Corporate-Sponsored Killspree

Anyis descended on the ground of Rogue Netfrica Net without much ado, just before Magna followed with a much noiser entrance. Oh well, it didn't really matter since no one was around to hear it... Err, wait. There were multiple other Navis just within eyesight. Anyis had never even seen one other Navi on Rogue Net before, let alone... "... Nope, not worth counting that many." sighed Anyis as she gave up rather quickly. At least it made sense, since Mill had jacked her into one of several clustered servers, through which all those other hired Navis entered the area. And since the whole job was clearing out a transport route, wiping out the viruses far away from that zone would be rather... pointless. Violently amusing, perhaps, but it wouldn't go towards the paycheck any.

"Mother Unit, I have located a sub-area along the indicated route that has yet to be sufficiently purged of viruses. Should we approach?" queried Magna, who had long since finished that earlier wonder of how many Navis were around, but he didn't reveal the answer since the Mother Unit didn't care. Yep, Magna had really come a long way if he could now understand when the Mother Unit just did not give a crap.

"Nah, we'd better wait for MeleeMan and... err, Other." stuttered Anyis, fumbling with the words as she realized that she had NO idea who the third Navi was. "But, uh... it's not like Rogue Net's ever at a shortage of viruses. This probably wouldn't even be a job otherwise." she explained with a shrug. Anyis was a bit lacking in motivation at the moment, though she really couldn't place the reason why other than a guess that it was because she was sleeping earlier and wasn't fully awake yet. Regardless, she'd probably be more alert when her allies arrived. At minimum, MeleeMan being present was a guarantee that she'd have something to make fun of all day.

(Waiting on MeleeMan and Djinni)

MeleeMan appeared in a glorious blaze of fire, followed by a choking and ungraceful plume of smoke, which billowed across the planes in a broad wave. His black coat flapped behind him briefly, then settled. Still frowning, he stared across the vast expanse of Netfrica and crossed his arms. His frown almost turned into a smile as he gave an approving nod. "This really is the best place for me," I concluded. "A man belongs in the heat of a jungle."

"It's really more like a savanna," Damascus commented, appearing beside him in a shimmer of light, accompanied by a sound like a blade entering its sheath. Her robe was still tightly folded around her body, giving her that strange, mummy-like appearance.

Ignoring his ally's comment, MeleeMan turned his helmeted head towards Anyis. Finally, his frown curved up into a cocky, demeaning, and utterly self-satisfied smirk. "Well, well! If it isn't my favorite purple-headed friend," he called out to her, approaching with his arms crossed tightly across his chest. "Have you gotten a little taller? Wait, no, my visor's down a little too low. I guess you've gotten shorter, haven't you!" he guffawed, thinking his joke a rib-tickler.

Damascus paused to wonder how MeleeMan had managed a second arrangement with his friend, carrying on like that, but kept her thoughts to herself. Stoically, she took up her place beside Magna as a ram-rod straight, metallic background character. Her face kept its eerie glare, which as usual, was focused on her master. She kept silent.

"Oh, Damascus!" Rania chimed in, addressing her navi's SP. "Do you need your swimsuit? I know you remarked last time it was a little hot for the-"

"No," Damascus spat, hoping to put that switch off for as long as possible. The last thing she needed was to go through that utter lack of chest support again. She'd fill her sheath full of sweat before she went back to the bikini.

Following the entrances of Anyis and MeleeMan, Djinni came flying from the sky like a fiery meteor. Landing with her feet on the ground while expelling the flames surrounding her, she quickly waved her cape in the air and dropped two rubies towards the surface. Fhyre and Szand both engaged their initial program, creating a fire and sand aura around their core and producing their limbs.

It didn't take long for Djinni to notice MeleeMan, Damascus and the new faces. It wasn't hard to realize which of the two was the Navi, understanding that the giant purple thing was the SP. Why was it that the inhuman creations of Operators were always used for the creation of the Support Program? Djinni ran over to Anyis, her assets moving rhythmically with every step, and embraced the Navi in her arms. "You must be my new friend, right? I am Djinni," she cooed happily. While Djinni always took pleasure in making new friends, she felt a better connection with female Navis like herself.

The two Support Programs had floated after Djinni but while Szand stopped behind his mistress obediently, Fhyre continued and raised her hand at Damascus and Magna in a wave. Of course she had met Damascus before, but Magna was shiny and new to her. Two of her hands pointed at her central core as if to say who she was, while her third hand was extended to Magna for a handshake to represent her desire to become a friend.

Djinni, however, couldn't sit still for introductions. Releasing Anyis from the hug, she turned around with her body moving about vividly and pointed into the distance. "But there are people who require our help!" she exclaimed and did her best to pinpoint where the most viruses would be, "We're here for a task and not to stand around!" But even Djinni knew that with the Rogue Net, there would be enough viruses wherever they'd go. Levitating herself off of the ground, she took flight and began her search for viruses.

"She's always like this," Szand commented vaguely to no one in particular, although he was standing near Anyis as he stood behind Djinni during their hug, "But at least you can count on her strength." After those words, he dug his hand into the ground and threw himself into the direction Djinni flew towards. "I'd suggest coming along already if you want some of the action too!" he shouted at MeleeMan and Anyis, although his message was also to make Fhyre realize Djinni had already started to move.

((Battle 1, please))

Venturing into the Netfrica network to clear out a route, the sizable team ventured forth into the desert to find some viruses to defeat. Their route didn't go very far before they came across a small oasis, decorated with a nice reservoir of fresh water and dotted with some palm trees here and there. Of course, such an attractive spot wasn't going to be devoid of other visitors, which consisted of a trio of Weathers, KillPlants, and Mettfires. Two of the Wingers decided they weren't going to have much to do with the battle yet, and zipped up into the air, where they disappeared into some portals. The FullFires also sought cover in order to make use of their meteor-summoning later.

-- ENEMIES --
Winger A: 180 HP [Sea / Portal'd up]
Winger B: 180 HP [Sea / Portal'd up]
Winger C: 180 HP [Sea]
KillWeed A: 160 HP [Sea]
KillWeed B: 160 HP [Grass]
KillWeed C: 160 HP [Grass]
FullFire A: 150 HP [Sand / Behind Palm Tree A]
FullFire B: 150 HP [Grass / Behind Palm Tree B]
FullFire C: 150 HP [Sand / Behind Palm Tree C]

-- OBJECTS --
Palm Tree A: 30 HP [Sand]
Palm Tree B: 30 HP [Grass]
Palm Tree C: 30 HP [Sand]
Palm Tree D: 30 HP [Sand]
Palm Tree E: 30 HP [Grass]

-- ALLIES --
Anyis.EXE: 220 HP [Sand]
Magna.SP: 80 HP [Grass]
MeleeMan.EXE: 420 HP [Sand]
Damascus.SP: 60 HP [Sand]
Djinni.EXE: 180 HP [Flying / Sand]
Fhyre.SP: 70 HP [Grass]
Szand.SP: 80 HP [Sand]

-- TERRAIN --
30% Sea
35% Sand
35% Grass

-- ROGUE TEAM BATTLE 01, READY? START!! --[/b]

"Oh... Have I?" pondered Anyis in response to MeleeMan's taunt, putting a hand to her mouth to feign concern. With eyes wide and worried, Anyis looked up to MeleeMan's face... which might've helped his case, but Anyis wasn't taking that risk unprepared. "That's so strange... Rather than your helmet being bigger, it almost seems like your head shrunk to fit the size of your brain. I hope you're okay..." And thus was Anyis's greatest weapon, appearing almost... cute in her sympathy as she mocked her 'friendly' rival.

She could've continued taunting MeleeMan with head-shrinking voodoo magic all day, but Anyis suddenly found herself turned around and enveloped in... soft... warm... good lord, this woman was a cow. It finally dawned on Anyis that she had gotten dragged face-first into a hug by Djinni, who was currently smothering Anyis with her ample chest. "This is... kind of irritating." thought Anyis to herself, as she extracted herself from the dark-skinned girl's suffocating embrace. Opting to respond in a much more modest manner, Anyis looked up at Djinni... oh for god's sake, she was just about as tall as MeleeMan. "Okay, that is really irritating." thought Anyis again, easily more bothered by the disparity in height than chest size. Regardless of who was bigger in whatever sense of the word, though, Djinni was certainly a friendly type to up and hug her like that. "Yeah, uh... Nice to meet you to." said Anyis hesitantly, against her frustrations with Djinni's size and the thought that 'meet' was too weak a word for what Djinni just did to her.

Magna, meanwhile, just watched as Unit Damascus came to stand next to him, which was fine. Some of her prior actions were strange and confusing to Magna, so her just establishing position in such a simple and efficient manner was quite respectable. One of Djinni's SPs was more outgoing than Unit Damascus, however, as the floating ruby with gold rings approached and offered Magna one of three hands for a handshake. The lack of speech wasn't really troublesome for Magna, considering in the past he had gone out of his way to converse with a Needler, so the golem in turn offered up his own hand, allowing the ruby to reach around two of his fingers (as the best she could manage) and shake. Magna would have to inquire to the Unit Djinni as to this unit's name later, he noted mentally.

Of course, just as quickly as all that happened, Djinni darted off to find viruses, leaving her other SP to explain her actions. "... Wha? Hey! Wait!" shouted Anyis in return, immediately dashing after Djinni. She had already lost to the... frankly, bombshell Navi in more than one way, so like hell was she going to lose in a fight as well. As she came up to the virus-populated oasis, Anyis clapped her hands once, causing her gloves to swap out with her gauntlets and make her ready for battle. She was quick to pick the FullFires out of the enemies, as would any predator be able to find favorable prey. "Don't expect me to just sit back and lose!" announced Anyis to Djinni before turning to her Operator... What was she going to lose, exactly...? "Mill! Gimme something to cut down these trees!" she commanded, dissatisfied with the cover the FullFires had already provided themselves.

"And I'm sure you'll want some Aqua chips after that..." thought Mill aloud as he rustled up the right choices, having a fairly good read of Anyis's thinking at this point.

"Oh, good, you're learning." observed Anyis as a Boomerang materialized in the palm of her gauntlet. Given that the trees were littered around the oasis, something that could travel around the water body was... pretty smart, actually. Bravo, Mill. Anyis twisted her body back with her eye on the right-most tree, then threw the Boomerang ahead, letting it fly towards the plant life guilty of harboring viruses, en route to clipping all of its buddies. One might question if a wooden object could cut down a multitude of trees, but that's a-okay. This thing was 40% metal, too.

Giving a momentary pause to allow the Boomerang to complete its course, Anyis then let loose the first Aqua chip she had been sent. With just a wave of her hand, a dark storm cloud bubbled up above the battlefield and unleashed a torrential downpour, chasing after the FullFires as it went. Having no desire to let the firey viruses off with just that, Anyis also triggered an AquaNeedle chip, summoning a trio of spikes in the air and allotting each of the 3 FullFires the opportunity to get skewered.

While Anyis was unleashing aquatic hell on the fire viruses, Magna finally caught up to the battle, stomping his way over one piston-powered jump at a time. After taking a moment to observe the current situation, Magna addressed Mill, asking, "Operator, it would appear that the Mother Unit has already engaged in her designated course of action. What is my designated course of action?" Naturally, he expressed his uncertainty while he assembled a trusty shield in his hand. It was seriously automatic for him.

"... Hrm. I'm a little worried about sending you in with the GutPunch with this many viruses around, but... Oh, hey, your processing speed back up to Navi level now, isn't it?" pondered Mill before having a realization.

"Correct Operator, I am able to engage in as many actions as I was upon my first initialization as a Navi." answered Magna with a proud nod, at the risk of Damascus' jealousy if she heard.

"Then, could you take a moment to upload a different chip?" suggested Mill.

"An unregistered chip...? It is..... within my processing power, and my defensive capacity will not be compromised. Proceed with the upload, Operator." confirmed Magna, needing just a moment to perform a logic test on the idea. As the upload commenced, Magna could only stand and watch his allies engage in battle with the nine viruses, but that would all change right... now. Oh yes. It was easy to tell something was about to happen, as Magna's orange core energy was crackling with the sound of electricity in response to the uploaded ElecReel. Mill used his PET to direct Magna's attention the Winger that stayed behind, floating above the middle of the oasis and right in the center of the battlefield. All he had to do was hit that, and electrical judgment would rain down on the grounded viruses. To accomplish that, Magna raised his arms forward, letting both his palm shutters spin open, which immediately allowed orange electrical energy to start spilling out. With both his hands pointed at the Winger, Magna fired, launching the bolt of lightning with an incredible noise, as a full-on clap of thunder echoed across the oasis.

Just as she finished attacking with her AquaNeedle, Anyis heard the clap of thunder, causing her to leap back in fright. Electricity was totally not her favorite thing. After watching the orange lightning bolt streak towards the Winger, she looked back to the unlikely source that was her own SP. "Jesus you two, could you give me a little warning next time?!" barked Anyis to both Magna and Mill, knowing that there was no way the golem could've done that on his own.

"My apologies, Mother Unit." responded Magna... as he kept staring at his hands. He wasn't one to be superficial, but the apology seemed a bit lifeless as Magna couldn't help but marvel at what he just did. It just felt... right, in so many ways.

"Fine, fine, I'm sorry. Why don't you attack the Winger too, then? That'll make you feel better." offered Mill.

"Like that would... mrgh." grunted Anyis, who started to rebuke Mill's statement only to realize he was right. Feeling grumpy over the whole thing, Anyis just turned towards the Winger and opted to let all her frustrations out on it. Naturally, there was only one way to do that... "Watch out everyone, I'm gonna use a big attack!" warned Anyis... though, really, her motive was totally to one-up MeleeMan. She just loved upstaging him. She raised one hand into the air and pointed up, locating her favorite power source. Anyis then lowered her hand back down quickly and clenched it into a fist, sending a surge of ghost data crashing down onto her. Finally, Anyis balled her other armored hand into a fist, and crashed the two together, making the ghost data explode upwards in the image of the Titan monster.

"Grrrrroooooooaaaaarrrrr!!!" bellowed the ethereal Titan, puffing his chest out during the warcry. With a flick of his wispy tail, Anyis's mightiest ghost launched forward in the wake of the ElecReel, charging the Winger mercilessly despite the colossal size difference. The Titan stretched both his arms back as he approached, clenched his fists, then closed them around the floating virus with a crashing sound almost as loud as the prior thunderclap. The sheer force of the impact reverberated back into the Titan, shattering the ice crystals keeping him in one piece and sending him back up to the River from whence he came.

"... Heh, how 'bout that?" said Anyis smugly, as she and Magna assumed defensive stances, their jobs done for the moment.

Anyis's Actions:
1) Boomerang1 (60 Wood damage [b], Group Attack (Arc)) @ ALL THE TREES
2) LilCloud (85 Aqua damage [b], Wide Attack, 2 Turn Duration) @ FullFireA/B/C
3) AquaNeedle1 (35 Aqua damage x 3 targets [b]) @ FullFireA/B/C
4) Titan Revival (140 Aqua damage [A], Phasing, 4TCD) @ WingerC
5) Dodge

Magna's Actions:
--Reinforced Golem's Buckler (Passive 3-Hit Shield)
1) Transfer ElecReel1
2) ElecReel1 (80 Elec damage , Spread 3 (Side+Behind)) @ WingerC + FullFireA/B/C
3) Dodge

Cooldowns:
Titan Revival - 4 turns

"Hey, you know damn well my head is already the perfect size and sculpt, just like every other inch of my body," he replied, leaning in closer to Anyis. He drew back as a big streak of white and luscious brown jumped his ally; he quickly identified the blur as Djinni. He drew back, mentally cursing the fact that he hadn't been greeted the same way when she'd met him. "Maybe being short would actually be a pretty good deal," he pondered, rubbing his brick-like chin thoughtfully.

Damascus gave a simple nod to Fhyre, but otherwise kept silent. It was easy for her to pick up the SP's identity, since she was no stranger to transforming one's shape.

MeleeMan gave a frown to Szand. "Didn't you hear what I said to skinny out there a second ago? Just implying that I'm EVER not ready for some action is a crime worthy of a punch in the face," he warned the SP, then walked on after the others. He could barely even remember Szand's face from the previous mission; it struck him that Damascus had more interaction with the SPs anyways. She acted like she'd been an SP all her life, with how she always brooded around that big metal guy.

Interrupting his sour mood, a handful of viruses (MeleeMan had some pretty big hands) came out to attack them. "Dumbasses," he smirked, cracking his knuckles preemptively. "Why don't you ladies stand back while I-" the big navi started, then frowned as he realized that, wouldn't you know it, Anyis had no intention of standing back. "Hey, you wanna get in my way while I do my business? Be my guest! Just don't complain if I knock the purple out of your hair by accident!"

Watching Anyis with a smirk, MeleeMan shook his head slowly. "I thought you were going to show me something awesome? Didn't realize it was amateur hour!" he guffawed. "Let me show you the staggering versatility and prowess of a real fighter. Rania, give me the special."

"... Which is?" the operator responded, having no clue.

"Damn, you know. The FireHits! Those are the special."

"Oh, oh! Sure," she laughed, not wanting to ruin his fun by telling him that he was hardly the only navi to hold claim to two or three FireHits. "Yeah, this oughta impress them. They've never seen this before!"

"Never like this, anyways. But still, give me the LavaBreath too," MeleeMan responded with a nod, although the mental image in his head was, indeed, exactly like they'd seen before. Rania had also sent him the AreaGrab, just as a given. He couldn't complain; that chip had been his golden ticket to punching things right in the face lately. It was just nicer to preserve the leg strength, rather than having to chase enemies down... not that there'd be much chasing in this case. Kind of hard for something to run from you when it's rooted into the ground on a scrawny stem...

MeleeMan quickly hopped towards the enemy group, leaping in a great burst of fire and coming back down in a plume of smoke. Once he'd landed, he heaved his chest out, then suddenly realized he wasn't feeling like he needed to make a gassy burp. "Wait, what gives? It's loaded!"

"O-Oh. Er, well, the fire breathing you'd been doing was kind of embarrassing, so I got a mod for it. You should be able to use it from your gloves now, with the heatwave mechanism you use for your suplex," Rania interjected, seeing that her navi was understandably perplexed.

"Huh. Guess that is better," he muttered in a rare moment of agreement. Holding out both fists in front of him, he revved the mechanisms inside his tremendous, furnace rimmed gauntlets and blasted a wave of heat from their front. "Those plants are going to scatter like dandylions! Just in case, though, I'm going to throw on a little extra man-power," he spoke (mostly to himself). With two quick, expert motions, he threw some freshly ignited punches towards the plants, hoping to knock them off their buds if they remained standing. With all of that finished, he raised his hands for a speedy dodge, just in case they remained. It only just then occurred to him that he'd never been in Rogue Net before. "Huh."

Damascus stayed where she was, watching Magna, mostly. "Hmm..." she muttered to herself, smiling secretly. "I wonder what other tricks he knows..." Idly, she turned her glance to one of the Wingers, possibly scaring the hell out of it. Her body stood as rigid steel, unmoving.

For a moment, MeleeMan thought that another virus had appeared to attack them; something like a Cragger, but way bigger. It turned out to be his ally showing off again. "Wooo, my gloves are haunted by the 13 Ghosts of Bob's Big and Tall Selections!~" he taunted her, waggling his fingers and expelling smoke from his gauntlets.

MeleeMan
1) AreaGrab towards KillWeed group [Accuracy UP + teleport (dodge)]
2) HeatBreath @ KillWeed group [105 fire melee, A accuracy + lava panel change + cone attack]
3) FireHit1 @ KillWeedA [85 fire melee, A++ boosted accuracy + impact]
4) Double attack @ KillWeedB [85 fire melee, A++ boosted accuracy + impact]
5) Dodge

Damascus
*) Variable debuff @ WingerA [20 debuff to next attack]
1) Steel Skin [Self ironbody for 1 turn, 2 TCD)
2) Nothing!

Djinni followed her new allies shortly after the first attacks were executed, but in the back of her head something was bothering her. "Sit back and lose?" she wondered, seeing Anyis and MeleeMan in front of her and attacking. Wasn't this to help other Navis? If there was anything Djinni wanted Anyis to do it was not lose and not sit back. While it confused Djinni, she wasn't going to take it easy in order to figure it out. "Come to think of it... What is her name?" she thought while looking up at Na'im.

"Chips," Na'im simply said and looked at the battlefield from Djinni's perspective. It was obvious that this was overkill if Djinni actively joined in the combat. Anyis and MeleeMan were definitely strong fighters, while their Operators knew how to handle the chips. He looked through his chips to see if there was anything to help them rather than attacking directly. "Yeah, this should be fine." He took out four chips and slotted them into the PET's slot one by one. "Assist them."

"But what is her name..." Djinni thought as she was sent the chip data, frowning a bit, but then turned to look at Magna once she heard his robotic voice speak with his Operator. "Mother Unit... Does he mean the purple-haired Navi?" Djinni thought and looked at Anyis. "Fhyre! Szand!" Djinni exclaimed, beckoning her SPs over, "Pick up pace and don't hold back!"

Szand looked over at Djinni as she exclaimed and floated towards the fight's back line while Fhyre followed him. "We know how to take care of ourselves, cow," Szand complained to Djinni. With his rod in his right hand, he extended his left hand ahead of himself and the sand particles came together until his entire hand was solidified as a shield. Fhyre quickly hopped behind Szand and put one of her hands on the back of Szand's shield in order to make it even stronger. Cracks of magma were visible on the surface of the shield, while the two started their attacks.

Fhyre brought her remaining two hands together and launched a fireball at the visible Winger virus while Szand pointed at the virus, collected a gust of sand around the tip and launched it like a spear point at the virus. It didn't seem like they were the only SPs to attack though, as Fhyre could see Magna was actively in the combat. But on the other hand Szand simply frowned as he saw that Damascus was doing nothing at all. "Is this the same woman I had met before...?"

At the same time as the SP's actions, Djinni had flown towards Anyis' side and slammed her feet onto the ground after a quick horizontal spin. "Losing?" she asked Anyis with a smile behind her facial mask, "Can't we all be winners, Mother Unit?" With the impact on the ground she had sent the first piece of chip data into the ground. Sand started to form in the area where Djinni could see the FullFire viruses, which rapidly became a downwards spiral into the earth in an attempt to suck anything into it. From her position, Djinni made a forwards cartwheel and once again slammed her feet onto the ground to make the area even bigger. "Does it matter if we just beat them all?" Djinni asked Anyis, glancing over her shoulder and at her ally for a moment.

With a quick turn she turned to the enemies MeleeMan had been attacking. Channeling the chip data of the FireBurn chip she had received from Na'im, Djinni's cape spread to both sides while she raised her hand to chest level. "Burn," she whispered and snapped her fingers, causing three balls of fire to shoot out of her cape. "MeleeMan!" Djinni shouted as her fiery attack was on its way, "Careful for my attack!"

She kept her eyes on MeleeMan for a moment longer to make sure her attack didn't hit her ally, then turned to look at the direction where she had once seen two Winger viruses. "Let's see if this chip was worth it, master," Djinni said as she raised her arms in front of her chest and head in a defensive stance. Lazily she raised her right leg and swung it backwards, but when she swung it back she grazed the floor which caused her foot to catch fire. Going along with the motion she kept the leg raised in order to attack with it the moment something would dare attacking her. Her eyes showed the tension of her being capable of jumping in with ease and delivering a kick that would knock you off your feet.

After Anyis experienced some rather suffocating embraces from Djinni, and MeleeMan was left out of the interaction, they faced down the viruses like good teammates did. Anyis put up some slicing action with the Boomerang, cutting down an impressive four trees out of five with her throw, denying the FullFires their cover. A heated entrance from MeleeMan was also presented, with the KillWeeds being well and completely torched by the heatwave, and the FireHits just being extra doodads. Djinni had followed up Anyis's attack with some quicksand, snaring the FullFires before they could get away! Realizing their fate, they started to attack anyway in desperation, making it rain meteors on the battlefield.

Anyis summoned up a storm cloud with her LilCloud, making it a bit of a bad day to be a FullFire, with some added AquaNeedles into the mix, deleting one. An electrifying play by Magna deleted another in the aftermath of hitting a Winger. The doll virus decided that it wasn't going to hang around these jerks, and pulled up into the skies. Its mates went down for a visit, and paid a visit to Anyis and MeleeMan, giving them a frosted welcome. Anyis managed to get the hell out of the way, while Magna absorbed the blow with his simple, yet effective shield. MeleeMan received a full treatment of the icy breath, dealing massive damage to him. (60x2Aqua)

Oh, yeah, and some meteors fell somewhere. Most of them were woefully inaccurate, but one did hit Anyis in the chest (30), and some others were absorbed by Szand's protection. Lastly, the Winger that had pulled itself up into the sky came down for a check on its mates, only to be greeted somewhat violently by Anyis's Titan.

-- ENEMIES --
Winger A: 180 HP [Sand]
Winger B: 180 HP [Sand]
Winger C: DELETED
KillWeed A: DELETED
KillWeed B: DELETED
KillWeed C: DELETED
FullFire A: 80 HP [Quicksand / 1 turn Snare]
FullFire B: DELETED
FullFire C: DELETED

-- OBJECTS --
Palm Tree D: 30 HP [Sand]

-- FACTORS --
LilCloud: 85 Aqua; 1 Turn Left

-- ALLIES --
Anyis.EXE: 190 HP [Sand]
Magna.SP: 80 HP [Ice] [2-hit shield]
MeleeMan.EXE: 300 HP [Ice]
Damascus.SP: 60 HP [Sand] [IronBody]
Djinni.EXE: 180 HP [Flying / Sand] [Equip: Counter1]
Fhyre.SP: 70 HP [Grass]
Szand.SP: 80 HP [Sand] [Equip: Shield Broken]

-- TERRAIN --
25% Sea
15% Sand
15% Ice
10% QuickSand
10% Lava
25% Grass

Anyis totally wasn't paying attention. It wasn't extraordinarily painful to get hit by that meteorite, since she had her pride as an Aqua Navi to not be significantly injured by fire, but this all happened because Anyis was totally distracted... for two reasons. The first was that, by some oversight, Anyis had failed to give Djinni her name. As a result, the dark-skinned girl picked up the first reference she heard. From Magna. Well @#$%. Unsure of who she was actually angry at for the misconception, Anyis quickly dusted the soot off her robe from the meteor strike and marched over to Djinni. "Okay, listen. My name is Anyis, not... that! An-yis. A, N, Y, I, S. My mistake for not introducing myself properly, but do not listen to Magna! He names people weird things!" chided Anyis as she turned her head up- which still really irritated her- to meet eye-to-eye with Djinni. You'd think the surviving FullFire would be a bit insulted to see the Navi that assaulted him and his friends earlier completely ignoring him, but all was well as Anyis's LiLCloud was still floating in the air, raining down pain and misery on a perhaps justifiably miffed virus.

The second thing that distracted Anyis when she was hit was, strangely, MeleeMan getting hit. Well, no, it wasn't like Anyis was concerned for MeleeMan. That guy could take a missile to the gut and shrug it off. No, what caught Anyis's attention was what the Wingers hit MeleeMan with: ice. She had no idea these things were ice viruses! This was Netfrica, so Anyis wasn't expecting anything but plants and fire! To think there was ice here to be had... She wanted it! She really, really wanted it! But, eh... she didn't know about Djinni, but Anyis was plenty sure that MeleeMan had absolutely no way to heal himself. She was still irritated by Djinni calling her Mother Unit, too, so beating the damage out of MeleeMan would be very therapeutic.

So, with that in mind, Anyis quickly jogged over to the ice-encrusted MeleeMan (which in itself made Anyis happy), said nothing, and punched him square in the gut. It was a good, solid punch, delivered with extra care as Anyis infused repair-oriented ghost data onto MeleeMan's frostburnt body. Such was Anyis's Soul Riser, and she for the life of her could not think of a more enjoyable way to heal someone. "You're welcome." said Anyis as a matter-of-fact before walking away towards her SP.

"Magna, could you give me a toss up to those floating things? They're spitting ice out, and I want to beat it out of them personally." requested Anyis coolly as she effectively confessed a plan to mug the Wingers.

"Understood, Mother Unit. Allow me just a moment to calculate the trajectory." acknowledged Magna as he turned his head to examine the Wingers.

"... And how are you going to beat it out of them, exactly?" questioned Mill, inserting himself in the conversation before his Navi did something silly.

"Hmm? With the ColdPunch you're going to send me, of course." answered Anyis simply, as if this matter had already been decided.

"... Uh huh." sighed Mill. He couldn't really argue, since he couldn't just let her fly in unarmed, which she would totally do. And with that, the aforementioned chip went in, and Anyis got what she wanted.

As Magna picked up his host unit, Anyis went ahead and started channeling some melee-oriented ghost data to boost her ColdPunch, noting from her readings that the Wingers were surprisingly meaty. With the Battlechip uploaded, Anyis triggered it, coating her right gauntlet with a layer of ice as she had done so many times before. Now that her equipment was set, Anyis gave the signal to her SP, prompting Magna to fling Anyis through the air straight at the first of the two floating viruses.

A trail of ghost data swirled in the air behind Anyis as it continued to funnel into her ice-encased fist, thickening the ice even further as she made a strong downward swing at the first Winger, using both her fall and the weight of the ice to propel her punch. Anyis's FloatShoes kicked in as she splashed into the slushy mix of water and ice below. She spun around on her heels to set her eyes on the second Winger and shouted, "Boogeyman!", the usual calling card for her phantom servant to appear and push things around against their will. The second Winger was the target this time, as Boogeyman materialized just above it and shoved it arms towards the top of the virus's head, in an effort to bring the floating virus ground-ward. Feeling rather excited still to have found ice viruses in Netfrica, Anyis launched herself at the remaining virus, dragging her heavy ice fist along before swinging it upwards at the Winger in an attempt to sock it clear out of existence. With that strike, her ghost-fueled power was exhausted, causing the ColdPunch to sublimate back down to its normal size. No longer dragging that chunk of ice around, Anyis was free to assume a defensive posture.

Anyis's Actions:
--LilCloud1 (85 Aqua damage Wide Attack) @ FullFireA
1) Soul Riser (90 Heal, 3TCD) @ MeleeMan
2) Channel Surf (200 Strengthen, 5TCD) @ Self
3) ColdPunch (95 + 100 Aqua damage (A), Impact, Knockback) @ WingerA
--Boogeyman (Passive Knockback): Push down WingerB
4) ColdPunch (95 + 100 Aqua damage (A), Impact, Knockback) @ WingerB
5) Dodge

Magna's Actions:
1) Pick up Mother Unit
2) Throw Mother Unit @ Winger A
3) Dodge

Cooldowns:
Titan Revival - 3 turns
Soul Riser - 3 turns
Channel Surf - 5 turns

"Ahahaha! I killed all of mine, how about you guys? Hooo.... hrrrrgh!" MeleeMan began, then suddenly stopped as the viruses he wasn't watching encased him in ice, leaving him frozen in the ridiculous shape of holding both arms out to his side and grinning like a fool who was pleased with his accomplishments. Not only was that in itself annoying, but MeleeMan didn't deal well with icy weather; he could feel the furnaces inside his gauntlets cooling and it felt like a case of frostbite might be coming on.

Thankfully, Anyis was on the job, punching him in the gut and freeing him from his icy holdings. As the ice broke off of his body, his first action was to reprimand Anyis, of course. "I-I-I w-was just a-about to d-d-d-do that," he chattered, holding his arms while he shivered uncontrollably. Whirring back up his gauntlets, he removed the rest of the frost and restored heat to his body. "And damn! What the hell is a virus that spits ice doing in this net anyways!?" he roared, shaking his fist into the sky.

Realizing something important, MeleeMan pressed the formerly raised fist to his chin. "What was that going through my body just now when she punched me? It felt... kind of... Wait, damn, I'm not-! No way! I like punching and everything, but that crap's ridiculous just to think about!" he thought to himself, shaking his head rapidly at the thought that he might have been turned on just now by getting punched. In reality, it may have been just the tingle of Anyis' healing technique.

Damascus shook her head at the buffoonery of her master, then realized her steel skin was wearing off. "This is truly disgraceful... I used to be capable of maintaining my perfect form for so much longer," she muttered to herself with a distasteful frown. As such, all she could really do was focus on her defense by watching the enemies and preparing to get out of the way of attacks. Her displeased frown pierced into the eyes of her enemies...

"Hey Rania!" MeleeMan barked out of the PET. "Both Magbolts, alright?"

"Sure thing. You know, it's kind of cute," she whispered into her PET, hopefully quiet enough so Mill wouldn't hear. "Anyis came over to you as soon as she saw you'd been hit!"

He chose to ignore her final comment, as he himself knew that she'd just done that for the chance to punch him. As much as MeleeMan hated those hanging sons-of-bitches, it didn't seem terribly likely that he was the best candidate to attack them. As such, he instead focused his irritation-driven violence on the remaining FullFire, reaching out with one gauntlet. The gauntlet released a magnetic pull, which would presumably draw the virus towards him and allow him to pummel it with the force of the very magnet-fist itself. If that didn't work... well, there was always another hand. He readied his left fist with a similar magnet, just in case.

Using the magnet would hopefully draw it out of the range of Anyis' raincloud as well, serving three purposes: he'd have something productive to punch, Anyis wouldn't get another kill over him, and he wouldn't risk getting battered with rain, which was hardly what he needed at this point. Common sense might tell one to sit back and let Anyis and Djinni handle the rest from a safe distance, but sense wasn't one of his strong points.

As a final point, he watched the sky for any more sudden cold fronts. The last thing he needed was to get another face full of frosty breath, so he kept on his toes.

MeleeMan
1) Magbolt1 @ FullFireA [90 elec melee, boosted A accuracy + stun + magnetic pull]
2) Magbolt2 @ FullFireA [110 elec melee, boosted A accuracy + stun + magnetic pull]
3) Dodge
4) Dodge
5) Dodge

Damascus
*) Variable debuff @ WingerA [20 debuff to next attack]
1) Dodge
2) Dodge

Djinni looked curiously at Anyis as she approached her, listening quietly at her angered explanation of her name. She already thought 'Mother Unit' was a weird name for a Navi, but usually Navis weren't named by themselves. Na'im created Djinni and her name. Maybe 'Djinni' was a weird name to some. "I'm sorry, Anyis," Djinni said as Anyis turned to 'help' MeleeMan. But with this explanation, Djinni glanced at Magna and wondered what kind of name he would come up with for herself.

In another spot of the battlefield were Szand and Fhyre with Szand shaking off the pieces of meteor from his shield which crumbled and dropped onto the ground. After reforming his hand, he turned his core to Fhyre and began to speak to her, "There has to be a better way to do this. Why must we remain in this form anyway? It feels like Djinni is keeping us shackled. A suppressed form." However, he was talking to Fhyre who was a dim as a brick wall. "Right..." he muttered, then focused on the viruses and noticed there weren't many anymore, "Djinni will take care of it. Let's start looking for our food." Fhyre wasn't all too sure about leaving Djinni to her own devices, but what Szand was true. Djinni was strong and she could clearly handle this without the support of her Support Programs. The two then started to scour the area for Bugfrags, while the fight was still going on.

"Na'im," said Djinni as she turned her eyes upwards, "I feel like we should go out with a bang. Got anything for me?"

As Djinni asked this, both MeleeMan and Anyis had already started their next attacks and Na'im wasn't really sure if Djinni had anything to contribute to this. "A bang..." he repeated after Djinni while checking his chips. "I guess," he said as he browsed his chips, "What your friends are doing can't be considered a 'bang'. Not enough fire." He then took a chip from his pack and slotted it into the chip. "May have to power yourself up first, Djinni."

Receiving the chip data, Djinni nodded in reply to Na'im's last statement. Truthfully, with the received Magnum chip there was usually no requirement to enhance its prowess even further. But a single a shot of the Magnum was simply not enough to take down the enemies. After extending her arms forwards and putting her left hand onto the back of her right hand, she initiated her program and concentrated on it. Air and warmth circulated around Djinni, making her cape flutter, while altering the panels beneath and around her. Water was vaporizing while sand was cracking apart to reveal coal panels as result. The heat kept building, to the point her allies could've felt an obvious change even in the warmth of the Netfrica Net, until the program hit its dead end.

Djinni grabbed hold of her cape from the right side, waved it upwards and in the instance of a second all the heat she had built up was transmitted to the center point of her inner cape. "This is going to be hot," Djinni said with a playful smile while she unleashed an enormous torrent of fire from her cape and towards the Winger viruses.

There wasn't really much to do except have them viruses die. The FullFire died by the cloud attack from Anyis, and a combined smacking from everyone ended the Wingers. It's all very unfortunate. Djinni also turns a large swath of the area to coal to fuel her attack. As a final note, MeleeMan gets off from being punched and is bonerhealed. (+90)

-- ENEMIES --
Winger A: DELETED
Winger B: DELETED
Winger C: DELETED
KillWeed A: DELETED
KillWeed B: DELETED
KillWeed C: DELETED
FullFire A: DELETED
FullFire B: DELETED
FullFire C: DELETED

-- OBJECTS --
Palm Tree D: 30 HP [Coal]

-- FACTORS --
LilCloud: 85 Aqua; 1 Turn Left

-- ALLIES --
Anyis.EXE: 190 HP [Coal]
Magna.SP: 80 HP [Coal] [2-hit shield]
MeleeMan.EXE: 390 HP [Coal]
Damascus.SP: 60 HP [Coal] [IronBody]
Djinni.EXE: 180 HP [Flying / Coal] [Equip: Counter1]
Fhyre.SP: 70 HP [Grass]
Szand.SP: 80 HP [Coal] [Equip: Shield Broken]

-- TERRAIN --
25% Sea
50% Coal
25% Grass

-- TERRAIN --

-- REWARDS --
Anyis: 1800z, 25 BugFrags, 6 MeleeMan FXP, 5 Djinni FXP
MeleeMan: [Meteor12] Battlechip, 1600z, 25 BugFrags, 6 Anyis FXP, 5 Djinni FXP
Djinni: 1800z, 25 BugFrags, 5 Anyis FXP, 5 MeleeMan FXP

"Damn, no ice..." grumbled Anyis as her frozen fist broke apart. "What was the point of me even doing that, then?"

"Actually... I think those viruses use all the elements, so I'm not even sure what would come out of them." noted Mill, having done a little research while his Navi attacked.

"... That's dumb. Guess I should've expected that from Netfrica Net." sighed Anyis, exhibiting some grumpiness due to this warm climate. It probably didn't help that what little water that was present was being evaporated by a huge pile of smoldering coals, courtesy of Djinni. Now there was absolutely nothing Anyis liked about this place.

... Well, hold on, MeleeMan and Djinni were here. At least... no, no, she couldn't possibly regard MeleeMan as a plus. She gave MeleeMan a curious glance while pondering, but that didn't last more than a few seconds. To be fair, though, she still didn't know Djinni very well. All Anyis could figure so far was that the new woman was: 1) taller than her, 2) bustier than her, and 3) a Fire Navi like MeleeMan.

... Damnit. Just damnit. Maybe the SPs...? Magna was a giant oblivious lummox, Damascus was guilty of most of the same counts as Djinni, and probably hated Anyis anyway, and Djinni's SPs... "I don't even know what those things ARE..." thought Anyis as she glanced over towards Fhyre and Szand.

So, poor Anyis was feeling rather isolated at the moment. Depressed? Not really. Lonely? Ha ha, no. Just a bit more agitated than usual... Usual was still a lot, though. "Alright you bunch of firebrands, we've still got a job to do. Since Djinni can clearly fight, let's hurry and find the next virus group." ordered Anyis bluntly as she began walking off. That was... probably a compliment to Djinni, right? Maybe... Anyis probably had no idea she had just addressed Rania, either.

MeleeMan rubbed his chin for a moment, feeling as though something was amiss. "Hey Rania... what happened to that prize I just got? You're looking kind of suspicious," he asked his operator, frowning deeply. She had one of those faces that just screamed to him "I've deliberately screwed over the most outstanding navi on the net without even asking him first."

"Oh, well... I was just... helping out a friend who gave us a lot of nice chips recently!" his operator laughed, smiling innocently. "You've got enough good chips already anyways, right?"

Shuddering, MeleeMan decided that he really didn't want to know what Rania meant by that and pressed onward after Anyis. "She's giving me the cold shoulder," he thought to himself, smirking briefly at the use of the word cold, and then regaining his usual frown. Djinni hadn't been interested in him since he jacked in, either. Damn, if this wasn't all stretching his belief in the gilded principle he'd set out for himself upon his creation: "it is only natural for all chicks to dig me."

Damascus slid along behind him, moving fairly nimbly for someone with both of her legs bound by a sheath. She was beginning to feel a bit like Anyis, thanks to the fact that even the SPs didn't seem to care to associate with her. In the past, she'd built a lot of tense but close relationships just by result of... intimidation. Maybe those hadn't been relationships at all? Regardless, it was proving to be a pretty lonely existence, being an intimidating looking but ultimately weak SP.

Slowly, she scooted back over towards Magna, keeping her stoic frown. "So, that electric function seems new. I don't remember feeling any indicative current back when we last met," she mentioned off-handedly, trying small talk for... perhaps the first time she could ever remember.

"You know," Szand started as he floated over to Djinni, "This almost seems too easy with three of you guys around." He had already collected a large pile of bugfrags, followed by Fhyre who had even more together in her three hands. He had decided not to press on the 'current form' matter, but just enjoyed his bugfrags while remaining quiet. There was enough time to check with Na'im later, as he was the one who programmed them all.

"Isn't it normal like that?" Djinni mused as she tilted her head sideways and glanced at MeleeMan and Anyis. She knew MeleeMan was strong, although she had only seen him take down a single target in their NetPolice mission. Anyis, as completely new to Djinni, was still a mystery for the most part. It was obvious what her element was, but there was something else about Anyis that Djinni couldn't quite put her finger on. With her feet on the ground and her head turned into a proper position again, Djinni walked over to Anyis and waved at her before talking. "Good fighting out there. We made quick work of them," she said before hitting the subject she wanted to know more about, "But what was that thing you created? With the loud voice and the tail..."

((Battle2, yo))

The three, rather awkwardly paired navis and their SPs continued their journey around the Rogue Netfrican network in search for some large virus loots. However, they instead found four giant trees that blocked their road. Like insects coming out from their nests, viruses suddenly appeared from within the trees as they grouped around to protect their "home." Few of them were brave to stand strong in front of their adversaries, but most decided to stay back for the moment...

Skarab2A: 200 HP [Behind the TreeA]
Skarab2B: 200 HP [Behind the TreeA]
Skarab2C: 200 HP
LargeTreeA: 200 HP

Swordy-F2 A: 160 HP
Swordy-F2 B: 160 HP [Behind the TreeB]
Swordy-F2 C: 160 HP
LargeTreeB: 200 HP

Ninetails2A: 190 HP [Behind the TreeC]
Ninetails2B: 190 HP
Ninetails2C: 190 HP [Behind the TreeC]
LargeTreeC: 200 HP

HeavierA: 125 HP
HeavierB: 125 HP [Behind the TreeD]
HeavierC: 125 HP [Behind the TreeD]
LargeTreeD: 200 HP

-Terrain-
60% Soil
40% Grass [10% Directly beneath each trees, not around it]

Anyis.EXE: 190 HP
Magna.SP: 80 HP

MeleeMan.EXE: 390 HP
Damascus.SP: 60 HP

Djinni.EXE: 180 HP
Fhyre.SP: 70 HP
Szand.SP: 80 HP

-ROGUE BATTLE TWO, START!-

"Hmm...? Oh, the Titan." responded Anyis after taking a moment to figure out what Djinni was asking. "That would be a ghost. A very, very big ghost. I guess I don't really look the part anymore, but I was designed as a spiritual priestess." she said, tugging at what was left of her robe to illustrate. "Ghost channeling is just something I'm still using from back then, and I'm not really at a lack of ammo for how often things die on the Net." Well, that was a bit of a morbid outlook on her powers. Guess Anyis was just used to it at this point.

Magna, meanwhile, found himself approached by Unit Damascus, expressing a desire to investigate his electrical attack. She seemed under the impression that this was a standardized function he acquired after their prior meeting. This was an error on her part. "Unit Damascus, I must inform you that was only a Battlechip, of the 'ElecReel1" designation. My main functions have not been altered since our last meeting." explained Magna concisely. Though... Why did Unit Damascus reach that erroneous conclusion? Magna had to analyze this. "Is there a reason you concluded the electricity was a new function of mine, Unit Damascus?"

Soon enough, the team found the next group of viruses... rather, they found what seemed to be an entire nest of them. Of course there was a virus nest right on the designated route. Naturally, the viruses seemed entirely intent on defending their homes. Did that give Anyis pause? For a moment, yes, but only due to curiosity instead of ethical uncertainty. One by one she tallied the virus groups, "So there's those dumbbell-looking things, a bunch of foxes with too many tails, some fire-slinging Swordies, and... Oh hell no." Anyis's thoughts came to a screeching halt upon observing the Skarab group defending the first tree. The Normal Net version of these skeletons had griefed her quite enough already, but now their Rogue-tier big brothers were around to drive Anyis utterly mad. "Mill, send our strongest chips. I'm going to blast those bags of bones clear off the Net, right now." commanded Anyis with a great deal of venom in her voice, well aware of how hard Skarabs were to kill in more than one shot. To emphasis her point, she was already channeling some fresh ghost data to amp up whatever her Operator might offer.

Mill too was aware of where Skarabs fell on Anyis's most hated virus list, and thus was quick to comply with his Navi's demands, else she go running in with little else but her bad mood. "This is definitely the strong stuff, so just do me a favor and avoid friendly fire." added Mill, suggesting that Anyis warn her allies that she was on the warpath.

"Fine, fine." nodded Anyis hastily, while sorting out the incoming chip data. Once that was done, she turned towards her fellow Navis and said thusly: "MeleeMan! Djinni! The skeletons are mine! If you don't want to get hurt, go deal with the other viruses!"

"Mother Unit, what should I-"

"You stay put!" barked Anyis at Magna, before promptly dashing towards the large tree the Skarabs called home.

"... Well, that's that, then." sighed Mill as his Navi ran off to battle. "What are you going to do now, Magna?"

Magna thought for a moment, examining the known properties of the viruses they were facing. What the Swordies could do was obvious enough, and even given their fire blades, none of the allied units were of the Wood element, so that was not a huge issue. Magna's data on the Heaviers was limited, but they seemed very... weighty, like himself. From personal experience, Magna knew that weight typically translated to Breaking attacks, so he theorized that Unit Damascus should be careful with her Steel Skin ability. There was prior data that told the Ninetails could strike multiple times, which was bad for his shields. Solution? Magna crafted a shield in his hand, as he always did. Always.

"... Magna?" queried Mill, having received no response from his SP.

"... Ah. My apologies, Opreator. I was analyzing. This array of viruses seems to place myself and my fellow Support Programs at a disadvantage, being able to compromise both shields and Unit Damascus's metal skin." explained Magna finally.

"I see... I noticed one of Djinni's SPs has a shield too, but I think that won't be an issue so long as you keep away from the Ninetails, I think you all should be fine with shields. Damascus probably can't use her defense, though... Why don't you give her your barrier, Magna? That'll do fine here, I'd think." suggested Mill in response to his SP's plight.

"Understood, Operator. Commencing barrier." responded Magna, who then turned to face Unit Damascus. Was he going to ask if she wanted the barrier? No. Did she even need the barrier? Who knows. Regardless, Magna had orders from the Operator to provide Unit Damascus with a barrier. So, he stared at her. Stared at her intently. She was probably quite bothered by this golem's glowing orange stare as it engulfed her... literally. Orange energy from Magna's core washed over his ally, surrounding Damascus in a swirling barrier of the same energy. "You are now protected from the damage type that would compromise your steel skin, Unit Damascus." noted Magna proudly.

While that bunch was thinking way too hard about defense, Anyis charged straight into the Skarab nest, ducking and weaving here and there against whatever bones might be thrown her way. One Skarab in particular stood at the large tree's vanguard, blocking Anyis from both the nest and the other Skarabs hiding behind it. That was a hindrance, and one she wouldn't stand for. "Boogeyman! Shove this bonehead out of the way!" shouted Anyis, commanding her phantom servant into existence next to the virus. Boogeyman obediently followed his master's orders, throwing his arms forward against the Skarab's ribs to try and open a path for Anyis. Her first chip was already set in place as she dashed by Boogeyman's conflict with the Skarab vanguard, and if the stone layer encasing her gauntlets was any clue, along with the ample amount of ghost data surrounding it, Anyis was not pulling punches against these viruses. "Break apart...!" yelled Anyis as she slammed her GolemHit into the tree, ready to destroy the whole tree in one hit and extend the impact from the punch further into the other Skarabs hiding behind it.

Was that good enough? Of course not. Anyis immediately side-stepped away from the tree (or whatever might be left of it) to get all of the Skarabs in her sight. With one chip left, she wasn't done with her attack, or even her battlecry at that. "... and drown!" she shouted once more, punching the ground hard as she did so to send columns of water erupting up from the ground every last bone these skeletons had. The last of the ghost data she had channeled earlier funneled into the ground to follow the gushing waters, sending the geysers even higher up into the air.

Magna only watched as the Mother Unit finally backed off from her hatred-fueled rampage, taking an evasive stance amidst what was left of the Skarab nest. Hmm... The Mother Unit was deep in enemy territory, and Magna was off on the sideline, merely observing the battle and shoring up the team's defenses. His shield seemed awfully pointless right now... Maybe the Mother Unit could use it, if it was a bit smaller. Just as a thought, Magna put his free hand on top of the shield and tried pushing it down... and it worked? Surprised, Magna did the same on the bottom of the shield to the same result, and soon enough Magna had condensed his tower shield down to a size suitable for the Mother Unit and most normally-sized Navis. Wonderful. "Mother Unit! A shield is being transferred to your possession!" announced Magna loudly across the battlefield, not long before chucking his shield just as far as his voice went.

"Huh? Wait... Whoa!" gasped Anyis as she shield flew at her. Thankfully, she managed to catch it without much incident and equip it her left hand, but damn if that wasn't a surprise. "Decide that earlier next time!" barked Anyis back to her SP, not wanting to have to do that again.

Magna took the chiding in stride, internally admitting that decision did come rather late. That said... even if it was better used in the Mother Unit's possession, Magna felt very uncomfortable without his shield. "Operator, do I have any other defensive options available?" asked Magna, greatly wanting to do more.

"More... Uh, you could try digging a hole with your drill? Everything here is just soil, so that should be pretty easy." offered Mill, as more of just a guess than anything.

"Understood, Operator." confirmed Magna, who then waited just a moment for Mill to apply his Drill GMO. His base quickly swapped out with a sharp-pointed giant drill, which pierced down into the soil almost automatically for how easy it was. "I will be digging a hole for defensive purposes if any Unit wishes to make use of it." announced Magna to his allies, just before sending his drill into full gear and diving underground.

Anyis's Actions:
1) Channel Surf (200 Strengthen, 5TCD) @ Self
2) Dodge
--Boogeyman (Passive Knockback): Push Skarab2C out of the way
--Ice Bleeding (Passive Imbue Aqua) to:
3) Ice GolemHit2 (190 + 10 Aqua damage [b], Break, Panel Break, Wide Attack) @ Skarab2A/B/LargeTreeA
4) WaterLine2 (145 + 55 Aqua damage , Ground Attack, Wide Attack) @ Skarab2A/B/C
5) Dodge

Magna's Actions:
--Reinforced Golem's Buckler (Passive 3-Hit Shield)
1) Core Field (80 HP Barrier, 2TCD) @ Damascus
2) Throw Shield to Mother Unit
--Equip Drill.GMO
3) Burrow

Cooldowns:
Channel Surf - 5 turns
Core Field - 2 turns

Damascus lowered her eyebrows, feeling slightly irritated with the giant metal golem's bluntness. "I'm not sure that such an animated attack suits you, actually. It might be better if you stuck to beating things with the blunt force of your fists, like that master of mine," she responded coldly, failing to answer his question and simply turning to face the enemies that approached.

Over with the navis, MeleeMan smirked as he watched Anyis dive right into the Skarabs. Maybe he'd been worrying a little too much about whether anybody paid attention to him or whether or not he could out-do Anyis. Being surrounded by capable fighters got his blood pumping, and that was about all he could really ask for. Of course, if he really wanted a piece of those skeletons, he'd surely get in there regardless of what the purple-headed wonder midget told him to do... but he figured she'd be done with them so quickly that there was really no point.

As such, MeleeMan turned his attention to the guys with swords. While lifting some dumb-bell viruses would be good exercise, there was just something about tangling with other melee fighters that couldn't be beat in terms of a workout. "Alright, Rania, why don't I take a rare queue for Anyis and go for a little ice myself this time? Send me the ColdPunch," he requested... Although it was sort of funny. His fists already felt sort of cold. Kind of like...

Before MeleeMan knew what was happening, his AnyisCross forced activation, transforming his coat into a white hooded version and his furnaces into some sort of steam-powered mechanisms. Except it wasn't really steam, was it? It was actually ghosts; the snickering voices that had replaced the whirring told him that much. "Aw dammit, not this again... Although at least it's not pajamas this time. White's not really my color, but this jacket's okay, I guess," he affirmed, not seeing the silly penguin on its back.

Rania covered her mouth to hide a giggle, sending her navi the chip, along with an extra GolemHit. "Why don't you try out GolemHit first? After that, you can wipe up the remnants using your ColdPunch," she suggested, speaking through her hand in a muffled voice.

"Fine," he replied, although her expression had him on edge. After checking to make sure ghosts hadn't placed a kick-me sign on his back, only to discover that no such tag existed, he shrugged and decided his worries were probably unfounded. "Time to show Anyis I'm no slouch when it comes to GolemHits! Showing Djinni that probably isn't such a bad idea either..."

Backing up his words with action, MeleeMan performed a leap high into the air, then smashed down in front of the enemies in a shriek of steam and ghosts. In the end, it hadn't been a leap at all; it was less like he'd been propelled by rockets and more like some invisible hand had grabbed him and flung him into the sky, only to crash back down feet-first. While it was a little disorienting, he supposed he didn't mind; it basically accomplished the same purpose.

MeleeMan's fists weren't as big as some ghostly golem's, but they were still plenty large for the purpose. Placing them together like a club, he clenched his teeth and raised both arms above his head. Wordlessly, he smashed them back down into the soil and grass, raising a tremendous shockwave around the point of impact; with any luck, he might take a few out with this initial attack. He let the ethereal chill of... chilly ghosts surge through his gauntlets and threw out two punches, each aimed for a different Swordy on either side of the tree. He figured it'd just be troublesome to chase the third around the other side; he'd get to it when he got to it.

Damascus, in the mean time, was trying to glare at the viruses while still acting indifferent towards Magna. Mill and Magna had been correct in their assumption that Damascus' steel skin would be an ineffective choice. As such, she saw few options open to her besides sitting there and waiting for the offending enemies to be taken care of, as embarrassing as it may be. With this cowardly thought in her head, she was especially bothered by the way the golem was staring so intently at her. Did he understand that she was upset? It was impossible to tell just by looking at his inanimate face.

Her frown deepened as she finally turned her head towards Magna. "What do you want?" the SP asked, raising one eyebrow. Soon after, however, he explained that he had protection for her that would allow her to operate efficiently. "Ah... That's a fine gift," she replied gratefully. "Rarely can a sword be utilized while in its sheath. I'll be certain to spill enough blood to repay you." With her mood thus improved, Damascus spread her cape around herself and rushed like a hungry vampire towards her prey.

Of course, she was typically less like a vampire and more like a woman that transforms into a sword. As such, her body quickly transformed into a spinning, long nodachi, attempting to cleave apart the admittedly durable metal viruses. She felt so empowered that she was nearly certain her blade would pass right through them, if she could only connect the attack. Once it was over, she'd stop stretching her luck and utilize the speed granted by her non-metallic form to evade attacks.

MeleeMan
1) Level 2 AnyisCross! [+15 to aqua attacks]
*) Red Rage to next attack [+30 strengthen]
*) Ghost Infusion #1 to next attack [+20 strengthen]
*) Ghost Infusion #2 to next attack [+20 strengthen]
2) AreaGrab towards Swordy-F2 group [Accuracy UP + Teleport]
3) GolemHit1 @ Swordy-F2 group [170/160/160 melee, boosted A accuracy + Break + Panel Crack + Wide Attack]
4) ColdPunch @ Swordy-F2 A [85 aqua melee, boosted A+ accuracy + Impact + Knockback]
5) ColdPunch @ Swordy-F2 C [85 aqua melee, boosted A+ accuracy + Impact + Knockback]

Damascus
*) Variable buff to next attack [+20 buff]
1) StepSword @ Heavier group [130/125/125 damage melee, S/A/A accuracy + Slashing + Wide Attack + Teleport]
2) Dodge

While it was no surprise that each Navi executed their programs differently, the mention that Anyis used the data of the defeated enemies throughout networks was surprising. But truly, what did Djinni know about her allies? Even MeleeMan, who she had been with since the last mission, was still somewhat of a mystery. Did the two of them simply fight because they wanted to or were there other reasons? "Why do I fight...?" chimed through Djinni's head, "I guess it's to protect others. And help." But having seen the attitudes of her allies, she was certain it was not the same for them. Regardless, they were friends and allies.

But in the back of her head, she felt a spark similar from when she had fought MachMan. "But these guys..." her thoughts chimed, "If I want to protect, I'll have to become the best there is." She slammed her foot onto the ground and propelled herself into the air with the momentum. "Na'im, I can't let these guys get the best of me. Send me fire and flames!" she shouted at Na'im, spinning around in the air to shoot a glance at Szand. "Back me up," she simply said before turning back and heading to the tree that the Ninetails viruses had huddled up to.

"Did something happen?" Szand asked as he glanced upwards. While he did not want to assist Djinni that badly, he was still part of her. No, it wasn't the bond they had that made him want to assist her. It was the command.

Na'im, on the other hand, just looked at the screen for a moment before taking out a few chips while replying to Szand. "I don't know what you mean," he said while sliding the chips into the PET one by one, "It's human nature to go beyond your capabilities if challenged. Djinni doesn't directly notice it, but MeleeMan and Anyis are constantly fighting each other. She got in the middle of it."

"You're saying she got influenced by them?" Szand asked as he looked at Anyis and MeleeMan performing their attacks. As SP he didn't really have a place amongst them, despite Damascus rushing out to attack. "In the end, she's as foolish as always," he said as he shrugged, "But to get along with those two... Guess I'd prefer to see her more like this. Only because she's actually good at fighting." Within an instant after his words, he slammed his hands onto the ground and caused a wave of sand to fly at the only Ninetails he could see. But before he could execute another attack, he was pulled away by Fhyre.

While Djinni and Szand had been focusing on themselves, Fhyre was listening to pretty much everyone. But it was Magna she showed the most interest in. If Szand had used his shield, he would've been in more trouble than without it so it was up to Fhyre to figure out a solution. Which was huddling up to Magna. Without warning, not like she could warn him, Fhyre pulled Szand along her into the pit Magna had dug.

"Oh hi," Szand muttered as he found himself face to face with the purple golem. While it was a good way to defend themselves, he kind of wished Fhyre had a mouth to notify him of the plan. They were going to have to hide until it was safe, weren't they? "So..." Szand continued to mutter, figuring he might as well talk to Magna in order to maintain his sanity, "I'm Szand and the fire one is... Fhyre. Yeah..." That plan was a total bust.

Back on the surface, then a bit further into the air, was Djinni who had loaded her three offensive chips. In her flight to the tree she had brought forth her decoy with whom she was floating over the tree, both looking down onto the Ninetails viruses. It was then that the cape of each Djinni started to flutter and both bodies moved to keep the cape open and spread to both sides as far as possible. "I like my foxes burned to the bone," she told them with a smile. From the capes emerged fire, strengthened by her element, that spread around the tree like a wildfire in an attempt to swallow the Ninetails viruses whole.

The Navis and the SPs quickly got to work with some division of work. Anyis directed all of her rage at the Skarabs, gathering up some strength and pushing away one of the Skarabs. A second later, her powerful GolemHit pounded the tree with a decisive blow... which the Skarabs managed to leap away from, sending some Skarab bones her way. Fortunately, she managed to dodge them, and land a second blow on two of them with her WaterLine. Magna distributed some defenses around in the meantime, burrowing into the soil as a last measure.

Meanwhile, MeleeMan donned a stylish penguin jacket in his AnyisCross, and teleported over towards the Swordy, landing a powerful GolemHit as well on one of the Swordy. The others managed to leap away, and strike at him with an attack just as he deleted them as well with a ColdPunch. (45) Damascus landed a strike on two of the Heavier, leaving one to roll around slowly, with its targets easily stepping out of its way. So sad.

Djinni flew over to the Ninetails, and roasted them with a serving of wildfire, while her SPs got acquainted with Magna. Two of the Ninetails survived the onslaught, having dodged some of the flames. Each of them targeted a "Djinni", and lashed out with their nine tails. (20/Decoy Dissipated)

Skarab2A: DELETED
Skarab2B: 200 HP [Soil]
Skarab2C: DELETED

Swordy-F2 A: DELETED
Swordy-F2 B: DELETED
Swordy-F2 C: DELETED
LargeTreeB: 200 HP [Grass]

Ninetails2A: 60 HP [Behind the TreeC] [Soil]
Ninetails2B: DELETED
Ninetails2C: 60 HP [Behind the TreeC] [Soil]
LargeTreeC: 200 HP [Grass]

HeavierA: DELETED
HeavierB: DELETED
HeavierC: 125 HP [Behind the TreeD] [Soil]
LargeTreeD: 200 HP [Grass]

-Terrain-
55% Soil
35% Grass [10% Directly beneath each trees, not around it]
5% Broken, 5% Cracked

Anyis.EXE: 190 HP [3-hit shield] [Strengthen 5] [Homing: 3 Skarab2 Bones] [Near Skarab/Soil]
Magna.SP: 80 HP [Burrowed into Soil]

MeleeMan.EXE: 345 HP [L2 AnyisCross: Aqua/Melee, +15 Aqua] [ColdPunch 4/6] [Near TreeB/Soil]
Damascus.SP: 60 HP [80 HP Barrier] [Soil]

Djinni.EXE: 160 HP [Flying over TreeC/Soil]
Fhyre.SP: 70 HP [Burrowed into Soil]
Szand.SP: 80 HP [Burrowed into Soil]