[Video] [Action] Something's Stinky in Everglade

[scarlet_discord]

 [Heavy breathing. The scene is a bit shakycam--of a rooftop in Everglade. Multiple screams keep erupting in the background.]

This is Wanda Maximoff. I'm on a rooftop in Everglade near the river and we've got zombies. Big goddamn zombies. They're coming out of the dead area. [The camera shifts to focus in on one of the things--twelve feet tall, massively muscled, and lumbering along at an alarmingly fast clip. She zooms to take in the street signs nearest it.]

[These things are tougher than regular zombies by a lot. Fire won't work fast enough unless there is a lot of it. They don't get pinned down easily and blunt instruments are useless unless you smash a whole car into their heads or something. [Her voice is mostly calm but there's a tiny shake down at the bottom of it.]  Decapitation, destroying the brain stem, total destruction. Their necks are protected by a lot of muscle and their skulls are way thicker than a human's. But they can die, and if we don't get them all--

[A pause as a low, rumbling roar sounds below, coupled with a human scream. Wanda runs over to the edge, looks down, and gestures. There's a tremendous flash of blue light, followed by a heavy thud. The human screaming dwindles into the distance as the hysterical survivor gets away. She looks back up at the camera.]

There is no way I can get all of them before they start eating people.

Comments

[Action]

[scarlet_discord]

Oh man. He's going to get himself killed-- [She shuts off her communicator, tucks it away, and runs for the edge of the building. She waves her hands frantically, and the zombies suddenly start sinking into the blue-glowing, tarlike ground. It's tough to keep them all stuck, and sweat breaks out on her forehead as she concentrates. She hopes this will buy him time to either finish them off or run.]

[no_love_potions]

[Harry's spots the sensation of magical energy in use and looks up toward its source. Ah, so that would be the cockroach girl.

Well, no time to worry about that. She's got them stuck but judging by the strain on her face, it's taking everything she's got to keep them there.

So Harry'll just have to make the best of the time she bought him.]

Infriga!

[The fire clinging to the burning zombie is ripped away, spiraling up into the air and spreading out above the others for a moment.]

Forzare!

[And then comes crashing down with a ton of raw, kinetic force behind it, smashing the zombies down and setting them alight. It doesn't have nearly the amount of juice his first spell did but the fire was doing its work.

Unfortunately, the zombies were now struggling harder than ever to break loose from Wanda's spell.]

[scarlet_discord]

[Wanda grits her teeth as her anger starts to get the better of her. The asphalt boils, and black tendrils of it starts whipping around the zombies' legs and lower bodies, yanking them downward. Some are pulled free, but they are numerous and reform quickly. She breathes raggedly and keeps at it, the effort intense enough that her eyes glow blue and then a corona starts creeping over her skin.] You are not...getting...away!

[Unfortunately, a few more zombies further off see the light and start heading their direction.]

[no_love_potions]

[Harry looks off to the side when the light from Wanda burns brighter, catching sight of more of the zombies rushing their way. And he... grins.

This was it. Chaos, battle, death, his prey rushing right towards him to be burnt and frozen and smashed and--]

[Harry shook his head, gritting his teeth against the Winter magic boiling within him. This was not happy fun party times. He was outnumbered and the girl up top was looking like she was going to burn herself out any moment now. This was a desperately bad situation.]

Arctis! [The word comes out like a hiss and the power of Winter erupts from him, curling out around the trapped zombies like a claw, and sucking whatever warmth still clung to them and creating a thick, heavy layer of ice.]

Drop that spell, you're no good if you wear yourself out! [He shouts upwards, wincing a little when the words come out harsher and angrier than he'd hoped. He adjusts his tone a little.] There's more coming! Try to trip them up until we can get these people out of here!

[scarlet_discord]

[She nods and releases the ice-encased forms, then looks around quickly to see where the others are coming from. Her vantage point lets her see not only them, but countless others lumbering randomly through the fog. How can she possibly slow them all down? She freezes--until she sees one of them reaching down to pick up a terrified human.]

Oh, no goddamn way. [She doesn't even think about it much, just focuses on the first thing that comes to mind and puts as much power behind it as she can.] Why...don't...you...fuckers...just go...eat...each other?

[It's incredible luck, really, that a giant monster should suddenly make the logical connection that the biggest source of meat around is not small screaming humans that take effort to catch, but rather its fellow giant monsters. But since zombies generally have no sense of community, it's not that much of a stretch.]

[She can't maintain it forever, but for now, the creatures turn and start stumbling toward each other like desperate drunks seeking dance partners.]

[no_love_potions]

Damnit!

[Harry wheels around at the scream from the would-be human snack, judging whether he can aim well enough to take the zombie's arm off without hurting the victim when it just... lets go. Harry lowers his blasting rod for a second, looking around as the zombies turn on one another and then glances up at the girl.]

Did she just...?

[He doesn't get to finish that train of thought, however, as apparently at least one of the zombies has avoided the effect, or maybe it was just closer to him than its fellows, but either way, it crashes past his truck and bears down on the distracted wizard faster than he can toss up a shield.]

Gfffwuuuuugh! [Says Harry as a trashcan-sized fist slams into his chest, lifting him off his feet and sending his staff and blasting rod clattering to the pavement. The force of the blow, enough that he almost thinks he feels his ribs creak, launches him across the road where his flight is stopped by a helpful wall and he drops to the ground, wheezing for breath and spitting out a mouthful of blood.]

[scarlet_discord]

[Wanda grins a bit as it starts working. Unfortunately she hasn't grasped yet that not all the zombies have been caught by her spell--only the ones she had in line of sight at the time. That didn't include Harry's dance partner--or the one climbing up the back side of the building she is on.]

[The crashing sound turns her around just in time to see Harry go sailing not-so-merrily across the street.] Oh shit--!] She sees his staff and rod go flying and all she can think is he must need them like I need gestures. If that thing corners him--!]

[Three choices and none of them good. Maintain the spell and let him fend for himself, drop the spell and save him, or push herself by dropping the spell, saving him and then putting it back up. And she has never been comfortable sacrificing any life but her own.]

[The far-off-light starts fading; she hurls a Dumpster at the zombie to drive it back, then focuses on the ritual tools. They rise up and dart toward him like a pair of lightsabers being retrieved.]

[She's really breathing hard by the time she turns back. Struggling to reassert her hex feels like lifting a thousand pound weight with her brain.]

[no_love_potions]

[It takes a few seconds but Harry's already pushing himself up, and trying to dismiss the unpleasant sensation of something in his ribcage grinding together as his imagination. It doesn't hurt, but with the mantle of Winter, few things did.]

Alright. [And he turns toward the lumbering zombie, readying the rings on his right fist to unload some pain on it-- and then it gets creamed by a dumpster.]

What?

[And then his rod and staff come rolling across the ground to his feet. Holy hell, that girl up there had been able to pull that off while maintaining... whatever it was she had done to the zombies?

He knows almost immediately that that isn't the case when he looks up at her though. She was down to fumes by the look of it. All the more reason to get the hell back on his feet.

Leaving the fighting zombies to deal with each other for now, and unloads a cannonball blast of force on one that came too close. Just a little more time for the bystanders to get clear and then they could run for it. He tosses another upwards glance to check on his sudden helper and his eyes widen at the shape rising up behind her.]

Kid! Behind you!

[scarlet_discord]

[Wanda staggers slightly as she tries to refocus her will. This is really being one Hell of a night. But before she can gather the last of her strength, she hears his shout of warning.]

[Don't look up. Just move. She rolls to the side as a rotting hamfist slams against the rooftop right where she was. Her focus dissolves as she's forced to deal with the immediate threat. From the snarling, tearing sounds in the distance, some of the creatures are still heartily involved in trying to eat each other--but it's going to be a while before she can focus back on inspiring the others.]

[She gets up as the thing stomps after her, and runs to the side before it can take a swing. She's sweating hard, her head's pounding and she knows she can't call up enough strength yet to fend this thing off with magic. She'll have to get creative before she runs out of rooftop.]

[She's cornered temporarily, and when she darts through its legs the thing manages to grab her by the jacket, which tears to hell. She wiggles and swears and gets her shoulder wrenched getting out of it, but she does, leaving it industriously chewing on fake leather as she runs for the fire escape.]

[no_love_potions]

[Smart girl, good head on her shoulders. Harry watches the cat and mouse chase on the roof, looking for a clean shot until Wanda manages to make her getaway.

He looks around, scowling at the zombies still approaching, drawn by the light from Wanda's casting, which luckily, seemed to draw them away from the running civilians. Which was a damn good thing because winning this fight was starting to look less likely with every second.]

Fuego!

[Fire rushes from his blasting rod again, burning bright blue-white with soulfire, and twists in midair, streaking across the ground in the zombies' path, cutting off their approach and burning brightly as it would be for at least several minutes.]

[With one quick move, he's in his truck, tires squealing as he wheels around to the building where Wanda made her stand and slams on the brakes with the open passenger door facing her.]

Drake, we are leaving!

[scarlet_discord]

[Wanda manages to snatch up her dropped communicator in mid-run, and feels a massive hand sweep over her head just as she ducks. Then she's running straight toward the fire escape, throwing herself onto it.]

[The zombie gets to the roof's edge a few seconds after her, and strikes her a glancing blow as she scrambles down the ladder. She whimpers at the smack to her already injured shoulder, but forces herself to keep moving. Nothing feels broken and she can still use the arm, and there's no room to think about it.]

[The creature bellows dully and starts trying to climb down after her. The aging iron of the fire escape groans dangerously as the thing puts its weight on it.]

Crap crap crapcrapcrap....[Wanda manages to jump onto the last ladder and ride it to the ground seconds before the entire structure starts peeling away from the wall. She dives into the passenger door, nearly catching her torn pantleg as she slams it behind her. Behind them, bits of torn-loose iron railing start raining on the ground.] Okay! I'm in!

[no_love_potions]

Come on, come on, come on--

[Harry watches Wanda's great escape on the edge of his seat, wincing hard when she takes the hit to her shoulder.

He barely waits for the door to close before throwing the truck into reverse and slamming down on the gas, the vehicle heaving as it bounces up onto the curb and smashes the glass of a bus stop. The last of the ladder and the zombies on it crash to the ground where they were just a second ago.]

Hang on!

[The truck goes into drive again and he floors it, swerving violently around the scrambling zombie which still manages to rip off the passenger side mirror as they pass.

Harry keeps the gas pedal down, swerving sharply around the last few zombies in the area, whether they were still chewing on each other or taking swipes at the passing car.]

[scarlet_discord]

[She hangs on, bracing her legs and breathing deep. Panic won't help; until she recovers a little she has no power to safely draw on. It's a terrible feeling, but she's lived with it before; that's why she has any physical training at all. She also knows it's her fault she's worn down now; she was trying to keep back the creatures at the river with her magic alone for a while before calling for help. So she struggles to quietly get herself back together and not distract him while he gets them in the clear.]

[The mist swirls past thickly, obscuring the road. After a few moments a treetrunk leg strides past just a few yards in front of them. She sucks air--but the figure just keeps walking. A long, groaning roar, and the crash-thud of two heavy bodies slamming together. Then the mist clears a bit and leaves them with a stretch of empty road.]

[Deep breaths, Wanda.] Thank you for stepping in. I didn't know if anyone would. [Scratch that. She didn't expect that anyone would.] I...need time before I try anything else.

[no_love_potions]

[Harry curses when the leg just misses them, steering away from the newest clash and looking backwards to see two of the zombies rushing each other.

Finally though it seems like they're in the clear and Harry eases off the gas, letting out a slow breath.]

Yeah, let's both just take a minute.

[He's going to keep an eye out anyway though. Those zombies were surprisingly sneaky and quick.]

You okay?

[scarlet_discord]

[She must have at least some proper training, because the moment they get a break she drops into five-fold breath and starts trying to grab some recovery. But she doesn't dare close her eyes.]

My shoulder and upper back will be sore as hell tomorrow, but nothing feels out of place. We're talking heating pads, not hospitals. You?