Save the Hospital! Group Three <EVENT>

"Hmm . . . . T-t-t-thats an interesting thought actually, but it could be a super-sensitive liquid that deteriorated when inflicted by light?" Polonius comes out in a pondering mood. The white-haired navi pics up the spoils and puts the box on his head, spins it around then grabs it with one hand " But there's two things wrong with that theory, A. I dont think a liquid like nitroglycerin would be safe to travel and B. The post said Recoveries300.". "Hmm . . .a-a-a-alright, but w-w-w-w-why put it to the h-h-h-hands of regular navis? I mean they should have enough people to do the delivery themselves?" Came the shy med student's reply. "Well . . . Coco, it could just mean that there was so many sick navi's, they had no chioce but even so . . . why volunteers?" came from the White Blood Cell's Supremely Oddly normal response. . .
Rui was just standing around, but a new voice could be heard.

"U-um... excuse me... But... " Shin's nervous voice spoke quietly as he voiced his opinions. "Couldn't they have been short on staff, so they needed voluenteers? And... The boxes are trapped for security?" There was a brief silence before Shin hastily responded "I mean, thats just my opinion..."
"Ah, so the operators have decided to speak up, eh? Again, a pleasure meeting the both of you. As for our theories, well, I suppose they might be feasible. The idea that they were just short on staff seems to fit, I suppose... And trapping the packages seems a bit much, but it does seem like an adequate measure to take. Simple and easy, I suppose. Damn, I'm surprised I didn't think of that." The Master mumbled something that Crush couldn't quite make out. Again, the question of why he was still staying put bothered him. What was distracting the Master so?

"Why didn't she just come out and tell us that then? It makes sense, best thing I can make out at any rate, but I don't see why 'Grandma' wouldn't simply tell us that the items were booby trapped! It's so annoying, not knowing the answer to so simple a thing." The Master made an exasperated sigh. "Whatever. Standing about's not going to help us, that's for sure. We'll simply continue along as is. Why have we stayed in this spot, now that I think of it? We're certainly capable of moving and speaking at the same time. Multitasking isn't that hard, eh?"

"CrushMan! I think I've gotten the basics of the directions coupled with the data packages. Begin moving towards the designated location." Finally, something that he agreed with. Crush obeyed and immediately started marching forward. "DNR, you've got one, Rui, would you mind grabbing that last package? I think it best we each carry but one. That way, should one of the Navi be eliminated we won't fail the mission. This option carries the least amount of risk. A rather grim look on things, I'm afraid, but one must be a realist in this type of scenario."

"Right! We're all set then? Again, the sooner, the better. It's still frustrating though, not being able to do anything with these darn packages! Once I'm done with this, I'll be demanding some answers. Hmph, not nearly enough information going into this..."
Shin spoke again "We might have tried something if we had known there was something wrong... If we tried to take them this way, they would catch us right?" There was a short pause in his voice before he noticed Rui twirling a package "AH! Be carefull..." His words came just in time. The box tipped, but Rui managed to secure it in his hand rather then on a single finger. "Ah..." Shin sighed in relief. "Well.. I guess we'll start following you."

Rui smilled, nodding and stepping behind the giant. "But while we walk.." He adjusted his glasses, causing a brilliant shine. "Lets talk strategy."
"Strategy? Hmm, well, I suppose there's more we can work on than the simple things we've accomplished so far. CrushMan is used to working alone though. It's an unfortunate fact, but he and I have simply never allied ourselves with another pair before. Or for that matter, two pairs. As a result, he is dreadfully unprepared for this sort of occurence. I must say, I'm not too much better off."

"I can say what my dear friend Crush specializes in, though. I'm sure you've noticed by now, CrushMan holds quite a bit of power in his body and he's got the sheer mass to back it up. Should we encounter any foes with particularly powerful defensive options, simply leave them to us. Crush is also quite sturdy. He's taken some devastating attacks in the past and all but shrugged them off." Crush was suddenly reminded of his battle in the Netspace of Sharo and his dire encounter there. That wasn't so much enduring attacks as it was fighting back against them. Still, if the Master said it, it would be so. "He's taken a hit or two so far, so his ability to act as a shield for the rest of the group has diminished somewhat, but I'm sure he can still stand to do a bit more for the team."

"Especially with this new chip data I seem to have downloaded. I've managed to get it uploaded into a blank chip, so it's ready for use. Yes, Crush should be more than capable of playing an offensive/blocking role for the group. Or so I hope at any rate. Beyond his own abilities, there's our selection of attacks. Standard weapons, mostly close to mid-range. We have one electric chip and two aqua chips, so I'm slightly prepared for Aqua and Fire type foes, respectively. As best as I can tell, that's all that my dear Crush and I can contribute to our little band of opposition here."
"Hmm . . ." is all DNR could say at all that is happening in front of his eyes. He was juggling his single box like a circus preformer. He may have been playing around almost the entire time Rui and Crushman's teams but he was entirely focused on it. " . . . I guess I could say my stragedy. After all, we are companions after all" He said with an unusualy calm face. " As you can tell, my attacks have been quite "random" so to speak. I'd like to assure to everybody, especially to the Netops that is all my method of attacking. Hmmheeheeeheee!" He said in a quite unmoving, serious tone. " I never, ever truly state my method but we are teamates so this suffices as a exception to this rule. I rarely talk seriously so please forgive me for any. . . future 'inconviniences'" After he finished his explanation, he went juggling again with the box saying in a quite, "DNR-ish" style " And besides, The worst that can happen is that we all die in a horribaly cliched death scene am I not right?" . . .
Only half paying attention to DNR, and hearing only understanding Crushman and his fancy operator, Rui gave another thumbs up. "PLEASE TRUST ME M Y F R I E N D S!" His glasses shimmered, "I'LL L E A D!"
As the trio continues to follow their map, they are syphoned into a smaller alleyway of the town. As they walk down the dank alleyway, the path from which they entered is blocked by a row of viruses! the path before them is quickly filled with more bugs and the group is trapped!

<FRONT>
LarkA 100HP
LarkB 100HP
LarkC 100HP
BillyA 50HP
BillyB 50HP
BillyC 50HP

<BACK>
CactyA 70HP
CactyB 70HP
CactyC 70HP
MetEXA 70HP
MetEXB 70HP
MetEXC 70HP

DNR 120HP
Crushman 140HP
Rui 100HP

<Each post, a player must at the end of the post state whether they face the front or back row>

BATTLEROUTINE...SET>>>EXECUTE
"When did they..." CrushMan saw them, the enemy. Another interuption to the task at hand. The Master would be displeased. Or maybe not. Another chance for his fun. "Behind too?" CrushMan turned around, hearing this, and noticed that he and his allies had been all but trapped in the area. "Lovely. And there's more than before." The Master laughed. "Well! Guess this a chance to see you in action, eh 'Lead'er?" CrushMan made note of the strain in the Master's voice, a tone he took when he was agitated or annoyed and yet it was held back, restrained. Was it towards the oncoming enemies? Or perhaps it had something to do with the way the Master seemed to accent the word 'Lead'?

"But let's not waste time. CrushMan! Distract the frontline!" As soon as the Master finished his words, CrushMan moved to do his bidding. "Rui, DNR, do take care of the foes in the back, will you? The sooner we have one of the threats neutrilized, the safer the battle should go. Who knows how many other nuisances like this will pop up, eh?"

"CrushMan! Our priority here is to simply keep the enemies busy long enough so that our allies might finish their charge and then come to our aid. That means that you should concentrate on dodging. Do you think you can do it? Like that one time?" The Master? Asking, rather than telling? Strange. But surely he was referring to the Sharo incident. There was no reason he shouldn't be able to be as skilled as he was that shining moment, but it didn't feel like he could. Like there was something weighing him down. But he would certainly attempt his best. The armor shift was hardly a perfected technique, but in the too-cramped alleyway it was as best as he would get.

The Front seemed to sport quite a few viruses, all of them targets with which CrushMan was unfamiliar. "I'll make things even easier. There's no way we can fail in such a simple thing as this. First, we'll eliminate one of the targets. Ignore the annoying, fish-looking things. We'll take care of them later. For now, use this." This was followed, of course, by the familiar feeling of strange that always accompanied an influx of foreign data. A battle chip. A canister formed in front of Crush, a large canister, and then slipped over his entire left arm before the device tightened and secured itself to CrushMan's arm. "Do you like it? A minor upgrade but I'm rather fond of it myself. As soon as you use it, I'll activate the second part of the plan. Remember, defense is the key here. Now eliminate one of those small yellow viruses. They are registered as Billy type enemies and appear to have a weak structure. Go!"

CrushMan willed the shotgun, for he recognized the data to be that, to fire and the altered attack did just that, blasting out a shining bolt that flashed out towards the enemy. This too, appeared to be some sort of cosmetic change created by the Master. As the canister discharged it's attack, it rolled back on Crush's arm and then slid back forward, as if absorbing the recoil of the attack. Not that there was much to be absorbed, not enough to bother him. A section of the canister then slid away, allowing a hollow tube to pass through. A silly thing to add, CrushMan thought. Perhaps this was how human weapons operated? He watched for a moment as the shot careened towards one of the small foes. A black tube propelled at high velocity large enough to tear a hole in the enemy if not simply blow him away, the item still still seemed to be little more than a change in appearance.

But the Master would have his way. Just a moment after Crush turned his attention away from his attack, now closing the last bit of distance, the Master sent the second part of his plan forward. CrushMan noted that the canister on his arm still remained, despire the loss of it's ammo, yet it was little more than a passing thought. The item in front of him was much more interesting. "Guard," the Master said. The Master had worked quickly. This hardly resembled the tiny creatures he had liberated the item from. Or at least, he believed he had. The guard, as the Master had named it, formed in front of him, like so many other of the Master's items, and leaned against his shoulder. It was formed in the shape of a drop of water, but one turned upside down. The curve at the top was gentle and the point at the bottom sharp, the gray-steel colored item apeared rather formidable. As well as in proportion to the rest of him. Crush liked that. "A little archaic. But it'll do. Prepare to defend yourself!"

Summary
1. Dodge
2. Shotgun to BillyA - 50 Damage -
3. Guard

Facing Front
The White-Haired Wonder stands up at attention and salutes the spiky, slave navi, screaming at the top of his lungs so to speak "SIR, YES SIR!". He then raises his hand like a public school student, screaming again in a monotone voice: " Request Permission to attack the enemy from the rear with a log and a Atchisson Assault Shotgun!"

It was painfully obvious to everybody, especially Polonius that he was asking for the Shotgun and Ringlog1 Chips. It was quite DNR's "style" to sneakingly put clues in his dialogues for his actions. Quickly knowing the chips, he takes the chips from his opened coat pocket and slots each one while doing the mundane ritual of saying each one in his stuttering way: " R-r-r-r-ringlog, Sh-sh-shotgun, Slot-in! Vaccinate!"

The Log quickly materialises from the brown data clouds in front of the white haired weird one. He picks it up and brandishes it as a spear, pointing the naked end towards the left Metool. He then starts running towards the smallfry, planning to give him a little "nudge to the eye" as well to his little friend next to him by turning around 360 degrees and swatting it like a pitiful little fly then saying "Request Denied Soldier!" . . . .

After that exclamation, the Shotgun comes swooping in, eradicating the log in an instant. It moves around DNR's right arm, configuring it into a steel-plated shotgun, seemingly melding to his own epidermis. He points it towards the Met and the leftmost Cactus, saying " Zoob a Floob! Amiga Boonk!" He does a little bit of side stepping left and right, just in case an attack comes afterwards . . . .

Actions
1. RInglog ( MetEXA,MetEXB for 50 dmg)
2. Shotgun ( MetEXC, CactyA for 50)
3. Dodge

Facing Back
((Sorry!))
Rui gave thumbs up. "CO-OPERATION TIME!" he started hailing with his right arm while pointing with his left.

"Shin my best man! Send me chips!"

Shin bounced in his seat, inserting a few chips.
"Shotguns and guard in!" He said while watching his screen intently.

"GO!" Rui shouted. Getting the chips had taken a while, but he was now ready. As DNR shouted his nonsence, firing off his shotgun, Rui hunched over, dropping to the ground and in a sudden burst of power, digging into the ground with both hands and dislodging a chunk of brown net rock, about say.... 5 feet in diameter. Suddenly, Rui lifted the massive rock, bringing his hands together and crushing the rock into tiny bit sized bits. Before they fell, Rui stood from his hunched stance, pulling his fists back and preparing for business. Before the rocks hit the ground, Rui released open handed blows at the chunks of rock, propelling them at lightning speeds towards the rebeling viral threats. The rocks scattered like... Well, a shotgun, spreading to demolish the virii who wre unlucky enough to get caught by the deadly projectiles.

Shin then held his arms in front of him as an X as a protective barrier while rushing forward.

"DNR!" He shouted without turning. "FOLLOW MY LEAD! ALL OUT ATTACK! WIPE THEIR NUMBERS!"

((1-2. Double shotgun to whats close. 50 DMG
3.Guard
Facing Back))
The groups ballista of various twin hitters seems to make dents in the lines of enemies. A couple of the billies fall to a shotgun to the face, and as DNR weakens the back line, Rui works over the larks, deleting one. However, many viruses remain, and all begin they're return assault on the navis entrapped by them. Crushman manages to rebound a wave of water at a lark as it was fired, weakening another. The cacty lobs a head at Rui, who catches it with his own shield and rebounds it to the virus, dazing it. Howeverm he is caught in the back by a blast of electricity and stunned. The metool focus on DNR, sending waves of power at him. He can only dodge two as the third catches him and knocks him back. The remaining cactys take advantage of Crushmans loss of guard to send attacks at him, his only being able to dodge one.

<FRONT>
LarkA DELETED
LarkB 50HP
LarkC 80HP
BillyA DELETED
BillyB DELETED
BillyC 50HP

<BACK>
CactyA 50HP
CactyB 70HP
CactyC 70HP
MetEXA 20HP
MetEXB 20HP
MetEXC 20HP

DNR 80HP
Crushman 120HP
Rui 80HP <STUNNED, -1 ACTION>
"Ug.." Rui fell on his face as the ever slow ball of electricity caught him from behind. He stood slowly, his body shaking as a feel jolts of electricity could be seen jumping along his limbs. Suddenly, his arm straightened out to his side. "Shin... Chips.." He gritted his teeth, this time quite serrious. "THAT WAS NOTHING, OHO!" His grit turned to smile.

That was short lived.

At any rate, Shin gave a sigh of relief to see his friend was ok. He inserted two chips, seeing how things would work out..

Rui gave a quick point to the left before giving his instructions. "Head left M y a l l y." with that said, a concentration of power fled to Rui's legs and a single arm, and with that, he was off, running at a not very inpressive speed to the right, a message met DNR via private transmition.

I'll draw the fire! Attack with intensity!
With this said, Rui extended his left arm, bracing it like a gun, his palm flat. The virii, caught up in the display began to notice, going for the kill when suddenly, his speed increased greatly and he blurred before disapearing. With no warning, he appeared a short distance behind DNR ((Wherever he ends up going)), talking a leap at least 5 feet in the air. His extended arm shot back as his other arm fell to his side. Pumping forward and back, Rui's arm "fired" at machinegun pace, sending barely visible shots of moving air at a lone cactus.

The poor thing. The barage of shots were heading straight for it, with the exception of one that missed by a mere inch to create an explosion and a tiny crater. An entire platoon of shots still headed for the cactus, Rui landed, sweat on his forehead and kneeling, holding his arms in the same X.

((BREAKDOWN.
1- Can't touch this~!
free dodge with 50 DMG attack to cacty A
2- Guard))
The fish viruses' attack came hurtling in as CrushMan braced himself behind his shield. The wave of water slammed into the guard, forcing the Navi to fall back a bit, but the guard held. The water fell into the shield itself, giving the reverse teardrop shield a shining blue sheen, before firing back out at it's original target. "My, how lucky of us to have gotten our guard up in time! That attack was so very wide, in this cramped space I do imagine it could have done quite a bit of damage to us. CrushMan, keep an eye on the remains of those viruses, especially once the battle is completed. I believe we could do well with that kind of weapon. Yes, with that shot-"

A pair of flying clouds of debris flew past CrushMan and collided into the group of viruses before him. "What on earth? Was that one of our own?" CrushMan looked down at his hands and noticed that his shield had done more than reflect the attack, it had absorbed the damaging viral matter and was now falling apart. A pity, it was a useful item and it was more than a little appealing to CrushMan. "That attack, it came from behind! Didn't I-"

The Master was cut off again as CrushMan was alerted to something new. A loud scratching sound behind him caused him to turn around and see a green ball of nails bounce off of the ground and fly towards him. The way things were now, it'd collide dead center in his chest. That would be most unfortunate. He moved himself over as far as he could, but it still wasn't enough. His massive frame simply wouldn't let him move far enough to dodge. So he resorted to the next option. The Armor Shift. And with his repositioning, the sphere of spikes now hurtling towards his left center, it was an easy thing to complete. He dropped into a kneeling position, letting the attack bounce right into his shoulder. Amidst these many thoughts in such a small time period, Crush briefly wondered if it might have been a better idea to simply throw himself against the wall and dodge the attack like that. But had he done that, would the attack have struck his chest anyway? Sometimes, his big body was more a nuisance than anything else.

The moment of crystal clear thought passed. Again things erupted into chaos. The attack knocked into his shoulder, but with the skill of countless practices of the maneuver, CrushMan shifted his shoulder back, down, then back up, all in one fluid motion, as soon as the attack made contact. The attack followed the movement perfectly, bouncing off CrushMan's shoulder before spiraling into the NetSpace above.

Damage was minimal. Unnoticeable. A flawless reproduction of the attack. CrushMan was pleased with himself. It was an incredibly difficult action that rarely worked. It's applications were limited as well. A simple evasive action would have worked just as well, had it been possible. Yes, the Armor Shift technique worked fairly well in cases of limited mobility, be it due to cramped spaces or simply lack of time. Not that the act was without it's flaws. Beyond it's difficulty to perform, there was also the fact that it was incredibly difficult to do much of anything for the next few seconds.

CrushMan was poignantly reminded of this second flaw as he saw a second sphere of spikes hurtling towards the area just below his neck. It collided, slammed into his upper chest and burrowed itself for an instant before exploding, imbedding countless needles into the decent sized hole in his chest. CrushMan was also reminded that it was always the shallow injuries that hurt the worst. Hardly enough to slow him down, the injury had done nothing to his critical systems and he'd certainly experienced worse before. But Crush tended to avoid this kind of pain when possible. Truly his frame was a nuisance from time to time.

"From behind? Damn, can't things just... Never mind," The Master said. "I see an opening before us. CrushMan? Change of plans. Destroy the remaining enemies on our side. We'll go to assist our allies after that. Use the swo... No..." The Master chuckled. "I have something better. Use this." The cylinder on CrushMan's left arm remained as foreign data entered through his right arm. It was quite a shock to his system. His entire right arm went completely numb, then all his senses came back only to be knocked out once again. This happened, in rapid succession, six times before his arm finally stopped thrashing about. Two wicked spikes had replaced his fist during his brief spasm. Sparks of electricity bounced between the two prongs and CrushMan knew his duty. "Fry the fish," the Master said.

CrushMan started moving as soon as ordered. He moved forward, trying to get within the farthest range he thought the attack could take and still be effective. The placement now might be enough, it'd certainly worked with his shotgun strike earlier, but he wanted to make sure. That, and a little close range payback for the earlier hit might be nice too. The wrong target, but he'd feel better having done it all the same.

"Oh, and CrushMan? Don't forget, we do need our defense." Right. The Armor Shift or dodging, whichever was more suitable. "Who knows how long this march might take us. Best to take all the precautions necessary. Ah, but I appear to have forgotten our allies. CrushMan, you know what to do." Indeed he did. "Also, mark that the target is known as a Lark virus, Aqua element, as expected. Now do it."

The Master was late. CrushMan was even then pulling his arm back to drive the shocking prongs into the enemy. "Focus on your line, my allies!" The Master shouted, "Crush and I shall join you soon!" He threw his arm forward and down towards the Lark as the energy between the prongs flashed and arced out, reaching towards the foe as Crush's fist drew closer. "Oh," the Master said. The energy flashed once more, this time bright enough to make CrushMan's sight waver, and a moment later his fist met resistance. "Use this..." There was a crash as his prongs bit into the ground, then dissipated, their energy expended. The Lark was gone, either dodged or destroyed, he couldn't tell. A sudden wave passed over him that he recognized immediately. "...too." There was a heavy feeling in his left arm, where the shotgun canister remained.

That's right. The Master had said that he would join them soon. The Master expected him to eliminate the last of the foes. Both of them. With one attack. The Master was testing him again. But the light of his previous attack still obscured his vision. Crush was fairly sure he knew where the enemies were, but was that enough? Had they moved? And could he take them both out with the one attack? He'd done it before, multiple times, but it was always a matter of chance rather than skill. Wasn't it?

Disappointing the Master was certainly not an option he would choose. He aimed his arm up to the position where the foe was, or where Crush believed it was, and stopped. There was the matter of the second target as well. Where was it again? Oh, yes, back there. But was it then possible to hit them both? The angle was all wrong.

But what if he made it right? He could ricochet the attack, with some luck, or maybe reposition himself and then fire straight on. Which would be easier? Which would be faster? Most importantly, which would have the highest rate of success within the parameters of success and defense? CrushMan made his decision quickly as he aimed and fired, sending another empty, pointless slug falling to the ground.

Summary
1. Magbolt1 to LarkC - 90 Damage - Elec
2. Shotgun to LarkB - 50 damage - Chance of Splash
3. Dodge
"Right then!" the White Haired Intellectual rises up from the disheartening shocks that were delivered from the digitized mechaniloids and looks towards the vertically challenged construction workers. "Aphra, could you please do me the favor and bring a Frisbee and a rusty screwdriver? We're gonna go play with our yellow friends here, hee hee hee" The cell chuckled as he twirled around in place and stopped, making a V shape with his arms.
. . .
In the quiet, sterile scenery of his dormitory, Polonius was a bit distraught in his navi's health. 80 HP the display said in bright green fonts. He thought about the last message DNR gave. "Hmm . . . a Frisbee . . . Oh! That's Zap Ring, but a Rusty Screwdriver? . . . . A screwdriver is used to drive screws . . .. in wood! He must mean the Ringlog Chip!" He went down his pant pockets, struggling to find those two chips. He found them in a few seconds --- glistening in the sunlight from the window --- and slots them in the typical fashion: "Zapring, Ringlog, Slot in! Vaccinate!"
. . .
Above the head of the B-Cell, the two data clouds arrive side by side. The left one, Yellow and charged by electricity while the right one, is brown. The yellow one comes down and solidifies into a ring of yellow electrical energy. The doctor catches it with his left hand and puts it onto his head like a headband. Normally, this would hurt to a normal navi but the Purple-bodysuit navi created a negatively charged band to protect his head right before he placed it on his head, shielding himself. He puts his hand on his hips and exclaims, "Headbands make you smarter! They make sure the smart juice stays in your brain all the time!" before he takes it off, saying an ignorant "Duh" and throws it to the leftmost Metool.

The second data stream comes down in succession after the throw and materializes onto the floor as a log. The aforementioned navi picks up the log with both hands and runs towards the other two metools, screaming repetitively and annoyingly loud, "Time to hammer out the screws!" He may not look like it but he secretly plans to twirl away afterwards in case of a retaliation from the mechaniloids.

Actions

1. Zapring to MetoolA (40)
2. Ringlog to MetB and C (50)
3. Dodge
<(Who forgot directional placement? YOU DID! YOU DID!)>

The virii fall to the unerring blasts of the navis, each attack hitting as they move around. The larks are blown to bits an fried as the cacty is blown away. The mets suffer heavy casualties, all dissappearing. As the navis attempt to retain their ground, however, the remaining viri launch attacks at them! The attacks are in vain however, for as rui sends the attack back at the billy, the other navis merely dodge the cactus heads as they're rocketed towards them!

<FRONT>
LarkA DELETED
LarkB DELETED
LarkC DELETED
BillyA DELETED
BillyB DELETED
BillyC 35HP

<BACK>
CactyA DELETED
CactyB 70HP
CactyC 70HP
MetEXA DELETED
MetEXB DELETED
MetEXC DELETED

DNR 80HP
Crushman 120HP
Rui 80HP
He made his decision. The ricochet idea was too risky, unnecessarily so, to the point where he might hit nothing at all. That lead him with the dead on attack. He fired the shotgun. As his vision cleared, he was pleased to see the remnants of the Lark virus. Both of them. What remained, however, was the last foe. His dead on attack had missed.

This would not go over well. He noticed with detached interest as the final virus on his side fired an attack past and beyond CrushMan. It returned not soon after, knocking into the virus itself and sending tiny shocks through it. That would be something at least. Electric attacks tended to leave one numb after all, it was probably an easy target. No, what bothered him was the fact that he'd failed. Again. He'd not met the Master's expectations. The shotgun chip was strange, it never did seem to work the way Crush expected it to. When he wanted it's power to come to it's fullest, it failed, and when he simply wanted to damage the enemy, it surprised him with it's effectiveness. Better to have a surprise now and again with above average performance than repeated standard boredom, but it was still a failure nonetheless.

"Why didn't..." He heard the Master whisper. There was silence a moment as Crush awaited his next order, staring down at the small virus before him as he did so. "How annoying. Finish it, Crush. I've got a few things I'd like to attend to that I've been neglecting. Haven't had much to eat today, you know. Do finish this up, will you?"

That simple? The Master had let his failure go at that? Or was this a chance for redemption? A test? Could he hear the Master's quiet breathing even then? It was best not to disappoint. That, and to leave a foe before you was simply an act of neglect. CrushMan strode forward, each step full of purpose, as he reached inside himself and prepared his special attack. It had been some time since he'd used his crushing hug attack. But where he'd expected to find the power for such a thing, he instead found something else. Rather than finding something that briefly augmented his arms and chest, he found something that could briefly augment any part of him, physically, for a short period of time. The Master had upgraded him without notifying him. But there was no reason to dwell on that. The Master's will would be done. The battle would be finished, the group would continue on its way and the mission would be completed.

Ah, now there was an interesting thought. The group. He'd never worked with other Navis before. It really was a shock. Throughout the entire battle, he had yet to hear the operators speak out commands. Had he simply not been paying enough attention? No, what's more, he remembered the one Navi, Rui, actually asking something of his operator. Most strange. Where was the respect? The deference? The fear, a tiny part of his consciousness said, a thought that was quickly swept away.

Yes, his allies were quite unlike himself. Although Rui bore a resemblance to the Master. Was it simply because he too issued commands, or was it something else? Regardless, there was no question over who would be heard if it ever came between a disagreement with the Master and the Navi. It was only to be expected after all. Beyond that, the Navi appeared to be somewhat capable of handling himself. His methods were different than those Crush was used to using himself, but only so much so. There were still enough similarities. Judging his power was fairly difficult as well, although he appeared to have an interest in being flashy, showy, a trait that the Master was showing more than a little these days. But did that say anything about his strength, or just his character? And if the second, what did it say?

The DNR individual, on the other hand, was a bit more difficult to judge. An incredibly peculiar sort. What Crush had heard from him either made little sense or none at all. Granted, during their speculation on the properties of their delivery DNR had managed to achieve a momentary state of clarity, but it was just a moment. He was fairly chaotic, although the same might be said about Rui, although to a lesser extent. Crush was having some difficulty predicting his moves, much less his mind set or what he was going to do next. Was that a strength? He couldn't see that chaotic nature working well with the Navi's partner. And there was another thing, what was wrong with the operator? Had Crush even heard the operator speak? If so, they were soft spoken. How very much unlike the young Master.

And so there they were. The two allies. It was so unusual to simply have others around who Crush wasn't supposed to destroy. It would take some getting used to. And there was another thought, and an amusing one at that. Could he destroy these two Navis if the Master demanded it of him? They were spectacular fighters, Crush had never seen anything like it beyond his own abilities. And they each had their own sort of strength. Rui seemed to have quite a bit of speed behind him, speed that Crush would have a great deal of difficulty matching, and DNR was simply so chaotic that predicting his movements might be near impossible.

As he made the final steps towards the small virus, Crush made a look back to where his two allies were. Yes, DNR's chaos and Rui's speed... But why did it seem like Rui was slowing down? "Something's wrong..." He heard the Master whisper. Pain lanced through his right arm, causing the giant Navi to turn and watch as a familiar scene unfolded. A great, floating, steel gray box with waving tendrils latched onto his arm, digging deep before the weapon itself slammed home. Two thick wires burst from the back and dug themselves into Crush's shoulder as he recognized the Master's worries. Rui, something seemed very wrong with him. Would DNR be able to finish the foes on his own? Best to aid in whatever manner possible and get the battle over and done with. With a thought, the cannon discharged its load, firing a dark gray sphere hurtling towards one of the foes at the rear.

Crush turned about not a moment after as he raised his right foot. The Master was watching, he knew it now. And the Master always did enjoy it when Crush made true to his namesake. Hovering his spiked boots over the small virus before him for just a moment, he suddenly made use of his storage of extra strength. Power surged through his legs as CrushMan brought his impaling heel down on the virus before him.

Summary
1. Cannon to CactyB — 40 Damage —
2. Strength Reserve - +60 Damage and
Break to Next Melee -
3. Crush to BillyC — (1+60) 61 Damage —
Break

Facing Front
"Hmmm . . . there are three left . . . I think it's good to all three at the same time . . ."
The doctor navi moonwalks back and forth, giving a quick "Woo" every few seconds. He stares at the remaining virii as he yells to his very quiet net operator. "Human Female! I require a big laser gun and a big chunk of wood por favor? He exclaimed to his netop as he was in line to give a football play towards the remaining enemies.
...
His net op thought that this little riddle of his navi was pretty much simpler than the last one, so he decided to slot in the Shotgun and Ringlog chips as quick as a team of doctors in an emergency in an Emergency Room.
...
The chips appear in the usual manner, as data clouds above the scene. The brown one, obviously the log, appears in its usual, redwood way. He picks it up, saying "45, 69, 9001! Hike, Hike, Hike! He holds it up, a bit grudgingly and throws it like a sideways football towards the virii in the back row. The second cloud comes in and turns his hand into the regular shape of a Shotgun. He points it at the same backside virii and shoots . . .

Actions

1. Ringlog1 to CactyB and CactyC (50)
2. Shotgun to CactyB and CactyC (50)
3. Dodge

Facing Back
The final viruses are torn to peices by blasts of energy and fists, standing no chance. And then...


...


A safety ladder falls from a building and slices Rui in half, for no apparent reason.


<FRONT>
LarkA DELETED
LarkB DELETED
LarkC DELETED
BillyA DELETED
BillyB DELETED
BillyC DELETED

<BACK>
CactyA DELETED
CactyB DELETED
CactyC DELETED
MetEXA DELETED
MetEXB DELETED
MetEXC DELETED

DNR 80HP
Crushman 120HP
Rui DELETED <EJO'ED! -700z!>

VICTORY!

Rewards: 800z
There was a loud crash as Crush's foot slammed down of the virus. With great effort, he slowly slid his foot back, his spiked heels digging in and through the ground, before taking a step back to observe his work. The Master would be pleased.

"It would appear that all of the opposition has been defeated! Excellent! I do so enjoy when a well laid plan comes to fruition. Now let's-" There was another crash. CrushMan turned around quickly to find the scene as before, but with the a ladder hanging off the side of a building. There was also a rapidly disentigrating segment of unrecognizable data. "Oh, now damnation! The package!"

The package? What did the Master mean? And what was that data? Crush came to his own conclusion not long after noticing the absence of one of his allies. Rui was gone. "It... would seem that we've lost Rui." The Master's voice had quickly changed from that of frustration to a gentler tone, one Crush was quite unfamiliar with. "A damnable shame. He was a definite strength. We shall have trouble if the enemy resistance continues to improve." Where the Master had seemed angry and callous, his voice was now gentler. Very strange.

"We should move on. Especially out of this alley. In fact, I suggest we avoid such places completely if possible. We've lost a member of the team as well as part of the delivery, but let's not waste more time. With luck, Rui managed to jack-out with the emergency protocol. Waiting here won't help anything though. Remember, we do have a mission. CrushMan? Move. To the location as seen on the map."

CrushMan moved on without another thought. He remembered that the Master had asked DNR to come along as well, or so it had seemed. Crush briefly looked behind at his companion before turning his attention to the end of the alley and beyond. What a pathetic loss. If Crush were to suffer such an ignoble failure, he would receive no small deal of suffering. So much for Rui's speed. And yet he'd seemed like an almost even match. Was it that simple attitude of his? A difficult character to read, but CrushMan was hardly an expert. There was only the Master to consider. Yes, only the Master. He moved on.