The Shrew taming the Beast.

Winter glided back to where the pit was as the currents' power subsided and looked down. "Not perfect, but we can get past here now," she remarked upon seeing the partial plug-job. "Let us proceed." Winter suited action to words after motioning to Nemo for it to follow her with a wave of her hand, and continued through the water filled tunnel.
With the pit mostly plugged, Winter was able to make her way back up through the tunnel with relative ease. She passed several smaller, less accessible holes in the ice that looked like they could have been feeding more water into the passage, before surfacing a few feet below the entrance to another chamber. From the gradually rising surface of the water, Winter could only barely over the edge of the tunnel into the chamber itself, allowing her to glimpse pieces of more viruses inside. Unlike the ones hiding from the rampage in an alcove or the opportunists that had previously been Nemo's companions, these appeared to be actively preparing for battle. A couple of swordies were attempting to sharpen their ethereal, watery blades on the ice walls of the cavern, while two unmodified Ashuraid were attempting to help a truly massive virus that one could only wonder how it fit into the chamber in the first place, as it dug into and threw debris from a pile on the other side of the room. Each piece dug away was accompanied by a splash, suggesting another pool out of sight in the room.

As for Winter's own pool, the water level was slowly rising but other than runoff and a small waterfall from a hole in the ceiling behind her, there was no more current to worry about. As if to prove this, Nemo surfaced behind Winter and under the small waterfall, appearing unhindered by it.
___

---Preparing for Battle---
Gigas: 100 HP (At far end of room) (Ice)
Ashuraid A: 100 HP (At far end of room) (Ice)
Ashuraid B: 100 HP (At far end of room) (Ice)
Swordy-A EXA: 120 HP (On left side of room, next to wall) (Ice)
SwordyA EXB: 120 HP (On right side of room, next to wall) (Sea)

---Just arriving---
Winter: 105 HP (In lower tunnel)
Marina EX: 100 HP (In lower tunnel)

---Terrain---
60% Sea (Pool, stretching from ice floor near the tunnels to far right end of the room)
30% Ice (Left and forward edges of the room, from Winter's perspective)
10% Broken (Entrance to the tunnel where Winter is, Sea at the bottom of the pit)

---Locations---
Lower tunnel: Where Winter is now, leads back to where she's been. Mostly filled with water, water level is currently rising)
Upper tunnel: Tunnel at the far end of the room. Entrance is collapsed, but in the process of being dug out.

>Combat has not begun<
Well, well; what do we have here? Winter arched an eyebrow as she heard a commotion from above. A mixture of several somethings impacting solid ice, the splashing sounds of things being dropped into the water, and a very weird scraping noise she couldn;t begin to properly describe, let alone identify, all came echoing down the well. What in the Net is going on up there? She really couldn't begin to imagine. As she rose, she caught sight of the viruses in the cave above. I see what looks like blue Swordy blades-- And when a blue gauntlet floated up, touched the blade, and slid own again out of sight, the source of the really strange scraping sound became apparent. This genuinely surprised Winter. I did not know they actually sharpened their swords. I didn't think it was possible, much less necessary. Huh... Learn something new every day.

Winter frowned as she caught sight of the towering form of a single Gigas flanked by accompanying Ashuraids. The nearby Swordies were no more or less hostile than other viruses, and Ashuraids were fairly even tempered as well. However, Gigas, as far as Wimnter understood it, were a derivative of the Bladia strain of DarkViruses. As such, they hated Navigators at the core level, and would become both hostile and enraged at the very sight of a Navi. ...Such as myself. The last thing I need is for it to bring down the entire cave system upon our heads while trying to delete me. Winter allowed herself to quietly sink back down into the underwater cave. Since they seem to be tunneling into a collapsed cave, I think it is my best interests to let this group of viruses go about their business for the time being.

Winter made the universal signal for 'come here' to Nemo once she was safely underwater, and certain she would not make any noise from doing do.
Nemo returned underwater as instructed, submerging itself under the waterfall as silently as it could manage. Fortunately, whatever sound it did make was easily covered up by the flowing water, so the viruses in the chamber above were none the wiser to the navi and tamed virus lurking below.

Up above, Winter could hear the sounds of fist striking debris for another minute before one final impact against the ice sounded, much louder and heavier than the ones before, followed by the smaller thuds of something crumbling. The impacts and scraping noises stopped, followed by the slightly less bizarre grinding of ice against ice and the crunch of something crushing some of the smaller pieces. If Winter were to take a second look, she would see that the blockage had been cleared with the last blow, and that the ball-mounted viruses that had been working on it were alternately clearing away and crushing the remaining debris blocking their progress.

Even those noises eventually slowed and faded as the way was cleared, and were replaced by a rough, synthetic voice rumbling in its viral language. The crunching then returned, but softer and more consistently before and clearly getting farther away. If Winter looked up over the edge of her hole, she could see the viruses filing out into the tunnel beyond.
When the sounds above seemed to die down at last, Winter glided slowly back up to the water's surface. She paused at the level where she had previously noticed signs of the viruses, but she saw none. Are they on the move...? Winter continued her ascent until she managed to catch a fleeting glimpse of a couple of the viruses as they exited the room through the newly re-opened passage. That answers my question. She looked around the room for a few moments while she waited for the viruses to widen their lead just a bit.

Time to move. Winter thought as she climbed slowly out of the water so that any noise she made was quieter than the sound of the waterfall behind her. Once out, she signaled for Nemo to follow her with a wave of her hand, and proceeded towards the wall next to the tunnel opening. Viral check. She stood against the wall, and carefully peeked around the corner ever so slightly. I wonder where this leads to....
By the time the viruses had left the room and Winter made her way into it, the rising water in the tunnel she had been hiding in reached the edge and started pouring into the room. Inside, the chamber itself looked just about as would have been expected from what she had heard. A large pool of water covered most of the room, with only a shelf of ice separating the two exists from it. Rubble from the now-cleared collapse had been collected in the pool, while smaller chunks were still scattered around the exit. Beyond that, most of the remaining rubble had been ground into a fine powder by the steel ball mounts of the Ashuraids and Gigas.

From the wall next to the tunnel opening, Winter could see that the tunnel itself was not very long at all, or even much of a tunnel. As would have been expected from a collapsed passage, there was not much of a roof to the tunnel, so Winter could clearly see how it had led up an somewhat steep incline that the ball-riding viruses had nonetheless cleared and curved sharply after several feet, leading into another chamber almost directly above.

A very large chamber.

The room at the other end of the tunnel was roughly cylindrical and at least sixty feet high, with the floor area being large enough to easily accommodate all five of the viruses that Winter was trailing as well as the rubble from one end of a larger collapsed tunnel, and the remains of what had once, given the fact that the top of the chamber was now open to the surface, been the ceiling. And floating above them all for a very brief moment before disappearing somewhere above Winter's vantage point was a six-armed virus riding a massive red Fishy.

Nemo instinctly sank back toward the pool at the sight of the metavirus, but in the room ahead the Gigas had produced a ball and chain and hurled it up and in the direction it was flying off in. The ball crashed into the ice somewhere above Winter, and fell down into the mouth of the once-tunnel before dissolving.
_____

---Ready for Battle---
Gigas: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Ashuraid A: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Ashuraid B: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Swordy-A EXA: 120 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
SwordyA EXB: 120 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)

---The Target---
Varunavalry: ??? HP (Tunnel somewhere above Winter, leaving the room ahead)

---Quietly following---
Winter: 105 HP (At edge of tunnel)
Marina EX: 100 HP (In room behind)

---Terrain---
Room ahead and tunnel:
-100% Ice
Room behind:
-60% Sea (Pool, stretching from ice floor near the tunnels to far right end of the room)
-30% Ice (Left and forward edges of the room)
-10% Broken (Tunnel where Winter entered from)


>Combat has not begun<
There's the target. Winter through as she spotted the MetaVirus flying away. That thing looks like a monster. She looked back down at the viruses gathered in the bottom of the chamber. The problem is, I have to get through them to get to it. She watched as the Gigas hefted the Olympic hammer, spun it with one hand and hurled the thing into the air like a children's toy. The room shook ever so slightly and a dusting of snow feel from the ceiling as the projectile impacted the wall in the chamber above. Hahahahaha, no way. Those viruses will turn me into a messy wall graphic if I just rush out there.

Winter turned away from the opening so the viruses couldn't see her, and looked around the room for Nemo. She finally spotted her viral companion when she gazed back in the direction of the underwater cave the two of them had entered the room from. The virus was currently submerged, and somewhat out of sight, save for its periscope which poked out of the water just a bit. I really can't blame it for wanting to stay hidden. It is the smarter thing to do at the moment, but it's not productive.

Winter tapped her chin while staring at the waterfall in an unfocused manner. Then, the foamy water at the base of the waterfall gave her the beginnings of an idea as she remembered he battle against the very virus resting under the brine: Bubbles...? Bubbles could work. Surely with the water filling this chamber, the air is leaving it. She licked her finger hand held it up to gauge the wind. Yes, with just a little little extra push, this should work.

"Come here." Winter waved urgently at Nemo, signaling for the virus to come to her. "I need you to make bubbles."
The Marina virus turned toward Winter, giving her the closest approximation to a quizzical expression possible to a virus without a face or anything actually capable of making expressions. Which, ultimately, only amounted to the virus pointing toward Winter with its periscope light half-lit for a few seconds before it approached her again.

Nemo stopped next to Winter, then created a pair of anchor-filled bubbles in front of them. The bubbles drifted slowly forward, into the once-tunnel, but seemed to be completely unaffected by the air flow.

The viruses in the room ahead did not seem to notice the bubbles. In fact, if Winter were to look they would appear to be too occupied with looking for a way up the walls to notice the tunnel they had just left.
_____

---Ready for Battle---
Gigas: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Ashuraid A: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Ashuraid B: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Swordy-A EXA: 120 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
SwordyA EXB: 120 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)

---The Target---
Varunavalry: ??? HP (Tunnel somewhere above Winter, leaving the room ahead)

---Quietly following---
Winter: 105 HP (At edge of tunnel)
Marina EX: 100 HP (At edge of tunnel) (Anchor-bubbles x2 created)

---Terrain---
Room ahead and tunnel:
-100% Ice
Room behind:
-60% Sea (Pool, stretching from ice floor near the tunnels to far right end of the room)
-30% Ice (Left and forward edges of the room)
-10% Broken (Tunnel where Winter entered from)


>Combat has not begun<
"Okay, here's what you do..." Winter whispered to Nemo as she watched the bubbles float slowly into the tunnel ahead of her. "...once I'm through the tunnel, just hang back in here where it's safe and keep sending bubbles up through this opening." She touched the virus with her hand, healing it slightly. "I will deal with them and that monster." As soon as she finished whispering, Winter channeled her powers to summon a breeze in the tunnel, and push the anchor filled bubbles through it.


[spoiler=Split Summary]x: Improved Novice's Healing @ Nemo (Recover 15 HP)
x: Gust @ Anchor Bubble A (Knockback)
x: Arctic Wind @ Anchor Bubble B (Knockback)
1: ----
2: ----
3: ----
4: ----[/Spoiler]
Winter healed the virus slightly, then tried to blow the anchor bubbles through the tunnel. Unfortunately, the bubbles remained completely unaffected by the wind, and continued to drift forward at the same speed that they already were.

Fortunately, the viruses still had yet to notice Winter, but one of the Swordies was now cautiously drifting back toward the tunnel.
_____

---Ready for Battle---
Gigas: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Ashuraid A: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Ashuraid B: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
Swordy-A EXA: 120 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)
SwordyA EXB: 120 HP (In room ahead) (Ice)

---The Target---
Varunavalry: ??? HP (Tunnel somewhere above Winter, leaving the room ahead)

---Quietly following---
Winter: 105 HP (At edge of tunnel)
Marina EX: 115 HP (At edge of tunnel) (Anchor-bubbles x2 created)

---Terrain---
Room ahead and tunnel:
-100% Ice
Room behind:
-60% Sea (Pool, stretching from ice floor near the tunnels to far right end of the room)
-30% Ice (Left and forward edges of the room)
-10% Broken (Tunnel where Winter entered from)
"That didn't work at all." Winter muttered unhappily as she inched back from the edge of the cave opening. "Plan B: We fight them from here." She whispered to Nemo just before she whispered the chant for her GrabStop spell. With that task completed, Winter began storing spell power as she waited patiently for the anchor bubbles to float out of her way. She cleared her mind and began to focus while she waited.


[spoiler=Summary]1: Hide (Dodge/Cover)
2: Set GrabStop (Trap(Stun + To-All-Clause): Teleport; S Acc.)
3: Activate Nuclear Winter (Strengthen 160; Self Slow; 4 TCD)
4: Take Aim (+10% Acc. Next Attack)

Strengthen Pool: 160[/Spoiler]
As Winter prepared herself for the inevitable battle, the anchor bubbles reached the sharp bend in what was once a tunnel. They popped against the wall, dropping the anchors to the ground and drawing the attention of the curious Swordy. It teleported toward them to attack...and immediately got caught in Winter's GrabStop trap. A shockwave spread through the massive chamber ahead, stunning all the viruses that had still been trying to find a way up the sheer wall.

They were not going to be happy when the stun wore off.
___

---Ready for Battle---
Gigas: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice) [Stun!]
Ashuraid A: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice) [Stun!]
Ashuraid B: 100 HP (In room ahead) (Ice) [Stun!]
Swordy-A EXA: 120 HP (In room ahead) (Ice) [Stun!]
Swordy-A EXB: 120 HP (At other end of tunnel) (Ice) [Stun!]

---The Target---
Varunavalry: Left the room

---Quietly following---
Winter: 105 HP (At edge of tunnel) [Strengthen: 160] [Taken Aim]
Marina EX: 115 HP (At edge of tunnel) (Anchor-bubbles x2 created)

---Terrain---
Room ahead and tunnel:
-100% Ice
Room behind:
-60% Sea (Pool, stretching from ice floor near the tunnels to far right end of the room)
-30% Ice (Left and forward edges of the room)
-10% Broken (Tunnel where Winter entered from)
Winter cringed as she heard the two anchors crash heavily to the ground. Ugh, now everyone and their programmer knows we're here. I can work with that, though. They'll surely come to investigate-- Her eyebrows flew up in surprise as her thoughts were interrupted by the feedback from her trap spell, which was letting her know it had been triggered already. Okay... Winter's thoughts began as she chanted the command to summon her force bracelet on the arm she was using to hold the bubble anchor, and the anchor immediately ceased to be a burden. ...Far be it for me to ignore the knockings of opportunity.

"Scratch the plan. Here we go!" Winter shouted as she ran around the corner with the anchor slung over her left shoulder, and into the tunnel. However, the sorceress Navi was feeling a bit sluggish as she did so... Bah! I forgot about the downside to tapping my reserves. This will not be easy. Winter thought unhappily while she chanted the command to summon her rune saber as she ran up to the pile of anchors in the middle of the tunnel floor. The sword materialized in its sheath at sorceress' waist just as she jumped over them.

Winter grabbed the curved handle of her sword with her right hand as she landed. She then put the weapon to use as was intended by its ancient designer as she stepped forward, drew the saber, and slashed at the stunned virus at the end of the tunnel in one smooth motion. The saber already played host to the power of a Sword battlechip, as the glowing runes indicated, but Winter channeled in an extra bit of her own as the sword left the sheath; thus transforming the swing from merely powerful to potentially lethal at a blow thanks to a little extra help from the wind.

Once Winter cleared the mouth of the tunnel, she looked around only briefly enough to catch sight of the nearest Ashuraid... which really took no effort at all as the massive metallic viruses with the six pack of large free floating arms were kinda hard to miss for anyone with eyes. I really hate these things. The sorceress wasted no time in channeling her power through her force bracelet in preparation to launch the the anchor she'd been carrying over her shoulder at the closest of them. As soon as she did, the anchor levitated upwards a couple of feet, and the ethereal image of a large polar bear standing upon it's hind legs materialized with the anchor grasped in one of its paws. As winter made a throwing motion towards the Ashuraid with her empty hand, the ghostly polar bear snarled and hurled the heavy metal anchor at the virus with awesome force. The anchor was thus transformed from a means of tethering the largest of sea going vessels into a lethal high speed projectile that would surely wreck whatever it hit.

With her hand now free of the weighty burden, Winter turned her attention towards a second Aqua Swordy just off to one side. I'd better deal with this one before it starts teleporting around. It will be problematic, otherwise. With that thought, she reached towards the sword wielding virus with her free hand, then made a hand motion as if commanding it to come to her. The wind, rather than the virus, responded to her call, and puled the two of them towards one another. As soon as Winter entered melee range of the virus, she channeled a bit of wind energy and took a swing at her enemy with a wind assisted slash of her saber as she skated past across the ice.

Let's not bounce off the wall, shall we? Winter though as she spun with the motion of her slash, and kept herself upright with a little footwork as she used the wind to help alter her course. She was now facing back towards the center of the room where the remaining viruses congregated as she glided in a sideways arc around the room on the ice... and was deriving a little bit of pleasure from doing so. I haven't done this in what feels like forever. Skating is fun, and I really should do it more often. But... Winter began chanting and channeling her powers in preparation for casting another spell at the enemy. ...that will have to wait until my life isn't in danger, immediate or otherwise. Now back to business. With that thought, Winter suddenly focused a huge quantity of cold energy, and projected it towards the second Ashuraid. The concentrated blast of cold drained the heat out of the air as it passed, leaving a trail of snow and ice particles formed of flash-frozen air in it's wake.

Ugh. Winter felt slightly drained after casting such a powerful spell, and took a few moments to cast a minor healing spell on herself to dispel the feeling. Better. But I still have to contend with the proverbial 800 pound gorilla in the room. Winter thought as her gaze shifted to the Gigas that would be recovering from the stun effect in just another second or two....

[spoiler=Summary]x: Swift Strider (Movement)
1: Strengthened Sword @ Swordy-A EXB (120 Null + Slashing; A Acc.)
2: Strengthened Nemo's Anchor @ Ashuraid A (100 Aqua + Break; A Acc.)
x: Use Gust to skate across the Ice. (Gust)
x: Antarctic Wind @ Swordy-A EXA (Pull)
3: Strengthened Sword @ Swordy-A EXA (120 Null + Slashing; B Acc.)
x: Use Arctic Wind to avoid colliding with the wall. (Knockback)
4: Shatter @ Ashuraid B (100 Aqua + Break; Sacrifice 15 HP; A Acc.)
x: Novice's Healing @ Self (Recover 15)

Strengthen Pool: 40[/Spoiler]
Between the power of a sword battlechip and just a little bit of magic, Winter effortlessly cut through the hapless Swordy who had triggered her trap. The first of two multi-armed ball-riding viruses fell shortly after, to the spectral image of a gigantic polar bear carrying her submarine friend's anchor.

Behind Winter, the submarine friend in question silently cheered at this display, rapidly bobbing up and down while flashing its periscope-mounted light on and off. It then settled back down, drifting slowly through the tunnel while trying to stay out of range.

Meanwhile, Winter continued on her small rampage, cutting through the remaining Swordy while skating across the room, then tapping her own energy to put the remaining Ashuraid on ice. Well...more ice. The air around it flash froze, leaving the virus covered in a jagged mass of ice that punched through its armor in several places. Although the spell left it effectively deleted, the ice held it in one piece, as little more than a damage statue.

Speaking of statues, the Gigas was indeed starting to get over the stun effect. It started with a few erratic jolts, then turned on the spot and smashed its fist through a chunk of debris reducing it to ice shards in an instant.

And above them, the sound of a heavy impact, a rumbling through the caverns, and another chunk of ice from overhead falling and crashing into the ground to reduce the Ashuraid-turned statue into even more ice shards served as a reminder that Winter's target was still nearby, and still rampaging.
___

---Taken by surprise---
Gigas: 100 HP (In center of room) (Ice)
Ashuraid A: Deleted
Ashuraid B: Deleted
Swordy-A EXA: Deleted
Swordy-A EXB: Deleted

---The Target---
Varunavalry: Left the room, causing a ruckus

---Quietly following---
Winter: 105 HP (Near the wall, where Swordy-A EXA was) (Ice) [Strengthen: 40]
Marina EX: 115 HP (In the tunnel)

---Terrain---
Room ahead and tunnel:
-100% Ice
Room behind:
-60% Sea (Pool, stretching from ice floor near the tunnels to far right end of the room)
-30% Ice (Left and forward edges of the room)
-10% Broken (Tunnel where Winter entered from)

Winter winced involuntarily when the huge chunks of ice crashed unexpectedly into the ground; one such chunk crushing the frozen Ashuraid in the process. That could just as easily have been me. And I still have to deal with that monster. That last thought was not an especially pleasant one, but it wasn't something to concern one's self with when another adversary already stood before her. Focus, girl. One thing at a time. The sorceress touched her face with one of her chilled hands, and used that to restore a bit of her calm and allowed her focus. After all, she would need it if she was seriously going to take on her current opponent, which wasn't to be taken lightly at all. Better. Now let's complicate matters.

Winter changed the direction of her glide to angle directly towards the Gigas for a biref moment. She then silently casted Arctic Mirror, and quickly veered off to the left and the right as her image became two at the end of the slalom. The real Winter had doubled back to the right while her illusory double was continuing along the same path she had been previously. The Gigas would now have to choose its target. As soon as it commits fully to attacking, I and my mirror image will both react to it by attempting to evade. One of the tw of us will look silly reacting to nothing, but that's not the point. The point is to incite uncertainty and confusion. The two Winters smiled at the thought. Once it has attacked, I'll hit it with a spell combination, and finish it off while it's still open.

Wait for it.... The two Winters then casted a healing spell upon themselves, and seemingly watched for the Gigas' response.

[spoiler=Split Summary]x: Arctic Mirror : ((Decoy) + (5 Aqua, Delayed))
x: Swift Strider (Movement)
x: Novice's Healing @ Self (Recover 15)
1: Prepped Dodge[/Spoiler]
Unfortunately for Winter, the Gigas was either smarter than Winter gave it credit for or considerably less in the mood for games than she was hoping. The moment it was suddenly faced with two of them instead of one, it materialized another ball and chain out of nowhere. The massive virus swung it in a circle around itself, effortlessly smashing the decoy before it could evade. Having slightly more time to get out of the way, Winter managed to avoid the first pass of the hammer. But now that her decoy was gone, the Gigas only had to pick from one target, and made up for its earlier miss by nailing Winter with the thrown projectile.

Good thing Winter had prepped a healing spell to soften the blow.
___

---Taken by surprise---
Gigas: 97 HP (In center of room) (Ice)
Ashuraid A: Deleted
Ashuraid B: Deleted
Swordy-A EXA: Deleted
Swordy-A EXB: Deleted

---The Target---
Varunavalry: Left the room, causing a ruckus

---Quietly following---
Winter: 100 HP (Near the wall, where Swordy-A EXA was) (Ice) [Strengthen: 40] [Decoy: Destroyed]
Marina EX: 115 HP (In the tunnel)

---Terrain---
Room ahead and tunnel:
-100% Ice
Room behind:
-60% Sea (Pool, stretching from ice floor near the tunnels to far right end of the room)
-30% Ice (Left and forward edges of the room)
-10% Broken (Tunnel where Winter entered from)
Winter's eyebrows flew up as the Gigas produced a flail, and unexpectedly managed to swing the thing all the way around the edge of the room. How in the Undernet did it manage to make the chain that long? She skated forward and ducked under the chain as the ball passed behind her. She stood back up, and watched as her double was destroyed by the very same chain passing through it a moment later. This is absurd. The chain retracted, and the Gigas hurled the hammer in her direction very suddenly. The best Winter could manage was to begin a sideways move to get out of the way before the ball slammed into her shoulder, and spun her around.

Winter managed to stay on her feet somehow, but that blow just now hurt a bit. How about I return the favor, the sorceress thought as she sheathed her rune sabre, and began channeling power into her hands. With Winter's mind no longer focused on suppressing her powers, a zone of extreme cold formed around her. A moment later, she raised he hands, and flung her right arm towards the Gigas first. A jet of ice cold water leaped from her open hand, and flew towards the hulking virus while leaving snow and sleet in its wake. Winter repeated the attack with her left hand, sending a second spiraling blast of frigid water towards her enemy. Both of the high magic projectiles would take all of a fraction of a second to reach their destination before they exploded into a mass of literally freezing cold water.

With the second projectile away, Winter reached for her rune saber, and channeled a much larger quantity of aqua element energy into it that either of her earlier attacks had required. "Ha!" She said as she drew drew the saber and slashed it through the air before her in one motion. The blade left a wide arc of water behind that defied gravity for a moment before flying towards the Gigas while maintaining its wide crescent shape.

Summary
x: Cold Aura @ Gigas (5 Aqua x 4 Attacks)
2: Bubbler @ Gigas [65 Aqua + Spread(1); A]
3: Bubbler @ Gigas [65 Aqua + Spread(1); A]
4: WideShot1 @ Gigas [115 Aqua + Wide Attack; A]

Note: All attacks/hits have a chance to Freeze (Ice Terrain)
The first jet of water left a nice little coating of ice on the Gigas that would easily lock up its attack routines, but it mattered very little, as the second and third battered it with freezing water until it fell over, inert and encrusted in ice. The hardened metal shell of the virus cracked, then split in half and fell away, while the rest of the virus underneath dissolved into frozen junk data.

That just left the metavirus Winter had come for which, if the continuing occasional tremors were any indication, was still banging around in a tunnel overhead. The downside was that the walls of the room she was in were sheer cliffs of ice.
___

---The Dead---
Gigas: Deleted
Ashuraid A: Deleted
Ashuraid B: Deleted
Swordy-A EXA: Deleted
Swordy-A EXB: Deleted

---The Target---
Varunavalry: Left the room, causing a ruckus

---The Not Dead---
Winter: 100 HP (GET: 900z, HammerToss1)
Marina EX: 115 HP (GET: Not much)

---Terrain---
100% Ice

Locations:
-Lower Tunnel: The tunnel Winter came from. Right where she left it.
-Varunavalry's Tunnel: Above the Lower Tunnel, and up a sheer wall of ice.
Winter cut and pasted the Zenny data into her PET, then retrieved the HammerToss1 data from the remains of the Gigas. What an ironic acquisition. The sorceress Navi thought as she transmitted the data to her PET as well. She then looked up the sheer cliff at the high cave the metavirus had flown into much earlier. It's time to confront the beast. Winter looked back in the direction of her viral companion. "That monster above is my target. From here on, whether you follow me or not is your choice, little one. Your help has been appreciated."

Somehow, I don't see this ending happily... Winter turned towards the opening once more after she finished speaking. ...no matter the outcome. She then channeled the power of Wind, jumped up, and rode the sir current to the cave above....
A light flicked on from Nemo's hull, the same one that it had used to signal Winter that it would join her before. But this time it blinked on and off twice. Then, the Marina disappeared back into the still-flooding chamber below.

Before Winter could leave the room herself though, it came floating back, and tossed a datapacket at her before scurrying away again. The packet opened itself in midair and enveloped Winter in a soft light that restored her to full health.

That just left Winter to ride the wind up to the hole to the tunnel her quarry had disappeared into. Fortunately, it was only a short tunnel, opening into another larger room. The walls in this new room were covered in impact marks, while the icy floor at their edges was lined with the shards of ice carved out of the walls. Larger shards covered the floor farther into the room, fallen from a now jagged mess of a ceiling. And in the air above the floor, sending its free-floating fists repeatedly into the ceiling, was Winter's quarry.

It was an Ashuraid alright, but one much larger than the normal viral variant. Its base, normally shaped to ride on a steel ball, had been modified into a saddle of sorts for its equally massive mount. A mount that was in fact not a Fishy as the mission request had stated, but a Blazer. Flames spewed out of the flying virus's gills each time the metal giant on its back struck at the ceiling.

Right up until the tournament-built virus noticed that it was no longer alone.

((Music (placeholder until I find something better).))

One final fragment of the frozen ceiling fell as it stopped attacking, but it never reached the ground before being melted into nothing by the flames from the Blazer. The modified Ashuraid turned in midair toward Winter and descended closer to the frozen floor, then spread its six detached arms wide around its upper body. Heavy katars flipped out of the wrists and locked into place over the knuckles of each of the virus's six hands. It let out a piercing viral shriek that shook the room around them all on its own, while another jet of flames from its blazer mount melted and evaporated the ice in the center of the room, creating an aura of heat and steam around the monster while it gave its war cry.
___

---Virusfights' Most Promising (maybe) Entrant---
Varunavalry: ???? HP (Damage taken: 0) (Flying) (5 Panels Away)

---The Poor Girl Who Has To Subdue It---
Winter.EXE: 200 HP (Ice) (At Edge of Room)

---Terrain---
90% Ice (Most of the room)
10% Sea (A (comparatively) small puddle in the center)

---Objects---
None yet

---Other---
Room Size: The room is mostly cylindrical, 10 panels in diameter and approximately 5 rockcubes in height.

>BOSS FIGHT BEGIN<