destinystrings | [Game Opening, Part 4 : Mission 2

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[Game Opening, Part 4 : Mission 2 - Fire the Arrow of War]

Who: Jun Kuga, Theodore, Yamato, Ludwig, Elizabeth Middleford, Atsuro, Aoba, Urataros, Volstagg
Where: The Saggitarius Research and Development lab, wards C4 & B4.
Summary: Help defend the prototypes and barricade the labs.
Music: Castle of the Four Gods
Warnings: Combat! Action! Science!

The build itself seemed unimpressively gray, four stories tall, lacking in windows, and yet oddly cylindrical. There seemed to be some sort of commotion on the roof, but there wasn't much time to examine the exterior. Once the group had stepped close to the front door, they were almost immediately ushered up the emergency staircase, to the fourth floor. The lights within the R&D department were almost blindingly clinical, with many of them being backed up by black lights. The combination made the area a little jarring to stand around in, but it seemed the COMP glasses came in handy for that, cutting some of the dizzying effects.

The fourth-floor door was opened wide by an odd looking pixie, who seemed to regard the group coldly before gesturing them in. Behind her was a black-haired teen, no older than seventeen at most, frantically standing at a console and typing away. The room was completely white, littered with odd gadgets and glass enclosures straddling other computer terminals. The room seemed to be bustling with energy, even with the presumed lack of people in it. The pixie floated over to the teen, tapping him once on the shoulder to get his attention, before he spun around fast and harsh.

"Oh! Good, just barely in time, thank you..."

He dragged a gloved hand over his tired face, and gave a half-sort of bow. "My name is Ideo Hazama. I'm one of the head researchers..."

The screen behind him beeped, and he immediately turned back to it with a muttered curse. Seems he was going to be explaining the situation with his back turned, then! "The Anoli began their attack from the roof, breaking in to ward C4 first- we didn't expect them to be so daring. Several of our most potent prototypes are housed in B4, as well as here in D4." The labcoated teen gestured to the screen, and a map of the floor came up; it seemed to be in real time, showing blips for enemies and damaged doorwars. "Our first priority is to keep this area secure, while taking back B4. Once that is under control, we can push them out of C4, then pursue them to the roof if needed." As he spoke, Ideo gestured across the map without looking at his audience directly. He was probably not a people person anyway. "We cannot allow them to leave with the prototypes we have here...lives depend on this."

Finally, he turned back around, pointing to the doors labeled A4. C4, for the time being, seemed to be guarded by several imposing demons. Odd. "Reiko is in A4 right now, with the frontal assault force. The rest of our team is guarding the other emergency stairwells that lead downstairs. When you have cleared B4, my forces here will go through to C4 and meet you for a pincer attack. I would like to request that some of you stay here, in case we have trouble- everyone else, make your way to A4."

[OOC: As with every log like this, you are free to start your own sub-thread and have your characters stop swarms of monsters on your own. The place is being invaded by demons as well as Anoli! Don't forget to write your character's Persona awakening as well! Finally, here is a map, for easier comprehension!]

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"Ngh..."

Were he on his own, the smart thing to do would be to grab ahold of Badb Catha and teleport into a more strategically advantageous position - somewhere with a bottleneck where he could engage them one a time with Laksmi healing him continuously. But that would mean leaving this guy on his own, and there was no way the demons would follow the three of them with this single morsel around.

Atsuro tries to think quickly.

"...I'm going for a pincer attack - I'll take the one on the right; Badb Catha will get the middle. Try to get the left. Let's take them by surprise!"

With that, Atsuro, the raven, and the goddess vanish in a flash of light, reapparing behind the approaching Waira. Atsuro clocks his target in the back of the head as the raven swoops in to tear and rake with its vicious, barbed claws.

"Understood!" Ludwig could take orders as well as give them. Aiming at the one on the left, he fired a few shots, then found himself in a tight spot. "Out of bullets!" Would he even have time to reload? The pressure was definitely on. He attempted a brief retreat so he could reload, but the Waira caught up to him and gave him a nasty slash across the face. He couldn't help it- he cried out in pain, and covered his face with one hand. Dammit, he was trained for normal Earth battles, not for anything like this! He wasn't exactly cornered, but with Devil Speed on, the Waira could definitely catch up to him if he tried to retreat again. He was, to say the least, in a tough spot.

Oh, crap. Now that he thought about it, most pistols only carried six shots, and Ludwig had already used up... at least three or four back there. Atsuro whirls towards the man after delivering a solid kick straight towards what he hopes are the Waira's sensitive parts. ...Demon physiology was something he tried not to think too much about.

"Badb Catha, get -- Aghnn...!"

Badb Catha was a smear of feathers and blood crumpled against the wall. The Waira it had been engaging had naturally turned for Atsuro next, landing a vicious blow along his left shoulder and arm. With a grunt of pain, the boy staggers back a few steps; out of the corner of his eye, he can see Laksmi darting in from the right to buy him some time, leaving just one of the Waira to pursue. But she was frail - there was no way she was lasting longer than a few minutes.

Looks like they were both on their own...

Ludwig wiped away the blood running down his face, only to see the that the bird that had previously been attacking one of the Wairas was gone, Atsuro had sustained a new wound, and the healer was dangerously close to a demon. The Waira that he was stuck with was too close for him to reload his pistol. The situation had only gotten even more dire in the space of mere minutes.

Dammit, he couldn't die here! He had died many times before- being a soldier who also represents a country will make that happen- but he feared that if he died here, away from the protective influence of his country, it might be for good. There had to be something he could do to reverse the tide of events here and get victory back on their side...

A voice echoed through his mind.

I am thou. Thou art I.

A surge of energy coursed through Ludwig's body, straightening him up and giving him a new resolve. Yes, something could be done indeed!

Suddenly, an armored warrior appeared in front of Ludwig and struck the Waira with a mighty blow- Cleave. The sudden appearance of the warrior stunned the Waira, giving Ludwig enough time to reload. "Was that...?" he thought aloud. Was that a Persona?

"Leave it, Laksmi! Samarecarm Badb Catha!"

Caught up in his own struggle, Atsuro only has time to throw a few glances in Ludwig's direction as he resorts to kicks and low sweeps to stave off the demon's advance. Deathbound could be performed just as well with his legs as with his fists, but the usage of the skill only saps his strength even further. Though the one is pushed back, the second, now unencumbered by dancing goddesses making feeble attempts at combat, surges forward to take its fellow's place.

Outnumbered and outgunned... by a few Waira! This was way too embarrassing; these guys had better be some obscenely high level in this world. Given his own proficiency, probably somewhere up in the high 60s. Or, he admits grudgingly, it was perfectly possible that the demons of this world just didn't respond the same way to the skills and magic he had picked up back home. ....It doesn't really matter, either way. He was losing.

He leaps to the side to avoid a swiping claw and gives the Waira a cracking snap-kick at where an elbow joint ought to be. This is a maneuver he's performed many times before, but this time, somehow, with his arm injured and his body generally unbalanced, he is caught off guard when the demon retaliates with a strike straight at his ankle. He collapses immediately to the floor, burning pain flooding up and down his leg.

"Tch...!"

This was ludicrous! At this point, their health had to be ridiculously low! They could probably only take another blow or two; he had Phys Amp equipped, for goodness' sakes! Losing to a couple of Waira was... unimaginable. There was no way he was going to give up here, not after he had come so far, lived through so much!

Atsuro can't see that Laksmi has successfully revived Badb Catha. He can't see Ludwig on the ground in similarly dire straits. He can't even see the demons approaching, grotesque leers stretched across their bulbous features. Everything is suddenly a blurry haze, an indistinct red veil of equal-parts agitation, consternation, and determination stretching before his eyes.

There sounds a humming in his ears. It's been there the whole time, he realizes, but in the heat and fervor of battle, it has been almost inaudible. It feels now, oddly, as if the near-silent whisper is bidding the entirety of his attention. ...For a brief moment, he yields to the demand and closes his eyes, his teeth grit tightly in resolve.

I am thou. Thou art I.

The words fill his heart and mind and he knows what it is it demands. "I... I've got to survive!"

A flood of energy rushes through him as he thrusts forward a hand; in a flash of light, the projected image of a slender man with torrents of water circling about his body appears before him with hands similarly outstretched. The image glances back briefly before it cries out.

"Malaqua!"

Out of nowhere, a raging blast of water smashes into the two enemies and sends them sliding across the slick floor; a few moments after, Badb Catha and Laksmi have reappeared to help their master off the floor.

He stands slowly with an expression of astonishment on his face... But there was no time to think too much about it now. They had to take this chance. Glancing over towards Ludwig to catch the tail end of the other man's Persona, he breaks into a broad smile and quickly darts over to his side.

"...We've got this. Let's take them down for good!"

Edited 2012-09-09 03:08 (UTC)

Ludwig grinned, feeling power coursing through him. When Atsuro came to his side, he couldn't help but ask, "You, too...?" Well, they could discuss it once the enemies had cleared up a bit. The Wairas were still standing, though they were all clearly reaching the ends of their ropes. Ludwig wanted to try summoning his Persona again, but he wasn't sure... how did it even wake up the first time? Maybe, if he focused on it for a moment...

The area around Ludwig took on a bluish glow as he summoned his Persona once more. "Siegfried!" he cried out, the name belonging to his Persona; he wasn't sure how he knew, but somehow he knew that it belonged to his Persona with a great certainty. The armored man from before appeared once again and lunged at the one Waira, using Cleave to strike it down one last time. "One down, two to go!"

Laksmi is running low on her magic reserves as she casts one more Affection on them all. Releasing his arm as it stitches itself together, Atsuro will nod a gesture of thanks. He has a feeling they won't be needing anymore.

"Right. You know what to do!"

Badb Catha rockets forward like a bullet, Laksmi whirls in a flurry of scarves, and Atsuro closes his eyes once more. "Persona!" The man appears again, holding what seems to be a thick branch of an olive tree as a club and matter-of-factly crushes one of the Waira beneath it. The other quickly collapses under the combined assault of his demons.

"...This is so cool."

Edited 2012-09-09 03:54 (UTC)

Ludwig watched Atsuro's team and Persona dispatch the remaining two Wairas, bringing about a lull in the fighting on their end. "Thank goodness that's over," he said, taking a deep breath for what felt like the first time in an eternity. He chuckled a bit at Atsuro's comment. "Well, I'd hesitate to call it 'cool.' We were in great danger, after all. But it certainly is an incredible phenomenon."

"Ahah... I didn't think that's what it would be like at all!" Atsuro has gained the ability after seven days of being hunted to allow 'great danger' to roll off his back. Or at least pretend that it did. By his standards, that clocked in at maybe 5 or so on the great danger scale. He looks pretty content, if not a bit exhausted.

"I was thinking... I'm not sure, like learning a new skill yourself. It's more like a... summoning ritual, isn't it?"

Atsuro will try to cast his mind back towards which video game this is most like, but decides that Ludwig probably wouldn't appreciate this comparison too much. "...It looks like there's still a few enemies left. Maybe we should take a few moments first."

Ludwig paused to give Atsuro's words some thought. "A summoning ritual? I can't say I know how that goes enough to say whether it's like that or not. I do think it is a skill of some sort... you need to think about how to use it, when to use it... the strategic applications of a Persona could take some figuring out." There was another pause as he sighed and touched where the cut had been on his face. "We should take a few moments, if we can. That sudden burst of energy I got ran out... Persona use might be a bit physically taxing, which could be problematic."

The only strategy Atsuro has come up with so far is to lie back in a corner, sip some cola, and let the Persona do all the work. He wisely refrains from mentioning this well-conceived plan in front of the military fellow.

"It's just too bad Mediarahan doesn't make you feel any less tired..." He backs up against a wall and uses it as support. "I've been running on fumes already, but it seems like I have just enough energy to keep going every time a new fight comes up. ...Guess I've gotten used to it."

"I thought I felt a little energy, though that may just have been a side effect." Ludwig cocked his head at the second part, then remembered what Atsuro had mentioned earlier. "Right. You have combat experience... you must have been fighting for a long time to be 'used to it.' Either way, that tenacity is a good sign. It means you're a strong fighter."

"Maybe it does. I'm not sure if it's... placebo, or if it actually helps with fatigue, but it doesn't fill you up all the way, anyway." He glances towards Laksmi. The goddess manages to look infuriatingly mysterious without shifting her expression at all.

"Thanks. It's actually only been a week, but... you learn fast when you have to."

"Only a week?" Now Ludwig was puzzled. "I'd ask how you managed to become competent at fighting demons in only a week, but... perhaps I'm just underestimating the human ability to adapt." Careful, Ludwig, that came dangerously close to "I'm a nation" territory. Besides, he'd seen many humans perform incredible feats. What was he doing doubting them after all these years? Well, he was a bit of a pessimist.

"Hah... Trust me. I'm just as surprised as you are." Atsuro responds with a slight flush on his face. If anyone had asked him eight days ago how he'd feel about taking on the demon lords of old (Beelzebub and Lucifer, for goodness' sakes), he wouldn't even have known where to begin questioning their sanity.

"All I know is that I couldn't have made it this far without help - my friends back home, and now, here... from you and the others I've met. Even just in the last few hours."

"Is that so..." Ludwig was the kind of person who generally preferred to do most things alone, but he was always surprised when a friend's support saved the day. "This is true. Without your help, I think I might have been overwhelmed here. It's good that they sent us out in squads, isn't it?" He might have been taking it a bit literally, focusing on power in groups instead of emotional support.

"There were a lot of us. No point sending one out when you can send a group. ...But, uh."

He glances around at the slightly sparse forces fighting for their side. "I was hoping more people would've wanted in on the battle. ...I can understand, though. Not many people have actual combat experience... I would've been right there guarding the doorway last week."

"It's a real shame, isn't it..." Ludwig found himself resenting the fact that so many people had stayed behind. The danger wasn't there yet! Did they really send weaklings and cowards on a mission like this? That might have been a bit too strong, but Ludwig was wondering what compelled so many people to stay behind. Perhaps they really couldn't fight. "More people should really have come along. The danger is here, currently. It seems to have simmered down a bit for us, but there are still plenty of Anoli soldiers here..."

"Ah, yeah." Atsuro pushes off from the wall he'd been leaning against with a taut smile. "We'll just have to work all the harder, then... That's probably enough time chit-chatting. We can take a break when this sector is all cleared out."

"Yes, that's right. Let's try focusing on the Anoli soldiers this time. However, we must remember that the objective is to disable, not to kill." Truth be told, Ludwig feared he'd be the one having trouble with that directive. "Are you ready? Let's engage the ones closest to us first."

"Right. Let's make sure they don't get what they're after."

Atsuro brings out his glorified game system briefly to check on the status of his demons before raising his fists again in what he hopes was a defensive position. Badb Catha and Laksmi return to his side.

Peaceful days are in sight. Let's survive!

[And if you don't mind, I think that's a good place to leave the battle!]

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[Game Opening, Part 4 : Mission 2 - Fire the Arrow of War]

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