Suien Matsumoto was never the most attentive operator. In fact, a survey of his most recent forays into the network would reveal a netOp who was constantly distracted by the day's happenings and who would consistently neglect his netnavi. More often than not, these were not instances of justifiable neglect, at times operating while drunk, hungover, while flirting, or while on vacation. The case could therefore most certainly be made that Suien Matsumoto was not fit to be an operator, with his track record revealing at best, a reckless disregard for safety... at worst, total incompetence.
No court, jury, or rational being, however, could fault Suien for neglecting his navi in the foregoing scenario.
Suien smirked as the battle unfolded just as Tem's optimal situational progression had foretold. The battle data reflected in the dark-haired netOp's glasses as it scrolled down the top screen of his PET. The MachineSword chip had done its work, sending an ironclad phalanx of blade-wielding soldiers to the front lines and reducing the menagerie of viral threats to strands of data. One by one, the blips on the lower screen disappeared until finally, the battlefield lay barren in front of Rass. Suien sighed, leaning against the wall and taking another glance at the network security camera. Soon, he thought, biting his lip, I'll be able to figure out exactly what was going on last night. Drinking in public and thievery? Between Joey and Chuckles, I'm not sure if I like the direction into illegality this night is taking.
You know, come to think of it... where the heck ARE they? thought Suien, not noticing that the battle routine hadn't ended but slipping in a few battlechips absentmindedly, I swear they were bickering up a storm a few minutes ago. I hope they didn't get into any trouble. The dark-haired netOp frowned, then took note of his surroundings — sure enough, there was no sign of the massive Netopian nor the disgruntled clown. He was just about to consider the two of them gone when his eye caught the cigarette that Joey had lit and stamped out earlier. Upon closer inspection, the smoking object wasn't a cigarette, but a handrolled blunt, and the smell was slightly nuttier and off — certainly not of typical Netopian tobacco, but...
Oh... oh no! thought Suien, noticing at once that his once-ajar door was now closed, I... I know what that smell is! That's not cigarette, that's...
-*-
...pot? A stupid, stationary, worthless pot? That's our opponent? scoffed Argo as Rass walked toward the monolithic pot in the center of the battlefield, I hate to be blunt, but this has got to be the dumbest challenge we've ever faced.
Don't be a fool, Argo — you're always blunt. chimed in Tem, Given that the battle routine has not yet concluded, we can only assume that the final viral threat is contained within that pot. By the looks of things, it seems that my instincts were correct in assuming that the contents of the pot were a threat.
Rass sighed and shook his head sadly, not bothering to mention that it was his instincts that had predicted danger. "S-So what's next?" he asked halfheartedly, "Suien just uploaded a b-bunch of battlechips. Sh-Should we j-just shoot at the p-pot until it breaks?"
Hardly, said Tem, If that pot could withstand those DarkMech blades, it's unlikely that we will be able to pierce its defenses with the chips we've been provided. If we're going to attack that thing, we'll have to do so directly — straight down the middle. With that, Tem initialized the ITEM-2 proceedings, germinating a luminous green wireframe in front of Rass. As bits of protoplasm leaked from the fusion navi's chest, filling in the wireframe Rassboard with the ebony material, Tem turned to look toward Rass for a brief moment before bursting from his chest in a flash of blue light. Ishamel will take the command for this particular maneuver, though Argo will need to use the 3L3M system to use the battlechips to their full potential. she said, her blue orb smashing into ITEM-2 and making its nosecone a distinct blue color, Do not concern yourself with the positioning — I will handle your transportation for the purposes of this endeavor. The Rassboard roared to life as it scooped Rass up unceremoniously and hovered a short distance above the conspicuous pot. As the fusion navi assumed a wobbly stance atop the rocket surfboard, he nodded at Ishamel as both hands turned a brilliant crimson color. The targeting subsystem tensed Rass' arms, adjusting their angles ever so slightly as ITEM-2 circled the pot. Argo, for his part, took one glare toward Tem and the Rassboard, grumbled something mean about female drivers, and retreated into the 3L3M system.
Now! shouted Tem, Execute the battle routine!
ROGER, SUBSYSTEM TEM! COMMENCING REMOVAL OF WINDBOX! AUTOCORRECTION 4 DEGREES NORTH, 20 DEGREES EAST. QUOTE POP CULTURE, LETS LIGHT UP THAT POT, ENDQUOTE! shouted Ishamel, firing a blast of compressed air and two pulses of kinetic energy toward the windbox, aimed to knock it off of the pot and away from the battlefield. Tem swiftly corrected for the recoil, but did so in such a fierce manner that Rass could scarcely remain on his feet. As the fusion navi struggled to regain his balance, he felt a surge of warmth from within his chest cavity. The 3L3M system surged to life, distilling wood and aqua energies from the battlechip data that had been sent. 3L3M output at maximum capacity, grunted Argo, his green presence swirling into view upon Rass' shoulder, Don't mess this one up, Rasshole!
Rass gulped, and nodded fervently. Crouching down on the Rassboard he balled his hands into tight fists, allowing his palmbuster modules to collect the elemental forces in preparation for their discharge. A burst of green light erupted from his chest cavity and surged toward the ground, forming quickly into a wireframe Kilby and draining bits of protoplasm from Rass' body. As the black data leaked from his amorphous form, Rass brought both fists forward toward the pot - one pulsing with white-hot concussive energy barely contained in his palmbuster, and the other leaking bits of bubbly foam from between his blackened fingertips. As ITEM-2 hovered tensely above the pot, the fusion navi sat, watched...
...and waited.
-*-
1: Masterwork Rassboard (20 + 35 HP Board, 1 Hit Shield, 2 tactical movements per turn)
*Rassboard: Tactical Move to a better position
2: Airshot + Fusionist Physics Knockback x2 to Windbox, knocked away from pot.
3: HiCannon at anything that exits (80, Knockback)
4: Bubbler at anything that exits (50 Aqua, Splash)
5: Sidebamboo at anything that exits (80, Wood)
*Rassboard: Tactical Move: Assist prepped dodge*
6: Tactical Move-Assisted prepped-dodge
...Stays in NetVegas
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With a bird's-eye view and a wide array of weaponry, Rass was ready for anything to come out of that pot. The tension hit a high point as a combination of an Airshot and the Fusionist Physics toppled the Windbox off its perch, opening the path for whatever was in there to come bursting out. Yet... nothing came still. Almost like it was mocking the fusionist Navi, the pot sat there silently. Regardless of whether that was a trap or a sign of non-resistance, Rass unloaded a trio of attacks, striking the side of the pot with the Bubbler and SideBamboo, and landing a round of his HiCannon right down the middle of the container. Silence then ensued for the next few seconds until a thin tendril of smoke began rising up out of the pot. Was this the makings of an attack...?
*boom*
An explosion! Argo instinctively sent ITEM-2 back to create distance from the sudden blast, sparing Rass from a very charred appearance. Rass and his subsystems looked around frantically for the source of the blast until...
*boom*
Another one! Rass saw this one, and it was in the air! And... it was kind of pretty? The flames from the blast hung around in the air for a few seconds, and Rass noticed they were several different colors and arranged in a strange pattern. Soon enough, a third explosion came, and it became perfectly clear what Rass was witnessing...
Fireworks. Rass had managed to stumble upon, amidst all those viruses, a pot of fireworks. Well then... Only in NetVegas? Either way, Rass was being treated to a nice display as he gathered up the spoils of his battle.
-Normal-[Current]20%
MuteAntA: ABDUCTED
MuteAntB: ABDUCTED
RASS.exe: 100 HP
-Metal-[Left]20%
ElecOgreA: HACKED
ElecOgreB: HACKED
-Lava-
*boom*
An explosion! Argo instinctively sent ITEM-2 back to create distance from the sudden blast, sparing Rass from a very charred appearance. Rass and his subsystems looked around frantically for the source of the blast until...
*boom*
Another one! Rass saw this one, and it was in the air! And... it was kind of pretty? The flames from the blast hung around in the air for a few seconds, and Rass noticed they were several different colors and arranged in a strange pattern. Soon enough, a third explosion came, and it became perfectly clear what Rass was witnessing...
Fireworks. Rass had managed to stumble upon, amidst all those viruses, a pot of fireworks. Well then... Only in NetVegas? Either way, Rass was being treated to a nice display as he gathered up the spoils of his battle.
-Normal-[Current]20%
MuteAntA: ABDUCTED
MuteAntB: ABDUCTED
RASS.exe: 100 HP
-Metal-[Left]20%
ElecOgreA: HACKED
ElecOgreB: HACKED
-Lava-
20%
VolcanoA: HACKED
VolcanoB: HACKED
Pot: FIREWORKS
VolcanoC: HACKED
VolcanoD: HACKED
Wind: 100 HP [On top of Pot]
-Sea-[right]20%
SlimeyA: HACKED
SlimeyB: HACKED
SlimeyC: HACKED
-Grass-[Across]20%
SpidyA: HACKED
SpidyB: HACKED
SpidyC: HACKED
-VICTORY!-
Get: 4200z
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Rass stared blankly at the luminous display of brilliant color as the fireworks erupted from the mysterious pot. The vibrant pinks, the austere blues, the breathtaking greens, and the shimmering reds exploded upon the blackened backdrop of the NetVegas network. Had the fusion navi possessed any sort of poetic programming, he might have appreciated some sort of personal analogue with the swirling synergistic lightshow, the four colors working in unison to create something much greater than the sum of their parts...
...and then promptly abandoned the notion as his subsystems began bickering once again.
Hyahahahah! That's your "big viral threat," Tem? laughed Argo, his green presence following Tem's rising blue orb as ITEM-2 began dissipating into a fine black mist, "Oh no, it looks like it's a scary fireworks virus! Let's just tactically fire off our most potent ordinance." You're a piece of work, you know that Tem?
Shut up, Argo. growled Tem as her azure orb of light crashed into the fusionist protoplasm at Rass' shoulder, and Rass, are you planning on just standing there? Last I recall, Suien was making us look for that video data. Stop gawking and get walking.
As Rass nodded quickly and absorbed the zenny data into his systems, he couldn't help but notice that Suien had been awfully quiet lately. Looking up at the sky with a perplexed look, he continued deeper into the security camera network, searching still for signs the camera playback function.
Hmm... I hope we aren't in trouble or anything, he thought.
((Battle 4))
...and then promptly abandoned the notion as his subsystems began bickering once again.
Hyahahahah! That's your "big viral threat," Tem? laughed Argo, his green presence following Tem's rising blue orb as ITEM-2 began dissipating into a fine black mist, "Oh no, it looks like it's a scary fireworks virus! Let's just tactically fire off our most potent ordinance." You're a piece of work, you know that Tem?
Shut up, Argo. growled Tem as her azure orb of light crashed into the fusionist protoplasm at Rass' shoulder, and Rass, are you planning on just standing there? Last I recall, Suien was making us look for that video data. Stop gawking and get walking.
As Rass nodded quickly and absorbed the zenny data into his systems, he couldn't help but notice that Suien had been awfully quiet lately. Looking up at the sky with a perplexed look, he continued deeper into the security camera network, searching still for signs the camera playback function.
Hmm... I hope we aren't in trouble or anything, he thought.
((Battle 4))
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As Rass continued deeper, the network shifted away from the strange terrain patterns into a grid pattern of solid black but otherwise unremarkable tiles. Eventually he reached a point where there were nothing but the black panels as far as he could see. Otherwise, the only remarkable feature of the area was a catwalk stretching overhead.
And perhaps a few viruses.
As Rass watched, several of the black panels flared to life and flashed white, spawning viruses in the space above them before fading back to black. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by no fewer than six viruses. It seemed like there was at least one more, though...
Meanwhile, on the catwalk above, three more appeared: two of them spider-like and crawling over the top and onto the underside, and the third, wearing a cloak and carrying some sort of staff, leaned over the edge and thrust the staff in the air while yelling in a strange viral language to the others below.
It appeared to be an ambush.
___
---Enemies---
-To Left:-
CirKill: 110 HP
-To Right:-
KillerEye: 100 HP
-Behind:-
TwinsA: 100 HP
TwinsB: 100 HP
-Ahead:-
HntedCandleEXA: 150 HP
HntedCandleEXB: 150 HP
???: ??? (Invis)
-Underside of Catwalk-
SpidyA: 80 HP
SpidyB: 80 HP
-On Top of Catwalk-
Mettfire: 100 HP
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 100 HP
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 100% Normal
Upper Level: 10% Metal (catwalk), 90% Missing (everything else)
<Battle 4: Now with a bit less of a swarm. FIGHT!>
And perhaps a few viruses.
As Rass watched, several of the black panels flared to life and flashed white, spawning viruses in the space above them before fading back to black. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by no fewer than six viruses. It seemed like there was at least one more, though...
Meanwhile, on the catwalk above, three more appeared: two of them spider-like and crawling over the top and onto the underside, and the third, wearing a cloak and carrying some sort of staff, leaned over the edge and thrust the staff in the air while yelling in a strange viral language to the others below.
It appeared to be an ambush.
___
---Enemies---
-To Left:-
CirKill: 110 HP
-To Right:-
KillerEye: 100 HP
-Behind:-
TwinsA: 100 HP
TwinsB: 100 HP
-Ahead:-
HntedCandleEXA: 150 HP
HntedCandleEXB: 150 HP
???: ??? (Invis)
-Underside of Catwalk-
SpidyA: 80 HP
SpidyB: 80 HP
-On Top of Catwalk-
Mettfire: 100 HP
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 100 HP
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 100% Normal
Upper Level: 10% Metal (catwalk), 90% Missing (everything else)
<Battle 4: Now with a bit less of a swarm. FIGHT!>
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"What the hell did you do to the room?!"
Suien stared at his two colleagues in horror, having just opened the bathroom door only to be met with a wall of cannabis smoke that caused the netOp to sputter and cough. Sure enough, the dark-haired netOp's suspicions had been confirmed: Chuckles had gone ahead and hotboxed the room. HIS room.
"Relax, man, it's only the bathroom. &%$#ing chill out," replied Chuckles, motioning to the toilet to his right, You've gotta $%&@ing admit — you OWE me this. You caused me a lot of stress, and I need this sort of relief. Helps me keep things funny and $%&@, yeah? So just chill the %$#@ out and join us — this is what NetVegas is all about, man!"
Joey, having been long-exposed to the hazy narcotic, simply threw what was apparently some sort of gang sign with his fingers and nodded lazily at Suien.
"Wh...What the hell are you talking about?!" stammered a disbelieving Suien, entering the bathroom and shutting the door quietly as not to disturb his bedmate, "I guess breaking the law is what NetVegas is all about? Last I checked, it was illegal to even possess the stuff, much less do something like this! Get that stuff out of here so we can start cleaning up!"
"For the last %$&#ing time Masters, chill the $#%& out. You're totally killing the high." growled Chuckles, though with significantly less venom than before, "Maybe you didn't hear me the first time, but here in NetVegas, this is how we roll. Geez, you'd think someone who did what you did last night would have some $%#&ing balls."
"That's the thing, I DON'T remember what happened last night!" protested Suien, coughing as he gestured to his PET, "and my efforts at figuring out what DID happen last night? They're not going so well — to the point where hotboxing my bathroom isn't the most constructive endeavor. We're already doing enough illegal stuff as it is."
"First of all, if we're already doing illegal stuff, what's one more thing? It won't matter if the boys in blue catch us blazin' or you hacking that security camera — we're in deep &%$% if we're caught, so don't %$&#ing get caught," said Chuckles, "Secondly, what the $%#& is there to say about last night? Seems pretty $#%&ing simple to me. You got drunk. You went to my circus. You stole my unicycle, AND the show with your juggling act. You saw some tramp. You took her to your room. You woke up hungover. Easy. Now sit down, relax, have a $%#&ing joint, enjoy my hospitality, and wait until your $%&$# wakes up so you can pay her."
Suien would probably have protested, but the marijuana smoke was making him lightheaded. Squinting his eyes and covering his mouth, he opened the door once more. "Just... keep it in here, okay?" he coughed.
-*-
Gyahah, now this is my idea of a challenge, smirked Argo, taking note of the oncoming viruses that quickly surrounded Rass' position, Tem, do you have the point scan data? What sort of fighting index are we lookin' at?
You know, all four of us have access to the protoplasm's scanning equipment, so if you ever feel like not being lazy, be my guest, quipped Tem, As a matter of fact, the scans were completed fifteen seconds ago. We're looking at six viral units, four different types.
Eh? Are you sure? asked Argo, Ain't like you to miss something like that, Tem, but I count seven viruses, five types.
Tem was incredulous. Argo, the point scans clearly indicate six viruses. I don't know where you learned to count, but I can definitively tell you that whatever value your two-bit brain spits out is not going to be more accurate than the R.A.S.S. scanners."
AGREED, SUBSYSTEM TEM! chimed in Ishamel, SPECULATION EXISTS THAT SUBSYSTEM ARGO IS MALFUNCTIONING. SCANNERS CORRECTLY INDICATE SIX VIRAL THREATS. ANY OTHERS ARE LIKELY ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE POOR EYESIGHT OF A MELEE-RANGE SUBSYSTEM!
If I wanted your opinion, I would have asked for it, laser brain! snarled Argo, Though from where I'm standing, all of you are malfunctioning. There's clearly something over there, even if it's not being picked up on the scanner. Or on optics. Or on... just... I mean... it's there! Something tells me there's a seventh! Shut up!
Wait a minute, you may be right. muttered Tem as the Mettfire and Spidy viruses slithered into view on the precarious catwalk above, In fact, I'm detecting an additional three viruses for a total of nine viral signatures.
No, now there are ten viruses protested Argo, You're still missing that one on our level! You see it, don't you Rasshole?
Rass had no idea what Argo was talking about, but did not want to risk aggravating his melee subsystem. "I... er... well..." he stammered, "I mean, the s-scanners don't feel like they're broken, but I... I guess m-maybe there could be s-something over there?"
Before Argo could respond, however, Suien's voice broke into the navi's radio feed. "If you four are done with your mathematics lesson, perhaps it would be best to focus on the problem at hand," he said, his face popping up on a screen near Rass' position, "The viruses here are exhibiting a higher degree of tactical coordination, and they control the higher ground — you're not going to be able to beat them in a straight battle."
Hmph, finally got around to acting like an operator Suien? Took you long enough, muttered Tem, But I suppose I should be thankful that you're actually taking an interest in our welfare. However, I have already prepared a suitable combat routine that would allow us to wrest control of the high ground away from the viruses and begin our assault from there.
Suien bristled visibly, but retained his cool in the face of Tem's cutting insult. "We would tax your system resources beyond an acceptable level trying to capture the high ground from the viruses here. Our best bet is to try to eliminate their advantage altogether." said Suien, adjusting his glasses with one hand while revealing a quartet of battlechips with the other, "I'm uploading a few old favorites, but do you think you can handle the SeaZone? You haven't used it extensively, so it might be a bit tough on the 3L3M processor and..."
The SeaZone? That'll make us sitting ducks for the viruses up above! interrupted Tem.
"That's why we're not activating it on the lower level — we're turning that catwalk to water!"
-*-
Was that really necessary, Tem? Going after Suien like that? thought Rass as he loosed two blasts of kinetic energy from his rubbery protoplasm, He's really trying his best to make us as good as we can be. We should probably not be so hard on him. It's not like he means to be so busy all the time. The twin bursts barreled toward the flaming viruses dead ahead, aimed to launch them beneath the silvery catwalk overhead. We could give him a break, can't we?
Rass, you already know what my opinion is on your leadership, but I would *expect* that a netOp has certain standards he is obliged to meet, she said simply, initializing the airshot routines and channeling yet another burst of compressed air through Rass' lower body, I am merely speculating that Suien's performance does not fall within those parameters.
Rass didn't like where Tem's answer was going, but decided that there were more important concerns. Steeling his sinewy legs for the impact, Rass crouched down, collected the wind beneath his feet, and pressed off of the ground. There was a resounding crack as the pink navi was launched upward into the air, surging at breakneck speeds toward the precarious catwalk above. Rass could have sworn he felt his stomach sink into his chest, but as it turns out, the sensation was only Argo spiraling into the 3L3M sensor and giving it a quick charge. Rass landed hard on the catwalk, feeling slightly lightheaded from the trip and scrambling to his feet. Taking a nervous step backwards from the cloaked virus, the fusion navi gulped and began charging an aquatic force between his fingers. The azure energy fluctuated wildly as it struggled to escape his grasp, but Rass managed to hold on, balling his hands into fists and thrusting both of them into the ground. Instantly, a pulse of blue light exploded skyward, pulsating through the catwalk with the force of a tsunami and channeling the full force of the fusion navi's elemental processors into the network.
"The ElecReel1 battlechip's on it's way!" said Suien, sliding in the goldenrod chip into the PET, "Though by now, I suppose I don't need to tell you what to do with it. We've got ten viral signatures, and ideally, they'll all be on the ground level by now."
Right, right, I'm just glad you're actually paying attention to us this time. Just upload the stupid chip and we'll do the thinking for you. scowled Tem.
Geez, Tem, you're a bit testy today, grumbled Argo, And besides, at least Suien can count properly. Even he knows that there's definitely ten of them down there.
Hmph. Just focus on making sure we don't end up a splat on the network, she sneered, We're going to be freefalling in a few microseconds, after all.
Sure enough, as the SeaZone chip began to work its magic, Rass quickly leaped off the fluctuating catwalk, trading the iron catwalk for the open air. For an instant, things were peaceful and quiet as the fusion navi lingered in the air — at the apex of his leap — before plummeting downward. Stay focused, Rass! shouted Tem, as the green, surfboard-shaped wireframe took form in front of his body, Argo's taking command of ITEM-2, and Ishamel's working the targetting systems, so just concentrate on staying on board.
"Y...Yeah," nodded Rass as bursts of protoplasm exited his body and poured into the wireframe transport, "Staying on t-top of things. I can d-do that."
Tem seemed to scoff, but retreated into the fusion navi's legs anyways. As Rass plummeted toward the ground, a burst of green light and the roar of rocket engines erupted forth. The rassboard, with Argo at the helm, surged to life and scooped Rass up, aiming to save the small pink navi from a painful run-in with artificial gravity. The high g-forces of the maneuver coupled with the salty spray of the SeaZone chip made it difficult to see exactly what was going on below, but fortunately for Rass, the ElecReel battlechip was fully charged the instant ITEM-2 had burst into being. A luminous thunderstorm of yellow and white erupted from his fingertips, the high-voltage tendrils assaulting the ground with speed and power. Rass could smell a strange scent of ozone as his elemental processors overclocked themselves and rapidly adjusted for the sudden drain in energy, but paid it no mind as the electrically-charged lightshow came to a conclusion.
Ishamel, not skipping a beat, quickly raised Rass' arm and took careful aim. A series of calculations and formulas flashed across Rass' eyes faster than he could process them as the targeting subsystem went straight to work. INITIALIZING CORNSHOT ROUTINES — CALCULATING RICOCHET ANGLES! shouted Ishamel, OPTIMAL ANGLE OF ATTACK IS 43.45 DEGREES TO THE NORTHWEST, FIRED WITH 73% THRUST! A PROJECTILE FIRED AT SUCH AN ANGLE WILL RICOCHET AND STRIKE THE DESIRED TARGETS! With that, a verdant blast of cornshot energy flashed forward toward the ground, exploding in a burst of popping kernels and wood-type energy.
Argo, for his part, made an obnoxious sound as he tore away, evasively flying the rassboard across the field. Whatever, he muttered to Argo, But for all your mathematical mumbo-jumbo, you STILL can't count to ten. Idiot. Suien'll back me up here. HE knows that there's somethin' over there. Right, Suien? Right?
-*-
*Fusionist Physics — Knockback HntedCandleEXA below the catwalk
*Fusionist Physics — Knockback HntedCandleEXB below the catwalk
1: Airshot leap onto Catwalk
2: Seazone Catwalk (Create large area sea panels, aim to turn metal catwalk into water and drop sea panels onto HntedCandleEXA and B and possibly TwinsA and TwinsB, (Aqua panelshot damage?), possibly transforming ground to sea panels in the process)
3: Masterpiece Rassboard (20+35 HP Object, 1-hit shield, 2 tactical movements)
*Rassboard: Move away from SeaZoned catwalk
4: ElecReel1 to Mettfire, SpidyA, SpidyB if catwalk doesn't fall, to all on ground if catwalk falls (80 ElecDamage, To all ground, Damage x2 if sea panels.)
5: Cornshot1 to KillerEye (50 Wood damage, 100 weakness), Trick Shot to Cirkill(50 Wood damage)
*Rassboard — Assist prepped dodge
6: Prepped Dodge
Suien stared at his two colleagues in horror, having just opened the bathroom door only to be met with a wall of cannabis smoke that caused the netOp to sputter and cough. Sure enough, the dark-haired netOp's suspicions had been confirmed: Chuckles had gone ahead and hotboxed the room. HIS room.
"Relax, man, it's only the bathroom. &%$#ing chill out," replied Chuckles, motioning to the toilet to his right, You've gotta $%&@ing admit — you OWE me this. You caused me a lot of stress, and I need this sort of relief. Helps me keep things funny and $%&@, yeah? So just chill the %$#@ out and join us — this is what NetVegas is all about, man!"
Joey, having been long-exposed to the hazy narcotic, simply threw what was apparently some sort of gang sign with his fingers and nodded lazily at Suien.
"Wh...What the hell are you talking about?!" stammered a disbelieving Suien, entering the bathroom and shutting the door quietly as not to disturb his bedmate, "I guess breaking the law is what NetVegas is all about? Last I checked, it was illegal to even possess the stuff, much less do something like this! Get that stuff out of here so we can start cleaning up!"
"For the last %$&#ing time Masters, chill the $#%& out. You're totally killing the high." growled Chuckles, though with significantly less venom than before, "Maybe you didn't hear me the first time, but here in NetVegas, this is how we roll. Geez, you'd think someone who did what you did last night would have some $%#&ing balls."
"That's the thing, I DON'T remember what happened last night!" protested Suien, coughing as he gestured to his PET, "and my efforts at figuring out what DID happen last night? They're not going so well — to the point where hotboxing my bathroom isn't the most constructive endeavor. We're already doing enough illegal stuff as it is."
"First of all, if we're already doing illegal stuff, what's one more thing? It won't matter if the boys in blue catch us blazin' or you hacking that security camera — we're in deep &%$% if we're caught, so don't %$&#ing get caught," said Chuckles, "Secondly, what the $%#& is there to say about last night? Seems pretty $#%&ing simple to me. You got drunk. You went to my circus. You stole my unicycle, AND the show with your juggling act. You saw some tramp. You took her to your room. You woke up hungover. Easy. Now sit down, relax, have a $%#&ing joint, enjoy my hospitality, and wait until your $%&$# wakes up so you can pay her."
Suien would probably have protested, but the marijuana smoke was making him lightheaded. Squinting his eyes and covering his mouth, he opened the door once more. "Just... keep it in here, okay?" he coughed.
-*-
Gyahah, now this is my idea of a challenge, smirked Argo, taking note of the oncoming viruses that quickly surrounded Rass' position, Tem, do you have the point scan data? What sort of fighting index are we lookin' at?
You know, all four of us have access to the protoplasm's scanning equipment, so if you ever feel like not being lazy, be my guest, quipped Tem, As a matter of fact, the scans were completed fifteen seconds ago. We're looking at six viral units, four different types.
Eh? Are you sure? asked Argo, Ain't like you to miss something like that, Tem, but I count seven viruses, five types.
Tem was incredulous. Argo, the point scans clearly indicate six viruses. I don't know where you learned to count, but I can definitively tell you that whatever value your two-bit brain spits out is not going to be more accurate than the R.A.S.S. scanners."
AGREED, SUBSYSTEM TEM! chimed in Ishamel, SPECULATION EXISTS THAT SUBSYSTEM ARGO IS MALFUNCTIONING. SCANNERS CORRECTLY INDICATE SIX VIRAL THREATS. ANY OTHERS ARE LIKELY ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE POOR EYESIGHT OF A MELEE-RANGE SUBSYSTEM!
If I wanted your opinion, I would have asked for it, laser brain! snarled Argo, Though from where I'm standing, all of you are malfunctioning. There's clearly something over there, even if it's not being picked up on the scanner. Or on optics. Or on... just... I mean... it's there! Something tells me there's a seventh! Shut up!
Wait a minute, you may be right. muttered Tem as the Mettfire and Spidy viruses slithered into view on the precarious catwalk above, In fact, I'm detecting an additional three viruses for a total of nine viral signatures.
No, now there are ten viruses protested Argo, You're still missing that one on our level! You see it, don't you Rasshole?
Rass had no idea what Argo was talking about, but did not want to risk aggravating his melee subsystem. "I... er... well..." he stammered, "I mean, the s-scanners don't feel like they're broken, but I... I guess m-maybe there could be s-something over there?"
Before Argo could respond, however, Suien's voice broke into the navi's radio feed. "If you four are done with your mathematics lesson, perhaps it would be best to focus on the problem at hand," he said, his face popping up on a screen near Rass' position, "The viruses here are exhibiting a higher degree of tactical coordination, and they control the higher ground — you're not going to be able to beat them in a straight battle."
Hmph, finally got around to acting like an operator Suien? Took you long enough, muttered Tem, But I suppose I should be thankful that you're actually taking an interest in our welfare. However, I have already prepared a suitable combat routine that would allow us to wrest control of the high ground away from the viruses and begin our assault from there.
Suien bristled visibly, but retained his cool in the face of Tem's cutting insult. "We would tax your system resources beyond an acceptable level trying to capture the high ground from the viruses here. Our best bet is to try to eliminate their advantage altogether." said Suien, adjusting his glasses with one hand while revealing a quartet of battlechips with the other, "I'm uploading a few old favorites, but do you think you can handle the SeaZone? You haven't used it extensively, so it might be a bit tough on the 3L3M processor and..."
The SeaZone? That'll make us sitting ducks for the viruses up above! interrupted Tem.
"That's why we're not activating it on the lower level — we're turning that catwalk to water!"
-*-
Was that really necessary, Tem? Going after Suien like that? thought Rass as he loosed two blasts of kinetic energy from his rubbery protoplasm, He's really trying his best to make us as good as we can be. We should probably not be so hard on him. It's not like he means to be so busy all the time. The twin bursts barreled toward the flaming viruses dead ahead, aimed to launch them beneath the silvery catwalk overhead. We could give him a break, can't we?
Rass, you already know what my opinion is on your leadership, but I would *expect* that a netOp has certain standards he is obliged to meet, she said simply, initializing the airshot routines and channeling yet another burst of compressed air through Rass' lower body, I am merely speculating that Suien's performance does not fall within those parameters.
Rass didn't like where Tem's answer was going, but decided that there were more important concerns. Steeling his sinewy legs for the impact, Rass crouched down, collected the wind beneath his feet, and pressed off of the ground. There was a resounding crack as the pink navi was launched upward into the air, surging at breakneck speeds toward the precarious catwalk above. Rass could have sworn he felt his stomach sink into his chest, but as it turns out, the sensation was only Argo spiraling into the 3L3M sensor and giving it a quick charge. Rass landed hard on the catwalk, feeling slightly lightheaded from the trip and scrambling to his feet. Taking a nervous step backwards from the cloaked virus, the fusion navi gulped and began charging an aquatic force between his fingers. The azure energy fluctuated wildly as it struggled to escape his grasp, but Rass managed to hold on, balling his hands into fists and thrusting both of them into the ground. Instantly, a pulse of blue light exploded skyward, pulsating through the catwalk with the force of a tsunami and channeling the full force of the fusion navi's elemental processors into the network.
"The ElecReel1 battlechip's on it's way!" said Suien, sliding in the goldenrod chip into the PET, "Though by now, I suppose I don't need to tell you what to do with it. We've got ten viral signatures, and ideally, they'll all be on the ground level by now."
Right, right, I'm just glad you're actually paying attention to us this time. Just upload the stupid chip and we'll do the thinking for you. scowled Tem.
Geez, Tem, you're a bit testy today, grumbled Argo, And besides, at least Suien can count properly. Even he knows that there's definitely ten of them down there.
Hmph. Just focus on making sure we don't end up a splat on the network, she sneered, We're going to be freefalling in a few microseconds, after all.
Sure enough, as the SeaZone chip began to work its magic, Rass quickly leaped off the fluctuating catwalk, trading the iron catwalk for the open air. For an instant, things were peaceful and quiet as the fusion navi lingered in the air — at the apex of his leap — before plummeting downward. Stay focused, Rass! shouted Tem, as the green, surfboard-shaped wireframe took form in front of his body, Argo's taking command of ITEM-2, and Ishamel's working the targetting systems, so just concentrate on staying on board.
"Y...Yeah," nodded Rass as bursts of protoplasm exited his body and poured into the wireframe transport, "Staying on t-top of things. I can d-do that."
Tem seemed to scoff, but retreated into the fusion navi's legs anyways. As Rass plummeted toward the ground, a burst of green light and the roar of rocket engines erupted forth. The rassboard, with Argo at the helm, surged to life and scooped Rass up, aiming to save the small pink navi from a painful run-in with artificial gravity. The high g-forces of the maneuver coupled with the salty spray of the SeaZone chip made it difficult to see exactly what was going on below, but fortunately for Rass, the ElecReel battlechip was fully charged the instant ITEM-2 had burst into being. A luminous thunderstorm of yellow and white erupted from his fingertips, the high-voltage tendrils assaulting the ground with speed and power. Rass could smell a strange scent of ozone as his elemental processors overclocked themselves and rapidly adjusted for the sudden drain in energy, but paid it no mind as the electrically-charged lightshow came to a conclusion.
Ishamel, not skipping a beat, quickly raised Rass' arm and took careful aim. A series of calculations and formulas flashed across Rass' eyes faster than he could process them as the targeting subsystem went straight to work. INITIALIZING CORNSHOT ROUTINES — CALCULATING RICOCHET ANGLES! shouted Ishamel, OPTIMAL ANGLE OF ATTACK IS 43.45 DEGREES TO THE NORTHWEST, FIRED WITH 73% THRUST! A PROJECTILE FIRED AT SUCH AN ANGLE WILL RICOCHET AND STRIKE THE DESIRED TARGETS! With that, a verdant blast of cornshot energy flashed forward toward the ground, exploding in a burst of popping kernels and wood-type energy.
Argo, for his part, made an obnoxious sound as he tore away, evasively flying the rassboard across the field. Whatever, he muttered to Argo, But for all your mathematical mumbo-jumbo, you STILL can't count to ten. Idiot. Suien'll back me up here. HE knows that there's somethin' over there. Right, Suien? Right?
-*-
*Fusionist Physics — Knockback HntedCandleEXA below the catwalk
*Fusionist Physics — Knockback HntedCandleEXB below the catwalk
1: Airshot leap onto Catwalk
2: Seazone Catwalk (Create large area sea panels, aim to turn metal catwalk into water and drop sea panels onto HntedCandleEXA and B and possibly TwinsA and TwinsB, (Aqua panelshot damage?), possibly transforming ground to sea panels in the process)
3: Masterpiece Rassboard (20+35 HP Object, 1-hit shield, 2 tactical movements)
*Rassboard: Move away from SeaZoned catwalk
4: ElecReel1 to Mettfire, SpidyA, SpidyB if catwalk doesn't fall, to all on ground if catwalk falls (80 ElecDamage, To all ground, Damage x2 if sea panels.)
5: Cornshot1 to KillerEye (50 Wood damage, 100 weakness), Trick Shot to Cirkill(50 Wood damage)
*Rassboard — Assist prepped dodge
6: Prepped Dodge
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After knocking the two HauntedCandles underneath the catwalk, Rass landed on top of it with no problems, and immediately tried to turn the entire thing to water. Which...worked out for the most part, as water spread out across the entire surface cut into the metal plates of the catwalk, but did not drop it to the lower level. Rather, it created something similar to an overflowing aqueduct, with water flowing across the top and running down each side, creating two lines of puddles with the space in between acting almost as a shadow to the upper level. The HauntedCandles were trapped in the strip in between and didn't seem to like it too much, which they made evident by launching twin attacks that...did nothing as the flames utterly failed to reach high enough to touch the navi.
The Mettfire encountered a similar problem as it found itself waterlogged and unable to teleport in time before Rass pushed away on ITEM-2 and electrified the catwalk-now-aqueduct. Worse still for the viruses, the electricity followed the water running over the side and fried the Spidys on the underside as well.
Unfortunately, this was about the end of Rass's good fortune as he turned a Cornshot chip on the eye virus that had appeared and fired...only for a monolith of stone with a monstrous face to appear out of nowhere and prove Argo right, meanwhile blocking the brunt of the attack. It spread to the eye anyway, thus still ensuring its deletion, but went no farther than that. The stone virus disappeared again as soon as this happened, while the remaining three opened fire on Rass. The fusion navi dodged the CirKill's shot, but could do nothing about the Twins both locking on and hitting him.
The tiled black ground, meanwhile, lit up again before deciding on a spiral pattern of lava ending just before the overflowing water, with the rest remaining as it was.
___
---Enemies---
-To Left:-
CirKill: 60 HP (On Lava)
-To Right:-
KillerEye: DELETED
-Behind:-
TwinsA: 100 HP (On Normal)
TwinsB: 100 HP (On Normal)
-Ahead:-
HntedCandleEXA: 150 HP (On Normal) (Between strips of Sea)
HntedCandleEXB: 150 HP (On Normal) (Between strips of Sea)
Dominerd: 99 HP (Invis)
-Underside of Catwalk-
SpidyA: DELETED
SpidyB: DELETED
-On Top of Catwalk-
Mettfire: DELETED
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 60 HP (on Rassboard)
---Objects---
Rassboard: 55 HP (on Normal, at center of spiral)
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 15% Sea (In two strips on either side of catwalk), 35% Lava (spiral pattern beginning next to Rass and ending next to nearest strip of Sea), 50% Normal (Everywhere else)
Upper Level: 10% Metal (catwalk), 90% Missing (everything else)
The Mettfire encountered a similar problem as it found itself waterlogged and unable to teleport in time before Rass pushed away on ITEM-2 and electrified the catwalk-now-aqueduct. Worse still for the viruses, the electricity followed the water running over the side and fried the Spidys on the underside as well.
Unfortunately, this was about the end of Rass's good fortune as he turned a Cornshot chip on the eye virus that had appeared and fired...only for a monolith of stone with a monstrous face to appear out of nowhere and prove Argo right, meanwhile blocking the brunt of the attack. It spread to the eye anyway, thus still ensuring its deletion, but went no farther than that. The stone virus disappeared again as soon as this happened, while the remaining three opened fire on Rass. The fusion navi dodged the CirKill's shot, but could do nothing about the Twins both locking on and hitting him.
The tiled black ground, meanwhile, lit up again before deciding on a spiral pattern of lava ending just before the overflowing water, with the rest remaining as it was.
___
---Enemies---
-To Left:-
CirKill: 60 HP (On Lava)
-To Right:-
KillerEye: DELETED
-Behind:-
TwinsA: 100 HP (On Normal)
TwinsB: 100 HP (On Normal)
-Ahead:-
HntedCandleEXA: 150 HP (On Normal) (Between strips of Sea)
HntedCandleEXB: 150 HP (On Normal) (Between strips of Sea)
Dominerd: 99 HP (Invis)
-Underside of Catwalk-
SpidyA: DELETED
SpidyB: DELETED
-On Top of Catwalk-
Mettfire: DELETED
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 60 HP (on Rassboard)
---Objects---
Rassboard: 55 HP (on Normal, at center of spiral)
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 15% Sea (In two strips on either side of catwalk), 35% Lava (spiral pattern beginning next to Rass and ending next to nearest strip of Sea), 50% Normal (Everywhere else)
Upper Level: 10% Metal (catwalk), 90% Missing (everything else)
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There! I told you! I freaking TOLD you idiots that there was a tenth virus! I knew it! Now look what happened! roared Argo as he supported the wounded Rass aboard ITEM-2, See? I'm not just a "stupid melee system!" I've got better eyes than your stupid %$&%ing scanners! "Oh, let's just ignore stupid old Argo because he only knows how to fist!" That's a motherboard-$#%$ing load of...
Will you shut up, Argo?! I'm TRYING to fix this! yelled Tem, Structural integrity of the Fusionist Protoplasm is at 60% operating capacity, but the fusion module is completely offline! I'm going to reroute power from the core to the protoplasm, but I... I don't think it's going to help much. The blue support system cursed as a loud buzzing sound signified an error with Rass' core module. Dammit... if that idiot Suien hadn't gone and messed up Rass' core systems, we'd be able to restore balance to the protoplasm easily. Now it's a challenge to get him to even *move* after taking an attack like that.
Rass' left arm muscle spasmed as the fusionist core began to reroute energies throughout the body. The fusion navi groaned as his ocular sensors adjusted themselves, slowly clearing away the static caused by the last attack. Something smelled like it was burning, and Rass' torso was covered in black, sticky fluid, but he managed with some difficulty to struggle to his feet aboard the Rassboard. Weakly clutching his chest with one hand and ignoring the burning in his lungs, the small black-and-pink navi brought his free hand to his ear and opened up communications with the real world. "S-S-Suien? I... I think I've been injured," he muttered, "H...Help?"
-*-
Suien's eyes widened at his PET display as entire segments of Rass' wireframe suddenly went from green to red. Cursing, he unfolded the PET keyboard in a single swift motion and began hammering out a series of commands. 40% reduction in system integrity? Those viruses managed to do quite a number on Rass. he thought, biting his lower lip as he sifted through a series of files and command lines, Of course, it didn't help that his scanners failed to pick up the residual data on the Dominerd virus. I'll have to get that checked out next time I run a system diagnostic... but now's not the time to worry about stuff like that. As the PET screen displayed yet another project file he had been preparing, Suien continued to frown as he began to insert new lines of code into the already-complex document. I had hoped to further refine this program before uploading it to Rass... but I suppose now's not the time for...
Suien?! SUIEN! Paging Mr. Matsumoto! yelled Tem's sarcastic voice, I suppose you're too busy to care, but in case you haven't noticed, your netnavi needs some support!
The dark-haired netOp frowned and furrowed his brow. "Just a second, Tem. I'll upload something that'll allow you to resolve the situation. Just hold on," he said, "It'll be done in just a second."
Hold on? HOLD ON? Suien, we're getting killed down here carrying out your half-wit schemes while using your half-wit strategies! What on EARTH could you be working on that's more important than us? Honestly, the way you function, I'd say we'd be better off ROGUE than stuck with someone like you!
Suien froze.
-*-
Geez Tem... that was a bit too harsh, doncha think? asked Argo, his eyes looking upward at Rass from the nosecone of ITEM-2, I mean... I know he ain't the best operator around, but going rogue... that's a bit much.
"Y...Yeah," added Rass, coughing as he warily eyed the viral horde, "I... I mean... S-Suien takes care of us, right? R-Remember Sharo? H-He's the only one who b-bothered to take us in and understand us."
Tem was too proud to admit her mistakes, but she felt a tinge of guilt as Suien grew silent on the other end of the radio. F... Feh, she spat, hoping she sounded more confident than she felt, Looks like he's not going to be responding. I suppose that means I have the command here. It's just as well. My superior tactics will be able to prevail in any situation. This included.
Suddenly, a surge of black electricity arced across Rass' body, causing the protoplasm to buck and spasm. Instead of feeling a burning pain, however, the fusion navi felt a refreshing coolness rush over his inky black body. The burns and tears in the protoplasm instantly began to fill with dark fluid as his skin began to rapidly mend itself. "This is what I was working on, Tem. It's not yet fully complete, so be prepared for a few glitches, but I think I managed to reverse-engineer the recovery routines that your fusionist core was emulating before. It functions by using object data to rebuild the protoplasm around you using the constructive energies of the fusionist core while siphoning the excess protoplasm into a malleable shell" said Suien flatly, "I have every bit of confidence that you will use it to its full potential." As Suien briefly disconnected communications to riffle through chips, Rass gazed in wonder at his fully-restored form, giving his hardened flesh an experimental poke before crouching onto the Rassboard and assuming a combat position. "Th...Thanks S-Suien," he said, "S-Systems are all green and online!"
"Five battlechips heading your way," said Suien, ignoring Rass as he slotted in each in turn, "The Dominerd virus is going to be trouble if we don't take care of it quick, but we've only got one shot at taking it down. I'm sending you the Aurahead battlechip, which should be able to pierce its defenses. If that fails, however, we're in for a long battle. Use another chip as a decoy if you have to, but make sure you hit that virus.
Tem, still too proud to apologize, curtly responded. Acknowledged, she said simply, Executing battle routines.
-*-
Sighing dejectedly, Suien entered the bathroom once more, closed the toilet lid, and seated himself on the porcelain throne. Placing his PET and a few spare battlechips on the counter. As soon as he heard Tem chirp Executing battle routines he turned down the volume and motioned to Chuckles. "I think," he said, extending his arm to the clown, "I'll have that joint now, thanks."
Chuckles looked at him, frowned, and shook his head. "No can do, pal. I heard you out there getting yelled at. You ain't got what it takes to enjoy this $%&#. Trust me on this one."
Suien balked. "Wh-What? Just a minute ago you offered me a smoke! Now you go and say I can't handle it?" he demanded, "I don't care anymore, just give me the stupid joint and let's be done with it!"
"That ain't what I'm talking about, kid. I've got no doubt you can physically handle the stuff, but you don't got the right attitude about these things." replied Chuckles, "It's one thing not care about doin' illegal #$%#. That's what I'm talking about. It's another thing to do illegal $%#% to not care. That's what we call denial... and truth is, boy, you do care about somethin' — and It's eatin' away at you like a bad habit." The NetVegas performer smirked and shook his head, his eyes now red from the cannabis exposure, "It's a girl, ain't it? Come on Masters, don't $%#@ with me."
The dark-haired netOp stared at Chuckles with a look of disbelief. Did this ridiculous vulgar clown just say something insightful, or is the secondhand weed driving me crazy? he thought. With another sigh, Suien nodded his head. "I mean... besides the fact that my navi now hates me. That's a pretty big burden. But I guess when you boil everything down... yeah, it comes down to that girl. A stupid crush that I can't seem to kick," he said, "But then, it's hopeless with her. I mean it's illegal for one thing, and it's just... a complicated relationship. Friendship. Whatever."
Chuckles laughed — a deep guffaw that, to Suien, shed a great deal of light as to why so many people have a phobia for clowns. "Trust me, I've been there. I know what that's all about," said the clown. Suien doubted it, but said nothing, allowing Chuckles to continue. "True, it's illegal. True, it's frowned upon. And true, it ain't something a lot of folks take too kindly to cause it's pervy and kind of gross to want to $#%& someone so much smaller than you." Suien winced as the clown kept talking. "But man, sometimes they seem like real women yeah? So %$#&ing much that you can just imagine taking them by their little waists and..."
"Okay, okay... I get it," said Suien, unsure whether it was Chuckles or the marijuana haze that was making him sick to his stomach, "Just... it's not about %$&%ing or anything physical even. It's the amount of passion and spirit she exhibits, you know? It's stupid, but maybe I should just tell her how I feel. You know, get myself out of this... this mess."
The clown nodded sagely, taking another drag from his joint. "Yep. Feelings. Great," he said, somewhat disinterested, "Oh, and hey, I heard that there are these places in ElecTown that cater exactly to that sorta thing you're into. Fully-interactive holographic projections. Just the thing for you and your navi to have that night you're pining over. She sounded like a real %$&$# just now, but I can dig. You must have programmed her like that, you dirty Electopian."
Suien stared at Chuckles, completely and utterly confused by his latest suggestion. One incredibly awkward pause later, it dawned on him, "Wait, you thought I was talking about Tem?"
-*-
SUPPORT SYSTEM TEM! IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOU REESTABLISH POSITIVE SUPPORT WITH OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO! shouted Ishamel, OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO POSSESSES A NUMBER OF USEFUL SKILLS THAT WORK TO A MUTUAL ADVANTAGE. ADDITIONALLY, THERE IS A LOW THRESHOLD OF SUCCESS FOR THE PROPOSED PATHWAY OF SUPPORT SYSTEM TEM, DESIGNATION, QUOTE, "GOING ROGUE" ENDQUOTE. FINALLY, OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO MAKES SEVERAL PURCHASES ON OUR BEHALF, WHICH INCREASES OUR FUNCTIONALITY. THE FOREGOING REASONS DEMONSTRATE A NEED TO MAINTAIN ACCEPTABLE STANDARDS OF COOPERATION WITH OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO
Geez, a bit late to the whining party, Ishamel? Argo and Rass already said their piece, growled Tem, So *maybe* I overreacted a little bit. Fine, shut up. I'll deal with Suien when this is over. Right now, you all should be focusing on luring that stupid invisible virus into the open. On that note, Rass, what the hell are you doing?! Be more convincing!
Rass, who had been struggling to stay aboard his floating platform, was doing his best to do a convincing aiming position. His right arm fully-extended and palm outstretched, the fusion navi made it painfully obvious that he was charging a very volatile packet of chip data through his buster units. His hand glowed white with concussive force, slightly adjusting the alignment as the Rassboard traversed back and forth. "I... I don't know, Tem. D-Do you really think this is going to work?" he asked, "I m-mean... what if it doesn't take the bait."
We don't have a whole lot to go off of, she said, We know it's on the ground somewhere because of its last appearance, and we know that its primary directive programming is to defend other viruses from attack. Knowing these two facts, it's only logical that it would go out of its way to protect against an obvious attack.
Rass gulped and nodded, before turning his attention once more to the oncoming viruses. Argo, fully in control of ITEM-2, continued his traverse as the fusion navi continued to hold his arm extended toward the HntdCandle viruses. "H-H-HEY! STUPID CANDLE UGLYFACES!" he shouted, "T-TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE!"
Argo groaned at the ineptness of Rass' insults, but moved quickly to absorb the recoil as Rass sent a high-velocity volley of energy toward the two flaming viruses. There was a powerful crack as the gun battlechip unloaded its ammunition in a single burst of power. Anticipating the Dominerd's next move, the fusion navi spun around on his axis, bringing up one of the newest and deadliest weapons in his arsenal. The ivory alien skull pulsed with a terrible energy, its bonecrushing force barely contained within the wrist-mounted launcher. Without missing a beat, Rass spun and fired the skeletal projectile down the long pathway, aiming to reduce the invisible demonic wall to rubble and extinguish the flaming HntdCandles for good. The Aurahead tore down the center pathway, screaming as it went and leaving Rass with a rather unsettling feeling as he recovered from the maneuver.
Thrusting both arms forward in a quick motion, Rass began charging yet another attack within his palmbuster units. The 3L3M system roared to life, channeling bursts of elemental energy — this time a brilliant azure — and allowing it to collect on the surface of Rass' weary palms. Bits of water collected and dripped from the tips of his fingers, as the bubbler battlechip reached its optimal level of charge. This time aided by Ishamel's targeting routines and a roar of CEASE WASTING TIME, CORE SYSTEM! FIRE AQUATIC PROJECTILE NOW!, Rass discharged the sudsy weapon with a resounding crack. Sending a jet of high-pressure water toward his opponents, Rass shielded his eyes as the bubbles exploded outward, making confirmation of the hit utterly impossible, but forcing him backwards all the same. Using the rotational velocity of the attack, Rass forced himself around, extending his arms once more and discharging a burst of cannon fire toward the CirKill virus to his left. The massive cannon shot left his targeting system drained for a moment, but a burst of code and complex equations across his optical sensors signified a quick reboot.
We aren't done yet, Rasshole! Get a move on! shouted Argo from the Rassboard, swiftly turning the floating platform 180 degrees to face the additional viruses to the rear, Tem, how's he doing on system resources? I'm burning on about 50% capacity here!
System resources are at about 30% and keeping steady — and for the record, I can't remember the last time you actually cared about our system integrity. What gives? asked Tem, steeling Rass' legs as the fusion navi fumbled with the ElecSword battlechip, It's not exactly like you to care about the tactical allocation of resources.
Argo responded by pushing the Rassboard as hard as it would go, streaking toward the two Twins viruses to Rass' rear. Rass gulped, triple-checked the energy output on his ElecSword, nodded to himself, and crouched down as he closed the distance between the pair of mechanical viruses. Two blasts of compressed air later, the fusion navi spring from the Rassboard, brandishing the electric-element blade on his right arm. A brilliant arc of light sliced through the network, tracing a luminous circular path as Rass landed hard in a crouching position. He panted, barely audible above the hum of the ElecSword, but did not dare to look back.
"D...Did that work?" he asked, to nobody in particular.
1: Fusion Restorer *Masterwork* (Heal for 45, Create 25+35 HP Casing around Rass)
*Rassboard: Tactical Move — Hover menacingly, make it look like Rass is aiming for HntdCandleA
2: Shotgun (50 Damage, Spread) toward HntdCandleA, aim to get Dominerd to appear
3: Aurahead1 toward Dominerd (when/if it appears), HntdCandleA, HntdCandleB (90 + Break + Line Attack + Aura Boost. 180 to Dominerd due to breaking attack against Stonebody status)
4: Bubbler (50 Damage, 100 Aqua Weakness, Spread) toward HntdCandleA, Spread to HntdCandleB
5: HiCannon (80, Knockback) to CirKill
*Rassboard: Tactical Move — Move Rass toward TwinsA and TwinsB
*Fusionist Protoplasm — Knockback TwinsA into water, attempt to throw off next attack
*Fusionist Protoplasm — Knockback TwinsB into water, attempt to throw off next attack
6: ElecSword to TwinsA and TwinsB (80 Elec, 160 if on water)
Will you shut up, Argo?! I'm TRYING to fix this! yelled Tem, Structural integrity of the Fusionist Protoplasm is at 60% operating capacity, but the fusion module is completely offline! I'm going to reroute power from the core to the protoplasm, but I... I don't think it's going to help much. The blue support system cursed as a loud buzzing sound signified an error with Rass' core module. Dammit... if that idiot Suien hadn't gone and messed up Rass' core systems, we'd be able to restore balance to the protoplasm easily. Now it's a challenge to get him to even *move* after taking an attack like that.
Rass' left arm muscle spasmed as the fusionist core began to reroute energies throughout the body. The fusion navi groaned as his ocular sensors adjusted themselves, slowly clearing away the static caused by the last attack. Something smelled like it was burning, and Rass' torso was covered in black, sticky fluid, but he managed with some difficulty to struggle to his feet aboard the Rassboard. Weakly clutching his chest with one hand and ignoring the burning in his lungs, the small black-and-pink navi brought his free hand to his ear and opened up communications with the real world. "S-S-Suien? I... I think I've been injured," he muttered, "H...Help?"
-*-
Suien's eyes widened at his PET display as entire segments of Rass' wireframe suddenly went from green to red. Cursing, he unfolded the PET keyboard in a single swift motion and began hammering out a series of commands. 40% reduction in system integrity? Those viruses managed to do quite a number on Rass. he thought, biting his lower lip as he sifted through a series of files and command lines, Of course, it didn't help that his scanners failed to pick up the residual data on the Dominerd virus. I'll have to get that checked out next time I run a system diagnostic... but now's not the time to worry about stuff like that. As the PET screen displayed yet another project file he had been preparing, Suien continued to frown as he began to insert new lines of code into the already-complex document. I had hoped to further refine this program before uploading it to Rass... but I suppose now's not the time for...
Suien?! SUIEN! Paging Mr. Matsumoto! yelled Tem's sarcastic voice, I suppose you're too busy to care, but in case you haven't noticed, your netnavi needs some support!
The dark-haired netOp frowned and furrowed his brow. "Just a second, Tem. I'll upload something that'll allow you to resolve the situation. Just hold on," he said, "It'll be done in just a second."
Hold on? HOLD ON? Suien, we're getting killed down here carrying out your half-wit schemes while using your half-wit strategies! What on EARTH could you be working on that's more important than us? Honestly, the way you function, I'd say we'd be better off ROGUE than stuck with someone like you!
Suien froze.
-*-
Geez Tem... that was a bit too harsh, doncha think? asked Argo, his eyes looking upward at Rass from the nosecone of ITEM-2, I mean... I know he ain't the best operator around, but going rogue... that's a bit much.
"Y...Yeah," added Rass, coughing as he warily eyed the viral horde, "I... I mean... S-Suien takes care of us, right? R-Remember Sharo? H-He's the only one who b-bothered to take us in and understand us."
Tem was too proud to admit her mistakes, but she felt a tinge of guilt as Suien grew silent on the other end of the radio. F... Feh, she spat, hoping she sounded more confident than she felt, Looks like he's not going to be responding. I suppose that means I have the command here. It's just as well. My superior tactics will be able to prevail in any situation. This included.
Suddenly, a surge of black electricity arced across Rass' body, causing the protoplasm to buck and spasm. Instead of feeling a burning pain, however, the fusion navi felt a refreshing coolness rush over his inky black body. The burns and tears in the protoplasm instantly began to fill with dark fluid as his skin began to rapidly mend itself. "This is what I was working on, Tem. It's not yet fully complete, so be prepared for a few glitches, but I think I managed to reverse-engineer the recovery routines that your fusionist core was emulating before. It functions by using object data to rebuild the protoplasm around you using the constructive energies of the fusionist core while siphoning the excess protoplasm into a malleable shell" said Suien flatly, "I have every bit of confidence that you will use it to its full potential." As Suien briefly disconnected communications to riffle through chips, Rass gazed in wonder at his fully-restored form, giving his hardened flesh an experimental poke before crouching onto the Rassboard and assuming a combat position. "Th...Thanks S-Suien," he said, "S-Systems are all green and online!"
"Five battlechips heading your way," said Suien, ignoring Rass as he slotted in each in turn, "The Dominerd virus is going to be trouble if we don't take care of it quick, but we've only got one shot at taking it down. I'm sending you the Aurahead battlechip, which should be able to pierce its defenses. If that fails, however, we're in for a long battle. Use another chip as a decoy if you have to, but make sure you hit that virus.
Tem, still too proud to apologize, curtly responded. Acknowledged, she said simply, Executing battle routines.
-*-
Sighing dejectedly, Suien entered the bathroom once more, closed the toilet lid, and seated himself on the porcelain throne. Placing his PET and a few spare battlechips on the counter. As soon as he heard Tem chirp Executing battle routines he turned down the volume and motioned to Chuckles. "I think," he said, extending his arm to the clown, "I'll have that joint now, thanks."
Chuckles looked at him, frowned, and shook his head. "No can do, pal. I heard you out there getting yelled at. You ain't got what it takes to enjoy this $%&#. Trust me on this one."
Suien balked. "Wh-What? Just a minute ago you offered me a smoke! Now you go and say I can't handle it?" he demanded, "I don't care anymore, just give me the stupid joint and let's be done with it!"
"That ain't what I'm talking about, kid. I've got no doubt you can physically handle the stuff, but you don't got the right attitude about these things." replied Chuckles, "It's one thing not care about doin' illegal #$%#. That's what I'm talking about. It's another thing to do illegal $%#% to not care. That's what we call denial... and truth is, boy, you do care about somethin' — and It's eatin' away at you like a bad habit." The NetVegas performer smirked and shook his head, his eyes now red from the cannabis exposure, "It's a girl, ain't it? Come on Masters, don't $%#@ with me."
The dark-haired netOp stared at Chuckles with a look of disbelief. Did this ridiculous vulgar clown just say something insightful, or is the secondhand weed driving me crazy? he thought. With another sigh, Suien nodded his head. "I mean... besides the fact that my navi now hates me. That's a pretty big burden. But I guess when you boil everything down... yeah, it comes down to that girl. A stupid crush that I can't seem to kick," he said, "But then, it's hopeless with her. I mean it's illegal for one thing, and it's just... a complicated relationship. Friendship. Whatever."
Chuckles laughed — a deep guffaw that, to Suien, shed a great deal of light as to why so many people have a phobia for clowns. "Trust me, I've been there. I know what that's all about," said the clown. Suien doubted it, but said nothing, allowing Chuckles to continue. "True, it's illegal. True, it's frowned upon. And true, it ain't something a lot of folks take too kindly to cause it's pervy and kind of gross to want to $#%& someone so much smaller than you." Suien winced as the clown kept talking. "But man, sometimes they seem like real women yeah? So %$#&ing much that you can just imagine taking them by their little waists and..."
"Okay, okay... I get it," said Suien, unsure whether it was Chuckles or the marijuana haze that was making him sick to his stomach, "Just... it's not about %$&%ing or anything physical even. It's the amount of passion and spirit she exhibits, you know? It's stupid, but maybe I should just tell her how I feel. You know, get myself out of this... this mess."
The clown nodded sagely, taking another drag from his joint. "Yep. Feelings. Great," he said, somewhat disinterested, "Oh, and hey, I heard that there are these places in ElecTown that cater exactly to that sorta thing you're into. Fully-interactive holographic projections. Just the thing for you and your navi to have that night you're pining over. She sounded like a real %$&$# just now, but I can dig. You must have programmed her like that, you dirty Electopian."
Suien stared at Chuckles, completely and utterly confused by his latest suggestion. One incredibly awkward pause later, it dawned on him, "Wait, you thought I was talking about Tem?"
-*-
SUPPORT SYSTEM TEM! IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOU REESTABLISH POSITIVE SUPPORT WITH OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO! shouted Ishamel, OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO POSSESSES A NUMBER OF USEFUL SKILLS THAT WORK TO A MUTUAL ADVANTAGE. ADDITIONALLY, THERE IS A LOW THRESHOLD OF SUCCESS FOR THE PROPOSED PATHWAY OF SUPPORT SYSTEM TEM, DESIGNATION, QUOTE, "GOING ROGUE" ENDQUOTE. FINALLY, OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO MAKES SEVERAL PURCHASES ON OUR BEHALF, WHICH INCREASES OUR FUNCTIONALITY. THE FOREGOING REASONS DEMONSTRATE A NEED TO MAINTAIN ACCEPTABLE STANDARDS OF COOPERATION WITH OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO
Geez, a bit late to the whining party, Ishamel? Argo and Rass already said their piece, growled Tem, So *maybe* I overreacted a little bit. Fine, shut up. I'll deal with Suien when this is over. Right now, you all should be focusing on luring that stupid invisible virus into the open. On that note, Rass, what the hell are you doing?! Be more convincing!
Rass, who had been struggling to stay aboard his floating platform, was doing his best to do a convincing aiming position. His right arm fully-extended and palm outstretched, the fusion navi made it painfully obvious that he was charging a very volatile packet of chip data through his buster units. His hand glowed white with concussive force, slightly adjusting the alignment as the Rassboard traversed back and forth. "I... I don't know, Tem. D-Do you really think this is going to work?" he asked, "I m-mean... what if it doesn't take the bait."
We don't have a whole lot to go off of, she said, We know it's on the ground somewhere because of its last appearance, and we know that its primary directive programming is to defend other viruses from attack. Knowing these two facts, it's only logical that it would go out of its way to protect against an obvious attack.
Rass gulped and nodded, before turning his attention once more to the oncoming viruses. Argo, fully in control of ITEM-2, continued his traverse as the fusion navi continued to hold his arm extended toward the HntdCandle viruses. "H-H-HEY! STUPID CANDLE UGLYFACES!" he shouted, "T-TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE!"
Argo groaned at the ineptness of Rass' insults, but moved quickly to absorb the recoil as Rass sent a high-velocity volley of energy toward the two flaming viruses. There was a powerful crack as the gun battlechip unloaded its ammunition in a single burst of power. Anticipating the Dominerd's next move, the fusion navi spun around on his axis, bringing up one of the newest and deadliest weapons in his arsenal. The ivory alien skull pulsed with a terrible energy, its bonecrushing force barely contained within the wrist-mounted launcher. Without missing a beat, Rass spun and fired the skeletal projectile down the long pathway, aiming to reduce the invisible demonic wall to rubble and extinguish the flaming HntdCandles for good. The Aurahead tore down the center pathway, screaming as it went and leaving Rass with a rather unsettling feeling as he recovered from the maneuver.
Thrusting both arms forward in a quick motion, Rass began charging yet another attack within his palmbuster units. The 3L3M system roared to life, channeling bursts of elemental energy — this time a brilliant azure — and allowing it to collect on the surface of Rass' weary palms. Bits of water collected and dripped from the tips of his fingers, as the bubbler battlechip reached its optimal level of charge. This time aided by Ishamel's targeting routines and a roar of CEASE WASTING TIME, CORE SYSTEM! FIRE AQUATIC PROJECTILE NOW!, Rass discharged the sudsy weapon with a resounding crack. Sending a jet of high-pressure water toward his opponents, Rass shielded his eyes as the bubbles exploded outward, making confirmation of the hit utterly impossible, but forcing him backwards all the same. Using the rotational velocity of the attack, Rass forced himself around, extending his arms once more and discharging a burst of cannon fire toward the CirKill virus to his left. The massive cannon shot left his targeting system drained for a moment, but a burst of code and complex equations across his optical sensors signified a quick reboot.
We aren't done yet, Rasshole! Get a move on! shouted Argo from the Rassboard, swiftly turning the floating platform 180 degrees to face the additional viruses to the rear, Tem, how's he doing on system resources? I'm burning on about 50% capacity here!
System resources are at about 30% and keeping steady — and for the record, I can't remember the last time you actually cared about our system integrity. What gives? asked Tem, steeling Rass' legs as the fusion navi fumbled with the ElecSword battlechip, It's not exactly like you to care about the tactical allocation of resources.
Argo responded by pushing the Rassboard as hard as it would go, streaking toward the two Twins viruses to Rass' rear. Rass gulped, triple-checked the energy output on his ElecSword, nodded to himself, and crouched down as he closed the distance between the pair of mechanical viruses. Two blasts of compressed air later, the fusion navi spring from the Rassboard, brandishing the electric-element blade on his right arm. A brilliant arc of light sliced through the network, tracing a luminous circular path as Rass landed hard in a crouching position. He panted, barely audible above the hum of the ElecSword, but did not dare to look back.
"D...Did that work?" he asked, to nobody in particular.
1: Fusion Restorer *Masterwork* (Heal for 45, Create 25+35 HP Casing around Rass)
*Rassboard: Tactical Move — Hover menacingly, make it look like Rass is aiming for HntdCandleA
2: Shotgun (50 Damage, Spread) toward HntdCandleA, aim to get Dominerd to appear
3: Aurahead1 toward Dominerd (when/if it appears), HntdCandleA, HntdCandleB (90 + Break + Line Attack + Aura Boost. 180 to Dominerd due to breaking attack against Stonebody status)
4: Bubbler (50 Damage, 100 Aqua Weakness, Spread) toward HntdCandleA, Spread to HntdCandleB
5: HiCannon (80, Knockback) to CirKill
*Rassboard: Tactical Move — Move Rass toward TwinsA and TwinsB
*Fusionist Protoplasm — Knockback TwinsA into water, attempt to throw off next attack
*Fusionist Protoplasm — Knockback TwinsB into water, attempt to throw off next attack
6: ElecSword to TwinsA and TwinsB (80 Elec, 160 if on water)
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((Actually, unless it works completely different outside of sig effects, break doesn't do double damage against body effects. Just full damage. Other staff feel free to correct me on this, of course.))
As if by some miracle, the plan worked. After healing himself, Rass rode the hoverboard toward the HauntedCandles, doing his best impression of 'menacing'. Granted, it wasn't much, but as soon as he opened fire, the stone shield appeared once again, positioning itself directly in the way of the blast. Like last time, the spread of the shot hit the candle behind it for minor damage, but the real hurt came when he launched the glowing skull of the Aurahead at it and both of the candles. The chip ran through both the Dominerd and the originally targeted candle, but missed the second by mere inches.
The bad news of this was that, as beaten up as it looked by this point, the Dominerd wasn't yet dead. It vanished into the air again, leaving no trace but the chipped pieces of stone where it had floated as it took the hit. It was about this point where the black-tiled terrain began to change again. The lava spiral and the lines of water began to glow white.
Meanwhile, Rass aimed again and launched a stream of bubbles at the candles. This time it did hit both targets, but without the hit on one of them from the aurahead, only one of them was deleted. The second retaliated by summoning a large spire of flame under Rass, the result of which being the destruction of ITEM-2. Rass himself was saved from what would have been a near-fatal hit by the board, but at the cost of flinging him halfway across the battlefield. He managed to get off a shot and destroy the CirKill before landing...conveniently where he wanted to go in the first place.
Though there was no sea on that side of the field to knock them into, Rass did manage to knock them back into the glowing tiles, which were apparently no longer lava by this point that they didn't half-melt upon touching it. He even managed to throw off one of the shots, but only one, as the second still hit him. He retaliated with an ElecSword slash.
The terrain finished changing, leaving no more lava or sea terrain. The water, still flowing down from the catwalk-turned aqueduct above, now disappeared before it reached the ground, and the only difference from the marked black tiles was a bizarre pattern of grass.
Or perhaps not so bizarre. If Rass were to see it from above, the pattern of grass would read "Ha Ha!"
It seemed the battlefield itself was mocking him.
More serious, however, the navi's scanners would pick up a sinister presence directly behind him.
___
---Enemies---
-To Left:-
CirKill: DELETED
-To Right:-
KillerEye: DELETED
-Behind:-
TwinsA: 20 HP (On Grass)
TwinsB: 20 HP (On Grass)
-Ahead:-
HntedCandleEXA: DELETED
HntedCandleEXB: 50 HP (On Grass) (Under catwalk)
Dominerd: 8 HP (Attacking) (Directly behind Rass)
-Underside of Catwalk-
SpidyA: DELETED
SpidyB: DELETED
-On Top of Catwalk-
Mettfire: DELETED
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 80 HP (On Grass) (in front of Twins)
---Objects---
Rassboard: Destroyed
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 40% Grass (Pattern reading "Ha Ha!" stretching from the Twins to just past the catwalk), 60% Normal (everywhere else)
Upper Level: 10% Sea (catwalk/aqueduct), 90% Missing (everything else)
As if by some miracle, the plan worked. After healing himself, Rass rode the hoverboard toward the HauntedCandles, doing his best impression of 'menacing'. Granted, it wasn't much, but as soon as he opened fire, the stone shield appeared once again, positioning itself directly in the way of the blast. Like last time, the spread of the shot hit the candle behind it for minor damage, but the real hurt came when he launched the glowing skull of the Aurahead at it and both of the candles. The chip ran through both the Dominerd and the originally targeted candle, but missed the second by mere inches.
The bad news of this was that, as beaten up as it looked by this point, the Dominerd wasn't yet dead. It vanished into the air again, leaving no trace but the chipped pieces of stone where it had floated as it took the hit. It was about this point where the black-tiled terrain began to change again. The lava spiral and the lines of water began to glow white.
Meanwhile, Rass aimed again and launched a stream of bubbles at the candles. This time it did hit both targets, but without the hit on one of them from the aurahead, only one of them was deleted. The second retaliated by summoning a large spire of flame under Rass, the result of which being the destruction of ITEM-2. Rass himself was saved from what would have been a near-fatal hit by the board, but at the cost of flinging him halfway across the battlefield. He managed to get off a shot and destroy the CirKill before landing...conveniently where he wanted to go in the first place.
Though there was no sea on that side of the field to knock them into, Rass did manage to knock them back into the glowing tiles, which were apparently no longer lava by this point that they didn't half-melt upon touching it. He even managed to throw off one of the shots, but only one, as the second still hit him. He retaliated with an ElecSword slash.
The terrain finished changing, leaving no more lava or sea terrain. The water, still flowing down from the catwalk-turned aqueduct above, now disappeared before it reached the ground, and the only difference from the marked black tiles was a bizarre pattern of grass.
Or perhaps not so bizarre. If Rass were to see it from above, the pattern of grass would read "Ha Ha!"
It seemed the battlefield itself was mocking him.
More serious, however, the navi's scanners would pick up a sinister presence directly behind him.
___
---Enemies---
-To Left:-
CirKill: DELETED
-To Right:-
KillerEye: DELETED
-Behind:-
TwinsA: 20 HP (On Grass)
TwinsB: 20 HP (On Grass)
-Ahead:-
HntedCandleEXA: DELETED
HntedCandleEXB: 50 HP (On Grass) (Under catwalk)
Dominerd: 8 HP (Attacking) (Directly behind Rass)
-Underside of Catwalk-
SpidyA: DELETED
SpidyB: DELETED
-On Top of Catwalk-
Mettfire: DELETED
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 80 HP (On Grass) (in front of Twins)
---Objects---
Rassboard: Destroyed
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 40% Grass (Pattern reading "Ha Ha!" stretching from the Twins to just past the catwalk), 60% Normal (everywhere else)
Upper Level: 10% Sea (catwalk/aqueduct), 90% Missing (everything else)
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Rass staggered to his feet, shaken up by the relentless pounding his protoplasmic body had sustained. Despite the fact that he had begun leaking fluid again and the hardened shell lay in useless fragments at his feet, however, Rass found himself in remarkably good condition. Sure, his ocular sensors were a little bit fuzzy, and there was this persistent ringing in his ears that he couldn't quite get out... but it wasn't anything he couldn't deal with.
Argo, meanwhile, was not nearly so lucky. As the Rassboard exploded in a burst of crimson flame, the melee subsystem flew forward in a bolt of green light and slammed straight into the Rass' chest, knocking the wind out of the fusion navi as he reintegrated himself into the fusion core. Without warning, however, Rass suddenly felt his muscles tense as an areagrab battlechip rapidly assimilated itself through his core. The displacement subroutines of the teleportation technique initialized in an instant. "W...Wait, Argo!" protested Rass, feeling Argo's presence reintegrate spread throughout every joint and muscle of his body, "W-W-What are you..."
Scanners, Rasshole! Use them! roared Argo, triggering the teleport and warping to a location several feet above their original position. Had Rass been programmed to eat, he likely would have been sick from the jerking jolt that launched him skyward. As Rass reappeared in a burst of light, he felt his upward momentum shift, pressing his lower body back and over into a neat frontflip. Argo, now in command of the fusion frame, wasted no time in charging the ElecSword full of luminous electric energy. The light blue blade crackled with electricity as Argo's advanced melee subroutines took control, regulating the beam output and bringing the blade in alignment with Rass' rotation. As the fusion navi completed his flip, he brought the Elecsword downward, aimed to deliver a crushing blow to the attacking Dominerd virus. Rass landed, panting from exertion, but found himself taking a step backwards and delivering a second slash upward and diagonally toward the still-surviving Twins viruses. The pulsating ElecSword scored the network, leaving a scent of ozone as a brilliant arc-shaped afterimage pierced the air.
Cripes Rasshole, take care of your damn body! growled Argo, There's a reason why we've got scanners in this shell, so why not put them to freaking use? Honestly, every freaking time Suien gets you an upgrade, you act as though you're some kind of wonderboy. Good thing you've got us around to counter your total... wussitude.
Rass, for his part, felt awful enough to nod his head and simply accept Argo's belittlement. As Argo carelessly disengaged the ElecSword and tossed the deactivated data to the side, he took the moment to glare upward at the core system from his chest. Geez, and grow a spine too, Rasshole, he grumbled, There's no fun in making fun of you if you just sit there and take it.
-*-
"...and the MarkCannon should finish things up," said Suien to nobody in particular as he slid the final battlechip into his PET, "Not that it matters terribly. Tem seems to be hell bent on the idea that they're better off without me."
I dunno, homeboy. You should probably just talk to her anyways though. offered Joey, The clown might not be interested in talkin' to girls about your problems, but I think it can't really hurt, ya know? Especially if you're in the virus bustin' business — strong friendships with your navi are crucial, yo.
"Joey, I'm not in love with my navi!" was Suien's exasperated reply, "My problems with my navi's subsystem personalities are completely separate from my... admittedly abysmal love life." The dark-haired netOp shook his head sadly, "Granted, neither seems to be going very well at the moment. Call it a cruel trick of fate, or maybe just a lack of just... getting out, but I haven't really been able to meet the kind of girls I'm interested in, you know?"
"Heh, by the looks of things, though, you're not really in the business of meeting girls at all, if you catch my drift. I don't care what Chuckles says, that dude's a dude in there." said Joey.
Suien, doubtful, nevertheless looked toward the open bathroom door with apprehension. "I... I don't know. I'm pretty sure I don't have any latent homosexuality lurking beneath the surface, but honestly, I don't think I could have been *that* drunk last night," he said, rubbing his chin in thought, "Still, I suppose bedding a guy would be better than smuggling some 17-year-old to NetVegas and climbing into bed with her. Better gay than illegal, right?"
"That ain't true at all, boy, and you know it. Women, %$&%ing women is where it's at, and don't you forget it!" said Chuckles, "but you ain't got nothing to worry about — that's definitely a woman in there. Trust me, I can tell these things. It's part of being a %&$%ing clown, you know?"
-*-
Ishamel's single yellow eye glowed bright as it locked onto the remaining HauntedCandle. The waxy fire-element virus glistened in the artificial NetVegas lighting as Rass took aim, zeroing in the crosshairs upon his opponent. With a resounding crack, the pink-and-black navi let loose a barrage of cannon fire, the high-accuracy blast roaring across the network at breakneck speeds. As Rass gritted his teeth and absorbed the kickback, however, he noticed that instead of retreating into his gemstone, Ishamel had slid up his arm and into his right shoulder. CORE SYSTEM, whispered Ishamel, as quietly as his robotic voice would allow, SUPPORT SYSTEM TEM APPEARS TO BE ACTING UNDER THE FLAWED ASSUMPTION THAT OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO WILL ATTEMPT TO ADMIT HIS ERROR AND NEGATE HER IMPERATIVE TO OFFER AN APOLOGY. OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO HAS NOT CONTACTED US, DESPITE NUMEROUS BATTLECHIP UPLOADS. ERGO, INITIALIZING APOLOGY ROUTINES TOWARD OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO IS IN ORDER. SUPPORT SYSTEM ISHAMEL BELIEVES THAT GOING ROGUE IS A LOSING PROPOSITION.
"I... I know Tem's b-being unreasonable, Ishamel, and I don't like the idea of going r-rogue any more than you do," whispered Rass, "but maybe... m-maybe this'll all blow over if we ignore it...?" The fusion navi steeled his legs and glanced around the network, wary of any oncoming threats and prepared to take evasive action should the situation warrant.
-*-
1: Areagrab teleport immediately above current location, attempt to dodge/place self in a position to counter Dominerd's attack
2: Counter w/ ElecSword (80 Damage, Elec) Dominerd, TwinsA, TwinsB
3: ElecSword (80 Damage, Elec) TwinsA and TwinsB
4: MarkCannon1 (70 Damage) to HntdCandleEX
5: Prepped Dodge, Assisted w/ fusionist physics knockback
6: Prepped Dodge, Assisted w/ fusionist physics knockback
Argo, meanwhile, was not nearly so lucky. As the Rassboard exploded in a burst of crimson flame, the melee subsystem flew forward in a bolt of green light and slammed straight into the Rass' chest, knocking the wind out of the fusion navi as he reintegrated himself into the fusion core. Without warning, however, Rass suddenly felt his muscles tense as an areagrab battlechip rapidly assimilated itself through his core. The displacement subroutines of the teleportation technique initialized in an instant. "W...Wait, Argo!" protested Rass, feeling Argo's presence reintegrate spread throughout every joint and muscle of his body, "W-W-What are you..."
Scanners, Rasshole! Use them! roared Argo, triggering the teleport and warping to a location several feet above their original position. Had Rass been programmed to eat, he likely would have been sick from the jerking jolt that launched him skyward. As Rass reappeared in a burst of light, he felt his upward momentum shift, pressing his lower body back and over into a neat frontflip. Argo, now in command of the fusion frame, wasted no time in charging the ElecSword full of luminous electric energy. The light blue blade crackled with electricity as Argo's advanced melee subroutines took control, regulating the beam output and bringing the blade in alignment with Rass' rotation. As the fusion navi completed his flip, he brought the Elecsword downward, aimed to deliver a crushing blow to the attacking Dominerd virus. Rass landed, panting from exertion, but found himself taking a step backwards and delivering a second slash upward and diagonally toward the still-surviving Twins viruses. The pulsating ElecSword scored the network, leaving a scent of ozone as a brilliant arc-shaped afterimage pierced the air.
Cripes Rasshole, take care of your damn body! growled Argo, There's a reason why we've got scanners in this shell, so why not put them to freaking use? Honestly, every freaking time Suien gets you an upgrade, you act as though you're some kind of wonderboy. Good thing you've got us around to counter your total... wussitude.
Rass, for his part, felt awful enough to nod his head and simply accept Argo's belittlement. As Argo carelessly disengaged the ElecSword and tossed the deactivated data to the side, he took the moment to glare upward at the core system from his chest. Geez, and grow a spine too, Rasshole, he grumbled, There's no fun in making fun of you if you just sit there and take it.
-*-
"...and the MarkCannon should finish things up," said Suien to nobody in particular as he slid the final battlechip into his PET, "Not that it matters terribly. Tem seems to be hell bent on the idea that they're better off without me."
I dunno, homeboy. You should probably just talk to her anyways though. offered Joey, The clown might not be interested in talkin' to girls about your problems, but I think it can't really hurt, ya know? Especially if you're in the virus bustin' business — strong friendships with your navi are crucial, yo.
"Joey, I'm not in love with my navi!" was Suien's exasperated reply, "My problems with my navi's subsystem personalities are completely separate from my... admittedly abysmal love life." The dark-haired netOp shook his head sadly, "Granted, neither seems to be going very well at the moment. Call it a cruel trick of fate, or maybe just a lack of just... getting out, but I haven't really been able to meet the kind of girls I'm interested in, you know?"
"Heh, by the looks of things, though, you're not really in the business of meeting girls at all, if you catch my drift. I don't care what Chuckles says, that dude's a dude in there." said Joey.
Suien, doubtful, nevertheless looked toward the open bathroom door with apprehension. "I... I don't know. I'm pretty sure I don't have any latent homosexuality lurking beneath the surface, but honestly, I don't think I could have been *that* drunk last night," he said, rubbing his chin in thought, "Still, I suppose bedding a guy would be better than smuggling some 17-year-old to NetVegas and climbing into bed with her. Better gay than illegal, right?"
"That ain't true at all, boy, and you know it. Women, %$&%ing women is where it's at, and don't you forget it!" said Chuckles, "but you ain't got nothing to worry about — that's definitely a woman in there. Trust me, I can tell these things. It's part of being a %&$%ing clown, you know?"
-*-
Ishamel's single yellow eye glowed bright as it locked onto the remaining HauntedCandle. The waxy fire-element virus glistened in the artificial NetVegas lighting as Rass took aim, zeroing in the crosshairs upon his opponent. With a resounding crack, the pink-and-black navi let loose a barrage of cannon fire, the high-accuracy blast roaring across the network at breakneck speeds. As Rass gritted his teeth and absorbed the kickback, however, he noticed that instead of retreating into his gemstone, Ishamel had slid up his arm and into his right shoulder. CORE SYSTEM, whispered Ishamel, as quietly as his robotic voice would allow, SUPPORT SYSTEM TEM APPEARS TO BE ACTING UNDER THE FLAWED ASSUMPTION THAT OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO WILL ATTEMPT TO ADMIT HIS ERROR AND NEGATE HER IMPERATIVE TO OFFER AN APOLOGY. OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO HAS NOT CONTACTED US, DESPITE NUMEROUS BATTLECHIP UPLOADS. ERGO, INITIALIZING APOLOGY ROUTINES TOWARD OPERATOR UNIT SUIEN MATSUMOTO IS IN ORDER. SUPPORT SYSTEM ISHAMEL BELIEVES THAT GOING ROGUE IS A LOSING PROPOSITION.
"I... I know Tem's b-being unreasonable, Ishamel, and I don't like the idea of going r-rogue any more than you do," whispered Rass, "but maybe... m-maybe this'll all blow over if we ignore it...?" The fusion navi steeled his legs and glanced around the network, wary of any oncoming threats and prepared to take evasive action should the situation warrant.
-*-
1: Areagrab teleport immediately above current location, attempt to dodge/place self in a position to counter Dominerd's attack
2: Counter w/ ElecSword (80 Damage, Elec) Dominerd, TwinsA, TwinsB
3: ElecSword (80 Damage, Elec) TwinsA and TwinsB
4: MarkCannon1 (70 Damage) to HntdCandleEX
5: Prepped Dodge, Assisted w/ fusionist physics knockback
6: Prepped Dodge, Assisted w/ fusionist physics knockback
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The crushing iron jaws of the Dominerd clamped down on...absolutely nothing, as Rass, controlled by Argo, vanished from in front of it, only to reappear directly above and finish it with a slash of the elecsword. He then finished off the Twins with a second slash, then locked onto the remaining HauntedCandle and shot it into oblivion as well.
Even with all the viruses deleted, however, the ever-shifting, smartass terrain didn't seem to think it was done. The grass vanished back into black panels, which sprung to life once again in the form of an arrow of Holy panels, pointing forward under the catwalk. It blinked a few times, then those panels went inert as well. Was Rass supposed to go that way?
Then again, this was the same terrain that laughed at him for falling off the Rassboard, so maybe not.
___
---Enemies---
<ALL DELETED>
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 80 HP (On Normal)
---Objects---
Rassboard: Destroyed
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 100% Normal
Upper Level: 10% Sea (catwalk/aqueduct), 90% Missing (everything else)
VICTORY
GET: 2800z, Sensor1
Even with all the viruses deleted, however, the ever-shifting, smartass terrain didn't seem to think it was done. The grass vanished back into black panels, which sprung to life once again in the form of an arrow of Holy panels, pointing forward under the catwalk. It blinked a few times, then those panels went inert as well. Was Rass supposed to go that way?
Then again, this was the same terrain that laughed at him for falling off the Rassboard, so maybe not.
___
---Enemies---
<ALL DELETED>
---Not Enemies (Hopefully)---
RASS.EXE: 80 HP (On Normal)
---Objects---
Rassboard: Destroyed
---Terrain---
Lower Level: 100% Random (Changes every turn. Changes are not necessarily uniform.)
--Currently: 100% Normal
Upper Level: 10% Sea (catwalk/aqueduct), 90% Missing (everything else)
VICTORY
GET: 2800
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Hmph, that was tougher than it really needed to be, grumbled Argo as Rass got to his feet and gingerly dusted himself off, You'd be wise to learn, Rasshole, that in the end, it was good old-fashioned Melee techniques that saved the day. You can chalk one up for Argo!
...
Argo swirled into existence on Rass' chest, looking upward at Rass suspiciously. Geez, no snide remarks? No deflating ridicule? You must be stunned speechless by my supreme level of beatdownage! he laughed, Seriously, where the heck would you guys be without me? Up a damn creek, that's for sure! Hyahahah! Or maybe at the bottom of some... er... bottomless hole! A bottomless Rasshole!
"Argo," said Rass suddenly, "D-Do you think we should apologize to Suien?"
Argo looked taken aback, What? The hell should I know?! he growled, I mean, I know *I* didn't do anything wrong. It's all Tem's fault anyways.
"R-Right... b-but aren't you always telling me to grow a backbone and take r-responsibility? Isn't it my fault that I c-can't control you guys better?" asked Rass, absorbing a packet of battlechip and zenny data before absentmindedly walking in the direction indicated by the holy panels on the ground. Had he been less distracted, Rass might have thought something was strange about the terrain teasing him and telling him which direction to go. As it stood, however, the fusion navi naively carried forth deeper into the network.
Argo paused for a moment before appearing to sigh, sinking deeper into Rass' torso. Rasshole, Suien ain't a bad guy... but if you keep blamin' yourself for what you are, you're always gonna be a pussy little pink thing! he said sagely, Also, you know as well as I do that you can't control us. You don't got the brains or the talent, but that ain't your fault. So like I said, you're lucky to have me around... Rasshole.
Rass looked confused for a moment, but upon realizing that Argo had simply failed to give him a straight, or even a coherent answer, he shrugged his shoulders and continued onward. His thought processors overclocked themselves evaluating the relative merits of apologizing on Tem's behalf, but were nonetheless unable to arrive at a satisfactory conclusion.
(Battle 5)
...
Argo swirled into existence on Rass' chest, looking upward at Rass suspiciously. Geez, no snide remarks? No deflating ridicule? You must be stunned speechless by my supreme level of beatdownage! he laughed, Seriously, where the heck would you guys be without me? Up a damn creek, that's for sure! Hyahahah! Or maybe at the bottom of some... er... bottomless hole! A bottomless Rasshole!
"Argo," said Rass suddenly, "D-Do you think we should apologize to Suien?"
Argo looked taken aback, What? The hell should I know?! he growled, I mean, I know *I* didn't do anything wrong. It's all Tem's fault anyways.
"R-Right... b-but aren't you always telling me to grow a backbone and take r-responsibility? Isn't it my fault that I c-can't control you guys better?" asked Rass, absorbing a packet of battlechip and zenny data before absentmindedly walking in the direction indicated by the holy panels on the ground. Had he been less distracted, Rass might have thought something was strange about the terrain teasing him and telling him which direction to go. As it stood, however, the fusion navi naively carried forth deeper into the network.
Argo paused for a moment before appearing to sigh, sinking deeper into Rass' torso. Rasshole, Suien ain't a bad guy... but if you keep blamin' yourself for what you are, you're always gonna be a pussy little pink thing! he said sagely, Also, you know as well as I do that you can't control us. You don't got the brains or the talent, but that ain't your fault. So like I said, you're lucky to have me around... Rasshole.
Rass looked confused for a moment, but upon realizing that Argo had simply failed to give him a straight, or even a coherent answer, he shrugged his shoulders and continued onward. His thought processors overclocked themselves evaluating the relative merits of apologizing on Tem's behalf, but were nonetheless unable to arrive at a satisfactory conclusion.
(Battle 5)
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The black tiles continued as Rass made his way deeper into the security network, until up ahead of him a wall rose, and above him several more catwalk passages crossed. The catwalks seemed to be conveniently positioned to obscure something on a raised platform in the middle of them. The wall, meanwhile, was made up of similar tiles to the ground below him. Rather than smart remarks out of terrain, however, this wall occasionally displayed actual images on each, looking suspiciously like security feeds.
As if noticing his approach, however, they all went blank again. Back on the ground, a lava tile flashed into existence several tiles ahead, then disappeared, cuing one closer to turn to lava, and then the next, continuing right up to Rass and...stopping right next to him.
From somewhere above him, a voice snickered, then said something that sounded like "I love my job."
As if noticing his approach, however, they all went blank again. Back on the ground, a lava tile flashed into existence several tiles ahead, then disappeared, cuing one closer to turn to lava, and then the next, continuing right up to Rass and...stopping right next to him.
From somewhere above him, a voice snickered, then said something that sounded like "I love my job."
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Rass, stay alert. There seems to be some sort of network disturbance going on here. I've got a bad feeling about this muttered Tem, swirling into existence onto Rass' right shoulder, The dynamic nature of the terrain doesn't display any readings on the point scanner, but we can't ignore the probability that a threat exists here.
Heh, good to see you're finally recognizing the importance of not relying on scanners. Only tools rely on tools like that. laughed Argo, Obviously we've stumbled on some sorta... living terrain! Some truly monstrous network... monster. Rass flinched at the idea of the massive NetVegas network, opening up and swallowing his rubbery frame whole, and was about to suggest jacking out when Tem scoffed.
You're an idiot, Argo, she said, The network's not alive. That's just ridiculous. Somebody... or something... is obviously controlling it. I'd suggest that it's an automated AI program, but the inefficient manner of operation seems to suggest something a little bit more... malicious. Tem seemed to narrow her eyes, looking suspiciously between the wall of still images and the catwalks above. Her gaze lingered on the top catwalk for a while before spiraling down Rass' body into his legs. Rass, relinquish mobility control for a moment. Our scanners can't pick up any data signatures from here. We'll need to get a closer look.
Rass didn't hear Tem's command. He was busy watching the lone lava panel slowly making its approach along the darkened network. The fusion navi took a nervous step backwards as the molten panel appeared right in front of him. As the fire-element panel remained innocuously close, Rass leaned in for a closer look, curiously examining the mysterious tile. That's when he heard it.
Rass immediately bolted to attention, his full focus now upon the catwalk overhead. This lapse of concentration was all that Tem required to seize control of Rass' limbs and bolt away from the lava panel, traversing the blackened battlefield as she broke toward the upcoming wall. As the tactical subsystem weaved and moved, Rass couldn't help but notice that she did not lecture him on the dangers of terrain or berate him for not recognizing the danger. Skidding to a halt near the pitch-black barrier, Rass gazed up at the ceiling, squinting his eyes as he tried to identify the source of the taunt. Before his eyes could focus, however, Tem's presence possessed his vocal chords and vibrated them to suit her purposes. "You there! Are you the controller of the camera data?! I am the netnavi of a private investigator retained by a confidential party, designation SpectrumMan.EXE!" Rass heard himself say, "If you are the correct party to speak to, we require the use of your equipment as part of an ongoing investigation. Please relinquish any video data from the previous night, or be prepared to suffer the consequences."
Rass, stunned by Tem's audacity, could only direct his confusion toward the tactical subsystem. SpectrumMan? That's... That's... That's not going to work! he thought, Why on earth would we want a codename like that?
What Suien is doing is undoubtedly shady, if not outright criminal. We are trespassing on secure networked property, and are encountering what may be a system administrator for this sector. replied Tem, in a voice only audible in the depths of Rass' mind, An alias will help preserve anonymity and throw off any agents looking to incriminate our netOp. I'm trying to... to protect Suien the best I can, so kindly allow me to do the talking.
Rass nodded. Tem was always so smart. With that, the fusion navi leaped up toward the wall, unfolding his legs as he pressed off of the slick, black surface and directed his angular thrust toward the tiled barrier. Turning in mid air, he pressed hard against the wall and sprung upwards even higher, attempting to maneuver himself up to the catwalks above...
1: Tactical move — avoid lava panel
2: Address source of the noise
3: Tactical move — attempt to climb up to one of the upper catwalks
4-6: Reserved for dodging
Heh, good to see you're finally recognizing the importance of not relying on scanners. Only tools rely on tools like that. laughed Argo, Obviously we've stumbled on some sorta... living terrain! Some truly monstrous network... monster. Rass flinched at the idea of the massive NetVegas network, opening up and swallowing his rubbery frame whole, and was about to suggest jacking out when Tem scoffed.
You're an idiot, Argo, she said, The network's not alive. That's just ridiculous. Somebody... or something... is obviously controlling it. I'd suggest that it's an automated AI program, but the inefficient manner of operation seems to suggest something a little bit more... malicious. Tem seemed to narrow her eyes, looking suspiciously between the wall of still images and the catwalks above. Her gaze lingered on the top catwalk for a while before spiraling down Rass' body into his legs. Rass, relinquish mobility control for a moment. Our scanners can't pick up any data signatures from here. We'll need to get a closer look.
Rass didn't hear Tem's command. He was busy watching the lone lava panel slowly making its approach along the darkened network. The fusion navi took a nervous step backwards as the molten panel appeared right in front of him. As the fire-element panel remained innocuously close, Rass leaned in for a closer look, curiously examining the mysterious tile. That's when he heard it.
Quote ()
From somewhere above him, a voice snickered, then said something that sounded like "I love my job."
Rass immediately bolted to attention, his full focus now upon the catwalk overhead. This lapse of concentration was all that Tem required to seize control of Rass' limbs and bolt away from the lava panel, traversing the blackened battlefield as she broke toward the upcoming wall. As the tactical subsystem weaved and moved, Rass couldn't help but notice that she did not lecture him on the dangers of terrain or berate him for not recognizing the danger. Skidding to a halt near the pitch-black barrier, Rass gazed up at the ceiling, squinting his eyes as he tried to identify the source of the taunt. Before his eyes could focus, however, Tem's presence possessed his vocal chords and vibrated them to suit her purposes. "You there! Are you the controller of the camera data?! I am the netnavi of a private investigator retained by a confidential party, designation SpectrumMan.EXE!" Rass heard himself say, "If you are the correct party to speak to, we require the use of your equipment as part of an ongoing investigation. Please relinquish any video data from the previous night, or be prepared to suffer the consequences."
Rass, stunned by Tem's audacity, could only direct his confusion toward the tactical subsystem. SpectrumMan? That's... That's... That's not going to work! he thought, Why on earth would we want a codename like that?
What Suien is doing is undoubtedly shady, if not outright criminal. We are trespassing on secure networked property, and are encountering what may be a system administrator for this sector. replied Tem, in a voice only audible in the depths of Rass' mind, An alias will help preserve anonymity and throw off any agents looking to incriminate our netOp. I'm trying to... to protect Suien the best I can, so kindly allow me to do the talking.
Rass nodded. Tem was always so smart. With that, the fusion navi leaped up toward the wall, unfolding his legs as he pressed off of the slick, black surface and directed his angular thrust toward the tiled barrier. Turning in mid air, he pressed hard against the wall and sprung upwards even higher, attempting to maneuver himself up to the catwalks above...
1: Tactical move — avoid lava panel
2: Address source of the noise
3: Tactical move — attempt to climb up to one of the upper catwalks
4-6: Reserved for dodging
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"Hah?" the voice asked as Tem's voice spoke from below. "Did you clear it with the staff? Only I don't have it listed that anyone else would be here while I was doing maintenance."
As Rass jumped up the wall and onto the catwalks above, he saw the source of the voice, a male navi in a blue maintenance worker's outfit, a hat worn...sideways...and carrying a large camera hefted over one shoulder. He was faced toward the wall Rass had just climbed typing on a holographic keyboard projected over a large console.
"Nope, no SpectrumMan here," the navi said.
As Rass jumped up the wall and onto the catwalks above, he saw the source of the voice, a male navi in a blue maintenance worker's outfit, a hat worn...sideways...and carrying a large camera hefted over one shoulder. He was faced toward the wall Rass had just climbed typing on a holographic keyboard projected over a large console.
"Nope, no SpectrumMan here," the navi said.