I Kotobuki, it weighed 28.3 ounces

So far, so good. But some things didn't change...she knew it was going to happen sooner or later, but Divina still winced as the Spooky met its demise from the skies. Death-or rather, deletion in this case-was just not something she cared for. And yet, if it wasn't inflicted on this group of malcontents, the ones that had established themselves as benevolent would face it themselves. Killing, just to avoid getting others killed...what a cruel irony.

Fortunately, the goddess had the sense to not get too lost in her thoughts, as she eyed the rat-shaped bomb turning to try and hit her again. She had an idea, however, using the enemy viruses' own tricks against them. It was a very simple idea; she hovered over to the FlashBomb, and got behind it, so that if the Ratton sped towards her, it wouldn't be able to hit her without hitting the bang first. If she was lucky, that would be it...but what if it wasn't? She looked down at her staff, and started to power a bit of energy into its head...then, once it was clear whether the rodent based attack would hit it or not, whacked the bomb (or where it was, or possibly even a spot near the bomb), to try and ensure its destruction. It was the closest thing to battlefield violence she'd ever so much as attempted...

Even though it was only an inanimate object she'd struck, she moved back slightly, distancing herself from the recent event. She...didn't really like how that felt. If she didn't have to do it again any time soon, that'd be great. She was more than happy to leave her fiery friends the task of actually bringing harm to their foes. "...That's about all the offense I have to bring to the table...and if I had to do that to any of the others...no thank you. Still, give 'em heck, you guys!" If only because they were far better at it than she was. At least they were unharmed, and seemed to be in no obvious danger of such...that was worth some peace of mind. Enough that she could instead concentrate on avoid attacks, instead of worrying.

[Order of Turn:
1-Get FlashBomb between Divina and Ratty attack (Movement)
2-Buster charge
3-Half-charged buster attack on FlashBomb (20)
4-Dodge]
Hesitant to get her divine hands dirty, Divina did her best to turn the forces of the enemy against themselves. For a moment, it looked like it was going to work, too, but the tricky, skittering path of the launched ratton zig-zaged around the flash bomb on its way to its target, missing it by a hair. It seemed to be on course for the Goddess, but she managed to get out of its way, causing the missile to spiral off and fizzle as it ran out of power.

Meanwhile, the Ratty that had launched it scuttled in closer to its master, and proceeded to release a new missile, this time at the swordy that was harassing them. Still preparing for his next attack, the ever-watchful swordy would have been hit, if not for Divina's shield. It caught the projectile neatly, the small explosion making the shield shake, before the veteran responded swiftly, warping to the small rat virus and stabbing with its blade. It was a long strike, and the Swordy had been clever enough to position it so that the blade passed through and caught the BigHat off guard as well. with an itate cry, the hatted virus reeled away, then swiftly delved in its pockets, looking for another flash.

Divina was busy trying to safely dispose of the first one, but her inexperience with violence was showing; her pure bolt of light energy missed the stationary flash bang completely, scoring across the lava nearby instep with little effect. A moment late,r the flash itself detonated, searing the entire area with a blinding light. Oddly enough, however, the flash didn't seem to have any effect at all on the viruses, regardless of their allegiance — Divina herself was thus the only one rendered dazed, stunned and blinded by the light. The BigHat chuckled and finally found another bomb, throwing it out to replace the first.

Ever slow off the mark, the Heavy had wound itself up to have another go, teleporting to the other side this time in an effort to side-swipe Divina and the aged MettFire again. The older virus was busy blowing on his staff; apparently it wasn't ready to go again yet, and though he tried to dodge the careening virus at the last moment, he wasn't fast enough. Luckily, even with its heavy impact, the barrier Divina had provided him earlier was enough to protect him from harm. for her own part, Divina also avoided the heavy weight's surprisingly accurate ram; whether by divine providence or blind luck, she managed to get out of its way, even through her dazzled state.

Seeing its chance, the Spooky cackled and teleported up to Divina, aiming to give her an indecently thorough licking... somehow, though, it's flailing tongue missed her as well, and she remained unmolested, for now.


-=Unregistered Toll Collectors=-

Ratty: 10Hp [Normal][Behind BigHat]
BigHat: 70Hp [Normal][Mid Back, in front of Ratty]
Heavy: 75Hp [Normal][Middle of the Causeway]
SpookyA: METEORED
SpookyB: 30Hp [Normal][Near Divina]

-=Journeying Pilgrims=-

MettFire: 100hp [Normal][Barrier(10)][Next to Divina]
Swordy-F: 80hp [Normal][1-Hit shield][Behind Ratty]

-=Divine Assistance=-

Divina.Exe: 90Hp [Normal][Blind!][Stunned!][Next to the MettFire]

-=Not a Real Toll Bridge=-

40% Normal: Two broader seconds, connected by a narrow causeway
20% Furnace: Several patches in the lava pools. Can be jumped to, if you really want to.
40% Lava: Large pools, taking up the majority space either side of the causeway.

-=Objects=-

Flash BombB: 20Hp [Centre][Detonates next turn]
Normally, when Divina was around, light tended to herald good things. This time, however, all it did was render her unable to see through the massive spots before her eyes...not to mention the pain, and sudden difficulty of movement. "Ugh...I hate to use this on myself, but..." It wouldn't do to have one of her new friends get themselves badly hurt. She fought off her sudden immobility to call upon another ray of light from above...a more gentle beam this time, which, instead of taking a solid form, was content to glow on the goddess. Any and all side effects of the bomb, from the damage, to her near-blindness, and even the shock, quickly faded, until they were simply a bad memory. She let out a sigh of relief, and took quick inventory of the fight. Looked like the others were okay, at least. ...Wait, what? Did that mean the bomb was specifically attuned to affect Navis' systems? How odd. A bit of a relief that not everyone would have to deal with that, but odd.

"Lady Divina! I just figured out how we can completely ignore that bomb!"

"Oh? Well, it'd be wonderful to have one less virus to functionally not worry about, so let's hear it."

"I think it'd be easier to just show you." Hmm, wasn't very often she used BattleChips. Hikari just hoped she wouldn't miss or anything. ...Phew, in it went. "BattleChip, IronShield! Slot in!"

For a brief instant, a large metal shield formed in front of Divina...but that'd be rather hard for her to move around, so she quickly reconfigured it to take on a more ethereal appearance, much like the one she'd provided the Swordy earlier. It maintained the base shape, however, to differentiate it. "Oh, I see. These sorts of chips can block defenses, can't they? Good thinking, HIkari!"

"You know I live to serve!"

Now that she didn't have to worry about getting blinded or stunned again for the time being, the goddess Navi raised her staff, and let two more light rays shine downward. One enveloped the fiery Swordy in a bubble, to give it even more protection, and the other formed into a small wall in front of the MettFire. It seemed to like that the last time, so why not give it another one? Sadly, that was the extent of what she could do for now, so she'd have to sit back and see how things played out...

[Order of Turn:
1-Goddess's Blessing sig on Divina (Recover 30, Status Cure)
2-IronShield1 chip on Divina (S, 2-hit shield)
3-Aether Guard sig on Swordy-F (Barrier 40)
4-Radiant Partition sig in front of MettFire (10 HP Obstacle)]
As the only one on the field effected by the invasive flash bomb, Divina was swift in restoring her senses so she could monitor the continuing battle properly. As it was, the tiny Ratty in the back seemed to take exception to her healing ways, launching another missile in her direction. Once again, however, its aim proved poor, and it zig-zagged across the field and past her before beginning to arc about for another go.

Readying herself for the next flash, Divina brought her shield to bear, and just in time, no less: the spooky, unhappy with its initial failure, took another try to give the goddess some tongue. Its aim was better now, but the unlucky ghost only managed to slobber all over her newly positioned defence instead. It was probably a good thing it hadn't licked her though; the outer layer of the shield seemed to corrode with alarming swiftness under the enthusiastic tonguing. Safely protected, Divina sent another layer of defence out to her Swordy ally, just as the Heavy virus changed tack, teleporting to the side this time in an effort to launch a surprise attack at the group's front-liner instead.

The body-guard's helm turned just a fraction, and if anything, Divina might just have caught a glint of confidence behind the grill. As the heavy swung in, the Swordy warped, changing his position just a little bit and reappearing on the far side of the attacking heavy with a quick sweep of its sword. The blow cut broadly, slicing through the ratty with a shocked squeak, tearing at the ever-more agitated BigHat, and passing just within a hair's breadth of the Heavy as it completed its attack run.

While this exchange took place, Divina gave the MettFire another handy wall to shelter behind so he could raise his staff and call down another swarm of meteors to the field. Rather unlike his earlier embarrassing accident, the old virus seemed to do surprisingly well under pressure; all three of the meteors that fell to ground found their marks on hostile viruses, pummelling the Heavy and the BigHat first, before a third one crashed down just inches from Divina herself, obliterating the spooky in front of her shield with precision.

A second later, the flash bang in the middle of the area went off, though as before Divina herself was the only one it seemed to affect. Hiding her vision behind her shield, however, the shearing light didn't manage to do her any ills this time — thought he shield itself did collapse. Stamping its foot, the BigHat hurled another bomb, but it was beginning to run out of thugs and cronies now.


-=Unregistered Toll Collectors=-

Ratty: SLICED
BigHat: 30Hp [Normal][Burn (5)][Mid Back, in front of Ratty]
Heavy: 45Hp [Normal][Burn (5)][Middle of the Causeway]
SpookyA: METEORED
SpookyB: METEORED

-=Journeying Pilgrims=-

MettFire: 100hp [Normal][Barrier(10)][Next to Divina]
Swordy-F: 80hp [Normal][1-Hit shield][Barrier (40)][Beside BigHat]

-=Divine Assistance=-

Divina.Exe: 100Hp [Normal][2-hit shield: Broken!][Next to the MettFire]

-=Not a Real Toll Bridge=-

40% Normal: Two broader seconds, connected by a narrow causeway
20% Furnace: Several patches in the lava pools. Can be jumped to, if you really want to.
40% Lava: Large pools, taking up the majority space either side of the causeway.

-=Objects=-

Flash BombC: 20Hp [Centre][Detonates next turn]
Radiant PartitionB: DELETED
Ratton Missile: 30Hp [Behind Divina][Homing on Divina]


Slowly but surely, the list of things trying to kill the group was getting smaller. The Ratty was gone (though it had left behind a present), and though Divina had to admit she'd been worried about the incoming meteor for a moment, it turned out to have perfect aim, and wiped out the other Spooky. "Phew, that's some aim! Even I felt that one!" Considering all the other heat sources around, that said something. It also said something that, even though her dress wasn't exactly loose, it was definitely contouring more to the shape of her body than it normally did. If she noticed it, however, she wasn't showing any signs of it.

Instead, she was content to try to cause a bomb collision again, and floated over such that the immobile flash bang was between her and the Ratton. "I hope this works this time..."

"Um, just in case, how about some more protection? We have another one of those, after all..."

"Well, I was hoping I could save that for one of the others...but at this point, I suppose there's no harm in it. Go ahead."

"Okay, then! BattleChip, IronShield2, slot in!"

Once again, a slab of metal appeared, only to quickly be transformed into solidified light, almost like glass. It was far sturdier than it looked, though, and rat bombs, light bombs, and dumbbells combined would only barely shatter it. Now sufficiently protected, she quickly took stock of her fire-based companions...and, by her calculations, they were incapable of being harmed right now. That was a relief...and it meant that, should the worst happen, she could simply try swerving out of the way, without an ounce of guilt over whether it was worth doing that instead of buffing her allies. That, at least, was a nice feeling in the midst of heated battle.

[Order of Turn:
1-Get FlashBomb between Divina and Ratton (Movement)
2-IronShield2 chip on Divina (S, 4-hit shield)
3-Dodge
4-Dodge]
With the battlefield cleared up a lot more, now, Divina was able to successfully manoeuvre herself enough to run her trailing friend into the waiting flash bomb this time. They popped and fizzled together, neither device reaching its life goal of causing harm to other entities. The BigHat was practically steaming now, tiny fists clenched as it jumped and stamped its feet. The next flash bomb it pulled out of its pocket got pelted directly at the Swordy nearby but, almost as if to spite the would-be highway-virus, the Swordy had already warped, and the flash went sailing into the lava where it slowly began to sink and melt.

The Swordy added injury to insult a moment later, its areagrab leaving it in the perfect position to drive its sword clean through the top of the BigHat's Big Hat, leaving a hole that smouldered and burned. The other virus staggered away and turned, uttering what could only be a string of viral expletives at it.

The Heavy was still doing its own thing, by and large, and seemed oblivious to its leader's dire straits. It shifted its aim back towards Divina and the MettFire and took another shake at them. From Divina's perspective, it might seem as though it was really having a hard time aiming itself as it swung violently across the causeway, but even as it missed her, one edge of the dumbbell clipped into the Mettfire next to her. What remained of its protective barrier couldn't stand up to the full weight of the larger virus and the older one stumbled backwards, slightly winded by the blow. He didn't seem too worse off, honestly, but even so small a scrape was something Divina would probably have rather avoided.


-=Unregistered Toll Collectors=-

Ratty: SLICED
BigHat: 10Hp [Normal][Mid Back, in front of Swordy]
Heavy: 40Hp [Normal][Middle of the Causeway]
SpookyA: METEORED
SpookyB: METEORED

-=Journeying Pilgrims=-

MettFire: 90hp [Normal][Barrier Broken!][Next to Divina]
Swordy-F: 80hp [Normal][1-Hit shield][Barrier (40)][Behind BigHat]

-=Divine Assistance=-

Divina.Exe: 100Hp [Normal][4-hit shield][Next to the MettFire]

-=Not a Real Toll Bridge=-

40% Normal: Two broader seconds, connected by a narrow causeway
20% Furnace: Several patches in the lava pools. Can be jumped to, if you really want to.
40% Lava: Large pools, taking up the majority space either side of the causeway.

-=Objects=-

Flash BombD: 15Hp [Right lava pool][Sinking][Detonates next turn... but will probably melt before then]

"Wh-what?!" Divina was a goddess, but she wasn't all-seeing. And she clearly hadn't foreseen the Heavy managing to bust through the barrier like that. "How in the world...?"

"Um, now that I think about it, don't a lot of attacks that involve physically striking the enemy have that attribute? I remember something like that from virus busting class, all those years ago..."

"...And Heavy physically strikes...I see. ...Forgive me, MettFire. That was a very foolish mistake on my part."

"I don't think you need to worry too much about it. If nothing else, it's certainly a reversable mistake."

"That's true, but that's also what happens when you get overconfident, even when you're not the one harming the enemy..." Still, Hikari was right, and it was certainly something she could correct. Once more, she allowed several beams of light to shine down, all of which were either upon or near her slightly wounded ally. One appeared to be a bit larger than the others, however, and even seemed to shine a bit brighter. But its effect seemed to take slightly longer, allowing the others to form a new barrier of light, and set a new light wall in front of the meteoric virus. The other one had just as simple, but probably not unappreciated effect: the removal of all blunt force trauma from the wizard's body. It'd be as good as new, now.

Knowing that her ally was truly safe now, Divina was able to concentrate on avoiding a similar fate, should it try to bring harm to her. She noticed the flash bang in the lava, but chose to ignore it, since what little inconvenience it could do to the team was negated by her own shield. She was better off worrying about getting her bell rung by the dumbbell.

[Order of Turn:
1-Aether Guard sig on MettFire (Barrier 40)
2-Radiant Partition sig in front of MettFire (10 HP object)
3-Heavenly Light sig on MettFire (Recover 60)
4-Dodge]
In the lava pool, the flash bang fizzled out, too damaged to detonate, but before the virus running the shake-down could try anything else, the veteran Swordy had blinked again, sweeping a final, almost disdainful slice of his blade through the would-be highwayman. The BigHat fell, swiftly breaking down and fading away is its code dispersed.

The swordy swiftly turned its attention back to the Heavy and his companions, but the largest virus seemed to be hesitating. It had turned to see its leader fall, and now seemed uncertain, rocking back and forth slowly as though not really sure what it should be doing now. Freshly healed up and protected, the MettFire had nodded both its thanks and forgiveness to Divina before raising up is staff again from behind its fresh wall, but it too, now stopped. This drew a short snap of warning from the Swordy, but it earned him only a slow 'calm down' wave from the older virus with one hand taken off its staff for a moment. Even so, it looked like it was meaning to begin working on finishing of the last virus quickly for the sake of protecting its colleague, but there was, nevertheless, a moment of stillness right now, before the violence resumed, if Divina felt like making something of it.


-=Unregistered Toll Collectors=-

Ratty: SLICED
BigHat: DELETED
Heavy: 40Hp [Normal][Middle of the Causeway][Hesitating]
SpookyA: METEORED
SpookyB: METEORED

-=Journeying Pilgrims=-

MettFire: 100hp [Normal][Barrier (40)][Next to Divina]
Swordy-F: 80hp [Normal][1-Hit shield][Barrier (40)][Eyeing Heavy]

-=Divine Assistance=-

Divina.Exe: 100Hp [Normal][4-hit shield][Next to the MettFire]

-=Not a Real Toll Bridge=-

40% Normal: Two broader seconds, connected by a narrow causeway
20% Furnace: Several patches in the lava pools. Can be jumped to, if you really want to.
40% Lava: Large pools, taking up the majority space either side of the causeway.

-=Objects=-

Radiant Partition: 10Hp [In Front of MettFire]

"Wait!!!"

As soon as the MettFire proceeded to not get to work on destroying the last virus, Divina had a very good idea of what was going through its mind. It was something going through her mind, as well. "Heavy is your name, correct? It seems you needn't take orders from that horrid BigHat any more. But, if you dislike being on your own, why not come along with us? I'm sure your smashing abilities would be a big help to our little team. As you perhaps noticed, I'm in charge of making sure everyone stays in tip top shape! Here, let me show you! ...Hikari, some assistance, please!"

Assistance? Hmm, she probably wanted it fully healed, so she should probably give her a stronger chip...healing viruses. She had to wonder how many people would look at her like she had two heads if they knew she was condoning this sort of thing. "Here you are, Lady Divina! BattleChip, Recover50! Slot in!"

The goddess Navi extended her free hand, forming a pink ball of light in it...this was not for self-use, however, and by pointing her finger at the dumbbell, it quickly shot out, causing the virus to glow a similar color for a moment, as the tolls of battle were quickly and unceremoniously erased. "I believe that should acquaint you with everyone's talents. So, what do you think? Care to join us?" Oh, please say yes. Enough data had been spilled over this whole situation already...

[Order of Turn:
1-Recover50 chip on Heavy (50, Recovery)
2-Convince Heavy to join team
3-Like really
4-Super convincing]
In the tense few seconds before the veteran Swordy took matters into its own hands, Divina joined her plea to the reassurance of the MettFire virus, forestalling it. Instead of attacking, the Swordy teleported back to wait alongside its wizened companion, but it didn't seem at all happy about all of this.

The Heavy seemed surprised at first, and moved to get out of the way when Divina sent a beam of light towards it. fortunately it wasn't nearly nimble enough, and was struck by what turned out to be healing energy. Surprises upon surprises! The heavy didn't, in all honesty, seem like the brightest specimen of its type, but it was, at the least, good-natured now that it wasn't being attacked and wasn't attacking anyone else. It was hard to tell if it understood Divina's words, but in either case the elder MettFire picked up after she finished with some viral chatter of its own. The Swordy grumbled. Perhaps Divina had been around it long enough to get the gist of things, but it seemed as though it was mostly considering the new addition to their team as another duckling that would need looking after and protecting. It was a pity that it didn't have a nice big moustache, because, as the Heavy drifted over to join them, it gave what was undeniably a substantial 'Harumph' at the situation.

At any rate, it seemed that the overtures towards recruiting another member to the strange pilgrimage were successful. all that was left now was for Divina to collect her other non-companion rewards, and they could move onwards. As it happened, the spooky that had been next to Divina when it met its demise had left behind some convertible chip data, although it wasn't exactly the strongest version she might have hoped to find.

-=Unregistered Toll Collectors=-

Ratty: SLICED
BigHat: DELETED
Heavy: 75Hp [Normal] JOINED THE PARTY
SpookyA: METEORED
SpookyB: METEORED

-=Journeying Pilgrims=-

MettFire: 100hp [Normal]
Swordy-F: 80hp [Normal]

-=Divine Assistance=-

Divina.Exe: 100Hp [Normal]

-=Not a Real Toll Bridge=-

40% Normal: Two broader seconds, connected by a narrow causeway
20% Furnace: Several patches in the lava pools. Can be jumped to, if you really want to.
40% Lava: Large pools, taking up the majority space either side of the causeway.

-=Battle 2, Victory!=-

Spoils: 810z, Recover10, (And a Heavy)