Wandering Storm

Tempest touched down onto Electown Net in a bolt of lightning. The flashy entrance suited her and also drew the interest of everyone in audible range. She glanced around at the gawking spectators and walked away as if she didn't care. A small smirk crept up along her lucious lips as she drank in the attention. The men around her couldn't help but follow her sultry walk while the ire and jealousy of the women was almost tangible. She broke free from the crowd and began to look for something more interesting to sate her boredom.

((Battle 1))
A trio of Metools just happen to be around when Tempest walked away from the populated areas, all of them trying their best to be as intimidating as they could towards the navi as they began to swing their pickaxes. The viruses quickly approached Tempest as they were ready to take down their foe!

MetoolA: 40 HP
MetoolB: 40 HP
MetoolC: 40 HP

Terrain: 100% Metal

Tempest.EXE: 100 HP

-BATTLE ONE, START!-
"Aww... Cute. What are those?" Gale asked.

"They're just viruses." Tempest answered, immediately recognizing them and entering a battle ready mode.

Gale was at a loss, "Oh. Okay so what now? Do I have to call a tech guy to get rid of them or something?"

"What!?" Tempest barked, exiting her battle ready mode just as quickly.

"What? I don't know anything about computers. I know viruses are bad but I don't know how to get rid of them."

"Well I do." boasted Tempest. She glared at the trio of Metools and focused on them, spawning a dark cloud overhead. It cracked with thunder before unleashing a heavy downpour of rain all over the viruses. The initial deluge flashflooded the area before dying down to a lighter drizzle. All the while, the cloud continued to grow while maintaining its ominously dark hue. Without warning, three bolts of lightning touched down in rapid succession over the soaked tiles. The colour of the cloud lightened into a softer grey after the release, but immediately began to swirl and blacked once more.

"Oh wow. I didn't know you could do that? Jealous!" Gale said.

Though Tempest felt a little patronized, she found some solace in the praise regardless.

"Can you do me a favour?" Tempest asked, "Could you please slot-in a battlechip just to be safe?"

"Battlechips? The tiny little plastic card thingys that came with the PET? Is that what they're called?"

"Uhh... Yeah." Tempest quipped in her snippiest tone.

"Well I didn't know that!" Gale snapped back, clearly offended, "I'm not some kind of online geek!"

Though her well being was on the line, Tempest was too proud to admit she said anything wrong and stood with her arms crossed, waiting silently. Gale's raised voice seemed to have drawn an unwanted crowd which forced her to reconsider her position and acquiesce to Tempest's request. Rummaging through her purse for the little plastic card thing, she waved it over the PET screen as if trying to scan a barcode on it.

"What are you doing?" Tempest asked.

Gale didn't want to admit the problem, "...I don't know how to use it."

"The chip?" Tempest said in disbelief, "Just slide it into the slot on the side. It's just like using a credit card."

Gale turned the PET over on its side and found the slot in port and sighed, "Ohhhh... Okay, I can do this."

She slid the chip in and flipped the PET rightside up and watched as Tempest channeled the Magbomb data between her hands into a small grey cloud that sparked with electricity. Not content to leave her targets where they were, she tilted her head slightly, summoning a gust of wind that whisked the rain to one side. She was trying to force the remaining Metools closer together before she bent over slightly and lobbed the Magbomb infused cloud in an underhanded granny toss. The small cloud arced as if it was weighed down by something and landed in a globe of yellow light. The wide discharge sparked along the wet terrain before dying down into nothing.

"And that's how it's done." Tempest added.



* - SetSea (large sea terrain under Metools)
1 - Storm Warning MetoolA, MetoolB, MetoolC (20 damage) {D} x2 from terrain
* - Gust MetoolA closer to MetoolB
2 - Dodge
3 - Magbomb MetoolB (35 damage + Blast 2 + Stun) {D} x2 from terrain
Making some wet ground underneath the Metools, Tempest proceeded to have some lightning smite a couple of Metools. Later, a small cloud was lobbed towards the last remaining one, though it discharged harmlessly as it floated off somewhere that wasn't anywhere near the Met. It didn't really feel like making a last stand, and just cowered in its helmet in the soaking rain, being all miserable.

MetoolA: DELETED
MetoolB: DELETED
MetoolC: 40 HP [under helmet]

Terrain: 50% Sea, 50% Metal

Tempest.EXE: 100 HP
"Haha, you did it! Yay!" Gale said, clapping quietly with a smile.

Tempest pouted when she saw she wasn't finished yet. The last virus in the line had avoided being hit by hiding under its helmet. She was feeling too drained to attack with another round of thunderbolts and had just expended her battlechip.

"Gale, what other chips are you carrying?" Tempest asked.

"Hold on, lemme check." Gale replied, searching through her bag. Her operator wasn't sure, though she did empty the contents of the PET case into her purse. She must have put the rest of the chips in there somewhere. "There's two more: A Shotgun and a Rageclaw. Ugh... Who comes up with these names?"

Tempest didn't like the sound of the Rageclaw either and preferred to take out the Metool from a distance where she didn't have to touch anything. Still, it was hiding under its helmet and that seemed pretty effective at repelling her attacks so far.

"Mmm... Alright, can you slide the Shotgun in please?" Tempest.

Gale was happy to oblige, feeling very integrated in the fight though her participation was fairly limited. Tempest conjured another cloud between her hands and waited for something to happen. Winds picked up again, twisting around the lone Metool and spiralling upwards. Soon, water was being lifted up into the funnel, turning it into a miniature hurricane. Tempest made her move. She released the energy stored in the cloud in the form of a yellow beam. It pierced through the center of the cyclone's dead center, dissipating it. The collected water splashed back down in a light shower.



1 - Take Aim (for Shotgun)
* - Gust Metool into the air
2 - Shotgun MetoolC (50 damage + spread 1)
3 - dodge
After knocing away the poor Metool's helmet, the virus was wide open for Tempest's fury (in a form of a beam)!

MetoolA: DELETED
MetoolB: DELETED
MetoolC: DELETED

Terrain: 50% Sea, 50% Metal

Tempest.EXE: 100 HP

-BATTLE WON!-
250z + [Guard] Battlechip
Gale didn't want to make the same mistake twice and this time asked, "Did you win?"

Tempest was busy trying to hide the fact that she was panting a bit and had exhausted herself trying to fight off 3 Metools. She simply wasn't cut out for fighting and while her attack style was flashy and impressive looking, it wasn't very effective. Quickly compsing herself, she said, "Yesss, they're deleted."

"Hmmm..." Gale mused to herself while browsing the display, "My account balance looks higher than it did before," she gasped, "Do you think the virus got to it!?"

Tempest shook her head, "No, I don't think so. You get zenny for deleting viruses."

"Deleting viruses earns me money!?" Gale echoed excitedly.

"Not a lot. Mostly depends on the virus, I think." Tempest answered, still quietly catching her breath.

The PET itself finished registering the Guard chip and ejected it out from the side, much to Gale's surprise.

"What's this?" Gale asked.

"Sometimes you get battlechip data from viruses too." Tempest added.

"Like, whaaaaaat! No one ever told me deleting viruses could be so lucrative..." Gale smiled, "Now I can trade this in to that Christmas chip event I've been hearing about."

"So where were we?" Tempest asked.

"Well, we WERE going to visit some online stores but now I'm curious about viruses." Gale said.

The navi sighed. This was going to be a long day.

((Battle 2))
After finding out the rewards to be had from busting viruses, Gale sent Tempest out to find more viruses. Along the busy streets of Electown, Tempest went along a small side street, which eventually led to a few more viruses. Two Canodumbs blocked the way ahead, while a couple of Bunnies jumped around the turrets excitedly. An interesting thing to note was also the floating green crystal behind the Canodumbs, which rotated around idly as the viruses prepared to fight!

-- ENEMIES --
Canodumb A: 50 HP (Normal)
Canodumb B: 50 HP (Normal)
Bunny A: 50 HP (Normal)
Bunny B: 50 HP (Normal)

-- OBJECTS --
Green Mystery Data: 20 HP [Behind viruses]

-- NAVIGATOR --
Tempest.EXE: 100 HP (Normal)

-- TERRAIN --
70% Normal (Road)
30% Metal (Sidewalks)

-- BATTLE 02, READY? START!! --
"Let's end this quickly." Tempest said, not really looking forward to having to fight again.

"So like, can I just put these cards in whenever?" asked Gale, "Oh, what's that?"

Tempest noticed it as well when one of the bunnies bounded out of the way. The glowing green gem was hard to miss.

"That's a Green Mystery Data." Tempest said, accessing her pre-programmed memory, "It contains either zenny, battlechip data or..."

"...Or what?" Gale asked with a big grin of anticipation.

"...Or a trap." Tempest grimaced.

Gale's smile flopped, "Oh. Well, let's open it anyways."

Tempest was a little shocked at her operator's total lack of compassion for her well being but had no time to dwell on it - the viruses needed to be deleted first. Spinning her finger about, dark clouds spiralled overhead and drenched the floor in another torrential downpour. It continued to rain hard while flashes of smothered light sparked within the brewing storm. Bolts of lightning crashed down over the two turrets and one of the bunnies while Tempest casually walked around the group. Not wanting to damage the data while she fought, she waved her hand in a light dismissal. A simple but strong gust of wind breezed around the data trying to carry it away.

Gale flipped through her chips, "Which one do you want? There's the Shotgun, the Magbomb, the Rageclaw and I got this new Drain one from the exchange I was talking about. It was so nice of them to host it again this year. Last year I got the Magbomb by sending in that other one that came with the PET. You know the one."

Tempest interjected her operator's rant, "Whatever."

"...What's with you?" Gale asked.

"Nothing." Tempest answered bluntly, as she created a tiny cloud in her hand to play with, "Just use whatever."

"Look, I don't know what I said or what, but you don't need to be like, 'whatever'." Gale said, slotting in the Shotgun.

Tempest found a point where the Bunnies were standing in a line and presented the cloud as if to offer it to them. Without warning, it released a pulse of condensed energy that shot out at the viruses. The cloud itself melted away from her open palm, allowing her to close her fist and lower her arm.



* - SetSea under viruses (large sea terrain)
1 - Storm Warning CanodumbA, CanodumbB, BunnyA (20 damage) x2 from terrain
* - Gust Mystery Data aside
2 - Move to line up BunnyA and BunnyB
3 - Shotgun BunnyA (50 damage + spread1)
Flooding the road with some heavy rain, Tempest got to work, and shocked a few viruses with her lightning attacks. Later, after she had gotten the Mystery Data out of the way, she had her cloud fire a burst of energy at the Bunnies, deleting them both instantly. The Canodumbs reacted by swiveling their turrets about, locking onto Tempest's signature.

-- ENEMIES --
Canodumb A: 10 HP (Sea) (Lock-on: Tempest)
Canodumb B: 10 HP (Sea) (Lock-on: Tempest)
Bunny A: DELETED
Bunny B: DELETED

-- OBJECTS --
Green Mystery Data: 20 HP [Behind viruses]

-- NAVIGATOR --
Tempest.EXE: 100 HP (Normal)

-- TERRAIN --
20% Normal, 50% Sea (Road)
30% Metal (Sidewalks)
Tempest could tell she was in a spot of trouble when she heard the cannons lock onto her. Dodging left and right seemed useless at this point, which left her with only one option: Up. The navi leapt and allowed a sudden current of air propel her body far higher than she could have managed on her own. From her new vantage point, she could see the viruses were still a little too far for her liking. Sweeping her hand to one side, another gust picked up to push the Canondumbs a little closer together.

"Gale, I need a chip." Tempest said. She could feel the effects of gravity starting to take hold.

"Is Magbomb okay?" Gale asked.

Tempest began her descent, "Yes! Yes! Just use it!"

Her operator slipped in the chip as Tempest accelerated towards the ground. She tried to create a cloud between her hands but the air rushing past worked against her. In her frustation, she made a fist and began charging it with an aura of electrical energy.

"Rargh!" She growled, slashing her arm at the viruses and ejecting the ball of light from her hand. She and her attack touched down at the same time, though with very different impacts. A pillow of air cushioned Tempest's landing, saving her from harm while her Magbomb infused sphere exploded on contact and sent sparks arcing across the surface of the water.

"Is it okay if I use the Drain card now? I want to see what it does." Gale asked.

Tempest shrugged and figured why not. She had nothing to lose and prepared to accept the new data by creating another tiny cloud. Gale slotted in the chip, eager to see what her Christmas trade had yielded.

A look of confusion crossed Tempest's brow as a strange buzzing eminated from the core of her wispy creation. The sound and size of the cloud continued to build until it grew out of her hands. Wary, she distanced herself from it and shifted her hand to release whatever was germinating inside.

The cloud popped open to reveal a swarm of tiny black insects that instantly sent chills up and down both Gale and Tempest's spines. In unison, they screamed.

"EWWWWWWWWWWWW!"

The mass of insects immediately set themselves upon the turrets. Tempest was too busy shuddering and shaking off the feeling of having created such a terrifying and disgusting mess. Gale didn't even want to touch the chip anymore after seeing what it did.

"Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod!" Tempest winced with clenched teeth. She couldn't even bear to look at where the swarm had gone but her attention was quickly drawn to the slowly amplifying sound of buzzing. The swarm was returning for her.

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" She screamed, "STAY AWAY FROM MEEEEE!"

She tried to generate a repulsive blast of wind at it but she was too spent and couldn't focus. The multitude of bugs condensed into a single glowing point that darted straight for her and disappeared into her body. Just the thought of what happened sent Tempest's eyes rolling into the back of her head and she collapsed in a heap, foaming at the mouth.

"Tempest? Tempest!?" Gale called out to no avail.



1 - Airstep dodge (high alt)
* - Gust CanondumbA closer to CanondumbB
2 - Magbomb between CanondumbA and CanondumbB (35 damage + Blast 2 + Stun1) x2 from terrain
3 - Drain1 CanondumbA (50 damage + drain)
Ding dong, the witch is de--

I mean, the turrets were eliminated by the sphere of electrical energy, and the Skeeters did mostly nothing but make everyone go crazy and screaming and stuff.

-- ENEMIES --
Canodumb A: DELETED
Canodumb B: DELETED
Bunny A: DELETED
Bunny B: DELETED

-- OBJECTS --
Green Mystery Data: 20 HP [Behind viruses]

-- NAVIGATOR --
Tempest.EXE: 100 HP (Normal)

-- TERRAIN --
20% Normal, 50% Sea (Road)
30% Metal (Sidewalks)

-- BATTLE 02, VICTORY!! --

-- REWARDS --

[Cannon] Battlechip, 420z

[Open GMD? Y/N]
With no physical means of reaching her navi, Gale had to wait for Tempest to recover from her shock naturally. This took a significant period of time, during which Gale found a person willing to trade her Drain chip to for something more suitable.

Tempest woke up in a daze, not sure what had happened. Her memory returned in a jolt, causing her to immediately check her body for lingering insects. There was nothing on her, nor were there any signs of intrusion. She sighed a breath of relief, humouring the idea that it might have been a bad dream.

"Oh Tempest, you're up." Gale said, changing her upbeat tone to a sympathetic one, "How're you feeling?"

"Awful." Tempest answered, getting to her feet.

"At least you weren't hurt," Gale said, "And don't worry abou that chip. I traded it away for something else. A Zapring, I think."

Though Tempest was listening, her visual attention focussed on the Mystery Data. She walked up to the gem and took a deep breath. Though it could contain valuables, it was also very possible she was walking into a trap. She reluctantly extended her palm to its surface.

"...Tempest, wait." Gale interrupted

"Hm?" she stopped, retracting her hand.

"If it's dangerous, you don't have to open it." Gale reassured her.

She smiled. All she really wanted was some consideration and equal treatment. She shook her head and said, "It's fine. I can do this."

"Alright then, let's see what we got!" Gale smiled back.

This time Tempest wasted no time in accessing the fragile surface to unlock whatever was held inside.

(GMD GO))
Accessing the mystery data's contents revealed...

[GMD: [Thunder1] Battlechip]
"A Thunder Battlechip." Tempest noted with a suppressed smile. She couldn't argue that it was certainly a suitable reward for her.

Gale sighed, "Aw..." It wasn't the zenny she had been hoping for but at least it was something she could use, "At least it wasn't a trap, right? Haha..."

Tempest could only reply with a half-amused, "Hm..." walking away from the scene with nothing else to hold her interest.

((Battle 3))
Tempest becomes a rider on the storm and wanders his way into a more advanced, less industrial-era part of Electown; this one even has Magnet sidewalks that make walking a lot easier! (Wait, navis don't get tired...)

Regardless, a couple of viruses-- namely two Cacty, an ENGBall, and two Champu-- hop onto the sidewalk and harass Tempest. The ENGBall kind of floats and looks like it is having to hurry to try to keep up with the mobile battlefield, while the Champu kind of slip and roll along for a bit before coming to a stop.

And of course, this entire thing is happening as buildings and the streets whirr by.

--Enemies-- (In front of/ahead of Tempest on the sidewalk)
Cacty A: 70 (Magnet) (1x stun, will not be stunned after this turn)
Cacty B: 70 (Magnet) (1x stun, will not be stunned after this turn)
ENGBall: 80 (Floating over Magnet) [Blue]
Champu A: 60 (Magnet) (1x stun, will not be stunned after this turn)
Champu B: 60 (Magnet) (1x stun, will not be stunned after this turn)

--Tempest.EXE--
100 HP (You're a Magnet)

--Terrain--
Sidewalk: 15% Magnet terrain (You're on this. It's a mobile sidewalk, specially made to keep foot traffic moving. It is keeping the battle moving, and appears to be cranked a couple gears too fast. Requires a standard action to dismount, and two to dismount without taking damage or stumbling.)
15% Magnet terrain (The sidewalk on the other side of the road)
Road: 70% Normal
"This is gonna be wayyyy too much hassle..." Tempest said, "Bail."

"Yeah, I'm alright with that." Gale agreed with a sympathetic nod.

Thankfully, most of the viruses were having too many issues with the magnetic path to attack her right away. Rather than take the oppotunity to strike first, Tempest wasted no time in leaping high into the air with a sudden updraft. She watched as the viruses were whisked away by the mobile walkway from her new vantage point though the ENGBall wasn't so easily deterred.

Slowly descending from her high jump, Tempest guided herself onto the other sidewalk with a gentle breeze. She landed safely and immediately began to briskly make her way back to where she came from, trying to outrun the floating blue virus.



1 - Airstep up and onto other sidewalk.
* - Gust self away
2 - Escape
3 - Escape
Tempest goes flying away onto... the sidewalk going the opposite direction!

The ENGBall is the only virus that tries, in vain, to follow; the rest unanimously give the situation a "screw that" look as they all flop down on the sidewalk carrying them away.

[Escape: Success]
"I kinda JUST started this whole... y'know," Gale struggled to find a less offensive term for what she was thinking, "Internet life? Like, I mean, I've used it before, but like not REALLY used it. Not like this. I always considered this type of thing more for like... Umm, 'enthusiasts', y'know?"

Tempest narrowed her eyes as she tried to pick through her operator's words, "So like, what're you trying to say?"

"Can we stick to less complicated viruses and work our way up?" Gales asked, "I could use the learning curve."

Tempest didn't want to admit it, but she didn't think she could handle anything more challenging than what she just escaped from. Though her pride was at stake so she made a small sigh of feigned disappointment and said, "I guess."

Gale beamed, "Yay! I promise I'll check out that computer store near SciLabs for you later."

The prospect of getting new upgrades was more appealing to Tempest than she let on. She hid her smile and began to stroll around looking for trouble - but not too much of it.

((Can I opt to do another battle 1 or 2 now instead of logging out and back in?))
Trouble was exactly what Gale got, as she strolled down a less populated road, and got some viruses blocking her way. The ones she got were kind of cute, though, with floppy arms and some kind of antenna making the Powies look more adorable than deadly. Even their battle cry sounded like they were squeaking or something. Would this hinder Tempest's offenses? Find out, on the next episode of Pocket's Post!

-- ENEMIES --
Powie A: 60 HP [Metal]
Powie B: 60 HP [Metal]
Powie C: 60 HP [Metal]

-- ALLIES --
Tempest.EXE: 100 HP [Metal]

-- TERRAIN --
60% Metal
40% Normal

-- BATTLE 01, READY? START!! --