Paper Moon

Luna and PaperMan went through the Beach Street network without further delay, and found themselves some viruses to play with. A duo of Walla were floating in the water, ridden by two Metools who seemed to be facing off against each other. For some reason, the Metools weren't wearing their signature yellow hardhat, but a black one instead with a skull and crossbones at the front. Their normal mattocks also seemed to have morphed into cutlasses. Hurling viral insults at each other, they battled verbally while a swarm of Skeeters flew nearby, presumably to watch. The insect-viruses saw the Navis' approach, and alerted the others.

-- ENEMIES --
Walla A: 100 HP (Sea)
Walla B: 100 HP (Sea)
Metool A: 40 HP (Riding WallaA)
Metool B: 40 HP (Riding WallaA)
Skeeter A: 30 HP (Flying over Sea)
Skeeter B: 30 HP (Flying over Sea)
Skeeter C: 30 HP (Flying over Sea)
Skeeter D: 30 HP (Flying over Sea)

-- NAVIGATORS --
Luna.EXE: 100 HP (Sand)
PaperMan.EXE: 100 HP (Sand)

-- TERRAIN --
50% Sea
50% Sand

-- TEAM BATTLE 03, READY? START!! --
"..." Why did this keep happening to him? Turner tried to live simply. Really, he did. Wake up, eat, go to work, come home, eat, sleep, and spend weekends with Shiri. But this stuff just kept happening for some reason. Today it was pirate Metools riding walruses. Shiri would've loved this.

PaperMan didn't even wait for Turner to finish lamenting to celebrate the occasion. PaperMan pulled a single piece of paper off his forearm, and with some deft and masterful folding, PaperMan had designed a classy paper pirate's hat. The origami Navi slipped the new headgear onto his head, opted to also include a bushy paper beard, and was thus ready for a swashbuckling battle. Being the considerate guy he was, though, he held up long enough to motion towards Luna to ask if she wanted a hat too.

Turner took a heavy drag of his cigarette in response to PaperMan's fashion statement, but then opted to drop the burning roll to the pavement and snuff it out with his boot. If his Navi did just one more silly thing, Turner was liable to chew right through that cigarette. And that wouldn't be fun at all. "Just... take some chips and fight." grunted Turner, who really couldn't come up with a sharper statement to the pending birth of PaperBeard as he slipped 3 Battlechips into his PET.

The first chip arrived at PaperBeard's disposal, and, feeling the spirit of the moment, spawned an old-world cannon to launch the DoubleBomb cannonballs Turner had given him. Under other circumstances this would be intimidating, but again, this was PaperBeard, and he made stuff out of paper. So it was a paper cannon with paper cannonballs. Not deterred by what would usually be a fatal design flaw, PaperMan tugged on the cord sticking out of the back of the cannon, launching the first cannonball towards the Walla that had been boarded by the scurvy pirates. In fellow ruthless pirate spirit, PaperMan immediately pulled the launch cord again, sending a second cannonball soaring through the air towards the pirate-walrus-ship.

Once the second chip loaded in PaperBeard's systems, the origami-turned-temporary-pirate Navi opted to continue making use of the cannon he had already made. A third tug of the launch cord sent a different cannonball up and towards the un-mounted Walla. Contrary to standard cannonball protocol, though, this one froze in the air up above the Walla, but only before morphing into something else entirely. This looked like the same routine as the Quake chip from last battle, but this time... What was it? A barrel? Why a barrel? What would a pirate fill a... Oh right, rum. As soon as its identity became clear, the weighty paper barrel of paper rum dropped out of the air, ready to crash on and/or intoxicate the hapless walrus.

Finally, the last Guard chip was used, and into PaperBeard's hands arrived... a pirate flag! Wonderful! A pirate's flag was his undying emblem of pride and glory. As long as that flag flew, a pirate could never fall. Thus it made perfect sense that PaperBeard's flag could provide a very solid defense as he waved it in front of himself.

Turner, during all this, was asking himself some very difficult questions. Was PaperMan doing this on purpose? His coding definitely did not allow this by default. Did PaperMan even have this kind of control over his attacks? Why did screw up and make mistakes so often, then? Was this just a subconscious thing? Maybe PaperMan just performed better under strange situations. Damn, that wasn't the answer Turner wanted...

Actions:
1. DoubleBomb (20 damage, Blast 2 x 2 bombs) @ MetoolA/MetoolB/WallaA
2. Quake1 (100 damage, Impact, Medium Area Cracked Terrain) @ WallaB
3. Guard1 (1 Hit Shield, Reflect 60, Piercing, Line Attack)
Kat quietly watched Turner slowly turn back to his grouchy self, coughing and fanning the smoke away. "Keh keh...Let's get rid of these viruses before he smokes a pack in front of my face, Luna.". Luna swung the parasol down to the ground, splashing the same strange solution from the previous battle right down to the sand. However, the liquid was mixed in two different colors, one light blue and the other was gold. "I'll leave the pirates up to you...I guess." said Luna as she watched the eccentric Paperman don the Pirate hat and generously declined his offer.

Tapping her heels against the soft sand, the seawater slithered towards Luna's feet and created a circular platform beneath the navi's feet. She immediately launched herself forward with the parasol still dripping with the solution, opening it above her head while she was couple of feet away from the Skeeters. "Come along now..." Suddenly, the liquid platform suddenly grew in size as it drank up even more water, launching Luna upward again along with other unfortunate viruses in an explosive geyser.

Luna spun the parasol as she fluttered down and began to spray the solution all over the place like a sprinkler. "Woah, Pretty." In just a matter of seconds, a pair of bubble clouds accompanied the navi as she began to fall down, one light blue and the other gold. The gold bubbles were much larger than the blue ones, but blue cloud was bigger with its overwhelming numbers. Luna pressed her lips with her left index and middle finger and blew a kiss and a wink at the Skeeters below or beside herself. "Here it is~." Both bubble clouds exploded and the bubbles began to rain down upon the Skeeters relentlessly. Though the golden bubbles traveled at a slower pace, the smaller blue bubbles went down like pouring rain on the viruses.

The navi began her descent down to the ground as she swung back and forth in air. Strangely enough, she was able to catch up with the golden bubbles and even began to go past it. "Oh, for the love of god!" Closing the parasol, Luna swung it like a baseball bat to create a draft of wind to speed up the bubbles. As a result, Luna landed onto the ground the moment the bubbles reached its targets. "Heh, I guess you can get angry as well." Kat stated as she watched the battle from the side line. "Hush, Katherine...Even a lady can have her moments." Realizing that the attack has taken a bit too much out of her, Luna simply hoped that the attacks made its mark and no viruses had the chance to attack the vulnerable navi.

* Knockback: Self / Movement towards Skeeter group.
1. Movement [Jump Up / [b]AirStep[/b]
2. Bubbler [50+[color=blue]5[/color] | Spread] @ Skeeter C/D
3. BubbleStar [20+[color=blue]5[/color] x 3 Targets | Bubble Trap] @ Skeeter A/B/C

Cooldown
None
Immediately donning a hat to fit the occasion, PaperMa- er, PaperBeard readied a cannon to join the fray. He fired a salvo of explosives at the dueling Metools. One, presumably the owner of the second Walla, hopped off the targeted vessel back to its own. The other could only stare dumbfounded as the volley fell on his "ship." As the second Walla barely managed to float out of the blast radius, it was assailed by PaperBeard's next attack. The Metool saw the attack coming and dove into the water just as the barrel crashed down and sank the Walla.

Meanwhile, Luna launched herself into the air again using the water. She launched a relentless assault of bubble chaos, landing on the ground just as numerous pops and other less innocent sounds could be heard. By the time the chaos subsided, one Skeeter was gone and another was trapped in a bubble. The other two apparently managed to avoid the bubble assault.

The remainder of the viruses were in disarray after the cannonball salvo and the bubble hell, but that didn't stop an angry pirate Metool from running up and whacking Luna with its cutlass as she landed. It took off back towards the water afterward. PaperBeard remained ready, bearing his flag proudly towards the retreating Metool.

-- ENEMIES --
Walla A: 60 HP (Sea)
Walla B: DELETED
Metool A: DELETED
Metool B: 40 HP (Sea)
Skeeter A: 5 HP (Flying over Sea, inside bubble)
Skeeter B: 30 HP (Flying over Sea)
Skeeter C: DELETED
Skeeter D: 30 HP (Flying over Sea)

-- TERRAIN --
35% Sea
15% Cracked (Near WallaA)
50% Sand

-- NAVIGATORS --
Luna.EXE: 90 HP (Sand)
PaperBeard.EXE: 100 HP (Sand) (Guard1)
Avast! One ship had fallen to the briny deep, and a dirty landlubber had left to meet Davy Jones! It was time to board the other vessel and make the survivors walk the plank! May the flag of PaperBeard fly forever!

"... Enough with the pirate games, PaperMan. Just fight the viruses." grunted Turner, who was getting sick of the antics, being the killjoy he was.

PaperMan's shoulders sank as he slowly removed his fake beard, but he couldn't help but pause as his hand reached up for the hat. The beard was one thing, but the hat... It was so great. It really was.

"... Fine... Keep the hat. Just for this battle, though." conceded Turner, who saw that PaperMan wasn't going to be focused in at all without that silly hat.

After hearing that news, PaperMan's eyes lit up like those of a kid in a candy store. His feet also lit up apparently, as the next thing Turner saw was his Navi sprinting out towards the water with pirate flag-shield in one hand and hat secured on his head with the other. Oh god, what was PaperMan doing... would be the question, if PaperMan wasn't producing paper platforms with each step he took, which in turn sprouted into tufts of grass. With leaps and bounds at a time, PaperMan established his grassy bridge across the water until he reached the Walla injured in the earlier cannon salvo. However, PaperMan was unarmed...

... Or was he? His flag-Guard wasn't much of a weapon, but in his other hand was... the hat! Yes! PaperMan lifted the headgear up off his noggin, and just like that the controversial headgear morphed into a sword mounted on PaperMan's arm. See, it was useful! At least, so PaperMan hoped as he cut at the Walla with his hat sword before letting it fold back into its prior form and placing it back on his head. Then, PaperMan... looked back and forth, realizing he had no more weapons.

"You were the one that rushed in all of a sudden..." sighed Turner with a hint of frustration in his voice as he put two chips into his PET.

PaperMan bowed as an apology, while of course holding his hat in place so it wouldn't fall off. Once he stood upright again, though, he didn't have much choice but to let go of the headgear when his hand morphed into a Cannon. After looking for a target for a moment, PaperMan spotted the surviving Metool that cowardly abandoned its walrus earlier. Of course, that "spotted" quickly turned to "attacked", as PaperMan did not like those who ditched allies. That distaste took the form of a paper cannonball, which the origami hat-clad Navi fired at the fellow headgear-sporting virus.

With its ammo spent, PaperMan expected his hand to take its normal form again, but instead the gun fixture just shedded some excess sheets to take the form of his ink-loaded Shotgun. Having already attacked the other virus groups, PaperMan turned his attention to the Skeeters buzzing around that Luna was dealing with before. One was stuck in a bubble, while two others flew around, seemingly unscathed. Not wanting to waste one of his more powerful chips on a weakened enemy, PaperMan instead targeted the two healthy-looking Skeeters. Admittedly, that wasn't a very easy task as the cluster of insects bounced around in the air. Eventually PaperMan just settled for taking a guess with his aim rather than wait all day for a good bead, and with that fired, sending a splatter of ink forward from his gun barrel towards his targets.

Actions:
--SetGrass (Large Area Grass Terrain)
1. Papercutter (60 Wood damage, Slashing) @ WallaA
2. Cannon (40 damage, Knockback) @ MetoolB
3. Shotgun (50 damage, Spread 1) @ SkeeterB/D

Cooldowns:
Papercutter - 2 turns
After receiving a surprise blow from the Metool, Luna lost her balance as she lurched forward. She planted the tip of the parasol into the ground on instinct, pushing herself up at the last second before she fell to the sand. "Did it really hurt that much?" questioned the clueless operator. The attack didn't cause any serious damage, but the fact that it was the first real pain she received after 8 years of inactivity made it sting more than it should have. "I'm fine!"

Standing straight, Luna's eyes were immediately fixed onto the sneaky Metool pirate and clenched her fist to bring up a well of sea water beneath the virus. "I-I think PaperMan is gonna take care of that guy!" Ignoring Kat's claims, Luna continued with her attack as she pulled her fist back, causing the well beneath the Metool to rise up and came towards the navi. "I could care less! He can get everyone else, but this one's mine!" She loosened her fist and gave a spicy slap (in the air), creating a counter-tide against the current one and hopefully crush the Metool between the two.

"C'mon, aren't you two suppose to work together? There's no teamwork in that!"

Luna continued to ignore her operator and waved one hand towards herself, taking control of the water around the Walla and pulled the virus closer. "Chips, Katherine. I need chips if you don't want me to get deleted." Katherine sighed in frustration, but did as her navi asked and slotted two chips into the PET. "...Y-You're at fault when Turner gives me those looks, alright?!"

With a flick of her wrist, Luna encased her entire right arm in sea water and shaped it into a gigantic claw. However, the water began to dwindle down in size as the water began to evaporate, leaving nothing but a smaller, solid salt claw on Luna's arm. "This will do." She drew her clawed hand back and timed herself with the speed of the tide carrying the Walla. With a graceful swing, her calcified hand easily sliced through the tide (and the Walla hopefully) as if the claw was made out of solid steel.

"..."

Luna turned towards the horde of Skeeters, who put the navi in a rather bad mood as noticed that her last attack almost did no significant damage to them. "H-hey! It's alright. Hitting a bug is hard no matter how you do it?" In her sad attempt to calm her navi down, Katherine scratched her sandy hair, trying to find some better excuse than just "hitting a bug is hard". Luna clenched her hand into a fist till she began to break the salt claw apart into bits and pieces, a rather strange feat as the suppose weapon was almost as strong as a steel. "It's simply inexcusable, Katherine...Inexcusable!!" She threw the salty chunks up into the air and seized hold of her parasol with both hands. She opened the parasol, causing a violent gust of wind to shoot forward and carry the sharp salts straight at the Skeeters.

"...Are you on your 'special day' or something? You've been spazing out way too much!" Before she knew it, Katherine's image of the calm, beautiful Luna she knew 8 years ago was slowly fading away into a much harsher reality.

1. Tidal Blow [1st Stage: Pull | 2nd Stage: 40 / Knockback | Aqua | Requires Sea Terrain (Fluff) | 2TCD] @ MetoolB
* Pull WallaA
2. Rageclaw [60 | 20 Grapple | 6 Uses | Slashing] @ WallaA
3. Shotgun [50 | Spread] @ SkeeterA / Other Nearby Skeeter.
(Bump)
[RageClaw does 40 damage, not like it matters much.]

Turning back into plain old PaperMan, the origami Navi headed out to sea, swinging about his piratey hat as a very sharp paper cut-inducing tool. It worked beautifully, as the Walla was torn in half and deleted. Meanwhile, the sneaky Metool-pirate from earlier got an angry counterattack from its victim. It was promptly drowned in the waters with a powerful tide as Luna executed her revenge. Now that PaperMan's original cannon target was gone, he decided to shoot one of the Skeeters, which worked out pretty well. Luna's sandy claw was also redirected towards one of the mosquitoes, also useful in that it deleted almost all of them. Finally, PaperMan's ink gun got one last use as the last Skeeter fell to it.

-- ENEMIES --
Walla A: DELETED
Walla B: DELETED
Metool A: DELETED
Metool B: DELETED
Skeeter A: DELETED
Skeeter B: DELETED
Skeeter C: DELETED
Skeeter D: DELETED

-- TERRAIN --
35% Sea
15% Cracked (Near WallaA)
50% Sand

-- NAVIGATORS --
Luna.EXE: 90 HP (Sand)
PaperMan.EXE: 100 HP (Grass) (Guard1)

-- TEAM BATTLE 03, VICTORY!! --

-- REWARDS --

PaperMan: [TwinFang1] Battlechip, 780z, 3 FXP
Luna: [Drain1] Battlechip, 700z, 3 FXP
Luna placed her hand over her chest, attempting to regulate her breathing to calm her self down. The viruses was taken care of, mostly by PaperMan and Turner's hand, but the navi didn't even bother thanking them and took her loot. "These viruses are starting to get tougher...Katherine, ask the man if we're done yet."

Kat's mouth curled into a smile as she looked down on her navi, making Luna feel a bit nervous as she retorted back. "What's with that look? Take it off before I d-", "Oh no, it's nothing. It's just the fact that you dragged me into this because of your curiosity, but now you want to go back? Nu-uh, we're gonna stay here and finish this job!" Her smile grew longer and turned towards Turner with a child-like eagerness. "So, how much more virus do we need to bust till we can fix this problem?"
"Uh, hold on..." muttered Turner as he pulled his electrical meter out of his pocket and hooked it up to the control box. The device began beeping as it took a measure of the voltage, but Turner quickly focused his mind on other things. Mainly, his cigarette was burnt down to a stump. That was no good. "... Meh." And just like that, Turner dropped his stub of a smoke to the pavement and crushed it into dust with the heel of his boot.

*beeeeeeep*

That prolonged sound signaled the reading was done, causing Turner to look down to the meter in his hand. "110 kVs... A little low, but I can fix that myself. Yeah, PaperMan and Luna are done." Turner responded to Kat as a matter of fact. "Thanks for your help, and never speak of this incident to anyone ever." And with that Turner pulled a screwdriver off his work belt and began poking away at the electrical hardware.

PaperMan was depressed that his job with Luna was over, but he knew well enough that he couldn't fight it. So, with far more energy than was necessary, he ran over to Luna and gave her a hug before jacking out. Totally platonic, of course. PaperMan just wanted to make it clear that he enjoyed virus busting with Luna. Really, that was all.

(Jack Out)