Friday night stroll

Though the log assault wasn't enough to bring the virus down, it managed to run it through the ringer. Barely able to stand, it was mostly helpless at HangMan's feet. If it were another Navi, it may feel pity for the virus's sad state. Unfortunately for the Moloko, that wasn't the case with HangMan. By simply reading the Navi's name, one would rightly guess mercy wasn't exactly an often practiced virtue.

Opting for speed over sheer destructive power, HangMan didn't bother wasting time to summon his RageClaw chip and instead had the noose over his right hand loosen and slip from his wrist. As it did so, he drew his arm up, as if preparing a back-handed slap. The noose spooled out a few feet, causing its length to briefly curve back, looking like a snake preparing to strike. A blink of an eye later, HangMan swung his forearm down and across the virus's position, causing the rope and noose to trace a similar path while striking outwards like a whip. Regardless of what it hit, the impact would blurt out a sharp snap. It wasn't exactly the sound caliber of a cracking whip, but it sounded painless nonetheless.

Half expecting for the virus to restore its seemingly protective fleece, he swiped his arm back the opposite direction than before, delivering a second sharp whip towards the virus. After his arm swung past the Moloko, he rotated his swing upwards to set up a third and final strike straight down. The entirety of the noose and several inches of the trailing rope would have slammed hard against the floor, hopefully hitting the Moloko on its way down.


ACTIONS:
1. Buster: MolokoA (5dmg)
2. Buster: MolokoA (5dmg)
3. Buster: MolokoA (5dmg)

((By the by, even at most basic, your buster deals 10 damage; (1+1)*5))

It was with a whimper, rather than a bang, that the combat ended. HangMan, with his usual level of cold, merciless efficiency, put the last stray sheep down before it could cause any more damage.

For a moment, things had quieted and there was little but the sound of the pouring rain outside. The interior of the cafe was well and truly trashed, though if he was looking to have a brief seat for another minute or two, there were a couple of miraculously unbroken chairs here and there, amidst the wreckage.

In gathering the various spoils of his scuffle, the victorious executioner was likely to find that at least one of the small herd of viruses had crumpled into a packet of data easily converted to chip form, that it might one day charge with valiant stupidity across some other field once again.

Outside, the rain wasn't letting up; if anything it seemed to be getting steadily worse. The stampede of wet sheep that had gone past had clearly been running form something, but there was nothing obliging HangMan to brave the inclement weather again just to find out what.


-=Terrified Stampede=-

MolokoA: DELETED
MolokoB: DELETED
MolokoC: DELETED
MolokoD: DELETED
MolokoE: DELETED
MolokoF: DELETED

-=Not Their Shepard=-

HangMan: 65HP

-=No Place For Sheep=-

All Normal... and very wrecked.

-=Battle 4, Victory!=-

Rewards: 1100z, MokoRush1

Quote ()

MokoRush1
Damage: 60 + Ground Attack x 3 targets
Accuracy: C
Description: Summons 3 Mokolo viruses to charge at the enemy. Only broken or missing terrain can stop their charge.
Duration: Once
Element: Null

With the din of explosions and bleats of viruses gone, the now openly exposed cafe was filled only by the sound of the intensifying rainstorm outside. HangMan shifted his gaze from the thoroughly thrashed Moloko at his feet, and quickly retracted the noose back to his wrist. He rolled his shoulders as he took a deep draw from his cigar, then exhaled while assuming a more relaxed posture. The zenny littering the floor amongst the debris and a glowing chip packet caught his eye, briefly causing his grin to widen before he calmly moved to gather up the spoils.

As he plucked the zenny and chip data from the floor, he spoke up to any programs that didn't flee the immediate area amongst the chaos (not that he assumed any would've been stupid enough to stay behind). "I would apologize for tha mess, but without me heah, them viruses would still be causing an awful ruckus." He stood back up straight, holding his right hand palm upward and open. Moments later the zenny and chip data fragmented and seemed to evaporate upwards into nothingness, though in reality it was simply downloaded to the PET. Holly's expression was unsurprisingly unchanged as she saw her zenny total climb a good amount, along with an useful chip to use later on.

As she slotted in a blank chip on which to burn the new data, HangMan started to make his way towards the door. "Now if y'all don't mind, I'll be goin' nah." Though he was ready to move on, the weather looked thoroughly uninviting. Instead of simply strolling out the front door into the pouring rain, he paused for a moment to lean forward as he looked down the street in the direction from which the Molokos stampeded, to see what lay ahead.

((Ready for Battle #5 and/or exploration))

Peeking out into the rain, Hangman would see only the gloom at first, but the sounds of something thrashing about wasn't far away. The more his gaze readjusted to the dark, the easier it would become to see a large figure flailing and grabbing at the few remaining viruses that skittered past, crashing into the sides of the street and converting many of the aesthetic niceties of the area into so much debris.

It stood for a moment, caught in relief against the weak moonlight that managed to make its way through the clouds. The creature was mostly humanoid, but tall and bulky, with a vaguely monstrous feel to it. Its skin was mostly bare, save for a modesty-preserving pair of rather ragged-looking shorts, and the skin it showed was a very faint bluish colour. As it stood straight, the creature let out a sound that was hard to identify: it wouldn't be correct to call it a roar, or a howl, not exactly; it sounded as much like an unnervingly sentient cry of frustration, as much as it did either of those.

Standing straight up, with its head back seemed more effort that it was worth for the creature, and after it had cried out, it hunched forward again, its back curling as it lumbered forward in pursuit of the last few fleeing viruses. As it got closer, HangMan might be able to see that it had just one single eye dominating an otherwise mostly human face, along with a pointed horn in the middle of its forehead. These details were only partially visible, however, due to two feet worth of long, lank hair that pooled forward over its face and down over its back as well, which the creature often flicked its head to shift out of the way.

"Sheep-food! Come back sheep-food!!" Gutural and rough, and a little bit soggy-sounding, it might have been, but the voice was clear enough to understand as it shouted up the street ahead of it. It stumbled over another benched as it lumbered, and batted one of the dimly flickering street lights out of its way with the back of one fist. He would be drawing alongside HangMan in just a few moments now. Closer, it was easier to notice that the rain wasn't just washing over the creature; it seemed to be coming from it just as much. Far more rain water was dripping and trailing from his body than the amount of rain actually falling on him, and by the feel of the wind, whipping and curling about, this creature was the centre of the bad weather that was passing through.

-=Sheep-Eater=-

Rexa~1.SP: 400Hp [???][Normal]

-=Coffee-Drinker=-

HangMan.Exe: 65HP [Normal]

-=Wet or Dry=-

All Normal Terrain. Inside the coffee shop is out of the rain, elsewhere is not.

-=Objects Debris=-

Nothing left that hasn't already been smashed in one way or another.

-=Battle 5, Begin=-


Notes: HangMan is currently undetected, and has the element of surprise should he choose to attack; this will satisfy his shadow subtype effect. He is technically not in combat, yet, and may still opt to perform non-combat and out of combat actions until such a time as he is detected, or engages.

[???]: This creatures status effects are not clear to read initially, but will reveal themselves as discovered, or if the player takes actions to attempt to learn more.

((Necropost + Turn-splice))

HangMan was greeted to quite an odd sight: a hulking, cycloptic creature lumbering through the street, chasing viruses and reducing nearly every obstacle to rubble. [[i]Now that I did not expect,[/i]] Hangman thought to himself as he looked upon the creature from behind his pitch-black glasses. It appeared the brute hadn't noticed him yet, so he slunk back into the door frame of the ruined cafe to keep himself hidden.

"Looks like we have ourselves a biggin. I'd like to give him one helluva surprise with a Dynamite, if you please," The Navi requested quietly, his voice so low it seemed he was merely talking to himself. However, his voice rang loud and clear to Holly through the PET's speakers. She'd seen the creature through her Navi's eyes thanks to the PET's screen, and quickly deduced the Navi's plan. She surprisingly had no objections and retrieved the requested chip. As she slotted the chip into the PET, she was already thinking ahead; they had a small arsenal now, but their enemy was tough.

[[i]"What's your plan after that?"[/i]] She replied, sounding more like an order than a question. His grin stretched a bit to one side as he gave a low chuckle. "Depends on how well this works... but I plan to string 'im up nicely." The cylindrical trip mine materialized in his gloved right hand, which he briefly inspected before he placed it down on the ground, with its laser-equipped end pointing out of the store and across the street.

Anticipating the cyclops to continue trundling forward and down the street, he waited for the rumbling to get louder before he activated the mine's laser trigger, and took a step back to keep clear of the imminent detonation. He expected the mine to deal its advertised amount of destruction as always, but if it somehow didn't work out, he remained out of sight.

ACTIONS: (1/3)
1. Dynamite1: Rexa~1.SP (100dmg Null + Blast2 + Line Attack + Seeking) (A)

Without taking any more time to patch himself up, HangMan capitalised on his stealthy advantage by setting a nasty surprise. From his position in the ruined coffee shop, he had a good view as the soggy creature stumbled past unheeding, right across the laser line. The shaped blast marched across the street with an unerring roar, lighting up the night briefly and drawing a wail of surprise and pain from the cyclops. At first, it was difficult to make out exactly what had happened while the smoke cleared, though the growing winds whipped it up and around the target at the centre of the tempest.

As the downpour thinned the air, HangMan would be able to see the blue-skinned program pulling itself to its feet, from where he had been knocked flat. Its hands covered its head and upper body as it swayed, turning about looking out from under its hair for the source of the attack. He seemed to be mixing proper words in with the unintelligible sounds of pain and surprise, but the only one that HangMan was likely to be able to make out would be loud demands of 'Where?!'.

It turned about, sheep forgotten, and unfortunately for HangMan's cover the lights of the coffee shop drew its eye. Still covering itself with one arm, the creature pulled his sodden hair off his face again to fix his eye on HangMan. As the first entity he was seeing after the sudden assault, it seemed obvious that the execution-navi was the one getting the blame, guilty or not. That he was, in fact, guilty, was probably only a minor consolation at best. The cyclops cried out at him without any particular words; the roar sounded both angry and confused, but anger was clearly the primary emotion being communicated here. A quick check of the SP's readings might show an observer that he had indeed taken a chunk of damage - very nearly, but not quite the expected amount. Such a check would also show that he was beginning to move towards the trashed coffee shop, and HangMan.


-=Sheep-Eater=-

Rexa~1.SP: 304Hp [???][Normal]

-=Coffee-Drinker=-

HangMan.Exe: 65HP [Normal]

-=Wet or Dry=-

All Normal Terrain. Inside the coffee shop is out of the rain, elsewhere is not.

-=Objects Debris=-

Nothing left that hasn't already been smashed in one way or another.

HangMan has 2 Actions remaining.

[???]: This creatures status effects are not clear to read initially, but will reveal themselves as discovered, or if the player takes actions to attempt to learn more.

((Apologies, forgot the Assassin bonus, which would bump the Dynamite up to 120dmg))

While the mine worked just as advertised, he didn't escape the dazed creature's sight. Upon being spotted, Hangman simply responded with a "Heh," before he took a deep draw from his cigar. He exhaled quickly, the smoke spread over his entire body instead of blowing out and away, and lingered for a couple seconds before two figures burst forth from the milky smoke.

While both figures dashed out of the doorway and into the street, one angled to the left of the creature, while the other angled out the right as it crossed the street. Both looked exactly like HangMan, even down to his persistent toothy grin and glowing cigar. HangMan hoped this split would add to the hulking program's confusion, and keep him that way at least for a bit longer.

He skidded to a top near the other side of the street, and turned to face the cyclops as his tarnished brass cuff noose disengaged from his wrist, and began to spool outwards. His grin widened ever further as he cocked his arm back, as if preparing to whip the creature, then hurled the noose towards his target. The loop of the noose widened significantly as it soared in an arc to get up and over the cyclops's head, then drop down upon it.

As soon as the rope dropped below the creature's eye, HangMan whipped his arm back, prompting the rope to quickly retract into the trapezoidal opening below his wrist. The slack in the rope was gone in the blink of an eye, causing the loop to tighten like a vice, hopefully around the creature's neck. If it snared his target, some of the strands in the rope started to glow a foreboding crimson, indicating it was beginning to hungrily sap its victim's energy and route it to its master. HangMan's stance widened, to keep himself steady as he kept the rope taut over his target for the duration of his noose's vampiric effect.



ACTIONS:
-Clone Technique: Summon one decoy-
2. Movement: Dash out and to the left of Rexa~1
Decoy: Dash out and to the right of Rexa~1
3. Leeching Loop: Rexa~1.SP (15dmg Wood LifeDrain + Stun + 2TCD) [+3 Assassin bonus dmg]

((Got some rulings from others to confirm - attacks originating from placed objects, such as Dynamite, can't benefit from Assassin, because it isn't the navi themself attacking))

True to expectation, the creature slowed as the smoke cloud obscured the shadowy navi, becoming a complete stop as the two figures emerged from the smoke. His head swung back and forth between them, and that was enough time for both targets to slip past. Even so, the Cyclops took a rough swing at one of them, but fortune favoured HangMan this time around and it was the decoy that got belted into a streetlight and dispersed.

A moment or two later, the noose fell over the creature's head, but one of his arms was still up near his face, and reflexively he managed to get a few fingers under the rope as it closed. the brute thrashed and struggled, but couldn't throw the rope as it began to drain him. Even so, holding on would prove to be a challenge in itself and the swirling vortex of wind and rain surrounding the beast wasn't helping: HangMan would find the distance between them closed to almost nothing by the time he'd drained off as much as he could, and the enemy program had turned around to face his attacker. Worse, despite a successful attack, HangMan would find that the rope hadn't drained off as much as he would have wanted, despite his surprise attack. It seemed like, as well as defending himself the program had some kind of innate damage reduction occurring too.

This piece of curio was probably the least of HangMan's worries in that moment, however, as the Cyclops bellowed in his face, then slammed both arms in around his shoulders. His hands fully engulfed the noose-navi's upper body and began to apply a very worrying amount of brute pressure to his body. Muscles rippled and veins stood out as the rain poured over both of them, but now that he was holding HangMan, all he did was glare at the smaller navi and pant heavily. The eye was wet and bloodshot, the horn on his head keeping the long black hair from obscuring it for now. The pressure was dangerously intense, but now that he had his attacker, the brute didn't seem to know quite what to do. There was still a flicker of confusion, not least as the lingering effects of HangMan's drain began to affect him. The stun likely wasn't going to last too long, though, and remaining within crushing reach of the damaged SP was probably a bad idea.


-=Sheep-Eater=-

Rexa~1.SP: 299Hp [???][DR 4][Normal][Strengthen 20][Stunned!]

-=Coffee-Drinker=-

HangMan.Exe: 40HP [Normal][Hold!]

-=Wet or Dry=-

All Normal Terrain. Inside the coffee shop is out of the rain, elsewhere is not.

-=Objects Debris=-

Nothing left that hasn't already been smashed in one way or another.

[???]: This creature's status effects are not clear to read initially, but will reveal themselves as discovered, or if the player takes actions to attempt to learn more.
Learned: Aqua/Wind, DR4 Passive, Can Brace, Easily Confused.

Though his noose landed upon his opponent, the desired effect was unfortunately muted to near uselessness. The Navi attempted to keep his hold on the hulking foe, but it managed to turn the tables and grasp the Navi in its own vice-like hands.

HangMan seethed as the unkempt creature dared to lay hands upon him, but he had little room to protest. [[i]Invis and Rageclaw, if you please.[/i]] he sent rather bluntly to his NetOp. Platitudes and politeness didn't serve much purpose when in the grasp of a very large, provoked foe, and his tense tone eluded as such. Holly picked up on the sternness of her Navi's voice, and held back the commentary precluding her slotting in the requested chips.

Though still in the creature's grasp, Hangman activated both chips, causing his body to rapidly become transparent. It didn't give him any sort of phasing abilities, so the hulking enemy could still feel the Navi in its grip, so the latter chip provided a "persuasion" to release its prey. HangMan's now transparent right hand and fingers twisted into a set of wickedly curved, sharpened claws. They quickly dug into the Cyclops's hands, piercing and ripping as the Navi thrashed against the creatures' grip. HangMan hoped to break free of its grip, to fall somewhat gracefully to the ground below.

Still under the transparent veil of invisibility, HangMan chose to swallow his pride and fall back. Though it pained him greatly, he was up against a target that couldn't be felled at his current strength. He grimaced as he dashed down the street, one hand holding his gambler-style hat to his head.


ACTIONS:
1. Invis1: HangMan.EXE (Invisibility x1)
2. RageClaw1: Rexa~1.SP (40dmg + Slashing)
3. Escape

Still glaring furiously at the smaller navi crushed tightly in his grip, the one-eyes SP started sharply as HangMan disappeared from sight. Someone with a keener wit and more presence of mind might have realised that he could still feel the navi in his hands, but this creature wasn't exactly the sharpest. It blinked a few times, then did exactly what HangMan needed him to do: He pulled his hands back and lifted them away, releasing the crafty navi in the process, and began casting about looking for his foe. HangMan was dropped neatly to the ground while the cyclops looked around, sounding more confused than ever, and there was ultimately no need to make the extra slash with his rageclaw, except for the sake of revenge, spite and vindication... all of which were, of course, perfectly acceptable motivations. The slash drew another bellow of pain and confusion from the creature who began to flail about with both arms, before learning upright and howling fiercely.

The sound heralded the wind turning icy and freezing in the air while the ground all around the beast froze over in a spreading wave of fresh snowfall instead. He thrashed again, still howling, and sent shards of slid ice spraying out in a number of random directions while the water pouring over its body became frost and icicles instead. All of this was secondary, however, because Hangman was already beating a tactical retreat from the dangerous situation, and under the cover of his invisibility he quickly put enough distance between himself and the rampaging program to achieve relative safety again.


-=Sheep-Eater=-

Rexa~1.SP: 263Hp [???][DR 4][Normal][Strengthen 20][Stunned!]

-=Coffee-Drinker=-

HangMan.Exe: 40HP [Normal][RageClaw 5/6][Invis]

-=Wet or Dry=-

All Normal Terrain. Inside the coffee shop is out of the rain, elsewhere is not.

-=Objects Debris=-

Nothing left that hasn't already been smashed in one way or another.

[???]: This creature's status effects are not clear to read initially, but will reveal themselves as discovered, or if the player takes actions to attempt to learn more.
Learned: Aqua/Wind, DR4 Passive, Can Brace, Easily Confused.

-=Escape Successful!=-

Having made a hasty retreat under the cover of invisibility, HangMan kept moving in the opposite direction of the creature's path, at least until his Invis chip started to time out. He attempted to duck into an alleyway before his body bled back into view. He flicked the brim of his hat to dislodge the accumulated beads of rainwater, and twisted the cigar in his teeth. "Tch, 'best laid plans,' as they say..." the well-dressed Navi remarked to himself, before tilting his head slightly to the side to get a better view down the street.

"Nah if I might be so bold, I could continue on with this little advenchah if you could use one-a' them subchips. They ahn't expensive; believe me, I checked," the Navi said quietly in his southern drawl, as if speaking to no one in particular, though his NetOp was listening. She wasn't particularly pleased either, to which HangMan was not surprised in the least. [Fine, but you better pay this cost back ten-fold.] "Of course," the Navi replied as he briefly glowed a green hue that replenished his energy, then stepped back out into the street.

[Out of Battle Action: MiniEnergy x1]

((Ready for Battle #1))

HangMan stepped back out onto the streets of NetopiaNet. He would be happy to see that the terrain was still fairly safe to traverse as it was all normal panels up and down. A few buildings stretched on either side of the street, that he could possibly find a easy way on top of them if the Navi chose to search. On the right about half way down the street, atop the building there was a CannonGuard leaned over the edge, holding HangMan right in it's sights. There was a feint green glow behind it, which could possibly mean GMD.

The rain hadn't seemed to slow down, the fact that there was an angry looking cloudy floating in the center of the street was sure to not help that fact. Floating up and down the road with a grimacing look on its face. Further down the street, a Sparky could be seen, which was probably the cause of Mr.Clouds gloomy day, seeing as electricity and rain water didn't actually go hand in hand. Thunder cracked of of the floating asteroid once it seen HangMan make his way on to the street... he happened to bring them a quick alliance to foil his stroll... but would he be the one coming out on top?

-- Viruses --
CannonGuardCannonGuard (CannonGuard)

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

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Netopia, NAXA

HP: 60
Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Lockon
Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Locks on and attacks
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): MarkCannon1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: Target's evasion counts less against this virus.
Special: Can guard against attacks.: 60 HP Top of building on the right, half way between HangMan and Sparky. (Normal)
SparkySparky (Sparky)

Area: Netopia, Sharo, NAXA, SciLab

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 40 Elec to close group, break, impact
Attack Accuracy: B
Attack Description: Zips in rotation around the battlefield, attempting to slam its electrically-charged body into enemies.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Satellite1, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes. One free dodge against each opponent. If this virus makes contact with an object on the battlefield, it will begin to slowly orbit the object and loses its ability to dodge.: 100 HP To the North about an action away. (Normal)
CloudyCloudy (Cloudy)

Area: Yoka, Netopia, Sharo

HP: 80
Attack: 40 Aqua + Group Attack
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Summons a rainstorm that lasts 2 turns.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): LilCloud, Zenny
Special: Immune to Ground Attacks.
- Rainstorm lasts 2 turns.
- Virus attacks every 3 turns.: 80 HP Middle of the street half way between HangMan, and Sparky. (Normal)

-- Navis --
HangMan.EXE: 90 HP

-- Terrain --
100% Normal

-- Objects --
GMD: 15 HP Top of building on the right, half way between HangMan and Sparky. (Normal)

-- Battle 1 Ready? Start!! --

It didn't take long for viruses to appear behind the odd cyclops' path through the street, and stood in HangMan's path. His toothy grin remained plastered on his face, and the end of his thin cigar continued to glow a healthy crimson and leave a whispy white trail of smoke. [[color=brown]Heh, no rest for the wicked,[/color]] the well-dressed Navi thought to himself before the tarnished brass trim of his right cuff seemed to fall from his hand as more rope spooled out from the trapezoidal aperture mounted in the inseam of his right wrist.

"I say it's time foah the trusty shotgun," HangMan remarked as he indirectly asked Holly to upload the aforementioned chip. He then whipped his right arm and hand up in a rising counter-clockwise motion, causing the rapidly widening noose to fling towards, and around, the cloudy virus. He attempted to aim the lasso-like noose over the Cloudy, then snapped his black-gloved fingers shut into a fist and yanked his forearm back, causing the rope to rapidly retract into his arm and consequently tighten the noose. If the rope found purchase, some of the "strands" began to glow crimson as it bit into the virus and siphoned energy back to its master.

Regardless of his noose's accuracy, he continued to draw back the slack as he dashed forward and slightly to his left, towards the Cloudy virus. He'd spied the armored turret on the roof to his right, and wanted to put something more-or-less solid between him and said gun emplacement; the Cloudy would do just nicely for now. After partially sliding to a stop, and his right hand occupied with wrangling the Cloudy, a sawn-off shotgun materialized in HangMan's left hand. As soon as he felt it solidify in his hand, he drew the weapon like a cowboy with his wheelgun. Instead of shooting from the hip; however, he extended his left arm fully as he peered from behind the Cloudy, so he could get a clear shot at the spark-spewing virus before he pulled the trigger.

The shotgun went off with a loud bang and a significant amount of recoil, causing HangMan's elbow to bend and the weapon to rise, but the Navi didn't seem deterred or inconvenienced. He was more focused on where the slight spread of shotgun pellets eventually hit. The Sparky's armor was obviously too strong to bring down with a single shot, but hopefully a torrent of energy shot would weaken it enough to be brought down with just one more hit.

With some slightly less brutish adversaries interrupting his continued stroll through the rainy back streets, HangMan split his attention and positioned himself as advantageously as he could to handle the trio. His noose struggled to catch on the wispy could virus properly, but as it passed through it nevertheless managed to drain strength from it directly, and his efforts at wrangling it yielding some measure of cover from the overhead cannon.

The turret tried to find a clear shot and take it, but it missed, the heavy ball planting itself in the solid ground to HangMan's left while the cloudy virus, unhappy at being reined in, attempted to rain on HangMan in return. The executioner stepped aside, though the torrent made a lazy s-curve over the area and seemed like it was going to stick around for a little while longer.

Regardless, the Sparky was rushing up, and HangMan met it with a shotgun blast from his other hand, almost at point blank, before it could assail him. The Sparky shuddered and didn't manage to make contact with him, though it was hard to tell whether that was because it hadn't reached him yet, or whether it had missed — either way it still seemed eager to give him a shock.

-=Viruses=-
CannonGuardCannonGuard (CannonGuard)

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

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Netopia, NAXA

HP: 60
Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Lockon
Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Locks on and attacks
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): MarkCannon1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: Target's evasion counts less against this virus.
Special: Can guard against attacks.: 60Hp [Top of building on the right, above HangMan][Normal]
SparkySparky (Sparky)

Area: Netopia, Sharo, NAXA, SciLab

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 40 Elec to close group, break, impact
Attack Accuracy: B
Attack Description: Zips in rotation around the battlefield, attempting to slam its electrically-charged body into enemies.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Satellite1, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes. One free dodge against each opponent. If this virus makes contact with an object on the battlefield, it will begin to slowly orbit the object and loses its ability to dodge.: 40Hp [Close to HangMan][Normal]
CloudyCloudy (Cloudy)

Area: Yoka, Netopia, Sharo

HP: 80
Attack: 40 Aqua + Group Attack
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Summons a rainstorm that lasts 2 turns.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): LilCloud, Zenny
Special: Immune to Ground Attacks.
- Rainstorm lasts 2 turns.
- Virus attacks every 3 turns.: 62Hp [Just above HangMan, between him and Cannon][Normal][Stunned!]

-=Navi=-
HangMan.EXE: 100Hp [Normal]

-=Terrain=-
100% Normal

• No effects.

-=Objects=-
GMD: 15Hp [Top of building on the right, half way between HangMan and Sparky][Normal]

Rain Storm: ??? [Attacks an area once per turn][1 Turn Remaining]

Things were going well so far, but the Sparky was starting to get too close for comfort. HangMan initially wanted to cleave the virus into little pieces with a RageClaw, but it would likely be a shocking disappointment. Though he felt the next option seemed out of place and rather silly, it would have to do for now. "Mind sendin' the Pillow1Damage: 30 + Sleep
Accuracy: B
Description: A fluffy pillow that will make anyone drowsy when it hits.
Duration: Until Overridden/Broken. Breaks after 3 swings.
Element: Null
Trader Rank: D and Invis1Effect: Invisibility
Accuracy: S
Description: Grants the user invisibility. This reduces the chance of being hit by non-Seeking attacks by 50%, but the user will also be susceptible to Area of Effect attacks.
Duration: One turn
Element: Null
Trader Rank: D please?" he asked as he began to backpedal away from the Sparky, while keeping an eye out for that storm cloud, he didn't want to unintentionally walk into a rain storm.

Once he got enough breathing room between the Sparky and himself, he brought his right arm across his chest, which was now clutching a freshly formed white pillow. The ridiculousness of an unnervingly creepy-looking Navi holding a pillow wasn't lost on HangMan, and he proceeded to vent his displeasure on the Sparky as he whipped the pillow forward with a back-handed swing, in an attempt to swat the floating virus with said sleeping implement.

Regardless if he hit or not, HangMan took a deep drag of his cigar before exhaling an unusually large cloud of smoke in front of him. The lazily swirling smoke dissipated fairly quickly, then HangMan, or something that looked exactly like him, ran towards the right side of the street. It then appeared the Navi was attempting to climb up the side of the building to reach the CannonGuard on its roof.

Meanwhile, the actual HangMan more or less stood in place, but under the cover of total invisibility, thanks to the chip he activated. He didn't make a sound, intending to let his wall-scaling decoy attract all of the attention. It also gave him a chance to look at the building and the CannonGuard. Unless he could get inside and find a staircase, he'd likely have to climb up the hard way... [[color=brown]I ain't a damn spider,[/color]] the Navi huffed in his internal monologue.

HangMan backpedaled away from the Sparky and the rainstorm. The CannonGuard's armored shutter flipped open to take a shot at the navi from its perch. The cannonball missed and landed where HangMan was moments before. The Cloudy was stunned, hanging in the air limply while its rainstorm continued unabated. However, HangMan was able to easily run away from the rainstorm, which then dissipated.

The Sparky gave chase as HangMan brought a fluffy pillow down upon its body. Unfortunately, the speedy Sparky dodged the blow. But its counterattack also missed, leaving them at a stalemate.

HangMan then puts down a smokescreen and disappears from view for a moment. He then runs out of the smoke and begins to climb the side of the building. He noticed that each building had at least one gutter downspout running down from the roof, along a sidewall. He could attempt to shimmy up the downspout if he didn't have a RageClaw or something similar to climb the walls with.

-=Viruses=-
CannonGuardCannonGuard (CannonGuard)

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

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Netopia, NAXA

HP: 60
Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Lockon
Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Locks on and attacks
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): MarkCannon1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: Target's evasion counts less against this virus.
Special: Can guard against attacks.: 60Hp [Normal] [Top of building on the right, above HangMan]
SparkySparky (Sparky)

Area: Netopia, Sharo, NAXA, SciLab

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 40 Elec to close group, break, impact
Attack Accuracy: B
Attack Description: Zips in rotation around the battlefield, attempting to slam its electrically-charged body into enemies.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Satellite1, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes. One free dodge against each opponent. If this virus makes contact with an object on the battlefield, it will begin to slowly orbit the object and loses its ability to dodge.: 40Hp [Normal] [Close to HangMan]
CloudyCloudy (Cloudy)

Area: Yoka, Netopia, Sharo

HP: 80
Attack: 40 Aqua + Group Attack
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Summons a rainstorm that lasts 2 turns.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): LilCloud, Zenny
Special: Immune to Ground Attacks.
- Rainstorm lasts 2 turns.
- Virus attacks every 3 turns.: 62Hp [Normal] [Just above HangMan, between him and CannonGuard] [Stun1: Ended!]

-=Navi=-
HangMan.EXE: 100Hp [Normal] [Pillow1: 2/3 Uses Remaining] [Invis1: Invisibility for next 2 actions]
HangManDecoy: ??? [Normal] [Top of building on the right, above HangMan] [Duration: the next 2 actions]

-=Terrain=-
100% Normal

• No effects.

-=Objects=-
GMD: 15Hp [Top of building on the right, half way between HangMan and Sparky][Normal]

Rain Storm: ??? [Attacks an area once per turn][0 Turns Remaining: Ended!]
Downspout: ??? [One Movement Action to climb to the roof of any building]

Though still unseen, Hangman's toothy grin briefly changed to a disappointed scowl. He already didn't like his weapon, so the fact he missed with said weapon didn't sit well with the Navi. He then raised the pillow over his head, and briefly thanked his invisibility so no one else could see how ridiculous he looked, before he swung the weaponized bedding down from over his head in and tried to smack the hovering satellite from above.

If the pillow wasn't shredded by now, he shifted his focus back to the cloudy virus. He swiped the pillow across the virus's position in an attempt to batter that virus as well, or dissipate it... whatever. Unfortunately he'd quickly find himself starting to become more opaque as the Invis chip's effects wore off, but at least he reappeared without that silly-looking pillow, which he had dropped and allowed to fragment and disappear.

Now exposed, he anticipated he would've gotten the attention of both the Cloudy and CannonDumb viruses. For the latter, HangMan's decoy clambered up the side of the building thanks to the downspout, and deftly touched down on the roof before glaring at the turret-like virus with his signature unnervingly toothy grin. It also helped that the decoy had spooled out some of its rope, and held it threateningly like an assassin with piano wire.

Back on the ground floor, the real HangMan had spooled out some rope as well, but instead of going for an "execution," he briefly twirled the noose a rotation or two before he whipped the entire thing diagonally across the virus's position. Regardless of his success in hitting, and hopefully bringing down, the Cloudy virus, the noose hit the ground with a surprisingly solid thud. Though it looked like rope, its tarnished brass look wasn't just a fancy dye, those threads were solid and heavy enough to pack a significant punch.

Miffed at his previous difficulties, HangMan shook it off and tried again, apparently hoping to use up his embarrassing weapon before his invisibility failed and revealed it for all to see. The Sparky rushed at where it believed the noose-wielding navi was, but missed as HangMan stepped aside and clouted it with the pillow properly this time. There a was a moment when the sparky seemed to sense the hit coming and tried to twist away, but it wasn't quick enough and HangMan gave it not just a sleep, but a long sleep.

His decoy was engaging the Cannon, and with another foe closer to it now, the turret shifted its sight, took a moment to decide, then launched a shot at the closer target. The decoy got destroyed by the pin-point cannon round, but better it than HangMan himself.

The Cloudy virus seemed to be building itself up to start a new rain storm, but it wasn't ready yet, and in the mean time, HangMan managed to connect one more time with his deceptively soft weapon. Mercifully, the bed-time object burst apart as it swiped at the cloud, and faded away just before his invisibility ran out, and the executioner faded back into sight. The cloudy was beginning to drift down slowly, barely held together and looking fairly detached from the fight now — it wasn't too hard for him to finish it off before it could cause any more problems. This left him with one last target to deal with before he'd have a moment's peace.

-=Viruses=-
CannonGuardCannonGuard (CannonGuard)

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

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Netopia, NAXA

HP: 60
Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Lockon
Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Locks on and attacks
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): MarkCannon1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: Target's evasion counts less against this virus.
Special: Can guard against attacks.: 60Hp [Normal] [Top of building on the right, above HangMan]
SparkySparky (Sparky)

Area: Netopia, Sharo, NAXA, SciLab

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 40 Elec to close group, break, impact
Attack Accuracy: B
Attack Description: Zips in rotation around the battlefield, attempting to slam its electrically-charged body into enemies.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Satellite1, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes. One free dodge against each opponent. If this virus makes contact with an object on the battlefield, it will begin to slowly orbit the object and loses its ability to dodge.: DELETED
CloudyCloudy (Cloudy)

Area: Yoka, Netopia, Sharo

HP: 80
Attack: 40 Aqua + Group Attack
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Summons a rainstorm that lasts 2 turns.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): LilCloud, Zenny
Special: Immune to Ground Attacks.
- Rainstorm lasts 2 turns.
- Virus attacks every 3 turns.: DELETED

-=Navi=-
HangMan.EXE: 100Hp [Normal]

-=Terrain=-
100% Normal

• No effects.

-=Objects=-
GMD: 15Hp [Top of building on the right, half way between HangMan and Sparky][Normal]

Downspout: ??? [One Movement Action to climb to the roof of any building]

With the street cleared, HangMan leered up at the CannonGuard as he began to swing the noose in a circle around his right hand, now that the Cloudy virus had been dissipated. He rolled his cigar in his teeth, causing the crimson-glowing embers to trace a small ellipse of smoke as he refined his aim, then drew his right arm back. The rope and noose continued to swing around, then over-exaggerated the swing before he whipped it up and towards the turret-shaped virus. The coils slid back and caused the loop to extend so much, it looked akin to a lasso thrown by a cowboy, rather than a noose tossed by a hangman.

He aimed his throw to have the center of the loop fall atop the building with the CannonGuard at its center, then pulled his arm back, prompting the tarnished brass rope to retract into the trapezoidal slot in his cuff. If he managed to snare the CannonGuard, the rope would've rapidly gone taut once the noose cinched down on the virus's turret, before some of the strands began to glow a deep crimson, indicating its vampiric properties came into effect.

That said, siphoning the turret's energy (if it was caught in the noose) was just a nice bonus; HangMan's original plan was to use the turret virus not as just a energy source, but an anchor. HangMan continued to reel in the noose as he ran towards the building in an arcing curve, where he eventually ended up running more-or-less parallel with the front of the building, then attempted to use the momentum of his body and the taut rope to swing/wall run his way up the side of the building. His right arm remained stretched towards the top of the building as the slack was continuously reeled in, while his fancy black dress shoes struggled for grip against the building's surface as he tried to swing and/or run his way up to the rooftop.

If he didn't manage to make a fool of himself and smack into the wall, lose his grip, or any myriad of bad results, he tried to use his momentum to send him not only up to the edge of the roof, but flying up and over. If all else failed, he'd just have to scramble up the drainpipe "Like some uncouth catburglah," as HangMan would've likely muttered to himself. As he made his way up, regardless of how cool or completely uncool he went about it, the fingers of his left hand rapidly twisted and shifted into a set of curved, sharpened claws. [[color=brown]"Looks like Miss Dale is getting the hang-a things,"[/color]] HangMan thought. After reaching the rooftop, he'd attempt to vault over the CannonGuard to get behind the turret virus's armored shutter, if his swing wasn't able to get him high enough to simply sail over the virus.

Upon landing, HangMan drew his left arm back and opened his hand, then stabbed his obsidian-black claws forward and attempted to slam his hand shut like the oddly-shaped jaws of some unholy creature. He aimed to take a chunk out of the CannonGuard's unarmored back, while his expression remained unchanged: a maniacally wide, toothy grin.

Just one to deal with, and HangMan took it leisurely now His noose settled around the body of the turret cleanly, and though the muzzle swivelled towards him and took a shot, the shoulder-blow was instantly offset by the energy he drew back from it when the noose tightened.

The turret sparked slightly affected by the drain while HangMan used it as a support to swing himself up onto the roof with it. His attack raked it on one side while the virus couldn't respond, and he had the satisfaction of seeing its muzzle twitch and shift side to side erratically as the disorienting stun began to play havoc with it.

-=Viruses=-
CannonGuardCannonGuard (CannonGuard)

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

Area: SciLab, Kotobuki Town, Netopia, NAXA

HP: 60
Attack Damage/Effect: 15 Null + Lockon
Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Locks on and attacks
Element: None
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): MarkCannon1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: Target's evasion counts less against this virus.
Special: Can guard against attacks.: 5Hp [Normal][Top of building on the right][Stunned!]
SparkySparky (Sparky)

Area: Netopia, Sharo, NAXA, SciLab

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 40 Elec to close group, break, impact
Attack Accuracy: B
Attack Description: Zips in rotation around the battlefield, attempting to slam its electrically-charged body into enemies.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): Satellite1, Zenny
Special: Omnishoes. One free dodge against each opponent. If this virus makes contact with an object on the battlefield, it will begin to slowly orbit the object and loses its ability to dodge.: DELETED
CloudyCloudy (Cloudy)

Area: Yoka, Netopia, Sharo

HP: 80
Attack: 40 Aqua + Group Attack
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Summons a rainstorm that lasts 2 turns.
Element: Aqua
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): LilCloud, Zenny
Special: Immune to Ground Attacks.
- Rainstorm lasts 2 turns.
- Virus attacks every 3 turns.: DELETED

-=Navi=-
HangMan.EXE: 100Hp [Normal][Beside CannonGuard][RageClaw 5/6]

-=Terrain=-
100% Normal

• No effects.

-=Objects=-
GMD: 15Hp [Top of building on the right, Not far from HangMan and the turret][Normal]

Downspout: ??? [One Movement Action to climb to the roof of any building]