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Post by Vilicious on Jun 19, 2015 7:22:13 GMT -8
The fog muffles sound. AirMan's torrents of wind become the soft blowing of air through an open door, Jax's moving earth becomes merely the crackle of gravel under soft feet, the rustle of Silence's cloak and the hum of Xion's energy each become nothing.
Orange electricity arcs from the clouds to a (well advised) handrail and back again... and a procession begins.
<From Rammount> Another pause. Here now, and nowhere else to be. The navi opens his senses to the vastness of this un-area and gains bearings regarding their un-place on the underside of the net using the faint direction of those on the surface as an anchor by which to maneuver. Without space to bother them, real space, the distance would be shorter than anticipated... but still not short. Silence points in the direction the path needs to go, and walks.
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Post by Shast on Jun 19, 2015 8:36:16 GMT -8
Jax [From Rammount(pg3)] The bridge becomes soft, brittle. Should something strong strike it may just snap like a twig. He may be able to enforce it, but such an act would take reserves he'd rather not expend. Xion would have to be alert. The odd network... if you could call it that, reminded him of another area that had been tucked away. Nothing extravagant like a 'land before time' or secret cove of mystery. Just some small time research labs testing servers. The frail ground materializes in the direction of Silences whim. Allowing further travel.
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Post by Genesis on Jun 19, 2015 20:11:29 GMT -8
*This was some strange fog. But this place... it was different. More than muffling sound, more than the silence around them. The electric arcs that traveled through this place was different as a whole. He had been to isolated networks before, one special one in particular, but this was different than he imagined. Was it even a network? It was so... alien, truly.*
*So like Jax thought, Xion remained alert. Not simply because of their bridge, but because of the intrigue and foreign feeling this place offered them. And with that he continued to proceed, his eyes and his other senses trying to make out anything around them that he would have to target right away, including the orange electricity that might send a few stray bolts their way as well.*
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Post by Raven8 on Jun 22, 2015 17:06:56 GMT -8
...been there, done that.
The entire area is generally awe-inspiring, but AirMan finds himself unimpressed at what he sees as he walks along, obviously more labored than normal. As he keeps a "bubble" of fresh air circulating around the group, he also uses the extreme air-flow to give himself a bit of lift; just enough to lighten the load on the bridge. However, this also makes walking somewhat more difficult; a fact that is somewhat lessened by the conveniently placed guard rail.
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Post by Vilicious on Jun 26, 2015 16:18:51 GMT -8
Eerie quiet surrounds the quest.
Leading onward, Silence points when the direction changes. It changes often, it changes strangely: Sometimes the direction is straight down. When it is steeply enough that only stairs can accommodate the decline, their lead almost intuitively changes the angle of his foot to walk down... the "forward" face of the steps. Likewise when the direction is up, he changes angles. For those that saw the Bug City in its splendor, this is a familiar oddity.
The storm's intensity changes - the party draws close to what must be its nexus.
He stops mid step and lightly removes himself from the traveling turf. In execution of his premeditated tactics, to Xion alone he thinks <Single entity. It surrounds the party. Be alert,>, and then, a moment later, <Should have chanced failing in Creamland. This was a mistake.>
As though in answer to M's thought-sending, four navis appear from the clouds. One takes each flank, and two fall in from the rear. Cloaked much as M is as Silence, they float on without facade, their Heel eyes and mouths glowing a sickly orange from beneath their dark cowls.
They halt, estimate range, eye Xion.
They draw black blades.
They charge.
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Post by Genesis on Jun 27, 2015 2:48:50 GMT -8
*He had expected silence, but this was near-deafening. Not to mention the road they had been taking. It was familiar for sure because he had been in the Bug City before. For some time even, before the events that took place shattered the place.*
"It's strange for a place so foreign to be familiar like this. Creepy even."
*He didn't like it. Venturing the unknown was one thing, but being familiar with some sort of concept of that unknown never sat well with him. Which would be weird to everyone else because usually you would WANT to be familiar with what you were getting in to. But the storm's intensity had changed. Were they close? Maybe. He had stopped when the party had come to a pause, his eyes darting about. The warning from Silence didn't speak too well about their predicament, but he was taking in their targets now to do his end of the bargain.*
"A single entity that can multiply? Fancy that. There's such a thing as good mistakes, you know? Let's try to make this better than our other option anyway now that it's come to this."
"Looks like we have some company, gang."
*Floating meant that Jax trying to drop the bridge under their opponent's feet would be worthless. He would do his best then. Xion started things in a weird fashion compared to what some would expect. He lopped the two spheres in his hands back at himself before summoning up two more. When the spheres slammed into him, two more of himself sprung loose, the original Xion firing at the two at their flank before firing two more at them for good measure from his hands. The clones of himself had summoned up two violet blades of their own, both jumping off to charge for the other two in a man-to-man fashion to use one sword to cross blades with them and the other to try and strike them down in that very same clash.*
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Post by Shast on Jun 27, 2015 21:43:08 GMT -8
Jax No trip worth its destination is without some form of danger. Whether it be monstrous virus beasts, treacherous terrain, or stone puzzles.
With powers somewhat diminished to the point of his stone being little more than sand, Jax opts to allow his more distance adept companions to take the charge of defeating these foes.
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Post by Vilicious on Jul 7, 2015 11:56:47 GMT -8
The flankers each slash the at the first orb and throw up the flat of their blade at the second: The unified timing is impeccable. Each shoves the darkness "down" into the abyss and readies their blade again.
To the rear, one accepts the clone's second blade to its abdomen, grabs the simulacrum, and falls together with it. The second parries hard right, then spins under the second blade and retaliates with a sweeping uppercut, but is halted.
Charging again, the flanks move in toward Xion only, this time warping close and swinging in unison; one low, one high.
A black mask looks back toward the fighting, and then forward. Those weren't the entity he had detected. Or, worse, they were. He relinquishes some of his control over the inhibitor. It begins to vibrate a little more violently.
As the green light increases, the three remaining attackers stagger.
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Post by Genesis on Jul 7, 2015 13:16:17 GMT -8
*Yeah, they were definitely one entity. Unified timing like that could only be accomplished from a similar mind. They had batted aside his ranged assault and one of his clones had been dragged down into the abyss. The sweeping uppercut had caught the other clone off guard, even more when the attack had halted too. It had tried to take advantage of this and went for a stab with the swords and a push, attempting to drag it "down" like what happened to the other one.*
*Xion didn't know how down worked here but he wouldn't let those thoughts preoccupy his mind now, as he had to move. He jumped at a steady pace, but turned as he did into a turn to twist in the air on his side to slide between the two attacks, a dark spike launched from his elbow to lock into the stone bridge, in case the worst happened from here. It would serve as an anchor in case of that. But the green light seemed to weaken them, so he would seek to take advantage of this opportunity. As he turned to a better position he called up two blades of darkness to thrust at the attackers, except the blades let loose a tornado immediately after he thrust them forward. Seeking to blast them away and then the tornado exploded again in a not so mild display of force.*
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Post by Shast on Jul 7, 2015 15:13:14 GMT -8
Jax (Sloth.exe, execute!)
The attention of the navis remained solely on Xion. Who was, so far, able to aptly handle the threat. This being so Jax continues to focus mostly on maintaining the bridge and allowing himself to recuperate. Offering the battle little more than curious scowls.
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Post by Raven8 on Jul 30, 2015 20:33:55 GMT -8
How trivial yet annoying. Why was this taking so long? These shadows should have been expelled long ago so that the field trip can come to an end. Time is money, and this excursion is anything but profitable thus far.
With a moan, AirMan begins to shift gears. The bubble of fresh air shrinks to roughly 70% of its previous size as a set of cyclones tear into the brink around Xion and begin to orbit him swiftly. While not highly damaging, they are more than enough to disorient anything that gets in their way and give an ample opening to one of the group's designated attackers.
AirMan: Friends, could we kindly butcher these bits of scrap data and move on? I would like to see the point of this entire ordeal before I die of old age.
An obviously sarcastic statement given the virtual immortality of a program such as a Navi.
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Post by Vilicious on Jul 31, 2015 12:04:00 GMT -8
The clone's blade meets the attacker's chest as the other had, and similarly the two recede into the encroaching cloudbank: The third and fourth are buffeted by Xion's blades and tornadoes, but before they can recover Airman's cyclones spin them into the abyss.
The air tingles with static and burnt ozone.
Silence open his free hand in preparation to summon energy and turns back toward the front of their platform -
- just in time to be engulfed in a much more willful cloud. It pulses once with electric darkness and dissipates, leaving only the inhibitor on the platform in its wake.
????????: HEH HEH HEH... He dropped it. A shame.
The air quakes, and in the distance, the world rumbles. In present perception, the air on their level begins to fade on out to the horizon, leaving only a single, fat, gray cloud towering from far below to high and away: As it condenses, a navi's features make themselves apparent. Its domed head, trailing condensation, and miniature wings define his long accursed name. Lighting pulses above, below, and between.
CloudMan: Heh heh heh... TRAVELERS! Welcome to our River, and forgive those fallen wishing to claim more... some that tarry here may be kept, some may go on, all that I ask is that you hand over that item and move along - if you do, I give you leave to go where you like with a clear path and benevolent direction.
The strange navi smiles in divinely smug arrogance, but opens his arms to them as though the deal is a simple thing.
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Post by Shast on Aug 1, 2015 14:03:27 GMT -8
Jax Could their guide have been so weak as to vanish to a cloud? Jax shrugs at the thought. He had known this navi for less than a few hours. He turns to the assaulter. Looking up at him with a hooded gaze.
Their guide is gone, rendering them lost within the infinite. Their new guide-to-hire demands the only remnant their previous had left in his wake. Under normal circumstances when the strong vanquish the weak Jax is fine. However this pompous cloud demands payment for his service when it is he who put them in this situation?
Answering for the group before they could muster a sentiment of their own he nods in disapproval. While and the same time the inhibitor becomes enveloped in an incredibly dense, even for here, shell of rock. Jax unfolds his arms and clutches the it with his left hand.
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Post by Genesis on Aug 1, 2015 20:51:53 GMT -8
*The anchors disappeared, Xion landing back on his feet. It was funny for Airman to mention time here, but that was a potshot for another time and place. Then their guide got pulled into a cloud, which caused the crimson orbs to flicker. Did he blink? That might have been what that was. He directed his eyes to the cloud, the orbs growing slightly more dim. He doubted that Silence was completely gone from that. Disabled? Perhaps. Jax had spoken for them though. For them to be on the same page from the start was infrequent enough as it was for him to be satisfied with it as it was. And he didn't like how smug this guy looked. That was enough for him to disapprove as it were. Wiping the smug look off was next on his list.*
"You can give us leave and a clear path where we like while we keep what's ours instead. Not that we would need your leave anyway."
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