of course, any attempt at pulling her down when she was determined like this was going to result in this reaction. Was there any reason why he had pointed out Lyntael's state to her? Surely, the more prudent way was to appeal Aurora's current state, which was more evidently in need of attention. It wouldn't be any good to switch directions now, and now he'd just deal with the fallout and kick himself for it later. Unexpectedly, however, Lyntael sat back down, and asked Aurora herself about what was bothering her.

At this point, Aurora had her eyes closed, trying to block out the world around her, encased in flashbacks of times long past. Her limbs began to shake, the sweltering Kotobuki network's temperatures replaced with the biting frost of the Sharo network in her mind. A female support program, pointing her buster arm at her, whose identity she had long forgotten. Only the vitriol, the rage, and the words cursing her, a chained dog of Sharo. The gunmetal-colored barrel of the anti-Navi weapon in her hand was pointed squarely at the support program's forehead. And in the midst of her memory, the long-forgotten face in her sights slowly melted into a familiar face, of that of a young blonde girl of sixteen.

Aurora pressed her fingers into the bridge of her nose forcefully. It felt slick, from beaded sweat. She sharply inhaled before opening her eyes. The same face was before her, sitting cross-legged across from her, asking if she was alright. "Sorry, I... it's nothing, I'm fine," she replied. Next to Lyntael, Eternalis knelt down; a concerned query reached her mental border. She looked back up at him for a moment, shook her head, and turned back to Lyntael. "No, alright, I probably shouldn't keep it from you."

She inhaled slowly again. The air felt humid. There was no frost against her face. "Truthfully, I... used to work for that part of the Sharo family. Assassinations, against Navis that crossed their interests," she said. She tried to make eye contact with Lyntael, but her eyes darted away just as quickly. "A few things happened, and my operator and I retired, I swear, but... you telling me that just now, and... I just thought, I could have been sent against you, and I... it hadn't occurred to me. You've told us about Rogan before, and we even met him here."

"If we're--I'm here with you, I don't know if I should be here. I'm sorry, it shouldn't be your problem. It's mine." Words were failing her now, and she half-hugged herself with one of her arms.