CrushMan - Guard Duty

((Sorry, Thanksgiving))

Splitman ran in from the side as though he had been next door the entire time. "Did you need any help?" He asked The question was devoid of any warmth or authenticity. He waited for an answer for a moment, just looking at CrushMan breathing heavily.

Chad looked back at his screen to see Split in an entirely different region than he had left him. Odd, he didn't warp him anywhere... the hell, did he run?
"Ah, Splitman, what a surprise to see you. Welcome Chad." The Master didn't sound surprised at all. "I was wondering when you two would show up. Luckily, we haven'th made too much progress towards our goal, else you might have been left behind. I'll take some comfort in knowing you'll be there to assist Crush if necessary."

He paused. "Well?" he intoned. "Bjorn? Shall we be off?"
Bjorn just raises a pointing hand, at- a giant cluster of Slimeys. It seems vaguely reminiscent of a video game, where the monsters seem to be collections of changed pallette stronger things, but that's an entirely different story.

SlimeyA: 90
SlimeyB: 90
SlimeyC: 90
SlimeyD: 90
SlimeyE: 90
SlimeyF: 90
SlimeyG: 90
SlimeyH: 90
SlimeyI: 90
SlimeyJ: 90

Crushman: 190
Splitman: 120

Bjorn: 150
((Might as well just go first then))

Splitman charged forwards intro the group of harmless looking slimes. Their jiggly bodies looked as though they would be no match for him. He chuckled out loud as his eyes grew red and his pace quickened. 'Soon they would all be dead though not nearly soon enough. The wretched little slimes had stepped fourth in this cockly little mockery of him and his abilities. They would break.'

Midway though his next thought, though he could not recall what Split realized that his arm had been shattered into pieces by the force of his own attacks. Disgusted, he threw it off to the side, it was useless to him now. He charged forward at one of the nearby slimes and dropped his bomb on it at point-blank range. Before it could detonate he leapt high into the air to avoid the blast. The three shockwaves that followed brought a smile to his face.

"Damnit Split" Chad's voice came in from nowhere "Stop acting like an idiot and take them on at a range" Splitman listened but didn't reply, there was no point. A shield materialized in his remaining hand, useless.

Summary:
Red Out(5 Buster Attacks, Buster Lock): SlimeyA 3x, SlimeyB 2x +20 damage to last blow (Focused Power)
EnergyBomb(40x3): SlimeyC/B aswell if managable- Point Blank
Advanced Mobility: Jump Away from blast
Guard1
(Guess I'll stop avoiding this and jump back in, heh.)

"Ah, it would appear that we are not alone, my companions," the Master said, amused.

More viruses. CrushMan was almost frustrated by the enemy's tenacity. Or at least their tenacity coupled with their weakness. So far, the enemy had been no challenge at all, simply weaklings who, for whatever reason, saw fit to disrupt the Master's way. He would deal with them as he dealt with all such instances. Mercilessly.

And yet still, there was that nagging feeling, prodding at his very being. What was that? Something inside him, something clawing to get out, what was this feeling? "Destroy them," the Master commanded. CrushMan discarded his tiny concerns and focused on the foes before him. "Data readout indicates... Troublesome." The Master sighed. "Well. these will at least pose some kind of challenge. No matter. Destroy them!"

Warm energy coagulated in his arm, spreading as if he were near a blazing flame, then his arm exploded out, reforming as a great, long barrel, emblazened with runes and the Weatherbey family symbol, the rising raven. "Upgrade," the Master said, simply. The thing let off a thunderous crash as it sent it's deadly payload soaring off, then fired again, shooting yet another seering red cone of energy off and away.

The great gun shook, rumbled, then changed slightly, it's runes morphing suddenly into something quite similar but noticably different, before spouting off another blast, this one an iron clad spear that whistled through the air.

Crush still couldn't help a feeling that something was wrong though, that his performance was down, that something wasn't quite clicking like it should have. He waved the feeling off. The Master would accept no failures. He rocked back and forth, his spiked heels biting into the ground as he did so, preparing himself for the enemy's counter.

Summary
1. Cannon to SlimeyJ - 40 Damage -
2. Cannon to SlimeyI - 40 Damage -
Free. Smash - Adds
Break to Next Attack -
3. ShotGun to SlimeyJ - 50 Damage -
Break
4. Dodge
((Bump))
((Twiddle twiddle bump))
((Geez, I kept you waiting for a fucking month. Why am I a mod, again? ;._.

Incredibly sorry. Feel free to whale on me with a two-by-four or something.))

While Crushman fired intermittent shots into the mountain of slime, Splitman's bomb detonated in the center of it all, with its user just managing to leap away from the blast. It was clear from the small blast radius that Energybombs are intended for just one target, but it managed to clip the virii closest to it. Bjorn even contributed a little, hefting an odd segmented boomerang in one hand and sending it spinning through a couple Slimies.

Despite all this, though, the Slimey collective seems pretty unfazed. A couple even seemed to be napping in a way not totally uncharacteristic of their kind. The others, though, quickly leapt to their duties and sent themselves flying. Splitman's shield sent one flying directly back and into another Slimey, who was promptly deleted, and yet another hit the ground somewhere to Crushman's left with the sound of moist clay hitting a table. Two still manage to connect, hitting Bjorn and Splitman.

SlimeyA: DELETED!
SlimeyB: DELETED!
SlimeyC: DELETED!
SlimeyD: 50 HP
SlimeyE: 60 HP
SlimeyF: 65 HP
SlimeyG: 90 HP
SlimeyH: 90 HP
SlimeyI: 50 HP
SlimeyJ: DELETED!

Crushman: 190
Splitman: 90

Bjorn: 120

((Things'll probably get into full swing after this battle -- and I'll pay attention to it this time, too!))
A dual thump-thump as his projectiles slammed into their slimy targets offered some small comfort to Crush, as did the resounding explosion as his Shot Gun hit home and blew the virus to data particles, but none of this did little to ease the feelings he felt when all was clear, when he noticed his charge and his state. He'd allowed the enemy to damage the weakling! His charge!

"Damn it!" the Master shouted. "CrushMan! Don't allow such a thing to happen again! Guard Bjorn with your life, we're not about to fail this mission because of low-life slime like these! No more holding back, blast them into dust!" It was almost painful to hear the Master's change of tone, so quick from strange whispers to proud decrees. Yet the sound of 'we' brought some emotion to Crush that he could not quite describe once more, and he knew that he would not fail again. He couldn't allow it, he would not disappoint the Master again!

He'd use the aqua blue blade; with it he would tear the enemy asunder! All he had to do was await the Master's command, to issue him his weapon and... And yet he felt it not entirely necessary to do so. A bubbling, familiar energy churned within his right arm, something like the attack he'd quickly grown familiar with, and yet at the same time it felt different. Crush could see it crawling, moving underneath his armor plating like some wriggling worm. Had the Master sent it to him already?

Another feeling raised more questions than answers. His arm practically went numb with shock as another energy burned, torched, exploded through him, causing his primary hand to twist and morph and meld, seeming to have all the solidity of water. "CrushMan, use the ShotGun, now!" His arm quickly solidified into a new and familiar form, a long cylindrical tube, a barrel like that of gun. So the Master had sent him something, but then what was that feeling earlier? Too many things had made too little sense since the time of the black out. Crush decided to burn it all away; he'd destroy every vague feeling and strange new emotions until all that was left was the complete and pure truth. He'd start destroying with the enemies in front of him.

He quickly went to one knee, took aim, and then mentally commanded his arm to obey. It responded by firing a sharp-ended projectile towards one of the foes, making a barely audible sound as it sliced through the air with all speed. Crush was up a moment later, knowing full well that something like 50% of his arsenal was comprised of weapons usable only in melee combat. That, and he was all to glad to throw himself into the throng of enemies, the frenzied combat might do well to help him forget his failure, curse his weakness!

Again, a jolt of energy surged through him, burning like a searing brand dragged all the way down his forearm, and again his arm seemingly melted, dripping down to the ground as one long, thick strand of metal. It sucked itself back up quickly a moment later as Crush continued his wild bounds forward and reformed as a great four-edged steel cube jutting directly out of his shoulder, crowned by two long prongs that almost stretched to the ground. A blue flash sparked betwixt them and the two long spikes began to rotate, spinning in a wild dance around one another.

MagBolt. Crush took another bound forward and then, mid-leap, thrust his electrically charged limb out towards one of the remaining foes and let it loose. The spinning blades, now seeming like a single phantom circle, spewed forth a single beam each, the two colliding together and coalescing into a great pulsating blue-white orb some inches in front of the arm, all the while the two feeding beams still churning and spinning with their origins. The energy exploded into movement and burst forward, blasting out with a thunderous roar and zigzagging it's way to its target.

Summary
ShotGun to SlimeyI — 50 Damage — Chance of Hitting Additional Target —
MagBolt to SlimeyH — 90 Damage —
Elec

(Turn split, because I'd like to see what Split does... and I ran out of time to write stuff up. Think of this as a "I'M WORKING ON IT" post, heh.)
((Sorry, finishing up finals))

Splitman gazed out onto the battlefield as his teammate finally took charge of himself and did something for a change. Worthless incompetent fool barely did anything at first, and let that idiot in back get damaged. It occurred to Split that he had been pretty heavily damaged himself, but that wasn't exactly his concern right now.
"GUARD" He shouted out to Chad, the idiot would need to be shouted to in order to get a damn thing done anyway. The shield materialized in his remaining hand, it at least would be useful for helping that idiot off to the side. "Here, take this" He shouted to Bjorn, before tossing off to the side in his direction. Hopefully the fool would at least have sense enough to grab the thing when it was given to him.

Ah well, even if he had no defenses, even if he had no really good offensive chips....
OK, maybe he was in a bad situation.
Splitman charged in ignoring the basic facts of the situation and attacked directly the leftmost group of remaining slimes. Bombs might do the trick, though his attempts for using explosives effectively were distinctly ineffectual the last time he tried this trick. It didn't matter though, maybe he could at least get out some use from it, he wasn't the type to back down just because it wasn't easy.

First, second. The two shots were perfectly on target between the slimes. He dropped the two cornbombs in the middle of the group, no epic struggles, no dire situations, just a simple dropping of two explosives amongst a group of horrible (ok, maybe only slightly) ineffectual and translucent foes. Before the bombs could detonate he leapt into the air vertically and impossibly high above the group and doused it with a shotgun blast of empowered flame.

Two explosions range out from beneath him, clouding the ground in smoke before he could land. "YOU GOING TO TAKE CARE OF THE REST OR DO YOU FEEL LIKE SLEEPING AGAIN AND LEAVING IT TO ME!?" He shouted at his ally, apparently he was just watching him fight to decide what to do next, wasting time while the enemies around him could still be alive.

Summary:
1: Guard1: Throw to Bjorn
2: CornShot1(50x2): Plant explosives next to SlimeyD, E, and F
2a: Advanced Mobility: Leap straight into air above bombs
3: Heatshot+Focused Power(60, Fire- Spread 1): Attack bombs/Slimey group
* If too much of a pain to count combo attack, just count as attacking D and F with bombs and E with heatshot +F Splash
"What did you..." the Master hissed, before stopping suddenly. He let out an indignant, "Hmph!" before issuing his next order. "Oh, he'll do something alright. CrushMan, finish off the enemy!" Crush felt the oncoming energy and welcomed it. All the better to silence that yapping pup. Little dogs shouldn't bark so very loudly! His arm quickly deformed, then reformed as a giant, twisting needle, slowly filling out on the way down and becoming thicker than his arm at the base. Now this was different. Not new, not entirely at any rate, but it was definitely different. "AquaNeedle," the Master called excitedly, giving all the information that Crush needed to continue the attack.

He turned to the nearest foe, one arm still trailing a sparkling line of electricity, and drove his fist-turned drill forward. The thing opened suddenly, firing off three smaller versions of itself rocketing outwards towards the enemy. "I wanted so very much more, but for now, this'll do. Now we finish it. WideShot, Alpha Mode engaged!" With a sickly sucking sound, Crush's two arms fused together as one, forming a great barrel with a too wide end. Out of it surged forth a great wave of water that flowed towards the enemy. And again, Crush couldn't help feel but something was off...

Summary
AquaNeedle to SlimeyD, 30 Damage x2, SlimeyG 30 Damage x1 —
Aqua
Wideshot to SlimeyE, SlimeyF, SlimeyG — 60 Damage to 3 Targets —
Aqua

(Sigh, I really was hoping to put more effort into this, but damn it if I don't just keep putting it off. Sorry for holding things up guys.)
((Sorry; The 21st to the 24th was Eid, and I was too busy visiting family and stuff to check in or use the chat for more than five seconds.

I sorta prefer Christmas because I can just sit around and enjoy myself. Muslims are just so damn social! XD

Anyway, merry Christmas. Here's a mod post. And like I promised, this is the last cluster of normal viruses you'll face.

Sorry if I seem incoherent. Just finished watching Paprika, and it nearly blew my head clean off. Trippy, but a very good movie. I suggest wholeheartedly that you watch it.))
Scarcely before the Slimies could move, they fell prey to a veritable wall of firepower. The viruses were reduced to viscous blue puddles, which were in turn reduced to null streams of data soon to blink out of demi-existence. As usual, though, some of those streams collided and inexplicably became into battle data or money.

"Alright," Bjorn grunted, sounding pleased. "We're close. Gather up whatever you want and let's move on; it shouldn't take too much longer. You don't mind if I hold on to your little pie tin here, do you?" He hefted the Guard with his free arm. "I might need it."

SlimeyA: DELETED!
SlimeyB: DELETED!
SlimeyC: DELETED!
SlimeyD: DELETED!
SlimeyE: DELETED!
SlimeyF: DELETED!
SlimeyG: DELETED!
SlimeyH: DELETED!
SlimeyI: DELETED!
SlimeyJ: DELETED!

Crushman: 190
Splitman: 90

Bjorn: 120

-VICTORY!-
Splitman: 800z
Crushman: 950z

Friendship Points:
Splitman and Crushman: 1 FXP
Free-Floating: 3 FXP

((Remember to keep track in your sig.))
(Metagel1? I can't seem to find it in the battlechip list. Is it something else I wonder? Hmm...)

Crush quickly collected the data and nodded to his charge. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go," the Master said, and Crush had every intention to follow.
(( It sounds like a battlechip, but there is nothing like it in the lists. Just got back myself, sorry about the delay
Edit: just noticed there was almost none, good timing then))

Splitman nodded tacitly before continuing down the path. He kept looking backwards sporadically as if at any moment a group of enemies could be going down the path to attack him.

((Oh, and could you tell me if this counts as turn 2 or turn 3 for the buster crash during the first turn of battle. I know it lasts after the fight, but was unsure of whether the intermission counts as a turn))
((Some mood-setting banter before the encounter. Hope you don't mind.))

The ragtag group came upon a large round depression in the "natural" stone of the Yoka Net, walled in on all sides by thick foliage growing along the rim. In its center was a discarded bento box, marked with cheery cartoon characters which had started to wear away from age.

"This should be it..." Muttered Bjorn. "Don't let the looks deceive you. We operate with the utmost secrecy around here, you know." He began to hobble toward the discarded trash on the ground, stopping halfway to speak to his two escorts. "Now comes the easy part, you two. You've gone to all the trouble of escorting me here, so you shouldn't have too much of a problem with staying on duty a bit longer. Just make sure no one comes in, alright? The transfer itself might take a while, and it'll take my full attention."
"Very well," The Master said. "I'll post CrushMan on guard duty outside here. We'll destroy anything that attempts to go inside. I'll take the liberty of also suggesting that we go inside should something go wrong? Say, for example, there were an ambush awaiting you inside. We would hear the noise and come running, yes?"

The Master chuckled. "Not to put you on edge or anything, my dear friend Bjorn. In fact, be at ease. We've gotten you in one piece this far, haven't we?"
((Oh, drat, missed that entirely. I'm going to fix up my mod post; I assumed MetaGel1 was a chip, but it's totally not. I also forgot to include FXP.

So, Tom, that's 200 more Zenny and one less MetaGel1 for you.

Both of you get 3 free-floating FXP for the virii killed, and 1 static FXP for your partner. Sorry, but you can't spend any on Bjorn just yet. :<

As for the intermission, the general verdict is "no." Sorry, dude.))
(Aw shucks. And here I was warming up to the idea of having a defective battle chip. Ah well, profile fixed.)
There was silence for a very long time, and then the Master sighed. "Oh dear. It would appear that we're missing something, something rather important. ElecTown... That's where that happened. Hmm..."

"Bjorn, hurry it up, will you? Let's finish this business."
((Computer died, had to rebuild new one by hand. Am better now))

Splitman shifted awkwardly back and fourth outside the building. The guy was an idiot to go in there alone if he actually needed help, but for all he knew the guy was setting them up to be attacked from all sides. 'Damnit Damnit Damnit.............' he muttered quietly to himself as he kicked at the ground increasingly hard, leaving small dents in the virtual landscape. For some reason the anger just was fading away this time, it just went on and on.

"HE HURRYING UP OR WHAT" Splitman yelled after a bit, seemingly out of nowhere.