Posts made by Link2125

Nitro and Tina both took their drinks (the former immediately drinking from his rather heartily, it seemed he was acquiring a taste for it), and nodded as they recieved their instructions.

"It would probably be less suspicious if we let her lose a few hands anyway," Tina said quietly. "Constant victories would probably hint at some dishonesty."

"Yeah, what she said," Nitro replied. He nodded to Jolly as she beckoned them over, lifting his drink to her. "We'll be right over!" The two took their respective positions, Nitro helping himself to a calzone at his, and waited for the game to proceed.

Apologies for the semi-extended absence (this mostly applies to Aim), I've just been looking for a new room, as my lease ends with this month. The good news is, I've already found a place, so come August, I should be posting with more regularity.

Nitro was a bit surprised to see the diminutive captain as he came up over the side of the boat. From the nature of their true assignment, he would've figured that all the captains would be modelled after a more adult frame. However, from the sound of things, it seemed that she wasn't always so childlike. At any rate, though, it seemed that any pictures they got of her wouldn't be worth much to Boss Oni... unless he liked that sort of thing.

As Cutlass got everyone's attention, Tina was still mulling over her self-demotion to first mate. It seemed to her that there was more to it than what she let on. She figured it'd be worth getting to the bottom of, but she'd hold off on questioning her for now.

When the two Teksqp operatives were given the floor, Nitro stepped forward, giving a quick glance around for Triangleman. He decided it wasn't worth calling attention to, and there must've been a good reason for his absence. With that in mind, he began speaking.

"Okay, so, first off, I'd just like to say again that, on behalf of the Teksqp, we're happy to have the opportunity to with the Jolly pirates," he said with a grin. "Here's hoping for a mutually fruitful partnership for today, tomorrow, and the forseeable future.

"Secondly, I'd like to say that it's a pleasure to meet the three of you as well; Bomba, Clipper, and I'm guessing you're Power," Nitro nodded to the shorter captain in greeting. "Here's hoping today goes well for all parties involved, and we all come out of it in one piece!" Nitro chuckled a bit to show he was joking, but with the way everyone was at each other already, it was certainly a legitimate concern. He hoped the alcohol didn't exacerbate things.

Nitro and Tina both looked up as they heard Cutlass call out from outside. Tina, however, glanced back as Jolly flubbed the name of her first mate. She tried not to dwell on it as they all got up to leave, but she had a sneaking suspicion that the Teksqp weren't the only ones that had had a hidden agenda. She resolved to keep an eye on Cutlass and Jolly as the day went on.

------------------------

As they came to Clipper's ship, Nitro and Tina were a bit surprised with the captain's appearance. She seemed a bit more high-class than the typical image of a pirate.

They were surprised yet further as she guessed their faction. Had they met before? Tina searched her memory, trying to figure out if she was familiar.

"It's nice to meet you, Clipper," Nitro said. "I'm Nitro, and this is TNT." He sat back as much as the boat would allow, and looked toward the next ship as they ventured over, the one belonging to Bomba.

-----------------------

After Bomba came aboard and they began to head back to Jolly's ship, Nitro was starting to feel the tension building between the passengers on the boat. He figured he'd take it upon himself to start a conversation.

"So, you're Bomba?" Nitro said, addressing the burning navi. "Nice to meet you, I'm Nitro, this is TNT. So, I'm told you have a talent for firebombing. I've actually got something of a passion for explosives and the like, so I'm really interested to hear more about that."

Tina, meanwhile, decided to talk with Cutlass. "So, Cutlass, Jolly mentioned that you only recently became her first mate. Why don't you tell us how you came to be employed by her."

"Well," Nitro said. "I've never been expressly told not to share this with others, and I've kind of made it my business to let people know about these guys... They're known as the Right of Operation Templars, they're a pretty radical group. Basically the whole meeting was a set-up, they had no interest in partnering with us from the word Go, and they intended to attack one of our operatives through the meet-up. Of course, it blew up in there face, quite literally considering I was involved." While Nitro trusted Jolly, his words had a bit of a warning to them, whether intentional or not, that he wouldn't stand for any double-crossing on her part.

Tina, meanwhile addressed Jolly's concerns regarding the parley. "I'd just tell them what you've told us, that you stand to make more money working together than you do as enemies. Each one of you has resources and abilities that, when put together, form quite a formidable team. And if they're upset with your working with us, just remind them that if they work with you, then they all stand to benefit from the Teksqp's partnership as well."

"TNT's right," Nitro said. "I also think that the atmosphere could help things along. If everone's relaxed, they're more agreeable and open to hear you out, right? I say we get some drinks passed around, maybe play some cards, and we're set!" Nitro took a swig of his own drink to punctuate his belief.

Nitro and Tina each took their mugs with a polite smile and nod, the former having no reservations about having a somewhat generous swig almost immediately. Tina, by contrast, elected to keep her mug lowered. They both raised their mugs to Jolly's toast, and each took a seat in the armchairs as they were motioned to.

"Well, to start with the second question," Nitro said, before taking a quick drink, "I'm Nitro, and this is my partner and SP, TNT, and my colleague, TriangleMan." He motioned to each with his free hand. "Let's see... TNT and I are demolitions experts. We wreck things... professionally." He paused for a moment. "At least, that's ehat we signed onto the Teksqp for."

At this point, Tina jumped in. "Please, call me Tina. And of course, the Teksqp is a veritable melting pot of skillsets," she began. "We get all sorts in our family, demolitions experts like myself and Nitro, cunning strategists like TriangleMan here, phsyciatrists, jailkeepers, morticians, forensic investigators, you'd likely be hard-pressed to find a field that at least one Teksqp navi wasn't involved in... of course, demolitions isn't mine and Nitro's primary area of expertise." She said. "This isn't our first time being sent to represent our family in the interest of forming a partnership with another organisation. We certainly hope all goes well between our family and your crew today and in the future." As a bit of an afterthought, she took a small sip of her drink, so as not to seem rude.

Meanwhile, Nitro gestured to his fellow Teksqp navi. "What about you, TriangleMan? Why don't you tell about yourself?"

"Strip Bowling?" Chris said. "Do you see a bowling alley? No, I mean, maybe a game of poker or something would be a good means to talk things over. Things would probably be more relaxed if it were in a more casual setting rather than a stiff, official meeting. Maybe even toss a few drinks around, and just maybe they might start betting their boots and tricornes, so to speak. Just so long as they're relaxed. Things might go smoother for us that way too. They might be too wrapped up in the game to notice that we're snapping a few pictures." Eight sentences. Chris figured that TriangleMan would be itching to fill in that last one to make the ninth. A triangle of triangles would likely be too good for him to ignore.

As Chris and TriangleMan talked and Tina listened attentively, Nitro peered past his fellow "genius" and caught a glimpse of the Navi approaching. He saw the sun glinting off the handles of the blades, and figured that she was Jolly's first mate. Realizing that their time for private conversation was short, Nitro turned back to TriangleMan. "So, one last thing before Cutlass gets here," he asked. "Are you providing us with a camera at all, or is that something we're meant to handle ourselves?"

Nitro, Chris, and Tina both stood by and listened to TriangleMan's explanation, though the latter two were having a bit of difficulty wrapping their heads around the fact that he had called Nitro a genius. If he thought Nitro was a genius, that would certainly say a lot about TriangleMan's alleged genius.

As they listened to his explanation of the various captains, they did indeed pick up on the pattern laid out. "So, they each hate their elemental 'superior'?" Tina inquired. "Tell me if I'm correct."

"Makes sense," Nitro replied. "If I were a pirate, I wouldn't want to hang around the one that could blow me out of the water." Speaking of blowing things out of the water, given Bomba's name, element, and talent, he had a feeling he'd be able to strike a chord with her. The others, on the other hand, especially Clipper, might be a challenge. "Does the whole 'hate circle' run the other way, too?" Nitro asked. "Like, Jolly hates Bomba hates Clipper hates Power hates Jolly?"

As they discussed the captains further, Chris was trying to work out how they were supposed to organize a parley. Especially considering that they had absolutely no experience in piracy to speak of. He rubbed his temples a bit, groaning. This was going to be a tough one. It wasn't as if they could just get them playing a game of Strip Poker...

"Hey, TriangleMan, I have a question," Chris said, popping up on a video screen. "These pirates... do any of them like to gamble?"

Nitro and Tina trudged along the beach as they jacked in, the given coordinates putting them about seventy feet away from their intended destination.

"Pretty sure I joined the Teksqp to blow stuff up," Nitro complained. "Not play frickin' diplomat and spy for them. Why do we keep getting stuck with these lame recon missions?"

"Remember Gala's party?" Tina said. "Remember the Bowl 'n' Bones? You've seen the other people in our family; along with Jailbird, we're probably the sanest, most normal looking programs in the Teksqp."

"So we were doomed to play emissary for the crazies since we joined?" Nitro said.

"Sounds about right," Chris said.

Nitro kicked the sand a bit. "Should've joined the Bloodhounds or something. Maybe I'd see a bit of action then."

"Come on, Nitro, we've met some good people," Tina said.

"We've met Jail and Melissa, everyone else is either crazy or someone we were helping have their homes broken into." He sighed a bit, and looked up to see the fire a little ways away. "Whatever, let's just go see Jail. Least we can hang out with her again. I wanna see if she likes that GMO we got her."

"Uh... we're not working with Jail this time," Chris said.

"Great," Nitro groaned. "Is it someone we know, or is it some random whack-job?"

"It's, uh... TriangleMan."

"Seriously?" Both programs said in unison.

"Swell, now we have to deal with his pointy, pompous ass too, and that triangle obsession he's got." Nitro lamented.

"Hopefully he doesn't know too much about what the party was really about," Tina noted.

"Well, just play it cool," Chris said. "There's a lot of money riding on this."

The two nodded, and they approached the fire, and the Navi waiting beside it.

"Hey, TriangleMan," Nitro said with a wave. "Good to see you again." Not...

Chris here.

I suppose I've got no choice but to accept, with that kind of money up for grabs. Let Boss Oni and TriangleMan know that we're in.

-Chris Harper

Hey, Chris Harper here, posting for myself, Nitro.exe, and TNT.SP/Tina.

I'll spare you the details of my personal life save to say that I've hit a bit of a financial snafu, so I've come to request another mission for my team and I to take on for the Teksqp. We'll take just about anything, to be frank, whatever you need us to do, we'll do it.

-Chris Harper, Operator of Nitro.exe

[Requested Difficulty: *****]

Nitro quickly went to Tina's side as she was hit by the kunai, looking slightly worried. "You alright, TNT?" He asked her.

The Support Program nodded slowly, grimacing a bit. "I'll be alright... The show must go on, after all..." However, that sentiment might not hold true, if the way Chris was cursing was anything to go by.

"Chris? You okay man?" Nitro asked.

"Damnit, damnit, damnit!" Came Chris's reply. The source of his grief was soon made apparent, as Nitro discovered that one of the kunai he had dodged was now lodged in the lense of the floating camera.

"The recording program's corrupted beyond repair," Chris said. "That thing set me back... ugh, I don't believe this!"

"Uh... ladies and gentlemen," Tina spoke up, assuming that the audio function of the recording program was still working. "I regret to inform you that, due to unforseen circumstances, this episode of Let's Bust will be ending prematurely." She turned to the Professor. "Professor, Mr. Gibson, it was a pleasure to have you with us."

"...Going to have to do like a hundred missions to get this thing replaced..."

"Uh, yeah, right, what TNT said," Nitro replied. "You have our email I guess, so if you'd like to come bust with us again once we get this camera thing sorted out, just drop us a line and let us know."

With a parting nod, the Navi and SP disappeared in a flash of green and red light, as Chris deactivated the recording program entirely.

[NITRO & TINA JACK-OUT]

Nitro gave a bit of a start as the purple smoke descended around him. He coughed a bit, due to the foul stench, but it seemed to heighten his focus, so he decided that the Professor was just trying to help him. He quickly leapt to the left out of the fog, as Chris uploaded a battlechip.

Nitro lifted his buster as flames licked the edges of the barrel, and looked down its length at the remaining viruses. When they were lined up just how he wanted them, he let loose a torrent of flame, aiming to roast the remaining Genin alive. Not wanting to leave himself open again, he quickly began moving about the battlefield, pausing for a moment as he heard the Professor's voice and allowing him to heal him.

Tina, meanwhile, held her buster at the ready, electing to answer the viewer's question. "Well, if you're just starting to bust, my recommendation is to head for the ACDC network," she explained. As she talked, she fired three explosives into the flames in rapid succession, hoping to polish off any surviving viruses. "The viruses there are comparatively weaker, and you're less likely to be overwhelmed."


Summary:
N1: Dodge left (+Haste)
N2: Heatshot (40Fire(+10 Elemental Affinity = 50Fire, x2 Grass Terrain = 100Fire) +Spread2 (Mass Destruction), at GeninB, C, and D (Acc: A+ (Accuracy Enhancement))
T1: Buster (20Fire) at GeninB
T2: Buster (20Fire) at GeninC
T*: Buster (20Fire) at GeninD (Gatling Gun)
N3: Dodge Right
N4: Dodge Back

Cooldowns:
Dynamite Bundle: 2 turns

Nitro nodded to the Professor as he received the recovery orb, its effects going to work immediately on contact. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind..." Nitro said, "but my name isn't Neddy, or Nelly, or Freddy, it's Nitro. As in Nitroglycerin." After he (probably unsuccessfully) clarified his name to the old, goofy navi, he set his sights on the viruses. "TNT, you stay back for a minute, I'll mop up the rest."

"Very well," Tina replied, before resigning to watching the viruses carefully, and expanding on the Professor's answer. "As our colleague said, viruses do share the same basic weaknesses as Navis," she said. "However, it should be noted that some viruses also have certain resistances as well. For instance, trying to attack a Scarecrow virus with an Elec-type chip or attack will deal no damage to it." She kept a keen eye on the bushes and viruses as she spoke, ready to leap back at a moment's notice.

Nitro, meanwhile, had readied another pair of explosives: a Crossbomb in his left hand and a Magbomb in his right. He began his assault by hurling the Magbomb at the visible Genin, in an effort to at least slow it down so it could be finished off. As the explosive sailed through the air, Nitro gave a quick jump to the left to avoid any potential sneak attack, before heaving the other explosive at the two gently shaking bushes, aiming to land it between the two, closer to the one further away from where the Professor had placed himself, to avoid catching him in the blast as well. With any luck, the foliage would be immolated, and the hiding viruses along with it. As he finished off his attack, he moved back again, watching to see if the job had been done.

Summary:
T1: Dodge Back
T2: Dodge Back
N1: Recover30 @ Nitro (+30 HP, S Accuracy)
N2: MagBomb1 @ GeninA (30 Elec Dmg + Stun1 + Blast3*, C Accuracy)
N3: Dodge Left
N4: CrossBomb @ Bush G & F (100 Null Dmg + Blast4*, C Accuracy)
(*: Mass Destruction)

Cooldowns:
Dynamite Bundle: 3 turns

Nitro and Tina both readied themselves as the viruses came into view, but were a bit perplexed as their guest prattled on about the grass. Chris, meanwhile, read the situation, and uploaded a few chips that should help them mop up the viruses with ease. "Well, as for why we chose Yumland," Chris started. "We wanted to do a net we hadn't been in before, and after looking at the information available, we decided Yumland would be the right place for Nitro and Tina, being Fire based, to strut their stuff."

As Nitro recieved his first chip, the standard Minibomb, he held it up to the camera for a moment. "This right here is our bread and butter as far as chips go," Nitro said proudly. "A whole bunch of heavy ordinance." Nitro proceeded to hurl the Minibomb between the Boomers, the camera following its trajectory. "And that's our basic tactic, hit as many as you can as hard as you can. When you get right down to it, there are few things in life that can't be solved with a healthy amount of explosives."

Tina decided to field the third question, as she produced a lit bundle of dynamite, which she swung by the fuse and lobbed into the midst of the bushes, in an attempt to draw the Genin out. "Our story is nothing special, really, it's the same as most others." She kept a careful eye out for attackers as she spoke, the dynamite bundle exploding with a loud bang, scattering its smaller components between the bushes. "Chris and Nitro started busting as a hobby, and a means to make a few extra zenny. I became a member of their family about a year after they themselves began, and I should say that I'm incredibly thankful for that." She smiled a bit, looking to Nitro.

Nitro stopped for a moment as he was about to fire his modified, speaker-like buster, blushing and chuckling a bit. "Wow, heh, I'm touched, TNT, really." He said. After a moment, though, he remembered the viruses, and he promptly raised it back up, and fired at one of the bushes that seemed to be rustling.


Summary:
N1: Minibomb at Boomer A & B (90 DMG + Blast2)(Mass Destruction)
T1: Dynamite Bundle
-Stage 1: 20 DMG + Blast2 at Bush D (& Genin C)
-Stage 2: 1 Action Delay, 5 DMG + Blast2 at Bush A, B, E, F, & G (3tcd)
T2: Dodge Back-right
N2: Pulsar @ Bush C (70DMG + Object-Triggered Blast3)(Mass Destruction)
N3: Dodge right
N4: Dodge left

Cooldowns:
Dynamite Bundle: UTT

Chris, meanwhile, in stark contrast to Hal, was laughing richly at the Professor's exuberant introduction. "Why don't you tell the folks at home what they're in for, Neddy?" He chimed in.

"A good number of cheap laughs at my expense, no doubt," Nitro said flatly, already dreading having to work with the Professor. "But other than that, probably a lot of explosions and a good amount of roasted viruses. Anything you wanted to add, "Tasha"?"

Tina shot Nitro a mild glare, and continued. "Explosions and comedic anecdotes notwithstanding, this video, along with later entires in our series, should serve as an informative overview for beginners of what to expect out on the various networks," Tina continued. "An informed Navi is a safe Navi, after all."

"Right, so without further ado," Chris said, swiveling the camera out to face the dense forest along their intended path, "Let's Bust!" The title drop was Nitro and Tina's signal to venture forth, Tina motioning for the Professor to follow along.

((Ready for Battle 1))

Nitro and Tina both backed off as the Professor stumbled out of the bush, and couldn't do much more than stare as he sailed at and swung off of the camera, completely dumbfounded. Chris, meanwhile, was attempting to reign in the rapidly spinning camera, with slightly panicked utterances of "Sorry folks! Technical difficulties! Sorry!" Thankfully, he was able to regain control of the camera, and was now pondering the new arrival.

Meanwhile, Nitro and Tina exchanged confused glances as the Professor (incorrectly) recognized them. "Um, sir?" Tina said. "I think you've mista-" Her sentence was cut off, however, as she and Nitro were pulled into a lung-crushing hug.

As Nitro struggled to free himself from the Professor's deceptively strong grip, he wheezed to his operator. "This isn't the guy, is it?" He asked, not quite managing to free himself. Tina, meanwhile, gently patted the Professor's back, bewildered and befuddled by the series of events that had taken place.

Chris exchanged pleasantries with Howard in the meantime. "Uh... Chris Harper, host and producer of "Let's Bust!"," he introduced. "As I've already informed the audience, these are my Navi and SP, Nitro and TNT, respectively," he added.

"Please... call me Tina..." she chimed in, still stuck in the Professor's bear hug.

"Can you call him off or something?" Nitro groaned. "I don't think this show'll last too long if my back is broken..."

As Nitro and TNT appeared in the Yumland Net, Chris switched on the live feed for the potential viewers, and began talking into the microphone.
"Hey there, everybody, welcome to the very first episode of Let's Bust!" He said proudly. "I'm Chris Harper, and with me is my Navi, Nitro," Nitro gave a short wave, "and his busting partner and Support Program, Tina," Tina bowed to the "camera", which was signified to the Navis by a stereotypical floating black film camera. A fairly basic recording program, but Chris had tooled around with it to make it work for livestreaming. "Now, we have a guest joining us for our first episode, so we just have to wait for him to arrive, which shouldn't take more than a minute or two. Once he arrives, though, we can get this show on the road!"

As Chris talked, Nitro was examining the network with a smirk. "Let me guess, Chris," Nitro said. "You chose the net full of Wood viruses just so you could make me look more impressive."

"Well... yeah," Chris admitted. "But let's face, you need all the help you can get in that regard."

Tina laughed into her hand a bit, while Nitro rolled his eyes. "Whatever, let's just get to the part where I cause massive de-forestation." The trio waited for their guest to arrive, so they could get their show started.

((Note to mods: This busting run is being done in the form of a livestream. So, if you feel like it, you can simulate "chat comments" from the "viewers", for Chris to read and respond to. Of course, this is entirely up to you.))

"Check 1, check 2, check 3... Alright, mic seems to be working."

Chris tested his new microphone one final time, satisfied with the quality. He'd been setting up his equipment for the past half hour or so, making sure everything was in working order. This was to be the first episode of "Let's Bust!" his new web series, and he wanted to be sure everything was perfect. He checked the feed of the homepage one last time, and saw that a few navis had begun to trickle in. He smiled, and set some miscellaneous videos up to keep them entertained while he set up, then turned to his Navis. "Alright, Nitro, Tina, how're you two doing?"

"I've just finished applying the upgrades," Tina replied. "I'm ready to go."

"And I got the chips from the shop," Nitro said, sending the data to the cache. "Ready to go when you are."

Chris smirked. "Alright then, I'l. send a quick email to this other guy, and we can get started." He quickly typed out the notification and hit send, then picked up his PET, jacking it in and sending his Navi and SP through a link to the Yumland network.

[Jacking into Yumland]

Bunp