genessia | Assault on Everyman: Kazuya Tower

In the courtyard outside G Corp, things seemed normal. That is, until a group of irritating heroes came in to wreck up the place. Mass-produced jackbots stood at attention, silently guarding the main entrance and otherwise keeping an eye on things.

The tower itself was immaculately metallic, rising half a mile highh, overlooking a futuristic street dotted with slim streetlights and a few, tastefully placed articles of artificial greenery.

[OOC: Set up, RP the meetup, do battle with mooks here!]

Edited 2015-02-01 20:56 (UTC)

Kazuya, like many martial artist CEOs, loved money and power. He also knew when to suitably combine the two. He'd set up a lucrative business in the security department, but had received inquiries if he couldn't provide bodyguards that were...especially attentive to the "body" part. What to do when a client wanted an escort in more ways than one?

Enter the prototype LuvBot, or LB. It combined the latest in combat and technomorphic technologies, along with terabytes of relationship and compatibility data, sourced from e-dating websites the internet over. In other words, it was both a lover and a fighter. Theoretically. It still had some kinks to work out, but that's what field experience is good for.

Edited 2015-02-02 01:03 (UTC)

In the scientific community, it is widely held that sea creatures are God's mistakes; ugliest in the animal kingdom. Only fitting, as they're geographically situated closest to hell. Naturally, their diabolical juxtaposition made them especially attractive to Kazuya, one whose hobbies included making Mother Nature wish she'd aborted.

For reasons known only to himself, if the creature in question had no limbs with which to affix boxing gloves, he had little interest. Fortunate for him, then, that the abomination he genetically mutated next was among the most fearsome of punchers.

It was located, ironically, in a very scenic part of the building. A normal enough room, but instead of walls, it was surrounded on all sides by an aquarium, full of enough exotic fauna to stock a sushi restaurant. Situated in a dark corner of the watery cell was a robotic, aquatic sarcophagus. Lord have mercy on the one foolish enough to awaken this scientific aberration.

Edited 2015-02-02 01:32 (UTC)

Branching off from the group per instruction with Stein, Spirit was prepared for encountering dangerous combatants. However, the room looks...benign. He retains his sense of proprioception while in weapon form--he's aware of up and down, left and right, and he's very much aware that the room is surrounded by fishtanks, the blue-tinged light shining like waves across the floor.

"Seriously? What the hell is this?"

There's a pause, and a sigh. "We're going to have to open that, aren't we?"

Stein is very ready for this fight, moving through the hallways with the familiar weight of his scythe resting on his shoulder. The walls glow with the light of fish tanks and the gently bobbing souls of the creatures inside. But the boy doesn't even notice, because he's fixated on the container in the corner.

He bares his teeth in a grin as he steps towards the sarcophagus, eyes fixed on the soul inside it.

"Are you ready, senpai?"

Stein is. Whatever's in there, Stein's going to take it apart.

"We really have to open it, don't we?"

He totally ignored Stein's comment at least at first, though he's aware of the familiar pressure of a soul ready for resonance--preparation for battle. It's been a very long time since he's fought with Stein when Stein was still this small, of course. They haven't attempted resonance since Stein's arrival, and Kid had mentioned more than once that perhaps they should attempt doing so before the need became urgent. They have not.

Spirit is afraid of what might come of the attempted resonance, but there's no choice. Regardless, he reframes his own thoughts, ready to resonate while also ready to carefully manipulate the generally unstable wavelength of his young meister.

"I'm ready when you are."

Stein's wavelength is as steady as it usually is before a fight, laser focused and hungry. Pushing up against the edge of insanity without him even recognizing it. There's no resonance yet, not this early. Stein doesn't want to kill the thing in the box before he gets a chance to look at it.

He steps around the junk in the middle of the room on his way to the tank holding the sarcophagus. It's under the water, which means Stein can't just smash it open with Spirit unless he wants to deal with the problem of hundreds of gallons of water and shards of aquarium glass.

If it does break out, this fight will provide him a prime opportunity to test what he's researched about the properties of water in wavelength conduction. If Stein can hold his breath for long enough (and he thinks that he can) the creature might get to experience an onslaught of energy ten times more than what Stein can create on land.

But however this fight is going to go, first Stein needs to figure out how to make it happen. He walks up to the glass, trying to get a good view of the box.

Several ports on either side of the tomb opened up, letting out an exhaust of tranquilizing gas and other things meant to keep the monster sedate. That time had passed. The tomb rustled, brimming with rage, and then it began. But first, a biology lesson.

The mantis shrimp, sometimes referred to as "thumb splitters" by those who carelessly handle them in the ocean, are strange crustaceans who, at their normal size, "punch" at a speed of 23 m/s, easily breaking shells and other hard surfaces of prey. They do this by rapidly unfolding their appendages, a club/spear combo in this case, which in water is so fast as to both produce a painful strike and a cavitation bubble, or shockwave that makes for a stunning one-two combo.

For a man-sized versions, well...only G-corp scientists really knew what might happen. The lid of the tomb broke apart, then flew out of the cage, instantly shattering the aquarium. Shards of glass and gallons of water were spilling in, fish thrashing about the room. The creature emerged from its cage, anger increasing with consciousness. Fluorescent patterns across its carapace glowed; it was ready for round one.

"Shit--watch out, Stein!"

For what it's worth he harbors no fear of being submerged entirely--there's no need for him to breathe in this form, though there would be definite limitations with their speed.

Stein however does need to breathe. The weapon is looking for an out already. The weapon is looking for a weak spot--a crack or a window, anything--and thinks he might see one in the opposite corner.

"There's a crack in the wall. If we can break it you won't have to worry about drowning. I bet that thing can swim and we don't want to fight it on its territory!"

The tank explodes, inches from his face, smacking him with mingled glass and water and sea life. He jumps back as soon as it happens, but his reactions are only human. It's like being punched, but worse because there's water forced up his nose and into his mouth, and shards of glass stuck into the skin of his face. A splinter cuts open his upper lip and his mouth fills with blood, and there's another gash in his right eyebrow that's sending a red film across his vision. He spits out blood and glass and fishy-tasting salt water.

Spirit's concerned about fighting the thing (some kind of shrimp) on its own territory. Stein isn't. Stein's excited, because now he'll have the chance to test what happens when a soul force attack is amplified by sea water.

"Soul Resonance!" He commands, taking a deep breath and reaching out for his weapon's soul.

Water had filled the room halfway to the ceiling, and it was rising. Security protocols were now enforced, sending sirens throughout the building, and locking the doors behind them. Extra-reinforced, given what the doors were meant to contain.

Speaking of that "what", it was sizing up its enemy, a delicate bobbing and weaving as its feet splashed throughout the water. It aimed, then let loose a punch faster than the eye could see, with the force of a shotgun blast. Several things would happen with that punch. The force was substantial, but beyond that, there was the bubble it created, sending out a rippling, stunning wave hit or miss. Then there was the boiling; both the speed and the friction of the blow would put the waters up to a scalding heat. Can little ~~Mac~~Stein take home the belt?

He hasn't fought with Stein in quite some time, but a meister hardly has to suggest a command to a weapon and they oblige--is a trained response and one that could be triggered almost in the scythe's sleep at this point.

Spirit can feel himself bracing for impact anyway; soul resonance has a tendency to be intimate and personal. There isn't much to hold back in resonance. Your soul is who you are and at that level there is very little that can be done to hide things if one's partner chooses to look. Resonating with Stein perpetually feels like being studied on a microscope.

The familiar feel of his meister's soul synchronizes with his own, and he acts on instinct before anything else as the shrimp attacks. "Experimental ectoplasm!"

He isn't even sure if this will work but he has to try. Success will leave Stein protected with a marshmallow type image, a manifestation of their souls.

Spirit's soul is subtly different from what Stein knows, fascinating and confusing and incredibly distracting. There's a giant monster bearing down on him, water everywhere, and broken glass in his face. But there's a soul that should be familiar being incredibly different instead.

And an attack he's never heard of before. Spirit knows what to do, and Stein just lets his soul follow his weapon's. Their souls sync up and glow, manifesting a vague shape around them, a protective wall that takes the punch and absorbs it. Stein's flung back, but the punch, the shockwave, and the heated water are blocked and cushioned. He laughs, a bubble of air escaping him as he's shoved up against one of the remaining tanks.

Stein swings Spirit around in an arc, trying to catch the monster in the side with the scythe's razor-sharp blade. The shrimp creature does have a protective exoskeleton, but chitin shouldn't be able to stand up to demon steel.

Mantis shrimp, as a rule, typically sought prey which withdrew; certainly none that effectively fought back. Seeing Stein do exactly that was a shock, and its reflexes failed it. It raised its crystalline fists and took half the brunt of the blow. The blade was repulsed for a moment before reinvesting itself into its side, mutant blood coloring the water. An inhuman screech was let out. Its carapace was cracked, and it focused its attention now on the scythe in its side.

To that end, it would try to rain as many blows as it could on the weapon, shock wave after shock wave exploding in the water as it tried to dislodge the impertinent blade.

Edited 2015-02-08 00:03 (UTC)

Rude. It isn't painful, but there's a familiar sense of discomfort--shockwaves of dull vibrations running through him. At worst, they feel like they're scrambling his thoughts, like being violently shaken.

He's distracted just the same, but not by the mantis shrimp. It's the familiar-yet-unfamiliar wavelength of his meister that takes up more of his attention than it should. It isn't that Spirit can't adapt: adaptability of his own soul wavelength makes him a very good weapon partner, after all, and manipulation of others' soul wavelengths made him a good weapon partner for Stein--but it's so incredibly distracting. Something about Stein's wavelength, when they were children, makes him incredibly uncomfortable.

The weapon forces himself to focus. His voice, tinny in weapon form almost vibrates with the continue rain of blows.

"Stein, we have to get some of this water out of here!"

Stein yanks on the weapon, trying to pull in through the shrimp's body as he pulls it out. His lungs burn and he tries to get over to the crack Spirit saw before. If he can just breathe, he can kill this monster in a heartbeat.

The combined forces of its tough shell, and the momentum-dampening effect of the water made it a struggle, but eventually the blade was out, monster gore along with it. The water had absorbed a lot of heat from the flurry, and even now its level had diminished, turning into steam. There was enough at the top of room if one brought their mouth to the ceiling.

Monster mantis clutched its gaping chest wound with one arm. True to form, the scientists had twisted nature even more, resulting in its other arm having something of a Swiss army knife capability. Most mantis shrimp had either clubs or "spears" for hand implements. They gave this one a laser drill. With a "shink-shink", it traded out its blunt instrument, and produced a spiraling, crystal tool with a bright-red laser tip. Exhaust ports opened up on the soles of its crustacean feet, where it would produce cavitation bubbles and use the shockwaves for propulsion.

It was rapidly losing energy thanks to the wounds; still, it knew only violence and the will to survive. With all it could muster, it shot towards Stein.

"I'm not going to drain this room on my own!"

He would refocus his meister the best he could, shifting his attention to the wall with the crack. He and Stein could break the wall, he thought--but perhaps an even better use of available energy would be to allow the mantis shrimp monster to go for them and move out of the way to allow the blow to go for the crack.

With any luck, he knows his meister well enough to expect that he'll take the hint. Let the enemy do the brunt of the work!

Stein shoves away from the wall, dodging out of the way of the monster's attack. His vision's going dark on the edges and his entire body is starting to focus in on just the desperate need for air. Hopefully, the shrimp will hit the wall and break through it.

Like a classic matador bull, it had seen red, and sacrificed accuracy for strength, crashing into the wall in a flash of force. Even Kazuya's reinforced plate glass wasn't a match for the power of the creature's assault, and it gave way. There was an explosion, a cracking, and a bursting as water rapidly drained out of the room, spilling out into the streets far below.

They'd find the creature hanging on with its claws, digging into the edge of the floor. It had caught on at the last second, once it knew the folly of its flurry. With a wheeze, it pulled itself back up, and readjusted its bearings now that it was out of its preferred environment. No cavitation bubbles, no boiling water, no maneuverability advantage. It traded out its claws for the club implement again, then lunged for Stein, heedless of the damage it had taken thus far. It could still fight.

Thought the weapon felt none of the oppressive weight of the water and had not himself been near faint from lack of oxygen, he was relieved that the water was gone.

Spirit is silent, but the question is palpable among the shared wavelength of resonance: are you okay?

In some ways it doesn't matter. With solid ground beneath them and the monster about to attack again, it's time for Stein to do what he does best.

Stein stabs Spirit into the floor, using the scythe as an anchor so he doesn't get blown out of the room with the water. He sucks in air too quickly and coughs, but they don't have time for him to really clear his lungs. He doesn't have time to respond with anything more than just a vague acknowledgement that he's alive and okay.

Stein pulls Spirit out of the floor and swings it back around at the creature in a wide arc that should hopefully take off at least one of those arms.

It struck out its club, only to have it lashed off by Spirit. Blood spurted out of the wound, creature kneeling down and screeching. With but one arm left, it put all its remaining strength into a final blow, a brilliant flash of light accompanying its momentum.

While it was well within G Corp.'s power to create Roomba 5.0, even Kazuya knew that some things required a more human touch. But then, being Kazuya, the human he had in mind to do the day-to-day chores would have to be someone truly exceptional.

Etsuki Mita was no ordinary maid. For one, she could clean ceilings without a ladder. For two, she was fiercely protective of her domestic domain, and would not let anyone to see her boss without her consent. And that consent could only be given in one way...

Well, it was about that time, huh? He couldn't place Kazuya. Just another a**-hole, he guessed. Good enough to cover room and board and give him free stuff, but not so good that he wouldn't screw it up by letting the cat out of the bag.

Oh well; it'd been fun while it lasted. Honestly, he was kind of excited to see what force the good guys would bring to bear. Just how much had he pissed them off, anyway? John smiled. Oh, Kazuya. You should've known better than to try and prank this guy.

He lovingly fondled his baseball bat. Sorry, whoever walked through that door. Going quietly just wasn't his style.

Edited 2015-02-03 17:12 (UTC)

It had been a long time coming, but it seemed that Mamizou would finally get a chance to part with her good friend Mr. Spirit Thing. One way or another it should happen by the time she left Kazuya's tower. Either it would end the way she hoped, or she'd likely be dead. Either way her and the spirit that had been roaming around her body would likely be parted soon enough.

Naturally, she wasn't wearing her normal form. The entire reason she had came up with a fake persona was to protect her real one. If Mamizou Futatsuiwa, known to be so close to Satsuki she actually taught at her school showed up, it'd make things obvious that said woman was far from normal. And over those centuries she'd learned the value of looking like a normal, boring individual.

Maybe that was why she made the fake her so over the top. While Mami was something of a traditional Japanese woman (with a tail), her fake was about as far from that as one could get. And it was that form she was wearing when the door opened.

The girl wears an annoyed look on her face when she peeks through the door. "You like, better be in this one. I've been all through this hella tacky building. And it was SO boring. Nothing but robots and people fighting and like...I swear I saw some sort of death shrimp. Not chic at ALL. I feel groddy even thinking about it."

He took one look, then guffawed. "Oh, Jesus. You're the pinch hitter here? Nice." He knew that, similarly to himself, she wore many disguises, but he's touched that she'd choose the one they both indulged. How much did they have in common, anyway?

Speaking of which, a tangent. Mr. Ghost, as he's come to affectionately be known, had put Mamizou through the ringer in terms of sensual night-outs and drills. He was "soul shivering" especially violently, and by now hoped that Mamizou had gotten a handle on that sensation. In addition, he'd worked with her to develop a few go-to signals if the time to talk wasn't available. Little things like touching certain body parts with certain extremities. A ring finger on the thigh meant "hold on", for example. Right now, he was signaling her pinky finger up and down, which meant "be wary."

John got up from his cozy penthouse chair, bat hung across his shoulders. Both of Mamizou's eyes saw the same thing, which, if Mr. Ghost was correct, meant that he wasn't disguising himself right now. He appeared as a sturdily-built man in his twenties, with shoulder-length brown hair and a face which, no matter the expression, screamed of overconfidence. He stood up leisurely enough, and then tensed up. He knew whom she was with.

"Wow, Bitchquake. You really out-kicked your coverage on this one. I didn't know blondes were your type." He seemed to be talking past her, before he met eyes. "I didn't know teenagers were into demonic sh**. I know how it is. You get all your girlfriends over for some fun and games, but the Ouija board just didn't go the way you'd hoped. Still, blonde, stupid, and possessed is no way to go through life.

Normally, this would be the part where I play your heartstrings till you're just begging for it, but I don't like your friends. Buzz off."

Thankfully the woman, despite occasionally seeming like she might not be taking things seriously, was wise enough to know that she had been dealing with a life or death situation from the start. She had taken the training seriously, even when it had been unpleasant. It was not like their mutual enemy wanted to treat her to a cup of tea, it looked like he wanted her beaten to death.

Of course the overconfidence that is being shot her way is returned, a cocky grin on her currently youthful face. "Blondes like, have more fun and some junk." A hand comes to her hair, brushing it back like some sort of wannabe model. "And this? This is my sort of fun. If you ranked this between snoozefest and awesome, it'd be pretty close to awesome. But look at you! You're all...normal. Couldn't you have made yourself look like some sorta monster? Like horns or wings or maybe wings with claws? And wheres the fire breath? All good villains breath fire." He seems convinced she's a dumb kid. Naturally, she'd play it up.

And the warning she's given doesn't go unnoticed. On the outside, it seems like she should have numerous advantages. It looked like her enemy was just one human, but it is the unknown that makes her not quite as overconfident on the inside as she appears outside. "You want me to go? kay, see ya." She stands there for a moment, before tilting her head to the side. "As if! That's about as stupid as me going 'Hey, you should just give up right away!'. And you try to call ME stupid. Like omigawd, that's so much irony I want to use it to get wrinkles out of my clothes!"

"Ha. You're so funny." Okay, now he was sure it was an act. Stupid people don't make world-play like that, and even he had to admit it was pretty good. That and, well, it took one to know one.

" 'Your kinda fun', huh...okay, I getcha. You like it rough. One of those chicks who just can't get a thrill unless the cops show up. I bet a right hook to the jaw is like a glass of water to a man in the desert for you, eh? Lemme pick your brain for a bit though. Any particular reason you got your cardio coming all this way? I mean, besides a chance at scoring with a guy waaaay outta' your league? I just gotta know how Itchy over there put you up to this."

Edited 2015-02-10 07:15 (UTC)

The girl shakes her head. "Naw, it totes ain't like that. I look at you and I see a guy that I could tell all of my awesome reasons for this to and you'd just not get it. Though it IS all the excitement I'll need for the rest of the day! I'll have to send this Kazuy...whatever guy a nice fruit basket. Finding you has been super hella hard!"

She lifts one finger, and shakes it as if she was addressing a naughty child. "That isn't the only thing wrong with what you said, though. Like, out of my league? Pashaw! Have you taken a look at this face? At these amazing curves? They don't have a word for the league I am in, language isn't awesome enough for it!" She's really getting into her role it seems.

"So...just to be sure, you really aren't gonna just give up, right? I mean, there are so many people in here right now you really wouldn't get out even if I just skipped out on this party and went to my nail appointment." Not that she expects for a moment for it to be that easy. It probably wouldn't do much to rattle his confidence either. Still, she was in the groove now, she wouldn't display a lack of confidence herself!

"Pff, now you're playing coy, after running to see lil' ol' me. Well, can't say I blame ya. I am quite the prize."

His eyebrows twitch at the taunt. "'Give up?' Bi*** please. You've any idea who you're f***ing with? You can call me ****in' Dumbledore, all right? Cause I'm a goddamn wizard! I'll mind-rape you so hard your grand kids will have autism." His words were becoming a bit more panicky. He pointed the bat at her.

"So you can take Quaker Oats over there and mosey on back to whatever Hooters you crawled out of. Otherwise, I'm gonna be your new pimp, and break you in Babe Ruth style.

Edited 2015-02-10 07:50 (UTC)

A part of her wants to return the taunts. While it was true she didn't know what she was dealing with, neither did he. She didn't know much he knew, but she'd been careful not to reveal her true nature even before she got involved in all this business. There simply wouldn't have been any information out there to gather when it came to her real form. That is, unless he managed to get his hands on Satsuki somehow!

So while she may have tipped her hat a little with her little video show, she actually had more of an idea what he was about then he did about her. References to wizards are more amusing then threatening to someone who actually knew real ones, and that amusement is evident on her face. "You've got a bad case of potty mouth, young man!" She has no weapon to brandish and, from the outside, the fight would look so one sided one would have to assume the girl insane to be standing up to someone who was both larger and better armed then herself.

"That and your references are hella dated. You can't hope to be as fashionable as me with stuff from like 20 years ago or whatever. Get with the program! You gotta remain fresh, keep up with the trends! And lets be honest, you're pretty old news nowadays. People are like, soooooooo tired of you. Do you know what a welcome is? Because like, yours ran out ages ago. Like, when your welcome was worn out, there were still dinosaurs walking around. That is how past your due date you are. Kinda sad you don't see it."

The girl, despite the situation, seemed to be wearing a smile and enjoying the verbal sparring session. "Oh, now its my turn! Questions, I have one! Do you have anything else besides that baseball bat? If not, just save us both time, kay?"

His eyes went to his implement, giving it a twirl in his palm. "My wood, like myself, has classic appeal. It's timeless." Ah, women. He'd just as soon hit her as hit on her. He'd go with the former, for two reasons. One, the company she seemed to keep. Two, shapeshifting hijinx. He knew what a "trap" was, and while she was pretty hot, he didn't fancy any kind of fatal attraction. For all he knew she was an alien, or worse, a man. No bueno.

"Besides, it's not just the bat. It's at least a few dozen." With that, he set his illusionary powers to work, instantly placing several clones of himself around the room. Mamizou's right eye would perceive them to be fakes; not actually there with her left eye beholden to the theatrics he employed.

To John's mind, this would have the effect of bamboozling her eyesight, and he'd quietly slip in, invisible, and give her a good crack on the back of the head. Cleverly, or so he thought, he wasn't among any of the visible John's at all. Of course, Mr. Ghosty's eye could tell the difference.

While the woman may have something of a 'trump card' with the vision of the spirit allowing her to tell who was the real deal and who was the fake, it was a far from perfect method. First of all, it only worked with one eye. She was blind to the truth on one side of her face. Secondly, it was rather disorienting to see something different in each eye. For all her claims she had been ready, she had never had a chance to actually experience it until now. Like ones eyes adjusting in the dark, it took a moment for her vision to figure out what exactly it was seeing, and by that time her enemy had already managed to sneak behind her.

This meant she was too slow on the offense to just blast him before he could get anywhere near her. But with it obvious the real deal was nowhere in front of her, that left only a few places he could be. Its more luck then anything else that she checks behind before above. And that luck prevents her from getting cracked on the back of the head. Sadly, turning around means the bat is aimed for the FRONT of her head instead. A leap backwards is intended to take her out of harms way, but the swing still nicks her, knocking her glasses right off of her face as well as leaving her with a nice, if minor, bruise to form on her forehead.

"Woah now, chippy. We're starting? I thought we were just gonna chat all day!" She reaches into her outfit and pulls out...another pair of glasses, which she places onto her face. Gotta maintain the look. Even though that surprise attack stung, with the spirit's present making it worse then it actually was. Still, she didn't show much in the way of outwards pain. "That trick is like, so utterly amazawesome, guy. That's amazing and awesome at the same time, in case you were out of the loop. I wish I could do that! Oh, wait."

The blonde vanishes into a puff of smoke, seeming to just cease existing for a moment, and then she fills the room with her own clones, each one wearing a cocky grin. "Forgot. I totes can. You know, I'm not really the one that doesn't know what they're dealing with. Its you!"

The trick loses some power due to the presence of the spirit within her body. Normally, she could literally create physical clones of herself, but in this case she can't split herself like that. All but the real one are fakes, incapable of causing any harm. Normally, all of them would be dangerous. In all there are five blondes, and they move to surround the one that has she can see to be the real deal, all of them with a hand outstretched. "Lemme show you what else I can do." The voice comes from a different girl this time. Each time she speaks, it comes from a different girl. Helps to keep up the illusion!

And of course her attack wasn't just 'point my hand at you and look awesome', either. Around the hand of each, a ball of light blue energy begins to circle, rapidly splitting into several smaller balls. Its enough to light the room up in a light blue color. The little orbs change shape, into what looks like tiny little stick figure men. "I've got my own army, too! Pew pew, shoot him full of holes!"

And then, the room is bathed in blue. Almost all of the shots are illusory and can't cause any harm, and the ones that are real aren't likely to be fatal. She isn't trying to kill the guy. For all she knows it was a case of possession as well. Despite them not being fatal, they would sting if struck by them, each like a tiny rock thrown by a baseball pitcher.

Hold on, he knew this...that danmackoo, or whatever it was called. He'd tango'd with Sakuya like this once before, so he's had some time to adjust to it, minus the stick figures. Still, he's only human, and can't dodge them all, getting zapped by pinpricks of light.

"Yeah, I don't like to waste time, especially with girls that talk too much." His illusion cloaked the room again, this time wiping out all the Mamizou's, even the real one. Just the sight and sound of them, naturally. She and her copies were still there, still firing anime lasers, but like before, only half of her eyes could see them. Mr. Ghost sensed this dilemma, and motioned to control both her eyes and ears for good measure.

In addition, instead of a stuffy penthouse suite, the room was now glamoured to appear in the middle of Niagara Falls, water crashing over a wide rim, with a large rainbow arcing in the middle. It looked larger than the room's dimensions, and could be verified by bumping one's nose into the walls which remained.

He taunted a second time, getting zapped all the while by a few stray shots he couldn't shake. "Enjoy the view, sugartits, cause I am done-ion rings. Peace." One might think that a man's man like him might shrink at the prospect of retreat so early in the game, but he enjoyed script-flipping and getting chased by women. Or at least, things that looked like them. That and he had no means to pierce others' magic tricks. So much for having the market cornered on his brand of BS. Can't exactly spray-and-pray with a baseball bat, so away he went, out the door and down the hall, bat in tow.

Once he'd gotten clear of the stick-man battalion, he'd leave behind a few images to cover his tracks. A field of caltrops and obvious mines, a bottomless cliff that would change shape to make one believe they were falling, and a river of crocodiles for good measure. To top it all off, all of them obscured the route he was actually taking. If one trusted their eyes, they'd be lost forever. And if they felt their way through, that would probably buy him enough time to make a getaway. Still, for Mami, all she really had to do was maintain a smidgen of willpower, which ought to be easy enough given that she was wise to his tricks.

Edited 2015-02-11 20:07 (UTC)

Her choice of fighting style might give mild hints at her real identity if Everyman had taken time to do his research. There had not been many people at that festival who engaged in curtain fire madness after all. The maid hadn't shown any ability to alter her form, though clearly his transforming foe had taken effort to hide their real self as well. Still, there had been only five of them there who did this. Of course if he knew a thing or two about Japanese myth, which one it was would probably be obvious, but he didn't really seem the type to read a dusty old book when he could be trolling the world around him!

And besides, there wasn't time for thinking about that sort of thing now. The obnoxious blonde was proving resilient and nearly as tricky as her enemy was. With her eyesight adjusting to the half-vision, she was able to track his movements better then he might hope. Anime lasers marched on, and she relinquished her senses to the spirit within her when prompted. She only had a glimpse of what sort of fake horrors were laid in her path, with her senses overtaken by the spirit's, all she saw was a running Everyman.

And with the tricks not tricking her, following after proves not only possible, but horribly easy. She was NOT a 'mere' human, and not limited by their movement options. She doesn't run after him, but rather she takes to the air, flying at far from her full speed. The last thing she wanted was to bash into a wall and let him get away, and besides she didn't have complete control over her senses.

She did, however, have complete control over her mouth, and as she begins to close the distance between the two of them, she can't help but throw out a few choice words. "Done-ion rings? I prefer fries. Which reminds me, want fries with this?" Not sure if anyone else is around, and not wanting to hurt the innocent, Mami sends a handful of little energy balls flying down the hallway at the retreating fellow. This time they are shaped like birds, and even flapping their wings solely because it amuses her.

Well excuse him for not paying attention to the light show while he was in the middle of orchestrating a faux-terrorist attack, geez! Doesn't she know that multitasking is bad for you?

Apparently not, because she was taunting, flying, and sending birds all without so much as a speed bump. His illusions were rapidly losing what meager effect they had, and John knew it. Well, two can taunt, can't they?

"Wow, I guess pigs can f-ACK!" His insult was cut short as birds blasted him off his feet, down the end of a side hall. Sometimes talking just wasn't a free action.

He got up, spurred on by the adrenaline, and the knowledge that he was running out of options. Then it struck him. He had been sent down a hall whose main feature was a viewing window, overlooking a large height outside of G-Corp. Obviously, right?

He sighed. The upper limits of confidence were starting to show their crazy side. Technically, it was true that every now and again a human could survive a deadly drop. He'd heard about a woman surviving being thrown out of a plane from thousands of feet, or something. The logical part of his brain told him that his odds weren't good.

Screw the odds. He resolved that he'd truly rather be dead than have to go back to what was now pursuing him. He cracked open the window with his bat, then tossed it aside.

"Let's see how bad you want me." Then out he went, shoulder-first as glass crashed around him.

Mr. Ghost spiked another shiver. He crooked her middle finger, which meant: Pursue. Now.

Edited 2015-02-17 09:58 (UTC)

Tanuki, not pig! Though of course she was keeping that little tidbit a secret. Even if the mission was a success, she knew that Kazuya and Satsuki weren't on the best of terms, and didn't really want to be known as associated with the Nova City Guardian. Not out of fear, of course, but to maintain the secrecy she had clung to ever since she first ended up here.

It seemed the chase was going well, with the spirit's help, he was proving not to be as dangerous as she had expected. Without it, he probably would have escaped easily of course, but that was that and this was this! What she didn't expect was the desperation that would drive him to jump out a window. Could he fly? Did he have some ability she had yet to learn of? Or was this really the last ditch effort to escape it looked like? There's no time for taunts from the woman. He's about to escape...one way or another. Either from their grasp, or from life itself!

"Damn..." She raises a hand toward the window, shooting away what was left of the window so she could just zoom out of it, which she does without hesitation. She looks the most logical direction first, down. If this wasn't yet another trick that should be where he's going, after all!

Very astute, fellow potty-mouth! Yes, John was hurtling down on a one-way trip to kiss the ground. In danger, and loving every second. He'd always wanted to go skydiving; sky-scraper diving was almost as good. In such suicidal ecstasy was he that he had no notice of his determined pursuer. Even the bits of glass that had dug into him didn't dampen the thrill of reaching terminal velocity.

Thus, the question posed: Can a flying tanuki accelerate faster than 9.8 m/s^2?

(OOC: Free-fall = god-moding permission granted.)

Edited 2015-02-18 22:06 (UTC)

It was a bit less scary of a situation to leap out of a window when one treated the law of gravity as more of a suggestion, a rule to follow when one saw fit to do so. However, there was a bit of a difference between her normal method of flight, which allowed her some leniency, and intentionally throwing herself face-first at the ground. If she wasn't quick enough, this could up bad for her as well!

A bit recklessly, she lowers her arms to her sides and bullets downwards, the wind making her regret not tying her hair back in this form. Slowly but sure, she creeps closer and closer, one of her hands outstretching, her fingertips just barely out of reach. Just a little closer.....and then the joy of skyscraper diving would come to an end as the girl grabs hold of his leg, a bit above the ankle. That doesn't end the fall however, it only slows it, with the two continuing to fall for another second before Mami can finally adjust to holding up that extra weight. The descent then is controlled and slow, heading for the ground at a speed that wouldn't crush anyone's skull.

Her hair was wind whipped, but somehow the girl had not lost her glaces. She peers from behind them, with a look of annoyance on her face. "If you just wanted to hang out, you should have said so."

Edited 2015-02-19 04:14 (UTC)

He had learned one thing from Danmaku: for all it's emphasis on cardio, its players had remarkable upper body strength for girls.

John couldn't help but laugh as his pursuer proved inescapable. The thrill of a fall, the despair of being caught all mixed to make him feel a fatigued jocularity, laughing at his own misfortune. What would he do now; kick her in the wrist? Not a bad idea, but instead he'll flip her the bird on the way down, too mentally exhausted for anything wittier.

That wouldn't stop him from trying to headbutt her in her stupid glasses once they touched ground though.

Edited 2015-02-19 05:07 (UTC)

That was because most of the girls involved in it were strange and unusual, of course. When the most normal participant is a maid that stops time, you've gone past normal and way off into the deep end of crazy where sanity is a liability. Thankfully, the blonde doesn't seem to have superhuman strength to add to her list of abilities, carrying a whole second person, particularly in such an awkward position. But then, how did strength even fit in when one was just ignoring gravity? It was likely she was just cheating somehow.

The finger either passes her by or she just doesn't care. Things should be coming to a close now. Without a weapon, and with the help of the spirit to negate his tricks, she was basically dealing with a single unarmed human. How could she lose to that?

Perhaps that is why she was so easily caught off guard upon landing. She's far too gentle with setting her enemy down. If she was a bit more ruthless she could have just tossed him against a wall, but instead she sets him down relatively gently. That might be why she catches a headbutt to the face. There's a cracking sound which, thankfully, is the glasses instead of a skull, and the eyewear falls partly off of her face, dangling before just falling to the ground as she reels backwards. The pain is worse then it should be due to the spirit's reverberations but it is not nearly enough to do her in.

"Woah. Rude!" There is only a moment's hesitation before she fires a blast of energy out. This one isn't a silly one, it isn't shaped like a little man or a bird or anything weird. It is meant simply to accomplish what she should have done already, to make him incapable of running away any more. She's been caught off guard twice now, she doesn't intend to let the third time be the unlucky charm.

Tit for tat, John had taken the brunt of the blow, and was out cold. That was it for this Everyman figure. Only one more thing was needed to wrap this all up. Mr. Ghost nudged at her mouth for the last time.

"Thank you. Finally, this conflict will come to an end. You've done well in performing nearly all I've asked, and so I ask one last thing: release me into him; end the matter just as it began many days ago. Goodbye."

For how willing she'd been to accept her part in the conflict, the tanuki was rather eager for it to come to an end. Sharing her body like this was not the sort of thing she would ever claim she had enjoyed, and she'd taken two too many bumps to the head to be in a cheerful mood.

"Well, I'd say I was sad to see you go, but I don't want to be a liar. I suppose I shall leave it with 'nice working with you'? Yes, that sounds about right." Here's hoping he is actually out and not just faking it to attack her again. She approaches the fallen body, getting rather uncomfortably close to it before reaching out to grab the fallen man's hand. "Do your thing. I want to go home and sleep for a week."

No love lost between these two, apparently.

Just as before, Mamizou would be brought to the cusp of consciousness as the spirit transferred hosts.

Unlike before, it would become clear that something was wrong, even to Mamizou's diminished senses. An inky darkness was covering John, spreading out from his chest outwards. He started to levitate, and with him, a booming voice shouted from the ether.

"JOHN DELMAR HARDY. YOU HAVE DISOBEYED THE RULES AND STIPULATIONS AS AGREED UPON IN OUR CONTRACT. IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITS DICTUM, I SHALL NOW TAKE FULL OWNERSHIP OF YOU AND THE ABILITIES THEREIN, UP TO BUT NOT EXCEEDING THE LENGTH OF YOUR REBELLION." Once he had reached the top of his ascent, about fifty meters high, the darkness grew outwards, blackness becoming solid and stitching itself to John's supine form. Four large solid limbs came out; the back two with cloven hooves, front with rending claws. Two wings like a bat's unfurled from its back, and its head sprung horns that curled upwards. The face had the likeness of a goat. He turned to address his previous benefactor.

"THANK YOU, MAMIZOU. WHEN I'M DONE WITH HIM, LET'S DO THAT AGAIN, OKAY?" With that, he barreled out of G Corp's Archway, looking for a larger playground to romp in.

Assault on Everyman: Kazuya Tower

Security, setup, and intros

Can love blossom on the battlefield?

What has Tekken science done!?

Fishies!

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Rude you don't own him, Stein, he isn't *yours*

Keep telling yourself that

Re: Keep telling yourself that

This is going swimmingly and yes I went there

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I've been driving for an hour, just talking to the rain

I GIVE UP THIS IS THE TAG HUFF

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The art of womanly combat

John Everyman at large

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Censors activate!

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And he's freee...free-fallin'!

She's a good girl

Re: She's a good girl

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K.O.!

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Rude you don't own him, Stein, he isn't yours