(Inside the Vorpal...)
Signas moves to the front of the craft, taking the pilot's seat, which he actually stands rather than sits at. Thrusters and engines and all sort of sci-fi goodness roars to life as the craft powers up, and begins the trip into the wild blue yonder... "Everyone remember to buckle up," says the diplomat.
[Radio: (D) Hunter-S] Zero transmits, "Good luck people, Commander Signas is the operation leader, make sure you heed his orders."
Bowie, like the typical cavalry he is, runs in at the last moment, and straps himself in.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> flexes as it powers up.
Wire Wolf sits on all fours. Rather then buckle up, he just digs hsi claws into the deck plates, ears perked interestedly.
Zero sits down and buckles himself in towards the back, still rubbing the back of his head, "Jeez, Breeze... I was just kiddin'..."
Sonata slides down into her seat, checking the connections for the harness that she is wearing, before running a quick check on her own systems... power levels OK, gravity generator functional... looked like everything was good to go. Hopefully these new combat upgrades would do some good in this little scuffle.
Breeze likewise settles in, though she looks confused at Zero's remark. "What the hell're you talking about, now?"
Ride Armor <Triumph> has a seat in the far corner of the Vorpal, in one of the few places large enough to accomodate the ride armor.
Zero leans back in his chair and tucks his hands behind his head, closing his eyes for a moment. It's been a long time since he's taken part in something as big as this. He opens his eyes and smiles, "I wonder what jokesters they'll send, probably Volt Catfish and Chill Penguin, and a bunch of lame drones. This oughta be easy."
"Do not underestimate our adversary." states Wire Wolf calmly. His eyes are closed, ears twitching erraticly, "...I sense a storm brewing..."
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> is nowhere near as cocky as Zero. He girds himself mentally, making sure he's strapped in tightly. "I do not aim with my hand... he that aims with his hand has forgotten the face of his father..."
Zero chuckles, "I'm always prepared for the worst... I just like to muse about the best."
Breeze snaps over to Wire Wolf, "That would be me you're sensing. Keep at it."
Outside> France
Outside>
No longer the world capital of love, France has been ground under the heel of Maverick rule. The Eiffel Tower, now resonating with Maverick radio waves, is still the tallest structure in France. The strong and rigid iron spire rises above it's beloved city of Paris, looking down upon an occupied city. Paris' museums and elements of human culture are still being gathered, reworked, or eliminated as the Mavericks see fit, the Lourve locked to all visitors. The reploid patrols keep Paris under a tight keep, but beyond the main, city one can still find a pleasant life of wine, love and art.
Outside> Contents: Contents:
Enforcer Malamute [Main] [M] Cleaver Cow [Cooking] [M]
Napalm Wolverine [Armor] [M] Bit [Normal] [M]
Byte [Yoma] [M] Shyster [Cinematic] [M]
Sigma [Imperial_sigma] [M]
Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> [M] Maverick Outpost [M]
Outside>
West <W>: Northeastern Atlantic Ocean
South <S>: Iberian Peninsula
Northwest <NW>: Great Britain
Southeast <SE>: Switzerland
North <N>: Flemish States
East <E>: Germany
Up <U>: Sky Above Western Europe
Outside> Something flies high above the skies of France, the country of wine, love, and fascist Maverick oppresion... Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Er, yes, it is. In fact, it's the Maverick Hunter VTOL, and it's en route to some serious Maverick aftkicking. Massive thrusters power the craft in from the west, crossing over the shortest possible stretch of land, headed for the city of Paris.
Sonata just remains quiet.. this is going to be nasty enough as it was... and she didn't want to waste any energy chatting.
Bowie, as usual, is silent. He's already said his peace about the mission, and there's no reason for him to chatter now. The gunslinger (not the Gunslinger) checks his rifle one last time, then slings it over his shoulder.
Outside> Sigma stands on an outlook from the Eifell Tower, grinning in his usual mocking manner. It's a grin that hardly ever fades, and even now as the world's most elite force flies into the area, he smiles. "My.", he says, "You are certainly being cocky.", still Hunters usually have a plan, and they usually can do the greatest damage despite their small numbers. Sigma raises binoculars hanging around his neck as he peers to look at the incoming craft a bit more closely. Making a few minor adjustments, he waits... Waits... And there, perfecto. With a raise of his hand, Sigma says, his voice resonating throughout the Eifell Tower and, in fact, beyond as he shouts, "City of Paris, today you will shine like a gem lost in sand! Today you will show the true strength of this land! Ready!"
As he says this, several turrets move in and aim towards the VTOL... Nothing near the defenses of Berlin, but enough to make driving uncomfortable.
"Aim!", is Sigma's next word. He truly enjoys this part of an attack, the defensive strike. The turrets lock into position. And when Sigma says "FIRE!", a radio message being sent out to those who man the turrets as he speaks with the same message. With a split second difference in timing, shells are launched from the turrets all towards the single Hunter craft, attempting to down it before it even gets close, or at least ruin it's new paintjob.
Zero hrms, "So maybe this might be a little bit harder than first thought..."
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> looks up. "We'll overcome. We're Hunters. That's what we do."
Zero smirks, "Oh, I'm not worried. I'm actually kinda glad... this might actually be a little fun." Zero then gets that weird crooked grin that really doesn't give off the most reassuring message about his complete mental sanity.
Breeze looks a bit unnerved as the Vorpal nears the operations area. Moreso as it seems defenses are /quite/ ready for them. "Mind if I bail out here and attack from the air, rather than having to rise from wherever we land?"
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> does a final powerup. *Main engines online, laser systems online, gauss system online, missile system online, targetting sytem online, flight system online, all systems online* Mike smiles at the HUD. "Okay, the Gunslinger is ready."
Silently, the wolf stands. Sort of. He's on all fours, actually. Even as the Vorpal rocks from the shelling, he moves towards the rear of the craft, and the exit. There, he sits again, digging his claws in to make sure he doesn't go anywhere.
Outside> Behind and above Sigma, appearing to hover ominously beside the Eiffel Tower... ...appears Byte.
Huge and powerful he hovers, and with golden eyes he witnesses what is about to take place. He feels the swell of pride within him at the words of his Emperor... and slowly raises his hands before himself, pressing his fingertips together.
Byte awaits the command of his Emperor... ...and watches the fireworks begin to blaze out from the city... ...is that contentment on his grim face?
Sonata shakes her head slightly. "You have the most messed up version of fun I've ever seen in a reploid," she comments to Zero, unhooking her saftey harness. Checking her weapons, she walks over to look out the window as the defenses fire around the ship. "Those things might be worth attacking, at least..." she comments, checking the defense emplacements.
Zero shakes his head, "No, we can use those if we take the area."
"Sir." Wire Wolf interjects, "If we do not take the area, and the Vorpal is not shredded in landing, it will be most difficult to evacuate with the defenses firing on us."
Bowie remains laconic, even as the Vorpal shudders from the near-misses. He calmly puts on his helmet, adjusting the straps, then his gloves. Looking to the others, he listens, but has nothing to add just yet.
Zero hrms, "Good point, Signas?"
Outside> To face head-on the Maverick Hunters' attempt at attack... Vile has brought reinforcements. A column of Maverick soliders, well-armed and ready, begin a ground march into the heart of the city. They keep slow, pace steady and synchronized, for at their forefront, the great machine of war marches, slowly. Power that moves through the streets with slow, heavy steps: the Goliath.
Outside> Focusing grimly on the incoming fire, Signas can't really respond to the chatter from the back. Meneuvering the large craft, he manages to keep it from taking the Maverick shots full on, instead veering away to catch a partial hit to the side. But the Vorpal's heavy armor is more than enough to withstand it - though it lacks any weaponry of real note, it makes up for it in speed and defence. As quickly as possible, the VTOL is taken down, so that the forces within can be unleashed, to show the Mavericks what they think of the strength of their land.
Outside>
And what's that appearing almost right next to Byte? The smaller figure, the one standing on a hovering shield of sorts, that's now turned horizontal to look like a surfboard. The one who looks strangely familiar to Byte. Why, the answer is incredibly obvious. It's the opposite of Byte. Yang.
A.K.A Bit.
He seems cool, collected. He's here to serve the Empire, the Mavericks, and he isn't going to let them down. But for now, he merely watches the turrets as they fire on the single, incoming craft...
Zero stands up, starting to walk out of the ship, "Lock and load, Hunters, let's give em hell."
Outside> Napalm Wolverine marches smartly behind Vile and the Goliath, head held high, proud to be who and what he is. Ears flatten to his head as the defenses open fire, and then Napalm's mouth splits into a hungry grin. Combat will be coming soon. Its been oh so long since he's had a real fight.....
Outside>
Some distance beneath the hovering Bit, Byte, and Sigma's own perch on the Eiffel Tower, Shyster steps out of the structure's lower levels, striding purposefully forward. In his wake, a business-suited executive of the local broadcast station slumps in defeat, shaking his head in dismay as he returns to his office. Meanwhile, Shyster walks towards the nearest railing and hops atop it, patent-leather shoe soles resting with perfect balance upon the ancient steel. The fabric of his trenchcoat flaps gently in the wind as the Maverick surveys the city, arms crossed over his chest.
A smile crosses Shyster's visage as he produces a pair of silver-rimmed sunglasses with one hand, slipping them over his eyes. It's showtime.
Behind him, above him, the broadcast arrays that run the length and breadth of the Parisan landmark come alive, all usual radio programming superceded mere minutes earlier by one particular arm-waving trenchcoated Maverick. It's amazing how good firearms are when trying to persuade uncooperative radio station execs to see things -your- way.
A single tune crackles through the airwaves, amd Shyster begins singing along at the top of his lungs: "Do yer hear t'people sing? Singing a song o'angry men? It is t'music o'a people who will not be slaves again! When t'beating o'yer heart echos t'beating o'the drums, there is a life about to start when tomorrow comes! (WOO!)"
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> says, "Gunslinger launching."
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> has left.
Breeze seems to like what she hears, rightly launching herself out of the Vorpal at Zero's signal. "About damn time!"
Breeze has left.
Sonata follows Zero out, but doesn't even bother to use the door - a quick trip of her blink system, and the Hunter vanishes to outside.
Sonata has left.
Ride Armor <Triumph> has left.
Bowie is the last man out, so to speak, reviving the bike and zipping out after the others.
Wire Wolf has arrived.
Signas has arrived.
Zero has arrived.
Sonata appears in a flash of light, her blink system materializing her on top of a small building nearby to the Vorpal's landing sight. Looking about for a moment, she tries to decide where the best place that she can go is, and where she might be able to use her own skills. Flipping up a small panel on her armor, she strikes a trio of buttons... and wavers before vanishing from sight. Best to not be too open about moving around here...
Sonata activates her stealth mode.
Cleaver Cow is, well, reinforcements. Riding on a black-and-white hovercycle that perfectly matches her own colouration, chef's hat pulled firmly down so that it doesn't blow off as she does this, she catches up (eventually) with Vile's column and trails just behind it, trying to get a sense of the situation. Lost? Who her?
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> poofs into the air in a burst of little bits of dust and other detritus from the RA launch bay. The Gunslinger's wings spread, jets lighting, as the Officer Pod of Doom jets toward the Maverick positions.
From the back of the vorpal emerges Wire Wolf, in free-fall. He whirls in midair, feet facing the streets below. From his forearms emerge several cables, which he whips towards a flagpole. They wrap about it, curling him about the pole easily. Rather then fall into the pavement, Wolf spins in midair, coming to a stop gripping the side of a flagpole, peering at the streets of Paris before him.
Ride Armor <Triumph> emerges from the launch bay shortly after the Gunslinger, weapons systems powering up as it maneuvers into place.
Breeze rather fairly comes sailing out of the Vorpal's boarding ramp area, a bazooka in her right hand. Her scanners check the area over, occasional blips of more unusual personnel in the area showing up. "Where to begin...so many choices!"
Bowie and his bike are the last out of the Vorpal, the hoverjets kicking in full once they clear the ramp.
Most likely emerging towards the end of the procession out of the Vorpal is the blazing red form of Zero, he's not in any rush at all unlike most of the others. He hops out of the ship and adjusts his gauntlets slightly shortly after landing gracefully. He then turns towards the city and begins to walk forward, his sabre still attached to the back of his armor, his crimson eyes narrowed. The berserker has his game face on, now let's see who came to play.
Enforcer Malamute is just kinda here along with everybody else who came along with Vile, so, yeah. Whatever. After the last fight he ended up in, he's not really looking forward to another one.
Around roughly the same time as Zero, Signas teleports out of the vehicle, quickly powering up his Glaive in front of him, while he begins rapidly subvocalizing transmissions to the... others already here. Every city is an army unto itself, and on whose side is sometimes difficult to know...
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "Ready for battle. As a scorpion defending it's territory. As a provoked rattlesnake. All shall feel my sting."
Sigma smiles as he leans forward a bit, tapping looking all the way down to the bottom of the tower. That's a nice long drop. Perfect amount of movement space, though. He raises his binoculars again, spotting the one reploid to truly defy the Virus, and Sigma's usual mocking grin...thins into quite the simple relaxed one. He sends out another radio, <Hm...Yes, this will do nicely. Coalition, run counterattack maneuvers. Be prepared in case we need to split our forces.>, Sigma then adds, <General Vile, you are in charge of the exterior force, I will handle any who make it inside to the city and supress any civilians who decide this might be a good idea to test our strength here.>
Sigma sends a radio transmission.
Zero receives a radio transmission from Sigma.
Zero sends a radio transmission.
Sigma receives a radio transmission from Zero.
Oblivious to the proper tactical coordination going on over the official Maverick radio bands, we have Shyster. Still singing at the top of his little lungs, his surprisingly loud voice booming out through the air. Then he begins waving his arms in purposefully dramatic sweeping arcs, in time to the ancient music swelling over the airwaves.
"Will yer join in our crusade? Who will be strong and stand wit'me? Somewhere beyond t'barricade is there a world yer long t'see? Do yer 'ear t'people SSIIIINNG--"
Oh, Lord. That boy can't carry a tune to save his life.
[Radio: (G) None] Bowie transmits, "Whare do ya want me?"
Civilian problems? If any such thing WERE to happen, it would be a very bad sign of the Mavericks' ability to hold ground. Vile narrows his single eye, only hoping that it will not be so. The last night the Maverick Hunters should see here is such a display of weakness from the Mavericks, when their forces are so many.
Vile pulls back a control on the Ride Armor, and the great, heavy fist draws back, then forward, pointing one finger toward the oncoming hunters. "DESTROY THEM!" Vile calls out, his voice carrying out over the field. Allowing the troops to swarm forward around his steadfast vehicle, Vile continues the Goliath in a steady march toward the outer streets of the city.
Sigma sends a radio transmission.
Zero receives a radio transmission.
Zero sends a radio transmission to Sigma.
Sigma receives a radio transmission.
Sigma sends a radio transmission to Zero.
Zero receives a radio transmission from Sigma.
Zero sends a radio transmission to Sigma.
Sigma receives a radio transmission.
Sigma sends a radio transmission to Zero.
Zero receives a radio transmission.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> lands with a crash near the front line, firing his ER PPC... er... Desperado Buster, toward the oncoming Maverick ranks, the Hunter scanning the crowds for any really obvious threats to his person or his allies.
Having not been given much in the way of clear instructions, Bowie and bike tear through the streets of Paris, heading for a rondevous point with one of the resistance groups. Hopefully the roar of the AA guns was enough to make them aware that things were not going quite according to plan.
Bit... Does nothing. He doesn't move in to attack anyone, nor does he ready any weapons. He just remains on his shield, near his brother and the famous Eiffel Tower. ...He'll probably make his move sooner or later. But for now, he stays, waiting for the right time to strike out at the invaders.
Theres the order he was waiting for. As the ranks begin to break apart and charge, Napalm slams his helmet blast shield down, cutting off his laughter. The firebat quickly charges to the fore of the Maverick forces, long strides carrying him along with ease. Holding up his hands, he lets off small bursts of napalm, confirming his weapons are live. "Attack us will they? We'll see about that."
Sigma sends a radio transmission to Zero.
Zero receives a radio transmission.
Within the Triumph, Kalinka knows that this is going to be a fierce fight, but she's inherited the grim determination of her father. She's in this for the long haul. She maneuvers the Triumph to one of the main Parisian thoroughfares, and begins scanning her immediate vicinity for opposition.
Byte narrows his golden eyes slowly, slowly does he scan the battlefeild. He watches the VTOL unleash its horde... and pauses for long moments to witness the events that are unfolding before his eyes. The message from Sigma to all Coalition members... and then, Shyster's singing... ...only give him a moments pause.
...Byte will have to tell Shyster to take some lessons from Guts Man...
Then... the Triumph. A slow, grim interest spreads over his features. The Gunslinger is also noted... the later of which giving Byte pause. That was the RA that used 'Nuclear Winter'... Byte pauses, looking to Bit a moment. Then Byte returns his gaze to the battlefield. ...and begins to send messages.
Eyes narrowed into slits, Shyster peers towards the horizon, taking in the advance of Maverick Hunter troops as they break through into the Paris city streets. Nice day. Pity they had to spoil it.
With a single fluid motion, Shyster slips one gloved hand into the folds of his trenchcoat, and draws a massive weapon, bringing its muzzle to bear on the nearest target to his own Eiffel Tower position, a single moving streak which he can barely make out at this distance - a hovercycle, throttle to full. Bowie.
Squinting through the scope bolted to the side of his absolutely -immense- sniper rifle, and swaying over the railing as the weapon's weight threatens to unbalance him Shyster singsongs to himself, and then pumps the trigger. PULL!
Shyster strikes you with a glancing hit from his Squinty Eye Shot for 6 units of damage.
Shyster sends a radio transmission to Bowie.
Shyster sends you a tightbeam radio transmission: "*STATIC* --Will yer give all yer can give, so that our banner may advance, some will fall and some will live, will yer stand up and take yer chance? T'blood o'the martyrs will water t'meadows o'France!--"
Byte sends a radio transmission to Kalinka.
Byte receives a radio transmission.
Breeze spots something most interesting in the Maverick ranks. A 14 foot tall Wolverine-styled robot with high heat signatures. "Perfect." She begins flying on ahead towards Napalm Wolverine's general location, high above most of the fighting but still plainly visible. A set of three silver orbs launch off her back as she goes, these all heading closer towards Napalm and firing a series of thin red energy beams at him, then after a few shots, flying back to Breeze.
Breeze strikes Napalm Wolverine with her Plasma Option attack.
Byte sends a radio transmission.
Byte sends a radio transmission to Vile.
Well, the Mavericks hadn't noticed her yet - so far, so good. But it really was starting to seem like they were vastly outnumbered, and that wasn't a good thing... and Sonata slowly shook her head, trying to figure out the best angle to try and improve this situation. Well, they were out in the city, which meant that there were some of the local defense systems around here... which meant a possible weapon for the Mavericks to use against them.
Or for they to use against the Mavericks, if they had the chance.
Sprinting off and leaping down from the rooftop, Sonata makes her way towards one of those nearby defense emplacements. Hoping that her stealth systems hold out for the time being, until she can get there.
Byte receives a radio transmission from Vile.
Byte receives a radio transmission.
Releasing the flagpole, Wire Wolf drops. Rather then face off with assorted masses of soldiers, he darts into an allyway. It's evening, and night is falling. He's in his element, despite the urban setting. The wolf sneaks along, going from shadow to shadow to try and avoid detection by Maverick defense squads. This may be interesting.
Cleaver Cow had been near the trailing edge of the line of Maverick infantry, off to the side so she could see just what was going on. When the Desperado Buster fires into the ranks, she accelerates towards the source of the blast, one hand moving up to hold her hat on. Again.
"Hey! Hey, you!" So it's not really a /good/ way to get a Ride Armor's attention, but it's the only way Cleaver can think of. Levelling her left arm at the Armor, her hand retracts into the bracer, which divides into four to allow a larger object to be fired. Said object is:
A plate. One ceramic plate with carefully sharpened steel edges, right at the Gunslinger.
Byte sends a radio transmission.
Cleaver Cow strikes Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with her Razor Plates attack.
Bowie is struck by a shot that comes from seemingly nowhere, left shoulder jerking back from the impact. It will take more than that for him to lose control of the bike, though a few garbage cans spill instead. And then, that singing. In horrible off-key. Even he can sing better than that. A glance up, and he catches the glint of a rifle, and the reploid weilding it. He wants a gunfight? He can provide. The Texan draws his energy pistol from its holster, and while still managing the bike with his right hand, fires at the atonal Shyster.
As Signas coordinates things silently over the radio waves, elsewhere in Paris, things begin to happen. Within the power generators, reploids or assaulted as subjugated human workers suddenly turn against them, quickly joined by small crowds who probably shouldn't be there in the first place. Communications relays and computer networks are shut down all over the city. Many of the actions of the small human resistance groups prove to be in vain, as they are overpowered by the stronger loyal reploid population, and some of the networks are quickly restored, but their efforts are not totally in vain. And, gathering seemingly at random, as water droplets trickles down and eventually collect into a basin, another army is formed, in the streets a few blocks away from where the Hunter Vorpal sits... a human force, the true resistance and defenders of Paris. They don't advance just yet, hanging back out of site, but soon...
Meanwhile, the Diplomat's eyes turn to the current strongest unit in the Maverick defences, the ride armor Goliath. He owes the General something.
You strike Shyster with a glancing hit from your Trick Shot attack.
Byte sends a radio transmission to Kalinka.
Napalm Wolverine grunts as three orbs suddenly appear, seemingly from nowhere and open fire on him. Minor damage reports come in from his systems even as he staggers ever so slightly. Breaking from the rest of the force, he tracks the orbs, holding his fire for a moment till he finds the real source of the attack. And there it is, in the form of Breeze, flying above the attack. "Great...a flyer. I hate flyers." A sigh of resignation escapes him, though for just a split second. "I guess I'll just have to bring her down to my level." Raising one hand, the Maverick tracks for a moment, then fires a stream of napalm from the palm of that upraised hand.
Napalm Wolverine misses Breeze with his Napalm Stream attack.
Byte receives a radio transmission from Kalinka.
Napalm Wolverine sends a radio transmission.
Napalm Wolverine receives a radio transmission.
Zero's expression twists into a bit of a disgusted sneer as his radio begins receiving transmissions from someone he sincerely did not expect to be here, nor did he -want- him to be here either. Regardless, it can't be helped, and Zero knows what's got to be done now. He picks up into a jog towards the city, immediately meeting resistance from a cadre of Maverick drones. He plants one foot down, sliding forard a bit before swinging around with his other foot and lashing out with his fist, backhanding the head clear off of one and fluidly shifting the same arm into his Hyper Buster and leaning backwards, causing him to fall to the ground as he nails three more. Upon impacting the ground he rolls backwards and handsprings back up to his feet. Two more rush him, one meeting one oversized boot to the gut, and then quickly finds himself launched backwards by a fierce upppercut. The other manages to leap onto Zero's back, causing him to stumble forward quickly, and nearly topple over.
"Get offa me you son of a...," the whirling hairball of doom growls, before reaching up and flinging the encroaching Maverick forward, his arm quickly shifting into his Hyper Buster again and firing off three quick volleys, causing the drone to explode midair in a fairly nice looking explosion.
(It must be sweeps week, this episode has a pretty good effects budget.)
Zero takes a moment to do a quick damage assessment before casting his gaze up towards the Effiel Tower. He then returns his gaze to the path in front of him. "This is /not/ going to go well... especially if I'm gonna end up getting caught up by all of these croonies... and I really don't want to run into the bigger ones. Hrm." Zero casts his gaze around quickly before deciding the best course of action is to take his journey topside. He leaps up onto the side of a nearby building, only to quickly spring back off of it towards the building adjescent. He continues this activity until he finds himself on the roof of one of Paris' office towers. Already begining to plot out his route across the staggering rooftops.
Napalm Wolverine sends a radio transmission to Dr. Doppler.
Byte sends a radio transmission.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> is struck, Michael registering the damage to one of the Gunslinger's armored legs as the blade slices into it. "You can't win, Maverick. Surrender or this will be messier than it has to be." Having said his token request for surrender, Mike brings up both arms of the Hunter mech, firing twin streams of lead at the bovine warrior.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> strikes Cleaver Cow with its Machine Guns attack.
Signas sends a radio transmission.
Napalm Wolverine receives a radio transmission from Dr. Doppler.
Napalm Wolverine sends a radio transmission.
Breeze easily, seemingly casually flits aside from the incoming flames. "Heh! It works better if you aim /at/ me." Tired, cliched taunts aside, she's aiming her bazooka down at Napalm Wolverine, and pulls the trigger. A single warhead flies out, the type who 'explode on contact' with solid things. Perhaps Napalm, or perhaps the street, or something else.
Breeze strikes Napalm Wolverine with her Bazooka Shot attack.
Still busy singing along happily to his pet tune, Shyster is, quite simply, caught completely flat-footed when Bowie doesn't just fail to fall beneath his bullet - and actually returns fire. Shyster's mangled rendition of the Broadway song is cut mercifully short by a yelp of surprise, followed by a much larger yelp as the impact knocks Shyster off balance, and all the way down the side of the Eiffel Tower. Yeoch.
But Shyster's remarkably unconcerned for a falling reploid rushing to meet the pavement. He simply replaces his dropped rifle with a new weapon. The gun now resting in the Maverick's hand bears the unmistakable profile of an autoloader - a semiautomatic firearm. It is, however, the wrong size to be a pistol. Mainly because it's a few orders of magnitude too big.
True, the grip is just about right for Shyster's hand. However, the rest of the weapon is just about right...for someone the size of General. A broad grin stretches across Shyster's features, showing several teeth. Cackling, the Maverick fires clear across the city as he hurtles earthward, the gun's slide blasting backwards as it launches an immense bullet...
...That...wait, that isn't a bullet. Scorched and blackened feathers rain down in the projectile's wake, as reflected light glints off the polished metal of the slab-sided handgun on steroids. If you look carefully, you can read the legend engraved neatly along the gun's barrel:
.60 x 10 MAGNUM CAL CHICKEN
Shyster strikes you with a minor hit from his Feather Buster for 10 units of damage.
You take less damage due to your Blunt resistances.
Byte receives a radio transmission.
Byte sends a radio transmission to Vile.
[Radio: (G) None] Sonata transmits, "Well, this isn't the best situation that we've gotten into, is it?"
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "The calm has ended. We find outselves bearing the full brunt of the Maverick storm."
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "Hey, we've been through worse."
[Radio: (G) None] Sonata transmits, "Of course, of course... is that the Goliath over there?"
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "X stormed a Maverick stronghold and beat Vile -and- Sigma by himself once."
Heavy steps crush down a brick street on the outskirts. A human runs by, to where, Vile does not know, as safety is too precious a commodity here... Vile would destroy him, if there wasn't more important things on his mind. Whether this decision proves an undoing shall remain to be seen.
The Goliath faces down with Signas, just as Vile recieves a radio message....then another. He's quick to respond, even as he brings the weapons on-line. The entire armor emits a dangerous hum. "Have you come to taunt, or fight, 'Hunter'?"
[Radio: (G) None] Sonata transmits, "My older brother also has signifigantly more firepower than we do."
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "Winning fights is a lot more than sheer power, Sonata."
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "Strategic thinking."
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "Not only just that."
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "I appear to have entered the city undetected..."
[Radio: (G) None] Sonata transmits, "...if you make one crack about good looks, Zero..."
Enforcer Malamute breaks off from the group of Maverick soldiers, to go try to find any Hunters which might have escaped back into the city. So right now, he's heading towards the area where Wire Wolf went off to..
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "Improvision, surprise, and just the sheer emotion you put into it."
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "No jokes from me tonight, Sonata. Even I ain't in the mood for laughin'."
Napalm Wolverine glowers as his shot misses. And stands still for just a bit to long. Combat training takes over and Napalm hurls himself to the side, which just means that the blast tosses him brutally against a building wall instead of incinerating him. He hits upside down and actually makes a Wolverine shaped dent in the wall. With a groan, he peels out of the indention and crumples to the ground. After several moments, he hauls himself to his feet. "Ok then, she wants to play rought." Both hands pull back down to his sides, fingers curling into claws. Heat waves begin to distort the area around Napalm, and he suddenly bursts into white hot flame, the streetlamps and signs near him melting and curling as metal runs like butter. Abruptly, both hands thrust upwards, towards Breeze. And as they do, a wall of fire leaps into being, some 20 feet tall and 20 wide, scorching buildings an vaporizing hapless pigeons as it hurtles for the flying Hunter.
Napalm Wolverine misses Breeze with his Napalm Wall attack.
Sonata continues to leap from rooftop to rooftop, trying to remain stealthy... although a bit of speed never hurt anyone in the middle of a combat situation. Leaping from a relatively high roof down to the edge of a smaller one, she pauses to look about for a moment... appearing to be nothing more than a shifting batch of shadows in the midst of a larger group of shadows cast by the city itself. Looking about to get her bearings, Sonata continues on her way, now only a few blocks away from one of the defense emplacements. Only a little ways to go now...
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "I wouldn't be surprised if that's the Goliath though... Sigma's here, and that means the whole gang of disorderlies is probably with him."
Cleaver Cow was doing just fine with the 'driving right at the Gunslinger' right up until the time the machine gun shots are fired. One stream hits her, causing a rather startled yelp as the shots crunch into her shoulder and torso. But the worst of it actually comes from the other shots - which hit the front of her 'cycle.
The cycle almost immediately stops, skidding along the ground rather then neatly above it. Cleaver is suprisingly quick at launching herself off it, tumbling once before landing on hands and knees. Getting up to her feet with a wince, she draws her right arm back before something slides into her hand from the 'bracer'. What it is is hard to make out at any distance, but judging from the way she holds it, it's surprisingly heavy. Drawing back as if she was going to throw a frisbee, Cleaver launches the weapon at the torso of the Gunslinger. "No surrender!"
Bit... Still remains up above. He's not fighting anyone at all. His hovering shield does begin to lower, sending Bit closer to the ground. Strange that he isn't attacking anyone, but maybe he's waiting to attack when an opponent is weak. But I'm sure he'll find something to do soon...
Cleaver Cow misses Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with her Fruitcake Discus attack.
Following a brief radio exchange, Kalinka begins taking the Triumph down one of the main thoroughfares, doing the ride armor equivalent of 'slinking' away from the battle proper to locate a weaker link further in. It isn't like she isn't fairly obvious, especially from higher vantage points.
[Radio: (G) None] Kalinka transmits, "That IS Vava. He is here."
Byte sends a radio transmission to Kalinka.
Waiting in the shadows, Wolf observes as one comes towards him. A canine reploid. It seems unawares. Wolf smirks lightly, firing off wires from his forearm ports. Impossibly thin, razored wires. They loop around objects in the scene, forming a sort of spiderweb of nearly invisible cables all around the allyway that Wire Wolf crouches in.
Wire Wolf strikes Enforcer Malamute with his Tangle Wire attack.
Enforcer Malamute is temporarily disoriented by Wire Wolf's Tangle Wire attack.
Byte receives a radio transmission.
Breeze's response to the incoming flame 'wall' is to glide higher up than the attack can reach, with incredible speed. Apparently, she heard his remarks though. "I always play rough! Think I'm gonna hold back on your account?" Her left palm points down at Napalm now, a horizontal tornado forming in front of the hand. It looks much like one Storm Eagle would make, only not as thick/wide. A second after it springs into being, it shoots forward towards Napalm, naturally enough.
Sigma crosses his arms as he watches the battle with merely his eyes as he awaits Zero's arrival. Timing is crucial in such a battle. The small deadly force combined with the large bulky one is like fighting someone with a sword and a poisoned dagger. He will have to keep an eye on both. He recieves thousands of reports and he slowly responds, taking his time, smiling all the way through. Sigma sure seems sure of himself, perhaps a bit too much so. Distribution of forces, also key. Even if the sword is destroyed, the poisoned dagger may make a victory meaningless. It's still too early to make any more decisions than he already made, and even though he is sure Zero will take him up on his offer, he is a bit ... nervous? Yes, perhaps that is so. Waiting is the killer, but waiting must be done sometimes.
Breeze strikes Napalm Wolverine with her Minor Gale attack.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> pulls back quickly, the discus missing by a hair's breadth as Mike pulls the armor to one side. He frowns, looking over at the cow as he brings the armor back up to a semblance of full speed, trying to bowl over the hopefully disoriented dismounted Maverick.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> misses Cleaver Cow with its Smash attack.
Score one for the Texan. Bowie doesn't smile, but he does take some satisfaction in managing to tag the Maverick, striking him down from his high perch. That satisfaction is woefully short lived. No sooner does he clear the street, heading across the grassy park around the Tower, than he learns that Shyster isn't put down so easily.
One moment, Bowie's kicking up the throttle. The next moment, he's attacked in a manner most fowl. Yes, Bowie is struck full in the chest by a chicken. There's a screech as he loses control of the bike, striking the beautiful wrought-iron fence, sending him up and over into the lawn. It takes him a moment to regain his footing and remove the poultry products from his chestplate. His brow furrows...that was most annoying. Unslinging his rifle, the Texan brings it to bear on the Maverick jokester, though his return fire isn't nearly so humerous.
You strike Shyster with a minor hit from your Buffalo Rifle attack.
Byte sends a radio transmission.
Byte closes his golden eyes after issuing messages across tightbeam to many individuals across the battlefeild as the fight begins to break up. His arms slowly rise, and he speaks softly to his brother. "...Deal with the Hunters, my brother... ...I have other prey."
Byte then tears a hole in the fabric of reality... ...and vanishes into it. For the moment... he is not visible in the air over the battle.
Byte receives a radio transmission.
Cleaver Cow is indeed disoriented - but just enough to stumble out of the way of the charging Ride Armor. She's back on her feet, now, and looks rather irritated. Her hat is askew, too, and her normally clean apron has dirt (and holes, and her blood-fluid) on it. This time both hands draw back into the bracers, coming out with heavy iron spatulas. Moving to something that might have come from a martial arts stance in a movie, Cleaver's hooved feet clatter as she charges the charging Ride Armor from the side, launching into a series of pounds and hammers.
Cleaver Cow strikes Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with her Twin Spatula Style attack.
Shyster
You know what they say. Dress for success. True, fashion tips for 20th century white collar professionals ain't exactly relevant today, but clothes still maketh the man, and this man is dressed to kill. Literally.
A neatly-starched white dress-shirt covers his lean frame, the collar and first button left undone, letting his deep crimson necktie hang loosely around his neck. Dark slacks cover his lower body, belted with heavy double loops of oiled leather that keep the ready grips of silver handguns within easy reach. Matching holster rigs criss-cross his chest, bearing another pair of large-caliber semiautomatics. The way he carries himself suggests the archaic firearms are for more than just cosmetic effect. Well, either that, or he's certifiably insane. Probably the latter. He certainly looks the part.
Gloves of pitch black guard his hands, the knuckles of each marked clearly with neat silver studs. Patent-leather shoes serve as footwear, polished to the degree that you can almost see your reflection in them - though why you'd want to is another matter entirely. Cloaking it all is a billowing garment of a raven-black hue, a trenchcoat woven from perfect darkness, gleaming chrome buttons and clasps shining against an inky backdrop. Things just wouldn't be complete without the requisite action hero trenchcoat, now would they? Pinned prominently to the left lapel of his coat is an unmistakable symbol, wrought in silver, a stylized rendering of the Greek letter Sigma.
Glittering, mirror-bright eyes stare accompany a bold, confident smirk of unadulterated mischief, framed by sharply-angled cheekbones. Human in appearance, looking to be in his early to mid twenties, he wears his hair in a chaotic black shock, a wild fringe of jagged locks shadowing his visage. A pair of sunglasses are perched high on his forehead. Gotta keep with the mafia motif, you know. He cuts a distinctly dramatic figure...
...Except for the pelican strapped to his back. Yes, a pelican. Specifically, a cartoonish plastic version of a pelican, somewhat oversized and looking more cheerful than any replica of a large-beaked bird has any right to be. You're in the presence of Shyster, warrior of the Mavericks...
...Wielder of waterfowl.
"I have come to release this city from your control," replies Signas, gazing up at the massive battle armor, glaive glowing a faint green before him.
"Whether you fight me as a reploid, or merely try to hold us back with your machine... It makes no difference. We do not come for honor, for glory, for battle, or for spoils. We comes as the protectors of freedom... And that is something ten of your Goliaths could not take from us, or from the people of this city. Freedom will survive no matter how much your grip is tightened, in the minds of the people here... And with that as our strength, no amount of power will keep you from being crushed in the end."
Almost makes you want to throw a brick at him, doesn't it?
Upon the Diplomat's subvocalized signal, while he's speaking with the Maverick General, the French resistance advances - Many have guns, probably stolen from reploids, others have more crude weapons, and their armor is sparce and irregularly distributed, but the fervor with which they move is truly what categorizes them. Somewhat disorganized, and apparently with rather rushed training, but a fury that even the most hardened of Mavericks are sure to take note of. From hundreds of voices, a battle cry ensues.
"NOUS NOUS RENDONS!"
Silently, the wolf moves into view. He is naught but a shadow at the moment, though the grasping hand closest to the Malamute shows that he is the result of the tangling wires. "Fear not, Maverick, for soon you shall feel the warm embrace of the natural mother Earth." With a movement, he yanks the entangling wires, tearing them free in a most painful way.
Napalm Wolverine literally eeps and turns, trying to get the heck away from that tornado. Once again, though, he finds himself tossed into the air, only this time he at least has the nice cushion of a car instead of a wall. Dragging himself out of the remains of that poor VW Bug mk 42, he growls. "dmaned cocky flyers! Get down here!" Then it occurs to him. Maybe he should go to her. Looking around, quickly, Napalm finds what he was looking for: An external fire escape. Leaping up, he grabs the ladder and begins climbing quickly. Not like its not obvious what he's doing, but even so, he doubts that Breeze is going to be ready for him to hurl himself off of the building. I mean, he obviously can't fly. And yet, he does hurl himself into the air without a second thought. On fire. And headed for the flying nuisance, if he judged the height right.
Wire Wolf strikes Enforcer Malamute with his Mangle Wire attack.
Napalm Wolverine strikes Breeze with his Fire Crash attack.
Byte sends a radio transmission to Kalinka.
You know what hurts worse than hitting the ground after falling off an extremely high building? Hitting the ground after falling off an extremely high building when you're possessed of a gaping chest wound. Especially with a bunch of humans yelling in the background. Shyster looks down, contemplatively, at the rather nasty hole in his chest, poking with one finger at the excessively large shell lodged firmly in the ruins of his cotton dress-shirt. And he just got that dry-cleaned, too.
A split-second before he smears himself all over the pavement at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, Shyster teleports - and he blinks back in, scant inches away from Bowie. Before the Hunter can react, the Maverick loon lunges toward him, thrusting one black-gloved hand forward. Waving his index finger beneath the rifle-wielding Bowie's nose, Shyster makes a tsking sound and shakes his head admonishingly. "Baaaad Hunter. Bad BAAAD Hunter. YER not HAPPY! YER MUST BE CLEANSED!"
Like lightning, Shyster's other hand snaps round, plucking something large and black from previously empty space. Flashing in a wide arc, the object in the Maverick's grip speeds with firm finality towards the top of Bowie's skull.
As it races home, the terrible, terrible artifact clutched in Shyster's gloved fist is visible for the world to see. One hat. Black. Disney Universe Logo. Lead Weights Sewn Into Rim.
And Mouse Ears. Can't forget the Mouse Ears.
Shyster misses you with his Mouse Eared Panic attack.
After receiving a radio transmission, Kalinka grits her teeth and rather violently jerks the Triumph in the opposite direction, making a beeline to the main Resistant front line as quickly as she can. She mustn't be late...!
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> pauses, and Michael Eildath blinks. Spatulas. He just got attacked with /spatulas/. Let's hold on a take a moment to regard what just happened. He does pause, but only for a second as his armor is scored by the weapons. Shaking his head, the human Hunter has to say something. "What... the... hell!?" Lauching himself into the air for a quick turnaround, he unloads on the cow with the laser cannons on the Gunslinger.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> misses Cleaver Cow with its Strafing Run attack.
Breeze actually laughs at Napalm as he leaps at her. "Stupid! I can fight in close too!" She flies right at him, preparing to punch him with her left hand...but he has a size advantage, and manages to hit her out of her attack. Even as he's plowed into her, she lets out an angry yell, and a 'wave' of dark purple energy, indicative of gravity forces, shoots out of her in a circle. Unless Napalm lets go /right now/, he's likely to get pushed away very, very hard.
Breeze strikes Napalm Wolverine with her Gravity Spread attack.
Bit just bows to the spot his brother just inhabited, before observing the batttlefield once more, noting those already in combat... And then he spots the Triumph, which doesn't appear as if to of been attacked as of yet. Time to change that, no?
Bit blinks, ripping a hole through reality, disappearing through it, his shield coming too... And he appears in front of the Hunter Ride Armor, blocking it's path on the way to the main resistance line. "...You shall not pass."
Enforcer Malamute grunts as the wires rip away, and stumbles back, "Ngh." Great. Something's attacking him, but he's not sure who, or what, or where it's coming from, "Come out of hiding and fight me." He growls, "If you're not scared." His right arm clicks, and he raises it and fires, aiming to light up the area.
Enforcer Malamute misses Wire Wolf with his Incendiary Grenade attack.
Vile has no noble words to respond to the diplomat, for noble words he does not speak. What he has is rage, and power, and he is wont to wield them both. It is not the sound of Signas' speech which brings him to the fight, but it is the cry from around...the shouts of humanity, kept 'safe' by Sigma's soft policies.
First, this Hunter.
Vile clenches a fist around the controls of the Goliath, and the Goliath responds with a clench of its fist. The great body one with his own, the Maverick General pulls forward, and the Armor launches itself at Signas with a heavy, spike-knuckled punch. "YOU will fall, and THEN, the resistance!"
Byte appears from wherever it was he traveled to. He, however... is not in the thick of the battlefield anymore.
The onrush of the French Resistance comes down the road toward the battlefield... ...and before it, between the humans and the battlefield... is Byte.
Slowly he opens golden eyes on the approaching horde... and his arms come up slowly.
They begin their charge... ...and Byte begins to kill.
With a wave of his hand, the very metal of weapons, armor, and anything scattered becomes a weapon of death. Cars are flung into the mob. Metal signposts are ripped out and turned into deadly spears. Pieces of armor too loose are turned against their masters.
To Byte... this is 'Neccesary Force'.
The wolf swats the grenade skyward, "A true night warrior knows his place. He fights from the shadows, and uses his strengths to take advantage of his enemy's weaknesses. You have much to learn." With a feral growl and a flash of fangs, Wire Wolf surges right at Enforcer, attempting to pin him down and substantially maul him.
Wire Wolf strikes Enforcer Malamute with his Call Of The Wild attack.
[Radio: (G) None] Breeze transmits, "!! On it..."
Enforcer Malamute gets smacked into by the lupine, and goes down onto his back, growling as he's clawed up. One of his hand slips down and draws a weapon, aiming it upwards and firing twice.
Enforcer Malamute strikes Wire Wolf with his Desert Eagle .50 Action Express attack.
Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> strikes Signas with its Spiked Fist attack.
Zero quickly makes his way from rooftop to rooftop, most likely at least once crossing paths with Sonata, but there's no time for pleasantries now. As he nears the massive landmark he comes to a stop, crouching down and evaluating the situation. More likely than not, a large regiment of guards on the ground, so the elevator is out of the question. His gaze slowly traces up the tower as he tries to plot out a feasable wall climbing path, and comes up short on that as well, too many unfriendlies posted about. Then he focuses a bit more, and then examines the crisscrossing bars that make up the interior of the tower and the cables in the elevator shaft. A smile creeps across Zero's features as he hops back up, he's got his plan, now it's time to instigate it.
Within a few moments he finds himself on the closest building to the Tower and kicks on his dash jets, leaping off of the building and hurtling towards the tower itself. As he comes near one of the bars he reaches out, snagging it and swinging himself up onto another bar. He continues to work his way back up the tower rapidly with a series of jumps and swinging manuevers, garnering a little help from his dash jets now and then. As he reaches the top of the tower he closes in on the elevator shaft and leaps over to it, grabbing onto the main cable and starts climbing up it rapidly. As he reaches the top of the shaft he hops on the small ledge in front of the doors and starts to pry them open, meeting with minimal resistance. As he emerges he curls his hands in and out of a tight fist, his eyes darting around quickly before settling on the form of the person he came here to find.
"Sigma."
Bowie is normally the unflappable sort, not taken to being surprised by anything. However, having the (mostly) tastefully dressed Maverick blink-teleport to right in his face, admonishing him like a schoolmarm is enough to give him a moment's pause. But only a moment's pause. Wired police reflexes kick in, and he draws his knife as Shyster moves in with the Evil Hat, jabbing at the offending arm. He knocks the hat aside, and hopefully leaves Shyster with a pointed reminder as well.
Kalinka scowls with annoyance as Bit suddenly impedes her way. "I think not," she says curtly. "Now move it! Or you will...err...you will LOSE it. Because I have not come this far to be stopped by you! Is that clear?"
You strike Shyster with a glancing hit from your Namesake Knife attack.
Gravity. Ice smothers flame. Intense flame snuffs it abruptly. With a howl as his flame generators are forced offline and backlash through his system, Napalm convulses and loses his grip, covering the distance to the ground in the blink of an eye. The street seems to explode as he slams into the pavement, sinking a good 5 feet into the ground. Laying there, in a broken pit of debris, Napalm appears quite dead for a long moment. Then, one hand twitches, rising to clutch feebily at the firebat's head. Struggling, he drags himself, from the hole, armor rent and dented, nearly destroyed in several places. Vainly, he struggles to his knees, raising one hand as if to fire a blast at Breeze. And then, he collapses forwards onto the ground, lying still as energy sparks over his form.
Spatulas are not really meant to be used as weapons against something as tough as a Ride Armor, and they're soon bent out of shape, but they still make tolerable clubs for Cleaver. Right up until one of them is rather neatly cut in half by a laser; launching herself to one side to dodge the others, she drops the remaining spatula when she does this.
"All right," Cleaver growls under her breath. "Nobody insults the spatulas." What comes out of her wrists /this/ time is very simple. It looks like a skewer, something to cook a chicken on. However, the spike looks about three feet long, and it /is/ made of military-quality material...the tip is also already glowing white-hot. Letting the Gunslinger lower itself, she makes the best leap she can and stabs out, leaving it behind in the armor if it connects.
Cleaver Cow strikes Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with her Rotisserie Style attack.
Bullets ricochet off Wire's apparently unarmored chest, and he rears back. cables shoot from his forearms, attempting to wrap the Malamute and sling him into the wall of the allyway.
Wire Wolf misses Enforcer Malamute with his Wire Throw attack.
Bit remains silent, looking as if he's ready to strike... But then his form loosens, and he nods. "As you wish." And he, and the shield he's riding on, turn around and slowly head towards Byte and the resistance group...
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> is struck again, and Mike blinks. He can't seem to hit today... but the armor doesn't seem to be unduly damaged, so he doesn't sweat it. "Nobody insults the spatulas?" He shakes his head, rearing back with one foot to do a rather jet-assisted heavy kick at the Maverick burger beneath him.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> strikes Cleaver Cow with its Crush attack.
Breeze looks down at Napalm as he falls, and observes, "Cool. I think I killed him. One less person in the way of my dreams." Her celebration is cut short by seeing Byte rip into the resistance forces, at which point she turns angry. A dark purple 'ring' forms in front of her, with similarly purple rays shooting into it. Then a copy of the first ring opens near Byte, and an equal number of these 'rays' shoot out of it, attempting to strike him with crushing G-forces, or at least gain his attention.
Breeze strikes Byte with her Wormhole Smasher attack.
Ride Armor <Triumph> is motionless for a brief moment, stunned by Bit's sudden change of heart. (...What was THAT all about?!) Kalinka thinks, shaking her head. She smirks and...then...suddenly gets a flash of HORRIBLE realization. (...........I know why he's moving off..........of course! Damn it ALL...!! I have to stop this!) Immediately, she begins chasing after Bit, firing at him with a wide-dispersing laser fire.
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "How we doin' out there?"
While Signas alerts the human forces, the Maverick General's ride armor deals a major hit against the Diplomat's armor, just as last time, square in his chest - Vile must really be jealous of Signas's stunning array of emerald orbs, or something like that. Teleporting across to the other side of the Ride Armor, Signas raises his hands out before him, concentrating his internal weapons systems... And without visibly launching anything, thin black strands of energy begin to form around the ride armor, outlining great circles in a massive circle around it, and then slowly bending inwards, as a sphere of black and purple energy begins to implode on the Ride Armor, gravity and spacetime twisted on itself in the contained area...
"Oooh," Shyster murmurs, "you're not -nice-." With unnatural swiftness, he drops the hat, letting it clatter towards the pavement. Twisting his wrist around, the Maverick -catches- Bowie's knife thrust with his naked palm, light glinting behind his sunglasses as the blade cuts into his hand. A few drops of circulatory fluid splatter to the ground, but otherwise, Shyster looks remarkably unconcerned for someone holding an edged weapon in his appendage.
His other hand, once again, waggles a finger at Bowie in disapproval. "Hey, hey, TWO CAN PLAY!"
Snapping his fingers, Shyster plucks a large pair of scissors from the air and lunges forward, his blades flashing with lethal intent towards Bowie's helmet - and his left eye.
Shyster misses you with his Random Pointy Object attack.
Ride Armor <Triumph> misses Bit with its Generic Ranged attack.
Signas misses Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with his Gravity Cell attack.
It isn't that hard to kick Cleaver; it catches her in the stomach, and she wheezes out the air that was knocked out of her. She uses it for cooling, after all; it's almost as essential as for a human. She also appears to be stuck to the foot - or, more accurately, clinging for dear life.
Or, apparently, not quite dear life. Her right arm is looped around the back of the ankle as she uses it to support her weight, while the left has now extruded a very thin, very sharp fish deboner. She goes to work not on the foot, but on the leg itself, trying to pry off armour and sever connections inside.
Cleaver Cow misses Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with her Debone attack.
[Radio: (G) None] Breeze responds to Zero's question with a short bout of profanity, though the word 'you' fails to be used along with them.
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "I appear to be holding fast. The Maverick I have engaged appears to depend on weaponry I am resistant to. ... And his aim leaves somethign to be desired."
[Radio: (G) None] Kalinka transmits, "Zero...there may be very big trouble soon! I am pursuing Bit, but I think he is on his way back to his brother to...you know, make that MERGE..."
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "That good, huh Breeze? Good to hear, Wire... right Kali."
[Radio: (G) None] Zero transmits, "*pause* Wait... what?!"
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "... They must be stopped. No matter the cost."
Sigma raises his head as he hears his own name spoken. The world is temporarily shut out of his mind as Sigma about faces, turning in a slow pivot to lock his gaze onto the Hunter Commander. His smile just lightly on his face, his cape billowing behind him, flapping like a heavy wind. "...Zero.", he says slowly, "You came. I was beginning to worry you would not make it, but once more you prove me wrong.", he reaches to his side and draws his sabre out in a quick motion. He keeps his eyes locked on Zero as he raises the blade up between his eyes, and performs a sweeping bow, swinging the saber in a slight arc downward. An old Fencing salute. "They say fencing was started in France. En guarde, Zero. It has been too long a time since we last met on the field." And with that, he straightens, striding his left foot back as he ducks down slightly and tilts his blade slightly upward, holding it out in front of his body.
Maverick Hoverbike <Muon> arrives from the Germany.
Maverick Hoverbike <Muon> has arrived.
Raver Cat has arrived.
Byte's slaughter cuts heavily into the front of the human army, but sheer numbers are strongly on their side. If just four or five Striders are enough to take out the X-Hunter Agile, what might ten regular humans, or even twenty, be able to do? And that's not all - among the ranks are a few cyborgs, some of them less visibly enhanced than others, and even, for whatever strange reason, a reploid here and there. Yet still, they don't seem to have much been able to make a strong assault on the Nightmare Police.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> backs up, shaking away the deboning cow before it can do any real damage, and Michael grimaces, bringing up the Desperado Buster. But he doesn't fire it... not yet. A thin beam of energy lances out from the smaller laser emitter at the base of the cannon, a targeting blast of sorts... though it's still got power to. Mike's getting ready to unleash some serious hell of some kind.
Gizmo Glider arrives from the Germany.
Gizmo Glider has arrived.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> misses Cleaver Cow with its Targeting Laser attack.
Raver Cat steps off the Hoverbike and gets her staff ready, not activated yet but ready to as she looks around the battle field. O_O
Bit continues to head towards his brother on his shield, noting the incoming attack. He and his shield bank to the side, the laser fire missing him easily. And he continues on his way, the plan working perfectly... And in hardly any time at all, he arrives near Byte, quickly jumping off the shield and landing nimbly. He spares a glance at the humans and cyborgs, but let's Byte handle them... For now. And he begins to walk back slightly, sending the hovering shield at the Triumph, intent on having it bash into the Ride Armor's frame.
Bit strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Shield Bash attack.
The impact of the gravton rays causes Byte to stagger a pace forward in the air. His own gravimetric forces come online... preventing much of the damage that such an attack could have caused... even on him. Byte's golden-eyed, grim-featured face turns slowly. Even as he is, the force of the Resistance is brought to bear against him. Projectile and laser weapons slam into his body, and other assaults are made... and Byte seems... ...to take them with only a hint of the pain they cause him. One Cyborg rushes up to him, weilding a large axe attached to a robotic limb... ...and Byte snaps his head around, his arm coming up... ...and catches the Cyborg with his mind. "My dear girl... was that... ...Gravity? ...Fool. ...Allow me to show you the power of a Master of its Manipulation."
And the Cyborg transforms instantly from attacker to projectile. Magnetism and Gravitational forces send the poor soul /HURTLING/ at Breeze!
Enforcer Malamute rolls back away from Wire as the attack snaps out at him, reaches to his side and grabs hold of a weapon, twisting and throwing the knife right at Wire's neck, as he gets back up to his feet.
Enforcer Malamute strikes Wire Wolf with his Combat Knife attack.
Byte strikes Breeze with his Magnetic Throw attack.
Cleaver Cow looks rather surprised as the deboner literally snaps; apparently the armor she was aiming at wasn't quite as thin as she'd hoped. When she's shaken off, rather then try to stay on any longer, she simply drops back to the ground with a loud clatter. The targetting laser doesn't /quite/ connect, probably because she started to move immediately after dropping.
Stepping a few feet backwards, Cleaver looks up at the still hovering 'Slinger. She can probably jump it...launching at the other foot, she doesn't actually try to grab on this time, but rather slam into it and knock the Gunslinger's aim off.
Cleaver Cow misses Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with her Mad Cow Charge attack.
That knife finds it's way into Wire Wolf's shoulder. He grunts slightly, taking a step back. Reaching up, he pulls the weapon free, peering at it, "Fine edge. Nice balance. Perfect for throwing." Flipping it suddenly, he returns the weapon to it's owner.
Wire Wolf misses Enforcer Malamute with his Random Pointy Object attack.
It's an amazing display. Through the shifting spacetime, the Goliath almost seems to buckle under its own massive weight, folding in half, and then, disappearing.
Or perhaps it could always do that. For, just a moment after vanishing, the giant ride armor appears at Signas' side. Vile chuckles darkly. Then, the armor opens up a pair of launchers on its side, and launches an array of small missiles toward Signas. Moving in streaks with wreckless abandon, they crush into buildings, cracking on the street, throwing up dust and filling the air with the sounds of destruction.
Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> strikes Signas with its Minimissile Swarm attack.
Bowie has no witty remark to share, and so he simply says nothing. His brow furrows in determination, seemingly not terribly disconcerted with the way Shyster chose to capture his knife. It's repairable damage, after all, and in his place he might have done the same.
The Texan also moves with preternatural swiftness, bringing up his other hand to bat the oversized kitchen shears out of the way. The sharpened tips scratch his amber-tinted visor, but nothing worse than that.
So apparently this shootout has turned into a knife fight. Fine. Bowie extracts his namesake from Shyster's palm, the knife now emitting a faint whine, nearly above the range of human hearing. Said knife is then brought down in an overhand slash, as much to try and get Shyster out of his face as to cause any harm.
Byte sends a radio transmission to Kalinka.
You strike Shyster with a glancing hit from your Vibro-knife attack.
Ride Armor <Triumph> is smashed back by the sheer force of that unyielding shield, and within the cockpit several warning sirens sound, as the Triumph sprawls in the opposite direction. However, Kalinka isn't particularly upset. She knows she needs to keep this one occupied as long as possible...no matter what it takes. And so, she lunges the Triumph forward, pulling a smallish rifle out of a side compartment and taking aim at the Binary brother.
Ride Armor <Triumph> strikes Bit with its Electro Pulse attack.
Bit is temporarily disoriented by Ride Armor <Triumph>'s Electro Pulse attack.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> shoots into the air, aim thrown off... so either way, it was successful. Mike swears, pulling up both arms as he swings around to target the cow again, unable to get a clean lock for the Desperado Buster, and decides to opt for what he considers to be a valid option... flooding the area with missiles a-plenty, missile swarms budding around either arm as Mike makes like a Veritech.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> misses Cleaver Cow with its Missile Swarm attack.
And Bit... is hit. Not to mention the attack stuns him for a moment, leaving him open for attack. ...Um, yeah.
Breeze immediately throws up her own field to slow the incoming individual down, though at the velocities being talked about here...that's like 'slowing down' a railgun shot. The cyborg plows into her rather hard, dents forming in her armor from the impact. She does redirect her grav-field to gently lowering him to the ground however. "Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut UP!", her response to Byte's remarks, as her flight stabilizes. "I'm tired of people like you!" With that, she pulls her bazooka's trigger and sends a single warhead at Byte, aiming for his stomach area in general.
Breeze strikes Byte with her Bazooka Shot attack.
Enforcer Malamute grabs his knife out of the air, and puts it back into the sheath he had it in, "Thanks. These things are hard to find." He murmers, as he takes out one of his larger weapons, and opens fire.
Enforcer Malamute strikes Wire Wolf with his Mp-5 Sub Machine Gun attack.
Wolf darts forward through the hail of bullets, reaching behind him. As he draws near, he suddenly, skids to a hand, snapping his hand forward. In his calwed grip is ... A stick? No, two sticks, attached together with a strong cable. Nunchaku. Wire Wolf makes a show of attempting to whack Enforcer upside the face with the flailing weapon.
Wire Wolf strikes Enforcer Malamute with his Whipchucks attack.
Shield Shellfish enters the Sky Above Western Europe.
Shield Shellfish has left.
Suddenly, the Triumph becomes airborne, Kalinka deciding that it might not be a good idea to get too close to Bit should the stunning electro pulse wear off prematurely. She gusts past Bit in a powerful rush of air as she moves to ascend.
Ride Armor <Triumph> strikes Bit with its Wing Gust attack.
Raver Cat stays near the bike as she scans the field for one Napalm Wolverine. Upon recieving a signal she lifts her tail and the tip spilts into a mini Dish that she moves to scan for a signal.
Missiles galore... Paris shall henceforth be known as the city of wine, love, and mass destruction! Nothing like a little collateral damage to let you know when the battle is starting to get really crazy. Some of them hit Signas, as well, further scarring and burning his once proud and shiny battle armor. Signas raises his glaive, his wounds easily seen, lit above by the blade's green energy glow, "You can take my life," he says, as he slashes the blade across - a massive energy wave appears in the air in the path it cuts through, and then the wave blasts forward at the Gloath. Signas says something else, but the words are drowned out by the noise of the energy ripping through the air.
Signas misses Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with his Signas Wave attack.
Zero smiles as his left hand reaches back to retrieve his own sabre from it's magnetic hold on his back. As he tightens his grip around the weapon a glowing green beam shoots out of it, a few crackles of loud electricity followed by a even low hum providing the blades entrence with it's own style of fanfare. He slowly falls into one of his stances, waving the sabre around quickly in front of him, the ribbons of energy trailing from the blade probably being the stuff of a Deadhead's dreams. He locks his gaze on Sigma, as his smile slowly fades into a grim look of determination, "Far too long, 'old friend'."
Zero then edges a foot forward before quickly hopping back, and then lunging forward, his sabre swinging around in a strangely erratic yet graceful motion. After the strange dramatics he slides forward to engage Sigma, taking the role of the aggressor in the first flurry of sword strikes, each one surely parried by the Maverick Emperor. After a more swipes he pauses for just a moment midswipe and winks at Sigma. "It's good to know you've at least been practicing," Zero says during the pause, however midway through his words he finishes the swipe, hoping he threw Sigma off his groove enough to catch him with his blade.
Zero strikes Sigma with his Z Feint attack.
Still grinning from ear to ear, Shyster releases his grasp on Bowie's blade as the Hunter tugs it backwards, bloody fingers uncurling in quick succession. With excessive cheer, he sing-songs, "Be -nice-, now, y'ere?"
An expression that quickly darkens, and then edges into the realm of pain as Bowie diverts power to his signature weapon. That whine might be nearly beyond the reach of human ears, but it seems to do -something- to Shyster. Before the blade even hits him, he staggers, glassy-eyed, looking even more disoriented than usual. "Whoa," he murmurs, "check."
As Bowie brings the knife up and around in his wide slashing arc, Shyster barely manages to deflect it, catching the knife against a melee weapon of his own. A plastic flamingo. Pink. Beak sharpened to a fine edge. Holding the lawn ornament like an axe, both hands wrapped around the waterfowl's legs, the Maverick squints at Bowie through the haze of agony threatening to eclipse his vision. "Okie. No more mister NICE PUPPY."
With that, he slides the edge of the...flamingo...down across where the two blades are in contact, aiming to slice into the Hunter's hands...
Shyster strikes you with a glancing hit from his Flip The Bird for 2 units of damage.
You take less damage due to your Blunt resistances.
The Wing Gust sends Bit flying to the ground, landing in a heap. But slowly... He gets back up. The Aegis, his shield, returns to his side, ready to block any attacks that come Bit's way. And luckily for Bit, that attack snapped him back out of been stunned. Time to attack back. Extending his hand at the Triumph, it begins to glow with white energy, before a beam of gravity reaches out at the Ride Armor, intent on grasping it and holding it in place.
Cleaver Cow leaps, misses completely when the Gunslinger lifts off - and rather neatly arcs back down to the ground, on her feet. She moves, quickly, to behind the crash of her own vehicle, using it as impromptu cover from the missile swarm. Amazingly, it /works/; she doesn't take any further damage, though the bike probably needs more repair now.
Popping up from behind the bike, Cleaver squints up at the Gunslinger. It's still flying? Hmph. This time Cleaver lowers both arms at the hovering Ride Armor, hands withdrawn. It takes a moment, but there's a dull glow from deep inside where her hands went -
And then there's a veritable barrage of small metal piece of cookware. Spoons, forks, little knives, big knives, the odd steak knife or fish scaler, something that looks suspiciously like a peeler and a potato masher, a can opener...Cleaver certainly didn't stint on the sheer volume of objects she fires.
Bit strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Snare Beam attack.
Ride Armor <Triumph> is temporarily disoriented by Bit's Snare Beam attack.
Cleaver Cow strikes Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with her Cutlery Cannon attack.
Okay, so basically, Enforcer's been screwed from the beginning of this fight. So now he gets whacked in the head. He stumbles back, and puts his SMG away, "I give up." He growls, "You're too tough. But I won't leave you without a parting gift." He steps back, and his hip pannels open up, as he draws a pair of weapons, and takes aim at Wire, his weaposn switching over to the right ammo with a flick of a small switch, before he opens fire on auto mode.
Raver Cat flicks her ears as her tail locks on, then the dish retracts as she mounts up on the bike. a quick power up and she rushes off twords the transponder of one Napalm Wolverine.
Enforcer Malamute misses Wire Wolf with his Cruel Enforcers - Enforcer Ammo attack.
Ride Armor <Triumph> gets snared in Bit's energy snare, and she struggles vigorously to break free...it's no use, though. she finds that out quickly.
Byte turns, meeting the explosion with his full mass. The blast sending him /hurtling/ back into the mob... and Byte seems to smile, even as he helps the momentum. Byte movement, mass, and weight are brought against the front ranks of those french forces... Byte's golden eyes locking on Breeze the whole time... and when he slows himself... Byte rises upward slowly... and begins to walk towards breeze. His belly armor is dented, and his other armor has been blackened by the force of the explosion.
Before him lies sprawled one of those who stand against him. Byte hovers feet above the ground, however as he moves... ...and for the moment he comes to him... Byte raises his foot, and steps down from the air onto the cyborg's robotic legs... crushing them with a crackle of metal and the stream of the poor man below his weight.
"...Like me? ...Child. You have no idea what I am."
Byte then raises his hands slowly, and then does something remarkable... ...Byte hardly ever uses his legs in combat... ...let alone in such heated combat. This, however, is his one exception... and newest toy. Byte's foot which had stepped on the Cyborg comes up as he begins to spin. Gravimetic and magnetic distortions race around his great leg... ...the force of it all moving through the air creating a massive shockwave as Byte rotates around... sending a wave towards those behind and around him as well as in front. Byte seems to launch forward, his great and massive heel coming down with crushing force for Breeze!
Bit puts his guard up.
Byte strikes Breeze with his Shockwave Kick attack.
Zero puts his guard up.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> sweatdrops. No, really, the whole armor sweatdrops. Mike's seen enough. Taking one arm, he brushes as much of the cutlery as he can away from the armor, which is still in relatively passable shape, but is looking pockmarked in many places. Shaking his head, Mike grabs the left armor control, bringing up the gauss slugthrower. "Okay, cow against armor is all well and good, but this needs to stop. This is getting freaky." He goes with some metal-vs-metal action, and launches a slugthrower round at the annoyingly hard to hit split-hooved ungulate.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> strikes Cleaver Cow with its Gauss Slugthrower attack.
Cleaver Cow falls to the ground, unconscious, due to massive systems damage.
The attack roars forward, but it never meets with the Goliath's hull. Before the blad is lowered, Vile pulls back the controls of the massive machine, and its hands move forward, to grab around the Hunter, and strike him in midleap...to crush him bodily, if not in spirit. With the giant hands trying to throw their heavy punches at Signas, perhaps the end of his battlecry will not be spoken at all.
Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> strikes Signas with its Smash attack.
Bit ponders going for his sabre... But the Triumph is too far away. Never mind that, though. Stepping into Ryu's hadoken stance, he begins a similar motion, both hands together, beginning to sparkle with fire... And lunging both hands forward, he sends off the 'Fireball Comet' at the Trimuph. And there /would/ be bigger poses, but player is busy IRL and in Cairo too, yes yes.
Zero puts his guard down.
Bit strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Fireball Comet attack.
It's just one shot, but it's a neat one. Right between and just above Cleaver's eyes, the killing point on an actual cow. Apparently it works pretty well on her, too, because Cleaver goes straight down without even another sound in a messy pile. Messy because she's missing most of the back of her head. Good thing it's repairable.
Breeze decides to play 'chicken' with Byte. At the last possible moment, she...just finally starts rising up to avoid the kick. Too late. Her legs just snap clean off, and her hip caves in rather noticably, sending her sailing back into a wall with an agonized scream, smoke trailing out of a small gash in what remains of her lower body. "...Bastard. I can't believe this!" She manages to resume flight however, and a set of six silver orbs fly off her back, each extending a red 'energy blade.' They begin to do fly-by slices at Byte, and while they do, Breeze's left hand begins glowing a dark purple...
Breeze puts her guard up.
Breeze strikes Byte with her Option Bombardment attack.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> comes to a rest for a moment after finishing the Cow. Mike looks about, to see if anyone else needs help.
Napalm Wolverine lies broken on a street, the remains of one severly crushed care nearby. A huge indention of his form in a wall some 50 feet away and the 5 foot deep impact crater near his prone form, as well as the hideous fire damage in the area attest to the violence that ocurred here.
Bowie reflexively drops the blade to avoid being struck by...a flamingo beak? where does this guy shop for weapons, Acme Inc?...but not quite in time. The sharpened plastic avian slices through his glove and several layers of synthskin - hardly a killing blow, but certainly irritating.
Bowie can't bring his rifle into play, not with Shyster practically on top of him like this. His air cannon is another matter. The retired Ranger brings up his right arm, practically sticking it in the Maverick's crazed face. Still no words from him. Why bother, when the weapon can speak volumes for him? He squeezes his hand into a fist, releasing a concussive force of air, on par with a small tornado, at point blank range.
You miss Shyster with your Windstorm attack.
Sigma's slight smile turns into a slightly more manic one. Zero may have the fame, but the Berserker lies in Sigma as well. As Zero hops backwards, Sigma answers the call of the Beast with a double advance to stay in melee range with Zero, moving his blade in a downward parry to block the first one, and then bringing his own blade across his body to block the second blow in an upwards parry. And after three more parries, Sigma's eyes seem to widen at the wink, "I've been wa...errfghh!", his blade moves to parry a second too late and the blade carves a new hole into his frontal armor. Sigma hops back, his free hand tearing his cape off he lands just a couple feet away, close to the edge of the ledge. He then dashes forward and throws a few quick swipes with his own blade, each one likely parried just as much as Zero's before Sigma throws his cape at Zero's head to distract in a more official manner as he brings his sword down in a diagonal swipe. "You still know the book.", he says.
Sigma misses Zero with his Claw Swipe attack.
Sigma puts his guard up.
As Byte continues to hammer home against Breeze, a figure thus forgotten so far in battle makes her return... although at this point, she's not quite sure what she can do. And given that the giant Maverick is doing some damage to everybody in the area... well, that just wasn't going to cut it at this point, was it? Sonata joins the fray for the first time, appearing right behind Byte as her cloaking system shuts down, her stealth net folding back into her armor.
"You have to watch it when you put your foot down like that - you might end up hurting yourself," Sonata comments - right as she shifts one arm into its weapon form, and slams it on the ground at Byte's feet. A sphere of black discharges itself into the ground, just as Breeze's weapons slash out at the Maverick - and Sonata reverses the gravity under the Yin Yomi's feet, hoping to launch the Maverick into the air - and the drag him back down.
Hovering over the area a small grey blur can be seen as it lowers itself over the area. If one gets a closer look they just might notice the small cute and fluffy fuzzball glider rounding over the battle field. Its arms seem spread out and its tail is straight and being used as a rudder as it quickly manuvers through the skys. As the coordinates come through Gizmo pulls himself up and installs his hover jets, letting him stay in one place. From his chest gem several small orbs begin to dance around the creature before a massive shield of gravity is present. Hiding behind his shield Gizmo launches himself into a ball and shoots towards the ground, moving at extreme velocities. As the creature nears the ground the glider unravels himself and spreads his arms out, letting the air catch in his winglike flaps and slowly gliding to the ground where Napalm lies.
Sonata strikes Byte with her Inverse Gravity Flux attack.
Gizmo Glider projects a forcefield around himself.
Kalinka howls in rage and in pain as the Triumph is consumed in flames. The ride armor is shaken about, and its occupant is rattled like a bead in a can as she finally manages to break free of the energy beam. Blood flows freely from a gash over her left eyebrow, but she ignores it for now...concentrating more on getting the Triumph's weapons systems operational. Fighting to remain airborne, she dives down at Bit like an angry hornet.
Ride Armor <Triumph> misses Bit with its Wing Smack attack.
Bit deflects Wing Smack from Ride Armor <Triumph>.
The Wolf ducks aside of the pistol fire, vanishing into ... a fog bank? Where did that come from? In fact, the entire allyway, and indeed, most of Paris is aquiring a thick, pea-soup-like fog quality. The entire city takes on a horror movie effect, fog obscuring vision and turning visible shapes into mere silhouettes.
Wire Wolf misses Bit with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Bit deflects Horror Movie Fog from Wire Wolf.
Wire Wolf strikes Byte with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Zero with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf misses Gizmo Glider with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Sonata with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Breeze with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Shyster with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Sigma with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes you with a glancing hit from his Horror Movie Fog for 0 units of damage.
Wire Wolf strikes Signas with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Enforcer Malamute with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Raver Cat with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Wire Wolf misses Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Raver Cat slide stops the bike as she arrives at the location of the transponder..and the beating up of one poor Wolverine. As she hops off the bike she crouches down to stay out of sight from anyone who may wish to use her as a scratching post. She slides downt he crator and stays near Napalm as she speaks softly, "Hey..you operating?"
Wire Wolf strikes Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with his Horror Movie Fog attack.
Enforcer Malamute growls a little bit, and brings up his shield as the movie fog covers the area, "Fine. I see how you're going to play.." He murmers, as he launches a grenade at where Wire disapeared into..
Enforcer Malamute misses Wire Wolf with his Shock Grenade attack.
Facial features twisted into a grin of insane glee, Shyster stares unflinchingly down the barrel of Bowie's air cannon. And makes absolutely no move to dodge. The cannon -discharges-, blasting Shyster backward like a rag doll. Staggering to a halt a few feet away, the Maverick shakes his head slightly. The flamingo drops from his slack fingers - though it never hits the ground, instead simply vanishing a second before it smacks into the pavement. Raising his hands, Shyster moulds his wind-blasted features back into place, and picks at his now even -more- disarrayed hairdo.
"Nonono, yer -wash-, -then- yer blow-dry." Flicking his wrist, Shyster yanks a grossly oversized revolver from subspace, cocking the neon blue hammer backwards. "Like so." When he squeezes the trigger, it's not a bullet that emerges, 'tho. It's a boxing glove, on a spring.
Oh, and yes, with regards to where Shyster does his shopping?
Ask a silly question. Get a silly answer.
Shyster strikes you with a glancing hit from his Sponsored By Acme <tm> for 5 units of damage.
Enforcer Malamute puts his guard up.
Signas, like all diplomats and treaty-signers everywhere, finds that in the face of good, raw technological might, his skills are worth, all totalled and account for, approximately nothing whatsoever. With almost unsettling arrogance, the armor defies the Hunter's attack, and resonds with one of its own, admittedly a less powerful strike as even the great General must take pity upon TinyHat's inferior skills. He won't give up just yet, though... Throwing his hands in front of him, the diplomat suddenly charges a burst of energy, throwing out four little comets of flaming energy death from the palm each hand, balls of pure explosive force trailing luminescant tails. "This is for Paris!"
Signas misses Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with his Comet Crash attack.
Napalm Wolverine groans slightly, as Raver speaks. he may be trying to speak, or he may be unconcious still. His face is still covered by his combat visor, though cracks spiderweb it's surface.
Well, Kalinka's attack is expected, by then, has already moved to the side, his shield taking the full brunt of the blow, and remaing in perfect condition... That's one handy shield. And now, time to respond in kind. Shield returning back to his hand, the blue glass orb on it's front begins to glow brightly... Before a blast of energy zooms out over at the Ride Armor.
Bit strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Shield Blast attack.
Disappearing into the fog, Wire Wolf completely avoids the grenade. It's explosion causes light in the smoke-like surroundings, though the lack of any pain-sounds suggests a miss. Blue light flashes off to one side, accompanied by a howl. And from the pea soup fog, Wire Wolf launches at Enforcer from the side, surrounded in a halo of blue energy. It's almost as if he had become a bullet himself.
Wire Wolf misses Enforcer Malamute with his Energy Crash attack.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> kicks on the floodlights, and heads towards Signas and Vile, the Ride Armor looking for the commander...
[Radio: (G) None] MVH-083 Michael Eildath transmits, "Need help, Signas?"
Raver Cat erfs as she looks Napalm over, "Well you look like something Doc Gerbal played with.." she giggles faintly, "Now the question is how to get you out of here..." She pauses to perk her ears and glance out of the crator incase someone is nearby.
[Radio: (G) None] Signas transmits, "Help would *static*deed be apprec*static*"
Byte's head goes back an instant, and his yell of pain fills the battlefield for long moments... as one of Breeze's deadly strikes... ...severs his left hand, sending it flying away from him and into a wall where it smashed home with a rumble and crash of stone. Byte's eyes narrow as he lowers his head then, looking upon Breeze. Byte's voice comes out in a vicious rumble,
"...I... ...know you now..."
And then Sonata decides to unleash her own strength against Byte, and Byte, in his weakened state, it slamed to the ground by the force of Sonata's energies... his golden eyes going to her, recognition coming to his features. "...Detective..."
Byte, it seems, standing against an Army and two Maverick Hunters. ...But Byte... is prepared.
The Great Ring upon his back begins to revolve even as Byte turns golden eyes from one to the other... then to the advancing French Resistance forces... those that remain after the hundreds slain by Byte's hand. Softly he announces then, after internal computers having taken count, "Ninteen-thousand Six-hunred and Fifty Four..."
It seems Byte keeps track. Got to be the Steel Butcher's record, afterall.
The Great Ring then... ...reverses.
There is a sound like a great gong being tolled as it does so... as a wave of magnetic and gravitonic distortion radiates out from him. Bit and, surprisingly, the Triumph are both shielded by the expanding wall... ...but Byte no sheild Breeze, Sonata, or the advancing horde from the wave of distortion that can knock even a grown man senseless. It expands in waves... encompassing the whole of the Resistance Forces.
The Wall Magnet.
Bowie just sort of blinks at Shyster as his cannon has no effect on him. Aside from giving him a very bad case of Wily hair, that is. Well, that's different. Perhaps that explains why his reaction time is a little off, and the boxing glove strikes him right in the kisser. How embarassing.
The Texan takes a few steps back to regain his balance...and then the fog rolls in. Heavy fog that puts London to shame. Wiping his visor with his left hand (the one that still has a glove worth mentioning), he peers into the gloom for a sign of the loony Maverick. Failing that, he adjusts the air cannon, creating a sweeping gale in an arc around him.
You miss Shyster with your Whirlwind attack.
Byte misses Breeze with his Wall Magnet attack.
Byte misses Sonata with his Wall Magnet attack.
As Gizmo lowers himself on the field his large black optics begin to glow a deep dark blood red as he gazes through the fog. Fixing some small adjustments on his sensors the glider seems to be able to see quite well in the fog. Even so he puts on a pair of infer-red goggles and presses near Raver and Napalm. Letting his tail sweep around his footpaws it raises up to smack Raver in the head. Yet his own forcefield stops his actions immediately. "How many times have I said that I am NOT a rodent. And what I played with? Bawh! I don't see you dead. You are becoming slightly ungrateful. However...I would suggest you not step in the open or have a shield. IF YOU DON'T WANNA BE HIT BY STRAY FIRE!!"
Ride Armor <Triumph> is struck by the blue energy from Bit's shield, glowing and crackling wickedly as its suddenly falling back to earth with a sickening crash. Within, Kalinka is further jostled around. Now, she's cut and bruised up considerably, and cursing just like her dear old Daddy as she sets the Triumph upright once more. Undaunted, she lunges toward Bit with some jagged-looking tool.
Ride Armor <Triumph> misses Bit with its Utility Arm - Cutter attack.
Bit deflects Utility Arm - Cutter from Ride Armor <Triumph>.
Although the French Resistance is taking very heavy losses, great numbers still remain, dozens if not indeed hundreds. Every last one, to a man, dodges Byte's Wall Magnet. So it goes.
Enforcer Malamute has disconnected.
Fog thickens in the area, obscuring vision, and... causing aim to fail. The bulk of the Goliath moves aside, and explosives hit nothing, vanishing in the depths. Vile, losing his target in the haze, scans for the source, his one eye making a trail like the laser scope of a sniper's rifle. He spots no immediate target, seeing only white, one light, in the distance, approaching... "Time to end this." The voice speaks out through the haze. And, then, the Goliath charges up an attack that begins to whip waves of air around its hull. The fog itself swirls into the haze, and becomes superheated, a rage of wind and fire that sears in circles around the machine, making it visible in the center of the glowing whirlwind, and clearing the area around it of anything that would dare to cross its path.
Breeze holds her hand out at the incoming G-forves Byte unleashes, and the dark purple glow around said hand intensifies. Moments later, she looks completely unphased by Byte's attempt...and negating it in other areas as well; it's possible French fighters and other nearby allies will escape the 'wall magnet' effect due to this. "Ch...I've done my part. I'm out of here." She glides down to pick up what's left of her legs, then begins flying for the Vorpal.
Breeze retreats from the area swiftly, leaving her open to pursuit or parting shots from Bit, Ride Armor <Gunslinger>, Maverick Hunter VTOL <Vorpal>, and Ride Armor <Triumph>.
Napalm Wolverine energy crackles over Napalm's form, and then the visor seems to..twitch. A muffled voice, twisted with pain struggles to be heard from within. "Open...the visor...break it if you must. I have to see.."
Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> misses Signas with its Napalm Cyclone attack.
And indeed, Bowie's trusty pneumatic blaster discharges its duty well, blasting away the clouds of fog that obscure the Hunter's vision. Such that he's able to see Shyster, bracing against the gale-force winds by wrapping himself around a Parisan lamppost's decorative cast-iron styling. Gotta love ornate municipal features.
Reaching into the apparently bottomless depths of his trenchcoat. As Bowie comes into view, Shyster waves jauntily, and then whips out a small battery-operated cassette player. With one hand, he thumbs the play button. With the other, he produces a very large squeeze-tube of Supah Glue <tm>.
Visibility is still poor. But if Bowie can see Shyster, well, then, Shyster can see Bowie. Obviously this isn't a good thing. Favouring his opponent with one of his trademark used-car-salesman smirks, Shyster smears the pocket stereo with a liberal amount of adhesive and slings it at Bowie, dead centre towards his helmet visor. Flecks of glue splatter through the air as the plastic box flips end over end towards its hapless target, its single speaker lending an eerie backdrop to the ghostly mist:
"C'mon, SING ALONG! This is the SONG that DOESN'T EEEENNND, yes it goes ON AND ON MY FRIIIEEENNND! Some people started singing it not knowing what it WAAAASSS..."
Shyster misses you with his Diversionary Doohickey attack.
[Radio: (G) None] Breeze transmits, "That's it for me."
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "I appear to be victorious."
[Radio: (G) None] Bowie transmits, "*grumble*"
Well, it seems that Byte's massive magnet attack has... misfired? The effects seem to be less than impressive, as Sonata is completely unaffected by the massive effects of the energy wave. "You must be losing your touch," Sonata comments, pulling one hand back as she looks at the Binary Component with a smile. "It happens to us all - don't be too upset."
Pulling her weapon hand back, Sonata thrusts it forward in what looks to be a quick, straight out bunch into that oversized Budda Belly of Byte's. Except in the middle of this she fires her weapon - creating a hole of black energy in front of her hand, a vacuum of gravity energy that drags her forward in an extremely rapid, high speed punch.
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "Am I required anywhere else?"
Sonata strikes Byte with her Singularity Punch attack.
Gizmo Glider growls softly and lets his tail wrap around the arm of Napalm. "See? You fool! We are in the middle of a fog. What is it you need to see?!
Raver Cat rolls her eyes, "I knew I heard anoyyence comeing.." she shakes her head as she crouches back down, useing her fist to crack the Visor open wide. "That better pal?" she asks as she curls her tail closer to herself, semi ignoring the Doc for the moment as she stays low.
Zero quickly brings his blade up to slice the cape cleanly in half and brings it back down quickly to parry the incoming swipe and throws an arm down to lock Sigma in place as he sneers, "I sure do, so you better stop taking pages out of it. Too predictable, nnnyagh!" Zero then pushes Sigma forward, releasing his lock on his arm and shifting it into his buster, firing off a shot he had been charging during the exchange of words.
Bit quickly withdraws the moment after attacking, the shield slipping from his hand, going back to hovering. He notices the magnetic distortion, but quickly turns his attention back to the Ride Armor once he hears the sound of it attacking once more. Shield coming into place, it deflects the attack, again, letting Bit follow up with an attack of his own.
Finally grabbing the hilt of his sabre, he flicks it on, holding it firmly... Before /dashing/ at the Triumph quite fast, katana like sabre pulled back... And then, just as he begins to pass, he /slashes/ out, intent on creating a nice, large cut in the Armor's structure.
Zero misses Sigma with his Charged Hyper Buster attack.
Bit strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Slash Dash attack.
[Radio: (G) None] Kalinka transmits, "Listen...I need more help here...with Binaries. I can only hold back Bit so long! Ride armor is definitely...buckling at this point. These two have to be distracted, or else you know what they will do!"
[Radio: (G) None] Sonata transmits, "I'll try and handle Byte."
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "On my way."
[Radio: (G) None] Breeze transmits, "Should be able to. I sunk in a lot of good hits on him."
Napalm Wolverine winces as the visor is smashed, then blinks his eyes gratefully. "Thank you." He blinks unsteadily at Raver, not recognizing the other Maverick. "Who...ahhh..." He shudders and cries out as energy backlashes through one of his wounds abruptly. After a moment, he seems to relax. "Who are you?"
His foe apparently vanquished and retreating, Wire Wolf vanishes into the fog. His silhouette can be seen approaching the fight between the Triumph and Bit, moving quickly on all fours with a sense of purpose.
Enforcer Malamute has connected.
Raver Cat flicks her ears as she keeps an ear out trough the fog, "Names Raver Cat..just call me Cat.." she says softly still, why draw attention like a big Pouched Fuzzy Doctor..<_<
Ride Armor <Triumph> gets carved up like a Thanksgiving turkey. First, the utility arm is hacked off, landing in an unceremonious heap nearby. Then, the cockpit gets sliced into, causing the unfortunate occupant even further laceration and bleeding. Other girls might have screamed and ran away a long time ago, but not this one. Shaking bits of broken glass out of her hair, Kalinka narrows her eyes, then with the Triumph's working arm she brings forth...the Boomerang. This, she flicks out in a narrow arc toward her opponent.
Ride Armor <Triumph> misses Bit with its Halo Boomerang attack.
Bit deflects Halo Boomerang from Ride Armor <Triumph>.
Sigma is pushed back, smirking a bit, "Too predictable? Very well.", he twists to Zero's side as he fires a charged blast which goes sailing out into the distance. And as the fog starts to lap at the two warriors' feet, he dashes forward in a quick tackle combined with an axehandle bash with the back of his oversized left hand. Sigma actually tilts his head back slightly as he performs this maneuver, trying to get a better view of the room. And he growls as he hears more reports. This is not a feint, hm? ... Very well, but as Shyster suggests, another wave is likely.
Sigma misses Zero with his Bash attack.
If Bowie and Shyster can now see each other, this is both a good and bad thing. On the plus side, it gives the Texan a chance to bat the screeching tape player aside before it strikes him. On the minus side, the Supah Glue is potant stuff, and so the tape player adheres to his left arm instead. It clings there in spite of his best efforts to shake it off. And of course the battery compartment and tape compartment are sealed tight. Grumbling softly, Bowie dampens his audials somewhat, just to keep out the damned overcheefulness of the music.
Another plus is that Bowie can bring his rifle into play again, now that he can draw a bead on Shyster. Which he does, leveling its business end at the Maverick of tricks. No words, only action as he pulls the trigger.
Breeze makes her way back to the Vorpal in good order. Simple.
You miss Shyster with your Acid Rifle attack.
Napalm Wolverine smiles weakly at Raver. "Well then, Cat. Its good to see you, I thought that cursed Hunter would be my last sight in this world." He chuckles, though his face screws up with sudden pain. "Gah....it would seem I'm in bad shape." his gaze suddenly bores into Cat's. "Don't let me die. I don't want to die."
The optics of the glider redens brightly as he gives a tug at the arm of Napalm. It is doubtful that he would move since the little scientist doesn't have the strength enough to pull. Growling in fustration the glider flops to the ground and stares at Napalm. "When we get back I am putting you on a stricted diet! In which means anything that makes you heavy is being removed!" Letting his head tilt to the side the Glider gently rubs his muzzle in thought before looking back at Raver. "YOU! Make yourself useful worm and provide cover fire and run to go get your vehicle. I will attempt to equipe him him minor repairs on his legs to make him mobile once more....GO NOW YOU FOOOL! Don't stand around gawking!"
Bit continues past the Triumph, the sabre still in his hand. And it's about to be used again, too. He turns around... Only to face the incoming boomerang. However, the trusty Aegis takes up a place in front of him, taking the full blow, before moving behind Bit... It needs a rest, so to speak.
He blinks away, reappearing in front of the Triumph, purple sabre glowing... And he strikes out with the katana looking device, intent on finishing this.
Zero smiles yet again as he looks up to stare Sigma in the face before closing his eyes moments before Sigma swings down at him. Shortly before his fists impact, Zero splits into two Zero's, both quickly side stepping to avoid the attack and chuckling in unison, "Oh, Sigma, please, do you really underestimate me that much, you better come with it all, or don't come at all." The twin Zeros then ignite their sabres and leap in at Sigma at the same time, both swinging the sabres in a flurry.
Bit strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Energy Katana attack.
Zero strikes Sigma with his Twin Dream attack.
Bit puts his guard down.
Byte narrows his eyes slowly, grunting as his Wall Magnet is... neutralized... by the power of Breeze. His golden eyes narrow intensely upon his opponent... then he frowns even as she withdraws. "..." Byte then turns his head, looking to the Detective as she rushes for him... the blow from her slamming into his great midsection with a staggering shudder from Byte. Byte's eyes then slowly open, and look down upon Sonata. "...Merely... underestimating my opponents. A mistake, detective, that you make now."
And Byte's free hand slowly lowers, moving to try to and place the first two fingers of his massive hand to her.
And from Byte's hand, coupled with the equaly powerful electricity manipulators within his body... ...comes Pain.
Byte strikes Sonata with his Pain Touch attack.
By luck or by skill, Signas manages to teleport out of the way of the Maverick attack, before the whipping winds of flame are able to carry him with them, and while the flames continue to whip around and then slowly power down, Signas takes the time to charge his own attack... Holding both hands out in front of him, palms forward, wrists pressed together, and fingers curled somewhat inwards as claws, energy begins to build between them. Little motes of white light gather into the central point, a quickly expanding ball of superhot energy, pure white and perfectly spherical. As it grows larger, it begins to pulse, and one wonders why Vile is willing to just stand there and wait for this excessively long charging sequence to take place. Signas begins panting slightly with the effort, and then takes a deep breath. He's not going to...? Oh, hell, he is.
"Noooooooovvvvaaaaaaaaaa"
A throbbing hum begins to resonate from the ball of energy, now with a central red flame within as well, little heated particles and threads writhing within the great white ball. Soon it is nearly as large as Signas himself, an attack which truly is far more impressive and intimidating in its appearance than any attack should reasonably be.
"STOOOOOOOOOORM!"
Signas strikes Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with his Nova Storm attack.
Considering how much fog there is, blanketing the city streets, it's amazing how Shyster can -see- through his sunglasses. But they don't seem to hinder his vision in the slightest. Behind the tinted lenses, the Maverick's eyes narrow dangerously, pupils all but glow with an inner light. He sees the muzzle flash of Bowie's rifle and blinks away, letting the acid-payload shell arc through empty space. A second later, he snaps back into three dimensions, crouched atop an alley dumpster, six feet to Bowie's left. "Go ahead," Shyster snarls, "make my day." Abruptly, he pauses, his expression softening into a look of thoughtful contemplation. "Make. Day. Hm. Not really sure wot yer supposed t'make it out -of-, really. Always liked paper-mache, but it doesn't last, yer know? Epoxy putty's good, 'tho, maybe modeling resin..."
"...But, eh, I never sweat t'small stuff," Shyster continues, his features changing again, into a look of unadulterated glee, "SMILE SMILE!"
With a loud report, the neon blue ACME gun once again appears in his hand, and immediately goes off, spewing a single oversized round the size and approximate shape of a beer can. In fact, it -is- a beer can. Filled with concrete. With a happy face painted over the side which used to have a ring-pull. WilyBeer Happy Hour. Accept No Imitations.
Shyster strikes you with a minor hit from his Genki Genki Gunfire for 8 units of damage.
You take less damage due to your Blunt resistances.
Raver Cat growels at the Doc and moves to the edge of the crator, her head poping up slowly to glance around....all clear for now. "Clear.." she mumbles as she springs herself up with her hands in a jump, rolling along the short space to the Hover Bike.
Sonata grits her teeth and keeps from screaming... she won't give the Maverick the pleasure. "...underestimating you...?" she growls from between clenched teeth, her weapon still pressed against Byte's stomach. "...I think... not..." she adds, mentally generating vectors, paths, possible avenues of motion... thousands of things that might or might not work, generating them all into a single comprehensive attack plan.
There is a massive whine in the area... and suddenly a Displacement Cube appears around Byte. And it skews in a horrendous twisting motion. If Byte's frame is up to the challenge is the real question.
Sonata strikes Byte with her Displacement Rend attack.
Sigma steps back but it's not enough to avoid both sabres which further slash down his armor, cutting the elbow pads off. The armor ain't looking so hot and Sigma seems to duck down further, breathing heavily, "...I have always fought with you with the blade, and that is how I shall continue to do so.", and as that happens, Sigma himself splits into two people. It's not quite the twin dream, however, as one of the forms is Colonel himself and the other is Sigma indeed. They both dash forward weaving in and out of each other as they advance upon the Berserker...But it's the Colonel who arrives first, slashing in a wide arc as he moves across Zero's body. However...whether it is parried or no, this does nothing, as Sigma himself comes along across the opposite side, and swinging his Sabre in an upward cross. "But if you want it all, I shall give it all!
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> gets a good bearing on Vile and Signas, and flies in, firing a strafing blast at the Maverick Ride Armor as Mike gets a bearing on the area, moving in quickly to help his field commander today. "Let's make things a little more fair here, shall we?"
Sigma misses Zero with his Sigma Sabre attack.
Zero successfully deflects an attack randomly.
Breeze puts her guard down.
Kalinka braces herself -- it's all she can do, really, as Bit's katana rips the Triumph into metal shreds. The Triumph totters, and falls in a heap, smoking.
And so, it is finished?
Not quite. There's a Cossack at the helm, and their sort don't give in quite so easily. Kalinka grins, the blood on her face staining her teeth red as it drips down...and with a few deft movements, she activates a port on the front of the Triumph. It slides open nonchalantly, and then...a sudden burst of rushing flames roar forth, right towards Bit.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> strikes Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with its Strafing Run attack.
Ride Armor <Triumph> misses Bit with its Flame Strike attack.
Byte's frame is indeed up to the challenge... but the systems within are not. Energy fluctuates around Byte, and his eyes close as he grunts his pain... the cube shuddering around him as his body is contorted painfully. Systems enter the red. Warnings flash in Byte's mind.
Byte opens his eyes slowly, and looks upon Sonata, "...Excellent play, Detective."
And Byte moves to tear open a hole in the fabric of reality... and vanish into it... ...only moments before he is completely gone.
Byte retreats from the area swiftly, leaving him open to pursuit or parting shots from Bit, Zero, Ride Armor <Gunslinger>, Gizmo Glider, Sonata, Maverick Hunter VTOL <Vorpal>, Breeze, Napalm Wolverine, Shyster, Sigma, Bowie, Signas, Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath>, Ride Armor <Triumph>, Wire Wolf, Enforcer Malamute, and Raver Cat.
Napalm Wolverine groans as Giz tugs at his arm, though he makes no effort to assist them moving him
Bit disignites the katana as soon as he's finished with it, placing it away. Turning to look at the Triumph. "..." The flames come at him... And he merely rips a hole in the fabric of reality, blinking to the other side of the Ride Armor.
And then, he speaks. "Stop been a fool!" A second, smaller hilt appears in his hand, and he flicks it on... Creating a smaller version of his katana. And shaking his head, he merely just a bit of slashing.
Bit strikes Ride Armor <Triumph> with his Energy Wakazashi attack.
Bowie briefly contemplates smiley faces and concrete as the special delivery can strikes him in the head, cracking the visor neatly in half and leaving a nice imprint on the front of his helmet. Again he feels the need to step back and brace himself. This one is really starting to annoy him. Time to heat things up.
What Shyster may or may not see through the fog is Bowie tugging one of his own pop-sized cans from his belt, popping the tab, and flinging it in the direction the Texan last saw him. He'll probably hear the thunk of its landing on the grassy ground, and the audible hiss of vapor streaming from in. He might even hear the spark as it catches said vapor on fire. He'll definitely hear the roar of the fireball as the now dispersed fuel catches and bursts into flame.
You strike Shyster with a glancing hit from your F.a.e. Grenade attack.
Raver Cat activates the Hover bike and moves it by hand twords the Crators edge, "Now what Doc?" she asks as she stays low.
Wire Wolf vanishes into the fog, leaving Enforcer to shoot at shadows. The wolf's silhouette seems to be headed for the Vorpal.
Wire Wolf retreats from the area swiftly, leaving him open to pursuit or parting shots from Bit, Ride Armor <Gunslinger>, Gizmo Glider, Sonata, Maverick Hunter VTOL <Vorpal>, Breeze, Napalm Wolverine, Sigma, Signas, and Ride Armor <Triumph>.
In the center of the swirling winds of his own attack, Vile and his Ride Armor are tempting targets for retaliation. And, so, it comes... searing fire and light that tears into the Goliath, propelled by Signas' fist and his brash heroic cry. The light sears, covering Vile's monoptic vision. He pulls a control to raise one of the armor's great arms, providing some shade from the burning light, and, then, the crackle of gunfire from the Gunslinger pounds into the hull.
The light fades at last, and the fog is gone. The Goliath has its bulletholes now, and smoke pouring out from its back. But Vile merely laughs. "You grow weary... Maverick Hunter..." He looks down at Signas, then, over, at the Gunslinger. The roaring winds already subsided, and the fog cleared, the Goliath raises its arms, and as it brings them down, two waves of fire emerge from the ground itself, streaking toward the hunters.
Enforcer Malamute just retreats, since he's too wounded to do anything anyway.
Enforcer Malamute retreats from the area swiftly, leaving him open to pursuit or parting shots from Bit, Ride Armor <Gunslinger>, Gizmo Glider, Sonata, Maverick Hunter VTOL <Vorpal>, Breeze, Napalm Wolverine, Shyster, Sigma, Signas, Ride Armor <Triumph>, and Wire Wolf.
Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> strikes Signas with its Napalm Burst attack.
Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> strikes Ride Armor <Gunslinger> with its Napalm Burst attack.
Zero's form quickly retracts back into one single Zero, just in time to be staring the faux Colonel in the face. As the appirition charges at Zero he starts to go up to parry the attack until an almost sixth sense kicks in and he sidesteps slightly and swings his own sabre down hard, catching Sigma's midway on it's upward swipe. While normally he would take this moment to say something witty or dramatic, he opts to just get the job done and as soon as the parry is made, he spins around away from the parry, and onto Sigma's back, and rolling over him in a rather odd, yet highly atheletic manuever. As he comes down the other side he brings an open hand down to strike at the back of Sigma's neck, with the intent on at least temporarily offsetting the servos and fiberoptics that lead to his motor functions, if not severing them completely.
Zero misses Sigma with his Disabling Strike attack.
<O-Hunter> Ether Skunk remembers that at Guilty Gear X MUSH. Her character had Regeneration, which made auto-healing much faster. Since the average pose length was about three times what it was, here, she ended up 0wning in a combat tournament simply because she healed up in the time it took everybody to pose. Of course, up against Tallie's character, who also had regeneration, things were... fun...
Actually, Shyster doesn't hear the sound of the explosive slamming home into the earth. And he doesn't hear the release of noxious gases from it. Nor does he notice any sparks and flaming gas. No fireball, either. Not yet. Why does he see none of these things?
Because he's just -caught the grenade-.
With a look of mild befuddlement, Shyster squints at the explosive in his hand, and then -teleports-, blinking to a point just over Bowie's shoulder. Tapping the Texan on the shoulder, he asks politely, "'xcuse me, I think you dropped this--"
And THEN the grenade explodes.
Shyster strikes you with a solid hit from his Breaking The Sfx Budget for 15 units of damage.
"Don't think that you're going to get off that easily," Sonata replies as Byte attempts to blink away from the scene of the battle. "Who knows how many people that you killed here - you're going to answer for your crimes, Byte." As the portal opens up behind him, Sonata decides to... accelerate Byte a bit more on his way. The only way that you can make a massive, oversized Reploid who is attempting to make an odd subspace jump out of the area overshoot his target.
There is a massive buzz around one of Sonata's arms, and a mass of black energy crackles around the end of her weapon - a swirling darkness that suggests that nothing good can come of it. And while most of Sonata's attacks and weapons seem somewhat vague and diffuse... punches of air and small gravity fields... this one is different. A dot forms on the end of her weapon, a tiny, insignificant black dot. A black dot that seems to warp the space around it, pulling in air, light... anything.
A Black Hole.
And a moment later, Sonata fires it directly at Byte.
Wire Wolf has left.
Sonata strikes Byte with her Black Hole Shot attack.
Byte falls to the ground, unconscious, due to massive systems damage.
"Go to hell," Kalinka says, pretty helpless to stop Bit from slicing the devastated Triumph into further pieces. However, the body of the craft is still sort of in one piece. She can't retreat without the use of the Triumph's legs, but she's not going down without giving it her all. "Maybe now, you see why I have occupied you all of this time...?" Another port slides open, directing a forceful blast of pure sound toward Bit...a sonic boom cannon.
Ride Armor <Triumph> strikes Bit with its Sonic Boom attack.
Beam Demon arrives from the Germany.
Beam Demon has arrived.
[Radio: (G) None] Sonata speaks with a massive roar in the background.
[Radio: (G) None] Sonata transmits, "I've taken care of Byte... erm... crap. How do I turn this thing off..."
[Radio: (G) None] Wire Wolf transmits, "I am retreating to the Vorpal."
Pushing himself near Napalm, Gizmo begins to pull out several tools from his tool pouch and lays them down near neatly down near the wolverine. Sure it isn't the most sanitary move however it still works. Letting his thin fingers gently push between the cracks of the leg arms he begins to quickly repair the wiring. Not bothering to look up from his work Gizmo hisses with annoyance. "Cover fire. Make sure no one attacks us while I am working. The worst case scenero is if all of us are caught surprised!" Pulling at the wiring to the point that he can see them he begins to splice the wires and then weld the parts together. All simple things. Nothing fancy but enough to give Napalm some movement. "Now when I say when, ride and take him back. Understood!"
Gizmo Glider effects some minor repair work on Napalm Wolverine.
Breeze has left.
Gizmo Glider takes out a medical scanner and scans Napalm Wolverine.
Byte begins to vanish into the Blink, his golden eyes locked upon the Detective. Byte's sytems charge higher and higher... rumbling to their activation point.
Byte's eyes lock on the Detective for long moments, his head cocking to the side as he witnesses the event unfolding before him... ...he knows he will not have time to avoid it. The gaze he gives the oncoming tiny Singularity... so like the one housed within his own belly... the cast almost... ...content.
Like Captain Hook gazing up into the mouth of the Crocodile as it fell upon him.
...Byte's yell of pain as he vanishes into the Blink is... terrible. Distortion magnifies it a hundred fold, even as the very body of Byte ripples and shudders... as the gravity plays hell with the Blink systems.
...and then... Byte is gone.
...and his severed right arm, the one not having lost a hand... including his entire shoulder... ...falls to the ground. Blackened. Scorched. ...twisted.
...That had to hurt...
"I am as strong as I ever was," replies Signas boldly, although he looks to be, at a glance, approximately 88.37% on the way to death. "It is your opression which has grown tiresome to this city of freedom, one of the first lands of democratic revolution. Retreat now, and this needless conflict will not be the end of you..." Wearily raising his arms, a hum of black and purple energy charges over the Signas Glaive, as the Hunter suddenly rushes forward, combined with his teleporter systems to leave behind a trail of Signases, almost a solid line, as between each two there is another, and between it and before it another, and so on to infinity... And with an infinite number of them, all seperated by an infinitely small space, the edge of the blade slashing at the Goliath is infinitely long...
Signas strikes Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with his Infinity Slam attack.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> is rocked by the blast from the Goliath, getting grounded quite forcefully, the Gunslinger digging its claws into the dirt as it's hit, armor peeling away under the blast. Mike grimaces, wasting no words on Vile as he brings up an arm once more, snarling as he fires off a rocket that speeds toward the other Ride Armor, Mike firing the jets on the Gunslinger to get it back in the air, to try and present more of a varied angle than before, so that hopefully Vile can't hit them both at once.
Ride Armor <Gunslinger> misses Heavy Ride Armor <Goliath> with its Rocket attack.
Sigma smirks once more, "Once more you surprise me.", he actually goes into a backwards roll to escape Zero's maneuever hopping up right by the edge. Two steps back, and he's going to have to deal with a whole lot of gravity. Sigma's eyes do not close, but actually widen as he focuses on the area around him. Hm ... With a quick hop forward, Sigma slashes twice in rapid succession in a low leap slash before driving his sword upwards at the Crimson Wonder, bringing it down before the full force of the blow is exerted in an attempt to enact two quick strikes on the Reploid instead.
Sigma misses Zero with his Claw Slash attack.
Raver Cat still gazes out, not a being noticing them thankfully, "Understood.." she says as she positions the bike to make a speedy retreat.
Large transports alight on the outskirts of Paris, depositing massive machines into fields, into forests, and all manner of suburbs and small towns surrounding Paris before turning and leaving back for Berlin. Siege equipment. C