Dullahan, still slightly shaken from the unexpected dive, spoke silent prayers to the now-expired Guard. "That was a rather elegant fall, given the circumstances," Birkenhead spoke, unable to wipe the look of pure glee from his face. Well, at leastsomeone was thoroughly entertained.

Dullahan turned to Alex's window, adjusting his bandanna as he addressed his partner's Operator. "I am well; and you are welcome," he replied curtly in return, shifting his gaze to ResQ. A window prompt notified Dullahan of his new loot; and he promptly materialised the data into a simple box in his hand.

He trudged over to ResQ. "As promised," Dullahan said, handing over the Pulsar1. He had no need for additional battlechips at this juncture; might as well give it to the more arsenal-deprived Navigator between them.

After all... It not as if I'm comfortable with fighting viruses in the first place. Dullahan clicked his tongue annoyedly.

He waited for ResQ to plunder the GMD silly, himself confused by the contraption. "Was this a thing? I do not seem to recall," Dullahan said aloud, but Birkenhead just shrugged. "You're asking the wrong person," his Operator provided helpfully. Dullahan scratched at his head.

Or... well... it would seem that the GMD was waiting for him, for one reason or another, long after ResQ had gotten her share of... more chips? Sigh.

Raising an index finger, Dullahan gently tapped it on the green object, not entirely enthusiastic about whatever that might drop out of it.

"Wait!" Dullahan called out, but to no avail; the enigmatic potassium-based Navigator was long gone, his voice trailing off into the ethereal void of... wherever his headquarters were within this absurd architecture.

Earlier, he spotted that his partner had taken up his offered arms, and looked rather eager to put them to good use. Birkenhead was rather unamused, the incessant sound of scritch-scratch echoing the Operator's confusion. Don't worry, I, too, am confused by this ridiculous rule, Dullahan cursed inwardly.

At this rate, he was going to pull the collaborative effort down, making it unsightly and too inefficient for his personal tastes. Hah! As if you and your programming is not the same person. Surely you jest, silly knight, the Navigator mentally chided some more.

It didn't take him long to spot the PulseBat fluttering about, looking eager to draw blood. ... Metaphorically speaking. Dullahan raised his shield against the mammalian adversary, ready to brace for any oncoming impact.

The Lock-On unit, however, was not as passive; and proceeded to shoot a bolt at its master's opponent.

Summary of actions:
1) Raise Guard1 and brace for impact
-. Activated Chip: Lock-On1 - 10 Null + Lock On; A Accuracy - PulseBatB
2-4) Autododge

Dullahan winced visibly from the commotion, not favoring the angry strobelight and its associated sound effects at all.

He, however, did not expect what happened next.

The flooring on the second level creaked, the platform groaning before collapsing down to earth within the tower. Dullahan stood, stunned briefly, before heading to the edge of his own platform to ensure his partner was unhurt. The Lock-On next to him remained entirely vigilant, and amidst the chaos and collapsing floor, took the opportunity to thunder down another strike at a Banana Swordy. Meanwhile, it took Dullahan a few moments to realise that ResQ's status could be made out in their shared interface. "... We're backing her up, Birkenhead."

"Right. Hold on, I'll send something over," his Operator replied. Dullahan loaded the first chip almost immediately: materialising a kite shield in his right hand, capable of withholding... well, probably only one hit, Dullahan mused inwardly. He held his breath at the edge of his platform, and eyed for a straight line of sight with ResQ. It would appear that ResQ was managing well, despite being significantly outnumbered.

"Catch!" Dullahan called out, loosening the two rounded arrows he had nocked. Without checking whether his ally would appreciate his gift or not, the Navigator turned and went for the last plunger.

"You know... Your reluctance to kill is absolutely puzzling," Birkenhead noted, shrugging. Dullahan did not bother to respond in kind.

Summary of actions:
-. Activated Chip: Lock-On1 - 10 Null + Lock On; A Accuracy - Banana Swordy C
1. Battlechip: Guard1 - REFLECT 60 once, breakable
-. Passive: Focus - Take Aim
2. Battlechip: DrillArm1 - Pass to ResQ
3. Battlechip: Curseshield1 - Pass to ResQ
4. Activate Plantain Plunger

"Holy moly, Dullahan, it's a giant piece of potassium!" Birkenhead joked, no longer taking the net world seriously at the advent of a giant banana tower. His Navigator visibly frowned; the network was wackier than he last remembered. Regardless, with BananaMan introducing himself as a humorous threat, Dullahan caught on ResQ's animosity and readied himself for battle...

... Until they were both caught unawares by the vortex sucking them into the tower, of course.

For the sole reason he was caught unawares, Dullahan landed within the tiered banana structure face-first; luckily for him, the flooring was not composed of banana. Quickly brushing himself and getting on his feet, he took a headcount on the number of targets.

"Eight, Dullahan, look, it's written here on the screen, even," Birkenhead quipped helpfully. Right, Dullahan didn't need to actually count to know. What gave him that habit?

Regardless, Dullahan regarded ResQ's suggestion to reach for higher grounds as sound, and with no hesitation, tumbled towards the updraft generated by his partner.

His goal, however, was much higher.

Thankfully for him, Birkenhead echoed his sentiments; DoubleJump flowed into Dullahan's programming, allowing him to take advantage of his descent from the updraft to boost himself further onto the next level, letting loose a somersault as he did so. As soon as he landed, he turned his attention to their assailant Navigator.

"I wish to avoid combat if at all possible," Dullahan called out, sidestepping towards the nearest Plantain Plunger (What sort of a name is that?) on the floor. Without leaving his gaze from BananaMan, Dullahan let his leg and his weight lean down on the handle, even as he mentally flipped through his arsenal for his next best option.

Distraction. A distraction, Dullahan repeated in text to his Operator. Birkenhead frowned, thoroughly confused, and threw a MetalGear1 at his PET. The sheer firepower of the battlechip did not impress Dullahan. "No... Give me another one. Give me Lock-On," Dullahan concluded simply, motioning for Birkenhead to hurry.

As soon as it was made possible, Dullahan dragged a finger towards the flooring a few paces away from him from the sky, firing a bolt of thunder from the sky. In its place, a default Lock-On unit appeared, making Dullahan blink slightly. Guess my programming doesn't account for everything to be thematically consistent, he mused.

Summary of actions:
1. Tactical Movement - Towards the updraft, up to second floor
2. Battlechip: Double Jump [6/6] - Jump off to the third floor
3. Activate Plantain Plunger
4. Battlechip: Lock-On1 - 10 Null + Lock On x 6 shots; A Accuracy until destroyed (80HP)

Dullahan smiled, allowing his partner to take the lead.

((Ready for Battle #2))

"You seem to socialise well enough, Dullahan," Richard reflected Alexander's statement, and the Operator couldn't help but smile. Dullahan scratched at his head uneasily, as if considering whether to take it as a compliment or as an insult. He shrugged.

There was an oddly endearing trait about how ResQ was denying her need for 'his help', but Dullahan decided to keep that part under the covers. "Yes... I have no need for excessive firepower," Dullahan stated, as if needing to explain himself. Without a doubt, his actions did seem slightly suspicious if seen from ResQ's perspective. Or perhaps now he's coming off as too snobbish?

He wasn't a bad socialiser, but on the other hand, Dullahan feared that his strategies may be dated.

Dullahan raised an eyebrow at ResQ; he guessed that in his personal pursuit for his own identity, he got a bit overly hasty with asking such questions. She's right, Dullahan smiled bitterly, she doesn't know me.

Dullahan quietly assessed ResQ's offered theory nonetheless, mulling on the possibility of him being a scout. "That sounds about right," Dullahan said. He eyed a small window that popped up next to him; a private message from is Operator.

"You do know that historically, knights do everything under the sun, right? Not just wildly flailing a sword around on oaths of chivalry or whatnot," the message read. Dullahan raised an eyebrow.

"... Really?" the Navigator huffed, but not as audible to let ResQ hear it. He shrugged. He had assumed otherwise, given the number of Wookiepedia articles that Dullahan read. In all honesty, given the crowd-sourced nature of Wookiepedia's writing, Dullahan trusted the historian-turned-lecturer much more than the website.

Dullahan turned his head slightly to face ResQ. "Well, I suppose I should help you get a head start in plenishing your tools of trade," Dullahan offered. "If we find any battlechips in the next battle, I believe it is more ideal for you to keep them."

Dullahan gave a reassuring smile to ResQ's feistyness in her reply, but his features took an immediate turn for the worse upon her rebuttal. Wrenching his attention from the negativity urging to surface, his head turned to the higher positioned Navigator. "That is a good question. For what purpose did I come into existence?" he shrugged. "... Hopefully, I'm no result of some imbecilic musings of a programmer." Birkenhead snorted, obviously bemused by Dullahan's unexpected snark.

The pseudo-medieval themed Navigator did not ease his pace. "Any one of your guesses would be as good as mine. Have any ideas to share?"

Dullahan folded his arms, brows furrowing slightly. "Makes sense? Though that explains not her design, nor personality," he noted, shrugging slightly. "Surely, Dullahan, you're not one to talk," Birkenhead chipped in, followed by a boastful laughter. The Navigator shrugged.

Dullahan decided not to interrupt "I guess we both just have to learn to play our roles better," he addressed ResQ, with a small smile. Though he felt no inclination to be overly nice to his temporary partner, Dullahan had decided to make the best out of it. After all, chances are that she's been more active in recent years than I was, he mused inwardly.

"So ideally, you would have a more 'complicated' loadout? I'm supposing that is your purpose for venturing into the Network," Dullahan inquired, even as he began walking towards a random direction. No point staying in one place.

Dullahan bent over to the ground, a hand reaching for his fallen cloak-- and his share of the loot. I'll need more work on this, he mused, dusting digital dust off the fabric. Making a light sprint towards his ally, he quietly observed ResQ as she made her way down from her jammed exoskeleton. He moved forward slightly when he caught sight of ResQ wobbling from her landing, but progressed no further as the latter straightened herself, her eyes on the loot.

"... The lady is not exactly... ResQ-y, no?" Dullahan addressed Alex, draping the cloak over himself once more. "Mind me not if I am wrong, but aside from the grappler, I see no other traces of her being an immensely helpful Navigator."