Oh dear, sounds terrible. Please rest appropriately, hope she makes a good recovery.

"Dammit... I can't ignite anything!"

Clouds of steam hissed from ThermalMan's body, along with a low whining sound. His face became increasingly redder, warped by the heat mirage wafting up from the lava going up around his legs, up to his midsection. However, the heat didn't seem to be affecting the rapidly spreading frost on his cannon arms. As if to mock his current situation, Courser flicked out a SeaSeed towards the rusty Navi, splashing against his legs. Immediately, the lava underneath ThermalMan erupted in a burst of steam, covering him in scalding water. The lava around his feet was replaced with a small pocket of warm water. From the howl that escaped his lips, it didn't sound like he was enjoying it very much, being a Fire elemental.

The armor plating that had broken after protecting him a moment ago reappeared around his person, immediately latching around him yet again. At that point, the decoy that Courser sent out to poke fun at ThermalMan appeared next to him, while his tank treads began revving up, backing out of the pool of water towards the now very small bit of land that still remained unmolested by either lava or water. The safe haven that had been the molten rock was now not a very safe place for him at all, and his heavy body reconfiguring itself to weather blows didn't seem to work as well against CourseMan's methods.

Still, it wasn't like ThermalMan was going to go down without a fight, starting to move erratically from side to side on the tiny outcropping of land that he still had. As such, he managed to avoid the Momogra's jittery shovel slap with a bit of luck, and the icy gauntlet that CourseMan equipped moments later to follow it up also hit nothing but air. "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon!" he could hear ThermalMan desperately repeat, heavily breathing in between words. Unfortunately, Lady Luck wasn't there to grant him a hat trick, and ThermalMan saw the raw end of CourseMan's strongest attack thus far crashing into his arm.

The armor immediately cracked and gave way, and ThermalMan's steeled defense didn't hold against the stalwart steel of Courser's mallet, leaving the golem Navi with the tiniest protection offered by the Undershirt program. Colorful curses escaped his broken mouth, as ThermalMan's locked-up joints finally gave way, leaving him vulnerable to the last attack Courser threw his way. The chunk of water crashed against him with impunity, breaking through his last bit of resistance and triggering the Emergency Jack-Out in a beam of light.

-- Aging and Active --
ThermalMan.EXE: EJO'd

Totem1HP: 100
Properties: Anchored, Element Shift
Object Damage: 100 + Impact
Damage Method: Telekinesis
Attack Damage: 100 Fire + Line Attack (3) / Healing 50
Accuracy: A / S
Description: Summons a Totem to breath fire and heal you. Attacks once per turn, and switches faces when hit.
Duration: 3 turns, or until destroyed.
Element: Fire / Wood
Special: Element Shift: This Object alternates between Fire element when Attacking and Wood element when Healing.
Trader Rank: D: DESTROYED

-- Cool and Collected --
CourseMan.EXE: 100 HP (Normal) (Barrier: 40) (Casing: 10) (Shield: 2)
(Trap: Mist and Shadow)
(Counter: No Peeking)

MomograHP: 60
Damage: 15 + Backstab
Accuracy: B
Description: Creats a Momogra virus to aid you. Attacks with a shovel from behind, and has a constant Mole status that ignores terrain solidness when not attacking (unless the panel currently does not exist). Still affected by other effects of panels.
Element: Null
Special: Allied Virus: This virus has one action per turn, and is fully controllable by the summoner. If no orders are given, it will perform actions at random, but will never intentionally interfere with or damage the summoner or their allies. Deleting this virus will grant no additional rewards to either side.
Trader Rank: C: 60 HP (Normal, next to CourseMan)

-- Terrain --
15% Sea

• Fire Elementals lose 10 HP/action standing, 20 HP/action submerged. Other Non-Aqua Elementals lose 5 HP/action submerged. Nullified for Aqua Elementals.
• Ice attacks: 50% Freeze1 chance, Changes terrain hit to Ice.
• Terrain changes between Sea and Onsen do not inflict damage upon submerged entities, nor do they eject submerged entities to the surface.
• Elec attacks: +100% Source Damage.
• PanelShot: Imbue Aqua.

(Small bit at the edge of lava)
15% Normal

• No effects.

(Very thin bit around the lava)
70% Lava

• Non-Fire Elementals lose 5 HP/action standing, 10 HP/action submerged. Doubled for Wood Elementals, nullified for Fire Elementals.
• Aqua attacks: Panel explodes, +100% Source Aqua Damage, change terrain hit to Normal.
• PanelShot: Imbue Fire.

(Everywhere else)

Field Effect:
-- Volcanic Activity: At the start of each turn following the first, the volcanic crack will burst forth with Lava, increasing the area currently covered by Lava by 15%. Any non-Fire elementals caught in the vicinity take the same damage as standing in Lava for 1 action.

-- Battle 10, Victory!! --
Rewards: 4500z, [GolemHit1] Battlechip

---

Even with the immediate culprit out of the way, however, the volcanic spread didn't seem to be stopping. The lava continued to gurgle, and the wire fencing around the area had already succumbed to it, dripping over the sheer drop that it bordered. It seemed like ThermalMan's vision of a warmer Sharo sector was going to come to fruition after all, despite not being present for it!

Scratching his metal head, ThermalMan grunted to himself in contemplation. With the reassurance from "CourseMan", the giant eyed the Navi with a sideways glance, and rolled his shoulders with a murmur. "Mmm, you're right. Screw it, if there's anything in there, I'll deal with it if it comes out. Probably drowning in the fire anyway," he mused. As he spoke, the volcanic pool gurgled with more activity, and began overflowing further outwards.

As usual, ThermalMan only shielded himself from being splashed in the face rather than avoiding any kind of damage. While "Courser" was able to keep his distance, it was definitely getting more difficult to keep close to ThermalMan. The iron giant was now a little closer to the center of the lava pool rather than at its edge, thanks to the volcanic activity causing its expansion. "Little fella found something?" ThermalMan called out to "Riptide". Once he reported his findings, ThermalMan lumbered up into a standing pose.

"Aaaah... I'd just gotten to relax, really. What a bother. Turrets, right? Should be fine if I suit up," he said. Lifting his fists, he punched them together, causing hefty brown metal plates to materialize in the air and fall onto his body, folding themselves around his trunk and limbs with a few noisy clanks. Afterwards, he raised his hand to his head. His expression hardened for a moment, and he gestured silently with his head to nobody in particular, before lowering his hand again.

"Okay, let's go," said ThermalMan, moving up to the breach. As CourseMan had hoped for, the huge Navi seemed to have taken the bait somewhat, as he stepped through the breach cautiously. With a bit of hesitation, ThermalMan crossed the trip laser for the Dynamite, and it beeped briefly, causing him to instinctively jump slightly backwards. "Wh--" he blurted out, before the explosion tore open the ground in front of him in a show of pyrotechnics, leaving him unharmed save for perhaps a little ear ringing.

However, there was yet more to come. The loud sound and copious smoke from the Dynamite charge masked the subsequent sound of a barrage of needles from the smoke. As expected, however, ThermalMan's armor deflected one of the shots, while the other whizzed over his shoulder thanks to his earlier evasive action. "Eager, aren't ya!" he exclaimed, as he raised his arm and pointed it forward, his palm rapidly opening up into the barrel of a cannon. A floating green visor appeared in front of his face, looking poised to relay some targeting data to him.

"?! There's something under the turret?!"

Before he could discern the second target under his original one, the "something" exploded spectacularly, this time in a particularly devastating manner. Shrapnel flew out and shredded through ThermalMan's armor in moments, though it still managed to protect him from any actual damage while he retaliated with a shot back at the Needler. The giant's cannon shot landed, destroying the Needler in one go. Before he could celebrate his accurate marksmanship, though, a sudden smack clanged against his metal body, causing him to turn around in surprise--the "little fella" he had called out about before had snuck in a hit on him!

Before ThermalMan himself could react, a wooden pillar shot out of the ground in front of him, spinning the telltale three faces of a Totem chip towards "Riptide". However, as it spat out its plume of fire from its mouth, it was received with a quickshot of two pulses of water from the trickster's hands, while he retrieved his trusty revolver from his belt. The Magnum tore through the Totem's wooden body with ease, and ThermalMan along with it. With holes torn in both of his targets, the Totem disintegrated in blazes, while ThermalMan staggered to a standing position with a cry of indignant pain.

"Arrrrrgh! Should've known!" he roared, trying to dash forward, only to be greeted by the wall of freezing water that had suddenly come up from behind him. The burst of ice snaked through his metal arms as he roared in pain once more. "Give me the big gun!" he bellowed out, clearly enraged enough to not care about keeping operator communications private. As he said so, ThermalMan's rusty exterior began to click and snap, as his joints fused together and forced his whole body to become rigid in a position that kept him pointing forward with both arms. At the same time, his feet spat out some treads to move around with, and his eyes were covered with a large faceplate.

The cannon barrel that was on one of his arms was now much larger, with its barrel count now suddenly tripled in a triangle, in a configuration that would look very familiar to CourseMan. The cannon fired thrice at both of the "CourseMan" figures, as well as the Momogra. The real one managed to swerve out of the way easily, while the decoy and Momogra suffered the powerful Magnum shell head-on. Thankfully for the Momogra, it was protected by the barrier that CourseMan had the foresight to bestow on it earlier, while the decoy simply phased out. After the shot, the barrel froze over. "Ugh, really!? Cheeky bastard!" he cursed.

-- Aging and Active --
ThermalMan.EXE: 95 HP (Normal, next to Lava pool) (SteelBody: 1 Turn) (Frozen: 1 Turn) (Casing: 0)

Totem1HP: 100
Properties: Anchored, Element Shift
Object Damage: 100 + Impact
Damage Method: Telekinesis
Attack Damage: 100 Fire + Line Attack (3) / Healing 50
Accuracy: A / S
Description: Summons a Totem to breath fire and heal you. Attacks once per turn, and switches faces when hit.
Duration: 3 turns, or until destroyed.
Element: Fire / Wood
Special: Element Shift: This Object alternates between Fire element when Attacking and Wood element when Healing.
Trader Rank: D: DESTROYED

-- Cool and Collected --
CourseMan.EXE: 100 HP (Normal) (Barrier: 40) (Casing: 10) (Shield: 2)
(Decoy (Forked Streams): HIT)
(Trap: Forked Streams: TRIGGERED)
(Counter: No Peeking)

MomograHP: 60
Damage: 15 + Backstab
Accuracy: B
Description: Creats a Momogra virus to aid you. Attacks with a shovel from behind, and has a constant Mole status that ignores terrain solidness when not attacking (unless the panel currently does not exist). Still affected by other effects of panels.
Element: Null
Special: Allied Virus: This virus has one action per turn, and is fully controllable by the summoner. If no orders are given, it will perform actions at random, but will never intentionally interfere with or damage the summoner or their allies. Deleting this virus will grant no additional rewards to either side.
Trader Rank: C: 60 HP (Normal, next to CourseMan) (Barrier: 0)

-- Terrain --
70% Lava (Around ThermalMan)
30% Normal (Everywhere else)

-- Objects --
Needler2HP: 80
Properties: Normal, Mobile
Object Damage: 80 Null + Impact + Break
Damage Method: Ramming attack, Telekinesis, Throw
Attack Damage: 40 Null x 2 hits x 3 Targets
Accuracy: A
Description: Summons a gun platform that attacks up to 3 separate targets each turn with its trio of double spike cannons. It can also perform a defense piercing kamikaze attack.
Duration: Until destroyed.
Element: Null
Special: This chip's accuracy cannot be boosted or reduced by any means, including RP quality.
- This object may ram a target instead of firing needles, but is instantly destroyed in exchange.
- This object may dodge by trying to ram nothing, but if it hits something in this way, it is still destroyed and deals object damage.
Trader Rank: C: DESTROYED
Dynamite1HP: 100
Properties: Light
Object Damage: 100 Null + Blast2
Damage Method: Throw, Knockback, Microburst, Telekinesis, Gust
Attack Damage: 100 Null + Blast2 + Line Attack + Seeking
Accuracy: D (thrown) / A (trigger)
Description: Sets a lightweight laser trip bomb. When something crosses the sensor beam, the bomb detonates a shaped charge that blasts an entire line. It can see through Invisibility. This weapon is very dangerous to use, caution is advised.
Duration: Until destroyed or until it attacks.
Element: Null
Special: Laser TAG: Attack triggers when something moves through the targeting laser beam, no matter who or what that may be.
Trader Rank: D: EXPLODED
TimeBomb1HP: 100
Properties: Anchored
Object Damage: 50 + Impact
Damage Method: Telekinesis
Attack Damage: 100 + To-All-Clause (Enemies)
Accuracy: S
Description: Places a bomb on the field that will explode after two turns, damaging all enemies.
Duration: 2 turns or until destroyed.
Element: Null
Trader Rank: D: EXPLODED

Field Effect:
-- Volcanic Activity: At the start of each turn following the first, the volcanic crack will burst forth with Lava, increasing the area currently covered by Lava by 15%. Any non-Fire elementals caught in the vicinity take the same damage as standing in Lava for 1 action.

"Hmm... Sounds like some good money. You think if I turned in these two I melted down I'd get some of the pay?" said ThermalMan. As he talked, the lava erupted with the sound of a bubble bursting, causing him to flinch slightly and shield his face from the lava. He was, however, otherwise unharmed. "Courser" and "Riptide" managed to keep their distance from the eruption as well, though the area was starting to heat up more now. Over on the other end of the lava pool, ThermalMan lumbered over to the spot where one of the Bashers used to be. Leaning over, he sank his hands into the lava, and grunted slightly as he wrenched out a heavily mangled pile of iron from the bottom of the pool.

"Even if they didn't accept this pile of junk, I'd bet I could make some kind of art piece from these!" he joked, laughing heartily with his deep voice. The mass of metal in his hands ended up next to the pool, just as "Courser" started asking him of his presence in the area. ThermalMan looked back over his shoulder, and shrugged. "Can't say I know anything about that. Got no clue what this place is for. Whatever my operator's got in mind, though, he clearly doesn't want this place around. Didn't take long, either, didn't have anyone around except for--" he grunted briefly, yanking the other melted Basher out of the pool, "--these two." The destroyed virus's remains made a loud clank as it landed next to its fallen comrade.

"Definitely made for a nice surprise to find this little patch'a home nestled in this awful frostbite of a network, though! Gave it a little push and this whole sector should be getting real warm in a bit. Been ages since I got to swim in a flow!" he said, beaming cheerfully. "You two can come along, too, if ya got what it takes! Hahaha!" As the TimeBomb's timer ticked down again, ThermalMan visibly twitched in place, and looked around once more, with suspicion on his face. Looking over at "Riptide", he eyed the Momogra suspiciously for a moment. However, with how it didn't seem hostile, ThermalMan shook his head, and looked back behind him, where the TimeBomb and Dynamite rested.

"Did I miss any viruses in there...?" he wondered aloud.

-- Aging and Active --
ThermalMan.EXE: 500 HP (Lava)

-- Cool and Collected --
CourseMan.EXE: 100 HP (Normal) (Barrier: 40) (Casing: 10) (Shield: 2) ( Fire+30Status: Fire Element UP 30, Stackable
Accuracy: S
Description: Adds 30 Damage to all hits of a Fire Element attack chip, before any external environment-related or target-related damage modifiers apply.
Duration: Once
Element: Fire
Trader Rank: C: Active)
(Decoy: Near ThermalMan)
(Trap: Forked Streams)
(Counter: No Peeking)

MomograHP: 60
Damage: 15 + Backstab
Accuracy: B
Description: Creats a Momogra virus to aid you. Attacks with a shovel from behind, and has a constant Mole status that ignores terrain solidness when not attacking (unless the panel currently does not exist). Still affected by other effects of panels.
Element: Null
Special: Allied Virus: This virus has one action per turn, and is fully controllable by the summoner. If no orders are given, it will perform actions at random, but will never intentionally interfere with or damage the summoner or their allies. Deleting this virus will grant no additional rewards to either side.
Trader Rank: C: 60 HP (Normal, next to CourseMan)

-- Terrain --
55% Lava (Around ThermalMan)
45% Normal (Everywhere else)

-- Objects --
Dynamite1HP: 100
Properties: Light
Object Damage: 100 Null + Blast2
Damage Method: Throw, Knockback, Microburst, Telekinesis, Gust
Attack Damage: 100 Null + Blast2 + Line Attack + Seeking
Accuracy: D (thrown) / A (trigger)
Description: Sets a lightweight laser trip bomb. When something crosses the sensor beam, the bomb detonates a shaped charge that blasts an entire line. It can see through Invisibility. This weapon is very dangerous to use, caution is advised.
Duration: Until destroyed or until it attacks.
Element: Null
Special: Laser TAG: Attack triggers when something moves through the targeting laser beam, no matter who or what that may be.
Trader Rank: D: 100 HP (Normal, across breach in wall)
TimeBomb1HP: 100
Properties: Anchored
Object Damage: 50 + Impact
Damage Method: Telekinesis
Attack Damage: 100 + To-All-Clause (Enemies)
Accuracy: S
Description: Places a bomb on the field that will explode after two turns, damaging all enemies.
Duration: 2 turns or until destroyed.
Element: Null
Trader Rank: D: 100 HP (Normal, slightly behind Dynamite1's trip line) (1 Turn Remaining)

Field Effect:
-- Volcanic Activity: At the start of each turn following the first, the volcanic crack will burst forth with Lava, increasing the area currently covered by Lava by 15%. Any non-Fire elementals caught in the vicinity take the same damage as standing in Lava for 1 action.

The metal Navi paused for a moment, steam venting from his joints. The fists that he had readied at his sides relaxed slightly, and his small eyes narrowed further. He looked back and forth between CourseMan and "RiptideMan", grunting loudly, and his shoulders hung down. Taking the towel off the back of his neck, he straightened up to his full height, draping it over his arm.

"Alright, sure. It's not like I have anything to do while I wait for this place to heat up proper. This godforsaken Sharo place is too damn cold for its own good, makes everything ache." At the mention of a hot spring, he rubbed his square jaw in thought. "A hot spring...? Oh! You mean like those heated water pools; no, can't say I'd be much of a fan of rusting any more than I've already got now. I'll stick to what I know," he said, scooping up some lava in his hands and letting it pour from between his fingers.

Curiously, the towels around his hips and on his arm didn't seem to be burning at all from contact with the molten earth. "Excessive... what? Artillery viruses? Those big turret ones that were here before? Mmm..." he said, looking up from playing with the lava pool to look around the place, presumably trying to find the now-sunken viruses.

Scratching at his temple, he shrugged. "Can't say I noticed if there were that many of them when I got here... These two I found here, yeah, but those got scrapped pretty quickly. I just came here to do what I wanted to do. If you want to look around, be my guest, s'not much here."

While CourseMan began setting up his insurance around the place, the giant retreated a little backwards to the edge of the gurgling pool of lava. It seemed like it was about to erupt a little, but he paid it no heed and reclined against the edge. Once the TimeBomb was set, however, he looked up suddenly, looking to his sides in puzzlement. He didn't seem to notice the bomb itself, though, as it silently set itself up along with the Dynamite trip line, he went back to addressing the two. "Any reason you two're following them viruses? Just out of some sorta civic duty, or someone payin' ya?"

-- Aging and Active --
ThermalMan.EXE: 500 HP (Lava)

-- Cool and Collected --
CourseMan.EXE: 100 HP (Normal) (Barrier: 40) (Casing: 10) (Shield: 2)
(Decoy: To CourseMan's right)
(Trap: Forked Streams)
(Counter: No Peeking)

-- Terrain --
40% Lava (Around ThermalMan)
60% Normal (Everywhere else)

-- Objects --
Dynamite1HP: 100
Properties: Light
Object Damage: 100 Null + Blast2
Damage Method: Throw, Knockback, Microburst, Telekinesis, Gust
Attack Damage: 100 Null + Blast2 + Line Attack + Seeking
Accuracy: D (thrown) / A (trigger)
Description: Sets a lightweight laser trip bomb. When something crosses the sensor beam, the bomb detonates a shaped charge that blasts an entire line. It can see through Invisibility. This weapon is very dangerous to use, caution is advised.
Duration: Until destroyed or until it attacks.
Element: Null
Special: Laser TAG: Attack triggers when something moves through the targeting laser beam, no matter who or what that may be.
Trader Rank: D: 100 HP (Normal, across breach in wall)
TimeBomb1HP: 100
Properties: Anchored
Object Damage: 50 + Impact
Damage Method: Telekinesis
Attack Damage: 100 + To-All-Clause (Enemies)
Accuracy: S
Description: Places a bomb on the field that will explode after two turns, damaging all enemies.
Duration: 2 turns or until destroyed.
Element: Null
Trader Rank: D: 100 HP (Normal, slightly behind Dynamite1's trip line) (2 Turns Remaining)

Field Effect:
-- Volcanic Activity: At the start of each turn following the first, the volcanic crack will burst forth with Lava, increasing the area currently covered by Lava by 15%. Any non-Fire elementals caught in the vicinity take the same damage as standing in Lava for 1 action.

Skating his way around the bend, the path led up a winding incline by the side of the mountain. The further he went, the scent of sulfur started to permeate the air, rising from a few cracks splitting the side of the mountain. Something he noticed as well was that the white road was now stained with some sort of trail of black soot. Besides that, despite the cold that generally characterized the Sharo networks, the temperature was starting to rise little by little, such that the snow that usually covered the area was replaced by white CyberPanels and dark red soil. Eventually, he reached the end of the road, where the incline opened up to an open gate in some wire fencing. The fence protected from what looked like quite a sheer drop on both sides of the clearing.

Further ahead was a tall grey barrier wall encircling some inner area, most likely a little over twice CourseMan's height. Despite the large red "no entry" signs propped up alongside it, something seemed to have melted clean through what appeared to have been a security checkpoint station close to the wall, creating a very large hole in the wall, that was as wide as the wall was tall. Beyond the breach, thick opaque clouds of gas obscured whatever lay beyond, but whatever was back there, CourseMan could certainly feel the heat radiating from it. Par for the course for a "volcanic simulation" area, most likely. There was also something stranger that CourseMan might notice; on either end of the hole, alongside upturned and melted barricades, the remains of a pair of Basher viruses lay unclaimed. The multi-barreled turret viruses had been thoroughly disabled, with their metallic bodies warped from being melted, probably by whatever had invaded the area.

Before CourseMan would be able to decide whether to investigate further into the area, loud pneumatic discharges could be heard echoing out from the breach, accompanied every time by a slow, metallic stomping. A cloud of gas blasted out from the hole, obscuring whatever was making its exit. Stomp, stomp, stomp, a slow, methodical approach. A massive shadow, reaching the top of the melted wall, appeared within the cloud of gas. Then, the gas suddenly cleared, blown away by jets of steam.

Standing there was a heavily-armored iron giant, its square grey features almost entirely caked in rust. Glowing red vents all about its body hissed with trails of vapor, the biggest source of which were two large towers jutting out from its back, around a cylindrical base covering the majority of its back. Around its large metal feet, a pool of lava trailed back from behind it. Beady eyes peeked out of a square-jawed metal head, as the heat CourseMan felt earlier increased further, clearly radiating out of the new arrival.

"Ahhhhh, nothin' like a hot soak! Can't believe they'd be hiding something like this way up here!"

In contrast with its otherwise intimidating stature, the voice that came from the giant sounded somewhat like a cheerful old man, albeit somewhat robotic. Being otherwise uncovered, a fluffy white towel was wrapped around the lower half of the giant's body. A small hand towel in its gigantic gauntlet-covered hands, the giant used it to wipe down the side of its rust-covered head. Then, he stopped wiping, staring ahead.

"... Hm? Another one? Come back for more?" the giant grunted. He stayed silent for a moment, eyes narrowed slightly. "... Deal with it however I want? Alright, sure, I could use some more exercise now." He threw the hand towel over his head, landing neatly over his neck, and balled up his fists. Even more steam burst forth from his vents, and the heat reached a crescendo, warping the air with its intensity. The giant widened his stance and stomped on the ground, causing it to split open, leaking forth a torrent of lava that quickly spread out around his feet. Around him, the destroyed Bashers and barricades sank into the lava, while he stepped into it up to his knees.

"Come on!" he roared.

-- Aging and Active --
ThermalMan.EXE: 500 HP (Lava)

-- Cool and Collected --
CourseMan.EXE: 100 HP (Normal)

-- Terrain --
40% Lava (Around ThermalMan)
60% Normal (Everywhere else)

Field Effect:
-- Volcanic Activity: At the start of each turn following the first, the volcanic crack will burst forth with Lava, increasing the area currently covered by Lava by 15%. Any non-Fire elementals caught in the vicinity take the same damage as standing in Lava for 1 action.

-- Battle 10, Start!! --

The smoke that billowed out from all over ScorchMan's body did little to obscure the glowing embers that reflected off of the Scarecrow's heavily marred face. Despite this, its closed eyes looked calm, perhaps as blind as ScorchMan himself was, staring down the flames that burst out soon after that charred it to ashes. All that was left was the metal framework that was its "skeleton", still sparking with electrical discharge. Looks like it could be useful for some battlechip data...

-=Shocking Farm-Hands=-
ScarecrowScarecrow (Scarecrow)

Scarecrow attack every action, if able. Every time they attack, they recover HP equal to their attack power regardless of whether or not they hit anything. This virus type also has the rare ability to absorb Elec element damage as healing for the same amount. They are immune to any status effects associated with Elec element damage/attacks. Scarecrows are anchored to the ground, and thus enjoy the effects of SuperArmor. Scarecrow are never encountered underground or indoors.

Area: Electown, Dentech, NAXA

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 20 Elec + Piercing + Recover20
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Conducts thunder, healing itself.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): DollThunder1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: SuperArmor: Immunity to Knockback, Microburst, Pull, Gravity, and similar effects.
Special: Lightning Rod: This virus absorbs Elec attacks as Healing.A: DELETED
ScarecrowScarecrow (Scarecrow)

Scarecrow attack every action, if able. Every time they attack, they recover HP equal to their attack power regardless of whether or not they hit anything. This virus type also has the rare ability to absorb Elec element damage as healing for the same amount. They are immune to any status effects associated with Elec element damage/attacks. Scarecrows are anchored to the ground, and thus enjoy the effects of SuperArmor. Scarecrow are never encountered underground or indoors.

Area: Electown, Dentech, NAXA

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 20 Elec + Piercing + Recover20
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Conducts thunder, healing itself.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): DollThunder1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: SuperArmor: Immunity to Knockback, Microburst, Pull, Gravity, and similar effects.
Special: Lightning Rod: This virus absorbs Elec attacks as Healing.B: DELETED
ScarecrowScarecrow (Scarecrow)

Scarecrow attack every action, if able. Every time they attack, they recover HP equal to their attack power regardless of whether or not they hit anything. This virus type also has the rare ability to absorb Elec element damage as healing for the same amount. They are immune to any status effects associated with Elec element damage/attacks. Scarecrows are anchored to the ground, and thus enjoy the effects of SuperArmor. Scarecrow are never encountered underground or indoors.

Area: Electown, Dentech, NAXA

HP: 100
Attack Damage/Effect: 20 Elec + Piercing + Recover20
Attack Accuracy: A
Attack Description: Conducts thunder, healing itself.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): DollThunder1, Zenny
Special: Immobile.
Special: SuperArmor: Immunity to Knockback, Microburst, Pull, Gravity, and similar effects.
Special: Lightning Rod: This virus absorbs Elec attacks as Healing.C: DELETED

TwistyTwisty (Twisty)

Area: SciLab, Electown

HP: 80
Attack: 20 Elec + Panel Break + Drop Attack
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Summons a RemoteBit to rain down lightning and break panels.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): RemoteBit1, Zenny
Special: Immobile. RemoteBit is invulnerable to all attacks and effects. Can use Blinder once.A: DELETED
TwistyTwisty (Twisty)

Area: SciLab, Electown

HP: 80
Attack: 20 Elec + Panel Break + Drop Attack
Attack Accuracy: C
Attack Description: Summons a RemoteBit to rain down lightning and break panels.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): RemoteBit1, Zenny
Special: Immobile. RemoteBit is invulnerable to all attacks and effects. Can use Blinder once.B: DELETED

MagTectMagTect (MagTect)

MagTect move and dodge at slightly above average speed. In spite of the fact that they have wings, and hover above the ground, they are still subject to the effects of the terrain below. Regardless, they are very dangerous thanks to their ability to exert control over enemy movements with pincer attacks and magnetic pull effects. They know how to use these effects, too. MagTects avoid liquid terrain types if at all possible, as they do not function well at all if forcibly submerged.

Area: SciLab, Electown, Netfrica, NAXA

HP: 90
Primary Attack Damage/Effect: 20 Elec + Stun 1 + Magnetic Pull
Primary Attack Accuracy: B
Primary Attack Description: Pulls opponents towards them and hits with a magnet. Stuns.
Secondary Attack Damage/Effect: 10 Elec + Seeking + Pincer Attack x 2 Missiles
Secondary Attack Accuracy: C
Secondary Attack Description: Shoots two MagnetMissiles at a target: one from each side. The missiles move as if to pass the target, then suddenly turn towards each other in a pincer attack with the target between them.
Element: Elec
Possible Rewards (Per Virus): MagBolt1, MagnetMissile1 (Rare), Zenny
Special: Pincer Attack: Attacks a single chosen target from two opposing directions at the same time.: DELETED

-=Blazing Explorer=-
ScorchMan: 25 Hp [Lava, mid left field][RageClaw: 5/6]

-=Fine Fields=-
50% Lava [Pathway up the center, and the entire left field]
15% Broken, 5% Cracked [Some holes and cracks in the middle pathway]
20% Metal [The right side 'field']
10% Solar [Circular patch, in the fields, around TwistyB]

-=Objects=-
RemoteBitA: [Deactivated]
RemoteBitB: [Deactivated]

-=Battle 4, Victory!!=-
Rewards: DollThunder1Damage: 80 + Line-Attack5
Accuracy: B
Description: Fires a powerful bolt of lightning that pierces through objects and enemies alike.
Duration: Once
Element: Elec
Trader Rank: D Battlechip, 1350z

Terra was having a bit of a rough patch, as it appeared. She was watching her body get tossed about and bearing the brunt of a terrible series of attacks, that she was somehow still equipped to handle. However, from the moment that she had fired off the first attack that fired off the solid grey faux-tree trunk, it was as if her body tapped into a well of energy that slipped entirely from her grasp. She could feel a strange presence invading and numbing her mind, as if her consciousness was being filled with a slow, hazy opaqueness, like a sedative.

From then on, her body moved on its own without her consent, and it would not respond to any of her attempts to restore control. She could also "hear" Carbide's internal yelling quite well -- in fact, it was starting to wear on her a little -- but she could not respond, much to her dismay.

Then, just as she was about to sink into the abyss, whatever had its grip on her mind loosened, and she felt suddenly herself falling, amongst a din of noises and lights about her. The most prominent was the blinding glow of the Cybeast, falling alongside her, along with a veritable mountain of debris besides them. The sharp scent of ozone filled the air that they passed through, even as they were hurtling down at a seemingly high velocity. As her overly long ponytail billowed upwards, she rotated her body around to see the cavern floor below rapidly approaching. Without delay, she forced her energy into an angled burst of air to slow her descent, as well as draw herself away from the gigantic beast next to her.

Thanks to her quick reaction, she was able to stick a rolling landing, while Riccio's fate was much rougher, striking the ground with such force that the entire area seemed like it would break at any moment. Sustaining some momentum as she rolled away from the beast, Terra sustained relatively little aside from some scratches. As her landing slowed down, however, the mental invasion started once more, and the forced calm and sedate feeling she had earlier resumed. She then watched as the battlefield before her started to warp subtly. A different field forcibly superimposed itself in front of her, before it faded away just as quickly.

Her body moved without her volition again, counterattacking and dodging about with vigor, but it wasn't quite enough. A thunderstrike from Riccio landed. All at once, she felt her body return its control to her, and the mass of electrical energy tensed up her body like a surge of adrenaline. The energy manifested quite visibly, as her terraforming protocol involuntarily activated, erupting forth from where she stood as a massive deluge of dark mud. Her consciousness was cleared from the artificial tranquil.

"Whoa, what, hey! That is way too much!" came Carbide's panicked inner voice.

"I'm trying... to hold it back!" exclaimed Terra, while she tried to reel in the runaway terraforming process. She could feel the quiet presence in her mind creeping back in again, while the mud slowly receded in its spread.

"What do you mean--Oh! You're back! What happened?"

"Something was controlling me, I'm not sure what happened," explained Terra, as her armor reformed from the her being back in her element, and a translucent green honeycomb sphere surrounded her.

"I knew this was a bad idea! Is it this spiky hedgehog thing? Ugh, shield, where's the shield..." argued Carbide. Terra quickly found the rocky tower shield affixed to her arm once again, as it moved by itself to face forward against the beast. Terra's eyes narrowed slightly, observing the strange circuitry that leaked from the beast's wounds. What was strange was that she couldn't feel life from it, as she did with the encounter she had in Okuden. It was like comparing a fully powered device to one that was barely hanging on to life, discharging its last capacitors.

"I don't think so... From the energy around here, it's just lashing out now, like a wounded animal. We can try to keep a distance," she said. The static field about her was providing her with energy, but it was also restricting her movement quite a bit as it involuntarily tensed her body up periodically.

"Well, whatever it is, let's get outta here!" replied Carbide emphatically. It was about time Terra listened to some reason. Yet, even though they were following her recommendation to leave, or at least keep further away from it, Carbide couldn't help but feel a slight sense of unease. Not voicing it out, she hoped she was wrong.

Gathering her strength, Terra raised her hand and repeated the same forced energy burst from her earlier descent, this time directed at Riccio in order to propel her away. Her body was launched away, though she kept herself grounded and bent the mud under her feet to her will in order to gain some footing in case it launched a counterattack at her.

"Ah..."

However, once she was starting to clear a distance away from Riccio, she realized that the electric field may have been inadvertently protecting her as well, as it grasped her mind once more, and the mud under her feet switched from assisting her evasion to swirling around in a rage. Sloshing about like the surface of a stormy sea, Terra felt her body manipulate the mud, unbidden, into a tidal wave of earth. Just as she had done before with Scarlet's assistance, the murky tsunami was a force to be reckoned with, heading straight for Riccio's wounded body.

// Summary (Field Effect: -10% Evasion, +1 Buster Charge)
[Te.1] Sig: Terrascape (Archiver): Raging Landslide: Stage Change (Mud

• Non-Wood Elementals get -10% Evasion penalty and reduced movement speed, 25% (+/-25% RP) chance to fall or get stuck (1 action to get free).
• Automatically triggers Aqua Boost for appropriate chip attacks.
• Wood attacks: Change terrain hit to Soil.
• PanelShot: Imbue Wood + Slow1.

) + Strengthen(20) (Planar Casing: Reactivate, Preserver: Mud)
[Te.2] Sig: Terraskill (Archiver): Persistence of Will: Planar Barrier(30) + Planar Casing(30) + Planar Shield(1) (Mud: Wood)
[Te.4] Act: Buster Charge
[Te.3] Sig: Terraforce (Archiver): Force of Disaster: Microburst @ Away from Riccio
[Te.5] Sig: Terraskill (Archiver): Vigilance of Will: Haste 2 + Dodge (Haste2+FieldEffect: Evasion+10%)
[Te.6] Act: Charged Buster: Wood 600 @ Riccio (Element Weakness: +100% Source)

"STEADY DOES IT..." the Prog said, as the bridge was lowered into place, perfectly fitting into place of the ravine. After doing its work, the crane raised its hook, and the loud engine slowly whirred to a halt while the Prog hopped out. "DONE!" it proudly announced, while Courseman went to inspect the place for itself. When Courseman turned back, he would find the crane already gone, with only the Prog there hovering by his side.

"SORRY! I HAVE NO RECORDS STORED ABOUT HOW THIS AREA WAS DESTROYED. I WAS ASSIGNED TO REPAIR THIS AREA WHEN IT WAS DAMAGED. THIS PATH GOES UP TO A VOLCANIC SIMULATION RESEARCH AREA, REGISTERED UNDER SHARO NETWORK ADDRESS 88:FF:11:AA:12:9A. DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS?" said the Prog, all with the same smiling face it always had.

Hershel Layton's cousin takes an interest in the abyss.

Approved.